Posted on by Reid Spencer

DOVER, Del. — Joey Logano got a stark reminder at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course last Sunday of just how important a single point can be in a championship run.

Fortunately, the wake-up call didn’t prove costly to Logano himself.

But when Kyle Larson bounced off the outside wall in a crippled car on the final lap of the Bank of America Roval 400 and finished just high enough to create a three-way tie for the last two berths in the Round of 12 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, the complexion of the title competition changed radically.

Moments earlier, entering the final chicane, seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson had been battling Martin Truex Jr. for the race win. But Johnson lost control in the chicane and ultimately knocked Truex into the outside wall.

RELATED: Johnson sticks by late-race move | Knaus: ‘I beat myself up’

Johnson would have advanced to the Round of 12 had Larson not steered his car around the track and passed the stalled car of Jeffrey Earnhardt 100 feet from the finish line to gain the one position he needed to create the three-way tie. On a tiebreaker using the respective best finishes in the Round of 16, Johnson was the odd man out.

And Logano noticed.

“We always say, ‘Man, we need every point possible; we need to get every little bit that means so much,’ ” Logano said on Friday at Dover International Speedway. “But think about like not only during that race, but the races leading to it or the regular season. You know how big one stage win would have been? That’s all that matters sometimes to make a huge difference.

“Your whole season can be on one point, and that’s what these playoffs bring, and that’s so cool. We all knew that, but when you see it again, and sometimes you get kind of comfortable with a situation and then you see that and it’s like, ‘Wow, one point would make a really big difference a lot of times.’

“So we need to race aggressively knowing that. You can be put into a situation where the smallest thing makes a big difference.”

Posted on by Holly Cain

As Jimmie Johnson leaned into the microphone Friday morning during his press conference in the Dover International Speedway media center, he fully anticipated the opening line of questioning before opening practice for Sunday’s Gander Outdoors 400 (2 p.m., NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

With time to reflect on the last lap of last weekend’s NASCAR Playoffs cutoff race, would the seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion still have raced hard for the victory or should he have settled in for a safe finish?

As it turned out, Johnson doubled down Friday on his decision to go for the win, even though he collided with race leader Martin Truex Jr. just before the finish line. They both spun out and third place Ryan Blaney motored on by for the victory. Truex recovered to finish 14th instead of hoisting his fifth trophy of the season.

Johnson wound up finishing eighth and in one of the most unique circumstances in playoff history, that put him in a three-way tie in points with Kyle Larson and Aric Almirola and only two of the three able to advance to the Round of 12. Larson and Almirola won the tiebreaker based on “best finish” in the previous two playoff races and Johnson was left to race for a historic eighth championship next year.

The outcry from various “backseat drivers” – racing’s equivalent of a “Monday morning quarterback” – was typically loud and befuddled. But Johnson reiterated Friday at Dover, that under the same circumstances again, he would go for the win instead of playing it conservatively. That’s what race car drivers do.

RELATED: Knaus: ‘I beat myself up’

Johnson, 42, stood on Charlotte Motor Speedway pit lane after the race and calmly answered all the tough questions. He did so again on Friday in a formal media conference setting.

“It wasn’t a banzai move just trying to clean him out,” Johnson said. “It was a very calculated move and if we both hit the brakes at the same point in time. Unfortunately, I got it wrong.

“There were many consequences to follow after that. Disappointed, it’s way easier after the fact is over to say, ‘Well, why didn’t you?’ or ‘How come?’ and all that kind of crap. But I was focused on winning a race and that is what got me there.”

Asked if with time to reflect, would he change the approach?

“I still have to make that move,” Johnson said. 

DEBATE: Was Jimmie’s move the right one?

“I still have to try for it.  … Looking back, I was a little lower than I typically was entering that braking zone and had a bit more steering wheel input in the car and that is why the left-front (tire) initially locked up. So I could change a couple of things, but I still … I don’t know how I don’t go for it.”

The biggest thing, he conceded, is that he regrets collecting the reigning Cup champion and season-long title contender Truex in the accident.

“The other piece that weighs on me and I don’t know if it would for all drivers, but I feel bad for Martin and that No. 78 team,” Johnson said. “I hate that my mistake affected them and could impact their season to some degree. 

“So I don’t like that aspect to it, but it is racing and I know in my heart that it was a legitimate attempt at winning the race and a mistake was made.

“I didn’t go in there and just try to move him out of the way and wreck him and create all this havoc,” Johnson said, emphatically. “So I’ve moved on and did have a good week, but there are a couple of things that still linger and that always seems to go away when you get in the race car and start the next practice session.”

His 2018 championship already decided and looking ahead – something Johnson is clearly ready to do – the driver of the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet has to like his chances this weekend at Dover’s “Monster Mile.” Perhaps no other venue on the circuit presents a better opportunity for Johnson to snap a 33-race long winless streak – the longest of his career.

Johnson is the all-time winningest driver at Dover with 11 trophies to date. Next closest among the competitors this weekend is championship leader Kyle Busch with three wins. Johnson has 17 top-fives and 14 top-10s in 33 Dover starts and his driver rating of 117.2 is highest by a long-shot over the next-closest driver at Dover – Busch (105.5 driver rating).

MORE: How Johnson’s Dover data stacks up

Johnson’s last win? It came at Dover last spring.

“We’re at my favorite race track and absolutely, do I want to win the race,” Johnson said. “And I’ll do everything in my power to win the race.

“It takes a collective group to have the car, the pit stops, the strategy and all that. And I don’t know if this weekend is that weekend. But if there’s a track where I can make up a 10th or two for the team, this would be one of them.

“And I hope I can do that and make the difference.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

DOVER, Del. — A sudden rain shower in the afternoon of an otherwise dry day soaked the concrete racing surface at Dover International Speedway and forced cancelation of Friday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series knockout qualifying session.

As a consequence, with the field set according to owner points, Kyle Busch will lead the 39 Cup drivers to the green flag in Sunday’s Gander Outdoors 400 (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN) at the Monster Mile, the opening race in the Round of 12 of the NASCAR Playoffs.

Kevin Harvick will start on the outside of the front row, and the remaining 10 playoff contenders will line up in owner-points order on Rows 2 through 6.

MORE: Starting lineup from Dover

Busch thought the rainout was a net positive for his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing team, in terms of potential spots gained.

“Probably six or eight spots or so, I believe,” Busch said. “It definitely bodes well for us. I thought we had a decent car in practice, the way that it felt — it felt pretty good. It just didn’t show the speed on the speed chart.

“But as practice was going on, and guys were making their second and third runs, they were kind of coming back to us in lap times, where our car was really consistent over the run and running the same lap times …

“It certainly better for us not to have to go out there and bust off a really fast lap. Speeds were way high here this morning (in practice). With cooler temperatures, it seemed like it was going to be way fast.”

Martin Truex Jr. will start from the third spot next to Brad Keselowski. Only 15 points separate fifth-place starter Clint Bowyer from 12th-place Alex Bowman, with the next three races set to determine the drivers who will advance to the Round of 8.

Busch, on the other hand, has a 47-point edge over ninth-place Chase Elliott, who was fourth fastest in Friday’s opening practice behind Kyle Larson (10th in the playoff standings), Harvick and Kurt Busch (seventh).

NASCAR also postponed Friday afternoon’s scheduled K&N Pro Series East Race until 9 a.m. ET Saturday.

Posted on by Holly Cain

Ryan Blaney acknowledged with a slight smile Friday morning that perhaps some pundits don’t consider his No. 12 Team Penske Ford team a shoe-in to advance beyond this second round of Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

Then again, those may be the same people that weren’t expecting the 24-year-old to be one of only three race winners in the first round either. And he and his team are still feeling the good vibes from last Sunday’s victory at the Charlotte road course even as they change focus to this Sunday’s Gander Mountain 400 at Dover International Raceway (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

RELATED: Blaney comes from third to first in final turn to win 

“Just because you win a race, and the circumstances that we won the race in (where) we weren’t the best race car that weekend … but I don’t really think it elevates us or hurts us winning that race as far as the outside kind of sees,” Blaney said. “I feel like it’s more of a confidence-builder inside the 12 team and inside our whole group that really gets everyone fired up, and big momentum for our team. I wouldn’t say we’re a championship favorite. I’d say we’re in the hunt and honestly we’ve been in the hunt all year.

“I feel like we’ve kind of been on the cusp of being right there where we need to be just finding that little bit more from the speed standpoint of the race car and myself, but I think we’re close. 

“I don’t think we’re a favorite, but I think we’re getting close to where we need to be, which is nice to see the progress that we’ve had throughout the year. It’s really been fun to be a part of and witness in person.”

Blaney has always had a humble, low-key persona even as one of the most popular new generation Cup drivers. Most importantly – as his win Sunday demonstrates – he is a top-shelf talent and knows how to get it done when it matters most. He and Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski (Las Vegas) and regular season champion, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch (Richmond) are the only drivers arriving at the always-tough Dover “Monster Mile” with a playoff victory in their pocket and plenty of positive momentum.

Blaney’s eighth-place finish at Dover this spring ties his best work (spring, 2016) at the track.

RELATED: Playoff standings | Blaney leaves lasting impression with young fan

On the season, he has finished in the top 10 in four of the last seven Cup races with a fifth place at the Vegas playoff opener. Additionally, the win on Sunday moves him to eighth in the playoff standings. He’s only two points behind fifth-place Clint Bowyer in a crowded and competitive top eight as the second round begins.

“We had a pretty good run at this track earlier this year,” Blaney said of Dover. “We’ve always run decent here, we haven’t really led a lot of laps here, but we’ve kind of been running in that fifth to eighth range here for the last year or so, and we did that in the first race here.

“I think we ran eighth or something, but I think it’s just trying to be consistent throughout the whole race. I think that’s really important in these playoffs and the reason why you want to be consistent is obviously the stage points and you want to be able to get stage points in every round or every stage, I should say, and finish the race where you should up towards the front of the field. The same thing goes at Talladega.”

His positioning is solid going forward and Blaney says the team is genuinely – and understandably – invigorated with the victory at Charlotte. And with tough and varied venues in this round – from the Dover one-miler, to the Talladega Superspeedway restrictor plate toss-up next week and the Kansas 1.5-miler elimination race the next – any positive momentum can be a difference maker.

RELATED: Statistical superlatives heading into Round of 12

Blaney has a pair of top 10s in eight Talladega starts and has been taken out in crashes two of the last three races there. He started on the outside pole position at Kansas earlier this year and led 54 laps before being caught up in a crash. But he has three top fives at the track, including a third place in the playoff race there last season.

“People focus on just not getting in the big one, and that’s a big part of it, but you’ve got to get stage points at that place,” Blaney said of Talladega. “You can’t go to Talladega or these speedways and not get any stage points. That’s a killer to your day. We did that a couple times. We didn’t get any stage points at Richmond and we finished 19th and that was a brutal hit to the points that we were in in the first round, so you really can’t have that and especially when you start moving on in the rounds and the championship field gets smaller and smaller. 

“You’ve got to get stage points and finish well, so I think just being consistent is the biggest thing we have to do and obviously staying out of trouble.”

With so much on the line in this most crucial portion of the schedule, Blaney conceded a good celebration last Sunday with friends followed by Team Penske’s traditional victory ceremony at the shop on Monday has certainly kept him and his team enthusiastic about their chances going forward in the trophy hunt. His exuberance is a fantastic reminder of what winning is all about. And it will surprise no one if Blaney wins more.

“It’s good to celebrate these wins, but then you’re focused on the next week, so there has just been a couple more things to do and you see everybody in the shop,” Blaney shared with a smile. “They’re really excited, so it’s nice to see their faces, but you’re focused immediately on the next round, the next race and trying to do it again.”

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR announced before the season that it will standardize at-track team rosters across all three national series in 2018, providing a structure for the number of personnel working on each vehicle during the course of a race weekend.

Official team rosters for Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover International Speedway (2 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) have been released. Click the print icon above, or the link below.

ROSTERS: Dover fall race

RELATED: Overview of 2018 rules updates

Posted on by Staff Report

Kyle Larson soared to the top of the leaderboard in Friday’s opening Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice from Dover International Speedway with a top speed of 164.444 mph.

MORE: Practice results | Full Dover schedule

The entire top five was made of of NASCAR Playoff drivers in the Round of 12; seven-time 2018 winner Kevin Harvick was next fastest to Larson, his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford clocking in at 163.451 mph. His SHR teammate Kurt Busch ranked third on the speed charts in his No. 41 Ford (163.362 mph), while Chase Elliott was fourth in the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet (163.236 mph).

Charlotte road course winner Ryan Blaney rounded out the top five with a 162.719 mph lap in his No. 12 Team Penske Ford.

Blaney’s teammate Joey Logano was the slowest playoff car, his No. 22 Ford ranking 21st.

The Monster Energy Series is back on track for qualifying at 3:40 p.m. ET (NBC Sports App).

Posted on by Steve Luvender

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! No, not pumpkin spice season — NASCAR silly season. With rumors of driver changes and team changes floating in the air among the autumn leaves, have you ever wanted to add to the noise? Now, with the 2018 upgrade to our Silly Season Simulator, you can generate your very own fictional scenarios to share with your friends and totally look like a genius when they come true for next season.

RELAYED: Key players in the 2018 Silly Season

Posted on by Jordan Bianchi

Two races down, one race remaining in the first round of the Xfinity Series playoffs that hasn’t lacked for drama nor intrigue. Here is a look back at what’s transpired thus far and where things stand entering the Round 1 elimination race Saturday at Dover International Speedway (3 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Is championship co-favorite Justin Allgaier, 11 points above the cut line, sweating heading into the Bar Harbor 200?

When the playoffs began regular season champion Justin Allgaier was presumably a lock to advance to the second round based on all the bonus points he had accumulated during the regular season. Now, after consecutive subpar finishes (15th at Charlotte, 32nd at Richmond) to open the postseason he finds himself in a precarious position where another poor result Saturday could lead to his elimination.

It is understandable why the JR Motorsports driver may be feeling a bit uneasy, as his championship run could be over far sooner than expected. The good news for Allgaier is that Dover is one of his better tracks. He has finished fourth or better in four of the past five races, a stretch that includes a dominating win in the spring where he led 104 of a possible 200 laps.

MORE: Clinching scenarios | Xfinity Series Playoff standings | Full Dover schedule

How is Christopher Bell, the other championship co-favorite, feeling this weekend?

Relieved, thanks to his win two weeks ago at Richmond that automatically transferred Bell into the next bracket regardless of what happens Saturday. His focus is now on winning and amassing additional playoff points that he can use to his advantage in subsequent rounds.

Who else is feeling good about their chances to advance?

Barring a disastrous finish Saturday, Daniel Hemric (+30 points) and Tyler Reddick (+21) are in good shape and should be confident about maintaining their championship eligibility. Also feeling secure, though with a bit more trepidation, is Cole Custer (+14), who would need a lot to go wrong for him to be eliminated.

Can Ross Chastain’s magical run continue?

Ross Chastain maximized his opportunity to drive Chip Ganassi Racing’s No. 42 Chevrolet, winning the regular season finale at Las Vegas then finishing runner-up in the playoff opener at Richmond. He jumped back to JD Motorsports for the Charlotte roval and finished 12th, which has him nine points clear of Austin Cindric for the final transfer spot.

MORE: Chastain nabs first Xfinity win at Las Vegas

Whether Chastain can advance depends on two factors: 1) He needs to run and finish well for the entirety of the race Saturday, with Cindric capable of overcoming that nine-point deficit via stage points, and 2) Chastain becomes vulnerable if a playoff driver below him in the standings wins as that would move up the cut line.

Only one of the above factors Chastain has any control over, making for a stressful weekend with the real possibility the clock may strike midnight for NASCAR’s Cinderella.

Is Austin Cindric up to the task of racing his way into the second round?

Although Cindric’s best tracks are road courses — he’s coming off a third-place finish at Charlotte — Dover does offer the rookie a good opportunity to earn himself a spot in the second round. He qualified seventh and finished ninth there in the spring (in the No. 22 Team Penske Ford), his first start on the high-banked, one-mile oval. That result was seven positions higher and 18 points better than Chastain. If a similar outcome occurs Saturday, Cindric is likely moving forward in the playoffs.

What must Ryan Truex, Ryan Reed and Brandon Jones each do to avoid elimination?

Win! It is anything but easy, however that is the most straightforward path for the three drivers lowest in the playoff standings if they are to continue onto the second round. Yes, Truex (-24 points), Reed (-25) and Jones (-28) could transfer without a victory, except a lot things would need to occur in their favor and that is simply not realistic.

By going out and winning, Truex, Reed and Jones would take their respective playoff fates into their own hands without the need to concern themselves about how their competition is performing.

Of course, this is easier said than done and each faces an incredibly tall task Saturday. Among the three, Jones appears to be the best candidate to accomplish the feat with the Joe Gibbs Racing driver turning in a fine performance at Dover in the spring that saw him win the pole, lead 33 laps and finish 10th.

Posted on by Staff Report

Four drivers will be eliminated from the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs after Saturday’s Bar Harbor 200 presented by Sea Watch International (3 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Dover International Speedway. The postseason field will be whittled from 12 to eight drivers.

Only Christopher Bell has sealed a berth in the Round of 12 with a victory at Richmond Raceway in the Round of 12.

RELATED: Postseason standings | Full schedule for Dover

With seven spots up for grabs, here’s what the remaining contenders must do to advance to the next round (drivers listed in order of their points ranking):

  • Daniel Hemric  – Hemric would clinch on points with 31 Points.  If there is a repeat winner (or a win by Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer, Matt Tifft, Elliott Sadler, Justin Allgaier or Ross Chastain), he would clinch with 26 Points.
  • Tyler Reddick – Reddick would clinch with 40 Points.  If there is a repeat winner (or a win by Daniel Hemric, Cole Custer, Matt Tifft, Elliott Sadler, Justin Allgaier or Ross Chastain), he would clinch with 35 Points.
  • Cole Custer – Custer would clinch with 47 Points.  If there is a repeat winner (or a win by Daniel Hemric, Tyler Reddick, Matt Tifft, Elliott Sadler, Justin Allgaier or Ross Chastain), he would clinch with 42 Points.
  • Matt Tifft – Tifft would clinch with 48 Points.  If there is a repeat winner (or a win by Daniel Hemric, Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer, Elliott Sadler, Justin Allgaier or Ross Chastain), he would clinch with 43 Points.
  • Elliott Sadler – Sadler would clinch with 50 Points.  If there is a repeat winner (or a win by Daniel Hemric, Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer, Matt Tifft, Justin Allgaier or Ross Chastain), he would clinch with 45 Points.
  • Justin Allgaier – Allgaier would clinch with 50 Points.  If there is a repeat winner (or a win by Daniel Hemric, Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer, Matt Tifft, Elliott Sadler or Ross Chastain), he would clinch with 45 Points.
  • Ross Chastain – Chastain would clinch on points with 51 Points.  If there is a repeat winner (or a win by Daniel Hemric, Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer, Matt Tifft, Elliott Sadler or Justin Allgaier), he would clinch with 47 Points.
  • The following drivers can clinch either with a win, or with help (none have a defined points total that would guarantee a clinch): Austin Cindric, Ryan Truex, Ryan Reed and Brandon Jones.