Posted on by Jason Lofing

Keegan Leahy continued his stellar 2018 NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series season by winning at Kansas Speedway after passing Logan Clampitt for the lead with eight laps to go. Ray Alfalla continued his hot start to 2018 by finishing second while Nickolas Shelton was third. Zack Novak led a race-high 72 of 167 laps but faded a bit to come home fourth. Veteran Chris Shearburn completed the top-five finishers. Notably absent from the top five was Ryan Luza, who sat out Kansas for an unknown reason.

Clampitt, who started on pole and led 51 laps, was on a different strategy than the rest of the field but ran just short of making it to the finish on fuel. To make matters worse, he spun and hit the wall when making his stop, relegating him to 27th at the checkers.

RELATED: Full 2018 iRacing schedule

The night started with Novak quickly making his way to the front from sixth position on the grid. He sliced through the top five and passed Clampitt for the lead on Lap 5. Novak threatened to pull away but a crash involving Michael Conti and Bobby Zalenski, both who entered the race inside the top five in the championship standings, slowed the field. Conti could not continue and finished 34th but Zalenski soldiered on with damage and brought his car home 24th.

Despite having the No. 1 pit box, Clampitt could not beat Novak off pit road as the No. 15 car continued to pace the field as the second run played out much like the first. Though Clampitt started to reel Novak in during the later stages of the run, the second caution brought the leaders back to pit road with Novak comfortably ahead.

Novak won the race off pit road once again and sprinted out to a lead for the third run in a row. This time, however, company would be coming. Leahy, who had the better long-run car, caught and passed Novak on Lap 73 to take the lead for the first time. Just four laps later, Novak fell into the clutches of Shelton as his sudden freefall continued. By Lap 82 he sat fifth with an ill-handling car.

Back at the front, Leahy headed to pit road under green on Lap 87, dragging Alfalla with him. Leahy quickly cycled back to second position followed by Shelton and Alfalla. Clampitt, the only driver seemingly trying to make the race on one stop, remained on track in the lead. When Clampitt surrendered the lead to pit on Lap 105, it was clear he had little chance of making it to the end without stopping again, putting Leahy in control.

On Lap 126 the top three all made their final pit stops, with Leahy nearly speeding on entry as he locked his front tires. No driver appeared to gain an advantage in the pits, leaving any passing to be settled on track over the last 40 laps. As the laps ticked down, Leahy found himself in heavy traffic and Shelton, sensing a chance, began to push and close the gap. Unfortunately for Shelton he ran a bit high in Turn 1 and brushed the wall, apparently doing enough damage to harm his car’s performance. Alfalla managed to pass for the runner-up spot with two laps to go, with Leahy well in the clear up front.

Alfalla’s second-place finish kept him in the points lead, but Leahy is now second, 22 points back. Luza slipped to third after missing the race, 45 points adrift. Zalenski also lost ground after an early crash but is still fourth and Shelton completes the top five, knocking out Conti.

The stretch of fast, downforce-heavy tracks continues for Week 7 when the NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series visits Charlotte Motor Speedway for the longest race of the season. The 200-lap, 300 mile affair is the closest this series gets to an endurance event and with the current state of the tires, expect to see plenty of comers and goers. Points leader Alfalla has amazingly only lead 18 laps this season. Is Charlotte where he will turn in a vintage performance? Will Luza show up and get back to his winning ways? Or can Leahy ride the momentum to a third win in 2018? Find out on iRacingLive when the NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series drivers take on CMS!

Posted on by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (May 9, 2018) — NASCAR Productions took the checkered flag for Outstanding Social TV Experience at last night’s 39th Annual Sports Emmy® Awards, marking the sport’s sixth win since 2011 and second consecutive in this category. Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series™ driver and DAYTONA 500® champion Austin Dillon joined a talented lineup of guests, presenting the awards for Best Playoff Coverage, Camerawork and Live Graphic Design.

“100,000 Cameras: Ohio State vs. Michigan” received top honors in the Outstanding Social TV Experience category for its innovative use of fan-generated video to showcase one of the nation’s top college football rivalries. Weaving together content submitted using #100KCams, the groundbreaking FS1 documentary series has taken viewers inside some of NASCAR’s most captivating races since its debut, this year expanding to include its first-ever event outside motorsports.

“After the enormous success of the first three ‘100,000 Cameras’ documentaries, one of which was honored with a Sports Emmy last year, FOX Sports felt it was time to reach beyond the world of NASCAR to see if the same formula for fan-sourced content could work in another arena,” said Tally Hair, Managing Director and Executive Producer, NASCAR Productions. “We’re honored to be able to tell the story of the Ohio State vs. Michigan rivalry in a way that’s never been done before and for this distinction from the NATAS.”

Last night’s ceremony also recognized the sport’s broadcast partners FOX and NBC in several categories, including NASCAR on FOX for Outstanding Sports Promotional Announcement, Outstanding Technical Team Remote and Outstanding Live Event Audio/Sound. View the full list of winners here.

Presented annually by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS), the Sports Emmy Awards recognize outstanding achievement in sports television coverage. Nominations were announced in 40 categories earlier this year, and winners were honored last night at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s prestigious Frederick P. Rose Hall in New York City.

Watch more from NASCAR Productions and FOX by tuning in this Saturday for the KC Masterpiece 400 at Kansas Speedway, live at 8 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

Posted on by Staff Report

There have been plenty of dominant seasons in the playoff era (2004-present), and Stewart-Haas Racing driver Kevin Harvick has the look — and the statistical evidence — of being in the midst of another one.

We took a look back at every season in the playoff era and identified the drivers with the most wins each year, then dove into their stats following the first 11 races of that season. We wanted to compare where they were then to where Harvick is now.

The results are striking. If Harvick keeps this pace up, he’s headed for an all-timer of a season.

MORE: Most wins per season since 2004

See our study below, and remember: The numbers pulled are from that season’s eventual top race-winner, but through the first 11 races of that year.

Note: Three drivers tied for 5 wins in 2012. We are using Brad Keselowski’s numbers because he won the championship that year. We bolded and underlined the best figure in each category.

Season Driver Wins Top fives Laps led Avg. Finish
2018  Kevin Harvick  4  8  741  8.5
2017  Martin Truex Jr.  2  3  536  10.5
2016  Jimmie Johnson  2  5  215  14.0
2015  Joey Logano  1  6  447  10.9
2014  Brad Keselowski  1  4  364  15.6
2013  Matt Kenseth  3  3  781  11.8
2012  Brad Keselowski  2  3  250  15.4
2011  Tony Stewart  0  1  251  14.7
2010  Denny Hamlin  3  4  344  13.9
2009  Jimmie Johnson  1  5  313  13.7
2008  Carl Edwards  3  5  306  12.9
2007  Jimmie Johnson  4  8  529  9.9
2006  Kasey Kahne  2  4  190  15.1
2005  Greg Biffle  3  4  739  12.3
2004  Jimmie Johnson  1  7  355  9.5

 

Posted on by Kathy Sheldon

Isla Rose already has the ‘Earnhardt smirk’ down. At least according to her dad.

It’s been one week since Dale Earnhardt Jr. and wife Amy welcomed home their new bundle of joy, and the first seven days of fatherhood have been a whirlwind.

MORE: Junior, Amy through the years

“I feel like everything that’s going to come out of my mouth is so cliche,” Earnhardt Jr. said during the most recent episode of “The Dale Jr. Download” podcast. “The love that you have is more than ever. This person … I don’t know what it is. It’s hard to explain. You feel this love for this baby that is not a love that you’ve felt for anyone else. I love my wife to death. I love my parents, my father and my sister. … It’s a 100 times more than that.”

The couple, who wed on New Year’s Eve in 2016, announced the pregnancy in October 2017 and had the racing world on pins and needles as the due date got closer.

The newest little Earnhardt was born April 30, just one day after what would have been Dale Earnhardt Sr.’s 67th birthday.

“I was really emotional, more so than Amy” he said. “This whole week I keep telling Amy she reminds me of a pit crew. The car comes down pit row, hops in the box … it’s like clockwork. It hits this line, the crew jumps over, goes to work, does the work, crew goes over wall, car leaves and everyone is back watching the race.

RELATED: Drivers offer fatherhood advice to Junior

“It’s instinctual. That’s the way she’s been. Baby comes out, she knows what to do, she’s doing it. She’s not crying, not emotional. She’s just doing her mother thing. I’m just a basket of nerves and crying.”

And it didn’t take long for Junior to find a little personality in his daughter either.

“She smirks the ‘Earnhardt smirk’ some, where she does it off to the side,” he proudly shared. “… I like to tell Amy that’s the Earnhardt in her coming out, because that’s how Daddy always smiled.”

RELATED: Dale’s sister on fatherhood: ‘He gets it, now’

Posted on by Staff Report

Kevin Harvick is a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion, a four-time winner already in the 2018 season and the most recent race winner Sunday at Dover International Speedway. Safe to say he’s used to pressure and to meeting those expectations.

But a seemingly sweet and innocent tweet from Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Tuesday led to Harvick admitting that even he sometimes feels the burden to do well for others.

Specifically, for Mammaw.

Martha (Mammaw) Earnhardt, Dale Jr.’s grandmother and the mother of Dale Earnhardt, visited Junior’s newborn daughter, Isla, and happened to mention that she still watches every Monster Energy Series race and still pulls for Harvick, who drove for Richard Childress Racing in the renumbered No. 29 car after Earnhardt was killed in a 2001 wreck in the Daytona 500.

This was news to Harvick, who was quick to react, complete with emoji.

Harvick was asked about this on Friday at Kansas Speedway and smiled widely as he talked about it.

“Seeing the reaction from a lot of fans is a lot of responsibility, honestly. As I said on the show Tuesday night (“Happy Hours” on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), when you look at the Earnhardt family in general, the legacy they have in our sport. … it’s a major backbone of what has happened in this sport,” Harvick said.

“When you look at that, I feel like I have a small part of where that changed, took place and where it’s going.

“For me, there’s a lot of pressure but also a lot of pride in that as well, trying to do right, whether it’s for the family or those old Senior fans, you want to do to the right thing. I haven’t always done the right thing but I feel like as you go through the years you transition more into the right direction than you did in the beginning so for me, personally, that feels good.”

Harvick, of course, honored Earnhardt earlier this year after he won in Atlanta, the same track where he earned his first premier series win in his third career start in the series.

Contributing: NASCAR Wire Service

Posted on by Staff Report

The third NASCAR Xfinity Series Philadelphia Takeover hit the streets of the City of Brotherly Love on Tuesday. A record 21 drivers across 12 teams were in Philadelphia to greet fans while promoting next month’s Pocono Green 250 (June 2 at 1 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). In addition to Pocono Raceway, Dover International Speedway — site of the most recent Xfinity Series race — was involved in this event.

MORE: Scenes from the Philadelphia #XfinityTakeover

Drivers explored the city through various activities that included going to the Franklin Institute for a STEM-focused Q&A, meet and greets at the Comcast Center Front Plaza and Xfinity Live, visiting the steps made famous by Rocky Balboa, stopping by Pat’s & Geno’s, serving up food at the Reading Terminal Market, taking in a Philadelphia Phillies Major League Baseball game and the smoke show in Center City complete with burnouts. Keep tabs on how the day was spent below.

Posted on by Steve Luvender

Editor’s Note: The NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series is back in action on May 8 at Kansas Speedway.

Josh Bilicki: noted road racer, Xfinity Series driver with two Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series starts under his belt, and iRacing driving coach, apparently.

 

Spencer Boyd logged some laps at the virtual Dover International Speedway before competing in the Xfinity Series race at the real Dover last weekend, too.

Check out Austin Dillon using iRacing to talk through a lap around the Monster Mile.

And why is the iRacing van visiting Travis Pastrana’s house?

NASCAR PEAK ANTIFREEZE iRACING SERIES UPDATE

The best iRacers in the world face off Tuesday night for Race 6 of the NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series season at Kansas Speedway.

Last race, at Richmond Raceway, three-time series champion Ray Alfalla put an end to Ryan Luza’s hopes of three consecutive wins, making a late pass for his first victory of 2018.

Alfalla currently leads the series standings by six points over Luza and 27 points over rookie Keegan Leahy.

RELATED: Who is atop the Race 6 Power Rankings?

The series hasn’t visited Kansas Speedway since 2013, when Nick Ottinger claimed the checkers. Ottinger currently sits seventh in series points after winning the season opener at Daytona. He hasn’t cracked the top 10 otherwise.

iRACING PAINT SCHEMES OF THE WEEK

Ryan Williams painted Noah Gragson’s super-sharp Xfinity Series Switch Toyota Camry — not only for iRacing, but for Gragson’s actual car, too. It’s Williams’ first paint scheme to hit the track in real life.

Erik Le painted the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Chevrolet Kasey Kahne raced at Dover — but re-imagined as an Xfinity Series car.

If you’re feeling nostalgic (or hungry), Ken Huff creatively reconfigured Ken Schrader’s 1987 Red Baron race car onto an iRacing NASCAR Camping World Truck Series truck.

DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME

Check out this camera work and video editing by Reddit user /u/dankfisch to capture an intense moment in the Xfinity Series-style cars at Dover.


Watch the lead car barely use the outside wall as an assist after wheeling the car through the corner. The competition on iRacing is no joke!

Posted on by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – NASCAR and Camping World have expanded their agreement to provide Gander Outdoors naming rights to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Beginning in 2019, the national series will be rebranded as the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series.

Camping World originally became title sponsor of the Truck Series in 2009. In 2014, NASCAR and Camping World signed a landmark seven-year agreement, continuing the partnership through 2022. This newly expanded agreement provides official NASCAR status and naming rights to Camping World’s partner brand, Gander Outdoors. The remaining years on the deal are still intact.

RELATED: Truck Series standings

“Gander Outdoors’ customer base has an affinity to the outdoor lifestyle and will transition seamlessly as the title sponsor of our national series in 2019,” said Steve Phelps, NASCAR Chief Operating Officer. “The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series has a consistent and dedicated fan base that will embrace the Gander Outdoors brand. This expanded agreement demonstrates our partners’ confidence in the on-track product and the power of our brand loyal fan base.”

Gander Outdoors, formerly known as Gander Mountain, was purchased and rebranded by Marcus Lemonis, Chairman of Camping World, in May 2017. Earlier this year, Gander Outdoors announced its title sponsorship of two races at Pocono Raceway; the Gander Outdoors 150 (NASCAR Camping World Truck Series) on July 28 and the Gander Outdoors 400 (Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) on July 29.

“Nearly a decade ago we felt strongly our entitlement sponsorship would dramatically increase Camping World’s customer base and it’s delivered,” said Marcus Lemonis, Chairman of Camping World. “We expect the passionate fans of NASCAR will embrace Gander Outdoors the same way they supported Camping World and we couldn’t be more excited about the future of the series.”

Additionally, as part of the newly expanded agreement, Camping World partner brands Overton’s and The House Outdoor Gear will also receive official NASCAR status. The newly signed agreement includes rights to activate across all retail locations nationwide.

Posted on by RJ Kraft

CONCORD, N.C. — For the third straight year, NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers will travel to Philadelphia for the NASCAR Xfinity Philadelphia Takeover on Tuesday.

This year will see a record 21 drivers across 12 teams head to the City of Brotherly Love to greet fans while promoting next month’s Pocono Green 250 (June 2 at 1 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). In addition to Pocono Raceway, Dover International Speedway  — site of the most recent Xfinity Series race — is involved in this event.

Drivers will explore the city through various events that include going to the Franklin Institute for a STEM-focused Q&A, meet and greets at the Comcast Center Front Plaza and Xfinity Live, the steps made famous by Rocky Balboa, Pat & Geno’s, serving up food at the Reading Terminal Market and taking in a Philadelphia Phillies Major League Baseball game.

The highlight, though, is the parade at lunchtime through downtown Philadelphia that includes a smoke show on Market Street. Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cole Custer, driver of the No. 00 Ford, is most excited for that.

“It’s really cool because we get to do burnouts on the street,” Custer said. “There’s people in their windows and the skyscrapers looking out. It’s a really cool event.”

The 2018 season marks the fourth with Xfinity as the series’ entitlement sponsor. NASCAR and the Comcast company agreed to a 10-year deal that started with the 2015 season for the sport’s No. 2 series.

“Just getting to spend a day with the Xfinity group will be enjoyable,” Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell (driver of the No. 20 Toyota) said. “They’ve done a lot for this sport. It’s an honor to be able to race with the Xfinity Series. It’s been really cool to see just how involved they are with their drivers and the NASCAR peers. It’s something that we can do to help promote their company and I’m glad we are able to give back to them because they sure do give a lot to us.” 

The 21 Xfinity Series drivers for Tuesday’s event are scheduled to be: Bell, Spencer Boyd, Chase Briscoe, Ross Chastain, Austin Cindric, Custer, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Joey Gase, Kaz Grala, Daniel Hemric, Brandon Jones, Shane Lee, Dylan Lupton, Ty Majeski, Vinnie Miller, Matt Mills, John-Hunter Nemechek, Ryan Reed, Garrett Smithley, Ryan Truex and J.J. Yeley.

Posted on by RJ Kraft

CONCORD, N.C. – What a difference 18 hours makes.

Kyle Larson dropped the news on Sunday during a Dover rain delay that John Hunter Nemechek would be on standby for him at Kansas Speedway if Larson’s fiancée Katelyn Sweet was giving birth to their second child. Fast forward to Monday afternoon, and Larson had taken to Twitter to reveal the birth of Audrey Layne Larson.

RELATED: Larson, Sweet welcome second child

“It’s definitely an honor,” Nemechek told NASCAR.com during a break in the NASCAR Xfinity Series test at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Monday. “Thankful for Kyle, Chad (Johnston, Larson’s crew chief), Chip (Ganassi, team owner) and Max (Jones, managing director of team’s NASCAR operations) and everyone at Ganassi for believing in me and actually giving me the opportunity to sit on standby just in case.”

With the baby’s early-week arrival, Nemechek’s services will likely not be needed.

“I doubt it now. I figured from the start it was going to be hard to get him out of the seat even if she was having the baby,” Nemechek said. “We’ll still be around, still be around the Cup hauler, those guys and learning as much as we can.”

IN HIS OWN WORDS: Nemechek on his move to Chip Ganassi Racing

While the opportunity to log some Monster Energy Series practice or race laps won’t happen just yet, the 20-year-old is keeping plenty busy. He’ll be back behind the wheel of his family-owned NEMCO Motorsports truck this Friday at Kansas in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in the 37 Kind Days 250 (May 11, 8:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Nemechek won his most recent start in the series at Martinsville in March.

On top of that, he is running a part-time schedule in the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. In Monday’s test, Nemechek posted three of the top five single-lap times in the morning session.

To date, he has run six of the season’s first 10 races with a best finish of fourth in his series debut at Atlanta Motor Speedway in February. In those races, he has two top 10s and an average finish of 13.3.

“This year has definitely had its ups and downs,” Nemechek said when reflecting on his runs with the No. 42 Xfinity team thus far. “We’ve been fast, we’ve had tire issues and we haven’t had the finishes we’ve needed. We’re fast each and every weekend that we go to the race track; we just have to figure out how to close it out.”