Posted on by Brad Norman

Peace and quiet … while flying over sand dunes at top speeds.

That’s Kyle Busch’s idea of relaxation.

MORE: Complete Phoenix lineup | Drivers to win in all three national series

The Joe Gibbs driver is making the most of the NASCAR Goes West swing as he took to the desert with his Toyota Racing family in his hometown of Las Vegas.

Samantha Busch even tries her hand behind the wheel. She wasn’t going to let her husband have all the fun.

Posted on by Staff Report

Take a look at which drivers have led the way with the best 10-lap averages at ISM Raceway in this weekend’s practices ahead of Sunday’s TicketGuardian 500 (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

FINAL PRACTICE: RESULTS

Pos Car Driver From Lap To Lap Avg Speed
1 4 Kevin Harvick 2 11 133.612
2 9 Chase Elliott 2 11 133.458
3 10 Aric Almirola 2 11 133.384
4 42 Kyle Larson 2 11 133.245
5 88 Alex Bowman 2 11 133.216
6 18 Kyle Busch 2 11 133.206
7 20 Erik Jones 2 11 133.201
8 48 Jimmie Johnson 2 11 133.155
9 1 Jamie McMurray 1 10 133.119
10 11 Denny Hamlin 3 12 133.005
11 78 Martin Truex Jr. 1 10 132.979
12 2 Brad Keselowski 1 10 132.936
13 47 AJ Allmendinger 2 11 132.768
14 14 Clint Bowyer 2 11 132.766
15 31 Ryan Newman 2 11 132.663
16 41 Kurt Busch 2 11 132.572
17 3 Austin Dillon 2 11 132.550
18 21 Paul Menard 2 11 132.480
19 19 Daniel Suarez 2 11 132.250
20 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 2 11 132.185
21 34 Michael McDowell 2 11 132.112
22 22 Joey Logano 16 25 132.090
23 6 Trevor Bayne 2 11 132.004
24 12 Ryan Blaney 1 10 131.709
25 37 Chris Buescher 2 11 131.677
26 13 Ty Dillon 3 12 131.249
27 38 David Ragan 2 11 131.212
28 95 Kasey Kahne 2 11 131.129
29 43 Darrell Wallace Jr. # 4 13 130.922
30 24 William Byron # 31 40 130.501
31 96 DJ Kennington 2 11 129.529
32 32 Matt DiBenedetto 1 10 129.427
33 23 Gray Gaulding 4 13 128.619

PRACTICE 2: RESULTS

Pos Car Driver From Lap To Lap Avg Speed
1 11 Denny Hamlin 3 12 133.846
2 78 Martin Truex Jr. 3 12 133.781
3 9 Chase Elliott 1 10 133.713
4 4 Kevin Harvick 2 11 133.607
5 18 Kyle Busch 3 12 133.577
6 42 Kyle Larson 19 28 133.556
7 31 Ryan Newman 4 13 133.368
8 48 Jimmie Johnson 1 10 133.260
9 12 Ryan Blaney 11 20 133.130
10 2 Brad Keselowski 1 10 133.041
11 3 Austin Dillon 3 12 132.957
12 24 William Byron # 2 11 132.940
13 1 Jamie McMurray 3 12 132.930
14 20 Erik Jones 3 12 132.851
15 88 Alex Bowman 3 12 132.846
16 10 Aric Almirola 2 11 132.802
17 21 Paul Menard 2 11 132.795
18 41 Kurt Busch 3 12 132.730
19 37 Chris Buescher 2 11 132.689
20 14 Clint Bowyer 16 25 132.633
21 38 David Ragan 1 10 132.335
22 6 Trevor Bayne 1 10 132.261
23 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 26 132.099
24 19 Daniel Suarez 4 13 132.045
25 95 Kasey Kahne 1 10 131.936
26 34 Michael McDowell 2 11 131.754
27 43 Darrell Wallace Jr. # 1 10 131.408
28 32 Matt DiBenedetto 1 10 131.372
29 23 Gray Gaulding 2 11 129.761
30 15 Ross Chastain(i) 1 10 129.685
31 96 DJ Kennington 1 10 129.022

PRACTICE 1: RESULTS

Pos Car Driver From Lap To Lap Avg Speed
1 43 Darrell Wallace Jr. # 2 11 130.471

* Car must run 10 consecutive laps on the track to be included in the above chart.
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series.
# Means driver is a rookie in the series.

Posted on by Staff Report

Kevin Harvick continued his speedy driving as he wheeled his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford around ISM Raceway at 134.544 mph to record the fastest final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice speed Saturday.

Harvick, the winner of the last two Monster Energy Series races at Las Vegas and Atlanta and an eight-time winner at the Phoenix track, also recorded the fastest practice speed in Saturday’s early session.

RELATED: Final practice results | See every car in the field

Jamie McMurray was second-fastest in the practice session, moving his No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet at 134.504 mph.

Pole-winner Martin Truex Jr. was third on the practice chart after recording a speed of 134.454 mph in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota.

Aric Almirola in the No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford and Alex Bowman in the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet rounded out the top five.

Two cars – the No. 4 of Harvick and the No. 32 of Matt DiBenedetto – had 15-minute practice holds for the final practice because they failed qualifying inspection twice.

Sunday’s TicketGuardian 500 is set for 3:30 p.m. ET with TV coverage on FOX.

PRACTICE 2 RECAP | RELATED: Best 10-lap averages | Practice 2 results 

Kevin Harvick’s No. 4 Jimmy John’s Ford was “Freaky Fast” on Saturday morning at ISM Raceway at Phoenix, turning a top lap of 134.806 mph in the first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice of the day.

Harvick tied Chase Elliott for the top speed in Saturday’s opening practice, but Harvick gets the top spot based on having a win (Atlanta) this season, according to a NASCAR spokesperson.

Kyle Busch, in the No. 18 Toyota, followed Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet in third place at 134.655 mph. Brad Keselowski, in the No. 2 Ford, and Denny Hamlin, in the No. 11 Toyota, rounded out the top five.

Last year’s race winner, Ryan Newman, was sixth in the No. 31 Chevrolet, and this year’s pole winner Martin Truex Jr. was seventh in the No. 78 Toyota.

The Nos. 23 (Gray Gaulding), 34 (Michael McDowell), 41 (Kurt Busch) and 51 (Timmy Hill) were held out of practice for 15 minutes for being late to qualifying inspection.

 

Posted on by Reid Spencer

AVONDALE, Ariz. – Hendrick Motorsports is back. 

That was the brief consensus when Jimmie Johnson shot to the top of the speed chart in the first round of Friday’s knockout qualifying session at ISM Raceway.

But the seven-time champion’s stint at the front of the field was short-lived. In the second round, Johnson was 17th fastest and failed to advance to the final round.

RELATED: Starting lineup | Bowman has ‘really good notebook’ for Phoenix

Inexplicable? Hardly.

“I kind of look back to the amount of practice we had today. We only had 20 minutes practice because of the issues we had in Las Vegas, and I never had a chance to go out on scuffed tires to see what adjustments we had to make,” Johnson said.

Johnson’s car failed pre-race inspection three times at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and the team lost 30 minutes of practice time in the one session before qualifying on Friday. That left no time for the No. 48 Chevrolet team to make any runs on scuffs.

“I had two runs on stickers in practice, and we clearly dialed that part of the car in, and it would have been nice just to have a scuff run to go out and understand what exactly to do. I’m very optimistic with the speed in the car in that first round and look forward to a full practice session or two (Saturday) and dial this Lowe’s for Pros Chevy in.” 

Johnson needs a reason for optimism. He enters Sunday’s TicketGuardian 500 (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM) 29th in Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series points.

Posted on by Reid Spencer

AVONDALE, Ariz. — The good news about the composite body in the NASCAR Xfinity Series this year? As JR Motorsports driver Justin Allgaier put it, the transition from sheet metal bodies has been a smooth one.

Asked whether there were noticeable differences that accompanied the change, Allgaier said, “As far as the fundamentals go, no, not really.

MORE: Full weekend schedule at Phoenix | What did ISM Raceway upgrade?

 “We do the same things when we go to the race track. The inspection line is the same, albeit probably a little bit harder if you’re out of tolerance … it’s harder to put yourself back into tolerance, because the bodies are not as pliable.

“And the amount of bracing that we have is way different. We’re kind of stuck in a box with where the braces have to be at. It puts it on the guys at the shop a lot more to have everything where it needs to be.”

NASCAR’s new Optical Scanning Station has put the onus on the race teams to make sure the bodies conform to the rules before they’re unloaded at the race track. 

“I think everybody’s kind of going through that,” Allgaier said. “But, for us, the one thing that’s been nice is that the composite body has been pretty seamless, as far as just introducing it and rolling it out.

“It takes a lot of work to make it seamless, but all the teams have put the effort and the time into it, and it seems like it’s working out really well.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

AVONDALE, Ariz. – Defending Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr. finally found the extra speed he needed at ISM Raceway.

Saving his best lap for the final round of knockout qualifying on Friday at the one-mile track in the Sonoran Desert, Truex sped around the circuit in 26.288 seconds (136.945 mph) to win the pole position for Sunday’s TicketGuardian 500 (3:30 ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Truex beat Kyle Larson (136.643 mph) by .058 seconds to earn his first pole of the season, his second at ISM Raceway and the 16th of his career. But Truex hadn’t claimed the top starting spot at ISM since he led the field to the green flag in the fall of 2009. Truex said a strong game plan and a variety of factors contributed to the pole-winning run for the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota.

RELATED: Full qualifying speeds | See the full field | Practice 1 results

“I think it was a little bit of everything,” Truex said. “I wouldn’t say I held back that much the first two runs. But we really worked on our car in practice to try to be best in that third run and to understand what we needed to do for balance-wise throughout those three runs. Honestly, sometimes you just hit it right, and today all the stars lined up, and here we are. 

“So many little things come in to play when you’re talking about how to pick up half of a tenth at the racetrack. Just a lot of little things and details that were done properly, and that’s what’s so fun about our team. We work together so well. They can tell me I’m not driving right, and I can tell them they’re not setting up the car right, and we can meet in the middle.”

Chase Elliott (136.126 mph) qualified third, followed by Alex Bowman (136.080 mph) and Joey Logano (135.947 mph).

Time trials took place two hours earlier than their traditional later afternoon time slot, and Larson thought he had a strong shot at his first Phoenix pole.

“Our Credit One Bank Chevy has been really good here the last few years and actually, I’m a little disappointed in second, because I always qualify good here,” Larson said. “I think I’ve been like in the top eight every single time I’ve qualified at Phoenix (except for a 12th-place start in 2015) and still don’t have a pole yet. 

“I thought today was going to be the day. I thought my first lap was okay, but Martin, obviously, their team hit it there for that final round. Sunday’s race will be fun. Like I said, we’ve been fast here the last few years, so it would be nice to close out the weekend with a win.”

Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Jamie McMurray, Erik Jones and Kevin Harvick completed spots six through 10 on the grid. Harvick is a record eight-time winner at ISM and is on a two-race winning streak this season entering Sunday’s event.

After laying down the fastest lap in Round 1, Jimmie Johnson failed to make it into the final 12-car round as he’ll start 17th in the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on Sunday.

Brad Keselowski was the biggest shocker of the day after failing to advance to the second knockout round. He’ll start 25th in the No. 2 Team Penske Ford.

The red flag was briefly displayed after Jeffrey Earnhardt hit the wall during the first round of group qualifying, locking up the brakes on his No. 00 Chevrolet going into Turn 3. He will start last in the 37-car field.

Posted on by Staff Report

Kevin Harvick said Friday that the psyche of the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 4 team is undaunted, explaining that a midweek penalty after last Sunday’s win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway “just motivates us.”

Harvick’s response may be reason enough for the rest of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series field to be worried at ISM Raceway at Phoenix, easily one of the veteran driver’s best tracks.

“It says a lot about our team,” Harvick said Friday before opening practice for the series’ fourth race of the year. “A lot of us didn’t know where we were going to stand as far as performance. As a whole, Stewart-Haas Racing, we were within a half a lap of winning every race so far. You can’t knock anything that we have done and everybody has done a great job.

“We have a lot of momentum and these things tend to make you closer, stronger and better.”

MORE: Harvick says no decision yet on appeal

On Wednesday, NASCAR announced the No. 4 team was found in violation of Sections 20.4.8.1 (dealing with rear window support) and 20.4.18 (rocker panel extensions) in the 2018 NASCAR Rule Book. A brace meant to support the rear window was found to have failed, and the rocker panels (side skirts) were not made of aluminum.

In addition to the loss of seven playoff points, the team lost 20 points from the overall championship standings and crew chief Rodney Childers was fined $50,000 for the L1-level penalty. Car chief Robert “Cheddar” Smith is set to serve the first race of a two-event suspension this weekend.

Childers noted that it has been a bit tough without Smith and agreed that the penalty is motivational.

“(Harvick has) actually talked about the last 24 hours how badly he wants to come out here and win and just kind of put everything to bed,” Childers told NASCAR.com after Harvick qualified 10th. “In all honesty we haven’t been as good here lately as what we should have been or what we were in our early years here at Phoenix. We did better last fall; we had a top-five car most of the race. Normally qualifying in the top 12 is a good thing for us here. To qualify top 10 is pretty good. …

“The car’s been driving good, we really haven’t had to make many adjustments and I haven’t had to work on it a whole lot,” he continued. “It’s always a deal where he needs to kind of get in a rhythm – that’s the reason he’s good here, he kind of gets in a rhythm and gets stuff figured out and today just doing qualifying runs it was hard to get in a rhythm and get sorted out.”

Childers added later, “The best way is just to go out there and run good and prove a point. So that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

Sunday’s TicketGuardian 500 (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM) marks the second event in the three-race NASCAR Goes West swing for the sport’s top series. Harvick is aiming to become the series’ first driver since Joey Logano in 2015 to win three consecutive races.

Harvick tops the 1-mile track’s all-time win list with eight Phoenix victories in his career, but he hasn’t won here since March 2016. That triumph capped an especially successful stretch of six wins in an eight-race span in the Arizona desert.

RELATED: Drivers to win three straight races | No. 4 team penalized

Contributing: Jessica Ruffin

Posted on by Holly Cain

AVONDALE, Ariz. — This weekend’s arrival in his home state for Sunday’s TicketGuardian 500 (3:30 ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at ISM Raceway in Phoenix is a sentimental first for Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman. 

It isn’t his first start in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series on the 1-mile oval and it’s not even his first drive in the iconic No. 88 Hendrick Chevrolet Camaro. But it is the first time Bowman, 25, has driven this car as his own, set to take the green flag in a competitive opportunity at his home track.

 “It’s always fun to come home,’’ the Tucson, Ariz. native said Friday morning before opening practice in Phoenix.

“Don’t really get to spend a lot of time out here. It’s definitely an enjoyable trip. I really enjoy this racetrack, too. Pretty successful here, wish we could close races a little better here.

“We have run really well here in the Xfinity Series and in the Cup Series. Just never been able to close one off. Hopefully, that all changes this weekend.” 

RELATED: Practice results | Weekend schedule for Phoenix

Filling in for a then-injured Dale Earnhardt Jr. two seasons ago in the Phoenix Fall race, Bowman scored his first-ever Cup pole position and led an impressive 194 of the 324 laps on his way to a sixth-place finish – his first top-20 showing there. The pole position and the finish career bests, too.

It wasn’t just good for the heart, it was the ultimate chance to prove he could do big things with the right opportunity. And Hendrick Motorsports is the ultimate opportunity. After being named to take over the No. 88 when Earnhardt retired at the end of last season, Bowman’s career has taken a new avenue and the prospects are now in line with his expectation.

He won the pole and led 13 laps in the season-opening Daytona 500, but was sidelined after being caught up in an accident. He has added finishes of 20th (Atlanta) and 16th (Las Vegas) since and is actually the highest-ranked driver in the four-car Hendrick stable — 17th in the standings — coming to Phoenix.

“Well, Daytona went well,’’ Bowman said. “We had a really fast race car and contended all day and then got caught up in a wreck at the end. There is really nothing you can do there. But you know, other than that, we have not run how we expect and how we want to run.

“It hasn’t been a great start for us. I think we unloaded at Atlanta and quickly realized that we have a lot of work to do. We’ve got the best guys in the business back at the shop working hard. We made progress last week. We were definitely better last week. We didn’t get the finish that we would have hoped for, but we are making progress. 

“To start the year, we are behind what we expected to be, but like I said before, there is such a depth of really smart people at Hendrick Motorsports that I’m confident that we will be contending for race wins soon.” 

Interestingly, Bowman doesn’t necessarily consider his home track a particularly “best” shot for his first trip to Cup’s victory circle. His best NASCAR finish on it is a runner-up in a 2011 NASCAR K&N West Series race there when Bowman was only 18 years old. But the sixth place here two years ago gives him reason to smile. He remains optimistic about his chances this weekend. His last time behind the wheel of this car at Phoenix produced a career highlight reel. At last, he is in the ride of his life and there has never been a better time – or frankly, locale — to seize this opportunity.

“Absolutely, we have a notebook of what I liked here and a really good one at that,’’ Bowman said of making his first “return” trip to a track driving a Hendrick car.

“We were really fast here before,’’ he said. “I think it’s a positive. We’ve got some changes. The race car has changed, we have the new car in the Camaro ZL1.

“A lot has changed, but at the same time at least we have something to kind of look back on and look at what changes I liked and didn’t like throughout practice and where our car was strong and where we needed work. 

“I think it’s always good to have that notebook to lean on and especially here with as good of a notebook as we’ve had.”