Posted on by Holly Cain

RELATED: Alias Dale Jr. would use for possible late-model races | Qualifying results

DOVER, Del. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. was all smiles and high hopes as he walked down pit road following qualifying for Sunday’s Apache Warrior 400 at Dover International Speedway.

NASCAR’s reigning Most Popular Driver qualified seventh Friday on the Monster Mile — his best start since March on any non-restrictor plate track.

His No. 88 Nationwide Chevy will be the second-highest Chevrolet on the grid — best of his Hendrick Motorsports team and one of only three non-playoff drivers who advanced to the final round of qualifying.

And the good news for both him and his loyal legions? Earnhardt — the 2001 Dover winner — thinks his car could easily finish better than it starts.

“Heck yeah I’m happy,” Earnhardt said while walking down pit road as fans in the grandstands cheered and shouted their approval.

“I didn’t know what to expect. Our car was real fast off the truck. We had some pretty good comfort in practice. So I was feeling pretty confident about it, but yet we’ve had the same thing happen week after week where we’ve been confident and not backed it up. But this car was really nice right off the track. We ran some really good laps in the first run in practice and was right there with the 4 [Kevin Harvick], which I think he’ll be great.”

Earnhardt got a slightly late start to qualifying as NASCAR officials spent extra time inspecting his car. As he walked back toward the garage following the qualifying session, he said he anticipated an extra “hold” time by NASCAR for tomorrow’s final practice session.

“We ran some good laps on our qualifying mock runs and actually ran the mock runs on our race tires so we saved another set for tomorrow and we’ll have more stickers for practice tomorrow, but it came at a cost,” Earnhardt said.

“Thankfully our car is good and comfortable. If we were really struggling with speed and balance I’d be real upset because we need all the practice we can.

“I’m thankful the car is fast. So, hopefully we’ll learn what we can in the little bit of practice we’re going to get. I think we’ve got a chance at a real good run this weekend. I really do.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

RELATED: Qualifying results | Full schedule for Dover, Las Vegas

DOVER, Del. – The two drivers who have seized control of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff continued their domination in Friday’s knockout qualifying session at Dover International Speedway.

Navigating the Monster Mile in 22.407 seconds (160.664 mph) in the final round, Martin Truex Jr. edged Kyle Busch (160.392 mph) for the top starting spot in Sunday’s Apache Warrior 400 (on NBCSN at 2 p.m. ET), the elimination race in the Playoff’s Round of 16.

Truex won his second Coors Light Pole Award of the season, his third at Dover — the closest facility to his Mayetta, New Jersey, home town — and the 14th of his career. Winner of a series-best five races this season, Truex will start on the front row for the ninth time this season.

“We just kind of chased it a little bit — chased the balance — and I thought we were pretty close at the end of practice,” Truex said. “We hit it pretty close for Round 1 (of qualifying) and tweaked on it a little from there.

“We put together a decent lap for Round 1, and the guys did an awesome job all day. So, really proud of them, and I’m looking forward to getting some more bonus points.

With a victory at Chicagoland Speedway in the opening event of the Playoff, Truex already has locked up a spot in the Round of 12. His 19 stage wins and 59 Playoff points both are tops in the series.

Going for his third straight qualifying sweep, Busch was fastest in the first and second rounds but fell short in the third. With last Sunday’s victory at New Hampshire, Busch also is guaranteed a spot in the Round of 12.

MORE: Starting lineup in photos | Playoff Bubble Watch

“It was a good run for us,” said Busch, whose lap at 160.800 mph in the second round was the fastest of the day. “I thought the first two rounds, obviously, we showed really good speed — probably used up a little too much tire in Round 2, and I just wasn’t able to follow through in that third round and get a quick enough time to hold off Martin. …

“But I’m excited to have a Toyota front row, and we’ll go race ’em on Sunday.”

With Kyle Larson qualifying third and Matt Kenseth fourth, playoff drivers swept the top four spots, and Toyota drivers claimed five of the top six. Daniel Suarez will start fifth, followed by playoff driver Denny Hamlin and Dale Earnhardt Jr., who posted his first single-digit qualifying effort since winning the pole at Daytona in July.

After posting the third-fastest time in Friday’s opening practice, 11-time Dover winner Jimmie Johnson qualified a disappointing 17th and failed to advance to the final round.

“The track changed a little more than we adjusted for is really what it boils down to,” Johnson said. “We felt like it was going to do that and made an effort at it and just didn’t go far enough.”

Nevertheless, Johnson has unwavering confidence in his No. 48 Chevrolet under race conditions.

“Yeah, the great thing is just how fast the car was off the truck,” said Johnson, who is seeking an unprecedented eighth series championship. “I know when it comes to race time we will be fine here. Qualifying for me is qualifying, so we had speed this morning, and I know it’s in there.”

Of the drivers fighting from the bottom of the playoff standings for the final positions in the Round of 12, Ryan Newman had the best effort in time trials, qualifying eighth. Relative to the field, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. improved over practice and secured the 15th position on the grid.

Austin Dillon, currently tied with Stenhouse for the 12th and final position in the next round, will start 23rd, while Kurt Busch and Kasey Kahne — both of whom likely will need a victory to advance from their respective 15th and 16th positions in the standings — qualified 13th and 21st, respectively.

“We just didn’t have the rotation we needed to kind of finish off the end of the corner,” Dillon said. “It’s tough. We’ve been not that great since we unloaded. We’ll keep working on it though. Usually, the race comes to us a lot more than qualifying does.”

 

 

Posted on by Holly Cain

RELATED: Full Dover schedule | Playoff standings

DOVER, Del. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. stressed Friday afternoon at Dover International Speedway that any post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series racing days will be the result of a mutual decision between him and his wife, Amy.

But should he be inclined to enter a local short-track weekend feature, NASCAR’s 14-time and reigning Most Popular Driver grinned and confirmed he has used aliases before – a favorite, he revealed was “William Bonney,” Billy the Kid’s name.

But, he conceded with a grin, “I doubt I’d even try it. I’d just come in there and race. I really don’t have any reason to hide I suppose.’’

The two-time Daytona 500 winner Earnhardt is retiring at the end of the season and indicated he fully intends to enjoy his post-competition days. In addition to his work on NBC’s Cup Series telecasts next year, it would be only natural for him to still include an occasional short-track visit — to race or to watch.

“I might enjoy signing some autographs and just kinda being in that environment as a driver,’’ he said. “It might be hard to just quit cold turkey. It might do me some good to hold those feelings again.”

“I could be in the pits rumbling around. I’ve been there as a car owner. I was lucky enough to be there at one particular race we won and got some pictures in Victory Lane, which is a lot of fun. I’m sure I’ll miss that as a driver.

“I don’t want to make this sound like I have plans to do this. I have a wife at home that’s part of this discussion. I have to make sure it’s good for both of us and fun to do and maybe I’ll go do that.’’

WATCH: Dale Jr. ‘Legacy’ Series, part 2: Healing after tragedy

Earnhardt mentioned several times during his press conference that he is most hopeful that he and his newlywed, Amy, will soon have children to consider.

“I’m excited to start a family, and I hope I’m fortunate enough to do that with Amy,’’ he said. “We definitely want to do that. And it would be weird not being a race car driver if I have a daughter or son, I think about that, would they understand what I’m telling them or what I did for a long time. I’m hoping to find out all that stuff soon.’’

Posted on by Staff Report

“Alexa, Open NASCAR.”

“Alexa, who is winning the race?”

Thanks to Amazon’s popular voice-activated device, NASCAR fans can access two skills (similar to ‘apps’ in the app store) specifically designed with racing enthusiasts in mind.

The first product available for NASCAR fans on Alexa is the skill of “NASCAR.” Users can ask questions related to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, including gathering details on: Live race information (driver position, broadcast date/time) and previous race information (winner/top five). Install NASCAR on your Alexa-enabled device

The product also allows fans to listen to NASCAR’s Glass Case of Emotion weekly podcast featuring driver Ryan Blaney and co-hosts Kim Coon and Chuck Bush.

NASCAR Flash Briefing is the second product available to Alexa users. NASCAR provides a news update every Monday with a recap of the previous race. Fans can access the skill by enabling the NASCAR flash briefing, and asking Alexa, “What’s the news?” Install NASCAR Flash Briefing on your Alexa-enabled device

Both products are available to NASCAR fans and Alexa users now.

Posted on by Team Release

MORE: Bowman to drive No. 88 in ’18 | Bowman takes place among up-and-comers

CONCORD, N.C.  — Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) announced today that through their technical partnership with Hendrick Motorsports, Alex Bowman, 24, will pilot the No. 42 Chevrolet Camaro in the NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) races at Charlotte Motor Speedway (Oct. 7) and Phoenix International Raceway (Nov. 11). Hendrick Automotive Group’s HendrickCars.com, which features more than 43,000 new and pre-owned cars for sale, will serve as the primary sponsor in Charlotte with additional support from Vannoy Construction. A sponsor for Phoenix will be announced at a later date.

“We’re excited to welcome Alex to the No. 42 team for two races. He’s a great young talent, who can help us with our goal of winning an NXS owners’ championship,” team owner Chip Ganassi said. “Initially those two races were earmarked for (Kyle) Larson but we wanted him to focus on the (Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) playoffs so we appreciate Rick (Hendrick) and his team for allowing us to put Alex in our car. Hendrick Motorsports has been a tremendous partner of CGR for many years.”

The Tucson, Arizona, native made his NXS debut in 2012, and finished runner-up to Larson in the 2013 NXS Rookie of the Year standings. In 50 series starts, Bowman has five top-five and 13 top-10 finishes along with three poles. Bowman moves into the No. 88 Chevrolet in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series for Hendrick Motorsports beginning in 2018.

“This is a terrific opportunity for Alex to get back into a competitive environment and work with a championship-caliber team,” HMS owner Rick Hendrick added. “I think he’ll pick up right where he left off. It’s also a valuable platform for us to promote HendrickCars.com in our (Hendrick Automotive Group’s) home market. Chip is a great friend, and we’re looking forward to working with his team on and off the track.”

Bowman joins Larson, Tyler Reddick and Justin Marks as drivers of the No. 42 Chevrolet in 2017. Currently the No. 42 team leads the NXS owners’ standings following Reddick’s win at Kentucky Speedway. Through 27 starts, the combination of Larson, Reddick and Marks has four wins, 11 top-five, 15 top-10 finishes and two poles. Larson picked up victories in Fontana, Richmond and Dover prior to Reddick’s win in the first round of the NXS playoffs.

“I’m really excited to get back in a race-winning car with a team like CGR,” Bowman said in the release. “A huge thanks to Chip and Mr. Hendrick for putting this together for me to get some valuable seat time heading into 2018. My goal is to win two races and help the No. 42 team win the NXS owners’ championship.”

 

Posted on by Kathy Sheldon

“Roses are red, violets are blue

Sponsor me

And my fans will buy pizza from you.”

MORE: Behind the visor of Bubba Wallace Jr.

That’s the #NationalPoetryDay tweet from driver Darrell Wallace Jr. to Domino’s that sparked a ridiculously awesome video in hopes the pizza company will hop on board the Bubba Express.

At the very least, it got the attention of Dale Jr. — and clearly the No. 88 driver is rooting for the partnership, too.

Wallace Jr. is no stranger to vocally expressing his love for Domino’s. After he won the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Michigan, he conducted a live-streaming Periscope that included him wolfing down a celebratory pie and sharing his devotion to the pizza company.

Like any true fan would do.

And guess what? It worked.

 

At the very least, we’re rooting for Wallace to get a lifetime supply of gooey, cheesy pizza.

Posted on by Holly Cain

DOVER, Del. – Danica Patrick’s future in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series remains unsettled as one of the sport’s big-name “free agents” for 2018. But she sure sounded calm and reflective Friday in advance of qualifying for the Apache Warrior 400 at Dover International Speedway.

Patrick, 35, spoke to reporters about her situation, reiterating that there is no “new” news in terms of where she may race in the Monster Energy Series next year or “if” she will race next year.

“Yeah, I’ve had some [discussion about next season] but not a ton,’’ Patrick said. “As I’ve said for a good while now, I let business people in my business handle that and have those conversations and figure out what options are out there and I’m going to let them do that.”

The media availability Friday was to debut her No. 10 “Ford Warriors in Pink” car for Sunday’s race and the Oct. 8 race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. It’s a cause that has become particularly important to her.

“Cancer impacts all of us,’’ Patrick said. “I bet there are very few people out there who don’t know someone impacted by breast cancer.

“My friend had a double mastectomy as a preemptive strike because she actually tested positive for the breast-cancer gene. She went through everything and hopefully avoided it, but it still hit close to home.’’

This weekend Patrick hopes to not only make a statement for this important cause, but also for herself. Her only top-10 of the season so far –10th place — came here on the Dover concrete mile in June.

Among the topics she addressed Friday was her gratitude for her team owner, retired three-time Cup champion Tony Stewart.

“Pretty much as long as I’ve been in NASCAR he’s been a part of it,’’ Patrick said. “Even as early as my part-time NASCAR with JR Motorsports and the transition to full time. … The plans were in the works to go to his [Stewart] team for almost the entire time. He’s been a part of it all. Pretty much my entire existence in NASCAR has had to do with him indirectly or directly. I’m grateful.

“He’s an encourager but I wouldn’t say that he’s a driving coach or setting up the cars or anything like that. Everybody has their abilities though. I can’t be taught anything in NASCAR if I’m not here and he’s the reason, a very big reason, that I am here.”

RELATED: Patrick won’t return to SHR in 2018

Asked if she could name her favorite NASCAR moment to date, Patrick smiled widely. Of course, she acknowledged, the historical significance in winning the pole position for the 2013 Daytona 500 makes for a momentous time in her career. But, she conceded, it was actually the true progress she’s made in a stock car that gives her a feeling of achievement — whether it’s obvious to others or not.

“The one that will stand out is qualifying on the pole for the Daytona 500 as the media results of that were something like winning the fourth-biggest race of the year, even though it’s just for qualifying,’’ Patrick said. “That one will be the biggest one that will stand out.

“But there have been lots of little races along the way that I have felt have been much more difficult and much more representative of the hard work that I’ve put into the sport. But those don’t stand out because those weren’t wins or top fives. But top 10s and things like that, and some runs that I’ve had have meant more to me.

“I definitely think pulling back a little further than individual events is the inspiration that you’ve been told you bring to people, especially to kids, that’s a role that you can’t buy your way into.

“You have to earn that. You just can’t stumble onto that, especially having been around a long time now. That’s probably the most meaningful.”

Posted on by RJ Kraft

RELATED: Full Dover schedule 

DOVER, Del. – Jamie McMurray has been in this position before. The veteran driver of the No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet has come into the cutoff race that sets the Round of 12 at Dover International Speedway on both sides of the cut line in the past two years. And in both instances, he has not advanced out of the Round of 16.

This year, though, there is a new variable at play: Stage points. With the race split up into three stages, (Stage 1 ends at Lap 120, Stage 2 ends at Lap 240 and the Final Stage is scheduled to end at Lap 400 at Dover) the opportunity to gain chunks of points for drivers to make up ground in the standings is very much a factor. McMurray enters Sunday’s Apache Warrior 400 presented by Lucas Oil (2 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) nine points to the good side of the cutline in 11th place.

“It’s going to be different this year because in the years past, I think it was two years ago with Dale Jr. I knew that all I had to do — if (Kevin) Harvick won the race, I knew for the last 200 laps that all I had to do was outrun Dale Jr.,” McMurray said recalling back to the 2015 fall race where he finished fourth to Earnhardt Jr.’s third and just missed advancing to the Round of 12.

“It’s not as easy as knowing you need to be ‘X’ amount of positions in front or behind somebody because if you finish second or third in the stage earlier in the race that completely changes the points. And so, you are going to be dependent on the team to kind of fill you in like if you have to have another position or if someone is pressuring you that you can maybe give up that position and not get wrecked.”

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. comes into Sunday’s race holding the final provisional transfer spot in the Round of 12. Stenhouse is tied with Austin Dillon and a point ahead of Ryan Newman, but the Roush Fenway Racing driver holds the edge on Dillon thanks to the best finish in the Round of 16 tiebreaker — Stenhouse Jr.’s 15th in New Hampshire is one spot better than Dillon’s 16th in Chicago.

RELATED: Playoff standings

“It is going to be a battle,” Stenhouse said. “I think there is some strategy you can play to maybe get some stage points, but you don’t want to give up too much track position here. It will be a fine line of what your crew chief wants to do — but it will be a heck of a battle for sure.”

And at a track where he finished 39th in June, Stenhouse knows trouble can lurk around every corner and change playoff positions in an instant.

“It is always easy to make mistakes,” Stenhouse said. “You have to watch other people around you and be able to get on and off pit road. There are a lot of things that you have to pay attention to yourself, not just what Austin and Ryan are doing. Heck, who knows. The 41 (Kurt Busch, sits 15th in the standings, 17 points behind Stenhouse) could go out and get stage points and all of us miss stage points and before the end of the race you are talking about him, as well. We have to go out and do the best we can and really kind of keep your head down until after that second stage and then see where things shake up and go for it after that.”

The Richard Childress Racing teammates Dillon and Newman both sit just outside the cutline and Dillon expects it “to be a race within the race.”

“You’ve got to be smart throughout and make sure you’re there at the end and put yourself in good positions,” Dillon, the driver of the No. 3 Chevrolet said. “I’m looking forward to the challenge. It’s a little championship run here for all three of us this race. One of us, I think, obviously, is going to get to the next round. So, we’ve got to make it happen.”

RELATED: Round of 16 Playoffs bubble watch

Three years ago, with a spot in the Championship 4 on the line, Newman made it happen, by giving a bump on the last lap to Kyle Larson to grab the spot he needed for the championship battle at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The veteran driver of the No. 31 Chevrolet used the information he had from crew chief Luke Lambert to know what he to do to advance.

“Would I have made that move not knowingly? Absolutely not,” Newman said. “So, I think there’s a time and a place for that information and it can benefit you; but it can also ruin your day or somebody else’s.

“I was aware of it on the last restart of where we needed to finish. And not knowing where Jeff (Gordon) was at that point, if he gained or lost a couple of spots in that last run. I knew what our guaranteed spot was, but not where he was going to finish, or roughly where he was going to finish, or where I needed to finish. So, it makes a difference, obviously.

“It created a lot of excitement and enthusiasm at least, on our part, but it’s not where we wanted to finish. We’re there to win.”

Posted on by Staff Report

MORE: Bookmark this live-streaming link

Can’t wait to see Hendrick Motorsports drivers in their new paint schemes — and, in some cases, new car numbers? You won’t have to wait until 2018.

Hendrick Motorsports will unveil the Daytona 500 schemes for all four team cars on Thursday, Oct. 5, with the event being live-streamed on NASCAR.com starting at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Drivers Chase Elliott (No. 9), William Byron (No. 24), Jimmie Johnson (No. 48) and Alex Bowman (No. 88) will be on hand to pull the covers off their 2018 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 cars, with special guests Bill Elliott, Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Rick Hendrick.

RELATED: More on Elliott, Byron | No. 24 car through the years

The reveal will be followed by a post-event show featuring interviews with the Hendrick Motorsports team.

In addition, fans will have the opportunity to be there live and in-person via the NASCAR Hall of Fame — go here to learn how you can be there live.

MORE: See full 2018 schedule

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Practice 1 results | Full schedule for Dover, Las Vegas

Matt Kenseth rose to the top of the chart Friday in opening Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Dover International Speedway.

Kenseth, a three-time Dover winner, guided the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 Toyota to a best lap of 162.550 mph around the 1-mile concrete track.

Drivers involved in the NASCAR Playoffs swept the top nine spots. There was a tie for the second-fastest spot between Kyle Larson’s Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet and seven-time series champion Jimmie Johnson’ Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 Chevrolet with identical 162.023 mph speeds.

Johnson topped the leaderboard early in the 85-minute session before settling in behind Kenseth’s lap. He holds the all-time record with 11 career wins at the “Monster Mile.”

RELATED: Johnson’s Dover history | Analyzing the playoffs bubble

Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick completed the top five in preparation for Sunday’s Apache Warrior 400 (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM).

Sunday’s event marks the last of three races in the playoff opening Round of 16. The Dover race will whittle the field to 12 championship-eligible drivers, eliminating the bottom four from the NASCAR Playoffs grid.

Rookie Daniel Suarez was fastest among the drivers ineligible for the championship, turning the 10th-fastest lap at 161.240 mph in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 19 Toyota.

Coors Light Pole Qualifying to determine the 40-car starting lineup is scheduled for Friday at 3:40 p.m. ET (NBCSN/NBC Sports App).