JTG Daugherty Racing, Dell partner together

Posted on April 9, 2017 by Staff Report

DALLAS — Today, Dell EMC announces that, for the first time ever, the company is sponsoring a NASCAR team, JTG Daugherty Racing. Through this partnership, Dell EMC is working with JTG Daugherty Racing to help provide a competitive edge through the implementation of technology within the racecar, on the track and at the shop.

Specifically, the JTG Daugherty Racing team is using Dell IoT and client solutions and Dell EMC enterprise technologies to help improve performance of the team at the racetrack and manage shop floor operations. This collaboration is reflective of the growing trend within NASCAR to leverage more powerful technologies and data in new ways to help improve performance at all levels of the race team — for the drivers, throughout practice and testing and at the track on race day.

"Dell has had a long-standing relationship with JTG Daugherty Racing and the company is excited to be taking the partnership a step forward by bringing innovative solutions to NASCAR. This is the first time Dell EMC will sponsor a NASCAR team and we are pleased to be working with such an innovator in motorsports," said Joyce Mullen, senior vice president and general manager, Global OEM and IoT Solutions, Dell EMC. "The presence of technology is growing in sports, especially auto racing, where there’s no better proving ground than a race car to show what technology is capable of. This is a tremendous opportunity and we look forward to proving how Dell EMC solutions can offer JTG Daugherty a competitive edge."

With powerful insights and analytics, JTG Daugherty Racing expects tangible advantages from its Dell EMC solutions, including the power to control their garage and shop in North Carolina from afar and improving team performance on the track.

Specific solutions that help the team:

· Enhance productivity and power simulation workloads with Dell Precision 7510 Workstations

· Gain real-time insights about timing and scoring, directly from track to server with the Dell Edge Gateway 5000 Series

· Enable testing of shock with Dell Embedded Box PC 3000 Series, designed to withstand the harshest of environments

· Improve tire matching via barcodes with Dell Latitude 12 Rugged Tablet

· Provide race simulation with Dell Precision Mobile

· Deliver driver overview of speed and performance with Dell Latitude laptops.

· Support applications for predictive modeling to help JTG Racing identify when critical parts are approaching end of life in the race car

· Support race engineers and tire specialists to make smarter, faster decisions trackside or in the garage using 7510 mobile workstations and Dell Latitude 5000 Series laptops to run real-time decision making software

· Streamline operations with ruggedized Dell EMC PowerEdge servers in JTG Daugherty Racing’s Harrisburg, N.C. shop and on the haulers that transport cars to the races; the servers store vital race car information to help simplify car set-up when transitioning to a new track

"In NASCAR, we process large amounts of data quickly to gain insights, then develop conclusions and solutions," JTG Daugherty Racing team owner Tad Geschickter said. "Additionally, we leverage resources located in remote locations so there is a need to move data to multiple points quickly. Dell and Dell EMC provide solutions to accomplish this seamlessly."

Posted on April 9, 2017 by Staff Report

NASCAR takes a week off next weekend, but then heads to Bristol Motor Speedway for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR XFINITY Series the following weekend. Check out the full weekend schedule below.

Note: All times are ET

MONDAY, APRIL 24:

ON TRACK

12:20 p.m.: Driver Introductions
12:53 p.m.: Presentation of Colors by: Grundy High School JROTC Color Guard
12:53 p.m.: Invocation by: Mike Rife, Vansant Church of Christ, Vansant, Virgina
12:54 p.m.: National Anthem by: Todd Smith, Recording Artist and lead singer of Selah
12:56 p.m.: Flyover TOT by: (4) T-38s 49^th Fighter Training Squadron from Columbus AFB, Mississippi (Turn 1 to Turn 4)
12:56 p.m.: Food City Salute Commercial (Colossus TV)
12:57 p.m.: Bristol August Video (Colossus TV)
12:58 p.m.: Bristol Motor Speedway Hype Video (Colossus TV)
1 p.m.: Dale Earnhardt Jr Congratulations Food City Video (on Colossus TV)
1:01 p.m.: "Drivers, Start Your Engines" by: Kerry Earnhardt and Kelley Earnhardt Miller
1:07 p.m.: Start of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Food City 500 (500 laps, 266.5 miles), FOX (Results)

SUNDAY, APRIL 23:

PRE-RACE SCHEDULE: ALL ACTIVITIES POSTPONED

ON TRACK
— 2 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Food City 500 (500 laps, 266.5 miles), FOX (Follow live) POSTPONED TO MONDAY

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
— 5:30 p.m.: (approx.) Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race

FRIDAY, APRIL 21:

ON TRACK
— 2-2:55 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series practice, FS1 (Results)
— 3-3:55 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice, FS1 (Results)
— 4:45 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, FS1 (Qualifying lineup) — CANCELED DUE TO RAIN

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
— 9:30 a.m.: Kurt Busch
— 10:30 a.m.: Jimmie Johnson
— 10:45 a.m.: Chase Elliott
— 11 a.m.: XFINITY Series Dash 4 Cash drivers: Justin Allgaier, Michael Annett, Darrell Wallace Jr.
— 1:45 p.m.: Trevor Bayne
— 2:15 p.m.: Kyle Busch
— 3:55 p.m.: Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott

GARAGECAM (Watch live)
— 11 a.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series—CANCELED

SATURDAY, APRIL 22:

ON TRACK
— 8:30-9:25 a.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice, FS1 (Results)
— 9:35 a.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, FS1 (Results)
— 11-11:55 a.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, FS1 (Results)
— 1 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series Fitzgerald Glider Kits 300 (300 laps, 159.9 miles), FS1 (Results)

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
— 5 p.m.: (approx.) Post-XFINITY Series race

Posted on April 9, 2017 by Staff Report

RELATED: FAQ for race format | Updated stage points

STAGE 2

The yellow flag was thrown in the waning laps of Stage 2, causing various pit strategies — and a leaderboard shakeup — amongst the 40-car field.

Ryan Blaney, who was leading at the time of the caution, chose to stay off pit road and won his team another stage victory, collecting a total of 20 points (10 points per stage).

Hendrick Motorsports’ Jimmie Johnson earned nine points on the heels of an up-and-down weekend for the reigning series champ. Johnson’s two teammates Chase Elliott and Dale Earnhardt Jr. joined him inside the top 10, taking six and two points, respectively.

After failing to collect any points in Stage 1, 2017 Daytona 500 winner Kurt Busch completed the session sixth, followed by fellow Stewart-Haas Racing wheelman — and race polesitter — Kevin Harvick in seventh.

STAGE 1:

Blaney dominated the speed charts during Stage 1 at Texas Motor Speedway, earning his first stage win of 2017. The Wood Brothers Racing wheelman’s No. 21 Ford sat atop the leaderboard for 66 circuits in the 85-lap stage.

Next up was Las Vegas winner Martin Truex Jr. in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota.

Points leader Kyle Larson also finished within the top 10, accelerating his No. 42 Chevy to the sixth position after starting toward the back in 32nd.

Kyle Busch, too, made an impressive comeback, marching his way to 10th, following a rocky weekend. Busch clipped the wall during the opening minutes of first practice and failed to make a qualifying attempt with his team working on his Toyota.

Posted on April 9, 2017 by Staff Report

What channel is NASCAR programming on this week? We answer that and provide all the weekly NASCAR television listings here.

RELATED: Find NBCSN in your area | See the races at Bristol

All times ET

Monday, April 10
12:30 a.m., NASCAR Victory Lane: Texas (re-air), FS1
6:30 a.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 (re-air), FS1
9:30 a.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 (re-air), FS2
6 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
7 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 (re-air), FS1

Tuesday, April 11
3:30 a.m., IMSA Racing: WeatherTech SportsCar Championship: Long Beach Street Circuit (re-air), FS1
7:30 a.m., XFINITY Series: My Bariatric Solutions 300 (re-air), FS1
5:30 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

Wednesday, April 12
5:30 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

Thursday, April 13
5:30 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

Saturday, April 15
9 p.m., NASCAR K&N Pro Series East: Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 150 (taped), NBCSN

Sunday, April 16
3:30 p.m., Beyond the Wheel 2017 (re-air), FS1
4:30 p.m., Refuse to Lose: Jeff Gordon and the 1997 Daytona 500 (re-air), FS1
5:30 p.m., 1997 Daytona 500 (re-air), FS1

Posted on April 9, 2017 by Staff Report

RELATED: Texas race results | Detailed race breakdown
SHOP: Johnson gear

FORT WORTH, Tex. — Jimmie Johnson proved on Sunday that you can’t keep a good driver, a good car and a good team down for long — even if you change the playing field at one of his favorite race tracks.

The seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion passed Joey Logano for the lead on Lap 318 of 334 and pulled away for his first victory of the season in the O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at newly repaved and reconfigured Texas Motor Speedway.

The win was Johnson’s seventh at the 1.5-mile track and the 81st of his career, and it came despite an inauspicious start to the weekend. Johnson spun in the first round of Friday’s knockout qualifying and flat-spotted his tires. Because his team changed tires on the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet before the race — contravening NASCAR’s mandate that drivers start the race on their qualifying tires — Johnson dropped to the rear for the initial green.

By the time NASCAR called the fifth caution of the race on Lap 121 for debris on the frontstretch, Johnson had cracked the top-10, and he was fourth out of the pits for the subsequent restart on Lap 127.

At the end of Stage 2, which concluded on Lap 170, the No. 48 Chevy was second behind Ryan Blaney, who swept the first and second stages but finished 12th overall after sliding through his pit box on the final stop on Lap 300 and losing track position.

RELATED: Blaney wins Stages 1, 2

Blaney led 148 laps. Johnson led 18, but he led the one that counted most. The victory was Johnson’s sixth in the last 10 races at Texas.

"I guess I remembered how to drive, and I guess this team remembered how to do it!" said Johnson, who has been the victim of some inevitable second-guessing after scratching out a lone top-10 (ninth at Phoenix) in the first six races of the season. "I’m just real proud of this team.

"What a tough track and tough conditions. We were really in our wheelhouse and we were just able to execute all day."

The only thing that bothered Johnson was a lack of hydration in the car, thanks to a malfunction in the fluid delivery system, but with a break in the schedule for Easter, he’ll have nearly a fortnight to recover before the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series goes to Bristol Motor Speedway.

"Oh, it was hot in there," Johnson acknowledged. "I got cooked in the car today. I didn’t have any fluids, so I’m not feeling the best, but we got into Victory Lane. I’m so proud of the fight in this race team. I can’t wait to celebrate during this off-weekend with my family and friends and really enjoy this."

Johnson paid a visit to the infield care center after climbing from his car, before coming to the media center for his post-race press conference.

RELATED: Johnson treated in care center

Kyle Larson finished second for the fourth time this season. A winner at Fontana, California, in late March, Larson also started 32nd because his car didn’t pass pre-qualifying inspection in time to make an attempt during time trials. After working his way toward the front, Larson was sent to the rear again for driving through too many pit boxes under a competition caution on Lap 33. But he again found his way to the front. It simply took him too long to get past Logano during the final 30-lap green-flag run.

"Wish I would have got him by a little sooner, but all in all a great day for our Credit One Bank Chevy team," Larson said. "I made a mistake there on the first pit stop and clipped too many boxes. I turned in way early.

"I was disappointed in myself then, because I feel like our car was really, really good the beginning part of the race and probably could have drove up to the lead and maybe controlled the race from then on. So you never know.

"But I just got to focus a little bit harder and not make mistakes, and we can control some races, lead some laps. All in all, still a really good finish for us and we extend the point lead a little bit (to 17 points over ninth-place finisher Chase Elliott), so a solid day."

The racing groove on the repaved surface began to widen out as the race progressed, thanks in part to the track’s effort to drag tires and lay down rubber throughout the weekend.

"Yeah, the track was a little bit better than I think I expected it to be," Larson said. "I thought it would be a little bit harder pass. Maybe it was, but our car was really good, so it could operate on the bottom of (Turns) 1 and 2 really good, and that was about the only place you could pass was the exit of 2, so our car was thankfully working good over there."

On a contrarian pit strategy that dictated he stay out in the lead for the final restart, Logano held third. Polesitter Kevin Harvick came home fourth after leading 77 laps. Dale Earnhardt Jr. ran fifth, far and away his best result of the season, after starting 37th because of the same pre-qualifying inspection issue that buffaloed Larson.

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Posted on April 9, 2017 by Staff Report

RELATED: Texas race results | Johnson wins at Texas

Jimmie Johnson’s celebration of his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win of the season was interrupted by a visit to the infield care center at Texas Motor Speedway.

Johnson complained about overheating and cramping up during his Victory Lane interviews, moments after posting his seventh win at the 1.5-mile track. He said he received three bags of intravenous fluids in nearly an hour spent in the care center.

"I knew I was warm, but I didn’t feel too bad," Johnson said about the late portions of Sunday’s 500-miler. "When I caught Joey (Logano, third-place finisher) and was racing with Joey, I started cramping pretty good on my left side, my chest and my biceps, my forearm, and I knew I was real low on fluids. And I got out of the car, and I was OK, certainly hot, but then again, when I started doing some other interviews in Victory Lane, big muscles started cramping, and I knew I needed to go get some IV then, some fluids."

Chad Knaus, crew chief for Johnson’s Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 Chevrolet, indicated that there was an unknown malfunction with the in-car cooling system. Johnson said that he has a button connected to an electric motor that pushes fluid to a bite valve in his helmet, but that the system did not work for the entirety of the race.

"To be frank I don’t know what that is yet," Knaus said. "We’ve got to look at it and see what’s happened there. I don’t … I really don’t know. I can’t comment on too much because I don’t really know what happened. Jimmie felt like it was an isolated situation, but I really don’t know a heck of a lot yet.

"He was hot after the race. He’s a pretty tidy, lean, neat guy, and when things get hot, he can get hot pretty quick, but we got him cooled off and he’s looking good. He’s ready to go have a weekend off like the rest of us."

JJ Yeley also made a trip to the care center for fluids after his 27th-place finish.

Posted on April 9, 2017 by Staff Report

RELATED: Texas race results

FORT WORTH, Texas — Dale Earnhardt Jr. was hot and happy when he climbed out of his No. 88 Axalta Chevy on Texas Motor Speedway’s pit road Sunday afternoon.

Wiping his brow and his neck with a cool towel, Earnhardt smiled and leaned against his car, ready to talk about a hard-fought, fifth-place finish in Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500. It was his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series top five since a runner-up effort last June at Pocono Raceway.

"We needed this bad," a smiling Earnhardt said.

Temperatures were in the mid-80s outside the car and much hotter inside during the course of the 334-lap race. Even Earnhardt’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate — race winner Jimmie Johnson — needed fluids after his Victory Lane celebration.

RELATED: Johnson goes to care center

"It was kind of like a vacuum, pulling air out of helmet going down one side of the track so I just ran with the visor up all day,” Earnhardt said. "I was glad to see that late caution so I could get some Gatorade and cool off a little bit. It was hot."

Earnhardt talked about being a little more prepared for the weather conditions, thanks to a new physical fitness program he’s been enjoying with the encouragement of his teammate Johnson. Earnhardt said he rode his bike 20 miles on both Friday and Saturday.

"Jimmie rode like 100 miles, though," he added quickly with a grin.

And while Earnhardt didn’t hoist any hardware this week, he still felt encouraged, back on course.

The fifth-place showing was a marked uptick in performance. He hadn’t had a top-10 finish since returning to competition full time this year after missing the second half of 2016 recovering from concussion symptoms.

His previous best finish this season was 14th at Phoenix. He also has three finishes of 30th or worse. The Texas result actually vaulted him five positions in the standings to 20th place.

"I figured we’d get one sooner or later, but it’s nice,” Earnhardt said. "I know our fans are pulling for us. Could have finished a little better, but we’ll take a top five."

The longtime reigning Most Popular Driver in the series readily conceded the result was a perfect send-off for NASCAR’s Easter off-week. Having been out of the car for half of the last season and still struggling for a top 10 coming into April, Earnhardt was visibly encouraged with the Texas showing.

"Confidence is probably half the battle for me," he allowed. "I need all I can get to have a shot. If I don’t believe in it and have confidence in it, it’s hard for me to go for it and drive with confidence. Me and (crew chief) Greg (Ives) have been talking about that all offseason and yesterday. We talked about getting the confidence on restarts and I think we had it today. He was great at giving me some input to get the car working good.”

Earnhardt said he was certain the showing not only capped a good weekend but perhaps launched a return to form.

"We haven’t had a top-five finish since like four races before we stopped racing last year," Earnhardt said. "This is great for us and the guys are excited. It was big for us.

"I will say this about our team: We spend a lot of time communicating during the week. With what we’ve been through last year and this year especially, it would have been easy for a lot of those guys to give up and not really keep pulling their work. But we’ve motivated each other.

"We need to be ready when the car is there, and we were today."

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Posted on April 9, 2017 by Staff Report

RELATED: Johnson prevails at Texas | Race results

FORTH WORTH, Texas — Ryan Blaney couldn’t have asked for a better start to Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Grabbing the top spot from polesitter Kevin Harvick on two straight restarts within the first 37 laps, Blaney led 148 of the first 172 laps and in the process picked up a pair of stage wins and two playoff points toward the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship.

But Blaney’s race changed dramatically when crew chief Jeremy Bullins opted to keep him on the track when debris from Gray Gaulding’s car in Turn 1 caused the sixth caution of the day on Lap 163. All told, seven cars stayed out, giving Blaney plenty of cushion to win the second stage of the race, which concluded on Lap 170 after a three-lap sprint.

Then came the rub. Blaney had to pit under the caution that ended the stage and dropped from first to 20th behind the cars that had pitted under the previous yellow. Blaney never got back to the front, and after sliding through his pit box on his final stop, he finished 12th. In hindsight, would Blaney have preferred to have come to pit road with the majority of cars before the end of the stage and sacrificed a stage win for better prospects at the end of the race?

"It’s easy to look back on it and say, ‘Oh, we should have done this, should have done that," Blaney said. "Now I say we should have stayed out the last caution (at the end of the race) and might have had a better shot at it. But you can’t really change any of that now. Yeah, in hindsight, to answer your question, that was kind of a judgment call.

"You give up a stage win and 10 points and a bonus point for the playoffs to try to set yourself for the end of the race. We thought we had enough time after Segment 2 to try to work our way back up through there, and a restart actually after Segment 2 really went bad for us. We got jumbled up in (Turns) 1 and 2 and let a lot of cars get by.

"That was kind of the deciding factor, I feel like. I let a lot of good cars get by like the 48 (race winner Jimmie Johnson) and 42 (runner-up Kyle Larson and 24 (Chase Elliott). What hurt us more, I think, than anything was that restart after Segment 2 when we had to check up big in (Turns) 1 and 2. I thought we made the right call to stay out there and try to win that segment. I’m for that."

Posted on April 9, 2017 by Staff Report

RELATED: Race recap | Results

Chad Knaus, crew chief for race winner Jimmie Johnson, was pleasantly surprised at how racy Texas Motor Speedway became as Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 progressed.

But NASCAR’s premier driver/crew chief duo had to deal with a new racing surface to pull off their seventh victory at TMS. That meant the notes from the six previous wins no longer applied.

"Coming here, we knew that it was going to be a challenge," Knaus said. "We didn’t have any data from the race track. We didn’t know how to set up our simulation, so we had to do a lot of it kind of old-school. It really worked out well."

"Was very impressed with the way the race track began to take rubber, very impressed with the way NASCAR and everybody here at Texas Motor Speedway worked throughout the course of the night to get the groove widened out (dragging tires), and the track really got pretty racy there at the end," Knaus said.

"I think we saw some guys on the outside be able to maintain their position or even take the lead on restarts there towards the middle portion of the race and then to the end. It was a good weekend. It was a lot of fun to be able to come out here and race with this new race track."

Posted on April 8, 2017 by Staff Report