Posted on by Holly Cain

RELATED: Blaney to drive third Team Penske car in 2018

It’s not a bad week to be Ryan Blaney.

On Wednesday, he was named to drive a third Team Penske car starting in 2018 and coming up on Saturday he and his Wood Brothers Racing team return to Pocono Raceway, site of Blaney’s maiden Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win just a month ago.

The 23-year-old was clearly in fantastic spirits Wednesday doing media – Facebook Live, television and conference calls – to share the big news about his future. Clearly it’s sunny skies and mega potential ahead.  And Blaney is the first to recognize his uniquely positive position.

“It’s been special to be with two of the most iconic teams and owners in NASCAR,” he said. “It’s been pretty great to be a part of and get to know the history of each team, from the Wood Brothers to the Penske side. Not even on the NASCAR side with Mr. Penske, from the IndyCar side, even anything outside of motorsports, or the sports car side. It’s been neat to know the bandwidth he’s had. Just to really get to know somebody like that is special to me.

“I’ve been really lucky to drive for two great teams and get to know some great families and great people along the way. Kind of growing up in the sport, I looked up to teams like this: the Wood Brothers and the Penske organization. To drive for them is definitely something that I would always want to do as a kid. It’s really nice to be able to be in a spot to do that.”

RELATED: Relive Blaney’s Pocono win | Career stats for Blaney

This weekend obviously presents a prime opportunity for Blaney. A win at the tricky Pocono 2.5-miler would give him the first season sweep of 2017 and earn his legendary team its 100th premier series victory.

Although Blaney insists,  “I don’t feel any different going into this race than last time.

“Just another racetrack. Maybe we have a little more confidence and brings back a lot of memories.” 

Certainly good memories that accompany a solid, fond future with this week’s announcement.

“Obviously the main goal when I started was I wanted to drive in the Cup Series for Penske,” Blaney shared. “That was my goal when I started in 2012 when I was just driving Brad’s [Keselowski] truck. Obviously, that’s the main goal ever since you’re a kid.

MORE BLANEY: Check out his ‘Glass Case of Emotion’ podcast

“Once you get to that level, I didn’t really know what the timeline was going to be or what the plan was going to be. I just kind of went with what we would figure out year after year, whether it was driving Brad’s trucks, in 2014 when I did Brad’s trucks full-time, or ’15 when I did nothing full-time, I just did some partial schedule stuff, to full-time with the Wood Brothers the past few seasons.”

“I just kind of went with everything,” Blaney continued. “I knew that the plan was, you know, going to open up eventually. But I was just nice and thankful for the opportunities to get to drive for some great teams and meet some great people along the way.

“It’s nice that it ended up kind of where it started, for sure. That definitely makes me feel good. But I don’t think … there will be any difficulties really. The Wood Brothers, Penske group, we’ve worked really well together the past couple of years. Brad and Joey [Logano] and everybody on the Penske side pretty much already made me feel at home. Really, the whole Wood Brothers group makes them feel at home. I think that’s what makes our bond really strong. I don’t think really there will be any difficulty transferring to the Penske car full-time.”

Posted on by DraftKings

RELATED: Full schedule for Pocono, Iowa

Rankings below are based on a mixture of expected output and DraftKings’ NASCAR salaries for that day. The ordering is not based on highest projected fantasy totals, but rather by value of each driver.

(fppk = average fantasy points per $1,000 of salary. The typical median fppk for a 2016 race was in the 3s. Plate tracks tend to be lower and short tracks tend to run higher due to the amount of laps.)

1. Kyle Busch ($10,700) – Terrible misfortune cannot be predicted, but maybe it can. A dark cloud follows the No. 18 car, but it has to be a fast cloud to keep up with Kyle Busch. He almost led every lap at the last Pocono race. (5.1 fppk)

2. Martin Truex Jr. ($10,500) – The No. 78 car started from the back and made it into the top 10 at Pocono in no time. That’s where the run ended. Last week, at a similar track, Truex started inside the top 10 and was in contention for the win until the late-race apocalypse at Indy. (6.2 fppk)

3. Kyle Larson ($10,100) – This isn’t really the track for the free-wheelin’ Kyle Larson. Pocono is a one-groove track. Even if you’ve got a good car, good luck passing. In the spring Pocono race, Larson started seventh and finished seventh. That’s about where he topped out last week at Indianapolis. (5.9 fppk)

4. Brad Keselowski ($9,100) – Although the No. 2 car has appeared to be a step behind the elite cars this summer, Keselowski’s Pocono results are undeniable. He has earned four straight top-five finishes at the Pennsylvania track. (4.2 fppk)

5. Joey Logano ($8,800) – Team Penske hasn’t shown the ability to lead the pack in recent months. They can sneak away with a win because they’re fast enough to run inside the top 10. If this race turns into “Apocalypse 2: Indy Redux,” then Team Penske is a strong play. (3.4 fppk)

6. Ryan Blaney ($8,700) – The spring Pocono winner was in contention to win at Indianapolis. There is something about these long, flat tracks that suits Blaney. Maybe it suits the Wood Brothers; their speed is undeniable. (2.8 fppk)

7. Kevin Harvick ($10,200) – Last week, Harvick started second. We never heard from him again fantasy-wise. Harvick is a top-10 driver, but he’s not setting the pace. Even when he last won the pole, he was not gobbling up the fast lap and laps led points. (4.2 fppk)

8. Chase Elliott ($9,500) – In the spring of 2016, Elliot nearly won this race. In the spring of 2017, Elliott didn’t win, but he scored the third-most fantasy points. (3.7 fppk)

9. Jamie McMurray ($8,100) – One of the worst wrecks in recent memory involved Jamie McMurray and Jimmie Johnson at Pocono. Racers have short memories. Jamie Mac might be overlooked because DraftKings players may only look at his last Pocono finish. (3.5 fppk)

10. Jimmie Johnson ($9,600) – He wrecked at Pocono. He wrecked at Indianapolis. For any other driver, this would be an easy fade. We’re talking about Jimmie Johnson. Pocono is a strategy race, and few are better in a strategy race. (4.0 fppk)

11. Denny Hamlin ($9,700) – This might comes as a surprise, but Hamlin has the fifth-best average running position this season. He’s rarely out front, but he’s always creeping around the top five. Hamlin has balanced his performance this season and is racing well everywhere. (3.8 fppk)

12. Kurt Busch ($8,500) – The spring 2016 Pocono winner is very comfortable at this track. In the last 15 Pocono races, Kurt Busch has 11 top-10 finishes. Busch has a win in the bank, so look for him to at least snare a top-10 finish. (2.6 fppk)

13. Erik Jones ($8,300) – The long, flat tracks favor the big teams. More so, they favor the best teams. No team is as consistently fast as Furniture Row. Jones will show up with a fast car. If he keeps his nose clean, then he’ll be in contention for a top-five finish. (3.4 fppk)

14. Daniel Suarez ($7,200) – This isn’t Carl Edwards, but it’s Carl Edwards. If you took David Hasselhoff out of Knight Rider, it would still be Knight Rider. Suarez isn’t leading laps, but this JGR car is fast, and he hangs around the top 10 every week. (4.2 fppk)

15. Matt Kenseth ($9,200) – In four of the last five Pocono races, Kenseth has scored a top-10 finish. He’s not running like a lap leader, but lately, he’s turning out consistent top 10s. (3.4 fppk)

16. Dale Earnhardt Jr. ($7,800) – Track history will buy Junior one more week in the rankings. This is a great track for Earnhardt Jr. (sweep in 2014). Before the shifting issue that ended his spring race, Junior reported that he was only giving 80% and was cruising in the the top 10. (2.3 fppk)

17. Clint Bowyer ($8,000) – Life just got tough. Bowyer should be a playoff car, but there have been 13 winners this season. Bowyer looks to be an all-or-nothing racer from here on out, but Pocono has not been his best track (three top-10s in the last 10 Pocono races). (3.8 fppk)

18. Austin Dillon ($6,900) – The price tag is alluring. More alluring is the fact that Dillon’s Charlotte win may not be enough to get him into the playoffs. He can no longer sit back. Dillon needs to consistently score top-15 finishes. (3.5 fppk)

19. Ty Dillon ($6,600) – Realists are often confused with pessimists. Ty Dillon knows he’s not going to win, but if he plays it safe and hangs around, then he can earn a top-20 finish. It’s not sexy, and you’re not going to see Ty in many commercials, but he’s a safe fantasy NASCAR pick. (4.6 fppk)

20. Ryan Newman ($7,600) – The good news is that Newman survived the Indy mayhem with a third-place finish. The bad news is that his average finish was 20th last month. It appears that Newman is playing it safe and cruising into the playoffs. (3.9 fppk)

 

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: All Darlington throwback schemes

Hendrick Motorsports revealed Chase Elliott’s 2017 Darlington throwback paint scheme on Thursday evening, and, boy, is it awesome.

The No. 24 Chevrolet driver will honor his father, “Awesome” Bill Elliott, when the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series takes to the track for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on Sept. 3 (6 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

The 21-year-old’s ride will be painted with a powder blue base and royal blue NAPA logo — the same colors his father ran in his premier series debut at Rockingham Speedway in 1976.

The younger Elliott’s only two Monster Energy Series starts at the “Lady in Black” were polar opposites — a 41st-place finish after a crash in one of a handful of starts he made in 2015, the other a top-10 result in his official rookie season last year. Elliott owns an XFINITY Series win at Darlington from his championship season in 2014.

MORE: Bill Elliott through the years

His 2016 scheme was a yellow-and-black nod to his sponsor, NAPA, which was celebrating 90 years of business.

This season marks the third year that Darlington will host a throwback-themed Southern 500 event. This year’s event will focus on the 1985-1989 era, considered a time of growth and exposure for the sport.

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: All Darlington throwback schemes

Matt DiBenedetto and Go Fas Racing are bringing back one of NASCAR’s most memorable paint schemes.

Unveiled Wednesday night during NASCAR America on NBCSN, DiBenedetto’s throwback paint scheme for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on Sept. 3 will mimic Bobby Allison’s 1988 Miller High Life car. The gold and white livery was one Allison drove to victory in the 1988 Daytona 500, a race that featured a 1-2 finish for Allison and his son Davey.

It was also the 85th and final victory of Allison’s career as that season happened to be his final year of NASCAR competition. Allison suffered a career-ending injury at Pocono Raceway that June.

“There are a lot of really cool throwbacks out there, but man, it’s such an honor to run this car,” DiBenedetto told NASCAR.com. “Bobby Allison was and is a legend to the entire sport and to race a scheme that he ran is such an honor. Tom and TJ Keen from CorvetteParts.net came up with the idea, and obviously, we couldn’t turn that down.

“This is the type of scheme that the throwback weekend is all about.”

ISC Archives via Getty Images

The September 3 race at ‘The Lady in Black’ will be DiBenedetto’s third career start at Darlington. His career best finish is 25th, which came in the 2015 event.

This year marks the third consecutive year that Darlington Raceway will host the NASCAR throwback weekend. The designated time period for team tributes is 1984-89.

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Two crewmembers suspended 3 races

The following is a statement from Furniture Row Racing team owner Barney Visser in regards to the No. 78 pit crew:

“Our No. 78 pit crew is hired, trained and managed by Joe Gibbs Racing,” said Furniture Row Racing team owner Barney Visser. “They are one of the best pit crews on the circuit and have kept us up front all season. We admire the talent and dedication of our pit crew and support all of the decisions and actions taken by Joe Gibbs Racing.”

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Watch the 17-78 crash at Indy

Joe Gibbs Racing has suspended two crewmembers from the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing team for three races after an altercation at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a JGR team spokesman confirmed.

As part of Furniture Row Racing’s technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing, JGR provides (and employs) crewmembers to Furniture Row Racing.

Front tire changer Chris Taylor and rear tire changer Lee Cunningham will miss the races at Pocono, Watkins Glen and Michigan. Kip Wolfmeier and John Royer will fill in on the No. 78 pit crew during the three-race suspension.

Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch crashed on Lap 112 of the Brickyard 400 while racing for the lead entering Turn 1, ending the day for both teams. Video from pit road captured an incident between the two crews, one in which Busch’s crew chief Adam Stevens was involved.

In a statement, Furniture Row Racing team owner Barney Visser said: “Our No. 78 pit crew is hired, trained and managed by Joe Gibbs Racing. They are one of the best pit crews on the circuit and have kept us up front all season. We admire the talent and dedication of our pit crew and support all of the decisions and actions taken by Joe Gibbs Racing.”

The full incident, shown on FS1’s “Race Hub” program, can be viewed atop this story.

Posted on by RJ Kraft

Editor’s Note: The following are completely made-up trades around the fantasy of NASCAR having a trading deadline

Silly Season is a time where lots of rumors and speculation take place as it is really the only time that drivers change teams. And while those rumors are running rampant throughout the garage, other sports have a trade deadline  — usually around the middle to two-thirds mark of a season — that leads to additional speculation and movement. Baseball’s such deadline is July 31st  and has already seen one giant domino fall in the form of crosstown rivals in Chicago connecting on a deal involving starting pitcher Jose Quintana.

That got us to thinking: What if NASCAR had a trade deadline or allowed driver trades? What follows are some deals in this made up, fantasy world of driver trading.

SILLY SEASON: Bowman in the No. 88 | Jones in the No. 20 | Blaney-Menard movement

Trade No. 1: Change of scenery deal that brings a driver back to familiar turf
Joe Gibbs Racing gets: Joey Logano
Team Penske gets: Denny Hamlin
Why: Hamlin’s recent hot streak (four top-four finishes in his last six races) makes this deal a little tougher to make, but there is still a big benefit to it. Penske seems to be in a rut, speed wise. Since the Talladega race, the two-car organization has led just 95 laps in 10 races. Hamlin, who has been at JGR his whole career and notched 30 wins, could see the same late career surge that Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth had upon moving to different organizations. On the JGR side, yes those early team meetings might be awkward for a bit, but long term “Sliced Bread” is solid. This is a bit of a buy low move that has high upside as JGR transitions a bit in terms of personnel with the recent moves up to the top series of Daniel Suarez (in 2017) and Erik Jones (to JGR in 2018).

Trade No. 2: The four-team extravaganza
Stewart-Haas Racing gets: Rights to Carl Edwards, Aric Almirola
Joe Gibbs Racing gets: Ryan Reed
Richard Petty Motorsports gets: Trevor Bayne
Roush Fenway Racing gets: Kurt Busch
Why: Where to begin? The headliner in this one is a driver who isn’t currently turning laps in NASCAR. SHR nabs the rights to Edwards, should he decide to return. With Busch and Danica Patrick not locked in for 2018, SHR could certainly tempt him into returning. A Kevin Harvick-Clint Bowyer-Edwards led trio would be fascinating from day one. Almirola takes over the No. 41 and gets a chance to show what he can do in top equipment, even if just for a trial basis, since his contract is up at the end of the season. JGR gets value from an asset not currently driving by acquiring Ryan Reed, who slots into one of their XFINITY Series cars full-time with sponsorship, setting up a likely Reed-Matt Tifft-Christopher Bell trio to compete for the XFINITY title in ’18. To replace Almirola, Petty gets Bayne, sticking with a driver in the Ford family that brings significant sponsorship to the table as well. And lastly, Roush brings Kurt Busch back to the organization he won a championship with in 2004 and gives Ricky Stenhouse Jr. the most accomplished teammate in the Monster Energy Series he has had since Edwards. Moving Reed also opens the door for Roush to stick NASCAR Next product Ty Majeski in a full-time XFINITY ride for the coming season.

Trade No. 3: The future for right now
Hendrick Motorsports gets: Martin Truex Jr.
Furniture Row Racing gets: William Byron, Kasey Kahne
Why: With seven wins over the past season-and-a-half, Truex has the second-most victories in this time (his new Hendrick teammate—in this scenario– Jimmie Johnson has the most with eight). That success, though, brings a high acquisition price and that comes in the form of Byron. The 19-year-old has already racked up 10 NASCAR national series wins. The deal is, in essence, an instant title contender for a driver that could set up Furniture Row Racing for multiple championships down the line with his upside and future growth. In addition, Hendrick sends the Washington native and recent Indianapolis race winner Kahne closer to his home as Furniture Row seeks to keep its two-car operation intact for future seasons with Erik Jones moving to JGR in 2018. The Kahne departure would also open the door for Hendrick to pursue Matt Kenseth for the No. 5.

Posted on by Staff Report

BUY TICKETS: See XFINITY in Iowa | See the Pocono races
RELATED: Full schedule for Iowa and Pocono

All three NASCAR national series are in action this weekend with the XFINITY Series doing battle at the Iowa Speedway short track and the ‘Tricky Triangle’ of Pocono Raceway hosting the Camping World Truck and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

Below are the stage lengths for each race.
Click here to bookmark stage lengths for every race this season

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (Race is Sunday, 3 p.m. ET, NBCSN)

Stage 1: Ends on Lap 50
Stage 2: Ends on Lap 100
Final Stage: Scheduled to end on Lap 160

NASCAR XFINITY Series (Race is Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, NBC)

Stage 1: Ends on Lap 60
Stage 2: Ends on Lap 120
Final Stage: Scheduled to end on Lap 250

Camping World Truck Series (Race is Saturday, 1 p.m. ET, FOX) 

Stage 1: Ends on Lap 15
Stage 2: Ends on Lap 30
Final Stage: Scheduled to end on Lap 60

Posted on by Pat DeCola

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers Austin and Ty Dillon held their third annual Dillon Brothers 3-on-3 Celebrity Basketball Tournament presented by The Dow Chemical Company on Wednesday at Catawba College in Salisbury, North Carolina.

The event, which featured a bevy of NASCAR drivers, athletes and celebrities, was held to benefirt the Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma, with an auction of autographed memorabilia and other items courtesy of The NASCAR Foundation and Fanatics Auctions. Items include an autographed guitar, VIP suite passes, a Grizzly Cooler and a Bass Pro Shops kayak. Additional items will be added throughout the week, and the auction will end at 9 p.m. ET on Sunday.

Team Leaf Filter — featuring Kaulig Racing crew chief and NASCAR.com analyst Chris Rice — was the winner of the tournament over Team Cometic/Klotz.

After the title game, both Dillon brothers faced off with their all-star teams. Ty walked away with the victory in that one, earning a W for little brothers everywhere.
Find the full list of participants below, and see photos and videos from the event via Twitter.
  • Austin Dillon, NASCAR driver
  • Ty Dillon, NASCAR driver
  • Rick Allen, NASCAR media
  • Justin Alexander, NASCAR crew chief
  • DeAngelo Williams, NFL player
  • Gary Barnidge, NFL player
  • Jason Seahorn, former NFL player
  • Craig Campbell, country music singer
  • Sae’Quahn Rogers, current college basketball player
  • Craig Dawson, former Wake Forest University basketball player
  • Shavlik Randolph, former Duke University basketball player
  • Kasey Kahne, NASCAR driver
  • Blake Koch, NASCAR driver
  • Corey LaJoie, NASCAR driver
  • Joey Logano, NASCAR driver
  • David Ragan, NASCAR driver
  • Jeb Burton, NASCAR driver
  • Chase Briscoe, NASCAR driver
  • Larry McReynolds, NASCAR legend
  • Carl Michael, magician and entertainer (seen on America’s Got Talent)
  • Brad Miller, former NBA player
  • Phil Parsons, NASCAR media
  • Hermie Sadler, NASCAR media
  • Adam Alexander, NASCAR media
  • Bubba Sparxx, musician and entertainer
  • Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., NASCAR driver
  • Ryan Taylor, NFL player
  • Bubba Wallace, NASCAR driver
  • Drew Blickensderfer, NASCAR crew chief
  • Sean Willingham, Professional Bull Rider

 

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: On-track schedule | TV schedule

See your favorite drivers at this weekend’s Pocono Fan Fest. From 5:30-8:30 p.m. ET on Friday at Pocono Raceway, these drivers will participate in activities on the Infield Block Party Stage with the Infield Block Party to follow.

It’s all part of NASCAR’s enhanced race weekend schedule at Pocono Raceway.

–Landon Cassill, Martin Truex Jr.: 5:30 – 6 p.m. “Never Have I Ever”
–Dale Earnhardt Jr., Ryan Blaney: 6 – 6:45 p.m. “Hungry Fan Throwdown”
–Kurt Busch: 7-7:30 p.m. “NASCAR Champion Story Time”
–Kyle Larson and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: 7:30 – 8 p.m. “Name That Tune”
–Michael McDowell and Daniel Suarez: 8 – 8:30 p.m. “Lip Sync Battle”

MORE: Buy tickets for Pocono and Iowa