Posted on by

The thermostat read around 100 degrees, as a small, tan and white kitten weighing 0.8 pounds hid under a dumpster on an August afternoon in a North Carolina neighborhood.

Two days later, with a rested body and full belly, that same cat boarded a private plane to Watkins Glen International for the Sprint Cup Series race weekend.

Talk about a rags to riches story for the feline — now dubbed Mr. Tickles — who is the pampered pet of Sprint Cup driver AJ Allmendinger and girlfriend Tara Meador.

“I think I was actually doing ‘Race Hub’ that day and during the show, I was getting text messages from Tara that they had found a cat under a dumpster,” Allmendinger recalled on Aug. 19 at Bristol Motor Speedway. “So, (they’re) trying to get this cat out. … They had got him to eat a little bit, but every time they’d try to grab him, he’d run right back in the middle of it (and) you couldn’t get him. I sat there probably for an hour trying to drag him out, figure out something — cat was pretty smart, he didn’t want to be caught.

“I try not to have that much of a heart most of the time,” Allmendinger continued with a smile, “But you know I had to have one. I was like, ‘It’s 105 degrees outside right now, you can tell that this cat is tiny — he may not be there tomorrow or he might be there, but not the way we want to see him.’ “

The group eventually scraped the kitten from under the dumpster and took him back to Allmendinger and Meador’s house, while he was
“screaming and swatting.” But it didn’t take long for the tiny animal to feel at home in the comforts of blankets and a full belly — then cross-country trips to race tracks.

Thus began the adventures of Mr. Tickles the traveling cat.

“It’s been fun, you know, because with the airlines that we fly on as a team, it’s not like you can bring your own dog on the plane or anything like that,” Allmendinger said. “So we’ve got a little cat backpack and he gets in it and gets under the chair and goes to sleep and it’s good entertainment throughout the course of a weekend when I’m stressing myself out.

“He’s definitely … the airplane cat because people that are big cat people are like, ‘Is Tickles on here?’ We’ve passed him around before … he’s got a funny personality on him. He talks a lot, he can be a pain in the butt sometimes — I guess he’s a lot like me,” Allmendinger joked.

Wait … he talks?

Yep, and does tricks, Allmendinger says.

“He’ll shake with his right paw; left paw, he’ll fist pound you,” Allmendinger said. “So if you say, ‘Fist pound or jab,’ because Tara’s gotten into boxing … and he knows which paw is which. … He’ll definitely speak at you; if you tell him to speak, he’ll meow at you.”

Mr. Tickles’ talents are depicted on his three social media pages — Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and he tallies more than 1,500 followers on Twitter alone. His Twitter bio says, “It’s not easy being the kitten, but someone has to do it.”

“Cat’s got more followers than me,” No. 47 crew chief Randall Burnett chimed in as he entered the hauler.

“He’s way nicer and he’s way more fun to be around and he’s way cuter,” Allmendinger joked back.

“That’s not true, I’m pretty charming to be around,” Burnett said.

Don’t underestimate the power of big kitty-cat eyes, Randall. They’ve definitely captured the attention of fans.

“My Twitter page is filled up with people sending me their cat pictures,” Allmendinger said. “That’s what I get. Like, ‘Oh look it, look at Mr. Butters!’ 

“A few weeks ago, (after) one of the Saturday races, (on) Sunday Tara and I are just having a fun day and we happen to be kind of in this shopping center area down in Charlotte and went into this store. They had some birthday cards of cats and I’m like, ‘Oh look it, it’s Mr. Tickles right here.’ The lady working there … said, ‘Mr. Tickles? I love that cat, I follow him.’ … I was like, ‘Are you serious?’ She’s like, ‘I thought it was you, AJ.’ 

“There are people that come out of the woodwork or big cat people that love Mr. Tickles.”

Allmendinger says he wasn’t always a cat person — “I’m a bigger dog person,” he admits — but the cuteness that is Mr. Tickles enraptured him from the beginning. And it’s been made clear that the Allmedinger-Meador house is now governed by Mr. Tickles — no other animal is allowed.

“He hates everybody,” Allmendinger said. “He hates every type of animal. We’ve always wanted to get a dog as well at the right time — I don’t think that’s going to happen because he may kill the dog. I guess, like one of his owners, he’s an only child and shows it.

“Now he runs the show at the house. It’s his house — he doesn’t need anyone messing around, any other animals coming in to take over his house. He doesn’t play well with others.”

With his following, Mr. Tickles may not ever have to adjust his attitude. Just have him give a little furry fist pound and all ‘tude is forgiven.

Just make sure you provide a treat afterward.

Posted on by Holly Cain

MORE: Custer: ‘He wanted to ruin our day’


John Hunter Nemechek made the media rounds Wednesday to promote NASCAR’s upcoming Camping World Truck Series race in Chicago and to talk about the series’ inaugural Chase, which starts later this month in New Hampshire.


But there was this one “other thing” everyone was more eager to discuss with last weekend’s winner: Nemechek’s bump of Cole Custer in the final corner and the ensuing pass-in-the-grass to edge Custer for the win at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on Sunday.


It was a dramatic finish, and Nemechek acknowledges, it was also controversial. So much so that a frustrated Custer, 18, ran across the track and tackled Nemechek, 19, as the second-generation driver waited near the officials’ stand to receive the checkered flag.


“There’s been a lot of attention toward the finish and towards me on social media but like we said, we’re happy that we got the win and we won’t take that away from anything,” Nemechek said. “But if the circumstances of us going in the grass hadn’t happened, they wouldn’t be talking about the finish. That’s the only thing you’d like to go back and change, is not ending up in the grass.”


As he did on Sunday, Nemechek did not back down from his elation at winning even under contentious conditions.


“I’m definitely proud to get the win, to get our second win of the year checked off our list and have some momentum going into the Chase,” Nemechek said. “It was a great day for our whole team. I hate the circumstances it ended under with us in the grass, and that definitely wasn’t what we were trying to do in making the pass.


“If we could go back and change the circumstances we would, but a win is a win and we’ll take it.”


It was actually the second win this season for the No. 8 Chevrolet truck, owned by Nemechek’s father, Joe, a former NASCAR Busch Grand National (now called the XFINITY Series) champion. And John Hunter said his father — along with many others — offered support following the race.


Nemechek did note, however, that his father had not seen the race ending live and did not see a replay until after the Victory Lane celebration.


“He said congrats on the win and that I did everything right all day and we executed our strategy well, having to save fuel there at the end,” Nemechek said. “I actually ran out of gas on the cool-down lap so we stretched it as far as we could. But he (Joe Nemechek) said, ‘You were smart all day, and you were there at the end. That’s what made the victory.’ “

Custer is not high enough in points to earn a Chase berth and will now have one more shot to score a victory at Chicagoland on Sept. 16 and earn his position in the Chase.


In addition to the tackle at the race track, Custer has candidly shared his displeasure about the ending with the national media this week.


There have even been suggestions that Custer may try to even the score by wrecking Nemechek during the championship Chase although Custer never directly said such.


Nemechek did acknowledge the possibility himself.


“You can’t be paranoid, you can’t worry,” Nemechek said. “If it happens, it happens.


“I definitely think it would be a whole different story and you’d expect payback if it ended like the Ty Dillon incident a couple years ago where he ended up in the tire barriers and didn’t finish the race.


“We raced back to the line and finished first and second. So who knows what’s going to happen. You can’t worry about it.”


As for Custer and Nemechek racing together at Chicago in the final race before the Camping World Truck Series Chase grid is set, Nemechek is hopeful that time and maybe some effort on his part will ease the tension.


“I haven’t spoken to him yet, but I expect to in the future,” Nemechek said.

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Chase Bubble picture

NASCAR officials handed down a P3-level penalty to the Richard Childress Racing No. 31 team Wednesday, including a 15-point deduction that places an extra hurdle in driver Ryan Newman‘s path to Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup playoffs eligibility.

Newman finished eighth in last Sunday’s Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, but his No. 31 Chevrolet failed its post-race pass through the Laser Inspection Station (LIS) platform. On Wednesday, competition officials docked the team 15 points in the drivers and team owners standings and fined crew chief Luke Lambert $25,000.

Newman ended the Darlington weekend seven points behind Jamie McMurray, the last driver clinging to a playoff spot on the provisional Chase grid. The penalty leaves him in need of either winning or rallying to overcome a 22-point deficit in Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400 (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM), the regular-season finale at Richmond International Raceway.

Newman’s No. 31 team was also docked 10 points in March for the use of unapproved body attachment mounts and supports at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Lambert was then placed on NASCAR probation through the end of the year.


In a statement, Richard Childress Racing responded to the penalty and announced the team would not appeal.


“We do not plan to appeal the penalty issued today to the No. 31 team. Our rear toe settings were well within specs during pre-race inspection. The car made contact with the outside wall during the race and there was clear damage to the right rear fender and tire. NASCAR has told us that the LIS standard is clear and the car must pass post-race inspection even if damage has been sustained.” 


Competition officials on Wednesday also issued a P2-grade penalty to the Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet team for a post-race LIS violation at Darlington. Third-place finisher Kyle Larson was docked 15 points and crew chief Chad Johnston was fined $22,500. The team also was assessed the loss of 15 owner points.

With one win on the season and a 15th-place spot in the standings after Darlington, Larson is locked in for the Chase.

Driver Ryan Blaney was tagged with a P1 penalty for a safety equipment infraction, and the driver was fined $1,000. The Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate took the NASCAR Throwback weekend concept too far by briefly participating in Saturday’s practice without protective driving gloves.

Other warnings issued after last weekend’s events at Darlington:

In the Sprint Cup Series, the Nos. 2 and 19 teams received written warnings and the loss of 15 minutes of practice time for failing pre-race LIS three times.

The Nos. 22 and 32 teams were issued written warnings for failing pre-race LIS twice, and the No. 14 got a written warning for failing pre-race template inspection twice.

In XFINITY, the No. 01 team was issued a written warning for failing pre-race LIS twice.

And in the Camping World Truck Series, the Nos. 02 and 8 teams were issued written warnings for truck trailing arms not meeting rule specifications.

Posted on by Staff Report

Twelve drivers have clinched a spot in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup with just one regular-season race remaining Saturday night at Richmond (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

The 12 clinchers: Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson and Tony Stewart.

 

Everyone who has a win this season is locked in — except for Chris Buescher, who has yet to clinch a top-30 spot. 

 

Here are the scenarios for Saturday night:

 

Control their own destiny

— Chris Buescher: He would clinch a top-30 spot by earning 34 points (finishing seventh with no laps led). He currently has an 11-point lead over 31st-place David Ragan, so he can’t slip below that threshold.

 

— Chase Elliott: Would clinch a Chase spot by finishing 24th, if there is no new winner. If there is a repeat winner and Chris Buescher falls out of the Top 30, he clinches on points, regardless of finish. With a win, Elliott would clinch a Chase spot.

 

— Austin Dillon: Would clinch on points if there is a repeat winner (or if Chase Elliott wins, or if Chris Buescher falls out of the top 30), by finishing 15th. If there is a repeat winner and Chris Buescher falls out of the top 30, he would clinch on points regardless of finish. A win would also lock up a spot.

 

— Jamie McMurray: Would clinch on points if there is a repeat winner (or win by Chase Elliott or Austin Dillon, or a new winner and Chris Buescher falls out of the top 30) by finishing sixth. If there is a repeat winner and Chris Buescher falls out of the top 30, McMurray would clinch on points, regardless of finish. He cannot lose more than 21 points to Newman as Newman would hold the tie-breaker.

 

Need help

—  Ryan Newman: With a win, he would clinch a Chase spot. But a P3 penalty for failing post-race LIS cost him 15 driver points, and made his Chase chances even more difficult. If he needs to clinch on points, he needs help: he’d need to top McMurray by 22 or more points Saturday, or Dillon by 32 or more points or Elliott by 40 points.

 

— Kasey Kahne: With a win, Kahne would clinch a Chase spot. He could clinch on points with a repeat winner by outpointing Newman by 37 points — which basically means Kahne would need to finish second and Newman last.

 

Win only

The following drivers can only get a Chase spot if they win: Ryan Blaney, AJ Allmendinger, Trevor Bayne, Ricky Stenhouse Jr,  Paul Menard, Greg Biffle, Danica Patrick, Aric Almirola, Clint Bowyer, Casey Mears and Landon Cassill.

 

Win and help
If David Ragan or Regan Smith win on Saturday, they still would need to clinch a spot in the top 30.

 

XFINITY Series

• A win would clinch a spot for any eligible driver. Also, a 42-point lead over the 8th winless driver if there is a new winner or that same lead over the 9th winless driver if there is a repeat winner will clinch a spot.
 
Possible to Clinch:
• Ryan Reed: Would clinch on points with 31 Points (10th and no laps led, 11th and led at least one lap, 12th and led most laps). Would clinch on points with a repeat (or previously clinched driver) winner and 27 Points (14th and no laps led, 15th and led at least one lap, 16th and led most laps).

 

• Blake Koch: With a win, he would clinch a Chase spot on wins. Could clinch on Points with a repeat winner and help.
 
The following need a win to clinch a Chase spot: Ryan Sieg, Dakoda Armstrong, Jeremy Clements, Ross Chastain, Ryan Preece, Ray Black Jr., BJ McLeod, Joey Gase.

Posted on by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — In the midst of a year-long celebration of the 75th anniversary of the iconic M&M’S® Brand, NASCAR, and Mars Chocolate North America announced today a renewed agreement that will extend their Official Partnership through 2019. As part of the renewed relationship, Mars Chocolate will continue its designation as the Official Chocolate of NASCAR®, ensuring its various brands remain a race day staple for millions of fans.


Since entering NASCAR as a team sponsor more than 25 years ago, Mars Chocolate has steadily increased its level of participation in the sport. In 2000, the company expanded its sponsorship by becoming the “Official Chocolate of NASCAR,” emphasizing to fans its dedication to the sport. In the spirit of thanking its loyal NASCAR fans, M&M’S will celebrate race fans during Richmond International Raceway‘s inaugural Fan Appreciation Weekend. To help honor its 75th Anniversary, the brand will roll out the red carpet and give fans a VIP welcome at the Front Stretch Gate on Saturday.


“Our association with NASCAR has proven to be a true win-win partnership and we’re excited to continue the relationship for the next several years,” explained William Clements, vice president, sponsorships and sports marketing, Mars Chocolate North America. “From helping M&M’S celebrate their 75th anniversary to energizing the thousands of Mars Chocolate Associates coast to coast, NASCAR is the perfect platform to fuel our business.”


With more than 15 consecutive years of Official Partnership and a historic championship run as the primary sponsor of the No. 18 M&M’S Toyota last season, Mars Chocolate is undoubtedly one of the most recognizable brands in the sport. Mars Chocolate continues to execute a fully integrated strategy that includes advertising, event marketing, social media, business to business, and associate engagement.


“Mars Chocolate has delivered creative and engaging activations that our brand loyal fans have embraced throughout the past 15 years,” said Steve Phelps, executive vice president and chief global sales and marketing officer, NASCAR. “As the Official Chocolate of NASCAR, Mars Chocolate has made race day more enjoyable for millions of fans and we are proud to continue our successful partnership.”


As the Official Chocolate of NASCAR, Mars Chocolate encourages fans to “Celebrate Race Day with M.” The campaign reminds fans to include irresistible and colorful chocolate in their race day rituals. Many of Mars’ most iconic brands belong to the category, including M&M’S®, and SNICKERS®. Additionally, a number of Mars and Petcare iconic brands are also included, such as SKITTLES® and PEDIGREE®. 


The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ season will continue with the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday, Sept. 10 at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Posted on by Pat DeCola

While Harvick remains atop these Power Rankings, his No. 4 pit crew would likely be at the bottom of any such rankings that evaluated them after another subpar performance.

MORE: Harvick frustrated with crew

https://www.nascar.com/drivers/brad-keselowski/
BradKeselowski
0
Team Penske

While Ford is in the midst of a bit of a dry spell, wins-wise, Keselowski continues to perform well and that should continue at Richmond, where he has the best average starting spot among active, full-time drivers (8.6).

MORE: Dry spell for Ford

While Logano’s teammate Keselowski sports the top average starting position, it’s Logano who is the defending pole-winner of the race.

https://www.nascar.com/drivers/denny-hamlin/
DennyHamlin
3
Joe Gibbs Racing

Hamlin is on quite a roll right now, and comes into Richmond as the active, full-time leader in laps led at a whopping 1,405.

Edwards took a bit of a dip at "The Venue Formerly Known as Carlington," but has some good juju on his side as the spring Richmond winner.

https://www.nascar.com/drivers/kyle-busch/
KyleBusch
0
Joe Gibbs Racing

Busch is the race favorite heading into Richmond, with a series-high four wins and a sizzling 6.9 average finish at the Virginia track.

Truex has a tendency to show up on the big stage, as we’ve seen at Daytona, Charlotte and Darlington. The next true big stage? Homestead.

MORE: Truex surges to Darlington win

Larson started from the pole in his first Richmond race as a rookie and should continue his hot streak with an above-average finish in each start there thus far in his career.



MORE: Larson a surprise Chase contender

Kenseth has been running at the finish of 32 of his 33 Richmond starts, but only 24 of those were on the lead lap. Buy, hey, he’s the defending winner of the race after leading 352 of 400 laps.

It’s unfortunate for Busch, but he takes a tumble this week after a had-nothing-to-do-with-him run-in with Paul Menard that saddled him with a poor finish.

https://www.nascar.com/drivers/jimmie-johnson/
JimmieJohnson
-3
Hendrick Motorsports

Johnson struggled mightily at Darlington, but should rebound this week with Hendrick running better as a whole and running third in the spring Richmond race (44 laps led).

MORE: Johnson gets ‘F’ for Darlington

https://www.nascar.com/drivers/chase-elliott/
ChaseElliott
1
Hendrick Motorsports

Elliott backed up another strong run at Michigan with his second-straight top 10 and should be a near-lock to make the Chase.

Stewart and Brian Scott didn’t play nice at Darlington, but don’t expect them to race near each other at Richmond. "Smoke" has the most top 10s at the track (19, tied with Harvick), among active, full-time drivers.

MORE: Stewart called to NASCAR hauler

https://www.nascar.com/drivers/austin-dillon/
AustinDillon
1
Richard Childress Racing

Dillon could really use a strong run at Richmond to ensure he gets in at the Chase, but it’s not a certainty. He’s not fared well there in the past.

Good news: Newman had a great Darlington race to close the points gap between him and Jamie McMurray. Bad news: a failed post-race inspection may negate that.

MORE: Newman’s car fails inspection

McMurray is earnestly square on the tip of the Chase bubble and needs to have a good Richmond finish to ensure he makes it.

Kahne seems to have found a little something in his No. 5 ride. Only thing — is it too little, too late?

MORE: Good news for Kahne

Buescher has yet to clinch a Chase berth and certainly can’t take it easy at Richmond, especially after he finished 34th there in the spring.

Blaney all but needs to win at Richmond to make the Chase, but it’s certainly not out of the question for the talented rookie.

It all comes down to Richmond for ‘Dinger’s Chase chances. Unfortunately for him, he has just three top 10s in 18 starts.

Posted on by

RELATED: Full race results | Standings | Chase Grid

Breaking down the full field for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway:

1. Martin Truex Jr., No. 78 Toyota, Furniture Row Racing. Truex’s two victories this season are the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte and now the Southern 500 … and he finished second in the Daytona 500. Even with all the bad luck he has had, Truex is having a monster year. Grade: A+


2. Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. This is word-for-word — except for the number of laps led Sunday night — from the race at Dover in May when Harvick finished 15th: Harvick led a race-high 214 laps, and who knows how well he would have done if his pit crew had done its job. Harvick’s grade is an average of his A and his crew’s F. Grade: C


3. Kyle Larson, No. 42 Chevrolet, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. Larson led 45 laps and was in contention to win for the second week in a row. Larson and his team are hitting their stride at the exact right time. Grade: A


4. Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Breaking news: No pit-road penalties for Hamlin or his crew … just their seventh consecutive top-10 finish (5.3 average finish in the streak). Grade: A


5. Joey Logano, No. 22 Ford, Team Penske. Logano doesn’t have a streak to rival Hamlin’s, but he now has top-10 finishes in 11 of his past 13 starts. Grade: A


6. Matt Kenseth, No. 20 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Kenseth was running 14th when he stayed out during the sixth caution and restarted with the lead. He was a fixture in the top 10 the rest of the night. Grade: A


7. Kasey Kahne, No. 5 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. Kahne’s first top-10 finish since Sonoma in June is too little too late. Unless he wins at Richmond, he likely won’t make the Chase. Grade: A


8. Ryan Newman, No. 31 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing. Huge night for Newman. Despite having to start from the back of the field (unapproved adjustments), Newman scored a must-have top 10 and is sitting seven points behind Jamie McMurray for the final spot in the Chase. He came into the race 15 points back. Grade: A+


9. Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Ford, Team Penske. An early vibration and two loose wheels couldn’t keep Keselowski from his 16th top 10 of the season, tying him with Kurt Busch for third most behind Kevin Harvick (20) and Joey Logano (17). Grade: A


10. Chase Elliott, No. 24 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. Elliott did much better on restarts Sunday night, but he lost spots on pit road. Another good run at Richmond should net him a spot in the Chase. He is 24 points ahead of Ryan Newman and 17 ahead of Jamie McMurray. Grade: A-


11. Kyle Busch, No. 18 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Busch missed a top-10 finish at Darlington for the first time since 2011 (also an 11th-place finish). Grade: B


12. Austin Dillon, No. 3 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing. An early pit-road speeding penalty had no bearing on his finish. He is nine points ahead of Jamie McMurray and 16 ahead of Ryan Newman. A good finish at Richmond should clinch a spot in the Chase. But … in five starts at Richmond, Dillion has finished 27th three times and 20th twice. If he runs to form, that might not be good enough. Grade: B –


13. Ryan Blaney, No. 21 Ford, Wood Brothers Racing. Blaney had multiple visits with the wall, had to pit under green for a flat and had a pit-road penalty (for a crew violation) … and still finished 13th. Busy night. Grade: B-


14. Jeff Gordon, No. 88 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. Gordon scored his fourth top-15 finish in five starts for Dale Earnhardt Jr. Grade: B-


15. Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Chevrolet, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. If McMurray misses the Chase by a handful of points, an extra pit stop Sunday night might turn out to be the difference. McMurray had to pit for a second time under caution on Lap 354 for a loose lug nut. Instead of restarting 13th, 13 points to the good on Ryan Newman, McMurray restarted 18th, the last car on the lead lap. Newman finished seven spots better than McMurray and trails McMurray by seven points for the final Chase-eligible spot. Grade: B-


16. Paul Menard, No. 27 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing. Menard did a nice job of moving through the field after starting from the back for unapproved adjustments. But a tire rub late in the race resulted in a flat left rear and Menard losing control of the No. 27 and wiping out Kurt Busch on Lap 327. Still, Menard’s 16th-place finish was his second best in his past nine starts. Grade: B-


17. Chris Buescher, No. 34 Ford, Front Row Motorsports. Buescher is not out of the woods yet. He is 11 points ahead of David Ragan for 30th in the points standings and a spot in the Chase. His task at Richmond is simple: Stay ahead of Ragan or close to him all night. It didn’t happen in the April race at Richmond, however, when Ragan finished 23rd and Buescher 34th, an 11-point difference. How’s that for coincidence? Saturday night should be fun. Grade: B


18. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 17 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing. Stenhouse was the final car on the lead lap. Grade: B


19. Carl Edwards, No. 19 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Edwards finished 19th in the JGR No. 19 Toyota for the third time, the first time this season. That’s three more times than Edwards finished 99th in No. 99 Ford in 11 seasons driving for Jack Roush. Grade: B-


20. Regan Smith, No. 7 Chevrolet, Tommy Baldwin Racing. Smith scored his third-best finish of the season. The other two are top 10s (eighth in the Daytona 500, third last month at Pocono). Grade: B


21. David Ragan, No. 23 Toyota, BK Racing. Despite having to start from the rear of the field because of an engine change, Ragan equaled his third-best finish of the season. Grade: B


22. Clint Bowyer, No. 15 Chevrolet, HScott Motorsports. Contact with Aric Almirola brought out the 10th and final caution. Fortunately for Bowyer, Almirola’s car got the worst of the encounter. Grade:  C


23. AJ Allmendinger, No. 47 Chevrolet, JTG Daugherty Racing. Allmendinger’s run of top-15 finishes ended at four on a night when he completed no laps in the top 15 for the second time this season (Week 4 at Phoenix). Grade: C


24. Danica Patrick, No. 10 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. For the third time this season, and second time in three weeks, Patrick had the second-best finish among the four Stewart-Haas Racing cars. Grade: C


25. Casey Mears, No. 13 Chevrolet, Germain Racing.  GEICO’s “It’s What You Do” fact of the night: RAF, as in “running at the finish.” Did you know only two Sprint Cup drivers who have started all 25 races this season have been running at the finish of each race this season? One is Brad Keselowski. The other is GEICO’s very own Casey Mears. It’s what he does. Grade: C


26. Matt DiBenedetto, No. 83 Toyota, BK Racing. DiBenedetto scored his fourth-best finish of the season, his best at a track more than a mile long. Grade: B+


27. Michael McDowell, No. 95 Chevrolet, Circle Sport-Leavine Family Racing. Despite an early pit-road speeding penalty on his first stop, McDowell posted his best finish at Darlington in five starts. Grade:  C


28. Michael Annett, No. 46 Chevrolet, HScott Motorsports. Annett equaled his fourth-best finish of the season. Grade: C


29. Josh Wise, No. 30 Chevrolet, The Motorsports Group. The theme of the backmarkers continues: Wise also equaled his fourth-best finish of the season. Grade: C


30. Landon Cassill, No. 38 Ford, Front Row Motorsports. Cassill matched his lowest finish at Darlington in six starts. Grade: C


31. Reed Sorenson, No. 55 Chevrolet, Premium Motorsports. Sorenson finished nine laps off the pace. Grade: C


32. Aric Almirola, No. 43 Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports. Almirola was running 20th with 18 laps to go when he got into Clint Bowyer and then Bowyer hit Almirola, sending the No. 43 hard into the wall. Grade: C-


33. Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. The lowlight of Johnson’s night came when he lost control off of Turn 4 on Lap 214 and went for a spin. He ultimately finished 39 laps off the pace and with his 77th finish of 30th of worse in his illustrious Sprint Cup career — which also equals his Cup wins. Who knew? Well, you do now. Grade: F


34. Kurt Busch, No. 41 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. Busch called it a “tough, tough night.” We call it being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Paul Menard was nursing a tire going down, and Busch was next to him when it finally did. The No. 41 suffered major damage, and Busch was left with his second DNF for crashes in three weeks. Grade: C


35. Tony Stewart, No. 14 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. Score one for karma in Stewart’s final race at “The Lady in Black”. In a move few will dispute, Stewart wrecked Brian Scott to bring out the third caution. Then, after battling a cooling issue for a good chunk of the night, Stewart’s engine expired a shade more than 100 laps later. Grade: F


36. Greg Biffle, No. 16 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing. Biffle got loose in Turns 3 and 4 and hit the wall to bring out the sixth caution. The No. 16 returned to the track but was through after 295 laps run, giving Biffle his sixth DNF, tying a season high with 11 races remaining in 2016. Grade: F


37. Cole Whitt, No. 98 Chevrolet, Premium Motorsports. Electrical issues cut short Whitt’s night after 250 laps run. Grade: F


38. Jeffrey Earnhardt, No. 32 Ford, Go Fas Racing. Earnhardt hit the wall literally and figuratively on Lap 250. Grade: F


39. Brian Scott, No. 44 Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports. Scott was running 24th on Lap 204 when Tony Stewart took exception to something Scott did or was doing and turned the No. 44, sending it crashing into the inside wall. Maybe Scott wasn’t handling his car as well as ‘Smoke’ thought he should. But no one will dispute how well Scott handled himself in his interview on NBC afterward. Grade: B


40. Trevor Bayne, No. 6 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing. Bayne brought out the first caution when he went for a spin trying to get to pit road on Lap 95. But it was his engine that ended his night after 161 laps, leaving Bayne with his first DNF of the season. Grade: F

Posted on by Staff Report

Joe Gibbs Racing product and NASCAR Next driver Matt Tifft appears to be progressing in his recovery from brain surgery to remove a tumor, posting a photo on his Twitter account Monday showing him in full gear and in the cockpit of a race car — with the all-important thumbs-up.

 

After jumping in a go-kart on Sunday, Tifft tested a late model at Hickory Motor Speedway. He originally had planned to test last month, but confirmed to NASCAR.com that Monday’s test was his first action.

 

The team announced in June that the 20-year-old would undergo surgery for a low-grade glioma in the brain, which he did in early July. 

 

Tifft tweeted an upbeat video following the surgery and updated his condition last month, addressing the media at Bristol Motor Speedway.

 

RELATED: Tifft has renewed passion after brain surgery