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RELATED: Full race results | Standings | Chase Grid
 

Breaking down the full field for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway:

1. Martin Truex Jr., No. 78 Toyota, Furniture Row Racing. This season’s most-dominant driver on 1.5-mile tracks overcomes a tire issue in the first half of the race and then roars to the victory in overtime after his team gets him off pit road one spot ahead of Chase Elliott on the final stop. Grade: A+  

2. Joey Logano, No. 22 Ford, Team Penske. Logano lined up sixth on the final restart and did the next-best thing to winning the race. And in the Chase, that’s huge. Grade: A

3. Chase Elliott, No. 24 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. Sooo close. If not for the caution with four laps to go, we’d likely be toasting Elliott. And blaming his pit crew for not getting him out ahead of Martin Truex Jr. on the final stop? Not here. As Elliott said after the race, you don’t know how many drivers are going to stay out. If Carl Edwards pits, it’s Elliott on the outside of Row 2, not Truex. Grade: A

4. Ryan Blaney, No. 21 Ford, Wood Brothers Racing. All the issues the No. 21 team had on pit road vanished when Michael McDowell’s right-front tire exploded and littered the track with debris with four laps to go, setting up NASCAR overtime. Blaney stayed out and restarted first. He was no match for Truex and his four new tires — but no one else was, either. Grade: A

5. Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Ford, Team Penske. Keselowski’s average running position of 3.2 was second only to Chase Elliott’s 3.1. Grade: A


6. Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Another top-10 finish — his ninth in a row — also ties Hamlin with Geoff Bodine for 36th all time with 190 top 10s. Grade: A

7. Kasey Kahne, No. 5 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. Kahne stayed out for the final restart and lined up second, but his old tires were no match for the competition. Still the right call, and Kahne now has three consecutive top 10s for the first time since 2014. Grade: A

8. Kyle Busch, No. 18 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Busch started from the pole, led the first 21 laps and was a mainstay in the top five until a pit-road speeding penalty Lap 172. Grade: A-

9. Matt Kenseth, No. 20 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Kenseth was running 10th when he was caught speeding on pit road during the second caution. Grade: A-

10. Alex Bowman, No. 88 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. In his third start in place of Dale Earnhardt Jr., Bowman earned his first career top 10 (74th start). Grade: A

11. Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Chevrolet, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. McMurray hung around the top 10 all day and moved up five spots in the Chase standings to 11th. That’s a good start and would put him in position to advance to the next round if he can maintain that spot. Grade: B

12. Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. Johnson caught the break of the day when he pitted just before the first caution came out and exited the pits right before race leader Martin Truex Jr. crossed the start-finish line (enabling Johnson to not only stay on the lead lap, but also restart first). Then he squandered it all, including a race-high 118 laps led, when he was caught speeding on pit road during a green-flag pit stop on Lap 234. Grade: C-

13. Kurt Busch, No. 41 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. Busch’s average finish in the first 18 races was 9.1 (15 top 10s). In the next nine it’s double — 18.2 (two top 10s). If Busch has any chance at a second Sprint Cup championship, he needs to turn things around. On the other hand, he did improve two spots in the standings to 10th. Grade: B

14. Austin Dillon, No. 3 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing. Dillon finished a respectable 14th Sunday. But in Chaseland, that’s not going to cut it. The No. 3 team needs to find more speed. Grade: B

15. Carl Edwards, No. 19 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Edwards stayed out on the final caution and restarted third … and in the two-lap sprint to the finish dropped 12 spots. Ouch. Grade: B

16. Tony Stewart, No. 14 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. Stewart caught a break when he got the free pass back to the lead lap on the last caution. No one knows better than Stewart — other than Carl Edwards, perhaps (see 2011 Chase) — how important every point is in the Chase. Grade: B

17. AJ Allmendinger, No. 47 Chevrolet, JTG Daugherty Racing. Allmendinger scored his best finish at Chicagoland since finishing 14th in 2010. Grade: B

18. Kyle Larson, No. 42 Chevrolet, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. Larson started in the rear of the field (transmission change) but had worked his way into the top 10 and was looking at a remarkable day when he had to make a green-flag pit stop on Lap 260 because of an issue with his right front tire. Tough break. But it was the right call. Had it gone flat and exploded (like Michael McDowell’s), it would have been disastrous to his Chase chances. Instead, he’s only two points behind 12th-place Tony Stewart. Grade: B-

19. Ryan Newman, No. 31 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing. Newman’s finish was his worst at Chicagoland since a 22nd-place effort in 2010. He’d had seven top 10s in his previous nine starts at the track. Grade: B-

20. Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. About two feet separated Harvick from an awesome day and the mediocre one he experienced. Harvick was in the pits when the first caution came out, but unlike Jimmie Johnson, Harvick didn’t reach the end of pit road before leader Martin Truex Jr. crossed the start-finish line. Harvick was about two feet short. Instead of restarting second, he restarted 20th, the first car a lap down — and he never made it back to the lead lap. And this was the driver who had started in the rear of the field (unapproved adjustments) and was putting on a show zipping his way into the top 10 in less than 40 laps. Tough, tough break. Grade: A

21. Paul Menard, No. 27 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing. Not a competitive day for Menard, who started 26th and ran only eight laps in the top 15, his fewest at Chicagoland since he had zero in his first race at the track in 2007. Grade: C

22. Clint Bowyer, No. 15 Chevrolet, HScott Motorsports. It’s OK to try this at home, kids: Bowyer finished 22nd for the third straight week. Grade: C

23. Trevor Bayne, No. 6 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing. Bayne’s finish was in line with his three previous finishes at Chicagoland — 23rd, 20th and 28th. Grade: C

24. Danica Patrick, No. 10 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. Patrick turned only three laps in the top 15, but it was three more than last year at Chicagoland. In her five starts at Chicagoland, Patrick has raced in the top 15 in only 25 of her 1,332 laps. Grade: C-

25. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 17 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing. Stenhouse posted his worst finish at Chicagoland in four starts. Grade: C-

26. Greg Biffle, No. 16 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing. Chicagoland was Biffle’s worst track when he arrived (one top 10 in 13 starts), and his 14th start didn’t change anything. Grade: C-

27. Ty Dillon, No. 7 Chevrolet, Tommy Baldwin Racing. Dillon was making his ninth start of the season and 16th of his career — but first subbing for Regan Smith, who was home awaiting the birth of his second child. Good call by Smith. Regan and his wife, Megan, had a girl Sunday, Eliza Grace Smith. Congrats. Grade: B (as in baby)

28. Chris Buescher, No. 34 Ford, Front Row Motorsports. Lack of speed, including the inability to make the car faster as the race progressed, was the culprit in the rookie’s first Chase race. Grade: C-

29. Landon Cassill, No. 38 Ford, Front Row Motorsports. Cassill finished three laps back, aided by a pit-road speeding penalty on Lap 53. Grade: C-

30. Matt DiBenedetto, No. 83 Toyota, BK Racing. DiBenedetto finished three laps off the pace. Grade: D

31. Brian Scott, No. 44 Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports. Scott brought out the second caution when he lost control in Turn 4 and went for a spin. Grade: D-

32. Aric Almirola, No. 43 Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports. Almirola had to start in the rear of the field (unapproved adjustments), and then his team caused the first caution when one of the car’s tires got loose during a pit stop and rolled across pit road and onto the grass. Grade: F

33. Michael Annett, No. 46 Chevrolet, HScott Motorsports. Annett finished five laps off the pace. Grade D

34. Casey Mears, No. 13 Chevrolet, Germain Racing. Mears was penalized for speeding on pit road on Lap 103 and then penalized again for speeding while serving the pass-through penalty. Grade: D-

35. David Ragan, No. 23 Toyota, BK Racing. Ragan nailed his day in his tweet: “Had too many speeding penalties and not enough time to make up ground.” He had two. Grade: F

36. Cole Whitt, No. 98 Chevrolet, Premium Motorsports. Whitt finished seven laps back. Grade: F

37. Michael McDowell, No. 95 Chevrolet, Circle Sport-Leavine Family Racing. McDowell changed the outcome of the race when his right-front tire exploded, spewing debris across the track and bringing out the fourth and final caution with four laps left in regulation. Grade: F

38. Josh Wise, No. 30 Chevrolet, The Motorsports Group. Wise was already seven laps down when the No. 30 team was penalized for an uncontrolled tire during the third caution on Lap 194. Grade: F

39. Reed Sorenson, No. 55 Chevrolet, Premium Motorsports. One week after getting his second-best finish over the past two seasons (26th at Richmond), Sorenson finished 13 laps back. Grade: F

40. Joey Gase, No. 32 Ford, Go Fas Racing. Gase finished 16 laps back in his fourth start of the season and 11th of his career. Grade: F

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Watch the live stream here | Chicagoland results | Standings 


NASCAR.com will live stream post-race inspection Tuesday from 8-11:30 a.m. ET at the NASCAR Research & Development Center in Concord, North Carolina.


Tune in for a three-hour view of the inspection floor of the 61,000-square-foot shop, bringing you behind the scenes as NASCAR officials tear down and inspect Sprint Cup Series vehicles following Sunday’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway.


The cars selected for further evaluation at the R&D Center this week are:


— The No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota of race-winner Martin Truex Jr.
— The No. 22 Team Penske Ford of second-place finisher Joey Logano.
— The No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet of third-place finisher Chase Elliott. 

For more details about the inspection process, click here.

Posted on by Staff Report

Weather has impacted Texas Motor Speedway before, but never like this.

 

Lightning struck the facility’s infield road course during a weekend storm, creating a large hole that sent asphalt spraying — some as far as 150 feet, a TMS spokesman told the Star-Telegram of Fort Worth.

 

 

Crews were busy at work Monday morning patching it. The infield road was the only area of the track hit during the deluge — “Bog Hoss,” the massive, 10-story tall video screen, was unaffected.

 

The infield road course sits on the inside of the track’s 1.5-mile oval, which was not struck by lightning. The track will host the second race in the Round of 8 of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup on Nov. 6.

 

The track’s Twitter account had a bit of fun with the incident, too.

 

Where there’s lightning, there’s … ‘Smoke?’

Posted on by Staff Report

Furniture Row Racing said in a team release Monday that it accepts NASCAR’s failed post-race inspection ruling, while also citing on-track contact with the No. 4 Chevrolet of Kevin Harvick as the likely reason for being out of compliance.


“The right rear of our car was well within the tolerance margin, which showed that we were trying to be conservative,” the statement read. “However, the left rear wheel alignment was off by approximately ten-thousandths of an inch, which in high probability was due to damage in that area as a result of being hit by the No. 4 car.


“We believe the laser inspection numbers were correct and accept NASCAR’s decision that was made following Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway.”


Truex Jr.’s race-winning No. 78 Toyota, along with the No. 48 Chevrolet of Jimmie Johnson, failed post-race inspection after Sunday’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series opener at Chicagoland Speedway.


NASCAR recently updated its rules for “encumbered” victory penalties during the postseason, but those are not be in effect for Truex Jr. because it was the lowest grade of failure for the LIS platform.


Any penalties will be announced later in the week, according to NASCAR.

Posted on by Staff Report

Following the release of NASCAR Heat Evolution, BK Racing announced Monday that it has teamed with game developer Dusenberry Martin Racing to sponsor Matt DiBenedetto‘s No. 83 Toyota Camry at New Hampshire Motor Speedway this weekend.


“We are proud to showcase the NASCAR Heat Evolution game on Matt’s car this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway,” said BK Racing CMO Doug Fritz in a team release. “Dusenberry Martin Racing is a great partner for everyone in NASCAR and we’re excited to feature three BK Racing cars in the game.”


NASCAR Heat Evolution will adorn DiBenedetto’s ride for Sunday’s New England 300 (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at the “Magic Mile.”


NASCAR Heat Evolution connects fans more than ever before. A new online competitive multiplayer feature supports a full field of up to 40 racers, a NASCAR video game first. Gamers can race as and against the top drivers and teams of today. Users can enter their rookie season and race for a spot in The Chase, relive classic NASCAR moments, or make new ones.


“Dusenberry Martin Racing is proud to partner with Toyota Racing and BK Racing with our brand new NASCAR Heat Evolution video game,” said Tom Dusenberry, DMR Chief Executive Officer. “Matt DiBenedetto is an authentic gamer, talented driver, and we are excited to have him represent the NASCAR Heat Evolution game on track at Loudon. Fans can race the with the No. 83 Toyota Camry in NASCAR Heat Evolution on Xbox One, PlayStation®4, and PC. Pick up your copy today!”

NASCAR Heat Evolution is now available in North American stores for $59.99 as a retail and digital release on the PlayStation®4 system, Xbox One and Windows PC. This title is rated E (Everyone) by the ESRB.

Posted on by Nascar

RELATED: Full race results | Updated Chase Grid

 

JOLIET, Ill. — With the laps winding down and Chase Elliott out front, NASCAR’s opening race of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup appeared to be headed to a surprising start.

 

Was Elliott, the son of a former champion and the future of Hendrick Motorsports thinking about victory? About win No. 1 in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series and a sure-fire ticket into the next round of eliminations, perhaps?

 

No way.

 

Instead, as he leaned against his No. 24 Chevrolet afterward, a soft drink upside down in his hand and its contents leaking slowly onto pit road, he said he was thinking “that a caution was probably going to come out.”

 

It did.

 

And in the scramble on and off pit road, mixed in with the calls by some to stay out and risk worn tires versus fresh ones, Elliott, 20, emerged fifth instead of first.

 

With only two laps — three miles — to try and get back into the lead.

 

He didn’t.

 

“That’s a fact of life,” said Elliott, who finished third, of the late caution. “I guess fortunately and unfortunately I’ve raced long enough to know that these races don’t go green for that long period of time.

 

“We see more late-race cautions than we do not; that’s just the world we live in. It was expected; it’s going to happen.”

 

Elliott led three times, his blue Chevrolet out front for 75 of the race’s 270 laps. It was not the first time victory had seemingly been stripped from his grasp.

 

Martin Truex Jr., Sunday’s winner of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, said he knew what Elliott must be feeling. The Furniture Row Racing driver has had his share of dominating runs end in disappointment.

 

“First off, I want to say I feel for Chase,” Truex said. “I know what he’s going through. He did a great job. I wasn’t going to catch him. I was catching him, but I was not catching him enough to pass him in five more laps.

 

“So I know what he’s going through. But obviously he did a good job and they were really fast today. We had to come from behind.”

 

Elliott, who started 14th on the 40-car grid when rain forced officials to cancel qualifying on Friday, wasn’t out of the top 10 for long. Or the top five, for that matter, settling in for the duration after only a little more than 40 laps had been completed.

 

He gave notice of his car’s speed with a 57-lap stint out front (from laps 178-234), and lost the spot only during a final round of green-flag stops. By Lap 249, he was back on top and keeping a manageable advantage on the rest of the field.

 

But when Michael McDowell blew a tire to put the race under caution just four laps from the end of regulation, Elliott’s lead suddenly evaporated.

 

“They had no choice,” crew chief Alan Gustafson said of the call by NASCAR officials to display the yellow flag.

 

“It’s just frustrating because it’s not determined by the people who should determine the outcome of the race,” Gustafson continued. “It’s racing. It’s why this is one of the most humbling sports in the world. You can do everything right — there are some things we could have done better, that we have to clean up. But at the end of the day it’s frustrating to have it won and … whatever. It’s over.

 

“We didn’t execute the last pit stop and (the 78 of Truex) beat us out. We can work on that. (Our) guys did an awesome job today; I’m really proud of their pit stops. A little hiccup; obviously it came at the wrong time, but we’ll work on it.”

 

After the first of three Chase races that make up the Round of 16, Elliott sits sixth in points. The series moves on to New Hampshire and then Dover before the bottom four drivers are eliminated and the Round of 12 begins.

 

There were positives to take away from the almost-win.

 

“I feel like we did a good job trying to control the things that we could control today,” Elliott said. “We had a good car, something to be proud of. We can’t control when they’re (yellow flags) going to come out or who is going to stay out on tires or where you’re going to line up on restarts. That stuff is just life; (you) move on.”

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Find NBCSN in your area | Find CNBC | Watch live online at NBCSports.com

The NASCAR Sprint Cup and Camping World Truck Series will gather for a doubleheader showing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway this weekend. The XFINITY Series will race at Kentucky Speedway. Check out the full schedule below.


Note: All times are ET


SUNDAY, SEPT. 25:

ON TRACK: New Hampshire

–1:25 p.m.: NCSC Driver Introductions with NASCAR Special Awards

–1:58 p.m.: Canadian National Anthem by Kirk Young

–2:00 p.m.: Presentation of Colors by New Hampshire State Police Honor Guard and Combined Services Military Color Guard

–2:00:20 p.m.: Invocation by Dustin Pari, actor on the show “Ghost Hunters”

–2:01 p.m.: National Anthem by Daniel M. Clark, U.S. Marine Corps veteran and retired Massachusetts state trooper

–2:02:30 p.m.: Fly-by, two F-15s from Massachusetts ANG 104

–2:07:30 p.m.: “Drivers, Start Your Engines” by Kevin Holleran, president of Textron Specialized Vehicles 

— 2:15 p.m.: Start of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bad Boy Off Road 300 (300 laps, 317.4 miles), NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results)


PRESS CONFERENCE (Watch live)
— 5 p.m. (approximately): NASCAR Sprint Cup Series post race press conference


DAILY ROUNDUP

— At-track photos: Sunday, New Hampshire

— Full schedule for Dover and Las Vegas

— Harvick charges to New Hampshire with late-race surge

— Kenseth: ‘The last restart is my fault’

— Chase bubble watch: Harvick, Stewart head in opposite directions 

— Stewart’s Fathead makes appearance during Harvick’s post-race presser

— Edwards rallies to sixth-place finish after Loudon penalty

— All 16 Chase cars pass post-race inspection


FRIDAY, SEPT. 23:

ON TRACK: New Hampshire

— 11:30 a.m.-12:55 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series first practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results)

— 1:45-2:40 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series first practice, FS1 (Results)

— 3:30-4:25 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series final practice, FS1 (Results)

— 4:45 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results)

GARAGECAM: New Hampshire

— 11 a.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (Watch live)

— 1 p.m. NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (Watch live)

PRESS CONFERENCES (Watch live)

—10:15 a.m.: Joey Logano

—10:30 a.m.: Matt Kenseth

—11 a.m.: John Hunter Nemechek

—11:15 a.m.: William Byron

—1:05 p.m.: Carl Edwards

—3 p.m.: Austin Dillon

—5:30 p.m.(approximately): NASCAR Sprint Cup Series post qualifying press conference


ON TRACK: Kentucky

— 3:30-4:25 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series first practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results)

— 6-7:25 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series final practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results)


DAILY ROUNDUP

— Five to Watch: XFINITY Chase 

— Dillon wrecks in Larson-led practice 

— At-track photos: Friday, New Hampshire and Kentucky

— Second-best thrills Logano as he readies for Chase long haul

— Nemechek, Byron ready for anything in Truck Chase

— Truex, Harvick discuss on-track Chicago contact

— Rhodes, Crafton sweep Friday’s practices

— Drivers rally from pre-qualifying hang-ups

— Drivers react to social unrest in Charlotte

— Edwards earns Coors Light Pole Award at New Hampshire

— See the full lineup for Sunday

— Full XFINITY practice results

— Snapshot: Sunday’s event

SATURDAY, SEPT. 24:

ON TRACK: New Hampshire

— 9-9:55 a.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series second practice, CNBC/NBC Sports App (Results)

— 10:10 a.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying, FS1 (Results)

— 11:30 a.m.-12:20 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series final practice, CNBC/NBC Sports App (Results)

— 1 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series UNOH 175 (175 laps, 185.15 miles), FS1 (Results)


PRESS CONFERENCE (Watch live)
— 3 p.m. (approximately): NASCAR Camping World Truck Series post race press conference

ON TRACK: Kentucky

— 4:45 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results)

— 8 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series VisitMyrtleBeach.com (200 laps, 300 miles), NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results)

DAILY ROUNDUP

— Larson sweeps Cup practices at New Hampshire
— Phone call changes Johnson’s Chase outlook
— Byron wins Trucks Chase opener at New Hampshire
— Top 10 consecutive lap averages at New Hampshire
— Nemechek fails post-race inspection

— Runner-up Bell: ‘Just got to keep digging’

— Jones earns 21 Means 21 Pole Award at Kentucky

— Sadler wins first XFINITY Chase race in caution-filled night

— Jones, Dillon’s Chase positions in trouble post-Kentucky

Posted on by Staff Report

While most of NASCAR was either watching or participating in the opening Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday, No. 7 Tommy Baldwin Racing driver Regan Smith was busy welcoming his daughter, Eliza Grace Smith, to the world.


Smith tweeted a photo of the couple’s new bundle of joy pictured with wife, Megan, saying, “The two most beautiful girls I’ve ever laid my eyes on. We welcomed Eliza Grace Smith to the world this afternoon.”



Smith had shared an early photo from the couple’s hospital room during Sunday’s race, noting that the two still were cheering on the No. 7 — being piloted by Ty Dillon — while his wife was in labor.

RELATED: T. Dillon subs for Regan Smith at Chicagoland



This is the couple’s second child together. The pair welcomed their son, Rheet Lee Smith, on Feb. 25, 2015.

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Full race results | O’Donnell discusses post-race process

 

The No. 78 Toyota of race winner Martin Truex Jr. and the No. 48 Chevrolet of Jimmie Johnson failed post-race inspection Sunday following the opening race in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

 

Both cars failed during both trips through the Laser Inspection System (LIS). Any penalties will be announced later in the week, according to NASCAR.

 

“It is what it is,” No. 78 crew chief Cole Pearn said post-race in the Sprint Cup garage. “Kind of a bummer on the day, but whatever, you know. We’ll move on. … It’s just really tricky. It’s just the repeatability. Things relax. It’s not the stiffest suspension back there, by any means. You try to account for that and prevent it and we missed it. We missed it two weeks in a row, which is kind of crappy.”

 

This is the second consecutive week the No. 78 failed post-race LIS.

 

RELATED: No. 78 fails Richmond post-race | Team assessed P2 penalty

 

Previous LIS violations have produced either 10- or 15-point deductions during the regular season. NASCAR recently updated its rules for “encumbered” victory penalties during the postseason, but those would not be in effect for Truex Jr. because it was the lowest grade of failure for the LIS platform.

 

“The right rear of our car was well within the tolerance margin, which showed that we were trying to be conservative,” Furniture Row Racing announced in a team release on Monday. “However, the left rear wheel alignment was off by approximately ten-thousandths of an inch, which in high probability was due to damage in that area as a result of being hit by the No. 4 car. We believe the laser inspection numbers were correct and accept NASCAR’s decision that was made following Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway.”

 

RELATED: Read more about the rules updates

 

Kyle Busch‘s No. 18 Toyota failed its first trip through the LIS platform, but passed the second. That does not equal a failed post-race inspection.

 

Additionally, the No. 16 Ford of Greg Biffle was missing one lug nut after the race and the No. 43 Ford of Aric Almirola had a broken stud.

 

The Nos. 78, 22 (of Joey Logano) and 24 (of Chase Elliott) will undergo further scrutiny at the weekly post-race inspection at the R&D Center in Concord, North Carolina, on Tuesday. That event will be live-streamed on NASCAR.com.

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Full starting lineup

 

Kyle Larson was forced to start his No. 42 Chevrolet from the rear of the field in today’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup opener at Chicagoland Speedway (2:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), and Kevin Harvick joined him in the back just before the race started.

 

Larson’s Chip Ganassi Racing team had to change the transmission in his Chevy early Sunday morning, which sends him to the back of the pack. That news came early in the day; Harvick’s move to the rear, due to unapproved adjustments, wasn’t confirmed until approximately 2:25 p.m. ET, about 20 minutes before the green flag.

 

Larson led both practice sessions on Saturday, and he will be credited with an official starting position of 10th, where he would have lined up had the car change not been needed. Harvick was slated to start fourth.