Posted on by Staff Report

Editor’s Note: Clinching scenarios courtesy of NASCAR statistical services

RELATED: See the Chase Grid

Below are the finishes each driver/owner/manufacturer needs in this weekend’s races at Homestead-Miami Speedway to clinch their respective championships, regardless of the finish of any other driver/car/manufacturer.

 

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

 

• Driver: The first to the finish line among the Championship 4 — Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr. — will win the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver championship.

 

• Owner: The same rule applies to the owner championship, which involves the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet.

 

• Manufacturer: Chevrolet has officially clinched the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Manufacturer’s Championship.

 

NASCAR XFINITY Series

 

• Driver: Chris Buescher leads Chase Elliott by 18 points. He will clinch the 2015 NASCAR XFINITY Series driver championship with a finish of 13th or better; or 14th with at least one lap led; or 15th and the most laps led.

 

• Owner: The No. 22 Team Penske Ford has officially clinched the 2015 NASCAR XFINITY Series owner championship.

 

• Manufacturer:  Ford leads Chevrolet by six points. Ford will clinch the Bill France Performance Award if its top-finishing car finishes second while leading at least one lap.

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

 

• Driver: Erik Jones leads Tyler Reddick by 19 points. Jones will clinch the 2015 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver championship with a finish of 15th or better; or 16th with at least one lap led; or 17th and the most laps led.

 

• Owner: The No. 4 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota leads the No. 19 Brad Keselowski Racing Ford by 19 points. The No. 4 will clinch the owner championship with a finish of 15th or better; 16th with at least one lap led; or 17th and the most laps led.

 

• Manufacturer: Toyota has officially clinched the 2015 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series manufacturer championship.

Posted on by Staff Report

Jeff Gordon came to Homestead-Miami Speedway with the chance to do something remarkable; win his fifth Cup title in his final full-time season. He finished the race in sixth place but there was plenty to remember about the weekend for the four-time champion. Catch up on everything No. 24 here — and check back every day, as NASCAR.com will continue to add content regularly about the four-time champion’s last ride.

 

— Where Gordon stacks up all-time in NASCAR

— Gordon: Hendrick ‘more than just a car owner’

— Cain: Gordon walks away on cloud nine even without title

— Drivers react to Gordon’s final ride

— Gordon’s last ride in photos

— Gordon parks car for final time

 

— Gordon: ‘We’re still going to celebrate’

 

— Gordon finishes sixth in final race

 

— Gordon on McMurray: ‘I’m punting his ass’

 

— Gordon takes the lead on restart

 

— Crew members salute Gordon as he leaves pit road 

 

— Fans salute Gordon with card trick

 

— Gordon honored in eventful final 2015 drivers’ meeting


— Watch: Final introduction of Gordon


— Watch: Gordon walks to car for one last time

— Watch: Gordon greets family and friends at car

— Chronicling Gordon’s final race

— Gordon’s iconic career coming to a glorious close


— Photo gallery: Gordon through the years

 

— Tale of the Tape: 1995 Gordon vs. 2015 Gordon

 

— Gordon’s top-24 moments during his NASCAR career

— Gordon’s best paint schemes of all-time

— Gordon honored at drivers’ meeting

— Cain: My dinner with Gordon

— Capsule look at Gordon’s four championships

— Homestead could be ‘fairy-tale ending for Gordon

— Teammates pay tribute with paint schemes

— Drivers offer favorite Gordon memories

— Gustafson remains focused for Gordon’s final race

— Inside Access with MSC: Crew chiefs on Gordon’s farewell

— Gordon flips the script, gives gift

— ‘Dirty Air’ crew talks Gordon’s drive for five

— Comparing Gordon, other NASCAR greats in final year

— Hendrick: Tried to keep Jeff a few more years

— Kraft’s Korner: Going out on top rare but ideal

— Send your personal message to Gordon

— Title would be ‘poetic justice’ for Gordon

— NASCAR nation honors Gordon with #24Ever

 

—Larson’s touching tribute to Gordon


— Evernham expects Gordon to capture title

Posted on by Pat DeCola
Harvick just needed to get to Homestead — which he did by virtue of a second-place finish at Phoenix — to emerge once again as the favorite to win the 2015 Sprint Cup Series title.

MORE: Harvick headed back to Homestead

Gordon comes into Homestead on a hot streak and actually has a good shot at finding Victory Lane. The four-time champ won there as recently as 2012.

MORE: Comparing Gordon to other greats

https://www.nascar.com/drivers/kyle-busch/
KyleBusch
Joe Gibbs Racing
Busch has overcome the odds to even make it this far (see: 11 races missed due to injury), but don’t expect him to be playing with house money. His No. 18 Toyota will be among the strongest cars Sunday.

MORE: Busch takes huge step in journey

The undisputed underdog story, Truex continues to amaze by advancing his single-car team this far. Not many will pick him to win Sunday, but not many picked him to still be alive in the Chase, either.
Logano has to deal with the heartbreak of what could’ve been — he had the strongest car entering the Eliminator Round until, well, you know — but is likely to give the four drivers ahead of him a run for their money at Homestead.
https://www.nascar.com/drivers/dale-earnhardt-jr/
DaleEarnhardt Jr.
4
Hendrick Motorsports
Junior added yet another high note to his 2015 season with a win at Phoenix and was perhaps the most consistently excellent driver in the Eliminator Round, despite having previously been knocked out of the Chase.

MORE: Junior wins rain-shortened Phoenix race

Busch had what looked to be the strongest car at Phoenix, but lost his shot at the lead — and advancement — when he was black-flagged from the start of the race for beating pole-winner Jimmie Johnson to the line.

MORE: Busch left with sour taste

https://www.nascar.com/drivers/brad-keselowski/
BradKeselowski
-2
Team Penske
After winning his first Sprint Cup Series title in 2012, Keselowski has yet to be in contention for a second at Homestead since.
Edwards might’ve been a major factor at Homestead with two wins and an average finish of 9.1. He still might be, but it won’t count for much more than a race trophy.
https://www.nascar.com/drivers/denny-hamlin/
DennyHamlin
1
Joe Gibbs Racing
Like his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate above him, Hamlin is exceptional at Homestead — perhaps the pair will do what they can play spoiler to Harvick, Gordon and Truex and help out teammate Busch, who is still in the hunt.
https://www.nascar.com/drivers/jimmie-johnson/
JimmieJohnson
-2
Hendrick Motorsports
Johnson placed fifth at Phoenix, but started on the pole. We’ve grown accustomed to Johnson being perfect over the years, so, you know, down two spots.
With two races to simmer while 19-year-old Erik Jones piloted his ride, expect Kenseth to come out roaring at Homestead.

MORE: France, Kenseth meet

This time last year, Newman was focusing on Homestead, where a title shot was his. This year, he’s focusing on next year.
McMurray continues to perform well in the latter half of the Chase and should use that momentum to build on next year. Then again, that’s what we thought last season, too.
For a little while, it looked like Menard was going to notch his second top 10 in four races, but wound up finishing just outside of it.
https://www.nascar.com/drivers/clint-bowyer/
ClintBowyer
Stewart-Haas Racing
Bowyer will look to end his MWR career on a high note as the organization will field cars for the final time at Homestead.
Posted on by Pat DeCola

RELATED: After the Lap Sweepstakes

One of the year’s hottest events, NASCAR After The Lap Sponsored by Ford and Sprint (streaming on NASCAR.com Dec. 3), will be hosted by motorsports TV personalities Courtney Hansen and Rutledge Wood. Hansen recently chatted with NASCAR.com’s Pat DeCola to talk about the event, Jeff Gordon and her impressive car collection.

Pat DeCola: So, you’ve got After the Lap coming up. It’s always a good time — you excited?

Courtney Hansen: I’ve done some work with NASCAR and NASCAR.com in the past and of course I’m a huge fan and they know that and I’m good friends with Rutledge Wood. I think NASCAR felt it would be a great fit and I’m thrilled to be taking part in After the Lap — the most unpredictable time of the year in motorsports. 

PD: Definitely. It wasn’t that long ago that we saw Jeff Gordon break dance, so drivers really tend to be a little relaxed.

CH: I love it, I love it. Apparently there’s a little bit of alcohol involved so you never know what’s going to happen. I think it’s really fun for the drivers let loose in that way and get personal in a way that fans never get to see. 

PD: Exactly; for 36 races a year, things are so tense. Especially when you get to the Chase when things really tighten up. The past few weeks have been especially crazy.

CH: They’re so wound up and focused all year, they finally get a chance to let loose in Vegas and have fun with their fans. I think it’s awesome.

PD: You come from a pretty deep racing background. I hear your family even used to own a race track.

CH: Yes, we used to own Brainerd International Raceway in Minnesota so I grew up there a pit kid and my father (Jerry Hansen; three career Sprint Cup Series starts) raced Sports Car Club of America and won 27 national SCCA championships so my whole life was just going from one track from the next and spending a whole lot of time at BIR. I’ve been an enthusiast since I was born and (motorsports) is definitely in my blood. 

Because of hosting all these automotive shows and working with NASCAR and doing auto show appearances all over the country, I’ve had the chance to learn so much about cars and see the coolest cars on the planet and get to know a lot of the amazing people in the automotive world. The love just grows stronger and the passion runs deeper every day. It’s an addiction for me.

PD: Have you done any racing yourself?

CH: You know, my parents forbid it. They’re both very supportive people and they gave us a lot of love and support over the years but they just steered us away from motorsports. They would let us do anything besides race. Because that was always deterred, I never went that route but my brother did a little bit of racing and my sister was always wanting to race NASCAR. I’m a good driver, though. Whenever somebody sees me drive they say, “Oh, you’re actually a woman who can drive and I’m like — hey now!” 

But I’ve test driven cars. I test drove Lamborghinis at Homestead with magazine editors and other things like that. You know, I’ve driven cars around race tracks, but I’ve never done professional racing. 

PD: So you’ve probably got a killer daily driver then.

CH: I’ve got a couple. I’m all about the American classics. Those are my favorite in the mix. I have a ’57 (Ford) Thunderbird with numbers matching the original. I have a ’70 (Chevrolet Camaro) Z-28 that is also numbers matching original. I have a ’70 (Ford Mustang) Mach 1 that I got from DJ Funk Master Flex. I have yet to pick it up; I’m picking it up in New York on Thanksgiving weekend. I have an Aston Martin DB9 that’s like my reliable daily driver when I want to get quickly around Los Angeles. And then I have a baby-friendly SUV … Range Rover Sport that’s super-charged. And then (automotive designer) Chip Foose tricked out a 2004 Thunderbird for me. Now I’m looking for a MOPAR; a MOPAR will round out the equation.

PD: Those all sound really cool. I drive a Honda Accord. Did you have a favorite driver growing up?

CH: My dad! No, I mean, of course I was young, but I loved Richard Petty. I’ve always loved Mario Andretti, who’s a dear family friend. Dale Earnhardt Jr. … I totally support him and would love to see him win a championship. My dad was always number one, though. I also loved Paul Newman, the actor. He’s a very close family friend and my dad taught him how to race. He actually stayed at our cabin in Minnesota for like 20 years and raced Trans-Am Series with my dad … I loved watching Paul Newman race and he was a very good racer.

PD: Jeff Gordon has a final shot at a fifth championship this Sunday at Homestead. As a long time fan of the sport, what does Gordon mean to you?

CH: Absolutely (I’m a fan). Jeff Gordon is a legend in the sport and he has such a huge fan base. It would be amazing to see him go out with a bang and win the championship. I don’t think anybody would be disappointed by that. I think it’d be phenomenal to see him win one last championship and go out with a bang. 

I wish Dale was still in the Chase, of course. He was so close. It was disappointing. I think he’s got a championship in his future and he’s going to have a killer next season. I like all the drivers so it’s hard for me to say I’d like to see one win over the other, but I definitely think the fans would love it and I would love to see Jeff clinch another title before he retires.

I interviewed him years ago at Martinsville  when I was doing some hosting with NASCAR and he said a quote — and maybe it’s been said before by various people — but I just loved the way that Jeff said it. I said, “What does it feel like to go 200 mph?” and he said, “The rush isn’t about the speed. The rush is when you’re faster than everybody else.” I loved that he said that. I loved that quote. 

PD: When you’re on the stage hosting After the Lap, that’s probably going to be one of the first times where Joey Logano and Matt Kenseth have been forced to interact since their run-in — do you plan on playing into that at all?

CH: I think if the drivers are cool with it — I imagine they’ll both have their opinions and their stance on the topic — and the fans are definitely going to want to dive into that one … I’ll roll with it. I’ll keep it light and fun. I think the job of Rutledge and I is to manage the crowd and interact with the drivers and facilitate the questions in a way that keeps everything lighthearted and fun. Ultimately, that’s what it’s about. If it starts to get negative or contentious or if there’s an energy that’s not welcomed in that arena, we’ll steer it in a positive direction, but I think it’ll definitely be brought up. It’s one of the hottest topics of the season.

Posted on by RJ Kraft

Going out on top is something every athlete dreams of when their career is winding down.

 

That metaphorical ride into the sunset feels a whole lot sweeter with a title in hand. Because an athlete’s performance tends to diminish in the latter years, the feat is much easier said than done.



But heading into Sunday’s Championship 4 race at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3 p.m. ET, NBC, MRN, SiriusXM), the Ford EcoBoost 400, Jeff Gordon is in position to walk away on top — with his fifth Sprint Cup Series championship. In January, the driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet announced that 2015 would be his final full-time season. Chase Elliott will pilot the car starting when the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series begins.



Gordon’s swan-song season hasn’t been as strong as his four-win campaign in 2014, but he is still walking away while performing at a high level. That was evident a few weeks ago at Martinsville Speedway, where the 44-year-old scored his 93rd career premier series victory.



In addition to the pure joy Gordon displayed upon winning the race, the victory locked him into being one of the four drivers to battle for a championship. If Gordon is the best finisher among the four title-eligible drivers at the 1.5-mile track, then he goes out in style and truly walks away on top.





Gordon would not be alone in that club among all athletes. There have been several stars to walk away while still performing at a high level, but its even rarer to see an athlete walk away on the top of mountain with a championship.



• Quarterback John Elway spent his entire 16-year career with the Denver Broncos, despite being drafted by the then-Baltimore Colts, who would later deal Elway to Denver. Up until his final two NFL seasons, Elway had not won a Super Bowl, but he closed his career with back-to-back Super Bowl titles before calling it a career. He even was named the Super Bowl MVP in his final game, Super Bowl XXXIII. Elway’s dream ending is the type of finish Gordon is going for.





• You may know Michael Strahan better these days as one half of LIVE! with Kelly and Michael, but before that he was busy chasing down quarterbacks like nobody else. In his career, he recorded 141.5 sacks, including setting the single-season mark of 22.5 in 2001. Strahan was the defensive leader of the New York Giants for several years and was a key part of the team that knocked off the undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. He retired the following summer.





• David Robinson was one of the NBA’s best centers for a number of years. Injuries and the presence of Tim Duncan on the San Antonio Spurs saw Robinson’s offensive role decrease toward the end of his career, but “The Admiral” was still a force on the defensive end. In the final game of his career, Game 6 of the 2003 NBA Finals, Robinson turned in a vintage performance with 13 points and 17 rebounds as the Spurs topped the New Jersey Nets to win the championship. The title was Robinson’s second of his career and sent him out of the NBA on top.



Gordon has a chance to ride into the sunset with a championship. He already has four titles (1995, 1997, 1998 and 2001) but is hungry for a fifth. Will he score a championship for the ages or will Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch or Martin Truex Jr. deny him in his bid for another title? Tune in Sunday to find out.

Posted on by Nascar

AVONDALE, Ariz. — Kyle Busch took another step in what’s been a long, amazing journey here Sunday evening, finishing fourth in the Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 to earn an opportunity to compete for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship next weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.



The Joe Gibbs Racing driver, never a winner of the series’ top prize, will join Jeff Gordon (Hendrick Motorsports), defending series champion Kevin Harvick (Stewart-Haas Racing) and Martin Truex Jr. (Furniture Row Racing) in the Championship 4 round of this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup.



That he qualified for the 16-team Chase to begin with was more than noteworthy — Busch missed the first 11 points races after breaking his right leg and left foot in a crash during the season-opening XFINITY Series race at Daytona.



Once he did return, he ripped off three wins in a four-race span to earn a spot in the Chase.



Of course, Busch has been there before — and his Chase fortunes have rarely ended well. This year, though, could be different.



“I guess I’m just pleased that I didn’t have any bad luck,” Busch said after Phoenix. “We didn’t necessarily have any good luck through the Chase.



“We did in the summer, definitely. We were running second, third, whatever it might have been, and then we had a good pit call or something kind of go our way with a yellow flag and it got us our track position, got out front; we won a couple races through the summer, but it’s just been pretty even keel, and I’m happy with that.



“I feel like we’ve done some good things through this Chase. We’ve run up front, we’ve run strong. We also had a couple mishaps but fortunately they weren’t big enough that they eliminated us. We were able to persevere through those things.”



Busch entered Sunday’s race second in the point standings — safe but perhaps not secure. However, a race that began more than six hours late due to weather provided limited drama and ended after only 219 of its 312 laps had been completed when rain returned.



Busch was able to avoid any missteps and he and his team begin preparations for what lies ahead.



“Now going to Homestead for the first time with the opportunity to win a championship is really awesome,” Busch said. “It’s very good for my team. (Crew chief) Adam Stevens and these guys, they worked really hard and they persevered all through the beginning … of the season when I was gone, working with David Ragan and Erik Jones and Matt Crafton and those guys that drove my race car.



“But once I was able to return, it felt pretty good to get back in the car and have my team guys motivated and ready to have me back, and we’ve really excelled since then.”



Dale Earnhardt Jr. ultimately won the Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500, the second consecutive Chase race won by a non-Chase driver and third straight event won by a Hendrick Motorsports driver.



Busch’s best previous Chase finish was fourth (in 2013), and came before the elimination element was implemented into the 10-race format.

Posted on by Nascar

RELATED: Race results | Updated standings | Bubble watch

 

AVONDALE, Ariz. — A green-flag pit stop and subsequent caution nearly undid a season’s worth of work for Martin Truex Jr. and his Furniture Row Racing team here Sunday evening.

But when the skies opened up again and brought an end to the Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, Truex found himself officially locked in, one of four drivers that will compete for NASCAR’s Sprint Cup championship next weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

“I feel like we’ve overcome a lot of obstacles, a lot of odds,” Truex said of the Cole Pearn-led No. 78 team. “Just proud to be a part of this group and looking forward to having the opportunity to do something we’ve dreamed about our whole lives next weekend.”

 

He’ll be joined by Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch in next weekend’s title determining race.

Truex, 35, entered Sunday’s race fourth in the points standings and six points ahead of Carl Edwards (Joe Gibbs Racing). Once the race, which was initially delayed for seven hours due to rain, got underway, the two drivers were never separated on the track by more than a couple of cars.

Shortly after the race had passed the halfway mark, Edwards had managed to trim the deficit to three points. Green-flag pit stops began and both drivers had come to pit road when the second caution flag of the race appeared for a crash involving Joey Gase and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

What initially looked to be a devastating turn of events wound up being only a minor setback for Truex and the No. 78 team.

Both drivers were among those caught a lap down, but Edwards, the first driver not on the lead lap, was the beneficiary of the free pass, putting him back on the lead lap. Truex, however, was one of the “wave-around” cars and because he had already completed his pit stop, rolled back into line in 14th, just two spots behind the JGR entry.

Subsequent attempts at a restart were delayed by rain, and when the skies eventually opened up, officials declared the race over. Officially, 219 of the 312 scheduled laps were completed.

With no restart, no positions changed hands and Truex was officially scored in 14th, edging Edwards (12th) to secure the final Chase spot by five points.

“I was real concerned until I looked at the scoreboard, and then I was like ‘OK, we’re going to be fine. We’re going to be back on the lead lap if we get going here,’ ” Truex said of the fallout front the caution flag. “Really the only guy we were racing was one car ahead of us. We felt OK about it, but you never know who could have (gone) up there and snuck out a win.

“It was just one of those deals where I couldn’t believe we got caught by the caution after running almost 200 laps almost green the whole race. We pitted a lap before the caution came out and that’s a tough deal. That’s happened to us … I can’t believe how many times it’s happened to us this this year. It’s got to be 15 or plus times. We pit, the caution comes out and you’re stuck a lap down.

“It’s really frustrating because we were having a solid night up to that point, certainly not as good as we’d hoped, but solid. It’s always frustrating when those things happen.”

Edwards was hopeful that officials would get the track dry and allow the race to continue. “We want to race for sure,” he said. “I don’t care if we do this thing with row boats or on foot or whatever we got to do. I want to go race.”

Unfortunately, Mother Nature had other ideas.

Truex, moves on, still in contention. For Edwards and the No. 19 team, ousted after coming so close, there was the understandable disappointment.

Disappointment, crew chief Darian Grubb said, because of “how hard they’ve worked all year to come down to something as simple as a rain out.”

His team was a first-year outfit added to the JGR stable for 2015 with Edwards coming on board. The group won twice, at Charlotte and Darlington.

“We feel like we could have raced our way back in there and have a shot at it,” Grubb said. “We were still five points out, just like we were five points (out) coming in. We knew that was going to be a tough situation, but it ended up that bit us and I hate it for these guys.”

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Junior wins rain-shortened race

 

Dale Earnhardt Jr. did something for the first time in his 16-year NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career on Sunday by virtue of his win at Phoenix International Raceway.

 

The Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 win gave Earnhardt Jr. three victories this season. Coming off a four-win year in 2014, it’s the first time Junior has ever won three or more races in consecutive seasons.

 

His three wins in 2015 also ties his mark from the 2001 season. Earnhardt’s six-win 2004 remains his personal standard when it comes to victories in a season.

 

For his career, Junior has 26 premier series victories — which ranks him tied for 27th in NASCAR history with Denny Hamlin and NASCAR Hall of Famer Fred Lorenzen.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s career wins

Year Number of wins
2000 2
2001 3
2002 2
2003 2
2004 6
2005 1
2006 1
2007 0
2008 1
2009 0
2010 0
2011 0
2012 1
2013 0
2014 4
2015 3
Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Chase Grid | Full Chase rules

The final race at Homestead-Miami Speedway is all about order of finish. No bonus points are awarded for laps led, most laps led or for winning the race. So the best finisher from the Championship 4 group of Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr. will be crowned the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion.

The Championship 4:
1. Kevin Harvick, 5,000 points
2. Jeff Gordon, 5,000 points
3. Kyle Busch, 5,000 points
4. Martin Truex Jr., 5,000 points

Drivers who didn’t advance to the Championship 4 had their point total reset to 2,000 (with any regular-season wins bonus points added), plus the additional points they’ve earned during the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

How the rest of the top 10 looks headed into Homestead:
5. Carl Edwards, 2,334 points
6. Joey Logano, 2,319 points
7. Dale Earnhardt Jr., 2306 points
8. Brad Keselowski, 2,304 points
9. Kurt Busch, 2,297 points
10. Denny Hamlin, 2,293 points

RELATED: How a driver can finish fifth | Driver standings

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR Chairman & CEO Brian France and Joe Gibbs Racing driver Matt Kenseth met Monday in Charlotte, North Carolina, in advance of the driver’s return to the track following a two-race suspension.



France was “pleased” with the dialogue, according to a tweet from NASCAR Senior Vice President and Chief Communications Officer Brett Jewkes.




Kenseth was suspended for the past two races following his role in an on-track incident with Joey Logano at Martinsville Speedway. He will return to the No. 20 Toyota at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the Ford EcoBoost 400.


“NASCAR has asked the driver of the 20 to meet with Chairman and CEO Brian France,” NASCAR Vice President David Higdon confirmed earlier Monday, and the two got together shortly thereafter.


Kenseth tweeted later Monday afternoon, noting that he’s “glad to have all this behind (him).”



France and NASCAR handed down the suspension, which was upheld on appeals, following Kenseth’s wreck of race leader Joey Logano in the Eliminator Round opener.



The two had previous on-track run-ins, and Kenseth — nearly 10 laps down at the time — drove Logano into the wall with less than 50 laps remaining. Logano was eliminated from the postseason following Sunday’s race at Phoenix International Raceway. Kenseth had been eliminated the week before Martinsville.


In addition to his suspension, Kenseth is on probation for the rest of 2015.