Jeff Gordon tops final practice at Watkins Glen

Posted on August 7, 2015 by Staff Report

Whirling his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet at 127.333 mph around Watkins Glen International, Jeff Gordon soared to the top of the leaderboard on his first lap during Friday’s final Sprint Cup Series practice at the New York road course. The runner-up in all-time wins at the Glen with four trips to Victory Lane, Gordon will be one of several drivers looking to clinch a spot in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup with a win this weekend.

Shortly after topping the final XFINITY practice, Kyle Larson returned to the race track to post the second-fastest speed (127.049 mph) in the field in his No. 42 Chip Ganassai Racing with Felix Sabates Chevrolet. Larson is one of a handful of Sprint Cup regulars who will attempt double-duty races at the road course this weekend.

Roush Fenway Racing‘s Greg Biffle (126.987 mph), Joe Gibbs Racing‘s Kyle Busch (126.837 mph) and Team Penske‘s Joey Logano (126.720 mph) rounded out the top five in the final session.

Defending Sprint Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick made several mock qualifying runs during the second session, propelling his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet at 126.348 mph to the ninth position on the leaderboard.

With five wins at the New York track, Tony Stewart remains the all-time winner at Watkins Glen. During a mock qualifying run, “Smoke” propelled his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet around the road course at 126.263 mph to rank 10th on the practice leaderboard.

After coming up second on the leaderboard in the opening session with a high speed of 127.067 mph, AJ Allmendinger — the reigning race winner at the Glen — posted the 27th-fastest speed in the field in his JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet with a fast lap of 124.823 mph.

After topping opening practice, Clint Bowyer slowed in his No. 15 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota, recording a high speed of 124.401 mph for the 31st spot.

The Sprint Cup Series is back on track at the Glen on Saturday at 1:15 p.m. ET for Coors Light Pole Qualifying (NBCSN/Live Extra).

Bowyer leads opening practice

RELATED: Practice 1 results

A pair of former road-course winners looking to clinch a berth in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Clint Bowyer and AJ Allmendinger paced opening Sprint Cup Series practice at Watkins Glen International on Friday afternoon.

Bowyer, winner of the 2012 Sonoma race, topped the session with a best speed of 127.067 mph, followed by last year’s Watkins Glen winner in Allmendinger at 126.901 mph.

Jimmie Johnson — who has never won at the Glen in 13 career starts — was third on the charts at 126.139 mph. Sam Hornish Jr. (126.095 mph) and Casey Mears (125.969 mph) rounded out the top five.

Brad Keselowski, who once ran off three straight runner-up finishes at the Glen, was eighth-fastest at 125.419 mph.

Another Sprint Cup practice is set to run later on Friday afternoon at 4:40 p.m. ET with coverage on NBCSN/Live Extra.

https://www.nascar.com/en_us/sprint-cup-series/standings/results/2015/cheezit-355.raceResults.practice2.html

Posted on August 7, 2015 by Staff Report

Kyle Larson led the way in final NASCAR XFINITY Series practice Friday afternoon, putting the HScott Motorsports with Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet atop the leaderboard at Watkins Glen International.

Larson, a Sprint Cup regular with two XFINITY wins in his career, turned a lap of 123.623 mph late in the 57-minute session, which was extended two minutes past its scheduled window by NASCAR officials. His lap was slightly more than eight-tenths of a second better than second-fastest Joey Logano, who clocked a 122.223-mph lap in the Team Penske No. 22 Ford and was fastest in opening practice.

Paul Menard was third-fastest 122.201 mph in the Richard Childress Racing No. 33 Chevrolet in a 1-2-3 sweep by Sprint Cup regulars. Ty Dillon was fourth-fastest in another Childress Chevy, just ahead of fifth-best Brad Keselowski in the other Penske entry, the No. 22 Ford.

Defending series champion Chase Elliott managed just the 18th-fastest lap at 119.444 mph, but dealt with mechanical trouble when his JR Motorsports No. 9 Chevrolet slowed on the frontstretch midway through practice.

“I think the rear end locked up on it,” Elliott told his crew. “May have been a fluid issue with it. I don’t think I missed any shifts.”

Series points leader Chris Buescher was sixth-fastest in the Roush Fenway Racing No. 60 Ford. Daniel Suarez, who severely damaged his primary Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota during a crash in opening practice, was 11th-fastest. His lap was just one spot better than JGR teammate Boris Said, a veteran road racing making his third XFINITY start of the season.

NASCAR officials added two minutes to final practice because of two late-session instances of stalled cars — one for Eric McClure‘s No. 24 and another for Tomy Drissi‘s No. 26.

Coors Light Pole Qualifying is scheduled Saturday at 11:15 a.m. ET (CNBC).

Logano sets early pace; heavy crash early hits Suarez

Joey Logano sailed to the top of the leaderboard Friday afternoon in opening NASCAR XFINITY Series practice at Watkins Glen International.

Logano drove the Team Penske No. 12 Ford to a fast lap of 122.452 mph on the 2.45-mile road course in preparation for Saturday’s Zippo 200 (3 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM), the 20th of 33 races this season. His lap was just slightly better than second-fastest Brad Keselowski, his Penske teammate who registered an 122.286 mph lap in the No. 22 Ford.

Brendan Gaughan was third-fastest and Paul Menard fourth-best in a pair of Richard Childress Racing Chevrolets. Kyle Larson completed the top five.

The 85-minute first session was marked by a severe crash for rookie Daniel Suarez in the early going. Suarez lost control of the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota at the exit of the bus-stop chicane, sliding off course and hard into the Turn 5 barrier.

The 23-year-old Suarez was uninjured, but the force of the impact lifted the No. 18 entry off the ground. His crew prepared his backup car in time for him to return to the track at the tail end of the practice.

“When I got to that part of the race track, I was a little bit too loose on entry,” Suarez said. “Like I say, it was my first lap with speed and it looks like it was a pretty hard hit. I just wasn’t able to handle that little loop because it was getting worse and worse and worse, and I wasn’t able to put the car back straight. I’m just disappointed with myself because it was very, very early. Hopefully we can get back to the race track to make up some ground.”

Aside from Suarez’s wreck, the session was marked by a handful of harmless solo spins. John Wes Townley and Todd Bodine both looped their cars in Turn 7, near the track’s pit entrance. Keselowski overshot the chicane, putting all four wheels in the grass before Turn 5.

XFINITY Series points leader Chris Buescher was sixth-fastest in the Roush Fenway Racing No. 60 Ford. Boris Said, the 52-year-old road racing expert, was ninth-fastest in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 54 Toyota as he readies for his third XFINITY Series start of the year.

Final XFINITY practice is scheduled from 3:30-4:25 p.m. ET (NBCSN), with Coors Light Pole Qualifying set for Saturday at 11:15 a.m. ET (CNBC).

Posted on August 6, 2015July 7, 2020 by Kathy Sheldon

Dale Earnhardt earned his Intimidator nickname by handing out some lickings on the racetrack, but he could take one, too, as he proved in 1996 at Watkins Glen.

He couldn’t breathe and he couldn’t raise his right arm as NASCAR’s premier series headed to the road course in New York. Earnhardt had been in a hard wreck at Talladega two weeks earlier, suffering a disclocated sternum and broken collarbone. But he wanted to both qualify and race at The Glen after running just six laps at Indianapolis the week after Talladega before handing over the No. 3 to relief driver Mike Skinner.

Dr. Jerry Punch recalled in 2014 for NASCAR.com how he was called to the motorhome with Dale and Teresa Earnhardt and Richard Childress as the debate went on about whether Dale would pilot the Goodwrench Chevrolet that weekend.

“In spite of us telling him how dangerous it was, and how painful it was, he wanted to be in that car,” Punch said. “Richard and Teresa were getting me to help convince him to not get in the car, for his own safety. He looked right at Richard and said, ‘If you tell me, Richard, I’m going to hurt this race team by being in your race car, I won’t get in it.’ Richard said, ‘Are you kidding me? You’re Dale Earnhardt. I can’t tell you you’re going to hurt my race team by being in my car.’ And Dale said, ‘All right, it’s done.’ “

A loose sternum was very disconcerting at the road course, as any impact could send bone fragments into nearby vital organs — the heart and lungs.

But those around Earnhardt were more worried about his body, and he was concentrating hard on the racing. All that shifting and steering didn’t stop the tough-as-nails driver, who reportedly used his knees to help steer on his way to winning the pole for The Bud at The Glen.

Earnhardt stayed in the car for the whole race on Aug. 11, 1996, as well, despite Jeff Green standing by in case he needed or wanted relief. The No. 3 finished sixth.

After finishing the 220.5-mile race, Earnhardt said, “It hurts. But it’s a good hurt.”

That season he wound up fourth in the points standings.

Posted on August 6, 2015 by

RELATED: Latest series standings

As Kyle Busch races his way toward 30th in the driver standings, HScott Motorsports‘ Justin Allgaier has hovered around the magic spot that makes a winning driver eligible for Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

The 29-year-old driver is 29th with five races to go until NASCAR’s playoffs. While a win will get him into the postseason, his goal has been to be a little higher in the points standings.

“You always set goals that are a little bit higher than what you can accomplish trying to get there, and if you accomplish them, then you’ve really gone above and beyond,” Allgaier said at Pocono Raceway. “Realistically, I thought we’d be 25th. We’re not quite there. There’s still a lot of races left to go. Not saying that it can’t be done.

“Kyle Busch has proven that you can gain a massive amount of points in a short amount of time. I’d be OK with going on a win streak of four out of five. I don’t know that that’s in the cards for the near future but…”

Instead, Allgaier and his team are battling to make bad days not take too much of a toll on his points position, which reached a peak of 24th after the fifth race of the season at Auto Club Speedway.

“We’ve given up a lot more points than we’ve gained,” Allgaier said. “The part that’s crazy is when we race on a weekly basis, let’s just say we finish 25th. Even finishing 25th, you’re only gaining on the guys that we’re racing with, you’re only gaining two to six points a week.

“The problem is when you finish 40th, you’re losing 10 to 15 points. Unless you have a great day, like Bristol or some of those places where we’ve run really well, you’re not really gaining any points. You’re just kind of trickling out.”

Of the tracks left to qualify for the Chase, Bristol is Allgaier’s best chance. His 14.7 average finish is fifth among drivers in the top 30 who haven’t won a race yet, behind Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (9.2), Kyle Larson (9.7), Jeff Gordon (12.0) and Greg Biffle (12.6).

Allgaier had a career best eighth-place finish in April at the Tennessee short track, and his first of three XFINITY Series wins came at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile in 2010.

“The key to all of it is that 30th is the number, and as long as we stay there, and if we were to get that win, it’d be huge,” Allgaier said. “It’d be unbelievable, but at the same time, we’ve got to go get the win. The only way we’re going to do that is by firing on all eight cylinders and going better.

“If we do that, though, I don’t think we’ll lose as many points. I don’t think we’ll fall out of the top 30. If we’re running well enough on a weekly basis to go win one, I don’t foresee us falling out of the top 30 in points.”

MORE ON WATKINS GLEN: Rain tires at the ready | Unique pit stops

His third XFINITY win came on the road course in Montreal in 2012, and Allgaier is looking forward to Sunday’s Cheez-It 355 at The Glen (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM). When he thinks of Watkins Glen this weekend, it brings back memories of a moment that means more than any victory .

“I remember two years ago my daughter came kind of a day late,” Allgaier said. “Not necessarily a day late in the process, she was pre-due date, but they induced my wife. By the time they started inducing, we went in on like a Tuesday, and she didn’t have Harper until Thursday morning so it was crazy the time frame of everything. So literally we had Harper, and it was 7 o’clock in the morning, and it was 9 o’clock (at night) by the time we actually got to be with her and everything.

RELATED: Allgaiers have first child

“We were supposed to take off at noon on that day and so I ended up figuring out somebody that had an open seat on a plane to fly out at like 5 o’clock, but I literally got like five or six hours with my daughter and then had to get on a plane.

“It’s crazy. People always talk about kids and the things that you don’t realize and take for granted. You have kids and it’s like yep, I can already see that and I’m half a day into it. But it’s cool.”

That perspective and planning will come in handy as he looks ahead to an uncertain 2016 but hopes to follow the same plan that got him into a full-time Sprint Cup ride in 2014, bringing sponsor Brandt with him from the XFINITY Series.

“I feel like we’ve got a great organization, we’ve got a great team,” Allgaier said. “It’s kind of a weird situation. In one aspect, I’m kind of in limbo in the fact that all the pieces of the puzzle have to fit back together. They’ve done that in the past the way that this program has worked out. We’ve had great support from Brandt, I think this is their fifth full season that they’ve been on the race car so there’s so many things that have kind of fallen into place the last few years.

“So I hate this time of the year where you don’t really know. But at the same time, I’ve got great people around me, and we haven’t changed what we’re doing because of it. We’re still on the same path. We’re still pushing just as hard every week to win races whether tomorrow is your last race or you’re going to be here for another 10 years.

“That’s the only advantage to it right now. We really haven’t gotten to that point where we’re in scramble mode. We’re still sitting pretty well so I have no complaints at the moment.”

Sunday’s wacky ending at Pocono shows strategy plays a big role in racing. If Allgaier and crew chief Steve Addington can grab a victory in the next five races and stay in the top 30 in points, he’ll make the Chase at Chicagoland Speedway, where he won his second XFINITY event, about a two-hour and 20-minute drive up Interstate 55 from his hometown of Riverton, Illilnois.

Posted on August 6, 2015 by Nascar

Tony Stewart says he’s trying not to think about the tragedy that kept the three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion on the sidelines last year when the series last competed at Watkins Glen International.

The series, and Stewart, return to the 2.45-mile road course this weekend for Sunday’s Cheez-It 355 at The Glen (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM).

“Unfortunately I have a feeling it’s going to get brought up a lot this week. It doesn’t help you continue to move forward with it” Stewart told members of the media prior to Wednesday’s annual “Smoke Show” charity event at Texas Motor Speedway.

On the eve of last year’s Sprint Cup race at Watkins Glen, Stewart was involved in an on-track incident at Canandaigua (New York) Motorsports Park that claimed the life of Sprint car driver Kevin Ward Jr.

Stewart, who was not charged for his role in the accident, sat out the next three Sprint Cup Series races. His Stewart-Haas Racing team continued to compete with driver Regan Smith piloting the No. 14 Chevrolet at Watkins Glen while veteran Jeff Burton replaced Stewart at Michigan International Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway.

It marked the second consecutive season the three-time Sprint Cup champion did not compete at the Glen. Less than a week before the 2013 race, Stewart suffered a broken right leg in a sprint car race in Oskaloosa, Iowa.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be the same from what happened the last two years,” Stewart said when asked if the incidents had changed him. “I don’t know how you could be.

“I don’t know how anybody ever could be back to exactly the way they were. Not being back exactly the same as I was doesn’t mean I haven’t become better in some ways. I think there are always positives that come out of every scenario.”

Five of Stewart’s 48 career wins have come at Watkins Glen, the last in 2009. Thus far this year, he has struggled with a new rules package that has taken away horsepower and decreased downforce. He’s 25th in points heading into this weekend’s event, with only five races remaining before the field is set for this year’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

While back-to-back top-five qualifying efforts have been a pleasant surprise, Stewart said he isn’t ready to proclaim that he and the team have turned the corner.

“It’s been a decent couple of weeks,” Stewart said. “I think it’s a little early to put judgment on whether we’ve got it figured out or not. But at least we qualified well the last two weeks. That definitely has been a bonus for sure.”

His ninth-place finish last weekend at Pocono Raceway was just his second top-10 of the year.

“We ran decent last week and I think that was a positive sign,” he said, “but it’s way too early to (tell). For moving the needle two weeks, that’s a good thing … but I don’t know that it means we’ve got it all figured out yet.

“I think it’s just too early to tell. … I wish I knew what to say. I’m not really sure yet. I’m not sure two weeks gives me a definitive answer.”

Teammates Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch each have two wins this season while Stewart and teammate Danica Patrick have struggled to get a handle on the car and the rules package.

Such gaps in the level of competition across the same organization have often left Stewart frustrated.

“On one side it’s encouraging because you know that the organization’s capable of doing it,” he said. “The other side of the coin is … you’re frustrated because you can’t figure it out yourself.”

Wednesday’s event marked the eighth year Stewart has participated in the fundraiser, which benefits the Speedway Children’s Charities Texas Chapter. Donors who spent the day taking part in activities similar to those experienced by NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competitors on race day have raised approximately $1.5 million since the program’s inception.

“I don’t think we anticipated how it was going to grow,” Stewart said of the event. “… It amazes me how many people have done it and keep coming back every year, keep supporting it. That’s what’s cool about it; it’s great to see that kind of support for an event that’s lasted that long.

“They’re the heroes of the day. They are the ones that have made it what it is. I just come along to have fun and have a good time with them.”

Posted on August 6, 2015 by Nascar

Kyle Busch came up short in his attempt to win four consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota running out of fuel on the final lap of Sunday’s Windows 10 400 at Pocono Raceway.

Twelve drivers have won four or more consecutive premier series races. NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Cale Yarborough was the first, in 1976. Six-time series champ Jimmie Johnson was the most recent, in 2007.

And then there was Billy Wade. Notable here because Wade’s fourth and final win came in 1964 at Watkins Glen International, site of this weekend’s Cheez-It 355 at the Glen (Sunday, 2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM).

Driving for car owner Bud Moore, Wade strung together wins at Old Bridge (N.J.) Stadium, a half-mile oval; Bridgehampton (N.Y.) Raceway, a 2.85-mile road course; Islip (N.Y.) Speedway, which measured a mere two-tenths of a mile; and Watkins Glen.

The stops were part of what was known as the “northern tour” for the series at that time; the four races came in a span of 10 days.

Wade’s success came against some of the series’ toughest competition of the day. At Old Bridge, he outlasted Ned Jarrett; two days later he held off two-time series champ Buck Baker; on Wednesday evening he bested Jarrett once more; and on the following Sunday, Wade beat LeeRoy Yarbrough to the checkered flag.

Lee and Richard Petty, David Pearson and Marvin Panch were among those also in the field for the four races.

A native of Houston, Wade had won the NASCAR Rookie of the Year title the previous year, tops among a group that included Bobby Isaac, Larry Manning and J.D. McDuffie.

Three of his four wins during the streak came from the pole position, including the victory at Watkins Glen. Although he competed in only 35 of the season’s 62 events, Wade finished a career-best fourth in the final points standings.

Sadly, those were the only victories of Wade’s brief NASCAR career. Less than a year later, the 34-year-old was killed during a January 1965 tire test at Daytona International Speedway when his Mercury blew a right-front tire and slammed into the wall.

According to reports, the wall had been built barely a month earlier as a safety measure to keep cars inside the 2.5-mile track.

Wade was the fourth driver to lose his life on the track in less than a year’s time. Two-time series champ Joe Weatherly was killed in a crash the previous January while racing at Riverside (Calif.) Raceway; Glenn “Fireball” Roberts died in July of ’64 as a result of injuries suffered in a crash at Charlotte Motor Speedway earlier that season; and Jim Pardue, twice a winner, was killed when he crashed at CMS during a Sept. tire test in ’64.

Such tragedies did spur safety developments in the sport, such as the driver’s side window net, the inner liner for tires and the fuel cell.

Similar safety developments continue today, and were in evidence this past weekend at Pocono.

When Brad Keselowski slid through his pit box during the race, he sent his crew scrambling. Jackman Braxton Bannon was upended and landed on his back; front tire carrier Jeremy Ogles, headed around the front of the car, managed to leap onto the hood of the No. 2 Team Penske Ford.

No one was injured, and the crew, wearing helmets, managed to complete the pit stop.

WATCH: Pocono pit problems for Keselowski

Since 2002, NASCAR has required crewmen going over the wall to service a vehicle on pit road in all three national series, Sprint Cup, XFINITY and Camping World Trucks, to wear a helmet.

More than a decade earlier, in 1991, pit road speed limits had been put into place. The action was taken after a crewman, Mike Rich, was killed on pit road at Atlanta in the season-ending race of 1990.

Limiting pit road speed doesn’t eliminate the danger, as the Keselowski incident clearly revealed. But it has, fortunately, lessened it considerably.

Posted on August 6, 2015 by Staff Report

NASCAR.com reporter Holly Cain has been voted as the National Motorsports Press Association’s Spirit Award winner for the second quarter of 2015.

Cain, whose career covering motorsports spans more than 25 years, was named on 66 percent of the ballots cast by NMPA membership. The award is “designed to recognize character and achievement in the face of adversity, sportsmanship and contributions to motorsports,” according to the NMPA’s news release.

Cain was diagnosed with breast cancer in the summer of 2014. Her courage and determination while battling multiple surgeries, her ability to write with passion and purpose, and — most importantly — her role as a loving mother of two have inspired others throughout the NASCAR industry.

Cain has been a longstanding supporter of the Susan B. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and its “Race for a Cure” running events. Her column documenting her personal fight won first place in the NMPA’s column writing category in 2014.

Cain worked for numerous media outlets — The Tampa Tribune, The Dallas Morning News, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, AOL and FOXSports.com — before joining NASCAR.com in August 2012.

Posted on August 6, 2015 by Staff Report

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to Watkins Glen International to run its second and final road-course race of the season, the Cheez-It 355 at The Glen (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM).

For this race, group qualifying remains in effect but will be slightly different than the group qualifying seen as short tracks and intermediate tracks in the sport’s national series.

Qualifying will consist of two elimination rounds to determine the starting lineup. The first round will last 25 minutes with all cars then the 12 fastest cars will advance to the final round.

After a 10-minute break, the final round will last for 10 minutes and drivers will start based off of their time from the first round. The fastest single lap will determine P1 through P12 in descending order for Sunday’s race. The fastest driver wins the coveted pole position. This same format was used at Sonoma Raceway in June.

This setup for road course qualifying will also be used in the NASCAR XFINITY Series road course races at Watkins Glen, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Road America as well as the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.

Last year, Marcos Ambrose set a new track record in qualifying at Watkins Glen with a fast lap of 129.491 mph in the first of three rounds of qualifying.

Posted on August 6, 2015 by Staff Report

Chris Buescher will be extra busy this weekend.

The No. 60 Roush Fenway Racing driver gets to pull double-duty, running in Saturday’s NASCAR XFINITY Series Zippo 200 (3 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM) at Watkins Glen International before making his sixth career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start for Front Row Motorsports in Sunday’s Cheez-It 355 at The Glen (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM).

RELATED: Buescher to drive No. 34 Ford at Watkins Glen

“I really enjoy road racing and I am excited to get back to Watkins Glen,” Buescher said. “It is a very fast course and we had a really good car last year. I think we have some great notes to build on from last season. It will be a good weekend for us to get a top five and gain some more points.”

Buescher’s XFINITY Series standings lead over Chase Elliott has dwindled from 36 points to 20 over the last three races. He has failed to record a top-10 finish in the last five events.

Luckily for the 22-year-old Texan, three of the next four series races take place at road courses — Watkins Glen, Mid-Ohio and Road America. It’s rare for young drivers to succeed at road courses, but last year, Buescher won at Mid-Ohio and ran in the top 10 at Watkins Glen before a mechanical issue and contact with a competitor relegated him to a 29th-place finish. In five road course starts in the ARCA Racing Series, Buescher earned one win (Road America, 2013) and three top-five finishes.

“I’m not a road course specialist by any means, but I really enjoy it,” Buescher said. “And each time we go out, we learn a lot, have a lot of fun and seem to do pretty decent at the same time.”

Buescher hasn’t piloted a Sprint Cup car since May 3, but believes he’s ready for Sunday.

“I’m really excited to go racing again in the Cup car,” he said. “I had some success on road courses last year, and I think Watkins Glen was a good track for us. I didn’t get to do Sonoma earlier this year, but I feel like we can get back into it at Watkins Glen and have a good day.”

Posted on August 6, 2015 by Staff Report

In perhaps his most searing blog to date, Brad Keselowski revealed in a Wednesday post that daughter Scarlett was given a fatal diagnosis nearly one month after she was born — one that turned out to be inaccurate.

The Team Penske driver and girlfriend Paige White were told on June 16 that Scarlett had a condition that would cause her to eventually not be able to eat or breathe.

Keselowski writes: “It’s fair to say that those hours were among the worst in my life and Paige’s. As a parent, this was pretty much your worst nightmare. We went into full freak-out mode.

“Not really knowing what to do, we just started contacting doctors, and eventually, got in touch with the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, which is kind of the official hospital of a lot of people at Penske Corporation. We were able to get connected with one of their main doctors, and flew with Scarlett to Minnesota as soon as we could.

“Their diagnosis was this: ‘Oh, yeah, she’s in a lot of trouble, but she doesn’t have what those doctors said she has.’ She had laryngomalacia, a weakness in the muscles of the throat that’s fairly common in infants, though it’s rarely as severe as Scarlett’s case was. They did emergency surgery on her the next day, and it saved her life.”

Keselowski and White took their daughter back home on Father’s Day. Three weeks later, Keselowski won the Kentucky 300 NASCAR XFINITY Series race … and celebrated in Victory Lane with Paige and Scarlett.

RELATED: Baby Scarlett makes her debut

“Just being there, holding Scarlett — it was the culmination of one of the most powerful experiences of my entire life,” Keselowski writes. “I honestly can’t think of anything to compare it to. It felt like its own victory. It really did.”

The title of this latest post is ” A Win for Scarlett.” Click here to read the entire piece.