Posted on by Pat DeCola

RELATED: Brett Eldredge to perform at Chicagoland Speedway pre-race concert

 

Country music star Brett Eldredge will kick off the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup on Sunday at Chicagoland with a pre-race concert.

Eldredge sat down for a conversation with NASCAR.com’s Pat DeCola earlier this season at Kansas Speedway. True story: he stopped midway through the interview to take a selfie with the Spongebob Squarepants 400 trophy before continuing on.

 

PD: Have you been to Chicagoland before?

Brett Eldredge: Yes, I went to school in the suburbs of Chicago. I’m very familiar with Chicago, it’s my favorite city in the world. To be going and kicking off the Chase there and getting to play the show that kicks it off, that’s going to be kind of a dream come true as a kid growing up in Illinois and watching racing. It’s going to be quite the night; I’m fired up.

PD: So you grew up watching racing.

 

BE: Yup. I grew up next to Indianapolis, next to the Indiana border, which is an hour-and-a-half, two hours to the Brickyard. So I’d go there and see the Indy 500 and stuff growing up. Living there, you kind of at least somewhat have to be a fan.

PD: So then … Indy 500 or Brickyard 400?

 

BE: I would really have to say NASCAR, just because of the rub of the paint and it’s just a more gritty kind of a race to me. It’s more personal, I guess you could say. I love watching the Indycars and everything, but there’s just something about watching NASCAR and about that Brickyard race that I just … that was the first time that I got a feeling from going to a race that I thought to myself, “This is a unique experience; this is an adrenaline rush just from being a fan.” With playing music, people get a rush by watching you up there on stage. I get a rush being up there on stage. But I also get a rush as a fan of NASCAR because I get to feel what it’s like just by watching and seeing people bumping into each other at 200 miles an hour going around a turn and I can’t even imagine being those drivers. I just got to ride in a pace car with Michael Waltrip out there right now and we’re going like 120, 130 and it felt intense at that speed. So I’ve got a lot of respect for the guys driving at 200.

PD: Was that your first pace car ride?

 

BE: That was my second pace car ride, but it was my first one with somebody like Michael Waltrip. He’s an awesome guy and obviously his track record shows. He’s a great person, too. He was singing my songs as he was driving and he was like, “Let’s see what this baby can do,” and I was like “All right, you’re the pro so I’ll just sit back,” … it was great.

PD: Did you see him on “Dancing with the Stars” at all?

 

BE: No! That’s awesome. I’ve got to talk to him about that now. I’m always on the tour bus so I don’t watch much TV, but now I’ve got to ask him to show some of these dance moves off. Now we’re going to be buddies.

PD: He’s a tall, lanky guy, so the dancing was … interesting.

 

BE: That’s the wild thing. I’m a really tall guy, too, and I don’t really like small spaces. I can’t imagine as drivers, getting into those little cars and driving around, let alone somebody as tall as Michael Waltrip (6-foot-5) getting in that car. That’s impressive. Big ups to him.

PD: So, safe to say you wouldn’t get behind the wheel of a stock car, then?

BE: I like spectating. I love sitting on pit road and watching the cars come in. I did that last year in Kansas and it was like … that was intense. All these guys hopping over that wall and they get really mad if they miss one second and it’s a cool thing. It’s a sport. It’s really a sport.

PD: Which of your country music friends is the biggest NASCAR fanatic?

BE: Oh, Blake Shelton’s a huge fan. And Clint Bowyer, I think, is a good buddy of his. And his tour manager, Kevin, is a huge NASCAR fan. It’s cool to see, because they helped introduce me to some of these folks sometimes if I don’t know anybody, and they know everybody in NASCAR. It’s cool that they’re fans of something other than music. They’re fans of something else, as well.

Posted on by Nascar

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Part of what Goodyear officials, along with four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams, did here at Kansas Speedway Monday and Tuesday was verify the tire combination to be used in next month’s Chase for the Sprint Cup race at the 1.5-mile track.



On Wednesday, 12 teams did a little verifying of their own, taking part in an open team test before heading to Chicago for this weekend’s opening race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.



“It seems like at this point in the year with the (rules) package and program that we’re under with the car, you’re kind of just verifying things,” Michael Waltrip Racing driver Clint Bowyer said during a break in testing. “There are a very specific, few items that we’re making sure that we have verified to when we go to Chicago starting the Chase this weekend that we know that’s going to be the right way to go.”



In addition to Bowyer, other Chase drivers testing Wednesday were Jimmie Johnson (Hendrick Motorsports), Brad Keselowski (Team Penske), Jamie McMurray (Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates), Kevin Harvick (Stewart-Haas Racing), Kyle Busch (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Paul Menard (Richard Childress Racing).



Also testing but not in the Chase were Aric Almirola (Richard Petty Motorsports), Greg Biffle (Roush Fenway Racing), Alex Bowman (Tommy Baldwin Racing), J.J. Yeley (BK Racing) and Ryan Blaney (Wood Brothers Racing).



That Kansas and Chicagoland Speedway are somewhat similar perhaps made Wednesday’s opportunity a bit more beneficial.



“(Testing here) is an advantage, this track being similar (to Chicago); you can learn some stuff,” Bowyer said. “Obviously the grip level and the asphalt and stuff like that’s different. And it’s an important track when we come back here (in October).



“The circumstance we are under, given the fact we got ourselves in the Chase last weekend, it’s kind of just a verification day for us.”



Rodney Childers, crew chief for defending series champ Harvick, said there were some things that could be gleaned from Wednesday’s test that could be beneficial this weekend, “but not a lot.



“I felt like our test went well, we got to try all kinds of crazy stuff the first half of the day. We really haven’t found anything that was all that great compared to what we had in the past.



“So we ended up kind of going back to what we thought was right at the end of the day and the car drove good and had good speed.”



Johnson was one of four drivers taking part in the 2-day Goodyear test, and the six-time series champion said he was ready for a change of scenery. “I’ve run almost two races now,” he said during a break.



Much time during the Goodyear test, he said was working with the potential 2016 rules package, a platform that features less downforce and was used twice this year — at Kentucky and Darlington.



“I found myself behind a few cars and felt like the car drove really well in traffic,” he said. “I think we found and identified a few sets of tires worked really well, started off fast and had a lot of falloff. So I feel like the last two days of the tire test were very productive.



“Today … we worked through a busy morning trying some things off our list. We’ve got a long list of stuff to try; we don’t test all that often. Really just working through this systematically, seeing what might be faster and just collecting data.”



Sunday’s myAFibRisk.com 400 (3 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR) is the opening race of the 10-race Chase. Kansas will play host to the Chase Sunday, Oct. 18 with the Hollywood Casino 400.

Posted on by Nascar

Sixteen-time National Hot Rod Association champion John Force will pay tribute to NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon this weekend with a special paint scheme honoring the four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion.

 

The red and blue scheme, billed as “Thank You Jeff Gordon,” will be run on Force’s Peak-sponsored Chevrolet Funny Car during the Carolina Nationals, slated for Friday through Sunday at zMAX Dragway in Concord, North Carolina.

The design also includes flames similar to those that adorned Gordon’s earlier NASCAR Sprint Cup entries, as well as the No. 24 on the sides and roof of the car.

“I got the idea for the flames from Jeff telling me years ago he was a fan because I was always on fire,” Force said in a team release announcing the tribute. “He was right; when I got started we were on fire from here to Australia.”

Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, will retire from full-time competition at the end of 2015. The 44-year-old captured NASCAR Sprint Cup Series titles in 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2001. His 92 career victories rank No. 3 on NASCAR’s all-time wins list, trailing only seven-time champion Richard Petty (200) and three-time champ David Pearson (105). He tweeted Tuesday night: “Man, that is so cool. Thanks, John … for that awesome tribute and paint scheme.”

Gordon is also one of 16 drivers competing in this year’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, scheduled to get underway this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway with the running of the myAFibRisk.com 400 (3 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM Radio).

 

RELATED: See the entire Chase Grid

“I always enjoyed seeing Jeff at races and award banquets,” Force said. “The guy was just so polite and professional but you knew he had the eye of the tiger too. You don’t win all those championships on your good looks.

 

“This special Funny Car is just a way for me, my family, my team, my sponsors, NHRA and the fans to say thank you for being a great champion and being such a great driver in NASCAR.”

Posted on by Nascar

Four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams will lose a portion of their practice time at Chicagoland Speedway this weekend for failing to arrive in the inspection line in the allotted time at Richmond International Raceway.

 

According to NASCAR, the entries for drivers Alex Bowman (Tommy Baldwin Racing), J.J. Yeley (BK Racing) and Michael McDowell (Leavine Family Racing) were late getting to the inspection line prior to qualifying. As a result, each will lose 15 minutes in the opening practice, scheduled to get underway Friday at 12:30 p.m. ET.

The No. 23 entry of Jeb Burton (BKR) will miss the opening 30 minutes of practice after being late to both qualifying inspection and race inspection at Richmond. (UPDATE: NASCAR revealed on Friday that Burton will only serve a 15-minute practice hold for being late to qualifying inspection only.)

Arriving late in line for at-track inspection results in an automatic 15-minute deduction in practice time at the next scheduled series event.

Teams that fail to pass inspection in the specified number of attempts receive warnings, with the accumulation of four warnings resulting in the loss of pit box selection. According to NASCAR, no warnings were issued last weekend at RIR.

Two XFINITY Series teams will also serve 15-minute penalties at Chicagoland — the No. 66 with driver Benny Gordon (late to qualifying inspection) and the No. 17, to be driven this week by Ryan Ellis and fielded by Rick Ware Racing.

 

The No. 17 team, which did not enter last week’s race at RIR, was penalized for being late to the inspection line two weeks ago at Darlington Raceway.

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RELATED: Part 1 | Part 2
MORE: Meet the 16 Chase crew chiefs

This is the third in a series of four pit crew analysis pieces NASCAR.com will roll out this week as we preview the 2015 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. For more pit crew news provided by PitTalks.com come back throughout the Chase.

Team Penske No. 2 Ford for Brad Keselowski

Pit Coach: Trent Cherry
Front Changer: Hunter Masling
Front Carrier: Jeremy Ogles
Jackman: Braxton Brannon
Rear Changer: Dwayne Ogles
Rear Carrier: Tyler Mitchell
Gas Man: Nick Hensley

Strength: This is the same group that pitted BK last year in the Chase and it has lots of talent. The team was part of six wins last year and one so far this year. Pitting a winning car is something this crew is used to doing.

Weakness: This team has shown both signs of greatness and struggle all year. If it can improve on consistency it can be a scary team to pit against.

Furniture Row Racing No. 78 Chevrolet for Martin Truex Jr.

Pit Crew: 78
Pit Coach: Walt Smith
Front Changer: Dave Collins
Front Carrier: Craig Curione
Jackman: Carey Wimbish
Rear Changer: Kyle Turner
Rear Carrier: Adam Mosher
Gas Man: Brian Dheel

Strength: They have a cool nickname: “Box-spring bandits.” On a more serious note, this team is loaded with veterans and has perhaps the most experience of any crew in the Chase.

Weakness: This crew has been all over the place this year. It is a good crew when things are right but keeping it right is a challenge. Earlier in the year the team made a change at rear changer but that didn’t last long. A few weeks later it was back to the original crew.  There’s enough veteran talent that if the team can keep up with its driver, it has a chance to run deep in the Chase.


Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 Toyota for Denny Hamlin

Pit Coach: Mike Lepp
Front Changer: Dustin Necaise
Front Carrier: Brandon Pegram
Jackman: Nate Bolling
Rear Changer: Mike Hicks
Rear Carrier: Heath Cherry
Gas Man: Caleb Hurd

Strength: This crew is solid at every position and works great under pressure. There has been a lot of talk about this team over the year and rightfully so. The team was instrumental in JGR winning the All-Star race has put its driver in position to win multiple times this year. Look for this to be one of the crews to beat come Chase time.

Weakness: As good as this group is there have been races where consistency has been an issue. This team gets up for the big stops better than any team out there but sometimes relies on the Money Stop. Keeping jack man Nate Bolling healthy is also a major concern. Nate is coming off a very bad injury in the offseason and is a major contributor to the success.


Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates No. 1 Chevrolet for Jamie McMurray

Pit Coach: Shaun Peet
Front Changer: Danny Kincaid
Front Carrier: Ben Fetzer
Jackman: Shane Wilson
Rear Changer: Kenyatta Houston
Rear Carrier: Art Simmons
Gas Man: Mike Metcalf

Strength: This crew has been one of the best surprises of the year. It has been very good as of late and the chemistry within this group is strong. It’s a group of talent that was put together this year by first-year coach Shaun Peet, and it’s working.

Weakness: This team has zero wins this year and hasn’t found itself pitting under winning pressure for most of the year. In order to compete in the Chase the team will have to thrive under pressure situations.

For more pit crew news, visit PitTalks.com

Posted on by Holly Cain

Even before the Joe Gibbs Racing team offered up its Richmond International Raceway speed clinic last Saturday — all four cars were running first-second-third and fourth midway through the night’s regular season finale — many NASCAR pundits had made up their mind.


With JGR driver Matt Kenseth leading a dominant 352 of 400 laps at Richmond en route to his fourth win of the season and the team’s eighth in the past 10 races, who would argue that JGR is the team to beat heading into Sunday’s playoff opener of the 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup?


The team has led more than 2,000 miles and collected 11 of the season’s first 26 race trophies. Kenseth and teammate Kyle Busch have each won four races tying Jimmie Johnson‘s season high mark.


RELATED: Kenseth gets fourth win | By the numbers: Kyle’s dominance


And all four Gibbs Toyotas appear to be hitting on all cylinders at a time when winning matters most. Most troubling to the competition is that it’s not just one driver leading the charge, nor one style of venue where their cars are fast.


Busch, for example, won four times in a five-race stretch this summer on a road course, big speedway, short track, and a 1.5-miler that will comprise most of the Chase dates.


“I feel like as a company right now, all four cars are really strong,” Kenseth said. “I felt like we were really strong in the Chase in 2013, but ended up getting beat.


“I feel like as a company right now, we’re stronger than we were in ’13. We had a lot of different things happen where all four of us now have been able to win races and we’re all in the Chase. I feel like as a company we’re stronger this year.”


His boss, former Washington Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs, was all smiles when he met the press following Kenseth’s victory.


“Obviously we’re thrilled,” he said of the Chase outlook. “Now the problem is, I think for the next three weeks I’ll be ready to throw up at any minute. That’s the bottom line (smiling).”


For Gibbs and the team, much of the satisfaction in earning four Chase bids is the difficult path to success — a lot to overcome with both man and machine. It’s easy to forget that the first two months of the season, Toyota and JGR were struggling and the questions were about if the team would be represented in the Chase at all.


Busch missed the first 11 races of the season and yet — with one of the most impressive efforts in Cup history — he still managed to win four races and earn enough points to be Chase eligible.

Kenseth’s victory in Bristol, Tenn. this March was his first since September of 2013 (New Hampshire) and his four wins is only the second time in the last nine years he’s taken home that much hardware.


RELATED: Kenseth dominates his way to Richmond win



Carl Edwards‘ two wins are his first after moving to the Gibbs organization this year from his longtime Cup home, Roush Fenway Racing.


And Denny Hamlin, who led the JGR charge in 2014 and advanced all the way to the Chase Final Four, is now playing hurt after tearing his ACL during a pick-up basketball game. He’ll have surgery after the season. There’s a title to win now.



RELATED: Hamlin tears ACL | Hamlin pushes past pain with Chase approaching


The key is being confident, not comfortable.


“I’m sure Joe is very confident that he has a great shot,” Hamlin said smiling. “He’s got a 25 percent chance with four cars out of the 16 so realistically, the Vegas odds are probably even a little better than that, that it will be a Gibbs car (winning the championship).


“But we’ve been in the sport long enough to know Homestead is still two and a half months away and a lot changes in our sport in two and a half months. Seems like two months ago we really hit our stride so we’ve got to keep our head down and continue to improve every race because as fast as our cars are now, the competition will pass us if we sit still.


“We were on other side for so long, really two years. I feel like our set-ups have gotten better, a lot of little things have gotten better. I feel like we’re all pushing each other to be better. I think TRD (Toyota Racing Development) really stepped up the program.


“All in all, you just have to hope to keep improving. That’s what you really worry about that you are running so well, you don’t change, but we have to keep changing to stay on top.”


Busch even wondered aloud Saturday night if the team might pull off the ultimate championship storyline.


“It might be a race between all four Gibbs cars come Homestead, but I’m sure Joe [Gibbs] would love that,” Busch said smiling. “It’s a good time to be driving a Toyota for Joe Gibbs.”

Posted on by Staff Report

BOOKMARK NOW: Watch Thursday’s Chase Media Day live stream



Want to watch Chase Media Day on Thursday, but you’re not in Chicago? We’ve got you covered.


Close your office door, dim your lights and tune in to NASCAR.com’s live stream of the event, from 1 p.m. ET to 4 p.m. ET Thursday.



Miss Sprint Cup Julianna White will host the special broadcast, and she will have time with all 16 drivers in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.


Again, here is the link for Thursday’s event.

Posted on by Staff Report

Landon Harrison pulled-off one of the most improbable wins in the history of the NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze Series Powered by iRacing at Darlington Raceway last night by beating Ray Alfalla (Slip Angle Motorsports) and Last Row Motorsports‘ Chris Overland in a 32 lap sprint to the finish.

Harrison started thirty-second and ran mid-pack until a timely caution flew during a round of green flag pit stops with 42 laps remaining, giving him his best track position of the night. After another quick caution and a few laps of following Overland and Alfalla after the final restart, Harrison made his move with 30 laps to go. Amazingly, he was able to pass both Alfalla and Overland in Turn Three before pulling away from the tandem who were left fighting for second.

That battle was won by Alfalla who took advantage of Overland’s slightly older tires to grab second, just over a second behind Harrison.  Overland took third followed by the Stergios brothers with PJ in fourth and Jake coming home fifth.  In all, three out of the top five finishers started twenty-seventh or worse, an impressive statistic for a track where overtaking is notoriously difficult.

The race also saw the debut of iRacing’s dynamic track surface model which shook-up the field and made track position less important than normal. In addition, the tires gave up more than three seconds over a full fuel run and rewarded smooth and consistent driving over pure hot-lapping.  This played right into the hands of a driver like Harrison who normally is not the fastest on the time sheet but knows how to keep his car clean and be around at the finish.

The conditions led to comers and goers along with tight sim racing throughout the pack as drivers slid around searching for grip. Despite the struggles experienced by many drivers, only four cautions slowed the pace for 16 laps. The long green flag runs created varying pit strategies with many drivers opting to short-pit for fresh tires in hopes of gaining track position while others chose to stretch their tires and fuel in hopes of catching a caution.

The TEAM‘s Kenny Humpe grabbed his fifth pole of the season and looked to clinch the 2015 series championship with a finish of thirteenth or better. Humpe started off strong and led 44 laps early but he was undone by damage to his PEAK Chevrolet, first by hitting the wall on his own and then later when he ran into Alex Warren when Warren was heading to pit road. As a result, Humpe finished twentieth, his worst result of the season, and failed to secure the championship.

Nick Ottinger also encountered tough sledding at Darlington after being a dominating force in recent weeks. Ottinger qualified second and looked to have above average speed at the beginning of the race, especially on the short run. However, as the track took rubber and the runs went on and on, Ottinger faded outside of the top ten, winding up thirteenth at the finish.

While Humpe failed to mathematically clinch the championship, he moved closer and now only needs to score six points over the final two races to take his first NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze Series title. Alfalla still is second, 90 points behind while PJ Stergios is another 43 back of Alfalla in third. Though the top three positions are comfortably held, the fight for fourth is a different story. Overland currently holds the spot but only by a single point over Bryan Blackford. Matt Bussa is lurking five points adrift of Blackford followed by Corey Vincent who is 11 points out of fifth.

Just two races remain in the 2015 NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze season, both 1.5 mile tracks.  Chicagoland Speedway is the first of the two and drivers will have to get to work quickly as there are just seven days until the next race rather than the customary two weeks. This shorter time frame will likely favor teams that test quickly and efficiently, and it will be interesting to see which sim racers can best adapt to changing track conditions. Will this be the race Humpe wraps up the championship, or can Alfalla somehow stay alive for the finale? Find out next Tuesday on iRacingLive!

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Latest Chase Grid | Full 2015 schedule |  See all the 2015 winners

Elimination-style playoffs return for the 2015 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, and excitement is building. If you forgot exactly how Kevin Harvick made his way to the title in 2014, we’re here to help with a quick refresher on how the Chase Grid system works.

THE SEEDING

Each of the 16 drivers who qualifies for the Chase Grid starts with 2,000 points, plus three points for each win earned during the first 26 regular-season races. After the bonus points for wins are added, drivers are ranked in order of the reset points. See the updated standings.

THE ROUNDS
Challenger Round: The 16 drivers will take to the track at Chicagoland Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Dover International Speedway for the 12 spots available in the next round (Contender). A win at any of the three races equals advancement into the next round. The rest of the field of 12 will be determined by order of points scored in the three races. After this round, each advancing driver will be reset to 3,000 points.

Points note: Bonus points for laps led will still be awarded in the Challenger, Contender and Eliminator Rounds. However, at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship, the four drivers will start the race tied and there will be no bonus points for laps led, etc.



Tiebreaker: If any position comes down to a tiebreaker, only the three races in the Challenger Round matter. Wins and finishes in the regular season won’t, so these nine drivers will need to run up front to challenge for the win. If they can’t win, they’ll need to have more second-place finishes, third-place finishes, etc. than their competitors in order to break the tie and advance. If two drivers have the exact same finishes, the tiebreaker then goes to the driver who scored the best finish first.

Contender Round: The 12 drivers will battle at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Kansas Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway for the eight spots available in the next round (Eliminator). A win at any of the three races equals advancement into the next round. The rest of the field of eight will be determined by order of points scored in the three races. After this round, each advancing driver will be reset to 4,000 points.



Tiebreaker: If any position comes down to a tiebreaker, only the three races in the Contender Round matter. Wins and finishes in the regular season won’t, so the drivers will need to run up front to challenge for the win. If they can’t win, they’ll need to have more second-place finishes, third-place finishes, etc. than their competitors in order to break the tie and advance. If two drivers have the exact same finishes, the tiebreaker then goes to the driver who scored the best finish first.

Eliminator Round: The eight drivers will battle at Martinsville Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway and Phoenix International Raceway for the four spots available in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship. A win at any of the three races equals advancement into the next round. The rest of the field of four will be determined by order of points scored in the three races. After this round, each advancing driver will be reset to 5,000 points

.

Tiebreaker: If any position comes down to a tiebreaker, only the three races in the Eliminator Round matter. Wins and finishes in the regular season won’t, so the drivers will need to run up front to challenge for the win. If they can’t win, they’ll need to have more second-place finishes, third-place finishes, etc. than their competitors in order to break the tie and advance. If two drivers have the exact same finishes, the tiebreaker then goes to the driver who scored the best finish first.

THE NASCAR SPRINT CUP CHAMPIONSHIP


The final race is all about order of finish. No bonus points for laps led, etc. The four finalists will start the race tied, and the highest finisher among them at Homestead-Miami Speedway will win the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.

 

THE POINTS


Drivers who don’t advance to the next round will have their point totals reset to the Chase-start base of 2,000 (with any regular-season wins bonus points), plus the additional points they’ve earned during the Chase. The idea, which was actually a driver-led suggestion, is that those eliminated from the postseason still have something to race for — fifth place. A driver eliminated in the opening Challenger Round, for example, can still finish ranked higher than someone who just misses the Championship Round cut.