Posted on by Nascar

Driver on the verge of becoming first back-to-back Truck champion

FORT WORTH, Tex. — It’s been 10 years since the points leader with three races remaining in NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series failed to win the title.

Matt Crafton is hoping to stretch the streak to 11.

The ThorSport Racing driver holds an 18-point lead on Ryan Blaney (Brad Keselowski Racing) and leads third-place Darrell Wallace (Kyle Busch Motorsports) by 22.

Friday’s WinStar World Casino & Resort 350 at Texas Motor Speedway kicks off the final three-race leg for the series, followed by stops at Phoenix International Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway.

The defending series champion, and winner of the most recent NCWTS race at the 1.5-mile track, Crafton said the experience of last year’s title run has him better prepared for, and more comfortable with, what lies ahead.

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"Absolutely," he said Thursday after wrapping up two practice sessions. "I know from last year to this year I’m a completely different person. At this point last year … we had a 40- or 50-point lead (51 points), I have no idea what it was but it was huge, and I still had a lot of sleepless nights.

"Now, it is what it is. I’m just going out and trying to win races. You’re going to look at points — ‘OK, he’s this much back’ but I’m not going to worry about it. I haven’t woken up one time in the last three months and even thought about points. I can promise you that.”

A two-time winner this season, Crafton has finished third in three of the last four races. Blaney rolled into town on the heels of back-to-back top-five finishes. And Wallace has a win and two runner-up results in three of his last four outings.

The expectation is that Blaney and Wallace will continue to be fast, "but if you look at Darrell’s team, they’ve been on a roll here lately," Crafton said. "I think right now that’s going to be one of the tougher teams."

Wallace, also in a Toyota, won’t argue the assessment of his No. 54 group, but isn’t ready to talk points. Partly racer superstition perhaps, partly because of past experiences. But he said he feels good about the three remaining tracks on the schedule, especially Texas.

"I feel like this is where our mile-and-a-half program came to life," he said of a 10th-place Texas finish earlier this year. "We were way different (with our set-up) than we’d ever been so the confidence level went up. Kentucky was the next (1.5-mile track), we were really strong, finished second, Las Vegas finished second, and at Chicago ran top five all night, finished sixth. But this is the track where I think it came to life."

It’s been a complete turnaround for the KBM team, which finished no better than 15th in four of its first five starts this year.

The change, Wallace said, was due in part to "knocking all the bad luck out of the way" as well as communication with crew chief Jerry Baxter and his own comfort level inside the truck.

"I forget where it was, after Texas maybe, Jerry was like … ‘dude, believe in this truck, please.’ Stuff started turning around. All these mile-and-a-halves are so different, you’re feeling the air and any inch I’d get loose, and I’d be like ‘uh-oh.’ Now I don’t even care. Kyle (Busch, team owner and teammate) will mention ‘I’m feeling this.’ Well I’m feeling the same thing. He’s winning races so it’s got to be a good feeling."

Toyota can clinch the manufacturer’s championship this weekend with a finish of seventh or better by one of its drivers, eighth with one lap led or ninth with the most laps led.

Another victory would be No. 16 for the automaker, breaking the mark of 15 first reached in 2010 and equaled this year.

The title is far from a done deal, and as Johnny Sauter, Crafton’s teammate said, "anything is possible."

"I think his points lead is around 20, so yeah, three races is a long time," Sauter said. "That’s really not insurmountable by any means.

"Obviously I want to see Crafton win the championship because we’re in the same camp … those guys are solid week in and week out, they’re consistent. If they continue to do what they’ve done all year, they’re probably not going to be (caught).

"But three races is a long time. A lot of things can go right and a lot can go wrong."

For now, Crafton said he and his No. 88 team aren’t looking too far down the road.

"We know we have fast trucks," he said. "If I don’t make any mistakes, and we don’t make any mistakes as a team, we should be able to do it."

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Posted on by George Winkler

Blown engine while running second ends Wallace’s night in Texas

FORT WORTH, Texas — The points race in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series took a dramatic turn during the WinStar World Casino & Resort 350 on a wild Friday night at Texas Motor Speedway.

After climbing to within 16 points of leader Matt Crafton, Darrell Wallace Jr. lost his engine on Lap 106 of 147 while driving in second place, ending his night. It was a devastating blow to the championship hopes of the 21-year-old driver, who refused media interviews afterward but sent out the following message on social media:


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Meanwhile, Crafton, who is attempting to become the first back-to-back champion in the series’ history, fought off his own issues to finish fifth and increase his lead from 18 to 23 points over Ryan Blaney. Wallace dropped from 22 points behind to 43 points down with two races to go in the 2014 season.



Like Crafton, Blaney had to work extra hard to end up with a ninth-place finish. He battled electrical problems and lost some track position shortly after the halfway point of the race when he pitted with 79 laps to go — eight laps earlier than expected — to get new tires and better grip. 



Crafton complained of possible engine issues on Lap 57 but did not end up having them as his truck kept its top speed. That’s why it was a cruel bit of irony for Wallace to be running so well, seemingly flawlessly, before his engine blew.

The disappointment was evident as Wallace walked back from the infield care center toward his hauler and took a quick right turn to avoid media. Wallace’s crew chief Jerry Baxter spoke in the garage area while the truck was being worked on in the background.



"We don’t know what happened to the motor, but these motors run great every week," Baxter said. "He showed a lot of maturity driving, our truck was really right tonight. At least we were able to race Kyle for once instead of him running off."



Busch did end up with the victory, however, his 42nd in the series, but the driver of the No. 51 was mindful of his teammate’s misfortune afterward.



"Bubba was really good," Busch said. "I was actually really impressed with how well he was running, and when he was running the top he was making some really good moves and some smart decisions. I enjoyed racing with him. It’s a shame to see his engine fail as it did, but those guys at JGR give us some good motors."

Now Wallace is forced into almost a must-win situation for the final two races in order to have any chance at a title, and even if he does that he’ll need help in the form of misfortune for the Nos. 88 and 29.

"When we talk points, he doesn’t want to hear it because he thinks that’s when things are going to go bad," Baxter said. "He has better days ahead."

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Posted on by George Winkler

‘Smoke’ sets Texas track record and makes NASCAR history in second round

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FORT WORTH, Texas — For the first time in NASCAR history a driver topped 200 mph in a qualifying lap on a 1.5-mile track, and it was Tony Stewart who did the honors in the second of three rounds of qualifying on Friday night at Texas Motor Speedway.

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Stewart set the track qualifying record with a lap of 200.111 mph, breaking the previous record of 198.282 mph set by Kevin Harvick in April of 2014. The man known as ‘Smoke’ lit up the leaderboard with the lap of 26.985 seconds and gained the attention of Chase drivers such as Coors Light Pole Award winner Matt Kenseth.

"I never dreamed we’d see a lap time like that around here unless they paved it," Kenseth said. "It’s incredibly fast."

For Stewart it was a highlight in a difficult season, and it came on the heels of a top-five finish at Martinsville. That was Stewart’s first top-five since March at Auto Club Speedway, and combined with the good qualifying run gives Stewart something to build on as he looks towards the 2015 season.

Stewart was surprised when he broke the 200-mph barrier, saying over the radio, "Didn’t look that fast."

Although he set the record in the second round, Stewart ended up qualifying sixth and will share Row 3 with teammate Kevin Harvick for the start of Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 (3 p.m. ET, ESPN). He expressed some regret about not being able to hit the top speed in the third round of qualifying but was still pleased with the record.

"It is always cool to be the first guy to be able to do anything," Stewart said.

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Posted on by George Winkler

Points leader’s crew chief spent part of week working with Dale Jr. on ’15 setup

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FORT WORTH, Texas — Chase Elliott has a 42-point lead on his nearest competitor in the NASCAR Nationwide Series standings. At this point, only a complete meltdown in Saturday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) would prevent him from taking another step toward becoming the youngest champion ever in a major NASCAR series.

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Nevertheless, Elliott spent some time on Friday answering questions centering on potential issues that could slow down the No. 9 championship express.

One was whether it could become a distraction that outgoing crew chief Greg Ives is spending time with the No. 88 Sprint Cup Series car and tested with Dale Earnhardt Jr. earlier in the week at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

As he said earlier in the season when Ives first got the No. 88 job for 2015, Elliott said he was unfazed by the crew chief using some of his time to focus elsewhere. Elliott said he understood Ives needed to do that because of the big job he has coming up stepping in for Steve Letarte and teaming with a driver who will be coming off one of his best seasons to date.

Despite the forays into the Sprint Cup world, Ives is keeping up his end of the bargain back in the Nationwide Series garage, according to Elliott.

"As far as his mentality and mindset and where his focus is, it hasn’t changed a bit," Elliott said. "I think he has done a great job balancing what he needs to do to prepare himself for next year and make sure he gives the Nationwide effort on the 9 car the best effort he can. And I think he’s done a good job of doing both in my personal opinion."

Other items that could potentially derail Elliott’s championship aspirations include looking too far ahead and the physical demands of a long season in that he has never experienced at this level.

But like checking off items on a honey-do list, Elliott addressed both of those issues and said he wasn’t worried about lapsing into complacency or running out of the energy needed to focus on his ultimate goal.

"As far as racing at as many different locations in the United States, I’ve never done that much traveling and stuff as we’ve done this year," Elliott said. "But I have raced just as many, if not more races, than what we have in the past. But I think the biggest thing is just the traveling. That can set in on you, but if you love it, the biggest thing for me is we’ve had two weeks off and there were a lot of bored days in those two weeks for me. So I’m just happy to be back and look forward to racing."

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Posted on by George Winkler

Disparity between Logano, Newman stats could lead to interesting strategies

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FORT WORTH, Texas — Guess which one of these drivers is in the thick of the championship race as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series comes to Texas Motor Speedway:



Driver A has five wins, 16 top-fives, 21 top-10s and has led 976 laps this season.

Driver B has zero wins, four top-fives, 15 top-10s and has led 41 laps this season.

Driver A looks like the clear choice, but the answer is both.

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Joey Logano (Driver A) and Ryan Newman (Driver B) have taken different paths to get here, but both have a golden opportunity in front of them in Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 (3 p.m. ET, ESPN). Logano is third in the Chase standings, four points behind leader Jeff Gordon, while Newman is in second place, three points back. Another strong performance will put either one of them one step closer to getting into the championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

While winning is still the most direct route to advance, non-Chase driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s victory last weekend at Martinsville assures that at least two drivers will go to the championship race based on points. And with two of the fastest cars — Brad Keselowski‘s No. 2 Ford and Kevin Harvick‘s No. 4 Chevrolet — buried in the Eliminator Round standings, avoiding the big mistake has become almost as important as getting a win.

But could a driver lose his edge if he decides to go into prevent-defense mode this late in the game? Logano says he’s not going to take that chance, as he refuses to back down from what could be a run to his first championship.



"What we have done all year, even before the Chase started — we have raced the same way and that is aggressive," Logano said. "We put ourselves in the offensive mode no matter what the situation was, and we saw that again last weekend when we took four tires there with a green-white-checker and we started 13th and got up to fifth with the aggressive mode.



"That is the mode we should stay in because that is what has been working. It is not the time to reinvent the wheel, just time to polish it a little bit and make sure we stay out there doing what we have been doing, just doing a little better job at it."



It’s tough to argue with that approach as Logano has finished in the top five in six of the past seven races. And lest we forget, Logano won at Texas in the spring in a season that he admits has already been dream-like.

While Logano knows he can get to Victory Lane if needs to, Newman has not proven it yet this season. 
So for Newman, one might think the pressure is building for him to get a win and serve notice that he’s a legitimate contender, but he doesn’t seem too concerned with proving a point. Instead, he’s having fun in the new format and in his first year with Richard Childress Racing and is willing to win a title with dogged consistency if that’s what he needs to do.

Using this approach, Newman has compiled a career-best average finish of 13.5.


"Yeah, there’s intensity out there but that’s different from pressure to me," Newman said. "Pressure is what explodes things, and there’s no reason to put unneeded or unwanted pressure on anything that you want to perform well."



But to use a golf analogy, will Newman go for the green and the birdie opportunity in this week’s race? Or will he lay up and take his par?



"Bottom line is you only have to be aggressive as you need to be," Newman said. "If you have a dominant race car, then being aggressive is the worst thing you can be. But if you’re in a position where you’re fighting for seventh or eighth all day and you think you have a top-five car, then you better be aggressive and make something happen."



What will happen on Sunday at Texas? That’s what we’re waiting to find out as the new Chase format continues to provide intensity and intrigue at every turn.

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Panel of experts debate the hot topics in NASCAR

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1. Before we put last week’s race in the rear-view, which win was bigger for Dale Earnhardt Jr. this year — the Daytona 500 or Sunday’s victory at Martinsville?

Kenny Bruce: From an appearance standpoint, it certainly seemed as if the Martinsville win meant a lot to Dale Jr. He’s one of a very few folks in the sport today who understands and values the history of the sport, and there’s no denying Martinsville’s place. It’s the only track still on the schedule since the very beginning. Had he still been in Chase contention, the importance of that win would have been even bigger. But … Daytona 500 wins are still cherished, and by the way, that track has a bit of history as well. And when Hall of Fame talk comes up, a win or wins in the D500 carry a lot of weight.

Holly Cain: While Junior seemed nearly as emotional for the grandfather clock on Sunday, I think becoming a rare multi-winner of the Daytona 500 always be the highlight of his career. …. until and unless he gets a championship trophy, that is.

Zack Albert: Maybe I’m speaking as someone still full of Martinsville hot dogs, but it was quite the reaction that Junior had coming across the finish line and in the infield media center afterward. Crowd reaction was super-loud, too.

Cain: Seems like I recall a pretty loud reaction in Daytona too, though. I just feel that second Daytona 500 victory is what will elevate him as a driver.

Bruce: Were they cheering in the press box, Zack? Not to dismiss the importance of his other wins this year, but were the Pocono wins as memorable? As monumental? I think you’re right Holly, a multi-time winner of the D500 carries a lot of clout. But singling out this year’s win … he already had one win in the 500. He had never won at Martinsville. For him personally, it seemed like this last win was the bigger deal.

Albert: Our media corps cheering in the press box? Heresy! Honestly, the Pocono wins, to me, are what elevated crew chief Steve Letarte as a savvy pit strategist. Dale Jr. can’t do it alone and he’s had a crew chief on top of his game as well this year. Plus, he got a clock. They also gave him two hot dogs after he got out of Victory Lane on Sunday. When he saw they were plain, he left them in the media center. I haven’t seen them show up on eBay just yet …

Cain: Are you kidding Zack, two hot dogs unattended in the media center were definitely eaten by a reporter at some point.

Bruce: Give ’em time, Zack.

Albert: Here again, you know our media corps.

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2. At least two drivers are guaranteed to advance into the season-finale at Homestead based on points earned. Could we see a return to "points racing" in the final two races of the Eliminator Round?

Albert: Not if your name is Harvick or Keselowski. Maybe the drivers ahead of them in the Chase standings will lean toward being more conservative in these next two, but those two will be going for it.

Cain: Maybe it’s just me but it feels like points racing is a scary and uncertain proposition. These guys are getting crashed out up front and in back. However, I agree with Zack and think that will be an easier tactic for those higher in the standings this week.

Albert: Is it like football? Will a prevent defense prevent you from winning?

Bruce: I don’t know that we will. Maybe when the Chase began and there were 16 "Nations" involved, a team could look a little more at the points situation. But now, with wins being guaranteed tickets to advance, I think those left are more focused on winning that ever, if that’s possible. In reality, they might end up with a "good points day" but that’s just the result of a day spent trying to get to the front. Not a goal.

Cain: And certainly these two tracks — Texas and Phoenix — can be tough on the best of "points" strategies.

Bruce: Right, Holly. And how many times have we seen drivers try to play it safe only to have it wind up biting them?

Albert: Plus, I still think these guys still set the goal to win every week. If that’s not in the cards, we may see more risk-takers than usual, depending on the standings. I should’ve "points raced" when it came to hot dogs last weekend.

Cain: Let’s face it, there are only so many times a season when you have THE winning car and you typically know that pretty early on in a race, so making the best of a situation — points racing — is always Plan B. But especially at these tracks, you are easily the victim of others mistakes, Zack.

Bruce: You were going for the win, Zack. Giving 100 percent.

Cain: Glad I DNQ’ed on that one.

3. Both Ryan Newman and Matt Kenseth remain winless yet also remain very much in the title picture. How realistic are their chances at advancing and perhaps even winning the series title without winning a race?

Cain: I didn’t think I’d be saying this a few weeks ago, but I could totally see either Newman or Kenseth advancing on points. But that Homestead race is going to be crazy aggressive so I’m not ready to give them a trophy yet.

Albert: There is something to be said for keeping fenders on the car, isn’t there? I know that a win comes with all kind of incentives, glitz and extras, but there’s still a reward for being consistent.

Bruce: I don’t think they’ve over-achieved, or been more fortunate than most. It’s more just the way the system is set up. You don’t have to win to advance, but it certainly helps. And with at least two spots in the final race now based on points, their chances look even better. I don’t see them all of a sudden going out and dominating a race and winning, they’ve had 30-plus races to accomplish that and it hasn’t happened. But advance? Sure.

Cain: It’s been amazing … just when you think Kenseth is out of if, he crosses the line just where he needs to be. Homestead is just going to be unlike anything we’ve ever seen.

Albert: Kenseth is as good a pick as any to win Texas, but as Kenny says, I think it’s going to be tough to make too many inroads into converting so-far-elusive victories this late in the season.

Bruce: Kenseth’s Texas stats? Two wins and the best average finish in the field. So maybe this is his week after all. But I wouldn’t wager two Martinsville hot dogs on it, Zack.

Cain: Kevin Harvick only said Kenseth wouldn’t win a championship. He didn’t say anything about winning races!

Albert: If they continue to mess with each other, perhaps neither will be in the final four — wins or not. And there it all comes full circle. Enjoy a Texas sirloin while you’re down in the Lone Star State.

Bruce: Everything’s bigger in Texas, Zack. Including the sirloins.

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Posted on by Holly Cain

Region’s largest hospital organization to name Turn 1 injector

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Daytona International Speedway proudly unveiled another major corporate sponsor of its Daytona Rising redevelopment on Thursday morning, welcoming Florida Hospital as a founding partner. Its brand will hold prime naming rights on Injector Number One of the speedway’s $400 million remodeling — "re-imagining" project.

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International Speedway Corporation Chief Executive Officer Lesa France Kennedy made the announcement outside the iconic track Thursday. The largest hospital organization in the Daytona Beach region — with 23 hospitals statewide — joins Toyota as the first two founding partners of Daytona Rising.

Florida Hospital will have naming rights on the huge fan injector nearest Turn 1. It also will brand and run all of the property’s first aid centers and the infield care center as the facility’s exclusive healthcare provider.

The company has a relationship with the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the NBA’s Orlando Magic — something Daytona International Speedway President Joie Chitwood says also makes Florida Hospital a natural fit with NASCAR’s most famous race track.

"We’re excited to welcome them to the family,” Chitwood said. "And we are really excited about where we are. This project has truly generated the publicity we hoped for, and it’s a unique project to go from race track to motorsports stadium.

"We’ve got a lot of positive news, the fact we’ll have 40,000 seats available for next year’s Daytona 500 gives fans a little sneak preview. I couldn’t be more pleased with where we are."

The corporate interest in partnering with the speedway has been significant. The construction project is on course to be fully completed by 2016, and Chitwood says he is thrilled with the progress and what it says for the track and the sport in general.

"We still have a year and three months until opening for 2016, and we’ve announced two partners for injectors (Toyota was announced in February.) We’ve done our topping out ceremony. I do believe in the next month or so we’ll have an announcement for maybe a new event we’ll add for 2016.

"I am really pleased with where we are and what we have in front of us. It reinforces that NASCAR is a great spot for partners like Toyota and Florida Hospital. We’re planting our flag. We’re not going anywhere, we’re setting up this property for the next 50 plus years, and the fact we’re seeing great interest on the corporate side just reinforces this is the right thing to be doing at the right time."

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Posted on by Staff Report

In a combined 22 starts at Texas and Phoenix, Keselowski has yet to earn a victory

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Less than two weeks ago, Brad Keselowski was the talk of NASCAR World after he pulled out an improbable victory in a "win or go home" situation at Talladega that propelled him into the Eliminator Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

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Going into Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway (3 p.m. ET on ESPN), Keselowski finds himself in a similar predicament. After finishing 31st in the opening Eliminator Round race at Martinsville, the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford driver is 26 points behind the Chase cutoff line and essentially needs to win one of the next two races at Texas or Phoenix to move on to the Championship final race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

"We were doing the things we needed to do, we were surviving," said Keselowski about his performance at Martinsville. "We were gonna probably have ourselves a fifth or sixth-place day, which is certainly something we could be proud of and move forward with, but this kind of puts us in a position now where we need to win."

Fortunately for Keselowski, winning hasn’t been a problem for him this season. The 30-year-old Michigan native leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with six victories and has captured a checkered flag in each of the first two rounds of the pressure-packed Chase.

Unfortunately, winning at Texas and Phoenix has been a problem for Keselowski throughout his career. In a combined 22 starts at the two tracks, Keselowski has yet to collect a victory.

Recent success at the pair of courses suggests Keselowski is on the verge of breaking through for his first win at either of them. In his last four starts at Texas, Keselowski claims three top-10 finishes, including a runner-up showing in the fall of his 2012 championship season. While Keselowski struggled in his first five career starts at Phoenix with no showing better than 15th, he has placed sixth or better in his last five races at the Arizona track, including a third-place result from the pole this spring.

Keselowski feels confident in his ability to pull off a victory, especially after coming through in the clutch at Talladega.

"Yeah, it’s still tough to do," Keselowski said. "It’s not like we’re just gonna go and guarantee a win at Texas and Phoenix, but it’s also not impossible, and we’ve got the team, if there is one, to pull it off."

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Posted on by Staff Report

ThorSport driver shows early speed, edges Burton, Peters atop leaderboard

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Johnny Sauter swept to the top of the leaderboard in both NASCAR Camping World Truck Series practices Thursday afternoon at Texas Motor Speedway.

Sauter, driving the ThorSport Racing No. 98 Toyota, clocked a lap at 180.114 mph in the opening hourlong practice, making him the only driver to break the 30-second barrier on the 1.5-mile track. Sauter was just .012 seconds faster in the 90-minute final session, translating to a best lap of 180.186 mph.

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Sauter, who has won twice at the Fort Worth facility with a sweep of the track’s two events in 2012, edged ThorSport teammate Jeb Burton for the No. 1 spot in final practice. Burton, who notched his first truck series victory at Texas in June 2013, clocked a lap at 179.952 mph in final practice and was also third-fastest in first practice.

Timothy Peters placed his Red Horse Racing No. 17 Toyota second on the board behind Sauter in the opening practice at 179.545 mph and third-best (179.826) in final practice in preparation for Friday night’s WinStar World Casino & Resort 350 (8:30 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1). Peters and Sauter engaged in a spirited shouting match after last weekend’s race at Martinville Speedway, needing to be separated by their two crews.

Brennan Newberry and Darrell Wallace Jr. — last week’s winner at Martinsville — completed the top five in opening practice. In the final session, Kyle Busch — Wallace’s teammate and a six-time truck series winner at Texas — was fourth-best with defending series champion and current points leader Matt Crafton fifth-fastest.

Crafton, a winner at Texas for the first time in June, was 10th-fastest in opening practice before finding improvement. Ryan Blaney, 18 points off the top and Crafton’s closest pursuer, was 12th-best on the speed chart early and only 15th-fastest in final practice.

Only 25 of the 32 trucks entered hit the track in the first practice, but 30 participated in the final session.

Keystone Light Pole Qualifying is scheduled at 3:15 p.m. ET to set the field. The 20th of 22 races this season is scheduled for an 8:30 p.m. ET start time, televised by FOX Sports 1.

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Posted on by Staff Report

Keep tabs on the action at Texas Motor Speedway

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This weekend brings the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the NASCAR Nationwide Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series to Texas Motor Speedway.

The Sprint Cup Series AAA Texas 500 is on Sunday, Nov. 2 at 3 p.m. ET with coverage on ESPN.

The Nationwide Series O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge is on Saturday, Nov. 1 at 3:30 p.m. ET with coverage on ESPN.

The Camping World Truck Series WinStar World Casino and Resort 350 is on Friday, Oct. 31 at 8:30 p.m. ET with coverage on FOX Sports 1.

For more information on track times, press conferences and GarageCam, you can check out this weekend’s schedule. For TV times, see this week’s TV schedule.

We know you may not have the time to watch the race action without any interruptions, so if you’re on the go, here’s how to keep up at Texas.

FULL CHASE COVERAGE

• Chase hub page
• Chase Grid games
• #MyChaseNation

NASCAR.com’s live Sprint Cup Series leaderboard, Nationwide Series leaderboard and Camping World Truck Series leaderboard update in real-time and offer constant text updates of lead changes, cautions, strategies, strong runs and everything in between. From the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series leaderboard, fans can also access live standings. On the go? Download the NASCAR Mobile app to follow the leaderboards live from your device.

Lap-by-Lap will keep you caught up even if you can only take a peek here or there. Check in to read back through all the laps you’ve missed, or keep an eye on the feed for real-time race updates.

For all the information you need on the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup format, check out Chase 101 for an easy-to-follow guide — Texas is the second race in this year’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Eliminator Round. Fans can also keep up with how their fantasy Chase Grid is doing here.

We’ll also send race updates via Twitter through the official @NASCAR and @NASCARStats handles.

RaceBuddy will have enhanced views and coverage for the Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series races with 10 HD live race views, including six in-car cameras as well as a backstretch camera, pit road camera and more.

Haven’t tried RaceView yet? If you sign up, you’ll get virtual video of cars on the track from various angles and hear what your favorite team is saying over the radio. Use it as a second screen or as your only screen. Just want to scan the radios? You can have that too with RaceView Audio. On a mobile device? Get RaceView Mobile here.

If you want to be more involved in the on-track action, you can manage your fantasy team on NASCAR.com and follow your team’s performance in NASCAR Fantasy Live. Mobile users can also download NASCAR Connect, a game from OneUp Sports that allows users to play other fans with race predictions, for some off-track competition while drivers battle it out on the track.

Live Press Pass video streams will keep the NASCAR action rolling even after the winner goes in and out of Victory Lane. Catch interviews with the top finishers immediately following the checkered flag for all three national series events, and stay tuned to NASCAR.com throughout the week for the latest news.

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