Busch tops Charlotte Truck Series qualifying

Posted on May 16, 2014 by Staff Report

Busch wins second consecutive Keystone Light Pole Award

Kyle Busch won the Keystone Light Pole Award for the North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Busch turned in a lap of 183.773 mph in the final round of qualifying.

For Busch, it was his 14th career Keystone Light Pole Award and his second straight one in the Camping World Truck Series after winning the pole at Kansas last week.

Busch, who topped the lone practice session on Friday, has five wins in eight previous Truck Series races at Charlotte. This is his fourth pole at the track in the Truck Series.

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Defending series champion Matt Crafton, who also finished second to Busch at Kansas will start on the front row. Crafton’s lap in the final round of qualifying was 182.741 mph.

Brad Keselowski and Ron Hornaday Jr. will comprise Row 2.

The 12 trucks that made it to the final round of qualifying waited until about a minute left on the clock of the five-minute final session to run laps.

The North Carolina Education Lottery 200, which is the fourth Truck Series race of the season, consists of 134 laps and will get underway at 8:30 p.m. ET on Friday night (FOX Sports 1).

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Posted on May 16, 2014 by Staff Report

Rookie will be joined by Allmendinger on the front row for Sprint Showdown

RELATED: All-Star weekend paint schemes | Lineup for Sprint Showdown

Austin Dillon won the pole for Friday night’s Sprint Showdown at Charlotte Motor Speedway (7:15 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1).

The Sprint Cup Series rookie posted a fastest lap of 194.616 mph to take the top spot.

AJ Allmendinger (194.098 mph), who won the pole for the 2012 Sprint Showdown, will join Dillon on the front row.

Rookie Kyle Larson (194.014 mph) and Clint Bowyer (193.826 mph) will comprise Row 2, while Marcos Ambrose (193.625 mph) and Paul Menard (193.126 mph) will make up Row 3. Danica Patrick (192.795 mph) and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (192.623 mph) will make up Row 4.

Qualifying for the Sprint Showdown consisted of single-car runs with drivers taking two laps around the 1.5-mile track.

The Sprint Showdown consists of two 20 lap segments with an optional pit stop in between the two segments. The top two finishers in the Sprint Showdown will advance to Saturday night’s Sprint All-Star Race (9:10 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1).

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Posted on May 16, 2014 by Staff Report

Daytona 500 winner sets pace; Larson tops Showdown practice

Dale Earnhardt Jr. vaulted to the top of the leaderboard Friday afternoon in practice for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

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Earnhardt, the 2000 All-Star winner, turned a fast lap of 193.562 mph in the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet ahead of the Saturday night invitational (9 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1).

Earnhardt’s lap was just ahead of the 193.382 mph lap of Brian Vickers’ No. 55 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota. Denny Hamlin was third-best at 193.271 mph in the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

Kevin Harvick, a two-time winner in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series this season, was fourth-fastest with Greg Biffle completing the top five. Jimmie Johnson, winner of the last two NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, was just 12th-fastest of the 19 drivers already confirmed for the 22-car main event.

The All-Star entrants were on track for a total of 1 hour and 40 minutes, with the final 15 minutes devoted to pit-stop practice. The unique format to Saturday night’s Coors Light Pole Qualifying is a three-lap time trial that includes a four-tire change, with no speed limit on pit road.

Brad Keselowski was summoned to the NASCAR hauler for practicing his high-speed entry onto pit road before the designated 15 minutes.

Larson leads way in Sprint Showdown practice | Results

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series rookie Kyle Larson set the early pace in Friday practice for the Sprint Showdown qualifying race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Larson, in the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet, turned a fast lap of 194.105 to top the leaderboard by a wide margin. Aric Almirola was second-fastest in the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford at 192.438 mph.

Clint Bowyer, Marcos Ambrose and Paul Menard completed the top five in the 95-minute practice session.

The top two finishers from Friday night’s 40-lap Sprint Showdown (7:15 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1) will transfer into the main event, Saturday night’s NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. One other driver will make the invitational field as the top ballot-getter in the Sprint Fan Vote.

Rookie Alex Bowman spun off Turn 4 with 10 minutes to go in the practice session, but managed to avoid contact and bring his BK Racing No. 23 Toyota back to the garage in one piece.

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Posted on May 16, 2014 by Staff Report

RCR driver, series-leading rookie flash early speed

RELATED: Full practice results

NASCAR Nationwide Series points leader Chase Elliott and Brian Scott set the pace in a busy opening day full of practice Friday at Iowa Speedway.

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Elliott closed out practices on Friday with the highest speed of the session (135.566 mph). Elliott’s speed in the third session topped both of his speeds in the earlier two practices.

Coming in at second-fastest was Brendan Gaughan with a speed of 134.180 mph.

Elliott, driving the JR Motorsports No. 9 Chevrolet, set a fast lap of 134.690 mph on the .875-mile track in the opening three-hour practice, just ahead of Scott’s 134.546 mph lap. Elliott will be vying for his third victory in 10 races this season in Sunday’s Get to Know Newton 250 (2 p.m. ET, ESPN).

Scott and Elliott alternated their 1-2 spots in the day’s second practice, a two-hour session. Scott’s leaderboard-topping lap in the second session was a slightly faster 134.811 mph in the Richard Childress Racing No. 2 Chevrolet, compared to Elliott’s 134.656.

Joe Gibbs Racing drivers placed third in each session. Early in the day, it was the No. 54 JGR Toyota of Sam Hornish Jr., last year’s Nationwide Series runner-up, taking the last spot on the podium. Elliott Sadler — winner of the series’ most recent race, at Talladega — was third-fastest in the No. 11 JGR entry in session No. 2.

Defending race winner Trevor Bayne was fifth- and fourth-fastest respectively.

Teams showed some reluctance to get on the track in the initial three-hour session. With temperatures opening up in the upper 30s in the Hawkeye State, teams opted to allow more warmth to build in the track before making practice runs in earnest.

The Nationwide Series final practice will be held Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET. The Nationwide Series Coors Light Qualifying will be held Saturday evening at 7:10 p.m. ET.

You can catch the running of the Get to Know Newton 250 presented by Sherwin-Williams on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET with coverage on ESPN.

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Posted on May 16, 2014 by Staff Report

Sprint Cup regular edges Ryan Blaney in two-hour session

Kyle Busch set the pace in Friday’s lone practice for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

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Busch drove the No. 51 Toyota out of his own Kyle Busch Motorsports shop to a fast lap of 180.820 mph on the 1.5-mile track. Busch will be aiming for his sixth Charlotte victory in the series in Friday night’s North Carolina Education Lottery 200 (8:30 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1).

Ryan Blaney, last year’s truck series rookie of the year, was second-fastest in the two-hour session at 180.282 mph in the Brad Keselowski Racing No. 29 Ford. Timothy Peters was third-best in the Red Horse Racing No. 17 Toyota at 180.210 mph.

Owner/driver Brad Keselowski, still 0-for-59 in the win column in truck series competition, was fourth-fastest in the No. 19 Ford. Defending series champion Matt Crafton, the current points leader, completed the top five in the No. 88 ThorSport Racing Toyota.

A pair of two-hour truck practices were scheduled Thursday, but steady rain and a threatening forecast washed both sessions away. NASCAR officials expanded Friday’s practice by one hour to allow teams more track time.

Keystone Light Pole Qualifying for the series’ fourth race of the season is scheduled for 5:40 p.m. ET, also broadcast on FOX Sports 1.

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Posted on May 16, 2014 by Staff Report

Learn more about the formats of the Sprint Showdown and Sprint All-Star Race

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What: 30th-annual NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
Where: Charlotte Motor Speedway
When: Saturday, May 17, 2014
TV/Radio: FOX Sports 1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 20 laps / 20 laps / 20 laps / 20 laps / 10 laps (135 miles)
Time: 9:20 p.m. ET; qualifying at 7:20 p.m. ET

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Fastest in practice
Lone practice: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports No. 88 Chevrolet (193.562 mph)

From pole to Victory Lane
The NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race has been won from the pole position four times: Dale Earnhardt (1990), Davey Allison (1991 and 1992), Kurt Busch (2010).

Seeking a three-peat
Jimmie Johnson became the first driver to win four NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races last year, and he seeks to become the first driver to win three consecutive all-star events. Last year, Johnson joined Davey Allison as the only other driver to score back-to-back victories (1991-92).

Transfers from the Sprint Showdown
Clint Bowyer, Michael Waltrip Racing No. 15 Toyota, and AJ Allmendinger, JTG Daugherty Racing No. 47 Chevrolet, finished 1st and 2nd in Friday’s Sprint Showdown to advance to the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.

Josh Wise, Phil Parsons Racing No. 98 Ford, earned the Sprint Fan Vote to make his first career start in the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. In 2008, Kasey Kahne became the first and only driver to get into the NASCAR Sprint All-Star race by the Sprint Fan Vote and go on to win the event.

Youth vs. experience
Jeff Gordon is the youngest winner of the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at 23 years, 9 months and 18 days (1995). Mark Martin is the oldest at 46 years, 4 months and 12 days (2005). .

Former NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race winners in field
Jimmie Johnson (4); Jeff Gordon (3); Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Ryan Newman, Tony Stewart (1).

Field breakdown
Drivers who meet the following criteria are eligible for the 2014 Sprint All-Star Race:

· Drivers who have won races in the current and preceding year. (Greg Biffle, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray, Ryan Newman, David Ragan, Martin Truex Jr., Brian Vickers) If a driver leaves a team with which he/she has won a race, the driver remains eligible (through the last race before the All-Star Race), the former team does not.

· Drivers who are past NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champions in the last 10 years.

· Drivers who have won the All-Star Race in the past 10 years.

· The winning driver of the Sprint Showdown. (Clint Bowyer)

· The runner-up in the Sprint Showdown. (AJ Allmendinger)

· The driver who is voted in by fans by the Sprint Fan Vote. (Josh Wise)

Unique qualifying
The starting lineup for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race will be determined by time trials consisting on three laps including a four-tire pit stop. The total time will determine the lineup.

Race format
The NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race consists of five segments with the first four segments consisting of 20 laps each and the final segment consisting of 10 laps.

Following the first three segments, there are optional pit stops and five caution laps. The field will be set by pit stop/stay out track position after each of the first three segments. Following the fourth segment, the running order will be repositioned based on the average finish for the first four segments prior to pit road opening for the mandatory four-tire pit stop. The order of cars returning to the track will determine the order for the fifth and final segment. The running order ties will be broken by the finish of the fourth segment.

The final fifth segment is winner take all for the $1 million winner’s payday.

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Posted on May 16, 2014 by Nascar

Seventh-place finish at Kansas was Patrick’s best in 57 Sprint Cup Series starts

CONCORD, N.C. — A week removed from a career-best finish in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Danica Patrick says that her Stewart-Haas Racing team has "to keep our expectation levels in check just a little bit."

"And that we don’t just go out there and expect to run in the top five or 10 every single time now," she said following practice for Friday night’s Sprint Showdown at Charlotte Motor Speedway. "We have to remember that there is a process to it."

Patrick finished seventh in last week’s race at Kansas Speedway for her second top-10 in 57 Cup starts. It was the fourth-best finish by a female in NASCAR, trailing only a fifth-place run by Sara Christian (1949) and sixth-place results by Christian in ’49 and Janet Guthrie (’77).

That she ran among the top 10 drivers for the majority of the race, at one point climbing as high as third, was perhaps more impressive than the final result.

"We skipped over top-15s and went right to top-10," Patrick said of her Kansas run. "Shoot, we pretty much skipped over top-20s — I didn’t have many of those, either.

"We have to keep improving and keep getting in the thick of the good drivers, move up like that. It definitely gives confidence, definitely is a good sign and (it’s) definitely good to have those races. We just hope to have them more often."

The expectations of others, she said, "aren’t important to me."

"They don’t affect me. They don’t make me go any faster … and they don’t make me go any slower."

Statistically, there’s little difference in Patrick’s results from a year ago, when she was 28th after 11 races with one top-10 finish. She will enter next week’s Coca-Cola 600 27th in points, again with one top-10. But the Kansas effort clearly showed what Patrick and the No. 10 team, headed by veteran crew chief Tony Gibson, can accomplish.

Her teammates at SHR have produced mixed results this season. Kevin Harvick is a two-time race winner while Kurt Busch has a single victory. But consistency has been difficult to maintain — Harvick sits 15th in points while Busch is 28th.

Team co-owner/driver Tony Stewart, after missing the final 15 races of 2013, is 22nd in the standings.

"I feel like I’m feeling the car better and better," Patrick said, "but I don’t think it was a light switch (moment) for me. It was just a weekend that so many good things happened in the race and we ran with such good cars and passed such good cars that for me it gives me confidence, for sure.

"Like I said, I’ve always believed I can do that, but when you’re head-to-head with guys like Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson and Dale Jr. … then it’s another story on it’s own.

"I think that if we keep doing what we’re doing and keep our heads down and not get flustered; not every single weekend is going to be like that for anyone. But we’ll have more of those, for sure."

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Posted on May 16, 2014 by Nascar

Keselowski still seeks a Truck Series win in his career

CONCORD, N.C. – Brad Keselowski finished third in his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start of the season.

He nearly wound up on the back end of a wrecker.

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Keselowski was fourth when Ron Hornaday Jr., running second behind leader Kyle Busch, spun after a restart just past the halfway point of the 137-lap North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

"We got into him," Keselowski said afterward, "but I don’t think it did any significant damage.

"It got our attention and made us worry but … I think that didn’t have much of an effect on us. But it was really cool looking."

Ryan Blaney, Keselowski’s teammate, wasn’t as fortunate – his night ended on Lap 105 following contact with John Wes Townley.

Blaney was not injured, and said afterward he’d "like to know what (Townley) was thinking."

It was the second consecutive week Blaney had been caught up in an accident. He dropped three positions, to ninth, as a result of Friday night’s incident.

"I was behind it but I can’t say I was studying it," Keselowski said of Blaney’s crash. "No one knows what happened except the drivers that were in the seat.

"It looked like Ryan tried to make a move and whether the 5 (of Townley) turned down or there wasn’t a hole there I’m not sure. …

"Obviously disappointed that we tore up a truck. That’s not going to win a championship and I think the pieces are there to run with Matt (Crafton) and the other guys week after week. But you have to finish up front and getting the finishes you deserve. Being out of a race with a wreck isn’t going to get that. That’s basically what I saw."

Keselowski, the 2012 Sprint Cup Series champion, fields two NCWTS teams – the No. 29 for Blaney as well as the No. 19 that has several drivers scheduled for seat time.

While he has 11 wins in Cup and 28 in the Nationwide Series, Keselowski is still searching for his first Truck Series win.

"We’re close," he said. "Every time I get in it I feel like we run second or third if I don’t screw it up. We can’t seem to get over the hurdle."

The hurdle Friday night was Busch, race winner for the sixth time at Charlotte and the 38th time in his career. Busch led 130 of the 134 laps.

"I think Kyle was probably in a class of his own – we’ve seen that the past couple of weeks on these mile and a halves," he said. "So we’ve got work to do, still. But we were decent. I think there were a lot of trucks that were close to the same – (Hornaday) looked good, (Ben Kennedy), obviously Matt (Crafton) looked good. The 5 truck (of Townley) looked good. But we were all probably about the same. It would have been a great race if Kyle wasn’t here.

"We need just a little bit more to run with him; they’ve definitely got the package figured out. I’m proud of my group but we’ve got more work to do."

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#	Car	Driver	Team
1	55	Brian Vickers	Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota
2	14	Tony Stewart	Bass Pro Shops Tracker Boats Chevrolet
3	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	National Guard Chevrolet
4	16	Greg Biffle	3M Ford
5	24	Jeff Gordon	Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet
6	11	Denny Hamlin	FedEx Express Toyota
7	31	Ryan Newman	CAT/Quicken Loans Chevrolet
8	5	Kasey Kahne	Time Warner Cable Chevrolet
9	22	Joey Logano	Shell Pennzoil Ford
10	34	David Ragan	Taco Bell Ford
11	1	Jamie McMurray	Bass Pro Chevrolet
12	18	Kyle Busch	M&M’s Toyota
13	48	Jimmie Johnson	Lowe’s Patriotic Chevrolet
14	20	Matt Kenseth	Home Depot Husky Toyota
15	78	Martin Truex Jr.	Furniture Row Chevrolet
16	4	Kevin Harvick	Hunt Brother’s Pizza Chevrolet
17	99	Carl Edwards	Fastenal Ford
18	41	Kurt Busch	Haas Automation Chevrolet
19	2	Brad Keselowski	Miller Lite Ford
20	Sprint Showdown Winner	Clint Bowyer	Charter Toyota
21	Sprint Showdown 2nd	AJ Allmendinger	Freightliner-Miller Welders Chevrolet
22	Sprint Fan Vote Winner	Josh Wise	Dogecoin/Reddit.com

* Required to qualify on time, (i) Ineligible for driver points in this series

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		Track Qualifying Record:	Mike Skinner, 05/20/05, 29.5 sec/183.051 mph
#	Trk	Driver	Team
1	63	Justin Jennings	Mittler Bros. Machine & Tool Chevrolet
2	0	* Willie Allen	Grimes Irrigation & Construction Chevrolet
3	98	Johnny Sauter	Nextant Aerospace/Curb Records Toyota
4	42	* Charles Lewandoski	Randco/Young’s Building Systems Chevrolet
5	20	Austin Dillon(i)	Ranch Hand Chevrolet
6	82	* Jake Crum	My Freedom Smokes Chevrolet
7	9	Justin Lofton	Gunbroker.com Chevrolet
8	88	Matt Crafton	Hormel/Menards Toyota
9	57	Norm Benning	Grabiak Performance Center/Watts Truck Center Chevrolet
10	5	John Wes Townley	Zaxby’s Toyota
11	99	Bryan Silas	PBG/Bell Trucks America Inc. Chevrolet
12	10	Jennifer Jo Cobb	RobbyWells2016.com Chevrolet
13	21	Joey Coulter	Allegiant Travel Chevrolet
14	23	* Max Gresham	AmWinsGroup, LLC Chevrolet
15	35	Mason Mingus #	Mad Vapes/Call 811 Toyota
16	92	* Scott Riggs	BTS Tire/Thrifty Tire/Goodyear Fleet HQ/Wynns Ford
17	29	Ryan Blaney	Cooper Standard Careers for Veterans Ford
18	07	* J. J. Yeley	Thunder Exhaust Chevrolet
19	8	Joe Nemechek	MD Anderson Cancer Center/Smoke-N-Sear Toyota
20	50	T. J. Bell	Electric Linemen Chevrolet
21	13	Jeb Burton	Carolina Nut Co. Toyota
22	19	Brad Keselowski(i)	DrawTite Ford
23	30	Ron Hornaday Jr.	Rheem Chevrolet
24	7	Brian Ickler	Bullet Liner Toyota
25	54	Darrell Wallace Jr.	Toyota Time Sales Event Toyota
26	32	Tayler Malsam	Outerwall Chevrolet
27	08	Jimmy Weller III #	JoeDance.org/Liberty Steel Chevrolet
28	02	* Tyler Young	AKL Insurance Group/Young’s Building Systems Chevrolet
29	28	* Ryan Ellis(i)	Endo Optiks/FDNY Racing Chevrolet
30	17	Timothy Peters	Red Horse Racing Toyota
31	31	Ben Kennedy #	ALS Association Chevrolet
32	51	Kyle Busch(i)	Hiring Our Heroes/Toyota Care Toyota
33	77	German Quiroga	OtterBox Toyota

* Required to qualify on time, (i) Ineligible for driver points in this series

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