Denny Hamlin falls short on victory promise

Posted on March 31, 2014 by Zack Albert

Despite front-row starting spot, Joe Gibbs Racing driver struggles at Martinsville

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Denny Hamlin‘s bold prediction of a Martinsville Speedway victory fell flat Sunday afternoon, leaving the Joe Gibbs Racing driver scratching his head after an uncharacteristically subpar performance at one of his best tracks.

Hamlin set the fastest time in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice Friday and backed it up with a second-best speed in Coors Light Pole Qualifying, prompting the Virginia native to promise a victory in Sunday’s main event. But after a washout of on-track activity Saturday, Hamlin faded from his front-row starting spot in the STP 500 and dropped to a 19th-place finish in an ill-handling car.

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Hamlin, who missed the series’ previous race after a piece of metal lodged in his eye last weekend at Auto Club Speedway, said he had no vision problems at Martinsville.

"Just slow. That’s the only thing that was wrong with us today," said Hamlin, a four-time winner at the .526-mile track. "Frustrating day, especially when you know that this is a race track that I feel like I can make up a difference here and there, but man, we were a football field and then some away from the right set-up today."

Hamlin sent a radio message to crew chief Darian Grubb before one of his earliest pit stops, saying he wanted to "take a big swing" at improving the set-up. But whatever changes his No. 11 Toyota crew made throughout the course of the day never quite addressed the handling issues.

Compounding the lack of grip was an ignition issue that caused the car to lose power in Martinsville’s tight turns.

"Still, setup-wise, we could’ve really used Saturday," Hamlin said of the rainy preliminary day. "I was thinking as fast as we were on Friday, it probably would play into our advantage not having practice on Saturday, but there was a laundry list of things we needed to try and didn’t get to do it. Obviously, this car and the set-up we had was good for 10 laps, but it just goes away after that. We’ve got to go to work, do some testing. It’s the only thing you can do to get better."

Guarantees aside, Hamlin and his team will try to regroup next weekend at Texas Motor Speedway, where he has two Sprint Cup victories — a sweep of the 1.5-mile track’s races in 2010. Though his team’s recent showing on intermediate tracks has him hopeful for a rebound in Fort Worth, it’s the mild short-track shortcomings that had him down on Sunday.

"Really, our short-track program since the beginning of ’13 has really gone away — a lot," said Hamlin, who finished seventh at Texas last fall. "We definitely need to test and get it a little better than what it is, and a lot better to get to Victory Lane. We’ve definitely got a long way to go, but it’s a long season, we’ve got all of our tests saved up, so we’ll hit it here in the summer months."

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Posted on March 31, 2014 by Nascar

Dale Jr. gets back points lead, but misses out on win at Martinsville

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — There was a bit of frustration as Dale Earnhardt Jr. attempted to catch the leaders in the final laps of Sunday’s STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway.

At one point, Earnhardt Jr. seemed to be catching race leader Kurt Busch and second-place Jimmie Johnson; the traffic, the lack of laps remaining and the small differences in how close the three cars were from a competitive standpoint negated any serious bid for the lead.

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Instead, he finished third, his No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet surviving on a day when many others did not. He’s back atop the points standings, and has now finished third or better in four of this year’s six races.

The winning driver at Martinsville earns a grandfather clock. Earnhardt Jr. is still searching for his first.

"You couldn’t run any harder with the wear we had on the tires," Earnhardt Jr., who led three times for 25 laps, said. “You just couldn’t afford to. You saw how the 20 car and the 18 car (of Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Matt Kenseth and Kyle Busch), those guys would run real hard at the lead early in the race, and they set an example for the rest of us to watch out and be easy on that left‑rear tire … it just goes away like a snap.

"I couldn’t afford to run any harder if I wanted to be competitive on the end of these runs. … None of the runs went past 80 laps, but typically we see a good long run in the middle of the race, and we were just ready for that."

Earnhardt Jr. had qualified 26th, worked his way toward the front shortly before halfway, then stayed out under a round of caution-flag stops to inherit the lead. He was able to remain out front for a bit, but eventually fresher tires would win out.

Toward the end of the race, after all the leaders had pitted with less than 40 laps remaining, everyone had fresh tires. It was time to go.

"Inside of 38 laps to go I thought everybody was going to go like hell, and we all did and ended up running third," he said. "I think the two guys (Busch and Johnson) in front of me were — I was losing my car pretty fast there the last five laps so I didn’t have anything else to get there.

"I got a couple lapped guys gave me the outside instead of the inside. That’s their right, but that cost me a little time and maybe some wear and tear on my tires. I thought when we passed the 22 (Joey Logano) we might be able to roll up there and get in the middle of the race for that win, but no, those guys’ cars, they were pretty good."

Patience, he said, was the key. "When guys were faster, I just let them go and just sat there," he said.

"I was real patient all day in saving the left rear (tire) and just waiting until the end (to) see where we’d be. We had good track position."

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Posted on March 31, 2014 by Nascar

A statistical look ahead to this week’s Sprint Cup Series stop at Texas

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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 31, 2014) – Below is a look at some of the top statistical performers at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas going into the Duck Commander 500 on April 6 at 3 p.m. ET (FOX, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

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TEXAS-SPECIFIC STATISTICS

Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M/Give Kids A Smile Ford)

· Two wins, eight top fives, 12 top 10s; one pole

· Average finish of 15.1

· Average Running Position of 12.3, seventh-best

· Driver Rating of 101.8, third-best

· 465 Fastest Laps Run, second-most

· 1,194 Green Flag Passes, 10th-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 173.396 mph, third-fastest

· 4,457 Laps in the Top 15 (74.0%), fourth-most

· Series-high 742 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green)

Clint Bowyer (No. 15 Willie’s Duck Diner Toyota)

· Three top fives, nine top 10s

· Average finish of 12.8

· Average Running Position of 12.6, eighth-best

· Driver Rating of 92.3, ninth-best

· Average Green Flag Speed of 173.094 mph, eighth-fastest

Kurt Busch (No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet)

· One win, three top fives, 12 top 10s

· Average finish of 15.3

· Driver Rating of 88.0, 12th-best

· 191 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most

· 1,372 Green Flag Passes, third-most

· 578 Quality Passes, 12th-most

Kyle Busch (No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota)

· One win, six top fives, seven top 10s; one pole

· Average finish of 14.0

· Average Running Position of 11.0, fourth-best

· Driver Rating of 101.6, fourth-best

· 331 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 173.452 mph, second-fastest

· 4,158 Laps in the Top 15 (73.1%), sixth-most

· 597 Quality Passes, 10th-most

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet)

· One win, four top fives, 13 top 10s; two poles

· Average finish of 13.7

· Average Running Position of 11.5, fifth-best

· Driver Rating of 93.8, seventh-best

· 216 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most

· 1,343 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 173.134 mph, seventh-fastest

· 4,624 Laps in the Top 15 (76.8%), third-most

· 736 Quality Passes, second-most

Carl Edwards (No. 99 Fastenal Ford)

· Three wins, six top fives, eight top 10s; one pole

· Average finish of 15.6

· Average Running Position of 12.3, sixth-best

· Driver Rating of 97.5, sixth-best

· 358 Fastest Laps Run, third-most

· 1,164 Green Flag Passes, 12th-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 173.320 mph, fourth-fastest

· 4,425 Laps in the Top 15 (73.5%), fifth-most

· 703 Quality Passes, fourth-most

Jeff Gordon (No. 24 Axalta/Texas A&M School of Engineering Chevrolet)

· One win, eight top fives, 11 top 10s; two poles

· Average finish of 17.8

· Average Running Position of 14.5, 11th-best

· Driver Rating of 90.6, 10th-best

· 307 Fastest Laps Run, seventh-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 172.965 mph, 11th-fastest

· 3,727 Laps in the Top 15 (61.9%), eighth-most

· 629 Quality Passes, ninth-most

Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Office Toyota)

· Two wins, five top fives, nine top 10s

· Average finish of 10.7

· Average Running Position of 12.7, ninth-best

· Driver Rating of 93.3, eighth-best

· 167 Fastest Laps Run, 11th-most

· 1,301 Green Flag Passes, ninth-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 172.998 mph, 10th-fastest

· 3,596 Laps in the Top 15 (67.2%), 12th-most

· 696 Quality Passes, fifth-most

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s “Spring is Calling” Chevrolet)

· Three wins, 10 top fives, 16 top 10s; one pole

· Average finish of 8.7

· Average Running Position of 10.3, second-best

· Driver Rating of 106.4, second-best

· Series-high 488 Fastest Laps Run

· Average Green Flag Speed of 173.319 mph, fifth-fastest

· 4,660 Laps in the Top 15 (77.4%), second-most

· 681 Quality Passes, sixth-most

Matt Kenseth (No. 20 Dollar General Toyota)

· Two wins, 13 top fives, 16 top 10s

· Average finish of 8.3

· Series-best Average Running Position of 9.0

· Series-best Driver Rating of 107.2

· 350 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most

· 1,360 Green Flag Passes, fifth-most

· Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 173.482 mph

· Series-high 4,827 Laps in the Top 15 (80.1%)

· 709 Quality Passes, third-most

Tony Stewart (No. 14 Code 3 Associates/Mobil 1 Chevrolet)

· Two wins, six top fives, 12 top 10s; one pole

· Average finish of 13.1

· Average Running Position of 10.8, third-best

· Driver Rating of 99.1, fifth-best

· 344 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 173.180 mph, sixth-fastest

· 4,023 Laps in the Top 15 (70.7%), seventh-most

· 596 Quality Passes, 11th-most

Martin Truex Jr. (No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet)

· Two top fives, eight top 10s; two poles

· Average finish of 15.0

· Average Running Position of 13.7, 10th-best

· Driver Rating of 89.1, 11th-best

· 1,164 Green Flag Passes, 12th-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 173.017 mph, ninth-fastest

· 3,605 Laps in the Top 15 (63.4%), 11th-most

Texas Motor Speedway

Texas Motor Speedway Data

Season Race #: 7 of 36 (04-06-14)

Track Size: 1.5-mile

Banking/Turn 1 & 2: 24 degrees

Banking/Turn 3 & 4: 24 degrees

Banking/Frontstretch: 5 degrees

Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees

Frontstretch Length: 2,250 feet

Backstretch Length: 1,330 feet

Race Length: 334 laps / 501 miles

Top 10 Driver Ratings at Texas

Matt Kenseth……………………….. 107.2

Jimmie Johnson…………………… 106.4

Greg Biffle………………………….. 101.8

Kyle Busch.………………………… 101.6

Tony Stewart…………………………. 99.1

Carl Edwards………………………… 97.5

Dale Earnhardt Jr.………………….. 93.8

Denny Hamlin……………………….. 93.3

Clint Bowyer…………………………. 92.3

Jeff Gordon………………………….. 90.6

Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2013 races (18 total) among active drivers at Texas Motor Speedway.

Qualifying/Race Data

2013 Coors Light Pole winner:

Kyle Busch, Toyota

196.299 mph, 27.509 secs. 04-12-13

2013 race winner:

Kyle Busch, Toyota

144.751 mph, (03:27:40), 04-13-13

Track qualifying record:

Kyle Busch, Toyota

196.299 mph, 27.509 secs. 04-12-13

Track race record:

Greg Biffle, Ford

160.577 mph, (3:07:12), 11-14-12

History

· Construction on Texas Motor Speedway began in 1995.

· The first NASCAR national series race at TMS was a NASCAR Nationwide Series event on April 5, 1997 – won by Mark Martin.

· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was on April 6, 1997 – won by Jeff Burton.

· The track underwent a repave between the 2001 and 2002 seasons.

· In 2011, the spring NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was moved from Sunday to Saturday night under the lights at Texas Motor Speedway.

· Texas Motor Speedway hosted its first Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on November 6, 2005 – won by Carl Edwards.

Notebook

· There have been 26 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway, one NSCS event from 1997 – 2004 and two races per year since 2005.

· 134 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Texas; 109 in more than one.

· Four drivers have made all 26 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway – Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte, Jeff Burton and Mark Martin.

· Jeremy Mayfield was the first Coors Light pole winner, in 1998 with a speed of 185.906 mph. The inaugural Coors Light pole at Texas Motor Speedway in 1997 was cancelled due to weather conditions.

· 19 drivers have Coors Light poles at Texas, led by Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte, Ryan Newman and Martin Truex Jr. with two each.

· Two drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at Texas Motor Speedway: Bobby Labonte (2003 and 2004) and Ryan Newman (2005 sweep).

· Youngest Texas Coors Light pole winner: Brian Vickers (11/05/2006 – 23 years, 0 months, 12 days).

· Oldest Texas Coors Light pole winner: Bill Elliott (4/08/2002 – 46 years, 6 months, 0 days).

· 17 different drivers have won at Texas Motor Speedway, led by Carl Edwards and Jimmie Johnson with three each.

· Seven drivers have multiple wins at Texas Motor Speedway: Carl Edwards (three), Jimmie Johnson (three), Greg Biffle, Jeff Burton, Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Tony Stewart each have two.

· Roush Fenway Racing leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in wins at Texas Motor Speedway with nine; followed by Hendrick Motorsports with five and Joe Gibbs Racing with four.

· Three of the 26 (11.5%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway have been won from the Coors Light Pole; Kasey Kahne (2006), Jimmie Johnson (2012) and Kyle Busch (2013).

· The third-place starting position is the most proficient starting spot in the field at Texas Motor Speedway, producing more wins than any other starting position in the field (five) – most recent: Jimmie Johnson last fall.

· Six of the 26 (23.1%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway have been won from the front row: three from the pole and three from second-place.

· 20 of the 26 (76.9%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Texas Motor Speedway have been won from a top-10 starting position.

· Four of the 26 (15.3%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.

· The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Texas Motor Speedway is 31st, by Matt Kenseth in 2002.

· Youngest Texas winner: Ryan Newman (03/30/2003 – 25 years, 3 months, 22 days).

· Oldest Texas winner: Dale Jarrett (04/01/2001 – 44 years, 4 months, 6 days).

· Jimmie Johnson leads the series in runner-up finishes at Texas Motor Speedway with five; followed by Matt Kenseth with four.

· Matt Kenseth leads the series in top-five finishes at Texas Motor Speedway with 13; followed by Jimmie Johnson with 10.

· Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson are tied for the series lead in top-10 finishes at Texas Motor Speedway with 16 each; followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. with 13.

· Jimmie Johnson leads active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Texas Motor Speedway with an 8..476. Johnson is the only active driver with an average starting position at Texas in the top 10.

· Two active drivers have a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series average finish in the top 10 at Texas: Matt Kenseth (8.3) and Jimmie Johnson (8.7).

· There have been three NSCS green-white-checkered finishes at Texas Motor Speedway: fall 2006 (334/339), spring 2008 (334/339), and fall 2012 (334/335).

· Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions twice in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Texas Motor Speedway; the inaugural event in 1997 and spring 2007. The race has never been rain shortened.

· Kevin Harvick has participated in the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway without posting a DNF (22).

· Jeff Burton (4/06/1997) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (4/02/2000) won their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career race at Texas Motor Speedway.

· David Ragan (4/09/2011) and Martin Truex Jr. (11/04/2007) posted their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light poles at Texas Motor Speedway.

· 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski (11/02/2008) and Trevor Bayne (11/07/2010) made their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career starts at Texas Motor Speedway.

· Two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers have posted consecutive wins at Texas Motor Speedway: Carl Edwards (2008 sweep) and Denny Hamlin (2010 sweep).

· Nine of the 12 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers who have won at Texas Motor Speedway participated in at least two or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Jeff Burton and Dale Earnhardt Jr. won at Texas in their first appearance; Carl Edwards and Ryan Newman won in their second appearance at TMS.

· Jeff Gordon competed at Texas Motor Speedway 16 times before winning in the spring of 2009; the longest span of any the 12 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners.

· Only three of the 12 winning drivers have made 10 or more attempts before their first win at Texas Motor Speedway: Jeff Gordon (16) Kyle Busch (15) and Kurt Busch (13).

· Joe Nemechek leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway without visiting Victory Lane at 23.

· Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Texas Motor Speedway was the (4/4/2004) race won by Elliott Sadler with a MOV of 0.028 second.

· Two female drivers have made NSCS starts at Texas Motor Speedway: Shawna Robinson and Danica Patrick

Driver	Starting Position	Finishing Position	Date
Shawna Robinson	16	36	4/8/2002
Danica Patrick	32	24	11/4/2012
Danica Patrick	42	28	4/13/2013
Danica Patrick	30	25	11/3/2013

· Matt Kenseth leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Texas Motor Speedway with 775 laps led in 23 starts.

· One NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver has won at Texas Motor Speedway in two different manufacturers: Jeff Burton (1997 – Ford; 2007 – Chevrolet)

NASCAR in Texas

· There have been 35 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races among three tracks in the state of Texas.

Track Name	City	NSCS
Texas Motor Speedway	Fort Worth	26
Texas World Speedway	College Station	8
Meyer Speedway	Houston	1

· 80 drivers in NASCAR national series history have their home state recorded as Texas.

· Nine drivers from Texas have won at least one race in NASCAR’s three national series. Six of the nine Texas native NASCAR winners have won in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Driver	NSCS	NNS	NCWTS
Terry Labonte	22	11	1
Bobby Labonte	21	10	1
A.J. Foyt	7	0	0
Billy Wade	4	0	0
Bobby Hillin Jr	1	2	0
Johnny Rutherford	1	0	0
James Buescher	0	1	6
David Starr	0	0	4
Colin Braun	0	0	1

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Posted on March 31, 2014 by Staff Report

The Nationwide Series returns to action at Texas Motor Speedway

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Entry	#	Driver	Owner	Crew chief	Manufacturer	Sponsor
1	01	Landon Cassill	Johnny Davis	Dave Fuge	14 Chevrolet	G&K Services
2	2	Brian Scott	Richard Childress	Phil Gould	14 Chevrolet	Shore Lodge
3	3	Ty Dillon	Richard Childress	Danny Stockman Jr	14 Chevrolet	WESCO
4	4	Jeffrey Earnhardt	Gary Keller	Perry Mitchell	14 Chevrolet	Flex Seal
5	5	Kevin Harvick(i)	Rick Hendrick	Ernie Cope	14 Chevrolet	Hunt Brothers Pizza
6	6	Trevor Bayne	Jack Roush	Chad Norris	14 Ford	AdvoCare
7	7	Regan Smith	Kelley Earnhardt-Miller	Ryan Pemberton	14 Chevrolet	TaxSlayer.com
8	9	Chase Elliott	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Greg Ives	14 Chevrolet	NAPA AUTO PARTS
9	10	Blake Koch	Mark Smith	Todd Myers	14 Toyota	Supportmilitary.org
10	11	Elliott Sadler	J D Gibbs	Chris Gayle	14 Toyota	GameStop-Lego Hobbit
11	13	Matthew Carter	Derek White	Kevin Eagle	14 Toyota	TBA
12	14	Eric McClure	Mark Smith	Wes Ward	14 Toyota	Hefty Ultimate / Reynolds Wrap
13	16	Ryan Reed	Jack Roush	Seth Barbour	14 Ford	ADA Drive to Stop Diabetes presented by Lilly Diabetes
14	17	Tanner Berryhill	Adrian Berryhill	Benny Gordon	14 Dodge	BWP Bats
15	19	Mike Bliss	Mark Smith	Paul Clapprood	14 Toyota	TriStar Motorsports
16	20	Matt Kenseth(i)	Joe Gibbs	Kevin Kidd	14 Toyota	GameStop
17	22	Ryan Blaney(i)	Roger Penske	Jeremy Bullins	14 Ford	Discount Tire
18	23	Robert Richardson Jr	Robert Richardson Sr	George Church	14 Chevrolet	Willbros
19	24	Jason White	Jason Sciavicco	George White Jr	14 Toyota	Be/More Friday Night Tykes
20	28	Derek White	James Whitener	David Goulet	13 Dodge	TBA
21	31	Dylan Kwasniewski	Steve Turner	Patrick Tryson	14 Chevrolet	Rockstar
22	39	Ryan Sieg	Rod Sieg	Kevin Starland	14 Chevrolet	RSS Racing
23	40	Josh Wise(i)	Curtis Key Sr	Gary Showalter	14 Chevrolet	Curtis Key Plumbing
24	42	Kyle Larson(i)	Harry Scott Jr	Scott Zipadelli	14 Chevrolet	Cartwheel
25	43	Dakoda Armstrong	Richard Petty	Philippe Lopez	14 Ford	WinField
26	44	David Starr	Mark Smith	Greg Conner	14 Toyota	Whataburger
27	46	Matt Dibenedetto	Curtis Key Sr	TBA	14 Chevrolet	Curtis Key Plumbing
28	51	Jeremy Clements	Tony Clements	Ricky Pearson	14 Chevrolet	TBD
29	52	Joey Gase	Jimmy Means	Tim Brown	14 Chevrolet	BBB
30	54	Kyle Busch(i)	J D Gibbs	Adam Stevens	14 Toyota	Monster Energy
31	55	Jamie Dick	Jimmy Dick	William Henderson	14 Chevrolet	Viva Auto Group
32	60	Chris Buescher	Jack Roush	Scott Graves	14 Ford	Roush Performance Parts
33	62	Brendan Gaughan	Richard Childress	Shane Wilson	14 Chevrolet	South Point
34	70	Derrike Cope	Mary Louise Miller	Fred Wanke	14 Chevrolet	CharliesSoap.com
35	74	Mike Harmon	Mike Harmon	Gary Ritter	12 Dodge	TBA
36	76	Tommy Joe Martins	Tommy Joe Martins	Joey Jones	14 Ford	TBA
37	184	Chad Boat	Billy Boat	Dan Deeringhoff	14 Chevrolet	RedFest Music Festival Chevy
38	87	Joe Nemechek(i)	Andrea Nemechek	Steven Gray	14 Chevrolet	TBD
39	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr(i)	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Mike Bumgarner	14 Chevrolet	Ragu
40	93	J J Yeley	Gregg Mixon	Steve Plattenberger	13 Dodge	TBA
41	99	James Buescher	Robby Benton	Chris Rice	14 Toyota	Rheem

(i) equals ineligible for driver championship points

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Posted on March 31, 2014 by Staff Report

The Sprint Cup Series’ seventh stop of the season is at Texas Motor Speedway

Entry	#	Driver	Owner	Crew chief	Manufacturer	Sponsor
1	1	Jamie McMurray	Felix Sabates	Keith Rodden	14 Chevrolet	Bell Helicopter
2	2	Brad Keselowski	Roger Penske	Paul Wolfe	14 Ford	Miller Lite
3	3	Austin Dillon	Richard Childress	Gil Martin	14 Chevrolet	Dow
4	4	Kevin Harvick	Tony Stewart	Rodney Childers	14 Chevrolet	Jimmy John’s
5	5	Kasey Kahne	Linda Hendrick	Kenny Francis	14 Chevrolet	Time Warner Cable
6	7	Michael Annett	Tommy Baldwin	Kevin Manion	14 Chevrolet	Accell Construction
7	9	Marcos Ambrose	Richard Petty	Drew Blickensderfer	14 Ford	STANLEY
8	10	Danica Patrick	Tony Stewart	Tony Gibson	13 Chevrolet	GoDaddy/Get Found
9	11	Denny Hamlin	J D Gibbs	Darian Grubb	14 Toyota	FedEx Office
10	13	Casey Mears	Bob Germain	Bootie Barker III	14 Chevrolet	No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet SS
11	14	Tony Stewart	Margaret Haas	Chad Johnston	14 Chevrolet	Mobil 1/Bass Pro Shops
12	15	Clint Bowyer	Rob Kauffman	Brian Pattie	14 Toyota	Willie’s Duck Diner
13	16	Greg Biffle	Jack Roush	Matt Puccia	14 Ford	3M/Give Kids a Smile
14	17	Ricky Stenhouse Jr	John Henry	Michael Kelley	14 Ford	Ford Ecoboost
15	18	Kyle Busch	Joe Gibbs	Dave Rogers	14 Toyota	Interstate Batteries
16	20	Matt Kenseth	Joe Gibbs	Jason Ratcliff	14 Toyota	Dollar General
17	21	Trevor Bayne(i)	Glen Wood	Donnie Wingo	14 Ford	Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center
18	22	Joey Logano	Walter Czarnecki	Todd Gordon	14 Ford	Shell Pennzoil / Hertz
19	23	Alex Bowman	Ron Devine	Dave Winston	14 Toyota	Dr. Pepper Toyota Camry
20	24	Jeff Gordon	Rick Hendrick	Alan Gustafson	14 Chevrolet	Axalta / Texas A&M School of Engineering
21	26	Cole Whitt	Anthony Marlowe	Randy Cox	13 Toyota	Speed Stick
22	27	Paul Menard	Richard Childress	Slugger Labbe	14 Chevrolet	Quaker State / Menards
23	30	Parker Kligerman	Brandon Davis	Steve Lane	13 Toyota	Swan Energy
24	31	Ryan Newman	Richard Childress	Luke Lambert	14 Chevrolet	Caterpillar
25	32	Travis Kvapil	Frank Stoddard Jr	Daniel Stillman	14 Ford	TBA
26	33	David Stremme	Joe Falk	Mark Hillman	14 Chevrolet	Little Joe’s Autos
27	34	David Ragan	Bob Jenkins	Jay Guy	14 Ford	TACO BELL
28	35	David Reutimann	Jerry Freeze	Todd Anderson	14 Ford	MDS TRANSPORT
29	36	Reed Sorenson	Allan Heinke	Todd Parrott	14 Chevrolet	TBA
30	38	David Gilliland	Brad Jenkins	Frank Kerr	14 Ford	Love’s Travel Stops
31	40	Landon Cassill(i)	Michael Hillman	Mike Abner	14 Chevrolet	Hillman Racing
32	41	Kurt Busch	Gene Haas	Daniel Knost	14 Chevrolet	Haas Automation
33	42	Kyle Larson	Chip Ganassi	Chris Heroy	14 Chevrolet	Target
34	43	Aric Almirola	Richard Petty	Trent Owens	14 Ford	Eckrich
35	47	A J Allmendinger	Tad Geschickter	Brian Burns	14 Chevrolet	Bush’s Beans
36	48	Jimmie Johnson	Jeff Gordon	Chad Knaus	14 Chevrolet	Lowes "Spring is Calling"
37	51	Justin Allgaier	Harry Scott Jr	Steve Addington	14 Chevrolet	BRANDT Professional Agriculture
38	55	Brian Vickers	Michael Waltrip	Billy Scott	14 Toyota	Aaron’s Dream Machine
39	66	Joe Nemechek(i)	Jay Robinson	Scott Eggleston	14 Toyota	Land Castle Title
40	77	Dave Blaney	Randy Humphrey	Peter Sospenzo	14 Ford	TBA
41	78	Martin Truex Jr	Barney Visser	Todd Berrier	14 Chevrolet	Furniture Row
42	83	Ryan Truex	Ron Devine	Dale Ferguson	14 Toyota	Borla Exhaust Toyota Camry
43	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Rick Hendrick	Steve Letarte	14 Chevrolet	National Guard
44	95	Michael McDowell	Bob Leavine	Wally Rogers	14 Ford	TWD
45	98	Josh Wise	Mike Curb	Gene Nead	13 Chevrolet	Phil Parsons Racing
46	99	Carl Edwards	Jack Roush	James Fennig	14 Ford	Fastenal

(i) equals ineligible for driver championship points

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Posted on March 31, 2014 by Staff Report

Plan your NASCAR weekend with these on-track times for Texas

MORE: NASCAR TV schedule for Week of March 31-April 6
All times ET / BUY TICKETS / WEEKEND TRACK EVENTS

THURSDAY, APRIL 3:

ON TRACK
— 6-7 p.m. ET: NASCAR Nationwide Series practice (Get results)
— 7:30 p.m.-9 p.m. ET: NASCAR Nationwide Series final practice (Get results)

PRESS CONFERENCES
— 4:45 p.m. ET: Ty Dillon
— 5 p.m. ET: Trevor Bayne
— 5:15 p.m. ET: Matt Kenseth

FRIDAY, APRIL 4:

ON TRACK
— 4:10 p.m. ET: NASCAR Nationwide Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, FOX Sports 1 (Get results)
— 6-7:50 p.m. ET: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice, FOX Sports 1 (Get results)
— 8:30 p.m. ET: NASCAR Nationwide Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 (200 laps, 300 miles), ESPN2 coverage begins at 8 p.m. ET (Get results)

PRESS CONFERENCES
— 2:30 p.m. ET: Robin Pemberton, NASCAR vice president of competition and racing development and Greg Stucker, Goodyear director of race tire sales
— 3:30 p.m. ET: Joey Logano
— 4 p.m. ET: AJ Allmendinger
— 5:15 p.m. ET: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
— 5:30 p.m. ET: Jimmie Johnson
— 11 p.m. ET approx.: NNS post-race press conference

GARAGECAM PRESENTED BY MOBIL 1
— 5:30 p.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series (Watch live)

SATURDAY, APRIL 5:

ON TRACK
— 10:30 a.m.-noon ET: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series final practice, FOX Sports 1 (Get results)
 – 3:10 p.m. ET: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, FOX Sports 2 (Get results)

PRESS CONFERENCES
— 1 p.m. ET: Jeff Gordon
— 4:45 p.m. ET approx.: Post-Sprint Cup Series qualifying press conference

MONDAY, APRIL 7:

ON TRACK
— Noon ET: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Duck Commander 500 (334 laps, 501 miles), FOX, coverage starts at 11:30 a.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (Get results) RESCHEDULED FROM SUNDAY

PRESS CONFERENCES
— 3 p.m. ET approx.: NSCS post-race press conference

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Posted on March 30, 2014 by

Notebook: Bowyer’s frustrations boil over after late swoon

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — If you want to find a driver who isn’t particularly thrilled with Kurt Busch’s victory in Sunday’s STP 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway, look no farther than the No. 2 Team Penske garage stall.

Brad Keselowski felt he had a potential race-winning car, but his chances disappeared early in a pit-road collision with Busch.

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Keselowski took his Ford to the garage and lost 31 laps while his crew made repairs. He finished 38th.

After the race, Keselowski questioned Busch’s judgment in driving aggressively on Lap 42 of 500.

"If you’re going to be aggressive, wreck yourself, don’t wreck me," Keselowski said. "I’ll remember that when it’s Lap 50 and he needs a break, and he’ll find his ass turned around in the wall. Just like he tore my car up.

"Once or twice when it happens, you start to go, ‘Hey, it happens,’ but when it happens repeatedly, you just realize who the person is who’s at fault, and you just got to make sure you show them you’re not going to take that, and I’m not going to take it, and I know the 2 team’s not going to take it."

Busch was surprised at the vehemence of Keselowski’s reaction to the incident, especially after Keselowski tried to exact payback on the track.

"Yeah, I can’t believe he overreacted and he’s as upset as he is," Busch said. "The 5 car (Kasey Kahne) was trying to pull into his box. Brad ran into the back of him. I steered right to go around Brad and then he clobbers our left-side door, and it’s like, OK, accidents happen on pit road. It’s congested.

"It’s not a place to race, because of all the pit crew guys down there and I didn’t think much of it, and then once we were back out running, he targeted us. He was aiming for us. He tried to flatten all four of my tires. That’s a no-fly zone. That’s a punk-ass move and he will get what he gets back when I decide to give it back."

UPDATE: Keselowski later said on Twitter that there would be no carryover at Texas and that he didn’t blame Kurt Busch for the pit road accident. He blamed him for not lifting and making it worse.

No Sorry to burst @eddiegossage bubble. @racrboi90 @keselowski Will the rivalry with @KurtBusch carry forward to @TXMotorSpeedway next week?

— Brad Keselowski (@keselowski) March 31, 2014

Not that it matters to the media, but I never blamed Kurt for the accident. I blamed him for not lifting and making it worse @timpowell8

— Brad Keselowski (@keselowski) March 31, 2014

SOLID RUN FOR EARNHARDT

In all honesty, Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished as high as he could have hoped in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville — third.

Earnhardt had the best seat in the house for the decisive battle between race winner Kurt Busch and runner-up Jimmie Johnson, but he didn’t have enough left to mount a challenge at the end of the race.

The key to Earnhardt’s success was self-restraint.

"You had to just discipline yourself to not use the throttle," said Earnhardt, who regained the series lead by nine points over second-place Matt Kenseth. "I think we’ll have a lot of fun looking at the throttle trace on some of the runs, because I was quarter-throttle at the max. …

"I was real patient all day, saving the left rear and just waiting till the end to see where we’d be. Inside 38 laps to go, I thought everybody was going to go like hell, and we all did and ended up running third."

As the laps wound down, Earnhardt’s car began to fade.

"I was losing my car pretty fast the last five laps, so I didn’t have anything else to get there (to Busch and Johnson)," he said. "I got a couple of lapped guys give the outside instead of the inside. That’s their right, but that cost me a little time and maybe some wear on my tires.

"I thought when we passed the 22 (Joey Logano, for third) we might be able to roll up there and get in the middle of the race for the win, but, no, those guys’ cars, they were pretty good."

MORE FRUSTRATION FOR BOWYER

With 50 laps left in Sunday’s STP 500, Clint Bowyer grabbed the lead, but a subsequent caution and a mistake on pit road proved his undoing.

After Carl Edwards spun on Lap 459 to bring out the 14th caution of the afternoon, Bowyer led the field to pit road. But a problem with the right rear tire led to a slow stop that mired the driver of the No. 15 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota in 10th place for a restart on Lap 466.

“Disappointed,” Bowyer said. "We had the lead there at the end and had trouble in the pits and came out 10th. We just didn’t have enough laps to make it up.

"Just really disappointed. Felt we could have had the win there."

Last week at Auto Club Speedway, Bowyer was running second when he blew a left-rear tire with less than three laps left in the Auto Club 400. Bowyer is 17th in the series standings, with just one top 10 in six starts.

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Posted on March 30, 2014 by

Sauter earns second top-five finish of the season

RELATED: Full race results | Series standings

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — In fading sunlight, in the second race of a Sunday doubleheader at Martinsville Speedway, Matt Crafton beat polesitter Darrell Wallace Jr. to the start/finish line to win the Kroger 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event under yellow because of a last-lap accident.

The reigning series champion sealed the victory on the second attempt at a green-white-checkered-flag finish in a race that went six laps past its scheduled distance at the 0.526-mile short track.

The win was Crafton’s first of the season, his first at Martinsville and his fourth in 318 career starts. To secure it, Crafton had to survive a series of late restarts that tested both his talent and his patience.

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Rookie Ben Kennedy ran third in a race that produced a record 17 lead changes. Johnny Sauter was fourth, followed by Ryan Blaney.

The Kroger 250, postponed from Saturday because of rain, was run after the conclusion of Sunday’s STP 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

Crafton’s No. 88 Toyota started out sluggish but benefited from successful adjustments throughout the race.

"At the beginning of the day, we were terrible," said Crafton, who led 47 laps. "I’m not going to lie. We were terrible. We were really, really tight from the center (of the corner) off. I didn’t think we were going to get it right there on those first two runs, but that’s just the way these guys never give up.

"We made track bar adjustment, another track bar adjustment, air pressure adjustment and finally we got that thing going."

Crafton grabbed the lead from Timothy Peters on Lap 208 and held the top spot until a caution for debris on the frontstretch slowed the field on Lap 225.

The lead-lap trucks already had visited pit road under caution on Lap 193 for the final stops, and all the contenders stayed out on the track under the Lap 225 yellow and took the green for a restart on Lap 232, with Crafton leading the field to the stripe.

Moments later, former series champion Ron Hornaday Jr., who had led 62 laps, slammed the wall between Turns 3 and 4 after contact from the Toyota of German Quiroga.

Crafton retained the lead after the subsequent restart, and after Peters and Wallace settled second place, with Peters prevailing on Lap 239, the No. 17 Toyota began chasing the No. 88 Tundra of the race leader.

Gray Gaulding’s spin off Turn 2 on Lap 243, however, caused the eighth caution and set up the overtime finish. Erik Jones spun on the backstretch after contact from Sauter to foil the first attempt at a green-white-checkered.

Note: NASCAR officials announced that suspension parts from the trucks of Darrell Wallace Jr., Ben Kennedy and Johnny Sauter would be taken to the NASCAR Research & Development Center in Concord, N.C., for further evaluation.

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Posted on March 30, 2014 by

Busch snaps 83-race winless streak with Martinsville victory

MORE: Full race results | Series standings

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – On Sunday at historic Martinsville Speedway, the driver known as "The Outlaw" committed highway robbery.

Bullying his way past six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson with 11 laps left in Sunday’s STP 500 at the .526-mile short track, Kurt Busch held on to edge Johnson by 0.263 seconds, denying Johnson a ninth Martinsville victory.

A Martinsville winner in 2002, Busch added a second victory at Sprint Cup’s oldest current venue to his resume. Busch’s 25th career victory was his first triumph in the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet and the first victory as a Sprint Cup crew chief for Daniel Knost.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished third in a race that produce a record 33 lead changes and a sixth consecutive different winner to open the 2014 season. Joey Logano ran fourth, followed by Marcos Ambrose and Matt Kenseth.

Kevin Harvick, Aric Almirola, Clint Bowyer and Paul Menard completed the top 10.

Busch stole the victory from Johnson, despite an earlier collision with Brad Keselowski’s Ford that cost Keselowski 31 laps.

"We’re done," Busch said tersely after running into the back of the No. 2 Team Penske Ford, a car Busch drove for much of his career, to date.

That was far from the truth. Busch worked his way back into contention and restarted third on Lap 466 after caution for Carl Edwards spin in Turn 2. On Lap 473, he got the nose of his car under Johnson’s No. 48 Chevy and grabbed the lead.

Ten laps later, Johnson — who led 296 of the 500 laps — regained the top spot with a slight nudge to Busch’s bumper, but Johnson fought a loose handling condition the rest of the way and couldn’t keep the Stewart-Haas Chevy behind him.

Busch, like Johnson, was driving a Hendrick Motorsports chassis powered by a Hendrick engine.

"I didn’t know if we’d be able to do it," Busch said. "The 48 car is king here, him and the 24 (Jeff Gordon, who also has eight Martinsville wins). This is the old theory ‘If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.’ I had a Hendrick chassis prepared by Stewart-Haas Racing, a Hendrick motor. So thanks to those guys and Chevrolet.

"I’ve been on this journey for a while, and every time you come to Martinsville, you kind of draw a line, like ‘There’s no way I’ll be able to challenge those Hendrick guys or be up in the top 10.’ These Stewart-Haas guys gave me a car to do it."

Johnson, who has been having uncharacteristic difficulty closing out races of late, did everything possible to keep Busch at bay.

"That’s all I had," Johnson said. "I ran the rear tires off the car. I flipped every switch and knob I could to get front brake and turn fans off to try to help bring the balance back. But it was still too loose to get the win."

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Posted on March 30, 2014 by Staff Report

Moments that changed the course of the sixth race of the season

BUSCH BULLIES JOHNSON FOR THE WIN

On Sunday at historic Martinsville Speedway, the driver known as "The Outlaw" committed highway robbery.

Bullying his way past six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson with 10 laps left in Sunday’s STP 500 at the .526-mile short track, Kurt Busch held on to edge Johnson by 0.263 seconds, denying Johnson a ninth Martinsville victory.

A Martinsville winner in 2002, Busch added a second victory at Sprint Cup’s oldest current venue to his resume. Busch’s 25th career victory was his first triumph in the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet and the first victory as a Sprint Cup crew chief for Daniel Knost.

KESELOWSKI CAUGHT BY KURT ON PIT ROAD

Busch stole the victory from Johnson, despite an earlier collision on pit road with Brad Keselowski’s Ford that cost Keselowski 31 laps.

"Kurt just accelerated and drove through us," Keselowski said. "Absolutely drove through us."

“We’re done,” Busch said tersely after running into the back of the No. 2 Team Penske Ford, a car Busch drove for much of his career, to date.

That was far from the truth. Busch worked his way back into contention and restarted third on Lap 466 after caution for Carl Edwards spin in Turn 2. On Lap 473, he got the nose of his car under Johnson’s No. 48 Chevy and grabbed the lead.

MCMURRAY’S DAY ENDS EARLY AFTER DALE JR. SPIN

Running for seventh place at Lap 199, Dale Earnhardt Jr. got into Jamie McMurray in Turn 2 to bring out the sixth caution of the race.

"He (Dale Earnhardt, Jr.) barely got into me and you hope that wouldn’t happen and he would get off of you, but he didn’t," McMurray said. "I went around and got into the wall pretty hard."

The contact spun the No. 1 car into the wall, ending a run that saw the car in the top 10 for most of the race after starting ninth. McMurray was able to get back on track, but the damage left him with a 42nd-place finish.

"There was a lap car holding up our pack. I thought the No. 88 would be a little more patient with me. I had gotten by him in lap traffic. Then he got on my inside.

"When he got into me, it was like it couldn’t get off and spun me around and just got into the wall there."

The NASCAR Wire Service contributed to this report.