Posted on by Holly Cain

Strong Nationwide Series start puts Sprint Cup future in focus

FONTANA, Calif. — Kyle Larson turned his first laps at Auto Club Speedway during Friday’s afternoon practice, then boarded Tony Stewart’s plane for a quick trip north to Stockton for a World of Outlaws sprint car feature — which Larson won with Stewart finishing 9th — on Friday night before returning to Fontana for his fifth NASCAR Nationwide Series start Saturday afternoon.

Larson is ranked ninth in the Nationwide Series championship standings and is fresh off his best ever NASCAR showing — a runner-up finish to Kyle Busch by half a hood-length last week at Bristol Motor Speedway. Considered one of the sport’s brightest up-and-comers, the questions about his future were inevitable even before he took his first Nationwide green flag in February.

Larson’s running well — he turned in the second-fastest time in Friday’s practice — running often and racing everywhere. He’ll spend the upcoming Nationwide Series off weeks racing sprint cars up and down the West Coast.

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So, when will that include NASCAR’s marquee Sprint Cup Series?

“I haven’t heard anything about that,’’ Larson, 20, said Friday, flashing a broad grin. “I’m just going to keep trying to do the best I can. If (team owner) Chip (Ganassi) wants to move me up, hopefully I’m ready and have learned enough in the Nationwide Series to prepare me for the Cup Series.

“I’m still taking it one race at a time and having a blast with what I’m doing right now, so I’m not looking anymore forward than where I am right now. I’m having fun racing Nationwide right now.’’

One of the first questions Ganassi got when announcing Larson’s hire was how long until his Cup debut.

“I don’t want to get ahead of ourselves here,’’ Ganassi said in February. “He hasn’t even run a Nationwide race yet. Let’s just go one step at a time here. All we’re doing is looking to get him some seat time. Right now his solid plan involves Nationwide.

“I think a car owner’s job, number one, is managing expectations, whether it’s your drivers, sponsors, employees. There’s no question that everybody’s eyes are going to be on Kyle and the job that he’s doing.’’

What he’s done is turn in three top-13 finishes in four Nationwide races — one memorable for his car’s final lap crash at Daytona International Speedway and another for the thrilling final lap duel with Busch.

“Everywhere I go I still get asked about that wreck,’’ Larson said. “Hopefully with me running well and stuff, people will forget about it and start remembering me more for running up front and battling hard.

“It will change. Everyone’s not going to know me as the guy who wrecked at Daytona for the rest of my career hopefully. It’ll just take time. I’m not too worried about it. Just go out there and run well. I know after Bristol, a lot more people have been asking about that race than Daytona.’’

If you weren’t familiar with Larson before Daytona Speedweeks, chances are you were after it.

Even before he made newspaper headlines and television highlights in the Nationwide race, he won the inaugural Battle of the Beach NASCAR Late Model race with a controversial last lap maneuver. Approaching the checkered flag he spun out leader C.E. Falk to take the win. He got some criticism for the bold move, however, something uncharacteristic for him.

“It’s definitely been new,’’ Larson said. “My whole career I’ve always been kinda the guy everyone likes and after the Battle of the Beach and the incident I had there in Late Model race, I got a lot of criticism for it. But it didn’t affect me really at all. I just tried to shrug it off and move on. I don’t really think too hard about anything whether it’s good talk or bad talk.

“I just go out there and try to race and try to change people’s mind. I know maybe a lot of people might gain respect for me from Bristol not getting into Kyle Busch at all … I’ve just got to try to gain all the fans, and even the other drivers’ respect back and I think I’ve been doing pretty well with that so far.’’

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Posted on by Staff Report

Watch live on SPEED, Saturday at 1:35 p.m. ET 

Driver Date Time Speed
Track Qualifying Record: Tony Stewart 02/26/05 38.722 185.941
# Car Driver Team Time Speed Time Speed
1 74 Mike Harmon Dave Novak Racing Chevrolet         
2 15 Juan Carlos Blum # VMP Nutrition Ford            
3 23 Carl Long KOMA Unwind / Rick Ware Racing Ford            
4 00 Jason White Headrush Toyota            
5 70 * Tony Raines Toyota            
6 24 Blake Koch SupportMilitary.org / I am Second Toyota            
7 46 * Chase Miller Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet            
8 47 * Scott Riggs(i) Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet            
9 92 * Dexter Stacey # Maddie’s Place Ford            
10 52 * Joey Gase Toyota            
11 51 Jeremy Clements US Petroleum Consultants Chevrolet            
12 27 * Michael McDowell(i) TeamBoom Toyota            
13 44 Hal Martin # American Custom Yachts / DoubleTree Toyota            
14 55 * Jamie Dick VIVA Auto Group Chevrolet            
15 42 * JJ Yeley(i) Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet            
16 87 Joe Nemechek AM/FM Energy Wood & Pellet Stoves Toyota            
17 14 Eric McClure Hefty / Reynolds / DoubeTree Toyota            
18 79 Paulie Harraka Crackle It’s on Ford            
19 10 * Jeff Green TriStar Motorsports / DoubleTree Toyota            
20 01 * Mike Wallace Flex Seal Chevrolet            
21 40 Josh Wise Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet            
22 4 * Daryl Harr iWorld Chevrolet            
23 19 Mike Bliss DoubleTree by Hilton – Claremont Toyota            
24 43 Reed Sorenson Pilot Ford            
25 5 Brad Sweet Great Clips / EA Sports Chevrolet            
26 2 Brian Scott Whitetail Chevrolet            
27 20 Brian Vickers Dollar General Toyota            
28 77 Parker Kligerman TOYOTA Toyota            
29 22 Brad Keselowski(i) America’s Tire / Discount Tire Ford            
30 60 Travis Pastrana Roush Fenway Racing Ford            
31 6 Trevor Bayne Cargill Ford            
32 99 Alex Bowman # St. Jude Children’s Hospital Toyota            
33 98 * Kevin Swindell # Carroll Shelby Engines Ford            
34 33 Dakoda Armstrong(i) Winfield / Mudd.com Chevrolet            
35 30 Nelson Piquet Jr. # Qualcomm Chevrolet            
36 7 Regan Smith TaxSlayer.com Chevrolet            
37 54 Kyle Busch(i) Monster Energy Toyota            
38 12 Sam Hornish Jr. Wurth Ford            
39 31 Justin Allgaier Brandt Chevrolet            
40 11 Elliott Sadler OneMain Financial Toyota            
41 32 Kyle Larson # Eveready Chevrolet            
42 3 Austin Dillon AdvoCare Chevrolet            

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Posted on by Staff Report

No. 15 car leads the way at the top of the leaderboard in weekend opener

FULL RESULTS

Clint Bowyer, runner-up in the 2012 Sprint Cup Series standings, isn’t completely satisfied with his current fourth-place position. If Friday afternoon’s practice for the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. is any measure, Bowyer could be well on his way to passing California native Jimmie Johnson (third) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (second) with current points leader Brad Keselowski being the ultimate goal. 

Bowyer was dominant in the weekend’s opening practice, easily registering the fastest speed of the day on his first lap at 185.414 mph, while zipping around the track in 38.832 seconds. Bowyer was followed by Denny Hamlin, who is looking to put a tumultuous few weeks behind him after a $25,000 fine from NASCAR and an altercation with Joey Logano following last week’s Sprint Cup race at Bristol. Hamlin ran his 21st and final lap in 38.956 with a best speed of 184.824. AJ Allmendinger, fresh off a 13th-place finish at Bristol, placed third in his Phoenix Racing No. 51 Chevrolet.

Fourth place on the leaderboard went to Kyle Busch, who placed second at this race in 2012 and is coming off a weekend in which he won the Nationwide Series race and took second to Kasey Kahne in last week’s Sprint Cup race at Bristol. Busch ran his 16th lap in 39.013 with a best speed of 184.554. Logano rounded out the top five with a time of 39.045. Kahne was 17th, running his 33rd lap in 39.340.

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Keselowski has never finished higher than 18th at this track and Friday’s practice wasn’t an encouraging start to the weekend for him. The reigning Sprint Cup champ was 20th on the leaderboard at day’s end, nearly a full three mph behind Bowyer at 182.732.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., currently third place in the standings, was ninth, with a best speed of 183.748. He finished third at Auto Club last season.

Johnson, who lost his standings lead to Keselowski last week, placed 15th with a time of 39.396 on his first of 13 laps.

Tony Stewart, who won this race last season and is trying to recover from a tough start to 2013 that has him in 24th place in the standings, picked up the 10th-best speed at 183.542.




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Furious finish benefits Dillon, rookie Kyle Larson

Practice results

It’s difficult to catch Kyle Busch at Auto Club Speedway, but Austin Dillon was among the drivers to do just that in the first NASCAR Nationwide Series practice for Saturday’s Royal Purple 300.

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After Busch set the pace early with a blazing first-lap time that was the best for nearly two hours, Dillon finished with the best time of Friday afternoon.

Driving the No. 3, Dillon turned a lap time of 40.728 seconds, a speed of 176.783 mph. It capped a furious finish to the practice that saw Kyle Larson post the best time with about two minutes to go, before Dillon topped Larson’s mark 20 seconds later.

Larson settled for second place, with his best time of 40.960 seconds (175.781) coming on his final of 52 laps.

That sequence of events knocked Elliott Sadler down a peg, although the No. 11 driver still finished third (175.683 mph, 40.983 seconds).

Justin Allgaier, who is second in NASCAR Nationwide Series points standings, was fourth and series points lead Sam Hornish Jr. finished fifth on the speed chart.

Busch, who sat atop the leaderboard for most of the day, posted the sixth-best time after running 38 laps.

Busch has won five of the past seven Nationwide Series races at Auto Club Speedway; Joey Logano won the other two, including last year’s race, but he’s not in this year’s Nationwide Series event.

Busch has already won two races this year, including last week’s Jeff Foxworthy’s Grit Chips 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The practice lasted for more than two hours in advance of Saturday’s Coors Light Pole Qualifying, scheduled for 1:30 p.m. ET.

The Royal Purple 300, to be televised on ESPN, is Saturday at 5 p.m.

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Posted on by Nascar

Media relations vice president passes away after battle with cancer

John Cardinale, vice president of media relations for Sonoma Raceway, passed away March 21 following a two-year battle with gastric cancer.

Cardinale, 47, is survived by his wife, Andrea, and two daughters.

“John Cardinale was as true a friend, as loyal a colleague, as devoted a husband and father and as fine a human being as you could ever hope to know,” Sonoma Raceway President Steve Page said.

“John has been a part of every good thing that has happened at this track over the last 15 years. We are all so fortunate to have had him in our lives and to have shared in his intelligence, his wit, his integrity and his brave spirit.”

Cardinale joined the staff of the track then known as Infineon Raceway in 1998. He was a graduate of San Francisco State University and spent 10 years in the newspaper business as a sports reporter and editor in the Bay area.

This past January, Sonoma Raceway hosted the second annual John’s March Against Stomach Cancer, an event established to honor Cardinale while raising awareness and funds for stomach cancer research. The inaugural event raised nearly $17,000.

According to track officials, for those who would like to make a donation in Cardinale’s honor, a memorial fund has been set up on behalf of his family.  Donations may be sent to the John Cardinale Memorial Fund, care of Sonoma Raceway, 29355 Arnold Drive, Sonoma, CA 95476.

Sonoma Raceway is a property of Speedway Motorsports Inc.

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Three Joe Gibbs Racing drivers in top five; Keselowski, Biffle will move to rear

Auto Club 400 lineup

FONTANA, Calif. — Denny Hamlin edged Greg Biffle and Brad Keselowski for the top starting spot in Sunday’s Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway, but of the three top qualifiers, Hamlin will be the only driver starting at or near the front of the field.

Overcoming an early draw, Hamlin toured the 2-mile track in 38.410 seconds (187.451 mph) to win the 13th Coors Light pole award of his career and his third at Fontana.

Biffle (187.217 mph) was second fastest and Keselowski, the defending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion and current points leader, ran third at 187.149 mph. However, both Biffle and Keselowski will start from the rear of the field after changing their Ford engines before qualifying.

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As time trials ended, Biffle’s team was tearing down his motor to determine the cause of a failure that occurred early in Friday’s opening practice. Keselowski’s team changed engines after the conclusion of practice because of an issue Biffle believed was similar to his, although neither engine had been analyzed by Friday afternoon.

Though Biffle and Keselowski drive for different organizations — Roush Fenway Racing and Penske Racing, respectively — their power plants come from a common source, Roush Yates Racing Engines.

Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth, Hamlin’s teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing, qualified fourth and fifth, respectively. Joey Logano, Keselowski’s teammate, claimed the sixth starting position but will move closer to the front of the field — and to Hamlin, his nemesis from last Sunday’s race at Bristol Motor Speedway — when Biffle and Keselowski drop to the rear.

Though conventional wisdom says that drivers will post faster laps later in the day as the track cools, Hamlin, the third driver to make a qualifying attempt, felt the quality of his No. 11 Toyota made the difference.

“Honestly, I think our car was really fast,” said Hamlin, who started from the pole at Fontana last year. “I knew, talking to a few people in my motor home… it’s cocky to say, but I said, ‘Man, I can almost guarantee a pole, if we have a late draw.’ When they told me we were third, I was like, ‘OK. Well, just never mind. Forget that.’

“I knew, after running so well here in qualifying before, you kind of get a feel for what you need to do as a driver to hit your points and be fast, and I think our car was just exceptional for a lap or so today.”

Keselowski expressed concern of the engine issues that will send him and Biffle to the back.

“I’m a little bit nervous about the engine issues the 16 (Biffle) and the 2 cars had in practice,” said Keselowski, who has finished in the top five in each of the first four Cup races this season. “Hopefully, those will subside for the race.

“It’s unfortunate, but it’s kind of what it is, and we’ll have a good time, hopefully, racing to the front.”

Martin Truex Jr., defending race winner Tony Stewart, Mark Martin and Kurt Busch will start from positions seven through 10 on the grid, respectively.

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Re-watch the best moments from Friday’s Nationwide Series Garage Cam

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Nationwide Series driver Kyle Larson speaks to the media at Auto Club Speedway.

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Need to set up your fantasy lineup for the Auto Club 400? Check out what the experts are saying.

 

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