Posted on by Zack Albert

Joey Logano says he has an appetite for superspeedway racing, a sort of fondness that’s bolstered by several positive factors — his talent for it, an adept spotter in veteran TJ Majors, and stout No. 22 Team Penske Fords. When the NASCAR Cup Series reconvenes this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, he’ll be leaning on all three.

“For those reasons, I feel like we’re always a threat to win. We’re always up there. We always have a shot,” Logano said earlier this week before teeing up the big caveat. “That being said, we’ve been crashing a lot, too. That’s part of it, I guess.”

Logano punctuated that remark with laughter, but he wasn’t exactly yukking it up with teammate Brad Keselowski after their last-lap collision sparked a multicar crash in the most recent superspeedway event, allowing Michael McDowell to dash to victory in the season-opening Daytona 500. The in-house calamity was such that team owner Roger Penske said last month that he planned a face-to-face sitdown with his drivers — Logano, Keselowski and Ryan Blaney — to mend fences and make a pact on the rules of engagement for Sunday’s GEICO 500 (2 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at the high-speed Alabama track.

“I don’t think there’s anything new that will happen,” Penske said in a March 22 video conference, “but I think we just have to make an agreement on just exactly how you want to play ball if you get into that same situation as we had with two of us running as well as we had with a half-mile to go, and then end up with three cars in the trash bucket, but that’s what you have to expect, unfortunately. It wasn’t a good day for us, obviously.”

RELATED: Talladega schedule | Sunday’s starting lineup

In a Thursday morning Zoom press conference, Blaney indicated that conversation had occurred between the team owner and his three drivers. The call also included Wood Brothers Racing driver Matt DiBenedetto.

“I wouldn’t say it was awkward,” Blaney said. “Even though I was on the couch watching the end of that race because we wrecked out early, you’re still a part of it. It’s something that we talked about … just trying to find the best way if we are in a spot to where we’re 1-2 coming to the end of this thing, how do we go about that? How do we go about to make sure we do our best to finish 1-2, no matter who wins. I feel like we had a really good conversation between all of us.”

Blaney went on to say the ultimate goal is for all the Penske cars to be lined up and in the best position to win the race at the end. But, it’s difficult for a driver to have that mindset in the heat of the moment when you’re trying to reach Victory Lane, regardless if you’re battling with a teammate.

Good days have been part of Penske’s recent experience at Talladega, where the team’s entries have won nine of the last 18 Cup Series races — a stretch that includes four victories from Keselowski, three from Logano and two by Blaney. Ford has also benefited at the 2.66-mile trioval where teamwork and manufacturer solidarity are crucial, winning 12 of the last 17 events there in a similar span.

RELATED: Watch the 2021 Daytona 500 finish | Joey Logano on Daytona 500 last-lap crash 

That said, the nature of superspeedway racing can alter the best-laid plans of teams and automakers to work together in harmony. On-track decisions made in the thick of the aerodynamic draft can thwart even the most crystalline pre-race strategies in a split second. Those strategies become even more murky in the late going, when team unity can give way to individual goals. Those clouded conditions are what Logano says he’d like to clear up when those pre-Talladega discussions take place.

“As far as who you work with, when you work with them, what you’re supposed to do, I just pray for clarity,” Logano said. “That’s all I want. Just tell me what I can do and what I can’t do, how to work together the best way possible when the gloves drop and when we go for it. Honestly, that has nothing to do with the 100% rule. That is how we win, right? I don’t think I can go out there and win by myself without having allies on the race track. I think probably most everyone can agree with that that’s out there.

“So you have to have some kind of plan of how do you pit together, how do you work the draft together, what’s OK and what’s not OK, and when does that end and does it end. I don’t know. I think this week will be important to get some clarity to those questions.”

MORE: Roger Penske on plans for pre-race talk

Count DiBenedetto among that group pushing Team Penske’s superspeedway mission, as the second-year driver of the tightly affiliated Wood Brothers Racing No. 21 Ford. DiBenedetto said communication across the Penske banner has remained a strong point, noting the chemistry among teammates through a group text and the intensity of the “group study” for superspeedway strategy.

All that, he said, comes with the acknowledgement that Talladega’s brand of racing sometimes scuttles even the best prep work, bending well-established alliances.

“I haven’t made a mistake like that but none of it all works out perfectly,” DiBenedetto says. “You can scope out all these plans and have all this organization and communication but when the green flag drops you can’t predict what lines are moving or what line you are stuck in. It is really freaking stressful.”

Contributing: Chase Wilhelm

Posted on by Tadd Haislop

Tyler Rypkema did not head into the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season-opener at Martinsville Speedway almost two weeks ago expecting a top-five finish.

But that’s exactly what happened.

Rypkema charged through the field late in the 200-lap race on fresh tires to finish second to Eric Goodale. It marked the 24-year-old Rypkema’s career-best finish.

After four straight top-10 finishes to close out 2020 season, Rypkema’s No. 32 team continues to bring speed to the track in their second full-time season on the Tour.

Tyler Rypkema
Tyler Rypkema, driver of the No. 32 Musco / Welcorp Chevrolet, competes during the Virginia Is For Racing Lovers 200 for the Whelen Modified Tour at Martinsville Raceway in Martinsville, Virginia, on April 8, 2021. (Adam Glanzman/NASCAR)

Even though Rypkema had to rally late to finish where he did at Martinsville, he ran second in the only practice session of the day and qualified 10th. There is no doubt about it: Rypkema has improved from the beginning of 2020, when he finished 18th at Pennsylvania’s Jennerstown Speedway.

“We keep gaining on everything and building as a team,” Rypkema said. “We said a few times last year, ‘We probably had a top-five car, just came up short.’ So just to have it all come together and finally get that first top five is huge for everybody involved.

“As a team, we’re just looking to be competitive and really learn. We still have a ton to learn. All we’re looking to do is just finish the race, gain some more respect and gain some more knowledge.”

Rypkema credits crew chief Zach Truesdall for much of that improvement. It was Truesdall’s decision to save a set of tires for the final run at Martinsville.

“It really panned out for us,” Rypkema recalled. “It was huge for all of us to have that outcome and have that good of a run for us. … I’ve always been one that I want to be fast at the end of the race. I don’t want to be backing up. I want to be going forward. That’s how Zach likes it, too.”

Now Rypkema heads north to run the 49th edition of the NAPA Auto Parts Spring Sizzler at Stafford Motor Speedway, where tires almost certainly will play a role in deciding who wins.

MORE SPRING SIZZLER:

“You gotta be there at the end,” Rypkema said. “You gotta be quick at the end. You can’t just be there by luck.”

Like Martinsville, Stafford is a track with plenty of historical significance dating back to the 1950s.

“Obviously, the Spring Sizzler is huge,” Rypkema said. “It dates back all the way to Richie Evans and before him. It’s incredible to see the list of drivers that have won that race. To think that that’s a possibility, that you might someday be on that list, too, is incredible. Everybody wants a Stafford Spring Sizzler trophy.”

Despite the string of strong finishes, Rypkema is keeping expectations cautiously optimistic for the rest of the season.

“Yeah, we had a good run,” he allowed. “It was huge to do that, but, don’t think just because you did that one time, you can do it every race. Prepare yourself. You’re going to have bad races. It’s not the end of the world. You’ll learn from even the bad races.”

Posted on by Marcus DiNitto

While some professional bettors look to take advantage of the randomness that results from restrictor plate racing, drafting at 200-plus mph and the crashes that usually ensue, other sharps believe it is too difficult to find an edge and stay away from superspeedways completely. 

For public bettors, the buzz around Talladega and Daytona, plus the long odds available on top drivers in races such as Sunday’s GEICO 500, are too enticing to ignore.

RELATED: NASCAR BetCenter | Odds for the Talladega spring race

Zack White, a pro bettor who specializes in NASCAR, has long avoided superspeedways and in recent seasons has pared down the number of races he bets to only about half the Cup schedule, tracks “where I’m still finding some edges,” he said. “I used to try to bet just about every race, maybe save the superspeedways.”

“The bookmakers know this, too, but it’s just a super crapshoot until the last few laps,” White said of superspeedway races. “It’d be really rare to go into a Talladega or a Daytona week and see anybody at +150 or anything around that range (in a driver vs. driver matchup prop). The bookmakers know that it’s fairly random. I’m sure a few people out there try to piece something together that they think is a winning strategy at these tracks, but I just choose not to.”

Sharp NASCAR bettor Blake Phillips agrees that the randomness of superspeedways makes it difficult to predict outcomes, but from his perspective, since oddsmakers are up against the same challenge, opportunity is borne from this randomness.

“The normal stuff that you would think is correlated with a win or at least finishing in a good position doesn’t necessarily apply as much in these kinds of races,” Phillips said. “First off, you have the issue of drafting, which changes the equation a little bit. But more importantly, you’re practically guaranteed a giant wreck that’s going to wipe out a big percentage of the drivers.

“Talladega and Daytona are tracks where I have a different approach that’s a lot less based on fundamental handicapping and a lot more looking at the offerings available and seeing where I feel there’s too heavy of a lean in a race with low predictability.”

That strategy translates into giving serious consideration to underdogs in head-to-head and group matchups, manufacturer to win and other props.

Superspeedway randomness also means longer odds in the outright market than we see for most races. At SuperBook USA in Las Vegas, no driver opened with single-digit odds to win the GEICO 500, as Denny Hamlin was made the 10/1 favorite. Nine drivers are listed at less than 20/1 odds, and six more opened at exactly 20/1.

Conversely, for last week’s race in Richmond, the SuperBook offered six drivers in single digits and a total of 11 at 20/1 or less. 

“Talladega is much more open than Richmond,” said Ed Salmons, vice president of risk management at the SuperBook. “At Talladega, if you got six drivers against the field, the field would be a huge favorite.”

The chance to bet drivers like Chase Elliott at 12/1 odds, Brad Keselowski at 14/1 or Martin Truex Jr. 20/1 doesn’t come around often, and these opportunities motivate casual bettors. Handle tends to pick up for Talladega, according to Salmons.

“People always like this race,” he said. “You get good odds on everyone, no matter who you bet.”

Marcus DiNitto is a writer and editor living in Charlotte, North Carolina. He has been covering sports for nearly two-and-a-half decades and sports betting for more than 10 years. His first NASCAR betting experience was in 1995 at North Wilkesboro Speedway, where he went 0-for-3 on his matchup picks. Read his articles and follow him on Twitter; do not bet his picks.

Posted on by Staff Report

See where your favorite driver will pit for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway (2 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Posted on by Staff Report

Denny Hamlin has claimed the Busch Pole Award for Sunday’s GEICO 500 (2 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Talladega Superspeedway.

Hamlin will start his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota from the pole position for the third time this season in the 500-miler at the 2.66-mile Alabama track. He finished second last weekend at Richmond Raceway and has held the NASCAR Cup Series points lead for all but one week this season.

Austin Cindric, the defending Xfinity Series champion, captured the pole for Saturday’s Ag-Pro 300 (4 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM) in the No. 22 Team Penske Ford.

RELATED: Talladega weekend schedule | 2021 Cup Series standings

As NASCAR adapted to COVID-19 protocols last season, practice and qualifying were eliminated at a majority of national-series events to limit at-track time, exposure and to cut race weekend costs. To determine starting lineups, competition officials used grouped draws, added inversions for weekend doubleheaders, and eventually adopted a performance-metrics formula. That metrics format remains in place this season, drawing on performance from both individual races and season-long results.

NASCAR’s metrics formula for 2021 weighs:

  • 25 percent: Driver’s finishing position from the previous race
  • 25 percent: Car owner’s finishing position from the previous race
  • 35 percent: Team owner points ranking
  • 15 percent: Fastest lap from the previous race

See the full lineup for Sunday’s Cup Series race below.

Start pos.
 Driver Car # Team
1 Denny Hamlin 11 Joe Gibbs Racing
2 Joey Logano 22 Team Penske
3 Martin Truex Jr. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing
4 William Byron 24 Hendrick Motorsports
5 Alex Bowman 48 Hendrick Motorsports
6 Christopher Bell 20 Joe Gibbs Racing
7 Ryan Blaney 12 Team Penske
8 Chase Elliott 9 Hendrick Motorsports
9 Kyle Busch 18 Joe Gibbs Racing
10 Brad Keselowski 2 Team Penske
11 Austin Dillon 3 Richard Childress Racing
12 Kyle Larson 5 Hendrick Motorsports
13 Matt DiBenedetto 21 Wood Brothers Racing
14 Aric Almirola 10 Stewart-Haas Racing
15 Kurt Busch 1 Chip Ganassi Racing
16 Kevin Harvick 4 Stewart-Haas Racing
17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing
18 Ross Chastain 42 Chip Ganassi Racing
19 Daniel Suarez 99 Trackhouse Racing Team
20 Tyler Reddick 8 Richard Childress Racing
21 Chris Buescher 17 Roush Fenway Racing
22 Erik Jones 43 Richard Petty Motorsports
23 Michael McDowell 34 Front Row Motorsports
24 Bubba Wallace 23 23XI Racing
25 Chase Briscoe 14 Stewart-Haas Racing
26 Corey LaJoie 7 Spire Motorsports
27 Cole Custer 41 Stewart-Haas Racing
28 Ryan Newman 6 Roush Fenway Racing
29 Ryan Preece 37 JTG Daugherty Racing
30 Anthony Alfredo 38 Front Row Motorsports
31 BJ McLeod 78 Live Fast Motorsports
32 Quin Houff 00 StarCom Racing
33 Cody Ware 51 Petty Ware Racing
34 Justin Haley 77 Spire Motorsports
35 Joey Gase 28 Rick Ware Racing
36 Josh Bilicki 52 Rick Ware Racing
37 JJ Yeley 15 Rick Ware Racing
38 Kaz Grala 16 Kaulig Racing
39 Harrison Burton 96 Gaunt Brothers Racing
40 Timmy Hill 66 MBM Motorsports

Practice and qualifying are tentatively scheduled for eight Cup Series races this year. Busch Pole Qualifying was held for the season-opening Daytona 500 but rain canceled the qualifying races for Bristol Motor Speedway’s dirt-track race. The next Cup Series event with qualifying scheduled is the May 23 debut at the Circuit of the Americas road course in Austin, Texas.

Posted on by Staff Report

Jesse Iwuji has won the first ever eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series Fan Vote, as revealed on Tuesday’s NASCAR Race Hub on FS1. As a result, Iwuji is now eligible to race in Wednesday night’s Pro Invitational Series event at virtual Talladega Superspeedway, airing at 7 p.m. ET on FS1.

RELATED: Pro Invitational Series schedule

Iwuji was one of 10 drivers in the fan vote. NASCAR Xfinity Series driver and Martinsville Speedway winner Josh Berry finished second in the vote, followed by Xfinity Series driver Landon Cassill.

Other drivers in the fan vote included Justin Allgaier, Rajah Caruth, Noah Gragson, Austin Hill, Nicholas Sanchez, Ryan Truex and Ryan Vargas.

NASCAR Cup Series driver William Byron earned victory in the first 2021 Pro Invitational Series event on the virtual Bristol Motor Speedway dirt. The triumph was his fourth career Pro Invitational Series victory.

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR officials issued penalties Tuesday to three teams — two in the Cup Series and one in the Camping World Truck Series — for lug-nut violations in last weekend’s events at Richmond Raceway.

The infractions, filed under the heading of Sections 10.9.10.4 (tires and wheels) in each series’ rule book, resulted in fines for each team’s crew chief. The vehicles were each found with one unsecured lug nut in a post-race check.

STANDINGS: Cup Series | Camping World Trucks

After the Cup Series’ Toyota Owners 400, the safety violations — which carried $10,000 fines — were handed to:

• The No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet for driver William Byron (crew chief Ryan “Rudy” Fugle)
• The No. 51 Petty Ware Racing Chevrolet for driver Cody Ware (crew chief Mike Hillman)

In the Camping World Truck Series, the race-winning Kyle Busch Motorsports No. 4 Toyota team for driver John Hunter Nemechek was docked for a single-lug penalty. The infraction resulted in a $2,500 fine to crew chief Eric Phillips.

Posted on by Steve Luvender

The stars of the NASCAR Cup Series are pulling double-duty at Talladega Superspeedway this week — if you count Wednesday night’s eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series event from the virtual 2.66-mile superspeedway. 

Here’s everything you need to know about the second iRacing exhibition event airing live Apr. 21 at 7 pm. ET on FS1.

This year’s format

    • Qualifying: Two-lap, three-minute solo session
    • Race: 70-lap, 2 resets
  • Field Size: 40 cars, comprised of 36 NASCAR Cup Series drivers, a NASCAR.com fan vote winner and any past Pro Invitational winners, along with special guests Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Clint Bowyer.

Entry list

Car No.

Team

Driver

0

StarCom Racing

Quin Houff

2

Team Penske

Brad Keselowski

3

Richard Childress Racing

Austin Dillon

4

Stewart-Haas Racing

Kevin Harvick

5

Hendrick Motorsports

Kyle Larson

6

Roush Fenway Racing

Ryan Newman

7

Spire Motorsports

Corey Lajoie

8

Richard Childress Racing

Tyler Reddick

9

Hendrick Motorsports

Chase Elliott

10

Stewart-Haas Racing

Aric Almirola

11

Joe Gibbs Racing

Denny Hamlin

12

Team Penske

Ryan Blaney

14

Stewart-Haas Racing

Chase Briscoe

15

Rick Ware Racing

James Davison

17

Roush Fenway Racing

Chris Buescher

18

Joe Gibbs Racing

Kyle Busch

19

Joe Gibbs Racing

Martin Truex Jr.

20

Joe Gibbs Racing

Christopher Bell

21

Wood Brothers Racing

Matt DiBenedetto

22

Team Penske

Joey Logano

23

23XI Racing

Bubba Wallace

24

Hendrick Motorsports

William Byron

28

Rick Ware Racing

Joey Gase

34

Front Row Motorsports

Michael McDowell

38

Front Row Motorsports

Anthony Alfredo

41

Stewart-Haas Racing

Cole Custer

42

Chip Ganassi Racing

Ross Chastain

43

Richard Petty Motorsports

Erik Jones

47

JTG Daugherty Racing

Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

48

Hendrick Motorsports

Alex Bowman

51

Petty Ware Racing

Garrett Smithley

52

Rick Ware Racing

Josh Bilicki

77

Spire Motorsports

Justin Haley

78

Live Fast Racing

BJ McLeod

97

Trackhouse Racing

Daniel Suarez

88

Promoter’s Provisional

Dale Earnhardt Jr.

79

Promoter’s Provisional

Clint Bowyer

62

Promoter’s Provisional

Keelan Harvick

66

MBM Motorsports
Past winner Provisional

Timmy Hill

99

Fan Vote Winner

Jesse Iwuji

 

Last year’s Pro Invitational Series race at Talladega

The 2020 iRacing Pro Invitational Series race was one of the most memorable races of last spring’s seven-race season. 

For starters, Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon made his iRacing debut — but it wasn’t before long the driver-gone-broadcaster ended up in Talladega’s virtual catch fence. 

Denny Hamlin was also (now famously) knocked out by a technical glitch of sorts.

…which, by the way, has become one of our favorite GIFs. Thanks for that, Taylor.

Taylor Hamlin Turn Off Denny Computer Screen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Birthday boy and frequent mid-race tweeter Alex Bowman ended up bringing home the win, holding off Corey LaJoie in overtime. 

Last Pro Invitational Series race: Byron wins the Bristol Dirt Race

William Byron, the most decorated driver in the brief history of the Pro Invitational Series, picked up his fourth win last month in the 2021 season opener at the dirt version of Bristol Motor Speedway.

What to expect and who to watch

They say just about anything can happen at Talladega, and that’s no different in the sim-racing world. Alex Bowman wasn’t considered a favorite to win last year’s race — after all, his opening weeks of the series were spent, to our entertainment, in-race tweeting and blaming his dog for incidents — but he managed to prevail despite Brad Keselowski and John Hunter Nemechek leading the most laps.

Of course, we’ve got our eyes on William Byron, who’s an evergreen iRacing favorite, though Talladega’s draft is known as the great equalizer. 

Like each time the NASCAR Cup Series visits Talladega, there’s a chance for an underdog story, too. Corey LaJoie finished runner-up at ‘Dega last year, just ahead of Ryan Preece and Garrett Smithley; Smithley also finished fourth at the Bristol Dirt iRacing race last month. 

Be sure to keep an eye out for Daniel Suárez’s special paint scheme, honoring 2021 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Red Farmer.

One more driver for the fans

Through a fan vote, fans selected one more guest entrant to round out the field: Jesse Iwuji will put on the virtual belts Wednesday to show his stuff against the Cup Series stars. Iwuji, who’s also a U.S. Naval officer, competes in the Camping World Truck Series. He competed in last year’s Saturday Night Thunder exhibition event on iRacing, held the night before the Pro Invitational Series race with non-Cup Series drivers. 

Catch the live broadcast of the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series race from Talladega Superspeedway Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET on FS1, following NASCAR Race Hub.

Posted on by Staff Report

Joe Gibbs Racing unveiled a retro-themed M&M’s design for Kyle Busch’s No. 18 Toyota in NASCAR’s Throwback Weekend next month at Darlington Raceway.

RELATED: Buy Darlington tickets

JGR’s paint scheme commemorates the candy’s 80th anniversary with vintage branding as part of its design. Busch will drive the throwback car as he vies for his second career Darlington victory in the NASCAR Cup Series on May 9 in the Goodyear 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

JGR and Busch also paid tribute to an M&M’s milestone in May 2016, switching from No. 18 to No. 75 in the NASCAR All-Star Race to coincide with its diamond anniversary.

Darlington has two dates on this year’s Cup Series schedule. The annual throwback weekend tradition shifts to a springtime tripleheader this year, with all three NASCAR national series competing May 7-9. The Cook Out Southern 500 retains its customary Labor Day weekend slot, opening the Cup Series’ 10-race playoffs Sept. 5.

Posted on by Staff Report

Jimmie Johnson offered Monday morning congratulations to Alex Bowman, his successor in the No. 48 Chevrolet, for his Sunday victory at Richmond Raceway. The triumph marked the No. 48 car’s first win since 2017, adding another measure of success to the number’s legacy at Hendrick Motorsports.

RELATED: Bowman wins Richmond | Cup Series standings

Johnson was occupied with his own racing efforts Sunday, making his IndyCar debut at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama. The seven-time champion was gracious in his warm salute to his former teammate from the NASCAR world.

Bowman paid his own tribute to Johnson in acknowledgment of his tweet. The No. 48’s current driver made a fashion statement with a T-shirt reading “I’m far from done JA,” referring to a 2018 social-media clapback to critics that became a Johnson catchphrase and rallying cry.