With a Lazarus act that was delayed and then shortened by rain, Carl Edwards revived his moribund championship hopes the only way he could—with a victory in Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.
Last in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings after a hard crash and a 36th-place finish last week at Martinsville, Edwards took the lead under caution on lap 257 when his crew dashed off an 11-second pit stop.
Edwards beat Martin Truex Jr. out of the pits, and that proved the difference, as the No. 19 Joe Gibbs racing Toyota held the top spot the rest of the way until a rain shower halted the proceedings after 293 of a planned 334 laps. Continue reading →
Austin Dillon, driver of the #3 Realtree/Bad Boy Chevrolet, poses with the Coors Light Pole Award after qualifying for the pole position during Salute to Veterans Qualifying Fueled by Texas Lottery for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on November 4, 2016 in Fort Worth, Texas. Photo – Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Just because Austin Dillon is no longer in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, that doesn’t mean the driver of the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet has forgotten how to go fast.
Dillon sped around 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway in 28.081 seconds (192.301 mph) in the final round of Friday’s knockout qualifying session to earn the pole for Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at 2 pm ET on NBC, the second race in the Chase’s Round of 8. Continue reading →
Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Interstate Batteries/ABC Toyota, looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on October 6, 2016 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Photo – Sarah Crabill/Getty Images
Kyle Busch has won a points race at every active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series track with only two exceptions: Pocono and Charlotte.
But that could change on Saturday night – at Charlotte, at least – If Busch’s No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota lives up to the expectations of the defending series champion. Even though Busch has never won in 25 starts at Charlotte, he’s always been quick under the lights at the 1.5-mile track. Continue reading →
LOUDON, NH – SEPTEMBER 25: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M’s Core Toyota, pits during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bad Boy Off Road 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 25, 2016 in Loudon, New Hampshire. Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images
Kyle Busch didn’t have a car that could contend for the victory on Sunday at New Hampshire – until crew chief Adam Stevens convinced him to pit for fresh rubber with 35 laps left.
Subsequently, Busch restarted tenth on lap 269 and quickly powered his No. 18 Toyota into third place. But for two late cautions, the reigning NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion might have had a shot at victory in the second race of the Chase.
But Busch was happy to take his third-place result into the final race of the Round of 16 next Sunday at Dover.
“If it wasn’t for those last couple of cautions, I thought maybe we had an opportunity to chase those guys (Matt Kenseth and Martin Truex Jr.) down under green and pass them for the win,” Busch said. “It wasn’t meant to be. We managed our way through those restarts as best we could with restarting on the bottom, I feel like that’s a little bit of a disadvantage.
“We made the most of it at least at the end and didn’t lose spots, we were able to maintain our position and come out of here with a decent day. Excited about the opportunity to finish third and having a good points cushion. You can’t take any of that for granted, you have to focus on what’s ahead and the big picture and the task at hand, which is to have another good, solid week next week at Dover.”
