NASCAR Alex Bowman

200 posts

The Bottom Line in the Championship 4? There’s No Clear Favorite

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News
Photos - Getty Images
Photos – Getty Images

A week before they were to race for the NASCAR Sprint Series championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch sat side-by-side at the daïs in the Phoenix International Raceway media center and began the bickering that invariably accompanies the battle for the series title.

“I think my stats at Homestead show that I’m the favorite, right?” Johnson said facetiously.

“I think my results from last year show that I’m the favorite, right?” Busch retorted.

Busch goes to Homestead as the defending champion, having overcome a broken leg and foot that caused him to miss the first 11 races of the 2015 season. With the elimination of Kevin Harvick in Sunday’s Can-Am 500 at Phoenix, Busch is the only Championship 4 contender who has won a title under the 16-driver Chase format introduced by NASCAR in 2014. Continue reading →

Matt Kenseth’s Championship 4 Aspirations Evaporate with Late Accident

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News
AVONDALE, AZ - NOVEMBER 13: Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 Dollar General Toyota, leads Kurt Busch, driver of the #41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Chevrolet, during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Can-Am 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on November 13, 2016 in Avondale, Arizona. Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
AVONDALE, AZ – NOVEMBER 13: Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 Dollar General Toyota, leads Kurt Busch, driver of the #41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Chevrolet, during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Can-Am 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on November 13, 2016 in Avondale, Arizona. Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images

In one moment, Matt Kenseth was leading Sunday’s Can-Am 500 and seemed destined to race for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship next Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

A moment later, he was wrecked and out of the Chase.

Kenseth led the field to green on the first attempt at overtime, with polesitter Alex Bowman to his inside. Kyle Busch made a move to the inside of Bowman from the third position, and Bowman blocked. Continue reading →

Joey Logano Advances to Championship 4 with Hard-Fought Win at Phoenix

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News

Joey Logano earned a return trip to the Championship 4 at Homestead-Miami Speedway after a year’s absence.

Kyle Busch will head to the South Florida track to try to defend his 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title.

And Kevin Harvick won’t be competing for the title for the first time since NASCAR debuted its elimination Chase format in 2014. Needing a victory to advance, as it turned out, Harvick finished fourth in Sunday’s Can-Am 500 at Phoenix International Raceway. Continue reading →

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Hellmann’s 500 at Talladega Preview

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Track News

322218

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams will take to the track on Sunday, October 23rd at 2 pm ET to race 500.8 miles over 188 laps in the Hellmann’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. NBC Sports Network begins their coverage at 1:30 pm ET and radio coverage is on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

What to Watch For: Heading into Sunday’s Hellmann’s 500 cutoff race at Talladega Superspeedway, Austin Dillon (ninth, tiebreaker), Denny Hamlin (tenth, -6 points below Joey Logano on the cutoff line), Brad Keselowski (11th, -7) and Chase Elliott (12th, -25) are on the outside looking in for advancement to the Round of 8.

Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski can break their tie for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins lead by getting a fifth victory. Continue reading →