Catch the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at Martinsville Speedway in the STP 500 on Sunday, April 2nd at 2 pm ET. Television and radio coverage begins at 12:30 pm ET on FOX Sports 1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Drivers will race 500 laps covering 263 miles with Stage 1 ending on lap 130 and Stage 2 ending on lap 260. Continue reading
Kyle Larson, driver of the #42 Target Chevrolet, applies the winners sticker in victory lane with his son, Owen, after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway on March 26, 2017 in Fontana, California. Photo – Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images
…and Fifth straight top-two finish at Martinsville
After running out of gas with the lead on the final lap of the Daytona 500 and finishing runner-up in the three subsequent races, Kyle Larson finally got his first win of the season.
The No. 42 Chevrolet driver led a race-high 110 laps on his way to Victory Lane in last Sunday’s Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. Continue reading
Joey Logano, driver of the #22 AAA Southern California Ford, stands on the grid before the start of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway on March 26, 2017 in Fontana, California. Photo – Sarah Crabill/Getty Images
Joey Logano didn’t experience the early complications that beset teammate Brad Keselowski, but the driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Ford nevertheless had to overcome late-race obstacles to pull off a fifth-place finish.
Logano pitted early on lap 177, along with Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott. Three laps later, an ill-timed caution trapped Logano a lap down, but he regained the lead lap with a wave-around for a restart on lap 185. Continue reading
Martin Truex Jr, driver of the #78 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Toyota, stands on the grid before the start of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway on March 26, 2017 in Fontana, California. Photo – Sarah Crabill/Getty Images
When Corey LaJoie’s brush with the turn two wall brought out the sixth of seven cautions on lap 192 of a scheduled 200, Martin Truex Jr. and crew chief Cole Pearn gambled.
They stayed out on old tires for a restart on lap 196, but only two other drivers, Denny Hamlin and Jamie McMurray, followed suit. That left race winner Kyle Larson in the fourth starting position, and one lap after the resumption of action, he had the lead. Continue reading
Clint Bowyer, driver of the #14 Rush Truck Centers Ford, gets into his car during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway on March 25, 2017 in Fontana, California. Photo – Sarah Crabill/Getty Images
Even though he had just posted his best Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series finish since 2015, Clint Bowyer didn’t expect effusive praise from the driver he succeeded in the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.
So when Bowyer pulled on to pit road at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday after running third behind race winner Kyle Larson and runner-up Brad Keselowski in the Auto Club 400, Tony Stewart’s reaction, as a car owner, was predictably restrained. Continue reading