NASCAR Can Am 500

19 posts

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

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

Kevin Harvick’s Chase Streak Ends at Phoenix

Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Jimmy John's Chevrolet, walks on stage during driver introductions prior to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Can-Am 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on November 13, 2016 in Avondale, Arizona. Photo - Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images
Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Jimmy John’s Chevrolet, walks on stage during driver introductions prior to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Can-Am 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on November 13, 2016 in Avondale, Arizona. Photo – Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images

Kevin Harvick’s hopes of a second NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title ended with a fourth-place finish at Phoenix International Raceway.

For the first time since NASCAR introduced its 16-driver elimination Chase format in 2014, Harvick won’t be racing for a championship in the season finale.

The performance of Harvick’s No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet was far from optimal during the weekend of the Can-Am 500 elimination event at the Arizona track. Continue reading

Matt Kenseth’s Championship 4 Aspirations Evaporate with Late Accident

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