HUNTERSVILLE, NC – JANUARY 11: NASCAR driver Daniel Suarez talks about his future driving at NASCAR’s highest level during a press conference at Joe Gibbs Racing on January 11, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Photo by Bob Leverone/ Getty Images
The phone call interrupted Daniel Suarez’s lunch. He didn’t mind.
Team owner Joe Gibbs was calling with the surprising news that Suarez, winner of the NASCAR XFINITY Series championship last season, would be promoted to drive the team’s No. 19 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Toyota in 2017 as a replacement for Carl Edwards.
Edwards had told Gibbs about his decision to leave racing during the Christmas holidays. Continue reading →
HUNTERSVILLE, NC – JANUARY 11: NASCAR driver Carl Edwards talks about his career in a stock car during a press conference to announce his retirement at Joe Gibbs Racing on January 11, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Photo by Bob Leverone/Getty Images
Calling at least a temporary halt to a career he described as “living a dream,” Carl Edwards confirmed Wednesday his decision to step away from driving race cars to pursue what he described as other adventures.
In a decision that shocked the NASCAR world, Edwards, 37, said he was leaving the Joe Gibbs Racing team and one of the best rides in stock car racing “because I’ve always followed my gut. All the signs point to this being the right thing to do.”
Daniel Suarez will be elevated from the NASCAR XFINITY Series operation at JGR to replace Edwards in the No. 19 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Toyota.
Edwards would not rule out returning to racing in the future, but, during a 37-minute news conference in which he was near tears, he emphasized that many other things – at this point not identified – have his attention.
He said he is satisfied with his driving career, which includes 28 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup victories and an XFINITY Series championship. He barely missed a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup title twice. Continue reading →
From left, Burt Myers, Cayden Lapcevich, Todd Gilliland, Anthony Kumpen, Justin Haley and Doug Coby show off their NASCAR championship rings at the end of Saturday’s NASCAR Touring Series Night of Champions at the Charlotte Convention Center. Photo – Getty Images
NASCAR Night of Champions Recognizes Touring Series Titlest
It was the fourth time Doug Coby took the stage to accept a NASCAR championship ring. As the elder statesman on the stage, the Milford, Connecticut, driver took a moment to reflect.
“It seems like just yesterday I was standing right here giving a speech for my first championship and now here I am for number four,” said 37-year-old from Milford, Connecticut. “But a lot has changed in the five years since my first championship, and in fact it has been a great five years for all of the series champions.”
27 Showcase Events Slated To Test Sport’s Top Young Talent
NASCAR fans have been thrilled in recent years by the achievements of the sport’s rising stars – from Joey Logano’s DAYTONA 500 win in 2015 to Austin Dillon, Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson joining him in the 2016 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Daniel Suarez won the NASCAR XFINITY Series championship this year and William Byron led the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in wins.
They all have one thing in common. They cut their teeth in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series before breaking into NASCAR’s national series.
With the announcement by NASCAR of the 2017 schedules for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and West, fans across the United States will get to see up close the next wave of young drivers looking to make their impact. Continue reading →