Tag Archives: Drive for the Cure 300

Rain Forces Cancellation of Friday’s Track Activity at Charlotte

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Photo - Robert Laberge/Getty Images

Photo – Robert Laberge/Getty Images

Persistent rain, and the forecast for more of it, forced NASCAR to cancel all of Friday’s on-track activity at Charlotte Motor Speedway, including the NASCAR XFINITY Series Chase Round of 12 finale.

The Drive for the Cure 300 will now run Sunday at 4 pm ET, (or after the Sprint Cup race, whichever comes first) and will broadcast on NBCSN.

The starting lineup for Sunday’s rescheduled race will be determined by the XFINITY Series rule book, which sets the field by fastest-to-slowest practice speeds from both of Thursday’s sessions. During final practice, Kyle Larson turned the fastest practice lap (185.198 mph) of the day and will start on the pole.

Erik Jones, who currently sits outside the top 8 cut-off line for advancement into the next round, will start second on Sunday.

Saturday night’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bank of America 500 — the first race in the Chase’s Round of 12 — remains scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

Penske Teammates aren’t Worried about Lack of Practice Time at Charlotte

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Photo - Getty Images

Photo – Getty Images

With all track activity canceled because of rain on Friday at Charlotte Motor Speedway – a far-reaching effect of Hurricane Matthew – NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers won’t have an opportunity to practice between Thursday evening’s knockout qualifying session and Saturday night’s Bank of America 500 (7 p.m. ET on NBC).

No problem, according to Team Penske drivers Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski, both exuding confidence entering the first race of the Round of 12 in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. After all, both drivers spent the vast majority of Thursday’s opening practice in race trim, anticipating the rain. Continue reading →

Austin Dillon Completes XFINITY Series Sweep at Charlotte

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When NASCAR comes to Charlotte Motor Speedway, Austin Dillon doesn’t mind being a creäture of habit.

After experienced veterans Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne knocked themselves out of contention 151 laps into Friday night’s Drive for the Cure 300 NASCAR XFINITY Series race at the 1.5-mile track, Dillon streaked away from Erik Jones to win by 2.809 seconds over the Joe Gibbs Racing driver.

With the victory, Dillon completed a season sweep at Charlotte, both wins coming from the pole position. The triumph was Dillon’s third of the season in the XFINITY Series and the sixth of his career.

Dillon’s closest call came not on the track, but during the pre-race ceremony. A fireball from one of the skyrockets used to liven up the proceedings dropped out of the evening sky and singed Dillon’s firesuit. Continue reading →

Brad Keselowski Grabs Nationwide Series Victory At Charlotte

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In the closing laps of Friday night’s Drive for the Cure 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, with an air of inevitability, Brad Keselowski tracked down teammate Ryan Blaney and made the pass for the win on lap 187 of 200.

With frequent cautions giving crew chiefs multiple options and scrambling tire strategies, Keselowski had four fresh tires for the restart on lap 182. It was simply a matter of time before he passed Blaney, who had gained seven positions with a two-tire stop under caution on lap 169. Continue reading →