Tag Archives: The Chase

Johnson, Knaus Can Cement Names atop NASCAR Record Books

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Photo - Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

Photo – Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

Jimmie Johnson has been there before – more than any other driver in the past two decades.

But this trip to Homestead-Miami Speedway for Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 at 2:30 pm ET is different. In the first place, Johnson has his first opportunity to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship under the 16-driver elimination format introduced by the sanctioning body in 2014.

Beyond that, in what is the transcendent story of this year’s Chase, Johnson has a chance to win a seventh series title, one that would tie him for the all-time lead with NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt. Continue reading →

In Championship 4, Joe Gibbs Racing Must Deal with Unprecedented Success

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Photo - Robert Laberge/Getty Images

Photo – Robert Laberge/Getty Images

The crowning achievement of Joe Gibbs Racing’s 2016 season may also be its biggest problem.

But it’s a problem the organization is happy to have.

When defending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Kyle Busch earned a return trip to the Championship 4 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway with a second-place finish at Phoenix, JGR became the first organization in the three-year history of the Chase’s elimination format to put more than one driver in the final race with a chance to win the title. Continue reading →

Texas, the Next Stop on Kyle Busch’s Title Defense Tour

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Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M's Halloween Toyota, looks on prior to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Goody's Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway on October 30, 2016 in Martinsville, Virginia. Photo - Jerry Markland/Getty Images

Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M’s Halloween Toyota, looks on prior to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway on October 30, 2016 in Martinsville, Virginia. Photo – Jerry Markland/Getty Images

No driver has swept a track in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series this season.

Kyle Busch will attempt to become the first as he continues his championship defense in Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway at 2 pm ET on NBC. Busch enters the race off a fifth-place finish in the Round of 8 opener at Martinsville last Sunday and is four points ahead of Joey Logano for the final advancement spot to the Championship 4 race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He visited Victory Lane in the April Texas race by speeding away from the field on a restart with 33 laps left to break Jimmie Johnson’s three-race wins streak at the 1.5-mile track. A win on Sunday would mean an automatic berth in the Championship 4, and a chance for a repeat championship. Continue reading →

Roles are Different this Year for Penske Teammates

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Photo - Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

Photo – Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

Last year, Joey Logano did all he could at Talladega Superspeedway to help Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski advance to the Chase’s Round of 8.

Then again, last year Logano was in a position to do so, given that he had won the first two races in the Round of 12. And with his help, Keselowski advanced to the penultimate round with a fourth-place finish.

But in the Hellman’s 500 on Sunday, both Logano and Keselowski will be fighting for their Chase lives. Heading into the Round of 12 cutoff race, Logano is tied for eighth, the final transfer position. After wrecking out of last Sunday’s Kansas race in 38th place, Keselowski is 11th in the Chase standings, seven points behind Logano and Austin Dillon. Continue reading →

Brad Keselowski Plans to Race for Wins Despite Wicked Kansas Finish

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Brad Keselowski, driver of the #2 Miller Lite Ford, is involved in an on-track incident during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway on October 16, 2016 in Kansas City, Kansas. - Photo - Matt Sullivan/Getty Images

Brad Keselowski, driver of the #2 Miller Lite Ford, is involved in an on-track incident during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway on October 16, 2016 in Kansas City, Kansas. – Photo – Matt Sullivan/Getty Images

Brad Keselowski had a terrible day Sunday afternoon at Kansas Speedway, but the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion isn’t ready to count himself out of a championship yet.

While running inside the top-ten on lap 189 of Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400, Keselowski’s No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion drifted up the track and directly in front of fellow Chaser Denny Hamlin, but got loose in the process causing Hamlin to hit him from behind.

The contact sent Keselowski sliding wildly and uncontrollably spinning into the infield grass, where the splitter of his car tore into the sodded grass causing colossal front-end damage to his car. Continue reading →