Race postponed: Due to rain, NASCAR has postponed the Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono Raceway. It has been rescheduled for 11:00am/et Monday.(7-31-2016)

Second Furniture Row team next year with Erik Jones? Fox Sports' Kaitlyn Vincie reported on NASCAR Race Day Sunday morning that Furniture Row Racing is close to adding a second team next year. She says she spoke with Furniture Row Racing General Manager Joe Garone and he said the pieces were coming together but nothing is confirmed. Regarding speculation that Erik Jones would be the driver, he said Jones would be a good fit for the team but nothing is finalized. The second team would be headquartered in Denver, Colorado with the #78 team of Martin Truex, Jr.(7-31-2016)

Rain could be an issue at Pocono: The weather forecast for Sunday at Pocono Raceway calls for the possibility of rain. According to the National Weather Service Sunday morning:
Sunday - Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 1pm. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 76. South wind 5 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Sunday Night - Showers and thunderstorms likely before 10pm, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 10pm and 2am, then scattered showers and thunderstorms after 2am.
Monday - Scattered showers, with thunderstorms also possible after noon. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 77. Calm wind becoming west around 5 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
According to NASCAR_WXMAN's forecast at SB Nation, "Scattered showers and thunderstorms are possible Sunday afternoon thanks to a very unsettled atmosphere over eastern Pennsylvania and a stalled front across the region. The good news -- the data for Sunday is drier than it has been all week. The bad news -- we could still see showers and storms during the race and depending on how numerous the showers and storms are we could see red flag delays or possible postponements of the race. Odds of racing the Pennsylvania 400 Sunday has increased to 50 to 60 percent. It looks drier with more scattered showers and storms than previous forecasts but showers and storms are still possible. The odds of a complete race is around 40 to 45 percent. Odds of a Monday race is now around 30 to 35 percent. Monday's weather forecast still has a chance of scattered showers and storms in the afternoon. If the race were to be postponed for Monday an earlier start time would be in NASCAR's best interest"
Pocono does not have lights. Sunset is at 8:19pm/et tonight.
For more weather links, see the Pocono race page - weather section.(7-31-2016)

Increased timing zones on pit road: NASCAR has increased the number of timing zones on pit road this weekend at Pocono Raceway. Last week, NASCAR had 12 timing zones at Indianapolis Motor Speedway - an average of one timing zone about every three pit stalls. Four drivers were penalized for speeding at Indy: #48-Jimmie Johnson, #11-Denny Hamlin, #14-Tony Stewart and #1-Jamie McMurray. This weekend, NASCAR will have 18 timing zones at Pocono - an average of one timing zone about every two pit stalls. NASCAR increased the number of timing zones after questions were raised when Martin Truex Jr. was penalized earlier this month at Kentucky for passing leader Kevin Harvick on the left.(NBC Sports)(7-31-2016)

Almirola says Petty could benefit from stronger alliance: #43-Aric Almirola met with the media Saturday at Pocono Raceway:
The top four teams have an alliance. Do you think an alliance with another team would be beneficial for [Richard Petty Motorsports]?
"I think so. I think we've kind of seen that this year. We still have an alliance with Roush, but it's a little less this year than it's been in year's past. We've gotten a little more autonomous with building our own cars and hanging our own bodies and brought on some of our own engineering staff and things like that. To be honest with you, we knew that going into it it was going to be a work in progress. We weren't just gonna be able to build from ground zero and come out of the box and be super-successful and ultra-competitive, but we did have a lot higher hopes for success than what we've seen this year... So it makes it very challenging and very difficult to start a program like we have, especially when you're competing against teams that have been doing it for years and years and years and have a lot of resources, a lot of people and a lot of experience at doing it. That being said, I feel like there could be some positives from having a stronger alliance with some of the top teams, but, currently right now, we're devoted and right in the middle of trying to scratch and claw and work our guts out to figure out our program."(Ford Racing)(7-31-2016)

Pocono Race Notes & Facts:
· There have been 77 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Pocono Raceway, one race from 1974 through 1981, and two per year since.
· Hendrick Motorsports leads the series in wins at Pocono with 17: Jeff Gordon (six), Tim Richmond (three), Jimmie Johnson (three), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (two), Kasey Kahne (one), Geoff Bodine (one) and Terry Labonte (one).
· Eight different manufacturers have won in the NSCS at Pocono; led by Chevrolet with 32 victories; followed by Ford with 21, Dodge (seven), Pontiac (six), Buick (four) Toyota (four), Mercury (two) and Oldsmobile (one).
· Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Pocono Raceway is the race on July 23, 2000 that was won by Rusty Wallace over Jeff Burton with a MOV of 0.126 second.
· There have been three NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races resulting with a green-white-checkered finish at Pocono Raceway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): spring of 2005 (200/201); fall of 2005 (200/203); spring of 2010 (200/204).
· Six of the 77 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono Raceway have been shortened due to weather conditions; the most recent was the event on 8/5/2012.
(NASCAR)

Jack Huston to drive pace car at Watkins Glen: Jack Huston, star of the upcoming epic action adventure "BEN-HUR" from Paramount Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, will drive a 2016 Toyota Camry pace car to kick off the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Cheez-It" 355 at Watkins Glen International on Sunday, August 7. This will be Huston's first time serving as an Official Pace Car driver at a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event. He will also be recognized during pre-race ceremonies and will greet each NASCAR driver on stage during driver introductions. "BEN-HUR" is the epic story of Judah Ben-Hur (Jack Huston), a prince falsely accused of treason by his adopted brother Messala (Toby Kebbell), an officer in the Roman army. Stripped of his title, separated from his family and the woman he loves (Nazanin Boniadi), Judah is forced into slavery. After years at sea, Judah returns to his homeland to seek revenge, but finds redemption. Based on Lew Wallace's timeless novel, Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. The film also stars Rodrigo Santoro, Nazanin Boniadi, Ayelet Zurer, Pilou Asbaek, Sofia Black D'Elia and Morgan Freeman.(WGI)(7-31-2016)

Final practice for the Pennsylvania 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway is over after 80 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#78-Truex, Jr. 176.377
#2-Keselowski 176.136
#4-Harvick 176.012
#41-Busch 175.922
#24-Elliott 175.864
slowest: #32-Burton 168.136 & #55-Sorenson 167.6513.
most laps run: #41-Busch 42 laps & #14-Stewart 41 laps
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap avg on the Pocono Final Practice speeds page (pdf).(7-30-2016)

Pit Stall Selections: The selections of pit stalls for the Pennsylvania 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway have been made.
Pole sitter #78-Truex, Jr. chose pit stall 1 [as do most pole sitters].
Outside pole sitter #19-Edwards took pit stall 31, the first stall before the start finish line, with an opening in front of it.
#27-Menard, who starts 3rd took the 3rd pit stall.
The final pit stall was taken by #2-Keselowski, who starts 7th.
To see where the drivers/teams pit stall is, see the pit selection chart on Jayski.com's Pit Stall Selection chart.

Earnhardt, Jr. says "no change lately": #88-Dale Earnhardt, Jr. tweeted Saturday morning, "Update: No change lately. Symptoms have plateaued over the last week. Balance/Gaze Stabilization are only issues. Docs preaching patience."(7-30-2016)

Phelps says search for Sprint's replacement still on track: As NASCAR chief marketing officer Steve Phelps explained the status of the search for a new sponsor to replace Sprint, the Pocono Raceway weather went from cloudy, to drizzle to sun breaking through the clouds all in 15 minutes. Was it a sign of the roller-coaster ride of the search for a Cup Series sponsor? "It's all good," Phelps said. There is no sense of panic within Phelps as the sponsorship search continues and in some ways can be as unpredictable as the Pocono weather. When Nextel was announced to replace Winston in 2003, the deal came together quickly and was announced in June. Two years ago, the Xfinity deal to replace Nationwide as the sponsor of NASCAR's top national developmental series was announced in September. The announcement of a new Cup sponsor likely will come later. Phelps told ESPN.com on Friday morning that an October announcement is the most likely scenario. He stressed not to confuse NASCAR not having a concrete feel of an announcement date with the search not going as planned. He said the timeline is tracking as NASCAR expected when Sprint announced in December 2014 that it would depart after the 2016 season. "We've got roughly 12 companies we're still in discussions with," Phelps said. "They're in various stages. I would say there's an opportunity that I believe we could get an offer from -- five or six. The process is going very well. The brands are a mixture of those that are not in the sport right now and some that are in the sport. It's a good list and we're trying to determine what is the best for the sport overall."
NASCAR doesn't expect a 10-year deal this time around. "It probably will be a shorter deal," Phelps said. "It is something that bodes from our standpoint and as well a brand standpoint. ... Although we did a 10-year deal with Comcast (for the Xfinity Series); that's a bit of an anomaly in this world today. It will depend on the brand and it will depend on what we believe will be right for the sport."
Even when NASCAR signs a deal, the steps prior to the announcement will depend on several factors. NASCAR won't want to tread on the media blitz of the end of the regular season or start of the Chase, possibly feeding speculation of the status of negotiations in order to make sure it does the announcement at the time that works best for NASCAR and its sponsor.(ESPN.com)(7-30-2016)

Childress close to finalizing 2017 plans UPDATES: Car owner Richard Childress anticipates he'll know his 2017 driver lineup within three weeks. While Childress told NBC Sports on Thursday that "we've still got a couple of months before we make any real decisions," he did say that "we'll kind of know in the next two or three weeks. We'll have a direction." The main question for the three-car organization is #31-Ryan Newman's status. He's in the final year of his contract, and Childress' grandson, Ty Dillon, appears set to move to Sprint Cup next season. The team also includes #27-Paul Menard, who is 23rd in the points. Childress said Menard's is expected to return to the team as sponsor next year. The final member of the team is #3-Austin Dillon, who is 13th in points and seeking to make the playoffs for the first time.
Ty Dillon has driven eight Sprint Cup races this season. He drove three races for Tony Stewart early in the season and has run five races for Circle Sport - Leavine Family Racing. "I think he'll be in a Cup car next year," Childress said of Ty Dillon. "I'm pretty sure he'll be in a Cup car. We're working on some different programs. Hell, he may be with us, who knows? We're just working on a lot of different things. Right now it's just a lot of things are hanging. We're trying to put together what's going to be the best for everybody, not just for RCR, but for the drivers and the sponsors, we're trying to put together good programs."(NBC Sports)(7-22-2016)
UPDATE Richard Childress Racing is expected to announce its 2017 Sprint Cup Series driver lineup in the coming weeks. Ryan Newman, in his third season as driver of the #31 RCR Chevrolet, isn't quite sure if he'll be a part of it. "We haven't talked about it in-depth yet, but we have talked about it," Newman, 13th in points, said Thursday at Kalahari Resort in Pocono Manor, Pennsylvania. "Hopefully, we'll get to sit down and talk about it soon." While Newman offers consistent, above-average production week in and week out, RCR may be faced with a tough decision as Childress' grandson, Ty Dillon, appears ready for a full-time Sprint Cup Series ride with no clear path to a spot for him. Still, the team owner told NASCAR.com earlier this year at Michigan International Speedway that he's planning on having the '16 XFINITY Series title hopeful in a Sprint Cup car full-time in 2017, while the exact organization and ride has yet to be finalized. Right now, Newman doesn't appear to be getting his ducks in order just yet on the off chance he finds himself ousted from his ride in favor of the younger Dillon. "I plan on (coming back)," he said. "If they'll have me back, I'll be there."(NASCAR.com)
AND: The team is a question mark, the number is uncertain and the logistics are still behind closed doors. But one thing's for certain: If he has his way, Ty Dillon will be in a Sprint Cup Series ride next season. "I fully plan on being in the Sprint Cup Series next year full time," Dillon said Friday at Iowa Speedway. "We've got a lot of options on the table. A lot of chips still left to fall before we kind of get to that point, but hopefully we'll have something really close to getting done in a month or so." With #31 driver Ryan Newman's RCR contract up after this season, it looks to be seen whether or not Dillon will take his place as the driver of the team's third car or if organization will add a fourth car. The possibility of driving for a different team also looms. "Talks have progressed a lot further than they have in past years," Dillon said. "I had talks with other teams in the past couple years and had opportunities, but it's always been my dream to drive for RCR and be teammates with my brother. "But now it seems like the time's more and more important. We've got some things going with RCR but we're still slowly working on other options."(NASCAR.com)(7-30-2016)

Insurance company separated from suit against Stewart: A federal judge ruled Friday that the insurance carrier for NASCAR driver Tony Stewart does not have to defend or indemnify him in a lawsuit brought by the family of a driver who died after being struck by Stewart's car during a race. U.S. District Court Judge David Hurd ruled that Axis Insurance Co.'s policy with Stewart "unambiguously limited" the insurer's liability to specific races. The family of Kevin Ward Jr. is suing Stewart, claiming that he acted recklessly when he struck and killed the young driver in an open-wheel race at Canandaigua Motorsports Park in August 2014. According to the decision, Stewart's policy covered 105 "specified events." The judge wrote that it is "undisputed" that the sprint car event in which Ward was killed was not one of those specified in the policy. Attorneys for Stewart had countered that certain language in the policy supported their position that coverage was warranted. Stewart will now have to bear the costs of his defense as the lawsuit continues.(Associated Press)(7-30-2016)

Pocono Driver Notes & Facts:
· 331 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway; 234 in more than one.
· Ricky Rudd leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in starts at Pocono with 55.
· Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 46 starts at Pocono; followed by Tony Stewart (35); then Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth with 33 starts each.
· Denny Hamlin (21 starts) leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Pocono with a 7.000.
· 34 different drivers have won at Pocono Raceway, led by Jeff Gordon with six wins.
· Eight active drivers have multiple wins at Pocono: Jeff Gordon (6) Denny Hamlin (4), Jimmie Johnson (3), Carl Edwards, Kasey Kahne, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tony Stewart (each have 2).
· Seven drivers have posted consecutive wins at Pocono Raceway all-time, including three consecutive by Bobby Allison (1982 sweep and spring 1983) and Tim Richmond (1986 sweep and spring 1987).
· Three of the seven drivers to win consecutive races at Pocono are active: Jimmie Johnson (2004 sweep); Denny Hamlin (2006 sweep and 2009 fall and 2010 spring races) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2014 sweep).
· One active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver has posted his first career win at Pocono Raceway: Denny Hamlin (06/11/06).
· Denny Hamlin (2006) and Carl Edwards (2005) are the only two active drivers to win at Pocono in their first appearances.
· Matt Kenseth leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Pocono without visiting Victory Lane at 33; followed by Kevin Harvick with 31.
· Kurt Busch can become the eighth driver in series history to sweep Pocono in a single season joining Bobby Allison (1982), Bill Elliott (1985), Tim Richmond (1986), Bobby Labonte (1999), Jimmie Johnson (2004), Denny Hamlin (2006) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2014).
· If Jeff Gordon wins in the No. 88 Chevrolet this weekend he will become the eighth different driver to win at Pocono in two or more different car numbers joining Cale Yarborough (Nos. 11, 5); Darrell Waltrip (Nos. 11, 88); Kasey Kahne (Nos. 5, 9); Kurt Busch (Nos. 2, 41); Terry Labonte (Nos. 11, 5); Tony Stewart (Nos. 14, 20); and Geoff Bodine the only driver to win in three different car numbers (11, 5, and 7).
· Mark Martin leads the series in runner-up finishes at Pocono with seven; Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with six.
· Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon lead the series in top-five finishes at Pocono with 20 each.
· Mark Martin leads the series in top-10 finishes at Pocono with 34; Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 32; followed by Tony Stewart with 23.
· Kyle Larson leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at Pocono with a 9.400.
· Jeff Gordon leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Pocono with 1,040 laps led in 46 starts.
· Two female drivers have competed at Pocono Raceway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Janet Guthrie and Danica Patrick.
(NASCAR)

Erik Jones wins XFINITY race at Iowa: #20-Erik Jones won the US Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway. It is his 5th XFINITY Series win and 3rd of the year. Jones led 154 of the 250 laps but had to take the lead from #3-Ty Dillon with 15 laps to go to get the win.
Dillon finished second, followed by #1-Elliott Sadler, #48-Brennan Poole, #18-Dakoda Armstrong, #2-Sam Hornish, Jr., #7-Justin Allgaier, #22-Brad Keselowski, #88-Josh Berry, and #16-Ryan Reed.
Pole sitter #19-Daniel Suarez finished 30th. He suffered front-end damage after getting into the back of #88-Josh Berry on a restart and did not finish.
There were 6 cautions for 29 laps and 7 lead changes among 4 leaders.
The average speed was 104.401mph.
Complete results are on the Iowa race results page (pdf).
(7-30-2016)

Iowa XFINITY Race Fast Facts:
Erik Jones won the 8th Annual U.S. Cellular 250, his fifth victory in 45 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his third victory and 12th top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his first victory and third top-10 finish in four races at Iowa Speedway.
Ty Dillon (second) posted his fifth top-10 finish in six races at Iowa Speedway. It is his 12th top-10 finish in 2016.
Elliott Sadler (third) posted his 12th top-10 finish in 12 races at Iowa Speedway.
Erik Jones (first) was the highest finishing rookie.
Elliott Sadler leads the point standings by 14 points over Daniel Suarez.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-30-2016)

XFINITY Driver standings following Iowa:
[12 drivers qualify for the XFINITY Series chase. 7 more races until the Chase cutoff.]
1) #1-Elliott Sadler [1 win], 633
2) #19-Daniel Suarez [1 win], 619, -14
3) #3-Ty Dillon, 598, -35
4) #20-Erik Jones [3 wins], 584, -49
5) #7-Justin Allgaier, 576, -57
6) #62-Brendan Gaughan, 565, -68
7) #48-Brennan Poole, 556, -77
8) #33-Brandon Jones, 545, -88
9) #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., 500, -133
10) #16-Ryan Reed, 464, -169
11) #39-Ryan Sieg, 446, -187
12) #11-Blake Koch, 431, -202
Currently outside the chase:
13) #51-Jeremy Clements, 407, -226
14) #4-Ross Chastain, 407, -226
15) #28-Dakoda Armstrong, 407, -228
See complete owner and driver standings on the driver standings(pdf) and owner standings page (pdf).(7-30-2016)

Daniel Suarez on XFINITY pole at Iowa: #19-Daniel Suarez won the Coors Light pole for the US Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway with a speed of 132.811mph. #20-Erik Jones will start second. The rest of the top 10: #18-Dakoda Armstrong, #1-Elliott Sadler, #22-Brad Keselowski, #88-Josh Berry #2-Sam Hornish, Jr., #62-Brendan Gaughan, #28-Drew Herring, and #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr..
Did Not Qualify: #92-Dexter Bean.
The starting lineup is posted on the Iowa starting lineup page (pdf).(7-30-2016)

Iowa Qualifying Notes:
Daniel Suarez won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 8th Annual U.S. Cellular 250 with a lap of 23.718 seconds, 132.811 mph.
This is his fifth pole in 54 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his second pole and 19th top-10 start in 2016.
This is his second pole in four races at Iowa Speedway.
Erik Jones (second) posted his 19th top-10 start of 2016 and his fourth in four races at Iowa Speedway.
Dakoda Armstrong (third) posted his first top-10 start at Iowa Speedway. It is his first in 19 races this season.
Erik Jones (second) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-30-2016)

Byron wins Truck Series Race at Pocono: #4-William Byron won the Pocono Mountains 150 at Pocono Raceway on Saturday, setting a new series record for most wins by a rookie in a single season at five. #13-Cameron Hayley finished second, followed by #11-Brett Moffitt, #17-Timothy Peters, #00-Cole Custer, #98-Rico Abreu, #33-Ben Kennedy, #21-Johnny Sauter, #8-John Hunter Nemechek, and #4-Christopher Bell.
Byron started from the pole after qualifying was canceled. He led 44 of the 60 laps.
There were 9 cautions for 27 laps and 5 lead changes among 3 leaders.
The average speed was 99.174mph.
Complete results are on the Pocono race results page (pdf).(7-30-2016)

Pocono Race Fast Facts:
William Byron won the 7th Annual Pocono Mountains 150, his fifth victory in 13 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.
This is his fifth victory and seventh top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his first victory and first top-10 finish at Pocono Raceway.
Cameron Hayley (second) posted his second top-10 finish in two races at Pocono Raceway. It is his sixth top-10 finish in 2016.
Brett Moffitt (third) posted his first top-10 finish at Pocono Raceway.
William Byron (first) was the highest finishing rookie.
William Byron # leads the point standings by 25 points over Matt Crafton. (NASCAR Statistics)(7-30-2016)

Driver standings following Pocono:
1) #9-William Byron #, 319
2) #88-Matt Crafton, 294, -25
3) #19-Daniel Hemric, 282, -37
4) #17-Timothy Peters, 282, -37
5) #21-Johnny Sauter, 278, -41
6) #4-Christopher Bell #, 268, -51
7) #8-John Hunter Nemechek, 256, -63
8) #13-Cameron Hayley, 251, -68
9) #33-Ben Kennedy, 251, -68
10) #29-Tyler Reddick, 250, -69
See complete standings on the driver standings page (pdf).(7-30-2016)

Owner Standings following Pocono are posted (pdf).(7-30-2016)

Byron on pole at Pocono: #9-William Byron will start from the pole at Pocono Raceway for the Pocono Mountains 150. Byron was awarded the pole based on the rulebook after NASCAR canceled qualifying for ongoing track drying efforts. #8-John Hunter Nemechek will start second, followed by #41-Ben Rhodes, #29-Tyler Reddick, #4-Christopher Bell, #02-Austin Hill, #17-Timothy Peters, #51-Cody Coughlin, #33-Ben Kennedy, and #13-Cameron Hayley.
Did Not Qualify: none.
See complete lineup on the Starting lineup (pdf) page.(7-30-2016)

New sponsor for Hemric: Blue Gate Bank (In Organization) announced today a partnership with Daniel Hemric, driver for Brad Keselowski Racing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Blue Gate Bank will be the primary sponsor of the #19 Ford F-150 beginning at the Pocono Mountain 150 at Pocono Raceway on July 30. For the Pocono race, the #19 will feature a one-time only special electric blue and vivid fuchsia paint scheme commemorating Blue Gate Bank's founding. Blue Gate Bank (In Organization) is just the fifth new bank formed in the United States since the 2009 financial crisis. Blue Gate Bank will also appear as the primary sponsor on the #19 F-150 for races at Bristol - Aug 17, New Hampshire - Sept. 24, Las Vegas - Oct. 1, Martinsville - Oct. 22, Texas - Nov. 4, and Phoenix - Nov. 11.(Brad Keselowski Racing)(7-30-2016)

Watkins Glen announces National Anthem singers: Former U.S. Marine and star of the hit network television show Gotham, J.W. Cortes, has been named the National Anthem singer for the Cheez-It 355 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on August 7th at Watkins Glen International. Cortes, who currently stars as Detective Alvarez on FOX's Batman-inspired hit, also serves as a New York City MTA police officer. Cortes is also an ambassador for Boot Campaign, a national military-focused nonprofit that engages all generations of Americans in supporting those who defend the United States' freedom. On Saturday, Nashville recording artist Electra Mustaine, daughter of Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine, will perform "The Star Spangled Banner". Mustaine is set to release a new single on August 5th and has been a hit at several tracks on the NASCAR circuit in 2016. Windsor, Ontario's Amy Rivard will perform the Canadian national anthem before Saturday and Sunday's races, in addition to both anthems on Friday prior to the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Bully Hill Vineyards 100. Rivard has toured the world with shows such Riverdance, Celtic Woman, Disney, among several others.(WGI)(7-30-2016)

Truex, Jr. wins pole at Pocono: #78-Martin Truex, Jr won the pole for the Pennsylvania 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway with speed of 179.244mph for his 3rd pole of 2016, 1st at Pocono and 10th of his career. Truex, Jr has won from the pole once in nine previous tries.
#19-Edwards will start 2nd, followed by #27-Menard, #11-Hamlin, #31-Newman, #14-Stewart, #2-Keselowski, #24-Elliott, #20-Kenseth, #22-Logano, #42-Larson and #3-Dillon.
Jeff Gordon, subbing for #88-Dale Earnhardt, Jr., will start 24th.
#78-Truex, Jr was fastest in the second round with a speed of 178.426mph and will start on the pole.
#19-Edwards paced the opening round of qualifying at 177.880mph and starts 2nd.
Did not qualify: None.
See round-by-round qualifying results on the Pocono qualifying results page (pdf) and the complete starting lineup on the Pocono Starting Lineup page (pdf).(7-29-2016)

Pocono Raceway - Qualifying Fast Facts:
Martin Truex Jr won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 43rd Annual Pennsylvania 400 with a lap of 50.211 seconds, 179.244 mph.
This is his 10th pole in 390 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his third pole and 14th top-10 start in 2016.
This is his first pole in 22 races at Pocono Raceway.
Carl Edwards (second) posted his 16th top-10 start of 2016 and his 12th in 24 races at Pocono Raceway.
Paul Menard (third) posted his sixth top-10 start at Pocono Raceway. It is his fourth in 21 races this season.
Chase Elliott (eighth) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Statistics)(7-29-2016)

Second Round of Qualifying for the Pennsylvania 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway is over, after 10 scheduled minutes.
#78-Truex, Jr. 178.426
#19-Edwards 178.363
#11-Hamlin 178.105
#20-Kenseth 178.094
#27-Menard 178.094
the rest of the top 12: 24 31 14 42 3 2 22;
out of the top 12 and not advancing to round 3: 47 17 41 18 4 21 1 13 48 34 5 88
(7-29-2016)

First Round of Qualifying for the Pennsylvania 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway is over, after 20 scheduled minutes.
#19-Edwards 177.880
#78-Truex, Jr. 177.417
#21-BLaney 177.291
#4-Harvick 177.172
#18-Busch 177.106
the rest of the top 24: 22 31 48 11 27 2 3 24 20 17 41 5 34 42 13 14 1 88 47;
out of the top 24 and not advancing to round 2: 16 10 43 15 95 7 6 38 23 83 44 98 32 30 46 55
Drivers who will miss the race: None
(7-29-2016)

Gordon says he will remain in #88 if needed: Jeff Gordon met with the media at Pocono Raceway Friday morning:
How long are you prepared to fill-in? Is there a plan for Watkins Glen
Gordon: "Well, we have to cross that bridge when we get there. It seems like... it was great last Friday to see him say 'hey I feel good today and made some progress.' We want to just keep going with how he is feeling. The doctors are evaluating. I'm not speculating anything at this time. I wouldn't be here in Pocono if I wasn't committed to be there for Hendrick Motorsports and this team in any way that they need me. I think there is a balance between trying to make this transition. First of all you want Dale to have the comfort of knowing that somebody is there for him. He doesn't have to worry about that aspect of it through this process. Just get well at the pace that is the right pace to do it. So, nobody is putting any pressure or time frame on that. He may be putting that on himself more than anybody else. Then there is the side of who is the best person to be in the car to get the most points. And then there is the sponsorship side of it as well. So far from what Rick (Hendrick) is telling me that seems to be me. That is why I was at Indy and that is why I'm here. I thought Alex Bowman did an excellent job at New Hampshire. I tell you after going through what I went through at Indy I have a much greater appreciation for him because that was one of the toughest things I ever did. Not just getting in the race car after eight months, but trying to fill-in for Dale Earnhardt, Jr. knowing the kind of attention that it gets. My heart was beating out of my chest because of the pressure and the eyes that were on you as much as just not being in the car. Great job to Alex. I will be here as long as they need me. I say that very loosely." (Chevy PR)(7-29-2016)

Boris Said driving for Go Fas at Watkins Glen: Boris Said will return to pilot the #32 Genesee Brewing Company Ford Fusion at Watkins Glen International in August. Said has 51 starts in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series from 1999-2015. The Carlsbad, CA native has 15 NSCS starts at Watkins Glen including two top-ten finishes, one top-five finish and a best finish of third which came in 2005. Rochester, NY-based Genesee Brewing Company has agreed to once again sponsor Go Fas Racing and Boris Said. The #32 Ford Fusion features a design inspired by Genesee's heritage that was first introduced in 2015. "I'm always excited when it comes to racing at Watkins Glen," said Boris Said. "Not only is Watkins Glen one of my favorite race tracks anywhere in the world, I just love the area, the fans, the food and everything about it! Being able to represent Genesee is a huge honor, so hopefully I can put on a good show for them."(Go Fas Racing)(7-29-2016)

USA Network featured on the #23 at Pocono: David Ragan's #23 car at the upcoming Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono Raceway will feature USA Network's We The Bold branding in support of the network's upcoming race coverage. Additionally, USA Network branding will be featured on Matt DiBenedetto's #83 E.J. Wade Construction Camry in an associate position. The paint scheme came together as part of a broader effort from NASCAR and NBC Sports, in conjunction with the industry, to drive awareness and promote tune-in for the the upcoming Cheez-It 355 at The Glen, airing on USA Network (Sunday, August 7 at 2:30pm/et).(BK Racing), see an image of the car on the #23 team paint schemes page.(7-29-2016)

Friday practice for the Pennsylvania 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway is over. The top-five, slowest and notes:
#27-Menard 177.438
#11-Hamlin 177.406
#18-Busch 177.019
#19-Edwards 176.944
#4-Harvick 176.620
slowest: #30-Wise 167.929 & #55-Sorenson 162.911.
most laps run: #17-Stenhouse, Jr. 22 laps
notes: The start of practice was delayed by more than 20 minutes while NASCAR dried the track of some weepers.
Qualifying is scheduled for today at 4:15pm/et and will be shown on NBCSN. There is a chance of rain throughout the day (and the weekend).
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap avg on the Pocono Practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-29-2016)

Qualifying Order for the Pennsylvania 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway is posted. 40 cars/drivers are listed.
The first driver to be lined up on pit road will be #13-Mears.
The final driver lined up on pit road will be #31-Newman.
The order is set by a random draw, how cars park on pit road before they qualify, held about an hour before the first practice.
After the first round, the cars line up by speed.
See the full qualifying order on Jayski.com's Pocono Qualifying Order Page (pdf).

Keselowski ok after hard wreck in testing at Watkins Glen UPDATE: #2-Brad Keselowski escaped uninjured -- "still upright," in his words -- after a scary crash Tuesday during an organizational test for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams at Watkins Glen International. Keselowski had just turned a session-topping 124.572 mph on his 18th lap of the day, best of the 14 drivers participating on the freshly repaved 2.45-mile road course. But just after registering that speed, the rear brakes on his Team Penske No. 2 Ford failed, sending Keselowski's car nose-first into the tire-pack barrier in Turn 1 at the end of the long frontstretch. "Just the pedal went to the floor," Keselowski said. "It means that you've lost brakes on one of the corners. At a track like this, you're already on the edge. You don't have any room or margin for something to fail. That's the way it is." The wreck occurred midway through Tuesday's afternoon session on the first day of a two-day organizational test before the series' Aug. 7 Cheez-It 355 at the Glen. Keselowski was evaluated and released from the infield care center, no worse for wear, but crew chief Paul Wolfe still lamented the circumstances. He tweeted video of the heavy crash and a photo of his bent steering wheel on social media to illustrate the wreck's severity. Team Penske unloaded a reserve #2 Ford -- a car that's been a backup at several events this season -- which it planned to put on the track Wednesday.(NASCAR.com)(7-26-2016)
UPDATE: #2-Brad Keselowski considers road courses as the most dangerous tracks the Sprint Cup teams compete on and not everyone would have survived the hit he took Tuesday in testing. Keselowski, who said a brake line was improperly installed, causing him to lose the brakes going into Turn 1 while testing at Watkins Glen, walked away from the accident where he was running around 165 mph when he tried to hit the brakes and hit a wrapped tire barrier in front of a steel guard rail while going more than 80 mph. "I don't know that I have all the answers," Keselowski said Friday prior to practice at Pocono Raceway. "The answers I do have is that there are only so many of those hits you're going to take before someone gets killed. That's the way it is. It's not something I'm comfortable with, but I think as a sport there's a lot of different ways to look at it. At the end of the day, I'm still standing here. Odds are, that if 100 people take that hit, one or two are not going to be standing here anymore."
Keselowski wasn't angry in making the comments, as he held more of a matter-of-fact tone. The Team Penske driver broke his left ankle in a 2011 crash at Road Atlanta and believes the road courses are more dangerous than the high-banked superspeedways of Talladega and Daytona. "In general, I'm not comfortable with tracks that have runoffs that lead to very harsh angles," Keselowski said. "That's certainly the situation that track has, always had it. The road courses remain the most dangerous tracks in motorsports for good reason because of that. ... To some point, we have signed up for a certain level of risk. That's right on the edge of what's acceptable risk. I think every driver has their own line."(ESPN.com)(7-29-2016)

Stewart doesn't regret lug nut comments: #14-Tony Stewart has seen two of his Stewart-Haas Racing crew chiefs suspended for failing to have lug nuts tight after a race, but he's not regretting his comments that sparked the strict rule. After Stewart said in April that teams were playing games with safety because NASCAR had refused to legislate whether lug nuts should be tight, he was fined $35,000 for the derogatory statements -- and NASCAR created what many believe is a harsh rule. Any car that has a missing or loose lug nut after a race results in the crew chief receiving an automatic one-race suspension, a fine and probation for the rest of the year. "It just means they made mistakes -- we had (tire) changers that made a mistake and didn't get all of them on there tight," Stewart said Thursday night at the track. It was definitely the right thing (to say). It's two separate deals. The fact they got a penalty because of it, I don't regret that at all. ... It's still the right thing to do. Do I regret (saying) that? Absolutely not." said Stewart, speaking after an appearance for Mobil 1. "People are having five lug nuts on the cars now," Stewart added. "We don't have to worry about the drivers being unsafe, we don't have to worry about the fans being unsafe. We solved that problem."(ESPN.com)(7-29-2016)

Most mentioned drivers in first half of season: According to research by Joyce Julius, #4-Kevin Harvick recevied the most TV interviews and TV mentions in the first half of the Sprint Cup season (through Kentucky) and #18-Busch had the most interview time. They also note that there were 46 fewer (-23%) NASCAR driver TV interviews at mid-year compared to 2015 at the same point in the season.

Menard's Darlington throwback scheme unveiled: Paul Menard's Richard Childress Racing #27 Chevy will carry the gray, orange and black color scheme used by Al Unser Jr. for the 1993 Daytona 500 with sponsor Valvoline featured on the hood when the series travels to Darlington Raceway for the annual Labor Day weekend classic. "Little Al's first NASCAR race was the Daytona 500 in 1993," Menard said earlier this week as preparations for the unveiling of the paint scheme got underway. "The partnership with Valvoline this year -- we got to talking earlier about who some of my racing heroes were and Al Jr. was right away, even without the Valvoline relationship. I've always been a huge fan of his. He was the guy in IndyCar that I always pulled for." Menard said he met the former open-wheel champion and two-time winner of the Indianapolis 500 "when I was probably 12."
"I remember; he probably doesn't," Menard continued. "But I pulled up (this morning) ... and he was standing out in the parking lot. We were out there talking probably 10 or 15 minutes, just about the '93 (Daytona) 500, his autocross stuff that he's doing now, just talking about a little bit of racing." When told that Menard and Valvoline were bringing the original paint scheme back to the track for the Darlington throwback weekend, Unser said he was "just overwhelmed."(NASCAR.com), see images of the scheme on the #27 Team Schemes page.(7-29-2016)

Pocono Pole Notes & Facts:
· Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Pocono Raceway five times; most recently the spring of 2013.
· 41 drivers have posted Coors Light poles at Pocono, led by Bill Elliott and Ken Schrader with five each; Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin lead all active drivers with three each.
· Buddy Baker won the inaugural Coors Light pole at Pocono in 1974 with a speed of 144.122 mph.
· Five drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at Pocono. Bill Elliott holds the record for most consecutive poles at Pocono with three; fall 1984 and both races in 1985.
· Two active drivers have posted consecutive Coors Light poles at Pocono: Denny Hamlin (2006 sweep) and Joey Logano (fall 2011 and spring 2012).
· Three drivers have posted their first-career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at Pocono Raceway: Harry Gant (1979), Casey Mears (2004) and Kyle Larson (2014).
· Eight different manufacturers have won a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series pole at Pocono; led by Chevrolet with 33, followed by Ford (16), Dodge (8), Pontiac (6), Toyota (5), Buick (2), American Motors Company and Oldsmobile (each have one).
· 13 of the 77 (16.8%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono have been won from the Coors Light pole; the most recent was Joey Logano (June, 2012).
· 15 of the 77 (19.4%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono have been won from the first starting position; the most recent was Jimmie Johnson (June, 2013).
· The first starting position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (15) than any other starting position at Pocono Raceway.
· 24 of the 77 (31.1%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono have been won from the front row: 15 from the first starting position and nine from second-place.
· 55 of the 77 (71.4%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Pocono have been won from a top-10 starting position.
· Five of the 77 (6.4%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.
· The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Pocono is 29th, by Carl Edwards in the spring of 2005.
(NASCAR)

Indianapolis XFINITY TV Ratings: NASCAR Xfinity Series racing from Indianapolis earned a 1.0 final rating and 1.6 million viewers on NBCSN last Saturday afternoon, down 38% in ratings and 31% in viewership from last year on the NBC broadcast network (1.6, 2.3M) and down 23% and 20%, respectively, from 2014 on ESPN (1.3, 2.0M). Despite the drop, it was the most-watched Xfinity Series race since Talladega on FOX in April (2.9M).(ShowBuzz Daily / Sports Media Watch)(7-29-2016)

Blake Koch fastest in XFINITY happy hour: #11-Blake Koch was quickest during final practice for the US Cellular 250 with a speed of 134.105mph. He was followed by: #2-Sam Hornish, Jr., #20-Erik Jones, #19-Daniel Suarez, #62-Brendan Gaughan, #3-Ty Dillon, #7-Justin Allgaier, #1-Elliott Sadler, #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., and #28-Drew Herring. 40 drivers participated in the session.
See complete results on the Iowa practice 2 speeds page (pdf).(7-29-2016)

Sam Hornish, Jr. fastest in first XFINITY practice: #2-Sam Hornish, Jr. was fastest during opening practice at Iowa Speedway with a speed of 132.214mph. #3-Ty Dillon was second, followed by: #19-Daniel Suarez, #1-Elliott Sadler, #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., #7-Justin Allgaier, #18-Dakoda Armstrong, #22-Austin Theriault (filling in for Brad Keselowski), #11-Blake Koch, and #20-Erik Jones. 30 drivers practiced during the session.
See complete results on the Iowa practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-29-2016)

Iowa XFINITY Chase Clinch scenarios: The XFINITY Series Chase doesn't begin until September as well, but several drivers are looking to close their playoff position up with a win. At present, #20-Erik Jones, #19-Daniel Suarez and #1-Elliott Sadler are locked into the postseason. The following drivers can officially clinch a Chase spot with a win, as they have secured a spot in the top 30 in points: #3-Ty Dillon, #7-Justin Allgaier, #62-Brendan Gaughan, #33-Brandon Jones, #48-Brennan Poole, #6-Darrell Wallace Jr., #16-Ryan Reed, #39-Ryan Sieg, #11-Blake Koch.(NASCAR.com)(7-29-2016)

Michael Lira to make XFINITY debut at Iowa: For the U.S. Cellular 250, B.J. McLeod will be joined by new teammate Michael Lira who will attempt his XFINITY Series debut at Iowa. Lira, a native of Port Orange, Florida is a veteran of the ARCA Racing Series. The 18-year-old has two starts at the seven-eighths mile oval in ARCA competition. Lira will pilot the #15 Ford Mustang in a collaborative effort between McLeod and Rick Ware Racing.(McLeod Motorsports)(5-29-2016)

Pocono Truck Series Chase Clinch scenarios: The Camping World Truck Series Chase doesn't begin until September, but several drivers are looking to firm up their playoff position up with a win. At present, only #9-William Byron and #98-Matt Crafton are locked into the postseason. Three drivers can lock themselves in with an additional win because they are locked into the top 30: #21-Johnny Sauter, #4-Christopher Bell, and #8-John Hunter Nemechek.(NASCAR.com)(7-29-2016)

Nemechek fastest in final Truck practice: #8-John Hunter Nemechek was fastest in final practice for the Pocono Mountains 150 at Pocono Raceway with a speed of 169.074mph. He was followed by #41-Ben Rhodes, #9-William Byron, #29-Tyler Reddick, #4-Christopher Bell, #02-Austin Hill, #51-Cody Coughlin, #33-Ben Kennedy, #21-Johnny Sauter, and #23-Spencer Gallagher. 26 drivers practiced during the session. See complete results on the Pocono practice 2 speeds page (pdf).(7-29-2016)

Byron fastest in first Truck practice: #9-William Byron was fastest during opening practice at Pocono Raceway on Friday with a speed of 169.249mph. #17-Timothy Peters, #4-Christopher Bell, #13-Cameron Hayley, #23-Spencer Gallagher, #19-Daniel Hemric, #33-Ben Kennedy, #8-John Hunter Nemechek, #41-Ben Rhodes, and #00-Cole Custer were the top-10. 26 drivers practiced during the session. See complete results on the Pocono practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-29-2016)

Craig Morgan in concert at Bristol: Bristol Motor Speedway is home to "America's Night Race" and that theme will be on display as country music entertainer, TV host and military veteran Craig Morgan kicks off the biggest night in racing with a pre-race concert on Saturday, Aug. 20, prior to the start of the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race. Morgan, who is well-known for country staples "International Harvester", "Bonfire" and "That's What I Love About Sunday", will excite the crowd during the NRA Country presents Craig Morgan concert on the backstretch of Bristol Motor Speedway. Morgan is a natural fit for the NRA country sponsored concert taking place prior to "America's Night Race" having spent 17 years serving this country, including 10.5 years on active duty in the US Army, before launching his music career. While penning some of country's biggest hits and performing across the country, Morgan continued his military service in the Army Reserves for six-and-a-half years. In 2006, he was awarded the USO Merit Award for his tireless support of U.S. soldiers and their families. Morgan has participated in thirteen overseas trips to support U.S. troops and has also headlined 20 Jack Daniel's "Toast to the Troops" events to prepare care packages for those stationed overseas. While supplies last, Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race ticket holders may add on a pre-race SuperPass and be stage-side (on the track) for the concert featuring Craig Morgan. The SuperPass also includes a Track Walk and track access for Bristol's wildly popular Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race Driver Introductions.(BMS)(7-29-2016)

NASCAR implementing safety changes to cars at superspeedways next year: In an attempt to protect the driver's feet and legs, NASCAR will gradually implement changes to strengthen the car by modifying the floorboard, driver's anti-intrusion plating, firewall and footbox areas. The changes, sparked by the accidents to Kyle Busch and Austin Dillon last year, are optional for 2016, mandatory for the Daytona and Talladega races in 2017 and then all tracks in 2018. NASCAR senior vice president Gene Stefanyshyn said teams designed various proposed changes, and NASCAR had done two crash tests to help determine the changes. "We're replacing existing materials with materials in instances which are thicker or being formed in a way with less welds," Stefanyshyn said in announcing the changes Thursday. "Also the way we attach part of it is we are creating, for lack of a better term, a zipper so we provide a lot more weld surface. The gradual implementation is so teams don't obsolete current chassis, as the new chassis will have to go through the NASCAR certification process.(ESPN.com)(7-28-2016)

NASCAR will use lower downforce package at Michigan: In a rules bulletin Thursday morning, NASCAR announced it will run the lower downforce rules package in the Aug. 28 race at Michigan International Speedway. The changes, which include a shortened spoiler, a reduced splitter and the elimination of rear skew that generated sideforce, also were used in the June 12 race at Michigan, the July 9 race at Kentucky Speedway and at the Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May. The objective is enhancing the ability of drivers to pass. NASCAR vice president of innovation Gene Stefanyshyn said the same rules likely would be used for the 2017 season. NASCAR still is considering a few tweaks that including shifting some downforce from front to rear, removing some rear downforce or adding some sideforce. Any further tweaks will be made in collaboration with teams after the Aug. 28 race at the 2-mile oval. Stefanyshyn said there were more setup combinations to try after experimenting with the new rules at Michigan in June.(NBC Sports)(7-28-2016)

Teams complete Watkins Glen test: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams wrapped up a two-day organizational test Wednesday at newly repaved Watkins Glen International, emerging with better ideas of the challenges they'll face when the series returns for the Aug. 4-7 race weekend. Among those challenges: reworked curbing, a fast circuit and a harder-compound tire that has made grip elusive. A total of 16 Sprint Cup teams -- one permitted from each organization -- tried to unlock the novelty of the $12 million resurfacing project, using a Goodyear tire that emphasizes durability at the expense of traction and wear. The rubber compound chosen is similar to that used July 9 at Kentucky Speedway, site of the Sprint Cup Series' most recent race on a repaved track. The Goodyear tire compound designated for both the Watkins Glen test and the race weekend is the same used for right-side tires in XFINITY Series competition at Iowa Speedway. Those Iowa right-sides will be used at all four corners for the Sprint Cup event at the 2.45-mile road course. In addition to the surface itself, the track features new concrete for the rumble strips that border the circuit's turns and run-off areas. Some drivers found the differences barely noticeable, but Kurt Busch discovered a distinction the hard way with an early Tuesday spin as he bounded over the apex points in the backstretch chicane on one of his initial laps.
Some notes: #13-Casey Mears turned the fastest lap in the two-day test, which was divided into four sessions of four hours apiece. Mears pushed the Germain Racing #13 Chevrolet in the closing session to a best lap of 126.7 mph, a good bit slower than the track qualifying record of 129.491 mph set by Marcos Ambrose in August 2014. Brad Keselowski returned to the track Wednesday, one day after his severe, nearly head-on crash in Turn 1. He turned 74 laps over both sessions in a reserve Team Penske #2 Ford. Two teams -- Furniture Row Racing (driver #78-Martin Truex Jr.) and Circle Sport-Leavine Family Racing (driver #95-Michael McDowell) -- were absent from testing's opening day, arriving in the Watkins Glen garage Wednesday in time for the two closing sessions. Wednesday's final session was extended 30 minutes to a 5:30pm/et close because of a nearly hour-long clean-up for fluid on the track. After Chase Elliott's #24 Chevrolet suffered a broken axle, Clint Bowyer's #15 Chevy ran over the part, damaging the car's transmission.(NASCAR.com)(7-28-2016)

Track ticket revenues down in 2016: The two major public companies host NASCAR races have seen ticket revenues drop about 10 percent for 14 events since the Daytona 500. Speedway Motorsports, in releasing Wednesday its 2016 financials through June, showed its admissions revenue down 11 percent this year. That includes its seven major NASCAR weekends, but it also includes some impact from the suspended IndyCar race at Texas in June that will be completed in August. Earlier this month, International Speedway Corp. reported its ticket sales were down 8.3 percent for March through May. "[Improving attendance] is a combination of the improved racing that fans are being [able] to see and enjoy and also more certainty in the economy -- particularly, the middle class needs to feel more certain and confident in their economic position to travel more," SMI CEO Marcus Smith told financial analysts in a conference call Wednesday morning. SMI showed a $25.6 million profit through June and said its March estimate of earnings of $0.90-$1.10 per share for 2016 is still an accurate estimate for the year. In addition to a decrease in general ticket sales, SMI saw decreased demand for suites and corporate entertainment as well as fewer track rentals, Brooks said. The June race at Sonoma also saw a decrease in revenues in part, Brooks said, because last year was Jeff Gordon's final race at the track that is just 15 miles from Gordon's hometown. While attendance has dropped, tracks have seen an increase in television revenues. SMI reported a 3.1 percent increase. Combined with ISC, the tracks reported television net income of $199.6 million from the NASCAR television contract. Their ticket sales, which include other racing events (NHRA, IndyCar, sports-car races, etc.) totaled $107.4 million for the first half of their fiscal years.(ESPN.com)(7-28-2016)

Jeb Burton in the #32 at Pocono with Erie Insurance sponsorship: Go Fas Racing announced that Erie Insurance will be a primary partner on the #32 Ford Fusion for this weekend's event at the Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, PA. Halifax, VA native Jeb Burton will pilot the #32 Erie Insurance Ford Fusion. Burton has 29 career starts in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, including three starts at Pocono Raceway. According to A.M. Best Company, Erie Insurance Group, based in Erie, Pennsylvania, is the 10th largest homeowners insurer and 12th largest automobile insurer in the United States based on direct premiums written and the 15th largest property/casualty insurer in the United States based on total lines net premium written. The Group, rated A+ (Superior) by A.M. Best Company, has more than 5 million policies in force and operates in 12 states and the District of Columbia.(Go Fas Racing), see images of the car on the #32 team paint schemes page.(7-28-2016)

Knoxville Nationals on the #15 at Pocono: Clint Bowyer's traditional #15 5-hour Energy Chevrolet will have a new look this weekend. The 5-hour Energy Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey's General Stores, will adorn Bowyer's #15 Chevy. The 2016 Knoxville Nationals, sprint car racing's most prestigious event, marks 5-hour Energy's first entrance into dirt track racing. The sponsorship was directly linked to a partnership with the event's presenting sponsor, Casey's General Stores, a chain of convenience stores located primarily in the Midwestern United States. The Knoxville Nationals kicks off Wednesday, August 10 and concludes on Saturday, August 13.(HScott Motorsports), see images of the car on the #15 team paint schemes page.(7-28-2016)

200th Sprint Cup start for Almirola: This weekend at Pocono Raceway is a monumental one for #43-Aric Almirola. After his first Sprint Cup start in 2007, he had several years of only part-time rides with various teams. It took time, patience and perseverance to reach the point of having a full-time ride in the sport's premier national touring series. This is Almirola's fifth full season with Richard Petty Motorsports, and 170 of his 200 starts have been with the team. During his time in the Sprint Cup Series, Almirola has scored one win at Daytona International Speedway in 2014. He'll head to the Poconos this weekend in the #43 Smithfield Ford looking to secure his second win in the series to top off the monumental weekend.(Richard Petty Motorsports)(7-28-2016)

Kurt Busch trying to set record for running all laps: #41-Kurt Busch seeks to do something this weekend that hasn't been done in NASCAR. Run every lap for the most consecutive races to start a season. Busch enters Sunday's race at Pocono Raceway on NBCSN having completed all 5,673 laps in the first 20 races. No driver has completed every lap through the the first 21 Cup races in a season. Busch tied Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the record this past weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway when Busch completed every lap on the way to finishing 16th. Earnhardt set the mark in 2012 by completing every lap in the first 20 races of the season. In the 21st race, which was at Pocono, Earnhardt fell 18 laps short of the distance in the rain-shortened race. Busch's consistency this season has led to 15 top-10 finishes, second only to Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Kevin Harvick, who has 16. #2-Brad Keselowski has run all but 8 laps this season.(NBC Sports)(7-28-2016)

Pocono Track Notes & History:
· Opened in 1968 as a three-quarter-mile track, Pocono Raceway held the first race on the 2.5-mile track in 1971.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was in 1974 - won by Richard Petty, Dodge, 115.593 mph, 08/04/1974.
· The 2.5-mile track was repaved during the fall of 2011.
· 2012 marked the first season the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono were scheduled for 400 miles. Prior to 2012 all NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races were 500 miles at Pocono Raceway.
(NASCAR)

RepairableVehicles.com sponsoring Clements at Iowa: Jeremy Clements and the JCR crew are excited to be heading back to Iowa Speedway for the US Cellular 250. "Back in June, we were headed toward a Top 10 finish, until a bad tire dropped us to a 16th place finish," says Clements. This will be the sixth Iowa race in a row for RepairableVehicles.com to sponsor Jeremy and the #51 JCR Camaro SS. RepairableVehicles.com, a division of Interstate Auto Center, Inc., is one of the leading resellers of repairable vehicles in North America. By working together with insurance companies, dealerships, rental companies, and automotive salvage auctions, we are able to provide an ever changing inventory of high quality total-loss, recovered theft, collision damage, and other types of repairable vehicles to our customers worldwide. Joining RepairableVehicles.com as associate sponsors on the 51 car this week are Coca Cola of Spartanburg, Fish Camp, Robert Ianuario, Cometic, Wix and Kollegetown.(Jeremy Clements Racing)(7-28-2016)

Cobb announces Pocono sponsors: Jennifer Jo Cobb will return to Pocono International Raceway this Saturday for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Pocono Mountains 150 competing in a used, yet newer and updated truck acquired after her crash in Gateway retired the team's last intermediate truck. A New Jersey based fertilizer and chemical applications company, GTT Services L&T, Inc., will be featured on the TV panel of Cobb's #1 MAKE Motorsports Chevrolet. Cobb's primary sponsor will be Pit Stops for Hope. This not-for-profit was formed by Ray Wright, a top-level NASCAR crew member. The charity hopes to overcome poverty for children and assist in improving communities. Cobb likes to name the trucks that she races, often to honor those who have passed away and this truck will be named after one of her supporter's father, John McKinley, but the team has begun affectionately calling the truck, "Johnny Mack."(Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing)(7-28-2016)

Fans can take the train to Chicago race: Finding the fastest way to the track isn't always the easiest task, but fortunately for fans, Chicagoland Speedway has taken the guess work out of the equation for fans with a commute. Chicagoland Speedway will once again offer fans who are attending the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400, the convenient and affordable Train-to-Track program for those who take either Metra or Amtrak trains. For just $5 each way, fans can take a short shuttle ride from Joliet's train station to Chicagoland Speedway. Recommended routes include the Metra Rock Island District service which riders can catch from any of the 25 stops along the way and the Amtrak to Joliet with service from St. Louis through Southern Illinois. Guests utilizing the Train-to-Track program will receive print-at-home tickets upon purchase and must reserve a specific time of departure to and from the race track. Upon arrival at the Joliet train station, a Chicagoland Speedway ambassador will greet fans outside and direct fans to a shuttle transporting fans directly to the track. The Chicagoland Speedway ambassador will be available to answer questions throughout the short trip to the track.(Chicagoland Speedway)(7-28-2016)

NASCAR announces 2017 race start times: NASCAR, along with FOX Sports and NBC Sports, announced 2017 race start times and network coverage for the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series -- based on the previously released schedule dates. Through collaborative efforts with its broadcast partners, race teams and tracks, NASCAR was able to finalize full 2017 start times for all three national series almost six months earlier than in recent seasons. Seventeen national series events will start closer to primetime, helping to bring NASCAR's photo finishes and close, side-by-side racing to larger audiences. Seventeen NASCAR Cup Series points races will air on broadcast television next year, including the DAYTONA 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on FOX; and the Brickyard 400 and the NASCAR Cup Series championship race, the Ford EcoBoost 400 from Homestead-Miami Speedway, on NBC. Since the initial release of the 2017 schedule, NASCAR and its partners have shifted two dates for the NASCAR XFINITY Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The NASCAR XFINITY Series race at Road America will move to Sunday, August 27, on NBC. The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park will now take place on Sunday, September 3, airing on FS1 prior to the NASCAR Cup Series event at Darlington Raceway on NBCSN. Looking ahead to the 2018 season, the DAYTONA 500 will move to Sunday, February 18, during Presidents Day weekend. NASCAR and its partners are working collaboratively on the remainder of the 2018 schedule, which will be finalized and released at a later date.(NASCAR), see Cup start times on the 2017 Cup schedule page.(7-27-2016)

Target ending IndyCar sponsorship; will continue with Larson in 2017: Target will leave IndyCar at the end of this season after 27 years with Chip Ganassi Racing that included 11 championships and four Indianapolis 500 victories. The exit comes as Target is examining all of its marketing platforms under new chairman Brian Cornell. Target is also the primary sponsor of Kyle Larson in NASCAR's top Sprint Cup Series and will return to his car in 2017. Target's relationship with Ganassi is one of the longest in any racing series, and the retail giant was a key player in helping Ganassi build his organization. Target not only sponsored Ganassi's first car as a team owner, it eventually became a partner as the Ganassi team grew to one of the top two players in open wheel racing. "It was a really difficult decision that we made -- we've been with Chip Ganassi Racing for 27 years and we are ridiculously proud of the success," [senior vice president Scott] Nygaard said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "But the Target brand is about being fresh and new, so we felt like this was the time to make the difficult decision and expand our sports marketing platform." About the NASCAR sponsorship, Nygaard said only that Target is excited for the 2017 season with Larson. Target's contract with Ganassi runs through next year.(Associated Press/ESPN.com)(7-27-2016)

Indianapolis Post-race penalties and warnings: NASCAR has announced penalties and warnings following the Crown Royal presents the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 24th.
#4-Kevin Harvick was given a P3 penalty for violations of Section 12.1; Section 10.11.3.4 [Lug Nut(s) not properly installed]. Crew chief (Rodney Childers) has been fined $20,000 and suspended from all NASCAR Series Championship Points Events through August 3, 2016 and placed on NASCAR Probation through December 31, 2016.
The following warnings were issued:
#5-Kahne (1), #27-Menard (3), #83-Dibenedetto (4), Failed LIS twice during pre-race inspection, written warning
#41-Busch (2), #43-Almirola (2), Failed template inpection twice, prequalifying inspection, written warning
()--Total current warnings
See the New Hampshire Post-Event Penalty & Warning Report(pdf) for more.(7-20-2016)

Pocono Chase Clinch Scenarios: So far, the five drivers who have clinched Chase berths are #2-Brad Keselowski, #18-Kyle Busch, #19-Carl Edwards, #48-Jimmie Johnson and #20-Matt Kenseth. Chase-clinching scenarios for this weekend's Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono:
#4-Kevin Harvick (1 win, 671 points, +434 points ahead of 31st): Can clinch with a win.
#41-Kurt Busch (1 wins, 627 points, +390 points ahead of 31st): Can clinch with a win.
#22-Joey Logano (1 Win, 606 points, +369 points ahead of 31st): Can clinch with a win.
#78-Martin Truex Jr (1 win, 573 points, +336 points ahead of 31st): Can clinch with a win.
#11-Denny Hamlin (1 win, 542 points, +305 points ahead of 31st): Can clinch with a win.
All of the above drivers have already clinched a position in the top 30 in the drivers points standings, but need to clear the multiple wins hurdle.(NASCAR.com)(7-27-2016)

Top-20 drivers in merchandise sales released: This race weekend at Pocono Raceway marks the first anniversary of the Fanatics Trackside Superstore - the reimagined and improved at-track shopping experience. The Trackside Superstore offers fans a one-stop-shop every race weekend with the largest selection of in-store NASCAR merchandise in the world. Halfway through 2016, photo finishes, side-by-side racing and record passing as the Chase spots are clinched has driven interest in the telecast and engagement on digital and social as well as in driver merchandise sales. NASCAR fans take pride in flying the colors of their favorite drivers and the first-half merchandise sales results are officially tallied. The top three drivers are no surprise with #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. leading the rankings, followed by six-time Sprint Cup Series champion #48-Jimmie Johnson and defending champion #18-Kyle Busch. With rising stars like Austin Dillon, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano and Sunoco Rookie of the Year contenders Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney, there are currently five drivers in the top-20 list who are 26 years of age or younger. The most popular products available at the Trackside Superstore include apparel, headwear and novelty items. Lionel's 1:64 scale die-casts are up 77 percent year-over-year, one of the largest growth trends across all categories at the Trackside Superstore.(NASCAR) The top 20: #88-Earnhardt, Jr., #48-Johnson, #18-Busch, #24-Elliott, #4-Harvick, #14-Stewart, #10-Patrick, #19-Edwards, #2-Keselowski, #5-Kahne, #22-Logano, #11-Hamlin, #20-Kenseth, #78-Truex, Jr., #41-Busch, #42-Larson, #31-Newman, #3-Dillon, #21-Blaney, #1-McMurray.(NASCAR)(7-27-2016)

Hamlin to help with West Virginia flood relief: #11-Denny Hamlin is heading to southern West Virginia to help out after deadly floods ravaged the region. A news release from The Greenbrier resort says that on Thursday evening, Hamlin will hand out toys and school supplies to Greenbrier County students affected by the June 23 floods. He'll be at the White Sulphur Springs train station. Kyle Larson, who competes in NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series, will accompany Hamlin on Thursday. The floods killed 23 people and devastated homes, businesses and infrastructure. Greenbrier County accounted for 15 of the 23 deaths.(Associated Press)(7-27-2016)

vineyard vines joins Germain Racing: vineyard vines has just announced a partnership with NASCAR Germain Racing and driver Casey Mears, for five upcoming races in 2016. vineyard vines is one of the first lifestyle clothing brands to be associated with a NASCAR team, and their whale logo will be prominently displayed on the #13 Germain Racing car and the driver's fire suit. Kicking off with the "Combat Wounded Coalition 400 at the Brickyard" which took place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, July 24, vineyard vines will be partnering with Germain Racing on four other races throughout the season. "The story of the Murray brothers is great. Two guys quit their jobs to sell neckties. It's exciting to promote vineyard vines in what, I believe, is still just the beginning of the growth of their brand. We are thrilled to bring the vineyard vines style into the NASCAR garage," said Bob Germain. vineyard vines will be opening a new retail store in Indianapolis this month and next up in the series of NASCAR races will be in Richmond, VA this September followed by Chicago, Charlotte and Miami.(Vineyard Vines)(7-27-2016)

Pocono Goodyear Tire Notes: While NASCAR Sprint Cup and Camping World Truck Series teams will run the same right-side tire code at Pocono this week, they will run different left-side codes . . . for Sprint Cup teams, this is the same combination of left- and right-side tires they ran at Pocono in June . . . while Pocono is the only track at which Cup teams will run this left-side tire code (D-4708), they did run this right-side code (D-4710) at Indianapolis last week . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run inner liners on all four tire positions at Pocono . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.(Goodyear), see tire codes, pressures, set limits and more on the Pocono Race Info page

Sad News - Judy Parrott: Judy Kelley Parrott, 75, of Statesville died peacefully in her home on July 22, 2016. Survivors include her husband (former NASCAR Crew Chief) Buddy Parrott; sons, (NASCAR crew chief) Todd Parrott (Billie) of Mooresville and (NASCAR crew chief) Brad Parrott (Mary) of Huntersville; siblings Pat Power and Mike Kelley, and 6 grandchildren, Tyler, Blake, Chandler, Ella, Ayden and Lola. Judy was Vice President of Sports Management Group, which was formed in 1986 to manage the Folgers NASCAR racing program. As the account manager she worked along side of many drivers ranging from Tim Richmond to Mark Martin. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Judy Parrott's name to the following: Motor Racing Outreach or Victory Junction. A memorial service will be held in her honor at Langtree Plantation on Wednesday August 17th at 6:00 pm. Rev, Kenny Crosswhite will officiate.(Jamesfuneralhomelkn.com)(7-27-2016)

Sad News - Dave Sisco: Former NASCAR Cup driver and 1969 Nashville Fairgrounds late model champion Dave Sisco passed away, July 25, 2016, at the age of 79. He was U. S. Army Veteran. His family has asked that those desiring to make memorial contributions to do so to either the Alzheimer's Association, St. Judes or Caris Hospice of Dickson, TN.(full obit and service info at mcdonaldfuneralhomeinc.com). Sisco ran 133 NASCAR Sprint (then Winston) Cup races from 1971 to 1977, with 6 top-fives and 31 top-tens. His best finish was 3rd two times, both in the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, the first in 1974, won by Cale Yarborough 2nd was Darrell Waltrip. Sisco finished 3rd again in 1975 to winner Bobby Allison with Richard Petty 2nd.(7-27-2016)

Cope announces Iowa Sponsors Derrike Cope Racing announces three returning sponsors for this week's race at the Iowa Speedway. As a co-primary, Sammi's Best Coffee Creamers is on the car, a product of Best Life International. Made with all natural ingredients, this is a great way to enjoy a great tasting coffee with great health benefits. It is also non dairy, and includes coconut oil to neutralize the acid in coffee. As a co-primary, E-hydrate now at Hyvee will be on the car for Iowa. E-hydrate products are all natural, with products available for children all the way up to active adults. Lastly, Ice-Frost will be joining as an associate.(Derrike Cope Racing)(7-27-2016)

Spencer Boyd to make XFINITY debut at Iowa: Rick Ware Racing announced that Spencer Boyd will make his NASCAR XFINITY Series debut this Saturday night at Iowa Speedway. Boyd will pilot the #25 Wick Buildings Chevrolet Camaro in the U.S. Cellular 250. It will be Boyd's third career NASCAR national series start this season. Wick Buildings, Inc. is a privately held Wisconsin company founded in 1954 by John F. Wick. With the sale of over 70,000 buildings to date, Wick Buildings has steadily grown to become one of the nation's largest producers of post-frame buildings, including sophisticated animal confinement systems, horse housing facilities, on-farm livestock and storage buildings, suburban structures and professionally engineered commercial and light industrial buildings. An avid racer, Boyd, a native of St. Louis, Missouri is a 12-time World Karting Association (WKA) champion, a two-time Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway Legends Car champion and a multi-race winner in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series (NWAAS).(Rick Ware Racing), see an image of the car on the #25 team paint schemes page.(7-27-2016)

Josh Berry making first start of the year at Iowa: Iowa Speedway marks Josh Berry's fourth career NASCAR Xfinity Series start, and his first of 2016. Last season, Berry made one NXS start for JRM, qualifying fifth and finishing seventh at Richmond International Raceway. Berry owns seven wins this season competing in the #88 JR. Motorsports Late Model. This weekend's race at Iowa Speedway marks the first of five races with SunEnergy1 as the primary sponsor on the #88 Chevrolet Camaro.(JR Motorsports)(7-27-2016)

Townley cleared to race: John Wes Townley received medical clearance earlier today to resume racing in NASCAR and ARCA. He will compete in this weekend's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and ARCA events at Pocono Raceway. Townley had been sidelined for the past four weeks while being treated for mild concussion-like symptoms. "I'd like to thank Parker Kligerman, Cole Custer and Brady Boswell for filling in for me," Townley said. "I feel great and I'm looking forward to racing at Pocono this week."(Athenian Motorsports)(7-26-2016)
UPDATE: John Wes Townley will return to the Camping World Truck Series this weekend at Pocono Raceway and said on Wednesday morning he's feeling "a whole lot better." Townley joined "The Morning Drive" on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio and revealed he believes the concussion-like symptoms that resulted in him missing the last two races stemmed from his two crashes at Gateway Motorsports Park on June 25. The first incident involved contact with Spencer Gallagher, who sent Townley spinning into the Turn 2 wall with a driver's-side impact. "It wasn't too bad, but it was enough to ring my bell a little bit," Townley said. Just a few laps later, he would wreck again after he got into Gallagher going into Turn 1. The contact wasn't retaliatory as Townley said his brakes were damaged from the first wreck. He said he got into Gallagher after his brake pedal went to the floor entering the turn. "After that, I saw lots of stars, and it kind of dazed me, so I think that's what did the damage," said Townley, who engaged in an on-track scuffle with Gallagher after the incident. "I didn't really think much of it to start out with, but after a few days, the symptoms hadn't really subsided, so I decided in light of things to just hang out and not race the Daytona Xfinity race (on July 1). "But even after a week had passed, the symptoms were still there, so that's kind of when I decided to go and follow up with the NASCAR medical community and do whatever they recommended, and that's when I got evaluated and figured out what was going on."
After Daytona, Townley missed the truck races at Kentucky and Eldora Speedway, as well as ARCA Racing Series events at Iowa Speedway and Lucas Oil Raceway. Townley, who has been diagnosed with attention deficit disorder, said that condition led him to not think of much of his symptoms at first, but then realized they were more than what he had come to expect as normal. Those symptoms included dizziness and never feeling as if he were 100 percent.In the immediate aftermath of Gateway, Townley admitted he was not completely honest about how he was feeling.
"When I got out of the truck at Gateway and got to the med center, I had all kinds of things going through my head because I knew (in 2014) when I had the symptoms it was two or three weeks that I was pulled out," Townley said. "I remember the long process of getting reintegrated and back and approved. Those thoughts were definitely crossing my mind, so I'll be the first to say I wasn't completely honest - I didn't tell them about seeing stars or being dazed.
"But I did take it upon myself that within the next few days if I'm not feeling better I'm definitely not going to race Daytona, which I didn't, and the symptoms lasted longer than I expected. So I ended up going back and being completely honest. That's the important thing I guess. Coming back and being honest and not going out there and taking that chance. At the end of the day, I think it's worth it because you can go out there and keep going."
Townley praised NASCAR for the cautionary procedures in place, believing it helps prevents unchecked symptoms from worsening. However, the driver must be honest about their symptoms and willing to get help - even if it means sitting out. Part of the process with NASCAR was taking cognitive performance tests through a computer-modulated program, which tests a driver's reaction time and memory. The results are compared to the driver's baseline test that they are required to take before each season. He took his last test on Tuesday and was cleared to return to action. His team confirmed Wednesday evening that Townley will be eligible for the Chase despite missing two races. NASCAR informed the team Wednesday of the waiver.(NBC Sports)(7-27-2016)

Jake Owens in concert at Texas: Texas Motor Speedway's "Christmas In July" event just added another major present under the tree for fans attending the AAA Texas 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday, Nov. 6, as country music star Jake Owen will perform a free concert during the Loud & Proud Pre-Race Show Fueled By American Ethanol. Since releasing his debut album Startin' with Me in 2006, Owen has risen as one of today's most popular male country singers for his irresistible melodies, smooth vocals, and laid-back attitude. The Florida native is known throughout the music world as an artist who has become a beacon of positive vibes through his uplifting lyrics and melodies, optimism, love of the beach and his youthful spontaneity. While the concert can be enjoyed from the grandstands for free by AAA Texas 500 ticketholders, fans also have an opportunity to watch the concert and pre-race driver introductions stage side by purchasing a Loud and Proud Pre-Race Show Fueled by American Ethanol pass for $79. The pre-race pass and access are free for all Texas Motor Speedway season ticket holders. A ticket to the AAA Texas 500 must accompany all pre-race passes. The free music also will continue for fans following the conclusion of the AAA Texas 500. Jason Boland & The Stragglers will perform at the Portacool Post-Race Show approximately 30 minutes after the finish of the race.(TMS)(7-27-2016)

Keselowski ok after hard wreck in testing at Watkins Glen: #2-Brad Keselowski escaped uninjured -- "still upright," in his words -- after a scary crash Tuesday during an organizational test for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams at Watkins Glen International. Keselowski had just turned a session-topping 124.572 mph on his 18th lap of the day, best of the 14 drivers participating on the freshly repaved 2.45-mile road course. But just after registering that speed, the rear brakes on his Team Penske No. 2 Ford failed, sending Keselowski's car nose-first into the tire-pack barrier in Turn 1 at the end of the long frontstretch. "Just the pedal went to the floor," Keselowski said. "It means that you've lost brakes on one of the corners. At a track like this, you're already on the edge. You don't have any room or margin for something to fail. That's the way it is." The wreck occurred midway through Tuesday's afternoon session on the first day of a two-day organizational test before the series' Aug. 7 Cheez-It 355 at the Glen. Keselowski was evaluated and released from the infield care center, no worse for wear, but crew chief Paul Wolfe still lamented the circumstances. He tweeted video of the heavy crash and a photo of his bent steering wheel on social media to illustrate the wreck's severity. Team Penske unloaded a reserve #2 Ford -- a car that's been a backup at several events this season -- which it planned to put on the track Wednesday.(NASCAR.com)(7-26-2016)

Teams testing at Watkins Glen: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams will receive extra track time this week at newly repaved Watkins Glen International, site of the final road-course race on this year's schedule. A total of 16 teams are scheduled to converge on the New York circuit for a two-day organizational test Tuesday and Wednesday in advance of the Aug. 7 Cheez-It 355 at The Glen. The $12 million offseason repaving project marks the first full resurfacing at the facility since 1989. The new asphalt includes the 2.45-mile layout used in NASCAR competition and the longer 3.4-mile configuration used by other series. Drivers scheduled to participate this week: #47-Allmendinger, #21-Blaney, #15-Bowyer, #34-Buescher, #41-Busch, #18-Busch, #83-DiBenedetto, #3-Dillon, #24-Elliott, #2-Keselowski, #95-McDowell, #1-McMurray, #13-Mears, #44-Scott, #17-Stenhouse Jr., and #78-Truex Jr. The on-track schedule will feature two sessions each day -- 9:00am-12:00pm/et and 1:00-5:00pm/et. NASCAR XFINITY Series teams will get extra practice time on the new surface during an expanded race weekend. The schedule was extended from three days to four this year with the addition of two XFINITY practice sessions on Thursday, Aug. 4.(NASCAR.com)(7-26-2016)

Indianapolis TV Ratings: With Jeff Gordon coming out of retirement to replace Dale Earnhardt Jr., NASCAR's Brickyard 400 scored a double-digit increase over last year. NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Indianapolis earned a 3.1 rating and 5.2 million viewers on NBCSN Sunday afternoon, according to Nielsen fast-nationals - up 3% in ratings and 11% in viewership from last year (3.0, 4.7M) and down 9% and about even, respectively, compared to 2014 on ESPN (3.4, 5.2M). Kyle Busch's win, in which Gordon finished 13th, ranks as the highest rated and most-watched program in the history of NBCSN (previously VERSUS and OLN). The previous highs were set by last year's race. It was also the third of the past five Sprint Cup races to post an increase in ratings and viewership. Excluding races that were postponed either this year or last, seven of 17 races this season have posted an increase in ratings and/or viewership.(Sports Media Watch), see race-by-race TV Ratings for 2016 and a comparison chart on the 2016 TV Ratings page.(7-26-2016)

E.J. Wade Construction sponsoring DiBenedetto at Pocono: BK Racing announced that E.J. Wade Construction will return as a primary sponsor on Matt DiBenedetto's #83 E.J. Wade Construction Toyota Camry in the Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono Raceway. The race on July 31, 2016 will be E.J. Wade Construction's third race with BK Racing, debuting at Richmond in April. E.J. Wade Construction is a Class A Contractor and a VDOT Prequalified Contractor that has highly trained professionals who have their tradesman licenses in electrical, plumbing, HVAC and gas fitting tradesman licenses.(BK Racing), see an image of the car on the #83 team paint schemes page.(7-26-2016)

Mobil 1 sponsoring 3 SHR cars at Pocono: A live-broadcasted virtual race, a one-of-a-kind time lapse experience and another leg of an endless road trip are all upcoming digital video events to celebrate ExxonMobil's expanded partnership with Stewart-Haas Racing at Pocono. These three pieces of Mobil 1 online content will be released during the days leading up to race weekend, culminating with full primary sponsorships of #4-Kevin Harvick, #10-Danica Patrick and #14-Tony Stewart for the Pennsylvania 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. Additionally, Mobil 1 will be the presenting sponsor of the race's NBC Sports Network TV broadcast. "The same brand having marquee placement on three cars for one of NASCAR's top teams during the same race is rare, so we are marking the event by bringing more Mobil 1-branded action to race fans before and during the Pocono Sprint Cup race," said Kai Decker, global motorsports manager at ExxonMobil. "Our Mobil 1 Pocono digital content ranges from light-hearted to thrilling and provides behind-the-scenes access we think fans will love."(Mobil 1 PR)(7-26-2015)

Top 10 Driver Ratings at Pocono:
#24-Chase Elliott 130.9
#41-Kurt Busch 106.8
#48-Jimmie Johnson 106.3
#11-Denny Hamlin 106.0
#19-Carl Edwards 95.1
#14-Tony Stewart 94.7
#88-Dale Earnhardt Jr 93.9
#4-Kevin Harvick 92.4
#31-Ryan Newman 92.3
#22-Joey Logano 92.2
Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2015 races (22 total) among active drivers at Pocono Raceway.
Formula combining the following categories: Win, Finish, Top-15 Finish, Average Running Position while on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps, Lead-Lap Finish. Maximum: 150 points per race.
See an explanation how the Driver Rating is calculated at NASCAR.com.(NASCAR)

Drew Herring in the #28 at Iowa: Drew Herring will step into the seat of the #28 Toyota this week at Iowa Speedway in place of full-time driver Dakoda Armstrong. With Dakoda being presented the opportunity to fill in for Matt Tifft in the Joe Gibbs Racing #18 Toyota, it was a popular choice to have Drew return to JGL Racing at a track where he has had a great amount of success. Drew will be making his seventh career NASCAR XFINITY Series start at Iowa Speedway to go along with one previous start in the Camping World Truck Series. The event will mark his 19th career start in the series and fourth one this season for JGL Racing. He has had much success at Iowa Speedway having earned two career Pole Awards and a best finish of sixth which came during the 2013 season at the Newton, Iowa track. He piloted the #24 JGL Racing Young Guns Toyota in the XFINITY Series event at Iowa Speedway earlier this season where his solid run was derailed by getting caught up in a late accident.(Integrity Sports Marketing)(7-26-2016)

Sieg gets Iowa sponsor: RSS Racing welcomes Ritchie Industries, Inc. as a primary sponsor for Ryan Sieg for the race at Iowa Speedway Saturday night. Since 1921, Ritchie Industries has manufactured durable, dependable automatic fountains for many species of livestock, including beef, dairy, equine, swine, sheep and goats. The distinct Ritchie design has been the standard bearer of quality. Ritchie fountains continue to serve all sizes of operations in the livestock industry with equipment designed to provide years of trouble-free use. Sieg and the 39 team are currently 11th in the standings following the race at Indianapolis. Sieg had a solid run going in the first race at Iowa Speedway this season before problems on pit road cost him multiple laps to the leaders.(RSS Racing), see an image of the car on the #39 team paint schemes page.(7-26-2016)

Dakoda Armstrong in the #18 at Iowa: The Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) No. 18 team enters week nineteen of the NASCAR XFINITY Series schedule for the second 2016 race event at Iowa Speedway in Newton. While Matt Tifft was originally scheduled to pilot the #18 Toyota Camry this week with JGR, his rehabilitation from recent surgery to remove a low-grade glioma will afford an opportunity for Indiana-native Dakoda Armstrong to take over driving duties and with support from his longtime partner Winfield. Support for Matt Tifft and his recovery will still be seen over the #18 car's doorframe. Armstrong is an XFINITY Series regular with five years of competition under his belt. In that time he has raced in 91 events and recorded four top-10 finishes, one pole and 12 laps led. In the fall of 2015 in the NASCAR XFINITY series Iowa event, Armstrong started in 16th place and finished in the 16th position. In the initial 2016 XFINITY series race at Iowa Speedway, Armstrong started 21st and advanced his position to 17th for race end.(Joe Gibbs Racing)(-2016)

Townley cleared to race: John Wes Townley received medical clearance earlier today to resume racing in NASCAR and ARCA. He will compete in this weekend's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and ARCA events at Pocono Raceway. Townley had been sidelined for the past four weeks while being treated for mild concussion-like symptoms. "I'd like to thank Parker Kligerman, Cole Custer and Brady Boswell for filling in for me," Townley said. "I feel great and I'm looking forward to racing at Pocono this week."(Athenian Motorsports)(7-26-2016)

DC Solar sponsoring Las Vegas Truck race: DC Solar, Las Vegas Motor Speedway's official off-grid mobile solar partner, has been named title sponsor of the track's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race for 2016. The DC Solar 350 will take place at LVMS on Saturday, Oct. 1, with John Wes Townley returning to defend his title from a year ago. It will be the 20th staging of the popular NASCAR series race at LVMS. LVMS and DC Solar partnered earlier this year to provide solar-powered EV charging stations and LED mobile solar light towers during this Spring's NASCAR Weekend. This newly expanded partnership will dramatically increase the number of LED towers in use throughout the LVMS property. DC Solar is a clean energy company that specializes in mobile solar products. Its flagship product, The Solar Eclipse, is the most widely distributed mobile solar generator in the U.S., and it has revolutionized the solar industry by taking the technology off-grid. DC Solar serves a variety of industries, including emergency preparedness, disaster relief, construction, entertainment, sports and agriculture, to name just a few.(LVMS)(7-26-2016)

Guy Fieri named Grand Marshal at Pocono: Chef, restaurateur, New York Times best-selling author and Emmy Award-winning television host Guy Fieri will serve as Grand Marshal of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Pennsylvania 400, Sunday July 31 at Pocono Raceway. Fieri owns Guy Fieri's Mount Pocono Kitchen in the Mount Airy Casino Resort in nearby Mount Pocono, as well as Guy Fieri's Chophouse in Atlantic City, amongst others. He is also the star of "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," and "Guy's Grocery Games" on Food Network., Fieri will provide the "Star Your Engines" command prior to the start of the Pennsylvania 400.(Pocono Raceway)(7-26-2016)

Entry List for the Pennsylvania 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway is posted, 40 teams/drivers [for 40 spots] are listed, including: #21-Blaney*, #30-Wise*, #32-Jeb Burton, #55-Sorenson*, #88-Jeff Gordon, #95-McDowell, #98-Whitt*.
Drivers who are not a Charter team, an Open Team, and must get in via speed: #21-Blaney, #30-Wise, #55-Sorenson, #98-Whitt
Since only 40 cars are entered, all drivers will make the race, 40 is the maximum.
* Open Team (no Charter)
See the full entry list on Jayski.com's Pocono Entry List

Earnhardt, Jr gives update on his status: Dale Earnhardt Jr., on his weekly The Dale Jr. Download, said "I miss the people more than the driving" while sitting out with concussion-type symptoms such as balance issues and nausea. He said he has been working on the physical and mental exercises for 2-2.5 hours a day. "This process is going to take a little bit longer. ... With my history, I don't need to get cute (in returning)," said Earnhardt, who indicated he will see doctors soon to make a determination about Watkins Glen next week. He said it must have been a challenge for Jeff Gordon because of the changes to the cars since Gordon last drove them. On Kyle Busch's win: "You have to hand it to Gibbs. Good Lord, their stuff is so fast."(ESPN.com)(7-25-2016)

Stockman replaces Alexander as Menard's crew chief: Richard Childress Racing has made a change in crew chiefs for its NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR XFINITY Series programs, effective immediately. Danny Stockman, a two-time champion in the NASCAR XFINITY and Camping World Truck Series, will assume crew chief responsibilities for the #27 Menards Chevrolet SS team, with driver Paul Menard. Stockman's first race with the team will be at Pocono Raceway on Sunday, July 31. During Stockman's seven-year tenure with RCR, he has captured two championships and nine wins between the NASCAR XFINITY and Camping World Truck Series. The Yucaipa, Calif., native joins the #27 program already familiar with Menard, having worked with the veteran driver for the past two years in the XFINITY Series. Together, they produced a race win at Road America in 2015. Menard, who earned a spot in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chase in 2015, is currently 23rd in the championship point standings. RCR's current NASCAR XFINITY Series Director, Gil Martin, will serve as interim crew chief for the #2 Rheem/Menards program. Martin, a 16-year veteran of RCR, is among a select group of crew chiefs that have won races in NASCAR's Sprint Cup, XFINITY and Camping World Truck Series.(Richard Childress Racing)(7-25-2016)

NASCAR would like to see better attendance, racing at IMS: NASCAR's Steve O'Donnell said Monday on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that series officials would like to "see more fans in the stands" at Indianapolis Motor Speedway but stated that "we've got to put on the racing people want to see." Kyle Busch dominated Sunday's Brickyard 400, leading 149 of 170 laps. That came a day after he won the Xfinity race there, leading all 20 laps in his heat and 62 of the 63 laps in the main event. While attendance figures are not announced, The Indianapolis Star reported that Sunday's crowd "might not have topped 50,000" at a track that has more than 250,000 permanent seats. On the crowd, O'Donnell said: "Certainly we would like to see more fans in the stands. It's been a struggle over the last couple of years for sure. We put a little bit on that ourselves when we had the tire issue (in 2008 where tire issues prevented any green flag stretch longer than 13 laps).
"It's a challenging race track for us from a racing perspective. That's no secret. So, we've got to balance the ability to race at that speedway but also put on a good race and balance that with the attendance. That's an ongoing thing. We're in discussions with Doug Boles (track president) and Mark Miles (CEO of Hulman & Company), and I know from their perspective as well, they certainly want to see folks in the stands, as do we. It's an important market for us, but by the same token we've got to put on the racing that people want to see. It's a balance, but we've got to make sure when we go there it's the best of all worlds and this year was a challenge, and we want to see that turn and reverse."
O'Donnell said that more can be done with the racing at Indianapolis: "Maybe the cars were a little bit closer together from a 1-40 standpoint, but obviously the ability to pass was a challenge, especially at the front. We'll go back and look at what levers we can pull. We're still evaluating 2017 (rules package), continuing on the lower (aero) trend and working with Goodyear on the tire. It's just a real challenge in terms of the groove in the corners at Indy. It's something we've got to continue to look at and see if we can, if at all, open up the ability to draft more and increase those passing zones."(NBC Sports)(7-25-2016)

Stewart, Gordon take final lap together at Indianapolis: The two Indiana favorites didn't win the Brickyard 400 -- far from it. But Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon gave the fans at Indianapolis Motor Speedway the highlight of the race minutes after the checkered flag dropped on the Kyle Busch victory Sunday afternoon. Stewart and Gordon took a ceremonial lap driving side-by-side in what is expected to be their final race in the state that has celebrated their racing prowess. After they parked on pit road, Gordon went over to Stewart and gave him a hug.
"For us to share that moment together, I mean that's probably our last lap around here in a professional race, and I'll cherish that moment," Stewart said. "It's something that doesn't happen very often. It was pretty cool. ... We're never going to get that chance to do that again."
"Tony and I have gone through a lot over the years, but he and I have become really good friends," Gordon said. "I was with him when he got hurt this year. ... I learned a lot about Tony Stewart. He's driven. He's tough. To see him in that pain I saw him in and come back and win Sonoma [last month] and be out here driving like this with a chance at a championship when this whole thing is over, that's impressive."(ESPN.com)(7-25-2016)

Kenseth and Johnson Clinch Chase spots: #20-Matt Kenseth and #48-Jimmie Johnson clinched a spot in the top 30 in driver standings at Indianapolis Motor Speedway Sunday. The magic number was 271, as a driver needed to be 271 points ahead of 31st-place following the race. After Kenseth's 2nd place finish, he is 308 points ahead of 31st, while Johnson's 3rd place finish puts him 315 points ahead. #2-Brad Keselowski, #18-Kyle Busch and #19-Carl Edwards had already clinched a spot.(7-25-2016)

Gordon enjoys return to racing; restarts provided challenge: Gordon was driving the #88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in a substitute role for Dale Earnhardt Jr., who has suffered concussion-like symptoms in recent weeks and was advised by doctors not to race until he recovers. The unexpected opportunity was also a stern reminder for Gordon of the level of competition he left behind last November when he transitioned to the FOX Sports television booth. Though he lost ground repeatedly on restarts, however, Gordon finished a respectable 13th on Sunday.
"Wow-the challenges to be out there against the best, especially on those restarts," said Gordon, who also will sub for Earnhardt next Sunday at Pocono. "I got my butt kicked on those restarts. It was embarrassing. While I will fill in for Dale Jr., and I hope he's doing good, I needed a fill-in on restarts. It was pretty bad. Other than that, I thought it went really well. I really liked working with (crew chief) Greg (Ives) and this whole #88 team. ... We just couldn't get the track position. It was pretty tough to pass. And I didn't want to see those cautions there at the end. But, I'm going to need some practice on restarts for Pocono anyway."(NASCAR Wire Service)(7-25-2016)

Indianapolis Race and Commercial Breakdown of the 2016 Combat Wounded Coalition 400: For those of you NASCAR fans that like stats and love to hate commercials, here is the breakdown for Sunday's race. Began recording the times at the Invocation of the race at 3:00 PM, and stopped at the waving of the checkered flag at 6:47 PM (all times are EDT). NBCSN was the broadcast team for this event.
Total number of commercials: 106
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 47
Number of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 90
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 43
Number of 'Side-by-Side' commercials during race broadcast (split-screen): 16
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 12
Number of times NBCSN utilized 'Side-by-Side' commercials during this broadcast: 4
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 131
Total number of companies or entities advertised in brief promos or crawlers: 21
Total amount of time these brief promos take during broadcast: app. 3 min. 20 sec.
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 3:00PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 6:47 PM
Total minutes of complete race broadcast: 227
Minutes of race broadcast: 183
Minutes of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 39
Minutes of 'Side-by-Side' commercials (split-screen): 9
Number of missed restarts: 0
Number of 'mystery cautions' (debris not shown): 0
Total race brdcst time 183 Total comm. brdcst time 39
See past races, more info on the commercials with links at CawsnJaws.com.(7-25-2016)

Hendrick Motorsports looking for 1000th top-5 UPDATE: Cars fielded by Hendrick Motorsports have recorded 999 top-five finishes since the team was founded by Rick Hendrick in 1984. The owner's first Sprint Cup top-five also was his first win -- with driver Geoff Bodine on April 29, 1984, at Martinsville Speedway. This season, the organization has recorded 19 top-fives among its four drivers. Hendrick Motorsports posted a team record 57 top-five finishes in 2007.(Hendrick Motorsports)(7-21-2016)
UPDATE: #48-Jimmie Johnson's 3rd place finish at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday was Hendrick's 1000th top-5.(7-25-2016)

XFINITY Entry List: There are 41 cars on the preliminary entry list for Saturday's US Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway. A few notes:
Sam Hornish will drive RCR's #2;
Mike Bliss is entered in the #10;
The Gibbs #18 is TBA;
Brad Keselowski will drive Penske's #22;
Brandon McReynolds is in the JGL #24;
The Rick Ware #25 is TBA;
Drew Herring is listed in the #28 of JGL;
Obaika Racing's #77 & #97 is TBA.(7-25-2015)
See the complete list on the Iowa entry list page.

Stewart Haas to field XFINITY team in 2017: Stewart-Haas Racing, the championship-winning NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team, will expand into the NASCAR XFINITY Series in 2017. The organization will field a full-time, single-car team in the XFINITY Series with a driver and sponsor lineup to be announced prior to the conclusion of the 2016 season. The XFINITY Series team will be run from SHR's headquarters in Kannapolis, North Carolina. "In order to maintain the competitiveness that has earned SHR two championships since our debut in 2009, we needed an outlet to develop drivers and team personnel for the Sprint Cup Series," said Greg Zipadelli, vice president of competition, SHR. "People make the difference between winning and losing. An XFINITY Series team gives us added depth that will allow us to promote from within whenever necessary."
"An XFINITY Series team has always been something we would consider when the time was right, and that time is now," said Stewart, who co-owns SHR with Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. "Staying successful in this sport means staying ahead of the curve, and having an XFINITY Series team provides an in-house driver development program and a new channel for personnel to make a positive impact with our race team."
"This is a natural progression of SHR's growth and one that allows us to be more self-sufficient," Haas said. "If you look at all the teams that are successful in Sprint Cup, they have a direct connection to the XFINITY Series where drivers, engineers, mechanics and pit crew members are developed. We're an established team with a strong infrastructure that is ready for this endeavor."(Stewart Haas Racing)(7-25-2016)

Nickelodeon joins with Bubba Wallace at Chicago: Nickelodeon announced that it is has teamed up with NASCAR XFINITY Series star "Bubba" Wallace to drive a special #6 Shredder Ford Mustang in the XFINITY 300 on Saturday, September 17. Nickelodeon is the entitlement sponsor of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday, Sept. 18, dubbed the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. The track will feature a weekend of action, activities and fun for the entire family with the iconic Heroes in a Half Shell. Wallace is in his second fulltime season in the NASCAR XFINITY Series for Roush Fenway Racing. His unique racecar at Chicagoland will feature Shredder in his iconic helmet on the hood, rear bumper and left rear quarter-panel. The Foot Clan is right there with him, standing watch on the right rear quarter-panel, ready to do battle. Shredder is the commander of an evil ninja army called the Foot Clan, and is one of the deadliest martial artists in the world. He is cold, cunning, ruthless, and obsessed with destroying Splinter, whom he blames for the death of his true love. Shredder's thirst for revenge has drained him of all compassion, warmth and connection to humanity. Wallace will join a number of other drivers with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles paint schemes for the Sept. 17-18 race weekend. NASCAR Sprint Cup Series star Danica Patrick has already been announced to drive the No. 10 April O'Neil/Nature's Bakery Chevrolet SS in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400. Additional drivers will be announced this summer.(Nickelodeon PR), see an image of the car on the #6 team paint schemes page.(7-25-2016)

Tony George is again Chairman of the Board at IMS: The most intriguing story coming out of Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday for people who follow racing was the public confirmation that Tony George was quietly named chairman of the board of the speedway, in addition to its parent company, Hulman & Co., some four months ago. Sure, there was Indy's 160-lap NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race -- actually, make that 170, thanks to a series of overtime crashes -- which to the surprise of no one was dominated by Kyle Busch and the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas. That made George's ascension to the chairman's seat of his family's companies the biggest story of the day, marking a comeback that rivals any we've ever seen on the executive side of the sport. The news broke in unorthodox fashion. George was voted into the chairman roles during Hulman & Co.'s annual meeting in March, but there was no public confirmation of the change until he was introduced as the IMS chairman over the Speedway's public address system when he stepped out to give the command to start engines for Sunday's race. Talk about a private company that really keeps things private. Now 56, George was named president of Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1989 when he was just 29 years old, kicking off a turbulent 20-year run. During his tenure, George brought NASCAR to Indianapolis with the first Brickyard 400 in 1994, and he also built a road course in the IMS infield that hosted the Formula One United States Grand Prix from 2000-07. But George is more famous (or infamous) for creating the Indy Racing League and using the Indianapolis 500 as a bargaining chip in the quest to take control of Indy car racing from CART. The 13-year civil war between the two Indy car series from 1996-2008 caused huge damage to the sport, which it still continues to recover from. After Indy car racing was unified as the IndyCar Series under Hulman &. Co leadership, George resigned as the league's CEO in 2009, and he relinquished his board roles in 2011. He was reinstated to the IMS and Hulman & Co. boards in 2013; with his 82-year-old mother Mari Hulman-George in failing health, his recent ascension to the chairman role doesn't come as a surprise. Just family business. Still, the fact that Hulman & Co. chose not to publicize the move indicates they understand the perception of putting George back in charge still carries some public relations baggage with longtime Indy car fans -- even though as the board chairman, he will have little or no influence on the company's day-to-day operations.(ESPN.com)(7-25-2016)

Kyle Busch wins at Indianapolis: #18-Kyle Busch won the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for his 4th win of the season, 2nd win at Indianapolis, and 38th career win. He started from the pole and led 149 of 170 laps. That is the most laps led in a race at Indianapolis.
The race required two NASCAR Overtime attempts to complete after a rash of late race cautions.
Busch is the first driver to capture the XFINITY and Sprint Cup poles and win both races in the same weekend.
#20-Kenseth finished 2nd followed by #48-Johnson, #11-Hamlin, #42-Larson, #4-Harvick, #22-Logano, #78-Truex, Jr., #3-Dillon, and #27-Menard.
#14-Stewart, running his final race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, finished 11th.
Jeff Gordon, subbing for #88-Earnhardt, Jr. finished 13th.
There were 4 lead changes among 3 drivers and 8 cautions for 34 yellow flag laps.
The average speed was 128.940 mph.
Scheduled Race Re-Air: None
See unofficial race results, awards, laps led, cautions and more [NOTE: money/winnings are no longer reported] at:
Unofficial Race Results page (pdf)
Lap Summary Report (pdf)
Penalty Report (pdf)
Pit Stop Times (pdf)
(7-24-2016)

Race Fast Facts - Indianapolis Motor Speedway:
Kyle Busch won the 23rd Annual Crown Royal presents the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 at The Brickyard, his 38th victory in 410 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his fourth victory and 13th top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his second consecutive victory and 10th top-10 finish in 12 races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Busch is the first driver to complete the weekend sweep of both Coors Light Poles and race wins in NASCAR history.
Busch led 149 laps, a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series record at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Matt Kenseth (second) posted his 11th top-10 finish in 17 races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is his ninth top-10 finish in 2016.
Jimmie Johnson (third) posted his seventh top-10 finish in 15 races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 24 points over Brad Keselowski.
(NASCAR Integrated Sports Marketing)(7-24-2016)

2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup CHASE Standings:
[after Indianapolis, race 20 of 36, 16 drivers for the Chase]
Set by most wins, then by points standing
1) #2-Keselowski [4 wins], 2nd in driver points
2) #18-Busch [4], 5th in driver points
3) #19-Edwards [2], 6th
4) #48-Johnson [2], 8th
5) #20-Kenseth [2], 9th
6) #4-Harvick [1], 1st
7) #41-Busch [1], 3rd
8) #22-Logano [1], 4th
9) #78-Truex, Jr. [1], 7th
10) #11-Hamlin [1], 10th
11) #14-Stewart [1], 27th
no wins, in by drivers points standings
12) #24-Elliott, 11th in drivers points, 63 ahead of 17th
13) #3-Dillon, 12th, +58
14) #31-Newman, 13th, +45
15) #1-McMurray, 14th, +34
16) #42-Larson, 15th, +10
no wins, not in the Chase
17) #5-Kahne, 16th, -10 pts
18) #88-Earnhardt Jr., 17th, -11
19) #6-Bayne, 18th, -14 pts
20) #21-Blaney, 19th, -22 pts
21) #17-Stenhouse, Jr., 20th, -23pts
(7-24-2016)

2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Driver Points (not CHASE) Standings:
[after Indianapolis, race 20 of 36]
1) #4-Harvick [1 win], 671
2) #2-Keselowski [4], 647, -24
3) #41-Busch [1], 627, -44
4) #22-Logano [1], 606, -65
5) #18-Busch, [4], 601, -70
6) #19-Edwards [2], 593, -78
7) #78-Truex Jr. [1], 573, -98
8) #48-Johnson [2], 552, -119
9) #20-Kenseth [2], 506, -130
10) #11-Hamlin, 542, -129
See the Unofficial Drivers Points Standings page (pdf) and
Unofficial Owners Points Standings page (pdf)

NASCAR may use more timing zones at IMS: NASCAR [emplyed] additional timing zones on pit road for [Saturday's] NASCAR Xfinity race and if all [went] well, those timing zones will be used in Sunday's Brickyard 400, NASCAR confirmed to NBC Sports. There were 12 timing zones along pit road - up from six previously at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. There [was] be a timing zone about every 3.5 pit stalls on average. Those are being added to limit drivers accelerating toward their pit stall and passing cars. That became a bigger issue after NASCAR penalized Martin Truex Jr. for passing Kevin Harvick on pit road during the Sprint Cup race at Kentucky Speedway earlier this month. NASCAR experimented with the additional timing lines last weekend at New Hampshire and had no issues.(NBC Sports)(7-24-2016)

Indianapolis Race Notes & Facts:
· There have been 22 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway; one per year from 1994 through 2012.
· Hendrick Motorsports leads the series in wins at Indianapolis in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with nine; followed by Joe Gibbs Racing (four) and Richard Childress Racing (three).
· Four different manufacturers have won at Indianapolis; led by Chevrolet with 16 victories; followed by Ford (three), Toyota, Dodge and Pontiac each have one.
· Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was the August 3, 1997 race won by Ricky Rudd over Bobby Labonte with a MOV of 0.183 second.
· Three out of the last five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races have had a MOV larger than one second.
· Two of the 22 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races have resulted with a green-white-checkered finish at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): 2004 (160/161) and 2015 (160/164).
· None of the 22 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions.
(NASCAR)

NASCAR Chevrolet Diversity Scholarship Contest returns: NASCAR and Chevrolet announced the launch of the second annual NASCAR Chevrolet Diversity Scholarship Contest during a press conference at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Through this initiative, NASCAR and Chevrolet continue their longstanding commitment to Science, Technology, Engineering & Math (STEM) education and promoting opportunities for college students pursuing technology related careers. The contest challenges students to identify a technology or innovation within NASCAR and explain how STEM professionals came to its design in 90-second videos submitted on chevyscholarship.nascardiversity.com. Four winners will receive a total of $20,000 in scholarships and a VIP experience at Texas Motor Speedway during the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race on November 6, 2016. In what has quickly become an important component of NASCAR's diversity and inclusion platform, the scholarship program helps both organizations attract young, diverse talent to the world of motorsports. Video submissions will be judged on technical accuracy, creativity and production quality. Winners will be awarded a scholarship and an exclusive, behind-the-scenes race experience in Texas, including a tour of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series garage, pace car rides and meet-and-greets with Team Chevy drivers and Chevrolet NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Program Manager, Alba Colon.(NASCAR)(7-24-2016)

Pit Stall Selections: The selections of pit stalls for the Crown Royal presents the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway have been made.
Pole sitter #18-Busch chose pit stall 1.
Outside pole sitter #19-Edwards took pit stall 2.
#14-Stewart, who starts 3rd took the 10th pit stall, with an opening in front of it.
The final pit stall was taken by #24-Elliott, who starts 15th.
To see where the drivers/teams pit stall is, see the pit selection chart on Jayski.com's Pit Stall Selection chart.

Kyle Busch wins pole at Indianapolis: #18-Kyle Busch won the pole for the Crown Royal presents the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with speed of 184.634mph for his 2nd pole of 2016, 1st at Indianapolis and 19 of his career. Busch has won from the pole 3 times in 18 previous tries.
#19-Edwards will start 2nd, followed by #14-Stewart, #11-Hamlin, #2-Keselowski, #31-Newman, #78-Truex, Jr., #4-Harvick, #1-McMurray, #42-Larson, #41-Busch, and #3-Dillon.
Jeff Gordon, subbing for #88-Dale Earnhardt, Jr., will start 21st.
#18-Busch was fastest in the second round with a speed of 185.227mph and will start from the pole.
#48-Johnson paced the opening round of qualifying at 185.816mph and starts 13th.
Did not qualify: #30-Wise.
See round-by-round qualifying results on the Indianapolis qualifying results page (pdf) and the complete starting lineup on the Indianapolis Starting Lineup page (pdf).(7-23-2016)

Indianapolis Motor Speedway - Qualifying Fast Facts:
Kyle Busch won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 23rd Annual Crown Royal presents the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 at The Brickyard with a lap of 48.745 seconds, 184.634 mph.
This is his 19th pole in 410 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his second pole and 14th top-10 start in 2016. Busch has now started in the top 10 in six consecutive races.
This is his first pole in 12 races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. His previous best Brickyard start was seventh in 2012.
Carl Edwards (second) posted his 15th top-10 start of 2016 and his sixth in 12 races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is the second consecutive Brickyard race that he will start on the front row (he won the pole last season).
Tony Stewart (third) posted his seventh top-10 start at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is his fourth in 12 races this season.
Chase Elliott (15th) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Statistics)(7-23-2016)

Second Round of Qualifying for the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is over, after 10 scheduled minutes.
#18-Busch 185.227
#14-Stewart 184.885
#19-Edwards 184.593
#11-Hamlin 184.456
#2-Keselowski 184.083
the rest of the top 12: 78 1 42 31 3 4 41;
out of the top 12 and not advancing to round 3: 48 22 24 17 21 20 16 6 88 34 27 10
(7-23-2016)

First Round of Qualifying for the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is over, after 20 scheduled minutes.
#48-Johnson 185.816
#18-Busch 185.805
#2-Keselowski 185.567
#19-Edwards 185.556
#3-Dillon 185.521
the rest of the top 24: 14 24 17 4 1 41 11 10 78 88 21 31 20 42 27 22 16 6 34;
out of the top 24 and not advancing to round 2: 47 5 95 23 43 83 15 44 38 13 98 93 7 46 55 30 32
Driver who will miss the race: #30-Wise
(7-23-2016)

Stewart willing to sub next year if needed: #14-Tony Stewart met with the media Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and was asked the process Stewart-Haas Racing would use to find a replacement driver in the future, if needed:
Stewart: "We never thought of that actually. It is something that I thought about since the talk came about Jeff getting back in the car. We don't have a feeder system. We don't have an Xfinity team. We don't have anybody that's in our system to bring up if that is the case. We will talk about it at some point, but I am definitely open to that scenario if it were to happen down the road and we needed somebody, I would be open to doing what Jeff is doing this weekend."(Chevy Racing)(7-23-2016)

IMS gives Stewart a piece of catchfence: Indianapolis Motor Speedway President Doug Boles made a point of clarifying he wasn't giving Tony Stewart a going-away present prior to Friday afternoon's practice. What he gave him was something that focused not on Stewart's final Brickyard 400 but rather the first Brickyard he won back in 2005, when he climbed the iconic catch fencing that was removed during the renovations made in preparations for this year's Indianapolis 500. Stewart got a piece of the old fence to keep forever. As IMS had done for Helio Castroneves, who started the fencing-climbing trend when he made the climb after winning his first 500 win in 2001, Boles said he gifted Stewart the portion of old fencing he climbed for "doing something unique" in being one of the few drivers to make the climb. "If you do it on the new one, I'll take that fence down and give you some of that, too," Boles joked as he presented Stewart with the piece of fencing, encased in a large black display case with several pictures of Stewart's climb.(Indianapolis Star)(7-23-2016)

Indianapolis Pole Notes & Facts:
· Rick Mast won the inaugural Coors Light pole at Indianapolis in 1994 with a speed of 172.414 mph.
· 18 drivers have won Coors Light poles at Indianapolis, led by Jeff Gordon with three; followed by Kevin Harvick with two.
· Two drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at Indianapolis: Jeff Gordon (1995-96) and Ernie Irvan (1997-98).
· Reed Sorenson (07/29/07) is the only driver to post his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
· Chevrolet leads the series in poles at IMS with 10; followed by Ford with six; Toyota, Dodge and Pontiac each have two.
· Only three of the 22 (13.6%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Indianapolis have been won from the Coors Light pole: Kevin Harvick (2003), Jimmie Johnson (2008) and Ryan Newman (2013).
· The pole and the third-place starting position are the two most proficient starting positions in the field, each producing three winners - more than any other starting positions at Indianapolis.
· Five of the 22 (22.7%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Indianapolis have been won from the front row: three from the pole and two from second-place.
· 11 of the 22 (50%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Indianapolis have been won from a top-five starting position.
· 14 of the 22 (63.6%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Indianapolis have been won from a top-10 starting position.
· Three of the 22 (13.6%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Indianapolis have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.
· The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Indianapolis is 27th, by Jeff Gordon in 2001.
· Qualifying has not been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
(NASCAR)

Suarez, Sadler clinch XFINITY Chase spots: #19-Daniel Suarez and #1-Elliott Sadler have both clinched spots in the inaugural NASCAR XFINITY Series Chase coming out of the Lilly Diabates 250 on Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Suarez and Sadler already had spots locked up in the top 30 in points, but needed a new Chase-eligible driver not to win at Indianapolis. That was achieved with Kyle Busch's third straight win and seventh victory of the season in the series. Suarez and Sadler join #20-Erik Jones as the only drivers to officially clinch spots in the 12-driver, elimination-style playoff that will be used in the series this fall. The drivers must start the remaining eight races of the regular season.(NASCAR)(7-23-2016)

Kyle Busch wins XFINITY race at Indianapolis: #18-Kyle Busch won the Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is his 83rd XFINITY Series win and 7th of the year. He dominated the race, starting from the pole and by leading 62 of 63 laps. The race went into Overtime after a late race caution.
#88-Kevin Harvick finished second, followed by #2-Paul Menard, #42-Kyle Larson, #7-Justin Allgaier, #1-Elliott Sadler, #19-Daniel Suarez, #22-Joey Logano, #3-Ty Dillon, and #33-Brandon Jones.
#7-Justin Allgaier won the Dash 4 Cash over #1-Elliott Sadler, #19-Daniel Suarez, and #20-Erik Jones. The 4 drivers had qualified for the Dash 4 Cash by being the top finishing XFINITY Series drivers in the two heat races.
There were 2 cautions for 10 laps and 2 lead changes among 2 leaders.
The average speed was 136.298mph.
Complete results are on the Indianapolis race results page (pdf).
(7-23-2016)

Indianapolis XFINITY Race Fast Facts:
Kyle Busch won the 5th Annual Lilly Diabetes 250, his 83rd victory in 322 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his seventh victory and 11th top-10 finish in 2016.
Busch has now won three consecutive races for the second time this season, the first driver to accomplish the feat in the NASCAR XFINITY Series.
This is his third victory and fourth top-10 finish in five races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Justin Allgaier (fifth) won the NASCAR XFINITY Series Dash 4 Cash bonus of $100,000.
Kevin Harvick (second) posted his fourth top-10 finish in four races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is his third top-10 finish in 2016.
Paul Menard (third) posted his fifth top-10 finish in five races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Brandon Jones (10th) was the highest finishing rookie.
Daniel Suarez leads the point standings by 14 points over Elliott Sadler.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-23-2016)

XFINITY Driver standings following Indianapolis:
[12 drivers qualify for the XFINITY Series chase]
1) #19-Daniel Suarez [1 win], 608
2) #1-Elliott Sadler [1 win], 594, -14
3) #3-Ty Dillon, 558, -50
4) #7-Justin Allgaier, 542, -66
5) #20-Erik Jones [2 wins], 539, -69
6) #62-Brendan Gaughan, 535, -73
7) #33-Brandon Jones, 520, -88
8) #48-Brennan Poole, 519, -89
9) #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., 486, -122
10) #16-Ryan Reed, 433, -175
11) #39-Ryan Sieg, 420, -188
12) #11-Blake Koch, 403, -205
See complete owner and driver standings on the driver standings(pdf) and owner standings page (pdf).(7-23-2016)

Kyle Busch on XFINITY pole for main event at Indianapolis: Following the two 20 lap heat races, #18-Kyle Busch will start from the pole for the Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He gets the pole by winning the first heat race and having the fastest qualifying time. #20-Erik Jones will start second after winning the second heat.
The rest of the top 10 starters: #42-Kyle Larson, #88-Kevin Harvick, #22-Joey Logano, #7-Justin Allgaier, #19-Daniel Suarez, #2-Paul Menard, #1-Elliott Sadler, and #48-Brennan Poole.
The starting lineup is posted on the Dover starting lineup page (pdf).(7-23-2016)

Erik Jones wins XFINITY Heat 2 at Indianapolis: #20-Erik Jones won the second heat race for the Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He led all 20 laps.
#88-Kevin Harvick was second, followed by: #7-Justin Allgaier, #2-Paul Menard, #48-Brennan Poole, #3-Ty Dilloon, #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., #62-Brendan Gaughan, #39-Ryan Sieg, and #28-Dakoda Armstrong.
The race was caution free.
#18-Kyle Busch, who won the first heat, will start the main event from the pole because he had a faster qualifying time than Erik Jones. Finishers of this heat race will lineup on the outside of the feature in even-numbered starting positions.
Erik Jones and Justin Allgaier, the top 2 XFINITY regulars in the heat, will join Suarez and Sadler in running for the Dash 4 Cash bonus in the main.
Results are posted on the Indianapolis XFINITY Series Heat 2 results page (pdf).(7-23-2016)

Kyle Busch wins XFINITY Heat 1 at Indianapolis: #18-Kyle Busch won the first heat race for the Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He lead all 20 laps.
#42-Kyle Larson was second, followed by: #22-Joey Logano, #19-Daniel Suarez, #1-Elliott Sadler, #98-Jeb Burton, #33-Brandon Jones, #16-Ryan Reed, #11-Blake Koch, and #51-Jeremy Clements.
The race was caution free.
After the second heat, the complete lineup will be set for the 120 lap main event.
Busch will start the main from the pole because he had the fastest speed in qualifying.
Finishers of this heat race will line up on the inside of the feature in odd-numbered starting positions.
Suarez and Sadler, being the top 2 XFINITY regulars in the heat, will run for the Dash 4 Cash bonus in the main.
Results are posted on the Indianapolis XFINITY Series Heat 1 results page (pdf).(7-23-2016)

Kyle Busch fastest in XFINITY qualifying at Indianapolis: #18-Kyle Busch won the Coors Light pole for the Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with a speed of 181.939mph.
Qualifying sets the field for the two heat races. Odd-numbered qualifiers will run in the first heat race, even-numbered qualifiers in the second.
Top 5 starters in the first heat race: #18-Kyle Busch, #42-Kyle Larson, #19-Daniel Suarez, #22-Joey Logano, and #16-Ryan Reed.
Top 5 starters in the second heat race: #20-Erik Jones, #88-Kevin Harvick, #7-Justin Allgaier, #2-Paul Menard, and #48-Brennan Poole.
Result of the heat races will determine the lineup for the 60 lap main event.
Did Not Qualify: #77-TJ Bell.
See round-by-round qualifying results on the Indianapolis qualifying results page (pdf), the Heat 1 lineup (pdf) and the Heat 2 lineup (pdf).(7-23-2016)

Indianapolis Qualifying Notes:
Kyle Busch won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 5th Annual Lilly Diabetes 250 a lap of 49.467 seconds, 181.939 mph.
This is his 54th pole in 322 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his sixth pole and 11th top-10 start in 2016.
This is his fourth pole in five races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Kyle Larson (second) posted his seventh top-10 start of 2016 and his second in four races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Daniel Suarez (third) posted his second top-10 start at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is his 18th in 18 races this season.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-23-2016)

Final practice for the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is over after 85 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#18-Busch 184.619
#4-Harvick 184.268
#42-Larson 183.767
#31-Newman 183.673
#19-Edwards 183.554
slowest: #55-Sorenson 174.652 & #32-Carpentier 173.364.
most laps run: #11-Hamlin 57 laps.
notes: Jeff Gordon, subbing for #88-Earnhardt, Jr., was 25th.
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap avg on the Indianapolis Final Practice speeds page (pdf).(7-22-2016)

First Friday practice for the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is over after 85 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#48-Johnson 184.185
#11-Hamlin 182.563
#13-Mears 180.346
#4-Harvick 179.845
#31-Newman 179.784
slowest: #30-Wise 169.501 & #93-Ellis 168.700
most laps run: #19-Edwards 30 laps.
notes: #18-Busch spun in turn two late in practice while trying to get around #32-Carpentier. He did not hit anything.
Jeff Gordon, subbing for #88-Earnhardt, Jr. was 9th fastest.
Qualifying is scheduled for Saturday at 1:45pm/et and will be shown on NBCSN.
See fastest laps and laps run on the Indianapolis Practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-22-2016)

SunnyD renews sponsorship with Roush Fenway, Stenhouse: You will find no "purple stuff" in the #17 team's cooler at Roush Fenway Racing, as the team has announced a multi-year extension with SunnyD as a primary partner on the #17 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford with driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. The iconic brand has served as the primary partner for Stenhouse in multiple races this season, including this weekend at the famed Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "We are very excited to have SunnyD extend its partnership on the #17," said Stenhouse. "It's a great brand and we have had a lot of fun this year promoting their product. In addition to the extension, SunnyD will serve as the primary for Stenhouse in the October Sprint Cup race at Charlotte and in the NASCAR XFINITY Race in Phoenix later this season. This season, Roush Fenway and SunnyD have teamed together in several unique social programs and promotions. Stenhouse and teammate Chris Buescher, along with FOX personalities Kaitlyn Vincie and Andrew Doud, recreated the classic "Purple Stuff" SunnyD commercial.(Roush Fenway)(7-22-2016)

Earnhardt Jr. sensing improvement: #88- Dale Earnhardt Jr. indicated Friday he is feeling a little better as he battles balance issues and nausea believed to be from concussions. Earnhardt, who has been working with doctors for the past 10 days, will miss his second consecutive race this weekend. "Today is the 1st day in many that I sensed improvement," Earnhardt tweeted Friday morning. "Seen small gains during my physical therapy as well. Light at the end of the tunnel." Earnhardt was replaced by one his Xfinity Series drivers, Alex Bowman, last week at New Hampshire and will be replaced by four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon this weekend at Indianapolis and next week at Pocono. There is no timetable for Earnhardt's return.(ESPN.com)
AND: Hendrick Motorsports held a press conference Friday morning at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with Jeff Gordon and Rick Hendrick. A few notes:
• Gordon says he has done everything he can do to prepare for the race this weekend. Heat will a concern, but he feels ready.
• Hendrick says Earnhardt, Jr. is "getting antsy" but he is going to follow doctor's orders.
• Gordon say he "didn't have to think twice" about filling in for the team.
• Gordon has not made a commitment for any races beyond Pocono. They will wait and see Earnhardt, Jr's status.
• Gordon was asked to fill in for Tony Stewart at Daytona, but could not do it because of his commitment to Fox.
• The biggest issue for Gordon will be to remember to pull into the #88 pit on Sunday and not into the #24 out of habit.
• Gordon had planned to drive the pace car on Sunday before the opportunity to drive came up.
(7-22-2016)

Stewart inducted into USAC Hall of Fame: Tony Stewart nodded, smiled and complied with dozens fans asking for pictures and autographs Thursday night, but eventually he cut them off and told them he needed to pay attention to the stage in front of him. After all, Stewart was waiting to hear his name called. When his time finally came, the fans returned the love as Stewart, along with 11 other drivers, was inducted USAC Hall of Fame prior to the 100-lap Silver Crown Rick Vogler Classic at Lucas Oil Raceway. Stewart, a Columbus, Ind., native, was the first driver to win all three USAC national championships in a single season, in 1995, and is one six USAC "Triple Crown" champions." He is also a member National Midget Hall of Fame. "This is the culmination of everything you do," Stewart said after the ceremony. "This is not what you think of while your career is going on, but toward the end of your career - and it's not the end of my career yet; I plan on going and racing a little bit - this is the stuff that reminds you of all the hard work and the fun you had along the way." Stewart has "no idea" where he will be next year but does not plan on leaving racing behind, saying he could race sprint cars just about anywhere in 2017.(Indianapolis Star)(7-22-2016)

Childress close to finalizing 2017 plans: Car owner Richard Childress anticipates he'll know his 2017 driver lineup within three weeks. While Childress told NBC Sports on Thursday that "we've still got a couple of months before we make any real decisions," he did say that "we'll kind of know in the next two or three weeks. We'll have a direction." The main question for the three-car organization is #31-Ryan Newman's status. He's in the final year of his contract, and Childress' grandson, Ty Dillon, appears set to move to Sprint Cup next season. The team also includes #27-Paul Menard, who is 23rd in the points. Childress said Menard's is expected to return to the team as sponsor next year. The final member of the team is #3-Austin Dillon, who is 13th in points and seeking to make the playoffs for the first time.
Ty Dillon has driven eight Sprint Cup races this season. He drove three races for Tony Stewart early in the season and has run five races for Circle Sport - Leavine Family Racing. "I think he'll be in a Cup car next year," Childress said of Ty Dillon. "I'm pretty sure he'll be in a Cup car. We're working on some different programs. Hell, he may be with us, who knows? We're just working on a lot of different things. Right now it's just a lot of things are hanging. We're trying to put together what's going to be the best for everybody, not just for RCR, but for the drivers and the sponsors, we're trying to put together good programs."(NBC Sports)(7-22-2016)

Indianapolis Chase Clinch Scenarios: Several drivers have the opportunity to clinch a spot in the top 30 this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This weekend, the magic number for the Sprint Cup Series is 271, as a driver will need to be 271 points ahead of 31st-place following Sunday's race to nab a top-30 spot, guaranteed. To clinch an early Chase berth, a driver must have multiple wins and a top-30 spot. #2-Brad Keselowski, #18-Kyle Busch and #19-Carl Edwards have already clinched a spot.
#20-Matt Kenseth (2 wins, 521 points, +301 points ahead of 31st): Just needs a top-30 spot to officially clinch.
#48-Jimmie Johnson (2 wins, 514 points, +294 points ahead of 31st): Just needs a top-30 spot.
#4-Kevin Harvick (1 Win, 636 points, +416 points ahead of 31st) -- Harvick has already clinched his top-30 spot, but the only way he can clinch a Chase berth at this point is by being a multi-race winner.
#41-Kurt Busch (1 win, 601 points, +382 points ahead of 31st) -- Can clinch with a win.
#22-Joey Logano (1 win, 571 points, +351 points ahead of 31st) -- Can clinch with a win.
#78-Martin Truex Jr (1 win, 540 points, +320 points ahead of 31st) -- Can clinch with a win.
#11-Denny Hamlin (1 win, 505 points, +285 points ahead of 31st) -- Can clinch with a win.
(NASCAR.com)(7-21-2016)

FORTUNE 100 companies increase in NASCAR: The list of blue-chip brands involved in NASCAR continues to grow. According to a recent internal analysis, the number of FORTUNE 100 companies investing in NASCAR has increased five percent year-over-year. Also, the number of FORTUNE 500 companies investing in the sport has either grown or sustained year-over-year since 2012. Overall, more than one-in-four FORTUNE 500 companies integrate NASCAR into their marketing strategies. A charter agreement with race teams, five-year track sanctioning deals, and a bevy of new or renewed long-term partnerships have contributed to NASCAR's business growth over the last several years. FORTUNE 500 companies Auto-Owners Insurance, Stanley DeWalt, Fastenal, O'Reilly Auto Parts and Axalta have all renewed with or entered the sport this season, highlighting the momentum across the industry. Repucom's SponsorLink survey shows NASCAR surpasses all other sports properties in fan sponsor consideration. Seven out of 10 NASCAR fans are loyal to a sponsor's brand when it supports the sport, and three out of four NASCAR fans would consider a sponsor's brand. While being a FORTUNE 500 company is the gold standard of success for publicly-traded companies in the United States, there are several global corporations involved in NASCAR that weren't included in the analysis because they do not meet FORTUNE's criteria. A number of blue-chip brands significantly involved in the sport did not qualify, including: Mars, MillerCoors, Shell and Toyota.(NASCAR Wire Service)(7-22-2016)

Carpentier returns to the #32: Heading into this weekend's event at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the #32 Can-Am/Kappa team will head to the "The Hoosier State" with the return of Quebec native Patrick Carpentier for the 23rd annual Crown Royal 400. Sunday's Crown Royal 400 will mark Carpentier's second career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Start start at the renowned 2.5-mile speedway, and his 42nd career NSCS start. Previously, Carpentier finshed 21st in the 2005 Indianapolis 500 driving for Red Bull and Eddie Cheever Jr. In his lone NSCS start at Indianapolis driving for Ray Evernham, Carpentier finished 18th after starting 15th in the 2008 Brickyard 400. The 44-year-old Quebec native is a five-time winner in Champ Car competition, and also won the Coors Light Pole Award in June 2008 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.(Go Fas Racing)(7-22-2016)

Sad News - Nancy Hammond: Nancy Tadlock Hammond, 85, of Charlotte died July 21. She was born on August 30, 1930 in Mecklenburg County to the late Marion Rube and Lura Tadlock. She was preceded in death by her husband Jacque Hammond. Survivors include her sons, Jeffrey Lee Hammond (Sharon) of Cleveland and Rodney Craig Hammond (Debra) of Cleveland; and grandchildren, Colt, Heather, Jacob and Jake. Visitation will be 5-7 PM Sunday, July 24 at James Funeral Home. The funeral service will be at 11:00 Monday at Oak Grove U.M.C. with Rev. Bob Roten officiating. Burial will follow at Sharon Memorial Park. Memorials may be made to the Serenity House, 110 Centre Church Rd., Mooresville, NC 28117. James Funeral Home of Huntersville is serving the family.(7-22-2016)

Indianapolis Driver Notes & Facts:
· 143 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway; 113 in more than one.
· Jeff Gordon is the only driver who has competed in all 22 races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Tony Stewart leads all active drivers with 17.
· Ryan Newman leads the series among active drivers in average starting position at Indianapolis with a 9.533.
· 13 different drivers have won at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, led by Jeff Gordon with five; followed by his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Jimmie Johnson, with four.
· Jimmie Johnson is the only driver to have posted consecutive wins at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (2008 and 2009).
· All seven active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race winners at Indianapolis Motor Speedway participated in at least one or more races before visiting Victory Lane.
· Jeff Gordon won the Brickyard 400 in his first start at Indianapolis (inaugural event 1994).
· Ryan Newman competed at Indianapolis Motor Speedway 12 times before winning in 2013; the longest span of any the seven active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners.
· Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth lead the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Indianapolis without visiting Victory Lane at 16 each.
· Paul Menard (07/31/11) is the only NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver to have posted his first career NSCS win at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
· NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace leads the series in runner-up finishes at Indianapolis with three; followed by Kyle Busch Bobby Labonte, Mark Martin and Matt Kenseth with two each.
· Jeff Gordon leads the series in top-five finishes at Indianapolis with 12; followed by Tony Stewart and Matt Kenseth with seven each.
· Jeff Gordon leads the series in top-10 finishes at Indianapolis with 17; followed by Tony Stewart and Mark Martin with 11 each.
· Tony Stewart leads NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at Indianapolis with a 9.647.
· Jeff Gordon leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Indianapolis with 528 laps led in 22 starts; Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers with 302 laps led in 14 starts.
· Danica Patrick became the first female driver to compete in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2013.
· Shawna Robinson (08/05/01) is the only other female driver to attempt to compete in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Indianapolis, but she failed to qualify for the event.
(NASCAR)

Kyle Busch fastest in XFINITY happy hour: #18-Kyle Busch was also quickest during final practice for the Lilly Diabetes 250 with a speed of 176.554mph. He was followed by: #20-Erik Jones, #19-Daniel Suarez, #3-Ty Dillon, #7-Justin Allgaier, #42-Kyle Larson, #28-Dakoda Armstrong, #88-Kevin Harvick, #1-Elliott Sadler, and #2-Paul Menard. 39 drivers participated in the session.
See complete results on the Indianapolis practice 2 speeds page (pdf).(7-22-2016)

Kyle Busch fastest in first XFINITY practice: #18-Kyle Busch was fastest during opening practice at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with a speed of 181.039mph. #1-Elliott Sadler was second, followed by: #19-Daniel Suarez, #88-Kevin Harvick, #7-Justin Allgaier, #20-Erik Jones, #2-Paul Menard, #3-Ty Dillon, #48-Brennan Poole, and #42-Kyle Larson. 40 drivers practiced during the session.
See complete results on the Indianapolis practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-22-2016)

Gase gets Indianapolis sponsor: #52-Joey Gase and Jimmy Means Racing welcome back JT Concrete, Inc. as a primary sponsor and Highway Equipment Company as an associate sponsor for the Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday afternoon. JT Concrete, Inc. is a full service concrete company based in Chicago. Highway Equipment Company is the leading manufacturer of HI-Way deicing spreaders and road maintenance equipment and New Leader crop nutrient applicators.(Joey Gase Racing)(7-22-2016)

Preece picks up Indy sponsors: Indianapolis-based Castleton Outdoor Solutions and Lyndhurst Lawnmower is sponsoring the #01 Chevrolet driven by Ryan Preece in Saturday's Lilly Diabetes 250 Xfinity Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Along with brands Toro and Ferris, the colors of Castleton, a family-owned business since 1975, will fly with Preece in one of the Xfinity season's biggest races. Castleton and Lyndhurst have two locations - on Johnson Road and West Michigan Street - in metro Indianapolis. Both locations offer a huge selection of new outdoor power equipment from a variety of fine manufacturers, including Toro and Ferris. Additionally, Castleton has one of the most extensive inventories of replacement parts in central Indiana. Included is a broad parts inventory that can be delivered overnight to anywhere in Indiana and within 48 hours to the rest of the 48 contiguous states.(JD Motorsports)(7-22-2016)

Lagging ticket sales pinching IMS profit UPDATE: An article for IBJ in 2003 about the Brickyard 400 ... was "Drafting off NASCAR." The story detailed the financial prowess of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's Brickyard 400, which debuted in 1994, and how then-Speedway boss Tony George used the money from the NASCAR race to prop up the Indy Racing League-now the IndyCar Series. The story noted that the NASCAR race brought in about $35 million in annual revenue in those days and $25 million or more in profit-yes, profit-for the Speedway. Back then, motorsports business experts said the race brought in more than $20 million in ticket revenue alone and that over the first decade of the race, it netted the Speedway about $300 million in profit. The Brickyard, according to IMS officials, is still profitable and is still a solid use of a fixed asset. But it's not as profitable as it used to be. Not even close.
And now the Speedway is hoping to use momentum from its IndyCar crown jewel-the Indianapolis 500-to somehow bolster the flagging Brickyard 400. The 100th running of the Indy 500 this May drew a huge crowd, and Speedway officials have been trying to convince spectators who saw that race at the Speedway that they should return to the track this weekend.
Attendance at the Brickyard 400 has plummeted from more than about 270,000 during its halcyon days to 75,000 in recent years. Not even the final NASCAR race here for Hoosier native Tony Stewart has drummed up much excitement this year. And 90-plus degree temperatures forecasted for the race this Sunday aren't going to help walk-up ticket sales. Semi-retired fan favorite Jeff Gordon will replace injured Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Sunday, the series announced this morning, so we'll see if that moves the needle.
In the meantime, business research firm WalletHub estimates ticket sales for this year's race will be $8.5 million. That might be optimistic. Either way, it's about one-third what it was at the Brickyard's high point. While the Speedway does get money from a variety of sources-TV, sponsorship, parking and concessions-sports business experts estimate two-thirds of the Speedway's Brickyard 400 revenue comes from ticket sales. Costs for the race were estimated at $5 million to $10 million a decade ago-and you can assume they've been hit by inflation like everyone else. So you can see the IMS' revenue and expenses are getting perilously close on this event. If the weather scares away another 20 percent of so of the crowd, it could be trouble.
Speedway President Doug Boles told IBJ earlier this month that, despite the attendance declines, the Brickyard still "draws more people than most NFL stadiums." He said it's the third-biggest annual sporting event in the state, behind the Indianapolis 500 and Carb Day. NASCAR does not release attendance figures, but Boles said the Brickyard 400 ranks between fourth and eighth out of NASCAR's 36 races each year.(Indianapolis Business Journal)(7-21-2016)
UPDATE: Jeff Gordon's return for a post-retirement run in the Brickyard 400 has been a commercial boon for Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Track president Doug Boles told USA TODAY Sports Thursday that ticket requests for the Sprint Cup race began to spike within 90 minutes of Hendrick Motorsports' announcement on Wednesday that Dale Earnhardt Jr. would miss his second-consecutive race and Gordon, an Indiana native, four-time series champion and five-time Brickyard-winner who retired last season, would take over the car. Boles said ticket sales generally ramp up in the days preceding the event but said a Gordon bump was tangible, with ticket sales up 35% on Wednesday this year compared to Wednesday before race in 2015. "A substantial difference," he said, "especially when you compare it to last year. And last year being Jeff's last year, it was a pretty good year for a lot of racetracks, including the Speedway and to have our sales more than last year the same days out tells you there is still a lot of demand for Jeff Gordon." Boles said the fact that Gordon was involved in an early wreck and failed to finish last season likely helped created a desire to see his last-last run at Indianapolis. With dire sales figures anecdotally surrounding the race, Boles conceded that this event will be down in attendance overall from last year, when Gordon's retirement was the focus of the track's marketing campaign. Attendance figures this season, he said, should be similar to 2014 levels.(USA Today)(7-22-2016)

Bands added to Michigan's Keloorah lineup: The lineup for Keloorah in August just got bigger. A Thousand Horses and Drake White and The Big Fire have been added to an already jammed packed festival schedule on August 26-27. The two acts join country music favorites Chase Rice, Chase Bryant, Kip Moore and Tim Dugger at Keloorah during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series weekend at Michigan International Speedway. Keloorah is a unique concept. It's a two-day music festival that takes place on Friday and Saturday during the August 26-28 NASCAR weekend at MIS. The talent lineup combined with unparalleled activities at the festival such as go karts, an arcade and paint and foam deejay party elevates the post-race fun. The lineup for Keloorah is impressive and will give NASCAR fans and music festival fans an experience to remember. Keloorah ticket packages that include a NASCAR ticket for the Pure Michigan 400 on Aug. 28 start at $60. NASCAR fans who already have a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series ticket for Aug. 28 can add a two-day Keloorah festival ticket for $30. Once inside Keloorah gates, all activities at the festival are FREE. Other activities include paint ball, cornhole tournaments hosted by MISCamping.com and a paint and foam deejay party between acts.(MIS)(7-21-2016)

Gordon's return could impact Hall of Fame admission: Jeff Gordon's return to Sprint Cup racing could impact his NASCAR Hall of Fame eligibility. He was on track to be nominated, after the required two years of retirement for a driver under 55, in 2018 for the 2019 class. NASCAR will have to determine if this two-race (at least) substitute role in place of Dale Earnhardt Jr. will push him into first being eligible to be nominated in 2019 for the 2020 class.(ESPN.com)(7-21-2016)

New Hampshire TV Ratings UPDATE: NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from New Hampshire scored a 2.0 overnight rating on NBCSN Sunday afternoon, down 13% from last year (2.3) and down 23% from 2014 on TNT (2.6). Overnights for the race have now dropped a full point in three years (from 3.0 in 2013).(Sports Media Watch), see race-by-race TV Ratings for 2016 and a comparison chart on the 2016 TV Ratings page.(7-19-2016)
UPDATE: For the second straight week, NASCAR ratings dropped on NBCSN. NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from New Hampshire scored a 2.1 and 3.3 million viewers on NBCSN Sunday afternoon, down 13% in ratings and 10% in viewership from last year (2.4, 3.7M) and down 22% and 23%, respectively, from 2014 on TNT (2.7, 4.3M). Keep in mind Dale Earnhardt Jr. missed Sunday's race due to concussion symptoms. His absence may or may not have had an impact on the numbers. As was the case with Kentucky the previous week, poor numbers for NASCAR are still big numbers for NBCSN. Sunday's race delivered the network's largest audience since last year's Martinsville Chase For the Cup race (3.4M), exceeding even Games 2 and 3 of the Stanley Cup Final.(Sports Media Watch)(7-21-2016)

Hendrick Motorsports looking for 1000th top-5: Cars fielded by Hendrick Motorsports have recorded 999 top-five finishes since the team was founded by Rick Hendrick in 1984. The owner's first Sprint Cup top-five also was his first win -- with driver Geoff Bodine on April 29, 1984, at Martinsville Speedway. This season, the organization has recorded 19 top-fives among its four drivers. Hendrick Motorsports posted a team record 57 top-five finishes in 2007.(Hendrick Motorsports)(7-21-2016)

Indianapolis Track Notes & History:
· Indianapolis Motor Speedway has existed since 1909, and is the original "Speedway," the first racing facility to incorporate the word into its name.
· With a permanent seating capacity for more than 250,000-plus people and infield seating that raises capacity to an approximate 400,000, it is the largest and highest-capacity sporting facility in history.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was August 6, 1994 - won by Jeff Gordon.
· The first NASCAR national series race held in the state of Indiana was at Funks Speedway in Winchester on October 15, 1950. The race was won by Lloyd Moore in a Mercury.
(NASCAR)

MBM announces IMS sponsors: MBM Motorsports announced that Tredwear and Master Properties will sponsor the #13 Toyota this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with Harrison Rhodes behind the wheel. Timmy Hill will be in the #40 Dodge with flwaterfront.com and crashclaimsr.us returning as sponsors.(MBM Motorsports)(7-21-2016)

Sieg gets two-race sponsor: RSS Racing welcomes NiceTargets as a two race primary sponsor for Ryan Sieg. NiceTargets will be on the #39 Chevrolet for the race this Saturday at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway as well as the race at Road America in August. NiceTargets offer a better, creative, less expensive solution to the archery & shooting world. The targets feature realistic imaging through printing technology at a low cost.(RSS Racing), see an image of the car on the #39 team paint schemes page.(7-21-2016)

Lagging ticket sales pinching IMS profit: An article for IBJ in 2003 about the Brickyard 400 ... was "Drafting off NASCAR." The story detailed the financial prowess of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's Brickyard 400, which debuted in 1994, and how then-Speedway boss Tony George used the money from the NASCAR race to prop up the Indy Racing League-now the IndyCar Series. The story noted that the NASCAR race brought in about $35 million in annual revenue in those days and $25 million or more in profit-yes, profit-for the Speedway. Back then, motorsports business experts said the race brought in more than $20 million in ticket revenue alone and that over the first decade of the race, it netted the Speedway about $300 million in profit. The Brickyard, according to IMS officials, is still profitable and is still a solid use of a fixed asset. But it's not as profitable as it used to be. Not even close.
And now the Speedway is hoping to use momentum from its IndyCar crown jewel-the Indianapolis 500-to somehow bolster the flagging Brickyard 400. The 100th running of the Indy 500 this May drew a huge crowd, and Speedway officials have been trying to convince spectators who saw that race at the Speedway that they should return to the track this weekend.
Attendance at the Brickyard 400 has plummeted from more than about 270,000 during its halcyon days to 75,000 in recent years. Not even the final NASCAR race here for Hoosier native Tony Stewart has drummed up much excitement this year. And 90-plus degree temperatures forecasted for the race this Sunday aren't going to help walk-up ticket sales. Semi-retired fan favorite Jeff Gordon will replace injured Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Sunday, the series announced this morning, so we'll see if that moves the needle.
In the meantime, business research firm WalletHub estimates ticket sales for this year's race will be $8.5 million. That might be optimistic. Either way, it's about one-third what it was at the Brickyard's high point. While the Speedway does get money from a variety of sources-TV, sponsorship, parking and concessions-sports business experts estimate two-thirds of the Speedway's Brickyard 400 revenue comes from ticket sales. Costs for the race were estimated at $5 million to $10 million a decade ago-and you can assume they've been hit by inflation like everyone else. So you can see the IMS' revenue and expenses are getting perilously close on this event. If the weather scares away another 20 percent of so of the crowd, it could be trouble.
Speedway President Doug Boles told IBJ earlier this month that, despite the attendance declines, the Brickyard still "draws more people than most NFL stadiums." He said it's the third-biggest annual sporting event in the state, behind the Indianapolis 500 and Carb Day. NASCAR does not release attendance figures, but Boles said the Brickyard 400 ranks between fourth and eighth out of NASCAR's 36 races each year.(Indianapolis Business Journal)(7-21-2016)

New Hampshire Post-race penalties and warnings: NASCAR has announced penalties and warnings following the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 17th.
#20-Matt Kenseth was given a P3 penalty for violations of Sections 12.1; 20.17.3.1.2 [Failed the post-race Laser Inspection Station (LIS) measurements]. Crew chief (Jason Ratcliff) has been fined $25,000; team has been assessed with the loss of 15 championship owner and 15 championship driver points.
The following warnings were issued:
#3-Dillon (4), Failed LIS three times, pre-race inspection, Written warning and loss of 15 minutes of practice time
#4-Harvick (2), Failed template inspection three times, prequalifying inspection, Written warning and loss of 15 minutes of practice time
#22-Logano (1), Failed LIS twice, pre-race inspection, Written Warning
#1-McMurray (3), #3-Dillon (4), #6-Bayne (3), #10-Patrick (2), #14_Stewart (3), #15-Bowyer (2), #19-Edwards (1), #21-Blaney (2), #42-Larson (3), #47-Allmendinger (3), #83-DiBenedetto (3), Failed template inpection twice, prequalifying inspection, Written Warning
#19_Edwards (1), Failed LIS twice, pre-qualifying inspection, Written Warning
()--Total current warnings
See the New Hampshire Post-Event Penalty & Warning Report(pdf) for more.(7-20-2016)

Earnhardt, Jr. to miss at least two more races; Gordon to sub: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 Chevrolet SS for Hendrick Motorsports, has not been cleared by physicians to compete in at least the next two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events as he continues to recover from concussion-like symptoms. He will miss the races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Pocono Raceway. Four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon will be the team's substitute driver at Indianapolis and Pocono. He most recently raced in the 2015 Sprint Cup season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Gordon, who grew up in Pittsboro, Indiana, ranks third all-time with 93 career victories in the series, including six at Pocono and five in the Brickyard 400 - both records. Earnhardt underwent further evaluation Tuesday at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Sports Medicine Concussion Program. The driver said this week on his "The Dale Jr. Download" podcast that he has been experiencing issues with balance and nausea. He will not travel to Indianapolis or Pocono. "Our focus is giving Dale all the time he needs to recover," said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports. "There's nothing we want more than to see him back in the race car, but we'll continue to listen to the doctors and follow their lead. What's best for Dale is what's best for Hendrick Motorsports and everyone involved with the team. We're all proud of him and looking forward to having him racing soon." Gordon, 44, has made all 797 of his career Cup starts for car owner Hendrick. He competed in his 23rd and final full-time Sprint Cup Series season in 2015. "Jeff's a team player," Hendrick said. "I know he'll be ready, and I know Dale has incredible trust in him. It's going to be an emotional weekend (at Indianapolis) with Dale not being there and seeing Jeff back behind the wheel. Greg (Ives) and the team did a great job at New Hampshire, and they have the full support of our organization."(Hendrick Motorsports)(7-20-2016)

Update on NASCAR Cup entitlement search: NASCAR is in the process of selling its premier series entitlement sponsorship, the most recognized asset for NASCAR and one of the most prominent in sports. NASCAR's expiring series entitlement sponsorship with Sprint started in 2004 with a ten year deal between Nextel and NASCAR. The sponsorship required a shift from Nextel Cup Series to Sprint Cup Series in 2008 and has remained as such ever since. The parties previously extended their arrangement through 2016.
How Much Money Will It Cost For NASCAR Series Entitlement Sponsorship?
Sprint was spending somewhere between $50 million and $75 million annually to be the series entitlement sponsor of NASCAR's highest level of racing. A year ago, NASCAR purportedly was seeking a price of $100 million per year with a minimum commitment of ten years prior to Sprint deciding to remain as the series entitlement sponsor for one final season. It was reported that NASCAR believed it could fetch a guarantee of $1 billion. The fee would be split between annual rights fees and activation. Sources have recently disputed the veracity of reports indicating that NASCAR's next premier entitlement sponsor pays $100 million per year. It is much more likely that NASCAR receives an amount commensurate with what Sprint paid in its expiring deal.
Which Brands Are In The Chase For Entitlement Sponsorship?
[NASCAR Chief Sales Officer] O'Connell told me that NASCAR is currently in serious talks with roughly a dozen companies within various categories and that NASCAR's timeline is to narrow the list down to a few final contenders by the end of Summer. NASCAR Chief Marketing Officer Steve Phelps recently stated that NASCAR is in talks with eight to ten companies. O'Connell expects an announcement by the Fall, which would be a similar timeline as to what took place when the Nationwide Series shifted to XFINITY.
In October 2015, SportsBusiness Journal indicated that the following companies had been pitched on the title sponsorship: Panasonic, LG, Coca-Cola, Goodyear, Comcast and Hisense, with Hisense showing the most interest at that time. Hinese would fall into the latter, international category described by O'Connell.(Forbes)(7-19-2016)
UPDATE: All good things must come to an end and such is the case with NASCAR's relationship with outgoing entitlement sponsor, Sprint. But that does not mean there aren't bigger and better things on the horizon for the sport's top racing series. The list of companies wanting to step forward with an iconic branding opportunity has now been narrowed to roughly a dozen, NASCAR Chief Sales Officer, Jim O'Connell, told Kickin' the Tires on Thursday. "We are in a great place," O'Connell said. "Timing wise we are exactly where we thought we would be. The numbers go up and down but we are talking to approximately a dozen companies right now. From a timing standpoint we look to narrow that down to a handful sometime (later) this summer and we look to make the announcement sometime in the Fall, similar to what we did with Xfinity. We are talking to a number of great companies." There has been speculation of two potential entitlement sponsors but that does not appear to be the case as several people involved, who asked not to have their names used in this article, said the traditional entitlement sponsorship is what most companies appear interested in. Still, there is a chance for tweaks and adjustments based on the needs of the sponsor and the sport. For example, it might not make sense for the entitlement sponsor to have its name on the All-Star race or it might be better for a company to have a specifically-branded identity for the Chase for the Championship. O'Connell declined to address specifics when asked but indicated NASCAR would try to keep close to its existing model, while meeting the best needs of the next entitlement sponsor. "While it certainly won't look exactly how Sprint has done the partnership, we are flexible to fit the needs of our new brand," O'Connell said. "But I don't want to get into details of how a new partnership might look. I don't want to say anything is off the table but if it is the right fit we will consider looking at things differently than we have done in the past. We have been asked about different things - some of which you have mentioned."
O'Connell stopped short of saying exactly which companies NASCAR was negotiating with but he was adamant things were going well despite rumors to the contrary. It's expected he would paint a rosy picture but sources have confirmed some companies have actually been declined by NASCAR because it wasn't a good business decision. Of course, there's been a few PG-13 jokes about which companies might or, might not, be interested and what the series would be named if certain companies sealed a deal. There have also been rumors that, at least, one insurance company was interested in becoming the entitlement sponsor but after reviewing contracts with its teams and partners, it was determined a deal could hurt several teams and the investment wouldn't offset money lost from other sponsors that might end up being locked out of the sport, like Verizon was when Sprint came on-board. NASCAR doesn't want to have a sponsor that will hurt the financial strength of its race teams and track partners.
One issue that keeps coming up is the overall cost of the entitlement sponsorship, which appears to be confusing with regards to how much a company would pay to NASCAR and how much the activation by that company would cost. Early numbers hit the $1 billion mark but that was said to be inaccurate. Whatever company comes on-board will pay a rights fee. That amount is only a portion of the investment must make but the money doesn't necessarily go to the sanctioning body. In fact, the new entitlement sponsor will want to spend money with tracks for activation during race weekends, on advertising and marketing and then on other promotions that would boost fan interest in the sport and the sponsor's brand. That is separate from what NASCAR would receive but it would be included in an overall total value.
See much more at Kickin the Tires.(7-20-2016)

Kenseth wins Slinger Nationals: Matt Kenseth had won the Slinger Nationals six times before Tuesday night. He apologized for winning his seventh. Faced with a late restart he really, really didn't want, the champion driver from Cambridge knocked his NASCAR teammate Erik Jones out of way in a two-lap shootout and went on to the checkered flag and a subdued victory celebration. "I got going OK, and I was tight on that last restart and I lost the lead to Erik there," Kenseth said. "He had me beat on the last restart. I just didn't want to lose it on the last one. My move wasn't a very good one. It was definitely uncalled for. I hit him way too hard. I didn't want to make any contact to start with, but I felt like he moved me three or four times before that. I felt like that was probably going to be the etiquette. It was definitely way too extreme, way too hard. I was just trying to move him up off the bottom a little bit and overshot it a bit." Despite a wild ride through Turn 2 after the white flag, the 20-year-old Jones hung on for second in his debut at the challenging, high-banked quarter-mile. He climbed out sweaty and irritated. "We raced into 1 and 2, I moved him up...and after that...we just about got dumped in 1 and 2 - I don't know what that's all about - the next time by," Jones said. "That's not really short-track racing in my book. We were the best cars here, with Matt, and I thought we were a little better, but it got away at the end." The two talked on the victory podium and seemed to come away OK, at least. Behind them, local driver Travis Dassow took third place and came away happier than the first- and second-place finishers together.(Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)(7-20-2016)

Lower downforce package could return at Michigan UPDATE: The low, low downforce package was met with mixed reviews at Kentucky Speedway on Saturday - but could we see it again before the Chase for the Sprint Cup begins? NASCAR will meet with team representatives on Wednesday to review the latest experience with the proposed 2017 configuration for the Cup Series to determine what, if any, changes need to be made and if the sport needs to take another run with the car prior to next season. While NASCAR has said repeatedly there will be no changes to the current 2016 rules package for the Chase, the possibility of running the lower downforce package at Michigan Speedway next month is not completely off the table. [NASCAR senior vice president of competition Scott Miller] believes the lower downforce package actually enhanced the racing on Saturday. He believes the additional grip provided by a higher-downforce package could have been a recipe for disaster. "The low, low downforce package, if that's what we're calling it now, helped at this race on the repave," Miller said. "I think the corner speeds would have been extremely high, and with the higher downforce stepping out of the groove might have even had more consequences than we had (Saturday night)."(Motorsport)(7-12-2016)
UPDATE: Goodyear is planning ahead for whatever challenges NASCAR has in store for the tire manufacturer. While no decision has been made regarding which aerodynamic setup the Sprint Cup Series will return to Michigan International Speedway next month with the 2017 prototype or the current 2016 low downforce package, the tire manufacturer will be prepared. "When we tested there to come up with the package that we ran at the first Michigan (June), we tested under both conditions - both downforce settings - with that same setup," Stu Grant, Goodyear's General Manager of Worldwide Racing, told Motorsport.com. "We had a lot of discussions with NASCAR, 'So what are you guys going to do rules-wise, tire-wise and so on?' It didn't really matter to us. We were ok on both downforce settings with that setup. So, whatever they choose, we have the tire for that. I know there's discussion about going back there with lower downforce setting. Then there's the school of thought, 'Let's get another data point and change it.' I have not heard one way or another what the decision it, but we're prepared both ways."(Motorsport)(7-20-2016)

Ragan adds another assoicate sponsor for Indy: BK Racing announced the signing of Schwarze Industries as an associate sponsor on David Ragan's #23 Brandeis Camry at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. With more parking lot and street sweeper models to choose from than any other manufacturer, Schwarze Industries is dedicated to using a Total Performance Teamwork concept to produce, maintain and market the finest, most durable, quality power sweeping equipment in the world.(BK Racing)(7-20-2016)

Suit filed against NASCAR, Daytona for 2015 wreck: A Florida man who alleges he was hit in the head and shoulder while shielding his wife from flying debris after Austin Dillon's car flew into the Daytona International Speedway catch fence has filed a lawsuit against the track and NASCAR. William Fulton claims in the lawsuit, filed Monday in Florida state court in Volusia County (Fla.), that he was sitting in Row 6 when the crash happened at the finish of the July 2015 Coke Zero 400. Beyond stating in the complaint that he has not fully recovered from the injuries, Fulton did not list specific injuries in his complaint nor a specific amount being sought in damages. According to the complaint, the track, its parent company International Speedway Corp. and NASCAR, were negligent, among other things, for "failing to properly remedy known dangerous conditions following continued, numerous injuries to spectators as a result of airborne race cars crashing into the catch fences" and for "failing to conduct a thorough engineering analysis of the catch fences and pre-race inspection of the fences." Spokesmen for NASCAR, which sanctions and operates the races, and ISC said they had no comment on the lawsuit. Fulton's attorney, David Beers, declined comment.(ESPN.com)(7-20-2016)

NASCAR Foundation Board of Directors Adds Two Members: The NASCAR Foundation announced two key additions to its board of directors, further strengthening the organization's leadership and its relationships with business communities on both local and national levels. Katie Palmer, Florida Personal Lines Leader with Daytona Beach-based Brown & Brown Insurance, and Sunoco LP Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Cynthia Archer will join the board that is led by Chairwoman Emeritus Betty Jane France and Chairman Mike Helton. The NASCAR Foundation is NASCAR's charitable arm that works to improve the lives of children in need. It was founded in 2006 by France. Brown & Brown was founded in Daytona Beach in 1939. The growth of its business model from regional to national scope coincided with that of NASCAR, which started in Daytona Beach in 1947. Sunoco has been the Official Fuel of NASCAR since 2004 and since then, has almost doubled the size of its retail network. Palmer, who has been with Brown & Brown since 2012, said she is "extremely honored to join The NASCAR Foundation and to be a part of an organization that is filled with such a passion and dedication for helping today's youth live happier, healthier lives." Archer is a longtime Sunoco executive who was deeply involved with Sunoco's entrance into the sport in 2004 and with the growth in Sunoco's partnership with NASCAR since then. She has held her current positions since April 2015.(NASCAR)(7-20-2016)

Sad News - Garland Jack Biffle: #16-Greg Biffle tweeted Tuesday morning that his father has passed away, "My father/veteran Garland Jack Biffle passed away this morning at 10:32am.. He taught me some much in life and I will miss him greatly..RIP". No additional details available at this time.(7-20-2016)

New Hampshire Post-race and warning: NASCAR has announced a warnings following the New Hampshire XFINITY Series race.
#3-Dillon (3), Failed template inspection three times in prequalifying inspection, written warning
()--Total current warnings
See the New Hampshire Post-Event Penalty & Warning Report(pdf) for more.(7-20-2016)

Obaika Racing plans two cars for rest of season: Obaika Racing debuted new car #77 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. VroomBrands has been the primary sponsor for Obaika Racing's #97 in the 2015 and 2016 Xfinity Season. VroomBrands will also be the primary sponsor for the race team's second car, the #77. For all upcoming races, Obaika Racing, will be running two cars until the end of the season.(Obaika Racing)(7-20-2016)

Clements names Indianapolis sponsors: Indianapolis Motor Speedway is hallowed ground, a fact that is not lost on Jeremy Clements, who returns to the Brickyard with RepairableVehicles.com and SDD, Signs & Displays Direct for the Lilly Diabetes 250. After making their debut with JCR at Talladega, SDD- Signs & Displays Direct, has returned for Saturday's race. Launched in 2006, SDD provides "quality products with knowledgeable customer service and value pricing," according to SDD's Kaz Rossetto. "SDD creates turnkey, no inventory, in-store display and graphics programs for manufacturers and retailers." RepairableVehicles.com, a division of Interstate Auto Center, Inc., is one of the leading resellers of repairable vehicles in North America. By working together with insurance companies, dealerships, rental companies, and automotive salvage auctions, they are able to provide an ever changing inventory of high quality total-loss, recovered theft, collision damage, and other types of repairable vehicles to customers worldwide. Joining RepairableVehicles.com as associate sponsors on the #51 car this week are Coca Cola of Spartanburg, Fish Camp, Robert Ianuario, Cometic, Wix and Kollegetown.(Jeremy Clements Racing)(7-20-2016)

Larson wins Truck Series Race at Eldora #24-Kyle Larson overcame a one-lap deficit to win the Aspen Dental Dirt Derby at Eldora Speedway on Wednesday. Larson was penalized one lap for intentionally bringing out a caution just 50 laps into the race. In the closing laps, he was able to hold off the defending race-winner, #4-Christopher Bell, to get the win. Bell finished second, followed by: #98-Rico Abreu, #11-Jake Griffin, #29-Tyler Reddick, #00-Cole Custer, #13-Cameron Hayley, #19-Daniel Hemric, #22-Austin Wayne Self, and #88-Matt Crafton.
#63-Bobby Pierce led the field to green and held the position for 102 of the event's 150 laps. With just over 25 laps remaining however, Pierce bounced hard off of the wall while chasing down Larson. The damage was done and he ended the race in 25th.
There were 9 cautions for 52 laps and 3 lead changes among 2 leaders.
The average speed was 41.971mph.
Complete results are on the Eldora race results page (pdf).
(7-20-2016)

Eldora Race Fast Facts:
Kyle Larson(i) won the 4th Annual Aspen Dental Eldora Dirt Derby 150, his second victory in 12 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.
This is his first victory and second top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his first victory and second top-10 finish in three races at Eldora Speedway.
Christopher Bell (second) posted his second top-10 finish in two races at Eldora Speedway. It is his seventh top-10 finish in 2016.
Rico Abreu (third) posted his first top-10 finish at Eldora Speedway and best of his NCWTS career.
Christopher Bell (second) was the highest finishing rookie.
William Byron # leads the point standings by 9 points over Matt Crafton.
(NASCAR Statistics)(7-20-2016)

Driver standings following Eldora:
1) #9-William Byron #, 282
2) #88-Matt Crafton, 273, -9
3) #19-Daniel Hemric, 271, -11
4) #21-Johnny Sauter, 253, -29
5) #17-Timothy Peters, 252, -30
6) #4-Christopher Bell #, 245, -37
7) #29-Tyler Reddick, 243, -39
8) #8-John Hunter Nemechek, 232, -50
9) #33-Ben Kennedy, 225 -57
10) #13-Cameron Hayley, 220, -62
See complete standings on the driver standings page (pdf).(7-20-2016)

Owner Standings following Eldora are posted (pdf).(7-20-2016)

Lucky Dogs - Who got a lap back on each caution at Eldora: (and their finish)
Caution 1: #33-Kennedy, 11th
Caution 2: #98-Abreu, 3rd
Caution 3: #00-Custer, 6th
Caution 4 #19-Hemric, 8th
Caution 5: #33-Kennedy, 11th
Caution 6: #24-Larson, 1st
Caution 7: #9-Byron, 14th
Caution 8: #44-Heffner, 15th
Caution 9: #44-Heffner, 15th
(7-20-2016)

Pierce, Reddick, Schrader, Heffner, Rhodes win heats: #63-Bobby Pierce, #29-Tyler Reddick, #71-Ken Schrader, #44-JR Heffner, #41-Ben Rhodes won the heat races, securing top-five starting spots. #51-Cody Coughlin won the last chance race. #98-Rico Abreu followed Coughlin in the final transfer slot. The remainder of the field was set on points.
Failed to qualify: #78-Chris Fontaine, #82-Sean Corr , #43-Korbin Forrister, #6-Norm Benning, and #10-Caleb Roark.
#75-Caleb Holman had the fastest individual lap in qualifying. He will start sixth, followed by #24-Kyle Larson, #21-Johnny Sauter, #23-Spencer Gallagher, and #4-Christopher Bell.
See the starting lineup on the Starting lineup page(pdf)(7-20-2016)

Qualifying race results: #63-Pierce won race 1. See results on the Race 1 results (pdf) page
#29-Reddick won race 2. See results on the Race 2 results (pdf) page
#71-Schrader won race 3. See results on the Race 3 results (pdf) page
#44-Heffner won race 4. See results on the Race 4 results (pdf) page
#41-Rhodes won race 5. See results on the Race 5 results (pdf) page
#51-Coughlin won the Last Chance race. See results on the Last Chance Race results (pdf) page
(7-20-2016)

Heat race groups:
Race 1: #75-Holman, #11-Griffin, #8-Nemechek, #63-Pierce, #10-Roark, #66-Anderson, #05-Boswell, #49-Edwards
Race 2:#29-Reddick, #16-Friesen, #24-Larson, #43-Forrister, #22-Self, #88-Crafton, #51-Coughlin, #33-Kennedy
Race 3: #71-Schrader, #98-Abreu, #21-Sauter, #00-Custer, #80-Shipley, #50-Kvapil, #9-Byron
Race 4: #44-Heffner, #86-Brown, #02-Young, #23-Gallagher, #78-Fontaine, #6-Benning, #17-Peters
Race 5: #41-Rhodes, #4-Bell, #07-Creed, #19-Hemric, #1-Cobb, #13-Hayley. #82-Corr

Holman fastest in qualifying at Eldora: #75-Caleb Holman ran the fastest lap for the Aspen Dental Eldora Dirt Derby at Eldora Speedway with a speed of 86.659mph. #29-Tyler Reddick, #71-Ken Schrader, #44-JR Heffner, #41-Ben Rhodes, #11-Jake Griffin, #16-Stewart Friesen, #98-Rico Abreu, #86-Brandon Brown, and #4-Christopher Bell followed in the top-10. Five qualifying races and a last chance race will determine the starting lineup. See complete results on the Qualifying results page (pdf) page.(7-20-2016)

Update on Earnhardt Jr. expected Wednesday: Team Hendrick tweeted Tuesday afternoon, "We expect to make an announcement Wednesday regarding plans for @IMS."(7-19-2016)

HScott Motorsports makes personnel moves: HScott Motorsports has made personnel changes in order to better utilize its expertise and resources over the second half of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. The following changes are effective immediately:
• Jay Guy is promoted from crew chief of the #46 Pilot/Flying J Chevrolet driven by Michael Annett, to HScott Motorsports Technical Director. Guy will report to Competition Director, Steve Addington.
• Mike Hillman, Sr. takes over as the crew chief of the #46, under direction of Addington and Guy.
Jay Guy, who has been with HScott Motorsports since the start of the 2015 season, has been involved in management or crew-chief positions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series dating back to the 2003 season. Guy has one previous win as crew chief during the 2013 Talladega Superspeedway Aaron's 499 for David Ragan. Mike Hillman, Sr. served as a crew chief and general manager in each of NASCAR's top three series. In 2012, he started Hillman Racing, which competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series through the 2016 season and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series through the 2014 season.(HScott Motorsports)(7-19-2016)

McDowell's Darlington scheme to honor Richard Childress: Circle Sport - Leavine Family Racing unveiled its throwback paint scheme for the upcoming Bojangles' Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team will honor Richard Childress by running a special #95 Thrivent Financial Chevrolet SS paint scheme saluting Childress' 1973 #3 Kansas Jack car. Childress may be a legendary car owner in NASCAR today, but the Winston-Salem, N.C. native started his career in the drivers' seat and collected six Top-5 and 76 Top-10 finishes between 1969-81. He went on to finish fifth in the NASCAR premier series standings in 1975 before retiring as a driver in 1981.
"Back in those days, the 'independents' like us all worked on our own cars and drove the trucks," recalled Childress of his driving career. "I loved it! I loved the driving part of it. We'd work 60-70 hours a week just to get to drive. I loved Darlington, it was one of my favorite tracks. It was really narrow back then had guard rails around it. I'll never forget being there as a rookie and taking it all in."
CSLFR is a modern-day independent team, running a single-car entry in the NSCS. The team entered a technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing at the start of the 2016 season and is thrilled to represent the newly inducted NASCAR Hall of Fame member with this historical paint scheme at Darlington Raceway.(Circle Sport - Leavine Family Racing), see images of the car on the #95 team paint schemes page.(7-19-2016)

New Hampshire TV Ratings: NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from New Hampshire scored a 2.0 overnight rating on NBCSN Sunday afternoon, down 13% from last year (2.3) and down 23% from 2014 on TNT (2.6). Overnights for the race have now dropped a full point in three years (from 3.0 in 2013).(Sports Media Watch), see race-by-race TV Ratings for 2016 and a comparison chart on the 2016 TV Ratings page.(7-19-2016)

NASCAR considering changes to pit road timing UPDATE: NASCAR officials are contemplating changes to their electronic timing systems in the pits at New Hampshire Motor Speedway after the controversy surrounding last week's penalty to #78-Martin Truex Jr. Truex was penalized for passing leader Kevin Harvick Jr. on the inside while accelerating into his pit stall. The Furniture Row Racing driver said he unfairly was singled out by NASCAR on the call, noting that several other drivers have made the maneuver this season without penalty (a claim that was supported this week by video evidence). By increasing the number of timing lines, which typically split the pits into six or eight sections, it would decrease the efficacy of the practice of accelerating to enter or exit the pit stall because there would be less wiggle room for drivers. Speeding in the pits is measured by time over distance rather than in real time, so with shorter sections for monitoring, there'd be less opportunity to exceed the prescribed mph. NASCAR officials said they also are considering other methods that could be implemented in Sunday's New Hampshire 301 and will address it in the prerace drivers meeting.(NBC Sports)(7-16-2016)
UPDATE: NASCAR experimented with extra timing loops on pit road for the Xfinity and Sprint Cup races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, a week after a penalty to Martin Truex Jr. raised questions about drivers accelerating past a competitor while heading to their pit stall. The extra timing loops were not live because NASCAR wanted to ensure they would work within the software in place. NASCAR hopes to implement the expanded system soon, a statement Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR's chief racing development officer, noted Monday on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. This isn't the first time NASCAR has added extra timing loops at a track after questions about the issue. Jeff Gordon called for extra timing loops after the 2011 Bristol night race, saying that Matt Kenseth and Brad Keselowski both sped to their stalls, passing cars, once they passed the final timing line before their pit stall. Extra timing loops were in place there for the spring 2012 race. O'Donnell also asked on "The Morning Drive" if there could be another system used to better control pit road speeds by competitors. "We like the fact that it's in the driver's hands and team's hands instead of flipping the switch (to run pit road speed), we feel like that is part of the NASCAR experience, NASCAR racing, but I think what you can see us go to is more consistent GPS data, which we are working hard on," O'Donnell said. "We're not there yet. So, short-term, it will be some additional (timing) loops. As NASCAR develops new technologies, we're going to embrace those. It's an area we can get more data out to the fans as well and that's something we're going to look at for sure and is in the works and excited about the possibilities in that space."(NBC Sports)(7-19-2016)

Update on NASCAR Cup entitlement search: NASCAR is in the process of selling its premier series entitlement sponsorship, the most recognized asset for NASCAR and one of the most prominent in sports. NASCAR's expiring series entitlement sponsorship with Sprint started in 2004 with a ten year deal between Nextel and NASCAR. The sponsorship required a shift from Nextel Cup Series to Sprint Cup Series in 2008 and has remained as such ever since. The parties previously extended their arrangement through 2016.
How Much Money Will It Cost For NASCAR Series Entitlement Sponsorship?
Sprint was spending somewhere between $50 million and $75 million annually to be the series entitlement sponsor of NASCAR's highest level of racing. A year ago, NASCAR purportedly was seeking a price of $100 million per year with a minimum commitment of ten years prior to Sprint deciding to remain as the series entitlement sponsor for one final season. It was reported that NASCAR believed it could fetch a guarantee of $1 billion. The fee would be split between annual rights fees and activation. Sources have recently disputed the veracity of reports indicating that NASCAR's next premier entitlement sponsor pays $100 million per year. It is much more likely that NASCAR receives an amount commensurate with what Sprint paid in its expiring deal.
Which Brands Are In The Chase For Entitlement Sponsorship?
[NASCAR Chief Sales Officer] O'Connell told me that NASCAR is currently in serious talks with roughly a dozen companies within various categories and that NASCAR's timeline is to narrow the list down to a few final contenders by the end of Summer. NASCAR Chief Marketing Officer Steve Phelps recently stated that NASCAR is in talks with eight to ten companies. O'Connell expects an announcement by the Fall, which would be a similar timeline as to what took place when the Nationwide Series shifted to XFINITY.
In October 2015, SportsBusiness Journal indicated that the following companies had been pitched on the title sponsorship: Panasonic, LG, Coca-Cola, Goodyear, Comcast and Hisense, with Hisense showing the most interest at that time. Hinese would fall into the latter, international category described by O'Connell.
See more at Forbes.(7-19-2016)

Top 10 Driver Ratings at Indianapolis:
#48-Jimmie Johnson 106.5
#42-Kyle Larson 103.6
#18-Kyle Busch 101.5
#14-Tony Stewart 101.2
#5-Kasey Kahne 97.4
#20-Matt Kenseth 97.0
#4-Kevin Harvick 96.6
#11-Denny Hamlin 91.3
#16-Greg Biffle 90.3
#22-Joey Logano 88.7
Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2015 races (16 total) among active drivers at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Formula combining the following categories: Win, Finish, Top-15 Finish, Average Running Position while on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps, Lead-Lap Finish. Maximum: 150 points per race.
See an explanation how the Driver Rating is calculated at NASCAR.com.(NASCAR)

Indianapolis Goodyear Tire Notes: Teams in both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Xfinity Series will run the same tire codes at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this week . . . this is the same left-side tire code (D-4650) these teams ran at Indy last year, though this is a different right-side code (D-4710) . . . compared to what was run at Indianapolis last year, this right-side features slightly less gage (tread thickness) to reduce heat and align with what is run at Pocono . . . Sprint Cup teams ran this same right-side code at Pocono in June, and will do so again next week . . . this tire set-up came out of a Goodyear test at Indy on April 26-27 . . . drivers taking part in that test were Aric Almirola, Carl Edwards, Chase Elliott and Tony Stewart . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams will run inner liners in all four tire positions at Indianapolis . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.(Goodyear), see tire codes, pressures, set limits and more on the Indianapolis Race Info page

Gdovic returns to XFINITY Series at Indianapolis: Reigning Lamborghini Gallardo World Champion, Brandon Gdovic, will return to the seat of the #46 Chevrolet Camaro for the Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 23rd, 2016. Multi-year partner TCC will join Precision Performance Motorsports as primary sponsor as they hope to spread the message about the Culture of Good initiative. The Culture of Good is a cultural movement, launched in 2013, of TCC doing good in its local communities where stores are located. All efforts of good happen on a local level by the employees who help lead what has become a grass roots movement changing lives and communities in the US. Local is what the Culture of Good is all about. Partnerships happen with local organizations by Donate a Dollar, the in-store donations that are given by customers. Each dollar given goes right back into that community to further efforts to do good. Employees are encouraged to give their time to volunteer with any local organization that quarterly donations are given to.(Precision Performance Motorsports), see an image of the car on the #46 team paint schemes page.(7-19-2016)

Bell fastest in final Truck practice: #4-Christopher Bell was fastest in final practice for the Aspen Dental Dirt Derby at Eldora Speedway with a speed of 82.369mph. He was followed by #13-Cameron Hayley, #98-Rico Abreu, #24-Kyle Larson, #41-Ben Rhodes, #63-Bobby Pierce, #29-Tyler Reddick, #88-Matt Crafton, #19-Daniel Hemric, and #33-Ben Kennedy. 36 drivers practiced during the session. See complete results on the Eldora practice 2 speeds page (pdf).(7-19-2016)

Reddick fastest in first Truck practice: #29-Tyler Reddick was fastest during opening practice at Eldora Speedway with a speed of 85.808mph. #24-Kyle Larson was second, followed by: #4-Christopher Bell, #98-Rico Abreu, #63-Bobby Pierce, #88-Matt Crafton, #19-Daniel Hemric, #11-Jake Griffin, #33-Ben Kennedy, #16-Stewart Friesen. 38 drivers practiced during the session. See complete results on the Eldora practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-19-2016)

Virginia Lottery returns to Martinsville Speedway as pole day sponsor: The Virginia Lottery is returning to Martinsville Speedway to once again sponsor Virginia Lottery Pole Day on October 28, Speedway President Clay Campbell announced. The Virginia Lottery, which has partnered with the race track since 2014, will also sponsor Pole Day for the STP 500 race weekend in the spring of 2017. The Virginia Lottery generates more than $1.4 million per day for Virginia's K-12 public schools. Operating entirely on revenue from the sale of Lottery products, the Virginia Lottery generated nearly $534 million for Virginia's public schools in Fiscal Year 2015. In addition to qualifying for the Goody's Fast Relief 500, there will be plenty of more excitement on Virginia Lottery Pole Day. The Camping World Truck Series will practice for the Texas Roadhouse 200 presented by Alpha Energy Solutions and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will practice for the Goody's Fast Relief 500.(Martinsville Speedway)(7-19-2016)

Earnhardt Jr. battling balance, nausea issues: #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. is suffering from balance issues and nausea, but a test that measures his cognitive function showed optimistic results, the Hendrick Motorsports driver said Sunday night. Earnhardt, speaking on his weekly race recap podcast "The Dale Jr. Download" released Monday, described what kept him out of the race car this past weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. He did not give a timetable for his return from concussion-like symptoms, possibly caused by wrecks June 12 at Michigan and July 2 at Daytona. Earnhardt said the results of his ImPACT test, a 20-minute test that measures memory, reaction time, attention span and other cognitive skills, have matched his baseline, so that is encouraging.
"My results matched my baseline, which made me feel confident that my brain is pretty sharp; it feels good," Earnhardt said. "The symptoms I have are balance and nausea. I struggled with my balance over the last four, five days and I definitely wouldn't be able to drive a race car this weekend."
"They can give me a lot of exercises that retrain my brain to handle what I need to handle -- it's just going to take a lot of patience," Earnhardt said. "I take my health and quality of life as a top priority. ... I am going to take this slow and strictly take the advice of my doctors."(ESPN.com)(7-18-2016)

New Sponsor, New Paint Scheme for Truex at Indy: The #78 Furniture Row Racing entry for Sunday's Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway will have a new paint scheme and a new primary sponsor. The color of Truex's Toyota Camry will be blue, the corporate hue for Auto-Owners Insurance, which announced earlier in the year that it will be the primary sponsor on Truex's car for three Sprint Cup Series races. Along with Indianapolis, Auto-Owners Insurance primary schedule includes Darlington Raceway on Sept. 4 and Martinsville Speedway on Oct. 30. It's only fitting that Truex's #78 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota Camry will make its debut with Furniture Row Racing at the fabled Indianapolis Motor Speedway's 2.5-mile oval, one of the crown jewel races in the NASCAR schedule. A few weeks after the Indianapolis 500 celebrated its 100th year of the race in May, Auto-Owners Insurance celebrated its 100th anniversary. Auto-Owners Insurance, based in Lansing, Mich., offers auto, home, life and business coverage for NASCAR fans and consumers through local, independent agents in 26 states.(Furniture Row Racing), see an image of the car on the #78 team paint schemes page.(7-18-2016)

Hendrick talks about Earnhardt, Jr.: Hendrick Motorosports' owner Rick Hendrick met with media prior to the start of the New Hampshire 301 to talk about Dale Earnhardt, Jr's possible concussion:
CAN YOU TELL US HOW DALE EARNHARDT JR IS DOING? HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO FIGURE OUT IF HE HAS HAD A CONCUSSION, OR NOT?
"I'm not a doctor, but he's running through a bunch of tests and he's going to have some more tests the first of the week. He's doing good. He wants to be in the car. The doctors are going to tell him when it's okay for him to be back. And so, I know he's anxious. We want him back as soon as the doctors give him clearance."
DO YOU IMAGINE JEFF GORDON WOULD CONTINUE IF JUNIOR'S PROBLEMS CONTINUE?
"I would think so. I haven't talked to him about it. We're just taking it a week at a time. Hopefully Dale's going to be back next week and it's not even something that we really think is going to happen. But if it does, Jeff is a team player and he wants to support the organization, and I'm sure he'll do whatever he has to do."
SINCE THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THAT DALE HAS HAD TO GET OUT OF THE CAR FOR THIS ISSUE, IS THERE ANY CONCERN ON YOUR PART THAT SOMETHING MORE SERIOUS WOULD GO ON THAT WOULD CURTAIL OR SHORTEN HIS CAREER?
"I don't think so. He and I talked about years beyond next year. And just around, I guess it was Daytona, if there was something major wrong, I think they would have seen it already. So, I'm very hopeful and he's very hopeful. And I think the doctors want to err on the side of being sure because we want him for a long time. He loves the fans. He loves the sport. He loves to race."
IS THERE A TIMETABLE FOR A DECISION ON INDIANAPOLIS?
"I think probably by late Tuesday afternoon, Wednesday morning we've got to know. So, we will get that decision then and then we will go to plan B."
See the full interview transcript on the Rick Hendrick transcript page. (Chevy Racing PR)(7-18-2016)

Kyle Busch, Edwards clinch Chase spots at New Hampshire: Joe Gibbs Racing teammates #18-Kyle Busch and #19-Carl Edwards officially clinched berths in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup playoffs based on their finishes in Sunday's race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Busch, the defending series champion, led a race-high 133 laps and finished eighth in Sunday's New Hampshire 301. Edwards faded to a 20th-place finish after involvement in a crash that forced the last of the race's seven yellow flags. Each qualify for championship eligibility in the 10-race postseason based on their status as multiple winners in the regular season and because of their points stature in the Sprint Cup driver standings, mathematically unable to fall outside of the top 30 requirement. Heading into Sunday's 301-lapper, Brad Keselowski was the only certified Chase-eligible driver, based on his points position and status as a winner of multiple regular-season races. Keselowski leads the series this year with four victories.(NASCAR.com)(7-18-2016)

Harvick not happy with pit crew: #4-Kevin Harvick talked to NBCSN at the conclusion of Sunday's race at New Hamsphire:
HOW HAPPY ARE YOU WITH THIS TOP FIVE?
"I'm disgusted to tell you the truth. It's the same thing every week. We just make mistake after mistake and until we clean that up we don't have a chance to win races putting ourselves in a hole every time we make a mistake. It sucks because the cars are plenty fast, but we are just not executing."
WHAT WILL BE YOUR TAKE AWAY WHEN WE COME BACK HERE IN THE FALL?
"We just have to perform better. We under execute as a team on a weekly basis and got to do a better job. The Jimmy John's Chevrolet cars are always fast, but we always do something wrong."
HOW DO YOU AS THE LEADER OF THIS TEAM HELP CORRECT SOME OF THOSE ISSUES?
"It's really going to have to come from the top. I mean they are going to have to clamp down and there is no way we can win a championship like this unless they straighten some of this stuff out."
(Chevy Racing PR)(7-18-2016)

New Hampshire Race and Commercial Breakdown of the 2016 New Hampshire 301: For those of you NASCAR fans that like stats and love to hate commercials, here is the breakdown for Sunday's race. Began recording the times at the Invocation of the race at 1:23 PM, and stopped at the waving of the checkered flag at 4:39 PM (all times are EDT). NBCSN was the broadcast team for this event.
Total number of commercials: 111
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 52
Number of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 88
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 50
Number of 'Side-by-Side' commercials during race broadcast (split-screen): 23
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 18
Number of times NBCSN utilized 'Side-by-Side' commercials during this broadcast: 4
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 92
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 1:23PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 4:39 PM
Total minutes of complete race broadcast: 196
Minutes of race broadcast: 156
Minutes of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 40
Minutes of 'Side-by-Side' commercials (split-screen): 10
Number of missed restarts: 0
Number of 'mystery cautions' (debris not shown): 1 Safety Trucks Shown, But Not Debris
Total race brdcst time 156 Total comm. brdcst time 40
See past races, more info on the commercials with links at CawsnJaws.com.(7-18-2016)

Townley to miss Eldora UPDATE: John Wes Townley has not been medically cleared to drive after suffering what the team calls a "possible concussion" and will miss his second consecutive NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, a team spokesman confirmed to NBC Sports. Brady Boswell is expected to drive Townley's Athenian Motorsports ride in Wednesday night's race at Eldroa Speedway, as Catchfence.com first reported. Townley missed the July 7 Truck series race at Kentucky because of the injury. He had competed in 40 consecutive Camping World Truck Series races, dating back to 2014, before missing that event. Parker Kligerman drove for Townley at Kentucky. Townley last drove in the June 25 Truck race at Gateway Motorsports Park. He was involved in two incidents with Spencer Gallagher. The second accident ended with them fighting. NASCAR confirmed that Townley was treated and released from the track's care center after the second crash. After Eldora, the series next races July 30 at Pocono Raceway.(NBC Sports)(7-18-2016)
UPDATE: John Wes Townley remains under treatment for a possible concussion and will not compete in Wednesday night's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Eldora Speedway. ARCA competitor Brady Boswell will drive the #05 Zaxby's/Jive Communications Chevrolet at Eldora for Townley. The 19-year-old Boswell, like Townley, is a resident of Watkinsville, Ga. Both drivers are graduates of North Oconee High School in Bogart, Ga. Veteran driver and NASCAR on NBC analyst Parker Kligerman will substitute for Townley in Friday night's ARCA Sioux Chief PowerPEX 200 presented by Jive at Lucas Oil Raceway. Townley is scheduled to be re-evaluated by his physician on Monday July 25th, when he anticipates gaining medical clearance to return to competition in ARCA and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for events next week at Pocono Raceway.(Athenian Motorsports)(7-18-2016)

Cobb gets Eldora sponsor: WestsideVapor.com, an Ohio-based E-Cigarette company with dozens of Vapor Station stores throughout the state as well as an online store will be the primary sponsor of the #1 MAKE Motorsports NASCAR Camping World Truck Series entry driven by Jennifer Jo Cobb at Eldora Speedway this Wednesday, July 20 for the Aspen Dental Eldora Dirt Derby. Westside Vapor is a returning sponsor for Cobb, who is enthusiastic about the company's desire to help American's "Kick-Ash" and reduce the harmful effects of tar and nicotine. According to The American Heart Association, "vaping" is a safer alternative to smoking. Recently, the government has passed legislation, however, that may make that mission extremely difficult. The Consumer Advocates for Smoke-Free Alternatives (CASAA) is urging the vaping community and those who support it to contact their congressmen, congresswomen and senators to share their vaping stories and let them know the positive effects of vaping.(Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing)(7-18-2016)

Local company joins Nemechek as associate for Eldora: Delphos Discount Drugs, an independent drug store established in 2003 that offers retail pharmacy products, will adorn the #8 Chevrolet Silverado driven by John Hunter Nemechek at the Eldora Speedway as an associate sponsor. Based in Delphos, Ohio, Delphos Discount Drugs is family-owned and operated.(NEMCO Motorsports)(7-18-2016)

Kenseth fails post-race inspection: ESPN.com's Bob Pockrass reports, "Tech is done. Kenseth's car failed laser tech postrace. Stewart passed postrace." Failing laser tech has been a 15-point penalty this year.(7-17-2016)

Entry List for the Crown Royal presents the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is posted, 41 teams/drivers [for 40 spots] are listed, including: #21-Blaney*, #30-Wise*, #32-Carpentier, #55-Sorenson*, #93-Ellis*, #95-McDowell, #98-Whitt*.
Drivers who are not a Charter team, an Open Team, and must get in via speed: #21-Blaney, #30-Wise, #55-Sorenson, #93-Ellis, #98-Whitt
Driver who would miss the race if qualifying is canceled (least race attempts, then owners pts): #93-Ellis
* Open Team (no Charter)
See the full entry list on Jayski.com's Indianapolis Entry List

Matt Kenseth wins at New Hampshire: #20-Matt Kenseth won the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway for his 2nd win of the season, 3rd win at New Hampshire, and 38th career win. He led 38 of the 301 laps.
#14-Stewart finished 2nd followed by #22-Logano, #4-Harvick, #16-Biffle, #1-McMurray, #31-Newman, #18-Kyle Busch, #11-Hamlin and #17-Stenhouse, Jr.
Polesitter #48-Johnson led just 1 lap and finished 12th.
Alex Bowman, subbing for #88-Earnhardt, Jr. ran in the top 15 most of the day, but cut a tire down with less than 30 laps to go and finished 26th.
There were 13 lead changes among 6 drivers and 7 cautions for 36 yellow flag laps.
The average speed was 107.416 mph.
Scheduled Race Re-Air: Monday, July 18 at 2:30pm/et on NBCSN
See unofficial race results, awards, laps led, cautions and more [NOTE: money/winnings are no longer reported] at:
Unofficial Race Results page (pdf)
Lap Summary Report (pdf)
Penalty Report (pdf)
Pit Stop Times (pdf)
(7-17-2016)

Race Fast Facts - New Hampshire Motor Speedway:
Matt Kenseth won the 24th Annual New Hampshire 301, his 38th victory in 597 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his second victory and eighth top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his third victory and 18th top-10 finish in 33 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Tony Stewart (second) posted his 19th top-10 finish in 34 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It is his fifth top-10 finish in 2016.
Joey Logano (third) posted his eighth top-10 finish in 16 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Ryan Blaney (11th) was the highest finishing rookie.
Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 14 points over Brad Keselowski.
(NASCAR Integrated Sports Marketing)(7-17-2016)

2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup CHASE Standings:
[after New Hampshire, race 19 of 36, 16 drivers for the Chase]
Set by most wins, then by points standing
1) #2-Keselowski [4 wins], 2nd in driver points
2) #18-Busch [3], 6th in driver points
3) #19-Edwards [2], 4th
4) #20-Kenseth [2], 8th
5) #48-Johnson [2], 9th
6) #4-Harvick [1], 1st
7) #41-Busch [1], 3rd
8) #22-Logano [1], 5th
9) #78-Truex, Jr. [1], 7th
10) #11-Hamlin [1], 10th
11) #14-Stewart [1], 28th
no wins, in by drivers points standings
12) #24-Elliott, 11th in drivers points, 52 ahead of 17th
13) #31-Newman, 12th, +50
14) #3-Dillon, 13th, +41
15) #1-McMurray, 14th, +27
16) #88-Earnhardt Jr., 15th, +14
no wins, not in the Chase
17) #6-Bayne, 16th, -14 pts
18) #21-Blaney, 17th, -16 pts
(7-17-2016)

2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Driver Points (not CHASE) Standings:
[after New Hampshire, race 19 of 36]
1) #4-Harvick [1 win], 634
2) #2-Keselowski [4], 622, -14
3) #41-Busch [1], 602, -34
4) #19-Edwards [2], 587, -49
5) #22-Logano [1], 571, -65
6) #18-Busch, [3], 556, -80
7) #78-Truex Jr. [1], 540, -96
8) #20-Kenseth [2], 521, -115
9) #48-Johnson [2], 514, -122
10) #11-Hamlin, 505, -131
See the Unofficial Drivers Points Standings page (pdf) and
Unofficial Owners Points Standings page (pdf)

Fred Lorenzen to donate brain to science: He was one of NASCAR's first superstars, but Fred Lorenzen's memories of his Hall of Fame career have dimmed as he battles dementia. His Daytona 500 victory, the wins he piled up to become NASCAR's first $100,000 driver, his life on the road, all have been largely extinguished. Lorenzen still has flickering moments when he remembers the days when he was NASCAR's "Golden Boy" for his rugged, movie-star looks. Like in recent years, when he visits Chicago Speedway, not far from his assisted living facility. "His face just lights up when he's there," said his daughter, Amanda Lorenzen Gardstrom. Nearly 45 years after his last Cup race, Lorenzen hoped he would still make his mark on the NASCAR community. Inspired by Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s decision to pledge his brain to the Concussion Legacy Foundation, Lorenzen became the second known driver to make the same decision. Gardstrom made it official Friday with a pledge to Legacy co-founder Chris Nowinski. As auto racing grapples with the issue of concussions and head trauma, one of NASCAR's pioneers is now alongside Earnhardt in the donation queue. "As a family, we decided we wanted to support Dale Junior and all work together toward a healthy future for these drivers," she told The Associated Press. Gardstrom is convinced the 81-year-old Lorenzen has CTE as a result from years of brutal wrecks and hits from the 1960s, one of the most dangerous eras in racing history. "He never stopped to heal," she said.(Associated Press)(7-17-2016)

Ryan Ellis in the #98 at New Hampshire:The 14th Star Brewing Company of St. Albany, Vermont will join as a primary sponsor of the #98 Chevrolet of Premium Motorsports when it competes at New Hampshire Motor Speedway this Sunday on the NBC sports network. This will be driver Ryan Ellis' 3rd career Sprint Cup start and first with Premium Motorsports. The 14th Star Brewing Company, based out of St. Albany, Vermont in a 16,000 sq. foot facility currently distributes widely across New Hampshire and the Boston area. They produce craft brews on a growing scale, including a honey IPA, (made with local Vermont honey), several ales, a maple breakfast stout, and a signature Valor Ale where they donate a portion of the proceeds to the Purple Hearts Reunited Fund. An additional primary sponsor includes Superlite Cars based out of Fraser Michigan. Associates sponsors include Speed Stick, Doc X, Ultimate Tailgating, RTIC, ChampionMachinery.com, and FastSigns of Manchester, New Hampshire.(Ryan Ellis Motorsports)(7-17-2016)

New Hampshire Race Notes & Facts:
· There have been 42 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway; one per year from 1993 through 1996 and two per year since.
· Hendrick Motorsports leads the series in wins at New Hampshire in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with nine; followed by Joe Gibbs Racing (eight), Roush Fenway Racing (seven), Team Penske (six), and Richard Childress Racing (four).
· Five different manufacturers have won at New Hampshire; led by Chevrolet with 18 victories; followed by Ford (13), Toyota (six), Dodge (three) and Pontiac (two).
· Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway was the July 1, 2007 race won by Denny Hamlin over Jeff Gordon with a MOV of 0.068 second.
· 17 of the 35 (48.5%) NSCS races scored by electronic scoring at New Hampshire Motor Speedway have had a Margin of Victory less than a second.
· Four of the 42 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races have resulted with a green-white-checkered finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): 2006 (300/308), 2013 (301/302), 2014 (301/302) and the Chase race 2014 (300/303).
· Four of the 42 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions; the most recent was June 28, 2009 - the race was called on Lap 273, 28 circuits shy of the 301 scheduled laps.
· There have been 42 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races in New Hampshire, all at NHMS.
(NASCAR)

Final practice for the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is over after 55 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#24-Elliott 131.347
#11-Hamlin 131.302
#20-Kenseth 131.044
#4-Harvick 130.941
#18-Busch 130.891
slowest: #32-MacDonald 125.798 & #30-Wise 125.405.
most laps run: #41-Busch 60 laps, #11-Hamlin 59 lapss
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap avg on the New Hampshire final practice speeds page (pdf).(7-16-2016)

First Saturday practice for the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is over after 55 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#19-Edwards 131.456
#11-Hamlin 131.284
#20-Kenseth 131.193
#4-Harvick 130.914
#24-Elliott 130.855
slowest: #30-Wise 124.507 & #98-Ellis 124.434.
most laps run: #19-Edwards & #41-Busch, 47 laps
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap avg on the New Hampshire Practice 2 speeds page (pdf).(7-16-2016)

Pit Stall Selections: The selections of pit stalls for the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway have been made.
Pole sitter #48-Johnson chose pit stall 1 [as do most pole sitters].
Outside pole sitter #18-Busch took pit stall 32, with an opening in front of it.
#78-Truex, Jr., who starts 3rd took the 2nd pit stall.
The final pit stall was taken by #24-Elliott, who starts 7th.
To see where the drivers/teams pit stall is, see the pit selection chart on Jayski.com's Pit Stall Selection chart.

Edwards loses New Hampshire pit stall selection: #19-Carl Edwards is scheduled to start 13th in Sunday's Sprint Cup race at New Hampshire but he will begin the race with a disadvantage. Edwards's #19 Toyota was one of several teams which had trouble getting through Friday's pre-qualifying inspection and accumulated its fourth written warning. The fourth warning means Edwards's team will be last to pick a pit stall for Sunday's race. The pit stall selection is even more important on a track like New Hampshire Motor Speedway, where track position is vital to success.(Motorsport)(7-16-2016)

NASCAR considering changes to pit road timing: NASCAR officials are contemplating changes to their electronic timing systems in the pits at New Hampshire Motor Speedway after the controversy surrounding last week's penalty to #78-Martin Truex Jr. Truex was penalized for passing leader Kevin Harvick Jr. on the inside while accelerating into his pit stall. The Furniture Row Racing driver said he unfairly was singled out by NASCAR on the call, noting that several other drivers have made the maneuver this season without penalty (a claim that was supported this week by video evidence). By increasing the number of timing lines, which typically split the pits into six or eight sections, it would decrease the efficacy of the practice of accelerating to enter or exit the pit stall because there would be less wiggle room for drivers. Speeding in the pits is measured by time over distance rather than in real time, so with shorter sections for monitoring, there'd be less opportunity to exceed the prescribed mph. NASCAR officials said they also are considering other methods that could be implemented in Sunday's New Hampshire 301 and will address it in the prerace drivers meeting.(NBC Sports)(7-16-2016)

New Hampshire Chase clinch scenarios: The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup doesn't begin until September, but several drivers have the opportunity to clinch a spot in the top 30 this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, thus securing a spot in the NASCAR playoffs. To clinch an early Chase berth, a driver must have multiple wins and a top-30 spot. Below are Chase-clinching scenarios for this weekend's races at New Hampshire:
#18-Kyle Busch -- Busch can only clinch a top-30 spot with help.
#19-Carl Edwards -- Edwards needs to clinch a top-30 spot, which he should be able to do before the Chase cutoff as he's 349 points ahead of 31st now. With multiple wins, the clinching of a top-30 spot will also clinch his Chase berth.
#4-Kevin Harvick -- Harvick has already clinched his top-30 spot, but the only way he can clinch a Chase berth at this point is by being a multi-race winner, so his only chance to clinch at New Hampshire is with a win.
#41-Kurt Busch -- Can clinch with a win.
#22-Joey Logano -- Can clinch with a win.
#78-Martin Truex Jr. -- Needs some help next week to clinch a top-30 and would also need a win to join the multi-winner club to clinch his Chase berth.
(NASCAR.com)(7-16-2016)

50 Most-Watched Sporting Events of 2016: Past the halfway point of 2016, here is a look at the top sporting events of the year so far. With few exceptions, this year has been marked by declines. The Super Bowl posted declines in ratings and viewership for the first time in three years. College football's national championship sank double-digits. The NCAA Final Four delivered some of its worst numbers on record. Five of seven NBA Finals games declined. The MLB All-Star Game hit a record low. The Kentucky Derby, Masters and Daytona 500 also fell, as did smaller events like the Indy 500 and Stanley Cup final. Bright spots have included the most-watched AFC Championship Game in 30 years (Patriots/Broncos), the most-watched NBA game in 18 years (Cavaliers/Warriors Game 7), the most-watched NBA game ever on cable (Thunder/Warriors Game 7), and the most-watched Copa America match ever (Chile/Argentina). And even in a down year, the Super Bowl still delivered the third-largest audience in U.S. television history.(Sports Media Watch)
NASCAR's only event on the list was the Daytona 500. It was the 31st most-watched event. Shown on FOX, the race got a 6.6 rating, with 11.36 million viewers.(7-16-2016)

New Hampshire Driver Notes & Facts:
· 169 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway; 134 in more than one.
· Jeff Gordon has competed in all 42 races at New Hampshire - the only driver to accomplish the feat.
· 14 different drivers have made their first NSCS start at NHMS all-time, but only one of the 14 is active: Joey Logano (9/14/08).
· Ryan Newman leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at New Hampshire with a 9.321.
· 24 different drivers have won at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, led by Jeff Burton with four.
· Nine active drivers have multiple wins at NHMS: Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman, Tony Stewart (each have three); Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, Clint Bowyer, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano (each have two) · Two drivers have posted consecutive wins at New Hampshire Motor Speedway: Jimmie Johnson (2003 sweep) and Kurt Busch (2004 sweep).
· Jeff Burton is the only driver to win the July race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway three consecutive years in a row (1997, '98 and '99)
· Dale Earnhardt Jr. leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at New Hampshire without visiting Victory Lane at 33; followed by Jamie McMurray and Casey Mears (26 starts each).
· Five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers have posted their first career win at New Hampshire Motor Speedway: Ryan Newman (09/15/02), Clint Bowyer (09/16/07), Joey Logano (06/28/09), Robby Gordon (11/23/01) and Joe Nemechek (09/19/99).
· Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart are tied for the series lead in runner-up finishes at New Hampshire with five each; followed by Denny Hamlin (four), Kyle Busch and Mark Martin (with three each).
· Jeff Gordon leads the series in top-five finishes at New Hampshire with 16; followed by Tony Stewart with 14 and Jimmie Johnson with 10.
· Jeff Gordon leads the series in top-10 finishes at New Hampshire with 24; followed by Jimmie Johnson with 19.
· Denny Hamlin leads NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at New Hampshire with a 10.250.
· All 13 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race winners at New Hampshire Motor Speedway participated in at least one or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Ryan Newman and Joey Logano won at New Hampshire in their second appearance.
· Jeff Gordon leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at New Hampshire with 1,373 laps led in 42 starts.
· Jeff Gordon leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps completed at New Hampshire with 12,267 laps completed in 42 starts.
· Danica Patrick is the only female driver that has competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
· 15 drivers in NASCAR national series history have their home state recorded as New Hampshire; Jamie Aube is the only one of the 15 to record a victory in NASCAR national series competition.
(NASCAR)

XFINITY Series Indianapolis Entry List: There are 40 cars on the preliminary entry list for Saturday's Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. A few notes:
Paul Menard returns to the RCR #2;
John Jackson is entered in the MBM #13;
Todd Peck is listed in the RWR #15;
Cody Ware will drive the RCR #25;
Brandon Gdovic is entered in the #46;
Kevin Harvick will drive the #88 for JR Motorsports;
Jeb Burton will be in the #98 for Biagi;
Travis Kvapil is entered in the #99;
The #51 of Jeremy Clements and #97 of Obaika are not currently listed, but are expected to be added.(7-16-2015)
See the complete list on the Indianapolis entry list page.

Kyle Busch wins XFINITY race at New Hampshire: #18-Kyle Busch won the AutoLotto 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Saturday. It is his 82nd XFINITY Series win and 6th of the year. He dominated the race, leading 190 of the 200 laps.
#20-Erik Jones finished second, followed by #22-Brad Keselowski, #19-Daniel Suarez, #2-Austin Dillon, #48-Brennan Poole, #7-Justin Allgaier, #88-Alex Bowman, #62-Brendan Gaughan, and #1-Elliott Sadler.
There were 7 cautions for 37 laps and 3 lead changes among 3 leaders.
The average speed was 98.789mph.
Complete results are on the New Hampshire race results page (pdf).
(7-16-2016)

New Hampshire XFINITY Race Fast Facts:
Kyle Busch(i) won the 27th Annual AutoLotto 200, his 82nd victory in 321 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his sixth victory and 10th top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his fifth victory and eighth top-10 finish in 11 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Erik Jones (second) posted his first top-10 finish in one races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It is his 11th top-10 finish in 2016.
Brad Keselowski(i) (third) posted his eighth top-10 finish in eight races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Erik Jones (second) was the highest finishing rookie.
Daniel Suarez leads the point standings by 15 points over Elliott Sadler.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-16-2016)

XFINITY Driver standings following New Hampshire:
[12 drivers qualify for the XFINITY Series chase]
1) #19-Daniel Suarez [1 win], 574
2) #1-Elliott Sadler [1 win], 559, -15
3) #3-Ty Dillon, 526, -48
4) #20-Erik Jones [2 wins], 520, -54
5) #62-Brendan Gaughan, 509, -65
6) #7-Justin Allgaier, 506, -68
7) #48-Brennan Poole, 489, -85
8) #33-Brandon Jones, 489, -85
9) #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., 459, -115
10) #16-Ryan Reed, 405, -169
11) #39-Ryan Sieg, 397, -177
12) #11-Blake Koch, 377, -197
See complete owner and driver standings on the driver standings(pdf) and owner standings page (pdf).(7-16-2016)

Kyle Busch on XFINITY pole at New Hampshire: #18-Kyle Busch won the Coors Light pole for the AutoLotto 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway with a speed of 130.792mph. It is his 5th XFINITY pole of the year. #20-Erik Jones will start second. The rest of the top 10: #22-Brad Keselowski, #19-Daniel Suarez, #88-Alex Bowman, #1-Elliott Sadler, #2-Austin Dillon, #7-Justin Allgaier, #48-Brennan Poole, and #3-Ty Dillon.
Did Not Qualify: #92-Josh Williams.
The starting lineup is posted on the New Hampshire starting lineup page (pdf).(7-16-2016)

New Hampshire Qualifying Notes:
Kyle Busch(i) won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 27th Annual AutoLotto 200 with a lap of 29.121 seconds, 130.792 mph.
This is his 53rd pole in 321 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his fifth pole and 10th top-10 start in 2016.
This is his third pole in 11 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Erik Jones (second) posted his 17th top-10 start of 2016 and his first in one race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Brad Keselowski(i) (third) posted his eighth top-10 start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It is his seventh in eight races this season.
Erik Jones (second) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-16-2016)

Johnson wins New Hampshire pole: #48-Jimmie Johnson won the pole for the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway with speed of 133.971mph for his 1st pole of 2016, 1st at New Hampshire and 35th of his career. Johnson has won from the pole 13 times in 34 previous tries.
#18-Busch will start 2nd, followed by #78-Truex, Jr., #41-Busch, #11-Hamlin, #22-Logano, #24-Elliott, #4-Harvick, #2-Keselowski, #47-Allmendinger, #5-Kahne, and #14-Stewart.
Alex Bowman, subbing for #88-Dale Earnhardt, Jr., will start 20th.
#18-Busch was fastest in the second round with a speed of 134.080mph and will start 2nd.
#33-Logano paced the opening round of qualifying at 133.166mph and starts 6th.
40 cars were entered so everyone made the race.
See round-by-round qualifying results on the New Hampshire qualifying results page (pdf) and the complete starting lineup on the New Hampshire Starting Lineup page (pdf).(7-15-2016)

New Hampshire Motor Speedway - Qualifying Fast Facts:
Jimmie Johnson won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 24th Annual New Hampshire 301 with a lap of 28.430 seconds, 133.971 mph.
This is his 35th pole in 526 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his first pole and ninth top-10 start in 2016.
This is his first pole in 29 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Kyle Busch (second) posted his 13th top-10 start of 2016 and his 14th in 23 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Martin Truex Jr (third) posted his 11th top-10 start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It is his 12th in 19 races this season.
Chase Elliott (seventh) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Statistics)(7-15-2016)

Second Round of Qualifying for the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is over, after 10 scheduled minutes.
#18-Busch 134.080
#11-Hamlin 133.343
#24-Elliott 133.105
#5-Kahne 133.086
#48-Johnson 133.035
the rest of the top 12: 22 14 2 4 41 47 78;
out of the top 12 and not advancing to round 3: 19 21 3 83 42 20 1 88 13 17 23 27
(7-15-2016)

First Round of Qualifying for the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is over, after 20 scheduled minutes.
#22-Logano 133.166
#11-Hamlin 133.054
#41-Busch 132.831
#20-Kenseth 132.827
#4-Harvick 132.794
the rest of the top 24: 78 3 24 19 18 13 42 88 21 5 48 14 83 23 47 2 1 27 17;
out of the top 24 and not advancing to round 2: 31 43 95 16 10 38 6 15 44 7 34 55 46 32 90 98
Drivers who will miss the race: none as 40 cars entered for 40 spots
(7-15-2016)

Friday practice for the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway over after 85 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#78-Truex, Jr. 133.562
#19-Edwards 133.380
#18-Busch 133.100
#41-Busch 133.091
#11-Hamlin 132.956
slowest: #30-Wise 125.047 & #98-Ellis 124.977.
most laps run: #88-Bowman 38 laps, #44-Scott 32 laps
notes: Alex Bowman, filling in for Dale Earnhardt, Jr., was 13th fastest.
Qualifying is scheduled for today at 4:45pm/et and will be shown on NBCSN.
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap avg on the New Hampshire Practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-15-2016)

Qualifying Order for the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is posted. 40 cars/drivers are listed.
The first driver to be lined up on pit road will be #4-Harvick.
The final driver lined up on pit road will be #2-Keselowski.
The order is set by a random draw, how cars park on pit road before they qualify, held about an hour before the first practice.
After the first round, the cars line up by speed.
See the full qualifying order on Jayski.com's New Hampshire Qualifying Order Page (pdf).

Hendrick Motorsports talks about Dale Jr's status: Hendrick Motorsports general manager Doug Duchardt, #88-Crew Chief Greg Ives and Alex Bowman talked to the media at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Friday morning. Some notes:
After Earnhardt, Jr. continued to feel bad last weekend at Kentucky, the initial plan was for him to start this weekend's New Hampshire race and be relieved by Alex Bowman;
Friday afternoon it was determined that Earnhardt, Jr. would not be able to race at all this weekend;
Duchardt says they won't speculate on the long term impact of this on Earnhardt, Jr's career;
Should Earnhardt, Jr. not be able to race next week, Jeff Gordon will drive the #88 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway;
The #88 driver after Indianapolis (if needed) has not been determined. A decision will be made around Wednesday next week.;
Earnhardt, Jr. will need approval from a independent, board-certified neurologist before he is allowed to return. (7-15-2016)

TBR honoring Mario Fiore at New Hampshire: Tommy Baldwin Racing will honor the memory of longtime NASCAR Whelan Modified Tour Championship Car Owner, Mario Fiore with a special paint scheme on their Advanced Patient Care (APC) / Nikko RC #7 Chevy this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Fiore passed away last month of an undisclosed illness at age 65. The #44 team was always part of the NASCAR Modified conversations from the 1970's through the early 2000's within the context of winning. In 2000, Fiore and company took Championship honors with Jerry Marquis behind the wheel. In addition to the Series title, Fiore's team won championships at five New England short tracks over the years. Baldwin ran a poll on their Facebook page for the fans to vote on their favorite paint scheme. The iconic Teddy Bear Pools Pontiac was the overwhelming choice.(Tommy Baldwin Racing), see an image of the car on the #7 team paint schemes page.(7-15-2016)

Edwards' Darlington throwback scheme revealed: Thursday afternoon Joe Gibbs Racing debuted the car #19-Carl Edwards will drive at Darlington. The car, sponsors by ARRIS, features a JGR 25th Anniversary tribute to Tony Stewart's retirement. The scheme was the first design run on the #20 car in 1999, Stewart's Rookie year. See images of the car on the #19 team paint schemes page.(7-15-2016)

Keselowski is first driver to officially clinch Chase spot: Brad Keselowski has asserted himself as the hottest driver in NASCAR this summer after winning the last two consecutive races (Daytona and Kentucky). Dating back to his May 1 win at Talladega, the No. 2 Ford driver has recorded three wins, six top fives and eight top 10s in his last nine starts. His four wins this season lead the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. After his win Saturday, Keselowski became the first driver to officially clinch a berth in the Chase because he has multiple wins and is too far ahead in points (+378) to fall behind 31st-place Brian Scott.(NASCAR)(7-15-2016)

MacDonald returns to the #32 at New Hampshire UPDATE: Eddie MacDonald is set for his third Sprint Cup Series start next weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Go Fas Racing will have MacDonald behind the wheel of the #32 Bentley's Saloon Ford Fusion in the New Hampshire 301. Both of MacDonald's previous Cup starts have come at New Hampshire with Go Fas Racing, with his best finish being a 35th in 2014. He finished 37th there last year. With starts in all three NASCAR national series on his resume, MacDonald has been competing in the ACT Late Model Tour this season. Through seven events he has won twice and sits second in points. MacDonald has also made two NASCAR K&N Pro Series East starts.(NBC Sports)(7-8-2016)
UPDATE: Heading into this weekend's event at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the #32 Bentley's Saloon team will head to north to "The Granite State" with Rawley, MA native Eddie MacDonald for the 24th annual New Hampshire 301 in Loudon, NH. Sunday's New Hampshire 301 will mark MacDonald's third career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Start start at the flat 1-mile speedway, and his third career NSCS start. Go Fas Racing welcomes a new associate partner for this weekend's race with Mike's Clam Shack in Wells, Maine. Additionally, this weekend GFR will be supported by previous partners Weirs Motor Sales of Arundel Maine, The Rod Father Custom Rod's and Muscle Cars, and Bangor Equipment of Bangor Maine.(Go Fas Racing), see an image of the car on the #32 team paint schemes page.(7-15-2016)

Finalists Announced for Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award: Finalists for The NASCAR Foundation's Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award Presented by Nationwide were announced on Wednesday night. The award will be showcased on Sept. 27 at the Foundation's inaugural Honors Gala at the Marriott Marquis in New York City. The award honors volunteers - who are also NASCAR fans - who dedicate themselves to children's causes in their communities throughout the United States. The award winner will be determined via an online vote now underway and running through Sept. 26 at 5:00pm/et at NASCAR.com/Award. This year's Award presentation will be part of the "10 Years of Giving" celebration for The NASCAR Foundation, which has donated $25 million to more than one million children since its inception in 2006. Betty Jane France, founder and chairwoman emeritus of The NASCAR Foundation, will present the award. The NASCAR Foundation will donate a total of $175,000 to the charities represented by the finalists - with the winner's charity receiving a $100,000 donation. This year's finalists include Jim Giaccone of Bayville, New York, representing Tuesday's Children; Andy Hoffman of Atkinson, Nebraska, founder of the Team Jack Foundation; Logan Houptley of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, a founding member of Mikayla's Voice; and Parker White of Greensboro, North Carolina, founder of BackPack Beginnings.(NASCAR)(7-15-2016)

Skuttle Tight joins Ragan at Indianapolis: BK Racing announced the signing of Skuttle Tight as an associate sponsor on David Ragan's #23 Brandeis Camry at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Skuttle Tight has previously sponsored Ragan's many racing endeavors throughout the years. With many years of experience in the construction industry, Skuttle Tight sets out to address the many issues of the conventional attic hatch entry system. They currently produce an all-in-one attic access entry system which is insulated, uses a gasket, is easy to install, and is virtually invisible. Skuttle Tight is committed to having the highest quality, affordable product on the market. They currently have production capabilities of up to 300,000 units per year.(BK Racing)(7-15-2016)

New Hampshire Pole Notes & Facts:
· Mark Martin won the inaugural Coors Light pole at New Hampshire in 1993 with a speed of 126.871 mph.
· 19 drivers have Coors Light poles at New Hampshire, led by Ryan Newman with seven.
· Four active drivers have multiple poles at New Hampshire: Ryan Newman (seven), Brad Keselowski (three), Kyle Busch (two) and Carl Edwards (two).
· Six drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at New Hampshire: Ken Schrader (1997 sweep); Jeff Gordon (1998-1999); Rusty Wallace (1999-2000); Ryan Newman (twice - 2003-2004 and 2011 sweep); Juan Pablo Montoya (2009-2010); Carl Edwards (2015 sweep).
· Two drivers (all-time) have posted their first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at New Hampshire Motor Speedway: Brad Keselowski (09/19/10) and Patrick Carpentier (06/27/2008).
· Five of the 42 (11.9%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at New Hampshire have been won from the Coors Light pole; the most recent was Ryan Newman in 2011.
· The Coors Light pole and the 13th starting position are the two most proficient starting positions in the field, producing more winners (five each) than any other starting positions at New Hampshire.
· Eight of the 42 (19%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at New Hampshire have been won from the front row: five from the pole and three from second-place.
· 23 of the 42 (54.7%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at New Hampshire have been won from a top-10 starting position.
· Nine of the 42 (21.4%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at New Hampshire have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.
· The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at New Hampshire is 38th, by Jeff Burton in 1999.
· The deepest in the field that an active race winner has started at New Hampshire is 32nd, by Kurt Busch in the summer of 2003.
· Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway five times: fall 2001, summer 2003, fall 2004, fall 2008 and summer 2009.
(NASCAR)

Kyle Busch fastest in XFINITY happy hour: #18-Kyle Busch was quickest during final practice for the AutoLotto 200 with a speed of 129.388mph. He was followed by: #3-Ty Dillon, #22-Brad Keselowski, #2-Austin Dillon, #11-Blake Koch, #88-Alex Bowman, #19-Daniel Suarez, #1-Elliott Sadler, #16-Ryan Reed, and #33-Brandon Jones. 40 drivers participated in the session.
See complete results on the New Hampshire practice 2 speeds page (pdf).(7-15-2016)

Brennan Poole fastest in first XFINITY practice: #48-Brennan Poole was fastest during opening practice at New Hampshire Motor Speedway with a speed of 129.248mph. #18-Kyle Busch was second, followed by: #42-Justin Marks, #22-Brad Keselowski, #2-Austin Dillon, #20-Erik Jones, #7-Justin Allgaier, #1-Elliott Sadler, #88-Alex Bowman, and #16-Ryan Reed. 38 drivers practiced during the session.
See complete results on the New Hampshire practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-15-2016)

Truck Series Entry List: There are 38 trucks on the preliminary entry list for Wednesday's Aspen Dental Dirt Derby at Eldora Speedway. A few notes:
David Levine is in the #1;
The #05 is TBA;
Norm Benning is in the #6;
The #07 is TBA;
Jake Griffin is in the #11;
The #16 is TBA, but expected to be Stewart Friesen;
Kyle Larson is in the #24;
JR Heffner is in the #44;
Bobby Pierce is in the #63;
Ken Schrader is in the #71;
Justin Shipley is in the #80;
(7-15-2016)
See the complete list on the Eldora entry list page.

Friesen to run Eldora: Stewart Friesen, formerly of Ontario, but now living in Sprakers, N.Y., will attempt to make his Camping World Truck Series debut at Eldora Speedway on July 20 in the Aspen Dental 150. Halmar Racing, Friesen's regular team in the Super DIRTcar Series and on a regular basis at Albany-Saratoga Speedway, has purchased a chassis and acquired an engine from Richard Childress Racing for use in the effort. Sponsorship will likely be provided by Halmar International, a construction company that focuses on mass transit, road construction and industrial construction. Heading up the effort for Friesen will be a familiar face in NASCAR circles. Harold Holly, a former champion crew chief in the XFINITY Series with Jeff Green, will serve as Friesen's crew chief. Friesen also noted the presence of Gary Balough behind the scenes. Balough, who briefly drove very early in the history of the Camping World Truck Series, is a controversial figure in the history of both Big Block Modified racing and NASCAR. In Modified circles, he's best known for racing the "Batmobile," a supposed Lincoln Continental that dominated Super Dirt Week at the New York State Fairgrounds in 1980.(Frontstretch)
AND: Without officially announcing a number, Friesen tested a #16 Chevy earlier this week.(Facebook)(7-15-2016)

Griffin in for Red Horse at Eldora: Jake Griffin will get behind the wheel of the Red Horse Racing #11 Toyota Tundra for the Aspen Dental Dirt Derby at Eldora Speedway on July 20. Griffin has four NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts and has raced extensively in dirt late models and open-wheeled modifieds. The 17-year-old Quincy, Illinois native has recorded wins on dirt tracks all over the Midwest.(Red Horse Racing)(7-15-2016)

Dale Earnhardt Jr. will not race at New Hampshire: Dale Earnhardt Jr. will not compete in the July 17 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway after experiencing concussion-like symptoms. Earnhardt, driver of the #88 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, was evaluated this week in Charlotte and today was not cleared by physicians to race. Alex Bowman will be the team's substitute driver this weekend at New Hampshire.
"I wasn't feeling great the week going into Kentucky (Speedway) and thought it was possibly severe allergies," Earnhardt said. "I saw a family doctor and was given medication for allergies and a sinus infection. When that didn't help, I decided to dig a little deeper. Because of my symptoms and my history with concussions, and after my recent wrecks at Michigan and Daytona, I reached out and met with a neurological specialist. After further evaluation, they felt it was best for me to sit out."
"I'm disappointed about missing New Hampshire this weekend. I'm looking forward to treatment with the goal of getting back in the race car when the doctors say I'm ready."
A timetable for Earnhardt's return has not been established. Hendrick Motorsports will provide an update next week regarding plans for the July 24 event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
"I'm proud of Dale for standing up," said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports. "The number-one priority is his health, so we're going to give him all the time he needs. We completely support the decision by the doctors and will be ready to go win races when he's 100 percent. In the meantime, we have full confidence in Greg (Ives) and the team, and we know they'll do a great job."(Hendrick Motorsports)(7-14-2016)

Kyle Busch nominated for "Best Driver" ESPY UPDATE: Defending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion #18-Kyle Busch could see his celebration of last year's championship continue on July 13 - at the ESPY Awards. The yearly awards show, hosted by ESPN with winners decided via fan voting, will air on Wednesday at 8:00pm/et on ABC. Busch is nominated for "Best Driver" and is up against Scott Dixon (IndyCar), Lewis Hamilton (Formula One), Erica Enders-Stevens (NHRA) and Alexander Rossi (IndyCar). NASCAR is the defending winner in that category as well. Kevin Harvick , the 2014 champion, took home the hardware last year.(NASCAR.com)(7-11-2016)
UPDATE: The 24th annual ESPY Awards got a little "rowdy" as reigning NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Kyle Busch was named Best Driver at last night's ceremony. He received the most votes among fellow nominees 2015 IndyCar Series Champion Scott Dixon, 2015 Formula One World Driver's Champion Lewis Hamilton, 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner Alexander Rossi, and 2015 NHRA Pro Stock Champion Erica Enders-Stevens. NASCAR drivers have been victorious in the Best Driver category eight of the last ten years, with Busch joining fellow competitors Kevin Harvick, Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson on the elite list of winners.(NASCAR) For a list of complete winners, see ESPN.com.(7-14-2016)

Special St. Jude scheme for Annett at Watkins Glen; fans can get name on car: In association with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the St. Jude Tournament of Hope, NASCAR driver Michael Annett is offering race fans everywhere an opportunity to have their name adorn his car. Annett will sport a special St. Jude paint scheme for the August 7 race at Watkins Glen International in New York. Fans who donate a minimum of $46 will have their names appear on the deck lid of Annett's #46 Chevrolet SS. St. Jude is the charity of choice for Annett, who will serve as the honorary chairperson for the St. Jude Tournament of Hope golf tournament on Monday, August 8 at Glen Oaks Country Club in West Des Moines, Iowa. Fans have until July 22 to make their $46 donation.
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Everything they do is centered on theirr mission: Finding cures. Saving children. Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20 percent to 80 percent since they opened in 1962.(Rising Star Management), see an image of the car on the #46 team paint schemes page.(7-14-2016)

Kentucky TV Ratings UPDATE: Sprint Cup racing from Kentucky earned a 1.8 overnight rating on NBCSN Saturday night, according to Sports Business Daily, down 10% from last year and 2014 (2.0). Excluding rainouts, the 1.8 is tied as the lowest of the season for a Sprint Cup race - matching Kansas on Fox Sports 1 in May.(Sports Media Watch), see race-by-race TV Ratings for 2016 and a comparison chart on the 2016 TV Ratings page.(7-12-2016)
UPDATE: NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Kentucky earned a 1.9 final rating and 3.2 million viewers on NBCSN Saturday night, down 5% in ratings and 1% in viewership from last year (2.0, 3.2M), down 17% and 11%, respectively, from 2014 (2.3, 3.6M), and the lowest rated and least-watched Sprint Cup race from Kentucky (dates back to 2011). Kentucky was the ninth race this season to hit a multi-year low in ratings and/or viewership (excluding rainout years), joining Michigan, Charlotte, Richmond, Bristol, Texas, Fontana, Phoenix and Las Vegas. Though low overall, Saturday's race was the most-watched program on NBCSN since last year's Martinsville race (3.4M) - topping Games 2 and 3 of the Stanley Cup Final (2.5M and 2.8M, respectively). Head-to-head, NASCAR on NBCSN topped competing coverage of Major League Baseball on FOX (2.1M) but trailed the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials on NBC (3.4M).(Sports Media Watch)(7-14-2015)

Shaw's Supermarket making first appearance on the #44: Shaw's Supermarket will make their debut on the hood of the #44 Ford Fusion this weekend in New Hampshire. Shaw's is one of the oldest continuously operated supermarkets in the United States with New England roots dating back to 1860, when George C. Shaw opened the first store in Portland, Maine. A few years later, Maynard A. Davis opened the first 'Public Markets' in New Bedford and Brockton, Massachusetts. Throughout five New England States, there are 154 store locations employing approximately 19,000 employees.(Richard Petty Motorsports), see an image of the car on the #44 team paint schemes page.(7-14-2016)

Jimmie Johnson Foundation on the #48 at Watkins Glen: The Jimmie Johnson Foundation unveiled its 10th anniversary paint scheme via social media this week. The scheme, set to run on Aug. 7 at Watkins Glen, incorporates the 10th anniversary logo as well as the logos of other JJF programs. Lowe's has generously donated a paint scheme to the JJF each season to help raise awareness for the work the foundation does supporting K-12 public education.(Hendrick Motorsports), see an image of the car on the #48 team paint schemes page.(7-14-2016)

New Hampshire Track Notes & History:
· Groundbreaking for New Hampshire International Speedway, as New Hampshire Motor Speedway was originally named, was Aug. 13, 1989.
· The 1.058-mile oval is located on approximately 1,200 acres; the multi-use complex is the largest sports facility in New England.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was on July 11, 1993 - won by NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace.
· Speedway Motorsports, Inc. agreed to purchase New Hampshire International Speedway from Bob and Gary Bahre on January 11, 2008 and then renamed the track New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
(NASCAR)

Hunt Brothers Pizza to sponsor Schrader at Eldora: Hunt Brothers Pizza will be the primary sponsor for Ken Schrader and the #71 Contreras Motorsports (CMS) Toyota Tundra for the Aspen Dental Eldora Dirt Derby July 20 at Eldora Speedway in Ohio as part of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Schrader currently holds the fastest truck lap record at Eldora-19.709 seconds-from 2013. Currently sitting in fourth in driver points, he and his team have already had a very impressive run this year in the ARCA Racing Series. In his Modified, Schrader has 20 top five finishes, nine second place finishes and a trip to victory lane in Idaho.(Ken Schrader Racing)(7-14-2016)

Mayhew Tools partners with MB beginning with Pierce at Eldora: It's only logical that one of America's oldest tool companies, Mayhew Tools, would partner up with the sole surviving original NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team, MB Motorsports. Founded in 1856, Mayhew Steel Products (Mayhew Tools) is the oldest punch and chisel manufacturer in the United States. As they've grown from a small tool house to the industry leader, there's only one thing that hasn't changed-their dedication to quality, reliability, and craftsmanship. That's why they've become the tool of choice for certified technicians and professional mechanics across the country, and have found a home in the belts of do-it-yourselfers as well. The Mayhew Tools logo will adorn the #63 Chevy Silverado for the first time at the Aspen Dental Eldora Dirt Derby on July 20th at the famed Eldora Speedway. Bobby Pierce finished second in the MB Motorsports truck at last years' race and is a heavy favorite in 2016.(MB Motorsports)(7-14-2016)

Larson to run Eldora with GMS: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Kyle Larson will return to the Camping World Truck Series, and to the dirt, when the Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates driver competes for GMS Racing in next week's stop at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. It will be just the second Truck Series start this year for Larson, 23, and his 12th overall in the series. He finished fourth with the GMS team earlier this season at Martinsville Speedway. Larson has two previous Truck starts at Eldora, finishing second in 2013 and 26th the following year. The well-known dirt track was also the site of a record-equaling run by the Elk Grove, California, native. In 2011, Larson became only the second driver to win all three races on the same night in the Four Crown Nationals. DC Solar, which sponsors Chip Ganassi Racing driver Brennan Poole in the NASCAR XFINITY Series, will sponsor the Larson entry at Eldora.(NASCAR)(7-14-2016)

Testing at Indy July 12-13 UPDATES: Preparations for NASCAR's Brickyard 400 will begin in earnest next week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with at least a dozen car-and-driver Sprint Cup Series combinations scheduled to test Tuesday and Wednesday, 9am-5pm/et. The test follows this weekend's race at Kentucky Speedway. Next week, the series will be at New Hampshire Motor Speedway before arriving for the 23rd Brickyard 400. Drivers scheduled to test: #4-Harvick, #6-Bayne, #15-Bowyer, #20-Kenseth, #21-Blaney, #22-Logano, #27-Menard, #34-Buescher, #42-Larson, #44-Scott, #48-Johnson and #78-Truex, Jr.(Indianapolis Star)
AND Fans are encouraged to take advantage of this free opportunity to see some of the biggest stars in racing up close and personal. Testing on the 2.5-mile oval is taking place in advance of the Crown Royal presents the Wounded Warrior Coalition 400 at the Brickyard. The public may watch the test for free from the south terrace grandstands and Turn 2 viewing mounds, and the newly refurbished B Penthouse grandstands will also be open for viewing. Fans in attendance should also be on the lookout for special surprises from the IMS Field Marketing Team.(IMS)(7-7-2016)
UPDATE: A dozen NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers began the first day of a two-day test session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Tuesday in preparation for the Brickyard 400 on July 24. After turning the first few laps on Tuesday morning, Kenseth was optimistic based on what he initially felt inside his #20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. "I was just out there running by myself, but it seems OK," said Kenseth. "It's pretty much what you'd expect. There was a lot of fall off (with the tires) with not a lot of cars on the track. So when you have fall off like that, new tires mean a lot, and I think that's always good for the racing." Menard, driver of the #27 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, agreed with Kenseth. "I always enjoy racing at Indianapolis, but the rules package we had last year could have definitely been better," Menard said. "It was little bit of a shot in the dark. It had low reviews with the drivers. I think internal cockpit temperatures we at least 10-15 degrees hotter, so we were getting cooked and the cars were totally unstable in traffic."(Fox Sports)
AND NASCAR.com's Kenny Bruce tweeted Tuesday afternoon that "Larson, Truex, Harvick, Johnson your leaders, unofficially, during afternoon session as Day 1 of organizational test ends"(7-12-2016)
UPDATE 2: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams wrapped up a second day of testing here at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Wednesday in preparation for next week's Crown Royal Presents The Combat Wounded Coalition 400 at the Brickyard. Wednesday's session, originally scheduled to last until 5:00pm, was shortened by one hour due to the threat of inclement weather. Teams worked through the lunch hour to adjust and get through their individual checklists. "I wish more tests were like this where you come the week before," said Kyle Larson, driver of the #42 Chevrolet for Chip Ganassi Racing. "A lot of times you test at a track three months before the race and the climate's different, the track is not the same as when you test, and you forget a lot of stuff you learn technique-wise as a driver before you come back. To be this close to the race, I wish more were like that." Jimmie Johnson's #48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was fastest, unofficially, during Tuesday morning's session, and had the top overall speed at the close of Wednesday as well. Larson, fastest in Tuesday's afternoon run, was second after Wednesday's combined effort. Series points leader Kevin Harvick had the third fastest unofficial lap in his #4 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet Wednesday, followed by #78-Martin Truex Jr.(NASCAR.com)(7-13-2016)

Joe Gibbs Racing makes changes to pit crew management: Joe Gibbs Racing announced changes to the management structure of its pit crews with Matt Osborn now in charge of day-to-day operations and former athletic director Mike Lepp assuming new duties within the organization. Lepp has served as Athletic Director for the past 10 years overseeing Joe Gibbs Racing pit crew operations. In his new role as Senior Athletic Advisor, Lepp will assume an increased role in marketing and public relations duties. Lepp will continue to do public speaking events, drawing on his extensive experience in athletics and motorsports, on subjects related to pit crew training and trends related to pit stops. He remains available for media interviews on those subjects and will also be available for public speaking to JGR's sponsors and partners. In his new role, Lepp will also assist in seeking sponsorship opportunities with companies involved in athletic apparel and equipment.(Joe Gibbs Racing)(7-13-2016)

Michael & Jami McDowell adopt son: While NASCAR driver Michael McDowell was at the Richard Childress Racing shop recently, making preparations for an upcoming XFINITY Series start with the organization, McDowell's wife was thousands of miles away. In China. When Jami McDowell returns next week, she will arrive with the newest member of the McDowell household, 3-year-old son Lucas. "I wish I could be there," Michael McDowell said. "I have obligations here and need to make sure I can provide for my family, too." The McDowells already have three children -- Trace, Emma and Rylie -- but were first-time parents when they initially decided to go the adoption route. "That was our plan," McDowell said. "We were going to have one and then we were going to adopt one. We felt like with our lifestyle and travel and everything, two is manageable. But God had other plans, and while we were waiting we had two more, so now we'll be at four. And four is not manageable on the road and all those things. But at the same time, I'm very thankful to be in this sport and have the opportunities that I have." The family's faith started the McDowells down the road to adoption. And while it has taken longer than expected -- six years -- that faith never wavered. Even as their family continued to grow. "Our son Lucas, he's 3 now, but he was left in the street at five days old because he has cleft hand and feet. Something here that would be very small, something that ... you can operate and help them be able to walk and grab and do all the things that your other kids can do. But over there, it's 'Well, he's not perfect. There's something wrong with him.'"(NASCAR.com)(7-13-2016)

Ford will try to secure more young drivers: The head of Ford Performance says that the manufacturer will be more active in seeking and securing young drivers. "We need to have more involvement going forward," Dave Pericak, director Ford Performance, told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Tuesday. "We have to make sure that we constantly have a good lineup of drivers across the board that are ready to fill the seats when it's time." The need to find young talent is because manufacturers have gotten more aggressive about keeping such drivers under contract in recent years. Toyota had Kyle Larson in its camp before he went to Chevrolet-affiliated Chip Ganassi Racing. Ford lost Jeff Gordon to Chevy and once sued Kasey Kahne for breach of contract when he signed with Ray Evernham's Dodge team. Pericak's comments come as the sport cycles toward more young racers with a group of drivers retiring or closing in on that point. Toyota has stockpiled young drivers in NASCAR's feeder series. Eighteen-year-old William Byron leads the Camping World Truck Series standings after his fourth series victory last weekend at Kentucky, 24-year-old Daniel Suarez leads the Xfinity standings and 20-year-old Erik Jones has won two Xfinity races this season. Toyota also has 19-year-old Ben Rhodes, 19-year-old Cameron Hayley, 21-year-old Christopher Bell and 24-year-old Rico Abreu competing for its teams in the Camping World Truck Series. Ford has the youngest lineup of drivers in the Sprint Cup Series among the three manufacturers. Ford has seven Cup drivers in their 20s: Ryan Blaney (22), Chris Buescher (23), Trevor Bayne (25), Joey Logano (26), Landon Cassill (27), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (28) and Brian Scott (28).(NBC Sports)(7-13-2016)

Austin Dillon's #3 to feature Olympics scheme: The #3 Dow Race to Rio Chevy will feature Dow's partnership with Team USA in action during the race weekend in New Hampshire. In 2010, Dow became the Official Chemistry Company and a Worldwide Olympic Partner, following a 30 year history of involvement with the Olympic Games. Dow is helping the most iconic of global sporting events achieve higher levels of performance and sustainability. Follow @DowChemical and stay-tuned this August to learn more. (Richard Childress Racing), see images of the car on the #3 team paint schemes page.(7-13-2016)

Haas Automation featured on the #14 at New Hampshire: Gene Haas has a present for fellow Stewart-Haas Racing co-owner Tony Stewart this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. The gray-and-red paint scheme of Haas Automation, the largest CNC (computer numerically controlled) machine tool builder in North America, will adorn the three-time champion's #14 Chevrolet in Sunday's New Hampshire 301 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. "Everyone at Haas Automation is appreciative of Tony's partnership since 2009, the countless wins and two championships," Haas said. "We thought it would be fitting to publically express thanks to Tony at New Hampshire - a track where he has such an impressive record and the site of one of SHR's best days." Haas founded Haas Automation in Sun Valley, California in 1983 to manufacture machine tools and entered the industry with the first fully automatic, programmable collet indexer - a device used to position parts for machining with high accuracy. Haas moved the company in 1997 to its current purpose-built facility located on 86 acres in Oxnard. By then, the company had shipped its 10,000th CNC machine and, less than 10 years later, had installed its 75,000th machine. To date, more than 175,000 Haas CNC machines are in service worldwide.(Stewart-Haas Racing), see an image of the car on the #14 team paint schemes page.(7-13-2016)

Ragan gets Indianapolis sponsor: BK Racing today that Brandeis Machinery will sponsor David Ragan's #23 Toyota Camry at the upcoming Combat Wounded Coalition 400 on Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Since 1908, Brandeis Machinery (a division of Bramco) has sold, serviced, and rented mining and construction equipment, products, and services in partnership with their suppliers from a base in Kentucky and Indiana. They offer full parts/service/planned maintenance packages and a rental lineup. Brandeis is your full-service equipment dealer, offering new equipment, used equipment, heavy equipment rentals, parts, service, and rebuilds.(BK Racing), see an image of the car on the #23 team paint schemes page.(7-13-2016)

Pocono Raceway, NASCAR win lawsuit on fan's death: A Pennsylvania jury ruled Monday for Pocono Raceway and NASCAR in lawsuits brought against both by the widow of a fan killed and others injured in lightning strikes at the track on Aug. 5, 2012. The case was heard in the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County. Brian Zimmerman, 41, of Moosic, Pa., was killed when he was struck by lightning in the parking lot behind the frontstretch grandstands. A second strike also hit the parking lot. Ten fans were injured. The three lawsuits alleged that if the race had been stopped when a severe storm warning was first issued, it would have provided sufficient time for those struck to have found proper shelter. The Trial Work Sheet in the case for all three lawsuits showed that even though the jury ruled for the defendants, it found Pocono Raceway negligent. However, on the question if "the negligence of Pocono International Raceway was a factual cause of any harm to ... Brian Zimmerman," the jury checked the box "No." The jury also voted that way in the other two cases brought by fans injured by lightning. The jury also stated it did not find NASCAR negligent in all three cases.(NBC Sports)(7-13-2016)

New Hampshire Goodyear Tire Notes: Teams in both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Xfinity Series will run the same tire set-up at New Hampshire this weekend . . . these teams have run this left-side tire (D-4564) at New Hampshire since 2012 . . . this is the first time they have run this right-side tire (D-4706) . . . compared to what was run at New Hampshire last year, this right-side features a construction change to bring it into line with what is run at Phoenix and Richmond, and a compound change to give cars more grip and introduce more wear over the course of a run . . . this tire set-up came out of a Goodyear test at New Hampshire on May 31-June 1 . . . drivers participating in that test were Aric Almirola, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. . . . as on most NASCAR ovals one mile or less in length, teams will not run inner liners in their tires at New Hampshire.(Goodyear), see tire codes, pressures, set limits and more on the New Hampshire Race Info page

Cope announces New Hampshire sponsors: E-hydrate announces that Hannaford, one of the premier northeast grocers, will be co-sponsored on the hood of the #70 Chevrolet driven by Derrike Cope this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. This partnership comes at a perfect time, as E-hydrate products are now available at Hannaford locations throughout the NE. Hannaford will highlight the convenient E-hydrate Protein-On-the-Go product line and support the launch with strong in-store presence and demos. Ice-Frost, the revolutionary, all natural ice-enhancement product that turns your cooler into a freezer will be featured as the co-primary at NHMS this weekend as well. CircleTtrack Warehouse returns as an associate sponsor for the #70, selling used racing parts and cars at affordable prices.(Derrike Cope Racing)(7-13-2016)

Brown crew chief penalized following Kentucky: Crew chief Adam Brenner has been fined $5,000, suspended from all NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship points events through July 27 and placed on NASCAR Probation through Dec. 31. The #86 driven by Brandon Brown was found to have lug nuts not properly installed during post race inspection.(NASCAR)(7-13-2016)

Testing at Indy July 12-13 UPDATE: Preparations for NASCAR's Brickyard 400 will begin in earnest next week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with at least a dozen car-and-driver Sprint Cup Series combinations scheduled to test Tuesday and Wednesday, 9am-5pm/et. The test follows this weekend's race at Kentucky Speedway. Next week, the series will be at New Hampshire Motor Speedway before arriving for the 23rd Brickyard 400. Drivers scheduled to test: #4-Harvick, #6-Bayne, #15-Bowyer, #20-Kenseth, #21-Blaney, #22-Logano, #27-Menard, #34-Buescher, #42-Larson, #44-Scott, #48-Johnson and #78-Truex, Jr.(Indianapolis Star)
AND Fans are encouraged to take advantage of this free opportunity to see some of the biggest stars in racing up close and personal. Testing on the 2.5-mile oval is taking place in advance of the Crown Royal presents the Wounded Warrior Coalition 400 at the Brickyard. The public may watch the test for free from the south terrace grandstands and Turn 2 viewing mounds, and the newly refurbished B Penthouse grandstands will also be open for viewing. Fans in attendance should also be on the lookout for special surprises from the IMS Field Marketing Team.(IMS)(7-7-2016)
UPDATE: A dozen NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers began the first day of a two-day test session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Tuesday in preparation for the Brickyard 400 on July 24. After turning the first few laps on Tuesday morning, Kenseth was optimistic based on what he initially felt inside his #20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. "I was just out there running by myself, but it seems OK," said Kenseth. "It's pretty much what you'd expect. There was a lot of fall off (with the tires) with not a lot of cars on the track. So when you have fall off like that, new tires mean a lot, and I think that's always good for the racing." Menard, driver of the #27 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, agreed with Kenseth. "I always enjoy racing at Indianapolis, but the rules package we had last year could have definitely been better," Menard said. "It was little bit of a shot in the dark. It had low reviews with the drivers. I think internal cockpit temperatures we at least 10-15 degrees hotter, so we were getting cooked and the cars were totally unstable in traffic."(Fox Sports)
AND NASCAR.com's Kenny Bruce tweeted Tuesday afternoon that "Larson, Truex, Harvick, Johnson your leaders, unofficially, during afternoon session as Day 1 of organizational test ends"(7-12-2016)

NASCAR announces changes to Competition Executive Team: NASCAR announced that Elton Sawyer has been promoted to the role of Vice President, Officiating and Technical Inspection and John Probst has joined the organization as Managing Director, Competition and Innovation. Additionally, NASCAR made the following promotions within its competition team:
· Brad Moran will transition to Managing Director, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
· Brandon Thompson will become the Senior Director, Touring Series
· George Grippo will join the competition team as Managing Director, Competition Technology and Timing & Scoring
· Jusan Hamilton will become Manager, Racing Operations & Event Management
Sawyer, who will continue reporting to Senior Vice President of Competition Scott Miller, transitions to his new role after serving the last two seasons as Managing Director of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He will oversee multiple functions to ensure NASCAR events are the best in motorsports, including inspection/officiating; officials training and development; and the events and transportation groups.
Probst joins NASCAR after serving as Technical Director for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. He also held the same role at Red Bull Racing, and spent more than 11 years as Engineering Supervisor at Ford Motor Company.
Moran will oversee the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series after serving in a similar capacity over the NASCAR Touring Series. The Canada native brings more than 25 years of motorsports experience into the role, including serving as owner of Barrie (Ontario) Speedway.
Thompson, who will transition into Moran's role, has more than 10 years of experience at NASCAR. He also served a two-year role as operations manager at Revolution Racing. After rejoining NASCAR in 2012, Thompson has held a number of responsibilities in the company's Racing Operations team, including the coordination and administration of weekly race activities.
Grippo, who has provided oversight of NASCAR Productions' Technology Field and Media Operations department as its managing director since September 2013, moves to the Competition team to lead the constantly evolving technology and timing and scoring realm, while retaining many of his at-track technology field responsibilities.
Hamilton first joined NASCAR in 2012 as a member of the company's Diversity Internship Program in both the Racing Operations and Integrated Marketing Communications departments. In 2013, he joined the sanctioning body fulltime as a member of its IMC team, later transitioning to the Industry Operations department.(NASCAR)(7-12-2016)

Lower downforce package could return at Michigan: The low, low downforce package was met with mixed reviews at Kentucky Speedway on Saturday - but could we see it again before the Chase for the Sprint Cup begins? NASCAR will meet with team representatives on Wednesday to review the latest experience with the proposed 2017 configuration for the Cup Series to determine what, if any, changes need to be made and if the sport needs to take another run with the car prior to next season. While NASCAR has said repeatedly there will be no changes to the current 2016 rules package for the Chase, the possibility of running the lower downforce package at Michigan Speedway next month is not completely off the table. [NASCAR senior vice president of competition Scott Miller] believes the lower downforce package actually enhanced the racing on Saturday. He believes the additional grip provided by a higher-downforce package could have been a recipe for disaster. "The low, low downforce package, if that's what we're calling it now, helped at this race on the repave," Miller said. "I think the corner speeds would have been extremely high, and with the higher downforce stepping out of the groove might have even had more consequences than we had (Saturday night)."(Motorsport)(7-12-2016)

NESN Fuel to sponsor Biffle at New Hampshire: Roush Fenway Racing is going to have more "fuel" than usual when the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to New Hampshire Motor Speedway. NESN Fuel, a website covering all things automotive, is set to be the primary sponsor of Greg Biffle's #16 car for the New Hampshire 301 on July 17. NESN Fuel launched in February. In addition, NESN Fuel and RFR will host Boston Bruins players Frank Vatrano and Noel Acciari on race day. Both players have New England roots; Vatrano is a native of East Longmeadow, Mass., and played at UMass, while Acciari was born in Johnston, R.I., and won a national tile at Providence College.(NESN), see images of the car on the #16 team paint schemes page.(7-12-2016)

Top 10 Driver Ratings at New Hampshire:
#14-Tony Stewart 103.4
#11-Denny Hamlin 103.2
#48-Jimmie Johnson 101.1
#2-Brad Keselowski 99.5
#88-Dale Earnhardt Jr 97.4
#4-Kevin Harvick 96.2
#18-Kyle Busch 95.6
#15-Clint Bowyer 91.3
#31-Ryan Newman 91.3
#5-Kasey Kahne 91.0
Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2016 races (22 total) among active drivers at New Hampshire Speedway.
Formula combining the following categories: Win, Finish, Top-15 Finish, Average Running Position while on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps, Lead-Lap Finish. Maximum: 150 points per race.
See an explanation how the Driver Rating is calculated at NASCAR.com.(NASCAR)

NASCAR Foundation to Host Honors Gala to Celebrate 10 Years of Giving: The NASCAR Foundation will host its first-ever Honors Gala at the Marriott Marquis in New York City Sept. 27 to unveil the winner of its signature Betty France Humanitarian Award Presented by Nationwide. Multi-platinum selling pop star Rachel Platten will perform live with music from her major-label debut, Wildfire, which debuted at number five on the Billboard 200 Chart in the U.S. and spawned chart-topping singles "Fight Song" and "Stand by You." The gala will celebrate "10 Years of Giving" for the NASCAR Foundation which has donated $25 million to more than one million children since its inception in 2006. Betty Jane France, Founder and Chairwoman Emeritus of The NASCAR Foundation, will present the Humanitarian Award to the NASCAR fan who has shown tremendous dedication to improving the lives of children in their communities. This Award has benefitted nearly 200,000 children since launching six years ago and the winner will be chosen following a public vote of four finalists that begins July 13. At the event, The NASCAR Foundation will hand out a series of awards including its first-ever Founder's Award to Mark Lazarus, Chairman of the NBC Sports Group. The Founder's Award honors contributions to philanthropy through use of time, talent and resources - both personally and professionally - to make a meaningful impact on the lives of children. The NASCAR Foundation will also announce the launch of the Speediatrics Children's Fund through a long-term partnership with a New York-area medical organization providing services to children in need. The event will also host a live auction featuring the artwork of the 2015 Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award presented by Nationwide winner Jeff Hanson, a philanthropic artist whose artwork gifted to charity has generated nearly $2 million.(NASCAR)(7-12-2016)

Sad News - Richard Donlavey: Charles Richard Donlavey, 68, of Chesterfield, died July 10, 2016. He was preceded in death by his parents, Junie and Phyllis Donlavey; and his first wife, Janet M. Donlavey. He is survived by his wife, Sandy Donlavey; daughter, Ashley Gold (Andrew); two stepsons, Brent and Zach Harper; and two sisters, Linda Perkins (Billy) of Williamsburg, Va., and Beverly Swata of St. Petersburg, Fla. Richard was a member of the NASCAR Donlavey Racing Team of Richmond, Va. A memorial ceremony will be held 2:00pm Wednesday at Bliley's-Chippenham, 6900 Hull Street Road, with a reception to follow.(Richmond Times-Dispatch)(7-12-2016)

Jeb Burton in the #98 for 2 races: Biagi-DenBeste Racing announced a partnership with Jeb Burton and Estes Express Lines, a full-service freight transportation provider, for two NASCAR XFINITY Series races in the 2016 season. Burton will pilot the #98 Estes Ford at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 23 and Richmond International Raceway September 9. This partnership will mark the second time Burton has driven the #98 Ford. He piloted the #98 Ford to a 15th-place finish at Charlotte in 2014. Most recently, Burton competed in 11 NASCAR XFINITY Series races with Richard Petty Motorsports where he scored one Top-10 and four Top-15 finishes. Burton will make his track debut at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and compete for the fourth time at Richmond International Raceway. Estes Express Lines is a full-service freight transportation provider, headquartered in Burton's home state of Virginia. The Richmond-based company has previously partnered with Burton in both the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Camping World Truck Series.(Biagi-DenBeste Racing)(7-12-2016)

OneMain leaving NASCAR at end of season: Only 16 races into his first year with JR Motorsports in the Xfinity Series, Elliott Sadler felt as if his #1 Chevrolet team was meeting every expectation. From a business standpoint, though, the news wasn't so good. The night before the July 1 race at Daytona International Speedway, Sadler received a call that longtime primary sponsor OneMain wouldn't return for 2017. For the Emporia, Virginia, driver, whose cars have carried the company's colors for more than five years, the news came as a shocking blow - particularly given his results this season and JRM's reputation as an Xfinity Series mainstay known for its innovative approach to digital platforms, such as its podcasting network. OneMain was sold last year by Citigroup to Springleaf Holdings, and it isn't unusual for companies to abandon NASCAR sponsorships after management changes. Dollar General, which named a new CEO last year, announced earlier this season it would be leaving the Joe Gibbs Racing Sprint Cup ride of Matt Kenseth because of a shift in marketing priorities. OneMain didn't respond immediately to a request for comment. "I think they want to go in a different direction than what racing is," Sadler said. "They didn't share a lot with me other than that part of it." Sadler, who has been friends with JRM co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. for over two decades, dating back to their days of racing Late Models together, hopes a championship would shore up his prospects for staying put. "The future is 100 percent uncertain with all this happening, but if I could get a blank sheet of paper and write down a wish list, it'd be to still race with JR Motorsports moving forward," Sadler said. In a statement, JR Motorsports co-owner Kelley Earnhardt Miller said the team wants to maintain three Chevys again next season. JRM also fields the #7 for Justin Allgaier and a #88 that is split between several drivers.(NBC Sports)(7-12-2016)

Kentucky XFINITY TV Ratings: The NASCAR Xfinity Series race from Kentucky had 995,000 viewers on NBCSN Friday night, down 9% from last year (1.1M), down 21% from 2014 on ESPN (1.3M) and easily a season-low. No other race this season dipped below 1.2 million viewers.(Sports Media Watch)(7-12-2016)

Moran to replace Sawyer as Managing Director of Truck Series: NASCAR announced that Elton Sawyer has been promoted to the role of Vice President, Officiating and Technical Inspection and John Probst has joined the organization as Managing Director, Competition and Innovation. Additionally, NASCAR made the following promotions within its competition team: Brad Moran will transition to Managing Director, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Brandon Thompson will become the Senior Director, Touring Series, George Grippo will join the competition team as Managing Director, Competition Technology and Timing & Scoring, and Jusan Hamilton will become Manager, Racing Operations & Event Management.
Sawyer, who will continue reporting to Senior Vice President of Competition Scott Miller, transitions to his new role after serving the last two seasons as Managing Director of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He will oversee multiple functions to ensure NASCAR events are the best in motorsports, including inspection/officiating; officials training and development; and the events and transportation groups. Sawyer joined NASCAR in 2015 after serving as Director of Team Operations for Action Express Racing in the IMSA Series. Prior to that role, he held competition positions at Red Bull Racing and Evernham Motorsports. Sawyer also spent a portion of his racing career competing in the NASCAR national series as a driver.
Moran will oversee the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series after serving in a similar capacity over the NASCAR Touring Series. The Canada native brings more than 25 years of motorsports experience into the role, including serving as owner of Barrie (Ontario) Speedway.(NASCAR)(7-12-2016)

New Hampshire names honorary pace car drivers: A little bit of hockey and a little bit of rock 'n roll - that's how two of the biggest races of this weekend will start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Boston Bruins forward Tim Schaller and Dave Matthews Band bassist Stefan Lessard will serve as honorary Toyota Camry pace car drivers for the NASCAR XFINITY Series AutoLotto 200 on July 16 and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series New Hampshire 301 on July 17. Schaller, a 25-year-old native of Merrimack, N.H., will lead the XFINITY Series field to green for the AutoLotto 200 at 4:00pm on Saturday, July 16. Schaller played his collegiate hockey at Providence College and is entering his fourth season as a professional. Schaller has two goals and three assists in 35 games at the NHL level. Lessard will make a pit stop from the Dave Matthews Band's summer tour, including two sold out concerts in New Hampshire, and pace the field for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday, July 17 at 1:30pm. As a member of Dave Matthews Band, Stefan has sold more than 20 million tickets and a collective 38 million CDs and DVDs combined. Dave Matthews Band is also the first group in history to have six consecutive studio albums debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.(NHMS)(7-12-2016)

Truex, Jr. to discuss penalty with NASCAR UPDATE: #78-Martin Truex Jr. shored up seventh place in the Chase for the Sprint Cup points standings with a 10th-place finish at Kentucky Speedway on Saturday. But, he was not happy. During a caution with nearly 70 laps remaining in the Quaker State 400, Truex entered pit road trailing only Kevin Harvick for the lead. As he approached his pit stall, Truex dove in front of Harvick and much to Truex's chagrin, was penalized by NASCAR for making an illegal pass on pit road, a penalty that dropped him to 22nd and likely cost him a shot at the win. Truex insisted he did nothing wrong to deserve the penalty. He planned to speak with NASCAR officials about the decision to penalize his team. "I feel like I did the same thing guys do every week," Truex said. "You get to your timing line, you step on the gas, and you head straight toward your pit. Obviously I turned left and came up next to the 4 car (Harvick) and passed him as I was driving to my pit, which is what guys do every week. I don't know why it was different (Saturday). I would think that if they didn't want us to do it any more, they would tell us in the drivers' meeting. But I mean, hell, I've been passed on pit road 15 times this year that same exact way - and I didn't see guys get penalized."(Sporting News)(7-11-2016)
UPDATE: A NASCAR executive said series officials will "reiterate" this week the rule that drivers cannot pass to the inside on pit road after penalizing Martin Truex Jr. for that Saturday night at Kentucky Speedway. Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer, made the comments Monday on "The Morning Drive" on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Truex was penalized on Lap 196 for passing leader Kevin Harvick on the inside on pit road before heading to his stall. Truex was the first Sprint Cup driver penalized this season for that specific violation. O'Donnell said series officials saw this issue happening more often this season and described what Truex did as "blatant," leading to the penalty. "It is clear in the rule book that you can't pass to the left," O'Donnell said on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. "It's also brought up in every drivers meeting. If you look at drivers pulling off just as they pull into their pits and kind of pull up alongside a car, sure, that's happened. I would probably relate this to other sports. If you look at the three-second rule (in the NBA), it's always there but it's rarely called because you don't see it blatantly, and then you'll see a coach or some teams say, 'Hey, you've got to focus on this rule, it's getting out of hand.' That was the case certainly for us. We saw a trend that was getting bigger and bigger. For us, that was a blatant pass to the left. We felt we had to make that call. We'll certainly address it with the industry prior to New Hampshire again to reiterate what the rule is as well."(NBC Sports)(7-11-2016)

Entry List for the New Hampshire 301 Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is posted, 40 teams/drivers [for 40 spots] are listed, including: #21-Blaney*, #30-Wise*, #32-Eddie MacDonald, #55-Sorenson*, #95-McDowell, #98-Whitt*.
Drivers who are not a Charter team, an Open Team, and must get in via speed: #21-Blaney, #30-Wise, #55-Sorenson, #98-Whitt
Since only 40 cars are entered, all drivers will make the race, 40 is the maximum.
* Open Team (no Charter)
See the full entry list on Jayski.com's New Hampshire Entry List

A.J. Allmendinger's thumb OK after Kentucky wreck: A.J. Allmendinger's left thumb is OK after a heavy impact at Kentucky Speedway, but his JTG Daugherty Racing team slightly will scale back its schedule this week. A team spokesperson said Allmendinger's #47 Chevrolet won't be at a Tuesday-Wednesday test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway because the team will be regrouping to focus on building cars after a rough stretch. Allmendinger has crashed in two of the past four races and hasn't finished in the top 10 in two months. He finished 36th in Saturday's Quaker State 400 after being caught in two wrecks, the second of which resulted in his left hand and wrist being wrapped during a visit to the track's care center. Allmendinger said his thumb was hurting, but the spokesperson said an X-ray revealed the thumb was fine.(NBC Sports)(7-11-2016)

Kyle Busch nominated for "Best Driver" ESPY: Defending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion #18-Kyle Busch could see his celebration of last year's championship continue on July 13 - at the ESPY Awards. The yearly awards show, hosted by ESPN with winners decided via fan voting, will air on Wednesday at 8:00pm/et on ABC. Busch is nominated for "Best Driver" and is up against Scott Dixon (IndyCar), Lewis Hamilton (Formula One), Erica Enders-Stevens (NHRA) and Alexander Rossi (IndyCar). NASCAR is the defending winner in that category as well. Kevin Harvick , the 2014 champion, took home the hardware last year.(NASCAR.com)(7-11-2016)

XFINITY Entry List: There are 41 cars on the preliminary entry list for Saturday's AutoLotto 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. A few notes:
John Jackson will drive the #13;
Todd Peck returns to the RWR #15;
Kyle Busch will drive the #18 in place of Matt Tifft;
Corey LaJoie returns to the JGL #24;
Chris Cockrum will drive the #25 for RWR;
Justin Marks is driving the #42;
The Obaika #77 & #97 are entered with drivers TBA;
Alex Bowman will drive the JRM #88.(7-11-2015)
See the complete list on the New Hampshire entry list page.

Genesis Brake Light Systems sponsoring Bowman: JR Motorsports announced the addition of Genesis Brake Light Systems, a provider of state-of-the-art brake light technology, as a team partner. Genesis Brake Light Systems will have primary placement on JRM's #88 Chevrolet with driver Alex Bowman in the NASCAR Xfinity Series event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and associate placement for the remainder of 2016. Based in Tucson, Ariz., Genesis Brake Light Systems utilizes pulse width modulation and pre-programmed patterns to increase braking awareness among drivers. Its systems serve as a rear-end collision countermeasure, helping alert other drivers to a braking or stopped vehicle with its Sure Stop Technology. This weekend's race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway marks Bowman's fifth NXS start for JRM in 2016. In his previous four starts with the team this season, he's earned two top-five and four top-10 finishes with one pole.(JR Motorsports), see an image of the car on the #88 team paint schemes page.(7-11-2016)

Taiga Coolers joins MBM at New Hampshire: MBM Motorsports [XFINITY #13 & #40] announcs a partnership with Taiga Coolers, starting at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Taiga Coolers, a Veteran owned company and supporters of the Chris Kyle Memorial Benefit, make durable coolers that have 7 day ice retention. Their NASCAR campaign will feature "Dealers Wanted", as Taiga Coolers LLC are looking to expand nationwide.(MBM Motorsports)(7-11-2016)

AutoLotto making first appearance on #6: When Bubba Wallace hits the track at New Hampshire Motor Speedway this weekend, his #6 Ford Mustang will carry a new look, debuting the AutoLotto paint scheme in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. In addition to partnering with Wallace and Roush Fenway, AutoLotto will also serve as the title sponsor of the NXS race - the AutoLotto 200. AutoLotto is a mobile application that allows users to play the Powerball lottery from their smartphone. Users can play with zero fees or commissions, and collect 100 percent of the winnings. AutoLotto checks the tickets for winning numbers and automatically alerts users when they win, eliminating store lines, lost tickets and the need to track down results.(Roush Fenway Racing), see an image of the car on the #6 team paint schemes page.(7-11-2016)

Eldora race dubbed Aspen Dental Eldora Dirt Derby: A race that has made everyone smile since its inception in 2013 has earned an appropriate new name. The Aspen Dental Eldora Dirt Derby is the official name of the fourth annual NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event July 20 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. The Aspen Dental Eldora Dirt Derby will take place on a Wednesday night at the half-mile, clay oval. The Camping World Truck Series is the only national NASCAR series event contested on dirt, with the 150-lap feature broken into three segments of 40 laps, 50 laps and 60 laps. Five qualifying heat races set the 32-truck field, a nod to dirt-track tradition.Aspen Dental is one of the largest and fastest-growing networks of independent dental care providers in the United States, with more than 550 locations across 33 states.(Eldora Speedway)(7-11-2016)

New Hampshire to feature a Taste of the Speedways: With more than 700 miles of racing coming up, the on-track action at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is sure to leave fans' appetites satisfied and mouths watering. There will also be some off-track options that will leave fans equally satiated, as the Magic Mile unveils the Taste of the Speedways. The Taste of the Speedways will feature signature food items from each of the eight Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (SMI) racetracks throughout the country and will be located under the Main Grandstand to the right of the main elevator. Menu items will include:
New Hampshire Motor Speedway: New England Fried Lobster Plate, Speedway Breakfast Burger, The Clam Bake Sandwich, Magic Mile Sundae, and Maple Cotton Candy; Atlanta Motor Speedway: Peanut Butter & Jelly Milkshakes; Bristol Motor Speedway: Loaded Tots; Charlotte Motor Speedway: Speedway Picnic Burger; Kentucky Speedway: Fried Bologna Sandwich; Las Vegas Motor Speedway: South of the Border Cheesesteak & Busch Brothers Beer Braised Brisket Nachos; Sonoma Raceway: Crab Cake Skewer; Texas Motor Speedway: Bacon Cotton Candy & Queen Wing.(NHMS)(7-11-2016)

Kentucky Race and Commercial Breakdown of the 2016 Quaker State 400: For those of you NASCAR fans that like stats and love to hate commercials, here is the breakdown for Saturday's race. Began recording the times at the Invocation of the race at 7:30 PM, and stopped at the waving of the checkered flag at 10:57 PM (all times are EDT). NBCSN was the broadcast team for this event.
Total number of commercials: 119
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 48
Number of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 95
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 45
Number of 'Side-by-Side' commercials during race broadcast (split-screen): 24
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 16
Number of times NBCSN utilized 'Side-by-Side' commercials during this broadcast: 4
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 89
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 7:30 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 10:57 PM
Total minutes of complete race broadcast: 207
Minutes of race broadcast: 166
Minutes of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 41
Minutes of 'Side-by-Side' commercials (split-screen): 10
Number of missed restarts: 0
Number of 'mystery cautions' (debris not shown): 0
Total race brdcst time 166 Total comm. brdcst time 41
See past races, more info on the commercials with links at CawsnJaws.com.(7-103-2016)

Vehicle fire in a parking lot at Kentucky Speedway: Firefighters have extinguished a fire that broke out in the parking lot behind the grandstand at Kentucky Speedway and sent thick, black smoke billowing into the sky. Track spokesman Tim Bray said firefighters at the facility and from Gallatin County put out the blaze in the speedway's Platinum lot. Bray said the fire began in the passenger compartment of a truck and damaged a second vehicle, with a third singed. No one was injured.(Associated Press)(7-10-2016)

Flaming Leprechaun to sponsor Ragan at NHMS: BK Racing announced that Flaming Leprechaun has joined on to sponsor David Ragan at the upcoming New Hampshire 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Ragan's #23 Flaming Leprechaun Camry will be adorned with the leprechaun logo. Flaming Leprechaun is an exciting new line of premium spirits exported directly from Ireland. The brand, which is deeply rooted in traditional Irish heritage and culture, offers US consumers top-quality spirits with an award-winning taste that captures all the fun of St Patrick's Day in every bottle.
"Our entire Flaming Leprechaun Team is thrilled to partner with David Ragan and the 23 Toyota for what should be a fantastic race in New Hampshire. We are very proud to be on the verge of our highly-anticipated US launch of our award-winning line of Irish Spirits - especially our Fiery Cinnamon Whiskey, for all of the world to enjoy," said Jack Walsh, Managing Partner of 3 Hearts of Ireland. "David's car will proudly display our distinctive leprechaun logo, and we are sure it will bring him and everybody who is excited to try our fantastic products "the Luck of the Irish" at New Hampshire."
"We're proud to welcome Flaming Leprechaun on board at such an important time for their company," said BK Racing Chief Marketing Officer Doug Fritz. "NASCAR is a great marketing platform for their company as they prepare for their US launch and we are excited to tell our fans about this company."(BK Racing), see image of the scheme on the #23 Teams Schemes page.(7-10-2016)

Wood Brothers' Ford to change look at Indy to support scholarship program: When the Wood Brothers' historic #21 Ford takes to the famous 2.5-mile oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 24 for the Crown Royal presents the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 at the Brickyard, it will have a decidedly different look and a very noble purpose. The look is the blue Quick Lane Tire & Auto Centers livery for the only time in 2016. The purpose is to promote Quick Lane's new "Trading One Uniform for Another" scholarship program for veterans. To help veterans acquire the skills they need to become automotive technicians, Quick Lane Tire & Auto Centers will award $10,000 scholarships to five veterans. The funds are used to pay for tuition, books and fees at any community college, university, trade or vocational school with an accredited program in automotive mechanics in the United States. "We are honored that Quick Lane has decided to use our car to deliver its message about 'Trading One Uniform for Another,'" said Wood Brothers Racing co-owner Eddie Wood. "Our uncle, (Hall of Fame crew chief) Leonard Wood, is a veteran and we've always held those who served in high esteem. This scholarship program is an excellent opportunity for them." Everyone is invited to nominate veterans for these scholarships by going to www.QLtradingone.com and writing a short essay on why their nominee is a deserving recipient. Quick Lane Tire & Auto Centers will select 10 finalists from all qualified nominees. In November, which is Military Appreciation Month, Quick Lane Tire & Auto Centers will reveal the finalists at www.QLtradingone.com and invite everyone to vote for a finalist to receive a scholarship. Quick Lane will announce the five scholarship recipients at this year's Quick Lane Bowl at Ford Field in Detroit on Dec. 26.(Wood Brothers Racing), see image of the scheme on the #21 Teams Schemes page.(7-10-2016)

Update on Matt Tifft: Matt Tifft updated his status in a Twitter video Sunday afternoon. Some notes:
Doctors confirmed that it was a Grade 2, low grade tumor. While it was not immediately a danger, there was a chance it could have become worse in several years, so they were lucky to have caught it when they did. He will now work with doctors to look at chemotherapy and radiation options for treatment.(7-10-2016)

Brad Keselowski wins at Kentucky: #2-Brad Keselowski won the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway for his 4th win of the season, 3rd win at Kentucky, 2nd win in a row and 21st career win. Keselowski ran out of fuel just after the start-finish line.
#19-Edwards finished 2nd followed by #31-Newman, #41-Busch, #14-Stewart, #16-Biffle, #1-McMurray, #20-Kenseth, #4-Harvick and #78-Truex Jr.
#17-Stenhouse Jr. hit the wall twice early in the race and hit the wall hard, finished 40th. Next was #48-Johnson, who got loose and backed in to the wall, finishing 32nd, down 59 laps. #22-Logano, smacked the wall with the right rear but continued on, falling back many spots. Then had a tire go down from the damage and slammed the wall, ending his night and finishing 39th. Four of the five Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidates were involved in wrecks. First #21-Blaney and #24-Elliott made contact on lap 87 with both backing into the wall. A few laps later, #44-Scott got loose and hit by #42-Larson, causing the #44 to go sideways, then #34-Buescher hit the #44. The one rookie not involved was #32-Jeffrey Earnhardt who finished a career best 28th, was the highest finishing rookie for the first time.
There were 16 lead changes among 9 drivers and a record tying 11 cautions for 53 yellow flag laps.
The average speed was 128.583 mph.
Scheduled Race Re-Air:
Monday, July 11 at 4:00pm/et on NBCSN
See unofficial race results, awards, laps led, cautions and more [NOTE: money/winnings are no longer reported] at:
Unofficial Race Results page (pdf)
Lap Summary Report (pdf)
Penalty Report (pdf)
Pit Stop Times (pdf)
(7-9-2016)

Race Fast Facts - Kentucky Speedway:
#2-Brad Keselowski won the 6th Annual Quaker State 400 presented by Advance Auto Parts, his 21st victory in 251 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his fourth victory and 12th top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his third victory and fifth top-10 finish in six races at Kentucky Speedway.
#19-Carl Edwards (second) posted his third top-10 finish in six races at Kentucky Speedway. It is his 12th top-10 finish in 2016.
#31-Ryan Newman (third) posted his third top-10 finish in six races at Kentucky Speedway.
#32-Jeffrey Earnhardt (28th) was the highest finishing rookie.
#4-Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 4 points over #2-Brad Keselowski.
(NASCAR Integrated Sports Marketing)(7-9-2016)

2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup CHASE Standings:
[after Kentucky, race 18 of 36, 16 drivers for the Chase]
Set by most wins, then by points standing
1) #2-Keselowski [4 wins], 2nd in driver points
2) #18-Busch [3], 6th in driver points
3) #19-Edwards [2], 4th
4) #48-Johnson [2], 9th
5) #4-Harvick [1], 1st
6) #41-Busch [1], 3rd
7) #22-Logano [1], 5th
8) #78-Truex, Jr. [1], 7th
9) #20-Kenseth [1], 10th
10) #11-Hamlin [1], 11th
11) #14-Stewart [1], 30th
no wins, in by drivers points standings
12) #24-Elliott, 8th in drivers points, 63 ahead of 17th
13) #31-Newman, 12th, +34
14) #88-Earnhardt Jr., 13th, +32
15) #3-Dillon, 14th, +31
16) #1-McMurray, 15th, +10
no wins, not in the Chase
17) #6-Bayne, 16th, -10 pts
18) #5-Kahne, 17th, -16 pts
(7-9-2016)

2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Driver Points (not CHASE) Standings:
[after Kentucky, race 18 of 36]
1) #4-Harvick [1 win], 599
2) #2-Keselowski [4], 595, -4
3) #41-Busch [1], 583, -16
4) #19-Edwards [2], 566, -33
5) #22-Logano [1], 533, -66
6) #18-Busch, [3], 521, -78
7) #78-Truex Jr. [1], 514, -85
8) #24-Elliott, 492, -107
9) #48-Johnson [2], 484, -115
10) #20-Kenseth [1], 477, -122
See the Unofficial Drivers Points Standings page (pdf) and
Unofficial Owners Points Standings page (pdf)

Daytona Rookie of the Year Race Results & Points:
#32-Jeffrey Earnhardt, finished 28th (best career), 11 rookie points
#24-Chase Elliott, finished 31st, accident, 10 rookie points
#44-Brian Scott, finished 33rd, accident, 9 rookie points
#21-Ryan Blaney, finished 35th, accident, 8 rookie points
#34-Chris Buescher, finished 37th, accident, 7 rookie points
See Jayski.com's 2016 Rookie of the Year page for rules, standings and more.(7-9-2016)

Lucky Dogs - Who got a lap back on each caution at Kentucky: (and their finish)
Caution 1: no cars a lap down
Caution 2: no cars a lap down on the track
Caution 3: no cars a lap down on the track
Caution 4: #55-Sorenson, 27th
Caution 5: #55-Sorenson(2), 27th
Caution 6: no cars a lap down on the track
Caution 7: #48-Johnson (Still down 42 laps), 32nd
Caution 8: #23-Ragan, 22nd
Caution 9: #10-Patrick, 17th
Caution 10: #15-Bowyer, 23rd
Caution 11: #1-McMurray, 7th
(7-9-2016)

Four Rookies wreck at Kentucky, comments from each: Four of the five rookie of the year candidates had issues in the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway on Saturday night: #21-Blaney, #24=Elliott, #34-Buscher and #44-Scott were involved in accidents. On lap 89, #21-Ryan Blaney got stuck in the middle between #24-Elliott on the top and #16-Biffle who was below the #21. Blaney and Elliott made contact, sending both backing into the wall. Then, on Lap 93, #44-Scott got loose, then made contact with #42-Larson, sending the #44 sliding. #34-Buescher had no place to go and hit the #44 Ford sending it into the inside wall. #47-Allmendinger and #95-Dillon were also involved. Comments/Quotes from each:
#24-Chase Elliott:
Q) YOUR CREW IS MAKING REPAIRS, BUT TAKE ME THROUGH WHAT HAPPENED. DID YOU REALIZE YOU WERE GOING THREE-WIDE?
Elliott: "Yeah, kind of at the last second I heard them say three, and I really didn't know how that was going to work. And there's really not enough room. I felt like I was I was about at the top of the gray; or the bottom of the gray; as about at the top as I could be without getting up in the mess. I tried to give as much room as I could do as possible. That's racing, I guess. We'll just try to go get 'em next week. The good news is we had a fast NAPA Chevy; the bad news is that we've had three bad weeks in a row. So, for us; we've just got to go back and get the job done, bottom line. So, we'll try again next week."
Q) WE JUST SAW ANOTHER BIG WRECK THAT TOOK OUT A LOT OF CARS. HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR YOU TO TRY AND MAKE THE REPAIRS AND GET BACK OUT?
Elliott: "Well, it's definitely important. It's not as important as winning. That's the most important thing, for us, at this point. That's our goal. Just because we had a bad night tonight doesn't mean our goal has changed. So, we'll try to get 'em next week."
Q) WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON HOW THAT ALL TRANSPIRED?
Elliott: "Just being top of (Turn) 3 and there is really not enough room to be three-wide, so I heard at the last second we were three-wide and I had a feeling that we were just because we got bottled up there off of (Turn) 2. I tried to give as much room as I possibly could to stay at the top of the black and out of the grey. I didn't know how much further out I could get without wrecking myself without any help. I guess Ryan (Blaney) just got loose and got us, but that is racing. The good news is we had another fast car, the bad news that is the third bad week in a row. We will try to regroup and go get 'em wherever we go next."
Q) WHAT HAPPENED?
Elliott: "Just got three-wide, had a bad corner there in (Turn) 2 and got us bottled up. Once that happened guys obviously tried to pounce and make things happen. For me, I was kind of the guy on the outside lane. I tried to get out as far as I felt like I could without getting up in the grey. I know every time somebody has got in the grey this weekend it has been bad news. I was trying to stay out of that myself. I guess Ryan (Blaney) got loose in the middle and that is an easy thing to do. It's slick." Q) HOW SLICK WAS IT? WAS THE DRIVING TONIGHT AS CRAZY AS EVERYBODY THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE?
Elliott: "It's just such a fine line. There is just not a lot of room for error. The groove is so narrow that if you make a mistake you just kind of have to stop in your tracks. You can't necessarily slide up and gather yourself back up in a wider spot. You just kind of have to try to keep it wherever you are and obviously the people coming behind you. That is part of it I guess and like I said we will try to come back and have a better week next week."(Team Chevy)
#21-Ryan Blaney: "That restart was pretty hectic from the beginning with the 78 getting loose and it kind of put everybody in a bad spot, and it wound up with us being in the middle of three-wide into three. It's so hard to get into that corner all night with a car close to behind you and outside of you, and no one lifting either, and it's just an unfortunate spot we got put in and I hate to see two really good cars tore up. We were both very fast tonight (24 and 21) and it's just a really unfortunate deal, but we'll try to get it fixed and get back out there and make some laps."
#34-Chris Buescher: "I was really happy with our Love's Ford Fusion. Our fire-off speed was excellent and this was the best car we've had all year. The guys did a heck of a job. Unfortunately, the call was made to run practice during our qualifying time and we started by points. We've had three of these situations at superspeedways already this year and just didn't put us in a good place for the start and the pit selection wasn't good because of it, and we ended up in a bad spot because of it. We were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."
Q) HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE TRACK TONIGHT?
Buescher: "They did a good job with the repave. The track is a lot of fun to drive. Everybody keeps begging for less and less downforce, and we keep seeing more and more incidents because of it. I think it has made better racing at a lot of race tracks, but it's not easy to get into turn three here side-by-side."
#44-Brian Scott: "The 11 was pretty tight on my door and I had the 42 up my bumper there on that restart and these cars are pretty difficult to drive when you're in that type of situation. I was expecting it and when it happened I thought I had it saved. I was just trying to gather it back up and lose the spots we were gonna lose, but go on and then some cars barreled in pretty fast from behind and caused a pile up. It started with me. It's a product of new paves. You just don't have any room and everybody holds each other really tight, and it's just difficult. This low downforce package is racing really well, but it doesn't really matter what downforce package you have when you've got two cars really tight on you from behind and on the side you just have no air on your car and there was nothing I could do."(Ford Performance)(7-9-2016)

Logano wrecks at Kentucky: #22-Joey Logano slid up and smacked the wall with the right reear of the catrr, then a few laps later, on lap 53, Logano slammed the wall, comments from Logano:
Q) DID YOU HAVE ANY INDICATION OF A PROBLEM? COULD IT HAVE BEEN A HEAT-RELATED PROBLEM WITH THE RIGHT-FRONT TIRE?
Logano: "I think so. It's hard to say for sure, but I got loose off of four and knocked the right-rear quarter off it and then got real loose. When you get loose you have to slow down more and you use a lot of brake to slow down. Usually, the next thing to go is the right-front tire and that happened. Unfortunately, I put us in a bad spot here. It's not where we want to be and we'll figure out next week."
Q) WHAT HAPPENED?
Logano: "I was just looking at the tire in there. I got loose and hit the wall about 10 laps before that and the car got really loose when you tap the right-rear quarter over. You're trying to slow down a lot and the brakes started going away and I don't know what happened after that, if a rotor blew up or what made the tire go down, but the right-front went flat and I was pretty much along for the ride after that. I hit a ton, so I'm pretty impressed by the way the safety is in these race cars. That was one of the hardest hits I've had in a while. I had a long time to look at the wall before I hit it and not really slow down much before I got there and I'm alright, so it's pretty cool to get through that. It just kind of stinks for our race team to be crashed out so early in the race, but we'll just go back to Loudon and go back to work."
Q) YOUR CHEEK IS RED. DID YOU HIT THE SIDE OF YOUR FACE?
Logano: "Yeah, a little bit, but everything did its job. It doesn't hurt. I think it's just red."
Q) IS THE TRACK REAL SLIPPERY?
Logano: "Yeah, it's real slick. The first lap I was out there sideways and then tried to make a little bit of progress on it. For me it was either you're really loose in and really tight off, or you're good in and decent off - or at least it was for my car, so it is what it is."(Ford Performance)(7-9-2016)

Cars to carry special police tribute decal at Kentucky: from NASCAR Senior Vice President Jim Cassidy's Twitter: "The Thin Blue Line symbolizes honor to fallen law enforcement officers. Our cars will carry this emblem. #Dallas"
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series cars will carry this decal in the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway tonight, July 9, 2016

Kentucky Sprint Cup Series Pre-Race Schedule for Saturday, July 9: (eastern time)
5:30:00 pm: NSCS Driver/Crew Chief Meeting
7:00:00 pm: NSCS Driver Introductions and NASCAR Special Awards
7:27:30 pm: Pledge of Allegiance by USAF New Enlistees
7:28:15 pm: Introduction of God Bless America Local Boy & Girl Scouts from Kentucky will unfurl US Flag
7:28:30 pm: God Bless America performed by J.D. Shelburne, Kentucky Native and country Music Artist
7:30:00 pm: Presentation of Colors by Kentucky National Guard
7:30:20 pm: Invocation by Larry Campbell, Kentucky Raceway Ministries
7:31:00 pm: National Anthem by Marlana VanHoose
7:32:30 pm: Flyover by 123rd Airlift Wing, Louisville, KY C-130H from the 165 Airlift Squadron
7:37:30 pm: Command to Start Engines by George Sherman, President of Advance Auto Parts
7:45:30 pm: Green flag for Quaker State 400
eastern time (NASCAR.com)

Kurt Busch has raced all the laps in 2016: #41-Kurt Busch, has an impressive streak of his own in jeopardy at Kentucky. Through 17 races this season, Busch has completed 4,935 laps in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competition. That makes him the only driver to have finished on the lead lap in every race this year. At Kentucky, Busch got into the marbles and slid sideways into the Turn 4 wall late in Friday evening's final practice session. Damage to the right rear of the car forced crew chief Tony Gibson to opt for a backup car. That decision forced Busch to take the green flag for Saturday night's race from the rear of the field - in a car he has never practiced.(NASCAR Wire Service)(7-9-2016)

Kentucky Race Notes & Facts:
· There have been five NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Kentucky Speedway since the first race in 2011 - one race per season.
· 67 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway; 51 in more than one.
· Joe Gibbs Racing and Team Penske are tied for the series lead in wins at Kentucky with two each: Joe Gibbs Racing (2011, 2013); Team Penske (2012, 2014).
· Three different manufacturers have won in the NSCS at Kentucky: Toyota (2011, 2013 and 2015), Dodge (2012) and Ford (2014).
· The 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky produced the most lead changes (20) at the 1.5-mile track. The fewest lead changes were in the 2013 race at Kentucky (11).
· The 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky produced the most different leaders (12) at the 1.5-mile speedway. The fewest leaders in a NSCS event at Kentucky were the 2014 race with three.
· Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Kentucky Speedway was the July 9, 2011 race won by Kyle Busch over David Reutimann with a MOV of 0.179 second.
· None of the five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Kentucky Speedway have resulted with a green-white-checkered finish.
· None of the five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Kentucky Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions.
(NASCAR)

NASCAR says no aero package changes for the Chase: There will not be a change in the aerodynamic package for this year's Chase for the Sprint Cup, NASCAR Senior Vice President of Competition Scott Miller told FOXSports.com in an exclusive interview Friday morning. This weekend at Kentucky Speedway, NASCAR is testing a new low-downforce package that was also used four weeks ago at Michigan International Speedway. If this test is successful, the Michigan/Kentucky specs will form the basis of the 2017 rules package. But won't be used in NASCAR's playoffs this season. "I don't believe we'll get to changing the Chase around," Miller said. "The 2016 (aero) package as it is has raced really good, provided really good racing, and I don't think that there will be any industry momentum to change the Chase around." Miller said it was possible the package could be run again before the regular season ended, just not in the Chase. Miller said NASCAR officials were very pleased with the results they've gotten so far this year, when the quality of racing for the most part has been exceptional.(see full article at FoxSports)(7-9-2016)

Johnson looking to cross Kentucky off the win list: Of the 77 career wins #48-Jimmie Johnson has accumulated over his 16-year career, none of them have come at Kentucky. The other "winless" tracks Johnson has his sights set on include Chicago, Watkins Glen and Homestead-Miami. In five starts at Kentucky, Johnson has an average start of 8.0 and an average finish of 7.4, leading 203 total laps at the track and finishing in the top 10 each race. Johnson's best finish is 3rd in the first race at Kentucky in 2011.(HMS)(7-9-2016)

NASCAR Season Launch Campaign Honored at 2016 CLIO Sports Awards: Inspired by the simple truth that all human beings love to race, NASCAR's season launch marketing campaign, Ready. Set. Race, was celebrated as the winner of three Silver CLIO Sports Awards during the ceremony last night (July 7th) in New York. The overall campaign was awarded Silver honors in the Integrated Campaign category, while the unique social media promotion, the Hashtag 500, and lead creative spot were recognized in the Social Media and Film categories, respectively. Developed by Ogilvy & Mather New York, Ready. Set. Race introduced the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season leading up to the 2016 Daytona 500® through a blend of digital and social media activation, and advertising creative.
The Hashtag 500 was designed to engage fans around the Great American Race and last month garnered awards at the annual Cannes Lions festival in France. The social promotion, where fans tweeted custom hashtags to win race-used memorabilia from drivers and the Daytona 500, won a Cannes Silver Lion in the sports entertainment category, and a Cannes Bronze Lion in Digital & Social for best use of social platforms. The Ready. Set. Race campaign and "It's In Our Blood" spot were shortlist honorees at Cannes Lions 2016.
Another NASCAR creative spot, titled "What If," received a Bronze CLIO Sports award in the Short Form category. The 90-second spot launched in 2015 and recounts the history of NASCAR, from the earliest days of stock car racing through to today's action-packed events at iconic race tracks like Daytona International Speedway.
Halfway through the 2016 season, the combination of great racing and a marketing strategy driven by digital and social media have helped drive fan consumption of the sport. From January through June, NASCAR has more than doubled its follower growth compared to the same period last season. In addition, engagement with social content has increased by 83 percent year-over-year, with more than 114 million total engagements. The 2016 Daytona 500 saw more NASCAR-related social conversation than any single day since the inception of the NASCAR Fan and Media Engagement Center (FMEC). Social conversation was up 44 percent compared to last year's race. The Hashtag 500 fan race on Twitter to win Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s firesuit generated the most NASCAR-related mentions in one minute (13,000) since the inception of the FMEC.(NASCAR)(7-9-2016)

Lupton hopes to run more Cup races: With the help of sponsors Bell Brothers, Elk Grove Toyota, and Dr. Pepper, Dylan Lupton was able to make his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut at the Toyota/SaveMart 350 at Sonoma Raceway on June 26. Unfortunately, he was only able to finish 35th place for BK Racing, the NASCAR team that built his #93 Toyota. Currently, Lupton is working with his team, BK Racing, to compete in some five or six more races before the year ends. Though they aren't able to specify which series or races.(Elk Grove Citizen)(7-9-2016)

Busch driving at New Hampshire: JGR officials confirmed Kyle Busch will drive JGR's #18 Toyota in next weekend's race in place of Matt Tifft, who continues to recover from brain surgery. Tifft, 20, had surgery last week to remove a slow-growing tumor. He is awaiting pathology reports before doctors can determine when can return to the race track. Tifft was scheduled to compete in 13 Xfinity races for JGR this season. His next scheduled race after New Hampshire is July 30 at Iowa.(Motorsport)(7-9-2016)

Heffner to drive for Martins at Eldora: JR Heffner will return to Eldora Speedway in Ohio for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race on July 20th. He will also compete in the Super Dirt Car Big Block Modified. During the 4th annual NASCAR Camping World Series truck race his entry will be the #44 Chevy Silverado. JR will partner with Martin Motorsports, a regular truck team for logistics and operations. Current Modified race team partners A Colarusso & Sons and Park East Sales will join the truck program. JR Heffner Racing is a New York based race team that races Big Block Modified's at Albany Saratoga Speedway in Malta NY, and both Big Block and Small Block Modified's at Lebanon Valley Speedway in Lebanon, NY, halfway between Albany and Pittsfield. Massachusetts. JR has won 4 track Championships, is a 3 time Mr. Dirt Track USA, and has won the Hagerstown 350 twice. He has competed in the ARCA Racing Series and raced at tracks such as Daytona, Talladega, Kentucky, Chicago, and New Hampshire.(See an image of the truck on the #44 Team Paint Schemes page)(JR Heffner Racing)(7-9-2016)

AAA to sponsor Kentucky Speedway garages: AAA announced its partnership with Kentucky Speedway to sponsor the "AAA Garage," the areas at the track used by both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and XFINITIY Series teams during race weekend. This will be the first time AAA will make this type of sponsorship in motorsports. As part of AAA's sponsorship, the AAA Garage will feature AAA branding at Kentucky Speedway NASCAR events for the next three seasons. The garage sponsorship was a natural fit for AAA. The company is a leader in providing car care for consumers, and helps fans get back on the road fast when car issues arise. AAA has had a strong presence in NASCAR for years but the organization has increased its efforts significantly this season. They were the title sponsor of the AAA 400 Drive for Autism in May. AAA sponsors Richard Childress Racing drivers Austin Dillon and Brandon Jones. Dillon has had a AAA paint scheme for two races this year, and will again in October, while Jones will drive his #33 AAA Camaro at the Alsco 300 at Kentucky.(Kentucky Speedway)(7-9-2016)

Race Coverage of the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is scheduled for Saturday, July 9, 2016.
Television (TV): NBCSN at 7:30 pm/et; Pre-Race show at 7:00 pm/et; green flag approx. 7:46pm/et
Radio: Performance Racing Network (PRN) and Sirius XM Satellite NASCAR Radio 90
Scheduled Race Re-Airs: Monday, July 11 at 4:00pm/et on NBCSN

Pit Stall Selections: The selections of pit stalls for the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway have been made.
With the field downsized to 40 cars, three pit stalls (1,42,43) have been eliminated and are not in play and don't count towards driving through more than three pit boxes.
#4-Harvick who starts 1st via owners points after qualifying was cancelled(rain) chose pit stall 2 [the 1st pit stall].
#2-Keselowski starts 2nd, took pit stall 14, the next pit stall with an opening in front of it.
#41-Busch starts 3rd took the 31st pit stall, the 3rd with an opening behind it, even thou he goes to a backup car and starts in the back.
The final pit stall was taken by #48-Johnson, who starts 9th.
To see where the drivers/teams pit stall is, see the pit selection chart on Jayski.com's Pit Stall Selection chart.

Qualifying cancelled: Qualifying for the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway was cancelled as NASCAR decided that with the new track surface, practice is more important. The first practice for Friday rained out after 29 minutes.
The starting lineup was set by the rules book / owners points.
#4-Harvick will start 1st, followed by #2-Keselowski, #41-Busch, #22-Logano, #19-Edwards, #18-Busch, #78-Truex Jr., #24-Elliott, #48-Johnson and #11-Hamlin.
#41-Busch wrecked in Happy Hour practice and will go to a backup car and have to fall to the rear of the field before the start of the race.
#48-Johnson wrecked in the 1st Friday practice, before qualifying was cancelled, so he will keep his starting spot.
See the starting lineup on the Kentucky Starting Lineup Page (pdf) (7-8-2016)

Happy Hour practice for the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is over, after 60 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#19-Edwards 187.448
#78-Truex Jr. 186.528
#42-Larson 186.387
#88-Earnhardt Jr. 186.091
#18-Busch 185.989
The best 10 consecutive lap ave: #42-Larson 183.629 (of 23 drivers)
slowest: #55-Sorenson 176.171 & #32-Earnhardt 178.089
notes: late in the practice, #41-Busch got loose in turn 3, smacking the right rear, then the front. The team will go to a backup car, so Busch will have to fall to the rear of the field before the start of the race. Since #48-Johnson went to a backup before qualifying was cancelled, he will keep his starting spot.
There was NO live TV, only online streaming at nbcsports.com/live.
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap ave on the Kentucky Happy Hour Practice speeds page (pdf).(7-8-2016)

Second Friday practice for the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is over, after 40 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#19-Edwards 188.633
#78-Truex Jr. 187.774
#42-Larson 187.487
#18-Busch 187.123
#3-Dillon 187.097
The best 10 consecutive lap ave: #42-Larson 185.468 (of 13 drivers)
slowest: #32-Earnhardt 178.885 & #30-Wise 179.934
no speed: #55-Sorenson
notes: this practice was added after qualifying was cancelled and covered on TV by NBCSN.
There will also be a Happy Hour (final) practice from 6:30-7:20pm/et, NO live TV, only online.
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap ave on the Kentucky Practice 3 speeds page (pdf).(7-8-2016)

First Friday practice for the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is over, the practice was rained out after 29 of 85 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#11-Hamlin 188.285
#48-Johnson 188.121
#4-Harvick 188.088
#95-Ty Dillon 188.042
#42-Larson 187.963
slowest: #55-Sorenson 177.614 & #30-Wise 178.613
The best 10 consecutive lap ave: #48-Johnson 186.517
notes: #48-Johnson slid up the track just before the red flag and smacked the wall, doing damage to the right side of the car, the team will pull out a backup car. Johnson will not have to go to the rear of the field because he goes to a backup car, as long as the car is presented for qualifying, Johnson will keep his qualifying position.
Practice speeds no longer set the starting lineup if qualifying is cancelled, it is set by the rules book: owners points with Charter teams first, then the Open Teams.
Practice was not covered LIVE but online at NBC Live Extra.
Happy Hour (final) practice is scheduled to start at 1:30pm/et and be aired on NBCSN, depending on the rain and track conditions.
Qualifying is scheduled for Friday, July 8th at 6:45pm/et NBCSN is not airing it live but it can be viewed online using their App
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap ave on the Kentucky Practice 2 speeds page (pdf).(7-8-2016)

Johnson wrecks in practice, goes to backup car: #48-Jimmie Johnson experienced an issue in the second NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice session at Kentucky Speedway on Friday. The #48 Lowe's Chevy team will go to a back-up car.
Q) WHAT HAPPENED THAT CAUSED YOU TO GET INTO THE OUTSIDE WALL?
Johnson: "I just got wide and evidently the track is dirty wide. I didn't have anything go wrong, I just got wide and the car just started going straight and it wouldn't turn. I was in the marbles. I couldn't see the line where the track was clean and dirty and it just kept going straight and straight and straight and hit the wall."(Team Chevy)(7-8-2016)

TV Quirks for NASCAR Coverage today (July 8th), First Friday practice for the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is scheduled for 11:00am - 12:25pm/et, will not air LIVE but start on online at NBC Live Extra, then NBCSN is scheduled to air delayed coverage at 11:45am after coverage of the Tour de France. Can also be followed on NASCAR.com and updates will be Tweeted
Happy Hour (final) practice is scheduled for 1:30-2:50pm/et and air on NBCSN Live (changed 6:30-7:30pm/et).
Qualifying is scheduled (now cancelled) for 6:45pm/et and will NOT air on TV Live but also be on online at NBC Live Extra or via the NBC Sports App. Performance Racing Network (PRN) will cover qualifying live (www.goprn.com). Delayed TV coverage of qualifying is scheduled for Saturday, July 9 at 4:30pm/et on NBCSN

Coverage of Qualifying for the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is scheduled for Friday, July 8, 2016 at 6:45pm/et.
Television (TV): not being aired live on national TV
Radio: Live online at Performance Racing Network (PRN)
Streaming: nbcsports.com/live
Scheduled Qualifying Re-Air: Saturday, July 9 at 4:30pm/et on NBCSN

Group qualifying under the three-round qualifying format:
" Round 1 -- All entries will have 20 minutes to post a qualifying time, after which the 24 registering the fastest laps will advance to the second round. Those failing to advance will be sorted based on first-round times in descending order (from fastest to slowest).
" Round 2 -- The 24 fastest from the first round will have 10 minutes to post a second-round qualifying time, with the 12 fastest advancing to a third round. Those not advancing will earn starting positions 13 through 24 based on time, again in descending order.
" Round 3 -- The final round will be five minutes in length. The fastest times from this session will determine the first (Coors Light Pole Award) through 12th starting positions.
There will be a seven-minute break between each round; teams may make adjustments to their entries only during the individual breaks. They will not be allowed to jack the vehicle or raise the hood, and once the car or truck enters the garage, it will no longer be permitted to return to the track for additional qualifying attempts.

Venues, Dates Set for All Three National Series Awards: Whoever wears the crown of 'NASCAR champion' unquestionably will earn it, following a 2016 season that has already featured some of the toughest and most thrilling competition the sport has ever seen. The year-end celebration will be deservedly grand, and it will take place at familiar sites built upon major moments. Continuing a fan-favorite culmination to its national series seasons, NASCAR announced today the return of the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards to Las Vegas and the 2016 NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards to Miami Beach.
Carrying on a tradition that started in 2009, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards will return to Wynn Las Vegas on Friday, Dec. 2, 2016. The sport's premier series will regale its champion in a week-long celebration that offers NASCAR fans interactive entertainment, access to the sport's biggest stars and appearances from an assortment of musical and celebrity guests. A full lineup of activities for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion's Week will be announced at a later date.
"We are excited to welcome NASCAR and the thrill of Champion's Week back to Las Vegas," said Rossi Ralenkotter, president/CEO of Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA). "Las Vegas is one of the top tourist destinations in the world and the NASCAR community can look forward to nothing short of unprecedented entertainment and unparalleled hospitality."
The NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards will take place Monday, Nov. 21 at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel located in the heart of South Beach. This year's event will honor the champions of the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, both of whom will be crowned during the Homestead-Miami Speedway race weekend, November 18-20.
"Las Vegas and Miami are unrivaled when it comes to hosting premier events," said Steve Phelps, NASCAR executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "Both cities were built upon big events and major celebrations, and we're thrilled to once again honor our NASCAR national series champions along the Vegas strip and on South Beach." TV: The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards will air on NBCSN on Dec. 2 beginning at 9:00pm/et. MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Channel 90, will carry the awards show live. The NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards will air on NBCSN on Nov. 27 starting at 8:00pm/et.(NASCAR PR)(7-8-2016)

Kentucky Pole Notes & Facts:
· Kyle Busch won the inaugural NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky from the first starting position. Due to the qualifying session being cancelled for the 2011 race, it was not from the Coors Light pole.
· Brad Keselowski (2014), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2013) and Jimmie Johnson (2012) are the three drivers that have won Coors Light poles at Kentucky.
· Brad Keselowski is the only driver to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky from the Coors Light pole (2014).
· Two of the five (40%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Kentucky have been won from the front row - both from the first starting position (2011, 2014).
· Four of the five (80%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Kentucky have been won from a top-10 starting position.
· The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Kentucky is 16th, by Matt Kenseth in 2013.
· Brad Keselowski leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Kentucky with a 5.000; followed by Kyle Busch with a 6.800.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Qualifying at Kentucky was cancelled due to weather. The starting line-up was set per the Rule Book - Kyle Busch started from first.
· Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Kentucky Speedway twice; the 2011 and 2015 races.
(NASCAR)

Kentucky Marks Second Appearance Of Updated NASCAR Rules Package: The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will run its rules updates implemented last month at Michigan for the second time in Saturday's Quaker State 400 at Kentucky. The rules package developments are part of an industry-wide collaboration to further enhance the quality of racing. Earlier in the season, welded truck trailing arms and new brake cooling rules were put into place. The following updates to the rules package were added at Michigan and Kentucky to further reduce downforce and sideforce:
· Reduce skew generated sideforce by setting rear toe to zero
· Aero package tweaks to reduce aero-generated downforce and sideforce
o Spoiler shortened from 3.5 inches to 2.5 inches
o Splitter reduced to 2 inches
o Resize of deck fin to match spoiler
Saturday's race will be the first Sprint Cup contest on Kentucky's repaved racing surface and the reconfigured first and second turns. Kentucky Speedway underwent a full repave during the offseason and its new surface debuts from Wednesday through Saturday when all three of NASCAR's national series head to The Bluegrass State. In addition to the repave, Turns 1 and 2 had their banking increased from 14 to 17 degrees. The racing groove narrowed in the process. Turns 3 and 4 remain 14 degrees. The track also added 3,200 feet SAFER barrier and made improvements to its drainage system.(NASCAR)(7-7-2016)

MacDonald returns to the #32 at New Hampshire: Eddie MacDonald is set for his third Sprint Cup Series start next weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Go Fas Racing will have MacDonald behind the wheel of the #32 Bentley's Saloon Ford Fusion in the New Hampshire 301. Both of MacDonald's previous Cup starts have come at New Hampshire with Go Fas Racing, with his best finish being a 35th in 2014. He finished 37th there last year. With starts in all three NASCAR national series on his resume, MacDonald has been competing in the ACT Late Model Tour this season. Through seven events he has won twice and sits second in points. MacDonald has also made two NASCAR K&N Pro Series East starts.(NBC Sports)(7-8-2016)

Busch wins XFINITY race at Kentucky: #18-Kyle Busch won the Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway on Friday night. It is his 81st XFINITY Series win and fifth of the year. #2-Austin Dillon finished second, followed by #19-Daniel Suarez, #20-Erik Jones, #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., #1-Elliott Sadler, #3-Ty Dillon, #12-Ryan Blaney, #48-Brennan Poole, and #22-Brad Keselowski.
Busch started from the pole and put on a dominant performance, leading 185 of the 200 laps.
There were 5 cautions for 22 laps and 11 lead changes among 6 leaders.
The average speed was 144.258mph.
Complete results are on the Kentucky race results page (pdf).
(7-8-2016)

Kentucky XFINITY Race Fast Facts:
Kyle Busch(i) won the 16th Annual Alsco 300, his 81st victory in 320 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his fifth victory and ninth top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his second victory and seventh top-10 finish in nine races at Kentucky Speedway.
Austin Dillon(i) (second) posted his fifth top-10 finish in five races at Kentucky Speedway. It is his 10th top-10 finish in 2016.
Daniel Suarez (third) posted his second top-10 finish in three races at Kentucky Speedway.
Erik Jones (fourth) was the highest finishing rookie.
Daniel Suarez leads the point standings by 9 points over Elliott Sadler.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(6-19-2016)

XFINITY Driver standings following Kentucky:
1) #19-Daniel Suarez [1 win], 537
2) #1-Elliott Sadler [1 win], 528, -9
3) #3-Ty Dillon, 518, -19
4) #20-Erik Jones [2 wins], 480, -57
5) #62-Brendan Gaughan, 477, -60
6) #7-Justin Allgaier, 472, -65
7) #33-Brandon Jones, 459, -78
8) #48-Brennan Poole, 454, -83
9) #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., 430, -107
10) #16-Ryan Reed, 378, -159
11) #39-Ryan Sieg, 371, -166
12) #11-Blake Koch, 368, -169
See complete owner and driver standings on the driver standings(pdf) and owner standings page (pdf).(7-8-2016)

Busch on XFINITY pole at Kentucky: #18-Kyle Busch won the Coors Light pole for the Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway with a speed of 187.318mph.#19-Daniel Suarez will start second. The rest of the top 10: #20-Erik Jones, #2-Austin Dillon, #1-Elliott Sadler, #12-Ryan Blaney, #16-Ryan Reed, #88-Cole Custer, #11-Blake Koch, and #22-Brad Keselowski.
Led the way in both rounds one and two. His speed in round one was at 186.361mph, and round two at 186.819mph.
Did Not Qualify: none
The starting lineup is posted on the Kentucky starting lineup page (pdf).(7-8-2016)

Kentucky Qualifying Notes:
Kyle Busch(i) won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 16th Annual Alsco 300 with a lap of 28.828 seconds, 187.318 mph.
This is his 52nd pole in 320 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his fourth pole and ninth top-10 start in 2016.
This is his first pole in nine races at Kentucky Speedway.
Daniel Suarez (second) posted his 16th top-10 start of 2016 and his third in three races at Kentucky Speedway.
Erik Jones (third) posted his third top-10 start at Kentucky Speedway. It is his 16th in 16 races this season.
Erik Jones (third) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-8-2016)

Piquet to run Mid-Ohio for Biagi DenBeste: Former Formula 1 driver and inaugural FIA Formula E champion Nelson Piquet Jr. will return to the NASCAR Xfinity Series next month at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Piquet raced in NASCAR between 2010 and 2014, winning four races across the Nationwide and Camping World Truck series before turning his attention to Formula E. Piquet won the first Formula E title last year with NextEV TCR, but could only finish 15th in season two which came to a close last weekend in London. Announced on Friday, Piquet confirmed that he would be returning to the Xfinity Series - previously known as Nationwide - with Biagi DenBeste Racing for the Mid-Ohio 200 next month. Piquet has proven himself to be adept in a number of racing categories, having also entered Global Rallycross and FIA World Endurance Championship events over the past two years. Piquet also tried to race in the FIA European F3 Championship round at Pau in May, only for the FIA to block the move, believing his entry to be against the spirit of a junior series.(NBC Sports)(7-8-2016)

Date announced for XFINITY, Truck banquet, stays in Miami: Whoever wears the crown of 'NASCAR champion' unquestionably will earn it, following a 2016 season that has already featured some of the toughest and most thrilling competition the sport has ever seen. The year-end celebration will be deservedly grand, and it will take place at familiar sites built upon major moments.Continuing a fan-favorite culmination to its national series seasons, NASCAR announced today the return of the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards to Las Vegas and the 2016 NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards to Miami Beach.The NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards will take place Monday, Nov. 21 at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel located in the heart of South Beach. This year's event will honor the champions of the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, both of whom will be crowned during the Homestead-Miami Speedway race weekend, November 18-20. Currently, two NASCAR Next graduates - Daniel Suárez and William Byron - lead the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points, having locked up their respective spots in the Chase with stirring victories. Both captured their first NASCAR national series victory in 2016. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards will air on NBCSN on Dec. 2 beginning at 9 p.m. ET. MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Channel 90, will carry the awards show live. The NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards will air on NBCSN on Nov. 27 starting at 8 p.m. ET.(NASCAR)(7-8-2016)

Kentucky State Police to provide NASCAR traffic updates via social media: Kentucky State Police will provide traffic updates to NASCAR fans heading to the Kentucky Speedway for the XFINITY and Sprint Cup race series this weekend. KSP encourages fans to download the KSP mobile app which is free in both the Apple and Google Play stores. In addition to the mobile app updates, KSP will use Twitter and roadside message boards to provide consistent traffic and parking updates. ADA parking will be able to use both Exit 55 and Exit 57 to reach the designated parking areas. KSP advises all commercial motor vehicle traffic and other non-race traffic to avoid the Gallatin County area, specifically Interstate 71, July 8-9. Commercial motor vehicles in transit between Louisville and Cincinnati are advised to utilize I-64 and I-75. Fans can find the KSP mobile app by searching "KSPOLICE" in their app store and follow along on twitter @KYStatePolice.(The State Journal)(7-8-2016)

Sad News - Carl Haas: Carl Haas, an important figure in American motorsports for nearly 50 years, died June 29 at the age of 86, it was revealed Thursday (at haasauto.com). A quirky character who became famous for chomping on a huge cigar that he rarely lit, Haas built a business as the North American distributor for Lola cars and Hewland gearboxes in the 1960s and branched into racing team ownership in the early '70s. After dominating the Sports Car Club of America's Formula 5000 and Can-Am championships, Haas joined forces with actor (and rival Can-Am team owner) Paul Newman to form Newman/Haas Racing in 1983 with driver Mario Andretti. NHR immediately developed into one of the top teams in the CART IndyCar series and expanded to run two cars in 1989 when Andretti's son Michael joined. The Andrettis combined to score 57 of the team's 107 race wins, a total that ranks second only to Team Penske's 183, and each won a CART championship during their time at NHR. Newman/Haas won a total of eight Indy car championships with drivers including Nigel Mansell, Cristiano da Matta and Sebastien Bourdais. The team competed in the Verizon IndyCar Series through the end of 2011, at which time Haas withdrew from public life due to the effects of Alzheimer's disease. In 1985 and '86, Haas was the last American Formula 1 team owner prior to Gene Haas' (no relation) entry this year. Carl Haas also served as the chairman of the board of the SCCA and was presented with the Woolf Barnato Award in 2007, when he was inducted into the SCCA Hall of Fame. In all, Haas-owned cars won a total of 147 races. His other notable drivers included Jackie Stewart, Peter Revson, Brian Redman, Alan Jones and Paul Tracy. The only thing missing from Haas' record as an Indy car team owner is a win at the Indianapolis 500. His cars finished second in 1985 and '91.(ESPN), Haas also co-owned a NASCAR Winston Cup Series team with Travis Carter for eight seasons.(7-8-2016)

Thursday practice for the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is over, after 85 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#19-Edwards 186.451
#18-Busch 186.181
#78-Truex Jr. 185.217
#11-Hamlin 185.084
#48-Johnson 184.989
slowest: #55-Sorenson 173.160 & #32-Earnhardt 175.393
The best 10 consecutive lap ave: #48-Johnson 181.441 (only 4 drivers)
notes: #2-Keselowski and #5-Kahne both made some contact with the wall but the crews fixed the cars and made more runs.
#30-Wise's car was smoking and slowed on the track and headed to the garage, possibly hit the wall. Most teams scuffed tires during the practice.
Track qualifying record is 188.791mph, set by #2-Brad Keselowski in June 2014.
This was the only practice for Cup on Thursday, the XFINITY Series practices four times on Thursday.
There are two practices scheduled for Friday, July 8th: 11:00am/et and 1:30pm/et both on NBCSN.
Qualifying is scheduled for Friday, July 8th at 6:45pm/et NBCSN is not airing it live but it can be viewed online using their App
See fastest laps, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap ave on the Kentucky Practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-7-2016)

Kentucky Driver Notes & Facts:
· 67 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway; 51 in more than one.
· 24 different drivers have made all five series starts at Kentucky Speedway.
· Three different NSCS drivers have won at Kentucky Speedway: Kyle Busch (07/09/2011 and 7/11/2015), Brad Keselowski (06/30/2012 and 6/28/2014) and Matt Kenseth (6/30/2013).
· Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch lead the series in wins at Kentucky with two each.
· The fewest laps led in a single race by an eventual NSCS winner at Kentucky is 38 laps by Matt Kenseth in 2013.
· The most laps led in a single race by an eventual NSCS winner at Kentucky is 199 laps by Brad Keselowski in 2014.
· Five different drivers have posted NSCS runner-up finishes at Kentucky: David Reutimann (2011), Kasey Kahne (2012), Jamie McMurray (2013), Kyle Busch (2014) and Joey Logano (2015). · 14 different drivers have posted top-five finishes at Kentucky; led by Kyle Busch with four; followed by Matt Kenseth with three.
· 19 different drivers have posted top-10 finishes at Kentucky; led by Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth with five each.
· Kyle Busch leads the series in average finishing position at Kentucky with a 3.8.
· Kyle Busch leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Kentucky with 437 laps led in five starts.
· Danica Patrick is the only female driver to compete in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Kentucky Speedway. (NASCAR)

Testing at Indy July 12-13: Preparations for NASCAR's Brickyard 400 will begin in earnest next week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with at least a dozen car-and-driver Sprint Cup Series combinations scheduled to test Tuesday and Wednesday, 9am-5pm/et. The test follows this weekend's race at Kentucky Speedway. Next week, the series will be at New Hampshire Motor Speedway before arriving for the 23rd Brickyard 400. Drivers scheduled to test: #4-Harvick, #6-Bayne, #15-Bowyer, #20-Kenseth, #21-Blaney, #22-Logano, #27-Menard, #34-Buescher, #42-Larson, #44-Scott, #48-Johnson and #78-Truex, Jr.(Indianapolis Star)
AND Fans are encouraged to take advantage of this free opportunity to see some of the biggest stars in racing up close and personal. Testing on the 2.5-mile oval is taking place in advance of the Crown Royal presents the Wounded Warrior Coalition 400 at the Brickyard. The public may watch the test for free from the south terrace grandstands and Turn 2 viewing mounds, and the newly refurbished B Penthouse grandstands will also be open for viewing. Fans in attendance should also be on the lookout for special surprises from the IMS Field Marketing Team.(IMS)(7-7-2016)

9 To Go: Winless Drivers Who Have Visited Victory Lane At Remaining Tracks: Only five berths remain for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup with nine races left in the season. Remember, "Win and you're in." A driver gets into the Chase with a victory as long as he/she is in the top 30 of the points standings and attempts every race. And speaking of clinching, a number of drivers can lock up a top-30 spot this weekend. Any driver who has multiple wins and leaves Kentucky with a 361-point lead on 31st place is guaranteed to be among the top-16 winners and top 30 in points, thereby locking up a Chase spot. Those who can do it at Kentucky: #2-Brad Keselowski, #19-Carl Edwards, #4-Kevin Harvick, #41-Kurt Busch and #22-Joey Logano. Below are the remaining tracks and winless drivers who have visited Victory Lane at them:
Kentucky: None
New Hampshire: Ryan Newman, Clint Bowyer, Greg Biffle, Kasey Kahne
Indianapolis: Jamie McMurray, Paul Menard, Ryan Newman
Pocono: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kasey Kahne, Greg Biffle, Ryan Newman
Watkins Glen: AJ Allmendinger
Bristol: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kasey Kahne
Michigan: Greg Biffle, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Ryan Newman, Kasey Kahne
Darlington: Greg Biffle, Regan Smith
Richmond: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne, Ryan Newman (NASCAR)

600th career start for Tony Stewart: There's an historic importance to Saturday night's Kentucky race. It marks #14-Tony Stewart's 600th Sprint Cup start - the 24th-most in the sport's history. If Stewart can win, he will tie NASCAR Hall of Famers Ned Jarrett and Junior Johnson for 11th on all-time wins list. Kentucky Speedway is about 80 miles from Stewart's home in Columbus, IN, and a good contingent of Hoosiers will head to the Bluegrass State this weekend for one of the final opportunities in the area to watch the three-time champion race in NASCAR. It's also his final chance to win at one of the only two tracks where he has yet to record a Sprint Cup victory. Kentucky and Darlington Raceway are the only tracks remaining on Stewart's very short winless list. By his standards, Stewart hasn't excelled at Kentucky Speedway in its brief history with the Sprint Cup Series. In five starts, he's only led one lap at the track and has yet to post a top-10 finish.(SHR)(7-7-2016)

Harvick named celebrity captain for Triple-A Home Run Derby: #4-Kevin Harvick has been named one of eight celebrity captains for the 2016 Triple-A Home Run Derby. Harvick joins Panthers star Shaq Thompson, Hornets head coach Steve Clifford, UNCC men's basketball coach Mark Price and WWE Hall of Fame member Sergeant Slaughter as celebrity captains. Harvick will represent the Kevin Harvick Foundation, which he and wife DeLana founded in 2010.(WCNC)(7-7-2016)

Special scheme for Earnhardt Jr. at Kentucky: Dale Earnhardt Jr. will drive the #88 Nationwide Children's Hospital Chevy this weekend at Kentucky Speedway. The special paint scheme features the Nationwide Children's Hospital (NCH) logo as well as the names of fans (on the hood) who donated to the hospital through a special fundraising platform. The blue car will be adorned with butterflies, as they are recognized as the hospital's ambassadors of hope and optimism. As America's largest pediatric hospital and research center, NCH is dedicated to making sure that all patients are given the care they need, regardless of the family's ability to pay. Families travel from around the nation - and some even come from other countries - to gain access to the Columbus, Ohio-based hospital's life-saving treatments. On race day, Earnhardt and Nationwide will host the Patient Champions and their families at the track to show appreciation for the bravery the kids show as they battle their illnesses. As previously announced, The Dale Jr. Foundation has partnered with Nationwide and NCH on the Driven to Give Gloves program and has dedicated four pairs of Earnhardt's gloves to four different Patient Champions at NCH. The money raised from those four pairs of gloves will go to NCH to support their mission of helping kids everywhere. More than 1,000 Nationwide associates will be in attendance at Kentucky Speedway on July 9 to support the Patient Champion Program.(HMS), see image of the scheme on the #88 Teams Schemes page.(7-7-2016)

Stenhouse to run special Stand up to Cancer scheme: Fifty-three names of brave individuals who are currently fighting or have fought a battle with cancer will be featured on the #17 Fifth Third Ford for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky. A longtime supporter of Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), Fifth Third Bank, in partnership with Ricky Stenhouse Jr., reached out to NASCAR fans asking them to #StandUpwithRicky and honor a friend or family member who has fought or is in the fight against cancer by sharing their story. For every story shared with the hashtag #StandUpwithRicky, Fifth Third Bank made a donation to Stand Up To Cancer up to $20,000. In addition to the money donated during the #StandUpwithRicky campaign, Fifth Third will be donating $530 for every lap Stenhouse makes at the Quaker State 400 race. Fifth Third will also continue its #howifight campaign through December 31. From running a 10K to bringing dinner to a neighbor fighting cancer, Fifth Third is encouraging everyone to share how they fight using #howifight. Fifth Third Bank will donate $1 per eligible hashtag usage to Stand Up To Cancer up to $500,000. You can see how people fight and get full details at 53.com/howifight. To date, Fifth Third Bank has donated over $6.2 million to Stand Up To Cancer.(RFR), see image of the scheme on the #17 Teams Schemes page.(7-7-2016)

Ty Dillon back in the #95 at Kentucky: Ty Dillon will drive the #95 Chevy Summer Sell Down Chevy at Kentucky Speedway. The chassis, prepared by Richard Childress Racing, was previously raced by the #31 Sprint Cup Series team and Ryan Newman. Newman drove chassis No. 504 to a seventh-place finish earlier this season at Kansas. Dillon will be making his Sprint Cup Series debut at Kentucky . A deal as impressive as their award-winning vehicles, head to your local Chevrolet dealership this weekend for the Chevy Summer Sell Down. With a purchase of a new Chevrolet, you get 20% of MSRP cash back. Dillon will be making his eighth start in the Cup Series, and his fifth in the #95 Chevy. Dillon has finished 25th or better in each of his seven starts (RCR / CSLFR), see image of the scheme on the #95 Teams Schemes page.(7-7-2016)

Patriotic paint scheme for Elliott at Kentucky: After a two-week hiatus, primary partner NAPA Auto Parts is back on the hood of Chase Elliott's #24 Chevy. This weekend at Kentucky, Elliott's NAPA Auto PartsS Chevy will sport a brand new look. Elliott will pilot a patriotic paint scheme that features stars and stripes.The scheme will help to kick off NAPA's "Get Back and Give Back" effort while boosting awareness for the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund.(HMS), see image of the scheme on the #24 Teams Schemes page.(7-7-2016)

NASCAR on Jeopardy: NASCAR played a significant role in the popular game show "Jeopardy" on Monday, July 4. One of the categories on the show was "NASCAR Technologies."
Here were the questions:
For $200: "The tires used in NASCAR have another tire within them for safety reasons and are filled with this gas, symbol 'N,' because it contains less moisture than air and the tire pressure doesn't change as much in a race."
For $400: "The window net used to prevent injuries by keeping a driver's arms inside the car during a crash became mandatory after this NASCAR legend known as 'King Richard' almost died in a 1970 wreck at Darlington."
For $600: "Engines with carburetors ruled NASCAR for decades, but since 2012 all cars have been equipped with 'EFI,' electronic 'this,' because it's more efficient and produces a better air/gas mixture."
For $800: "'Banking' is the degree of incline of a racetrack's surface which allows the cars to go faster in the turns with minimal lateral slippage. While Daytona has a 31% bank, Will Ferrell could tell you that this Alabama speedway is even steeper at 33%."
For $1,000: "Also known as 'the blade,' this strip of metal on the rear deck lid is designed to create downforce on the rear of the car to increase traction, but it has to be angled just right so it doesn't hinder speed on the straightaways."
And the answers:
$200: "What is nitrogen?"
$400: "Who is Richard Petty?"
$600: "What is fuel injection?"
$800: "What is Talladega?"
$1000: "What is a spoiler?"
(NASCAR)

Suarez fastest in XFINITY happy hour: #19-Daniel Suarez was quickest during final practice for the Alsco 300 with a speed of 186.845mph. He was followed by: #20-Erik Jones, #12-Ryan Blaney, #18-Kyle Busch, #3-Ty Dillon, #11-Blake Koch, #2-Austin Dillon, #44-JJ Yeley, #1-Elliott Sadler, #22-Brad Keselowski. 32 drivers participated in the session.
See complete results on the Kentucky practice 4 speeds page (pdf).(7-7-2016)

Erik Jones fastest in third XFINITY practice: #20-Erik Jones was fastest during the third practice at Kentucky Speedway with a speed of 187.800mph. #19-Daniel Suarez was second, followed by: #18-Kyle Busch, #3-Ty Dillon, #12-Ryan Blaney, #44-JJ Yeley, #22-Brad Keselowski, #2-Austin Dillon, #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., and #7-Justin Allgaier. 36 drivers practiced during the session.
See complete results on the Kentucky practice 3 speeds page (pdf).(7-7-2016)

Erik Jones fastest in second XFINITY practice: #20-Erik Jones was quickest during second practice for the Alsco 300 with a speed of 186.245mph. He was followed by: #19-Daniel Suarez, #18-Kyle Busch, #22-Brad Keselowski, #2-Austin Dillon, #7-Justin Allgaier, #88-Cole Custer, #12-Ryan Blaney, #48-Brennan Poole, and #11-Blake Koch. 37 drivers participated in the session.
See complete results on the Kentucky practice 2 speeds page (pdf).(7-7-2016)

Dillon fastest in first XFINITY practice: #2-Austin Dillon was fastest during opening practice at Kentucky Speedway with a speed of 187.754mph. #18-Kyle Busch was second, followed by: #20-Erik Jones, #3-Ty Dillon, #19-Daniel Suarez, #88-Cole Custer, #48-Brennan Poole, #33-Brandon Jones, #1-Elliott Sadler, and #7-Justin Allgaier. 34 drivers practiced during the session.
See complete results on the Kentucky practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-7-2016)

Bubba Wallace launches fundraiser for flood victims in WV: Bubba Wallace, driver of the #6 Roush Fenway Ford in the NASCAR XFINITY Series, was recently fined $15,000 for a tweet regarding NASCAR's handling of the Daytona race. Wallace took to social media after many fans offered to help pay the fine: "Following Daytona, my emotions got the best of me, and I used social media to vent. That wasn't the best way to express myself, and I apologize for my actions. After the announcement of my fine, I was blown away by how many of you offered to assist me. With this support from my fans in mind, I thought there was a way we could turn this incident into a positive cause. For those of you that were considering making a donation towards me, I ask that you instead support this GoFundMe account, where we'll be raising money for The Greenbrier Resort's "Neighbors Loving Neighbors" campaign, which assists West Virginia's flood victims. Thank you all, and let's help those that need it! (Bubba Wallace's Facebook page)(7-7-2016)

Byron wins Truck Series race at Kentucky: #9-William Byron won the Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway on Thursday night, and with it claimed his fourth win of the season, and 51st for his Kyle Busch Motorsports team. KBM now holds the record for most team wins in series history. #8-John Hunter Nemechek finished second, followed by: #19-Daniel Hemric, #4-Christopher Bell, #21-Johnny Sauter, #13-Cameron Hayley, #71-Brandon Jones, #88-Matt Crafton, #17-Timothy Peters, and #29-Tyler Reddick.
Pole sitter #51-Daniel Suarez led for 59 laps and finished 11th.
There were 5 cautions for 32 laps and 9 lead changes among 6 leaders.
The average speed was 116.698mph.
Complete results are on the Kentucky race results page (pdf). (7-7-2016)

Kentucky Race Fast Facts:
William Byron won the 6th Annual Buckle Up In Your Truck 225, his fourth victory in 12 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.
This is his fourth victory and sixth top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in two races at Kentucky Speedway.
John H Nemechek (second) posted his first top-10 finish in three races at Kentucky Speedway. It is his fifth top-10 finish in 2016.
Daniel Hemric (third) posted his first top-10 finish in three races at Kentucky Speedway.
Byron (first) was the highest finishing rookie.
Byron leads the point standings by 13 points over Matt Crafton.
Byron's victory was the 51st for Kyle Busch Motorsports. KBM passed Roush Fenway Racing for the series record.
(NASCAR Statistics)(7-7-2016)

Driver standings following Kentucky:
1) #9-William Byron #, 263
2) #88-Matt Crafton, 250, -13
3) #19-Daniel Hemric, 246, -17
4) #17-Timothy Peters, 246, -17
5) #21-Johnny Sauter, 233, -30
6) #8-John Hunter Nemechek, 223, -40
7) #29-Tyler Reddick, 215, -48
8) #4-Christopher Bell #, 214, -49
9) #33-Ben Kennedy, 203 -60
10) #41-Ben Rhodes, #, 201, -62
See complete standings on the driver standings page (pdf).(7-7-2016)

Owner Standings following Texas are posted (pdf).(7-7-2016)

Suarez on pole at Kentucky: #51-Daniel Suarez won the pole for the Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway with a speed of 182.983mph. #11-Brett Moffitt will start second followed by #9-William Byron, #19-Daniel Hemric, #29-Tyler Reddick, #05-Parker Kligerman, #18-Kyle Busch, #88-Matt Crafton, #41-Ben Rhodes, #4-Christopher Bell.
9-Byron was fastest in the first round at 183.020mph.
Did Not Qualify: none.
See complete lineup on the Starting lineup (pdf) page.(7-7-2016)

Kentucky Qualifying Notes:
Daniel Suarez(i) won the Keystone Light Pole Award for the 6th Annual Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 with a lap of 29.511 seconds, 182.983 mph.
This is his first pole in 21 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.
This is his first pole and fifth top-10 start in 2016.
This is his first pole in two races at Kentucky Speedway.
Brett Moffitt (second) posted his first top-10 start of 2016 and his first in two races at Kentucky Speedway.
William Byron (third) posted his first top-10 start at Kentucky Speedway. It is his eighth in ten races this season.
William Byron (third) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-7-2016)

Truck swaps after accident: Jennifer Jo Cobb posted on her Facebook page that following Travis Kvapil's wreck in the #50 yesterday, MAKE Motorsports and Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing will be switching around trucks for tonight's race. Cobb has been driving the #1 MAKE entry as a teammate to Kvapil, while Caleb Roark has been entered in her Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing #10. Following the accident, MAKE did not have a back-up truck for Kvapil. "In first practice yesterday my MAKE Motorsports teammate cut down a RF tire and lost a truck. I was able to pad up Travis' seat to make it work for me but he was not able to squeeze into my seat in our back up so we are experiencing a bit of a driver/truck shuffle.(For) tonight's race I will be back in the #10 and Caleb will move to the #1 while Travis will race the #50. We are fortunate to be able to pull our resources together amongst our small teams to continue to overcome adversity," she wrote.(7-7-2016)

Ren takes over as crew chief for Self: Rick Ren, a two-time championship NASCAR Camping World Truck Series crew chief has joined AM Racing and driver Austin Wayne Self, effective immediately. Ren has joined AM Racing in an effort to boost the overall performance for rookie Austin Wayne Self in the #22 AM Technical Solutions Toyota Tundra. Ren started his new role during practice on Wednesday at the 1.5-mile speedway. Ren who won two NCWTS championships in 2007 and 2009 with driver Ron Hornaday Jr. has 324 recorded starts as crew chief, 28 wins, 114 top-fives and 199 top-10 finishes over a span of 19 years. Before pairing with AM Racing, Ren was serving as a consultant with Mike Mittler's MB Motorsports and their various drivers. Stepping up from the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards series last year, Self, the Austin, Texas native has competed in all nine races thus far with a best finish of 13th at his home track of Texas Motor Speedway in June. He failed to qualify in the third race of the season at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, but when Tommy Joe Martins crashed his own truck during qualifying, a NASCAR approved agreement was worked out where Self drove Martins' "back-up" truck to a 15th place finish. The 20-year-old Self sits 19th in the championship standings entering his Kentucky debut in Thursday night's Buckle Up In Your Truck 225. He starts 23rd. Ren replaces Marc Browning who started the year as crew chief.(Catchfence)(7-7-2016)

Update on KBM Lawsuit: Kyle Busch Motorsports scored a big federal court decision when its $4 million lawsuit against its former driver Justin Boston was sent back to North Carolina court. Boston had argued that his sponsor -- his father's company, Zloop -- is in bankruptcy and the claims against him should be part of those proceedings. A federal judge ruled Zloop's liability can be determined by federal bankruptcy court, but the claims against Boston belong in North Carolina court. KBM claims it is owed $4.025 million for an alleged default on a two-year contract originally worth $6.4 million that Boston would pay to drive a KBM truck. Boston claims KBM breached the contract clause to provide a "well-trained crew."(ESPN NOW)(7-7-2016)

Brickyard 400 NASCAR Race to be Named in Honor of Veteran's Charity: In just a few short weeks, racing fans from across the country will flock to Indianapolis for one of NASCAR's biggest events of the summer. And despite being named the winner of the annual Crown Royal "Your Hero's Name Here" program, which renames the Brickyard 400 after a deserving hero, retired U.S. Navy Seal Jason Redman's name won't be displayed around the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway - for good reason. Redman instead asked that the race bear the name of the charity he and his wife, Erica, founded. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race will officially be referred to as the "Crown Royal presents the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 at the Brickyard." During a special surprise event in Suffolk, Virginia, Redman was announced the winner of the annual program while completing his 100th skydiving jump. Redman witnessed the reveal of the official race logo, painted in the landing area at Skydive Suffolk, from midair as he approached the ground. After the logo unveiling, Redman was greeted by Erica, Indianapolis Motor Speedway President Doug Boles and Crown Royal Associate Brand Manager Dany Penn. Redman was then escorted to a nearby hangar for a party where he was able to celebrate the announcement with his closest friends, colleagues and family. Redman, of Chesapeake, Virginia, enlisted in the Navy following high school and served 10 years as an enlisted SEAL before enrolling at Old Dominion University. After graduation, Redman was commissioned as a Naval SEAL Officer. Throughout his career he served five deployments including two combat deployments.
This will mark the 10th time Crown Royal has renamed a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, and the first time a race will be named after a charity, through the whisky brand's "Your Hero's Name Here" program. After receiving hundreds of entries during the nomination period, five heroes were chosen as finalists and adult fans had the opportunity to cast their votes for the person they felt was most deserving of the honor.
In addition to Redman, program finalists included: Piper Hill, retired Army Captain and founder of Healing4Heroes from Atlanta, Georgia; Michael Gallardo, retired Army Sergeant from San Antonio, Texas; Chris Mintz, former Army Infantryman and community leader from Roseburg, Oregon, and Leigh Ann Hester, Army National Guard Sergeant First Class and Police Officer from Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
As the "Your Hero's Name Here" winner, Redman will receive the ultimate VIP race weekend experience, including garage tours, driver introductions and Pace Car rides. He'll cap off Race Day by delivering the trophy bearing his charity's name to the winner in Victory Lane.(IMS)(7-7-2016)

Kentucky Track Notes & History:
· In 1998, the track broke ground in Sparta, Kentucky, and opened as a 1.5-mile speedway in 2000.
· The original owners, Jerry Carroll and four other investors owned the track until 2008, when current owners, Speedway Motorsports Inc. purchased the facility.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was held in 2011 - won by Kyle Busch.
· During this past off season, the track underwent a repave. The banking in Turns 1 and 2 were increased to 17 degrees.(NASCAR)

Top 10 Driver Ratings at Kentucky:
#18-Kyle Busch (2 wins)..................... 129.1
#2-Brad Keselowski (2)...................... 117.8
#48-Jimmie Johnson........................ 111.9
#20-Matt Kenseth.(1).......................... 106.7
#22-Joey Logano............................. 100.4
#4-Kevin Harvick.............................. 97.1
#5-Kasey Kahne.............................. 94.0
#19-Carl Edwards.............................. 92.2
#11-Denny Hamlin............................. 91.6
#41-Kurt Busch.................................. 90.0
Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2016 races (five total) among active drivers at Kentucky Speedway.
Formula combining the following categories: Win, Finish, Top-15 Finish, Average Running Position while on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps, Lead-Lap Finish. Maximum: 150 points per race.
See an explanation how the Driver Rating is calculated at NASCAR.com.(NASCAR)

BK Racing Unveils Darlington Throwback Schemes: A NASCAR 'Throwback' weekend at Darlington Raceway and two Toyota Camrys serve as the perfect canvas for Dr Pepper and Orange Crush to pay homage to their history. David Ragan's #23 Dr Pepper paint scheme will echo the iconic "I'm a Pepper" look that we grew up with. Matt DiBenedetto's #83 is going to stand out in the Orange Crush paint scheme from the 70s. "We're proud to have both Dr Pepper and Orange Crush featured on our cars for the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway," said BK Racing owner Ron Devine. "Dr Pepper has been such a loyal partner of ours and we are thrilled to have them bring Orange Crush along for such an iconic race."
"We're thrilled to partner with NASCAR and BK Racing in remembering our heritage," says Derek Dabrowski, Senior Director of Brand Marketing for Crush and Dr Pepper. "'I'm a Pepper' remains one of the most iconic slogans and jingles in U.S. advertising history, and it's a great source of pride for 'Peppers' everywhere. We're looking forward to honoring it with NASCAR fans during this throwback weekend. We're also excited to pay tribute to the rich heritage of Orange Crush. We hope by showing off the brand's throwback creative we can tap into the nostalgic feelings race spectators and our longtime Crush fans have for the brand."
During the weeks leading up to the race, BK Racing's social media will throwback to the history of the Dr Pepper brand. Fans can participate by using the hashtag #ImAPepper. Fans who participate will be entered to win autographed merchandise. The contest will run from August 18th through the Darlington race weekend.(BK Racing), see images of the cars on the 2016 Darlington Throwback schemes page (7-6-2016)

Daytona penalties/warnings announced: NASCAR has announced penalties and warnings following the Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway on July 2nd.
It was a pretty light week for penalties as in Cup, only #1-Jamie McMurray's Chevy failed LIS(laser tech inspection) pre-race inspection twice and the team was given a warning
On the XFINITY Series side, Darrell Wallace was fined $15,000 for a behavioral level issue "Disparaging the sport and/or NASCAR's leadership" (section Section 12.8.1.b of the rules book). Wallace tweeted: "Got the muppets up there officiating tonight! Never know how to react under pressure... Whatta joke"
after the XFINITY Series race at Daytona on Friday night (see more on Jayski.com's XFINITY Series page).
See the Daytona Post-Event Penalty & Warning Report (pdf) for more.(7-6-2016)

Newman's 2017 plans still undecided: One thing pressing for #31-Ryan Newman is what his 2017 plans are. His contract is up at the end of the season and Richard Childress Racing has not announced whether he or someone else will drive the #31 Chevy. "I don't have any plans as of right now. I'd sure like to be back and build my relationship with Caterpillar, and Grainger, and WIX Filters. We've got Florida Lottery on the car [this weekend]. We've done races with Whelen and Kalahari and different people, sponsors," said Newman. Though he nearly scored RCR its first championship since 1994, Newman and all of RCR are winless since Kevin Harvick left after the 2013 season. Childress' grandson, Ty Dillon, is in his third Xfinity Series season and is eagerly waiting in the wings to join his brother Austin in an RCR Cup car, but sponsorship has kept him back. Caterpillar has been with RCR since 2009 and likely will dictate who drives the #31 next. "We've two-and-a-half pretty good years together. I don't want to look anywhere. I don't want to be forced to look anywhere," Newman stated.(WSB Radio Race Blog)(7-6-2016)

Kentucky Goodyear Tire Notes: This is the first race for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams on Kentucky's re-paved and re-configured surface . . . while teams in all three NASCAR series in action at Kentucky this week will run the same left-side tire, Sprint Cup teams will run their own right-side tire . . . this tire set-up came based on the results of a NASCAR organizational test at Kentucky on June 13-14 . . . Sprint Cup teams ran this left-side tire code at Las Vegas earlier this season . . . this is the first time running this right-side code, which features the same construction as the Michigan right-side, but is a single compound tire with the same compound that was run on the inboard two inches of Michigan's multi-zone tread right-side . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run liners in all four tire positions at Kentucky . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire (Goodyear), see tire codes, pressures, set limits and more on the Kentucky Race Info page

Stewart runs dirt track at Indy: A couple hundred people, including #14-Tony Stewart, got to see Tuesday what dirt-track midget racing could look like at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It might not have been the best view, but it was a peek. The temporary 3/16th-mile oval track installed by IMS officials inside Turn 3 of the oval was too small for the six midget cars on hand to properly stretch their horsepower, but if the right opportunity becomes available, the world's most famous racing facility might one day offer a larger dirt track. That might help the sport reach a bigger audience. Tuesday's experiment was just a sampling in honor of Stewart, who is retiring from NASCAR at season's end and running his final Brickyard 400 on July 24. "But this is a great idea," Stewart said of the dirt track. "Maybe something can come of it in the future." Certainly, IMS president Doug Boles would consider dirt track racing, but there is nothing on the schedule. Why? There are too many logistics to work through and too many other major events to work on. This track was built over three days with 56 loads of dirt. The banking in the corners was minimal, but again, it was a temporary layout. A lot of thought went into the project, even though it's, at this point, temporary. Boles first talked with Stewart about such a track in 2013, although Stewart's push was for an asphalt surface closer to the front straightaway. In recent weeks, Boles envisioned this track going closer to the north end tunnel, but it was moved closer to the backstretch so the spectator mounds could better be used.(Indianapolis Star)(7-6-2016)

Sad News - David Smith: David Ray Smith, 65, went to be with his Lord and Savior June 30, 2016. He was born in Forsyth County, on August 25, 1950, to Ina Lois Smith, and the late Thomas Mclean Smith. David knew early in life that racing would be his life's direction. He began racing at Bowman Gray Stadium that eventually led to a career in NASCAR with Richard Childress Racing. He was the award-winning and multi-championship jack man for the #3 Chevrolet for many years as one of the "Flying Aces." He then became Crew Chief in 1996 during his tenure in his career. He moved on to being team manager and pit crew coach for the multi-team operation. For the full obituary, services info and condolences go to Jayski.com's Sad News page.(7-6-2016)

Teams to test Daytona: NASCAR XFINITY Series teams ran their last restrictor-plate race of the season Friday night at Daytona International Speedway. On Sunday, three of those teams will return to the 2.5-mile speedway to work with NASCAR officials, testing potential changes in the cars that could lessen the tandem drafting that occurs when one car intentionally pushes another for an extended period of time, enabling the two to move more quickly through the field. The #19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with driver Daniel Suarez, the #22 of Team Penske with driver Ryan Blaney and the #33 of Brandon Jones (Richard Childress Racing) are scheduled to participate in the one-day test. While NASCAR polices such incidents with a no-push rule, it's one that has been scrutinized often in restrictor-plate races at Daytona and Talladega Superspeedway. Instituted in 2014, the edict allows drivers to "bump-draft" or shove another car in an effort to pass others, but constant contact will draw a penalty from officials. Officials are expected to look at several changes aimed at making the cars more similar to those in the Sprint Cup Series, where the front and rear of the cars don't match up sufficiently to enable one car to push another effectively. Sprint Cup cars currently cannot run an extended number of laps without risking damage to the engine of the trailing car due to overheating.(NASCAR)(7-3-2016)
UPDATE: NASCAR implemented rule changes two years ago in its Sprint Cup Series aimed at limiting the action known as tandem drafting, the ability for two cars to lock up and advance past another competitor. Changes now are being considered to halt the activity for the XFINITY Series after a one-day test at Daytona International Speedway July 2.NASCAR outlawed the practice of tandem drafting, the process of two cars hooking up nose-to-tail to increase overall speed, by implementing changes that affected engine cooling, thus increasing the likelihood of overheating the engines if the practice continued. Cars still use the draft, run nose-to-tail with minimal or no contact to advance, but they are not allowed to lock onto the back of another car and push the car in front around the track. XFINITY Series Director Wayne Auton called policing the practice of locking up "the hardest thing I've ever done at a race track by far." Specific changes likely won't be announced until the 2017 rules package for the XFINITY Series is unveiled, but it is possible that some of what was learned during the test could be implemented across the board for the series. NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series rules package, which features a reduction in downforce, has improved competition and XFINITY Series teams appear willing to go down a similar road..(NASCAR)(7-6-2016)

Sieg gets primary following strong run: Following a third place finish at Daytona International Speedway, Ryan Sieg and RSS Racing are thrilled to welcome back Tri County Landscape as a primary sponsor for the ALSO 300 in Kentucky. "Last Friday night was one of the coolest experiences of my life and I'm excited to root on Ryan and the team at Kentucky Speedway" said Todd Coon, President of TCL. Sieg and his family owned race team have now moved to 11th in points, only 16 points out of the top 10 in driver points.(See an image of the car on the #39 Team Paint Schemes page)(RSS Racing)(7-6-2016)

Wallace upset with officials UPDATE: Friday's NASCAR XFINITY Series race ended in controversy, as there was a big crash on the backstretch on the last lap, but the caution flag was not displayed until the leaders were in Turn 4, about 15 seconds later. After officials checked the scoring loops and TV footage, Aric Almirola was declared the race winner over Justin Allgaier. After the race ended, one of the drivers who wasn't happy with the ending was Roush Fenway Racing's Darrell "Bubba" Wallace, who got wrecked in the last-lap melee and was also spun out earlier in the race. Wallace took to Twitter to vent his displeasure.(FOXSports)"Got the muppets up there officiating tonight! Never know how to react under pressure... Whatta joke," Wallace wrote on his Twitter.(7-2-2016)
UPDATE: Darrell Wallace, Jr. has been fined $15,000 for his behavioral infraction for his comments following Daytona.
Wallace was fined under Section 12.1 of the Rule Book - NASCAR Member Conduct. He also was cited for Section 12.8.a and 12.8.1.b.
Section 12.8.a reads: NASCAR membership is a privilege. With that privilege comes certain benefits, responsibilities and obligations. Correct and proper conduct, both on and off the race track, is part of a Member's responsibilities. A Member's actions can reflect upon the sport as a whole and on other NASCAR Members. Ideally, NASCAR Members are role models for the many fans who follow this sport, regardless of the type of license a Member may hold, or the specific Series in which a Member may participate. Therefore, NASCAR views a Member's conduct, both on and off the race track, which might constitute a behavioral rules violations under this Rule Book with great importance.
Section 12.8.1.b reads: Member actions that could result in a $5,000-$25,000 fine and/or probation:
Disparaging the sport and/or NASCAR's leadership; Verbal abuse of a NASCAR Official, media members, fans, etc.;Intentionally damaging another vehicle under yellow or red flag conditions or on pit road with no one around.(NBC Sports)(7-6-2016)

Moffitt fastest in final Truck practice: #11-Brett Moffitt was fastest in final practice for the Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway with a speed of 183.805 mph. He was followed by #9-William Byron, #18-Kyle Busch, #71-Brandon Jones, #05-Parker Kligerman, #29-Tyler Reddick, #51-Daniel Suarez, #17-Timothy Peters, #13-Cameron Hayley, and #19-Daniel Hemric. 31 drivers practiced during the session. See complete results on the Kentucky practice 2 speeds page (pdf).(7-6-2016)

Kligerman fastest in first Truck practice: #05-Parker Kligerman, filling in for John Wes Townley, was fastest during opening practice at Kentucky Speedway with a speed of 179.099mph. #9-William Byron was second fastest, followed by: #18-Kyle Busch, #88-Matt Crafton, #19-Daniel Hemric, #11-Brett Moffitt, #23-Spencer Gallagher, #21-Johnny Sauter, #41-Ben Rhodes, and #24-Grant Enfinger. 31 drivers practiced during the session. See complete results on the Kentucky practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(7-6-2016)

Truck Series Entry List: There are 30 trucks on the preliminary entry list for Thursday's Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway. A few notes:
The #11 is TBA;
Kyle Busch is in the #18;
Grant Enfinger is in the #24;
Timmy Hill returns to the #49;
Daniel Suarez is in the #51;
The #63 is TBA;
Brandon Jones is in the #71;
The #81 is not entered;
(7-4-2015)
UPDATE: Brett Moffitt will be in the #11 at Kentucky; Garrett Smithley was added in the #07;
(7-5-2016)
UPDATE 2: Austin Hill is in the #02 in place of Tyler Young;
(7-6-2016)
UPDATE 3: Kligerman is in for Townley in the #05; and Norm Benning fills the seat in the #63; Mike Harmon has been added to bring the field to 32 entries;
(7-6-2016)
See the complete list on the Kentucky entry list page.

Kligerman in for sidelined Townley at Kentucky: John Wes Townley is undergoing treatment for a possible concussion and will not compete in Thursday night's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Kentucky Speedway. The No. 05 Jive Communications Chevrolet will be driven by Parker Kligerman. Cole Custer will substitute for Townley in Saturday night's ARCA 150 presented by Casey's General Stores at Iowa Speedway. Townley hopes to return to competition at the NASCAR Truck race at Eldora Speedway on Wednesday night July 20th.(Athenian Motorsports)(7-6-2016)

Hill in for Young at Kentucky: Young's Motorsports has announced that Austin Hill will drive the #02 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) machine in Thursday night's Buckle Up Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway. Tyler Young, the Midland, Texas native and the team's regular driver will return to the #02 Young's Building Systems / Randco Chevy Silverado for the following race of the season at Eldora Speedway on Wed., July 20. Moving ahead, Young is insistent that his small team will continue to work hard and bring a capable and competitive product to the track each and every week, including for the 11th race of the season at Eldora. While Young, who holds a significant role in the day-to-day operations of his team during the week won't rule out the opportunity to coach from the sideline again in 2016, he indulges at the thought of another career-best performance this season. While the team has embraced some of their personal milestones this season, the family-owned and operated team is also building a foundation as a driver development organization where the team specializes on the fundamentals of a core development structure. Debuting Derek Scott Jr. at Iowa Speedway last month added to the inner circle of Young's Motorsports growth this season which includes a part-time NASCAR K&N Pro Series East program with driver Reid Wilson. Now, the opportunity to nestle Hill into a similar-type role is bound to pay dividends. In three highly competitive K&N races this year, Wilson and Young's Motorsports have earned two top-10 finishes.(Young's Motorsports)(7-6-2016)

Smithley gets new sponsor for Kentucky: The Northern Kentucky Chapter of the Kentucky Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education (FAME) and Mubea partnered to sponsor Garrett Smithley in this weekend's Kentucky Speedway NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR XFINITY Series races. Smithley will drive the #07 SS Green Light Chevy Silverado on Thursday night and the #0 JD Motorsports Chevy Camaro on Friday night. It will be his third NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start of the season. He sits 17th in NASCAR XFINITY Series driver points. The 2016 incoming KY FAME class includes 24 students from Northern Kentucky who were matched with 10 local manufacturing companies to develop highly desirable skills through work and study. (Mubea)(7-6-2016)

Daytona TV Ratings: NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Daytona earned a 3.4 rating and 5.7 million viewers on NBC Saturday night, per Nielsen fast-nationals - up 26% in ratings and 43% in viewership from last year's race, which was run on a Sunday and delayed several hours due to rain (2.7, 4.0M). The 2014 race was postponed a full day from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon, earning a 2.4 and 4.0 million on TNT. Brad Keselowski's win, which peaked at a 3.9 and 6.5 million from 10:30-11 PM ET, ranks as the highest rated Firecracker 400 since 2013 (3.5) and the most-watched since 2012, when coverage aired on both TNT and TruTV (6.2M).(Sports Media Watch / NBC Twitter), see race-by-race TV Ratings for 2016 and a comparison chart on the 2016 TV Ratings page.(7-5-2016)

Mass Markets Joins BK Racing at Chicago: BK Racing announced that Mass Markets has signed as primary sponsor of Matt DiBendetto's #83 Toyota Camry for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on September 18, 2016. "The beginning of my fourth year as a NASCAR team co-owner/investor has made me realize that I missed sponsoring a team," said Anthony Marlowe, Mass Markets CEO and BK Racing co-owner/Investor. "I am thrilled with the on track improvements that BK Racing has made during this pivotal season as a Chartered team, and our continued pursuit of performance that I wanted to be part of the Cup Series as a sponsor as well. I recently bought my first company back, and look forward to replicating and multiplying the success the NASCAR Premier Series platform provided to us in the past."
On October 1st, 2015, TMone's original founder Anthony Marlowe bought back 100% of Iowa City, IA-based TMone, LLC and rebranded it as Mass Markets to reflect the XaaS (Anything-as-a-Service) vision of the company. Mr. Marlowe started on the phones as a telesales agent for a major Fortune 500 telecommunications company, and turned it into a colorful career. Mass Markets' holding company is Marlowe Companies Inc. (MCI, LC), which is a wholly owned Iowa City Capital Partners company, which Mr. Marlowe owns. Mr. Marlowe is redefining how cloud-based technology and business process outsourcing (BPO) meet."(BK Racing/140 BUZZ), see image of the scheme on the #83 Teams Schemes page.(7-5-2016)

XFINITY Entry List: There are 40 cars on the preliminary entry list for Friday's Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway. A few notes:
Austin Dillon is in the #2;
Ryan Blaney is in the #12;
Kyle Busch is in the #18;
Brad Keselowski is in the #22;
Cole Custer isi n the #88;
Dexter Bean is in the #92;
The #97 is TBA;
(7-5-2015)
See the complete list on the Kentucky entry list page.

New sponsor for Smithley: The Northern Kentucky Chapter of the Kentucky Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education (FAME) and Mubea partnered to sponsor Garrett Smithley in this weekend's Kentucky Speedway NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR XFINITY Series races. Smithley will drive the # 07 SS Green Light Chevy Silverado on Thursday night live on Fox Sports 1 and the # 0 JD Motorsports Chevy Camaro on Friday night live on NBC Sports Network. It will be his third NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start of the season. He sits 17th in NASCAR XFINITY Series driver points. The 2016 incoming KY FAME class includes 24 students from Northern Kentucky who were matched with 10 local manufacturing companies to develop highly desirable skills through work and study.(See an image of the car on the #0 Team Paint Schemes page) (Mubea)(7-6-2016)

Alsco joins Dillon at Kentucky: For the third year in a row, Alsco, a worldwide leader in the rental of linen, uniforms, healthcare garments, and washroom services and products, has teamed with VF Imagewear to power the #3 Chevy Camaro driven by Ty Dillon. This opportunity is made possible by Richard Childress Racing's (RCR) partnership with VF Imagewear brand Red Kap. Alsco is a proud sponsor this year of the NASCAR XFINITY Series Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway on July 8. Alsco became the title sponsor for the race after reaching a multi-year entitlement sponsorship agreement with Kentucky Speedway.(Alsco Inc.)(7-5-2016)

Tifft will return at Daytona UPDATES brain surgery: Matt Tifft had a successful procedure to alleviate a lower back problem and is on schedule to return to action in next month's Xfinity Series race at Daytona International Speedway. Tifft, who turns 20 this Sunday, sat out this past weekend's Truck and Xfinity series races at Iowa Speedway on advice of his doctor. He was scheduled to run the Truck race for Red Horse Racing and the Xfinity race for Joe Gibbs Racing. Sam Hornish Jr., filling in for Tifft, won Sunday's Xfinity race in his first series start of the season. "He's had a lower back issue, I think a bulging disc. What Matt wanted to do was run (at Iowa) and go in next week for the procedure and be ready for Daytona, but his doctor thought that might be pushing it," said Steve deSouza, JGR's executive vice president of Xfinity Series and development. "He called me Thursday after the procedure this week and said he'd be good to go (for Daytona)."(Motorsport)(6-20-2016)
UPDATE: Joe Gibbs Racing announced a medical update on driver Matt Tifft, who will undergo surgery for removal of a low-grade glioma in the brain. The slow-growing tumor was found during treatment and evaluation for a recent disc condition in his back. Tifft is expected to undergo surgery and rehabilitation soon and once cleared by physicians is expected to return to racing. The JGR rookie is anxious to return to the race track as soon as possible. David Ragan has been enlisted to drive the #18 Surface Sunscreen/Rugged Maniac Toyota Camry XFINITY series entry for Joe Gibbs Racing on Friday at Daytona International Speedway.(Joe Gibbs Racing)(6-28-2016)
UPDATE2: Tifft tweeted before the NXS race on Friday, July 1st: "Getting ready to go for the surgery! Craniotomy starts soon to get the tumor out of there. Update later!!"(7-1-2016)
UPDATE3: later this was tweeted: "Matt is out of surgery and in recovery. We will update you with more information tomorrow morning. Thank you all for your thoughts."(7-2-2016)
VIDEO: Tifft tweeted this and posted a video "Video update! Thanks so much to everyone for all the positive thoughts and prayers"(7-2-2016)
UPDATE 4: Fantastic news from Joe Gibbs Racing driver Matt Tifft: He's out of the hospital after successful brain surgery. Friday, the 20-year old racer underwent surgery to remove a low-grade glioma in his brain, and around midnight on Saturday night he was released. Tifft Tweeted that he had begun walking and had eaten solid food as well, both great signs. And he Tweeted a fairly graphic picture of what his skull looks like after the surgery. He is expected to resume his racing career once he completes rehabilitation and receives medical clearance. So far this season, Tifft has run six NASCAR XFINITY Series races and three more in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.(FOX Sports)(7-3-2016)
UPDATE 5: NASCAR driver Matt Tifft hopes to return to racing this season after having brain surgery July 1, but he told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Tuesday that test results on the benign tumor should be available late next week. "That will tell us what kind of tumor it was, what it could have become,'' Tifft told co-hosts Jim Noble and Chocolate Myers on "Tradin' Paint.'' "Based on that, we're going to know a lot more on the recovery time. If it comes back and it shows that they got enough of it out and it doesn't seem to be harmful - we know it's a benign tumor now but we don't know if it could have turned cancerous or not, or what kind of form it could have taken, that will give us all that information. Based on that, I'll know if I need to do anything with chemotherapy or radiation for the remaining part, if there is any. I think the hardest part now is when you're back home they have a pretty intensive medicine regimen you have to take,'' he said, noting steroids he has to take to control tissue swelling. "It takes a lot out of your body and makes you kind of nauseous. It's just fighting through that and just staying positive. Every day seems to get better.''(NBC Sports)(7-5-2016)

Ellis treated for carbon monoxide poisoning following Daytona: Ryan Ellis earned his career-best NASCAR XFINITY Series finish Friday night at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway driving the #15 ScienceLogic Chevy Camaro for Rick Ware Racing, but his finish came at a cost. A 15th place result was a great boost for the part-time NASCAR driver, but instead of celebrating with his friends, family and sponsor, Ellis found himself in the infield care center post-race for an hour. When a multi-car incident broke out on the final lap of Friday night's Subway Firecracker 250, the field raced on, as a junkyard of race cars scattered behind. Seeing the subsequent hits and collisions, NASCAR quickly displayed the yellow flag ending the race. Though noted as being involved in the pile-up, Ellis' damage was minor and he was able to coast back to checkered flag, but his radio transmission was an instant cause for concern. "I told the team I need water and had to pit (immediately)." Not knowing his actual condition and as precaution, the team requested medical assistance through their radio to NASCAR. Standard with every lug nut check, each XFINITY car came to pit road, but in need of serious attention, Ellis stopped his vehicle, unbuckled his belts, climbed from the car and laid down. Ellis was treated for dehydration and carbon monoxide poisoning, where his levels surged outside the comfort zone, but after being attended to by track medical personnel, Ellis's levels returned to normal and he was later released.(Catchfence)(7-4-2016)

Moffitt joins Red Horse for Kentucky: Brett Moffitt will join the Red Horse Racing stable for the Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway on July 7, subbing for Matt Tifft in the #11 Toyota Tundra, who underwent surgery for removal of a low-grade glioma in the brain. The slow-growing tumor was found during treatment and evaluation for a recent disc condition in his back. Tifft is expected to undergo rehabilitation soon and once cleared by physicians is expected to return to racing. The rookie is anxious to return to the race track as soon as possible."Obviously, we're thinking of Matt and can't wait for him to return, so we're sending him our best wishes and we hope to see him back at the track soon," said Moffitt. "I hate that it's under these circumstances, but I'm really grateful for this opportunity with Red Horse Racing and I hope it can lead to more." Moffitt, the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rookie of the Year, has 38 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts, one XFINITY Series start and two Camping World Truck Series starts.(Red Horse Racing)(7-5-2016)

Ticket sales dip at ISC tracks: Ticket sales at International Speedway Corporation (ISC) tracks dropped 8.3% from March through May, but company executives don't expect that trend to continue through the end of the year. The ISC 2016 second quarter financial results include NASCAR weekends at six tracks - Phoenix, Auto Club (California), Martinsville, Talladega, Richmond and Kansas - as well as motorcycle events at Daytona and an IndyCar race at Phoenix. The IndyCar race was a new event, signaling that the NASCAR events had a bigger drop than 8.3% in ticket sales. When including its January and February events at Daytona, ISC's ticket revenues are down 2.3% for the year. The financial results were somewhat expected, as ISC had warned of a weakening of ticket sales in April. ISC President John Saunders, speaking to financial analysts in a conference call, said the consistent strong racing, youth pricing initiatives and tracks creating themes for their weekends - such as the Darlington throwback weekend that features paint schemes reminiscent of yesteryear - should help with ticket sales. Saunders said the June event at Michigan also was down as far as ticket revenues. Daytona's race last weekend was up from 2015 as expected considering only 50,000 seats of Daytona's new 101,500-seat grandstand were available. ISC expects to at least match its admissions revenue for races next month at Watkins Glen and Michigan, while advance ticket sales are slightly down for its eight races from September through November, Saunders said. The average ticket price for a Sprint Cup ticket bought at its six races from March through May was $72.09, down 3% from a year ago, Saunders said. The average ticket bought in 2016, when including its Daytona events in February, was $101.64, up 7%. The other major public track-operating company, Speedway Motorsports Inc., is expected to announce its midyear results in about four weeks.(ESPN)(7-5-2016)

Inaugural Fan Appreciation Weekend at Richmond: NASCAR fans are some of the greatest in all of sports. Their unmatched passion and loyalty has even earned them the name of NASCAR Nation. And, a fan base like that deserves a weekend dedicated in their honor. That's why Richmond International Raceway will celebrate NASCAR Nation with the inaugural Fan Appreciation Weekend Sept. 9-10. Drivers, teams, sponsors and NASCAR are joining RIR to recognize the pride and dedication of NASCAR Nation during this weekend-long celebration. Whether fans are at the track in Richmond or tuning in from Alabama, Michigan or California, they will feel the love during Fan Appreciation Weekend. Here's a small sampling of what fans can expect - with more to come. Fans around the country will be showered with praise and thanks on social media, throughout the broadcast and even through special messages on the B-Post from drivers like Martin Truex, Jr., Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney, just to name a few. Fans also will see more than your average sweeps and freebies, with unique items and once-in-a-lifetime experiences up for grabs, like an all-expenses-paid trip to Richmond to ride in the two-seater with former driver and NBC analyst Jeff Burton. Richmond ticket holders also will get the royal treatment with special access, experiences and an unprecedented number of driver appearances. Most notably, all fans will be invited onto the frontstretch prior to the start of the Federated Auto Parts 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race for a new event, Gridside Live!, featuring 2016 winners and Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup contenders. For more information and updates on what's happening during Fan Appreciation Weekend, visit rir.com/FanAppreciation. Or go straight to the free stuff by visiting rir.com/FANPRIZES.(RIR)(7-5-2016)

Homestead-Miami Speedway accepting grant applications: Homestead-Miami Speedway's charitable outreach program, Driving for a Cause is now accepting applications for financial gifts to be awarded to eligible 501(c) (3) charities as part of its 2016 grant program. Applications can be found at www.HomesteadMiamiSpeedway.com/DrivingForACause.(HMS)(7-5-2016)

Entry List for the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is posted, 40 teams/drivers [for 40 spots] are listed, including: #21-Blaney*, #30-Wise*, #32-Earnhardt, #55-Sorenson*, #95-Ty Dillon, #98-Whitt*.
Drivers who are not a Charter team, an Open Team, and must get in via speed: #21-Blaney, #30-Wise, #55-Sorenson, #98-Whitt
Since only 40 cars are entered, all drivers will make the race, 40 is the maximum.
* Open Team (no Charter)
See the full entry list on Jayski.com's Kentucky Entry List

Benny Phillips Named Sixth Squier-Hall Award Winner: NASCAR and the NASCAR Hall of Fame announced longtime High Point (N.C.) Enterprise reporter and sports editor Benny Phillips as the sixth recipient of the Squier-Hall Award for NASCAR Media Excellence. Phillips spent 48 years with the Enterprise, serving as its sports editor for 32 of them. He will be honored during NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony festivities on Jan. 20, 2017 and featured in an exhibit in the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, North Carolina. In addition to his time at the Enterprise, Phillips wrote for Stock Car Racing magazine for 27 years and spent 12 years with TBS. The prestigious Squier-Hall Award is the latest in a long list of accolades bestowed upon Phillips during, and after, his exemplary career. Phillips was named the NMPA Writer of the Year seven times, won the NMPA Joe Littlejohn Award in 1977, the IMHOF Henry T. McLemore Award in 1978, the Buddy Shuman Award in 1986 and the NMPA George Cunningham Award in 1988. Phillips, who battled polio throughout his life, died in 2012 at the age of 74.
"Benny Phillips told the engaging stories that transformed our drivers into heroes, and with it developed a deserved reputation as a trusted confidant whose determination and affable personality made him a beloved fixture in the NASCAR garage," said Brian France, NASCAR chairman and CEO. "Benny delivered the stories of our sport to millions of NASCAR fans on a daily basis through newspapers, books, magazines and television. This award has been given only to the giants of his industry, and unquestionably, Benny was exactly that." Phillips penned four books, including Dale Earnhardt's autobiography "Determined," which he co-authored with fellow NASCAR reporter Ben Blake. Phillips was among eight nominees voted upon by a panel comprised of NASCAR and NASCAR Hall of Fame executives, journalists, public relations representatives and former competitors. The Squier-Hall Award was created in 2012 to honor the contributions of media to the success of the sport. Legendary broadcasters Ken Squier and Barney Hall, for whom the award is named, were its initial recipients. Chris Economaki, Tom Higgins and Steve Byrnes have since won the award.
The other seven nominees were:
Norma "Dusty" Brandel, the first woman to report from inside the NASCAR garage
Russ Catlin, one of the best-known early racing writers and historians, served as editor of Speed Age Magazine
Shav Glick, covered motorsports for the Los Angeles Times for 37 years, bringing NASCAR coverage to the West Coast
Bob Jenkins, served as the lead NASCAR lap-by-lap anchor at ESPN from 1982-2000.
Bob Moore, spent more than 20 years as a NASCAR beat writer including stints with the Daytona Beach News-Journal and The Charlotte Observer.
T. Taylor Warren, best known for his three-wide photo of the 1959 Daytona 500 finish, he covered every Daytona 500 until his death in 2008.
Steve Waid, covered NASCAR for more than 40 years for the Roanoke Times & World News, NASCAR Scene and NASCAR Illustrated.(NASCAR)(7-4-2016)

Anest Iwata Joins BK Racing, Matt DiBenedetto at Kentucky: BK Racing announced that Anest Iwata will sponsor Matt DiBenedetto's #83 Toyota Camry at the upcoming Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway. Anest Iwata USA, located in Cincinnati, Ohio, is the North American Spray Equipment Headquarters for the Anest Iwata Corporation of Yokohama, Japan. Besides being the leading producer of spray guns in the world, Anest Iwata is a leading manufacturer of engineered solutions for air compressors, vacuum pumps, spray and finishing equipment. "We are thrilled to return to Kentucky as the primary sponsor for the #83 Toyota," said Nicolle Williams, Head of North American Marketing for Anest Iwata. "It's really special to see Matt representing the Anest Iwata brand, in a car painted with Anest Iwata equipment, under the lights of our hometown track. We couldn't ask for better partners on and off the track and look forward to working with BK Racing and Matt DiBenedetto for years to come."
"Anest Iwata has been a wonderful company to work with," said BK Racing Chief Marketing Officer Doug Fritz. "We proudly use their spray guns in our shop and their quality is top notch. The #83 Anest Iwata Camry will not only showcase their brand on track but also the work of their products."(BK Racing/140 BUZZ), see image of the scheme on the #83 Teams Schemes page.(7-4-2016)

Johnson Foundation Golf Tournament Tops $730,000 in Funds Raised: The Jimmie Johnson Foundation announced that its annual Jimmie Johnson Foundation Golf Tournament and Dinner raised more than $730,000. Johnson hosted 116 golfers at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California for Tuesday's golf tournament. The night before the tournament, the Johnsons hosted over 200 guests at a special dinner and auction at The Lodge at Torrey Pines, with music from O.A.R. The tournament, which in ten years has raised more than $6.3 million, benefits the Champions Grants program, a partnership between the Jimmie Johnson Foundation and Lowe's Toolbox for Education. The grants range from $25,000-$100,000 and are distributed to K-12 public schools in Chandra and Jimmie Johnson's hometowns in California and Oklahoma, and where they currently reside in North Carolina.(JJF)(7-4-2016)

NASCAR Weekend in Sonoma Nets More Than $216,000: Charitable programs combined to raise more than $216,000 for local youth groups during the Toyota/Save Mart 350 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series weekend at Sonoma Raceway, June 24-26. The proceeds from the majority of events will benefit Sonoma County youth organizations through the Sonoma Chapter of Speedway Children's Charities, the charitable arm of the raceway, which has distributed more than $5.1 million to local youth-serving non-profit groups since 2001. The Children's Champions Grand Marshal Banquet was held on Friday, June 24, at Cline Cellars in Sonoma. Proceeds from the banquet benefit Speedway Children's Charities and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Sonoma Valley. Overall, the banquet generated more than $156,000, while the Ride-of-a-Lifetime Online Charity Auction raised over $10,000. A live auction was also held the night of the banquet for a special NASCAR Race-Day Experience, which included a meet and greet with the NASCAR on FOX broadcast team and a behind-the-scenes tour of the iconic Hollywood Hotel. In addition, a special Pixar Studios package included a CARS-themed gift basket and a private tour of the Emeryville headquarters. Both packages combined to bring in nearly $15,000. More than $25,000 was also raised through various donations during the weekend, including a $5,000 donation on behalf of the Transporter Drivers of Motorsports Association (TDMA), which participated in the 6th annual NASCAR Hauler Parade in Sacramento on June 23. Great Clips raised over $6,000 in donations throughout the weekend at its mobile hair salon in the main paddock.(Sonoma Raceway)(7-4-2016)

Truck Series Entry List: There are 30 trucks on the preliminary entry list for Thursday's Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway. A few notes:
The #11 is TBA;
Kyle Busch is in the #18;
Grant Enfinger is in the #24;
Timmy Hill returns to the #49;
Daniel Suarez is in the #51;
The #63 is TBA;
Brandon Jones is in the #71;
The #81 is not entered;
(7-4-2015)
See the complete list on the Kentucky entry list page.

Daytona Race and Commercial Breakdown of the 2016 Coke Zero 400: For those of you NASCAR fans that like stats and love to hate commercials, here is the breakdown for Saturday's race. CawsnJaws began recording the times at the Invocation of the race at 7:45 PM, and stopped at the waving of the checkered flag at 10:55 PM (all times are EDT). I did not keep records for the pre- and post-race coverage. NBC was the broadcast team for this event. This was their first broadcast of the 2016 season.
Total number of commercials: 124
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 51
Number of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 100
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 48
Number of 'Side-by-Side' commercials during race broadcast (split-screen): 24
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 22
Number of times NBC utilized 'Side-by-Side' commercials during this broadcast: 4
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast (including company logos 'floating' in corners of the screen): 126
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 7:45 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 10:55 PM
Total minutes of complete race broadcast: 190
Minutes of race broadcast: 143
Minutes of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 47
Minutes of 'Side-by-Side' commercials (split-screen): 10
Number of missed restarts: 0
Number of 'mystery cautions' (debris not shown): 0
Total race brdcst time 143 Total comm. brdcst time 47
2015 Coke Zero 400 comparison:
Total number of commercials: 96
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 55
Number of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 72
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 44
Number of 'Side-by-Side' commercials during race broadcast (split-screen): 24
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 23
Number of times NBC utilized 'Side-by-Side' commercials during this broadcast: 5
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 11:18 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 2:41 AM
Total minutes of complete race broadcast: 203
Minutes of race broadcast: 168
Minutes of traditional commercials (not split-screen): 35
Minutes of 'Side-by-Side' commercials (split-screen): 12
Total race brdcst time 168 Total comm. brdcst time 35
See past races, more info on the commercials with links at CawsnJaws.com.(7-3-2016)

Stewart gets loose and wrecks, takes blame: In his swan song on Daytona International Speedway, #14-Tony Stewart finished 26th in his Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) entry after looking like he might win his second consecutive race of the season. Stewart avoided early trouble then battled in the top-five as the race wound down, but with 10 to go the #14 slammed into the wall, ending his chances for victory. Stewart took the blame for the incident. "I just overcorrected for it and drove it into the fence," said Stewart, who is a four-time Sprint Cup winner at Daytona, having scored victories in the annual Fourth of July weekend race in 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2012 - the most among active drivers. "So definitely my fault. I don't know why I got loose, but I got loose going into (turn) one." Despite his misfortune, Stewart moved into the top-30 in the driver standings by a three-point margin over 31st-place Brian Scott. If Stewart can remain in the top-30 through the 26th race of the season, he will secure his spot in the 16-driver Chase for the Sprint Cup playoff by virtue of his victory last week at Sonoma.(SHR)(7-3-2016)

What happened to Kurt Busch at end of the Coke Zero 400? #41-Kurt Busch was running fourth on the Coke Zero 400's final restart at Daytona with two laps to go in overtime and was fighting for the win when he was hit from behind [by #22-Joey Logano] and sent sliding across the infield grass toward the finish line, which he crossed as the final car on the lead lap, finishing 23rd (SHR).
Kurt Busch's Comments: "We positioned ourselves to be the car to get a good run off the bottom. It just didn't work out with him (Joey Logano) trying to drive straight through us. And it would have worked out better if he would have pushed us. We could have had a shot at the #2 (Brad Keselowski). And with just the way that it turned out, I feel disappointed that I didn't get the win for (Tony) Gibson (Crew Chief) and all these guy that work for our team. We did everything right tonight except cross the line where we were supposed to."
Q) DO YOU EXPECT HIM TO PUSH YOU BECAUSE THAT'S HIS TEAMMATE IN THE LEAD? DOES THAT MAKE IT MORE UNDERSTANDABLE?
Busch: "On the last lap, there is so much going on. You can't drive other people's cars for them. I think that he made an aggressive mistake. You can't go from fifth to first. There's just no shot at it. And, it's a shame that we ended up spun around and wrecked. We could have come out of here with the point lead."
Q) YOU ARE SO GOOD AT PLATE TRACKS, IS IT A CONSOLATION KNOWING THAT YOU WERE SORT OF IN A SPOT TO GO FOR IT AT THE END?
Busch: "That's what I always hope for. I hope to be right there where I was tonight on a green-white-checkered and one day the chips are going to fall in my direction. There's no way that it can't. It's almost two rotations around a roulette wheel for how many times we've been here and haven't won. But we'll keep trying."(Team Chevy)
Joey Logano's comment: "It was hard fought for sure. Anytime you have an opportunity to win and you are in the top four or five or six on the last restart you know you have a shot at it. I was able to get Brad a good push to clear and get a Penske car to victory lane which is really cool. Todd Gordon made a great call to put four tires on which allowed us to be aggressive at the end. I hate that I got into Kurt (Busch) there at the end racing to the line. I had a run to turn up underneath him and when you do that the cars get free and then I was there and he tried to catch it and I was there again. It is a product of this racing but I hate that it happened. The last thing I want to do is hit someone like that. Unfortunately, it happened. Overall a solid day for us. The 2 was the fastest car and he deserved to win the race. We need to find a little more speed in our race car."(Ford Performance)(7-3-2016)

Tifft will return at Daytona UPDATES brain surgery: Matt Tifft had a successful procedure to alleviate a lower back problem and is on schedule to return to action in next month's Xfinity Series race at Daytona International Speedway. Tifft, who turns 20 this Sunday, sat out this past weekend's Truck and Xfinity series races at Iowa Speedway on advice of his doctor. He was scheduled to run the Truck race for Red Horse Racing and the Xfinity race for Joe Gibbs Racing. Sam Hornish Jr., filling in for Tifft, won Sunday's Xfinity race in his first series start of the season. "He's had a lower back issue, I think a bulging disc. What Matt wanted to do was run (at Iowa) and go in next week for the procedure and be ready for Daytona, but his doctor thought that might be pushing it," said Steve deSouza, JGR's executive vice president of Xfinity Series and development. "He called me Thursday after the procedure this week and said he'd be good to go (for Daytona)."(Motorsport)(6-20-2016)
UPDATE: Joe Gibbs Racing announced a medical update on driver Matt Tifft, who will undergo surgery for removal of a low-grade glioma in the brain. The slow-growing tumor was found during treatment and evaluation for a recent disc condition in his back. Tifft is expected to undergo surgery and rehabilitation soon and once cleared by physicians is expected to return to racing. The JGR rookie is anxious to return to the race track as soon as possible. David Ragan has been enlisted to drive the #18 Surface Sunscreen/Rugged Maniac Toyota Camry XFINITY series entry for Joe Gibbs Racing on Friday at Daytona International Speedway.(Joe Gibbs Racing)(6-28-2016)
UPDATE2: Tifft tweeted before the NXS race on Friday, July 1st: "Getting ready to go for the surgery! Craniotomy starts soon to get the tumor out of there. Update later!!"(7-1-2016)
UPDATE3: later this was tweeted: "Matt is out of surgery and in recovery. We will update you with more information tomorrow morning. Thank you all for your thoughts."(7-2-2016)
VIDEO: Tifft tweeted this and posted a video "Video update! Thanks so much to everyone for all the positive thoughts and prayers"(7-2-2016)
UPDATE 4: Fantastic news from Joe Gibbs Racing driver Matt Tifft: He's out of the hospital after successful brain surgery. Friday, the 20-year old racer underwent surgery to remove a low-grade glioma in his brain, and around midnight on Saturday night he was released. Tifft Tweeted that he had begun walking and had eaten solid food as well, both great signs. And he Tweeted a fairly graphic picture of what his skull looks like after the surgery. He is expected to resume his racing career once he completes rehabilitation and receives medical clearance. So far this season, Tifft has run six NASCAR XFINITY Series races and three more in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.(FOX Sports)(7-3-2016)

Teams to test Daytona: NASCAR XFINITY Series teams ran their last restrictor-plate race of the season Friday night at Daytona International Speedway. On Sunday, three of those teams will return to the 2.5-mile speedway to work with NASCAR officials, testing potential changes in the cars that could lessen the tandem drafting that occurs when one car intentionally pushes another for an extended period of time, enabling the two to move more quickly through the field. The #19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with driver Daniel Suarez, the #22 of Team Penske with driver Ryan Blaney and the #33 of Brandon Jones (Richard Childress Racing) are scheduled to participate in the one-day test. While NASCAR polices such incidents with a no-push rule, it's one that has been scrutinized often in restrictor-plate races at Daytona and Talladega Superspeedway. Instituted in 2014, the edict allows drivers to "bump-draft" or shove another car in an effort to pass others, but constant contact will draw a penalty from officials. Officials are expected to look at several changes aimed at making the cars more similar to those in the Sprint Cup Series, where the front and rear of the cars don't match up sufficiently to enable one car to push another effectively. Sprint Cup cars currently cannot run an extended number of laps without risking damage to the engine of the trailing car due to overheating.(NASCAR)(7-3-2016)

Wallace upset with officials: Friday's NASCAR XFINITY Series race ended in controversy, as there was a big crash on the backstretch on the last lap, but the caution flag was not displayed until the leaders were in Turn 4, about 15 seconds later. After officials checked the scoring loops and TV footage, Aric Almirola was declared the race winner over Justin Allgaier. After the race ended, one of the drivers who wasn't happy with the ending was Roush Fenway Racing's Darrell "Bubba" Wallace, who got wrecked in the last-lap melee and was also spun out earlier in the race. Wallace took to Twitter to vent his displeasure.(FOXSports)"Got the muppets up there officiating tonight! Never know how to react under pressure... Whatta joke," Wallace wrote on his Twitter.(7-2-2016)

Brad Keselowski wins at Daytona: #2-Brad Keselowski won the Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway for his 3rd win of the season, 1st win at Daytona and 20th career win in his 250th start.
The race's final caution flag set up NASCAR Overtime, adding a lap to the total.
#18-Busch finished 2nd followed by #6-Bayne, #22-Logano, #17-Stenhouse Jr., #42-Larson, #3-Dillon, #16-Biffle (pole winner), #15-Bowyer and #95-McDowell.
#98-Cole Whitt finished 11th, his career best finish. #21-Blaney was the highest finishing rookie at 14th.
There was one 'big one' wreck with 19 cars involved including points leader #4-Harvick, #48-Johnson, #20-Kenseth, #24-Elliott, #5-Kahne and #1-McMurray. Last weeks winner, #14-Stewart was running in the top ten late in the race when his car got loose and hit the wall and a couple other cars, ending his night, despite wrecking and finishing 26th, Stewart moved into 30th place in the series standings, the position he needs to maintain or improve to remain eligible for the Chase. #41-Busch was running in the top-five on the last lap when #22-Logano got into the #41, sending it spinning thru the infield grass, Busch finished 23rd.
There were 26 lead changes among 13 drivers and 5 cautions for 28 yellow flag laps.
The average speed was 150.342 mph.
Scheduled Race Re-Airs:
NASCAR 120, Sunday, July 3 at 3:00pm/et on NBCSN;
NASCAR 120, Monday, July 4 at 3:30pm/et on NBCSN;
See unofficial race results, awards, laps led, cautions and more [NOTE: money/winnings are no longer reported] at:
Unofficial Race Results page (pdf)
Lap Summary Report (pdf)
Penalty Report (pdf)
Pit Stop Times (pdf)
(7-2-2016)

Race Fast Facts - Daytona International Speedway:
#2-Brad Keselowski won the 58th Annual Coke Zero 400, his 20th victory in 250 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his third victory and 11th top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his first victory and fourth top-10 finish in 15 races at Daytona International Speedway.
#18-Kyle Busch (second) posted his eighth top-10 finish in 23 races at Daytona International Speedway. It is his 11th top-10 finish in 2016.
#6-Trevor Bayne (third) posted his third top-10 finish in 12 races at Daytona International Speedway.
#21-Ryan Blaney (14th) was the highest finishing rookie.
#4-Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 14 points over #2-Brad Keselowski.
(NASCAR Integrated Sports Marketing)(7-2-2016)

2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup CHASE Standings:
[after Daytona, race 17 of 36, 16 drivers for the Chase]
Set by most wins, then by points standing
1) #2-Keselowski [3 wins], 2nd in driver points
2) #18-Busch [3], 6th in driver points
2) #19-Edwards [2], 5th
4) #48-Johnson [2], 9th
5) #4-Harvick [1], 1st
6) #41-Busch [1], 3rd
7) #22-Logano [1], 4th
8) #78-Truex, Jr. [1], 7th
9) #11-Hamlin [1], 10th
10) #20-Kenseth [1], 11th
11) #14-Stewart [1], 30th
no wins, in by drivers points standings
12) #24-Elliott, 8th in drivers points
13) #3-Dillon, 12th
14) #88-Earnhardt Jr., 13th
15) #31-Newman, 14th
16) #21-Blaney, 15th
(7-2-2016)

2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Driver Points (not CHASE) Standings:
[after Daytona, race 17 of 36]
1) #4-Harvick [1 win], 565
2) #2-Keselowski [3], 551, -14
3) #41-Busch [1], 545, -20
4) #22-Logano [1], 531, -34
5) #19-Edwards [2], 527, -38
6) #18-Busch, [3], 492, -73
7) #78-Truex Jr. [1], 482, -83
8) #24-Elliott, 482, -83
9) #48-Johnson [2], 475, -90
10) #11-Hamlin [1], 446, -119
See the Unofficial Drivers Points Standings page (pdf) and
Unofficial Owners Points Standings page (pdf)

Race Coverage of the Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is scheduled for Saturday, July 2, 2016.
Television (TV): NBC at 7:45 pm/et; Pre-Race show at 7:00 pm/et; green flag approx. 8:08pm/et
Radio: Motor Racing Network (MRN) and Sirius XM Satellite NASCAR Radio 90
Scheduled Race Re-Airs:
NASCAR 120, Sunday, July 3 at 3:00pm/et on NBCSN;
NASCAR 120, Monday, July 4 at 3:30pm/et on NBCSN

Daytona Sprint Cup Series Pre-Race Schedule for Saturday, July 2: (eastern time)
7:15pm: Drivers Introductions
7:45pm: Intro Presentation of Colors & Invocation: Naval Air Station Jacksonville Honor Guard
7:45:20pm: Invocation by First Baptist Church of South Daytona Pastor, Ronnie Barton
7:46pm: National Anthem: U.S. Army Maneuver Center of Excellence Band, Fort Benning, GA
7:47:10pm: Flyby: (4) F-16's - 93rd Fighter Squadron, Homestead Air Reserve Base, FL
7:48pm: Medal of Honor Recipients Presentation
7:56pm: Command to Start Engines by Victor Irland, Daytona Beach Fire Department; David Aiken, EMT with Volusia County EMS; Brett Whitson, Volusia County Sheriff Deputy; and Officer Ryan Forrest of the Daytona Beach Police Dept
8:08pm: Green Flag for the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona
eastern time (NASCAR.com)

Earnhardt Jr. looking to repeat at Daytona: #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. is the defending champion of the Coke Zero 400. Earnhardt Jr. will try to join the back-to-back club of Coke Zero 400 champions including Fireball Roberts (1962-63), A.J. Foyt (1964-65), Cale Yarborough (1967-68), David Pearson (1972-74) and Tony Stewart (2005-06).(NASCAR)(7-2-2016)

Kurt Busch Extends Top-10 Streak: #41-Kurt Busch extended his top-10 streak to 10 straight races, become the second driver in as many seasons to do so. Joey Logano boasted a string of 11 straight top 10s last season. Busch's consistency puts him second in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points rankings, 35 markers behind his Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Kevin Harvick. Busch will try to earn his first restrictor-plate track victory in Saturday's Coke Zero 400 Presented By Coca-Cola at Daytona International Speedway.(NASCAR)(7-2-2016)

Denny Hopes going for the Daytona sweep: Following a slip-up on the final lap at Sonoma that allowed Tony Stewart to pass him for the win, 2016 Daytona 500 champion #11-Denny Hamlin hopes his luck changes when he attempts to become the sixth driver to sweep the races at "The World Center of Racing." The five drivers who have achieved the feat are Jimmie Johnson (2013), Bobby Allison (1982), LeeRoy Yarborough (1969), Cale Yarborough (1968) and Fireball Roberts (1962). In 21 starts at Daytona, Hamlin owns one win, six top fives and seven top 10s. Among active drivers, he ranks third in Daytona driver rating (91.5) and fourth in average running position (14.4). He has finished sixth or better in his last five races at the 2.5-mile track.(NASCAR)(7-2-2016)

Daytona Race Notes & Facts:
· There have been 138 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Daytona International Speedway since the track hosted its first race in 1959: 58 have been 500 miles, 53 were 400 miles and four 250 miles. There were also 23 qualifier races that were point races.
· 449 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series July race at Daytona International Speedway; 284 in more than one.
· The Wood Brothers have the most wins at Daytona in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with 15; followed by Hendrick Motorsports with 14.
· The first NASCAR premiere series race in the state of Florida was held at the Daytona Beach & Road Course on 7/10/1949. The 40 lap event was won by Red Byron (Oldsmobile, 80.883 mph).
· Seven different manufacturers have won the July NSCS race at Daytona: Chevrolet: 19; Ford: 17; Mercury: 7; Dodge: 5; Pontiac: 5; Buick: 3; Toyota: 1.
· Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Daytona International Speedway for the July race is the July 7, 2007 race won by Jamie McMurray over Kyle Busch with a MOV of 0.005 second. · Four of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series July races have resulted with a green-white-checkered finish at Daytona International Speedway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): 2008 (160/162), 2010 (160/166), 2011 (160/170) and 2013 (160/161).
· Only two of the 57 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series July races at Daytona International Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions: 1) July 6, 1996 - the race was called on Lap 117, 43 circuits shy of the 160 scheduled laps and 2) July 6, 2014 - the race was called on Lap 112.
(NASCAR)

Latest on Sprint's replacement as series sponsor: Sprint's sponsorship of NASCAR's top national series ends after the 2016 season, which raises a simple question: Who's next? Negotiations are under way for a new title sponsor, and it appears likely an announcement will come in early fall. That's the word from NASCAR executive Steve Phelps. Speaking on a SiriusXM show, Phelps laid out in rather general terms how the talks were going. Some companies remain in the mix; Phelps pegged the number at eight to 10. Others have fallen out, mostly as bad fits for one reason or another. A month after his interview, Phelps had little to offer in new information. The vetting process goes on and NASCAR maintains its optimism. Happy-face time, however, is growing short. In all likelihood, NASCAR will announce the Cup series title change in September or October. That's when, Phelps noted, current agreements with Xfinity and Camping World were made for the second-level series and the trucks series, respectively. NASCAR's deal with Xfinity runs through 2024. Its Camping World agreement runs through 2022. Another key point raised by Phelps: There might be more than one sponsor. Don't be surprise to see a sponsor that is currently involved in NASCAR and one that is new to the sport. (Sporting News / Motorsport)(7-2-2016)

added images of the #32 OneOrlando Fund, #3 Bass Pro Shops / NRA Museum, #11 FedEx, #20 DeWalt FlexVolt schemes that will run at Daytona.

How to make Unlimited, All-Star Race more 'prestigious': How can NASCAR make the Sprint All-Star Race and the Sprint Unlimited more prestigious and interesting for fans? Drivers mulled that during Thursday night's Sprint Cup Drivers Council meeting, Denny Hamlin said. The answer could be limiting the field for both races. "Trying to make it as prestigious as it probably used to be,'' Hamlin said Friday of the goal for both races. "It expanded over the last few years, the Unlimited especially, and even our All-Star event. It's over half the field, not really that prestigious. We'd like to get some of that back. If you tighten up how you get in, maybe these guys will keep that in the back of their mind when going for a pole and they'll go for it. You can tighten it up by making it a certain way to get in. The fan vote and all that stuff is cool, but it's also gimmicky and gets a lot of people in versus making it the true race winners or pole winners.'' The Sprint Unlimited, held the week before the Daytona 500, and Sprint All-Star Race, run the weekend before the Coca-Cola 600, will have new names next year with the series getting a new title sponsor.(NBC Sports)(7-2-2016)

Furniture Row Racing looks for Truex Jr. to stay, 2nd team considered: For anyone worried about Martin Truex Jr.'s future at Furniture Row Racing, according to general manager, Joe Garone, everything will be just fine and even though the organization is looking for more funding behind the #78 Toyota, it is also exploring options for a second team and the possibility of bringing on current Camping World Truck Series Champion and Xfinity Series driver, Erik Jones.
"For us, we're going to be together, that is just the way it is," Garone told PRN's Garage Pass. "He's got a good thing going on with our team and our crew, they're just working really well together, which is obvious. You see those results on the track and he wants to be here. We all feel real confident about that, so in some ways we are just kind of putting it on the back burner, continuing to get the funding and then once we reach a satisfactory level we will get all the papers signed and we will get on with life." As of now, Truex Jr. doesn't have a signed contract for next year with Furniture Row but Garone said that's just a formality as the team is hoping to secure additional funding from sponsors. "We're getting real close to getting the things we need to get signed, signed, from a sponsorship side," Garone said. "We're just focusing on the 78 car right now trying to continue to get the car full-funded. What I can say is that is going well but it is not finished. And the other thing I can say is that we love Martin and Martin just feels like he wants to be here. And, at that point, we'll match Martin to the term of the sponsorship and we will have it behind us. It is really not a lot of drama."
Garone also addressed Furniture Row finally adding a second team and which driver would be on the wish-list to fill any future seat. He said, having Jones would be a big win for any team to lockdown for as a driver. "You want to get the first team put away, working right and set before you really spend any focus on a second team because you really don't want to draw any attention away from your primary team and it feels like from a competition side things are going really well there, obviously," Garone said. "So it does feel like a time when we could make that move to a second team. We are continuing to seek funding and if that comes up here in the next few weeks, maybe we can go ahead and make those plans. We've worked on our shop and have gotten it to where we feel like we can run two teams out of it. We're doing all of the things we can in the background to be prepared but again, it takes funding. The first thing you have to do is get a team put together then we can talk about a driver but I can tell you this if you look at all the drivers out there you would be honored to have Erik Jones. Again, it is funding issue and we are sitting here coming to the first of July and to realistically get a second team going to compete for wins right of the box - which is the only way we would do it - we are running out of time. We have set a stake in the sand and if we don't have the funding properly put in place by mid-July, I think we have to look at scrapping it and look maybe for the following year."(KickinTheTires)(7-2-2016)

Go Fas Racing to endorse OneOrlando Fund in Daytona UPDATE: Go Fas Racing (GFR) announced that they will be working alongside their sponsors and local organizations to garner support for the OneOrlando fund next weekend at Daytona International Speedway. The OneOrlando fund was created by Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer to help aid the victims of the June 12th terrorist attack at the Pulse Nightclub. During next weekend's Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway the #32 Ford driven by Bobby Labonte will be displaying the website's links and more information to urge all NASCAR fans and sponsors to donate directly to the cause in the name of our great sport. For GFR owner Archie St.Hilaire who is a native of Maine he understands firsthand the tragic impact of these types of events after witnessing the terrorist attack that took place during the Boston Marathon on April 15th, 2013. St. Hilaire is trusting that the efforts of his team will show that all NASCAR fans stand behind Orlando. For more informing on how you can join the effort, please visit www.OneOrlando.org, and spread the word on your favorite social media platform by using #OrlandoUnited. Donations can also be made on your mobile device by texting ORLANDO to 501501 to make a $10 donation.(Go Fas Racing Facebook)(6-25-2016)
UPDATE: Archie St. Hilaire, owner of the #32 GoFas Racing team, and driver Bobby Labonte are at Daytona International Speedway hoping to win the Coke Zero 400, but they're also hoping to raise more than $100,000 for a group formed to benefit the victims of the June shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando and their families. Labonte said he was coming out of church on a Sunday morning when he began to hear the full details of the tragedy at the nightclub. "It affects everybody across the country, across the world, when something like that happens, he said. For the race, his #32 Ford features One Orlando and Orlando United decals. All the cars participating in the weekend racing also have decals in honor of the shooting victims. "It's really great to help, to be a part of that," Labonte said. "We're hoping to raise a lot of money for the fund." St. Hilaire said they're focusing on encouraging people to text $10 to 501501. "We're hoping to raise $100,000, $10 at a time," he said. "We think it's a great cause. Pretty much the whole car has been donated,: he said. "There's no money coming to the team out of this. It's all donated. Donations also can be made to OneOrlando.org.(Daytona Beach News Journal, see images of the scheme on the #32 Team Schemes page

Stewart racing with Dale Earnhardt tribute helmet: The coolest helmet at Daytona this weekend hands down belongs to Tony Stewart. On the back of the three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion's helmet is a phrase that Dale Earnhardt Jr. wrote to describe his father in a column that originally appeared on NASCAR.com on Oct. 18, 2000: "No fire could burn his character, no stone could break it" If you knew Earnhardt, that description is spot on and quite a tribute from a son to his father.(see image and full article at FoxSports)(7-2-2016)

Penske presented the Cameron R. Argetsinger Award: A capacity crowd at the Corning Museum of Glass was treated to a celebratory evening of tributes, shout-outs, slide shows and interviews on Thursday as the International Motor Racing Research Center presented the Cameron R. Argetsinger Award to racing icon Roger Penske. This was the IMRRC's third consecutive presentation of the award recognizing outstanding contributions to motorsports in the name of the founder and organizer of the first races at Watkins Glen, N.Y. Multi-team owner and former driver Chip Ganassi was the first recipient of the Argetsinger Award in 2014. NASCAR icon Richard Petty was the 2015 honoree. Penske, whose Team Penske is celebrating 50 years in the sport this year, received the award from Argetsinger's sons J.C. and Duke, along with Bobby Rahal, four-time Indianapolis 500 winner and chairman of the IMRRC's Governing Council. Racing dignitaries offered up personal memories of their experiences with the man who's known as "The Captain." Speakers included famed TV reporter Dr. Jerry Punch as the master of ceremonies; Scott Atherton, president and COO of IMSA; Michael Printup, president of WGI; Jay Frye, president of INDYCAR Competition and Operations; Lisa Noble, president of SCCA; and Walt Czarnecki, executive vice president of Penske Corp. and vice chairman of Team Penske. The laudatory evening was punctuated by the $27,500 auction bid for an original painting by famed motorsports artist Randy Owens depicting just a few of the championship-winning cars that represent Team Penske's remarkable 50 years in the sport.(PR)(7-2-2016)

Former US Army Officer to serve as #17 Team Rep: In honor of Independence Day, Jason McKay will be the #17 Roush Fenway Racing team representative during the pre-race ceremonies for Saturday night's Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway where he will line up amongst 150 military members to hold the American Flag during invocation and the national anthem. McKay, who graduated from the United States Military Academy in 2007 and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Army as an Infantry Officer, is part of the engineering department at Roush Fenway Racing but serves as second gasman for the #17 team on raceday.(RFR)(7-2-2016)

Greg Biffle wins Daytona pole: #16-Greg Biffle won the pole for the Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway with speed of 192.955mph for his 1st pole of 2016, 2nd at Daytona and 13th of his career. It is Biffle's first pole since Charlotte in October 2012, 129 races ago. Biffle has never won from the pole in 12 previous tries.
#19-Edwards will start 2nd, followed by #18-Busch (in a backup car), #17-Stenhouse Jr., #2-Keselowski, #3-Dillon, #20-Kenseth, #48-Johnson, #11-Hamlin, #41-Busch, #22-Logano and #21-Blaney.
#16-Biffle was fastest in the first round with a speed of 192.629mph and will start 1st.
41 cars were entered. The one driver/team to not qualify: #30-Wise.
See round-by-round qualifying results on the Daytona qualifying results page (pdf) and the complete starting lineup on the Daytona Starting Lineup page (pdf).(7-1-2016)

Daytona International Speedway - Qualifying Fast Facts:
#16-Greg Biffle won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 58th Annual Coke Zero 400 with a lap of 46.643 seconds, 192.955 mph.
This is his 13th pole in 491 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his first pole and second top-10 start in 2016.
This is his second pole in 28 races at Daytona International Speedway.
#19-Carl Edwards (second) posted his 13th top-10 start of 2016 and his seventh in 24 races at Daytona International Speedway.
#18-Kyle Busch (third) posted his 12th top-10 start at Daytona International Speedway. It is his 11th in 17 races this season.
#21-Ryan Blaney (12th) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Statistics)(7-1-2016)

First Round of Qualifying for the Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is over, after each driver ran a single lap, the top-five and more.
#16-Biffle 192.629
#2-Keselowski 192.419
#3-Dillon 192.098
#19-Edwards 192.082
#20-Kenseth 192.061
the rest of the top 12: 22 17 18 48 21 41 11;
out of the top 12 and not advancing to round 2: 6 43 78; 88 42 5 14 13; 4 10 31 24 34; 47 27 35 1 44; 15 32 46 38 98; 83 95 23 55 7 30
Driver who will miss the race: #30-Josh Wise, was 41st fastest
(7-1-2016)

Coverage of Qualifying for the Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is scheduled for Friday, July 1, 2016 at 4:50pm/et.
Television (TV): NBCSN, 4:00pm/et
Radio: Live online at Motor Racing Network (MRN)
Scheduled Qualifying Re-Air: none
UPDATE: with XFINITY Series qualifying being delayed, Sprint Cup qualifying scheduled to start at 4:50pm/et

Superspeedway Qualifying Format for Daytona/Talladega: The qualifying format at superspeedways consists of the following:
· Two rounds of qualifying, with the top-12 posted lap speeds advancing to the second round
· Race vehicles taking one, timed lap in each round of qualifying
· Each race vehicle will be released in a predetermined timed interval as determined by NASCAR, with the sanctioning body reserving the right to have more than one vehicle engaging in qualifying runs at the same time
· Qualifying order for the first round was be determined by practice speeds, slowest to fastest; final round qualifying order is determined by slowest to fastest speeds from the first round
· A 10-minute break will occur between the first qualifying round and the final round
· Upon completion of the first qualifying round, the field will be set with positions 13 and beyond determined from first round qualifying speed
· The 12 fastest vehicles from the first round will have their speeds reset for the final round with starting positions 1-12 determined by the fastest laps in the final round
· NASCAR will impound race vehicles following each qualifying lap; vehicles advancing to the final round will be allowed to adjust tape and utilize a cool-down unit during the 10-minute break only.

Qualifying Order for the Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is posted. 41 cars/drivers are listed.
The first driver to be lined up on pit road will be #32-Labonte (was slowest in practice).
The final driver lined up on pit road will be #44-Scott (was fastest in practice).
The order is set by practice speeds (was only one practice).
After the first round, the cars line up by speed from that round.
See the full qualifying order on Jayski.com's Daytona Qualifying Order Page (pdf).

Happy Hour (only) Practice for the Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is over, after 45 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#44-Scott 199.349
#3-Dillon 199.344
#2-Keselowski 198.711
#21-Blaney 198.649
#35-Gilliland 198.623 (disallowed)
slowest: #32-Labonte 188.739 & #83-DiBenedetto 193.582
the best 10 consecutive lap ave: #2-Keselowski, 197.034
The open teams in practice:
#21-Blaney was 4th fastest
#98-Whitt 13th
#55-Sorenson 17th
#30-Wise 9th
(disallowed)
#35-Gilliland 5th (disallowed)
If qualifying gets rained out, Charter teams are set by owners points, and then the final four spots are set by fastest open teams, if qualifying is cancelled, #55-Sorenson would not make the race as he was the slowest in practice. #30-Wise and #35-Gilliland's times were disallowed after failing inspection after practice.
Notes: #18-Busch had a rear tire go down towards the end of practice and went nose first into the SAFER wall, destroying the front end of the car, he will go to a backup car for qualifying. Both practices were rained out on Thursday, June 30th, this practice was added. Qualifying is scheduled of 4:10pm/et, TV=NBCSN.
See fastest speeds, laps run, best 10 consecutive lap ave on the Daytona Happy Hour Practice speeds page (pdf) (7-1-2016)

Kyle Busch crashes hard in practice after cutting right rear tire: Suddenly and without warning, Kyle Busch's #18 Toyota veered hard to the right and nosed into the outside SAFER barrier at Daytona International Speedway. The wreck occurred 35 minutes, 47 seconds into Friday morning's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice, a session rescheduled from the day before because of afternoon rains on Thursday. Busch was second in a four-car line, drafting with teammates #11-Denny Hamlin (who led the pack), #20-Matt Kenseth (running third) and #!9-Carl Edwards. As the quartet rolled through Turns 1 and 2 at the 2.5-mile track, the right rear tire on Busch's Camry exploded, sending the car out of control and into the wall. Busch walked away from the wreck. "It wasn't any fun, that's for sure," Busch said after a mandatory trip to the infield care center. "Your first instinct is to correct, and the car automatically corrects, and then finally when it catches... or hit the apron and caught, it turned back the other way and headed on into the fence. That was certainly a big hit, so you've got to thank NASCAR for their safety advancements in the cars and the driver's equipment and things like that-and of course the SAFER barrier as well. That could have been a heck of a lot worse than what that was."
A Goodyear spokesperson noted that Busch's tire had sustained a gash roughly the size of a fist. And Busch, who had to go to a backup car, wasn't the only Joe Gibbs Racing driver to experience issues with a cut tire on Friday. Teammate Edwards was far more fortunate. The driver of the #19 Toyota brought his car to the garage before his tire suffered a catastrophic failure. "I felt something vibrating... I thought it was the drive line or the engine," Edwards said. "We had a puncture in the tread of the left rear tire. It was leaking in the garage. It was five or 10 pounds low when we came in." After returning to the track with his teammates, Edwards had a close-up look at Busch's accident. "It was Matt in front of me and Kyle in front of him," Edwards said. "I saw something come out from under Matt's car and I thought, 'I wonder what that is?' Then I saw Kyle sideways. He drilled the fence. Honestly, he hit hard enough (that) I was really worried about him. But it seems like he's OK. Adam (crew chief Stevens) said he was good...It's just kind of odd to have two out there like that. We were in the same group and had them happen one right after the other. There's just some debris out there causing punctures. I got lucky because I don't think I would have stopped if we were racing out there, if I had felt that vibration. It was very slight. I'm fortunate that mine didn't blow like that. It looked like a pretty violent hit." Because the accident occurred with fewer than 10 minutes left in practice, Busch had no opportunity to get laps in the car before Friday's scheduled 4:10pm/et qualifying session.(NASCAR Wire Service)(7-1-2016)

added images of the #3 Bass Pro Shops / NRA Museum, #11 FedEx, #20 DeWalt FlexVolt schemes that will run at Daytona.(7-1-2016)

Daytona Pole Notes & Facts:
· Fireball Roberts won the inaugural Coors Light pole for the July race at Daytona in 1959 with a speed of 144.997 mph.
· A total of 59 drivers have posted at least one pole in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Daytona. 38 of the 59 drivers have posted Coors Light poles at Daytona for the July event, led by NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough with eight.
· Only five active drivers have posted a pole for the Daytona July race: Kevin Harvick (2002), Tony Stewart (2005), Paul Menard (2008), Matt Kenseth (2012) and Kyle Busch (2013).
· Three drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles for the July race at Daytona: Cale Yarborough (1970-'71; 1980-'81, 1983-'84), Sterling Marlin (1991-'92) and Dale Earnhardt (1994-'95).
· 16 different drivers have posted their first series career Coors Light pole at Daytona International Speedway - nine during Speedweeks in February and seven for the July races.
· Seven active drivers have posted their first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at Daytona International Speedway: Greg Biffle (2/15/04), Kevin Harvick (7/6/02), Jimmie Johnson (2/17/02), Paul Menard (7/5/08), Danica Patrick (2/24/13), Austin Dillon (2/23/14) and Chase Elliott (2/21/16).
· Eight of the 57 (14%) July NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Daytona have been won from the Coors Light pole; the most recent was Kevin Harvick in 2010.
· The first starting position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (nine) than any other starting position in the July race at Daytona International Speedway - most recent Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2015 July race)
· 16 of the 57 (28.1%) July NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Daytona have been won from the front row: nine from the first starting position and seven from the second starting position.
· 43 of the 57 (75.4%) July NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Daytona have been won from a top-10 starting position.
· Four of the 57 (7%) July NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Daytona have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.
· The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Daytona is 42nd, by Tony Stewart in the 2012 July race.
· Qualifying for the July race has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Daytona International Speedway four times: 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2015.(NASCAR)

Goodyear changes Kentucky tire after blistering found: Following a two-day NASCAR test at Kentucky Speedway on June 13 and 14 featuring 14 different Cup teams, Goodyear saw an unusual amount of wear on the right side tires - which featured a dual-zone tread. The tire manufacturer elected to incorporate what was originally two inches of a more durable compound throughout the entire tread. After discovering that the right side tires blistered on longer runs, Goodyear's director of racing Greg Stucker said the organization scrapped the Michigan tire for something closer to what the teams use at Las Vegas with a revised right-side construction. "Some guys were ok, but it just seemed to be too close to stay with what we had," Stucker told Motorsport.com. "So we decided to go a little bit more conservative and move to a harder compound across the whole tire. But it's not drastically different from what we've raced in the past." Kentucky Speedway underwent a complete repave starting in January with an increase from 14 to 17-degrees banking of banking in Turns 1 and 2. By the time construction was complete, Goodyear did not have time for a specific tire test prior to the organizational test. With just 24 days between the NASCAR test and next week's Quaker State 400, Goodyear had to scramble for a solution. Goodyear manufactured 1,200 new tires for the race.(Motorsport)(7-1-2016)

Furniture Row Racing to Recognize USO at Daytona Race: Martin Truex Jr.'s #78 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Toyota will carry the USO logo in Saturday night's Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway. The USO (United Service Organizations) is celebrating 75 years of supporting America's service members and military families through the delivery of morale-boosting programs, services and entertainment. "Life is about caring and giving back and no one better exemplifies the true meaning of those human qualities than the USO," said Truex. "It is only fitting the USO will be on our race car on the same weekend we celebrate our independence." The Denver-based Furniture Row Racing, whose organization consists of nine former military members, will be recognizing the U.S. Armed Forces on its #78 race car throughout the 2016 season.(Furniture Row Racing)(7-1-2016)

Hamlin didn't give Stewart the win at Sonoma: Joe Gibbs Racing driver #11-Denny Hamlin was made available to the media at Daytona International Speedway, some of the Q&A's from the transcript:
: Q) Did you let Tony win at Sonoma?
HAMLIN: "I didn't let Tony (Stewart) win. I made a mistake and didn't execute good. Ultimately I made a mistake and thought we would maybe drag race to the line because we were in the center of the corner side-by-side and I thought this could be good. Once I saw him steer left, I knew it was over with. He had an opportunity to - if I'm in his situation, I probably would do the same. My biggest mistake I feel like is not recognizing the gap I had behind me. I don't know whether Tony would have gotten there. I thought it would have been very close if you really wanted to carry the car down in there, whether he still would have got to me or not. I still needed to execute to make him make the decision. Instead I made the decision for him." Q) Did you speak to your team after the Sonoma finish?
HAMLIN: "I did. I talked to the team and said I apologized. I mean, I hate to call one of my crew guys out, but I mean he even had a conversation with my girlfriend (Jordan Fish) and said - she says, 'Hey, we gonna get a win today,' and he says, 'We might want to play the lotto instead.' We hadn't had the best luck on road courses. I think statistically, I'm probably the worst average finish of any full-time Cup driver over the last six years and so it was out of the blue and I don't know. I'm sort of happy with second. I also could have been 32nd after the last corner if he was close enough, so who knows, but I'd love to play it over again and have the experience that I have now knowing what I maybe could have done because I've never really honestly broke down road course races to figure out the proper defensive move in the final corner of the final lap."
Q) How did you end up designing your own Camry paint scheme?
HAMLIN: "Yeah, I wanted - it was an awesome thing for me. Obviously after the Daytona 500, they presented my crew chief (Dave Rogers) with a nice gift and everything and I remember my first gift from FedEx and it's material things and it's all great, but they said, 'You know, what else do we give you?' And so they offered me an opportunity to design my own paint scheme for this July race coming back. I didn't think about the temperature with the color choices for sure, but I just wanted it to be like an old school-type car. This isn't really what my late models looked like, but just to me I look at the car and I think old school, short track-type paint scheme that they have on super late models, so it's cool. It's a lot of the colors that I have on my personal logos. It's black, red and white, so I think next year if they let me do it, it's going to be white on white on white."
Q) Do you provide input on your normal paint schemes?
HAMLIN: "I get to have a little bit of input for sure, but the people at FedEx are a lot smarter than I am with branding and figuring out what colors pop on certain things and so they're pretty consistent on doing everything and I'm okay with it."(Toyota Racing), see an image of the scheme Hamlin will run at Daytona on the #11 Team Schemes page (7-1-2016)

Pearce gathers signatures from F1 racing greats for charity: Al Pearce is a writer for Autoweek and spent the last four years gathering autographs of former Formula One champions on a white helmet. He recently had the helmet auctioned off. The money went to three charities. Here is Pearce in his own words describing the experience: "In the past few days the Kyle Petty Charity Ride, the Victory Junction Gang Camp, the Jimmie Johnson Foundation and the Jeff Gordon Children's Foundation have received direct deposits totaling $13,207 from Sotheby's Auction House in London. The Charity Ride and the Camp received most of the money; the drivers' foundations shared equally in lesser amounts, but all got four-figure deposits. That's the bottom line (after the euro-to-dollar conversion) from the sale of a full-face, white Formula One champions' helmet that Sotheby's auctioned on May 14 in Monte Carlo. The helmet carries personal signatures (not an agent or a PR rep or a relative) of 20 living F-1 world driving champions, plus signatures from Phil Hill and Sir Jack Brabham before they died. I spent parts of four years meeting these drivers and getting their autographs. From the very beginning (Phil Hill), I planned to split whatever proceeds I got equally between the Charity Ride and the Camp; I later added the foundations because Jimmie and Jeff were the only drivers to show any interest or encouragement. Sotheby's expected the helmet would attract a far larger bidding audience than it did, but they assured me (and I believe them) they did all they could in Monte Carlo."(Daytona Beach News Journal)(7-1-2016)

Almirola wins XFINITY race at Daytona: #98-Aric Almirola won the Subway Firecracker 250 at Daytona International Speedway. It is his second XFINITY Series win and first of the year. #7-Justin Allgaier finished second. The race ended under caution following a wreck on the last lap. #39-Ryan Sieg finished third, followed by #22-Joey Logano, #62-Brendan Gaughan, #16-Ryan Reed, #17-Jeff Green, #21-Spencer Gallagher, #88-Chase Elliott, and #20-Erik Jones.
Pole sitter #18-David Ragan led for 18 laps but finished 21st after being involved in the final caution.
There were 8 cautions for 33 laps and 19 lead changes among 12 leaders.
The average speed was 121.192mph.
Complete results are on the Daytona race results page (pdf).(7-1-2016)

Daytona XFINITY Race Fast Facts:
Aric Almirola(i) won the 15th Annual Subway Firecracker 250 Powered By Coca-Cola , his second victory in 93 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his first victory and third top-10 finish in 2016.
This is his first victory and third top-10 finish in eight races at Daytona International Speedway.
Justin Allgaier (second) posted his sixth top-10 finish in 12 races at Daytona International Speedway. It is his 12th top-10 finish in 2016.
Ryan Sieg (third) posted his third top-10 finish in six races at Daytona International Speedway.
Erik Jones (10th) was the highest finishing rookie.
Daniel Suarez leads the point standings by 6 points over Elliott Sadler.
This is Fred Biagi's second NASCAR XFINITY Series win; his first was with Mike Wallace in 2004 (Daytona-2).
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-1-2016)

XFINITY Driver standings following Daytona:
1) #19-Daniel Suarez [1 win], 499
2) #1-Elliott Sadler [1 win], 493, -6
3) #3-Ty Dillon, 483, -16
4) #7-Justin Allgaier, 462, -37
5) #62-Brendan Gaughan, 449, -50
6) #20-Erik Jones [2 wins], 442, -57
7) #33-Brandon Jones, 429, -70
8) #48-Brennan Poole, 422, -77
9) #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., 394, -105
10) #16-Ryan Reed, 366, -133
11) #39-Ryan Sieg, 350, -149
12) #11-Blake Koch, 341, -158
See complete owner and driver standings on the driver standings(pdf) and owner standings page (pdf).(7-1-2016)

Ragan on XFINITY pole at Daytona: #18-David Ragan won the Coors Light pole for the Subway Firecracker 250 at Daytona International Speedway with a speed of 180.346mph. #2-Austin Dillon will start second. The rest of the top 10: #20-Erik Jones, #22-Joey Logano, #19-Daniel Suarez, #6-Darrell Wallace, Jr., #7-Justin Allgaier, #48-Brennan Poole, #1-Elliott Sadler, and #24-Corey LaJoie.
Did Not Qualify: #74-Mike Harmon, #70-Derrike Cope, and #40-Carl Long.
#18-Ragan was also fastest during the first round at 181.302mph.
The starting lineup is posted on the Daytona starting lineup page (pdf).(7-1-2016)

Daytona Qualifying Notes:
David Ragan(i) won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 15th Annual Subway Firecracker 250 Powered By Coca-Cola with a lap of 49.904 seconds, 180.346 mph.
This is his third pole in 107 NASCAR XFINITY Series races.
This is his first pole and first top-10 start in 2016.
This is his first pole in ten races at Daytona International Speedway.
Austin Dillon(i) (second) posted his ninth top-10 start of 2016 and his seventh in eight races at Daytona International Speedway.
Erik Jones (third) posted his fourth top-10 start at Daytona International Speedway. It is his 15th in 15 races this season.
Erik Jones (third) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(7-1-2016)

Hope For Warriors on board with RCR at Daytona: Hope For The Warriors will partner with Richard Childress Racing (RCR) drivers Ty Dillon and Brandon Jones for tonight's NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) race at Daytona International Speedway to honor two active duty units of the United States Marine Corps. The effort will be part of the ongoing "NASCAR: An American Salute" campaign, which looks to show appreciation for the United States Armed Forces as NXS drivers have their names on their front windshields replaced by active duty military units and installations.The relationship with RCR allows Hope For The Warriors to bring greater meaning to their "Serve 2 Serve" 10 Year Celebration, which is designed to recognize those individuals that first served their country and now continue to serve the local community. The units were selected due to their relationship to Hope For The Warriors' Chief Operation Officer Chris Sharon and Senior Director of Sports and Recreation Travis Hanson, who both served in combat with each of the units. Today, both Sharon and Hanson continue to serve the military community and their local communities through their work with Hope For The Warriors. Dillon will have the name of the 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines (1/2) across the windshield of his #3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet. Based at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, N.C., the unit is nicknamed "Tyhpoon." Several Marines who have served in combat with ½ will join Hope For The Warriors at the track on Friday night. Jones will have the name of the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marines (3/2) across the windshield of the #33 Florida Lottery Chevrolet. The unit, which is nicknamed the "Betio Bastards," is also based at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, N.C. In addition to an active duty service member, several retired Marines who served in combat with 3/2 will also be in attendance at the race.(Hope For The Warriors)(7-1-2016)

Townley, Gallagher have altercation following crash UPDATE 4: John Wes Townley and Spencer Gallagher wrecked, then wrestled and finally threw a number of punches in Saturday night's Drivin for Linemen 200 at Gateway Motorsports Park.Townley was the aggressor, coming down the track after he and Gallagher exited their respective wrecked trucks on Lap 154, grabbing Gallagher in a headlock and threw him to the ground. They clinched and tossed each other around several times, falling to the pavement again, and then Townley appeared to land at least five punches to Gallagher's head, while Gallagher appeared to land just one punch in retaliation. None of the safety workers interceded, prompting a lengthy delay before a NASCAR official arrived on scene and broke up the pair. The race was red flagged for a third time so that the track could be cleaned up. Both drivers were taken to the infield care center to be examined for injuries - in separate ambulances.(NBC Sports)(6-26-2016)
UPDATE: Spencer Gallagher issued a statement regarding his role in the incident: "I would like to take time to address my actions at Gateway Motorsports Park this past weekend. First, I would like to apologize to John Wes Townley. Additionally, to his team and fans, I am sorry. The incident earlier in the race was not intentional and certainly was not meant to cause bigger problems later in the event. My crew, who have worked so hard to get me to where I am this season, did not deserve to have their night ended in that way. My teammates and all of the guys back at the shop deserve more respect than was shown Saturday night. I would also like to apologize to my team owner, who wholeheartedly believes in this organization and expects all of us to perform at our best at all times, no matter the situation. And finally, I would like to extend a sincere apology to the NASCAR community - representatives and fans. I love this sport just as much as all of you and I am ashamed that I was part of an incident that has allowed so many to view what we do in a negative light."(GMS Racing)(6-27-2016)
UPDATE 2: A NASCAR executive stated Monday on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that "there will be repercussions" for the incident between John Wes Townley and Spencer Gallagher during Saturday night's Camping World Truck Series race at Gateway Motorsports Park. Townley and Gallagher had contact during the race that caused Townley's truck to hit the wall. They both wrecked in the final laps. After exiting their vehicles, they soon began scuffling, tumbling to the track and throwing a few punches.
"We'll look at the all the video feeds we have, we certainly talked to both drivers postrace," said Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer. "We'll have our discussions. We'll kind of have an evaluation and talk to everyone about where we stand from that. Certainly not our best moment, for sure, two passionate drivers. That's part of things sometimes when emotions run high, but certainly don't like to see that to occur when they're especially on the racetrack."
"We certainly like to see drivers who are going to express their emotions be outside of a race car, that's where we really, really jump in and react when it's drivers using their race cars beyond what is normal for a race," O'Donnell said. "We're going to react heavily when we have to. There will still be repercussions for sure. We want to make sure drivers, if they're going to do anything, are outside of their car but certainly don't encourage what happened at Gateway." (NBC Sports)(6-27-2016)
UPDATE 3: John Wes Townley and Spencer Gallagher have been fined and penalized following their physical altercation at Gateway last Saturday. Driver (John Wes Townley) has been fined $15,000 and placed on NASCAR probation through Dec. 31. Driver (Spencer Gallagher) has been fined $12,500 and placed on NASCAR probation through Dec. 31.(NASCAR)(6-29-2016)
UPDATE 4: On Wednesday, NASCAR levied a $15,000 fine against John Wes Townley and placed him on probation for the remainder of the season for his involvement in a late-race incident at Gateway Motorsports Park on Saturday night. Townley, who will not appeal the ruling, said his sole focus now is preparing for next week's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Kentucky Speedway. "I want to apologize to NASCAR and my fans," Townley said. "That's not the way I want to represent myself, Zaxby's or Jive Communications. I'll try my best to make sure it never happens again."
Townley originally planned on competing in tonight's NASCAR Xfinity Series race in Daytona Beach, Fla. But following a day-long meeting with his Athenian Motorsports team earlier this week, the decision was made to withdraw from the event. "Honestly, we went into this season with our sights sets on running strong in the Truck Series and ARCA. We've always said that. And we, as a team, don't need to overlook those goals. We were getting ready to pull guys off our Truck and ARCA teams to go run an Xfinity race in Daytona. I love racing at Daytona. I've won there twice in ARCA. But considering that we have a Truck race and an ARCA race next week (at Iowa Speedway), we felt it was better to pour our time and resources into getting ready for next week." Townley is ready to put last weekend's incident, and the publicity that followed, behind him. "It's been an interesting week, to say the least," he said. "But I'm eager to get to Kentucky on Wednesday to practice on their new racing surface. We'll have Jive Communications onboard our Chevrolet for this race and I feel like this will be the place we jump start our season."(Athenian Motorsports)(7-1-2016)