Category Archives: Xfinity Series

Rain Forces Postponement of Food City 500 until Monday

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Photo – Jonathan Moore/Getty Images

With steady rain falling at Bristol Motor Speedway, and no abatement in the forecast, NASCAR and Bristol officials opted to postpone Sunday’s Food City 500 until Monday.

The eighth Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race of the season will be contested at 1 pm ET and broadcast on FOX.

With Friday’s knockout qualifying session also canceled because of inclement weather, series leader Kyle Larson will lead the field to the green flag when the race is run, with second-place Chase Elliott beside him on the front row. Continue reading →

Erik Jones Rallies from Penalty to Win NASCAR XFINITY Race at Bristol

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Erik Jones found the ideal way to atone from a mistake in Saturday’s Fitzgerald Glider Kits 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway, but it took a bump-and-run for Jones to complete his comeback at the-0.533-mile short track.

Recovering from a lap 230 pit road speeding penalty that sent him to the back of the field, Jones worked his way to the front through a series of quick cautions and muscled Ryan Blaney out of the way to take the lead on lap 280 of 300. Continue reading →

Bristol Brings Back Positive Vibes for Montoya

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Photo – IndyCar Media

Juan Pablo Montoya got a warm welcome on his return to Bristol Motor Speedway, even if it was just to announce his sponsor for the upcoming Indianapolis 500.

Montoya will compete for Team Penske in the May spectacle with Fitzgerald Glider Kits as his sponsor, the same company that holds the entitlement for Saturday’s NASCAR XFINITY Series race at Bristol.

But when asked about his first trio around BMS in a stock car, Montoya waxed nostalgic.

“I love this place,” Montoya told the NASCAR Wire Service. “Because for me, the biggest problem I had with a stock car was it had no grip.  Here, with the banking, it made up a lot of grip. I always ran really well here. This was a fun place for me.”

Asked whether the relationship with Penske and Fitzgerald Glider Kits might lead to a return to NASCAR racing in a one-off situation, Montoya shrugged and smiled.

“I don’t know,” he said. “They tell me go here, I go there. I mean they say, ‘Jump,’ I say ‘How high?’”

In general, however, Montoya thinks cross-pollination between racing series is a good thing. In the Indy 500 he’ll compete against Fernando Alonso, a rival in Formula One from 2001 through 2006.

“I think it would be nice for motorsports to do a little more of that, because it’s just going to create a little more interest overall,” said Montoya, who doesn’t have a full-time IndyCar ride this season. “It is something that it would be nice to see all motorsports to be able to see top drivers jump from one to the other just for one race.

“I was lucky enough to be in all the top series in the world, and being able to win in all of them and everything. I’ve been very blessed in that point of view.”

Montoya, however, wasn’t immune from some good-natured ribbing that also recalled his NASCAR days. Fitzgerald Glider Kits founder Tom Fitzgerald Sr. introduced Montoya as “Mr. Jet Dryer,” a reference to the driver’s fiery collision with track-drying equipment under caution during the 2012 Daytona 500.

“I wasn’t going to do that,” quipped Fitzgerald, “but I couldn’t resist.”

Absence of Cup Veterans Doesn’t Hurt Dash 4 Cash Competition

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Justin Allgaier, driver of the #7 Cheney Brothers/Southern Foods Chevrolet, looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR XFINITY Series Fitzgerald Glider Kits 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway on April 22, 2017 in Bristol, Tennessee. Photo – Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

A difference in format and a ban on five-year Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series veterans may have changed the tenor of the Dash 4 Cash races in the NASCAR XFINITY Series, but it hasn’t diminished the quality of competition in the eyes of the drivers.

This year, eligibility for the $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonuses is determined during the first two stages of a race, rather than through separate heat races. And though Cup drivers with five-year full-time tenures aren’t allowed to compete, there are plenty of talented drivers with less than five years of Cup experience eager to fill the top-quality rides. Continue reading →

Bowyer Hopes to Continue Bounce-Back Season at Bristol

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Clint Bowyer, driver of the #14 Haas Automation Demo Days Ford, practices for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on April 22, 2017 in Bristol, Tennessee. Photo – Matt Sullivan/Getty Images

Clint Bowyer’s NASCAR career hit a crossroad last season. Racing for HScott Motorsports, the 2012 championship runner-up finished 27th in the points standings and only logged three top-ten finishes – both career lows.

Heading into this year as the replacement for Tony Stewart in the No. 14 Ford at Stewart-Haas Racing, there was optimism Bowyer could get his career back on track. So far, he’s experiencing a bounce-back season. He’s already matched his 2016 total with three top-ten finishes and his third-place showing at Auto Club Speedway was his best performance since finishing third at Sonoma Raceway in June of 2015. Continue reading →