NASCAR Sprint Cup Series New Hampshire 301 Preview

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NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams will race all 301 laps covering 318.46 miles in the New Hampshire 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway today, Sunday, July 17th.  NBC Sports Network will begin their coverage at 1 pm ET with a green flag around 1:30 pm ET. Radio coverage is on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

Keselowski Goes for Third Consecutive Win

Brad Keselowski has asserted himself as the hottest driver in NASCAR this summer after winning the last two consecutive races at 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-tens in his last nine starts. His four wins this season lead the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Continue reading

BREAKING NEWS: Dale Earnhardt Jr Not Racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 Nationwide Chevrolet, stands in the garage area during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway on July 8, 2016 in Sparta, Kentucky. Photo - Jerry Markland/Getty Images

Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 Nationwide Chevrolet, stands in the garage area during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway on July 8, 2016 in Sparta, Kentucky. Photo – Jerry Markland/Getty Images

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 No. 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. Continue reading

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Coke Zero 400 at Daytona Preview

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NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams are at Daytona International Speedway for the second time this season as the series starts counting down last ten races before the Chase begins at Chicagoland Speedway in September.  On Saturday, July 2nd they’ll race 400 miles over 160 laps in the Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola with NBC coverage starting at 7 pm ET and a green flag at 7:45 pm ET. Radio coverage is available on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

Smoke Show: Stewart Fires Up Win at Sonoma

Even Smokey the Bear couldn’t have prevented the fire performance Tony Stewart produced in Sunday’s Toyota / Save Mart 350.

Stewart, who paced the field for 22 circuits, lost the lead to Denny Hamlin on the last lap, but moved him off the 11th turn to win his first race since June 2, 2013 at Dover – 110 events ago. The triumph marked Stewart’s first win in 84 starts. Continue reading

Upcoming Kentucky Test Adds New Variables to Lower-Downforce Equation

Photo - Robert Laberge/Getty Images

Photo – Robert Laberge/Getty Images

For more than a third of active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers, there will be no rest for the weary.

One driver from each Cup organization is eligible to participate in a test of newly repaved Kentucky Speedway on Monday and Tuesday. The test is a continuation of NASCAR’s proving-out process for a new lower-downforce competition package earmarked for 2017.

Last year, as the sanctioning body solidified the rules for 2016, races at Kentucky and Darlington were used as benchmarks for the progression toward lower downforce for the Cup cars. This year, in selected events, NASCAR is taking an additional 500 pounds of downforce and 125 pounds of sideforce away from the cars by chopping the size of the spoiler, reducing the surface area of the splitter, tapering the rear deck lid fin and eliminating rear axle offset. Continue reading

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Wrecked Early at Michigan International Speedway

Photo - Josh Hedges/Getty Images

Photo – Josh Hedges/Getty Images

Vocal that he had a strong car for Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway, Dale Earnhardt Jr. never really had the opportunity to showcase it after being eliminated in early race crash.

Shortly after a Lap 60 restart Earnhardt’s Chevrolet was in a three-wide battle with Chris Buescher (on the bottom) and A.J. Allmendinger (on the outside). Buescher’s Front Row Motorsports Ford broke loose and hit the left rear of Earnhardt’s car, which sent both he and Allmendinger into the backstretch wall.

The damage was too severe for both Earnhardt and Allmendinger to continue placing them 39th and 38th respectively in the finishing order. Continue reading