Author: Mike Haag

By Lee Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service SPARTA, Kentucky – Martin Truex Jr. didn’t need a dress rehearsal to put on a pole-winning performance at Kentucky Speedway on Friday. His lack of mock qualifying runs in practice did not affect the ultimate result – his first Busch Pole on the 1.5-mile track. The defending winner of the Quaker State 400 presented by Walmart executed the fastest lap in Round 3 to win the pole for Saturday night’s race at the 1.5-mile track (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). For Truex, the pole was his fourth of the season, the…

By Lee Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service Call me maybe? Busch disappointed by Stenhouse SPARTA, Kentucky— When it comes to racing etiquette, the rules of conduct vary from driver to driver. Following Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s faux pas at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, which eliminated Kyle Busch and five other competitors from the field, the driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was expecting an apology. But the call never came. “I am disappointed that he did not (call),” Busch said at Kentucky Speedway on Friday in advance of Saturday’s Quaker State 400 (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM…

Courtesy of the Verizon IndyCar Series TORONTO – Verizon IndyCar Series championship leader Scott Dixon paced Friday’s practice for the Honda Indy Toronto, leading 13 drivers who circulated the 1.786-mile temporary street course in less than a minute. Driving the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, Dixon’s quick lap was 59.0751 seconds (108.838 mph) during the second 45-minute session and stood as best for the day from either of the two practices. Dixon, who won both Toronto races on a doubleheader weekend in 2013, has a 33-point lead over Josef Newgarden entering competition this weekend as he chases…

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service For popular Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Ryan Blaney, the strategy and season outlook isn’t that complicated. After getting his breakthrough first career Cup win last season, the Team Penske driver has been an odds-on favorite to hoist another trophy – or two – this season and be a legitimate title contender when it comes playoff time. But uncharacteristic issues have derailed strong expectations for the front-running team this summer and the 24-year-old has arrived at Kentucky Speedway for Saturday night’s Quaker State 400 (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) ready to…

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service The wide smile and unmistakable light in Erik Jones eyes felt familiar Friday morning. There was still a lot of residual joy even a week after earning the first victory of his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career. The 22-year old Joe Gibbs Racing driver met with the media at Kentucky Speedway in advance of Saturday night’s Quaker State 400 (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusNASCAR Radio) and he showed an almost a palpable extra dose of confidence. Jones grinned when asked about how he celebrated the career milestone, assuring there were plenty of celebratory…

Honda Indy Toronto fast facts Courtesy of the Verizon IndyCar Series Race weekend: Friday, July 13 – Sunday, July 15 Track: Streets of Toronto’s Exhibition Place, an 11-turn, 1.786-mile temporary street course Race distance: 85 laps / 151.81 miles Entry List: Honda Indy Toronto (PDF) Push-to-pass parameters: 200 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 20 seconds per activation. Firestone tire allotment: Seven sets primary, four sets alternate. Teams must use one set of primary and one new set of alternate tires in the race. Twitter: @HondaIndy, @IndyCar, #IndyTO, #INDYCAR Event website: www.HondaIndyToronto.com INDYCAR website: www.IndyCar.com 2017 race winner: Josef Newgarden (No. 2 DeVilbiss Team Penske Chevrolet) 2017…

Sparta, Ky. – A photographic look at Thursday’s racing action at Kentucky Speedway. All photos courtesy of NASCAR and Getty Images. ” order_by=”sortorder” order_direction=”ASC” returns=”included” maximum_entity_count=”500″]

By Lee Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service SPARTA, Ky. –The Louisville Slugger knocked it out of the park on Thursday night at Kentucky Speedway. Ben Rhodes, who grew up less than an hour west of the venue in Sparta, Kentucky, finally won a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at his home track. A fuel-only gamble by the No. 41 ThorSport Racing team in the closing laps paid off for the 21-year-old Louisville native, who led the final 24 laps of the Buckle Up In Your Truck 225. Rhodes held off Stewart Friesen by .922-seconds at the line for his first…

By Lee Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service Haley ready to bounce book from near Xfinity miss SPARTA, Ky.–Justin Haley isn’t pining over the win that got away. Yes, the 19-year-old nearly scored his first NASCAR Xfinity Series victory with a last-lap pass at Daytona International Speedway last Friday. TV and radio broadcasters proclaimed Haley the winner, but upon further review, the driver of the No. 24 GMS Chevy was penalized for going below the double-yellow line to advance his position. He was scored 18th, the last driver on the lead lap. Although Haley started his celebration on the frontstretch, at what…

Courtesy of Texas Motor Speedway FORT WORTH, Texas – One point. A single, solitary point – that’s all that stood between Joe Watson and a Universal Technical Institute Friday Night Drags season championship in 2017. That one point was all the motivation he would need to return stronger than ever. And he hasn’t. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EW4-xm6uTA&feature=youtu.be “That was tough,” said the 38-year-old Watson who resides in Fort Worth. “But it drove me to make (my truck) even faster. … This year, I’m not going to let anybody beat me at all.” Through the first three weeks of the season, Watson’s seemingly inconspicuous…