Author: Mike Haag

Courtesy of the Verizon IndyCar Series INDIANAPOLIS – Fast Friday was just that at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. With added horsepower at their disposal, drivers exceeded 231 mph for the first time in practice this week for the 102nd Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil, on the eve of qualifying for the world’s largest single-day sporting event. INDIANAPOLIS 500: Fast Friday practice results; No-tow practice results; Qualifying order Marco Andretti was fastest with a lap of 231.802 mph in the No. 98 U.S. Concrete/Curb Honda. It earned the Andretti Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian driver a $10,000 check from Harding Group for turning the top…

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service CONCORD, N.C. – On Friday at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Matt Kenseth put an exclamation point on his return to racing at NASCAR’s highest level, winning the pole for Saturday night’s Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race (6 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). In the unique All-Star qualifying format, which features three laps and a four-tire stop with no pit road speed limit, Kenseth posted a total time of 2:07.644 for an average speed of 126.915 mph to edge Roush Fenway Racing teammate Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (126.427 mph) for the Monster Energy Pole…

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service Kurt Busch expects Talladega-style racing in NASCAR All-Star event CONCORD, N.C. – Drivers who hoped to learn as much as they could about NASCAR’s new lower-horsepower, higher-drag competition package for Saturday night’s Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race were still guessing on Friday afternoon, after rain washed out all but a few minutes of practice at Charlotte Motor Speedway. As a result, drivers and crew chiefs have no certain idea what racing with the radically different package will look like when the elite of the Cup series compete for the $1-million top prize on the…

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – You would be hard-pressed to find a driver more optimistic or more confident than Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon this week at Charlotte Motor Speedway. There’s a new race format for Saturday’s Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race (6 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) and for the first time ever, a restrictor-plate on the race cars – however both competitive twists seemed to only encourage the 28-year old from nearby Lewisville, North Carolina, who will be making his All-Star race debut. Dillon has good reason to smile. His…

Courtesy of the Verizon IndyCar Series INDIANAPOLIS – Famous names set the pace in the third day of practice for the 102nd Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil, with the likes of Rahal, Kanaan and Andretti atop the speed chart. Graham Rahal, the son of 1986 Indy 500 winner Bobby Rahal, was fastest of the 35 Verizon IndyCar Series drivers on track Thursday, putting down an early lap at 226.047 mph in the No. 15 United Rentals Honda that held up throughout the seven-hour session. Tony Kanaan, the 2013 Indy 500 winner, was second fastest at 225.896 mph in…

Courtesy of the Verizon IndyCar Series INDIANAPOLIS – INDYCAR drivers are now required to undergo a clinical eye-tracking computer test recently cleared by the Food and Drug Administration. It has been implemented as part of the sanctioning body’s concussion evaluation protocol, it was announced today. Drivers competing in this month’s Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil – plus drivers in the Mazda Road to Indy development ladder program – have been tested by the innovative system known as I-PAS and created by Pittsburgh-based Neuro Kinetics, Inc. The I-Portal Portable Assessment System, commonly referred to as the “goggles test,” runs…

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Looking at the past winner’s list of Saturday night’s Monster Energy All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the only thing certain about this NASCAR event is that nothing is certain. Ten of the 17 drivers already eligible to compete in the event have won it before – but four-time winner Jimmie Johnson is the only repeat winner in the last 20 years. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2000) and Ryan Newman (2002) won it as rookies. Kasey Kahne is the only driver to get into the field via Fan Vote and then win…

By Jodie Valade, NASCAR Wire Service CHARLOTTE, N.C. — To be honest, Brian Deegan didn’t see that championship fire in his daughter, Hailie, when she first began racing. With his eldest son, Haiden, sure. He’s only 12 years old, but has always had the kind of daring and reckless personality that already has earned him the nickname “Danger Boy Deegan” on the motocross circuit. Even youngest son, Hudson, who races trucks and motocross at age 8 showed that classic Deegan fearlessness early. But Hailie — smart, laid-back, happy-go-lucky Hailie — began racing go-karts at age 8 just to keep her occupied…

Courtesy of the NHRA TOPEKA, Kan. – It is way too early in the season for Vincent Nobile to be thinking about world championships, but after a frustrating 2017 where he sat out the final five races, Nobile has enjoyed every bit of his Pro Stock team’s early-season success heading to this weekend’s Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals presented by Minties at Heartland Motorsports Park. Nobile won the most recent NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series event in Atlanta, becoming the first two-time winner in Pro Stock in 2018, also taking over the points lead in his Mountain View Tire Chevrolet…

Courtesy of the Verizon IndyCar Series INDIANAPOLIS – The speed chart provided the proof when Marco Andretti said he had a good race car on the second day of Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil practice. The third-generation Indy car driver was fastest in Wednesday’s seven-hour session on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval, turning a 227.053-mph lap in the No. 98 U.S. Concrete/Curb Honda. Andretti led a parade of four Honda drivers atop the timesheet a day after Chevrolet owned the first three spots in Tuesday’s opening practice. INDIANAPOLIS 500 PRESENTED BY PENNGRADE MOTOR OIL: Day 2 practice results; Combined…