{"id":16611,"date":"2018-04-21T13:54:18","date_gmt":"2018-04-21T18:54:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/?p=16611"},"modified":"2018-04-21T13:54:18","modified_gmt":"2018-04-21T18:54:18","slug":"nascar-race-preview-toyota-owners-400-at-richmond-raceway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/2018\/04\/21\/nascar-race-preview-toyota-owners-400-at-richmond-raceway\/","title":{"rendered":"NASCAR race preview: Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway"},"content":{"rendered":"

News, notes and photos courtesy of NASCAR<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series<\/u><\/b><\/p>\n

Next Race: Toyota Owners 400<\/b><\/p>\n

The Place: Richmond Raceway<\/b><\/p>\n

The Date: Saturday, April 21<\/b><\/p>\n

The Time: 6:30 p.m. ET<\/b><\/p>\n

TV: FOX, 6 p.m. ET<\/b><\/p>\n

Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio<\/b><\/p>\n

Distance: 300 miles (400 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 100),<\/b><\/p>\n

Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 200), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 400)<\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/b><\/p>\n

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series<\/u><\/b><\/p>\n

There\u2019s No Place Like Home For Hamlin<\/b><\/p>\n

Denny Hamlin doesn\u2019t just love to come home to Virginia for sentimental reasons, he considers Richmond Raceway, in particular, a place he can always contend for victory. And with good reason.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Ground Toyota, drives during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway on April 20, 2018 in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo by Robert Laberge\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

Hamlin has three Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series wins at the track, where the series will race in the Toyota Owners 400 Saturday night (6:30 p.m., ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).  <\/span>His mark of 10 top-five and 14 top-10 finishes in 23 starts there makes him one of the most productive drivers in the field there. And no one on the track this weekend has led more laps (1,653 or 17.9%).<\/p>\n

The three-quarter mile Richmond track is a place where Hamlin has always looked forward to competing. And it could prove to be exactly the shot of adrenalin Hamlin needs to reboot his 2018 season.<\/p>\n

After a thrilling third-place finish in the season-opening Daytona 500, Hamlin\u2019s season has largely vacillated between near-misses and lost opportunity. He\u2019s had four top-six finishes, but also four showings less characteristically out of the top-10 including a 34th–<\/span>place finish at Texas two weeks ago after being involved in a crash.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s ranked eighth in the Monster Energy Series standings, but is among the top-three drivers in Richmond proficiency. Hamlin has top-10 finishes in his last six races at Richmond, including a win from the pole position in the 2016 fall race. He\u2019s led 263 laps in the last five races there and had finishes of third in this spring race last year and fifth in the fall race.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously after some unfortunate circumstances in Bristol, I\u2019m looking forward to returning to Richmond where I know we can be competitive,\u2019\u2019 Hamlin said. \u201cThis No. 11 FedEx team is more motivated than ever to get a win and competing in front of my hometown crowd always adds some an extra incentive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Win-Win-Win Situation<\/b><\/p>\n

Kyle Busch\u2019s win a week ago at Texas and this Monday at Bristol marked the fifth time in his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship career that he\u2019s won back-to-back races. And he shows up at Richmond this week absolutely the driver to beat again. A victory Saturday night would mark the second time in Busch\u2019s 14-year Monster Energy Series career that he\u2019s won three straight races.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M’s Flavor Vote Toyota, drives during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway on April 20, 2018 in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

His four victories and 15 top-five finishes are most among his competition this weekend at Richmond. Busch\u2019s 109.7 driver rating is tops in the series, as is his 7.4 average finishing position. His 8,855 laps run in the top-15 — (88.5% of the time) — is second most in the field.<\/p>\n

Busch has five top-10 finishes in the last seven Richmond races, including back-to-back runner-up finishes in fall 2015 and spring 2016 races. His last victory was in the 2012 spring race, and he actually won every spring race from 2009-2012.<\/p>\n

Penske Power<\/b><\/p>\n

Although Ryan Blaney understandably left Bristol disappointed last weekend after being crashed out while leading early in the race, he can take some solace in yet another strong showing.<\/p>\n

The Penske driver \u2013 who led twice for 100 laps at Bristol \u2013 is ranked sixth in the standings thanks to five top-10 runs in the season\u2019s opening eight races, including a third place at Martinsville three weeks ago.  Blaney\u2019s best showing at Richmond was 18th <\/span>last fall. But he does have a pair of top fives in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the track.<\/p>\n

His Penske Racing teammates Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski — ranked second and fifth in the standings, respectively, have three wins between them at Richmond. All three victories have come in the last eight races \u2013 the team swept the 2014 Richmond races – and Logano is the defending winner of this race.<\/p>\n

So Close\u2026<\/b><\/p>\n

Kyle Larson led 200 laps at Bristol Motor Speedway but had to settle for a runner-up finish \u2013 his second of the early season and third top-three. And as \u201cfrustratingly successful\u201d as that was, he is eyeing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series stop at Richmond, where he won for the first time at the track in last September\u2019s regular season finale.<\/p>\n

Larson has a win and a runner-up in the last three races there and has posted an impressive 10.4 average finish in eight starts. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver has led laps (73 total) in the last three races.<\/p>\n

Taking the Lead<\/b><\/p>\n

Darrell Wallace Jr. didn\u2019t win the Bristol race, but the popular rookie certainly had a career-making day, leading his first-ever Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series laps. He led six laps from lap 375-380 \u2013 and ran among the top five for longer still.<\/p>\n

Although Wallace\u2019s No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 ultimately faded to a 16th–<\/sup>place finish, it was still an accomplishment that Wallace will remember always.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnto the next. \u2026\u2019\u2019 he wrote on social media after sharing his thoughts post-race; so competitive that he seemed nearly as frustrated not to finish inside the top-10 as he was happy to have led the laps.<\/p>\n

\u201cSmall team making big gains and that\u2019s what we need,\u2019\u2019 he said on Twitter immediately after the race.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood to see the 43 back up front leading laps and doing good things. Still have momentum on our side,\u2019\u2019 he added, making a point to stay positive, thinking big picture.<\/p>\n

In addition to the laps out front Monday, Wallace has a pair of top-10s this season \u2013 including a runner-up finish in the Daytona 500 and an eighth-place finish at Texas – to bring to his Richmond Monster Energy Series debut this week. <\/p>\n

In six NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Richmond, Wallace never finished worse than 16th. He had a pair of top 10s, including a sixth place in his last race at the track last April.<\/p>\n

Making Progress<\/b><\/p>\n

Jimmie Johnson didn\u2019t finish his Bristol long race weekend in Victory Lane however, his third-place finish marked a season-best effort from the seven-time championship team and provided great optimism that a win may be close. He moved from 20th <\/span>to a season high 17th <\/span>in the championship rankings \u2013 a single point out of the Playoff-eligible top 16.<\/p>\n

It was his first top five of the year and second top 10 in the eight races. But for a sport accustomed to Johnson winning. \u2026 and winning. \u2026 and winning, it has been a highly-publicized trophy gap. It\u2019s been a career-long 31 races since Johnson last celebrated in Dover\u2019s Victory Lane.<\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s work at Richmond is encouraging, however. He has three victories \u2013 only Kyle Busch has more \u2013 and he\u2019s finished 11th <\/span>or better in the last seven races there, including a pair of top-five finishes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe finish in Bristol is exactly what this team needed,\u2019\u2019 Johnson said. \u201cI\u2019ve known that every week we have been getting better, but it’s nice to finally have a finish to back that up. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNow if we could just fix these bouts of bad luck we have been having. I\u2019m already ready to get back in the Lowe\u2019s for Pros Chevy and looking forward to Richmond. We have put together some solid runs there lately and with the momentum from Bristol, I\u2019m ready to roll.\u201d<\/p>\n

Success in Stealth Mode<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s Hendrick Motorsports teammate Alex Bowman quietly turned in a career best-mark of fifth at Bristol. It\u2019s his second top-10 finish in the last three races and he is the top-ranked of the four Hendrick drivers \u2013 13th <\/span>in the standings.<\/p>\n

His seventh-place finish at the Martinsville half-miler two weeks ago, coupled with his fifth place at Bristol, makes him one of only five drivers to have top-10 finishes on both short tracks in 2018. The others include Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer and Joey Logano.<\/p>\n

Bowman, who turns 26 next week, has four previous Richmond starts but is looking for his first top-20 showing there in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. He does have a ninth-place NASCAR Xfinity Series showing in a JR Motorsports Chevrolet in 2016.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

News, notes and photos courtesy of NASCAR   Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Next Race: Toyota Owners 400 The Place: Richmond Raceway The Date: Saturday, April 21 The Time: 6:30 p.m. ET TV: FOX, 6 p.m. ET Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Distance: 300 miles (400 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 100), Stage 2 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16553,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[11],"tags":[16,486,418],"class_list":["post-16611","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nascar","tag-nascar","tag-richmond-raceway","tag-toyota-owners-400"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racedaysa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/MENCS_RR_Pole_042018.jpg?fit=4616%2C3072&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7hzTZ-4jV","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16611","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16611"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16611\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16613,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16611\/revisions\/16613"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16553"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16611"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16611"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}