March 22, 2014
- Final practice: for the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway is over after 50 scheduled minutes. The top 5, slowest, and notes:
#55-Vickers 185.926
#24-Gordon 185.840
#48-Johnson 184.781
#2-Keselowski 184.743
#88-Earnhardt, Jr. 184.705
slowest: #78-Truex 178.448 & #40-Cassill 177.874.
All 43 drivers have practiced.
Notes: Team Penske has been battling tire troubles. Early on, #2-Keselowski stopped on track after a left rear tire went down. After coming back out, he had another tire go down, then broke an axle or crankshaft. After that, #22-Logano cut a left front tire and made contact with the wall in turn 2. He will have to go to a backup car. In addition, #10-Patrick and #78-Busch also cut a rear tire during the session.
See the speeds, laps run, 10-lap averages on the Auto Club Practice 3 speeds page.(3-22-2014)
- First Saturday practice: for the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway is over after 55 scheduled minutes. The top 5, slowest, and notes:
#4-Harvick 186.018
#24-Gordon 185.677
#22-Logano 185.620
#20-Kenseth 185.319
#41-Busch 184.943
slowest: #36-Sorenson 178.359 & #66-Nemechek 178.218.
All 43 driver practiced.
Notes: #14-Stewart smacked the wall, but the team will repaid the car. #78-Truex, Jr. cut a tire and hit the wall in turn 1. He will have to go to a backup.
See the speeds, laps run, 10-lap averages on the Auto Club Practice 2 speeds page.(3-22-2014)
- Janssen Pharmaceuticals joins NASCAR as official partner: NASCAR announced that it is teaming up with Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., to help make a difference for racing fans who are at risk for or are living with blood clots. Janssen, the maker of XARELTO (rivaroxaban), an important medicine used to treat and help prevent blood clots, is now the Official Cardiovascular Partner of NASCAR. Blood clots have hit close to home for the NASCAR community. Brian Vickers, full-time driver of the #55 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, recently overcame his second episode with the condition. Having completed his treatment with XARELTO and being cleared by his physician, Brian is now competing again in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and is currently 18th in points. 900,000 Americans experience blood clots every year2 that result in nearly 300,000 deaths. According to The National Blood Clot Alliance, many factors can increase a person’s risk for developing blood clots, including age; being overweight; having other chronic diseases; immobility; hormones and pregnancy; long air travel; surgery; trauma or injury.(NASCAR)(3-22-2014)
- Open wheel split caused Toyota to look to NASCAR: Had the CART-IRL split of the mid-1990s never occurred, Toyota might still be racing open-wheelers instead of having a huge presence in NASCAR. But according to Toyota’s U.S. racing boss, the split diluted the value of Indy car racing so badly that it ceased being of interest to the automaker. “To demonstrate the lack of value … in 2003, we won the Indy 500, we won the race in Japan, we won 13 out of 16 races that year, and that fall, we still had to sell to our management to stay in the sport,” said David Wilson, president and general manager of TRD, U.S.A., the Costa Mesa, Calif.-based racing arm of Toyota. “As much as we loved it from an engineering standpoint, we also starting realizing that there were a lot of empty seats,” said Wilson. “And open-wheel in the United States was not exactly catching fire, so that started our … relationship with NASCAR.”(Fox Sports)(3-22-2014)
- Larson wins Nationwide Race at Auto Club: #42-Kyle Larson won the TreatMyClot.com 300 at Auto Club Speedway, fir his 1st Nationwide Series win. #5-Kevin Harvick finished second followed by #54-Kyle Busch, #22-Joey Logano, #11-Elliott Sadler, #9-Chase Elliott, #20-Matt Kenseth, #3-Ty Dillon, #6-Trevor Bayne, and #7-Regan Smith.
There were 4 cautions for 15 laps and 18 lead changes among 6 leaders. Complete results are on the Auto Club race results page (pdf).
(3-22-2014)
- Auto Club Nationwide Race Fast Facts:
Kyle Larson(i) won the 16th Annual TreatMyClot.com 300, his first victory in 38 NASCAR Nationwide Series races.
This is his first victory and fifth top-10 finish in 2014.
This is his first victory and second top-10 finish in two races at Auto Club Speedway.
His victory ends the streak of nine consecutive NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Auto Club Speedway by Joe Gibbs Racing drivers.
Kevin Harvick(i) (second) posted his 15th top-10 finish in 18 races at Auto Club Speedway. It is his third top-10 finish in 2014.
Kyle Busch(i) (third) posted his 13th top-10 finish in 16 races at Auto Club Speedway.
Chase Elliott (sixth) was the highest finishing rookie.
Regan Smith leads the point standings by 0 points over Trevor Bayne.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(3-22-2014)
- Nationwide Driver standings following Auto Club:
1) #7-Regan Smith 185
2) #6-Trevor Bayne 185
3) #3-Ty Dillon# 179, -6
4) #9-Chase Elliott# 177, 8
5) #11-Elliott Sadler 174, 11
6) #62-Brendan Gaughan 160, -25
7) #2-Brian Scott 160, -25
8) #31-Dylan Kwasniewski# 149, -36
9) #99-James Buescher 145, -40
10) #19-Mike Bliss 125 -60, -60
See complete standings on the driver standings page (pdf).(3-22-2014)
- Nationwide Owner Standings following Auto Club are posted (pdf).(3-22-2014)
- Sadler on Nationwide pole at Auto Club: #11-Elliott Sadler won the Coors Light Pole for the TreatMyClot.com 300 at Auto Club Speedway with a speed of 176.991 mph. #20-Matt Kenseth will start second. The rest of the top 10: #3-Ty Dillon, #22-Joey Logano, #9-Chase Elliott, #5-Kevin Harvick, #31-Dylan Kwasniewski, #42-Kyle Larson, #2-Brian Scott, and #62-Brendan Gaughan. Did Not Qualify: none. The starting lineup is posted on the Auto Club starting lineup page (pdf).(3-22-2014)
- Busch fails Nationwide inspection:Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch may be going for his seventh Nationwide Series victory at Auto Club Speedway, but he’ll have to do so from the rear of the field on Saturday. The #54 Toyota failed to clear NASCAR technical inspection, despite multiple attempts. According to crew chief Adam Stevens, the initial issue was the length of the wheel studs. Once that issue was fixed by the team, NASCAR then determined there was too much skew in the car, and failed the #54 Toyota again. With a limited amount of time to make a qualifying attempt, Busch was never able to get on track and will start Saturday’s Nationwide Series race at Auto Club Speedway in the 39th spot.(Fox Sports)(3-22-2014)
- Auto Club Qualifying Notes:
Elliott Sadler won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 16th Annual TreatMyClot.com 300 with a lap of 40.680 seconds, 176.991 mph.
This is his 16th pole in 235 NASCAR Nationwide Series races.
This is his first pole and third top-10 start in 2014.
This is his first pole in ten races at Auto Club Speedway.
Joe Gibbs Racing drivers have won the last nine NASCAR Nationwide Series races at Auto Club Speedway, with five of the race winners starting from the pole.
Matt Kenseth(i) (second) posted his fifth top-10 start of 2014 and his eighth in 14 races at Auto Club Speedway.
Ty Dillon (third) posted his first top-10 start at Auto Club Speedway. It is his fourth in five races this season.
Ty Dillon (third) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Integrated Marketing)(3-22-2014)
- Sunday’s race a sellout: Auto Club Speedway President Gillian Zucker announced that grandstand tickets for Sunday’s Auto Club 400 have been sold out. Those wishing to purchase standing room only tickets can still join the Auto Club 400 festivities by calling 1-800-944-RACE (7223). “Southern California fans have proven the Auto Club Speedway is the place to be March 23rd,” said Zucker. “Let’s go racing!”(Auto Club Speedway)(3-22-2014)
- Hot Dog Eating Championship qualifying to include NASCAR locations: Nathan’s Famous, Inc. has unveiled the official list of sites that will host hot dog eating contests to qualify competitive eaters who will participate in the annual Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest at Nathan’s Famous on Brooklyn’s Coney Island. The Nathan’s Famous qualifying tour stops in four new cities this year. It’s also premiering at NASCAR events, including the annual Speed Street celebration in Charlotte, NC; Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, PA; and Sonoma Raceway in northern California. Nathan’s Famous will host its first-ever qualifier at Busch Stadium prior to a St. Louis Cardinals game in May. This year’s circuit begins on April 26th in Las Vegas and stops at 12 other cities before the final event takes place on July 4, 2014 at the Nathan’s Famous flagship in Coney Island. The top male and top female finishers from each qualifier will earn a spot to compete in the ESPN-televised finals at the original Nathan’s Famous, a holiday tradition since 1916.(Nathan’s Famous)(3-22-2014)
- Family ticket package at Darlington includes Jimmie Johnson Q&A: Darlington Raceway is offering race fans the opportunity to purchase a special family ticket package for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 on Saturday, April 12. The package, which starts at an affordable $48, will feature a question and answer session with six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson in the Darlington Stock Car Museum on race day. It also includes an adult ticket in the Colvin Grandstand and scanner rental. Children’s tickets can also be purchased for $22 each. The special package can be purchased by visiting www.DarlingtonRaceway.com/GoJimmie or by calling 866-459-7223.(Darlington Raceway)(3-22-2014)
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