NASCAR ‘back to the drawing board’ to improve passing up front after Coca-Cola 600

Executive vice president Steve O’Donnell said Martin Truex Jr.’s dominant victory in the Coca-Cola 600 has NASCAR heading “back to the drawing board” to improve its 1.5-mile racing.

O’Donnell, the chief racing development officer for NASCAR, credited Truex and Furniture Row Racing for its “blowout” victory in which the No. 78 Toyota led a record 392 of 400 laps at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

“Certainly great for Martin Truex Jr. and the race team and Furniture Row and (owner) Barney Visser,” O’Donnell told SiriusXM NASCAR’s “The Morning Drive” in his weekly appearance. “But also certainly a challenging race for us and things we’ve already learned and going to back to the drawing board, and one of our stated goals is passing up front. That was not what we saw (Sunday) night.

“Not to take anything away from Martin. He had the car to beat, and he didn’t give it up all night long.”

The quality of racing was in contrast to the Sprint All-Star Race the previous week on the same track. NASCAR changed its rear-toe alignment rules for the All-Star Race, restricting the amount of “skew” teams can employ to improve handling and stability. As a result, there hardly were any spins in the longest race of the season as several drivers said their cars felt more comfortable on the 1.5-mile oval.

O’Donnell said NASCAR used different rules in successive weekends at Charlotte to prove out whether the changes had a significant impact. Nearly four hours of mostly lackluster racing Sunday affirmed that.

“That’s one of the reasons we ran two different things to have some comparative data,” O’Donnell said. “We saw some really good things with the skew we had for the All-Star Race. It’s something we can immediately pull the lever on.”

NASCAR already announced last week that the skew rules from the All-Star Race would be used for the June 12 race at Michigan International Speedway and the July 9 event at Kentucky Speedway.

O’Donnell also said NASCAR would look at finding ways to improve tire wear in night races, which typically have cooler track conditions.

“More so than anything, you immediately look at the partnership with Goodyear and what we need to do to really look at how we wear tires as much as possible, particularly at night races,” he said. “We can go to work on that.

“Goodyear has been a great partner this year from the rules package and matching that up. We’ve seen some really strong results, particularly in the day races. Obviously, we’ve got some things to look at as we look at some of the future night races and see what we can do with that tire combination and the rules package.”

O’Donnell also conceded when a driver has a car as good as Truex’s was, there only is so much that can be done to improve passing at the front of the pack. There were nine lead changes across 600 miles Sunday, mostly during green-flag pit sequences.

“It’s one of those things,” O’Donnell said. “(NASCAR Chairman) Brian (France) said this. We only have one race to compare against vs. 14 to 15 NFL games, or 10 NBA games. But if you do look at, and we do compare ourselves in terms of being a playoff sport each and every week, and you’ll have those blowouts from time to time.

“I don’t want to by any means take anything away from what Martin, (crew chief) Cole Pearn and that team has done because they are more deserving of that win. He is a great story. When you look at it, he’s a guy who you expect could win a championship now. That is just great to see.”

Miesha Tate named grand marshal for Michigan Sprint Cup race

Miesha Tate, the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion, has been announced as the grand marshal for the June 12 Sprint Cup race at Michigan International Speedway.

Tate will give the command to start engines for the FireKeepers Casino 400.

Tate, who is represented by Kevin Harvick‘s KHI Management, holds a 18-5-0 record in her professional MMA career and a 5-2-0 UFC record.

In March, Tate defeated then-champ Holly Holm in the fifth round of UFC 196 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The next day she attended the Sprint Cup race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

“I’m excited and honored to be the grand marshal for the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway,” Tate said in a release. “There are a lot of things I look forward to doing at the track, but to give the command to start the engines is at the top of my list for sure.”

NASCAR America: Parker Kligerman makes triumphant return to the ARCA series

Camping World Truck Series driver and NBCSN analyst Parker Kligerman made his first ARCA start in nearly seven years a memorable one, winning Saturday at New Jersey Motorsports Park.

Kligerman was 2009 ARCA rookie of the year, winning nine of 21 starts.

During Monday’s NASCAR America, he discussed his victory and his affinity for road courses.

Post-Charlotte notebook: Truex achievements make for a long list

Martin Truex Jr.’s dominant victory in Sunday night’s Coca-Cola 600 was notable on a number of accounts.

Not only was it his fourth career win in 382 career Sprint Cup starts, it was his first win in nearly a year (34 races, last win was June 2015 at Pocono).

Here are several more nuggets that also are notable (courtesy of Racing Insights).

* In just 13 races this season, Truex has led more laps (809) than he has in any other season in the Sprint Cup Series. The most laps Truex had led in a previous season was 581 in 2007 and 567 in 2015.

* It was the first win by a single-car team in the Coca-Cola 600 since Bobby Labonte for Joe Gibbs Racing in 1995.

* Truex became the first driver in 40 years to win the Coca-Cola 600 from the pole. David Pearson last did so in NASCAR’s longest race of the year in 1976.

* Truex wasted little time in earning the win. In fact, all drivers wasted little time, as it was the quickest race in Coca-Cola 600 history: Just 3 hours, 44 minutes and 8 seconds.

* The average speed in Sunday’s race was also the fastest in Coca-Cola 600 history: 160.644 mph.

* Truex led 98 percent of the 400 laps. That’s the most dominating win in the last 714 races, dating back to September 2000 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, when current NBC NASCAR analyst Jeff Burton led 100 percent of the laps.

* With 13 races, 23 races remain in the 2016 Sprint Cup season. However, time is getting more crucial for drivers to qualify for the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Only 13 races remain to make the Chase. Truex is the eighth driver to win a race in 2016, meaning there still are eight spots remaining to fill the 16-driver Chase field.

* With his late May win at Charlotte, Truex began a new timetable of sorts. All three of his previous Sprint Cup wins came in June.

Jimmie Johnson impressed by Martin Truex Jr.’s dominance: ‘He was playing with us’

CONCORD, N.C. – Surrounded by throngs of microphones and recorders, Jimmie Johnson suddenly darted away from his No. 48 Chevrolet at the sound of an engine rumbling through the pits.

The six-time Sprint Cup champion wasn’t running away from the reporters who still had questions about his third-place finish in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Johnson was running toward the driver he and everyone else couldn’t catch Sunday night – Martin Truex Jr.

“He was too damn fast not to” congratulate, Johnson told reporters with a laugh after returning from high-fiving the Furniture Row Racing rival.

Few could relate to the dominant victory by Truex, who led 392 of 400 laps – a NASCAR-record 588 miles led. But if anyone had some perspective, it was Johnson, a four-time winner of the Coke 600 who led 334 laps at Charlotte in a May 2004 victory.

“It just means so much to the team,” Johnson said. “It’s a long night. It’s hard to stay that good for that long, and that’s something they’ll savor for weeks to come. It is so tough to start in the day and end in the night and have everybody covered like they did.”

Though he lost the runner-up slot to Kevin Harvick late in the race, Johnson might have mounted the strongest challenge to Truex’s No. 78 Toyota. On the final Lap 345 restart, Johnson briefly took the lead, but Truex led the final 55 circuits on the 1.5-mile track.

“I had to give him something for being a good sport,” Truex said with a laugh. “I just wanted to give him a taste of what it might feel like to lead this thing.”

Johnson said it did feel as if Truex “was playing with us. He was so fast. I would flatfoot (turns 1 and 2) and have a nose on him, and he would drive right back by me.

“He just drove by me on the straightaways. His car was just very strong. There were many times I thought I’d get close, then he’d pick the pace up a couple of 10ths (of a second). I think he had plenty of speed on his side and could really control the race, which is such a neat position to be in; I’ve been very fortunate to be there in the past. I hope to get a car we can control the race like that in the future.”

Johnson, who has seven wins at Charlotte but none better than 17th in his previous three stars, found some solace in having more speed.

“It just drove really good all night long,” he said. “I could drive the car, it wasn’t driving me. The last two times we’ve been here, I’ve been hanging on, so I think we’re going the right way with the race cars.”

Truex and his team already are there, having also led the most laps on the 1.5-mile ovals at Texas and Kansas. He hadn’t scored a top-five finish, though, since a runner-up in the season-opening Daytona 500, and that made his win popular among peers, Johnson said. Brad Keselowski also congratulated Truex on his way to victory lane.

“I think from a fan and garage perspective, he’s been so close (to a win),” Johnson said of Truex. “I just think Martin is really well liked. I know in the garage area, he’s just a good dude. Very happy for him.”

What drivers said after Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway

CONCORD, N.C. – Martin Truex’s No. 78 Toyota did all of the talking during the race, but many drivers still had something to say after Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Here’s what they were saying:

Martin Truex Jr. – finished first: “It meant a lot to me. Just kind of sinking in now, you know? We won the 600, so just really proud of my team. Everybody that made this possible and believed in me and gave me this opportunity. Man, my guys are just … they’re something special, so just got to thank all them. This is a big day, you know? Got the troops on the car – it’s a special weekend. It’s really neat to bring – to bring that name home and to victory lane, so just a lot of emotion right not and not real sure it’s sunk in yet but just an amazing day, an amazing weekend for all of us and just a weekend you dream about. … I had confidence. I had faith. I had confidence in my team. I’ve got a lot of great people behind me. Sherry’s (Pollex, girlfriend) – she gives me a lot of inspiration and we just keep fighting. We never give up. We never quit. … It feels awesome. Coca-Cola 600, man, this is one everybody wants to win. I feel like we had this thing won last year when we gave it up and just I don’t know. There are so many emotions, I had to unplug my radio and just ride around and think for a few minutes, because I didn’t even know what I was going to say or what I was going to do.”

Kevin Harvick – finished second: “Yeah, we struggled the first 450 miles, but they kept swinging at it and were finally able to find some tire pressures that were better.  At the beginning of the race, we were just having the same problem getting in the corner and then sliding the back of the car up off the corner, and towards the end we got the car on the racetrack a lot better and were able to really start driving it like we needed to keep up.  I think we’d have been better off if they would have just kept running, but when the caution came out, because we had caught (Truex), passed (Johnson) and then once he got new tires and an adjustment on there, it seemed like he was kind of able to get out in front of us, and we were never really able to make up any ground once we got around (Johnson). … We ran 10th all day.  I’m just really, really happy with when you’re able to take a 10th‑place car at best, for the first 450 miles and make adjustments on it, those are huge gains.  I was just happy we were competitive at the end of the race. We didn’t have the fastest car, obviously.”

Jimmie Johnson – finished third: ““It’s nice when you have a car like that.  I’m so proud of the effort we put in tonight.  This is the best car I’ve had in Charlotte for a long time.  It just shows you how good (Truex) was, and (Harvick) got a little bit better than us at the end.  I thought we had a chance at them a few times, a couple of times on the long run we would get close. A couple times on the restarts we would get close, but all-in-all a very strong performance for this Lowe’s Chevrolet.  Very proud of the team work and the support that we have from all the employees at Lowe’s.  Just came up a little short today.”

Denny Hamlin — finished fourth: “It was a battle, but we kept good track position all day – had one bad restart where I lost some spots, but other than that fourth is about par for us today. The pit crew did an amazing job all day keeping us up front and our car was pretty good at the end. That’s about what we had, nothing else. (Truex) did a great job, and we saw it in practice, he had a bunch of speed and really a lot of the mile-and-a-halves those guys have really hit on something really nice. We’ll go back and work and figure out what we can do to be better, but obviously a good top-five is a good step in the right direction for us.”

Brad Keselowski – finished fifth: “On the long green-flag runs, it seemed like we would be able to move up a little bit.  On short runs we would fall back, but we definitely didn’t have anything for those guys.  (Truex) and (Harvick) were just really fast, and Martin Truex deserves this finish.  He had a good run. It’s a long 600 miles and to come home fifth is decent.  It’s not what we want, but we needed a little bit more to be able to run with those guys. The day to night transition is always a challenge, but some places more than others.  I think this track in particular it’s more about the temperature and how hot it is during the day and the long mileage.”

Matt Kenseth — finished seventh: “We were kind of off all weekend. We obviously didn’t qualify good. I think that’s the worst I can remember qualifying since I’ve been over here at least, so we had pretty good pit stops most of the night. (Crew chief) Jason (Ratcliff) and those guys made good adjustments, and we worked out way towards the front as far as we could. … All weekend, really, just at times we could get the balance sort of OK, but we were way off on the speed and just had a hard time getting a nice corner balance and enough speed to be able to go race the good cars. (On colliding with Austin Dillon) Well, whenever you get hit on pit road it’s a surprise. I was just leaving honestly, and he was leaving his spot and I don’t know. They must have cleared him out of there and didn’t see me or something.”

Chase Elliott – finished eighth: “Definitely a long one, very difficult.  We fought hard and we are trying to get that next little bit.”

Joey Logano – finished ninth: “We got a pit road penalty. You’re trying to make pit stops so fast and you’re going to push everything to the edge.  I guess we jumped off the wall a little bit too soon.  I haven’t seen it, but unfortunately, that kind of made us make a green-flag pit stop, which is really hard to overcome.  Overall, we were able to get our lap back by racing up there, which was kind of cool.  We didn’t have to take a lucky dog or any of that.  We actually raced back to the lead lap, but we lost the balance a little bit on the last run and I couldn’t make much time once we got going. … As it got cooler and cooler out I felt like we lost a little bit of speed compared to the field.  Obviously, the more grip in the racetrack the tougher it was to try to pass, so there were a lot of things going against us there. … Yeah, we got a pit road penalty during one of those super-long green flag runs and had to make a pass-through and went down a lap.  We did a good job recovering without a caution because we were able to pass the leader back and be able to get back on the lead lap and then we finally got a caution, but it was so late in the race and you can only pick a couple off on the restart.  We kind of settled in there and it was hard to pass tonight, so I had a lot better car than ninth – that’s for sure.  I had something that could have finished in the top three or four, and maybe second.  We didn’t have anything for (Truex).  Martin Truex was on fire tonight and really all weekend.  They had it figured out. … We had our own battle to worry about.  There were times that we were racing him up front for the lead on restarts.  We’d run with him for a while and then eventually on the long run he just took off.  We had nothing for him, but at times I thought we were definitely a second-place car, but unfortunately it’s a distant second.”

Ryan Newman – finished 10th: ““I messed up and sped on pit road and it sent us back.  I don’t know that it cost us a whole lot.  I’m just proud of everybody on the Whelen Engineering Chevrolet. They came on board for this race to sponsor us.  Got a decent finish and decent point’s day, I guess, but congratulations to my buddy Martin. He deserved that one.”

Greg Biffle – finished 11th: “That’s all the speed we had.  It was a hard-fought battle and I think we’re gaining on it.  It’s frustrating that we didn’t get up to the top-five, but at times we could run top-five lap times.  It’s a huge amount of progress from where we’ve been, but we clearly have a little ways to go.  Everybody is working hard and hopefully we’ll get there soon.”

Ryan Blaney – finished 20th: “It was a long night, man. A really, really long night. Nothing could go right for us. That was the frustrating part. I didn’t do us any favors speeding on the first stop. I think we got most of our track position back after that. Then we had a green-flag stop, and there was a total miscommunication. The next stop we were able to line up with the lead-lap cars and the left-front wheel was loose and had to come back and change that tire. We just struggled from there on out. We definitely didn’t do ourselves any favors tonight. There’s some stuff we have to work on with the race car. I probably didn’t do the best job tonight.”

Kyle Busch — finished 33rd: “It was a tough night, start to finish. The car had great acceleration toward the end, but we were tight all night and really never able to pass anybody. Definitely not the run we wanted for our M&M’S Red, White and Blue Camry.”

Upon Further Review: Coca-Cola 600

So how to explain why a week after the Sprint All-Star Race was praised for its racing could the Coca-Cola 600 not have similar racing at the front?

Kevin Harvick, who finished second to Martin Truex Jr. in Sunday’s race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, suggests that one shouldn’t be quick to judgement.

“The All‑Star Race is just so much different,’’ Harvick said. “I don’t know if it’s a fair assessment of was it better or was it worse. I think both nights we’ve seen good racing.

“We were able to pass tonight with our car once we got the handling better and make up ground, so I don’t know what the racing was like with the rest of the pack, but I think as you look at what’s coming down the road, I think that the cars were already sliding around a fair amount. They seemed like they slid around more (Sunday) than they did actually at the All‑Star Race. But my car had some different balance characteristics tonight than it had at the All‑Star Race.

“I think compared to last year, we’re light years ahead of where we were, and I think we’re headed in a great direction with the new package.’’

Two of the next five Sprint Cup races — Michigan on June 12 and Kentucky on July 9 — will feature rule changes NASCAR is looking to incorporate next season. The changes are intended to reduce downforce and sideforce, lowering corner speeds and making it easier for drivers to run closer together.

One of those changes is a rear-toe alignment change that reduces the amount of “skew,” or how much the car can be slanted at speed. That change was in place at the All-Star Race but not in the Coke 600, and some drivers said the return of skew seemed to increase their cars’ stability, making it easier to keep competitors at bay and fend off passes.

Sunday, few got close enough to Truex, who led a record 392 of the 400 laps. Truex and Jimmie Johnson briefly dueled for the lead with less than 60 laps to go, but Truex quickly pulled away.

“He wasn’t going to be denied, there was no way around that,’’ Johnson said.

— Each race, NASCAR takes at least two Sprint Cup cars back to its R&D Center for further inspection.

The winner of each races goes except for the Daytona 500 winner  (inspection is completed at the track because the winning car remains in Daytona for a year after that race). The runner-up also goes to the R&D Center. At times, NASCAR selects a random car as well.

Here’s how many times each car has gone to the R&D Center.

Kyle Busch — 5 times (Kansas, Talladega, Richmond, Texas, Martinsville)

Kevin Harvick — 5 times (Coke 600, Kansas, Auto Club, Phoenix, Daytona 500

Joey Logano — 3 times (All-Star, Las Vegas, Daytona 500)

Brad Keselowski — 3 times (All-Star, Talladega, Las Vegas)

Carl Edwards — 3 times (Richmond, Bristol, Phoenix)

Dale Earnhardt Jr. — 3 times (Bristol, Texas, Atlanta)

Martin Truex Jr. — 2 times (Coke 600, Daytona 500)

Jimmie Johnson — 2 times (Auto Club, Atlanta)

Kasey Kahne — 2 times (Dover, Las Vegas)

Greg Biffle — 1 time (Coke 600)

A.J. Allmendinger — 1 time (Martinsville)

Matt Kenseth — 1 time (Dover)

Kyle Larson — 1 time (Dover)

So that’s a tally of 14 Chevrolets, 11 Toyotas and 8 Fords since the Daytona 500.

— All five cars in the Joe Gibbs Racing/Furniture Row Racing alliance now have won a race, all but putting each in the Chase.

— The last Sprint Cup victory by a Chevrolet team was by Jimmie Johnson on March 20 at Auto Club Speedway.

Chase Elliott’s Darlington paint scheme is a blast from NAPA’s past

Chase Elliott‘s paint scheme for the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway is now here for us all to enjoy.Elliott’s No. 24 Chevrolet will be sponsored by NAPA for the Sept. 4 race. Instead of the familiar blue and yellow, the car will be black and yellow, based on how NAPA’s delivery trucks looked in the 1960s.Last year, Elliott’s Southern 500 paint scheme was a subtle tribute to the one used by his father, Bill Elliott, in 1985.

NASCAR’s Saturday schedule at Charlotte Motor Speedway

Saturday at Charlotte Motor Speedway is dedicated to final prep for the Coca-Cola 600 and the Xfinity Series’ Hisense 300.

Here’s the full schedule for the the day, including TV and Radio info.

All times are Eastern.

7 a.m. – Xfinity garage opens

8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. – Sprint Cup garage opens

10 – 10:55 a.m. – Sprint Cup practice (FS1)

11:15 a.m. – Xfinity qualifying; multi-car/three rounds (FS1)

12:45 p.m. – Xfinity driver-crew chief meeting

1 – 1:50 p.m. – Final Sprint Cup practice (FS1)

2 p.m. – Xfinity driver introductions

2:30 p.m. – Hisense 300; 200 laps, 300 miles (FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

Kurt Busch fastest in first of two final practices for Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte

Kurt Busch was fastest in the first of two final Coca-Cola 600 Sprint Cup practice sessions Saturday morning at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Busch was the only driver to exceed 191 mph, clocking a field-best speed of 191.002 mph.

Jimmie Johnson was second fastest at 190.617 mph, followed by 600 pole sitter Martin Truex Jr. (190.061), Carl Edwards (189.887) and a strong run from Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (189.414).

On the flip side, several drivers struggled in the session, including three Joe Gibbs Racing drivers: Denny Hamlin (25th fastest, 185.848 mph), Matt Kenseth (26th fastest, 185.510) and defending Sprint Cup champion Kyle Busch, who was 32nd fastest (184.281 mph).

Dale Earnhardt Jr. suffered a slight problem during the session when the power steering fluid seal broke, causing smoke to come out of the rear of his car. The problem was fixed and Earnhardt returned to the track.

The final practice session takes place this afternoon at 1 to 1:50 pm ET. The Coca-Cola 600 begins Sunday night at 6 p.m. ET.

Here’s how Saturday’s first practice session played out:

Today’s Xfinity race at Charlotte: Start time, weather, radio & TV info

After a week off, the Xfinity Series returns to the track today at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Hisense 4K TV 300.

Here’s what you need to know for today’s race.

(All times are Eastern)

START: The command to start engines will be given at 2:37 p.m. by the Boys & Girls Club of Cabarrus County.

DISTANCE: The race is 200 laps (300 miles) around the 1.5-mile track.

PRERACE SCHEDULE: The Xfinity Garage opens at 7 a.m. The driver/crew chief meeting is at 12:45 p.m. Driver introductions are at 2:05 p.m.

NATIONAL ANTHEM: Colby Bell will perform the anthem at 2:31 p.m.

TV/RADIO: Fox Sports 1 will broadcast the race with its coverage beginning at 2 p.m. Performance Racing Network’s broadcast on radio and at goPRN.com, begins at 2 p.m. SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will carry the PRN broadcast.

FORECAST: wunderground.com predicts a temperature of 84 degrees at 2 p.m. with no chance of rain.

LAST TIME: Austin Dillon swept both Xfinity races at Charlotte last year, leading a combined 224 laps in both wins.

STARTING LINEUP: Qualifying is at 11:15 a.m.

No secrets: From setups to strategy, group chat among some crew chiefs shares all

CONCORD, N.C. — As Martin Truex Jr. led fellow Toyota driver Carl Edwards at Dover earlier this month, crew chief Cole Pearn plotted his strategy, wondering what Edwards’ crew chief, Dave Rogers, planned to do.

So Pearn asked Rogers.

He messaged him, actually.

“Come on man, throw me a bone,’’ Rogers recalled Pearn’s note. “Tell me when you’re going to pit.’’

Pearn, Rogers and his fellow Joe Gibbs Racing crew chiefs are on a group chat with Andy Graves, group vice president, technical director for Toyota Racing Development, USA. They share information throughout the week and an occasional quip — often by Pearn. The chat doesn’t stop when the race starts.

Group chats are not new in NASCAR among crew chiefs on the same team or alliance. Graves recalls a more modest system in place at Hendrick Motorsports when he served as Terry Labonte’s crew chief from 1997-99.

With team computers showing each car’s setup and pertinent information, crew chiefs know what their teammates are doing at all times. Joe Gibbs Racing has incorporated Furniture Row Racing’s Truex so that the information available to each team is if they truly were teammates.

Even with all that information to both Toyota teams, the group chat provides answers to questions about key issues, setup notes and other matters. The more a crew chief knows, the more informed their decisions can be.

Still, what about asking a teammate/competitor on strategy that could hurt them?

It’s all fair.

“What did you tell him?’’ Edwards asked Rogers upon hearing of Pearn’s Dover request. “Get back to you in a minute?’’

They laughed.

No, that’s not what Rogers told Pearn.

Before Rogers revealed how he responded, he recalled that weekend and the struggles Rogers and Edwards had with their car during practice. It was confusing because the setup had worked so well previously. As they tried to figure out how to be faster, Truex posted quick times.

Rogers told his engineers to get Truex’s setup and they would change Edwards’ car to match what Truex had with his.

Edwards went faster.

So when Pearn’s request came during the race asking about what lap Edwards would pit, Rogers responded in the only way he could.

“I told him what I was going to do,’’ Rogers said.

As Graves watched the exchange on the chat, he beamed.

“It’s competitive inside, but not to the point that we’re willing to jeopardize the good of the whole,’’ he said.

That’s the message ingrained in the teams. There’s a closeness between JGR and Furniture Row Racing that is different when Michael Waltrip Racing was with Toyota. The group chat for JGR and MWR crew chiefs was primarily used during restrictor-plate events at Daytona and Talladega.

It’s used constantly among JGR and Furniture Row Racing.

“There’s no question that each one of us wants to be the top team every week,’’ Rogers said. “If you didn’t, you don’t belong in this sport. But we all know that our unity and our sharing of information is going to separate us from the field. It’s a heck of a lot easier to beat four guys than it is to beat 39. So if we work together and we can separate our group and fight amongst ourselves, our odds of winning are better.’’

Pearn said that the openness will keep their working relationship strong.

“Once you go down the path of hiding from each other is when most teammate relationships break down,’’ he said. “You hide one time and it’s easier to do the next time and you just slowly drift apart.’’

Another key to the group chat is that Graves can add his insight on matters, including things during the race the other crew chiefs might be too busy to notice.

Graves noticed during that Dover race that Dale Earnhardt Jr., running outside the top 10 at the time, was saving fuel to make it to the end based on his slower lap times. Graves altered his crew chiefs to the maneuver. In the end, it didn’t matter when Earnhardt was collected in the 18-car crash late in that event, but it could have.

The cooperation was evident Thursday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Truex and Edwards were staged next to each other on pit road during Coca-Cola 600 qualifying. Before the final session, which would determine the pole, Rogers walked over to Pearn and talked briefly. Truex went on to win the pole.

“There’s no information that is not shared,’’ Rogers said.

As a result, Joe Gibbs Racing has won seven of the first 12 points races this season and Truex seems on the cusp of winning.

Mark Martin returns to track as pace car driver for Coca-Cola 600

Newly elected NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin hasn’t been to a NASCAR race since the 2013 Sprint Cup finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He’ll return in a big way Sunday at the Coca-Cola 600, serving as the race’s pace car driver prior to the green flag..

The honor will cap off a day for Martin that starts off in Indianapolis, where Martin will watch the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500. Then in his own version of “The Double,” the 2002 winner of the Coke 600 will fly to Charlotte to jump in the Toyota pace car.

“When the speedway called to ask me if I’d do it, my first reaction was ‘Hell, yeah!’” Martin said in a press release. “Originally I’d planned to be at Indy, but now I get to do the ‘double’ in a way, and I can say I’ll be driving at Charlotte. Charlotte Motor Speedway was always my favorite race track.”

In addition to his Coke 600 win, Martin won at Charlotte a total of four times in the Cup series and had 18 top fives. In the Xfinity Series, Martin earned another six wins at the 1.5-mile track.

“I was fortunate enough to have a lot of success there, including winning a Coke 600,” Martin said. “Bruton and Marcus (Smith) always put on a fabulous show, and this will be cool to lead the field to green in front of thousands of fans that I enjoyed racing for all those years.”

NASCAR on NBC podcast, Episode XIX: Juan Pablo Montoya, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Ray Evernham

With the annual Memorial Day weekend tripleheader on tap Sunday for motorsports’ biggest day of the year, the NASCAR on NBC podcast welcomed a tripleheader of vaunted guests for its latest episode.

The roster includes the past two winners of the Indianapolis 500 – Juan Pablo Montoya and Ryan-Hunter Reay – and the man voted the greatest crew chief in NASCAR history by a 2006 media poll – Ray Evernham.

Montoya won last year at the Brickyard in his second start with Team Penske, marking the longest gap between Indy 500 victories (having won his first start at the 2.5-mile track in 2000).

The Colombian once viewed Indianapolis as just another track, but his viewpoint has shifted through the passion of his car owner, who has a record 16 Indy 500 wins.

Feeling the withering drive of Penske, Montoya laughs that he prefers to stay inside his motorhome to stay focused on the task at hand.

“It feels so different,” Montoya said. “I actually spend a lot of time in the bus … because it’s so intense. Thursday, someone turned on the light. The intensity level goes up and everyone starts getting more serious, more serious, more focused.”

Hunter-Reay, who outdueled Montoya’s teammate, Helio Castroneves, to win in 2014, will start third Sunday at Indy. He discussed his chances this season and his son’s passion for racing.

Having restored a car for Indy legend Mario Andretti that will be driven in a prerace parade at the Brickyard, Evernham is in Indianapolis this weekend as well to watch the 100th running of the Indy 500. The NBCSN analyst previewed the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, explaining how tire wear could impact the longest race of the season.

You can listen to the podcast by clicking below or download and subscribe to it on iTunes by clicking here. The free subscription will provide automatic downloads of new episodes to your smartphone. It also is available on Stitcher

Here are times cues for easy referencing while listening to the episode:

Starting grid for the 57th Coca-Cola 600

Martin Truex Jr. will lead the field in the Coca-Cola 600 to the green flag Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Behind him in the field will be Joey Logano, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski. Defending race winner Carl Edwards starts ninth. Seven-time Charlotte winner Jimmie Johnson rolls off seventh.

Here’s the starting grid for NASCAR’s longest race.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s team among three that will lose pit stall selection for Coca-Cola 600

NASCAR announced Thursday that three Sprint Cup teams had received their fourth warning and would lose pit stall selection for Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.‘s team received its fourth warning after failing template inspection twice before qualifying.

Jimmie Johnson‘s team received its fourth warning after failing template inspection twice before qualifying.

Aric Almirola‘s team received its third and fourth warnings Thursday after failing template inspection twice and the Laser Inspection Station twice before qualifying.

Teams lose pit stall selection for every fourth warning. With pit stall selection not taking place until Saturday morning, the teams of Earnhardt, Johnson and Almirola lose pit stall selection for this weekend’s event.

Ty Dillon fastest in final Xfinity practice at Charlotte

Ty Dillon claimed the fastest speed in the final Xfinity Series practice for the Hisense 4K TV 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Dillon posted a top speed of 181.342 mph while recording 48 laps in the session.

Daniel Suarez was second fastest at 181.056 mph while also recording the best 10-lap average for the session.

The top five was filled out by Erik Jones, who was fastest in the first session, Austin Dillon and Brennan Poole.

Speed Chart 

‘The Double’ awaits Mark Martin, who will commute often between Indy and Charlotte

INDIANAPOLIS — Though he will attend Sunday’s Indianapolis 500, Mark Martin will have the chance to celebrate his NASCAR Hall of Fame election with some of his closest friends in racing.

Martin, who will be inducted in the 2017 class with Rick Hendrick, Richard Childress, Raymond Parks and Benny Parsons, told NBC Sports that he will be leaving a few hours after the 100th running of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing begins and catching a flight to North Carolina.

He will be headed to Charlotte Motor Speedway, where he will take in the Coca-Cola 600 (which he won in 2002) and the congratulations of those he raced against in the Sprint Cup Series.

Martin also is expected to be at Charlotte for a NASCAR-arranged media availability Saturday.

Martin, who was in his second year on the ballot, felt he had such little chance to be chosen for the Hall of that he left his native Arkansas earlier this week to attend the Indy 500.

“It was a bucket list sorta thing,” he said.

But then came Wednesday’s announcement that he had been elected – while he was on the road headed to Indy, no less – and Martin’s travel plans suddenly became a lot more complicated.

He attended Thursday’s Indy 500 Media Day at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He will fly Friday afternoon to Charlotte and returns to Indy later Saturday after his appearance at the Charlotte track. Then it’s back to Charlotte again after watching the start of Sunday’s race.

“I was speechless, still not sure what to say, other than I’m surprised,” Martin said of his selection for the NASCAR Hall. “If I’d been voting, I’d have voted another way.

"But I’m humbled and honored and not only to be in this class because of the performance of the people in this class and the people, the persons they were. … I just feel really fortunate. It’s like icing on the cake, like the race you never won but always wanted to, and more.”

To further illustrate his total surprise at being chosen for the Hall, Martin quipped, “I did not expect it, or otherwise I wouldn’t have been in the motor home driving up here yesterday.

“I hadn’t been to (the Indy 500) in my lifetime, so now it appears I’m going to be doing the ‘double.’ I’m not driving, but I’m doing the ‘double’ anyway.”

Here’s a few posts from Martin’s Twitter account about his time at IMS on Thursday as well as his selection for the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

NASCAR America: Terri Parsons: ‘We’ve been waiting so long for this to happen’

Wife of the late Benny Parsons, Terri, talks about what it means for the 1973 Sprint Cup champion to be inducted to the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

NASCAR America: Mark Martin inducted into Hall of Fame

Considered the greatest driver to never win a Sprint Cup championship, Mark Martin is part of the 2017 Hall of Fame class. The native of Batesville, Arkansas, was runner-up five times. Martin won the Southern 500 twice and and earned 96 victories in NASCAR’s national series.

NASCAR America: Raymond Parks was a pioneer as one of the original car owners

Raymond Parks brought unprecedented organization to stock car racing, becoming NASCAR’s first successful team owner. His contributions to the sport are enough to put him in the Hall of Fame in the Class of 2017.

NASCAR America: Rick Hendrick: ‘I would have thought you were crazy’ with Hall of Fame talk

Rick Hendrick never would have thought he would be elected into the NASCAR Hall of Fame when he started his team as an owner back in 1984 and he still has a chance to add to his legacy over the coming years.

NASCAR America: Richard Childress: It’s been ‘quite a ride’ to reach Hall of Fame

Richard Childress became the first owner to win three titles in all three NASCAR national series. He talks about how special it is to be inducted into the Hall of Fame and his special connection to Dale Earnhardt.

Hall of Fame selection ensures Benny Parsons’ last remaining wish

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Shortly before he died in 2007, former NASCAR champion and broadcaster Benny Parsons gave his wife a list of 10 things to do.

Some were personal: He wanted her to grow a vineyard, something he had wanted but hadn’t done.

Some were about community: He wanted her to help find a way for racing to return to North Wilkesboro Speedway.

Some were for family that remain private.

She completed those tasks, but for years, the last item on the list haunted Terri Parsons.

“The one that kept throwing me was ‘Don’t let people forget me,’ ’’ she told NBC Sports. “How does one person do that? There is only so much Facebook you can do.’’

Voters for the NASCAR Hall of Fame showed they had not forgotten Wednesday. While it took until the eighth class for one of the remaining inaugural nominees to be selected, Benny Parsons made it after receiving 85 percent of the vote. He’ll be joined by Mark Martin, Rick Hendrick, Richard Childress and Raymond Parks.

Terri Parsons had a feeling that this year would be different from all the times she had come before, hoping the man she loved and fans adored would be inducted.

She had a restless night of sleep. She was nervous on the drive to the Hall of Fame. Then shortly before the announcement, Hall of Famer Ned Jarrett told her he thought this would be Parsons’ year based on the talk about the 1973 champion among voters.

“When his name was announced, it hit me, this is it,’’ Terri Parsons said. “Nobody is going to forget him. People will know the history of Benny forever.’’

Still, she sat stoically. Jarrett, who spoke to his fellow voters earlier in the day about Parsons’ credentials, reached over and shook Terri Parsons’ wrist. Hall of Famer Bobby Allison turned around and shook her knee.

“I was numb,’’ Terri Parsons said. “I wanted to make sure I heard it right.’’

And then she saw the face of the man she married in 1992 on a video board as the first member of the new Hall of Fame class.

“He’s in,’’ she said to herself.

She later described it as “an awesome moment for me.’’

And for her husband, who became as well known to many fans for his role as broadcaster with NBC and other networks as for his success on the track.

“Somewhere tonight he’s saying fantastic, I’m sure, and we all know the smile he would have on his face,’’ Terri Parsons said.

It’s the smile that will be etched on his pylon when he’s inducted Jan. 20, 2017, into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Fastenal signs multi-year extension with Roush Fenway Racing

Roush Fenway Racing announced Wednesday morning that Fastenal has signed a multi-year extension as primary sponsor for Ricky Stenhouse Jr.‘s team. As part of the agreement, Fastenal will increase the number of races it will serve as primary sponsor in 2017.

“We’ve seen a lot of improvement across the board this year,” Ricky Stenhouse Jr. said in a team release. “We are very happy that Fastenal will continue to be a part of the momentum at Roush Fenway. There has been a lot of hard work and effort put into this team and our goal and expectation is to reward Fastenal with a trip to victory lane and the Chase in the near future.”

This is the fifth season Fastenal has served as a primary sponsor for a Roush Fenway Racing Sprint Cup team. This is Fastenal’s second season as the anchor partner on Stenhouse’s car. The announcement did not say how many races Fastenal will serve as the primary sponsor beginning next year. Fastenal has served as the primary sponsor in five of the first 12 points races this season, including the Daytona 500. It also was the primary sponsor for Stenhouse in the Sprint Unlimited.

Stenhouse is 20th in the points entering this weekend’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He has finished in the top 20 in five of the last six points races.

Joey Logano has chance to earn first All-Star, Coke 600 sweep since 2010

Joey Logano‘s win in the Sprint All-Star Race last Saturday might have been the result of the event’s confusing format, but it was also a result of broader trend.

Logano is kind of good at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Through his first seven seasons in the Sprint Cup Series, Logano made 14 starts at the 1.5-mile track, plus six starts in the All-Star Race.

Logano’s win last weekend was his second visit to victory lane in Charlotte in as many races, including his win last year in the October points race.

Based on his results in the 14 point races, Logano now owns the best average finish at Charlotte among active Cup drivers with an average of 9.57. NASCAR’s totals for the stat date back to the 2005 season, which was four years before Logano’s first full-time campaign.

In his last seven Charlotte starts, Logano has three top five and four top-10 finishes. If Logano were to win Sunday, he would be the first driver since Kurt Busch in 2010 with Team Penske to sweep the All-Star Race and the Coke 600.

Behind Logano in the avg finish category is defending Coca-Cola 600 winner Carl Edwards, with an avg of 10.5. Edwards has seven top five and 15 top-10 finishes at Charlotte since he broke into the Cup series in 2005. Last’s year’s Coke 600 was his first win in 22 Charlotte starts.

“Last year’s win at the Coca-Cola 600 was huge for us,” Edwards said in a press release. “It was a turning point in our season and it’s still sinking in that our 19 team are the defending champions of the Coca-Cola 600.”

Edwards’ win was his first with Joe Gibbs Racing.

“The track changes a lot as we go into the night and you have to stay on top of it and regardless of how long it is,” Edward said. “A lot of it is you have to be on your game at the end and those have been some long nights and I think that at the end of the day that does wear on you and you have to be prepared for it.”

Not among the top drivers in avg finish is a surprising name – Jimmie Johnson. While the six-time Sprint Cup champion is has the best driver rating at Charlotte since 2005 (109.0), his avg finish in that time is 14.9, which trails drivers like Logano, Edwards, Kevin Harvick (13.9), Denny Hamlin (12.8), Kasey Kahne (12.0) and Kyle Busch (13.5).

Since 2005, Johnson has won four of his record seven Charlotte races. His sweep in 2005 was part of four wins in a row for the No. 48 team. His two wins since 2005 came in the 2009 fall race and the 2014 Coke 600.

“Last weekend’s All-Star event was in essence a ‘test’ for this weekend,” said Johnson’s crew chief, Chad Knaus, in a press release. “We learned some important things about tire fall off even though we didn’t get a ton of practice. The 600-miler is a tough, tough race and it takes a lot of patience and some endurance on everyone’s part to be there at the end.”

In his 22 Charlotte starts over the last 10 seasons, Johnson has nine top fives, 11 top-10 finishes and four DNFs.

Since 2013, he has one win, but in the four races he hasn’t finished in the top five, he has failed to finish better than 17th.

NASCAR on NBC podcast, Episode XVIII: Roger Penske

Venerable team owner Roger Penske, who turned 79 in February, made a visit to the infield hospital last week at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

This wasn’t a checkup to determine if Penske, who remains as spry as ever with his racing organization in its 50th year, was at risk of slowing down as he nears his ninth decade.

This was to ensure he could speed up, hammering the accelerator of the 2017 SS Camaro pace car that will lead the field to green Sunday in the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500.

“I guess before you can drive on this racetrack, you need to have a physical,” Penske said with a chuckle during the Wednesday episode of the NASCAR on NBC podcast. “So the good news is I passed my physical, so I guess I’ll now be able to drive the car on race day.”

There was a time when he would have been racing it.

Though he has become synonymous with success in fielding cars – his teams have won a record 16 Indy 500s – Penske started his legendary career in racing as a driver and was named Driver of the Year in 1961 by Sports Illustrated and in 1962 by the New York Times.

Though he hung up his helmet for good in 1965 to focus on his automotive empire, Penske once won a NASCAR race at Riverside International Raceway in 1963, and he discusses those memories from his driving career during the podcast – including another NASCAR race he nearly won at Indianapolis Raceway Park.

“I was leading with about 10 laps to go and lost the rear end and then went out and won the race at Riverside,” he said, laughing. “When I came back (to Indianapolis), they didn’t want to let me in the Speedway because I’d driven a NASCAR car.”

Other topics covered by Penske:

–His first visit to Indy as a 14-year-old in 1951;

–His team’s success since combining its IndyCar and NASCAR operations under one roof;

–His potential future plans for returning to sports cars;

–Why he believes “anything you want, you can get it.”

–What he believes the future holds for IndyCar, NASCAR and auto racing.

You can listen to the podcast by clicking below or download and subscribe to it on iTunes by clicking here. The free subscription will provide automatic downloads of new episodes to your smartphone. It also is available on Stitcher

Here are times cues for easy referencing while listening to the episode:

Ray Evernham hopes for Hall of Fame: ‘Your place in history is determined by other people’

In the Hendrick Motorsports shop where he won three NASCAR titles with Jeff Gordon, Ray Evernham hung a famous sign on the wall with a list of six boxes.

Nobody. Upstart. Contender. Winner. Champion. Dynasty.

Only the first five descriptors were checked – though you could make a case the sixth is why Evernham is on the ballot for the second consecutive year in Wednesday’s NASCAR Hall of Fame voting.

But the former crew chief and team owner said whether he built a dynasty worthy of stock-car immorality is for 57 voters (including an online fan poll) to decide.

“Your place in history really is determined by other people,” Evernham, also an NBCSN analyst, said in a Tuesday phone interview. “We’d get asked all the time about our checklist, ‘When are you going to put that dynasty checkmark up?’ That’s not really one for us to put up. That’s for the sportswriters and fans to decide. I don’t know that’s not our checkmark to make.

“I think the Hall of Fame is really like that. Are you Hall of Fame material? Everyone is going to say, ‘Hell yeah, I am.’  But you really don’t know until the other people vote for you.”

The results for Evernham and 19 other candidates won’t be known until 5 p.m. when the five inductees of the Class of 2017 will be revealed as joining the previous 35 members of the Hall of Fame.

After attending the announcement in Uptown Charlotte last year, Evernham will be monitoring the results from Indiana (he and his family will be attending the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500).

Though the wait isn’t agonizing, the potential honor will be on his mind.

“Some guys will tell you they don’t think about it, and it happens when it happens,” he said. “But you still think about it. I do think about it. You’re being considered for what I consider the highest honor you can be given in a sport. So it’s extremely important. If you’re fortunate to get elected to the Hall of Fame, it puts a period on a career. It’s the highlight of a career.

“So for me, three championships and a couple of Daytona 500 wins and three (Brickyard 400s wins) is great, but to be elected to the Hall of Fame would be the crowning jewel of that career.”

Of the 35 previous inductees, there have been only four full-time mechanics, which might lessen the odds for Evernham (who did receive a vote last year from this voter).

Voted the best crew chief of all time in a 2006 media poll, the New Jersey native watched last year as Jerry Cook, Bobby Isaac, Terry Labtone, O. Bruton Smith and Curtis Turner were voted into the stock-car shrine.

Evernham said it was with the mixed emotions of being honored to make the ballot (which was reduced from 25 to 20 nominees three years ago) but also the competitive disappointment of failing to achieve enshrinement.

“Certainly, I agreed with all the picks that went in there, but you can’t say oh my God, you’re so happy for everybody else that you’re not let down,” he said. “It’s as simple as that. And you should be. Who wouldn’t be?

“You’re amazed when you do get in, and I hope that as people are voting they consider the things I’ve done in the sport, and hopefully it’s worthy enough to get in this year, and if not, I’ll keep waiting and hopefully someday, I get a turn.”

The top three vote-getters who didn’t make the Hall of Fame last year were inaugural NASCAR champion Red Byron, 1973 champion and broadcaster Benny Parsons and Rick Hendrick, the owner whose teams have won a record 11 Cup championships – three with Evernham.

“I’m hoping and pretty confident that he gets in this year,” Evernham said of Hendrick. “I think a lot of people pass him up because he’s still active. But when you look at the numbers of what he’s done in the sport, how can he be denied? He’s made such a huge impact in NASCAR since the mid-80s.”

Evernham has been close to other recent inductees, too, such as Cook, a former Modified champion, and 2015 inductee Bill Elliott, who drove for Evernham from 2001-03.

“I know how much it meant to Jerry; this was the crown jewel for him,” Evernham said. “Bill Elliott is a pretty quiet guy who doesn’t say much, but I can tell you spending time with Bill, getting into that Hall of Fame was really important.

“When Bill and I won the (2002) Brickyard together, I could tell that was important to him because that was one of the things that he didn’t have that he really wanted. When he got elected to the Hall of Fame, it was like a giant sigh of relief or almost peace. The people who do get in, you’ve got a great feeling that your body of work has been recognized and appreciated. In the end, that’s all you get. When you do a lot of things in life, to be appreciated by the sport or the people involved in the sport that you’ve committed your life to, the greatest thing that can happen is that in the end they say that you did a good job. When you get elected to the Hall of Fame, that’s pretty much what they’re saying.”

Evernham, who helped groom a crew chief “tree” that includes Chad Knaus, Steve Letarte, Rodney Childers and Tony Gibson, said he has wondered if he will earn that career-defining validation since he stopped being able to enjoy it on a weekly basis.

“While you’re (racing), you have a measurement all the time in the sport,” he said. “You’re winning, you’re losing, you’re getting better, you’re doing things. But when you’re out of it a while, you’re wondering, ‘Did I make a difference? Was I any good? Where do I stack up in the competition?’ When you’re racing it’s easy to find that out every week. Where your place is in history comes a little bit later.

“I know what I’d like it to feel like, but until it happens, I think only those who have been inducted can tell you. To me it seems more like a quiet sigh of relief that, ‘Yes, I made a difference. Yes, I mattered.’ ”

Poll: Who would you select for next NASCAR Hall of Fame class?

Voters will gather Wednesday in Charlotte, North Carolina, to select the next five-member class to the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

The class will be introduced on NASCAR America at 5 p.m. ET Wednesday on NBCSN. Krista Voda will host and be joined by analysts Steve Letarte and Jeff Burton.

Here are the Hall of Fame candidates followed by a poll for you to make your selection. Which five would you choose?

Buddy Baker, won 19 times in NASCAR’s premier (now Sprint Cup) series, including the Daytona 500 and Southern 500

Red Byron, first NASCAR premier series champion, in 1949

Richard Childress, 11-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series

Ray Evernham, three-time NASCAR premier series championship crew chief

Ray Fox, legendary engine builder, crew chief and car owner

Rick Hendrick, 14-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series

Ron Hornaday Jr., four-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion

Harry Hyde, 1970 NASCAR

Alan Kulwicki, 1992 NASCAR premier series champion

Mark Martin, 96-time race winner in NASCAR national series competition

Hershel McGriff, 1986 NASCAR west series champion

Raymond Parks, NASCAR’s first champion car owner

Benny Parsons, 1973 NASCAR premier series champion

Larry Phillips, five-time NASCAR weekly series national champion

Jack Roush, five-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series

Ricky Rudd, won 23 times in NASCAR’s premier series, including the 1997 Brickyard 400

Ken Squier, legendary radio and television broadcaster; inaugural winner/namesake of Squier-Hall Award for NASCAR Media Excellence

Mike Stefanik, winner of record-tying nine NASCAR championships

Waddell Wilson, won three NASCAR premier series championships as an engine builder

Robert Yates, won NASCAR premier series championship as both an engine builder and owner

Who would you select for the next NASCAR Hall of Fame class? (Pick 5 only)
Buddy Baker
Red Byron
Richard Childress
Ray Evernham
Ray Fox
Rick Hendrick
Ron Hornaday Jr.
Harry Hyde
Alan Kulwicki
Mark Martin
Hershel McGriff
Raymond Parks
Benny Parsons
Larry Phillips
Jack Roush
Ricky Rudd
Ken Squier
Mike Stefanik
Waddell Wilson
Robert Yates

Vote

View ResultsPolldaddy.com

Winning paint scheme design for Kasey Kahne’s Coke Zero 400 car

Last week Kasey Kahne and Great Clips held a vote for fans to choose what paint scheme the Hendrick Motorsports’ driver would have for the Coke Zero 400 in July at Daytona International Speedway.

The vote was among four designs created by patients at the Seattle Children’s Hospital as part of its “Strong Against Cancer” program.

Kahne later revealed the winner of the contest, which was designed by an 8-year-old named Noelia from White Center, a suburb of Seattle. The paint scheme can be seen on July 2 on NBC.

Below is how the car will look in the race and the original design.

NASCAR drivers to carry names of fallen service members in Coca-Cola 600

For the second consecutive year, all 40 drivers in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Charlotte Motor Speedway will pay tribute to fallen members of the U.S. Armed For

As part of “600 Miles of Remembrance,” the top part of the windshield on each driver’s car will carry the  fallen service member’s rank and last name in place of where driver names are usually located.

Names of fallen service members also will adorn the pace car and grand marshal cars.

The tribute serves as the commemorative launch of “NASCAR: An American Salute,” an initiative within the industry to express collective respect and gratitude to members of the U.S. Armed Forces.

Fans can follow the conversation on social media using #NASCARSalutes.

“Each of the names proudly displayed on these race cars tells a story of honor and sacrifice,” said Brent Dewar, NASCAR chief operating officer. “As the NASCAR industry reflects on Memorial Day Weekend, we’re proud to honor these and all fallen service members in a way that helps ensure their stories and lives are never forgotten.”

Many of the fallen members that will be remembered have direct links to individuals who work for NASCAR teams, including:

* Navy SEAL Denis Miranda, who was killed in a helicopter crash in Kabul, Afghanistan in 2010, trained in BUD/S alongside Graham Molatch, jackman for the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing team. Miranda’s name will appear on Kyle Larson’s car during the Coca-Cola 600.

* Lance Corporal Scott Lynch served in the United States Marine Corps with Mark Singleton, tire changer for Chip Ganassi Racing, and will be honored on Jamie McMurray’s No. 1 car.

* Furniture Row Racing employee John Parks served in the Marines with Jeffrey Bohr, Jr., a gunnery sergeant who was killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom and whose name will be carried on Martin Truex Jr.’s No. 78 car.

In addition, Charlotte Motor Speedway will once again play host to and salute more than 6,000 active-duty military members and their families through the weekend.

Other activities scheduled for the weekend include:

* During Saturday’s Hisense 4K TV 300, NASCAR XFINITY Series drivers will display red, white and blue Xfinity windshield decals on their race cars.

* Goodyear will replace the “Eagle” sidewall design with “Support Our Troops” messaging on all tires used during the weekend.

* NASCAR, Coca-Cola and Mars will offer a sweepstakes to shoppers at more than 180 military commissaries who will have a chance to win a trip for two to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week in Las Vegas.

* Race fans can help assemble care packages for the troops in the midway at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The care packages will include Mars candy and be shipped following the Coca-Cola 600 to deployed military members.

* NASCAR and Honor and Remember, Inc. will display specially prepared Honor and Remember flags representing those who lost their life in service to our country from each of the 50 United States throughout the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series garage at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

* During the Fox Sports broadcast of the Coca-Cola 600, the names and branch of all service members who have lost their lives in the past year will by displayed on a graphic scroll.

* SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90) will have a special military tribute Sunday at 1 p.m. ET., that will include interviews with drivers as well as service men and service women from different branches of the military.

Here’s the list of service members who will be honored with their names atop driver windshields in Sunday’s race:

2016 600 Miles of Remembrance
Car No.DriverSoldierBranchSoldier Hometown

1Jamie McMurrayLCPL Scott Albert LynchMarinesGreenwood Lake, NY
2Brad KeselowskiSPC Joseph T. PrentlerArmyFenwick, MI
3Austin DillonSOC Mark T. CarterNavyFallbrook, CA
4Kevin HarvickLCPL Nathan Ross ElrodMarinesRockwell, NC
5Kasey KahneLCPL Eric Levi WardMarinesRedmond, WA
6Trevor BayneCW4 Jason William McCormackArmyEnterprise, AL
7Regan SmithLCPL Cody Steven ChildersMarinesChesapeake, VA
10Danica PatrickLCPL Benito “cheeks” Ramirez
11Denny HamlinSGT John Davis HarveyMarinesRoanoke, VA
13Casey MearsSPC Christopher Shane WrightArmyTollesboro, KY
14Tony StewartMSG Paul D. KarpowichArmyFreeland, PA
15Clint BowyerMSGT Tara BrownAir ForceLong Island, NJ
16Greg BiffleSPC Joel A. TaylorArmyPinetown, NC
17Ricky Stenhouse Jr.SP4 James (Jim) H. WoolardArmyManchester, OH
18Kyle BuschPFC Robert Stephan UnderwoodArmyO’ Fallon, MO
19Carl EdwardsCPT Edmond Jablonsky Jr.ArmyPasadena, TX
20Matt KensethPFC Christopher Neal WhiteMarinesElizabethtown, KY
21Ryan BlaneySMSN Cherone L. GunnNavyVirginia Beach, VA
NASCAR Select Driver
Kevin Harvick carried the name of fallen military member Sgt. Mracek in last years Coca-Cola 600.
(Matt Sullivan/NASCAR via Getty Images)
NASCAR drivers to carry names of fallen service members in Coca-Cola 600
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By Jerry BonkowskiMay 23, 2016, 1:13 PM EDT
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For the second consecutive year, all 40 drivers in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Charlotte Motor Speedway will pay tribute to fallen members of the U.S. Armed Forces.

As part of “600 Miles of Remembrance,” the top part of the windshield on each driver’s car will carry the  fallen service member’s rank and last name in place of where driver names are usually located.

Names of fallen service members also will adorn the pace car and grand marshal cars.

The tribute serves as the commemorative launch of “NASCAR: An American Salute,” an initiative within the industry to express collective respect and gratitude to members of the U.S. Armed Forces.

Fans can follow the conversation on social media using #NASCARSalutes.

“Each of the names proudly displayed on these race cars tells a story of honor and sacrifice,” said Brent Dewar, NASCAR chief operating officer. “As the NASCAR industry reflects on Memorial Day Weekend, we’re proud to honor these and all fallen service members in a way that helps ensure their stories and lives are never forgotten.”

Many of the fallen members that will be remembered have direct links to individuals who work for NASCAR teams, including:

* Navy SEAL Denis Miranda, who was killed in a helicopter crash in Kabul, Afghanistan in 2010, trained in BUD/S alongside Graham Molatch, jackman for the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing team. Miranda’s name will appear on Kyle Larson’s car during the Coca-Cola 600.

* Lance Corporal Scott Lynch served in the United States Marine Corps with Mark Singleton, tire changer for Chip Ganassi Racing, and will be honored on Jamie McMurray’s No. 1 car.

* Furniture Row Racing employee John Parks served in the Marines with Jeffrey Bohr, Jr., a gunnery sergeant who was killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom and whose name will be carried on Martin Truex Jr.’s No. 78 car.

In addition, Charlotte Motor Speedway will once again play host to and salute more than 6,000 active-duty military members and their families through the weekend.

Other activities scheduled for the weekend include:

* During Saturday’s Hisense 4K TV 300, NASCAR XFINITY Series drivers will display red, white and blue Xfinity windshield decals on their race cars.

* Goodyear will replace the “Eagle” sidewall design with “Support Our Troops” messaging on all tires used during the weekend.

* NASCAR, Coca-Cola and Mars will offer a sweepstakes to shoppers at more than 180 military commissaries who will have a chance to win a trip for two to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week in Las Vegas.

* Race fans can help assemble care packages for the troops in the midway at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The care packages will include Mars candy and be shipped following the Coca-Cola 600 to deployed military members.

* NASCAR and Honor and Remember, Inc. will display specially prepared Honor and Remember flags representing those who lost their life in service to our country from each of the 50 United States throughout the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series garage at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

* During the Fox Sports broadcast of the Coca-Cola 600, the names and branch of all service members who have lost their lives in the past year will by displayed on a graphic scroll.

* SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90) will have a special military tribute Sunday at 1 p.m. ET., that will include interviews with drivers as well as service men and service women from different branches of the military.

Here’s the list of service members who will be honored with their names atop driver windshields in Sunday’s race:

2016 600 Miles of Remembrance
Car No.DriverSoldierBranchSoldier Hometown

1Jamie McMurrayLCPL Scott Albert LynchMarinesGreenwood Lake, NY
2Brad KeselowskiSPC Joseph T. PrentlerArmyFenwick, MI
3Austin DillonSOC Mark T. CarterNavyFallbrook, CA
4Kevin HarvickLCPL Nathan Ross ElrodMarinesRockwell, NC
5Kasey KahneLCPL Eric Levi WardMarinesRedmond, WA
6Trevor BayneCW4 Jason William McCormackArmyEnterprise, AL
7Regan SmithLCPL Cody Steven ChildersMarinesChesapeake, VA
10Danica PatrickLCPL Benito “cheeks” RamirezMarinesEdinburg, TX
11Denny HamlinSGT John Davis HarveyMarinesRoanoke, VA
13Casey MearsSPC Christopher Shane WrightArmyTollesboro, KY
14Tony StewartMSG Paul D. KarpowichArmyFreeland, PA
15Clint BowyerMSGT Tara BrownAir ForceLong Island, NJ
16Greg BiffleSPC Joel A. TaylorArmyPinetown, NC
17Ricky Stenhouse Jr.SP4 James (Jim) H. WoolardArmyManchester, OH
18Kyle BuschPFC Robert Stephan UnderwoodArmyO’ Fallon, MO
19Carl EdwardsCPT Edmond Jablonsky Jr.ArmyPasadena, TX
20Matt KensethPFC Christopher Neal WhiteMarinesElizabethtown, KY
21Ryan BlaneySMSN Cherone L. GunnNavyVirginia Beach, VA
22Joey LoganoSPC Cindy BeaudoinArmyPlainfield, CT
23David RaganLT COL Paul Keith MikealAir ForceMooresville, NC
24Chase ElliottGYSGT Justin MartoneMarinesBedford, VA
27Paul MenardSPC Zachary Lee ShannonArmyDunedin, FL
30Josh WiseSSG Robert A. MassarelliArmyHamilton, OH
31Ryan NewmanSSGT Jason C RamseyerMarinesWest Palm Beach, FL
32Jeffrey EarnhardtCPT Christopher CashArmyOld Orchard Beach, ME
34Chris BuescherSSGT Eric A. McIntoshMarinesIndianapolis, IN
38Landon CassillPVT Earl PlattArmyVestaburg, MI
41Kurt BuschSGT Nicholas Ray GibbsArmyStokesdale, NC
42Kyle LarsonSO3 Denis Christian MirandaNavyToms River, NJ
43Aric AlmirolaSSGT Forrest B. SibleyAir ForcePensacola, FL
44Brian ScottPFC John G. BorbonusUS ArmyBoise, ID
46Michael AnnettPFC Jacob Henry WykstraArmyThornton, CO
47AJ AllmendingerYN3 Wendell WilliamsNavyCincinnati, OH
48Jimmie JohnsonSFC Kyle B. WehrlyArmyGalesburg, IL
55Reed SorensonPFC Jason Hill EstopinalMarinesDallas, GA
78Martin Truex Jr.GYSGT Jeffery E. Bohr, Jr.MarinesOssian, IA
83Matt DiBenedettoCPL Jared C. VerbeekMarinesVisalia, CA
88Dale Earnhardt Jr.LCPL Aaron Howard ReedMarinesChillicothe, OH
95Michael McDowellPFC Andrew Mark KrippnerArmyGarland, TX
98Cole WhittCPL Michael D. Anderson Jr.MarinesModesto, CA
Pace CarCAPT Matthew RollandAir ForceLexington, KY
Split Pace Car1SG Kevin A. DupontMarinesChicopee, MA
Grand Marshal Car 1SGT Bryan Paul AbercrombieArmyClinton, UT
Grand Marshal Car 2SPC Tony J. GonzalesArmyNewman, CA

Branch Breakdown
Army20
Marines 16
Air Force 4
Navy 4
Total Pairings 44