Jeffrey Earnhardt to drive for BK Racing at Talladega

Jeffrey Earnhardt will drive the No. 83 car for BK Racing at Talladega Superspeedway, the team announced Monday.

Earnhardt, the grandson of Dale Earnhardt Sr., will have Starter as a sponsor.

He’ll be in one of three BK Racing cars entered this weekend. David Ragan is in the No. 23 car, and Matt DiBenedetto, who regularly drives the No. 83 car, will be in the No. 93 car this weekend.

“I’m really excited to drive the No. 83 Starter Toyota Camry for the fall race at Talladega,” Earnhardt said in a statement from the team. “It’s my first Cup Series race at Talladega, my first race with BK Racing, the first time anyone from our family competes in a Toyota and it’s the 25th anniversary of my grandfather’s victory at Talladega. Having this opportunity with an iconic American partner like Starter is an incredible honor. I can’t remember being so pumped up for a race and sincerely appreciate our friends at Starter for their support.”

Dale Earnhardt Sr. won a record 10 Cup races at Talladega. His first victory there came in 1983. He won five of nine Talladega races from 1990-94.

Doug Richert, who served as Dale Earnhardt Sr.’s crew chief when he won the first of his seven titles in 1980, will be Jeffrey Earnhardt’s crew chief this weekend.

“I’m looking forward to once again returning to the track as crew chief with an Earnhardt behind the wheel,” Richert said in a statement from the team. “The Earnhardt family has played such an important part in my racing career; starting in 1978 with Dale Sr. and then winning a championship with him in 1980, it’s very cool to work with the fourth generation of the family.”

Jeffrey Earnhardt regularly drives the No. 32 for Go Fas Racing but Bobby Labonteis driving that car this weekend, giving Earnhardt the opportunity to drive for BK Racing.

Jeffrey Earnhardt’s appearance at Talladega will continue the family’s streak of starts at the track. An Earnhardt family member has started every Talladega Sprint Cup race there since 1980.

Kevin Harvick outruns Carl Edwards to win Hollywood Casino 400

Kevin Harvick took advantage of Carl Edwards dueling with a teammate to lead the final 30 laps and win the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.

Harvick clinches a spot in the third round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup with the win.

The No. 4 was followed by Edwards, Joey Logano, Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch.

Harvick, who led 74 laps, has won the second race in both rounds of the Chase so far. He won at New Hampshire in the first round.

“These races are hard to win and these guys are so good at the details,” Harvick told NBC Sports. “You put their backs against the wall and they get better.”

Harvick first took the lead on Lap 126 from Matt Kenseth, who led 116 laps before the halfway point before fading to finish ninth. Harvick then led 43 laps. In the middle of the race, a slow pit stop sent Harvick deep into the top 10, but Harvick returned to the point on the final restart. Edwards got into a tense battle with Busch, allowing Harvick to jump out to a 2.5-second lead.

Since the elimination format of the Chase debuted in 2014, Harvick has never been eliminated from a round.

“It’s hard to keep yourself motivated and perform at a high level, so to be able to come out and do it for three years says a lot about the character of this team and the things that they do,” Harvick said. “I’ve done a poor job (on restarts) the first half of the year. We struggled with some ratios and timing. We came up with some good ratios and things that really fit what we are doing.”

Harvick’s fourth win of the year gives him 35 Sprint Cup victories.

MORE: Race results

MORE: Point standings

HOW KEVIN HARVICK WON: Harvick overtook Carl Edwards on the final restart with 30 to go and led the rest of the way unchallenged.

WHO HAD A GOOD DAY: Carl Edwards led 61 laps and earned his first top five since Kentucky in July … Joey Logano finished third a week after placing 36th at Charlotte … Jimmie Johnson followed up his Charlotte win with a fourth-place finish … Alex Bowman bounced back from early contact with Jamie McMurray and an unscheduled pit stop to finish seventh for his career-best finish and his second top 10 … A.J. Allmendinger finished eighth for his sixth top 10 of the season and his first since Bristol in August …Kasey Kahne‘s 10th-place finish gives him six top 10s in the last seven races.

WHO HAD A BAD DAY: Aric Almirola andDavid Ragan caused a caution on Lap 37 when they got together. Almirola finished 40th, Ragan in 36th … Jamie McMurray hit the wall on Lap 44 after making contact with Alex Bowman. McMurray finished 37th … Kyle Larson hit the outside wall on Lap 177 to bring out the caution. Larson finished 30th … Brad Keselowski was turned by Denny Hamlinas they exited Turn 4 on Lap 190. Keselowski went sliding through the frontstretch grass, receiving significant damage. Keselowski finished 38th, earning his first DNF since the 2015 Daytona 500 … Denny Hamlin finished 15th after having to pit three times under one caution for splitter damage and being called for three pit road penalties late.

Notable: The last four Kansas races have been won by a different driver … Chevrolet has won 11 of the 22 Sprint Cup races held at Kansas.

Quote of the Day: “With this format I had a big points gap coming in. With this format it is probably the smart thing to do but I don’t want to race like that. I want to race my guts out and go for wins. I don’t want to points race. I don’t care what the damn format is, I am going to give it my best.” – Brad Keselowski after finishing 38th

NEXT: Alabama 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on Oct. 23 at 2 p.m. ET on NBCSN

One of the championship favorites will skip critical test at Homestead-Miami Speedway

A championship contender – possibly the early favorite — will be absent from next week’s test at Homestead-Miami Speedway, whose Nov. 20 season finale will decide the Sprint Cup title.

Furniture Row Racing won’t bring Martin Truex Jr.’s No. 78 Toyota to the Oct. 18-19 session at the 1.5-mile oval. A team spokesman said the test was removed from the team’s schedule last week and didn’t know the reason.

Homestead-Miami Speedway will play host to the last of several “organizational tests” scheduled by NASCAR during the season. In an organizational test, which isn’t mandatory, only one car per organization is permitted to participate.

As a single-car team, Furniture Row Racing wouldn’t have been in the predicament of having to choose who would test among multiple contenders, which is the case with Joe Gibbs Racing and its four Chase-eligible drivers.

Every other remaining championship contender will be represented at Homestead-Miami Speedway next week: Team Penske (Brad Keselowski), Hendrick Motorsports (Chase Elliott), Stewart-Haas Racing (Kurt Busch), Joe Gibbs Racing (Carl Edwards), Richard Childress Racing (Austin Dillon).

Truex won two of the first three races in the 2016 playoffs at Chicagoland Speedway and Dover International Speedway. He reached the championship round last season, finishing fourth among the Chase contenders (12th overall).

Here’s the list of drivers and teams that are testing at Homestead-Miami Speedway next week (current championship contenders in bold):

–Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Ford, Team Penske

–Carl Edwards, No.19 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing

–Chase Elliott, No. 24 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports

–Austin Dillon, No. 3 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing

–Kurt Busch, No.. 41 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing

—Chris Buescher, No. 34 Ford, Front Row Motorsports

—Aric Almirola, No. 43 Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports

—Ryan Blaney, No. 21 Ford, Wood Brothers Racing

—Trevor Bayne, No. 6 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing

—Kyle Larson, No. 42 Chevrolet, Chip Ganassi Racing

—Michael McDowell, No. 95 Chevrolet, Circle-Sport Leavine Family Racing

—David Ragan, No. 23 Toyota, BK Racing

Chris Buescher goes from Xfinity Series champion to rookie Chase driver (video)

Mission accomplished for Chris Buescher and Front Row Motorsports.

Buescher locked up a spot in the Chase Saturday night at Richmond with a 24th-place finish in the Federated Auto Parts 400. It was enough to keep him inside the top 30 in points, making him eligible for the playoffs after winning a rain-shortened Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono Raceway last month.

It is Buescher’s first Chase appearance in his rookie season in the Sprint Cup Series. It is also the first time Front Row has been represented in the Chase.

“It’s obviously a big night for Front Row Motorsports and (owner) Bob Jenkins,” Buescher told NBCSN. “For a small team like we are to be able to pull it off and get that win at Pocono and find ourselves in the Chase right now, it’s pretty special.”

The 2015 Xfinity Series champion entered Richmond with an 11-point lead on David Ragan for 30th in points. Looking to stay out trouble, Buescher was having an incident-free night until he had to make an unscheduled pit stop on Lap 308 for a flat tire.

After going two laps down, the No. 34 team worked their way back onto the lead lap and then suffered minor damage during a multi-car wreck with 40 laps to go. Buescher was able to finish the race and locked in his Chase spot by moving to 29th in the point standings with a 21-point gap on 31st place.

Sprint Cup Chase Bubble outlook entering the Southern 500

Thanks to Chris Buescher and Kyle Larson the next two weeks will be a lot more interesting.

With Larson’s win at Michigan and Buescher’s upset in the fog-shortened race at Pocono last month, there are only three spots left to be filled on the grid for the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

At the most, two spots could potentially be filled by first-time winners in the Southern 500 or next week at Richmond.

Then comes the wrench named Buescher.

The rookie driver is only on the grid because he’s narrowly in the top 30 in points. Buescher is ahead of David Ragan by just seven points, down from 13 entering Michigan.

If the Front Row Motorsports driver falters further in the next two races, he could allow for at least four more drivers to point their way into the Chase.

Here’s a look at how the Chase bubble looks with and without Buescher in the top 30 in points.

While Buescher has said Darlington is his favorite track on the NASCAR circuit, he has not made a start there in the Sprint Cup Series. But in four starts there in the Xfinity Series, Buescher has one top five (2015).

The Southern 500 airs Sunday at 6 p.m. ET on NBC.

Brett Moffitt making first NASCAR start of year subbing for Matt Tifft in Truck race

Brett Moffitt, the 2015 Sprint Cup rookie of the year, will drive Red Horse Racing’s No. 11 truck for Matt Tifft in Thursday night’s Camping World Truck Series race at Kentucky Speedway.

Tifft is out indefinitely as he recovers from brain surgery July 1 to remove a low-grade tumor. Moffitt, who hasn’t competed in a NASCAR race since the 2015 Sprint Cup finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, will be driving in his third Truck race but his first since 2013.

“Obviously, we’re thinking of Matt and can’t wait for him to return, so we’re sending him our best wishes and we hope to see him back at the track soon,” said Moffitt in a press release. “I hate that it’s under these circumstances, but I’m really grateful for this opportunity with Red Horse Racing and I hope it can lead to more.”

Tifft was replaced by German Quiroga two weeks ago at Iowa Speedway.

Moffitt, 23, earned the Sprint Cup Rookie of the Year honor last season after making 31 starts for Michael Waltrip Racing and Front Row Motorsports as a substitute driver for Brian Vickers and David Ragan.

Moffitt’s best finish in those 31 races was eighth at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The native of Grimes, Iowa, made the first of his two 2013 Truck starts at Kentucky Speedway driving for ThorSport Racing. He started 34th and finished 14th.

Matt Tifft to undergo surgery for tumor in his brain

Joe Gibbs Racing announced that Matt Tifft will undergo surgery for removal of a low-grade glioma in his brain.

The slow-growing tumor was found during treatment and evaluation for a recent disk condition in his back. Tifft, who turned 20 years old two days ago, is expected to undergo surgery and rehabilitation soon afterward and is expected to return to racing once cleared by doctors.

David Ragan will drive for Tifft in Friday night’s NASCAR Xfinity race at Daytona International Speedway.

Tifft did not drive in either the recent Xfinity or Camping World Truck Series races at Iowa Speedway. Sam Hornish Jr. won the Xfinity race at Iowa with Joe Gibbs Racing. German Quiroga drove in the Truck series race for Tifft.

Tifft had driven in three Truck series races and six Xfinity races. He won the pole for the Xfinity race at Talladega.

Ragan drove nine races for Joe Gibbs Racing last season in the Sprint Cup Series after Kyle Busch was injured. Ragan had three top-10 finishes, including a fourth-place result at Auto Club Speedway. He finished the season with Michael Waltrip Racing. Ragan is driving in the Cup series this year for BK Racing.

Watch LIVE: NASCAR America at 6 p.m. ET: Darrell Wallace Jr., season recap and more

Today’s episode of NASCAR America airs from 6 – 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN and feature Xfinity Series driver Darrell Wallace, who will help preview this weekend’s race at Iowa Speedway.

Carolyn Manno hosts with Parker Kligermanfrom Stamford, Connecticut. They are joined by Dale Jarrett, Steve Letarte and Bubba Wallace from NBC Charlotte.

On today’s show:

• Rapid fire with Dale Jarrett and Steve Letarte as we reflect on the season so far.  Find out which driver has stood out most through the first 15 Sprint Cup races and the driver who is outside the top 16 with the best chance to make the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

• Darrell Wallace Jr., driver of the No. 6 Ford Ecoboost Mustang for Roush Fenway Racing in the Xfinity Series joins the show. We’ll look back on some of Bubba’s most memorable moments on social media. Jarrett will critique Wallace’s golf swing and Kligerman will reveal Bubba’s best bromance.

• Kligerman jumps into the NBCSN iRacing simulator with Wallace playing “crew chief” with a preview of what to expect in Sunday’s Xfinity Series race at Iowa Speedway.

• David Ragan calls into NASCAR America and shares his family’s racing history in today’s edition of My Home Track.

If you’re not near a TV, you can watch online or on the NBC Sports app via at the NASCAR stream on NBC Sports.

If you plan to stream the show on your laptop or portable device, be sure to have your username and password from your cable/satellite/telco provider handy so your subscription can be verified.

Once you enter that information, you’ll have access to the stream.

Click here at 6 p.m. ET to watch live via the stream.