NO. 8 OF NEMECHEK FAILS POST-RACE INSPECTION

LOUDON, N.H. – Following the conclusion of Saturday's UNOH 175 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series inaugural Chase race, NASCAR officials announced that the No. 8 Chevrolet of John Hunter Nemechek failed the post-race heights inspection.

Nemechek brought out the fourth caution of the day, spinning on Lap 53 after slight contact with Kaz Grala, but rallied to finish ninth.

The driver currently sits fourth on the Chase Grid.

Any penalties would be announced later in the week.

Upon Further Review: Mirror image with No. 24 car

JOLIET, Ill. — While rookie Chase Elliott’s third-place finish puts him in a good spot to advance to the next round of the Chase, it doesn’t put away any frustration with trying to score that first Sprint Cup victory.

For the second time in the last four races, Elliott lost the lead in the late stages of a race.

Sunday, Elliott was leading at Chicagoland Speedway when a caution came out for Michael McDowell’s blown tire, sending the race into overtime. Elliott went to pit but came out second. Three cars did not pit. That meant Elliott restarted fifth. Martin Truex Jr. restarted fourth and took the lead shortly after the green flag waved to win his third race of the season.

“There are some things you just can’t control with the amount of guys that stay out and where you line up on a restart,’’ Elliott said. “We played the cards we were dealt and came up short.’’

So when will Elliott win?

Maybe one should look at the driver he’s replaced in the No. 24 — Jeff Gordon.

Sunday’s race was Elliott’s 32nd career Sprint Cup race. Comparing his stats to what Gordon accomplished in his first 32 races (his 32nd career start was the 1994 Daytona 500), the results are eerily similar. Consider their totals:

Wins: Gordon 0; Elliott 0

Runner-up finishes: Gordon 2; Elliott 2

Top-five finishes: Gordon 8; Elliott 8

Top-10 finishes: Gordon 12; Elliott 14

Poles: Gordon 1; Elliott 2

Laps led: Gordon 237; Elliott 238

Gordon scored his first career victory in the 1994 Coca-Cola 600. That was Gordon’s 42nd career series start.

Will Elliott beat that?

RESOUNDING DAY

Although Hendrick Motorsports saw its winless drought reach 22 races — tying its third-longest drought in team history — there was much for the organization to feel good about.

Three of its four drivers finished in the top 10 and its cars led 193 of 270 laps.

Chase Elliott led 75 laps and finished third.

Kasey Kahne finished seventh for his third consecutive top-10 finish.

Alex Bowman, driving the No. 88 in place of Dale Earnhardt Jr., finished a career-best 10th.

Jimmie Johnson led a race-high 118 laps but finished 12th after a speeding penalty on pit road late.

WHAT HARKENS AHEAD?

One of the fascinating aspects about the inaugural Chase in the Camping World Truck Series and Xfinity Series is that no one is quite sure what to expect.

This weekend completed the 12-driver lineup for Xfinity and eight-driver field for the Truck series. Their playoffs begin this week (Trucks in New Hampshire and Xfinity in Kentucky).

While many competitors professed excitement about the tracks in their Chase, some talked about being leery of the aggression surely to be seen in the coming races — just as it has in the Sprint Cup Chase, leading to driver confrontations on and off the track each of the previous two seasons of the elimination-style format.

“It’s going to be very interesting to see how everybody races,’’ said two-time Truck series champion Matt Crafton. “It’s going to bring a lot of different characters.’’

Said Timothy Peters: “I guess the unknown is that the Trucks are already aggressive anyway and the Chase is adding that to boot. The unknown is how many people want to be play bumper cars.’’

There’s also that feeling among some in the Xfinity Series, especially with five of the seven races on 1.5-mile speedways. Track position will be critical.

“I feel like restarts are going to be really important,’’ Brennan Poole said.

Justin Allgaier said aggression could be a key in the Chase but not how much.

“The aggression level is really high right now,’’ he said. “I don’t think it will elevate a whole lot, but I think you’re going to have to manage that through the Chase. You watch a guy get too aggressive and get himself in trouble, then you’re going to have to back yourself down to make sure that you are going to capitalize.’’

Most drivers anticipate the aggression will increase as it gets closer to the championship in Miami.

“Most of these young kids understand the Chase format because they’ve watched it,’’ Brendan Gaughan said. “The problem is understanding it. They see John Hunter Nemechek do what he did a couple of weeks ago (vs. Cole Custer ). They see Ryan Newman at Phoenix (move Kyle Larson out of the way two years ago to reach the final).

“They see all the exciting things. You can make the Chase pretty exciting.’’

PIT STOPS

— Martin Truex Jr. had three wins in his first 369 Sprint Cup starts. He has three wins in his last 27 Cup starts.

— Denny Hamlin’s sixth-place finish extended his career-best streak of consecutive top-10 finishes to nine races.

— Trevor Bayne was Roush Fenway Racing’s top-finishing driver Sunday at Chicagoland. He placed 23rd.

— Clint Bowyer finished 22nd for the third consecutive race.

— Austin Dillon (14th) has placed between 12th and 16th in each of the last four races.

— Jimmie Johnson led 118 laps Sunday. He had led 120 laps in the previous 22 races combined.

— Through 27 races, Kasey Kahne has led 0 laps this season.

— Tony Stewart (16th) has failed to finish in the top 15 in each of the last five races.

John Hunter Nemechek gains primary sponsorship for five of seven Truck chase races

Ahead of his participation in the first Camping World Truck Series Chase, NEMCO Motorsports has announced that John Hunter Nemechek has gained sponsorship from Fire Alarm Services, Inc. for five of the seven postseason races.

Nemechek, who claimed his second win of the year two weeks ago at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in a controversial finish, has already been sponsored by FAS in three races this year, which included a pole at Iowa Speedway.

The No. 8 Chevrolet will have FAS on it beginning with the Chase opening race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sept. 24. It will reappear at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway, Phoenix International Raceway and the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

“NEMCO Motorsports is very proud and honored to have Fire Alarm Services, Inc., return as a primary sponsor for a majority of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Chase events,” team owner Joe Nemechek said in a press release. “John Hunter (Nemechek) captured the first pole award for Fire Alarm Services, Inc., and we hope to capture the first championship with them as well.”

Nemechek will be one of eight drivers in the Truck Series’ Chase field. The field will be completely set in this weekend’s regular season finale at Chicagoland Speedway.

Truck series rookie William Byron’s fourth win sets record for Kyle Busch Motorsports

SPARTA, Ky. – William Byron scored his fourth Camping World Truck Series victory through 10 starts this season, capturing the Buckle Up in Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway.

Byron’s No. 9 Toyota held off a charge by John Hunter Nemechek, who finished 0.190 seconds behind in the first NASCAR race on the 1.5-mile oval’s repaved and reconfigured surface. Byron, 18, moved onto the truck circuit this year after winning the 2015 K&N East championship last year as a rookie.

“It just keeps going, man,” Byron told FS1. “I’ve got a great team behind me.”

The win marked a truck series-record 51st for Kyle Busch Motorsports, whose team owner also was racing Thursday. The defending Sprint Cup champion finished 30th after crashing but still reveled in Byron’s win.

“I’ve tried to assemble a great group of guys,” said Busch, who started the team in 2010. “I feel like we have a great group of guys now.

“It’s been a lot of fun, it’s been a lot trying times, it’s been a lot of blood, sweat and tears by both my wife and myself and all these guys that are on this team now and all the people that have been a part of Kyle Busch Motorsports in the years past. We wouldn’t be here without all them. This is a special moment.”

Daniel Hemric finished third, followed by Christopher Bell and Johnny Sauter.

HOW BYRON WON: He took first from Timothy Peters on the 82nd of 150 laps and didn’t relinquish the lead over the final 69 laps.

WHO ELSE HAD A GOOD RACE: Nemechek’s runner-up finish was his first top five since a second at Martinsville Speedway three months ago. … Daniel Suarez started from the pole and led 59 laps in an 11th-place finish … Hemric tied his season-best finish with his second consecutive third.

WHO HAD A BAD RACE: Brett Moffitt completed only 26 laps before being finishing 31st with an engine failure. … Rookie Austin Wayne Self suffered a transmission failure just past the halfway mark.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “It was self-inflicted, I guess. Got back in traffic, and I don’t know. Going down the backstretch I thought I had enough room on the inside, but I know who I crashed with. That doesn’t surprise me. Now I know how John Wes Townley feels. It’s just a shame. Brand new truck and really good piece. Destroyed..” – Busch after his crash with Spencer Gallagher (who was involved in a memorable wreck and fight with Townley two weeks ago).

WHAT’S NEXT: The series will return Wednesday, July 20 at Eldora Speedway (green flag is 9:16 p.m. ET).

Ben Rhodes sweeps Camping World Truck practices at Gateway

Ben Rhodes posted the fastest lap in Saturday’s final practice session for the Camping World Truck Series race at Gateway Motorsports Park with a lap of 135.755 mph. Rhodes also was the fastest in the opening session Saturday at 135.738 mph.

Johnny Sauter was second in Saturday’s final practice at 135.510 mph with John Hunter Nemechek third at 135.054 mph.

Rico Abreu, who crashed in the first practice session, did not make it on the track for the final session. His team was busy preparing the backup. He will have no laps on that vehicle at Gateway when he qualifies at 5:45 p.m. ET today. The race is at 8:30 p.m. ET.

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Christopher Bell fastest in final Truck practice at Iowa

The final Camping World Truck Series practice at Iowa Speedway was led by rookieChristopher Bell.

Bell put up a speed of 135.292 mph in the session as he recorded 35 laps around the short track.

The top five was filled out by Cameron Hayley, Ben Kennedy, Kaz Grala and Tyler Reddick.

John Hunter Nemechek had the best 10-lap average at 131.415 mph.

The first session was led by Ben Rhodes. The ThorSport Racing rookie was 19th fastest in the second session.

Speed chart

Matt Crafton: No movement on a Drivers’ Council in the Truck series

FORT WORTH – A year ago at Texas Motor Speedway, two-time Camping World Truck Series champion Matt Crafton stated he believed all three of NASCAR’s national touring series should have a Drivers’ Council.

Crafton’s statement came a month after the Sprint Cup Series’ first council formed.

“(NASCAR’s) constantly making rule changes and trying to make the sport better and sometimes we as drivers feel things whenever they make a rule change, and I think they need to hear it sometimes,” said Crafton at the time. “Not in a bad way or good way, but we need to be able to talk to them for sure.”

Crafton, in his 16th full-time season in the Truck series, now says he hasn’t heard any rumblings about the formation of similar Drivers Councils for the lower-tier series.

“I haven’t had any talks about it,” Crafton told NBC Sports in his team’s hauler Thursday. “I wish they would; they would talk to us. There’s not a whole lot of drivers in this series that they’re probably going to listen to, because they haven’t been here long enough to listen to them.”

The Sprint Cup Drivers Council currently is comprised of nine drivers, including five past champions and defending series champion Kyle Busch. In the Truck series, Crafton is the only champion from the last 10 seasons actively driving in the series. Last year’s champion,Erik Jones, is driving full time in the Xfinity Series.

Crafton said a hypothetical Drivers Council for the truck series would be comprised of series veterans.

“I know there is probably a handful of them they probably should listen to and be able to speak their minds and talk to them about things,” Crafton said. “I’m not saying the rookies shouldn’t have a voice, but at the end of the day, they need to earn the respect to have it.”

Veterans of Crafton’s caliber are sparse among the 20 drivers who have run all six races in 2016. Of those 20, Crafton is one of five drivers who have competed in every race over the past two seasons (22 races in 2014, 23 races in 2015). That includes, Johnny Sauter,Timothy Peters, Ben Kennedy and Tyler Young.

John Wes Townley, who won his first Truck race last year, has missed only four races since 2012. Drivers such as John Hunter Nemechek and Cole Custer, both multiple race winners, likely would have attempted full-time seasons if not for NASCAR’s age limits for tracks larger than 1.25-miles.

If he officially were able to convene with his fellow veterans and a couple of younger drivers with NASCAR, Crafton knows at least one topic he’d like to discuss.

“Differences in how (the trucks) drove in traffic five years ago and how they drive in traffic now,” Crafton said “I’d like to talk about some of that stuff with them and see if we can make the racing even better than what it is already.”

Fire Alarm Services sponsoring John Hunter Nemechek at Texas

It’s no secret that John Hunter Nemechek has had sponsorship struggles in his last two seasons in the Camping World Truck Series.

last three races. Monday, NEMCO Motorsports announced it has added the sponsorship of Fire Alarm Services for Friday night’s Rattlesnake 400 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Nemechek, a two-time winner in the Truck series and the series’ most popular driver in 2015, has had to scrap together primary sponsorship for NEMCO Motorsports No. 8 Chevrolet in the first six races of the year.

After going sponsorless in the races at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where Nemecheck won, and Martinsville Speedway, the team has had sponsorship by Andy’s Frozen Custard and Cricket SX3 in the last three races.

FAS has provided “fire and life safety and security services and products for protecting their client’s real estate investment” since 1997.

FAS, which has sponsored Regan Smith in the Xfinity and Sprint Cup Series, is sponsoring a team in the Camping World Truck Serie for the first time. It sponsored Smith in the April Sprint Cup race at Texas.

The Rattlesnake 400 is set for 9 p.m. ET Friday on Fox Sports 1.

Timothy Peters assumes Truck series points lead after Kansas

After finishing eighth in the Toyota Tundra 250, Timothy Peters leaves Kansas Speedway holding the points lead in the Camping World Truck Series.

Peters gained two spots after earning his third top-10 finish of the season. Peters’ move into the points lead comes when his No. 17 truck for Red Horse Racing hasn’t had primary sponsorship for three of the season’s first four races.

Filling out the top five is Daniel Hemric (-8), Ryan Truex (-10), Tyler Young (-14) and John Hunter Nemechek (-15). Nemecheck had entered the weekend leading the standings.

Hemric, Crafton and race winner William Byron all gained five spots in the standings. Byron is now seventh behind Crafton.

The biggest gain in the standings was eight spots to 14th by Christopher Bell. Bell earned his best finish in four starts this season and his first top-five finish.