RYAN NEWMAN PLANS TO STICK WITH RCR IN 2017

LONG POND, Pa. -- Richard Childress Racing is expected to announce its 2017 Sprint Cup Series driver lineup in the coming weeks.

Ryan Newman, in his third season as driver of the No. 31 RCR Chevrolet, isn't quite sure if he'll be a part of it.

"We haven't talked about it in-depth yet, but we have talked about it," Newman, 13th in points, said Thursday at Kalahari Resort in Pocono Manor, Pennsylvania. "Hopefully, we'll get to sit down and talk about it soon."

Newman has been arguably the organization's most successful driver during his tenure with the longtime Sprint Cup Series stable, coming within a straightaway of his first championship in 2014 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

His numbers are down slightly from the past two seasons (just one top-five finish and seven finishes in the top 10), but his team, winless since he started driving the No. 31 Chevrolet, employs a consistent points-racing strategy that focuses on solid finishes rather than gambling for a victory.

It worked wonders in '14, and with 12 finishes inside the top 15 this season and several more on the cusp, appears to be working in 2016. He sits 13th in the drivers points standings coming into Pocono. That doesn't mean, however, that NASCAR's "Rocket Man" isn't looking to launch himself into Victory Lane.

"We're kind of getting back into that zone of having better finishes, better runs," Newman said. "We had a great run going last week (at Indianapolis) and crashed out with seven laps to go or whatever. So we feel like we've turned the momentum back in our favor but in the end we still have to deliver that victory."

While Newman offers consistent, above-average production week in and week out, RCR may be faced with a tough decision as Childress' grandson, Ty Dillon, appears ready for a full-time Sprint Cup Series ride with no clear path to a spot for him.

RELATED: Dillon talks 2017 plans, aims to make move up

Still, the team owner told NASCAR.com earlier this year at Michigan International Speedway that he's planning on having the '16 XFINITY Series title hopeful in a Sprint Cup car full-time in 2017, while the exact organization and ride has yet to be finalized.

Dillon has made five starts in the No. 95 Circle Sport-Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet this season with a best finish of 20th (Texas). It's possible Dillon could slide over to that ride full-time, but it would leave veteran Michael McDowell without a seat.
Dillon also ran three Sprint Cup Series races filling in for injured Tony Stewart in the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet, getting his season-best finish of 15th at Phoenix. His relief duty in the Talladega race was not credited as an official start for Dillon since Stewart began the race behind the wheel.

In a report by NBC Sports' Dustin Long earlier this month, Childress said, "Right now, it's just a lot of things are hanging. We're trying to put together what's going to be the best for everybody, not just for RCR, but for the drivers and the sponsors; we're trying to put together good programs."

Right now, Newman doesn't appear to be getting his ducks in order just yet on the off chance he finds himself ousted from his ride in favor of the younger Dillon.

"I plan on (coming back)," he said. "If they'll have me back, I'll be there."

TRUEX TAMES POCONO FOR COORS LIGHT POLE AWARD

LONG POND, Pa. – Martin Truex Jr. found a lot more than light at the end of the Tunnel on Friday afternoon at Pocono Raceway.

Gaining time on the rest of the field through Turn 2—the Tunnel Turn—at the 2.5-mile triangular race track, Truex put his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota on the pole for Sunday’s Pennsylvania 400 (on NBCSN at 1:30 p.m. ET; MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), knocking fellow Toyota Camry driver Carl Edwards out of the top starting spot.

It's not that Truex and his team made a special point of emphasis on that particularly tricky corner. It just worked out that way, earning Truex his third Coors Light Pole Award of the season, his first at Pocono and the 10th of his career.

"For whatever reason, today—all day long—I felt comfortable there, more so than past times here," said Truex, who ran his fastest lap of the day (179.244 mph) in the third and final round of knockout qualifying for the 21st NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race of the season. "The first race here (in June) we really struggled in the Tunnel Turn.

"We kind of focused on it a little bit coming back, as far as just making sure it was closer to Turn 1 and Turn 3 and not something that would really handcuff us so bad. So maybe that had something to do with it—I'm not sure—but it just kind of worked out that way, for whatever reason.

"Each round I felt a little bit more comfortable and was able to gain a little more time there, and the third round I was able to just kind of sail off in there and get a little bit lucky and hit it right. It's one of those corners that, if you take a risk going in, nine out of 10 times it doesn’t pay off coming out of the corner. This time it did, and we were able to take advantage of it."

On the strength of his run through the Tunnel Turn, Truex covered the distance in 50.211 seconds, .104 seconds faster than Edwards (178.873 mph), who thought he had the pole won when he completed his lap in the final round.

"As I crossed the line, I felt like, 'That’s it'," said Edwards, who was a close second to Kyle Busch in pole qualifying last week at Indianapolis. "But after seeing what (Truex) ran, I thought 'Well, maybe I could go back and change this or that,' but that was a really good lap for me. It just was.

"You can always go back and pick your lap apart, but the last two weeks, Indy and here, I was pretty proud of my lap, and they just got us."

Paul Menard (178.671 mph) qualified third, the fastest of three Richard Childress Racing drivers in the top 12, with Ryan Newman placing fifth and Austin Dillon placing 12th. That's the first time all three RCR Chevrolets have cracked the top 12 for the same race since August of 2014 at Michigan.

Denny Hamlin claimed the fourth spot on the grid. Tony Stewart, Brad Keselowski, Chase Elliott, Matt Kenseth and Joey Logano will start from positions six through 10, respectively.

Subbing for ailing Dale Earnhardt Jr., six-time Pocono winner Jeff Gordon advanced to the second round but went no farther, qualifying 24th. Gordon made two runs in the first round to ensure he would make the second, and that eventually cost him.

"The first time out, the car was pretty close, a little bit tight, but we should have been better that first time out, and then we wouldn't of had to gone out the second time," Gordon said. "But overall just too tight over the Tunnel (Turn). 

"The car is really good down in (Turn) 1. I picked up speed every time we went out. I think having to do that last run our third time on tires didn’t really give us a good chance to advance and get the lap that we wanted. It's still a work in progress."

NASCAR competition officials delayed the start of qualifying by 20 minutes to allow teams extra time to make their way through the Laser Inspection Station (LIS). Scott Miller, NASCAR senior vice president of competition, said that a glitch early Friday forced the wait time in the inspection process.

"I'm not exactly sure of the exact technical thing that happened (with the LIS), but it got back online really quick," Miller said. "One thing I want to make clear is, the reason we're moving this back is because we had a little bit of ownership in it with our equipment. On a regular weekend, if everything … if we had our time block and our equipment worked fine and this was a team issue getting through templates and they didn't get out there, we would be inclined not to extend qualifying and if they miss qualifying it's on them."

Despite the delay, all teams made it through inspection in time for the first 20-minute round of qualifying. The last of those was the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota team for driver Kyle Busch, who cut it close but made his first qualifying pass with roughly five minutes left in the opening session. No. 18 crew chief Adam Stevens told NBCSN that the car was initially out of tolerance with the rear-axle toe. Busch will start 16th after missing out on the 12-driver cut after qualifying's Round 2. His brother Kurt, who won the Sprint Cup tour's most recent race at Pocono, was 15th-fastest and will start alongside him in the eighth row.

TRUEX TAMES POCONO FOR COORS LIGHT POLE AWARD

Martin Truex Jr. stormed to the Coors Light Pole Award in Friday's qualifying for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Pocono Raceway.

Truex logged a fast lap of 179.244 mph in the Furniture Row Racing No. 78 Toyota on the 2.5-mile triangular track. He'll start first in Sunday's Pennsylvania 400 (1:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM), the 21st of 36 points-paying races for the circuit this year.

The Coors Light Pole Award is Truex's third of the season, his first at Pocono and the 10th of his Sprint Cup career.

Carl Edwards' Joe Gibbs Racing No. 19 Toyota will start alongside Truex in Sunday's 400-miler after posting the second-fastest qualifying lap (178.873 mph) in the final five-minute session. Paul Menard, Denny Hamlin and Ryan Newman completed the top five.

Jeff Gordon, a six-time Pocono winner making his second Sprint Cup start of the season in place of Dale Earnhardt Jr., was 24th-fastest in the Hendrick Motorsports No. 88 Chevrolet. Earnhardt is missing his third consecutive race weekend, out indefinitely as he recovers from concussion-like symptoms.

NASCAR competition officials delayed the start of qualifying by 20 minutes to allow teams extra time to make their way through the Laser Inspection Station (LIS). Scott Miller, NASCAR senior vice president of competition, said that a glitch early Friday forced the wait time in the inspection process.

"I'm not exactly sure of the exact technical thing that happened (with the LIS), but it got back online really quick," Miller said. "One thing I want to make clear is, the reason we're moving this back is because we had a little bit of ownership in it with our equipment. On a regular weekend, if everything … if we had our time block and our equipment worked fine and this was a team issue getting through templates and they didn't get out there, we would be inclined not to extend qualifying and if they miss qualifying it's on them."

Despite the delay, all teams made it through inspection in time for the first 20-minute round of qualifying. The last of those was the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota team for driver Kyle Busch, who cut it close but made his first qualifying pass with roughly five minutes left in the opening session. No. 18 crew chief Adam Stevens told NBCSN that the car was initially out of tolerance with the rear-axle toe.

Busch will start 16th after missing out on the 12-driver cut after qualifying's Round 2. His brother Kurt, who won the Sprint Cup tour's most recent race at Pocono, was 15th-fastest and will start alongside him in the eighth row.

Greg Biffle just missed the 24-driver cutoff in the opening round of qualifying, with a late run by rookie Chris Buescher knocking him to 25th-fastest.

Sprint Cup teams have an 80-minute final practice scheduled Saturday at 11 a.m. ET (NBCSN) ahead of Sunday's Pennsylvania 400 (1:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

ALMIROLA REFLECTS ON CAREER, HERITAGE AS HE MAKES 200TH START

Aric Almirola insists he was absolutely prepared to climb into his No. 43 Smithfield Ford this Sunday for the Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono Raceway completely focused on nothing other than scoring a victory and working toward earning a position in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

But his public relations team brought up an important milestone that even he conceded was definitely worth noting, if not celebrating. This Sunday's race marks the 32-year old Almirola's 200th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start -- a significant measure of his staying power and a testament to how far he's come. Literally.

He is the son of a Cuban immigrant on his dad's side of the family and the grandson of one of Florida's most celebrated and accomplished racers -- Sam Rodriguez -- on his mom's side. That has created a unique background dynamic that gives Almirola motivation and pride. And makes this weekend a heartfelt measure of success.

"I think here I am and my dad came over from Cuba and 50 years later I'm making my 200th start in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Richard Petty," Almirola said. "It's so crazy to me, what living in this country affords you and allows you to be able to do, and my grandparents made that decision to come over here and take this chance."

The sheer number of starts represents a mark of opportunity for Almirola. Making it into NASCAR's big league was always the harder path, the road less travelled.

But he has made it. And that's only the beginning.

"I don't think anybody dreams about running two hundred races, they dream about 'a' race," Almirola said. "So as a kid I dreamed about driving 'a' Cup car, running 'a' race. So, now the fact I've had the opportunity to do it two hundred times, when you realize that, and the marketing department brings to your attention that, 'Hey, Pocono is going to be your 200th start,' it really makes you kind of reflect on everything that's led up to this.

"From being a kid racing go-karts all the way up to all the opportunities I've had. I realize by reflecting on all that stuff how fortunate and blessed I am."

The thing is, Almirola could have just as easily been a star baseball player as a winning NASCAR driver.

His native city of Tampa, Florida is a ballplayer's town. It produced Wade Boggs and Lou Piniella. Both Dwight Gooden and Gary Sheffield graduated from Almirola's Hillsborough High School.

A calendar year in this part of the country has traditionally been delineated by baseball and football seasons. That just makes Almirola's success climbing the NASCAR ranks even more impressive.

"I was in somewhat of a hot bed there for athletes," Almirola said smiling. "But I had a really strong passion for racing and I know that made me somewhat of an outsider at school growing up. When friends would ask, 'Hey what are you doing this weekend?' I'd say, I was going racing.

"That kind of separated me from a lot of kids at school -- not in a bad way, I wasn't an outcast in a negative way, but I didn't have as close a relationship with kids at school because I didn't go parties at their house Friday night after football games. I was always working on my race cars or go-karts and racing on the weekends.

"I wasn't looking for something to do on the weekend. I already had it."

"I was always going to be a NASCAR guy. My grandfather raced sprint cars, so obviously the open wheel path was there, too. He'd race at East Bay every Saturday night and occasionally travel around the country going to races. But every Sunday it was normal, to get up, eat breakfast, hang around the house and then watch the Cup race. That was routine around my parents and my grandparents. We love NASCAR."

The result for Almirola has been a starring role driving his sport's most iconic car -- the No. 43 -- for the sport's biggest legend, Petty.

NASCAR's crown jewel, Daytona International Speedway, is also Almirola's "home track" and fittingly the venue he won his first Sprint Cup Series race in 2014, the Coke Zero 400 -- exactly 30 years after his boss Petty scored his historic 200th victory at the track.

Consider this: Petty's win total would be equivalent to Almirola winning every start he's made.

RELATED: Almirola's Darlington scheme honors Petty | Darlington schemes

Though that remains the only Cup victory so far for Almirola, it was enough to propel him into the 2014 Chase and make him only more eager to return. His team's best finish this year is a 12th-place in the season-opening Daytona 500. He's had four top-15 showings -- three in the season's opening four races. He ranks 25th in points entering Pocono, hopeful to score a win in one of the remaining six races to set the 16-driver Chase field.

"I think the reality is we have struggled this season and you can tell by watching the race and looking at our results," Almirola said. "This year has been a struggle and we can't really put our finger on what's wrong. People often ask what's wrong and it sounds like a smart-aleck answer, but if I knew, we'd fix it.

"There are a couple places looking ahead that have been strong for us. Bristol comes to top of mind. We had a chance to win there a couple years ago battling with Carl Edwards. And then there's (regular season finale) Richmond. Last year we went there kinda do or die to make the Chase and finished fourth, but had a really strong car and a legitimate chance to win that race, too. Those are kind of top of mind to me where we might go in and get a win."

Listening to Almirola reflect on his first 200 races, there is both a fond memory of what it took to get to this point and a distinct urgency in his voice to succeed in a way worthy of the hard work already put in.

"Making my 200th start really forces me to reflect and when I do that and think about doing it for Richard Petty, who is very much an American icon. And I can't help but reflect on my family, which has done so much and sacrificed so much to get me where I'm at," Almirola said.

"It really is amazing."

RACE START TIMES FOR 2017 SCHEDULE UNVEILED

NASCAR has released the starting times for 2017 races in all three national series.

Among the biggest changes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the first night race for next year will be May 13 at Kansas Speedway. The spring race at Texas Motor Speedway -- typically run under the lights -- moves to an afternoon green flag (1:30 p.m. ET).

Eight races from the first half of the season will move their afternoon starting times from 1 p.m. ET to 2 p.m. ET or later, including the season-opening Daytona 500 with a 2 p.m. ET start on Feb. 26, 2017.

The four races at Pocono Raceway and Michigan International Speedway move from 1 p.m. ET starts to 3 p.m. ET green flags.

The later starting time is also the case for most of the second half of the season. The green flag will drop at 3 p.m. ET next year at Watkins Glen International and the Chase opener at Chicagoland. The rest of the Chase looks more similar to 2015 with 2 p.m. ET starts at New Hampshire, Dover and Talladega, and a slightly later 3 p.m. start at Kansas Speedway.

The season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway will again begin at 2:30 p.m.

As for the XFINITY Series, there will be seven night races including a three-race swing from Iowa Speedway (June 24) to Daytona (June 30) and Kentucky (July 7).

Its two stand-alone road course races at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Road America in Wisconsin will start at 3:30 p.m. ET and 3 p.m. ET, respectively.

Both its season-opening race at Daytona and finale at Homestead will begin at 3:30 p.m. ET.

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will have a decidedly night-time look with 14 of its 23 races held under the lights.

The season opens with a 7:30 p.m. ET green flag at Daytona. There is an eight-race swing of starts at 5 p.m. ET or later between the May 12 race at Kansas (8:30 p.m.) and culminating with the hugely popular event at Eldora Speedway (9 p.m.) on July 19.

See the full schedules below.

Note: All times listed are ET. Subject to change.

2017 SPRINT CUP SERIES SCHEDULE

DATE LOCATION NETWORK RACE START RADIO

2/18 The Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway FS1 8 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
2/19 Daytona 500 Qualifying at Daytona International Speedway FOX 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
2/23 Can-Am Duel at Daytona International Speedway FS1 7 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
2/26 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway FOX 2 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
3/5 Atlanta Motor Speedway FOX 2:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
3/12 Las Vegas Motor Speedway FOX 3:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
3/19 Phoenix International Raceway FOX 3:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
3/26 Auto Club Speedway FOX 3:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
4/2 Martinsville Speedway FS1 2 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
4/9 Texas Motor Speedway FOX 1:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
4/23 Bristol Motor Speedway FOX 2 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
4/30 Richmond International Raceway FOX 2 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
5/7 Talladega Superspeedway FOX 2 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
5/13 Kansas Speedway FS1 7:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
5/20 NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway FS1 6 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
5/28 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway FOX 6 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
6/4 Dover International Speedway FS1 1 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/11 Pocono Raceway FS1 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/18 Michigan International Speedway FS1 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/25 Sonoma Raceway FS1 3 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
7/1 Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola at Daytona International Speedway NBC 7:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
7/8 Kentucky Speedway NBCSN 7:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
7/16 New Hampshire Motor Speedway NBCSN 3 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
7/23 Indianapolis Motor Speedway NBC 3 p.m. IMS/Sirius XM
7/30 Pocono Raceway NBCSN 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
8/6 Watkins Glen International NBCSN 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
8/13 Michigan International Speedway NBCSN 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
8/19 Bristol Motor Speedway NBC 7:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
9/3 Darlington Raceway NBCSN 6 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/9 Richmond International Raceway NBCSN 7:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/17 Chicagoland Speedway NBCSN 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/24 New Hampshire Motor Speedway NBCSN 2 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
10/1 Dover International Speedway NBCSN 2 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
10/7 Charlotte Motor Speedway NBCSN 7 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
10/15 Talladega Superspeedway NBC 2 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
10/22 Kansas Speedway NBCSN 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
10/29 Martinsville Speedway NBCSN 1 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
11/5 Texas Motor Speedway NBC 2 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
11/12 Phoenix International Raceway NBC 2:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
11/19 Homestead-Miami Speedway NBC 2:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM

2017 NASCAR XFINITY SERIES SCHEDULE DATE LOCATION NETWORK RACE START RADIO

2/25 Daytona International Speedway FS1 3:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
3/4 Atlanta Motor Speedway FS1 1:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
3/11 Las Vegas Motor Speedway FS1 4 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
3/18 Phoenix International Raceway FOX 4 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
3/25 Auto Club Speedway FS1 4 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
4/8 Texas Motor Speedway FOX 1:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
4/22 Bristol Motor Speedway FS1 12:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
4/29 Richmond International Raceway FS1 12:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
5/6 Talladega Superspeedway FOX 1 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
5/27 Charlotte Motor Speedway FS1 1 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
6/3 Dover International Speedway FS1 1 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/10 Pocono Raceway FOX 1 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/17 Michigan International Speedway FS1 1:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/24 Iowa Speedway FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/30 Daytona International Speedway NBCSN 7:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
7/7 Kentucky Speedway NBCSN 8 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
7/15 New Hampshire Motor Speedway NBCSN 4 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
7/22 Indianapolis Motor Speedway NBCSN 3:30 p.m. IMS/Sirius XM
7/29 Iowa Speedway NBC 3:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
8/5 Watkins Glen International NBCSN 2 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
8/12 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course NBCSN 3:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
8/18 Bristol Motor Speedway NBCSN 7:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
8/27 Road America NBC 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/2 Darlington Raceway NBCSN 3:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/8 Richmond International Raceway NBCSN 7:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/16 Chicagoland Speedway NBCSN 3:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/23 Kentucky Speedway NBCSN 8 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
9/30 Dover International Speedway NBCSN 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
10/6 Charlotte Motor Speedway NBCSN 8 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
10/21 Kansas Speedway NBC 3 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
11/4 Texas Motor Speedway NBCSN 8:30 p.m. PRN/Sirius XM
11/11 Phoenix International Raceway NBC 3:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
11/18 Homestead-Miami Speedway NBCSN 3:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM

2017 CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES SCHEDULE

DATE LOCATION NETWORK RACE START RADIO

2/24 Daytona International Speedway FS1 7:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
3/4 Atlanta Motor Speedway FS1 4:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
4/1 Martinsville Speedway FS1 2:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
5/12 Kansas Speedway FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
5/19 Charlotte Motor Speedway FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/2 Dover International Speedway FS1 5:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/9 Texas Motor Speedway FS1 8 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/17 Gateway Motorsports Park FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
6/23 Iowa Speedway FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
7/6 Kentucky Speedway FS1 7:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
7/19 Eldora Speedway FS1 9 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
7/29 Pocono Raceway FS1 1 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
8/12 Michigan International Speedway FS1 1 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
8/16 Bristol Motor Speedway FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/3 Canadian Tire Motorsport Park FS1 2:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/15 Chicagoland Speedway FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/23 New Hampshire Motor Speedway FS1 1 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
9/30 Las Vegas Motor Speedway FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
10/14 Talladega Superspeedway FOX 1 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
10/28 Martinsville Speedway FS1 1:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
11/3 Texas Motor Speedway FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
11/10 Phoenix International Raceway FS1 8:30 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM
11/17 Homestead-Miami Speedway FS1 8 p.m. MRN/Sirius XM

NASCAR America: Scan All Indianapolis

Take another look at the Brickyard 400 from Kyle Busch‘s victory and late-race restarts to Jeff Gordon‘s return to the track and Tony Stewart‘s suggestion that led to a memorable salute after the race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

NASCAR America: Justin Allgaier relishes Xfinity Dash 4 Cash bonus at indy

Justin Allgaier described racing JR Motorsports teammate Elliott Sadler for the Xfinity Dash 4 Crash bonus at Indianapolis. Allgaier finished fifth to win the $100,000 bonus last weekend.

“That last restart, we knew it was coming down to just the two of us,” Allgaier said. “Being on the outside, not being in the preferred lane and also racing a teammate, we knew it was going to be a huge challenge. Luckily enough, our car was just a little bit better, I think, than Elliott’s on Saturday.”