JR Motorsports extends deal with Unilever, longest-running sponsor

JR Motorsports announced Friday that it will extend its longest running sponsorship — with Unilever — through 2018.

JRM and Unilver have been partners since 2009. The new extension includes having team co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. serve as a brand ambassador through 2018. In addition, the No. 88 Xfinity Series team owned by Earnhardt will carry Unilver sponsorship for 10 races in each of the 2017 and 2018 seasons.

“Unilever has been an incredible supporter of our program for a long time,” Earnhardt said in a media release. “That type of dedication is good for the health of our race team and the health of our sport.

“I am very appreciative of their commitment and what they have brought to JR Motorsports as a partner since 2009. We look forward to continuing that relationship and growing our partnership in the future.”

Unilever is the longest-tenured sponsor with JRM in Xfinity Series competition. It’s brand include Hellmann’s, Suave, Degree and Breyers.

“When JR Motorsports first put an Xfinity car on the track in 2005, we weren’t sure where it would take us,” said Kelley Earnhardt Miller, general manager of JR Motorsports. “With the addition of Unilever to JRM in 2009, it helped pave the way and bring stability to our organization.

“We will always be grateful for that. We’ve been fortunate to grow over the years with Unilever as a cornerstone partner and we’re thrilled to be with them again in multiple capacities.”

Harvick fastest in rain-shortened Cup practice at Richmond

Kevin Harvick was fastest in a rain-shortened Sprint Cup practice Friday at Richmond International Raceway.

Harvick was the only driver to exceed 129 mph with a top speed of 129.069 mph. Joey Logano was next fastest (128.694), followed by Jimmie Johnson (128.187), Bristol winnerCarl Edwards (128.181) and Denny Hamlin(128.156).

While 41 drivers are on the entry list, only 40 recorded practice times. The other driver, Michael Annett, spun on his first lap of practice on the backstretch and suffered extensive damage to the rear of his No. 46 Chevrolet.

“I just came off pit road trying to go out there in qualifying trim,” Annett said. “Not knowing what the weather is going to do later on, we wanted to lay down a lap and get us the best starting position we could if it does rain out qualifying.

“It’s unfortunate. I just feel like a rookie, it’s my third year in the Cup Series, and to do something like that you feel pretty stupid.”

The practice session was red flagged with just over 22 minutes left in the session when the rain began to inundate the track.

There will be two more practice sessions on Saturday, while Sprint Cup qualifying is still set for later Friday afternoon, providing the rain clears up by then.

Here’s how the abbreviated session played out:

NASCAR to ‘re-evaluate’ policy on lug nuts after drivers raise questions

RICHMOND, Va. — After criticism from a three-time series champion and concern from other drivers, NASCAR said Friday it would “re-evaluate” its policy on lug nuts but offered no change for this weekend’s Sprint Cup and Xfinity races at Richmond International Raceway.

The announcement comes a day after NASCAR fined Tony Stewart $35,000 for questioning why series officials don’t require teams to tighten all five lug nuts on each wheel during a pit stop. At least seven Sprint Cup teams have had loose wheels in the last two races.

Teams are tightening fewer lug nuts for quicker pit stops to gain track position. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Greg Biffle and former champion Kurt Busch have expressed concerns about the matter, along with Stewart.

“Since the drivers are now questioning (the rule), it’s time for us to kind of re-evaluate our position and work with the community on looking at possibly different ways to enforce the pit road rules,’’ said Scott Miller, NASCAR senior vice president of competition.

“The teams are obviously pushing harder than they ever have in this area. It’s time for us to take a look at it. The open dialogue is very good right now between NASCAR and the teams. We’ll work internally and with them to move forward here.’’

NASCAR’s Rule Book states that any team that has a wheel come off after exiting pit road faces a P3 penalty that includes a minimum four-race suspension for the crew chief, tire changer and tire carrier. No one has received this penalty in Cup or Xfinity since the rule was instituted.

Although the rule has been in place since the start of last year, the issue of how many lug nuts teams tighten has intensified the past two weeks with the teams of Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Martin Truex Jr., Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Jimmie Johnson andChase Elliott each experiencing a loose wheel in a race.

“Throughout the history of the sport there have been loose wheels,’’ Miller said. “It hadn’t risen, in our opinion, to the point where we thought loose wheels currently were becoming an unsafe thing out there. Obviously others have. We’ll do our best to make sure that we satisfy the industry on this one.’’

Miller said that officials could “potentially consider” a single lug nut  for the wheel — as used in open-wheel — in the future but said that a lot of work would have to be done for that.

Miller hinted that there could be a more efficient way to monitor the lug nuts in the future.

“I think technology ultimately will be our way home on this,’’ he said without providing detail.

Long: Sprint Cup Drivers Council action shows group is evolving

RICHMOND, Va. — The undertones could be unsettling, but drivers say it’s not like that.

The action was surprising, but drivers say they had to act.

The growth is worth watching. That’s the way drivers want it.

The decision by the Sprint Cup Drivers Council to publicly criticize NASCAR for fining Tony Stewart $35,000 was a dramatic change for the 11-month-old group. Created to help improve the sport, the Council’s action had mostly been kept quiet — other than the push for the low downforce package, which universally was supported by drivers.

Thursday’s statement was a sign of how this nine-member organization has grown. It is learning what it can be and should be.

Multiple members told NBC Sports that they were displeased that NASCAR fined Stewart, saying they didn’t think what he said disparaged the sport, especially because it dealt with the safety matter of loose wheels. Other drivers not on the Council told NBC Sports that they were encouraged by the group’s action to stand up for Stewart.

The unified action by the Council makes it easy to wonder that if it disagrees with a fine, what’s next? Is this the beginning of a power play? Could it make the first step toward a union?

“I don’t think it was us putting our foot down or trying to get in NASCAR’s way,’’ Dale Earnhardt Jr., a Council member, told NBC Sports. “We just didn’t really agree with what they did there in that particular instance.’’

Drivers contend that they need to work together with owners and NASCAR to provide the racing wanted by fans. They stated that butting heads with series officials won’t accomplish that goal.

Still, the drivers know they need to be heard.

“As a group, we talk every week, it may not be every day, but as a group there are conversations going on that are in 100 percent the best interest of the sport,’’ said Kevin Harvick, a Council member, Friday at Richmond International Raceway. “Obviously, our opinions are 100 percent of the equation, but maybe it hasn’t been a third up until the last two years, but we are going to fight hard to have our third of the opinion heard.”

They should because they’re the ones taking the biggest risks. Of course, that doesn’t mean everything they want is right or will be best for the sport. That’s where NASCAR officials must weigh input from  owners, drivers, fans, sponsors and television, among various groups.

That leads to many challenges for NASCAR in trying to appease everyone.

“As a sport we have some major decisions to make as to how we want to be identified,’’ saidBrad Keselowski, a Council member. “How do we want to compete? What are those aspects? Whether that is NASCAR themselves, the drivers, (Race Team Alliance), the fans, we have to make a decision of what tools do we want to determine who is a winner and who is great. Who is not?’’

Keselowski notes how the role of pit road has become more significant in who wins races. That’s more a measure of a team’s ability as opposed to a driver’s. He said that in the past, a fast car could make up for a bad pit stop because the competition wasn’t as balanced. Now, it’s more difficult to overcome something such as that.

“Do we want to determine who is great off of pit road?’’ Keselowski said. “Then we should just have a pit road competition every weekend if we come to that conclusion. I don’t think we want that. I don’t think we want pit road to mean nothing, either.’’

Those and other issues are what the Council will discuss, debate and help NASCAR decide in the days ahead.

Thursday showed that the group could present a clear message. Of course, that was easy because they felt one of their own had been wronged.

What about other issues?

“We’re all in this together as the drivers,’’ Denny Hamlin, a Council member said. “We want to have one voice because that one voice is obviously a little louder and clearer to NASCAR when we go into meetings talking about where it’s going to head from competition to safety and amongst other things.’’

Saturday’s NASCAR schedule at Richmond International Raceway

Saturday’s schedule at Richmond International Raceway was juggled due to Friday’s rain.

There will be only one final Sprint Cup practice session. Xfinity Series drivers — who were unable to take part in Friday’s two scheduled practices — will have just one practice session prior to the two previously scheduled qualifying heat races leading up to the Xfinity Series ToyotaCare 250.

Here’s how Saturday’s schedule shapes up

All times are Eastern
7:30 a.m. – Xfinity garage opens

8:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. – Sprint Cup garage open

9-9:50 a.m. – Xfinity Final Practice (FS1)

10:15 a.m. – Xfinity driver-crew chief meeting

10:30 – 11:50 a.m. – Sprint Cup final practice (FS1, MRN)

Noon – Xfinity driver introductions

12:30 p.m. – Xfinity Heat No. 1; 35 laps, 26.25 miles (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

1:10 p.m. approx. – Xfinity Heat No. 2; 35 laps, 26.25 miles (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

1:45 p.m. – ToyotaCare 250; 140 laps, 105 miles (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

Today’s Xfinity race at Richmond: Start time, weather, radio and TV info

The NASCAR Xfinity Series moves from one short track (Bristol) to another for today’s ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond International Raceway.

There will be two 35-lap heat races to set the starting lineup for the 140-lap main event race.

Here’s what you need to know about the series’ eighth race of the season:

(All times are Eastern)

START: The command to start engines for the first heat race will be given at 12:37 p.m. The command to start engines for the second heat race is scheduled to be given at 1:14 p.m. Matt Gray will give the command to start engines for the main event at 1:57 p.m. The green flag is scheduled to wave at 2:03 p.m.

DISTANCE: Each heat race is 35 laps (26.65 miles). The main event is 140 laps (105 miles) around the .750-mile concrete oval track.

PRERACE SCHEDULE: The Xfinity Garage opens at 7:30 a.m. The driver/crew chief meeting is at 10:15 a.m. Driver introductions are at Noon.

NATIONAL ANTHEM: Sophia Nadder will perform the anthem at 12:31 p.m.

TV/RADIO: Fox Sports 1 will broadcast the first Heat race beginning at 12:30 p.m., followed by the second heat race and the main event. Motor Racing Network will have both heat races and the main event on radio and at MRN.com, beginning at 12 p.m. SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will carry the PRN broadcast.

FORECAST: wunderground.com predicts a temperature of 72 degrees at race time with a 34 percent chance of rain at the scheduled time for the main event.

LAST TIME: Chase Elliott led 83 laps on the way to winning at Richmond last September with Kyle Busch second and Brian Scott third. Denny Hamlin won the April 2015 race, leading all but two laps in the 250-lap event. Joey Logano finished second, followed byRegan Smith.

Kurt Busch looks for more Richmond success, glad to have Tony back

When they’re paired together for the first time, how often have you heard drivers or crew chiefs talk about how long it will take for them to develop communication and rapport?

Sometimes it takes a few races, other times it may take the better part of a full season.

Such was not the case with Kurt Busch and crew chief Tony Gibson. They clicked almost immediately when they were put together near the end of the 2014 season.

“I think we hit top 10’s right off the bat, just bang, bang, bang, just sliding around a little bit,” Busch said Friday at Richmond International Raceway. “But we didn’t quite finesse that, maybe hit that exactly right, but we were cranking out top 10’s.

“So we knew we only had a short way to go to find those rhythms for a win. It was great to win here at a short track. I think that is where him and I have really had most of our success is at the short tracks.”

The reason why Busch and Gibson jelled so quickly has a lot to do with the fact both are veterans in their respective discipline as driver and crew chief.

That’s a big part of the reason why Busch won last year’s spring race at Richmond International Raceway, where the Sprint Cup Series is back at again for Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400.

“The personal relationship is somebody that I look up to as a mentor, as a coach,” Busch said. “It takes that head couch, quarterback, it takes crew chief/driver combo to be able to see it all in this day and age and to know what to do on pit stops, two tires, four tires. The restarts, he leaves those up to me, and yet we go back on watch tape together on what we can do better.

“It’s great to have the ability to have an old school guy like him continue to want to learn and to be the best in this garage.”

Busch’s win at Richmond was the first of two victories he claimed in 2015, the other coming last June at Michigan International Speedway.

Busch has two wins, six top fives and 11 top 10s in 30 career starts at Richmond.

“The short track part of our schedule is a lot of fun,” Busch said. “You have Martinsville, Bristol, Richmond, all are uniquely different, but they all share the same quality and that is a short track.

“Richmond is a fun track. They used to call it the action track, that was when the groove would widen out and get to two, three lanes wide. We always hope to get back to that and it’s a matter of finding the right tire and the right downforce combination to allow the cars to race competitively side-by-side in safe situations.”

The entire Stewart-Haas Racing team will get a big boost with team co-owner Tony Stewartback behind the wheel of his No. 14 Chevrolet this weekend.

“It’s great to have our team owner and our lead driver back in the car,” Busch said. “To have an injury outside of racing it is always tough to go through, especially with (Tony) Stewart in a retirement type of mentality the way that his emotions were going into this season.

“He has had good history here at Richmond. He has had multiple wins and it’s just nice to see him jump back in the car so soon.”