Nemechek docked 10 points for failing post-Iowa inspection

Unpredictable Talladega gives way to predictable Kansas (The Associated Press)

The controversy that surrounded the crash-filled race at Talladega last weekend made its way to Kansas Speedway, where what exactly should be done about restrictor-plate racing remained the topic du jour. Perhaps that’s because Kansas tends to be a bit more predictable. Carl Edwards would give just about anything to reach victory lane.

 

NASCAR revises format for All-Star Race at Charlotte (The Associated Press)

NASCAR announced a new format for the All-Star Race at Charlotte on Friday that will feature two 50-lap segments followed by a 13-lap shootout in which a portion of the field will be on fresh tires. Drivers will be required to pit for at least two tires in each of the 50-lap segments, with the stop in the second segment coming with at least 15 laps to go.

 

Clint Bowyer navigating rough bridge season to Stewart-Haas (The Associated Press)

Clint Bowyer will be a busy man this weekend at Kansas Speedway. Then he’ll slip into his regular ride with HScott Motorsports in the Sprint Cup race on Saturday before giving fans who purchased a car from his dealership ride-alongs on Sunday. In other words, Bowyer will be too busy to ruminate on how rocky this season has been.

 

Talladega will no longer be NASCAR elimination race in 2017 (The Associated Press)

NASCAR has decided that Talladega Superspeedway won’t be an elimination race in next year’s championship Chase. The Alabama track swapped its date with Kansas Speedway in the most significant change to the 2017 schedule released Thursday. Talladega had been the third race in the second round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship to the frustration of many drivers.

 

Column: NASCAR’s Talladega wreck-fast comes at a price (The Associated Press)

Racing at Daytona and Talladega, the only two tracks in NASCAR that require the use of horsepower-sapping restrictor plates to slow the cars, simply is what it is. NASCAR is in the same position and went to work Monday studying the wrecks to see what can be altered to keep cars from lifting off the track. ”We never want to see cars get up in the air,” Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR’s chief racing development officer, told AP.

 

Banged-up, but intact Patrick runs into trouble at Talladega (The Associated Press)

Danica Patrick was happy to leave Talladega Superspeedway with no broken bones. Patrick climbed out after the 12-car melee, walked to the inside wall and bent over for a moment before emergency workers escorted her to a waiting ambulance.

 

Brad Keselowski wins crazy crash-fest at Talladega (The Associated Press)

Brad Keselowski won a demolition derby at Talladega Superspeedway, where multiple wrecks caused two cars to go airborne and led to millions of dollars in damage to race teams. Chris Buescher’s car flipped three times in an early crash, and Matt Kenseth was turned upside down in the waning laps. In Kenseth’s accident, Danica Patrick hit hard into an energy-absorbing wall that that seemed to buckle upon impact.

 

Earnhardt forced to park Amelia early at Talladega (The Associated Press)

Earnhardt’s beloved car, rebuilt for the track where he’s won more than any other active driver, bobbled 49 laps into Sunday’s race and NASCAR’s most popular driver started a wreck that collected Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kasey Kahne, as well as Matt DiBenedetto. Just like that, his bid for a seventh Talladega victory was over. Hendrick Motorsports rebuilt the Chevrolet that he drove to four victories in six starts over a 13-month period.

 

Sadler wins Xfinity Series race at Talladega after OT wreck (The Associated Press)

Elliott Sadler celebrated his 41st birthday Saturday with his first victory in almost two years. Mired in a drought that dated to May 4, 2014, Sadler didn’t mind waiting through a five-minute post-race review by NASCAR to be named the winner of the Xfinity Series race at Talladega Superspeedway. NASCAR had to determine who was the actual leader when a caution froze the field in overtime.

 

Chase Elliott wins pole at Talladega 30 years after his dad (The Associated Press)

Chase Elliott won his second career Sprint Cup Series pole by taking the top spot in qualifying Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway, where his father started from the pole in this race 30 years ago. Elliott turned a lap at 192.661 mph to put his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in the top position for Sunday’s race. Bill Elliott won the pole in 1986 with a lap at 212.229 mph.

 

Edwards will have post-Richmond talk with Kyle Busch soon (The Associated Press)
TALLADEGA, Ala. (AP) — A test session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway has delayed the inevitable conversation between teammates Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch.

Lug nuts and $35,000 fine still the talk around Tony Stewart (The Associated Press)

It’s been an action-packed week for Tony Stewart following his return to a race car after a back injury sidelined him the first eight races of the season. Upon his return, he was promptly fined $35,000 by NASCAR for criticizing the series about safety surrounding lug nuts. Now he’s scheduled for a short weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, where Ty Dillon will be his relief driver to help Stewart avoid hurting his back again.

 

Earnhardt gets favorite car “Amelia” back for Talladega (The Associated Press)

The beloved car ”Amelia” will be back at Talladega Superspeedway after Hendrick Motorsports rebuilt the Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to drive on Sunday. Earnhardt drove the car he named Amelia Earhart to four wins in six starts over a 13-month period. Earnhardt wrecked Amelia in February and thought the car that had never finished lower than third was gone forever.

 

Stewart focuses on ‘fun’ after NASCAR fine, policy change (The Associated Press)

Tony Stewart kept his thoughts to himself after NASCAR beefed up the penalties for using fewer than five lug nuts on each wheel during a race. Carl Edwards and Chase Elliott both backed the move. ”I listened to Brian France speak about it, and if the intention is to make safer for the drivers and fans, it’s a good thing,” Edwards said Wednesday, two days after series officials announced it would assess tougher penalties on the rule-breakers.

 

NASCAR suspends crew chief for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 1 race (The Associated Press)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The crew chief for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has been suspended for Sunday’s race at Talladega Superspeedway for a technical violation found last weekend.

 

NASCAR adds penalties for teams that ignore lug nuts (The Associated Press)

NASCAR has added mandatory fines and other penalties for teams caught without five lug nuts on each wheel. The move announced Monday comes less than a week after three-time series champion Tony Stewart urged NASCAR to take action. NASCAR can only check for every lug nut before and after a race, but may call a car back to pit road during a race.

 

Column: Not even bump-and-run generates good vibes in NASCAR (The Associated Press)

It’s what Carl Edwards did to teammate Kyle Busch at Richmond International Raceway in what NASCAR says was the first last-lap pass for a win in track history. It was dramatic, controversial and likely set the stage for tense team meetings this week at Joe Gibbs Racing. Was it enough, though, to build any positive goodwill for NASCAR?

 

Daytona’s Chitwood promoted to ISC’s chief operating officer (The Associated Press)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — After overseeing a widely acclaimed $400 million upgrade of Daytona International Speedway, track President Joie Chitwood III is getting promoted.

Edwards passes Kyle Busch on last lap to win at Richmond (The Associated Press)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Carl Edwards bumped teammate Kyle Busch off his racing line in the last turn and passed him to win the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway on Sunday.

 

Stewart says he won’t hold tongue on safety concerns (The Associated Press)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — NASCAR driver and car owner Tony Stewart says he’s not going to keep quiet when he has safety concerns.

 

Earnhardt wins NASCAR Xfinity race at Richmond (The Associated Press)

Dale Earnhardt Jr. dominated all day and regained the lead on a late restart to win the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday, earning his 24th career victory in the series and first in more than six years. Earnhardt said Unilever, the maker of Hellmann’s mayonnaise and a team partner since 2009, has signed on to sponsor the team’s Xfinity cars for 20 races in 2017-18. ”To be able to come and win a race in that car is incredible,” Earnhardt said about the car that bore the Hellmann’s colors.

 

Drivers excited for daytime racing at Richmond (The Associated Press)

Denny Hamlin has gotten accustomed to having Sundays off when NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series comes to Richmond International Raceway, where the premier series has traditionally raced under the lights on Saturday night. The track moved its spring race for this year to Sunday afternoon, hoping that racing during the day would be more appealing to families with young children, and Hamlin and others thinks they might be in for a treat. ”I like having Sundays off every now and then, but I think it’s definitely going to put on a great show for sure,” Hamlin, who grew up about 25 minutes from the track, said ”This race track, it does change a lot during the day.

 

Stewart’s stormy return garners support of fellow drivers (The Associated Press)

Three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart returned to the track on Friday for the first time this season, and several drivers said they support his right to raise questions about safety concerns. NASCAR fined Stewart $35,000 on Thursday for comments he made criticizing the series for not policing how many lug nuts teams are applying during tire changes. The nine-member driver council announced Thursday night that it would pay the fine for Stewart, saying it disagreed with the punishment, and council member Denny Hamlin said at Richmond International Raceway that the show of solidarity was important.