NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES NEWS

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES 10/29/15 NEWS

Joey Checkers: Logano Takes Down Talladega For Third Straight Win

Joey Logano took the checkered flag at Talladega to sweep the Contender Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup with his third consecutive win. The No. 22 Team Penske driver now leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with six wins and 26 top 10s – both career highs. He also ranks tied with Kevin Harvick for the most top fives with 20, also a career-best total.

In Sunday’s Goody’s Headache Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway (1:15 p.m. ET on NBCSN), Logano will attempt to become the first driver to win four straight races since Jimmie Johnson achieved the feat in the 2007 Chase when he visited Victory Lane at Martinsville, Atlanta, Texas and Phoenix on his way to his second of six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championships.

Logano has never won an NSCS race at Martinsville, but has finished in the top five in his last three starts at the Virginia short track.

The 25-year-old Connecticut native is the second driver to win three consecutive races this year after Kyle Busch pulled off the achievement by conquering Kentucky, New Hampshire and Indianapolis. The last time two different drivers won three straight races in a season was 1993 when Rusty Wallace and Mark Martin did it.

Father Time: Gordon Goes For Ninth Martinsville Clock

Jeff Gordon has to love his position in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup now.

He heads to Martinsville Speedway – arguably his best track – where a win automatically advances him to the Championship Round of the Chase at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Gordon is tied with Jimmie Johnson for the active wins lead at Martinsville with eight checkered flags – a total that is also his most at any track. The No. 24 Chevrolet driver boasts series bests in average finish (6.9), average running position (6.7) and average green flag speed (91.7 mph) at Martinsville.

Last season, Gordon finished second at Martinsville to Dale Earnhardt Jr., a race in which he led a race-high 130 laps.

Although he squeaked into the Chase on points and still doesn’t have a win, Gordon is building up some momentum in NASCAR’s playoffs. He placed in the top 10 of all three Contender Round races.

JGR Chasers Hope Organization Has Unlocked Secret To The Paperclip

Kyle Busch didn’t seem worried that he hasn’t performed up to his expectations at Martinsville heading into Sunday’s Eliminator Round opener.

“I wouldn’t have said that I felt comfortable at Martinsville based off how we ran there last year,” said Busch, who has never won at the .526-mile track. “But the way the guys at Joe Gibbs Racing ran this spring, everybody ran in the top five, so it was really a good race. I’m looking forward to getting back and utilizing some of that in order to have a good race and maybe do what Denny (Hamlin) did and win one here.”

JGR placed three drivers in the top five at Martinsville in the spring (Denny Hamlin, first; Matt Kenseth, fourth; David Ragan, fifth). Carl Edwards finished 17th, but led 13 laps and looked like a contender for the win before a late-race spin.

With wins in nine of the 12 races leading into the Contender Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, JGR had aspirations of advancing all four of its drivers to the Championship Round at Homestead. That can no longer happen; Busch and Edwards are JGR’s only drivers still in the Chase after Hamlin and Kenseth were knocked out at Talladega.

Busch and Edwards better hope that JGR figured out Martinsville this spring. Busch has been boom-or-bust at The Paperclip with eight top fives in 20 starts, but also has 11 finishes outside the top 10. In 22 Martinsville starts, Edwards has posted only one top five and five top 10s.

Stayin’ Alive: SHR’s Harvick And Busch Remain Standing In Chase

The two dominant drivers at the beginning of the year – Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch – remain alive in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

Both Harvick and Busch are strong bets to win the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title, too.

As the defending champion, Harvick knows how to handle the pressure of the Chase format. A win in the next three events gets a driver a free pass to the Championship Round race at Homestead, which is great news for Harvick. He is practically automatic at Phoenix where he has won the last four races.

Busch has won at all four of the remaining tracks and cannot be counted out either.  He and Jeff Gordon are the only Chase drivers who have visited Victory Lane at the final four ovals (Martinsville, Texas Phoenix, Homestead).

Short Track Showdown

Martinsville Speedway serves as the only short track in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. If a Chase driver wins at Martinsville, he gains a distinct advantage over the field because his team can focus on preparing for the Championship Round at Homestead.

Here’s how the Chase-eligible drivers rank in winning percentage at short tracks:

Kyle Busch – .145 win pct., 9 wins, 62 starts

Jeff Gordon – .110 win pct., 16 wins, 145 starts

Kurt Busch – .100 win pct., 9 wins, 90 starts

Brad Keselowski – .083 win pct., 3 wins, 36 starts

Joey Logano – .073 win pct., 3 wins, 41 starts

Carl Edwards – .059 win pct., 4 wins, 68 starts

Kevin Harvick – .057 win pct., 5 wins, 88 starts

Martin Truex Jr. – .000 win pct., 0 wins, 59 starts

Click here for an infographic detailing the Eliminator 8’s short track prowess.

Watch Out for ‘Spoilers’ At Martinsville

Chase-eligible drivers aren’t the only competitors who can win at Martinsville on Sunday. Last season, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the first “spoiler” in NASCAR’s playoffs when he won for the first time at the Southern Virginia track to block a transfer spot.

In fact, many of the favorites on Sunday are not in the Chase. Past Martinsville winners set to race on Sunday are Jimmie Johnson (8 wins, tied for the active lead), Denny Hamlin (5, spring winner), Tony Stewart (3), Earnhardt (1) and Ryan Newman (1).

The Chasers who have never won at Martinsville are Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Carl Edwards and Martin Truex Jr.

NASCAR XFINITY SERIES

A Closer Look At Roush Fenway Racing’s Potential Champion – Chris Buescher

With a 27-point lead over second-place Chase Elliott in the NASCAR XFINITY Series standings, Chris Buescher is on top of the world with just three races remaining in 2015. But who is Chris Buescher?

Buescher, 22, grew up in Prosper, Texas. He enjoys fishing, ATV and motorcycle riding, movies and fabrication work. Buescher is also the cousin of former NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion James Buescher.

In 1999, at the age of six, Chris Buescher started racing motorcycles, but it wasn’t long until he moved to four wheel vehicles. He went on to win the Bandolero Series Nationals in 2004 at the age of 12. The following year, Buescher competed in the Legends Car Series, becoming the youngest winner in the Pro Division at the age of 13.

While driving in the Legends Car Series, Buescher made his first connection to NASCAR in 2007, when he signed as a development driver for David Ragan Racing after he purchased his first late model from the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver.

Buescher then dabbled in ASA Late models and ASA Speed Trucks before getting a shot in the ARCA Series where he won the Rookie of the Year honors with three wins. Buescher would go onto win the ARCA Series championship in 2012.

Roush Fenway Racing picked Buescher up on a part-time basis in 2011 and 2013. He ran a total of nine races and posted two top 10s. RFR then signed him full-time in 2014 to drive the No. 60 Ford. He ran 32 races that season, finishing seventh in points with one win (Mid-Ohio), five top fives and 16 top 10s.

This season, Buescher has upped his game again. In 30 starts, he has posted two wins (Iowa, Dover), 11 top fives, and 20 top 10s.

Buescher needs to finish fourth or better in the next three races and he will win the NASCAR XFINITY Series championship no matter what any other driver does.

Jack Roush: A Fountain Of NASCAR Talent

While nothing is set in stone as of yet, Roush Fenway Racing does have a high probability of winning the organization’s fifth NASCAR XFINITY Series driver title this season. The credit of masterfully assembling these winning teams goes to RFR owner Jack Roush; who has proven over his tenure in NASCAR that he has an eye for young talent by paving the way for the careers of Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and now Chris Buescher.

Roush’s gift for eyeing talent really developed into success with Biffle. Biffle brought Roush Fenway Racing its first XFINITY Series title back in 2002 after he began racing for Roush in 1997 in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS). The Washington native now competes full-time for RFR in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in the No. 16 Ford.

Next, Roush stumbled upon a young man by the name of Carl Edwards, who happened to give him his business card when they first met. Roush was impressed by Edwards on and off the track and signed him in 2003 to drive in the NCWTS. It wasn’t long until Roush moved Edwards up to the NASCAR XFINITY Series and from there he blossomed. Edwards captured the series title in 2007. He now competes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Joe Gibbs Racing, but drove for RFR in the series from 2004-2014.

Roush’s most successful NASCAR XFINITY Series driver in terms of titles is Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who captured back-to-back championships in 2011 and 2012. He started driving part-time for Roush in the NXS in 2009, but went full-time in 2010. Stenhouse struggled at first, but found his groove in 2011. He now competes in the NSCS for RFR in the No. 17 Ford.

Roush’s next protégé is Chris Buescher and only three races remain to find out if his eye for talent to win titles will be on par with those of the recent past.

Who That Rookie? The Spotlight Turns To Daniel Suarez

Not only can he steer a 3,450 lbs. NASCAR XFINITY Series Toyota around with ease, but the Joe Gibbs Racing Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate, Daniel Suarez, can also speak two languages (Spanish, English), which is more than most can say in the NXS garage. But who is this international driver that has commanded our attention?  

Suarez, a Monterrey, Mexico native, currently leads the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings in the NXS with just three races remaining and could become the first Hispanic and Mexican-born driver to win the series honors.

Suarez got his start in motorsports back in Mexico where he raced go-karts as young boy. In 2007, he won the national karting championship and from there he started working his way up to competing in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West in 2011. He also competed in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East from 2011 – 2014 finishing a series career-best third in the 2013 standings. Suarez also competed in the NASCAR Mexico Series from 2011 – 2014, finishing a series career-best second in the points in 2013. 

In his rookie season in the NASCAR XFINITY Series, the 23-year-old driver has posted seven top fives, 15 top 10s an average finish of 12.3.

This weekend, the young JGR talent will be strapping into the Kyle Busch Motorsports No. 51 Toyota for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway on Saturday.

Young Talent Holds Strong In 2015

At the beginning of the season everyone was talking about the young talent at the top of the series standings when the average age of the top five in points was 21.2. Now, with 30 races in the books, the young drivers haven’t waivered to their veteran counterparts and the average age (23.6) continues to be on the younger end of the spectrum proving a wave of solid young talent has washed ashore.

The youngest of the top five in points is the 2014 series champion Chase Elliott, 19, who is currently second in the 2015 point standings. Elliott’s sophomore season has seen one win (Richmond), 11 top fives and a series leading 24 top 10s.

The next two youngest are standings leader Chris Buescher and Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate Darrell Wallace Jr., both 22. Buescher has posted two wins (Iowa, Dover), 11 top fives and 20 top 10s. Wallace is fifth in points after posting three top fives and 12 top 10s.

Ty Dillon, 23, is the third youngest of the top five in points. The Richard Childress Racing driver is currently fourth in points after posting 10 top fives and 22 top 10s this season.

Last but not least, the elder statesman of the five is Regan Smith at the grizzled age of 32. Smith is currently third in the series points, 33 points back from Buescher. Smith has made 30 starts this season posting two wins (Mid-Ohio, Dover), 11 top fives and 23 top 10s.