On paper, a win and a potential third-place finish in the final points standings would appear to be a pretty successful season. However, racing isn’t done on paper. Matt Smith has seen his team lose a primary sponsor and has been plagued by gremlins on his Haltech/Redline Oil/Affliction Buell.
On Saturday, November 12th, prior to the start of the Beau Slocumb Memorial 100 Pro Late Model feature as part of the 28th-Annual Rheem World Crown 300 weekend, Gresham Motorsports Park (GA) honored the life and memory of Slocumb with the unveiling of the Beau Slocumb Memorial Spotters Tower.
Trevor Bayne, No. 16 AirHogs.com Ford Mustang (Finished 6th) “That was pretty wild but that is what racing used to be. It used to be rubbing and grinding and trying to fight for one groove. That isn’t exactly the day we wanted."
Matt Kenseth earned Roush Fenway’s team-high 10th Sprint Cup pole of the season, turning a lap of 26.26 seconds (137.101 mph) around the 1-mile low banked tri-oval of Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday to score his career-high third Sprint Cup pole of the season.
AVONDALE, AZ - (November 12, 2011) - Mark Martin, No. 5 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet, leads three Team Chevy drivers with top-10 qualifying efforts for Sunday's Kobalt Tools 500. Martin will start fourth in the 43-car field.
Edwards, No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion (Qualified 9th) “That was a good lap for us. It depends on this clouds. I think someone will hit it and be really fast but I think it can be a top-10 spot and that is all we need. We had a good solid run, practiced well and a solid qualifying lap. We have to keep on moving.”
BRAD KESELOWSKI (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T) Qualified 12th “That was faster than I thought it was. It’s terrible out there right now, but it’s the same for everybody. I’m happy to pick up, just so hard to tell what’s a good lap and what’s a bad lap right now; really hard to tell.”
Each race weekend, selected Dodge Motorsports engineers, Penske Racing engineers and crew chiefs, drivers or engine specialists give their insight on the ‘Keys for Success’ for the upcoming race. This week, Howard Comstock, Dodge Motorsports engineering - provides the keys for Sunday’s Sprint Cup race.
Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion, brings a three point Chase standings lead into Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 500 over Tony Stewart. Edwards, who posted the second fastest lap time in the final Friday practice at Phoenix International Raceway, talked about racing at PIR and his slim Chase lead.
In 150 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Phoenix Raceway, Richard Childress Racing has scored six victories, led by Kevin Harvick with four wins (including a sweep of both races in 2006 plus fall races in 2012 and 2013).
Ryan Ellis was announced as Young’s Motorsports’ full-time driver in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series as the organization enters its third season of competition.
Hendrick Motorsports is the all-time leader in wins (13), poles (16), top fives (61), top 10s (113) and laps led (3,736) at the 1-mile dog-legged oval.
As Josh Berry and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team enter the final stretch of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, this weekend’s Freeway Insurance 500 at Phoenix Raceway
