NASCAR Cup Series

Closing the deal in the last three Sprint Cup Series races has been a thorn for Martin Truex Jr. and the single-car Furniture Row Racing team.

Dakoda Armstrong and the No. 43 WinField Ford team have a lot to be excited about going into this weekend's race at Phoenix International Raceway. The team is coming off of their third Top-10 of the season and will go for their second consecutive Top-10 this weekend.

The former tight end on Arizona State’s 2008 football team will be honored on the Sun Devil Stadium video board Saturday night when his alma mater takes on highly ranked Notre Dame.

Edwards has 20 Sprint Cup starts at the one-mile oval with an average start of 13.0 and an average finish of 12.1.

Richard Childress Racing's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history at Phoenix International Raceway ... Team owner Richard Childress has five victories at Phoenix International Raceway, ranking him third on the all-time car owner win list at the Avondale, Ariz. facility.

JUST THE FACTS: Ragan has 15 Sprint Cup career starts at Phoenix International Raceway ... He has one top-10 finish at the one-mile oval ... His best finish at Phoenix is 10th (2008) .... Taco Bell returns as primary sponsor of the No. 34 Ford for Sunday's race.

David Gilliland, driver of the No. 38 Long John Silver's Ford, comments on racing at Phoenix International Raceway:

Joey Logano leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings going into this weekend’s race at Phoenix International Raceway. The last Ford driver to hold the top spot this late in the season was Carl Edwards in 2011 when he held a three-point lead over Tony Stewart with two races remaining.

After remembering the passing of racer Jim Sauter with a moment of silence, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 10th annual AAA Texas 500 at the Texas Motor Speedway.

Jimmie Johnson was a factor from beginning to end in Texas, claiming his fourth victory of the season. Okay, enough about the damn race. All the real excitement took place after they waved the checkered flag.