NASCAR Cup Series

RYAN BLANEY, No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion -- WHAT DO YOU AND YOUR TEAM NEED TO DO HERE TO PUT YOURSELF IN POSITION TO WIN THE RACE AND ADVANCE IN THE PLAYOFFS? “I think we just need to have a solid weekend like we had in the spring race and try to finish it out better. We got behind there and slid through my box the last pit stop which put us back. We need to have a good, solid race. That is the best thing we can do. Cut down on mistakes like we have the whole playoffs. We haven't had huge mistakes. We have been consistent and gotten good finishes. We are coming to a track that has been decent for us in the past and the 1.5 mile stuff has been really good for us. Hopefully we can have a solid weekend and a good run on Sunday and put ourselves in a decent spot going into Phoenix.”

DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO. 88 NATIONWIDE/JUSTICE LEAGUE CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Texas Motor Speedway and discussed his upcoming Appreci88ion event during banquet week at Las Vegas, last weekend’s race at Martinsville, what Texas Motor Speedway has meant to his career and many other topics.

Team Penske and Miller Lite announced today that the original light beer will continue its relationship with the No. 2 Ford Fusion team and driver Brad Keselowski in 2018 and beyond. The renewal continues a partnership that began on the No. 2 Team Penske Ford in 1991 with driver Rusty Wallace.

Leavine Family Racing (LFR) and Michael McDowell will celebrate their homecoming at Texas Motor Speedway for the AAA Texas 500.

NASCAR heads to Texas Motor Speedway this weekend with all three national series as the Playoffs continue. The Truck Series hits the track Friday for the JAG Metals 350 followed by the XFINITY Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 Saturday night. The Cup Series closes out the action Sunday at 2 p.m. on NBCSN with the AAA Texas 500.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is right when he says NASCAR needs more Martinsville-like dramas to play out every week. What they need is “drama and exciting finishes — the fans sitting there in the grandstands cheering like crazy, and booing, and cheering and booing after every interview, for 15 minutes after the race — we need that every weekend.” Damn right.

“There are now seven drivers fighting for those three remaining Championship 4 spots. We’ve had good runs at Texas in the past, but have not closed the deal there. First and foremost, we want to have a strong race at Texas and acquire as many points as we can.”

Seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) champion and career-long Chevrolet driver, Jimmie Johnson, is the leader of the pack at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS).  Johnson has seven wins, 15 top-fives and 21 top-10 finishes, more than any other driver in the series.  

“Looking forward to getting back to Texas – it’s a fun place to go. I enjoy going there and after the good runs we had there last season, I’m definitely looking forward to returning. In the spring we had a pretty good car, our teammate won, so good things to look back to for that race when we go back.”

Aric Almirola will be making his 14th start at the fast, mile-and-a-half oval.  He has a best start of third and finish of seventh, both coming with Richard Petty Motorsports.  "Our goal is to always win, that hasn't changed.  The next three races, yeah, it'd be pretty special to get another win.