Kevin Harvick continued his mastery of the Phoenix International Raceway today, winning the Quicken Loans 500 for Heroes. The win also secured him a spot for the championship race next Sunday at the Homestead-Miami Speedway. It was the only way Harvick could have made the finale since he was tied in points with the runner up in the race, Jeff Gordon.
Denny Hamlin captured the Coors Light Pole Award for Sunday’s Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 at Phoenix International Raceway Friday evening. The Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota had a lap speed of 142.113 mph as he grabbed his third pole of the season and his 20th series career pole.
NASCAR sought unpredictability for its championship run, and they have it. If not for the Chase, Jeff Gordon would just need to hold off Joey Logano, 26 points back, over the next two races and the title would be his. If the Chase format had not changed from last year, Logano would be the man in charge, with Kevin Harvick 35 back with two to go. Not much drama, not terribly unpredictable, and to change that up is the sole reason NASCAR changed things up this season.
Joey Logano: Logano spun on lap 303 at Texas and lost ground, but recovered to finish 12th. He is tied for the lead in the points standings with Denny Hamlin.
So, Danica Patrick is not all sweetness and loveliness. Okay, she is the latter, but the fact she is a little ticked or not going along with the company line, has some folks talking. She is upset with Joey Logano, she had a bit of a run in with Martin Truex Jr. at Martinsville and she thinks qualifying at Talladega stinks after her boyfriend got left in the cold. She even is not a fan of NASCAR’s diversity program.
His smile is infectious and his exuberance contagious. Nowhere was that more evident than in victory lane after Dale Earnhardt Jr. finally won at Martinsville Speedway. He’s an unexpected combination of vulnerability and a hidden strength born of tragedy that endears him to not only his fans but his fellow competitors as well. When Earnhardt wins it’s difficult not to get caught up in his joy.
1. Jeff Gordon: Gordon, an eight-time winner at Martinsville, finished second in the Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500, the best finish among Chase-eligible drivers. He leads the points standings by three over Ryan Newman.
Chip Ganassi Racing driver Jamie McMurray posted a lap of 99.905 mph to grab his second Coors Light Pole Award of the season. It was also his second pole at the famed half-mile paperclip and his 11th career pole.
Will it bother anyone if, conceivably, one not so deserving wins the Cup title this year? I mean, if it is Jeff Gordon, Joey Logano, or Brad Keselowski, I doubt few would argue the outcome. One could even argue that the likes of Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, or Ryan Newman would be a worthy champion.
The two-time ARCA Menards Series East champion from Johnston, Iowa, led a race-high 21 of 86 laps and outdueled Ty Majeski, Kaden Honeycutt and a pack of eight competitors on the final lap to become the 130th competitor to win in the Truck Series division.
Kaden Honeycutt (fifth) earned the most stage points and delivered another top-five finish in the Chase to lead Toyota in Friday night’s NASCAR Truck Series race at Talladega Superspeedway.
The 2024 Truck Series champion from Seymour, Wisconsin, posted a pole-winning lap at 177.389 mph in 53.983 seconds for his third Truck pole of 2026, first at Talladega and the 14th of his career.
Rackley W.A.R. will end its NASCAR Truck Series program at the conclusion of this weekend's Chase event at Talladega Superspeedway and following a six-year campaign.
