Kyle Busch Scores Win #50 in the Cup Series

Kyle Busch climbed yet another step higher on the all time win list with a strong victory at Richmond. With the win, Kyle Busch is now tied with Ned Jarrett and Junior Johnson on that list, and his grand total among the top three national series stands at 193.

The race itself was very tame, with the only one caution outside of the two stage finishes. Kevin Harvick started on the pole, but Martin Truex Jr. took control of the early portion of the race, winning Stage 1 with Harvick and Brad Keselowski close behind.

Truex continued to show the way in Stage 2, winning that stage as well. After pitstops, however, Truex was sent to the rear of the field for an uncontrolled tire. This put Chase Elliott in the top spot, but it would be Brad Keselowski that led the middle portion of the race.

Keselowski was strong, but Kyle Busch showed his might on lap 287, taking the lead. Busch would lead until the 59 to go mark, when Keselowski mounted another charge, regaining the lead. Keselowski’s time out front would not last as Busch would again take the lead, this time for good, on lap 363. Busch then set sail toward his 50th NASCAR Cup Series victory. With the victory, Busch has swept both Cup Series events at Richmond in 2018 and secured his spot in the Round of 12.

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Brad Keselowski Makes it Three in a Row with Win in Vegas

After a career highlighting win in Indianapolis, Brad Keselowski started his 2018 NASCAR Playoff run with a convincing victory in the South Point 400 at Las Vegas. This marked Keselowski’s third win in a row and advances him into Round 2 of the Playoffs.

Erik Jones started on the pole, but it was Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. that really looked strong in the opening stage of the race. Martin Truex would capture the Stage 1 victory, while fellow Playoff contender Kyle Larson fell victim to a unscheduled pit stop due to a right front tire.

On Lap 149, Harvick lost a right front tire as well, sending him hard into the turn one wall and collecting Erik Jones in the process, ending both driver’s day. Brad Keselowski emerged as the victor of Stage 2.

In Stage 3, chaos erupted as caution after caution slowed the race pace down considerably. On lap 212, Jamie McMurray lost a tire after slapping the wall on the previous lap. McMurray’s crash collected Playoff driver Chase Elliott, ending both driver’s race.


With 35 laps to go, Kyle Busch got loose in turn four, spinning down into the frontstretch grass, bringing out the caution. With 21 to go, teammate Denny Hamlin met the same fate, also spinning out of turn four. His day would end there, however, as his machine was destroyed by the tri-oval grass.

On the next restart, with 16 laps left, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. lost control of his machine making hard contact with the wall, bringing out yet another yellow.

All the while, Brad Keselowski held off the field with each ensuing restart. Keselowski would have to endure three more restarts, pulling away from the competition each time, before securing his victory.

Editor’s Take:

In my opinion, for a race at a mile and half, this was pretty exciting. It wasn’t a snooze-fest, with the early drama of Kevin Harvick’s tire failure, and it provided plenty of restarts, which in turn set the stage for exciting racing.

No controversies here, just a solid NASCAR Playoff race.


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Brad Keselowski Wins the Brickyard!

Brad Keselowski scored his second straight victory for 2018 by winning the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The win was the first for Roger Penske in NASCAR at Indy.

Rain throughout the weekend washed out all practices and qualifying. The field was set by the rulebook, putting Kyle Busch on the pole. Continued storms pushed the race to Monday. This race is now marked in the record book as the only race in the modern era to have all on track activities canceled, with the race being postponed to the next day. Drivers started the race with zero time on track.

Although there was potential heightened exposure from making the Brickyard 400 the final race before the NASCAR Playoffs, this race saw a lessened turn out and ratings, mostly due to the weather. 

In true Brickyard fashion, the race itself proved to be a test of track position and fuel strategy. Clint Bowyer picked up his first Stage win of 2018, and came within three laps of winning Stage 2, but pitted early, giving the Stage win to Matt Kenseth.

Lap 59 saw yet another instance of brake failure for the number 43 of Bubba Wallace. Wallace also had a dramatic failure in Pocono, leading to a fiery crash in turn one. At the Brickyard, while not as dramatic as Pocono, the failure still resulted in a day-ending crash for Wallace, which also collected David Starr in the 51.

I crash with seven laps to between Landon Cassill and Jeffrey Earnhardt setup the final restart.

Denny Hamlin and Clint Bowyer led the field to the restart. Bowyer spun his tires, allowing Brad Keselowski by quickly, with Keselowski and Hamlin breaking away from the pack. Keselowski, with much fresher tires, muscled by Hamlin with a lap to go, winning the race, and securing Team Penske’s name in the NASCAR record books at Indianapolis.

Editor’s Take:

I, like so many others, was unable to watch this race live due to the postponement. I rushed home after work to catch up on the details of what was supposed to be one of the biggest races of the year. Not only is the Brickyard 400 one of the Cup Series’ crown jewel events, it’s now the final race before the NASCAR Playoffs.

While Indy has become known as a track position, and fuel strategy venue, I was hoping that the championship implications would add to the drama, and the excitement of this event. In reality, however, that drama was washed away in the storms the covered the weekend. While the race was okay; it was only… okay.

I’m going to to give this the benefit of the doubt because of the weather, hoping next year’s edition will garner better results.

On a side note, I find Denny Hamlin’s comments post race, referencing Landon Cassill and Jeffrey Earnhardt’s crash a race among “meaningless drivers”, laughable. Sure, it stemmed from frustration after being the potential winner prior to the yellow, but come on Denny, come on. LOL.

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PixelatedPICK: Can Harvick Tame the Lady in Black?

This week’s PixelatedPICK goes to Kevin Harvick. He is a former winner of the Southern 500 and with seven wins this season, he is undoubtedly a contender. He may have some added motivation as well, after a heated contest versus Ross Chastain in the Saturday Xfinity Series race. 

Harvick has one win at Darlington Raceway, coming in April of 2014. In that race, he led 238 laps, beating Dale Earnhardt Jr. Yes, this technically a Southern 500 win, but most fans hold the April date in a different light compared to the traditional Labor Day timeframe.

Going back to Saturday, Harvick began the day with a 22nd place qualifying effort for this year’s running of the Southern 500. He has a way to go to get to the front, but he is known as the “Closer”, always finding a way to be in contention at the end of the race.

He continued his Saturday adventure attempting to claim his first Xfinity Series win at Darlington, and came very close to achieving that feat. Harvick battled lap after lap with Ross Chastain in the final stage of the Sport Clips 200. His day ended early, however, on lap 110 after contact with Chastain while trying to take the lead. The two collided, sending Chastain up the track and into the wall. Chastain then hooked Harvick on the back stretch and sent him into the wall head on, ending his day.

RELATED >> Chastain has Solid Debut; Leaves Harvick Pissed at Darlington

A furious Harvick emerged from the infield care center with choice words about Chastain and the incident.

“I tried to stay as low as I could and he just rode on my door,” Harvick said. “That’s just a really inexperienced racer and a really bad move there and got the air and got on beside me and just kept going up the race track. I couldn’t do anything with the wheel. So, you’ve got a really inexperienced guy in a really fast car and made a really bad move, and then wrecked me down the back straightaway and hooked me to the right. That’s probably the reason that he’ll never get to drive many of them again.”

It’s that fire that I think will motivate Harvick to victory in this year’s Southern 500. After all, it's been a whole two Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races since his last win in Michigan, so the Bakersfield driver is overdue.

Okay, in all seriousness, Kevin Harvick has nothing to prove by winning the race after the incident with Ross Chastain. Come race time, I’m sure that affair will be far from his thoughts as he focuses in on 500 miles around the sports toughest track. 

Simply put, there are three drivers that the NASCAR world is focused on. Kyle Busch is more than capable of pulling off the win, and is sure to be a threat after finishing second last year to teammate Denny Hamlin. Martin Truex Jr. led 76 laps in last year’s race, and is looking for a strong run amid the uncertainty of he and his team for next season.

In the end, however, I think that Kevin Harvick is in the groove right now, and will come out on top with his second Southern 500 trophy. 

Each week PixelatedSPEED will pick one driver, or team, as the PixelatedPICK. No fantasy rosters, leagues, budgets, or any of that other inflated fantasy stuff... just one driver... win or lose... for the fun of it!  If you've made it this far into the post, thank you. Please consider sharing this content on the interwebs and following PixelatedSPEED on Facebook and Twitter and joining in on the conversation. http://facebook.com/PixelatedSPEED & http://twitter.com/PixelatedSPEED

Chastain has Solid Debut; Leaves Harvick Pissed at Darlington

Ross Chastain was given an opportunity to show the racing world just how talented he is in a racecar. He took that opportunity to the fullest on Saturday in the Sport Clips 200 at Darlington Raceway. In the process, he battled two NASCAR champions. In the end, one was all smiles in victory lane why the other was left steaming at the ears.

Chastain has over 200 career starts in NASCAR’s top three series, dating back to 2011. The Florida driver is perhaps known more for his connections to the watermelon industry than his raw talent. He is the son of a watermelon farmer and his family’s racing pedigree goes back two generations. His connections in watermelons paved the way for Chastain’s move up the racing ladder, but that funding has not been able to get him into premiere equipment.

For the past four seasons, Chastain has raced for JD Motorsports in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, and for Premium Motorsports in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series the past two. While JD Motorsports is a respected team in the series, the ability for the team to provide the resources needed to compete as been limited. The team has struggled to meet the needs required for a championship run. It’s clear that Chastain has over-performed in JD Motorsports’ cars this season, and that effort has lead to him now having a chance at making the Xfinity Playoffs this season.

The chance at making the playoffs has resulted in the opportunity to race for Chip Ganassi racing in three of the remaining races this season. In addition to Darlington, Chastain will also race in the number 42 at Las Vegas and Richmond this September.

Ross made the most of the first race on that list, Darlington, by earning his first career pole in the series, and won both the first and second stages of the 200 mile event. In doing so, Chastain led a race-high 90 laps. He had led a career total of 16 laps prior to today.

Surprisingly to many, Chastain wasn’t the only contending driver looking for his first win at Darlington. Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski have never won at the track “Too Tough To Tame”. The three battled vigorously during the final stage. Harvick pulled a slide job on Chastain at one point, but Chastain fought back with a cross over maneuver to reclaim the lead. Keselowski pushed Chastain down the back stretch to get him loose, yet Chastain held tough.

Everything changed on lap 110. While trying to pass the lapped car of Chad Finchum, Harvick took the chance at a threewide pass. He got under Chastain, with Chastain moving down to defend. The two connected and slid up with 42 car making heavy contact with the outside wall. After they gathered themselves up, Chastain then appeared to  hooke Harvick, sending Harvick head on into the back stretch wall. In the process, Brad Keselowski passed both drivers to assume the lead and would go on to score his first career victory at Darlington in NASCAR’s second tier series.

As Harvick made his way to the garage area, he stopped in the 42 team’s pit stall in frustration before retiring for the day. Afterward, he shared his displeasure of the event with the media.

“I tried to stay as low as I could and he just rode on my door,” Harvick said. “That’s just a really inexperienced racer and a really bad move there and got the air and got on beside me and just kept going up the race track. I couldn’t do anything with the wheel. So, you’ve got a really inexperienced guy in a really fast car and made a really bad move, and then wrecked me down the back straightaway and hooked me to the right. That’s probably the reason that he’ll never get to drive many of them again.”

Harvick was relegated to a 29th place finish.

Chastain continued in the race through the restart after repair work on pit road, however, a lap following the restart would come back to the pits due to a severe tire rub and suspension damage. He finished in 25th place.

Chastain said following the race that the contact with Harvick after the initial incident was not intentional.

“I was out of control, man,” Chastain said. “After we hit the wall, I lost the wheel.”

He followed up with his take on the day.

“This was a win for every short-track racer running Fast Trucks, Pro Trucks, Late Models across the country that you can just race as long as you can stay in the car and progress up the ranks,” Chastain said. “However fast or slow it’s going to be or whatever your situation is, it’s just a testament. As long as you just keep racing, however you can, it’ll pay off.”

Car owner Chip Ganassi tweeted this about his driver in response to Harvick’s statements.

“Well everyone, I say @RossChastain simply helped himself to many future opportunities! @nascar @NASCAR_Xfinity @CGRnascar  @DCSolar”

So what about Chastain’s day? Did he blow his opportunity by retaliating against Harvick? Should Harvick have let out of the gas to avoid the contact in the first place?

I think there are a few things to gleam from this day. First, after today it should be pretty clear that Ross Chastain is in fact a talented driver, and when given good equipment, can shine… even at NASCAR’s toughest track.

Second, Chastain didn’t spoil his shot at greatness at all. In fact, it’s my belief that the tangle with Harvick actually helped his case. Why? Let’s say Chastain wins the race. That’s great, and in some ways can be considered even more superb had he beaten two Cup Series champions at the hardest track on the circuit. But let’s also consider what would have happened had Harvick made the pass without incident and gone on to win. Would the media buzz surrounding Chastain been as great? I think not. Having this tussle with Harvick will undoubtedly add more eyeballs in Chastain’s direction. As they say, any publicity is good publicity.

Chastain said he lost the wheel after the initial contact and was out of control, resulting in hitting Harvick and sending into the wall. I call B.S. on that one. I think Chastain was angry and in the heat of the moment, retaliated. I suppose only he knows for sure, however.

Did Harvick have a right to be pissed? Hell yeah he did. Sure, many will say that Harvick could have backed out, let Chastain by and went after him on the next lap or so. But this is racing, and these two drivers were going at it for several laps. It was a hard fought battle. Harvick saw his chance… the lapped car my have provided his only opportunity. I think if the roles had been reversed it would’ve been the same outcome; two contenders fighting for the win. So yeah, Harvick has every right to be mad, and if in fact wrecked on purpose afterward, that much more anger.

Harvick, still very much angered, claims that he doesn’t think Chastain will get to drive many good cars again after what happened in this race. I have to think this was the anger talking, because it’s clear that Ross Chastain will have many more opportunities to perform at a higher level in both the Xfinity Series, and the sport in general.

In this race we saw the emergence of another young, strong, highly talented driver. He proved that if given the right opportunity, he could prosper. Ross Chastain came close, and ruffled some feathers in the process, but he’ll have two more shots this year in that car, and who knows what lies beyond.

In time, Harvick’s anger will subside and hopefully he will realize that he was part of yet another great highlight of this 2018 season. The question is what, if anything, will happen if and when they two cross paths down the road.

In the end, this was a great race, with an unexpected show of talent and a dramatic ending thanks to two drivers RACING HARD FOR THE WIN. Isn’t that what everyone wants? I think so.

What do you think? Should Kevin Harvick have backed out of the pass? Will this incident help or hurt Ross Chastain moving forward. Share your thoughts.

PixelatedSPEED is a motorsports news and views website covering all things racing. If you've made it this far into the post, thank you. Please consider sharing this content on the interwebs and following PixelatedSPEED on Facebook and Twitter and joining in on the conversation. http://facebook.com/PixelatedSPEED & http://twitter.com/PixelatedSPEED