2019 Chicagoland NASCAR Cup Series Notes

Denny Hamlin won at Chicagoland in 2015. JGR has won 4 straight there.

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

Next Race: Camping World 400
The Place: Chicagoland Speedway
The Date: Sunday, June 30
The Time: 3:00 p.m. ET
TV: NBCSN, 2:30 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 400.5 miles (267 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 80),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 160), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 267)
2018 Race Winner: Kyle Busch

Joe Gibbs Racing’s teammate rivalry may heat up at Chicago

Recent history at Chicagoland Speedway has a distinctive similarity to the current competitive situation in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship standings. Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch are the most recent Chicago winners – Truex earning back-to-back trophies in 2016-17 and Busch winning last year.

The two drivers come to the Camping World 400 (Sunday, June 30 at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR radio) as the Monster Energy Series’ winningest drivers this season. Truex picked up his fourth victory Sunday in Sonoma to tie Busch in the win count.

Chicagoland Speedway, however, has long been one of Busch’s best tracks – and he’s performed best in the last few years. In addition to his 2018 win at the track, he won from the pole position in 2008 – the only driver in history to win from pole. He has earned an all-time high four pole positions in all.

In just the last six years Busch has won three poles and one race. His 399 laps led during that time frame is 69.9 percent of his career total laps led (573) at Chicago. He has six top-10 finishes in the last seven races. And Busch has three Xfinity Series and five Gander Outdoor Truck Series wins at Chicago, too.

Last year’s Monster Energy Series victory is among the most memorable in Busch’s career as he prevailed in a spirited last lap exchange with Kyle Larson. Larson used a "slide job" maneuver to get by Busch out of Turn 2 and then Busch caught back up to Larson and the two made contact as Busch got around Larson between Turns 3 and 4 en route to the checkered flag. The two shook hands after one of the more exciting finishes of the 2018 season.

That success all lines up well with his current season’s work. He has a series-best 15 top-10 finishes in 16 races, including top-five finishes in his last four races. He finished runner-up to Truex Sunday at Sonoma. He’s led laps in 12 races – double digit laps in nine of those. And he trails reigning series champion Joey Logano by a single point in the championship standings.

"Back when we first started racing there in the summer, it was a night race, so with a hot track now and the surface worn out more now, it certainly tends to play to my strengths and as we saw last year, we can put on a really good race with the heat, combined with the worn-out surface,’’ Busch said.


Its Truex time

Martin Truex Jr. has shown no signs of any transitional snafus moving from the Furniture Row Racing team, where he won the 2017 series championship, to the Joe Gibbs Racing operation this year where he just earned his fourth trophy in the season’s opening 16 races.

And he and his No. 19 JGR Toyota team arrive at Chicagoland Speedway with every reason to feel optimistic about carrying on the good vibes. Truex won back-to-back races in 2016-17 on the Chicago mile-and-a-half oval and finished fourth there last summer.

Truex has led laps in only three of the last seven races at the Chicago track - a career best 77 laps in his 2017 victory. Statistically Truex certainly seems to be getting better with age – scoring three of his five career top-five finishes in the last three races. He has 13 starts total.

Since his first win of 2019 – at Richmond on April 13 - Truex has only gone more than two weeks without a trip to Victory Lane only one time. There were three weeks between his win at Charlotte and last week on the Sonoma, Calif. road course.

He’s led 493 laps in his four wins – that’s 95.1 percent of all his laps led (518) this season.

Interestingly though, in his 23 career victories, Truex has never won back-to-back races on the schedule.

"I think JGR, all of our cars are running good at places throughout the season but for us personally on the 19, the last couple of mile-and-a-halves we’ve really turned a corner,’’ Truex said. "Michigan was a great run for us, Charlotte obviously, winning there was big.

"We started out the year kind of searching a bit on the mile-and-a-halves and the bigger tracks with the 550-horsepower package. For us, I definitely feel like we’ve learned a lot the past month and half and really turned a corner there. That has given us a lot of confidence and we feel like Chicago will be a good race for us.’’


Harvick still waiting on a win

Kevin Harvick won the very first two Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races ever held at Chicagoland Speedway and visiting Victory Lane again – for the first time in 17 years since – would be a timely dose of can-do for a team that had already hoisted five trophies by this time last season.

Harvick boasts the most top-five (10) and top-10 (11) finishes in the field this weekend and his 101.1 driving rating is third best among drivers with more than five starts in Chicago.

He’s finished top-five in four of the last six races and third both in 2017 and 2018. He’s led an impressive 471 laps at the track and led laps in four of the past five races. He’s started in the top-five in three of the last four races, including from the pole position in 2015. And . …. Harvick has never suffered a DNF at Chicago.

This time last year Harvick’s Stewart-Haas Racing team had won seven of the opening 16 races – nearly half. This year SHR is still contending for its first win. Although the team has certainly been close. Harvick has 11 top-10 and five top-five finishes – five times finishing a season best fourth place.

And that work - even without a win - has been good enough to place him third in the driver points standings. He trails leader Joey Logano, a two-time winner in 2019 by 70 points. But he’s got a four-point advantage over three-race winner Brad Keselowski in fourth place and a 70-edge over four-race winner Truex, who is in fifth place.


Logano continues his reign

Reigning Monster Energy NASCAR Cup champion Joey Logano has won half as many races (two) as Kyle Busch and last week’s Sonoma champion Martin Truex Jr., but he has been good enough to maintain his position atop the points standings – by a single point over four-time winner Busch.

Logano’s 23rd-place finish at Sonoma matched his worst finish of the season - at Atlanta in February - and snapped a three-race top-10 run. But he still maintains a one-point edge over four-race winner Kyle Busch atop the points standings.

Logano has only led laps in one of the last five races (163 of 203 laps in his Michigan win two weeks ago). The driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Ford has never won at Chicago before, but earned the pole position for the 2013 race and has top-10 finishes in six of the last seven races – including the last five consecutively. His best showing at Chicago is runner-up to Martin Truex Jr. in 2016.


Keselowski is a good bet at Chicago

Brad Keselowski is one of only four multi-time winners (also Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr. and Kevin Harvick) at this week’s Chicagoland Speedway venue – taking the trophies in 2012 and 2014. He shows up with eight consecutive top-10 finishes there and a pair of front row starts (outside pole in 2013 and 2016). His 9.2 average finish is best among active drivers with more than five starts. And he’s led laps in seven of his 10 starts.

It’s been five races since Keselowski earned his third win of 2019 – at Kansas. Two of this three victories (at Atlanta and Kansas) and one of his two runner-up finishes (at Las Vegas) have come on 1.5-mile tracks similar to Chicagoland.


Newman is a new man

Ryan Newman’s move to Roush-Fenway Racing this season has been a revitalization of his competitive spirit and talent can-do. He’s been making an especially impactful run at the Playoff 16 in recent weeks and shown no signs of letting up.

Newman’s sixth place showing at Sonoma, Calif. on Sunday was his second straight top-10 finish and fifth of the season. And it was good enough to move him into the 16th place – final cutoff position - in the series driver standings. He trails 15th place Kyle Larson by nine points and holds a one-point edge on 17th place Jimmie Johnson. It’s Newman’s first time back inside the top 16 since the first week of May.

The native Midwesterner, Newman, shows up in Chicago fresh off back-to-back top-10 finishes – eighth at Michigan and sixth place at Sonoma – his best showing at the California road course venue since a seventh place in 2008.

The driver of the No. 6 Roush-Fenway Racing Ford is one of only six active drivers with a previous win at this week’s Chicagoland Speedway venue. He won the pole position in his very first start (2002) and he won the race in his second start (2003). And he’s one of only two drivers (also Kyle Busch won race from pole in 2008) to win a pole position and also a race at the track.


Stats and Facts: 2019 has delivered for the fans

The 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season has experienced record numbers statistically in key competitive categories.

The average number of lead changes per race (18.69) through the opening 16 races is the highest since 2015 (19.50). Nine of the 16 races have had a margin of victory less than one-second. And this season has also had the most green flag passes for the lead in the last five years. It’s up an impressive 57.8 percent from 2018. The numbers were up in 11 of 16 races so far and three times a new record has been set (Las Vegas, 47, Bristol, Ten., 47 and Kansas, 41). So far Daytona’s 110 passes for the lead is most.

There have been six race winners representing three organizations – Joe Gibbs Racing, Team Penske and Hendrick Motorsports. All the winners have won multiple times, with the exception of Chase Elliott who won at Talladega, Ala.

Clint Bowyer is 18/1 to win at Chicagoland

CLINT BOWYER Brown Eyed Girl Was Bowyer’s Favorite Car Name – What’s Yours? KANNAPOLIS, North Carolina (June 25, 2019) – If anyone’s named his or her car or talked to it regularly – or even felt guilty driving another one – he or she is not alone. American car owners see their vehicles as family members, with 60 percent considering their cars to be part of the family, according to new research conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Toco Warranty. Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 14 Toco Warranty Ford Mustang for Stewart Haas Racing (SHR) in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, admits he hasn’t named many of his racecars since joining NASCAR, but he has a favorite dirt car from the 2003 season when he was racing around the Midwest. “I once had a dirt car we called Brown Eyed Girl,” he said. “We named her that because we were dirt racing at the time and she won just about every race she entered that year. I haven’t named many of the racecars since then. But the old Brown Eyed Girl is the one that sticks in my memory.” About 56 percent of American car owners go as far as naming their cars, according to the survey. With a bond so deep, what goes into the naming process? Results found that 42 percent of named cars get their names from a prominent feature, like color, the sound it makes, etc. Other name inspirations – 20 percent – come from movies, TV shows, and songs, and another 17 percent of names are triggered by famous cars or celebrities. The survey unveiled just how close people are to their cars. Two in five of the 2,000 motorists studied said they regularly talk to their vehicle. Given that Americans speak to their cars approximately 13 times a week, with 18 percent of owners speaking to them every single trip, one might wonder what they talk about. For 63 percent of owners, car conversations are primarily encouraging the car to go faster or make it up a hill. What other quirky habits do Americans have with their cars? It should come as no surprise that many identify their cars with personality traits. In fact, half of American car owners describe their car as having a “trustworthy” personality. More than one in three say their car’s personality is fun, and 28 percent say their vehicle is adventurous. Twenty-two percent believe their car is charming. Bowyer doesn’t care as much about his Mustang’s charm as he does its performance on the track. “I just want my hot rod to be fast,” he said with a laugh. “If she’s fast, I’ll put up with anything.” Bowyer will carry the Toco Warranty paint scheme on his No. 14 Ford Mustang at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois in Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race. Bowyer arrives at Chicago after finishing 11th on the road course at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway last weekend. He’s 12th in points with just 10 races remaining before the NASCAR playoffs begin Sept. 15 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. “Maybe if we win this weekend in Chicagoland, we’ll start naming all of our cars,” Bowyer said. “We’ll do anything if it helps us lock down a playoff spot.” Sunday’s race in Chicagoland marks Toco Warranty’s third appearance as the primary sponsor on Bowyer’s No. 14 Mustang. In its first season as a partner at SHR, Toco has initiated several racing programs, including the Toco All-Star Sweepstakes in which one lucky winner and his or her guest will attend the season finales of both the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series and the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The winner will be hosted by Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) for the World of Outlaws World Finals Nov. 8 to 9 at The Dirt Track near Charlotte, North Carolina, before jetting off to South Florida to see the NASCAR season finale Nov. 16 to 17 at Homestead-Miami Speedway with Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR). Toco Warranty will provide VIP access that includes round-trip airfare, hotel accommodations, a rental car and event tickets. Tony Stewart, the owner of TSR and the co-owner of SHR, will be at both events, where the winner will see the three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion in action as an owner, facilitating meet-and-greets with 10-time and reigning World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series champion Donny Schatz at Charlotte and Bowyer in Homestead. To register, fans simply need to go to www.TocoWarranty.com. A winner will be drawn by Sept. 16 at 5 p.m. EDT. “Toco Warranty has long realized that Americans view their cars as four-wheeled family members. Whether you are driving to little league, on a road trip or heading out on your daily commute, we know that every mile counts,” said Nota Berger, CEO of Toco Warranty. “Keeping cars reliable and on the road is Toco’s mission. Straightforward coverage plans to help hard-working Americans keep their cars for longer is the Toco promise.”

Clint Bowyer, Driver of the No. 14 Toco Warranty Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

What are your thoughts on Chicagoland Speedway? “Chicago has always been a cool racetrack. It is a sister track to my home track in Kansas and that fan base up there is that Midwestern fan base I feel most comfortable with, and I enjoy going to that racetrack and interacting with them in the infield and everything else. Again, we are fortunate to be able to race all over the country and see different people in different ways of life.” What are your thoughts on your 2019 season? “Success is measured by winning – that’s goal number one. We still haven’t accomplished that, so that’s our priority. Whether that’s this weekend in Chicago or the final race at Homestead, we have got to get a race win this season and, if we don’t, I’ll be disappointed.”

Kevin Harvick is 9/2 to win for third time at Chicagoland

KEVIN HARVICK Home Race Kevin Harvick is a two-time winner at Chicagoland. KANNAPOLIS, North Carolina (June 25, 2019) – Kevin Harvick finished sixth last week at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway in what could be considered his home race as Sonoma is located in the same state in which Harvick grew up. This week, the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois. And the speedway is located just 164 miles from Charleston, Illinois, where Jimmy John’s was founded in 1983 by Jimmy John Liautaud. So, for Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John’s Ford Mustang, this is an important weekend. Harvick and Jimmy John’s won the 2014 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Chicagoland, but a Chicago Cup Series victory for Jimmy John’s would make for a happy sponsor and driver. Harvick and his crew chief Rodney Childers have been successful in 2019 as they are third in the standings despite being without a victory thus far. But Harvick has been victorious at Chicagoland several times before. He has two wins, 10 top-five finishes, 11 top-10s and has led a total of 471 laps in his 18 career NASCAR Cup Series starts there, with an average start of 15.3, an average finish of 11.2 and a lap-completion rate of 98.4 percent – 4,736 of the 4,812 laps available. Since he joined SHR in 2014, Harvick has never started lower than 12th and he has three top-five finishes. Harvick also has three wins in 12 NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Chicagoland to go with six top-fives and eight top-10s at the 1.5-mile oval. He even has competed in one NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series race at Chicagoland. On September 16, 2011, Harvick drove Truck No. 2 and started second and finished second in the Fast Five 225. By the time Harvick won his second consecutive race at Chicagoland in 2002, Jimmy John’s had grown to 160 stores. If Harvick can win at Chicagoland this weekend, those 160 stores will celebrate as will more than 2,800 stores that are now open across 43 states. It would be a great hometown victory for Jimmy John’s and for Harvick, Childers and the No. 4 team.

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John's Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Are you frustrated by not having been to victory lane this year? “I am beyond all the frustration. To me it is now a challenge just because I feel like this is very similar to 2014 and 2017. I can see the progression in the speed of the cars and the things we have done and honestly we just chose the wrong direction to start the year. Our cars weren’t where they needed to be and everyone realizes that as a company. We had some situations where we were in position to win some races and had some things go wrong, whether it was my team or the 14 (Clint Bowyer). In the end, our cars just weren’t fast enough. I think everybody has kept his head down and is looking at it as a challenge now. Aside from the second half of the Charlotte race, I think over the last month or so the cars are headed in the right direction. Aric (Almirola) had a great test at Indianapolis and that is really the benefit of having quality teammates and people who communicate and an organization like we have with Gene (Haas) and Tony (Stewart) letting the racers go race. Sometimes that overrules the engineering. Not saying that our engineering guys did anything wrong, but it was just the direction wasn’t right to be able to do the things we are doing on the racetrack in the cars in real-life scenarios that are being covered with what we are doing on the track. That is what really tells the tale. We are all pulling the rope in the right direction now and feel like we have made some good gains. This is part of that challenge that is a cycle. I have talked about this for years – you have to build, you have to rebuild, build and rebuild. You are on the good side of it and the bad side of it and it all has a funny way of cycling itself through. We have had a number of challenges since I have been here with Tony in and out of the car and drivers changing. It is a resilient group of people who continue to set aside the frustrations and look forward. We were all frustrated at Pocono because we were in a position to win the race. It is hard to put your thumb on everything and know when steering boxes are going to break. I know we had a pit-road penalty but they had a phenomenal day on pit road. There were just a number of things that piled onto one stop there. At this point, in these types of situations for me, they are almost more fun than winning all the time because you get to talk about things and live that frustration and go through those scenarios and, in the end sometimes, it makes you stronger at the end of those seasons to be where you need to be as we saw with the 22 (Joey Logano) last year. They were nowhere in sight at the beginning of the year and they finished as the champs. Winning is easy because it means everything is right. You get to get gritty when it is not 100-percent going your way.” You’ve worked with Jimmy John’s for a few years. What makes Jimmy John’s unique? “I’ve known Jimmy since 2009 and I’ve personally seen how driven he is and how his work ethic is embraced by everyone who works at Jimmy John’s. They’re freaks about the details just like he is and want to be the best, period. And he’ll outwork everyone to be the best. That’s the same mindset we have in racing.”

Kyle Busch is 3/1 favorite to win at Chicagoland

KYLE BUSCH Slide Job! Kyle Busch has won twice ay Chicagoland. HUNTERSVILLE, North Carolina (June 25, 2019) – Without a doubt, the most exciting finish of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season came one year ago this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois. Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 Skittles® America Mix Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), battled it out with Chip Ganassi Racing’s Kyle Larson on a final lap to remember as Larson slid up in front of Busch attempting a “slide job” coming out of turn two, putting Busch into the wall and Larson into the lead. Despite some damage to his car, Busch caught Larson between turns three and four and made contact, spinning Larson sideways and going on to take the checkered flag. The sequence also was a memorable on-air moment for former-driver-turned-NBC-announcer Dale Earnhardt Jr., whose call of the last lap slide job perfectly captured the excitement of the finish and was a memorable clip that will be replayed not only this weekend, but for years to come. For Busch and Larson’s part after the race, Larson graciously went to victory lane to congratulate Busch and both smiled and laughed about one of the most memorable finishes in recent years. With a repeat of last year’s win on his mind and July 4 on the horizon, Busch will again sport a special Skittles scheme that will proudly show off the Red, White, and Blue for this Sunday’s Camping World 400 that is sure to be a hit with NASCAR’s patriotic fans. The Skittles America Mix is a must-have for summer gatherings, road trips and, of course, a great snack while watching a NASCAR Cup Series race either in-person or on television. Every bag contains red, white and blue Skittles with fruit flavors that include strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, wild berry and “yumberry” – the first white, fruit-flavored Skittles candy – and are available at retailers nationwide throughout the summer. In addition to its Hackettstown, New Jersey headquarters near its home track of Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, Mars Wrigley Confectionary U.S.  has offices in Chicago, as well, and Busch would like nothing more than to score another “home” win like last year for the Mars Wrigley associates located downtown, especially after his recent win at Pocono that gave him three wins in his last four outings at the Pennsylvania triangle. Last year’s win at Chicagoland was the second of Busch’s career at the 1.5-mile oval, his first coming in 2008. In the latter race, a late caution set up a green-white-checkered finish in which the Las Vegas native lined up behind now seven-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson. On the final restart, Busch made a bold and surprising move to the outside in turns one and two, passing Johnson and holding him off to bring home the win. In addition to his two wins in the Cup Series, Busch has four NASCAR Xfinity Series and five Gander Outdoors Truck Series wins there. So as Busch heads back to Chicagoland this weekend, he hopes the Skittles America Mix Red, White, and Blue colors will propel him to a third career Chicagoland win. There would be no better place to kick off the July 4 celebration than in victory lane at the 1.5-mile oval in the backyard of one of the main hubs for his primary backers. And wouldn’t it be nice if it was just as exciting as last year’s finish?

KYLE BUSCH, Driver of the No. 18 Skittles America Mix Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing:

How do you feel about how you’ve run at Chicagoland in recent years? “Chicago is all about being good at the start, but also good in the long run since tire longevity is a big deal there. The key is to have a good car on the front side of the run while also saving enough tires to be fast on the back side of the run. Tire longevity is a big deal there. It’s not quite as bad as California or Atlanta. It’s one of those places that’s very similar to Homestead. It’s a fun place where you can run the bottom, middle, top, and you can race all around there. It’s gotten a lot bumpier over the years and you have to get the setup to go over the bumps in turn three. It’s definitely a place where the guys who have been good there over the years have been rewarded each and every year they go back with their experience and what they’ve learned. Back when we first started racing there in the summer, it was a night race, so with a hot track now and the surface worn out more now, it certainly tends to play to my strengths and, as we saw last year, we can put on a really good race with the heat, combined with the worn-out surface. Chicago is another home for Mars Wrigley Confectionary U.S., now, so we’re hoping to have a strong run with our Skittles America Mix Camry and hopefully give them something to celebrate up there in the Chicago offices.” Has your experience helped you get through situations like the last lap at Chicagoland last year? “I mean, the wall obviously helped me in (turn) two when (Kyle) Larson got into me a bit. He didn’t bump me and send me to the bottom, he bumped me upward, which got me into the wall, which caught the car and maybe I could have caught the car if the situation was a bit differentl. Whatever, I don’t know. But then, getting into (turn) three, it was just – I drove it so far into three that I drove it tight, so you can watch a wall come at you a heck of a lot easier than you can back into one, right? So it really wasn’t all that spectacular as far as driving goes, I guess. It didn’t take a lot of talent to do that. But I was able to get back by him and win the race.” Both of your Chicago Cup Series wins have been quite memorable. Where does the 2008 win at Chicagoland rank in terms of special wins for you, knowing how you made a spectacular move on the outside to win? “Winning both (Xfinity Series and Cup Series) races at Chicago that year, it was just a great weekend. It was special, but there have been several special wins the last few years. Obviously, winning twice at the Brickyard was very special and, of course, winning the championship at Homestead in 2015 was a big highlight, as well. But winning Chicago in 2008 was a highlight in those early years at JGR, for sure. Beating Jimmie (Johnson) was definitely really cool. Ultimately, I have a lot of respect for him, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and a lot of guys who have given a lot to this sport over the years, since it’s been so competitive and those were guys you had to beat back in those days to win races. To go out and beat guys like that, it’s something pretty special and I really cherished that, for sure.” Do you kind of bring an “us against the world” mentality to the racetrack? “Absolutely, yeah. I would agree with that. I think when you come to the racetrack and you have a team like my 18 team, it is ‘us,’ collectively, as a group. But we have ‘us’ as Joe Gibbs Racing, as well, who we work with and we try to help make each other better and stronger, and I feel like we have a strong team in doing that. I’ve pushed Denny (Hamlin) an awful lot over the years, and Denny has pushed me an awful lot over the years, and it’s made us a pretty good duo. Now you add Martin (Truex Jr.) and Cole (Pearn, crew chief) into the mix and you have another team pushing us, as well, and I think it’s making us very strong as a company. But once you get on to the racetrack on Sunday and you strap your helmet on and you come down, especially toward the end of the race, it’s every man for himself. It’s me against the world. It’s me against everybody else. Sometimes you’re against your critics that you have to deal with, as well, and I think all of us have those. And it seems as though those voices have gotten louder over the last few years, just with ‘reachability,’ let’s call it, with social media and things like that. I don’t think you necessarily saw those in the ’90s, in the ’80s and in the ’70s, but I could say the philosophy of us against the world has been around about forever in sports.”

Odds to win 2019 Camping World 400 at Chicagoland

Kyle Busch is the 3/1 favorite to win Sunday.

WESTGATE LAS VEGAS SUPERBOOK

ODDS TO WIN 2019 CAMPING WORLD 400

CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY

SUNDAY, JUNE 30 - 3:15 PM ET 

Kyle BUSCH 3/1
Kevin HARVICK 9/2
Martin TRUEX JR 6/1
Brad KESELOWSKI 8/1
Joey LOGANO 8/1
Chase ELLIOTT 10/1
Kyle LARSON 10/1
Denny HAMLIN 18/1
Clint BOWYER 18/1
Ryan BLANEY 20/1
Kurt BUSCH 20/1
Erik JONES 20/1
Aric ALMIROLA 30/1
Jimmie JOHNSON 30/1
Alex BOWMAN 30/1
Daniel SUAREZ 40/1
William BYRON 80/1
Austin DILLON 100/1
Ricky STENHOUSE JR 100/1
Daniel HEMRIC 200/1
Paul MENARD 200/1
Ryan NEWMAN 300/1
Chris BUESCHER 300/1
Matt DIBENEDETTO 300/1
Ryan PREECE 1000/1
Ty DILLON 1000/1
Michael McDOWELL 2000/1
David RAGAN 2000/1
Darrell WALLACE JR 2000/1
FIELD (all others) 1000/1

Martin Truex Jr wins at Sonoma, again

Sonoma Results

Kyle Larson wins pole at Sonoma Raceway

Kyle Larson won the pole for Sunday’s Cup Series race at Sonoma Raceway.

It is Larson’s third consecutive pole on the road course and his first of the year. He claimed the top spot with a speed of 95.712 mph.

“I felt good in our mock run yesterday in practice, ran a good lap,” Larson told FS1. “Both of these two rounds I ran good. I felt like I overdrove the first session. Then the next session I was like, ‘OK, I’m just going to calm down and not make any mistakes’ and I probably under drove just a little. I felt like through the Carousel and Turn 7 I probably under drove some and gave up a little speed, but felt like I made up some time in other areas.”

Larson tied Ricky Rudd for the most consecutive Sonoma poles.

Larson and former teammate Jamie McMurray have combined to give Chip Ganassi Racing five of the last seven Sonoma poles.

The top five is completed by William Byron, Joey Logano, Chase Elliott and Daniel Suarez. All top five starters are under the age of 30.

Byron will start on the front row for the seventh time in the first 16 races of the season.

Defending race winner Martin Truex Jr. qualified eighth.

In the first round, Michael McDowell qualified 13th and was followed by Clint Bowyer, Aric Almirola, Kurt Busch and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

READ MORE HERE....NBC SPORTS

STARTING LINEUP

Kyle Larson fastest in final Sonoma practice, Kurt Busch second

Happy Hour Speeds

Sonoma Betting Preview: 2019 Toyota/Save Mart 350

Kevin Harvick won at Sonoma in 2017.

Sunday's Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway will be the first of three races on road courses this season giving us a chance to see the drivers make both left and right turns.

It's the 50th anniversary of Sonoma Raceway and to do a little something special commemorating the weekend, track officials have brought back "The Carousel" which has been bypassed by NASCAR since 1998. The course goes from 1.99-miles now to a 12-turn 2.52-mile layout as it was when the track opened in Sonoma's wine country in 1969. This week's 7/2 favorite (Bet $100 to win $350) to win, Kevin Harvick, had something to do with the change.

"Honestly this was a conversation that Marcus Smith (SMI CEO) and I had at lunch one day and I asked why we don’t just run The Carousel and how cool it would be to throw it back," Harvick said. "An hour later, he told me he talked to his guys and they were looking into it. Next thing you know we are running The Carousel. I love the fact they are changing it up. I think Watkins Glen could do the same thing."

Harvick is one of three active drivers to actually have experience racing on the old layout. Kyle Busch drove a Legends car there in 1998 and Jimmie Johnson drove it during a driving school session, but Harvick dates back to 1995 there. Harvick grabbed his three wins at Sonoma in three different series after changing to the 1.99-mile layout. His lone Cup Series win there came two years ago and last year he was runner-up.

Still, despite having the most experience, Harvick is still going to be prepping the unfamiliar layout in the simulator like most drivers.

“I was in the simulator last week and got lost a couple of times – forgot where to turn," Harvick said. "It is a lot different than I remember it from 1995. I told some of the guys in our organization that the last time I was there and ran this particular course, the course we have been running wasn’t even there. There was a mountain in the middle of the racetrack. A lot has changed. Running that portion of the racetrack, the lap time is longer and there are some different corners to deal with and, from (turn) 3B all the way through four, through The Carousel and the exit of it and what is a different turn seven than the one we have been racing, which was actually turn five."

Harvick's Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Clint Bowyer won at Sonoma in 2012 and his 11 top-fives on road courses are tied for the most among active drivers. He's not exactly a big fan of the changes this week.

“I’m a little bit torn on this,” said Bowyer who is 6/1 to win. “I was surprised they added The Carousel back to the layout. I’m kind of old-fashioned and thought, you know, if it isn’t broke, why fix it, why touch it? And I didn’t think that track was broke at all. I think the tire and stuff has gotten a little bit too good for a track like that, but I always have thought it’s been a great product for our sport. Who knows, maybe, it’ll make it better and it’s certainly going to make it a longer race.”

Bowyer has a big reason to not be happy because he's the best among active drivers at Sonoma with a 10th-place average finish in 13 starts and eight top-five finishes. He was third last season and runner-up in 2017 behind Harvick.

SHR has yet to win this season through 15 races, but this may be the week. And don't be surprised if it's another teammate with Daniel Suarez who grew up in Mexico go-karting. Turning left and right is more natural for him than several NASCAR regulars who grew up mostly on ovals. He's performed better at Watkins Glen with third and fourth-place finishes between his five Cup starts on the road courses. At 25/1 odds, he's probably the best value on the board because of his own skills coupled with having great SHR equipment.

And when looking at the race package being used the week -- no aero ducts with engines producing 750 horsepower, the cars aren't that much different from what they used last season and SHR was very good. Harvick has top-five finishes in his past two starts using this weeks package (Richmond, Dover).

READ MORE HERE.....TOP-5 FINISH PREDICTION ON VEGASINSIDER.COM

Jimmie Johnson is 25/1 to win at Sonoma

Jimmie Johnson last season at Sonoma.

Jimmie Johnson on the Carousel at Sonoma:
“I grew up on the West Coast, watched a lot of races at Sonoma Raceway that included the carousel, and I even did a driving school and learned how to drive that track as a teenager with the carousel. Then I showed up on the NASCAR circuit and they didn’t have the carousel (laughs). So, naturally, I am really excited that they are now opening that back up to us and we will be running through there this time around.”


CALIFORNIA KIDS: The “Golden State” is not only home to El Cajon, California, native Jimmie Johnson – the No. 48 team has two other members who also call California home. Race engineer Julian Pena hails from Aliso Viejo, California, and graduated from Stanford University with a degree in mechanical engineering. Interior mechanic Matt Philpott originally hails from nearby Tracy, California, which is roughly 90 miles from Sonoma.

FINDING VICTORY LANE: Johnson has been able to sip wine in Victory Lane one time at Sonoma Raceway over the course of his career. His win at the road course came June 20, 2010, when he led 55 of 110 laps en route to the victory. He has finished inside the top 10 nine times at the venue, including most recently in 2015, when he led 45 laps before finishing sixth.

SONOMA STATS: At Sonoma, the seven-time Cup Series champion has the second-best average running position of all current drivers, 11.34, and an average finish of 11.0. Johnson has spent 77 percent of all laps run in the top 15 and has led 143 circuits around the now 12-turn, 2.52-mile road course.

STREAKING AT SONOMA: Johnson has not finished outside of the top 15 at Sonoma Raceway since a 17th-place result in 2007. He has finished outside of the top 17 just twice in his career at the track. In his last 10 races at the road course, Johnson has earned a win, three top-five finishes, seven top-10s and most recently an 11th-place result.

PICKING UP POINTS: In 2018, Johnson earned the fifth-most points of all drivers at road course races, earning 101 between events at Sonoma, Watkins Glen and the Charlotte Motor Speedway "roval."

EARL BARBAN Q&A: Longtime spotter for the No. 48 team Earl Barban will participate in a question-and-answer session Sunday, June 23, in the Save Mart/Lucky Breaking Zone at Sonoma Raceway at 9 a.m. local time.

OFF-WEEKEND FUN: Over the off-weekend break, Johnson, his wife Chandra and daughters Genevieve and Lydia enjoyed a vacation in Greece, traveling to Athens, Mykonos, and Santorini.

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2019 Season 16th in standings 15 starts 0 wins 1 pole position 1 top-five finish 6 top-10 finishes 68 laps led     Career 630 starts 83 wins 36 pole positions 225 top-five finishes 358 top-10 finishes 18,771 laps led     Track Career  17 starts 1 win 0 pole positions 4 top-five finishes 9 top-10 finishes 143 laps led

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Chase Elliott is 6/1 to win 2019 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma

Chase Elliott on racing at Sonoma:
“I have enjoyed road racing in these cars. I think road course racing suits these cars well, which is fun. We don’t do it a whole lot and that makes it cool when we do have a chance. I’ve enjoyed it. Sonoma is a very tough racetrack and it’s been an extreme challenge for me to try and get around there at a decent pace. I always look forward to going out there. It’s a cool part of the country and since we only go there once a year, that’s what makes it special.”

Elliott on the difference between Sonoma and Watkins Glen:
“Everything. You are still road course racing, for sure, but your habits and tendencies that you’d have at Watkins Glen, you would just never get away with at Sonoma. It’s a lot more finesse, I feel like, at Sonoma, a lot more making sure you hit your marks and doing the right things to make your tires live. Watkins Glen, with the repave that happened a few years ago now, it’s kind of just everything you've got, every lap, and it’s very different. Obviously, the pace is polar opposite. Sonoma isn’t slow, but it is certainly not fast like Watkins Glen is."

ROAD COURSE RINGER: Chase Elliott proved his road course prowess in 2018 after collecting his first career NASCAR Cup Series victory at Watkins Glen International. The win made Elliott the ninth-youngest first-time winner in the Cup Series (22 years, eight months, eight days) and the youngest road course winner of all time. In 2018, he was one of only three drivers to finish inside the top 10 in all three road course races (Sonoma, Watkins Glen, Charlotte "roval") and he also garnered the second-most laps led on road courses (52) behind only Martin Truex Jr. (71) last season. The Dawsonville, Georgia, native held the best average finish on road courses last season (3.67) and his 141 points collected on those tracks were 20 more points than any other driver.

SONOMA STATS: Elliott is set to make his fourth Cup Series start at Sonoma Raceway this weekend. In his previous Cup starts at the road course, the driver of the No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 hah an average starting position of 9.0 and finishing position of 11.0. The 23-year-old driver earned his first top-10 result at Sonoma in 2017 and followed it up last season, posting a fourth-place finish, his first top-five road-course result.

ROAD COURSE ROUNDUP: In his seven previous starts in the Cup Series at road courses, Elliott has collected two top-five finishes – including his win at Watkins Glen – and four top-10s. He has started in the top five in each of his last four road course races, and finished in the top six in the last three for an average finish of 3.67. In the NASCAR Xfinity Series (Road America, Watkins Glen, Mid-Ohio) the No. 9 Chevy driver finished inside the top 10 in all six starts and collected four top-five finishes. Elliott also garnered victories in both the NASCAR Truck Series (Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, 2013) and K&N Pro Series West (Sonoma Raceway, 2016) at road courses.

GUSTAFSON AT ROAD COURSES: No. 9 team crew chief Alan Gustafson will call his 30th road course race from atop the pit box this weekend. In his previous 29 starts with five different drivers (Elliott, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin, Casey Mears and Kyle Busch), Gustafson has collected one win – with Elliott last season at Watkins Glen – one pole award, six top-five finishes and 12 top-10s.

LAST SIX: The driver of the No. 9 Chevy is currently on a streak of leading laps in six straight races, behind only Brad Keselowski's active streak of eight straight. He has collected five top-five finishes (Talladega – first; Dover – fifth; Kansas – fourth; Charlotte – fourth; Pocono – fourth) in the last six events. Over those six races, he has averaged a starting position of 14.2 and finishing position of 6.3 while leading 281 laps.

DARLINGTON SCHEME REVEALED: Last week, the No. 9 team unveiled the Darlington throwback scheme via social media that will hit the track in September. The ride mirrors the fourth-ever NASCAR Cup Series car of Elliott’s father, NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott. He drove it while racing for his father, George Elliott, in the 1981 season. That year, Bill Elliott captured his first Cup Series pole at Darlington and earned seven top-10 finishes. Click here for a closer look at the throwback No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.

HOOTERS PAGEANT: Before heading to Sonoma, Elliott will serve as a judge for the 23rd Annual Hooters International Pageant at Lake Tahoe on Thursday. The crowned pageant winner will also become a brand ambassador for Hooters that leads the #Hooters9 Crew in cheering on the No. 9 team. The pageant will also feature a special concert from award-winning country music singer-songwriter Lee Brice. For more information, click here.

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2019 Season 5th in standings 15 starts 1 win 2 pole positions 6 top-five finishes 7 top-10 finishes 403 laps led Career 128 starts 4 wins 6 pole positions 39 top-five finishes 66 top-10 finishes 1,646 laps led Track Career  3 starts 0 wins 0 pole positions 1 top-five finish 2 top-10 finishes 0 laps led

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Sonoma NASCAR Cup Series Notes: 2019 Toyota/Save Mart 350

Martin Truex Jr. is 9/2 to win Sunday at Sonoma.

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

Next Race: Toyota/Save Mart 350

The Place: Sonoma Raceway

The Date: Sunday, June 23

The Time: 3:00 p.m. ET

TV: FS1, 2:30 p.m. ET

Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Distance: 226.8 miles (90 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 20),

Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 40), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 90)

2018 Race Winner: Martin Truex Jr.

Summertime and the winning is hot

Traditionally, summertime has been Truex-time in terms of a trophy haul for the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion. Ten of his 22 career wins have occurred on or after Memorial Day weekend in May through Labor Day weekend in September.

Truex is the defending winner of this Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway (3 p.m. ET on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) and one of only two multi-time winners in this week’s field at the scenic 2.52-mile course in California’s famed Wine Country.

The driver of the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry earned his Sonoma wins in 2013 and 2018 – and led the most laps (25) in his 2017 championship year at the venue only to finish 37th of 38 cars due to engine failure.

Truex’s race days at the road course have typically been very good or very disappointing. He has two top-five finishes (including last year’s win) and two finishes of 37th or worse in the last four races at the track. Of his 154 career laps led at Sonoma, he’s led 87 of them (56.4 percent) of them in just the last two races.

Last season, Truex led the most combined laps (71) at the three road course venues – Sonoma, Watkins Glen, N.Y. and the Charlotte ROVAL.

Logano returns to the top of the points

Team Penske’s Joey Logano has retaken the championship points lead with his win at Michigan and would love to have that good mojo translate into a first career victory at Sonoma Raceway.

Logano holds a nine-point edge over two-time Sonoma winner Kyle Busch in the standings and would love nothing more than to accentuate his title defense with his first Sonoma Raceway win. The driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Ford Mustang has one pole, two top-fives and four top-10 finishes in 10 starts on the famed road course. His best showing is third in 2016 and both of his top-five finishes have come in the last four-race span.

Historically speaking, Sonoma has been challenging for Logano. His 18 laps led (over three races) at the facility is his third-lowest laps led mark of any track the Monster Energy Series currently visits. The only other tracks he’s led fewer laps at are the other road courses, Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International (nine laps led) and the Charlotte ROVAL (zero laps led). But keep in mind, he has a win at The Glen (2015).

Certainly, momentum is on Logano’s side this weekend. He has seven finishes of seventh place or better in the last eight series races this season – four of those are top-three efforts. In addition to his win at Michigan, Logano finished runner-up at both Richmond and Charlotte during that span. Only his Penske teammate Brad Keselowski (775) and Kyle Busch (763) have led more laps this season than Logano (549).

Kyle Busch’s road course skills shine at Sonoma

Kyle Busch and his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr. are the only two-time winners at Sonoma Raceway this weekend.

Busch has four top-five and six top-10 finishes in 14 starts at the track. Furthermore, he’s finished seventh or better in the last four races including his victory in 2015.

That win was particularly important to Busch as it was the first victory for him after he returned from a serious injury that sidelined him for the season’s first 11 races. The Sonoma win ensured him a position in the championship Playoffs and Busch went on to earn four more race wins and eventually his first series title.

The Sonoma Raceway victory – on such a physically demanding venue – was a particular bright spot for Busch in that championship run. Busch acknowledges that perhaps his background racing on road courses (and Sonoma, in particular as a youth) made him more open to the discipline.

“It’s different, for sure,’’ Busch said. “There are a lot of guys out there who have the road racing background, who know a heck of a lot more about road racing and technique than we do. The neat thing about road racing is just being able to have – it’s like – a vacation weekend. You just go out there and have fun and do the best you can and you’ll either do really well or you’ll do really badly, and you just go on to the next one.

“We don’t have a lot of testing for it and you try to pick up on it but, with respect to who you’re racing, you can expect to race a little bit of a different crowd.

“I think the biggest thing you do for Sonoma is watch some film, look at things from the past few years that have worked and some things that haven’t, and look at what has made you better there. You always have to be mindful of what has made you good there and what you can improve on. Looking forward to heading out there and getting back in the M&M’S Hazelnut Spread Camry and having some fun.”

Statistically speaking, Kurt Busch is one to watch

Crunch the numbers at Sonoma Raceway and veteran Kurt Busch rises to the top in four of the six most important statistical loop categories. Using Loop Data since 2005, Busch leads the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in Driving Rating (107.1), Average Running Position (9.863), Laps in the Top-15 (78.9 percent) and Laps Led (167) at Sonoma Raceway.

In the other two categories (Quality Passes) and (Fastest Laps Run) – Busch is ranked second and third best, respectively. He has 351 Quality Passes compared to Jimmie Johnson’s 419. And Busch has run 89 Fastest Laps, compared to leader Martin Truex Jr.’s 100.

In fact, Busch’s 198 laps led all-time is most among active drivers and second all-time only to NASCAR Hall of Famer and five-time Sonoma winner Jeff Gordon. And Busch’s average running position of 9.863 is especially impressive considering the second-best mark is Johnson’s 11.343.

Busch is tied with Clint Bowyer for most top-10s (10) among active drivers at Sonoma and his seven top-five finishes is second only to Bowyer’s mark of eight.  And not only are Busch’s finishes impressive, he swept the 2006 road course season scoring pole positions at both Sonoma and Watkins Glen, N.Y.

Coming to California, Busch is still looking for his first win in his first season driving the No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. He has four top fives and nine top 10s in the season’s opening 15 races and is ranked eighth in the series driver standings, six points behind seventh place Denny Hamlin and 14 points behind sixth place Martin Truex Jr. – drivers that have five wins on the year between them. Busch is the highest ranked driver without a victory or any stage points in 2019.

Will this be the week for Harvick?

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick must surely be open to any home-state love he can muster this weekend at Sonoma Raceway. The Bakersfield, California, native is still looking for his first win of the 2019 season and the Sonoma 2.52-mile course has generally been a good venue for the 2014 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion.

Harvick has nine top-10 finishes in 18 starts on the track, including five of the last six races there. Harvick won at Sonoma in 2017 and has finished sixth or better in the last four consecutive races there. He was runner-up last year to Truex and led 35 laps in the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mustang. In fact, he’s led 62 of his 95 career laps out front in just the last three races.

A victory would not only make him one of only three drivers to earn multiple trophies at Sonoma but would top off a season that’s been consistently good, if trophy-less. Harvick has 10 top-10 finishes through the opening 15 races and is ranked fourth in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup championship standings – ahead of race winners Chase Elliott, Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin.

Even without a victory yet, Harvick is only two points behind three-time race winner Brad Keselowski, who is third in the standings.

Sonoma is one of Clint Bowyer’s best tracks

Stewart-Haas Racing driver Clint Bowyer shows up at Sonoma Raceway this week one of only six drivers with a previous win on the road course and someone whose track record there makes him an absolute race day favorite.

The popular driver of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mustang boasts the best average finish in the field (10.077) – the third best mark all-time behind only Jeff Gordon (8.304) and the late Dale Earnhardt (8.583) – a pair of Hall of Famers.

Bowyer scored his victory in 2012 and has a series-best eight top-five finishes at Sonoma. He and Kurt Busch are tied for most top-10 finishes (10). And a victory Sunday would be a well-needed and well-timed boost for the SHR driver’s season.

He has three top-10 finishes and three finishes of 24th or worse in the last six races of the season; including a disappointing 35th-place finish at Michigan in the series’ last race before a Father’s Day off-weekend. Still, Bowyer is well inside the top-16 championship field – ranked 12th, 22-points behind his Stewart-Haas teammate Aric Almirola. A runner-up showing at Texas and third at Richmond highlight his five top-five finishes.

Bowyer has finished among the top-three in three of the last four Sonoma races – including a third-place finish in 2015, runner-up in 2017 and third place last year. The only foul mark in that run was a 40th-place finish in 2016 when an electrical problem sidelined him only five laps into the race.

“The summer stretch is everything and, looking back at our season last year, we’ve got to get better at it,’’ Bowyer said. “Everybody asks, ‘How are you going to improve from last year?’ And I say it’s that late-summer stretch. We started off great last year and then tapered off in the summer. We have to avoid that this year. You have to get on a roll, especially leading off into the Playoffs.”

The Carousel returns

The Sonoma Raceway course will have a distinct new - longer - look this weekend, at least for recent NASCAR fans. For the first time in 22 years, the course will again use the “The Carousel” turn – a tight, 200-degree plus turn that leads to the track’s long straightaway and hairpin turn.

Since 1998, NASCAR has bypassed “The Carousel” and used a 1.99-mile course. The addition of the turn makes the course layout 2.52-miles long. 

The last driver to win at Sonoma with “The Carousel” is Mark Martin in 1997. Ricky Rudd is the only driver to win in both course layouts, earning the inaugural NASCAR race victory in 1989 and then winning a second time in 2002. All of NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon’s historic five wins happened since 1998. Of the current roster of drivers entered this weekend only Kyle Busch and California natives Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick have ever turned a lap  on The Carousel configuration – all getting time on track in other series earlier in their racing careers.

Defending race winner Martin Truex Jr. anticipates “The Carousel” has the potential to significantly impact the race.

“It’s going to be a game charger,’’ Truex said. “We’ll have a fast, left-hand turn that we’ve never had there before. In the past, you focused on turning right and kind of threw the left-hand turns away. I don’t think any current driver has ran on this course, so it’s kind of starting from scratch for everyone.

“I have it embedded in my mind the track we have ran and what we’ve been doing for as long as I’ve raced there. On the old layout, I feel like I could go there and get 99 percent out of my car on Lap 1. Now you throw in the different turns and I might just get lost and fly on by the turn into the carousel. It’s going to be fun to try to figure it out. It looks like a really neat course.”

Sunoco Rookie race continues

The Sunoco Rookie of the Year contest continues to thrive and thrill. Richard Childress Racing’s Daniel Hemric retook the rookie lead from Ryan Preece with a solid 12th-place finish at Michigan before the off-week. He’s had top-20 finishes in four of the last six races in the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and Michigan’s result was his second best showing of the year after a fifth-place finish at Talladega last month.

Judging by his recent NASCAR resume, Hemric, 28, has reason to be optimistic heading into the summer road courses. He has three top-three finishes on road courses in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and two previous top-five showings in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series road course events. This will be his first time on the Sonoma course.

Preece, 28, is looking for his first top-20 since a third-place finish at Talladega. His best showing in the No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the five races since is 23rd at Pocono Raceway. After leading the rookie standings for much of the season, he now trails Hemric by nine points heading to Sonoma this weekend. His best NASCAR national series road course finishes are fourth place at both Watkins Glen, N.Y. and the Charlotte ROVAL course in the NASCAR Xfinity Series last year.

Matt Tifft, 23, is hoping this week’s fresh venue may offer an uptick in his rookie season. The Ohio native comes into the Sonoma race ranked 31st in the standings with five finishes of 25th or better – including a 24th place showing at Michigan.

He has been good on road courses, in particular, in the Xfinity Series with five top-10 finishes. He won the pole position and finished runner-up at Road America in last year’s Xfinity race there.

Parade Laps: Insights ahead of this week’s driver media rotations

Six drivers from the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series – Leavine Family Racing’s Matt DiBenedetto, Hendrick Motorsport’s William Byron, Wood Brothers Racing’s Paul Menard, Front Row Motorsports’ David Ragan, GO FAS Racing’s Corey LaJoie and Richard Petty Motorsport’s Bubba Wallace will be participating in this week’s media rotations at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway in advance of Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race the Toyota/Save Mart 350  at 3 p.m. ET on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Matt DiBenedetto, 27, of Grass Valley, California, earned his best result so far this season – 17^th at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway – three weeks ago in the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota Camry. He has five top-20 finishes and is ranked 26th in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup standings. The Californian returns to his home state this week looking to better his top career effort (17^th in 2018) at the Sonoma Raceway road course.

William Byron, 21, of Charlotte, North Carolina, has shown plenty of statistical improvement in his second Monster Energy Series season driving the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. He has three top-10 finishes in the last five races – including back-to-back pole positions at Charlotte and Pocono and ninth-place finishes in both races. Byron already has as many top-10s (four) through 15 races as he did in all of his 2018 Cup rookie season and his 14th place in the series driver standings is a high mark as well. He’s led a career high 150 laps on the year and paced the field in the last five consecutive races. Byron started eighth and finished 25th at Sonoma as a rookie last year, leading one lap.

Paul Menard, 38, Eau Claire, Wisconsin, is coming off his best finish in months – a 13th place run at Michigan two weeks ago. He has a pair of top-10 finishes – including a season best of sixth at the Bristol short track in March. The series veteran is currently ranked 19th in the championship – in his second season driving the iconic No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford Mustang. This week will be a good test for the team. Road courses have typically been challenging for Menard. He has one top-10 finish in 11 starts at Sonoma – a fifth place showing in 2014. He was 26th last year. Although he’s yet to hoist a trophy, Menard has completed all but two laps in the 11 races he’s started at Sonoma.

David Regan, 33, of Unadilla, Ga., posted his best finish of the season three races ago at Charlotte – a 15th place effort – and led three laps in the season’s longest race, the Coca-Cola 600. The driver of the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang is looking for his first top-10 in a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series road course event. His best finish in 12 Sonoma Raceway starts is 22nd and that came last summer

Corey LaJoie, 27, of Concord, N.C., is earning the best results of his three-year Cup career. He has five finishes of 25th or better in the No. 32 GO FAS Racing Ford Mustang, including a 23rd place effort in the series’ last race at Michigan. LaJoie’s 11th-place finish at Talladega in May ties his career-best series result scored at Daytona in July, 2018. This weekend marks LaJoie’s Sonoma Raceway debut. He’s only made one road course start in the Monster Energy Series, starting 36th and finishing 33rd at Watkins Glen International in 2017.

Bubba Wallace, 25, of Mobile, Ala, the popular driver of the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford Mustang, has six top-25 finishes this season with a best 2019 effort of 17th at Martinsville Speedway in April. He was 28th at the series’ last stop at Michigan two weeks ago. Wallace has three top-10 finishes in road course races at the Xfinity Series level and a career best effort of fourth place in the 2013 Gander Trucks race at Bowmanville, Ontario. The second-year Cup driver is still looking for his first top-20 at the Cup road course venues. He started 35th and finished 29th in his Sonoma Raceway debut last season.