Next Race: Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race The Place: Charlotte Motor Speedway The Date: Saturday, May 19 The Time: 6 p.m. ET TV: FS1, 5 p.m. ET Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Distance: Open – 3 Stages: 20 Laps / 20 Laps / 10 Laps All-Star Race – 4 Stages: 30 Laps / 20 Laps / 20 Laps / 10 Laps Kyle Busch Looking To Repeat As much as Kyle Busch wins – 187 victories in NASCAR’s three national series – he scored his only Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race win just last year. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver is already on a hot streak to start the 2018 season, scoring three wins through the first 12 races. So a victory in Saturday night’s version of the All-Star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway (8 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) would be fitting of such a strong season start. Even for a former series champion (2015), being a part of the sport’s $1 million-to-win All-Star Race is both honorable and motivating. “For us, being an all-star and being in the All-Star Race is one of the most fun things we get to do each year,’’ Busch said. “I’d say the Clash is another one of those and, with the All-Star Race, they are certainly two fun races where we get a chance to go after just a win and bring home the checkers or end up on the wrecker. “It’s an exciting night and there’s a lot of energy there. It gives you the opportunity to run that many qualifying laps in a row. That’s all you’re doing – you’re giving it all you’ve got every single lap.” History Says Winners Don’t Repeat A look at the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race’s past winners list reveals a rare occurrence in the sport. Since 1998 only one driver – Jimmie Johnson – has scored multiple victories in the event. He’s the all-time best with four wins and despite a field full of past champions and weekly contenders, this event has hosted a wide range of drivers in its Victory Lane. One time each. Ryan Newman (2002), Matt Kenseth (2004), Kevin Harvick (2007), Kasey Kahne (2008), Kurt Busch (2010), Jamie McMurray (2014), Denny Hamlin (2015) and Joey Logano (2016) all have an All-Star trophy. Former series champion Brad Keselowski is 0-for-9 in the race. This year’s Martinsville Speedway winner Clint Bowyer is 0-for-8 and reigning series champion Martin Truex Jr. is 0-for-6. Newcomers Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson are both winless in two All-Star Race appearances. Despite being one of the winningest drivers – and champions – on the circuit, Kyle Busch just picked up his first All-Star trophy last May. Trying Something New This year’s All-Star race will include a four-stage format (30 laps, 20 laps, 20 laps and 10 laps) and for the first time ever, cars will run a restrictor plate similar to what’s long been used on the big speedways in Talladega and Daytona. Cars will also carry a six-inch spoiler on the rear deck, a 2014-style front splitter and aero ducts. The idea is to increase the passing opportunities and there has been success with this idea. The NASCAR Xfinity Series used a similar package on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway last year, producing a record-setting race in terms of lead changes. The field will include all 2017 and 2018 race winners, plus former series champions and former All-Star race winners that are still competing full time. The three stage winners from the Open will also transfer to the main event. No stage will end under yellow flag conditions and only green flag laps count in the fourth and final stage. The All-Star Of The All-Stars Not only does Jimmie Johnson boast the biggest championship haul in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, he is – fittingly — the all-time winningest All-Star driver with four race trophies (2002, 2006, 2012, 2013). And he is the only one in Saturday’s field with more than one victory in the big race. Charlotte Motor Speedway has been a bastion of good results in the champion’s stellar career even beyond the All-Star race. He is an eight-time points-paying race winner at the 1.5-mile speedway, sweeping the 2014 and 2015 season races there and has led almost 2,000 laps (1,930). In 16 All-Star Race starts, Johnson has four trophies and nine top-five finishes – including a runner-up finish in 2007 and a third-place showing last May in the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. And in a race known for its hard-charging, win-at-all-costs style, Johnson has only one DNF in all those starts. Tried And True-x Sunday’s Kansas race runner-up Martin Truex Jr. set a mark of domination at this week’s venue, Charlotte Motor Speedway two years ago – leading an amazing 392 of 400 laps to win the sport’s longest race, the Coca-Cola 600, from the pole position. He is the most recent Charlotte winner, leading 91 laps in last fall’s victory during his championship Playoff run. He has five top-five finishes – and two wins – in the last six Charlotte points races. But. … Truex is still looking for his first All-Star trophy. He has two wins in the Open (2007 and 2010) but his best finish in the All-Star Race portion is a runner-up in 2010 – his only top-five showing in six starts. THE OPEN While obviously the big emphasis Saturday night is on the All-Star race itself, but the qualifying portion of the evening – the Open – will have plenty of intrigue as well. Winners from each of the three stages of the Open race will transfer into the big show. Three of the four Hendrick Motorsports drivers — Chase Elliott, Alex Bowman and rookie William Byron – are among the Open field. Stewart-Haas driver Aric Almirola, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Daniel Suarez and Erik Jones, along with this year’s Daytona 500 runner-up Darrell Wallace JR., will be among the star-filled starting grid for the Monster Energy Open hoping to transfer to the All-Star race later Saturday night. Next Race: Alsco 300 The Place: Charlotte Motor Speedway The Date: Saturday, May 26 The Time: 1 p.m. ET TV: FS1, 12:30 p.m. ET Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Distance: 300 miles (200 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 45), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 90), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 200) Next Race: North Carolina Education Lottery 200 The Place: Charlotte Motor Speedway The Date: Friday, May 18 The Time: 8:30 p.m. ET TV: FS1, 8 p.m. ET Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Distance: 201 miles (134 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 30), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 60), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 134) Noah Gragson Captures Second Career Win At Kansas Exactly a week after losing his chance to win at Dover International Speedway due to an incident while racing eventual winner Johnny Sauter, Noah Gragson scored his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory of the 2018 season and the second of his young career. Starting from the pole position for the second week in a row, Gragson led 128 of the 167 laps in the No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota in beating out his truck owner, Kyle Busch, who returned to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for the first time in over a month. Gragson swept past Busch and third-place finisher Stewart Friesen on Lap 157, giving all the thanks to his crew chief Rudy Fugle, who called for four fresh tires during a green-flag pit stop on Lap 134. With five laps left, Myatt Snider ran out of gas, leaving the race lead to Gragson. This was Gragson’s second-time at Kansas Speedway, his first was last year where he started fourth and finished 28th due to a clutch issue. Gragson sits just 35-points behind Johnny Sauter with 275 points on the leaderboard and Grant Enfinger is holding onto the third points position with 214. Enfinger is the only driver in the top three without a win yet this season. Looking ahead to this week’s North Carolina Education Lottery 200 on Friday, May 18, at Charlotte Motor Speedway (8:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), Gragson is hoping he can secure the pole for the third week in a row and possibly another victory. He made his series debut at Charlotte last season posting a top-10 finish. Kyle Busch & Charlotte Motor Speedway: A Nearly Perfect Match It may not be all the time, but when Kyle Busch is entered into a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race, he usually becomes hard to beat, especially when it comes to a race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. There have been 15 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races at Charlotte…and Busch has won seven of them (46.7% winning percentage). It should be noted that when Busch wins a race at the track, it’s usually two in-a-row for him. He won in 2005 and 2006, in 2010 and 2011, in 2013 and 2014 and he won last year in 2017. Does that mean Busch will win again on Friday, May 18, in the North Carolina Lottery 200 (8:30 p.m. ET on FS1)? He has visited the track 11 times, grabbing seven wins, nine top fives, 10 top 10s and three poles. There is no other driver even close to having that many wins at the speedway. Matt Crafton follows Busch with two wins, six top fives and 12 top 10s. Crafton and Busch are the only two drivers entered in Friday’s race who have won at Charlotte in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. First Timers At Charlotte There are nine NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers making their track debut at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Friday’s North Carolina Education Lottery 200. There are four Sunoco Rookie of the Year contenders: Myatt Snider, Bo Le Mastus, Dalton Sargeant, and Justin Fontaine. There are five other NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers making their track debut this week including Robby Lyons, Josh Reaume, Jamie Mosley, Camden Murphy and Bayley Currey. Kyle Busch Motorsports owner Kyle Busch (05/20/2005), two-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Matt Crafton (05/16/2008) and Justin Lofton (05/18/2012) all won their first career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. By The Numbers As Crafton Looks For A Win Matt Crafton has competed full-time in NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for the past 18 years (since 2001, he did run one race in 2000). He has participated in 413 races and won 14. In 2018, he has not yet clinched a victory but has recorded two top fives and three top 10s. The last time Crafton won a race was in July of last year at Eldora, and he has not gone an entire season without a win since 2012. In 2015, he finished the season with six wins, the most career victories in a season for him. Crafton won in 2008 at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the first win of his career. He also won again at Charlotte in 2016 and is hoping that past success will lead to his first win of 2018 this weekend. Keep On Truckin’ Ford has yet to win a race this season for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, leaving them in last place of the three manufacturers. To get back in the running, Ford needs a win to push themselves up. Although they are only behind 27 points from the leader, Chevrolet and are only five points behind second-place Toyota. It is interesting to note that a Ford has never won at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in the 15 races the series has contended at the track. If a Ford wins this Friday at the North Carolina Education Lottery 200, it will be a new milestone reached for the OEM. Six Ford trucks are entered to race on Friday. source – NASCAR communications
