Jimmie Johnson: ‘I am for protesting, peaceful protesting’

By May 31, 2020, 9:55 PM EDT
Jimmie Johnson
Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images
0 Comments

Seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson said he is for peaceful protesting and said “I hope there’s more of that tonight” after Sunday’s Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Some major U.S. cities remained under curfew orders as people across the county and the world protested the death of George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody on May 25. Former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin is charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in Floyd’s death as Chauvin pinned Floyd’s neck to the ground with his knee.

Numerous athletes from across all sports have commented on Floyd’s death and the protests since, including NASCAR drivers Bubba Wallace, Daniel Suarez, Tyler Reddick and Ty Dillon, along with Serena Williams, LeBron James, Richard Sherman, and Lewis Hamilton, who stated on Instagram: “We are not born with  racism and hate in our hearts, it is taught by those we look up to.”

Asked about the protests after Floyd’s death, Johnson said Sunday: “I’ve watched it all. The circumstances are just crazy and unacceptable. I am for protesting, peaceful protesting. I hope there’s more of that tonight. I know there are concerns, especially in the Charlotte area, near my home, that they will be protesting tonight.

“The message needs to be clear, but I think being peaceful is really the right way to send the message here. I hope everybody stays safe.”

Johnson spoke up in 2016 when there were protests in Charlotte, North Carolina after a police officer fatally shot Keith Lamont Scott. Johnson said at that time: “I’m a firm believer of gender equality, race equality, and I live my life that way and teach that to my children.’’

Said Clint Bowyer after Sunday’s race when asked about his reaction to Floyd’s death: “It’s very sad. Heart goes out to everybody involved. Just praying for everybody. It’s very sad to see every angle, every aspect, everything you’re seeing. Very, very sad.”

MORE: NBA players react, participate in protests

MORE: Brian Flores: People with loud opinions on Colin Kaepernick are silent on George Floyd

MORE: Major League Baseball players, managers react to death of George Floyd

View this post on Instagram

🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

A post shared by Ty Dillon (@ty_dillon) on

NASCAR Saturday schedule at Sonoma Raceway

By Jun 10, 2023, 7:00 AM EDT
0 Comments

Cup and Xfinity teams will be on track Saturday at Sonoma Raceway.

Cup teams will practice and qualify for Sunday’s race. Xfinity teams will qualify and race Saturday on the 1.99-mile road course in Northern California.

Sonoma Raceway

Weather

Saturday: Mostly cloudy with a high of 75 degrees. Forecast is for mostly cloudy skies, a high of 71 degrees and no chance of rain at the start of the Xfinity race.

Saturday, June 10

(All times Eastern)

Garage open

  • 12 p.m. – 8 p.m.  — Cup Series
  • 1 p.m. — Xfinity Series

Track activity

  • 3 – 4 p.m. — Xfinity qualifying (FS1)
  • 5 – 6 p.m. — Cup practice  (FS2)
  • 6 – 7 p.m. — Cup qualifying  (FS2)
  • 8 p.m. — Xfinity race (79 laps, 156.95 miles; FS1, Performance Racing Network, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

Read more about NASCAR

Alpha Prime Racing
Alpha Prime Racing’s road woes don’t keep team from competing
Kyle Larson Xfinity Sonoma
Kyle Larson leads Xfinity practice at Sonoma
NASCAR Xfinity Series Pacific Office Automation 147 - Practice
Saturday Sonoma Xfinity race: Start time, TV info, weather

Alpha Prime Racing’s road woes don’t keep team from competing

By Jun 9, 2023, 8:14 PM EDT
0 Comments

SONOMA, Calif. — Alpha Prime Racing owner Tommy Joe Martins laughs. He can. His Xfinity Series cars all are here at Sonoma Raceway.

At one point last week, it was not certain if his team’s cars would make it to Portland International Raceway.

“It was probably the toughest professional week I’ve had of my NASCAR career,” Martins told NBC Sports on Friday at Sonoma.

MORE: Kyle Larson leads Xfinity practice at Sonoma

The Alpha Prime Racing team had both its trucks break down and one of its haulers have mechanical issues last week on the way to the Pacific Northwest.

“We basically sent four pieces of equipment on the road and three of them broke,” Martins said.

For a time, the car Sage Karam is driving this weekend at Sonoma was left in a hauler in Kansas City because there wasn’t room in the dually Martins sent. It had room only for the car that was needed at Portland and other equipment. Karam’s car, which was to be a backup at Portland, was left behind.

“It’s a very helpless feeling when you feel like your stuff is stuck on the side of the road,” Martins said.

He still has one truck still in St. Louis and another in Oregon. Martins estimates the mechanical issues will cost his team about $50,000 when everything is totaled.

Trouble started well before the team left its Mooresville, North Carolina, race shop for Portland.

The Xfinity Series race at Charlotte was scheduled to run May 27. Rain forced that event to be rescheduled to May 29. Martins said the team had planned to send its trucks to Portland on May 28. With the race pushed back to the 29th, the travel schedule tightened.

It got worse.

After the Xfinity race started, rain came. With the Coca-Cola 600 scheduled for 3 p.m. ET that day – after being delayed by rain from Sunday – the rest of the Xfinity race was pushed back until after the 600. That further tightened the window on Xfinity teams to make it to Portland.

The Xfinity race ended around 11:30 p.m. ET on May 29. Alpha Prime Racing’s haulers left the shop around 6 a.m. ET on May 30.

The two trucks traveled together until issues in St. Louis.

The truck hauling the Nos. 44 and 45 cars had engine issues in St. Louis. The other truck kept going until it had mechanical issues with its hauler in Kansas City. The air bags on the hauler failed.

So, Alpha Prime Racing had a truck that worked in Kansas City with a hauler that didn’t and a truck that didn’t work in St. Louis with a hauler that did.

The truck in Kansas City went back to St. Louis to attach to the hauler and take those cars and equipment to Portland. Martins then had to find something to haul the stranded equipment in Kansas City and a driver. He eventually did. A dually left North Carolina for Kansas City. Once there, what fit in the dually was taken to Portland and what didn’t, including Karam’s Sonoma car stayed behind.

Yet, more trouble was headed for Martins and his team.

The truck that had gone back from Kansas City to St. Louis to take hauler that worked then broke down about 200 miles from Portland.

“I laugh knowing that we’re on the other side of it,” Martins said Friday of all the issues his team had transporting cars and equipment across the country.

“We’ve started to make plans and corrections for it not happening again,” he said.

That hauler that was left in Kansas City? It was repaired and transported to Sonoma, arriving earlier this week.

“Our guys are troopers,” Martins said. “Both of our (truck) drivers were just awesome about the whole thing. … They went through hell week as far as driving somewhere, fly back and pick something up, drive again and now are going to have to do the same thing getting back.”

When the garage opened Friday at Sonoma, Alpha Prime Racing had all its cars.

“I don’t think we had any major issues here, so that was good,” Martins said.

The focus is back on the track. Karam was 24th on the speed chart in Friday’s practice, leading Alpha Prime Racing’s effort. Dylan Lupton was 32nd. Jeffrey Earnhardt was last among 41 cars.

After Saturday night’s race, the team heads back to North Carolina for a well-earned weekend off.

Read more about NASCAR

NASCAR Xfinity Series DoorDash 250 - Practice
NASCAR Saturday schedule at Sonoma Raceway
Kyle Larson Xfinity Sonoma
Kyle Larson leads Xfinity practice at Sonoma
NASCAR Xfinity Series Pacific Office Automation 147 - Practice
Saturday Sonoma Xfinity race: Start time, TV info, weather

Kyle Larson leads Xfinity practice at Sonoma

By Jun 9, 2023, 5:45 PM EDT
0 Comments

SONOMA, Calif. — Kyle Larson posted the fastest lap in Friday’s Xfinity Series practice at Sonoma Raceway.

This is the first time the series has raced at the 1.99-mile road course in Northern California. Teams got 50 minutes of practice Friday.

Larson led the way with a lap of 90.392 mph. He was more than a second faster than the rest of the field.

MORE: Xfinity practice results Sonoma

Sheldon Creed was second on the speed chart with a lap of 89.066 mph. He was followed by AJ Allmendinger (89.052 mph), Cole Custer (89.020) and Ty Gibbs (88.989).

Larson, Allmendinger and Gibbs are among seven Cup drivers are entered in the Xfinity race. Aric Almirola was seventh on the speed chart with a lap of 88.750 mph. Ross Chastain was ninth with a lap of 88.625 mph. Daniel Suarez was 16th with a lap of 88.300 mph. Ty Dillon was 33rd with a lap of 86.828 mph.

Anthony Alfredo will go to a backup car after a crash in practice. He was uninjured in the incident that damaged the right side of his car.

Qualifying is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET Saturday. The race is scheduled to begin at 8:20 p.m. ET Saturday.

Anthony Alfredo’s car after a crash in Xfinity practice Friday at Sonoma Raceway. He was uninjured. (Photo: Dustin Long)

Read more about NASCAR

NASCAR Xfinity Series DoorDash 250 - Practice
NASCAR Saturday schedule at Sonoma Raceway
Alpha Prime Racing
Alpha Prime Racing’s road woes don’t keep team from competing
NASCAR Xfinity Series Pacific Office Automation 147 - Practice
Saturday Sonoma Xfinity race: Start time, TV info, weather

Saturday Sonoma Xfinity race: Start time, TV info, weather

By Jun 9, 2023, 1:59 PM EDT
0 Comments

The Xfinity Series will compete for the first time at Sonoma Raceway this weekend. This is one of eight road course events on the Xfinity schedule this season.

Seven Cup drivers are scheduled to compete in Saturday’s race, including AJ Allmendinger, Kyle Larson and Daniel Suarez, who won last year’s Cup race at this track Allmendinger has won 11 of 25 career road course starts in the Xfinity Series.

Details for Saturday’s Xfinity race at Sonoma Raceway

(All times Eastern)

START: Golden State Warrior Patrick Baldwin Jr. will give the command to start engines at 8:08 p.m. … The green flag is scheduled to wave at 8:20 p.m.

PRERACE: Xfinity garage opens at 1 p.m. … Qualifying begins at 3 p.m. … Driver introductions begin at 7:35 p.m. … The invocation will be given by Earl Smith, team pastor for the Golden State Warriors and San Francisco 49ers, at 8 p.m. … The national anthem will be performed by 9-year-old Isis Mikayle Castillo at 8:01 p.m.

DISTANCE: The race is 79 laps (156.95 miles) on the 1.99-mile road course.

STAGES: Stage 1 ends at Lap 20. Stage 2 ends at Lap 45.

STARTING LINEUP: Qualifying begins at 3 p.m. Saturday

TV/RADIO: FS1 will broadcast the race at 8 p.m. ... Coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. … Performance Racing Network coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. and can be heard on goprn.com. … SiriusXN NASCAR Radio will carry the PRN broadcast.

FORECAST: Weather Underground — Mostly cloudy with a high of 72 degrees and a zero percent chance of rain at the start of the race.

LAST TIME: This is the first time the Xfinity Series has raced at Sonoma.

Read more about NASCAR

NASCAR Xfinity Series DoorDash 250 - Practice
NASCAR Saturday schedule at Sonoma Raceway
Alpha Prime Racing
Alpha Prime Racing’s road woes don’t keep team from competing
Kyle Larson Xfinity Sonoma
Kyle Larson leads Xfinity practice at Sonoma