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NASCAR entry lists for Michigan, Road America

By Dustin LongAug 4, 2020, 2:11 PM EDT
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The NASCAR entry lists are out for this weekend’s racing at Michigan International Speedway and Road America.

Cup and Truck teams will compete this weekend at Michigan. Cup teams will race Saturday and Sunday.

Xfinity teams will race Saturday at Road America.

Here are the preliminary NASCAR entry lists 

Cup – Firekeepers Casino 400 (4 p.m. ET Saturday on NBCSN)

Thirty-nine cars are entered.

Joey Gase will be in the No. 7 for Tommy Baldwin Racing.

JJ Yeley will drive the No. 27 for Rick Ware Racing.

James Davison will be in the No. 51 for Petty Ware Racing.

Click here for Saturday Cup race entry list

 

Cup – Consumers  Energy 400 (4:30 p.m. ET Sunday on NBCSN)

Thirty-nine cars are entered.

Josh Bilicki will be in the No. 7 for Tommy Baldwin Racing. That is the only change from the Saturday entry list.

Click here for Sunday Cup entry list

 

Xfinity – Henry 180 (Noon ET Saturday on NBCSN)

Thirty-seven cars are entered.

Among the drivers entered:

Mike Wallace, who made his first series start since 2015 last month in the road course race at Indianapolis, is back in the No. 0 car for JD Motorsports this weekend.

Andy Lally, a road racing expert and the 2011 Cup rookie of the year, will be in the No. 02 Our Motorsports car.

RC Enerson will make his NASCAR debut in the No. 07 SS Green Light Racing ride.

Jesse Iwuji will make his series debut in the No. 13 Motorsports Business Management car.

AJ Allmendinger will be in the No. 16 for Kaulig Racing.

Click here for Xfinity entry list

 

Truck – Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series 200 (6 p.m. ET Friday on FS1)

Forty trucks are entered.

Cup rookie John Hunter Nemechek is entered in the No. 8 truck for NEMCO Motorsports.

David Gravel, the 2019 Knoxville Nationals winner, makes his Truck Series debut in the No. 24 ride for GMS Racing.

Brennan Poole is entered in the No. 30 On Point Motorsports truck.

Jeb Burton is entered in the No. 44 Niece Motorsports ride.

Parker Kligerman is entered in the No. 75 Henderson Motorsports truck.

What Drivers Said after virtual North Wilkesboro

Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images
By Jerry BonkowskiMay 9, 2020, 6:32 PM EDT
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Denny Hamlin – winner: “I knew we had the fastest car, it was just getting through traffic. We got into an early incident, had to use the (reset) right off the bat, so that wasn’t advantageous for us but we were able to methodically make our way back up to the front.

“Winning the first race and the last iRacing event is significant. It’s good for my team and my sponsors. It’s all equal, it’s about who can hone their craft in iRacing. You have to use the same techniques in iRacing like in real life. It’s not like playing Madden or NBA2000. I feel pretty good where I’m at as a driver. Certainly there’ll be some confidence that will spill over for a few weeks.”

Hamlin also addressed getting ready for NASCAR to resume real-life racing next Sunday at Darlington Raceway:

“There’s nothing that’s going to sidetrack us on race day. I envision that people are going to be pretty timid, at least for the first few laps. … There’s plenty of times where these teams unload, cars are hitting the track and you’re not ready to be in a pack. We do have data from last year so I think everyone is going go be very confident going into turn one.

“All in all, it’s going to be like an old shoe. From a fan’s perspective, I don’t think it will be any different (watching it on TV).

“It’s going to be a challenge for us drivers with that hot race track. It’s a lot different during the day vs. the night. I like the challenge … any time there’s a change. I think that’s the mindset for 36 other drivers.

Timmy Hill — finished 2nd:

Tyler Reddick — finished 3rd:

Ross Chastain — finished 4th:

Austin Dillon — finished fifth:

Garrett Smithley — finished 6th:

Parker Kligerman – finished 8th:

Kevin Harvick — finished 9th:

Landon Cassill — finished 10th:

JJ Yeley — finished 11th:

Clint Bowyer — finished 12th: “I’m scared to go race these guys next week. I think I need to write some apologies. We came a long way and dodged a lot of bullets today, and we were looking good in our Rush Truck Centers/Cummins Ford Mustang until there at the end. This track races so cool – it would be great to go back there. North Wilkesboro is a very, very racy little joint. It has a lot of forward-bite action and you’re just trying to keep the car underneath you. A ton of fun.”

Jon Wood — finished 13th:

Christopher Bell — finished 14th:

Dale Earnhardt Jr. — finished 15th:

Cole Custer — finished 16th: “It was an interesting day for sure. I started out on the pole after qualifying 10th and the field was inverted. Led some laps in the HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang, so that was pretty cool. Then I got loose and turned myself around, and from there I was caught up in some other wrecks and ended up 16th. It was neat to race at North Wilkesboro, but I’m ready to climb back in the car at Darlington next week. I want to thank everyone at iRacing, Stewart-Haas Racing, HaasTooling.com and FOX for all of their effort to put these iRaces together these last few weeks.”

Jeff Gordon — finished 18th:

Martin Truex Jr. — finished 2Oth:

Erik Jones — finished 22nd:

John Hunter Nemechek — finished 24th:

Corey LaJoie — finished 25th:

Aric Almirola — finished 26th:

Ryan Preece — finished 27th:

Michael McDowell — finished 28th:

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Results for Pro Invitational iRacing Series finale at North Wilkesboro

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By Jerry BonkowskiMay 9, 2020, 5:08 PM EDT
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Denny Hamlin hovered around the top 10 for most of the race and then made his move with nine laps to go, bumping race leader Ross Chastain out of the way to take the NASCAR Pro Invitational iRacing Series race at a virtual North Wilkesboro Speedway.

The top five was Hamlin, Timmy Hill, Tyler Reddick, Chastain and Austin Dillon.

It was the second win for Hamlin in the seven-race series, having won the opening event nearly two months ago at a virtual Homestead-Miami Speedway.

William Byron earned the most wins with three victories in just six starts (he did not compete in Saturday’s finale).

Click here for results

Denny Hamlin bumps Ross Chastain for iRacing win at North Wilkesboro

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By Jerry BonkowskiMay 9, 2020, 4:45 PM EDT
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Denny Hamlin put the bumper into Ross Chastain with nine laps to go and held on to win Saturday’s final eNASCAR Pro Invitational iRacing Series race at a virtual North Wilkesboro Speedway.

Hamlin and Chastain had battled for a couple of laps as the North Wilkesboro 160 was closing in on the finish. Chastain tried to come down on and block Hamlin, but the latter got his right front fender into the left rear of Chastain, pushing him out of the way.

It was Hamlin’s second win in the series. He won the series’ first race (Homestead) and final race (North  Wilkesboro).

“I knew we had the fastest car, it was just getting through traffic,” Hamlin told Fox. “We got into an early incident, had to use the (reset) right off the bat, so that wasn’t advantageous for us but we were able to methodically make our way back up to the front.”

Click here for full results.

Chastain avenged Hamlin’s race-winning move by spinning the FedEx Toyota after the checkered flag on a cool-down lap on the .625-mile oval.

“We were two guys going for the same spot,” Hamlin said of the incident. “I got a good run on him off Turn 2 and as soon as he saw I was going low, he pulled down the straightaway to try and block and we both just let off the gas at the same time.”

Timmy Hill finished second, followed by Tyler Reddick, Chastain and Austin Dillon.

Sixth through 10th were Garrett Smithley, Brennan Poole, Parker Kligerman, Kevin Harvick and Landon Cassill.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., who helped facilitate the race by leading efforts to clean up the track so that it would be realistic for iRacing engineers to build a platform around, hung around the top 10 for most of the race before finishing 15th.

William Byron, who won three of the first six races in the series, did not participate in this race.

Next up is NASCAR’s return to real-life racing next Sunday at Darlington Raceway. Hamlin can’t wait to continue is momentum.

“There’s nothing that’s going to sidetrack us on race day,” Hamlin said in a post-race teleconference. “I envision that people are going to be pretty timid, at least for the first few laps. … There’s plenty of times where these teams unload, cars are hitting the track and you’re not ready to be in a pack. We do have data from last year so I think everyone is going go be very confident going into turn one.

“All in all, it’s going to be like an old shoe. From a fan’s perspective, I don’t think it will be any different (watching it on TV).”

Follow @JerryBonkowski

Entry lists for NASCAR iRacing events at North Wilkesboro, Martinsville

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By Daniel McFadinMay 6, 2020, 3:12 PM EDT
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With NASCAR scheduled to return on May 17 at Darlington Raceway, the planned conclusion of NASCAR’s iRacing season will take place this week, with events held on a virtual North Wilkesboro Speedway and Martinsville Speedway.

The planned finale of the eNASCAR Pro Invitational iRacing Series will occur at 3 p.m. ET Saturday at North Wilkesboro on Fox and FS1.

Among the initial 28 entries is Jeff Gordon, who won the final Cup Series race there in 1996. Not among the entered drivers is William Byron, who has won three of the six Invitational races so far. Also, Matt DiBenedetto has been replaced in the No. 21 car by Jon Wood, the member of the Wood family who once competed in the Xfinity and Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series.

Gordon will be joined in the race by fellow NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobby Labonte. They are the only two entries in the race who competed in Cup races on the real North Wilkesboro.

Martin Truex Jr. is also entered in his first Invitational race.

According to NASCAR.com, the race will be 160 laps. Drivers will get one reset. There will be manual cautions and a maximum of three attempts at a green-white-checkered finish. Christopher Bell and Timmy Hill, who finished second and third at Dover, will start from the rear. The top 10 qualifiers will be inverted to start the event.

Invited Race Entries (Subject to change)
#3 Austin Dillon
#4 Kevin Harvick
#6 Ross Chastain
#8 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
#10 Aric Almirola
#11 Denny Hamlin
#13 Ty Dillon
#14 Clint Bowyer
#17 Chris Buescher
#18 Kyle Busch
#19 Martin Truex Jr.
#20 Erik Jones
#21 Jon Wood
#24 Jeff Gordon
#31 Tyler Reddick
#34 Michael McDowell
#37 Ryan Preece
#38 John Hunter Nemechek
#41 Cole Custer
#49 Chad Finchum
#51 Garrett Smithley
#52 JJ Yeley
#53 Joey Gase
#66 Timmy Hill
#77 Parker Kligerman
#89 Landon Cassill
#95 Christopher Bell
#TBD Bobby Labonte

Friday Night Thunder

Like the Pro Invitational Series, this weekend sees the scheduled conclusion of the iRacing series dedicated to non-Cup drivers with a race at a virtual Martinsville Speedway at 8 p.m. ET Friday on eNASCAR.com/live.

The series is open to drivers from the Xfinity, Gander RV & Outdoors Truck, NASCAR Peak Mexico, Pinty’s, Whelen Euro and ARCA series.

The virtual race will be conducted under the lights and will be 125 laps.

The format: Single-car qualifying will set the grid for four, 10-lap heat races to determine 24 spots in the feature. A 15-lap last-chance qualifier race will determine six spots in the feature for a total of 30 cars.

The order of the first 10 cars in the feature will be inverted before the green flag. There will be one reset, manual cautions and three attempts at a green-white-checkered finish.

Entry list is subject to change

Alex Labbe

90

Angela Ruch

OO

Anthony Alfredo

33

Austin Cindric

22

Bayley Currey

74

Brandon Brown

68

Brett Moffitt

23

Chase Briscoe

98

Chase Cabre

4

Christian Eckes

81

CJ McLaughlin

39

Derek Kraus

19

Donny Lia

O7

Drew Dollar

O15

Drew Herring

3

Grant Enfinger

O98

Harrison Burton

20

Jeb Burton

8

Jeffrey Earnhardt

50

Jesse Iwuji

36

Joe Graf Jr.

80

Josh Berry

88

Josh Bilicki

99

Justin Allgaier

7

Kaz Grala

29

Kyle Weatherman

54

Landon Huffman

75

Logan Seavey

67

Matt Mills

5

Myatt Snider

93

Noah Gragson

9

Ruben Garcia

27

Ryan Ellis

78

Ryan Truex

40

Ryan Vargas

51

Scott Stenzel

63

Spencer Boyd

0 2

Stephen Leicht

25

Stewart Friesen

52

Thad Moffitt

46

Todd Gilliland

38

Ty Majeski

45

Ty Gibbs

18

Will Rodgers

55

Stefan Parsons

83