Kyle Larson will become the driver of a Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in 2021. This fills a vacancy left by 7 time Champion Jimmie Johnson. The successful dirt racer turned stock car driver is currently serving an indefinite suspension from NASCAR and a termination from Chip Ganassi Racing after the use of a racial slur during a broadcasted video game event earlier this year. The team announced today that they will transition the number 88 to number 5 moving forward. [It was announced in October that Alex Bowman will officially replace Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 for the last 19 seasons at Hendrick beginning in 2021. Jimmie was said to have a large influence in the successor to the famed #48. Longtime Hendrick Motorsports sponsor Ally Bank will stay with the #48 team.] Larson who was recently reinstated by NASCAR has completed the proper sensitivity training that is needed to return to his stock car career. He returned to his dirt racing past this summer and has won a historic amount of races this season. Since leaving NASCAR to serve his suspension, Larson has won 14 events in the Ollie's Bargain Outlet All-Star Circuit and he now owns 39 total dirt racing victories across all series in 2020. The 28 year-old driver from Elk Grove California has 6 career wins in 223 Cup Series Starts. Immediate news on sponsorship and contract length are not available at this time. Updates will be reflected on this page as they become available.

CONCORD, N.C. -- Hendrick Motorsports has named Rudy Fugle as the crew chief for William Byron and the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE team for the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. He will join the organization in mid-November. The 36-year-old Fugle is one of the most successful crew chiefs at the NASCAR national series level. He has won two driver championships and five owner titles in the Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series. As a crew chief for Kyle Busch Motorsports since 2013, he has recorded 28 truck victories, which tie him for the second-most in series history. Fugle will replace current No. 24 crew chief Chad Knaus, who was recently named Hendrick Motorsports’ vice president of competition effective at the completion of the 2020 racing season. “We’re pleased to welcome Rudy,” said Jeff Andrews, general manager of Hendrick Motorsports. “His teams have consistently performed at a championship level for many years. We believe he’s an excellent fit for our culture and will mesh extremely well with our other crew chiefs and competition personnel. In addition, Rudy and William have proven to be a successful combination with a high level of communication and trust in one another.” A native of Livonia, New York, Fugle holds a mechanical engineering degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. In 2006, he began his NASCAR career with Robert Yates Racing before joining Germain Racing in 2008. With KBM, he has won truck races with six different drivers: Byron, Kyle Busch, Christopher Bell, Erik Jones, Greg Biffle, and Noah Gragson. “The opportunity to join Hendrick Motorsports is incredible for me and my family,” Fugle said. “The No. 24 has always been one of the premier teams in racing. We have the owner, the driver, the people and the resources to continue that tradition. William is a great talent, and we have a very strong working relationship. I’m confident in what this team can accomplish and look forward to the challenge of competing at the Cup level. In 2016, Fugle and then-rookie Byron won seven truck races in 23 starts. That season, the pair led 21% of all possible laps and earned the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series owner championship. Byron, 22, is closing out a 2020 season in which he won his first career NASCAR Cup Series race (Daytona) and made his second consecutive playoff appearance. “I’m excited to work with Rudy again,” Byron said. “We have a great team in place, and I know he will be the right leader to keep moving us forward. I’ve seen first-hand what he’s capable of, his competitive nature and the high standards he has. With Rudy, I believe we’ll have a chance to win every single time we go to the racetrack, which is what both of us expect.” Syndicated Post From Hendrick Motorsports Press Release

Leading online auto retailer Carvana (NYSE: CVNA) announced today it will be the primary partner for 7-time NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Champion Jimmie Johnson and Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) for the 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES racing season in the newly-formed Carvana Chip Ganassi Racing entry. Johnson co-holds the NCS record with Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty for most premier series championships and is the only driver to win five consecutive titles (2006-2010). Johnson’s 83 career wins is tied with Cale Yarborough for sixth all-time and is tops among active drivers. With an impressive record any athlete would envy, Johnson saw his next challenge in INDYCAR, and recently announced his plans to race with CGR in his continued pursuit of excellence. “Jimmie Johnson has already made his mark as one of the best NASCAR drivers in history, yet he’s continuing to push himself with a new challenge,” said Carvana Chief Brand Officer Ryan Keeton. “He’s not resting, but raising the bar, and that’s a mindset we can very much relate to. We’re looking forward to that shared challenger mindset, teamed up with Chip Ganassi Racing, for what is sure to be a fun, exciting racing season.” Ahead of the upcoming season, Johnson is scheduled to participate in tests with CGR in the No. 48 Carvana Honda at Barber Motorsports Park and Laguna Seca in November. Johnson’s new paint scheme will be unveiled prior to the start of the 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season where he is scheduled to compete in the full road and street course calendar. “Carvana is a young, tech-forward, smart and aggressive company and is the perfect partner for this next challenge in my career,” said Johnson, who will be competing for 2021 INDYCAR Rookie of the Year. “I’ve dreamed of racing in INDYCAR since I was a little kid. Going from one championship organization to another with CGR, you know the resources, including great people, are going to be there. To have friends like Scott (Dixon), Dario (Franchitti) and Doug (Duchardt) there to lean on and learn from just makes this transition so much better. 2021 is going to be a lot of fun!” “I think this is a perfect fit for our organization - Carvana is a very exciting technology company that is always continuing to challenge themselves to be the best they can be,” said Team Owner Chip Ganassi. “Like us, they value innovation – and when you add it all up, we seem to have a lot in common, which is why I think this relationship can really grow and be successful. You all know Jimmie and his accomplishments. Jimmie is a champion and a winner and will bring tremendous value to our organization. I think we’re going to learn as much from him and his approach as he is going to learn about INDYCAR racing. It will only move the team in a positive direction.” As the pioneer of online car buying, Carvana created an easy, transparent way for consumers to purchase their next car - the ability to shop more than 20,000 vehicles, finance, purchase and schedule touchless delivery, all in as little as five minutes from the comfort and safety of home. (Syndicated Post From Chip Ganassi Racing Press Release)

Syndicated Post : PRESS RELEASE FROM SPEEDWAY MOTORSPORTS - If everything’s bigger in Texas, it’s only appropriate that the inaugural NASCAR weekend at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) just got bigger. Speedway Motorsports officials today announced that the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series have been added to the weekend lineup with the NASCAR Cup Series at COTA in Austin, Texas, May 21-23, 2021. "When NASCAR rolls into Austin for the first time, it’s going to be exactly what Speedway Motorsports always presents, and that’s the biggest, baddest events that we see throughout all of NASCAR," said Daniel Hemric, NASCAR Xfinity Series driver of the No. 8 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports. "Bruton and the entire Speedway Motorsports family always do the utmost job of bringing the best experience for the fans, the best show for the fans, and we look forward to doing that as drivers as well." Three-day weekend packages are on sale now at NASCARatCOTA.com with general admission access starting at just $99 and reserved seating starting at just $125. Fans can save an additional 20 percent on adult weekend packages by purchasing during the NASCAR Playoffs. This offer will expire at midnight on Nov. 8. "Anytime we go road racing, it seems like there’s a lot of beatin’ and bangin’," said current Xfinity Series point leader Chase Briscoe, who will take over the cockpit of the No. 14 Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2021. "I can’t wait to be a part of it." Fans will get their first glimpse of the weekend action as the Xfinity and Camping World Truck series take their first practice laps on the world-renowned road course on Friday, May 21. On Saturday, May 22, the on-track action will heat up with practice and qualifying sessions for each series as well as the NASCAR Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series races. The weekend will conclude with the NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday, May 23. Fans who have already made deposits for weekend ticket packages will be contacted directly to finalize their seat selections, while new purchases can be made at www.NASCARatCOTA.com. Three-day weekend ticket packages are the most affordable way to catch all the action for the May 21-23 event. Single-day tickets will go on sale Feb. 1. Announcements regarding race length, course selection and the complete weekend schedule will be made at a later date. — Speedway Motorsports —

The GoFas Racing Team operated by Archie St. Hilaire has announced that they will be transitioning into a part-time effort beginning with the 2021 season. They have competed full-time for from 2014 to 2020 in NASCAR's premiere series. Team Owner Hilaire provided this statement regarding the change. "It has been a lot of fun over the years but with the evolution of life, your priorities change. With my son [and GM of Go Fas] Mason moving on to start his own business in a different industry and myself getting ready to spend time with my daughter having my first grandchild, I feel its time to reevaluate the next chapter of my life. It definitely has been great working with Ford and all of our great marketing partners over the last 10 years and we look forward to continuing with them on a smaller scale going forward. I can’t say enough about how NASCAR has built and maintained their business model during the current pandemic and how exciting the schedule looks for 2021! We will keep 4-5 cars and anticipate running 5-6 races in 2021 at tracks we enjoy and make financial sense. Joe Falk of Circle Sport will continue to own half of the charter we currently run and we will be transferring our ownership in our half of the charter at the end of the season to Joe’s new partner, who will be announced in the coming days. We will continue our partnership with the Wood Brothers Racing team on our other charter moving forward into the future. We look forward to the 2021 season. Driver update will come forward after the remaining full time teams announce their 2021 driver line-ups!" Former NASCAR Cup Series driver Matt Tifft and BJ McLeod have purchased the charter that is associated with this team. Their purchase will take over for Hilaire's ownership interest in Circle Sport Racing. Joe Falk, part owner of Circle Sport will continue to serve an ownership role in this team overall. No details on driver, sponsor, or manufacturer information is available at this time.

The new racing team that is being started by Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan has been officially announced as 23XI Racing (Prounounced Twenty-Three Eleven Racing). The name pays homage to both the legendary NBA Hall of Famer's basketball number as well as co-owner Denny Hamlin's racing number 11. The team has not officially announced that they will be running Toyota in the 2021 season, but it is widely understood that this will be a TRD team, with assumptions that there will be some type of Joe Gibbs Racing alliance as well. No details on the contract terms are announced in regards to sponsorship or the length of announced driver Darrell Wallace Jr.'s contract.

(Photo Source : Twitter.com/NASCAR_Xfinity)

As the 2020 NASCAR season winds down, the stakes have never been higher. With Joey Logano’s spot in the Final 4 being the only guarantee, the remaining seven playoff drivers hope they can make their mark at Texas this weekend. But what does Texas have in store for them? Let’s take a closer look: Texas is a 1.5 mile quad-oval, and this weekend’s race will be called the AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 500. While NASCAR has been racing in Texas for many years, the track they will visit on Sunday was built in 1996, and began hosting the Cup Series a year later. The race will be 334 laps long (for a total of 501 miles), and just as it was in July, stage breaks will occur at 105 – 210 – 334. The fuel window is approximately 60-63 laps. This year, the Cup Series has raced a total of 12,437.83 miles. Top 5 Career Average Finishers at Texas: Erik Jones 9.00 over 8 races Matt Kenseth 9.74 over 31 races Kevin Harvick 10.23 over 35 races Jimmie Johnson 10.85 over 34 races Chase Elliott 11.11 over 9 races Bottom 5 Career Average Finishers at Texas: Joey Gase 35.17 over 6 races JJ Yeley 33.61 over 18 races Quin Houff 33.50 over 2 races Corey LaJoie 32.17 over 6 races Michael McDowell 30.62 over 21 races Since Texas Motor Speedway is 1.5 miles long, it is classified as an intermediate track. An intermediate track is seen as anything between 1 and 2 miles in length. Top 5 Career Average Finishers at Intermediate Tracks Kevin Harvick 11.72 over 358 races Brad Keselowski 12.63 over 210 races Jimmie Johnson 12.81 over 343 races Kyle Busch 12.83 over 289 races Matt Kenseth 12.84 over 346 races Jimmie Johnson is by far and away the winningest driver at Texas, as he holds 7 wins at this track. Carl Edwards is a distant 2nd with 4 wins. Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin each have 3 wins. Notable drivers who have not won at Texas: Brad Keselowski (has won at 17 other tracks) Martin Truex Jr. (has won at 14 other tracks) Clint Bowyer (has won at 7 other tracks) Chase Elliott (has won at 6 other tracks) Tyler Reddick and Matt Kenseth both list Texas as their BEST track. Cole Custer is the only driver to list Texas as his WORST track. It’s important to note that both Reddick and Custer have only raced at Texas once in the Cup Series, where they finished P2 and P39, respectively. Compared to last year, some drivers have seen a big change in their performance. Some changes may be performance-related, but it is also potentially a product of the driver joining a new team who may have more or less speed. This statistic is based on their current point pace. Drivers Faring Better than in 2019 Matt DiBenedetto +205 pts Chase Elliott +178 pts Kevin Harvick +141 pts Bubba Wallace +132 pts Austin Dillon +130 pts Drivers Faring Worse than in 2019 Daniel Suarez -475 pts Kyle Busch -278 pts Joey Logano -94 pts Ricky Stenhouse Jr. -85 pts William Byron -75 pts While some drivers may be doing better this year than they did in 2019, how does this year stack up against their entire career? This statistic does not include rookies, as this is their first full year in the Cup Series. Drivers Having their BEST Career Year Kevin Harvick 6.79 Denny Hamlin 9.42 Matt DiBenedetto 15.30 Michael McDowell 20.48 Bubba Wallace 20.76 Corey LaJoie 25.24 Drivers Having their WORST Career Year Daniel Suarez 26.41 Ryan Preece 24.39 Matt Kenseth 20.90 For those that aren’t aware, the Manufacturer Standings are calculated by awarding points to the highest finisher for each manufacturer according to their finishing position. (40 for 1st, 35 for 2nd, 34 for 3rd, etc.) No stage points or playoff points count. Manufacturer Standings Ford 1225 Toyota 1157 Chevrolet 1120 If this same formula were used for each Team, you could determine which team has been the most successful this season. For some reason NASCAR does not calculate or showcase these stats, but here they are regardless: Chartered Team Standings Joe Gibbs 1159 Penske 1097 Stewart-Haas 1093 Hendrick 1049 Chip Ganassi 864 Richard Childress 845 Wood Brothers 716 Roush-Fenway 715 Front Row 667 JTG-Daugherty 612 Richard Petty 542 Leavine Family 535 Germain 493 Go Fas 392 Rick Ware 297 Spire 228 StarCom 205 The race begins Sunday, October 25th at 3:30pm EST/12:30pm PST. Is there an error? Is there a stat missing that you’d like to see? Let us know!

In a season filled with so many twists and turns it is sadly winding down. Eight drivers remain in the hunt and half of the final four is a compelling battle between six drivers. Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin are essentially locked in on points, and the races in this round being at Kansas, Texas, and Martinsville really sets up well for them. Martinsville is the "wildcard" of the round, but even then the elite drivers there always rise to the top. Kansas actually sets up as the most compelling in my opinion, and here's why six different active playoff drivers have won here. Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick both have three wins at Kansas, Brad Keselowski, Martin Truex Jr., and Joey Logano all have two wins at Kansas, and Chase Elliott has one win at Kansas. Denny Hamlin has won two of the last three at Kansas including the race this July, and last seasons playoff race. I think Denny Hamlin is the favorite coming into this race, but Kevin Harvick's 9.6 average finish is the best in the field. Texas I think is the most predictable race of the round. Once again Harvick, and Hamlin have three wins here. Kurt Busch, and Joey Logano have a win a piece here. Harvick is the favorite, even though Hamlin won at Texas in 2019, Harvick has won three consecutive fall Texas races, and all of those wins have come since the repave and reconfiguration after the 2016 season. Harvick's 10.2 average finish once again is the best of the playoff drivers. Martinsville as the Round of 8 finale should be fascinating especially if Harvick, and Hamlin are both locked in. Denny Hamlin leads active playoff drivers with five wins, but hasn't won there since 2015. Martin Truex, Kurt Busch, and Brad Keselowski all have two wins at Martinville; while Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick both have one win at Martinsville. Denny Hamlin has the highest average finish at 9.9. Truex's recent dominance in Martinsville including back to back wins at the track makes him the favorite overall. My official final four picks are Harvick, Hamlin, Truex Jr., and Keselowski. Hamlin, and Harvick get wins, but even if they didn't I expect them to get there on points. The round sets up very nicely for Truex to win at any of these three tracks, but I think Martinsville is where he could win and advance on his own. In a Round of 8 as competitive as ever Keselowski's small points advantage will lead him to the Championship Four. Playoff Grid 1. Harvick +45 2. Hamlin +32 3. Keselowksi +13 4. Elliott +5 5. Logano -5 6. Truex Jr. -10 7. Bowman -18 8. Ku. Busch -21

For the second race of NASCAR's Saturday double header at Kansas, the NASCAR Xfinity Series kicked off their Round of 8. Like the Truck and Cup series, this was the first opportunity for an Xfinity playoff driver to lock themselves into the Championship 4 at Phoenix. The playoff drivers fought extremely hard under the lights to grab a championship opportunity. The race overall was a bit dull, as there was not much action. However, at the end of the night, one playoff contender did find himself with a golden ticket to the desert. In Stage 1, Noah Gragson led the field to green with Austin Cindric to his outside. It didn'tt take long for the action to intensify as Matt Mills got sideways bringing out the caution on lap 10. This lined up the field again, and this time it was a wild restart. Going into turn 1 there was a 4-wide battle for the lead between playoff drivers Noah Gragson, Austin Cindric, Ross Chastain, and Brandon Jones. Gragson and Cindric got the worst end of this as they both got heavy damage after getting into one another. The contact put Noah Gragson out of the race and Cindric multiple laps down. Ross Chastain and Brandon Jones led the field to green, but that didn't last long as Chase Briscoe found his way to the lead. Briscoe went on to win the first stage with Jones, Burton, Alfredo, Chastain, Herbst, Allgaier, Sieg, Brown, and Haley all receiving stage points. Briscoe continued this dominance in Stage 2. While Briscoe led, he was reporting a vibration in his car which made the team concerned about the car. Nonetheless, Briscoe was able grab the second stage win. The stage went nearly without incident besides a spin from Jeffery Earnhardt on lap 52. Jones, Alfredo, Burton, Chastain, Herbst, Allgaier, Sieg, Moffitt, and A. Hill all earned stage points in Stage 2. The final stage proved to be a retelling of the story from Stage 2. Briscoe led the majority of the stage, even throughout green flag pit stops which occurred between laps 144-157. On lap 157, Josh Reaume brought out the caution. This seemed to help out playoff driver, Ryan Sieg, as he was the only driver who had not pitted during the green flag run. Sieg was able to get fresh tires and restart 9th. Briscoe once again led the field to green on lap 164, but the run was short after Anthony Alfredo had some contact with Ross Chastain. Harrison Burton spun into the inside wall trying to avoid the two. This brought out the caution on lap 168. Chase Briscoe, along with others, used this opportunity to go get fresh tires. In the meantime, Ryan Sieg cycled to the front and led the field to green with Justin Haley beside him. Briscoe had the lead back within a lap, however, proving that he was the car to beat. Briscoe led all the way to lap 193 when Myatt Snider spun bringing out the caution. This allowed Ryan Sieg one more attempt to put fresh tires on and run down the leader. It wasn't enough though as Briscoe went on to score his 9th win of the season, securing a spot in the Championship 4. Hemric, Sieg, Haley, A. Hill, Williams, Moffitt, Annett, Jones, and Allgaier all got a Top 10 finish. Chastain (12th), Cindric (28th), and Gragson (36th) were the only playoff drivers to finish outside the Top 10. After Kansas, the playoff grid looks like this: 1. Chase Briscoe - Advanced 2. Justin Allgaier - +11 Points 3. Brandon Jones - +9 Points 4. Austin Cindric - +2 Points 5. Justin Haley - -2 Points 6. Ross Chastain - -12 Points 7. Ryan Sieg - -17 Points 8. Noah Gragson - -33 Points Kansas proved that playoff point gaps can be cut down with one bad race. Austin Cindric with a significant points advantage over the majority of the playoff drivers, but now sits just 2 points above the cut line. Noah Gragson, while not mathematically out, finds himself nearly in must win territory. It was no surprise to see the driver that has dominated nearly the whole season clinch his spot in the Championship 4 first. With how tight the points battle is, Chase Briscoe is the only driver who can breathe easy going into Texas. Who will be the next driver to clinch their spot in the finale in Phoenix?

What an interesting story for a race. I rarely am down on competitive races, but I am down on this Kansas race. The finish resulted in fans watching Harvick almost helpless in his attempts to try to pass Joey Logano, and Logano used his master blocking skills to clinch a spot in the Championship Four. Stage one was controlled by Chase Elliott largely, and seven of the eight remaining playoff drivers scored stage points. Stage one was the best racing of the day, and it is becoming more obvious this intermediate aero package works best in cool, cloudy, and wintery weather. Stage two was won by Denny Hamlin, and it was an interesting battle in the closing laps of the stage, but it was at that point I realized passing for the lead was going to be a problem at the end of the race. It was another stage dominated by the playoff drivers, and it tightened up around the playoff cutline after stage 2. Stage three was a mess. Playoff contender Kurt Busch had an engine blow up, and Denny Hamlin made the mistake of hitting the wall late in the run. The end of the race basically came down to Joey Logano versus Kevin Harvick for the final forty laps. Logano used his mirror and spotter TJ Majors to repeatedly take the air away from Kevin Harvick. Watching Harvick try to pass Logano was interesting, but knowing Harvick had the better car, and still wasn't able to pass him was infuriating. Joey Logano's win clinches his title race spot, and he will be one of the favorites at the championship event considering his win at Phoenix earlier this year. Joey beat Kevin Harvick to the line in a close battle that day as well. As for the other contenders...Logano's win hurt everybody except Kevin Harvick. As we near the final two races of the round every driver should race like they're in a must win situation... because they are.