Nascar news

• 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Chase field set after Daytona

  30-08-2026 02:08 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Following Saturday night‘s NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway, the 16-driver field for The Chase is officially set.Denny Hamlin will lead the field into the postseason as the No. 1 seed after a dominant summer stretch that included three consecutive victories at Nashville Superspeedway, Michigan International Speedway and Pocono Raceway. Hamlin clinched the top seed following the penultimate regular-season race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.RELATED: Unofficial resul
  
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• Who can win the NASCAR championship? Ranking all 16 Chase drivers

  03-09-2026 15:02 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  The postseason for NASCAR’s Cup Series begins Sunday, Sept. 6 at one of the sport’s crown jewel races, the Southern 500 in Darlington, South Carolina.Following 12 years of the win-and-in elimination-style playoff format, the Chase is back. This postseason system is designed to award consistency and drivers who have achieved success over the stretch of a long season — which began all the way back in February at the Daytona 500 — rather than drivers who simply won one race
  
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• Denny Hamlin Reveals What He Needs to Finally Win NASCAR Title

  03-09-2026 14:40 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  USA TODAY Network via Reuters ConnectDenny Hamlin enters the 2026 NASCAR Chase in the position he has wanted: the favorite.The Joe Gibbs Racing driver finished the regular season with four wins, 14 top-five finishes, 17 top-10s, and an impressive 880 laps led. He also carries a 25-point advantage over Ryan Blaney into the 10-race championship fight.Yet for Hamlin, the biggest challenge may not be finding something new. It may be doing exactly what he has already been doing.Hamlin sees no weaknes
  
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• 0 Wins in 50 Races: Why Kyle Larson Still Thinks He Can Win the NASCAR Title

  03-09-2026 14:39 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectKyle Larson knows the #5 team has not been where it wants to be in 2026. The two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion enters the 2026 postseason facing a 50-race winless drought.But he also knows something the rest of the field should not forget: this is almost exactly where he was one year ago.Larson enters the 2026 Chase as the #7 seed, 55 points behind Denny Hamlin. After 26 regular-season races, he has 0 wins, nine top-five finishes, 13 top-10s, and 659 laps led. H
  
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• Why Bubba Wallace believes he can win first race in the NASCAR Chase

  03-09-2026 12:05 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  The pressure that came with trying to make the NASCAR Chase did not take away Bubba Wallace's wry sense of humor.When asked if there was one particular thing that happened down the stretch of the 2026 regular season for his No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota team and helped him secure his third berth in the NASCAR playoffs, Wallace said yes."I just decided to start trying again, that's all," he joked.WHY NASCAR PENALIZED BUBBA WALLACE:Why NASCAR penalized Bubba Wallace after Atlanta race finishIt never a
  
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• Ryan Blaney says Ford caught up to Toyota before the NASCAR Chase. Here's the proof

  03-09-2026 12:05 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Ryan Blaney is confident Ford caught up to Toyota in the manufacturer battle headed into the 2026 NASCAR Chase. The evidence is there to back him up.Blaney, in his No. 12 Team Penske Ford, won two of the last seven races in the regular season, and Fords overall won five of the last seven, including the last three.Compare that to the start of the season when Toyota, with Tyler Reddick and 23XI Racing on a historic heater, won five of the first nine races.HOW RYAN BLANEY WON A CUP TITLE:Ryan Blane
  
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• JR Motorsports sets the Chase pace as favorites in O'Reilly Auto Parts Series title fight

  03-09-2026 11:59 via sports.yahoo.com
  CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Justin Allgaier has already established himself as a favorite for the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series championship, based not just on his edge in experience but on a brilliant regular-season run. His six wins — and counting — plus remarkable consistency left him 229 points clear of the field after last Friday’s regular-season closer at Daytona International Speedway.His strongest challengers in The Chase presented by Mobil 1, however, may come fr
  
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• Austin Cindric Opens Up on Losing Pit Crew to Ryan Blaney Ahead of the Darlington Race: “It’s Not My Race Team”

  03-09-2026 11:17 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  May 28, 2022; Concord, North Carolina, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Austin Cindric (L) talks with Ryan Blaney (R) prior to qualifying for the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. © Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY SportsTeam Penske has ordered a pit crew swap between Austin Cindric’s No. 2 team and Ryan Blaney’s No. 12 entry. Cindric opened up on the change and called it a “great opportunity” to seize the remaining 10 races.Blaney has struggled with his pit crew for a
  
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• NASCAR at Darlington: Key info, links, results for Chase race weekend

  03-09-2026 11:01 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  The NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series head to the track “Too Tough to Tame” this weekend as The Chase presented by Mobil 1 gets underway for both tours. Sunday night marks the 77th running of the crown jewel Southern 500, where Chase Briscoe enters as the defending two-time winner. As for the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, Saturday night will mark the first time Darlington hosts a postseason race. Bookmark this page and come back often for your race-wee
  
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• Jimmie Johnson’s NASCAR team to part ways with John Hunter Nemechek

  03-09-2026 06:10 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Legacy Motor Club, the NASCAR team owned by seven-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson and a host of celebrities, now has an open seat to fill ahead of next season.The team announced on Wednesday, Sept. 2 that John Hunter Nemechek would not return to drive the No. 42 Toyota for Legacy next season. The news is both surprising and abrupt considering that Legacy announced sponsors for the 2027 season for Nemechek back in May.“Legacy Motor Club has made the decision to part ways with John H
  
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• The Chase is on for NASCAR's new look playoff format

  03-09-2026 03:49 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Motorsport photoPrior to officially unveiling the Chase for the Championship format in January, NASCAR and Racing Insights conducted over 25,000 simulations to predict how the format could potentially play out.The findings:Overall, drivers won the championship 85 percent of time when seeded inside the top six and 69 percent of the time from the top three. There is a pathway to the championship all the way through the 16th seed but the math doesn’t lie about who the favorites are.The Chase
  
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• NASCAR: Denny Hamlin Not Concerned About Shoulder Injury

  03-09-2026 02:59 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Denny Hamlin not concerned about shoulder injury ahead of The Chase. GettyDenny Hamlin has been unbothered by a shoulder injury that has nagged him throughout the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season. The driver of the No. 11 plans to have surgery sometime during the offseason.Hamlin enters The Chase as the points leader after clinching the regular-season championship. The Joe Gibbs Racing star has scored four victories in 2026, including three straight back in June (Nashville, Michigan, Pocono).Amid h
  
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• NASCAR Cup Series: Denny Hamlin Says One Thing Matters More Than Chase Experience

  03-09-2026 02:27 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - SEPTEMBER 02: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota speaks to the media during the NASCAR Cup Series Chase Media Day at Charlotte Convention Center on September 02, 2026 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images) GettyDenny Hamlin enters the 2026 NASCAR playoffs as the No. 1 seed, but the Joe Gibbs Racing driver does not believe his long Chase history will give him a major edge. Hamlin starts the 10-race Chase with 2,100 point
  
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• Matt DiBenedetto to make NASCAR return in Las Vegas O'Reilly race

  03-09-2026 01:49 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Motorsport photoMatt DiBenedetto will be back behind the wheel of a NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series car, driving the No. 42 Young's Motorsports Chevrolet Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 3. Magnesium Performance Wheels will sponsor the effort.Catchfence.com's Chris Knightbroke the story, with DiBenedetto expressing excitement and gratitude over the opportunity.DiBenedetto is a highly experienced NASCAR driver with 248 Cup starts, 127 O'Reilly starts, and 43 Truck starts. He last s
  
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• NASCAR Cup Series: Carson Hocevar’s Surprising Chase Plan Could Backfire

  03-09-2026 01:46 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - SEPTEMBER 02: Carson Hocevar, driver of the #77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet speaks to the media during the NASCAR Cup Series Chase Media Day at Charlotte Convention Center on September 02, 2026 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images) GettyCarson Hocevar is entering his first NASCAR Cup Series Chase with a mindset that is far different from the pressure often linked to a playoff debut. The Spire Motorsports driver says the No. 77 Chevrolet ha
  
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• Denny Hamlin Gets His Trophy After Winning 2026 NASCAR Regular Season Championship

  03-09-2026 01:06 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Denny Hamlin may have bigger hardware on his mind over the next 10 weeks, but NASCAR’s top driver through the first 26 races of 2026 finally has a trophy to show for it.Hamlin finished the regular season atop the NASCAR Cup Series standings, securing the No. 1 seed for the newly revived Chase and a 25-point advantage over Ryan Blaney entering Sunday’s postseason opener at Darlington Raceway.There was just one unusual detail.With NASCAR returning to a 10-race Chase format this season,
  
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• NASCAR Cup stars react to Days of Thunder sequel and meeting Tom Cruise at Daytona

  03-09-2026 00:34 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Motorsport photoAll 16 NASCAR Cup drivers who qualified for the Chase took part in Media Day on Wednesday, and several fielded questions about the long-awaited Days of Thunder sequel that is coming to theaters in June of 2028. Tom Cruise will again star as fictional NASCAR driver Cole Trickle, with Anne Hathaway co-starring as a team owner/engineer.Dale Earnhardt Jr. has been in contact with the minds developing a script for the film for over a year, and is among those very excited to see the mo
  
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• The new Chase for the Championship is different but the same

  02-09-2026 23:58 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Motorsport photoOf the 16 drivers who comprise the newest iteration of the Chase for the Championship, only two of them have competed in the version that predated The Playoffs from 2004-to-2013.Denny Hamlin
  Joey LoganoOn one hand, this gives them both a baseline understanding of how to navigate the next 10 weeks but there are also enough wrinkles that both of them are still curious about what this is going to look like.The most notable difference from the earliest versions of The Chase to this o
  
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• Legacy Motor Club to part ways with John Hunter Nemechek

  02-09-2026 23:40 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Motorsport photoJohn Hunter Nemechek, 29, will not return to Legacy Motor Club for the 2027 NASCAR Cup Series season.Nemechek first. joined the team at the start of the 2024 season, recording points finishes of 34th and 25th. He currently sits 27th in the 2026 championship standings, trailing teammate Erik Jones in 21st by 80 points after Daytona."Legacy Motor Club has made the decision to part ways with John Hunter Nemechek at the conclusion of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season," a statement fr
  
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• "I Might Be"- Joey Logano Embraces ‘Psychopath’ Label As He Publicly Shuts Down Old Chase Comparisons

  02-09-2026 23:21 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  February 11, 2026, Daytona Beach, Fl, USA: JOEY LOGANO 22 of Middletown, CT gets gets ready to practice for Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach , FL. Daytona Beach USA – ZUMAa161 20260211_aaa_a161_006 Copyright: xWalterxG.xArcexSr.x ©IMAGO/ZUMA Press WireJoey Logano finishing ninth in the standings to secure his spot in the Chase, especially as one of the Championship favorites, has to be one of the great comeback stories of the Team Penske driver’s ca
  
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• NASCAR drivers scrambling for cameos after Tom Cruise announces 'Days of Thunder' sequel

  02-09-2026 23:05 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Joey Logano has won 71 NASCAR races and three Cup Series championships during his illustrious career.But the driver of the No. 22 Penske Racing Ford said nothing would make him appear cooler in the eyes of his five children than securing a cameo in the upcoming sequel to “Days of Thunder,” which will star Tom Cruise and Anne Hathaway and is set for release in 2028.“Yeah, are you kidding me — that's like wicked cool dad points to be in ‘D
  
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• Christopher Bell: New format brings "more pressure" and believes he has to start winning

  02-09-2026 23:05 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Motorsport photoThe 'win and you're in' may be gone, but the importance of winning remains critical in the battle to become a NASCAR Cup Series champion. Ryan Preece showed just how valuable a win can be last than a week ago at Daytona International Speedway.And while there is one point between each position on track, that abruptly jumps to 20 points between the runner-up spot and the race winner. That means the gap between P2 and P22 on the track is identical to first and second.Unfortunately f
  
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• Dale Earnhardt Jr. Reveals His Surprising Connection to New ‘Days of Thunder’ Movie

  02-09-2026 22:11 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Dale Earnhardt Jr. wasn’t supposed to be at Daytona International Speedway when Tom Cruise arrived.NASCAR changed that.Earnhardt revealed on the “Dale Jr. Download” that he had initially planned to leave Daytona after the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race. Instead, NASCAR asked him to spend another night in town for a reason that didn’t require much convincing: Cruise wanted to meet him.The two eventually spent about 20 minutes together Saturday morning after Cruise f
  
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• Prank War Helped Buescher, Preece Find Levity in Race to the Chase

  02-09-2026 22:09 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Chris Buescher (right) says that an ongoing prank war with his teammate Ryan Preece (left) has helped lighten the mood for the two drivers. | Danny Hansen, NKP for Ford RacingIt took a walk-off win at Daytona International Speedway for Ryan Preece to make the NASCAR Cup Series Chase for the Cup, but with Preece advancing to the championship fight, RFK Racing will now have two drivers battling it out in the 10-week mental marathon for the sport's ultimate prize.Chris Buescher comes into the Chase
  
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• Ryan Blaney, Austin Cindric react to Penske pit crew swap

  02-09-2026 22:02 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Motorsport photoRyan Blaney is the No. 2 seed in the Chase for the Championship and will start the final 10 races 25 points behind regular season champion Denny Hamlin.Austin Cindric is the No. 15 seed and is 95 points back.For Team Penske, the decision to swap their respective pit crews boiled down to simple mathematics, and everyone with both programs are largely understanding of that decision. Team Penske has a championship to win and the No. 12 with Blaney and crew chief Jonathan Hassler are
  
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• Kevin Harvick Questions NASCAR’s Next-Gen Identity After Daytona Fail- "I Just Don’t Know That That Is the Style of Car We Need"

  02-09-2026 21:35 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Cup Series Championship Qualifying Nov 4, 2023 Avondale, Arizona, USA NASCAR Cup Series driver Kevin Harvick during qualifying for the NASCAR Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway. Avondale Phoenix Raceway Arizona USA, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xMarkxJ.xRebilasx 20231104_mjr_su5_006 ©IMAGO/USA TODAY NetworkNASCAR brought quite a few changes to its superspeedway package at Daytona this past weekend for the Coke Zero Sugar 400, but th
  
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• Team Penske Makes Major Ryan Blaney Change Days Before NASCAR Chase Begins

  02-09-2026 21:32 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Ryan Blaney will begin his pursuit of a second NASCAR Cup Series championship with a significantly different team around him.Just days before the Chase opens at Darlington Raceway, Team Penske has swapped the pit crews assigned to Blaney’s No. 12 Ford and Austin Cindric’s No. 2 Ford.A Team Penske spokesperson confirmed the change to NASCAR.com.The timing alone makes the move notable. Both drivers qualified for NASCAR’s 16-driver Chase, meaning Penske isn’t simply moving r
  
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• Dale Earnhardt Jr. Calls For Tweak to NASCAR Points System

  02-09-2026 21:23 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  Dale Earnhardt Jr. wants to see one tweak to the NASCAR points system.GettyDale Earnhardt Jr. would like to see NASCAR bring back awarding points to drivers who lead a lap and for the one who leads the most laps. The retired Hall of Famer’s comments stem from frustration with drivers not going for the lead in Saturday’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona.Prior to NASCAR implementing stage breaks and awarding points to the top-10 finishers in 2017, drivers could earn points from leading a
  
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• Blaney, Cindric react to crew swap before The Chase: 'Best chance to win the championship'

  02-09-2026 21:14 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Ryan Blaney will have a new pit crew on his No. 12 Team Penske Ford to begin NASCAR’s postseason.Blaney inherits the crew that previously serviced Austin Cindric’s No. 2 Ford through the regular season. Per NASCAR Insights, Cindric’s crew ranked 10th-best through 26 races while Blaney’s crew ranked 32nd. As Team Penske confirmed Tuesday, those teams will swap cars ahead of Sunday’s opening race of The Chase presented by Mobil 1.MORE: Penske s
  
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• NASCAR Driver Tyler Reddick Faces a Tough Reality Before the Chase

  02-09-2026 20:42 via sports.yahoo.com
  
  DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA - AUGUST 28: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #45 Jordan Brand Toyota, looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on August 28, 2026 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) GettyTyler Reddick enters the NASCAR Chase as the No. 3 seed after a strong 2026 regular season that also exposed some problems at 23XI Racing. Reddick won five Cup Series races, the most in the regular season, including
  
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