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Jimmie JohnsonCONCORD, N.C. (Sept. 14, 2015) – Lowe’s Companies Inc. has extended its longtime relationship with Hendrick Motorsports after signing a two-year agreement that will continue its full-season primary sponsorship of the No. 48 NASCAR Sprint Cup team and six-time series champion Jimmie Johnson in 2016 and 2017.

In addition, Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports have agreed to a two-year contract extension that will keep the driver behind the wheel of the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet SS through 2017.

 

The agreements build upon a partnership launched in 2001 when Johnson was selected to drive for the new No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports team. Now in its 14th full season, the sponsor-driver-team relationship has become one of the most successful in NASCAR history. Lowe’s, whose NASCAR involvement dates back to its first car sponsorship in 1960, has been Johnson’s primary sponsor for each of his 497 career Sprint Cup starts.

“Lowe’s has a longstanding history with NASCAR and knows its fans are some of the most loyal in all of sports,” said Tom Lamb, chief marketing officer of Lowe’s. “Our partnership with Jimmie and Hendrick Motorsports has been an amazing ride as we chase history, and more than 265,000 Lowe’s employees are proud to be part of such a legacy.”

Since his first full-time Sprint Cup season in 2002, Johnson has earned 74 victories — the most in the series during that span — and averaged a third-place (3.07) championship points finish.

“My relationship with Lowe’s and Hendrick Motorsports means so much,” said Johnson, 39, who has won four races in 2015. “To me, this just reinforces how committed Lowe’s is to our sport and to our partnership. It says a lot to have one sponsor and one team for this amount of time. I couldn’t be prouder to represent everyone at Lowe’s and Hendrick Motorsports. This is my home, and I’m looking forward to many more victories together as a team.”

Led by crew chief Chad Knaus, whose contract with Hendrick Motorsports runs through 2018, the No. 48 Lowe’s team has scored at least three Sprint Cup wins in each of its 14 full seasons (2002-15). Johnson’s six championships trail only first-ballot NASCAR Hall of Fame drivers Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty, who each posted seven.

“Lowe’s history in racing goes back more than 50 years,” said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports. “Their dedication over that time, not only to Hendrick Motorsports but to the NASCAR community and our fans, has been absolutely incredible. We’re fortunate to work with a company that’s truly passionate about our sport and shares many of our organization’s core values.

“The contributions Jimmie and Chad have made to Hendrick Motorsports can’t be overstated. When Lowe’s took a chance by sponsoring the No. 48 team back in 2001, we never could’ve envisioned the results. It’s a championship combination and genuine partnership that we’re proud to continue and committed to develop even further.”

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during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway on September 12, 2015 in Richmond, Virginia.

Sept. 12, 2015

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

RICHMOND, Va. – Joe Gibbs Racing brought guns to a knife fight on Saturday night at Richmond International Raceway.

But JGR’s Matt Kenseth did his teammates one better — he brought a howitzer.

Leading 352 of 400 laps in a race he owned from the outset, Kenseth pulled away from Kyle Busch after a restart with 18 laps left and won the Federated Auto Parts 400 by .951 seconds over his teammate.

Kenseth’s fourth victory of the season, tying him for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series lead with Jimmie Johnson and JGR teammate Kyle Busch, meant the 16 drivers who started the race in playoff-eligible positions stayed there. Jamie McMurray (13th-place finisher), Jeff Gordon (seventh), Ryan Newman (20th), Clint Bowyer (10th) and Paul Menard (26th) all earned berths in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup based on position in the standings — without a victory between them.

Joey Logano ran third, followed by Aric Almirola, whose gallant bid to crack the Chase grid fell 17 points short of the final position claimed by Menard. Dale Earnhardt Jr. came home fifth.

The victory was Kenseth’s second at Richmond and the 35th of his career. Joe Gibbs Racing has won seven of the last nine NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, with Logano the only other driver to score a win during that stretch.

Emblematic of JGR’s dominance at Richmond was a restart on Lap 126. Hamlin surged from fourth to first on the restart lap, pulling his three teammates with him. The four Gibbs cars quickly separated from fifth-place Kyle Larson, establishing a gap of two seconds back to the No. 42.

It was akin to watching Prototypes streak away from GT Class cars at the Rolex 24 Hours sports car race at Daytona.

Kenseth overtook Hamlin for the top spot on Lap 139, but for 60 straight laps the JGR teammates ran 1-2-3-4, until McMurray (who had qualified for the Chase simply by taking the green flag to start the race) passed Carl Edwards for the fourth position on Lap 186.

The only suspense during that stretch came when Kenseth and Edwards rubbed fenders while fighting for position early in the run.

Logano was the only non-JGR driver who could stay within hailing distance of Kenseth, but the ultimate third-place finisher stayed out on old tires for that restart on Lap 126 and did a creditable job holding the 10th spot before the fourth caution on Lap 209 gave him a chance to pit for fresh rubber.

Notes: Roush Fenway Racing failed to place a car in the Chase for the first time in the organization’s history… McMurray and Menard earned Chase positions for the first time in their careers… Newman made the Chase without a victory for the second straight year… In his final season as a full-time Sprint Cup driver, Gordon qualified for his 11th Chase in 12 tries.

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RICHMOND, Va. – How confident is Denny Hamlin that he’ll advance to the Championship 4 Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup at Homestead-Miami Speedway?

So much so that he hasn’t even contemplated the prospect of surgery to his injured right knee, if he’s eliminated in one of the earlier rounds of the Chase.

“Actually, had not even thought about being eliminated—that’s how confident I am right now that we’re not going to (be). If we do, I don’t know. You want to finish the year strong and I think the way the points all work out you still can move up to fifth or something like that.

“I think, either way, off-season is going to be the best option (for surgery) as long as I can make it that long.”

Hamlin tore the ACL in his right knee playing basketball on Tuesday night. It’s not the first time his ardent pursuit of hoops has interfered with his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career. In the spring of 2010, Hamlin tore the ACL in his left knee and had surgery during an off week but didn’t miss a race.

This time it’s the right knee, which faces less stress with the gas pedal than the left leg does with the brake. With the Chase looming, Hamlin has chosen to postpone surgery and put up with the discomfort outside the car. He showed up in the media center at Richmond International Raceway on Friday as he prepared for Saturday’s Federated Auto Parts 400 (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN), aided by a single crutch.

In a league basketball game, Hamlin hit a driving layup at the end of regulation play to send the contest into overtime. He tore the ACL in the extra period. But the mishap hasn’t quelled his optimism about his chances for a championship, a confidence that extends to the entire Joe Gibbs Racing roster, which also includes Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth and last week’s Darlington winner, Carl Edwards.

“I think our cars are obviously very good right now,” Hamlin said. “And, yeah, there’s no reason why… we all said in January that our goal is to have four cars at Homestead with a chance to win, and I don’t see — except for bad luck — anything that can keep that from happening.”

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during the NASCAR XFINITY Series Virginia529 College Savings 250 at Richmond International Raceway on September 11, 2015 in Richmond, Virginia.

Sept. 11, 2015

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

RICHMOND, Va. – Reigning NASCAR XFINITY Series champion Chase Elliott was first off pit road under caution on Lap 218 of 250 and held the top spot the rest of the way, breaking a 39-race winless streak on Friday night at Richmond International Raceway.

Elliott’s victory in the Virginia529 College Savings 250 trimmed his standings deficit to 21 points behind series leader Chris Buescher, who finished 10th. Elliott’s first victory of the season was also the first in 24 races for an XFINITY Series regular at RIR.

Yes, Elliott won the race, leading a race-high 83 laps on the way to his first win at Richmond and the fourth of his career. Perhaps, the loudest noise, however, came from late model stock car star and Dale Earnhardt Jr. protégé Josh Berry, who trumpeted his arrival for his maiden XFINITY race at RIR with a seventh-place finish.

During an 81-lap green-flag run from Lap 54 through Lap 134, Berry drove from seventh to second. In the latter half of the run, Berry trimmed a five-second deficit to Brian Scott, the leader, to 2.6 seconds before Jeremy Clements’ wreck in Turn 2 slowed the action for the fourth cation of the race.

Berry repeatedly lost positions on pit road, the last time because egress from his stall was blocked by the No. 6 Ford of Darrell Wallace Jr. He lost five positions under that sixth caution and restarted ninth on Lap 226 before recovering to finish seventh.

Polesitter Kyle Busch came home second, 1.308 seconds behind Elliott. Brian Scott led 63 laps and finished third, followed by Joey Logano, Erik Jones, Regan Smith and Berry.

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The Final Lap Weekly Podcast LogoSHOW #375 – Guest: Kelli Stavast from NBC Sports – We recap the Darlington Weekend, Jimmie Johnson gets recognized, Chip Ganassi falls off bike, Denny Hamlin tears ACL, plus a full Richmond preview. Hosted by Kerry Murphey and Toby Christie.

( Roughly 48:00 mins)

Continue reading “The Final Lap Weekly NASCAR Podcast #375 – Kelli Stavast NBC – NASCAR Richmond Preview”