Johnson, Logano Split Charlotte Double-Header

Jimmie Johnson celebrating in Victory Lane

(CONCORD, NC - OCT. 9, 2016 - RIS) Jimmie Johnson and Joey Logano raced to wins in both halves of the hurricane-affected Bank of America 500 race weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Johnson took his eighth win at Charlotte in his victory in the Sprint Cup Bank of America 500, while Logano took the lead for the final 12 laps of the XFINITY Series Drive for the Cure300  presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina race.

Jimmie Johnson won his career 78th NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Charlotte Motor Speedway's Bank of America 500. Following a one-day delay because of the rains brought by Hurricane Matthew, the race went under the green flag on Sunday at noon. With a green track, the first caution flew on lap 25 as a competition caution. The next caution came out for a crash between Alex Mowman and Casey Mears when Bowman's car suffered a flat left-front tire and pinched Mears against the wall in turn Three.

Chase Elliott looked like he would dominate the field until a crash on lap 260 wiped out his chances at a win after he had led 103 laps. The crash also involved Jamie McMurray, Austin Dillon, Clint Bowyer, Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards, Trevor Bayne, Paul Menard, Brian Scott and Kurt Busch to various degrees and caused a ten-minute red flag for the cleanup.

Johnson passed Matt Kenseth for the final lead with 18 laps left, winning by a margin of almost a second and a half over Kenseth.

"We knew we would be back; it was just slower than we thought it would be," Johnson said. "We feel like the day conditions helped us and the sun definitely helped. This has opened up some opportunities for us now. It's just fantastic, we can race hard now. We take (the Chase) day at a time and one race at a time. I still feel like we can bring better race cars to the track. We can't sit back and celebrate too much. Tomorrow, we'll be back at work."

Runner-Up Matt Kenseth commented "We didn't make it easy. We had a part go bad in inspection or something and had to start from the rear. Then we got the pit road penalty and had to go back there again. So, it was an uphill battle. The team made some great adjustments and had great pit stops there at the end to try and put us in position to go for the win. We were just a little off of the 48 (Johnson) on the short run. I couldn't have done anything different there. Again, it was a solid run. That was all I had on the restart and all I had on the run. I just didn't have enough speed."

Following the conclusion of the Bank of America 500, Friday's Drive for the Cure300  presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina took to the track after Friday's continuous rain caused the race to be postponed.

Joey Logano redeemed his 36th place finish in the '500' by winning the XFINITY Series race, taking the lead and leading the last 12 laps on the way to his 27th series win. Kyle Larson dominated the race, leading 165 of the 200 laps after finishing fifth in the Sprint Cup race earlier in the afternoon. Veteran driver Elliott Sadler finished second after leading 39 laps in the race.

"I knew my only shot was on the restart … I was huffing and puffing and giving it all I got," said Logano. "To come out here and compete at this level shows the depth of this team and Team Penske. It was a long night but a good recovery from earlier in the day, when I tried to knock the wall down. Obviously we had a good car. Maybe we didn't have the best car but we had something that we could make something happen with. We stayed on the lead lap on that long run. The pit crew did their job. It was an awesome restart on there at the end. It was a lot of fun to be able to do that. We have a great mix of guys and girls from the shop on this team and it's a good win for them and the first for my crew chief, Brian Wilson. It was a long night for sure but a good recovery. It was a great win and a lot of fun."

Runner-Up Elliott Sadler said: "We really wanted to win this race. Any time I get to run this pink race car it's very sentimental to me and my family. My mom wasn't able to be here this weekend because she is still recovering. All I could think about those last few laps was trying to get by Joey (Logano) and trying to get that win. It just shows how hard my team really works on the car. The thing took off … We have got some really good cars sitting in the shop ready to go for the second round … How we battled and fought tonight gives us some momentum going into the next (races)."

Unofficial Race Results for the 57Th Annual Bank Of America 500 - Charlotte Motor Speedway - Sunday, October 9, 2016

Fin, Str, Driver, Car, Pts, Bns, Tms, Laps, Status, Laps
1) 11, Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet, 45, 5, 7, 155, Running, 334
2) 17, Matt Kenseth, No. 20 Dollar General Toyota, 40, 1, 1, 5, Running, 334
3) 12, Kasey Kahne, No. 5 Great Clips Chevrolet, 38, , , , Running, 334
4) 21, Ryan Newman, No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet, 38, 1, 1, 1, Running, 334
5) 25, Kyle Larson, No. 42 Target/Belkin QP Chevrolet, 36, , , , Running, 334
6) 4, Kyle Busch, No. 18 Interstate Batteries/ABC Toyota, 36, 1, 1, 1, Running, 334
7) 20, Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Wurth Ford, 34, , , , Running, 334
8) 23, Kurt Busch, No. 41 Haas Automation/Monster Energy Chevrolet, 33, , , , Running, 334
9) 5, Tony Stewart, No. 14 Mobil 1/Rev the Vote Chevrolet, 32, , , , Running, 334
10) 16, Jamie McMurray, No. 1 McDonald's Chevrolet, 31, , , , Running, 334
11) 13, Danica Patrick, No. 10 Aspen Dental Chevrolet, 30, , , , Running, 334
12) 8, Carl Edwards, No. 19 Stanley Toyota, 29, , , , Running, 334
13) 7, Martin Truex Jr, No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, 28, , , , Running, 334
14) 22, Michael McDowell, No. 95 Thrivent Financial Chevrolet, 27, , , , Running, 334
15) 33, Aric Almirola, No. 43 Smithfield Ford, 26, , , , Running, 334
16) 26, Chris Buescher #, No. 34 Love's Travel Stops Ford, 25, , , , Running, 334
17) 31, Clint Bowyer, No. 15 5-hour Energy Chevrolet, 25, 1, 1, 2, Running, 334
18) 27, Trevor Bayne, No. 6 AdvoCare Ford, 23, , , , Running, 334
19) 32, Landon Cassill, No. 38 Rev the Vote/Snapchat Ford, 22, , , , Running, 334
20) 15, Ricky Stenhouse Jr, No. 17 SunnyD Ford, 21, , , , Running, 333
21) 35, Regan Smith, No. 7 Nikko RC/Toy State Chevrolet, 20, , , , Running, 333
22) 30, Brian Scott #, No. 44 Jacob Companies Ford, 19, , , , Running, 333
23) 34, David Ragan, No. 23 Dr Pepper Toyota, 18, , , , Running, 331
24) 37, Michael Annett, No. 46 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet, 17, , , , Running, 330
25) 24, Matt DiBenedetto, No. 83 Pink Cosmo Motors Online Toyota, 16, , , , Running, 329
26) 38, Jeffrey Earnhardt #, No. 32 Can-Am Ford, 15, , , , Running, 328
27) 36, * Cole Whitt, No. 98 Vydox Plus Chevrolet, 14, , , , Running, 327
28) 39, * Reed Sorenson, No. 55 Vydox Plus Chevrolet, 13, , , , Running, 321
29) 40, * Josh Wise, No. 30 Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet, 12, , , , Running, 320
30) 9, Denny Hamlin, No. 11 FedEx Office Toyota, 12, 1, 2, 52, Engine, 308
31) 18, * Ryan Blaney #, No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford, 10, , , , Running, 307
32) 19, Austin Dillon, No. 3 Dow Coating Materials Chevrolet, 9, , , , Accident, 258
33) 3, Chase Elliott #, No. 24 3M Chevrolet, 9, 1, 3, 103, Accident, 258
34) 28, Paul Menard, No. 27 Valvoline/Menards Chevrolet, 7, , , , Accident, 258
35) 14, Greg Biffle, No. 16 Ford EcoBoost Ford, 6, , , , Accident, 257
36) 10, Joey Logano, No. 22 Pennzoil Ford, 6, 1, 1, 3, Running, 254
37) 6, AJ Allmendinger, No. 47 Kroger/Stouffer's/Stouffer's FitKitchen Chevrolet, 4, , , , Accident, 252
38) 1, Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Busch Hunting Chevrolet, 4, 1, 1, 12, Engine, 155
39) 2, Alex Bowman(i), No. 88 Axalta Chevrolet, 0, , , , Accident, 61
40) 29, Casey Mears, No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet, 1, , , , Accident, 61
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series
* = non-franchise team

Race Comments: Jimmie Johnson won the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, his 78th career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory.

Prior to the start of the race, the following car dropped to the rear of the field for the reason indicated: No. 20 (Unapproved adjustments). 

Time of Race: 03 Hrs, 42 Mins, 47 Secs.
Average Speed: 134.929 MPH
Margin of Victory: 1.474 Seconds

 Caution Flags: 8 for 51 laps: Laps: 27-30 (Competition caution [23]); 63-70 (#13 and 88 Accident in Turn 3 [38]); 118-124 (#22 Accident in Turn 2 [4]); 157-161 (#22 Accident in Turn 2 [18]); 229-236 (Debris on the frontstretch [10]); 254-258 (#47 Accident in Turn 2 [14]); 260-265 (#1, 3, 15, 16, 18, 19, 21, 24, 27, 41, 44 and 78 Accident on the frontstretch [Red 10:49] [95]); 309-316 (Fluid in Turn 4 from #11 [43]).

 Lead Changes: 17 among 9 drivers: K. Harvick 1-12; C. Elliott # 13-113; J. Logano 114-116; J. Johnson 117-118; D. Hamlin 119; J. Johnson 120-124; D. Hamlin 125-175; J. Johnson 176-213; R. Newman 214; Kyle Busch 215; C. Bowyer 216-217; J. Johnson 218-229; C. Elliott # 230; J. Johnson 231-253; C. Elliott # 254; J. Johnson 255-311; M. Kenseth 312-316; J. Johnson 317-334.

Top 16 Driver Points:  (1) J. Johnson 3,045;(2) M. Kenseth 3,040;(3) Kyle Busch 3,036;(4) B. Keselowski 3,034;(5) Kurt Busch 3,033;(6) C. Edwards 3,029;(7) M. Truex Jr 3,028;(8) D. Hamlin 3,012;(9) A. Dillon 3,009;(10) C. Elliott # 3,009;(11) J. Logano 3,006;(12) K. Harvick 3,004;(13) K. Larson 2,109;(14) T. Stewart 2,106;(15) J. Mcmurray 2,084;(16) C. Buescher # 2,070.

American Ethanol Green Flag Restart Award: Kyle Busch, #18
Ingersoll Rand Power Move: Kyle Busch, #18 6 positions

Mahle Clevite Engine Builder of the Race: Hendrick Engines, #48
Mobil 1 Driver of the Race: Matt Kenseth, #20

Moog Chassis Parts Problem Solver of the Race: Matt Kenseth, #20 crew chief Jason Ratcliff, 0.073 seconds
Sherwin-Williams Fastest Lap: Kyle Busch, #18

Sunoco Rookie of the Race: Chris Buescher, #34

Unofficial Race Results for the 35Th Annual Drive For The Cure 300 Presented By Blue Cross Blue Shield Of North Carolina

Fin, Str, Driver, Car, Laps, Pts, Bns, Tms, Laps, Status
1) 3, Joey Logano(i), No. 12 PPG Ford, 200, 0, , 1, 12, Running
2) 14, Elliott Sadler, No. 1 OneMain Chevrolet, 200, 39, , , , Running
3) 4, Daniel Suarez, No. 19 Juniper Toyota, 200, 38, , , , Running
4) 1, Kyle Larson(i), No. 42 Nature Made Chevrolet, 200, 0, , 6, 165, Running
5) 2, Erik Jones #, No. 20 GameStop/NBA 2K17 Toyota, 200, 37, 1, 4, 21, Running
6) 7, Justin Allgaier, No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet, 200, 36, 1, 1, 1, Running
7) 19, Kevin Harvick(i), No. 88 Hunt Brothers Pizza Chevrolet, 200, 0, , , , Running
8) 16, Matt Tifft(i), No. 18 American Brain Tumor Association/tunity Toyota, 200, 0, , , , Running
9) 17, Brad Keselowski(i), No. 22 Discount Tire Ford, 200, 0, , , , Running
10) 9, Ryan Sieg, No. 39 Tri County Landscapes Chevrolet, 199, 32, 1, 1, 1, Running
11) 8, Ty Dillon, No. 3 WESCO Chevrolet, 199, 30, , , , Running
12) 6, Blake Koch, No. 11 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet, 199, 29, , , , Running
13) 11, Brendan Gaughan, No. 62 American Ethanol/Sheetz Chevrolet, 199, 28, , , , Running
14) 10, Austin Dillon(i), No. 2 Rheem Chevrolet, 199, 0, , , , Running
15) 12, Ryan Reed, No. 16 Lilly Diabetes/American Diabetes Association Ford, 198, 26, , , , Running
16) 5, Brandon Jones #, No. 33 Nexteer Chevrolet, 198, 25, , , , Running
17) 18, Jeb Burton, No. 98 The Z Real Estate Group/KW Burlington Ford, 198, 24, , , , Running
18) 13, Brennan Poole #, No. 48 DC Solar Chevrolet, 198, 23, , , , Running
19) 20, Dakoda Armstrong, No. 28 Winfield Be Greater Toyota, 198, 22, , , , Running
20) 15, Darrell Wallace Jr, No. 6 Leidos Ford, 197, 21, , , , Running
21) 24, Ross Chastain, No. 4 Dream Water Chevrolet, 196, 20, , , , Running
22) 23, Jeremy Clements, No. 51 RepairableVehicles.com/AllSouthElectric.com Chevrolet, 196, 19, , , , Running
23) 30, Ryan Preece #, No. 01 Rockstar Energy Drink Chevrolet, 195, 18, , , , Running
24) 25, Spencer Gallagher(i), No. 21 Domestic Violence Awareness Chevrolet, 195, 0, , , , Running
25) 29, Garrett Smithley #, No. 0 teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet, 195, 16, , , , Running
26) 34, Clint King, No. 15 Warehouse Design Inc/J&L Wire Ford, 195, 15, , , , Running
27) 21, JJ Yeley, No. 44 Zachry Toyota, 194, 14, , , , Running
28) 22, Ray Black Jr #, No. 07 Scuba Life Chevrolet, 194, 13, , , , Running
29) 26, David Starr, No. 93 Massimo Motors Chevrolet, 193, 12, , , , Running
30) 32, BJ McLeod #, No. 78 Batteries Plus Bulbs Ford, 193, 11, , , , Running
31) 38, Martin Roy, No. 90 Gamache Truck Center Chevrolet, 191, 10, , , , Running
32) 37, Joey Gase, No. 52 Agri Supply Chevrolet, 189, 9, , , , Running
33) 35, Jordan Anderson(i), No. 97 VroomBrands Chevrolet, 188, 0, , , , Running
34) 36, Brandon Hightower, No. 13 Timmons Truck Center/Premier Recycling Dodge, 188, 7, , , , Running
35) 40, Chris Cockrum, No. 25 Advanced Communications Group Chevrolet, 168, 6, , , , Running
36) 31, Derrike Cope, No. 70 J Peters Grill & Bar/E-hydrate Chevrolet, 160, 5, , , , Oil Leak
37) 27, Jeff Green, No. 14 Toyota, 104, 4, , , , Electrical
38) 39, Mike Harmon, No. 74 truckersfinalmile.org Dodge, 50, 3, , , , Too Slow
39) 33, Morgan Shepherd, No. 89 Chevrolet, 49, 2, , , , Handling
40) 28, Timmy Hill(i), No. 40 OCR Gaz Bar/TLC Vacations Toyota, 33, 0, , , , Electrical

(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series

Race Comments: Joey Logano won the Drive for the Cure 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, his 27th career NASCAR XFINITY Series victory. Prior to the start of the race, the following cars dropped to the rear of the field for the reasons indicated: Nos. 13, 40 and 74 (missed drivers meeting).

Time of Race: 02 Hrs, 05 Mins, 23 Secs.
Average Speed: 143.560 MPH
Margin of Victory: 0.462 Seconds

 Caution Flags: 4 for 19 laps: Laps: 26-30 (#07 Accident in Turn 2 [78]); 66-69 (Debris on the backstretch [16]); 177-182 (Debris on pit road [1]); 185-188 (#28 Spin in Turn 4 [2]).

 Lead Changes: 12 among 5 drivers: K. Larson(i) 1-27; R. Sieg 28; K. Larson(i) 29-48; E. Jones # 49-50; K. Larson(i) 51-68; E. Jones # 69; K. Larson(i) 70-118; E. Jones # 119-120; K. Larson(i) 121-159; E. Jones # 160-175; K. Larson(i) 176-187; J. Allgaier 188; J. Logano(i) 189-200.

Top 10 Driver Points: (1) D. Suarez 2,125;(2) E. Sadler 2,124;(3) J. Allgaier 2,107;(4) B. Gaughan 2,096;(5) R. Reed 2,091;(6) E. Jones # 2,090;(7) B. Koch 2,087;(8) D. Wallace Jr 2,085;(9) T. Dillon 2,084;(10) B. Poole # 2,080.

Duralast Brakes "Brake in the Race": Kyle Larson, #42
Mahle Clevite Engine Builder of the Race: Hendrick Engines, #42

Mobil 1 Driver of the Race: Daniel Suarez, #19
Sunoco Rookie of the Race: Erik Jones, #20

John Davison

Long-time RIS staffer, beginning in the mid-80s. Charlotte, NC area local contact.

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Volume 2016, Issue 8, Posted 11:49 PM, 10.09.2016