THE RACE: Quaker State 400
TRACK: Kentucky Speedway
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race #19 of 36
Date: Saturday, July 14, 2018 in Sparta, KY
Scheduled Green Flag (approx): 7:45 pm/et
Sections on this page:
Television | Radio/Streaming | Schedule | Track/Race Info | Race Rundown
Qualifying / Practice / Entry Info | Weather Links | Tire Notes | Odds
NASCAR America: 6:00 pm/et on NBCSN
NASCAR Countdown to Green: 7:00 pm/et on NBCSN
Television Race Coverage: NBCSN, 7:30pm/et
Practices:
Friday, July 13, 12:00-12:50pm/et, TV-NBCSN;
Friday, July 13, 2:00-2:50pm/et, TV-NBCSN
Qualifying for positions 1-40, Friday, July 13 at 6:40 pm/et, TV-NBCSN;
re-air scheduled: None
In the Booth: Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte, Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
Pre/Post-Race and Hosts: Krista Voda, Kyle Petty, Dale Jarrett
Pit Reporters: Marty Snider, Kelli Stavast, Dave Burns
Features Reporter: Rutledge Wood
Breaking News: Nate Ryan
Scheduled Race Re-Air Dates/Times:
TBA
TV Listings, Links and Info:
see the TV Listings and Links page
Performance Racing Network (PRN)
SiriusXM Satellite NASCAR Channel 90
ONLINE STREAMING
NBC Sports - Live
Radio: PRN Live Streaming
SiriusXM Internet Radio (available via internet connected device, with subscription)
EVENT SCHEDULE
Event Schedule times are local to the track
Thursday, July 12
3:00 PM 5:00 PM MENCS HAULERS ENTER (EQUIPMENT UNLOAD)
Friday, July 13
9:00 AM-10:00 PM MENCS GARAGE OPEN
11:00 AM MENCS ROOKIE MEETING, SPOTTER MEETING, & RANDOM DRAWING
12:00 PM-12:50 PM MENCS 1ST PRACTICE
2:00 PM-2:50 PM MENCS FINAL PRACTICE
6:40 PM MENCS QUALIFYING (MULTI-VEHICLE / THREE ROUNDS)
Saturday, July 14
2:00 PM MENCS GARAGE OPENS
5:30 PM MENCS DRIVER / CREW CHIEF MEETING
6:50 PM MENCS DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS
7:30 PM MENCS RACE (267 LAPS, 400.5 MILES)
MENCS = Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
SCHEDULE SUBJECT TO CHANGE
Kentucky Speedway Track News, Stats & Links page
July 2017: see the Kentucky Race Info page
Race Festivities/Officials:
Grand Marshal: Carlos Maurer, President of Shell Lubricants Americas
Command to start engines: Fishing League Worldwide angler Jimmy Houston
Honorary Starter/Wave Green Flag: Mike Palmisano, Owner, Fast Track
Honorary Pace Car Driver: Marty Brennaman, Hall of Famer & Cincinnati Reds Radio Announcer
Color Guard: U.S. Army, Fort Knox, Ky.
Invocation: Larry Campbell, Track Chaplain, Kentucky Raceway Ministries
National Anthem: Thoroughbred Chorus, Louisville, KY
Flyover: Two F-16's, 187th Fighter Wing, Montgomery Alabama
Saturday Kentucky Notebook: Knaus extends contract with Hendrick; Kentucky solidified Wallace's status with RPM; Bell returns to the "Big E" for his broadcasting debut.[More](7-14-2018)
Friday Kentucky Notebook: Call me maybe? Busch disappointed by Stenhouse; Bowman looks to build on recent success; The fine line between bold and over the line.[More](7-13-2018)
What to Watch for: Kentucky Speedway: What Happened to Jimmie Johnson?; Can Erik Jones Contend?; Keselowski Looking for a Big Win at Kentucky; Busch and Harvick Dominate, 1.5 Miles at a Time; Who's Hot and Who's Not - Kentucky.[More](7-13-2018)
Thursday Kentucky Notebook: Haley ready to bounce book from near Xfinity miss; Seavey looks to follow Larson and Bell's path to NASCAR's top tiers; Rhodes tries to turn his season around at Kentucky.[More](7-12-2018)
Kentucky Speedway Weekend Preview: Keselowski looks to continue Kentucky success; XFINITY and Trucks also in action this weekend at Kentucky Speedway.[More](7-12-2018)
A look at many news, notes and story lines for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway, see the stats on the NASCAR National Series News & Notes -- Kentucky Speedway
A look at some of the top statistical performers and top-10 driver ratings at Kentucky Speedway, see the stats on the Statistical Advance - Analyzing Kentucky Speedway page
Truex sweeps stages at Kentucky for fourth victory: Martin Truex Jr., made it a clean sweep at Kentucky Speedway this weekend. After starting from the pole, Truex won all three stages and successfully defended his victory from last year's Quaker State 400. Truex led 174 laps en route to his fourth win of the season and his 19th career victory in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.[More](7-14-2018)
Martin Truex, Jr. won the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway. The win is his 4th win of 2018, 2nd win at Kentucky and 19th career win.
He started from the pole, won all three stages, and led 174 of the 267 laps.
#12-Blaney finished 2nd followed by #2-Keselowski, #18-Busch, #4-Harvick, #41-Busch, #20-Jones, #10-Almirola, #42-Larson, and #22-Logano.
There were 14 lead changes among 7 drivers and 4 cautions for 22 yellow flag laps.
The average speed of the race was: 150.454mph.
See unofficial race results, awards, laps led, cautions and more at:
Unofficial Race Results (pdf)
Cumulative Report (pdf)
Penalty Report (pdf)
See OFFICIAL race results & points standings on the Official Race & Points Report (pdf).
MENCS at Kentucky
- Martin Truex Jr.: 19th career win; T-41st all-time with Joey Logano, Greg Biffle, Davey Allison (killed 15 years ago this week), Buddy Baker and Fonty Flock
- Truex Jr.: 4th win sweeping all stages; since format began last season, all other drivers have 3 combined (2 for Harvick, 1 for Kyle Busch), Truex has done it twice at Kentucky
- Truex Jr.: 16th win over last 3 seasons, 2 more than any other driver
- Truex Jr.: won 3 of last 5 races when winning pole
- Truex Jr.: 25 playoff points, 3rd in series behind Kyle Busch (30) and Kevin Harvick (27); no other driver has more than 10
- Ryan Blaney: finished 2nd; best finish since winning at Pocono last season; 4th top-5 this season (had 4 all of last season
- Brad Keselowski: finished 3rd; had won previous 3 even-numbered year races at Kentucky
- Kyle Busch: finished 4th; 8.1 average finish this season, would be 3rd-best by a driver in a full season since 2000 behind Jeff Gordon (7.3 in 2007) and Bobby Labonte (7.4 in 2000)
- Kevin Harvick: finished 5th; 8th top-5 finish in last 9 races on 1.5-mile tracks
(ESPN Stats & Info)
Race Fast Facts - Kentucky
Martin Truex Jr. won the 8th Annual Quaker State 400 presented by Walmart, his 19th victory in 460 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races.
This is his fourth victory and 13th top-10 finish in 2018.
This is his second victory and fifth top-10 finish in eight races at Kentucky Speedway.
Ryan Blaney (second) posted his second top-10 finish in three races at Kentucky Speedway. It is his ninth top-10 finish in 2018.
Brad Keselowski (third) posted his sixth top-10 finish in eight races at Kentucky Speedway.
William Byron (20th) was the highest finishing rookie.
Kyle Busch leads the point standings by 59 points over Kevin Harvick.
(NASCAR Integrated Sports Marketing)(7-14-2018)
2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Driver Chase Standings:
[after Kentucky, race 19 of 36] - 7 races left until the playoffs.
#18-Kyle Busch [5 wins], 799
#4-Kevin Harvick [5 wins - 4 can be used for playoffs], 740
#78-Martin Truex Jr. [4 wins], 689
#14-Clint Bowyer [2 wins], 629
#22-Joey Logano [1 win], 648
#20-Erik Jones [1 win], 480
#3-Austin Dillon [1 win], 362
#2-Brad Keselowski, 630, -169
#41-Kurt Busch, 601, -198
#42-Kyle Larson, 581, -218
#11-Denny Hamlin, 559, -240
#12-Ryan Blaney, 546, -253
#10-Aric Almirola, 534, -265
#48-Jimmie Johnson, 484, -315, +66 pts ahead of 17th
#9-Chase Elliott, 469, -330, +51
#88-Alex Bowman, 427, -372, +9
Outside the top 16
#17-Ricky Stenhouse Jr., -9 pts behind 16th
#21-Paul Menard, -23
#31-Ryan Newman, -79
See the Unofficial Drivers Points Standings page (pdf) and Unofficial Owners Points Standings page (pdf)
See OFFICIAL race results & points standings on the Official Race & Points Report (pdf).
Top-Ten Stage 2 Results (lap 160) of the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway (lap 160/267):
#78-Truex, Jr., 10pts, 1 playoff point
#18-Busch, 9pts
#12-Blaney, 8pts
#4-Harvick, 7pts
#42-Larson, 6pts
#14-Bowyer, 5pts
#41-Busch, 4pts
#22-Logano, 3pts
#20-Jones, 2pts
#21-Menard, 1pt
Top-Ten Stage 1 Results (lap 80) of the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway (lap 80/267):
#78-Truex, Jr., 1 playoff point
#4-Harvick, 9pts
#18-Busch., 8pts
#12-Blaney, 7pts
#21-Menard, 6pts
#14-Bowyer, 5pts
#19-Suarez, 4pts
#42-Larson, 3pts
#10-Almirola, 2pts
#9-Elliott, 1pt
Lucky Dogs, drivers that got a lap back during the cautions (and their finish):
Caution 1: #48-Johnson, 14th
Caution 2: #3-Dillon, 22nd
Caution 3: #37-Buescher, 23rd
Caution 4: #17-Stenhouse, Jr., 26th
Saturday pre-race schedule at Kentucky:
7:30pm: Presentation of Colors: U.S. Army, Fort Knox, Ky.
7:30pm: Invocation: Larry Campbell, Track Chaplain, Kentucky Raceway Ministries
7:31pm: National Anthem: Thoroughbred Chorus, Louisville, Ky.
7:32pm: Flyover: 187th Fighter Wing, (2) F-16's Montgomery Alabama
7:37pm: "Drivers, Start Your Engines" by Carlos Maurer, President of Shell Lubricants Americas
7:45pm: Green Flag, Quaker State 400 presented by Walmart (267 laps, 400.5 miles), NBCSN/PRN (Canada: TSN2)
See the starting lineup for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway on the Starting Lineup Page (pdf).
To the rear: #42-Larson (missed driver introductions)
NASCAR Overtime Race Procedure: Rule and notes on the NASCAR Overtime rules/news/stats page.
Wave Around: how the wave around rule works: All vehicles between the leader and the caution vehicle at the start/finish line when the "one to go" signal is given by the starter are considered "Wave Around" eligible. "Wave Around" vehicles will not be permitted to enter pit road at any time during this yellow flag/caution period. "Wave Around" vehicles must receive the green flag on the race track before being permitted to enter pit road without a penalty. Vehicles under a penalty and the "Free Pass" vehicle will not be eligible to receive a "Wave Around".
Pit Stall Selections: The selections of pit stalls for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway have been made.
With 39 cars running, pit stalls 1, 36, 42, & 43 are not in use.
Pole sitter #78-Truex, Jr. took stall #2, the first available pit stall.
Outside pole winner #20-Jones. took pit stall 14, with an opening in front of it.
#4-Harvick, who starts 3rd, took the 41st and final pit stall.
To see where the drivers/teams pit stall is, see the pit selection chart on Jayski.com's Pit Stall Selection chart.(7-13-2018)
Links to results, practices, qualifying PDF's: (will be added as available)
Official Race & Points Report
Race Results
Drivers Points
Owners Points
Cumlative Race Report
Penalty Report
Pitstalls
Starting Lineup
Qualifying Results
Qualifying Order
Happy Hour Practice Speeds
Practice 1 Speeds
Crew Rosters
Latest / Final Entry List
Preliminary Entry List
See the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race results page
QUALIFYING INFO, PRACTICE SPEED and ENTRIES
Defending Kentucky winner Truex earns pole in Bluegrass State: Martin Truex Jr. didn't need a dress rehearsal to put on a pole-winning performance at Kentucky Speedway on Friday. His lack of mock qualifying runs in practice did not affect the ultimate result - his first Busch Pole on the 1.5-mile track. The defending winner of the Quaker State 400 presented by Walmart executed the fastest lap in Round 3 to win the pole for Saturday night's race at the 1.5-mile track.[More](7-13-2018)
Martin Truex, Jr. won the Busch pole for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway with speed of 188.890mph for his 4th pole of 2018, 1st at Kentucky and 19th of his career. Truex, Jr. has won 3 times from the 18 previous poles.
#20-Jones will start 2nd followed by #4-Harvick, #2-Keselowski, #18-Busch, #21-Menard, #12-Blaney, #14-Bowyer, #41-Busch, #31-Newman, #19-Suarez, and #10-Almirola.
#78-Truex, Jr. was fastest in the second round with a speed of 188.976mph.
#4-Harvick was quickest in the first round with a speed of 187.859mph.
Driver(s) who will miss the race: none as 39 were entered for 40 spots
See round-by-round qualifying results on the Qualifying results page (pdf) and the complete starting lineup on the Starting Lineup page (pdf).(7-13-2018)
Kentucky Speedway - Qualifying Fast Facts:
Martin Truex Jr. won the Busch Pole Award Pole Award for the 8th Annual Quaker State 400 presented by Walmart with a lap of 28.588 seconds, 188.890 mph.
This is his 19th pole in 460 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races.
This is his fourth pole and 12th top-10 start in 2018.
This is his first pole in eight races at Kentucky Speedway.
Erik Jones (second) posted his 11th top-10 start of 2018 and his first in two races at Kentucky Speedway.
Kevin Harvick (third) posted his fifth top-10 start at Kentucky Speedway. It is his 16th in 19 races this season.
William Byron (21st) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Statistics)(7-13-2018)
Second Round of Qualifying for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is over, after 10 scheduled minutes.
#78-Truex, Jr. 188.976
#18-Busch 188.403
#10-Almirola 188.107
#2-Keselowski 187.780
#20-Jones 187.741
the rest of the top 12: 31 14 41 4 12 21 19
out of the top 12 and not advancing to round 3: 3 17 88 9 6 42 22 37 24 1 34 38
(7-13-2018)
First Round of Qualifying for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is over, after 15 scheduled minutes.
#4-Harvick 187.859
#20-Jones 187.676
#3-Dillon 187.611
#2-Keselowski 187.169
#21-Menard 186.994
the rest of the top 24: 18 19 14 31 12 78 10 88 41 37 9 24 1 17 42 34 22 6 38
out of the top 24 and not advancing to round 2: 43 47 48 95 15 13 72 23 00 51 99 11 32 66 7
Drivers who will miss the race: none, 39 entered
(7-13-2018)
Coverage of Qualifying for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is scheduled for Friday, July 13, 2018 at 6:40pm/et.
Television (TV): NBCSN, 6:30pm/et
Group qualifying under the three-round qualifying format:
• Round 1 -- All entries will have 15 minutes to post a qualifying time, after which the 24 registering the fastest laps will advance to the second round. Those failing to advance will be sorted based on first-round times in descending order (from fastest to slowest).
• Round 2 -- The 24 fastest from the first round will have 10 minutes to post a second-round qualifying time, with the 12 fastest advancing to a third round. Those not advancing will earn starting positions 13 through 24 based on time, again in descending order.
• Round 3 -- The final round will be five minutes in length. The fastest times from this session will determine the first (Coors Light Pole Award) through 12th starting positions.
There will be a seven-minute break between each round; teams may make adjustments to their entries only during the individual breaks. They will not be allowed to jack the vehicle or raise the hood, and once the car or truck enters the garage, it will no longer be permitted to return to the track for additional qualifying attempts.
Qualifying Order for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is posted.
The first driver to be lined up on pit road will be #42-Larson.
The final driver lined up on pit road will be #15-Chastain.
The order is set by a random draw, how cars park on pit road before they qualify, held about an hour before the first practice.
After the first round, the cars lined up by speed.
For the qualifying order, see the Qualifying Order page (pdf).(7-13-2018)
Happy Hour (final) practice for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is over, after 50 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#20-Jones 187.749
#12-Blaney 186.896
#18-Busch 186.503
#17-Stenhouse, Jr. 185.982
#3-Dillon 185.714
best 10 consecutive lap avg (of 15 drivers): #11-Hamlin 180.939
slowest: #66-Hill 172.227 & #99-Smithley 172.018
See the fastest speeds, best 10 consecutive lap average, laps run on the Happy Hour Practice speeds page (pdf) (7-13-2018)
First practice for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is over, after 50 scheduled minutes, the top-five, slowest and notes:
#42-Larson 185.867
#12-Blaney 184.653
#22-Logano 184.300
#18-Busch 183.955
#78-Truex, Jr. 183.892
most laps run: #20-Jones, 36 laps.
best 10 consecutive lap avg (of 9 drivers): #14-Bowyer 181.444
slowest: #99-Smithley 173.161 & #66-Hill 172.161
See the fastest speeds, best 10 consecutive lap average, laps run on the Friday Practice speeds (pdf) (7-13-2018)
Entry List for the Quaker State 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway is posted, 39 teams/drivers [for 40 spots] are listed.
Some of the drivers entered include: #6-Kenseth, #7-Jesse Little, #15-Chastain, #23-TBA, #51-McLeod, #66-Hill, #72-LaJoie, #99-Smithley.
Since only 39 cars are entered, all drivers will make the race.
See the full entry list on the Entry List (pdf)
For qualifying rules and formats, see the Qualifying Rules page
How to Calculate Track Speeds: use the formula Speed = Distance divided by Time. Distance is Track Length, and Lap Time into Hours. Once hour is 3600 seconds, so the calculation for a 48 second lap at Kentucky(2.5 miles) would be: Speed = 2.5 x (3600/48), = 2.5 x 75 = 187.500mph. For a 19 second lap at Kentucky(.533 miles): Speed = .533 x (3600/19), = .533 x 189.474 = a speed of 100.990mph
Weather Channel
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National Weather Service
Race Weather
Race Day Forecast
Weather Bug
Weather Underground
Brian Neudorff @NASCAR_WXMAN
Aaron Studwell @RaceWeather
Kentucky Goodyear Tire Notes See complete tire information for the race weekend across all series on the [Goodyear Tire Notes - Kentucky Speedway page.(7-10-2018)
RACE & CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS
Vegas Insider
Race and Championship odds
NASCAR Top-Five Finish Prediction
Bovada Sportsbook:
Race and the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Championship