Nascar 2020 - Las Vegas

[GA_Boater]

After a few days of worry about Ryan Newman, the three series go to Sin City for a weekend of racing. It will be sunny, except for Saturday where the dart tossers are saying AM rain and tapering off through late evening. Except for Sunday's Cup race on FOX, FS1 has televised pictures for the rest. Here's the race schedule from MRN;

[h=1]Las Vegas Schedule of Events[/h] All Times Eastern (Local Time 3 Hours Behind)

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Thursday, February 20
ARCA Menards Series West Star Nursery 150: 11 p.m. ET

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Friday, February 21
Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Final Practice: 11:05 a.m.-12:25 p.m.
Xfinity Series Final Practice: 2:35 p.m.-3:55 p.m. (FS2)
Cup Series First Practice: 4:05 p.m.-4:55 p.m. (FS1)
Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Qualifying: 5:05 p.m. (FS1)
Cup Series Final Practice: 7:30 p.m.-8:20 p.m. (FS1)
Radio Pre-Race: 8:30 p.m. (MRN)
TV Pre-Race: 8:30 p.m. (FS1)
Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Strat 200: 9:00 p.m. (MRN/FS1)

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Saturday, February 22
Xfinity Series Qualifying: 1:05 p.m. (FS1)
Cup Series Qualifying: 2:35 p.m. (FS1/PRN)
Radio Pre-Race: 3:30 (PRN)
TV Pre-Race: 3:30 p.m. (FS1)
Xfinity Series Boyd Gaming 300: 4:00 p.m. (PRN/FS1)

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Sunday, February 23
Radio Pre-Race: 2:30 p.m. (PRN)
TV Pre-Race: 3:00 p.m. (FOX)
Cup Series Pennzoil 400: 3:30 p.m. (PRN/FOX)

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News and Notes

• After fearing the worst, Ryan Newman walked out of the hospital with his two daughters yesterday. Less than 48 hours after Monday evenings horrific wreck.
• Newman is a tough cookie, but Ross Chastain will be filling the #6 driver's seat until Newman returns or a permanent driver is named.
• At 209 laps, this was the longest Daytona 500 ever.
• With 0.125 seconds over 2nd place, an 1/8 of a second, Hamlin's finish was the 2nd closest D500 victory.
• Hamlin joins the list of back to back Daytona 500 winners. He makes # 4 with Richard Petty (1973-74), Cale Yarborough (1983-84) and Sterling Marlin (1994-95).
• TV ratings - Delayed by rain, 4.2 rating and 7M viewers. Before the rain, rating was up 10% over 2019 and with 10M viewers.

iBoats Fantasy Live

• Kicking off a new iFL season, 88 & 24 TO THE TOP! took the checkers by 3 points and :first:. Congrats, 88 & 24.
• Cup qualifying is 2:35 PM Eastern on Saturday, so the pole pick locks at 2:30 barring rain.

Humpty

 

[GA_Boater]

Cup has two practices today before qualifying tomorrow - 4:05-4:55 and 7:30-8:20.

Cool tribute on the #6 X-Car of David Starr;

 

[GA_Boater]

First Cup practice was led by Almirola, then Bowyer, TDillon, Logano, Bowman, DiBenedetto, KuBusch, Elliott, Larson and Blaney to round out the 10 fastest.

Truck qualifying is going on now.

 

[GA_Boater]

Final Cup practice - Johnson, Bowyer, Almirola, Harvick, DiBenedetto, Chastain, Larson, Blaney, JH Nemechek and Bowman the top-10.

Truck race at the top of the hour.

Chastain is in a Truck tonight, his normal X-Car tomorrow and the Roush #6 on Sunday while filling for Newman. A busy boy this weekend.

iFL pole locks at 2:30 EST tomorrow.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

I don't play fantasy anything. If it doesn't make me, or lose me any money I don't bother.

My trifecta is Lagano, Nemachek and the puke or whatever you call him. I wheel them and I have a winner.

 

[GA_Boater]

I didn't the puke was running a Truck tonight. :smile:

 

[GA_Boater]

Call him what you want, he won the 1st heat.

 

[GA_Boater]

And the 2nd.

 

[GA_Boater]

And the race.

Remember your pick for the pole tomorrow.

 

[GA_Boater]

Up in the first post, Humpty mentioned WX dart tossers and the evil word RAIN.

 

[GA_Boater]

X-Men qualifying has been cancelled because the rain began. Cup qualifying is scheduled for 2:30 - Maybe.

 

[GA_Boater]

I may begin to like Kevin Harvick again.



The tweet stream is funny - https://twitter.com/KevinHarvick/status/1231266777130127360

BountyGate is no longer a New Orleans Saints property.

 

[GA_Boater]

Meanwhile - Rain or not, Cup cars are being inspected. Elliott didn't make it in his first 2 tries and lost his car chief. 3rd shot at passing is coming.

 

[GA_Boater]

Elliott passed on the 3rd go-round. He will start the race where he qualifies and not go to the rear.

 

[GA_Boater]

Cup qualifying cancelled, field is set by 2019 owner points, so TWT is on pole.

But rumblings in the garage say he will move to the rear for an inspection issue yesterday. Toyotas of Hamlin, Bell, Truex and Jones all had the same issue of too much bondo around the left front wheel. Suarez is the only Toyota to escape with less bondo, I guess.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Man I'm learning a bit about NASCAR. Too much bondo? What does too much bondo have to do with the car? And why is bondo on a race car anyway? I thought that you undo a few clips and change the entire fender or similar. Those inspections are tough.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Call him what you want, he won the 1st heat.

The Twerp, I remember now, he's The Twerp. But he can sure drive a truck.

 

[GA_Boater]

They use bondo in places for added aero advantage. An area exiting the left front wheelwell was massages for exiting air.

I remember a few years ago when Johnson failed for too much bondo over the rear window. Knaus actually built a mini-spoiler at the rear of the roof.

These bodies are hand built and a lot of filler is used to smooth the metal. One of the reasons for the laser inspection now instead of templates is lasers catch everything, whereas templates only measures parts of the bodies.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Got it thanks my NASCAR mentor. I have to tell you from a novices point of view I wouldn't know 1 car from the next unless somewhere on it said Chevrolet or Toyota par example.

 

[GA_Boater]

OK, it wasn't bondo at the wheelweels, it was the something at the nose of the cars. TWT, Hamlin and Bell got L1 penalties losing 10 driver and owner points and will start at the rear. Truex, Jones, Suarez and Hill, the remaining Toyota drivers somehow escaped.

Smithly failed 3 times, so he will be joining the Gibbs boys at the back.

X-Race start was delayed about 30 mins. Fired up the X-Cars and started warmup, then the shies opened and down pit road they went, just like Cup last Sunday. Drying will commence....................Again.