Jimmie Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus made a gutsy call late in the SpongeBob SquarePants 400 at Kansas Speedway last weekend. The gamble paid off.
While nearly a third of the field entered pit road with 11 laps to go, Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr., among others, decided to stay out. Johnson was able to hold off Kevin Harvick, who pitted and took two tires after leading the previous 43 laps, for the victory.
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With the win early Sunday, Johnson recorded the 200th top five and 300th top 10 finish of his career. Harvick remained dominant at 1.5-mile tracks; he has finished in the top two in his last seven races at them.
NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series heads south for a busy weekend. The action begins Friday with the Sprint Showdown, followed by the Camping World Truck Series NC Education Lottery 200. On Saturday, the Sprint Cup All-Star Race will feature the return of Kyle Busch to the track. The Xfinity Series 3M 250 from Iowa Speedway will be the capper on Sunday.
(All times Eastern)
THURSDAY
3 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series practice, Fox Sports 1
7 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series final practice, Fox Sports 1
FRIDAY
Noon: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint Showdown final practice, Fox Sports 1
1:45 p.m..: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint All-Star Race final practice, Fox Sports 1
4:15 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint Showdown Qualifying, Fox Sports 1
5:45 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying, Fox Sports 1
7:15 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint Showdown (20 laps/20 laps), Fox Sports 1
8:30 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series NC Education Lottery 200, Fox Sports 1 (134 laps, 201 miles)
SATURDAY
10 a.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series practice
Noon: NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice
5:45 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying
7:10 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race Qualifying (three laps with pit stop and a four-tire change), Fox Sports 1
9 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint All-Star Race (25 laps/25 laps/25 laps/25 laps/10 laps), Fox Sports 1
SUNDAY
2 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series 3M 250 (250 laps, 218.75 miles), Fox Sports 1
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: 2014 Sprint Showdown
Clint Bowyer dominated the preliminary race to earn a spot in the Sprint All-Star Race. AJ Allmendinger finished second to also make the race.
Josh Wise finished 18th in the race but won the Sprint Fan Vote to transfer into the main event.
In 2015, race winners from this year and last year plus former Cup champions and previous All-Star race winners automatically qualify of the race. Drivers who have not qualified for the All-Star Race have one final chance to gain a spot by winning one of two 20-lap segments in the Sprint Showdown.
NASCAR Cup Series: 2014 Sprint All-Star Race
Jamie McMurray won a battle with Carl Edwards for the lead in the final segment to claim his first NASCAR All-Star Race win and the $1 million first prize.
McMurray held off a fast-closing Harvick, who crossed the finish line .696 seconds behind the race winner.
The exhibition race wasn't without real damage as Kyle Busch and Joey Logano got into a spinning wreck six laps into the second segment.
Results
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (11) McMurray, Chevrolet, 90 laps, 120.3 rating, 0 points, $1,035,734.
2. (3) Harvick, Chevrolet, 90, 123.9, 0, $240,716.
3. (8) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 90, 88.3, 0, $140,716.
4. (6) Earnhardt, Chevrolet, 90, 92.4, 0, $110,686.
5. (1) Edwards, Ford, 90, 99.1, 0, $105,686.
6. (5) Johnson, Chevrolet, 90, 85.1, 0, $99,686.
7. (9) Bowyer, Toyota, 90, 67.8, 0, $93,536.
8. (16) Brian Vickers, Toyota, 90, 71.6, 0, $92,536.
9. (22) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 90, 54.1, 0, $91,536.
10. (13) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 90, 73.3, 0, $90,536.
11. (18) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 90, 57.8, 0, $89,511.
12. (15) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 90, 41, 0, $88,511.
13. (20) David Ragan, Ford, 90, 36.4, 0, $87,511.
14. (7) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 90, 95.3, 0, $87,011.
15. (19) Wise, Chevrolet, 90, 32.4, 0, $86,411.
16. (21) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, accident, 77, 44, 0, $86,136.
17. (4) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, accident, 60, 87.1, 0, $86,011.
18. (12) Martin Truex Jr., Chevrolet, accident, 60, 37.6, 0, $85,911.
19. (14) Greg Biffle, Ford, accident, 60, 36.4, 0, $85,811.
20. (17) Allmendinger, Chevrolet, accident, 30, 41.5, 0, $85,711.
21. (2) Kyle Busch, Toyota, accident, 25, 90.6, 0, $84,973.
22. (10) Logano, Ford, accident, 25, 50.7, 0, $78,181.
Average speed of race winner: 100.517 mph.
Time of race: 1 hour, 20 minutes, 35 seconds.
Margin of victory: 0.696 seconds.
Caution flags: Seven for 12 laps.
Lead changes: Nine among six drivers
Recent winners
2014: McMurray
2013: Johnson
2012: Johnson
2011: Edwards
2010: Kurt Busch
Top five drivers at Charlotte in past 10 races
Harvick (three wins, four top fives, 6.0 average finish)
Kenseth (one win, three top fives, 9.5 average finish)
Kyle Busch (seven top fives, one pole, 10.4 average finish)
Kahne (one win, four top fives, 11.3 average finish)
Johnson (one win, four top fives, 16.0 average finish)
News and notes
– Gordon hopes to win in the final All-Star Race start of his career. The No. 24 driver owns three All-Star Race victories, tied with Dale Earnhardt for the second-most in history. Gordon's teammate Johnson holds the all-time mark with four victories.
– Johnson also ranks first among active drivers in average All-Star finish (6.2 in 13 events), average running position (6.9) and number of fastest laps led (219).
– Kyle Busch, who suffered a broken leg and broken foot in a crash at Daytona on Feb. 21, will race for the first time this season in the Saturday night shootout. He has the most starts in the event without a win (nine) and has led 212 laps, the second-most among active drivers behind Johnson.
NASCAR Xfinity Series: 2014 Iowa spring race
In only his second race for Joe Gibbs Racing while sharing the seat with Kyle Busch in the No. 54 car, Sam Hornish Jr. led 167 laps for the third win of his career.
Ryan Blaney was second, followed by Regan Smith, series points leader Chase Elliott and Elliott Sadler.
In the 10 Xfinity Series races at Iowa Speedway, there have been six different winners. Of those six, only one, Sadler, is entered this weekend.
Five other drivers who are entered this weekend have average finishes at Iowa inside the top 10: Elliot (6.0), Ty Dillon (6.5), Regan Smith (6.7), Blaney (7.0) and Darrell Wallace Jr. (8.0).
Camping World Truck Series: NC Education Lottery 200
Last year Kyle Busch led 130 of 134 laps to earn his record sixth truck series victory at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Busch beat reigning series champion Matt Crafton by 0.201 seconds, while Keselowski, John Wes Townley and Timothy Peters rounded out the top five.
With Busch not participating this weekend, Crafton will look to continue his dominance at 1.5-mile tracks. He has notched a top 10 finish in each of his past 10 races on intermediate courses. Included in his streak are three wins (Texas in 2014, Atlanta and Kansas in 2015), three runner-ups and a 3.2 average finish. The Tulare, Calif., native will be back at the track where he earned his first career win in 2008.