NASCAR Camping World Truck Series - Results from #25

RIDGEWAY, V.a— The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series returns to action for the first time in a month at Martinsville Speedway for the Alpha Energy Solutions 250. The first two stages will be 70 lap shootouts while the final stage will be a 110 lap dash for the finish.

35 drivers are scheduled to present themselves at Martinsville to qualify for 32 positions. Chase Elliott and Ty Dillon will be the only two drivers from the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series competing on Saturday afternoon.

This will be the 37th race from Martinsville. There have been 25 different pole winners. Only eight races have been won from the pole with Joey Logano being the last driver to do so in 2015. The race record was set back in 1999 by Jimmy Hensley at 74.282 mph. Logano also set the qualifying record in 2015 at 97.088 mph.

Drivers are excited about returning to the track this weekend at Martinsville.

"Having a win will make these races a lot less stressful for me. As far as my approach, I don't feel like it will be any different -- I'm out there to get a win if possible and if not, get the best finish that I can. I think it may change Rudy's (Fugle, crew chief) approach, because it will allow him to be more aggressive with his strategy. I feel like both Rudy and myself are well prepared for this race and we're going to go out and do everything we can to put the JBL Tundra in victory lane Saturday,” says Christopher Bell, who won the last race at Atlanta.

"The difference in speed from a 12th-place truck and a first-place truck is very small and makes for some crazy racing and I think the new points system will make it even crazier. Last year in the spring, I saw how important it is to qualify up front for that reason, but getting the balance right is very hard to do at Martinsville. The corners are so tight it makes it tough to make adjustments that help all the way around. Martinsville also seems to go through a pretty big 'mood swing' throughout the weekend and from the spring race, to the fall race. It's definitely a track for an experienced driver and team,” said Ben Rhodes.

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series is scheduled to have two practice sessions on Friday at 1:00 p.m. EST and 3:00 p.m. EST on Fox Sports 1. Teams will qualify on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. EST on Fox Sports 1. The Alpha Energy Solutions 250 will air on FOX and Motor Racing Network at 3:00 p.m. EST.

Petty v. Pearson, Yarborough v. Allison, Earnhardt v. Wallace, Rudd v. Harvick

What do all those have in common? They were some of the rivalries that brewed from some of NASCAR’s greatest drivers. Rivalries are what caught the attention of many fans to bring the sport to where it is. However, that is not the case now.

There are no rivalries brewing among the top drivers of NASCAR, at this moment.

On Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Joey Logano and Kyle Busch went at it on pit-road after an altercation on the final lap in the Kobalt 400. Busch went down on Logano after trying to avoid the slower car of Brad Keselowski on the backstretch then Busch went down on Logano in the fourth turn, getting Logano loose, and sending Busch for a spin. Both drivers were in the top-5 at the time of the accident.

Busch felt that he was wronged by the accident and went to talk to Logano after the cars stopped on pit road post-race that resulted in an altercation between Logano’s crew and Busch.

NASCAR announced earlier today that neither Logano, Busch, and the crew members would not be penalized. This decision was hinted on Monday on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio with Steve O’Donnell and Brian France.

NASCAR made the right call to not penalize the drivers for their post-race altercation.

In my opinion, the sport needs rivalries in an effort to gain more footing in the national sports market in the United States.

Does there need to be a fight every weekend? Absolutely not!

The first question each of the drivers will be asked come this weekend at Phoenix International Raceway is, “Have you guys talked it out?”

When that question is asked to drivers who have had an incident with another driver, it irks me to my bones. Why? It squanders the possible of a potential rivalry among the best.

NASCAR was built on rivalries. The rivalries mentioned above were ones that stayed on the track, but sometimes did get physical. Fans would always turn their heads to the battle between rivals because neither driver would give an inch to the other person.

“Boys, have at it” was a term coined by Robin Pemberton that was used to describe a new “hands off” approach that allowed drivers to self-police and show their true selves without any repercussions from NASCAR.

“Boys, have at it” is a very grey area among the NASCAR garage. NASCAR has the right to step in when it feels that the policy has been violated. This situation is no different than Ambrose v. Mears or Keselowski v. Gordon. Ambrose and Mears were both fined, while Keselowski and Gordon were not fined for fighting.

All I ask is that NASCAR remain consistent with its rulings. My hope is that NASCAR and other media members let this “rivalry” play out naturally before asking if they are cool with each other.

LAS VEGAS, Nv.— After many years of trying, it became official today that Las Vegas Motor Speedway (LVMS) would receive a second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS), NASCAR Xfinity (NXS), and Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) date in 2018.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) approved unanimously Wednesday afternoon.  The deal is for seven-years at  $2.5 million a year.

The date is currently set to fall the third or fourth weekend of September, but flexibilty is available.

In attendance at the announcement included Jamie Little, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Spencer Gallagher, Brendan Gaughan, and Noah Gragson. All are natives of the Las Vegas area.

“This is a tremendous opportunity for Speedway Motorsports and Las Vegas Motor Speedway to create a NASCAR spectacle worthy of the greatest racing in the world and the Entertainment Capital of the World,” said Speedway Motorsports, Inc. President and Chief Executive Officer Marcus Smith.“It’s taken a tremendous amount of work to make this happen, and we are very thankful to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and NASCAR for their support in our endeavor to create a triple-header NASCAR weekend in such a world-class destination.”

“Over the years, Las Vegas has become a major sports city as a popular destination for a variety of championship and professional sports events, and today we are proud to add a second NASCAR Cup race to that roster. Las Vegas, NASCAR and Las Vegas Motor Speedway (LVMS) have developed a strong and successful partnership, and we are certain this second race will prove to be another great success,” said Rossi Ralenkotter, president and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Who loses a date? Speedway Motorsports Inc. will remove the September MENCS and NCWTS date from New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS) and the NXS standalone date from Kentucky Speedway (KYS). These transition of dates will provide LVMS two triple-header weekends on the NASCAR circuit, the first of its kinds.

NASCAR has confirmed that tracks have the ability to request a transfer of date. The sanctioning body would not further comment on the specifics of any agreements within the sanctioning agreement, but noted they’re all currently admidst five-year agreements.

This announcement comes at the heels of the sports scene boom in the Las Vegas area as the National Hockey League (NHL) is expanding into the market and with interest from the National Football League (NFL) about expanding to the area.

HAMPTON, Ga.— NASCAR and its inspection process has taken its toll on drivers this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway. As the new season begins

The first issues with inspection came before Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying on Friday. On Friday, teams were able to go through inspection once, but were unable to pass due to template issues.

From the NASCAR Xfintiy Series race, Kyle Busch was found too low in the front on both sides.

From the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race, Chase Elliott was also found low.

AJ Allmendinger was pinged with having three loose lug nuts following the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series face.

All penalties will be announced later this week.

HAMPTON, Ga.-- Jordan Anderson had an egregious day late Saturday afternoon at Atlanta Motor Speedway in the Active Pest Control 200.

Anderson spun coming into the double dogleg at Atlanta coming off of turn four. Anderson's truck spun and went into the infield grass. That is when things went from bad to worse for Anderson.

When the truck went towards the grass, the splitter went into the grass. The truck went airborne and was destroyed.

For Anderson, the truck was his only truck for the season. Anderson and his team will be unable to race  for the rest of 2017 if sponsorship or the opportunity to buy another truck doesn't arise.

Anderson went to twitter to express his early season frustrations:

Thanks for all the kind tweets and messages guys. I'm more heartbroken than anything with all the hard work & sacrifices it took to get here

— Jordan Anderson (@j66anderson) March 5, 2017

I give everything I have to be in this sport and to make things happen and to just get taken out & lose our only truck is a huge blow

— Jordan Anderson (@j66anderson) March 5, 2017

I give everything I have to be in this sport and to make things happen and to just get taken out & lose our only truck is a huge blow

— Jordan Anderson (@j66anderson) March 5, 2017

But I know that God is in control & everything that happens in life has seasons. Better things ahead. Always humbled by everyone's support..

— Jordan Anderson (@j66anderson) March 5, 2017

What we don't have in resources we make up for in grit, determination, and a lot of perseverance.

Praying for our next step ?? pic.twitter.com/Y8DPL6vlvB

— Jordan Anderson (@j66anderson) March 5, 2017

Anderson finished 28th at Atlanta. He currently sits 29th in points after missing last weekend's race at Daytona International Speedway.