Nascar 2018 Race #26 - End Of The Regular Season At Indy

[GA_Boater]

We've reached the end of the regular season. Cup and X-men both will leave Indy with the playoff teams to determine the seasons champion. No Trucks this week.

Forecast for the weekend is rain, rain and more rain. Ugh! 40 Cup teams are entered. MRN's schedule for the weekend;

Indianapolis Schedule of Events

All Times Eastern

---

Friday, September 7
Xfinity Series Practice: 1:05 p.m.-1:55 p.m. (NBC Sports App)
Xfinity Series Final Practice: 3:05 p.m.-3:55 p.m. (NBC Sports App)

---

Saturday, September 8
Monster Energy Cup Series Practice: 10:30 a.m.-11:20 a.m. (NBCSN)
Xfinity Series Qualifying: 11:45 a.m. (NBCSN)
Monster Energy Cup Series Final Practice: 1:30 p.m.-2:20 p.m. (NBCSN)
Xfinity Series Lilly Diabetes 250: 3:00 p.m. (IMS/NBCSN)
Monster Energy Cup Series Qualifying: 6:15 p.m. (NBCSN)

---

Sunday, September 9
TV Pre-Race: 12:00 p.m. (NBCSN)
Monster Energy Cup Series Big Machine Brickyard 400: 2:00 p.m. (IMS/NBCSN)

---

News and Notes

• The big news is Furniture Row closing shop after season and leaving Martin Truex Jr. in a lurch. Maybe it should be said that some other driver with another team will be dropped to the curb because Truex will be on a top team next year. Speculation is running rampant.
• Kasey Kahne won't be defending his only win last year at Indy. He's suffering from heat exhaustion. He was dropping out of full-time driving after this year.
• The only Darlington penalty of note was for the #19 flunking inspection 4 times costing 10 driver and 10 owner points.
• Playoff drivers - Of course the season race winners have a spot, but Johnson and Bowman get in as long as a a previous winner wins again. If the Moon is in the 7th house and dragons fly over Indy, that is. :lol: Not getting into all the chances for other drivers, if they get in, so be it.
• TV ratings continue the cable spiral. Darlington got a1.5 rating and 2.66 million viewers on NBCSN, down 17% in ratings and 14% in viewership from last year (1.8, 3.10M) also on NBCSN and down 46% and 43% respectively from 2016 on the NBC broadcast network (2.8, 4.64M).

iBoats Fantasy Live

• Now a two-time winner this year - Boating For Nascar.
• FlaCowboy has the regular season locked with a 342 point lead over Trackchick Stars. Official congrats coming next Tuesday - Just in case something weird happens. :wink:
• The Indy pole locks at 6:15 PM on Satuday. The 5 points saved my Darlington bacon. :smile:

Humpty_Boater

 

[GA_Boater]

The #19 penalty above was for the X-Men race, not the Suarez #19 (or soon to be #78 if rumors are true).

 

[GA_Boater]

Indy is washed out for the day. X-Men will try to qualify tomorrow with no practice and a forecast of only 3.73 inches. :rain:

 

[GA_Boater]

The Nascar broadcast day is over.

Today's track activities are cancelled by solid rain. Owner points put The Twerp on the pole and the start of the race tomorrow has been moved to start an hour earlier, 1 PM. Roster lock is now at 12:55 PM Eastern tomorrow.

The X-Race has been moved to 10 AM Monday morning. Whenever racing flags off, no Cup or X-Car would have any time on the track.

 

[64osby]

We drove through Indy yesterday on our way back home. Raining cats and dogs and any other pet you could think of.

Track grip should be interesting with a high of about 65 today.

Nice wheel chock GA.

 

[GA_Boater]

Tried to be practical, 64. LOL

Looking at the radar, all the major rain is to the East and away from the race track. It's cool, upper 50's, while Air Titans and jet driers are running their version of a mini 500. The big concern is weepers after more than 4" of rain since Friday.

Competition cautions at laps 10 and 30 with the green flag at 1:06 give or take a Nascar minute. I guess we should expect some squirrely cars since there has been no track time. Truex and Suarez will start at the rear for 3 or 4 inspection fails. The Twerp is on the pole.

 

[GA_Boater]

Mist is hampering track drying. :blue:

 

[GA_Boater]

"we've lost everything" is not what you want to hear over the officials radio

ugh!

 

[GA_Boater]

Can't race in the rain! X-Men tomorrow at 10AM and Cup at 2PM when partly cloudy is the forecast.

 

[GA_Boater]

Not used to early Monday morning racing.

X'ers are tearing up the Indy track and Indy is tearing up the racers, one car anyway. It's been hard on tires.

 

[GA_Boater]

JH Nenechek wins heat 1 after a long caution for a few mangled cars.

 

[GA_Boater]

Hemric wins heat 2.

 

[GA_Boater]

Justin Allgaier wins X-Indy. This was the final race before the playoffs begin, just like the Cup race today.

Cup race is at 2PM on NBCSN. iFL is unlocked until 2:15 so green flag should be around 2:20.

 

[GA_Boater]

Things are running slow - Green flag at Indy!

Competition caution out at lap 10. Harvick has uncontrolled tire during stop.

 

[GA_Boater]

Lap 30 - 2nd competition caution. Why?

 

[GA_Boater]

Oh no - Truex blew his motor.

 

[GA_Boater]

Noe they're saying it wasn't the motor, but the right front tire. Nascar was picking up chunks of brake rotor off the track. His hood is sure mangled, maybe it was the rotor.

 

[GA_Boater]

Bowyer wins 1st heat. All cars on track are on the lead lap.

 

[MTboatguy]

Uh Oh! just a couple laps to go, hamlin in the lead, bowyer crawling up his rear and Kelso with newer tires!

And a yellow comes out!

 

[GA_Boater]

Was gone for a while and Kenseth won heat 2.

In the closing laps with Hamlin leading an a yellow rag flies.