Latest news with #JamieMcMurray
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
What to Watch: Xfinity takes center stage in Rockingham return
Track: Rockingham Speedway Location: Rockingham, NC Track length: 0.94 miles When: Saturday, 4 p.m. ET Where to tune in: The CW, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Race purse: $1,651,939 Race distance: 250 laps | 235 miles Stages: 60 | 120 | 250 Defending winner: Jamie McMurray, February 2004 Xfinity Series ready to rock with return to Rockingham For the first time since 2004, the NASCAR Xfinity Series is racing at Rockingham Speedway. The 0.94-mile high-banked tri-oval is back, allowing North Carolina's Richmond County to host NASCAR national series racing once again for the first time since the Craftsman Truck Series returned for two years in 2012-13. Advertisement At long last, Jamie McMurray's streak of four straight Xfinity wins at 'The Rock' will fall. The question is: Who will be the first new Xfinity winner at Rockingham since Jason Keller in 2002? MORE: Xfinity Series standings | Full 2025 schedule Sheldon Creed — still in search of his first Xfinity win — posted the best 10-lap average in Friday's 50-minute practice session, picking up where he and his Haas Factory Team left off after a mid-winter NASCAR test. But his overwhelming takeaway wasn't just his lap times — it was how much speed the track's new coat of pavement allows drivers to carry through the corner. 'It's just super fast,' Creed told 'Like, we're wide open at the quarter mark in (Turn) 3. It's so fast. And we're wide open at like the center in (Turns) 1 and 2 — in race trim. It's just really fast.' Advertisement Defending series champion Justin Allgaier raced at Rockingham back in 2008 in ARCA Menards Series competition. With that experience came preconceived notions that may not be serving well, despite scoring the sixth-quickest single lap in practice. 'I think in my mind, I expected (the track) to do something,' Allgaier told 'And I think that's a tough spot to be in because a lot of these younger drivers that are coming in, they don't have a perception of what to expect, and I think that they're willing to do things that, while I'm not saying I'm not willing to do them, my thought doesn't even go there because I'm so used to how I think it should go.' RELATED: Rockingham through the years Matt DiBenedetto is one of those drivers who doesn't have much Rockingham experience, but he did test a Cup Series car for 600 miles at 'The Rock' a number of years ago. Walking into the track again Friday, only one came to DiBendetto's mind: Advertisement 'Legendary,' DiBenedetto told 'That's the word. I think it's cool, just because I grew up watching it as a kid on TV, and watching 'The Rock' and thought just how cool. I mean, this place is historic, legendary — kind of like going back to North Wilkesboro. It's got some of that same cool factor to it. … 'I've just always, as a fan, thought this place was cool for the history of it, and to be actually coming here, seeing an event here, seeing it sold out, and all the excitement and enthusiasm, all the people wanting passes — friends and everybody wanting to come to this one — it's just a good thing. It just shows how excited everybody is, especially locally too.' From atop the pit box … What do crew chiefs and pit crews have in focus to win Saturday's race? Advertisement Though Rockingham is traditionally known for its high tire wear and abrasive surface, a 2022 repave smoothened the track significantly. 'The Rock' still has its quirks — a relatively long backstretch, steeply banked turns and a late apex in the tri-oval before diving into Turn 1 — but a lack of significant tire wear could play a role in how crew chiefs strategize for Saturday's 250-lap feature. 'If the fall-off model is low and we're not seeing it, you're going to see guys flipping stages and trying to hold that track position for the race win,' Jim Pohlman, crew chief of Justin Allgaier's No. 7 Chevrolet, told 'And if you get off cycle to take some tires or stay out, you might get your points, but man, it's going to be hard to get back through there. So unfortunately, we're probably going to see a split field when it comes to some of that, guys fighting for points right now. 'That becomes a qualm for all the crew chiefs as to what strategy (they choose) and how they want to play and where how your season's been so far. So yeah, I think track position — getting it and maintaining — it's gonna be a big priority.' Advertisement RELATED: Rockingham race weekend hub History tells us … Chevrolets will be at the front of the field. Chevrolet teams have combined to lead 1,313 of 1,666 laps in the Xfinity Series this season. That should favor teams like JR Motorsports and Richard Childress Racing on Saturday afternoon. He may not be the favorite to win, but watch out for … NICK SANCHEZ. Of the 27 drivers and teams who posted a 10-lap average in Friday afternoon's practice, Sanchez was fourth-quickest on average. The Big Machine Racing rookie has posted top 10s every other week in 2025. Good news for the Florida native: The numbers say he's due for his fifth top 10 of the year in race No. 10. Speed reads Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles. • Welcome back, Kasey: Kahne, one of NASCAR's 75 Greatest Drivers, returns for Xfinity race| Read more • Rocking out: Best photos from a doubleheader weekend at Rockingham | View gallery • NASCAR Classics: Rewind with full-race Rockingham replays from the archives | Watch races • Paint Scheme Preview: All the schemes on track for 'The Rock's' return | View gallery
NBC Sports
18-04-2025
- Climate
- NBC Sports
How to watch Saturday's Xfinity race at Rockingham: Start time, TV info and weather
The Xfinity Series will race at Rockingham Speedway for the first time in over 21 years Saturday. The gap is so long that 'The Rock' was slightly longer when Jamie McMurray won in the most recent race in the Xfinity Series (then called the Busch Series) on Feb. 21, 2004. After the track went dormant for nearly a decade, Rockingham now welcomes the return of NASCAR as a 0.94-mile oval. McMurray's win — the last of four consecutive at Rockingham from 2002-04 in the series — came during his second year in the Cup Series. The are no Cup regulars entered in Saturday's race, but Indy 500 veteran Katherine Legge will be starting her first Xfinity race since 2023. Details for Saturday's Xfinity race at Bristol Motor Speedway (All times Eastern) START: The race will begin shortly after 5 p.m. PRERACE: The Xfinity garage will open at 6:30 a.m. ... Qualifying will begin at 11:30 a.m. ... Driver introductions are at 3:25 p.m. DISTANCE: The race is 250 laps (235 miles) on the 0.94-mile oval. STAGES: Stage 1 ends at Lap 60. Stage 2 ends at Lap 120. ENTRY LIST: Click here for the 40 cars entered at Rockingham TV/RADIO: The CW Network will broadcast the race starting at 4 p.m. ... Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will have radio coverage. FORECAST: Wunderground — Overcast with a stray shower or possible thunderstorm and a high of 83 degrees with winds west to southwest at 5-10 mph. It's expected to be 82 degrees with a 15% chance of rain at the green flag of the Xfinity race. LAST TIME: Jamie McMuray led the final 21 laps to beat Martin Truex Jr. by 0.411 seconds on Feb. 21, 2004.
NBC Sports
17-04-2025
- Automotive
- NBC Sports
Rockingham Speedway weekend schedule, TV info for NASCAR Xfinity, Trucks and ARCA East
NASCAR will return to Rockingham Speedway with its national series for the first time in over a decade. For the first time since 2013, the Truck Series will practice, qualify and race Friday at the track popularly known as 'The Rock.' The track, which is located about 70 miles southeast of Charlotte in Rockingham, North Carolina, will play host to the ARCA Menards East and Xfinity series in a Saturday afternoon doubleheader that has been announced as a sellout. On Feb. 22, 2004, Matt Kenseth won the most recent Cup race at The Rock, which played host to NASCAR's premier series from 1965-2004. Jamie McMurray won the most recent Xfinity race at Rockingham on Feb. 21, 2004. Cup Series veterans Kasey Kahne (2012) and Kyle Larson ('13) won the most recent truck races at Rockingham. There are no Cup drivers entered in the Truck or Xfinity series this weekend. Once barely classified as a speedway (1 mile and above), Rockingham now barely meets the requirements of a short track. The oval is measured at 0.94 miles, slightly shorter than its former 1.017-mile length. Rockingham Speedway schedule (All Times Eastern) Friday, April 18 Garage open 7:30 a.m. - 10 p.m. — Truck Series 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. — ARCA East Series 12 - 6 p.m. — Xfinity Series Track activity 10:30 a.m. - 12 p.m. — ARCA East practice 12:30 - 1:20 p.m. — Truck Series practice, FS2 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. — Truck Series qualifying, FS2 3:05 - 3:55 p.m. — Xfinity Series practice (CW App) 5 p.m. — Truck race (200 laps, 188 miles, Stage 1 at Lap 45, Stage 2 at Lap 90; FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) Saturday, April 19 6:30 a.m. - 9:30 p.m. — Xfinity Series 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. — ARCA East Series 9:30 a.m. - 10:20 a.m. — ARCA East practice 10:35 - 10:55 a.m. — ARCA East qualifying 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. — Xfinity qualifying (CW App) 1 p.m. — ARCA East race (125 laps, 117.5 miles, Flo Racing, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) 4 p.m. — Xfinity race (250 laps, 235 miles, Stage 1 at Lap 60, Stage 2 at Lap 120; CW, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) Weekend weather Friday: Mostly sunny skies with a high of 83 degrees and winds south to southwest at 10-15 mph. It's expected to be 81 degrees with no chance of rain at the green flag of the truck race. Saturday: Overcast with a stray shower or possible thunderstorm and a high of 83 degrees with winds west to southwest at 5-10 mph. It's expected to be 82 degrees with a 15% chance of rain at the green flag of the Xfinity race.
