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Drivers debate what is the best NASCAR movie of all time
We get to the bottom of an age-old question at the USA TODAY 301 in New Hampshire — what is the better NASCAR movie, Talladega Nights or Days of Thunder?
A rainy Sunday in Michigan prompted several delays for NASCAR’s FireKeepers Casino 400 before the race was finally suspended. The drivers will get back to it Monday.
Sunday’s race was delayed more than two hours before the green flag dropped. Drivers were able to complete the first stage, which was won by Ryan Blaney. Denny Hamlin had spun on Lap 39 of the 45-lap opening stage, bringing out a yellow flag. Most of the drivers hit pit road for fuel and tires during the caution, but Blaney was among a handful of drivers who stayed out. The Team Penske driver led on the restart and held on during a three-lap shootout to the end of the stage.
Follow along for highlights and analysis from the completion of NASCAR’s FireKeepers Casino 400.
The fifth caution of the day was the most dramatic as Corey LaJoie made contact with Noah Gragson on the backstretch and turned sideways on Lap 135.
Even though the roof flaps on his car flared up, LaJoie’s No. 7 Chevy still flipped over, soared into the air and skidded along the track before hitting the infield grass and tumbling several times.
“That’s just about the way the year has gone. We have a good car and I find a way to flip it upside down. Twice this year, we’ve been upside down and I haven’t been upside down in my whole career,” LaJoie said on the NBC broadcast.
“It was a ride, buddy. There’s sparks and dirt and all sorts of stuff coming in … I think we had a top-12, top-10 car all day and I hate ending up on a roof.”
Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and William Byron lead the field as the race goes back to green with 56 laps remaining.
An ill-fated decision to pit under caution took Kyle Larson from the front to the middle of the pack, where his car wobbled and created a chain-reaction crash with multiple cars suffering damage.
“Restarts are difficult here with the side drafts and all that,” Larson told the NBC Sports broadcast after he was discharged from the infield care center. “Bummer. We had an extremely fast car. I hate that I screwed that up for our team as well as the others out there that I got collected in it.”
Playoff contenders Bubba Wallace and Chris Buescher, along with Christopher Bell, Joey Logano, Chase Briscoe, Daniel Hemric and Todd Gilliland were all involved as several cars skidded to a stop in the infield.
Kyle Busch won his first stage of the season as he maintained the lead under caution.
After the cars cycled through their pit stops, Kyle Larson came out ahead of Martin Truex Jr. to claim the lead with 16 laps remaining in Stage 2. But with 13 laps remaining in the stage, the yellow caution flag came out when three different cars experienced tire issues.
Joey Logano, A.J. Allmendinger and Todd Gilliland all blew rear tires. Fortunately, no other cars suffered any damage as those three cars were all able to slide to safety.
Several of the leaders used the caution period to hit pit road.
Running order (through 114 of 200 total laps):
- (1) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet
- (8) Kyle Busch, Chevrolet
- (54) Ty Gibbs, Toyota
- (6) Brad Keselowski, Ford
- (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet
Chase Elliott took the green flag with the lead on Lap 10 of Stage 2 as the drivers restarted the race Monday morning. However, Kyle Busch – who could go through the season winless for the first time in his 20 seasons on the NASCAR Cup circuit – moved ahead a few laps into the proceedings.
Martin Truex Jr. overtook Busch for the lead to hold it through the stage’s midpoint.
Two-time Michigan winner Denny Hamlin moved to the back of the field for the restart after taking on fuel during the warmup lap.
What time does NASCAR Cup race at Michigan start?
The FireKeepers Casino 400 will resume at 11 a.m. ET on Monday at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan.
How to watch NASCAR Cup race at Michigan
USA Network will broadcast the conclusion of the race Monday, with live streams available on NBCSports website and the NBC Sports app. The race is also available to stream on Fubo.
The FireKeepers Casino 400 is 200 laps around the 2-mile track for a total of 400 miles. The race features three segments (laps per stage) – Stage 1: 45 laps; Stage 2: 75 laps; Stage 3: 80 laps.
On Sunday, 51 of the 200 laps were completed. Ryan Blaney earned the Stage 1 win and led eight laps.
According to the AccuWeather forecast, it appears that weather will not be a factor at Michigan International Speedway on Monday.
The forecast calls for sunny skies and breezy conditions. The temperature is expected to be around 68 degrees with winds out of the north-northwest at 13 mph.
Thirteen drivers have won races this season, but only 12 have clinched playoff berths after NASCAR penalized Austin Dillon, who won last week’s race at Richmond Raceway, by stripping his playoff berth after he wrecked Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin on the final lap.
Three races remain in the regular season, including Sunday’s race at Michigan, with four playoff berths still available. A win locks up a playoff spot, but a few drivers could still make the playoffs on points.
2024 winners (points in parentheses): Kyle Larson 4 (779); Denny Hamlin 3 (758); Christopher Bell 3 (701); William Byron 3 (678); Ryan Blaney 2 (702); Tyler Reddick 1 (774); Chase Elliott 1 (773); Brad Keselowski 1 (636); Alex Bowman 1 (615); Joey Logano 1 (557); Daniel Suarez 1 (497); Austin Cindric 1 (451); Austin Dillon (319) – Dillon lost his automatic playoff berth.
If no other winless drivers reach victory lane in the next three races, these five drivers are in position to claim the final four playoff spots on points. Their totals before Sunday’s race at Michigan:
- 13. Martin Truex Jr.: 662 points, +78 above the cutline
- 14. Ty Gibbs: 602 points, +18 above the cutline
- 15. Bubba Wallace: 587 points, +3 above the cutline
- 16. (tie) Chris Buescher: 584 points
- 16. (tie): Ross Chastain: 584 points
- Saturday, Aug. 24: At Daytona International Speedway, 7:30 p.m. ET (NBC)
- Sunday, Sept. 1: At Darlington Raceway, 6 p.m. ET (USA Network)
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