Audio: NASCAR Live
The 2018 NASCAR season featured a number of stories that will be remembered for years to come.
Joey Logano is a Cup Champion
The 28-year-old Logano climbed to the top of the Cup Series mountain by winning his first career championship. He did it in dramatic style first advancing to the Championship 4 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway with a controversial move around Martin Truex Jr. at Martinsville. Logano then won the title by passing the defending champion with fifteen laps to go in the championship race.
See Also: 2018 Playoff Drivers Season Reviews
Furniture Row Shuts Down
Less than a year removed from winning the 2017 Cup crown, team owner Barney Visser announced Furniture Row Racing would cease operations at season’s end. Citing a lack of sponsorship and proper funding, Visser’s decision sent shock waves throughout the NASCAR community and put a spotlight on the tenuous business model of team ownership.
Jimmie Johnson’s Season, Chad Knaus Breakup
It was a memorable year for Jimmie Johnson but not for the right reasons. The seven-time Cup champion went winless for the first time in his 16-year career. In October team owner Rick Hendrick announced he would split up Johnson and longtime crew chief Chad Knaus for the 2019 season. Johnson will work with JR Motorsports import Kevin Meendering while Knaus pairs up with William Byron and the Hendrick No. 24 team
The “Big 3” Dominates the Season
Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Truex Jr. combined to win 20 of the season’s 36 races and turned in a collective dominating performance for the ages. The trio of drivers took turns visiting Victory Lane with Busch and Harvick winning eight times each. All made it to the Championship 4 race in Miami however the trio came up short of putting a championship on their stellar seasons.
See Also: Top Performers of 2018
Breakout Year for Chase Elliott
The talented and popular young driver finally scored his first Cup Series win with an August victory at Watkins Glen. A pair of victories followed and Elliott ended up a three-time winner in 2018 and evolved into what many believe will be a championship contender next season.
Playoff Highlights and Lowlights
Drama punctuated this year’s Playoff schedule, which featured a shake-up of tracks and venues. Las Vegas led off the Playoff slate and delivered a wild and wooly start to the championship season. The debut of Charlotte Motor Speedway’s Roval featured a dramatic finish with Johnson and Truex Jr. making contact on the last lap and Ryan Blaney winning. Plus Logano and Truex Jr. triggered fireworks after their Martinsville finish. But the Playoffs were also marred by penalties and inspection talk the biggest of which came when Harvick was found with an illegal spoiler after winning at Texas, putting a large shadow on his team and performance.
See Also: Top Finishes of 2018
Rules Packages
The All-Star Race featured a rules package that turned out to be the basis for the 2019 season. More downforce and lower horsepower tied with aerodynamic modifications, a derivative of which was also used in the Xfinity Series specifically at Indianapoiis, will now be implemented in NASCAR’s top series in hopes of creating closer and more entertaining races at the bulk of the tracks on the schedule.
Silly Season
Lots of moves for next year broke loose during the season with Truex Jr. and crew chief Cole Pearn moving to Joe Gibbs Racing in the aftermath of Furniture Row closing. Other changes include Ryan Preece replacing AJ Allmendinger at JTG Daugherty Racing, Matt DiBenedetto to Leavine Family Racing, Kurt Busch from Stewart-Haas to Chip Ganassi Racing replacing Jamie McMurray, Matt Tifft joining the now three-car Front Row Motorsports team and Ryan Newman jumping from RCR (where Daniel Hemric will take his seat) to Roush Fenway Racing.
Stewart Haas Racing Dominates
It was a stellar year for SHR led by Harvick’s eight wins. But Clint Bowyer snapped a long winless drought with a pair of victories while Kurt Busch and Aric Almirola also took checkered flags. All four drivers went deep into the Playoffs and contributed to the organization’s best overall year in the series.
Underdog Champions
The three Championship 4 races at Homestead-Miami Speedway produced what had to be considered underdog championship stories. Brett Moffit took the underfunded Hattori Racing Enterprises entry to the Camping World Truck Series title. Tyler Reddick outran the competition to give JR Motorsports a second straight Xfinity Series crown. And Logano out performed the “Big 3” to capture the Cup Series championship.
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