2014 Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500

The 2014 Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on November 9, 2014, at Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Arizona. Contested over 312 laps, it was the 35th and penultimate race of the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season, as well as the ninth race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Kevin Harvick dominated the race on his way to scoring the win. Jeff Gordon finished second while Matt Kenseth, Brad Keselowski, and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top five. The top rookies of the race were Kyle Larson (13th), Michael Annett (26th), and Alex Bowman (32nd).

2014 Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500
Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]
Race 35 of 36 in the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Date November 9, 2014 (2014-11-09)
Location Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Arizona
Course Permanent racing facility
1 mi (1.6 km)
Distance 312 laps, 312 mi (502.115 km)
Weather Sunny with a temperature of 83 °F (28 °C); wind out of the east at 7 miles per hour (11 km/h)
Average speed 99.991 miles per hour (160.920 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Joe Gibbs Racing
Time 25.332
Most laps led
Driver Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing
Laps 264
Winner
No. 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing
Television in the United States
Network ESPN & MRN
Announcers Allen Bestwick, Dale Jarrett, and Andy Petree (Television)
Joe Moore and Jeff Striegle (Booth)
Dan Hubbard (Backstretch) (Radio)
Nielsen Ratings 3.1/7 (Finals)
2.8/6 (Overnights)
5.091 Million viewers

Previous week's race edit

Jimmie Johnson held off Brad Keselowski and Kevin Harvick to score his 70th career win in the AAA Texas 500.[11] “It's a testament to this team and the fact that we'll never give up,” said Johnson. “We'll always keep fighting and keep trying to make our cars better. We’re not in the Chase and not where we want to be - fighting for the championship.”[12]

Report edit

Background edit

Phoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the IndyCar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series. The raceway is currently owned and operated by International Speedway Corporation. The raceway was originally constructed with a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) road course that ran both inside and outside of the main tri-oval. In 1991 the track was reconfigured with the current 1.51 miles (2.43 km) interior layout. PIR has an estimated grandstand seating capacity of around 67,000. Lights were installed around the track in 2004 following the addition of a second annual NASCAR race weekend.

On Friday, the Dover Police Department announced it was conducting a criminal investigation into domestic assault allegations that involves Kurt Busch.[13] The allegations allege that Busch had had an altercation with Patricia Driscoll in his motor coach at Dover International Speedway late September during the weekend of the 2014 AAA 400.[13] The department issued a written statement saying, “The Dover Police Department can confirm that an investigation is being conducted based on an allegation of domestic assault that is alleged to have occurred in the City of Dover involving Mr. Busch. These allegations were brought to the Dover Police Department on Wednesday, November 5th at 2:00PM. At this time, the department is still investigating the victim's claims and will not have any further comment on this matter in order to preserve the integrity of the case. The Dover Police Department will release further information as it becomes available. We appreciate the public's and media's patience in this matter and are confident that the department is taking the proper investigative steps to ensure the case is resolved appropriately."[13] Rusty Hardin, attorney for Busch, said, "The Dover Police Department has been informed that Mr. Busch will fully cooperate with their investigation and he expects to be vindicated when the entire truth of the situation comes to light. This allegation is a complete fabrication by a woman who has refused to accept the end of a relationship and Mr. Busch vehemently denies her allegations in every respect. At this time we intend to have no further comment in the media out of respect for the Dover Police Department’s desire to conduct a thorough investigation without a media circus."[13] NASCAR has commented on the investigation, saying they are “aware of the investigation involving driver Kurt Busch. We recognize the seriousness of this matter and are actively gathering information from all parties, including law enforcement authorities and Stewart-Haas Racing. It would be inappropriate for NASCAR to comment further on this matter until we have more information."[13] Stewart Haas Racing, which has fielded cars for Busch this season, issued a statement saying, “This is an allegation Stewart-Haas Racing takes very seriously but we’re still gathering all of the facts."[13] Kurt Busch will race this weekend.[13]

Practice and qualifying edit

Kevin Harvick was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 25.438 and a speed of 141.521 miles per hour (227.756 km/h).[14] Denny Hamlin won the pole with a new track record time of 25.332 and a speed of 142.113 mph (228.709 km/h).[15] “We showed up today and had decent speed in race trim, not great speed but decent speed,” said Hamlin after his third pole of the season. “But we didn't show decent speed in qualifying and it just shows today that it's possible. We’ve got it in our car. We just gotta get for 312 laps now.”[15] "Kevin (Harvick) probably has a 10th on everyone," Kez says. "We probably have a second or third place car."[15] "You're either going to hit a walk off, or you're just going to race next weekend," said Harvick, who is last in the Chase standings and 18 points out of the lead.[15] Clay Rogers failed to qualify for the race.[16] Kevin Harvick was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 26.011 and a speed of 138.403 mph (222.738 km/h).[17] Jamie McMurray was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 26.257 and a speed of 137.106 mph (220.651 km/h).[18]

Race edit

 
Kevin Harvick won the race.

The race was scheduled to begin at 3:15 PM Eastern time, but started five minutes late at 3:20 when Denny Hamlin led the field to the green flag. Thanks to Kevin Harvick splitting the middle in turn 4, Joey Logano took the lead from Hamlin on lap 25. The first caution of the race flew on lap 31 for debris on the backstretch. Denny Hamlin exited pit road in fourth, but came back down for a flat right-rear tire.[19] David Ragan stayed out to lead two laps before pitting. The race restarted on lap 36 with Logano leading the way. Kevin Harvick took the lead on lap 44. Casey Mears was running twelfth when his right-rear tire blew out on the dogleg, went spinning, made light contact with the inside wall towards turn 3 and brought out the second caution of the race on lap 81. Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the race off pit road by taking two tires and assumed the lead. The race restarted on lap 88. Earnhardt wasn't the leader for long as Kevin Harvick took back the lead on the restart. Debris on the front-stretch brought out the third caution of the race on lap 96. The race restarted on lap 101. The fourth caution of the race flew on lap 123 for debris in turn 1. Joey Logano beat Harvick off pit road, but was forced to restart from the end of the longest line for equipment leaving the pit box. The race restarted on lap 128 with Harvick leading the way. The fifth caution of the race flew on lap 185 after Austin Dillon had a right-front tire blowout in turn 3. The race restarted on lap 192. Debris in turn 1 brought out the sixth caution of the race on lap 201. The race restarted on lap 206 and caution flew for the seventh time after Josh Wise was turned by Ty Dillon and rear-ended the wall in turn 4. The race restarted on lap 212. Kyle Busch got loose in turn 1, tagged the wall in 2 with the right-rear corner panel, came down and clipped Clint Bowyer and sent him head first into the backstretch wall. Cole Whitt also was taken out in an unrelated chain-reaction after rear-ending Casey Mears. These two wrecks brought out the eighth caution of the race. Because of all the bits and pieces on the track in turn 2, the race was red flagged on lap 216. It was lifted after four minutes. The race restarted on lap 221. The ninth caution of the race flew on lap 237 after Jimmie Johnson went high in turn 1 and just rode the wall. The race restarted with 69 laps to go. The tenth caution of the race flew with 68 laps to go when Jamie McMurray was turned in turn 2. The race restarted with 64 laps to go. Debris on the front-stretch brought out the eleventh caution of the race with 25 laps to go. The race restarted with 20 laps to go. The twelfth caution of the race flew with 16 laps to go when Landon Cassill had a left-rear tire blowout and rear-ended the wall in turn 4. Mike Wallace spun out trying to avoid him. The race restarted with twelve laps to go. Kevin Harvick dominated the race to score the victory.[20] "Wow. I guess that's what it feels like to hit a walkoff in extra innings. I mean this thing -- both races here -- has been bad to the bone," Harvick said after winning his fourth race at this 1-mile oval in the last five tries. Harvick would not have made the final four to race for the title without a win. I could tell that we were going to have to win because everybody was running in the front of the pack that we were racing against. I think this says a lot about our team. We had our backs against the wall. We're in victory lane and we get to go on."[21] In the final turn, Ryan Newman sent Kyle Larson into the wall to secure his place in the championship race.[22] “I just gave it my all,” Newman said. “I wasn’t proud of it but did what I had to get to this next round. That little boy has got a lot of things coming in this sport and he used me up like that in a truck at Eldora a couple years ago. From my standpoint, I call it even but I think if he was in my position, he’d have done the same thing.”[23] "Coming to the finish, there were a lot of cars racing really hard,” said Larson today. “I knew (Newman) was right around me and knew he needed to gain some spots to keep from getting eliminated from the Chase. It's a little upsetting he pushed me up to the wall, but I completely understand the situation he was in,” said Larson, “(I) can't fault him for being aggressive there. I think a lot of drivers out here would have done something similar if they were in that position."[24] Kevin Harvick (with the much-needed win), Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, and Ryan Newman were the four drivers who will race for the championship, which also meant that NASCAR will be having a new Sprint Cup Series champion. Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski, and Matt Kenseth were the four drivers eliminated.

Results edit

Qualifying edit

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer R1 R2
1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 25.426 25.332
2 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 25.468 25.338
3 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 25.506 25.353
4 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 25.327 25.389
5 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 25.539 25.389
6 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 25.533 25.393
7 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 25.520 25.412
8 42 Kyle Larson (R) Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 25.475 25.474
9 55 Brian Vickers Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 25.521 25.480
10 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 25.560 25.498
11 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 25.587 25.552
12 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Chevrolet 25.607 25.761
13 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 25.625
14 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 25.639
15 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 25.649
16 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 25.662
17 15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 25.679
18 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 25.680
19 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 25.685
20 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 25.691
21 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 25.706
22 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 25.720
23 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 25.722
24 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 25.761
25 3 Austin Dillon (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 25.770
26 33 Ty Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 25.819
27 51 Justin Allgaier (R) HScott Motorsports Chevrolet 25.826
28 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 25.836
29 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 25.863
30 7 Michael Annett (R) Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 25.880
31 95 Michael McDowell Leavine Family Racing Ford 25.923
32 10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 25.927
33 36 Reed Sorenson Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 25.957
34 38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 26.029
35 34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 26.034
36 98 Josh Wise Phil Parsons Racing Chevrolet 26.098
37 23 Alex Bowman (R) BK Racing Toyota 26.110
38 40 Landon Cassill Hillman-Circle Sport LLC Chevrolet 26.114
39 37 Mike Bliss Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 26.179
40 26 Cole Whitt (R) BK Racing Toyota 26.197
41 83 J. J. Yeley BK Racing Toyota 26.307
42 32 Joey Gase Go FAS Racing Ford 26.432
43 66 Mike Wallace Identity Ventures Racing Toyota 26.848
Did not qualify
44 75 Clay Rogers Beard Motorsports Chevrolet 26.218

Race results edit

Pos Grid No. Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 3 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 312 48
2 7 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 312 42
3 5 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 312 41
4 2 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 312 40
5 1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 312 40
6 4 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 312 39
7 10 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 312 37
8 16 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 312 37
9 28 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 312 35
10 21 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 312 34
11 20 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 312 33
12 14 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 312 32
13 8 42 Kyle Larson (R) Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 312 31
14 19 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 312 30
15 13 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 312 29
16 24 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 312 28
17 18 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 312 27
18 23 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 312 26
19 9 55 Brian Vickers Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 312 25
20 29 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 312 24
21 22 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 312 23
22 32 10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 312 22
23 11 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 312 21
24 34 38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 312 20
25 35 34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 312 20
26 30 7 Michael Annett (R) Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 311 19
27 26 33 Ty Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 310 0
28 33 36 Reed Sorenson Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 310 16
29 38 40 Landon Cassill Hillman-Circle Sport LLC Chevrolet 310 0
30 41 83 J. J. Yeley BK Racing Toyota 309 0
31 31 95 Michael McDowell Leavine Family Racing Ford 309 13
32 37 23 Alex Bowman (R) BK Racing Toyota 308 12
33 42 32 Joey Gase Go FAS Racing Ford 308 0
34 6 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 308 10
35 12 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Chevrolet 305 9
36 43 66 Mike Wallace Identity Ventures Racing Toyota 303 0
37 27 51 Justin Allgaier (R) HScott Motorsports Chevrolet 302 7
38 25 3 Austin Dillon (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 283 6
39 15 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 235 5
40 17 15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 211 4
41 36 98 Josh Wise Phil Parsons Racing Chevrolet 204 3
42 40 26 Cole Whitt (R) BK Racing Toyota 147 2
43 39 37 Mike Bliss Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 16 0

Race summary edit

  • 8 lead changes among different drivers
  • 12 cautions for 58 laps; 1 red flag for 4 minutes
  • Time of race: 3:07:13
  • Kevin Harvick won his fourth race in 2014

Standings after the race edit

References edit

  1. ^ "2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  2. ^ "Phoenix International Raceway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  3. ^ "Entry List". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. November 3, 2014. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  4. ^ "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. November 7, 2014. Archived from the original on November 7, 2014. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  5. ^ "Qualifying Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. November 7, 2014. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  6. ^ "Second Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. November 8, 2014. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
  7. ^ "Final Practice Results". MRN.com. November 8, 2014. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
  8. ^ "Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. November 9, 2014. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  9. ^ "Points Standings". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. November 9, 2014. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  10. ^ "Manufacturer Standings". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. November 9, 2014. Archived from the original on August 3, 2014. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  11. ^ Fryer, Jenna (November 2, 2014). "Johnson wins at Texas, Gordon irate at Keselowski". racing.ap.org. The Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2014-11-03. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  12. ^ Pistone, Pete (November 2, 2014). "Johnson Takes Texas Thriller". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on November 3, 2014. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g Moody, Dave (November 7, 2014). "Kurt Busch Being Investigated For Alleged Domestic Assault". GodfatherMotorsports.com. Godfather Motorsports. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  14. ^ Bonkowski, Jerry (November 7, 2014). "Kevin Harvick sets track record, tops speed charts in first Cup practice at Phoenix". motorsportstalk.nbcsports.com. NBC Sports. Archived from the original on November 7, 2014. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  15. ^ a b c d Pistone, Pete (November 7, 2014). "Phoenix Pole to Hamlin". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  16. ^ Gluck, Jeff (November 7, 2014). "Denny Hamlin wins pole at Phoenix". usatoday.com. Gannett Satellite Information Network, Inc. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  17. ^ Bonkowski, Jerry (November 8, 2014). "Harvick, Keselowski fastest in second Cup practice at PIR". motorsportstalk.nbcsports.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
  18. ^ Bonkowski, Jerry (November 8, 2014). "McMurray steals fastest Happy Hour speed from Harvick". motorsportstalk.nbcsports.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
  19. ^ Estrada, Chris (November 9, 2014). "Denny Hamlin shuffled to back of field early due to flat tire". motorsportstalk.nbcsports.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
  20. ^ Fryer, Jenna (November 9, 2014). "Newman's late pass dooms Gordon at Phoenix". racing.ap.org. The Associated Press. Archived from the original on November 24, 2014. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
  21. ^ Ryan, Nate (November 9, 2014). "Harvick, Logano, Newman, Hamlin advance to race for NASCAR title". usatoday.com. Gannett Satellite Information Network, Inc. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
  22. ^ Peltz, Jim (November 9, 2014). "Kevin Harvick advances to NASCAR Chase final with win in Phoenix". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
  23. ^ Pistone, Pete (November 9, 2014). "Clutch Phoenix Win by Harvick". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on November 10, 2014. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
  24. ^ Moody, Dave (November 10, 2014). "Larson On Newman: "I Completely Understand The Situation He Was In"". GodfatherMotorsports.com. Godfather Motorsports. Retrieved November 11, 2014.


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