Four days and four races are scheduled for this NASCAR weekend at Phoenix International Raceway.
Thursday the K&N Pro Series West has two practice sessions and qualifying for its Saturday night race – following the Nationwide Series race. The Camping World Truck Series practices Thursday, with qualifying and racing on Friday.
The Sprint Cup Series has one practice and qualifying on Friday, Happy Hour practice Saturday midday and race Sunday – the only event that day. The Nationwide Series has one or two practice sessions Friday, time permitting. Its qualifying is Saturday morning and its race Saturday night.
Got that – there’s a test at the end.
There are three women racing this weekend, one in each series except Sprint Cup. TONI MARIE McCRAY of Highland CA is running No.90 Chevrolet in NKNPS – her second race in the series this year; she raced Phoenix in the Spring, starting twenty-ninth and finishing thirteenth. McCray is a second generation racer. Her father RICK McCRAY raced with the NASCAR Winston West and Craftsman Truck Series.
CAITLIN SHAW is running her first NCWTS race this season. She ran at O’Reilly Raceway Park year ago July.
And who could forget DANICA, who is so well known that her last name (PATRICK) isn’t needed. She will be racing her twelfth NNS race this weekend. Now that the IndyCar season is over, she has been able to race more with NASCAR.
The weather is cooler than most expected. The forecasts seem to be daily revised downward. For the evening K&N qualifying, it was reported as 68 degrees, but felt far colder. And we all know how cold the desert nights can be.
Two K&N cars hit the wall in the second practice, and won’t be racing this weekend. CHAD BOAT /No.30 Chevrolet, son of indy car driver, BILLY BOAT – best time was sixth in the first practice; and KEITH FLACH/No.08 Chevrole – best time thirty-third in second session – have withdrawn as they have no backup cars.
A third driver hit the wall, but BRETT THOMPSON/No.61 Chevrolet, went to his backup car. He was twenty-fourth fastest in qualifying.
No drivers were hurt.
The K&N Series will start forty cars this weekend on the one-mile speedway – thirty-six based on fastest time, and four provisionals. Each K&N field is different, based on the size of the track.
GREG PURSLEY/No.26 Chevrolet has the K&N pole with a lap of 129.984. Second through fifth are TOM DYER/No.86 Ford; DAVID MAYHEW/No.17 Chevrolet; DUSTY DAVIS/No.94 Chevrolet; and EDDIE McDonald/No.70 Chevrolet. forty-one drivers qualified. TROY ERMISH/No.Chevrolet was working on his car during qualifying, but will start the race on a Provisional.
Thursday, MATT CRAFTON/No.65 Chevrolet filled in Thursday for STAN SILVA, who couldn’t be at the track for K&N sessions. Crafton was fastest in the first K&N practice, eighth in the final session, and qualified eighth. BRENNAN NEWBERRY was fastest in the final K&N practice.
Crafton was also fastest in the Truck practice, driving No.88 Chevrolet.
Friday’s schedule starts at 10 am with NNS practice and runs into the night ending with the NASCAR Lucas Oil 150 Camping World Truck Race.