2017 Axalta presents the Pocono 400

The 2017 Axalta presents the Pocono 400 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on June 11, 2017, at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The race was contested over 160 laps on the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) triangular superspeedway, and was the 14th race of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

2017 Axalta presents the Pocono 400
Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
Race 14 of 36 in the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
The 2017 Axalta presents the Pocono 400 program cover, featuring Kurt Busch.
The 2017 Axalta presents the Pocono 400 program cover, featuring Kurt Busch.
Date June 11, 2017 (2017-06-11)
Location Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania
Course Permanent racing facility
2.5 mi (4 km)
Distance 160 laps, 400 mi (640 km)
Average speed 142.292 miles per hour (228.997 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Joe Gibbs Racing
Time 50.237
Most laps led
Driver Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps 100
Winner
No. 21 Ryan Blaney Wood Brothers Racing
Television in the United States
Network FS1
Announcers Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Darrell Waltrip
Radio in the United States
Radio MRN
Booth Announcers Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace
Turn Announcers Dave Moody (1), Mike Bagley (2) and Kyle Rickey (3)

Report

Background

Layout of Pocono Raceway, the track where the race was held.

The race was held at Pocono Raceway, which is a three-turn superspeedway located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The track hosts two annual Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races: the Axalta presents the Pocono 400 and the Pennsylvania 400, as well as one Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series event. Since 2013, the track is also host to a Verizon IndyCar Series race.

Pocono Raceway is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation. It is operated by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon, Nicholas, and sister Ashley, and cousins Joseph IV and Chase Mattioli, all of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli.

Outside of the NASCAR races, the track is used throughout the year by Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools and an IndyCar race. The triangular oval also has three separate infield sections of racetrack – North Course, East Course and South Course. Each of these infield sections use a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. During regular non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different infield sections. Also some of the infield sections can be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together – such as running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.

Entry list

No. Driver Team Manufacturer
1Jamie McMurrayChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet
2Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord
3Austin DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet
4Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord
5Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet
6Trevor BayneRoush Fenway RacingFord
10Danica PatrickStewart-Haas RacingFord
11Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota
13Ty Dillon (R)Germain RacingChevrolet
14Clint BowyerStewart-Haas RacingFord
15Reed SorensonPremium MotorsportsToyota
17Ricky Stenhouse Jr.Roush Fenway RacingFord
18Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota
19Daniel Suárez (R)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota
20Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota
21Ryan BlaneyWood Brothers RacingFord
22Joey LoganoTeam PenskeFord
23Gray Gaulding (R)BK RacingToyota
24Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet
27Paul MenardRichard Childress RacingChevrolet
31Ryan NewmanRichard Childress RacingChevrolet
32Matt DiBenedettoGo Fas RacingFord
33Jeffrey EarnhardtCircle Sport – The Motorsports GroupChevrolet
34Landon CassillFront Row MotorsportsFord
37Chris BuescherJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet
38David RaganFront Row MotorsportsFord
41Kurt BuschStewart-Haas RacingFord
42Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet
43Darrell Wallace Jr. (i)Richard Petty MotorsportsFord
47A. J. AllmendingerJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet
48Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet
51Cody WareRick Ware RacingChevrolet
55Derrike CopePremium MotorsportsChevrolet
72Cole WhittTriStar MotorsportsChevrolet
77Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota
78Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota
83Corey LaJoie (R)BK RacingToyota
88Dale Earnhardt Jr.Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet
95Michael McDowellLeavine Family RacingChevrolet
Official entry list

First practice

Kyle Larson was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 50.758 seconds and a speed of 177.312 mph (285.356 km/h).[10]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 42Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet50.758177.312
2 18Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota50.780177.235
3 20Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota50.865176.939
Official first practice results

Qualifying

Kyle Busch scored the pole position.

Kyle Busch scored the pole for the race with a time of 50.237 and a speed of 179.151 mph (288.316 km/h).[11]

Qualifying results

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer R1 R2 R3
1 18Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota50.54650.42550.237
2 78Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota50.98050.57850.408
3 20Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota51.22050.53750.531
4 21Ryan BlaneyWood Brothers RacingFord51.02350.47850.591
5 41Kurt BuschStewart-Haas RacingFord50.95250.89550.619
6 2Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord50.90650.78250.621
7 42Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet50.38550.90350.688
8 1Jamie McMurrayChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet51.11950.86650.742
9 22Joey LoganoTeam PenskeFord50.79750.47350.774
10 31Ryan NewmanRichard Childress RacingChevrolet50.95250.93650.840
11 95Michael McDowellLeavine Family RacingChevrolet51.33150.97550.871
12 4Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord50.73750.56050.974
13 27Paul MenardRichard Childress RacingChevrolet50.94950.982
14 19Daniel Suárez (R)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota51.29851.003
15 77Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota51.15151.075
16 43Darrell Wallace Jr. (i)Richard Petty MotorsportsFord51.17651.094
17 3Austin DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet51.29551.101
18 11Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota51.22451.122
19 48Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet51.20051.225
20 14Clint BowyerStewart-Haas RacingFord51.35451.257
21 47A. J. AllmendingerJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet51.27651.258
22 6Trevor BayneRoush Fenway RacingFord51.22551.291
23 17Ricky Stenhouse Jr.Roush Fenway RacingFord51.29851.502
24 10Danica PatrickStewart-Haas RacingFord51.35752.124
25 24Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet51.363
26 5Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet51.504
27 13Ty Dillon (R)Germain RacingChevrolet51.669
28 88Dale Earnhardt Jr.Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet51.774
29 37Chris BuescherJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet51.830
30 32Matt DiBenedettoGo Fas RacingFord51.898
31 38David RaganFront Row MotorsportsFord52.046
32 72Cole WhittTriStar MotorsportsChevrolet52.114
33 23Gray Gaulding (R)BK RacingToyota52.229
34 34Landon CassillFront Row MotorsportsFord52.248
35 83Corey LaJoie (R)BK RacingToyota52.738
36 15Reed SorensonPremium MotorsportsToyota53.494
37 33Jeffrey EarnhardtCircle Sport – The Motorsports GroupChevrolet53.770
38 51Cody WareRick Ware RacingChevrolet54.108
39 55Derrike CopePremium MotorsportsChevrolet55.825
Official qualifying results

Final practice

Final practice

Kyle Busch was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 51.305 seconds and a speed of 175.421 mph (282.313 km/h).[12]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 18Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota51.305175.421
2 2Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord51.345175.285
3 42Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet51.367175.210
Official final practice results

Race

First stage

Kyle Busch led the field to the green flag at 3:22 p.m. Aside from an unscheduled pit stop by Joey Logano for a flat left-rear tire on the sixth lap, nothing unusual happened in the early stage of the race.[13] It proceeded in an orderly fashion, only interrupted by a cycle of green flag stops on lap 14. Busch pitted from the lead on lap 18, followed by Kyle Larson pitted the next lap, and the lead moved to Erik Jones. He pitted on lap 36 and the lead cycled back to Busch. During the pit cycle, Ryan Newman and Darrell Wallace Jr. were handed pass through penalties for speeding on pit road.[14] Both served them, but Wallace was hit with a second penalty – a stop and go – for speeding while completing his pass through.[15]

Busch drove on to win the first stage and caution flew for the first time in the race on lap 50 for the culmination of the stage. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. took the lead under the caution by opting not to pit when the leaders did.

Second stage

When the race returned to green on lap 57, Jones – on fresher tires – took the lead from Stenhouse driving down the Long Pond Straightaway. At the start/finish line the following lap, Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s engine blew up as a result of a mis-shift and transmission failure.[16] Moments later, Clint Bowyer tagged the wall with his right-rear corner exiting Turn 1. After those two events and Busch retaking the lead on lap 62, however, the second stage continued just as the first did. It was only broken up by a cycle of green flag stops on lap 91 when Busch pitted from the lead. Teammate Denny Hamlin followed suite the subsequent lap, giving the lead to Larson. On the 96th lap, Jimmie Johnson – running seventh – suffered brake failure hurdling down the frontstretch.[17] He turned his car down into the grass to bleed off speed, which then turned up the track and slammed the wall hard in Turn 1.[18] Moments later, Jamie McMurray suffered a similar brake failure going into Turn 1 and also pounded the Turn 1 wall.[19] His car continued rolling down the Long Pond Straightaway when it caught fire in the engine compartment, prompting McMurray to park it on the apron and quickly exit the burning vehicle.[20] These two events brought out the second caution, as well as a 23-minute and 25-second red flag to facilitate cleanup.

Rather than run out the remaining four laps of the stage under caution, NASCAR decided to run a one-lap shootout to end it. It restarted on lap 99, Larson won the second stage and caution flew for the third time for the conclusion of the stage. Busch bypassed pit road under the caution, having just pitted a few laps prior, and took back the lead.

Final stage

Ryan Blaney scored his first career win.

Back to green with 55 laps to go, the race settled into an orderly procession. As was the case in the first and second stage, the race was only broken up when race leader Busch commenced a cycle of green flag stops with 36 to go. Martin Truex Jr. did so as well four laps later, handing the lead to Brad Keselowski. He stayed out for 12 laps hoping to catch a caution, but didn't, pitted with 20 to go. Kasey Kahne suffered brake failure the following lap and belted the wall in Turn 1, bringing out the fourth caution.[21] Busch opted not to pit and took the lead, as did Keselowski, while rest of the field pitted and Jones exited pit road first by taking two tires, followed by Ryan Blaney and everyone else taking 4 tires.[22]

Ryan Blaney celebrating in Victory Lane after the race.

On the ensuing restart with 13 to go, Busch bolted ahead as Keselowski faltered. Blaney quickly pounced on and took second from Keselowski.[23] Blaney on his fresher tires closed the gap to Busch on worn tires coming to 10 to go. After crossing the start/finish line, Blaney dropped down to the bottom of the track to pass to give himself the preferred groove going into Turn 1, but Busch blocked his move on the frontstretch and the battle continued.[24] Blaney got to Busch's inside exiting Turn 1 and made contact going down the Long Pond Straightaway, even took the battle onto the apron.[25] Blaney backed out going into Turn 2, but Busch left the bottom open, letting Blaney get back to his inside exiting Turn 2 and lost the lead to him on the Short Chute.[26] Blaney spent the remaining nine laps holding off a charging Kevin Harvick to score his first ever victory and first for the Wood Brothers since Trevor Bayne winning the Daytona 500 in 2011.[27]

Stage results

Stage 1 Laps: 50

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
118Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota10
24Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord9
32Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord8
442Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet7
548Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet6
624Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet5
741Kurt BuschStewart-Haas RacingFord4
820Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota3
91Jamie McMurrayChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet2
103Austin DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet1
Official stage one results

Stage 2 Laps: 50

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
142Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet10
218Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota9
378Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota8
44Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord7
524Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet6
677Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota5
72Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord4
841Kurt BuschStewart-Haas RacingFord3
95Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet2
1020Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota1
Official stage two results

Final stage results

Stage 3 Laps: 60

Pos Grid No Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1421Ryan BlaneyWood Brothers RacingFord16040
2124Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord16051
31577Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota16039
4541Kurt BuschStewart-Haas RacingFord16040
562Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord16044
6278Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota16039
7742Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet16047
82524Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet16040
9118Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota16047
10320Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota16031
112317Ricky Stenhouse Jr.Roush Fenway RacingFord16026
121811Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota16025
13173Austin DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet16025
141031Ryan NewmanRichard Childress RacingChevrolet16023
151419Daniel Suárez (R)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota16022
162410Danica PatrickStewart-Haas RacingFord16021
172014Clint BowyerStewart-Haas RacingFord16020
182713Ty Dillon (R)Germain RacingChevrolet16019
192937Chris BuescherJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet16018
201327Paul MenardRichard Childress RacingChevrolet16017
21226Trevor BayneRoush Fenway RacingFord16016
222147A. J. AllmendingerJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet16015
23922Joey LoganoTeam PenskeFord16014
241195Michael McDowellLeavine Family RacingChevrolet16013
253138David RaganFront Row MotorsportsFord15912
261643Darrell Wallace Jr. (i)Richard Petty MotorsportsFord1590
273434Landon CassillFront Row MotorsportsFord15810
283583Corey LaJoie (R)BK RacingToyota1579
293323Gray Gaulding (R)BK RacingToyota1568
303272Cole WhittTriStar MotorsportsChevrolet1557
313615Reed SorensonPremium MotorsportsToyota1546
323032Matt DiBenedettoGo Fas RacingFord1535
333955Derrike CopePremium MotorsportsChevrolet1534
343733Jeffrey EarnhardtCircle Sport – The Motorsports GroupChevrolet1463
35265Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet1404
361948Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet957
3781Jamie McMurrayChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet953
382888Dale Earnhardt Jr.Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet581
393851Cody WareRick Ware RacingChevrolet351
Official race results

Race statistics

  • Lead changes: 9 among different drivers
  • Cautions/Laps: 4 for 18
  • Red flags: 1 for 23 minutes and 25 seconds
  • Time of race: 2 hours, 48 minutes and 40 seconds
  • Average speed: 142.292 miles per hour (228.997 km/h)

Media

Television

Fox NASCAR televised the race in the United States on FS1 for the third consecutive year. Mike Joy was the lap-by-lap announcer, while six-time Pocono winner, Jeff Gordon and four-time winner Darrell Waltrip were the color commentators. Jamie Little, Chris Neville and Matt Yocum reported from pit lane during the race.

FS1 Television
Booth announcersPit reporters
Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy
Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon
Color commentator: Darrell Waltrip
Jamie Little
Chris Neville
Matt Yocum

Radio

Radio coverage of the race was broadcast by Motor Racing Network (MRN) and simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and four-time Pocono winner Rusty Wallace announced the race in the booth while the field was racing on the front stretch. Dave Moody called the race from atop a billboard outside of turn 1 when the field was racing through turn 1 while Mike Bagley called the race from a billboard outside turn 2 when the field was racing through turn 2. Kyle Rickey reported the race from a billboard outside turn 3 when the field was racing through turn 3. Alex Hayden, Winston Kelley and Steve Post reported from pit lane during the race.

MRN
Booth announcersTurn announcersPit reporters
Lead announcer: Joe Moore
Announcer: Jeff Striegle
Announcer: Rusty Wallace
Turn 1: Dave Moody
Turn 2: Mike Bagley
Turn 3: Kyle Rickey
Alex Hayden
Winston Kelley
Steve Post

Standings after the race

References

  1. "2017 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 5, 2016. Archived from the original on February 4, 2017. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  2. "Pocono Raceway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  3. "Entry List". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. June 5, 2017. Archived from the original on June 9, 2017. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  4. "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. June 9, 2017. Archived from the original on June 15, 2017. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  5. "Qualifying Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. June 9, 2017. Archived from the original on June 14, 2017. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  6. "Final Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. June 10, 2017. Archived from the original on June 13, 2017. Retrieved June 10, 2017.
  7. "Axalta presents the Pocono 400 Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. June 11, 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  8. "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. June 12, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 29, 2019. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  9. "Manufacturer standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. June 12, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 29, 2019. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  10. Spencer, Lee (June 9, 2017). "Larson tops first Pocono practice as Dale Jr. encounters engine issues". Motorsport.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Motorsport Network. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  11. Gelston, Dan (June 9, 2017). "Kyle Busch turns fastest lap at Pocono for 2nd straight pole". Associated Press. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on July 23, 2017. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  12. Spencer, Lee (June 10, 2017). "Kyle Busch leads final practice at Pocono". Motorsport.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Motorsport Network. Retrieved June 10, 2017.
  13. Horrow, Ellen (June 11, 2017). "Ryan Blaney holds off Kevin Harvick at Pocono for first career Cup win". USA Today. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Gannett Company. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  14. Gelston, Dan (June 11, 2017). "Wallace falls behind, falls ill in milestone 1st Cup start". Associated Press. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 20, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  15. Spencer, Lee (June 12, 2017). "Darrell Wallace Jr. endures challenges Sunday at Pocono Raceway". Motorsport.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Motorsport Network. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  16. Davis, K. Lee (June 11, 2017). "Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Pocono race ends early because of broken transmission". ESPN.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: ESPN Inc. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  17. White, Tucker (June 11, 2017). "Wreck ends day for Johnson and McMurray at Pocono". SpeedwayMedia.com. Speedway Media. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  18. Horrow, Ellen (June 11, 2017). "Johnson, McMurray walk away from scary Pocono crashes". USA Today. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Gannett Company. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  19. Cain, Holly (June 11, 2017). "Hard shot, big fire end race for Johnson, McMurray". NASCAR.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  20. Knight, Chris (June 11, 2017). "Jimmie Johnson and Jamie McMurray walk away from violent crashes after brake failures". Catchfence.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Catchfence. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  21. Kivak, Rebecca (June 11, 2017). "POCONO: Three plagued by brake issues". The Scranton Times-Tribune. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Times-Shamrock Communications. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  22. Spencer, Lee (June 11, 2017). "Ryan Blaney and the Wood Brothers win at Pocono in thrilling finish". Motorsport.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Motorsport Network. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  23. Courson, Daniel (June 11, 2017). "Blaney holds off former champions to capture first career victory". TheRacingExperts.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: The Racing Experts. Archived from the original on August 25, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  24. Crandall, Kelly (June 11, 2017). "Blaney charges to first Cup win at Pocono". Racer.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Racer Media & Marketing, Inc. Archived from the original on June 15, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  25. Spencer, Reid (June 11, 2017). "Ryan Blaney makes late pass, holds off Harvick for thrilling win". NASCAR.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: NASCAR Wire Service. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  26. White, Tucker (June 11, 2017). "Blaney gets maiden victory with late pass at Pocono". SpeedwayMedia.com. Speedway Media. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  27. Gelston, Dan (June 11, 2017). "Blaney wins 1st career NASCAR Cup race at Pocono Raceway". Associated Press. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on August 25, 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
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