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2018 Pocono 400

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2018 Pocono 400
Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
Race 14 of 36 in the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
2018 Pocono 400 program cover
2018 Pocono 400 program cover
Date June 3, 2018 (2018-06-03)
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 139.535 miles per hour (224.560 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Team Penske
Time 50.877
Most laps led
Driver Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing
Laps 89
Winner
No. 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing
Television in the United States
Network FS1
Announcers Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Darrell Waltrip
Nielsen Ratings 1.6[10]
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 Kurt Becker (3)

The 2018 Pocono 400 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on June 3, 2018 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. Contested over 160 laps on the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) triangular racecourse, it was the 14th race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

Report

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Background

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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 Pocono 400 and the Gander Outdoors 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

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No. Driver Team Manufacturer Sponsor
00 Landon Cassill StarCom Racing Chevrolet TW Cable, LLC
1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet GEARWRENCH
2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford Wurth
3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Dow
4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Busch Beer
6 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford Ford
7 J. J. Yeley (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet Steakhouse Elite
9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet NAPA Auto Parts
10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Smithfield
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota FedEx Office
12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford Menards/Duracell
13 Ty Dillon Germain Racing Chevrolet GEICO
14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Busch Light/Haas 30 Years of the VF1
15 Ross Chastain (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet Premium Motorsports
17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford Little Hug Fruit Barrels
18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota M&M’s Red, White and Blue
19 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota ARRIS
20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota DeWalt
21 Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing Ford Motorcraft/Quick Lane
22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford Shell Pennzoil
23 Gray Gaulding BK Racing Toyota BK Racing
24 William Byron (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Unifirst
31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Kalahari Resorts and Conventions
32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford Zynga Poker
34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford Dockside Logistics
37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Louisiana Hot Sauce
38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford MDS Transport
41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Monster Energy/Haas Automation
42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet DC Solar
43 Darrell Wallace Jr. (R) Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet Weis Markets
47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Kroger ClickList
48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Lowe's for Pros
51 Cole Custer (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford HAAS CNC/Prefund Capital
72 Cole Whitt TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet Tri-Star Motorsports
78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota Bass Pro Shops/5-hour ENERGY
88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Nationwide
95 Kasey Kahne Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet FDNY Foundation
99 Derrike Cope StarCom Racing Chevrolet StarCom Fiber
Official entry list

First practice

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Kyle Busch was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 50.865 seconds and a speed of 176.939 mph (284.756 km/h).[11]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 50.865 176.939
2 88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51.285 175.490
3 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 51.286 175.486
Official first practice results

Qualifying

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Ryan Blaney scored the pole position.

Ryan Blaney scored the pole for the race with a time of 50.877 and a speed of 176.897 mph (284.688 km/h).[12]

Qualifying results

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Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer R1 R2 R3
1 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 51.369 51.217 50.877
2 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 51.151 51.068 50.903
3 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 51.473 51.300 50.955
4 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 51.384 51.272 50.987
5 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 51.532 51.132 50.998
6 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 51.366 51.290 51.076
7 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 51.738 51.388 51.083
8 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 51.688 51.241 51.176
9 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 51.402 51.457 51.195
10 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 51.345 51.327 51.197
11 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51.404 51.256 51.361
12 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 51.921 51.497 51.520
13 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 51.193 51.524
14 88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51.494 51.579
15 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51.487 51.616
16 24 William Byron (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51.460 51.649
17 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 51.642 51.661
18 19 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 51.565 51.690
19 43 Darrell Wallace Jr. (R) Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet 51.726 51.811
20 21 Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing Ford 51.650 51.833
21 38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 51.929 51.934
22 95 Kasey Kahne Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 51.766 52.024
23 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 51.972 52.182
24 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 52.007 0.000
25 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 52.081
26 6 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 52.140
27 37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 52.187
28 51 Cole Custer (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford 52.197
29 13 Ty Dillon Germain Racing Chevrolet 52.658
30 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 52.703
31 15 Ross Chastain (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 52.908
32 32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford 53.354
33 00 Landon Cassill StarCom Racing Chevrolet 53.477
34 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 53.855
35 72 Cole Whitt TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet 53.882
36 23 Gray Gaulding BK Racing Toyota 53.927
37 7 J. J. Yeley (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 53.935
38 99 Derrike Cope StarCom Racing Chevrolet 54.753
Official qualifying results

Final practice

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Kyle Busch was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 51.550 seconds and a speed of 174.588 mph (280.972 km/h).[13]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 51.550 174.588
2 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 51.690 174.115
3 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 51.738 173.953
Official final practice results

Race

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Martin Truex Jr. won the race.

Stage Results

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Stage 1 Laps: 50

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 10
2 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 9
3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 8
4 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 7
5 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 6
6 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 5
7 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 4
8 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 3
9 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 2
10 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 1
Official stage one results

Stage 2 Laps: 50

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 10
2 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 9
3 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 8
4 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 7
5 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 6
6 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 5
7 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 4
8 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 3
9 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 2
10 88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1
Official stage two results

Final Stage Results

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Stage 3 Laps: 60

Pos Grid No Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 4 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 160 57
2 13 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 160 43
3 5 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 160 51
4 2 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 160 52
5 17 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 160 37
6 1 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 160 38
7 34 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 160 30
8 15 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 33
9 7 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 160 28
10 11 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 38
11 20 21 Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing Ford 160 26
12 12 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 160 25
13 26 6 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 160 24
14 23 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 160 23
15 3 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 160 22
16 21 38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 160 21
17 27 37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 160 20
18 16 24 William Byron (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 19
19 6 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 160 18
20 9 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 160 32
21 30 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 160 16
22 24 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 160 15
23 29 13 Ty Dillon Germain Racing Chevrolet 160 14
24 18 19 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 160 13
25 8 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 160 12
26 28 51 Cole Custer (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford 160 0
27 14 88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 11
28 31 15 Ross Chastain (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 159 0
29 25 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 159 8
30 35 72 Cole Whitt TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet 158 7
31 33 00 Landon Cassill StarCom Racing Chevrolet 157 6
32 37 7 J. J. Yeley (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 157 0
33 36 23 Gray Gaulding BK Racing Toyota 157 4
34 38 99 Derrike Cope StarCom Racing Chevrolet 152 3
35 10 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 146 8
36 22 95 Kasey Kahne Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 120 1
37 32 32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford 113 1
38 19 43 Darrell Wallace Jr. (R) Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet 108 1
Official race results

Race statistics

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  • Lead changes: 7 among different drivers
  • Cautions/Laps: 6 for 23
  • Red flags: 0
  • Time of race: 2 hours, 52 minutes and 0 seconds
  • Average speed: 139.535 miles per hour (224.560 km/h)

Media

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Television

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Fox NASCAR televised the race in the United States on FS1 for the fourth 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, Vince Welch and Matt Yocum reported from pit lane during the race.

FS1 Television
Booth announcers Pit reporters
Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy
Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon
Color commentator: Darrell Waltrip
Jamie Little
Vince Welch
Matt Yocum

Radio

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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. Kurt Becker 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 announcers Turn announcers Pit reporters
Lead announcer: Joe Moore
Announcer: Jeff Striegle
Announcer: Rusty Wallace
Turn 1: Dave Moody
Turn 2: Mike Bagley
Turn 3: Kurt Becker
Alex Hayden
Winston Kelley
Steve Post

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ "2018 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 5, 2017. Archived from the original on December 24, 2017. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  2. ^ "Pocono Raceway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Archived from the original on April 29, 2017. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  3. ^ "Entry List". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. May 29, 2018. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  4. ^ "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. June 1, 2018. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  5. ^ "Qualifying Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. June 1, 2018. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  6. ^ "Final Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. June 2, 2018. Retrieved June 2, 2018.
  7. ^ "Pocono 400 Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. June 3, 2018. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
  8. ^ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. June 4, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 25, 2018. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
  9. ^ "Manufacturer standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. June 4, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 25, 2018. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
  10. ^ "Pocono TV ratings". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. 7 June 2018. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  11. ^ Utter, Jim (June 1, 2018). "Kyle Busch fastest in Friday's shortened Cup practice session". Motorsport.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Motorsport Network. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  12. ^ Gelston, Dan (June 1, 2018). "Blaney goes for Pocono repeat with pole effort in qualifying". Associated Press. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: AP Sports. Associated Press. Retrieved June 1, 2018.[permanent dead link]
  13. ^ Utter, Jim (June 2, 2018). "Kyle Busch paces final NASCAR Cup practice at Pocono". Motorsport.com. Long Pond, Pennsylvania: Motorsport Network. Retrieved June 2, 2018.


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