Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard

Indianapolis Motor Speedway - Indianapolis, IN
Sunday September 9, 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time on NBCSN
2.5 Mile Rectangular Flat Oval
Weather: Scattered Thunderstorms, 71°F

Previous Five Winners and Pole Sitters

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series returns to Indiana this Sunday with the Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. A total of 41 cars are scheduled to enter the event. Only one race remains for drivers to try to punch their ticket into The Chase For The Cup. Who will the find the speed necessary to kiss the bricks at the "Brickyard"?

The Favorite

This week's race marks the end of the regular season for the NASCAR Cup Series and it comes as no surprise the driver leading the Cup Series in points is the favorite this week.

Kyle Busch leads the drivers points standings because he is consistently fighting for the checkered flag in the closing laps at nearly every track on the circuit. That includes Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Busch has captured the last two poles here and won two out of the three last races. Last season he was dominating the race before being caught up in a wreck on Lap 110.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway closely resembles the track at Pocono with its flat turns and long straightaways. A driver's performance at the two Pocono races earlier this year is a strong indicator of how he will perform at the Brickyard. Busch finished third in the first race and won the second. Busch knows a win wraps up the regular season title and will provide serious momentum heading into the playoffs, along with crucial bonus points. Everything is pointing towards a victory for Kyle Busch this week.

Other Drivers to Watch

Kevin Harvick is the only driver who can mathematically topple Busch for the regular season championship, but it won't be easy. He needs to win this race to have a real shot at the championship. Harvick has one career victory at Indianapolis, but it came back in 2003. However his 9.7 average finish at the Brickyard is highest among active drivers. He has finished in 6th place here the last two years and finished in 4th place in both Pocono races this season. Harvick will have to step up his game to push across the finish line first this week and knowing he has to win to have a chance at the regular season title might provide the extra motivation he needs.

Kyle Larson has to be feeling the pain after dominating the race at Darlington last Sunday, but coming home with a third place finish. On top of that he has five runner-up finishes with no victories this year. Larson has four career starts at Indianapolis with three top-ten finishes to his credit. One of his runner-up finishes this year came at Pocono, so we know he has a good set-up for the flat tracks. Larson has been the fastest of all the Chevrolet drivers this season and Chevy's have a strong history of winning on this track. Look for Larson to be in the mix for the checkered flag again this Sunday. It may be the week he finally takes it.

Martin Truex Jr. has never won at Indianapolis, but he has two wins at Pocono. One of those wins was the first Pocono race this season. Truex is a better racer at the 1.5 mile tracks, yet Indianapolis represents his last chance to score bonus points for the playoffs. He currently trails fellow Big Three members Busch and Harvick in that department, so the motivation is there to strengthen his position.

Daniel Suarez is only in his second season as a full time Cup Series driver, but he can make the playoffs by winning at the Brickyard on Sunday. Still searching for his first career win, his recent track history shows he has the capability to pull it off this week. His first career start here last season resulted in a seventh place finish. Earlier this year he took the pole and finished runner-up at the second Pocono race. Suarez is a teammate of Kyle Busch, who has been dominant at Pocono and Indianapolis lately. Joe Gibbs will make sure the two teams are sharing notes to give Suarez a chance at qualifying for the playoffs this year.

Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers with four career victories at Indianapolis, but his team has struggled mightily this year. Johnson has never gone this far into a season without winning before, his best finish this season was third place at the first Bristol race. The Chevy's have begun to show more speed recently and Johnson has the experience to use that speed to claw his way to the front of the field. He also needs to finish well to claim one of the two remaining spots available for the playoffs. Last season Johnson's teammate Kasey Kahne struggled all year before pulling off a big upset by winning the Brickyard 400. Johnson could very well be a surprise winner this year.

News Around the Track

Furniture Row Racing (FRR) shocked the NASCAR world on Tuesday by announcing the organization will shut down following the 2018 season. FRR fields one car in NASCAR, the #78 of defending Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr.

"I would have to borrow money to continue as a competitive team and I'm not going to do that," said Barney Visser, owner of FRR.

Earlier this year FRR lost 5 Hour Energy as one of its co-sponsors when the company decided to step away from NASCAR following the 2018 season. FRR still has a sponsorship deal with Bass Pro Shops, but has been unable to fill the void left by 5 Hour Energy. Visser has sponsored cars with his mattress company, Furniture Row, in the past yet appears to be unwilling to do so now.

"We've been aggressively seeking sponsorship to replace 5-hour Energy and to offset the rising costs of continuing a team alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing, but haven't had any success," Visser said. "I feel that it's only proper to make the decision at this time to allow all team members to start seeking employment for next year."

Truex joined FRR in 2014 after losing his job when Michael Waltrip Racing shut down after a cheating scandal. Truex thanked FRR racing for giving him an opportunity to continue in the motorsport.

"The entire Furniture Row Racing team took me in while my career was in a bad place, and together we reached the pinnacle of the sport," Truex said. "Make no mistake, this is not the immediate end. We still have unfinished business to attend to and that's to give everything we have to successfully defend our ... championship."

Truex is part of NASCAR's Big Three and has a serious chance of defending his championship this season. Rumors are already circulating about him joining Joe Gibbs Racing or replacing Kurt Busch at Stewart-Haas Racing.

Kyle Larson's Crew Chief Chad Johnson was fined $10,000 after the #42 car was found to have one lug nut loose during the post-race inspection following the Southern 500. Lug nut violations only result in monetary fines, no drivers points or owners points are docked.

Fan voting for the Most Popular Driver Award sponsored by Hooters opens on Wednesday September 5th. You can vote by clicking this link: https://www.nascar.com/mostpopulardriver Voting ends at Noon EST on November 27th.

Enjoy The Race!

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_{Author: @chops316
Editor: @liberty-minded}

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