There are a variety of stories to follow during Sunday’s running of the O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.
Full New Rules Pt. 3
Sunday is the third time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup cars will utilize the complete 550 horsepower rules package. Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Auto Club Speedway were the other two races so far this year where the full rules were in play including the front aero ducts. Drivers have had some limited practice with weather impacting Saturday’s schedule as they try to dial in their cars.
Pit Stall Assignments | Paint Schemes
Texas Track Surface
TMS officials have spent weeks working on the track surface in hopes of creating multi-grooves and thus better competition. In addition to putting down rubber through various processes, traction compound has also been applied at both ends of the 1.5-mile speedway. The combination of the rules package impact and the conditions of the racing surface have created a lot of unknowns for many drivers on just what to expect. This weekend’s race will mark the fifth since Texas was repaved and reconfigured.
Final Practice Speeds | Fantasy Racing Preview
Kyle Busch Shoots for Sweep
Kyle Busch has another chance to sweep a racing weekend. He has already won Friday night’s Gander Outdoors Truck Series and Saturday’s Xfinity Series races. He has won nine of the 14 NASCAR national series races Busch has entered this year. If he wins Sunday it would be his third Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series triumph of the season.
Power House Battle
Joe Gibbs Racing and Team Penske have combined to win all six of this year’s races to date. Brad Keselowski (2) and Joey Logano are on the board for Penske while Kyle Busch (2) and Denny Hamlin have the victories for JGR. Will a different organization break through Sunday or will the winning ways continue for Penske and JGR?
Harvick Texas Streak
A year ago Kevin Harvick had a trio of wins on the board thanks to a three-race winning streak. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver is still looking for victory number one of 2019. He’ll have a good shot at Texas at least based on his previous success at the track. Harvick has finishes of first, second and first in his last three TMS starts.
Chevrolet Strong in Qualifying
Another bizarre qualifying session on Friday at least produced some good news for Chevrolet teams and Hendrick Motorsports specifically. Jimmie Johnson scored his first pole since 2016 with his Hendrick teammates William Byron and Chase Elliott making it a 1-2-3 sweep for the organization. Austin Dillon, Daniel Hemric, Ty Dillon and Bubba Wallace gave Chevy seven of the top-10 starters in Sunday’s race. Johnson paced the first practice session and all rounds of qualifying.
