NASCAR at Pocono 2016: Start Time, Ticket Info, Lineup, TV Schedule and More
NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series took a trip back to 2015 last weekend in Indianapolis, a trend likely to continue Sunday when Kyle Busch leads the way at Pocono Raceway in the Pennsylvania 400.
Busch dominated last week, securing the checkered flag and giving all involved flashbacks to his epic campaign last year, though this season doesn't feature an awe-inspiring return from injury.
Even more so causing flashbacks was the appearance of one Jeff Gordon, racing in place of the injured Dale Earnhardt Jr. He'll suit up again this weekend at a familiar, albeit tricky, course.
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With drivers battling for a spot in the Chase and garages still jockeying for sport dominance, Pocono seems like the perfect host track at the right time. Here's a full preview for the event.
Viewing Details
Where: Pocono Raceway
When: Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET
Watch: NBCSN
Live Stream: NBC Sports
Tickets: ScoreBig
Sprint Cup Standings
| 1 | Brad Keselowski | 647 | 4 |
| 2 | Kyle Busch | 601 | 4 |
| 3 | Carl Edwards | 593 | 2 |
| 4 | Jimmie Johnson | 552 | 2 |
| 5 | Matt Kenseth | 545 | 2 |
| 6 | Kevin Harvick | 671 | 1 |
| 7 | Kurt Busch | 627 | 1 |
| 8 | Joey Logano | 606 | 1 |
| 9 | Martin Truex Jr. | 573 | 1 |
| 10 | Denny Hamlin | 542 | 1 |
| 11 | Tony Stewart | 317 | 1 |
| 12 | Chase Elliott | 525 | 0 |
| 13 | Austin Dillon | 520 | 0 |
| 14 | Ryan Newman | 507 | 0 |
| 15 | Jamie McMurray | 496 | 0 |
| 16 | Kyle Larson | 472 | 0 |
NASCAR at Pocono Lineup
| 1 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. |
| 2 | 19 | Carl Edwards |
| 3 | 27 | Paul Menard |
| 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin |
| 5 | 31 | Ryan Newman |
| 6 | 14 | Tony Stewart |
| 7 | 2 | Brad Keselowski |
| 8 | 24 | Chase Elliott |
| 9 | 20 | Matt Kenseth |
| 10 | 22 | Joey Logano |
| 11 | 42 | Kyle Larson |
| 12 | 3 | Austin Dillon |
| 13 | 47 | AJ Allmendinger |
| 14 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
| 15 | 41 | Kurt Busch |
| 16 | 18 | Kyle Busch |
| 17 | 4 | Kevin Harvick |
| 18 | 21 | Ryan Blaney |
| 19 | 1 | Jamie McMurray |
| 20 | 13 | Casey Mears |
| 21 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson |
| 22 | 34 | Chris Buescher |
| 23 | 5 | Kasey Kahne |
| 24 | 88 | Jeff Gordon |
| 25 | 16 | Greg Biffle |
| 26 | 10 | Danica Patrick |
| 27 | 43 | Aric Almirola |
| 28 | 15 | Clint Bowyer |
| 29 | 95 | Michael McDowell |
| 30 | 7 | Regan Smith |
| 31 | 6 | Trevor Bayne |
| 32 | 38 | Landon Cassill |
| 33 | 23 | David Ragan |
| 34 | 83 | Matt DiBenedetto |
| 35 | 44 | Brian Scott |
| 36 | 98 | Cole Whitt |
| 37 | 32 | Jeb Burton |
| 38 | 30 | Josh Wise |
| 39 | 46 | Michael Annett |
| 40 | 55 | Reed Sorenson |
Drivers to Watch
Matt Kenseth
The defending champion at an event is always one to watch, especially when said defending champion has finished second or better in each of his past two outings.
Matt Kenseth is the name to know this weekend after a checkered flag in New Hampshire and a second-place finish last weekend at The Brickyard.
Granted, Kenseth has only won two races this year. But this time last season showed what he can do when on a roll—the win at Pocono was one of six consecutive top-10 finishes and one of two wins over the same span.
Toyota Racing provided a reflective quote from Kenseth looking back to that stretch last year:
Funnily enough, Kenseth has been rather lost in the headlines as of late despite his dominant form. So it goes with Earnhardt injured and Gordon back at it, among other factors.
There's no better way for Kenseth to force the globe to look his way than to hit Victory Lane for a third time.
Jeff Gordon
Take a moment to bask in the greatness of Gordon. Not only did he come out of retirement to suit up in the No. 88 car, he did so after coming off a vacation overseas.
Was there any doubt about Gordon's legend status? Despite the above and starting 21st, the guy still finished 13th.
With the wheels back under him and another chance to climb into the car, a top-10 finish almost seems like a sure thing for Gordon. He sees improvement with further continuity among the team, as captured by Bill Fleischman of the Philadelphia Inquirer:
"I want Dale Jr. back in the car as soon as possible, but to go to Indy and finish a decent 13th, I think I can do better this week for him and then we'll just go from there. We are all going to work together to do our best to continue to keep that excitement and momentum in the team there for when he is ready to come back, so he comes back and doesn't miss a beat and can win some races.
"
It helps that the No. 88 has looked so great at Pocono lately. Earnhardt swept the 2014 Pocono races, finished 11th or better at both last year and finished second this past June.
Combine Gordon getting back to what he does best with the car's success at Sunday's track, and there's no reason to doubt Gordon.
Maybe last week. Not now.
Kyle Busch
Once again, no driver is hotter than Busch.
Busch didn't just win at IMS last week. He made it two in a row at the Brickyard 400, leading 149 of the 170 laps to give him a fourth top-10 finish over his last five outings.
It doesn't end there, either, as Busch also took care of business in other areas. A full-blown ad in USA Today, captured by Toyota Racing, says it all:
Now, one could argue Busch might fall back and perform less aggressively than usual at Pocono after a dominant weekend and plenty of momentum established.
It'd just be a miserable argument.
"If we could bring home two in a row and our first-ever win at Pocono, that would be something special, especially at a place I have yet to win at, so I would love to cross that one off the list," Busch said, according to NASCAR Wire Service (h/t Autoweek).
Busch is a guy who won't ease off after success. He's driven, and that's at least partially what separates him from the rest of the pack. There's little reason to doubt Busch's contention Sunday at a track where he has yet to explore Victory Lane.
Stats and info courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.
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