2018 Pocono 400
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| 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 | |||
| Date | June 3, 2018 | ||
| Location | Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 2.5 miles (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.
Background
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 IndyCar Series race.
Pocono Raceway is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports or NASCAR. 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
First practice
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
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
Final practice
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
Stage Results
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
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 | Bubba Wallace (R) | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 108 | 1 |
| Official race results | |||||||
Race statistics
- 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)
