John Hunter Nemechek escapes carnage to win Atlanta truck race

John Hunter Nemechek survived multiple wrecks during Saturday's Camping World Truck Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway to claim his second career checkered flag in the series in the #8 Chevrolet Silverado. Nemechek, the 2015 CWTS most popular driver and son of veteran racer Joe Nemechek, inherited the lead after Matt Crafton, Daniel Suarez and, for the second straight week, Christopher Bell, plus others got caught in a pair of wrecks, the latter of which brought out the red flag for cleanup. Nemechek then held on to the lead in the closing laps to take the win. It was the second end of a Saturday doubleheader at Atlanta that began with an Xfinity Series race earlier in the afternoon that was won by Kyle Busch.

Kyle Busch wins Xfinity end of Atlanta Saturday doubleheader

Kyle Busch drove to his first Xfinity Series victory lane of 2016 by taking the checkered flag Saturday in the Heads Up Georgia 250, the first end of Atlanta's second annual Xfinity-Truck doubleheader. Busch led 119 of 163 laps. It was his first Xfinity win in the #18 NOS Toyota in more than five years; he drove the infamous #54 Monster Energy Toyota in the interim, notoriously going winless in the series in 2012 driving that car.

Denny Hamlin beats Martin Truex Jr. in closest Daytona 500 finish ever

Denny Hamlin led 95 of 200 laps in Sunday's Daytona 500, the first race of the 2016 Sprint Cup season, leading up to a dramatic finish. Hamlin's teammate Matt Kenseth led at the white flag, but got loose in turn 3, losing several positions and yielding the lead to Hamlin. Martin Truex Jr., in his first race in a Toyota, then became locked in a drag race with Hamlin to the finish, with Hamlin prevailing by 0010 seconds, making it the closest finish in Daytona 500 history. It was the second win in the race for car owner Joe Gibbs. Some of the race's top contenders like Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Chase Elliott ran into problems throughout the day.

Chase Elliott holds off Joey Logano for Daytona Xfinity win

Johnny Sauter gives Chevy first Daytona Truck win; Christopher Bell flips

Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kyle Busch win Can-Am Duels; outside polesitter Kenseth wrecks

For the second straight year, Dale Earnhardt Jr. took his #88 Nationwide Chevrolet SS to victory in the first of two Can-Am Duel qualifying races for the Daytona 500 on Thursday evening. This is Earnhardt's fifth career Duel victory, a record among active drivers. Earnhardt's father Dale Sr., whose 15th death anniversary fell on Thursday, won a record ten straight Duels from 1990 through 1999. Dale Jr. used a few moments of his victory lane time to pay tribute to his father, adding that it felt special to win on the anniversary of that somber day. He is considered a favorite to win this year's Daytona 500, a victory which would be his third in the Great American Race, thanks to his 2016 restrictor plate car "Amelia".

The second Duel race was won by Kyle Busch. On the final lap, a crash took out Jimmie Johnson, Martin Truex Jr. and outside polesitter Matt Kenseth, whose #20 Toyota was to have shared Sunday's front row with the #24 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet of rookie Chase Elliott (#24). Kenseth and his crew brought out their backup Toyota and will have to start from the rear of Sunday's Daytona 500 field, meaning they have major ground to make up in Kenseth's quest for a third Harley J. Earl Trophy. Kenseth, his Joe Gibbs teammates and new Toyota recruit Truex are believed to have some of this year's fastest cars in Speedweeks.

Denny Hamlin wins wreck-filled Sprint Unlimited

Denny Hamlin took his third Sprint Unlimited win at Daytona Saturday evening in the #11 Joe Gibbs Toyota, dodging several wrecks including a last-lap one that froze the field, leaving the #22 Team Penske Ford of Joey Logano to settle for a runner-up finish.

Bobby Allison's wife Judy dies

Judy Allison, the wife of Hall of Famer Bobby Allison, died Friday at the age of 74.

Chris Heroy moving to RPM #9 team

Chris Heroy, who in 2015 served as the crew chief of the Chip Ganassi Racing #42 Chevrolet SS in the Sprint Cup Series driven by Kyle Larson, will move to the #9 Ford Fusion at Richard Petty Motorsports to serve as the crew chief of 2016 Rookie of the Year contender Brian Scott. Sam Hornish Jr., also a driver at Joe Gibbs Racing and Team Penske in recent seasons, left the Petty stable after driving the #9 car for the full 2015 season. Marcos Ambrose and, in various iterations, Kasey Kahne are also former drivers of the car. Heroy and Larson almost made it to Cup victory lane a few times in 2015.

Chris Buescher driving full-time at Front Row in 2016

Chris Buescher, the 2015 Xfinity Series champion, will leave the #60 Roush Fenway Ford Mustang Xfinity team to drive full-time in the Sprint Cup Series starting in February for Ford associate Front Row Motorsports. Front Row has said they could scale back to two cars in 2016, and Buescher may replace 2015 Cup Rookie of the Year Brett Moffitt in the #34 Ford Fusion. Buescher drove the #34 car in five 2015 Cup races during Kyle Busch's and Brian Vickers' medical issues during the spring that saw David Ragan replacing both drivers.

Brian Scott moving to Cup with Richard Petty

Brian Scott will move from the #2 Richard Childress Racing Xfinity Series Chevrolet Camaro to drive for Richard Petty full-time in the Sprint Cup Series in 2016. Scott will replace Sam Hornish Jr. in the #9 Ford Fusion with Twisted Tea retaining sponsorship. Scott drove in select Cup races in the RCR/Joe Falk #33 Chevrolet in 2015, sharing the ride with his Xfinity teammate Ty Dillon.

Busch, Gordon, others shine at Sprint Cup banquet

Kyle Busch, the 2015 Sprint Cup Series champion in remarkable fashion, was far from the only driver highlighted at Friday night's Sprint Cup Series Awards Banquet in Las Vegas hosted by Drew Carey. The ceremony featured spots from all 16 Chase drivers, whose speeches were all longer the higher they placed in the final season standings. Retired four-time champion Jeff Gordon delivered an emotional yet enthusiastic speech in front of the crowd and surprise guest Tom Cruise. For the 13th straight year, Dale Earnhardt Jr. came away with the Most Popular Driver award. The annual In Memorial segment included a special dedication to Steve Byrnes, who died of cancer in April. Each Chase driver was provided with a gift basket before the ceremony consisting mainly of candy and snacks. Some drivers including Busch engaged in an after-party following the awards. The ceremony was considered another successful one based on the reactions of fans and drivers.

88 days until the Daytona 500

89 days until the Daytona 500

Here is a list in detail of drivers who have driven #89 vehicles in NASCAR.

90 days until the Daytona 500

Here is a list in detail of drivers who have driven #90 vehicles in NASCAR.

Kyle Busch, 2015 Sprint Cup Series Champion

Kyle Busch, in his eleventh full season, completed his comeback from his Daytona injury in a big way by winning Sunday's Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in south Florida, thus claiming his first-ever Sprint Cup Series championship. It was the first title in NASCAR's top series for manufacturer Toyota, who entered the series in 2007. It is the fourth championship for team owner Joe Gibbs (2000, 2002, 2005) and the second for Gibbs' #18 car after Bobby Labonte's 2000 championship in the #18 Interstate Batteries machine. Busch got the lead on a late restart after a battle during a long green flag run between Brad Keselowski (#2) and Kyle Larson (#42).

91 days until the Daytona 500

Here is a list in detail of drivers who have driven #91 vehicles in NASCAR.

Kyle Larson wins Xfinity finale; Chris Buescher clinches championship

92 days until the Daytona 500

Crafton wins at Homestead; Jones takes truck championship

Matt Crafton took the #88 Toyota Tundra to his sixth Camping World Truck Series victory of 2015 in Friday's season finale in Homestead, Florida with a five-second lead over the #8 Chevrolet of John Hunter Nemechek. Erik Jones, the driver of Kyle Busch's #4 Toyota and the points leader after the Phoenix shakeup, finished the race in the sixth position, about eighteen seconds behind Crafton, and clinched the series championship. The 19-year-old will drive for Kyle Busch's Cup car owner Joe Gibbs full-time in the Xfinity Series in 2016. Finishing second in the final standings, and third in the race, was Tyler Reddick, a fellow rookie in the Brad Keselowski-owned #19 Ford.