2018 Can-Am 500

Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]
Race 35 of 36 in the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
Date	November 11, 2018 (2018-11-11)
Location	ISM Raceway in Avondale, Arizona
Course	Permanent racing facility 1 mi (1.6 km)
Distance	312 laps, 312 mi (499.2 km)
Average speed	98.354 miles per hour (158.285 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Kevin Harvick	Stewart-Haas Racing
Time	25.836
Most laps led
Driver	Kyle Busch	Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps	117
Winner
No. 18	Kyle Busch	Joe Gibbs Racing
Television in the United States
Network	NBC
Announcers	Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Nielsen Ratings	2.0/2.1 (Overnight)[11]
Radio in the United States
Radio	MRN
Booth Announcers	Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace
Turn Announcers	Kyle Rickey (1 & 2) and Buddy Long (3 & 4)

The 2018 Can-Am 500 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on November 11, 2018, at ISM Raceway in Avondale, Arizona. Contested over 312 laps on the one mile (1.6 km) oval, it was the 35th race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, ninth race of the Playoffs, and final race of the Round of 8.

Report

Background

ISM Raceway – also known as PIR – is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. It is named after the nearby metropolitan area of Phoenix. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the IndyCar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series. The raceway is currently owned and operated by International Speedway Corporation.

The raceway was originally constructed with a 2.5 mi (4.0 km) road course that ran both inside and outside of the main tri-oval. In 1991 the track was reconfigured with the current 1.51 mi (2.43 km) interior layout. PIR has an estimated grandstand seating capacity of around 67,000. Lights were installed around the track in 2004 following the addition of a second annual NASCAR race weekend.

ISM Raceway is home to two annual NASCAR race weekends, one of 13 facilities on the NASCAR schedule to host more than one race weekend a year. The track is both the first and last stop in the western United States, as well as the fourth and penultimate track on the schedule.

Entry list

First practice

Erik Jones was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 26.113 seconds and a speed of 137.862 mph (221.867 km/h).^[12]

Qualifying

Kevin Harvick scored the pole for the race with a time of 25.836 and a speed of 139.340 mph (224.246 km/h).^[13]

Qualifying results

Practice (post-qualifying)

Second practice

Kevin Harvick was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 26.724 seconds and a speed of 134.710 mph (216.795 km/h).^[14]

Final practice

Kevin Harvick was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 26.642 seconds and a speed of 135.125 mph (217.463 km/h).^[15]

Race

Stage Results

Stage 1 Laps: 75

Stage 2 Laps: 75

Final Stage Results

Stage 3 Laps: 162

Race statistics

• Lead changes: 8 among different drivers
• Cautions/Laps: 10 for 61
• Red flags: 1 for 16 minutes and 24 seconds
• Time of race: 3 hours, 10 minutes and 20 seconds
• Average speed: 98.354 miles per hour (158.285 km/h)

Media

Television

NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, two–time Phoenix winner Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and three-time Phoenix winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. had the call in the booth for the race. Dave Burns, Parker Kligerman, Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast reported from pit lane during the race.

Radio

MRN had the radio call for the race, which was simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.

Standings after the race

Pos Driver Points 2 1 Joey Logano 5,000 1 2 Kyle Busch 5,000 (–0) 1 3 Martin Truex Jr. 5,000 (–0) 4 Kevin Harvick 5,000 (–0) 1 5 Chase Elliott 2,320 (–2,680) 1 6 Kurt Busch 2,318 (–2,682) 7 Aric Almirola 2,316 (–2,684) 2 8 Brad Keselowski 2,309 (–2,691) 9 Ryan Blaney 2,278 (–2,722) 2 10 Kyle Larson 2,256 (–2,744) 11 Denny Hamlin 2,252 (–2,748) 4 12 Clint Bowyer 2,242 (–2,758) 3 13 Austin Dillon 2,219 (–2,781) 14 Jimmie Johnson 2,217 (–2,783) 2 15 Erik Jones 2,207 (–2,793) 1 16 Alex Bowman 2,196 (–2,804) Official driver's standings

Manufacturers' Championship standings Pos Manufacturer Points 1 Ford 1,270 2 Toyota 1,251 (–19) 3 Chevrolet 1,157 (–113) Official manufacturers' standings Note: Only the first 16 positions are included for the driver standings.