2018 Gander Outdoors 400

Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
Race 21 of 36 in the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
2018 Gander Outdoors 400 program cover
Date	July 29, 2018 (2018-07-29)
Location	Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania
Course	Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4 km)
Distance	164 laps, 410 mi (656 km)
Scheduled Distance	160 laps, 400 mi (640 km)
Average speed	132.460 miles per hour (213.174 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Daniel Suarez	Joe Gibbs Racing
Time	50.851
Most laps led
Driver	Kyle Busch	Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps	52
Winner
No. 18	Kyle Busch	Joe Gibbs Racing
Television in the United States
Network	NBCSN
Announcers	Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Nielsen Ratings	1.7/1.8 (Overnight)[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 Kyle Rickey (3)

The 2018 Gander Outdoors 400 is a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on July 29, 2018, at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. Contested over 164 laps—extended from 160 laps due to an overtime finish, on the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) superspeedway, it was the 21st race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

Report

Background

Pocono Raceway is a superspeedway that is located in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania in Long Pond. It is the site of two annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races held in early June and late July/early August, one NASCAR Xfinity Series event in early June, one NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event in late July/early August, and two ARCA Racing Series races in early June and late July/early August.

From 1971 to 1989, and again since 2013, the track has also hosted an Indy Car race, currently sanctioned by the IndyCar Series and run in August.

Pocono is one of a very few NASCAR tracks that is not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation, the dominant track owners in NASCAR. It is run by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon and Nicholas, both of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc., started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli. Mattco also owns South Boston Speedway in South Boston, Virginia.

In addition to NASCAR races, Pocono is used throughout the year by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools.

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. Several of the infield sections can also be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together, running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.

Entry list

Practice

First practice

Kevin Harvick was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 51.439 seconds and a speed of 174.965 mph (281.579 km/h).^[11]

Final practice

Joey Logano was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 51.029 seconds and a speed of 176.370 mph (283.840 km/h).^[12]

Qualifying

Daniel Suárez scored the pole for the race with a time of 50.851 and a speed of 176.988 mph (284.835 km/h) after Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch were both disqualified after failing post-qualifying inspection.^[13]

Qualifying results

• Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch will start from the rear after both cars failed post-qualifying inspection, leaving Daniel Suárez as the polesitter.^[14] Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, William Byron, Austin Dillon, Jimmie Johnson, Paul Menard, Ryan Blaney, Aric Almirola, Clint Bowyer, Darrell Wallace Jr. and Kasey Kahne also failed post-qualifying inspection. All 13 cars that failed the post-qualifying inspection will start at the rear and they lined up based on owner points.
• Gray Gaulding practiced and qualified the No. 15 for Ross Chastain who was in Iowa for the Xfinity Series race. Chastain will start at the rear due to Driver Change.

Race

Stage Results

Stage 1 Laps: 50

Stage 2 Laps: 50

Final Stage Results

Stage 3 Laps: 60

Race statistics

• Lead changes: 10 among different drivers
• Cautions/Laps: 7 for 29
• Red flags: 1 for 10 minutes and 10 seconds
• Time of race: 3 hours, 5 minutes and 43 seconds
• Average speed: 132.460 miles per hour (213.174 km/h)

Media

Television

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

Radio

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

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 Kyle Busch 891 2 Kevin Harvick 843 (–48) 3 Martin Truex Jr. 762 (–129) 4 Joey Logano 690 (–201) 1 5 Clint Bowyer 677 (–214) 1 6 Kurt Busch 677 (–214) 7 Brad Keselowski 644 (–247) 8 Kyle Larson 626 (–265) 1 9 Denny Hamlin 618 (–273) 1 10 Ryan Blaney 612 (–279) 11 Aric Almirola 587 (–304) 1 12 Chase Elliott 569 (–322) 1 13 Jimmie Johnson 547 (–344) 14 Erik Jones 533 (–358) 15 Alex Bowman 496 (–395) 16 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 440 (–451) Official driver's standings[permanent dead link]

Manufacturers' Championship standings Pos Manufacturer Points 1 Toyota 775 2 Ford 752 (–23) 3 Chevrolet 675 (–100) Official manufacturers' standings[permanent dead link] Note: Only the first 16 positions are included for the driver standings. . – Driver has clinched a position in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.