Jones’ Xfinity victory a boost for Cup race
Blaney and Harvick finish 2-3, will start on front row today.
Erik Jones skipped his high school graduation ceremony three years ago to run in a NASCAR truck race at Texas Motor Speedway, where he was presented his diploma before an event in which he placed 11th.
Two years ago at Texas, he went to victory lane for the first time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
On Saturday in the Xfinity race, he won again at the 1.5-mile track in Fort Worth that has been completely repaved and reconfigured in Turns 1 and 2 this year.
“Yeah, it’s been a good track for me,” Jones said.
The victory helped Jones, 20, make up for a crash in Cup S e r i e s p r a c t i c e F r i - day that pushed him into a backup car and a 36th-place start in today’s 40-car field.
“The repave was really treacherous to start the weekend,” Jones said Saturday. “Hopefully this is a good start for tomorrow.”
Jones, in a Toyota, led 112 of 200 laps for his seventh career Xfinity victory. He finished a half-second ahead of Ryan Blaney, another fulltime Cup Series driver and the second-place qualifier for today’s race. Blaney led 43 laps and went into his final pit stop still with the lead before Jones went back in front for good on lap 156.
“We passed him before the last pit stop and I thought our car was pretty decent right there,” Blaney said. “We didn’t come out with the lead and that hurt us. I think if we would have come out with the lead, I don’t know if I could have held him off.”
Kevin Harvick, the pole winner for today’s race, finished third, more than 21 seconds off the lead.
Jones drove for Joe Gibbs Racing in Saturday’s race but his Cup ride is with Furniture Row Racing.
“I always felt really comfor t able on the old track here,” Jones said. “Honestly, the new surface here, I felt like I was able to get back to what the car needed. ... A good day of learning.”
IndyCar: Helio Castroneves, in a Chevrolet, won the pole for the Grand Prix of Long Beach for the third consecutive year. The Team Penske driver held off five Hondas to secure the top starting spot today on the temporary street course in California, setting a track record with a lap of 1 minute, 6.22 seconds.
Scott Dixon qualified second for Chip Ganassi Racing.
Castroneves is seeking his first IndyCar victory since 2014. He and fellow Brazilian Tony Kanaan, the series’ elder statesmen, are in their 20th seasons. Kanaan has made this a commemorative year, with hats and stickers.
“I think he wants people to know, but I don’t,” Castroneves said. “But somehow people now know, and I am like, ‘Darn it, man, why you gotta do that? Now every- body knows we are old.’”
Castroneves turns 43 next month and is seven months older.
“In my mind, I’m still very young,” said Kanaan, who will start 11th for Chip Ganassi Racing. “I think I still I had a decent season last year, despite not getting a win. As long as I feel this way, I’m going to keep going.” ...
Mario Andretti, 77, will get back into a race car at Indianapolis Motor Speedway to go head-to-head in semi-autonomous vehicles against paralyzed former driver Sam Schmidt. The race will be May 13 on the 2.439-mile permanent road course. Schmidt was paralyzed from the neck down from a crash while testing an Indy car in 2000. The race will benefit Conquer Paralysis Now, a nonprofit founded by Schmidt.
Formula One: Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton won the pole position for today’s Chinese Grand Prix, edging Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari by less than two-tenths of a second. Hamilton also set a track qualifying record for the second race in a row, clocking 1 minute, 31.678 seconds to break by more than a half-second the 13-year-old mark held by Michael Schumacher at the Shanghai International Circuit. Vettel won the opener at Australia after starting second behind Hamilton.
“The Ferraris have looked s o f a s t , ” Hamil t o n s a i d . “It’s super exciting for me because we’re really fighting these guys, having to raise the bar every time.”
Dwyane Wade returned but Chicago sustained a potentially costly loss to Brooklyn. Spencer Dinwiddie made four free throws in the final 13.6 seconds for the Nets in their home finale. Jimmy Butler scored 33 points for the Bulls, who came in tied for seventh in the East. Wade started and played 25 minutes, scoring 14 points.
Isaiah Thomas scored 32 points, and Boston remained in contention for the No. 1 seed in East with a victory over Charlotte. Al Horford added 16 as the Celtics pulled within a half-game of the Cavaliers.
Paul George scored 37 points and Myles Turner added 23 points and 10 rebounds to help Indiana pull a game ahead of Chicago for seventh place in the Eastern Conference. Hassan Whiteside scored 30 points and James Johnson hit a layup with 11 seconds left to lift Miami into a tie for eighth in the Eastern Conference. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 20 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, and Milwaukee beat Philadelphia to clinch a playoff berth. Chris Paul had 19 points and Los Angeles beat San Antonio to help preserve its hopes of hosting a first-round playoff series. Late Late