Kevin Harvick won the Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway Sunday, clinching a spot in the final four of championship weekend in Homestead, Florida in two weeks. Harvick swept past race leader Martin Truex, Jr. ten laps from the finish, snapping Truex’s three-race winning streak on mile-and-a-half ovalsTruex was the runner-up, and clinched a final four spot based on points. Kyle Busch clinched a week ago with a victory at Martinsville. One spot remains open for a driver, and it will be determined this weekend in Phoenix.
Matt Kenseth said over the weekend that he is not actively seeking a Monster Energy Series ride for the 2018 season and that he’s likely to sit out all … or at least a portion … of the year ahead, telling the media in Texas that – QUOTE – “I’m not making any plans for 2018. I just plan on having some time off.” Joe Gibbs Racing announced at mid-season that Erik Jones would be replacing Kenseth in the Number-20 Toyota. Kenseth, who won the 2003 Cup Series championship, entered this year’s playoffs as the Number-15 seed and was eliminated from title contention in the second round at Kansas Speedway. He finished fourth on Sunday.