It’s probably not a stretch to suggest that the Celtics have produced their most encouraging basketball of the season the past two weeks, particularly with two quality wins over an Indiana Pacers team they are likely to play in the opening round of the playoffs.

And, yet, if you’re slightly skeptical about whether this team can bottle up their quality play and carry it into the postseason, it’s understandable. Fans are Charlie Brown and the 2018-19 Celtics are Lucy, repeatedly pulling the good basketball away. Good grief.

Maybe we’re getting duped again but it’s hard to shake the feeling that these Celtics — maybe just maybe — might be peaking at the right time. For the first time all season, this team passes the eye test.

Make no mistake, the Celtics have had these encouraging stretches of play throughout the year. Heck, we’re getting deja vu just typing these words out. And, yet, even in those good stretches, this team was prone to maddening lulls and it was hard to know on a night-to-night basis who, outside of Kyrie Irving, was going to deliver a consistent performance.

While still far from perfect, things feel a little different the past few weeks. Brad Stevens (finally) shuffled an underperforming starting lineup, inserting Aron Baynes into a two-big lineup alongside Al Horford. Poof! Boston’s two-month defensive regression reversed almost immediately.

The Horford/Baynes combo has paired with Irving, Marcus Smart, and Jayson Tatum to start four of Boston’s last seven games. In that span, that five-man unit has played 45 minutes together, outscoring opponents by 21 points per 100 possessions in that span.

The Baynes/Horford pairing has played 76 minutes together over those seven games and Boston owns a net rating of plus-17.2 in that span, which includes a sizzling defensive rating of 98.1. More encouraging, the Celtics have deployed that two-big lineup against Indiana and found success in matching the Pacers’ physicality.

A chess match could loom in the postseason but Baynes has helped restore Boston’s defensive identity. The Celtics seemed particularly energized after Friday’s win in Indiana having held the Pacers under the century mark, maybe recognizing that much of Boston’s postseason success will hinge on its ability to ratchet up the defense.

It’s telling that Horford declared after Friday’s win that, “This was one of our better games this season by far.”

Horford continues to quietly be the glue that holds everything together for these Celtics. His on/off splits since the All-Star break are absurd, with Boston owning a team-best plus-9.0 rating in Horford’s 577 minutes of floor time. That number plummets to a team-worst minus-12.5 in the 479 minutes Horford has been off the court.

It happened again Friday night. Boston had a net rating of plus-34.6 in Horford’s 27 minutes, and it dipped to minus-2.2 in the 21 minutes he was on the bench. Only Gordon Hayward (plus-37.9 on, minus-11.0 off had more jarring splits in Friday’s game). 

Hayward, of course, is maybe the biggest difference in these Celtics recently. Since returning from a concussion, Hayward’s stat lines jump off the page. He’s averaging 16.4 points on 58.8 percent shooting to go with 6.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists over 28.8 minutes per game. On Friday night, Hayward didn’t miss on nine attempts and continued to attack the basket with a confidence that escaped him for much of the season.

Even before he harnessed this confidence and aggression, the numbers suggested that Boston was simply a different team when Hayward is something better than average. Consider this: The Celtics are …

* 17-3 when Hayward scores 15 points or more
* 25-3 when Hayward shoots 50 percent or better in a game
* 17-3 when Hayward has a Game Score better than 13

Game Score is a noisy metric that attempts to condense a player’s box score data into one easy to digest number. Here’s all you need to know: Hayward didn’t miss on Friday night and it was only his sixth highest Game Score of the season (20.9). More encouraging: Some of his best Game Scores have come against top competition, including Golden State (30.5) and Philadelphia (23.0). Hayward also had one of his top 5 Game Scores in Miami earlier this week (25.0). 

Hayward so frequently makes the right play when he’s out on the court and, when you pair him with another right-play-maker in Horford, good things consistently happen. It’s unfair to expect that Hayward can be a dominant force every night in the postseason, there’s still going to be times when his body balks or his shot doesn’t fall. But he’s making things easier on himself by attacking the basket and not settling for long jumpers. He’s getting to the free-throw line even more regularly with a renewed confidence and fearlessness to absorb contact.

And it feels as if Stevens is just waiting to crank the knob on his minutes in the postseason. Whether he’s in the current bench role or maybe elevates to a starter role in small-ball lineups deeper into a potential postseason run, it feels like 30+ minutes of Hayward could really make Boston a different team.

Like Hayward, the Celtics simply pass the eye test right now. They’ve less frequently allowed teams to go on runs, they more consistently look for good shots. They don’t crumble at the first hint of adversity anymore.

The Celtics have done all this while still dealing with minor maladies and maybe the biggest challenge for Stevens is simply figuring out how to keep all his guys playing at a high level, particularly when minutes become scarcer as the playoffs arrive.

This is not to suggest that the Celtics are going to storm the playoffs. While they are clearly a more talented team than Indiana, it seems fair to suggest that wins won’t come quite as easy as they did Friday night when the playoffs start. The Pacers are still going to make Boston work, particularly with their physicality.

Even if the Celtics advance, things get daunting in a hurry with a likely second-round matchup opening on the road against Giannis and the Bucks. But if fans were leery of a quick postseason stay a few weeks ago based on how the Celtics looked, then maybe there’s a bit more optimism about whether this team can push the East’s elite.

Lucy could still pull that football. Nothing about the Celtics’ 2018-19 season suggests that anything is a given. But we’ve seen more encouraging stretches of good basketball lately than at any other point in the season.

A month ago, when the Celtics were clinging to a “flip the switch” possibility, it was fair to laugh and suggest they didn’t even know where that switch was. Now, it at least feels like they have a floor plan and a general idea of where they need to get to.

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Wasps moved themselves clear of the Premiership relegation battle with a 28-16 bonus-point win over Worcester.

The home side scored three tries in 15 first-half minutes through Nathan Hughes, Marcus Watson and Zurabi Zhvania.

Warriors hit back through Sam Lewis but Hughes' second try just after the hour mark sealed the win.

Wasps subsequently climb to seventh and leave Worcester deep in the relegation battle in 11th.

After Duncan Weir's early penalty had put the visitors in front, Wasps took control of the contest.

Hughes' first score was given after a referral to the Television Match Official, before Watson crossed and Georgian prop Zurabi Zhvania burrowed over from short range.

The shell-shocked Warriors regrouped and after a good spell of pressure of their own, Sam Lewis went over and Duncan Weir added the extras.

Wasps centre Gaby Lovobalavu was then yellow carded for an early tackle on Welsh wing Josh Adams.

Weir kicked to the corner as the visitors looked for a second try before half time but Francois Hougaard was tackled and turned over by James Gaskell as he darted for the line.

Scotland international Weir knocked over a penalty on the stroke of half time to reduce the gap to 21-13.

After Wasps outside-half Lima Sopoaga had effortlessly kicked three conversions, he had a moment to forget when he missed a penalty in front of the posts, in the first action of the second period.

Warriors skipper Chris Pennell showed him how it was done just minutes later when he kicked a penalty from halfway to cut the gap to five.

But Wasps held off the revival to secure the bonus point when Hughes added his second of the afternoon.

After being checked by the TMO for a forward pass, the try was given and Sopoaga added his fourth conversion of the match.

• BBC Sport assesses the Premiership relegation battle

Wasps: Le Roux; Watson, Daly, Lovobalavu, Bassett; Sopoaga, Simpson; Zhvania, Cruse, Stuart, Launchbury (capt), Gaskell, Shields, Carr, Hughes.

Replacements: Johnson, McIntyre, Cooper-Woolley, Rowlands, Morris, Hampson, Miller, De Jongh.

Worcester: Pennell; Howe, Te'o, Mills (capt), Adams; Weir, Hougaard; Black, Annett, Schonert, Bresler, Barry, Hill, Lewis, Mama.

Replacements: Taufete'e, Waller, Milasinovich, Kitchener, Du Preez, Heaney, Venter, Van Breda.

Referee: Matthew Carley

For the latest rugby union news follow @bbcrugbyunion on Twitter.

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Saracens kept up the pressure on leaders Exeter with a comeback win against bottom side Newcastle Falcons, who were denied a precious bonus point.

Two counter-attacking Saracens tries from Sean Maitland and Max Malins in either half punished the Falcons.

Sonatane Takulua's goalkicking kept the visitors in the game, landing four of his shots from the tee.

However, Nick Tompkins' try from a maul and Alex Lozowski's final play score cruelly snatched away the bonus.

Sarries picked up their own bonus point with Lozowski's try, and edged closer to securing their top-four play-off place.

More to follow.

Saracens: Malins; Maitland, Lozowski, Tompkins, Williams; Farrell (capt), Spencer; Barrington, Woolstencroft, Koch, Itoje, Kruis, Rhodes, Burger, Earl.

Replacements: Tolofua, Adams-Hale, Lamositele, Isiekwe, Clark, Whiteley, Morris, Lewington.

Newcastle: Tait; Goneva, Harris, Matavesi, Sinoti; Flood (capt), Takulua; Mulipola, McGuigan, Ah You, Olmstead, Green, Graham, Hardie, Chick.

Replacements: Cooper, Lockwood, Wilson, Robinson, Witty, Stuart, Connon, Dunbar.

Referee: Karl Dickson.

For the latest rugby union news follow @bbcrugbyunion on Twitter.

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BYRAM Miss. – Rodney Sanders saw the green flag and then proceeded to pounce on the United States Modified Touring Series competition Friday night at Jackson Motor Speedway.

The two-time USMTS National Champion held a comfortable lead for most of the 30-lap main event, but a caution with two laps remaining gave hard-charging Zack VanderBeek a shot at the leader.

Nevertheless, Sanders held on for the win while VanderBeek finished second at the quarter-mile dirt oval for the second year in a row. The victory was worth $3,000.

Last year VanderBeek inherited the win after apparent winner Lucas Lee was disqualified during post-race technical inspections. This time around VanderBeek wasn’t as lucky and had to settle for a runner-up paycheck behind Sanders.

Terry Phillips and Logan Robertson each took turns chasing Sanders with Phillips eventually claiming the third-place finish while Robertson followed Timothy Culp across the finish line in the fifth spot.

Joe Duvall came from the 14th starting position to finish sixth, Lance Walker passed 10 cars in his USMTS debut to claim seventh, Zane Ferrell earned eighth place, Jeremy Idom nabbed ninth and new Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year points leader Mike Striegel rounded out the top ten.

With his 87th career USMTS triumph, Sanders took command in the USMTS National Championship points standings as well as the Summit USMTS Southern Series powered by MSD.

The finish:

Rodney Sanders, Zack VanderBeek, Terry Phillips, Timothy Culp, Logan Robertson, Joe Duvall, Lance Walker, Zane Ferrell, Jeremy Idom, Mike Striegel, Nathan Hagar, Hunter Wilbanks, Charles Sibley, Greg Hollingsworth, Jarrod May, Toby Hodge, Spencer Hughes, Kenny Hollingsworth, Bryan Powell, Chad Shivers, Ben Davis.

The post Sanders Trounces Jackson USMTS Field appeared first on SPEED SPORT.

SEYMOUR, Tenn. – Ross Bailes rolled to his first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory on Friday night at 411 Motor Speedway.

The 29-year-old South Carolina native led all 50 laps of Tennessee’s Action Track 50 en route to one of the biggest wins of his career.

Bailes took the lead at the start of the race, withstood several cautions, and managed to hold off a late race charge from three other drivers to become the sixth different winner of the season.

Donald McIntosh took second over Jimmy Owens. Current Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series point leader Jonathan Davenport finished in fourth followed by Dale McDowell.

“This seems unbelievable,” said Bailes, who earned $12,000 for the victory. “We have tried for so long to win one of these and we just couldn’t get it done. To come to a new place like this and to get it done here is just unimaginable. I felt good on the bottom and then when I got to lapped traffic I was slowing down. I knew I needed to search around and do something different. My crew guys told me to move up and when I did the car felt really good up there.

“This place is awesome. I think if we would have run another 50 laps it would have been even better. I was happy with it. There was grip on the bottom . I didn’t have to worry about the top for the first half of the race and then it got racy all over. This win is now at the top of my list for sure. Maybe we can get another one tomorrow night at North Georgia. I want to thank Barry and Lance Wright, Ronnie McCarter and all of my crew it was a great team win that’s for sure.”

McIntosh, also looking for his first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win, settled for second at the line.

“Our car was pretty good,” said McIntosh. “I had it prepared to run the top. I was just biding my time out there. I thought I could get up to him [Bailes] and make a run for the win. I am blessed to be back at Blount Motorsports and maybe we can get that first Lucas Oil win tomorrow night at North Georgia.

“I don’t think he [Bailes] knew the top was there. We had a great race for second with Jimmy [Owens]. I think I showed him [Bailes] the top one time and he moved up there in traffic. Racing with these guys and from where we started that’s a pretty awesome run,” said McIntosh, who started sixth.

Owens finished third after a late-race charge.

“We have been pretty good in East Tennessee so far this year,” said Owens. “We have had good race cars all year long. It feels good to finally finish a Lucas Oil race. Last year we had such terrible misfortune. This year seemed like it was going to start off the same way but we just aren’t going to let that happen. McIntosh had a good car, and he was up on the wheel. I felt like we could have gotten second, but we are just happy to finish on the podium.”

The finish:

Ross Bailes, Donald McIntosh, Jimmy Owens, Jonathan Davenport, Dale McDowell, Kyle Bronson, Ryan King, Josh Richards, Tyler Erb, Earl Pearson Jr., Tim McCreadie, Robby Moses, Michael Chilton, Jason Jameson, Vic Hill, Billy Moyer Jr., Stormy Scott, Devin Moran, Shanon Buckingham, Don O’Neal, Cory Hedgecock, Hudson O’Neal, Pierce McCarter, David Crabtree.

The post Bailes Rolls To First Lucas Oil Win In Tennessee appeared first on SPEED SPORT.

FARMER CITY, Ill. — Team Illinois was firing on all cylinders on Friday night at Farmer City Raceway, as Brian Shirley bested Brandon Sheppard in an exciting 25-lap battle for $6,000.

This marked Shirley’s sixth career win with the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series, as part of the 12th annual Illini 100 presented by Douglas Dodge.

Chris Madden earned his hard-fought third-place finish, starting second and battling through heavy pressure from those behind him to collect his fourth top five of the season.

He said wasn’t as clean as he would have liked, but Shirley persevered through one intense battle in the closing stages with Series points leader Sheppard on a lightning-fast, yet technical race track.

“It wasn’t a perfect race, but in the end, it ended up being good enough to get the job done,” Shirley said.

Shirley grabbed the lead on the opening lap and held it until Madden pulled the trigger to Shirley’s inside on a lap seven restart. Madden held that lead only for a few laps before hitting a few ruts in turn one and jumping the cushion, handing the lead back over to “Squirrel,” which he held the rest of the way.

However, the battle with Sheppard had only begun once he regained the lead. Every corner of each of the last 10 circuits, “The Rocket Shepp” was nipping at Shirley’s heels, making forceful challenges to the inside several times. The Rocket Chassis house car driver’s efforts went unrewarded, but what a show both drivers put on in front of a packed grandstands.

“That guy’s an animal, he’s the best driver in the country,” Shirley said. “To be able to compete with him is second-to-none. I’m just glad I was able to beat him this time.”

Shirley said the difference maker was just track position. Even though Sheppard started directly behind him, Shirley admitted a pole-position redraw definitely aided his drive to victory.

“It definitely didn’t hurt us, starting in front of him,” Shirley said. “Anytime you can get an advantage over the No. 1 team, it’s pretty good, and I’m thankful.”

Sheppard also had himself quite a run in qualifying, picking up the PFC Brakes Fast Time Award and smashing the Farmer City Raceway track record of 11.973 seconds, set by Billy Moyer in 2008, with a lap of 11.750.

Chris Madden had a great night up front, aboard his Skyline Motorsports, Capital Race Cars No. 44. He held his runner-up starting spot through the first six laps before catching a better line than Shirley on a lap-seven restart, shooting to the bottom and snatching the lead away. His efforts to defend the lead went sour, however, when he hit a rough patch in turns one and two and found himself over the cushion, allowing Shirley and Sheppard to pass.

“Earlier on, I was able to get by Brian and the racetrack really wasn’t that bad,” Madden said. “I was able to run the middle through one and two, and I got by Brian racing him down there.”

“Smokey” was unable to make up the ground and reclaim the top spots but held off a bit of late-race pressure from Dennis Erb Jr. and Darrell Lanigan to bag the last podium spot.

The finish:

Morton Buildings Feature (25 Laps) 1. 3s-Brian Shirley [1][$6,000]; 2. 1-Brandon Sheppard [3][$3,000]; 3. 44-Chris Madden [2][$2,000]; 4. 28-Dennis Erb [8][$1,750]; 5. 29-Darrell Lanigan [6][$1,500]; 6. 36v-Kyle Hardy [4][$1,400]; 7. 18-Chase Junghans [9][$1,300]; 8. 25-Shane Clanton [7][$1,200]; 9. 7-Ricky Weiss [13][$1,100]; 10. 28m-Jimmy Mars [15][$1,000]; 11. 32p-Bobby Pierce [20][$900]; 12. 29D-Spencer Diercks [22][$850]; 13. 4G-Bob Gardner [18][$800]; 14. 89-Mike Spatola [14][$775]; 15. 97-Cade Dillard [19][$750]; 16. 99B-Boom Briggs [24][$700]; 17. 99jr-Frank Heckenast [11][$660]; 18. 24-Ryan Unzicker [16][$640]; 19. 22-Tanner English [5][$620]; 20. 21-Billy Moyer [12][$600]; 21. B1-Brent Larson [23][$600]; 22. 7r-Kent Robinson [10][$600]; 23. 6p-Jose Parga [21][$600]; 24. 6-Blake Spencer [17][$600] Hard Charger: 29D-Spencer Diercks[+10] Lap Leaders: 3s – Brian Shirley – 1-6, 12-25; 44 – Chris Madden – 7-11

The post Shirley Stops Sheppard In Illinois Battle appeared first on SPEED SPORT.

KOKOMO, Ind. – Tyler Courtney kicked off the running of the Kokomo Grand Prix for the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship with a dominant victory Friday at Kokomo Speedway.

The victory, his second-straight during the Kokomo Grand Prix, was also his third victory in four races to start the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship.

The Indianapolis, Ind., driver raced to the lead just prior to the halfway point, utilizing the bottom of the race track to track down early leader Kevin Thomas Jr. on lap 15. He held the point for the remainder of the race to nab the eighth win of his career in his Clauson-Marshall Racing/NOS Energy Drink/Spike/Stanton SR-11x.

Courtney began his expedition from the outside of row three while pole sitter Thomas slid up past outside front row starter Thomas Meseraull in turn one for the point on the opening lap.

The first stoppage of the night arrived on the fourth lap of the main when Tony DiMattia took a tumble in turn four, from which he walked away uninjured.

On the ensuing restart, Thomas once again spurted away to a relatively comfortable margin of one second while Clauson-Marshall teammates Chris Windom and Courtney battled side-by-side for the runner-up spot.  Courtney found the bottom of the quarter-mile to his liking and quickly ate up enough ground to nip Windom at the line for second on lap six, just before the yellow flag flew for a turn two spin by Justin Peck.

When racing resumed, Thomas and Courtney formed a two-car breakaway to distance themselves from the herd. Courtney kept inching closer and closer, sticking right within earshot of Thomas nearing the midway point. On the 14th lap, Courtney’s stick-to-itiveness paid off when he ran down Thomas, beating him to the entry of turn one before sliding up in front to nail down the lead.

Courtney had a plan and executed it perfectly on the bottom, something he attributes to his extensive experience watching, crewing and racing at Kokomo over the years.

“I ran the bottom all night, especially in (turns) three and four,” Courtney explained.  “It got pretty rough in one and two, so you had to search to find other ways to go.  I knew the bottom was going to be the place to be.  I watched a lot of races that were won here on the bottom, especially off of four.  Watching those guys and learning from the best, Bryan (Clauson) being one of them, I was fortunate I got to watch him race a lot here and be a part of it.  I think I would credit a lot to being a part of it and watching and take notes mentally and using it to capitalize here tonight.”

Courtney’s lead grew to two seconds by the 20th lap as Thomas became mired in lapped traffic, allowing Courtney to break away into his own zip code, albeit briefly, as Zane Hendricks slowed to a stop in turn two, thus resetting the landscape for the finish of the 30-lapper.

However, Courtney was unfazed with the lapped car of Cole Bodine separating he and Thomas, Windom and Jason McDougal in second, third and fourth.  Courtney said drove away during the restart as a cornucopia of drivers behind him jostled for position.

McDougal eventually prevailed with the second spot using a topside pass of K. Thomas in turn four on lap 24. With Courtney a distant three seconds ahead, McDougal needed a caution for any shot and he would receive one when Andrew Layser flipped between turns three and four on the 28th lap.  He was uninjured.

The stage was set for a three-lap dash to the finish with Courtney leading and McDougal in second.  Rewind back to last Labor Day Weekend and McDougal was in relatively the same position in Pevely, Mo., to win his first USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car race.  He conquered that quest, and now had a similar storyline setting up for his first career USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget score in his first drive for Steve Reynolds Motorsports.

Courtney had other plans, however.

“I didn’t really know what I was going to get with Jason,” Courtney pondered. “He’s good at the end of races; he proved it last year at Pevely. I was a little bit in defense mode, but I knew I just needed to hit my marks and make three good laps there at the end to put ourselves in position to be where we were.

“I knew he’d be running the top because that’s where he loves to be,” Courtney continued. “But nobody had passed me on the bottom the whole night, so I knew if I could just run where they were running, nobody was going to go where I was going.  It was just a matter of putting yourself in the right place at the right time.”

Courtney stuck to his guns and burst away on the restart, never allowing McDougal to get anywhere close enough to throw a haymaker for the win, closing out his fifth USAC National win at Kokomo (three sprint, two midget) by just a tick under a full second ahead of a wheel-standing McDougal in second, followed by Windom, Zeb Wise and Thomas.

Chad Boespflug held off McDougal to win the companion 25-lap non-winged sprint car feature.

For complete results, advance to the next page.

The post Courtney Fires First Kokomo Grand Prix Shot appeared first on SPEED SPORT.

TUCSON, Ariz. — With five laps to go in the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series Wildcat Shootout at USA Raceway Friday night, Brad Sweet’s victory was far from certain.

Sweet had command of the race, having stolen the lead from Ian Madsen just before a lap-19 caution flag.

However, Madsen did not let the blue Kasey Kahne Racing car of Sweet out of his sight.

With lapped traffic in Sweet’s windshield, Madsen used it to his advantage turning a car length distance between them into half a car length. Then a quarter. The laps were winding down in a hurry, but the race was far from over.

That is until the traffic that was helping Madsen catch Sweet, ended up killing his momentum with a lap to go, putting more than a car length back between he and Sweet, who went on to claim his first win of the season – his 35th career victory.

“I was just kind of lucky to get through a few of those guys, just mistakes in lap traffic and we were in the right spot to capitalize,” said Grass Valley, Calif., native Sweet. “The car was superfast and made the opportunities for us to take advantage of those opportunities.”

Sweet stared sixth for the 30-lap feature, while Madsen, who fared better in the dash, started outside the front row.

When the green flag waved, Madsen, last year’s Rookie of the Year, shot by polesitter Donny Schatz and ran away with the lead.

“Everyone’s always better in clean air,” said Madsen, who ended up second. “It just kind of got pretty tricky there in the middle of the race. We got stuck behind some lap cars and we just weren’t as good as Brad tonight to maneuver around to get past the lapped cars.”

Madsen’s blistering pace at the start of the race put him in lapped traffic by Lap five. While the Australian hustled his way around the slower cars, Sweet — with a little bit of luck on his side — methodically moved his way to the front, lap by lap.

“I think we were in the right place at the right time a lot of the time and we were able to capitalize,” Sweet said. “Coming from sixth to win is hard in these things, especially on a pretty fast track. We’ll take it any way we can get it.”

Luck wasn’t the only factor that helped him to the front. A little bit of skill, knowing where to put his car helped, too.

“Luckily for me, I kind of found a low line in turn one, and kind of low down the front stretch,” Sweet said. “If I could get off (turn) four equal or a little better than the guy in front of me, I could go low in turn one and it seemed like I could carry more speed. That’s where I made all of my passes.”

While Sweet and Madsen stole the show, Brent Marks raced his way to his best finish so far this year – sixth.

“I know my results through California don’t really show, but we’ve been getting our car really good,” said Marks. “We’ll just keep plugging away and fine tuning this race car and try to have a little bit better luck on our side. Excited we got a good run tonight.”

Sweet is the ninth different winner this season in 10 races.

That consistency, in addition to Friday night’s win, has left him tied for the points lead with 10-times series champion Donny Schatz.

To see full results, turn to the next page.

The post Sweet Holds Off Madsen In Tucson appeared first on SPEED SPORT.

BRISTOL, Tenn. – He may be the lone Team Penske driver who has yet to visit victory lane this season in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, but Ryan Blaney isn’t feeling the heat at all.

He’s focused forward and focused on converting his early-season pace into the wins he feels his team deserves.

Blaney said Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway that there’s “no pressure” as far as he’s concerned, even though both Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano are locked into the Cup Series playoffs by virtue of their triumphs through the first seven races of the Cup Series season.

“I don’t feel pressure at all,” Blaney told SPEED SPORT. “Yeah, you want to be part of the group, but we have the ability to do it and it’s just a matter of getting it done. Everybody knows that. My whole team knows, all of Penske knows and all of the competition knows that we’ve been one of the best cars all year. Yeah, you still hate to have a zero in that column even though it’s still really early in the year, but, no, it doesn’t bother me at all.

“Honestly, the pressure thing … I used to let get to me a handful of years ago, and then I realized that it doesn’t help you, so you just try to stay pressure free – no matter how good or bad things are or how things look,” Blaney continued. “There’s no pressure just because Brad and Joey have won. You just try to focus on your deal and what you need to do to try to get your team in victory lane and help your teammates and your team the best you can. I’m just trying to overlook all that stuff and focus ahead.”

It’s been feast or famine for Blaney this year. He has three top-five finishes, but he also has four finishes of 22nd or worse, including a crash in the Daytona 500 and an overheating retirement at Texas.

That’s left Blaney frustrated at times, even though he’s tried to put it out of his mind.

“There are moments you get frustrated at it,” Blaney admitted, referencing his bad luck. “You just wish stuff would stop happening. We had that run there of really good finishes, where we finished where we had been running. I wouldn’t say it’s relieving, but it was nice to finally actually not have anything go wrong in those races, and then you look at last week leading the race and a part falls off and we end up blowing up. That part is frustrating.

“I’m (just) tired of being in spots with a chance to win and then dumb luck happens and it just gets taken all away from you,” Blaney added. “That part gets frustrating, but I’m really only frustrated for 10 minutes after the deal happens. After that, you move on and figure out what you can do to prevent stuff from like that happening and then you focus on the next week because there’s nothing you can do about it after something like that happens. You just try to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Despite his goose-egg in the win column to this point, Blaney still firmly believes that Team Penske is seated atop the current pecking order in the Cup Series garage, alongside Joe Gibbs Racing.

“We’re at the top of our game and I think our cars are the fastest ones out there – us and the Gibbs guys seem to be the class of the field right now – but it all goes full circle,” Blaney noted. “You’ll have slumps and you’ll have good times, and you just try to capitalize on the good times.

“I think we’ll be in contention to win all year. Our team certainly is capable of that, but when we have so much speed right now as a whole group, we definitely want to capitalize on it,” he added. “You want to rack them up as much as you can, as quick as you can and when you can. It stinks sometimes when you can’t get them as fast as you want to, but I’d rather have fast cars and things happening when we’re in contention to win races than be running 15th, scratching our heads and wondering where the speed is at. They’re both frustrating, but I’d rather be in this position, with fast cars and running up front.

“You just hope the problems stop and you can figure out a way to pull through at the end of one of these races.”

Blaney qualified third for Sunday’s Food City 500. He dominated the early stages of last season’s spring race at Bristol before a crash collected him from the race lead and bounced him from contention.

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