An Idiot's Guide To The World Of NASCAR

At Saturday's Samsung Mobile 500, a NASCAR newcomer talks to fans and garage personnel alike about Dale Earnhardt Jr's popularity, the difference between the best drivers and the best teams and the thrill of a Sprint Cup race.

NASCAR 2012 Samsung Mobile 500 Results: Greg Biffle Outlasts Jimmie Johnson

Greg Biffle continued his hot start in the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, as the points leader extended his lead and notched his first victory of the year on Saturday night, winning the 2012 Samsung Mobile 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.

NASCAR superstar Jimmie Johnson was in contention throughout the night and finished second. Biffle overtook Johnson late in the race with 31 laps to go. Johnson led 156 laps of the race, while Biffle led 90 -- including the last 30 of the race.

Courtesy NASCAR.com, here are the results for the 2012 Samsung Mobile 500:

FIN	ST	CAR	DRIVER	MAKE	SPONSOR	PTS/BNS	LAPS
1	3	16	Greg Biffle	Ford	3M Filtrete	47/4	334
2	10	48	Jimmie Johnson	Chevrolet	Lowe's / Kobalt Tools	44/2	334
3	4	55	Mark Martin	Toyota	Aaron's 2011 Best of the Best	41/0	334
4	34	24	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	DuPont 20 Years	41/1	334
5	2	17	Matt Kenseth	Ford	Best Buy	40/1	334
6	1	56	Martin Truex Jr.	Toyota	NAPA Auto Parts	39/1	334
7	5	5	Kasey Kahne	Chevrolet	Farmers Insurance	37/0	334
8	20	99	Carl Edwards	Ford	Fastenal	36/0	334
9	15	29	Kevin Harvick	Chevrolet	Budweiser	35/0	334
10	16	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Chevrolet	Diet Mountain Dew / National Guard	34/0	334
11	17	18	Kyle Busch	Toyota	Interstate Batteries	33/0	334
12	13	11	Denny Hamlin	Toyota	FedEx Office / March of Dimes	32/0	334
13	27	51	Kurt Busch	Chevrolet	Phoenix Construction Services	31/0	333
14	9	1	Jamie McMurray	Chevrolet	Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats	30/0	333
15	12	22	AJ Allmendinger	Dodge	Shell / Pennzoil	29/0	333
16	25	42	Juan Montoya	Chevrolet	Target	28/0	333
17	18	15	Clint Bowyer	Toyota	5-hour Energy	27/0	333
18	11	27	Paul Menard	Chevrolet	Quaker State / Menards	26/0	333
19	14	20	Joey Logano	Toyota	Dollar General	25/0	333
20	7	9	Marcos Ambrose	Ford	Stanley	25/1	333
21	6	39	Ryan Newman	Chevrolet	U.S. Army	23/0	332
22	23	43	Aric Almirola	Ford	Smithfield	22/0	332
23	26	78	Regan Smith	Chevrolet	Furniture Row / Farm American	21/0	332
24	29	14	Tony Stewart	Chevrolet	Mobil 1 Advanced Fuel Economy / Office Depot	20/0	332
25	22	13	Casey Mears	Ford	GEICO	19/0	331
26	31	10	David Reutimann	Chevrolet	Accell Construction	18/0	331
27	30	47	Bobby Labonte	Toyota	Bush's Baked Beans	17/0	330
28	19	21	Trevor Bayne	Ford	Motorcraft / Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center	0	330
29	24	31	Jeff Burton	Chevrolet	Caterpillar	15/0	330
30	28	83	Landon Cassill	Toyota	Burger King / Dr Pepper	14/0	330
31	35	38	David Gilliland	Ford	ModSpace	13/0	328
32	39	32	Reed Sorenson	Ford	Jani-King	0	327
33	36	249	J.J. Yeley	Toyota	JPO Absorbents	11/0	325
34	42	33	Tony Raines	Chevrolet	Precon Marine	10/0	323
35	21	34	David Ragan	Ford	Scorpion Truck Bed Liners	10/1	313
36	8	2	Brad Keselowski	Dodge	Miller Lite	8/0	312
37	41	36	Dave Blaney	Chevrolet	Jimmie Johnson's Anything With an Engine	7/0	228
38	37	93	Travis Kvapil	Toyota	Dr Pepper	6/0	114
39	32	26	Josh Wise *	Ford	Morristown Driver's Service	5/0	66
40	43	119	Mike Bliss	Toyota	Humphrey Smith Racing	0	38
41	33	98	Michael McDowell	Ford	Curb Records	3/0	36
42	40	23	Scott Riggs	Chevrolet	North Texas Pipe / Embassy Suites	2/0	25
43	38	195	Scott Speed	Ford	Tommy Williams Drywall	1/0	13

For more NASCAR coverage, be sure to check out SB Nation's NASCAR hub.

2012 Samsung Mobile 500 At Texas Motor Speedway: Starting Lineup, TV Schedule And More

The 2012 Samsung Mobile 500 is set for Saturday night, as NASCAR week at Texas Motor Speedway comes to a conclusion -- for the spring, at least.

Tonight's race at Texas Motor Speedway will get underway at 6:46 p.m. local time. Pre-race festivities, however, will begin at 3:50 p.m. CT, with a concert by Foreigner being held at 4:30 p.m.

Defending Samsung Mobile champion Matt Kenseth is second in the starting lineup this year, behind pole winner Martin Truex Jr. Current Sprint Cup Series points leader Greg Biffle is third. Jeff Gluck, SB Nation's NASCAR guru, posted the entire starting lineup over at SB Nation's NASCAR hub, and it is as follows:

1. Martin Truex Jr.
2. Matt Kenseth
3. Greg Biffle
4. Mark Martin
5. Kasey Kahne
6. Ryan Newman
7. Marcos Ambrose
8. Brad Keselowski
9. Jamie McMurray
10. Jimmie Johnson
11. Paul Menard
12. AJ Allmendinger
13. Denny Hamlin
14. Joey Logano
15. Kevin Harvick
16. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
17. Kyle Busch
18. Clint Bowyer
19. Trevor Bayne
20. Carl Edwards
21. David Ragan
22. Casey Mears
23. Aric Almirola
24. Jeff Burton
25. Juan Pablo Montoya
26. Regan Smith
27. Kurt Busch
28. Landon Cassill
29. Tony Stewart
30. Bobby Labonte
31. David Reutimann
32. Josh Wise
33. Michael McDowell
34. Jeff Gordon
35. David Gilliland
36. JJ Yeley
37. Travis Kvapil
38. Scott Speed
39. Reed Sorenson
40. Scott Riggs
41. Dave Blaney
42. Tony Raines
43. Mike Bliss

Televised coverage of this year's Samsung Mobile 500 can be found nationally on FOX. Radio coverage of the event can be heard locally on The FAN, 105.3FM KLRD.

For more on all things NASCAR, be sure to check out SB Nation's NASCAR hub.

2012 Samsung Mobile 500: Trevor Bayne Has Fastest Practice Lap

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers had their final practice laps before qualifying on Friday afternoon, and Trevor Bayne ran the fastest lap of all drivers, with a top lap time of 184.641 miles per hour.

Bayne did notch a victory at Texas Motor Speedway last year, but it was in the Nationwide Series, as he won the O'Reilly Auto Parts 300.

Ford cars had a nice showing in the final practice for the Samsung Mobile 500. Not only was Bayne driving a Ford for the fastest lap time, but the next two fastest laps were also in Ford cars:

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points leader Greg Biffle (No. 16 Filtrete Ford) and defending Samsung Mobile 500 champion Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Best Buy Ford) gave Roush Fenway the next two spots and a top-three sweep for Ford. Biffle ran a lap of 184.370 mph and Kenseth followed at 184.351.

For more on NASCAR, be sure to check out SB Nation's NASCAR hub.

The NASCAR Experience

There's no scene in American sports quite like a NASCAR weekend.

NASCAR At Texas Motor Speedway: Friday Schedule

It's NASCAR week at Texas Motor Speedway, and Friday will be a busy day at the Texas track. Both the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series will have qualifying on Friday, and at night, the Nationwide Series will hold the O'Reilly Auto Parts 300.

Gates will open for NASCAR fans at 9:30 a.m. CT, as dedicated fans will be able to watch the final practices for both the NNS and NCNS drivers.

The full Friday schedule is as follows:

Friday, April 13
8:30am - 7:30pm	Texas Motor Speedway Credentials Office Hours
8:30am	NNS Garage & Registration Opens
9:30am	Gate 4 Opens
9:30am	Pit Road Open
10:00am-11:00am	NNS Final Practice
11:00am	NSCS HOT PASS IN EFFECT
12:00pm - 8:00pm	NSCS Garage & Registration Hours
1:30pm	Gates Open (1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 & 11)
1:30pm	Luxury Suites & Victory Lane Club Opens
2:00pm-3:30pm	NSCS Final Practice (TV: SPEED)
4:00pm	Live NASCAR Memorabilia auction benefitting Speedway Children's Charities (9th floor Speedway Club)
4:05pm	NNS SportsDay Qualifying Day Powered by The Dallas Morning News(TV: ESPN2)
5:10pm	NSCS HOT PASS IN EFFECT
5:40pm	NSCS SportsDay Qualifying Day Powered by The Dallas Morning News(TV: SPEED)
7:30pm	NNS O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 (200 Laps, 300 Miles/TV:ESPN,Local Radio:The FAN 105.3FM KRLD)
Midnight 12:00am	Burnout Alley Load In Closes

For more on NASCAR, be sure to head over to SB Nation's NASCAR hub.

2012 Samsung Mobile 500 Odds: Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon The Favorites

It's NASCAR week at Texas Motor Speedway, and it all culminates on Saturday night when the 2012 Samsung Mobile 500 gets underway. Last year, Matt Kenseth won, but the defending Samsung Mobile 500 champion isn't the favorite -- though that shouldn't come as much surprise.

Vegas Insider, which is presented by Top Bet, lists NASCAR superstar Jimmie Johnson as the favorite for this year's Samsung Mobile 500, giving him 5/1 odds to win on Saturday night. This comes as a surprise to absolutely nobody, of course, as Johnson has been the most dominant driver in recent years.

Last year's winner, Matt Kenseth, has 10/1 odds to win, which is tied for fifth best. Jeff Gordon (6/1), Kyle Busch (7/1) and Tony Stewart (8/1) are also ahead of Kenseth.

Dale Earnhardt Junior, who won his first NASCAR race ever at Texas Motor Speedway, has 12/1 odds to win the race on Saturday night.

Qualifying for the Samsung Mobile 500 will be held on Friday afternoon.

For more on NASCAR, be sure to check out SB Nation's NASCAR hub.

NASCAR At Texas Motor Speedway: Thursday Schedule

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series driers will get their first crack at Texas Motor Speedway on Thursday, as practice begins for both the 2012 Samsung Mobile 500 and the 2012 O'Reilly Auto Parts 300.

Fans will be able to get into Texas Motor Speedway to watch the practice laps at 4:00 p.m. CT, when gates three, four and five open up. The entire Thursday schedule is as follows>

Thursday, April 12
7:00am	NNS Haulers Enter
9:00am - 7:30pm	Texas Motor Speedway Credentials Office Hours
10:00am	NSCS Haulers Enter
11:00am - 6:00pm	NSCS Registration Hours
11:30am - 7:30pm	NSCS Garage Hours
12:30pm - 6:00pm	NNS Registration Hours
1:00pm - 9:00pm	NNS Garage Hours
4:00pm	Gates 3, 4 & 5 Open
4:00pm	Pit Road Open
4:00pm	Luxury Suites and Victory Lane Club Opens
4:00pm	NSCS HOT PASS IN EFFECT
4:30pm- 6:30pm	NSCS Practice
6:40pm - 8:00pm	NNS Practice

The practice laps are the calm before the storm, as Friday will have the qualifying laps for both the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series, as well as the O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 later at night.

For more on NASCAR, be sure to check out SB Nation's NASCAR hub.

2012 Samsung Mobile 500: Weekend Schedule

It's NASCAR week at the Texas Motor Speedway, and we're nearing the beginning of the weekend festivities, which will culminate with the 2012 Samsung Mobile 500 on Saturday night.

On Thursday, drivers will get to take their first practice runs at Texas Motor Speedway. Gates will open for fans at 4 p.m. CT. The Sprint Cup Series practice will begin at 4:30 p.m. CT and end at 6:30, before giving way to the NASCAR Nationwide Series drivers at 6:40.

Friday will be a busy day at Texas Motor Speedway. NASCAR Nationwide Series qualifying will begin at 4:05 p.m and will be televised on ESPN2. The Sprint Cup Series drivers will then hold their own qualifying at 5:40 p.m. After that, fans will get to watch the first race of the year at Texas Motor Speedway: the NASCAR Nationwide Series O'Reilly Auto Parts 300, which has a scheduled start time of 7:30 p.m. CT.

Saturday is the main event though, as the 2012 Samsung Mobile 500 will start at 6:30 p.m. CT, weather permitting.

For more on NASCAR, be sure to head over to SB Nation's NASCAR hub.

Texas Motor Speedway: Trevor Bayne, Kenny Wallace To Miss Nationwide Race

Thanks to sponsorship issues, the O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 will be without two of the most recognizable names in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Trevor Bayne and Kenny Wallace will both miss this weekend's Nationwide race at Texas Motor Speedway -- and it's certainly unfortunate in both instances.

Bayne simply couldn't come up with the sponsorship to run in this weekend's race, despite car owner Jack Roush's efforts. Jordan Bianchi over at SB Nation offers some explanation:

Ten years ago, he would have had companies backing up trucks full of money to sponsor him after his out-of-nowhere win in the Daytona 500. But in a struggling economy with companies still not embracing NASCAR with the same ferocity as they used to, that is simply no longer the case.

To his credit, Bayne's car owner Jack Roush has done everything he can to solicit sponsorship for Bayne - up to and including funding the No. 60 team out of his team's own pocket so that Bayne could run the first five Nationwide races of the year in an effort to stimulate support.

Wallace is also a victim of a lack of funding, though Ryan Truex, who is a part of Wallace's racing team, will be running this weekend. Truex was able to find sponsorship for this weekend.

For more on NASCAR week at Texas Motor Speedway, be sure to check out SB Nation's NASCAR hub.

2012 Samsung Mobile 500: Greg Biffle Looks To Expand Sprint Cup Lead

NASCAR returns to Texas Motor Speedway this weekend, and once again, the main event is on a Saturday night. The 2012 Samsung Mobile 500 will be held Saturday night at 6:30 p.m. CT from Texas Motor Speedway -- and Greg Biffle will be looking to expand on his Sprint Cup standings lead.

Biffle currently sits atop the Sprint Cup standings with 226 points, just a mere six ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr. Many eyes will likely be on Dale Junior this weekend, as the Texas Motor Speedway was the site of his first-ever NASCAR series victory.

Still, it's very early in the Sprint Cup Series standings, as six drivers are within 24 points of the lead. Defending Samsung Mobile 500 champion Matt Kenseth is tied for third in the standings, along with Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, and Martin Truex Jr. The four drivers are just 12 points off of Biffle's lead.

Denny Hamlin and Ryan Newman are 16 and 24 points back respectively.

For more NASCAR coverage, be sure to check out SB Nation's NASCAR hub.

Texas Motor Speedway: NASCAR Nationwide Series O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 Entry List Announced

It's NASCAR week at Texas Motor Speedway this week, and while most eyes will be on Saturday night's Sprint Cup race, there's also another important race on Friday night -- the O'Reilly Auto Parts 300.

While the NASCAR Nationwide Series isn't as heralded as the Sprint Cup Series, there's still some quality racing to be watched -- and it's often a stepping stone for young drivers before they hit the Sprint Cup Series full time.

The entry list for the O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 was announced, and is as follows:

Entry	Veh #	Driver	Owner	Crew Chief	Veh Mfg	Sponsor
1	01	Mike Wallace	Johnny Davis	Newt Moore	12 Chevrolet	G&K Services
2	2	Elliott Sadler	Delana Harvick	Luke Lambert	12 Chevrolet	ONE MAIN FINANCIAL
3	3	Austin Dillon	Morgan Shepherd	Danny Stockman Jr	12 Chevrolet	AMERICAN ETHANOL
4	4	Danny Efland	Rusty Wallace	Patrick Magee	12 Chevrolet	iWorld
5	5	Dale Earnhardt Jr(i)	Rick Hendrick	Tony Eury Sr	12 Chevrolet	Degree
6	6	Ricky Stenhouse Jr	Jack Roush	Michael Kelley	12 Ford Pure	Michigan
7	7	Danica Patrick	Kelley Earnhardt-Miller	Tony Eury Jr	12 Chevrolet	GoDaddy.com
8	108	TBA	Randy Hill	George Ingram	12 Ford Randy	Hill Racing
9	09	TBA	Robby Benton	Scott Zipadelli	11 Toyota	TBA
10	10	Jeff Green	Mark Smith	Todd Myers	12 Toyota	TBD
11	11	Brian Scott	J D Gibbs	Kevin Kidd	11 Toyota	Dollar General
12	12	Sam Hornish Jr	Roger Penske	Chad Walter	12 Dodge	Wurth
13	14	Eric McClure	Mark Smith	Wes Ward	12 Toyota	Hefty/ReynoldsWrap Toyota Camry
14	15	Timmy Hill(i)	Rick Ware	George Church	12 Ford	Poynt.com
15	18	Denny Hamlin(i)	Joe Gibbs	Matthew Lucas	12 Toyota	SportClips
16	19	Tayler Malsam	Mark Smith	Eddie Pardue	12 Toyota	G-Oil
17	20	Joey Logano(i)	Joe Gibbs	Adam Stevens	12 Toyota	GameStop
18	22	Brad Keselowski(i)	Roger Penske	Jeremy Bullins	12 Dodge	Discount Tire
19	23	Robert Richardson Jr	Robert Richardson Sr	Greg Conner	12 Chevrolet	Tia Rosa-Embassy Suites
20	124	Benny Gordon	Jason Sciavicco	Dave Fuge	12 Chevrolet	Samuel Metal, Dillon Manufacturing
21	27	David Ragan(i)	Steve Meehan	Wayne Grubb	12 Ford	Mercury
22	30	Steve Arpin	Harry Scott Jr	Trent Owens	12 Chevrolet	Mike's On The Rocks
23	31	Justin Allgaier	Sandra Turner	Jimmy Elledge	12 Chevrolet	Brandt
24	33	Paul Menard(i)	Delana Harvick	Ernie Cope	12 Chevrolet	MENARDS
25	38	Kasey Kahne(i)	Steve Turner	Mike Shiplett	12 Chevrolet	Great Clips
26	39	TBA	Archie St Hilaire	Clinton Cram	12 Ford	Fenton Motors
27	40	Erik Darnell	Curtis Key Sr	Gary Showalter	12 Chevrolet	TBA
28	41	Blake Koch	Rick Ware	Chris Wright	12 Ford	TBA
29	42	Josh Wise(i)	Curtis Key Sr	Mike Sroufe	12 Chevrolet	TBA
30	43	Michael Annett	Sandra Turner	Philippe Lopez	12 Ford	Pilot/Flying J
31	44	Mike Bliss	Mark Smith	Paul Clapprood	12 Toyota	TBD
32	46	Chase Miller	Curtis Key Sr	Jacob Richardson	12 Chevrolet	TBA
33	47	Scott Speed(i)	Curtis Key Sr	Bobby Burrell	12 Chevrolet	TBA
34	50	T J Bell	Rusty Wallace	Bobby Burrell	12 Chevrolet	Gulf Coast Software
35	51	Jeremy Clements	Tony Clements	Ricky Pearson	10 Chevrolet	Clements Automotive
36	52	Tim Schendel	Jimmy Means	Tim Brown	11 Chevrolet	Metro Ministries
37	54	Kurt Busch(i)	Kyle Busch	Mike Beam	12 Toyota	Monster Energy
38	70	Johanna Long	Mary Louise Miller	Mark Gutekunst	12 Chevrolet	Foretravel
39	172	John Jackson	James Carter	James Malone	12 Toyota	Crash Claims R US
40	174	TBA	Mike Harmon	Daniel Kolanda	12 Chevrolet	Koma Unwind
41	175	Scott Riggs(i)	Rick Ware	TBA	12 Chevrolet	RWR
42	81	Jason Bowles	Gina MacDonald	John Monsam	12 Toyota	American Majority
43	87	Joe Nemechek	Andrea Nemechek	Gary Cogswell	12 Toyota	SWM International, Inc.
44	88	Cole Whitt	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Bruce Cook	12 Chevrolet	TaxSlayer.com
45	89	Morgan Shepherd	Morgan Shepherd	Gary Ravan	11 Chevrolet	TBA

The O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 will get underway on Friday night, at 7:30 p.m. CT. Televised coverage can be found on ESPN.

NASCAR At Texas Motor Speedway: 2012 Samsung Mobile 500

Matt Kenseth will look to defend his 2011 Samsung Mobile 500 win on Sunday, as NASCAR returns to Texas Motor Speedway.