Tag: crown jewel

OFFICIAL: MAKING ARCA GREAT AGAIN

Crown Jewel Officials have announced changes to the Crown Jewel ARCA Series. After being sighted at multiple tracks across the country this weekend testing the Generation 6 (GEN 6) Cup Car. Crown Jewel Officials have announced that the ARCA series will move forward with the mid-season change over to the GEN 6 with a 90 KG weight addition and a 5% power reduction. Officials announced this change will take effect immediately causing car owners to scramble with paint scheme changes for next week’s race at Phoenix Raceway on July 21st.

“I have really been communicating with Crown Jewel Officials and pushing for them to make this change happen. I hope these changes will make a positive impact and keep the ARCA Series around for the foreseeable future.”

Thomas Villano #1 Chevrolet ARCA Series Driver

REPORT: HAS THE DRIVER CAROUSEL STARTED TO SPIN?

It’s that time of year when team owners grow tired of excuses, poor performance, and bad behavior. Their patience only lasts so long before they decide enough is enough and make changes to see who will finish out the remaining races of the season.

The rumor mill is in full swing, with grumblings heard across the league, and this week’s penalty report hasn’t helped slow it down. Factory Motorsports is at the top of the list, with their Public Relations team working hard to put out fires. Will Nic Vasquez return as the driver of the #22 Factory Motorsports Ford once his suspension is over, or will team owner Stephen Menke give a lesser-experienced driver the reins for the rest of the year?

The team is also dealing with Zander Short’s absence from the Cup League. Reports suggest he has been seen in numerous clubs in the early hours of the morning. Let’s hope Factory Motorsports isn’t facing a Johnny Manziel situation in the garage. Factory Motorsports said they will not be issuing any comments at this time.

Mike Burnett and Kris Burnham did not make it to Chicago for the street race. The Backroad Bandit’s Racing Teams social media page showcased the #39 Sears Chevrolet paint scheme earlier in the day, ready to go, but the hauler must have gotten stuck in traffic on the backroads of Chicago. A request for comment was not returned at the time this article was published.

Word on the street is that Moonshine Motorsports will be looking to add at least one more driver for next season. Potential drivers for that spot could be Paul Maziere, Jonathan Leger, or Thomas Villano, all of whom sit within the Top 25 of the seasons point standings and remain independent drivers in the league.

Connor Wold, the defending MCRL Cup Series Champion, has been unable to race since Phoenix this year due to scheduling conflicts with his employer. Will Top Tier keep his seat warm, waiting for his return, or will they kick him to the curb before next season to try to improve in the team point standings?

CHICAGO: Wolfe Triumphs Against All Odds to Secure Second Victory

CHICAGO- Thomas Wolfe arrived on the streets of Chicago with determination, following skepticism about his road course skills earlier in the week. As soon as he settled into the cockpit of his #94 RYCO Performance Chevrolet, he was resolute in his aim to dominate.

Despite only two of the four Backroad Bandit Racing Team drivers making it to Chicago, they managed to secure the front row for the 110 Mile race sponsored by the Bryan A. Leach Foundation. Wolfe demonstrated his speed and prowess by taking the pole position with a time of 1:28.116, and his teammate Zack Saunders followed closely, qualifying second with a time of 1:29.429.

Wolfe took the green flag and immediately pulled away, leaving the field trailing with a ten-second lead in just the first four laps. Race favorite Zack Saunders encountered trouble on lap four, failing to slow his car sufficiently before entering Turn 6 and colliding with the concrete barrier, resulting in significant damage to the right front. Saunders returned to the pits, falling several laps behind and dashing his hopes for consecutive victories on the road courses.

#91 Zack Saunders nails the concrete barrier on lap 4 essentially ruining his race.

By the 10th lap, Thomas Wolfe had increased his lead to 28 seconds. However, navigating through a field of lapped cars, many with front-end damage, posed a new challenge. On the 12th lap, Wolfe and Nic Vasquez were involved in multiple incidents, beginning in Turn 1 where Vasquez, braking too late, collided with Wolfe, sending him into the Turn 1 wall. Despite the damage, which resulted in a “meatball” black flag for Wolfe, he maintained pace and caught up to Vasquez in the chicane between turns 9 and 10. Attempting a pass, Vasquez made contact with Wolfe, causing Wolfe to spin. Penalties have been issued for this incident and you can view the penalty report here.

Cody Porter seized the lead while Wolfe was receiving repairs, ultimately securing the Stage 1 victory. Starting from the 20th position, Steven Carlile navigated through the chaos to finish 4th in Stage 1. During the stage caution, most of the field pitted, with Menke emerging in the lead off pit road to begin Stage 2. However, Menke’s advantage was brief as he and Oskar Jensen collided into the Turn 1 wall, prompting the first and only full course caution.

Cory Mott took the lead after the caution and maintained it to win Stage 2, marking his third stage victory of the year. However, he would not secure the overall race win, as he spun out after Turn 1 on the restart. Steven Carlile then took the lead, only to be overtaken by Cody Porter. Porter’s lead was brief, as Crown Jewel Officials penalized him with a drive-through for changing lanes on the restart before reaching the start/finish line.

“I am going to battle Steven (Carlile) hard for this win, but at the end of the day if I don’t win this, I am rooting for him to win.”

Cory Mott #1 Top Tier Chevrolet

Carlile has held a strong position in the season’s point standings, yet a victory remains elusive. Securing 2nd place in every road course race this year, Carlile was on the cusp of a win. As lap 40 began, Carlile had a 10-second lead, but Wolfe, now in 2nd place, was closing in fast, targeting Carlile and the lead. On Lap 41, Wolfe clocked his fastest lap at 1:28.181, nearly 4 seconds quicker than Carlile’s. With only five laps remaining, Carlile approached Turn 2 too quickly, hit the wall, and Wolfe seized the opportunity to take the lead, his first since Lap 12.

#94 Thomas Wolfe retakes the lead with 5 to go from #7 Steven Carlile.

Wolfe secured his second victory of the regular season at the Grant Park 110, affirming his status as one of the premier road course racers in the Crown Jewel Racing League. Carlile, once again, finished in second place, falling prey to Wolfe’s prowess. Following the race, Carlile made the following statement.

” I am not to torn up about it since Wolfe was the fastest driver out there and deserved to win but coming up 2nd again on a road course (for the 3rd time) is a bit frustrating. In the end the only thing we can do is to get ourselves in a position to have a chance each week, then avoid the mistakes.”

Steven Carlile #7 +MVT Racing Chevrolet

With 6 races to go, the playoff battle is really heating up for those final playoff spots. Check out the playoff standings to see which drivers are desperate for that first win next week in Long Pond, Pennsylvania for the HighPoint.com 225 at Pocono Raceway.

RICHMOND: Nishil Condoor falls short, Mott takes 2nd win of 2004 Cup

RICHMOND, V.A. — Mott finds victory lane for the 2nd time this week with his 2nd win in the newly re-branded Bob Henry’s 2004 Cup Series.

Tuesday night action at Richmond kicked off at 8:30 ET where 15 drivers took the field for a 200 lap event. Qualifying saw Mott take the pole with a 22.234 and just beat out Nishil Condoor’s 22.262 for the top spot. Auto Club winner Stewart Harding Walker would start 5th with a 22.479, more on him later.

As the green flag flew, Cory Mott would start battle off the jump with Nishil Condoor who would eventually go on to lead the most laps in the night with 138 laps lead. A 6 car incident on lap 2 would bring out the first caution of the night which would include Thomas Villano, Jay Salmon, Joe Gibbons, Jim Mott, Jonathan Leger, and Gordon Fraley. The wreck would total the cars of Salmon and Fraley, who were not pleased with that wreck.

Hilarious how the guy complaining about getting wrecked wrecks 4 people in the first few laps of the race, weird way to make friends on track.

Gordon Fraley, #9 Fraley Boys Racing Dodge

Racing would get back going but the night would be filled with cautions, 11 yellow flags flew in total with a count of 47 laps under yellow. Tempers would not cool down throughout the race as the sun set and track temps dropped for the last half of the race.

A constant battle for 3rd place between Stewart Harding Walker, Joe Gibbons, and Haden Higginbotham would take place through the first half with Higginbotham showing the most speed at first. Harding Walker would eventually fall back to a lap down and Gibbons would lose time to the #10.

On lap 82 tempers would pick back up as Harding Walker was trying to get back on the lead lap, locked up tires going into turn 3 and slid up the track into Higginbotham. Justin Bell would also end up being collected in the incident along with Leeroy Sellers. Higginbotham would end up finishing 13 laps down in 9th place.

Caution wouldn’t fly again until lap 119, when leaders Nishil Condoor and Cory Mott attempting to pass lap traffic would end up making contact and going around in turn 3. The track would stay green until lap 182 where Stewart Harding Walker would find himself in another incident this time with Jonathan Leger who had lost control of his car in turn 4.

Justin Bell who had just secured a 3rd place position missed pit entry under yellow and would end up losing track position after pitting a lap later than the leaders. This mistake would put the #8 of Joe Gibbons back into the top 3 just behind Cory Mott who had just taken the lead and Nishil Condoor.

We’re gonna send it for about 13 laps – hope we put on a show here.

Cory Mott, #1 Top Tier Racing Chevy

A string of late race cautions would plague the race as Cory Mott would secure the win. Under the last restart Joe Gibbons would sneak a nose past Nishil Condoor and squeak out a 2nd place finish, as for a first this year, the race would end under caution.

Joe [Gibbons] had a great run there – and I completely missed him diving underneath me.

Nishil Condoor, #42 Type R Honda

Cameras would end up catching a glimpse of the cause for caution, where Bill Martin seemingly had a “stuck throttle” heading into turn 1. The recipient of the incident was Stewart Harding Walker, who broadcast cameras would also catch intentionally hitting Martin back down pit road. Unsure of penalties coming out of this situation, check back tomorrow for a full week penalty report from Race Control Gordon Fraley.

Mott would extend his point lead over Gibbons with the win and seemed optimistic about next week’s race at Charlotte in post race interviews. Action tonight will kick off race 20 of the Circuit Cup Series year at the Chicago Street Course. Tune in to the broadcast at 8:10 ET to watch that action.

CHICAGO: WHAT TO WATCH FOR

The Grant Park 110: presented by The Bryan A. Leach Foundation. Green Flag Flies at 8:15pm est. https://www.twitch.tv/crownjewelrn



HOT DRIVERS

  • Thomas Wolfe-BBR-CHEVY- With 3, count them 3 second place finishes in the last 6 races, Seems like the 7th time might be the charm for Thomas in Chicago.
  • Allen Phillips-Hollywood-CHEVY- After securing his first top 10 in the last 4 races, Allen moves up to 12th place in the heated battle for the last remaining playoff spots.
  • Steven Carlile- PMR- CHEVY- Who would have thought a 6th place finish would bump him into the top 5 in points but here we are. Steven sits 4th in the points standings.

NOT DRIVERS

  • Paul Maziere-Independent-TOYOTA- After missing the last 2 races because of logistical reasons, Paul has slipped outside of the top 15 and may not have a spot in the playoffs even with his win.
  • Zander Short-Factory-FORD- Also not having raced since Iowa due to team issued substance abuse therapy, Zander, the series former points leader, finally falls outside of the top 5.(6th)

DRIVER NEWS

  • Factory Motorsports have hinted at surprise news to come next week.
  • Cameron Romano has signed a 1 year extension with WRL racing.
  • New comer Cody Porter shocked the league with sweeping Nashville.
  • Zach Johnson is reported to be back after his hauler was seen arriving in Chicago.
  • Driver of the 15 Ford Cody Leach was ask about incident with Thomas Villano last week at Nashville. He responded “No Comment”

FAN PICK OF THE WEEK

JOE T WRIGHT-WRL-FORD

Some may think lets go with the easy pick, throw Saunders or Wolfe on here because they have been showing some of the quickest times here in Chicago. On the other hand, with Thomas sitting at +470 for the win and the 91’s hauler not even spotting in Chicago yet, Joe sitting at +1850 seems just Wright. Joe is no stranger to road circuit being a former formula driver before heading over to the oval side of things and his times are right there with the top of the competition for Wednesday night! Its a safe pick in terms of his experience but a big winner if you decide to chase the dream of Joe Wright getting his first win of the season and secure his spot in the playoffs.

OFFICIAL: Romano Signs Contract Extension with WRL

Cameron Romano has secured his seat for the 2025 Crown Jewel Cup Series season per a recent press release from WRL Racing. Cameron Romano will be retiring the #55 Ford Mustang Darkhorse in favor of the #67 Toyota Camry TRD in 2025 for WRL Racing.

Official Press Release:

Cameron Romano currently sits 27th in the Circuit Cup Series standings with 0 top 5s and 3 top 10s. Earning only a dismal 21 stage points throughout the course of the season and an average running position of 18.6. The veteran Crown Jewel driver will look to have a turn-around season in 2025 with new support from their alliance with TRD and Top Tier.

STATS: Cameron Romano – CCS 2024

CHICAGO: Avila Steals the Win from Porter at Chicagoland

Johnny Avila takes the win from Cody Porter on a G/W/C Finish.

It was a beautiful Monday evening at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois to turn 134 laps to kick off Split #3 of the Sportsman Truck Series. Johnny Avila led 103 out of the 134 laps and won both stages, securing his second victory of the year.

Mike Burnett took the pole and would lead the first lap before Avila would take the reins and lead until a caution would come out on lap 13 due to Jonthan Leger getting into the wall in Turn 2 which caused him to collide with Robert Fraley and unfortunately myself.

A caution for Pete Morales spinning into the infield collecting Haden Higginbotham on the way would wind up being the last caution in the stage on lap 19. Matthew Owens, Sam Bennett, Allen Phillips and Nathaniel Campbell would try to mix things up by pitting in hopes to gain some positions after the stage. The first stage would end on lap 30 with Avila bringing home the stage win.

The early pit strategy from Sam Bennett would put him in the lead to begin stage two, but he quickly fell back in the field as Avila and Cody Porter would make their way back to the front by lap 37. Avila, Porter, and Zach Saunders would battle throughout stage 2 towards the front with some exciting side by side racing. Porter would give Avila a run for his money but was unable to capture the lead for the stage. Avila would take Stage 1 winning the stage by .044 of a second.

“Jim Mott told me to pit early, and if this restart doesn’t work out everyone should blame him.”

Sam Bennett #47 Top Tier Chevrolet

Avila, Porter, and Saunders would lead the pack into the final stage continuing their battle from Stage 2 until a caution flew on lap 71 which would set the trend for the rest of the race. From Lap 71 until the finish, 6 more cautions would keep the field bunched up and racing tight. Mike Burnett the pole sitter was involved in a caution on lap 77 with Oskar Jensen would move Burnett towards the rear of field. Burnett came into the race with the fastest truck, but it wasn’t fast enough to outrun the turmoil that was chasing him. Burnett would be involved in another incident on Lap 96 with Robert Fraley causing Burnett to take the truck to the garage.

Mike Burnett’s night ended after this collision with Robert Fraley. Burnett would finish with a disappointing 26th place finish.

Pete Morales worked his way back towards the front after the early spin in the race and was able to get back to 11th before an atrocious wreck on the front stretch on lap 102 involving Morales, Higginbotham, Aiden Schramm, and Ryan Taft. Morales sustained heavy damage after going airborne. He was cleared from the Infield Care Center, but the #95 Space-X Ford suffered fatal damage and will need a complete tear down and rebuild before next week’s race at Pocono.

This horrifying crash ended Pete Morales night with a 25th place finish.

A late caution with 5 to go involving Nathaniel Campbell would create for a thrilling Green, White, Checkered finish. Porter would lead them to the green flag and hold onto the lead to take the white flag, but Avila took the low line into turn one to take the lead and held off Porter for the win.

“I just like good, clean, close racing for the win.

It makes the racing fun which is why I joined the Crown Jewel Racing League.”

Johnny Avila #63 Xpress Esports Toyota

The Sportsmans Truck Series will travel to “The Tricky Triangle” of Pocono in Long Pond, Pennsylvania next Monday night July 15th.

If you are interested in racing come join us in our discord at https://discord.gg/cjracing

CHICAGO: Truck Series Split #3 – Who Will Come Out on Top?

The Sportsman Truck Series is kicking off Split #3 on Monday night at Chicagoland Speedway, and the excitement is building. With just 8 races to go, this split will decide the last 6 drivers for the playoffs.

Who is Locked-In

Zach Saunders, Mike Burnett, and Nishil Condoor clinched their spots in Split #1, and Cory Mott, Henry Kalhoff, and John Connor locked their spots last week in Nashville to conclude Split #2. Everyone else is racing to fill the last 3 spots in Split #3 and the 3 wildcard spots based on overall standings.

Who is on the Bubble

Drivers like Jim Mott, Thomas Villano, Ryan Taft, and Connor Wold are currently on the outside looking in for a playoff spot. They will need to get off to a hot start on Monday at Chicagoland Speedway.

MORE: Truck Series Playoff Picture

“The next two tracks are a couple of my favorite to run and I feel like I have a decent possibility of making a run for the playoffs”

Ryan Taft, #86 Indy Auto Sport Chevrolet Silverado

Menke Missing in Action


Stephen Menke who finished tied for 3rd in Split #1, but lost the tie breaker and the locked in playoff spot to Mike Burnett. Is looking to rebound in Split #3 after finishing 19th in Split #2. Menke who is currently ranked 6th in points missed several races in Split #2 and that trend could continue in the Truck Series into Split #3.

“It has been a busy couple of months on the farm. I don’t plan on missing any more cup races now that things have calmed down, but I don’t think I will have the time to be able to run both series full time. I will catch a truck race here and there, but my main focus is on the Cup Series.”

Stephen Menke – Factory Motorsports #6 Ford F150

Tune in on Monday night to see who can start off the leg of Split #3 and find their way to Victory Lane at Chicagoland Speedway in Joilet, Illinois. Racing will begin at 8:30 EST and as always streamed on the Crown Jewel Racing Network. Click the link to start watching https://www.twitch.tv/crownjewelrn.

CHICAGO: CCS Racing on the Wet Streets of Chicago

The upcoming Circuit Cup Series (CCS) race at the Chicago Street Course promises 50 laps of thrilling bumper-to-bumper racing on the vibrant streets of Chicago. With the playoffs around the corner, a race win on the Chicago Streets can hold the golden ticket for some drivers, guaranteeing their spot and leading to some exciting racing.

This will be the first time the Crown Jewel Racing League has visited the Chicago Street Course in the Next Gen Stock Car. These street roads are fast and bumpy, and with the narrow walls in some portions, chaos can ensue in a hurry. Drivers will need to maintain pace while keeping their cars out of the walls to come away with a win.

Zack Saunders ran away with the win at the last road course in Sonoma, with Steven Carlile finishing 26 seconds behind him for second place. I expect Zack Saunders to have another dominating performance in Chicago. Newcomer driver Cody Porter has made his presence known in the league with a fourth-place finish at Sonoma and a sweep at Nashville last week, winning in both the Sportsman Truck Series and CCS. Porter will be ready to capitalize on any mistakes made at the front of the pack.

#94 Thomas Wolfe getting motivated by #04 Cody Porter at Nashville

The Playoffs are looming with 7 races to go. Carlile, Cody Leach, Vince Mitchell, Caleb “The Uberman” Tipton, and Allen Phillips are in the playoffs based on points, but would love to have that race win that guarantees their spot. Nathaniel Campbell and Garth Griswold sit outside the cutline 30 points back and are hoping for some quality finishes and a little bit of luck to sneak into the playoffs. Ben Lawson and Joe Wright are behind by 76 and 85 points, and that race win might be the only thing that can save them at this point.

Don’t miss the green flag on July 10th at 8:30 PM EST to find out who can tame the streets in Chicago. As always, the race will be streamed on the Crown Jewel Racing Network at https://www.twitch.tv/crownjewelrn.

Ushering in a new era: How the MCRL became Crown Jewel

A new era has arrived – but how did we get to this point? What have we learned? And how can we be the best version of ourselves moving forward?

How did we arrive here?

The Sunday Night Showdown held its inaugural race on September 11, 2022 – the Never Forget 165 (how many current league members can you spot?). The SNS was an early success, with an average of 13 drivers per race in the entirety of Season 0. As the SNS expanded to running on multiple days, the name no longer fit the league. The decision was made at that point to rebrand to “THE SHOW” – a slight modification to the SNS.

At this point, the community saw rapid expansion. Season 1 saw great success – with an average of 22 drivers per race in the season, and a top car count of 33 racers taking to the track at Talladega that season. But not all good things last…

MORE: Cup standings / Trucks Schedule

The Season 2 implosion came on the back of the biggest league expansions the league had ever seen. But the expansion was too rapid. The administration team was split, race craft was subpar, and the community was in chaos. With no fallback plan in place, the league had to back out of everything and enter a rebuilding phase. And thus, the Moving Chicanes Racing League was born from the ashes.

The Moving Chicanes era found the rebuilding from scratch, only maintaining a handful of original members from THE SHOW era. A three-month period was spent rebuilding including an invite-only Cup Series to clean up the Cup Series race craft, while incorporating our now second most popular series – the Sportsman Truck Series. These would be the building blocks for the MCRL 2024 project announced in September of 2023 which would see an Indy Car, IMSA, and Touring Car series added to expand the league into a significant amount of road racing for the first time. After some internal struggles relating to participation however, the road racing was later removed in the early parts of the 2024 season. This – however – was the beginning of the end of the nomenclature “Moving Chicanes Racing League”.

READ MORE: (Changes Article)

Why the change?

Competing leagues and disgruntled members would use the league’s own name against itself in times of trouble. This led to an overall negative connotation to the league name and made it an easy target for nay-sayers and competing leagues.

Ah, I see why it is called “Moving Chicanes” now.

Disgruntled League Member c. 2024

In an attempt to move away from negativity, we have decided it would be best to rebrand the league to a name more befitting of the racing we perform. During the brainstorming process, we gathered many ideas about past league events and phrases that related to the league. But, one always came back to us no matter where else we looked – Crown Jewel.

There’s another one of those “Moving Chicanes” again!

Former League Member, c. 2024

When assessing the potential names, Crown Jewel became the obvious choice due to the type of schedule we run in the Circuit Cup Series currently. However, we wanted it to become more than that. We wanted to surpass just the NASCAR Cup Series “crown jewel” events and take a look at motorsports as a whole – so that’s what we did. By implementing the “Crown Jewel” schedule across multiple disciplines of racing, we will be able to provide a taste of all famous motor racing events such as the Rolex 24, Daytona 500, Indy 500, 24 Hours of Les Mans, and many more.

READ MORE: (2024-2025 Crown Jewel Schedule)

Moving into the future, we are looking to bring a more positive outlook to the league and build strong, lasting relationships with the iRacing community. Having a general set of ideas and principles to work around as well as a strong brand that ties into those principles will ensure long-term success for the community as a whole. We hope you enjoy the rebrand, new look website, and all of the other cool features we are “ushering in” with this process!