2017 Ford EcoBoost 400
# 2017 Ford EcoBoost 400

The 2017 Ford EcoBoost 400 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on November 19, 2017, at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida. Contested over 267 laps on the 1.5 mile (2.4 km) oval, it was the 36th and final race of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, and was also the final race for the Chevrolet SS which debuted at the 2013 Daytona 500, as its replacement for 2018 would be the Camaro ZL1.

This race marks the final cup start for Dale Earnhardt Jr.

## Report

### Background

Homestead-Miami Speedway is a motor racing track located in Homestead, Florida. The track, which has several configurations, has promoted several series of racing, including NASCAR, the Verizon IndyCar Series, the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series and the Championship Cup Series.

Since 2002, Homestead-Miami Speedway has hosted the final race of the season in all three of NASCAR's series: the Sprint Cup Series, Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series. Ford Motor Company sponsors all three of the season-ending races; the races have the names Ford EcoBoost 400, Ford EcoBoost 300 and Ford EcoBoost 200, respectively, and the weekend is marketed as Ford Championship Weekend. The Xfinity Series (then known as the Busch Series) has held its season-ending races at Homestead since 1995.

**Championship drivers**

Kyle Busch was the first of the four drivers to clinch a spot in the Championship 4, winning the first race of the Round of 8 at Martinsville.

Kevin Harvick clinched the second spot in the Championship 4, winning the second race of the Round of 8 at Texas.

Martin Truex Jr. clinched the third spot in the Championship 4 after the Texas race based on points.

Brad Keselowski clinched the final spot based on points after the Phoenix race.

**Entry list**

| No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski (CC) | Team Penske | Ford |
| 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 4 | Kevin Harvick (CC) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 13 | Ty Dillon (R) | Germain Racing | Chevrolet |
| 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 15 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 18 | Kyle Busch (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 19 | Daniel Suárez (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 23 | Corey LaJoie (i) | BK Racing | Toyota |
| 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing | Ford |
| 33 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group | Chevrolet |
| 34 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 37 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford |
| 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 51 | Ray Black Jr. (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 66 | David Starr (i) | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 72 | Cole Whitt | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota |
| 78 | Martin Truex Jr. (CC) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota |
| 83 | Joey Gase (i) | BK Racing | Toyota |
| 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 95 | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet |
| Official entry list ||||

## First practice

Kyle Busch was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 31.269 seconds and a speed of 172.695 mph (277.926 km/h).

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 31.269 | 172.695 |
| 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 31.299 | 172.529 |
| 3 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 31.420 | 171.865 |
| Official first practice results |||||||

## Qualifying

Denny Hamlin scored the pole for the race with a time of 31.038 and a speed of 173.980 mph (279.994 km/h).

### Qualifying results

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | R1 | R2 | R3 |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 30.931 | 30.949 | 31.038 |
| 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. (CC) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 30.743 | 30.889 | 31.043 |
| 3 | 18 | Kyle Busch (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 30.904 | 30.918 | 31.047 |
| 4 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 31.405 | 30.972 | 31.272 |
| 5 | 2 | Brad Keselowski (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 31.228 | 31.322 | 31.313 |
| 6 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 31.105 | 31.019 | 31.330 |
| 7 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 31.188 | 31.081 | 31.358 |
| 8 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 31.183 | 31.195 | 31.376 |
| 9 | 4 | Kevin Harvick (CC) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 31.103 | 30.987 | 31.418 |
| 10 | 19 | Daniel Suárez (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 31.286 | 31.247 | 31.434 |
| 11 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 31.288 | 31.204 | 31.532 |
| 12 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 31.502 | 31.317 | 31.556 |
| 13 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 31.426 | 31.322 | — |
| 14 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 31.267 | 31.365 | — |
| 15 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 31.337 | 31.367 | — |
| 16 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 31.208 | 31.396 | — |
| 17 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 31.348 | 31.459 | — |
| 18 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.243 | 31.470 | — |
| 19 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 31.391 | 31.524 | — |
| 20 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 31.457 | 31.541 | — |
| 21 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 31.486 | 31.577 | — |
| 22 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.355 | 31.595 | — |
| 23 | 95 | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 31.255 | 31.640 | — |
| 24 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.320 | 0.000 | — |
| 25 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 31.588 | — | — |
| 26 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 31.601 | — | — |
| 27 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.621 | — | — |
| 28 | 34 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 31.632 | — | — |
| 29 | 37 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 31.647 | — | — |
| 30 | 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 31.650 | — | — |
| 31 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 31.814 | — | — |
| 32 | 13 | Ty Dillon (R) | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 31.831 | — | — |
| 33 | 72 | Cole Whitt | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | 32.014 | — | — |
| 34 | 23 | Corey LaJoie (i) | BK Racing | Toyota | 32.301 | — | — |
| 35 | 83 | Joey Gase (i) | BK Racing | Toyota | 32.796 | — | — |
| 36 | 33 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group | Chevrolet | 32.801 | — | — |
| 37 | 15 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 32.997 | — | — |
| 38 | 66 | David Starr (i) | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | 33.025 | — | — |
| 39 | 51 | Ray Black Jr. (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 34.010 | — | — |
| Official qualifying results ||||||||

## Practice (post-qualifying)

### Second practice

Denny Hamlin was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 31.555 seconds and a speed of 171.130 mph (275.407 km/h).

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 31.555 | 171.130 |
| 2 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.638 | 170.681 |
| 3 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 31.761 | 170.020 |
| Official second practice results |||||||

### Final practice

Martin Truex Jr. was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 31.543 seconds and a speed of 171.195 mph (275.512 km/h).

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 31.543 | 171.195 |
| 2 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 31.804 | 169.790 |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 31.807 | 169.774 |
| Official final practice results |||||||

## Race

### Race results

**Stage results**

* Note: Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, and Brad Keselowski were not eligible for stage points because of their participation in the Championship 4.

Stage 1 Laps: 80

| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 2 | Brad Keselowski (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 0 |
| 3 | 18 | Kyle Busch (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 0 |
| 4 | 4 | Kevin Harvick (CC) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 0 |
| 5 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. (CC) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 0 |
| 6 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 3 |
| 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage one results ||||||

Stage 2 Laps: 80

| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. (CC) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 0 |
| 3 | 4 | Kevin Harvick (CC) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 0 |
| 4 | 18 | Kyle Busch (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 0 |
| 5 | 2 | Brad Keselowski (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 0 |
| 6 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 4 |
| 8 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 1 |
| Official stage two results ||||||

### Final stage results

Stage 3 Laps: 107

| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. (CC) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 267 | 40 |
| 2 | 3 | 18 | Kyle Busch (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 267 | 35 |
| 3 | 7 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 267 | 54 |
| 4 | 9 | 4 | Kevin Harvick (CC) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 267 | 33 |
| 5 | 18 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 267 | 39 |
| 6 | 19 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 267 | 36 |
| 7 | 5 | 2 | Brad Keselowski (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 267 | 30 |
| 8 | 4 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 267 | 33 |
| 9 | 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 267 | 32 |
| 10 | 21 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 267 | 27 |
| 11 | 17 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 267 | 26 |
| 12 | 16 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 267 | 26 |
| 13 | 13 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 266 | 24 |
| 14 | 26 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 266 | 23 |
| 15 | 6 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 266 | 22 |
| 16 | 15 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 265 | 21 |
| 17 | 30 | 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 265 | 20 |
| 18 | 20 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 265 | 19 |
| 19 | 12 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 265 | 18 |
| 20 | 29 | 37 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 265 | 17 |
| 21 | 14 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 265 | 16 |
| 22 | 8 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 265 | 24 |
| 23 | 28 | 34 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 265 | 14 |
| 24 | 23 | 95 | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 265 | 13 |
| 25 | 24 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 264 | 12 |
| 26 | 32 | 13 | Ty Dillon (R) | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 264 | 11 |
| 27 | 22 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 264 | 10 |
| 28 | 33 | 72 | Cole Whitt | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | 264 | 9 |
| 29 | 11 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 264 | 8 |
| 30 | 31 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 263 | 7 |
| 31 | 34 | 23 | Corey LaJoie (i) | BK Racing | Toyota | 261 | 0 |
| 32 | 36 | 33 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group | Chevrolet | 259 | 5 |
| 33 | 27 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 234 | 4 |
| 34 | 10 | 19 | Daniel Suárez (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 225 | 3 |
| 35 | 37 | 15 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 212 | 2 |
| 36 | 38 | 66 | David Starr (i) | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | 175 | 0 |
| 37 | 25 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 139 | 1 |
| 38 | 39 | 51 | Ray Black Jr. (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 |
| 39 | 35 | 83 | Joey Gase (i) | BK Racing | Toyota | 4 | 0 |
| Official race results ||||||||

With the win at Miami, Truex is the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Champion. While Busch finished 2nd in the championship. Harvick finished 3rd in the championship, and Keselowski finished 4th of the Championship 4.

### Race statistics

* Lead changes: 4 among different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 5 for 26
* Red flags: 0
* Time of race: 3 hours, 2 minutes, 11 seconds
* Average speed: 131.900 miles per hour (212.272 km/h)

## Media

### Television

NBC covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte had the call in the booth for the race. Dave Burns, Parker Kligerman, Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast reported from pit lane during the race. While the race itself aired on NBC, NBCSN aired NBCSN NASCAR Hot Pass, a simultaneous live feed dedicated to each of the Championship drivers, with commentary by Leigh Diffey and Dale Jarrett. Also, three different angles from in-car cameras and a track map tracked the driver's position and changes throughout the field.

NBC :

| Booth announcers | Pit reporters |
| - | - |
| Lap-by-lap: Rick Allen Color-commentator: Jeff Burton Color-commentator: Steve Letarte | Dave Burns Parker Kligerman Marty Snider Kelli Stavast |

### Radio

MRN had the radio call for the race, which was simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.

MRN :

| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| - | - | - |
| Lead announcer: Joe Moore Announcer: Jeff Striegle Announcer: Rusty Wallace | Turns 1 & 2: Dave Moody Turns 3 & 4: Mike Bagley | Alex Hayden Winston Kelley Steve Post |

## Final season standings

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| - | - | - | - |
| 2 | 1 | Martin Truex Jr. | 5,040 |
| | 2 | Kyle Busch | 5,035 (−5) |
| 2 | 3 | Kevin Harvick | 5,033 (−7) |
| | 4 | Brad Keselowski | 5,030 (−10) |
| | 5 | Chase Elliott | 2,377 (−2,663) |
| | 6 | Denny Hamlin | 2,353 (−2,687) |
| | 7 | Matt Kenseth | 2,344 (−2,696) |
| 1 | 8 | Kyle Larson | 2,320 (−2,720) |
| 1 | 9 | Ryan Blaney | 2,305 (−2,735) |
| | 10 | Jimmie Johnson | 2,260 (−2,780) |
| 2 | 11 | Austin Dillon | 2,224 (−2,816) |
| | 12 | Jamie McMurray | 2,224 (−2,816) |
| 2 | 13 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 2,222 (−2,818) |
| 1 | 14 | Kurt Busch | 2,217 (−2,823) |
| 1 | 15 | Kasey Kahne | 2,198 (−2,842) |
| | 16 | Ryan Newman | 2,196 (−2,844) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
| | Pos | Manufacturer | Points |
| | 1 | Toyota | 1,292 |
| | 2 | Ford | 1,254 (−38) |
| | 3 | Chevrolet | 1,247 (−45) |
| Official manufacturers' standings ||||
