2017 AAA Texas 500
# 2017 AAA Texas 500

The 2017 AAA Texas 500 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race which was held on November 5, 2017, at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. Contested over 334 laps on the 1.5 mile (2.4 km) intermediate quad-oval, it was the 34th race of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, eighth race of the Playoffs, and second race of the Round of 8.

## Report

### Background

Texas Motor Speedway is a speedway located in the northernmost portion of the U.S. city of Fort Worth, Texas – the portion located in Denton County, Texas. The track measures 1.5 miles (2.4 km) around and is banked 24 degrees in the turns, and is of the oval design, where the front straightaway juts outward slightly. The track layout is similar to Atlanta Motor Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway (formerly Lowe's Motor Speedway). The track is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., the same company that owns Atlanta and Charlotte Motor Speedways, as well as the short-track Bristol Motor Speedway.

**Entry list**

| No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 7 | Joey Gase (i) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 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 | 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 (R) | 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. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota |
| 83 | Gray Gaulding (R) | BK Racing | Toyota |
| 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 95 | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet |
| Official entry list ||||

* Daniel Hemric filled in for Menard for Qualifying, First and Second Practices as Menard and his wife, Jennifer, welcomed their second child that week.

## First practice

Ryan Blaney was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 27.009 seconds and a speed of 199.933 mph (321.761 km/h).

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 27.009 | 199.933 |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 27.109 | 199.196 |
| 3 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 27.111 | 199.181 |
| Official first practice results |||||||

## Qualifying

Kurt Busch scored the pole for the race with a time of 26.877 and a speed of 200.915 mph (323.341 km/h).

### Qualifying results

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | R1 | R2 | R3 |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 27.099 | 27.047 | 26.877 |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 27.181 | 27.010 | 26.917 |
| 3 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 27.016 | 27.015 | 26.949 |
| 4 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 27.142 | 26.997 | 26.956 |
| 5 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 27.221 | 27.090 | 26.966 |
| 6 | 19 | Daniel Suárez (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 27.355 | 27.133 | 27.055 |
| 7 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 27.362 | 27.064 | 27.077 |
| 8 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 27.321 | 27.138 | 27.084 |
| 9 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.427 | 27.158 | 27.173 |
| 10 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 27.164 | 27.159 | 27.207 |
| 11 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 27.332 | 27.228 | 27.253 |
| 12 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 27.499 | 27.301 | 27.262 |
| 13 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 27.451 | 27.315 | — |
| 14 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 27.547 | 27.322 | — |
| 15 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 27.497 | 27.337 | — |
| 16 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 27.403 | 27.346 | — |
| 17 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.460 | 27.350 | — |
| 18 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 27.521 | 27.374 | — |
| 19 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.474 | 27.397 | — |
| 20 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 27.598 | 27.477 | — |
| 21 | 27 | Daniel Hemric (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 27.554 | 27.520 | — |
| 22 | 34 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 27.644 | 27.601 | — |
| 23 | 95 | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 27.643 | 27.807 | — |
| 24 | 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 27.509 | 27.810 | — |
| 25 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 27.671 | — | — |
| 26 | 37 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 27.725 | — | — |
| 27 | 13 | Ty Dillon (R) | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 27.846 | — | — |
| 28 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 27.849 | — | — |
| 29 | 72 | Cole Whitt | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | 28.143 | — | — |
| 30 | 7 | Joey Gase (i) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 28.717 | — | — |
| 31 | 51 | Ray Black Jr. (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 28.861 | — | — |
| 32 | 33 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group | Chevrolet | 28.876 | — | — |
| 33 | 66 | David Starr (i) | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.704 | — | — |
| 34 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 0.000 | — | — |
| 35 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 0.000 | — | — |
| 36 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 0.000 | — | — |
| 37 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 0.000 | — | — |
| 38 | 15 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 0.000 | — | — |
| 39 | 23 | Corey LaJoie (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 0.000 | — | — |
| 40 | 83 | Gray Gaulding (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 0.000 | — | — |
| Official qualifying results ||||||||

## Practice (post-qualifying)

### Second practice

Kurt Busch was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 28.159 seconds and a speed of 191.768 mph (308.621 km/h).

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 28.159 | 191.768 |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 28.256 | 191.110 |
| 3 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 28.262 | 191.069 |
| Official second practice results |||||||

### Final practice

Denny Hamlin was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 28.203 seconds and a speed of 191.469 mph (308.139 km/h).

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 28.203 | 191.469 |
| 2 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 28.293 | 190.860 |
| 3 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 28.318 | 190.691 |
| Official final practice results |||||||

## Race

### Race results

**Stage results**

Stage 1 Laps: 85

| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 6 |
| 6 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 4 |
| 8 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 19 | Daniel Suárez (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 1 |
| Official stage one results ||||||

Stage 2 Laps: 85

| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 3 |
| 9 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 2 |
| 10 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage two results ||||||

### Final stage results

Stage 3 Laps: 164

| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 3 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 334 | 59 |
| 2 | 7 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 334 | 51 |
| 3 | 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 334 | 47 |
| 4 | 35 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 334 | 40 |
| 5 | 10 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 334 | 32 |
| 6 | 8 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 334 | 42 |
| 7 | 36 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 334 | 30 |
| 8 | 34 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 334 | 35 |
| 9 | 1 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 334 | 38 |
| 10 | 4 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 334 | 34 |
| 11 | 19 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 334 | 26 |
| 12 | 12 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 334 | 25 |
| 13 | 15 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 334 | 27 |
| 14 | 6 | 19 | Daniel Suárez (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 334 | 24 |
| 15 | 18 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 334 | 22 |
| 16 | 16 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 334 | 21 |
| 17 | 14 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 333 | 20 |
| 18 | 13 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 333 | 19 |
| 19 | 5 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 333 | 18 |
| 20 | 25 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 333 | 17 |
| 21 | 23 | 95 | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 333 | 16 |
| 22 | 26 | 37 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 333 | 15 |
| 23 | 21 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 332 | 14 |
| 24 | 27 | 13 | Ty Dillon (R) | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 332 | 13 |
| 25 | 28 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 332 | 12 |
| 26 | 22 | 34 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 331 | 11 |
| 27 | 9 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 331 | 10 |
| 28 | 37 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 330 | 9 |
| 29 | 29 | 72 | Cole Whitt | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | 330 | 8 |
| 30 | 24 | 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 329 | 7 |
| 31 | 38 | 15 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 325 | 6 |
| 32 | 30 | 7 | Joey Gase (i) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 322 | 0 |
| 33 | 32 | 33 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group | Chevrolet | 322 | 4 |
| 34 | 31 | 51 | Ray Black Jr. (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 305 | 0 |
| 35 | 17 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 304 | 2 |
| 36 | 20 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 303 | 1 |
| 37 | 11 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 282 | 18 |
| 38 | 33 | 66 | David Starr (i) | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | 237 | 0 |
| 39 | 39 | 23 | Corey LaJoie (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 227 | 1 |
| 40 | 40 | 83 | Gray Gaulding (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 159 | 1 |
| Official race results ||||||||

### Race statistics

* Lead changes: 13 among different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 8 for 40
* Red flags: 1 for 10 minutes and 29 seconds
* Time of race: 3 hours, 29 minutes, 52 seconds
* Average speed: 143.234 miles per hour (230.513 km/h)

## Media

### Television

NBCSN covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen and Dale Jarrett had the call in the regular booth for the race. Two–time Texas winner Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte had the call in the NBC's Stock Car Smarts Booth for the race. Dave Burns, Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast reported from pit lane during the race.

NBCSN :

| Booth announcers | Pit reporters |
| - | - |
| Lap-by-lap: Rick Allen Color Commentator Dale Jarrett Stock Car Smarts Booth Analyst: Jeff Burton Stock Car Smarts Booth Analyst: Steve Letarte | Dave Burns Marty Snider Kelli Stavast |

### Radio

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

PRN :

| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| - | - | - |
| Lead announcer: Doug Rice Announcer: Mark Garrow Announcer: Wendy Venturini | Turns 1 & 2: Rob Albright Turns 3 & 4: Pat Patterson | Brad Gillie Brett McMillan Jim Noble Steve Richards |

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| - | - | - | - |
| | 1 | Martin Truex Jr. | 4,168 |
| | 2 | Kyle Busch | 4,118 (−50) |
| 1 | 3 | Kevin Harvick | 4,112 (−56) |
| 1 | 4 | Brad Keselowski | 4,111 (−57) |
| 2 | 5 | Denny Hamlin | 4,092 (−76) |
| | 6 | Ryan Blaney | 4,089 (−79) |
| 1 | 7 | Chase Elliott | 4,062 (−106) |
| 3 | 8 | Jimmie Johnson | 4,060 (−108) |
| | 9 | Kyle Larson | 2,255 (−1,913) |
| | 10 | Matt Kenseth | 2,255 (−1,913) |
| 4 | 11 | Kurt Busch | 2,177 (−1,991) |
| 1 | 12 | Kasey Kahne | 2,176 (−1,992) |
| 1 | 13 | Austin Dillon | 2,175 (−1,993) |
| 1 | 14 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 2,171 (−1,997) |
| 1 | 15 | Jamie McMurray | 2,165 (−2,003) |
| | 16 | Ryan Newman | 2,147 (−2,021) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
| | Pos | Manufacturer | Points |
| | 1 | Toyota | 1,212 |
| | 2 | Ford | 1,189 (−23) |
| | 3 | Chevrolet | 1,178 (−34) |
| Official manufacturers' standings ||||
