2016 Good Sam 500
The 2016 Good Sam 500 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held on March 13, 2016, at Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Arizona. Contested over 313 laps, extended from 312 laps due to overtime, on the 1 mi (1.6 km) asphalt oval, it was the fourth race of the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Kevin Harvick won the race. Carl Edwards finished second. Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. rounded out the top–five.
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 4 of 36 in the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | March 13, 2016 | ||
| Location | Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Arizona | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1 mi (1.6 km) | ||
| Distance | 313 laps, 313 mi (500.8 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 312 laps, 312 mi (499.2 km) | ||
| Weather | Sunny, clear blue skies with a temperature of 70 °F (21 °C); wind out of the southwest at 4 mph (6.4 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 113.212 mph (182.197 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Joe Gibbs Racing | ||
| Time | 26.014 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | |
| Laps | 139 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Fox | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Darrell Waltrip | ||
| Nielsen Ratings |
3.6/8 (Overnight)[11] 4.0/9 (Final)[12] 6.6 million viewers[12] | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
| Booth Announcers | Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace | ||
| Turn Announcers | Dave Moody (1 & 2) and Kyle Rickey (3 & 4) | ||
Busch won the pole for the race and led 75 laps on his way to a fourth-place finish. Harvick led a race high of 139 laps on his way to winning the race. There were seven lead changes among four different drivers, as well as five caution flag periods for 30 laps.
This was Harvick's 32nd career victory, first of the season, eighth at Phoenix International Raceway and fifth at the track for Stewart-Haas Racing. With the win, he moved up to first in the points standings. Chevrolet moved to first in the manufacturer standings.
The Good Sam 500 was carried by Fox Sports on the broadcast Fox network for the American television audience. The radio broadcast for the race was carried by the Motor Racing Network and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.
Report
Background
Phoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the IndyCar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series. The raceway is currently owned and operated by International Speedway Corporation.
Entry list
The entry list for the Good Sam 500 was released on Monday, March 7 at 9:11 a.m. Eastern time. Thirty-nine cars are entered for the race. The only driver changes for this weekend's race were Ty Dillon returning to the seat of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet and Joey Gase taking over the No. 32 Go FAS Racing Ford.
First practice
Kurt Busch was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 25.928 and a speed of 138.846 mph (223.451 km/h).[13]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 25.928 | 138.846 |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 25.999 | 138.467 |
| 3 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 26.039 | 138.254 |
| Official first practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Kyle Busch scored the pole for the race with a time of 26.014 and a speed of 138.387 mph (222.712 km/h).[14] He said afterwards that he "cooled everything back down to make sure we gave it everything we got. We just made a couple of fine-tuning adjustments from what we ran before and it was a tick faster, not much, just a tick.”[15] Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne will both go to backup cars after mishaps in qualifying with the former crashing out and the latter changing engines.[16] Johnson said after being released from the infield care center that the car was "a lot of straight in an area of the track that I didn't need to have straight. We'll have to get to the bottom of it. Just a really hard impact to the outside wall. Thankful that we have SAFER barriers and soft walls. But very disappointed because we had such a fast race car."[17] He later took to Twitter to say that the wreck was because his steering wheel came off.[18]
Qualifying results
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | R1 | R2 | R3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.288 | 26.087 | 26.014 |
| 2 | 19 | Carl Edwards | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.363 | 26.093 | 26.179 |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.331 | 26.079 | 26.196 |
| 4 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 26.175 | 26.146 | 26.202 |
| 5 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.249 | 26.218 | 26.244 |
| 6 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.405 | 26.124 | 26.244 |
| 7 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 26.327 | 26.203 | 26.271 |
| 8 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 26.231 | 26.221 | 26.290 |
| 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 26.290 | 26.114 | 26.321 |
| 10 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 26.304 | 26.223 | 26.325 |
| 11 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 26.451 | 26.218 | 26.363 |
| 12 | 21 | Ryan Blaney (R) | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 26.252 | 26.223 | 26.411 |
| 13 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 26.395 | 26.230 | — |
| 14 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 26.408 | 26.236 | — |
| 15 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 26.387 | 26.260 | — |
| 16 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 26.324 | 26.272 | — |
| 17 | 24 | Chase Elliott (R) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.423 | 26.283 | — |
| 18 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 26.383 | 26.298 | — |
| 19 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 26.304 | 26.306 | — |
| 20 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 26.485 | 26.359 | — |
| 21 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 26.405 | 26.373 | — |
| 22 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 26.428 | 26.376 | — |
| 23 | 83 | Matt DiBenedetto | BK Racing | Toyota | 26.391 | 26.394 | — |
| 24 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.241 | 0.000 | — |
| 25 | 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 26.561 | — | — |
| 26 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.563 | — | — |
| 27 | 38 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 26.589 | — | — |
| 28 | 14 | Ty Dillon (i) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 26.594 | — | — |
| 29 | 23 | David Ragan | BK Racing | Toyota | 26.626 | — | — |
| 30 | 44 | Brian Scott (R) | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 26.683 | — | — |
| 31 | 7 | Regan Smith | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 26.763 | — | — |
| 32 | 34 | Chris Buescher (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 26.780 | — | — |
| 33 | 95 | Michael McDowell | Circle Sport – Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 26.852 | — | — |
| 34 | 98 | Cole Whitt | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.932 | — | — |
| 35 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.053 | — | — |
| 36 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 27.089 | — | — |
| 37 | 30 | Josh Wise | The Motorsports Group | Chevrolet | 27.109 | — | — |
| 38 | 46 | Michael Annett | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.115 | — | — |
| 39 | 32 | Joey Gase (i) | Go FAS Racing | Ford | 27.161 | — | — |
Practice (post-qualifying)
Second practice
Kurt Busch was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 26.194 and a speed of 137.436 mph (221.182 km/h).[19] During the session, Michael Annett suffered a front-end lockup and slammed the wall in turn 1.[20] Because this required him to go to a backup car, he'll start from the rear of the field.[20] He said that "the car just didn’t want to turn. I don’t know if we were on the splitter or if we cut down a right-front (tire). … I cranked on the wheel and it wouldn’t go straight.”[21]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 26.194 | 137.436 |
| 2 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 26.338 | 136.685 |
| 3 | 19 | Carl Edwards | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.375 | 136.493 |
| Official second practice results | ||||||
Final practice
Kevin Harvick was fastest in the final practice session with a time of 26.409 and a speed of 136.317 mph (219.381 km/h).[22]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 26.409 | 136.317 |
| 2 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 26.437 | 136.173 |
| 3 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.452 | 136.096 |
| Official final practice results | ||||||
Race
Start
Under clear blue Arizona skies, Kyle Busch led the field to the green flag at 3:49 p.m. After 10 laps, he pulled to a one-second lead over teammate Carl Edwards. The first caution of the race flew on lap 52 for a single-car wreck in turn 3. Going into the turn, Ryan Newman suffered a right-front tire blowout and slammed the wall.[23] He would go on to finish last for the first time since 2008.[24] He said he "just blew a right-front tire. It must have melted the bead or something. I don’t know if something failed in the cooling department or what the deal was. I didn’t do anything any different than I’ve ever done here before. Just definitely blew a right-front tire out and that was the end of our day with the Grainger Chevrolet.”[25] Denny Hamlin was tagged for an uncontrolled tire and restarted the race from the tail-end of the field.
The race restarted on lap 60. Unlike the first run, he didn't pull away from the field. After taking just right-side tires on the first pit stop, he began losing his lead to Dale Earnhardt Jr. who took four. Earnhardt passed him in turn 3 to take the lead on lap 76. The second caution of the race flew on lap 104 for a single-car wreck in turn 3. Going into the turn, Paul Menard suffered a right-front tire blowout and slammed the wall.[23] When asked what happened, he said he wasn't “really sure. We were okay that last run. We fired off pretty decent and started getting really tight at the end. I don’t know if a left-front tire blew or what going into 3. I don’t know if something broke or if a tire blew. We are going to check it out. I’m curious about it.”[25] Edwards exited pit road with the race lead. Brian Scott was tagged for speeding on pit road and restarted the race from the tail-end of the field.
Second quarter
The race restarted on lap 113. After pulling away from the field, Edwards began losing his lead to teammate Kyle Busch. The third caution of the race flew on lap 163 for a single-car wreck in turn 1. Going into turn 1, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. suffered a right-front tire blowout and slammed the wall.[23] He said he was "really tight and I was having to use too much brake and I think we got the tires hot and once we did that the right front gave out from having to use too much brake. The cars were a handful. They were fun to drive. We just didn’t quite have the Fastenal Ford dialed in like we needed to today. We were really tight, therefore, we had to use too much brake.”[25] Kyle Busch exited pit road 18th after overshooting his pit box and stopping too close to the pit wall.
Halfway
The race restarted at lap 169. Kevin Harvick powered ahead of Edwards on the restart and took the lead. On lap 180, Harvick led his nine-thousandth career lap in Sprint Cup Series competition. Debris on the backstretch brought out the fourth caution of the race with 87 laps to go. The debris came from the shredded right-rear tire of Brad Keselowski's car.[23] Edwards beat Harvick off pit road.
Fourth quarter
The race restarted with 78 laps to go. Harvick had no difficulty retaking the lead from Edwards going into turn 1. Joey Logano pitted from ninth with seven to go because he was short on fuel. The fifth caution of the race flew with six laps to go for a single-car wreck in turn 4. Rounding the turn, Kasey Kahne suffered a right-front tire blowout and slammed the wall.[23] He said he "had a right front tire go down. It happened earlier in the race but a caution came out and I thought it was the engine at the time because of the way it kind of vibrated and changed the tone of the engine. Come to find out it wasn’t the engine and it was the tire. We’ll look at what we are doing since it happened a couple of times. We had a car capable of running in the top-15 and we were really good early. The longer the race went I felt like I got looser. I used a lot of brake during the entire the race, which I was surprised about. Yesterday in practice I didn’t have to use the brake hardly at all and today with different grips I used it so much.”[25] Harvick, Earnhardt and Austin Dillon opted to stay out while the rest of the field opted to pit.[26]
Overtime
The race restarted with two laps to go at an overtime finish, Harvick led the field to the green with Carl Edwards at his back. After the white flag, Harvick and Edwards battled for the lead, bumping each other until Harvick came out victorious by 0.010 seconds, the closest finish in Phoenix history.[27]
Driver comments
Harvick said that he "knew he (Edwards) was better through (Turns) 3 and 4, but that was not the car I wanted to see behind me. I tried to protect the bottom in 3 and 4, and I just missed the bottom with all the rubber built up on the tires. I knew I was going to be on defense down there. I got up too high … and then he got into me, like he should have. I knew I needed to get a good run off the corner and I was going to have to get into his door. And it worked out, just barely.“[28]
Edwards said that Harvick "was pretty fast, even on old tires. Once we got clear, I thought we were going to get one shot. I tried to go to the outside of him and he blocked a little bit, and I didn't have anywhere to go but rub him a little bit."[29] He joked that he "should’ve wrecked him. No, those guys were doing a great job all day. They hung on with those tires but we were faster so I thought, ‘Man, I’ll just move him out of the way and get by.’ I just didn't move him far enough and then he got up the door and I thought I was trying to time—I thought ‘I think he’s going to beat me.’ So, I tried to sideswipe him before he got there but I needed to be in front of his front tire. Anyway, just a fun race.”[30]
Hamlin said he "was actually rooting on Carl going, ‘Get him.’ But, we’ve been on the other side of that photo finish. Awesome that this rules package creates this kind of racing and some of the finishes that we’ve seen so far this year.”[31]
Race results
| Pos | Grid | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 313 | 45 | |
| 2 | 2 | 19 | Carl Edwards | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 313 | 40 | |
| 3 | 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 313 | 38 | |
| 4 | 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 313 | 38 | |
| 5 | 26 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 313 | 37 | |
| 6 | 4 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 313 | 35 | |
| 7 | 6 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 313 | 34 | |
| 8 | 17 | 24 | Chase Elliott (R) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 313 | 33 | |
| 9 | 15 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 313 | 32 | |
| 10 | 12 | 21 | Ryan Blaney (R) | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 313 | 31 | |
| 11 | 5 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 313 | 30 | |
| 12 | 7 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 313 | 29 | |
| 13 | 14 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 313 | 28 | |
| 14 | 8 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 313 | 27 | |
| 15 | 28 | 14 | Ty Dillon (i) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 313 | 0 | |
| 16 | 11 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 313 | 25 | |
| 17 | 22 | 47 | A. J. Almendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 313 | 24 | |
| 18 | 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 312 | 23 | |
| 19 | 36 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 312 | 22 | |
| 20 | 23 | 83 | Matt DiBenedetto | BK Racing | Toyota | 312 | 21 | |
| 21 | 13 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 312 | 20 | |
| 22 | 24 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 312 | 19 | |
| 23 | 21 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 311 | 18 | |
| 24 | 29 | 23 | David Ragan | BK Racing | Toyota | 309 | 17 | |
| 25 | 27 | 38 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 308 | 16 | |
| 26 | 33 | 95 | Michael McDowell | Circle Sport – Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 308 | 15 | |
| 27 | 30 | 44 | Brian Scott (R) | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 308 | 14 | |
| 28 | 31 | 7 | Regan Smith | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 308 | 13 | |
| 29 | 19 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 307 | 12 | |
| 30 | 32 | 34 | Chris Buescher (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 307 | 11 | |
| 31 | 35 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet | 307 | 10 | |
| 32 | 39 | 32 | Joey Gase (i) | Go FAS Racing | Ford | 305 | 0 | |
| 33 | 38 | 46 | Michael Annett | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet | 303 | 8 | |
| 34 | 37 | 30 | Josh Wise | The Motorsports Group | Chevrolet | 303 | 7 | |
| 35 | 25 | 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 288 | 6 | |
| 36 | 34 | 98 | Cole Whitt | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 236 | 5 | |
| 37 | 10 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 161 | 4 | |
| 38 | 16 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 104 | 3 | |
| 39 | 20 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 51 | 2 | |
| Official race results | ||||||||
Race summary
- Lead changes: 7
- Cautions/Laps: 5 for 30
- Red flags: 0
- Time of race: 2 hours, 45 minutes and 33 seconds
- Average speed: 113.212 miles per hour (182.197 km/h)
Media
Television
Fox Sports will be covering their 12th race at the Phoenix International Raceway. Mike Joy, two-time Phoenix winner Jeff Gordon and Darrell Waltrip will have the call in the booth for the race. Jamie Little, Vince Welch and Matt Yocum will handle the pit road duties for the television side.
| Fox | |
|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon Color commentator: Darrell Waltrip | Jamie Little Vince Welch Matt Yocum |
Radio
MRN will have the radio call for the race which will also be simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and one-time Phoenix winner Rusty Wallace will call the race from the booth when the field is racing down the front stretch. Dave Moody will call the race from atop the stands in turn 1 when the field is racing through turns 1 and 2. Kyle Rickey will call the race from a billboard outside turn 4 when the field is racing through turns 3 and 4. Pit road will be manned by Alex Hayden, Glenn Jarrett and Steve Post.
| 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: Kyle Rickey | Alex Hayden Glenn Jarrett Steve Post |
Standings after the race
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Notes
References
- "2016 schedule" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. January 26, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 7, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- "Phoenix International Raceway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- "Entry List". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 7, 2016. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 11, 2016. Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
- "Qualifying Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 11, 2016. Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
- "Second Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 12, 2016. Archived from the original on March 13, 2016. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
- "Final Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 12, 2016. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
- "Good Sam 500 Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 13, 2016. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- "Point standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. March 13, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 15, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- "Manufacturer standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. March 14, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 15, 2016. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- Paulsen (March 14, 2016). "NASCAR Phoenix Overnights Dip to Six-Year Low". SportsMediaWatch.com. Sports Media Watch. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- Paulsen (March 18, 2016). "Slight Dip For NASCAR From Phoenix". SportsMediaWatch.com. Sports Media Watch. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
- Bonkowski, Jerry (March 11, 2016). "Kurt Busch is fastest in Friday's Sprint Cup practice at Phoenix". nascartalk.nbcsports.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
- Hembree, Mike (March 11, 2016). "Kyle Busch takes Phoenix pole as Joe Gibbs Racing goes 1-2-3". USA Today. Avondale, Arizona: Gannett Company. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
- Pistone, Pete (March 11, 2016). "Kyle Busch Wins Phoenix Pole". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
- White, Tucker (March 11, 2016). "Kyle Busch on the pole for Sunday's race at Phoenix". SpeedwayMedia.com. USA Today Sports Digital Properties. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
- Cranston, Mike (March 11, 2016). "Kyle Busch gets NASCAR pole; Jimmie Johnson escapes injury". Associated Press. Avondale, Arizona: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
- Cranston, Mike (March 11, 2016). "Jimmie Johnson escapes injury after steering wheel comes off". Associated Press. Avondale, Arizona: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
- Bonkowski, Jerry (March 12, 2016). "Kurt Busch once again fastest in Sprint Cup practice at Phoenix". nascartalk.nbcsports.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
- Spencer, Lee (March 12, 2016). "Kurt Busch sets the pace in Saturday morning practice". Motorsport.com. Avondale, Arizona: Motorsport.com, Inc. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
- White, Tucker (March 12, 2016). "Kurt Busch fastest in second practice at Phoenix". SpeedwayMedia.com. USA Today Sports Digital Properties. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
- Spencer, Lee (March 12, 2016). "SHR duo of Harvick and Busch top final Sprint Cup practice". Motorsport.com. Avondale, Arizona: Motorsport.com, Inc. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
- Knight, Michael (March 13, 2016). "Tire issues doom several NASCAR teams at PIR". The Arizona Republic. Avondale, Arizona: Gannett Company. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- Beard, Brock (March 13, 2016). "CUP: Tire problems leave Ryan Newman with first last-place run since 2008". brock.lastcar.info. LASTCAR.info. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- White, Tucker (March 13, 2016). "Harvick wins by a hair in Phoenix". SpeedwayMedia.com. USA Today Sports Digital Properties. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- Scott, David (March 13, 2016). "Kevin Harvick wins NASCAR race at Phoenix by .01 of a second". The Charlotte Observer. Avondale, Arizona: The McClatchy Company. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- Cranston, Mike (March 13, 2016). "Harvick nips Edwards in wild finish for 8th Phoenix win". Associated Press. Avondale, Arizona: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 15, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- Hembree, Mike (March 13, 2016). "Kevin Harvick edges Carl Edwards in photo finish at Phoenix". USA Today. Avondale, Arizona: Gannett Company. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- Pockrass, Bob (March 13, 2016). "Kevin Harvick needed every trick in his bag to win again at Phoenix". ESPN.com. Avondale, Arizona: ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- Pistone, Pete (March 13, 2016). "Edwards Comes Up Just Short". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- Jensen, Tom (March 13, 2016). "Joe Gibbs Racing all smiles despite bittersweet ending at Phoenix". Foxsports.com. Avondale, Arizona: Fox Sports Digital Media. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
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