For the first time in over a decade, Juan Pablo Montoya will race in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Juan Pablo Montoya to drive the 23XI Racing No. 50 Cup car at Watkins Glen as part of the Mobil 1 celebration of its 50th anniversary. It will be Montoya’s first Cup race since the 2014 Brickyard 400.
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) August 2, 2024
Montoya will drive the No. 50 Toyota Camry for 23XI Racing at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) on Sept. 15. The race will be his first in the Cup Series since the 2014 Brickyard 400 and the final start of the season for 23XI's part-time third entry.
The No. 50 car also ran at COTA with Kamui Kobayashi and at Nashville with Corey Heim earlier in the season. Mobil 1 will sponsor Montoya's car just as they did with Kobayashi and Heim as part of the company's 50th-anniversary celebration.
Welcome back to NASCAR, @jpmontoya! To help celebrate the Mobil 1 brand’s 50th anniversary, the championship-winning driver in multiple series will drive the final race for the No. 50 Mobil 1 Camry XSE at Watkins Glen. As a former winner at the Glen, he is proud to return to the… pic.twitter.com/fEjnd58R6H
— 23XI Racing (@23XIRacing) August 2, 2024
Montoya is a former Cup Series winner at Watkins Glen, beating Kurt Busch, Marcos Ambrose and AJ Allmendinger for the win in the 2010 Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at the Glen. The win was one of Montoya's two Cup Series wins, with the other coming at Sonoma in 2007.
23XI's car will likely be one of the best cars (if not the best) Montoya has ever driven at the Cup Series level. Montoya drove full-time for Chip Ganassi Racing from 2007 to 2013 and while he was able to win two races and make the Chase once with the team, mechanical issues and middling cars compared to the competition likely held him back more often than not.
Montoya will take the green flag with the rest of the Cup Series field at Watkins Glen on Sept. 15. The Go Bowling At The Glen will go green shortly after 3 p.m. ET on September 15, with coverage on USA Network, MRN, the NBC Sports App and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
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Following Bubba Wallace's win in Sunday's Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the NASCAR Cup Series playoff picture looks much different. Here's what the race around the cut line looks like with four races remaining in the regular season. 1. Denny Hamlin (four wins) 2. Kyle Larson (three wins) 3. Christopher Bell (three wins) 4. Shane van Gisbergen (three wins) 5. Chase Elliott (one win) 6. William Byron (one win) 7. Ryan Blaney (one win) 8. Chase Briscoe (one win) 9. Bubba Wallace (one win) 10. Joey Logano (one win) 11. Ross Chastain (one win) 12. Austin Cindric (one win) 13. Josh Berry (one win) 14. Tyler Reddick (+138) A decision to pit in the closing laps of Sunday's race led to a crash and subsequent 29th-place finish for Reddick, but he's all but locked up a playoff spot at this point. The No. 45 team is searching for playoff points over the next four weeks, as well as their first win of the season. 15. Alex Bowman (+63) Bowman stayed even with the cut line this week after a ninth-place finish at Indianapolis. He retains a one-race gap to the cut line, and is much more comfortable than he was a month ago in regards to the cut line. 16. Chris Buescher (+42) Buescher is now on the cut line and racing an RFK Racing teammate in Ryan Preece for the final spot in the postseason. There's little margin for error for Buescher over the next four weeks as he looks to get back to the playoffs. 17. Ryan Preece (-42) A fourth-place effort at Indy was mostly all for naught for Preece, who came into the Brickyard 400 battling Wallace for the final playoff spot. He'll need a great day at Iowa Speedway on Aug. 3 in order to get himself back in contention. 18. Kyle Busch (-81) A 25th-place run in the Brickyard 400 pretty much solidifies Busch's agenda over the next four weeks. Barring a miraculous points run, a win will be necessary for the No. 8 to get back to the playoffs. 19. Ty Gibbs (-95) Gibbs won the In-Season Challenge on Sunday, but a 21st-place finish wasn't what the No. 54 team needed. Gibbs will need to score his first career win in order to make the playoffs for the second consecutive season. 20. AJ Allmendinger (-124) Allmendinger finished 23rd on Sunday at Indy. His most likely path to the playoffs is a win at Watkins Glen on Aug. 10, but don't count him out at Iowa next week.
Shedeur Sanders has been working with the Cleveland Browns' equipment staff as the No. 4 quarterback this summer. He'll have a new opportunity following the troubling injury news for Kenny Pickett. Per Adam Schefter of ESPN, Pickett suffered a hamstring injury during Saturday's practice and will not receive reps until his issue is re-evaluated. "Browns QB Kenny Pickett injured his hamstring near the end of Saturday’s practice and is expected to re-evaluate the injury later this week, per sources," Schefter posted on X. "Pickett was coming off a strong couple of practices, per sources, and at least for the short term, there now will be more reps for Joe Flacco, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. Pickett's injury will shake up the quarterback race in Cleveland. Through OTAs and early in training camp, Sanders has been the odd man out as the only signal caller on the roster not to receive reps with the first-team offense. It's unclear if the Browns coaching staff intends to give Sanders reps with the first-team offense now that Pickett is sidelined, but the fifth-round pick will have more chances this week to prove that he deserves an opportunity to stay in Cleveland. The Browns are in a unique situation with their rookie quarterbacks. Third-round pick Dillon Gabriel was selected before Sanders, but the son of Deion Sanders fell to Day 3 of the draft for reasons other than talent. The majority of draft analysts had Sanders as a better-graded quarterback than Gabriel, and many thought the Colorado product would be taken in the first round. The Browns can use the injury as an excuse to give Sanders reps with the first team, and it's a task they need to take advantage of before the team names a starter. Sanders has the potential to be a starter in the league, and this week is pivotal for his rookie season in Cleveland.
Kirk Cousins might be relegated to the job of backup quarterback, but he is showing veteran leadership to his Atlanta Falcons teammates. Following Sunday's practice, Cousins pulled aside rookie defensive end James Pearce to encourage the first-round pick after his fourth practice in the league at Flowery Branch, Georgia. "QB Kirk Cousins pulled aside Pearce after practice to compliment him on a pass batted down," wrote Marc Raimondi of ESPN. Cousins reportedly had a solid day of practice on Sunday, going 7-of-12 passing against the first-team unit. If Cousins wants out of Atlanta, he's not showing it at practice. The four-time Pro Bowl quarterback is competing on the field and being a good teammate around the facility. Cousins' actions on the field backed up what Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot praised Cousins for before the team's practice on Sunday. “Outside, it's a lot more of a deal than it is in the building,” Fontenot said to the media about the idea of friction between the Falcons and Cousins, per video from D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “He shows up, he does his job, just like anybody ... We've gotta build the best 70-man roster so we can go win games. "That's what we're focused on, and Kirk, just like all the other players, is focused on coming in here and doing their job. That's what he's been doing." Fontenot didn't dismiss the idea that Atlanta would trade Cousins before the season. He said the Falcons will do whatever it takes to make the team better, but stressed that Cousins has been a professional throughout the process of being replaced by Michael Penix Jr., a first-round pick from the 2024 draft. “In terms of making moves, whether it's trades or acquiring players, we're always looking at those factors," Fontenot said. "We're gonna do whatever we can do to make this team the best it can possibly be. But he's been a great professional, and he's handled himself well.” Cousins is coming to work in a manner that will make another owner want to take a chance on the veteran quarterback. That could be one of his best-selling points before he plays in his 13th season in the league.
With the trade for Ryan McMahon now complete, it would seem New York Yankees’ general manager Brian Cashman has fulfilled one of his three priorities. He can now cross third base off the list, which leaves the rotation and bullpen as his remaining priorities. However, according to one Yankees writer, Cashman might not be done with the infield. Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reported this after the McMahon trade: “The Yankees may not be done adding to their infield. A team source said the Yankees are interested in adding a right-handed hitter who could play the infield.” Kirschner adds that the Yankees have had interest in Willi Castro and Amed Rosario. But the question now is, how would another player fit into the Yankees’ infield? Needless to say, Paul Goldschmidt and Jazz Chisholm Jr. aren’t going anywhere, and McMahon is just getting there. That leaves the low-hanging fruit. Anthony Volpe has been at the center of controversy all this season. His 13 errors, many of which had come at make-or-break moments, amount to the second-highest total in the game. In addition, his bat has not been able to compensate, hitting .217/.288/.408 with 14 home runs. There was always a lot to like about Volpe. He won a Gold Glove in his rookie year, his power has always been promising and his speed is nothing to scoff at. Unfortunately, his glove has become a liability, and his speed has also produced very few results. Volpe has swiped just 10 bags in 17 attempts. His power is the one thing that still has some upside, but it hasn’t been enough to justify a spot in the lineup. Both Castro and Rosario have been far more productive at the plate this season than Volpe. Kirschner doesn’t clarify how serious the Yankees are in their pursuit of another infielder, but that most likely isn’t available information. Having just turned 24, Volpe could still become the type of player that was expected from him as a top prospect. However, his recent performance has weighed heavily on his team’s efforts, and it may be buying him a ticket out of the Bronx — or at least a spot on the bench.
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