2018 Gander Outdoors 400

2018 Gander Outdoors 400

Race details
Date	July 29, 2018 (2018-07-29)
Location	Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania
Course	Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4 km)
Distance	160 laps, 400 mi (640 km)
Television in the United States
Network	NBCSN
Announcers	Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Radio in the United States
Radio	MRN
Booth Announcers	Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace
Turn Announcers	Dave Moody (1), Mike Bagley (2) and Kyle Rickey (3)

The 2018 Gander Outdoors 400 is a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on July 29, 2018 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. Contested over 160 laps on the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) superspeedway, it was the 21st race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

Report

Background

Pocono Raceway

Pocono Raceway (formerly Pocono International Raceway), also known as the Tricky Triangle, is a superspeedway located in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania at Long Pond. It is the site of two annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races held just weeks apart in early June and late July/early August, one NASCAR Xfinity Series event in early June, one NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event in late July/early August, and two ARCA Racing Series races in early June and late July/early August. From 1971 to 1989, and again since 2013, the track has also hosted an Indy Car race, currently sanctioned by the IndyCar Series and run in August.

Pocono is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation, the dominant track owners in NASCAR. It is run by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon and Nicholas, both of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli. Mattco also owns South Boston Speedway in South Boston, Virginia.

Outside of the NASCAR races, Pocono is used throughout the year by Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools. The triangular oval also has three separate infield sections of racetrack – North Course, East Course and South Course. Each of these infield sections use a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. During regular non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different infield sections. Also some of the infield sections can be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together – such as running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.

Practice

First practice

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Manufacturer	Time	Speed
1
2
3

Final practice

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Manufacturer	Time	Speed
1
2
3

Qualifying

Qualifying results

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Manufacturer	R1	R2	R3
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
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40						—	—

Race

Stage Results

Stage 1 Laps: 50

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Manufacturer	Points
1					10
2					9
3					8
4					7
5					6
6					5
7					4
8					3
9					2
10					1

Stage 2 Laps: 50

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Manufacturer	Points
1					10
2					9
3					8
4					7
5					6
6					5
7					4
8					3
9					2
10					1

Final Stage Results

Stage 3 Laps: 60

Pos	Grid	No	Driver	Team	Manufacturer	Laps	Points
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40

Media

Television

NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and two-time Pocono winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. had the call in the 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: Jeff Burton Color-commentator: Steve Letarte Color-commentator: Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Dave Burns Marty Snider Kelli Stavast

Radio

Motor Racing Network 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	Turn 1: Dave Moody Turns 2: Mike Bagley Turn 3: Kyle Rickey	Alex Hayden Winston Kelley Steve Post

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings

	Pos	Driver	Points
	1
	2
	3
	4
	5
	6
	7
	8
	9
	10
	11
	12
	13
	14
	15
	16

Manufacturers' Championship standings

	Pos	Manufacturer	Points
	1
	2
	3

• Note: Only the first 16 positions are included for the driver standings.
• . – Driver has clinched a position in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.

References

Previous race: 2018 Foxwoods Resort Casino 301

NASCAR Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

Next race: 2018 Go Bowling at The Glen