2018 Ford EcoBoost 400
The 2018 Ford EcoBoost 400 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on November 18, 2018, 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 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, and was also the last race for the Ford Fusion, as it will be replaced for the 2019 season by the Mustang GT. This race was the final career Cup start for A. J. Allmendinger as a full time driver, as well  as the final start for Furniture Row Racing. 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. Joey Logano 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. Kyle Busch clinched the second spot in the Championship 4 based on points at the Phoenix race when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. crashed out of the race and finished 33rd. Busch had to  finish at least 33rd to be locked in on points. He later clinched a playoff berth anyway by winning the race. Martin Truex Jr. clinched the third spot in the Championship 4 based on points. Kevin Harvick clinched the final spot based on points after his Texas win was encumbered after a spoiler violation. First practice. Martin Truex Jr. was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 31.035 seconds and a speed of . Qualifying. Denny Hamlin scored the pole for the race with a time of 31.059 and a speed of . Practice (post-qualifying). Second practice . Joey Logano was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 31.838 seconds and a speed of . Final practice. Joey Logano was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 31.450 seconds and a speed of . Race. Note: Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., and Kyle Busch were not eligible for stage points in this race because of their participation as the Championship 4 drivers. Stage Results. Stage 1 "Laps:" 80 Stage 2 "Laps:" 80 Final Stage Results. Stage 3 "Laps:" 107 Media. Television. NBC covered the race on the television side. Rick  Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr. 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. Radio. MRN had the radio call for the race, which was simulcast  on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.