Another generation of NASCAR stars is on the horizon

NASCAR FANS looking for the next wave of stars already know about Joey Logano, Kyle Larson, Austin Dillon and Chase Elliott.

Logano, 24, Larson, 22, and Dillon, 24, are established in the Sprint Cup series. Elliott, 19, is third in Xfinity series in points and will race in the Cup series next season after Jeff Gordon retires. He also will drive the No. 25 Chevrolet in Saturday night's Cup race at Richmond.

Another young racer, Brett Moffitt, 22, is taking advantage of his opportunity of replacing Brian Vickers, who is dealing with a recurrence of his blood-clotting issues.

Now, add Erik Jones and Daniel Suarez to the mix.

Jones, 18, did a commendable job filling in for Denny Hamlin Sunday at Bristol. Hamlin was hampered by neck spasms and relinquished the seat in the No. 11 Toyota after 22 laps. Earlier this month, Jones won the Xfinity race at Texas in only his ninth series start. Last Saturday at Bristol, Jones was the fastest Xfinity qualifier for the third consecutive race.

Driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports last year in the Camping World Truck Series, Jones won three races in 12 starts.

Summarizing his Cup debut at Bristol, Jones said: "Obviously, it was a huge learning experience overall. The FedEx Camry was pretty good, but it just took me so long . . . really figuring out what I had, and what I had to do different from the Xfinity cars was just huge.

"I wish we could start the night over and do it all again. I never turned a lap in one of these cars until the green flag dropped. It was interesting and I learned a ton. I can't wait to try it again."

After his Texas victory, the Michigan native said: "It's just surreal. It's going to take a minute for this one to sink in. This has got to be one of the biggest wins in my career by far, to race against these Cup guys and being able to go out and get a win.

"I watched the other guys do it, win races as young guys, and I wanted to be that guy. Now we're here in victory lane and taking it all in."

Suarez, 22, finished second in the Xfinity race at Bristol. He didn't lead a lap, because Logano led all 300 laps (boring!). Suarez is a product of NASCAR's Driver for Diversity program. The Mexico native is a Joe Gibbs Racing development driver.

Among other top young racers are Darrell "Bubba" Wallace, Ty Dillon, Chris and James Buescher and Tyler Reddick. Chris Buescher and Ty Dillon are one-two in Xfinity points. When the older Cup drivers are ready to retire to their yachts, the series' future is bright.

One of the many perks of winning a Chase title is visiting with the president at the White House. Kevin Harvick and his 2014 championship team were hosted by President Obama Tuesday.

"For the guys on the team, it's really an honor to see how excited they are. To see them take it all in is pretty neat," Harvick told nascar.com.

He said he talked mostly about family with Obama - "the family life and the change over the past 4 to 5 years [for myself and Delana] to get to this point."

Tony Stewart was there as car owner - he and Gene Haas co-own the four-team Stewart-Haas Racing organization. In 2012, Stewart made the visit to Washington as both winning car owner and driver following his 2011 championship at SHR.

"It's the chance of a lifetime," Stewart said of the visit. "To have this honor to come up here for a day and acknowledge what our team's accomplished is a huge honor."

Stewart offered the president the opportunity to take Harvick's No. 4 Chevrolet for a spin. Imagine that scene, the president smiling as he roared down Pennsylvania Avenue with the Secret Service trying to keep up.

"I said, 'Well, I'm the car owner, so you have my permission,' " Stewart said. "But I think there are a lot of other people he has to convince other than me; but definitely the offer's there."

Team Dover overcame a first-inning home run by Brandon "Babe" Igdalsky to defeat Team Pocono, 12-6, Tuesday at the Trenton Thunder's Arm & Hammer Park. Dover now leads the annual softball series, 2-1.

Igdalsky, president and CEO of Pocono Raceway, lined a drive over the rightfield fence.

Joey Logano was Dover's captain, while Dale Earnhardt Jr. served as Pocono's captain. Logano said it was the first time he's played softball or baseball. Talk about a young guy focused on his racing career . . .

The Victory Tour program promotes the NASCAR races at Dover, Del., on May 31 and Pocono on June 7.

Toyota Owners 400

Richmond International Raceway, Richmond, Va.

When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.

TV: Fox 29/WNPV (1440-AM)

Course: 0.75-mile oval

Distance: 400 laps/300 miles

Forecast: cloudy, mid-50s

Last year's winner: Joey Logano

Last year's pole: none, inclement weather.

Track qualifying record: Jeff Gordon, 130.599 mph (September 2013)

Track facts: Joey Logano led 46 laps, including the last four, in winning last year's race. Jeff Gordon was runner-up, Kyle Busch was third. Gordon paced the most laps (173). Polesitter Brad Keselowski won the fall race at Richmond, leading 383 of the 400 laps ... Gordon (third) and Tony Stewart (sixth) had their best finishes of the season Sunday at Bristol. Danica Patrick's ninth-place finish was her sixth career top-10, moving her one ahead of Janet Guthrie for the most top-10s by a female racer ... Kyle Busch has the most wins (four) at Richmond. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart are three-time winners at the track.

Wins: Kevin Harvick and Jimmie Johnson, 2 each; Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth, 1 each.

STANDINGS

1. Kevin Harvick 314

2. Joey Logano 284

3. Martin Truex Jr. 281

4. Jimmie Johnson 258

5. Brad Keselowski 255

6. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 241

7. Kasey Kahne 237

8. Matt Kenseth 236

9. Jeff Gordon 227

10. Aric Almirola 226

11. Denny Hamlin 223

12. Jamie McMurray 223

13. Danica Patrick 211

14. Paul Menard 210

15. Carl Edwards 203

16. Ryan Newman 201

17. Clint Bowyer 200

18. David Ragan 197

19. Casey Mears 186

20. Greg Biffle 180

Up next: Talladega 500, May 3, Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega, Ala., 1 p.m.; TV: Fox; last year's winner: Denny Hamlin.