2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Jauli Canal Incident
Clashes between the two communities occurred at low frequencies for the next two weeks. The Beti Bachao Mahapanchayat, attended by lacs of people, proved to be inflammatory as it was allowed to be held by the district administration, despite imposition of 144 Crpc in the area, around 2,000 Jats returning from Panchayat were ambushed by  Muslim mob armed with assault rifles and other sophisticated weapons near Jauli Canal on 7 September. The mobs had set fire on 18 tractor trollies and 3 motorbikes. According to an eyewitness account, the bodies were dumped into the canal.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Jauli Canal Incident
Although six bodies were recovered, it was rumoured that hundreds were missing. Bodies of three Jats were found at the site of violence and three Hindus bodies were fished out from Jauli Canal. District Magistrate agreed that many bodies were still missing, but doubted whether the missing people were killed or had migrated earlier from the village. Survivors of the Jauli Canal incident added that the policemen who were watching the assault did not help the victims, as they had said that 'they do not have orders to act'.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Jauli Canal Incident
This Jauli Canal incident aroused Jats to go on a rampage against Muslims with the claim that the latter were responsible for the killings. This led to the riots, which killed around 43 muslim people and 20 hindu (including a news reporter and a photographer). The casualties occurred before the Army was deployed and a curfew was imposed in Muzaffarnagar and its surrounding Shamli district.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Jauli Canal Incident
Even with the curfew and use of army the clashes continued for the next three days, with casualties increasing to 43 by 12 September 2013. A state home department official said that 38 people died in Muzaffarnagar, 3 in Baghpat, and one each in Saharanpur and Meerut.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Sexual violence
The first case of gang-rape was registered in the aftermath of the riots from the village of Fugana in Jogiya Kheda. Later two more cases of rape were registered in October. It was reported on 15 November 2013 that a total of 13 rape and sexual harassment cases were registered over the past two months of rioting and the report named 111 people in the incidents but no arrests had been made till then.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Aftermath, Mahapanchayat in Sardhana
A Mahapanchayat (great council) of 40 villages was held in Khera, Sardhana on 29 September 2013 to protest against the Uttar Pradesh government charging the local BJP MLA Sangeet Singh Som under the National Security Act. The crowd became violent when the police began to brandish sticks. The situation turned tense when a rumour spread that a youth injured in police action had died. Crowd set fire police jeeps and other vehicles.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Aftermath, Repercussions
On 30 October 3 people were killed and 1 injured after a clash between two communities in Mohammadpur Raisingh village of Muzaffarnagar district. Police forces were deployed and an alert was sounded in the entire district. The incident is widely seen as repercussion of the violence in September. On 4 July 2014, a local court has recorded the statement of a witness and deferred till 16 July the hearing in the Kawal killing case here.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Action
Approximately 1,000 army troops were deployed and curfew was imposed in the violence-hit areas. 10,000 Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) personnel, 1,300 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) troopers and 1,200 Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel were deployed to control the situation.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Action
Around 10,000 to 12,000 preventive arrests were made by the police as of 11 September 2013. They cancelled 2,300 arms licenses, seized 2,000 arms, and filed seven cases under the National Security Act.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Action
Approximately 50,000 people have been displaced. Some of them took shelter at ten state-run relief camps.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Action
By 31 August 2013, five FIRs were registered in connection with the case and eleven people have so far been arrested and booked under various charges, including that of rioting and murder. Police arrested several Bhartiya Janta Party leaders for inciting communal violence including Sangeet Som, Rashtriya Lok Dal leader Dharamvir Baliyan, party's district president Ajit Rathi and ten other political activists when they tried to visit communal violence hit Kawal village of Muzaffarnagar district.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Investigation
Seventeen FIRs have been lodged against leaders including one for the Mahapanchayat (great council) which organised by the Bharatiya Kisan Union leaders. The Uttar Pradesh Government announced a one-member judicial commission composed of Justice Vishnu Sahay, a retired Allahabad High Court judge on 9 September 2013. The commission has been asked to submit a report about the violence within two months. The UP government also removed five senior officials of the police and the administration from Muzaffarnagar for their poor handling of the situation.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Investigation, Misuse of social media
Chief Judicial Magistrate issued non-bailable warrants against 16 politicians. On 20 August 2013, BSP MP Kadir Rana was booked for his alleged hate speech in Khalapar area of the city. He was absconding but surrendered on 17 December 2013 and was sent to judicial custody. BJP MLA Sangeet Som was arrested for allegedly uploading a fake video that shows a Muslim mob brutally murdering a Hindu youth and delivering provocative speeches.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Investigation, Sting operation
A sting operation done by Headlines Today revealed that UP Cabinet Minister Azam Khan ordered police officers to release Muslims and not take action against them. However, Azam Khan has denied the charges.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Response
Political parties such as Bahujan Samaj Party, Bharatiya Janata Party, Rashtriya Lok Dal and Muslim organizations including Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind demanded the dismissal of ruling Samajwadi Party government and imposition of President's rule in the state.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Response
The failure of UP government to take prompt action is usually attributed to Akhilesh Yadav's indecision. According to a report in The Caravan, one reason for the hesitation may have been the response to a law and order directive weeks before the riots. Despite a ban on the activities of Vishwa Hindu Parishad, many of the organisations activists' managed to reach Ayodhya for a campaign. Akhilesh's government may have feared a similar undermining of their authority if they tried to ban the meeting of Mahapanchayat.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Response
Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde informed the press that he had already warned the Uttar Pradesh government about the escalating communal tensions there, for which Akhilesh Yadav had promised preventive measures.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Response
Senior Samajwadi Party leader and Minority Welfare Minister Azam Khan was absent from Party's national executive meeting which was held at Agra. He is reportedly unhappy with the manner in which the district administration handled the situation in Muzaffarnagar.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Response
Sompal Shastri, who was a candidate of Samajwadi Party from Baghpat, refused to contest 2014 Loksabha polls.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Response
In a Public Interest Litigation filed by a victim of the violence, Mohammed Haroon and others in the Supreme Court, the number of deaths was claimed to be over 200.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Relief camps
State Government has organised relief camps in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts for riot victims of 9,000 families, with over 50,000 members. According to district magistrates of Muzaffarnagar and Shamli, 3,500 families comprising over 23,000 members in Muzaffarnagar and 3,000 families consisting of over 15,000 persons are staying in camps in Shamli.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Relief camps
In Muzaffarnagar there are three relief camps where about 1,000 persons of one community have taken shelter while about 3,200 families of another community are staying in another 2 camps. In Shamli they are running 14 relief camps where foodgrains, milk, and water are provided to the families.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Relief camps, Deaths in camps
As of 22 October 2013, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), has said that seven deaths have occurred in the Loi relief camp in the aftermath of last month's riots in Muzaffarnagar even as organisers at Malakpur camp in Shamli district admitted that eight babies died at the camp. In Joula camp out of 30 deliveries in the camp three babies had died. In December, Al Jazeera English reported that an additional 30 children had "died due to the harsh cold".


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Book
The book Living Apart: Communal violence and forced displacement in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli, based on a field report conducted between March and July 2016, chronicles the lives of the victims of the Muzaffarnagar riots and reflects on the violence that occurred. The book also offers criticism for the apparent apathy of the state government for the victims.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Book
The novella In The Name of Blasphemy, written by Neeraj Agnihotri, is also set in the backdrop of Muzaffarnagar riots, talking mainly about the suffering and brutality caused by the riots in the name of religion.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Censure and indictment
A report composed by a six-member team of the Center for Policy Analysis, comprising Harsh Mander, Kamal Chenoy, John Dayal, Seema Mustafa, Sukumar Muralidharan, and E.N. Rammohan, censured members of the Samajwadi Party(SP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) for their role in the violence. According to the report, the violence was


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Censure and indictment
seen to be a choreographed spectacle in which the SP and the BJP would create sharp polarisation on communal grounds, compelling the electorate to make a choice between them and squeezing out other parties which have been claiming significant shares of popular vote.


2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, Censure and indictment
The Justice Vishnu Sahai commission, which made an enquiry into the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, blamed members of the SP and the BJP for being involved in the violence. The commission also blamed senior police and administrative officials for errors which led to the escalation of the violence.


2013 Myanmar National League
The MNL Myanmar 2013 is the Myanmar National League's fourth full regular season. The fixture schedule was released on third weeks of December 2012. The season is scheduled to begin on 5 January 2013 and end on 25 August 2013. At the end of the 2013 season, the top two teams from the MNL-2 New Holland League will be promoted to the MNL while the two bottom teams from the MNL will be relegated to the MNL-2.


2013 Myanmar National League, Teams, Personnel and kits
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2013 Myanmar National League, Matches
Fixtures and results of the Myanmar National League 2013 season.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots
The 2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots were a series of conflicts in various cities throughout central and eastern Myanmar (Burma).


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, March riots in Meiktila
Tensions between Buddhist and Muslim ethnic groups flared into violent clashes in Meiktila, Mandalay Division on 20 March and continued until the 22nd, killing at least 40 and wounding 61 people. The violence started on 20 March after a Muslim gold shop owner, his wife, and two Muslim employees assaulted a Buddhist customer and her husband in an argument over a golden hairpin. A large mob formed and began to destroy the shop. The heavily outnumbered police reportedly told the mob to disperse after they had destroyed the shop. In the evening, a local Buddhist monk not involved in the incident was dragged from his bicycle, doused in petrol, and burnt alive by six Muslim youths at a nearby mosque. The killing of the monk caused the relatively contained situation to explode, greatly increasing intensity and violence.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, March riots in Meiktila
The deadliest incident occurred when a Buddhist mob attacked and torched the Mingalar Zayone Islamic Boarding School. While outnumbered security forces stood by, rioters armed with machetes, metal pipes, chains, and stones killed 32 teenage students and four teachers.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, March riots in Meiktila
On 25 March, communal rioting targeting Muslim houses and mosques spread to the towns of Othekone, Tatkone and Yamenthin. At least 9,000 residents were documented to have been displaced by the violence. In April, the BBC obtained a leaked police video showing outnumbered police officers standing by while rioters torched houses and businesses in Meiktila. The video also shows the burning and killing of at least two Muslim students at the hands of rioters, which included Buddhist monks. The video was captured to prosecute the perpetrators later in court. On the third day, the situation stabilised when the government declared a state of emergency and deployed military troops.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, March riots in Meiktila
On 21 May, seven Muslims, including the gold shop owner and those who perpetrated the murder of the monk, were convicted for inciting the unrest and jailed from 2 up to 28 years. In July, the Burmese courts sentenced 25 Buddhists to up to 15 years in prison for murder and other crimes during the riot.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, April riots in Okkan
On 30 April 400 Buddhists armed with bricks and sticks overran mosques and torched more than 100 homes and shops in Okkan, killing two people and injuring at least ten more. Another 77 homes were destroyed in the nearby villages of Yadanakon, Panipin, Chaukthe and Thekon. The riot reportedly began when a Muslim woman on a motorcycle accidentally bumped into a Buddhist monk, knocking over his alms bowl.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, May riots in Lashio
On 29 May, violence broke out in Lashio, in Shan state bordering China, after reports that a 48-year-old Muslim man named Ne Win poured petrol on a young Buddhist woman with whom he was arguing and set her on fire. In response, a Buddhist mob armed with machetes and bamboo poles torched a mosque, a Muslim orphanage, and several shops after the police refused to surrender Ne Win. The Buddhists and Muslims continued to fight into the next day and at least one person died. Sword-wielding Buddhist gangs began patrolling the streets on motorbikes, forcing as many as 1,400 Muslims to take shelter in a Buddhist monastery until the police and army were able to restore order.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, August riots in Kantbalu
On 24 August, violence once again flared up in Htan Gon village, 16 kilometres south of Kantbalu in the Sagaing Region, following rumours that a Muslim man tried to sexually assault a young Buddhist woman. Local monks led a 1,000-strong Buddhist mob to retaliate by burning down Muslim owned businesses and the village mosque. State television reported that 42 houses and 15 shops owned primarily by Muslims were razed during the three-hour riot. One firefighter and one civilian were injured in the incident. Police officers were powerless to contain the violence, but finally dispersed the mob by firing their pistols into the air.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, October riots in Thandwe
Between 29 September and 2 October, Rakhine Buddhists rioted and attacked Kamein Muslims in Thabyachaing and Linthi villages, about 20 kilometres north of the coastal town of Thandwe in Rakhine State. Seven Muslims and two Buddhists were killed and between 70 and 80 houses were set on fire. About 500 ethnic Kamein Muslims were forced to flee from their homes. Local residents were worried that a further round of violence between Rakhine Buddhist and Muslim communities would ensue after two young Rakhine Buddhists girls aged five and six were found murdered on 17 and 18 November in separate incidents. One victim reportedly appeared to have been raped.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, Spillover
In April 2013, Muslim and Buddhist detainees from Myanmar clashed at a refugee camp in Indonesia. Eight Buddhists were killed and fifteen other people were wounded. Sources have asserted that the provocation for the riot was due to sexual harassment against female Rohingya Muslim inmates by the Rakhine Buddhist inmates. An Indonesian court jailed 14 Muslim Rohingya for nine months each in December. The sentence was lighter than the maximum penalty for violence resulting in death, which is 12 years. The men's lawyer said they would appeal for freedom because there was no real evidence shown during the trial.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, Spillover
In May, two Muslims were arrested for planning to attack the Myanmar embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia with pipe-bombs. The mastermind of the plot said he was still at war with anyone oppressing Muslims.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, Spillover
In June, at least four Buddhists were murdered in Malaysia which was linked to ethnic tensions in Myanmar. All the victims, including a man slashed to death by a machete-wielding mob in Kuala Lumpur, were Buddhists from Myanmar. Malaysian police had arrested approximately 60 Burmese immigrants in an attempt to control tensions.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, Spillover
In July, Muslims were blamed for the Bodh Gaya bombings, which targeted one of Buddhism's most revered sites. Five people, including two Buddhist monks, were injured by the blasts.


2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots, Spillover
On 5 August, two pipe-bombs went off outside the Ekayana Buddhist Centre in West Jakarta as some 300 people gathered inside the temple for a sermon, injuring three people. There was a note from the perpetrators that read "We respond to the screams of the Rohingya".


2013 Mysore Dasara
The Mysore Dasara 2013 is the 403rd edition of the annual royal festive gala event, a show of pomp and tradition that is held in the Mysore city in Karnataka, India for 10 days. The festival is called the Navaratri (meaning nine nights or Dussehra or Vijayadashami which conforms to the bright half (Shukla Paksha) of the month of Ashvin (Ashwayuja), from pratipada (first day) thithi (day)  to navami (ninth) thithi (first nine days of the month) in the Hindu calendar corresponding to 5 to 13 October during 2013.


2013 Mysore Dasara
The festival is also called Nada Habba (festival of the country) in Kannada language. The first day of the nine-day festivity started on 5 October with the traditional and religious special puja (worship) performed to Goddess Chamundeshwari in the Chamundi Temple on top of the Chamundi Hill, which forms the backdrop to the city; the temple was beautifully decorated with flowers and tourist from Gujarat, Rajasthan and other states enthralled the audience with their bhajan singing (devotional songs).


2013 Mysore Dasara
On this occasion, floral tribute wa offered to the goddess by Jnanpith Award winner  Chandrashekhara Kambara and festivities will continue for ten days. The ninth day of the festival is a special event called the Mahanavami when the royal sword is worshipped and taken in a procession  of elephants, camels and horses. The festival concludes on 14 October on the dashami day (tenth day from the start of the festival) with the grand finale of Jambusavari (a royal procession) with the idol of Chamundeshawri set in a golden howdah mounted on a richly caparisoned elephant. The procession is taken through the streets of the city and ends in the Banni Mantap where, in the evening, a torch light parade is held. Symbolically, the festival represents the victory of good over evil.


2013 Mysore Dasara
During the festival period the royal Mysore Palace, fitted with 96,000 bulbs is lit giving the palace a golden hue glittering brightness in the evenings which provides for a grand spectacle. Cultural programmes are part of the festivities.


2013 Mysore Dasara, History
The earliest recorded history of dasara celebration was during the reign of emperor Devaraya II of  the Vijayanagar Empire during the 15th century which has also been attested by the Persian traveler, Abdul Razzak who witnessed this festival during 1442 - 43 AD. When the Wadiyar kings of Mysore who were initially subordinate to the Vijayanagara Empire, following the decline of the empire, declared themselves as rulers. Then, Raja Wadiyar (1578-1617 CE) founded the Kingdom of Mysore and the Wodeyar Dynasty in 1610.


2013 Mysore Dasara, History
He continued the tradition of holding the dasara, first in Srirangapatna which was then their capital and then in Mysore city after they shifted their capital. In 1805, Krishnaraja Wodeyar III introduced the royal tradition of holding a durbar (Royal court) in the Mysore Palace when members of the royal family, courtiers, invited elites and common people of the city attended, and cultural programmes were performed. This tradition is continued even now, though as a private event called the "khasgi (private) durbar" by Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wodeyar, the former scion of the Wodeyar family. On the durbar days, the present scion of the Wodeyar family occupied the golden thrown with all pomp and splendour when a march past of the royal elephants and horses is also held; open air musical concerts are a regular feature on the occasion.


2013 Mysore Dasara, Jambo Savari
Jambo Savari is a royal procession of the Dusara that will take place on the Vijayadashami day (tenth day on 14 October). This procession, as in the past, will be taken through the streets of Mysore city. On this occasion, the main idol of the Goddess Chamundeshwari, placed over a golden howdah on the top of a richly decorated elephant is worshipped at the palace grounds by the royal couple and other assembled dignitaries. The procession starts from the palace with colourful floats, dance troupes, music bands, armed forces, folklores, the royal dignitaries, decorated elephants, horses leading the procession.


2013 Mysore Dasara, Jambo Savari
The procession terminates at the Bannimantap,  a traditional practice linked to Mahabharata epic. Banni is a tree (Prosopis spicigera) which is worshipped at the mantap or hall. The legend narrated for this event is that during  the Mahabharata, Banni tree was the place where the Pandavas the heroes of Mahabharata war had hidden their arms during their one-year vow of remaining incognito Agnatavasa. They retrieved their arms after the one-year  period and in the subsequent war they won against Kauravas. Since then symbolically, the kings, before embarking on any warfare, traditionally worshipped this tree to come out successful in the war. After the conclusion of the parade, in the evening, at the same venue, Panjina Kavayithu a locally named event meaning "torch-light parade" is held.


2013 Mysore Dasara, Cultural events
Cultural events and exhibition ( inaugurated for the festival which lasts till December) are part of the nine-day festival. On the first day on 5 October, the cultural programmes was launched in the evening with folk and classical music at the Amba Vilas Palace. During the nine-day festival period 150 cultural programmes have been arranged. The venue of these programmes are at the Kalamandira, Jaganmohan Palace, Gyanabharati, Town Hall, Kuppanna Park, and Chikka Gadiyara. On this occasion the prominent buildings and streets are also lighted.


2013 Mysore Dasara, Cultural events
Iconic artist Hema Malini, an actor and dance exponent, is presenting a dance ballet on 8 October. The doyen of Hindustani music Pandit Jasraj will give a musical concert on 13 October.


2013 Mysore Dasara, Cultural events
On this occasion, on the open grounds in front of the Maharaja College a Yuva Dasara (dasara for the youth) was scheduled to be held on 7 October featuring famous young singers like Sonu Nigam, Shaan and Sunidhi Chauhan, and Vijayprakash of Mysore who sang the famous "Jai Ho" song will entertain the audience.


2013 Mysore Dasara, Cultural events
Nancy Powell, the US Ambassador to India and the US Consul General from Chennai are special guests scheduled to attend the "Jamboo Savari" and "Torchlight Parade" on the tenth day of the festival.


2013 Māori All Blacks tour of North America
On 23 May 2013, it was announced by the New Zealand Rugby Union that following a successful tour in 2012, the Māori All Blacks will tour North America to take on Canada and the United States. The fixtures would not be the first time the national sides have met the invitational side, as the teams participated in the now defunct Churchill Cup, and the Māoris faced Canada during their 2012 tour where the Māoris were victorious 32-19. The head coach for the tour was announced as Taranaki's head coach Colin Cooper. He was assisted by Crusaders assistant coach Tabai Matson, and former All Black Carl Hoeft as the scrummage coach.


2013 Māori All Blacks tour of North America, Fixtures, Canada
Touch judges: USA Appt (United States) USA Appt (United States)Television match official: USA Appt (United States)


2013 Māori All Blacks tour of North America, Fixtures, United States
Touch judges: David Smortchevsky (Canada) Andrew McMaster (Canada)Television match official: Bryan Arclero (Canada)


2013 Māori All Blacks tour of North America, Squad
New Zealand Māori 29-man squad for the 2013 North America November Tour, facing Canada (3 November) and United States (9 November).


2013 Māori All Blacks tour of North America, Squad
Note: Bold denotes players that have represented the Māori All Blacks in previous tours. Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under IRB eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-IRB nationality.


2013 Māori All Blacks tour of North America, Squad, Squad notes
Tim Bateman took captaincy from Tanerau Latimer, who has made himself unavailable to have surgery on a long-standing arm injury. Several players were not considered due to injury including Ross Filipo and Bronson Murray. Ash Dixon replaced Corey Flynn after being ruled out of the tour through injury. Hika Elliot and Piri Weepu sustained injuries during the North American Tour and were replaced by Quentin MacDonald and Chris Smylie.


2013 NA LCS season
The 2013 NA LCS season was the first year of the North American League of Legends Championship Series. It was divided into spring and summer splits, each consisting of a regular season and playoff stage. The top six teams from the regular season advanced to the playoff stage, with the top two teams receiving a bye to the semifinals. Regular season games were played in a film studio in Sawtelle, Los Angeles, California.


2013 NA LCS season
The spring split began on February 7 and concluded with the spring finals on April 28. Both the regular season and playoffs were won by Team SoloMid with a roster consisting of Dyrus, TheOddOne, Reginald, WildTurtle, and Xpecial.


2013 NA LCS season
The summer regular season and playoffs were both won by Cloud9 in their debut split, with a roster consisting of Balls, Meteos, Hai, Sneaky and LemonNation. Cloud9 also set a historic regular season finish of 25–3, a record which stood until PAX 2013.


2013 NA LCS season
Cloud9, TeamSoloMid and Team Vulcun qualified for the Season 3 World Championship by placing first, second and third respectively in the summer playoffs.


2013 NAB Cup
The 2013 NAB Cup was an Australian Football League (AFL) pre-season competition that was played before the 2013 home and away season. The tournament commenced on 15 February 2013, and concluded with the NAB Cup Grand Final on 15 March 2013. The first group of matches was played between Collingwood, Essendon and Western Bulldogs in Melbourne at Etihad Stadium. The tournament was won by the Brisbane Lions, its first pre-season premiership.


2013 NAB Cup
The competition format was the same as the previous year and once again featured eighteen teams. Matches were played at both regular AFL venues and select regional centres. All matches in the first three rounds of the competition counted equally with four points for a win and percentage also being taken into account. The two best-performed teams, the Brisbane Lions and Carlton, played the NAB Cup Grand Final on 15 March. Teams not playing in the first week of Round 1 of the 2013 AFL season played one last pre-season match at various metropolitan locations across Australia in week 5.


2013 NAB Cup
The format for the 2013 NAB Cup was as follows:


2013 NAB Cup, Games
The fixtures were announced by the AFL on 24 October 2012. All times listed are local times.


2013 NACAC Cross Country Championships
The 2013 NACAC Cross Country Championships took place on January 26, 2013. The races were held at the Manchester Golf Club in Mandeville, Jamaica. A detailed report of the event was given.


2013 NACAC Cross Country Championships, Participation
According to an unofficial count, 114 athletes from 8 countries participated.


2013 NACAM Rally Championship
The 2013 NACAM Rally Championship is the sixth season of the NACAM Rally Championship. This Championship is the FIA regional rally championship for the North America and Central America (NACAM) region. The season began April 20 in Oaxaca, Mexico, and is scheduled to end November 24 in Jamaica, after six events.


2013 NACAM Rally Championship
Reigning champion Ricardo Triviño won his fourth NACAM championship, winning four of the six rallies, three of them outright. Trivino won by 21 points over Venezuelan driver Alejandro Lombardo. Costa Rican driver Andrés Molina won a season long battle with Mexican Carlos Izquierdo for third in the championship. Lombardo and Molina were the only drivers to take first place in NACAM points away from Triviño, having done so at the Peruvia Rally Cañete and the Costa Rican Rally Costa del Pacifico respectively.


2013 NACRA Rugby Championship
The 2013 NACRA Rugby Championship is a rugby union championship for Tier 3 North American and Caribbean teams, and took place between January and June, 2013.


2013 NACRA Rugby Championship
The top four teams from the second round of 2012 NACRA Championship qualified for the second round of the 2013 championship, while the third place team from the north and south pools of the 2012 championship qualified for the final games of the first round.


2013 NACRA Rugby Championship
The championship is split between north and south, with the winner of each division playing in a final game.


2013 NACRA Rugby Championship
This was the first game in the NACRA Championship for Curaçao and Turks and Caicos Islands.


2013 NACRA Rugby Championship, Round 1, Round 1b - North
The Bahamas hosted a game against the winner of Round 1a - North (USA South). The winner  progressed to Round 2 - North to take on Bermuda and Cayman Islands.


2013 NACRA Rugby Championship, Round 1, Round 1b - South
Barbados hosted game against the winner of Round 1a - South (Curaçao). The winner progressed to Round 2 - South to take on Guyana and Trinidad & Tobago.


2013 NACRA Rugby Championship, Round 2
Round 2 was played in regional single round robin (2 games for each team). The top team from the North pool and South pool progressed to the NACRA Championship final.


2013 NACRA Rugby Championship, Round 3
The winning team from Round 2 - North played off against the winning team from Round 2 South for the championship.


2013 NACRA Rugby Championship, Round 3
USA South is the winner of the 2013 NACRA Rugby Championship. Matt Upton presumably won the MVP.


2013 NACRA Women's Sevens
The 2013 NACRA Women's Sevens was the ninth tournament of the North America and Caribbean Women's Sevens Championship, the official rugby sevens continental championships organized by NACRA. Both the women's and men's competitions were held at the George Town which was in the Cayman Islands. It was held on 9–10 November. The stadium was the Truman Bodden Stadium as it was also a qualification tournament for the Central America and Caribbean Games which would be held in Mexico.


2013 NACRA Women's Sevens, General
The teams competed in two groups on the first day of the competition in a round-robin format. After the group stage, the teams advanced to the playoff stage beginning with the quarter finals.


2013 NACRA Women's Sevens, General
On the first day there were no surprises, the favored team which was the Canadian reserves then easily advanced to the finals, in which they defeated the Mexicans.


2013 NACRA Women's Sevens, General
Three teams, besides Mexico, fulfilling the conditions imposed by the ODECABE earned promotion to the Central America and Caribbean Games.


2013 NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament
The 2013 Buffalo Funds - NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament was held in March at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The 76th annual NAIA basketball tournament features 32 teams playing in a single-elimination format. The opening game started on March 13, and the National Championship Game was played on March 19.


2013 NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament
The 2013 NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball National Championship was held in March at Keeter Gymnasium in Point Lookout, Missouri. The 22nd annual NAIA basketball tournament featured thirty-two teams playing in a single-elimination format. The championship game was won by Cardinal Stritch University over William Penn University by a score of 73 to 59.


2013 NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament, Tournament field
The 2013 tournament field was announced on March 5. The field was made up of 23 automatic qualifiers and eight at-large bids and one automatic host bid presented to College of the Ozarks. This tournament field welcomed four newcomers, Madonna (Michigan), Rochester (Michigan), Saint Xavier (Illinois) and Valley City State (North Dakota).


2013 NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament, Highlights, First round
With five players scoring in double figures, including Roosevelt Green with eighteen, sixth seeded St. Xavier's dominated St. Mary's in first round action by a score of 82-60.


2013 NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament, Highlights, Elite Eight
Derek Semenas and Darren Moore both scored eighteen, and Moore pulled in eleven rebounds as second seed Cardinal Stritch defeated Dordt 82-76 in double overtime.


2013 NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament, Highlights, Championship game
Stritch won their first ever national championship 73-59 over William Penn on an impressive 21 point, seven rebound performance by Darren Moore.


2013 NAIA Football National Championship
The 2013 NAIA Football National Championship was a four-round sixteen team tournament played between November 23 through December 21 of 2013. The tournament concluded on December 21 with a single game played as the 58th Annual Russell Athletic NAIA Football National Championship. The game matched two undefeated teams: #1 Cumberlands Patriots (13-0) against #2 Grand View Vikings.


2013 NAIA Football National Championship
The championship game was played at Barron Stadium in Rome, Georgia. A total of sixteen teams participated in the single-elimination tournament from across the country. Placement in the tournament was based on the final edition of the 2013 NAIA Coaches' Poll. This year's field included the top 16 teams from the final poll.


2013 NAIA football rankings
One human poll makes up the 2013 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) football rankings, sometimes called the NAIA Coaches' Poll or the football ratings. When the regular season is complete, the NAIA plans to sponsor a playoff to determine the year's national champion. A final poll will be taken after completion of the 2013 NAIA Football National Championship.


2013 NAIA football rankings, Leading Vote-Getters
Since the inception of the Coaches' Poll in 1999, the #1 ranking in the various weekly polls has been held by only a select group of teams. Through the end of 2013, the team and the number of times they have held the #1 weekly ranking are shown below. The number of times a team has been ranked #1 in the postseason poll (the national champion) is shown in parentheses.


2013 NAIA football rankings, Leading Vote-Getters
In 1999, the results of a postseason poll, if one was conducted, are not known. Therefore, an additional poll was presumed, and the #1 postseason ranking has been credited to the postseason tournament champion, the Northwestern Oklahoma State Rangers.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
The 2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series was the nineteenth season of the Camping World Truck Series, the third highest stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in North America. The season was contested over twenty-two races, beginning with the NextEra Energy Resources 250 at Daytona International Speedway and ending with the Ford EcoBoost 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Matt Crafton of ThorSport Racing claimed his first championship with only one finish outside the top twenty and by completing every lap of the season. Toyota won the year's Manufacturers' Championship, while Kyle Busch Motorsports won the Owners' Championship, with its No. 51 entry.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Schedule
The final calendar was released on November 28, 2012, containing 22 races. Speed was re-launched in August as Fox Sports 1. The two iterations televised every race in the United States.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
Prior to the season, NASCAR lowered its age limit for participation in the Camping World Truck Series to age 16, with a stipulation that 16- and 17-year-old drivers could only participate at races held at ovals 1 mile and shorter, and at road course tracks.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
The Camping World Truck Series started its 2013 season at Daytona International Speedway. Johnny Sauter would hold off Kyle Busch over the last few laps to avenge his loss in 2012 and take the victory. Following a month-long break, the Trucks returned to action at Martinsville Speedway. Rookie polesitter Jeb Burton would dominate most of the race. However, Daytona winner Sauter passed Burton with 17 to go, and pulled away from teammate Matt Crafton to win his second race in a row. The trucks traveled to Rockingham Speedway for the first stand-alone weekend of the season. Nationwide regular Kyle Larson dominated the race, leading 187 laps and cruising to his first career win. Ron Hornaday Jr. was penalized late in the race for intentionally sending Bubba Wallace into the fences, later fined $25,000 and was put on probation until June 12.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
The Truck Series returned to action at the repaved Kansas Speedway. James Buescher, who dominated the intermediate tracks en route to the 2012 title, dominated the race, but was hampered by a slow four tire pit stop late in the race. Matt Crafton and Joey Coulter would inherit the top two positions, and the two would swap the lead for the final 30 laps until Crafton prevailed, taking his 3rd career Truck win since 2011. At Charlotte Motor Speedway, Kyle Busch would rally from a pre-race engine change and would drive past Miguel Paludo late in the race to claim his first Truck Series win since 2011.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
With a week off, the Truck Series returned to action at Dover International Speedway. Polesitter Bubba Wallace would dominate the race. However, teammate and boss Kyle Busch took the lead from Wallace and Matt Crafton on lap 145 and never looked back, taking his second consecutive win of the season. At Texas, Ty Dillon would have the dominant truck, though four-time Texas winner Brendan Gaughan took the lead from Dillon during the middle portion of the race. However, a loose truck would take Gaughan out of contention.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
On the restart at lap 144, rookie Jeb Burton drove past Dillon and held him off for his first career win. At Kentucky Speedway, Wallace once again dominated the race, leading 54 laps, but was taken out in a mid race incident with polesitter Ryan Blaney. Ty Dillon would inherit the lead from Kyle Busch and easily held off Busch and Brad Keselowski for his first win of the season.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
The Truck Series arrived at the Eldora Speedway for the inaugural Mudsummer Classic, the first race on dirt in any series since 1970. Ken Schrader started on pole, the oldest pole sitter in any NASCAR series at 58 years, but Austin Dillon and Kyle Larson battled for the lead throughout most of the race, with Dillon leading a race-high 63 laps. Dillon held off Larson and Ryan Newman on a green-white-checker finish to win his first start of the year. The Trucks would then trek to Pocono Raceway.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
After a brief rain delay before the race, Ryan Blaney pulled away from pole sitter Miguel Paludo on the second green white checkered attempt to take his first win of the season. After a week off, the series returned to action at Michigan International Speedway. Polesitter Jeb Burton would dominate most of the race, seeking his second win of the year. Defending champion James Buescher would take the lead late in the race from Kyle Busch and would go on to take his first win of the season. At Bristol Motor Speedway, defending winner Timothy Peters led most of the race. However, Kyle Busch would rally from a penalty to take the lead late from Peters and hold off his late pass attempt to take the win.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
The Trucks made their inaugural trip to Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and the series' first road course since 2000 for the Chevrolet Silverado 250. Chase Elliott led most of the first half, and Ty Dillon would dominate most of the second half of the race. However, Dillon's strategy of pitting on lap 35 of 64 forced him to stretch his fuel. Elliott would chase down Dillon through the last 15 laps. On the final lap in turn 10 (the final corner), Dillon attempted to block the inside line from Elliott, but Elliott spun Dillon and went on to become the youngest winner in series history, at 17 years, 9 months and 4 days.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
The Trucks then made their return to Iowa Speedway. Ross Chastain would dominate most of the race, leading 116 laps. Due to NASCAR allowing the teams only two sets of tires, James Buescher made the call to pit late to take a final set of sticker tires while others had used up their sets. This would prove to be the winning move as Buescher made his way past Chastain and held him off on two green white checkered attempts to take his second win of the season.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
At Chicago, Kyle Busch would dominate most of the race, but would have to fend off Brad Keselowski for his fourth Truck Series win. The Trucks then made their stop at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Late in the race, Ron Hornaday Jr. looked to snap his winless streak. However, Jennifer Jo Cobb slammed the wall, forcing a restart with 2 to go. Hornaday spun his tires, allowing Timothy Peters to get by and take his first win on an intermediate track.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
With the season winding down, the Truck Series traveled south to Talladega Superspeedway. Most of the afternoon would be dominated by survival. On the final run to the finish, Daytona winner Johnny Sauter, with a push from teammate Matt Crafton, vaulted ahead of the field in the tri-oval and took his third win of the season as chaos erupted behind him. The Trucks then returned to Martinsville Speedway. There, outside polesitter Bubba Wallace would dominate the race, while Cup drivers Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick were taken out in separate incidents.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
Wallace would hold off Brendan Gaughan over the final 10 laps to take his first career win in the Truck Series, becoming only the second African American to win in NASCAR's top 3 series. Returning to Texas Motor Speedway, Ty Dillon would dominate the night, leading 130 of 147 laps en route to his third win of the season and the 100th win for the No. 3 in NASCAR's top series. Trekking out to the Phoenix International Raceway, it would be an all-night duel between young drivers Erik Jones and Ross Chastain.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
Following a caution caused by dual spins by Timothy Peters and Bubba Wallace, Jones would pass Chastain on the restart with 10 to go and hang on to become the youngest winner in series history at 17 years, 5 months and 9 days, beating Chase Elliott's record from September. Points leader Matt Crafton continued his top-10 form, and only needed to start the final round at Homestead to win his maiden NASCAR championship.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Season summary
At the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, while Crafton wrapped up the championship by starting his engine, the Owners Championship and Rookie of the Year battles were still to be decided. The night would be dominated by polesitter Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch, the latter trying to win the owners championship. It seemed as though Crafton's 88 team would wrap up both championships when he crashed on lap 136 with Joey Coulter and Brennan Newberry. Busch would hold off Blaney and Jeb Burton on three green-white-checkered finishes to take his sixth win of the season and claim the Owners Championship with Crafton finishing 21st. Blaney would claim Rookie of the Year honors over Burton and Bubba Wallace.


2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Results and standings, Drivers' standings
(key) Bold - Pole position awarded by time. Italics - Pole position earned by final practice results or rainout. * – Most laps led.


2013 NASCAR Canadian Tire Series
The 2013 NASCAR Canadian Tire Series season is the seventh season of the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series taking place in the summer of 2013. The season composed of twelve races at ten different venues. Seven of those events were contested on oval courses.


2013 NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, Summary
The seventh season consists of 12 events spanning across 5 provinces featuring 12 events. Television rights are once again licensed to TSN in one-hour tape-delayed episodes, excluding both events at the  Canadian Tire Motorsport Park road course which will be aired live on TSN and CTV.


2013 NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, Summary
The season started on May 19 at the newly renovated Canadian Tire Motorsport Park with Louis-Philippe Dumoulin collecting his first series win with longtime veteran Jeff Lapcevich finishing second. After a two-year hiatus the series is set to return to the Autodrome St. Eustache on 27 July as the events in Montreal and Edmonton Airport will not return the calendar.


2013 NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, Results, Championship standings
Bold – Pole position awarded by time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings. * – Most laps led.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series
The 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series was the 32nd season of the Nationwide Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by the NASCAR in the United States. The season was contested over thirty-three races and started on February 23, 2013 at Daytona International Speedway, with the DRIVE4COPD 300, and ended on November 16 with the Ford EcoBoost 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Austin Dillon of Richard Childress Racing won the Drivers' Championship, becoming the first driver in the three major NASCAR series to do so without recording a win. The No. 22 entry of Penske Racing won the Owners' Championship, while Ford won the Manufacturers' Championship.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Teams and drivers, Driver changes
The 2013 season sees significant driver changes. With Nationwide champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr. moving to the Sprint Cup Series with Roush Fenway Racing, Trevor Bayne, who ran a partial Nationwide schedule with Roush, inherited the No. 6 Ford for 2013. Runner-up Elliott Sadler announced his departure from Richard Childress Racing in 2012, and signed to drive for Joe Gibbs Racing full-time in the No. 11 Toyota. In addition to Sadler, Brian Vickers, after running a partial Cup schedule, return to the Nationwide Series full-time for the first time since his championship season in 2003.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Teams and drivers, Driver changes
JGR's former driver Brian Scott took over Elliott Sadler's old No. 2 ride at RCR, signing a multi-year deal with the team. Truck Series driver Parker Kligerman signed with Kyle Busch Motorsports for 2013, driving the No. 77 Toyota for the season. Former Sprint Cup driver Regan Smith drove the full season for JR Motorsports in the No. 7, replacing Danica Patrick. Kasey Kahne and his USAC driver Brad Sweet also moved from Turner Motorsports to JRM, sharing the No. 5 Camaro for the season. TriStar Motorsports fielded a car for Louisiana native Hal Martin, running for Rookie of the Year. Jeffrey Earnhardt, after driving a limited schedule, drove the full season with Go Green Racing.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Schedule
The final calendar was released on November 13, 2012, containing 33 races.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Schedule, Schedule changes
On October 5, 2012, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve's promoter François Dumontier announced that the series would not return to the circuit for the 2013 season. The event was later replaced by Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course located in Lexington, Ohio.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Changes, Rule changes
After banning all testing on tracks where any of the three premier series sanction races  in 2008, NASCAR announced on September 29, 2012, that they will implement limited testing at tracks which sanction a race on the schedule. However, NASCAR stated that each team would only be allowed to test two different times, with each test at a different track. Rookie of the Year participants will also be allowed one extra test session, while NASCAR will choose two other events for extra testing during the race weekend. NASCAR also announced that the Nationwide Series's grid would decrease from 43 cars to 40.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
The Nationwide Series kicked off the 2013 season at Daytona International Speedway in the DRIVE4COPD 300. Following a big crash with 14 laps to go that resulted in a red flag, Regan Smith took the lead, attempting to take his second consecutive win. On the final lap, Smith attempted to block a pass attempt by Brad Keselowski and got turned into the outside wall, causing a big crash behind. Stewart drove to the inside and won his seventh career Daytona Nationwide race. However, the win was overshadowed by the last lap crash. Kyle Larson, who was collected into the crash, had his car lift off the ground and slamm into the safety fence. The car's engine and front wheels landed in the grandstands, injuring 33 fans (all of whom survived).


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
The series moved out west to Phoenix International Raceway. The race would be dominated by Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, and Brian Vickers. While Kenseth and Vickers had separate incidents taking them out of contention, Busch rallied from an early speeding penalty and drove to his first Nationwide win since 2011. The series made its lone stop at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway the following week.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
With Cup contenders Keselowski and Dale Earnhardt Jr. having multiple issues throughout the day, Nationwide regular Sam Hornish Jr. pulled away from Kyle Busch in the closing laps to capture his first win of the season. Heading to the first short track of the season at Bristol, Kyle Busch once again dominated the race, leading 156 laps and holding off rookie Kyle Larson on the last lap for his second win of the season. Heading out west to the Auto Club Speedway, Kyle Busch would once again dominate the race weekend from the pole, easily winning his second consecutive race of the season and JGR's 9th consecutive win at ACS.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
Following another off week, the Nationwide Series rolled into Texas Motor Speedway. Nationwide points leader Sam Hornish Jr. had the fastest car of the night, but contact with Jeremy Clements took Hornish out of contention. Kyle Busch took over the lead and easily won his third consecutive race of the season. The following week at Richmond International Raceway, the race would be dominated by Cup regulars Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, and polesitter Brad Keselowski. The three swapped the lead throughout the night, with Busch and Harvick's cars fading in the closing laps.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
Keselowski made a late pass on Harvick and went on to capture his first win of the 2013 season. The teams then headed south to Talladega Superspeedway. Joey Logano would dominate the race and looked set to win another plate race. With the race cut to 110 laps due to impending darkness, Regan Smith, with help from JR Motorsports teammate Kasey Kahne, stormed past Logano in a three wide finish on the final lap.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
Though Kahne beat Smith to the start finish line, Smith was ahead of his teammate at the scoring loop, handing him his first win of the season as well as the points lead. The night race at Darlington Raceway would be dominated by JGR. Pole winner Kyle Busch dominated the race, leading 107 laps and holding off teammates Elliott Sadler and Brian Vickers to take his 5th win of the season. Austin Dillon started on pole for the History 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, but Kyle Busch once again dominated. Busch led the most laps and took his 2nd consecutive win (his 6th of the season).


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
At Dover International Speedway, Kyle Busch once again dominated the race, looking for his 7th win of the season. A call for four tires late in the race proved to be his undoing and sent him outside the top-10. Joey Logano, who had won the previous year's race with Joe Gibbs Racing, inherited the lead and went on to win. The first stand-alone weekend for the Nationwide Series came at Iowa Speedway. Polesitter Austin Dillon dominated the race that had been pushed back from Saturday to Sunday and interrupted due to rain.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
However, Trevor Bayne would chase down Dillon and pass him before the race was declared official on lap 207, handing Bayne his first win of the season. The Nationwide Series headed north to Michigan International Speedway. Fuel mileage was key to winning the race, and points leader Regan Smith would take the lead over Parker Kligerman with 13 laps to go, and held off rookie Kyle Larson to take his second win of the season.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
Heading to the first road course of the season at Road America, polesitter A. J. Allmendinger would dominate most of the race, holding off Justin Allgaier on a green-white-checkered finish to earn his first win in NASCAR. The following week at Kentucky Speedway, the race would be dominated by Cup regulars Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski. Though Busch would lead the most laps, Keselowski emerged with the dominant car of the night, being declared the race winner after the race was called due to rain on lap 170. The Nationwide Series made its return to Daytona the following week. The Penske duo of Sam Hornish and Joey Logano would be dominant throughout most of the race. However, Sprint Cup regular Matt Kenseth, with help from James Buescher, worked his way to the front and held off the field for the win.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
At Loudon, Kyle Busch would once again dominate the race, but would have to survive a late red flag, as well as three green-white-checkered finishes to return to victory lane. At Chicagoland, defending winner Elliott Sadler had the dominant car, looking to turn his season around. However, Sam Hornish Jr. would rally from an early speeding penalty to take the lead from Sadler, only to be passed by teammate Joey Logano, who held on to take his second win of the season.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
At Indianapolis, pole-sitter Kyle Busch dominated the race, leading 92 of 100 laps and holding off Brian Scott to win his eighth race of the year. The series then returned to Iowa. Despite polesitter Austin Dillon dominating the race, Cup driver Brad Keselowski would rally twice in the race, first from a pit road penalty, then an overheating issue. Though both Dillon and Keselowski took four tires during the final round of pitstops at lap 200, Keselowski would charge through the field and take his third win of the season. At Watkins Glen, Keselowski and Penske Racing teammate Sam Hornish Jr. dominated the race, and Keselowski won his second consecutive Nationwide race.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
At Bristol, Kyle Busch started from the pole, and led 228 of 250 laps to win. Kevin Harvick held off Kyle Busch to win at Atlanta the following week. The Nationwide Series made its return to Richmond for its 1,000th race. Polesitter Brian Scott dominated the field, leading 239 of 250 laps. However, on the final restart, Scott spun his tires, handing the lead over to Brad Keselowski who held him and Regan Smith off for the win, as well as the 19th consecutive time that Cup regulars had won at Richmond. The series then returned to Chicagoland Speedway, where Kyle Busch led 195 of 200 laps to take his tenth win of the season.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
The Nationwide Series then held its final stand alone race of the year at Kentucky. Truck series regular Ryan Blaney would dominate the field, easily taking his first career win. Returning to Dover, multiple pit strategies were the order of the day. While Trevor Bayne decided to pit on lap 25 Joey Logano and others decided to pit on lap 40. Kyle Busch, who was taken out of contention due to pit strategy, decided to max out his cars fuel mileage to lap 86. However, he was forced to pit under the green flag, costing him the win.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
Logano would take back the lead from Busch on lap 142 and would win his fourth consecutive Dover Nationwide race. The series made the final Midwestern stop at Kansas Speedway, where the race would be dominated by Regan Smith, hoping to put himself back in the championship hunt. However, Matt Kenseth's team would make a late call to pit for two tires, forcing him to conserve fuel. However, contact between Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski, whose respective cars were fighting for the owner's championship, late in the race caused a caution.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
On the following restart, Kenseth pulled away for his second Nationwide win of the year. The teams then headed home to Charlotte Motor Speedway. Championship contender Sam Hornish Jr. dominated the early stages of the race with a fast car. Despite an early two-tire stop by Matt Kenseth, Hornish returned to the lead until the middle stages of the race, when Regan Smith took the lead after a round of pit stops. Rookie Kyle Larson used the outside lane to pass Smith and lead until lap 163. A slow stop by Larson's crew handed the lead to polesitter Kyle Busch.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
Despite Hornish reeling in Busch after the restart, his car faded over the long run, allowing Busch to retake the lead with seven laps to go and sail to his eleventh win of the season. In the second Texas race, Alex Bowman won the pole for the 2nd straight Texas race but Sprint Cup driver Brad Keselowski dominated the race on his way to 7th win of the season. At Phoenix, Kyle Busch dominated from the pole and held off Justin Allgaier to sweep the Phoenix races in 2013.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Season summary
Austin Dillon and Sam Hornish Jr were separated by 8 points heading into the final race. At the season finale at Homestead, Sam Hornish Jr won the pole and was trailing Austin Dillon by 8 points. He and fellow Nationwide regular Kyle Larson dominated but Brad Keselowski passed Larson on fresher tires with less than 10 laps to go to score his eighth win of the season. Austin Dillon would finish twelfth and win the championship by 3 points despite not winning a race all season.


2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series, Results and standings, Drivers' standings
(key) Bold - Pole position awarded by time. Italics - Pole position set by final practice results or rainout. * – Most laps led.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
The 2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on May 18, 2013, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. Contested over 90 laps, the it was the second exhibition race of the 2013 Sprint Cup Series season. Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports took his record fourth All-Star Race victory, while Joey Logano finished second. Kyle Busch, Kasey Kahne, and Kurt Busch rounded out the top five.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, Background
The track, Charlotte Motor Speedway, is a four-turn quad-oval track that is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long. The track's turns are banked at twenty-four degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is five degrees. The back stretch, opposite of the front, also had a five degree banking. The racetrack has seats for 134,000 spectators.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, Background
A total of 23 drivers were entered for the Sprint Showdown, while 19 different drivers were eligible to participate in the All-Star Race, including race winners from last season through the 2013 Bojangles' Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway and previous All-Star race winners from the past 10 years. The drivers who finished first and second in the Sprint Showdown, a 40-lap  preliminary race, were also eligible to compete in the race, as well as the Sprint fan vote winner.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, Background
The race was 90 laps long, separated into five segments: four segments of 20 laps and a final segment of 10 laps. Following the fourth segment, drivers were repositioned by their average finish in the previous four segments to determine what position they would enter pit road. A mandatory four-tire pit stop was between the final two segments, while pitting between the 20 lap segments was optional.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, Sprint Showdown
Martin Truex, Jr. started on pole, but Jamie McMurray passed him in turn two on the first lap. McMurray led all 20 laps to win the first segment after holding off a mid-segment charge by Truex. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. finished the segment in third, followed by Juan Pablo Montoya and Paul Menard. During the competition caution between segments, Casey Mears stayed out as the rest of the field came to pit road. McMurray took two tires and restarted second.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, Sprint Showdown
He quickly re-took the lead and pulled away from the field as Stenhouse and Truex (who took four tires) tried to catch up. Stenhouse slightly closed in on McMurray over the next few laps while Truex and Jeff Burton battled for third. McMurray once again led all 20 laps to win segment two and advance into the All-Star Race. Stenhouse finished in second to advance as well. Burton, Menard, Truex, and Montoya rounded out the top six. Danica Patrick, who finished ninth, won the fan vote to advance to the All-Star Race.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
Carl Edwards started on pole and choose the outside lane, with Kurt Busch starting second. Busch took the lead from Edwards in turn three on lap one as Brad Keselowski had transmission failure at the end of lap two. The first caution flag waved on lap eight for a rain shower and 11 of the remaining 21 cars (including Mark Martin, Tony Stewart, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Danica Patrick, and Jimmie Johnson) made pit stops. The field ran under caution for five laps, until the red flag came out on lap 13 and the jet dryers were called onto the track. After a 41-minute red flag, the field took the restart on lap 16. Kurt Busch continued to lead and won the first 20-lap segment. He was followed by Kyle Busch, Clint Bowyer, Carl Edwards, and Kasey Kahne.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
Following the caution, Kurt Busch took the green flag with Kyle Busch on his outside. Kyle quickly moved around Kurt in turn two, but Kurt came back alongside Kyle in turn three. This allowed Clint Bowyer to pass them both and pull away with the lead, while Kyle and Kurt settled in second and third, respectively. On lap 25, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. bounced off the frontstretch wall and into Mark Martin, who was sent spinning into the infield, to bring out the third caution. On the restart, Kyle Busch passed Bowyer for the lead in turn three.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
Busch led the next 12 laps to win the second segment, followed by Bowyer, Edwards, Kurt Busch, and Jimmie Johnson. During the caution, all drivers came down pit road, with the exception of Bowyer, Edwards, and Martin. On the restart, Bowyer continued to lead over Edwards and Kyle Busch. Edwards then quickly faded, leaving Busch in second and Johnson in third place. On lap 44, Kyle Busch passed Bowyer for the lead and pulled away, leaving Kurt Busch, Bowyer, Johnson, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. to battle for the second position.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
Bowyer then fell back, leaving Kurt Busch in second, Johnson in third, and Earnhardt in fourth. Kyle Busch would lead the last 17 laps of the third 20-lap segment to win the segment (his second segment win). He was followed by Kurt Busch, Johnson, Earnhardt, and Joey Logano. The whole field came onto pit road during the caution (with some taking two tires and others taking four) and Kasey Kahne rolled off of pit road first, followed by Kevin Harvick, Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, and Kyle Busch.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
At the start of the fourth 20-lap segment, Harvick nosed ahead of Kahne, but Kahne was able to stay in front of Harvick and pull away. As a result of everyone shuffling on the restart, Kyle Busch fell back several positions but regained to sixth. The fifth caution waved on lap 65 for debris resulting from contact between Biffle and Earnhardt. Kahne led on the restart (lap 71), followed by Kurt Busch, Harvick, and Johnson. Busch passed Kahne for the lead on lap 72 and started to pull away as Kahne and Johnson battled for second. Busch led the last nine laps of segment four to win the segment (his second segment win), followed by Kahne, Johnson, Kyle Busch, and Matt Kenseth.


2013 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Report, NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
Due to a new stipulation, the field was shuffled in order of their average finishes in the first four segments before the mandatory pit stop. This put Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Kahne, Johnson, and Logano as the first five onto pit road. Kahne came out first, followed by Johnson, Kyle Busch, Logano, and Kurt Busch. On the restart, Kahne and Johnson ran side-by-side for two laps until Johnson finally cleared Kahne and moved away. Johnson sped away over the last eight laps to win his second All-Star Race in a row (becoming the only driver to win four All-Star races). Logano finished second, followed by Kyle Busch, Kahne, and Kurt Busch. Hamlin, Earnhardt, Jamie McMurray, Matt Kenseth, and Edwards rounded out the top ten.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
The 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series was the 65th season of NASCAR professional stock car racing in the United States and the 42nd modern-era Cup season. The season began on February 16, 2013, at Daytona International Speedway, with the Sprint Unlimited, followed by the Daytona 500 on February 24. The season ended with the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 17.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
The 2013 season was the first season using the Generation 6 race car, the Car of Tomorrow's successor, and marked the return to the qualifying procedure that was used before the 2005 season. However, at the two road courses on the schedule drivers qualified in groups instead of single laps. In September 2012, NASCAR removed a ban introduced in the 2008 season on testing at tracks that were on any of the premier series' schedules, replacing it with a testing limit.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Chevrolet entered the season as the reigning Manufacturer's Champions, while Brad Keselowski was the reigning Drivers' Champion. However, because Keselowski failed to make the Chase, he was unable to defend his title. By the end of the season, Jimmie Johnson claimed his sixth Sprint Cup Championship.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
This would be the first season without Dodge since 2000 and the first without NASCAR legend Bill Elliott since 1974, although he did come out of retirement for a one-off start in the Xfinity Series in 2018 at Road America.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Teams and drivers, Team changes
Penske Racing changed their manufacturer to Ford after being with Dodge since 2003. Penske had collaborated with Ford from 1994 through 2002. During the off-season, Inception Motorsports was purchased by Swan Energy Inc. CEO Brandon Davis, renaming the team to Swan Racing. However, David Stremme remained as the driver of the team's car. Tommy Baldwin Racing changed the number of their primary car from 36 to 7 in honor of former Modified Series driver Tom Baldwin Sr., the father of team owner Tommy Baldwin Jr. During the season, James Finch announced that he would sell Phoenix Racing, and that his final race as owner of the team would be the Crown Royal presents the Samuel Deeds 400 at the Brickyard which was later changed to the AdvoCare 500.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Generation 6 car
In preparation for the 2013 season, NASCAR allowed the manufacturers participating in the series to develop a new car that resembles the production models. Areas of the car that were allowed to be changed were the area above the doors, hood and truck lid.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Generation 6 car
Ford was the first to announce their 2013 car on January 24, 2012, with the Ford Fusion; however, the company modified the car in June 2012 by designing a new grille and hood lines. Afterward, Dodge revealed their 2013 Dodge Charger, while Chevrolet announced that the Chevrolet Impala would no longer race in the series, instead the Chevrolet SS, which is expected to go into production in 2014, would. On May 22, 2012, Toyota announced that the Toyota Camry would continue to be their race model for the 2013 season.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Generation 6 car
On July 30, 2012, NASCAR approved each of the manufacturer's design after the results of the final aerodynamic test, allowing them to begin making parts for the cars. The new cars are expected to premiere in the 2013 Daytona Speedweeks. Dodge announced on August 7, 2012, that it would not participate in the series during the 2013 season after recording 55 victories in the previous eleven years.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Generation 6 car
To benefit the safety of the drivers, NASCAR improved the roll cage that surrounds the driver after a large amount testing in the NASCAR Research and Development Center. The improvement features a new forward roof bar and center roof support bar that intersects in the center of the front section of the roll cage.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Generation 6 car
NASCAR later released cosmetic changes to the 2013 car, including the driver's last name on the windshield, the sponsor's logo placed on the roof, the team logo being moved from the headlights to the front bumper, and the reduction in size of contingency decals and car numbers due to the smaller size of the car. During the Autoweek's Racing Conference in Detroit, Michigan, NASCAR announced that the manufacturer logos will be placed on either side of the drivers' name to increase manufacturer identity.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Generation 6 car
Starting with the Subway Fresh Fit 500, the roof camera was removed for approximately two-thirds of points races to lessen turbulent air impact, though tracks like Daytona International Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway, Sonoma Raceway and Watkins Glen International retained the cameras.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Rule changes
After banning all testing on tracks where any of the three premier series sanction races in 2008, NASCAR announced on September 29, 2012, that they will implement limited testing at tracks which sanction a race on the schedule. However, NASCAR stated that each organization is only allowed to test four different times, with each test at a different track. Rookie of the Year participants were allowed one extra test session, while NASCAR chose two other events for extra testing during the race weekend. NASCAR changed the car inspection process as well. The new process involves a laser mechanism which scans different parts of the car. Teams were first introduced to this new inspection process during the Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway testing. It was also used during preseason testing at Charlotte Motor Speedway to make sure it doesn't have any problems.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Rule changes
Furthermore, NASCAR removed the top-35 qualifying rule that was introduced in 2005 to revert to the previous qualifying rule. The rule was originally established so that full-time teams, as well as their sponsors, were ensured a spot in the race when 50+ cars attempted to race. For 2013, the top 36 starting positions were set by qualifying speed. Positions 37 to 42 were set by provisionals (based on owners points). Similar to previous seasons, the forty-third position were given to the most recent series champion who didn't qualify on time or the next available team in owner's points.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Rule changes
Unlike in previous years, the previous years' Owners points were only used for the first three races of a season instead of five. Also, NASCAR instituted a random draw to determine qualifying order instead of inverting the first practice speeds. Director of Competition Robin Pemberton stated the change was made due to teams manipulating their first practice run to get a later qualifying draw.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Rule changes
On January 9, 2013, the sanctioning body disclosed changes to track drying processes. At first, Brian France wanted to shorten waiting times by 80 percent, but he expects it to improve by 60 percent, stating, "We won't be at 80 percent, but we're going to be dramatically better with a whole new system on how to dry the track as much as 60 percent (faster) and we will get to the 80 percent goal." Instead of jet dryers, track crews had a vacuum following a different air-powered system. Afterward, France said, "We're patenting some technology that (uses) air pressure.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Rule changes
Think of it as giant tanks, scuba tanks, that drive air out and blow water – or anything else – off the surface in a dramatically better way. It's a big solution. We're not (all the way) there yet, but it's ready now." However, as NASCAR is requiring tracks to pay for its rental during race weekends, very few races have actually had the system available for use. While the race at Talladega was able to be run to completion during daylight hours thanks to the new system, the race at Chicago saw a 6-hour delay due to rain and the time it took to dry the track using conventional jet dryers.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Rule changes
In response to the ongoing controversy over start and park teams, NASCAR decided to reallocate money from the last five finishing positions to the remainder of the field, making the practice less profitable.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Rule changes
NASCAR announced on April 22 that qualifying for the road course races at Sonoma Raceway and Watkins Glen International would change from the traditional single car qualifying to group qualification sessions. The rule, carried over from the Nationwide Series road races, is anticipated to speed up the qualifying process. The field that is entered for the event will be divided into qualifying groups based on times from final practice. The amount of time that each group has on track is at the discretion of the series director. The session will begin with the first car taking the green flag at the start/finish line, and a drivers fastest lap will be the one used to determine their starting position.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Changes, Rule changes
Controversy arose after the Federated Auto Parts 400, in which Carl Edwards beat leader Paul Menard to the start/finish line and subsequently won. On September 15, NASCAR announced that starting with the race at Chicagoland, the second place driver will be allowed to cross the line first on restarts.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Schedule
The final calendar was released on September 25, 2012, containing 36 races, with the addition of two exhibition races. The schedule also includes two Budweiser Duels, which are the qualifying races for the Daytona 500.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Schedule
: Race was postponed a day because of persistent rain.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Schedule, Schedule changes
The 2013 schedule differentiated slightly from the 2012 season. The fall Chase races at Kansas Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway (Hollywood Casino 400 and the Good Sam Club 500) returned to their original positions on the schedule because of the completion of Kansas Speedway's reconfiguring project. That was the only change on the whole schedule.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The 2013 season began on February 16, 2013, at Daytona International Speedway with Kevin Harvick winning the 2013 Sprint Unlimited in his final season with Richard Childress Racing. Five days later, Harvick recorded another victory at Daytona International Speedway in the first qualifying race of the Daytona 500, while Kyle Busch was victorious in the second qualifying race.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Following the Duels, the points paying season began with the 55th Daytona 500. Matt Kenseth, hoping to take home his second consecutive 500 win, dominated the race but was taken out of contention by an engine failure. Jimmie Johnson, making his 400th start, held off late challenges from teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin to take his second Daytona 500 win.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The series then headed west to Phoenix International Raceway. There, Carl Edwards recovered from a disastrous Speedweeks by dominating the race, holding off the competition on fuel mileage to take his first win since 2011.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
At Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the race was dominated by Kasey Kahne, who led 114 laps. However, new Joe Gibbs Racing driver Matt Kenseth took no tires during the final round of pit stops, handing him the lead, and managed to hold off a hard-charging Kahne to take his first win with JGR as well as becoming the third birthday winner in NASCAR history.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The fourth race of the season was held at Bristol Motor Speedway and was largely dominated by Jeff Gordon and Matt Kenseth. However, on lap 390 Gordon's right front tire blew, sending him into Kenseth's path and knocking both of them out of the race. Denny Hamlin then led a fair portion of the race, seeking JGR's second consecutive win. However, after Hamlin and Joey Logano collided late, Kasey Kahne held off Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, and Brad Keselowski to grab his first win of the season. This race marked the beginning of animosity between Hamlin and Logano.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Returning west to race at Auto Club Speedway, Kyle Busch dominated the race, leading 125 laps. However, his ex-teammate Joey Logano pulled a bump and run on Denny Hamlin with 6 laps to go, but the two wrecked each other on the final lap, allowing Busch to sneak through and capture his first win of the season. Hamlin suffered a compression fracture in his back, which kept him out of action until Talladega.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
At Martinsville Speedway, the race was a battle between Jimmie Johnson and JGR teammates Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth. Johnson eventually dominated the weekend, leading 346 laps from pole and scoring his record 8th win at Martinsville.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The Cup Series then rolled into Texas Motor Speedway to return to the intermediate tracks. The night race was split between Martin Truex Jr. and Nationwide winner Kyle Busch. The two led for a combined 313 laps, but Busch beat Truex Jr. during the final round of pit stops on lap 315 to pull off his second weekend sweep of the season.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The Cup Series then headed to the repaved Kansas Speedway. 2012 Fall winner and polesitter Matt Kenseth dominated the race, leading 163 laps and holding off another furious charge from Kasey Kahne to take his second win of the season.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Following Kansas, the series returned to the short tracks in the form of Richmond International Raceway. Though polesitter Matt Kenseth dominated the race, leading 140 laps, fellow Toyota drivers Clint Bowyer and Kyle Busch also took their turns up front. Kenseth faded over the race, and Busch was swept up in a near lane violation followed by a crash. After a crash on lap 325 involving Tony Stewart, Juan Pablo Montoya stayed out and led the next 67 laps.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
It seemed as though Montoya would get his first win on an oval track, but a crash by Brian Vickers on lap 394 set up a green-white-checker finish, sending most of the field down pit road. Jeff Burton and others stayed out during the round of pit stops, but Burton's teammate Kevin Harvick used his fresher tires to take the race lead and drive to his first win of the season.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
In the tenth race of the season at Talladega Superspeedway, Matt Kenseth again dominated the race, leading over 140 laps. On lap 42, Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne triggered a 16-car crash. Earlier in the race, on lap 23, Denny Hamlin, making his return from the injury he suffered in the Auto Club 400, switched out with Brian Vickers. Matt Kenseth led much of the first 110 laps, though Jimmie Johnson and Ford drivers Ricky Stenhouse Jr., polesitter Carl Edwards, Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski subsequently passed him.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The Ford drivers then teamed up to pass Johnson, and before the yellow flag flew for rain, Edwards was able to pass Stenhouse. Three laps later, the red flag was flown. The rain delayed the race for 3 hours, 36 minutes. The race eventually restarted and continued to be led by Kenseth. Johnson took over after green-flag pit stops with 20 to go. The caution then came out and bunched the field up.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
With six laps left in the race and darkness arriving, Stenhouse and J. J. Yeley made contact, sending Yeley down the track into Kurt Busch, who flipped and landed on top of Ryan Newman's car, causing a green-white-checker finish. 14 cars in all were involved in the crash. Newman later criticized NASCAR for continuing the race even with darkness reaching the track so quickly. During the two-lap shootout, Front Row Motorsports teammates David Ragan and David Gilliland surged ahead of Kenseth, Johnson, and Edwards to finish in the top two, with Ragan securing his second career Sprint Cup victory and the first for Front Row Motorsports.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
At Darlington Raceway, Kyle Busch dominated much of the race, but a deflating tire proved to be his undoing, as teammate Matt Kenseth passed Busch with 13 laps left. Busch quickly fell to sixth, while Kenseth won his first career Sprint Cup race at Darlington with interim crew chief Wally Brown, who was filling in for Jason Ratcliff. Denny Hamlin, in his first full race since the Auto Club 400, finished second, while Jeff Gordon, racing in his 700th Sprint Cup start, finished 3rd.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The second exhibition race of the season took place on May 18 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In the Sprint Showdown (the race to determine the two drivers, and another that wins a fan vote, that will advance to the All-Star Race), Martin Truex Jr. qualified on the pole but was passed by Jamie McMurray on the first lap. McMurray led all 40 laps, win both 20-lap segments, and advanced into the All-Star Race. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished second to advance as well. Danica Patrick won the fan vote to advance after a 9th-place finish in the Showdown.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
In the All-Star Race, Carl Edwards started on pole, but was quickly passed by Kurt Busch. Busch dominated the first 20-lap segment, which was interrupted by a caution for rain on lap seven and an ensuing red flag on lap 13 that lasted 41 minutes. Kyle Busch dominated segments two and three, before Kurt Busch once again found himself in the lead at the end of the fourth 20-lap segment. Due to a new stipulation, the field was re-ordered before the mandatory pit stop at the end of segment four.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The drivers were ordered by their average finish in the first four segments. Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Kasey Kahne, Jimmie Johnson, and Joey Logano were the first five down pit road. Kahne's pit crew got him out first, followed by Johnson, Kyle Busch, Logano, and Kurt Busch. In the ensuing ten lap dash (segment five), Johnson and Kahne ran side-by-side for two laps before Johnson pulled away to take his second All-Star Race in a row (his record fourth win overall). He was followed by Logano, Kyle Busch, Kahne, and Kurt Busch.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
At Charlotte Motor Speedway, the race was dominated by Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth and Kyle Busch. Denny Hamlin started on pole but was quickly passed for the lead by Kenseth. In a strange turn of events, the third caution came out on lap 122 for debris as a result of a cable that suspended a FOX Sports television camera over the frontstretch of the track snapping and falling on the track. Several cars ran over the cable, but only two sustained major damage: Kyle Busch and Marcos Ambrose.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The red flag then came out on lap 126 as track officials cleaned up the cables. After a delay of 10 minutes, 40 seconds, NASCAR brought the cars down pit road and gave each team 15 minutes to look over their cars and do repairs if needed. Ten spectators received minor injuries as a result of the cable failure. Busch fell out of contention due to engine failure. Kenseth was hit from behind by Juan Pablo Montoya when he tried slow up due to a spin out by Jimmie Johnson. Kahne appeared to be headed towards back-to-back 600 victories, but a caution on lap 385 forced Kahne to stay out on old tires. 2011 Coke 600 winner Kevin Harvick, who took two tires, drove past Kahne on the restart to claim his second win of the season.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
At Dover International Speedway, car owner Joe Gibbs had his 3 cars starting in 3 of the top 4 spots. Denny Hamlin won the pole, Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth started third through fourth. Martin Truex Jr. started 2nd. Kyle Busch later took the lead and nearly put points leader Jimmie Johnson one lap down until green-flag pit stops allowed Johnson to stay on the lead lap. During a caution, Matt Kenseth beat Busch off pit road to take the lead. Kenseth led the next 29 laps when his engine failed, giving Busch the lead again. Kenseth finished 40th.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Busch led the most with 150. Johnson came on strong in the second half of the race, leading 143 laps. Just under 100 laps after Kenseth's engine blew, Truex Jr.'s engine also blew. After pit stops due to a late caution, Juan Pablo Montoya was in the lead with Johnson in second. Stewart took only two tires on the final pit stop for track position. At the restart with 19 laps remaining, Johnson jumped the gun and was penalized. Johnson protested over the radio that he didn't deserve the penalty and stayed on the track asking for a review.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Johnson finally followed the order to head to the pits and serve a pass-through penalty. Johnson finished 17th. Stewart, aided by Johnson's miscalculation, Kasey Kahne's Turn 1 mistake and a fading Kyle Busch, caught a loose Montoya, passing him with three laps left. Stewart remained in the lead, winning his first race of the season.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Jimmie Johnson was rewarded the pole after qualifying was rained out. After Carl Edwards led the first nine laps, Johnson took the lead and dominated the race, leading 128 of 160 laps, to win his third race of the season. Greg Biffle, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart, and Ryan Newman rounded out the top-five.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The race began with Busch colliding with pole-sitter Edwards in an attempt to grab the lead in the first turn. While Edwards lost multiple positions, Kurt Busch came out on top. Shortly after, the caution flag flew after Bobby Labonte got loose and spun into Gordon. After a lap 20 competition caution for the previous night's rain, Kurt Busch got loose off of turn two and crashed down the back-straightaway.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Afterward, multiple caution flags and different pit stop strategies gave Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Kasey Kahne turns at leading the race. Johnson rebounded to the second position after falling to twelfth as a result of a restart mistake, and leader Kahne blew a right-front tire and hit the wall in turn one on lap 105. Johnson took over the lead but lost it to Earnhardt during pit stops. On the restart, Earnhardt pulled away from Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle as Johnson struggled to battle back to the lead.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Several laps later, Earnhardt developed engine problems and started to fall back, giving Johnson the lead (after he had passed Kenseth and Biffle). After a few slow laps, Earnhardt's engine blew up, bringing out yet another caution. After taking four tires in the pits, Johnson fell to 20th and Edwards took the lead ahead of Logano, Kenseth, and Biffle. Biffle then closed in on Edwards and passed him for the lead on lap 150, quickly pulling away.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
A caution for McMurray's blown right-front tire came in the middle of the last round of pit stops, trapping Edwards a lap down (he got the free pass). Biffle, who had pitted under the green but did not go a lap down, cycled out as the leader. On the restart at lap 174, Kenseth got loose off of turn two and dropped several positions while Johnson, who restarted 10th, tried to pick up positions. Johnson gradually came through the field, passing Kevin Harvick to move into second with eight laps to go. However, as Johnson struggled to catch Biffle, he blew a right-front tire out of turn two on lap 198. Biffle sped away to win over Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, and Tony Stewart. Biffle's victory was the 1,000th for the Ford Motor Company in NASCAR's top 3 series.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Jamie McMurray started on the pole, but Kurt Busch was able to get the lead early. However, Busch suffered back-to-back speeding penalties, sending him to the back of the field. Danica Patrick became the first woman to race a road course in the Sprint Cup Series; she spun midway through the race in turn seven and finished 29th. Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch both struggled, going off track numerous times. Martin Truex Jr. led 51 laps on his way to his first win in 218 races, setting a NASCAR record for most races between wins. Juan Pablo Montoya was running second on the white flag lap before running out of gas, relegating him to a 34th-place finish. Truex was followed by Jeff Gordon and Carl Edwards, with Kurt Busch and defending race winner Clint Bowyer rounding out the top five.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Dale Earnhardt Jr. started on pole, but Carl Edwards led the first 30 laps. After a lap 30 competition caution and a second caution on lap 43 for a Kyle Busch spin, Earnhardt assumed the lead until Jimmie Johnson passed him on the lap 46 restart. Johnson went on to dominate the race, leading 182 of the 267 laps. Two laps after the restart, Kurt Busch spun Brad Keselowski going into turn one, causing Keselowski to slide back up the track, where he collected Greg Biffle, Dave Blaney, and Travis Kvapil. The crash caused a red flag so the track could be cleaned.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Once back to green on lap 52, Johnson held the lead over second-place Matt Kenseth until a restart on lap 94, when Kenseth moved into the lead and Kyle Busch passed Johnson for second. Kenseth led until the next caution (a debris caution on lap 109), when he came to pit road after running over the debris. Johnson, who stayed out, reassumed the lead and held it until lap 149, when he was beat off of pit road by Edwards following a caution for a Denny Hamlin tire failure. Hamlin hit the wall where there was no SAFER barrier and had a lengthy stay in the infield care center; however, he was not injured.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Johnson retook the lead shortly after the lap 154 restart and held the lead until lap 244 when he was beaten off of pit road by Kenseth, who didn't take any tires following a caution for Brian Vickers' collision with the wall. On the restart, Kenseth restarted on the outside and pulled away as Johnson spun his tires. Joey Logano tried to make it three-wide in turn one. This partly resulted in Johnson's car losing control and spinning onto the track apron. Johnson made a pit stop and restarted 25th on lap 251. However, Kenseth continued to lead, and he picked up his fourth win of 2013, ahead of Jamie McMurray, Clint Bowyer, Logano, and Kurt Busch. Johnson battled back to finish ninth after his spin.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Kyle Busch started on pole and led 30 of the first 33 laps. Jimmie Johnson then took the lead and dominated, leading 94 of 161 laps (a green-white-checker lengthened the race by one lap). Jamie McMurray led 10 laps just past the halfway point after Johnson restarted in the middle of the pack, but no one was actually able to take the lead from Johnson. A series of crashes occurred in the second half of the race, two of which involved four cars each and another which had six cars involved.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The drivers in these crashes were: Martin Truex Jr., Juan Pablo Montoya, Kyle Busch, Aric Almirola, Greg Biffle, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, David Reutimann, Dave Blaney, David Stremme, Denny Hamlin, and A. J. Allmendinger. Hamlin and Allmendinger were both involved in two of the crashes, including the third (and largest) crash in which Hamlin lost control and hit the wall, and was then hit hard by Allmendinger.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
A caution waved with four to go after Kasey Kahne and Marcos Ambrose (who were second and third at the time) tangled and Kahne hit the inside wall. This set up a green-white-checker finish attempt in which Johnson and Tony Stewart were able to get in front of Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer. Two large crashes occurred on the last lap; the first saw Carl Edwards got turned in turn one, collecting Ambrose, Bobby Labonte, Scott Speed, and others. In the tri-oval, Danica Patrick cut down in front of David Gilliland and was turned into Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Ryan Newman, causing a crash that also involved Kyle Busch, Casey Mears, and Jeff Burton, among others.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Johnson held off Stewart, Harvick, and Bowyer to win his fourth race of the season. Michael Waltrip rounded out the top five. Johnson became the first driver since Bobby Allison in 1982 to win both Daytona races in the same year.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
The second half of the season started with Brad Keselowski clinching the pole. Jimmie Johnson (who qualified second) was sent to the rear of the field for failing post-qualifying inspection. Keselowski led the first few laps, but relinquished the lead to Kyle Busch, who, in turn, lost it to Kurt Busch. As drivers came into and fell out of the top ten due to pit strategy, both Kurt and Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, Tony Stewart, and others took turns at the front.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Stewart led the majority of the last 100 laps, but Brian Vickers passed both Stewart and Kyle Busch with about 15 laps left. The race saw an unusually high amount of cautions, with the 12th of the day coming out with four to go to set up a green-white-checker finish. On the restart, Vickers held the lead over Stewart and Busch, but coming to the white flag, Stewart ran out of fuel. This allowed Vickers to take his third career win over Kyle Busch, Jeff Burton, Keselowski, and Aric Almirola.


2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Season summary, Race reports
Round 20: Crown Royal Presents The Samuel Deeds 400 at The Brickyard