The Money Racing Team will attempt to compete in this year’s 65th running of the Daytona 500 by fielding the No. 50 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 throughout this year’s Daytona Speedweeks with Conor Daly set to pilot the entry.
The news comes as the organization owned by former professional boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. is coming off its first part-time campaign in the NASCAR Cup Series by fielding the No. 50 entry in four events. Kaz Grala debuted the team’s presence in the Cup circuit by qualifying for the 64th running of the Daytona 500, where he went on to finish 26th. Grala then finished 25th at Circuit of the Americas and 23rd in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, respectively before Daly made his debut in NASCAR’s premier series with the organization in the Bank of America Roval 400 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course last October, where he finished 34th.
For this upcoming season, the 31-year-old Daly from Noblesville, Indiana, will attempt to make his debut in the Great American Race at Daytona International Speedway with the Money Racing Team, which will compete as a non-chartered organization, as BitNile will sponsor the team’s entry. The season opener at Daytona is the first of select planned events for Daly and the team to compete in for the 2023 campaign. Daly is also set to return as a full-time competitor in the NTT IndyCar Series for Ed Carpenter Racing, where he has accumulated a single pole, a single podium, 136 laps led and an average-finishing result of 15.5 in 97 career starts.
Daly and the Money Racing Team’s bid to compete in this year’s Daytona 500 commences next Wednesday, February 15, during Busch Light Pole Qualifying followed by the Bluegreen Vacations Duels that will take place next Thursday, February 16, as they attempt to secure a starting spot for the main event.
The 65th running of the Daytona 500 is scheduled to occur on February 19 and air at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
After enduring a difficult 2022 season mired with no victories and missing the Playoffs, Martin Truex Jr. responded back with vengeance by winning the second annual Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Sunday, Feb. 5.
The 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion from Mayetta, New Jersey, took care of business at the start of the weekend by being the fastest competitor during Saturday’s practice session before winning the second of four Heat qualifying events, which placed him on the front row for the main event. During the main event, he led the final 25 of 150-scheduled laps and survived a chaotic evening mired with multiple on-track incidents and restarts, including the last one with seven laps remaining, to fend off Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch for his first career victory in the Clash.
The eligibility for the event included all NASCAR Cup Series chartered team competitors along with open teams. The lineup for the heat qualifying events was determined through a single-round and single-car qualifying session that occurred on Saturday, Feb. 4.
At the conclusion of Saturday’s qualifying session, Justin Haley posted the fastest-qualifying lap at 67.099 mph in 13.413 seconds and started on the pole position for the first heat event. Kyle Busch, who posted the second-fastest qualifying lap at 66.406 mph in 13.553 seconds, started on the pole position for the second heat event while Christopher Bell, who posted the third-fastest qualifying lap at 66.328 mph in 13.569 seconds, claimed the top starting spot for the third heat event. Lastly, William Byron, who posted the fourth-fastest qualifying lap at 66.196 mph in 13.596 seconds, was awarded the number one starting spot for the fourth and final heat event.
The lineup for the exhibition feature was determined through four 25-lap heat races as nine competitors from a total of 36 competed in each. The top-five finishers from each heat (20 total) earned a one-way ticket to the Clash. Afterward, the competitors who did not advance to the Clash via the heat races participated in two 50-lap Last Chance Qualifying races. The top-three finishers in each Last Chance Qualifying event advanced to the Clash while the rest were left on the sidelines.
In the first Heat event, Aric Almirola, who started on the front row alongside Justin Haley, capitalized in a race-long battle against Haley to win and claim the pole position for the main event as he also made the Clash at Los Angeles for the first time in his career. Also transferring to the main event were Alex Bowman, Haley, rookie Noah Gragson and reigning series champion Joey Logano, all of whom finished in the top five in the first heat event, while Michael McDowell, Harrison Burton, Ty Dillon and Chris Buescher were sent to the Last Chance Qualifiers.
In the second Heat event, Martin Truex Jr. prevailed in a five-lap shootout to beat Kyle Busch and win as he claimed a front-row starting spot for the main event. Busch, who led a race-high 18 laps, settled in second followed by teammate Austin Dillon, Kyle Larson and Kevin Harvick, who edged Chase Elliott at the finish line to claim the fifth transfer spot as he makes his 19th and final career start at the Clash. Meanwhile, Elliott joined Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Austin Cindric (who spun twice) and BJ McLeod as competitors who were sent to the Last Chance Qualifiers.
In the third Heat event, Denny Hamlin overtook teammate and pole-sitter Christopher Bell on the sixth lap and retained the lead for the remainder of the event, which included two late-race shootouts, to win and claim the third-place starting spot for the main event. Joining Hamlin in the main event were Chase Briscoe, Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney and, Daniel Suarez, who rallied from a late run-in with Brad Keselowski and overtook Todd Gilliland on the final lap to claim the fifth and final transfer spot. Meanwhile, Bell, who spun with three laps remaining, was sent to the Last Chance Qualifier along with Gilliland, Keselowski and JJ Yeley.
In the fourth and final Heat event, William Byron cruised to the heat event after leading all 25 laps as he claimed a second-row starting spot for the main event. Byron beat runner-up Bubba Wallace by more than a second as both, along with top-five finishers Ross Chastain, Ryan Preece and Erik Jones, who fended off rookie Ty Gibbs, and AJ Allmendinger on the final lap, transferred to the main event. Meanwhile, Gibbs and Allmendinger joined Corey LaJoie and Cody Ware as the next four competitors to be sent to the Last Chance Qualifier.
Prior to the event, Logano was the lone competitor who was guaranteed a spot in the 2023 Busch Light Clash based on a point provisional and being the reigning Cup Series champion. With both Logano and championship runner-up Chastain earning a top-five result in their respective heat events and racing their way into the main event, however, Bell was the next competitor in line to be guaranteed a spot for the Clash based on the points provisional after finishing in third place in the 2022 Cup standings. Despite having the option to not run the Last Chance Qualifier and take the provisional to start in 27th and last place for the main event, he opted to compete in the first Last Chance Qualifier as he started alongside pole-sitter McDowell.
In the first Last Chance Qualifying event, Michael McDowell led all 50 laps en route to the qualifier victory to claim a transfer spot for the Clash. Bell and Todd Gilliland finished second and third as they both also transferred into the main event while Harrison Burton, Brad Keselowski, Ty Dillon and JJ Yeley failed to qualify.
With Bell racing his way into the Clash based on a transfer spot, Elliott, who started on the pole position for the second and final Last Chance Qualifying event, was the next competitor in line to be guaranteed a provisional to compete in the main event. In addition, Chris Buescher, who initially did not earn a transfer spot in the first Last Chance Qualifier, was left to await his fate of racing or not racing in the main event, based on if both Elliott and Austin Cindric would earn transfer spots through the upcoming qualifying event.
In the second and final Last Chance Qualifying event, Elliott led all 50 laps and edged rookie Ty Gibbs in a photo finish to win and race his way into the Clash. Gibbs and AJ Allmendinger, both of whom finished second and third, also transferred along with Cindric, who finished fifth but was awarded a provisional to make his first career start in the Clash, where he will roll off the starting grid in 27th and last place. This officially left Buescher out of the event along with Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Corey LaJoie, Cody Ware and BJ McLeod.
When the main event commenced under green, the 27 starters battled against one another for positions through two lanes around the one-quarter mile short track, among which included front-row starters Almirola and Truex until Almirola pulled ahead to lead the first lap by a fender over Truex. During the following lap, Almirola managed to clear Truex and control both lanes through the first two turns. Behind, Truex managed to settle in second in front of a side-by-side battle between Denny Hamlin and William Byron while Alex Bowman and Kyle Busch battled for fifth place.
Through the first five scheduled laps, Almirola was leading by nearly half a second over Truex followed by Hamlin, Bowman and Byron while Busch, Bubba Wallace, Chase Briscoe, Justin Haley and Austin Dillon were running in the top 10. Meanwhile, Tyler Reddick was in 11th ahead of Ross Chastain, Ryan Preece, Kyle Larson and Ryan Blaney while a flurry of names led by Joey Logano duked it out for spots within the top 20.
Ten laps into the event, Almirola extended his advantage to more than a second over Hamlin, who was being pressured by teammate Truex for the runner-up spot, while Bowman led a parade of competitors in fourth place.
Six laps later and just as Almirola started to catch and lap the competitors at the rear of the field, including Todd Gilliland, the first caution of the event flew when Erik Jones, who was trying to challenge Harvick for position midway in the field, spun his No. 43 Allegiant Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through Turns 1 and 2 after getting bumped and turned by McDowell as he became the first retiree of the event.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 16, Hamlin and Almirola dueled for the lead until Hamlin prevailed during the following lap by a fender. Shortly after, Truex got sideways entering Turn 1 after he got hit by Byron as he bumped and rubbed against Almirola, which moved the latter up the track as he fell out of the battle toward the front of the pack.
Then on Lap 23, the caution returned when a domino effect within the middle of the pack resulted in Chase Briscoe bumping and sending Ryan Blaney spinning his No. 12 Menards Ford Mustang through Turns 3 and 4. Blaney’s incident ignited a stack-up and chain reaction as Daniel Suarez, Elliott and Gibbs sustained damage to their respective cars while trying to avoid Blaney.
During the following restart on Lap 23, Hamlin retained the lead ahead of Busch and Truex as the rest of the competitors behind jostled for positions. Hamlin would continue to lead through the Lap 35 mark. By then, teammate Truex was in second followed by Wallace and Austin Dillon while Busch was back in fifth. The third caution of the event would then fly on Lap 42 when Gibbs bumped Gilliland into AJ Allmendinger entering Turn 2 as Allmendinger spun his No. 16 Action Industries Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 into the Turn 2 outside wall. The caution period allowed Elliott, who was lapped by Hamlin, to cycle back on the lead lap.
With the event restarting under green on Lap 42, Hamlin retained the lead by a narrow margin through the first two turns. Then entering Turn 3, an accordion effect that started with Truex bumping into the rear of Wallace on the inside line resulted in Wallace bumping and sending his owner Hamlin up the track as he lost the lead and was relegated back to sixth. This, however, allowed Wallace to move into the lead followed by Truex, Byron, Dillon and Busch.
At the Lap 50 mark, Wallace was leading by six-tenths of a second over Truex followed by Byron, Dillon and Busch while Reddick, Preece, Bowman, Larson and Logano were running in the top 10. Amid the battles around the circuit, Hamlin had fallen back to 12th.
Ten laps later, Wallace continued to lead by four-tenths of a second over Truex while Byron, Dillon and Busch remained in the top five. By then, Almirola was lapped by Wallace while Hamlin was still mired in 12th.
Then with two laps remaining in the first half of the event, trouble struck for Hamlin as he spun his No. 11 Sport Clips Toyota TRD Camry entering Turn 2 after getting bumped by former rival Chastain. Hamlin’s incident generated the event’s fourth caution and set the stage for a two-lap shootout to conclude the first half of the event.
During the two-lap shootout, Wallace managed to fend off Austin Dillon and retain the lead for two cycles around the Coliseum before the event reached its halfway mark and the competitors entered an intermission period. With Wallace out in front, Truex managed to move into second followed by Dillon, Byron and Reddick while Preece, Busch, Bowman, Logano and Larson were scored in the top 10. In addition, 23 of the 27 starters were scored on the lead lap.
At the conclusion of the intermission period, which included a performance by rapper Wiz Khalifa, the race proceeded under green with 75 laps remaining. At the start, Wallace remained as the leader by a narrow margin over Truex before Truex started to ignite a challenge for the top spot followed by Dillon. The caution, however, was quick to return during the following lap when Gibbs got bumped by teammate Hamlin and spun his No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota TRD Camry in Turn 2.
Over the course of the next five laps, starting with 74 laps remaining, Wallace retained the lead ahead of Truex, Dillon and Preece amid three caution periods and three separate incidents that involved Harvick, Bell, McDowell, Hamlin, Gibbs and Gilliland. Then during a restart with 68 laps remaining, Preece, who had slowly moved his way up the leaderboard and was running within the top five, executed his mark as he moved into the lead over Wallace, which dropped Wallace into the runner-up spot while Bowman and Truex battled for third place. It only took three laps for the caution to fly due to an incident in Turn 2 that involved Allmendinger, Cindric and Bell. Then as Preece retained the lead during the following restart with 65 laps remaining, the caution quickly returned a lap later when Logano, who overshot his entrance into Turn 3, got into the left-rear quarter panel of Busch’s No. 8 BetMGM Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 as Busch spun and plummeted below the leaderboard.
As the race resumed under green flag conditions with 64 laps remaining, Preece managed to fend off Bowman to retain the lead while Truex was in third ahead of Wallace while Austin Dillon and Byron were in fifth and sixth.
Down to the final 50 laps of the event, Preece was leading by three-tenths of a second over Bowman followed by Truex, Wallace and Dillon while Byron, Larson, Haley, Reddick and Briscoe were in the top 10. By then, all but two of 27 starters were running on the track, with 26 scored on the lead lap.
Six laps later, the caution flew when Haley spun his No. 31 Celsius Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Turn 2 after getting hit by Reddick, who got hit by Briscoe entering the turn.
With the race restarting with 44 laps remaining, Preece and Bowman engaged in another brief battle until the former prevailed. Three laps later, another accordion effect resulted in Briscoe spinning in Turn 3 as he also collected Gragson, thus drawing another caution period. As the field attempted to restart with 41 laps remaining, where Preece outdueled Bowman with the lead, it only took four laps for the caution to return as Blaney wrecked against the outside wall in Turn 2 after getting bumped by Reddick and Chastain.
Amid a restart with 37 laps remaining, Preece pulled ahead once again through the first two turns to retain the lead as Truex started to intimidate Bowman for the runner-up spot by bumping him. A few laps later, Truex carved his way into second, which allowed Wallace to challenge Bowman for third as Austin Dillon joined the battle.
Down to the final 30 laps of the event, Preece was leading by half a second over Truex followed by Wallace, Dillon and Bowman. Behind, Byron was in sixth ahead of Larson, Chastain, Gragson and Reddick.
Then with six laps remaining, Truex overtook Preece and assumed the lead, with the latter reporting a mechanical issue but keeping his No. 41 United Rentals Ford Mustang on the track. Soon after, Preece started to fall off the pace as both Dillon and Wallace moved into podium spots.
With 15 laps remaining, Truex was out in front by more than a second over Dillon and more than two seconds over Wallace while Bowman and Byron were in the top five. Meanwhile, Preece was back in sixth while Chastain, Busch, Larson and Reddick were in the top 10. By then, McDowell was also starting to fall off the pace due to a mechanical issue.
With 10 laps remaining, the caution flew when McDowell stopped on the track amid a fuel issue with his No. 34 FR8Auctions.com Ford Mustang. The caution erased Truex’s steady advantage over Dillon as the field stacked up for a 10-lap shootout.
At the start of the 10-lap shootout to the finish, Truex managed to persevere over a brief challenge from Wallace to retain the lead as Dillon ignited a challenge on Wallace before overtaking him for the runner-up spot. Wallace, however, fought back as he repeatedly bumped against Dillon through the straightaways and the turns in front of Busch and Bowman. Then with seven laps remaining, Dillon delivered the final blow to Wallace as he sent the latter spinning into the Turn 1 outside wall with the caution flying. Under the caution period, Wallace pulled his No. 23 DoorDash Toyota TRD Camry in front of Dillon and hit the right-front fender of Dillon’s No. 3 Get Bioethanol Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to express his displeasure before dropping back to the rear of the field.
As the race restarted with seven laps remaining, Truex engaged in a tight battle with Busch, who had methodically carved his way back to the front, before the former prevailed on the inside lane during the following lap and through Turn 4. As the laps started to dwindle, Truex retained the lead as Busch surrendered the runner-up spot to teammate Dillon with four laps remaining.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Truex retained the lead with a decent advantage over Dillon. As a series of late battles and chaos ensued within the middle of the pack, Truex was able to cruise away with the lead and cycle his No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota TRD Camry around the quarter-mile short track for a final time as he crossed the finish line in first place and claim the first checkered flag of the 2023 Cup season.
Truex’s first Clash career victory occurred in his 12th start in NASCAR’s exhibition event as he also recorded the 11th Clash victory for Joe Gibbs Racing and the seventh for Toyota. The 2023 season is set to mark Truex’s 18th full-time season competing in NASCAR’s premier series as he sets his sights on winning a second Cup championship.
“It was just a really good race car,” Truex said on FOX. “The [pit crew] guys did a great job with this Bass Pro Shops Club Toyota Camry. Last year was a pretty rough season for us with no wins. To come out here and kick it off this way, just really proud of all these guys. Tonight was just kind of persevere, not give up and just battle through it. We found ourselves in the right spot at the end. Sometimes, they work out. Sometimes, they don’t. Tonight, it went our way and we made some good adjustments too.”
With Truex winning the event, Austin Dillon nursed his wounded No. 3 car to a second-place finish while teammate Busch settled in third place in his first start driving for Richard Childress Racing. At the conclusion of the event, all three competitors took part in the series’ inaugural medals ceremony beneath the Coliseum’s Olympic cauldron.
Photo by David Myers for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“I hate it for Bubba [Wallace],” Dillon, who achieved his fourth top-five result in the Clash, said. “He had a good car and a good run. You can’t tell who’s either pushing him or getting pushed. I just know he sent me into the corner. I saved it three times through there, released the brake, all kinds of stuff and when I got down, I was gonna give the same [to Wallace]. Probably, it was a little bit too hard. The Get Bioethanol Chevy was pretty good. It’s beat up, used up. [Thanks to] Teammate [Kyle Busch] for letting me go try and get Truex at the end. That was nice. It’s been fun. Hopefully, we can do this more often.”
“It was a battle all night long,” Busch added. “You can’t count us out. You always gotta bet on us with the BetMGM Camaro. We’ve used the outside [lane] on a lot of passes, everybody would get bottled up on the bottom [lane] and start bumper-tagging, and I’d just go around them on the outside. When you’re deep in the field, you can do some of that and work your way around. Overall, good to get back up to third. We could’ve got second, but like Austin [Dillon] said, I let him go. He was better than us in practice and was better than us in the beginning of the race there on the long runs. I thought he could have a shot at trying to get closer to [Truex] and I’ll push him through [Truex] in order for us to get the one, two [finish], but never made it there.”
Bowman and Larson claimed top-five results while Reddick, Preece, Chastain, Hamlin and Byron finished in the top 10.
There were four lead changes for five different leaders. The race featured a total of 16 cautions as 22 of 27 starters finished on the lead lap.
Results:
1. Martin Truex Jr., 25 laps led
2. Austin Dillon
3. Kyle Busch
4. Alex Bowman
5. Kyle Larson
6. Tyler Reddick
7. Ryan Preece, 43 laps led
8. Ross Chastain
9. Denny Hamlin, 26 laps led
10. William Byron
11. Justin Haley
12. Kevin Harvick
13. Christopher Bell
14. Noah Gragson
15. Chase Briscoe
16. Joey Logano
17. Ryan Blaney
18. Aric Almirola, 16 laps led
19. Daniel Suarez
20. AJ Allmendinger
21. Chase Elliott
22. Bubba Wallace, 40 laps led
23. Todd Gilliland – OUT, Fuel
24. Michael McDowell – OUT, Fuel
25. Austin Cindric – OUT, Engine
26. Ty Gibbs – OUT, Suspension
27. Erik Jones – OUT, Suspension
The NASCAR Cup Series teams and competitors will be taking a one-week break before returning to action at Daytona International Speedway in preparation for the 65th running of the Daytona 500. Qualifying that will determine the front row for the main event will occur on February 15 at 8:15 p.m. ET on FS1 while the rest of the lineup will be determined through the Bluegreen Vacation Duels on February 16, beginning at 7 p.m. ET on FS1. The 500, which will launch NASCAR’s 75th season of competition, is scheduled to commence on February 19 with the event’s coverage to occur at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
A new season with a new opportunity will produce another first-time opportunity for Sammy Smith as he will be joining TRICON Garage in a one-race deal for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway in mid-February.
The 18-year-old Smith from Johnston, Iowa, will be piloting TRICON’s No. 17 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro sponsored by Mobil 1 in place of Taylor Gray, who will not compete in the first three Truck events on this year’s schedule due to NASCAR’s age restriction policy. Gray, who is set to join TRICON and contend for the rookie title, will make his first start of this season at Circuit of the Americas in late March once he turns 18.
For Smith, the Daytona event will mark his first career start in the NASCAR Truck circuit. He is set to pilot Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 18 Toyota Supra on a full-time basis for this upcoming NASCAR Xfinity Series season, beginning at Daytona in February, as he will contend for both the rookie and championship titles. During the previous season, Smith made his first nine career starts in the Xfinity circuit with JGR, where he notched three top-10 results and a career-best third-place run at Watkins Glen International in August. He is also a two-time ARCA Menards Series East champion, having won both titles in the last two consecutive seasons, and a six-time ARCA Menards Series winner.
The 2023 season is set to mark a new beginning for TRICON Garage, which was rebranded from David Gilliland Racing and changed manufacturers with Toyota following a three-year partnership with Ford. In addition to the No. 17 entry, the team will be fielding the Nos. 5, 11 and 15 entries on a full-time basis. Corey Heim, the reigning Truck Series Rookie-of-the-Year recipient, will be piloting the No. 11 entry for his first full-time Truck campaign while Dean Thompson and Tanner Gray will be driving the Nos. 5 and 15 entries, respectively. TRICON will also be fielding the No. 1 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro on a part-time basis for newcomer William Sawalich, who is scheduled to make his Truck debut at Martinsville Speedway in April.
Additional details regarding TRICON Garage’s driver plans for the No. 17 entry for the following two Truck events at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March have yet to be announced.
Smith’s debut in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is set to occur at Daytona International Speedway on February 17, which will commence a new season of Truck competition. The event is scheduled to occur at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
Joe Graf Jr. became the latest addition to Joe Gibbs Racing’s driver lineup for the 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series season.
The 24-year-old Graf from Mahwah, New Jersey, will be piloting JGR’s No. 19 “all-star” Toyota Supra entry for five Xfinity events this upcoming season, beginning at Auto Club Speedway on February 25. He will then pilot the No. 19 entry at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 4, Richmond Raceway on April 1, New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 15 and at Kansas Speedway on September 9. CoverSeal® and G-Coin® will be supporting Graf’s efforts at JGR.
The news comes after Graf Jr. will also be driving for RSS Racing for 28 Xfinity events this season, which will commence at Daytona International Speedway in February and make him a full-time competitor in the series. It also comes after the New Jersey native spent the previous season competing in all but five of 33-race Xfinity schedule between SS-Green Light Racing, RSS Racing and BJ McLeod Motorsports.
“Running five races with JGR is a fantastic opportunity for myself and for my marketing partners,” Graf Jr. said. “I think I can learn a lot from JGR and showcase my skills I’ve been growing in the series in the past three years. 2023 is shaping up to be a great year and I’m pumped to get started with the No. 19 group.”
Graf Jr. made his inaugural presence in the Xfinity Series at Richmond Raceway in June 2019, where he piloted the No. 21 Chevrolet Camaro for Richard Childress Racing as a development driver and finished 19th after starting 21st. Since then, he has recorded a total of two top-10 results and 23 top-20 results in 93 career starts. His highest-finishing result to date is an eighth-place run at Talladega Superspeedway in April 2022.
Prior to the Xfinity Series, Graf Jr. competed in two ARCA Menards Series season in 2018 and 2019. He claimed his first career victory at Berlin Raceway in August 2018.
“Joe [Graf Jr.] is committed to success, which is something we are looking for in all of our drivers,” Steve DeSouza, Executive Vice President of NXS and Development, added. “We are anticipating a solid season from the No. 19 team and Joe’s addition to the driver lineup will help that team be competitive for the owner’s championship this season.”
With Graf Jr.’s addition to JGR, he becomes the second competitor scheduled to pilot the No. 19 entry that will be led by veteran crew chief Jason Ratcliff. Ryan Truex is scheduled to pilot the car in a total of six events, though his schedule has not been determined. The remainder of the No. 19 team’s drivers and schedules have yet to be determined.
With his schedule set, Graf Jr.’s 2023 Xfinity Series season will commence at Daytona International Speedway on February 18 at 5 p.m. ET on FS1. His part-time tenure at Joe Gibbs Racing will then begin at Auto Club Speedway on February 25 at 5 p.m. ET on FS1.
With the 2023 NASCAR season nearing its commencement, the Xfinity Series Dash 4 Cash and the Craftsman Truck Series’ Triple Truck Challenge programs will also be returning and featured in the early portions of the upcoming racing schedule.
For the Xfinity Series, the Dash 4 Cash program will launch its 15th consecutive season by hosting its qualifying event at Circuit of the Americas for a second consecutive season on March 25, where the top-four highest-finishing Xfinity regulars in the final running order will contend for the first round of bonus money. The Dash 4 Cash program will then commence at Richmond Raceway on April 1 before returning for the following three consecutive events at Martinsville Speedway on April 15, Talladega Superspeedway on April 22 and Dover Motor Speedway on April 29. The highest-finishing Xfinity competitor in each event will receive the cash-winning prize, with opportunities for the cash-winning prize to increase should a competitor achieve the bonus more than once.
This past season, Sam Mayer commenced the Dash 4 Cash program by winning the first bonus round at Richmond. Veteran AJ Allmendinger claimed the following two bonuses at Martinsville and Talladega before Noah Gragson claimed the fourth and final bonus at Dover. While Allmendinger and Gragson have moved up to the NASCAR Cup Series for this upcoming season, Mayer returns to the Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports as he will contend for another round of bonus money.
For the Craftsman Truck Series, which has been renamed from the Camping World Truck Series, the Triple Truck Challenge will occupy three events for a fifth consecutive season and offer Truck regulars three opportunities to earn bonus money for themselves. The program will launch at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 26 before returning at World Wide Technology Raceway on June 3 and at Nashville Superspeedway on June 23.
A year ago, Corey Heim claimed the first Triple Truck Challenge bonus after winning at World Wide Technology Raceway in Gateway. Ryan Preece went on to claim the second bonus after winning at Nashville before Parker Kligerman capped off the program by winning both the race and the bonus at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. While Preece and Kligerman have moved up to the Cup and Xfinity Series respectively, Heim will receive additional opportunities to compete for additional cash as he returns to the Truck Series as a full-time competitor for TRICON Garage.
Photo by Simon Scoggins for SpeedwayMedia.com.
For both initiatives, drivers who are competing for championship points in their respective series will only be eligible to compete in their respective cash-winning events (Xfinity for Dash 4 Cash and Truck for Triple Truck Challenge), thus making the Cup Series competitors ineligible for both program events.
As part of the restriction process that will not allow competitors competing in additional national touring series events in major events, drivers who are not competing for Xfinity Series points will be ineligible to compete in the series’ Playoff events, elimination races and the inaugural Xfinity event at the Chicago Street Race that is scheduled to occur on July 1. In addition, Xfinity regulars will not be allowed to compete in the Truck season finale event at Phoenix Raceway on November 3 while Cup regulars are ineligible to compete in the Truck’s Playoff schedule. Cup regulars, however, are permitted to compete in a maximum of five Xfinity and Truck events that do not involve the major bonus, Playoff or championship events.
The 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season is set to commence at Daytona International Speedway on February 17 with the event’s coverage to occur at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1. The 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series season is scheduled to occur the following day on February 18 with the event’s coverage to commence at 5 p.m. ET on FS1.
McAnally-Hilgemann Racing solidified its driver-crew chief lineup for the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season while also unveiling a special name that will be joining the organization to commence a new season of competition.
For the Truck Series’ season-opener at Daytona International Speedway that is scheduled to occur on February 17, Chase Elliott will be piloting the No. 35 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing Chevrolet Silverado RST sponsored by Gates Hydraulics and NAPA Auto Care. The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion will be driving the entry in place of Jake Garcia, who will not be competing in the event due to age restrictions. Garcia, who was announced as the driver of the No. 35 Chevrolet for this upcoming Truck season on December 6, will make his first start of the season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 3, which marks his 18th birthday.
The 2023 Truck opener will mark Elliott’s first series start at Daytona and 18th overall, with his latest occurring at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course last April, where he finished seventh while driving for Spire Motorsports. Making his Truck debut at Martinsville Speedway in April 2013, Elliott has achieved three career victories in the Truck circuit. His first occurred at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in September 2013 while driving for Hendrick Motorsports and following a last-lap run-in with Ty Dillon. He went on to win at Martinsville Speedway in April 2017 and at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May 2020, both while driving for GMS Racing.
“This will be the first time I’ve driven a truck at Daytona, let alone a superspeedway,” Elliott, who finished fourth in the 2022 Cup Series final standings, said. “There’s no better team owner than Bill McAnally to do it with, as he’s been involved in racing and been associated with NAPA for a long time.”
Following the season opener at Daytona, Garcia, who made his first five career starts in the Truck circuit with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing this past season and notched a career-best 16th place at Phoenix Raceway in November, will take over the No. 35 entry and compete for the rookie title. Mark Hillman, who spent the previous season at McAnally-Hilgemann Racing as a crew chief for Colby Howard and the No. 91 entry, will remain with the organization to navigate both Elliott and Garcia throughout the season.
“I think there’s an incredible amount of potential for our team to make a lot of noise this year, and we have the people to make it happen,” Bill McAnally, owner of McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, said. “We’re thrilled to have Chase step in and drive our No. 35 Gates Hydraulics Chevrolet at Daytona and everyone involved in our program is excited and glad that he’s able to do so. I think his presence at Daytona will benefit Jake (Garcia) and our entire group.”
Meanwhile, Charles Denike, who joined McAnally-Hilgemann Racing midway into the 2022 Truck season and served as a crew chief for the team’s No. 19 entry piloted by Derek Kraus, will be remaining with the organization to lead the No. 19 Chevrolet Silverado RST team for a full season. On this occasion, the No. 19 entry will be piloted by Christian Eckes, who joined the organization on December 6. The 22-year-old Eckes from Middletown, New York, spent the previous Truck season competing for ThorSport Racing, where he notched eight top-five results, 15 top-10 results and qualified for the 2022 Truck Playoffs before finishing eighth in the final standings. He also notched his first career victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in September 2021.
Photo by Chad Wells for SpeedwayMedia.com.
On the competition side, veteran Chad Norris will be serving as the team’s general manager and will oversee the truck operation at the team’s base in Statesville, North Carolina. Norris, who spent the previous season as Garcia’s crew chief in the Truck competition, joins McAnally Hilgemann Racing with an extensive racing resume that includes four victories in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and one in the Truck circuit, which occurred at Kansas Speedway in October 2020 with Brett Moffitt. Norris also previously served as a competition director for GMS Racing before filling in as a Cup Series crew chief for Petty GMS Motorsports and driver Ty Dillon midway through this past season.
“Mark [Hillman] and Charles [Denike] had good seasons last year and are motivated to elevate the performance of both teams,” McAnally added. “Having Chad [Norris] come on board is a good boost for us also. He’s been around the Chevrolet team, has crew chief experience, and worked with Jake last season. I feel like we have a lot of talented people in our team, and we’re looking forward to putting it all together in our 33rd season with NAPA and NAPA Auto Care.”
With their full roster set, McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season is scheduled to commence at Daytona International Speedway on February 17 at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
Kaulig Racing’s No. 10 Xfinity Series Chevrolet Camaro entry will become the team’s “all-star” entry for this upcoming Xfinity season as Justin Haley will be driving the entry in multiple Xfinity events, beginning with the season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway.
The news comes two days after Landon Cassill, who was scheduled to pilot the No. 10 entry for a second season, will not be competing on a full-time basis for the 2023 season. It also comes six months after his sponsor Voyager Digital filed for bankruptcy. Cassill, who finished in 13th place in the 2022 Xfinity standings on the strength of a career-high five top-five results, 12 top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 16.2, has yet to announce his plans for this upcoming season.
Haley, who competed in the Xfinity circuit with Kaulig from 2019 to 2021 and accumulated four victories, including two at Daytona, is currently set to compete in his second full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series. The 23-year-old native from Winamac, Indiana, capped off his first season with Kaulig in 22nd place in the 2022 Cup standings on the strength of three top-five results, four top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 22.7. Throughout the previous season, he also made one start in the Xfinity circuit in Kaulig’s No. 14 Chevrolet Camaro entry at Daytona in August, where he finished 25th after being involved in a late multi-car incident.
Kaulig Racing’s Nos. 11 and 16 entries will be remaining as full-time entries alongside the No. 10 entry for Xfinity regulars Daniel Hemric and Chandler Smith, respectively. Hemric, the 2021 Xfinity Series champion, returns for a second season at Kaulig while Smith prepares for his first full-time campaign in the Xfinity circuit as he will battle for the rookie title.
The remainder of Kaulig Racing’s No. 10 driver lineup will be determined at a later date.
Haley’s first Xfinity start of the season is set to occur at Daytona International Speedway on February 18 at 5 p.m. ET on FS1, which will commence a new season of Xfinity competition.
Ryan Vargas has a new team and new series to call home for this upcoming season after it was announced that he will be campaigning on a part-time basis for On Point Motorsports for the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season.
The 22-year-old Vargas from La Mirada, California, will make his inaugural presence in the Truck circuit at Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 18, where he will be piloting the No. 30 On Point Motorsports Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. He will then compete at Darlington Raceway (May 12), Nashville Superspeedway (June 23), Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (July 8), Richmond Raceway (July 29), Talladega Superspeedway (September 30) and Homestead-Miami Speedway (October 21).
The news comes as Vargas is coming off his fourth part-time campaign in the Xfinity Series, where he notched a career-best sixth-place result at Daytona International Speedway in August. Competing in 26 of 33-scheduled Xfinity events, he notched an average-finishing result of 25.4 before settling in 26th place in the final driver’s standings.
In 67 career starts in the Xfinity Series, Vargas has accumulated a total of two top-10 results, four laps led and an average-finishing result of 25.7. Prior to the Xfinity Series, he competed in the 2018 ARCA Menards Series East season with Rev Racing, where he notched six top-10 results before finishing in sixth place in the final standings. The Californian is also a two-time recipient of the Wendell Scott Trailblazer Award.
“I’m beyond thrilled to join On-Point Motorsports for the 2023 Season,” Vargas said. “I told myself heading into this offseason that it was time for a change. I knew that I was ready to take on a new challenge. Having never made a truck series start, I really felt that this year was the perfect time for me to make the move into a competitive Truck Series entry. There’s no denying what Bones and his team have done are nothing short of impressive. With a bunch of top-10 finishes and opportunities to make it to victory lane, I knew I had found myself a fantastic new home.”
In addition, Vargas will be receiving sponsorship support from Critical Path Security, Léargas Security, Swann Security, and Williamsburg Contracting throughout this season.
“Although I won’t be running the full schedule, I’m excited to engrain myself within the organization and work hands on with the development of my teammates and the truck’s on-track performance,” Vargas added, “Thank you to all my fans and followers for continuing to believe in me. I’m truly blessed and I really look forward to competing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2023!”
For this upcoming season, Vargas will become the 13th different competitor to compete for On Point Motorsports. The team’s No. 30 entry finished in 24th place in the 2022 Truck owner’s standings while being piloted by sixth different competitors. Their best result during the previous season included a 12th-place run at Las Vegas with Tate Fogleman followed by a 13th-place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway with Kaden Honeycutt.
Vargas’ first Truck Series career start of the season is set to occur at Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 18. The event’s coverage is scheduled to occur at 2 p.m. ET on FS1.
Tyler Ankrum will be returning for a second full-time stint in the No. 16 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro for Hattori Racing Enterprises for the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season.
The news comes as the 21-year-old Ankrum from San Bernardino, California, is coming off his first campaign with the organization. Throughout the 23-race schedule this past season, he finished in the top-10 eight times, led four laps and recorded an average-finishing result of 14.6 before settling in 12th place in the final driver’s standings.
LiUNA! (Laborers’ International Union of North America) will be returning to sponsor Ankrum’s truck in 21 of 23-scheduled races for this upcoming season. In addition, veteran crew chief Doug Randolph will work atop the No. 16 pit box to guide the Californian. Randolph spent the previous three seasons in the Xfinity Series with Brandonbilt Motorsports.
“It’s an honor to return to [Hattori Racing Enterprises] and the Toyota family in 2023,” Ankrum said. “There was already a solid foundation in place at HRE, and with the addition of Doug [Randolph] to the organization, I know we can achieve our goals as a team – get back to victory lane and be a strong playoff contender. LIUNA has grown to be more than just a partner over the last three seasons. They have come to be more like family. It is an honor to carry their colors for the fourth consecutive season and represent the more than 500,000 members for their 120th birthday celebration in 2023.”
Ankrum made his inaugural presence in the Truck Series at Martinsville Speedway in October 2018 after winning the ARCA Menards Series East championship, where he piloted the No. 54 DGR-Crosley Toyota Tundra to an 18th-place result. After finishing sixth in his second series start at Phoenix Raceway in November, he was announced as a full-time competitor for DGR-Crosley for the 2019 season. Despite being absent for the first three events on the schedule due to age restrictions and losing his ride with the team midway into the season due to sponsorship issues, he managed to secure his first career victory at Kentucky Speedway in July and grab a spot for the 2019 Truck Playoffs, where he proceeded to finish a career-best eighth in the final standings.
Prior to joining Hattori Racing Enterprises in 2022, Ankrum spent the previous two seasons at GMS Racing, where he accumulated a total of six top-five results and 15 top-10 results. He qualified for the 2020 Truck Playoffs and finished ninth in the final standings, but missed the Playoffs in 2021 and settled in 15th place in the final standings.
Through 90 previous starts in the Truck circuit, Ankrum has achieved one victory, one pole, nine top-five results, 32 top-10 results, 129 laps led and an average-finishing result of 15.6.
“I’m looking forward to seeing Tyler back for his second season with our team and continuing the partnership with Toyota Racing,” Shige Hattori, Owner of Hattori Racing Enterprises, added. “Tyler has been through the playoffs and has a lot of Trucks Series experience. With Doug [Randolph)]coming on board for the 2023 season, we look to build great chemistry with Tyler and the team. We want to get him back to victory lane and be a strong playoff contender.”
With his plans for the 2023 season set, Ankrum is scheduled to commence his second Truck Series stint with Hattori Racing Enterprises at Daytona International Speedway. The series’ opener is scheduled to occur on February 17 at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson will be vying for the Memorial Day ‘Double Duty’ challenge by competing in both the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2024.
In an announcement made on Thursday, January 12, Larson, who pilots the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Hendrick Motorsports in the Cup circuit, will also be piloting a Chevrolet entry for Arrow McLaren in the NTT IndyCar Series for the 108th running of the Indy 500. Larson’s McLaren entry will be back by his Cup Series owner Rick Hendrick, who will co-own the entry, and sponsored by HendrickCars.com.
The announcement comes as Larson, who will attempt to make his IndyCar debut next season, is coming off his eighth full-time season in NASCAR’s premier series and second driving for Hendrick Motorsports. Having won the 2021 Cup title on a strength of 10 victories and during his first season at HMS, Larson achieved three victories before finishing in seventh place in the 2022 final standings. He also achieved a total of four poles, 13 top-five results, 19 top-10 results, 635 laps led and an average-finishing result of 14.1 throughout the previous Cup season.
“I’m super excited,” Larson, a 19-time Cup winner, said. “Competing at the Indianapolis 500 is a dream of mine and something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time – since I was a child before I ever began competing in sprint cars. To do it with McLaren and Mr. Hendrick especially is a dream come true. I’m grateful for the opportunity and am really looking forward to it even though it’s still about a year-and-a-half away. I’m really looking forward to competing in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Charlotte 600 and maybe even get a win or two that day.”
In announcing his plans for the ‘Double Duty’ challenge, Larson will attempt to become the fifth competitor to accomplish the feat that was first started by the late John Andretti in 1994 and was soon followed by Robby Gordon, Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch.
Busch is the latest competitor to pull the ‘Doubly Duty’ feat in 2014, where he competed between Andretti Autosport and Stewart-Haas Racing. Stewart, who competed in the double twice (1999 and 2001), is the lone competitor to successfully complete the double’s 1,100 miles of racing between the two events in the same day after finishing sixth at Indy with Chip Ganassi Racing before finishing third at Charlotte with Joe Gibbs Racing.
Like Larson, the 2024 ‘Double Duty’ bid will also mark a new first for team owner Rick Hendrick, who will own an IndyCar entry for the first time in his career. The 2023 season is also set to mark Hendrick’s 40th season as an owner in NASCAR’s premier series, where he has accumulated an all-time record 14 championships and 291 victories. He has also accumulated 239 poles, 1,190 top-five results, 2,045 top-10 results and 77,317 laps led.
“Having the opportunity to support Kyle, partner with an elite team like Arrow McLaren and promote HendrickCars.com in one of the world’s great auto racing events is truly unique,” Hendrick said. “All of us are competitors. Putting Kyle in top-level equipment and allowing ample time for him to prepare for such a difficult challenge was important. It’s going to be very, very special to field a Chevrolet in the Indy 500 as a car owner. A collaboration like this was what we needed to make it happen, and fortunately the stars aligned. We’re 100% committed to doing it right and look forward to working with Zak [Brown, CEO, McLaren Racing] and his organization.”
Like Larson and Hendrick Motorsports, the 2024 season will also mark McLaren’s first participation in the ‘Double Duty’ challenge in a storied career highlighted with 12 drivers’ championships, eighth constructors’ titles and 183 victories in Formula One competition. The McLaren manufacturer has also made a total of three trips to Victory Lane in the Indy 500 three times, with the first occurring in 1972 with Mark Donohue. After achieving a second Indy 500 victory with Johnny Rutherford in 1974, McLaren’s latest Indy 500 victory occurred in 1976 with Rutherford.
The Arrow McLaren team, which has been rebranded from Arrow McLaren SP, is set to field three full-time entries in this year’s IndyCar season for drivers Pato O’Ward, Felix Rosenqvist and Alexander Rossi. The 2013 Indy 500 champion Tony Kanaan is also set to pilot a fourth Arrow McLaren entry for this year’s 107th running of the Indy 500.
“Adding Kyle Larson with a HendrickCars.com partnership to the Indy 500 lineup in 2024 is exciting for our Arrow McLaren team as well as for race fans,” Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing, added. “He’s a complete driver, known for racing anything on wheels, so I’m looking forward to seeing what Kyle can do in an NTT INDYCAR SERIES car. It’s been great working with Rick Hendrick and [Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman] Jeff Gordon to pull this together, so a big thank you to them for what’s to come in May 2024.”
Additional details regarding Larson’s number and car livery for the Indy 500 remains to be determined.
With his plans for the 2024 Memorial Day weekend set, Larson’s 2023 Cup Series season is set to commence at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the second annual Busch Light Clash at The Coliseum, which will occur on February 5 at 8 p.m. ET on FOX. This event will be followed by the 65th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, which will occur on February 19 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
