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Author: Andrew Kim

Vettel to join Aston Martin for 2021 F1 season

Nearly four months after declaring himself a free agent at this season’s end, Sebastian Vettel has a place to call home for the 2021 FIA Formula One World Championship season. That place is the BWT Racing Point F1 Team, which will be rebranded as the Aston Martin F1 team for next season, as Vettel is set to serve as one of the team’s two competitors.

Vettel, a four-time Formula One champion from Heppenheim, West Germany, is currently in his sixth and final season with Scuderia Ferrari. He was one of the first names to pop up on the free agency list in May and while this year’s Formula One season was delayed amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic when his departure from Ferrari at the conclusion of this season was confirmed. Shortly after Vettel’s departure was announced, Carlos Sainz Jr. was named as his replacement for next season as he will be a teammate to current Ferrari competitor Charles Leclerc.

Initially uncertain about his future plans following this season, Vettel’s move to Aston Martin scratches his name off the Silly Season topic and it reaffirms his goal in being competitive for himself and the rebranded organization for next season.

“I am pleased to finally share this exciting news about my future,” Vettel said. “I’m extremely proud to say that I will become an Aston Martin driver in 2021. It’s a new adventure for me with a truly legendary car company. I have been impressed with the results the team has achieved this year and I believe the future looks even brighter.”

“The energy and commitment of [businessman] Lawrence [Stroll] to the sport is inspiring and I believe we can build something very special together,” Vettel added. “I still have so much love for Formula 1 and my only motivation is to race at the front of the grid. To do so with Aston Martin will be a huge privilege.”

Vettel’s move to Aston Martin will mark his fifth different team he has driven for since making his Formula One debut in the 2007 United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with the BMW Sauber F1 Team, which skyrocketed into an illustrious racing career in F1. Among his accomplishments include recording the first win for the Toro Rosso F1 Team in the 2008 Italian Grand Prix, winning four consecutive championships from 2010 to 2013 with Red Bull Racing and finishing in second place in the final standings in 2017 and 2018. Currently, he has won 53 Formula One career races, which is third most all time behind Michael Schumacher (91) and Lewis Hamilton (89). Fourteen of his 53 F1 wins have come while driving for Ferrari from 2015 to 2019.

Through the first eight races of this year’s Formula One season, Vettel is ranked in 13th place in the Drivers’ standings as he trails six-time reigning champion Lewis Hamilton by 148 points. He has achieved four top-10 results and a best result of sixth place during the Hungarian Grand Prix in July, but he has also sustained two DNFs with Ferrari struggling to keep pace on the track.

Vettel’s move to Aston Martin came a day after Sergio “Checo” Perez confirmed that he will be departing the team at the conclusion of this season, despite his initial contract lasting through 2022.

Perez, a native from Guadalajara, Mexico, is in his seventh season with the team. He joined the organization in 2014 when it was branded as the Force India F1 Team. Midway into the 2018 season, Force India was placed into administration and Canadian businessman Lawrence Stroll, father of current F1 competitor Lance Stroll, purchased the assets of the team and the team was renamed to Racing Point Force India. The move allowed Perez, the employees and the team to resume and complete the season.

This season, Perez has notched six top-10 results, including a best result of fifth place during the Spanish Grand Prix in August, and he is ranked in 11th place through the first eight Formula One races of this season, trailing Hamilton 130 points. He was absent from both F1 races at the Silverstone Circuit in August (British Grand Prix and the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix) after he tested positive for COVID-19 symptoms prior to the main event. During his absence, Nico Hülkenberg filled in Perez’s Racing Point car, where he did not start the British Grand Prix due to an engine failure before coming back to qualify in third place and finish in seventh place in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix.

Before his move to Aston Martin, Vettel has nine races left with Ferrari this season, beginning with this weekend’s Tuscan Grand Prix at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello in Scarperia e San Piero, Tuscany, Italy. The race will occur on September 13 as Ferrari will also celebrate its 1,000th entry in Formula One with a special Burgundy livery scheme on the Ferrari cars driven by Vettel and Leclerc during the event.

September 10, 2020
Chad Knaus set for 700th Cup race as crew chief at Richmond

A major milestone is the making for Chad Knaus, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series championship-winning crew chief who is currently calling the shots for 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff contender William Byron and the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE team. When the green flag waves in the upcoming Cup Series race at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, September 12, Knaus will reach 700 Cup races as a crew chief.

A native of Rockford, Illinois, Knaus worked with his father, John, in races across the Midwest as he was also a crew chief for his father, who competed for the Rockford Speedway title. Together, they won a Great Northern Series championship and finished as the runner-up contender in the NASCAR Winston Racing Series.

In 1991, Knaus relocated to North Carolina to pursue a career in NASCAR. After starting his stock car career working for owner/competitor Stanley Smith, he teamed up with Hendrick Motorsports and worked his way up from being a general fabricator to a chassis and body construction manager for five seasons and while being part of the No. 24 DUPONT/HMS team driven by Jeff Gordon and led by crew chief Ray Evernham. Knaus was also a rear tire changer for Gordon’s No. 24 team and he was a part of the 1995 and 1997 championship seasons with Gordon.

In 1998, Knaus moved to Dale Earnhardt Inc. and worked as a car chief for the team’s No. 1 car driven between Steve Park and Darrell Waltrip. He went on to work for Tyler Jet Motorsports and Melling Racing, where he led the Dodge development team and worked with Stacy Compton before he was promoted to crew chief for three races towards the conclusion of the 2000 season (two with Casey Atwood and one with Stacy Compton). For the 2001 Cup Series season, Knaus remained as a full-time crew chief for Compton. Throughout the 2001 season, Knaus achieved two poles and one top-10 result with Compton. He was also suspended for two races due to a seatbelt violation in March at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Compton failed to qualify for two races throughout the season.

In 2002, Knaus rejoined Hendrick Motorsports to serve as crew chief for El Cajon, California’s Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet team. In their first run together, Johnson won the pole position for the 2002 Daytona 500 with a pole-winning lap at 185.831 mph. After finishing 15th at the Daytona 500 in February and recording six top-10 results in the following eight races, Johnson and Knaus both achieved their first Cup career win at Auto Club Speedway in April. Overall, Johnson and Knaus won three Cup races and four poles as they also achieved six top-five results and 21 top-10 results before they concluded the season in fifth place in the standings, though Johnson was beaten by Ryan Newman for the Rookie-of-the-Year title.

In 2003, Johnson’s sophomore season in the Cup Series, the combo achieved three victories, two poles, 14 top-five results and 20 top-10 results before concluding the season in the runner-up position in the final standings behind the champion Matt Kenseth. Following the 2003 season, Knaus surpassed 100 Cup starts as a crew chief. Throughout the following season, 2004, the combo recorded a season-high eight wins along with a pole, 20 top-five results and 23 top-10 results. Among the victories achieved between the two in 2004 included both Darlington races, both Pocono Raceway events, a second consecutive Coca-Cola 600 win, a win at Martinsville Speedway in October and a feel good victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway the following race and following a Hendrick Motorsports plane accident that claimed the lives of team owner Rick Hendrick’s son, two nieces, brother/president of HMS, lead engine builder, general manager, among others. Despite the victories and a productive junior season, Johnson and Knaus fell eight points shy of the title to Kurt Busch and veteran Jimmy Fennig.

In 2005, Johnson and Knaus achieved four victories, a pole, 13 top-five results and 22 top-10 results as they were the only Hendrick Motorsports team that had an opportunity to win the overall championship. During the finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, however, Johnson wrecked just shy of the midway mark and he concluded the season in fifth place in the standings while Tony Stewart went on to win his second Cup title.

Knaus started off the 2006 season on a rough note after he was caught making an illegal adjustment to the rear window of Johnson’s No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, thus being suspended for the first four Cup races of the season while Darian Grubb served as Johnson’s interim crew chief. Following the first four races, where Johnson and Grubb won the Daytona 500 and at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Knaus returned atop the pit box at Bristol in March. They achieved their first victory of the season at Talladega Superspeedway in May followed by the All-Star Race at Charlotte’s Lowe’s Motor Speedway and the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in August. Entering the postseason as a championship favorite, Johnson and Knaus, however, struggled during the first four races as they finished no nigher than 13th on track. They rallied at Charlotte in October as Johnson went on a five-race streak of finishing no worse than second place and picking up a win at Martinsville. After finishing in ninth place in the finale at Homestead in November, Johnson and Knaus achieved their first Cup championship by 56 points over Kenseth. With Knaus atop the pit box, Johnson won three races (five overall), one pole, 10 top-five results (13 overall) and 20 top-10 results (24 overall). By then, Knaus surpassed 200 Cup starts as a crew chief.

In 2007, Johnson and Knaus won a season-high 10 races, which included sweeping the pair of season races at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Martinsville Speedway and at Richmond Raceway. When the checkered flag waved in the finale at Homestead, Johnson finished in seventh place as he and Knaus achieved their second consecutive Cup championship following a season-long battle with teammates Jeff Gordon and crew chief Steve Letarte. Knaus also rallied from being suspended for six races throughout the summer following an inspection issue involving the templates on Johnson’s car at Sonoma Raceway (an issue that was also noted on Gordon’s car and resulted in a six-race suspension for Letarte).

In 2008, Johnson, Knaus and the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet team rallied from a slow start to achieve seven victories, six poles, 15 top-five results and 22 top-10 results throughout the season. When the checkered flag waved in the finale at Homestead, Johnson finished in 15th place and earned his record-tying third consecutive NASCAR Cup Series championship by 69 points over Carl Edwards, who had won nine races throughout the season. While Johnson tied NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough in achieving three consecutive Cup championships and Hendrick Motorsports recorded its eighth overall title, Knaus made history as he became the first Cup crew chief in history to achieve three consecutive titles as he accomplished the feat in his eighth full-time season as a crew chief.

The winning dynasty between Johnson and Knaus, however, did not stop there as both achieved seven victories, four poles, 16 top-five results and 24 top-10 results throughout the 2009 Cup season. Following the finale at Homestead, where Johnson brought his No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet to a fifth-place result, he achieved his record-setting fourth consecutive Cup championship by 141 points over teammate/NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin. As a result, HMS achieved its ninth title while Knaus became the first crew chief to win four consecutive Cup titles. In addition, Knaus surpassed 300 starts as a crew chief.

Throughout the 2010 season, Johnson, Knaus and the No. 48 Lowe’s team achieved six victories, two poles, 17 top-five results and 23 top-10 results. Among the season highlights included winning for the first time at Bristol Motor Speedway and at Sonoma Raceway. Entering the finale at Homestead, they were trailing Denny Hamlin and crew chief Mike Ford by 15 points. Following the finale, Johnson finished in second place and achieved his record-setting fifth consecutive Cup championship by 39 points over Hamlin, who finished 14th, and 41 over Kevin Harvick, who finished third. With Johnson’s accomplishment, Hendrick Motorsports achieved its 10th Cup title while Knaus became the first crew chief to win five consecutive Cup titles. In addition, Knaus surpassed Kirk Shelmerdine into second place on the all-time crew chief championship list in just his 10th season as a Cup crew chief.

In 2011, Johnson and Knaus achieved two victories (Talladega and Kansas), 14 top-five results and 21 top-10 results, but the results were not enough for both of them to extend their championship run to six consecutive years as they concluded the season in sixth place in the final standings. At the start of the 2012 season, Knaus was at the center of controversy when Johnson’s No. 48 car failed pre-race inspection prior to the Daytona 500. Initially fined $100,000, suspended for six races and Johnson docked 25 points, Knaus was later spared from the suspension and the points dock, though he was still fined. Despite winning five races throughout the 2012 season, including the All-Star Race at Charlotte, Indianapolis Motor Speedway and at Darlington Raceway while recording the 200th Cup victory for Hendrick Motorsports with Johnson, misfortunes during the final two races prevented Johnson and Knaus from winning their sixth title as Brad Keselowski, crew chief Paul Wolfe and team owner Roger Penske went on to claim their first title. Following the 2012 season, Knaus surpassed 400 starts as a crew chief.

In 2013, which marked the debut of the Generation 6 stock car and the new Chevrolet SS, Johnson and Knaus started the season on a high note by winning the Daytona 500 in February. While Johnson achieved his second Daytona 500 title and Hendrick Motorsports achieved its seventh, Knaus achieved his first 500 title as a crew chief. The dominance between Johnson, Knaus and the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet team did not stop there as they went on to win six races, including the non-point All-Star Race. Among the records Johnson broke in 2013 included becoming the first four-time winner of the All-Star Race, winning his record eighth race at Dover and becoming the first Cup competitor to sweep Daytona since NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobby Allison made the last accomplishment in 1982. Johnson and Knaus also went on to achieve three poles, 16 top-five results and 24 top-10 results. When the checkered flag flew in the finale at Homestead, Johnson finished ninth and achieved his sixth Cup championship by 19 points over Kenseth. With Johnson and Knaus each achieving their sixth title and Hendrick Motorsports achieving its 11th overall, the talks about the driver and crew chief of the No. 48 team achieving an unprecedented seventh title began to circulate approaching the 2014 season.

From 2014 to 2015, Johnson and Knaus won a total of nine races (including their fourth Coca-Cola 600 victory and a first win at Michigan International Speedway) and two poles as they also achieved 25 top-five results and 42 top-10 results. During both seasons, however, Johnson was unable to compete for the championship as his best points result was a 10th-place result in 2015. Prior to the conclusion of the 2015 season, Knaus achieved 500 starts as a crew chief.

In 2016, which marked Johnson and Knaus’ 15th season of racing and working together with the No. 48 Lowe’s/HMS team, Johnson started the season by finishing 16th in the Daytona 500 before he won the following race at Atlanta and tied the late NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt on the all-time Cup wins list with 76 wins. Johnson achieved his second victory of the season at Auto Club Speedway in March and was consistent throughout the regular season to make the Playoffs. In October, Johnson won at Charlotte and transferred to the Round of 8 in the Playoffs for the first time in his career. He went on to win at Martinsville for the ninth time in his career and earn one of four spots to the Championship Round at Homestead in November with an opportunity to compete for the title. Throughout the finale, Johnson struggled and was behind his other three opponents (Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards and Joey Logano) in the late stages. During the final 10 laps, however, Johnson benefitted on short-run speed, a late multi-car pileup involving Edwards and Logano, two late restarts and a two-lap shootout to win the finale and achieve his record-tying seventh Cup championship. Johnson’s accomplishment made him the third competitor to achieve seven Cup titles alongside Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt while Hendrick Motorsports achieved its 12th title. In addition, Knaus and Johnson tied Richard Petty and Dale Inman in achieving the most Cup championships by a driver-crew chief combo as Knaus moved himself in being one title shy of tying Inman for the most titles at eight.

The following season, 2017, Johnson won three races, including his 11th victory at Dover and his seventh triumph at Texas Motor Speedway, and he recorded four top-five results and 11 top-10 results. Though he and Knaus made the Playoffs, their hopes for a record-setting eighth championship came to an end in the penultimate event of the season at Phoenix after Johnson wrecked and finished 39th. They went on to conclude the season in 10th place in the final standings. By then, Knaus surpassed 600 starts as a Cup crew chief.

In 2018, Johnson and Knaus went winless for the first in their racing careers as Johnson only achieved two top-five results and 11 top-10 results before concluding the season in 14th place in the final standings.

Following a 17-year run with Johnson that included winning seven championships and 81 Cup career wins, Knaus moved over from the No. 48 team to the No. 24 team to serve as crew chief for William Byron, the 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion and the reigning Cup Rookie-of-the-Year recipient. In their first race paired together, Byron recorded the pole position for the 2019 Daytona 500 after he and his No. 24 AXALTA Chevrolet posted a pole-winning speed at 194.305 mph. The accomplishment made between Byron and Knaus allowed Hendrick Motorsports to achieve its fifth consecutive Daytona 500 pole and the qualifying session was capped off with an HMS front row sweep for the main event as Alex Bowman and crew chief Greg Ives earned the other front row spot. Ironically, Byron’s first career pole at Daytona mirrored Johnson’s first career pole for the 500, both of which came under Knaus’ leadership.

Byron and Knaus started off the Daytona 500 with a 21st-place after Byron was involved in a late accident. After finishing no higher than 15th place the following five races, they achieved their first top-10 result at Texas Motor Speedway in April (sixth place). Their next top-10 result came at Dover in May, where Byron finished eighth. During the Monster Energy Open at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May, Byron edged Bubba Wallace by a nose to transfer to his first All-Star Race appearance. Byron’s accomplishment allowed Knaus to extend his All-Star Race appearance to 18 consecutive seasons while the No. 24 car made its return to the main event following a one-year absence. Byron went on to finish ninth place in the All-Star event. The following two points races (Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway and at Pocono Raceway), Byron started on pole position and finished ninth. The combo went on to achieve five additional top-10 results, including a career-best second place at Daytona in July and a fourth-place run at Indianapolis in September, to qualify for the 2019 Cup Playoffs. For the remaining 10 races of this season, Byron, Knaus and the No. 24 team achieved four top-10 results, including another runner-up result at Martinsville in October, before they concluded the season in 11th place in the final standings and after being eliminated from title contention following the second round in the Playoffs. Overall, Byron achieved five poles, five top-five results and 13 top-10 results in his sophomore Cup season.

The combo started this season by winning the second Duel race at Daytona to line in fourth place for the Daytona 500, but they finished in last place of the 40-car field after being involved in a single-car wreck past the one-quarter mark of the race. Through the first 25 regular-season races together and despite being absent at Kansas Speedway while he and his wife Brooke were anticipating the birth of their daughter in July, Byron and Knaus have achieved one top-five result and seven top-10 results.

Entering the regular-season finale at Daytona, they were four points above the top-16 cutline ahead of teammates Jimmie Johnson and Cliff Daniels in their bid to make this year’s Playoffs. When the checkered flag flew, Byron was able to hold off the field and claim his first Cup career win in his 98th series start. While he recorded his first victory, Knaus claimed his 82nd Cup career win and first since June 2017 at Dover. The win at Daytona guaranteed the No. 24 team into the Playoffs as Knaus made his 17th consecutive postseason appearance as a title contender.

Byron and Knaus are coming off a fifth-place result in last Sunday’s Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway. They are ranked in ninth place in the Playoff standings and are nine points above the top-12 cutline in an effort to qualify for the second round in the Cup Playoffs.

Catch crew chief Chad Knaus’ milestone start at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, September 12, which will air at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 9, 2020
Greg Erwin to make 350th Cup start as crew chief at Richmond

A significant milestone is the making for Greg Erwin, a veteran crew chief who is atop the pit box of the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford Mustang team driven by 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff contender Matt DiBenedetto. When the green flag waves this upcoming race weekend at Richmond Raceway, Erwin will reach 350 Cup races as a crew chief.

A native of Hatboro, Pennsylvania, Erwin graduated from Clemson University in 1992 with an engineering degree and he attained a motorsports engineering scholarship the following year in graduate school while volunteering to work with teams that included TriStar Motorsports. In 1995, his career in NASCAR started with Diamond Ridge Motorsports as an engineer while he worked with names like Jeff Green, Steve Grissom and Elliott Sadler. Following the 1995 season, Erwin transitioned to Team SABCO Racing as an engineer, where the team was eventually purchased and expanded by Chip Ganassi in 2001. In 2003, Erwin joined forces with Richard Childress Racing and worked as the team’s seven-post research and development program.

Entering the 2005 NASCAR Cup Series season, Erwin was promoted to crew chief for Robby Gordon and the No. 7 Robby Gordon Motorsports Chevrolet team. Erwin and Gordon failed to qualify for the 2005 Daytona 500, but they made their first start of the season the following race at Fontana’s California Speedway in February, where Gordon finished 35th due to an engine failure. Erwin and Gordon competed in 23 races throughout the 2005 season, where Gordon achieved one top-five result and two top-10 results before he concluded the season in 37th place in the final standings. The following season, Erwin completed his first full-time season in the Cup Series with Gordon, where he achieved one top-five result and three top-10 results before he finished in 30th place in the final standings.

For the first 12 races of the 2007 Cup season, Erwin remained with Robby Gordon and Gordon’s No. 7 team. Through the one-third segment of the season, Gordon finished no higher than 15th place. Afterwards, Erwin was named crew chief for the No. 16 Ford team owned by car owner Jack Roush and driven by Greg Biffle for the following race at Dover International Speedway in June. From Dover in June through Dover in September, Erwin and Biffle achieved two top-five results and six top-10 results, though Biffle failed to make the 2007 Playoffs. The following race at Kansas Speedway, Biffle was able to survive on fuel and coast across the finish line to achieve his first victory of the season as Erwin achieved his first Cup win as a crew chief. They went on to achieve two additional top-10 results and conclude the season in 14th place in the final standings.

In 2008, Erwin served as Biffle’s crew chief in all but one of the entire 36-race schedule (Auto Club Speedway in February). Following a consistent 26-race regular-season stretch, they achieved their first victory of the season at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the first Playoff race of the season. They backed it up the following week by winning at Dover. Overall, Erwin achieved two victories, two poles, 12 top-five results and 17 top-10 results with Biffle, who concluded the season in third place in the final standings. Prior to the conclusion of the 2008 Cup season, Erwin surpassed 100 Cup races as a crew chief.

In 2009, Biffle and Erwin went winless, but they achieved 10 top-five results and 16 top-10 results as Biffle made the Playoffs and concluded the season in seventh place in the final standings. They rebounded the following season by recording two wins, nine top-five results and 19 top-10 results, with Biffle finishing the season in sixth place in the final standings. Following the 2010 season, Erwin surpassed 200 Cup races as a crew chief.

For the first half of the 2011 Cup season, Erwin remained as Biffle’s crew chief in the Cup circuit, but they only achieved one top-five result and five top-10 results. Following Kentucky Speedway in July, Erwin was replaced by Matt Puccia as Biffle’s crew chief for the remainder of the season. Fortunately, Erwin was then named crew chief for the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford team driven by A.J. Allmendinger for the remainder of the season. In Erwin’s first race with the team at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Allmendinger finished 22nd. Erwin and Allmendinger went on to record six top-10 results for the remainder of the season as Allmendinger finished in 15th place in the final standings.

Erwin remained as crew chief for the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford team piloted by Aric Almirola. Following the first nine Cup races with Almirola, where he only achieved one top-10 result, Erwin, however, was replaced by veteran Mike Ford.

For the 2013 season, Erwin was named a full-time crew chief for Penske’s No. 12 Ford Mustang team driven by Sam Hornish Jr. in the NASCAR Xfinity Series as Hornish competed for the series title. Erwin and Hornish made a one-race appearance in the Cup Series at Kansas in April, where Hornish finished 37th due to being involved in a late multi-car accident. Erwin and Hornish went on to finish in second place in the final Xfinity Series standings as they missed the title by three points to Austin Dillon, crew chief Danny Stockton and Richard Childress Racing.

In 2014, Erwin was named competition director for Team Penske’s Xfinity Series program. Throughout the season, he served as a Cup interim crew chief for Brad Keselowski at Phoenix in March and he worked with Juan Pablo Montoya and the No. 12 Ford team in two Cup races. He spent the 2015 season as an Xfinity crew chief for Penske’s No. 22 Ford Mustang team, where he notched seven victories and recorded Penske’s third consecutive owner’s title with Ryan Blaney, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano and Alex Tagliani piloting the No. 22 car throughout the season. The following season, he was named Penske’s Xfinity Series team manager while Brian Wilson served as the No. 22 team’s crew chief. He returned as crew chief for Penske’s No. 22 Ford team in the 2017 Xfinity season.

In August 2017, Erwin was named crew chief for the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford team and Paul Menard for the 2018 Cup season. In Erwin’s first race with Menard, the combo finished in sixth place in the 2018 Daytona 500 in February. Ultimately, they achieved one pole, one top-five result and seven top-10 results throughout the 36-race schedule as Menard finished in 19th place in the final standings.

The following season, Erwin and Menard achieved only four top-10 results as Menard concluded his second season with the Wood Brothers Racing in 19th place in the final standings. Earlier in the season, Menard dominated and was in race-winning position in the Clash at Daytona International Speedway in February until contact from eventual winner Jimmie Johnson knocked Menard out of contention as he was involved in a multi-car accident. Following the 2019 season, Erwin surpassed 300 starts as a Cup crew chief.

This season, Erwin remained as a crew chief for the Wood Brothers Racing team and driver Matt DiBenedetto, who joined the team following Menard’s departure from full-time racing. In Erwin’s first race with DiBenedetto, the combo finished 19th in the 2020 Daytona 500. The following race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, DiBenedetto made a late rally to finish in second place behind Joey Logano. Throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch, DiBenedetto achieved two top-five results and seven top-10 results. After finishing in 12th place at Daytona International Speedway in August, DiBenedetto claimed the 16th and final transfer spot to the 2020 Cup Playoffs. DiBenedetto’s accomplishment marked his first Cup postseason appearance as a title contender, Erwin’s third as a title contender and the Wood Brothers Racing’s second as a Playoff team.

Erwin and DiBenedetto are coming off a 21st-place result in the first Playoff race of this season at Darlington Raceway. They are ranked in 15th place in the Playoff standings and are 17 points below the top-12 cutline to advance to the second round of the 2020 Cup Playoffs.

Catch crew chief Greg Erwin’s milestone start at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, September 12, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 9, 2020
Kyle Busch to move into fifth place on all-time combined national series starts in NASCAR at Richmond

A significant milestone is in the making for Kyle Busch, a 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff contender and driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry. By the time Busch completes his two scheduled starts this weekend at Richmond Raceway between the NASCAR Xfinity and Cup Series, he will surpass Michael Waltrip and move into fifth place on NASCAR’s all-time combined national series starts with 1,174 starts between the Truck, Xfinity and Cup Series.

A native of Las Vegas, Nevada, Kyle Busch made his first appearance within NASCAR’s three major division series in 2001 in the Truck Series, where he drove the No. 99 Ford for car owner Jack Roush at age 16. His first start was at Indianapolis Raceway Park in August, where he started 23rd and finished ninth place. He competed in five additional Truck races with Roush and was set to compete at Fontana’s California Speedway in November when he was prohibited from competing since he was under 18 years of age in racing in events sponsored by Marlboro cigarettes. Shortly after, NASCAR imposed a rule where developing competitors were not allowed to compete within the sport until reaching the minimum age of 18, which began in 2002.

By 2003, Busch was a development driver for Hendrick Motorsports and competing in the ARCA Series, where he won his first two career races. In May, after turning 18 years of age, Busch made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut at Charlotte’s Lowe’s Motor Speedway while driving the No. 87 ditech.com Chevrolet under an alliance between Hendrick Motorsports and NEMCO Motorsports. In his first run in the series, Busch posted an impressive second-place result behind Matt Kenseth and received congrats from his older brother and current NASCAR star, Kurt. He competed in six additional starts in the Xfinity Series, where he posted another second-place result at Darlington Raceway in August and a seventh-place result at Rockingham’s North Carolina Speedway in November.

The 2004 NASCAR season was an eventful season for Busch, who competed the entire 34 Xfinity Series schedule with Hendrick Motorsports as a rookie candidate, made a one-race return in the Truck Series with team owner Rob Morgan and made his first six Cup career starts with HMS. In the Xfinity circuit, where he drove the No. 5 Lowe’s Chevrolet led by veteran Lance McGrew, Busch achieved five victories, five poles, 16 top-five results and 22 top-10 results before he concluded the season as the Rookie-of-the-Year winner and in second place behind Martin Truex Jr. In the Cup circuit, where he drove the No. 84 Carquest Chevrolet led by crew chief Gary DeHart, Busch’s best result was 24th place at California Speedway in September. In his one-race Truck start at Indianapolis Raceway Park in August, Busch finished 11th.

Busch’s career would skyrocket the following season as he was named a full-time NASCAR Cup Series competitor for Hendrick Motorsports, piloting the No. 5 Kellogg’s Chevrolet as a rookie candidate led by crew chief Alan Gustafson. During the season, he achieved his first two Cup career victories, one pole, seven top-five results and nine top-10 results before he was named the Rookie-of-the-Year recipient. He also won one race in 14 Xfinity Series starts and he claimed his first three Truck career victories in 11 starts throughout the season.

Through September 2020, Busch has made 155 career starts in the NASCAR Truck Series. He is the all-time Truck wins leader with 59 career victories, which he achieved while driving for Billy Ballew Motorsports and Kyle Busch Motorsports, and he is a seven-time Truck owner’s champion with KBM. He has also achieved 22 poles, 102 top-five results, 123 top-10 results and over 7,000 laps led in 18 years in the series. His current average result in the series is 6.8.

In addition, he has made 356 starts in the Xfinity Series and is also the all-time Xfinity wins leader with 97 career victories, which he achieved while driving for Hendrick Motorsports, Braun Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing. He is the 2009 Xfinity Series champion and holds the record for the most victories in a single Xfinity season (13 in 2010). He has achieved 10 or more victories in four Xfinity seasons. He has also achieved 68 poles, 219 top-five results, 257 top-10 results and over 19,000 laps led in 18 years in the series. His current average result in the series is 9.1.

Finally, he has made 561 starts in the Cup Series and has achieved 56 career victories, all while driving for HMS and JGR. He is the reigning two-time Cup Series champion and a two-time Cup regular-season champion who has achieved major victories like the 2018 Coca-Cola 600, the 2017 NASCAR All-Star Race, two Brickyard 400s, the 2012 Clash at Daytona International Speedway and the 2008 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. He has also achieved 32 poles, 211 top-five results, 310 top-10 results and over 17,000 laps led in 18 years in the series. His current average result in the series is 13.7.

To this day, Busch is the lone competitor to achieve a win across NASCAR’s three major division series in one weekend and to achieve a victory at every active NASCAR Cup Series track on the schedule.

This season, Busch has completed the first 27 Cup races and has also made four starts in the Xfinity Series and five starts in the Truck Series. He has achieved three Truck wins and one Xfinity win, but he is winless in the Cup circuit despite recording one stage win, 11 top-five results and 14 top-10 results. He is coming off a seventh-place result in the first Cup Playoff race of this season at Darlington Raceway and is in 10th place in the Playoff standings, seven points above the top-12 cutline to advance to the second round of the Playoffs.

In addition to competing in the Cup Series on a full-time basis with Joe Gibbs Racing, Busch is also scheduled to make his fifth and final Xfinity Series start this season with JGR in the first of a series doubleheader feature at Richmond Raceway.

Prior to this season, Kyle Busch made 1,136 across NASCAR’s three major division series. Once he surpasses Michael Waltrip this weekend at Richmond, Busch will trail Joe Nemechek (1195), Richard Petty (1185), Kevin Harvick (1178) and Mark Martin (1143) for the most starts between NASCAR’s three major division series (Truck, Xfinity and Cup).

Catch Kyle Busch’s milestone start at Richmond Raceway on Friday, September 11, at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN, where he will extend his streak of starts between NASCAR’s three major division series the following day for the Cup Series Playoff race on Saturday, September 12, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 9, 2020
Byron to make 100th Cup start at Richmond

A significant milestone is in the making for William Byron, a 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff contender and driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for Hendrick Motorsports. When Byron takes the green flag this weekend at Richmond Raceway, he will reach 100 starts in NASCAR’s premier series.

A native of Charlotte, North Carolina, Byron was a full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series competitor for JR Motorsports when he was announced as a full-time Cup competitor for Hendrick Motorsports in August 2017 for the 2018 season, replacing veteran Kasey Kahne. Near the end of August, HMS then announced that Byron will be driving the iconic No. 24 car sponsored by AXALTA and Liberty University in 2018 while Chase Elliott, who was in his second season driving the No. 24 car, will be driving the 9 car, a number his father, Bill, drove, the following season. Three months later, Byron went on to claim the 2017 Xfinity Series championship.

Byron made his Cup debut in the 2018 Daytona 500 with veteran Darian Grubb serving as his crew chief. He finished 23rd in his first start in NASCAR’s premier series after being involved in two separate incidents. Six races later, he recorded his first top-10 result, eighth place, at Texas Motor Speedway in April. Through the first 18 races of the season and in his rookie Cup season, Byron recorded one top-10 result and five top-15 results while also recording four DNFs. Near the end of July and the beginning of August, he recorded back-to-back top-10 results at Pocono Raceway (sixth place) and at Watkins Glen International (eighth place).

By the time the regular-season concluded in September at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Byron was ranked in 22nd place in the regular-season standings and failed to qualify for the 2018 Cup Playoffs. For the final 10 Cup races of the 2018 season, he recorded only one top-10 result (ninth place at Phoenix Raceway), he sustained four DNFs and he concluded the season in 23rd place in the final standings. Despite the challenges to his rookie season, Byron was able to beat Bubba Wallace for the Rookie-of-the-Year title.

In 2019, Byron was paired with seven-time championship-winning crew chief Chad Knaus, who completed a 17-year run with seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 team in the Cup circuit. In Byron’s first run with Knaus, he recorded his first Cup career pole for the 2019 Daytona 500. Byron’s pole was the fifth year in a row where a car from Hendrick Motorsports earned the pole position for the Daytona 500 as he also recorded the 700th Cup pole for Chevrolet. Byron, however, finished 21st during the main event after being involved in a late multi-car accident.

Following the first six races of the 2019 season, where he finished no higher than 15th, Byron recorded his first top-10 result of the season at Texas Motor Speedway in April (sixth place). Throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch, Byron achieved four poles, three top-five results and nine top-10 results. He was able to rack enough points and consistent runs to make the 2019 Cup Playoffs along with teammates Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman.

During the first round of the 2019 Cup Playoffs (three races), Byron finished seventh, 24th and sixth as he also claimed his fifth pole of the season at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval. His results in the first round of the Playoffs were enough for him and the No. 24 team to transfer into the second round of the Playoffs. During the second round, he finished 13th, 33rd and sixth, and failed to advance to the third round of the Playoffs. Nonetheless, he went on to finish in second place at Martinsville Speedway in October and conclude his sophomore season in 11th place in the final standings.

Byron and Knaus started this season off by winning the second Bluegreen Vacations Duel qualifying race at Daytona International Speedway in February and lining up in fourth place for the Daytona 500. Despite starting the Daytona 500 strong, Byron’s run came to an end past the one-quarter mark of the race when contact from Ricky Stenhouse Jr. sent Byron spinning and making hard contact against the inside wall, ending his run in last place of the 40-car field.

For the first 18 Cup races of this season, Byron achieved four top-10 results and was ranked in 17th place in the regular-season standings. He went on to achieve four additional top-10 results over the next 12 races. After finishing eighth, 28th and fourth the next three races, Byron retained the final transfer spot to the 2020 Cup Playoffs by a mere margin over teammate Jimmie Johnson.

Then, the following week, Byron’s roller coaster start in the Cup circuit concluded after he held off teammate Chase Elliott and the field in a late shootout to score his first Cup career win at Daytona International Speedway, the regular-season finale, in his 98th series start. The victory allowed Byron, Knaus and the No. 24 team to claim a spot in the Playoffs. He also became the 19th different competitor to win while driving for Hendrick Motorsports, only the second competitor to win driving the No. 24 car along with NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon and he recorded the team’s 260th Cup career victory.

Byron, who is a Cup Playoff contender for the second consecutive season, is coming off a fifth-place result in the first Playoff race at Darlington Raceway. He is ranked in ninth place in the Playoff standings and is nine points above the top-12 cutline to advance to the second round of the Playoffs.

Catch Byron’s milestone start at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, September 12, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 9, 2020
Harvick to start on pole position at Richmond

The 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick will start on pole position for the upcoming Cup Playoff race at Richmond Raceway, the Federated Auto Parts 400, on Saturday, September 12.

Harvick, who won last Sunday’s first Playoff race of this season at Darlington Raceway and has punched his ticket to the second round of the Playoffs, was awarded the pole position based on four statistical categories: current owner points standings, the driver’s results, the owner’s results and the fastest lap time from a previous Cup race. This Saturday will mark the fourth time this season, third in the previous six races, where Harvick will start in first place and lead the field to the start of a Cup Series race.

Joey Logano, who finished in third place last Sunday at Darlington, will start alongside Harvick on the front row for Saturday’s race at Richmond while Austin Dillon, who earned a strong runner-up finish at Darlington, will start in third place. Alex Bowman and William Byron, teammates at Hendrick Motorsports, will start fourth and fifth followed by Kyle Busch, a six-time Richmond winner who has yet to record his first victory of this season.

Denny Hamlin, Busch’s teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing and a three-time Richmond winner, will start in seventh place followed by Kurt Busch, Brad Keselowski and Aric Almirola. Clint Bowyer, a two-time Richmond winner, will start in 11th place followed by Chase Elliott, Cole Custer, Martin Truex Jr., Ryan Blaney and Matt DiBenedetto.

Erik Jones will start in 17th place and as the highest-starting non-title contender followed by Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth and Michael McDowell.

Starting in positions 21-29 are Ryan Newman, Tyler Reddick, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ryan Preece, Chris Buescher, Christopher Bell, Ty Dillon, Daniel Suarez and Brennan Poole.

Starting in positions 30-38 are Bubba Wallace, John Hunter Nemechek, J.J. Yeley, Quin Houff, Corey LaJoie, Reed Sorenson, Joey Gase, Timmy Hill and James Davison.

The second NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race of this season at Richmond Raceway will occur on September 12 at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 9, 2020
Almirola and Bowyer post top-10 results in Playoff opener at Darlington
While Kevin Harvick celebrated another momentous victory of this season in the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on September 6 and punched his ticket to the second round of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, teammates Aric Almirola and Clint Bowyer battled back from early struggles to their respective cars and persevered through a long night of racing to record top-10 results, thus opening the Playoffs on a decent note.

For Almirola, who started in 10th place, he started the race on a strong note as he kept his No. 10 Go Bowling Ford Mustang within the top 10, running as high as seventh place. Throughout the run, however, Almirola began battling loose-handling conditions as he lost track position and he was also involved in an incident past the Lap 80 mark involving Playoff contender Brad Keselowski, who cut a tire and drew out a caution due to debris. At the end of the first stage, he was scored in 18th place.

Restarting inside the top 20 at the start of the second stage, Almirola was able to work his way back into the top 15 and following adjustments to his car, he nearly cracked the top 10 before he settled in 11th place following the second stage. For the remainder of the run in the final stage, Almirola was able to work his way back into the top 10 on the track following a stellar pit stop from his crew and gaining track position. He was scored in seventh place prior to a late restart before he settled in ninth place when he crossed the finish line.

The top-10 result was Almirola’s 15th of the season and despite scoring no stage points throughout the race, he holds sole possession of the 12th and final transfer spot above the top-12 cutline in a tie-breaker over teammate Clint Bowyer, who finished right behind him.

“I think the downforce package has been a little bit different, for sure,” Almirola said in a post-race conference call. “I enjoy slipping and sliding around. Tires still seemed like they mattered, for sure. I think tires were a second-and-a-half to two seconds faster, so I’m excited about Richmond — going back to a short track package with low downforce and that’s been a good place for us, so I’m looking forward to there and Bristol and we’ll go from there…As far as Darlington compared to Las Vegas, I felt like I ran about the same as I would have at Las Vegas. I’ve been about a sixth to tenth place car at both places and that’s about what we ran tonight. We got in a little bit of a hole early in the race with some left-rear quarter panel damage that we had to fix on pit road and really put us in a spot to where we couldn’t capitalize on stage points, so that hurt us a little bit just not scoring any stage points, but we were able to battle back from that and get back to the top 10, which is where we felt like we were capable of running. I felt like we were a seventh to tenth place car and we finished ninth.”

For Bowyer, who started ninth, he was scored back in 10th place on the track when the competition caution flew on Lap 25. Though he had a car capable of running inside the top 10 and was able to work his way up to eighth place, he dropped back to 12th place, where he finished following the first stage. During the early run, he also had an on-track altercation with Kyle Busch, where both competitors made contact with one another for two consecutive laps and ended with Bowyer getting bumped by Kyle before he was passed for position in the top 10. Restarting inside the top 15 for the second stage, Bowyer received adjustments to his car throughout the run to improve the handling, which he was able to carve his way back into the top 10 and finish ninth when the second stage ended. As a result, he collected a couple of stage points.

Restarting in 11th place to start the final stage, Bowyer continued to methodically work his way towards the front as he worked his way up as high as sixth place on the track with his pit crew delivering strong service to his No. 14 PEAK Ford Mustang. With 66 laps remaining, however, he pitted to have a flat right-rear tire addressed. Though he returned to the track on fresh tires and was poised to gain more track position, a caution with less than 50 laps remaining due to debris evaporated Bowyer’s progress and chances of making a late rally for the win. Instead, he restarted inside the top 15 with approximately 40 laps remaining and made his way up to 10th place when the checkered flag flew and he crossed the finish line.

The top-10 result was Bowyer’s eighth of the season as he is ranked in 13th place in the Playoff standings and is tied with teammate Aric Almirola for the 12th and final transfer spot while being below the top-12 cutline.

“I certainly was hoping for more,” Bowyer said in a post-race conference call. “Frustrated to be honest with you. I have to go back and look at the race to see what happened with the debris. By the time that they picked it up I’d say it was way off the race track, so that kind of set us up to not have a not very good day. That put us in a hole. We were gonna be in the single digits for sure there, looking pretty good, but just had a lot of trouble. Right-rear — threw the rubber off the right-rear and had to pit there. It could have been catastrophic. At the end the left-rear was about to fall off of it, so we’ve got to clean some things up. I told you going into this we’ve got to put 10 races together. We’ve got to put whole races together. We can’t make these mistakes. If we can clean those up, we’re going to some good tracks for us — for us all, Aric, Kevin and all of us, we enjoy these short tracks. We’ve got a good short track program, so looking forward to what’s to come.”
Photo by Ted Seminara for SpeedwayMedia.com.
Following the race, however, disaster struck for Bowyer, when NASCAR discovered that his No. 14 Ford had two lug nuts not safely secured on his race car during post-race inspection. A similar discovery was made to Kyle Busch’s No. 18 M&M’s/Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry. As a result, both competitors will compete next weekend’s Playoff race at Richmond without their respective crew chiefs. Bowyer will have veteran Greg Zipadelli, Stewart-Haas Racing’s competition director, as an interim crew chief on a one-race basis next weekend.

Teammates Almirola and Bowyer, along with their fellow Cup contenders, will return for the next NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, September 12, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
September 7, 2020
Johnson records top-20 run in final start at Darlington

For the majority of Sunday night’s Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, Jimmie Johnson drove like a legend as a non-title contender and down to his final 10 races as a full-time NASCAR Cup Series competitor. Despite recording top-five runs in both stages and having a car to contend for a possible victory, contact with fellow competitor Denny Hamlin and being shuffled towards the middle of the pack in the closing laps left the seven-time champion and his No. 48 Ally Chevrolet team with an 18th-place run in the final running order.

Starting in 22nd place while sporting a special blue, white, red and black scheme to his No. 48 Chevrolet and paying tribute to Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt (two of three seven-time champions in NASCAR), Johnson wasted no time making his way to the front. Five laps into the event, Johnson was scored in 15th place and he continued to march towards the front. Following the competition caution on Lap 25 and the ensuing restart past the Lap 30 mark, Johnson made his way into the top 10. Battling teammates and Playoff contenders William Byron and Alex Bowman for position (both of whom sported special Jimmie Johnson throwback schemes), Johnson was scored in the top five by Lap 60. Following a caution past the Lap 80 mark due to debris, his pursuit to the front continued on the ensuing restart when he moved up to third place and then passed teammate Chase Elliott for second place on the track. Unable to catch leader Martin Truex Jr., Johnson settled in second place in the first stage on Lap 115.

Following a slow pit stop under the stage break, Johnson was shuffled back to eighth place for the start of the second stage. Nonetheless, when the racing resumed under green, he methodically worked his way back towards the front. Racing as high as third place in the stage when he cycled through a green flag pit stop and gained a handful of track position, he settled in fifth place when the second stage concluded on Lap 230.

Starting in eighth place for the final stage, Johnson raced as high as fourth place before he dropped and settled inside the top 10. His race, however, went away with less than 50 laps remaining and during a cycle of green flag pit stops. After completing his stop and cycling his way back on the track, he made contact with Denny Hamlin, who struggled and missed the pit road entrance. The incident dropped Johnson and his No. 48 team back within the top 20. Trying to charge his way back towards the front, he ended up getting shuffled back to 18th place when the checkered flag flew.

In the end, Johnson emerged as the second highest-finishing non-title contender on the track in his 24th and final run at Darlington, a track where he won three times during his 19-year career run in NASCAR.

Johnson, along with his fellow competitors, will return for the next Cup event at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, September 12, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 7, 2020
Kurt Busch pleased with strategy, top-10 run in Playoff opener

If there was a competitor and a team that came into the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, September 6, with a game plan, it was Kurt Busch and his No. 1 Monster Energy Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE team led by crew chief Matt McCall. Following a gusty call in the first stage to remain on the track on old tires for track position, the 2004 Cup champion was able to collect stage points within both stages and maintain track position inside the top 10 throughout the race before he battled back to record a solid eighth-place result in his quest for his second Cup title.

Starting in 16th place, Kurt Busch gained only three spots on the track in 13th place when the competition caution flew on Lap 25. Restarting in the top 15, Kurt was able to work his way into the top 10 as he was scored in eighth place by Lap 70. Following the first round of green flag pit stops and a caution just past the Lap 80 mark for debris, crew chief Matt McCall made the call for Kurt to remain on track, which he did along with Bubba Wallace while the majority of lead lap competitors behind him pitted. Leading two laps, he would be quickly overtaken by Martin Truex Jr. for the lead. Despite running on older tires compared to nearly the entire field, Kurt remained well inside the top five. When the first stage concluded on Lap 115, Kurt was able to maintain fifth place on the track and collect a handful of stage points.

Starting the second stage in fourth place, Kurt was able to race his way as high as second place by Lap 164. Following a green flag pit stop and a caution near Lap 180 for a spin involving Wallace, Kurt returned to pit road for four tires and an air pressure adjustment. Restarting in ninth place, Kurt was able to maintain 10th place on the track when the second stage concluded on Lap 230, thus collecting a single stage point.

Restarting in 10th place in the final stage, Kurt worked his way from the top 10 to the top five throughout the run. Following a late caution due to debris, he restarted in 11th place with approximately 40 laps remaining and was trying to battle his way back into the top 10 in the final laps. When leaders Truex and Chase Elliott tangled with 15 laps remaining, Kurt was able to gain a few more spots on the track and cross the finish line in eighth place, one spot behind brother Kyle but ahead of Playoff contenders Aric Almirola, Clint Bowyer, Brad Keselowski, Cole Custer and Denny Hamlin.

With his 15th top-10 result of this season, Kurt Busch is ranked in 11th place in the Playoff standings and is four points above the top-12 cutline.

“It was a great call by Matt McCall to stay out and use our strength,” Busch said on NBCSN. “Our strength was long run speed and it just seemed like our car needed 10-15 laps to get going on fresh tires. That put us in clean air, gave us a shot at trying to hang on to points and yeah, I gotta let some guys go. Otherwise, people will move you. You don’t want damage. I knew my job was to manage it. We got fifth. That was a great stage. Then we struggled with some of the loose and the tight on the Monster Energy Chevy. But all in all, when we were on that alternative strategy, I was loving it. That’s when you go back to old school Darlington and you’re out there for 60-70 laps at a time and you got to get every lap time you can when everybody else is on fresh tires. I was in the zone, I was feeling it and the yellow came out. We had to battle back, we got eighth. It was a good points night for us, but I wanted a little bit more out of Darlington.”

Kurt Busch, along with his fellow Cup Playoff contenders, will return for the next Playoff race at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, September 12, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 7, 2020
2020 Xfinity Playoff outlook after Darlington

It all comes down to the final three NASCAR Xfinity Series races through the upcoming two weekends until the 2020 Xfinity Playoff field is set.

With this year’s series regular season reaching its conclusion, the time for the competitors on the outside of the cutline and vying for the final spots to the 12-car postseason field is running out while those currently inside the cutline on points have stabilized themselves into the postseason battle for the title.

Following a thrilling finish to last Saturday’s Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200 at Darlington Raceway on September 5, Brandon Jones joins Chase Briscoe and Austin Cindric as the lone Xfinity competitors to achieve three or more victories through the first 23 races of the regular-season stretch as the Atlanta native also collected his fourth career series win.

They, along with Noah Gragson, Justin Haley, rookie Harrison Burton and Justin Allgaier, remain the only competitors to be guaranteed a spot in this year’s Playoffs based on winning throughout the regular season.

For Ross Chastain, Saturday’s race at Darlington produced a good and bad news outcome. The bad news for Chastain was that he fell short of claiming his first victory of the season following a late battle with Cup veteran Denny Hamlin, where he made contact with Hamlin approaching the final lap and limped home in second place and after leading in the closing laps. The good news for Chastain and his No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet team is that with his career-high 10th top-five result (fourth runner-up result in 2020), the Floridian is guaranteed a spot in the Playoffs based on points as he will make his second series postseason appearance as a title contender. In addition, Chastain’s result places both Kaulig Racing competitors into the Playoffs.

Like Chastain, the Darlington event produced strong outcomes for Michael Annett, rookie Riley Herbst and Ryan Sieg, all of whom recorded top-10 results, are 120 points or more above the top-12 cutline and have an opportunity to secure their spots for the postseason following next weekend’s doubleheader events at Richmond Raceway.

Despite starting and finishing in 17th place while rallying from being involved in a multi-car wreck past the opening two laps, Brandon Brown extended his cushion with the 12th and final spot to the Playoffs by 45 points over Jeremy Clements, who finished 32nd due to electrical issues, and 51 over rookie Myatt Snider, who finished 10th and rallied from a three-race stretch of finishing outside the top 15.

Other competitors who continue to trail the cutline by 84 or more points include Josh Williams, rookie Jesse Little, B.J. McLeod, Tommy Joe Martins and rookie Joe Graf Jr.

The battle for the final spots to this year’s NASCAR XFINITY Series Playoffs will continue next weekend at Richmond Raceway for a doubleheader series weekend. The first Richmond race will occur on Friday, September 11, at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN while the second Richmond race will occur on Saturday, September 12, at 2 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 7, 2020