Sitting in his office in Concord, North Carolina, Speedway Motorsports Chief Operating Officer Michael Burch smiled through much of our chat. Working at Speedway Motorsports for over 20 years, Burch brings a smile and a positive attitude into the workplace day in and day out.
“It’s really fun when you can come and spend a significant part of your day, eight hours of your day, with the people that you work with,” Burch said. “Without people, it’s a big asphalt circle or a big asphalt road course, and it’s a grandstand. And it’s really the experience that people make work. Their creativity, their energy, their hospitality, their friendliness, all those things I think is really what you remember when you go to the races.”
Burch got into the sport differently than most people of his experience, and in a way that would make current Cup Series Driver William Byron proud: He fell in love with NASCAR video games.
“I grew up in Reading, Pennsylvania, where Roger Penske has his trucking empire based. I was more of an IndyCar fan, watching the Indy 500 on Memorial Day,” Burch said. “I was aware of NASCAR, but it was actually the NASCAR video games that got me involved. I was a big gamer growing up and that’s what really taught me who drove what cars and the sponsors, and manufacturers and drivers, but also gave me an understanding of how the cars actually work. There was so much interesting feedback, that dynamic, you know, you could see that right front tire going from black, to green, to yellow, to red as it wore out, and you had to decide when to pit. You could feel the car start to move around and lose its optimal line.”
Burch’s love for the gaming side of NASCAR extends to the future of the sport as well.
“It’s been a real passion of mine, and I really think it’s important in bringing new fans to the sport. You look at William Byron who literally went from iRacing to driving the No. 24 for Hendrick Motorsports. It’s one of the rare video game experiences where the inputs are exactly the same as what you’d do in the real world. You can get as good as you want pressing that X button and moving that controller in Madden, or NBA 2K, or ESPN FC, but that really isn’t going to help you on the soccer pitch, or the basketball court, or the football field.”
“I’m really excited that iRacing has gotten that (NASCAR) license, they’ve done some great work, and I’m really looking forward to them bringing their expertise to consoles, and making sure we do have some good console games.”
When I asked Burch about his favorite moment in his over 2 decade-long career at SMI, his face lit up.
“The experience at North Wilkesboro has been something that I think everyone involved will always remember. The smile on (the fans) faces, the energy, the excitement, they just couldn’t believe they were back at North Wilkesboro watching racing,” Burch says, recounting the return of the famed track in May of this year.
Burch ended by saying words that all race fans should do their best to live by.
“I just encourage everybody to get to a race in 2024. Make that a New Year’s Resolution,” he joked. “It doesn’t have to be a Speedway Motorsports facility. Make sure you’re supporting your local short track. If you can get to a Cup race, fantastic. If you get to one of our facilities, fantastic. Racing only survives if fans continue to support it, and there’s an awful lot of race tracks out there that are really being challenged.”
In a sports world where loyalty and sincerity are becoming a lost art, Mike Burch’s passion and love for racing shines a light on all the good still left in those who choose to share it with the masses.
Talking to Ed Clark on the phone, you might not think you’re talking to a man who was once the President of one of NASCAR’s premier race tracks. A smooth, southern drawl covers up the wisdom that Clark gained after nearly three decades working in executive roles at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia.
Clark’s interest in the sport came from an uncle, and his interest eventually turned into a job at a local bi-weekly paper in rural Virginia, where Clark covered races before going off to college at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. After he graduated from VT, he got his first job in NASCAR at Bristol Motor Speedway in 1977. “Working in NASCAR is all I’ve done since,” Clark said.
Tennessee also ended up being the home of Clark’s first executive role in the sport. While still working at Bristol, he took up the role of Track Manager of the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway in 1979. In 1981, Clark went to his first corporate boardroom, accepting a role at Speedway Motorsports, which wasn’t the behemoth we know today. “At the time, Charlotte Motor Speedway was the only track we held. In 1990, we purchased Atlanta, and in the summer of ‘92, they asked me to come down and be the General Manager,” Clark explained.
“You know, I got to do something that everybody would love to do and got to do something that wasn’t like a job. It was a pleasure to do it day in and day out,” he added.
After a 27-year career at the track, Clark’s last weekend as President was marked on the calendar as March 13-15 of 2020, the track’s traditional tripleheader spring weekend. However, the COVID-19 pandemic, which was ramping up in the U.S. at that point, had other plans.
“The transporters and cars were in the infield. Then we got a call from NASCAR that, hey, you know, we may be changing the plan for the weekend a little bit. A few hours later, the call was that we might be running this race without any fans. So, you know, we kind of went into, how is this going to work? Before we could even get word out about that decision, they called and said that we’re not going to race at all.”
Not only did Clark not get to see the final scheduled race of his tenure, his retirement dinner was also called off.
“Basically, we all packed up and went home, and none of us were there that weekend,” Clark says. “It was the most bizarre thing when we finally did run the race, you know, like so many events that year. We ran it with no fans in the stands, and that was the most bizarre race I ever attended in my life.”
Asking Clark about his favorite moment as AMS President felt redundant, but I thought I’d try my hand anyway. Sure enough, he gave exactly the answer I thought he would.
“That was the race where Bill Elliott and Alan Kulwicki raced head to head for the championship. Those two guys raced and dueled all day long. And it came down to if Bill Elliott had waited one more lap to pit and led one more lap,” Clark said, recounting the infamous story of the 1992 Hooters 500.
“It was one of the greatest championship duels of all time, if not the greatest,” Clark said. “A couple other things were also happening that weekend. A guy named Richard Petty retired, ran his last race. A guy named Jeff Gordon made his very first Cup start. So there were so many storylines that weekend that made it special. The race was great. That buildup to Richard, for me, was like nothing I’d ever seen,” Clark says. “Of course it’s my first race. I’d never done a race in Atlanta before. So many great memories though,” he added.
Ed Clark may not be the flashiest name in NASCAR history, nor the most well-known employee in the history of SMI. His story of working his way up the ladder to the top rung of a premier track, however, is one that can inspire everyone seeking a career in NASCAR.
And it all started at a bi-weekly newspaper in rural Virginia.
Noah Gragson’s career seemed to come to a screeching halt this past August. The 25-year-old from Las Vegas, Nevada, had been suspended by Legacy Motor Club and NASCAR after allegedly liking an insensitive post on social media. Add his dismal results to that point in the year, and it seemed his career might have crashed and burned before it left the runway.
Fast forward to December of 2023, and Gragson is once again in the spotlight, but this time, for a good reason: he’s been signed to arguably a top-5 team in the NASCAR Cup Series, taking over the No. 10 Mustang Dark Horse for a retired Aric Almirola. While Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) has lost some of its luster over the past few years, turning in relatively subpar results and only garnering two wins over the past three seasons, its history can’t be denied. Two championships and a slew of wins from legends such as Tony Stewart and Kevin Harvick make those like myself believe that there is a chance for Stewart-Haas Racing to recapture the glory days of 2018, where all four cars made the playoffs and won at least one race.
Fresh faces in Gragson and his former JRM teammate Josh Berry provide a sense of promise in the office, while incumbent drivers Chase Briscoe and Ryan Preece revise their 2023 roles. Briscoe arguably has the most upside of the four, but Berry has proven to be a championship-caliber star in the Xfinity Series, as has Gragson. Preece seems to be a bit more of a work-in-progress, but he showed flashes of potential last season, dominating the spring race at Martinsville before a pit road penalty doomed his day.
Stewart Haas Racing’s rebuild isn’t guaranteed to be quick or even guaranteed to work at all, as Berry and Gragson are largely unproven in the NASCAR Cup Series. But if the rebuild does pan out, and SHR once more becomes a powerhouse, or even the top Ford team in the NASCAR Cup Series, Stewart and Gene Haas will be sitting in their offices laughing at everyone who called their organization dead at the start of the 2020s. If it doesn’t pan out and the team flops? Everyone who called the team dead will seem to be proven right until another rebuild begins.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – On Thursday night at the Music City Center, the NASCAR Champion’s Week festivities concluded with the honoring of Ryan Blaney, who reached the pinnacle of the sport—claiming the NASCAR Cup Series title—by outdueling three other Championship 4 contenders Nov. 5 at Phoenix Raceway.
The 29-year-old Blaney finished second to Ross Chastain in the season finale but crossed the finish line ahead of Playoff drivers Kyle Larson and William Byron—both representing Hendrick Motorsports—to earn his first Cup championship and the second in a row for team owner Roger Penske.
“I know, all the competitors, we don’t agree all the time, but it is a true honor to race with the best in the world on a weekly basis, and I do appreciate that,” Blaney said after an introduction from NASCAR president Steve Phelps and a welcome to the stage from one of Blaney’s favorite bands, Whiskey Myers.
Blaney comes from a racing family that includes his father, Dave Blaney and uncle, Dale Blaney, both superstars in the sprint car realm.
“Obviously, growing up, watching Dad race, that’s just what I wanted to do, and I wanted to be like my Dad,” Blaney said. “I was super lucky to be able see that at a young age and get the whole spectrum of seeing what it’s like as a driver, seeing how teams operated.”
Blaney had special praise for team owner Roger Penske, who has fielded Cup cars for Blaney for the last six seasons.
“Roger and (wife) Kathy Penske—it’s hard to believe it’s been over 10 years since we first met,” Blaney said. “As a kid, there’s nothing more I wanted to do than to win you a championship and just be successful, because I was such a big fan of you, not only in NASCAR but in every form of motorsport.
“I have such a huge respect for what you did. You stuck with me for over 10 years, and it’s been unbelievable.”
Blaney delivered Penske’s first back-to-back Cup championships this season, with Jonathan Hassler as his crew chief.
“Ryan is the champion, but think about his position in the garage area with other teams and other drivers,” Penske said. “He’s a champion with them, too. It’s very important, as you climb the ladder in this sport.”
For the sixth straight year, Chase Elliot won the National Motorsports Press Association Most Popular Driver Award. Justin Allgaier and Hailie Deegan were most popular drivers in the NASCAR Xfinity and CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, respectively.
Elliott, who is 10 short of the 16 Most Popular Driver Awards won by his father, Bill Elliott, appeared on stage with a sling on his left arm, indicative of recent offseason should surgery.
Ty Gibbs was named Sunoco Rookie of the Year in NASCAR’s top series.
“It’s been a great year, and we want to keep going,” said Gibbs, who scored 10 top-10 finishes with a best result of fourth in his first full-time season.
All 16 of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff drivers appeared on stage during the award ceremony. Veteran Michael McDowell perhaps had the best laugh line of the evening.
“It’s taken me a long time not to suck,” said McDowell, a former Daytona 500 winner who earned his second career victory on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course this year.
Kevin Harvick summed up his retirement from full-time Cup racing with a poignant image.
“When I got out of my car in Phoenix, there wasn’t another (race),” said Harvick, who is leaving full-time racing after 23 Cup seasons.
NASCAR vice chairman Mike Helton had high praise for Harvick, who will remain prominent in the sport as an analyst in the FOX Sports booth.
“I want to say, ‘thank you’ to everybody in this room,” Harvick said. “It’s been a heck of a ride… “Where’s Bubba (Wallace)? He bet me $100 I’d cry like a baby—I won $100. Thank you!”
Brad Keselowski, co-owner/driver at Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, pointed to the progress the organization has made in 2023, with both Keselowski and teammate Chris Buescher, a three-time winner, qualifying for the Playoffs.
Driving for Stewart-Haas Racing, Cole Custer bested Justin Allgaier, Sam Mayer and John Hunter Nemechek to win his first NASCAR Xfinity Series championship.
Custer returned to the Xfinity Series this season after three disappointing years in NASCAR’s top division.
“I think he’s matured a lot, and it’s very gratifying to see him win the Xfinity Series championship,” said team owner Gene Haas.
NASCAR chief operating officer Steve O’Donnell brought Custer to the stage with high praise for the title-winning performance at Phoenix.
“He dug deep, like he always does,” O’Donnell said, referencing the nail-biting restarts late in the championship race.
“At the end of that race in Phoenix, when we held that championship trophy, I’ve never been more proud to be a part of that (team),” Custer said. “To the whole team, thank you for believing in me—I love you guys.”
Custer also acknowledged the help and advice he received from Harvick, the 2014 Cup Series champion.
In the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, Ben Rhodes won his second title for ThorSport Racing, beating Grant Enfinger, Carson Hocevar and Corey Heim in the Championship 4 finale. Also notable in the Truck Series was Sunoco Rookie of the Year Nick Sanchez, the only rookie driver to qualify for the Playoffs this season.
Rhodes finished the season with Rich Lushes as his crew chief after two in-season changes to that vital role.
Ben Kennedy, NASCAR vice president of racing development and strategy, introduced Rhodes for his champion’s speech.
“I can’t speak for everyone on the team,” Rhodes said, “but I can say they had incredible tenacity. We went through a lot of adversity, and not once did I hear anyone complain… While I stand before you tonight taking recognition, I really defer that to my team, without which none of it would have been possible.”
Carson Hocevar and John Hunter Nemechek earned respective driver of the year honors in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and Xfinity Series, while Christopher Bell won the 2023 Busch Light Pole Award for his career-best six pole positions this year.
Kurt Busch held back tears as he was recognized for a NASCAR career that spanned more than two decades.
“I want to say thank you to everyone in this room and everyone in this industry for supporting me for all these years,” said Busch, the 2004 series champion. “I want to thank my father, my mother and my brother Kyle—we always pushed each other to get to the next level.”
NASCAR chairman Jim France presented the Bill France Award of Excellence to Rich Kramer, chairman, president and CEO of the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company.
“I’m completely humbled by this acknowledgement,” Kramer said. “The team you see at the track each weekend—anything I’m acknowledged for is due to them…. Goodyear is long-term partner of NASCAR, I think, because we’re cut out of the same cloth.”
Lesa France Kennedy, executive vice chair of NASCAR, announced Molly Moran, a volunteer at Comfort Zone Camp, as the winner of this year’s prestigious Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award.
Comfort Zone Camp is a non-profit bereavement organization that transforms the lives of children who have experienced the death of a parent, sibling, primary caregiver, or significant person.
Ryan Vargas was honored as Comcast Community Champion of the Year for his work with FACES, the National Craniofacial Association. Diagnosed with craniosynostosis as a child, Vargas serves as a board member of FACES and earned a $60,000 donation from Comcast and Xfinity for the organization.
Sherry Pollex, long-time partner of 2017 Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr., was honored with the NMPA Myers Brothers Award. Pollex lost a valiant, nine-year battle against ovarian cancer this year.
1. Ryan Blaney: Blaney passed Kyle Larson for second on lap 292 and held the position to claim the championship as Ross Chastain took the win at Phoenix. It is Blaney’s first Cup championship.
“I’d like to dedicate this to my father Dave,” Blaney said. “He raced for so long and never was able to win a championship. Now, he can finally say those words he longed to: ‘I’m the father of a NASCAR Cup championship.”
2. Kyle Larson: Larson was in position to win the championship late, but got loose and gave up second to Ryan Blaney, who went on to win the championship.
“I was looking for championship No. 2,” Larson said. “And ‘No. 2’ is exactly how I feel about losing the championship.”
3. William Byron: Byron started on the pole at Phoenix but didn’t have enough late to capture the championship and finished fourth.
“Being on the pole means I had my choice of pit stalls,” Byron said. “I took the first stall, because, as you and NASCAR inspectors well know, I’m always looking for an edge.”
4. Ross Chastain: Chastain ran strong all day at Phoenix and ran away with the win, his second victory of the year.
“As meaningless wins go,” Chastain said, “this one’s right up there with all of my other Cup wins.”
5. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished eighth at Phoenix.
“There’s a fine line,” Hamlin said, “between saying, ‘I can’t wait until next year,’ and ‘Wait until next year.’”
6. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex started second and came home sixth Phoenix.
“I really feel for my Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell,” Truex said. “He had all of the JGR hopes resting on his shoulders. And he disappointed. Or, I guess I should say, ‘He’s disappointed.”
7. Tyler Reddick: Reddick finished 22nd at Phoenix.
“My No. 45 Toyota featured a Star Wars-themed paint scheme,” Reddick said. “It had an Imperial TIE Fighter on it. That being said, I don’t even think NASCAR fans give a flying ‘F’ about Star Wars.”
8. Bubba Wallace: Wallace finished 10th at Phoenix, posting his 10th top-10 finish of the year.
“I wasn’t eligible to win the championship,” Wallace said, “but it was great to have the playoff experience. I’m not sure I quite have what it takes to win a championship just yet, but if I need advice, I’ll ask one of my car owners, probably the one with championships.”
9. Chris Buescher: Buescher won Stage 2 at Phoenix and finished fifth.
“This was Kevin Harvick’s final drive,” Buescher said. “He’s on to the next stage of his life, the one you don’t get playoff points for winning. Kevin didn’t win the race. He probably could have, if someone hadn’t tied a bunch of empty Busch Light cans to his bumper.”
10. Christopher Bell: Bell’s championship hopes ended early at Phoenix, when he hit the wall hard, ending his day on lap 109.
“It was a mechanical issue,” Bell said. “What rhymes with ‘issue?’ ‘Tissue,’ because I’m bawling.”
Amidst the sea of crew members and race fans lay three scenes of interest. At one end of pit road, Kevin Harvick hugs his family and crew members. At another end, Ross Chastain smashes a watermelon to celebrate his race victory. Finally, at the center of attention is the runner-up finisher. Surrounded by photographers, fellow drivers and eventually race fans, Ryan Blaney exits his car to a storm of confetti as the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series champion.
The 75th season of NASCAR concludes with the changing of eras.
The curtain call on the Winston Cup era
After a seventh-place finish at his playground of Phoenix Raceway, Harvick hangs up his helmet and transitions to calling NASCAR races for FOX Sports. His retirement severs the last connection to the Winston Cup Series era.
Sure, there are several drivers from the mid to late 2000s still active, but Harvick was the last full-time driver from the season-long points era.
In other words, the drivers of my childhood are gone.
My childhood hero, Jeff Gordon, retired just before I joined the media corp. Tony Stewart, NASCAR’s ultimate smartass, retired in my first season on the NASCAR beat. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth*, rookies when I started following NASCAR, retired in 2017.
*Yes, I know Kenseth raced in 2018 and 2020, but that was in substitution roles.
Finally, Harvick, an A-type personality who took over the ride of the late Dale Earnhardt, rides off into the sunset with a career that’s frankly on par with “The Intimidator.” Not necessarily numbers-wise, but like the man in black, he established himself as a member of his generation’s elite drivers.
Harvick finishes 10th on NASCAR’s all-time wins list (60), the champion of the 2014 season and five Championship 4 appearances. He’s a first-ballot entry into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
Somewhere in the racing afterlife, I imagine Earnhardt sporting his signature Chesire grin at his replacement.
The young guns
When I started covering NASCAR in 2016 and even into 2017, the scuttlebutt of who’s gonna fill the shoes of the stars permeated the airwaves of SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Cut to Sunday, and the roar of fans drowns out Blaney’s SportsCenter hit.
The young guns who replaced the older stars fit their shoes. Chase Elliott, Gordon’s (initial) replacement is NASCAR’s most popular driver, until one of Earnhardt Jr.’s daughters joins the Cup Series. William Byron, Gordon’s next replacement, made the Championship 4. Christopher Bell, Kenseth’s replacement, did the same two years in a row. Larson is the only driver to win both the Knoxville Nationals and Cup Series championships in the same year.
Now Blaney, one year removed from a winless season, hoists the Bill France Cup.
Of this group, only Larson is over the age of 30.
And there’s more youth coming up the NASCAR pipeline.
As the late George Jones sang, “Who’s gonna fill their shoes?”
Yeah, I think we can put those fears to rest now.
The future
Is the present perfect?
No. Not by a long shot.
But as I wrote, on Saturday, there’s reason for optimism about NASCAR’s future. Sunday at Phoenix Raceway encapsulated that the waning star power we feared in the late 2010s is a solved problem.
For now, we take a much-needed vacation and do this all again in February.
As Ross Chastain concluded the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season on a strong note by winning the season-finale NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, November 5, Ryan Blaney captured the main spotlight by winning his first NASCAR Cup Series championship with a runner-up finish and by outdueling title rivals Kyle Larson, William Byron and Christopher Bell on the track.
The 29-year-old, third-generation Blaney, who was born in Hartford, Ohio, but grew up in High Point, North Carolina, led two of 312-scheduled laps in a finale where he started the deepest of the four championship finalists in 15th place, but used the long runs to his advantage as he methodically carved his way through the field and found himself mixed within the battle for the title against Byron, Larson and Bell. With Bell falling out of contention amid an early incident and Blaney left to battle against two Hendrick Motorsports competitors for the title for the remainder of the finale, Blaney continued to persevere against the competition, even against a multitude of non-title contenders vying for the finale victory.
Despite being overtaken by both Larson and Byron during the final pit stop during a caution period with less than 40 laps remaining, Blaney, who restarted inside the top 10 during the final restart with 31 laps remaining, drove his way back to the front and overtook Larson for both the runner-up spot and the lead in the championship battle with 20 laps remaining. From there, Blaney managed to pull away and remain ahead of Larson by more than a second for the remaining scheduled laps as he crossed the finish line in the runner-up spot behind race winner Chastain and captured his first championship in his eighth full-time season in NASCAR’s premier series.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, November 4, title contender William Byron notched his fourth Cup pole position of the 2023 season and the 12th of his career after posting a pole-winning lap at 132.597 mph in 27.150 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Martin Truex Jr., who posted the second-best qualifying lap at 132.509 mph in 27.168 seconds. Byron’s title rivals, which included teammate Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell and Ryan Blaney qualified fourth, 13th and 15th, respectively.
Before the event, Brad Keselowski dropped to the rear of the field after being absent during Saturday’s qualifying session due to his wife going into labor, which resulted in this year’s Xfinity Series champion Cole Custer qualifying Keselowski’s No. 6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing entry.
When the green flag waved and the finale commenced, William Byron rocketed ahead with the lead over Martin Truex Jr. as the field fanned out through the frontstretch’s dogleg and the first two turns. With the field still fanning out through the backstretch, Byron proceeded to lead the first lap while Kevin Harvick challenged Truex for the runner-up spot followed by a hard-charging Kyle Larson.
Then as Larson used the dogleg in an attempt to overtake both Harvick and Truex for the runner-up spot during the following lap, Harvick and Larson continued to battle for the runner-up spot through the first two turns while Bubba Wallace battled and overtook Truex for fourth place. As Christopher Bell and Ryan Blaney tried to muscle their way into the top 10, Byron retained the lead by a steady margin over Harvick and teammate Larson through the fifth lap.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, title contender Byron was leading by more than a second over Harvick followed by teammate/title contender Larson, Wallace and Denny Hamlin as Truex, Ross Chastain, Erik Jones, Tyler Reddick and rookie Ty Gibbs were in the top 10. Behind, Ryan Preece and Chris Buescher were running in 11th and 12th followed by title contenders Bell and Blaney while Kyle Busch occupied 15th place in front of Daniel Suarez, Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, Michael McDowell and Austin Dillon. Meanwhile, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was in 21st ahead of Alex Bowman, Aric Almirola, Harrison Burton and Todd Gilliland while Brad Keselowski, Chase Briscoe, Carson Hocevar, Austin Cindric and AJ Allmendinger were mired in the top 30 ahead of Justin Haley, Corey LaJoie, Ty Dillon, JJ Yeley, BJ McLeod and Ryan Newman.
Ten laps later, Byron stabilized his advantage to a second over Harvick while third-place Larson trailed by more than three seconds. As Wallace and Truex continued to run in the top five on the track, title contenders Bell and Blaney were still mired back in 13th and 14th, respectively. Byron would continue to lead by more than a second over runner-up Harvick and by more than three seconds over teammate Larson by Lap 30 while Bell and Blaney were mired back in 11th and 14th, respectively.
At the Lap 40 mark, Byron retained the lead by more than a second over Harvick. Behind, Wallace overtook Larson for third place followed by Chastain, Truex, Buescher, Erik Jones and Hamlin. Meanwhile, Bell cracked the top 10 as he was up to 10th place while Blaney battled Tyler Reddick for 11th place.
By Lap 50, Byron’s advantage decreased to six-tenths of a second over runner-up Harvick, who started to gain ground on the former’s lead and used the inside lane through the turn to gain even more ground amid lapped traffic, while third-place Wallace trailed by a second. Behind, Larson was back in fifth after being overtaken by Chastain, Bell was running ninth behind Erik Jones and Blaney was battling Hamlin for 10th.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 60, title contender Byron fended off a late charge from Harvick to claim his ninth Cup stage victory of the 2023 season and to strike first in his bid for his first Cup title. Harvick settled in second place after following Byron by four-tenths of a second followed by Chastain, Wallace and Larson while Buescher, Truex, Erik Jones, Bell and Blaney were scored in the top 10 on the track. By then, all four championship finalists that included Byron, Larson, Bell and Blaney were scored in the top 10.
Under the stage break, the lead lap field led by Byron pitted for the first service of the afternoon. Following the pit stops, Byron retained the lead after exiting pit road first from the first pit stall ahead of Harvick and Chastain while Larson, Buescher, Wallace, Truex, Blaney, Bell and Hamlin followed suit. Amid the pit stops, Kyle Busch and BJ McLeod were sent to the rear of the field for speeding on pit road.
The second stage period started on Lap 68 as Byron and Harvick occupied the front row. At the start, Byron retained the lead from Harvick and Chastain as the field fanned out through the frontstretch’s dogleg before navigating their way through the first two turns and the backstretch. With Byron maintaining the lead through the frontstretch, Harvick and Chastain battled for the runner-up spot ahead of Larson and Wallace while Blaney moved up to sixth as Bell battled Buescher for seventh. Blaney would proceed to overtake Wallace for fifth place as Bell followed suit in sixth, leaving both to gain ground on Larson for fourth place. Meanwhile, Byron retained the lead in both the race and the championship battle by seven-tenths of a second over Harvick at the Lap 75 mark.
Just past the Lap 80 mark, Byron extended his advantage to more than a second over Harvick followed by third-place Chastain, who trailed by two seconds. Behind, title contenders Larson, Blaney and Bell occupied fourth through sixth on the track while Wallace, Buescher, Truex and Hamlin were running in the top 10 ahead of Erik Jones, Daniel Suarez, Chase Briscoe, Reddick, and Ryan Preece. Byron would retain the lead by six-tenths of a second over Harvick and by a second-and-a-half over third-place Chastain by Lap 90 while Larson, Bell and Blaney retained fourth through sixth, respectively.
Then on Lap 93, Harvick used the outside lane through the first two turns and entering the backstretch to rocket past Byron and move his No. 4 Busch Light Harvick Ford Mustang into the lead. Harvick would proceed to stretch his advantage by more than half a second over Byron while third-place Chastain tried to close in on Byron for the runner-up spot.
At the Lap 100 mark, Harvick was leading by more than a second over Chastain followed by Byron, who now trailed the lead by one-and-a-half seconds but continued to lead the championship battle. Behind, however, Blaney moved up to fourth place and started to close in on Byron for the championship lead while Bell and Larson occupied fifth and seventh, respectively, on the track. With Buescher running sixth, Truex, Wallace and Erik Jones were in the top 10 while Hamlin, Suarez, Briscoe, Reddick and Keselowski followed suit in the top 15.
Five laps later, Blaney drew himself into a side-by-side battle with Byron for third place on the track, but for the lead in the championship battle. After spending the next two laps battling Byron for the spot, Blaney managed to muscle his No. 12 Menards Ford Mustang past Byron’s No. 24 AXALTA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through Turns 3 and 4 assuming both third place on the track and the lead in the championship battle. By then, title contenders Bell and Larson trailed in sixth and seventh, respectively, while Harvick continued to lead the race over Chastain.
Shortly after, the caution flew after Bell, who was running in sixth place and had radioed braking concerns a few laps earlier, went dead straight toward the outside wall in Turns 3 and 4 after his brake rotor exploded as he scraped and heavily damaged the right side of his No. 20 DeWalt/Rheem Toyota TRD Camry. The incident all but evaporated Bell’s hopes of winning this year’s Cup Series championship as he retired from the race in 36th place, dead last.
Photo by David Myers for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“That was my first time I’ve ever exploded a rotor in my career,” Bell, who ended in fourth place in the final championship standings, said in the infield care center on NBC. “I was surprised. Just obviously a disappointing way to end, but super, super proud of this No. 20 team, all of our partners DeWalt, Rheem. To be in the Final Four, it’s something that we’re really proud of. It stinks to not have the shot at the end of it. Obviously, we were all four [title contenders] really close and we all four showed strengths at different times, so I think it’s gonna be a great championship race. Whoever’s [the championship] is his is gonna be well-deserving.”
During the caution period, the lead lap field led by Harvick pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Harvick retained the lead after exiting pit road first followed by Chastain, Byron, Buescher, Larson, Truex and Blaney.
With the race restarting under green on Lap 116, the field fanned out through the frontstretch’s dogleg as Harvick maintained the lead over Chastain and Byron. Through the first two turns and the backstretch, Buescher would move into third place and Chastain would move into the lead over Harvick while Byron was in fourth ahead of Truex, Larson, Erik Jones and Blaney. As the field navigated through the frontstretch, contact was made between teammates Briscoe and Preece as Preece slipped up the track. With the field still fanned out to four lanes through the dogleg, Chastain maintained the race lead over Harvick and Buescher while Byron, who was in fourth, retained the lead in the title battle over teammate Larson and Blaney.
Just past the Lap 125 mark, Chastain was leading by half a second over Harvick followed by third-place Buescher, who trailed by more than a second, while Byron retained the lead in the championship battle in fourth place. Behind, Truex occupied fifth place ahead of title contenders Larson and Blaney while Wallace, Erik Jones and Hamlin were scored in the top 10 ahead of Suarez, Keselowski, Carson Hocevar, Kyle Busch, Logano and Reddick.
Fifteen laps later, Chastain continued to lead by nearly eight-tenths of a second over Harvick followed by Buescher and Truex while Byron, who continued to lead the championship battle, fell back to fifth place in front of title rivals Larson and Blaney. Meanwhile, Austin Cindric, who got into the wall earlier, was on pit road and mired multiple laps down in 35th place.
At the halfway mark on Lap 156, Chastain was leading by nine-tenths of a second over Buescher followed by Harvick and Truex while Byron maintained the lead in the championship battle while running fifth place on the track ahead of Blaney and Larson. Meanwhile, Wallace, Erik Jones and Keselowski occupied the remaining spots in the top 10 on the track while Suarez, Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Hocevar, Logano, McDowell, Bowman, Ty Gibbs, Aric Almirola and Austin Dillon were running in the top 20 ahead of Reddick, Chase Elliott, Preece, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Briscoe.
Fourteen laps later, Chastain’s advantage decreased to two-tenths of a second over Buescher, who started to gain ground on the former for the top spot, while third-place Harvick trailed by three seconds. As Truex retained fourth place, Byron continued to lead the title battle and retain fifth place in front of Blaney and Larson. A lap later, Buescher muscled his No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang past Chastain’s No. 1 Worldwide Express Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through the frontstretch to assume the lead for the first time. Buescher would stretch his advantage to half a second over Chastain by Lap 175 while Harvick, Truex, Byron, Blaney and Larson followed suit in the top seven.
When the second stage period concluded on Lap 185, Buescher, who was eliminated from the Playoffs following the Round of 8 finale last weekend, captured his second Cup stage victory of the 2023 season. Chastain and Harvick settled in second and third followed by title contender Byron while Truex, Blaney, Larson, Wallace, Keselowski and Erik Jones were scored in the top 10.
During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Buescher pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Chastain reassumed the lead after exiting pit road first followed by Byron, Truex, Larson, Blaney, Harvick, Keselowski and Buescher.
With 119 laps remaining, the final stage period commenced as Chastain and Byron occupied the front row. At the start and with the field fanning out through the frontstretch’s dogleg, Chastain maintained the lead while Byron and Truex battled for the runner-up spot. As the field navigated back to the frontstretch, Byron fended off Truex to retain the runner-up spot on the track and the lead in the championship standings over Blaney and Larson, both of whom were running fourth and fifth, while Chastin continued to lead the race. Meanwhile, Harvick slipped to sixth as he was running in front of Wallace, Keselowski, Buescher and Hamlin.
With 100 laps remaining, Chastain was leading the race by more than a second over Blaney, who overtook Byron two laps earlier to assume the lead in the championship battle. With Byron following pursuit of Blaney in third place, Truex slipped to fourth place on the track while Larson occupied fifth place ahead of Harvick, Wallace, Buescher, Keselowski and Hamlin.
Twenty laps later, Chastain retained the lead by less than three-tenths of a second over Blaney, who started to close in on Chastain for the race lead and continued to lead the championship battle, while Truex was up to third place. Meanwhile, title contender Byron trailed in fourth place on the track and by more than four seconds followed by teammate/title contender Larson while Buescher, Harvick, Wallace, Keselowski and Hamlin occupied the top 10. Chastain would stabilize his advantage to three-tenths of a second over Blaney with 75 laps remaining while Byron and Larson continued to run fourth and fifth, respectively, behind Truex.
Then with 73 laps remaining, green flag pit stops commenced as title contenders Byron and Larson pitted from the top five. The leader Chastain and Blaney would pit during the following lap along with Buescher, Harvick, Wallace, Keselowski, Bowman, Kyle Busch, Logano, Suarez, Ty Gibbs, Austin Dillon, Reddick, Truex, Aric Almirola, Erik Jones, Hocevar, Michael McDowell, Chase Elliott, Justin Haley, Preece and others. Amid the green flag pit stops, Hamlin, who has yet to pit, was leading followed by Briscoe and Stenhouse while Chastain and Blaney, the first two competitors who pitted, followed suit in fourth and fifth.
Hamlin would then surrender the lead to pit his No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry under green with 61 laps remaining as Briscoe assumed the lead. Two laps later, however, Chastain rocketed past Briscoe to reassume the lead followed by a hard-charging Blaney, who retained the lead in the championship battle. By then, title contenders Larson and Byron were mired back in fifth and sixth on the track while Truex moved up to third place on the track before Briscoe pitted his No. 14 Mahindra Tractor Ford Mustang under green.
With 55 laps remaining, the battle for the race lead intensified as Blaney attempted to make a move beneath Chastain entering the backstretch. With Chastain still running on the outside lane, Blaney drag-raced Chastain entering the frontstretch and led the following lap by a hair before Chastain fought back on the outside lane. Chastain then used the lapped competitor of Ryan Newman to muscle ahead through the backstretch, but Blaney fought back on the inside lane.
Then with 53 laps remaining, Blaney gave Chastain a bump in the rear bumper, which allowed Truex to join the battle entering the backstretch. Amid the battles, Blaney and Chastain continued to duel for the lead through the frontstretch and the first two turns until Blaney muscled ahead with the lead on the inside lane. Chastain, however, pulled a crossover move on Blaney through the backstretch as both dueled for the lead through the frontstretch and in front of Truex. Chastain would then reassume the lead and pull away from Blaney through the backstretch entering the backstretch as Truex made his move beneath Blaney, who got loose, to assume the runner-up spot in his No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota TRD Camry. Despite losing ground of the race lead, Blaney, who fell back to third, retained the lead in the championship fight as he was ahead of title rival Larson by more than two seconds and with Byron running in fifth place with 50 laps remaining.
With 44 laps remaining, the battle for the lead between Chastain and Truex ignited as Truex made his move beneath Chastain for the lead through the frontstretch as Chastain was getting mired in lapped traffic. With both competitors dueling for the lead through the backstretch, Chastain used the outside lane to retain the lead as Blaney closed back in on the two leaders. Blaney then made his move beneath Truex entering Turns 3 and 4 to overtake the runner-up spot over Truex with 43 laps remaining before proceeding to regain ground on Chastain for the race lead.
Then with 37 laps remaining and just as Blaney attempted to take the lead from Chastain, the caution flew after Kyle Busch spun his No. 8 3CHI Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Turn 4. During the caution period, the lead lap field led by Chastain and Blaney pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Hamlin and Erik Jones exited pit road first and second, respectively, after both opted for two-tire pit stops while title contender Larson exited in third place and as the first competitor with four fresh tires followed by Chastain, Byron, Blaney and Truex.
Down to the final 31 laps of the event, the race restarted under green. At the start and with the field fanning out through the frontstretch’s dogleg, Hamlin muscled ahead with the lead before Larson and Chastain attempted to pin Hamlin in a three-wide move for the lead through the first two turns. With all three leaders remaining in three-wide formation through the backstretch, Chastain used the outside lane to muscle ahead with the lead before Larson and Hamlin fought back in three-wide formation through the frontstretch.
Then as Larson tried to muscle ahead from the inside lane with 30 laps remaining, he got loose entering Turns 1 and 2, which allowed title rivals Blaney and Byron to join the battle. As Chastain and Larson dueled for the lead through the backstretch, Chastain muscled ahead to control the race lead. Larson settled in the runner-up spot as Byron, Blaney and Hamlin battled for third place. As Chastain retained the race lead by a second with 25 laps remaining, the battle for the championship ignited as Larson, who was running second, had Blaney close in on his rear bumper while Byron trailed both by a second in fourth place.
Then with 22 laps remaining, the battle for this year’s championship ignited as Blaney closed in on Larson’s rear bumper. Then as Larson got loose and nearly wrecked in the frontstretch during the following lap, Blaney moved to the outside lane and made his bid to overtake Larson through the first two turns. With both Larson and Blaney dueling against one another through the backstretch, Blaney then gassed his No. 12 Ford ahead of Larson’s No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to the outside lane and to claim both the runner-up spot on the track and the lead in the championship battle with 20 laps remaining. Blaney would then move in front of Larson through the frontstretch and muscle ahead with a slight advantage through the backstretch. With Larson trying to use the outside lane to regain ground, Blaney, however, maintained his ground and remained in front of Larson during the following lap.
With less than 15 laps remaining, Chastain continued to lead the race by two seconds over Blaney, who remained a half a second ahead of Larson in his bid to win the title, while Byron, who was in fourth, trailed his two title rivals by two seconds followed by Buescher, Truex, Harvick and Hamlin. Blaney would retain the runner-up spot on the track and the lead in the championship battle by eight-tenths of a second over Larson with 10 laps remaining while Chastain retained the race lead by nearly two seconds.
Down to the final five laps of the event, Chastain stabilized his advantage to more than a second over Blaney, who continued to lead the title battle by more than a second over third-place Larson as fourth-place Byron trailed Blaney by nearly four seconds.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Chastain remained as the race leader by more than a second over Blaney, who remained as the championship leader by nearly two seconds over Larson and by four seconds over Byron. Following one final circuit around the Phoenix circuit, Chastain was able to cross the finish line in first place to claim the victory in the finale while Blaney was able to follow suit in the runner-up spot and win the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series championship.
With the championship, Blaney became the 36th different competitor to win a NASCAR Cup Series championship and the third to do so while driving for Team Penske, which achieved its fourth Cup career title. Blaney, who became the eighth different competitor to win a Cup title since the inception of the current Playoff-elimination format in 2014, also recorded the second consecutive Cup driver’s title in recent years for Ford as the Ford nameplate achieved a sweep in driver’s titles across NASCAR’s top three national touring series (Ben Rhodes won the Craftsman Truck Series title and Cole Custer won the Xfinity Series title). The championship was also the first for crew chief Jonathan Hassler and Penske’s No. 12 entry.
Overall, Blaney, who achieved his first Cup title in his eighth full-time season in NASCAR’s premier series, capped off the 2023 season with three victories (Charlotte Motor Speedway in May and Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway in October), which tallied his wins total to 10. He also earned six stage victories, eight top-five results, 18 top-10 results, 562 laps led and an average-finishing result of 14.1.
Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“It was just time to go to work [on the final restart],” Blaney said on NBC. “We did a good job of getting where we needed to be and [Larson and Byron] had two good pit stops, so just needed to go to work. [I was] Hoping our car was good enough, which it was. Just so proud of this team. What an unbelievable year. What an unbelievable Playoffs for us. To win back-to-back Cup titles for Mr. [Roger] Penske, that’s so special, and to have my family here on my first Cup title. I got emotional in the car. I’m not a very emotional guy, but so cool. Thank you, [fans], for coming. I hope it was an awesome show. Can’t wait to celebrate with my guys.”
“[I was praying] No yellow,” Blaney added. “[I] Didn’t want a caution and knew once I got to the white [flag], I felt pretty good about us just getting there and finishing it off. I just didn’t want a yellow and luckily, everyone kept it straight. We were going good. I wanna shout out also to Kyle [Larson] and William [Byron]. That was fun racing those guys all day, and [Christopher] Bell. Racing those two guys at the end there, racing clean. That’s what racing’s all about. That was a lot of fun. I think in the summer, we were struggling a little bit, but we never gave up. We just went to work and I’ve said that all week. This group goes to work and they figure out problems. That’s why they’re such an amazing group to be with the Team Penske folks because they just put their heads down and do the work and accept the challenge. It was a lot of hard work by a lot of amazing men and women over at our race shop and I can’t thank them enough for that. They deserve this [championship] just as much as the guys who travel here as much as me. They’re just a big part of it.”
Upon receiving the championship trophy on the championship stage, Blaney echoed his praise towards his crew chief, team owner Roger and his team for the hard work and perseverance towards achieving this year’s Cup title while paying homage to his family’s deep background of racing that includes his grandfather, Lou, and father, Dave.
“I think we did an amazing job on [never giving up],” Blaney said. “It was somewhat of an up and down year, but you’re gonna have those moments and through the summer we just worked really hard to get back to where we needed to be and set a deadline for the playoffs and we met that deadline. I’m just super proud of the effort by everybody at Team Penske who put in tons and tons of hours of hard work and nobody really got down. They just put their heads down and decided to really put in a lot of work and it showed up, especially these playoffs and especially the last five weeks. It’s so cool to have all of their hard work pay off, so they should be proud. Obviously, I come from a family of racers – my grandfather and dad and uncle. Dad is obviously who I grew up watching and admiring and wanted to be like, so to be able to do what he did because as a kid I just wanted to do what dad did, so to be able to race and let alone compete for wins and championships and still have my parents around and people that you look up to that are still around it makes it even more special.”
“It’s, obviously, a great place to be here today,” Roger Penske, team owner of Penske Racing, added. “The job that Blaney did racing clean with [Larson, Byron and Bell] was a pleasure to be in this race. To race my best friend, [owner] Rick Hendrick and Joe Gibbs, what a team. You can’t beat this. That’s why we do this every day. At the end of the day, [Blaney]’s a champion. That’s what counts.”
“It’s incredible,” Jonathan Hassler, Blaney’s crew chief, added. “It’s just a huge testament to the whole organization and this No. 12 team, working hard day in and day out and never being afraid to be a little bit better.”
“Yes, I believe it,” Dave Blaney, Ryan Blaney’s father and former NASCAR competitor, added. “A huge day. I don’t even know how to describe it. I thought [Ryan Blaney] was gonna win it five times and lost it five times. He just kept getting after it and did it. Proud of him and everybody on the team. He’s so talented. It’s just building confidence and if this doesn’t do it, I don’t know what will. I’ve seen it for a long time. Great kid. I’ve seen a lot of races, but this was the coolest one.”
As Blaney celebrated his first Cup Series title, Larson and Byron, both of whom finished third and fourth, respectively, on the track, were left disappointed on pit road after both fell short of winning their second and first title, respectively, while representing Hendrick Motorsports in the finale. For Larson, the 2021 champion who ended up in the runner-up spot in the final standings for the first time in his career, he concluded this season with four victories, eight stage victories, two poles, 15 top-five results, 18 top-10 results, 1,127 laps led and an average-finishing result of 14.6.
Photo by David Myers for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“[Blaney]’s car was really fast, really the last few months, and especially today,” Larson, who applauded the competitive and clean racing with Blaney and who commended the fast pit services from his pit crew, said. “Our pit crew and pit road just really kept us in the game. We weren’t the greatest on the track, but I was just hoping for pit stops because I knew the way our team executed our lights and the way our pit crew can execute a fast pit stop, I knew it was gonna be our only shot to win. They did everything in their power to give us the winning job there, so huge thank you to them. I needed to come out [as] the leader on that restart. I’m not sure if it would’ve made a difference. I was just not as good as a few guys, especially Blaney and Ross [Chastain], probably. It would’ve been difficult, but my team did a really good job all season, so I’m extremely proud of them. We had an up-and-down year and we finally put together two solid weeks in a row. We’ll come back next year and try to be stronger. A lot of fun there. Congrats to Ryan. He’s a deserving champion. Him and his team have done an amazing job. It’s been fun to kind of come up through the ranks with him and now, you see him be a champion. Congrats to Team Penske and their whole team. We’ll try and beat them next year.”
For Byron, who led 95 laps, won the first stage, and achieved a career-best third place in the final standings, he concluded the 2023 season with a career-high six victories, a season-high nine stage victories, four poles, 15 top-five results, 21 top-10 results, 1,016 laps led and an average-finishing result of 11.0.
Photo by Ron Olds for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“Once the track rubbered out, we got really tight,” Byron said. “Especially when we lost the lead on track, we just had a big balance shift and got tight back in second through fifth and just couldn’t gain a lot of speed through [Turns] 1 and 2 and just kind of having to really over-slow the car and get it to the bottom [lane]. That’s all we had there. Just really proud of our AXALTA team. Just a great season. It stinks to come up short, but I’d like to think we’re gonna be back in this position and we’re gonna have more shots at it. Just gotta keep working, gotta keep working on the short track program for us. It was definitely the tough part of our season, but I felt like we brought a good car this weekend and really until the track kind of changed, I thought we were in the game. All we had there. We’ve had a great season. Lots to be proud of and we’re gonna keep digging hard, so this was a great season for us.”
Amid Blaney’s championship celebration, Ross Chastain celebrated in Victory Lane for the first time at Phoenix and for the second time in the 2023 Cup Serie season after leading a race-high 157 of 312 laps. Chastain’s fourth career victory in NASCAR’s premier series and the sixth overall for Trackhouse Racing was enough for the 30-year-old native from Alva, Florida, to conclude this season in ninth place in the final standings as he became the first competitor not vying for the title to win the finale since Denny Hamlin won the 2013 finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Photo by Ron Olds for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“We did something else that’s never been done before, for everybody on this Worldwide Express team,” Chastain said in Victory Lane. “This vision for Trackhouse [Racing] and what this was was goals like this and they were lofty. I couldn’t think of anything I would want to do more as to try to be like Kevin Harvick and race with him early in the race was bucket list, little kid in me, racing that 2005 GameCube game. I am beside myself that we were able to do that. That last caution, we were really tight and it saved us. [Crew chief] Phil Surgen and this group at Trackhouse, all our GM support staff, SIM staff and everybody at Trackhouse, somehow, came up with a way to make this thing turn and we drove off into the sunset.”
On the track, Chris Buescher finished in fifth place while Martin Truex Jr., Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Michael McDowell and Bubba Wallace completed the top 10.
Notably, Harvick finished seventh in his 826th and final career start in the Cup Series while teammate Aric Almirola finished 13th in his 460th and final full-time event as a Cup competitor. In addition, Ty Gibbs, the 2023 Cup Series Rookie of the Year, finished 21st in front of Reddick, Carson Hocevar finished 19th in his final event with Legacy Motor Club, Ty Dillon finished 28th in his final event with Spire Motorsports and Justin Haley finished 29th in his final event with Kaulig Racing. Denny Hamlin, who finished eighth, claimed fifth place in the final standings while Chase Elliott, who finished 16th, settled in 17th place in the standings over Ty Gibbs, Daniel Suarez and teammate Alex Bowman.
There were 18 lead changes for eight different leaders. The race featured four cautions for 27 laps. In addition, 24 of 36 starters finished on the lead lap.
Results.
1. Ross Chastain, 157 laps led
2. Ryan Blaney, two laps led
3. Kyle Larson
4. William Byron, 95 laps led, Stage 1 winner
5. Chris Buescher, 18 laps led, Stage 2 winner
6. Martin Truex Jr., one lap led
7. Kevin Harvick, 23 laps led
8. Denny Hamlin, 14 laps led
9. Michael McDowell
10. Bubba Wallace
11. Daniel Suarez
12. Austin Dillon
13. Aric Almirola
14. Ryan Preece
15. Brad Keselowski
16. Chase Elliott
17. Alex Bowman
18. Joey Logano
19. Carson Hocevar
20. Erik Jones
21. Ty Gibbs
22. Tyler Reddick
23. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
24. Chase Briscoe, two laps led
25. Kyle Busch, one lap down
26. Harrison Burton, one lap down
27. JJ Yeley, one lap down
28. Ty Dillon, two laps down
29. Justin Haley, two laps down
30. Todd Gilliland, three laps down
31. Corey LaJoie, four laps down
32. AJ Allmendinger, four laps down
33. BJ McLeod, six laps down
34. Ryan Newman, seven laps down
35. Austin Cindric, 11 laps down
36. Christopher Bell – OUT, Accident
*Bold indicates championship finalists
Final standings
1. Ryan Blaney
2. Kyle Larson
3. William Byron
4. Christopher Bell
5. Denny Hamlin
6. Tyler Reddick
7. Chris Buescher
8. Brad Keselowski
9. Ross Chastain
10. Bubba Wallace
11. Martin Truex Jr.
12. Joey Logano
13. Kevin Harvick
14. Kyle Busch
15. Michael McDowell
16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
The NASCAR Cup Series teams and competitors enter an off-season period before returning to action at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the Busch Light Clash on February 4, 2024, that will air at 8 p.m. ET on FOX. This event will be followed by the 66th annual running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, which will occur on February 18, 2024, at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX and officially commence Cup Series’ 76th season of competition.
In the midst of this year’s NASCAR Cup Series championship battle that was won by Ryan Blaney, Kevin Harvick displayed a strong, competitive performance before finishing in seventh place in the final start of his illustrious NASCAR career during the season-finale NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, November 5.
The 2014 Cup Series champion from Bakersfield, California, rolled off the starting grid for the final time in his career in third place, but quickly made his presence at the front known as he navigated his No. 4 Busch Light Harvick Ford Mustang into the runner-up spot, where he closely trailed title contender William Byron after the first stage period. Then after restarting on the front row during the start of the second stage period on Lap 68, Harvick led the first time on Lap 93 after muscling his way past Byron. He would then lead the next 23 laps until he was overtaken by Ross Chastain during the start of another restart period on Lap 116.
Finishing in third place at the conclusion of the second stage period and restarting in the top 10 at the start of the final stage period with 119 laps remaining, Harvick would spend the remainder of the event running in the top 10 on the track before claiming his final checkered flag in seventh place, which marked his 14th top-10 result of the 2023 Cup Series season and his first top-10 result since finishing sixth at Texas Motor Speedway in September.
Despite concluding his final Cup season winless, Harvick tallied a total of one stage victory, six top-five results, 14 top-10 results, 157 laps led and an average-finishing result of 14.7 throughout the 36-race schedule, which were enough for him to end up in 13th place in the final standings with 2,241 points.
Amid the strong result, Harvick, who received a standing ovation and shared a photo with his family, team and every Cup Series competitor on the field prior to the event before sharing tears, laughs and a toast with his crew, teammates and friends at the event’s conclusion, took a moment to reflect on the illustrious and eventful journey he experienced throughout his 23-year career as a competitor in NASCAR’s premier series that started in the early stages of the 2001 season when he took over the ride that was piloted by the late seven-time Cup Series champion Dale Earnhardt.
“It’s been an emotional roller coaster, for sure,” Harvick said on NBC. “I think as you look at this last week, this really means a lot to me just because I love driving the race car, I love being around the people more. I love our sport. It’s giving our family so much through the years to be thankful for and proud of. I can’t wait to be able to walk in that tunnel with my head up and look around and just look at all the really cool things that are NASCAR racing in every venue that we go to with great fans and people all over the place. I think for me for the last 23 years in Cup, you walk into that tunnel laser just focused on how do you make your car go faster and communicate with your team the best that you car. Sometimes you don’t see everything that’s around you. I’m fortunate to be able to kind of close this. I opened this chapter unexpectedly in 2001, and closed it in 2023 how we wanted to. That was to be competitive. The thing that means the most is having the respect of the drivers and competitors and the crew chiefs, my team, organization, all the past people that I worked for or worked with. There’s been so many great stories and things that have happened over this year, but especially this week.”
Scoring his first Cup Series career victory in his third series start at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March 2001 after edging four-time champion Jeff Gordon by 0.006 seconds, Harvick’s career blossomed as he would achieve 22 additional victories from 2001 to 2013 while driving for Richard Childress Racing. Among his early accomplishments included winning the 2001 Rookie-of-the-Year title, the 2003 Brickyard 400, five race victories in 2006, winning the 2007 Daytona 500 after edging Hall of Famer Mark Martin by 0.020 seconds, the 2007 All-Star Race, three Daytona Shootout victories in 2009, 2010 and 2013, two Coca-Cola 600 victories in 2011 and 2013 and finishing third place in the final standings in 2010, 2011 and 2013.
Then in 2014, a new chapter presented itself for Harvick, who departed Richard Childress Racing to join forces with Stewart-Haas Racing to pilot the No. 4 entry for his longtime friend Tony Stewart and owner Gene Haas while Rodney Childers served as his crew chief. The move resulted in the Californian achieving a career year in NASCAR as he would win his first Cup Series championship in a season where he notched five victories, including the season-finale event at Homestead-Miami Speedway and during the current Playoff’s elimination-style format as Harvick transferred through all three rounds to contend for the title in the finale.
Harvick would record an additional 32 victories from 2015 to 2022 as a driver for Stewart-Haas Racing’s No. 4 entry, which were enough for him to tally 60 career wins in NASCAR’s premier series as he currently sits in 10th place on NASCAR’s all-time wins list. To coincide with his Cup title in 2014, Harvick’s top achievements as an SHR competitor include winning the Southern 500 in 2014 and 2020, notching a career-high nine victories in 2020, winning the 2018 All-Star Race and adding two consecutive Brickyard 400 victories to his resume in 2019 and 2020. His final Cup victory occurred at Richmond Raceway in August 2022. Since the start of the Playoffs in 2004, Harvick made 17 appearances in the Playoffs, including this season, and five in the Championship 4 round.
Overall, Harvick concludes his 23-year career as a Cup Series competitor with a total of 60 victories, 31 poles, 251 top-five results, 444 top-10 results, 16,058 laps led and an average-finishing result of 12.8 through 826 career starts. Through 2023, Harvick has also achieved 47 Xfinity Series career victories and two championships through 349 series’ starts and 14 Craftsman Truck Series starts through 124 series’ starts.
Named one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers earlier this season, Harvick departs from full-time NASCAR competition with hopes that he will be recognized for giving it his all both on and off the track since his first laps to his final ride. He also took the moment to applaud and express his gratitude for the memories he cherished and shared with his fellow competitors and current/former team owners, crew chiefs and crew members.
“I think for me, we gave it all we had, right?” Harvick added. “Every lap, every week in some way, shape or form, we touched every aspect of this race car. I care about how everything looks, whether it’s the color of the car, the stickers. I sit in the sponsorship meetings, the marketing meetings, the team meetings, and there’s just not any piece of it that I don’t’ feel like we are a part of in some way, shape or form. We built a team here at Stewart-Haas Racing. We built a team at [Kevin Harvick Inc.]. We built a management company. We built so many things from the bottom up. I think the hard work is something that people recognize, but as you guys have seen through the week, I’m a pretty emotional person. I’ve just done a really good job of hiding that through the years, to make you think I’m super tough, but I’m really not. I love people, I care about people and it’s been a lot of fun to get to know a lot of the drivers, crew chiefs, just people in NASCAR racing and it’s just been so much fun to tell a story about the last 30 years of my career this year. I think everybody’s done a great job and I can’t thank them enough.”
With his full-time racing career in NASCAR concluded, Harvick is set to join the FOX Sports broadcast booth to call the Cup Series action alongside Mike Joy, Stewart and Bowyer. Meanwhile, Harvick’s No. 4 entry will be taken over by Josh Berry, who graduates to the Cup circuit following a two-year run in the Xfinity Series with JR Motorsports and will contend for the 2024 Cup Series’ Rookie-of-the-Year title, as Rodney Childers will continue to work as the crew chief for the team.
Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.
The NASCAR Cup Series competitors and teams enter an off-season period before returning to action at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the Busch Light Clash on February 4, 2024, with the event’s broadcast time to occur at 8 p.m. ET on FOX. This event will be followed by the 66th annual running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, which will occur on February 18, 2024, and officially commence a new season of Cup Series competition. The Daytona 500’s broadcast time is slated to occur at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
Ty Gibbs has officially been named the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year.
The 21-year-old Gibbs from Charlotte, North Carolina, capped off his rookie Cup Series season with Joe Gibbs Racing, his grandfather and championship-winning team owner Joe Gibbs’ team, in 21st place during the season-finale NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, November 5, despite starting in 11th place, but settling in 18th place in the final driver’s standings with 771 points.
Gibbs’ inaugural presence in the Cup Series occurred during the second half of the 2022 season, when he drove the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota TRD Camry entry at Pocono Raceway in late July as an interim competitor for Kurt Busch. The move was made after Busch, the 2004 Cup Series champion, wrecked while qualifying for the main event and suffered concussion-like symptoms that would prevent him from returning for the remainder of the season and lead to his retirement. The move also occurred as Gibbs was competing on a full-time basis in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for Joe Gibbs Racing and contending for the series’ championship. Despite starting at the rear of the field due to a driver change, Gibbs finished 16th in his Cup debut.
Ultimately, Gibbs would compete in the next 14 Cup Series events of the 2022 season. He initially competed his first five events in 23XI Racing’s No. 45 entry, where he notched his first top-10 career result at Michigan International Speedway in August after finishing 10th. Once the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs commenced, 23XI Racing swapped rides from their two-driver lineup that resulted with Gibbs piloting the No. 23 entry formally piloted by Bubba Wallace, who contended for the owner’s championship in the No. 45 entry. In nine starts in the No. 23 Toyota, Gibbs recorded a 15th-place result at Darlington Raceway in September and a total of three top-20 results. He was replaced by Daniel Hemric for the season-finale event at Phoenix Raceway in November after Gibbs did not participate due to the death of his father, Coy Gibbs.
Ten days after winning the 2022 Xfinity Series title, Gibbs was officially named a Cup Series competitor for JGR as he would pilot the No. 54 Toyota TRD Camry led by Chris Gayle, who won the Xfinity title with Gibbs during the previous season. Piloting the No. 54 Toyota TRD Camry, Gibbs commenced his rookie Cup season by finishing 25th during his first Daytona 500 attempt. Four races later, he notched his first top-10 result of the season after finishing ninth at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March. He backed up his strong finish at Atlanta by finishing in the top 10 during the following three events at Circuit of the Americas, Richmond Raceway and the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course before finishing no higher than 13th during his next nine starts. Despite achieving his first two top-five career finishes of fifth place, a total of six top-15 results in an eight-race span from July to August and remaining in contention to make the 2023 Cup Series Playoffs, a late multi-car wreck and a 35th-place result in the regular-season finale at Daytona in August derailed Gibbs’ hopes of making his first appearance in the Playoffs as a title contender.
With his Playoffs hopes for this season evaporated, Gibbs commenced the 2023 Playoffs with respective finishes of 21st and 14th before notching a strong performance at Bristol Motor Speedway during the Playoff’s Round of 16 finale, where he led 102 of 500 laps and settled in fifth place. Two races later, he notched a career-best fourth-place result during the Round of 12 finale at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course. He then recorded respective finishes of 34th, seventh and 18th throughout the Round of 8 before capping off his rookie Cup season in 21st place during the season-finale event at Phoenix.
With his accomplishment, Gibbs became the fourth different competitor while driving for Joe Gibbs Racing to achieve a Cup rookie title, a feat that includes Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano. He also became the fourth different competitor from North Carolina to achieve a Cup rookie title within the previous six seasons and the first Toyota competitor to win the rookie title since Erik Jones made the last accomplishment in 2017. Gibbs is also the first competitor to win the Cup rookie title a year after winning the Xfinity title since William Byron made the last accomplishment from 2017-18.
Photo by Chad Wells for SpeedwayMedia.com.
Gibbs’ lone rival for this year’s Cup rookie title was Noah Gragson, who competed in 21 of the first 22-scheduled events for Legacy Motor Club before he was suspended indefinitely from NASCAR competition and released by LMC in early August for violating a section highlighting member conduct within NASCAR’s rulebook.
With the completion of his first full-time campaign in NASCAR’s premier series, Gibbs is set to return for a second Cup Series stint in 2024 with Joe Gibbs Racing as he will continue to compete alongside teammates Christopher Bell, Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr.
The NASCAR Cup Series competitors and teams enter an off-season period before returning to action at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the Busch Light Clash on February 4, 2024, with the event’s broadcast time to occur at 8 p.m. ET on FOX. This event will be followed by the 66th annual running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, which will occur on February 18, 2024, and officially commence a new season of Cup Series competition. The Daytona 500’s broadcast time is slated to occur at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
Heading into the championship finale weekend for NASCAR’s three main touring series at Phoenix Raceway, Christopher Bell is looking to win his first career Cup Series Championship. Bell won the Truck Series Championship in 2017 and this year, he is the only playoff driver for Toyota after Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr., and Tyler Reddick were eliminated from contention.
The Oklahoma native drives the No. 20 car for Joe Gibbs Racing and has six wins in his Cup Series career. This is his third year at JGR after leaving the now-defunct Levine Family Racing and he has been tearing it up in the Cup Series.
Along with his six wins in his Cup Series career, he has two Championship 4 runs in the Playoffs as well as 10 poles and 62 top 10’s. This year Bell has shown immense speed at various types of tracks.
Before arriving in NASCAR, Bell was an established dirt track racer and still is today. He has raced in the World of Outlaws Series and many other dirt track series across the United States. He won this year’s Bristol Dirt Race which will be the final Bristol Dirt Race since NASCAR turned Bristol back to a paved track.
With his mastery of different types of race cars and race tracks, he has developed a diverse craft of racing skills and abilities. The key for Bell in the Championship Race is whether he can stay consistent and get the win.
Make sure to tune in to the race and all the action on Sunday on NBC at 1 p.m. CT.
