Joey Logano achieved a silver lining amid a difficult first-half span of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series regular-season stretch by claiming the pole position for the 2024 NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway on Saturday, May 18.
The starting lineup for this year’s All-Star Race was determined through a special qualifying format infused with the return of the Pit Crew Challenge that was postponed to early Saturday afternoon after the qualifying session’s initial occurrence on Friday night, May 17, was canceled due to ongoing precipitation.
For the format, each competitor eligible for the All-Star Race exited pit road and commenced their qualifying session by taking the green flag and cycling once around the North Wilkesboro Speedway circuit for a full lap before making a mandatory four-tire pit stop with a mock fuel run in a designated pit stall during the second lap. At the conclusion of the pit stops the competitors would return to the track and race back to the checkered flag to conclude their qualifying session.
With a fast three-lap qualifying session of one minute, 29.75 seconds, that included his four-tire pit stop, Logano, who was the sixth of 17 competitors to qualify through the event’s qualifying order, will start on pole position for the All-Star Race for the first time in his career as this season will mark his 14th career start in the All-Star event. In addition, Logano, who will contend for his second All-Star victory and first since 2016, will start on the pole for the first of two 60-lap All-Star Heat events that will occur on Saturday evening.
“[I’m] Very proud of the whole team,” Logano said on FS1. “This qualifying session is the most fun session of the year. It really takes every crew member all the way through. Everybody’s got to do their part to make it happen and that’s why it means a lot to get an All-Star pole. Obviously, a great starting spot. Get a little momentum booster for our team.”
While Logano emerged as the fastest on the track amid his three-lap qualifying session, his No. 22 Team Penske Ford Mustang Dark Horse pit crew led by crew chief Paul Wolfe posted the fifth-fastest pit session at 13.592 seconds.
The team that emerged as this year’s Mechanix Wear Pit Crew Challenge winner was the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry XSE pit crew led by Adam Stevens and piloted by Christopher Bell, with the team generating the fastest four-tire pit service during Bell’s qualifying run at 13.223 seconds. Ironically, Bell’s pit crew features the same crew members that won the 2023 Pit Crew Challenge while servicing Ty Gibbs and the No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team to pole position for the 2023 All-Star Open. Despite Bell posting the third-fastest qualifying run on the track in one minute, 30.17 seconds, his No. 20 team has the first choice of pit stall selection for the All-Star event as they also claim a $100,000 prize. In addition, Bell will start alongside Logano for the first 60-lap Heat event on Saturday evening.
“What can you say? This is two in a row for these guys and they’ve been awesome,” Bell said. “I’m incredibly happy for them and honored to be their driver. That was a lot of fun.”
“I wouldn’t want to battle with no other guys and I wouldn’t want to do it for no other driver than Christopher Bell,” Derrell Edwards. Bell’s jackman, added. “We knew it was gonna come down to a Joe Gibbs [Racing] crew, which was special to say. We’ve been good, man. Back to back, baby.”
“I’m blessed to be with a good group of guys,” Michael Hicks, Bell’s rear tire changer, added. “I couldn’t do this if I didn’t have a good supporting cast. [The No. 20 crew] are the best on pit road. We got a stud for a driver. It’s awesome to win with these guys.”
Brad Keselowski, winner of last weekend’s Cup event at Darlington Raceway, posted the second-fastest three-lap qualifying session in one minute, 30.14 seconds as he will start on the pole for the second Heat event that will occur on Saturday evening. His No. 6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse pit crew led by crew chief Matt McCall posted the second-best four-tire pit service in 13.323 seconds.
Daniel Suarez and Chris Buescher qualified in the top five while Tyler Reddick, Ross Chastain, Martin Truex Jr., Michael McDowell and AJ Allmendinger rounded out the top 10 in the qualifying session.
Notably, Kevin Harvick qualified in the 12th position in the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry while serving as a standby competitor for Kyle Larson, who is qualifying for the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for Arrow McLaren.
Denny Hamlin posted the 11th-fastest qualifying run while William Byron, Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Ryan Blaney rounded out the 17-car field of competitors currently guaranteed starting spots for this year’s All-Star Race.
Qualifying Results/Time:
1. Joey Logano, 1:29.75
2. Brad Keselowski, 1:30.14
3. Christopher Bell, 1:30.17
4. Daniel Suarez, 1:30.20
5. Chris Buescher, 1:30.29
6. Tyler Reddick, 1:30.67
7. Ross Chastain, 1:30.77
8. Martin Truex Jr., 1:30.95
9. Michael McDowell, 1:30.99
10. AJ Allmendinger, 1:31.67
11. Denny Hamlin, 1:31.85
12. Kevin Harvick, 1:36.33
13. William Byron, 1:39.54
14. Kyle Busch, 1:39.79
15. Chase Elliott, 1:42.52
16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., 1:43.31
17. Ryan Blaney, 1:49.89
Pit Crew Challenge Results/Time:
1. Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 Toyota, 13.223 seconds
2. Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing No. 6 Ford, 13.323 seconds
3. Team Penske No. 12 Ford, 13.514 seconds
4. Trackhouse Racing No. 1 Chevrolet, 13.523 seconds
17. JTG-Daugherty Racing No. 47 Chevrolet, 25.741 seconds
The 2024 NASCAR All-Star Race festivities continue with a pair of All-Star Race Heat events that will commence on Saturday evening at 5:20 p.m. ET on FS2 and set the rest of the starting lineup for this year’s All-Star Race. The 2024 All-Star Race is scheduled to occur on Sunday, May 19, at 8 p.m. ET on FS1.
Brad Keselowski is back in Victory Lane at Darlington Raceway after a 110-race winless drought. He captured the checkered flag in the NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 Sunday evening, earning his 36th career win and the second at the 1.366-mile track.
It was also his first win as a co-owner and driver for RFK Racing and his first trip to Victory Lane since taking the checkered flag at Talladega in April 2021 for Team Penske.
“It’s just so great to be here in Darlington, Keselowski said. “I love this track. I love coming here. It’s a special place to me whether you win or not, but to run up front all day and have a great car, qualify up front, it was just an awesome day for Castrol.
“I’m glad for Ford. Ford has been working really hard to get us up here and here we are. We got them a win, so they don’t have to hear about that anymore. I’m happy for Ford. Hopefully, there are more great things to come.
“It was a total team effort from the top to the bottom to get us to where we could have a fast car. We executed on pit road, led laps and were there when it counted at the end.”
Ty Gibbs finished second in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 54 Toyota, his career-best result in the Cup Series and his seventh top-10 of 2024.
Josh Berry earned a third-place result in his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford and was the highest-finishing rookie. Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe rounded out the top five.
Kyle Larson leads the point standings despite a disappointing finish. He won the first stage but lost the handling of his car. Finally, on Lap 254 during the final stage, Larson spun due to a flat left-rear tire and took his car to the garage, ending his day early.
The post-race inspection was completed with no issues, confirming Keselowski as the winner.
Next week the Cup Series heads to North Wilkesboro Speedway for the All-Star Race.
Justin Allgaier dominated the Xfinity Series field to claim a decisive win at Darlington Raceway. He won the first two stages in his No. 5 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, led 119 of 147 laps and captured the checkered flag for his 24th victory in the series.
It was his third win at Darlington and his 24th Xfinity Series win, tying him with team owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr. He also leads the series with 267 top-10 finishes, breaking a tie with Kyle Busch.
“I didn’t know if the day would come when I’d be able to match Dale Jr.,” Allgaier said after the race. “Not only is he a great boss but a really good mentor and an unbelievable race car driver.
“To be able to come here, to be able to tie him, to be able to take over the all-time top 10s, man, there’s nothing better than that.”
Austin Hill led six laps, finished second and leads the series by 3 points. Cole Custer was third as Sam Mayer and Aric Almirola rounded out the top five finishers at Darlington.
Parker Kligerman, Riley Herbst, rookie Jesse Love, Sheldon Creed and Brandon Jones rounded out the top 10.
The post-race inspection was completed with no issues.
The Xfinity Series is off next week and returns to completion on May 25 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Tyler Reddick claimed the NASCAR Cup Series Busch Light Pole Award for Sunday’s Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway Saturday morning after a qualifying lap of 170.124 mph in the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota.
It was his seventh Cup Series career pole, his first pole at Darlington and his first this season. After qualifying he spoke about the complexities of racing at the 1.366-mile track and how it complements his racing style.
“I think I have a lot of fun racing here. I have a lot of fun racing other competitors, but I also have a lot of fun racing the track as well,” Reddick said. “My first ever laps in the Next Gen – the NASCAR Next Gen version three car was here – we had a test, and it was a handful to drive. We had a lot of fun in it. We had other rookie tests here as well.
“I learned a lot about a Xfinity car and the new Cup car at a place like this and that is challenging to do. I’ve had some unique experiences that have probably helped me get better here, but I think the biggest thing is just how the tires wear and the amount you have to move around. The amount of risk that you have to take every single lap and manage that for a whole race is kind of benefitted me and how I drive a race car.”
RFK’s Brad Keselowski will start beside him on the front row after posting a 170.108 mph lap. His RFK teammate, Chris Buescher (169.543 mph) will start third as Ty Gibbs (169.491 mph) and William Byron (169.397 mph) rounded out the top five in qualifying.
Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson will start sixth followed by Denny Hamlin, Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain and Martin Truex Jr. to complete the top-10.
You can tune into the NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 Sunday, May 12, at 3 p.m. ET on FS1 with radio coverage provided by MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Ross Chastain persevered to win the Buckle Up South Carolina 200 at Darlington Raceway after taking the lead in overtime to claim his first NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series victory of 2024.
He only led the final three laps during the race in his No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet but he led the one that mattered most.
“We have been trying to win at Darlington,” Chastain said, “This is where my career changed, my life changed forever. It’s so cool — we won Darlington.”
Nick Sanchez finished second in the No. 2 Rev Racing Chevrolet to an impressive second-place finish. He was fastest in qualifying but the team had to replace the right rear wheel hub due to a leak and he started at the rear of the field.
Corey Heim won the first two stages in his No. 11 Tricon Garage Toyota and led 77 laps but was caught up in a racing incident on Lap 98 when Dean Thompson’s truck got loose and Heim was relegated to a 28th-place finish. Rajah Caruth, Layne Riggs and Matt Crafton also sustained damage.
Ben Rhodes, Christian Eckes and Ty Majeski rounded out the top five. Eckes now leads the standings by 14 points over Heim.
Chase Purdy, Colby Howard, Taylor Gray, Ty Dillon and Tanner Gray rounded out the top 10 at Darlington.
You can catch the next Truck Series race on May 18 at 1:30 p.m. ET at North Wilkesboro Speedway on FS1 with radio coverage provided by MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
*Post-race inspection was completed with no issues.
Cole Custer will lead the field to green in Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at Darlington Raceway after the practice and qualifying sessions were canceled due to rain and hail at the track.
The field was set per the NASCAR Rule Book performance metric which is based on the previous event: 15% of a fastest lap time position, 25% of the driver’s final race finish position, 25% of the owner’s final race finish position and 35% of the owner points position.
Chandler Smith will join Custer on the front row followed by Sheldon Creed, AJ Allmendinger and Austin Hill to complete the top five starters. Sam Mayer, Justin Allgaier, Anthony Alfredo, Riley Herbst and Parker Retzlaff will round out the top 10.
All of the cars passed pre-race inspection.
The Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200 is scheduled for Saturday at 1:30 p.m. ET on FS1 with radio coverage provided by FS1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
NASCAR heads to Darlington Raceway for a full weekend of racing as all three national series compete. The racing will culminate on Mother’s Day with the Cup Series Goodyear 400. Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron is the defending race winner.
The Craftsman Truck Series will get the action started Friday night with the Buckle Up South Carolina 200. Christian Eckes is the most recent winner at the 1.366-mile track. Saturday afternoon the Xfinity Series takes center stage for the Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200.
Friday, May 10 3:05 p.m.: Truck Series Practice (Timed, All Entries, 20 Minutes) FS1 3:35 p.m.: Truck Qualifying (Impound, All Entries, Single Vehicle, 1 Lap) FS1 5:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice (Timed, All Entries, 20 Minutes) FS1 5:35 p.m.: Xfinity Qualifying (Impound, All Entries, Single Vehicle, 1 Lap) FS1 7 p.m.: Truck Series Driver Intros – FS1 7:30 p.m.: Truck Series Stages 45/90/147 Laps = 200.8 Miles FS1/MRN/SiriusXM Purse: $770,233
Saturday, May 11 10:35 a.m.: Cup Series Practice (Timed, Groups A & B, 20 Minutes each) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM 11:20 a.m.: Cup Qualifying (Impound, Groups A & B, Single Vehicle, 1 Lap, 2 Rounds) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM 1:10 p.m.: Xfinity Series Driver Intros – FS1 1:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200 Stages 45/90/147 Laps = 200.8 Miles FS1/MRN/SiriusXM Purse: $1,371,756
Sunday, May 12 2:25 p.m.: Cup Series Driver Intros – FS1 3 p.m.: Cup Series Goodyear 400 Stages 90/185/293 Laps = 400.2 Miles FS1/MRN/SiriusXM Purse: $8,090,969
In the blink of an eye, Kyle Larson went from being beaten to a photo finish that set a new record for the closest margin of victory in the NASCAR Cup Series division after edging Chris Buescher to score a wild win y in the rain-delayed AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, May 5.
The 2021 Cup Series champion from Elk Grove, California, led six times for 63 of 268 over-scheduled laps in an event where he was competitive from his fourth-place starting spot as he battled against NASCAR’s elite towards the front for the majority of the event. Then, after initially being poised for a top-six run, a caution for a spin involving Kyle Busch with seven laps remaining generated an opportunity for Larson, who opted for a two-tire pit stop to line up in third place behind Denny Hamlin and Chris Buescher. After attempting to make a three-wide move on both during the start of an overtime shootout, Larson settled behind Buescher, who would fend off an early challenge by Larson to retain the lead and start the final lap.
During the final lap, however, Larson then seized an opportunity to make a move to Buescher’s outside entering the final turn and despite getting both rubbed and squeezed by Buescher towards the wall, he managed to muscle ahead by a hair. With Buescher fighting back and both drivers refusing to step off the throttle as they made contact twice approaching the finish line, Larson and Buescher crossed the finish line dead even. Larson would be declared the race winner by 0.001 seconds, which eclipsed the previous margin of finish record of 0.002 seconds, as he notched his second NASCAR Cup Series victory of the 2024 season in dramatic fashion.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, May 4, Christopher Bell notched his first Cup pole position of the 2024 season and the 11th of his career after posting a pole-winning lap at 183.107 mph in 29.491 seconds in his No. 20 Yahoo! Toyota Camry XSE. Joining him on the front row was Ross Chastain, who clocked in the second-fastest qualifying lap time at 182.704 mph in 29.556 seconds.
When the green flag waved and the event commenced following a delay period of more than three hours due to inclement weather, Bell and Chastain battled for the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch as the field behind fanned out to three lanes. With the field still fanned out, Bell managed to edge Chastain to lead the first lap from the outside lane, but Chastain kept his car dead even against Bell for the following lap and in an early bid for the lead.
Prior to the third lap, Chastain, who edged Bell to lead the second lap, managed to muscle his No. 1 Busch Light Crocs Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 ahead of Bell through the backstretch as he had both lanes to his control. With Chastain leading Bell, Noah Gragson followed suit in third place followed by Kyle Larson while a three-wide battle for fifth place occurred between Kyle Busch, Austin Cindric and Ty Gibbs. Gibbs would prevail while running the outside lane as he muscled away from Busch and Cindric as Chastain proceeded to lead the fifth lap mark.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Chastain, who nearly lost the lead to Bell a few laps earlier, was leading by a tenth of a second over a hard-charging Larson, who assumed the runner-up spot from Bell a lap earlier, as Bell followed suit in third while Gibbs, Gragson, Busch, Chris Buescher, Cindric, Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. were running in the top 10. Behind, Michael McDowell trailed in 11th ahead of Alex Bowman, Tyler Reddick, Chase Elliott and Joey Logano as John Hunter Nemechek, Chase Briscoe, Bubba Wallace, Austin Dillon and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. trailed in the top 20 ahead of Ryan Blaney, Brad Keselowski, rookie Carson Hocevar, William Byron and Corey Heim.
Ten laps later, Chastain stabilized his early advantage to two-tenths of a second over Larson while Bell, Gibbs and Buescher were scored in the top five ahead of Gragson, Busch, Hamlin, Cindric and Truex. Meanwhile, Jimmie Johnson, who qualified 19th, had fallen to 32nd as he was trailing rookie Josh Berry and Daniel Suarez on the track while Austin Hill, Derek Kraus, Daniel Hemric, Harrison Burton, Riley Herbst and Ryan Preece were running towards the rear of the 38-car field.
Another 12 laps later, a cycle of green flag pit stops commenced as Truex pitted his No. 19 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota Camry XSE along with Alex Bowman, Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney and Bubba Wallace. The leader Chastain would pit under green on Lap 33, followed by Larson, Gibbs, Buescher, Gragson and a bevy of competitors as Bell and Busch remained on the track. While more drivers, including Bell, pit by Lap 35, Chastain and Larson engaged in a heated battle to emerge as the first competitor who recently pitted on the track while Derek Kraus, who has yet to pit, was leading.
On Lap 41, Chastain zipped by Kraus to reassume the race lead on the track as Larson, who was battling Chastain tightly for the lead a few laps earlier, followed suit in second. Both Chastain and Larson would be separated by a tenth of a second by the Lap 45 mark while Gibbs, who moved into third place, trailed the two leaders by more than two seconds as Buescher and Bell trailed in the top five by three seconds.
At the Lap 50 mark, both Chastain and Larson continued to engage in a heated battle for the lead with both swapping lanes, remaining dead even against one another’s entries, pulling crossover moves on one another through the turns and refusing to give an inch to one another. With Chastain and Larson continuing to battle dead even for the lead during the proceeding laps, third-place Gibbs started to close in as he trailed the two leaders by six-tenths of a second while fourth-place Hamlin only trailed by a second. Larson would then manage to emerge ahead by two-tenths of a second over Chastain by Lap 53 and he would proceed to extend his advantage to a second over Chastain just past the Lap 55 mark.
By Lap 60, Hamlin muscled his No. 11 Sport Clips Toyota Camry XSE past Chastain for the runner-up spot as he started to close in on Larson for the lead as he only trailed by less than half a second. Gibbs and Buescher would trail the lead by a second in the top five as Hamlin challenged Larson for the lead on Lap 63. With Larson retaining the top spot while running his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 on the outside lane, Hamlin tried to overtake Larson again during the following lap, but was denied by Larson as Chastain tried to close back in to join the battle. Eventually, Hamlin would overtake Larson to assume the lead by Lap 68 as Chastain battled and also overtook Larson to assume the runner-up spot.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 80, Hamlin, winner of last weekend’s Cup event at Dover Motor Speedway, captured his third Cup stage victory of the 2024 season after fending off a last-lap charge from Chastain, who ended up second. Larson settled in third ahead of Bell and Buescher while Gibbs, Truex, Busch, Gragson and Chase Elliott were scored in the top 10. By then, 33 of 38 starters were scored on the lead lap.
Under the stage break, the field led by Hamlin returned to pit road for service. Following the pit stops, Bell edged Chastain to emerge as the first competitor off of pit road with the lead from the first pit box as Larson, Gibbs, Buescher, Truex and Busch followed suit as Hamlin, who was blocked by Austin Hill while trying to exit his pit stall, exited eighth ahead of Elliott and Gragson. Amid the pit stops, John Hunter Nemechek was penalized for speeding on pit road.
The second stage period started on Lap 88 as Bell and Chastain occupied the front row. At the start, both Bell and Chastain mirrored their early performance from the event’s start by battling dead even against one another and in front of the fanned pack through the first two turns and the backstretch. Shortly after, Larson, who rocketed his way up to the two leaders, made a bold three-wide move beneath Bell and Chastain, who got loose through Turns 3 and 4, to assume the lead through the frontstretch’s apron. Bell and Chastain were then pinned in a five-wide battle with Gibbs, Buescher and Truex across the start/finish line as the latter three overtook both Bell and Chastain for positions along with Kyle Busch. Chastain and Bell would continue to battle for sixth place and Buescher would battle Truex for the runner-up spot in front of Gibbs and Busch while Larson retained the lead by the Lap 90 mark.
Through the Lap 100 mark, Larson was leading by nearly two seconds over Buescher followed by Gibbs, Busch and Truex while Bell, Gragson, Chastain, Hamlin and Bowman were racing in the top 10 ahead of Michael McDowell, Reddick, Wallace, William Byron and Elliott. As Brad Keselowski, Blaney, Cindric, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Carson Hocevar trailed in the top 20, Joey Logano was mired in 21st ahead of Austin Dillon, Justin Haley, Jimmie Johnson and rookie Zane Smith as Suarez was mired in 32nd behind Corey LaJoie, Hill and Chase Briscoe.
Ten laps later, Larson slightly stretched his advantage to three seconds over Buescher while third-place Gibbs trailed by four seconds. Behind, Busch occupied fourth place ahead of ex-teammates Truex, Bell and Hamlin while Chastain slipped to 10th as he trailed Gragson and Bowman on the track.
Another six laps later, another cycle of green flag pit stops commenced as Todd Gilliland and Ryan Preece pitted their respective Ford entries. Blaney would then pit along with Kraus, Briscoe, Harrison Burton, Logano, Byron and others before select front-runners like Buescher, Gibbs and Hamlin pitted by Lap 119. Larson would then surrender the lead to pit by Lap 120 as he was followed by Busch, Truex, Bell, Gragson and others while 23XI Racing’s Reddick and Wallace remained on the track.
On Lap 125, Reddick surrendered the lead to pit his No. 45 Monster Energy Toyota Camry XSE. By then, his teammate Wallace and Daniel Hemric pitted while Buescher, who split Bell and Chastain through the middle as part of the five-wide battle during the start of the second stage period, cycled his No. 17 Castrol Edge Ford Mustang Dark Horse into the lead. Gibbs trailed Buescher in the runner-up spot, followed by Busch and Larson, who endured a slow pit stop after his front-tire changer had issues tightening the left front tire. Meanwhile, Truex trailed in fifth while Hamlin was in sixth.
At the halfway mark in between Laps 133 and 134, Buescher was leading by more than a second over Busch followed by Gibbs, Larson and Truex while Hamlin, Bowman, Gragson, Bell and Chastain occupied the top-10 spots on the track. Behind, Elliott was in 11th place as he was running ahead of teammate Byron, Keselowski, McDowell and Reddick as Cindric, Blaney, Hocevar, Stenhouse and Wallace trailed in the top 20 as they were running ahead of Logano, Austin Dillon, Gilliland, Zane Smith and Jimmie Johnson.
By Lap 145, Buescher continued to lead by more than a second over a side-by-side battle between Larson and Busch for the runner-up spot while Gibbs and Hamlin trailed by within four seconds in the top five. Buescher’s advantage slightly decreased to nine-tenths of a second over Larson while third-place Busch trailed by a second by Lap 150.
Between the Laps 155 and 160 marks, Buescher stabilized his advantage within less than a second over a hard-charging Larson while Busch retained third place ahead of Hamlin and Gibbs. Behind, Chastain and Reddick battled dead even for a top-10 spot while Elliott and Bell battled for 11th place.
When the second stage period concluded on Lap 165, Buescher captured his first Cup stage victory of the 2024 season. Larson settled in second followed by Hamlin, Busch and Truex while Gibbs, Bowman, Reddick, Chastain and Gragson were scored in the top 10 on the track. By then, 29 of 38 starters were scored on the lead lap.
During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Buescher pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Larson returned atop the leaderboard after he edged Buescher off of pit road first while Busch, Gibbs, Truex, Chastain, Reddick, Elliott, Gragson and Bell followed suit in the top 10. Amid the pit stops, however, Buescher, who had part of a windshield tear off floating atop his car, was penalized for his pit crew jumping over the pit wall too soon prior to his service and was sent to the rear of the field.
With 94 laps remaining, the final stage period commenced as Larson and Busch occupied the front row. At the start, Larson fended off Busch and Truex to retain the lead through the first two turns and through the backstretch as the field behind fanned out. With the field fanning out as wide as four lanes during the following lap, Larson was ahead of Busch with the lead while Truex, Gibbs and Reddick were running in the top five. Another lap later, however, the caution returned after Jimmie Johnson was hit by LaJoie in Turn 1 and sent for a spin before he veered back across the track and crashed hard against the outside wall as Hemric and Hill were also collected. The incident left Johnson disappointed with LaJoie as he ended up with his first DNF of the season and strapped in 38th place, dead last.
During the following restart period with 84 laps remaining, Larson and Busch again battled dead even for the lead through the first two turns until Larson muscled ahead from the inside lane. Busch, however, crossed over to the inside lane in his bid to claim the lead, which he led the following lap by a mere margin as Truex closed in. Shortly after, however, the caution returned for a multi-car crash through the backstretch that started when Hamlin, who was running within the top 10, went up the track and was squeezed into the backstretch’s outside wall by teammate Bell into Cindric, where Cindric veered sideways before he spun his No. 2 Snap-On Ford Mustang Dark Horse back down the track and clipped both Wallace and McDowell as all three were sent spinning while the rest of the field scattered to avoid the carnage.
The next two restart periods, one with 77 laps remaining and another with 71 laps remaining, were quickly halted with two caution periods. The first with 77 laps remaining occurred during the following lap when Harrison Burton, who was running towards the rear of the field, spun his No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang Dark Horse entering the backstretch as he needed a wrecker to tow his car back to pit road after he flattened his rear tires. The second caution period with 71 laps remaining also struck a lap after the restart when Logano spun his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse entering Turn 4 as he too flattened his rear tires.
During the initial caution period for Burton’s incident, select names including Hamlin, Buescher and McDowell pitted while the rest led by Busch and Larson remained on the track. During the latest caution period for Logano’s incident, however, a majority of the field led by Larson and Busch pitted while select names led by Gilliland and including Hamlin and Buescher remained on the track.
As the event restarted with 62 laps remaining, the field quickly fanned out to multiple lanes through the frontstretch as Hamlin used the outside lane to muscle ahead with the lead through the first two turns. Buescher followed suit in the runner-up spot through the backstretch and Wallace challenged Gilliland for third place while Busch was trying to fight his way back to the front as he was up to fifth place in front of McDowell, Bell and the field.
Down to the final 60 laps of the event, the battle for the lead between Hamlin and Buescher ignited as Buescher used the apron to overtake Hamlin from the frontstretch to the first two turns. As Busch carved his way up to third place, Hamlin would reassume the lead from Buescher with 54 laps remaining. By then, Busch retained third place while Larson carved his way up to fourth place.
With 50 laps remaining, Hamlin was leading by two-tenths of a second over Buescher, who continued to stalk Hamlin for the lead amid their side-by-side battle earlier, while third-place Hamlin trailed by a second and fourth-place Larson trailed by more than a second. Behind, Gilliland continued to run in fifth place ahead of teammate McDowell, Wallace, Bell, Truex and Elliott while Hocevar, Reddick, Haley, LaJoie, Keselowski, Gragson, Blaney, rookie Josh Berry, Stenhouse and Byron trailed in the top 20.
Ten laps later, Hamlin continued to lead by two-tenths of a second over a hard-charging Buescher while Busch and Larson continued to trail the lead by more than a second. Buescher then transitioned to the outside lane as he drew even alongside Hamlin for the following lap before Hamlin rocketed back ahead and blocked Buescher through the frontstretch’s apron with 38 laps remaining. Not long after, Larson overtook Busch for third place as Truex overtook Gilliland to move into the top five while Bell carved his way into seventh place ahead of McDowell.
With less than 30 laps remaining, Hamlin stabilized his advantage to within two- and three-tenths of a second over Buescher while third-place Larson trailed by a second. Behind, Busch retained fourth place ahead of Truex while Bell, Gilliland, Elliott, Keselowski and McDowell were scored in the top 10 ahead of Blaney, Haley, Reddick, Wallace and Hocevar.
Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Hamlin and Buescher, both of whom were running on fumes with concerns about not having enough fuel to the scheduled distance, continued to run first and second on the track, with Hamlin leading by three-tenths of a second ahead of Buescher. Behind, Larson, who has enough fuel to finish, continued to trail in third place by while Busch and Truex occupied the top five.
Five laps later, Hamlin slightly stretched his advantage to six-tenths of a second over Buescher while third-place Larson continued to trail by more than a second. Hamlin would then extend his advantage to more than a second over Buescher while Larson, Truex and Busch trailed within three seconds with 10 laps remaining.
Two laps later, Truex, who was charging strong after overtaking both Larson and Busch, overtook Buescher for the runner-up spot through the frontstretch. Larson would then drop to sixth as Busch and Keselowski overtook him for top-five spots while Truex started to close in on teammate Hamlin for the lead amid lapped traffic.
Then with seven laps remaining, the caution flew after Kyle Busch, who was running in the top five, got loose and spun his No. 8 Cheddar’s Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 towards the apron from the first two turns and through the backstretch. During the caution period, the lead lap field led by Hamlin pitted for service. Following the pit stops and amid mixed strategies, Hamlin exited pit road first following a two-tire pit stop as he was followed by Buescher, Larson, Elliott, Blaney, Gragson, Bowman, John Hunter Nemechek and Corey Heim, all of whom elected for a two-tire pit service, while Truex exited in 10th place with four fresh tires.
With the event restarting in overtime, Hamlin and Buescher, both of whom restarted on the front row in front of Larson and Elliott, led the field to the start until Larson, who restarted behind Hamlin, quickly made a move beneath Hamlin in a three-wide bid for the lead. With Elliott joining the battle, Buescher managed to muscle ahead from the outside lane to emerge with the lead ahead of Larson, Hamlin and Elliott through the backstretch. Larson then tried to make a move beneath Buescher entering Turns 3 and 4, but Buescher blocked Larson, which caused the latter to move up the track and regain his momentum as Hamlin was pinned in a three-wide battle with Elliott and Truex for third place.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Buescher remained as the leader by a tenth of a second over Larson while Truex was trying to muscle away from Hamlin and Elliott to occupy third place. Then after stalking Buescher through the first two turns and through the backstretch, Larson gained a draft on Buescher and made his move to the outside lane as Buescher was trying to squeeze Larson’s No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 against the outside wall through Turns 3 and 4. Despite being rubbed and squeezed towards the wall, Larson then started to emerge ahead as both he and Buescher made contact while Truex and Elliott were trying to join the battle. Larson then veered left and rammed into the side of Buescher’s No. 17 Castrol Edge Ford Mustang Dark Horse to stall his momentum, which nearly got Buescher loose, but Buescher kept his foot in the gas, as both he and Larson crossed the finish line dead even ahead of Truex and Elliott.
When the dust settled, Larson, who was initially told that Buescher had won, emerged as the race winner by 0.001 seconds over Buescher, which set a new closest-recorded finish in the history of NASCAR’s premier series. Larson’s margin of victory over Buescher broke the previous record of 0.002 seconds that was made twice: once by Ricky Craven at Darlington Raceway in 2003 and the second made by Jimmie Johnson at Talladega Superspeedway in 2011.
Photo by Ron Olds for SpeedwayMedia.com.
With the victory, Larson notched his 25th career win in NASCAR’s premier series, which placed him in a tie with Jim Paschal and Joe Weatherly on the all-time wins list. He also recorded his second victory at Kansas Speedway, his second of the 2024 Cup Series season after winning his first of the year at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March, and his 19th driving the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. In addition, the victory was the sixth of the season for Hendrick Motorsports and the seventh for the Chevrolet nameplate as Larson became the third competitor to repeat as a race winner alongside teammate William Byron and Denny Hamlin through the first 12 events on the 2024 schedule.
“That was wild,” Larson said on FS1. “I was obviously thankful for that last caution [with seven laps remaining]. We were dying pretty bad. [I] Was happy to come out third and figured my best shot was me choosing the bottom [lane] and just try and split three wide to the inside. [It] Worked out. My car turned well and was able to get some runs. Got through [Turns] 1 and 2 really good down the backstretch and had a big tow on Chris [Buescher]. I just committed really hard up top and wasn’t quite sure if we were gonna make it to the other side. I got super loose in the center and then, I’m trying not to get too far ahead of him to where he can side-draft. Then I was trying to kill his run, so it was just crazy. That race from start to finish was amazing. You [fans] got your money’s worth today. I’m just proud to be a part of the show.”
“I didn’t know if I won or not,” Larson added. “I was pumped for the finish. I got to about Turn 3 and [spotter] Tyler [Monn] was going crazy up on the [spotter’s] roof, so just incredible finish there. I wish we have more mile-and-a-halfs [tracks]. These mile-and-a-halfs, these cars just race so amazing. This is so cool. Month of May is gonna be great for us, so hopefully, this just starts some momentum.”
As Larson was left beaming and celebrating on the frontstretch, Buescher was left dejected on pit road after coming up a nose shy of etching the first victory of the season for himself, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing and the new Ford Mustang Dark Horse stock car.
“I don’t know what to say right now,” Buescher said. “That sucks to be that close. It was a great finish for us. A really strong day, a lot of speed in this Castrol Edge Ford Mustang. We really needed that. Needed a win more. [I] Thought I might have had that one. [I] Tried to cover what I could and gave [Larson] half a lane too much, I suppose, but good hard race there right there down to the line, but that hurts.”
Meanwhile, Chase Elliott edged Martin Truex Jr. to finish third while Denny Hamlin, who led a race-high 71 laps, ended up in fifth place.
Christopher Bell, Alex Bowman, Kyle Busch, Noah Gragson and Michael McDowell finished in the top 10.
There were 27 lead changes for 10 different leaders. The race featured seven cautions for 43 laps. In addition, 31 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap.
Following the 12th event of the 2024 Cup Series season, Kyle Larson leads the regular-season standings by 29 points over Martin Truex Jr., 55 over Chase Elliott, 56 over Denny Hamlin and 93 over Tyler Reddick.
Results.
1. Kyle Larson, 63 laps led
2. Chris Buescher, 54 laps led, Stage 2 winner
3. Chase Elliott
4. Martin Truex Jr.
5. Denny Hamlin, 71 laps led, Stage 1 winner
6. Christopher Bell, five laps led
7. Alex Bowman
8. Kyle Busch, 14 laps led
9. Noah Gragson
10. Michael McDowell
11. Brad Keselowski, one lap led
12. Ryan Blaney
13. John Hunter Nemechek
14. Todd Gilliland, four laps led
15. Josh Berry
16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
17. Bubba Wallace
18. Justin Haley
19. Ross Chastain, 43 laps led
20. Tyler Reddick, seven laps led
21. Chase Briscoe
22. Corey Heim
23. William Byron
24. Carson Hocevar
25. Austin Dillon
26. Corey LaJoie
27. Daniel Suarez
28. Ryan Preece
29. Zane Smith
30. Daniel Hemric
31. Derek Kraus, six laps led
32. Ty Gibbs, one lap down
33. Austin Hill, one lap down
34. Joey Logano, two laps down
35. Riley Herbst, two laps down
36. Harrison Burton, six laps down
37. Austin Cindric – OUT, Accident
38. Jimmie Johnson – OUT, Accident
Next on the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. The event is scheduled to occur next Sunday, May 12, and air at 3 p.m. ET on FS1.
Corey Heim settled his score with Kansas Speedway by notching a dominant NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory in the Heart Of America 200 in the Heartland state on Saturday, May 4, after fending off Cup Series rookie Zane Smith for the top prize.
The 21-year-old Heim from Marietta, Georgia, led four times for a race-high 79 of 134 scheduled laps in an event where he started in 13th place but quickly carved his way to the front as he led for the first time on Lap 12. Following an early battle with Zane Smith, Heim would proceed to win the first stage period before he would battle Christian Eckes and Smith for the lead during the second stage period. After regaining the lead from Nick Sanchez on the track with 65 laps remaining, Heim would have to re-cycle back into the lead with 32 laps remaining during a late cycle of green flag pit stops.
Amid a late charge from Smith, Heim managed to maintain his ground and racing line along with navigating through lapped traffic to remain ahead of Smith and prevail for his second Truck Series victory of the 2024 season and his first at Kansas.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, Chase Purdy notched his third Truck career pole position after posting a pole-winning lap at 175.735 mph in 30.728 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Ty Majeski, who clocked in the second-fastest qualifying lap at 175.713 mph in 30.732 seconds.
Prior to the event, the following names that included Jake Garcia, Mason Massey and Timmy Hill dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective trucks. Nick Sanchez also started at the rear of the field due to his Rev Racing entry failing the inspection process three times which prevented him from posting a qualifying lap.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Chase Purdy muscled his No. 77 Bama Buggies Chevrolet Silverado RST ahead from the field through the first two turns with the lead as teammate Connor Mosack and Ty Dillon took Ty Majeski three wide to assume second and third place on the track. With the field fanned out as far as four wide exiting the backstretch and back towards the frontstretch, Purdy proceeded to lead the first lap while teammate Mosack, who won the ARCA Menards Series event at Kansas earlier in the day, followed suit in second place.
A lap later, the event’s first caution flew when Majeski, who started on the front row but was losing a bevy of spots through the frontstretch, scraped the outside wall in Turn 1 after cutting a left-front tire. The incident pinned Majeski two laps behind the leaders as his pit crew attempted to keep Majeski’s No. 98 Road Ranger Ford F-150 raceable.
As the event restarted under green on the sixth lap, Purdy retained the lead ahead of Zane Smith, Christian Eckes, Mosack and Ben Rhodes while the rest of the field behind started to fan out through the first two turns and through the backstretch. Purdy would lead the proceeding lap until Smith made a move beneath Purdy through Turns 3 and 4 to assume the lead. With Smith leading the race, Purdy was pressured by a hard-charging Corey Heim, who would claim the runner-up spot by the ninth lap, as Eckes tried to follow suit.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Zane Smith was leading by a tenth of a second ahead of a hard-charging Heim followed by Purdy, Eckes and Rhodes while Daniel Dye, Ty Dillon, Mosack, Kaden Honeycutt and Taylor Gray were scored in the top 10. Behind, Rajah Caruth was in 11th ahead of Stewart Friesen, Brett Moffitt, Tyler Ankrum and Matt Crafton while Bayley Currey, Grant Enfinger, Tanner Gray, Dean Thompson and Matt Mills were running in the top 20.
Two laps later, Heim ignited a side-by-side challenge against Smith for the lead, where Heim led the Lap 12 mark through the frontstretch before Smith led the following lap as both remained dead even for the lead. As Stewart Friesen pitted his No. 52 Halmar Toyota Tundra TRD Pro under green after getting into the wall a few laps earlier, Heim managed to muscle his No. 11 Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro ahead and clear Smith’s No. 91 Instacoat Premium Products Chevrolet Silverado RST to assume the lead with both lanes to his control by Lap 14.
At the Lap 20 mark, Heim was leading by half a second over Smith as Purdy, Eckes and Rhodes continued to follow suit in the top five. Behind, Honeycutt was up to sixth place ahead of Ty Dillon and Daniel Dye while Mosack and Taylor Gray were racing in the top 10.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 30, Heim notched his second Truck stage victory of the 2024 season. Zane Smith settled in second followed by Eckes, Purdy and Kaden Honeycutt while Rhodes, Mosack, Tyler Ankrum, Ty Dillon and Daniel Dye were scored in the top 10. By then, Majeski, who lost several laps since the restart following his opening lap incident, took his truck to the garage as he retired in 33rd place, dead last.
Under the stage break, the lead lap field led by Heim pitted for service for the first time in the event. Following the pit stops, Eckes emerged as the new leader after exiting pit road first followed by Honeycutt, Smith and Heim. Amid the pit stops, Dean Thompson, Daniel Dye and rookie Thad Moffitt were penalized for speeding on pit road. In addition, Jake Garcia was penalized for a pit box interference while Cam Waters, who was making his second Truck career start, was also penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation.
During the pit stops, Lawless Alan overshot his pit box and hit his front tire changer Brandon Henry. As a result, Henry, who survived the incident, was taken to the infield care center while a new tire changer took over to complete the pit service.
The second stage period started on Lap 37 as Eckes and Honeycutt occupied the front row. At the start, Eckes rocketed his No. 19 Adaptive One Calipers Chevrolet Silverado RST ahead with the lead from the inside lane as the field fanned out through the first two turns and the backstretch. Amid the battles, Smith claimed the runner-up spot from Honeycutt while Nick Sanchez, who carved his way towards the front from the rear of the field and restarted in the top 10, was losing a bevy of spots as he was being pinned in the middle of a bevy of three-wide battles. Smith would then waste little time overtaking teammate Eckes to reassume the lead on Lap 39, but Eckes would pressure Smith on the track during the proceeding laps as he tried to reclaim the lead.
Through the Lap 45 mark, Smith retained the lead by a tenth of a second over teammate Eckes, who continued to intimidate his McAnally-Hilgemann Racing teammate for the top spot, while Heim, Honeycutt and Purdy followed suit in the top five. Behind, Nick Sanchez was up to sixth place as Moffitt, Mosack, Rhodes and Dillon were running in the top 10 ahead of Caruth, Tanner Gray, Bayley Currey, Taylor Gray and Ankrum.
Five laps later, Smith continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over Heim as third-place/teammate Eckes trailed by a second. By then, Honeycutt and Purdy continued to run in the top five as Moffitt overtook Sanchez for sixth place. In addition, Caruth was up to 10th place as he trailed teammate Mosack and Rhodes on the track while Dillon dropped to 13th. Amid the on-track battles, Smith stabilized his advantage to six-tenths of a second over Heim by the Lap 55 mark.
When the second stage period ended on Lap 60, Smith cruised to his first Truck stage victory of the 2024 season. Heim followed suit in second along with Eckes, Honeycutt and Purdy while Moffitt, Sanchez, Caruth, Mosack and Rhodes were scored in the top 10. By then, 27 of 33 starters were scored on the lead lap.
During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Smith returned to pit road for service. Following the pit stops, Eckes reassumed the lead after exiting pit road first for the second time of the event followed by Heim, Honeycutt, Sanchez, Moffitt and Mosack while Smith exited out of pit road in eighth place. Amid the pit stops, Ankrum was assessed a safety violation penalty that sent him to the rear of the field from a top-15 running spot.
With 67 laps remaining, which marked the halfway mark of the event, the final stage commenced as Eckes and Heim occupied the front row. At the start, Eckes received a push from Sanchez on the inside lane to storm ahead with the lead through the first two turns as the field fanned out. Amid the field fanning out during the following lap, Sanchez cycled his No. 2 Gainbridge Chevrolet Silverado RST into the lead before Heim used a crossover move on Sanchez through the frontstretch to reassume the lead. Honeycutt would muscle his No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet Silverado RST into the runner-up spot while Sanchez tried to fend off Eckes and Smith for third place.
With less than 60 laps remaining, Heim was leading by two-tenths of a second over Honeycutt followed by Smith, Eckes and Moffitt as Tanner Gray, Currey, Sanchez, Taylor Gray and Matt Crafton trailed in the top 10 ahead of Purdy, Rhodes, Dye, Mosack, Jake Garcia, Caruth, Thompson, Dillon, Bret Holmes and Enfinger. Meanwhile, rookie Layne Riggs was mired in 23rd ahead of Ankrum and Cam Waters.
Down to the final 50 laps of the event, Heim retained the lead by over two-tenths of a second over a hard-charging Honeycutt as Smith, Eckes and Moffitt continued to run in the top five. Behind, brothers Tanner and Taylor Gray were running sixth and eighth while Currey was placed in the middle of the Gray brothers as Sanchez and Crafton continued to trail in the top 10.
Ten laps later, Heim extended his advantage to a second over Honeycutt, who closed in on Heim for the lead earlier before losing ground, as Smith, Eckes and Moffitt continued to trail in the top five.
Shortly after, a cycle of green flag pit stops commenced as Heim led Smith and a bevy of competitors to pit road for service before Honeycutt led another group of leaders, including Eckes and Moffitt, to pit road with 39 laps remaining. By then, Rajah Caruth pitted under green two laps earlier as more pitted during the proceeding laps while Daniel Dye, who has yet to pit, was leading. Mason Massey, who also has yet to pit, would then assume the lead with 34 laps remaining as Dye pitted under green. Amid the pit stops, Purdy lost multiple laps due to a loose wheel during his green flag pit service.
Then with 32 laps remaining, Heim cycled back into the lead after Massey pitted under green. Smith would cycle into second place followed by Eckes and Honeycutt as Heim was scored the leader by three seconds with 30 laps remaining.
With 25 laps remaining, Heim retained the lead by nearly three seconds over Smith while Eckes, Honeycutt and Moffitt were racing in the top five. Behind, Tanner Gray, Sanchez, Taylor Gray, Timmy Hill and Currey were in the top 10. Hill would then pit during the following lap before Taylor Gray slapped the outside wall in Turn 2 after sustaining a flat right-front tire to his No. 17 JBL Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. Amid Gray’s incident, where he pitted, the race remained under green flag conditions as Heim stabilized his advantage to two seconds over Smith with 20 laps remaining.
Down to the final 15 laps of the event, Heim continued to lead by two seconds over Smith while Eckes trailed in third place. As Honeycutt and Moffitt trailed in the top five, the following names that included Sanchez, Tanner Gray, Currey, Thompson and Crafton were racing in the top 10 as Dye, Enfinger, Caruth, Bret Holmes and Dillon followed suit in the top 15.
Five laps later, Heim’s advantage decreased to just over a second over Smith, who was trying to narrow the deficit between himself and the leader, while third-place Eckes trailed by four seconds. Honeycutt and Moffitt continued to run in the top five and sixth-place Sanchez trailed the lead by 16 seconds while Heim stabilized his advantage to two seconds over Smith with five laps remaining.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Heim remained as the leader by a second over a hard-charging Smith. As Smith tried to narrow the gap while Heim was mired in lapped traffic through the backstretch, the latter was able to stabilize his advantage to perfection and cruise his No. 11 Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro back to the frontstretch victorious for his second checkered flag of the 2024 Truck Series season.
With the victory, Heim notched his seventh career win in the Craftsman Truck Series, his first since winning at Circuit of the Americas this past March and his first at Kansas after finishing within the top four during both Truck Kansas events in 2023. Heim also joins Eckes as the only two series regulars to achieve multiple victories thus far into the 2024 Truck Series season while also delivering the second victory of the season for both TRICON Garage and the Toyota nameplate.
Heim’s Kansas victory also extends his strong start to the 2024 season as he has finished in the top 10 through the first eight events on the schedule while he also continues his pursuit for his first Truck Series championship. The Georgia native will also be making his second Cup Series career start as a relief competitor for Legacy Motor Club and the injured Erik Jones on Sunday.
“[I] Can’t say enough about these guys at TRICON Garage,” Heim said on FS1. “Top to bottom, we executed so well today. Pit crew, everyone back at the shop at TRICON Garage. What a truck. Definitely struggled with being free for most of the race, so I can’t say it was easy, but even with the balance I had, this truck has so much more potential to get better. [I] Really wanted this one today and drove my butt off for it.”
“[I] Just keep getting better, keeping that gap ahead of the second place guy’s the main thing,” Heim added. “I feel like we were so due on this place and I really wanted this one today, so I knew we were gonna be capable of winning today. It’s about putting some more consistency together for the rest of the year and going after that championship.”
Smith, a Cup Series Rookie-of-the-Year candidate who led three times for 29 laps, settled in second place in his fourth and final Truck Series start of the 2024 season, all while piloting the No. 91 entry for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing. Amid his strong run, Smith expressed his disappointment in losing a bevy of spots from the lead on pit road prior to the final stage period.
“I was surprised with how much we caught [Heim] there at the very end,” Smith said. “[You] Can’t lose eight spots on pit road. I let that [race] got away there.”
Teammate Christian Eckes, who led 11 laps, came home in third place followed by Kaden Honeycutt, who notched his first top-five career result after finishing fourth, while Brett Moffitt finished in fifth place in his first of select starts driving for TRICON Garage.
“It definitely sucks to come that close and not finish the job, but still a great run,” Honeycutt said. “You got to crawl before you walk, so this is the start of something of our part-time schedule.”
“It was a good night,” Moffitt added. “[I] learned a lot and we’ll move onto the next one and hopefully, be a little bit better.”
Nick Sanchez rallied from starting at the rear of the field to finish sixth while Tanner Gray, Dean Thompson, Daniel Dye and Matt Crafton finished in the top 10.
Notably, Rajah Caruth finished 13th, Rhodes ended up 16th behind Ty Dillon, Ankrum ended up 20th, Taylor Gray was mired in 27th, and pole winner Chase Purdy concluded his event in 28th place. In addition, rookie Layne Riggs and Cam Waters, both of whom made contact on the frontstretch prior to the event’s conclusion and had a heated post-race discussion on pit road, finished 18th and 19th, respectively.
There were 13 lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured three cautions for 16 laps. In addition, 14 of 33 starters finished on the lead lap.
Following the eighth event of the 2024 Craftsman Truck Series season, which marks the halfway mark of this year’s regular-season stretch, Corey Heim leads the regular-season standings by seven points over Christian Eckes, 49 over Nick Sanchez, 65 over Ty Majeski and 80 over Tyler Ankrum.
Results.
1. Corey Heim, 79 laps led, Stage 1 winner
2. Zane Smith, 29 laps led, Stage 2 winner
3. Christian Eckes, 11 laps led
4. Kaden Honeycutt, one lap led
5. Brett Moffitt
6. Nick Sanchez, one lap led
7. Tanner Gray
8. Dean Thompson
9. Daniel Dye, four laps led
10. Matt Crafton
11. Bayley Currey
12. Grant Enfinger
13. Rajah Caruth
14. Bret Holmes
15. Ty Dillon, one lap down
16. Ben Rhodes, one lap down
17. Jake Garcia, one lap down
18. Layne Riggs, one lap down
19. Cam Waters, one lap down
20. Tyler Ankrum, one lap down
21. Mason Massey, one lap down, two laps led
22. Timmy Hill, two laps down
23. Matt Mills, two laps down
24. Thad Moffitt, two laps down
25. Stewart Friesen, two laps down
26. Lawless Alan, two laps down
27. Taylor Gray, three laps down
28. Chase Purdy, three laps down, seven laps led
29. Mason Maggio, three laps down
30. Connor Mosack, three laps down
31. Spencer Boyd, five laps down
32. Jennifer Jo Cobb, six laps down
33. Ty Majeski – OUT, DVP
Next on the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series schedule is Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina, for the Buckle Up South Carolina 200. The event is scheduled to occur next Friday, May 10, and air at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
After a disappointing stretch of mediocre finishes, Christopher Bell is on top again after claiming the NASCAR Cup Series Busch Light Pole Award at Kansas Speedway. It’s his 11th Cup Series career pole and his first in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota this season.
While Bell was pleased with his qualifying effort, he’s focused on what comes next.
“It’s nice to have success,” he said, “but what happens on Saturday has no dictation on what happens Sunday. We’ve got a great starting spot and we’re in prime position to win some stage points. But 267 laps is a long time and I fully believe that we can have a great race tomorrow and definitely believe I can be talking to all of you guys in 24 hours after the race too.
“It just all has to come together and honestly at this point, I’m not looking for a race win, guys. I’m literally looking to see the checkered flag. And I know my car has great capabilities. If I just see the checkered flag with a clean car, we’re going to have a solid day and that’s what we’re after tomorrow.”
Ross Chastain qualified second-fastest in the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet with a qualifying lap of 182.704 mph and will start beside Bell on the front row for Sunday’s AdventHealth 400.
Stewart-Hass Racing’s Noah Gragson (182.451 mph) qualified third in the No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, Kyle Larson was fourth fastest in the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet at 182.383 mph, as Kyle Busch (182.070 mph) rounded out the top-five in the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet.
Ty Gibbs, Austin Cindric, Michael McDowell, Chase Elliott and Chase Briscoe completed the top-10 fastest drivers in the qualifying session.
The NASCAR Cup Series AdventHealth 400 is scheduled for Sunday, May 5, at 3 p.m. ET and will be televised on FS1 with radio coverage provided by MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
