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  • Trevor Bayne begins comeback effort with top-five at Auto Club Speedway

    Trevor Bayne begins comeback effort with top-five at Auto Club Speedway

    Trevor Bayne finished third Saturday in the Xfinity Series Production Alliance 300 at Auto Club Speedway. It was the first of seven Xfinity Series races currently scheduled with Joe Gibbs Racing and the beginning of a new opportunity.

    With sponsor Devotion Nutrition on the No 18 Toyota, his focus is on running competitively in an effort to renew his career in NASCAR. He started the race strong with a dominant car and won the first stage but lost momentum after a slow pit stop, eventually working his way back toward the front for a top-five.

    After winning the 2011 Daytona 500 with Wood Brothers Racing in only his second Cup Series start, it looked as though Bayne’s future in NASCAR was secure. In 2015, he signed with Jack Roush to run full-time in the Cup Series.  But, after four years, Bayne’s performance fell short of Roush’s expectations and his contract was not renewed after the 2018 season.

    His current alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing is a dream come true for Bayne.

    “I don’t know what comes of this,” Bayne continued. “I don’t know if I end up back in a Cup car full-time or an Xfinity car contending for championships. That’s what I would love to see happen, but I feel like, in seven races, I need to go win three to five races if I’m going to have a shot at a comeback. That’s my goal. That’s what I told Jason Ratcliff (crew chief). We’ve got seven – let’s go win five. Maybe it only takes one or two, I don’t know, but to have a shot in the 18 car, that’s my goal.”

    Bayne’s third-place finish at Auto Club was not the win he was looking for but it was an impressive performance and a confirmation of his commitment to making the most of this second chance

    “I got to race for wins today. Didn’t get it done, unfortunately, but I’m not going to get greedy with our first one back. We won the first stage, had a pit stop that got us behind and it just drove different in traffic. Once I got back to the front, it was pretty racy – really just too tight to have a shot to run with the 07 (Cole Custer). He could get through the corner really good, but I’m back in a race car, battling for wins. I was talking with Noah (Gragson) about which lane I ran in (turns) one and two there. To me, second or third don’t matter, I’ve got to win races, so I tried to go below the 07, didn’t work out, but super pumped to be here with Devotion, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing.”

    While his future in NASCAR may be uncertain, Bayne’s passion and desire to succeed are unshakable. His next race will be at Phoenix Raceway on March 12 and the goal remains the same.

    “It really feels like one of the best opportunities I’ve ever had outside of getting in that Wood Brothers car in Daytona. To me, this feels like the reset,” Bayne said. “I need to go win three to five races if I’m going to have a shot at a comeback.”

  • Custer grabs a dominant Xfinity win at Fontana

    Custer grabs a dominant Xfinity win at Fontana

    Cole Custer rallied from two slow pit stops and through three overtime restarts to score a dominant win in the Production Alliance 300 at Auto Club Speedway on Saturday, February 26.

    The 24-year-old native from Ladera Ranch, California, led five times for a race-high 80 of 165 laps to beat Noah Gragson by half a second in his first of select NASCAR Xfinity Series starts this season with SS-Green Light Racing, which achieved their first career victory in NASCAR.

    Qualifying on Saturday determined the starting lineup for the event. AJ Allmendinger, coming off his runner-up result at Daytona International Speedway, started on pole position after posting a pole-winning lap at 179.829 mph. He was joined on the front row with Cole Custer, who qualified with a fast lap at 179.793 mph.

    Prior to the event, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Jeb Burton, Jesse Iwuji, Joey Gase, Tommy Joe Martins and Josh Williams dropped to the rear for unapproved adjustments. Kyle Sieg also dropped to the rear of the field due to an engine change along with Joe Graf Jr. due to a driver change after he replaced Timmy Hill.

    When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Allmendinger and Custer battled dead even ahead of the field before the former cleared the latter through the backstretch and went on to lead the first lap. 

    During the following lap, Allmendinger continued to fend off early challenges from Custer to retain the top spot. Behind, Austin Hill, coming off his first Xfinity career victory at Daytona, made an unscheduled pit stop after sustaining right-side damage to his No. 21 Bennett Transportation and Logistics Chevrolet Camaro due to contact with Josh Berry through the backstretch. 

    By the fifth lap, Allmendinger and Custer continued to battle for the lead followed by Trevor Bayne, Noah Gragson and Brandon Jones. Ryan Sieg was in sixth ahead of Daniel Hemric, Ty Gibbs, Josh Berry and Justin Allgaier. 

    A lap later, the first caution flew when flames erupted out of the No. 10 Carnomoly Chevrolet Camaro piloted by Landon Cassill, who was running in 11th place. Cassill, though, was able to park his car below the apron in Turn 1 as he exited his flaming car. 

    Following an extensive cleanup, the race restarted on Lap 13. During the following lap, Trevor Bayne, making his first of select starts in Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 18 Devotion Nutrition Toyota Supra, flexed his muscles as he moved into the lead followed by Allmendinger, Custer and the field.

    On Lap 19, the caution returned when Mason Massey cut a left-front tire and shredded debris in Turn 2.

    When the race restarted on Lap 24 and as the field fanned out, Noah Gragson peaked ahead with the lead followed by Bayne, Custer and the field. When the field returned to the frontstretch, however, Bayne retained the lead followed by Custer, Gragson, Gibbs and Allmendinger.

    By Lap 30, Bayne was leading by a tenth of a second over Custer. Gragson was in third followed by teammate Justin Allgaier and Gibbs while Allmendinger, Hemric, Berry, Sieg and Sam Mayer were in the top 10.

    In the closing laps of the first stage, Custer started to close in and challenge Bayne for the top spot while Gragson was trailing by more than two seconds. 

    When the first stage concluded on Lap 35, Bayne, making his first start in NASCAR in two years, claimed his first career stage victory. Custer settled in second while Allgaier overtook teammate Gragson in Turn 3 after Gragson scraped the wall to settle in third. Gibbs, Allmendinger, Berry, Sieg, Hemric and Mayer rounded out the top 10.

    Under the stage break, the field pitted and Hemric utilized the first pit box to his advantage to move into the lead. Gibbs followed in second along with Gragson, Berry, Allgaier and Custer while Bayne dropped to 10th following a slow pit stop. During the pit stop, Ryan Sieg missed his pit box and had to return to pit road for service.

    The second stage started on Lap 42 as Hemric and Gibbs occupied the front row. At the start, Gibbs challenged Hemric for the top spot through the backstretch while Gragson, Custer and Allgaier battled ahead of the field that was fanning out. Then in Turn 4, Gibbs, who battled dead even with Hemric, bumped against Hemric’s No. 11 Poppy Bank Chevrolet Camaro before he spun wildly across the frontstretch and through the infield grass, all while sustaining no significant damage to his No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Supra.

    On Lap 48, the race restarted under green as Hemric and Gragson occupied the front row. At the start, Hemric retained the top spot until Custer stormed back to the lead during the following lap. With Hemric back in second, Gragson challenged for second ahead of Brandon Jones, Allgaier and Berry.

    By Lap 50, Custer was leading by a second ahead of Gragson while Hemric, Brandon Jones and Allgaier were in the top five. Allmendinger was in sixth ahead of Berry, rookie Sheldon Creed, Riley Herbst and Sam Mayer. Behind, Bayley Curry pitted under green after sustaining a flat right-rear tire.

    Five laps later, Custer stabilized his advantage to more than a second over Gragson while third-place Allgaier trailed by more than three seconds. 

    Another lap later, Brandon Jones, who was running in sixth place, spun his No. 19 Menards Toyota Supra in Turn 4.

    When the field restarted under green on Lap 60, the field battled through two lanes entering the first turn before fanning out to multiple lanes entering the backstretch. In the midst of the battles, Custer retained the lead and Gragson was in second ahead of teammate Allgaier, Allmendinger, Hemric, Berry and Mayer.

    Five laps later, Custer remained as the leader by a second and a half over Allgaier while Gragson, Allmendinger and Hemric were in the top five. 

    When the second stage concluded on Lap 70, Custer claimed his 17th career stage victory. Meanwhile, Brandon Jones, who made a late charge on fresh tires following his spin, settled in second followed by Allgaier, Gragson, Gibbs, Hemric, Allmendinger, Mayer, Berry and Riley Herbst.

    Under the stage break, the leaders returned to pit road and Brandon Jones exited with the lead followed by Allgaier, Gragson, Berry and Hemric while Custer, who endured a slow pit stop, dropped to eighth.

    With 74 laps remaining, the final stage started under green. At the start, Jones powered ahead with a brief advantage on the outside lane as the field fanned out entering the first two turns. When the field returned to the frontstretch, Custer, who restarted eighth, used a fast race car to his advantage by barreling his way back to the lead as Gragson challenged Brandon Jones for the runner-up spot.

    With less than 70 laps remaining, Allmendinger pitted under green to address a potential loose wheel to his No. 16 Nutrien Ag Solutions Chevrolet Camaro as he lost a lap to the leaders.

    Back on the track, Custer was leading by more than a second over Gragson. Brandon Jones was in third, trailing by more than two seconds, while Allgaier was in fourth. Meanwhile, Gibbs, who rallied from his early spin, was in fifth ahead of Hemric, Trevor Bayne, Berry, Mayer and Creed.

    Ten laps later, Custer extended his advantage to more than two seconds over Gragson while Allgaier, Brandon Jones and Gibbs were in the top five. Behind was Hemric, who had Berry, Bayne, Creed and Mayer battling behind him.

    Another 10 laps later, Custer’s advantage narrowed to less than two seconds as he continued to lead ahead of Gragson while Allgaier, Jones and Hemric were in the top five. Gibbs, Berry, Bayne, Creed and Herbst were scored in the top 10.

    With 48 laps remaining, Brandon Brown spun in Turn 2 as he drew the caution. Under caution, the field pitted and Justin Allgaier exited with the top spot followed by Jones, Gragson, Berry and Herbst. Meanwhile, Custer, who endured another slow pit stop, fell back to seventh.

    With 42 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Allgaier retained the top spot through the first two turns as the field jostled for positions. Not long after, Gragson muscled to the lead while Allgaier was back in second ahead of Berry and a hard-charging Custer.

    Down to the final 35 laps of the event, JR Motorsports’ competitors occupied four of the top-five spots as Gragson was leading by more than a second over teammate Berry while teammate Allgaier trailed by more than two seconds. Custer was back in fourth while Mayer, the fourth JRM competitor, was in fifth.

    Then with 27 laps remaining, the caution flew when Jade Buford wrecked in Turn 2 after getting loose before being hit by Creed. Under caution, some led by Gragson pitted while Gibbs and Anthony Alfredo remained on the track. During the pit stops, Gragson slid through his pit box and ran over his air hose as he exited pit road out of the top 10 while Allgaier was the first competitor on fresh tires and fuel to exit pit road.

    With 22 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start and with the field fanning out to multiple lanes, Allgaier reassumed the lead through Turn 1 while Bayne moved into second along with Berry.

    During the following lap, a five-car battle for the lead ensued as Allgaier led ahead of Bayne, Gragson, Berry and Custer. Soon after, Gragson muscled his way back to the lead. Not long after, Custer moved into second. By then, Myatt Snider fell off the pace after he lost an engine to his car.

    Back on the track, Gragson continued to lead, but he had Custer narrowing the advantage to less than three-tenths of a second. 

    Then with 15 laps remaining, Custer stormed back to the lead beneath Gragson.

    Just then, the caution flew with 10 laps remaining due to debris in Turn 1 as Mason Massey lost a left-front tire. At the time of caution, Custer had extended his advantage to more than a second over Gragson, more than two seconds over Josh Berry, more than three seconds over Bayne and more than four seconds over Allgaier.

    With six laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gragson mounted a brief challenge on Custer before the latter cleared the field through the backstretch. Behind, Bayne challenged Gragson for the runner-up spot as Custer started to pull away.

    During the following lap, the caution returned due to an incident involving Creed and Brett Moffitt in Turn 1.

    With the field set to overtime, Custer and Gragson occupied the front row as the race resumed to green flag conditions. At the start, Custer, who spun the tires, managed to retain the lead ahead of Bayne and Gragson as the field fanned out to multiple lanes. Then in Turn 1, Hemric made contact with Brandon Jones as Jones spun across the track and dodged by the oncoming field. The incident, however, sent the race into another overtime attempt.

    At the start of the second overtime attempt, Custer received a strong start to retain the lead as the field fanned out. Then entering Turn 4, a multi-car wreck struck that involved Creed, Stefan Parsons and Brandon Jones, who spun down to the infield and collided against the sand barriers near the pit road entrance, which destroyed the barriers in a sandstorm. The incident occurred before Custer could start the final lap of the event as the race was sent into third overtime attempt.

    Prior to the overtime attempt, the red flag was displayed for 23 minutes for repairs towards the pit road entrance. When the red flag was lifted and the third overtime attempt commenced under green, Custer received another strong start to retain the lead while Gragson and Bayne moved up to second and third followed by Alfredo, who restarted on the front row. 

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Custer was leading by nearly four-tenths of a second over Gragson and the field. With a fast race car, Custer was able to circumnavigate his way around the circuit for a final time and cycle back to the finish line to grab the victory.

    With the victory, Custer claimed his 10th Xfinity Series career win in his 106th series start, his second at Fontana and his first since winning at Dover Motor Speedway in September 2019.

    “Man, it was just an awesome car,” Custer said on FS1. “That [car] was just a rocket ship all day. I can’t thank [owner] Bobby Dotter enough, everybody who was involved on this car. It was just unreal how fast we were. Production Alliance Group, this is awesome, it’s [Dotter’s] race. It’s the Production Alliance Group 300 and we got him to Victory Lane. It’s awesome to win at home, so [I] can’t wait for tomorrow. ”

    Gragson settled in second place while Bayne notched a strong third-place result in his first Xfinity start in six years. 

    “We had the lead there and then came down pit road, slid through the pit box and then, had a really good restart from 11th, got back up to the lead in like a lap or two,” Gragson said. “I felt like the Bass Pro Shops Camaro was really close all day. Just struggled with the cloud cover and the temperature change, being too loose or too tight. Hats off to all the guys on the No. 07 car and Cole Custer. He was really fast today. We finished third last weekend, finished second here this weekend. Hopefully, [we] got some good points. This is not one of my good tracks, so I’ll take a second-place finish…Came up short today, but hey, top threes through the start of two races this season, I’ll take it.

    Josh Berry grabbed his first top-five result of the season by finishing fourth and Anthony Alfredo made the late decision to remain on old tires work to perfection as he finished in fifth place.

    Mayer, Allmendinger, Allgaier, Herbst and Ryan Sieg finished in the top 10.

    There were 19 lead changes for eight different leaders. The race featured 12 cautions for 58 laps.

    After rallying for a top-10 result, Allmendinger continues to lead the regular-season standings by a single point over Gragson, three over Allgaier and 19 over Herbst, Ryan Sieg and Gibbs.

    Results.

    1. Cole Custer, 80 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    2. Noah Gragson, 25 laps led

    3. Trevor Bayne, 24 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    4. Josh Berry

    5. Anthony Alfredo

    6. Sam Mayer

    7. AJ Allmendinger, 13 laps led

    8. Justin Allgaier, seven laps led

    9. Riley Herbst

    10. Ryan Sieg

    11. Brandon Brown

    12. Daniel Hemric, 10 laps led

    13. Ty Gibbs, three laps led

    14. Jeb Burton

    15. Joe Graf Jr.

    16. Kyle Weatherman

    17. Jeremy Clements

    18. Kyle Sieg

    19. Brett Moffitt

    20. Joey Gase

    21. Josh Williams

    22. JJ Yeley

    23. Matt Mills

    24. Alex Labbe

    25. Kaz Grala, two laps down

    26. Myatt Snider, two laps down

    27. Austin Hill, three laps down

    28. Mason Massey, three laps down

    29. Jeffrey Earnhardt, four laps down

    30. Stefan Parsons – OUT, Accident

    31. Tommy Joe Martins, seven laps down

    32. Sheldon Creed – OUT, Accident

    33. Brandon Jones – OUT, Accident, three laps led

    34. Bayley Currey, 11 laps down

    35. Ryan Vargas – OUT, Accident

    36. Jesse Iwuji, 34 laps down

    37. Jade Buford – OUT, Accident

    38. Landon Cassill – OUT, Engine

    The 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series season proceeds with its second of a three-race West Coast swing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, which will occur on Saturday, March 5, at 4:30 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • NASCAR 2022 driver and team updates

    NASCAR 2022 driver and team updates

    As the NASCAR season winds down, we typically look forward to all the driver and team announcements. This year, however, has given new meaning to the name, “silly season.”

    The biggest surprise came on June 30 when Chip Ganassi Racing announced the sale of its entire NASCAR operation to Trackhouse Racing Team, effective at the end of the 2021 season.

    While rumors had hinted of it in the preceding months, on July 20 it was confirmed that Brad Keselowski was leaving Penske Racing to drive the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford and will also have a minority ownership stake in the company.

    One of the most anticipated changes is the introduction of the Next Gen car in 2022. After months of testing, NASCAR announced on Dec. 21 that the 670 Horsepower and the 4-inch rear spoiler will be used for all tracks except for Daytona and Talladega which will have a “separate speedway package” with 510 Horsepower and a 7-inch rear spoiler.

    Please check out the list below for more NASCAR updates. Future news and announcements will be added regularly.

    Cup Series 2022 driver and team updates

    Anthony Alfredo

    Front Row Motorsports announced on Nov. 9 that Alfredo will not return to drive for the team in 2022. His future plans are to be determined.

    AJ Allmendinger

    In addition to competing full-time in the Xfinity Series for Kaulig Racing, Allmendinger will also run part-time in the Cup Series for the team in the No. 16 car (16 races) sharing driving duties with Noah Gragson (14 races) and Daniel Hemric (nine races).

    Aric Almirola

    Stewart-Haas Racing announced on Jan. 4, 2022, that Drew Blickensderfer will serve as the crew chief for Almirola in the Cup Series this season. On Jan. 10, Almirola announced that he would be retiring at the end of the 2022 season.

    Josh Bilicki

    Spire Motorsports announced on Jan. 10 that Bilicki will drive the team’s No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro for the majority of the 2022 Cup Series race schedule. Kevin Bellicourt will return as crew chief for Bilicki and the other drivers who will compete in the No. 77. In addition to his Cup Series schedule, Alpha Prime Racing announced on Jan. 27 that Josh Bilicki will also compete in six races for them in the Xfinity Series that will include four road courses and two ovals in the No. 44 Chevrolet. Bilicki’s first race with Alpha Prime Racing will be at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) on March 26.

    Alex Bowman

    Hendrick Motorsports announced on June 18 that Bowman signed a two-year extension to drive the No. 48 Chevrolet in the Cup Series through 2023 with Ally Financial as his primary sponsor. With Bowman’s extension, all four HMS drivers have been resigned through 2022.

    Harrison Burton

    Burton will leave Joe Gibbs Racing where he currently competes in the Xfinity Series to move up to the Cup Series in 2022 with Wood Brothers Racing. The press release on July 15 stated that sponsorship will be announced at a later date but would include support from Ford Quick Lane and Motorcraft. On Nov. 11 it was announced that Brian Wilson will serve as crew chief for Burton with Tyler Green as the spotter. 

    Kurt Busch

    After the announcement that Chip Ganassi Racing has been sold to Trackhouse Racing, Busch became a free agent. On August 27, 23XI Racing announced that Busch will join them as they field two full-time teams, alongside Bubba Wallace in his second year with 23XI. Busch will race the No. 45 Toyota with Monster Energy as a sponsor. It was confirmed on Nov. 16 that Billy Scott will be Busch’s crew chief. Jason Jarrett (Ryan Newman’s former spotter) will spot for Busch in 2022. 

    William Byron

    On Sept. 21, 2020, Hendrick Motorsports announced that Byron signed a contract extension through 2022. In June of this year, Rick Hendrick stated that his “plan is for Chase (Elliott) and William (Byron) to retire with us, so that’s an ongoing situation with me. I love the lineup right now, and I want to keep the band together.” Brandon Lines, spotter for Ryan Preece in 2021, will spot for Byron in 2022.

    Chris Buescher

    Buescher will continue to drive the No. 17 Ford for RFK Racing with Scott Graves as his crew chief. Graves began working with Buescher in Oct. 2021 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course.

    Ross Chastain

    On August 3, Trackhouse Racing announced that Chastain will join the team to drive the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro in the Cup Series. Another announcement was made on Oct. 25 stating that Phil Surgen will make the move with Chastain to continue as his crew chief at Trackhouse Racing.

    Austin Cindric

    After the news that Brad Keselowski was leaving Team Penske next season, it was announced that Cindric will move up from the Xfinity Series with Team Penske to take over Keselowski’s No. 2 Ford in the Cup Series in 2022. Jeremy Bullins will serve as Cindric’s crew chief with, spotter, Doug Campbell.

    Ty Dillon

    On Sunday, Oct. 10, it was announced that Dillon will drive full time in the No. 94 Chevrolet for GMS Racing (now Petty GMS Motorsports) in 2022 in their inaugural NASCAR Cup Series season. On Nov. 16, Jerame Donley, Ganassi engineer, was named as Dillon’s crew chief for next year.

    Chase Elliott

    On February 20, Hendrick Motorsports announced that they had signed a five-year contract extension with Elliott that will be in effect through the end of the 2027 racing season.

    Todd Gilliland

    On Nov. 30 it was announced that Gilliland will move up from the Camping World Truck Series to the Cup Series to drive the No. 38 Ford for Front Row Motorsports.

    Noah Gragson

    On Dec. 14 it was announced that Gragson will drive a part-time schedule in the Cup Series for Kaulig Racing in the No. 16 car in addition to driving full-time in the Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports. His first Cup Series race with Kaulig Racing will be on Sunday, Mar. 20, at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

    Kaz Grala

    Grala will attempt to qualify for the Cup Series Daytona 500 in the No. 50 Chevrolet for The Money Team Racing (TMT Racing), as announced by the organization on Feb. 1.

    On Jan. 24, Alpha Prime Racing announced that Grala will join their Xfinity Series driver lineup for select starts in 2022. His first race with them will be at Auto Club Speedway on Saturday, Feb. 26th.

    His season will get even busier as it was confirmed on Feb. 3 that Grala will return to Young’s Motorsports this year and drive the No. 02 Chevrolet Silverado in 11 Truck Series races. His first scheduled race with Young’s Motorsports will be at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 4, 2022.

    Justin Haley

    Haley will drive the No. 31 Camaro for Kaulig Racing in 2022 as he moves from the Xfinity Series to drive for the team in their first full-time season in the Cup Series. Trent Owens will join the team as the crew chief.

    Joey Hand

    Rick Ware Racing announced on Jan. 27 that Hand will drive all of the six Cup Series road course races for the team this year. His first race will be at Circuit of the Americas on March 27 followed by Sonoma on June 12, Road America on July 3, the Indianapolis road course on July 30, Watkins Glen on Aug. 21 and the Charlotte Roval on Oct. 9.

    Daniel Hemric

    Hemric will begin the 2022 season competing in the Daytona 500 in the No. 16 Chevrolet for Kaulig Racing. As noted below, Hemric, along with AJ Allmendinger and Noah Gragson will split the driving duties for Kaulig Racing’s No. 16. Chevrolet in the Cup Series this year. Hemric will also compete full-time in Kaulig Racing’s No. 11 entry in the Xfinity Series.

    Erik Jones

    Jones announced Sunday, August 22 at Michigan International Speedway that he will return to Richard Petty Motorsports (now Petty GMS Motorsports) in 2022 for his second season driving the No. 43 Chevrolet. Dave Elenz (Noah Gragson’s former crew chief) will serve as the crew chief for Jones.

    Brad Keselowski

    On July 20, Roush Fenway Racing confirmed the rumors that Keselowski will move from Team Penske to drive the No. 6 Ford for RFR in 2022 and will also have a minority ownership stake in the company. He explained the move as a way to live “up to the maximum potential that I have. I don’t feel like I’ve lived up to that. I feel like I have a lot more to offer than being just a race car driver. Short of having won championships in the last few years, I haven’t achieved that.” It was announced on Nov. 2 that Matt McCall (currently crew chief for Kurt Busch) will join Keselowski in 2022 as crew chief. TJ Majors will spot for Keselowski.

    Corey LaJoie

    Spire Motorsports announced in November 2020 that they had signed a multi-year deal with LaJoie to continue as the driver of the No. 7 Chevrolet full-time in the Cup Series. Ryan Sparks will return as crew chief for LaJoie.

    Kyle Larson

    It was confirmed on July 14 that Larson’s contract with Hendrick Motorsports has been extended through 2023. HendrickCars.com will provide the majority sponsorship of the No. 5 Chevrolet for 35 races per year and will sponsor Larson in his non-NASCAR races.

    Michael McDowell

    McDowell will return to the Cup Series and Front Row Motorsports to drive the No. 34 Ford Mustang for his fifth year with the team, as announced on Nov. 30. On Jan. 6, the team announced that Blake Harris will serve as the crew chief for McDowell.

    Ryan Newman

    Keselowski will take over the driving duties in the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford in 2022, leaving Newman’s future uncertain. RFR team president Steve Newmark indicated that a part-time role within the company is possible but Newman has not announced his plans for next season.

    Ryan Preece

    Stewart-Haas Racing announced on Jan. 6 that they have hired Preece as a reserve driver for the 2022 season. As part of an alliance between SHR and Rick Ware Racing, Preece will run a total of 12 races in the No. 15 including two in the Cup Series on May 1 at Dover Motor Speedway and May 29 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, and three in the Xfinity Series on April 2 at Richmond Raceway, May 28 at Charlotte and June 25 at Nashville Superspeedway. He will also run seven Truck Series races – March 4 at Las Vegas, March 19 at Atlanta, May 6 at Darlington, May 20 at Texas, June 24 at Nashville, July 23 at Pocono, and Sept. 9 at Kansas Speedway.

    David Ragan

    Rick Ware Racing announced on Jan. 12 that Ragan will pilot the No. 15 Ford in multiple Cup Series races this season beginning with the Daytona 500. Sponsors will be announced at a later date.

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

    During a media availability session prior to the Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway, Stenhouse confirmed that he will return to drive the No. 47 for JTG Daugherty Racing for the 2022 season. Tab Boyd will move from Hendrick Motorsports as the spotter for William Byron to spot for Stenhouse in 2022.

    Bubba Wallace

    Wallace will enter his second season with 23XI Racing. It was announced on Nov. 16 that Bootie Barker will be the full-time crew chief for Wallace in 2022.

    Cody Ware

    On Jan. 14, Ware confirmed that he will drive full-time in the Cup Series driving the Rick Ware Racing No. 51 Ford.

    Beard Motorsports – Will return to the Cup Series in 2022

    Beard Motorsports, a non-chartered team, announced today that they will return to compete in 2022 in the Cup Series in the No. 62 Camaro and attempt to race in the Daytona 500 and subsequent races at Daytona as well as Talladega. The driver is yet to be determined.

    Chip Ganassi Racing – Sold and will cease operations at the end of the 2021 season

    On June 30 Chip Ganassi Racing announced the sale of its NASCAR operation to Trackhouse Racing Team, effective at the end of the 2021 season.

    Front Row Motorsports – Will field two cars in 2022

    Front Row Motorsports announced on Nov. 9 that they will continue to field two cars in the 2022 Cup Series (No. 34 and No. 38). The team also said that Anthony Alfredo will not return next year to FRM. On Nov. 30 they announced that Michael McDowell will return to drive the No. 34 Ford and Todd Gilliland will move up to pilot the No. 38 Ford next year in the Cup Series. With Gilliland moving up, Zane Smith will join the team to compete in the No. 38 Ford in the Truck Series.

    GMS Racing/Petty GMS Motorsports – Will make its Cup Series debut in 2022

    It was announced on Dec. 1 that RPM sold a majority interest to GMS Racing owner, Maury Gallagher. The team announced the name change of Petty GMS Motorsports on Dec. 7. Erik Jones will return to drive the No. 43 Chevrolet in 2022. Ty Dillon will drive the No. 42 which was the original number used by Lee Petty from 1949 to 1961.

    JTG Daugherty Racing

    The team confirmed on Sept. 30, 2021, that they will only field one car in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2022 with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. as the driver of the No. 47 Chevrolet.

    Kaulig Racing – Purchased two charters from Spire Motorsports

    Kaulig Racing purchased two charters from Spire Motorsports for the 2022 season. As noted above, Justin Haley will drive full-time for the team in the Cup Series in the No. 30 entry. On Dec. 14, Kaulig Racing announced the driver lineup for their second Cup Series entry. Noah Gragson will drive the No. 16 Chevrolet in 14 races. AJ Allmendinger and Daniel Hemric will split the driving duties for the other 24 races. Sponsors and the race schedule for each driver will be announced at a later date. On Jan. 8, it was announced that Matt Swiderski will serve as the crew chief for the No. 16 entry. It will be Swiderski’s first, full-time season as a crew chief in the series.

    Richard Petty Motorsports agrees to sell majority interest to Maury Gallagher, owner of GMS Racing

    It was announced on Dec. 1 that RPM sold a majority interest to GMS Racing owner, Maury Gallagher. The team announced the name change of Petty GMS Motorsports on Dec. 7. They will race out of GMS Racing’s current headquarters in Statesville, NC. As confirmed in August, Erik Jones will return to drive the No. 43 Chevrolet in 2022. Ty Dillon will drive the No. 42 which was the original number used by Lee Petty from 1949 to 1961. Petty will serve as Chairman of the Board, with Mike Beam as President and Brian Moffitt as the Executive Vice President of Sales.  

    Roush Fenway Racing – Changes name

    Roush Fenway Racing announced on Nov. 16 that it has changed its name to Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing (RFK Racing).

    Stewart-Haas Racing

    Stewart-Haas Racing announced their driver/crew chief lineup for 2022 on Jan. 4 with Mike Bugarewicz making the move from crew chief to serve as the performance director at Stewart-Haas Racing after two years with Aric Almirola. Drew Blickensderfer will take over as crew chief for Almirola in the Cup Series this season. All of the other driver/crew chief pairings will remain the same – Kevin Harvick with Rodney Childers, Cole Custer with Mike Shiplett and Chase Briscoe with Johnny Klausmeier. Xfinity Series crew chief, Richard Boswell, will return to his position as crew chief for Riley Herbst.

    The Money Team Racing

    On Feb. 1, Floyd Mayweather Jr. announced his plans to compete in the NASCAR Cup Series on a partial schedule this season with The Money Team Racing (TMT Racing). They will start out the year with Kaz Grala behind the wheel of the No. 50 Chevrolet as they attempt to qualify for the Daytona 500. Tony Eury Jr. will serve as crew chief for the team.

    Trackhouse Racing Team – Will field two cars in 2022

    Trackhouse Racing’s purchase of Chip Ganassi Racing includes two charters and they confirmed that Daniel Suarez will be back to drive for the team in 2022. On August 3, they announced that Ross Chastain will join the team to drive the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro in the Cup Series. Another announcement was made on Oct. 25 stating that Phil Surgen will make the move with Chastain to continue as his crew chief at Trackhouse Racing.

    23XI Racing

    On August 27, 23XI Racing announced that Kurt Busch will join them as they field two full-time teams, alongside Bubba Wallace in his second year with 23XI. It was announced on Nov. 16 that Billy Scott will serve as crew chief for Kurt Busch and Bootie Barker will continue as crew chief for Bubba Wallace. Dave Rogers will also join the team to serve as performance director.

    Xfinity Series 2022 driver and team updates

    Anthony Alfredo

    Our Motorsports announced their driver lineup in the Xfinity Series on Dec. 16. Alfredo will drive full-time with crew chief Pat Tryson. Brett Moffitt and Jeb Burton will complete the three-driver team for Our Motorsports.

    Justin Allgaier

    JR Motorsports announced Sept. 14 that Allgaier will return to drive the No. 7 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2022. Jason Burdett will return as his crew chief. It will mark Allgaier’s seventh season with JRM.

    AJ Allmendinger

    It was announced on July 18 that Allmendinger has signed a multi-year agreement with Kaulig Racing and will continue to compete full-time in the Xfinity Series in the No. 16 Chevrolet. Bruce Schlicker will serve as the crew chief for Allmendinger in the Xfinity Series in 2022. Allmendinger will also run part-time in the Cup Series for the team in the No. 16 car, sharing driving duties with Noah Gragson and Daniel Hemric.

    Michael Annett

    It was announced on Oct. 6 that JR Motorsports driver, Annett, will retire from full-time competition in the Xfinity Series at the end of the 2021 season.

    Trevor Bayne

    2011 Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne will make his return to NASCAR in the Xfinity Series with Joe Gibbs Racing in the No. 18 Devotion Nutrition Toyota for seven starts. Bayne made the announcement Feb. 9 on FS1’s NASCAR Race Hub. His first start will be on Feb. 26 at Auto Club Speedway. He’s also scheduled to race at Phoenix Raceway on March 12, Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 28, Nashville Superspeedway on June 25, New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 16, Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Oct. 15, and Homestead-Miami Speedway on Oct. 22. Jason Ratcliff will serve as crew chief for the team. Additional drivers and sponsors will be announced at a later date.

    Josh Berry

    JR Motorsports announced on August 16 that Josh Berry will compete full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series next season, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet with Mike Bumgarner as crew chief.

    Josh Bilicki

    In addition to his Cup Series schedule, Alpha Prime Racing announced on Jan. 27 that Bilicki will also compete in six races for them in the Xfinity Series that will include four road courses and two ovals in the No. 44 Chevrolet. Bilicki’s first race with Alpha Prime Racing will be at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) on March 26.

    Brandon Brown

    Brown announced on Dec. 30 that he would compete full-time in the Xfinity Series in 2022 after securing a sponsorship agreement with LGBcoin.io for his team, Brandonbilt Motorsports. However, NASCAR chose not to approve the sponsorship, though the team and LGBcoin.io stated that NASCAR had already granted the approval. After a week of ‘he said, they said,’ LGBcoin.io, on Jan. 8, made the decision to expand their commitment to a 2-year sponsorship/personal endorsement deal with Brandon Brown. While NASCAR will not allow any sponsorship decals or logos on the car, Brown’s uniform, etc., the partnership will include Brown’s “participation in publicity events, videos and crypto conferences.”

    Jeb Burton

    Our Motorsports announced their driver lineup in the Xfinity Series on Dec. 16. Burton will drive full-time with crew chief Chad Walter. On Oct. 11 Burton had confirmed that he would not be returning to Kaulig Racing for the 2022 season due to funding issues. Brett Moffitt and Anthony Alfredo will complete the three-driver team for Our Motorsports.

    Landon Cassill

    It was announced on Dec. 9 that Cassill will drive the No. 10 Chevy in the Xfinity Series for Kaulig Racing in 2022. Voyager Digital Ltd., a publicly-traded cryptocurrency platform, also announced a two-year extension of their partnership with Cassill who will be paid in a portfolio of cryptocurrencies. Jason Trinchere was announced on Jan. 8 as Cassill’s crew chief for the 2022 season.

    Sheldon Creed

    On September 14 Richard Childress Racing announced that Sheldon Creed will join RCR in 2022 to compete full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Creed currently drives for GMS Racing in the Camping World Truck Series.

    Bayley Currey

    It was announced on Dec. 27 that Currey will return to JD Motorsports with Gary Keller for the 2022 season to compete full-time in the Xfinity Series. Sponsorship will be announced at a later date.

    Howie DiSavino III

    On Jan. 26, Alpha Prime Racing announced that DiSavino will join the team’s Xfinity Series driver lineup for select starts. He will make his Xfinity Series and Alpha Prime Racing debut at Phoenix Raceway on Saturday, March 12.

    Jeffrey Earnhardt

    On Jan. 14. 2022, Sam Hunt Racing announced that Jeffrey Earnhardt will drive multiple Xfinity Series races for them this year in the No. 26 Toyota.

    Ty Gibbs

    On Feb. 16 Joe Gibbs Racing confirmed that Ty Gibbs will compete full-time for the team this year in the Xfinity Series driving the No. 54 Toyota. Chris Gayle will return to the No. 54 team as crew chief.

    Noah Gragson

    JR Motorsports announced on August 31 that Gragson has been re-signed and will remain with the team in 2022 to compete in the Xfinity Series driving the No. 9 Chevrolet. Bass Pro Shops, TrueTimber® Camo and Black Rifle Coffee will return as sponsors. Dave Elenz will not return as Gragson’s crew chief and will move to Richard Petty Motorsports to serve as the crew chief for Erik Jones. On Dec. 14, it was announced that Gragson will also drive a part-time schedule in the Cup Series for Kaulig Racing in the No. 16 car and is scheduled to compete in 14 Cup Series events, sharing driving duties with AJ Allmendinger (16 races) and Daniel Hemric (nine races). Luke Lambert was announced as Gragson’s crew chief for this season on Jan. 4, 2022.

    Kaz Grala

    Kaz Grala – Alpha Prime Racing announced on Jan. 24 that Grala will join the team’s Xfinity Series driver lineup for select starts in 2022. His first race with them will be at Auto Club Speedway on Saturday, Feb. 26th.

    His season will get even busier as it was announced on Feb. 3 that Grala will also return to Young’s Motorsports this year and drive the No. 02 Chevrolet Silverado in 11 races Truck Series races. His first scheduled race with Young’s Motorsports will be at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 4, 2022.

    His diverse schedule will also include an attempt to qualify for the Cup Series Daytona 500 in the No. 50 Chevrolet for The Money Team Racing (TMT Racing), as announced on Feb. 1.

    Derek Griffith

    Sam Hunt Racing announced on Feb. 2 that Griffith will drive multiple Xfinity Series races for the team this year. His first start will be at Martinsville in April with additional races to be announced at a later date.

    Daniel Hemric

    Kaulig Racing announced on Sept. 25 that Hemric will drive the team’s No. 11 car in the Xfinity Series in 2022. On Jan. 8 Alex Yontz was announced as the crew chief for Hemric. He will take over for Justin Haley who will transition to drive Kaulig Racing’s first full-time entry in the Cup Series. Hemric will also run a part-time schedule for them in the Cup Series and compete in nine races, sharing driving duties with AJ Allmendinger (16 races) and Noah Gragson (14 races) in the No. 16.

    Austin Hill

    Richard Childress Racing announced on Oct. 29 that Austin Hill will join the team and compete in the No. 21 Chevrolet full-time in the Xfinity Series in 2022. On Feb. 11, it was announced that Hill will also drive in the Truck Series race at Daytona for Spire Motorsports in the No. 7 Chevrolet.

    Jesse Iwuji/Jesse Iwuji Motorsports

    On Aug. 21, 2021, Jesse Iwuji announced that he had partnered with NFL Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith to form Jesse Iwuji Motorsports for the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series season. On Feb. 7, Iwuji and Smith announced a partnership with Chevrolet and their intention to use car number 34, as a tribute to Wendell Scott. They will run a full-time schedule with Iwuji as the driver and Jason Houghtaling as the crew chief.

    Brandon Jones

    Joe Gibbs Racing announced on Oct. 20 that Jones will return to drive the No. 19 Toyota full-time in the Xfinity Series in 2022.  It will be his fifth consecutive season with JGR.

    Alex Labbé

    On Feb. 12 DGM Racing announced that Alex Labbé will return to the team to run a partial schedule of 18 Xfinity Series races in 2022. Labbé will drive the No. 90 at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 19 and will then move to the No. 36 car for the next three races at Auto Club Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and Phoenix Raceway. Labbé will also try to secure sponsorship so that he can compete full-time in the series.

    Mason Massey

    DGM Racing announced on Dec. 15 that Massey will drive the No. 91 Chevrolet in the “majority” of races in 2022.

    Sam Mayer

    JR Motorsports also confirmed on August 16 that Mayer will run a full-time Xfinity Series schedule for JRM in 2022 in the No. 1 with Taylor Moyer as crew chief.

    CJ McLaughlin

    On Jan. 17, McLaughlin announced that he will rejoin RSS Racing with sponsorship from SciAps for 13 Xfinity Series races in the No. 38 Ford Mustang beginning with the season-opener at Daytona on Feb. 19. He will also race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 5, Talladega Superspeedway on April 23, Texas Motor Speedway on May 21, New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 16, Michigan International Speedway on August 6, Daytona on August 26, Bristol Motor Speedway on Sept. 16, Texas on Sept. 24, Talladega on Oct. 1, Las Vegas on Oct. 15, Homestead-Miami Speedway on Oct. 22 and Martinsville Speedway on Oct. 29.

    Matt Mills

    It was announced on Jan. 20 that Mills will return to BJ McLeod Motorsports in 2022 to compete in the Xfinity Series in the No. 5 Chevrolet.

    Brett Moffitt

    Our Motorsports announced their driver lineup in the Xfinity Series on Dec. 16. Moffitt will be back to drive full-time with Jeb Burton and Anthony Alfredo as teammates. Jeff Hensley will join the team as Moffitt’s crew chief. Car numbers were not revealed.

    Miguel Paludo

    Paludo will drive the JR Motorsports No. 88 for three Xfinity Series road course races in 2022 at Circuit of the Americas (March 26), Road America (July 2) and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course on July 30.

    Stefan Parsons

    B.J. McLeod Motorsports announced on Sept. 21 that Parsons will compete full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2022 with “returning primary sponsor Sokal Digital and Advertising on-board for the entire season as well as Springrates Automotive Suspension Source.” This will be his first full-time season with the team.

    Ryan Truex

    Truex will race for Sam Hunt Racing in the No. 26 Xfinity Series car at Daytona with Circle B sponsorship. Any additional races are to be determined and announced at a later date.

    Will Rodgers

    Reaume Brothers Racing announced on Feb. 16 that Will Rodgers will join the team to drive a part-time schedule in the Camping World Truck Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2022. He will make his debut in the Xfinity Series race at Auto Club Speedway on Feb. 26. Rodgers will also compete in the Truck Series race at Sonoma Raceway on June 11 and will race in the Xfinity and Truck Series races at Circuit of the Americas on March 26.

    Myatt Snider

    Jordan Anderson Racing announced on Nov. 3 that Myatt Snider has signed with the organization to compete full-time in the Xfinity Series in 2022. He will drive the No. 31 Chevrolet and his longtime sponsor, TaxSlayer, will make the move with him.

    David Starr

    It was announced on Feb. 18, 2022, that Starr will drive the No. 08 Ford for SS Green Light Racing in 28 Xfinity Series races this season. His first race will be at Daytona International Speedway in the Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner 300 race.

    Ryan Vargas

    On Jan. 19. JD Motorsports w/Gary Keller announced that Vargas will return to the team for his second full-time season in the Xfinity Series. His car number and sponsors will be released at a later date.

    Kyle Weatherman

    DGM Racing announced on Jan. 31 that Weatherman will race in the first five Xfinity Series races of 2022 in the No. 92 Chevrolet.

    Josh Williams

    Williams confirmed on Nov. 15 that he will not return to DGM Racing next year. On Dec. 8, BJ McLeod Motorsports announced that Williams will join their Xfinity Series team driving the No. 78 in 2022 with crew chief Danny Johnson.

    DGM Racing

    DGM Racing announced on Nov. 15 that the team plans to field at least two full-time entries in the Xfinity Series in 2022 with the driver lineup to be announced at a later date. On Dec. 15, they also announced that Mason Massey will drive the majority of the Xfinity races in the No. 91 next season. This will be in addition to the two full-time teams announced in November.

    Joey Gase Racing

    On Nov. 18, driver Joey Gase announced plans to start an Xfinity Series team in 2022. He released a statement stating that the team “currently has 5 cars and bought the remaining cars and equipment of H2 Motorsports from Shane Lee.” The team plans to run a full-time schedule and Gase will drive the No. 35 car most of the year with Rick Bourgeois as the General Manager of the team. Gase also plans to drive part-time in the Cup Series. The newly formed team is now looking for additional sponsors and hiring for all positions, including qualified drivers. More information will be announced at a later date.

    Camping World Truck Series 2022 driver and team updates

    Tyler Ankrum

    Hattori Racing announced on Dec. 1 that they are expanding to two Truck Series teams in 2022 and that Ankrum will join them to compete in the No. 16 Toyota with crew chief Scott Zipadelli.

    Matt Crafton

    On Nov. 12, ThorSport Racing confirmed that Crafton will return in 2022 to race full-time for the team in the Truck Series in the No. 88.

    Hailie Deegan

    David Gilliland Racing announced on Dec. 15 that Deegan has been re-signed to run the full season in the Truck Series in 2022.

    Matt DiBenedetto

    It was announced on Jan. 6 that DiBenedetto will compete full-time in the Truck Series in 2022 for Rackley W.A. R. driving the number 25 Chevrolet.

    Christian Eckes

    On Feb. 3, ThorSport Racing announced that Eckes will drive a full Truck Series schedule for the team in the No. 98 Toyota this year.

    Grant Enfinger

    GMS Racing announced on Oct. 1 that Enfinger will drive the team’s No. 23 Chevrolet Silverado full-time in 2022 and 2023. His longtime sponsor, Champion Power Equipment, will serve as the primary sponsor for the majority of races over the next two seasons.

    Tate Fogleman

    It was announced on Nov. 30 that Fogleman will move from Young’s Motorsports to drive the No. 30 Toyota Tundra for On Point Motorsports.

    Jake Garcia

    Garcia, who currently races Super Late Models and Pro Late Models will make his debut in the Camping World Truck Series this season and compete in five truck races for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing. He will drive the No. 35 Chevrolet Silverado, the same number he has used in Pro Late Models.

    His first race will be at Martinsville Speedway on April 7. Garcia is also scheduled to compete at World Wide Technology Raceway on June 4, Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park on July 29, Richmond Raceway on Aug. 13 and Bristol Motor Speedway on Sept. 15.

    Kaz Grala

    it was announced on Feb. 3 that Grala will return to Young’s Motorsports this season and drive the No. 02 Chevrolet Silverado in 11 Truck Series races. His first scheduled race with Young’s Motorsports will be at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 4, 2022.

    In addition to his Truck Series schedule, Alpha Prime Racing announced on Jan. 24 that Grala will join the team’s Xfinity Series driver lineup for select starts in 2022. His first race with them will be at Auto Club Speedway on Saturday, Feb. 26th.

    To complete his schedule, on Feb. 1 The Money Team Racing (TMT Racing) announced that they will attempt to qualify for the Daytona 500 with Grala in the No. 50 Chevrolet.

    Chris Hacker

    Reaume Brothers Racing announced on Dec. 21 that Hacker will return to the team in 2022 to run a limited schedule in the Truck Series. His first race will be at Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 19, 2022. The remainder of his schedule and sponsorship will be announced at a later date.

    Corey Heim

    Kyle Busch Motorsports announced on Dec. 21 that Heim will compete in 15 Truck Series races in the No. 51 truck in 2022. Heim will begin the season at Daytona International Speedway and in the final eight races. The remainder of his season is to be determined.  

    Austin Hill

    Hill announced on Oct. 2 that he will not return to drive in the Truck Series for Hattori Racing Enterprises next year. On Oct. 29 Richard Childress Racing announced that Hill will join RCR to compete full time in the Xfinity Series in 2022. On Feb. 11, it was announced that Hill will also drive in the Truck Series race at Daytona for Spire Motorsports in the No. 7 Chevrolet.

    Timmy Hill

    On Dec. 6, 2021, Hill Motorsports announced that they will field two Truck Series teams in 2022 and make the switch from Chevrolet to Toyota. Timmy Hill will drive the No. 56 Toyota full-time in 2022. The number of the second truck and the driver will be revealed at a later date.

    Carson Hocevar

    Niece Motorsports announced on August 17 that Carson Hocevar will race full time for Niece Motorsports in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2022. It will be his second full-time season with the team.

    Jesse Little

    Young’s Motorsports announced on Dec. 22 that Little will join the team and compete in the Truck Series in 2022. His first race will be at the season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway. His truck number, crew chief, schedule, and sponsors will be announced at a later date.

    Ty Majeski

    ThorSport Racing announced on Feb. 11 that Ty Majeski will compete full time with the team in the Truck Series driving the No. 66 with Joe Shear Jr. as crew chief. Majeski joins returning drivers Ben Rhodes and Matt Crafton and Christian Eckes in his first full-time season with ThorSport.

    Matt Mills

    Young’s Motorsports confirmed on Feb. 10 that Matt Mills will join the team and drive the No. 20 Chevrolet for a limited Truck Series schedule beginning at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Fri., Mar. 4, 2022. He will also be behind the wheel at Kansas Speedway (May 14), World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway (June 4) and Richmond (Va.) Raceway (Aug. 13). These races are in addition to Mills’ Xfinity Series races with BJ McLeod Motorsports this year in the No. 5 Chevrolet.

    Thad Moffitt

    It was announced on Feb. 10 that Moffitt, the fourth-generation driver, and grandson of Richard Petty, will run a partial Truck Series schedule driving the No. 43 Chevrolet as part of a GMS Racing partnership with Reaume Brothers Racing. He will make his debut at Daytona International Speedway on February 18 in the NextEra Energy 250. STP will celebrate the 30th anniversary of Richard Petty’s “Fan Appreciation Tour” with a paint scheme that will pay homage to his 1992 retirement season. Moffitt’s 2022 schedule will include races in the Camping World Truck Series, ARCA Menards Series, and the Trans-AM Series. More information on his schedule and sponsorship will be announced at a later date.

    John Hunter Nemechek

    On Oct. 14, Kyle Busch Motorsports announced that Nemechek will return to drive the No 4 Toyota full time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2022.

    Blaine Perkins

    On Dec. 23, CR7 Motorsports (owned by Codie Rohrbaugh), announced that Perkins compete full-time for the team in 2022 and pilot the No. 9 Chevrolet in the Camping World Truck Series after signing a single-year contract.

    Chase Purdy

    It was announced on Nov. 30 that Chase Purdy will move from GMS Racing to Hattori Racing Enterprises and drive the No. 61 Toyota Tundra in the Camping World Truck Series. On Dec. 22 the team also announced that Matt Lucas has joined the organization as Team Manager and will also serve as crew chief for Purdy.

    Ben Rhodes

    On Nov. 12, ThorSport Racing confirmed that Rhodes will return in 2022 to race full-time for the team in the Truck Series in the No. 99.

    Will Rodgers

    Reaume Brothers Racing announced on Feb. 16 that Will Rodgers will join the team to drive a part-time schedule in the Camping World Truck Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2022. He will make his debut in the Xfinity Series race at Auto Club Speedway on Feb. 26. Rodgers will also compete in the Truck Series race at Sonoma Raceway on June 11 and will race in the Xfinity and Truck Series races at Circuit of the Americas on March 26.

    Johnny Sauter

    On Feb. 3 it was announced by G2G Racing that Johnny Sauter will drive the No. 47 entry at Daytona, as part of a 13-race schedule with the team.

    Chandler Smith

    It was announced on Nov. 30 that Smith will return to Kyle Busch Motorsports next season to drive the No. 18 in the Camping World Truck Series.

    Zane Smith

    As announced on Nov. 30, Smith will move from GMS Racing and join Front Row Motorsports to drive the No. 38 Ford in the Camping World Truck Series with crew chief Chris Lawson.

    Dean Thompson

    On Nov. 2 Thompson announced that they will join Niece Motorsports in 2022 to compete in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and contend for Rookie of the Year.

    Jack Wood

    It was announced on Aug. 26 that Wood has been re-signed by GMS Racing for the 2022 Truck Series season and will compete full-time in the No. 24 Chevrolet.

    G2G Racing

    G2G Racing will field two full-time trucks in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The team is owned by NASCAR driver, Tim Viens, and business partner Bill Shea. Matt Jaskol will pilot the No. 46 Toyota full-time while the No. 47 Toyota will be driven by three different drivers in 2022, including Johnny Sauter who will run a 13-race part-time schedule.  Sauter’s first race will be at Daytona. Roger Reuse and Viens will compete in the remaining races.

    GMS Racing – Truck Series

    GMS Racing confirmed on Dec. 7 that they will continue to compete full-time in the Truck Series and the ARCA Menards Series after their majority purchase of Richard Petty Motorsport, operating as GMS Racing. Grant Enfinger will drive the Truck Series No. 23 Chevrolet with Jack Wood in the No. 24.  

    ThorSport Racing

    ThorSport Racing will field four full-time teams in the Truck Series this year. Ty Majeski will compete full time with the team in the Truck Series driving the No. 66 with Joe Shear Jr. as crew chief. Majeski joins returning drivers Ben Rhodes and Matt Crafton and Christian Eckes in his first full-time season with ThorSport.

  • Weekend schedule for Auto Club Speedway  

    Weekend schedule for Auto Club Speedway  

    The NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series travel to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA this weekend for the second race of the 2022 season. It will be the first trip back to the track since 2020. The Camping World Truck Series is off and will return to completion on Friday, March 4.

    This year NASCAR has established a different procedure for practice and qualifying. At Auto Club Speedway, and on most ovals this year, the teams will be split into two groups.

    The groups will be based on the finishing order (odd/even) from the week’s previous race with one 15-minute practice for each group. Single-car, single-lap qualifying will follow immediately after the practice sessions. The top five drivers from each group will advance to the second round of qualifying to compete for the pole with a single-car, single-lap run.

    You can watch Press Pass live Saturday for drivers Chase Briscoe and Aric Almirola at 12:30 p.m. ET, Kevin Harvick at 12:45 p.m. ET, Kyle Larson at 1 p.m. ET and Kyle Busch at 1:15 p.m. ET. Press Pass will also be available for post-Cup qualifying, post-Xfinity race, and post-Cup race.

    All times are Eastern.

    Saturday, February 26

    Noon: Xfinity Series Practice
    12:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying
    2 p.m.: Cup Series Practice
    2:35 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying
    5 p.m.: Xfinity Series Production Alliance 300
    Distance: 300 miles (150 Laps)
    Stage 1 ends on Lap 35, Stage 2 ends on Lap 70, Final Stage ends on Lap 150
    FS1/MRN/ SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    Purse: $1,618,853
    2020 Race Winner: Harrison Burton

    Sunday, February 27

    3:30 p.m.: NASCAR Cup Series WISE Power 400
    Distance: 400 miles (200 laps)
    Stage 1 ends on Lap 65, Stage 2 ends on Lap 130, Final Stage ends on Lap 200
    FOX/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    Purse: $8,035,061
    2020 Race Winner: Alex Bowman

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Daytona

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Daytona

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional

    1. Austin Cindric: Cindric held off Bubba Wallace and teammate Ryan Blaney to win the Daytona 500 in his first Daytona start.

    “I’m only 23 years old,” Cindric said. “To achieve the greatest accomplishment of one’s life at that age is simply amazing. If that’s still the case 32 years from now, then I’ll officially change my name to ‘Derrick Cope.’”

    “Historically, the Daytona 500 is known as the ‘Great American Race.’ Currently, it’s known as the ‘Greatest Collection of ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ Merchandise In The World.’”

    2. Bubba Wallace: Wallace finished second at Daytona, matching his career-best 500 finish.

    “‘Second’ is a word that’s rarely used by Michael Jordan,” Wallace said, ‘unless it’s used in the following context: ‘Give me one second, while I place another bet.’

    “My crew chief is Bootie Barber. So, any communication between him and I is technically a ‘Bootie call.’ No matter what happens this season, I’ll still never have more ‘bootie calls’ than Tim Richmond.

    3. Ryan Blaney: Blaney came home fourth at Daytona as Penske Racing teammate Austin Cindric took the win.

    “Congratulations to Austin,” Blaney said. “And congratulations to Roger Penske. Roger’s 85th birthday was Sunday. Roger’s a legend in auto racing across many series and is the greatest car owner in auto racing. No other car owner can hold a candle to Roger, much less 85.”

    4. Aric Almirola: Almirola finished fifth at Daytona.

    “NASCAR started the season with the Busch Clash in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum,” Almirola said. “That track was tiny. I’ve seen bigger circles in a pack of Lifesavers or under the eyes of anyone who’s awoken in the Daytona infield after a day and/or night of drinking with Clint Bowyer.”

    5. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski led a race-high 67 laps and finished ninth at Daytona in his first points race as driver/owner for Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing.

    “I feel great being a part of re-igniting Roush Fenway,” Keselowski said. “It may sound difficult, but it’s really not, because re-igniting something that’s already on fire is easy, and Roush Fenway was a dumpster fire.”

    6. Michael McDowell: McDowell started sixth and finished seventh at Daytona in the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Mustang.

    “Fox Corporation CEO Lachlan Murdoch waved the green flag to start the race,” McDowell said. “As you would expect in a race green-flagged by him, there was a lot of ‘spin.’”

    7. Chase Briscoe: Briscoe finished fourth in the Daytona 500 in the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mustang.

    “I hope I made Tony Stewart proud,” Briscoe said. “Tony was in the booth with Mike Joy and Clint Bowyer calling the race for Fox. I think Tony’s a natural in front of the camera. They say ‘the camera adds ten pounds.’ Tony absolutely agrees with that. That way, he doesn’t have to blame it on his diet.” 

    8. Kyle Busch: Busch finished sixth at Daytona and remained winless in Daytona 500’s.

    “I’m now 0-17 in Daytona 500 races,” Busch said. “Personally, I’m looking forward to the ‘Next Generation,’ because I’ve already gone through one without winning the 500.”

    9. Chase Elliott: Elliott finished 10th at Daytona and was the only Chevrolet driver in the top 10.

    “I’m just happy the No. 9 NAPA Chevy finished the race in one piece,” Elliott said. “Obviously, I was able to steer clear of Brad Keselowski. How many cars did he wreck? Now that Brad is an owner and a driver, it’s clear he’s the ‘total’ package.”

    10. David Ragan: Ragan finished eighth at Daytona after avoiding several accidents until being caught up in a final-lap crash after crossing the finish line.

    “I,” Ragan said, “like 38 other drivers, was just happy to survive…a race that Brad Keselowski was in.

    “Floyd Mayweather Jr. is a new NASCAR owner. Kaz Grala drives the No. 50 car for The Money Team Racing. I don’t know much about Kaz Grala, but I can tell you this – Any car associated with Mayweather will never knock anyone out, and can only win on points. And should also have its financials reviewed by a competent accountant.”

  • Daytona 500 win first of many for Cindric in 2022

    Daytona 500 win first of many for Cindric in 2022

    Austin Cindric’s 2022 Daytona 500 win wasn’t the usual sort of victory you’d expect from a rookie in the NASCAR Cup Series. It wasn’t a fluke, it wasn’t a right-place-right-time when calamity strikes win and it wasn’t some fuel mileage win.

    Rather, it was a win on pure strength. Cindric was strong in his qualifying race and started the 500 in fifth. From there, he was rarely far from the lead, leading 21 laps on the way to scoring the win.

    It’d be surprising if not for the fact that he showed similar strength during his limited Cup campaign last season. The stats will say that he only scored one top-10 and led only eight laps. But what the stats won’t show is how he led in his Cup debut at the 2021 Daytona 500 and was in the lead pack heading into the final two corners before crashing. They won’t show how he started third in Austin and took a commanding lead – on slicks, in the rain – before spinning. They won’t even show how he took the lead at Road America and was running away with it before losing a rear gear.

    Cindric isn’t a typical rookie. He’s a phenom who is maturing very fast, having come a long way from a dismal 2018 XFINITY campaign where he drove for multiple teams and crashed far too many times. He’s now driving the flagship No. 2 for Team Penske heading into his first full NASCAR Cup Series season, And, it looks like he may have laid claim to the Rookie of the Year title before fellow rookies Todd Gilliland and Harrison Burton have even had a chance to establish themselves.

    Is Cindric the second coming of Jeff Gordon? It’s too soon to tell. But at the same time, there are many former rookies that took the Cup Series by storm, so this is nothing new. If anything it goes to show that Cindric is in great company, and if his limited schedule last season is any indicator he’ll be a force to be reckoned with. Team Penske Fords are undoubtedly the strongest in the garage and have a tendency to run well everywhere, especially road courses and superspeedways. Again, however, he’s performed well on all kinds of tracks so it wouldn’t be surprising to see him competing for wins and strong runs elsewhere.

    One thing is sure. Cindric is going to be a threat in his rookie year and for a long time to come. Expect him to prove himself, again and again, this season.

  • Cindric prevails for first Cup triumph at the Daytona 500

    Cindric prevails for first Cup triumph at the Daytona 500

    In a late war of attrition between the young guns and the veterans, rookie Austin Cindric captured the main spotlight to commence a new season of NASCAR competition by winning the 64th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, February 20, and capturing his first NASCAR Cup Series career victory after fending off the field during an overtime attempt.

    The 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion from Mooresville, North Carolina, led four times for 21 laps, including the final eight, to fend off challenges from teammate Ryan Blaney, ex-teammate Brad Keselowski and Bubba Wallace on the final lap to grab his first win in his eighth career start in NASCAR’s premier series and in his first event driving the No. 2 Ford Mustang for Team Penske as a full-time Cup Series rookie candidate.

    The starting lineup was determined through two single-car qualifying rounds on Wednesday, February 16, followed by the Bluegreen Vacations Duels on Thursday, February 17. Kyle Larson, the reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion, started on pole position after posting a pole-winning lap at 181.159 mph and was joined on the front row with teammate Alex Bowman, who qualified at 181.046 mph. Brad Keselowski and Chris Buescher, both of whom represent the newly named Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, occupied the second row after each won their respective Duel events.

    Prior to the event, George Spencer, the engineer for Chase Briscoe and the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mustang team, and JD Frey, the car chief for Daniel Hemric and the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 team, were ejected from the event due to their respective cars failing pre-race inspection twice. In addition, Hemric was assessed a drive-through penalty at the start. Joey Logano also dropped to the rear of the field in a backup car along with Jacques Villeneuve, who dropped to the rear due to an engine change.

    When the green flag waved and the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season commenced, Larson jumped with an early advantage and moved in front of teammate Bowman from the tri-oval through the back straightaway while running on the inside lane. The outside lane, however, proved to be the fastest, preferred lane for a majority of competitors as Keselowski received drafting help from Ford teammates Austin Cindric, Chris Buescher and Michael McDowell to move into the lead entering Turns 3 and 4.

    When the field returned to the start/finish line, Brad Keselowski, making his first start as a driver/co-owner of the No. 6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford Mustang, led the first lap ahead of Cindric and Buescher while Larson settled in fourth ahead of Michael McDowell, the reigning Daytona 500 champion. By then, Hemric served his drive-through penalty through pit road.

    By the fifth lap, a majority of the competitors were running in a long single-file line on the outside lane as Keselowski was leading Cindric, Buescher, McDowell and Kyle Busch. Christopher Bell, Martin Truex Jr., Kurt Busch, Bubba Wallace and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. were in the top 10 while rookie Harrison Burton was the lead car on the inside lane in 14th place while receiving drafting help from names like Chase Elliott, Daniel Suarez, Aric Almirola and Denny Hamlin.

    Two laps later, the momentum for the competitors running on the inside lane gained momentum towards the ones running on the outside lane as Kyle Busch, who darted to the inside lane, moved his No. 18 M&M’s Toyota TRD Camry to the front of the pack followed by teammate Bell. Soon after, Busch was engaged in a side-by-side battle with Keselowski’s No. 6 Kohler Generators Ford Mustang for the top spot.

    Through the first 10 laps of the event and with the field continuing to engage in close-quarters racing through multiple lanes, Keselowski, who fought back on the outside lane to retake the lead on Lap 8, was leading followed by Cindric, Buescher, McDowell and Stenhouse while Kyle Busch fell back to sixth ahead of Erik Jones, Bell, Larson and Truex. By then, Hemric was lapped behind the field.

    Five laps later, Jacques Villeneuve was lapped by the field as Keselowski continued to lead a bevy of competitors running towards the outside lane while Kyle Busch was the lead car for multiple competitors running on the inside lane.

    By Lap 20, Keselowski remained out in front on the outside lane ahead of Cindric, Buescher, McDowell, Stenhouse and a majority of the competitors while Kyle Busch continued to serve as the lead car on the inside lane with drafting help from his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Bell and Truex along with 23XI Racing’s Kurt Busch and Bubba Wallace.

    Seven laps later, the battle for the lead reignited between Keselowski and Kyle Busch as Busch received drafting help from his Toyota teammates on the inside lane to return to the lead. 

    Through the first 30 laps of the event, Kyle Busch remained as the leader of the field by a narrow margin over teammate Keselowski while Bell, Cindric, Truex, Buescher, Kurt Busch, McDowell, Wallace and Denny Hamlin were in the top 10. By then, Greg Biffle, making his return to the Cup Series following a five-year absence, took his No. 44 NY Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to the garage due to an engine issue. 

    By Lap 35, a majority of the field moved to the inside lane as Kyle Busch continued to lead ahead of Bell, Truex, Kurt Busch, Wallace, Hamlin, Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney, Keselowski and William Byron.

    A few laps later, the first round of green-flag pit stops commenced as names like Cindric, Blaney, McDowell, Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, Cole Custer, David Ragan, Aric Almirola and Chase Briscoe pitted. During the following lap, a majority of competitors led by Kyle Busch pitted. Then during the following lap and with another wave of competitors pitting, Villeneuve spun near the pit road entrance, but he proceeded without making contact with the wall as the race continued to run under green. In the midst of the pit stops, Ty Dillon was penalized for speeding on pit road.

    Then on Lap 40, the first caution of the event flew when Kaz Grala lost a right-rear wheel of his No. 50 Money Team Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Turn 2. At the same time, Briscoe got bumped by Cindric entering Turn 1 and spun his No. 14 Mahindra Ford Mustang, though he continued without sustaining any significant damage. Under caution, some like Larson and Bowman pitted.

    When the race restarted under green on Lap 45, Kyle Busch and Joey Logano occupied the front row ahead of Hamlin and Harrison Burton. At the start, Busch jumped ahead through Turns 1 and 2, but Logano used the outside lane to his advantage as he received a push from Burton’s No. 21 Motorcraft/DEX Imaging Ford Mustang to challenge Busch for the lead.

    Through the first 50 laps of the event, Kyle Busch was leading ahead of teammates Hamlin and Bell while Byron and Kurt Busch were in the top five. By then, Elliott, rookie Todd Gilliland, McDowell, Logano and Ross Chastain were in the top 10. 

    Shortly after, the caution returned when Justin Haley lost a right-front tire from his No. 31 LeafFilter Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Turn 1. Under caution, some like Noah Gragson, Harvick, Custer, and Almirola pitted while the rest led by Kyle Busch remained on the track.

    On Lap 56, the race proceeded under green as teammates Kyle Busch and Hamlin occupied the front row. At the start, Busch, who restarted on the outside lane, jumped with another strong advantage before moving in front of teammate Hamlin’s No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry to retain the lead. Behind, Byron challenged Logano for third place with drafting help from Harrison Burton. During the following lap, Byron moved his No. 24 AXALTA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to the lead through the back straightaway as he also moved in front of Busch’s No. 18 Toyota. 

    Then with the field engaged in close-quarters racing through double lanes, Harrison Burton received a push from Truex to challenge Byron for the lead.

    By Lap 60, Burton was leading ahead of Keselowski before Truex mounted his No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota TRD Camry alongside Burton’s car in Turn 1 in a bid for the lead. 

    Two laps later, however, the caution flew for a multi-car that started when Harrison Burton, who was challenging Truex for the lead, got bumped and turned off the front nose of Keselowski entering the back straightaway as he made contact with Byron, Kyle Busch, Hamlin and Bell. While Byron slid and pounded the inside wall head-on, Burton’s No. 21 Ford went airborne and landed upside down on the roof before flipping back on all four wheels and coming to rest with a destroyed race car. Also involved were Ross Chastain and Alex Bowman. Despite the incident, Burton emerged uninjured as his strong start to the race came to an early end along with Byron, Hamlin and Chastain.

    The multi-car wreck concluded the first stage scheduled for Lap 65 under caution as Truex claimed the first stage victory of the season. Keselowski settled in second ahead of Todd Gilliland, Stenhouse, Logano, Austin Dillon, Kurt Busch, Erik Jones, Larson and Elliott.

    Under the stage break, some including Kurt Busch, who received minor damage from the multi-car wreck, pitted early. Not long after, the remainder of the field led by Truex pitted for service.

    The second stage started on Lap 71 as Erik Jones and Ryan Blaney occupied the front row. At the start, Jones and Blaney dueled through the first two turns until Blaney received a push from teammate Cindric to clear Jones for the lead and retain the top spot when he returned to the start/finish line. 

    By Lap 75 and with the field fanning out to double lanes, Blaney continued to lead ahead of teammate Cindric and Jones, both of whom battled dead even for the runner-up spot. Chris Buescher and Stenhouse were in the top five ahead of Kevin Harvick, Daniel Suarez, Keselowski, Larson and Gilliland.

    Fifteen laps later on Lap 90, Blaney remained as the leader ahead of teammate Cindric, Buescher, Harvick and Keselowski as the field settled in a long single-file line towards the inside lane.

    At the halfway mark on Lap 100, Blaney was leading ahead of teammates Cindric, Buescher, Harvick, Gilliland, Custer, McDowell, Ty Dillon and Briscoe as Ford competitors occupied nine of the top-10 spots. Almirola, Logano, Larson, Gragson, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Tyler Reddick, Erik Jones, Truex, Wallace and Kyle Busch were running in the top 20 ahead of Kurt Busch, Daniel Suarez and Elliott, all of whom were running under three seconds behind the leader. Hemric, Corey LaJoie, Austin Dillon were in 24th, 25th and 26th followed by Landon Cassill, Codey Ware, David Ragan and Jacques Villeneuve, all of whom were on the lead lap.

    Shortly after, names like Austin Dillon, Hemric, LaJoie, Cassill, David Ragan and Corey Ware pitted under green as Blaney continued to lead the field. During the pit stops, Cassill nearly clipped two of Cody Ware’s crew members while trying to exit his pit stall.

    Then on Lap 107, a wave of competitors led by Blaney pitted, but Keselowski and Buescher managed to exit pit road ahead of Blaney. During the next lap, another wave led by Truex pitted. In the midst of the pit stops, Briscoe slid past his pit stall while Elliott stalled his No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 on pit road. In addition, Suarez was busted for speeding on pit road and forced to serve a drive-through penalty through pit road.

    By Lap 110, Keselowski returned to the lead followed by Buescher, Blaney and the field. A few laps later, Custer pitted for a second time due to not getting fuel in his car during his first stop.

    Through Lap 120, Keselowski continued to lead ahead of Buescher, Blaney, Harvick and Gilliland while Larson, who was running within the top 10, formed a line on the outside lane in his bid for the lead followed by Stenhouse, Logano and Truex. 

    Then five laps later, Larson motored his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to the lead, but Keselowski fought back on the inside lane after receiving a push from ex-teammate Logano. As Larson drifted back into the top 10 while receiving no drafting help, Keselowski retained the lead ahead of Logano, Truex, Wallace and Cindric.

    Then approaching the final lap of the second stage, Briscoe blocked Keselowski in an attempt to remain on the lead lap. Entering Turn 1, Keselowski moved to the inside lane in an attempt to pass Briscoe, but the rest of the field drafted with Briscoe as Logano moved his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang into the lead followed by Truex and Wallace. Then entering the tri-oval, Truex made his move beneath Logano and edged Logano to claim the second stage victory on Lap 130. Logano settled in second followed by Wallace, Keselowski, Stenhouse, Cindric, Buescher, Harvick, Larson and Gilliland.

    Under the stage break, the field returned to pit road for service and Keselowski exited with the lead followed by Cindric, Larson, Wallace and Harvick. During the pit stops, McDowell was penalized for speeding on pit road. In addition, Logano made a second trip to pit road to have the lug nuts on his car tightened. 

    With 63 laps remaining, the final stage started. At the start, Keselowski quickly moved in front of Cindric to retain the lead and gain momentum. Behind, Wallace was in third while Harvick gained a run on the outside lane. 

    Soon after, Keselowski led a seven-car breakaway from the field followed by Cindric, Wallace, Erik Jones, Blaney, Buescher and Briscoe while Harvick fell back in a side-by-side battle with Gragson, who was piloting the No. 62 Beard Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in his Cup debut.

    Down to the final 50 laps of the event and with the majority of the field running on the inside lane while the rest settled on the outside lane, Keselowski was leading ahead of Cindric, Wallace, Jones and Blaney. 

    Just then, the caution flew when Tyler Reddick got bumped and turned off the front nose of Villeneuve entering the frontstretch and came across the path of Truex, Kurt Busch and Logano, with the former sustaining front-nose damage while the latter two spinning towards the tri-oval grass as Stenhouse also sustained damage. In the aftermath of the wreckage, Logano and Reddick needed assistance from wreckers to get their stuck cars out of the grass, which dropped them out of lead lap contention. 

    Under caution, the field pitted for a potential final round of fresh tires, fuel and adjustments as Cindric exited with the top spot following a two-tire pit stop ahead of Wallace, Blaney and Jones,  all of whom took fuel only, while Keselowski exited in fifth place with two fresh tires.

    With 41 laps remaining, the green flag waved. At the start, Cindric retained the lead ahead of teammate Blaney and Jones while Wallace got shoved out of the top five while making an attempt for the lead on the outside lane. 

    During the following lap, Cindric was out in front of a four-car breakaway followed by Blaney, Jones and Keselowski while Briscoe, Wallace and the field closed in through Turns 3 and 4. 

    Another three laps later, Kyle Busch shoved Bubba Wallace’s No. 23 McDonald’s Toyota TRD Camry to the lead on the outside lane as Cindric fought back on the inside lane with drafting help from Blaney’s No. 12 Menards Blue DEF Ford Mustang.

    With 35 laps remaining and the field engaged in a duel and close-quarters racing, Wallace, who had Kyle Busch pushing him on the outside lane, battled Cindric, who had teammate Blaney pushing him on the inside lane, for the lead. By then, the top-15 competitors were separated by half a second.

    Five laps later, Wallace and Cindric continued to duel dead even for the lead. Soon after, the inside lane gained a brief advantage as Cindric cleared Wallace to assume full command of the lead followed by Blaney, Erik Jones, Keselowski and Briscoe while Wallace was back in sixth alongside McDowell’s No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops Ford Mustang.

    Another five laps later, the outside lane regained their momentum as Kyle Busch shoved Wallace back to the lead ahead of Cindric. Soon after, Wallace and Kyle Busch cleared the field and moved in front of Cindric’s No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang. By then, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. started to formulate a run for the lead on the outside lane with drafting help from Chris Buescher’s No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang.

    With 20 laps remaining, the battle for the lead and the win continued to intensify as Wallace and Stenhouse engaged in a heated duel for the top spot. While Stenhouse’s No. 47 Kroger Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 had drafting help from Buescher, Wallace continued to fight back on the inside lane with drafting support from Kyle Busch.

    Two laps later, the outside lane prevailed as Stenhouse started to lead a multi-car breakaway followed by Buescher, Larson, Gilliland, Harvick and Erik Jones. The field soon settled in a long single-car line on the outside lane as Wallace was mired back in 11th.

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event and with fuel in question for the front-runners, Stenhouse, who was told he had enough fuel to finish, continued to lead. Then just as the intensity started to crescendo with the competitors fanning out to double lanes, a multi-car wreck erupted just past the start/finish line when Harvick, who got caught up in an accordion effect with Buescher and Larson, slipped sideways off the front nose of Larson’s No. 5 Chevrolet and clipped Gragson, who pounded the inside wall head-on in front of Larson, which destroyed his car. Also involved were Erik Jones, Elliott and rookie Todd Gilliland, who also impacted the inside wall head-on. The wreck was enough for NASCAR to pause the race for approximately five minutes before the field proceeded under caution.

    When the race proceeded under green with six laps remaining, Stenhouse and Cindric engaged in a heated battle for the lead before Cindric started to pull away on the inside lane with drafting help from Blaney. As the field returned to the start/finish line, Stenhouse got turned off the front nose of Keselowski and bounced off of Wallace’s No. 23 Toyota before spinning and slapping the outside wall as Buescher got collected in the carnage. The wreck evaporated Stenhouse’s hopes of winning his first Daytona 500 as he was unable to continue.

    The late incident involving Stenhouse was enough to send the event into overtime. At the start, Cindric jumped with an early advantage and immediately moved in front of teammate Blaney from the outside to the inside lane to retain the lead. Through the back straightaway, Keselowski received a push from Briscoe to try to close in on Cindric on the outside lane. 

    When the white flag waved, Cindric was still leading by a narrow margin over teammate Blaney, Keselowski and the field. Through the first two turns and the back straightaway, Cindric continued to maintain his ground on the inside lane with teammate Blaney settling behind him while Keselowski continued to lurk but not close on the outside lane. 

    Then entering Turns 3 and 4, Cindric started to pull away followed by Blaney and Wallace while Keselowski could not gain drafting help from Briscoe. Entering the frontstretch and the tri-oval, Briscoe then squeezed himself past Keselowski towards the outside wall as Blaney and Wallace mounted a final challenge on Cindric for the win. As Blaney made a move to the outside of Cindric, Cindric blocked Blaney while making slight contact with his Penske teammate. That opened the door for Wallace to pounce, but at the finish line, Cindric edged Wallace by 0.036 seconds to win as another multi-car wreck erupted behind, among which were involved included Blaney and Keselowski.

    With the victory, Cindric, who won in NASCAR’s first points-paying event with the new Next Gen stock cars, became the 41st different competitor to win the Daytona 500 and the ninth to notch a first Cup career victory in the 500 as he delivered the 17th 500 triumph for the Ford nameplate, the first for crew chief Jeremy Bullins and the third for Team Penske and team owner Roger Penske, who turned 85 years old. In addition, Cindric became the 199th different competitor to win in NASCAR’s premier series and the 37th different competitor to achieve a victory across NASCAR’s top three national touring series (Camping World Truck, Xfinity and Cup).

    Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.

    “Oh my god!” Cindric exclaimed on FOX. “You know what makes [winning] better. A packed house! A packed house at the Daytona 500! I’ve got so many people to thank, first and foremost. Roger Penske, happy birthday! Oh my gosh! [I] Appreciate Ryan [Blaney] being a great teammate. Obviously, he wants to win this one. I’m so pumped for Discount Tire, Menards, Ford, everyone who works so hard with this Next Gen car through this whole process. I am so excited. This makes up for losing a [Xfinity] championship last race I did.”

    “I’m surrounded by great people,” Cindric added. “That’s all there is to it. I know there’s gonna be highs and lows being a rookie in a field of drivers this strong. I’m just grateful for the opportunity. [I’m] Excited to climb the mountain we got ahead of us on this No. 2 team. We’re in the Playoffs! That’s one good box check, but oh my gosh! What an awesome group of fans. What an awesome race car. Just really thankful.” 

    Behind Cindric was Wallace, who nursed his car with a damaged right-front fender to tie his best Daytona 500 result with a runner-up result while Briscoe made a late charge to finish third, which marks his first top-five result in the Cup circuit. Blaney fell back to fourth despite getting consumed in the final lap accident while Aric Almirola commenced his final full-time Cup season in fifth place.

    “What could have been, right?” Wallace said. “Just dejected, but the thing that keeps me up is just the hard work that we put into our speedway stuff. The hard work from everybody at 23XI [Racing]. Proud of them. Can’t thank them enough. I knew this was a big move last year for me to go out and be competitive. We’re showing that. There’s always a first race into the season. You’re getting through everything, but when you come out of the gates like that, it’s empowering. It’s encouraging, so thanks to everybody back at the shop. McDonald’s almost got them another [win], back-to-back superspeedway wins. That would’ve been awesome, especially with them being in the 500. Just short…Great Speedweeks, though. We come home second. I’m gonna be pissed off about this for a while. I was happy on the first second-place we got a couple years ago. This one sucks when you’re that close, but all in all, I’m happy for our team. Happy for our partners and on to California.”

    “I needed to be able to get to Brad [Keselowski to win],” Briscoe said. “He was having to drag so much brake for me to be able to help him that I wished I was more help. I felt like if I could’ve just locked on, I could’ve gotten him up there. To be sleeping on couches and volunteering at shops six or seven years ago, and now to have a chance to win the Daytona 500 at the end, to finish third and start the year off with these Mahindra Tractors folks and HighPoint.com, all the people that get us to the race track. We wanna be a Playoff contender this year and having a good run here is a good start. [I] Wished we could’ve had one more lap. You never know what could happen, but yeah, super cool to finish third.”

    “Coming to the restart there for the green-white-checkered, I really had those thoughts like, ‘Man, this is gonna be a storybook ending coming down here for my last full-time season with this team,” Almirola said. “Having Shane [Smith, President and CEO of Smithfield] and so many people from Smithfield here. I felt like I was in a great spot. It still hurts. It’s an awesome feeling. I’m gonna miss that, coming down the white flag lap, feeling like you have a shot to win the Daytona 500. That’s an incredible feeling. Just so proud of Ford for getting to Victory Lane…This is incredible to come here and almost feel like we had a shot at getting it done. Dang it. So close.”

    Kyle Busch, McDowell, Ragan, Keselowski and Elliott finished in the top 10 as 15 competitors finished on the lead lap.

    Truex settled in 13th behind Daniel Hemric, Daniel Suarez ended up in 18th ahead of Kurt Busch and Logano finished 21st ahead of Villeneueve. Stenhouse, Harvick and Larson were scored in 28th, 30th and 32nd after having their opportunities to win the 500 spoiled due to the late carnage.

    There were 36 lead changes for 13 different leaders. The race featured seven cautions for 37 laps.

    Following the first event of the 2022 Cup Series event, Austin Cindric and Brad Keselowski are locked in a tie for the lead in the regular-season standings by five points ahead of Martin Truex Jr., seven over Bubba Wallace and 13 ahead of Chase Briscoe and Ryan Blaney.

    Results.

    1. Austin Cindric, 21 laps led

    2. Bubba Wallace, 12 laps led

    3. Chase Briscoe

    4. Ryan Blaney, 36 laps led

    5. Aric Almirola

    6. Kyle Busch, 28 laps led

    7. Michael McDowell

    8. David Ragan

    9. Brad Keselowski, 67 laps led

    10. Chase Elliott

    11. Ty Dillon

    12. Daniel Hemric

    13. Martin Truex Jr., 11 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

    14. Corey LaJoie

    15. Landon Cassill

    16. Chris Buescher, one lap down

    17. Cody Ware, one lap down

    18. Daniel Suarez, one lap down

    19. Kurt Busch, two laps down

    20. Cole Custer, two laps down

    21. Joey Logano, three laps down, one lap led

    22. Jacques Villeneuve, three laps down

    23. Justin Haley, three laps down

    24. Alex Bowman, four laps down

    25. Austin Dillon, four laps down

    26. Kaz Grala, five laps down

    27. BJ McLeod, five laps down

    28. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – OUT, Accident, 16 laps led

    29. Erik Jones – OUT, Accident, three laps led

    30. Kevin Harvick – OUT, Dvp

    31. Noah Gragson – OUT, Accident

    32. Kyle Larson – OUT, Accident, one lap led

    33. Todd Gilliland – OUT, Accident

    34. Christopher Bell – OUT, Accident

    35. Tyler Reddick – OUT, Accident

    36. Greg Biffle, 65 laps down

    37. Denny Hamlin – OUT, Accident

    38. William Byron – OUT, Accident, one lap led

    39. Harrison Burton – OUT, Accident, three laps led

    40. Ross Chastain – OUT, Accident

    With the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season underway, the competitors will be embarking on a three-race West Coast swing over the next three weeks, beginning with the return of Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California, following a one-year absence. The event is scheduled to occur on Sunday, February 27, at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

  • Austin Hill scores first Xfinity Series career win at Daytona

    Austin Hill scores first Xfinity Series career win at Daytona

    In his first event as a full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series competitor, Austin Hill overtook AJ Allmendinger at the moment of caution due to a harrowing multi-car wreck to win the season-opening Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. 300 at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, February 19, and claim his first Xfinity Series career victory in his 16th series start.

    The 27-year-old Hill from Winston, Georgia, led four times for a total of 23 of the 120-scheduled laps as he made a bold move beneath Allmendinger to emerge out in front and claim the victory in his first event driving the No. 21 Chevrolet Camaro for Richard Childress Racing.

    The starting lineup was determined through a qualifying session earlier in the day. Daniel Hemric, the reigning Xfinity Series champion, started on pole position after posting a pole-winning lap at 182.849 mph. Joining him on the front row was Austin Hill, an Xfinity rookie candidate who qualified with a lap at 182.423 mph. 

    Ronnie Bassett Jr., Natalie Decker, Gray Gaulding, Alex Labbe, Mason Massey, Stefan Parsons, Harrison Rhodes, David Starr and Tim Viens failed to qualify into the 38-car field.

    Prior to the event, Shane Lee, Sam Mayer and Ryan Truex started at the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective machines.

    When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Hemric jumped with an early lead through the first two turns and through the backstraightaway. With the field fanning out to double lanes in the early stages of the event, Hemric led the first lap before he moved to the outside lane to block Sheldon Creed. At the same time, Jade Buford challenged Hemric for the lead, but was unable to clear Hemric as he retained the lead through the following lap.

    Then in Turn 1, Hill pulled his No. 21 Bennett Transportation/United Rentals Chevrolet Camaro beneath Hemric’s No. 11 Athletic Greens Chevrolet as he challenged for the lead. While Hill had teammate Creed behind him, Hemric received drafting support from his new teammate Landon Cassill. 

    Through the first five laps of the event, Hemric and Hill continued to duel for the lead followed by Sheldon Creed, Cassill, Buford, Riley Herbst, Brett Moffitt, Josh Berry, Drew Dollar, Brandon Jones and the field. By then, Anthony Alfredo was black-flagged and was forced to pit to replace a right-side window that fell out of his car.

    Five laps later, Hill was out in front ahead of Hemric, Cassill, Herbst and Gragson. By then, Creed was back in 12th ahead of Brandon Jones. In addition, Ty Gibbs was in 16th and AJ Allmendinger was in 20th.

    On Lap 13, the first caution of the event flew when Drew Dollar got loose in front of Jade Buford entering the backstraightaway and shot his No. 18 Lynx Capital Toyota Supra back across the track into the path of Jeremy Clements as both competitors made hard contact against the outside wall. Behind, Sam Mayer spun, but continued. Under caution, some like Noah Gragson, Justin Allgaier and Allmendinger pitted while the rest led by Hemric remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Gragson was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation.

    When the race restarted under green on Lap 19, Hemric, who restarted with the lead, retained the top spot for a full lap as the field jostled behind for positions. 

    By Lap 25 and with the field fanning out to three lanes through close-quarters racing, Hemric continued to lead ahead of Hill, Herbst, Ty Gibbs and Berry while Allmendinger, Cassill, Allgaier, Brandon Brown and Myatt Snider were in the top 10. By then, Gragson was in 12th behind Brandon Jones, Buford and Mayer were in 14th and 15th and Creed was in 19th in between Brett Moffitt and Kyle Weatherman.

    Then on the final lap of the first stage 1, Hill mounted a challenge on Kaulig Racing’s Hemric and Allmendinger for the first stage victory. Entering Turn 3, Hill briefly got by Allmendinger, but the latter fought back entering the frontstretch. Allmendinger, however, was unable to formulate a charge for the stage victory over his new Kaulig Racing teammate as Hemric claimed the first stage victory on Lap 30. Allmendinger settled in second followed by Herbst, Hill, Gragson, Gibbs, Allgaier, Ryan Sieg, Brandon Brown and Mayer.

    Under the stage break, nearly the entire field led by Hemric pitted and Brown exited first after electing to not have his tires changed. Mayer and Jeb Burton also pitted for only fuel, some like Hill and Gragson pitted for two fresh tires and others like Hemric pitted for four fresh tires. Back on the track, few like Joe Graf Jr. and Ryan Vargas remained on the track. Prior to the restart, Vargas pitted while Graf remained on the track.

    The second stage started on Lap 36 as Graf and Brown occupied the front row. At the start, both competitors dueled for the lead before Brown pulled ahead entering the backstraightaway while Graf slipped out of the top five. 

    By Lap 40, Brown was out in front of a long line of competitors running towards the outside wall while Gragson, Hill, Gibbs and Ryan Sieg were in the top five. Allgaier, Josh Berry, Buford, Herbst and Creed were in the top 10 while Snider, Hemric, Brandon Jones, Allmendinger and Landon Cassill were in the top 15. Graf was back in 16th ahead of Brett Moffitt, rookie Jesse Iwuji, Shane Lee, Josh Bilicki and Jeb Burton while Mayer was in 23rd.

    Ten laps later on Lap 50, Gragson was out in front of the field after he muscled his No. 9 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro into the lead during the previous lap. By then, Ryan Sieg was in second ahead of Hill and Kaulig Racing’s Hemric and Allmendinger. 

    Soon after and as the field began to fan out to multiple lanes towards the front, Hemric and Allmendinger moved up to second and third as Gragson retained the lead. By then, Gibbs emerged in the top five as he formed a second line of competitors running on the inside lane ahead of Hill.

    Through the closing laps of the second stage, the field settled in a long single file line towards the outside wall as Gragson led Hemric, Allmendinger, Brown, Sieg and the field. By then, Gibbs had drifted out of the top 15. 

    Then on the final lap of the second stage, Hemric and Gragson made contact while battling for the lead entering Turns 1 and 2, which sent Gragson nearly sideways before he slipped up the track and out of the draft as the former returned to the lead ahead of Sieg and Mayer. With the field unable to gain a draft for a final mount, Hemric was able to claim the second stage victory on Lap 60, which marked the halfway mark of the event. Sieg settled in second ahead of Mayer, Allmendinger, Allgaier, Brown, Gibbs, Berry, Jones and Herbst while Gragson, who managed to preserve his car from wrecking, fell back to 14th.

    Under the stage break, the field returned to pit road and Hemric retained the lead ahead of teammate Allmendinger following a two-tire pit service. Jones, Gibbs and Gragson exited pit road in the top five. During the pit stops, Jesse Iwuji dropped to the rear of the field due to an uncontrolled tire violation along with Jeb Burton, who had a crew member jump over his pit stall too early. In addition, Allgaier pitted for a second time to address missing lug nuts on his No, 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro.

    With 54 laps remaining, the final stage started under green. At the start, Hemric jumped ahead and pulled in front of teammate Allmendinger to retain the lead while Gibbs mounted a challenge for the lead on the outside lane with drafting help from Sheldon Creed.

    By the next scheduled lap, Gibbs led a lap for himself before Hemric fought back on the inside lane.

    With 50 laps remaining, Hemric was laeding ahead of teammate Allmendinger, Gibbs, Creed and Cassill.

    Four laps later, Kaulig Racing’s Hemric, Allmendinger and Cassill pitted under green. During the following lap, a next wave of competitors, including Mayer, Buford, Creed, Gragson and Hill pitted, but Mayer spun prior to reaching the pit road entrance. Despite the spin, Mayer was able to straighten his car into his pit stall as the race proceeded under green, but he returned not long after for a new bumper cover.

    Down to the final 40 laps of the event and with most of the field having made a pit stop, Josh Bilicki was leading ahead of Matt Mills, Ryan Vargas, Bayley Currey and Josh Williams, all of whom needed to pit, while Shane Lee, CJ McLaughlin, Hill, Gragson and Allmendinger were in the top 10. Cassill, Hemric and Gibbs were in 11th, 12th and 13th ahead of Creed and Brandon Jones.

    Four laps later, the caution returned due to Mayer’s bumper replacement coming off of his car in Turn 4. Under caution, some led by Bilicki pitted while the rest led by Austin Hill remained on the track. Among those who pitted included Hemric, who had all four tires on his car changed due to concerns of flat-spotting his tires.

    With 29 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Hill and Gragson dueled for the lead before Hill received a push from Allmendinger on the inside lane to retain the lead for a full lap. 

    Shortly after, the caution flew when the No. 38 Ford Mustang piloted by CJ McLaughlin got loose entering the frontstretch and came back across the middle of the track, which triggered a multi-car wreck that collected Moffitt, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Iwuji, Lee, Tommy Joe Martins, Joey Gase, Josh Williams, Kyle Weatherman and Hemric.

    With 23 laps remaining, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Hill muscled with an early advantage before he moved up the track entering Turns 1 and 2. This allowed Allmendinger to storm to the lead with drafting help from new teammate Landon Cassill.

    Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Allmendinger continued to lead ahead of teammate Cassill and Hill while Gibbs, Gragson, Jones, Herbst, Allgaier, Buford and Jeb Burton were in the top 10. 

    Three laps later, Hill cleared Allmendinger to control both lanes with the lead as he had drafting help from Gragson and Riley Herbst. 

    With less than 15 laps remaining, Allmendinger returned to the lead as Allgaier charged his way to the front ahead of Hill. Allgaier, however, slipped back into the top 10 as Hill led a parade of competitors running towards the outside lane behind Allmendinger’s No. 16 Nutrien Ag Solutions Chevrolet Camaro.

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Allmendinger remained as the leader followed by Hill, Gragson, Herbst and Creed, who was back in the top five. Snider, Buford, Bilicki, Brown and Allgaier were in the top 10 ahead of Cassill, Jeb Burton, Anthony Alfredo, Gibbs and Sieg.

    With five laps remaining and the top-25 competitors separated by five seconds, Allmendinger led ahead of Hill, Gragson, Herbst and Creed. 

    Then with two laps remaining, Gragson made his move to the front on the inside lane and drew himself alongside Allmendinger as the field fanned out to two lanes and close quarters racing. 

    When the white flag waved and the final lap commenced, Allmendinger continued to lead ahead of Hill, Gragson and the field. Then on the backstraightaway, Hill, who had drafting help from Herbst, made a crossover move beneath Allmendinger to challenge him for the lead. Behind, a multi-car wreck ensued that started when Myatt Snider got bumped and turned off the front bumper of Anthony Alfredo, which he was then hit by a pack of oncoming cars as his car was sent airborne and caught the catchfence while upside down before landing back on the track right-side up and in a shower of sparks with the front and rear ends of the car shredded off. Among those involved in the wreck included Matt Mills, Buford, Martins, Jeb Burton, Cassill and Gibbs.

    The wreck forced NASCAR to declare the event official and conclude under caution. At the moment of caution, Austin Hill was ruled the winner after emerging out in front of Allmendinger.

    The victory made Hill the 171st overall competitor to achieve a win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the 18th to do so while driving for Richard Childress Racing as RCR achieved their first Xfinity victory at Daytona International Speedway since July 2015. This also marked the first time since RCR’s No. 21 car won an Xfinity event since Kevin Harvick made the last accomplishment at Texas Motor Speedway in November 2007.

    In addition, Hill achieved his second NASCAR national touring series victory at Daytona, the track where he achieved his first Camping World Truck Series in 2019, and he became the first Xfinity Series competitor to score a first career victory at Daytona since Noah Gragson made the last accomplishment in 2020.

    “Me and [spotter] Derek Kneeland worked really well tonight,” Hill said on FS1. “I was learning all night. I kept telling him, ‘Hey, I’m putting that in the bank, I’m putting that in the bank. I’m just putting that in the memory bank to remember for late in the race.’ We timed [the pass] perfectly. Obviously, that caution came out, but we had a heck of a run, so who knows what would’ve happened there. I was able to drag back, [Herbst] gave me a heck of a push, we were able to get by [Allmendinger]. This is so crazy. [I] Won [Daytona] back in 2019 with a new team. Now we’re with RCR, first race with them, we were able to get the job done. Our United Rentals Chevrolet was just as fast as Xfinity Internet. Man, I’m speechless. [Crew chief] Andy Street, [team owner] Richard Childress, just all these guys back at RCR for believing in me. It’s been a fun off-season and now we get to go race for a championship.”

    Despite enduring a wild ride on the final lap, Snider emerged uninjured from his battered No. 31 TaxSlayer Chevrolet Camaro and made the mandatory trip to the infield car center, where he was evaluated and released.

    Allmendinger settled in second place while Gragson, Herbst and Allgaier completed the top five on the track. Creed, Alfredo, Ryan Sieg, Josh Bilicki and Brandon Brown finished in the top 10.

    There were 18 lead changes for nine different leaders. The race featured six cautions for 28 laps.

    Following the first event of the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series season, Allmendinger leads the regular season standings by four points over Hill, nine over Herbst and Allgaier, 10 over Sieg and 11 over Gragson.

    Results.

    1. Austin Hill, 23 laps led

    2. AJ Allmendinger, 18 laps led

    3. Noah Gragson, 12 laps led

    4. Riley Herbst

    5. Justin Allgaier

    6. Sheldon Creed

    7. Anthony Alfredo

    8. Ryan Sieg

    9. Josh Bilicki, 10 laps led

    10. Brandon Brown, 12 laps led

    11. Ty Gibbs, three laps led

    12. Ryan Truex

    13. JJ Yeley

    14. Landon Cassill

    15. Jeffrey Earnhardt

    16. Josh Berry, one lap led

    17. Brandon Jones

    18. Ryan Vargas

    19. Jeb Burton

    20. Bayley Currey

    21. Kyle Sieg

    22. Myatt Snider – OUT, Accident

    23. Jade Buford – OUT, Accident

    24. Tommy Joe Martins – OUT, Accident

    25. Matt Mills – OUT, Accident

    26. Joey Gase, one lap down

    27. Jesse Iwuji, two laps down

    28. Daniel Hemric, four laps down, 38 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

    29. Joe Graf Jr., 10 laps down, three laps led

    30. Sam Mayer, 15 laps down

    31. Josh Williams – OUT, Accident

    32. Kyle Weatherman – OUT, Accident

    33. Shane Lee – OUT, Accident

    34. Brett Moffitt – OUT, Accident

    35. CJ McLaughlin – OUT, Accident

    36. Drew Dollar – OUT, Accident

    37. Jeremy Clements – OUT, Accident

    38. Caesar Bacarella – OUT, Engine

    Next on the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is the series’ return to Auto Club Speedway, which also commences a three-week West Coast swing for the series. The event is scheduled to occur on Saturday, March 26, at 5 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Buescher avoids final lap calamity to win second Bluegreen Vacations Duel; Biffle transfers to the Daytona 500

    Buescher avoids final lap calamity to win second Bluegreen Vacations Duel; Biffle transfers to the Daytona 500

    Chris Buescher capped off a perfect day for the newly named Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing by winning the second Bluegreen Vacations Duel at Daytona International Speedway on Thursday, February 17, despite being involved in a last lap incident with Joey Logano that sent Logano hard into the wall and with a wrecked race car leading up to this year’s 64th running of the Daytona 500.

    The second Duel victory awarded Buescher a starting spot on the second row alongside teammate Brad Keselowski in fourth place as he will contend for his first victory in his seventh career start in the Great American Race.

    Prior to the event, Alex Bowman, who claimed a front row starting spot for the 64th running of the Daytona 500, started on the pole and was joined on the front row with Aric Almirola. In addition, Jacques Villeneuve, who locked himself into the 500 based on qualifying speed, fell out of lead lap contention after enduring a throttle cable issue before he could roll his car out on the track for the pace laps.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Bowman assumed an early command with the lead while Almirola challenged Martin Truex Jr. for the runner-up spot on the outside lane.

    By the first lap, Bowman was leading ahead of Truex, who had Joey Logano challenge him on the outside lane with drafting help from rookie Harrison Burton while Almirola lost the draft and drifted towards the rear of the field.

    During the following lap, Logano led by a hair through the tri-oval before Bowman stormed back to the lead on the inside lane in Turn 3 with drafting help from Truex and the competitors lined up on the inside lane.

    By the fifth lap, Bowman was leading ahead of Logano and Truex, both of whom were locked in a side-by-side battle in front of Burton, Denny Hamlin and the field. 

    Three laps later, Logano peaked his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang ahead with the lead. Another two laps later, however, Bowman fought back to lead another lap for himself before Logano assumed full command, beginning on Lap 11.

    By Lap 15, the Dillon brothers moved to the front as Austin Dillon assumed the lead followed by brother Ty. Another two laps later, however, Chris Buescher moved his No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang into the lead before Ricky Stenhouse Jr. led a lap for himself on Lap 18.

    Through the first 20 laps of the event, Buescher was leading ahead of Stenhouse, Kevin Harvick, Michael McDowell Logano while Burton, Austin Dillon, Ty Dillon, Greg Biffle and Kyle Busch were in the top 10. 

    On Lap 26, some competitors that included Kyle Busch, Bubba Wallace, Christopher Bell, Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin pitted under green. In the midst of the pit stops, Hamlin locked up the front tires of his No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry while trying to enter pit road and spun just past the pit road entrance. Despite continuing, he lost the draft with his Toyota teammates and was mired back in 19th place.

    Back on the track, Buescher continued to lead followed by Stenhouse, Harvick, McDowell and Logano. 

    At the halfway mark on Lap 30, Buescher retained the lead ahead of Stenhouse, Harvick, McDowell and Logano. Burton, Austin Dillon, Ty Dillon, Biffle and Kyle Busch were in the top 10. By then, Biffle was in a transfer spot and 12 spots ahead of Timmy Hill, who was also vying for a transfer spot but mired back in 21st place, dead last.

    Two laps later, the next wave of competitors led by Stenhouse pitted under green. Then coming to Lap 34, Buescher pitted as Logano cycled to the lead. In the midst of the pit stops, Biffle endured a long pit stop after his pit crew had issues while trying to get fuel in his car, but he retained a transfer spot for the 500 ahead of Hill and Villeneuve.

    With 20 laps remaining, Logano was leading ahead of Buescher, McDowell and Harrison Burton, all of whom were separated by less three-tenths of a second while fifth-place Stenhouse trailed by less than nine seconds. Harvick, Kyle Busch, Bell, Truex and Bubba Wallace were in the top 10 while Biffle retained a transfer spot in 14th place, six spots ahead of Timmy Hill and seven ahead of Villeneuve.

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Logano continued to lead by a narrow margin over Buescher, McDowell, Harrison Burton and Kyle Busch while Bell, Truex, Wallace, Stenhouse and Harvick were in the top 10. Behind, Biffle was in 14th ahead of Bowman, but in a transfer spot while Hill and Villeneueve were mired back in 20th and 21st.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Logano continued to lead ahead of Buescher, McDowell and Burton as Harvick was lapped. Then entering the backstraightaway, Buescher, who tried to make a move beneath Logano, made contact with Logano as Logano tried to block Buescher’s run, which sent Logano head-on into the outside wall. While Buescher and McDowell bolted to the left to avoid the carnage, Burton made contact with Logano’s damaged No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang, which sent his car spinning while Burton continued. 

    Logano’s wreck ended the event under caution as Buescher crossed the finish line in first place ahead of McDowell and Burton. Shortly after, Buescher was declared the winner of the event following an official review.

    The victory marked Buescher’s first victory in the NASCAR Cup Series since claiming his first career victory at Pocono Raceway during a rain-shortened event and his first career Daytona Speedweeks win.

    “What a way to start Speedweeks out here,” Buescher said on FS1. “To put both [Roush Fenway Keselowski] Ford Mustangs to Victory Lane. To get Fastenal their first win on a Cup car. I know it’s not the big show, but we got a really good hot rod here. Just hats off to everybody back at the shop. I know it’s been a heck of an off-season for everybody at our sport, but we’ve had a lot of changes going on and that’s cool to see it play out…We’re in a good spot here. That’s exciting.”

    Following his wreck, Logano ended the night in ninth place, the first competitor a lap down.

    “I just made a mistake,” Logano, who emerged from the infield care center uninjured, said. “I didn’t think the run would come that quick. It just seemed like it happened really quick. Even watching the replay, it happened quicker than I thought it would. I knew a run was gonna happen at some point on the last lap. I thought that was pretty early…Thought I was still clear and I wasn’t. I apologize to my race team…Just blew it. ”

    McDowell and Burton were scored in second and third while Kyle Busch and teammate Bell finished in the top five. Truex, Wallace and Stenhouse finished sixth, seventh and eighth while Harvick settled in 10th, a lap behind.

    Meanwhile, Greg Biffle finished 13th and raced his way into this year’s 64th running of the Daytona 500 while driving the No. 44 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for NY Racing. With the accomplishment, Biffle will be making his 511th career start in NASCAR’s premier series and contend for his first victory in the Great American Race, which will mark his 15th career start in the 500.

    “It was a tough go,” Biffle said. “I gotta thank Chevy, [Richard Childress Racing], Hendrick engines and [crew chief] Jay Guy. The car drove so good. This was a last minute deal. These team guys thrown together. We had trouble getting fuel in the car. I ran out of gas with two laps to go…Everything happened tonight, but we finished 14th. I’m glad maybe that fuel stop wasn’t perfect because I might’ve been in that wreck [on the final lap]. ”

    Timmy Hill, who finished 20th, failed to qualify for the Daytona 500 while Jacques Villeneuve, who retired in 21st place, dead last, secured the final transfer spot to the 500 based on his qualifying speed. 

    There were 11 lead changes for five different leaders. The race featured one caution for one lap.

    Results.

    1. Chris Buescher, 17 laps led

    2. Michael McDowell

    3. Harrison Burton

    4. Kyle Busch

    5. Christopher Bell

    6. Martin Truex Jr.

    7. Bubba Wallace

    8. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., one lap led

    9. Joey Logano – OUT, Accident, 33 laps led

    10. Kevin Harvick, one lap down

    11. Corey LaJoie, one lap down

    12. Ty Dillon, one lap down

    13. Greg Biffle, one lap down

    14. Alex Bowman, one lap down, seven laps led

    15. Denny Hamlin, one lap down

    16. Cody Ware, one lap down

    17. David Ragan, two laps down

    18. Austin Dillon, two laps led

    19. Aric Almirola, two laps down

    20. Timmy Hill, four laps down

    21. Jacques Villeneuve – OUT, Electrical

    With the starting lineup for the 2022 Daytona 500 established, the main event is set to commence on Sunday, February 20, which will also mark the start of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season. Coverage for the event is scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

  • Keselowski wins first Bluegreen Vacations Duel at Daytona; Grala transfers to the Daytona 500

    Keselowski wins first Bluegreen Vacations Duel at Daytona; Grala transfers to the Daytona 500

    Brad Keselowski commenced a new beginning to his racing career as a driver and co-owner of the newly named Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing on a high note by winning the first Bluegreen Vacations Duel at Daytona International Speedway on Thursday, February 17, following a late battle against his fellow Ford and ex-teammates from Team Penske that included rookie Austin Cindric, Ryan Blaney and Chase Briscoe.

    The first Duel victory awarded Keselowski the third-place starting spot for this year’s 64th running of the Daytona 500 as he will contend for his first victory in the Great American Race in his 13th career start in the 500.

    Prior to the event, Kyle Larson, who claimed the pole position for the 64th running of the Daytona 500, started on the pole for the first Duel event and was joined on the front row with teammate William Byron. Kaz Grala, competing for the non-chartered Money Team Racing that needed to race their way into the Daytona 500, started at the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to have his digital dash fixed in his car.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Larson moved in front of teammate Byron to retain the lead ahead of the field. With the field fanning out to double lanes and in close quarters racing, Larson led the first lap.  

    Behind Larson on the inside lane were his Hendrick Motorsports’ teammates Byron and Chase Elliott while Ross Chastain, who had drafting help from Tyler Reddick, started to mount a challenge for the lead on the outside lane. 

    Through the first 10 scheduled laps, the field settled in a long single file line as Larson continued to lead ahead of teammates Byron and Elliott followed by Daniel Suarez and Ryan Blaney. Brad Keselowski, rookie Austin Cindric, Kurt Busch and Cole Custer were running sixth through ninth while Chastain, who made several attempts to take the lead on the outside lane early, slipped back to 10th place ahead of Reddick, Erik Jones, Chase Briscoe and Kaz Grala. By then, Grala was five positions ahead of J.J. Yeley, who needed to race his way into the Daytona 500, and seven ahead of Noah Gragson, who was guaranteed a starting spot for the 500 based on his qualifying speed.

    Ten laps later on Lap 20, the field continued to run in a long single file line as Larson remained as the leader ahead of teammates Byron and Elliott followed by Suarez, Blaney, Keselowski, Cindric, Kurt Busch, Chastain and Reddick. Grala was back in 18th place ahead of Yeley, B.J. McLeod and Gragson.

    When the field Duel event reached the halfway mark on Lap 30, the 21-car field was broken apart in certain segments with a majority running closely at the front while the rest settled far back at the rear of the field. At the front, Larson retained the lead ahead of teammates Byron and Elliott while Suarez, Blaney, Keselowski, Kurt Busch, Cindric, Erik Jones and Chastain were in the top 10.

    Five laps later, all three non-chartered competitors were scored a lap behind as Grala lost a lap to the leaders while running ahead of Yeley and Gragson.

    Just then, a wave of competitors led by Larson pitted under green while Blaney assumed the lead. Soon after, Blaney, Keselowski, Briscoe and Cindric pitted for two fresh tires as they emerged ahead of the pack. In the midst of the pit stops, Grala was forced to serve a pass-through penalty for speeding on pit road during his service.

    With 20 laps remaining, Blaney was leading ahead of ex-teammate Keselowski, Briscoe and teammate Cindric while Reddick and Kurt Busch were in fifth and sixth. Elliott was in seventh ahead of Erik Jones while Larson was back in ninth ahead of teammate Byron, Chastain, Suarez, rookie Todd Gilliland, Justin Haley, Landon Cassill, Daniel Hemric and Cole Custer. By then, Yeley was in a transfer spot in 18th while Gragson and Grala were mired back in 20th and 21st.

    Five laps later, the top-five competitors led by Blaney were more than five seconds ahead of sixth-place Elliott as Blaney remained as the leader ahead of Keselowski, Briscoe, Cindric and Reddick.

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Blaney continued to lead by a narrow margin over Keselowski while Briscoe, Cindric and Reddick remained in the top five. Elliott continued to trail by less than five seconds in sixth place ahead of Erik Jones, Larson, Kurt Busch and Byron. By then, Yeley was in 18th but in a transfer spot ahead of Grala and Gragson.

    With five laps remaining, the top-four Ford competitors distanced themselves from the rest of the field by less than five seconds as Blaney led Keselowski, Briscoe and Cindric across the start/finish line.

    Then during the following lap, Keselowski made a bold move on the outside lane past the tri-oval to take the lead followed by Briscoe while Blaney and Cindric fell back to third and fourth. Blaney and Cindric, however, returned the favor by overtaking Briscoe to move back to second and third during the following lap as Keselowski made his way past three lapped competitors. 

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Keselowski continued to lead despite being pressured by Blaney, who was drafting Keselowski through the first two turns. Then through the backstraightaway, Cindric and Briscoe made their move to pass Blaney and close in on Keselowski for the lead entering Turns 3 and 4. Entering Turn 4, however, Briscoe made a move on Cindric for the runner-up spot, which allowed Keselowski to pull away from his fellow Ford competitors as he crossed the finish line to win by more than two-tenths of a second.

    The victory was Keselowski’s first in a Daytona Duel event and his first as a co-owner and competitor of the newly named No. 6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford Mustang team as he will occupy the inside line on the second row for this year’s Daytona 500. 

    “I felt pretty good about our car on practice on Tuesday,” Keselowski said on FS1. “I gotta give credit to the other Fords. We worked really well together. Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe, Austin [Cindric]. We had a great strategy. We stuck together and we drove away. Got ourselves in position where we could control the finish of this race. I’m happy to see all those Fords upfront. Good job to all those guys. Great start for our Kohler Generators Ford team! This is special.”

    Behind, Cindric edged Blaney and Briscoe in a photo finish to finish second while Elliott settled in fifth place, trailing by more than two seconds. Erik Jones, Larson, Reddick, Kurt Busch and Chastain rounded out the top 10 on the track.

    Meanwhile, Kaz Grala managed to track down Yeley and overtake him on the final lap while two laps behind to finish 18th and earn a transfer spot in this year’s Daytona 500, which will mark the first NASCAR Cup Series start for the Money Team Racing co-owned by former boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. The accomplishment will allow Grala to make his fifth career start in NASCAR’s premier series and his second in a row in the Daytona 500.

    Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.

    “I made it happen not the way I wanted to,” Grala said. “I made a mistake. I sped on pit road and I thought we were out of it, but I wasn’t gonna give up no matter what. We got into a little line in there with Kurt Busch pushing us and we were running fast lap times, and I was hoping the timing was gonna work out. It wasn’t by much, but it did. We caught them in [Turns] 1 and 2 on the very last lap and was able to get by [Yeley] for it. [I] Pulled a couple years off my life, but it doesn’t matter because we’re gonna be out there on Sunday and we got a shot to win the Daytona 500. I’m really grateful, I’m excited for the Money Team Racing. Floyd Mayweather’s car is gonna be out there, making its debut, and I’m really, really grateful to be the one holding the wheel. We’re gonna have fun. This is gonna be a fun ride together all year with them and I can’t wait to get it started.”

    Yeley, who ended up in 19th place, failed to qualify for this year’s Daytona 500 while Gragson, who settled in 21st place, dead last, made the 500 based on his qualifying speed.

    There were two lead changes for three different leaders. The race featured no cautions.

    Results.

    1. Brad Keselowski, four laps led

    2. Austin Cindric

    3. Ryan Blaney, 22 laps led

    4. Chase Briscoe

    5. Chase Elliott

    6. Erik Jones

    7. Kyle Larson, 34 laps led

    8. Tyler Reddick

    9. Kurt Busch

    10. Ross Chastain

    11. Daniel Suarez 

    12. William Byron

    13. Justin Haley

    14. Landon Cassill

    15. Todd Gilliland

    16. Cole Custer, one lap down

    17. Daniel Hemric, one lap down

    18. Kaz Grala, two laps down

    19. J.J. Yeley, two laps down

    20. B.J. McLeod, two laps down

    21. Noah Gragson, three laps down

    The second Bluegreen Vacations Duel is underway at Daytona International Speedway, which will complete the starting lineup for the 64th annual running of the Daytona 500 scheduled for Sunday, February 20, at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX.