This weekend the NASCAR Cup Series will make its debut at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway before a sold-out crowd. The Camping World Truck Series will join them for the series’ 22nd race at the 1.25-mile paved oval.
There are only five open spots available for the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs. Denny Hamlin, William Byron and Ross Chastain are the only drivers with multiple wins in the series, with two victories each.
The Xfinity Series will travel to Portland International Raceway, a 1.97-mile paved road course, for the first time, and NASCAR has instituted new caution and pit road procedures for this race as seen below.*
There have been 19 different Truck Series race winners at Gateway. But only one former winner, John Hunter Nemechek (2017), is entered in Saturday’s Toyota 200.
All times are Eastern.
Friday, June 3 Portland: 1:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice – All Entries – No TV 8:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Impound) (Groups A & B) (Multi-Vehicle, Two Rounds) FS1 Gateway: 5:05 p.m.: Cup Series Practice – Gateway – FS1/MRN/SiriusXM 6:05 p.m.: Truck Series Practice – Gateway – FS1 6:35 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying – Gateway – FS1 Saturday, June 4 Gateway: 11 a.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Impound) (Groups A & B) (Single Vehicle, 1 Lap, 2 Rounds) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM 1:30 p.m.: Truck Series ‘Toyota 200’ race Stages end on 35/70/160 (160 Laps=200 Miles) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM The Purse: $696,198 Portland: 2:30 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series West Practice/Qualifying – No TV 4:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series ‘Pacific Office Automation 147’ race Stages end on 25/50/75 (75 Laps = 147.75 Miles) The Purse: $1,258,443 FS1/MRN/SiriusXM 7:30 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series West Portland 100 (57 Laps, 112.29 Miles) FloRacing/MRN
Sunday, June 5 Gateway: 3:30 p.m. Cup Series ‘Enjoy Illinois 300 Presented by TicketSmarter’ race Stages end on 45/140/240 (240 Laps = 300 Miles) The Purse: $7,013,085 FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
*General Procedure Rules for Xfinity Series at Portland
The field will be frozen at the time of caution
All caution periods will be Quickie Yellows (when Pit Road has opened, ALL cars may pit)
Fuel may only be added during the stage breaks
Tires may be changed at any time during the event
Stage Break Pit Stops
Stage breaks will consist of a THREE-minute break
NASCAR Officials will announce the start of the THREE-minute break after the last vehicle has stopped in their pit stall
No crew members on pit road until all cars are stopped and NASCAR has announced the start of the break
Fuel may not be added and tires may not be changed at the same time
Tires must be changed first, then fuel may be added
The lap in which pit road is open during the stage breaks will not count
Teams that elect not to pit will stop behind the caution vehicle until the conclusion of the break
Green Flag Pit Stop
Green flag pit stops, where tires are changed, must not be completed faster than the minimum time allotted from yellow line to yellow line: 60 seconds minimum
In the event of flat tire(s) under green flag: If the tire(s) are visually flat when the vehicle enters pit road, the team may elect to change the flat tire(s) only and not be subject to the minimum time on pit road
Restart Lineup (During stage breaks and all caution periods)
Lead lap Cars that did not pit (Using Freeze the Field at Time of Caution)
Lead lap Cars that pitted (Using Freeze the Field at Time of Caution)
Lap(s) down Cars that did not pit (Using Freeze the Field at Time of Caution)
Lap(s) down Cars that pitted (Using Freeze the Field at Time of Caution)
Free Pass, Wave Around, and Penalty Cars (Using Freeze the Field at Time of Caution)
Pit Stop Penalties
Restart Tail End:
Servicing the vehicle before the THREE-minute break has started
Servicing the vehicle after the THREE-minute break has ended
Vehicles not in the correct restart position when the one to go is given at Turn 8
Pass-Through:
Not meeting the green flag minimum time limit on pit road
Pit Crew/Pit Equipment
The Pit Crew Members will consist of:
Road crew roster positions
Five (5) Crew Members to service and fuel the vehicle (excluding the stage breaks)
One (1) Driver Assist Crew Member to clean the windshield and assist the driver
All pit crew safety equipment is required during any pit stops (excluding the stage breaks)
Any compressed air-driven pneumatic pit gun or battery-operated electric pit gun may be used.
1. Kyle Busch: Busch suffered several spins at Charlotte, but attrition and a big crash in the first overtime restart opened the door for Busch to contend for the win. He finished second to Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin.
“I was frustrated for most of the race,” Busch said. “But when the going gets tough, you can do one of two things–either stay positive and hope for the best, or whine, complain, and moan and pray you get lucky. I chose the latter.”
2. Ross Chastain: Chastain ran up front consistently, winning Stage 3, and was in line for a certain top-five finish before being collected in an accident after the first overtime restart. Chastain finished 15th.
“I’m disappointed,” Chastain said. “Luckily, I already have two wins this season. I come from a family of watermelon farmers. So, qualifying for the NASCAR playoffs is important to me and my family. The last thing we want is for me to be ‘seedless’ once the post-season starts.”
3. Kyle Larson: Larson found trouble on many occasions early at Charlotte, but bounced back and was leading with a lap to go when Chase Briscoe lost control while chasing Larson, bringing out a caution. Larson spun on an overtime restart, and eventually finished ninth.
“Let’s see,” Larson said. “I wrecked in Saturday practice, had two equipment violations during Sunday’s race, hit the wall twice, had a fire in the pits, and spun a few times. Just a disastrous weekend. Heck, I don’t know what to say. I do know what not to say.”
4. Chase Elliott: Elliott won Stage 1 and led 86 laps, but a spin on lap 186 caused damage when he hit the wall. Elliott retired on Lap 193 and finished 33rd.
“I wasn’t around for all of it,” Elliott said, “but that race lasted more than five hours. To put that into perspective, it lasted as long as what Michael Waltrip’s ‘Grid Walk’ feels like.”
5. Alex Bowman: Bowman finished 10th at Charlotte.
“You saw an abundance of tire issues at Charlotte,” Bowman said. “There were blown tires, flat tires, runaway tires, and if you looked in the stands, plenty of spare tires.”
6. Ryan Blaney: Blaney got loose and tapped the wall on Lap 164, then lost control and triggered a big pileup on Lap 191, which involved 12 cars. Blaney finished 29th.
“I won $1,000,000 in the All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway,” Blaney said. “So, much like in Texas, I cost several drivers $1,000,000 at Charlotte.”
7. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex finished 12th at Charlotte.
“The Sunday before Memorial Day is the greatest day in auto racing,” Truex said. “You can wake up to the Monaco Grand Prix, have lunch with the Indianapolis 500, and get put to sleep by the Coca-Cola 600.”
8. Joey Logano: Logano finished 20th in the Coca-Cola 600.
“Like many other drivers,” Logano said, “I got taken out by a driver who made a dumb mistake. Charlotte was the long-time home of NASCAR’s All-Star Race. As you saw in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600, the drivers in NASCAR are not all-stars. Some are scrubs.”
9. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin started on the pole at Charlotte, but faded quickly and was not much of a factor until a big wreck on an overtime restart left Hamlin with the lead. Hamlin battled Kyle Busch in the second overtime and edged his teammate by 0.014 seconds.
“That crash on the first overtime restart damaged the cars of a lot of contenders,” Hamlin said. “So, I have to thank Austin Dillon for ‘going for ‘broke.’”
10. William Byron: Byron was a victim of a Lap 191 crash triggered by Ryan Blaney, who lost control near the apron and veered into traffic. Byron’s day was done, and he finished 32nd.
“Six hundred miles is a long way,” Byron said. “It’s a physically draining race for the drivers, but even more mentally draining, especially for the fans who have to watch it.”
In one of stock car’s longest events on Memorial Day weekend spanning more than five hours and mired with a bevy of cautions and on-track carnages, Denny Hamlin survived two overtime attempts to storm to the lead and fend off teammate Kyle Busch to win the Coca-Cola 600 victory of this season at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 29.
The 41-year-old Hamlin from Chesterfield, Virginia, led four times for 15 of 413 over-scheduled laps and was able to assume the lead during the first of two overtime attempts just as a multi-car wreck ensued behind him on the frontstretch. Then during the second overtime attempt, he came out on top over a late battle with teammate Kyle Busch, including overtaking and clearing his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate on the final lap, before having enough horsepower to cross the finish line in first place and claim his first 600 triumph.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, Denny Hamlin notched his first pole position of the season after clocking in a pole-winning lap at 183.680 mph in 29.399 seconds. Joining him on the front was Kurt Busch, who clocked in a qualifying lap at 183.661 mph in 29.402 seconds.
Prior to the event, Kyle Larson, Aric Almirola, Cole Custer, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kaz Grala dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective cars. In addition, Corey LaJoie started at the rear of the field in a backup car.
When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Hamlin launched ahead with the lead on the outside lane through Turn 1 before Kurt Busch drew himself in a side-by-side battle against his owner. As the field returned to the start/finish line, Hamlin managed to lead the first lap by a hair before Kurt Busch issued another early challenge for the lead.
During the following lap, Kurt Busch managed to edge Hamlin to lead the following lap before Hamlin returned the favor during the following lap. Then by the fourth lap, Hamlin managed to pull his No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry ahead of Busch’s No. 45 Monster Energy Toyota TRD Camry to clear the field for the lead while Kyle Busch was in third. Behind, Bubba Wallace muscled his way into third place ahead of William Byron, Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Kyle Busch, who overtook teammate Hamlin for the lead during the previous lap, was leading followed by Bubba Wallace, Reddick and Byron while Kurt Busch, Daniel Suarez, Bell, Martin Truex Jr. and Alex Bowman. Rookie Austin Cindric was back in 11th ahead of Chase Elliott, Chase Briscoe, Ryan Blaney, Michael McDowell, Austin Dillon, Ross Chastain, Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano and Erik Jones while Kyle Larson was up in 21st ahead of Justin Haley, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ryan Preece, Chris Buescher and rookie Harrison Burton.
Seven laps later, the first caution of the event flew when Ryan Preece spun entering Turn 4 on the outside lane. Just behind, Buescher and Noah Gragson spun separately to avoid Preece with Buescher making contact with Preece. By then, Kyle Busch was leading by more than a second over Bubbaa Wallace followed by Reddick and Byron while Hamlin and Kurt Busch slipped back to fifth and eighth, respectively. In addition, Kyle Larson was up to 18th.
Under caution, the leaders led by Kyle Busch pitted for the first time Kyle Busch, Byron, Reddick, Hamlin, Suarez and Wallace. Following the pit stops, Martin Truex Jr. was penalized for speeding on pit road. In addition, rookie Todd Gilliland was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 22, Kyle Busch rocketed his No. 18 M&M’s Toyota TRD Camry away with the lead while Reddick and Byron battled for the runner-up spot. Not long after, Wallace made his way into third place over Reddick and Hamlin while Larson was trying to work his way into the top 15.
By Lap 30, Kyle Busch was leading by half a second over Wallace followed by Byron, Reddick and Hamlin while Chase Elliott, Daniel Suarez, Bell, Kurt Busch and Bowman were in the top 10.
Two laps later, the caution returned when Josh Bilicki spun in Turn 3. Under caution, some led by Byron pitted while the rest led by Kyle Busch remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Larson was penalized for removing equipment out of his pit box.
When the race proceeded under green on Lap 38, Kyle Busch and Wallace battled for the lead as the field fanned out through the backstretch with fourth-place Briscoe briefly losing momentum in the top five.
Two laps later, Wallace led a lap for himself before Kyle Busch cleared Wallace’s No. 23 McDonald’s Toyota TRD Camry to assume full control of the field.
Another three laps later, Suarez, who overtook Wallace a few laps ago for the runner-up spot and was gaining ground on Kyle Busch, made a move beneath Busch as he issued his challenge for the lead from the fronstretch to Turn 1. Then as Suarez just emerged ahead while pinning Kyle Busch towards the Turn 1 outside wall, Busch slipped sideways and spun through Turn 2 without sustaining any damage as the caution flew.
Under caution, some who did not pit under the previous caution like Wallace and Kyle Busch pitted while the rest led by Suarez remained on the track.
As the race proceeded under green on Lap 50, Suarez launched ahead on the outside lane to retain the lead while Hamlin battled Bowman for the runner-up spot in front of Byron, Elliott and Reddick.
By Lap 60, Suarez was leading by more than two seconds over Bowman followed by Elliott, Byron and Hamlin while Cindric, Reddick, Kurt Busch, Ryan Blaney and Truex were in the top 10. Meanwhile, Larson was in 12th behind Joey Logano while Ross Chastain, Bell and Buescher were in the top 15.
A lap later, the caution returned when Corey LaJoie got loose, spun and backed his car against the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2, a wreck that was reminiscent of Saturday’s practice session and was enough to eliminate him from the event. During the caution period, the leaders led by Suarez pitted and Elliott exited with the top spot followed by Byron, Bowman, Suarez and Reddick. Following the pit stops, Larson, who got into the wall during the previous restart, was penalized for a second time due to an equipment interference along with Justin Haley. In addition, Cindric made another pit stop to ensure that the wheels on his car were tightened.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 67, teammates Elliott and Byron dueled for the lead for half a lap until Elliott managed to pull his No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 ahead of Byron’s No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 while Suarez was in third place in his No. 99 CommScope Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Behind, Bowman was in fourth while Reddick overtook Hamlin for a spot in the top five.
Through the first 75 scheduled laps, Elliott was leading by a tenth of a second over Byron followed by Reddick, Bowman and Suarez while Chastain, Bell, Hamlin, Blaney and Wallace were in the top 10. Kurt Busch was mired in 11th ahead of Logano, Stenhouse, Austin Dillon, Truex, Aric Almirola, Erik Jones, Chris Buescher, Chase Briscoe and Gilliland while Larson, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch were mired outside of the top 25.
Fifteen laps later, Elliott continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over Reddick while Byron, Bell and Chastain were in the top five as Bowman fell back to sixth. Behind, Wallace worked his way back to seventh followed by Blaney, Truex and Stenhouse.
On Lap 93, Byron got loose entering the backstretch and fell off the pace due to a flat tire, but he continued to run on the track as the race remained under green.
When the first stage concluded on Lap 100, Elliott captured his third stage victory of the season over Reddick, who settled in second followed by Bell, Chastain, Wallace, Blaney, Stenhouse, Truex, Bowman and Hamlin. By then, Byron was in 11th and Kyle Busch was in 17th while Larson and Suarez were mired back in 28th and 29th.
Under the stage break, the leaders led by Elliott pitted and Elliott retained the lead after exiting with the lead followed by Bell, Wallace, Chastain, Truex and Blaney. Following the pit stops, Kevin Harvick pitted again to address a steering issue.
The second stage started on Lap 107 as Elliott and Bell occupied the front row. At the start, Elliott received a draft from Chastain to retain the lead while Chastain and Bell duked for the runner-up spot. With Chastain making his way into the runner-up spot over Bell, Wallace and Blaney battled in the top five while Truex was in sixth.
On Lap 110, Chastain muscled his No. 1 Advent Health Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 into the lead following a brief battle with Elliott while Bell, Wallace and Blaney remained in the top five. Behind, Hamlin was in seventh followed by Byron and Stenhouse, Kyle Busch was in 11th ahead of Reddick, Logano was in 17th behind teammate Cindric and Larson was back in 20th in between Stewart-Haas Racing’s Aric Almirola and Briscoe.
By Lap 125, Chastain was leading by half a second over Elliott followed by Bell, Wallace and Blaney while Truex, Byron, Hamlin, Reddick and Stenhouse were in the top 10.
Just then, the caution flew when Wallace spun through the Turn 4 infield and he was quick to nurse his car to his pit stall with the right-front tire flat. During the caution period, the leaders returned to pit road as Elliott retained the top spot after exiting in first.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 131, Elliott and Chastain dueled for the lead until Elliott retained the lead as the field behind scrambled for positions.
On Lap 145, the caution returned when Cindric blew a left-rear tire and backed his No. 2 Menards Ford Mustang hard into the Turn 3 outside wall. During the caution period, nearly the entire field led by Elliott returned to pit road and Elliott exited with the top spot followed by Chastain, Kurt Busch, Truex, Reddick and Erik Jones while Blaney and Larson remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Bell was penalized due to a crew member jumping over the wall too soon while Stenhouse and Gilliland were penalized for speeding on pit road.
On Lap 151, the race proceeded under green as Blaney and Larson occupied the front row. At the start, Blaney held a brief advantage through the first two turns until Elliott muscled his way back into the lead through Turns 3 and 4. With Elliott checking out, Chastain moved back into the runner-up spot followed by Blaney, Kurt Busch and Reddick while Larson fell back to sixth.
By Lap 160, Elliott was leading by seven-tenths of a second over Chastain while Kurt Busch, Blaney, Reddick, Briscoe, Logano, Suarez, Hamlin and Larson were in the top 10. By then, Harvick, Kyle Busch, Byron, Erik Jones and Michael McDowell were in the top 15 while Bowman was in 16th. By then, Brad Keselowski was in the top 20 while Wallace was in 22nd behind Austin Dillon.
Then on Lap 165, the caution flew when Larson got loose and spun his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through the Turn 4 infield as he was dodged by Harvick. Under caution, some led by Blaney pitted while the rest led by Elliott remained on the track.
When the race proceeded under green on Lap 170, Chastain used the inside lane to his advantage as he cleared Elliott to lead while Kurt Busch, Reddick, Briscoe and Suarez battled towards the front. Soon after, Trackhouse Racing’s Chastain and Suarez battled for the lead with the former retaining the top spot.
At the Lap 175 mark, Chastain was leading by nearly three-tenths of a second over teammate Suarez while Elliott, Briscoe and Kurt Busch were in the top five. Reddick was in sixth ahead of Logano, Byron and Hamlin while Buescher and Truex challenged spots in the top 10.
Eleven laps later, the caution flew when Elliott got loose and briefly touched the outside wall between Turns 1 and 2 before he spun through the Turn 4 infield. Under caution, some led by Kurt Busch while the rest led by Chastain remained on the track.
With nine laps remaining in the second stage, the race restarted under green and Chastain took off with the lead ahead of Suarez and Briscoe. Shortly after, however, the caution returned when Blaney hit the apron, got loose and spun as he ignited a multi-car wreck that collected Kurt Busch, Keselowski, McDowell, Byron, Harvick, Hamlin, Gragson, Truex, Harrison Burton, Gilliland and Wallace.
Following an extensive cleanup, the race restarted under green with four laps remaining in the second stage. At the front, teammates Chastain and Suarez battled for the lead until Suarez managed to pull ahead through Turns 3 and 4. Behind, Erik Jones was in third place followed by Briscoe and Stenhouse.
When the second stage concluded on Lap 200, Suarez managed to fend off teammate Chastain and Erik Jones to captured his second stage victory of the season. Chastain held off Erik Jones to settle in second followed by Briscoe, Stenhouse, Logano, Harvick, Reddick, Truex and Bell.
During the stage break, the race was placed on a brief hiatus and the NASCAR community paused for a moment of silence to pay tribute in remembrance of the fallen servicemen and women on Memorial Day weekend. When the field returned to pit road for service, Suarez retained the lead after exiting with the top spot followed by Chastain, Briscoe, Erik Jones, Reddick and Harvick. Back on the track, however, names like Logano, Kyle Busch, Truex, Hamlin and Bell chose to restart at the front without pitting.
The third stage started on Lap 208 as Logano and Truex, both of whom did not pit, occupied the front row. At the start, Logano rocketed his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang clear of the field with the lead while teammates Kyle Busch and Truex battled for the runner-up spot ahead of Hamlin and Chastain while Bell slipped to sixth.
Six laps later, Suarez reassumed the lead over Logano as he brought teammate Chastain with him. Behind, Briscoe overtook Truex for fifth while Kyle Busch was in fourth.
Then on Lap 220, the caution flew when Harvick, who was just overtaken by Stenhouse for 11th place, got loose and scraped the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2, an incident that prompted Harvick to express his displeasure to Stenhouse under caution. Soon after, some led by Suarez returned to pit road for service while the rest led by Chastain remained on the track.
Another four laps later, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Chastain retained the lead ahead of Logano while Briscoe, Kyle Busch and Bell occupied the top five.
By Lap 235, Chastain extended his advantage to nearly two seconds over Logano while Briscoe, Suarez and Kyle Busch were in the top five. Bell was in sixth ahead of Stenhouse, Hamlin, Reddick and Noah Gragson while Larson was in 11th ahead of Harvick, Truex, Buescher, McDowell and Erik Jones.
At the Lap 250 mark, Chastain continued to lead by more than half a second over teammate Suarez while Briscoe, Logano, Bell, Kyle Busch Stenhouse, Hamlin, Reddick and Harvick were in the top 10. Meanwhile, Larson and Truex remained in the top 15 while Erik Jones, Austin Dillon and Almirola were running in the top 20.
Two laps later, Suarez overtook teammate Chastain to return to the lead. Not long after, however, the caution flew when Gragson spun his No. 16 Charlotte Knights Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through the Turn 4 infield. Under caution, the leaders led by Suarez pitted and Chastain reassumed the lead upon exiting pit road ahead of Briscoe, Reddick, Buescher, Hamlin, Stenhouse and the field. Following the pit stops, Kyle Busch was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation.
When the race resumed under green on Lap 258, Chastain cleared the field entering the first turn to lead ahead of Briscoe and Reddick. Two laps later, however, Briscoe hustled his No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Ford Mustang to the lead from Turns 3 and 4, but Chastain returned the favor and cleared Briscoe for the lead during the following lap. While Chastain, Briscoe and Reddick battled for the lead, Larson rallied his way up to fifth behind Buescher.
By Lap 275, Chastain continued to lead by more than a second over Briscoe and Larson while Reddick and Hamlin were in the top five. Suarez was in sixth followed by Buescher, Logano, Cole Custer and Stenhouse. Prior to this, Bell made a pit stop under green after suffering a flat tire and falling off the pace.
With 10 laps remaining in the third stage, Chastain remained as the leader by a healthy margin over Briscoe while Kyle Busch pitted under green due to an issue to the right rear of Busch’s car.
When the third stage concluded on Lap 300, Chastain captured his fourth stage victory of the season. Briscoe settled in second, trailing by more than two seconds, while Larson, Reddick, Suarez, Logano, Custer, Buescher, Austin Dillon and Hamlin were scored in the top 10.
Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Reddick exited with the top spot followed by Chastain, Larson, Briscoe, Custer and Buescher.
With 93 laps remaining, the final stage commenced. At the start, Reddick took off with the lead on the inside lane in front of Chastain while Custer and Larson battled for third place.
With 77 laps remaining, the battle for the lead ignited as Chastain dueled and overtook Reddick for the lead through the fronstretch.
Nearing the final 60 laps of the event, the caution flew due to debris in Turn 1 when Reddick cut a left-tire tire as he limped his No. 8 Cheddar’s Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 back to pit road. At the moment of caution, Chastain was leading by more than two seconds over Larson while Suarez, Briscoe and Custer were in the top five.
Under caution, the leaders led by Chastain pitted as Chastain retained the lead followed by Larson, Briscoe, Custer, Austin Dillon and Bell.
Down to the final 55 laps of the event, the race restarted under green as Chastain and Larson occupied the front row. At the start, Chastain managed to pull away from Larson and the field to retain the lead.
Then as the field made its way to the frontstretch, the caution flew for a major wreck when Suarez, who made the slightest of contact in front of Briscoe, got loose and slipped sideways in front of the field. As the field scattered, he was hit by Todd Gilliland and Buescher, who looped around the frontstretch grass before his No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang went airborne and barrel rolled multiple times before coming to rest on his roof. Despite the incident, all competitors, including Buescher, emerged uninjured.
Following a red flag period of 11 minutes, the race restarted under green with 48 laps remaining. At the start, Chastain took the lead before Larson muscled his way to the front two laps later. Another lap later, Briscoe made his way into the runner-up spot as he went to work to pursue Larson for the lead.
With 40 laps remaining, Larson was leading by nearly eight-tenths of a second over Briscoe while Chastain, Logano and Hamlin occupied the top five.
Ten laps later, Larson extended his advantage to more than a second over Briscoe while Chastain, Hamlin and Custer were in the top five. Behind, Logano fell back to sixth ahead of Kyle Busch, Bell, Erik Jones and Austin Dillon.
Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Larson continued to lead while runner-up Briscoe only trailed by six-tenths of a second. Chastain, Hamlin and Custer remained in the top five ahead of Logano, Bell, Kyle Busch, Erik Jones and Austin Dillon while Truex, Harvick, Almirola, Stenhouse, McDowell, Ty Dillon and Harrison Burton were scored on the lead lap.
Five laps later, Briscoe cut the deficit down to two-tenths of a second over Larson with the latter still leading while the former kept the leader within his sight.
Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Larson retained the lead by three-tenths of a second over Briscoe while third-place Chastain trailed by more than two seconds. Behind, Hamlin and Custer remained in the top five.
With five laps remaining, the battle for the lead ignited as Briscoe closed in and challenged Larson for the top spot. As both went dead even when the field returned to the frontstretch, Briscoe tried to squeeze himself ahead, but Larson retained the lead on the outside lane.
Then with two laps remaining, the caution flew when Briscoe, who made another move beneath Larson in another bid for the lead, got loose and spun from the outside wall to below the apron in Turn 1 as he punctured his tires. Briscoe’s incident was enough for the event to be sent into overtime as Chastain, Hamlin, Custer and Logano moved into the top five.
Under caution, the leaders led by Larson pitted as Larson, Chastain, Logano and Stenhouse opted for a two-tire pit stop while the rest took four tires.
At the start of the first overtime attempt, Larson and Chastain dueled dead even for the lead entering the first turn until Larson cleared the field entering the backstretch. As the field fanned out and scrambled for positions, Austin Dillon suddenly bolted his way towards the front and was able to draw himself even with Larson in a bid for the lead through Turn 3.
Then entering the frontstretch, Chastain and Hamlin drew Larson and Austin Dillon into a four-wide battle for the lead until Dillon made contact with Larson and spun in the middle of the field as he made contact with the wall. In the process, Larson, Logano and Chastain clipped one another and were sent spinning and sliding sideways along with Custer, Truex and Stenhouse while Hamlin escaped with the lead followed by Chastain, Kyle Busch, Harvick, Stenhouse and McDowell. With the wreck occurring just before the final lap could initiate, the field was sent into another overtime attempt.
At the start of the second overtime attempt, Hamlin rocketed with the lead on the inside lane and was quickly pressured by teammate Kyle Busch for the lead while Chastain was losing ground and speed due to suffering front-nose damage from the previous incident.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, teammates Kyle Busch and Hamlin dueled for the lead dead even until Hamlin managed to pull ahead through Turns 1 and 2. Though Kyle Busch kept Hamlin close to his front bumper, he could not execute a final lap pass for the win as Hamlin claimed the checkered flag by 0.119 seconds to win for the first time at Charlotte and in the Coca-Cola 600 in his illustrious Cup career.
In addition, Hamlin notched his second victory of the season since winning at Richmond Raceway in early April, thus becoming the third multi-winner of this year’s Cup season, and his 48th career win in the NASCAR Cup Series, which placed him in a tie with the late NASCAR Hall of Famer Herb Thomas for 16th place on the all-time wins list in the sport’s premier series. Since winning at Richmond in April, Hamlin had finished no higher than fourth during the following seven events prior to the 600. Mired during the seven-race span were four results outside of the top 20.
Photo by Ted Seminara for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“It’s so special,” Hamlin, who became the newest winner of the 600 since Kyle Larson won it a year ago, said on FOX. “It’s the last big one that’s not on my resume. It meant so much. Man, [I] Can’t thank this whole FedEx team enough. I’ve been a Coke Family driver for 18 years and never have won the Coke 600 before, so this means a lot. Man, we weren’t very good all day and just got ourselves in the right place at the right time. What a battle there.”
Teammate Kyle Busch rallied from his early spin and late pit road penalty to finish in the runner-up spot while Harvick, who endured steering issues and a handful of on-track incidents, came home in third place.
“We didn’t have a good enough day to even be in that position,” Busch said. “Just a strong fight all night long by this M&M’s team and give honor to those that we remember here on Memorial Day weekend. Appreciate the opportunity of being able to do that. We had [U.S. Army] St. [William R.] Theim on [the car] this weekend. [I] Tried to come out with Victory Lane and honor them, but unfortunately, one spot short.”
“That was not pretty,” Harvick said. “I think we went to the back eight times tonight, so everybody on our Mobil 1 Ford Mustang did a good job battling. We didn’t necessarily do a good job with everything else, but in the end, came home with a third-place finish. I knew this race was just gonna be a battle of attrition and forever. Almost six hours. ”
Following his late spin, Briscoe made a late charge to finish fourth, five spots ahead of Larson as Larson rallied from his wreck during the first overtime attempt for a top-10 result while Bell rallied from a late unscheduled pit stop to finish fifth.
“I was driving 110 percent,” Briscoe said. “I should’ve been only running 90 to 100. I just overstepped. It’s a crown jewel race and it was dangling right there in front of me. I tried too hard. Plain and simple. I was able to drive it in so much farther than Kyle [Larson] almost every time into [Turn] 1. I felt like I went to the same mark I had been. As soon as I went in there, I just got super loose…I saw a Coke 600 win right there in front of me, went for it and obviously, overstepped. To have speed like that’s really good. Wished we could’ve gotten the Mahindra Tractors Ford in Victory Lane, but we were fast and I guess that’s all that matters.”
“Long race, thankfully,” Larson said. “The first half was a struggle for all of us, but I was especially frustrated with myself. To rebound from that and have a shot to win there late was something to be proud of. Our team fought really hard, so happy with that. Briscoe’s really good that long run there. [I] Wished we would’ve been just a little bit better so he never would’ve gotten to me to work really hard and ultimately, spin. You’re kind of gambling on tire stuff there. We took two [tires] to try and get ourselves the front row, which we did. I think the four tires were just a little bit better than me and [Austin Dillon] got to my inside there through [Turns] 3 and 4. It was just really tight racing off of [Turn] 4…Again, proud of my Hendrick team. The day would’ve been a lot easier if I just didn’t hit the wall yesterday [during practice].”
“The only reason we got up there is ‘cause everyone crashed at the end of the race and gave us an opportunity,” Bell said. “This Yahoo Camry, just every bit is capable of the guys that beat us. Disappointing day, for sure, because I feel like we had something to contend for the win, but a top five’s nothing to hang our head about.”
Reddick, Stenhouse, McDowell, Larson and Bowman finished in the top 10. Harrison Burton was the highest-finishing rookie candidate in 11th place, thus notching his second top-15 result in the Cup circuit, while Chastain, who restarted on the front row during the second overtime attempt, fell back to 15th with a damaged front nose from his car.
There were 31 lead changes for 13 different leaders. The race featured 18 cautions for 90 laps. This marked the longest-held event in NASCAR history at 413 laps (619.5 miles), which occurred in five hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds.
With 12 races remaining in the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series regular-season stretch, Chase Elliott continues to lead the regular-season standings by 34 over Ross Chastain, 37 over Kyle Busch, 53 over Ryan Blaney and 59 over Martin Truex Jr.
Denny Hamlin, Ross Chastain, William Byron, Chase Elliott, Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, Alex Bowman, Kyle Larson, Chase Briscoe, rookie Austin Cindric and Kurt Busch are currently guaranteed spots for the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs based on winning once throughout the regular-season stretch. Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr., Christopher Bell, Kevin Harvick and Tyler Reddick occupy the remaining spots in the Playoffs as winless competitors while Aric Almirola trails the top-16 cutline by eight points, Austin Dillon trails by 23, Erik Jones trails by 29, Daniel Suarez trails by 49, Chris Buescher trails by 75, Michael McDowell trails by 76, Bubba Wallace trails by 78, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. trails by 83 and Justin Haley trails by 95.
Results.
1. Denny Hamlin, 15 laps led
2. Kyle Busch, 36 laps led
3. Kevin Harvick
4. Chase Briscoe, two laps led
5. Christopher Bell
6. Tyler Reddick, 19 laps led
7. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
8. Michael McDowell
9. Kyle Larson, 51 laps led
10. Alex Bowman
11. Harrison Burton
12. Martin Truex Jr.
13. Ty Dillon
14. Erik Jones
15. Ross Chastain, 153 laps led, Stage 3 winner
16. Todd Gilliland
17. Aric Almirola, one lap down
18. Cody Ware, one lap down
19. BJ McLeod, six laps down
20. Joey Logano – OUT, Accident, nine laps led
21. Cole Custer – OUT, Accident
22. Austin Dillon – OUT, Accident
23. Kaz Grala, 13 laps down
24. Noah Gragson – OUT, Throttle
25. Daniel Suarez – OUT, Accident, 36 laps led, Stage 2 winner
Next on the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the series’ inaugural event at the World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway in Madison, Illinois. The event is scheduled to occur on Sunday, June 5, at 3:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
NASCAR heads to Charlotte Motor Speedway on Memorial Day weekend for the 63rd running of the Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 Sunday evening.
The racing action begins Friday when the ARCA Menards Series and the Camping World Truck Series take to the track and continue Saturday with the Xfinity Series Alsco Uniforms 300.
The weekend is also an opportunity for NASCAR to honor and remember those who have served or are now serving in our military with the NASCAR Salutes program that concludes with the 600 Miles of Remembrance.
This year NASCAR is also debuting the NASCAR Salutes Wall of Honor mural that will allow fans to write messages on magnets that will be added to the mural to create a mosaic that will be donated to a military base.
All times are Eastern.
Friday, May 27
Noon-ARCA Practice & Qualifying (no TV) 1:30 p.m.: Truck Series Practice – FS1 2 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying – FS1 3:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice – FS1 4 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying – FS1
6 p.m.: ARCA Dutch Boy 150 (100 laps) – FS1/MRN
8:30 p.m.: Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200 – FS1/MRN/Sirius XM Distance: 201 miles (134 Laps) Stage 1 ends on Lap 30, Stage 2 ends on Lap 60, Final Stage ends on Lap 134 The Purse: $676,097
Saturday, May 28
1 p.m.: -Xfinity Series Alsco Uniforms 300 – FS1/PRN/SiriusXM Distance: 300 miles (200 Laps) Stage 1 ends on Lap 45, Stage 2 ends on Lap 90, Final Stage ends on Lap 200 The Purse: $1,284,615
7 p.m.: Cup Series Practice – FS1 7:45 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying – FS1
Sunday, May 29 6 p.m.: Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 – FOX/PRN/Sirius XM Distance: 600 miles (400 laps) Stage 1 ends Lap 100, Stage 2 ends Lap 200, Stage 3 Ends Lap 300, Final Stage ends on Lap 400 The Purse: $8,919,032
From having the race won to not having it won before officially emerging triumphant under the lights, Ryan Blaney outlasted Denny Hamlin and the field during an overtime shootout to win the 2022 NASCAR All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 22.
The 28-year-old Blaney from High Point, North Carolina, led a race-high 84 of 140 over-scheduled laps and was initially within striking distance of claiming the checkered flag and the win during the final 50 scheduled laps.
However, an untimely caution due to an incident involving Ricky Stenhouse Jr. sent the event into overtime as part of the All-Star Race format that stated the event could not finish under caution.
Despite initially having issues re-attaching his window net after having it partially down prior to overtime, Blaney managed to streak away from the competition that included his Team Penske teammates and Denny Hamlin to win NASCAR’s annual exhibition event with a million dollars on the line for the first time in his career.
The starting lineup for the event was based on a newly-formatted qualifying session, consisting of a single qualifying lap session before the top-eight competitors transferred to the second round, which was an elimination bracket session. In this session, the drivers competed against one another in a side-by-side four-tire pit stop before drag-racing off of pit road and cycling for a full lap, where the first competitor across the start/finish line would transfer to the following round.
Following all qualifying sessions and rounds, Kyle Busch started in the pole position for the third time in his career. Joining him on the front row was Ryan Blaney. Twenty competitors earned guaranteed spots for the main event and they were joined by Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chris Buescher, Daniel Suarez and Erik Jones (fan vote), all of whom transferred from the All-Star Open.
Prior to the event, Alex Bowman dropped to the rear of the field after unapproved adjustments were made to his No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Kyle Busch broke ahead with an early advantage followed by Blaney while teammates William Byron and Kyle Larson battled for third place. Behind, Kurt Busch and Ross Chastain raced one another for fifth place.
Following the first lap, Kyle Busch was out in front ahead of Blaney, Byron, Larson, Chastain, Kurt Busch, Martin Truex Jr., Joey Logano, AJ Allmendinger and Chase Briscoe.
Through the first five laps of the event, Kyle Busch continued to lead by nearly half a second over Blaney followed by Larson, Byron and Kurt Busch while Truex, Chastain, Logano, Allmendinger and Briscoe were in the top 10. Chase Elliott was in 11th followed by Kevin Harvick, Christopher Bell, Bubba Wallace, Aric Almirola, Denny Hamlin, rookie Austin Cindric, Daniel Suarez, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Alex Bowman, Brad Keselowski, Michael McDowell, Erik Jones and Chris Buescher.
At the Lap 10 mark, Kyle Busch stabilized his advantage to half a second over Blaney while Larson, Byron, Kurt Busch, Chastain, Truex, Logano, Allmendinger and Briscoe remained in the top 10.
Ten laps later, Kyle Busch remained as the leader and led by four-tenths of a second over Blaney while third-place Larson trailed by nearly two seconds. Byron remained in fourth followed by Kurt Busch, Chastain and Truex. By then, Christopher Bell was in ninth behind Logano while Elliott cracked the top 10 ahead of Bubba Wallace, Hamlin, Allmendinger, Suarez and Briscoe.
At the start of the final lap of the first stage, Kyle Busch was leading by nearly half a second over Blaney. Remaining uncontested at the front, Busch was able to cruise his No. 18 M&M’s Toyota TRD Camry back to the start/finish line and win the first stage on Lap 25. With the stage win, Busch was guaranteed to start with the lead for the final stage as long as he remained in the top 15 for the following two stages.
Under the stage break, some of the drivers, led by Kyle Busch, remained on the track while others, led by Byron, pitted.
The second stage started on Lap 26 as Kyle Busch and Blaney occupied the front row once again. At the start, Kyle Busch received a strong push from Chastain to maintain the lead. Blaney got loose behind Chastain entering the first turn, which allowed Kyle Larson to rocket into the runner-up spot while Cindric and Bell also moved into the top five. In the midst of the restart, Blaney was left battling Byron for sixth place.
On Lap 30 and while Kyle Busch remained as the leader. Blaney got into the rear of Chastain through the frontstretch in a bid for third place but got loose and shot up the track toward the outside wall. As a result, Blaney dropped from fourth to sixth. By then, Bubba Wallace had made an unscheduled pit stop under green and was a lap behind the leaders.
By Lap 35, Kyle Busch continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over Larson followed by Chastain, Byron and Cindric. Running in sixth was Suarez followed by Hamlin, Bell, Truex and Elliott.
Just then, the caution flew when Larson, winner of the last two All-Star events, lost a right-front tire and pounded the outside wall hard in Turn 4. Despite limping back to pit road, the damage to his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 was terminal as Larson retired in his pit stall.
“[I] Hate that that happened,” Larson, who was released from the infield care center, said on FS1. “I felt like our car was good enough, depending on restarts since you can’t pass at all, especially the leader anyways. It’s pretty impossible to pass. Yeah, we’ll move on and look forward to the [Coca-Cola] 600 and hopefully, put on some good racing there.”
During the caution period, names like McDowell, Wallace, Almirola, Briscoe and Erik Jones pitted while the rest led by Kyle Busch remained on the lead lap.
Following an extensive cleanup, the race proceeded under green on Lap 43. At the start, Kyle Busch and Chastain dueled for the lead for a full lap until Busch managed to pull ahead and clear Chastain for the lead during the following lap. Soon after, Cindric moved his No. 2 Keystone Ford Mustang into the runner-up spot while Blaney and Byron were in the top five.
By Lap 45, Kyle Busch was leading by nearly half a second over Cindric and Chastain while Blaney and Elliott were in the top five.
Two laps later, trouble ensued when Kyle Busch cut a right-rear tire and was off the pace through the frontstretch. Just as Busch moved his slow car to the inside lane, he was T-boned by an oncoming Chastain, whose No. 1 Worldwide Express Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 got airborne and nearly flipped as he shot up the track, clipped Elliott’s No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and sent him hard against the Turn 1 wall while Chastain came to a stop below the apron. The incident, which knocked out all three competitors, was enough for NASCAR to cease the competition for more than 14 minutes.
“I felt like the driver of the No. 1 car chose the wrong lane to go,” Chastain said. “I saw Kyle have an issue, like a tire down, and I guessed left [lane] and I should’ve guessed right. Big hits. Tough break, but fast cars.”
“Just got a flat tire off of [Turn] 4,” Kyle Busch said. “Right rear’s flat. Unfortunate for our guys. Everybody at Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota, M&M’s. We had a really fast race car. Led all the laps up until that point. Disappointing not to be able to finish it out and go race for the million bucks.”
The second stage resumed with a two-lap, overtime dash and teammates Cindric and Blaney dueled for the lead through the backstretch until the former pulled ahead through Turns 3 and 4 as the field behind jostled for positions. When the second stage concluded on Lap 54, Cindric claimed the second stage victory.
During the stage break, a pit stop competition occurred as all the remaining competitors on the track led by Cindric pitted for four tires. Following the pit stops, Team Penske’s No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang team, piloted by Joey Logano and led by crew chief Paul Wolfe, was awarded $100,000 for performing the fastest pit stop during the stage break and won the pit stop challenge. With that, Logano was given a guaranteed starting spot toward the front for the fourth and final stage so long as he remained in the top 15 during the third stage.
During the pit stops, Kurt Busch was penalized for driving through too many pit boxes.
The third stage started on Lap 55 as Byron and Blaney occupied the front row. At the start, Suarez gave Byron a bump to enable Byron’s No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to the lead while Blaney dueled against Suarez to retain the runner-up spot. With the field stacked up and dueling for spots, Bell was in fourth followed by Cindric.
Two laps later, Blaney moved his No. 12 Menards/Wrangler Ford Mustang to the front ahead of Byron as Bell tried to close in on the two leaders.
At the halfway mark between Laps 64 and 65, Blaney was leading by more than half a second over Bell followed by Byron, Suarez, Truex, Cindric, Buescher, Hamlin, Stenhouse and Logano while Kurt Busch, Keselowski, Bowman, McDowell, Wallace, Harvick, Erik Jones, Allmendinger, Almirola and Briscoe were still running on the track and on the lead lap.
By Lap 70, Blaney stabilized his advantage to nearly eight-tenths of a second over Bell followed by Byron, Suarez and Truex. Soon after, Stenhouse, who was in ninth, dropped off the pace after his No. 47 Viva Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 sustained a flat right-rear tire.
On Lap 75, the caution returned when Bell, who was in the runner-up spot, got his No. 20 DeWalt Toyota TRD Camry loose as he made contact against the outside wall between Turns 3 and 4.
Under caution, a majority of the field led by Byron pitted while the rest, including Blaney, Cindric, Logano and McDowell remained on the track.
With the third stage sent into another two-lap, overtime shootout, Blaney rocketed away with the lead entering the first turn while his teammates Logano and Cindric struggled to go as they briefly stacked up the field.
At the start of the final lap of the third stage on Lap 80, Blaney was leading by half a second over teammate Logano, who had Suarez pressuring him for the runner-up spot. By then, Blaney was long gone as he went on to claim the third stage victory on Lap 82. Behind, Suarez was able to overtake Logano for the runner-up spot followed by McDowell, Cindric, Byron, Hamlin, Buescher, Truex and Kurt Busch.
During the stage break and amid the reshuffling of the field, Cindric emerged with the top starting spot for the final stage followed by teammates Logano and Blaney. In addition, names like Cindric, Logano, Blaney, Michael McDowell and Stenhouse pitted while the rest remained on the track.
With the race entering the final stage comprised of 50 laps, the race proceeded under green. At the start, teammates Cindric and Blaney dueled for the lead while Suarez and Logano battled against one another for third place. As Blaney started to pull ahead of Cindric and Logano, Hamlin moved his No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry against Suarez’s No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in a bid for fourth place.
Down to the final 40 laps of the event, Blaney was leading by nearly a second over teammate Cindric while teammate Logano trailed by nearly two seconds. Suarez and Hamlin were in the top five followed by Truex, Byron, Kurt Busch, Buescher and Brad Keselowski while Allmendinger, Bowman, Harvick, Erik Jones, Wallace, Bell, McDowell, Almirola, Stenhouse and Briscoe were still running on the track and on the lead lap.
Just past the final 35 laps of the event, Wallace pitted his No. 23 Dr. Pepper Dark Berry Toyota TRD Camry under green after he suffered a flat tire while Blaney continued to lead ahead of his Team Penske teammates.
With 30 laps remaining, Blaney stabilized his advantage to more than a second over teammate Cindric while teammate Logano trailed in third place by more than three seconds. Suarez and Hamlin remained in the top five ahead of Truex, Byron, Kurt Busch, Buescher and Keselowski.
Two laps later, the caution flew when Erik Jones, the Fan Vote winner, got loose and spun his No. 43 Focus Factor Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 against the outside wall entering Turn 4, with Jones’ car suffering significant damage as the driver retired.
Under caution, a majority of the field led by Hamlin pitted while eight competitors led by Blaney and including Cindric, Logano, Suarez, Buescher, Keselowski and Almirola remained on the track.
With 21 laps remaining, the race resumed under green. At the start, teammates Blaney and Cindric dueled for the lead until Blaney managed to clear the field entering the backstretch. Behind, Suarez moved up to third place while Logano and Hamlin battled for fourth place in front of Buescher, Keselowski and Byron.
Six laps later, Blaney extended his advantage to more than a second over teammate Cindric, who had Hamlin closing in for the spot.
Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Blaney continued to lead by more than two seconds over Hamlin, who overtook Cindric for the runner-up spot three laps earlier. Behind, Suarez and Logano remained in the top five ahead of Buescher, Keselowski, Alex Bowman, Bell and Kurt Busch. Meanwhile, Byron was back in 11th ahead of Harvick, Stenhouse, Allmendinger and Truex.
With five laps remaining, Blaney extended his advantage to nearly three seconds over Hamlin while Cindric, Suarez and Logano were running in the top five.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Blaney remained as the leader by nearly three seconds over Hamlin. Just as Blaney was within reach of crossing the finish line to capture the victory, the caution flew when Stenhouse got into the wall. As part of NASCAR’s policy for this year’s All-Star event to conclude under green, the event was sent into overtime.
During the caution period, some like Harvick, Truex, Almirola and Kurt Busch pitted while the rest led by Blaney, who was struggling to get his window net secured, remained on the track.
During the start of the first overtime attempt, Blaney, who was able to attach his window net to an acceptable rate without having to pit, received a push from teammate Cindric to take off with the lead ahead of Hamlin.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Blaney was still out in front of Hamlin and the field. As he cycled his way back to the finish line and with no cautions in the air, Blaney officially crossed the finish line in first place as he cashed in a million dollars.
With the victory, Blaney became the 26th different competitor to win the All-Star Race and recorded the fourth All-Star victory for Team Penske while Ford earned its first All-Star win since 2016 with Joey Logano. The victory was also a first in the Cup Series for crew chief Jonathan Hassler as Blaney also won for the first time in 2022.
“It was about to be real bad for us,” Blaney said on FS1. “I thought the race was over. Everyone thought the race was over. I already had my window net down. I do wanna thank NASCAR for letting me kind of fix it and not make us come down pit road. Yeah, that was really tough and then, having to do it all over again after trying to get that window net back up there. Great car. [Crew chief] Jonathan Hassler, everybody on this No. 12 group did a great job. Can’t thank Menards, Ford enough…This is cool! I know it’s not a points race win, but it’s gonna be a lot of fun. The party’s gonna be pretty big.”
Hamlin, who won the All-Star Race in 2015, settled in second place but was left fuming over NASCAR’s decision to not penalize Blaney for having his window net not properly secured prior to the overtime attempt.
“You know, it’s tough because he deserved to win the race, but if you mess up and you break a rule – not intentionally, but there’s rules and we have rules in place for safety,” Hamlin said on MRN. “My crew chief is taking four weeks off [a penalty from a pit road infraction earlier in the season] because of safety. I nearly crashed him off of Turn 2 when I got squeezed there. If I send him into traffic and he’s got no window net, then what, right? Luckily, that didn’t happen.”
Cindric, who made his All-Star debut, came home in third place followed by teammate Logano while Suarez, the All-Star Open winner, completed the top five.
Finishing in the top 10 were Bowman, Allmendinger, Buescher, Keselowski and Bell.
There were three lead changes for four different leaders. The race featured eight cautions for 31 laps. Nineteen of the 24 starters finished the event, with 18 finishing on the lead lap.
Results.
1. Ryan Blaney, 84 laps led
2. Denny Hamlin
3. Austin Cindric, seven laps led
4. Joey Logano
5. Daniel Suarez
6. Alex Bowman
7. AJ Allmendinger
8. Chris Buescher
9. Brad Keselowski
10. Christopher Bell
11. William Byron, two laps led
12. Aric Almirola
13. Kurt Busch
14. Martin Truex Jr.
15. Michael McDowell
16. Bubba Wallace
17. Kevin Harvick
18. Chase Briscoe
19. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., one lap down
20. Erik Jones – OUT, Accident
21. Kyle Busch – OUT, Accident, 47 laps led
22. Ross Chastain – OUT, Accident
23. Chase Elliott – OUT, Accident
24. Kyle Larson – OUT, Accident
Next on the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, for the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 29, during Memorial Day weekend. The event is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. ET on FOX.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chris Buescher, Daniel Suarez and Erik Jones completed the starting grid for the 2022 NASCAR All-Star Race after transferring from the NASCAR All-Star Open at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 22. Stenhouse, Buescher and Suarez raced their way into the main event after each claimed a stage victory, respectively, while Jones was revealed as the Fan Vote winner, thus claiming the final spot of the 24-car grid for the All-Star event.
With the starting lineup based on on-track qualifying occurring on Saturday, Tyler Reddick initially qualified on pole position after posting a pole-winning lap at 186.981 mph in 28.880 seconds. He, however, dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to his No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. As a result, Daniel Suarez, who posted a qualifying lap at 186.903 mph in 28.892 seconds, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who qualified with a fast lap at 186.490 mph in 28.965 seconds, started on the front row.
Prior to the event, Justin Haley joined Reddick at the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to his No. 31 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Stenhouse and Suarez dueled for the lead for nearly a full lap before the former pulled ahead entering the frontstretch as he led the first lap. At the same time, Chris Buescher overtook Suarez for the runner-up spot while Austin Dillon was up in fourth ahead of Erik Jones and rookie Harrison Burton.
Through the first five laps of the event, Stenhouse was leading by three-tenths of a second over Buescher followed by Suarez, Erik Jones and Austin Dillon while Burton, Corey LaJoie, Reddick, Haley and Ty Dillon were in the top 10.
By Lap 10, Stenhouse continued to lead by eight-tenths of a second over Buescher. Meanwhile, Reddick, who started at the rear of the field, was up in sixth place after he overtook Harrison Burton.
With five laps remaining in the first stage, Stenhouse extended his advantage to more than a second over Buescher followed by Suarez and Austin Dillon while Reddick was up in fifth ahead of Erik Jones. By then, Haley, who also started at the rear of the field, was in seventh in front of Burton, LaJoie and Ty Dillon.
At the start of the final lap of the first stage on Lap 19, Stenhouse remained as the leader by one-and-a-half seconds over Buescher. Remaining uncontested for a final full cycle, Stenhouse captured the first stage victory on Lap 20 and secured a spot in the 2022 All-Star Race, which will mark his fourth appearance in the million dollar event.
“Our Viva Camaro took off really, really strong there,” Stenhouse said. “All the Kroger team’s been working hard these last few weeks and we’ve been getting results, which is nice. Now, we get to go race for a million bucks and be in the big show, which was disappointing. We sat and watched it last year, so it feels really good. We’ll make some changes, make some adjustments and [I] got a better idea of what my car was doing there. Hopefully, we can run up through the field.”
Under the stage break, the remainder of the field led by Buescher pitted. Following the pit stops, Haley and BJ McLeod were sent to the rear of the field due to uncontrolled tire violations.
The second stage started on Lap 20 as LaJoie and Suarez occupied the front row. At the start, LaJoie took off with the lead followed by Suarez as the field scrambled and jostled behind for positions. When the field returned to the start/finish line, LaJoie was out in front ahead of Suarez and Buescher while Reddick was in fourth ahead of Erik Jones.
Then on Lap 26 and as Suarez started to pressure LaJoie for the lead, the caution flew when Landon Cassill got loose, spun and made hard contact against the outside wall through Turns 3 and 4.
When the race restarted on Lap 31, LaJoie and Suarez dueled for the lead through the backstretch until Buescher pulled a bold three-wide move on both through Turns 3 and 4 in a bid for the lead. When the field returned to the start/finish line, Buescher emerged out in front followed by Suarez and Reddick while LaJoie was back in front of Erik Jones.
By Lap 35, Buescher was leading by three-tenths of a second over Suarez followed by Reddick, Erik Jones and LaJoie while Austin Dillon was in sixth.
At the start of the final lap of the second stage on Lap 39, Buescher stabilized his advantage to three-tenths of a second over Suarez. Despite having Suarez close within his rearview mirror, Buescher was able to fend off the competition to win the second stage on Lap 40 and race his way into the 2022 All-Star Race, which will mark his second appearance in the event as both Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing competitors will contend for a million dollars.
“That was cool to be able to race our way in with our Fastenal Mustang,” Buescher said. “It was aggressive racing like we know it is when we come to the All-Star and these short runs. Get to watch them get it there side by side. I see [LaJoie] start slipping up the hill and I’m like, ‘We got to commit.’ It was cool. Had a good push down the front straightaway, had to be really protective into [Turn] 1. That grip was just starting to come in, so I’m pretty curious to see where the end of this race goes and really excited for the All-Star now.”
Under the stage break, some like Cole Custer, LaJoie pitted while the rest led by Suarez remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Custer was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation.
With 10 laps remaining, the final stage commenced under green. At the start, Suarez and Reddick, both of whom started on the front row, dueled for the lead through the backstretch until Suarez managed to clear Reddick through Turns 3 and 4 to assume the lead.
Then with eight laps remaining, the caution flew when Reddick got loose entering Turns 3 and 4 and spun several times in the middle of the track. As the field scrambled to avoid Reddick’s spinning car, Harrison Burton collided into Reddick past the start/finish line. The incident spoiled Reddick’s opportunity to compete in the All-Star Race along for Harrison Burton.
When the race restarted with eight laps remaining, Suarez took off with a strong launch from the field as Austin Dillon moved into the runner-up spot followed by Erik Jones.
As the field returned to the start/finish line, Suarez was out in front by two-tenths of a second over Austin Dillon followed by Justin Haley, Erik Jones and LaJoie while Ty Dillon was up in sixth place.
Down to the final five laps of the event, Suarez was leading by eight-tenths of a second over Austin Dillon while third-place Haley trailed by more than a second.
When the white flag waved and the final lap was underway, Suarez continued to lead by more than a second over both Austin Dillon and Haley. Having no challengers coming close to his rear bumper, Suarez cycled his way back to the finish line as he won the All-Star Open for the second time in his career and earn a one-way trip to the All-Star Race for the third time in his career. Suarez’s accomplishment meant that both Trackhouse Racing competitors earned a spot for the All-Star event.
“I only wished I had to run 20 [laps], but we had to run the whole 50,” Suarez said. “Overall, just very proud of my team. Every time that I’ve been part of the All-Star Race, it’s always a lot of fun. It’s just about fun, not with the trophy. What I love the most is the part about going out there in a stage with a pit crew, with a team, everybody having a good time. I’m so happy that I’m gonna be able to do this with my No. 99 crew: Trackhouse Racing.”
In the midst of the conclusion of the event, Erik Jones, who finished in fifth place, earned the 24th and final spot after being named the Fan Vote winner. As a result, Jones earned a spot for the All-Star event for the third time in his career.
“[I] Appreciate the fans,” Jones said. “I never thought I’d have a shot to win [the Fan Vote], but the No. 43 fans are pretty strong. Been struggling a bit, but we’ll make some big changes here for tonight. Hopefully, give’em a run for it.”
Austin Dillon finished in second place, but was one of 12 competitors who did not make the 2022 All-Star Race along with Justin Haley, Corey LaJoie, Ty Dillon, Cole Custer, Todd Gilliland, Cody Ware, Garrett Smithley, BJ McLeod, Tyler Reddick, Harrison Burton and Landon Cassill.
There were four lead changes for four different leaders. The race featured four cautions for eight laps.
Results.
1. Daniel Suarez – Stage 3 winner, 10 laps led
2. Austin Dillon
3. Justin Haley
4. Corey LaJoie, 11 laps led
5. Erik Jones – Fan Vote winner
6. Ty Dillon
7. Cole Custer
8. Todd Gilliland
9. Cody Ware
10. Garrett Smithley
11. BJ McLeod
12. Tyler Reddick – OUT, Accident
13. Harrison Burton – OUT, Accident
14. Chris Buescher – Stage 2 winner, nine laps led
15. Landon Cassill – OUT, Accident
16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – Stage 1 winner, 20 laps led
The 2022 NASCAR All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway will follow suit on Sunday, May 22, at 8 p.m. ET on FS1.
With his pit crew executing three flawless services and the driver prevailing through three head-to-head drag races from pit road to the finish line, Kyle Busch earned the pole position for the 2022 NASCAR All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 21.
The two-time Cup Series champion from Las Vegas, Nevada, was one of eight competitors along with William Byron, Aric Almirola, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr., Ryan Blaney, Ross Chastain, Kurt Busch and Kyle Larson to transfer from the single-car qualifying session as part of the sport’s new qualifying format for those already guaranteed a spot for the annual All-Star event. He then went head-to-head and prevailed against teammate Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Larson through two rounds of the new elimination bracket qualifying session that placed heavy emphasis towards the pit crew performing a four-tire pit stop in a side-by-side duel with two competitors before the competitors exited pit road with no speed limit and raced one another back to the start/finish line to transfer to the following round.
After transferring all the way to the third and final elimination bracket qualifying session, Busch received another strong pit stop from his pit crew before he outlasted a single-lap duel from the pit road exit against Ryan Blaney to beat Blaney’s No. 12 Team Penske Ford Mustang back to the start/finish line and claim the top-starting spot for the sport’s annual All-Star event scheduled for Sunday, May 22, with a million dollars on the line.
Busch’s pole for the 2022 All-Star event marks his third time starting on pole for the event and his first since 2012. He will attempt to win his second All-Star event since winning his first at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2017.
“Anytime you’re able to showcase the pit crew’s ability and have them and their athleticism in this competition, in this qualifying format, I enjoy that,” Busch, whose best qualifying lap occurred at 189.115 mph in 28.554 seconds, said. “I think that’s my most favorite part of the year is coming to the All-Star Race, and whether it’s been Charlotte and coming down pit road and sliding into the box and whatnot. But having those guys go over the wall certainly means a lot, especially the No. 18 bunch that I’ve had a lot of success with over the years. It’s obviously changed up a few times, most recently, but you know, we’ve always been a threat to be reckoned with when it comes to getting on the pole for the All-Star Race. So it feels good to have that today.”
“This is a cool event,” Ben Beshore, crew chief for Kyle Busch, added. “It’s something new. A good way to showcase our pit crew. They did a great job. They put in a lot of hard work this offseason and throughout the beginning of the year. and they clicked off three really good stops there and got it. So that’s exciting.”
Blaney, who lost to Kyle Busch in the final elimination bracket session, will start on the front row in second place as he pursues his first All-Star victory.
Teammates William Byron and Kyle Larson, both of whom were eliminated following the second elimination bracket round, will start third and fourth, respectively.
Kurt Busch, Ross Chastain, Martin Truex Jr. and Aric Almirola, all of whom were eliminated following the first elimination bracket round, will start fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively.
Joey Logano, the first competitor who did not transfer to the elimination round bracket, will start the All-Star event in ninth place as he will share the fifth row with AJ Allmendinger. They will start in front of Chase Briscoe, rookie Austin Cindric, Chase Elliott, Christopher Bell, Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Bubba Wallace, Brad Keselowski, Michael McDowell and Alex Bowman, respectively.
Results:
1. Kyle Busch, 189.115 mph, 28.554 seconds
2. Ryan Blaney, 189.043 mph, 28.565 seconds
3. William Byron, 189.288 mph, 28.528 seconds
4. Kyle Larson, 188.600 mph, 28.632 seconds
5. Kurt Busch, 188.679 mph, 28.620 seconds
6. Ross Chastain, 188.003 mph, 28.723 seconds
7. Martin Truex Jr., 187.679 mph, 28.620 seconds
8. Aric Almirola, 187.715 mph, 28.767 seconds
9. Joey Logano, 187.650 mph, 28.777 seconds
10. AJ Allmendinger, 187.454 mph, 28.807 seconds
11. Chase Briscoe, 187.357 mph, 28.822 seconds
12. Austin Cindric, 187.305 mph, 28.830 seconds
13. Chase Elliott, 187.298 mph, 28.831 seconds
14. Christopher Bell, 187.279 mph, 28.834 seconds
15. Kevin Harvick, 187.084 mph, 28.864 seconds
16. Denny Hamlin, 186.909 mph, 28.891 seconds
17. Bubba Wallace, 186.825 mph, 28.891 seconds
18. Brad Keselowski, 186.800 mph, 28.908 seconds
19. Michael McDowell, 186.625 mph, 28.935 seconds
20. Alex Bowman, 186.136 mph, 29.011 seconds
*Bold indicates finalists of elimination bracket qualifying session.
Earlier in the day, Tyler Reddick, who is one of 16 competitors that are currently not eligible for the main event, claimed the pole position for the 2022 NASCAR All-Star Open after posting a pole-winning, single qualifying lap at 186.981 mph at 28.880 seconds. Joining him on the front row will be Daniel Suarez, who posted a fast qualifying lap at 186.903 mph in 28.892 seconds.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Erik Jones, Chris Buescher, Justin Haley, Austin Dillon, Corey LaJoie, rookie Harrison Burton and Cole Custer will start the Open in the top 10, respectively.
The All-Star Open, which will occur prior to the All-Star Race, will consist of three stages: 20 laps, 20 laps and 10 laps, respectively. The winner of each stage along with the Fan Vote winner will transfer their way into the All-Star Race, with the main event featuring a total of 24 competitors.
NASCAR heads to Texas Motor Speedway for a full weekend of racing culminating with the Cup Series All-Star Race Sunday evening.
The Camping World Truck Series will headline the on-track action Friday night followed by the Xfinity Series race Saturday afternoon.
There have been 37 previous All-Star races with 25 different winners. Kevin Harvick (2007, 2015) and Kyle Larson (2019, 2021) lead all active drivers with two wins each. Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano have won the exhibition race once.
The Xfinity Series has produced seven different winners so far this season. Ty Gibbs, Noah Gragson, AJ Allmendinger, Justin Allgaier, Josh Berry, Brandon Jones and Austin Hill have secured a spot in the Playoffs with 15 races left in the regular season. There are only five open spots remaining before the Playoffs begin.
Camping World Truck Series drivers Zane Smith (three wins), Chandler Smith, Ben Rhodes and John Hunter Nemechek have locked themselves into the Playoffs. There are eight races remaining in the regular season and six open Playoff spots.
8:30 p.m.: Truck Series SpeedyCash.com 220 Distance: 220.5 miles (147 Laps) Stages 35/70/147 Laps = 220.5 Miles FS1/MRN/ SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Saturday, May 21
1:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series SRS Distribution 250 race Distance: 250.5 miles (167 Laps) Stages 40/80/167 Laps = 250.5 Miles) FS1/PRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
7 p.m.: Cup Series Practice (Combined Open and All-Star) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
7:35 p.m.: Qualifying (Open) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
7:55 p.m.: Qualifying (All-Star) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
8:25 p.m.: Qualifying – Elimination bracket with mandatory pit stop (All-Star) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Sunday, May 22
5:30 p.m.: All-Star Open (20/20/10 Laps) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
8 p.m.: All-Star Race (25/25/25/50 Laps) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
In a season mired with constant trials and struggles both on and off the track, Kurt Busch and 23XI Racing triumphed at the Heartland State after emerging victorious in the AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, May 15.
The 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion from Las Vegas, Nevada, led five times for a race-high 116 of 267 laps as he prevailed after a fierce battle with Kyle Larson during the final 10 laps to snatch the lead and claim his first Cup Series victory of the season and his first driving for 23XI Racing.
With on-track qualifying occurring on Saturday, Christopher Bell notched his third pole position of his career and of the season after posting a pole-winning lap at 179.575 mph in 30.071 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Tyler Reddick, who recorded a qualifying lap at 178.855 mph in 30.192 seconds.
Prior to the event, Denny Hamlin, rookie Todd Gilliland and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective cars. In addition, Chris Buescher and Joey Logano also dropped to the rear in backup cars.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Bell and Reddick dueled for the top spot through the first three turns until Bell managed to clear Reddick and the field entering Turn 4 to lead the first lap. With Reddick settling in second in front of Kyle Larson, rookie Austin Cindric battled with Kurt Busch for fourth place as Kyle Busch joined the battle. Meanwhile, Aric Almirola and Alex Bowman dueled for seventh place in front of Chase Briscoe, Ross Chastain and Ryan Blaney.
During the fifth lap of the event, the first caution flew when Briscoe got loose and spun across the frontstretch grass, though he continued without sustaining any significant damage to his No. 14 Rush Truck Center/Cummins Ford Mustang.
Four laps later, the race restarted under green. At the start, Reddick received a push from Kyle Busch to assume the lead as Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson battled Bell for the runner-up spot, with Larson taking the spot.
At the Lap 10 mark, Reddick was leading ahead of Larson, Kyle Busch, Bell and Cindric while Chastain, Daniel Suarez, Aric Almirola, Blaney and Kurt Busch were in the top 10.
Through the first 20 scheduled laps, Reddick extended his advantage to more than a second over Larson while Bell, Kyle Busch, Cindric, Suarez, Chastain, Almirolam Kurt Busch and Blaney were in the top 10. Running in 11th place was Martin Truex Jr. followed by Bowman, Bubba Wallace, Erik Jones, William Byron, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Austin Dillon, Kevin Harvick and Michael McDowell. Cole Custer was in 21st ahead of Justin Haley, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ty Dillon and Corey LaJoie while Brad Keselowski, rookie Harrison Burton, Noah Gragson, Briscoe and Chris Buescher were in the top 30. Meanwhile, Joey Logano, winner of last weekend’s Cup event at Darlington Raceway, was mired in 31st while rookie Todd Gilliland was in 33rd.
Fourteen laps later and just as Larson overtook Reddick for the lead, the caution flew due to BJ McLeod spinning and stalling his car past the frontstretch. At the moment of caution, Logano dodged losing a lap to the leaders. In addition, Chris Buescher made a pit stop.
Under caution, the leaders pitted and Bell reassumed the lead after exiting pit road with the top spot followed by Reddick, Kyle Busch, Suarez, Chastain and Truex. During the pit stops, Hamlin and Austin Dillon were penalized for equipment interference while Cindric was penalized for an uncontrolled tire penalty. In addition, Justin Haley, who was having his pit service complete, had a left-rear tire fall off of his car as he exited his pit stall and caught on fire.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 39, Bell cleared the field entering the first turn to assume the lead. Through the backstretch, Kyle Busch took over the runner-up spot while Trackhouse Racing’s Chastain and Suarez overtook Reddick for third and fourth. Soon after, Truex mounted a challenge on Reddick for a top-five spot.
Through the first 50 scheduled laps, Bell was leading by six-tenths of a second over teammate Kyle Busch while Chastain, Suarez and Reddick were in the top five. Truex, meanwhile, settled in sixth followed by Bowman, Bubba Wallace, Almirola and Byron while Larson, who endured a slow pit stop during the previous caution, was in 12th behind teammate Chase Elliott. In addition, Kurt Busch was back in 14th ahead of Kevin Harvick while Blaney was back in 18th ahead of Denny Hamlin and Logano.
Eleven laps later, the caution flew when Suarez, who was being pressured by Truex for fourth place, got loose, spun and made contact with the outside wall entering Turn 4 as his No. 99 CommScope Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 stalled at the entrance of pit road. Things then went from bad to worse for Suarez as he needed a wrecker to have his car towed back to his pit stall due to flat-spotting his tires. During the caution period, Almirola pitted when pit road was not open for the field.
Under caution, the majority of the field, led by Bell who had a flat left-rear tire, pitted while Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Corey LaJoie and Austin Dillon remained on the track.
When the race restarted on Lap 67 amid a jumble and scramble within the field, Kyle Busch drove his No. 18 M&M’s Toyota TRD Camry to the lead on fresh tires while Chastain rocketed to the runner-up spot as Austin Dillon drifted toward the middle of the pack. As the field continued to scramble for positions while fanning out to multiple lanes, Elliott was up in third place followed by Reddick, Byron and Truex while Erik Jones was getting shuffled back to seventh in front of Wallace, Blaney and Stenhouse.
Under the final 10 laps of the first stage, Kyle Busch was leading by more than a tenth of a second over Chastain while Elliott trailed by seven-tenths of a second.
When the first stage concluded on Lap 80, Kyle Busch notched his first stage victory of the season while leading by more than a second over Chastain. Chastain settled in second followed by Elliott, Reddick, Byron, Truex, Wallace, Erik Jones, Blaney and Bowman.
Under the stage break, the leaders returned to pit road and Elliott exited with the top spot ahead of Chastain, Truex, Byron and Reddick. Disaster struck, however, for Elliott as he dropped to the rear of the field due to equipment interference. During the pit stops, Hamlin was also penalized for equipment interference while Wallace was penalized for having too many crew members over the wall during his service. In addition, Kyle Busch dropped from first to 10th after parking his car too close to his pit wall as he endured a slow pit stop. Following the pit stops, Harvick, Almirola and Buescher made another trip to pit road. Among those who pitted for a second time was Erik Jones as his crew was enduring constant issues removing the right-rear tire of his No. 43 Focus Factor Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.
The second stage started on Lap 87 as Chastain and Truex occupied the front row. At the start, Chastain and Truex dueled for the top spot through the backstretch before Byron made a bold three-wide move on both entering the frontstretch to take the lead. Behind, Reddick fended off Blaney for fourth place while brothers Kurt and Kyle Busch battled for sixth.
At the Lap 100 mark, Byron was leading by more than a second over Chastain followed by Reddick, Truex, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Blaney, Bowman, Bell and Larson. Cindric was in 11th ahead of Stenhouse, Keselowski, Elliott, Harvick, Logano, Custer, Wallace, Hamlin and Buescher while Michael McDowell, Briscoe, Ty Dillon, Austin Dillon, Harrison Burton, Corey LaJoie, Noah Gragson, Josh Bilicki, Gilliland and Almirola were in the top 30.
Eleven laps later, Kurt Busch leaped his No. 45 Jordan Brand Toyota TRD Camry way into the runner-up spot after rocketing past Chastain as Byron stretch his advantage to nearly three seconds. By then, names like Almirola and Erik Jones were lapped by the leader.
On Lap 113, disaster struck for Byron as his No. 24 Raptor Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 suffered a flat left-rear tire while leading as he fell off the pace below the frontstretch apron. With Byron out of contention, Kurt Busch took over the lead followed by Chastain, Truex, Reddick and Kyle Busch.
Shortly after, disaster then struck for Reddick as he blew a right-rear tire and smacked the outside wall as he limped his way to pit road. Reddick’s misfortune allowed Kyle Busch and Blaney to gain spots in the top five.
Nearing the Lap 125 mark, green flag pit stops occurred as Truex pitted. In the midst of the pit stops, the caution flew on Lap 126 when Harvick, who was just exiting pit road following his pit stop, spun his No. 4 Busch Light Ford Mustang due to a shifter issue.
During the extended caution period, some drivers including Elliott, Logano, Cole Custer, Michael McDowell, Ty Dillon, Harrison Burton, Noah Gragson, Todd Gilliland and Josh Bilicki pitted as they had not yet pitted prior to the previous caution while the rest, led by Kurt Busch, remained on the track.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 136, Kurt Busch and Blaney dueled for the lead as the field fanned out entering the first two turns. Through the frontstretch Kurt Busch and Blaney made contact as they continued to battle for the lead before the former managed to clear the latter during the following lap. In the midst of the battles, Kyle Busch overtook Blaney for the runner-up spot while Truex and Keselowski were in the top five.
By Lap 150, Kurt Busch remained as the leader by half a second over brother Kyle while Blaney, Truex and Cindric were in the top five. Elliott, meanwhile, was in sixth followed by teammate Larson, Chastain, Keselowski and Logano while Stenhouse, Hamlin, McDowell, Wallace, Gragson, Bell, Burton, Bowman, Custer and Ty Dillon occupied the top 20. Byron was back in 22nd ahead of Harvick while Reddick was in 28th, a lap behind the leaders.
With five laps remaining in the second stage, Kurt Busch extended his advantage to more than one-and-a-half seconds over brother Kyle while Blaney, Truex and Cindric remained in the top five.
Then, during the final lap of the second stage, Truex dropped off the pace due to a flat left-rear tire of his No. 19 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota TRD Camry. Despite the issue, Truex elected to nurse his car around the circuit for a final lap. In the midst of the issue, Kurt Busch went on to capture his first stage victory of the season on Lap 165. Brother Kyle settled in second followed by Blaney, Cindric, Elliott, Larson, Chastain, Hamlin, Logano and Wallace.
Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Kurt Busch retained the lead after exiting pit road with the top spot followed by Blaney, Kyle Busch, Larson and Cindric.
With 94 laps remaining, the final stage started. At the start, Kurt Busch and Blaney dueled for the top spot for a full lap before the former managed to clear the field entering the backstretch. Behind, Larson and Cindric battled for third place in front of Hamlin. During the pit stops, Kyle Busch, who endured a slow pit stop, was penalized for speeding on pit road.
Under the final 90 laps, the battle for the lead intensified between Kurt Busch and Larson as the former continued to retain the top spot over the latter. Then with 86 laps remaining, Larson, who made a move beneath Busch for the lead through Turn 1, slid up and got super loose in front of Busch, but Larson managed to straighten his car through the backstretch as Busch reassumed the lead.
With 75 laps remaining, Kurt Busch continued to lead by more than two seconds over his owner Denny Hamlin while Larson was back in third place. Blaney and Elliott occupied the top five in front of Wallace, Bowman, Cindric, Chastain and Bell.
Four laps later, the caution flew when Elliott lost a left-rear tire and spun in Turn 3 as he ended up getting his No. 9 UniFirst Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 stuck in the infield grass.
Under caution, the leaders pitted and Kurt Busch retained the lead after exiting his pit stall with the top spot followed by Larson, Blaney, Hamlin and Bell. During the pit stops, Wallace was penalized for an uncontrolled tire penalty as his tire was hit by Bowman and Chastain while Harvick was penalized for speeding on pit road.
With 67 laps remaining, the race restarted under green as Kurt Busch and Larson dueled for the lead through the first two turns and entering the backstretch. Then exiting the backstretch, Blaney attempted to make a three-wide move on both for the lead, but Larson managed to assume the top spot briefly until Busch rallied back on the inside lane and through the frontstretch.
Then with 63 laps remaining, Larson bounced off the outside wall entering the frontstretch while battling intensely against Kurt Busch for the lead, which allowed Busch to clear the field with the top spot. Despite the contact with the wall, Larson retained the runner-up spot in front of Bell, Hamlin, Blaney and Kyle Busch.
Under the final 60 laps of the event, Kurt Busch extended his advantage to more than a second over Bell while Larson and Kyle Busch battled for third place in front of Hamlin.
Down to the final 50 laps of the event, Kurt Busch stabilized his advantage to two-and-a-half seconds over Bell while Kyle Busch was in third ahead of Larson and Hamlin. Blaney was back in sixth ahead of Bowman, Chastain, Stenhouse and Byron while Cindric was in 11th ahead of teammate Logano, Truex, Austin Dillon and Brad Keselowski.
Ten laps later, Kurt Busch continued to lead by more than two seconds over brother Kyle while Bell, Larson and Hamlin remained in the top five.
A lap later, the caution flew due to possible fluid coming out of Harvick’s car. Prior to the caution, Harvick had gotten loose entering the frontstretch. During the caution period, the field pitted for fuel and Kyle Busch exited with the top spot followed by Larson, Kurt Busch, Bell, Hamlin and Blaney.
With 33 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Kyle Busch and Larson dueled for the top spot for nearly a full lap until Larson managed to pull his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 out in front with the lead entering the fourth turn. Meanwhile, Kurt Busch was locked into a battle with Bell for third place as Hamlin joined the battle.
Under the final 30 laps of the event, Larson was leading by three-tenths of a second over Kyle Busch while Kurt Busch trailed by less than a second.
Then with 22 laps remaining, Kurt Busch, who methodically narrowed the deficit between himself and the two Kyles, overtook brother Kyle for the runner-up spot as he went to work to track Larson.
With 15 laps remaining, Larson continued to lead by more than two-tenths of a second over Kurt Busch, who continued to pressure the former for the top spot.
Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Larson remained as the leader by less than three-tenths of a second over Kurt Busch as the leaders approached lapped traffic.
Then with nine laps remaining, the battle for the lead intensified as Kurt Busch drew himself beneath Larson for the top spot from the backstretch through the frontstretch. Then during the following lap, Larson, who continued to rim-ride towards the outside wall, scrapped the wall entering the backstretch, which allowed Busch to drive away with the lead while Larson retained second ahead of Kyle Busch.
Down to the final five laps of the event, Kurt Busch was leading by seven-tenths of a second over Larson while brother Kyle trailed by more than a second and a half. Meanwhile, Hamlin stabilized his No. 11 Sport Clips Toyota TRD Camry in fourth ahead of teammates Bell and Truex.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Kurt Busch was ahead by more than a second over Larson and nearly two seconds over Kyle Busch. With no traffic interfering with his progress and Larson not able to make up the deficit, Kurt Busch cycled his way back around to the frontstretch as he claimed his first checkered flag of the season.
With the victory, Kurt Busch, who has now won in at least 19 seasons, notched his first victory at Kansas and his 34th career win in the NASCAR Cup Series, which placed him in sole possession of 25th place on the all-time Cup wins list. The victory was also the third of the season for Toyota, the second for returning crew chief Billy Scott, the second for 23XI Racing in the team’s second season of NASCAR competition and the first for Busch since he won at Atlanta Motor Speedway in July 2021.
In addition, the Kansas victory made 23XI Racing the fifth different organization that Kurt Busch has won with throughout his Cup career. It also made Toyota the fourth overall manufacturer that Busch has won with after having previously won in the Cup circuit with Dodge, Ford and Chevrolet.
KANSAS CITY, KANSAS – MAY 15: Kurt Busch, driver of the #45 Jordan Brand Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway on May 15, 2022 in Kansas City, Kansas. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images).
“It’s all about teamwork,” Busch said on FS1. “I don’t do this alone and the way that Toyota’s helped us, [Joe Gibbs Racing]. My little brother’s [Kyle Busch] been so important just on the family side of, ‘Hey, you gotta get through these steps.’ Bubba’s [Wallace] a tremendous teammate, but this is 23XI [Racing]. This is our first win for the No. 45 car. With Jordan Brand on the hood, I felt like I had to race like the GOAT [Michael Jordan] and I had to beat the Kyles. I beat both…I can get one Kyle, I’m like, ‘I can get both.’ I just had the confidence to know that our setup would do things on the short-run and long-run. This No. 45 car’s a winner now!”
“It’s the most gratifying [feeling] to work from the ground up with a brand new number,” Busch added. “Yes, I’ve been with a lot of teams, a lot of manufacturers, but it’s about family. I love my family at home, I love my KBI employees and everybody at 23XI. This is for us. This is what the hard work is all about no matter if you lose a couple spots on pit road, no matter if our car was a basket or whatever to start…I’m in Kansas! I’m loving it!”
Larson, who led 29 laps and won at Kansas in October 2021, settled in second place for the second time this season and for his sixth top-five result of the 2022 season.
“We were racing for the win there,” Larson said. “[Kurt Busch] never got into me, so I’m trying to squeeze throttle to get position on him. Just got tight. That was fun racing with Kurt. The last half of the race, I was trying hard to hold time. I about spun out in front of him at some point in the third stage. We just kept fighting through it. Thanks to my team for building me a war machine. I hit the wall a lot today. Just struggled like people could put air on me and get me really tight and then, I hit the wall. We’ll work on that and figure it out, but happy with my car. The Toyota’s are extremely good today. I think they’re all in the top 10. They had the handling as well as a lot of raw speed. It was hard to hold off Kyle [Busch] and then, I knew when Kurt got by him, it was gonna be really hard to hold him off. I did my best, but came up one spot short.”
Filling in positions third through sixth were all four Joe Gibbs Racing competitors led by Kyle Busch while Hamlin, Bell and Truex followed suit. To go along with his top-five run, Hamlin was left beaming and emotional over his first victory of the season as an owner.
“We, as an organization, let these guys down,” Hamlin, who congratulated Busch on pit road, said. “I’m talking about Bubba [Wallace] and Kurt. So many mistakes that we made on pit road and whatnot. Bubba got let down again on the last stop, but he was fast. I thought he was a little bit better than I was. We had to go to the back again three times today, but let’s talk about the positives. Just can’t thank Kurt enough. Jordan Brand’s first race [as a sponsor]. So jealous he gets to drive that car and to have that thing so fast there. I’ve never had this kind of feeling even for a win for me much less when I did win. Just different.”
Chastain, Stenhouse, Bowman and Bubba Wallace finished in the top 10. Austin Cindric was the highest-finishing rookie in 11th place ahead of teammate Blaney while Harvick settled in 15th ahead of Byron and Logano.
There were 18 lead changes for 10 different leaders. The race featured eight cautions for 47 laps.
With the first half of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series regular-season stretch complete, Chase Elliott continues to lead the regular-season standings by 52 points over Ryan Blaney, 58 over Kyle Busch, 60 over William Byron and 68 over Ross Chastain.
Currently, William Byron, Ross Chastain, Chase Elliott, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, Alex Bowman, Kyle Larson, Chase Briscoe, rookie Austin Cindric and Denny Hamlin are tentatively locked into the 2022 Cup Playoffs based on winning at least once throughout the regular-season stretch. Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr., Christopher Bell, Kevin Harvick and Aric Almirola are above the top-16 cutline to the Playoffs as winless competitors with Austin Dillon trailing by 11 points, Tyler Reddick by 22, Erik Jones by 32, Daniel Suarez by 49, Chris Buescher by 61, Bubba Wallace by 65, Justin Haley and Michael McDowell both by 77, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. by 95 and Ty Dillon by 100.
Results.
1. Kurt Busch, 116 laps led, Stage 2 winner
2. Kyle Larson, 29 laps led
3. Kyle Busch, 18 laps led, Stage 1 winner
4. Denny Hamlin
5. Christopher Bell, 37 laps led
6. Martin Truex Jr.
7. Ross Chastain, four laps led
8. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., three laps led
9. Alex Bowman
10. Bubba Wallace
11. Austin Cindric
12. Ryan Blaney, one lap led
13. Austin Dillon
14. Brad Keselowski
15. Kevin Harvick
16. William Byron, 25 laps led
17. Joey Logano
18. Noah Gragson
19. Corey LaJoie
20. Ty Dillon
21. Harrison Burton
22. Cole Custer
23. Michael McDowell
24. Chase Briscoe, one lap down
25. Todd Gilliland, one lap down
26. Aric Almirola, one lap down
27. Chris Buescher, two laps down
28. Josh Bilicki, two laps down
29. Chase Elliott, three laps down, 10 laps led
30. Tyler Reddick, four laps down, 24 laps led
31. JJ Yeley, four laps down
32. Erik Jones, six laps down
33. Daniel Suarez, 11 laps down
34. Cody Ware, 12 laps down
35. Justin Haley – OUT, Electrical
36. BJ McLeod – OUT, Chassis
Next on the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the series’ annual All-Star Open and Race events at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. Coverage of the All-Star Open is scheduled to occur on Sunday, May 22, at 5:30 p.m. ET on FS1 with the All-Star Race to follow at 8 p.m. ET on FS1.
The NASCAR Cup Series and the Camping World Truck Series head to Kansas Speedway this weekend while the Xfinity Series enjoys a week off from competition.
Saturday afternoon the ARCA Menards Series will kick things off with the Dutch Boy 150 at 2 p.m. followed by the Truck Series Heart of America 200 at 8 p.m. The Cup Series will close out the racing activities Sunday at 3 p.m. with the AdventHealth 400.
Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick and Joey Logano lead all active Cup Series drivers with three wins each at Kansas.
Crafton is the only active driver in the Truck Series this weekend that has been to victory lane at Kansas. And if the past is any indication, it’s almost anyone’s race to win. In 23 races, there have been 19 different race winners.
You can tune in to Press Pass for additional live coverage including post-race and driver interviews throughout the weekend.
Saturday, May 14
10:45 ARCA Practice/Qualifying – ARCA Race Center Noon: Truck Series Practice – FS1 12:30 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying – FS1 2 p.m.: ARCA Dutch Boy 150 – FS1/MRN 5 p.m.: Cup Series Practice – FS1/MRN/SiriusXM 5:35 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying– FS2/MRN/SiriusXM
8 p.m.: Truck Series Heart of America 200 Distance: 201 miles (134 Laps) Stage 1 ends on Lap 30, Stage 2 ends on Lap 60, Final Stage ends on Lap 134 FS1/MRN/SiriusXM The Purse: $716,932
Sunday, May 15
3 p.m.: Cup Series AdventHealth 400 Distance: 400.5 miles (267 laps) Stage 1 ends on Lap 80, Stage 2 ends on Lap 165, Final Stage ends on Lap 267 FS1/MRN/SiriusXM The Purse: $7,117,591
