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  • Harvick shakes up the 2022 Cup Playoff field; snaps two-year winless drought at Michigan

    Harvick shakes up the 2022 Cup Playoff field; snaps two-year winless drought at Michigan

    With the start of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs looming, the battle for the final transfer spots to the postseason witnessed a major shakeup as Kevin Harvick vaulted himself into the Playoff picture by returning to Victory Lane after winning the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday, August 7.

    The 2014 Cup Series champion led the final 35 of 200-scheduled laps as he managed to pull away during a 35-lap dash to the finish and beat pole-sitter Bubba Wallace by less than three seconds to snap a 65-race winless drought and capture his first elusive NASCAR Cup Series victory of the 2022 season in the Irish Hills. The victory was one that placed Harvick’s name above top-16 cutline to make the Playoffs.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, Bubba Wallace achieved the first Cup Series pole position for himself and for 23XI Racing after posting a pole-winning lap at 190.703 mph in 37.755 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Christopher Bell, who posted his best lap at 189.898 mph in 37.915 seconds.

    When the green flag waved and the race started following a one-hour delay due to rain, Wallace received a push from Joey Logano to retain the lead through the first two turns while Logano, Bell and Kyle Busch engaged in a three-wide battle for the runner-up spot. Soon after Logano grabbed the runner-up spot, Tyler Reddick bolted his way in a three-wide move between Bell and Kyle Busch in a bid for third place while Wallace proceeded to lead the first lap.

    During the second lap, Wallace maintained the top spot ahead of Logano while Kyle Busch engaged in a tight, side-by-side battle with Reddick for third place in front of Bell and Kyle Larson.

    Through the first five laps, Wallace was leading by four-tenths over Logano followed by Reddick, Kyle Busch and Bell while Larson, Martin Truex Jr., Erik Jones, Michael McDowell and rookie Austin Cindric were in the top 10. Behind, Kevin Harvick was in 11th ahead of Denny Hamlin, William Byron, Ty Gibbs and Ross Chastain while Noah Gragson, Aric Almirola, Daniel Suarez, Chase Briscoe and Chris Buescher occupied the top 20.

    At the Lap 10 mark, Wallace continued to lead by more than a second over Reddick. Meanwhile, Kyle Busch, Larson and Bell were scored in the top five while Logano, who reported debris on the front grille of his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang, had fallen back in sixth ahead of Erik Jones.

    When the event reached Lap 20, the first caution flew due to NASCAR establishing a competition caution amid the rain-delayed start. At the time of caution, Wallace retained the lead by more than a second over Reddick while Kyle Busch, Bell and Larson were in the top five. By then, Logano had fallen back to ninth while being overtaken by Erik Jones, Truex and Hamlin. During the competition caution period, some led by Wallace pitted while the rest led by Bell remained on the track.

    When the race restarted under green on Lap 24, Bell and Erik Jones, both of whom did not pit during the competition caution, dueled for the lead until Bell managed to pull ahead on the outside lane. Shortly after, however, the caution flew when JJ Yeley, who appeared to fall off the pace through the first two turns as the field fanned out to avoid Yeley, got hit by Michael McDowell, which triggered a multi-car wreck that involved Aric Almirola, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., rookies Harrison Burton and Todd Gilliland, Ty Gibbs, Kyle Busch and Austin Cindric, who pounded the outside wall head-on and demolished the front nose of his No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang. All competitors involved, including Cindric, emerged uninjured, though big names that included Cindric, Kyle Busch, Almirola and Stenhouse were eliminated from further competition.

    Following an extensive caution period, the race proceeded under green on Lap 32. At the start, Bell retained the lead on the outside lane while teammate Denny Hamlin made his way into the runner-up spot over Erik Jones as the field behind fanned out to multiple lanes.

    When the first stage concluded on Lap 45, Bell captured his second stage victory of the 2022 season. Teammate Hamlin trailed in the runner-up spot followed by Erik Jones, Martin Truex Jr., Chris Buescher, Ross Chastain, William Byron, Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano and Chase Briscoe.

    Under the stage break, nearly the entire field led by Bell pitted and amid a flurry of different strategies, Chastain exited with the lead followed by Larson, Blaney, Wallace and Harvick. Back on the track, however, Ty Gibbs and Corey LaJoie remained on the track

    The second stage started on Lap 51 as Gibbs and Chastain occupied the front row. At the start, Chastain rocketed his No. 1 AdventHealth Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to the lead on the inside lane. Behind, Gibbs retained the runner-up spot followed by LaJoie, Blaney and the field. Then through the frontstretch and as Blaney took over third place, Erik Jones made a bold four-wide move in a bid for fourth place over Harvick, Larson and LaJoie before he settled behind LaJoie and Larson through the first two turns as Wallace tried to work his way back to the front.

    By Lap 60, Chastain was leading by three-tenths of a second over Larson followed by Gibbs, Bell and Blaney while Hamlin, Wallace, Gragson, Erik Jones and Harvick were in the top 10. Meanwhile, Truex was mired back in 11th ahead of Reddick, Byron, Buescher and Bowman while Logano, Elliott, LaJoie, Briscoe and Brad Keselowski were scored in the top 20.

    At the Lap 75 mark, Chastain continued to lead by two-tenths of a second over Hamlin, who overtook teammate Bell on the frontstretch while Noah Gragson, who was making his ninth Cup career start, was scored in fourth place ahead of Larson. Gibbs was back in sixth ahead of Harvick, Wallace, Erik Jones and Truex.

    Four laps later, Hamlin used the outside lane to muscle his No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry into the lead. In the process, teammate Bell navigated his No. 20 SiriusXM Toyota TRD Camry into the runner-up spot. By then, Wallace outlasted a four-car battle against Reddick, Erik Jones and Truex to move into eighth place.

    A few laps later, Noah Gragson and Ty Gibbs, who was substituting for the injured Kurt Busch for a third consecutive event, pitted under green. Cole Custer also pitted not long with a flat left-front tire.

    Nearing the Lap 90 mark, Blaney pitted his No. 12 Menards Ford Mustang under green along with Harvick and Wallace. Byron would also pit his No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 along with Chastain as Hamlin continued to lead. During the pit stops, Chastain was assessed a drive-through penalty for an uncontrolled tire violation when two tires rolled out of his pit box.

    Then just as Hamlin pitted along with Larson, Reddick, Truex, Logano, Bell, Elliott, the caution flew on Lap 97 when Cole Custer, who fell off the pace starting in the backstretch, had fire erupting out of the left front of his No. 41 Haas Ford Mustang. Despite the fire, Custer managed to nurse his car back to his pit stall, where he quickly emerged uninjured as his race came to an end.

    During the caution period, some like Erik Jones, Buescher, Daniel Suarez, Briscoe, Austin Dillon, Ty Dillon, Josh Bilicki, Truex, Larson, Byron and Cody Ware pitted while the rest led by Hamlin remained on the track.

    With 15 laps remaining in the second stage, the race restated under green. At the start, Harvick and Hamlin dueled for the lead while Brad Keselowski settled in third ahead of Bell and Larson. Shortly after, Bell overtook Keselowski for third as the field fanned out through the frontstretch. By then, Reddick pitted under green as his No. 8 pit crew popped the hood of his No. 8 Chevrolet open to address a mechanical issue, an issue that would eliminate him from further competition.

    Three laps later, the caution returned when Noah Gragson spun after he broke a toe link and slapped the outside wall in Turn 2 as he nursed his No. 16 Chevy Accessories Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 back to pit road with extensive damage. Under caution, some led by Harvick and Bell pitted while the rest led by Hamlin remained on the track.

    With the race restarting under green with seven laps remaining in the second stage, Hamlin managed to pull ahead with the lead as Suarez muscled his way into the runner-up spot over Keselowski and Larson as the field fanned out through the backstretch and back to the frontstretch. As the field continued to jostle for positions, Hamlin pulled away with the lead.

    When the second stage concluded on Lap 120, Hamlin captured his third stage victory of the 2022 season. Suarez settled in second followed by Larson, Bell, Keselowski, Erik Jones, Austin Dillon, Alex Bowman, Byron and Logano.

    Under the stage break, some led by Hamlin pitted while the rest led by Suarez remained on the track. During the pit stops, Larson was penalized for speeding on pit road. In addition, Austin Hill, a full-time Xfinity Series competitor for Richard Childress Racing who was making his Cup Series debut, was penalized for having a crew member jump over the wall too soon.

    With 74 laps remaining, the final stage commenced under green as Suarez and Bell occupied the front row. At the start and with the field fanning out through the first two turns, Suarez managed to fend off Bell to retain the lead while Chastain rallied from his uncontrolled tire violation that pinned him a lap behind to work his way back into third place ahead of Logano and Austin Dillon. Behind, Harvick overtook teammate Chase Briscoe for sixth while Hamlin started to close in while running in eighth place.

    Nearing the final 60 laps of the event, the battle for the lead intensified between Suarez and Bell as both dueled dead even for the lead with Chastain closing in. Despite Bell’s intimidation, Suarez maintained the lead by a tenth of a second while Chastain remained in third and trailing by six-tenths of a second. Meanwhile, Logano was in fourth ahead of Harvick and Hamlin while Austin Dillon was in seventh ahead of Wallace, Briscoe and Gibbs.

    Down to the final 50 laps of the event, the battle for the lead continued to intensify as Trackhouse Racing’s Suarez and Chastain battled for the lead with the former leading the latter. Behind, Hamlin overtook teammate Bell for third place as he continued to power his way to the front while Bubba Wallace, who overtook Logano for sixth place earlier, started to challenge Harvick for fifth, which he succeeded during the following lap. Not long after, Austin Dillon and Briscoe pitted under green.

    Then with 45 laps remaining, the cycle of green flag pit stops slowly commenced as Buescher pitted. During the following lap, teammates Suarez and Chastain pitted together, with Chastain managing to exit ahead of Suarez, as Hamlin assumed the lead. Harvick would then pit during the following lap.

    With 41 laps remaining, trouble ensued in Turn 4 when Chastain, who had just pitted for fresh tires and fuel but a lap behind, made contact with Bell as he sent Bell’s No. 20 Toyota into the outside wall in Turn 4 with Bell’s car suffering significant right-front damage. The incident was enough for NASCAR to display the caution.

    Under caution, the majority of the field that had not yet pitted led by Hamlin and Wallace pitted as Hamlin exited pit road first ahead of Wallace, Larson, Bowman and Logano. Back on the track, however, Harvick and BJ McLeod remained on the track as Harvick, who pitted prior to the caution and remained on the lead lap, assumed the lead. Following the pit stops, Hamlin was penalized for having too many crew members over the wall when a crew member leaned over his pit box to catch a loose tire. In addition, Ty Gibbs was penalized for speeding on pit road.

    Down to the final 35 laps of the event, the race restarted under green. At the start, Harvick received a push from Larson to retain the lead through the first turn. Despite being pressured by Wallace entering the backstretch, Harvick managed to pull away with the lead while Wallace and Larson dueled for second. Then in Turn 1, Logano, who joined the battle ensuing between Larson and Wallace in Turn 4, washed up the track and forced Wallace wide, which also affected Larson as his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 slid outside of the top 10 and back in ninth while Logano and Wallace battled for the runner-up spot.

    With 30 laps remaining, Harvick was leading by more than a second over Logano while Wallace was being pressured by Blaney for third place. Erik Jones was in fifth followed by Bowman, Truex, Elliott, Larson and Hamlin.

    Ten laps later, Harvick extended his advantage to more than three seconds over Logano, who had Wallace pressuring him for the runner-up spot, while Blaney and Erik Jones remained in the top five. Meanwhile, Hamlin, who was trying to carve his way back to the front, challenged Larson for eighth place. In addition, Erik Jones was being pressured by Truex for fifth place while Bowman started to close in.

    Another two laps later, Wallace dueled and overtook Logano for the runner-up spot as he began his pursuit on Harvick for the lead. Meanwhile, Blaney started to pressure teammate Logano for third place while Hamlin rocketed his way to sixth behind Erik Jones.

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Harvick’s No. 4 Busch Light Apple Ford Mustang continued to lead by more than four seconds over Wallace’s No. 23 McDonald’s Toyota TRD Camry while his team owner Hamlin battled Logano for third place in front of Blaney.

    With five laps remaining, Harvick stabilized his advantage to nearly four seconds over Wallace. By then, Suarez limped his No. 99 Worldwide Express Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to pit road after he cut a left-front tire and limped around the speedway for a full lap. Despite the late incident, the race proceeded under green.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Harvick remained as the leader by less than four seconds over Wallace. With Wallace unable to narrow the deficit in a single lap, Harvick cruised his way around the two-mile speedway circuit for a final time and cycled his way back to the frontstretch to claim his first checkered flag in two years.

    In addition to snapping a 65-race winless drought, Harvick achieved his sixth victory at Michigan, the second victory of the season for Stewart-Haas Racing and his 59th career win in NASCAR’s premier series. In addition, he became the 15th different competitor to win this season and be guaranteed a spot to the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs after coming into the event trailing the cutline by 96 points.

    Photo by Tim Jarrold for SpeedwayMedia.com.

    “Just good timing, for sure,” Harvick said on USA Network. “We’ve had several good runs the last few weeks. Loudon, Pocono, where the car ran good and just didn’t have everything work out. Just really proud of everybody on our Busch Light Apple Ford Mustang. They’ve been digging along all year long, trying to make these Mustangs run faster and they haven’t been great this year. Our guys have done a good job in trying to take what we have, maximize it and do the things that we need to do. Really proud of everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing.”

    “Everybody who doubted us doesn’t know us,” Harvick added. “They obviously know that we thrive in these types of situations. A lot of things went our way today, which we haven’t had, all year long, have things go our way and things fall our way. There at the end, we pitted, didn’t go a lap down, the caution came out, got control of the race. That’s the thing I struggled with the most today was traffic, the restarts and just having to make up ground. Once I got clear of traffic, [the car] was hunting. It’s been a while. Coming to Michigan, this has been a great place for us. Just gotta thank all the fans. They’ve stuck with us through this little dry spell, so hopefully, we can back to Victory lane again soon.”

    Wallace, who started on pole position and came into this weekend in a “must-win” scenario to draw himself into the Playoff picture, claimed the runner-up spot for the second time this season and for his fourth consecutive top-10 result in recent weeks after leading the first 22 laps. The result, however, kept Wallace in 20th place in the regular-season standings as he trails the top-16 cutline by 235 points.

    “[I’m] Replaying everything I could have done,” Wallace, who fought tears of disappointment, said. “[I] Should have taken the top on the restart. Thought I could hang with [Harvick] and just got to racing [Larson] and [Logano]. [Logano] did a great job of getting another Ford contract by helping another Ford win. All in all, an incredible weekend. Appreciate my team. Wish we could have gotten Toyota in victory lane. Wish we could have got McDonalds in victory lane again. [The car] was fast all weekend. I will wear this one on my heart for a while. I failed everybody…Hate it. Hate it for our team. Sucks. It was a hell of a job for our team. There were a lot of positives from this weekend, but I’m a person that looks more at the negatives and I need to change that. I want to win so bad and this was the best opportunity.”

    Hamlin rallied from his late pit road miscue to finish in third place while Logano and Blaney finished in the top five. The top-three result, however, did little to ease Hamlin’s frustration in having a potential victory slip out of his grasp following his late pit road penalty.

    “It’s just frustrating,” Hamlin said. “We’ve had really fast cars throughout the year and Dover comes to mind and Pocono comes to mind and this race comes to mind and a bunch of others. Just cant get a [win] in the column. Hats off to Joe Gibbs Racing for giving me a car that fast and my team for setting it up really good. This is a piece of the puzzle you have to have to win races. Everyone has to do their job to the best of their ability and we just are lacking in one little section of our team that we just can’t hem up…I just hope that we make strides and keep getting better. It’s just frustrating when you have fast cars like our Toyotas did this weekend, there’s just absolutely no excuse for not winning. We’re the ones that have to look each other in the face on Monday and figure out how we just keep doing this. Hopefully we can make it constructive and continue to get better, but obviously it’s disappointing.”

    Completing the top 10 on the track were Truex, Larson, Erik Jones, Bowman and Ty Gibbs.

    There were 15 lead changes for 10 different leaders. The race featured seven cautions for 36 laps.

    With three regular season races remaining this season, Chase Elliott continues to lead the regular season standings by 119 points over Ryan Blaney, 137 over Ross Chastain, 138 over Martin Truex Jr. and 142 over Kyle Larson. 

    Chase Elliott, Ross Chastain, William Byron, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Tyler Reddick, Kyle Larson, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, Daniel Suarez, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Alex Bowman, rookie Austin Cindric and Kevin Harvick are currently guaranteed spots for the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs based on winning once throughout the regular-season stretch while Ryan Blaney occupies the 16th and final transfer spot to the Playoffs based on points. Martin Truex Jr. trails the top-16 cutline by 19 points, Erik Jones trails by 190 points, Aric Almirola trails by 210 points, Bubba Wallace trails by 235, Austin Dillon trails by 245, Justin Haley trails by 283, Chris Buescher trails by 286 and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. trails by 333 points.

    Results.

    1. Kevin Harvick, 38 laps led

    2. Bubba Wallace, 22 laps led

    3. Denny Hamlin, 38 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    4. Joey Logano

    5. Ryan Blaney

    6. Martin Truex Jr.

    7. Kyle Larson

    8. Erik Jones, five laps led

    9. Alex Bowman

    10. Ty Gibbs, two laps led

    11. Chase Elliott

    12. William Byron

    13. Austin Dillon

    14. Ty Dillon

    15. Brad Keselowski

    16. Chris Buescher, one lap led

    17. Justin Haley

    18. Austin Hill

    19. Corey LaJoie

    20. Chase Briscoe

    21. Josh Bilicki

    22. Cody Ware

    23. BJ McLeod, one lap down, one lap led

    24. Ross Chastain, two laps down, 29 laps led

    25. Daniel Suarez, seven laps down, 33 laps led

    26. Christopher Bell – OUT, Accident, 31 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    27. Todd Gilliland, 12 laps down

    28. Michael McDowell, 13 laps down

    29. Tyler Reddick – OUT, Engine

    30. Noah Gragson – OUT, Accident

    31. Cole Custer – OUT, Accident

    32. Harrison Burton – OUT, Accident

    33. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – OUT, Accident

    34. Aric Almirola – OUT, Accident

    35. JJ Yeley – OUT, Accident

    36. Kyle Busch – OUT, Accident

    37. Austin Cindric – OUT, Accident

    Next on the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the series’ second and final visit of the season to Richmond Raceway. The event is scheduled to occur on Sunday, August 14, at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Ty Gibbs cruises to fifth Xfinity victory of 2022 at Michigan

    Ty Gibbs cruises to fifth Xfinity victory of 2022 at Michigan

    After assuming command of the field at the start of the final stage, Ty Gibbs never looked back as he cycled his way to a dominant victory in the New Holland 250 at Michigan International Speedway on Saturday, August 6.

    The 19-year-old Gibbs from Charlotte, North Carolina, rallied from starting ninth to lead twice for a race-high 54 of 125-scheduled laps, including the final 16, as he beat runner-up Justin Allgaier by more than a second to claim his fifth Xfinity Series victory of the 2022 season at the Irish Hills.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, Noah Gragson started on pole position for the second time this season after recording a pole-winning lap at 190.370 mph in 37.821 seconds. Joining him on the front row was AJ Allmendinger, winner of last weekend’s Xfinity event at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course who clocked in his best lap at 190.340 mph in 37.827 seconds.

    Prior to the event, names like Bayley Currey, David Starr and CJ McLaughlin started at the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective cars. Blaine Perkins and Matt Mills also dropped to the rear due to an engine change made to their cars.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Gragson and Allmendinger dueled early for the lead until Gragson gained a strong run on the outside lane to pull ahead through the backstretch. As Brandon Jones issued a three-wide challenge on Allmendinger and Justin Allgaier for the runner-up spot, Gragson proceeded to lead the first lap. Behind, Allmendinger retained second ahead of Jones while Daniel Hemric challenged Allgaier for fourth place.

    Three laps later and with the field jostling early for positions, Josh Berry, who was battling Joe Gibbs Racing’s Sammy Smith and Ty Gibbs for spots in the top 10, washed up the track and scrapped the outside wall in the backstretch as Kyle Weatherman made the slightest contact against Berry while quickly moving to the left to avoid hitting Berry. Then entering Turn 3, Weatherman got loose underneath Berry as Berry’s No. 8 Harrison’s Chevrolet Camaro washed up the track towards the outside wall again. Despite the contact, both proceeded at full race pace as Berry was mired back in the top 15.

    Through the first five scheduled laps, Gragson was leading by six-tenths of a second over Allmendinger followed by Brandon Jones, Allgaier and Hemric while Sammy Smith, Ty Gibbs, rookie Sheldon Creed, rookie Austin Hill and Landon Cassill were in the top 10.

    At the Lap 10 mark, Gragson extended his advantage to more than a second over Allmendinger, who was fending off Allgaier and Brandon Jones for the runner-up spot, while Sammy Smith moved his No. 18 Pilot Flying J Toyota Supra inside the top five. Meanwhile, Berry was in 12th in between Riley Herbst and Brandon Brown while Myatt Snider and Ryan Sieg occupied the top 15.

    By Lap 20, Gragson, who remained as the leader, had his advantage decreased to less than half a second with the latter closing in on the former and bidding for the lead. Meanwhile, Allmendinger, Sammy Smith and Brandon Jones were in the top five followed by Ty Gibbs, Hemric, Hill, Creed and Cassill.

    When the first stage concluded on Lap 30, Gragson carved his No. 9 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro through lapped traffic and to his ninth stage victory of the 2022 season. Teammate Allgaier, who could not navigate his way around Gragson for the lead, settled in second followed by Sammy Smith, Allmendinger, Gibbs, Brandon Jones, Hemric, Hill, Cassill and Berry.

    Under the stage break, the leaders led by Gragson pitted and Gragson retained the lead following quick service from his pit crew followed by Allmendinger, Smith, Allgaier, Hill and Hemric.

    The second stage started on Lap 36 as Gragson and Allmendinger occupied the front row. At the start, Allgaier pushed Allmendinger to the lead until Allgaier issued a challenge for the lead entering the first turn. Allmendinger, however, pulled away on the outside lane followed by a fast-charging Gragson, Allgaier, Smith, Gibbs and the field. 

    Then as the field entered the frontstretch, Gragson made his move beneath Allmendinger in his bid for the lead, but a bold three-wide move on the outside lane moved Allgaier to the lead entering the first turn followed by Smith and Ty Gibbs while Allmendinger and Gragson fell back to fourth and fifth. 

    On Lap 40, the caution flew when CJ McLaughlin got loose and pounded the outside wall in Turn 2 as he spun below the apron while being dodged by the competitors running towards the rear of the field. At the same time, Matt Mills spun and backed his car into the outside wall while trying to brake and dodge McLaughlin.

    When the race proceeded under green on Lap 45, Allgaier and Ty Gibbs dueled for the lead until Allgaier used the outside lane to his advantage and pulled ahead with the lead through the first two turns. Behind, Smith moved back into the runner-up spot followed by Gibbs, Allmendinger and Brandon Jones while Gragson was back in sixth.

    At the Lap 50 mark, Allgaier continued to lead by a tenth of a second over a hard-charging Sammy Smith followed by Gibbs, Allmendinger and Gragson while Brandon Jones, Sam Mayer, Landon Cassill, Hemric and Riley Herbst were in the top 10. Behind, Berry was in 11th followed by John Hunter Nemechek, Creed, Hill, Anthony Alfredo, Kaz Grala, Ryan Sieg, Myatt Snider, Kyle Weatherman and Kyle Sieg.

    Three laps later, the caution returned when Dillon Bassett made contact with David Starr entering the backstretch as Starr got into the outside wall and spun below the backstretch without hitting the inside wall. During the caution period, some led by race leader Allgaier and Smith pitted while the rest led by Allmendinger and Gragson remained on the track.

    With two laps remaining in the second stage, the race restarted under green as teammates Allmendinger and Cassill occupied the front row. At the start, teammates Cassill and Allmendinger dueled for the lead while their other teammate, Hemric, washed up the track and nearly got into the outside wall entering the backstretch. After dueling with Cassill throughout the backstretch, Allmendinger pulled ahead entering the frontstretch to retain the lead and commence the final lap of the second stage. Meanwhile, Gragson overtook Cassill for the runner-up spot as he bolted his way towards the front.

    When the second stage concluded on Lap 60, Gragson, who gained a strong run through the backstretch before drawing himself alongside Allmendinger’s No. 16 Action Industries Chevrolet Camaro through the frontstretch, edged Allmendinger by 0.035 seconds to capture his 10th stage victory and second of the day on Lap 60. Allmendinger settled in second followed by Berry, Cassill, Ryan Sieg, Anthony Alfredo, Kaz Grala, Myatt Snider, Gibbs and Hill.

    Under the stage break, some led by Gragson and Allmendinger pitted while the rest led by Ty Gibbs remained on the track. During the pit stops, Berry was penalized for speeding on pit road.

    With 59 laps remaining, the final stage started as teammates Gibbs and Sammy Smith occupied the front row. At the start, Gibbs launched his No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Supra to the lead on the outside lane. Shortly after, Hill moved into the runner-up spot while Smith was being pressured by Allgaier, Sam Mayer and Brandon Jones for positions in the top five for nearly a full lap. 

    Four laps later, Sam Mayer ran into the rear of Smith’s No. 18 Toyota as Smith was engaged in a fierce battle with Allgaier for third place, which damaged the left-front fender of Mayer’s No. 1 BUSDX Chevrolet Camaro and caused a tire rub as he began to slide below the leaderboard. During the following lap, he made an unscheduled pit stop under green while Smith remained on the track in fourth place.

    Back on the track and down to the final 50 laps of the event, Gibbs was leading by more than two seconds over Allgaier, who overtook Hill for the runner-up spot. Teammates Smith and Brandon Jones were in the top five while Herbst, Allmendinger, Gragson, Creed and Cassill occupied the top 10. Behind, John Hunter Nemechek was in 11th while Brandon Brown, Hemric, Berry and Alfredo were in the top 15.

    Ten laps later, Gibbs, who reported debris on his grille, continued to lead by more than two seconds over Allgaier while Smith, Hill and Jones, who had Allmendinger and Gragson closing in, were in the top five. Shortly after, however, Gibbs was able to use the lapped car of Blaine Perkins to remove the debris from his grille and retain the lead.

    Another 10 laps later, Gibbs retained the lead by nearly two seconds over Allgaier. Behind, Smith, Gragson and Hill were scored in the top five followed by Brandon Jones, Allmendinger, Herbst, Berry and Hemric.

    Four laps later, a late cycle of green flag pit stops occurred as Brandon Jones pitted his No. 19 Menards Toyota Supra along with Allgaier. During the following lap, Gibbs surrendered the lead to pit for four fresh tires and fuel along with Creed, Gragson and Smith, who led a lap for himself prior to pitting. During the pit stops, Sammy Smith’s strong run was spoiled when he was penalized for speeding on pit road.

    With 20 laps remaining, Berry, who has yet to pit, was leading by more than 13 seconds over Alfredo followed by Sieg, Weatherman and Gibbs. Meanwhile, David Starr experienced a scary moment while pitting as the right-front tire on his car exploded amid a fire.

    Five laps later, Gibbs cycled his way back to the lead after Ryan Sieg and Kyle Weatherman pitted. By then, Berry and Alfredo had pitted while Allgaier was in the runner-up spot followed by Gragson, Jones and Hill. 

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Gibbs was leading by more than a second over Allgaier, who was experiencing difficulties navigating his way through lapped traffic, followed by Gragson, Jones and Hill while Allmendinger, Berry, Hemric, Herbst and Cassill were in the top 10. Creed was back in 11th ahead of Sammy Smith, Ryan Sieg, Brandon Brown and Anthony Alfredo, all of whom were on the lead lap.

    With five laps remaining, Gibbs, who was trying to navigate and lap Ryan Sieg and Alfredo, continued to lead by more than a second over Allgaier while Gragson, Jones and Hill stabilized themselves in the top five.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Gibbs remained as the leader by more than a second over Allgaier. With Allgaier unable to narrow the deficit, Gibbs, who was proceeding to lap Brandon Brown, cycled his way back to the frontstretch as he streaked his No. 54 Toyota to the finish line and captured his fifth checkered flag of the 2022 season. 

    In addition, Gibbs, who last won at Road America during the Fourth of July weekend, captured his first NASCAR national touring series victory at the Irish Hills and his ninth career win in his 39th overall start in the Xfinity circuit. He also recorded the sixth victory at Michigan for Joe Gibbs Racing and the fifth for the Toyota nameplate as he trails the regular-season points lead by 28 points with five races prior to the start of the 2022 Xfinity Series Playoffs.

    “We had a very fast Monster Energy Toyota GR Supra,” Gibbs said on USA Network. “I’m so excited. I think this style of racing shows the strategy and the pit stops. It’s pretty spread out. My guys did a great job. My pit crew, they work so hard. I work out with them during the weekend. I see how hard they work, so every one of them did a good job. All glory to God. My car was faster than Xfinity high speed internet. Just kidding it wasn’t that fast. I just race, week in and week out, but [there’s] people who get all excited and think they’re making a huge statement and then they get in the playoffs and suck. I’m just doing what I can, week in and week out.”

    Allgaier, who led 17 laps, settled in the runner-up spot while Gragson, who led 39 laps and won the first and second stage, came home in third place after he was unable to charge his way back to the lead during the final stage.

    “I just had a couple of errors today that really kept us from racing [Gibbs],” Allgaier said. “Hats off to Ty. He did a great job. This team, our BRANDT Professional Agricultural Camaro was really good all day. We chose to play the right strategy. We gave up some points in the regular-season points, but I think it was the right strategy. I picked the wrong lane on one of the restarts and that was just kind of the difference maker, but all in all, a good day. A hot day, but a good day. Proud of our team. Proud of the effort.”

    “I felt like we had a good enough car to be able to get back up there,” Gragson said. “[I] Just kind of struggled on the short run. We won the first stage and then, kind of got shuffled back on the restarts on the second stage. [I] Decided to stay out, ended up winning the second stage. Once everything cycled through and we pitted after this stage, those guys started up front and on the tires they took. Just struggled, but really proud of the effort by all the guys sticking behind us. You’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t. We got two Playoff points, but I felt like we were good enough to win.”

    Brandon Jones and Hill finished in the top five while Berry, Allmendinger, Hemric, Herbst and Cassill completed the top 10 on the track. Following his late pit road penalty, Sammy Smith ended up in 12th place, the final competitor on the lead lap.

    There were 12 lead changes for nine different leaders. The race featured four cautions for 19 laps. Only 12 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap.

    With five races remaining in the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series regular-season stretch, AJ Allmendinger continues to lead the regular-season standings by 19 points over Justin Allgaier, 28 over Ty Gibbs, 87 over Noah Gragson and 98 over Josh Berry.

    Ty Gibbs, Noah Gragson, Justin Allgaier, AJ Allmendinger, Josh Berry, rookie Austin Hill and Brandon Jones are currently guaranteed spots for the 2022 Xfinity Playoffs based on winning once throughout the regular season stretch while Riley Herbst, Sam Mayer, Daniel Hemric, Landon Cassill, and Ryan Sieg occupy the remaining vacant spots to the Playoffs based on points. Rookie Sheldon Creed trails the top-12 cutline by 52 points, Anthony Alfredo trails by 75, Brandon Brown trails by 87, Jeb Burton trails by 155, Myatt Snider trails by 156 and Jeremy Clements trails by 170.

    Results.

    1. Ty Gibbs, 54 laps led

    2. Justin Allgaier, 17 laps led

    3. Noah Gragson, 39 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

    4. Brandon Jones

    5. Austin Hill, one lap led

    6. Josh Berry, three laps led

    7. AJ Allmendinger, seven laps led

    8. Daniel Hemric

    9. Riley Herbst

    10. Landon Cassill

    11. Sheldon Creed

    12. Sammy Smith, one lap led

    13. Brandon Brown, one lap down

    14. Anthony Alfredo, one lap down, one lap led

    15. Ryan Sieg, one lap down, two laps led

    16. Kyle Weatherman, one lap down

    17. Myatt Snider, one lap down

    18. Kaz Grala, one lap down

    19. John Hunter Nemechek, one lap down

    20. JJ Yeley, one lap down

    21. Kaz Grala, one lap down

    22. Jeb Burton, one lap down

    23. Joe Graf Jr., one lap down

    24. Mason Massey, one lap down

    25. Patrick Emerling, one lap down

    26. Alex Labbe, one lap down

    27. Ryan Ellis, one lap down

    28. Josh Bilicki, one lap down

    29. Ryan Vargas, two laps down

    30. Bayley Currey, two laps down

    31. Jeremy Clements, two laps down

    32. Blaine Perkins, two laps down

    33. Sam Mayer, two laps down

    34. Dillon Bassett, three laps down

    35. David Starr – OUT, Hub

    36. Josh Williams – OUT, Electrical

    37. CJ McLaughlin – OUT, Accident

    38. Matt Mills – OUT, Accident

    Next on the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, New York, which will occur on August 20 at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Bubba Wallace claims first career Cup Series pole at Michigan

    Bubba Wallace claims first career Cup Series pole at Michigan

    Bubba Wallace soared to the top of the speed charts in this No. 23 Toyota Saturday afternoon with a 190.703 mph lap to capture the Busch Light Pole Award. It was his first career Cup Series pole and the first for 23XI Racing, now in its second year of competition in the NASCAR Cup Series.

    Wallace has three top-10 finishes in the last three races including a third at New Hampshire, an eighth at Pocono and a fifth last week at Indianapolis.

    “It’s awesome, proud of my team, Wallace said, “continuing to show up and battle and give it all we got.

    “We’ve been one of the best teams these last couple of weeks. I came over the radio after the first run and said, ‘It’s fun to have fun,’ and it’s pretty fun right now. Car feels great in race trim.”

    Toyotas were strong during the qualifying session, capturing five of the top-10 spots. Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell qualified second, Kyle Busch was third, Martin Truex Jr. was seventh and Denny Hamlin was ninth quickest. Joey Logano and Austin Cindric will start fourth and fifth in their Fords for Team Penske.

    Logano felt like the team had made good adjustments but still has work to do.

    “We made up some time from practice, which was good. We made some solid adjustments to get our balance better. I’m not sure how much better we made our car, but we made our balance better, which is good. We’ll think a lot overnight to make the car better for race trim, so I’d say a successful day from where we were in practice and getting better for qualifying and having a top-five effort is nice, so we’ll fight from there.”

    Tyler Reddick was the fastest Chevrolet, qualifying sixth for Richard Childress Racing, Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson was seventh and Erik Jones was 10th in the Petty GMS Motorsports Chevy.

    Tune in to watch the Firekeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway Sunday, August 7 on USA Network and the NBC Sports App with radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

  • Weekend schedule for Michigan

    Weekend schedule for Michigan

    The NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity head to Michigan International Speedway this weekend while the Camping World Truck Series has a week off and returns to competition on August 13 at Richmond Raceway.

    Kevin Harvick, currently 17th in the points standings, leads all active drivers with six wins at Michigan.

    There have been 14 different winners in the Cup Series this year and with only four races remaining in the regular season, the pressure is on. Ryan Blaney is 15th in the standings, 121 points above the cutline, with Martin Truex Jr. in 16th place with a 96-point advantage.

    AJ Allmendinger leads the Xfinity Series regular season standings with six races to go followed by Justin Allgaier in second, only 17 points behind, and Ty Gibbs in third (-30).

    All times are Eastern.

    Saturday, August 6

    9:05 a.m.: Xfinity Series Practice – NBC Sports Online/App
    9:35 a.m.: Xfinity Series Practice – NBC Sports Online/App
    10:45 a.m. ARCA Menards Series Practice – No TV
    11:30 a.m.: ARCA Menards Series Qualifying – No TV
    12:35 p.m.: Cup Series Practice – NBC Sports Online/App
    1:20 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying – NBC Sports Online/App

    3:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series New Holland 250
    Distance: 250 miles (125 Laps)
    Stage 1 Ends on Lap 30, Stage 2 Ends on Lap 60, Final Stage Ends on Lap 125
    USA/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    The Purse: $1,269,941

    6:30 ARCA Menards Series Henry Ford Health 200 – FloRacing/MRN

    Sunday, August 7

    3 p.m.: Cup Series FireKeepers Casino 400
    Distance: 400 miles (200 Laps)
    Stage 1 ends on Lap 45, Stage 2 ends on Lap 120, Final Stage ends on Lap 200
    USA/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    The Purse: $7,125,085

    Press Pass Live Schedule – Saturday, August 6

    11:15 a.m.: Joey Logano, William Byron, Kyle Busch
    Post Cup Series Qualifying
    Post Xfinity Series Race
    Post ARCA Menards Series Race

    Press Pass Live Schedule – Sunday, August 7

    12:40 p.m.: Erik Jones
    Post Cup Series Race

  • Ty Gibbs subbing for Kurt Busch at Michigan

    Ty Gibbs subbing for Kurt Busch at Michigan

    For a third consecutive weekend, Ty Gibbs will be pulling double duty as he will be piloting the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota TRD Camry for the upcoming NASCAR Cup Series event at Michigan International Speedway while subbing for Kurt Busch.

    The news comes as Busch released a statement through social media that he has not received medical clearance to return to on-track, with his last start occurring at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 17. The 2004 Cup Series champion continues to recover from concussion-like symptoms he sustained following a hard wreck during a qualifying session at Pocono Raceway on July 23, which sidelined him from the main event the following day at the Tricky Triangle and during last weekend’s event at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course.

    In spite of his absence, Busch has been granted a medical waiver to be eligible for the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs, where he is currently guaranteed a postseason spot by virtue of winning at Kansas Speedway on May 15.

    With Busch setting his focus on returning next weekend at Richmond Raceway, the 19-year-old Gibbs from Charlotte, North Carolina, will be making his third career start in NASCAR’s premier series at the Irish Hills. He made his Cup debut at Pocono while filling in for Busch, where he finished 16th after starting at the rear of the field. He is coming off a 17th-place run at Indy after starting 26th.

    Gibbs also continues his pursuit for this first NASCAR national touring series championship as he is a full-time Xfinity Series competitor for Joe Gibbs Racing. Through the first 20-scheduled events, he has achieved four victories, three poles, eight top-five results, 12 top-10 results, 460 laps led and an average-finishing result of 10.1. He is currently ranked in third place in the regular-season standings and trails the points lead by 30 points with six regular-season events remaining.

    This weekend will mark Gibbs’ second and third career NASCAR national touring series starts at Michigan between his Xfinity-Cup doubleheader duty. His first national touring series start at the Irish Hills was August 2021, where he led a single lap and ended up in 13th place following a late incident. Gibbs also made his lone ARCA Menards Series start at Michigan last August, where he won from pole position and after leading all but one of the 100-scheduled laps.

    Gibbs’ third career start in the NASCAR Cup Series is set to occur at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday, August 7. The event’s coverage is scheduled to occur at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Michigan apparently a not-so-friendly reminder to NASCAR teams that the regular season is about to end

    Michigan apparently a not-so-friendly reminder to NASCAR teams that the regular season is about to end

    Did anyone else find it fascinating concerning what all can happen in the space of a month?

    Here are a few examples:

    A. I personally went from “productive citizen” to “hooray, I’m stuck in my home because I get to wear an oxygen line leash!” thanks to Covid.

    B. The Allies went from storming the beaches at Normandy on June 6 to controlling a significant portion of France four weeks later.

    C. And finally, Harry Gant won all four September races in 1991. He didn’t equate this to a championship, but hey, I thought it would be neat to bring up Mr. September.

    What’s happened so far in August?

    1. Well, in case we have all forgotten, we had something of a snoozer of an event at Watkins Glen, where, on top of us being quietly reminded that the outgoing NASCAR machinery really doesn’t have much of any place on a flat-ish road course (hooray for the incoming Next-Gen cars!). Practically every driver on the track burst a rotator cuff in their attempts at being “gentlemen drivers” in how furiously and happily they waved Kyle Larson to the front.

    2. Do I dare bring up the Indy road course debacle from last week/Scene 24? On top of being reminded…again…concerning how poorly the old, paltry downforce Model T NASCAR machinery does on flat road courses or even flat tracks for that matter. We also had the completely unfamiliar specter to process that with a handful of laps to go. There was a mildly alarming realization that the Turn 6 curbing was now actively wrecking the drivers.

    Concerning the “amateur hour” that unfolded afterward, it definitely appeared that something had gone horribly awry with the Turn 6 curbing, but shouting at our TV’s only works 50% of the time in making people onscreen listen to what we’re telling them to do or not to do. In this case, it was readily apparent that something had gone “Exxon Valdez”-level of wrong with that curbing. This reminds me of another D-Day invasion story, where a Tiger tank got past an Allied artillery station because whoever was manning it was busily relieving himself, and the Tiger knocked out several American tanks.

    At any rate, we all saw the show that unfolded afterward, including the truly genius decision to leave the perpendicular secondary curbing/Robby Gordon Super Stadium Truck Series jump ramp in place for the remaining few laps. After the lethal primary curbing had been unceremoniously removed, a wee bit of vehicular carnage presented itself as entertainment.

    Side notes for Indy:

    • Chase Briscoe gets punted off of turn one by Denny Hamlin (who was previously punted into Briscoe by someone else), and Hamlin is then somewhat shocked to discover that Briscoe just might retaliate only against the person who was punting the No. 14? Uh, okay.
    • Concerning the No. 14 “non-retaliation,” and “Briscoe has never done anything like this ever before!” No, he’s probably done it, it’s just that he’s never been this blatant and caught. Kudos to his explanation concerning what happened afterward, almost as if someone else (space aliens?) took control of his car and forced him to run into the back of Hamlin.
    • Yes, Indy happened almost two weeks ago, but I thought it would be better if I took an extra week to write about that. As my inner misanthrope was dominating any conversation I had immediately after that event, especially taking into account that the race probably should have ended after the first big curbing wreck that took out many competitors. But then again, it was nice to see Allmendinger in victory lane, so my thoughts are mixed.

    3. Michigan, however, that was the turnaround. Oh, hey, NASCAR teams finally remembered that the end of this season was two weekends away, and then proceeded to try to make up for 20-something weekends of coasting through the 2021 regular season all in one race. As everyone was racing for the lead, to the point where it looked like even the pace car was beating and banging to try to stay ahead of everyone else.

    Okay, I might be exaggerating slightly.

    Michigan notes: Um, can someone remind me as to why Austin Dillon has a full-time ride in NASCAR? And why is he parked in a car that has the legendary No. 3 on the side?

    Asking for a friend.

    4. The regular-season finale is Saturday night, in the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona. This is NASCAR’s original crash fest track and what a way to close out the regular season, practically the rest of the entire field (you know, pretty every team out there not already locked into the NASCAR Championship). This event has a distinct flavor…hint…feeling of October 2011, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, another season-ending event with a huge potential payoff for the winner, a track that was hosting cars that were probably too fast for the venue. A monster crash occurred with that year’s Indy 500 winner taken from us far too early in one of Indycar’s most horrible incidents.

    Not that I’m suggesting that there are too many elements of potential panic being pushed into one five-pound bag, but judging by the race full of Hail Marys being thrown last weekend at Michigan, this weekend doesn’t suggest, in the slightest, that this won’t be toned down for this night time Daytona bookend to the 2021 regular season, which promises to be one for the highlight reels for all the wrong reasons.

  • Blaney steals the show with a late victory at Michigan

    Blaney steals the show with a late victory at Michigan

    The outside lane at Michigan International Speedway was the preferred lane for many at Michigan International Speedway, but the inside lane prevailed at the right time for Ryan Blaney. The High Point, North Carolina, native received a push from Kyle Busch to overtake and beat William Byron in an eight-lap dash to win the FireKeepers Casino 400 at the Irish Hills on Sunday, August 22.

    The victory was Blaney’s second of the season and his first since winning at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March.

    The starting lineup was based on a performance metric formula, weighing the driver’s and owner’s results from a previous Cup event, the owner points position and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Cup race. With that, Kyle Larson, the regular-season points leader, started on pole position and was joined on the front row with teammate Chase Elliott.

    Prior to the event, Josh Berry and Joey Gase started at the rear of the field due to driver changes from their respective machines.

    When the green flag waved and the race commenced, teammates Larson and Elliott dueled dead even until Ryan Blaney issued a challenge on the inside lane through the first turn. Through the backstretch, however, Larson was able to pull ahead on the outside lane as he went on to lead the first lap ahead of Matt DiBenedetto.

    Meanwhile, Kurt Busch powered his way into third while Elliott was challenged by Kevin Harvick for fourth place. Behind, Ryan Blaney slipped back into the top 10 as Alex Bowman, Denny Hamlin and others moved up the leaderboard.

    On the third lap, DiBenedetto, who challenged Larson for the lead early, led the third lap before Larson took it back. Through the backstretch and entering Turn 4, Kurt Busch then moved into the runner-up spot over DiBenedetto as Elliott started to reel in the leaders. Just behind the top-four competitors were Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick, both of whom were battling for a top-five spot ahead of Alex Bowman.

    Through the first five laps, Larson continued to lead by nearly two-tenths of a second over Kurt Busch. Meanwhile, Martin Truex Jr. was mired back in 33rd after he sustained left-rear quarterpanel damage to his No. 19 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota Camry.

    By Lap 10, Larson’s No. 5 Cincinnati Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE was leading by nearly four-tenths of a second over Kurt Busch’s No. 1 Monster Energy Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE while DiBenedetto, Elliott and Hamlin were in the top five. Harvick was in sixth followed by Bowman, Tyler Reddick, Joey Logano and Kyle Busch. William Byron was in 11th ahead of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Blaney was back in 13th ahead of Chris Buescher and Erik Jones, who announced his return to Richard Petty Motorsports for the 2022 season. Ryan Newman was in 16th ahead of rookie Chase Briscoe, Brad Keselowski, Austin Dillon and Christopher Bell. Aric Almirola was in 21st ahead of Ross Chastain and Daniel Suarez, Michael McDowell was in 24th, Bubba Wallace was in 26th and Cole Custer was in 29th. 

    When the competition caution flew on Lap 20, Larson, who has led all but one of the scheduled laps, was the leader by nearly half a second over Kurt Busch. By then, Byron moved into the top 10 while Blaney and Harvick fell back to 12th and 16th. Truex, meanwhile, was still mired in 33rd.

    Under the competition caution, the leaders pitted and Hamlin emerged with the lead after only opting for fuel under his first pit stop. Larson, who elected for a two-tire pit stop, exited in second followed by Kurt Busch, Elliott, Bowman and Reddick.

    When the race restarted on Lap 25, Hamlin, who restarted on the outside lane, received a push from Larson to muscled away from Elliott, who elected to restart on the inside lane on the front row. Elliott, though, was able to settle in the runner-up spot ahead of teammate Larson through the backstretch.

    Two laps later, Elliott thundered his No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE into the lead over Hamlin’s No. 11 FedEx Toyota Camry. Behind, Kurt Busch overtook Larson for fourth while Reddick settled in fifth.

    The following lap, Kurt Busch drag-raced and battled Hamlin for the runner-up spot, but Hamlin managed to prevail on the outside lane through the first two turns. Behind, Joey Logano challenged Larson for fourth, but he lost his momentum in Turn 4 and fell back to sixth ahead of Byron and Bowman.

    Through the first 30 laps of the event, Elliott was leading by nearly four-tenths of a second over Hamlin while Larson, Kurt Busch and Reddick battled in the top five. Byron moved up to sixth ahead of Logano, Bowman, DiBenedetto and Austin Dillon.

    Shortly after, the caution flew when Joey Gase wrecked in Turn 2. Under caution, few like Daniel Suarez pitted while the rest led by Elliott remained on the track.

    When the race restarted on Lap 35, Elliott and Kurt Busch battled dead even for the lead through the first turn and the backstretch until Elliott managed to pull ahead in Turn 3. Behind, Hamlin, who received a push from Logano through Turn 4, moved up to second while Logano moved his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang in front of Kurt Busch for third the following lap. The next lap after, Larson overtook Kurt Busch for fourth in Turn 3 while Austin Dillon, a competitor battling for a Playoff spot and who opted for four fresh tires under the competition caution, challenged Busch for fifth. 

    Nearing the first 40 laps of the event and with the field jostling for positions, Elliott was leading by three-tenths of a second over Hamlin and Logano. Larson and Austin Dillon were in the top five followed by Kurt Busch, DiBenedetto, Blaney, Byron and Brad Keselowski. Meanwhile, Kyle Busch, Harvick and Truex were in 12th, 13th and 16th while Tyler Reddick was back in 15th.

    With the race surpassing the Lap 50 mark, Elliott was leading by half a second over Austin Dillon. Hamlin, Logano and Larson were in the top five followed by Byron and DiBenedetto while Kurt Busch fell back to eighth ahead of brother Kyle and Blaney.

    Back at the front, Austin Dillon and Larson started to reel in on Elliott for the lead. Despite the challenge, though, Elliott was able to maintain the lead and claim his second stage victory of the season by winning the first stage on Lap 60. Behind, Larson managed to edge Dillon at the line to settle in second while Hamlin held off Byron to retain fourth. Logano, DiBenedetto, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch and Keselowski settled in the top 10.

    Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Larson exited with the lead following a stellar four-tire pit stop. Elliott followed in second ahead of Austin Dillon, Suarez (who opted for two fresh tires), Logano and Kyle Busch while Hamlin, who pitted from fourth place, fell back to 10th. Prior to the restart, Logano returned to pit road to have the lug nuts on his car tightened.

    The second stage started on Lap 66 as Larson and Austin Dillon started on the front row. At the start, Larson and Dillon battled dead even for the lead for a full lap until Larson prevailed on the outside lane through Turn 1. With Larson clear in the lead, teammate Elliott moved up to second over Dillon, who was being challenged by DiBenedetto for more.

    Behind, contact from DiBenedetto got Kurt Busch loose in Turn 3. While Busch prevented the car from spinning, he fell out of the top 10 and was mired near the midfield and around a bevy of cars. At the front, though, Larson continued to lead ahead of teammate Elliott, Austin Dillon, Kyle Busch and Suarez.

    By Lap 75, a three-way battle for the lead ensued as Larson, the leader, was pressured by Austin Dillon and Elliott for the top spot, all three of whom were separated by approximately three-tenths of a second. Kyle Busch was up in fourth followed by DiBenedetto, Keselowski, Christopher Bell, Hamlin, Bubba Wallace and Harvick.

    Five laps later, Elliott motored his way back into the lead.

    At the halfway mark on Lap 100, Elliott continued to lead by a narrow margin over teammate Larson. Austin Dillon settled in third ahead of Kyle Busch and Bell while Hamlin was in sixth. DiBenedetto, Byron, Keselowski and Blaney were in the top 10.

    Not long after, pit stops under green commenced as names like Harvick, Byron, Stenhouse, rookie Chase Briscoe and Bowman pitted. By Lap 110, Larson surrendered the lead to pit. The following lap, Elliott also pitted. A few laps later, Kyle Busch and Hamlin pitted, but Hamlin slid past his pit box while trying to enter his stall. During the pit stops, Ross Chastain took his car to the garage due to a fire in the rear end of his No. 42 Moose Fraternity Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE.

    Back on the track and with the green flag pit stops concluding, Kyle Busch, who pitted three and four laps later than Larson and Elliott, cycled to the lead. Bell was in second while Larson and Elliott closed in and challenged Hamlin for third.

    Utilizing his pit strategy to perfection, Kyle Busch cruised to his fifth stage victory of the season after winning the second stage on Lap 120. Teammate Bell settled in second followed by Larson, Elliott and Hamlin. Behind, Austin Dillon nipped Keselowski for sixth, but then, Dillon’s strong day evaporated after contact from Keselowski sent Dillon head-on into the Turn 4 outside wall, where his car nearly flipped, before coming to a rest below the apron. The damage to the No. 3 Chevrolet was enough to terminate Dillon’s run for the day and put a huge dent to his Playoff hopes, though he will have a final opportunity to make the postseason next weekend at Daytona International Speedway. 

    “I was just trying to get as many stage points as I could get right there and did a good job of side-drafting and came down to the apron and I’ve seen just one quick replay, but it was after the start/finish line,” Dillon said at the infield care center on NBCSN. “I was starting to come up off the apron because it’s so rough down there. But I figured by that point, [Keselowski] would have given me a little room. I hate it. I’m thankful that the good Lord kept me safe today. That was a heck of a wreck, but I feel fine.

    “I hate it for BREZTRI and my guys, most of all,” Dillon added. “They built a rocket ship. They really wanted this one, and I did too. Just working our tails off right there. I think we would have had a shot to do something there at the end with our race car. It’s the best race car we’ve brought to the track at [Richard Childress Racing] this year, I feel like. It’s just a bummer but we’ve got Daytona left and I just hate it. I don’t know why it happened, really. I thought I had a little room to come up and he just held me down there a little bit too long, I guess.”

    In the midst of the incident, Reddick, Byron and DiBenedetto rounded out the top-10 stage points positions in the second stage.

    Under the stage break, names like Kyle Busch, Wallace, Elliott, Hamlin, Bell and Erik Jones pitted while the rest led by Larson remained on the track.

    With 74 laps remaining, the final stage started as Larson and Kurt Busch started on the front row. At the start, Larson and Kurt Busch battled dead even for the lead for a full lap, where Busch led for the first time before Larson received a push from teammate Byron to grab the lead through the first two turns. Behind, Byron motored his No. 24 AXALTA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE into the runner-up spot while Busch fell back to third ahead of Blaney, DiBenedetto and Truex.

    With 60 laps remaining, Larson was leading by a tenth of a second over teammate Byron while Kurt Busch, Blaney and Bowman were in the top five. Truex, following his early issues, was up in sixth ahead of teammate Hamlin, DiBenedetto, Logano and Reddick. Kyle Busch was mired back in 11th, Elliott was in 14th ahead of Harvick, Keselowski was back in 18th and Bell was in 21st.

    Down to the final 50 laps of the event and with overcast clouds hovering above the track, Larson continued to lead by nearly four-tenths of a second over teammate Byron. Kurt Busch and Blaney remained in third and fourth while Truex was up in fifth ahead of teammate Hamlin, Bowman and Logano.

    Nearing the final 40 laps of the event, names like Elliott, Byron, Bowman and Blaney pitted under green. During this time, Larson, who ran out of fuel, pitted along with Kurt Busch, but he was overtaken by teammate Byron on the track.

    Under the final 40 laps, Hamlin emerged with the lead followed by teammate Truex while Logano, Kyle Busch and Reddick were in the top five. Not long after, Logano pitted along with Harvick and Truex.

    With 35 laps remaining, Hamlin pitted as teammate Kyle Busch took the lead. Following Hamlin’s pit service, teammates Byron and Larson managed to overtake him on the track. Three laps later, Kyle Busch pitted along with Elliott, thus giving the lead to Keselowski as Chris Buescher was in second and Bell was in third, all of whom were among some who needed to pit.

    With 20 laps remaining, the caution flew due to precipitation reported on the track. Five laps earlier, Byron emerged with the lead after Keselowski and Bell pitted, thus completing the cycle of green-flag pit stops. Teammate Larson moved up to second followed by Hamlin, Kurt Busch and Blaney.

    Under caution, some led by Keselowski pitted while the rest led by Byron remained on the track.

    Down to the final 14 laps of the event, the race restarted under green as Byron and Kurt Busch started on the front row. At the start, the field stacked up past the start/finish line, but Byron received a push from teammate Larson to retain the lead through the first turn. 

    As the field fanned out through the backstretch, Hamlin aggressively charged his way into the runner-up spot over Larson while Reddick made a bold four-wide move on Logano, Kurt Busch and Blaney entering Turn 3 in a bid to gain spots towards his Playoff hopes. Then, through Turns 3 and 4, Reddick slowly drifted up the track and got loose in front of Logano, who got sideways and turned by Truex. The spin by Logano ignited a chain-reaction wreck that involved Bell, Josh Berry, McDowell and Ryan Newman. The incident drew the caution back on the circuit. 

    With eight laps remaining, the race restarted. At the start and with the leaders battling dead even, Blaney, who restarted as the first competitor on the inside lane, received a huge shove from Kyle Busch to assume the lead in the first turn ahead of Byron as the field fanned out.

    A lap later, Reddick spun in Turn 3, but the race remained under green. Back at the front, Blaney continued to lead by a narrow margin over Byron, Larson and Kurt Busch. Behind, Briscoe overtook Hamlin for fifth. 

    Down to the final five laps of the event, the top-seven competitors were separated by half a second as Blaney, the leader, had Larson closing in on his rear bumper through the first two turns along with Byron, Kurt Busch, Hamlin, Briscoe and DiBenedetto. 

    A lap later, Kurt Busch, who challenged Byron for third, wiggled in Turn 2 and lost his momentum before he was hit by Briscoe. Despite the contact, all competitors continued straight. A turn later, DiBenedetto shoved Hamlin out of the way on the inside lane, which sent Hamlin up the track in front of Briscoe, all of whom continued without wrecking.

    Back at the front, Larson issued a challenge beneath Blaney, but he could not carry the momentum in Turn 1. Two turns later, Byron passed teammate Larson for the runner-up spot as he started to intimidate Blaney for the lead.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap of the race occurred, Blaney was still leading ahead of Byron and Larson, both of whom were setting up a final challenge on Blaney for the top spot. Through the first turn and the backstretch, Byron gained a draft but was unable to execute a dive run on Blaney entering Turn 3. Through Turns 3 and 4, Byron tried another move from the outside lane, but the run came too late as Blaney edged Byron by 0.077 seconds to capture his first victory in the Irish Hills and in an upset fashion.

    In addition to capturing his second victory of the season and first at Michigan, Blaney achieved his sixth win in the NASCAR Cup Series and his first multi-victory season in the Cup circuit. He also recorded the seventh consecutive Cup victory for the Ford nameplate at Michigan.

    “We got a great push by [Kyle Busch] on the restart and was able to get clear there,” Blaney, who led the final eight laps, said on NBCSN. “Michigan’s a matter of pretty much wide open and just trying to play the air game. I hate you have to race that way, but that’s how you have to run. It worked out for us. Man, I’m proud of everybody on the No. 12 team. We weren’t great to start the day off and yeah, kept working and working, got a lot better. It’s so cool to get in Victory Lane for Ford here. This is such a huge one for Ford. That was cool, man. I’m fired up.”

    Behind, Byron, who led 18 laps, settled in the runner-up spot while Larson, who led a race-high 71 laps and was aiming for his fourth victory at Michigan, ended up in third.

    “[Hamlin] tried to shove us into [Turn] 1 and I had to stay with him to not sacrifice my right rear,” Byron said. “Once you get put three-wide middle, it’s game over. I gave up the lead trying to protect the top [lane] and just didn’t have the loyalty there to push me to the lead. Overall, a really good car. The AXALTA Chevrolet was extremely fast. Definitely, I know we can bring that to the Playoffs. It stinks to finish second, but I feel like we had a really good car to go to battle with.

    “Yeah, the restart worked out a little better than I thought it was going to for me,” Larson said. “[Hamlin] tried to stick [Byron] three-wide. They got loose. I got to the middle. I think came out third or something there. Was able to get to second. Just made a couple bad moves, I guess. I think honestly just a little too patient behind [Blaney]. Could have made some later, you know, dives I guess to the inside. Who knows. I need to watch the replay.

    “Just made a couple wrong moves, allowed William to get by me. Once I was in third, I hoped they would get racing, get side drafted. I was never close enough to William to help him generate a run on [Blaney]. Ended up third. A good points day. Wish we could have had more, but all in all a good day for the Cincinnati Chevy.”

    Kurt Busch came home in fourth ahead of Hamlin while DiBenedetto, Kyle Busch, Elliott, Keselowski and Truex finished in the top 10.

    Despite finishing 14th, Kevin Harvick clinched his spot into the Playoffs based on points.

    There were 20 lead changes for 11 different leaders. The race six featured cautions for 29 laps.

    With one race remaining until the 2021 Cup Playoffs commences, Larson continues to lead the regular-season standings by 28 points over Denny Hamlin. Currently, 13 competitors (Kyle Larson, Martin Truex Jr., Alex Bowman, Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, William Byron, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Brad Keselowski, Kurt Busch, Christopher Bell, Aric Almirola and Michael McDowell) are guaranteed Playoff spots based on winning at least once throughout the regular season.

    Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick are also guaranteed spots in the Playoffs based on points.

    Tyler Reddick, meanwhile, occupies the 16th and final berth to the Playoffs by 25 points over teammate Austin Dillon, with Matt DiBenedetto trailing by 120 points, Chris Buescher by 135, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. by 173, Ross Chastain by 185, Bubba Wallace by 195, Chase Briscoe by 227, Erik Jones by 250, Daniel Suarez by 254, Ryan Newman by 271, Ryan Preece by 279, Cole Custer by 295, Corey LaJoie by 370 and Anthony Alfredo by 440.

    Results:

    1. Ryan Blaney, eight laps led

    2. William Byron, 18 laps led

    3. Kyle Larson, 71 laps led

    4. Kurt Busch, one lap led

    5. Denny Hamlin, 10 laps led

    6. Matt DiBenedetto, one lap led

    7. Kyle Busch, 13 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    8. Chase Elliott, 68 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    9. Brad Keselowski, six laps led

    10. Martin Truex Jr.

    11. Chase Briscoe 

    12. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

    13. Christopher Bell

    14. Kevin Harvick

    15. Chris Buescher

    16. Alex Bowman

    17. Aric Almirola

    18. Erik Jones

    19. Bubba Wallace

    20. Michael McDowell

    21. Ryan Preece

    22. Daniel Suarez

    23. Cole Custer

    24. Ryan Newman

    25. Justin Haley

    26. Josh Berry

    27. Cody Ware, one lap down

    28. BJ McLeod, two laps down

    29. Tyler Reddick, two laps down

    30. Quin Houff, four laps down

    31. Josh Bilicki, five laps down

    32. Garrett Smithley, six laps down

    33. Joey Logano – OUT, Dvp

    34. Anthony Alfredo, 22 laps down

    35. Ross Chastain, 48 laps down

    36. Austin Dillon – OUT, Accident

    37. Joey Gase – OUT, Accident

    The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season will cap off its regular-season stretch next weekend at Daytona International Speedway for the Coke Zero Sugar 400 and where the 16-car Playoff field will be determined. The event is scheduled to occur on Sunday, August 28, at 7 p.m. ET on NBC. 

  • Allmendinger survives three overtime attempts to win at Michigan

    Allmendinger survives three overtime attempts to win at Michigan

    Coming off a thrilling Cup victory at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, AJ Allmendinger extended his momentum in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The veteran competitor from Los Gatos, California, survived three overtime restarts and a late charge from Brandon Jones to win the New Holland 250 at Michigan International Speedway on Saturday, August 21.

    The victory was Allmendinger’s third of this year’s Xfinity season as he continues his pursuit for his first NASCAR championship.

    The starting lineup was based on a performance metric formula, weighing the driver’s and owner’s results from a previous Xfinity event, the owner points position and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Xfinity race. With that, Austin Cindric, winner of the previous Xfinity event at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, started on pole position and was joined on the front row with AJ Allmendinger.

    Prior to the event, Josh Berry started at the rear of the field due to replacing Michael Annett in the event, with Annett being absent for the fourth time this season as he continues to recover from a leg surgery.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Cindric and Allmendinger battled dead even for the lead until Cindric got dead sideways in the first turn. As Allmendinger pulled ahead with the lead, Cindric got stuck in the middle lane with no cars behind him as a bevy of competitors went by him.

    Following the completion of the first lap, Allmendinger was leading ahead of teammate Justin Haley, Noah Gragson, Cindric, Justin Allgaier, Harrison Burton and the field. The following lap, Allmendinger’s advantage over Gibbs stretched out to nearly two seconds.

    Through the first five laps of the event, Allmendinger was leading by nearly two seconds over Gibbs, with Cindric, Justin Haley and Noah Gragson settling in the top five. Harrison Burton was in sixth followed by Justin Allgaier, Myatt Snider, Brett Moffitt and Daniel Hemric.

    By Lap 10, Allmendinger continued to lead by more than a second over Gibbs. While Cindric and Haley remained in the top five, Harrison Burton made his way into fifth place ahead of Gragson and Allgaier. Behind, Josh Berry was up in 21st behind Alex Labbe.

    When the competition caution flew on Lap 15, Allmendinger remained as the leader over Gibbs and the field. Under the competition caution, some led by Tyler Reddick pitted while the rest led by Allmendinger remained on the track. During the pit stops, Reddick missed his pit box and returned the following lap. 

    The race restarted on Lap 20 and Allmendinger, the leader, had issues launching at the start, which forced Gibbs and Cindric to place Allmendinger in a four-wide battle for the top spot along with Haley. By the second turn, Cindric made his way into the lead followed by Gibbs while Allmendinger was back in third. Harrison Burton was in fourth ahead of teammate Hemric, Haley, Snider, Gragson and Allgaier.

    A lap later, the caution returned due to Caesar Bacarella wrecking in Turn 4. Under caution, names like Allgaier, Jeb Burton, Tommy Joe Maartins, Bubba Wallace, Brandon Brown and Ryan Sieg pitted while the rest led by Cindric remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Allgaier was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation while Wallace was penalized for an over-the-wall-too-soon violation.

    When the race restarted with four laps remaining in the first stage, Cindric muscle ahead of the top spot to retain the lead through the first two turns while Gibbs challenged Snider for the runner-up spot. A lap later, both Gibbs and Allmendinger overtook Snider for second and third.

    While the field behind jostled for final opportunities of positions, Cindric cruised ahead to claim the first stage victory on Lap 30, which marked his ninth stage victory of the season. Gibbs settled in second followed by Allmendinger, Snider, Gragson, Hemric, Harrison Burton, Brandon Jones, Berry and Haley.

    Under the stage break, a majority led by Cindric pitted while the rest led by Jeb Burton remained on the track. During the pit stops, rookie Sam Mayer took his No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro to the garage due to transmission issues.

    The second stage started on Lap 35 and Jeb Burton rocketed with the lead followed by Tyler Reddick and the field through the first two turns. Just then, the caution flew for a heavy multi-car wreck in Turn 2 that started when Snider slid up the track in Turn 2, made slight contact with Cindric and ran into Brandon Brown before spinning. In the ensuing chaos, Cindric, who was trying to dodge Snider, ran into Hemric and both spun into the outside wall, collecting Bubba Wallace and Brown. Haley and Joe Graf Jr. were also collected in the wreck. 

    Under caution, Snider was held two laps in his pit stall for improper fueling. By then, Hemric and Cindric, who was strong at the start of the race and was trying to continue, retired.

    Following an extensive caution period, the race restarted on Lap 45. At the start, Jeb Burton retained the lead while Allgaier and Allmendinger overtook Tyler Reddick for spots in the top three. 

    By Lap 54, Allmendinger returned to the lead after he overtook teammate Jeb Burton for the top spot. 

    Down to the final five laps of the second stage, Allmendinger was out in front by nearly a second over Gibbs with Allgaier in third while Jeb Burton was back in fourth ahead of his cousin, Harrison. 

    When the final lap of the second stage struck, Allmendinger continued to lead by nearly a second over Gibbs. With no comers closing in behind, Allmendinger came back around and claimed the second stage victory on Lap 60, thus achieving his eighth stage victory of the season. Gibbs settled in second followed by Harrison Burton, Allgaier, Jeb Burton, Gragson, Brandon Jones, Josh Berry, Brett Moffitt and Riley Herbst.

    Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Allmendinger retained the lead after exiting pit road in first place ahead of Harrison Burton, Allgaier, Jeb Burton and Gragson. During the pit stops, Gibbs got blocked by Josh Williams in his pit box and fell from second to 10th.

    With 59 laps remaining, the final stage commenced. At the start, Allmendinger launched ahead with the top spot on the outside lane through Turn 1 while Allgaier muscled his way into the runner-up spot ahead of cousins Jeb and Harrison Burton.

    While Allmendinger and Allgaier were running first and second, the Burton cousins occupied third and fourth while Josh Berry, who started at the rear of the field, made his way into the top five ahead of Brandon Jones, Gragson, Gibbs and Herbst. A few laps later, Berry muscled into fourth place ahead of Jeb Burton, who was also being intimidated by Brandon Jones for more.

    With 52 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead by nearly four-tenths of a second over Allgaier. By then, Harrison Burton made an unscheduled two-tire pit stop under green due to vibration concerns while Josh Berry moved up to third place.

    With 40 laps remaining of the event, Allmendinger was leading by a tenth of a second over Allgaier and four-tenths of a second over Berry, with the two JR Motorsports competitors closing and issuing a challenging on Kaulig Racing’s Allmendinger for the top spot.

    Two laps later, Allgaier peaked ahead of Allmendinger through Turn 4 to lead for a lap before Allmendinger fought back through Turn 1. Then, when Allmendinger and Allgaier got stalled behind two lapped cars entering Turn 2, Berry zipped by both on the outside lane to take the lead.

    Down to the final 30 laps of the event, Berry was leading by more than a second over teammate Allgaier. 

    Nearing the final 20 laps of the event, pit stops under green occurred as Gragson, who was running in the top 10, pitted. Soon after, Brett Moffitt pitted along with Gibbs, who was then penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation. Then, Berry and Allmendinger pitted while Allgaier remained on the track for three laps before pitting.

    With approximately 15 laps remaining, Jeb Burton, who had yet to pit, was leading followed by Riley Herbst. A few laps later, however, Burton ran out of fuel as his car was coasting below the banking in Turn 1. Soon after, Herbst also ran out of fuel, but he was able to nurse his car back to pit road and his pit stall while Allgaier reassumed the top spot followed by his hard-charging teammate, Berry.

    With 10 laps remaining, the caution flew when Jeb Burton stalled his car near the pit road entrance after he was unable to nurse his car back to his pit stall. At the time of caution, Allgaier, who was locked into a fierce battle with Berry, managed to retain the lead ahead of his teammate.

    Under caution, Allgaier surrendered the lead to pit while the rest led by Berry remained on the track. Along with Allgaier, Harrison Burton, Herbst, Jeremy Clements and Gibbs pitted.

    Down to the final four laps of the event, the race restarted under green. At the start, Allmendinger muscled into the lead ahead of Brandon Jones and Berry. Then, the caution flew due to a two-car accident on the backstretch involving Bayley Currey and Jesse Little.

    With the race sent into overtime, the race restarted as Allmendinger and Berry filled in the front row. At the start, Allmendinger retained the lead. The race, however, was sent into another caution period and another overtime attempt when Mason Massey and Colby Howard wrecked.

    In the second overtime attempt, Allmendinger and Berry dueled for the lead as the field fanned out to multiple lanes entering the first turn. Then through Turns 1 and 2, while Berry slowly slid up the track, Gibbs got loose and hit the outside wall. While trying to straighten his car, Gibbs ended up spinning in the straightaway before making contact with the wall again, though he was dodged by the oncoming field. Gibbs’ spin was enough for NASCAR to draw the caution as the race was still not deemed official. At the time of caution, Allmendinger remained as the leader ahead of Brandon Jones, Berry, Gragson and Herbst. 

    In the third overtime attempt, Allmendinger received a push from Jones to pull ahead with the lead ahead of Gragson. While the field fanned out through the backstretch, Allmendinger slowly started to place a gap between himself and Jones. 

    When the final lap started, Allmendinger was leading by two-tenths of a second over Jones, with Gragson trailing by half a second. Despite a valiant final lap effort from Jones, Allmendinger was able to come back around, retain the top spot and streak across the finis line in first place to claim his third checkered flag of the season.

    The victory at the Irish Hills was Allmendinger’s third of this year’s Xfinity Series season and the eighth of his career, with the Xfinity Series making its return to Michigan International Speedway following a one-year absence. The race was also the 11th Xfinity career victory for Kaulig Racing, which achieved its first Cup career win last weekend at Indianapolis with Allmendinger.

    “Wow, what a hell of a six days. Oh my goodness,” Allmendinger, who led a race-high 70 laps, said on NBCSN. “This is what’s awesome, though, to have all the fans back. Indy, last weekend, was spectacular. Michigan, thank you. You, guys, make it fun. I’m more tired from the celebrations than I am from driving. When you’re restarting on the front row, the outside [lane] was the place to be. The problem is, you just got to hope you got pushed. Brandon Jones, thank you so much because he pushed me every time. Man, I can’t thank all the men and women at Kaulig Racing enough. I don’t wanna wake up from this dream.”

    Brandon Jones finished in the runner-up spot for his eighth top-five result of the season and following three DNFs in the previous four Xfinity races while Noah Gragson settled in third place for his eighth top-five result of the season.

    Berry, who led 24 laps, notched a strong fourth-place result as an interim competitor for Michael Annett while Harrison Burton finished in the top five for the eighth time this season. 

    Allgaier, Herbst, Moffitt, Jade Buford and Bubba Wallace finished in the top 10. Ty Gibbs, who was in position for a strong result following his late incident, came home in 13th.

    There were 13 lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured nine cautions for 43 laps. 

    Despite his early accident and retirement, Austin Cindric continues to lead the regular-season standings by 35 points over AJ Allmendinger as the 2021 Xfinity Series regular-season stretch is four races away from being complete.

    Results.

    1. AJ Allmendinger, 70 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    2. Brandon Jones

    3. Noah Gragson

    4. Josh Berry, 24 laps led

    5. Harrison Burton

    6. Justin Allgaier, nine laps led

    7. Riley Herbst

    8. Brett Moffitt

    9. Jade Buford

    10. Bubba Wallace

    11. Jeremy Clements

    12. Ryan Sieg

    13. Ty Gibbs, one lap led

    14. Matt Mills

    15. Jordan Anderson, one lap down

    16. Tyler Reddick, one lap down

    17. Justin Haley, one lap down

    18. Josh Williams, one lap down

    19. Tommy Joe Martins, one lap down

    20. Colin Garrett, one lap down

    21. Ryan Vargas, one lap down

    22. David Starr, two laps down

    23. Jeffrey Earnhardt, two laps down

    24. Kyle Weatherman, two laps down

    25. Colby Howard, two laps down

    26. Landon Cassill, two laps down

    27. Gray Gaulding, two laps down

    28. Carson Ware, three laps down

    29. Jeb Burton, four laps down, 23 laps led

    30. Mason Massey – OUT, Accident

    31. Alex Labbe, 16 laps down

    32. Jesse Little – OUT, Accident

    33. Sam Mayer, 25 laps down

    34. Bayley Currey – OUT, Accident

    35. Caesar Bacarella – OUT, Dvp

    36. Myatt Snider – OUT, Dvp

    37. Austin Cindric – OUT, Dvp, 12 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    38. Joe Graf Jr. – OUT, Dvp

    39. Daniel Hemric – OUT, Accident

    40. Brandon Brown – OUT, Accident

    Next on the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is the series’ second event of the season at Daytona International Speedway. The event will occur on Friday, August 27, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

  • Weekend schedule for Michigan and Gateway

    Weekend schedule for Michigan and Gateway

    This weekend the NASCAR Cup Series and the Xfinity Series travel to Michigan International Speedway. The Camping World Truck Series will compete at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway for the first race in their Playoffs.

    There are five regular-season races left in the Xfinity Series.

    Justin Allgaier, AJ Allmendinger, Jeb Burton and Myatt Snider have already clinched a spot in the Xfinity postseason 12-driver field.

    Xfinity Series drivers who can secure their spot with a win include Brandon Brown, Harrison Burton, Jeremy Clements, Noah Gragson, Justin Haley, Riley Herbst, Daniel Hemric, Brandon Jones and Ryan Sieg.

    Landon Cassill, Alex Labbe, Tommy Joe Martins and Josh Williams could clinch a spot in the Xfinity Playoffs with a win and some help.

    There are only two open spots in the Cup Series postseason. Aric Almirola, Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, William Byron, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Michael McDowell and Martin Truex Jr. have each qualified for the Playoffs.

    Kevin Harvick, Tyler Reddick, Austin Dillon, Matt DiBenedetto, Chris Buescher, Ross Chastain, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Darrell Wallace Jr., Chase Briscoe, Daniel Suarez, Erik Jones, Ryan Newman, Ryan Preece, Cole Custer, Corey Lajoie, Anthony Alfredo can clinch with a win.

    Harvick, the defending race winner, can also earn a spot in the Playoffs with 44 points.

    All times are Eastern.

    Friday, August 20 – Michigan

    4 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series practice – No TV
    6 p.m.: ARCA Series Henry Ford Health System 200 at Michigan
    100 Laps/200 Miles
    Trackpass/MRN

    Friday, August 20 – WWT Raceway at Gateway

    8:50 p.m.: Driver Intros
    9 p.m.: Truck Series Toyota 200 presented by CK Power at Gateway
    Stages 55/110/160 laps = 200 Miles
    Pole: Austin Hill
    FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

    Saturday, August 21 – Michigan

    3:05 p.m.: Driver Intros
    3:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series New Holland 250 at Michigan
    Stages 30/60/125 Laps = 250 Miles
    Pole: Austin Cindric
    NBCSN/NBC Sports App/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio/TSN

    Sunday, August 22 – Michigan

    2:30: Driver Intros
    3 p.m.: Cup Series FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan
    Stages 60/120/200 Laps = 400 miles
    Pole: Kyle Larson
    NBCSN/NBC Sports App/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio/TSN

    Michigan Intl. Speedway Data

    Track Size: 2-miles
    Banking/Turn 1 & 2: 18 degrees
    Banking/Turn 3 & 4: 18 degrees
    Banking/Frontstretch: 5 degrees
    Banking/Backstretch: 2 degrees
    Frontstretch Length:  3,600 feet
    Backstretch Length:  2,242 feet

    Michigan Qualifying Data

    Track qualifying record: Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet (206.558 mph, 34.857 secs.) on August 17, 2014.
    2020 Michigan pole winner: Qualifying canceled due to COVID-19.  The starting lineup was decided by a random draw.

    • Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch lead all active NCS drivers in Michigan starts with 40 each.
    • Tyler Reddick leads all active NCS drivers in average starting position at with an 8.500 in two starts.
    • Seven of the 50 NCS Michigan pole winners are active this weekend.  Joey Logano (4), Kurt Busch (3), Brad Keselowski (2), Denny Hamlin (1), Kevin Harvick (1), Kyle Larson (1), and Ryan Newman (1).
    • Joey Logano (2013, 2016 sweep, 2019) leads all active NCS drivers in poles at Michigan with four; followed by Kurt Busch (2010, 2011 and 2018) with three.
    • The youngest series Michigan pole winner is Joey Logano (August 16, 2013 – 23 years, 2 months, 23 days).
    • Nine different manufacturers have won a pole at Michigan in the NCS.  Ford leads the series in poles at Michigan with 31, followed by Chevrolet (27), Mercury (10), Dodge (nine), Pontiac (eight), Toyota (six), Buick (three), Plymouth (two) and Oldsmobile (one).

    Michigan Race Data

    Track race record: Dale Jarrett, Ford (173.997 mph, 2:17:56) on June 13, 1999.
    2020 Michigan race winner: Kevin Harvick, Ford (124.712 mph, (02:34:55) on August 8, 2020.

    • A total of 38 different drivers have won in the NCS at Michigan with seven of the 38 race winners are active this weekend.  Kevin Harvick (5), Joey Logano (3), Kurt Busch (3), Kyle Larson (3), Denny Hamlin (2), Ryan Newman (2), and Kyle Busch (1).
    • Kurt Busch (2003, 2007, 2015), Matt Kenseth (2002, 2006, 2015), Joey Logano (2013, 2016, 2019) and Kevin Harvick (2010, 2018, 2019) lead all active series drivers in wins at Michigan with three each.
    • The youngest series Michigan winner id Joey Logano (August 18, 2013 – 23 years, 2 months, 25 days).
    • Martin Truex Jr. (30), and Michigan native Brad Keselowski (23) lead all active drivers in the series in starts without a win at Michigan.
    • The first starting position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (22 of 103, 21.36%) than any other starting position at Michigan.
    • The deepest in the field that an active race winner has started at Michigan is 24th, by Kurt Busch in the June of 2015.
    • Roush Fenway Racing leads the series in wins at Michigan with 13.  Mark Martin (four), Greg Biffle (four), Carl Edwards (two), Matt Kenseth (two) and Kurt Busch (one).
    • Eight different manufacturers have won in the NCS at Michigan.  It’s led by Ford with 41 victories, followed by Chevrolet with 26, Mercury (12), Dodge (nine), Toyota (five), Buick (four) Pontiac (four) and Oldsmobile (two).

    Top 12 Michigan Driver Ratings

    Kevin Harvick……………………… 102.5
    Joey Logano………………………… 99.1
    Chase Elliott…………………………. 99.1
    Brad Keselowski……………………. 97.3
    Kyle Larson………………………….. 96.1
    Denny Hamlin……………………….. 92.6
    Ryan Blaney…………………………. 92.5
    Kurt Busch…………………………… 91.8
    Kyle Busch…………………………… 90.7
    Christopher Bell…………………….. 89.6
    Martin Truex Jr……………………… 89.3
    Erik Jones……………………………. 86.6
    Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2020 races (32 total) among active drivers at Michigan International Speedway.

  • Ty Gibbs’ full 2021 Xfinity schedule revealed

    Ty Gibbs’ full 2021 Xfinity schedule revealed

    Coming off an historic debut and victory at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course, Ty Gibbs will return for an additional 14 NASCAR Xfinity Series races throughout the 2021 season for Joe Gibbs Racing.

    The 18-year-old grandson of NASCAR Hall of Famer and team owner, Joe Gibbs, from Charlotte, North Carolina, will make his second career start in the Xfinity circuit at Phoenix Raceway on March 13.

    He will then compete at Martinsville Speedway on April 9 followed by Darlington Raceway on May 8, Dover International Speedway on May 15, Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 29, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on June 5, Pocono Raceway on June 27, Road America on July 3, Watkins Glen International on August 7, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course on August 14, Michigan International Speedway on August 21 and at Richmond Raceway on September 11. During the 2021 Xfinity Series Playoffs, he will also compete at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval on October 9 and at Kansas Speedway on October 23.

    JGR took to social media to reveal the announcement and Ty Gibbs’ schedule.

    With Gibbs’ full part-time Xfinity schedule revealed, he will also continue to pilot Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 54 Toyota Supra led by crew chief Chris Gayle.

    Gibbs made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut last weekend at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course, where he led 14 laps and outlasted the field through two overtime attempts to record his first victory across NASCAR’s top three national touring series. By winning at Daytona in his debut, he became the sixth competitor to win in their series debut but the first to do so without a prior Cup start. He also became the 165 different competitor to record an Xfinity Series win and the 18th to do so while driving for his grandfather’s organization.

    In addition to a part-time Xfinity schedule, Gibbs currently competes as a full-time competitor in the ARCA Menards Series for JGR and in the No. 18 Toyota Camry led by crew chief Mark McFarland.

    With Gibbs’ next event on the schedule at Phoenix in March, Ty Dillon will return for the following two NASCAR Xfinity Series races with JGR at Homestead-Miami Speedway on February 27 and at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 6.