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  • Haley to make 100th Cup career start at Kansas

    Haley to make 100th Cup career start at Kansas

    Competing in his second full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series, Justin Haley is within reach of achieving a milestone start. By competing in this weekend’s Playoff event at Kansas Speedway, the driver of the No. 31 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 will achieve 100 career starts in NASCAR’s premier series.

    A native of Winamac, Indiana, Haley made his inaugural presence in the Cup Series at Talladega Superspeedway in April 2019, where he piloted the No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Spire Motorsports. By then, he was also campaigning in his first full-time season in the Xfinity Series for Kaulig Racing. Starting 38th, Haley ended up in 32nd place after getting collected in a multi-car wreck on the backstretch with seven laps remaining. After finishing 34th in his second Cup career start at Sonoma Raceway in June, Haley pulled off an upset at Daytona International Speedway in July when he achieved his first career victory in the rain-shortened Coke Zero Sugar 400. His road to victory occurred with 30 laps remaining when contact between race leader Austin Dillon and Clint Bowyer triggered a multi-car wreck that eliminated a majority of the field. Haley, who avoided the carnage and moved up into the top five, then became the leader when initial leader Kurt Busch pitted during an extensive caution period and moments before the race was red-flagged due to a lightning strike. With the event remaining under a red flag period for hours, NASCAR called the event official on Lap 127 of 160 and awarded the first Cup win for both Haley and Spire Motorsports as Haley became the 193rd different competitor to achieve a win in NASCAR’s premier series. Despite not qualifying for the 2019 Cup Playoffs due to being a part-time series competitor, the Daytona victory made Haley eligible to compete in the 2020 All-Star Race.

    In 2020, Haley, who remained as a full-time Xfinity competitor for Kaulig Racing, campaigned in two Cup events, with his first occurring in the 62nd running of the Daytona 500, where he debuted Kaulig Racing in NASCAR’s premier series. He earned a transfer spot for the 500 after posting the fastest-qualifying time in a non-chartered entry and rallied from being involved in a late incident to finish in 13th place during the main event. Haley went on to finish 14th in the All-Star Race at Bristol Motor Speedway in July and 31st at Talladega in October, both while competing for Spire Motorsports.

    For the 2021 season, Haley, who remained at Kaulig in the Xfinity circuit, competed in all but five of the 36-race Cup schedule. Thirty-five of his starts occurred with Spire Motorsports, with his best on-track results being eighth at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course and sixth at Daytona in August. His lone start not with Spire occurred with Kaulig at Talladega in October, where he finished in 20th place. Overall, Haley concluded the season with 21 top-30 results and an average-finishing result of 28.5.

    Six months prior to the conclusion of the 2021 season, Kaulig Racing announced that the team would be fielding a full-time Cup Series entry for Haley to drive for the 2022 season. Assuming control of Kaulig’s newly formed No. 31 entry, he commenced the season with a 19th-place result in the Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum in February despite winning the third Heat qualifying event and starting towards the front. He proceeded to finish 23rd during the first two scheduled events before posting four consecutive top-20 results. At Darlington Raceway in May, Haley posted his first top-five result of the season by finishing third. Despite finishing seventh at Atlanta Motor Speedway in July and achieving 15 top-20 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch, he did not qualify for the 2022 Cup Playoffs. Haley went on to tie his season-best result of the season in third place at Texas Motor Speedway in September before finishing fifth at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course in October. He ended up recording a total of three top-five results, four top-10 results, 44 laps led and an average-finishing result of 18.4 throughout the 36-race schedule before capping off his first full-time Cup season in 22nd place in the final standings.

    Commencing this season with a 32nd-place finish in this year’s Daytona 500, Haley recorded three top-10 results during the first 17-scheduled events, with his best on-track finish being a sixth-place run at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course in April. Then during the inaugural Chicago Street Course, he assumed the lead on Lap 48 and led through Lap 70 until he was overtaken by eventual winner Shane van Gisbergen and ended up in a strong runner-up result. Despite finishing eighth during the following weekend at Atlanta, seven consecutive results of finishes outside the top 15 were not enough to boost Haley and the No. 31 team into the Playoffs for a second consecutive season. Coming off a 31st-place finish at Darlington, the Indiana native is currently situated in 24th place in the standings with a total of five top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 20.6 through 27 events. This season is also scheduled to be Haley’s last at Kaulig as he is set to join Rick Ware Racing for the 2024 Cup season.

    Through 99 previous Cup starts, Haley has achieved one victory, five top-five results, 12 top-10 results, 72 laps led and an average-finishing result of 22.1.

    Haley is primed to make his 100th Cup Series career start at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, September 10, with the event’s coverage to occur at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Mike Kelley to call 100th Cup event as crew chief at Kansas

    Mike Kelley to call 100th Cup event as crew chief at Kansas

    In his return as a full-time crew chief in the NASCAR Cup Series, veteran Mike Kelley is set to achieve a milestone mark. By participating in this weekend’s Cup Series Playoff event at Kansas Speedway, Kelley will call his 100th career race as a crew chief in NASCAR’s premier series.

    A native of Pinellas County, Florida, Kelley, who competed as a Pinellas Park racer in the 1990s before becoming a crew member and car chief working with icons that included Dale Earnhardt, Ernie Irvan, Ray Evernham, Jack Roush and Kurt Busch, made his inaugural presence as a crew chief in the Cup Series at the start of the 2014 season when he was paired with Ricky Stenhouse Jr., whom Kelley worked with and won back-to-back Xfinity Series championships in 2011 and 2012. By then, Kelley had also racked up 12 career victories and 13 poles in the Xfinity circuit as a crew chief while working with eight different competitors.

    In their first event paired in the Cup Series, Kelley led Stenhouse and the No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford Fusion team to a seventh-place result in the 56th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in February. Three races later, Stenhouse notched a career-best runner-up result at Bristol Motor Speedway in March as the No. 17 team cracked the top 10 in points. The remainder of the regular-season stretch, however, ended up being a struggle for both Stenhouse and Kelley as they only managed two additional top-10 results and dropped outside of the top-20 mark in the standings, which prevented them from making the 2014 Cup Playoffs. The low point for the duo was when both failed to qualify for the Playoff event at Talladega Superspeedway in October. For the other nine Playoff events, Stenhouse finished no higher than 15th before capping off the 2014 season in 27th place in the final standings.

    The following season, Kelley assumed the role as car chief for Stenhouse’s No. 17 Ford team while Nick Sandler, a former head engineer for Stenhouse’s teammate Carl Edwards, became Stenhouse’s new Cup crew chief. In 2016, however, Kelley returned to crew chief Stenhouse for a single event, which occurred at Talladega in May while on an interim role as Sandler was suspended for the event as a result of an unapproved steering wheel coupler that was found on Stenhouse’s car during the previous weekend’s practice session at Richmond Raceway. During the Talladega event, Stenhouse ended up 16th in the final running order after being involved in a multi-car wreck on the final lap.

    In 2019, Kelley departed Roush Fenway Racing and joined Front Row Motorsports as a full-time Cup crew chief for the No. 36 Ford Mustang team piloted by former Xfinity Series competitor Matt Tifft. Through the first 20-scheduled events, Tifft and Kelley could only manage to post three top-20 results and a single top-10 result, which occurred at Daytona in July, as they were mired in 31st place in the regular-season standings. Then for the final 16-scheduled events, Front Row Motorsports swapped Kelley’s team role that resulted with him becoming a crew chief for veteran David Ragan and the No. 38 FRM Ford Mustang team, a role that was previously held by Seth Barbour with Barbour assuming Kelley’s old role with Tifft. In spite of the move that reunited Kelley with Ragan, whom he notched two Xfinity victories with in 2009, the duo finished no higher than 11th for the remainder of the season as Ragan settled in 30th place in the final standings.

    Four years later, Kelley, who moved to JTG-Daugherty Racing in 2020 and served as a competition director for the organization and the team’s driver Stenhouse, was elevated to the role of becoming Stenhouse’s Cup crew chief for a second time. In their first driver-crew chief pairing with JTG-Daugherty Racing, Stenhouse and Kelley commenced this season on a high note by winning the 65th running of the Daytona 500 after Stenhouse survived two overtime attempts and retained the lead on the final lap amid a multi-car wreck to achieve an upset victory for himself and the team. The 500 victory was Kelley’s first overall as he also achieved his first Cup career win as a crew chief. With the 500 victory guaranteeing Stenhouse and Kelley a spot for the 2023 Cup Series Playoffs, the duo led the No. 47 team to an additional six top-10s and 13 top-15 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch before officially entering the Playoffs as one of 16 teams vying for this year’s title. Currently, Kelley and Stenhouse are coming off a 16th-place result in the Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway and are ranked in 15th place in the Playoff standings while being four points below the top-12 cutline to transfer to the Round of 12.

    Through 99 previous Cup events, Kelley has achieved one victory, three top-five results, 13 top-10 results and 26 laps led while working with three different competitors.

    Kelley is primed to call his 100th Cup Series event as a crew chief at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, September 10, at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Hamlin inks multi-year Cup Series contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing

    Hamlin inks multi-year Cup Series contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing

    Denny Hamlin officially scratched his name off of this year’s Silly Season list with the announcement that he has signed a multi-year contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing, where he will remain as a full-time NASCAR Cup Series competitor and driver of the No. 11 JGR Toyota TRD Camry.

    The news comes as the 42-year-old Hamlin from Chesterfield, Virginia, is currently campaigning in his 18th consecutive full-time season with JGR in NASCAR’s premier series and 17th as a Playoff competitor as he is one of 16 competitors currently vying for the 2023 Cup Series championship.

    ”Joe Gibbs Racing has been my home for almost 20 years now,” Hamlin said in a released statement. ”My relationship with Joe, my team, and everyone at JGR means a lot to me. We have accomplished so much together over the years. I’m excited to finally announce this so we can put all our focus on chasing the championship.”

    Hamlin, who first joined Joe Gibbs Racing as a development competitor in 2004, made his inaugural start in the Cup Series at Kansas Speedway in October 2005, where he first piloted JGR’s No. 11 entry. After competing in the final seven scheduled events of the 2005 season, where he notched three top-10 results and his first pole position at Phoenix Raceway, he became a full-time Cup Series competitor for JGR, starting in 2006.

    Since his debut in 2005, Hamlin has made 641 career starts in the NASCAR Cup Series, all while driving JGR’s No. 11 entry, and is one of 15 competitors to reach 50 career victories to date. Among his top achievements as a Cup competitor include three Daytona 500 victories, three Southern 500 victories, the 2022 Coca-Cola 600 victory, the 2015 All-Star Race victory, three Shootout victories and the 2006 Rookie-of-the-Year title, with his best points finish being a runner-up result in 2010. Having been named one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers this season, he has also achieved 40 poles, 217 top-fives, 333 top-10s, 13,920 laps led and an average finishing result of 13.2 throughout his Cup career.

    In addition to being a full-time Cup Series competitor for Joe Gibbs Racing, Hamlin is also entering his third season as a co-owner of 23XI Racing a team he co-owns with NBA icon Michael Jordan. Currently, 23XI Racing manages two full-time entries for Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace, both of whom are competing in this year’s Playoffs. Since its inception in 2021, 23XI Racing has notched a combined four victories, two poles, 25 top-fives and 41 top-10 results.

    Hamlin is coming off a 25th-place finish in this year’s Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway. Having scored two victories throughout the regular-season stretch to make the Playoffs, he currently sits in fifth place in the Playoff standings and is 27 points above the top-12 cutline to transfer to the Round of 12 as he continues his bid for his first championship in NASCAR’s premier series.

    ”It is amazing to think it has been almost 20 years since J.D. [Gibbs] first saw him race and we signed him to that first contract,” Joe Gibbs said. ”He has been a big part of Joe Gibbs Racing ever since then and we look forward to that continuing for years to come.”

    With his future plans set as a competitor, Hamlin’s bid for this year’s NASCAR Cup Series title continues this upcoming weekend at Kansas Speedway, a track where Hamlin won earlier in May and will serve as the second event in the Round of 16. The event is scheduled to occur on Sunday, September 10, at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Kyle Larson wins Southern 500 Playoff race at Darlington and advances to next round

    Kyle Larson wins Southern 500 Playoff race at Darlington and advances to next round

    Kyle Larson held off a hard-charging Tyler Reddick in the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway to claim the checkered flag at the historic track and advance to the Round of 12 in the Playoffs.

    It was the third win of the season for the Hendrick Motorsports driver and 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion and the 22nd of his career. The victory was not without its struggles, however, including a brush with the wall and a transmission that was temporarily stuck in neutral.

    “This has been one of my favorite tracks my whole career, and I’ve been really, really fast here my whole career. I just usually get in the wall,” Larson said. “And finally we have the Next Gen car that’s tough enough to allow me to hit the wall. So I was able to make some mistakes and get a win. Adding this trophy to the collection is gonna be amazing.

    “I messed up once and it (the transmission) got hung in neutral, and I slid and hit the wall, and I think bent the toe link a little bit, so it was kind of a struggle from there. Definitely had to fight it more than I was earlier, but we kept our heads in the game. That was really important. This race is all about keeping your head in it.”

    Reddick, after leading 90 laps in his 23XI Racing Toyota, had to settle for second place.
    “Kyle and I were pretty close the majority of the day, honestly, and he just got ahead of us there on pit road,” Reddick said, “but all in all, this is the day that we needed to have.

    “Really just thankful for the hard work from my pit crew, from the team, everyone at the shop,” he continued. “Days like this, with a car like this, we haven’t been able to get a second-place finish out of it, so really glad we were able to do that, and it was a really good points day on top of that, as well.”

    It was a good day for half of the Playoff drivers as eight of them finished in the top 10 with Chris Buescher in third, followed by William Byron (fourth), Ross Chastain (fifth), Brad Keselowski (sixth), Bubba Wallace (seventh) and Ryan Blaney (ninth). Non-Playoff drivers, Chase Elliott and Erik Jones finished eighth and 10th, respectively.

    But several of the playoff drivers had disappointing finishes.

    Denny Hamlin was dominant early, leading 177 laps and sweeping Stages 1 and 2 but made a green flag pit stop on Lap 274, thinking he had a loose wheel. This caused him to lose a lap, and then, on Lap 331, he was collected in a five-car crash that also included Michael McDowell and Christopher Bell, and Hamlin finished the race one lap down.

    Kevin Harvick was another victim of circumstance. While heading to pit road a caution was brought out by Newman after he spun in Turn 4 just as Harvick was attempting to pit. But the red light came on, closing pit road and Harvick was assessed with a penalty and was sent to the back of the field for the restart, relegating him to a 19th-place finish.

    Martin Truex Jr. lost four spots after contact with the wall in Stage 1 and in Stage 2 his day went from bad to worse as he had to make an unscheduled pit stop due to a loose wheel, losing two laps.

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was caught speeding on pit road and had to serve a pass-through penalty on his first green-flag pit stop.

    The remaining Playoff drivers finished as follows:

    Kyle Busch-11
    Joey Logano -12
    Stenhouse -16
    Truex-18
    Harvick-19
    Bell-23
    Hamlin – 25
    McDowell-32

    William Byron currently leads the point standings by 1 point over Kyle Larson.

    The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs continue next week on Sunday, Sept. 10 at Kansas Speedway on USA with radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

  • Team Penske and Wood Brothers announce crew chief swap for Cindric and Burton, beginning in 2023 Cup Series Playoffs

    Team Penske and Wood Brothers announce crew chief swap for Cindric and Burton, beginning in 2023 Cup Series Playoffs

    With the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs days away from commencing, Team Penske and Wood Brothers Racing announced a crew chief swap for two of their combined Penske-affiliated entries for the remainder of this season and entering the 2024 season.

    Beginning with the Playoff opener next Sunday at Darlington Raceway, Jeremy Bullins, who was the crew chief for Team Penske’s No. 2 Ford Mustang entry piloted by Austin Cindric, will reunite with Wood Brothers Racing and lead the No. 21 team piloted by Harrison Burton. As a result, Brian Wilson, who was atop the pit box of Wood Brothers Racing’s No. 21 team for more than a season, will return to Team Penske and reunite with Cindric to lead the No. 2 team in NASCAR’s premier series.

    The move for Bullins, a native of Walnut Cove, North Carolina, to Wood Brothers Racing, reignites a dynamic pairing as Bullins spent the 2015-17 seasons with the championship-winning organization as a Cup crew chief with Ryan Blaney piloting the No. 21 entry. Through 88 events, Bullins led Blaney and the No. 21 team to a late victory at Pocono Raceway in June 2017, which marks the 99th and latest victory for Wood Brothers Racing, and they went on to make the Playoffs and finish in ninth place in the final standings. The driver-crew chief duo also achieved a combined two poles, eight top-five results, 25 top-10 results and 332 laps led before both departed Wood Brothers and moved to Team Penske in 2018.

    From 2018 through the first 26 events of the 2023 season, Bullins has achieved eight Cup victories while working with three different competitors (Blaney, Brad Keselowski and Austin Cindric). His latest triumph was winning the 2022 Daytona 500 with Cindric, who proceeded to finish 12th in the final standings and claim the Rookie-of-the-Year title. He also achieved a breakout season with Keselowski in 2020, with the duo achieving four victories and making the Championship 4 round before finishing in the runner-up spot in the final standings. In addition to his success in the Cup Series, Bullins has 21 victories as an Xfinity Series crew chief under his resume and played an instrumental role in leading Penske’s No. 22 entry to back-to-back Xfinity owner’s championships (2013 and 2014).

    This season, Bullins and Cindric have only achieved three top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 21.1 through 26 scheduled events. Their best on-track results of this season thus far were three sixth-place runs at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Circuit of the Americas in March along with the inaugural Chicago Street Course in July. Currently situated in 22nd place in the standings, they did not make the 2023 Cup Series Playoffs a year after making it.

    For Wilson, the transition to Team Penske’s No. 2 team reunites the Detroit, Michigan, native back with the three-time Cup Series championship-winning organization to which he first joined in 2004 and was a race engineer during Penske’s first Xfinity Series championship in 2010 and first Cup Series championship in 2012, both achieved by former Penske competitor Brad Keselowski.

    Photo by John Knittel for SpeedwayMedia.com.

    Wilson called over 160 Xfinity events as a crew chief and achieved 23 victories from 2016-21, 13 of which were made by Austin Cindric and with whom Wilson will also reunite. During this span, he led Team Penske’s No. 22 entry to three Xfinity owner’s championships (2017, 2020, and 2021) and guided Cindric to the 2020 Xfinity Series driver’s championship. He also called his first four Cup events as a crew chief for Keselowski and the No. 2 entry in 2017 before being named a full-time Cup crew chief for Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing team in 2022, who ended up 27th in the final standings.

    This season, Wilson and Burton have only achieved two top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 23.8 through 26 scheduled events. Their best on-track result of this season thus far was a sixth-place run at Darlington in May. Currently situated in 30th place in the standings, they too did not make the Playoffs for a second consecutive season.

    With Bullins now paired with Burton and Wilson reunited with Cindric, the new driver-crew chief duo sets their sights on concluding the 2023 season on a strong note, beginning in this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway for the Cook Out Southern 500. The event is scheduled to occur on Sunday, September 3, at 6 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Buescher wins Cup regular-season finale at Daytona in overtime; Wallace clinches final Playoff berth

    Buescher wins Cup regular-season finale at Daytona in overtime; Wallace clinches final Playoff berth

    With nearly half the field vying for the 16th and final spot to make the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, the Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing duo of Chris Buescher and Brad Keselowski captured the final spotlight amid an overtime shootout as Keselowski drafted teammate Buescher to an overtime victory in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, August 26.

    The 2015 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Buescher from Prosper, Texas, led the final two of 163 over-scheduled laps in an event where he started 11th and kept his car intact throughout the event that was mired with competitive racing, 22 lead changes and 17 different competitors taking turns to lead at least a lap amid the draft, even including a 12-car pileup on Lap 94 that wiped out a handful of Playoff hopefuls. Then after surging his way towards the front prior to a harrowing rollover accident involving Ryan Preece with five laps remaining that sent the event into overtime, Buescher received the draft needed from teammate Keselowski to overtake Kevin Harvick and fend off the field through the final two laps to claim his unprecedented third NASCAR Cup Series victory of the 2023 season.

    By virtue of Buescher, who was already locked into the Playoffs based on winning twice prior to Daytona, winning the regular-season finale at Daytona, Bubba Wallace benefited by rounding out the 2023 Cup Series Playoff field after finishing in 12th place while several top names, among which included Chase Elliott, Daniel Suarez, rookie Ty Gibbs, Alex Bowman and Aric Almirola, did not make the Playoffs.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, August 25, Chase Briscoe notched his first Cup pole position of the season and the second of his career after posting a pole-winning lap at 181.822 mph in 49.499 seconds. Joining him on the front row was teammate Aric Almirola, who clocked in the second-best qualifying lap at 181.693 mph in 49.534 seconds.

    Prior to the event, Ryan Preece was the only competitor who dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to his entry.

    When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Briscoe, who started on the outside lane, quickly jumped ahead before he transitioned his No. 14 Magical Vacation Planner Ford Mustang to the inside lane in front of teammate Almirola’s No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang exiting the frontstretch and through the first two turns. As the stacked field navigated through the backstretch, Briscoe muscled ahead with drafting help from teammate Almirola, but Bubba Wallace quickly gained ground from the outside lane as he dueled with Almirola for the runner-up spot. As the field returned to the frontstretch, Briscoe led the first lap as Wallace challenged Briscoe for the lead with drafting help from Riley Herbst, who was piloting the No. 36 Monster Energy Zero Sugar Ford Mustang for Front Row Motorsports.

    Through the second lap, Briscoe and Wallace continued to duel for the lead in front of two stacked lanes of competitors, with Briscoe gaining a slight advantage with drafting help from teammate Almirola while Wallace had Herbst still drafting his No. 23 Luke Combs/Columbia Toyota TRD Camry. Through the backstretch and Turns 3 and 4, the inside lane led by Briscoe prevailed as Briscoe started to surge ahead followed by Almirola and Harrison Burton. Then through the frontstretch, rookie Ty Gibbs became the first competitor to lead the outside lane as he moved his No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota TRD Camry in front of Wallace as Briscoe proceeded to lead the third lap.

    Through the first five scheduled laps and as the field started to fan out and jostle early for positions amid the draft, Briscoe was leading ahead of teammate Almirola, Burton, Kyle Larson and Chris Buescher while Martin Truex Jr., Christopher Bell, AJ Allmendinger, Ty Gibbs and Bubba Wallace were in the top 10. By then, all 39 starters were separated within three seconds.

    At the Lap 10 mark, Briscoe retained the lead by 0.075 seconds over teammate Almirola while Burton, Larson and Buescher followed suit in the top five. By then, Truex was serving as the lead competitor on the outside lane as he dueled with Allmendinger for sixth place before Denny Hamlin moved up the outside lane and in front of teammate Truex in his bid for the front. Amid the field still engaged in two tight-packed lanes, Briscoe continued to lead the race.

    Five laps later, Briscoe was still leading ahead of teammate Almirola, Burton, Larson and Buescher while Allmendinger, Austin Dillon, Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Truex were in the top 10. By then, Bell, Chase Elliott, Erik Jones, Ty Gibbs, Ryan Blaney, Wallace, Herbst, Tyler Reddick, Kevin Harvick and Ross Chastain were battling within the top 20. Meanwhile, Joey Logano was in 21st ahead of Michael McDowell, Preece, Austin Cindric, Alex Bowman and Daniel Suarez, William Byron was back in 29th and Brad Keselowski drifted back to 38th behind Ricky Stenhouse Jr. as part of a conservative play.

    At the Lap 25 mark and with the field continuing to run within two tight-packed lanes, Hamlin, who used the outside lane to move his No. 11 FedEx Cares Toyota TRD Camry into the lead from Briscoe two laps earlier, was leading ahead of teammate Truex while his other two Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Bell and Ty Gibbs followed suit along with his 23XI Racing competitor Wallace. By then, Briscoe fell back to sixth while Herbst, Harvick, Almirola and Logano were scored in the top 10. In addition, Harrison Burton was back in 11th followed by Cindric, Larson, Suarez and Allmendinger while Elliott, who was dealing with radio issues, was in 16th ahead of Austin Dillon, Buescher, Kyle Busch and McDowell.

    Just past the Lap 30 mark, Hamlin retained the lead ahead of his three Joe Gibbs Racing teammates while Herbst started to ignite a charge as the lead competitor on the outside lane as he also dueled with Wallace for fifth while receiving drafting help from Ford teammates Harvick, Logano and Cindric. Herbst would then boost his way up to the runner-up spot by Lap 32 before Hamlin moved up the track through the backstretch to block Herbst. This allowed Truex to muscle a challenge on the inside lane during the proceeding lap as the Toyota competitors became separated within two tight-packed lanes.

    When the first stage period concluded on Lap 35, Truex, who received a big push from teammate Bell to muscle past teammate Hamlin through the backstretch as the field fanned out, captured his sixth Cup stage victory of the 2023 season. Teammate Bell settled in second followed by Harvick, Ty Gibbs, Logano, Wallace and Cindric while Hamlin fell back to eighth in front of Briscoe and Suarez. By then, all but one of 39 starters were scored on the lead lap as the event featured two lead changes for three different leaders.

    Under the stage break, the lead lap field led by Truex pitted for their first service of the night. Following the pit stops and amid mixed strategies, Austin Hill exited first after opting for no fresh tires, though he missed his pit stall, followed by Logano, the first competitor with four fresh tires, as Truex, Bell, Wallace, Harvick, Suarez, Hamlin and Briscoe followed suit. Amid the pit stops, Justin Haley was penalized for equipment interference. In addition, Kyle Busch was penalized for a crew member jumping over the pit wall too soon. Once Hill pitted again, Logano cycled into the race lead.

    The second stage started on Lap 40 as Logano and Truex occupied the front row. At the start, Truex and Logano dueled for the lead through the first two turns until Logano muscled ahead in his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang entering the backstretch with drafting help from Harvick and Suarez. Truex would continue to lead the outside lane in front of teammate Bell while Logano retained the lead for the following lap on the inside lane.

    By Lap 45 and as the field started to fan out to three tight-packed lanes, Logano was pushed ahead of the stacked field followed by Harvick and Suarez while Truex tried to regain ground from the outside lane with continuous help from teammate Bell as Wallace tried to follow suit. Soon after, Elliott surged towards the front in his No. 9 LLumar Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 as part of a third drafting lane running toward the outside wall. Elliott would then be drafted into a duel against Logano for the lead through the first two turns as he had Allmendinger, Kyle Busch and Stenhouse assisting him. Then as Elliott had appeared to break ahead of the pack, Allmendinger made his move to the front and led Lap 47 as he dueled against Elliott for the lead. Allmendinger would then break away from the pack along with Kyle Busch while Elliott dueled against Stenhouse for third place.

    At the Lap 50 mark, Elliott led a lap for himself followed by Logano as Allmendinger, who led the previous three laps, was back in third. By then, Kyle Busch and Harvick were in the top five followed by Haley, Ty Gibbs, Stenhouse, Chastain and Almirola while Truex, Austin Hill, Bell, Buescher and Chandler Smith occupied the top 15. By then, all 39 starters were running on the lead lap and separated by two-and-a-half seconds.

    Two laps later, a three-wide battle for the lead ensued as Logano was stuck in the middle lane, Elliott charged on the inside lane and Allmendinger muscled ahead on the outside lane with drafting help from Kyle Busch. As the field was also stacked in three tight-packed lanes, Allmendinger retained the lead from the outside lane while Ty Gibbs tried to launch a charge on the inside lane. By then, Elliott lost his momentum after nearly wrecking with Stenhouse through the frontstretch prior to Lap 54 while Logano also drifted back within the top 10 as he continued to run in the middle lane.

    Then on Lap 55, Ross Chastain made his presence known at the front as he led the middle lane and surged his No. 1 Worldwide Express Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to a narrow lead before dueling against Ty Gibbs and Allmendinger. By then, Chastain had drafting help from Logano while Hamlin drifted back to 37th after bailing on the three-wide pack towards the front.

    Just past the Lap 60 mark and with the field settling in two tight-packed lanes, Chastain, who took the lead from Allmendinger a few laps prior, was leading by a narrow margin over Logano while Truex, Bell, Preece, Allmendinger, Kyle Busch, Ty Gibbs, Haley and Harvick were battling in the top 10. With the field still settling in two packed lanes, Chastain would continue to lead by the Lap 65 mark.

    By Lap 70 and with most of the field migrating to the outside lane, Chastain was leading ahead of Logano, Preece, Elliott and Harvick while Larson, Blaney, Bell, Stenhouse and Truex were running in the top 10. By then, Almirola was in 11th ahead of Ty Gibbs, Buescher, Burton and Keselowski while Josh Berry, Cindric, Bowman, Reddick and Byron were battling up in the top 20. Behind, Briscoe was back in 21st, Austin Dillon was in 26th ahead of Suarez, Erik Jones and Kyle Busch, Allmendinger was shuffled back in 31st, Wallace settled in 34th and Hamlin continued to run in 37th.

    Five laps later, Ryan Blaney made his move beneath Chastain exiting the backstretch as he surged to the lead in his No. 12 Advance Auto Parts Ford Mustang with drafting help from teammate Logano and Harvick. Chastain would settle in fourth place and duel with Harvick for third while Stenhouse, Preece, Almirola, Elliott, Buescher and Larson battled within the top 10. Keselowski, who ran towards the rear of the field earlier in the event, would also carve his way to run just outside the top 10. Not long after and as the intensity of the two tight-packed racing increased, Stenhouse would surge his No. 47 Boost by Kroger Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to the front and lead the halfway mark on Lap 80 as Blaney and Chastain, both of whom Stenhouse was battling with, followed suit.

    A lap later, green flag pit stops ensued as Stenhouse led Chastain, Bell, Berry, Ty Gibbs, Truex, Reddick, Erik Jones, Wallace, Hamlin and BJ McLeod to pit road for service, mainly for fuel. Another wave of competitors led by Blaney, Logano, Harvick, Brennan Poole, JJ Yeley, Austin Hill, Allmendinger, Haley and Chandler Smith pitted during the proceeding lap as Almirola cycled into the lead. Amid the pit stops, Hamlin was penalized for a crew member jumping over the pit wall too soon as he was forced to return to pit road and serve a pass-through penalty. Herbst would also be penalized for meeting the same fate as Hamlin while Poole was penalized for speeding on pit road.

    By Lap 84, a big group of competitors led by Almirola pitted under green as Harrison Burton cycled into the lead followed by Keselowski and Michael McDowell. Burton and McDowell would pit two laps later before they were able to blend back on the track and retain the top-two spots ahead of the charging pack. With the pack quickly catching up to Burton and McDowell through the backstretch, Keselowski then tried to make a move to Burton’s outside for the lead, but the field fanned out to nearly four lanes through the frontstretch as Kyle Busch ignited his charge to the lead. Suarez followed suit along with Alex Bowman and Austin Dillon as Kyle Busch aggressively carved his No. 8 Cheddar’s Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 into the lead by Lap 87.

    With five laps remaining in the second stage, Kyle Busch was leading ahead of Suarez, Bowman, Austin Dillon and Keselowski while Burton was getting shuffled out of the top five amid two tight-packed lanes. As the laps dwindled, the field fanned out to three lanes as Busch continued to lead.

    Then on the final lap of the second stage, Lap 94, trouble ensued when Ty Gibbs, who was trying to surge to the front, slipped sideways off the front nose of teammate Bell and clipped the leader Blaney as both were sent hard against the outside wall, collecting Bell, Reddick, Stenhouse and Bowman in the process as Allmendinger, Hamlin, Herbst, Cindric, Austin Dillon, Harvick, Larson, Poole, Buescher and Burton were also involved. The wreck, which proved costly to Gibbs as his hopes of making the Playoffs came to an end, was enough to place the event in a red flag period for nine-and-a-half minutes. By then, Keselowski escaped the carnage to capture the stage victory, which was his fourth of the 2023 Cup season, while Kyle Busch, Suarez, Bowman, Byron, Reddick, Elliott, Austin Dillon, Chastain and Logano were scored in the top 10. In addition, Truex, who dodged the incident, was crowned the 2023 Cup Series Regular Season champion.

    Under the stage break and once the red flag period was lifted, a majority of the lead lap field led by Keselowski pitted for service while Stewart-Haas Racing’s Briscoe and Almirola remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Kyle Busch exited first while Elliott, Suarez, Chastain, Keselowski, Byron and Logano followed suit.

    With 56 laps remaining, the final stage started as Briscoe and Kyle Busch occupied the front row. At the start, Briscoe emerged with the lead and surged ahead with drafting help from teammate Almirola while Busch dueled with Erik Jones for third place. As Busch regained ground through the backstretch, he then challenged Briscoe for the lead as he had Bowman and Suarez pushing him. Despite Briscoe managing to lead the proceeding laps, he kept being engaged in a side-by-side duel against Busch for the lead as Almirola, Erik Jones and Bowman were in the top five. Meanwhile, Wallace, who was on the brakes to avoid the multi-car wreck at the end of the second stage, was up to seventh as he tried to crack the top five along with Keselowski and Suarez.

    With 50 laps remaining, Briscoe continued to lead as he had both lanes under his control followed by teammate Almirola, Erik Jones, Keselowski, Wallace and Logano while Kyle Busch tried to charge back to the front on the outside lane. Wallace would then move up in front of Busch and lead the outside lane during the following lap as he dueled against Logano for fifth while Josh Berry joined the battle.

    Five laps later and with the field slowly starting to fan out to three lanes, Briscoe retained the lead ahead of a long single file line on the inside lane as teammate Almirola, Erik Jones, Keselowski and Logano were in the top five. By then, Wallace fell back to 13th as Berry, Chandler Smith, McDowell, Bell and Corey LaJoie charged in the top 10 in front of Kyle Busch while Elliott and Suarez were mired back in the top 20.

    Another five laps later and with most of the field migrating to the outside lane, Briscoe was leading ahead of teammates Almirola and Preece while Buescher and Harvick were in the top five. By then, Keselowski, Elliott, Ty Dillon, Chandler Smith and Truex were in the top 10 while Wallace, who briefly moved back into the top five, fell back to 14th after being shuffled out of the draft before he blended back into the draft towards the outside wall. With nearly the entire field continuing to run in a long single-file line toward the outside wall, Briscoe also continued to lead ahead of teammates Almirola and Preece with 35 laps remaining.

    With 30 laps remaining, Briscoe retained the top spot by 0.083 seconds over teammate Almirola followed by Preece, Buescher and Harvick while Keselowski, Elliott, Ty Dillon, Chandler Smith and Truex continued to run in the top 10. With Erik Jones, Kyle Busch and Logano mired in 11th, 12th and 13th, respectively, Wallace retained 14th in front of McDowell while Bell, Austin Hill, LaJoie, Byron and Bowman were running in the top 20.

    Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Briscoe continued to lead a long line of competitors towards the outside wall, with teammates Almirola and Preece along with Buescher and Harvick following suit. By then, the top-six spots continued to be occupied by Ford competitors as Keselowski was in sixth, Elliott served as the lead Chevrolet competitor in seventh and Wallace was the leading Toyota competitor as he returned to the top 10.

    A lap later, Preece attempted to make a charge to the front on the inside lane, but he got shuffled out of the draft and drifted back as Chandler Smith served as the lead competitor on the inside lane while Briscoe retained the lead on the outside lane.

    With 16 laps remaining, a wave of competitors led by Chandler Smith, including Wallace, pitted under green, mainly for fuel, as Briscoe continued to lead the rest of the field. Briscoe would then lead another wave of competitors to pit road for service under green with 14 laps remaining. Once the wave of competitors led by Briscoe completed their service, Harvick, who pitted during the first wave, cycled as the leader ahead of Elliott, Almirola, Buescher, Keselowski, Bowman and Briscoe while the wave of competitors who pitted earlier led by Kyle Busch, who was running 12th in front of Wallace, was slowly gaining ground.

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Harvick was leading ahead of Elliott, Almirola, Buescher and Keselowski while Bowman, Briscoe, Byron, Logano and Ty Dillon trailed behind. Meanwhile, Wallace was in 13th behind McDowell and Kyle Busch while Erik Jones and Truex occupied the top 15.

    Two laps later, Almirola launched a charge on the outside lane, but Harvick moved up the track to block his Stewart-Haas Racing teammate. Harvick would then surge ahead with the top spot followed by Almirola and Buescher as Elliott tried to fight back on the inside lane as he had teammate Larson drafting him. Elliott then tried to launch another charge on the inside lane with seven laps remaining, but Harvick surged ahead on the outside lane as he, Almirola and Buescher briefly broke away from the pack. Teammates Buescher and Keselowski then overtook Almirola through the backstretch to move up to second and third as they settled behind Harvick with five laps remaining.

    Shortly after, the caution flew when Preece, who was running in the middle of the pack through the backstretch, got hit by Erik Jones as he veered sideways and collected teammate Briscoe in the process. Amid the collision, Preece’s No. 41 RaceChoice.com Ford Mustang then went airborne and barrel-rolled multiple times in the air and towards the backstretch’s infield before the battered car came to a violent rest on all four wheels. Despite the wild ride that ended his hopes of making this year’s Playoffs, Preece emerged uninjured as he was placed on a stretcher and medically escorted to the infield care center before being transported to a local hospital for further evaluation. Preece’s wild wreck was also enough to send the event into overtime.

    Following an extensive caution period, the race restarted in overtime as Harvick and Buescher occupied the front row in front of Elliott and Keselowski. At the start, Buescher and Harvick dueled for the lead entering Turns 1 and 2 until Buescher gained the upper hand as his teammate and co-owner Keselowski drafted his No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang into the lead entering the backstretch. Buescher then maintained the lead followed by Keselowski’s No. 6 King’s Hawaiian Ford Mustang as Almirola tried to move up to third place while battling alongside teammate Harvick and in front of Logano.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Buescher, who transitioned from the inside to the outside lane to retain the momentum and keep Keselowski behind him, remained as the leader as Harvick launched a charge with drafting help from Elliott. The two Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing competitors would slightly surge ahead entering the backstretch and remain on the outside lane with more momentum that included pushes from Almirola and Logano keeping them ahead of Harvick and Elliott. With Buescher and Keselowski starting to pull away from the pack through Turns 3 and 4, Harvick got shuffled out of the draft as Almirola and Elliott fanned out in their final hopes of making the Playoffs. Despite gaining momentum with drafting help, their runs were not enough to catch the Roush competitors as Buescher surged ahead and beat Keselowski to the finish line to capture his third checkered flag of the 2023 Cup season by 0.098 seconds over Keselowski.

    With the victory, Buescher became the fourth different competitor to achieve at least three victories throughout the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season as he also notched the fifth career win of his premier series resume and first at Daytona. With a total of 2,021 points, Buescher, who has made the Playoffs for the second time in his career and first since 2016, will line up in fourth place in this year’s Playoff grid and will embark on a 10-week Playoff stretch to battle for this year’s championship, beginning next weekend at Darlington Raceway.

    “[I owe Brad Keselowski] A little more than [the push],” Buescher said on NBC. “That was amazing. So proud to get Fifth Third Bank into Victory Lane here at Daytona. I knew we were coming here with fast [Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing] Ford Mustangs and got there at the end and showed when it counted. That’s as much Brad’s win as ours right there. That was the right help. Aggressive, sticking with us, too, all the way to the line. I was waiting for him to do something there coming to the finish. I figured we’d be side-by-side, but looked like he got stalled out a little behind. Just so thankful to Brad for all those pushes there at the right time. [This season]’s hard to explain. It’s awesome, though. To be sitting here again [as a winner] so quickly. What a heck of a start into the Playoffs right now. It’s been a long time coming, a lot of work. So amazing for us.”

    While Buescher celebrated on the frontstretch, Bubba Wallace celebrated with his pit crew, family, friends, teammate Tyler Reddick and team owners Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin on pit road after securing the 16th and final spot to make the 2023 Cup Series Playoffs by finishing 12th on the track and being 47 points ahead of Daniel Suarez, who ended up 20th. As a result, Wallace, who is in his third season driving for 23XI Racing and was able to lock both 23XI Racing cars in the Playoffs alongside teammate Tyler Reddick, has qualified for the Cup Playoffs for the first time in his career and in a season highlighted with four top-five results, six top-10 results, 14 top-15 results and five 12th-place finishes, a career-high 159 laps led and an average-finishing result of 16.8 throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch. He will line up in 16th place in the Playoff standings with 2,000 points as he will contend for his first series title.

    “That was the most stressed, but also the most locked in that I’ve ever been, knowing that this place is mostly out of your control,” Wallace said. “I just try to focus on doing the things that I could do. Missing that wreck [at the end of Stage 2] was massive. [I] Appreciate [spotter] Freddie [Kraft]. He’s one of the best up on the roof that gets us through a lot and that’s what helps our resume here at the speedway stuff. Proud to be locked into the Playoffs. This is special for our team. 23XI [Racing], third year in, getting both cars in the Playoffs. We’ve gone through a lot of trials and tribulations, but just so proud of the effort that we put in. No matter how much we set ourselves back, we know that we have a kickass group and we can bounce back from anything.”

    Meanwhile, Elliott was left disappointed after surging his way to finish fourth on the track, but could not gain the momentum needed to make the Playoffs as this season will mark the first time where he will not contend as a Playoff competitor. Amid a difficult regular-season stretch where he was absent for a total of seven events, six due to an injury from a snowboarding accident earlier this season, Elliott remained optimistic as he set his sights on gaining momentum for the 2024 season.

    “I really liked where we were before the caution [with five laps remaining],” Elliott said. “Honestly after the [overtime] restart there, we had the bottom lane that we wanted. I knew [Keselowski] was gonna go with [Buescher]. I thought [Harvick] was gonna take the bottom [lane] and he did, and we really had all the help that we could ask for behind…It’s a bummer, for sure. [I] Hate the season’s worked out like it has, but the good news is the car got in the owner’s points. That’s a big deal. Credit to [crew chief] Alan [Gustafson] and everybody for continuing to work and scratch and claw while I was out to keep our team alive and to give ourselves a chance, so that’s a big deal. Probably much bigger than a lot of people realize to our team. Looking forward to these next 10 [races] and try to make a little noise on that side of things and just try to get ready and prepare for next year. I appreciate everybody’s support. The season hasn’t been what I would want by any means, but certainly gonna be some lessons taken from it and I think we’ll be better for it on the other end.”

    Almirola came home in third place behind Buescher and Keselowski as he too missed the 2023 Playoffs while Elliott and Logano finished in the top five on the track. Bowman, who also missed the Playoffs, settled in sixth while Kyle Busch, Byron, Harvick and Corey LaJoie finished in the top 10.

    William Byron, Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin, Chris Buescher, Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Ross Chastain, Brad Keselowski, Tyler Reddick, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Michael McDowell, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Kevin Harvick and Bubba Wallace have made the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

    Daniel Suarez, rookie Ty Gibbs, Alex Bowman, Chase Elliott, AJ Allmendinger, Austin Cindric, Aric Almirola, Justin Haley, Corey LaJoie, Ryan Preece, Todd Gilliland, Erik Jones, Austin Dillon, Harrison Burton, Chase Briscoe and Ty Dillon are the remaining full-time competitors who did not make the Playoffs.

    There were 22 lead changes for 17 different leaders. The race featured three cautions for 18 laps. In addition, 25 of 39 starters finished on the lead lap.

    Results.

    1. Chris Buescher, two laps led

    2. Brad Keselowski, six laps led, Stage 2 winner

    3. Aric Almirola, three laps led

    4. Chase Elliott, two laps led

    5. Joey Logano, nine laps led

    6. Alex Bowman

    7. Kyle Busch, five laps led

    8. William Byron, one lap led

    9. Kevin Harvick, 14 laps led

    10. Corey LaJoie

    11. Ty Dillon

    12. Bubba Wallace

    13. Michael McDowell

    14. Austin Hill

    15. Chandler Smith

    16. Christopher Bell

    17. Ross Chastain, 19 laps led

    18. Erik Jones

    19. JJ Yeley

    20. Daniel Suarez, one lap led

    21. Justin Haley

    22. Josh Berry

    23. BJ McLeod

    24. Martin Truex Jr., four laps led, Stage 1 winner

    25. Tyler Reddick

    26. Denny Hamlin, one lap down, 12 laps led

    27. Kyle Larson, two laps down

    28. Harrison Burton, three laps down, five laps led

    29. AJ Allmendinger, three laps down, eight laps led

    30. Chase Briscoe – OUT, Accident, 67 laps led

    31. Ryan Preece – OUT, Accident

    32. Todd Gilliland – OUT, Overheating

    33. Austin Dillon – OUT, Accident

    34. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – OUT, Accident, one lap led

    35. Ty Gibbs – OUT, Accident

    36. Ryan Blaney – OUT, Accident, four laps led

    37. Austin Cindric – OUT, Accident

    38. Riley Herbst – OUT, Accident

    39. Brennan Poole – OUT, Accident

    The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs is set to commence next Sunday, September 3, during Labor Day weekend at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina for the Cook Out Southern 500. The event’s broadcast is scheduled to occur at 6 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Martin Truex Jr. captures 2023 Cup Series Regular Season Championship

    Martin Truex Jr. captures 2023 Cup Series Regular Season Championship

    Despite finishing 24th in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway, which served as the final regular-season event of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, Martin Truex Jr. clinched the 2023 Cup Series Regular Season Championship on Saturday, August 26.

    The 2017 Cup Series champion from Mayetta, New Jersey, came into the regular-season finale with a 39-point advantage over teammate Denny Hamlin and 76 over William Byron. Rolling off the starting grid in 13th place, Truex methodically carved his way to the front amid the draft and was battling amongst his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates in the closing laps of the first stage period. Then on the final lap of the first stage period, Truex was able to outmaneuver teammate Denny Hamlin through the backstretch and with drafting help from teammate Christopher Bell stormed to the lead and captured his sixth stage victory of the 2023 season along with an extra 10 stage points.

    Despite finishing outside the top 10 at the conclusion of the second stage period that was mired with a multi-car wreck, Truex was able to clinch the regular-season title while Hamlin was involved in the wreck. After cracking the top 10 midway into the final stage, Truex ended up getting shuffled towards the middle of the pack, where he would remain for the rest of the event and survived an overtime restart to nurse his No. 19 Bass Pro Shops/Ducks Unlimited Toyota TRD Camry across the finish line in 24th place, which was enough for him to wrap up the regular-season title by 48 points over teammate Hamlin and 64 over Byron.

    With his accomplishment, Truex joined former teammate Kyle Busch as the second competitor to achieve two Cup Series Regular Season Championship titles in a season where he has achieved three victories (Dover Motor Speedway in April, Sonoma Raceway in June and New Hampshire Motor Speedway in July), one pole, nine top-five results, 15 top-10 results, 832 laps led and an average-finishing result of 11.4 throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch.

    Awarded a 15-point Playoff bonus for winning this year’s regular-season title, Truex enters the 2023 Cup Series Playoffs tied with William Byron for the top seed in the Playoff standings with 2,036 points and as one of 16 competitors who will embark on a 10-race stretch to battle for the 2023 Cup Series title, beginning at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina, next Sunday on September 3.

    “The [regular-season] trophy is really cool, but we’re focused on the [season] championship again this year,” Truex said on NBC. “That feels really good. Really awesome to get those bonus points and just really proud of my team, everybody at [Joe Gibbs Racing],…all of our partners just giving us the opportunity to be here and being able to have a season like we’ve had. Hopefully, we can keep it going. It was a little frustrating not being able to really, really race tonight after Denny [Hamlin] got in that situation and we’d already got the stage win. That was kind of a bummer, but all in all, big picture, it was the right thing to do. Hopefully, we put together another 10 great races and do what we did in 2017 again. I feel as good as ever. I feel like our team is really, really strong. I feel like we can be strong anywhere we go. We’re optimistic, we’re hungry, we’re excited and fired up. Ready to get going.”

    Through 647 career starts in the Cup Series and in addition to his lone championship in 2017, Truex has achieved 34 victories, 21 poles, 142 top-five results, 278 top-10 results, 12,125 laps led and an average-finishing result of 15.1 as he will pursue his second premier series title in 2023.

    Martin Truex Jr.’s pursuit for his second NASCAR Cup Series championship commences next Sunday, September 3, at Darlington Raceway for the Cook Out Southern 500. The event’s coverage is scheduled to commence at 6 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Chase Briscoe wins the pole for NASCAR’s regular-season finale at Daytona

    Chase Briscoe wins the pole for NASCAR’s regular-season finale at Daytona

    Chase Briscoe captured the NASCAR Cup Series pole for Saturday’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway after posting a qualifying lap of 181.822 mph in the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford. It marks Briscoe’s second Cup Series career pole.

    After qualifying, Briscoe admitted that he was not confident as he left pit road to qualify. “I was worried,” he said. “When I left pit road I did an absolutely terrible job. I spun the tires and I shifted way too early to second and then I had a double lift on the gas at third and fourth and I was like, ‘Man, I completely threw this away,’ so I knew it was gonna be extremely close getting back to the line and just barely was able to be there.

    “It’s cool for Stewart-Haas Racing. It’s no secret that it’s been a struggle for us this year and to bring two really fast Fords to Daytona and lock out the front row is a testament to everything the men and women back there are doing and this Roush Yates power under the hood.”

    His teammate, Aric Almirola, will join Briscoe on the front row, after laying down a 181.693 mph lap in the final round. Wood Brothers Racing’s Harrison Burton claimed the third spot in the No. 21 Ford, his career-best starting position. Toyota drivers Bubba Wallace (23XI Racing) and Ty Gibbs (Joe Gibbs Racing) rounded out the top five.

    Riley Herbst qualified sixth for Front Row Motorsports in only his third Cup Series start as Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson, the only Chevrolet driver in the top 10, was seventh. Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney was eighth quickest, as Stewart-Haas Racing teammates, Ryan Preece and Kevin Harvick, earned the final two spots in the top 10.

    There is more on the line than usual this weekend with only one spot remaining in the 16-driver Cup Series Playoffs which is set to begin next week at Darlington Raceway.

    All eyes will be on Chase Elliott as he attempts to keep the streak alive after having made the Playoffs for seven consecutive years. He is currently 19th in the driver playoff standings and nothing short of a win will advance him.

    After qualifying 23rd, Elliott will have his work cut out for him but he remains determined.

    “I still don’t think it matters a whole lot,” Elliott said of qualifying at Daytona. “I do think track position matters at some point during the day, and we saw that in the [Daytona] 500 here. I crashed there early on, but the part of the race I was in, I felt like everybody was stuck. We couldn’t go anywhere. I was looking around, and there were times during the race I was like, he’s trying to go forward and can’t.

    “I think the more the cars are the same as time has gone on, it’s hard to be different, then it puts all the emphasis on the little stuff. How fast are your pit stops? How much gas you got in it? How good’s your restart? All the itty-bitty little things become much larger pieces of the puzzle when the cars are just more and more the same, especially when you’re running around here wide open.”

    “There’s still a little bit of a difference,” he added. “Whether it’s the driver, the car or a combination of both, I still think a guy can make himself stand out.”

    Tune into the Coke Sugar Zero 400 Saturday evening at 7 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock for all the racing action as the Cup Series playoff field is set.

    Starting Lineup

    1. Chase Briscoe
    2. Aric Almirola
    3. Harrison Burton
    4. Bubba Wallace
    5. Ty Gibbs (R)
    6. Riley Herbst
    7. Kyle Larson
    8. Ryan Blaney
    9. Ryan Preece
    10. Kevin Harvick
    11. Chris Buescher
    12. Brad Keselowski
    13. Martin Truex Jr.
    14. Joey Logano
    15. Christopher Bell
    16. Austin Cindric
    17. AJ Allmendinger
    18. Kyle Busch
    19. Denny Hamlin
    20. Tyler Reddick
    21. Austin Dillon
    22. Daniel Suarez
    23. Chase Elliott
    24. Erik Jones
    25. Ross Chastain
    26. Austin Hill
    27. William Byron
    28. Justin Haley
    29. Josh Berry
    30. Ty Dillon
    31. Alex Bowman
    32. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
    33. JJ Yeley
    34. Brennan Poole
    35. Todd Gilliland
    36. Chandler Smith
    37. Corey LaJoie
    38. BJ McLeod
    39. Michael McDowell
  • Weekend schedule for Daytona-2 and Milwaukee

    Weekend schedule for Daytona-2 and Milwaukee

    This weekend the NASCAR Cup Series travels to Daytona International Speedway for the regular season finale to determine the 16-driver field of the Playoffs. There is only one available spot, currently held by 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace, based on points earned.

    Joe Gibbs Racing’s Ty Gibbs, in 17th place, is 32 points behind Wallace and Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suarez is 43 points back. If Wallace has a bad day at the track either driver could mathematically earn their way into the Playoffs. And we can’t forget the 14 other drivers who could score their first win of the year and claim the final spot.

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series heads to Daytona with only three races remaining in the regular season. Eight drivers have already secured a spot in the 12-driver postseason field, including Austin Hill, John Hunter Nemechek, Justin Allgaier, Cole Custer, Sam Mayer, Chandler Smith, Sammy Smith and Jeb Burton.

    Milwaukee Mile Speedway will host the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Sunday afternoon for the first time in 14 years as their postseason continues with the second race in the Round of 10. Ty Majeski won the first event at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park on August 11 and will automatically advance to the Round of 8 at Bristol Motor Speedway on September 14.

    All times are Eastern.

    Friday, August 25

    3 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Daytona)
    Impound (Single Vehicle/1 Lap/2 Rounds) NBC Sports App

    5:05 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Daytona)
    Impound (Single Vehicle/1 Lap/2 Rounds)
    USA/MRN/SiriusXM/NBC Sports App

    7:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Wawa 250 powered by Coca-Cola (Daytona)
    Stages 30/60/100 Laps = 250 Miles
    USA/MRN/SiriusXM/NBC Sports App

    Saturday, August 26

    2 p.m.: Truck Series Practice (All Entries) at Milwaukee – No TV
    3 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series Practice (All Entries) at Milwaukee – No TV
    4 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series Qualifying at Milwaukee
    Impound (Timed, All Entries) No TV

    7 p.m.: Cup Series Coke Zero Sugar 400 (Daytona)
    Stages 35/95/160 Laps = 400 Miles
    NBC/Peacock/MRN/SiriusXM

    Sunday, August 17

    11:30 a.m.: Truck Series Qualifying (Milwaukee)
    Impound (Single Vehicle/1 Lap/All Entries) FS2

    1 p.m.: ARCA Sprecher 150 (Milwaukee)
    150 LAPS = 152.25 Miles – FS1/MRN

    4 p.m.: Truck Series Clean Harbors 175 (Milwaukee)
    Stages 55/110/175 Laps = 177.625 Miles
    FS1/MRN/SiriusXM

    NASCAR Press Pass will be available throughout the weekend.

    Notes:

    Cup Series Purse: $8,778,583
    Xfinity Series Purse: $1,640,749
    Truck Series Purse: $644,030

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Watkins Glen

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Watkins Glen

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin started on the pole at Watkins Glen and finished second.

    “William Byron just had too much car,” Hamlin said. “I mean, way too much car. It almost seems unfair, which is what NASCAR inspectors must be saying.”

    2. William Byron: Byron took charge early and dominated in winning the Go Bowling At The Glen, his fifth win of the year.

    “My No. 24 Chevy was fast,” Byron said. “Once I got to the lead, I just ran away from the field. Now, I just need to run away from inspectors.”

    3. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex finished sixth at Watkins Glen.

    “It just took us too long to find the right balance,” Truex said. “My No. 19 Toyota was sponsored by Siemens. If you scramble the letters in ‘Siemens,’ it tells you a lot about the handling, because it was my ‘nemesis.’”

    4. Chris Buescher: Buescher finished seventh in the Go Bowling At The Glen, and is now eighth in the points standings.

    “William Byron was the class of the field,” Buescher said. “I know my car was no match for him. So, the ‘Fastenal’ wasn’t fast at all.”

    5. Christopher Bell: Bell finished third at Watkins Glen, posting his sixth top-five of the season.

    “Sponsors naming races is totally out of control,” Bell said. “Come on, the ‘Go Bowling At The Glen?’ I mean, spare me.”

    6. Kyle Larson: Larson came home 26th at Watkins Glen after an early pit lane speeding penalty derailed his chances.

    “That was all my fault,” Larson said, “and I take full responsibility. And I really have to stop having to say those words.”

    7. Joey Logano: Logano came home 10th in the Go Bowling At The Glen.

    “The upcoming regular-season finale at Daytona is going to be wild,” Logano said. “If NASCAR’s most popular driver Chase Elliott doesn’t win there, he’s gonna come up ’empty’ once more.”

    8. Ryan Blaney: Blaney finished ninth at Watkins Glen and is now ninth in the points standings.

    “I’m rounding into playoff shape,” Blaney said. “You know what they used to say about Tony Stewart? His playoff shape was round.”

    9. Michael McDowell: McDowell won Stage 1 at Watkins Glen, but a subsequent pit lane penalty all but ruined his hopes for a win. Then, his engine failed, knocking him out of the race on Lap 74. He finished 36th.

    “I drove through too many pit boxes on pit entry,” McDowell said. “The penalty for that is a drive-through penalty, which means you have to return to the scene of the crime. That’s something that Kyle Busch hopes he never has to do.”

    10. Ross Chastain: Chastain finished 18th at Watkins Glen.

    “My car was sponsored by ‘Be A Moose,’” Chastain said. “‘Be A Moose’ in a charitable organization. Some drivers often say I’m a moose, as in a moose in a china shop.”