Kevin Harvick went to victory lane Sunday evening at Richmond Raceway, taking home the NASCAR Cup Series trophy in the Federated Auto Parts 400 for his 60th career win.
It marked his second consecutive win after ending a 65-race winless drought at Michigan International Speedway last Sunday.
After his triumph at Michigan, Harvick said, “Everybody who doubted us doesn’t know us.”
This week he doubled down.
When asked if he expected to win back-to-back, he said, in part, “You know, I didn’t know. It’s like I said last week, the cars have been running good week in and week out, and you see that we have a lot better understanding of what’s going on with how we adjusted on the car after the first run and were able to get our car handling a lot better. I think as it got dark, the racetrack really came to our Mobil 1 Ford Mustang.”
Harvick is now tied with Kyle Busch on the all-time Cup Series wins list.
He led 55 laps in his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, holding off a hard-charging Christopher Bell, who finished second. Chris Buescher, Denny Hamlin and Chase Elliott rounded out the top five finishers.
When Bell was asked what he needed to catch Harvick who had 12-lap fresher tires, he said, “I don’t know, I got held up a little bit there on the front side, and I guess when you’re splitting hairs like that, that probably cost me the race. That’s two races in a row here at Richmond. At the beginning of the year we kind of had that same strategy and barely missed fifth coming to the line, and today it was the win.”
He also acknowledged his pit crew, saying, “The pit crew really came through at the end there with some blazing stops and allowed us to get in front of the 11 (Hamlin) who was on the same strategy as us and get up there and contend.”
Joey Logano, who led a race-high 222 laps, faded in the closing laps to finish sixth, was followed by Martin Truex Jr., Aric Almirola, Kyle Busch and Ryan Blaney to round out the top 10.
Elliott, the current point standings leader, was the only Chevrolet driver to finish in the top ten and acknowledged that the team needs to improve before the Playoffs begin.
“Obviously we want to be better,” he said, “and Michigan was a big time struggle for us. This weekend was too all the way up until the last few runs. We will go to work and try to finish these last two weeks strong and get ready for Darlington.”
With only one open spot left in the Playoffs and two races remaining, Blaney improved his position over Truex to a +26 points advantage after earning 11 stage points throughout the race.
Tune in next week as the Cup Series heads to Watkins Glen International on Sunday, August 21 at 3 p.m. ET on USA, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
1. Chase Elliott: Elliott finished fifth at Richmond, posting his ninth top five of the year.
“Short track racing is the best,” Elliott said. “There were a lot of cars making contact on the track, which I’m sure the fans love. But really, what the fans really want to see are drivers making contact, off the track.”
2. Joey Logano: Logano powered to the Stage 2 win, but faded late and eventually finished sixth at Richmond.
“We led a race-high 222 laps,” Logano said, “but once the sun went down, we struggled to find the right balance. That’s what’s known as the ‘NASCAR gods throwing shade’ at me.”
3. Kevin Harvick: One week after winning at Michigan, Harvick surged late and held off Chris Buecher and Christopher Bell to win at Richmond.
“It was Cup win number 60,” Harvick said. “That’s a number that some of these younger drivers have a hard time fathoming. They hear ‘Kevin Harvick’ and ’60’ and think, ‘I thought he was older.’”
4. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished fourth at Richmond.
“Kevin Harvick is the hottest driver in NASCAR right now,” Hamlin said. “Once the NASCAR playoffs start, I contend Harvick will be a ‘4’ to be reckoned with.”
5. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex was clipped early by Ricky Stenhouse Jr. who missed pit road and swerved into the path of Truex’s No. 19 Toyota. Truex fell a lap down but recovered to post a seventh at Richmond.
“Stenhouse’s car was primarily sponsored by Kleenex,” Truex said. “That should come in handy for him because as I’m in a fight to make the playoffs, I don’t need a snot-nosed kid getting in my way.”
6. Ryan Blaney: Blaney ran in the top 10 for the majority of the race on his way to a 10th in the Federated Auto Parts 400.
“My car sported the ‘Body Armor’ paint scheme,” Blaney said. “And in today’s racing climate, I can’t stress enough the importance of having Body Armor. ‘Body armor’ is practically a must-have, especially with Ross Chastain on the track.”
7. Christopher Bell: Bell charged late at Richmond, but couldn’t catch Kevin Harvick and settled for the runner-up finish in the Federated Auto Parts 400.
“I tried my best to catch Kevin Harvick there at the end,” Bell said. “But I just couldn’t get closer to the ‘Closer.’
“But congratulations to Harvick on his 60th win. That’s 58 more Cup wins that I have, and 59 more facial hairs than I have.’
8. Kyle Larson: Larson started on the pole at Richmond and finished 14th, one lap down, in the Federated Auto Parts 400.
“We just couldn’t get the car dialed in,” Larson said. “So it was a frustrating day for me. But I’ve learned that when I’m frustrated, I should keep my head down and keep my mouth shut, with special priority on the ‘keep my mouth shut’ part.”
“But answer me this. Is there a valid reason the Federated Auto Parts 400 is not abbreviated the ‘FAP 400?’ I’m guessing there is”.
9. Kyle Busch: Busch finished ninth in the Federated Auto Parts 400.
“I made contact with Ross Chastain at one point during the race,” Busch said. “But then again, who hasn’t?
“Kevin Harvick tied me with his 60th Cup series win. That does not make me ‘Happy.’ And it may be the first time I’ve been on the same ‘page’ with Harvick.”
10. Ross Chastain: Chastain won Stage 1 and finished 18th at Richmond.
“Another day,” Chastain said, “another wreck that was my fault. I’m pretty sure I’ve set a record this year, for most apologies in one season. My No. 1 Chevy had ‘Be A Moose’ on it; maybe it should have read ‘Be At Fault.’”
Kyle Larson won the Busch Light Pole award at Richmond Raceway Saturday evening with a 117.177 mph lap in his Hendrick Motorsports No. 5 Chevrolet.
It’s his third NASCAR Cup Series pole of the season and the 13th of his career.
Larson was the final driver to qualify in the second round and he described how he thought he gained enough speed to outpace Ross Chastain for the pole.
“Even though I got into (turn) one too hard and a little bit sideways, I am imagining that is where I made up my time,” he said. “Just getting in really deep and I think getting it under control before I got to the exit is probably where I made up the lap time. I don’t know though, it could be three and four. Who knows? But I felt like I got in deep, too deep for sure, but it worked out.“
TrackHouse Racing’s Ross Chastain, who was fastest during practice, will start beside Larson on the front row after posting a lap at 116.883 mph. Denny Hamlin (116.485 mph) was third fastest in qualifying in his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with Hendrick Motorsports drivers William Byron (116.470 mph) and Alex Bowman (116.384 mph) rounding out the top five starters.
Martin Truex Jr. will begin the Federated Auto Parts 400 race in sixth followed by Cole Custer, Brad Keselowski, Erik Jones and Ryan Blaney to complete the top 10.
With only three races remaining in the regular season, there have already been 15 different winners in the Cup Series. Two top contenders for the final spot in the Playoffs are Blaney and Truex, but neither driver has won this year. Blaney currently occupies the final place with a 19-point advantage over Truex. Truex, however, has three previous wins at Richmond.
Todd Gilliland, who was the fastest rookie in qualifying, will start in 16th place.
The Federated Auto Parts 400 is set for Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on the USA Network with radio coverage on MRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
The NASCAR Cup Series and the Camping World Truck Series head to Richmond Raceway this weekend while the Xfinity Series enjoys a week off from competition.
So far, the regular season has produced 15 different Cup Series winners with only three races remaining. Seven drivers have officially clinched a spot in the Playoffs via wins and accumulated points. They include Chase Elliott, Ross Chastain, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, William Byron, Tyler Reddick and Denny Hamlin.
The Camping World Truck Series Playoffs continue at Richmond as the track hosts the second of three races in the Round of 10. Grant Enfinger went to victory lane last week at Indianapolis, securing his spot in the next round. That leaves nine drivers competing for their chance to advance to the Round of 8.
Press Pass Live on NASCAR.com will be available throughout the weekend providing additional coverage.
All times are Eastern.
Saturday, August 13
3:05 p.m.: Truck Series Practice (All Entries) FS1 3:35 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying (Impound) Single Vehicle, 2 Laps, All Entries – FS1 5:05 p.m.: Cup Series Practice – Groups A & B – USA/MRN/SiriusXM 5:50 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Impound) (Groups A & B) Single Vehicle, 2 Laps, 2 Rounds) USA/MRN/SiriusXM
8 p.m.: Truck Series Worldwide Express 250 for Carrier Appreciation Stages 70/140/250 Laps = 187.5 Miles The Purse: $744,951 FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
Sunday, August 14
3 p.m.: Cup Series Federated Auto Parts 400 Stages 70/230/400 Laps = 300 Miles The Purse: $1,159,436 USA/MRN/SiriusXM
Ty Gibbs will remain as an interim driver of the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota TRD Camry for the upcoming NASCAR Cup Series event at Richmond Raceway, where he will be substituting for Kurt Busch.
The news comes as Busch took to social media to announce that he has not received medical clearance to return to on-track competition. The 2004 Cup Series champion continues to recover from concussion-like symptoms he sustained following a qualifying wreck at Pocono Raceway on July 23, which sidelined him from the main event. In addition to Pocono, he has missed the previous two Cup events at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course and at Michigan International Speedway.
Busch, who last competed at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in mid-July, has already been granted a medical waiver to be eligible for the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs, where he is currently in contention to claim a postseason spot by virtue of winning at Kansas Speedway on May 15.
With Busch out, Gibbs, who competes as a full-time Xfinity Series competitor for Joe Gibbs Racing and won the Xfinity event at Richmond in April, will be pulling double-duty between the Xfinity and Cup Series for a fourth consecutive weekend. The 19-year-old from Charlotte, North Carolina, is coming off a strong weekend at Michigan, where he claimed his fifth Xfinity victory of the season with JGR on Saturday, August 6, followed by his first top-10 career result in NASCAR’s premier series with 23XI after rallying from a late pit road penalty to finish 10th on Sunday, August 7.
Prior to his 10th-place result at Michigan, Gibbs’ previous two finishes in NASCAR’s premier series were 16th and 17th at Pocono and at Indianapolis, respectively.
Gibbs is set to make his fourth career start in the NASCAR Cup Series at Richmond Raceway on Sunday, August 14, with the event’s coverage to occur at 3:00 PM ET on USA Network.
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.
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.
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
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.
1. Chase Elliott: Elliott finished 17th in the Verizon 200 at Indianapolis.
“I was battling for the lead on a late restart and got spun from behind,” Elliott said. “It’s always a crapshoot going into Turn 1 at Indy. There’s only one thing you can say about Indy’s Turn 1, and that is that more than 1 will be turned.”
2. Joey Logano: Logano finished seventh at Indy, recording his ninth top-10 result of the season.
“A race on the Indy road course is incredibly more entertaining than a Brickyard 400,” Logano said. “Heck, you could even say that Turn 1 in this race alone packed more excitement than 27 years of the Brickyard 400.”
3. Tyler Reddick: Reddick took the lead on Lap 62 at Indy and survived several restarts to win the Verizon 200, taking his second win of the year.
“That’s also my second road course win,” Reddick said. “I think that easily establishes me as the greatest race car driver who looks absolutely nothing like a great race car driver. My apologies to Indy car great Bobby Rahal, who used to hold that distinction”.
4. Christopher Bell: Bell won Stage 2 in the Verizon 200, but had a top 10 finish derailed by a flat tire with six laps to go. He eventually finished 12th.
“I braked a little too heavily entering Turn 12,” Bell said, “and flat spotted the right-front tire. That’s what happens under braking at Indy, especially when you’re over-braking.”
5. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished 15th in the Verizon 200 as no Joe Gibbs Racing cars placed in the top 10.
“That was my 600th career Cup start,” Hamlin said. “That’s impressive, and it’s really the story of my career because I can start with the best of ’em, but I can’t finish as the best of ’em.”
6. Kyle Busch: Busch finished 12th at Indy.
“I’m still a free agent,” Busch said, “so I’m weighing my options. Trust me, I’ve had offers. Many have been for me to go to this team, and many have been for me to go to that team, but most have been for me to go to hell.”
7. Ross Chastain: Chastain charged late and briefly took the lead over Tyler Reddick when he bailed on Turn 1 and took the access road through. Alas, Reddick got back by Chastain, and NASCAR deemed Chastain’s pass illegal anyway, a penalty which relegated him to 27th.
“NASCAR is really cracking down on drivers taking shortcuts,” Chastain said. “Just ask Denny Hamlin or Kyle Busch. Suffice it to say that if it’s me ‘cutting corners,’ NASCAR has ‘straightened’ me out.”
8. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex finished 22nd at Indy, and is fifth in the points standings, 133 out of first.
“I’m good on points for the playoffs,” Truex said, “but it would be nice to get a win and clinch it for sure. And I’m sure I can get it. In fact, I guarantee I’ll get in. I’m confident in my abilities, and when you’re confident in yourself, you’re a lot like Kyle Larson’s brakes—there’s no stopping you.”
9. Ryan Blaney: Blaney used a bold fuel-only pit stop early at Indy, which worked out until he was collected in one of many Turn 1 incidents. A sure top five turned into a 27th-place finish.
“The fuel-only pit stop was crucial,” Blaney said, “and obviously the right decision. I mean, it’s a quicker stop without tires, and you gain lots of track position. It’s a ‘win-win’ situation, which is two more wins that I have so far this year.”
10. AJ Allmendinger: Allmendinger finished seventh in the Verizon 200, one day after triumphing in the Xfinity Series race.
“Sunday’s was a grueling race for me,” Allmendinger said. “Not only was the cooling system in my race suit not working, but I also ran out of water. I was overheated but was still able to push the car to the limit. Heat exhaustion aside, I can still appreciate being called ‘Hot Flash.’”
