Testing SpeedwayMedia.com

Tag: NASCAR Xfinity Series

NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Preview-Atlanta
Last week we saw a thrilling finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway with Chase Elliott fending off Kyle Busch to claim the $100,000 bounty hosted by Marcus Lemonis and Kevin Harvick. The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will continue their momentum this week as they head to Atlanta Motor Speedway Saturday afternoon as part of the Truck-Xfinity Series doubleheader planned for the track.

Like the previous Charlotte races, Kyle Busch has been dominant at Atlanta recently with multiple race wins at the 1.5-mile speedway. This weekend, however, he won’t have to worry about a bounty as that has been claimed. However, competitor and last week’s race winner, Chase Elliott, will be back in the field to give Busch another run for his money.

As those two names are more than likely the favorites to win the Vet Tix/Camping World 200 at Atlanta Saturday, there are some sleepers in the field to keep an eye on. Despite that, we’ll also give you reasons why Busch and Elliott might dominate the competition once more.

Here is this week’s preview that details five drivers who might have a solid chance to win on Saturday afternoon.
1. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger has made four Truck Series starts at Atlanta dating back to 2016, the first time with ThorSport in 2017, three years ago. In all four of those starts, the Alabama native has managed to finish inside the top-10 in all of his starts. In last year’s race, Enfinger scored his best finish to date at Atlanta by finishing third. He piloted the No. 98 Truck to four laps led, finished third in Stage 1 and eighth in Stage 2. While Enfinger was certainly strong last year, he’s also managed to complete 100 percent of the laps in all four races. The ThorSport driver should be a strong contender Saturday.
2. Austin Hill – Hill has been having a solid season so far in the three races run. The Georgia native collected one top-five and three top-10 finishes in 2020 with a best finish of third at Las Vegas back in February, another 1.5-mile track, similar to Atlanta. Hill had his first outing with the team last year in 2019 and had a great run in the No. 16 Toyota when he finished seventh. He was also able to earn some stage points after placing fifth in Stage 1 and sixth in Stage 2. Hill never got to lead a lap, but it was still another solid run for Hill and the No. 16 team.
3. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt has three starts at Atlanta dating back to his first start in 2017. However, last year was his first start with the GMS Racing team. Moffitt had a great run with the team when he piloted his No. 24 Truck to a fourth-place finishing position. He averaged seventh mid-race, had 44 green-flag passes and had the two fastest laps throughout the event. Moffitt finished fifth in Stage 2. He is also the 2018 winner of this event.
4. Johnny Sauter – Surprisingly, Johnny Sauter has not had a win yet out of his nine starts but has been really close multiple times to securing a victory. His first few outings from 2009 to 2011 didn’t go well but in the last three since 2017, Sauter has really picked it up and has been a challenger for the win only to fall short. In the 2019 race, he secured his best finish ever at the track after placing second and leading nine laps. Sauter also placed fourth in both stages in the 2019 race. The year before in 2018, he led 12 laps en route to a third-place finish. Expect Sauter to be a front runner in the No. 13.
5. Chase Elliott – Elliott is back in the field this week with the GMS Racing team in the No. 24 Chevy. The Georgia native is coming into the race with momentum after the win at Charlotte last week. This weekend will mark the first time in three years that Elliott will make a start at Atlanta in a Truck. The last time he competed in the race was 2017. In that race, Elliott started ninth and came home to a fifth-place finish and finished eighth in Stage 2.
When the entry list came out, 47 Trucks were once again entered, but seven drivers were sent home. Those sent home were Tim Viens, Norm Benning, Trey Hutchens, David Ragan, Bryant Barnhill, Dawson Cram, and Parker Kligerman.

Since 2004, Atlanta Motor Speedway has hosted 18 races and has seen many different winners.

The list of winners includes Bobby Hamilton, Ron Hornaday Jr, Kyle Busch, Todd Bodine, Mike Bliss, Mike Skinner, Ryan Newman, Kevin Harvick, Ty Dillon, Matt Crafton, John Hunter Nemechek, Christopher Bell, and Brett Moffitt.

Out of those race winners, Kyle Busch has the most victories with five, while Hall of Famer Ron Hornaday has two victories. Everyone else has scored one win each.

As for qualifying, the lowest a winner has started from was 18th and that happened twice. That was set by Hornaday in 2005 and Nemechek in 2016. The highest a race winner has started from was from the pole, which happened five times, with Bodine being the first to do so in 2006. However, due to the ongoing pandemic and limited team exposure, there continues to be no live qualifying.

Chevrolet narrowly edges out Toyota in terms of victories at the track. The manufacturer has nine race wins in total while Toyota has eight wins. Dodge only has one win that took place in the first race in 2004. Ford has yet to secure a win.

The most ever lead changes was seen in 2006, with 21. The fewest lead changes in the Atlanta Truck race was six back in 2015, five years ago.

The Atlanta Truck race can be an eventful race as it has seen a lot of cautions flown from time to time. The most caution flags that occurred was nine times for 45 laps back in 2007. The least amount of cautions happened two times, with the 2015 race leading the way with three yellows for 13 laps, followed by the 2012 race with three cautions for 16 laps. In last year’s race, there was six cautions for 30 laps.

As far as stage winners go, Christopher Bell, Noah Gragson, and Kyle Busch have all won stages. Busch has the most stage victories with three, including sweeping last years stages.

Stages will be broken into 30-30-70 to make up the 130 lap race.

The race can be seen on Fox Sports 1 at 1 p.m. ET and can be heard on MRN Radio.
June 3, 2020
NASCAR Xfinity Series Power Rankings – Bristol I
The NASCAR Xfinity Series continued their stretch of racing this past week as another Monday night race was completed at the “Fastest Half-Mile,” Bristol Motor Speedway.

In what was an action-packed race, that saw 12 cautions for 85 laps, Noah Gragson made a late-race maneuver (that moved teammate Justin Allgaier) and was victorious for the second time this season.

The No. 9 Plan B Sales Chevrolet was a fast car early on after leading a stretch of 46 laps, before averaging a top-five to top-10 run mid-race.

As Gragson scored the victory, many other Xfinity drivers scored their best finish of the season, and for some, the best finish of their career.

This week’s Power Rankings sees a shakeup among the drivers.

With that in mind, here are this week’s Power Rankings following the Cheddar’s 300 at Bristol.
1. Chase Briscoe – After a miserable Charlotte outing where he finished 20th, the Indiana native looked to rebound this week at Bristol and have a strong run. With no qualifying in place as of now, Briscoe started the No. 98 Ford in the 11th position. He spent the majority of the race running inside the top-10, averaging sixth, never once falling outside the top-10. In the stages, Briscoe finished third in Stage 1 and fifth in Stage 2. He was in contention late with an overtime restart with two to go, restarting outside of eventual race winner Noah Gragson. Ultimately, Briscoe drove the No. 98 Highpoint.com Ford to second place and scored his fourth top-five of the season.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
2. Noah Gragson – The Las Vegas native shined under the lights in the early going and was there when it counted. Gragson moved his teammate Allgaier out of the way in the last two laps which led to a furious Allgaier, as Gragson picked up the victory for the second time his season. Despite that late-race move, the No. 9 JR Motorsports driver, was up front early and won the first stage. Gragson then piloted the Chevrolet to a second-place finish in Stage 2. Even though the late-race incident might cause some tension between the two teammates, Gragson is solidly locked in the Playoffs with a second win, should the playoffs still take place.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- Not Ranked
3. Brandon Brown – Brown continued his early season momentum after finishing eighth last week at Charlotte, to another season best by finishing seventh at Bristol. The Virginia driver’s last seventh-place finish came at the season opener back in February at Daytona. He was unable to score any stage points in either stage, however, the team continues to ride high on their last few weeks of solid top-10 finishes. Don’t be surprised if Brown can slip into a top-five finish here soon.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fourth
4. Daniel Hemric – The No. 8 South Point Casino and Hotel driver came home to a quiet sixth-place finish Monday night at Bristol. Hemric started eighth and ran the same position throughout the race. He did fell back to 23rd at one point in the race, due to a pit road speeding penalty. Despite that, Hemric spent 94 percent of the race in the top-15, before rallying to another top-10 finish, the fourth of the year for Hemric in six starts.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Third
5. Harrison Burton – It was a solid night for the Joe Gibbs Racing driver, who was awarded the pole after the random draw. Burton had a strong car early on but fell out of the top-10 in the first stage and did not receive any stage points. Eventually, the No. 20 team rallied back to a fourth-place finish in the second stage. Burton led the first 25 laps of the race and would lead again for two more times with a total of 81 laps led. When the checkered flag flew, the North Carolina driver finished fourth, his fifth top-five of the season.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
Fell Out
1. Ross Chastain – From first to worst in one week, Chastain never really got a chance to show what he was capable of in the race. He never got to lead a lap and was the reason for the first caution flag of the night. He and Austin Cindric were caught up in a battle before Chastain’s car moved up the racetrack. He would spin out in the process and collected Cindric in the going. While he was able to get back out to the track, the Floridian finished in 28th position, numerous laps down.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – First
2. Austin Cindric- The Team Penske driver was caught up in Chastain’s incident on Lap 7 of the race, resulting in his back bumper and deck lid being torn to shreds. An upper A-frame damage was too much for the No. 22 team to fix and he was credited with a 36th place finish.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Second
3. Michael Annett – Annett was among several drivers that were unfortunately caught up in the wreck with no wrongdoing on his part. He barely escaped the sitting car of Ross Chastain. Annett’s car tore the whole back bumper off of Chastain’s car and sustained major damage to the No. 1 Chevy. The night was done early for the JR Motorsports driver, as he would be credited with a last-place finish.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fifth
June 3, 2020
Gragson rallies from late incident to win at Bristol in overtime

It was not an ideal move that Noah Gragson had in mind when he wrecked his teammate Justin Allgaier for the lead in the closing laps, but it was one that resulted in the Las Vegas native winning the Cheddar’s 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway following an overtime shootout. The victory was Gragson’s second of his NASCAR Xfinity Series career in his 43rd series start, second of this season and his first national touring series win at Bristol. The victory was the 48th in the series for JR Motorsports.

The starting lineup was based on a random draw. Rookie Harrison Burton drew the pole position and was joined on the front row with teammate Brandon Jones. Carson Ware started at the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments.

When the green flag dropped, Burton took the lead followed by Jones. Allgaier, who started 10th, made a bold move on the outside lane to gain positions, but he slipped too high entering Turn 2 and barely touched the wall, though he continued without sustaining any serious damage. The following turn, three other competitors that included Jesse Little nearly made contact with one another but all three continued.

The first caution of the race flew on the fifth lap when Ross Chastain, who cut a right-front tire in Turn 3, got loose and made contact with Austin Cindric entering Turn 4, sending Cindric hard against the outside wall as Chastain spun and was clipped by Michael Annett, who had nowhere to go. All three sustained significant damage to their respective cars. Annett and Cindric retired while Chastain, who sustained damage to the rear end of his No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet, was able to continue on the lead lap.

The race restarted on the 16th lap and Burton was able to maintain the lead despite being pressured by Jones. Justin Haley settled in third while Daniel Hemric, Chase Briscoe and Allgaier battled hard for fourth. On Lap 18, Haley made the slightest of contact with Jones in Turn 3, sending Jones up the track and out of the racing groove. The following lap in Turn 3, Jones got loose again and dropped more positions. By Lap 24, Jones fell back to 10th after being passed by Vinnie Miller. The following lap, Chastain pitted for more repairs as he dropped out of the lead lap and out of race-winning contention.

On Lap 27, Haley made a run below Burton for the lead but was stalled by a lapped car which caused him to lose ground on the lead and battle Gragson for second. Despite encountering tight lapped traffic, Burton was able to maintain the lead and Gragson was able to take second from Haley at the time of the competition caution on Lap 35. Under caution, Jones along with Chad Finchum, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Colby Howard and Timmy Hill made a pit stop while the rest of the field remained on track.

When the race restarted on Lap 42, Burton benefitted on the outside lane to maintain his lead. Gragson retained second while Haley, who restarted third, spun his tires and dropped to fifth behind Ryan Sieg and Briscoe. Four laps later, Gragson made his move below the bottom of Turn 2 and took the lead from Burton. By Lap 60, Gragson was able to maintain his advantage by six-tenths of a second over Burton. The second caution of the day flew on Lap 63 due to debris from Joe Nemechek’s car in Turn 3. Under caution, Burton pitted from the runner-up position to have minimal damage he sustained from hitting the debris repaired. Four other competitors pitted while everyone else remained on track.

The following restart on Lap 68, Gragson received a push from teammate Allgaier. The contact allowed Gragson to boost ahead with the lead while Allgaier moved to second over Briscoe. By Lap 75, A.J. Allmendinger, who started 27th in his first Xfinity event of the season, made his way in the top 10, running ninth. From there, Gragson was able to lead the field through the conclusion of the first stage on Lap 85 and win the stage despite encountering lapped traffic. Allgaier settled in second followed by Briscoe, Haley and Hemric. Riley Herbst, Jones, Allmendinger, Sieg and Myatt Snider finished in the top 10.

Under caution, most of the leaders pitted while Burton, who pitted early, remained on track and reassumed the lead. Jones pitted for two tires and was the first off pit road. Jeremy Clements only took fuel and exited fifth behind Allgaier and Briscoe. Gragson suffered a slow pit stop and came out in sixth. Following the pit stops, Hemric was nabbed with a speeding penalty and sent to the rear of the field.

The second stage started on Lap 98 and Briscoe ran into the back of Burton which allowed Burton to boost ahead with the lead. Haley moved to second after Briscoe slipped in Turn 3 and fell back to fifth behind Gragson and Allgaier. Jones, who restarted second with two fresh tires, fell back to sixth. The caution returned three laps later for an incident in Turn 1 involving Hill and Vinnie Miller.

Six laps later, the race restarted with Burton maintaining the lead. During the restart, Allgaier used the outside lane to move into second over Haley. Gragson fell to fifth while battling Ryan Sieg and Briscoe for position. By Lap 119, Gragson moved back to fourth after passing Jones, who was battling loose conditions. Two laps later, the caution flew when Sieg made contact with Allmendinger in Turn 3 while battling for seventh. The contact resulted in Allmendinger sliding below the apron, but he was able to proceed without sustaining damage. He and Hill pitted while the rest of the field remained on track.

When the race restarted on Lap 128, Allgaier mounted a challenge for the lead below Burton and was able to take it. On Lap 137, Tommy Joe Martins made contact with the outside wall but the race proceeded under green. Four laps later, just as Gragson moved Burton out of the racing groove in Turn 1 to move back to second, the caution returned when Patrick Emerling wrecked through Turns 2 and 3 following contact with Bayley Currey. The race was red-flagged for nine and a half minutes to give the safety officials time to clean the fluid from Emerling’s No. 02 Our Motorsports Chevrolet from the bottom of Turn 2 through the high groove in Turn 3. When the red flag was lifted, the majority of the field remained on track while Sieg, Clements and Miller pitted.

When the green flag returned on Lap 148, Allgaier made the bottom lane work to his advantage as he powered away with the lead followed by Gragson. A lap later, Haley used the outside lane to take third from Burton. By Lap 155, Allgaier and Gragson gapped third-place Haley by more than a second. Meanwhile, Josh Williams engaged in a battle with Allmendinger for a top-10 spot while Hemric rallied from his penalty to race in eighth while battling Snider.

Despite encountering lapped traffic, which included Joe Graf Jr., Allgaier was able to hold off teammate Gragson to win the second stage. Haley and Burton finish third and fourth while Briscoe was able to pass Jones following a bump-and-run move to finish fifth. Jones, Hemric, Snider, Herbst and Allmendinger finished in the top 10.

Under caution, nearly the entire field pitted and Allgaier was able to barely avoid making contact on pit road with Gragson, who was exiting his pit stall, to maintain the lead. Gragson, Jones, Haley and Briscoe followed pursuit. During the pit stops, Sieg and Miller remained on track to inherit the front row for the start of the final stage.

With the final stage starting on Lap 182, Allgaier used the high lane to reassume the lead. A lap later, Sieg challenged Allgaier on the bottom lane for one circuit before Allgaier moved up the track in Turn 3 and allowed Gragson to move to second from Sieg. By Lap 190, Sieg, battling on old tires on the high lane, fell back to ninth.

With 100 laps remaining, Allgaier’s lead over Gragson was less than half a second. Haley moved to third followed by Jones, Hemric and Briscoe. Five laps later, Allgaier was able to extend his advantage by nearly a second over Gragson. By then, Allmendinger was eighth following his late spin and Burton was back in 10th.

With 81 laps remaining, Haley passed Gragson in Turn 2 to move into second and started pursuing Allgaier for the lead. At this time, however, his teammate, Allmendinger, made an unscheduled pit stop to have the right-side tires of his No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet changed. The late misfortune cost him multiple laps behind the leaders.

As the laps dwindled, Allgaier started to approach lapped traffic but he was able to maintain the lead despite Haley gaining more ground for the lead. With less than 60 to go, Haley caught Allgaier for the lead when Allgaier was experiencing difficulties trying to lap Clements and Brandon Brown. Just as the lead between the two Justins intensified, the caution flew with 52 to go when Martins spun in Turn 4. Under caution, the leaders pitted. Herbst exited pit road first after taking two tires followed by Allgaier, Gragson, Haley and Hemric.

When the race restarted with 45 to go, Allgaier took advantage of the high lane to lead the field through Turn 2. At the same time, the caution quickly returned when Herbst and Haley made contact that resulted in Herbst being turned in Turn 2 and slapping the outside wall. Herbst pitted, but ended his day due to the damage while Haley remained on track in third despite sustaining cosmetic damage to his No. 11 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet.

The next restart came with 36 to go. Allgaier maintained his lead while Jones, who restarted fourth, rocketed to second. Gragson used the high lane to take second and Haley forced his way underneath Jones to move to third and Jones fell to the clutches of Briscoe for fourth. With approximately 20 to go, Haley, who was trying to pursue Gragson for second, slipped high in Turn 1 and scrubbed the wall, causing him to fall off the pace. He was able to nurse his car back to pit but the incident cost him multiple laps and his hopes of winning his first Xfinity race.

Just when the race appeared to have been sealed by Allgaier, the caution flew with 13 to go when Colby Howard blew a left-front tire and stopped in Turn 2. The leaders remained on track under caution. When the race restarted with seven to go, Allgaier maintained the lead, but Gragson made his move to challenge for the lead a lap later. He moved below his teammate in Turn 2 and raced side by side with him through Turn 3 before edging out with the lead in Turn 4. Then, he ran into the side of his teammate in Turn 1, causing Allgaier to slip into the outside wall before spinning and making hard contact into the Turn 2 inside wall, drawing a caution with five to go. Gragson was able to continue with the lead followed by Briscoe, Burton, Jones and Snider. Allgaier drove his damaged No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet back to pit road but the damage was enough to end Allgaier’s strong race in his pit stall.

The incident between the two JR Motorsports teammates sent the race into overtime. In the first overtime attempt, Gragson led the field through Turn 1. In Turn 2, Jones attempted to split Gragson and Briscoe through the middle, but was unable to make enough room for himself to make the move occur. By the time the field returned to Turn 4 for the start of the final lap, Gragson managed to clear Briscoe and was able to fend off Briscoe for one final circuit to claim the checkered flag first.

“Really, [I] apologize to Justin and the No. 7 team,” Gragson said on FOX Sports 1. “That’s not how I want to race, but I saw the position open up. He, kind of, slipped off the bottom the lap before and I tried to get to the bottom and I just got too loose. All of us top-five guys – really everybody on the field – this track’s like ice out there right now. We were slippin’ and slidin’. What a heck of a night for this No. 9 team. It’s Bristol, baby! This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I sucked here. My crew chief believed in me and he wanted me to come back and run with them. Dave Elenz is the man.”

“The team did a great job getting us track position we needed,” Allgaier said on PRN radio. “I’m more mad at myself for making a mistake and slippin’ off the bottom, but yeah we got wrecked. We had the car to beat all night and unfortunately, we don’t have anything to show for it. I hate it for my guys. We’ll rebound and we’ll come back next weekend.”

Briscoe finished second followed by Jones and Burton as the trio will join Gragson in battling for the first Dash 4 Cash bonus this upcoming weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Myatt Snider edged Hemric to finish fifth for his first career top-five finish in the Xfinity Series. Hemric rallied in sixth while Brandon Brown, Clements, Josh Williams and Allmendinger rounded out the top 10.

There were 10 lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured 12 cautions for 85 laps.

Briscoe continues to lead the Xfinity Series regular-season standings by nine points over Gragson and 26 over Burton.

Results.

1. Noah Gragson, 55 laps led, Stage 1 winner

2. Chase Briscoe

3. Brandon Jones

4. Harrison Burton, 81 laps led

5. Myatt Snider

6. Daniel Hemric

7. Brandon Brown

8. Jeremy Clements

9. Josh Williams

10. A.J. Allmendinger

11. B.J. McLeod

12. Vinnie Miller

13. Joe Graf Jr.

14. Timmy Hill

15. Jeffrey Earnhardt, two laps down

16. Ryan Sieg, three laps down, six laps led

17. Justin Haley, four laps down, one lap led

18. Justin Allgaier – OUT, 156 laps led, Stage 2 winner

19. Colby Howard, seven laps down

20. Bayley Currey, eight laps down

21. Kody Vanderwal, 10 laps down

22. Carson Ware, 14 laps down

23. Tommy Joe Martins, 19 laps down

24. Chad Finchum, 26 laps down

25. Matt Mills – OUT, Clutch

26. Jesse Little, 43 laps down

27. Riley Herbst – OUT, Accident, four laps led

28. Ross Chastain, 48 laps down

29. Patrick Emerling – OUT, Accident

30. Mason Massey, 192 laps down

31. Ronnie Bassett Jr. – OUT, Engine

32. Joe Nemechek – OUT, Accident

33. Alex Labbe – OUT, Overheating

34. Stephen Leicht – OUT, Suspension

35. Jeff Green – OUT, Ignition

36. Austin Cindric – OUT, Accident

37. Michael Annett – OUT, Accident

The NASCAR Xfinity Series will travel to Hampton, Georgia, and race at Atlanta Motor Speedway on June 6. The race will air at 4:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

June 2, 2020
Catching up with Xfinity Series driver Kody Vanderwal

In this week’s interview, Speedway Media caught up with NASCAR Xfinity Series newcomer and Jimmy Means Racing driver, Kody Vanderwal. Vanderwal made his debut for the No. 52 team this past March at Phoenix International Raceway.

During the interview, Vanderwal talks about a wide variety of topics such as his first race as a stock car driver. He discussed the most exhilarating race he’s been a part of, what a fan needs to do to get his attention in the garage for an autograph and what planet he would choose to go to if he had a chance.

SM: What was your first race as a racecar driver? Was it everything you expected?

KV: “It was a dirt Enduro race in a mostly stock ’72 Monte Carlo when I was 11,” Vanderwal said. “I didn’t really have a clue what I was doing and spun more times then I could count. It was a learning experience.”

SM: How calm are you during a race? Are you a driver that’s more fired up behind the wheel
or do you take it easy until the halfway point?

KV: “That’s probably one of my biggest strong suits behind the wheel, my calm demeanor,” he said. Obviously, with all that adrenaline, it’s impossible not to get a little excited from time to time, but normally, I’m very calm.”

SM: What the most exhilarating race you’ve ever been a part of? Any come to mind?

KV: “When me and our small family and friends’ K&N West team won our first race at Tucson Speedway,” Vanderwal said. “Dominated the race and then had to hold off one of the best there is, Derek Thorn, on a green-white-checkered. Definitely was pumped after that one.”

SM: Which driver did you want to be like growing up as a racer?

KV: “I was always a Jeff Gordon fan growing up but it was really more my dad and some of the local guys in Colorado that inspired me to start driving,” he said. “The inspiration to make it more than a hobby came later when I realized it was actually possible.”

SM: You are walking around the garage area. A fan is trying to reach you for an autograph, but for whatever reason, you can’t see them and maybe the garage area is packed with fans. How does a fan grab your attention for an autograph or photo?

KV: “Well, there aren’t very many Kody’s in the NASCAR garage,” Vanderwal said. “So, all you gotta do is call my name.”

SM: Has there ever been a random or funny thing that’s happened to you during a race?

KV: “Racing can always be pretty random,” he said. “I lost brakes once because I ran over somebody’s starter. At the track several years ago, the same car rolled over within 10 feet of me in the same corner two races in a row.”

SM: Who is one racing icon that you’ve always wanted to meet?

KV: “Any of them,” Vanderwal said. “I especially love meeting people from the older days and hearing their stories.”

SM: Are you someone that is superstitious before a race starts? If so, what’s a raceday routine that you follow?

KV: “Not at all,” he said. “Just kind of go with the flow. The only thing, I try to do before every race is a prayer.”

SM: What is the first thing you do after you come home from a race? Does it take a while for the adrenaline to wear off?

KV: “I usually always eat something after a race and then usually, it’s late by the time I get home, so I just go to bed.”

SM: If you could visit any planet in the solar system. Which planet would you choose?

KV: “I’m gonna go with Neptune, it looks cool.”

SM: You are required to go without one social media app for a year. What app would you choose to go without?

KV: “Probably Facebook,” Vanderwal said. “I really don’t use it very much.”

SM: Time travel is available and you can go back in time to pick a race to watch in person. What race do you pick if you had the chance to watch it in person?

KV: “2002 Bristol night race.”

Vanderwal has made three NASCAR Xfinity Series starts in 2020 with a best finish of 29th at Phoenix back in March. In addition, the Colorado native has made 35 starts in what was previously the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West over the past three years with two wins at Tucson. Also, in the West Series, he has eight top-fives and 18 top-10 finishes, along with one pole and 140 laps led.

Fans of Kody can follow him on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. In addition, fans can also follow Jimmy Means Racing on Twitter and Facebook.

Special thanks to Kimberly Gazaway for making the interview happen and special thanks to Kody Vanderwal for taking his time out of his day.

June 1, 2020
NASCAR Xfinity Series Power Rankings – Charlotte I
The NASCAR Xfinity Series continued their fluid schedule this week, visiting the historic Charlotte Motor Speedway after last week’s events at Darlington Raceway on Thursday.

While the theme of no practice and qualifying continued this week, there was most certainly some thrilling race action during the race, especially toward the end of the 300-miler. Thankfully, unlike Sunday night and last Tuesday night, the Xfinity Series did not have to deal with any weather delay.

There was a familiar face in the field as there was in last week’s race at Darlington. And that name was Kyle Busch, who tops the all-time wins list. Busch was sporting an Appalachian State University scheme to honor the class of 2020.

Busch started 18th thanks to a random draw but the Las Vegas native did not take long to get to the front, as he won both Stage 1 and Stage 2. He ultimately took home the checkered flag, the 97th of his Xfinity Series career, after leading a race-high of 94 laps.

Despite the fact that Busch put on another clinic, there were other regular Xfinity Series drivers who flew under the radar in the Alsco 300 at Charlotte.

Here are this week’s Power Rankings following the sixth event of the 2020 season.
1. Ross Chastain – Chastain had a great advantage of starting on the pole, due to the random draw that took place earlier in the week. And while random draws can be lucky or unlucky, Chastain managed to use that draw to his advantage. He led the first 31 laps and had an opportunity to win both stages before being passed by Kyle Busch late in the stage, as Chastain would end up one spot short by finishing second in both stages. Troubles would arise late in the race as the Kaulig driver was penalized and caught up in an incident, and slapped the wall. However, Chastain rebounded to a fourth-place finish after leading 68 laps.
  
  https://twitter.com/NASCAR_Xfinity/status/1265113941778235392
2. Austin Cindric – Cindric came very close to scoring his first Xfinity Series oval win Tuesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He started sixth, finished fifth in Stage 1 and fourth in Stage 2. A late-race caution ensued with less than five to go that allowed Cindric to have a shot at the win. Unfortunately, the Team Penske driver fell short and finished third for his fourth top-five of the season. Cindric did manage to lead 30-laps in the event.
  
  https://twitter.com/AustinCindric/status/1265120989807087617
3. Daniel Hemric – While Hemric is a part-time driver in the Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports, he has certainly made the most of each opportunity in every race he has competed in this season. Previously, Darlington was Hemric’s best finish of the 2020 season, where he finished sixth in the outing. At Charlotte, he started 12th, finished ninth in Stage 1 and seventh in Stage 2. Hemric was never able to get out front to lead any laps, but had a late surge in the end and briefly challenged Busch for the win. He came home second in the running order, the first-time since Kansas two years ago.
  
  https://twitter.com/XfinityRacing/status/1265118109729304576
4. Brandon Brown – Speaking of someone who flew under the radar, Team-Owner and driver, Brandon Brown was quiet all night but was there went it counted the most. While he unfortunately did not secure any stage points, Brown had 27 quality passes and spent 111 laps in the top-15. Despite that being down from the previous week at Darlington (120-laps), Brown solidly earned a top-10 finish by finishing eighth, his third top-10 in his Xfinity Series career. Needless to say, Brown was pumped about the finish.
  
  https://twitter.com/brandonbrown_68/status/1265116691924684800?
5. Michael Annett – Annett’s 2020 Xfinity Series season has been a mixed bag of results so far, opening Daytona by finishing 11th and seventh at Las Vegas, but had three finishes outside the top-10, including a 25th-place finish last week at Darlington. Coming into Charlotte, the Des Moines, Iowa driver was hoping for a rebound after last week’s dismal outing. The No. 1 Pilot/Flying J Chevrolet rolled off in the ninth position, unable to score any stage finishes, but finished seventh for his second top-10 of the 2020 season, the 65th of his career.
May 29, 2020
NASCAR updates Xfinity Dash 4 Cash schedule

The 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series’ Dash4Cash schedule has been adjusted in the midst of the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic and as the series embarks toward its next scheduled event at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Following the upcoming event at Bristol on June 1, the top four Xfinity regulars who finish the highest on track at the short-steeped venue will qualify for the first Dash 4 Cash event of the year at Atlanta Motor Speedway on June 6. The following two consecutive race weekends, Homestead-Miami Speedway on June 14 and Talladega Superspeedway on June 20, will also serve as Dash4Cash events. The location of the fourth and final event is to be determined.

The format of the Dash 4 Cash remains the same. The highest-finishing Dash 4 Cash contender in each event will claim the check prize of $100,000 and will automatically qualify for the next scheduled event with an opportunity to win another check. In addition to the winner, the next three highest-finishing Xfinity drivers will also receive an opportunity to challenge for the prize on a weekly basis.

Last season featured the Big Three trio of the series – Christopher Bell, Cole Custer and Tyler Reddick – claiming the four Dash 4 Cash events, with Bell winning two $100,000 checks, by winning the race over the competition. With all three racing as NASCAR Cup Series rookies this season, it opens possibilities for familiar names like Justin Allgaier, who won four Dash 4 Cash events between 2016-2018, or new names, many of whom have never won the prize for themselves, to contend for it on a weekly basis.

Catch the Xfinity Series Dash 4 Cash qualifier at Bristol Motor Speedway on June 1 at 7 p.m. ET on FS1.

May 28, 2020
NASCAR postpones upcoming national series events at Charlotte and Bristol

NASCAR announced a pair of postponements for its upcoming national series races at Charlotte Motor Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway.

The NASCAR Cup Series event at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Alsco Uniforms 500 has been postponed from Wednesday, May 27, to Thursday, May 28, due to persistent rain. The 500-mile race will be aired at 7 p.m. ET on FS1. It will mark the second Cup event at Charlotte this week and cap off a quadruple-header weekend at NASCAR’s home base.

In addition, the NASCAR Xfinity Series upcoming event at Bristol Motor Speedway has been postponed from Saturday, May 30, to Monday, June 1. The race will also air at 7 p.m. ET on FS1. The rescheduling was made to give the teams the time needed to transport and set up their equipment in time for race day.

The Cup event at Bristol for the Supermarket Heroes 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 31, at 3:30 p.m. on FS1, remains as scheduled.

When the green flag drops for Thursday night’s Cup event at Charlotte, Hendrick Motorsports’ teammates William Byron and Alex Bowman will start on the front row and lead the field to the start. The starting lineup was based on the results from Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte on May 24, with the top-20 finishers from the event being inverted for Thursday’s event.

As announced on May 27, the starting lineup for the upcoming NASCAR events, beginning this weekend for the Xfinity and Cup doubleheader at Bristol, will be decided based on a random draw in groups of 12 with the final spots to be based on their order of eligibility/owner points. Pit selections will be based on the results from the previous events, followed by new entries in order of points.

May 27, 2020
Busch grabs a thrilling win at Charlotte with a last-lap pass

The third time was the lucky charm for Kyle Busch. After having victories slip away from him in his previous two NASCAR Xfinity Series starts this season, Busch rallied from a late pit road speeding penalty and survived a series of late restarts to overtake Austin Cindric on the final lap and win the Alsco 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The victory was Busch’s ninth at Charlotte and his first win of this year’s Xfinity Series season as he also became the first Cup regular to win an Xfinity event in 2020. With 97 career wins in the series, Busch is three victories away from reaching 100.

The lineup for Monday night’s event was based on a random draw, where Kaulig Racing’s Ross Chastain started on pole. Joe Gibbs Racing’s Brandon Jones joined Chastain on the front row.

When the green flag waved, Chastain rocketed to the lead followed by teammate Justin Haley as the field settled in and raced single file. It did not take long for the first caution to come out on the fourth lap when Kody Vanderwal made contact with the wall.

When the race restarted on the seventh lap, Chastain received another strong launch to pull away with the lead. Behind him, rookie Riley Herbst mounted a challenge on the outside lane for second against Haley. He nearly cleared him before Haley powered through and maintained the runner-up spot in Turn 3 the following lap. By then, Chase Briscoe, coming off his thrilling win at Darlington and who started eighth, was in fourth.

Following the first 10 laps of the race, Busch, who started 18th and was sporting a black and gold scheme on his No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota while honoring the 2020 Appalachian State University graduates, was running seventh. Four laps later, he made his first appearance in the top five after passing teammate Jones and former teammate Noah Gragson.

The competition caution flew on Lap 20. Chastain was able to lead the first 20 laps and hold a two-tenths of a second lead over Haley followed by Briscoe, Busch and Gragson. When pit road opened, a majority of the leaders remained on track while Jones was the first of a handful to pit for adjustments.

The following restart on Lap 26, Chastain used the high lane to maintain his advantage while Busch followed in pursuit. Herbst also moved to third and Haley dropped to fourth the following lap.

The third caution flew two laps later involving Vanderwal again when his motor blew up in a cloud of smoke. Under caution, most of the leaders remained on track while Justin Allgaier, who had reported radio and gauge issues, was among a handful of competitors who pitted for adjustments. Following his lengthy stop, he was assessed with a penalty for having too many of his crew members over his pit wall during the service.

The restart on Lap 32 featured a second round battle for the lead between Busch and Chastain as both drivers remained side-by-side before Busch slipped in Turn 1 the following lap and Chastain maintained the lead. Behind the leaders, competitive racing started to unfold around the track with drivers starting to race aggressively and battle one another for position.

With 10 laps remaining in the first stage, Busch drew himself up to the rear bumper of Chastain’s No. 10 Chevrolet in an effort for the lead. Three laps later Busch was finally able to take the lead from Chastain in Turn 4. From there, he was gone and he cruised to the Stage 1 win by more than a second over Chastain. Haley finished third followed by Gragson while Jones, who pitted on Lap 22, managed to march his way back to fifth. Austin Cindric, Herbst, Briscoe, Daniel Hemric and Harrison Burton finished in the top 10.

Under the stage break, the leaders made pit stops. Busch was the first to exit pit road followed by Chastain. Briscoe was able to gain five spots up to third following a stellar stop by his pit crew. Haley and Gragson exited in the top five. Jeffrey Earnhardt was penalized for dragging the jack out of his pit stall and around the track for one lap. In addition, Ryan Sieg, who had finished no worse than 11th in the first five races of this season, turned his No. 39 Chevrolet into the garage due to a mechanical issue.

The second stage commenced on Lap 51 as Chastain used the inside lane to retake the lead from Busch and lead Busch’s No. 54 Toyota by two-tenths of a second. By Lap 60, both were ahead of third-place Briscoe by two seconds. Meanwhile, Haley started to fall back to ninth while battling loose conditions and Allgaier, who was running inside the top 15, continued to report handling issues to his No. 7 Chevrolet.

Seventy laps through the race, the battle for the lead intensified as Busch locked himself behind Chastain’s rear bumper. He then pulled to the bottom lane and tried to take the lead, but Chastain refused to surrender. A lap later, a three-way fight for the lead ensured as Briscoe made a move in Turn 2 to pass Busch for second and draw himself behind Chastain. While Briscoe and Busch battled hard for second, Chastain slowly pulled away by half a second as Austin Cindric started to creep towards the leaders.

With nine laps remaining in the second stage, Busch, who took second back from Briscoe three laps earlier, used the lapped traffic in Turn 2 to take the lead back from Chastain entering Turns 3 and 4. Chastain remained glued to the rear bumper of Busch but by Turn 2 Busch powered away and was gone again. He remained uncontested in the final laps as he claimed the second stage win. Chastain finished second as he did in the first stage followed by Briscoe, Cindric and Gragson. Jones, Hemric, Herbst, Haley and Burton rounded out the top 10.

Under the pit stops during the stage break, Busch barely exited first over Chastain followed by Cindric, Briscoe and Jones. Briscoe, however, was penalized and sent to the rear of the field for an uncontrolled tire violation.

For the start of the final stage, on Lap 98, Chastain mounted a challenge on the inside lane with Busch remaining close on the outside lane. The next time the field circled back to the start/finish line, Chastain cleared Busch for the lead, but Busch used the bottom lane to lead the following lap by a nose. Chastain took the lead right back and led the next two laps before Busch cleared Chastain and reassumed the lead in Turn 2.

Behind the leaders, Jones moved to third and Haley fought his way back into the top five while battling Cindric. Briscoe, who was penalized under the previous stage break on pit road, had moved back to 15th.

As the laps dwindled, Busch extended his lead as high as four seconds over teammate Jones, who overtook Chastain for second. Chastain was left to battle with Cindric for third while fighting tight conditions on his race car. During this time, Allgaier and Briscoe rallied from their respective misfortunes to run inside the top 10.

With 56 laps remaining, green flag stops began. During the pit stops, Chastain overshot his pit stall, causing him to reverse into his stall and lose valuable time during his stop. Then, Busch, Jones and Briscoe were all assessed pit road speeding penalties.

Once most of the field pitted with 50 laps remaining, Michael Annett assumed the lead as one of a handful of cars that did not pit along with Brett Moffitt and Myatt Snider. The caution came out four laps later when Timmy Hill’s motor blew up in a deep cloud of smoke in Turn 3. Due to the smoke and the spilled oil from Hill’s machine, Briscoe and Chastain slipped and made contact with the outside wall, sustaining cosmetic damage to their respective rides.

When the caution waved, only five cars were scored on the lead lap. It became six as Gragson received the free pass. Under caution, Annett, Moffitt and Snider pitted and seven cars took the wave around to return on the lead lap. Cindric assumed the lead followed by Haley. Annett came out third followed by Snider and Gragson. Kyle Busch, following the caution and when the field cycled through, was back in ninth. Following their damaged repairs, Chastain and Briscoe fell back inside the top 20 and were pinned one lap behind the leaders.

The race restarted with 38 laps remaining and Cindric was able to maintain the lead on the outside lane. Gragson made his way into third a lap later as Snider slipped in Turn 4 and fell to fifth. Eight laps later, Gragson passed Haley and narrowed his deficit to Cindric to a second. Behind the leaders, Busch, who restarted 10th, was back in fifth.

With 29 laps remaining, Chase Briscoe’s good night turned bad after he made contact with the outside wall in Turn 1 and took his No. 98 Ford back to his pit stall with a flat right-side tire and drew a caution.

Under caution, Cindric, Gragson, Haley, Hemric and Snider remained on track while Busch pitted.

When the race restarted with 25 laps remaining, the caution quickly returned when Jeremy Clements, who had received the free pass the previous caution, wrecked in Turn 1 along with Austin Hill. At the time of the caution, Cindric was able to maintain the lead over Gragson. Under caution, Hemric surrendered third to pit, which moved Busch to third followed by Haley and Snider.

Following an extensive clean-up, the race restarted with 17 laps remaining. Cindric received a push from Busch to maintain the lead in Turn 2 but the caution returned again when Justin Allgaier and Snider collided on the backstretch with Snider, making contact with the outside wall and spinning below the apron. He was dodged by the oncoming field, but he limped to pit road with right-front fender damage.

The following restart with 12 to go, Cindric maintained the lead as Busch and Gragson battle for second. Two laps later, Busch returned to the lead. Three laps later, the caution returned for a wreck entering Turn 4 involving Haley, Herbst and Jones.

The night’s biggest chaos ensued on the following restart with three laps remaining. Just as Busch rocketed away from Cindric, Gragson slipped in Turn 1 while battling teammates Burton and Jones and spun in the middle of the field, making contact with Tommy Joe Martins, who spun and was hit by Haley’s No. 11 Chevrolet before making hard contact with the inside wall. The wreck sent the race into overtime. In the midst of the chaos, Hemric moved to third following his late pit stop, and Chastain, who was able to race his way back onto the lead lap with 25 to go, moved up to sixth.

In overtime, Cindric drove his No. 22 Ford to the lead over Busch. On the final lap, Busch made a move on the inside lane to draw himself next to Cindric in Turn 2. On the following corner Busch drove his car as deep as he could and was able to clear Cindric as both leaders slipped into the high lane in Turn 3. With the lead, Busch was able to power through and claim the checkered flag for the win with a last-lap pass.

“It was interesting, and it was crazy,” Busch said on MRN Network. “Earlier in the race, Ross Chastain gave me a hell of a run on a restart, and then right there, Austin gave me a hell of a run on that restart and I thought picking the outside lane would be the sure launch, and those guys would spin their tires down there and not get going. It might have been [Hemric] that helped [Cindric] stay alongside of me, and he was just able to clear me in [Turns] 1 and 2. Crazy how all that turned out.”

Hemric finished second for the sixth time in his Xfinity Series career, his best result in his fifth start of the season, followed by Cindric, who earned his fourth top-five result of this season.

“It just didn’t work out for us,” Cindric said. “I was on older tires, and everyone else on older tires ended up crashing. It’s hard to beat the best in the business on older tires. I got a great push from Daniel [on the final restart]. I’m shocked the restart zone went as well as it did. That was a big struggle for me all night. I knew I was going to have to defend in [Turns] 3 and 4 and took the top in [Turns] 1 and 2. I never lifted driving into [Turn] 3 on the final lap. I just gave up second, but didn’t really care at that point. I just wanted to win the race. Overall, it was a great night and I’m really proud of my team.”

Chastain and Allgaier rallied from their share of misfortunes to finish fourth and fifth. Moffitt, Annett, Brandon Brown, Burton and Snider round out top 10.

The race featured 20 lead changes with five different leaders. There were 11 cautions for 53 laps.

Briscoe continues to lead the Xfinity Series regular-season standings by eight points over Cindric and 12 over Chastain.

Results:

1. Kyle Busch, 94 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

2. Daniel Hemric

3. Austin Cindric, 30 laps led

4. Ross Chastain, 68 laps led

5. Justin Allgaier

6. Brett Moffitt

7. Michael Annett, nine laps led

8. Brandon Brown

9. Harrison Burton

10. Myatt Snider

11. Noah Gragson, two laps led

12. Riley Herbst – one lap down

13. Dillon Bassett – two laps down

14. Josh Williams – two laps down

15. Jesse Little – two laps down

16. Alex Labbe – two laps down

17. B.J. McLeod – three laps down

18. Bayley Currey – three laps down

19. Joe Graf Jr. – three laps down

20. Chase Briscoe – three laps down

21. Mason Massey – three laps down

22. Chad Finchum – three laps down

23. Vinnie Miller – four laps down

24. Tommy Joe Martins – OUT

25. Jeffrey Earnhardt – five laps down

26. Joe Nemechek – five laps down

27. Brandon Jones – OUT

28. Ryan Sieg – six laps down

29. Justin Haley – OUT

30. Matt Mills – seven laps down

31. Garrett Smithley – 10 laps down

32. Jeremy Clements – OUT

33. Austin Hill – OUT

34. Timmy Hill – OUT

35. Kody Vanderwal – OUT

36. Jeff Green – OUT

37. Colby Howard – OUT

May 26, 2020
NASCAR schedule for Charlotte Motor Speedway

Charlotte Motor Speedway will host four races on four consecutive days, beginning with the NASCAR Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 this Sunday. Monday will feature the Xfinity Series Alsco 300 followed by the Gander Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200 on Tuesday. The Cup Series will wrap up the events in Charlotte with the Alsco Uniforms 500 Wednesday evening.

The track will once again pay tribute to U.S. Armed Forces members who made the ultimate sacrifice with “600 Miles of Remembrance.” Each of the cars will display the name of a fallen soldier across the windshield.

All times are Eastern.

Sunday, May 24

Cup Series
Race: Coca-Cola 600
Qualifying: 2 p.m. (no practice)
Race Time: 6 p.m.
TV: FOX, 5:30 p.m.
Radio: PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 600 miles (400 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 100),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 200), Stage 3 (Ends on Lap 300), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 400)
2019 Race Winner: Martin Truex Jr.

Monday, May 25

Xfinity Series
Race: Alsco 300
Race Time: 7:30 p.m. (no practice or qualifying)
TV: FS1, 7 p.m.
Radio: PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 300 miles (200 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 45),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 90), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 200)
2019 Race Winner: Brad Keselowski

Tuesday, May 26

Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
Race: North Carolina Education Lottery 200
Race Time: 8 p.m. (no practice or qualifying)
TV: FS1, 7:30 p.m.
Radio: MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 201 miles (134 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 30),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 60), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 134)
2019 Winner: Kyle Busch

Wednesday, May 27

Cup Series
Race: Alsco Uniforms 500
Race Time: 8 p.m. (no practice or qualifying)
TV: FS1, 7 p.m.
Radio: PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 310.6 miles (205 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 55),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 115), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 208)

Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

May 24, 2020
Racing versus reality

Sometimes in NASCAR, we tend to focus only on the wins and losses. And nothing makes us happier than an all-out rivalry, a good guy to cheer for and a bad guy to heckle.

But then we are reminded that, in the end, it’s only racing. The significance of what happens on the track diminishes when we are confronted with the stark realities of life.

Wednesday night, social media was buzzing over the contact between Kyle Busch and Chase Elliott during the Toyota 500 at Darlington Raceway. The argument over whether the contact was intentional or simply bad timing by Busch was debated throughout the night.

But in the midst of this controversy, we learned that Xfinity Series driver, Chase Briscoe and his wife, Marissa, had lost the child they were expecting. Briscoe shared the heartbreaking news on social media.

Yesterday was the hardest day of my life,” he posted on Twitter. “Marissa Briscoe and I heard the worst news any soon-to-be parent could hear. That we wouldn’t be welcoming our daughter to the world on December 1st. I know God has a plan and we may not understand it but we seek Him and trust Him.”

While the NASCAR community grieved with them over their loss, reality took precedence as Briscoe prepared to compete in the Toyota 200 race Thursday afternoon at Darlington. It was the first race for the series since March 7 as the COVID-19 pandemic soon precluded any sporting events.

It was also Briscoe’s first race since receiving the devastating news. It was time to go back to work. One can only guess at the strength it took to compartmentalize his emotions and concentrate on the task before him.

As the race wound down and we saw Briscoe fighting to retain the lead with Busch on his back bumper, the NASCAR world held their collective breath until he crossed the finish line to collect the checkered flag.

When he climbed out of his car, tears streaming down his face, his emotions told the story of unimaginable grief that we hoped was momentarily eased with the joy of winning the race.

“This is for my wife. This has been the hardest week I’ve ever had to deal with,” Briscoe said. “When I took the lead, I was crying in my car. This is more than a race win. This is the biggest win of my life after the toughest day of my life. To be able to beat the best there is so satisfying.”

Sometimes in NASCAR, we tend to focus only on the wins and losses. Thanks to Briscoe for reminding us of what is truly important.

May 22, 2020