This Week in Motorsports: August 24-30, 2020
· NCS/NXS/NGROTS: Darlington Raceway (Darlington, South Carolina) – September 5-6
· ARCA: I-44 Speedway (Lebanon, Missouri) – September 5
PLANO, Texas (September 2, 2020) – It is Throwback Weekend at Darlington Raceway as the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) kicks off their Playoffs, while both the NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) and NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series (NGROTS) continue to finalize their Playoff fields. The ARCA Menards Series is also back in action at I-44 Speedway in Lebanon, Missouri, for the first time since 2012.
NASCAR National Series – NCS| NXS| NGROTS
Hamlin Ready for the Lady in Black… Denny Hamlin starts the Playoffs seeded second with a career-best 47 Playoff points. Hamlin has won three times at Darlington Raceway, including driving to victory in the Toyota 500 in May as part of NASCAR’s return from the COVID-19 pandemic. Hamlin will also return to drive his customary one NXS event of the year on Saturday afternoon aboard the No. 54 Toyota Supra. Hamlin has won the Darlington NXS event five times, most recently in 2017.
Truex Streaking… With a fourth-place run at Daytona, Martin Truex Jr. extended his streak to eight consecutive top-five finishes. Truex, who will begin the Playoffs as the sixth seed, drove to the Southern 500 win in 2016.
Jones Reigning Southern 500 Champ… Erik Jones returns to Darlington Raceway as the reigning Southern 500 winner. Jones drove to his second career NCS win in the historic Labor Day event last season after leading 79 laps (of 367).
Burton Ready for Darlington Return… Harrison Burton got an early Darlington preview when he drove his Supra to a top-10 finish in the Toyota 200 in May. The NXS Rookie of the Year leader has earned a rookie-best 11 top-five finishes and 15 top-10 results in 22 races this season.
Hill Doubles Up… NGROTS points leader Austin Hill will compete in two races this weekend as he returns for his fourth NXS event of the season. Hill has a career-best finish of eighth in four career NXS starts. Hill continues to lead the NGROTS point standings on the strength of a series-best 12 top-10 finishes.
Friesen Riding a Streak… Stewart Friesen earned his third straight top-10 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway as he drove to a fifth-place finish on Sunday. Friesen also earned top-10 finishes at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course and Dover International Speedway on this recent run of success.
NASCAR Regional Series – ARCA
Championship Leader… Despite a late-race accident at Gateway, Michael Self continues to lead the national ARCA Menards Series championship standings. Self won the most recent ARCA race at I-44 Speedway, which took place in 2012.
Sioux Chief Standings… This weekend’s event at I-44 Speedway also counts towards the 10-race Sioux Chief Showdown championship. After seven races, Chandler Smith leads by two points with Ty Gibbs in third, four points back. Self sits in fourth, 11 points behind.
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