STEWART-HAAS RACINGM&M’s Fan Appreciation 400
Date: July 24, 2022
Event: M&M’s Fan Appreciation 400 (Round 21 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Pocono (Pa.) Raceway (2.5-mile triangle)
Format: 160 laps, broken into three stages (30 laps/65 laps/65 laps)
Race Winner: Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 1 Winner: Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)
Stage 2 Winner: Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
SHR Race Finish:
● Aric Almirola (Started 12th, Finished 15th / Running, completed 160 of 160 laps)
● Chase Briscoe (Started 13th, Finished 17th / Running, completed 160 of 160 laps)
● Cole Custer (Started 32nd, Finished 19th / Running, completed 160 of 160 laps)
● Kevin Harvick (Started 24th, Finished 29th / Running, completed 160 of 160 laps)
SHR Points:
● Kevin Harvick (10th with 565 points, 214 out of first)
● Aric Almirola (13th with 512 points, 267 out of first)
● Chase Briscoe (18th with 485 points, 294 out of first)
● Cole Custer (26th with 351 points, 428 out of first)
SHR Notes:
● Almirola earned his 11th top-15 of the season and his sixth top-15 in 20 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Pocono.
● This was Almirola’s seventh straight finish of 16th or better at Pocono.
● Briscoe earned his 14th top-20 of the season and his first top-20 in three career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Pocono.
● Briscoe’s 17th-place result bettered his previous best finish at Pocono – 21st, earned in the second race of last year’s doubleheader.
● Custer earned his eighth top-20 of the season and his third top-20 in six career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Pocono.
● The M&M’s Fan Appreciation 400 marked Harvick’s milestone 775th career NASCAR Cup Series start.
● Harvick finished 10th in Stage 1 to earn one bonus point and sixth in Stage 2 to earn five more bonus points.
Race Notes:
● Denny Hamlin won the M&M’s Fan Appreciation 400 to score his 49th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his third of the season and his series-best seventh at Pocono. His margin over second-place Kyle Busch was .927 of a second.
● There were nine caution periods for a total of 37 laps.
● Twenty-nine of the 36 drivers in the M&M’s Fan Appreciation 400 finished on the lead lap.
● Chase Elliott remains the championship leader after Pocono with a 100-point advantage over second-place Ross Chastain.
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard on Sunday, July 31 on the road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race begins at 2:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBC and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
