Justin Haley, No. 31 Celsius Camaro ZL1
Starting Position: Ninth
Finishing Position: 11th
- Justin Haley earned his first-ever NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Busch Light Clash pole, giving him the top starting position in the first of four heat races, where he finished third and ultimately qualified ninth for the main event.
- Despite sustaining front-end damage and a late race spin, Haley managed to rally back for an 11th-place finish.
“I’m so proud of everyone at Kaulig Racing and where we have come in a short amount of time. The race results weren’t exactly what we wanted, but this weekend was a fun confidence booster. It’s pretty cool to get mine and Kaulig Racing’s first NASCAR Cup Series pole, points race or not, and I think we really showed we belong here. I feel pretty confident about where we are, and I think we are in a a good spot to start the season.” – Justin Haley
AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Action Industries Camaro ZL1
Starting Position: 26th
Finishing Position: 20th
- AJ Allmendinger qualified eighth, putting the No. 16 Action Industries Camaro on the front row of the fourth heat race, where he finished seventh. Allmendinger continued on to the last-chance-qualifying race, finishing third and earning the final transfer spot into the main event.
- Allmendinger battled handling issues throughout the race but made his way into the top 10 before before being shuffled back to 20th on the final restart.
“It was an up and down weekend for us at the Coliseum. We made adjustments after practice that helped us qualify on the front row of our heat race. We just lacked grip during the heat race and last chance qualifier. We lacked speed all day, but we made the race, made handling improvements and learned a lot to take back and build on. We’ve definitely got some work to do on this style track.” – AJ Allmendinger
About Kaulig Racing™
Kaulig Racing™ is a full-time multi-car NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) and NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) team, owned by award winning entrepreneur, Matt Kaulig. Established in 2016, Kaulig Racing™ has made the NXS Playoffs consecutively each season since the playoff system started and has won back-to-back regular-season championships. Before becoming a full-time NCS team, Kaulig Racing made multiple starts in the 2021 NCS season and won in its seventh-ever start with AJ Allmendinger’s victory at “The Brickyard” for the Verizon 200 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The team expanded to a two-car, full-time NCS team in 2022 with Justin Haley piloting the No. 31 Camaro ZL1, and an all-star lineup featured in the No. 16 Camaro ZL1. Haley will continue to drive the No. 31 full-time in 2023, alongside AJ Allmendinger, who will drive the No. 16 Camaro ZL1. The team will continue to field three, full-time NXS entries; the No. 10 Chevrolet driven by an all-star lineup that will be announced at a later date, the No. 11 Chevrolet driven by Daniel Hemric, and the No. 16 Chevrolet driven by Chandler Smith. To learn more about the team, visit kauligracing.com.
