Hendrick Motorsports Media Advance: Phoenix

Phoenix Raceway
Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024
1-Mile Tri-Oval
3 PM ET
Location: Avondale, Arizona
TV: Fox
Event: NASCAR Cup Series (Race 36 of 36)
RADIO: SiriusXM

5 KYLE LARSON
Age: 32 (July 31, 1992)
Hometown: Elk Grove, California
Last Week: 3rd (Martinsville)
Crew Chief: Cliff Daniels
Standings: 6th

No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Kyle Larson has run a NASCAR Cup Series-best 4,634 laps in the top five through 35 events in 2024 while his 10.18 average running position also tops NASCAR’s premier series.
• The 32-year-old driver has 12 stage wins in 2024 – one more than any other competitor. Larson’s 1,687 laps led is the most by 685. The driver of the No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet will finish the year with the most wins and most laps led.
• In November 2021 at Phoenix Raceway, Larson won the pole and led a race-high 107 laps – including the final 28 – en route to victory to secure his first Cup championship.
• Since joining Hendrick Motorsports in 2021, the Elk Grove, California, native has 23 wins – 11 more than any other driver.
• Larson has recorded nine top-10 finishes in his last 11 starts at Phoenix.

9 CHASE ELLIOTT
 Age: 28 (Nov. 28, 1995)
Hometown: Dawsonville, Georgia
Last week: 2nd (Martinsville)
Crew Chief: Alan Gustafson
Standings: 7th
 
No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• At Martinsville Speedway last weekend, Chase Elliott and the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts team nearly punched their ticket to the Championship 4 in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs after winning stage one and leading 129 laps en route to a second-place finish.
• With his runner-up finish at Martinsville, Elliott, the 2020 champion, became the only driver to finish all seven short track races this season inside the top 10. Both his average finish (4.6) and average start (5.0) across those seven events are best in the field.
• Elliott’s 18 top-10 finishes in 2024 are tied for fourth best and his 11 top fives are tied for sixth best. His average running position of 11.47 ranks third and he’s spent the fourth-most laps inside the top 10 this season (5,135).
• While Elliott will not be competing for the championship this weekend, he has a victory at Phoenix Raceway. In 2020, the Dawsonville, Georgia, native captured the race win his first Cup Series title.
• The 28-year-old driver’s 546 laps led at the desert tri-oval are his second-most on active tracks in NASCAR’s top series.
• No. 9 crew chief Alan Gustafson has four wins at Phoenix with four drivers (Kyle Busch, Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin and Elliott). Two of his wins were record-setting with Busch being the youngest Cup driver to win at Phoenix (20 years, 6 months, 11 days) and Martin being the oldest (50 years, 3 months and 9 days).

24 WILLIAM BYRON
 Age: 26 (Nov. 29, 1997)
Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
Last Week: 6th (Martinsville)
Crew Chief: Rudy Fugle
Standings: T-1st

No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• In the final race of the NASCAR Cup Series Round of 8 at Martinsville Speedway last Sunday, William Byron qualified third, matching his best qualifying effort at the venue. He picked up critical stage points in stage one and two and went on to collect a sixth-place effort – his sixth consecutive top-six finish.
• Byron locked himself into the Championship 4 for this weekend at Phoenix Raceway. It will mark his second consecutive appearance in the Cup Series final four.
• So far in the 2024 playoffs Byron has an average running position of 7.48 and an average finish of 9.33 – best in both categories of the four remaining drivers.
• Byron has a previous win at Phoenix Raceway, claiming the 2023 spring race. He also has three stage wins – tied for his second-most at a single track – and seven top-10 finishes – his most at a single track. In his last four starts at Phoenix, Byron has three finishes of sixth or better.
• While in the Next Gen era, Byron has led 171 laps at the 1-mile facility which is the fourth most, and collected 198 points, good enough for second-most.
• In 2024, Byron has 12 top-five finishes – tied for the third most – and 20 top 10s – tied for the second best

48 ALEX BOWMAN
 Age: 31 (April 25, 1993)
Hometown: Tucson, Arizona
Last Week: 13th (Martinsville)
Crew Chief: Blake Harris
Standings: 8th

No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Last Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, Alex Bowman rolled off seventh and battled a power steering issue in the second half of the race. He still managed to secure a 13th-place finish.
• The Ally Racing driver has executed a strong season in his seventh year with Hendrick Motorsports. The 31-year-old earned his eighth win in the sport’s premier series at the Chicago Street Course and finished as the runner-up in the DAYTONA 500. His eight top-five finishes in 2024 are tied for his most ever in a season (2021) and 17 top 10s are his most ever.
• The No. 48 driver qualified for NASCAR’s Cup Series playoffs for the sixth time in his career. Bowman advanced to the Round of 12 for a fifth time. He has run 4,097 laps in the top 10, ranking ninth most amongst Cup Series drivers. Despite falling just shy of the Round of 8, Bowman has finished ninth or better in five of nine playoff races.
• This weekend, Bowman will strive to make his first trip to victory lane at his home track, Phoenix Raceway. In the Tucson, Arizona, native’s previous 18 starts at the one-mile tri-oval, Bowman has led 195 laps, earned two top-10 finishes and completed 95.4% of the laps.
• For four years, Bowman and Ally have teamed up to support Best Friends Animal Society and its vast network of partners. The pair has donated close to $750,000 to date. Every race weekend, the pair donates $4,800 to help homeless pets. This weekend, the charitable donation will go to Home Fur Good located in Phoenix.
• Bowman has also stayed busy away from the race track, participating in five financial literacy readings this season, teaching elementary school students the significance of money in race markets including in North Carolina, Texas, Michigan, New York and Florida. In May, ahead of Memorial Day, Bowman and his team held a USO packing event to give to deploying service members who were awaiting assignment. In June, the No. 48 team joined Bowman in Nashville, Tennessee, for community service efforts in public spaces and at a local resident’s home. In October, Bowman visited the Best Friends Life Saving Center in New York and helped Ally host its sixth-annual “Fueling Futures” event, an interactive program that offers high school students the chance to learn more about the educational path and career opportunities within motorsports.

Hendrick Motorsports

*Most
**Tied for most

• Heading into this weekend’s finale in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs at Phoenix Raceway, Hendrick Motorsports has won five of the last nine races on the West Coast and seven of 16 in the Next Gen era.
• The organization leads in most statistical categories at the 1-mile tri-oval, including wins (13), poles (15), top-five finishes (56), top 10s (102) and laps led (3,530). A Hendrick Motorsports entry has won at least one stage at Phoenix in four of the last six events.
• A Hendrick Motorsports Chevy has sat on the pole in four of the last five short track races. The organization’s drivers have combined to lead 39% of laps on short tracks this season.
• With 11 victories in 2024, Hendrick Motorsports eclipsed the 10-win mark for the fourth straight season, matching the longest such streak in the organization’s history (1995-1998). This year also marked the fourth straight season in which the company led the Cup Series in victories, also tying an organization high.
• Hendrick Motorsports has gone to victory lane 60 times in playoff races, 23 more than any other team.
• All four Hendrick Motorsports pit crews rank in the top six in terms of average time for a four-tire pit stop. The No. 24 over-the-wall squad of William Byron leads the organization and is second in the Cup Series at 10.8 seconds.

 QUOTABLE /
 
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on going to Phoenix Raceway: “We’ve had a great year – although with a lot of ups and downs. We’ll head to Phoenix with the same mindset we’ve had all year and that is to win. Hopefully, we can finish the year out strong with William (Byron) also bringing home the championship for Hendrick Motorsports.”

Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on coming up short at Martinsville Speedway and looking ahead to Phoenix Raceway: “It’s a bummer, but we’ll try to build on it and learn from some mistakes and go to work out at Phoenix. Try to go out there and have a good run. Obviously, it’s an extremely important racetrack. While it doesn’t really matter this year, it will one day. So, we’ll go out there and give it our best effort.”

William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on being a part of the Championship Four at Phoenix Raceway: “It’s a short week for sure, you’re not home much because of obligations and just prepping for the weekend. It’s a lot of fun though. I enjoyed being a part of it last year. I feel like I learned a lot, not just for on-track but also off-track and what my routine would be going back this year. It’s something as a competitor you want to be a part of.

“For us, we had really good qualifying last year. We qualified on the pole which was awesome. We just need to continue and improve for sure. We want to try to be better through out the whole race though, especially the last run. That’s the part of the race that means the most, you don’t get paid for the first two stages, only the end.”

Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on racing at Phoenix Raceway: “It’s always nice returning to my home state (Arizona). Of course, I wish our No. 48 team was racing for a championship this weekend, but we still have plenty to compete for. We’ve been carrying some good momentum and it would mean a lot to visit victory lane at Phoenix. We still have a Hendrick Motorsports teammate to cheer on (William Byron) in efforts to secure a 15th Cup Series Championship title for Rick (Hendrick). Our Ally Racing team has had a solid season, but the year isn’t over yet and we aim to finish 2024 strong.”