The NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series head to Phoenix Raceway this weekend. The Craftsman Truck Series kicks off the weekend in the Zero Carbon Bioethanol 150 Powered by POET on Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS2. On Saturday, the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Timberland PRO 200 begins at 7:30 p.m. ET on the CW Network. Then the Cup Series wraps up the weekend Sunday with the Freeway Insurance 500 at 3:00 p.m. ET on USA Network.
NASCAR Cup Series Notes for Phoenix Raceway:
Kyle Larson’s 6th-place finish at Charlotte last week extended his points lead to 49 over Denny Hamlin. Hamlin remains second in points, but the 49-point gap is his biggest gap since June at Michigan. However, Chase Briscoe gained points on Larson, 19, from -84 to -65, and has gained 58 points over the last two races.
Briscoe’s crew has become the #1 pit crew of the season thanks to fast pit stops. Briscoe’s crew now has the three fastest four-tire pit stops of all time, all in the last three races, and 15 consecutive mistake-free races.
Kyle Larson’s average finish of 2.83 in the Chase is the best over the first six races of any postseason since the Chase was
introduced in 2004.
Both Phoenix races last year had a last-lap pass for the win, and 11 Phoenix races ended in overtime (3rd most among all
tracks), but only three in the last 18 races.
Denny Hamlin led 208 laps last November, the most since Kevin Harvick led 224 in March 2015, but finished sixth.
NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Notes for Phoenix Raceway:
Despite finishing third at Charlotte, Sheldon Creed lost 19 points to second place, scored only one stage point, and spent just 23 laps in the top-5. Corey Day gained 34 points on the leader and 85 points in the last two races.
Creed has the best average finish in the Chase with 4.0, and Taylor Gray is the only driver to finish Top 10 in every Chase race.
Four drivers on the entry list won at Phoenix: Justin Allgaier (3), Jesse Love (1), Brandon Jones (1), and Sammy Smith (1).
Eleven different drivers won the last 11 Phoenix races, and 10 different drivers won the last 10 fall races.
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Notes for Phoenix Raceway:
After Layne Riggs won at Charlotte, Kaden Honeycutt’s points lead was cut from 37 to 17. Riggs was the only driver to gain points on Honeycutt’s lead.
Eight Phoenix races have gone to overtime, including four of the last six, and in six of the last nine races, the final lead change came in the last five laps.
The Weekend Schedule for Phoenix Raceway:
RELATED: The Freeway Insurance 500 at Phoenix Raceway Outlook and Picks
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16
3:30 PM – 4:20 PM: NCTS PRACTICE
4:35 PM – 5:30 PM: NCTS QUALIFYING
7:10 PM: NCTS DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS
7:30 PM: NCTS ZERO CARBON BIOETHANOL 150 POWERED BY POET RACE (STAGES 45/90/150 LAPS = 150 MILES) ON FS2
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17
1:00 PM – 1:50 PM: NOAPS PRACTICE
3:05 PM – 4:00 PM: NOAPS QUALIFYING (IMPOUND)
4:30 PM – 5:20 PM: NCS PRACTICE (IMPOUND) (ALL ENTRIES)
5:35 PM – 6:30 PM: NCS QUALIFYING (IMPOUND)
7:10 PM: NOAPS DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS
7:30 PM: NOAPS TIMBERLAND PRO 200 RACE (STAGES 45/90/200 LAPS = 200 MILES) ON THE CW NETWORK
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18
2:15 PM: NCS DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS (STAGING IN CRESCENT)
3:00 PM: NCS FREEWAY INSURANCE 500 RACE (STAGES 60/185/312 LAPS = 312 MILES) ON THE USA NETWORK
*All times are Eastern. NASCAR Cup Series (NCS), NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (NOAPS), NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS), ARCA Series (AMS)
