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Crash Relegates Burton to 35th at Kansas

Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Menards/MasterForce team were working their way forward with about 100 laps remaining in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway only to be collected in a crash just as he was poised to join the top 15 after starting 29th.

With his Menards/MasterForce Mustang too damaged to continue, Burton wound up 35th in the final running order.

The first 80-lap Stage saw Burton fall a lap off the pace, but the team gained it back by taking the wave-around when the caution flag flew at Lap 64 for a spin by William Byron.

Burton ended the Stage in 29th place, then worked his way to 22nd at the end of Stage Two.

The Menards/MasterForce team made a pit stop during the caution period at the end of the Stage and took the green flag for the restart in 23rd place.

In the opening laps of the final segment of the race Burton picked up seven spots before contact with another car led to a collision with the outside wall that resulted in significant damage to the front and rear of the No. 21 Mustang.

Next up for Burton and the No. 21 team is a Saturday night 500-lapper at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Wood Brothers Racing
Wood Brothers Racing was formed in 1950 in Stuart, Va., by Hall of Famer Glenn Wood. Wood Brothers Racing is the oldest active team and one of the winningest teams in NASCAR history. Since its founding, the team won 99 races (including at least one race in every decade for the last seven decades) and 120 poles in NASCAR’s top-tier series. Fielding only Ford products for its entire history, the WoodBrothers own the longest association of any motorsports team with a single manufacturer. Glenn’s brother, Leonard, is known for inventing the modern pit stop. The team currently runs the Ford Mustang driven by Harrison Burton in the famous No. 21 racer.

Keselowski Wins Stage Two, Finishes Ninth in Kansas

No. 6 Compiles Solid Afternoon in Second Race of Round of 16

KANSAS CITY (Sept. 10, 2023) – Brad Keselowski put together a solid Sunday afternoon at Kansas Speedway as he led 23 laps, won the second stage, and went on to finish ninth in the BuildSubmarines.com Ford.

Keselowski – the two-time Kansas winner – began the day from the 12th position, but methodically worked his way through the top-10, and into the top five throughout the 400-mile race.

The opening stage saw a pair of yellows as the No. 6 restarted 10th with 11 laps remaining, and went on to cross the line eighth. From there, he never left the top-10, rolling seventh to begin the second stage of 85 laps.

One of nine caution flags flew at lap 107 with Keselowski in seventh, but after a solid pit stop, he restarted third at lap 113. He maintained the position for a handful of laps, before a caution again flew at lap 127.

This time, crew chief Matt McCall called him to pit road for sticker tires, in a move that would pay off. He restarted 10th after the stop, but drove to the lead in the final laps of the stage, earning stage points and a valuable playoff point.

He led the first handful of laps after the stage three start – 23 in total – before the No. 11 took over the lead with 81 laps remaining. He hit pit road under green with 53 laps to go, and pitted one final time in the closing laps for fresh tires again, before finishing ninth on a NASCAR Overtime restart.

Keselowski and the No. 6 team now sit fifth in the playoff standings, 33 points to the good.

Up Next

Bristol Motor Speedway hosts the third race of the playoffs, and final in the Round of 16, next Saturday night. Race coverage is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on USA Network, with radio coverage on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Late Tire Failure Relegates Buescher to 27th in Kansas

No. 17 Team Earns Stage Points before Tire Failure with Seven Laps Remaining

KANSAS CITY (Sept. 10, 2023) – Chris Buescher earned stage points and was poised for a quiet, solid afternoon Sunday at Kansas Speedway, but a tire failure with seven laps remaining relegated him to a 27th-place finish in the Fastenal Ford.

After starting 13th, Buescher worked his way to just outside the top-10 early on. A pit road mishap put him 18th to end the opening stage, but he battled back as stage two progressed.

He began the second stage 14th, and after a series of cautions and pit stops late, he drove to a ninth-place finish in the stage with sticker tires. The No. 17 began the third segment in seventh, and worked his way to inside the top five late as teammate Brad Keselowski paced the field for 23 laps.

With what appeared to be the final, green-flag stop in the books with just over 50 laps remaining, Buescher was battling in 11th in the closing laps, before losing a right-rear tire. Initially no caution was displayed, before it eventually flew with Buescher losing a lap on the pit stop. With only a NASCAR Overtime restart remaining, Buescher finished 27th.

Buescher and the No. 17 team now sit ninth in the standings, 13 points to the good with a tight race entering the final event of the opening round of 16.

Up Next

Bristol Motor Speedway hosts the third race of the playoffs, and final in the Round of 16, next Saturday night. Race coverage is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on USA Network, with radio coverage on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

CHEVROLET WINS 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES MANUFACTURER CHAMPIONSHIP

DETROIT (Sept. 10, 2023) – Chevrolet has won the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES (NICS) Manufacturer Championship for the eighth time since it returned to the Series in 2012.

“It is an honor to receive the 2023 INDYCAR Manufacturer Championship trophy on behalf of Chevrolet,” said Jim Campbell, US Vice President Performance and Motorsports.

“This championship is a result of teamwork, preparation, and execution on track throughout the season. Thanks to our powertrain engineers, our technical partners at Ilmor and our race teams, including Team Penske, Ed Carpenter Racing, Arrow McLaren, AJ Foyt Racing, Juncos Hollinger Racing and Paretta Autosport for their combined efforts that resulted in delivering our eighth championship since 2012.”

In the 12 seasons of the Chevrolet 2.2-liter V6 twin turbo direct injected INDYCAR engine, Team Chevy drivers have amassed 111 wins of the 198 races to date – an impressive 58.6%. Team Chevy drivers have been crowned champion seven times since 2012 and scored five Indianapolis 500 wins.

All of Chevrolet’s full-time teams contributed valuable time and effort toward the seventh NICS Manufacturer Championship. Team Penske, with drivers Will Power, Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin; Ed Carpenter Racing, with drivers Rinus VeeKay and Ryan Hunter-Reay; Arrow McLaren, with drivers Pato O’Ward, Felix Rosenqvist and Alexander Rossi; AJ Foyt Racing, with drivers Santino Ferrucci and Benjamin Pedersen; and Juncos Hollinger Racing, with drivers Callum Ilott and Agustin Canapino, were instrumental in Team Chevy’s success.

Although having less than half of the total car count, Chevy powered drivers maximized all their available support, engineering tools and simulator time to enable performance growth that translated to consistency and strong results.

Since 2012, in addition to the eight Manufacturer Championships, Chevrolet has won seven driver championships with Ryan Hunter-Reay (2012), Power (2014 and 2022), Scott Dixon (2015), Simon Pagenaud (2016) and Newgarden (2017 and 2019).

Additionally, the Chevrolet 2.2-liter V6 engine powered drivers to win the Indianapolis 500 with Tony Kanaan (2013), Juan Pablo Montoya (2015) Will Power (2018), Simon Pagenaud (2019) and Josef Newgarden (2023).

Previously, Chevrolet competed in Indy-style racing as a manufacturer of V8 engines from 1986-93 and 2002-05, powering 111 wins, one manufacturer championship in 2002, seven Indianapolis 500 wins and six driver championships.

NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Kansas

Photo by Ron Olds for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin had a sloppy late restart that likely cost him the win at Kansas. He still finished second and is in great shape to advance to the next round of the Playoffs.

“I just signed a contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing,” Hamlin said. “I’m very fortunate to remain with a great team and remain financially secure for the rest of my life. My cup runneth over. Unfortunately, the Cup runneth away.”

2. Kyle Larson: Larson won Stage 1 at Kansas and finished fourth.

“I’ve already locked up a spot in the next round of the Playoffs,” Larson said. “So the pressure was off. I was racing under the motto, ‘Winning isn’t everything, it’s just another thing.'”

3. William Byron: Byron spun on Lap 63 and eventually finished 15th at Kansas.

“Not a great finish,” Byron said, “and not a horrible finish. I’m in a great position to advance to the Round Of 12, as long as I don’t have to pass an inspection.”

4. Tyler Reddick: Reddick charged to the win on an overtime restart to claim the Hollywood Casino 400 victory and a spot in the next round of the Playoffs.

“I don’t know how to react,” Reddick said. “I don’t know if I should celebrate, or let out a big sigh of relief, or throw my helmet at Austin Dillon. I know that last one doesn’t make sense, but it also didn’t make sense when Austin threw his helmet at my car, even though I didn’t even touch him.”

5. Christopher Bell: Bell started on the pole at Kansas and finished eighth.

“That’s my fifth pole of the year,” Bell said. “And I was unable to win any of those races. I have to learn to ‘close the deal,’ or I won’t be able to ‘close the deal’ when it’s time for a contract renewal.”

6. Ross Chastain: Chastain finished 13th in the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas.

“I would love to win the Cup championship,” Chastain said. “Then I could happily drop watermelons on the heads of all my doubters. And trust me, that would take a watermelon farm’s worth of watermelons to do.”

7. Ryan Blaney: Blaney finished 12th at Kansas and is sixth in the points standings, 25 points above the Round Of 12 cut line.

“I don’t think anyone sees me as a real threat to win the Cup championship,” Blaney said. “But I’d like to prove those people wrong, especially since I am one of those people.”

8. Chris Buescher: Buescher blew a right-rear tire late at Kansas and finished 27th.

“That was a tough race,” Buescher said, “with an outcome I’m not happy with. But that’s in the past. As they say, ‘We’re not in Kansas anymore.’ After Bristol, I might be saying, ‘We’re not in the Playoffs anymore.'”

9. Joey Logano: Logano finished fifth at Kansas.

“How about Kevin Harvick’s No. 4 Ford?” Logano said. “It was primarily sponsored by Sunny D. Is Sunny D orange juice? Is it a soft drink? Who knows? All I know is that I don’t know what it’s made of, and it’s not good for your health. It’s like the Martinsville hot dog of drinks.”

10. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex blew a tire on Lap 4 at Kansas and slammed the outside wall, ending his day and handing him a painful last-place finish.

“I recently signed a contract extension to remain with Joe Gibbs Racing through 2024,” Truex said. “I’m 43 years old, so this early retirement at Kansas seems very out of place.”

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Photo by Christopher Ryan on Unsplash

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Reddick advances to Playoff’s Round of 12 in thrilling overtime Cup victory at Kansas

Photo by Mitchell Pavel for SpeedwayMedia.com.

A week after being left disappointed with a runner-up finish in the Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway, Tyler Reddick capitalized on a late caution period and an overtime shootout to emerge out in top and race his way into the second round of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs by winning the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, September 10.

The two-time Xfinity Series champion from Corning, California, led the final two of 268 over-scheduled laps in an event where he started fifth, scored stage points during both stage break periods and ran a consistent event while keeping pace with the leaders. Initially set to finish in the runner-up spot behind team owner and Playoff contender Denny Hamlin, an opportunity presented itself for Reddick and the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota team when the caution flew with seven laps remaining after Playoff contender Chris Buescher blew a right-rear tire.

Amid mixed strategy among the leaders, Reddick, who opted for a four-tire pit stop, exited pit road sixth and lineup alongside Hamlin on the third row for an overtime shootout. During overtime, Reddick managed to quickly carve his way up to third before he pulled a bold three-wide pass on both Erik Jones and Joey Logano through the frontstretch to assume the lead as he also started the final lap of the event. With the clean air and the fresh tires, Reddick was able to fend off Jones and a hard-charging Hamlin to claim his second checkered flag of the 2023 Cup season and become the second Playoff contender alongside Kyle Larson to transfer from the Round of 16 to 12 by winning.

With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, September 9, Playoff contender Christopher Bell claimed his fourth Cup pole position of the 2023 season and second in recent weeks after posting a pole-winning lap at 180.276 mph in 29.954 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Kyle Larson, winner of last weekend’s Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway who posted the second-best qualifying lap at 179.826 mph in 30.029 seconds.

Prior to the event, Kyle Busch dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to his No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 as a result of damaging his car against the Turn 3 outside wall after blowing a tire during Saturday’s practice session. Rookie Ty Gibbs also dropped to the rear of the field in a backup car after he wrecked his primary car during practice.

When the green flag waved and the race started, Bell took off with the top spot on the inside lane as he rocketed away from the field that was fanning out through the first two turns and through the backstretch. With the field continuing to jostle for early positions, Bell proceeded to lead the first lap in his No. 20 DeWalt Toyota TRD Camry. Behind, Kyle Larson fended off Martin Truex Jr. to retain the runner-up spot entering the second lap as Truex was being attacked by Chase Elliott, Ross Chastain, Tyler Reddick, William Byron and Michael McDowell for more.

Then on the third lap, Truex, who was continuing to backslide and had fallen out of the top 10 on the track, got loose while running 11th and pounded the outside wall in Turn 3 after losing a tire. The incident and the damage to his No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota TRD Camry were enough to terminate Truex’s run three laps into the event.

“Just really unfortunate, very unlucky,” Truex said at the infield care center on USA Network. “[The car] took off really tight. [I] Knew something was up and blew a right rear [tire]. Not really sure what happened. Obviously, it blew in the worst place possible. I hate it for my guys. We had an awesome race car. We were gonna have a really good day. Just not real sure what we need to do to get some luck right now.”

During the first caution period, select names that included Ryan Preece, Harrison Burton, Ty Dillon, Kyle Busch and JJ Yeley pitted while the rest led by Bell remained on the track.

When the race restarted under green on the ninth lap, Bell and Larson dueled for the lead through the frontstretch until Larson managed to rocket ahead from the outside lane and snatch the lead from Bell. With the field behind jostling for positions, Larson started to pull away from Bell with the lead while Chastain and Elliott battled for third in front of Byron, Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick.

By the 12th lap, Wallace muscled his No. 23 Columbia Sportswear Toyota TRD Camry up to fourth followed by Byron and Reddick while Elliott, who nearly scrubbed the outside wall entering the frontstretch a few laps earlier, was being pressured by Austin Dillon, Ryan Blaney and Brad Keselowski for seventh place. In the midst of the battles, Larson retained the lead in his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through the Lap 15 mark.

Through the first 20 scheduled laps, Larson was leading by more than a second over Bell followed by Wallace, Chastain and Byron while Reddick, Elliott, Blaney, Denny Hamlin and Austin Dillon were in the top 10. Behind, Erik Jones was in 11th ahead of Keselowski, Chris Buescher, Joey Logano and Michael McDowell while AJ Allmendinger, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Alex Bowman, Kevin Harvick and Justin Haley occupied the top 20 in front of Austin Cindric, Kyle Busch, Chase Briscoe, Daniel Suarez and Carson Hocevar.

Five laps later, Larson continued to lead by more than a second over Wallace, who overtook Bell for the runner-up spot two laps earlier, while Byron was up to fourth after he overtook Chastain’s No. 1 Kubota Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for the spot three laps earlier. Behind, Reddick occupied sixth place in front of Elliott, Hamlin and Blaney, thus placing eight Playoff competitors in the top 10 on the track, while Elliott and Erik Jones were the two highest-running non-Playoff competitors in seventh and 10th.

Another 10 laps later, Larson extended his advantage to more than two seconds over Wallace while Bell, Byron and Chastain remained in the top five in front of Reddick, Hamlin, Elliott, Erik Jones and Blaney.

Then on Lap 36, the first wave of green flag pit stops slowly commenced as Playoff contender Joey Logano pitted his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang followed by Corey LaJoie, Keselowski, McDowell, Daniel Suarez, Hamlin, Elliott, Austin Dillon, Chris Buescher, Erik Jones, Allmendinger, Alex Bowman, Harvick, Chase Briscoe, Ty Gibbs, Hocevar, Bell, Byron, Chastain, Blaney, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Justin Haley and Austin Cindric. By Lap 39, Larson surrendered the lead to pit along with Wallace, Kyle Busch and Sheldon Creed as Aric Almirola, who has yet to pit, cycled into the lead followed by teammate Ryan Preece and Harrison Burton.

By Lap 42, Larson cycled back into the lead after Almirola and Preece pitted. Wallace also returned to the runner-up spot by Lap 43 as Harrison Burton pitted. Then by Lap 45, Byron, Bell and Reddick cycled into the top five with nearly the entire field having made a pit stop under green.

At the Lap 50 mark, Larson was leading by more than a second over Wallace followed by Byron, Bell and Reddick while Chastain, Hamlin, Elliott, Erik Jones and Ty Dillon were scored in the top 10, thus placing eight of 12 Playoff contenders in the top 10 on the track. Behind, Austin Dillon was in 11th ahead of Playoff contenders Blaney, Buescher and Keselowski while JJ Yeley was in 15th ahead of Allmendinger, Kyle Busch, Logano, Bowman and Harvick. By then, Stenhouse and McDowell were mired back in 21st and 23rd.

Ten laps later, Larson stabilized his advantage to one-and-a-half seconds over Wallace while Byron, Reddick and Bell followed suit in the top five. By then, Erik Jones was up to seventh after he overtook Chastain while Blaney returned to the top 10 as he was running 10th behind Elliott. In addition, teammates Buescher and Keselowski were still mired in the top 15 and Kyle Busch cracked the top 15 while Logano, Harvick, Stenhouse and McDowell were mired within the top 20.

Then on Lap 62, the second caution flag flew when Byron, who was running fourth in front of Bell, got loose and spun his No. 24 Raptor Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 below the backstretch, though he managed to proceed without damaging his car. The incident occurred a lap after Austin Dillon, who was battling Buescher in 11th, got loose while and smacked the outside wall, damaging the right side of his No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.

During the caution period, the lead lap field led by Larson returned to pit road for service. Following the pit stops, Wallace emerged as the new leader after he managed to beat Larson off of pit road first while Bell, Reddick, Hamlin, Chastin and Elliott followed suit. In the midst of the pit stops Haley was penalized for speeding on pit road. In addition, Suarez was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation. Prior to the restart, Playoff contender Buescher would pit for a second time due to a left-front wheel being loose on his No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang.

With 11 laps remaining in the first stage period, the race restarted under green. At the start, Wallace and Larson dueled for the lead through the frontstretch until Larson managed to muscle ahead and reassume the lead from the inside lane. With Larson back in the lead, Bell battled Wallace for the runner-up spot in front of Chastain and Reddick as the field fanned out to three lanes. Wallace would manage to reassume the runner-up spot from Bell during the proceeding lap as he tried to track Larson for the lead.

When the first stage period concluded on Lap 80, Larson captured his fourth Cup stage victory of the 2023 season. Wallace followed suit in the runner-up spot along with third-place Bell while Chastain, Blaney, Reddick, Hamlin, Keselowski, Elliott and Kevin Harvick, all of whom were in the Playoffs, were scored in the top 10. By then, 32 of 36 starters were scored on the lead lap while Kyle Busch, Byron, McDowell, Logano, Buescher and Stenhouse were the remaining Playoff competitors on the track who did not accumulate the first wave of stage points.

Under the stage break, the lead lap field led by Larson returned to pit road for service. Following the pit stops, Larson retained the lead after exiting pit road first followed by Wallace, Chastain, Elliott, Reddick, Hamlin, Keselowski and Bell, who lost five spots on pit road.

The second stage started on Lap 87 as Larson and Wallace occupied the front row. At the start, Larson received a strong push from teammate Chase Elliott on the inside lane to retain the lead and muscle away from the field as Elliott battled Wallace for the runner-up spot. With the field behind jostling for positions, Larson retained the lead in front of teammate Elliott and Wallace while Chastain tried to join the battle in fourth place. With Reddick running fifth, Hamlin and Keselowski battled for sixth place in front of Bell, Harvick, McDowell and Logano as Larson proceeded to lead the Lap 90 mark.

At the Lap 100 mark, Larson was leading by more than a second over Wallace followed by Elliott, Reddick and Chastain while Hamlin, Keselowski, Bell, Harvick and Logano were running in the top 10. Behind, Blaney was mired back in 11th ahead of Kyle Busch, Allmendinger, Buescher and Erik Jones while Alex Bowman, Byron, McDowell, Suarez and Cindric occupied the top 20 in front of Aric Almirola, Justin Haley, Hocevar, Ty Gibbs, Briscoe, Stenhouse, LaJoie, Ryan Preece, Harrison Burton and Cole Custer.

Seven laps later, the caution flew when Wallace, who was running second, lost a right-rear tire and scrubbed the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2 as he limped his damaged No. 23 Toyota to pit road with a flat right-rear tire and a broken right-rear toe link. While Wallace’s pit crew managed to repair the car to keep Wallace in contention, he lost three laps in the process and would continue to lose more laps as he pitted for more repairs.

During the caution period, nearly the entire lead lap field led by Larson pitted for service while JJ Yeley and Ty Dillon remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Larson exited first followed by teammate Elliott, Keselowski, Reddick, Chastain, Hamlin, Harvick and Bell. Amid the pit stops, Ty Gibbs was sent to the rear of the field for speeding on pit road. Once Yeley and Ty Dillon pitted shortly after, Larson cycled back into the lead.

When the race restarted under green on Lap 113, teammates Elliott and Larson dueled for the lead as the field fanned out to three and four lanes through the frontstretch. As Larson and Elliott continued to duel for the lead for nearly a lap, Reddick pulled a bold three-wide move on both Hendrick Motorsports competitors through the frontstretch and entering Turn 1 to assume the lead. Then just as Elliott claimed the lead from Reddick through the backstretch, the caution quickly returned when Cindric, who had cracked the top 20, received a bump from Michael McDowell and spun his No. 2 Menards Ford Mustang towards the apron through Turns 1 and 2.

During the proceeding restart on Lap 119, Elliott rocketed away from the field on the inside lane as he retained the lead ahead of teammate Larson and Reddick while the field again fanned out entering the backstretch. With Elliott leading the proceeding lap, Keselowski was up to fourth followed by Harvick, who would lose the top-five spot to Chastain by Lap 121 as Blaney battled Harvick for sixth. By then, Hamlin, Bell and Logano were mired back in the top 10 while Byron was in 16th and trying to fight his way back towards the front.

Just past the Lap 125 mark, Elliott was leading by two-tenths of a second over teammate Larson followed by Keselowski and Reddick, both of whom were trying to close in on the two Hendric leaders, while Harvick was in fifth. By then, Briscoe was off the pace after he lost power, starting in Turn 3, in his No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Ford Mustang as he was nearly hit by an oncoming Corey LaJoie. With Briscoe continuing to fall off the pace through the backstretch and below the apron, the caution flew on Lap 127. During the caution period, some led by Keselowski pitted while the rest led by Larson remained on the track.

With the race restarting under green on Lap 132, Larson and Elliott dueled for the lead through the frontstretch as the field fanned out amid the competitors who pitted versus those who did not. With Elliott rocketing away with the lead, Blaney carved his way up to second followed by Buescher while Larson, who got loose while battling Chastain entering the backstretch since the restart, was overtaken by Harvick, Bell and Keselowski for spots, thus dropping him to seventh in front of Kyle Busch. Larson would continue to lose spots and fall out of the top 10 on the track while on old tires as the event reached its halfway mark. By then, Elliott, who was running on old tires, retained the lead in front of Blaney as Harvick battled and overtook Buescher for third place.

Two laps later, Harvick, racing on fresh tires, moved his No. 4 SunnyD Ford Mustang into the runner-up spot as he overtook Blaney before setting his sights on Elliott for the lead. With Harvick, Keselowski and Blaney trailing Elliott from second to fourth within a second by Lap 140, Larson had fallen back to 16th while Chastain plummeted to 27th behind McDowell.

At the Lap 150 mark, Elliott retained the lead by nine-tenths of a second over Keselowski, who overtook Harvick for the runner-up spot while also on fresh tires, while Hamlin and Blaney trailed in the top five. By then, Reddick was back in sixth ahead of Erik Jones, Logano, Buescher and Bell while Kyle Busch, Ty Gibbs, Suarez, Almirola, Hocevar and Byron trailed in the top 16. In addition, Larson was back in 20th behind teammate Bowman while Chastain was mired in 25th behind McDowell. In addition, Stenhouse was in 30th while Wallace, who was six laps behind the leaders, was in 34th.

Ten laps later, Elliott continued to lead by two-tenths of a second over a hard-charging Keselowski, who was continuing to gain ground in his No. 6 BuildSumbarines.com Ford Mustang through every turn and straightaway. Meanwhile, Hamlin cycled his No. 11 Yahoo! Toyota TRD Camry into third place over Harvick and Reddick while Erik Jones was in sixth ahead of Team Penske’s Blaney and Logano.

Then with three laps remaining in the second stage period, Keselowski muscled his way into the lead over Elliott as Hamlin started to gain ground and join the battle for the lead. Despite nearly getting held up by the lapped competitor of Austin Dillon during the following lap, Keselowski retained the lead over Elliott as Hamlin kept both close within his sights.

When the second stage period concluded on Lap 165, Keselowski, who came into the event 18 points above the cutline, claimed his fifth Cup stage victory of the 2023 season. Hamlin, who overtook Elliott for the runner-up spot during the proceeding lap, settled in second followed by Elliott while Harvick, Reddick, Erik Jones, Blaney, Logano, Buescher and Bell were scored in the top 10. By then, 30 of 36 starters were scored on the lead lap. With eight of 16 Playoff competitors scoring stage points, the following names that included Kyle Busch, Byron, Larson, McDowell, Chastain, Stenhouse and Wallace were the remaining Playoff contenders running on the track who did not achieve the second round of stage points.

During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Keselowski pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Keselowski retained the lead after exiting pit road first while Hamlin, Harvick, Erik Jones, Reddick, Blaney, Buescher and Elliott, who lost five spots during his pit stop, followed suit. Amid the pit stops, Chastain was penalized due to his pit crew jumping over the pit wall too soon.

With 96 laps remaining, the final stage started as Keselowski and Hamlin occupied the front row. At the start, Keselowski and Hamlin dueled for the lead through the first two turns and through the backstretch while Harvick and Erik Jones trailed behind along with a hard-charging Reddick. With Hamlin leading the proceeding lap by a hair, Keselowski managed to reassume the lead from Hamlin and clear the field from the inside lane during the next lap while Reddick and Erik Jones battled for third in front of Harvick and Blaney.

The caution would return with 94 laps remaining when Hocevar slid up the track and made contact with Harrison Burton toward the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2 before Burton hit the wall again in Turn 3. During the caution period, some of the drivers, including Larson, McDowell and Byron pitted while the rest led by Keselowski remained on the track.

With the race restarting with 88 laps remaining, Keselowski managed to muscle away from the inside lane to retain the lead ahead of Hamlin while Erik Jones followed suit in third. Jones and Hamlin then battled for the runner-up spot for nearly a lap in front of Harvick, Reddick, Elliott and Blaney while Keselowski rocketed away with the lead by three-tenths of a second.

Then with 81 laps remaining, the battle for the lead ignited as Hamlin made his move beneath Keselowski through the frontstretch. Hamlin then managed to clear Keselowski and slide up the track to inherit the lead. Behind, Reddick, Hamlin’s driver at 23XI Racing, overtook Keselowski for the runner-up spot as he ignited his charge on Hamlin for the lead.

With 70 laps remaining, Hamlin stabilized his advantage to two-tenths of a second over Reddick while Keselowski, Erik Jones and Elliott were in the top five. Behind, Harvick, Blaney, Bell and Buescher followed suit from sixth to ninth while Larson, racing on fresh tires, cracked the top 10 as he was in 10th ahead of Kyle Busch, Ty Gibbs, Logano, Suarez, Bowman and Byron.

Ten laps later, Hamlin continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over Reddick while Keselowski, Erik Jones and Elliott were in the top five. By then, Larson, who barely scrubbed the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2, was in ninth behind Bell while Kyle Busch and Buescher battled for 10th place. With Harvick, Blaney and Bell running sixth through eighth, Logano was in 13th behind Ty Gibbs, Byron was mired in 16th, Chastain was in 18th, Stenhouse was back in 22nd and McDowell was in 25th behind Briscoe.

Another six laps later, another cycle of green flag pit stops commenced as Blaney and Erik Jones pitted their respective entries. Keselowski would pit during the proceeding lap along with Harvick, Kyle Busch, Chastain, Ryan Preece, LaJoie, Hocevar, Reddick, Elliott, Larson, Ty Gibbs, Buescher, Almirola, Briscoe, Stenhouse and Yeley. Hamlin would then surrender the lead to pit with 52 laps remaining along with Bowman and Justin Haley as Bell cycled into the lead. Bell would then pit under green with 45 laps remaining along with Byron as Daniel Suarez, who has yet to pit, cycled into the lead ahead of McDowell, Todd Gilliland and Hamlin.

Then with 36 laps remaining, Hamlin cycled back into the lead after Suarez pitted his No. 99 Freeway.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. By then, Reddick trailed in the runner-up spot by more than a second while Keselowski, Erik Jones and Elliott were scored in the top five ahead of McDowell, Blaney, Larson, Harvick and Kyle Busch.

Down to the final 25 laps of the event, Hamlin stabilized his advantage to one-and-a-half seconds over Reddick while Keselowski, Erik Jones and Elliott remained in the top five. Larson, Kyle Busch, Blaney, Harvick and Ty Gibbs followed suit in the top 10 as Hamlin retained the lead with 20 and 15 laps remaining.

With 10 laps remaining, Hamlin extended his advantage to more than two seconds over Reddick while third-place Elliott trailed by more than nine seconds in his No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.

Then with seven laps remaining, the caution flew when Buescher, who was running 12th, blew a right-rear tire through the frontstretch as he fell off the pace while the tire disintegrated on his No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang. During the caution period, nearly the entire lead lap field led by Hamlin pitted for service while Suarez remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Erik Jones exited first after opting for two fresh tires for his No. 43 Allegiant Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 along with Kyle Busch and Logano while Hamlin exited pit road fourth and the first on four fresh tires ahead of Larson, Reddick, Elliott and Keselowski. Amid the pit stops, teammates Larson and Elliott made contact while both were exiting pit road, which prompted Elliott to bump Larson to express his displeasure over the contact.

With the event restarting in overtime, where Suarez and Erik Jones occupied the front row in front of Kyle Busch and Logano, Logano wasted no time diving his car beneath Suarez and both along with Erik Jones fanned out to three lanes through the frontstretch and entering Turn 1. Logano and Jones then made their way to the front followed by Reddick, Larson, Elliott and Hamlin while Suarez was falling back. Through the backstretch and Turns 3 and 4, Logano and Jones continued to duel for the lead as Reddick closed in on fresh tires.

Then entering the frontstretch, Reddick dropped the hammer and crossed his No. 45 MoneyLion Toyota TRD Camry from the top to the bottom lane beneath Logano and Erik Jones. With the momentum and the fresh tires, Reddick overtook both through the frontstretch and gained the lead as the white flag waved and the final lap occurred. With Reddick leading, Hamlin then gained a run on both Logano and Jones as he tried to use the outside lane to close in on Reddick. Entering the backstretch, however, Hamlin was blocked by Jones, which allowed Reddick to continue to lead by a decent margin. Hamlin then tried to use the outside lane again to step on the gas and mount a final corner charge for the win. Despite overtaking Jones while scrubbing the wall, Hamin’s momentum was not enough as Reddick was able to cycle back to the frontstretch and claim the checkered flag by three-tenths of a second to win.

With the victory, Reddick scored his fifth career win in NASCAR’s premier series, his second of the season, his first at Kansas and his first since winning at Circuit of the Americas in March. By becoming the second race winner in the Round of 16, Reddick advanced into the Playoff’s Round of 12 for the first time in his career as he continues his quest to win the first Cup Series title for himself, crew chief Billy Scott and the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota team.

Ironically, Reddick’s victory marked the third time 23XI Racing’s No. 45 entry won at Kansas after the No. 45 car swept both Cup Kansas events a year ago with Kurt Busch and Bubba Wallace. Overall, Reddick also recorded the fifth career victory for 23XI Racing.

“Just an outstanding job by this whole 23XI team,” Reddick said on USA Network. “We had really good pace, but just couldn’t get ahead of Denny [Hamlin] there. Chaos ensued, people stayed out, some took two tires and the bottom lane opened up. Pretty crazy. Four fresh tires, sent it in there and slide up. We’ve had really fast cars with this MoneyLion scheme and it’s really great to get it back to Victory Lane. We came here in the spring. I broke the streak and I didn’t get the No. 45 [car] back in Victory Lane, so I came back here motivated to get it where it belongs.”

Hamlin, who led 63 laps and was initially in the position of sweeping both Kansas Cup events, ended up in the runner-up spot. Amid his disappointment, Hamlin scaled back to the overtime restart, where he restarted alongside Reddick on the third row and opted to lay back to potentially have Larson draft him instead of keeping pace with the front-runners, a decision that may have cost him time to drive back to the front and win.

“[Larson] was just laying back so much, I was trying to back up to him,” Hamlin said. “I should’ve just focused forward. [I] Gave [Reddick] an opportunity to get up there in front of us. Just sleeping on the restart, looking in the rearview [mirror] instead of looking in the front. Hats off to the Yahoo! Camry TRD team. Another really, really fast car. Just didn’t need that caution at the end.”

Erik Jones, who was initially in the position of winning for Legacy Motor Club, ended up in third place while Larson and Logano finished in the top five. Elliott, Kyle Busch, Bell, Keselowski and Alex Bowman completed the top 10 on the track.

Notably, Harvick, Blaney, Chastain, Byron, Stenhouse, McDowell, Buescher and Wallace were the remaining Playoff contenders on the track to finish outside the top 10.

There were 19 lead changes for 10 different leaders. The race featured nine cautions for 45 laps. In addition, 24 of 36 starters finished on the lead lap.

Results.

1. Tyler Reddick, two laps led

2. Denny Hamlin, 63 laps led

3. Erik Jones

4. Kyle Larson, 99 laps led, Stage 1 winner

5. Joey Logano

6. Chase Elliott, 47 laps led

7. Kyle Busch

8. Christopher Bell, 15 laps led

9. Brad Keselowski, 23 laps led, Stage 2 winner

10. Alex Bowman

11. Kevin Harvick

12. Ryan Blaney

13. Ross Chastain

14. Ty Gibbs

15. William Byron

16. Daniel Suarez, 12 laps led

17. Aric Almirola, three laps led

18. Ryan Preece

19. Chase Briscoe

20. Carson Hocevar

21. Justin Haley

22. Corey LaJoie

23. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

24. Cole Custer

25. Todd Gilliland, one lap down

26. Michael McDowell, one lap down

27. Chris Buescher, one lap down

28. Ty Dillon, one lap down

29. Sheldon Creed, two laps down

30. AJ Allmendinger, two laps down

31. Austin Cindric, two laps down

32. Bubba Wallace, four laps down, three laps led

33. Austin Dillon, nine laps down

34. JJ Yeley – OUT, Dvp, one lap led

35. Harrison Burton – OUT, Dvp

36. Martin Truex Jr. – OUT, Accident

*Bold indicates Playoff contenders

Playoff standings

1. Kyle Larson – Advanced

2. Tyler Reddick – Advanced

3. Denny Hamlin +49

4. William Byron +41

5. Brad Keselowski +33

6. Ryan Blaney +25

7. Kyle Busch +24

8. Ross Chastain +18

9. Chris Buescher +13

10. Christopher Bell +13

11. Joey Logano +12

12. Kevin Harvick +7

13. Martin Truex Jr. -7

14. Bubba Wallace -19

15. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. -22

16. Michael McDowell -40

The Round of 16 in the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs is set to conclude next weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway for the Bass Pro Shops Night Race, where the first of three eliminations will occur. The event is scheduled to commence on Saturday, September 16, at 7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network.

Wallace’s strong start foiled by Stage 2 incident at Kansas

Photo by Ron Olds for SpeedwayMedia.com.

The conclusion of the NASCAR Cup Series Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, September 10, generated mixed feelings for 23XI Racing. While Tyler Reddick celebrated an automatic transfer to the Playoff’s Round of 12 by notching his second NASCAR Cup Series victory of the season in overtime, teammate Bubba Wallace was left disappointed. but remained optimistic, on pit road after having a strong start and potential bid for the victory evaporate from a flat right-rear tire that sent Wallace into the outside wall during the second stage and out of contention despite nursing his wounded car to the finish multiple laps down.

At the drop of the green flag, the 29-year-old Wallace from Mobile, Alabama, quickly worked his way to the front from starting 10th. Amid an early caution period on the third lap that knocked Playoff contender Martin Truex Jr. out of contention to the ensuing restart on the ninth lap, Wallace was up to sixth by the Lap 10 mark. Two laps later, Wallace navigated his No. 23 Columbia Sportswear Toyota TRD Camry up to fourth place before moving up to third by Lap 20. Another five laps later, Wallace overtook Bell for the runner-up spot as he tried to gain ground on Playoff contender Kyle Larson for the lead.

Keeping pace behind Larson through the first wave of green flag pit stops that commenced on Lap 36, Wallace capitalized on a caution period on Lap 62 for an incident involving Playoff contender William Byron and the ensuing pit stop to beat Larson off of pit road and assume the lead. Despite leading the field to the ensuing restart on Lap 69, where he led three laps in total, Wallace was quickly overtaken by Larson as he ended up fending off Bell to finish in the runner-up spot and collect nine stage points at the conclusion of the first stage period.

Restarting alongside Larson to start the second stage on Lap 87, Wallace again retained the runner-up spot as he tried to keep Larson within his sights. Then on Lap 107, Wallace’s strong run diminished after he blew a right-rear tire entering Turn 1 and scrubbed the outside wall through the following two turns. The right-side damage was also enough to damage the right-rear toe link from Wallace’s No. 23 Toyota as Wallace dropped out of the lead lap category. Wallace’s pit crew, though, were able to repair and keep the car up to minimum speed despite the damage as he returned to the track while mired three laps down. Despite gaining one of his three lost laps back during another caution period on Lap 114 for an incident involving Austin Cindric, Wallace would lose more laps to the leaders after making additional pit stops to have his car repaired.

For the remainder of the event, Wallace would manage to overtake Harrison Burton, JJ Yeley and Austin Dillon before finishing 32nd when the checkered flag flew as he was scored four laps behind the leaders. As a result, Wallace, who came into the event a single point below the top-12 cutline to transfer to the Round of 12, is now 19 points below the cutline entering next weekend’s Round of 16 finale at Bristol Motor Speedway.

“I got loose like five laps before, but I realize that was kind of like my line and my approach next to Turn 4,” Wallace said on USA Network. “Three or four laps later, [the right-rear tire] blew out. No indication going into [Turn] 1. I’m pissed at myself [that] I wasn’t closer to the fence and maybe, we would’ve gotten by with less damage, but you’re never gonna get a flat tire or blow a tire when you’re running 20th. You’re gonna get away really fast and lights out versus the competition.”

This season marks Wallace’s first appearance in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs as a title contender, where he made the top-16 cutline on the strength of four top-five finishes, seven top-10 results and 15 top-15 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch. Prior to Kansas, he finished seventh during last weekend’s Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway after rallying from a spin at the conclusion of the first stage period.

Wallace’s next NASCAR Cup Series event on the schedule is Bristol Motor Speedway for the Bass Pro Shops Night Race, which will serve as the Round of 16 finale as he aims to leap back above the cutline and keep his title hopes for this season alive. The event is scheduled to occur next Saturday, September 16, and air at 7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network.

Dixon Overcomes Chaos To Win Wild Laguna Seca Finale

MONTEREY, Calif. (Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023) – When the going gets most chaotic, nobody in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES finds a smooth path to Victory Lane better than Scott Dixon.

Dixon did it again Sunday, overcoming a starting grid penalty and an early on-track penalty and adapting strategy to multiple caution periods to win the season-ending Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. It was the third win of the season and 56th career INDYCAR SERIES victory for six-time series champion Dixon, who won on this 11-turn, 2.238-mile circuit for the first time.

“A credit to this team,” Dixon said. “They’ve been executing like that all year. We got caught up in some mayhem at the start. I definitely didn’t agree with the (penalty) call, but I haven’t seen all of it yet. But I had nowhere to go. But we won; that’s all that matters. We won.”

Dixon’s No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda crossed the finish line 7.3180 seconds ahead of the No. 3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet of runner-up Scott McLaughlin for his third victory in the last four races of the season. Alex Palou finished third in the No. 10 The American Legion Honda to close out his championship season with Chip Ganassi Racing.

Two-time series champion Will Power finished fourth in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, with Callum Ilott rounding out the top five in the No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet.

Marcus Armstrong was the top rookie finisher, eighth in the No. 11 Ridgeline Lubricants of Chip Ganassi Racing. That was enough to clinch Rookie of the Year honors for New Zealand native Armstrong and helped CGR achieve the unprecedented feat of taking the top two spots in the standings, with Palou and Dixon, and winning the Rookie of the Year title.

Chevrolet edged Honda by just 12 points to win the Manufacturers Championship for the second consecutive season.

The first hurdle for Dixon to scale came before the green flag flew to start the race. His CGR team was penalized six spots on the starting grid for an unapproved engine change after the morning warmup, so Dixon dropped from his qualifying spot of fifth to 11th at the start.

That lower starting spot put Dixon in the middle of mayhem that erupted near the front and throughout the midfield on Lap 1. Five cars were officially counted as part of the multiple collisions and jostling in Turn 2.

Dixon’s car veered hard right in traffic exiting the calamity corner better known as the Andretti Hairpin on Lap 1 and tapped the No. 21 Bitnile.com Chevrolet of Ed Carpenter Racing driver Rinus VeeKay into the gravel just past Turn 2. After extensive review of the entire maelstrom, INDYCAR officials assessed Dixon with a drive-through penalty for avoidable contact, along with a drive-through penalty for the No. 45 Hy-Vee Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Christian Lundgaard.

That penalty infuriated Dixon, known as “The Iceman” for his cool under pressure. But he chilled quickly in the cockpit, and Dixon and veteran CGR strategist Mike Hull started to devise alternate tactics to quicken a long climb from the rear of the cars still running on the lead lap.

Hull and Dixon decided to save fuel and try to finish the 95-lap race on one stop fewer than most of the rest of the field. They employed a similar strategy to win after being spun into the grass on Lap 1 of the Gallagher Grand Prix on Aug. 12 on the IMS road course and sipped fuel to win the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline on Aug. 27 at World Wide Technology Raceway.

When it was drawn up, the fuel-saving strategy was risky because it probably required some slower running under yellow to make it to the finish on one less stop. Dixon also couldn’t let teammate Palou, who was cruising out front while leading 51 of the first 58 laps, build a big enough lead to stay out front after the final pit cycles ended.

The yellows came that Dixon needed – and then some. And one of the caution flags flew with terrible timing for Palou.

On Lap 58, the No. 18 HMD Trucking Honda of David Malukas and the No. 29 Sapphire Gas Solutions Honda of Devlin DeFrancesco made side-by-side contact, with Malukas spinning into the gravel adjacent to Turn 3 to trigger the fifth of a race record-tying eight caution periods.

Palou was nearing the end of one of his fuel stints when the incident unfolded, but he couldn’t dive into the pits before the caution lights illuminated. He made his second and final stop on the next lap, Lap 59, and re-entered the race in 15th place with 37 laps to go.

Meanwhile, Dixon made his third and final stop on Lap 65. That ended up being one stop fewer than McLaughlin. Meanwhile, Palou couldn’t make up enough ground in the closing stages of the race to convert his two-stop strategy into catching Dixon or McLaughlin, as the last 17 laps of the race ran green despite the last four caution periods coming between Laps 58 and 75.

Dixon took the lead for good on Lap 76 when leader Romain Grosjean pitted for the last time in the No. 28 DHL Honda of Andretti Autosport. It was one of six lead changes among six drivers in a wild race that featured 432 on-track passes, an INDYCAR SERIES record for this picturesque track that features the famous “Corkscrew” turn complex.

From there, Dixon managed the gap after the final restart on Lap 78 and pulled away down the stretch of the 95-lap race with no need to save fuel.

Dixon will split $10,000 with Chip Ganassi Racing and his chosen charity, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, for his win as part of the PeopleReady Force For Good Challenge.

Kaulig Racing Post-Race Report | Kansas Speedway

Hollywood Casino 400

Justin Haley, No. 31 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Camaro ZL1

  • Justin Haley qualified 30th for the Hollywood Casino 400.
  • Although Haley’s No. 31 Celsius Camaro ZL1 fired off on the edgy side, he was able to quickly gain 10 spots from his starting position and into the top 20. Haley made it as high as 19th before making his first, scheduled green-flag pit stop on lap 39 for tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. As the green-flag stops cycled through, Haley made it back to 21st before the caution came out on lap 63. As he pitted to put qualifying tires on the No. 31 car to finish the stage, Haley acquired a speeding penalty on pit road, forcing him to start at the rear for the final 11 laps of the opening stage. He gained 10 spots in those 11 laps, finishing the first stage in 22nd.
  • Haley radioed that the No. 31 Chevy was still slightly edgy, but that he felt he was beating everyone on front turn and did not want to risk freeing the car up too much. He pitted for sticker tires and fuel during the stage break, before starting the second stage from 24th. The next caution came out on lap 108 as Haley sat 22nd. He radioed he was happy with the No. 31 Celsius Chevy before pitting for four tires and fuel. Restarting 23rd, another caution came out just after the restart. After restarting 21st on lap 120, the field went green for just seven more laps before the next caution came out. Haley pitted for four tires and fuel and restarted 21st on lap 133. The remainder of stage two stayed green, as Haley worked his way up to finish 16th.
  • Haley pitted once again during the stage break for tires and fuel, before starting the final stage in 18th. The caution came back out quickly on lap 173 for debris. Haley stayed out and restarted 17th with 88 laps remaining. With 70 to go, Haley sat 20th as he radioed the No. 31 Celsius was still trending tight but made it as high as seventh, as the green-flag pit stops began to cycle. Haley made his final green-flag stop on lap 216 for tires and fuel, falling down a lap to the leaders. The final caution came out with seven laps to go, and Haley took the wave around to put himself back on the lead lap. The race went on to finish in an overtime, two-lap shootout, and Haley finished 21st.

“We fired off so strong and gained 10 spots within the first 15 laps. Our No. 31 Celsius Camaro ZL1 was a little edgy, but I just felt like I could beat everyone on front turn, so I knew I would have to deal with it being a little tight, rather than being too loose and losing that momentum. The biggest difference was the draft, and I think that helped us on speed compared to yesterday during practice and qualifying. Overall, it was a solid day for our No. 31 team.” – Justin Haley

AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Dyna Gro Seed Camaro ZL1

  • AJ Allmendinger qualified 22nd for the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.
  • Allmendinger was happy with the No. 16 Dyna-Gro Seed Chevy early in the race. Under the first caution on lap four, he reported his car was tight in traffic, but the rear was stable, and his car turned well in clean air. The team opted to stay out under caution and restart in 22nd on lap nine. Allmendinger quickly made multiple passes, making it up to 15th by lap 24. The No. 16 came down pit road for a scheduled green-flag pit stop on lap 36. When the caution came back out on lap 63, Allmendinger was running 13th. He came down pit road under caution and put on qualifying tires for the short run to end the stage and save a set for the next stage. The team restarted 14th on lap 69 and went on to finish 18th in the opening stage.
  • Under the stage break, Allmendinger came down pit road for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment to help with rear grip. The No. 16 restarted in 15th place on lap 87 and drove up for 12th by lap 91. Running 11th when the caution came out on lap 108, Allmendinger told the team the balance in his No. 16 Chevy was really good. The team came down pit road under caution for four tires and fuel and restarted 12th on lap 113. The caution came back out on lap 115 and Allmendinger had driven up to 10th place, where he would restart on lap 119. Allmendinger maintained position until the caution came out on lap 128 and reported he was tighter that run. The No. 16 restarted 14th on lap 132 and fell back to 22nd after getting caught in the middle running four wide. Allmendinger made up positions quickly, taking over 15th by lap 145. The No. 16 came down pit road on lap 151 for an unscheduled pit stop to check the right front, after making contact with the wall. Allmendinger returned to the track and received a pass-thru penalty for too many team members over the wall during the pit stop. He finished the stage 33rd, three laps down.
  • Under the stage break, Allmendinger took the wave around and restarted the third stage in 33rd place and went on to finish in 30th place.

“I’m really happy with the speed we had in our No. 16 Dyna-Gro Seed Chevy. I’m disappointed with the small mistake there hitting the wall, but I’m really proud of my guys for bringing a competitive car. The speed we’ve had the last couple weeks is definitely encouraging, and we’ll keep gaining on that. ” – AJ Allmendinger  

Kansas Lottery 300

Derek Kraus, No. 10 Hardscape Construction/Crav’n Chevrolet Camaro

  • Derek Kraus qualified 18th for the Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas Speedway.
  • Kraus quickly gained multiple spots and avoided three early cautions in the first 20 laps of stage one. He radioed that he was happy with his No. 11 Hardscape Construction Chevy, making his way into the 10th position, where he finished the opening stage.
  • Kraus pitted for tires, fuel, and minor adjustments during the first stage break. Dropping back to 12th before the first caution of the second stage on lap 60, Kraus bounced back, moving up to seventh before the next caution came out on lap 76. Relaying that he was still happy with the handling of the car, Kraus went on to finish the second stage in eighth.
  • Before pitting during the second stage break, Kraus relayed that he needed to be slightly tighter on entry and to fire off for the final stage. The No. 11 pit crew gained Kraus two spots on pit road to start the final stage. Sitting sixth with 90 laps remaining, Kraus radioed he was a tick loose in his No. 11 Chevrolet. As another caution came out with 63 laps remaining, Kraus radioed that he fired off much better, but gets too free when running up top. He pitted under caution for tires and fuel before restarting sixth with 57 laps to go. The 10th and final caution came out on lap 145 before going green with 50 laps remaining. The race stayed green for the final 50 laps, and Kraus finish eighth, his third top-10 finish with Kaulig Racing this season.

“Today was a good day; we just kind of survived all day. In the first stage, I got into top 10 and got some stage points and then did the same in the second stage. In the third stage, fired off decent but just built too tight in the center and that carried all the way to the edge of the corner. Overall, it was a good day, and I’m looking forward to the next one.” -Derek Kraus

Chandler Smith, No. 16 Quick Tie Products Chevrolet Camaro

  • Chandler Smith qualified 12th for the Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas Speedway.
  • Moments after the initial start of the race, the yellow flag waved, and Smith restarted 11th on lap six. On lap 12, Smith reported that the No. 16 Quick Tie Products Chevrolet was low on power, and he started losing positions quickly. Once the race’s second caution came one lap later, the team told Smith to bring the car into the garage to work on the engine. The crew replaced the spark plugs, and Smith rejoined the race 13 laps down in 37th. He made up one spot by the time the first stage ended, finishing 36th.
  • The No. 16 team began making adjustments on the car during routine visits down pit road as stage two began. The crew utilized the early engine issues to learn as much as it could for future races. During the short, second stage, Smith continued making up ground, finishing stage two in 34th, 13 laps down.
  • Smith passed two more cars to move into 32nd by lap 156. He stayed there for the remainder of the race, finishing 14 laps down.

“That was a rough one. We were fast once we got back out on the track, but we obviously couldn’t do much because of the time spent fixing our engine issues. We could only pick up spots if others had problems, but points are points, so we used the rest of the 170 or so laps to try out some things and experiment before the playoffs start at Bristol next week.” – Chandler Smith

Daniel Hemric, No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro

  • Daniel Hemric qualified fifth for the Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas Speedway.
  • By starting the race, Hemric clinched his spot in the NXS Playoffs. After the caution came out on lap one, Hemric restarted fifth on lap six. After a few laps, he reported that the No. 10 Cirkul was loose-handling in turns three and four just after firing back off. On lap 10, Hemric dropped back two spots, sitting in seventh as the next caution came out on lap 14. Restarting seventh on lap 18 and maintaining position before the caution came out again on lap 20, Hemric made his way back up to fifth by lap 29. On lap 32, Hemric fell off the pace, reporting a possible voltage issue before pitting under green to diagnose the issue. The team discovered the power issue and pushed Hemric back to the garage to change the battery in the No. 10 Cirkul Chevy. The team spent the remainder of stage one and the entirety of stage two changing the battery and addressing the issue.
  • The No. 10 team sent Hemric back on track under green with 88 laps remaining in the race. Hemric returned to the garage once again on lap 139, as the team addressed another minor issue, before sending Hemric back on track 75 laps down, with 57 laps remaining. Caution came out with 52 laps to go, and Hemric pitted for a splash of fuel before the restart on lap 150 where he restarted 35th. Hemric reported that his car was getting progressively looser as the run went on, and pitted under green with 23 laps remaining for tires and fuel. Hemric went on to finish the race 34th.

“We beat ourselves today. It’s unfortunate, because I feel like we had a lot of speed in our Cirkul Chevrolet. We did what we had to do for the regular season, but there is still work to be done. As a group, we have shown we can build great race cars at Kaulig Racing; we just have to clean up all the little stuff.” – Daniel Hemric  


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, 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.