NASCAR is one of the most popular sports in the United States and North America. Every week, millions tune in to watch some of the most talented drivers on the planet go head-to-head. Watching these incredibly skilled drivers zoom across speedways around the country is an experience that can be augmented by wagering on the events. Many bettors worldwide love placing bets on NASCAR races as the sport has an exciting simplicity for bettors.
But whether you are sports betting in Quebec or Tallahassee, you need to familiarize yourself with the different NASCAR markets before you can win big. These markets are the different outcomes sportsbooks allow bettors to wager on within a NASCAR race or the league overall. Let’s look at the top markets to know when NASCAR betting.
Futures
The NASCAR Cup Series features 36 races, and eventually, when it is all said and done, there will be one driver that has collected the most points in the standings. That driver is the NASCAR Cup Series champion. Futures is a form of betting where gamblers wager on long-term outcomes within a league. For NASCAR, this would mean wagering on which driver will end the season as the overall champion.
Outright Betting
As we’ve mentioned, there are 36 races on the calendar in a typical NASCAR season. These highly competitive, hotly contested races will end with one driver in front. Outright betting is wagering on which driver will end up winning the race. For bettors watching an event, this is the most common form of betting. Each driver will have odds to win before the race begins, and typically, the outright market will have large payouts for gamblers.
Place Betting
Outright betting can be a little risky because, ultimately, only one driver is going to end up winning the race. That is why the payouts tend to be high. But if you want to be slightly more conservative, try place betting. Place betting is wagering on bettors to place rather than win. Bettors can choose to bet on several different kinds of place markets. The most common option is podium betting, where bettors wager on whether a driver will finish top three, but there is also top-five betting.
Head-to-Head Betting
The typical NASCAR race will feature 40 entrants, so there aren’t too many individual rivalries. However, some sportsbooks will manufacture these rivalries by creating a market centered around pitting two drivers against each other. Before the race begins, some sportsbooks offer head-to-head markets, where they will pick two drivers that are at similar positions in the standings and allow bettors to wager on which one will place higher in the race. This market is completely manufactured but adds a fun element to a race.
Prop Betting
A lot goes on in a typical race. For many bettors, the fun isn’t just about wagering on which bettor will win or place; it is about wagering on the many different unique outcomes that will transpire in a typical NASCAR event. Prop betting is a form of wagering where bettors can place bets on outcomes that go beyond the typical. These can include things like betting on which bettor will have the fastest lap and so on. Prop bets are essentially outcomes within the race that may not define who wins overall.
Live Race Betting
If you forget to get your wagers in before the race begins, it can be frustrating. But just about every sportsbook will allow bettors to place their bets on live events even after they are underway. Most sportsbooks have an odds algorithm that adjusts according to what is happening live, so bettors can continue to bet on NASCAR races even after the drivers have roared out of the gates.
June 7, 2023 (Concord, NC) Sebastian Arias is heading back to wine country this week to compete in the General Tire 200, at the Sonoma Raceway, in his #2 Rev Racing Chevrolet, sponsored by BradyIFS, one of the nation’s premier distributors of food service and janitorial products, as well as Betco and Rubbermaid Commercial Products.
Sebastian is excited to partner with Rev Racing, as the 2022 ARCA Menards Championship winning team has proven they have what it takes to run up front consistently and that is where Sebastian wants to be. Sebastian said, “I have been working hard on the simulator and was out at Sonoma Raceway testing in some other cars a few months ago to prepare for this race and I feel great.”
Sebastian will be competing against a stacked field this time around, with no less than six competitors from the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series scheduled to compete. Driver’s Ryan Preece, Cole Custer, Sammy Smith, Riley Herbst, Kyle Sieg and Parker Retzlaff will all be in the hunt for a win. Cole Custer finished second last week in the ARCA Menards Series West race at the Portland International Raceway and the next day he won the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at the same track, proving that the ARCA Menards Series West is not only a proving ground for future stars of NASCAR, but where its current stars look for quality experience to prepare for their upcoming races in the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Sebastian is thankful to BradyIFS for providing this opportunity for him and would also like to thank Betco, Rubbermaid, BeyondEnergy, Wiley X, SPARCO, Next Level Racing, Thrustmaster, InterPhase Entertainment and Masgrafx for their continued support.
Sebastian is a first-generation race car driver from Bogota, Colombia. At twenty-four years old, he is the next Colombian driver coming up the ranks of NASCAR since Juan Pablo Montoya.
Owned by NASCAR, the ARCA Menards Series is a proving ground and rung in the ladder to reach the pinnacle of their sport, the NASCAR Cup Series. Sebastian is working his way to the NASCAR Xfinity and Cup Series and knows his sponsors are more than a blessing in his journey.
Follow Sebastian at @sebastianariasracing and watch his progression as he climbs the ladder of NASCAR.
With headquarters in Bell, CA and Las Vegas NV, BradyIFS is one of the largest foodservice and JanSan platforms in North America. The company sources, manages and distributes a broad range of products, including paper, equipment, cleaning chemicals, foodservice disposables, and packaging and dry goods to over 30,000 customers. These customers operate in the restaurant, healthcare, building service, hospitality, education, wholesale, government, and food processor end markets. Founded in 1947, Brady Industries is universally regarded as one of the JanSan industry’s premier enterprises. Operating since 1926, Individual Foodservice is one of the leading broad line distributors of foodservice, JanSan, packaging, dry goods and smallwares in the United States. For more information, please visit www.bradyindustries.com, and www.individualfoodservice.com.
Time/TV/Radio: 8 p.m. EDT on FS1/PRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Cole Custer Notes of Interest
Cole Custer is headed to Saturday’s inaugural DoorDash 250 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway hunting for back-to-back wins. He scored his first win of the season last Saturday at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway and punched his ticket to the 2023 Xfinity Series Playoffs. It was a welcome momentum boost for Custer and the No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) as they head to a second consecutive road-course race. Custer has been on a hot streak the past seven races, posting an average finish of 3.7 and finishing fifth or better in six of the seven events. With the uncertainties of points racing into the playoffs set aside, Custer can focus on parking his Ford Mustang in victory lane for the next 13 regular-season races until the playoffs begin Sept. 15 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.
While Saturday’s DoorDash 250 will be the first Xfinity Series race at Sonoma, Custer can claim a leg up on his fellow fulltime competitors. The native of Ladera Ranch, California, has two starts at the track in the NASCAR Cup Series and three in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West. His best Cup Series finish at Sonoma was 20th in June 2021, and his best K&N Series finish was fourth in June 2019. He’ll get additional seat time at the 1.99-mile, 12-turn road course as he’s also competing in Friday’s ARCA Menards Series West race in the No. 55 Ford Mustang for High Point Racing. He drove that same car to a runner-up finish last weekend at Portland.
Win and you’re in. That’s the mentality of the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs. In the past seven races, Custer was able to elevate himself from 10th in the driver standings to fourth, and he has secured his spot in the 12-driver playoff field with his victory. His eyes are now set on the regular-season championship, where he currently sits 65 points behind leader John Hunter Nemechek. Custer is up for the challenge as he can focus on preparing for the playoffs and collecting more wins in the final 13 regular-season races.
Riley Herbst Notes of Interest
Riley Herbst looks to showcase his road-course racing skills during Saturday’s second consecutive Xfinity Series West-Coast road-course race during the DoorDash 250 at Sonoma. The driver of the No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang for SHR came out of the gates strong in last Saturday’s Portland 147 at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway and ran in the top-10 for a majority of the race. Engine problems in the final stage forced him to retire early from the 75-lap race, however. Herbst has been strong on road courses the past two seasons. In this year’s March 25 race at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, he earned a career-best COTA finish of 10th. He hopes to rebound from the bad luck at Portland and start anew at Sonoma.
While Saturday’s race at Sonoma will be the first at the track for the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Herbst does have one start there in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West. In June 2016, at the age of 17, Herbst started 10th and finished the 64-lap race fifth in the No. 19 car for owner Bill McAnally.
Like his teammate Custer, Herbst will also participate in Friday’s ARCA Menards Series West race at Sonoma. He will be piloting the No. 5 Ford Mustang for owner Jerry Pitts for the second week in a row. In last week’s race at Portland, Herbst started sixth and was one of only three drivers to lead the race, Custer being one of the others. Herbst led 17 laps and appeared to be on his way the win when a blown engine ended his day.
Cole Custer, Driver of the No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang
You’ve had experience at Sonoma in the NASCAR Cup Series and K&N Pro Series West. What’s your mindset for Sonoma as you return for the first time in the Xfinity Series?
“Sonoma is a cool track, but it’s one of those places where you have to learn that you can’t overdrive it. If you can get into the corner good, that means a lot at any road course, but especially Sonoma. The moment you start overdriving it and missing corners, you put yourself in a bad position. It not only makes you lose time, but you’re also wearing out your tires. It’ll really hurt you. Sonoma is all about trying to manage your tires and being there at the end. As a driver, you have to be disciplined.”
You scored your first Xfinity Series win of the 2023 season and your first on a road course last weekend at Portland. Talk about the win and what kind of confidence it gives you as we head to another road course.
“I knew going into that last restart that there was an opportunity to sneak through calamity. I just made sure I made it, and then I tried to be smart. Ultimately, everyone was equal on speed and performance, so it was about being able to finish, just like any road course. There was a bunch of relief when I crossed the finish line on Saturday. As a team, we’ve expected to win a lot going into this year and it hasn’t always gone our way. The win was such a big deal for myself and the team. Road courses in general have always been solid for me, but I feel like it just never worked out perfectly. You have to have everything go right to win this style of racing. I’m excited to head to another road course this weekend and go for another win.”
Riley Herbst, Driver of the No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang
Portland did not go as planned, but you had a good run going until the engine issue near the end of the race. How do you keep your confidence up after so much bad luck has been thrown your way?
“I won’t lie, it’s tough. We’ve had fast cars each and every week, but the results just haven’t been there for us. It’s a series of bad luck, but at the end of the day, you have to realize that it’s a long season. We still have plenty of time to turn it around, and hopefully that’s just what the No. 98 Monster Energy team will do at Sonoma. I’m excited to head there and get some extra time in the ARCA Menards Series West car to try and help me on Saturday. We’re taking it one race at a time, so we’re focused on this weekend in Sonoma.”
While you’ve never been to Sonoma in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, you do have some experience in the K&N Pro Series West. How do these starts help you learn a new track where you only have one Xfinity Series practice session?
“It helps a lot to have that extra time on the track in other series. I haven’t raced at Sonoma since 2016 in the K&N Pro Series West, so this, along with the full practice session on Friday, will help me learn and prepare. We haven’t really had a lot of full practice sessions since the pandemic, so it’s nice to get these when we can. I know Sonoma can be a tricky road course, so we’ve been working hard to prepare for it. Hopefully, we can have a good run this weekend.”
CHASE BRISCOE Sonoma Advance No. 14 Ford Performance Racing School Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing
Event Overview
● Event: Save Mart 350k (Round 16 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday, June 11
● Location: Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway
● Layout: 1.99-mile, 10-turn road course
● Laps/Miles: 110 laps/218.9 miles (352.3 kilometers)
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 25 laps / Stage 2: 30 laps / Final Stage: 55 laps
● TV/Radio: FOX / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Notes of Interest
● Ford Performance Racing School returns to Chase Briscoe’s No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) Mustang for Sunday’s Save Mart 350k at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway. Ford Performance Racing School is the only school to wear the Ford oval, and Ford is the only full-line vehicle manufacturer to offer product-focused experiential driving programs exclusively to the owners of its complete line of performance vehicles, from cars to trucks to SUVs.
● Briscoe has two starts at the 1.99-mile, 10-turn Sonoma road course, with a best finish of 13th in last year’s event. In 13 Cup Series starts on road courses, Briscoe has four top-10 finishes and was just shy of earning his career first Cup Series victory on the road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2021.
● The dirt racer from Mitchell, Indiana, picked up two Xfinity Series wins on road courses – his first career Xfinity Series victory was in the series’ inaugural race on the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Roval in 2018. He also fulfilled his childhood dream of kissing the historic Yard of Bricks when he scored his fifth win of the 2020 season on the Indianapolis road course.
● Briscoe finished among the top-10 in all but three of the 10 road-course races in which he competed in the Xfinity Series. And in his lone NASCAR Truck Series start on a road course, in September 2017 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, Briscoe finished seventh in a Ford F-150.
Chase Briscoe, Driver of the No. 14 Ford Performance Racing School Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
The No. 14 team’s strategy has shifted over the last week. What is the biggest difference and how does it impact preparation for the rest of the regular season?
“At this point, it’s all about winning. We always show up to win, this just gives us an opportunity to change up our strategy to make it happen. It opens the door for us to pit off strategy or make some different calls when it comes to what we do on a stop. It doesn’t change preparation much. We might have some different options that we look at, but we always want to run up front so we don’t have to do too much differently when it comes to how we prepare.”
Where do you feel like you have the best chance of getting a win?
“I wish I could say anywhere, but in reality, the road courses and short tracks are where we run best. Superspeedways are always a wild card, so you can’t really count them out. I think we have plenty of opportunities to get a win and turn things around. Sonoma hasn’t been my strongest road course but maybe we can change that this weekend. We’ve certainly got the determination and we’ve got a crew chief who has gone to victory lane there with the No. 14 team.”
No. 14 Ford Performance Racing School Team Roster
Primary Team Members
Driver: Chase Briscoe Hometown: Mitchell, Indiana
Crew Chief: Mike Bugarewicz Hometown: Lehighton, Pennsylvania
Car Chief: J.D. Frey Hometown: Ferndale, California
PLANO, Texas (June 7, 2023) – It is time for the annual Toyota Save Mart 350 race weekend at Sonoma Raceway as the NASCAR Xfinity Series competes at the track for the first time, while the NHRA Drag Racing Series is back on track at Bristol Dragway.
NASCAR National Series – NCS | NXS
Truex looks to add to Sonoma accolades… Martin Truex Jr. added another top-five finish to his season statistics this past weekend in Gateway as the New Jersey-native came home in the fifth position. Truex earned his first Toyota win at Sonoma Raceway in 2013, and later added dominating victories at the track in 2018 and 2019 – leading over 50 percent of the laps in each race.
Reddick plans for back-to-back road course wins… Tyler Reddick scored his first Toyota win at the first road course race of the year – Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in March. Reddick has won at three different road courses in the NASCAR Cup Series – Road America, Indianapolis and COTA – but is looking for his first victory at his home track. The Corning, Calif.-native has a best finish of 19th in two starts.
Nemechek adds to his lead… John Hunter Nemechek continues to lead the point standings after his series-leading 11th top-10 finish of the season. Nemechek ran at Sonoma Raceway last season in the NASCAR Truck Series and earned an eighth-place finish.
Mosack looks to add another good run… Connor Mosack had a strong run at Portland International Raceway as the North Carolina-native earned his first top-10 finish in the NASCAR Xfinity Series as he brought his Sam Hunt Racing Toyota GR Supra home in eighth. It was also the first road course top-10 finish for the team.
NASCAR Regional Series – ARCA West
Sawalich plans for strong back-to-back road course runs… William Sawalich competed in his first road course event in the ARCA Menards Series West at Portland International Raceway and scored a strong top-five finish. Sawalich, who leads the ARCA East points, is making his third ARCA West start of the season.
NHRA – Top Fuel | Funny Car
Capps back at the site of first Toyota win… Defending Funny Car champion Ron Capps heads into Bristol – a site of a major milestone for the three-time champ and Toyota. Capps, who had just joined Toyota a few races prior at zMax Dragway in Charlotte of 2022, took his Toyota GR Supra Funny Car to victory lane and earned the first win for the new body. Before the season was up, Capps added additional victories in Indianapolis, Charlotte and Ennis, Texas before claiming the title in Pomona.
Ashley hopes to help Toyota score another double… Justin Ashley also drove to victory at Bristol Dragway last season – helping Toyota to its first Top Fuel/Funny Car sweep in nearly a decade. The New York-native later helped Toyota to another sweep with Capps in Ennis, Texas in October. The multi-time winner this season is fourth in the standings, just 31 out of the lead coming into this weekend.
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About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.
Toyota directly employs more than 48,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 45 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 22 electrified options.
Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.
STATESVILLE, N.C. (June 7, 2023) – LEGACY MOTOR CLUB acknowledges the L1 penalty issued today following the NASCAR R&D center inspection of the No. 43 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 after the race event at World Wide Technology Raceway. The team will observe the two-race suspension for crew chief Dave Elenz as Joey Cohen, VP, Race Operations will serve as the interim crew chief for Erik Jones and the No. 43 team at Sonoma Raceway.
“We have been diligently working with NASCAR regarding the penalty and are working internally to determine the course of action in response,” stated Cohen. “We will announce that decision within the timeframe determined by the NASCAR Rule Book.”
LEGACY MOTOR CLUB is a professional auto racing club owned by businessman and entrepreneur Maurice J. Gallagher and seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion (NCS) Jimmie Johnson. The club competes full-time in the NCS fielding the Nos. 42 and 43 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for drivers Noah Gragson and Erik Jones, respectively, along with the No. 84 part-time entry for Johnson in 2023. Richard Petty “The King” serves as team ambassador.
In 2021, Gallagher acquired Richard Petty Motorsports and renamed the team to Petty GMS. With the addition of Johnson to the ownership structure in 2023, the organization rebranded to LEGACY MOTOR CLUB (LEGACY M.C.). With a unique title signifying a nod to car clubs of past eras, LEGACY M.C. is an inclusive club for all motorsport enthusiasts to celebrate the past and future legacies of its members, while competing for wins and championships at NASCAR’s elite level.
Based in Statesville, N.C., LEGACY M.C. operates alongside GMS Racing (GMS), which currently fields three full-time entries in the NASCAR Truck Series. Since the formation of GMS in 2012, Gallagher and Mike Beam, team president, have shared incredible success. GMS Racing captured the 2015 ARCA Racing Series championship, the 2016 and 2020 NASCAR Truck Series championships and the 2019 and 2020 ARCA East championships, accumulating over 65 wins across six national racing circuits.
To keep up-to-date with the latest news, information and exclusive content, follow LEGACY MOTOR CLUB on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and at www.LEGACYMOTORCLUB.com.
For a second consecutive season, Sonoma Raceway is in for a delightful treat as NASCAR makes its annual return to the 12-turn circuit in Sonoma, California, on June 9-11, 2023.
In a similar approach from last year, two of NASCAR’s top three national touring series will run on the same weekend in conjunction with the ARCA Menards Series West at Sonoma. Compared to a year ago, where the Craftsman Truck Series competition made its return to the circuit for the first time in 24 years, the NASCAR Xfinity Series competition will experience its first taste of the twists and turns in Wine Country this upcoming Saturday, June 10, with DoorDash returning as a title sponsor of the 250-mile event.
With the return of the highly anticipated racing weekend in Northern California, a host of NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series stars will be attempting to pull double duty efforts within all three series.
The driver who headlines the double duty role for this weekend’s Xfinity-Cup doubleheader feature is Kyle Larson. The 2021 Cup Series champion and 21-race Cup winner from Elk Grove, California, is scheduled to make his first of two starts this season in the No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro for Hendrick Motorsports. His Xfinity start will occur a day prior to climbing aboard his iconic No. 5 Valvoline Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the Cup division.
Aside from being a hometown hero, Larson is no stranger to achieving success at Sonoma. He notched a Cup victory at the circuit in 2021 after leading a race-high 57 of 92 laps and has started on pole position in the last five consecutive Cup events at Sonoma. He has also achieved his share of success on road course venues after winning the last two Cup events at Watkins Glen International, the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course venue in October 2021 and his first Xfinity road course victory at The Glen last August.
While this weekend is set to mark his first Xfinity start of this season in HMS’ No. 17 entry, Larson has already made one start in the series in May. There, he piloted Kaulig Racing’s No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro entry to a thrilling last lap victory over John Hunter Nemechek at Darlington Raceway. With the Darlington victory being the first for him ever in NASCAR, Larson aims to achieve another accomplishment by adding a Xfinity victory at Sonoma to his racing resume.
Speaking of the No. 10 Kaulig Racing entry, AJ Allmendinger returns to pilot the entry for a second time this season. The 41-year-old veteran from Los Gatos, California, will be receiving sponsorship support from Gabriel Glas for this weekend’s Xfinity and Cup rides, where he currently drives the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry for Kaulig in NASCAR’s premier series.
Of his 16 career victories in the Xfinity circuit, 11 of them have occurred on road course venues, which makes Allmendinger the winningest competitor on road courses in the series. Despite winning on seven different road courses between the Xfinity and Cup levels, including his two Cup victories at Watkins Glen International and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course venue, Allmendinger has yet to achieve a win at Sonoma. In 11 previous starts at Sonoma in the Cup Series, he has led a total of 65 laps, but has only managed to finish in the top 10 twice, with his best result being seventh in 2009. He has managed to start on the front row three times between 2014-16, including on pole position in 2015. With his most recent victory in the series occurring this past March at Circuit of the Americas, Allmendinger strives to extend his road course dominance by checking off another road course venue off his bucket list.
Photo by Chad Wells for SpeedwayMedia.com.
Joining the list of double duty competitors between the Xfinity-Cup action is Ross Chastain, who drives the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Trackhouse Racing in the Cup Series. The 30-year-old Chastain from Alva, Florida, is scheduled to drive the No. 91 Chevrolet Camaro for DGM Racing sponsored by Skip Barber Racing School, with the event set to mark his third series start of this season after competing at Auto Club Speedway in February and at Darlington in May.
In three career starts at Sonoma in the Cup Series, Chastain has notched two consecutive seventh-place results, including this past season. He was one of five Cup competitors who competed in last year’s Truck Series event at Sonoma, where he led 19 of 75 laps before finishing fourth while driving for Niece Motorsports. Chastain also has one road course victory stored in his resume, which occurred at Circuit of the Americas in March 2022 on a day where he also notched the first Cup career win for himself and Trackhouse Racing. On the Xfinity side, his best series’ result on a road course venue was at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course circuit, where he finished fourth.
Ironically, a year after making his 100th Truck career start overall at Sonoma, Chastain is also primed to achieve another milestone start in Northern California. By qualifying and taking the green flag in this Saturday’s event, he will make his 200th career start in the Xfinity circuit. Through 199 previous Xfinity starts, the Floridian has achieved two career victories, one pole, 23 top-five results, 49 top-10 results, 961 laps led and an average-finishing result of 16.7. His best points result in the series is seventh place, which occurred in 2020. During that season, he notched career-high stats in top-fives (15), top-10s (27), laps led (553), overall average-starting result (7.7) and overall average-finishing result (8.2) despite going winless and while driving for Kaulig Racing.
Veteran Aric Almirola from Tampa, Florida, is also scheduled to pull double duty efforts as he will be piloting the No. 28 Michael Roberts Construction Ford Mustang for RSS Racing on Saturday before driving the No. 10 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing on Sunday. The Xfinity event is set to mark Almirola’s 104th career start in the series and second of the season after he competed at Circuit of the Americas this past March, where he finished 24th while competing for SS-Green Light Racing.
Through 10 Cup career starts at Sonoma, Almirola has achieved two top-10 results, with his best result being eighth in June 2018. While this weekend is set to mark his first Xfinity start at Sonoma, it will mark his third different series where he has competed at the circuit. In June 2018, Almirola competed in the ARCA Menards Series West event at Sonoma for Stewart-Haas Racing, where he finished second after leading 23 of 64 laps. With his last Xfinity victory occurring at Talladega Superspeedway in May 2017 and his best road course result in the Xfinity circuit being a fifth-place run at Watkins Glen in August 2018, a first road course victory is still something Almirola continues to pursue.
Photo by Bruce Nuttleman for SpeedwayMedia.com.
Another competitor attempting to participate in double duty efforts is Ty Dillon, who will be piloting the No. 4 Chevrolet Camaro for JD Motorsports. The 31-year-old Dillon and grandson of championship-winning owner Richard Childress from Welcome, North Carolina, is coming off his recent series start at Darlington in May, where he finished 19th while driving the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Camaro.
Dillon has made a total of four Cup starts at Sonoma, with his best result being 23rd a year ago while driving for Petty GMS Motorsports. Like Almirola, he has yet to achieve a road course victory to his resume. The closest Dillon came to winning on a road course circuit was during the inaugural Truck Series event at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in September 2013, where he was leading on the final lap until he got wrecked by Chase Elliott entering the final corner. His best Xfinity result on a road course venue is third, which was achieved at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in August 2015. With his latest Xfinity victory spanning back to July 2014 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Dillon, who currently competes full time in the Cup Series and in the No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Spire Motorsports, aims for a momentous boost to his racing career as he fights his way back to championship-caliber form.
In a youthful career highlighted with an abundance of success and a rapid ascend to the Cup Series level, Ty Gibbs is set to experience another first to his career as he prepares to tackle Sonoma Raceway for the first time ever and twice in one weekend. The 20-year-old reigning Xfinity Series champion and grandson of championship-winning owner Joe Gibbs from Charlotte, North Carolina, will return as the driver of the No. 19 Toyota Supra sponsored by The He Get Us campaign for his third series start of this season.
While racing on Sonoma’s surface will be new for Gibbs, racing on road courses is something he is familiar with, with some of his success occurring on road course venues. He achieved his first Xfinity career victory in his series debut at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course in February 2021. He then proceeded to win at Watkins Glen in August 2021 before winning at Road America last July following a last lap battle against Kyle Larson. With 11 Xfinity victories achieved, three on road courses, in 53 series career starts, Gibbs, who earned top-five results in two Xfinity starts this season at Circuit of the Americas in March and at Charlotte in May, aims to extend his top-five streak to three and potentially, emerge victorious while continuing his pursuit of claiming this year’s Cup Rookie-of-the-Year title behind the wheel of JGR’s No. 54 Toyota TRD Camry in the Cup circuit.
Lastly on the Xfinity side, Daniel Suarez becomes the seventh Cup participant for the inaugural Xfinity event at Sonoma as he will be piloting the No. 07 Chevrolet Camaro for SS-Green Light Racing. The 2016 Xfinity Series champion from Monterrey, Mexico, enters the Sonoma weekend with high momentum after notching his first Cup Series career victory at the circuit a year ago and becoming the first Mexican-born competitor to win in NASCAR’s premier series.
While this season marks his third as a full-time Cup Series competitor in the No. 99 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Trackhouse Racing, this Saturday’s Xfinity event is set to mark Suarez’s first start in the Xfinity circuit since racing at Chicagoland Speedway in June 2018. Suarez, though, made his name made within the Xfinity circuit with 84 career starts in the series, a Rookie-of-the-Year title from 2015 and three career victories, including the 2016 championship as he became the first Latin American competitor to win a title across NASCAR’s top three national touring series. His highest Xfinity result on road courses stands at fourth place, which he achieved twice at Watkins Glen and at Road America in August 2016.
For Sonoma, Suarez returns to the circuit with vast experience. In conjunction with his five total Cup Series start, he competed in two consecutive ARCA Menards Series West events at Sonoma, where he finished 11th and fourth, respectively, in 2017 and 2018. Suarez also competed as a relief competitor for the injured Carson Hocevar and Niece Motorsports during the Truck Series’ Sonoma event a year ago, where he rallied from two laps down after relieving Hocevar early in the event to finish sixth. Given his strength of the circuit, Suarez aims for a repeat victory while pursuing his first Cup victory of the 2023 campaign.
Photo by David Myers for SpeedwayMedia.com.
A day prior to the Xfinity Series’ inaugural event at Sonoma, the ARCA Menards Series West division will make its return to the circuit for the 44th time overall as General Tire retains its right of sponsoring the 200-mile event. The lone Cup Series competitor who is entered for the event is Ryan Preece, who drives the No. 41 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing. The 32-year-old Preece from Berlin, Connecticut, will be piloting the No. 9 Ford for SHR in the ARCA West region, which will mark his second career start in the series. His lone start in the series occurred at Sonoma in June 2019, where he led a race-high 33 of 57 laps and was in position of winning until he was penalized for a late restart violation and demoted to the last competitor running on the lead lap in 20th place. A former winner across the Truck and Xfinity circuits, Preece has also made two previous starts at Sonoma in the Cup Series in 2019 and 2021, with his best result being 21st from the 2021 season. His best results on road courses within NASCAR’s top three national touring series are a pair of fourth-place runs at Watkins Glen and the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course in 2018.
For Friday’s ARCA West event at Sonoma, Preece will be competing alongside a host of Xfinity Series regulars that include Cole Custer, Riley Herbst, Parker Retzlaff, Kyle Sieg and Sammy Smith, all of whom will receive a head start to their weekend prior to their series’ debut at the Northern California circuit.
Custer, a former Cup Series Rookie-of-the-Year recipient from Ladera Ranch, California, will retain driving responsibilities of the No. 55 Ford for High Point Racing for a second consecutive week after competing in last weekend’s event at Portland International Raceway. Custer is also coming off a dramatic weekend at Portland, where he notched his first Xfinity victory of the season during an overtime shootout. Herbst, Custer’s Xfinity teammate at Stewart-Haas Racing from Las Vegas, Nevada, will also be returning to the series for a second consecutive week as he will be driving the No. 5 Jerry Pitts Racing Ford.
Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.
Retzlaff, a Xfinity rookie competitor from Rhinelander, Wisconsin, who currently competes for Jordan Anderson Racing, will be piloting the No. 02 Young’s Motorsports Chevrolet for a second consecutive week while Kyle Sieg, a full-time Xfinity competitor for RSS Racing from Tucker, Georgia, will be assuming the No. 46 Ford for Lowden Jackson Motorsports.
Lastly, Sammy Smith, a Xfinity rookie from Johnston, Iowa, who currently competes for Joe Gibbs Racing, will be joining Hattori Racing Enterprises for a one-race effort in the No. 81 Toyota. Smith, who notched his first Xfinity career victory at Phoenix Raceway in March, has not yet competed at Sonoma throughout his youthful racing career, but he has achieved an abundance of success within the ARCA divisions, with six victories in the ARCA Menards Series, two consecutive ARCA East titles and a single ARCA West victory that occurred at Phoenix last November.
With Sonoma Raceway serving as the next scheduled event on the 2023 NASCAR schedule and with the drivers’ roster for this weekend’s events set, the weekend commences with the ARCA Menards Series West running the General Tire 200 on Friday, June 9, at 6:30 p.m. ET as the event will air live on FloRacing. The Xfinity Series’ inaugural DoorDash 250 at Sonoma will occur the following day on Saturday, June 10, at 8 p.m. ET on FS1. The Cup Series’ Toyota Save/Mart 350 will cap off the weekend as the series’ top premier competitors compete on Sunday, June 11, at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
ARIC ALMIROLA Sonoma Advance No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing
Event Overview
● Event: Save Mart 350k (Round 16 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 11
● Location: Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway
● Layout: 1.99-mile, 10-turn road course
● Laps/Miles: 110 laps/218.9 miles (352.3 kilometers)
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 20 laps / Stage 2: 20 laps / Final Stage: 50 laps
● TV/Radio: FOX / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Notes of Interest
● Double Duty: Almirola will be doing double duty for the second time this season at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway, driving in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race and Sunday’s Cup Series Save Mart 350k. His first double-duty weekend was in March at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas. In Saturday’s Xfinity Series race, Almirola will be in the No. 28 Ford Mustang for RSS Racing. It will be Almirola’s first Xfinity Series start at Sonoma, but it won’t be his first double-duty weekend at the Northern California road course. In 2018, Almirola nearly pulled off the victory in the ARCA Menards Series race there, leading 23 laps and finishing second. Almirola finished eighth in the Cup Series race that weekend.
● Statistically speaking, Sonoma is where Almirola has been most consistent among the road courses on the schedule. In 10 starts on the 1.99-mile, 10-turn circuit, he has two top-10 finishes, and he finished on the lead lap in all but one of those 10 starts. The 39-year-old earned his two top-10 finishes in his first two starts with Stewart-Haas Racing.
● The No. 10 Smithfield Ford team’s season has been a rollercoaster ride. It got off to a strong start during the first two outings of the season. Almirola won his heat race and started on the pole for the non-points Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Then, in the points-paying season opener at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, the 39-year-old veteran won his Duel qualifying race and led 16 laps of the Daytona 500 – the most laps he’s led at Daytona in 23 starts. Almirola and his team were mired by bad luck at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California, Phoenix Raceway and Richmond (Va.) Raceway in subsequent races, unable to capitalize on newfound top-10 and top-five speed. He then led the field for a combined 28 laps during what were promising days at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, but a late-race accident ended Almirola’s day at Atlanta and he posted a 22nd-place finish at Talladega. His best outing of the early season came April 16 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, where he qualified third, ran up front all race long and earned a sixth-place finish and 42 points in the driver standings. Almirola and the No. 10 team continued to show improvement in their speed at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, and Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, but the finishes have not been indicative of the potential top-10 runs they have had. Last weekend at Gateway International Raceway, Almirola started 24th and finished 19th.
● Driver Points: Almirola arrives at Sonoma 25th in the driver standings, 244 points out of first.
● Almirola’s career: In 439 career NASCAR Cup Series starts, Almirola has three wins, 28 top-five finishes, 92 top-10s, four poles, and has led 1,018 laps.
● Smithfield has been a sponsor of Almirola’s for the entirety of his fulltime NASCAR Cup Series career – making it one of the longest-lasting partnerships in NASCAR. Smithfield is an American food company with agricultural roots and a global reach. Its 63,000 team members are dedicated to producing “Good food. Responsibly.®” Smithfield is one of the world’s leading vertically integrated protein companies. The company has pioneered sustainability standards for more than two decades, including its industry-leading commitments to become carbon negative in U.S. company-owned operations and reduce GHG emissions 30 percent across its entire U.S. value chain by 2030. Smithfield believes in the power of protein to end food insecurity and has donated hundreds of millions of food servings to local communities.
● Beyond the 10 YouTube Series:In 2023, Almirola is continuing to share his life beyond the No. 10 Ford with season five of his award-winning YouTube series. Fans and media can subscribe on YouTube to see Almirola’s personality on and off the track. Episodes have already featured life as a dad, a husband and an athlete, and the show gives fans a unique perspective on what goes on in the life of a professional NASCAR driver. Fans can also follow Almirola’s social media channels: @Aric_Almirola on Twitter and Instagram, and @AricAlmirola on Facebook.
Aric Almirola, Driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
Where do you think you and the team rank heading into a road course like Sonoma?
“I would say Sonoma is hands down my best road course and I feel like that’s because it’s not really one of those racetracks that you can attack because of the surface and the way the tires wear out. It’s more of a rhythm racetrack and it’s kind of flowy and you can’t really attack the racetrack or you’ll abuse your tires and really pay a huge penalty after five or six laps on tires. I do better at that. Even short-track racing like Richmond and Loudon, where you have to take care of your stuff, I tend to do much better at. The places where you have to be overly aggressive and really attack the racetrack and attack the braking zones are not my best places. So, at those racetracks that you really have to attack the braking zones and do all those things, I tend to not be as good at, and I feel like as an organization we have a lot of room for improvement to make our road-course stuff better. I think that we have been average at best as an organization with this NextGen car at most road courses, not all of them, but at most of them we have struggled to make our car get in the braking zones as hard as the competition. We’ve struggled to get the forward drive off of the corners to compete, so I think there are a lot of things that we can do better.”
Why did you decide to do double duty at Sonoma this year?
“Of all the road courses that we run, it’s my favorite. I run the best there, so having the opportunity to run an Xfinity car there, something that is new for that series, I just thought that it would be a great opportunity and something for me to go and do, and I think it is slightly helpful just to get some more reps at the road courses because, with only 20 minutes of practice, you don’t get a lot of laps in the Cup car. So just being able to pick up little things here and there on the racetrack maybe helps a little bit. But the cars are so different nowadays with the brakes, the way the cars drive, the transmission, all those things, that a lot of it doesn’t really correlate at all.”
Is there anything you noticed at Circuit of the Americas without cautions at the stage breaks and how it will be different this weekend?
“I think at COTA it made the strategy a little bit more straightforward, and now I think it’s going to be the same at Sonoma when you look at the race and the strategy play for Sonoma. It makes the race relatively straightforward with where you’re going to pit. There are a couple of windows here or there on what you’re going to do for strategy, so it really takes away, in my opinion, from the strategy aspect of it. Last year at Sonoma was a perfect example. We went there and we had a really good car, but we chose to score as many stage points as we could with the position that we were in in points going to Sonoma, and so we finished fifth in stage one and finished second in stage two because we elected to stay out on the racetrack and score stage points. After the stage breaks, we had to come back through the field on newer tires compared to the other guys that pitted a couple of laps before the end of the stage, so we constantly battled from poor track position driving through the field, and then staying out at the stages to score points – where now there’s not that opportunity so it doesn’t really jumble up or mix the field up as much. It’s more about qualifying well and then just making sure you pit when you’re supposed to pit.”
Which Sonoma layout do you like best?
“I love the chute. The carousel was cool to do once, just so I could say I had the experience to run it like they used to run it in the old days when Ricky Rudd and Dale Earnhardt and Rusty Wallace and those guys would duke it out there. I absolutely love the chute and I love that it gives you that opportunity to make some passes getting into turn seven if you get off of turn four well, and the carousel just never really presented that opportunity with the cars the way they are nowadays versus the old days. Our cars are so much more aero-sensitive, so going through the carousel was so tough to run behind somebody that you would give up too much of a gap off the carousel to whomever you were racing with that you didn’t really have that opportunity to make a pass into turn seven and out-brake them. Now with turn four, hopping that curb and going over the other side to the other curb, there’s a lot of opportunity to maintain your position relative to the car in front of you and then have an opportunity to out-brake them getting into turn seven, so I love the short chute.”
JR MOTORSPORTS TEAM PREVIEW: TRACK: Sonoma Raceway RACE: DoorDash 250 (79 laps / 156.95 miles) DATE: Saturday, June 10, 2023
Broadcast Information – TV: 8 p.m. ET on FS1 / Radio: 7:30 p.m. ET on PRN and Sirius XM Ch. 90
Sam Mayer No. 1 Accelerate Professional Talent Solutions Chevrolet
Sam Mayer heads to Sonoma Raceway this Saturday for his first NASCAR Xfinity Series start on the 1.99-mile road course in the California hills.
The young driver rebounded for a third-place finish at Portland International Raceway after an incident in practice sent the No. 1 Chevrolet to the back of the pack to start.
After last weekend’s effort, Mayer now has a total of two top-five and five top-10 finishes on road courses, with his best coming last weekend at Portland.
Crew chief Mardy Lindley has one Truck start at Sonoma and came home with a victory atop the pit box last season.
Josh Berry No. 8 Tire Pros Chevrolet
Josh Berry earned another top-five finish on a road course last weekend at Portland, giving him three top-five and seven top-10 finishes in nine total starts on the twisty tracks.
The result adds to a solid string of finishes over the past seven races for the Tennessee native, who has logged four top-five and five top-10 results in that span.
His inaugural trip to Sonoma’s wine-country circuit constitutes the eighth road course that Berry will compete on in his NXS career.
Berry maintained fifth place in the current standings, just 91 points behind the leader.
Brandon Jones No. 9 Menards/Patriot Lighting Chevrolet
Brandon Jones will make his first career start at the 1.99- mile road course in Sonoma as the NXS makes its wine country debut.
Jones has made four starts on road courses in the ARCA Menards Series and recorded one win at Watkins Glen International last season.
Crew chief Jason Burdett has been atop the pit box for 35 road-course races in the NXS and has recorded three wins, 12 top fives and 20 top 10s.
In 33 starts on road courses in the NXS, Jones has accumulated five top-five and 10 top-10 finishes. His best finish of second came at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course during the 2020 season.
Justin Allgaier No. 7 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet
Justin Allgaier heads into this weekend’s NXS event at Sonoma on the strength of four consecutive top-three finishes dating back to Dover Motor Speedway last month.
Allgaier is no stranger to the road course in the Northern California hills, having made two previous starts in the NASCAR Cup Series at Sonoma in 2014-15.
Overall in his NXS career on road courses, Allgaier has scored a combined three wins, 15 top fives and 28 top 10s in 46 starts.
In the two road-course races already run this season in the NXS, Allgaier has earned two top fives, with a best finish of second coming this past weekend in Portland.
Driver Quotes
“I am excited to bring our No. 1 Accelerate Professional Talent Solutions Chevrolet to Sonoma for the first time, especially coming off of a great third-place finish at Portland. My guys have worked so hard on these road course cars and I know we have the chance to have an awesome finish this weekend. Hopefully, we can put it all together this weekend and be in contention to battle for the win.” – Sam Mayer
“Returning to Sonoma will be a fun challenge this weekend. This is such unique road course that definitely keeps you on your toes. We had an unbelievable BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet last weekend on the road course in Portland, and I feel extremely confident that we will have that same speed again this weekend. I know that Jim (Pohlman, crew chief) and all the guys on this No. 7 team have been working their tails off out here this week and are ready to get after it. Hopefully, we can keep all four tires on the course and be one spot better than last week at the checkered flag.” – Justin Allgaier
“We had a great Tire Pros Chevrolet at Portland last week, and I expect that Taylor (Moyer, crew chief) and the guys will have an equally good car for this weekend at Sonoma. It’ll be different this weekend, never having raced at Sonoma before in the Xfinity Series, but we have a little momentum and this weekend would be a great chance to keep the pressure on and move up the order. I have a lot of fun on the road courses, and I’m looking forward to adding another track.” – Josh Berry
“I’m really looking forward to Sonoma this weekend. It’s a new track for the series and a really cool place to race. We were pretty good in Portland last week, but it was hard to pass. I know this team is going to work hard throughout the week to bring that same speed this weekend, so hopefully, we can have a good race and be there at the end of it.” – Brandon Jones
JRM Team Updates
JR Motorsports at Sonoma: JR Motorsports will compete at Sonoma Raceway for the first time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series as the NXS makes its debut at the 1.99-mile road course. In two starts on road courses this season, the organization has a best finish of second coming with Justin Allgaier last weekend at Portland International Raceway.
Road Course Racing: JR Motorsports has competed on road courses a combined 190 times in the NXS. Over the course of those 190 starts at such tracks, JRM has recorded five wins, 49 top fives and 102 top 10s. The most recent win on a road course for the organization came with Kyle Larson at Watkins Glen International last season in the No. 88 Chevrolet.
Souvenir Rig Signing: JRM drivers Justin Allgaier, Josh Berry, Brandon Jones and Sam Mayer will be signing autographs at the JR Motorsports/Legacy MC souvenir rig on Saturday, June 10 from 1:45 p.m. – 2:15 p.m. local time.
Zane Smith is back behind the wheel of the No. 38 Ford Mustang team this weekend for his fifth of seven NASCAR Cup Series starts for Front Row Motorsports (FRM) this season.
Smith will reunite with the team and Wellcare at the Sonoma Raceway for Sunday’s second road course race of the season. They will also celebrate Smith’s 24th birthday together. Smith will celebrate his birthday on Friday in what is also a homecoming weekend for the California native.
Wellcare (www.wellcare.com) will ride along with Smith once again as they travel to Smith’s home state. A subsidiary of Centene Corporation, Wellcare offers a wide range of Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (PDP).
Track activity will begin with practice and qualifying on Saturday at 5:00 p.m. ET. Sunday’s race is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
COMPETITION NOTES
In his six previous NASCAR Cup Series starts, Smith has finished 17th or higher in half of them- all at various types of tracks. This will be Smith’s first road course start in the NASCAR Cup Series.
He’s coming off his first top-10 at the Coca-Cola 600 in his first mile-and-a-half start in the NASCAR Cup Series. Smith was the best rookie finisher and led three laps.
The 2022 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champion was also the highest finishing rookie in his Cup Series debut at the World Wide Technology Speedway last season when he finished 17th.
Smith has two wins on a road course (COTA) in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series.
CREW CHIEF RYAN BERGENTY
“We are going back to Zane in our car this weekend. We just think back to our success at Charlotte and how we can replicate that. Our 38 program has speed, our cars are fast and our drivers are getting results. We just want to continue that momentum.”
DRIVER ZANE SMITH
“In Cup, I’m leaning on my teammates and other drivers in general. Michael (McDowell) is a great road course racer, and we can look back at past notes of what they had last year.
“That’s my plan for Sonoma. Yes, it’s a completely different car, but it’s still road course racing. Hopefully my background in road course racing can still apply to the Next Gen. That’s how we’ll go about it.
“I want to thank Wellcare for their support of me in the NASCAR Cup Series. I can’t do it without them.”
ABOUT FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS
Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is a winning organization in the NASCAR Cup and CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The team is the 2021 Daytona 500 and 2022 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champions. The team was founded in 2004 and is owned by successful entrepreneur, Bob Jenkins. FRM fields the No. 34 and the No. 38 NASCAR Cup Series teams along with the No. 38 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series team from its Mooresville, N.C. headquarters. Visit teamfrm.com and follow FRM on social media: Twitter at @Team_FRM, Instagram at @team_frm and Facebook at facebook.com/FrontRowMotorsports.
