Automobiles are a necessary part of daily life for many people. Maintaining your vehicle can keep it running smoothly and prevent expensive repairs down the line. While there are a variety of maintenance tasks you can perform on your car, here is an essential routine that will help keep your vehicle in good condition.
Replace Old Parts With New Ones
Have you noticed any strange noises coming from your car? Or, perhaps, it isn’t running as smoothly as it used to? These could be signs that it’s time to replace one or more parts. Depending on the make and model of your car, you may need to replace the spark plugs, air filters, or other parts regularly.
Check your owner’s manual to see what parts need to be replaced and how often. You might have to change your car’s shock absorbers, brakes, and other parts less frequently. You can also refurbish some pieces instead of buying all new ones. You might want to keep the original parts if your car is classic. For example, if your classic car’s shock absorber is not working appropriately, you might want to get a newly refurbished one to save money while taking care of your car. You can choose to get classic car shock absorber refurbishment so that your car still has that original feel. This car shock absorber can also smoothen your car trip.
Check the Fluid Levels Regularly
Fluids are essential for keeping your car running smoothly. Check the levels of oil, coolant, and brake fluid regularly. You can find out how often you need to check the fluids by consulting your owner’s manual. If the levels are low, top them off with the appropriate fluid. It’s also a good idea to check for leaks regularly. A leaky gasket or hose can cause fluid levels to drop quickly. By keeping this in mind, you can take care of the problem before it causes any damage.
Get the Car Serviced Every Few Months
You should take your car to a mechanic for a regular check-up every few months. During this visit, they will inspect the brakes, tires, and suspension. They will also check for any leaks or other problems. This is an excellent time to ask the mechanic about any concerns you have with your car. It’s also a good idea to change the oil, and the tires are rotated at this time. By following this routine, you can keep your car in good shape and avoid major problems down the road.
Keep the Body and Interior of the Car Clean
In addition to the mechanical parts of your car, it’s also important to keep the body and interior clean. Regularly washing the exterior of your car will remove dirt, salt, and other debris that can damage the paint. You should also vacuum the interior to remove dust and dirt. If you have leather seats, you might need to condition them to prevent cracking. By taking care of the inside and outside of your car, you can keep it looking good for years to come.
Be Mindful of How You Drive
The way you drive can also impact the condition of your car. For example, if you frequently accelerate quickly or brake hard, you might shorten the lifespan of your brakes. Similarly, if you drive on rough roads, you might damage the suspension. Try to avoid these habits and drive smoothly to keep your car in good condition. You can also reduce your car’s wear and tear by using public transportation or carpooling. So beware of your driving habits; they can impact the condition of your vehicle.
Take Care of Minor Issues Immediately
If you notice strange noises or leaks, it’s important to take care of the problem immediately. Ignoring a small problem can often lead to more severe and expensive repairs later. If you’re not sure how to fix the problem, take your car to a mechanic and have them take a look. A mechanic can diagnose the problem and make the necessary repairs. This will help you avoid more severe issues that can cost a lot of money to fix.
Get Comprehensive Insurance Coverage
Another way to protect your car is to get comprehensive insurance coverage. This type of insurance will cover the cost of repairs if your vehicle is damaged in an accident. It will also cover the cost of replacement if your car is stolen. The premium for this type of insurance is higher than other types, but it’s worth the peace of mind. By getting comprehensive coverage, you can rest assured that your car is protected in case of an accident or theft.
Conclusion
By following these simple maintenance tips, you can keep your car in good shape and avoid significant problems down the road. By taking care of your car, you can ensure that it will provide you with years of reliable service.
After a tumultuous race at Bristol Motor Speedway, four contenders were eliminated from the Cup Series Playoffs.
Kyle Busch was -2 points after last week’s race at Kansas Speedway but had gained 14 points after Stage 2 of the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway and was above the cutline.
But on Lap 269 his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota engine blew. It was the second engine failure he’s experienced during the Round of 16, the first coming at Darlington Raceway two weeks ago.
His frustration was obvious in his comments.
“It just goes with our year,” a disappointed Busch said. “I don’t even know what to say. I’m flabbergasted. I just feel so bad for my guys. They don’t deserve to be in this spot. They work too hard. We are too good of a group to be this low, down on the bottom, fighting for our lives just to make it through. Two engine failures in three weeks; that will do it to you.”
With Busch’s early exit from the race, he finished two points below the cutline making him ineligible to contend for the 2022 Cup Series championship title.
Kevin Harvick needed to win at Bristol to advance to the next round of the Playoffs. But, after running in the top-five for much of the race in his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, a lengthy pit stop late in the race led to a missed opportunity.
“It was pretty tough,” a disappointed Harvick said. “We pitted in front of the 17 (Buescher), so just kind of the way the year has gone. Just went from having a chance to lead the parade to being a part of the parade, just difficult to pass.”
Richard Childress Racing teammates Tyler Reddick and Austin Dillon saw their playoff hopes come to an early end after damage resulting from an accident on Lap 278.
Reddick, who finished 25th, said he saw the accident happening but could not avoid it.
“I saw the crash happen. I checked up, but I just got run over. We had two bad races with bad finishes. We had two really good race cars, but we just didn’t capitalize on it and that was enough to miss it.”
Dillon finished 31st, and commented, “I was just told the No. 99 (Daniel Suarez) wrecked in front of the field there and got in the No. 47 (Ricky Stenhouse Jr.). I hate it for the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/ TRACKER Off Road Chevy team. We got left-front suspension damage and if we don’t get that, we’re out there running and probably in a good points position to make it.
“It’s unfortunate, but we put ourselves in a little bit of a bind, points-wise, in the first two races. We were doing our job today though. We had a great race car and got stage points. It’s just unfortunate we were caught up in it.”
The Playoffs Round of 12 begins on Sept. 25 at Texas Motor Speedway at 3:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on the USA Network with radio coverage on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Playoffs – Round of 12
1) Chase Elliott – 3040 2) Joey Logano – 3025 3) Ross Chastain – 3020 4) Kyle Larson – 3019 5) William Byron – 3015 6) Denny Hamlin – 3013 7) Christopher Bell – 3013 8) Ryan Blaney – 3013 9) Chase Briscoe – 3009 10) Alex Bowman – 3007 11) Daniel Suarez – 3007 12) Austin Cindric – 3006
Photo by Christian Buescher for SpeedwayMedia.com.
On a night where multiple Playoff contenders encountered on-track issues from start to finish, another non-Playoff contender captured the spotlight as Chris Buescher made a triumphant return to Victory Lane in the NASCAR Cup Series in the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 17.
The 29-year-old Buescher from Prosper, Texas, led twice for a race-high 169 of 500-scheduled laps, including the final 61, as he prevailed through a two-tire pit strategy and in a 57-lap dash to the finish by holding off Playoff contender Chase Elliott to score his second career win in NASCAR’s premier series and snap a 222-race winless drought under the lights at Thunder Valley.
Buescher’s victory served as one of two major storylines to Saturday night’s event at Bristol. The second was the Playoff battle as the Round of 16 concluded with four big names, including Kyle Busch, Tyler Reddick, Austin Dillon and Kevin Harvick, being eliminated from the Playoffs.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, Aric Almirola claimed his first pole position of the 2022 season after posting a pole-winning lap at 127.826 mph in 14.946 seconds. Joining him on the front row was teammate Chase Briscoe, the highest-starting Playoff contender who posted the second-best qualifying lap at 127.503 mph in 14.968 seconds.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Almirola jumped ahead with the advantage on the outside lane followed by teammate Briscoe and Denny Hamlin as the field jostled early between two lanes for positions. When the field made their way back to the frontstretch, Almirola managed to lead the first lap ahead of Hamlin and Briscoe while Ryan Blaney was in fourth ahead of Christopher Bell, Alex Bowman, Brad Keselowski and Kyle Larson.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Almirola remained as the leader ahead of Hamlin followed by Blaney, Briscoe and Bell while Bowman, Larson, Keselowski, Ross Chastain and Kevin Harvick were in the top 10. Bubba Wallace, the winner of last weekend’s event at Kansas Speedway, was in 11th ahead of William Byron, rookie Austin Cindric, Cole Custer and AJ Allmendinger while Michael McDowell, Joey Logano, Chris Buescher, Martin Truex Jr. and Justin Haley occupied the top 20. By then, Playoff contenders Tyler Reddick, Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Austin Dillon and Daniel Suarez were mired in 21st, 24th, 26th, 30th and 32nd, respectively.
Fifteen laps later on Lap 25, Almirola, who approached lapped traffic, stabilized his advantage to nearly half a second over a side-by-side battle between Hamlin and Blaney while Briscoe and Bell remained in the top five. By then, half of the 16 Playoff contenders were scored in the top 10 while Kyle Busch, Reddick, Elliott, Austin Dillon and Suarez were among five Playoff contenders still mired outside of the top 20 on the track.
Another 11 laps later, Blaney muscled his No. 12 Pennzoil/Menards Ford Mustang into the lead after he overtook Almirola as Hamlin started to challenge Almirola for the runner-up spot.
On Lap 42, the first caution of the event flew due to debris on the backstretch and following two right-front incidents affecting two competitors. The first was when JJ Yeley smacked the outside wall in Turn 2 and fell off the pace after losing a right-front tire. The incident occurred as Yeley, who was multiple laps down, was battling the top-five front-runners on the track. By then, rookie Harrison Burton got into the outside wall in Turn 3 after he lost a right-front tire to his No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang.
During the caution period, a majority of the field led by race leader Blaney pitted wile the rest led by Keselowski remained on the track.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 49, Keselowski rocketed his No. 6 Kohler Generators Ford Mustang with the lead while teammate Chris Buescher and Wallace battled for the runner-up spot, with the former prevailing over the latter. Behind, Tyler Reddick was in fourth followed by Corey LaJoie and Almirola, the first competitor on four fresh tires, while Hamlin was in seventh as he was trying to navigate his No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry back to the front.
By Lap 60, Keselowski was leading by eight-tenths of a second over teammate Buescher followed by Wallace, Reddick and Almirola while Hamlin, Bell, Blaney, LaJoie and Suarez occupied the top-10 spots on the track. Briscoe was in 11th followed by teammate Harvick, Larson, Byron and Kyle Busch while Bowman, Chastain, Logano, McDowell and Truex were in the top 20. By then, Cindric was in 22nd ahead of Austin Dillon and Elliott was mired back in 25th ahead of Ty Gibbs and Ty Dillon.
Fifteen laps later and at the Lap 75 mark, Keselowski continued to lead by more than a second over teammate Buescher while Wallace, Hamlin and Reddick were running in the top five. Blaney, meanwhile, was in sixth while Almirola, Bell, Briscoe and Harvick were in the top 10 ahead of Larson, Kyle Busch, Bowman, Byron, Suarez and Chastain. While Logano and Austin Dillon were in 18th and 20th, Elliott was mired back in 22nd and Cindric was back in 24th.
Nine laps later, early disaster struck for Cindric, who pitted under green after he lost a right-side tire to his No. 2 Freightliner Ford Mustang and scrubbed the outside wall entering Turn 2. By the time he returned to the track, his hopes of advancing to the Playoffs were jeopardized as he was mired back in 36th place on the track, dead last, and five laps down to the leaders.
Then on Lap 91, the caution returned when Blaney smacked the outside wall through Turns 3 and 4 after losing a right-front tire to his No. 12 Ford. In the process to avoid hitting Blaney, Almirola spun his No. 10 Ford BlueOval City Ford Mustang in Turn 4 as he brushed the outside wall. Then as Blaney pitted for four fresh tires, the situation for him from bad to worse. In an effort to remain on the lead lap, he left his pit stall, but was unaware that his pit crew had removed the center lug nut from the left-rear wheel. This caused the left-rear wheel to roll off of Blaney’s car as Blaney came to a stop before spinning his car back to his pit stall for fresh left-side tires. In the process, he lost a lap to the leaders.
During the caution period, some led by Buescher pitted while the rest led by Keselowski remained on the track.
When the event restarted under green on Lap 99, Keselowski retained the lead on the outside lane for a second time while Bell quickly challenged and overtook Reddick for the runner-up spot in his No. 20 Yahoo! Toyota TRD Camry. Behind, Kyle Busch, who restarted seventh, used the outside lane to his advantage as he bolted his No. 18 M&M’s Toyota TRD Camry past a bevy of names, including Larson, Briscoe and Reddick, in one lap before settling in third place behind teammate Bell.
By Lap 115, Keselowski retained the lead by four-tenths of a second over Bell and nine-tenths of a second over third-place Kyle Busch while Briscoe and Larson battled for fourth. Meanwhile, Blaney, who had a part dragging to the rear end of his car following his pit road incident, had returned to the track following a lengthy pit stop as he was mired back in 36th place, dead last, and five laps behind the leaders. He would eventually be posted by NASCAR for not meeting minimum speed and pitted again to address a flat right-rear tire.
When the first stage concluded on Lap 125, Keselowski, who came into the event with an average-finishing result of 19.2, captured his first stage victory of the 2022 season. Bell settled in second followed by teammate Kyle Busch, Briscoe, Larson, Bowman, Buescher, Reddick, Byron and Truex. By then, Elliott was in 12th, Harvick and Hamlin were mired in 14th and 15th, Austin Dillon was in 17th, Chastain was in 19th ahead of Logano, Suarez was in 23rd, Cindric was five laps down in 35th and Blaney was 15 laps down in 36th, dead last.
Under the stage break, some led by Keselowski, who pitted for the first time, pitted while the rest led by Buescher remained on the track.
The second stage started on Lap 133 as Buescher and Harvick occupied the front row. At the start, Buescher retained the lead ahead of Harvick while Chastain and Hamlin duked for third in front of Wallace, Custer and Justin Haley.
Following another caution period on Lap 139 when Harrison Burton got hit by Cindric and spun on the frontstretch and during the following restart on Lap 145, Buescher retained the top spot in his No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang over Harvick’s No. 4 Busch Light Ford Mustang and the rest of the field.
At the Lap 150 mark, Buescher continued to lead by half a second over Harvick followed by Hamlin, Wallace and Custer while Chastain, Haley, Suarez, Briscoe and Logano were in the top 10.
Twenty-five laps later on Lap 175, Buescher stabilized his advantage to a tenth of a second over Harvick while Hamlin, Wallace and Chastain were scored in the top five. Shortly after, however, Wallace, who had smoke coming out of his No. 45 MoneyLion Toyota TRD Camry, pitted under green. The situation, which was deemed a right-front brake line failure, cost Wallace multiple laps as he remained in his pit stall while his pit crew diagnosed the issue.
Back on the track on Lap 190 and while Buescher continued to lead by a tenth of a second, seven of 16 Playoff contenders were scored in the top 10, with Harvick in second ahead of Hamlin and Chastain while Briscoe was in sixth, two spots ahead of Bowman, Larson and Bell. Kyle Busch was in 11th while Elliott was up in 12th place. Suarez was in 14th, Byron was in 16th, Logano was in 18th, Reddick was back in 23rd, Cindric was four laps down while mired in 34th and Blaney was 78 laps down in 36th as he continued to lose more laps to the leaders while he remained in the garage to have his car repaired. By then, Wallace’s 23XI Racing teammate Ty Gibbs took his No. 23 Monster Energy Toyota TRD Camry to the garage due to a power steering issue.
Six laps later, the caution flew when Erik Jones, who just went a lap down to the leader Buescher, spun his No. 43 U.S. Air Force Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the backstretch after making contact with teammate Ty Dillon. The incident occurred as both Petty GMS Motorsports competitors were trying to avoid Harrison Burton, who encountered his third right-front tire issue of the night. During the caution period, names like Bell, Kyle Busch, Elliott, Suarez, Keselowski, Byron, Logano, McDowell, Almirola, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Todd Gilliland Reddick and the Dillon brothers pitted while the rest led by Buescher and Harvick remained on the track. By then, Truex took his No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota TRD Camry to the garage and retired due to a power steering issue.
With 45 laps remaining in the second stage, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Buescher retained the lead over Harvick while Harvick was being challenged by Hamlin and teammate Custer. Behind, Chastain battled for fifth over Briscoe as both Haley and Larson joined the battle.
Twenty laps later and with 25 laps remaining in the second stage, Buescher stabilized his advantage to three-tenths of a second over Harvick followed by Hamlin, Custer and Larson while Chastain was locked in a side-by-side battle with Bell for sixth. Behind, Briscoe was left battling Kyle Busch for eighth while Keselowski was back in 10th ahead of Elliott, Bowman, Byron, Almirola, Haley and Logano. By then, Austin Dillon and Suarez were back in 20th and 21st while Cindric was in 31st, five laps down.
With 16 laps remaining in the second stage, the caution flew when Hamlin, who was in third, fell off the pace after blowing a right-front tire to his No. 11 Toyota as he just managed to keep his car off the outside wall. During the caution period, some led by Buescher pitted while the rest led by Bell remained on the track.
When the second stage proceeded with 10 laps remaining, Bell took off with the lead followed by a side-by-side battle involving Chastain and Briscoe while Elliott and Kyle Busch battled for fourth in front of Bowman and Byron.
When the second stage concluded on Lap 250, which marked the halfway point of the event, Bell, who is already guaranteed a spot in the Round of 12, captured his fourth stage victory of the 2022 season. Chastain settled in second followed by Briscoe, Elliott, Kyle Busch, Bowman, Byron, Austin Dillon, Larson and Harvick. By then, Suarez was in 11th, Logano was in 18th, Reddick was back in 23rd ahead of Hamlin, Cindric was five laps down in 31st and Blaney was still in the garage and mired in 36th place, 138 laps down.
Under the stage break, names like Chastain, Briscoe, Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon, Bowman, Harrison Burton and Almirola pitted while the rest led by Bell remained on the track.
With 241 laps remaining, the final stage started under green as Bell and Elliott occupied the front row. At the start, Bell retained the lead while Byron made his way into the runner-up spot over teammates Larson and Elliott. Behind, Harvick battled McDowell for fifth while Keselowski was in seventh over Custer.
Eleven laps later, the caution returned when Kyle Busch, who came into the event two points below the top-12 cutline, fell off the pace entering the frontstretch and steered his car, which was billowing smoke, below the apron and to the garage, where he retired from contention due to an engine failure.
“I don’t even know what to say,” Busch said on USA Network. “I’m flabbergasted. I just feel so bad for my guys. They don’t deserve to be in this spot. They worked too hard, were too good of a group to be this low, down on the bottom and fighting for our lives just to make it through. Two engine failures in three weeks. That’ll do to you…This is not our normal.”
When the race restarted with 224 laps remaining, Bell cleared Byron to retain the lead as Larson went to work on teammate Byron for the runner-up spot followed by teammate Elliott and Harvick. Just as the front-runners were approaching Turns 3 and 4, the caution quickly returned for a multi-car wreck that started when Suarez got loose entering the backstretch as he clipped Stenhouse and spun, thus igniting carnage that collected teammate Chastain, Austin Dillon, Gilliland, Cindric, Elliott, Cassill, Burton, Briscoe, Reddick and Bowman, who retired after busting the radiator from his No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, while Blaney, who returned to the track and was more than 150 laps down, was able to dodge the carnage.
When the race restarted with 214 laps remaining, Bell outdueled Byron to remain as the leader as Larson and Keselowski overtook Byron for second and third. Behind, Harvick, faced in a “must-win” situation to advance to the Playoffs, was in fifth and Elliott made his way up to sixth in front of Buescher, McDowell and Logano.
With 200 laps remaining, Bell was leading by six-tenths of a second over Larson followed by Keselowski, Byron and Harvick while Elliott, Buescher, Logano, McDowell and AJ Allmendinger were in the top 10. Meanwhile, Hamlin, Chastain and Briscoe were running 12th through 14th while Reddick was mired back in 28th place and still undergoing repairs to his No. 8 Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Meanwhile, Austin Dillon, who was involved in the latest multi-car wreck, took his No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to the garage as he retired and failed to advance past the Round of 12.
Fifty-two laps later, the caution flew when Erik Jones fell off the pace through the backstretch after he cut a right-rear tire to his No. 43 Chevrolet. By then, Bell continued to lead by by half a second over Larson followed by Keselowski, Elliott and Buescher while Harvick, Logano, Byron, McDowell and Allmendinger were in the top 10. In addition, Reddick, who found himself five points outside of the top-12 cutline to advance to the Playoffs, made another pit stop as his No. 8 pit crew went under the hood.
Under caution, the leaders led by Bell pitted and Larson emerged with the lead after beating Bell off of pit road in first place.
During the following restart with 140 laps remaining, Larson retained the lead over Bell while Keselowski launched a challenge on Bell for second place as the field scattered and jostled for positions. By then, Reddick, who was in 28th and 29 laps down, was scored four points behind Kyle Busch for the 12th and final transfer spot to the Playoffs.
With less than 120 laps remaining, Larson was leading ahead of Keselowski, Bell, Harvick and Buescher while Logano, Byron, Elliott, Allmendinger and Custer occupied the top 10. By then, Hamlin was in 11th, Chastain and Briscoe were in 14th and 15th, Suarez was back in 22nd, Cindric was in 25th and Reddick was in 28th. Blaney, meanwhile, was in 35th after he overtook a retired Truex.
Down to the final 100 laps of the event, Keselowski, who overtook Larson for the lead following a slide job 12 laps earlier, was leading by six-tenths of a second over Larson while Bell, Harvick and Buescher remained in the top five. By then, six of 16 Playoff contenders were scored in the top 10.
Not long after, Logano, who is guaranteed a spot in the Round of 12, made an unscheduled pit stop to address a flat right-front tire to his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang.
Then wit 87 laps remaining, disaster struck for Keselowski, who lost a right-front tire entering Turn 3 after he popped a right-front tire to his No. 6 Ford Mustang. With Keselowski limping his car back to pit road, the race remained under green as Bell returned to the lead followed by Larson, Harvick, Buescher and Elliott.
With less than 70 laps remaining, Bell remained as the leader by three-tenths of a second over Larson and more than a second over third-place Harvick while Buescher and Elliott remained in the top five. By then, pole-sitter Almirola took his car to the garage due to a power steering issue.
Down to the final 64 laps, however, the caution flew when Bell cut a right-rear tire as he lost the lead to Larson and fell off the pace through the backstretch, though he remained in second place in front of Harvick. During the caution period, the leaders led by Larson and including Bell pitted. Following the pit stops, Buescher emerged with the lead following a two-tire pit stop followed by Elliott, Byron, Larson and Allmendinger, all of whom elected for four fresh tires. During the pit stops, disaster struck for both Harvick and Hamlin after both encountered loose wheels that stalled their progress towards the front. For Harvick, he had fallen back to 10th after he backed his car back to his pit stall due to his left-front tire not being secured. For Hamlin, he was back in 11th after he had a loose left-rear wheel that needed to be tightened while trying to exit his pit stall.
With 57 laps remaining and with the field restarting under green, Buescher retained the lead while teammates Byron and Elliott battled for second in front of Larson, Bell and Allmendinger.
Sixteen laps later and with 40 laps remaining, Buescher stabilized his advantage to nearly nine-tenths of a second over Elliott while Byron, Larson and Bell battled for third. By then, Cindric, who took the wave around and was up in 21st while six laps behind, drew himself into a one-point advantage over Kyle Busch for the 12th and final transfer spot to the Round of 12. In addition, Logano retired due to a suspension issue.
Another 20 laps later, Buescher, who was navigating his way through lapped traffic, continued to lead by seven-tenths of a second over Elliott. Behind, Byron and Bell trailed by more than a second while fifth-place Larson trailed by more than two seconds. Meanwhile, Chastain was in sixth while Hamlin and Harvick were mired back in ninth and 10th.
Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Buescher was ahead by eight-tenths of a second over Elliott while Byron continued to fend off Bell for third place.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Buescher remained as the leader by four-tenths of a second over Elliott’s No. 9 Hooters Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Despite encountering more lapped traffic for a final circuit, Buescher was able to maintain a reasonable gap to Elliott as he returned to the frontstretch and claimed his first checkered flag in six years.
The Bristol victory was Buescher’s second in the Cup Series and first since he claimed his first career win in the rain-shortened event at Pocono Raceway in August 2016. He also became the 19th different winner through 29 scheduled events of the 2022 Cup season and the 139th different competitor to achieve multiple victories in NASCAR’s premier series. In addition, Buescher recorded the first NASCAR victory for Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing since the organization last won at Daytona International Speedway in July 2017, their first since the team was rebranded to RFK Racing and the first Cup victory for crew chief Scott Graves.
With Buescher’s victory, this marked the first time since the Playoff-elimination format debuted in 2014 where a Playoff round’s three events were swept by non-title contenders after Erik Jones and Bubba Wallace won the previous two Round of 16 events.
Photo by Jim Barnes for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“Man, this is just so special,” Buescher said on the frontstretch. “This team did such a great job. First Cup win for [sponsor] Fastenal for a points-paying race. That’s awesome. Glad to have Fastenal onboard tonight. Just so special here at Bristol. I love this racetrack. I love the fans. I love every time we come here. It’s so special. [I] Lost one [at Bristol] that really broke our heart back in 2015 on the Xfinity side with [Scott] Graves atop the pit box. This makes up for that. That’s pretty awesome. Pretty special.”
“It was up to me at that point [during the final restart],” Buescher added. “Just hold on and make it work. We really had a fast Fastenal Mustang. Just so proud of everybody. We knew we had a good race car after practice. [I] Didn’t quite get the job done in qualifying, but what a race car. It’s special. Get [Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing] in Victory Lane for the first time. We had great race cars. Brad [Keselowski] had really good speed, too. I don’t know what else to say. I’m out of breath. This place will wear you flat out and I love that about it, but such a special night. This [race] is number one on the list right here. This is it.”
Meanwhile, Elliott rallied from qualifying 23rd to finish in second place for his 11th top-five result of the season while Byron, Bell and Larson completed the top five on the track. All four are among 12 competitors to advance to the Playoff’s Round of 12.
“I wasn’t close enough to do anything with [Buescher],” Elliott said. “We had a long day yesterday. [I] Was able to battle back for a bad qualifying effort to get a top two [finish. Proud of that. Glad to be moving on [in the Playoffs]. Looking forward to some more opportunities in these coming weeks.”
Playoff contender Chastain came home in sixth while Allmendinger, Custer, Hamlin and Harvick completed the top 10 on the track.
When all was said and done on the track, drivers Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, Ross Chastain, Kyle Larson, William Byron, Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe, Alex Bowman, Daniel Suarez and rookie Austin Cindric transferred to the Round of 12 in the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Meanwhile, Kyle Busch, Tyler Reddick, Austin Dillon and Kevin Harvick were eliminated from title contention for the 2022 season.
For Cindric, good fortune was on the rookie’s side in spite of the early unscheduled pit stop for a flat right-front tire. With a multitude of Playoff contenders also running into on-track issues throughout the night, Cindric’s 20th-place result was enough for him to claim the 12th and final transfer spot to the Round of 12 by two points over both Kyle Busch and Reddick.
“That was easy, right?” Cindric said. “[I] Came in plus two [points] and leave plus two. Just how we drew it up. What a night. We had right-front tires going down left and right from the beginning of the race. To get all of us into the Round of 12 after a very scary night for Team Penske, proud to do my job and hang in there. Got that one out.”
For Harvick, the final pit stop prior to the final restart was the endgame of his hopes of transferring to the Round of 16 as he left Bristol mired in 16th place in the standings and without an opportunity to contend for a second championship despite rallying for a 10th-place result.
“It was pretty tough,” Harvick said. “We pitted in front of [Buescher], so just kind of the way the year has gone. [I] Just went from having a chance to lead the parade to being a part of the parade. Just difficult to pass.”
The night was also adventurous for both Blaney and Reddick, both of whom encountered on-track issues of their own from start to finish. In the end, Blaney managed to work his way to 30th place in the final leaderboard and transfer to the Round of 12 while Reddick failed to transfer to the Round of 12 by two points for a second consecutive season.
“Lucky to get in, I guess,” Blaney said. “We were really fast early and just had a right front [tire] go down like almost everybody else in the race. We just hit the wall a little bit harder than some other guys. Spent a long time fixing [the car], but was able to get back out. We built a good enough gap the first two [Playoff] races to give ourselves a bit of a cushion and then, some guys had their issues tonight. Pretty crazy turn of events, for sure. Good perseverance by this No. 12 group. Looking forward to getting into Texas.”
“Frustrating, for sure,” Reddick said. “We unloaded in the race and just quite didn’t have the pace or the balance to make our car better. Unfortunately, with the balance issues we were fighting, we were pretty much limited. We couldn’t really adjust on it without hurting the downforce of the car, overall. We were kind of boxed in. Then, we just got collected in that accident back there. I checked up in time, but yeah, I got absolutely ran over from there. Caught the right front and broke the upper control arm for the second week in a row.”
There were 12 lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured 11 cautions for 80 laps.
Results.
1. Chris Buescher, 169 laps led
2. Chase Elliott
3. William Byron
4. Christopher Bell, 143 laps led, Stage 2 winner
5. Kyle Larson, 34 laps led
6. Ross Chastain
7. AJ Allmendinger
8. Cole Custer
9. Denny Hamlin
10. Kevin Harvick
11. Michael McDowell
12. Justin Haley
13. Brad Keselowski, one lap down, 109 laps led, Stage 1 winner
14. Chase Briscoe, two laps down
15. Corey LaJoie, three laps down
16. Harrison Burton, three laps down
17. Cody Ware, three laps down
18. Todd Gilliland, four laps down
19. Daniel Suarez, six laps down
20. Austin Cindric, seven laps down
21. Erik Jones, eight laps down
22. Landon Cassill, eight laps down
23. JJ Yeley, nine laps down
24. BJ McLeod, nine laps down
25. Tyler Reddick, 31 laps down
26. Ty Dillon – OUT, Steering
27. Joey Logano – OUT, Suspension
28. Aric Almirola – OUT, Steering, 36 laps led
29. Bubba Wallace, 92 laps down
30. Ryan Blaney, 162 laps down, nine laps led
31. Austin Dillon – OUT, Dvp
32. Alex Bowman – OUT, Accident
33. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – OUT, Accident
34. Kyle Busch – OUT, Engine
35. Ty Gibbs – OUT, Steering
36. Martin Truex Jr. – OUT, Steering
*Bold indicates Playoff contenders
Playoff standings
1. Chase Elliott – Advanced
2. Joey Logano – Advanced
3. Ross Chastain – Advanced
4. Kyle Larson – Advanced
5. William Byron – Advanced
6. Denny Hamlin – Advanced
7. Christopher Bell – Advanced
8. Ryan Blaney – Advanced
9. Chase Briscoe – Advanced
10. Alex Bowman – Advanced
11. Daniel Suarez – Advanced
12. Austin Cindric – Advanced
13. Kyle Busch – Eliminated
14. Tyler Reddick – Eliminated
15. Austin Dillon – Eliminated
16. Kevin Harvick – Eliminated
The Round of 12 in the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs will commence next weekend at Texas Motor Speedway for a 500-mile feature on Sunday, September 25. The event is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. ET on USA Network.
ASHLEY, CAPPS BEGIN COUNTDOWN WITH STRONG QUALIFYING EFFORTS Team Toyota’s top Countdown seeds each start second for eliminations
MOHNTON, Penn. (September 17, 2022) – Justin Ashley led Toyota in qualifying for the Pep Boys Nationals with a second-place effort in the Top Fuel class at Pennsylvania’s Maple Grove Raceway. Ashley is Toyota’s top-seed in the Top Fuel Countdown for the Championship and has earned four straight top-three qualifying efforts. Team Toyota’s Steve Torrence (fifth), Doug Kalitta (seventh) and Antron Brown (eighth) joined Ashley inside the top-half of the qualified field.
In Funny Car, Ron Capps closed the Saturday qualifying effort with his strongest run of the weekend – a 3.878 – to move him to second on the final qualifying grid. Capps earned three bonus points in the session to add to the bonus point he earned in Friday evening’s session. J.R. Todd also closed with a strong run to qualify his Toyota GR Supra Funny Car inside the top-half of the field in sixth.
Toyota Post-Qualifying Recap NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Maple Grove Raceway Race 17 of 22
TOYOTA TOP FUEL QUALIFYING POSITIONS
Name
Car
Qualifying Position
First Round Opponent
Brittany Force*
Monster Energy Top Fuel Dragster
1st (3.696)
Ferre
Justin Ashley
Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel Dragster
2nd (3.703)
Chatterson
Steve Torrence
Capco Contractors Toyota Top Fuel Dragster
5th (3.711)
Langdon
Doug Kalitta
CMR Roofing & Construction Toyota Top Fuel Dragster
7th (3.724)
Pruett
Antron Brown
Matco Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster
8th (3.731)
Hart
Shawn Langdon
DHL Toyota Top Fuel Dragster
12th (3.801)
Torrence
(*non-Toyota driver)
TOYOTA FUNNY CAR QUALIFYING POSITIONS
Name
Car
Qualifying Position
First Round Opponent
Robert Hight*
AAA of Southern California Chevy Camaro FC*
1st (3.867)
Bye
Ron Capps
NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota GR Supra Funny Car
2nd (3.878)
Burkhart
J.R. Todd
DHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car
6th (3.912)
Green
Alexis DeJoria
Bandero Tequila Toyota GR Supra Funny Car
10th (3.966)
Wilkerson
(*non-Toyota driver)
TOYOTA QUOTES
RON CAPPS, NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota GR Supra Funny Car, Ron Capps Motorsports
FC Qualifying Result: 2nd
How do you approach race day?
“Great question. This place is historic for breaking your heart or making you feel so good. It’s the start of the Countdown obviously and so happy the fans came out like they did, it’s unbelievable. Robert (Hight) and I brag about it all the time. We have the two best seats in the house for some of the best runs, especially side-by-side stuff like this. Great job by Guido (Dean Antonelli) and John Medlen (crew chiefs) and the NAPA Auto Care team. Anytime I don’t see that whole car (Hight’s) out next to me, I know we’re running pretty well. The Countdown is going to be this same, exact stuff for all six races. All races and all qualifying. I hope I see a lot more of him (Hight) qualifying at the back of the pack. It’s going to be a lot of fun. Thank you to the fans, love you guys.”
JUSTIN ASHLEY, Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel Dragster, Davis Motorsports
TF Qualifying Result: 2nd
How were your qualifying efforts?
“It’s been a really good weekend for our team so far. Going into race day in the no. 2 position is really important just to try to position ourselves well. The way the depth of the Top Fuel field is – there is no easy matchups top-to-bottom, nonetheless, we feel good about where slotted in heading into race day. It’s the Countdown, so every run counts. Just proud of this Phillips Connect team. Mike Green, Tommy DeLago (crew chiefs) are doing a great job, and now that Friday and Saturday is behind us, we are focused on final eliminations.”
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 60 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 43 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 the more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, more than a quarter of the company’s 2021 North American sales were electrified.
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.
BRISTOL, Tenn. (Sept. 16, 2022) — Make it three in a row for Noah Gragson, who has built enormous momentum as the NASCAR Xfinity Series moves into its seven-race Playoff.
On 90-lap older tires, Gragson held off Brandon Jones, the driver who will take his seat in the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet next year, in a 20-lap green-flag run to the finish of Friday night’s Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
The victory was Gragson’s third straight in the series, his sixth of the season and the 11th of his career.
The race also settled the series Playoff picture. Despite power-steering issues, Daniel Hemric clinched one of the two available spots in the 12-driver Playoff field with a 20th-place finish. Ryan Sieg claimed the final berth, finishing 10th—his first top-10 run in 16 Bristol starts—after brake issues sent Landon Cassill to the garage for 112 laps and relegated him to 35th.
AJ Allmendinger clinched his second straight Regular Season Championship with a sixth-place result.
When J.J. Yeley slammed the inside wall after slight contact from race leader Justin Allgaier, on Lap 271, Gragson and crew chief Luke Lambert opted to stay on the track while all the other lead-lap cars pitted for fresh tires.
After the restart on Lap 281, Gragson pulled out to a one-second lead before Jones began to close the gap on new rubber. Jones got to Gragson’s bumper but couldn’t find a way past the No. 9 Chevrolet. Gragson crossed the finish line .145 seconds ahead of Jones’ No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
“That last caution came out, and I knew if I could ring the top, it was going to be hard for them to get there,” said Gragson, who will graduate to a full-time NASCAR Cup Series ride with Petty GMS in 2023. “I appreciate Brandon Jones racing us clean. He gave us the bumper with two (laps) to go, and I was hanging on, scrubbing the fence.
“We won here in Bristol in 2020 and there were no fans here (because of the coronavirus pandemic)… What a great opportunity to race here in front of fans and have the opportunity to win the race. Our car was fast all day. We got to the top and we were rolling. I had a blast.”
A rueful Jones provided a post-mortem of the event on pit road.
“This one hurt the most because this was our race to lose, I thought,” Jones said. “Fresher tires certainly paid off there at the end. I just caught him (Gragson) at the wrong time every time.”
Gragson’s stiffest competition—his JR Motorsports teammate Justin Allgaier—wasn’t at the front of the field for the ending. Allgaier led the procession of lead-lap cars to pit road when Gragson stayed out, but a speeding penalty sent him to the rear of the field for the final restart.
“I know what happened; I didn’t really think I was speeding, but obviously I was,” said Allgaier, who has led 791 laps in his last seven Bristol races without winning. “I just hate it for everybody. It was cool for (Noah) to get the win. I cannot believe that they were able to stay out there and still run the speed they were.
“I love to hate this place. I’m close to 1,000 career laps led here (actually 1,004) and only one win, and that was over 10 years ago (2010). So, I’ve just got to do a better job next time.”
Allgaier led a race-high 148 laps on Friday, to 89 for Ty Gibbs, 34 for Sheldon Creed and 25 for Gragson.
Gragson also was instrumental in changing the complexion of the race in the middle of Stage 2. Pole winner Gibbs had won the first stage wire-to-wire, but on Lap 129, while Gibbs and Creed were battling for the lead, contact from Gragson’s Chevrolet sent Gibbs’ Toyota into Creed’s Camaro.
Both Gibbs and Creed crashed hard into the outside wall and were eliminated from the race.
Austin Hill finished third, followed by Sam Mayer and Riley Herbst. Allmendinger, Josh Berry, Stefan Parsons, Allgaier and Sieg completed the top 10.
Story by NASCAR Newswire
NASCAR Xfinity Series Race – 41st Annual Food City 300 Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol, Tennessee Friday, September 16, 2022
(9) Noah Gragson, Chevrolet, 300. (11) Brandon Jones, Toyota, 300. (15) Austin Hill #, Chevrolet, 300. (5) Sam Mayer, Chevrolet, 300. (12) Riley Herbst, Ford, 300. (4) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 300. (2) Josh Berry, Chevrolet, 300. (14) Stefan Parsons(i), Chevrolet, 300. (3) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 300. (10) Ryan Sieg, Ford, 300. (20) Bayley Currey, Chevrolet, 300. (21) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Toyota, 300. (18) Anthony Alfredo, Chevrolet, 300. (6) Sammy Smith, Toyota, 299. (7) Jeb Burton, Chevrolet, 299. (19) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 299. (33) Kyle Weatherman, Chevrolet, 299. (31) Sage Karam, Chevrolet, 299. (28) Ryan Ellis, Chevrolet, 299. (8) Daniel Hemric, Chevrolet, 298. (30) Josh Williams, Chevrolet, 298. (36) Myatt Snider, Chevrolet, 298. (37) Joe Graf Jr, Ford, 298. (35) CJ McLaughlin, Ford, 297. (34) Kris Wright(i), Chevrolet, 297. (25) Alex Labbe, Chevrolet, 297. (23) Patrick Emerling, Chevrolet, 294. (32) Ronnie Bassett Jr, Chevrolet, 294. (24) Nicholas Sanchez, Chevrolet, 294. (27) David Starr, Ford, 293. (38) Bobby McCarty, Chevrolet, 288. (17) Mason Massey, Chevrolet, Oil Line, 271. (26) JJ Yeley, Toyota, Accident, 267. (29) BJ McLeod, Chevrolet, Brakes, 220. (16) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 188. (1) Ty Gibbs, Toyota, Accident, 129. (22) Sheldon Creed #, Chevrolet, Accident, 128. (13) Brandon Brown, Chevrolet, Accident, 45. Average Speed of Race Winner: 80.996 mph.
Time of Race: 1 Hrs, 58 Mins, 27 Secs. Margin of Victory: 0.145 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 8 for 58 laps.
Lead Changes: 6 among 5 drivers.
Lap Leaders: T. Gibbs 1-89;J. Allgaier 90;S. Creed # 91-124;J. Allgaier 125-175;B. Currey 176-179;J. Allgaier 180-275;N. Gragson 276-300.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Justin Allgaier 3 times for 148 laps; Ty Gibbs 1 time for 89 laps; Sheldon Creed # 1 time for 34 laps; Noah Gragson 1 time for 25 laps; Bayley Currey 1 time for 4 laps.
Herbst Powers His Way to Fifth at Bristol Resorts World Las Vegas Driver Overcomes Early Spin to Earn Sixth Top-Five of 2022
Date: Friday, Sept. 16 Event: Food City 300 (Round 26 of 33) Series: NASCAR Xfinity Series Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (.533-mile concrete oval) Format: 300 laps, broken into three stages (85 laps/85 laps/130 laps) Start/Finish: 12th / 5th (Running, completed 300 of 300 laps) Point Standing: 9th (711 points, 337 out of first)
Race Winner: Noah Gragson of JR Motorsports (Chevrolet) Stage 1 Winner: Ty Gibbs of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota) Stage 2 Winner: Justin Allgaier of JR Motorsports (Chevrolet)
Overview:
Riley Herbst and the No. 98 Resorts World Las Vegas team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) battled their way to a fifth-place finish in Friday night’s Food City 300, the NASCAR Xfinity Series regular-season finale, at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. After starting 12th, Herbst ran in the top-15 until contact with the No. 2 machine of Sheldon Creed on lap 14 sent him into a spin. He fell back to 33rd but wasted no time charging to the front of the pack. Herbst was 15th by the end of Stage 1 and entered the top-10 on lap 120. He earned six valuable stage points with a fifth-place finish in Stage 2. The Las Vegas native restarted ninth in the final stage and, during a hectic restart, maneuvered his way around the chaos to fifth. He struggled with the balance of his Ford Mustang from that point and fell back to sixth. When the caution flag flew on lap 272, crew chief Richard Boswell called his driver to pit road for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment to give Herbst what he needed for the final sprint to the finish. He restarted fifth with 20 laps to go and brought home his sixth top-five of 2022.
Riley Herbst, driver of the No. 98 Resorts World Las Vegas Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
“Man, our Ford Mustang was the best it had been all day at the end of the race. I wish we could’ve had a little more time and better track position, but I’m still proud of this No. 98 team for rebounding from that early spin for a top-five finish. I think we proved that we’re here to compete and capable of running up front. We’re turning our focus to the playoffs and Texas.”
Notes:
● Herbst earned his sixth top-five of the season and his second top-five in four career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Bristol.
● Herbst finished fifth in Stage 2 to earn six bonus points.
● This was Herbst’s third straight top-10 at Bristol. He finished third last September and 10th in September 2020.
● Noah Gragson won the Food City 300 to score his 11th career Xfinity Series victory, his sixth of the season, and his second at Bristol. His margin over second-place Brandon Jones was .145 of a second.
● Herbst finished the regular season ninth in the driver standings. He begins his third consecutive appearance in the 12-driver playoffs in the 11th position, three points behind the top-eight cutoff to advance to the next round.
● There were eight caution periods for a total of 58 laps.
● Only 13 of the 38 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
● AJ Allmendinger is the regular season champion. He won with a 53-point advantage over second-place Justin Allgaier.
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is the Andy’s Frozen Custard 300 on Sept. 24 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. It is the first race of the seven-race Xfinity Series Playoffs. The race starts at 3:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by USA and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Accident Ends Strong Run by Sheldon Creed, Whelen Team at Bristol Motor Speedway
Finish: 36th Start: 22nd Points: 14th
“I feel like we gave it a heck of a run the last few weeks. We started running top five, getting faster and almost won at Darlington Raceway. I thought the guys on the Whelen team did really well with adjustments after practice and qualifying today wt a Bristol Motor Speedway and they were getting me in the game. I was trying to hang in there and go as long as I could for the start of Stage 3. I was on older tires but had the top rolling pretty good. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. The No. 9 got the No. 54 and then he got into me. Everyone at RCR and ECR have worked hard this season and they put so much effort into it. I’m proud of them.” -Sheldon Creed
Austin Hill and the No. 21 Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet Team Pick Up Strong Third-Place Finish at Bristol Motor Speedway
Finish: 3rd Start: 15th Points: 6th
“Man, I think if I didn’t have that damage on the front, we could have rallied back and won that thing tonight in the Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet. We didn’t have a great practice or qualifying session and I started the race extremely tight. We made it through the first stage and then my team gave me a big adjustment and the car was much better. My spotter got me through some crazy incidents on the track and we were there in the right place at the end. Unfortunately, I got into the back of the 19 with nowhere to go and that gave us damage on the nose. I’ll take a third-place finish and now we have positive momentum heading into the first race of the Playoffs at Texas. I’m proud of this team and everyone at RCR and ECR. We’re ready to win in the Playoffs.” -Austin Hil
JONES EARNS RUNNER-UP FINISH AT BRISTOL Brandon Jones and Ty Gibbs officially advance to the Xfinity Playoffs
BRISTOL, Tenn. (September 16, 2022) – Brandon Jones scored a runner-up finish to lead Toyota in the NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday evening. Jones and Ty Gibbs officially advance to the NXS Playoffs. Gibbs is the second overall seed with Jones in seventh.
Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap NASCAR Xfinity Series Bristol Motor Speedway Race 26 of 33 – 159.9 miles, 300 laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS 1st, Noah Gragson* 2nd, BRANDON JONES 3rd, Austin Hill* 4th, Sam Mayer* 5th, Riley Herbst* 12th, JEFFREY EARNHARDT 14th, SAMMY SMITH 33rd, JJ YELEY 35th, TY GIBBS *non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
BRANDON JONES, No. 19 Menards/Jeld-Wen Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 2nd
Would you have played the last laps differently if it wasn’t your ride for next season?
“It didn’t even cross my mind at the time. This one hurts the most just because it was our race to win, I felt like. We battled so many things tonight adversity wise, and just kept coming back. It was really cool to look at our race as a whole to see where it started to see where it ended for us. Really thought when the 7 (Justin Allgaier) sped – I thought easy, piece of cake, we’ve got him easy, but the bottom didn’t take off great, but those newer, fresher tires certainly paid a dividend at the end. I just caught him at the wrong time, every single time. I could get in deeper into the corner, and I could kind of get him in the middle, but I could never get him at the exit. I had maybe two times where I had a shot maybe to try to get in his left rear, try to get him loose. I put maximum pressure on him. I gave it everything I had today, so that’s always a great thing to say that you’ve done. Big thanks to Jeld-Wen, Menards – so much they have done for my career. Toyota, this year has been really great, really special for me to be a part of it. We are getting close to the Playoffs – this is the last one, so we are going to start doing that. Just a lot of momentum with these last couple of races that we had here lately. We are ready to light the wick for the Playoffs.”
Would you have put the bumper to Noah Gragson if you could have gotten to him in the closing laps?
“This one hurts. I wanted this one really, really bad tonight. I fought a lot of adversity, a lot of odd things I’ve never had happened, I had happen tonight in the car and I had to fight through a lot of stuff early on. It was a blessing for us, not for the 7 (Justin Allgaier) that he sped, but one more spot that I didn’t have to deal with. Tried to give it multiple shots and obviously we’re switching to that group at some point, but that wasn’t even in my mindset in the middle of the race to try to knock them out of the way and try to get the win. This group still has a few more that are overdue and Bristol owes me one man. I’ve been so close here so many times. This was a good testament to these guys today. I can’t thank Toyota enough for everything they’ve done for me this year and in the past. Jeld-Wen, they came on this year and Menards as they have done so much. We’re close. This is right now the time to start turning this season around because the Playoffs are here. The last couple weeks have been great. Two second place finishes at Bristol in the weekend and can’t be too upset with that.”
TY GIBBS, No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 35th
How disappointed are you?
“Very disappointed. We had a very fast Monster Energy GR Supra. I was excited for the rest of the race. Thank you to Mitch Covington (Monster Energy) and Interstate Batteries. If it was God’s plan for us to win tonight, we would’ve. I feel like the guys made a really good progress over the last year from this car, from what we had last year. I felt like we were a little off last race here last September. We came back and I feel like we were one of the fastest, so very thankful for that.”
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 60 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 43 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 the more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, more than a quarter of the company’s 2021 North American sales were electrified.
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.
In a late attrition between two Xfinity Series regulars to cap off the regular-season stretch on a strong note, Noah Gragson came out of top over a late battle against Brandon Jones to win the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday, September 16.
The 24-year-old Gragson from Las Vegas, Nevada, led the final 25 laps and benefitted through a 20-lap dash to the finish while on old tires to fend off a hard-charging Jones and capture his sixth NASCAR Xfinity Series victory of the season and third in a row in recent weeks at Thunder Valley. The victory enabled Gragson to collect additional bonus points toward the 2022 Xfinity Series Playoffs as he commences the pursuit of his first NASCAR national touring series championship.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, Ty Gibbs claimed his fifth career pole position and fourth of the season after posting a pole-winning lap at 122.584 mph in 15.563 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Josh Berry, who posted the second-best qualifying lap at 122.100 mph in 15.715 seconds.
Prior to the event, Joe Graf Jr. and Stefan Parsons dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective cars.
When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Gibbs and Berry dueled for the lead while AJ Allmendinger, who started fourth, briefly went up the track and struggled to come up to pace after having a gear shifting issue. By the completion of the first lap, he was mired back in eighth while Gibbs was out in front ahead of Berry, Justin Allgaier, Sammy Smith, Sam Mayer and Daniel Hemric.
On the fifth lap, the first caution flew when Nick Sanchez blew a right-front tire entering the backstretch as he fell off the pace and managed to keep the No. 48 Big Machine Racing Chevrolet Camaro off the wall. At the moment of caution, Gibbs was out in front by more than a second followed by Berry, Allgaier, Sammy Smith and Mayer while Jeb Burton, Ryan Sieg, Noah Gragson, Daniel Hemric and Brandon Jones were in the top 10.
When the event restarted under green on Lap 10, Gibbs launched ahead with the lead while Allgaier moved his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro into the runner-up spot over teammate Berry. Behind, Mayer rocketed his No. 1 Huck’s Market Chevrolet Camaro into fourth place after overtaking Smith while Jeb Burton was in sixth ahead of a side-by-side battle between Gragson and Brandon Jones.
Three laps later, however, the caution returned when Riley Herbst made contact against rookie Sheldon Creed’s No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Camaro entering Turn 4 while battling for a spot in the top 15 as he spun before his No. 98 Resorts World Ford Mustang went below the apron and continued without sustaining any significant damage.
During the following restart on Lap 18, Gibbs rocketed away with another strong restart in his No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Supra while Allgaier fended off teammate Berry for the runner-up spot. Behind, Sammy Smith maneuvered his No. 18 Pilot Flying J Toyota Supra around Mayer for fourth while Gragson battled Jeb Burton for sixth place.
Through the first 25 scheduled laps, Gibbs was leading by nearly a second over Allgaier followed by Berry, Smith and Mayer while Gragson, Jeb Burton, Brandon Jones, Hemric and Landon Cassill were in the top 10. By then, Allmendinger was black in 11th ahead of Ryan Sieg, rookie Austin Hill, Creed and Jeremy Clements while Anthony Alfredo, Bayley Currey, Brandon Brown, Jeffrey Earnhardt and JJ Yeley were in the top 20.
Eleven laps later, the caution flew when Sanchez spun in Turn 4 as this marked his second incident of the night. During the caution period, few names like Brandon Jones, whose window net was loose, and Creed pitted while the rest led by Gibbs remained on the track.
When the race proceeded under green on Lap 41, Gibbs and Allgaier dueled for the lead through the first two turns until Gibbs managed to clear and fend off Allgaier with the lead. Behind, a trio of JR Motorsports competitors including Berry, Gragson and Mayer battled for third while Jeb Burton retained sixth ahead of Allmendinger, Smith, Hemric and Hill.
Four laps later, the caution returned when Brandon Brown got loose entering the backstretch as he spun, pounded the inside wall and damaged the rear end of his car.
Another five laps later, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gibbs and Allgaier dueled for the lead again through the first two turns before Gibbs retained the top spot on the outside lane in Turn 2. Behind, Gragson was in third followed by teammates Berry and Merry while Allmendinger was locked in a battle with Jeb Burton and Hemric for sixth.
By Lap 60, Gibbs continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over Allgaier while Gragson, Berry, Mayer, Allmendinger, Jeb Burton, Hemric, Smith and Ryan Sieg were running in the top 10. Meanwhile, Austin Hill was in 11th followed by Cassill, Clements, Currey and Kyle Weatherman while Creed, Herbst and Brandon Jones were in 20th, 21st and 24th, respectively.
Fifteen laps later and at the Lap 75 mark, Gibbs stabilized his advantage to less than half a second over Allgaier, who kept teammate Gragson behind in his rearview mirror, while Mayer and Berry remained in the top five. Behind, Allmendinger retained sixth as he was slowly catching Berry for position.
When the first stage concluded on Lap 85, Gibbs, who had to navigate his way through lapped traffic while also keeping Allgaier behind him, captured his sixth stage victory of the 2022 season. Allgaier settled in second while Gragson, Mayer, Allmendinger, Berry, Jeb Burton, Hemric, Cassill and Ryan Sieg were scored in the top 10. By then, Creed was mired in 17th as he was unable to record a stage point in the first stage compared to his rivals (Hemric, Cassill and Sieg) vying for the final Playoff berths.
Under the stage break, nearly the entire field led by Gibbs pitted while Creed and Jeffrey Earnhardt remained on the track.
The second stage started on Lap 94 as Creed and Jeffrey Earnhardt occupied the front row. At the start, Creed took off with the lead on the outside lane followed by Gibbs and Allgaier while Earnhardt struggled to launch on the inside lane. During the following lap, Allgaier overtook Gibbs for the runner-up spot before he went to work on Creed for the lead.
Soon after, a tight side-by-side battle for the lead between Creed and Allgaier ignited as Creed refused to give up the top spot. With both competitors refusing to give up and making contact, Creed managed to pull away with a steady lead of half a second while Allgaier was being challenged by Gibbs for the runner-up spot.
At the Lap 110 mark, Creed was leading by a tenth of a second over Allgaier followed by Gibbs, Mayer and Gragson while Brandon Jones, Smith, Allmendinger, Earnhardt and Hill were in the top 10. By then, Cassill, who came into the event holding the final transfer spot to the Playoffs, made an unscheduled pit stop under green. Soon after, Cassill, who then had smoke coming out of the right front of his No. 10 Voyager Chevrolet Camaro upon returning to the track with the driver reporting a brake hub issue, took his car to the garage as his Playoff hopes were placed in jeopardy.
Fifteen laps later, Allgaier prevailed in his intense battle with Creed as he moved into the lead while Creed was left to fend off Gibbs and Gragson for the runner-up spot. Another three laps later, however, disaster struck for Creed when Gragson bumped into the rear of Gibbs as Gibbs went up the track and collided with Creed and both competitors smacked the outside wall hard in Turn 2. The wreck was enough to eliminate Creed from the event as his hopes of making the Playoffs evaporated. Gibbs was also eliminated from the event while Gragson continued.
When the race proceeded under green on Lap 138, Allgaier took off with the lead on the outside lane while teammate Gragson retained the runner-up spot in front of Brandon Jones, who was racing on two fresh tires. Soon after, Mayer bolted his way into third place while Allmendinger went to work in battling Jones for fourth.
At the halfway mark on Lap 150, Allgaier was leading by more than half a second over teammate Gragson followed by Mayer, Allmendinger and Brandon Jones while Hill, Herbst, Jeb Burton, Hemric and Smith were in the top 10. Meanwhile, Ryan Sieg was in 12th in front of Berry, who got into the outside wall earlier, while Cassill was still mired in 37th and undergoing repairs in the garage.
Ten laps later, Allgaier extended his advantage to nine-tenths of a second over teammate Gragson while Mayer, Allmendinger and Brandon Jones remained in the top five. By then, Sieg remained in Playoff contention as he was in 13th place.
Then with four laps remaining in the second stage, the caution flew when Mayer, who tried to pull a three-wide move on both CJ McLaughlin and JJ Yeley, entering Turn 1, made contact with Yeley as both spun through the turn and below the apron while being dodged by Gragson.
The incident involving Mayer was enough for the second stage to conclude on Lap 170 as Allgaier captured his eighth stage victory of the 2022 season. Teammate Gragson settled in second while Allmendinger, Brandon Jones, Herbst, Hill, Jeb Burton, Hemric, Mayer and Sammy Smith were scored in the top 10. By then, Hemric and Sieg, who settled in 11th, were above the top-12 cutline while Cassill remained in the garage and in 37th place. In addition, Allmendinger locked up the 2022 Xfinity Series regular-season championship for a second consecutive season.
Under the stage break, nearly the entire field led by Allgaier pitted and Allgaier retained the lead after exiting pit road first followed by Gragson, Brandon Jones, Hill, Allmendinger and Herbst. Back on the track, however, Bayley Currey and Joe Graf Jr. remained on the track.
With 121 laps remaining, the final stage started under green as Currey and Graf occupied the front row. At the start, Currey launched ahead followed by Allgaier while Graf struggled to get up to speed on the inside lane. When the field returned to the frontstretch, Allgaier navigated his way around Currey as he reassumed the lead. Shortly after, Brandon Jones moved into second place while Currey retained third ahead of Hill, Herbst and Gragson.
Down to the final 100 laps of the event, Allgaier retained as the leader by a tenth of a second over future teammate Brandon Jones while Currey, Hill and Gragson were scored in the top five. By then, Sieg was in 10th on the track behind Hemric and scored six points above the cutline over Cassill, who was in 37th place and more than 90 laps down.
Twenty-five laps later, Allgaier extended his advantage to more than a second over Brandon Jones, who started to have Hill pressure him for the runner-up spot, while Gragson and Herbst were running in the top five. Behind, Allmendinger was in sixth ahead of Mayer, Ryan Sieg, Currey and Stefan Parsons. By then, Cassill, who was back on the track, was 112 laps behind the leaders while Sieg continued to hold possession of the 12th and final transfer spot to the Playoffs. Hemric, who was back in 15th, also continued to remain above the top-12 cutline.
With less than 60 laps remaining, Gragson overtook Brandon Jones for the runner-up spot while Allgaier continued to extend his advantage to more than two seconds. By then, Hemric, who was mired back in 22nd and off the lead lap category, was reporting power steering issues to his No. 11 AG1 Chevrolet Camaro.
Down to the final 35 laps of the event, the battle for the lead started to intensify as Gragson closed in to the rear bumper of teammate Allgaier in his bid for the lead.
Then with 30 laps remaining, the caution flew when Yeley, who made contact with the leader Allgaier as Allgaier was trying to lap Yeley and Alex Labbe with a three-wide move, spun and pounded the inside wall in the backstretch as his event came to an end. During the caution period, some led by Allgaier pitted while the rest led by Gragson remained on the track Following the pit stops, Allgaier and Jeffrey Earnhardt were sent to the rear of the field for speeding on pit road.
With 20 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gragson rocketed his No. 9 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro to the lead ahead of Brandon Jones’ No. 19 Menards Toyota Supra while Hill started to challenge Jones for the runner-up spot. Behind, Herbst was in fourth followed by Mayer, Berry, Stefan Parsons and Ryan Sieg, who was trying to finish the event to make the Playoffs.
Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Gragson stabilized his advantage to seven-tenths of a second over Brandon Jones followed by Hill, Herbst and Berry while Sieg remained in ninth and in contention to make the Playoffs.
With five laps remaining, a tight battle for the lead ignited between Gragson and Brandon Jones, with the former remaining out in front by a hair over the latter as both also navigated his way through lapped traffic.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Gragson retained the lead by a tenth of a second over Brandon Jones. Entering Turn 3, Jones gained a strong run on Gragson in a final bid for the lead, but the run was not enough as Gragson retained the top spot. From here, he made his way back to the frontstretch and beat Jones to the finish line by a tenth of a second to grab his sixth checkered flag of the 2022 season and his third in a row in recent weeks.
With the victory, Gragson achieved his 11th career win in the Xfinity Series, his second at Thunder Valley and the 12th victory of the season for JR Motorsports. By accumulating six victories along with a bevy of points throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch, he will commence the Playoffs with the top seed and with 2,051 points as he pursues his quest of winning his first Xfinity title.
Photo by Jim Barnes for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“Man, three [wins] in a row,” Gragson said on USA Network. “That last caution came out. I knew if we could bring the top [lane], it was gonna be hard for [Jones] to get there. [I] Appreciate Brandon Jones for racing us clean. He fed us the bumper with two [laps] to go. I was hanging on, scrubbing the fence, but we won here at Bristol in 2020. There was no fans here. This is 10 times cooler. [I] Appreciate you, Bristol. Thank you, all you fans, for coming out. You guys are awesome. Man, I’m just so thankful. What a great opportunity to race here for our fans and having the opportunity to win a race. Man, our car was fast all day. Once we got out to the top, we were rolling. Man, I had a blast.”
Brandon Jones, who is set to join JR Motorsports to pilot the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro in 2023, trailed Gragson and his future ride to the finish line by a tenth of a second as he settled in second place for the second time of the season and for his sixth top-five result of the season. He will line up in seventh place in the Playoff standings with 2,010 points as he also commences his pursuit for his first Xfinity title.
“I thought this [loss] hurts the most just because that was our race to win,” Jones said. “We fought so many different things tonight, adversity-wise. [I] Just kept piling back up and kept coming back. It was really cool to look at our race, in particular, as a whole to see where it started to where it ended for us. [I] Really thought when [Allgaier] sped [on pit road], I was like, ‘Aw man. Easy piece of cake. We got it.’ The bottom [lane] didn’t take off great. I didn’t have a great restart, but those newer tires, fresher tires, certainly paid a dividend at the very end. I just caught [Gragson] at the wrong time every single time. I could get in deeper into the corner and I could get him to the middle, but I just could never get to the exit. I got him, maybe, two times where I had a shot to try and get to his left rear and try to get him loose. I put maximum pressure on him. [I] Gave it everything I had today. Man, there’s a lot of momentum. These last couple of races we’ve had has really kicked it up here lately, so we’re ready. “
Hill came home in third place followed by Mayer and Herbst, all of whom have made the 2022 Xfinity Playoffs. Allmendinger settled in sixth place while Berry, Stefan Parsons, Allgaier and Ryan Sieg completed the top 10 on the track.
By clinching the 2022 Xfinity Series regular-season championship and being awarded an additional 15-point bonus towards the Playoffs, Allmendinger became the first Xfinity competitor to achieve multiple regular-season titles and the first to do so in back-to-back seasons. He will now line up in fourth place in the Playoff standings with 2,032 points as he pursues his first NASCAR title.
Photo by Christian Gardner for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“[I’m] Really proud of everybody at Kaulig Racing,” Allmendinger said. “[I’m] Frustrated at myself tonight, but all in all, great to win the regular-season championship two years in a row. To finish top six today, [I] really had a really fast car at the end of the race there. On long runs, I thought we had a shot to win the race. Short runs, we struggled a little bit, but overall, great regular season. We got to get ready for the Playoffs. We’ve been struggling a little bit. Tonight was a little bit of a boost and hopefully, get ready for Texas.”
Sieg’s 10th-place run was enough for him to claim the 12th and final spot to the Playoffs by five points over Cassill, who could only climb his way to 35th place on the track while 112 laps behind the leaders. Hemric also made the Playoffs despite finishing 20th as he will pursue his quest to defend his series title.
Noah Gragson, Ty Gibbs, Justin Allgaier, AJ Allmendinger, Josh Berry, rookie Austin Hill, Brandon Jones, Jeremy Clements, Sam Mayer, Riley Herbst, Daniel Hemric and Ryan Sieg have made the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs.
Landon Cassill and rookie Sheldon Creed join names like Anthony Alfredo, Brandon Brown, Brett Moffitt, Jeb Burton, Myatt Snider and Alex Labbe as the remaining competitors who did not make the Playoffs.
There were six lead changes for five different leaders. The race featured eight cautions for 58 laps.
Results.
1. Noah Gragson, 25 laps led
2. Brandon Jones
3. Austin Hill
4. Sam Mayer
5. Riley Herbst
6. AJ Allmendinger
7. Josh Berry
8. Stefan Parsons
9. Justin Allgaier, 148 laps led, Stage 2 winner
10. Ryan Sieg
11. Bayley Currey, four laps led
12. Jeffrey Earnhardt
13. Anthony Alfredo
14. Sammy Smith, one lap down
15. Jeb Burton, one lap down
16. Jeremy Clements, one lap down
17. Kyle Weatherman, one lap down
18. Sage Karam, one lap down
19. Ryan Ellis, one lap down
20. Daniel Hemric, two laps down
21. Josh Williams, two laps down
22. Myatt Snider, two laps down
23. Joe Graf Jr., two laps down
24. CJ McLaughlin, three laps down
25. Kris Wright, three laps down
26. Alex Labbe, three laps down
27. Patrick Emerling, six laps down
28. Ronnie Bassett Jr., six laps down
29. Nick Sanchez, six laps down
30. David Starr, seven laps down
31. Bobby McCarty, 12 laps down
32. Mason Massey – OUT, Oil line
33. JJ Yeley – OUT, Accident
34. BJ McLeod – OUT, Brakes
35. Landon Cassill, 112 laps down
36. Ty Gibbs – OUT, Accident, 89 laps led, Stage 1 winner
37. Sheldon Creed – OUT, Accident, 34 laps led
38. Brandon Brown – OUT, Accident
The 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs is set to commence next weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. The event is scheduled to occur on Saturday, September 24, at 3:30 p.m. ET on USA Network.
At the start of the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday, September 16, all eyes were focused on Daniel Hemric, Landon Cassill, Ryan Sieg and rookie Sheldon Creed, all of whom were battling for the final two transfer spots to make the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs.
When the event concluded following 300 laps of intensity, carnage and chaos, Hemric and Sieg were left victorious as they claimed the final two spots to the Playoffs while Cassill and Creed were left on the outside of the Playoff picture. For Hemric and Sieg, their road to making the Playoffs did not come without drama from start to finish.
For Hemric, who rolled off the starting grid in eighth place, the majority of his event went smoothly as he claimed top-10 results in both stages and was initially poised for a top-10 run on the track. His event, however, briefly turned sour when he radioed power steering issues to his No. 11 AG1 Chevrolet Camaro and fell out of the lead lap category. Needing to finish to have an opportunity to defend his series, Hemric managed to accomplish his mission after surviving a 20-lap dash to the finish to finish 20th, two laps down, and claim the first of two vacant spots in the Playoffs.
With his accomplishment, Hemric, the reigning Xfinity Series champion, qualified for his fourth career appearance in the Xfinity Series Playoffs and his first with Kaulig Racing amid a difficult 2022 campaign, where he has recorded nine top-10 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch and is seeking his first victory of the season. Despite the on-track struggles, Hemric sets his sights on the Playoffs and turning the difficulties throughout the regular-season stretch into success for the Playoffs.
“All the money we spent training, it was worth every penny after [the race],” Hemric said on USA Network. “That was the toughest challenge I’ve ever experienced inside of a race car that 80 or 90-lap run, whatever it was. [I] Had a leak somewhere in the system. That caution with 15 [laps] to go, we got the [pit] stop and it took a full bottle and a half of power steering to have power steering back. Obviously, [I] just got to execute better on that. In the Playoffs, you can’t have issues like that. Thankfully, we are part of that. We got a lot of work to do to get this AG1 Camaro, this entire No. 11 team to be championship contenders. We’re gonna fight. We’re gonna continue to fight, go down swinging. Read to go battle.”
Perhaps there was no competitor smiling more on pit road in making the Playoffs than Sieg, who started Friday night’s event in 10th place. His road to the Playoffs started with drama three days earlier when the news from NASCAR emerged that Jeremy Clements, who was initially assessed an L2-level penalty for an intake manifold violation and was disqualified from the Playoffs despite winning at Daytona International Speedway in late August, was reinstated back into the Playoff picture after winning his appeal case. Clements’ reinstatement knocked Sieg back below the cutline as he trailed the top-12 cutline by 19 points behind Landon Cassill.
Throughout the event, however, good fortune struck Sieg, who leaped his way back inside the cutline during the second stage once Cassill took his No. 10 Voyager Chevrolet Camaro to the garage due to a mechanical issue just past the one-third mark of the event. With Cassill multiple laps down, all Sieg had to do was nurse his No. 39 A-Game Ford Mustang to the finish and with a strong on-track result. Despite enduring a total of eight caution periods and a 20-lap dash to the finish, Sieg accomplished his task as he finished in 10th place, which was enough to claim the 12th and final spot in the Playoffs by five points over Cassill.
With his accomplishment, Sieg, who is currently campaigning in his ninth full-time season in the Xfinity Series with his family-owned RSS Racing organization, qualified for the Playoffs for the fourth time in his career. He will now embark on a seven-race stretch to contend for his first NASCAR national touring series championship. He also continues to pursue his first NASCAR victory, having made 294 previous starts without recording a victory to his resume.
“It’s Bristol,” Sieg said. “You never know what can happen. “It’s a lot of fun racing on these short tracks. Too bad we didn’t add a couple next year, but all in all, just a great day for our CMR/A-Game Ford. Just grind it out and find ourselves going to the Playoffs. That’s amazing for our small team and we’ll have [crew chief] Cowboy [Starland] back in the Playoffs in his last year. We got a top 10 [finish]. First time here. It’s all turning around a little bit. We’ve struggled through the summer, but we’ve turned it around. Hopefully, we’re headed in the right direction for these Playoffs.”
The first competitor to be left outside of the Playoff picture following the regular-season stretch was Cassill, Hemric’s teammate. In his first season with Kaulig Racing and amid a roller coaster regular-season stretch, Cassill came into the event retaining the 12th and final spot to the Playoffs after recording nine top-10 results throughout the regular-season stretch. Despite rolling off the grid in 16th place and remaining within striking distance of a strong run to qualify for this first appearance in the Xfinity Playoffs, his championship hopes took a serious hit nearing the Lap 110 mark when he made an unscheduled pit stop under green.
Soon after, the night went from bad to worse for the Iowa native as he took his car to the garage with smoke coming out of his No. 10 Chevrolet due to an apparent mechanical issue involving the brake hub. By the time Cassill returned to the track, he was 112 laps behind the leaders and needed to either gain a bevy of spots below the leaderboard or have Sieg eliminated from the event. With Sieg managing to finish 10th, Cassill could only climb his way up to 35th place in the final leaderboard, which was not enough for him to retain his Playoff hopes for this season as he missed the cutline by five points. He will be the only Kaulig Racing competitor to not make the Playoffs while his teammates Hemric and AJ Allmendinger, the 2022 Xfinity regular-season champion, will contend for this year’s title.
Photo by Jim Barnes for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“[The event] was fine,” Cassill said. “We were fast enough and I was doing what I needed to do, and then we had a mechanical failure. I really don’t know what to say. We’ll just move forward from here.”
Another competitor who did not make the Playoffs was Creed, who rallied from a difficult start to his rookie campaign in the Xfinity circuit to endure a strong summer stretch to draw himself back into contention to make the Playoffs. Despite being 32 points below the cutline at the start of the event and qualifying 22nd for Friday night’s event at Bristol, an opportunity presented itself for Creed when he elected to remain on the track with the lead on old tires to start the second stage. Despite being pressured by veteran Justin Allgaier at the start, Creed held his ground on the outside lane and managed to lead 34 laps before he lost the lead to Allgaier on Lap 125.
Three laps later, however, Creed’s strong run came to a crashing halt when he was caught up in a wreck in Turn 2 that started when the eventual winner Noah Gragson bumped into Ty Gibbs and sent Gibbs up the racetrack and into Creed’s No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Camaro, with the latter two making hard contact against the outside wall with wrecked race cars. The damage was enough to knock Creed out of the race and out of contention to contend for his first Xfinity title as he sets his sights on concluding the 2022 season on a strong note.
“[It] Looked like [Gragson] just got [Gibbs] on the left rear, got him loose and shot him up into me,” Creed said. “[We] Did what we had to do. [I] Didn’t have a great qualifying effort. I got track position there and still was super loose, but I had pace. I felt like that was the first time today I had good speed. I thought we were probably one [pit] stop away from being able to race those guys for a win. Man, that’s just the way my year’s gone. We have speed at times and then, stuff like that happens. Unfortunate, but proud of my guys. We never gave up all year. I felt like we gave it one hell of a fight the last few weeks. [I] Felt like we would’ve had a shot [to win] tonight. We’re gonna keep digging this year and maybe, build some new cars.”
With Cassill and Creed among a handful of competitors failing to make the Playoffs, Hemric and Sieg join 10 other competitors in a seven-race battle for the 2022 Xfinity Series championship. Their Playoff battle begins next Saturday, September 24, at Texas Motor Speedway with the event’s coverage to commence at 3:30 p.m. ET on USA Network.
