Date: April 17, 2022 Event: Food City Dirt Race (Round 9 of 36) Series: NASCAR Cup Series Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (.533-mile oval) Format: 250 laps, broken into three stages (75 laps/75 laps/100 laps) Race Winner: Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota) Stage 1 Winner: Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet) Stage 2 Winner: Chase Briscoe of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
● Chase Briscoe (10th with 245 points, 79 out of first) ● Aric Almirola (12th with 237 points, 87 out of first) ● Kevin Harvick (13th with 225 points, 99 out of first) ● Cole Custer (24th with 159 points, 165 out of first)
SHR Notes:
● Custer won the Busch Light Pole Award for the Food City Dirt Race by driving from ninth to second in his heat race on Saturday. The passing points he tallied in his heat race earned Custer the pole, his first in the NASCAR Cup Series. ● Custer secured his second top-15 of the season and his first top-15 in two career starts in the Food City Dirt Race. ● Custer’s 13th-place finish bettered his previous best result in the Food City Dirt Race – 24th, earned in the inaugural race in March 2021. ● Briscoe spun on the final lap while in second place as he attempted to pass race leader Tyler Reddick. ● Briscoe won Stage 2 to earn 10 bonus points and one playoff point. ● Briscoe led twice for 59 laps – his first laps led in the Food City Dirt Race. ● Almirola’s 23rd-place finish bettered his previous best result in the Food City Dirt Race – 36th, earned in March 2021.
Race Notes:
● Kyle Busch won the Food City Dirt Race to score his 60th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his first of the season and his first in the Food City Dirt Race. His margin over second-place Tyler Reddick was .330 of a second. ● There were 14 caution periods for a total of 82 laps. ● Twenty-six of the 36 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap. ● Chase Elliott remains the championship leader after Bristol with a three-point advantage over second-place Ryan Blaney.
Sound Bites:
“I was running Tyler (Reddick) down and I just tried throwing a slider. I didn’t expect him to drive in there on me and I was spinning out, I think, either way, and I hit him. I feel terrible. I was wanting to race him clean. I wasn’t going to wreck him for the win. That’s why I tried to slide him and I was trying to leave him enough room if I didn’t get there and that was my fault, 100 percent. I hate it for Tyler. He’s a good friend of mine and I wanted to see a dirt guy win if it wasn’t me. That was just racing. I was trying to go for the win and I feel terrible for him.” – Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 14 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang
“We did a terrible job prepping the track and full of mud and there was nobody here to pack the track, so we all look like a bunch of bozos coming in to pit because we don’t know how to prep the track. And then we don’t get the lucky dog for whatever reason with two cars on pit road, and then we got run over. I don’t know who ran us over at the end.” – Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Latte Ford Mustang
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the GEICO 500 on Sunday, April 24 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The race begins at 3 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
KYLE BUSCH DRIVES PAST LAST LAP INCIDENT TO SCORE THE VICTORY After the leaders tangle, Kyle Busch drives by them both to earn his ninth Bristol Cup Series win
BRISTOL, Tenn. (April 17, 2022) – Kyle Busch led just one lap – but it was the right one. The nine-time Bristol winner passed both Tyler Reddick and Chase Briscoe, who tangled on the final corners, to score his first victory of the season. With the win, Busch has now won in 18 consecutive seasons – tying Richard Petty for the most all-time. It was Busch’s 60th career Cup Series victory.
Toyota Post-Race Recap NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Race 9 of 36 – 125 miles, 250 laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS 1st, KYLE BUSCH 2nd, Tyler Reddick* 3rd, Joey Logano* 4th, Kyle Larson* 5th, Ryan Blaney* 7th, CHRISTOPHER BELL 21st, MARTIN TRUEX JR. 28th, BUBBA WALLACE 32nd, KURT BUSCH 35th, DENNY HAMLIN *non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M’s Crunchy Cookie Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 1st
Did you ever think you would win one like you did tonight? “Yeah, we backed into that one didn’t we. Sure feels good just to get a win. It’s been a little bit of a long time here, but overall, just a great day. Really appreciate – just proud of the guys. They work hard. We all work hard. We all work way too hard. There’s not a lot of rewards in the sport except winning. You could come home with a second-place day and not get everything that you wanted from the day and from what you put into it. It’s always good when you win. I appreciate M&M’s and this Crunchy Cookie Camry TRD. It was awesome to keep pace with those two. I don’t know why our car would not refire after the rain both times. I was leading on the first big rain delay coming back and I fell to eighth and I was able to drive back through on the long run and get back into position. Then on that one again, same thing and I fell off and couldn’t hang. It got me about 20 laps to get going, but overall, just great to get back in victory lane. Thank you to Rowdy Energy, Toyota, Interstate Batteries, Sport Clips, DeWalt, Breathe Right Nasal Strips, everybody that gets us here.”
What does tonight show what you’ve learned about dirt racing and the new car?
“The biggest thing was just trying to stay in contention. Those restarts were really helpful when you had an outside restart. When we come back, we need to somehow figure out how to do a choose rule because you just get burned on the inside. Overall, I think that was the biggest thing we learned. There were definitely some things we could improve on. I think the 14 (Chase Briscoe) was arguably the best car. He ran down the 8 (Tyler Reddick) there at the end. It’s just so hard to pass once you get into that rhythm. That right rear in that sticky up top. It’s hard to out accelerate that off the corner with momentum or anything from the bottom of the racetrack. I knew if there was going to be a move being made it was going to be contact being made with how aggressive I know Reddick is as well. Again, just kept myself in the game. It reminded me of Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin at California. Sometimes the seas part ways and you get one, so I’ll take it.”
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Ford Performance Notes and Quotes NASCAR Cup Series Food City Dirt Race – Sunday, April 17, 2022
FORD FINISHING ORDER: 3rd – Joey Logano 5th – Ryan Blaney 9th – Michael McDowell 11th – Brad Keselowski 13th – Cole Custer 15th – Chris Buescher 16th – Austin Cindric 17th – Todd Gilliland 20th – Harrison Burton 22nd – Chase Briscoe 23rd – Aric Almirola 25th – Josh Willilams 26th – Cody Ware 30th – JJ Yeley 34th – Kevin Harvick
CHASE BRISCOE, No. 14 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang – TAKE US THROUGH THE LAST LAP. “I was running Tyler down and I just tried throwing a slider. I didn’t expect him to drive in there on me and I was spinning out, I think, either way and I hit him. I feel terrible. I was wanting to race him clean. I wasn’t gonna wreck him for the win. That’s why I tried to slide him and I was trying to leave him enough if I didn’t get there and that was my fault 100 percent. I hate it for Tyler. He’s a good friend of mine and I wanted to see a dirt guy win if it wasn’t me. I’m gonna go down here and apologize and deserve what I get, I guess. That was just racing. I was trying to go for the win and I feel terrible for him.”
YOU’VE GOT TO MAKE A MOVE TO GO FOR THE WIN. “Yeah, I was just trying to win the race. I ran him down so fast and I knew it was gonna be hard with lap traffic, so I tried throwing a slider and it was the wrong move.”
HE SAID ON HIS RADIO HE WOULD HAVE DONE THE SAME THING. “Yeah, I’m gonna go talk to him. If he punches me, he punches me. I get it. I think it was just a racing deal and we’ll see what he says.”
POST-CONVERSATION WITH REDDICK:
WHAT DID TYLER SAY AFTERWARDS? “He got it. Obviously, Tyler and me have raced enough with each other. Both of us know we’re not gonna wreck each other or do something stupid on purpose, and that was just a racing deal. We were both going for a win. Both of us dirt guys. There’s a lot of pride in being the guy that wins the dirt race and it’s unfortunate. I hate that neither of us won, but I think Tyler understood and he was really cool about it and said he would have tried the exact same thing. He said it was his fault for letting me even get there in the first place.”
IT SEEMED YOU WOULD GAIN ONE LAP AND THEN FALL BACK THE NEXT WHEN TRYING TO CATCH HIM. “Yeah, it was definitely back and forth. I was trying stuff kind of behind him so if I did get there I kind of had an idea of what could work. My middle line that I was running down here kind of went away, so I knew the only way I was gonna pass him was to throw a slider, and it’s so hard when it’s that fast around the top. If you would have entered on the fence, I think I maybe would have got there, but when he went in right beside me there was no chance I was gonna make that work and that’s where I started spinning out in the first place.”
DID THE LAST RESTART NOT GO THE WAY YOU WANTED? “It could have gone a little bit better, but it was my fault because I spun the tires off of two and let the 18 back by. I had to get by him and then once the top came in I felt like I was ripping it pretty good. The only thing that didn’t go the way I wanted to on the restart was when I hit the 8. I was trying to do what I did to the 99 earlier in the race and Tyler waited so long to go that it just jammed me up and that’s what gave the 18 the opportunity.”
WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE THIS RACE COME BACK NEXT YEAR? “I had a blast. The track was way way better. I don’t know how much the rain helped that, but the banking – everything – was awesome. I thought there at the end you couldn’t put on a better race from a dirt track standpoint in these cars, so hopefully that sold more tickets for next year and gives it an opportunity to come back because if we keep doing this at night, I think the opportunity to put on a good race is there.”
JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang – “We’ll take that. We weren’t fast enough obviously to win. We had great execution on restarts and kept ourselves towards the front. Paul made a good call leaving us out. The tire was coming apart there at the end, but we did what we had to do to stay towards the front. Track position was so big. It’s so hard to pass and I felt like if I could just get towards the front, I could try to hold them all off and that’s what we did with our Mustang. We were able to get a top three finish with our Shell/Pennzoil car. It’s OK. We’ll take it. It’s not a win, but we’ve been stringing together some good finishes the last couple of weeks.”
RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Menards/Dutch Boy Ford Mustang — “It was a pretty decent race for us. We had to start 25th and come from the back and I thought our car was pretty fast. I kept having to restart on the bottom and kept losing all the spots we’d gain. Our car was good enough there at the end. I thought I was faster than a couple guys ahead of me, but it was a fun race. I thought the track was really good and you could move around. The track was pretty wide, so I’m happy we got the whole race in. That was nice and not a bad day. We’ll just go on.”
KEVIN HARVICK, No. 4 Busch Latte Ford Mustang – WHAT CAN YOU TELL US? “The first thing I can tell you is we did a terrible job prepping the track and full of mud and there was nobody here to pack the track, so we all look like a bunch of bozos coming in to pit because we don’t know how to prep the track. And then we don’t get the lucky dog for whatever reason with two cars on pit road, and then we got run over. I don’t know who ran us over at the end.”
AFTER YOU GOT YOUR LAP BACK DID YOU FEEL LIKE? “I had a great car. The racetrack was fine. They just did a terrible job to start with. They’ve done this before, but, obviously, it doesn’t look like it.”
WILL YOU GO AND TALK TO THEM OR SAY SOMETHING? “You can’t talk to them.”
YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO. “Might be, but if I had my choice we wouldn’t be doing this anyway.”
DO YOU THINK THIS IS SOMETHING THAT’S SALVAGEABLE? “What’s the point, really?”
THE POINT IS SOMETHING DIFFERENT AND GOING BACK TO THE SPORTS’ GRASSROOTS. “I guess the TV ratings will tell that. If the TV ratings are high, it’ll be great.”
YOU REALLY LIKED THIS TRACK THE WAY IT WAS, RIGHT? “I think Bristol is a great racetrack, but it must not have been what everybody liked.”
PRETTY FRUSTRATED? “I think it’s ridiculous that we’re doing what we’re doing anyway.”
NASCAR CUP SERIES BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY FOOD CITY DIRT RACE TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES & QUOTES APRIL 17, 2022
TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS: POS. DRIVER 2ND TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 3CHI CAMARO ZL1 4TH KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 6TH ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 8TH CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 KELLEY BLUE BOOK CAMARO ZL1 10TH TY DILLON, NO. 42 FOOD CITY / GAIN CAMARO ZL1 12TH DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 TOOTSIES ORCHID LOUNGE CAMARO ZL1 14TH JUSTIN HALEY, NO. 31 LEAFFILTER GUTTER PROTECTION CAMARO ZL1 18TH WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 19TH COREY LAJOIE, NO. 7 NATIONS GUARD CAMARO ZL1
TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS: POS. DRIVER 1st Kyle Busch (Toyota) 2nd Tyler Reddick (Chevrolet) 3rd Joey Logano (Ford) 4th Kyle Larson (Chevrolet) 5th Ryan Blaney (Ford)
The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at Talladega Superspeedway with the GEICO 500 on Sunday, April 24 at 3:00 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES:
TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 3CHI CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 2nd TYLER, TALK ME THROUGH TURNS THREE AND FOUR. WHAT TOOK PLACE OVER THERE? WHAT ARE THE EMOTIONS RIGHT NOW? “I don’t think I did everything right, to be honest with you. (Chase) Briscoe was able to run me back down there. Just looking at it, I should have done a little bit better job of just — I don’t know. I shouldn’t have let him get that close. He ran me back down. Worked really hard to do that.
I mean, you’re racing on dirt; going for the move on the final corner. It’s everything that as a driver you hope to battle for in his situation. Made it really exciting for the fans, so…
It does suck, but we were able to finish second still. I’m being honest. I should have done a better job and pulled away so he wasn’t in range to try to make that move. That’s how I look at it.”
KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 4th “We had a good No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevy all night. We could have been a lot better, but I still feel like we had a car capable of winning if things played out differently. I think the weather kind of had everyone on the fence on what to do. But either way, it was fun. Getting back up there to the top-five was good. I wasn’t sure if we could get it done restarting 20-something to start the final stage. I had a lot of fun and hopefully next year, we can get our car a little better and run towards the front even more.”
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 KELLEY BLUE BOOK CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 8th ELLIOTT’S THOUGHTS ON THE RACE DURING THE FIRST RAIN DELAY: “Towards the end of that first stage, I feel like I started finally halfway figuring it out and was able to go forward some. A lot of it is just whether you get the bottom or the top. We don’t have to choose, but it’s really unfair regardless of which end you’re on. Unfortunately, those last couple restarts, we had the top. And all kind of at the same time, I felt like I was able to finally make some pace whenever I did get some track position too.
Appreciate everybody on our No. 9 Kelley Blue Book Chevy this weekend for sticking with it and sticking with me. I’ve struggled. I’m excited to have made some improvements throughout the race.”
JUSTIN HALEY, NO. 31 LEAFFILTER GUTTER PROTECTION CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 14th “Not the day we wanted in our No. 31 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Camaro ZL1, but we got a good top 15 out of it. I led the team in the wrong direction for changes and got myself behind a little. Overall, it was a productive weekend. We got a heat race win and ran up front during stage one. I just backed myself into a corner, but I’m proud of this team’s effort.”
NOAH GRAGSON, NO. 16 CHEVY TRUCK MONTH CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 27th “We were trying to keep our No. 16 Chevy Truck Month Camaro ZL1 in one piece – that was my main goal. Unfortunately, I had nowhere to go and got caught up in a wreck. I’m thankful for everyone’s hard work on this Kaulig Racing team. Our first couple of races haven’t gone the way we have wanted them to, but we will keep building. The cars are fast, and I’m starting to learn and get better as we go.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS / TRACKER OFF ROAD CAMARO ZL1 – Sidelined due to mechanical failure; Finished 31st “We had such a fast Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet, and I love racing on dirt so I just wish we could have been there for the end. Both of our teams were a little worried about our air boxes because we stayed out at the end of Stage 2 instead of pitting. It didn’t work out for the No. 3 team. Too much dirt got into the engine, and we ended up losing the motor. It’s unfortunate because our No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet was pretty good, and we had a decent restart before it shut down on me. I’m thankful no one ko’d me there. I fell back so fast that I was waiting for somebody to get me big. I tried to hold it straight. I was just completely out of power. I want to congratulate my teammate, Tyler Reddick, on a great race. He drove his butt off, got up there and was good. He didn’t get his win tonight, but if RCR keeps giving us cars like these we both will be in Victory Lane soon.” Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
About Chevrolet Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.
NEXT UP: GT AMERICA AND GT WORLD CHALLENGE AMERICA SONOMA RACEWAY | APRIL 14-17, 2022 LIVE
Wright Motorsports Sweeps GT World Challenge America Sonoma Opener
SONOMA, Calif., (April 17, 2022) – Wright Motorsports drivers Charlie Luck and Jan Heylen made their debut as teammates in the Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS and swept the event, taking both wins in the Pro/Am class this weekend. Hutton McKenna also made his own debut in the GT America powered by AWS championship, closing out the weekend at Sonoma Raceway with a win of his own.
“It was a great weekend for both of our programs at Sonoma Raceway,” said Team Owner John Wright. “While Jan was new to the series, this year is a step up for both Charlie and Hutton, and they did a great job in their new level of competition. We’re starting the season off on the right foot, and we’re excited to see what’s in store. We have some championship titles to defend, and this is the right way to get it started!”
Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS After winning the inaugural GT America championship last season, Luck returned to SRO America this year, stepping up to the GT World Challenge America series with 2021 Pro/Am Champion Jan Heylen. He transitioned from 40-minute, single-driver races to a pair of 90-minute races he shares with his new co-driver. The two took full advantage of the days leading up to the races, practicing not only their on-track performance but driver changes in and out of the No. 45 Porsche 911 GT3 R as well.
Charlie Luck took the green flag in his first GT World Challenge America race starting from seventh overall and second in the Pro/Am class. He had a strong start, sliding into sixth place behind the Pro-ranked No. 3 K-PAX Racing Lamborghini of Misha Goikhberg. After he made an early pass on class leader Chandler Hull in the No. 94 BMW, Luck held off Hull to the conclusion of his smooth and clean stint. Luck pitted during the mandatory pit window to give the car over to co-driver Jan Heylen with a tank of fuel and new, hot tires. Pit stops cycled through and Heylen stayed up front, though an eager Colin Braun in the No. 04 Mercedes began to close. With every turn, Braun tried to find a window to make the pass on Heylen, but the Porsche stayed out front, the Belgian wisely making sure not to give his competition any opportunity. Heylen kept the position to the checkered flag, celebrating not only his first win with his new -teammate and father-in-law but also Luck’s first win in his GT World Challenge America debut.
The pair started from fifth overall and second in class on Sunday afternoon for race two. The No. 94 class-leading Acura of Mario Farnbacher started in the row ahead. The race went green, and the top six cars created a gap over the rest of the field, battling in their own group for position. The first two Pro entries pulled away, and Heylen found himself in a four-way battle for third position with Farnbacher and two other Pro entries. Farnbacher went side by side with one of the Pro Lamborghinis, sending both cars off circuit temporarily. He rejoined side by side with Heylen, who found himself in an even closer position to fight for the lead. He positioned himself on the outside of turn eleven, making the pass on the Acura, and took the Pro/Am class lead with one hour, 13 minutes remaining.
Heylen seized advantage of the opportunity, and sailed through the turns, taking the class lead. The 10-minute window for the mandatory pit stop opened 25 minutes later, and he brought the Porsche in the pits at the completion of his stint. With fresh tires and a load of fuel, Luck jumped in, leading the No. 94 Acura, now driven by Ashton Harrison, 1.2 seconds behind. From there, Luck charged ahead, hitting his marks with each lap, keeping ahead of Harrison. He crossed the finish line with a one-second gap, earning his second win in two days.
The team’s double win places them and the drivers firmly in the lead for the 2022 championship, which resumes next month at Ozarks International Raceway, May 20-22.
Charlie Luck // No. 45 Porsche 911 GT3 R What a weekend. Coming into this first race with Jan, I felt a lot of pressure. The first weekend with pit stops, that’s a huge deal, much bigger than I thought and all of it went really well. I got super coaching from Jan on all the details of a great pit stop. The number one thing on track was my concentration, which was really strong. Thanks to the whole Wright team for the incredible setup. What the heck! Two wins at Sonoma? We love it.
Jan Heylen // No. 45 Porsche 911 GT3 R Just an unbelievable weekend. We knew coming into this race, going off of past seasons, that this is not our strongest track – it doesn’t suit the car as well. I wouldn’t say a surprise to come away with two wins because of the total teamwork and we executed well, but these was two big wins for the team toward the championship. I know there are tracks coming our way that suit the car a lot better. Two crazy drives by Charlie. First time doing all the pit stops and the pace was extreme. GT America powered by AWS Hutton McKenna made his own debut in the GT America series on Saturday, starting sixth in the No. 30 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport. He had a strong debut, making his way up as high as third place before the checkered flag, but ultimately finished the race in sixth.
He started race two from fifth place with a renewed vigor to climb up to the front of the field. While race two had only a brief window of green flag racing at the start before a full course caution halted the action, McKenna jumped from his fifth-place starting position to restart from second-place. As the field went back to green, he drove down the side of the No. 39 Mercedes of Chris Cagnazzi to take the class lead, earning his first win with Wright Motorsports. The GT America championship will resume at Ozarks International Raceway, May 20-22, in support of GT World Challenge America.
Hutton McKenna // No. 30 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport That was awesome today! My first win with Wright Motorsports feels great. Thank you to the team. They did a fantastic job and gave me a great car. It was helpful to have them on my side and step up to this new series with their guidance. I’m really liking the GT4 racing here, and I love SRO America. Thanks to Bobby Viglione for everything.
Wright Motorsports Wright Motorsports is the premier Porsche race engineering facility in Ohio and a multi-series and international racing team known for superb car preparation, expert race strategy, and driver development. Located in Batavia, Ohio, it is owned and directed by John Wright, a certified Porsche factory-trained technician. As a crew chief John Wright has played a key role in winning eight driver and seven team championships in World Challenge, IMSA (ALMS) and the Grand-Am Rolex Series. Wright Motorsports won the team championship in Porsche GT3 Cup USA in 2012, 2013, and 2015, and went on to win the Pirelli World Challenge Overall, Sprint, Team, and Manufacturer’s titles in 2017. In 2020, the team captured the GT World Challenge America Am championship. In 2021, Wright Motorsports had a wildly successful season, capturing nine championships across their five racing efforts.
SONOMA, Cali., (April 17, 2022) – Flying Lizard returned to the Pirelli GT4 America and GT America powered by AWS this weekend at Sonoma Raceway, starting the new season off with another podium finish at their home track. The Sonoma-based squad raced a pair of Aston Martin Vantage GT4 cars in the two series with team newcomers Elias Sabo and Andy Lee, competing in four races on Saturday and Sunday.
“It was a great start to the 2022 season,” said Program Manager Darren Law. “Competing in two race series simultaneously can be quite demanding, but both Elias and Andy were able to get a lot of track time in our new cars. We had a great start to the race weekend and couldn’t be happier to have a podium finish in our first race weekend at our home track of Sonoma. Although the second day of racing didn’t produce the results we wanted, both Elias and Andy showed a lot of speed and we saw the performance capability of the team and the car as well as the potential of what we can do. I am really looking forward to the rest of the season. “
Pirelli GT4 America Elias Sabo took the green flag for race one in the No. 8 Aston Martin Vantage GT4 in 11th position, and before completing a full lap, the race immediately went yellow, temporarily pausing racing activities for an incident on track that dropped oil in the carousel. Sabo settled into 13th on the start, but gained back a spot, passing the No. 69 of Todd Coleman and taking 10th place before another incident brought out red flag. All running ceased while safety marshals cleaned up an incident on track, and after a substantial break, racing resumed. Sabo pitted in the mandatory window, allowing Andy Lee to get in the Aston Martin and take over for the remainder of the race. Once all pit stops cycled through, he found himself in fourth, but 0.6 seconds behind the No. 47 of Jason Hart. For the final 15 minutes of the race, the two raced nose to tail. Lee made the pass in the final lap, securing a third-place position for Flying Lizard Motorsports. The podium result gave the team ample momentum, excited to face day two of racing where the pair would start from sixth in the pro/am class.
The second day of racing failed to go as planned for the Flying Lizard duo. Though Lee started sixth in class and eighth overall, the packed field made it difficult to gain or maintain ground. He safely dropped to tenth on the start, knowing he could gain background throughout the race. A lengthy caution ate into the race clock, preventing further progression for Lee’s stint. Sabo took over from Lee during the mandatory stop and put on a great show battling for ninth position. Unfortunately, the battle led to final lap contact, resulting in a 14th place finish.
GT America powered by AWS After qualifying in a mixture of wet and dry conditions, Elias Sabo set a fast lap to start GT America race one in 15th position in the GT4 class. He had a strong start, climbing up to ninth, chasing the No. 930 Audi R8 of Steve Dinan. A full course caution interrupted his climb, but after the field went back go green, he climbed one more spot, taking eight place in his first GT America race with Flying Lizard Motorsports.
Sabo and the Lizards had high hopes for GT America race two from their third place starting position. However, the front leaders held up the field on the start, resulting in a bit of mele in the opening laps. The scuffle dropped the No. 8 Aston Martin down the field, where the car was hit by a competitor as Elias tried to regain lost ground. The contact caused damage to the car, resulting in the Lizard entry retiring early.
The series will race next at Ozarks International Raceway May 20-22. The 3.97-mile, 19-corner track is a new addition to the SRO America sanctioning body. Nestled in Gravois Mills, Missouri, the new circuit will offer exciting action as all competitors learn the circuit, eager to continue the battle for the championship titles. For more information, visit https://www.sro-america.com.
Elias Sabo It was a good start to the season with a podium finish on Saturday. We had a good pace and the Flying Lizard team performed exceptionally well. Andy and I are looking forward to the Ozarks.
Andy Lee I’m so proud of our team effort on Saturday! Standing on the podium to start the season is such an awesome feeling. The team delivered a great car and near-perfect pit stop. They made it easy for Elias and me to reach the front of the field.
Porsche Sprint Challenge by Yokohama The team also raced the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America this weekend, entering four Porsches in the single-make series. Chris Bellomo swept the weekend in his Porsche 992, clinching both class and overall wins in the pair of 40-minute races. Mike Gaulke also swept the Cayman class, and Paul Nemschoff picked up a pair of second-place finishes in his 991. Paul Bonderson earned a second-place finish in the Cayman class on Saturday, contributing to the Lizard’s success on their home race weekend.
2022 GT4 America Schedule Sonoma Raceway Rounds 1 & 2 | April 15-17
Ozarks International Raceway Rounds 3 & 4 | May 20-22
VIRginia International Raceway Rounds 5 & 6 | June 17-19
Watkins Glen International Rounds 7 & 8 | July 22-24
Road America Rounds 9 & 10 | August 19-21
Sebring International Raceway Rounds 11 & 12 | September 23-25
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Rounds 13 & 14 | October 7-9
2022 GT America Schedule St. Petersburg Rounds 1 & 2 | February 24-26
Sonoma Raceway Rounds 3 & 4 | April 15-17
Ozarks International Raceway Rounds 5 & 6 | May 20-22
VIRginia International Raceway Rounds 7 & 8 | June 17-19
Watkins Glen International Rounds 9 & 10 | July 22-24
Road America Rounds 11 & 12 | August 19-21
Sebring International Raceway Rounds 13 & 14 | September 23-25
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Rounds 15 & 16 | October 7-9
About Flying Lizard Motorsports Based out of Sonoma, California, Flying Lizard Motorsports is one of the most iconic sports car teams in motorsports, having celebrated ten driver and team championships, as well as competed internationally at the 24 Hours of Le Mans eight times.
The Lizards burst on the American Le Mans Series scene in 2004, competing in the GT class until 2012. In 2013, the team moved to the GTC class, still competing in legendary events such as the 12 Hours of Sebring and 24 Hours of Daytona. In 2014, the team expanded its program to include running two Audi R8 LMS in the TUDOR Championship, and in 2015, again expanded the program to include two Porsches in Porsche Club racing. Flying Lizard closed out the season with a dominating win at the 25 Hours of Thunderhill with Toyo Tires, a win they repeated in 2016, 2017, and 2018. The 2020 season proved the team’s most successful to date, earning four titles in the GT4 America championship. Flying Lizard Motorsports has proven to be a championship contender no matter the race series or race car. For more information, visit lizardms.com.
About 5.11 With offices around the globe, 5.11 ABR Corp. and its subsidiaries, including 5.11, Inc., work with end users to create purpose-built apparel, footwear and gear designed specifically to enhance the safety, accuracy, speed, and performance of tactical professionals and technical enthusiasts worldwide. 5.11 products exceed rigorous standards, which have allowed the brand to establish a reputation for innovation and authenticity, and become the premier choice for those who always have to be ready. 5.11 products can be purchased online, through authorized dealers and retailers, as well as at 5.11 company-owned retail stores.
Learn more about 5.11’s best-selling gear and accessories at www.511tactical.com. Find a full list of 5.11 company-owned retail stores at https://www.511tactical.com/locations/. Connect with 5.11 on Facebook, Twitter @511Tactical and on Instagram @511Tactical and #511tactical
5.11 ABR Corp. is a subsidiary of Compass Diversified (NYSE: CODI).
5.11, 5.11 Tactical and Always Be Ready are registered trademarks of 5.11, Inc. All rights reserved.
SONOMA, CA (18 April 2022) – Guy Cosmo and Chris Cagnazzi turned around their fortunes in their debut with Steve Cameron Racing in the SRO Pirelli GT4 America Series, taking fourth in Sunday’s second race of the season at Sonoma Raceway after being eliminated in the opening event.
“Overall, it was a great weekend,” Cosmo said. “We had our bad luck on Saturday, and got that off our back today. Chris had a really strong run this morning, finishing second in GT America. Then we were fourth in class in the SprintX race – and I believe that’s our best finish so far since teaming up last year. We wanted to be on the podium, but we’ll take fourth and push forward from there.”
Saturday’s season-opening SprintX Race 1 was cut short only four corners after the green flag due to an incident that eliminated Cagnazzi’s No. 39 Presido Mercedes-AMG GT4.
“Chris was hit by another car, who was swerving to avoid a crash in front of him and didn’t realize Chris was there,” Cosmo said. “Chris was an innocent bystander, with nowhere to go. Chris took a pretty good hit that tore up the left-rear suspension and the bumper. The team did a good job putting it back together. When something like this happens, you’ve got to have a short memory. You have to put all the bad stuff behind you, and focus forward and have as much fun as possible.”
The team quickly put the bad memories behind them on Sunday, beginning with a second-place finish for Cagnazzi driving the repaired car in the 40-minute companion SRO GT America powered by AWS race.
Cosmo then started sixth overall for the one-hour GT America GT4 SprintX round that featured an impressive 39-car field and raced to fourth in class ahead of a pit stop with 25 minutes remaining.
The Steve Cameron Racing team pulled off the second-fastest pit stop of the race while installing Cagnazzi behind the wheel. Cagnazzi rejoined the fray in sixth overall and fourth in class. Dicing through a frantic fight to the finish, Cagnazzi was able to bring the Mercedes home in fourth in Pro-Am.
Cagnazzi had mixed fortunes in the two 40-minute GT America races.
In Saturday’s opening race, he pitted on the first lap to serve a penalty that resulted from an incident in the season-opening round at St. Petersburg. That put him in 21st, with a big gap to the rest of the field. Cagnazzi patiently worked his way up the scoreboard. He was 16th with 30 minutes remaining, and 13th with 20 minutes left. A lengthy caution allowed him to catch back up, and he gained three positions in the remaining five minutes to finish ninth in class and 16th overall.
Cagnazzi had better luck on Sunday morning, coming back from a pair of slow starts to finish second. Starting on the pole, Cagnazzi was freight-trained at the initial start but was able to take the lead on the second lap. The race had two lengthy cautions. On the initial restart, Cagnazzi fell back to second, but the race went back to yellow only 90-seconds later. Cagnazzi held his own on the final restart with six minutes remaining, fighting off several challenges to claim the second step on the podium.
“Chris was hit by another car late in that race, so we had to do really quick repairs between the two races,” Cosmo explained. “The handling of the car wasn’t as good as it had been before, so we weren’t at our best in the SprintX race. I was battling understeer – the car didn’t handle as well as it did before. If we hadn’t had that contact this morning, we would have been stronger. But it is what it is, and we did the best with what we had. We’ll take it.”
Currently, the next race on the SRO schedule for the team will be at VIRginia International Raceway on June 17-19. The team expects to miss the next event, the first race at Ozarks International Raceway in Varvois Mills, Missouri, on May 20-22.
Handheld devices such as your mobile phone or tablet have gained their place as a necessity for everyday use and are just as important as a wallet or your car keys. These devices can offer finance management, interconnectivity, workflow improvement, entertainment, and more to any user within seconds.
If you’re a fan of motorsports (we all are here), there are various apps you can integrate into your daily routines to dramatically improve your experiences with motorsports. These types of apps can be something simple as motorsport news or as thrilling as betting on the next race.
Sportsbook and Betting
Nothing is more exhilarating than aligning your cash with confidence in the form of sportsbook betting. As with any sport, motorsports are especially engaging to place bets on racers, and the outcomes of events. Whether it’s Indy, Nascar, Formula 1, or any other form of motorsport, there is a community and app available to set it all on the line and keep you on the edge of your seat.
With the explosion of popularity and streamlining of online gambling and sportsbook betting apps, finding what works for you can be difficult. To point you in the right direction we recommend 20Bet application, as it offers 24/7 access to online betting, casino, and sportsbooks and works on all devices. It also accepts a multitude of deposit and withdrawal methods, even cryptocurrency.
News and Events
With the advent of the 24/7 news cycle, information overload is common and news and information regarding your interests can be drowned out in the endless sea of breaking news. As a result, you may be missing out on the latest news and events within the beautiful world of motorsport and detract from your enjoyment of it overall.
Coinciding with the previous heading, staying up to date on motorsports events through apps can be invaluable if you enjoy sportsbook betting or simply friendly wagers amongst friends. Knowing how certain teams are performing in the season, the upcoming tracks, or even the expected weather for any given event can be the edge you need.
Keeping up to date is also useful if you enjoy going out and seeing the races yourself. Knowing when and where any given event is taking place can allow you to prepare trips with your friends and family without tribulation.
Live and On-demand Video
An unfortunate reality for the majority of us is the inability to set aside the specific time that a motorsport event is happening. Scheduling conflicts result in detriments to enjoyment because you can’t view the races you want to see. Fortunately, apps are also incredibly useful to use here.
Many apps offer live feeds or on-demand videos for any motorsport event. This allows you to view and watch races anywhere at any time with your device. These apps also offer highlight reels for those of you who are especially time conscious and easily display the best bits of any race for your viewing pleasure.
In conclusion, apps are a wonderful means to improve or even reshape your motorsport experience entirely. Mobile devices are here to stay and have become intertwined in society, using them for your benefits and advantages, especially in motorsports leaves a lasting, positive impression.
In an unexpected turn of events, Kyle Busch benefitted from a final lap incident involving leaders Tyler Reddick and Chase Briscoe to storm to his first NASCAR Cup Series victory of the season in the second annual, rain-delayed Food City Dirt Race at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course on Sunday, April 17.
The two-time Cup champion from Las Vegas, Nevada, came into Sunday night’s feature on Bristol’s dirt course with five results in the top 10 through the first eight scheduled events. When the final lap of the main event occurred, Busch appeared to have a solid third-place result sealed. Then as Reddick and Briscoe tangled while battling for the win on the final lap, Busch managed to erase his deficit and cycle to the lead ahead of Reddick to capture another win at Thunder Valley and achieve career win No. 60 in NASCAR’s premier series.
The starting lineup was determined through four 15-lap heat events on Saturday, where the competitors accumulate points for their finishing results and for passes that improved their original starting spots.
Despite finishing in the runner-up spot behind Tyler Reddick during the first heat event, Cole Custer earned his first Cup career pole position for the main event after accumulating 16 points, nine for finishing in second place and seven for improving from his ninth-place starting spot. Joining him on the front row was Christopher Bell, who won the second heat event and racked up 14 points, 10 for winning the heat event and four for improving from his fifth-place starting spot.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Custer shot out with a brief early advantage until teammate Chase Briscoe, who qualified in fourth place, challenged and assumed the top spot when the field returned to the start/finish line. As Briscoe led the first lap, Christopher Bell moved his No. 20 DeWalt Toyota TRD Camry into the runner-up spot while Custer fell back to third. Behind, Tyler Reddick and Justin Haley battled for fourth place in front of a hard-charging Kyle Larson in his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.
Through the first five scheduled laps, Briscoe retained a narrow advantage ahead of Bell while Custer, Reddick and Larson were in the top five. Ty Dillon, who won the fourth and final heat event, was up in sixth place followed by Haley, Alex Bowman, Joey Logano and Kyle Busch.
By Lap 12, Custer pitted due to an overheating issue while teammate Kevin Harvick was lapped by the field. Just as Aric Almirola was making a pit stop to have the front grille of his No. 10 Cummins/Rush Truck Center Ford Mustang clean during the following lap, the first caution of the event flew due to mud on the track.
Under the first caution, the entire field made a mandatory pit stop to have their grilles and windshields clean from the mud and the dirt, with Briscoe retaining the lead ahead of Bell, Reddick, Larson and Haley. By then, teammates Harvick and Custer were pinned a lap behind the leaders despite taking the wave around.
When the race restarted on Lap 25, Briscoe rocketed away from Bell to retain the lead as Larson also muscled his way into the runner-up spot. At the same time, Ty Dillon battled against Bell for third place while Kyle Busch moved into the top five ahead of Reddick and Austin Dillon.
By Lap 35, Briscoe was leading by more than half a second over Larson followed by Ty Dillon, Bell, Kyle Busch, Reddick, Austin Dillon, Kurt Busch, Bowman and Haley.
Just then, trouble struck for the leader Briscoe on Lap 49, who got up on the high banking in Turn 3 and fell off the pace entering Turn 4 while Larson stormed to the lead. Two turns later, Briscoe spun in Turn 2 after cutting a right-rear tire on his No. 14 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang.
On Lap 55, the race restarted under green as Larson retained the lead. Behind, Ty Dillon and Bell battled for second while Austin Dillon and Bowman were up in the top five ahead of Kyle Busch’s No. 18 M&M’s Toyota TRD Camry.
With reports of light rain lingering close to the track under the final 10 laps of the first stage, Larson extended his advantage to eight-tenths of a second ahead of Ty Dillon while Bell, Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch while Bowman, who nearly spun, slipped back to sixth ahead of Joey Logano, Reddick, Blaney and Chris Buescher.
When the first stage concluded under caution on Lap 75 due to Justin Allgaier wrecking in Turn 3, Larson captured his first stage victory of the season. Ty Dillon settled in second followed by Bell, Austin Dillon, Kyle Busch, Bowman, Logano, Reddick, Blaney and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Under the stage break, some like Daniel Suarez, Ross Chastain and Briscoe remained on the track while the rest of the field led by Larson peeled off the track to pit road for service. By then, Harvick received the free pass to cycle back on the lead lap while Custer was still pinned a lap behind.
The second stage started on Lap 75 as teammates Suarez and Chastain occupied the front row. At the start, Suarez rocketed with the lead ahead of Larson, who overtook Chastain for the runner-up spot while Briscoe and Bell battled in the top five. Behind, Kyle Busch was in sixth ahead of Ty and Austin Dillon.
On Lap 91, the caution flew when Alex Bowman got loose and spun his No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 off the front nose of Chris Buescher in Turn 4. Under the caution period, Hamlin took his No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry to the garage due to a blown engine as he suffered his fourth DNF of the season.
Six laps later, the race proceeded under green as Suarez retained the lead ahead of Larson and the field. Not long after, however, the caution returned for a multi-car pileup on the backstretch that involved Corey LaJoie, Noah Gragson, Bowman and Harvick, who retired his No. 4 Busch Light Ford Mustang in the garage.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 105, teammates Suarez and Chastain dueled for the lead with the former retaining the top spot while Kyle Busch tried to split both Trackhouse Racing teammates.
By Lap 110, Trackhouse teammates Suarez and Chastain battled for the lead while Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Kyle Busch and Bell dueled for third place. Briscoe, meanwhile, was in fifth ahead of the field.
Three laps later, the caution returned when Brad Keselowski made contact against Austin Dillon’s No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through Turns 1 and 2, which got Keselowski sideways as he spun while barely clipping former teammate Ryan Blaney.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 119, Suarez retained the lead while Bell muscled his way into the runner-up spot as he started to put pressure on Suarez for the lead.
At the halfway mark on Lap 125, Suarez was leading ahead of Bell, Larson, Briscoe and Kyle Busch while Chastain, Chase Elliott, Logano, Ty Dillon and Blaney were in the top 10. Then during the following lap, the caution flew due to debris reported on the backstretch.
By Lap 131, the race restarted under green as Suarez retained the lead while Briscoe issued a challenge for the lead. The caution, however, flew due to an incident on the backstretch that involved LaJoie, Harrison Burton and Bubba Wallace,
On Lap 139, the race restarted under green. At the start, Suarez was locked in a three-wide battle with Bell and Briscoe before Briscoe assumed the top spot. In the process, Bell moved up to second while Suarez fell back to third place ahead of Chase Elliott.
By Lap 145, Briscoe was leading by more than four-tenths of a second over Bell while Suarez, Elliott and Logano were in the top five.
When the second stage concluded on Lap 150, Briscoe captured his first stage victory of the season. Bell settled in second followed by Suarez, Elliott, Kyle Busch, Larson, Logano, Michael McDowell, Blaney and Reddick.
Under the stage break, names like Kyle Busch, Logano, Blaney, Reddick, Austin Dillon, Keselowski, Haley, William Byron, Bubba Wallace, Buescher, rookie Harrison Burton, Bowman, JJ Yeley, Aric Almirola, rookie Austin Cindric and Cody Ware remained on the track while the rest led by Briscoe pitted.
Following the pit stop procedures, the race was red-flagged due to precipitation. At the moment of the event’s hiatus, Briscoe was scored the leader. When the red flag was lifted following an extensive delay and the race proceeded under caution, Kyle Busch cycled to the lead. As the competitors made their way back on the track, Ross Chastain, who noted that his engine expired during the red flag period, retired.
With 100 laps remaining, the final stage commenced under green. At the start, Kyle Busch was leading until Tyler Reddick made his way to the front.
Eleven laps later, the caution flew due to a multi-car stack-up and wreck in Turn 3 that involved Cody Ware, Elliott, Suarez, Martin Truex Jr. and Stenhouse.
With 83 laps remaining, the race proceeded under green as Reddick retained the lead ahead of Logano, Blaney, Austin Dillon and the field. It took only one lap, however, for the caution to return when Erik Jones made contact with Stenhouse entering Turn 2 before spinning his No. 43 Tide Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 across the outside wall.
Down to the final 75 laps, the race proceeded under green as Reddick retained the lead ahead of Logano, Austin Dillon and the field. The caution, however, returned three laps later when rookie Todd Gilliland got loose and spun in Turn 2.
Another five laps later, the race restarted under green and it was Reddick who fended off the pack and retained the lead.
With 43 laps remaining, the caution returned when Stenhouse spun for the second time in the event. It then took only three laps for the event to restart under green.
Then with 39 laps remaining, trouble ignited for Austin Dillon when he fell off the pace in Turn 4 and caused the field to scramble to avoid hitting him. In the midst of the scramble, JJ Yeley barely made contact with Dillon while Kurt Busch, who veered dead right to avoid hitting Dillon, ended up turning himself into the outside wall as he also collected Almirola.
During the caution period, the race was red-flagged for a second time due to another round of precipitation.
When the red flag lifted and the race restarted with 24 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Reddick retained the lead ahead of Kyle Busch, Logano, Briscoe, Blaney, Bell and the field.
Under the final 20 laps, Briscoe and Kyle Busch engaged in a fierce battle for the runner-up spot while Reddick continued to lead.
Down to the final five laps of the event, Reddick, who continued to lead, had Briscoe starting to erase his deficit as he was half a second behind.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Reddick was ahead by less than two-tenths of a second over Briscoe, who was right behind the rear bumper of Reddick’s No. 8 3Chi Chevrolet. Through Turns 1 and 2, Reddick retained the lead. Then in Turn 3, Briscoe made a final lap dive beneath Reddick’s car in a bid for the lead, but slipped sideways in the dirt and clipped Reddick in the process as both spun from the top to the bottom lane in Turn 3.
Following a full 360 spin, Reddick tried to limp to the finish line with the lead while Briscoe came to a rest backward below the apron. Just as Reddick had victory within his grasp, Kyle Busch, who was trailing the two leaders by less than four seconds at the start of the final lap, managed to edge Reddick at the finish line to win by 0.330 seconds.
With his first victory of the season and by becoming the eighth different winner through the first nine events of the 2022 season, Kyle Busch notched his 60th NASCAR Cup Series career win in his 615th series start, which kept him in ninth place on the all-time Cup wins list. In addition, Busch tied seven-time NASCAR champion Richard Petty’s record of achieving at least one Cup victory in 18 consecutive seasons. He also achieved his ninth Cup victory at Bristol Motor Speedway, but first on dirt.
Photo by Christian Gardner for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“We got one,” Busch, who only the final lap of 250, said on FOX. “It doesn’t matter how you get them. It’s all about getting them. Man, I feel like Dale Earnhardt Sr. right now. This is awesome. I didn’t even do anything. Just a testament to our team, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota, M&M’s…[The car] being fast. Fast enough to stay in contention. Fast enough to see those guys. I don’t know why we just couldn’t fire off after the rain. Every time it rained, both times, it just would not fire. It took it about 20 laps to get going. Overall, just real pumped to be back. Real pumped to get a win. This one means a lot. I could win on any surface here at Bristol. Bring it on, baby!”
Reddick, who led a race-high 99 laps and was a few feet away from achieving his first Cup career win, settled in a disappointing second place for the fourth time in his career while Briscoe, who led 59 laps and rallied from his early spin to contend for his second Cup triumph, tumbled down the leaderboard to 22nd. Following the event, both competitors managed to share their perspectives on the incident and shake hands in the process.
“I don’t think I did everything right, to be honest with you,” Reddick said. “Briscoe was able to run me back down there. Just looking at it, I should have done a little bit better job of just…I don’t know. I shouldn’t have let him get that close. He ran me back down. Worked really hard to do that. I mean, you’re racing on dirt; going for the move on the final corner. It’s everything that as a driver you hope to battle for in his situation. Made it really exciting for the fans. It does suck, but we were able to finish second still. I’m being honest. I should have done a better job and pulled away so he wasn’t in range to try to make that move. That’s how I look at it.”
Logano, the reigning Bristol Dirt Course winner, came home in third place as Larson and Blaney finished in the top five. Rounding out the top 10 were Bowman, Bell, Elliott, McDowell and Ty Dillon.
There were six lead changes among five different drivers. The race featured 14 cautions for 82 laps.
With his eighth-place finish, Chase Elliott continues to lead the regular-season standings by three points over Ryan Blaney, 21 over Joey Logano, 29 over William Byron and 51 over both Alex Bowman and Kyle Busch.
Results.
1. Kyle Busch, one lap led
2. Tyler Reddick, 99 laps led
3. Joey Logano
4. Kyle Larson, 27 laps led, Stage 1 winner
5. Ryan Blaney
6. Alex Bowman
7. Christopher Bell
8. Chase Elliott
9. Michael McDowell
10. Ty Dillon
11. Brad Keselowski
12. Daniel Suarez, 64 laps led
13. Cole Custer
14. Justin Haley
15. Chris Buescher
16. Austin Cindric
17. Todd Gilliland
18. William Byron
19. Corey LaJoie
20. Harrison Burton
21. Martin Truex Jr.
22. Chase Briscoe, 59 laps led, Stage 2 winner
23. Aric Almirola
24. Erik Jones
25. Josh Williams
26. Cody Ware
27. Noah Gragson, two laps down
28. Bubba Wallace, five laps down
29. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., 10 laps down
30. JJ Yeley – OUT, Accident
31. Austin Dillon – OUT, Accident
32. Kurt Busch – OUT, Accident
33. Ross Chastain – OUT, Engine
34. Kevin Harvick – OUT, Accident
35. Denny Hamlin – OUT, Engine
36. Justin Allgaier – OUT, Accident
Next on the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is Talladega Superspeedway, the first of two visits to the 2.66-mile superspeedway venue in Lincoln, Alabama, for the series, which is scheduled to occur on Sunday, April 24. The coverage for the event is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. ET on FOX.
BRISTOL, Tenn. (April 16, 2022) – Overcoming a mistake in communication, Ben Rhodes charged to the front in the closing laps of Saturday’s Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway and snatched the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory from runner-up Carson Hocevar.
One circuit after the final restart on Lap 146 of 150, Rhodes, the defending series champion, buried his No. 99 ThorSport Racing Toyota into Turn 1, slid to the outside of third-place finisher John Hunter Nemechek and dived to the inside of Hocevar to take the lead.
The dramatic charge to victory atoned for Rhodes’ failure to bring his truck to the pits at the end of the first stage on Lap 40 after missing his entrance to pit road. Forced to pit after winning Stage 2, Rhodes restarted 13th on Lap 91 and worked his way forward with the aid of four cautions in the final 60-lap stage.
“My crew gave me such an awesome Tundra this weekend that I wasn’t going to let them down,” said Rhodes, who led 95 laps and won the first two stages on the way to his first victory of the year and the sixth of his career. “I had to go back up there and earn the spot back. I’m really proud of all their effort.”
Rhodes and Hocevar were the only two drivers credited with leading laps. The driver of the No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet grabbed the top spot after restarting fourth on Lap 91 and held it until Rhodes passed him for the win.
In hindsight, Hocevar said he could have done a better job defending against the decisive pass.
“Either ripped the top or crashed him,” Hocevar said of his alternatives. “I hate saying that, but it’s part of this racing, right? I just couldn’t compete with him. He just had better (fresher) tires, and he was the fastest truck all day. I was just trying to hold on…
“He slide-jobbed me, and I should have prepared for it, crossed him over and race him really hard. Second just sucks. It’s terrible, especially being that close.”
The race marked the NASCAR national series debut of reigning USAC National Midget champion Buddy Kofoid, who started 32nd after his No. 51 Toyota overheated during the first qualifying heat earlier in the afternoon.
Methodically working his way forward, Kofoid ran as high as third before spinning in Turn 2 as he tried to cross over to the inside of Rhodes’ truck in a battle for fourth place on Lap 139, after Rhodes drove deep into the corner and slid toward the top of the track.
Collected in the ensuing wreck were Ty Majeski, who saw a probable top-five effort go awry, and Derek Kraus.
The race also had a taste of the bizarre. On Lap 96, Austin Wayne Self nudged the Chevrolet of hard-luck Matt DiBenedetto after the latter had passed Self. The front bumper of Self’s Silverado locked with the rear bumper of DiBenedetto’s Chevy, and the two drivers could not power them apart.
It took a red flag and a handful of track workers to separate the trucks. That incident ruined the race for both drivers, but the subsequent restart on Lap 106 put Rhodes on his path to the eventual victory. By the time caution flew again on Lap 112, he had climbed to fifth and was well on his way to the front.
-Story by NASCAR Newswire
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race 2nd Annual Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Bristol, Tennessee Saturday, April 16, 2022
