CHASE BRISCOE
Atlanta Advance
No. 14 Mahindra Compact Tractors Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Event Overview

● Event: Atlanta 400 (Round 27 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Sept. 8
● Location: Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia
● Layout: 1.54-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 260 laps/400 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 60 laps / Stage 2: 100 laps / Final Stage: 100 laps
● TV/Radio: USA / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● The NASCAR Playoffs begin Sunday with the Atlanta 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia, and for the second time in his four-year NASCAR Cup Series career, Chase Briscoe is a part of it. Briscoe qualified for this year’s playoffs by scoring the equivalent of walk-off home run last Sunday night at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway when he won the Cook Out Southern 500. Briscoe came into the race 144 points outside of the top-16 cutoff to make the playoffs. His only shot to make the 16-driver playoff field was with a victory, and in Briscoe’s eighth career Darlington start, the 29-year-old from Mitchell, Indiana, delivered. After starting third, his best at Darlington, Briscoe was a top-five mainstay, leading four times for 29 laps, including the final 26 tours around the 1.366-mile oval after a daring three-wide pass for the lead on lap 342. And when a late-race caution bunched the field for a 16-lap dash to the finish, Briscoe fended off a hard-charging Kyle Busch, who was also in a must-win situation to make the playoffs, to take the victory by .361 of a second over Busch. It was Briscoe’s second career Cup Series win and it ended a 93-race winless streak, as Briscoe scored his first Cup Series win in just his 40th career start on March 13, 2022 at Phoenix Raceway. Now, for the final 10-race title run, Briscoe is 13th amongst the 16 playoff drivers.

● Briscoe’s Darlington win was a milestone for Stewart-Haas Racing as it was the organization’s 70th points-paying NASCAR Cup Series victory. It was the 104th overall win for the organization co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart and Haas Automation founder Gene Haas. Stewart-Haas’ total win tally also includes six non-points-paying Cup Series wins, 27 NASCAR Xfinity Series wins, and one ARCA Menards Series West win.

● Atlanta Motor Speedway has been around since 1960, but the Atlanta track Briscoe and his NASCAR Cup Series brethren will compete on this Sunday is less than three years old. The 1.54-mile oval was reconfigured after the final race of the 2021 season. The banking was increased from 24 degrees to 28 degrees and the track was narrowed from 55-feet wide to 40-feet wide, and it was all covered in fresh asphalt. The goal of the reconstruction was to recreate the kind of pack-style racing seen at the behemoth, 2.5-mile Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway and the even bigger 2.66-mile Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. Drivers competed on the new layout for the first time in March 2022 and the Atlanta 400 will be the sixth Cup Series race on the revamped track.

● The Atlanta 400 will mark Briscoe’s eighth NASCAR Cup Series start at Atlanta. His first two starts came on the old configuration, where his best finish was 15th, earned in July 2021. Despite the new layout in 2022, Briscoe equaled that finish in the debut of “new Atlanta” in March, where the driver of the No. 14 Mahindra Compact Tractors Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Stewart-Haas Racing started from the pole and led five laps. Fifteenth remains his best career Cup Series result at Atlanta.

● Outside of the NASCAR Cup Series, Briscoe has four other Atlanta starts. He ran three NASCAR Xfinity Series races at the track, each on the old layout, and never finished outside of the top-15. His best result was ninth in June 2020. He made a lone NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series start at Atlanta in March 2017 and finished 25th.

● Mahindra Ag North America is a proud sponsor of Briscoe and Stewart-Haas, and 2024 highlights an impressive milestone for Mahindra – 30 years of selling tractors in the United States. Houston-based Mahindra Ag North America is part of Mahindra Group’s Automotive and Farm Sector, the No. 1-selling farm tractor company in the world, based on volumes across all company brands. Mahindra offers a range of tractor models from 20-75 horsepower, implements, and the ROXOR heavy-duty UTV. Mahindra farm equipment is engineered to be easy to operate by first-time tractor or side-by-side owners and heavy duty to tackle the tough jobs of rural living, farming and ranching. Steel-framed Mahindra Tractors and side-by-sides are ideal for customers who demand performance, reliability and comfort. Mahindra dealers are independent, family-owned businesses located throughout the U.S. and Canada.

● Mahindra Ag North America is using the Atlanta 400 to promote its newest line of sub-compact and compact tractors, which are designed with features to enhance operation for first-time buyers. Boasting comfort amenities like telematics, leather seats and USB charging ports, the Mahindra 1100 and 2100 models are designed around ease of use for acreage owners, farmers and ranchers, with features like a push-button PTO and side-by-side HST pedals. Other features include a hand throttle on the console, tilt and telescopic steering, implement quick raise and lower, and auto lift at three points while turning and backing. Every model in the 1100 and 2100 series is available in open station or cab configurations, with an HVAC system exclusive to the 2126. This line of compacts have compatible Mahindra attachments, including loaders, backhoes, mowers, snowblowers, post hole diggers and grapples. The loader on the 1100 series has a max lift of 770 pounds, while the 2100 has a max lift of 1,760 pounds.

Chase Briscoe, Driver of the No. 14 Mahindra Compact Tractors Ford Mustang Dark Horse

How much does racing at Atlanta emulate what you experienced two weeks ago at Daytona?

“It’s similar in a sense, but very different in the sense of just how fast things happen. The mental side of Atlanta is, by far, the hardest thing we do all year long. It’s a mile shorter, so while it’s very, very easy to run wide open the whole time when you go to Daytona or Talladega, at Atlanta your car is struggling just to even get close to that. There’s a lot more to the team side of things at Atlanta as far as getting the balance of the car right, and it’s just a challenge for us mentally with how fast things happen and how quickly you have to process things.”

Is competing at Atlanta mentally taxing?

“I think it’s the most mentally draining racetrack we have on the schedule. Daytona and Talladega have always been mentally draining, but you go to Atlanta and things happen four times the speed because you lose a mile with that racetrack. It’s an interesting track because it races like a superspeedway, but it’s still an intermediate. The corners didn’t change. The radius of the corners, all of that is still the same as we’ve always had, so it’s not like a Daytona or a Talladega where your car goes around there wide-open super easily. You’re manhandling the car at all times, so Atlanta is a very challenging racetrack and, by far, the most mentally draining with just how much your brain is trying to process and listen to your spotter. Actually applying what your spotter is saying is hard because things happen so fast there. It’s a tough one, for sure.”

Talk about your race earlier this year at Atlanta. Fast in qualifying. Fast in the race. Running top-five with 21 laps to go. A crash left you 31st, but that doesn’t really tell the whole story.

“Atlanta’s one of those races I wish I could have back. Our car was so good. We qualified well, we raced really, really well, and I was able to be extremely aggressive. I feel like my car handled better than anybody in the field. So, yeah, that’s a race I wish I could have back because the end-of-the-day result certainly didn’t reflect how good we were that day. It was just one of those situations where we got four-wide going into the corner and there was really only room for three cars, and I ended up being on the wrong end of it. But I’m excited to go back there. It’s a place where I felt like we kind of gave one away in a sense – maybe not gave one away, but we were going to be in the mix at the end, for sure, if we were still rolling. Hopefully, our car will be able to handle as good as it did there the first time, and if we can do that and be as aggressive as we were, I feel like it can be a good day for us.”

You first raced at Atlanta back in February. Seven months have passed and the weather is now a lot hotter and a lot more humid. How much does Atlanta change from late February to early September?

“I think your car is going to handle worse in the hotter temperatures. So from that side of things, how good our car handled earlier this year is encouraging. If it can continue to just be better than the field, that should make it easier for us to drive through the field. It’s hard to say, I think it will just get harder to run the car there wide open. Every time we’ve gone there, it’s gotten harder and harder to do that. That track’s been aging pretty quickly and the hotter temps are just going to make it that much more slick out there. I don’t know necessarily what to expect, but if I had to guess, that’s what going to happen.”

With your run at Atlanta earlier this year and a slicker track that plays into your dirt-track upbringing, what are your expectations for your return to Atlanta?

“Atlanta’s kind of unique because it is a superspeedway, so it’s not as comfortable to be loose as I would be at a Charlotte- or Darlington-type racetrack where it’s just easier to kind of slip and slide around. At Atlanta, you kind of want your car to be as stuck and comfortable as it can be because you have to be able to be aggressive and make moves and do the superspeedway-style blocks and maneuvers. That place is probably a little bit tougher. The encouraging thing for us is how well our car handled in the first race. Hopefully, that difference from the guys who didn’t have the handling will be a little bit bigger and our car will be able to adjust to the hotter weather, and if that happens, I definitely feel like we’ll be in the mix.”

When you get to Atlanta, it’s just 10 more races until the season is over. What do you want to accomplish in these last 10 races at Stewart-Haas?

“Everything we can do to try and win more races and compete for a championship. For sure, we want to go out with our heads held high. I’ve been in this same position with Brad Keselowski Racing (in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series) where we were going to shut down at the end of the year and we were able to go and literally win the last race of the season and I think that really put a stamp on things. It’s cool to be able to say, with all the circumstances you were in with all the chaos and everything, people trying to find another place to go, that they were still willing to put the work in and the effort to bring race-winning cars. Winning again would be pretty special, and that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

No. 14 Mahindra Compact Tractors Team Roster

Primary Team Members

Driver: Chase Briscoe

Hometown: Mitchell, Indiana

Crew Chief: Richard Boswell

Hometown: Friendship, Maryland

Car Chief: J.D. Frey

Hometown: Ferndale, California

Engineer: Mike Cook

Hometown: Annapolis, Maryland

Spotter: Joey Campbell

Hometown: Berlin, Connecticut

Over-The-Wall Members

Front Tire Changer: Shayne Pipala

Hometown: Frankfort Square, Illinois

Rear Tire Changer: Dakota Ratcliff

Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee

Tire Carrier: Jon Bernal

Hometown: Holland, Michigan

Jack Man: Kapil Fletcher

Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Fuel Man: Corey Coppola

Hometown: Bluefield, West Virginia

Road Crew Members

Underneath Mechanic: Stephen Gonzalez

Hometown: Mooresville, North Carolina

Interior Mechanic: Trevor Adams

Hometown: Plymouth, Wisconsin

Tire Specialist: Keith Eads

Hometown: Arlington, Virginia

Shock Specialist: Brian Holshouser

Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina

Engine Tuner: Jon Phillips

Hometown: Jefferson City, Missouri

Transporter Co-Driver: Todd Cable

Hometown: Shelby, North Carolina

Transporter Co-Driver: Dale Lackey

Hometown: Taylorsville, North Carolina

Cook Out Southern 500: Darlington Raceway
Darlington, S.C. – September 1, 2024

AUSTIN CINDRIC No. 2 DISCOUNT TIRE FORD MUSTANG

START: 11TH STAGE ONE: 32ND STAGE TWO: 26TH FINISH: 13TH POINTS: 10TH

RACE RUNDOWN: Austin Cindric and the No. 2 Discount Tire team rallied to a solid 13th-place in Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500 at the historic Darlington Raceway after battling off the lead lap for much of the event. Cindric started a strong 11th after narrowly missing out on advancing to the final round of qualifying in Saturday’s time trials. The Team Penske driver fought a tight car from the start, making his first visit to pit road on Lap 37 for four tires, fuel and an adjustment. On Lap 71, the No. 2 was docked for an uncontrolled tire penalty, swiping away valuable track position. After finishing 32nd in the opening Stage, Cindric returned to pit road for fresh tires, fuel and additional adjustments to aid the car. The 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion remained focused on the task at hand, returning to the lead lap, but slotted in 26th when Stage 2 concluded in a relatively uneventful second segment. In the third and final portion of the crown jewel event, Cindric was able to take the wave around on Lap 314, gaining a lap back. When the sixth caution of the day slowed the competition with less than 35 laps to go, Cindric was in the free pass position, jolting him back to the lead lap. As the chaos intensified in the regular season finale, Cindric was able to press forward, gaining momentum in the running order. The driver of the No. 2 ultimately recorded a 13th-place finish, demonstrating his never-give-up attitude.

CINDRIC’S THOUGHTS: “From our first pit stop to our last one, it was definitely an adventure. I feel like I used that word a lot throughout the regular season. But yeah, having to come down for the uncontrolled tire penalty put us two laps down for pretty much the majority of the race. The first chance we got to do the wave we got it, and then they got to wrecking and we drove up to the lucky dog spot and got the lucky dog, leading us to a decent finish. Track position was important, and I’m happy we were able to get a solid result. It was definitely an entire race of not giving up.“

RYAN BLANEY No. 12 MENARDS/RICHMOND FORD MUSTANG

START: 7TH STAGE ONE: 37TH STAGE TWO: 37TH FINISH: 37TH POINTS: 5TH

RACE RUNDOWN: Ryan Blaney’s run in the NASCAR Cup Series regular season finale came to a very early end Sunday night at Darlington as the No. 12 Menards/Richmond Ford Mustang was involved in an incident on lap three of the Southern 500. Blaney was running up by the wall in turns one and two when the No. 19 broke loose underneath the No. 24 and slid up into outside wall, collecting the Menards/Richmond Ford in the process. Despite the 37th-place finish, Blaney enters the Cup Series Playoffs fifth in the standings while defending the 2023 championship title.

BLANEY’S THOUGHTS: “It looked like [Martin Truex Jr.] got loose and I thought he was going to spin to the bottom, so I kind of gassed up, and right as I got to his outside his car kind of hooked up and shot right into me. Unfortunate timing on lap three. It stinks we didn’t get to race at all but we’ll go on to next week.”

JOEY LOGANO No. 22 SHELL-PENNZOIL FORD MUSTANG

START: 23RD STAGE ONE: 15TH STAGE TWO: 15TH FINISH: 8TH POINTS: 9TH

RACE RUNDOWN: Joey Logano posted his 11th-career top-10 finish at Darlington Raceway in Sunday night’s Southern 500 with an eight-place result. The No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford worked its way through the field in the opening stage of the regular season finale as Logano battled some early handling issues before coming away with a 15th-place finish in Stage 1. Following a four tire stop and a round of adjustments prior to the restart, Logano began to gain track position and charged into the top-10 early in the run. The 22-crew continued to go to work on the balance during a pair of green flag pit stops in Stage 2 as Logano came away with another 15th-place effort in the second segment. With just over 50 laps to go and teams needing one more pit stop to make it to the end, a trio of cautions saw varying strategies unfold as Logano was brought to pit road – the opposite call of the leaders ahead – in an effort to gain ground on those with older tires. Logano ultimately made his way up to ninth prior to the final restart with 17 laps remaining before taking the checkered flag eighth on the night. Logano enters the Cup Series Playoffs ninth in the standings following the points reset.

LOGANO’S THOUGHTS: “Starting where we were, our goal was to pick them off one or two at a time and methodically move our way through the field. We were doing that. We got ourselves into the top-10 and looking pretty good. We had some issues on pit road – I’m not sure exactly what happened – but we cleaned it back up for the end there and got a top-10 out of it, at least. Not quite what we wanted with the Shell-Pennzoil Mustang but at least we recovered and got something decent out of it. We’ll move on to the playoffs and give it a run for our money and see if we can get down to the championship four.”

The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs opens the Round of 16 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday, September 8. Coverage of the Quaker State 400 begins at 3 p.m. ET on USA, PRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

STEWART-HAAS RACING
Cook Out Southern 500
Date: Sept. 1, 2024
Event: Cook Out Southern 500 (Round 26 of 36 | regular-season finale)
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Darlington (S.C.) Raceway (1.366-mile oval)
Format: 367 laps, broken into three stages (115 laps/115 laps/137 laps)

Race Winner: Chase Briscoe of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)
Stage 2 Winner: Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)

SHR Finish:

● Chase Briscoe (Started 3rd, Finished 1st / Running, completed 367 of 367 laps)
● Ryan Preece (Started 30th, Finished 12th / Running, completed 367 of 367 laps)
● Josh Berry (Started 15th, Finished 31st / Accident, completed 343 of 367 laps)
● Noah Gragson (Started 29th, Finished 32nd / Accident, completed 343 of 367 laps)

SHR Regular-Season Points:

● Chase Briscoe (17th with 571 points)
● Josh Berry (23rd with 460 points)
● Noah Gragson (24th with 431 points)
● Ryan Preece (27th with 393 points)

SHR Playoffs:

● Briscoe qualified for the playoffs by winning the Cook Out Southern 500.
● This is Briscoe’s second playoff appearance.

Victory Notes:

● Briscoe’s victory in Cook Out Southern 500 marked the 104th overall win for SHR. It was the organization’s milestone 70th points-paying NASCAR Cup Series victory, its first of the season and its fourth at Darlington. SHR’s total win tally also includes six non-points-paying Cup Series wins, 27 NASCAR Xfinity Series wins and one ARCA Menards Series West win.

● Kevin Harvick scored all three of SHR’s prior Darlington wins. The first came in April 2014 with the other two coming in May 2020 and September 2020.

● This was SHR’s 34th NASCAR Cup Series victory with Ford. Kurt Busch won the 2017 Daytona 500 to deliver the organization’s first win with the Blue Oval.

● This was Ford’s 735th all-time NASCAR Cup Series victory, its sixth of the season and its second straight. Ford driver Harrison Burton won last weekend at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.

● This was Ford’s 34th all-time NASCAR Cup Series victory at Darlington and its second straight. Ford won its first race at the 1.366-mile oval on Sept. 3, 1956 with NASCAR Hall of Famer Curtis Turner. Brad Keselowski won the series’ prior race at Darlington in May when he took the checkered flag in the Goodyear 400.

● This was Briscoe’s second career NASCAR Cup Series victory. His first came in March 2022 at Phoenix Raceway. Both wins have come since he joined SHR in 2021.

Briscoe Notes:

● In addition to this being Briscoe’s first victory of the season, it is his third top-five and seventh top-10 of the year. It is his second top-five in eight career Darlington starts.

● Prior to his win at Darlington, Briscoe’s best finish of the season had been a runner-up effort earned June 23 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon.

● This was Briscoe’s second straight top-15. He finished 14th last weekend at Daytona.

● Prior to winning the Cook Out Southern 500, Briscoe’s previous best finish at Darlington was fifth, earned in May at the Goodyear 400.

● Briscoe finished third in Stage 1 to earn eight bonus points and second in Stage 2 to earn an additional nine bonus points.

● Briscoe led four times for 29 laps – his first laps led at Darlington.

Preece Notes:

● Preece earned his eighth top-15 of the season and his third top-15 in 10 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington.

● Preece’s 12th-place result equaled his previous best finish at Darlington, originally earned in September 2021.

Berry Notes:

● Berry finished ninth in Stage 1 to earn two bonus points and seventh in Stage 2 to earn four more bonus points.

● Berry led twice for five laps – his first laps led at Darlington.

Race Notes:

● Briscoe’s margin of victory over second-place Kyle Busch was .361 of a second.

● Briscoe was the 14th different winner in the 26 NASCAR Cup Series races run this season.

● There were seven caution periods for a total of 39 laps.

● Only 17 of the 37 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.

● Tyler Reddick won the NASCAR Cup Series regular-season championship by one point over second-place Kyle Larson. But with the points reset for the 16 drivers who qualified for the NASCAR Playoffs, Larson takes over first place in the playoff standings via his series-leading four victories.

Playoff Standings:

1. Kyle Larson (2,040 points)
2. Christopher Bell (2,032 points, -8)
3. Tyler Reddick (2,028 points, -12)
4. William Byron (2,022 points, -18)
5. Ryan Blaney (2,018 points, -22)
6. Denny Hamlin (2,015 points, -25)
7. Chase Elliott (2,014 points, -26)
8. Brad Keselowski (2,008 points, -32)
9. Joey Logano (2,007 points, -33)
10. Austin Cindric (2,007 points, -33)
11. Daniel Suárez (2,006 points, -34)
12. Alex Bowman (2,005 points, -35)
13. Chase Briscoe (2,005 points, -35)
14. Harrison Burton (2,005 points, -35)
15. Ty Gibbs (2,004 points, -36)
16. Martin Truex Jr. (2,004 points, -36)

Sound Bites:

“Man, everybody knows I’m a diehard Tony Stewart fan and to get this 14 car back in victory lane and, for all 320-something employees, to be able to race for a championship in their final year, it’s unbelievable. God is just so good. This group, the day that we found out that the team wasn’t going to exist anymore, we went over to the shop floor, we all looked at each other and said, ‘We’re in this till the end. We’re not going to give this up.’ We kept saying all week we’ve got one bullet left in the chamber. That bullet hit. It was like déjà vu there at the end with Kyle (Busch), with the Xfinity race here in 2020. Obviously, I didn’t know if I was going to be able to do it. I was sideways, counter steering, like I was in a sprint car. Yeah, this night just literally went perfect. The pit crew did an incredible job. I was crying after the checkered. I just won the Southern 500! This is a crown jewel! What makes this race so special is all these race fans. Every time we come here, it’s sold out. It’s awesome. We love you guys. Last time I won here was during COVID, I didn’t experience it with the fans. Glad that you are here and can’t wait to celebrate. Just can’t thank HighPoint.com, Mahindra Tractors, Rush Truck Centers, Rinnai, Zep, enough, everybody that makes this deal go around. We’ll go to Atlanta and try to steal another one.” – Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 14 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse

“We just got caught in a tough spot there at the end of the race. We decided to stay out and risk it on fuel and it just didn’t work in our favor today.” – Ryan Preece, driver of the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse

“Tough way to end such a promising day. We had a great No. 4 Overstock.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse and we were going to net out to have a good points day, and it was just one of those nights that you look back on in frustration because this team deserves better. Our results don’t do us justice and tonight was one of those nights. We have 10 weeks to go chase a win.” – Josh Berry, driver of the No. 4 Overstock.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse

“I saw a couple of them wreck up front, so I tried to get on the brakes. Then I saw an opening and a little bit of smoke, but I thought they were all sliding down to the bottom and I throttled up. I thought it was open and it wasn’t. Definitely a bummer. We needed to be better all day.” – Noah Gragson, driver of the No. 10 Bass Pro Shops/Winchester Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Next Up:

The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Atlanta 400 on Sunday, Sept. 8 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The first race in the 10-race NASCAR Playoffs starts at 3 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by USA and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
DARLINGTON RACEWAY
COOK OUT SOUTHERN 500
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE REPORT
SEPTEMBER 1, 2024

 Five Chevrolet Drivers Set for 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs

• In a caution-filled ending to the 2024 Cook Out Southern 500, strategy from atop the No. 8 Morgan & Morgan Chevrolet team’s pit box gave Kyle Busch a fresh set of tires and prime track position to make a run for the win and a playoff berth. Ultimately falling just short of the victory, Busch led Chevrolet to the checkered flag in the regular season finale from the runner-up position. The result marked Busch’s third top-four result – and his second straight runner-up finish – in the series’ past three races.
• In a three-way battle for the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Regular Season Championship, Chevrolet’s Kyle Larson put on a commanding performance in much of the 500-mile event. Qualifying fourth in his No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Camaro ZL1, Larson progressively made his way to the top of the leaderboard near the midway point of Stage One. The 32-year-old Elk Grove, California, went on to perform a commanding sweep of the stages and lead a race-high 263 laps en route to a fourth-place result. Falling just one-point short from claiming the regular season title, Larson will begin his campaign for his second career championship title in NASCAR’s premier series at the top of the playoff standings.

TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10:
POS. DRIVER
2nd Kyle Busch
4th Kyle Larson
5th Ross Chastain
9th Corey LaJoie

WITH 26 NASCAR CUP SERIES RACES COMPLETE:
Wins: 11
Poles: 7
Laps Led: 2,220
Top-five finishes: 47
Top-10 finishes: 100

UP NEXT: The first of three races in the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of 16 gets underway at Atlanta Motor Speedway with the Quaker State 400 on Sunday, September 8, at 3 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on the USA Network, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

 
CHEVROLET’S NASCAR CUP SERIES PLAYOFFS FAST FACTS:

· In the NASCAR Cup Series’ 26-race regular season, Chevrolet collected a manufacturer-leading 11 wins, recorded by six drivers from three different Chevrolet organizations.

· The 2024 season marks the 10-year anniversary of the elimination-style playoff format for NASCAR’s premier series.

Since the debut of the 16-driver playoff field and elimination rounds to the NASCAR Cup Series in 2014; at least five Chevrolet drivers were represented in the playoffs each season.

Chevrolet All-Time

NASCAR Cup Series Championships:

42 NCS Manufacturer Championships:

1st Chevy Title: 1958

Most Recent Title: 2023

Highest Number of Consecutive Titles: 13 (2003-2015)

33 NCS Driver Championships:

1st Chevy title: Buck Baker (1957)

Most Recent: Kyle Larson (2021)

Highest Number of Consecutive Titles: 7 (2005-2011)

 
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE QUOTES:

ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 BUSCH RETRO CAMARO ZL1

Finished : 5th

Chastain on his race at Darlington Raceway:

“For the final stage, we shorted the green flag stops the first time; netted some positions and we were fine. And then we did it again and as I was already on pit road, the caution came out. I could have kept rolling and probably stayed on the lead lap, but I wanted to try it just like Phil (Surgen, crew chief) was calling an aggressive race. I went ahead and stopped in the box knowing there was a chance that we would go a lap down. It was worth the risk. I had it off by about a quarter-lap in my head of where the No. 5 (Kyle Larson) would be. He was a lot closer than I thought.

It’s one of those things that the staying out was a little scary in the moment, but I just kind of went through what I needed to do; get a good launch. I got clear into turn one, which I struggle to do that on equal tires, let alone the old ones. I was clear off of (turn) two still, and I was like – OK, this is going pretty good. And then new tires took over into turn three.”

How crazy are those restarts with playoff positions on the line?

“Actually, they were pretty calm. Back in the pack, they’re way worse. It’s brutal back there. We’re all just trying to get leverage and air on and off each other. It’s a lot nicer to be up front.”

AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 TOYS FOR TOTS CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 15th

“We had a fast Toys for Tots Chevrolet tonight at Darlington Raceway and the entire Richard Childress Racing team fought hard all weekend. We fell a lap down in Stage 2, but never gave up, stayed patient and raced our way back onto the lead lap. We could have had a shot there at the end. We were well within the top 10 and battling for position when a multi-car incident happened, and we ended up with damage. We lost track position pitting for repairs but fought back to finish 15th. I’m proud of this entire team.”

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 4th

That was a dominant performance for you. What happened at the end of the race?

“Yeah, I think where it all kind of got crazy was when Ross (Chastain) stayed out. I had to choose the bottom on the front row. He got a good launch. I just got behind the No. 14 (Chase Briscoe) and kind of lost control of the race from then on. And then I just did a bad job on that last restart. Really, I just had the points on my mind there and really wanted to get the driver’s regular season championship there to get those bonus points. I was being extra cautious, which I don’t know if the end result was any different. But I was definitely as aggressive as I could have been with just being safe.

But hats-off to Chase Briscoe; that’s amazing. He did such a great job all day long, all weekend long. This is a super, super tough race to win. To do it with the pressure that they had on their team was pretty amazing.”

Looking back on a night where you were dominate, what do you think played a factor in that performance?

“Our No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevy was great. We came here with a little different package than normal, and I felt like our car was much better. Our pit crew did a really, really good job. I would have to look, but it felt like in the car, it was our best day on pit road by far. I’m proud of them. We were always able to maintain the lead and that’s what you need to do here to have a shot to win. It’s just so tough to pass.

Just proud of my team and looking forward to the next 10 weeks. Hopefully we can make the Championship Four.”

Not getting those extra 15 bonus points, what’s the strategy moving forward?

“Yeah, we got them on the owner’s side, which is nice. But the driver’s side is definitely a bummer. I thought we were going to be able to get it, but I guess Tyler (Reddick) must have passed a couple of cars there at the end, and then I fell back a couple of spots. Just a bummer, but we were still able to rack up a lot of playoff points this year with the wins, as well as the stage wins. We got two more stage wins today, so that’s always good. You just have to take each week, week-by-week. You have to assess how you did the week before, where you are in points and go prepare for the next week.”

Larson on the start of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

“I’m excited to get the playoffs going. The first round, there’s some nerve racking tracks, but our team is doing a great job right now. We just need to bring fast Chevrolet’s to the track and take it week-by-week.”

KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 MORGAN & MORGAN CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 2nd

“We needed him (Chase Briscoe) to have about three more laps on his tires, maybe. Just be a little bit more used up so I could get there. I got within his wake, and as soon as I got within his wake, I just felt my car come out of the race track and I didn’t have enough to overpower that.

Really hate it for everybody at RCR; the effort, the work and everything that’s gone into our Chevrolet’s. I’m proud of his Morgan & Morgan Chevrolet today for being what it was. To come out second; we didn’t have much speed there through a majority of the race. We were just mired in traffic and we weren’t able to get up through there. But once we got up there; I felt like those last three or four restarts, we were going to have a shot running in the top-five. But then we had a shot for the win and just couldn’t make it up there.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA GOLD FILTERS CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 11th

How would you describe this Southern 500?

“Very poor. We got a gift to finish where we did.. a bunch of gifts. But yeah, obviously excited to have that one over with and look forward to getting the playoffs started. These next 10 races; they’re intense, so myself and this entire NAPA Chevy team needs to hit the reset button in a big way. We were pretty bad today, but we’ll go to Atlanta (Motor Speedway); get things rolling in the right direction and see where we end up.”

There’s no track like this in the playoffs, so is the reset on all tracks or certain ones?

“I’m just glad we’re not coming back here next week (laughs). Man, I have to figure something out here. It’s been a struggle. But nonetheless, I’m excited to get these next 10 races started. There are some good tracks in there for us, so I’m excited to get to those and try to make the most of the places that we’ve struggled at. I would love to tackle that this year, so we’re going to work really hard these next 10 weeks; bring everything we’ve got and hopefully it’ll be enough to get to the Championship Four.”

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 19th

“We weren’t very good here in the spring either. We tried some different things, but it just didn’t really work out. We’ll keep digging at it. I’m glad we get to reset. Obviously next weekend at Atlanta (Motor Speedway) is going to be a wild, so we’ll see what happens.”

You’re back in the playoffs. How good does it feel to put this team back where I know you’ve said they deserve?

“It feels good, for sure. We just need to go run better. We can’t do what we’ve done for the last month. We’ve had some good runs, but we just haven’t ended up with good results. We just can’t have days like this, for sure.”

Atlanta is going to be wild, as you said. When you look at the first round, is there anything you are looking forward to? Is there a strength for this team?

“Yeah, I mean I think honestly; the one that I circle in the first round that I’m looking forward to is Watkins Glen. I’ve been so bad there. I’ve worked so hard at road course stuff, in general, and that’s the last one that I feel like as a driver I need to check the box at. Excited to get there and be better than we’ve been in the past, and I think we’re plenty capable of doing that.”

DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 FREEWAY INSURANCE CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 18th

Suarez on his race at Darlington Raceway:

“It was an up-and-down day for the No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevy team. I thought we made the car better when the sun was out. Once the nighttime came, I thought we were actually a little bit better, and good enough to run top-15. We were already right up there in the top-10 when the cautions started coming out. It’s unfortunate, but it’s part of it. There were people staying out. There were people with new tires. It was just a little bit of a crazy situation.”

How do you feel going into the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs?

“I feel good. I feel like our No. 99 team is strong. We’ve had pretty good momentum the last couple of months, so I think we’re ready. We’re ready to get to Atlanta (Motor Speedway).”

 

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands. 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.

Keselowski 14th in Southern 500

DARLINGTON, S.C. (Sept. 1, 2024) – If controlling his own destiny were the bottom line Sunday night at Darlington, Chris Buescher would’ve been in the right position as the 2024 NASCAR Playoffs picture was decided. However, another new winner went to victory lane, putting the No. 17 team on the outside looking in as the night ended.

“I don’t know,” Buescher said in disbelief following the 500-mile race. “We felt like we did, for the most part, what we needed to do today. We got back in contention there at the end and got a decent finish out of it. We just didn’t quite get it done again and we’re on the outside looking in.

“It’s just the system we’re all playing in. We had such a great year, everyone at RFK has worked so hard. We’ve been so fast. We’ve outrun so many of these cars that are gonna get to run for a championship, but that’s the system and we didn’t work it right.”

Keselowski finished 14th in his return to the track ‘Too Tough to Tame’ where he won this spring, and now enters the playoffs reseeded as the No. 8 driver entering the final 10 races.

6 Recap
Keselowski began the afternoon from the 12th spot, and ended the opening stage of 115 laps in 11th, just behind teammate Buescher.

Stage two ran caution-free for all 115 laps as Keselowski managed a 10th-place result to earn a stage point, setting up a long run to the finish as night fell on South Carolina.

Despite a lack of cautions early, the last 50+ laps saw four yellow flags fly, reshuffling track position and strategy for the closing laps. Keselowski overcame a pit road issue in one of the breaks, and restarted sixth with 17 to go before going on to finish 14th.

17 Recap
Buescher and the No. 17 team did everything needed to insert themselves into the playoff picture. A qualifying effort of 10th began the weekend as Buescher locked in a heated battle with the No. 23 all race. He put the BuildSubmarines.com Ford 10th in the first stage to pick up a stage point.

Despite a 13th-place finish in stage two, Buescher carried a seven-point buffer to the 23. He hit pit road earlier than the 23 as green-flag stops cycled early in stage three. After a yellow at lap 315, Buescher and the No. 38 were the cause of a caution just eight laps later as Buescher was forced into the outside wall.

Buescher rallied though, ultimately coming back to restart fifth with 17 laps remaining in what would be the final restart of the night. With the 14’s win, Buescher stood as the first car out of the playoffs.

Up Next
Atlanta Motor Speedway hosts the first race of the 2024 Playoffs next weekend, with race coverage Sunday set for 3 p.m. ET on USA, and radio coverage on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).

About RFK Racing
RFK Racing, in its 37th season in 2024, features an ownership lineup pairing one of the sport’s most iconic names, Jack Roush, along with NASCAR Champion, Brad Keselowski, and Fenway Sports Group owner John Henry. Roush initially founded the team in 1988 and it has since become one of the most successful racing operations in the world, propelling him to be the first NASCAR owner to amass three hundred wins and capturing eight championships, including back-to-back NASCAR Cup titles in 2003 and 2004. Keselowski, a former owner in the NASCAR Truck Series, is the 2012 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. In 2007, Roush partnered with Henry, who also owns Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox, English Premier League’s Liverpool F.C., and the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins, to form Roush Fenway Racing. Off the track, RFK is a leader and proven winner in NASCAR marketing solutions, having produced multiple award-winning social media, digital content and experiential marketing campaigns. Visit rfkracing.com, and follow the team on all social platforms @rfkracing.