The first Dash 4 Cash race is Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway with the EchoPark 250 (4:30 p.m. ET on FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Four NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers will be battling it out among the rest the of the 37-car field for not only the overall EchoPark 250 win but an additional $100,000 if they finish the highest among the Dash 4 Cash-eligible contingent. Those competing in the race within a race are Chase Briscoe, Harrison Burton, Brandon Jones and Noah Gragson.
There are four Dash 4 Cash events total, bringing the prize money to $400,000 total.
RELATED: Keep up with Dash 4 Cash results
“If people are able to sweep that, that’s like a brand new sponsor coming on board for nearly half a season,” Briscoe said on a Zoom teleconference Thursday. “It’s a huge deal to win one of them, but if you win four of them, it’ll literally change your entire program. So it’s a huge thing for us. I think everybody financially right now is struggling with everything going on with the COVID stuff, so for a team to be able to have that swing – from no new money coming in to potentially $400,000 – is a huge thing.”
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic paused all of NASCAR’s national-series schedules earlier this season for more than two months. The sport returned racing in late May without fans in attendance and with safety precautions implemented at track. Atlanta will mark the Xfinity Series’ fourth race back.
Drivers eligible for the Dash 4 Cash are determined by the results of the previous race. Briscoe, Burton, Jones and Gragson were the top-four full-time finishers (among drivers that have declared to be running for the Xfinity Series championship) last Monday at Bristol Motor Speedway. Whoever has the best finish of those four at Atlanta will win the $100,000 bonus and qualify for the next Dash 4 Cash event. The next three highest full-time finishers will join the winner in competing for the bonus at Miami. Talladega and a yet to be determined race will serve as the other races in the program.
“You’ve seen in years past guys be really aggressive to win the Dash 4 Cash,” Burton said on another Zoom teleconference Thursday. “It puts on great races. It reminds me of the old Cup (Series) races that were worth a million dollars to win. That always seemed like it put more pressure on everything, right? It was a playoff-like atmosphere. And that’s good. That’s a good little test for us. The guys that are in the Dash 4 Cash along with us are guys, I think, we have to beat to win the championship.”