Carson Hocevar leaves center of EchoPark storm fourth: ‘There was a shot there’

Posted on February 22, 2026February 22, 2026 by Zach Sturniolo

HAMPTON, Ga. — For the second straight year, Carson Hocevar was third coming to the white flag at EchoPark Speedway in overtime.

For the second straight year, the Spire Motorsports driver had to settle for a top-five finish that left him out of Victory Lane.

RELATED: Race results | 2026 schedule

Hocevar took the checkered flag fourth in Sunday’s Autotrader 400, but he was on the front row when the green flag waved in double overtime with two Chevrolet partners in his mirror, leaving the 23-year-old critical of himself for the outcome as his pursuit of Cup win No. 1 continues.

“I mean, I choked,” Hocevar said.

He did recognize that it was a far better result than last week’s Daytona 500, in which he led when the white flag waved until crashing with a late block that plummeted him down the leaderboard.

“We finished single digits, top five,” Hocevar said. “Better result than last week, so excited about that. Came from two laps down and knocked around a little bit to finish fourth, so happy about that.”

Knocked around a little, indeed.

Hocevar’s race exemplified every praise and criticism that comes his way, utilizing his brazen confidence to build runs and carve through traffic while, perhaps, bruising some competitors’ feelings along the way.

His most notable contact came on the first restart on Lap 266, with Hocevar restarting just behind front-row-sitter Christopher Bell. Exiting the quad-oval, Hocevar squeezed between leaders Bell and Bubba Wallace in an effort to take the lead. Instead, that contact sent Bell nose-first into the outer retaining SAFER barrier, crunching the front of his race car while Hocevar scurried to a front-row restart of his own just a couple laps later.

WATCH: Race Rewind

“I haven’t seen it, so I’m gonna keep my mouth shut till I see a replay,” Bell said.

Sean Gardner | Getty Images

With a win on the line, Hocevar saw an opening and was getting help from behind in the form of a Ross Chastain push. That was all he needed to be convinced to take his chance after losing to Bell in a photo finish in last year’s spring race at the 1.54-mile oval.

“I mean, I fit a car in there,” Hocevar said. “I got such a big run and he kind of opened it, and as I got there, I felt like there was a hole. But I got there so fast that I’m sure it was by all means closed by the time I got there. So yeah, I mean, I don’t mean to tear them up obviously, but at the same time, I felt like that move was probably gonna win us the race last year, and it just happened to be the same car.

“I felt like if I got an opportunity, I was gonna shoot for it. And I felt like with the push that Ross gave me, there was a shot there.”

There’s an argument to be made that one moment shouldn’t detract from what was an otherwise positive weekend for the third-year Spire racer. In the words of Kyle Busch, Hocevar was a “great teammate” in Saturday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race as Hocevar pushed Busch to the win in a Spire 1-2. On Sunday, Hocevar found himself in dustups with Bell, Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney, but he ultimately believed he played this race smarter than previous attempts toward Cup glory.

“I feel like I’ve done a good job,” Hocevar said. “You know, I was sitting there riding around for a while and biding my time and felt like I’ve been more patient but more precise. I know Blaney was kind of mad at me because my stuff was really tight, so I do owe him an apology at some point because I think I ran us both in the wall. But I think I’m pretty pleased.”

With more patience and more precision came more confidence, trusting both his car and his abilities to withstand his aggressive inputs with risks a touch more calculated.

MORE: Cup Series standings

Through two races, that’s paying off in the points standings, leaving Hocevar and his No. 77 Spire Motorsports team fourth in the driver standings, 51 points behind series leader Tyler Reddick heading into next Sunday’s race at Circuit of The Americas (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, HBO Max).

Posted on February 22, 2026February 22, 2026 by Holly Cain

HAMPTON, Ga. — Tyler Reddick answered his Daytona 500 victory a week ago with a dramatic double overtime comeback win Sunday evening in the Autotrader 400 at EchoPark Speedway, marking the first time in nearly two decades a driver has won the first two races of the NASCAR Cup Series season.

Even though Reddick’s No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota’s right-front fender was damaged in an earlier incident, he was able to persevere, zigging and zagging and making a strong move to the front on the very last lap. He finished a mere 0.164 seconds ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing’s Chase Briscoe, a fellow Toyota driver who gave Reddick the crucial winning push to get ahead of his 23XI teammate Bubba Wallace and the Chevrolets of Carson Hocevar and Ross Chastain.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

Reddick’s work makes him only the sixth driver in NASCAR history to win the opening two races of the year. NASCAR Hall of Famer Matt Kenseth was the last to do so in 2009.

Reddick, who started from the pole position after a rainout of Saturday’s qualifying and led a race-best 53 of the 271 laps, jumped out of his damaged Toyota Camry to retrieve the checkered flag. He paused to take a long look at the right-front damage – and missing fender – then smiled and wondered aloud how he pulled the victory off after being collected in a nine-car accident only 40 laps from the end of the scheduled distance.

“That’s crazy, how about that EchoPark Speedway?” the 30-year-old Californian yelled to the packed grandstands. “This place over the years, it just puts on some amazing racing. Handling matters here, but I don’t know, I guess determination outweighs handling.”

His team co-owner, NBA legend Michael Jordan, was equally as jubilant with Reddick’s rebound.

“Tyler did an unbelievable job, both teams did an unbelievable job,” Jordan said, also referring to Wallace, who led 46 laps but finished eighth in the final all-out push to the checkers.

“I wanted one of them to win, I feel bad for Bubba because he had an unbelievable day, but Tyler drove his ass off,” Jordan continued. “I’m very happy for Tyler and very happy for 23XI.

“The guys worked hard all summer, and they never gave up. This is the fruit of their labor, and for us to come out and win the first two races says a lot about our team.”

SHOP: Winner’s gear

Reddick’s crew chief Billy Scott revealed post-race that the temperatures were so cold – 39 degrees at the checkered flag – that it was difficult to fully repair the car after the accident, and the team had to resort to heavy tape on the front end of Reddick’s damaged No. 45. Team co-owner and Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin said of Reddick’s car, “It looked like carnage city.”

Trackhouse Racing’s Chastain and Spire Motorsports teammates Hocevar and Daniel Suárez rounded out the top five behind Reddick and Briscoe.

In another phenomenal comeback story, Chastain’s Trackhouse teammate Shane van Gisbergen finished sixth – his best oval finish in his two years in the series – even after the former Australian Supercars Series champion was caught up in two of the yellow-flag incidents on the day.

Front Row Motorsports’ Zane Smith, Wallace, RFK Racing’s Ryan Preece and Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney rounded out the top 10 in a race where 12 cars finished within a second of the race winner. Nine of the race’s 14 leaders led double-digit laps.

It was all indicative of the competitive nature now expected and delivered by this high-banked 1.54-miler that races like the famed Daytona and Talladega superspeedways.

Drafting partners are important, and the young driver Hocevar said he just couldn’t entice anyone to draft with him late. So, he took off by himself, passing three cars in one daring move in the final lap of regulation to position himself up front. However, he made contact with 2025 race winner, Christopher Bell, on the first overtime restart, drawing the final caution.

That put Hocevar alongside Wallace on the front row for the final green flag. Wallace got the jump on the start and held the point until making a move high on the track that allowed Reddick to come from below and blow past them both.

With his Atlanta win, Reddick now leads his teammate Wallace by 40 points atop the championship standings.

“It’s really fun to be a part of 23XI right now,” Jordan said, grinning.

MORE: Cup Series standings | Cup Series schedule

The NASCAR Cup Series moves to its first road course of the season next week for the DuraMax Grand Prix Powered by RelaDyne at Austin’s famed Circuit of The Americas (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Bell is the defending race winner.

Note: Inspection in the Cup Series garage was completed with no issues, confirming Reddick as the winner. The Nos. 23 and 60 cars will return to the NASCAR R&D Center in Concord, North Carolina, for further inspection.

Ethan Smith | For NASCAR Digital Media

Posted on February 22, 2026February 22, 2026 by Staff Report

Defending NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson dropped from contention Sunday afternoon after a crash with Shane van Gisbergen at EchoPark Speedway.

Larson was running third in Sunday’s Autotrader 400 on the final lap of Stage 2 when he dove low with his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet into the path of van Gisbergen’s No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevy. The contact at the Turn 4 exit sent Larson’s car spinning into the outside wall on the frontstretch, leaving it with heavy damage.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

From there, their fortunes were split. Van Gisbergen continued after repairs to salvage a sixth-place finish, his best oval-track result in the Cup Series. Larson, however, tumbled outside the top 30 after his car was towed to the garage for more extensive work before No. 5 crew chief Cliff Daniels called it a day.

“Well, it’s just more so frustrating because it was on me,” Larson said, absorbing the blame after his evaluation at the track’s infield care center. “You know, typically I get caught up in I feel like others’ mistakes on these style tracks, but that was completely my fault. So that’s what’s embarrassing and frustrating, and just glad nobody else, I don’t think, got taken out in it, too.”

Larson finished 32nd — 111 laps short of the full distance — and he was one of 13 drivers who were not running at the finish. Larson led 48 laps, second only to eventual race winner Tyler Reddick.

Van Gisbergen spun again 40 laps later in the same area of the 1.54-mile circuit, but recovered to finish with a remarkable top-10 outcome in double overtime. SVG is a six-time Cup Series winner on road courses, but the sixth-place result was his career best (in 52 starts) on an oval.

Alejandro Alvarez | NASCAR Digital Media

Posted on February 22, 2026February 22, 2026 by Staff Report

Kyle Busch found mid-race trouble in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Autotrader 400, crashing out at EchoPark Speedway after contact with Noah Gragson.

Busch started 14th in the 38-car field, but his No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet turned sideways after he veered in front of Gragson’s No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford in the 125th of a scheduled 260 laps. Busch’s car, which was running 13th at the time, skidded and made heavy nose-first contact with the inside retaining wall on the backstretch before sliding to a halt.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

Busch exited the car under his own power, and the 40-year-old driver was evaluated and released at the track’s infield care center. He was credited with 34th place in the final rundown.

Busch was critical of the 27-year-old Gragson in his post-wreck remarks for not allowing him an opportunity to right his No. 8 Chevy. Gragson drove for Kyle Busch Motorsports for two seasons (2017-18) in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

“I didn’t get the best of exits off of Turn 2 there,” Busch said. “Was a little crossed up, not bad when I got out there to the wall, and just perfect timing for the 4 (Gragson) to just ram me as hard as he could and send me spinning instead of just checking up for a second, making sure I was straight, hitting me softly. But it’s just what they all do. They just all run through you. Doesn’t matter if you’re aimed the right way or not.”

Busch entered Sunday’s race 14th in the Cup Series standings after a 15th-place finish from the pole in the season-opening Daytona 500. It was a split weekend for Busch, who won Saturday’s Truck Series race.

MORE: Cup Series standings | Cup Series schedule

Busch is 24th in the Cup Series standings, just two races into the 2026 campaign. The tour will visit the Circuit of The Americas next Sunday (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) for the first road-course event of the year. Busch led the most laps in last year’s race at COTA before finishing fifth behind winner Christopher Bell.

Posted on February 22, 2026February 22, 2026 by Zach Sturniolo

HAMPTON, Ga. — In what sounds like something more akin to the Twilight Zone than reality, Kyle Busch found himself thanking Carson Hocevar for his outstanding sportsmanship as a Spire Motorsports teammate Saturday afternoon.

Rivals who fight for separate teams on Sundays in the Cup Series, Busch and Hocevar doubled as NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series teammates Saturday at EchoPark Speedway, working well enough together to score a 1-2 finish that landed Busch in Victory Lane.

MORE: Truck Series results | Cup starting lineup

Nothing could have been more fitting or more ironic than it happening at EchoPark, where one year ago, Hocevar angered Busch so intensely during the Cup race that Busch radioed: “Go tell that 77 (Hocevar) he’s done that same [expletive] move 10 times. I don’t care if I wreck the whole [expletive] field. I’m over him. … I’m gonna wreck his ass.”

After Saturday’s truck race, that tone made a 180-degree turn.

“Carson Hocevar was a great teammate today,” Busch said. “Early on in the race, I was like, ‘Wait a second. OK, same old Carson.’ But as we got toward the end, we started working together and we started being able to maneuver our way through. At the end of the second stage there, I was behind him, pushing him. We were able to ratchet forward. And then there at the end, he was my wingman.”

Hocevar, who drives for Spire Motorsports in Cup as well, was just as surprised as anyone by his effectiveness together with Busch Saturday afternoon, with last year’s events firmly in his mind. What it led to was a dual-celebration, with Hocevar and Busch exchanging high fives while Busch performed his celebratory burnout.

“He deserved it,” Busch said. “He was the reason we won the race today.”

Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images

Hocevar seemed stuck in a state of disbelief even after getting out of his No. 77 Chevrolet.

“Especially a year from here — I think that’s when he was hating my guts especially in the Cup race — I don’t think I’d ever be excited to watch a Kyle Busch truck win […],” Hocevar said. “I had no shot to win the race, so if I wasn’t gonna have a shot, I was gonna make sure the company had a shot. And yeah, that was great. Yeah, I went over to just high-five him because I thought it’d be a good picture. Be good for the marketing team and good for the social. That was a business decision right there to do that.

“So I had fun. I wish there were a lot of truck guys that wanted to race more. They just want to sit on the top. I think I had my own fun and we had a blast, and me and Kyle worked great together.”

Is this the start of a sea change that will lead to more synergy between the veteran Busch and the up-and-coming Hocevar in the Cup Series? Probably not. But Busch did notice Hocevar’s progression throughout the race, and maybe even saw some of himself in Hocevar’s driving.

“I’m not a Spire Motorsports guy on Sunday, so I’m sure that’ll play some some differences,” Busch said. “But it was nice to see that he’s got it in him, right? Where in the beginning of the race, it was kind of normal Carson all over the place – not all over the place like out of control; just dicing it up, like cutting moves and making plays like I probably once was.

“But then in the second stage, I was able to kind of be his wingman for a minute. That worked real well. And I kind of wanted to say something like, ‘See? When you got a guy that will stick behind you, you can make some headway.’ But I kept my mouth shut. I just said it now. And then at the end of the race, that’s sort of how we played it, where I guess I had the track position, and so he had to play wingman for the day. Roles reversed, I’m doing the same thing. I’m trying to make sure that one of our trucks wins.”

Sunday will be a different story when Busch suits up for the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet and Hocevar for the No. 77 Spire Chevy in the Cup Series race (3 p.m. ET, FOX, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). But maybe – just maybe – Saturday was the first step into the Twilight Zone before Sunday turns into a madhouse.

Posted on February 21, 2026February 21, 2026 by Mike Hembree

HAMPTON, Ga. — It turns out there is a way to beat Austin Hill at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway. You send him into a big slide and knock him out of the lead on the last lap.

Hill rallied several times from deficits during Saturday night’s Bennett Transportation and Logistics 250 to emerge in the lead as the white flag flew. NASCAR Cup Series invader Ross Chastain, who led 11 consecutive laps before Hill took first place, hit Hill’s Chevrolet as they wrestled for the lead with a mile to go, dropping Hill out of the top 10.

MORE: Race results | At-track photos: EchoPark

Among the results of that calamity was Sheldon Creed inheriting first place and ultimately the win, his first in the series after numerous runner-up finishes.

Another result? Bruised feelings on pit road post-race as Hill criticized the move by Chastain.

“When Ross is behind you, I expect to get put firewall deep in the wall,” Hill said. “I mean, that’s just the things he does. So, unfortunate, but what about that save, though? The save was, like, just insane.”

Hill masterfully regained control of his car, rejoined the front-running pack in the middle of Turn 3 and finished 12th.

“I could have very easily ended up hitting the wall head-on, but was able to save it and salvage a 12th-place finish,” Hill said. “So, all in all, it was awesome.”

Still, the failure to win at a track where he is a prohibitive favorite stung.

“He got into my left rear and just didn’t lift,” Hill said. “I wouldn’t have lifted either, probably. We’re all just going for it. Unfortunately, we lost the race. He didn’t win the race, either. Finished sixth or whatever it was, then ol’ Sheldon got it done. I’m very happy for him.

“There’s only so much space you can cover [trying to protect the lead]. It’s worked in my favor so many times here. Eventually, it’s not going to work in my favor, and tonight was one of those nights.”

Chastain said he pursued Hill after Hill made the white-flag pass.

“If I would have went to his right rear, I think I would have had to lift out of [the gas], versus going to the bottom, I’d have been wide open,” Chastain said. “Coming to the checkered, I pulled out of line and he chased me down. I don’t blame him. I believe it’s a racing crash. It’s not an accident. We crashed. But yes, it was racing.”

Asked if he planned to discuss the finish with Chastain, Hill said, “I couldn’t care less to talk to Ross Chastain. I have nothing to say to him.”

MORE: O’Reilly Auto Parts Series standings | O’Reilly Auto Parts Series schedule

Likewise, Chastain doesn’t anticipate much conversation following Saturday’s race.

“I’ll see him in the gym on Monday, so we’ll be on the treadmill side-by-side going through a Chevy workout,” Chastain said. “But no, nothing crazy. I think he’ll realize the run I had felt very similar to the run he had the lap before.”

Posted on February 21, 2026February 22, 2026 by Holly Cain

HAMPTON, Ga. — Incredible. That’s how Sheldon Creed described his first career victory in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and that’s likely how anyone who watched the Bennett Transportation & Logistics 250 would describe the final dramatic run to the checkered flag Saturday evening at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway.

While racing hard for the win on the final lap, the Chevrolets of five-time EchoPark race winner Austin Hill and NASCAR Cup Series full-timer Ross Chastain collided while running first and second, clearing the way for the 28-year-old Californian Creed to emerge from his third-place position just behind. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Creed raced his No. 00 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet cleanly through the incident coming out of the last turn in front to earn his first career trophy in the series after setting a series record 15 runner-up finishes.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

“Incredible,” a smiling Creed said after accepting his first series checkered flag from the flagman after the race. “It worked out. Finally a winner.

“Obviously had a lot of good runs, but never finished it up, never won,” he said after hoisting his trophy in Victory Lane — his voice a little softer after screaming with emotion on the cool-down lap and later after celebrating with his team.

“To finally do that, after it looked like another second place for awhile coming off of [Turn] 2, it just all worked out for us tonight.”

It was a fitting ending to an action-packed race that featured 11 leaders and a record 24 lead changes on the 1.54-mile EchoPark high banks, with Creed ultimately besting Viking Motorsports’ Parker Retzlaff by 0.309 seconds. AM Racing’s Nick Sanchez, a former EchoPark winner, finished third, his third top-five finish in as many starts at the track. Hendrick Motorsports’ Corey Day was fourth, with Hill’s Richard Childress Racing teammate Jesse Love rounding out the top five.

Chastain recovered from the contact with Hill to finish sixth in the No. 32 Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet, and after watching a replay post-race, explained there was no intent to spin Hill.

MORE: Hill, Chastain collide on final lap

“No excuse, I turned him OK, for sure,” Chastain said of the late race contact with Hill. “And I hate that I did that to another Chevy, but I’m glad Sheldon was there to pick it up. … I don’t want to spin these guys I’m not trying to crash coming to the checkered. But to get the run down the back, I did not execute it very well, that’s for sure.”

A two-time defending winner of this race, Hill, finished 12th after a dramatic day of racing at his home track.

“We did everything right to get into the lead,” said Hill, who started an uncharacteristic 20th in the 38-car field but ended up taking the point for the first time at Lap 105 and ultimately leading the most laps on the day (34 of the 163).

“Coming off of Turn 2, I let it drag back a little bit to not get too far out, but kind of got a little further out than I would have liked. I knew I was going to have to throw a block [on Chastain] and was trying to get squared up, but it looked like he just drove into my left rear on purpose.

“I don’t know. We’re going for the win, so not going to say, shoulda done this or shoulda done that.”

Creed’s Haas Factory Team teammate Sam Mayer finished seventh after starting from the pole, followed by JR Motorsports’ rookie Rajah Caruth, who led a career-best 22 laps. Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Taylor Gray and Brandon Jones rounded out the top 10.

After so many runner-up finishes and Victory Lane near-misses, even Creed’s competitors made a point to congratulate him on finally scoring that elusive first win. He is an accomplished driver, having claimed the 2020 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship with a five-win season. And as his 15 runner-up showings indicate, Creed has consistently been a front-runner in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

“It just wears on you to not win,” Creed said, conceding he was feeling both a huge sense of relief and a huge surge of happiness for his work. “I don’t think one win is going to change things a whole lot, but I think a few might. I might get back on the radar for Cup, and obviously, I’d love that. … to get one of the way is great but I want to win more.”

“It’s been four years since I stood in Victory Lane and you miss that feeling — that’s why you keep working on it,” Creed added.

Even with his 12th place, Hill — who won the Daytona season-opener — holds the championship lead by 22 points over Caruth.

The NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series moves to Austin, Texas, next week for the first road course test of the season in the Focused Health 250 at the Circuit of The Americas (3 p.m. ET, The CW, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Note: Post-race inspection in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series garage concluded without issue, confirming Creed as the race winner.

Posted on February 21, 2026February 21, 2026 by Zach Sturniolo

HAMPTON, Ga. – Ben Rhodes led a race-high 70 laps, ran out of fuel and rallied back for a fourth-place finish in Saturday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at EchoPark Speedway.

All he could do was wonder what could have been if not for that miscalculation.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: EchoPark

In the final 10 minutes of a thrilling, time-shortened race due to the impending NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race and earlier rain that soaked the 1.54-mile drafting track, Rhodes charged his No. 99 ThorSport Racing Ford back from 19th on the final restart at Lap 107 to fight for the win when the checkered flag fell at Lap 126. How did he get there in less than 20 laps?

“Well, we had some new tires on the truck and a lot of anger behind the wheel after we ran out of fuel,” Rhodes said with a laugh.

His bright orange Ford was leading the field when it sputtered entering Turn 1 with two laps to go in the second stage, the only truck of the leaders to run out of gas before the stage end. Due to the earlier inclement weather, the field ran extra pace laps before the race officially got underway. Crew chief Vance “Bud” Haefele believes that was part of what led to the team running short.

“We just missed it by one lap,” Haefele told NASCAR.com. “We didn’t account for enough when they rode around at the beginning of the race under the five or six laps. We missed it by a lap.”

Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images

That, combined with a two-tire pit stop at the conclusion of Stage 1, left Rhodes in his pit stall for a shorter interval than his competitors. Everyone else, though, was able to make it to the green and white checkered flag at Lap 80. Rhodes was not.

“When you have two tires, and you run all those laps, I guess there was just a miscalculation on fuel. I was ready to fight, though,” Rhodes said. “Can’t fight your own team, but I was ready to fight.”

Thankfully, Rhodes’ only fighting was done for position on the race track. The No. 99 Ford lost a lap by running out of fuel, but a caution at Lap 101 allowed Rhodes to get back on the lead lap via the free pass. Rhodes followed with a fierce drive forward with an ill-handling race truck, combining for both an exciting show and a good finish for his ThorSport crew despite their mid-race adversity.

“I think it speaks volumes of the team, especially here where you have no practice,” Rhodes said. “The speed is made at the race shop, right? So we showed up, we had great speed. Kudos to the guys. But man, not getting the stage points really sucks. That’s the name of the game right now because the points are changed. Because it’s all about attrition. It’s all about consistency. So I was really hoping to be in the top five in points after Stage 2.”

MORE: Craftsman Truck Series standings | Craftsman Truck Series schedule

The good news is that goal was accomplished. Rhodes leaves Georgia sitting third in the Craftsman Truck Series points standings, 35 points behind points leader Chandler Smith. But the credit for making that strong of a comeback?

“Ben Rhodes,” Haefele said. “That’s all you can say.”

Posted on February 21, 2026February 22, 2026 by Holly Cain

HAMPTON, Ga. — Kyle Busch took his third consecutive and record ninth win of his career in the Fr8 208 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at EchoPark Speedway on Saturday afternoon, capping a dramatic push to the checkered flag to collect his record 68th series victory.

In the closing laps, Busch, 40, exchanged the lead with series veteran Stewart Friesen in a flashback from the 2025 race on the 1.54-mile Atlanta high banks when Friesen finished runner-up to him. Ultimately, Busch’s No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet was again able to get the best of the duel, benefiting from a timely push from his teammate, Carson Hocevar, to reclaim the lead for good in the final seven laps.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

The race went to an “adverse conditions” time-limit rule and ended on a pre-determined deadline, only 10 laps short of the original 135-lap scheduled distance.

Busch ultimately held off Hocevar by 0.114 seconds, with several trucks trying unsuccessfully to line up and make a run to the trophy in the closing laps. Hocevar was runner-up in the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet, followed by Tricon Garage’s Gio Ruggiero, ThorSport Racing’s Ben Rhodes and 2025 series champion Corey Heim in the running order. A frustrated Heim, who drove the No. 1 Tricon Garage Toyota Tundra and won Stage 1, said post-race he didn’t know the race had been officially shortened.

“It got dicey there at the end,” a grinning Busch said after giving his trademark bow to the crowd at the finish line. “Certainly, a great race and it got exciting there at the end.

“Had a great teammate [Hocevar] behind me and have to give credit where credit is due. Early on was a little worried he wasn’t helping but there at the end he was right there … definitely made it a whole lot easier.”

It was actually Rhodes, a two-time series champion, who set the pace for most of the race — hoping to celebrate his 29th birthday by claiming his first trophy in more than a year. He led a race-high 70 laps but ran out of gas mid-race, forcing him to rally from a one-lap deficit at one point. Rhodes got back on the lead lap, however, and was challenging Busch in the final laps, just never able to get around the veteran and stay there.

In the final stage, Friesen, who won Stage 2, made a dramatic push forward, putting his No. 52 Friesen-Halmar Racing Chevrolet nose to nose with Busch’s Chevy Silverado lap after lap in the closing portion of the race. But again, Busch was able to prevail with the help of Hocevar’s push.

Last week’s Daytona winner Chandler Smith finished sixth, followed by Saturday’s polesitter Jake Garcia and a pair of NASCAR Cup Series regulars in John Hunter Nemechek and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Justin Haley rounded out the top 10, driving the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Ram in the manufacturer’s 2026 return to the series.

MORE: Rhodes rallies to top five | Weekend schedule: EchoPark

There were five leaders on the afternoon and 14 lead changes.

And even after all the victories at the track, Busch said he genuinely had to work for it this week, noting that with all the success comes a certain target on your back — less willingness for others to pull out of line and run with him.

“If there was a confidence meter on me, the start of the race it was at a 100 but then as we got through the second stage of the race it was dipping, it was a 40 just because it seemed like everybody had talked, and no one was helping Kyle today,” said the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Busch, whose last win in a major NASCAR series was his truck victory at Texas last April.

“Every time I pulled out of lane and looked for two or three to go with me in order to get to the front, not one of them ever came to my rear bumper to push,” he said.

“Just seemed like at the beginning and middle of the race, I was having a tough time being able to make the moves I remember making last year by myself. Today it was harder to do that.”

The Front Row Motorsports driver Smith’s top-10 finish was enough to keep him atop the early championship standings, 28 points ahead of Tricon’s Ruggiero.

NASCAR officials announced before the race began that the event would have a time limit, following adverse weather that had delayed the start. Time expired at 4:20 p.m. ET, at which time the field ran two more green-flag laps — with no overtimes — before the end.

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series makes its debut at the downtown St Petersburg Road Course in the OnlyBulls Green Flag 150 at St. Petersburg next Saturday (noon ET, FOX, NRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). It will be the first street race in the series’ history.

Note: Post-race inspection in the Craftsman Truck Series garage was completed without issue, confirming Busch’s victory.

Contributing: Staff reports

Alejandro Alvarez | NASCAR Digital Media

Posted on February 21, 2026February 21, 2026 by Staff Report

Racing Insights’ projection model has processed recent drafting-track trends, team strengths and overall superspeedway history to forecast how Sunday’s Autotrader 400 at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway (3 p.m. ET, FOX, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) could unfold, and it could portend great things for a pair of NASCAR Cup Series champions with Georgia ties.

With qualifying canceled due to inclement weather on Saturday and the starting lineup set per the rule book, track position will evolve organically in the draft after Daytona 500 winner Tyler Reddick leads the field to the green flag. If the data dive is any indication, here’s how the field could stack up after Sunday’s event at the 1.54-mile drafting track.

DRIVERS TO WATCH

JOEY LOGANO: Logano stands as the model’s projected winner, and few drivers manage this style of race better than the three-time Cup Series champion and former literal EchoPark Speedway resident. Logano’s pack-racing decisiveness and ability to control lanes have made Team Penske a perennial drafting benchmark, led by the No. 22 team. On a track where momentum shifts in milliseconds, he consistently positions himself to dictate the final move rather than react to it. Of course, Georgia native and most recent EchoPark winner Chase Elliott could have something to say about it, and he’s projected to finish second.

BRAD KESELOWSKI: Superspeedway pedigree still matters, and few in the field own a deeper resume in the draft than Keselowski, who was moments from his first Daytona 500 win not even a week ago. RFK Racing has shown consistent pack speed in the Next Gen era, and the 2012 champion’s timing and spatial awareness remain elite, even in the waning years of his career. If the race turns strategic late, as it likely will, expect the No. 6 to surface near the front.

KYLE BUSCH: Projected to land inside the top 10, Busch’s experience in managing chaotic lanes and split-pack scenarios makes him a legitimate threat, and we know he’ll have the speed – that was evident throughout Speedweeks at Daytona. That has historically been the case during his time at Richard Childress Racing at EchoPark, and he should have the ability to be opportunistic in Atlanta’s draft action, with his veteran instincts paying dividends. The winless streak, pushing three years now, could snap here.

FULL PROJECTED RESULTS FOR 2026 AUTOTRADER 400 AT ECHOPARK SPEEDWAY (3 P.M. ET, FOX)

FINISH	CAR NUMBER	DRIVER
1	22	Joey Logano
2	9	Chase Elliott
3	45	Tyler Reddick
4	12	Ryan Blaney
5	6	Brad Keselowski
6	5	Kyle Larson
7	8	Kyle Busch
8	47	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
9	24	William Byron
10	17	Chris Buescher
11	20	Christopher Bell
12	23	Bubba Wallace
13	77	Carson Hocevar
14	71	Michael McDowell
15	7	Daniel Suárez
16	54	Ty Gibbs
17	38	Zane Smith
18	60	Ryan Preece
19	1	Ross Chastain
20	48	Alex Bowman
21	11	Denny Hamlin
22	41	Cole Custer
23	43	Erik Jones
24	10	Ty Dillon
25	16	AJ Allmendinger
26	21	Josh Berry
27	2	Austin Cindric
28	34	Todd Gilliland
29	42	John Hunter Nemechek
30	19	Chase Briscoe
31	35	Riley Herbst
32	3	Austin Dillon
33	88	Connor Zilisch
34	97	Shane van Gisbergen
35	4	Noah Gragson
36	51	Cody Ware
37	44	JJ Yeley
38	78	BJ McLeod