Three Up, Three Down: Drivers in focus leaving Dover

Posted on April 29, 2024April 29, 2024 by Zack Albert

Denny Hamlin emerged from a Sunday afternoon of twists and turns at Dover Motor Speedway with his third Cup Series win of the season. He fended off series points leader Kyle Larson down the stretch and kept teammate Martin Truex Jr., last year’s Dover winner, at bay, leaving him third in the final order.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Dover

Hamlin now sits tied with Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron for the most Cup Series wins this year. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver also moved into a dead heat with NASCAR Hall of Famer Lee Petty on the all-time win list with his 54th Cup Series triumph.

A handful of hopefuls savored banner days in Sunday’s Würth 400, while other favorites left the Monster Mile with disappointment. Here are six drivers — three each with trends heading in different directions — who experienced big shifts in fortune Sunday at Dover.

THREE UP ⬆️

1. Noah Gragson, No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

Alex Daus | NASCAR.com

Started: 5th

Finished: 6th

What happened: Gragson made the most of his 50th Cup Series start, coming up just one position short of collecting his second consecutive top-five finish. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver didn’t lead laps — as he did in last week’s third-place result, a career-best, at Talladega — but Sunday’s outcome gave him a significant six-spot improvement to 21st in the Cup Series points standings.

What’s next: The Cup Series shifts to Kansas Speedway for next Sunday’s AdventHealth 400 (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM). His last time out at the Kansas City track, Gragson was on the receiving end of a Ross Chastain punch to the face in a post-race confrontation. The rest of his Cup Series portfolio there is less dramatic (an average finish of 21.7 in three starts), but Gragson has Kansas wins in both the Xfinity Series (2022) and the Craftsman Truck Series (2018).

2. Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

James Gilbert | Getty Images

Started: 1st

Finished: 4th

What happened: Busch and the No. 8 group put together one of their most complete race weekends of the season, adding a second top-five finish to match the team’s photo-finish third at Atlanta back in February. Busch came away from Dover with his most laps led in a race this year (34) and his most points earned (42). Like Gragson, Busch savored a six-position jump-up in the Cup Series standings; that increase moved him into 11th place and on steadier ground above the way-early provisional dividing line for the playoffs.

What’s next: The Sunflower State has been a mixed lot for Busch in his Cup Series career, which went 14 Kansas starts before he notched his first top-five finish there. In the time since, he’s posted two victories — including his most recent in 2021. In two starts there with RCR, his best finish is seventh place during last September’s 400-miler.

3. Daniel Hemric, No. 31 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

Logan Riely | Getty Images

Started: 14th

Finished: 9th

What happened: Hemric benefited when a caution flag flew with 79 laps remaining, before the No. 31 Chevy team had made a scheduled green-flag pit stop. That trapped 16 cars that had already pitted a lap down, and each of those teams took the wave-around under yellow and lined up behind sixth-place Hemric and the other front-runners for the restart. From there, the 33-year-old driver held his ground for his second consecutive top-10 finish, equaling his season-best result from a week ago at Talladega.

What’s next: Hemric has only raced twice at Kansas in his Cup Series career, but his most recent start there was a memorable one. Back in 2019 during his stint with Richard Childress Racing, Hemric scored his only Cup Series pole position. More of that solid starting-spot vibes could come in handy next weekend; his average start this season is a suboptimal 28.4.

THREE DOWN ⬇️

1. William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Logan Riely | Getty Images

Started: 3rd

Finished: 33rd

What happened: Byron led 36 laps in the early going and was among the top five well into Stage 2. His Lap 182 pit stop, however, was part of the team’s undoing when the No. 24 Chevy fell off the jack before the left-front tire was fastened. The lengthy stop knocked Byron from second place to 18th after the pit cycle, and that midpack position was where he was running when a final-stage restart went awry. Contact in the melee that also involved Christopher Bell and Bubba Wallace handed him his first DNF of the season.

What’s next: Byron dipped two spots in the Cup Series standings, but his stature as a playoff qualifier hasn’t wavered as a three-time winner so far this season. The 26-year-old driver has won at a superspeedway (Daytona), a road course (Circuit of The Americas) and a short track (Martinsville) this year. The only void left to fill is an intermediate-sized track such as Kansas, where he won the pole for last year’s springtime event.

2. Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

James Gilbert | Getty Images

Started: 33rd

Finished: 34th

What happened: An ominous weekend that opened with a crash in Saturday’s practice and a starting spot at the back of the pack ended up no better with a premature exit for Bell at Dover. Bell’s No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was tangled up in the same Turn 2 fracas that snared Byron, and the team was out 72 laps shy of the full 400-lap distance. Bell, a winner earlier this year at Phoenix, fell four spots to 17th in the Cup Series standings.

What’s next: Bell could use a rebound and some smooth road ahead at Kansas after two consecutive DNFs with crashes at Talladega and Dover. He’s led laps in his last four Kansas starts, a span that includes two pole positions there for his No. 20 group.

3. Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford

Logan Riely | Getty Images

Started: 24th

Finished: 30th

What happened: Keselowski was on the Three Up side of this spectrum last week, when he contended for the victory in the final lap at Talladega Superspeedway. This weekend at Dover, the RFK Racing driver and co-owner went for a long spin at the end of Stage 1, then limped his No. 6 Ford to pit road in the 224th lap after slugging the outside wall in Stage 2. It marked Keselowski’s fourth finish of 30th or worse in 11 races this season.

What’s next: Keselowski is a two-time Kansas winner, prevailing there in 2011 and 2019 during his days with Team Penske. His three-year winless drought in the Cup Series now stretches to 109 races, but he ran a promising second place at the circuit’s most recent 1.5-mile track two weeks ago at Texas.

Posted on April 28, 2024April 29, 2024 by John Crane

DOVER, Del. — Despite finishing on the third-place end of an electric photo finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway in February, Kyle Busch looked to be in a momentum-building position to perhaps tally off even more top-flight finishes. The eight subsequent NASCAR Cup Series races for Rowdy and the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing team — spanning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway to Talladega Superspeedway — instead saw the group tally only two top 10s and finish outside the top 20 four times.

A fourth-place finish at Dover Motor Speedway in Sunday’s Würth 400, though, might rekindle early-season thrills and perhaps ignite an upswing as Rowdy rumbles forward in his 2024 Cup campaign.

RELATED: Race results | Best photos from Dover

“I felt like today was a good day overall,” Busch said. “There are still things to clean up, but I’m proud of a top-five effort. It felt like if we would have restarted third, I might have been able to keep pace maybe somewhere closer to the front. But starting where I did and having to race the 10 [Noah Gragson] was difficult. I hate it for our guys that we didn’t get a better finish, but the FICO Camaro was good. Just struggled a bit on the long, long run.”

“I think Kyle did a great job today,” Randall Burnett, No. 8 crew chief, told NASCAR.com. “It was a solid day for us. We were up and around the top seven all day long, which was a building block for us. We struggled the last few weeks, so to come out here and sit on the pole and run up in the top seven pretty much all day long and be in contention all day, it was a good day for us, overall.”

Despite opening the Dover race weekend with the 12th-fastest lap time during Friday’s practice session at the Monster Mile, Busch wheeled the No. 8 Chevy to the fastest speed during Saturday’s qualifying run, which netted the 38-year-old Las Vegas native his 34th-career pole and first since World Wide Technology Raceway in June 2023.

Such momentum continued through the opening portions of Sunday’s Delaware bout, with Busch leading 33 total laps and claiming nine combined stage points via his seventh and sixth-place finish in Stages 1 and 2, respectively. However, a Lap 330 wreck re-shuffled the field, with Denny Hamlin inevitably making the most of the circumstance to capture his third Cup win of the season.

Capturing his first Cup win of 2024, to Busch, could have possibly transpired with more speed up front.

“I felt like there, when we came off of pit road in third, if we could’ve maintained third, maybe, kind of, sort of, we might’ve had something for the front to or at least been able to keep pace closer to the front too to see what would’ve happened toward the end of the race, but that wasn’t to be,” Busch said. “We had to come back down and restart eighth and eighth to fourth in that final run right there, so decent day, just obviously, could’ve been one spot better, but still not a win.”

From his perspective atop the pit box, Burnett echoed Busch’s sentiment.

“In order to win these races, you gotta put yourself up in the front, so that’s what we gotta do,” Burnett said. “We got to be running up in the top five and put ourselves in position so we can try to get one of these. We just got to keep doing that week in and week out, more than anything.”

Although he couldn’t triumph in Victory Lane, a fourth-place run provides momentum that perhaps can be translated in the coming weeks.

A straightforward mindset will be critical for Busch and the No. 8 team as they continue to search for win No. 1 this season.

“Everything is week-to-week,” Busch said. “You just gotta keep working at it week-to-week. It can be different every week. I’m sure the 9 [Chase Elliott] didn’t think they were capable or in a position that they were ready for a win yet, and they got one a couple weeks ago, so just keep putting yourselves up front and in position and doing what you need to do for that.”

MORE: 2024 Cup Series standings | 2024 Cup Series schedule

Following Dover, Busch sits 11th in the points standings, a six-position bump from where he was a week previous. And there’s a possibility for even more ground to be gained, with Busch holding two wins, 10 top fives and 15 top 10s in 32 career starts at Kansas Speedway, the same track the Cup Series tackles next on May 5 (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

The X factor? Consistency. And after Dover’s finish, so far, so good for Busch as he and his team look to maintain upward momentum.

“We just gotta be consistent,” Burnett said. “We gotta come out here and perform like we did this weekend, bring a fast car, unload fast, qualify well, and qualifying has become such a big deal in these cars because it just sets up your whole weekend, so that’s one thing we gotta do better is we gotta qualify up the top five consistently and put ourselves in position to get stage points and position run up front all day.”

Posted on April 28, 2024April 29, 2024 by Holly Cain

Denny Hamlin essentially called his shot this week, saying on his popular weekly podcast that he absolutely expected to win Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Würth 400 at Dover Motor Speedway. And the veteran backed it up — holding off championship leader Kyle Larson by a slight 0.256 seconds to claim his third win of the season and 54th of his career — tying the legend Lee Petty for 12th on the all-time wins list.

Hamlin’s No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was scored ahead of Larson when the caution flag flew for a late-race crash on a restart, and he led the final 72 laps. He also got the jump on Larson’s No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on the final restart on Lap 339 of 400, then managed an advantage that was more than two seconds at one point with Larson closing on him.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

Larson got as close as two-tenths of a second behind Hamlin as they negotiated traffic on the 1-mile Dover track in the closing laps but was unable to get close enough to attempt a pass.

“You’d better win, if you’re going to open your mouth, that’s for sure,” Hamlin said of his bold prediction.

Hamlin, 43, immediately gave credit to his No. 11 JGR team.

“Just a great team, they just did a great job,” said Hamlin, who led a race-best 136 of the 400 laps.

“All the guys on the wall right here, they made it happen,” he said motioning to his cheering team on pit wall. “Thank you to them and to [crew chief] Chris Gabehart. The whole team just gave me a great car. I think the key moment, really, was Kyle did an excellent job executing during the green-flag pit cycle and then we were able to get the lead there on that restart, then got the caution that allowed us to control the restart. That was really the key moment for us and certainly feels good winning here at Dover.”

Alejandro Alvarez | NASCAR.com

Larson was disappointed standing next to his car after the race and explained that contact between his car and the No. 19 Toyota of Martin Truex Jr. on a late-race restart hurt his chances of being able to get going properly and challenge Hamlin.

“I knew when I got within three car-lengths, he was going to start moving around,” said Larson, who led 39 laps and won Stage 2. “I couldn’t really do anything. I was trying all sorts of different angles and speeds, all that. Nothing could generate enough speed to get close enough, I guess, to do anything. That was a bummer.

“A great day for our HendrickCars.com Chevy team. Started 21st, drove up to sixth in the first stage or fifth. Got a stage win. Another stage win sounds good. Good points day. We would have loved to get a win.”

SHOP: Get race winner gear

It was actually Hamlin’s JGR teammate Truex — last year’s Dover winner — who looked strongest in the field early on. He led 69 laps and won the opening stage, only to lose ground on a slow pit stop mid-race. His Toyota suffered some front-end damage from the restart incident that Larson referred to, but Truex held ground all day to finish third. He remains in second place in the championship standings, 15 points behind Larson.

“Feel like we let one get away today,” Truex said. “Had a really strong Bass Pro Camry. You can’t lose control of these races mid-stage like that. The track changes and you get behind. Man, just stinks. Overall, a good day, just keep working on it.”

Dover polesitter Kyle Busch finished fourth in the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, and Hendrick’s Chase Elliott was fifth.

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Noah Gragson — coming off his best career-best finish (third) last week at Talladega — finished sixth, his fourth top 10 of the year. Reigning champion, Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney was seventh, followed by Hendrick’s Alex Bowman, Kaulig Racing’s Daniel Hemric and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Ty Gibbs. It marked the second consecutive top 10 for Hemric, equaling his best result of the year.

It was a rough outing for the series’ other three-race winner this season, Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron. The perennial race favorite was involved in a three-car accident with 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace and JGR’s Christopher Bell with 71 laps remaining. It marked the first DNF for Byron this season and the second consecutive DNF for both Wallace and Bell. Byron had an issue during a pit stop that left him mid-pack and that’s exactly where the incident happened.

“Just sucks,” Byron told the Performance Racing Network. “We had a good car early, but once we got in traffic, we were terrible.”

Corey Heim finished 25th in his NASCAR Cup Series debut. The 21-year-old Craftsman Truck Series regular substituted for the injured Erik Jones in the Legacy Motor Club No. 43 Toyota. His team co-owner, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, finished 28th in his third start of the season.

The Cup Series’ next race is the AdventHealth 400, scheduled next Sunday, May 5 (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Kansas Speedway. Hamlin is the defending winner.

Contributing: Staff reports

NOTE: Post-race inspection was completed in the Cup Series garage at Dover Motor Speedway without issue, confirming Hamlin as the race winner. Competition officials will take the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet of Chase Elliott and the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of Martin Truex Jr. back to the NASCAR Research & Development Center in Concord, North Carolina, for teardown.

Posted on April 28, 2024April 28, 2024 by Staff Report

Kyle Larson revealed Sunday that Kevin Harvick will serve as his standby driver for the NASCAR All-Star Race weekend next month while he participates in qualifying for the Indianapolis 500.

Larson dropped the news with Harvick by his side during FOX Sports’ pre-race coverage of Sunday’s Cup Series race at Dover Motor Speedway (FS1, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Harvick, who shifted to FOX’s broadcast team this season after a Hall of Fame-worthy driving career, will potentially be called out of retirement to substitute during All-Star Race action in the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet at North Wilkesboro Speedway on May 17-19. Multiple sessions of qualifying are scheduled May 18-19 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where Larson will be bidding to make his Indy 500 debut May 26.

All-Star practice and qualifying at North Wilkesboro are scheduled Friday, May 17. All-Star heats are scheduled that Saturday (starting at 5:20 p.m. ET), and the All-Star main event will be Sunday at 8 p.m. ET (FS1, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Harvick, a two-time All-Star race winner (2007, 2018), said he was approached by team owner Rick Hendrick to ask about his availability.

“When Rick called a couple of days ago, he said, ‘Hey, I need a favor,’ and I know when the conversation starts like that, that usually you have to say yes,” Harvick said. “So I appreciate you guys calling. It’s going to be fun.”

Larson entered Sunday’s Würth 400 at Dover as the Cup Series points leader. He won last year’s NASCAR All-Star Race in dominant fashion, with stock-car racing’s top division holding its first event at the 0.625-mile North Wilkesboro track since 1996.

Posted on April 28, 2024April 28, 2024 by Staff Report

Editor’s note: This projection has been updated after Saturday’s practice and qualifying at Dover:

After last-lap mayhem last weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, the NASCAR Cup Series is now at Dover Motor Speedway for the Würth 400 (2 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

The advance metrics originally predicted Martin Truex Jr. would roar to Victory Lane for the first time this season and end his winless drought at the Monster Mile for the second straight year. However, after practice and qualifying on Saturday, it’s Denny Hamlin, Truex Jr.’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, who rises to the top of the board.

Hamlin will start the race in the sixth position, while Truex will fire off in 15th after Saturday’s qualifying. Hamlin also posted the second-best 10-lap averages in practice, behind only William Byron.

Byron follows Hamlin in the updated projection, with Truex, Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott rounding out the top five. Ross Chastain, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, polesitter Kyle Busch and Ty Gibbs round out the top 10.

With the 2024 campaign in full swing, the high-banked concrete oval in Delaware is sure to produce more thrilling action this weekend in the Cup Series.

OTHER DRIVERS TO WATCH

KYLE LARSON: Larson’s 8.6 average finish at Dover is second best all-time among drivers with more than two races. Dover’s slick track profile has helped the former dirt-track racer find his way to the front. Larson has led over 100 laps in four out of his previous nine starts at Dover. In total, Larson has led 899 laps at Dover — his most at any track.

CHASE ELLIOTT: In 13 starts at Dover, Elliott has nine top-five finishes and two wins. Elliott is starting 29th, however, and will need to roar forward from the back.

ROSS CHASTAIN: Chastain has found a liking to Dover in the Next Gen car. He’s the only driver to finish in the top five at both races, leading the field with a total of 97 points scored at the track. More importantly, Chastain has led 184 laps at Dover, and he leads all drivers in laps run in the top five (613) and laps run in the top 10 (754).

ALEX BOWMAN: Since 2019, Bowman has accumulated five top-five finishes at the Monster Mile. He is also a former Dover winner, having won at the concrete oval in 2021. Bowman has also found solid consistency this season, scoring top-10 finishes in four of the last six races.

KYLE BUSCH: Busch was a Saturday surprise by surging to his first pole win of the season. He has seven top-two finishes at Dover, including three wins.

RACING INSIGHTS’ PROJECTIONS FOR THE WÜRTH 400

Racing Insights’ advanced statistical formula includes current track, current track type, recent performance, team data and pit-crew data to arrive at a projected winner and full race results.

Finish	Car Number	Driver
1	11	Denny Hamlin
2	24	William Byron
3	19	Martin Truex Jr.
4	5	Kyle Larson
5	9	Chase Elliott
6	1	Ross Chastain
7	12	Ryan Blaney
8	48	Alex Bowman
9	8	Kyle Busch
10	54	Ty Gibbs
11	22	Joey Logano
12	45	Tyler Reddick
13	23	Bubba Wallace
14	20	Christopher Bell
15	6	Brad Keselowski
16	17	Chris Buescher
17	4	Josh Berry
18	14	Chase Briscoe
19	47	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
20	3	Austin Dillon
21	99	Daniel Suárez
22	16	AJ Allmendinger
23	34	Michael McDowell
24	84	Jimmie Johnson
25	2	Austin Cindric
26	10	Noah Gragson
27	41	Ryan Preece
28	7	Corey LaJoie
29	51	Justin Haley
30	21	Harrison Burton
31	42	John Hunter Nemechek
32	31	Daniel Hemric
33	77	Carson Hocevar
34	38	Todd Gilliland
35	43	Corey Heim
36	15	Kaz Grala
37	71	Zane Smith

Posted on April 27, 2024April 27, 2024 by John Crane

DOVER, Del. — There was no denying that Dover Motor Speedway would be a tricky track for Carson Kvapil.

The reasoning seemed simple enough. Although the 20-year-old North Carolina native turned heads during his dazzling fourth-place running at Martinsville Speedway nearly three weeks prior, the Virginia short track brought at least some familiarity. After all, two titles in the CARS Late Model Tour provided Kvapil with a touch of semblance when tackling the half-miler.

The Monster Mile, however, was a different animal that would take more getting used to, and there wouldn’t have been any shame in working through the aches and grinding through Saturday’s BetRivers 200 in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

Instead, Kvapil took the challenge in stride and wheeled the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet to second place at the 1-mile Delaware facility.

“I felt like our car was really good all day. I felt like we were a top-five car all day on speed,” Kvapil said. “We were able to drive through the field there. Just, I don’t know. I felt like our car really wasn’t that good on the outside, but I felt like the top was so dominant on the starts that you kind of had to be there. Just got a little too tight there running the top and he got around us going into [Turn] 3 and just had track position on us to move us up the hill. It’s just how it is. It sucks we couldn’t come off 4 in front of him there, but all in all, it was a very good day for these JR Motorsports guys, and I’m happy.”

Attempting to conquer an unfamiliar track didn’t come without a little bit of homework beforehand. Finishing with the best 10-lap average run during Friday’s practice session, combined with a third-place triumph during Friday’s General Tire 150 in the ARCA Menards Series, provided the framework, while a 26th-place starting position for Saturday’s Xfinity contest showed there was still work to be done.

Carson’s father, Travis Kvapil, understood the tall order that loomed ahead. For the 2003 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion, the opportunity to see how his son could fare against adversity presented itself.

“Stayed consistent. Pit crew guys did a great job. Coming down to the end, we’re standing here now disappointed in a second-place finish, but gosh, he did such a great job,” Travis told NASCAR.com. “I don’t think he made any mistakes, and with the rain, at one point, you’re thinking you did the wrong thing, and then it pays off to be the right thing, and then you’re in contention for the win. Fought track position all day long, finally got him up front at the end in clean air, and the car was a rocket. Give all the credit to [crew chief] Andrew Overstreet and the JR Motorsports guys for giving him a fast Camaro. Just a lot to digest there for everybody, and for Carson to do this in his second race. Just a huge learning curve. He did a great job. He’s gonna have more opportunities to win, I think.”

James Gilbert | Getty Images

After finishing 13th in each of Saturday’s Xfinity contest’s first two stages, Carson’s speed began to show itself during the latter portions of the final stage as weather began to creep into the picture. This speed came to a head on Lap 193, when a three-wide battle with Austin Hill and Sheldon Creed saw Kvapil pull ahead and lead 14 laps total. However, an inside run from Ryan Truex saw the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota pull clear of Kvapil’s No. 88 and hold fast to the race’s conclusion.

WATCH: Truex passes Kvapil in OT for race win

“I was pretty nervous the whole time,” Carson said. “I just didn’t know if we were gonna get the race in or not. I really wanted to keep the green flag because I felt like we had a really good car for the last few laps, and fortunately, that all went to plan. Like I said, just didn’t defend out of there going into [Turn] 3.

“You don’t want to put three-wide, right? But I feel like that was my only opportunity to get clean air for the lead, so I felt like I kind of had to do it. I had such a good run, so I felt like we really put ourselves in a good spot. Just came up a little short.”

Although a win couldn’t be achieved, plenty of momentum remains in Carson’s favor. And while the young racer might not be racing Xfinity full-time, the opportunity to make a lasting impression has been accomplished in full.

As a former racer himself, Travis certainly believes as much.

“You gotta try to make the most of these opportunities when they come,” Travis said. “There’s a lot of weight on your shoulders to perform and not screw it up, and I felt like he just did a masterful job of working through the traffic starting from where [he] did, on and off pit road. All those things are new that experienced guys like myself, we take it for granted, where he’s still learning lap-by-lap out there, so huge things to come from him in his future I think, but we just keep taking advantage of these opportunities when we get them.”

For Carson, the name of the game will be to continue making the most out of every opportunity that presents itself. And after almost conquering Dover during his first dose of Xfinity action at the track, it’s entirely likely more opportunities could come about.

And to call Saturday a success? There’s simply no denying it.

“I feel like I really know what I need to do here going next time,” Carson said. “Like I said at Martinsville, I just wish I could do this again tomorrow, right? I feel like I’d be so much better and wouldn’t have to drive back to the front I feel like. I feel like after running that ARCA race, I had a pretty good idea. These cars just drive a little bit different, so just had to adapt to that, but that’s really about it.”

Posted on April 27, 2024April 27, 2024 by Staff Report

The NASCAR Xfinity Series Dash 4 Cash midseason incentive program is underway, with Saturday’s Andy’s Frozen Custard 300 at Texas Motor Speedway dishing out the second $100,000 prize of 2024.

This hub page will provide you with everything you need to know about the program, including links and more for each race event. Continue to monitor this hub as results from each Dash 4 Cash race are added.

What is Dash 4 Cash?

Starting in 2009, the Dash 4 Cash is a midseason program sponsored by Xfinity that rewards drivers financially for performing well during a select stretch of four races in each Xfinity Series season. This year, the races will take place at Martinsville Speedway (April 6), Texas Motor Speedway (April 13), Talladega Superspeedway (April 20) and Dover Motor Speedway (April 27).

How does Dash 4 Cash work?

Before the four-race stretch begins, there will be a qualifying race to determine the participants in the first official Dash 4 Cash race. The four highest-finishing series regulars in the Xfinity race at Richmond will qualify for the first Dash 4 Cash race at Martinsville. The highest finisher of that quartet at Martinsville will collect the $100,000 prize and automatically qualify for the next Dash 4 Cash race. The next three highest-finishing Xfinity Series regulars in the race at Martinsville will also qualify to participate in the next Dash 4 Cash race at Texas. These rules repeat for subsequent Dash 4 Cash races.

In order to qualify for the program, drivers must be declared to collect Xfinity Series points.

2024 Dash 4 Cash recaps:

At Richmond Raceway (March 30 qualifier)

MORE: Chandler Smith wins Xfinity race at Richmond for second straight season

Recap: Chandler Smith emerged dominantly in the Final Stage at Richmond to ride to his second victory of the season — and a shot at next week’s first Dash 4 Cash prize of 2024. Smith led a strong 1-2-3-4 contingent for Toyota at the Virginia short track, and he’ll be joined by second-place finisher — and former Cup Series playoff contender — Aric Almirola, along with fifth-place finisher Jesse Love and Parker Kligerman, who landed seventh on the results sheet. They’ll compete for the $100,000 prize next Saturday at Martinsville Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

***

At Martinsville Speedway (April 6)

MORE: Aric Almirola claims Xfinity Series victory, Dash 4 Cash prize at Martinsville

Recap: Aric Almirola dominated at Martinsville Speedway for his fifth career Xfinity Series win and the first Dash 4 Cash prize of his long career, holding on for the victory in NASCAR Overtime over Sam Mayer. The No. 1 JR Motorsports driver landed runner-up on the board, followed by Chandler Smith, Carson Kvapil and Justin Allgaier to complete the top five. Mayer, Smith, Allgaier and sixth-place finisher Sheldon Creed will make up the Dash 4 Cash participants at Texas Motor Speedway, with Almirola not scheduled to participate in the event. They’ll compete for the $100,000 prize next Saturday at Texas Motor Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

***

At Texas Motor Speedway (April 13)

MORE: Sam Mayer edges out Ryan Sieg in incredible photo finish, banks $100,000 bonus at Texas

Recap: Sam Mayer won a photo finish at Texas Motor Speedway for his fifth career Xfinity Series win and the second Dash 4 Cash prize of his career, edging out Ryan Sieg by 0.002 seconds at the checkered flag. Sieg was followed by Justin Allgaier, AJ Allmendinger and Cole Custer to round out the top five. Mayer, Sieg, Allgaier and Allmendinger will make up the Dash 4 Cash participants at Talladega Superspeedway. The four drivers will battle it out with another $100,000 prize on the line next Saturday in the Ag-Pro 300 (4 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

***

At Talladega Superspeedway (April 20)

MORE: Jesse Love holds off field in double-OT to score first win at Talladega

Recap: Jesse Love held off the field and saved enough fuel after two overtime restarts to score his first career Xfinity Series victory. Love was followed by Riley Herbst and surprise appearances from Anthony Alfredo, Leland Honeyman and Brennan Poole in the top five. Despite falling a lap down after a flat tire, Ryan Sieg claimed his maiden Dash 4 Cash prize after passing fellow bonus competitor AJ Allmendinger during the final two laps. Sieg will go for his second $100,000 bonus against Love, Herbst and Alfredo next Saturday at Dover Motor Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

***

At Dover Motor Speedway (April 27)

MORE: Ryan Truex goes back-to-back at Dover, cuts through chaos for first Xfinity win of 2024

Recap: Ryan Truex clinched victory at Dover Motor Speedway, seizing the lead from Carson Kvapil during a double-overtime restart. The No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota led only the final two laps to secure his first win of the season and second straight win at the Monster Mile. Kvapil finished second in just his second Xfinity Series start, followed by Sam Mayer, Sheldon Creed and Cole Custer. Anthony Alfredo claimed the final $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus of 2024, with Riley Herbst, Jesse Love and Ryan Sieg facing difficulties in their attempts. The next Xfinity Series race is scheduled for Saturday, May 11 at Darlington Raceway (1:30 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Posted on April 27, 2024April 27, 2024 by Holly Cain

Ryan Truex, the hometown favorite, prevailed in a thrilling double-overtime finish in the BetRivers 200 NASCAR Xfinity Series race Saturday at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway, leading only the two final laps to earn back-to-back victories at the 1-mile track.

The New Jersey native and defending race winner started alongside 20-year-old rookie Carson Kvapil on the front row for the final overtime re-start then pulled away to take the lead and ultimately the white flag – signaling one lap to go. An accident elsewhere on track officially ended the race under caution.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Dover

“I can’t believe it, our car was just good at the end when it mattered, I was so loose all day,” said Truex, 32, the younger brother of NASCAR Cup Series driver Martin Truex Jr. “Shout out to Carson, what an amazing run for what, his second race. I felt a little bad running him up the hill, but you’ve got to take these things when you can.

“I think I held my breath the last two laps. Love these fans. Love this track.”

While Truex hoisted and will savor the Dover trophy, it was also a great day for Kvapil driving the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. The son of former NASCAR driver Travis Kvapil, finished fourth in his only other series start – at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway earlier this year – giving him a very promising pair of top-five results in as many Xfinity Series races he’s competed in.

“This is pretty incredible,” Kvapil said. “Definitely felt like we had a fast car going into the day, but to be competing for the win on a green-white-checkered is pretty amazing. We’ve been in this situation before just not quite at this level.”

For much of the final laps, the outcome looked like it was going to be decided between former Richard Childress Racing teammates Austin Hill and Sheldon Creed. Hill, driver of the No. 21 RCR Chevrolet, and Creed, who now drives the No. 18 JGR Toyota, restarted door-to-door on the front row on a restart with 11 laps remaining. As that pair raced aggressively side-by-side for the lead, Kvapil put his Chevy down low, three-wide and drove past the pair to take the lead with eight laps remaining in regulation.

On the final restart of regulation – with five laps remaining – Hill and Kvapil restarted alongside one another on the front row, but Hill spun out in tight-quarters action between them in Turn 1, necessitating overtime. Kvapil was able to fend off the field on that first restart, only to have another caution come out. On the second restart, he and Truex started alongside each other, but Truex was able to get around Kvapil at the green flag and pace the field for the final two laps.

The race was briefly halted under red-flag conditions for light rain with 34 laps remaining. Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cole Custer – who led a race-best 95 of the 208 laps – was leading at the time and then decided to pit for tires and fuel during yellow-flag laps just before the cars restarted. He had to restart at the tail end of the field, but the reigning series champion rallied back to a fifth-place finish – able to advance on three ensuing caution periods plus the double overtime.

JR Motorsports’ Sam Mayer finished third, with Creed fourth followed by Custer. Kaulig Racing’s AJ Allmendinger was sixth, followed by JGR’s Chandler Smith, Kyle Weatherman Racing’s Kyle Weatherman, Our Motorsports’ Anthony Alfredo and Jordan Anderson Racing’s Parker Retzlaff.

The ninth-place finish was especially big for Alfredo, earning him the final Dash 4 Cash $100,000 prize – besting Riley Herbst, Jesse Love and Ryan Sieg – in the last event of the four-race incentive program sponsored by Xfinity.

“Really coming into this race, that was our motivation, it wasn’t something to just be a part of, yeah, I mean this was huge,” Alfredo said. “You don’t understand how small our budget is compared to these bigger teams. People overlook it because we’ve been running so well. The last three weeks we’ve been running top 10, and everyone asks, ‘who’s your alliance with?’

“… Coming into this race we knew if we could pull it off, we could invest in our team to be that much better.”

Herbst, Love and Sieg all found trouble in their bids for the Dash 4 Cash prize. Sieg’s misfortune came first, when his No. 39 RSS Racing Ford caught fire through the first and second turns. He escaped unhurt but was sidelined after just 25 laps, leaving him 37th in the 38-car field.

MORE: Dash 4 Cash coverage for 2024

Love, a first-time Xfinity Series winner last weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, led 21 laps in the early going. The rookie’s No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet slowed after contact with the No. 20 Toyota of Truex near the start of the final stage, and his Lap 102 pit stop to change a flat left-rear tire shuffled him back in the order. Love finished two laps down in 24th.

Herbst was in solid position to capture the bonus, but late-race contact with Justin Allgaier’s No. 7 Chevrolet sent his No. 98 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford spinning through Turn 4, where he collected Sammy Smith and others on Lap 193. He continued with damage and finished 16th.

“I guess the 7 car got back at us from last week, so it is what it is and we’ll move on,” Herbst said of Allgaier. “Our Ford Mustang Dark Horse was fast. We should have finished third at worst and we finished 16th.”

JR Motorsports’ Allgaier, a two-time Dover winner, won the opening stage of the race and ran up front – his 39 laps in the lead second only to Custer. He also pitted in the waning laps and managed to rally back to a 17th-place finish.

Smith now leads Custer by a single point in the Xfinity Series championship standings as the series heads into an off week. It resumes racing at the historic Darlington (S.C.) Raceway in the Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200 on Saturday, May 11 (1:30 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). NASCAR Cup Series regular Kyle Larson is last year’s race winner.

NOTE: Post-race inspection in the Xfinity Series garage was completed at Dover Motor Speedway without major issue, confirming Truex as the race winner. Officials found the runner-up No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet of Kvapil with one unsecured lug nut in a post-race check. The infraction should result in a monetary fine for No. 88 crew chief Andrew Overstreet in next week’s penalty report.

Contributing: Staff reports

Posted on April 27, 2024April 28, 2024 by Cameron Richardson

Würth 400

(⏰ Sunday, 2 p.m. ET | FS1 | PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

Weekend schedule | TV schedule | Weather tracker | NASCAR 101

Location: Dover, Delaware
Track length: 1 mile
Cup Series race purse: $7,992,801
Race distance: 400 laps | 400 miles
Stages: 120 | 250 | 400
—
Starting lineup: Kyle Busch to lead field to green
Pit stall assignments: See where drivers will pit
Defending winner: Martin Truex Jr.,

Key things to watch

Saturday sessions

In a surprise based on season trends so far, Kyle Busch nabbed his first pole of 2024 in qualifying. Putting down a hot lap of 162.191 mph, it’s the first time the driver of the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet has started inside the top 10 on a non-drafting track this season. Ryan Blaney joins Busch on the front row Sunday after a 161.951 mph circuit around the concrete oval. William Byron, Tyler Reddick and Noah Gragson made up the top five in the starting lineup.

Blaney, the defending Cup Series champ, had a blazing Saturday, tallying the fastest lap in practice at 159.468 mph. Reddick, Byron, Chase Briscoe and Jimmie Johnson all landed inside the top five off the hauler. However, Johnson’s fast practice lap did not translate to qualifying as the 11-time Dover winner will start 27th. | Full Saturday recap

Big story line

Who can get Ford back into Victory Lane?

Saturday left optimism for the Blue Ovals as Blaney was fastest in Dover practice and put his No. 12 Team Penske Ford on the front row alongside polesitter Kyle Busch. In total, four Fords are starting inside the top 10 Sunday afternoon as Noah Gragson (fifth), Chase Briscoe (seventh) and Michael McDowell (eighth) all start up front.

Through 10 races, the positives on the stat sheet are few and far between for the automaker. Not a single Ford driver has reached the 200 laps led mark — although Joey Logano just needs one more lap to reach that mark.

On non-drafting tracks this year, only the two-time Cup champ has led over 40 laps combined with 105 circuits out front. Blaney is the next highest at 31 laps led away from Daytona, Atlanta and Talladega.

Larson, who leads the Cup field with 531 laps led this season, has logged more laps in first place than the top-five Ford lap leaders combined (505).

But with Dover falling in the category of tracks a mile or less, it will be one of Ford’s best opportunities to win as they have landed at least one blue oval in the top five at Phoenix, Bristol, Richmond and Martinsville.

History tells us…

The last six Dover races have been won by six different drivers. In a bit of an oddity, the starting positions of winners across that span were either inside the top five or outside the top 15 and victories were split evenly in those circumstances.

Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing have tamed the Monster Mile over the last 11 races, grabbing the checkered flag in eight of those events.

He may not be the betting favorite to win, but watch out for…

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. It’s been a trying 2024 campaign so far for the No. 47 JTG Daugherty team but after a top-five run at Talladega, the 12-year veteran has strong momentum heading to a track where he scored a runner-up finish in 2022. Stenhouse is quite a ways down the oddsboard, sitting at 100-1 before cars hit the track Saturday for practice and qualifying.

A driver that’s further up the betting favorites is Buescher. At 40-1 (updated Sunday), he and his RFK teammate and co-owner Brad Keselowski are among the best chances to nab Ford’s first victory of 2024. Both RFK cars finished inside the top 10 last season.| Dover odds

Speed reads

Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles.

• Turning Point: Trends from Talladega, arriving in Dover | Read article
• Family mindset: Third generation of Wood family takes co-ownership of iconic racing team | Read article
• Jones out Sunday: Corey Heim to pilot No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota | Read article
• The Field of 16: Last four in, first four out for Cup Series Playoffs | Latest projections
• ‘Timing was right’: Matt Kenseth settling into role at Legacy Motor Club | Read article
• Returning home: Ryan Truex returns to Dover as defending Xfinity Series winner | Read article
• Dash 4 Cash finale: Xfinity Series’ four-race initiative wraps up at Dover | Program overview
• Through the years at Dover: Take a trip through legendary moments | Photo gallery
• NASCAR Classics: Picks to click from our Dover video archives | Read article
• 36 for 36: NASCAR survivor pool picks for Dover | Read article
• Fearless prediction: Racing Insights projects Sunday’s final race results | Read article
• Fantasy Fastlane: Lineup pointers for Dover | Sleepers, drivers to avoid
• Paint Scheme Preview: Xfinity, Cup colors set to shine at Monster Mile | Pick your favorite
• Power Rankings: Can Bowman get all four Hendrick cars in playoffs? | Latest driver rankings

Fast facts ⏩

Race-relevant statistics, brought to you by the experts at Racing Insights.

• The race winner has led at least 68 laps in each of the last seven races.
• Over the last 28 races at Dover, only six winners have been younger than 32 years old.
• The stages and race win have been swept three times in track history. Kevin Harvick in 2018 and 2020, and Denny Hamlin in 2020.

Posted on April 27, 2024 by Staff Report

See where your favorite NASCAR Cup Series driver will pit for the Würth 400 at Dover Motor Speedway on Sunday (2 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).