Posted on by Staff Report

After a thriller in Texas, the Cup Series heads to Talladega Superspeedway for what is shaping up to be a sensational GEICO 500 this Sunday (3 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN Radio, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio).

RELATED: Set your Fantasy Live roster | Weekend schedule

The advance metrics predict another Hendrick Motorsports win, with William Byron projected to earn his fourth victory this season.

It’s wild to think Byron has yet to find Victory Lane at Talladega. The No. 24 Chevrolet finished in the top 10 at both races there last season, with a runner-up to Ryan Blaney in the fall. In addition, all of Byron’s finishes at Talladega in the Next Gen era have been in the top 15, suggesting he could visit Victory Lane soon at the famed superspeedway.

Following Byron in the projections is his teammate and most recent Cup Series victor Chase Elliott, Team Penske’s Blaney, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin, and 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace. Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Christopher Bell, Chase Briscoe, and Martin Truex Jr. complete the projected top 10.

Plenty of playoff spots are still up for grabs this weekend. Talladega is known to produce surprise winners, which leaves the door open for another wild Cup race.

OTHER DRIVERS TO WATCH

CHASE ELLIOTT: After returning to the mountaintop and breaking a 42-race winless drought last weekend at Texas, and with Talladega on tap, signs point to the No. 9 Hendrick driver to have another stellar weekend. Before last Sunday, Elliott’s last win came at the Alabama circuit, and he owns the fourth-best all-time average finish at Talladega (13.63) with a minimum of six starts.

RYAN BLANEY: Blaney is the only repeat Talladega winner in the last nine races. He’s finished in the top 10 in seven of the last nine drafting races, with his last three Talladega finishes being in the top two. In the Next Gen era, drafting tracks have been Blaney’s second nature, with the 2023 champ earning six top fives and nine top 10s and owning an average finish of 10.9.

JOEY LOGANO: After a slow start to the 2024 campaign, Logano has found his way back into the playoff mix. While his recent numbers at Talladega don’t jump off the page, one can’t discount the two-time champ whenever the Cup Series shifts to superspeedways. His last win came at a drafting-style track in last year’s Atlanta race, and it wouldn’t be a shock to see him in the mix this weekend as he aims to end a drought of his own.

CHRIS BUESCHER: Both RFK Racing cars have a chance to turn in solid results this weekend. Buescher, to match his champion teammate’s prowess, has become a savvy superspeedway racer over the past several years and won at Daytona last season. He is already off to another great start in 2024, with five top 10s through the first nine races. Plus, Buescher finished third at Talladega last fall. 

DANIEL SUÁREZ: Suárez landed a top-five finish last weekend at Texas for his first top-five finish since the Atlanta win earlier this year. Suárez also has three consecutive top-10 finishes at Talladega and should be carrying some extra momentum this weekend after turning in a result that reflects the speed the No. 99 has shown all season.

RACING INSIGHTS’ PROJECTIONS FOR THE GEICO 500

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.

FinishCar NumberDriver
124William Byron
29Chase Elliott
312Ryan Blaney
411Denny Hamlin
523Bubba Wallace
65Kyle Larson
722Joey Logano
820Christopher Bell
914Chase Briscoe
1019Martin Truex Jr.
118Kyle Busch
1217Chris Buescher
136Brad Keselowski
1499Daniel Suarez
151Ross Chastain
1648Alex Bowman
1743Erik Jones
1845Tyler Reddick
192Austin Cindric
2054Ty Gibbs
2134Michael McDowell
227Corey LaJoie
2310Noah Gragson
2451Justin Haley
2538Todd Gilliland
2641Ryan Preece
2747Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
283Austin Dillon
294Josh Berry
3042John Hunter Nemechek
3177Carson Hocevar
3221Harrison Burton
3332Daniel Hemric
3462Anthony Alfredo
3571Zane Smith
3678BJ McLeod
3715Cody Ware
3816Shane van Gisbergen
Posted on by Pat DeCola

Here’s what’s happening in the world of NASCAR with Texas in the rearview and Talladega (Sun., 3 p.m. ET, FOX) right around the corner.

THE LINEUP ️

1️⃣ Elliott back to winning — but is he a title favorite?

2️⃣ Playoff spot up for grabs at wide-open ‘Dega

3️⃣ Who could squeeze their way into the playoff picture?

4️⃣ Guess who’s due in Alabama?

5️⃣ Catch the pack — news and notes from around the garage

chase elliott celebrates at texas
Getty Images

1. Chase Elliott is back to winning — but is he a title favorite?

Now that the 2020 champion is free of a heavy 42-race winless streak and a playoff spot is in hand, it’s time to assess his championship hopes.

It felt like 420 races, didn’t it?

Forty-two-race winless streaks aren’t the most remarkable of droughts — plenty of drivers capable of winning in bunches have gone a season or more without a return to Victory Lane — but the way Elliott’s past two years have played out only served to highlight the drudgery of No. 9’s quest to snap the skid.

Well, he finally did.

Now Elliott’s got a provisional playoff spot after missing the postseason for the first time in his career eight months ago, a full head of steam and a championship-quality cast surrounding him. With the dominance we’ve seen from a handful of drivers apparently destined for a Championship 4 date themselves (Hendrick Motorsports teammates William Byron and Kyle Larson and rival Denny Hamlin, in particular) where, exactly, does the 2020 champ fit into this year’s title picture?

Honestly, he was already firmly entrenched in it even before Texas.

STACKING PENNIES: No. 9 team back in its stride?

While everyone was focused on the zero in the win column, Elliott was quietly putting the pieces together for what could wind up being his best season to date. The 19-time Cup Series winner has been a fixture among the cars at the front of the field nearly the entire campaign so far, landing in the top four in most laps run inside the top five and top 10 this season and turning in the second-best average finish (10.33) among full-timers this year. He’s absolutely on fire right now, with all four of his top-10 finishes coming in the last five races — the last three of which were all top fives for his longest top-five streak since last summer.

What was remarkable during the drought was the chatter and the questioning. Plenty asked the questions—did Elliott lose anything off the ol’ fastball from his snowboarding accident? Does Hendrick need to make a change atop the pit box and break up the dynamic duo of him and Alan Gustafson? Is this now Byron and Larson’s team?

No, no and no.

How quickly some forget just how exceptional of a talent Hendrick Motorsports’ longest-tenured driver is, and despite the slump he’s still, in a way, wiping the floor with everybody. Get ready for this — Elliott, a driver who missed last year’s playoffs amidst arguably his worst career season … still owns the best average finish (12.45) of any driver in the Next Gen era.

Couple that with the fact that his 13 most recent wins all came at different tracks (one of which is the site of this weekend’s race) and now that he’s kicked the streak to the curb, he’s likely to pile on plenty more in the coming months.

Elliott’s championship chase is officially on and in full force.

Giddy up.

chase elliott at texas
Getty Images

2. Playoff spots up for grabs at wide-open ‘Dega

The 2024 postseason field is taking shape already and drivers need to maximize every remaining opportunity as more spots dry up.

Part of the somewhat under-discussed fallout from Elliott’s massive Texas win? That’s one more playoff spot off the board.

“But Pat,” you say. “It’s Chase Elliott — we expected him to make the playoffs. Plus, it’s April.”

Indeed. But he didn’t last year. Nor did Atlanta winner Daniel Suárez. And one of last year’s postseason competitors (Kevin Harvick) will be watching this year’s playoff drivers sweat it out while he’s sitting comfortably on his couch.

That’s at least three spots of turnover in the playoff field we’re tentatively going to see. And perhaps more.

Enter Talladega Superspeedway.

Perhaps the track most notorious for unexpected winners, the Alabama track could easily offer up another surprise playoff entrant this weekend and really shuffle the deck.

According to Racing Insights, 86% of the playoff field has been set, on average, after the ninth race in the past seven years, which was Texas this season; Talladega being the 10th.

Based on that trend, there are essentially just two remaining spots up for grabs at the moment from drivers not currently in. Even if it is April.

And naturally, there’s almost no possible way to predict who might emerge this weekend — seven different drivers have won the last seven ‘Dega races.

There are a lot of eyes on Ford and Brad Keselowski — a six-time Talladega winner — to make the first big strike for the blue ovals this season, and his former Team Penske teammates all join him as formidable options to break through for their first 2024 wins as well, all being past superspeedway winners. Ford itself, for all of its noted struggles this season, might be the manufacturer to beat on Sunday as the unquestioned best at drafting tracks in recent years.

Talladega is anybody’s ballgame, but Toyota has not won a race on a drafting track in the Next Gen car, with the last win for the manufacturer on this track type coming via Bubba Wallace there in October 2021, 14 drafting races ago. Thankfully for Toyota, all Joe Gibbs Racing and 23XI Racing cars are in the tentative playoff field already, so an off weekend can be afforded should it happen. And actually, if Toyota was to buck the trend, it may come at the hands of Legacy Motor Club’s Erik Jones, who compiled a sparkling 8.71 average finish in the seven Talladega races prior to last fall’s P26 in his final superspeedway race for Chevy.

Then again, let’s go full circle here.

It’s extremely possible Elliott just goes back-to-back, as Talladega stands as one of his best tracks with two wins and top 10s in half of his 16 starts. No. 9 finished in the top 10 in three of the last four in Alabama and, oh yeah — his last win before the streak?

Talladega, fall 2022.

cars race at talladega
Getty Images

3. Who could squeeze their way into the playoff picture?

NBC’s Steve Letarte and MRN’s Todd Gordon break down expectations for when NASCAR hits the high banks at Talladega on Sunday.

 

4. Guess who’s due in Alabama?

This year’s Daytona 500 winner might make it two in a row at superspeedways, as William Byron has been close to his first ‘Dega win with two runner-ups in the past six races.

Most laps led at Talladega laps without a win

DriverLaps LedCareer wins
Kurt Busch29234
Benny Parsons25321
Geoff Bodine17818
Jeff Burton15821
Greg Biffle15519
Elliott Sadler1263
Morgan Shepherd1224
Rusty Wallace12055
William Byron10813
Jim Vandiver1030

5. Catch the pack — news and notes from around the garage

Power Rankings: Brad Keselowski next champ to snap winless streak?

Paint Scheme Preview: See the schemes for Talladega

William Byron on Texas tangle with Chastain: ‘We’ll discuss it and go from there’

@nascarcasm: Nine things you may not know about Chase Elliott

Analysis: Chase Elliott’s victory highlights journey back to top of mountain

NASCAR Inside The Race: How scoring lines factored into Chase Elliott’s Texas win

Fans fired up about Tyler Reddick’s No. 45 Jordan Brand paint scheme

Kyle Petty on impact of Elliott’s victory: ‘The sport needs him to win’

@nascarcasm: Fake texts to Texas winner Chase Elliott

Which driver is favored to win 2024 title after Texas?

Getty Images
Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR officials issued two-race suspensions Tuesday to two crewmembers of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team for a detached wheel in last Sunday’s Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.

Larson’s right-rear wheel came unfastened during a Stage 2 caution period in Sunday’s Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400. He was penalized two laps during the race but regained some of the lost ground for a 21st-place finish on the lead lap.

RELATED: Cup Series standings | Weekend schedule: Talladega

Tuesday, the remaining penalty for the safety violation was handed out, with suspensions for the next two Cup Series events for No. 5 crewmembers Calvin Teague (rear-tire changer) and Brandon Johnson (jack). The suspension will be in effect for Sunday’s GEICO 500 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Talladega Superspeedway and the following week’s race at Dover Motor Speedway.

Competition officials also issued an indefinite suspension to Nicholas Covey for a violation of NASCAR’s Substance Abuse Policy. According to NASCAR’s team rosters portal, Covey was jackman for the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet as recently as the April 7 race at Martinsville Speedway.

Three other Cup Series crews were hit with one-race suspensions for Talladega for infractions related to protective clothing and equipment:

  • No. 17 RFK Racing tire carrier Zach Yager (gloves)
  • No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing tire carrier Jake Holmes (helmet strap)
  • No. 33 Richard Childress Racing jackman Doug Warrick (helmet)

In the Xfinity Series, competition officials handed down a one-race suspension to Brandon Harder — fueler for the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet team — for a protective clothing/equipment violation, specifically the protective apron.

Officials also fined two crew chiefs $5,000 apiece after their cars were found with one unsecured lug nut each in a post-race check:

  • No. 9 JR Motorsports crew chief Phillip Bell
  • No. 48 Big Machine Racing crew chief Patrick Donahue

In the Craftsman Truck Series, Henderson Motorsports crew chief Chris Carrier was fined $5,000 and suspended for one race after two unsecured lug nuts were found on the No. 75 entry of Stefan Parsons post-race at Texas.

Posted on by Zack Albert

CONCORD, N.C. — William Byron said Tuesday he’s awaiting a discussion with Ross Chastain after their last-lap contact in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race but that the benefit of hindsight hasn’t swayed his viewpoint on their overtime collision at Texas Motor Speedway.

Byron finished third behind a victorious Hendrick Motorsports teammate in Chase Elliott, but his charging No. 24 Chevrolet tangled with Chastain’s No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevy as the two drivers exited Turn 2. Chastain scraped the outside retaining wall and went from a likely top-five finish to a 32nd-place result in the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400.

RELATED: Byron takes third at Texas | Byron tops Power Rankings list

Byron said post-race Sunday that the contact was not intentional, adding, “I don’t want to do that to anyone.” In a Tuesday roundtable with reporters, the 26-year-old driver said he’d made the initial reach-out to Chastain to talk it through.

“We haven’t spoken yet. I reached out to him, but I’m sure we’ll get connected later this week,” Byron said. “But nothing really changes for me, my perspective. We just came together in a spot there. He was coming down the track to try to cover my run, and I was just making the corner exit like I anticipated him being where he would be on the exit. It’s unfortunate, but it’s racing on the last lap, and I’m just going to do that at times probably to save that spot.”

Byron said he would have expected turnabout if the roles were reversed, and Chastain — known as one of the series’ most aggressive drivers — was in his position under Sunday’s circumstances.

“I would. I think probably the timing and the momentum that I had was probably, maybe a little bit different than what he thought or something,” Byron said. “I haven’t talked to him, so once we talk, we’ll discuss it and go from there.”

Byron enters Sunday’s GEICO 500 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Talladega Superspeedway as the circuit’s top winner this year with three Cup Series victories in the first nine races. He’s also rounded into a proven winner at superspeedway-style racing, with two wins each at Daytona International Speedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway.

MORE: Weekend schedule: Talladega

When pressed to measure his speedway credentials against the best of the field, Byron cites two drivers from rival manufacturers — Toyota’s Denny Hamlin and Ford’s Ryan Blaney, Talladega’s most recent winner last fall.

“Those two guys do a really good job of just kind of positioning themselves throughout the entire race,” said Byron, who was runner-up to Blaney at Talladega last October. “But yeah, it just seems like for us, we just have to go with a good mindset, and then it seems like the rest kind of takes care of itself. You can’t worry about the things you can’t control, so the times I go there stressed out or worried about crashing because of a point situation or whatever, it just doesn’t work. So just try to have the right mindset going there.”

Posted on by Staff Report

23XI Racing revealed on Tuesday a special No. 45 Jordan Brand Toyota that driver Tyler Reddick will pilot this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.

MORE: Full Talladega schedule | Tyler Reddick gear, die-casts

It’s the first time since Las Vegas Motor Speedway last fall that Reddick will sport the iconic brand featuring his NBA Hall of Fame team owner Michael Jordan, a frequent attendee at Talladega himself. The California native will look to claim victory No. 1 of the season in Sunday’s race (3 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) with the slick look — and also his first top 10 at Talladega since back-to-back seventh-place runs there in 2020-21.

The response to the stand-out scheme from fans was overwhelmingly positive.

 

Posted on by Brandon White

The vibrant racing culture at Berlin Raceway is set to ignite once again Saturday with the season-opening Icebreaker.

One of the facility’s most prestigious events, the Icebreaker also acts as the first leg of Berlin’s triple crown that consists of the Money in the Bank 150 and the Battle at Berlin. Headlining the on-track festivities is the Super Late Model division, which will be accompanied by the Limited Late Model, Sportsman and 4 Cylinder classes.

Super Late Model drivers will be competing for a $4,000 race-winning paycheck at the end of the 75-lap sprint. Evan Shotko, the 2022 Berlin track champion, enters the Icebreaker as the most recent winner.

Below is everything you need to know about the Icebreaker before Berlin kicks off its 2024 season Saturday afternoon.

Berlin Icebreaker
Super Late Models will battle for $4,000 in the season-opening Icebreaker at Berlin Raceway. (Photo: Emily Elconin/NASCAR)

What TV channel is the Berlin Icebreaker on in 2024?

All on-track action from the Icebreaker at Berlin Raceway can be viewed live on FloRacing, the official streaming partner for all NASCAR Regional properties.

The Icebreaker will not be shown on a television network.

Below is the complete schedule for Icebreaker coverage on FloRacing.

Date Start time How to watch
Saturday, Apr. 20 4 p.m. ET FloRacing
Berlin Raceway
Saturday’s season-opening Icebreaker at Berlin Raceway will consist of features for Super Late Models, Limited Late Models, Sportsmans and 4 Cylinders. (Photo: Emily Elconin/NASCAR)

Berlin Icebreaker 2024 schedule

The on-track activities for the Icebreaker commence at 2 p.m. ET.

Super Late Models will be the first to hit the track with a lone 30-minute practice session. The rest of the 90-minute practice period sees the Limited Late Model, Sportsman and 4 Cylinder classes get two, 10-minute sessions apiece.

Qualifying for Super Late Models starts at 3:30 p.m. ET, followed shortly by the first event at 4 p.m. ET. The three support divisions will all take part in double features, with the 75-lap Super Late Model race wrapping up a busy opening day for Berlin.

Below is the complete race-day schedule for the Icebreaker at Berlin Raceway.

Time Event
11 a.m. Pit Pass Window Opens
12 p.m. Pit Gate Opens
12:45 p.m. 4 Cylinder Tech (Turn 1)
1:30 p.m. Sportsman Tech (Turn 1)
2 p.m. General Admission Gates Open
2-2:30 p.m. Super Late Model Practice (30 min)/LLM Tech (Turn 1)
2:30-2:40 p.m. 4 Cylinder Practice (10 min)
2:40-2:50 p.m. Sportsman Practice (10 min)/SLM Tech
2:50-3 p.m. Limited Late Model Practice (10 min)
3-3:10 p.m. 4 Cylinder Practice (10 min)
3:10-3:20 p.m. Sportsman Practice (10 min)
3:20-3:30 p.m. Limited Late Model Practice (10 min)
3:30 p.m. Super Late Model Qualifying
3:57 p.m. Invocation (Larry Bush)/National Anthem (Orchard Hill Praise Team)
4 p.m. Icebreaker (Sportsman Feature 1: 20 laps/20 min, 4 Cylinder Feature 1: 15 laps/15 min, Limited Late Model Feature 1: 30 laps/30 min, Sportsman Feature 2: 20 laps/20 min, 4 Cylinder Feature 2: 15 laps/15 min, Limited Late Model Feature 2: 30 laps/30 min, Super Late Model Feature: 75 laps/60 min)
Posted on by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — NASCAR and the NASCAR Foundation are teaming up to host a 37-hour online giving event to raise funds for nonprofits across the country.

The Giveathon will begin May 14 at 8 a.m. ET and go until 9 p.m. ET on May 15. Officially known as the “NASCAR Day Giveathon,” the entire giving period will feature a multitude of bonus grants and matching gift donations for nonprofit organizations as well as commemorative prizes and memorabilia for donors. Nonprofit registration is still available until May 1 at NASCARdaygiveathon.org.

The NASCAR Foundation will work with organizations in the weeks approaching the Giveathon to increase awareness of this national movement across the extensive network of passionate NASCAR fans.

“We are thrilled to bring the NASCAR Day Giveathon back for a second year,” said Nichole Krieger, Vice President and Executive Director of The NASCAR Foundation. “It’s always heartwarming to see what our NASCAR industry can accomplish when we all come together for the greater good. We’re excited to build upon the success of last year’s campaign to make an even greater impact on the communities where we live, work and race.”

Contributions will be accepted online throughout the entire 37-hour window, with donors designating their funds toward their charities of choice from the list of participating organizations. The Giveathon will also feature bonus grants and matching gift donations for nonprofit organizations, as well as T-shirts and memorabilia items as incentives for donors.

NASCAR and Kaulig Giving will randomly award two $500 bonus grants every hour during the 37-hour window to charities that receive at least one $25 donation during that hour. Kaulig Giving is the philanthropic arm of Kaulig Companies and focuses on the wellbeing of children and families through charitable giving, community involvement, and partnerships with like-minded nonprofits.

Matching gift donations are made possible by the generosity of Giveathon sponsors, including NASCAR, Kaulig Giving, Jeep Beach, First Nation Group and Borkan Skahill. Matching donations will be matched up to $500 per gift on May 15 during the following hours:

8 a.m. NASCAR $10,000 Match
9 a.m. Kaulig Giving $10,000 Match
10 a.m. Jeep Beach $10,000 Match
11 a.m. First Nation Group
(veterans/military charities)		 $10,000 Match
Noon Borkan Skahill $10,000 Match
1 p.m. NASCAR $15,000 Match
2 p.m. Kaulig Giving $15,000 Match
3 p.m. Jeep Beach $15,000 Match
4 p.m. First Nation Group
(veterans/military charities)		 $15,000 Match
7 p.m. Kaulig Giving $10,000 Match
8 p.m. NASCAR $10,000 Match

Donor incentives include the opportunity to be listed on the bed of the Rev Racing Gainbridge No 2. Chevrolet Silverado driven by Nick Sanchez in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at North Wilkesboro on May 18; a commemorative Helmet for the first 100 donors who contribute $750 or more; a commemorative coin for the first 300 donors of $50 or more; and a commemorative T-shirt for the first 1,500 donors of $75 or more.

To learn more about the NASCAR Day Giveathon or to register your nonprofit for the event, please visit NASCARDaygiveathon.org. Nonprofit registration closes May 1.

Posted on by Brandon White

Of all the short tracks operating throughout the United States, none have a reputation quite like Bowman Gray Stadium.

Since first opening to the public in 1949, the quarter-mile bullring has entertained generations of fans with close-quarter racing and hot tempers that regularly spill over onto the track. The intense nature of the weekly shows has led Bowman Gray to be colloquially known by drivers and fans as ‘The Madhouse.’

Amidst the countless on-track rivalries is a rich racing culture that has seen many NASCAR legends take home checkered flags. The NASCAR Cup Series competed at Bowman Gray 29 times between 1958-71, with Richard Petty, Junior Johnson, Bobby Allison, Rex White and Glen Wood being amongst the winners.

RELATED: Watch the Bowman Gray Stadium opener on FloRacing

Today, racing at Bowman Gray is headlined by the renowned Modified division. Many drivers have cemented themselves into Bowman Gray lore in the last 75 years by outlasting the track and their fellow competition to become one of the select few to earn a Modified championship.

Burt Myers
Burt Myers will chase his 11th track championship at Bowman Gray Stadium this year. (Photo: Parker Michels-Boyce/NASCAR)

More recently, the Modified division at Bowman Gray Stadium has been dominated by two people, Tim Brown and Burt Myers.

Brown’s first championship in 1996 set a commanding precedent that would persist into the 21st Century. No other driver has more Modified titles at Bowman Gray than Brown with 12 overall, but Myers follows closely behind him with 10 of his own.

The efficiency Brown and Myers have enjoyed during their respective careers has also placed them atop the all-time win list in Bowman Gray’s Modified class. Brown’s 98 victories leads all drivers in Bowman Gray’s long history, all while Myers currently sits second on the win list with 91.

Despite taking home a combined seven checkered flags last year, neither Brown nor Myers managed to tack on another Bowman Gray championship to their impressive resumes. Both veterans are back at the facility for another season, each determined to best the other for the title following a long, grueling summer.

Saturday’s Hayes Jewelers 200 will be the first opportunity for Brown and Myers to kickstart a prospective championship campaign. Myers enters the endurance event as the defending winner, but Brown is seeking to take his first season-opening victory at Bowman Gray since 2013.

With NASCAR taking over the lease at Bowman Gray this year, a new era at the facility will begin with Saturday’s with the Hayes Jewelers 200, the longest and most prestigious race on the calendar. The Modifieds will contest 200 laps around Bowman Gray’s quarter-mile, with the Sportsman, Street Stock and Stadium Stock divisions also on the docket.

Brandon Ward
Brandon Ward will begin his pursuit for a second consecutive Bowman Gray Stadium title starting in Saturday’s Hayes Jewelers 200. (Photo: Eakin Howard/NASCAR)

Brandon Ward ready to defend Bowman Gray Modified title

After several years of trying, Brandon Ward finally broke through to join an elite list of Bowman Gray Modified champions at the end of the 2023 season.

Ward brings one of the more diverse backgrounds to the Bowman Gray driver roster, having won races in Modifieds, Super Late Models, the USAR Pro Cup Series and the NASCAR Goody’s Dash Series. During the mid-2010s, Ward and his team New Day Motorsports elected to test their luck in Bowman Gray’s Modified division.

It would not take long for Ward’s versatility to carry over into Modified competition at the Madhouse. His first Bowman Gray checkered flag came during the 2017 season finale. He’s followed that up with six more victories, including a stellar four-win campaign in 2019.

Although he is no stranger to finding Victory Lane at Bowman Gray, Ward earned his maiden track championship without a trip to Victory Lane. Now armed with momentum following last year’s championship, Ward is ready to defend his title by earning victories while also maintaining the consistency he displayed in 2023.

The primary obstacle standing in the way of Ward repeating will be the two elder statesmen of Bowman Gray’s Modified class in Brown and Myers. A win in the Hayes Jewelers 200 on Saturday could provide Ward the necessary jolt to assume early control over the Modified division.

Riley Neal
Riley Neal will transition into the Modified division full-time at Bowman Gray Stadium after spending the past two seasons in the Sportsman class. (Photo: Erick Messer) 

Riley Neal carries family tradition of success into Modified division

The Neal family has a long, proud tradition of success at Bowman Gray Stadium, with family patriarch Tommy Neal having won multiple titles in the track’s Sportsman and Stadium Stock classes.

Having already enjoyed the privilege of racing alongside his grandson Riley, Tommy will now get to see the youngest member of the Neal family advance from the Sportsman division to Modifieds in pursuit of a track championship.

Riley has already become embedded with the vibrant culture at Bowman Gray, tallying five victories in the Sportsman class since the 2022 season. During the most recent offseason, Riley was busy competing in Modified events around the Southeast to prepare for his transition into Bowman Gray’s top division.

Riley now has the chance to compete alongside many of the same legends that have been synonymous with efficiency inside the Madhouse. This step forward also brings many challenges for Riley, who will have to fight for every position in events ranging from twin 25-lap features to 200-lap endurance events.

With the first race, the Hayes Jewelers 200, serving as the longest race of the year, Riley will look to gain experience and learn from the veterans so he can find his comfort zone going into the summer.

NOTES:

  • Along with the 200-lap Modified feature, the season-opening Hayes Jewelers 200 at Bowman Gray Stadium will include a 40-lap Sportsman race to accompany the traditional 20-lap and 15-lap race lengths for the Street Stocks and Stadium Stocks, respectively.
  • The first green flag of Bowman Gray’s 2024 season is set to wave at 8 p.m. on Saturday evening. Tickets for adults cost $12, while children between the ages of six and 11 can get in for $2. Any child five years old or younger has free admission into the track.
  • FloRacing is set to provide live flag-to-flag coverage of every race at Bowman Gray.
Posted on by Cameron Richardson

FORT WORTH, Texas — A quarter into the 2024 season, Daniel Suárez has returned to the summit of the Cup Series’ results sheet while also avalanching down the points standings.

He has a provisional bid to the 16-driver dance for the Bill France Cup with his rousing victory at Atlanta in February, but his best finish of the year before a fifth-place result Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway was an 11th-place tally at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Amid a 276-lap race filled with 16 cautions, strategies and pit-road execution were the X factors in determining who was able to maintain track position out front. By the time the checkered flag flew under caution, Suárez found himself with a single digit next to his name on the official post-race rundown.

RELATED: Texas race results | Relive wild Sunday at Texas

“It was tricky. I thought we were going to be pretty strong, and we were pretty good in the first run,” Suárez said. “Then, in the first green-flag cycle, I don’t know what happened to the car because we were super loose, and then after that, we started making adjustments, and we got the car better.

“We started making progress, and we got a penalty, and we went to the back again. We started making progress, and we had another bad pit stop. It was just not a very clean day at all. It was a good result at the end of the day because the strategy worked out good, and we got a couple of good restarts. But we have some work to do. We have to continue to in order to move forward.”

Obstacles and adversity filled the day for the No. 99 Trackhouse Racing team. Suárez failed to score stage points in the first two legs of the race and only spent 65 laps inside the top 15, according to NASCAR loop data.

Suárez drives at Texas
Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images

With six cautions and two overtime restarts padding the final 46 laps Sunday, Suárez took advantage of the on-track assertiveness among the field and kept his car clean when the dust settled.

“Today we had a top five, but we didn’t have a top-five race,” Suárez said. “We got a top-five finish. So we have to continue to work and clean up a few things.”

Both Trackhouse Chevrolets were on their way to top-10 finishes until the exit of Turn 2 on the final lap when Ross Chastain washed up the track, was hit from behind and spun by a hard-charging William Byron. Instead of a runner-up finish, Chastain unceremoniously departed from his wrecked No. 1 Chevrolet on the backstretch and was credited with a 32nd-place result, his worst finish of 2024 so far.

WATCH: See last-lap contact through Byron’s windshield

“Yeah, I felt very bad for the 1 team because they deserve a better [run Sunday],” Suárez said. “They were doing a hell of a job all race long, and they should’ve finished in the top five.”

Texas has served Suárez well in the Next Gen era. He has consecutive top-10 results at the 1.5-mile facility following his fifth-place run Sunday and finished 12th in 2022.

When it comes to why he’s able to perform well in the Lone Star State, Suárez credited both the energy he gets from the fans and the prep work from his team entering Fort Worth.

“I think definitely the people. There is a lot of Hispanics here,” Suárez said. “They really give me a lot of good energy, a lot of support, a lot of love and we have had good cars. Today wasn’t pretty, honestly. After Stage 1 if you were telling me that we were going to finish top five, I was going to tell you you were crazy. So definitely wasn’t pretty but ended up working out good.”

Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

When Chase Elliott broke his leg in a snowboarding accident in March 2023, he knew the journey back to Victory Lane would be arduous. But no one knew exactly how long that gap between visits would be.

On Sunday, 409 days after suffering his injury, Elliott finally reached the top of the mountain once more, winning at Texas Motor Speedway to snap a 42-race winless streak that dates back to October 2022 at Talladega Superspeedway.

MORE: Race results | Buy Chase Elliott winner gear

The results between his mid-spring absence and Sunday’s return to prominence were far from dismal — Elliott had scored top 10s in three of the past four races entering Texas, including consecutive top fives at Richmond Raceway and Martinsville Speedway in the two weeks prior.

But they didn’t match the previous standard of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports team that claimed the Cup Series championship in 2020, won multiple races per year from 2018 through 2022 and matched a career-best five wins in 2022, the debut year of the Next Gen car. In fact, Elliott’s victory at Texas marked his first top-five finish on an intermediate oval in the Next Gen car.

But the fans who have voted him winner of the Most Popular Driver Award for six consecutive seasons can worry no longer — Elliott is victorious again and soaking in every second.

“I’ve just been really proud of our group for sticking together,” Elliott said, “because I’m sure a lot of you guys have been around the sport long enough to understand and know that when you have a couple bad years, a period of time that things aren’t going well, it is so easy to jump ship and to start bailing out on one another.

“I think that the win’s great, all that stuff is fantastic, but I’m truthfully most proud of the journey and the group of people that we have climbed back up together with. We’ve made each other better. They push me to be a better driver and a better person.”

That starts, Elliott added, with crew chief Alan Gustafson. When the lows added up for Elliott, a driver who has admitted some growing pains in adapting to the required driving style of the Next Gen car, Gustafson was there to keep Elliott focused on the tasks at hand and avoid the pitfalls of self-doubt.

“I think the longer it goes, the more ways you find to either not run good or lose races, it can make it tougher,” Elliott said. “To me, honestly, this journey and everything about today is really a credit to the guys that sit in our meetings on Monday mornings in the 9 room. That starts with Alan.”

Chase Elliott is congratulated in Texas Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series race.
Patrick Vallely | For NASCAR.com

It is resilience and self-admitted stubbornness that drives the No. 9 team toward its goals. That perseverance carried Elliott to his first Texas win.

WATCH: Gustafson discusses No. 9 team’s grit | No. 9 jackman on memorable victory

“You just have to trust in the process, trust each other,” Gustafson said. “Focus on improving, not getting caught up on what you don’t have, focus on what you do have. We have everything we need to win with Mr. Hendrick, how he supports us, how everybody at Hendrick Motorsports supports us. We have a great race team. This is a really great race team, a great pit crew.

“We just knew you had to stay committed to that and each other. That’s all I do. It’s not anything special besides just being super, super stubborn and resilient.”

Success has been frequent lately at Hendrick Motorsports, where William Byron has won three of the first nine races of 2024, and Kyle Larson has won three consecutive pole positions, coupled with a race win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Elliott and the No. 9 team were once the program’s dominant fleet. Sunday offered a glimpse at what Elliott’s long-term return to the sport’s uppermost echelon could look like.

“William Byron, as much as I love him and Rudy (Fugle, crew chief), they’re not always going to be at the top, right?” Gustafson said. “It’s just not going to happen. Everybody goes through ebbs and flows. Whoever you want to call successful: (Martin) Truex (Jr.), Denny (Hamlin), Kyle, Kyle Busch, everybody has those ups and downs. I think just having the strength to battle through it and persevere is key, and he’s done that.”

RELATED: Byron content with third after Chastain contact

Elliott has long been a believer that to reach Victory Lane, a driver must first put himself at the front of the field often. He’s done exactly that lately, entering Sunday’s race with the series’ fourth-best average running position at 11.096, per NASCAR’s loop data.

“You have to be in the mix. You got to be up front to even have things go your way,” Elliott said. “We were close enough to do that. We still want to be better. I think we have room for improvement. Just proud of the way everything worked out. It’s a lot more fun when you’re fighting for wins and up front battling, whether it goes your way or doesn’t go your way. Just to have a shot is enjoyable.”

The journey back to Victory Lane was far from easy for Elliott, something Gustafson has seen firsthand. But he also understands the work his driver has put into getting back to the peak of the mountain.

“He’s a human being just like everybody else,” Gustafson said. “He has his life going on. He has trials and tribulations that he has to work through. Yeah, being out with an injury, then having to go through all that. Yeah, maybe not performing to some people’s expectations.

“It’s not something that I believe. I feel like he’s performed really well. I think it’s just, yeah, sometimes you can get in a little bit of a hole. You just have to fight, right? That’s the biggest thing I’m most proud of him and the team for, is just continuing to fight through it, make it happen. It’s super cliché and cheesy, but you just never give up. You learn that if you don’t give up, eventually, things are going to turn around. I think that’s probably going to be the biggest lesson he takes out of that.”

Isn’t it convenient, then, that the series shifts to Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) — site of Elliott’s last win before Texas?