Posted on November 3, 2023 by Staff Report

NASCAR unveiled the new NASCAR Speed Hub Phoenix on Roblox Friday ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway.

The Phoenix Speed Hub is a new, event-themed experience on the platform that replaces the NASCAR Speed Hub Chicago experience on Roblox, with ample new additions to the game and even an appearance from a legendary NASCAR driver. The hub features a multitude of new and updated features and serves as a digital reimagining to celebrate the highly anticipated conclusion of NASCAR’s 75th Anniversary at Phoenix Raceway.  

Key Features

Before the final celebration of NASCAR’s 75th Anniversary this weekend, the Phoenix Speed Hub has new features that pay tribute to the history of the sport. The new critical elements of the hub include a reimagined map designed of the premier sports entertainment facility, Phoenix Raceway, which has been a staple track to the NASCAR Cup Series since 1988. The life-like features of Phoenix Raceway even include the Estrella Mountains, which serve as a desert backdrop.

Players can choose between three distinct courses to race, including a replica of the famous tri-oval at Phoenix Raceway and two tracks that take players through newly reimagined areas of Phoenix. For a unique game experience, players can celebrate like their favorite driver and do donuts at the base of the Estrella Mountains. Players can also visit the famous Rattlesnake Hill in NASCAR Speed Hub Phoenix.

The hub will also feature leaderboards for best lap time, allowing players to see exactly how they stack up with their opponents online. The hub also keeps track of players who have done the most donuts and run the quickest track time through legacy lap time.

A new edition to the Speed Hub is that one of NASCAR’s most popular drivers and 2-time Daytona 500 winner, Dale Earnhardt Jr., will provide an expansive onboarding experience for players, highlighting all the key features and welcoming them to the NASCAR Speed Hub Phoenix.

With this new update, players can customize their race day look to perfection with newly expanded car customization, allowing players a variety of choices to design their cars with different colors, patterns, and numbers to create unique paint schemes.

In addition to customizing cars, players will once again be able to visit merch haulers featuring collectible UGC (avatar clothing items) for sale (price WIP).  Players will also have a chance to earn weekly collectibles and limited UGC items that are quest-based, allowing players to acquire new items the more they play and complete different in-game challenges.

Enjoy the thrills of the Roblox world and tune in to see the real-world stars hit the track in Phoenix, culminating with the Cup Series season finale event, the NASCAR Cup Series Championship, on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, NBC, Peacock, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).

Posted on November 3, 2023November 5, 2023 by Kobe Lambeth

Championship Weekend at Phoenix Raceway

(⏰ Sunday, Nov. 5 at 3 p.m. ET | 📺 NBC, Peacock | 📻 MRN, SiriusXM)

Everything you need to know for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway, the 36th and final points-paying race of the 2023 Cup Series campaign.

Weekend schedule | TV schedule | Weather tracker | Phoenix championship race 101

Cup Series
💪Championship 4 drivers: Kyle Larson, William Byron, Ryan Blaney and Christopher Bell
📍 Location: Avondale, Arizona
📐 Track length: 1 mile
💰 Cup Series race purse: $11,143,232
📏 Race distance: 312 laps | 312 miles
🔢 Stages: 60 | 185 | 312
📋 Starting lineup: Byron on pole for Championship race
🚗 Pit stall assignments: Where drivers will pit on Sunday

Key things to watch 🔑

Friday and Saturday’s sessions

Championship 4 drivers Ryan Blaney and Christopher Bell had the advantage during Friday evening’s 50-minute practice sessions, but couldn’t back it up in Saturday’s qualifying. Those two will start outside the top 10 on Sunday with Bell rolling off 13th and Blaney in 15th. Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kyle Larson and William Byron will start at the front as Byron grabbed the Busch Light Pole Award and the all-important No. 1 pit stall at Phoenix Raceway. Larson will start fourth | Read qualifying recap

Big story line

In his first Championship 4 appearance, is Ryan Blaney ready for his one shining moment?

Blaney had never made it past the Round of 8 until now in his seventh playoff appearance. It truly feels like the 29-year-old High Point, North Carolina, native took the next step in his NASCAR Cup Series career. Exiting the previous round riding a hot streak, Blaney finished sixth at Las Vegas, a career-best finish of second place at Homestead, and sailed to Victory Lane in last Sunday’s elimination race at Martinsville. Getting two wins in the last five races certainly gives the Team Penske driver quite a bit of momentum heading into the championship decider.

His performances in the last two races have been championship-worthy and moments everyone may look back on if the driver of the No. 12 Ford ends up winning his first Cup Series title. Sunday’s trip to the “Valley of the Sun” will be the most important race of Blaney’s life. With six consecutive top-10 finishes at Phoenix, expect another strong drive in the championship race as Blaney seeks to deliver his one shining moment in the desert. | Inside the Race: Ryan Blaney’s Phoenix advantage

History tells us…

The final showdown for the 2023 title is anyone’s game.

Kyle Larson, William Byron, Ryan Blaney and Christopher Bell make up the youngest Championship 4 in Cup Series Playoffs history at 28 years, 11 months and 25 days. The only past series champion is Larson (2021), who makes his second Championship 4 appearance and hopes to go two-for-two with it all on the line.

Also making it to the final round for the second time is Joe Gibbs Racing’s Bell. He is the only driver from 2022 to return to the Championship 4.

Hendrick Motorsports will have two drivers representing the powerhouse Chevrolet team with Larson and Byron, who is in his first Championship 4 appearance. Team Penske’s Blaney joins Byron in the first-timers club. When evaluating each driver’s stats at Phoenix, there is no clear favorite. The average finishes at the 1-mile oval are very close between Larson (11.72), Byron (11.91) and Blaney (11.93). Bell is the sole outlier with an average finish of 14.43.

Now, evaluating each driver’s record in Arizona, 2021 Cup Series champion Larson has eight finishes of ninth or better in the last nine Phoenix races, including the win in the season finale to conclude his championship-winning season. If Larson becomes a two-time series champion on Sunday, he will join Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson as the third Hendrick driver to win multiple titles.

Byron is the winner of the Phoenix spring race from earlier in the year and is riding a hot streak in the desert, with two straight finishes of sixth or better. The driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet also earned five top 10s in the last seven races here. Byron certainly hopes to give team owner Rick Hendrick his 15th Cup Series title.

Blaney will try to give “The Captain” his fourth Cup Series title among three drivers after Joey Logano (2018, 2022) and Brad Keselowski (2012) collected the first three. Meanwhile, in Bell’s seven career Phoenix starts, the JGR driver earned four top 10s in the last five races and got a career-best finish of sixth earlier this year in the spring race. Unlike the other three drivers competing for the title, Bell is the only one who has never led a single lap here in Cup Series competition.

To paint a more clear picture, we ranked all four Championship 4 drivers in 15 key categories and used the results to establish a favorite. | See the results

NASCAR Creative Design

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

Kevin Harvick. After a long Cup Series career that lasted for over two decades, it all comes down to the final 312 laps. Being the young kid from Bakersfield, California, who had the weight of the world placed on his shoulders by taking Dale Earnhardt’s spot at Richard Childress Racing in 2001, to putting together a Hall of Fame career, imagine if Harvick wins his final Cup Series start on Sunday. As the 2014 Cup Series champion hangs up the helmet after the checkered flag, coming to one of his best tracks provides a great opportunity for a potential storybook ending in Phoenix Victory Lane. Although history suggests a Championship 4 driver will probably win the race, do not count out Harvick to seal the deal in “The Closer’s” last act before taking a final bow.

His odds of winning the Phoenix season finale have improved to 5-1 after practice and qualifying this weekend. Flashing back to the spring race earlier this year, Harvick was in prime position to win until a late-race caution cost him a visit to Victory Lane. The 47-year-old California native has a remarkable streak of finishing ninth or better in 20 consecutive Phoenix races. Look for this streak to continue on Sunday, but getting one more Cup Series win before riding off into the sunset in a mic drop moment would truly be a special moment for the sport.

To truly encapsulate Harvick’s career, we spoke with all four crew chiefs who won a NASCAR Cup Series race with him. | See their stories

Making the case 👨‍⚖️

Analyzing what makes each driver a good bet to win the title on Sunday.

• Why Kyle Larson will win the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series title
• Why Christopher Bell will win the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series title
• Why William Byron will win the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series title
• Why Ryan Blaney will win the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series title

Xfinity Series

Championship race: Cole Custer nabs illustrious first championship
Championship 4 drivers: John Hunter Nemechek, Justin Allgaier, Cole Custer and Sam Mayer
2023 champion: Cole Custer
NXS news: Get up to speed

Truck Series

Championship race: Rhodes rides to second career title
Championship 4 drivers: Corey Heim, Carson Hocevar, Ben Rhodes and Grant Enfinger
2023 champion: Ben Rhodes
More NCTS news: Get up to speed

Familiar favorites ⭐️

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

• Advance Through the Playoffs: Racing Insights projects the final race results | Read article
• Notes from the track: What to expect in the Phoenix title race | Watch video
• The Action Network: Best bet for Sunday’s championship race | Read article
• At-track photos: Sights and scenes from Phoenix Championship Weekend | Photos
• End of season goodbyes: See what comes to an end after Phoenix | Read more
• Fantasy Fastlane: Ryan Blaney is hot at the right time, one last Phoenix hoorah for Kevin Harvick | See fantasy tips
• Paint Scheme Preview: See the schemes for Phoenix | Pick a favorite
• Power Rankings: How all 12 Championship 4 drivers stack up| Latest driver rankings
• Silly Season: Catch up on driver, team changes | Read more
💎 NASCAR 75: Learn more about the history of the sport, from pioneers to current stars | Visit NASCAR 75 hub

Catch the pack 💨

Read up on the top headlines from the week leading up this weekend’s finales.

• Championship 4 roundtable: Hear from the four drivers going for the 2023 Cup title before the big race | Watch here
• Crew chiefs speak: Kevin Harvick’s crew chiefs reflect on his career and lasting legacy | Read more
• New Body: Ford unveils Mustang Dark Horse for 2024 Cup Series campaign | Read more
• Twenty-Four: Rick Hendrick discusses the possibility of the No. 24 car winning another championship | Watch here

Fast facts ⏩

Hard-hitting, race-relevant statistics, brought to you by the experts at Racing Insights.

• The No. 12 car has never won a championship in the Cup Series, while Nos. 5, 20 and 24 have combined to win eight championships.
• Christopher Bell’s crew chief Adam Stevens is making his seventh Championship 4 appearance (two with Bell and five with Kyle Busch), which is most of all Cup Series crew chiefs.
• For the first time since Tony Stewart and Gene Haas formed Stewart-Haas Racing in 2009, SHR may have its first winless season in the Cup Series if they do not find Victory Lane at Phoenix.

Posted on November 3, 2023February 8, 2024 by Pat DeCola

Editor’s note: This is the last in a series of four stories examining why each Championship 4 driver could win the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship.

Tuesday: Kyle Larson
Wednesday: Christopher Bell
Thursday: William Byron
Friday: Ryan Blaney

• • •

Ryan Blaney will win the 2023 championship because …

Momentum, sometimes, is all it takes.

Blaney has had perhaps the most interesting of seasons of the Championship 4 drivers, turning in his worst average finish since 2018, picking up his fewest top fives since he began driving in the Cup Series for Team Penske, having his talent publicly questioned in the media … and now entering the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race as the top-seeded driver with the biggest head of steam. DraftKings odds give the “favorite” status to Kyle Larson, but Blaney is a close second and certainly in a category of his own in the overall “mojo” department.

The No. 12 driver’s Martinsville win was a moment. Certainly the biggest of his career, the triumph catapulted him into his first Championship 4 — after some had written him off entirely over the summer after a dominant win at Charlotte was followed by an almost comically bad stretch that saw him average a 22.0 across the final 11 races to close out the regular season. As such, he was viewed by plenty — though not NASCAR Hall of Famer and NBC Sports broadcaster Dale Earnhardt Jr., who notably had Blaney making the Championship 4 pre-Darlington and stuck with him — as a first-round exit, second-round at best.

Blaney has continued to defy all expectations, turning a questionable season into a magnificent one with one of the more memorable postseason runs we’ve seen — and really, just in the last five races. The Round of 16 and beginning of the Round of 12 were more of the same, turning in finishes of ninth, 12th, 22nd, and 28th in the first four races (Darlington, Kansas, Bristol, Texas) before everything flipped and a Talladega victory vaulted him to the Round of 8. He hasn’t looked back, adding another win and runner-up finish since.

MORE: Ryan Blaney through the years

As we saw just last year, when a driver, crew chief and team start clicking at just the right time — i.e., the playoffs — there really is no ceiling, and a championship is absolutely within reach. The driver who did it a season ago? Blaney’s Team Penske teammate, Joey Logano.

As we illustrated all week in these pieces (see the above links for the cases for each driver to win), there are plenty of strong reasons to love the chances for any of the other three competitors to take home the big trophy on Sunday.

But ask yourself this — which driver would you not bet against right now?

You already know the answer.

Key stats: 3 wins, 7 top fives, 17 top 10s, 0 poles, 560 laps led, 12.6 average start, 14.4 average finish.

Championship 4 history: This is Ryan Blaney’s first appearance in the Championship 4.

Defining 2023 moment: Taking control of Martinsville late in the Round of 8 finale and commanding the mad dash to the checkered flag with a Championship 4 berth on the line. The win earned him both his first grandfather clock and Champ 4 bid.

Watch out for: There was just so much wrapped up in that Martinsville win on a highly charged, emotional afternoon that when Blaney celebrated in front of his sort-of-home-track fans, it felt like a bit of a crowning achievement for the season. Rebounding from such a high and getting refocused for the championship with not as much preparation as, say, Kyle Larson, who knew he’d be racing for a title weeks ago, isn’t an impossible task, but it’s not a simple one, either.

Posted on November 2, 2023November 3, 2023 by Reid Spencer

AVONDALE, Ariz. – Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson holds an important opportunity in his run for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series championship. Should the 2021 champ win the title Sunday, he’d join two-time champions Kyle Busch and Joey Logano as the only active drivers with multiple titles.

“I think you can make a case for all of us,” Larson said of his title competitors. “And I think whoever wins Sunday is a very deserving champion.”

MORE: Projected race results | Phoenix 101

Even at only 31 years old, the Californian is the veteran of this year’s championship-eligible quartet. With four wins – five if you include the All-Star Race – Larson has topped the 1,000-miles-led mark for the third time in his career. His 1,127 total laps led is the most in the series. He has 14 top-five and 17 top-10 finishes in his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet and, along with Denny Hamlin, leads the series with eight stage wins on the season.

Phoenix has been a particularly good place for him. His championship win in 2021 came from pole position, and he led the most laps (107 of 321) in the race. He has 11 top-10 finishes in 18 starts at the one-mile track and led 201 laps this spring, only to finish fourth in a race won by teammate William Byron.

Even with his success at Phoenix – and success in general – the 23-time NASCAR Cup Series winner refuses to consider himself the odds-on favorite this weekend – even as the most experienced and winningest NASCAR Cup Series driver among the four.

“I don’t view us as having a leg up on the others because we have a championship at all,” Larson said. “That was a couple of years ago, totally different race car, pit stops are different, restarts are different, the race is different. It’s all different. All of us have a fairly equal shot.

“I came into the Championship 4 a couple of years ago with no experience in the round of four and really had been in the Round of 8 only one other time before then. It does not make a difference. If your team executes right, any of us could win.”

WHY THEY COULD WIN: Christopher Bell | Kyle Larson

At long last, Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson go head-to-head in Cup cars

Those who have been following the respective careers of Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson have been waiting for this moment since both drivers graduated to the NASCAR Cup Series.

For years, Bell and Larson fought for Midget racing supremacy at the Chili Bowl Nationals in Tulsa, Okla., with Bell winning three straight titles from 2017-2019 and Larson claiming the next two.

They have dueled in 410 Sprint Cars. They have raced against each other and as teammates in international competitions on the dirt tracks of New Zealand.

For the first on NASCAR’s biggest stage, they will go head-to-head on pavement with a title on the line in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway.

Yes, there are two other drivers who can claim the series trophy — William Byron and Ryan Blaney — but Larson and Bell are the only two who have been there before—just not at the same time.

Larson won the Cup championship in his first attempt in 2021, his debut year with Hendrick Motorsports. Bell qualified for last year’s title race with a dramatic victory at Martinsville and finished third in the final standings, but Larson didn’t make the final four.

This year, they’re in it together.

“I hope we’re able to do this for many years into the future,” Bell said. “I hope that we’re able to do this many more times, and it’s certainly not the last.”

Don’t expect the rivalry to turn bitter, though. The four drivers in the Championship 4 are unusually compatible, for being playoff contenders.

“We definitely have a good, respectful group that, I guess, doesn’t have any history of having wrecks or anything like that,” Bell said. “So that’s good. But I honestly think it’s a great final four. It’s definitely Next Gen and probably a final four you wouldn’t have seen five years ago.”

Posted on November 2, 2023November 3, 2023 by Zach Sturniolo

AVONDALE, Ariz. — For the first time in his eight-year career, Ryan Blaney has advanced to the Championship 4. William Byron makes his simultaneous title fight debut, too, making rooting interests complicated for some.

Well, really just one in particular: Erin Blaney. Erin is caught in the middle with a personal emotional investment if either her brother Ryan or longtime boyfriend Byron is able to win the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, NBC, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Peacock).

Byron and Blaney — the racer, that is — are no strangers to racing close on the track. But the stakes have never been as high as they will be on Sunday afternoon.

“I told Erin, I was like, ‘You’ve got the best percentage of anybody of someone you care about winning this thing,’ ” Blaney said with a laugh during Thursday’s Championship 4 Media Day at the track. “I was like, ‘You’ve got a better chance than us, all four of us sitting up here!’ So yeah, it is a funny dynamic, but at the end of the day, he and I both understand we’re still competitors. But we’re gonna race each other with respect, too.”

MORE: Breaking down Champ 4 at Phoenix | Phoenix 101

In that regard, both drivers anticipate business as usual come time to strap into their machines. With a NASCAR title on the line, Byron’s No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet and Blaney’s No. 12 Team Penske Ford simply become obstacles on their respective routes to what would be the greatest accomplishment in either driver’s career.

A familial dynamic is hard, if not impossible, to ignore though. Time spent getting to know each other outside the race track has been vital to establishing better relationships both in and out of the car.

“We’re both gonna be going for it on Sunday and trying to win, so nothing changes there,” Byron said. “But yeah, when we get off the track, I mean, we spend time together and hang out. And so I’d say it’s like two different dynamics, but at the same time, I think that off-the-track relationship allows us to race with good respect and also good trust and race hard.”

Chris Graythen | Getty Images

Their situations are unique. Brotherly racing is by no means a new phenomenon in NASCAR (see: Busches, Waltrips, Labontes, Wallaces, Bodines, etc.). But two brother-type figures inside the championship hunt with a scheduled 312 laps standing between them? That we haven’t seen, particularly at the sport’s highest level.

“William and I have always raced really well together personally. He and I are buddies,” Blaney said. “He’s a good guy. I’ve gotten the pleasure of getting to know him, kind of more in-depth with him, the relationship side of that piece. Yeah, he comes from a great family. He’s a good kid. Awesome race car driver. Him and I have a lot of respect for each other. But at the end of the day, yeah, it is kind of funny we’re both going for a championship.”

In different ways, either driver could be framed as the favorite heading into Sunday’s finale. Byron is the most recent winner at Phoenix, one of a series-high six 2023 wins. Blaney had an incredible Round of 8 with finishes of sixth at Las Vegas, second at Homestead-Miami and a dominant win at Martinsville last weekend after leading 145 laps.

Blaney had led scores of laps in other races previously: 13 times in his career, Blaney has led 100 or more laps in a single event. He’s only won two of those. Both have come this year, with the other coming in May’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

“The way we were able to do it last week was great because we had to come from the middle of the pack after all the pit stuff was kind of jumbled,” Blaney said. “Being able to work our way through and be patient for the first 100 laps of that run really, I think, kind of slowly started us moving forward. I thought the discipline we all had, whether it was on the pit box, Josh (Williams, spotter) up top, me behind the wheel just understanding you’re in it for the long haul, let’s just inch our way forward and close this race out. That was great.

“I feel like we executed really good. I think it’s everyone getting better. Like I talked about earlier, everyone is syncing up at the right time of doing the best job they can do, in the pits, at the wheel, at the race shop. Everything is just kind of clicking. Like I said, you work a long time to try to get all that stuff synchronized. Last week was a perfect example of it, perfect storm. It ended up with us winning the race.”

James Thomas | NASCAR Studios

Byron is the one driver in this year’s Championship 4 who didn’t win to advance into the title-determining round, with Kyle Larson victorious in Vegas and Christopher Bell the winner at Homestead. But Byron is simply not as worried heading into Phoenix as he was through the penultimate round of the playoffs.

“I feel like the nerves for us in the Round of 8 were way worse than they are now,” said Byron, the 2019 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion. “I feel like for us to try to get to the championship race was the goal all year and I feel like now we’ve got a one-in-four chance to win it. So no more counting points. No more thinking about scenarios. It’s just go out and be the best we can be. So I feel a lot of comfort in that. And I feel like it kind of brings me back, to like I said, my Xfinity days when I won a championship and how that felt in the final four.”

Byron and Blaney each have 10 career wins. Byron has 90 fewer starts.

At the checkered flag Sunday, though, one of them could leave with a NASCAR Cup Series Championship.

Posted on November 2, 2023November 3, 2023 by Pat DeCola

AVONDALE, Ariz. – NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Regular Season Champion Corey Heim insisted Thursday morning at Phoenix Raceway there is no absolute clear-cut championship favorite among the four drivers racing for the big trophy Friday night. But of course. … he certainly likes his chances.

Despite one fewer start than the rest of the full-time field – Heim missed the Gateway race because of illness – the driver of the No. 11 Tricon Garage Toyota leads the series in top fives (12), top 10s (19) and stage wins (seven). He brings a streak of 15 consecutive top-10 finishes to Phoenix. And his 564 laps led is double that of any other full-time competitor.

The 21-year-old Georgia native – who is competing in his first full-time season – has only a single previous Phoenix start; leading five laps and finishing seventh last year driving for Kyle Busch. But he’s been preparing for this race since locking himself in early in the final round of the Playoffs.

“I’ve heard it go both ways, so I don’t know, but I think we’ve earned that (favorite) label,” Heim said. “I guess it doesn’t really matter at the end of the day until you win it. I feel like we have just been so rock solid and consistent since the springtime. We’ve done a good job of executing every week and we show up with fast Toyota Tundra TRD Pros.

“I feel like ever since around Martinsville when our first win happened, we kind of knew that we were capable of it. It was just a matter of executing from that point.”

Since his maiden national series victory at the Martinsville half-miler in April, Heim has led laps in all but one race (Talladega) and finished outside the top five only three times. It’s the kind of track record that has helped generate confidence and expectation.

Heim said he’s got plenty of family coming in from all over the country to support him this week, and he’s been relying on other Toyota Racing Development (TRD) drivers such as fellow national series title contenders John Hunter Nemechek and Christopher Bell, who have had championship experience, for tips on the sim and what to expect this weekend.

“It was nice to be able to kind of spread out some of my studying and really just sit on it and study on it for six weeks and show up and knowing what I need to do, and that has been really big for me,” Heim said. “I understand the circumstances and with this being my first full-time season and my first playoffs, being able to sit on it under the circumstances and the pressure has really let me just come here and feel a lot better about it.

“It would be a lot different if I just won my way in at (the last race) Homestead or something and had a week and a half to think about it. But I feel like I’d be more unprepared and coming in with a lot of pressure on me.

“But to be able to sit on it and study on it for six weeks and show up, kind of know what I need to do, was really big for me.”

Carson Hocevar won’t be unprepared for Truck Series Championship race

Carson Hocevar doesn’t consider his flat tire an omen. He’d prefer to think of it as bad luck that’s now behind him.

“A few days ago, I hit a curb with my truck and got a flat,” Hocevar said during a question-and-answer session with reporters during Championship 4 Media Day at Phoenix Raceway.

Hocevar wasn’t referring to the No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet he’ll drive in Friday night’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship race at the 1-mile track in the Sonoran Desert (10 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

The 20-year-old driver was happy the flat tire happened with his personal truck and not on the race track.

“We got it out of the way, hopefully,” Hocevar said.

The incident with the truck was a minor inconvenience during a week in which Hocevar has been running simulations to prepare for Phoenix, not only for his own Truck Series effort but also for the NASCAR Cup Series teams at Hendrick Motorsports. Hendrick drivers Kyle Larson and William Byron qualified for the Championship 4 on the Cup side.

“We’ve done at least a hundred runs of sim just on Phoenix alone from the start of the playoffs till now,” said Hocevar, who will graduate to the Cup Series in a Spire Motorsports car next year. “I’ve done hours and hours. I’ve done Cup sim these past few weeks for Phoenix, with Hendrick to run for the final four.

“I’ve done days with (trainer) Josh Wise where we don’t even work on the race car — we just work on myself. And obviously, with Niece, we’ve worked since the beginning of the year even, just working on Phoenix alone …

“I think we’ve gotten it a little bit better just in the last two days.”

Now, if Hocevar can just keep all four tires up, he expects to be a contender for the Truck Series title before he makes the jump to Cup. He’ll find out Friday night.

Posted on November 2, 2023 by Zack Albert

AVONDALE, Ariz. – Cole Custer’s car sat dormant during a long red-flag period in last weekend’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Martinsville Speedway. Six laps remained in regulation and his working margin relative to the elimination line at the time was a slim plus-two in the points, with a Championship 4 berth in the balance.

Overtime loomed, and the specter of late-race chaos seemed like more of a promise than a threat. Jonathan Toney, a Stewart-Haas Racing veteran in his first season as a crew chief with the No. 00 Ford group, keyed the team communications to fill in the lull.

“Bud, I’ve been sitting here trying to find something inspirational to say,” Toney told his driver. “I don’t guess I really can, so I’m just gonna tell you: No matter what, I’m proud of you, I’m proud of this team. We’ve come a long, long way this year, so let’s go finish this thing off, so we can go race ’em at Phoenix.”

Custer’s margin held in the most spectacular of ways, as he jammed his battered, fire-flashed car into reverse and backed across the start/finish line after the final-lap fracas that came to fruition.

“I’ve never done that before,” Custer said Thursday during NASCAR Championship Weekend Media Day. “That was a new one for me, but you’re gonna do whatever it takes to try to get in the Championship 4.”

Custer will compete for his first Xfinity Series championship in Saturday’s season finale (7 p.m. ET, USA, MRN, SiriusXM, NBC Sports App), squaring off against Joe Gibbs Racing’s John Hunter Nemechek and JR Motorsports teammates Justin Allgaier and Sam Mayer. The 25-year-old Californian has made the most of his return to the Xfinity circuit this season, scoring two wins, six poles and surviving the playoff gauntlet run.

Custer came back to the Xfinity Series this year with SHR after three full Cup seasons with the organization, a term that yielded a breakthrough victory as a rookie in 2020 but that also produced finishes outside the playoff running the next two years. From the step down the ladder has come a measure of rejuvenation. Custer’s car still wears the No. 00 that he carried during his previous stint in the series, but it’s a new group led by Toney that surrounds him. Their mission will continue into next season, with SHR announcing Thursday morning that Custer will return to the No. 00 ride for 2024.

Sean Gardner | Getty Images

“It’s been an extremely proud year for me because I think we’ve built something,” Custer says. “I think we started the year off and we weren’t exactly where we wanted to be, but we were a young team with a lot of young guys and I think we were able to really build it through the year and make sure to just communicate well, and through that, we turned ourselves into a championship-competing team.”

The team took some time to realize its performance goals. Custer didn’t notch his first top-five finish until April, but that fifth-place result at Richmond Raceway — his first since the season-opener at Daytona — was the start of an 11-race streak of top 10s that cemented his place in the higher reaches of the standings.

That resurgent run came together under the guidance of Toney, one of the senior-most members of the organization. The North Carolina native got his start there in December 2003, when the team was still under the Haas CNC Racing banner and years before Tony Stewart’s involvement as a co-owner.

Toney’s background and know-how have been a boon to SHR for years, and he served as the engineer for Stewart’s efforts for 14 Cup Series victories over four seasons, including the 2011 championship. Since then, Toney has served in research and development capacities and as the Xfinity program’s head of engineering, before his transition to crew chief this year.

MORE: Paint Scheme Preview: Phoenix

Calling the shots from atop the pit box has been a new act for the 49-year-old Toney. So has scratching around for a motivational team-radio speech, then sweating out the final nervous but fulfilling moments at Martinsville.

“We’ve just got such an uncommon group of guys. I mean, they are just a special, special group,” Toney told NASCAR.com post-race at Martinsville. “I’ve done this a long time and have been with some championship race teams, and I’m gonna put this one at the top. I’m so proud of them, so proud of our little race car driver. He’s an awesome little wheelman.

“I don’t think Phoenix will be this stressful. I hope not. I don’t know if I can take it.”

Custer has been through the Xfinity Series’ elimination-style format before, advancing to the final four in consecutive years (2018-19) and finishing second to eventual champ Tyler Reddick each time at Homestead-Miami Speedway – the former site of the finale. Reaching this stage of the playoffs again, Custer says, has him prepared for how Saturday’s 200-miler could play out.

“I think it just comes with experience knowing what to expect, knowing not to get too riled up through the weekend,” Custer said. “You’re gonna be up at times and you’re gonna be down at times, but knowing that you just have to put it together that last run, and I’m confident that we’re gonna have a fast car and should be able to compete for a win there.”

Posted on November 2, 2023November 4, 2023 by Dustin Albino

After 32 races, it all comes down to this.

Exactly 4,900 laps have been completed in the 2023 Xfinity Series season. Only 200 laps at Phoenix Raceway remain before a first-time champion is crowned.

This year’s Championship 4 is contested by series veterans, young hot shots with great potential and returning drivers after stints in the Cup Series. Three of the four championship-eligible drivers have tested the waters at NASCAR’s top level on a full-time basis. Sam Mayer is the only outlier, as he has fewer than 100 national series starts in total. His JR Motorsports teammate, Justin Allgaier, has more top fives in the Xfinity Series than Mayer has started races alone.

Then, there’s Cole Custer and John Hunter Nemechek.

Ah yes, a moment more than seven years in the making after their memorable post-race scuffle at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park in the Craftsman Truck Series. Both have significantly matured since, however, and stand as polished veterans now, each vying for their first NASCAR championship.

Let’s preview each driver’s chances.

MORE: 2023 Xfinity Series winners

John Hunter Nemechek
By all measures, Nemechek has been the most consistent in 2023 of the four championship drivers. The No. 20 team leads the series in wins (seven), top-five finishes (17), top 10s (24), laps led (1,017) and average finish (8.9). Each week, Nemechek finds himself in contention, whether the team struggles throughout the race or not.

Nemechek came up empty-handed in his championship vow at Phoenix in the Truck Series in 2021, running for powerhouse Kyle Busch Motorsports. He’s with another powerhouse this year in Joe Gibbs Racing, which has won 13 of the last 22 Xfinity races contested at Phoenix. For the last two years, it was a JGR driver celebrating the championship (Daniel Hemric 2021; Ty Gibbs 2022).

There’s also this: Nemechek has never finished worse than ninth in six Phoenix starts. In March, he finished sixth, the best of the four Championship 4 drivers.

“I like the race track,” Nemechek said on Championship 4 Media Day at Phoenix Raceway. “I’ve yet to win here, so hopefully, we can accomplish that this weekend. It’s been a good race track to me.”

Sam Mayer
JR Motorsports team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. said on this week’s “Dale Jr Download” podcast that he told Mayer he was the favorite to win the championship this weekend. Since winning his first career race at Road America in late July, the No. 1 team has won four of the last 13 races contested. The caveat is that only one of those came on an oval – Homestead – which locked him into the championship race. He has zero stage wins and has led the fewest laps of the four championship drivers.

It’s been hit or miss for Mayer in the playoffs, too. He has two clutch wins, including winning the Round of 12 finale at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval to advance into the Round of 8. The No. 1 car has finished 25th or worse in three of the six playoff races, however

This is Mayer’s first crack at a championship at Phoenix. And it’s a track he hasn’t excelled at in four starts this far, posting an average finish of 20th. In last year’s season finale, he finished 34th, five laps down. That won’t get it done this year, and JRM and Chevrolet will need to have the upstart driver as prepared as can be for this weekend.

“I’m locked in this week,” Mayer said. “I’ve put so much effort into this weekend over the last couple of weeks to make it happen that I’m not going to let anything get in my way from being my best. I’m going to put it all out there and do my best. I’ve put my best into this week, last week as well, and it all comes down to Saturday.”

Justin Allgaier
It took a last-lap pass to win at Martinsville, and Allgaier will now make his sixth Championship 4 appearance this weekend. He leads the series with 13 stage wins this season. His previous two Championship 4 opportunities at Phoenix ended in disappointment, finishing runner-up to Austin Cindric in 2020 before more heartbreak came just last season when he lost the lead late to Gibbs.

Allgaier doesn’t sugarcoat it, though. Phoenix is among his favorite tracks on the schedule and he expects to win this race — and the championship — outright, provided his team does what they’re all capable of. The 13-year veteran has a pair of wins at the track, with the last of those coming in 2019. He has 17 top-10 results in 26 starts and an impressive 9.5 average finish.

“It’s going to be a difficult battle,” Allgaier said of Saturday. “But when we come here, I feel like I have this peace with this race track, and I have a lot of peace with how the year has gone and where we’re at. This race is so important to have good practice, qualify well, and execute the stages properly. Anything here can and will happen. It literally takes everything perfect to walk out of here hoisting the trophy.”

Come Saturday afternoon, there’s a strong chance the No. 7 Chevrolet is pacing the field at some point, as Allgaier has led laps in 11 of the 15 Phoenix races that he’s been with JRM. He won both stages in the spring but was involved in a late wreck and finished 36th.

Cole Custer
Custer is coming off three years in the Cup Series, where he won as a rookie at Kentucky. His lack of consistency wound up with Stewart-Haas Racing dropping him back to the Xfinity Series for 2023 — and, just announced, 2024 as well — where he has tallied the second-most top 10s of the playoff drivers remaining.

Custer has two previous Championship 4 appearances, though both came when the championship was fought at Homestead. The California native finished runner-up in the standings to Tyler Reddick in both 2018 and 2019.

Throughout Custer’s Xfinity tenure, he has always been solid at Phoenix. He’s yet to visit Victory Lane but did finish second in the penultimate race of the 2019 season. In five of his seven starts, he’s finished inside the top 10. Custer will need to excel this weekend on an oval, while his two wins this season have come on road courses at Portland and the inaugural race on the Chicago Street Course.

“I’m confident about it,” Custer said of his Phoenix chances. “I’ve won a race here in K&N and ARCA, which is different, but I know how to go fast here and know what I need in the car. I think we can go out there and compete with anybody; I’m not too worried about it.”

Posted on November 2, 2023 by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Moments before the final green flag of NASCAR’s 75th anniversary season flies, a distinguished group of past Cup Series champions will pair with four young racers to deliver the most famous words in motorsports ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, Nov. 5.

Representing nearly every decade of NASCAR racing history are four Cup Series champions who were each named to NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers list earlier this year: Richard Petty, Rusty Wallace, Bobby Labonte and Kurt Busch.

With the current Cup Series Championship 4 drivers emblematic of NASCAR’s present, four aspiring youth racers will serve as a representation of NASCAR’s future: 8-year-old Brexton Busch of Mooresville, North Carolina; 7-year-old Easton Cambensy of Tucson, Arizona; 9-year-old Giselle Hicks of Mooresville, North Carolina; and 10-year-old Grayson Walcott of Chicago.

These “Diamond Anniversary Dignitaries” will deliver the command for drivers to start their engines alongside executives from NASCAR’s Premier Partners, who are serving as the official Grand Marshals for the championship race.

“The entire 75th anniversary season has been a celebration of not only where NASCAR has been, but where the sport stands today and the bright future that lies ahead,” said Pete Jung, senior vice president and chief marketing officer at NASCAR. “Seeing young racers who dream of becoming NASCAR stars side-by-side with some of the most legendary drivers in history as we prepare to crown a new Cup Series champion will be a powerful manifestation of that spirit. We hope it serves as a moment of recognition for all those who contributed to NASCAR’s rise and inspires anyone eager to join the ride from here.”

Furthering the fusion of past, present and future, in partnership with the NASCAR Hall of Fame, the first-ever NASCAR premier series championship trophy will be displayed along with the current Bill France Cup championship trophy during this anniversary tribute.

Fans watching at home can catch the special anniversary moment live on NBC before the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 5 (NBC, Peacock, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

More details about the four NASCAR Cup Series champions representing the sport’s past:

Richard Petty: Richard Petty is called “The King” for good reason. A member of the inaugural NASCAR Hall of Fame class of 2010, Petty has racked up the most wins (200), most poles (123), tied for most championships (seven), most wins in a season (27), most Daytona 500 wins (seven), most consecutive wins (10) and most starts (1,185) in NASCAR premier series history.
Rusty Wallace: A member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame class of 2013, Wallace’s first NASCAR Cup race resulted in his first top-five finish: second at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1980. He came to the series full time in 1984 and won Rookie of the Year honors, embarking on a full-time Cup career in which he won the 1989 series championship and 55 total races (11th all time).
Bobby Labonte: A member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame class of 2020, Labonte captured the 2000 Cup Series championship and 21 total Cup Series wins in his career. That portfolio includes three crown-jewel triumphs — a Coca-Cola 600, a Southern 500 and a Brickyard 400. He is also a 10-time winner in the Xfinity Series, claiming that tour’s championship in 1991.
Kurt Busch: The first champion of the Cup Series’ Playoff era, the recently retired Busch established a long and impressive career with wins in 19 of his 22 seasons as a Cup regular. Among those 34 victories were a Daytona 500 triumph (2017) and a Coca-Cola 600 win (2010). Busch also added nine victories combined in the Xfinity and Craftsman Truck Series.

More details about the four youth racers representing NASCAR’s future:

Brexton Busch: Brexton, 8, is following the racing path forged by his grandfather Tom, his uncle Kurt, a NASCAR champion, and his dad Kyle, a two-time NASCAR champion and the winningest driver in NASCAR history. The third-generation driver began his racing career in 2020 at the age of 5 in the Beginner Box Stock division at Millbridge Speedway and Mountain Creek Speedway. Brexton picked up his first victory at Mountain Creek Speedway just a month into his career and hasn’t slowed down since, racking up the Saturday Millbridge Beginner Box championship (2022), the Mountain Creek Beginner Box championship (2022) and the Tuesday night Beginner Box Millbridge championship (2023).
Easton Cambensy: Easton Cambensy, 7, is a second-generation race car driver from Tucson, Arizona, and a current driver in the NASCAR Youth Series. At the young age of 7, he claimed his first quarter-midget track championship at his home club of Tucson QMA. He has since won two more, including the prestigious Triple Crown that includes track championships in the Junior 160, Junior Animal and Junior Honda divisions.
Giselle Hicks: Giselle Hicks, 9, is a fourth-generation race car driver eager to carry on her family’s legacy in NASCAR. Her great-grandfather is the late Glenn Wood and her dad, Michael Hicks, is a rear tire changer on Christopher Bell’s No. 20 pit crew closing out his 19th year of changing tires in the sport. This year marks Giselle’s third year in wing kart racing, in which she took home 10 wins and finished fourth in the 2023 points standings at Millbridge Speedway.
Grayson Walcott: Grayson Walcott, 10, of Grayson Dean Racing, is a fast-rising go-kart racer from Chicago who just completed his rookie year on the pro circuit with Pole Position Motorsports. Grayson has raced all over the United States and was nominated for Rookie of the Year in Mexico. He starred in the limited run television show on Discovery+, “Baby Drivers,” which followed his journey in the world of motorsports. Grayson made his debut as a junior sports commentator this summer at the NASCAR Chicago Street Race weekend.

Posted on November 2, 2023November 2, 2023 by Cameron Richardson

The 75th NASCAR Cup Series champion will be crowned Sunday at Phoenix Raceway (3 p.m. ET, NBC, Peacock, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) as the milestone season comes to a close underneath the desert sun.

Kyle Larson looks to become the latest multi-time Cup champion while Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell and William Byron all seek their first title.

Before the action gets underway this weekend, let’s set the stage for the championship race with a short outlook for the four title contenders, trends to watch for Sunday’s showdown and a closer look at the special Goodyear tire that will be raced at Phoenix.

RULE CHANGES/GOODYEAR TIRE NOTES 🛞

Goodyear will run a special sidewall design for the Phoenix tires. A 75th anniversary logo will be included on all tires for Championship Weekend. 2023 also marked a milestone year for Goodyear as it was the 125th anniversary of the tire company.

The tire setup is different from the Phoenix spring race. This will be the setup that was used at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in July to introduce more lap-time fall-off at the 1-mile Arizona track.

Teams will be allotted three sets of tires for practice, one set for qualifying and an additional eight sets for Sunday’s race.

(Via Goodyear Racing)

RELATED: See rules changes for 2023

PHOENIX RACEWAY HISTORY 🌵

Phoenix Raceway was built in 1964, and the first NASCAR race was held in 1978 with Richard Petty taking the checkered flag. The first Cup race was held in 1988 and won by Alan Kulwicki, who celebrated with his first ever “Polish Victory Lap.”

Lights were installed at the track in 2004, leading to two races hosted at the track every season in 2005.

Phoenix has undergone two reconfigurations. The first in 2011 introduced the widened dogleg and added progressive banking in Turns 3 and 4. The second configuration moved from the flat straightaway off Turn 2 to just before the dogleg in 2018.

(Via Racing Insights)

IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS 🏆

Byron, Blaney, Bell and Larson will battle it out for the championship. Byron may enter as the consensus pick given his win in the spring race and that he’s amassed six victories this year, but momentum matters and Blaney is entering Sunday’s race one week after taking the checkered flag at Martinsville.

Blaney also owns four consecutive top-five finishes at Phoenix and has an average finish of 2.7 at the track in the Next Gen era.

Sunday has all the making of a highly-competitive affair as Byron, Bell and Larson all have top-10 finishes at Phoenix in the last two trips to the desert. Qualifying will be a must-watch on Saturday (4:35 p.m. ET, USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) as the four vie for pole position and the all-important No. 1 pit stall.

MORE: Racing Insights’ projections for Sunday

📉 TRENDS TO WATCH 📈

— Six different drivers have won the last six Phoenix races.

— The Stage 1 winner went on to win the last two Phoenix races.

— Toyota has only one win in the last seven Phoenix races.

— Hendrick Motorsports drivers won three of the last six Phoenix Races.

(Via Racing Insights)

CLASSIC FALL PHOENIX RACEWAY RACES 🎥

1988: Alan Kulwicki wins first Cup race at Phoenix | WATCH

2012: Jeff Gordon, Clint Bowyer wreck, brawl | WATCH

2017: Matt Kenseth wins final race; Elliott, Hamlin rivalry continues | WATCH

2020: Chase Elliott wins first championship race at Phoenix | WATCH

ON-TRACK SCHEDULE 🗓️

Friday, Nov. 3

— 8:05 p.m. ET: Practice (USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App)

Saturday, Nov. 4

— 4:35 p.m. ET: Qualifying (USA, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

Sunday, Oct. 22

— 3 p.m. ET: Cup Series Championship (NBC, Peacock, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App)

MORE: Full schedule at Phoenix Championship Weekend

FAN REWARDS 🫵

Fans can get in on the action all season long with NASCAR Fan Rewards, a free program that rewards fans for participating in the action when they watch races and play NASCAR Fantasy.

There’s no cost to join. Fans must be 18 years or older to participate in the program.

Earn points by checking into a race from home or at the track, setting your Fantasy Live lineup, making purchases on the NASCAR.com shop, and more. Points can be redeemed for race tickets, merchandise, and VIP experiences at the track, including pace car rides and waving the green flag at qualifying.

JOIN TODAY

FOLLOW THE RACE 📲

NASCAR Mobile has now added support for fans to “Follow the Race” and access live leaderboard and race information from Live Activities in the current app release (v13.2.0), available now. Android users, we didn’t forget you — the same functionality has been custom-built for Android devices, as well.

How to access Live Activities on iPhones:

Make sure your iOS device has been updated to 16.1 or higher.
Available on the leaderboard of all NASCAR Series races.
Click on the three-dot menu near the top right of the screen.
Select “Follow the Race.”
Swipe up to access the home screen, and you will see the Live Activities at the top.
Lock the device, and you will see Live Activities on the Lock Screen.
To turn it off, simply visit the leaderboard, click the three-dot menu, and “Unfollow the Race.”

ALSO ON NASCAR.COM 💻

Get additional camera views by logging on to NASCAR Drive, where each week, a select number of in-car cameras will be available — as well as a battle cam and an overhead look.

NASCAR has partnered with LiveLike to add fan engagement to the NASCAR Mobile App. Log in to the mobile app during the race for polls, quizzes, the cheer meter, and more — and see instant results from NASCAR fans like you.