That road so far has been filled with bumps and surprises, but Berry has held a steady wheel every step of the way. In doing so, he has become an inspiration for grassroots racers across the United States.
“My family were race fans, so I grew up as a race fan at a young age,” said Berry, who is in the midst of his second full NASCAR Xfinity Series season with JR Motorsports. “I watched the races as a kid, but my first racing experience would have been on my eighth birthday when I got a go-kart. I began racing just locally, just me and my mom and dad going racing.”
It wasn’t long before Berry moved up the racing ladder to competing in a four-cylinder at historic Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.
However, the sudden passing of Berry’s mother combined with the financial burden that comes with racing almost brought an end to his career before it truly got started.
“We built a car for me to race on the quarter mile at the Fairgrounds. I raced it a handful of times, and then my mother unexpectedly passed away,” Berry said. “That created a burden on us for awhile. There was a lull there for a year or so maybe.
“When I was a little bit older, we got a Legend car and raced on the quarter mile there for a handful of years. Basically once I got to graduating high school, I’m 18 or 19 years old at that point, each year we raced a little less. It was just a little bit harder to make happen.”
Josh Berry (88) races Austin McDaniel during a CARS Tour event at Hickory Motor Speedway in 2016. (Photo: Adam Fenwick)
That’s when Berry’s racing career shifted from competing on a real race track to racing on a digital one. At the time, the computer game NASCAR Racing 2003 Season had become popular, and Berry began making a name for himself as a top-tier online competitor.
It was through this that Berry met the man who would have possibly the biggest influence on his racing career: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
At the time, Earnhardt spent much of his free time racing online. The two crossed paths when Berry competed in a league run by Earnhardt. The two later raced against each other on iRacing, which launched in 2008.
“We just developed a friendship on there,” Berry said. “We would just chat here and there. Real casual. We weren’t really even racing together on there, we were just kind of racing around each other and kind of developed a friendship.”
Eventually Earnhardt became so impressed by Berry’s talent that he invited him to come test one of his Late Model Stock Cars. Berry jumped at the opportunity.
“We talked about my racing at the Fairgrounds. I remember he had inquired about it a little bit. I think I sent him some videos of it. Never thought anything of it,” Berry said. “I guess at the time they were in the midst of kind of looking for a driver for the Late Model program at JR Motorsports. They were just looking for some direction there or maybe Dale was looking for a project I think, maybe, for it.
“He asked me if I’d ever like to test his Late Model. Of course I was ecstatic, because at that point in my career and life, I never thought I would ever drive a stock car. To get asked to test like that, it was just crazy.”
Soon after a successful test at Virginia’s Motor Mile Speedway, Berry was named the team’s regular Late Model Stock Car driver. Track championships at Motor Mile (2012) and North Carolina’s Hickory Motor Speedway (2014) followed in the next few years.
The 2015 season brought a major change with the creation of the CARS Tour, a Southeastern-based touring series that featured Late Model Stock Cars as its headline division.
Berry and JR Motorsports quickly found a home with the series. Despite only racing in four events during the inaugural season, Berry won three CARS Tour races. He followed that up with five victories in 2016 and four victories in 2017 to go along with the series championship.
He was doing all of that while also serving as a mentor to young drivers as part of the JR Motorsports Late Model program, including future NASCAR Cup Series star William Byron.
“We decided to go try the CARS Tour, and we ended up finding a home there after that,” Berry said. “A lot of my career and my life has been about timing, right? I raced Late Model Stocks because that was the opportunity that I had. I quickly learned to love that and love Late Model Stock racing and love racing at all these tracks in North Carolina, Virginia, South Carolina, all of these amazing short tracks.
“I just learned to love it. It was my life.”
Josh Berry celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the Late Model Stock portion of the Jack Ingram Memorial at North Carolina’s Hickory Motor Speedway on June 11, 2022. (Photo: Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)
Berry continued in that role while racing with the CARS Tour until the 2020 season, when the COVID-19 pandemic — combined with an on-track incident at North Carolina’s Ace Speedway that led to a one-race suspension from the CARS Tour — changed his plans for the season.
Instead of focusing on the CARS Tour schedule, Berry and JR Motorsports pursued the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series national championship. The decision paid off, as Berry won 26 races and cruised to the national championship.
“It was an unusual year for everybody,” Berry said of 2020. “One of the main things that opened up the idea of us going for the national championship was the pandemic. When race tracks first started opening up, our Late Model program is a business, like a lot of people at that time, you’re just trying to keep your business going.
“My first race back from the pandemic were twin 40-lap races at Hickory. There was like 30 cars there and we won both of them. That was when it kind of clicked. We were like, ‘Wow, we could do this.’”
Josh Berry and Dale Earnhardt Jr. pose with Berry’s NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series national championship trophy at the JR Motorsports facility in Mooresville, NC. (Photo: Reagen Lunn/NASCAR)
The Weekly Series championship directly led to Earnhardt tabbing Berry to compete in the NASCAR Xfinity Series part-time in 2021.
Berry repaid Earnhardt’s faith with a victory early in the year at Martinsville Speedway, which he followed with a victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway while competing as a substitute driver for the injured Michael Annett.
The stock of the driver from Hendersonville, Tennessee has continued to rise since. His impressive performances in the Xfinity Series, which included three wins in 2022, is what led Hendrick Motorsports to pick him to drive the No. 9 Chevrolet while Elliott recovered from a fractured tibia he suffered in a snowboarding accident.
He further turned heads with a runner-up finish in Cup Series competition at Richmond Raceway, prompting Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman Jeff Gordon to say, “I think he’s got a future in the Cup Series.”
Berry will enter the next chapter of his racing career with the support of not only people like Earnhardt and Gordon, but with the support of weekly racers across the country. Berry is living proof that with enough hard work, dreams can come true.
“I’ve had lots of guys, whether they were friends or foes over the years, reach out to me and express the excitement that they have,” Berry said. “What it does, for one, is just solidify what the CARS Tour and what the Weekly Series and what these local tracks are. That it is a proving ground. It is legitimate.
“To be in the position to get an opportunity and capitalize on it and even make it to the Xfinity Series is a big deal. I think it really shows the amount of talent and how important these short tracks are to all of us.”
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (June 21, 2023) – Today, Comcast announced nominations for the 2023 Comcast Community Champion of the Year are now open through August 1, 2023, at ComcastCommunityChampion.com. The prestigious annual award has recognized the philanthropic efforts of individuals within the NASCAR community. In the ninth year of this award, Comcast will surpass $1 million in total contributions made to organizations affiliated with previous champions and finalists with this year’s awards.
To nominate and learn additional details about the award, visit ComcastCommunityChampion.com today through August 1, 2023.
Created in 2015, the Comcast Community Champion of the Year Award was designed to honor the incredible efforts of NASCAR industry members who are improving their communities. Comcast will select and honor three finalists, sharing their stories publicly. Following the finalists’ selection, a committee of NASCAR and Comcast executives, as well as 2022 champion Jes Ferreira, will determine the Comcast Community Champion of the Year. The champion will receive $60,000 to their affiliated charity and the two other finalists will each receive $30,000 to their selected charities later this year.
“Creating positive change across communities is a core pillar of Comcast’s mission and every year we look forward to telling the stories of these inspirational individuals within NASCAR who have selflessly dedicated their time and energy toward supporting others,” said Matt Lederer, Comcast’s Vice President, Brand Partnerships and Amplification.
Any individual with a 2023 annual credential or NASCAR full season license from NASCAR’s top-three national series are eligible to be nominated as a 2023 finalist, including:
• Team owners, drivers and all NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™ and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series™ employees • Full-time employees of tracks that are currently on the schedule for NASCAR’s three series • NASCAR Media members who have a Print, Broadcast or Photography Hard Card • NASCAR Officials • NASCAR Partners/Sponsors • Family members of drivers and crew members • Driver and team employees (motorhome drivers, agents, and managers etc.) • Support industry personnel (engine builders, parts and service providers etc.)
Since the inception of the program, Comcast has donated to 24 different nonprofit organizations, furthering the impact of the philanthropic efforts of all finalists and champions. This year, Comcast will reach the milestone of having donated $1 million to deserving organizations in a nine-year span.
“It was truly an honor to have been named Comcast Community Champion of the Year last season,” said Vice President of Live Shows, CSM Production, Jes Ferreira. “Most importantly, Comcast’s generosity benefited Foster Village Charlotte to support all of the life-changing work that they do for foster families in the region.”
Past champions include:
• Vice President of Live Shows, CSM Production, Jes Ferreira representing Foster Village Charlotte • World Wide Technology Raceway Owner, Curtis Francois, representing Raceway Gives Foundation • NASCAR driver, Bubba Wallace, representing the Live To Be Different Foundation • Dover Motor Speedway President, Mike Tatoian, representing USO Delaware • NASCAR champion, Joey Logano, representing the Joey Logano Foundation • Chip Ganassi Racing’s pit crew department representing Ronald McDonald House • JR Motorsports fabricator, Wade Jackson, representing Camp LUCK • NASCAR driver, Joey Gase, representing the Iowa Donor Network
In celebration of the 2023 Comcast Community Champion of the Year program and reaching the million-dollar mark, Comcast will be engaging within the community in Nashville, Tenn. NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Josh Williams, who was a 2022 Comcast Community Champion of the Year finalist, will be visiting Seacrest Studios at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt as part of his work with the Ryan Seacrest Foundation.
Comcast has a storied history of strengthening communities each and every day of the year providing education opportunities and digital skills training to help create more pathways to economic mobility for young people and adults alike, most recently through its Project UP initiative. Backed by a $1 billion commitment to reach millions of people, Project UP encompasses the programs and community partnerships across Comcast, NBCUniversal and Sky that connect people to the internet, advance economic mobility and open doors for the next generation of innovators, entrepreneurs, storytellers and creators. For more information on Project UP and the latest news on efforts to address digital inequities, visit https://corporate.comcast.com/impact/project-up.
CONCORD, N.C. – Eastman Performance Films, LLC, a subsidiary of Eastman Chemical Company (NYSE: EMN), has extended its sponsorship of Hendrick Motorsports, 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott and the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 team for three additional seasons.
The sponsorship, which features the LLumar® brand of window film and paint protection film, will run through 2026. LLumar will be a primary sponsor of Elliott, 27, for two races each season and a major associate sponsor in all other Cup Series events.
“We are excited to extend our sponsorship with Hendrick Motorsports and the No. 9 team,” said Erin Bernhardt, general manager of Eastman Performance Films, LLC. “This sponsorship has helped increase awareness of the LLumar brand and the benefits of window tint and paint protection film for vehicle and homeowners.”
As part of the extension, LLumar will be the primary sponsor on the No. 9 Chevrolet for two additional races this season: the Aug. 26 regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway and the Oct. 1 event at Talladega Superspeedway, where Elliott is the defending race winner. LLumar will also be the primary sponsor at the Oct. 15 Las Vegas Motor Speedway race, as previously announced.
“We’re delighted to extend our program with Eastman and the LLumar brand,” said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports. “LLumar offers tremendous products that we stand behind through the No. 9 team and in our Hendrick Automotive Group car dealerships across the country. It’s been rewarding to see them win races with Chase, translating to even more success off the track. We look forward to the future and continuing to grow our relationship together.”
LLumar high-performance films help improve the appearance and driving comfort of vehicles as well as enhancing the comfort, appearance and privacy in homes and commercial buildings around the world. The LLumar portfolio of products includes window tint and paint protection films for vehicles, and solar control, decorative and safety and security films for residential and commercial buildings.
“I’m excited to continue our relationship with LLumar and to get two additional chances to get them to victory lane this season,” Elliott said. “I’ve really enjoyed getting to meet many of the Eastman employees over the years, whether it’s at their facilities near tracks where we compete or having them out for the races. I look forward to seeing what we can continue to accomplish together in the coming years.”
SOUTH BOSTON, Va. — Mike Looney knows that to be a contender for the Virginia Late Model Triple Crown, you need to get off to a good start. In other words, you need a win or have a solid finish in the Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 presented by Grand Atlantic Ocean Resort on Saturday, July 1 at South Boston Speedway, the opening triple crown race.
The Virginia Late Model Triple Crown consists of the July 1 Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 presented by Grand Atlantic Ocean Resort at South Boston Speedway, the Hampton Heat 200 on July 22 at Larry King Law’s Langley Speedway, and the Sept. 23 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway.
“Normally somebody that wins the Triple Crown wins at least one of the three legs,” Looney said. “Martinsville is such a crapshoot to get a top-five finish. It’s tough to even make that show. You’ve got to start out well on the first leg to get to the last leg. That is what we’re focusing on.”
Looney has a good record at South Boston Speedway this season, scoring a pair of second-place finishes and a pair of third-place finishes in his six starts. Overall, Looney’s season record includes five wins and three second-place finishes.
“I can’t thank Billy Martin and the folks that help on this car enough,” Looney said. “They put me in equipment that with luck on our side we can get some wins and have some good runs. I hope we can keep that string going through July 1.”
Looney has two career wins at South Boston Speedway and says winning the July 1 Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 presented by Grand Atlantic Ocean Resort and earning the $10,000 winner’s prize would be one of his biggest wins.
“It would be really special to win this race,” Looney remarked. “There are some other big races, but this Fourth of July race at South Boston Speedway has always been the crown jewel of the summer. I came down here and watched the race for many years before I was able to be in a position to be in good equipment to be able to compete in it. It’s an honor to drive for (car owner) Billy Martin, have a fast race car, and have a shot at winning a crown jewel like this.”
Looney has been close to winning South Boston Speedway’s showcase event but has yet to win it. He finished 11th in last year’s 200-lap race and finished sixth in 2021.
“We were close a couple of years ago,” Looney noted. “We had the best car and the main rear seal or something blew out. Oil leaked on our clutch, and the clutch started slipping while we were leading the race. I know how it is to lose it. Now, we’ve just got to figure out how to win it.”
The key to winning the 200-lap race, Looney says, is a combination of multiple factors, the most important being a good car.
“You’ve got to have luck on your side, have good strategy calls, and have good tire conservation,” explained Looney. “These Hoosier F50 tires are hardy tires. You can run them pretty hard, but 200 laps here in July is pretty hard on anything. I think you need to stay as close to the front as you can without burning the right rear tire or right front tire off. You have to manage your equipment, but ultimately, it’s going to come down to the best-handling race car.”
South Boston Speedway’s July 1 Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 presented by Grand Atlantic Ocean Resort is one of the region’s premier NASCAR Late Model Stock Car Division events and is annually a favorite among race fans.
Fans will be treated to a dazzling and colorful Fourth of July fireworks show immediately following the last race of the night. Special patriotic festivities will be featured during pre-race ceremonies. In addition, fans can meet the drivers competing in the speedway’s four NASCAR racing divisions during the Autograph Session powered by Hitachi.
It will be an exciting night as fans will see four action-packed races. Along with the 200-lap race for the Sentara Health Late Model Stock Car Division fans will see a 40-lap race for the Budweiser Limited Sportsman Division, a 20-lap race for the Southside Disposal Pure Stock Division and a 20-lap race for the Virginia State Police HEAT Hornets Division.
Fans can purchase advance adult general admission tickets for $20 each online on South Boston Speedway’s website, www.southbostonspeedway.com or by calling the speedway office at 434-572-4947 or toll free at 1-877-440-1540 during regular business hours.
Tickets at the gate on race day will be $25 each. Seniors ages 65 and older, military, healthcare workers, and students (with ID) can purchase tickets for $20 each at the gate on race day.
The tentative race day schedule for the July 1 Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 presented by Grand Atlantic Ocean Resort has registration and pit gates opening at 10 a.m. ET. Frontstretch spectator gates will open at 12:30 p.m. ET, and practice will start at 1 p.m. ET. Backstretch and Turn 4 trackside tailgating gates will open at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Qualifying for the 200-lap Sentara Health Late Model Stock Car Division race is set for 4:15 p.m. ET. The Autograph Session powered by Hitachi is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. ET on the frontstretch of the speedway. Pre-race Ceremonies powered by Hitachi will begin at 6:35 p.m. ET, and the first race will get the green flag at 7 p.m. ET.
Friday, June 30 is Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 Practice Day and Fan Appreciation Day. Practice will run from 11 a.m. until 7:45 p.m. ET, and fans can come out and watch practice from the track’s spectator areas free of charge.
Fans and competitors can find the latest updates and information on the speedway’s website and through the track’s social media channels. Information may also be obtained by phoning the speedway at 434-572-4947 or toll free at 1-877-440-1540 during regular business hours.
This afternoon’s conference will include a major announcement from the championship organization, with Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Rodney Childers and Greg Zipadelli expected to be on hand. You can view the stream on NASCAR.com using the above link.
SHR, co-owned by the three-time champion Stewart and Haas Automation founder Gene Haas, currently fields four full-time entries in the NASCAR Cup Series. Stewart himself brought home the organization’s first title in 2011, followed three years later with Harvick claiming his first championship.
All signs point to Hendrick Motorsports in Sunday’s Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway as Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott have claimed the two trophies since NASCAR returned to the 1.33-mile concrete oval in 2021. But it wouldn’t take a Music City Miracle for Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick to record his first win of the season there, as Racing Insights’ metric formula has him right near the top in this week’s projections.
Among active winners on concrete tracks, only Kyle Busch ranks ahead of Harvick, who has six such victories. Plus, Harvick is among a group of five active drivers who finished in the top 10 in the previous two Nashville races as he came home fifth in 2021 and 10th last season.
There also seems to be something in the water as far as veteran drivers winning of late. Busch, Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin are responsible for five of the last seven wins in the Cup Series, so maybe Sunday’s race (7 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM) will be Harvick’s chance to shine as he makes his 807th career start and continues to put up impressive numbers (fifth in the standings) during his final full-time season.
That’s the case for Harvick, but let’s see who else is in contention for posting a big win after the off-week in what is shaping up to be a very close playoff race down the stretch.
OTHERS TO WATCH
KYLE LARSON: He won in 2021 at Nashville and finished fourth there last year after a speeding penalty on pit road. He also has the most laps led (264) in the last two races at Nashville.
KYLE BUSCH: Busch is the leader among active drivers in wins on concrete tracks with 11. He’s also enjoying a career resurgence and leads all drivers with five top-two finishes in 2023.
MARTIN TRUEX JR.: He has won two of the last six races this season and has the third-most laps led with 82 in the two Cup races at Nashville.
ROSS CHASTAIN: He finished in the top five in each of the previous two races at Nashville, but he’ll need to buck a recent trend where his average finish has been 18th over his last three starts.
Projections as of Sunday, June 25
RACING INSIGHTS’ PROJECTIONS FOR ALLY 400
Racing Insights’ advanced statistical formula includes current track, current track type, recent performance, team data and pit-crew data to arrive at a projected winner and full race results.
Last fall on an episode of “The Dale Jr Download,” NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. touted Kyle Weatherman as an underfunded driver who he wishes he could put in an additional JR Motorsports entry. That hit the 25-year-old right in the feels.
“I’m a driver that stays humble and quiet, keeps my head down, works hard and digs,” Weatherman told NASCAR.com last week. “I’m going to do that no matter what, but just to get some reassurance is nice every once in a while.”
This season, Weatherman remains a part-time competitor in the Xfinity Series after running much of the schedule in each of the last three seasons. In addition to his part-time on-track schedule, he’s freelancing for teams to help get their cars to the track. He’s also working on the Chevrolet simulator with Hendrick Motorsports.
Last year, Weatherman put an emphasis on assisting Jesse Iwuji Motorsports in its first year of existence. He drove the car to an eighth-place finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and posted 10 top-20 finishes in 18 starts.
Tracking top 20s isn’t desirable, but when it’s for teams that are fighting funding, it stands out. And with some of these teams, like DGM Racing, he’s had remarkable runs, including an eighth-place result last year at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Some people in the racing industry have noticed that Weatherman is making the most of every opportunity.
“I just prepare really hard and take it very personally,” Weatherman said. “I’m always hands-on with whatever car I’m driving. I’m to a point where a lot of people respect what I’ve done and am capable of doing and are willing to give what I need.”
On the driving side, Weatherman didn’t see the track this year until the third race of the season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Vic Reynolds, co-owner of Our Motorsports, handpicked Weatherman to be the driver of the No. 02 Chevrolet. In Weatherman’s first two outings, he posted a pair of top 20s. In the team’s other nine races that Weatherman hasn’t competed in, it only has two other top 20s.
Collin Fern, owner of the new FRS Racing team, which is running a partial schedule, also wanted Weatherman behind the wheel. So much so that he tabbed the Missouri native as the team’s first driver, originally set for Richmond Raceway until qualifying was canceled due to weather. Instead, he waited one more week at Martinsville Speedway to hop in the No. 96 car.
“I knew we were going to have to qualify into the race to make the show, so it was a no-brainer when he was available,” Fern said. “He is very handy with the cars, so it was like having another set of true mechanic hands on the car to prep it for Richmond and Martinsville. I wouldn’t have wanted anyone else.”
Weatherman qualified 27th and finished 34th in FRS’ debut, falling 52 laps short of completing the full distance due to a suspension issue.
James Gilbert | Getty Images
When Blaine Perkins was ruled out for Dover Motor Speedway after a vicious crash at Talladega Superspeedway, Our leaned on Weatherman at Dover. And though he finished a season-high 14th, Weatherman doesn’t count that result as his highlight of the season thus far.
“We had good speed [at Dover], but there was a time and place at Phoenix where we passed two JR Motorsports cars and was running ninth in a solid field as well with no falloff either,” Weatherman said. “As far as a full race put together, Dover is probably the best and completed where realistically we finished as good as we could have.”
After using Brett Moffitt as its primary simulator driver last year, Hendrick Motorsports sought Weatherman for the role this year. It’s a new gig for him over the last six months, as he’s been in the Chevy simulator a handful of times on behalf of Hendrick.
“We recognize that Kyle overachieved in some of the equipment he was in and had some good runs on the Xfinity side,” Kevin Meendering, competition development manager for Hendrick, said. “He was doing some simulator testing for JRM, and those guys spoke highly of him, so we gave him an opportunity.”
Weatherman’s role is to give Hendrick feedback and work on the correlation to make the team’s sim model more accurate. The team then looks at his data and compares it to the on-track SMT data to improve its model.
“I strive at giving really good feedback of what the car is doing, how it’s handling and reacting,” Weatherman noted. “I think the opportunity that I’ve got there this year to help diagnose different setups and situations and make that even better.
“I like being a part of what Chevy has going on and being a part of that family,” he said. “Hopefully a home opens up shortly where I can have a full-time home and showcase what I’m able to do.”
While Weatherman isn’t giving up on making starts in 2023 – his next race is scheduled to be at Atlanta – he’s putting more of a focus on how to be full time in 2024.
In previous years, Weatherman believes he’s made some fundamental errors while trying to overachieve. Now, he’s at the point where his awareness is on point.
“I’m at a point in my career where it’s lining up to where I’m waiting for that next good opportunity or the correct funding to come through and go to this next level, is where I’m at,” Weatherman said. “My race craft is ready for that situation where if I were to get in one of these race-winning-ready cars that we would fire off the truck and be ready to go.”
MINNEAPOLIS– Put the pedal to the metal in NASCAR Arcade Rush, launching later this year on PlayStation®5, PlayStation®4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam. This new arcade-style racing game revs up the heart-pumping, high-speed competition and action of one of the world’s top motorsports with wildly reimagined spins on NASCAR’s most legendary tracks.
Experience the high-octane thrill of NASCAR racing in a completely new way with intense arcade races on iconic NASCAR tracks, totally re-engineered with jaw-dropping twists, hair-raising turns, gravity-defying jumps, nitro boosts and other surprises. Customize your car and driver as you compete to take the top position across a variety of game modes, including the Career NASCAR Cup Series plus online and local multiplayer.
Key Features
• Iconic Tracks, Wild Twists: Experience iconic NASCAR tracks like Talladega Superspeedway, Daytona International Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Martinsville Speedway, Homestead-Miami Speedway and more in all-new ways that will thrill your imagination and deliver a new level of playability within the vaunted NASCAR video game franchise.
• Race Your Way: Choose from a full array of vehicles spanning 75 years of stock car racing history and horsepower. Customize your car and driver to suit your style with new paint schemes, rims, spoilers, visual effects, suits, helmets and more, with thousands of combinations to discover.
• Robust Racing Modes: NASCAR Arcade Rush features expansive single-player modes including the Career NASCAR Cup Series, Quick Race and Time Attack. Take on your friends in thrilling head-to-head local multiplayer, or race rivals around the world in 12-player online multiplayer.
NASCAR Arcade Rush is available to preorder now for $49.99 at major retailers.
Fans can also look forward to the NASCAR Project-X Bundle for NASCAR Arcade Rush for $59.99. This digital exclusive will include not only the full base game, but is also loaded with extra NASCAR Project-X playable content featuring:
• A hovercraft car model developed as part of Project-X • Project-X paint scheme, rims, wheels, and spoiler • Project-X themed drivers suit and helmet • Project-X team sponsorship option • Project-X vehicle FX package • A set of four additional in-game emojis to showcase your style
NASCAR Arcade Rush is published by GameMill Entertainment.
LEXINGTON, N.C. — Kaulig Racing announced Tuesday that Trackhouse Racing founder and owner Justin Marks will drive the No. 10 Jockey Chevrolet in the July 1 NASCAR Xfinity Series race on the Chicago Street Course.
The quality of Kaulig Racing’s Chevrolets, along with the inaugural street race made for an easy decision for both Kaulig Racing and Marks to team up for this historic event. Marks will step away from his NASCAR Cup Series owner duties to join forces with Kaulig Racing’s powerhouse road-course racing program and race in the NXS for the first time since 2018.
“It’s very difficult to retire as a race car driver,” said the 41-year-old Marks. “I’ve got a lot of experience on street courses, so when NASCAR announced it was going to Chicago, I just felt like I really had to be a part of that experience. We have a great relationship with Kaulig Racing through our pit crew department and being a fellow Chevrolet team, so making my return to racing with the team just felt right. Jockey coming on board makes it even more enticing to run well in Chicago.”
Marks owns 35 career Xfinity starts, including a victory in 2016 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course — along with three top-five and seven top-10 finishes. Each start has come on road courses.
Marks, whose Trackhouse Racing team fields Cup Series entries for drivers Daniel Suárez and Ross Chastain, boasts an extensive sports-car racing resumé, earning multiple wins across the Rolex Grand-Am Sports Car Series and the Weathertech Sportscar Championship Series. Most recently, he won the Trans-Am race on May 29 at Lime Rock Park in Connecticut.
Of Kaulig Racing’s 22 Xfinity wins, nine have come at road courses. The team also earned its first win in the Cup Series in 2021 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course with AJ Allmendinger.
“If you’re in a road-course car in the Xfinity Series, AJ [Allmendinger] demonstrates pretty consistently, that the Kaulig Racing cars are the ones you want to be sitting in,” Marks said. “It’s going to be a very unique event, and I know we will have a good race car.”
Kaulig Racing’s No. 10 Chevrolet, which features an all-star roster, has earned two wins in the 2023 Xfinity season. The three-car Xfinity team has earned three wins in 2023, along with nine top fives, 22 top 10s and 319 laps led.
Kaulig Racing
“We’re excited to have Justin [Marks], another road-course ringer, come out of retirement and compete for us in the Xfinity Series,” said Chris Rice, president of Kaulig Racing. “I think that says a lot about the tremendous success Kaulig Racing has had in just a few short years, especially on road courses. Not only is Justin Marks a successful team owner in NASCAR, but he has a ton of experience on street courses, so having him come on board for this historic weekend in our industry just makes sense.”
The No. 10 Chevrolet will carry Jockey’s red, white and blue paint scheme in Chicago, a partnership that began last year with Trackhouse, the first such team sponsorship in the 147-year history of the apparel brand. At the core of the partnership was the launch of the brand’s Made in America* Collection — proudly grown and crafted in the USA.
NASCAR will officially kick off its first-ever event weekend at the Chicago Street Course beginning with the Loop 121 Xfinity Series race on July 1 at 5 p.m. ET on USA Network.
It’s hard to believe, but the 2023 NASCAR Playoffs are coming.
As we emerge from the lone off week of the season with our eyes fully focused on the 10 races ahead that will decide the ’23 postseason field, let’s take a look back at what we’ve learned and what it means moving forward.
Before we take to Tennessee for Sunday’s Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway (7 p.m. ET, NBC, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App), check in with every full-timer’s season to date, sorted by current standings rank with a look at key stats, best remaining regular-season track and analysis on what to expect the rest of the way.
Martin Truex Jr., No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Playoff standings: 2nd, 2,026 points Key stat: Series-best 15 lead-lap finishes; on pace to better previous career-high of 31 (2015) for a series-best 11.4 average finish. Best remaining track: Watkins Glen (10.9 avg. fin., 1 win) Analysis: For a driver that nearly walked away from the sport a year ago, Truex’s renaissance has been something to witness. He looks every bit the title contender he’s been for the past decade and he and crew chief James Small appear to be clicking on all cylinders at the moment.
William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 1st, 2,027 points Key stat: Owns outright or tied for series lead in: wins, top fives, top 10s, poles, laps led, average start. Best remaining track: Pocono (9.4 avg. fin.) Analysis: We’d been hearing for years that Byron is the future. Well, he’s now the present and you can make a serious case that he’s been the driver to beat in 2023. A clear championship contender, look for Byron to pour on a few more wins as he makes his first title run with legs.
Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford Playoff standings: 4th, 2,015 points Key stat: On pace for a career-high 21 top-10 finishes (currently has nine). Best remaining track: Atlanta (11.6 avg. fin., 1 win) Analysis: There were some early questions this season about Blaney’s ability to take the next step up in the echelon of drivers, but the late spring saw him find a nice groove to position himself as one of the strongest out there entering the break. Another win — or two, with so many good tracks upcoming for him — before the playoffs would go a long way to bolstering his status and firmly asserting himself into the conversation.
Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 6th, 2,012 points Key stat: On pace for fewer top fives, top 10s and a worse average finish (13.9) than last season’s breakout. Best remaining track: Nashville (3.5 avg fin.) Analysis: Early on, it seemed Chastain was in the mix at the front of the field late. Then … things happened, conversations were had … and the No. 1 driver hasn’t been as prominent over the past month. Look for him and Trackhouse as a whole to come back from the break fresh, re-focused and ready to whoop some butt. Perhaps even literally.
Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Playoff standings: 11th, 2,007 points Key stat: Has finished worse than fifth in points just once since 2016 — last year, in 15th. Currently? Fifth in points. Best remaining track: Richmond (9.5 avg. fin., 4 wins) Analysis: For starters, Harvick looks entirely rejuvenated right now and when he hangs it up at the end of the year, he’s going to be going out at the top of his game. Though winless in 2023, the 2014 champ has a shot to pile on a few more victories over the summer — we saw him go back-to-back at Richmond and Michigan just last year.
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 3rd, 2,022 points Key stat: Three 2023 wins in 16 races, just one fewer than his final three seasons at Joe Gibbs Racing combined. Best remaining track: Richmond (7.2 avg. fin., 6 wins) Analysis: Busch has exceeded just about every expectation set for him in his first season with RCR after a tumultuous end to a strong tenure with JGR. He’s come out and firmly re-established himself as a title favorite and it’s very much on the table that he could become the sport’s first three-time champion since Tony Stewart did it in 2011.
Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Playoff standings: 9th, 2,009 points Key stat: Nearly identical pace to his 2022 stats, but thus far turning in a career-best 13.1 average finish. Best remaining track: Richmond (5.7 avg. fin.) Analysis: Bell has looked the part once again after making a surprise run to the Championship 4 a season ago. He’s still looking for his first non-dirt win of 2023 but has tended to heat up a bit over the summer. At this point last year, there was doubt he would even make the playoffs, and look where he landed.
Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Playoff standings: 7th, 2,011 points Key stat: Turned in his worst average finish (15.5) since 2013 last year — and his current 14.6 metric would be his second-worst average finish since 2013. Best remaining track: Richmond (8.7 avg. fin., 4 wins) Analysis: It’s been a typical Denny year so far — plenty of headlines, plenty of speed, plenty of headscratchers … and perhaps another date with destiny in the Championship 4. We’ve yet to really see Hamlin hammer it in there in 2023, but I get the feeling he’s about to really get hot over the summer.
Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
Playoff standings: 8th, 2,009 points Key stat: Led 140 laps in Atlanta victory in Race 5 … and has led just 37 laps since.
Best remaining track: Michigan (12.2 avg. fin., 3 wins) Analysis: Logano has made it clear that the Fords this year have some work to do and are behind the 8-ball to a degree, indicating he’d have to be “perfect” to race his way to back-to-back championships. If there’s any driver that can do it, he’s one of them, and we’ve seen on a few occasions this year just how determined he can be, willing his way to the front of the field through sheer driver skill.
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 5th, 2,013 points Key stat: Running at finish of just 11 races thus far — tied with J.J. Yeley, who has run … 11 races. Best remaining track: Nashville (2.5 avg. fin., 1 win) Analysis: If you’ve only watched certain races this year (Phoenix, Richmond, Martinsville, Kansas, All-Star Race) and missed some others (Atlanta, Bristol dirt, Talladega, Charlotte) you’d think Larson is far and away the championship favorite, in a class of his own. He honestly might be, but circumstances have relegated him to several race-ending wrecks so far. If those get cleaned up (or he gets, well, luckier) it legitimately might be his title to lose by a wide margin.
Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford
Playoff standings: 14th, 2,001 Key stat: 9.0 average finish in last seven races before off week. Best remaining track: Indianapolis Road Course (11.0 avg. fin.) Analysis: Clearly among — if not the — most underrated drivers in the series, Buescher is rounding the corner on 300 Cup starts and has taken a huge leap forward this year as RFK gets its legs under it after a transition year a season ago. We saw him win a playoff race last year — as a non-playoff driver — and it makes you wonder if there’s potential for a dark-horse run here.
Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford
Playoff standings: 13th, 2,001 points Key stat: Current standings position (12th) slices in half his 2022 standings finish (24th, worst since 2010). Best remaining track: New Hampshire (10.0 avg. fin., 2 wins) Analysis: Keselowski might still be a tick behind Buescher, stats-wise, but the championship pedigree is there and you can feel comfortable knowing that when RFK eventually has race-winning cars, No. 6 will know how to land it in Victory Lane. The team is probably still a season away from potential title contention, but keep your eye on Kes.
Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
Playoff standings: 10th, 2007 points Key stat: Five races where he scored fewer than 10 points. Best remaining track: Indianapolis Road Course (11.0 avg. fin., 1 win) Analysis: Though he — and his fledgling No. 45 team — are certainly still a work in progress, Reddick has shown on multiple occasions that he’s a superstar in the making. There are several strong tracks coming up for him before we hit the postseason and it’s not outrageous to think he could at least be tied for the series lead in wins come playoff time.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Playoff standings: 12th, 2,005 points Key stat: Has led just 11 laps since season-opening Daytona 500 win. Best remaining track: Daytona (19.3 avg. fin., 2 wins) Analysis: Already perhaps the best year of Stenhouse’s career — 2017’s two-win campaign being the competition here — Stenhouse has looked like a completely different driver. He’s competitive on road courses all of a sudden, for starters, and with plenty of those left and another shot at Daytona coming up, he could be riding some momentum heading into the fall.
Chris Graythen | Getty Images
Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
Playoff standings: 15th, 2,000 points Key stat: On pace for a career-best 17.2 average finish. Best remaining track: Daytona (13.0 avg. fin.) Analysis: There have been more misses than hits this season, for sure, but the second half of the first leg of the regular season saw a Wallace that looked every bit as competitive as his fellow Toyota compatriots and Wallace should have every opportunity to extend his winning streak to three seasons in a row.
Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 16th, 1,995 points Key stat: All six of his top 10s came in the first seven races of 2023. Best remaining track: Pocono (17.9 avg. fin, 1 win) Analysis: Bowman has had one heck of an interesting season, leading just 47 laps so far, missing time with a broken back, notching no top 10s since Richmond … and despite all that, averaging a far-and-away career-best finish of 12.0. He’s still more than likely going to make the playoffs, and the speed is definitely there to take it all the way.
Daniel Suárez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 17th, 328 points Key stat: Has earned just two top 10s since Las Vegas after a career-high 13 total last season. Best remaining track: Watkins Glen (12.0 avg. fin.) Analysis: Man, there isn’t a soul out there that didn’t expect bigger things from Suárez and the No. 99 team in 2023 after a strong breakout campaign a season ago. There’s still plenty of racing to be had this year so a turnaround is possible, but he’s currently on the outside looking in in terms of the playoffs.
Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Playoff standings: 18th, 320 points Key stat: Has five top 10s in first 31 career Cup starts — one more than two of last year’s rookies (Harrison Burton/Todd Gilliland) had combined across their full season. Best remaining track: Pocono (2.0 avg. fin. in NXS competition) Analysis: Gibbs still doesn’t have quite a full season of Cup racing under his belt, and yet we’re starting to see some signs of a potential breakout over the summer. He’s been good at every level he’s raced in so far and it’s only a matter of time before it’s evident in Cup.
Michael McDowell, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Playoff standings: 19th, 317 points Key stat: Average finish has dipped significantly from a season ago (16.7 to 19.6). Best remaining track: Daytona (20.6 avg. fin., 1 win) Analysis: McDowell’s Cinderella campaign a season ago was remarkable and he’s had a few strong runs this year but overall his numbers are a bit down. Still many chances to win his way into the playoffs, however, with a few road courses and Daytona still on the docket.
AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 20th, 298 points Key stat: Ran 18 total Cup races in 2022, with an average finish of 15.4. In his return to full-time competition this year, it’s 19.9. Best remaining track: Indianapolis Road Course (4.o avg. fin., 1 win) Analysis: Allmendinger’s return to being a full-time Cup driver certainly had a lot of people — myself included — wondering if, because of all the road courses, he could potentially make a deep playoff run. With four left to go it’s definitely possible, but the No. 16 team has a ways to go.
Austin Cindric, No. No. 2 Team Penske Ford
Playoff standings: 21st, 292 points Key stat: No top 10s since sixth race of the year, and just two total. Best remaining track: Indianapolis Road Course (5.5 avg. fin.) Analysis: Roger Penske expects his drivers to be competitive every weekend, and win often. That hasn’t quite been the case for Cindric in his sophomore season, as even his average finish (21.9) has tumbled from a season ago (16.3).
Corey LaJoie, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 22nd, 291 points Key stat: One of just two drivers to finish every race in 2023. Best remaining track: Daytona (18.8 avg. fin, three top 10s) Analysis: LaJoie’s year-over-year progress has been steady albeit incremental, but he’s taken a good leap forward this year to the point he was even called in to substitute for Chase Elliott in the No. 9 for a race.
Meg Oliphant | Getty Images
Justin Haley, No. 31 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 23rd, 284 points Key stat: Three top 10s just one shy of entire 2022 total, but on pace for a worse average finish (19.5 from 18.4). Best remaining track: Daytona (17.2 avg. fin., 1 win) Analysis: Haley could absolutely still shock the world and win his way into the playoffs at Daytona or something, but thus far it’s been a step back for Kaulig as a whole, himself included.
Todd Gilliland, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Playoff standings: 24th, 279 points Key stat: Had three top 10s in a five-race span from COTA to Talladega after two total during rookie year. Best remaining track: Indianapolis Road Course (4.0 avg. fin.) Analysis: Gilliland has turned a few heads this year after entering the year with some questions about his job status. He’s responded admirably and, though it’s not likely, it’s not out of the question to think he could steal a playoff spot somewhere.
Ryan Preece, No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Playoff standings: 25th, 269 points Key stat: Zero top-10 finishes in 2023 despite being 11th in laps led count. Best remaining track: Michigan (18.8 avg. fin) Analysis: SHR as a whole (minus Harvick) has struggled a good bit the past several years, and Preece’s first season driving the No. 41 is no exception. Nowhere to go but up here.
Aric Almirola, No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Playoff standings: 26th, 260 points Key stat: Averaging a 22.9 finish — worst since 2016 while driving for Richard Petty Motorsports. Best remaining track: Richmond (14.8 avg. fin.) Analysis: Though Loudon is where Almirola got his most recent win, he could be a sneaky guy to keep your eye on at Richmond. That said, Almirola’s decision to reverse course and return for another year is kind of a curious one at this point and he’ll need a major turnaround to make this year count.
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 27th, 247 points Key stat: On pace for his worst average finish (13.6) since 2019 (15.1). Best remaining track: Watkins Glen (5.7 avg. fin., 2 wins) Analysis: Definitely not the kind of season Elliott would’ve drawn up if given the choice, but the 2020 champ is in no way out of contention at this point. It seems near impossible he won’t win one of the next 10 races and, quite honestly, I expect him to win a few of them.
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 28th, 223 points Key stat: On pace for worst average start of career (21.1). Best remaining track: Daytona (15.6 avg. fin, 2 wins) Analysis: Dillon’s position in the standings has been sunk, to a degree, by a costly penalty but even still, his actual racing stats this year … not great. After looking like a stud alongside new teammate Kyle Busch at the LA Clash, Dillon has stumbled the first half of the season and it appears likely he’ll continue his history of alternating years of making/not making the playoffs.
Harrison Burton, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Playoff standings: 29th, 219 points Key stat: Nearly all of his standard stats (top fives, top 10s, avg. start/finish) are all on pace for worse showings than his rookie season last year. Best remaining track: Indianapolis Road Course (3.0 avg. fin.) Analysis: If you’re looking for strong year-over-year improvement, look somewhere else. The Fords, as previously mentioned, are having a down year and Burton has taken a step back in his sophomore campaign. Still plenty of talent here, but we likely won’t see it until at least next year.
Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 30th, 190 points Key stat: Averaging a career-worst 22.1 finish. Best remaining track: Watkins Glen (11.2 avg. fin) Analysis: Legacy Motor Club may be the biggest disappointment of the 2023 season after building a head of steam — and winning the Southern 500! — a season ago before injecting Jimmie Johnson into the ownership group. We later learned this is a transition year as the team will switch to Toyota next season, but, still, Jones has seen a tremendous drop-off after a strong 2022. Look for him to rebound in a big way next season.
Chase Briscoe, No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Playoff standings: 31st, 183 points Key stat: On pace for career-worst 19.8 average finish. Best remaining track: Watkins Glen (17.0 avg. fin., 1 top 10) Analysis: There was a three-race stretch earlier this season where Briscoe looked quite good. That has since become a distant memory, with no finish better than 17th since those three straight top fives. The book isn’t closed on a playoff appearance here, but he has obvious work to do.
Ty Dillon, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 32nd, 146 points Key stat: Just one finish inside the top 20 this year. Best remaining track: Daytona (21.2 avg. fin, 1 top 5) Analysis: Certainly not the kind of season Dillon was hoping for in his first run with Spire, very much on pace for his worst career average finish (28.5).
Noah Gragson, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet
Playoff standings: 33rd, 143 points Key stat: Just one finish inside the top 20 this year. Best remaining track: Daytona (20.0 avg fin, 1 top 5) Analysis: Being a rookie in the Cup Series is hard, but Gragson dominated at the Xfinity Series level last year and is most definitely a better driver than this season has shown thus far. Better days are ahead for him after he re-enters the Toyota fold next year.
