Posted on by Staff Report

Sunday marked a milestone 800th NASCAR Cup Series start for Kevin Harvick. The 47-year-old veteran accomplished the feat after taking the green flag during the GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 23 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Harvick became the 10th driver to reach 800 starts, joining Richard Petty, Ricky Rudd, Dave Marcis, Terry Labonte, Mark Martin, Kyle Petty, Bill Elliott, Darrell Waltrip and Jeff Gordon. The 2014 Cup Series champion also became the fifth-youngest driver to achieve 800 starts.

RELATED: Drivers with 600 or more starts | Talladega weekend schedule

“I think I’ve taken pretty good care of myself throughout the years to make myself durable through all the travel and time and things you put into doing this,” Harvick said in a team press release. “Being able to adapt and adjust to new things and new people, and being honest with people in situations, and sticking up for yourself when you think something’s right, and having those traits and the ability to have people who will accept those things because they know that you put a lot of thought and effort into what you’re doing.”

“The King” is the only driver to win his 800th start. Petty achieved the feat in 1979 at Dover Motor Speedway.

In 44 starts prior to Sunday at Talladega’s 2.66-mile superspeedway, Harvick owns one win (spring 2010) and 19 top 10s.

When Harvick completes his 23rd and final season in November at Phoenix Raceway, he will get to 826 starts, which will put him eighth on the all-time list surpassing Gordon and Waltrip.

“Well, I didn’t even know if I’d get to one,” Harvick said. “When you think about 800 races and you try to put it into perspective, you really start adding the years up. It’s a really wide body of work, and I think that’s what I’m the most proud of. Through those 800 starts, it’s not like we started the year cashing checks and just riding around. We’ve been competitive, racing at the front of the pack, leading laps and having the chance to win races. For me, that’s the thing that I’m most proud of, and I think from your colleagues and people from other race teams, they see that body of work and being competitive across that long period of time.

“You hear it all the time, ‘I can’t believe they’ve been that competitive for that long.’ And to me, that’s the part I’m most proud of, being able to do this at a high level for such a long time.”

ICYMI: Harvick to retire, head to FOX Sports booth after season

Posted on by Brandon White

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — For most of Saturday’s season-opening Hayes Jewelers 200 at Bowman Gray Stadium, it appeared Tim Brown would finally end a prolonged winless drought.

The defending track champion earned his 12th title without visiting Victory Lane once during the 2022 season, yet the veteran resembled his efficient form by leading every lap from the pole up until the closing stages.

Contact with Danny Bohn ended a perfect evening for Brown on an abrupt and sour note, while also allowing 10-time Bowman Gray Stadium champion Burt Myers to collect his 89th career victory at the track in front of the always-exuberant crowd.

Myers was a spectator to the on-track feud between Brown and Bohn. Once the two knocked each other out of the groove in Turn 3, nothing impeded Myers from driving away with the win.

“This might be one of the sweetest ones I’ve gotten,” Myers said. “I’ve lost races that way, so to finally win one that way feels really good. We had the best car tonight, but Tim was in the catbird’s seat to win the race. I saw it coming, and I was hoping we’d come out on the best end of it and we did.”

A long-time fan favorite at Bowman Gray, Myers admitted his triumph in the Hayes Jewelers 200 was cathartic in many aspects.

Despite finding Victory Lane four times in 2022, Myers struggled to build consistency and had to settle for a disappointing fifth-place finish in the Modified point standings. Not satisfied with his overall performance, Myers worked diligently over the offseason to ensure he could better capitalize on his wins moving forward.

The prestigious Hayes Jewelers 200 was exactly what Myers needed to showcase the speed of his cars. Myers has always favored the longer, more grueling features at Bowman Gray, and he knew he was in a great position to open 2023 on a convincing note.

Myers constantly stayed in Brown’s rearview mirror during the Hayes Jewelers 200 and was unsure if the right opportunity would come about to take the victory for himself.

Brown attempting to retaliate on Bohn for contact on a restart gave Myers the opening for which he was looking.

“Danny moved [Tim] out wide and drove under him,” Myers said. “When we got back [to Turn 3], Tim moved him out of the way and when he did, he got in hot enough and I was able to drive by both of them.”

Following the contact, Bohn recovered to come home with a second-place finish behind Myers while Brown ended up getting stuck on the high lane during the final sprint, forcing him to settle for 10th.

Bohn said there was no other way for him to take advatange of Brown’s sluggish short run speed and was left frustrated over Brown’s decision to respond against a move he has seen unfold numerous times in his career at Bowman Gray.

“[Tim] was tight during those first three or four laps on the restart,” Bohn said. “With no outside [line], the only way you can get by [someone] is to shoot the hole or put the bumper to him. I didn’t wreck him, I moved him up a groove and then he drove me down in the grass and then tried to wreck me in Turn 3.”

While Bohn reflected over the final laps of the Hayes Jewelers 200, Myers was ecstatic about earning another accomplishment at the track that defined his career.

Earning an 11th championship is the furthest thing from Myers’ mind now. Two 25-lap features are up next for the Modifieds on Apr. 29, but Myers is confident he can excel in those sprints while also carrying over the momentum from the Hayes Jewelers into the rest of Bowman Gray’s big events.

“We hang our hat on [these big races],” Myers said. “It makes us proud as a team to know that we are not out there just running a 25-lap sprint. We’ve won the big one and this is our Daytona 500. [It was great to] win this tonight in the exciting fashion we did. I think you could see I had them on their feet.”

Brandon Ward ended up placing third at the end of a wild 200-lap feature. Rounding out the Top 5 were Chris Fleming and James Civali.

OTHER NOTES:

  • In the 40-lap Sportsman feature, polesitter Chase Robertson had to come from the 10th starting position following a full field redraw. It did not take long for Robertson to make his way up through the field before passing Zack Ore to open the 2023 season with a victory at Bowman Gray. He then quickly departed the track to attend his high school prom.
  • There were two races for the Stadium Stock division. Isaac Harris took home the checkered flag in the first feature while Blaine Curry claimed the second event.
  • A chaotic Street Stock feature wrapped up an eventful season opener at Bowman Gray Stadium. Brad Lewis took home the checkered flag.
Posted on by Zack Albert

TALLADEGA, Ala. — The process of elimination in the Dash 4 Cash contest within Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race netted out with Cole Custer leaving Talladega Superspeedway $100,000 richer.

Custer outlasted the rest of the Dash 4 Cash bonus-eligible field in Saturday’s Ag-Pro 300, placing fourth after surviving 10 caution periods and a double-overtime finish. His fellow contenders for the Xfinity payday — Josh Berry, John Hunter Nemechek and Sammy Smith — all finished 30th or worse after crashes sidelined them in the final stage.

RELATED: Race results | Weekend schedule

Custer said he was involved in just one of the yellow flags, and the scraped-up right side of his No. 00 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford would attest, but he said he was thankful for his third consecutive top-five finish and the oversized check that went with it.

“I mean, it’s nice to have a little bit of luck,” Custer said. “You know, I’ve been on the wrong side of luck and a lot of times on these superspeedways, so it’s nice to have a little bit and come out on top of that. But we had a solid car, we raced up front for a little bit there and just guys did a solid job. And you know, we fought hard with it with the damage, the little bit that we had.”

Berry was in position to be the six-figure winner, and the JR Motorsports driver seemed to be living a charmed life after a big save through Turn 4 in the 94th of 121 laps. Just six laps later, he was done, gobbled up in the same corner in a major stack-up behind Ryan Truex’s No. 19 Toyota that also eliminated his JRM teammates Sam Mayer and Justin Allgaier.

“It looked like the 19 hesitated a little bit on the block on Sam, and Sam kind of had to check and got a little loose and we were right there and we all just piled into each other,” said Berry, who ended up 30th. “Just kind of an up-and-down day for us. I think we got to the front several times. We just had trouble staying in there for various different reasons, but all in all, I hate to get tore up like that.”

The two Joe Gibbs Racing drivers who were eligible for the bonus met a similar fate. Smith had the worst finish of the foursome, with a crash that ended his day after just 63 laps. His No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was in close competition with the No. 9 JRM Chevrolet of Brandon Jones, when Smith’s car veered left off Turn 2 and crunched into the inside retaining barrier. Smith finished 33rd.

“Either the 9 hit me or just got me really loose, I’m not sure,” Smith said after a quick check at the infield care center. “I never was getting loose at all up top. I haven’t seen a replay so I’m not gonna say anything, but a frustrating day.”

Nemechek’s charge lasted just 18 laps longer, and he wound up just one position better than Smith in the finishing order. A wayward lane change across the start/finish line in front of JGR teammate Truex’s No. 19 sent Nemechek’s No. 20 Supra skidding to the apron and into hard, flush contact with the inside wall.

The final event in the four-race series comes next Saturday at Dover Motor Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN, SiriusXM). Drivers eligible for the $100,000 bonus are Talladega race winner Jeb Burton, runner-up Sheldon Creed, third-place finishing Parker Kligerman and Custer.

Posted on by Holly Cain

TALLADEGA, Ala. – It was the kind of hard-nosed, impatient – and thrilling – competition that NASCAR fans have come to expect in the final laps of racing at Talladega Superspeedway. In the end, Jeb Burton took the checkered flag on a double overtime restart to claim the victory in Saturday’s Ag-Pro 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race.

The victory was the Virginia native Burton’s second in this Spring event on the 2.66-mile Talladega high banks – both his career wins have come there – and he earned it by being fast, patient and, at times, truly fortunate. His No. 27 Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet led 20 of the race’s 121 laps on the afternoon, won the second stage and, most importantly, was able to hold off Sheldon Creed by a mere 0.113 seconds to earn the team its first-ever NASCAR Xfinity Series win.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Talladega 

Burton, 30, the son of 2002 Daytona 500 winner Ward Burton, was hoarse after the race, having used his voice instead to scream congratulations to his team on the radio on the cool-down lap. It was a big afternoon-turned-evening for all involved.

“Man, I’m pumped up and out of breath from yelling,” Burton said, grinning. “These guys have made racing fun for me again.”

The fans were on their feet in the grandstands as the field filed up for the final restart; both Burton and Creed racing for their first wins of the season, and most of the remaining top-10 drivers racing for the first win of their careers.

“I let the 27 [Burton] get way out there and had the 00 [Cole Custer] on me getting ready for a big run,” said Creed, who was in front of Burton when the last caution came out, but the field was set according to the last scoring line and that went in Burton’s favor allowing him first choice on lane selection for that final restart.

“Nonetheless, a great day,” he added. “Plate racing is not my best, and I’ve been trying to get better at it. Happy to get Whelen Manufacturing a good finish. We’ve been up and down this year, so just to have a solid day like that is really good for us.”

Big Machine Racing’s Parker Kligerman finished third, with Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cole Custer and JD Motorsports’ Brennan Poole rounding out the top five.

Caesar Baccarella was sixth in the Alpha Prime Racing Chevrolet – his best career finish in part-time starts since 2017. Parker Retzlaff was seventh, followed by Gray Gaulding, Joey Gase and Josh Williams, who all earned their first top-10 finishes of the season.

The dramatic race ending was indicative of the afternoon – restarts and close-quarter racing. Two red flags slowed the event – a result of multi-car incidents that have become characteristic of this style of competition.

Twelve cars were involved in an accident with three laps remaining – including then-leader Daniel Hemric who ended up upside down against the wall. A red flag was thrown while the safety crew got Hemric out of the No. 11 Kaulig Racing Chevy, and Hemric waved to the crowd, walking to the ambulance on his own.

“Just got too far out, it looks like,” Hemric said, watching his accident on video replay afterward. “For sure, late on the block there. I committed – there had been so much give and take on the day.”

MORE: ‘Big One’ takes out numerous contenders

Driver Blaine Perkins was transported to a local medical facility in an abundance of caution after being involved in the first accident to bring out a red flag. He and Dexter Stacey’s cars collided just before the second stage break, and Perkins’ car flipped over multiple times. Both drivers climbed out of their cars on their own.

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Custer won the Talladega Dash 4 Cash $100,000 check with a fourth-place finish – the only one of the four eligible for the bonus to finish the race. With that effort, he, race winner Burton, Creed and Kligerman are eligible for the bonus in next weekend’s final of the four Dash 4 Cash events at Dover Motor Speedway.

“It’s nice to have a little bit of luck, I’ve been on the wrong side of that many times at these superspeedway races,” said Custer, driver of the No. 00 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, adding, “This is the happiest I’ve ever been running fourth.”

Austin Hill, who leads the series with three wins, reclaimed the NASCAR Xfinity Series points lead by four points over John Hunter Nemechek, who finished 32nd. Brett Moffitt’s 20 laps out front were the most among the 12 leaders.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series returns to competition next week in the A-GAME 200 at Dover Motor Speedway on Saturday (1:30 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Note: Post-race inspection is complete without issues. The No. 02 will be taken back to R&D for further inspection after its accident.

Posted on by Staff Report

The NASCAR Xfinity Series Dash 4 Cash midseason incentive program has come to a close for 2023, with the circuit’s regulars collecting $100,000 paydays from series sponsor Xfinity at four designated races this spring.

This hub page for this year’s edition recaps all the key information about the program, an overview and notes on this season’s winners.

What is Dash 4 Cash?

Starting in 2009, the Dash 4 Cash has been a midseason program sponsored by Xfinity that rewards drivers financially for performing well during a select stretch of four races during each Xfinity Series season. This year those races took place at Richmond Raceway (April 1), Martinsville Speedway (April 15), Talladega Superspeedway (April 22) and Dover Motor Speedway (April 29).

How does Dash 4 Cash work?

Before the four-race stretch began, there was a qualifying race to determine the participants in the first official Dash 4 Cash race. The four highest-finishing series regulars in the Xfinity race at Circuit of The Americas — Sammy Smith, Justin Allgaier, Daniel Hemric and Sam Mayer — qualified for the first Dash 4 Cash race at Richmond. The highest finisher of that quartet at Richmond collected the $100,000 prize and automatically qualify for the next Dash 4 Cash race. The next three highest-finishing Xfinity Series regulars in the race at Richmond also qualified to participate in the next Dash 4 Cash race at Martinsville. Those rules repeated for subsequent Dash 4 Cash races as well.

In order to qualify for the program, drivers must race full-time in the Xfinity Series and must be declared to collect points in the circuit.

RELATED: 2023 Dash 4 Cash schedule announced | Dash 4 Cash officially begins 2023 with COTA qualifier

NASCAR Xfinity Series Dash 4 Cash logo

2023 Dash 4 Cash recaps:

At Circuit of The Americas (March 25 qualifier)

MORE: Smith, Allgaier, Hemric, Mayer emerge in COTA qualifier

Recap: Cup Series regulars AJ Allmendinger and William Byron battled for the victory at COTA with road-course ace Allmendinger coming out on top. But farther down the race results list were the Xfinity Series regulars who will compete for the first Dash 4 Cash prize at Richmond Raceway. After Ty Gibbs in third place came Sammy Smith, Justin Allgaier, Daniel Hemric and Sam Mayer, the four qualifiers for the Dash 4 Cash at Richmond. John Hunter Nemechek appeared to be set for a Dash 4 Cash qualifying spot but spun out late and came home in 27th place. The race in Richmond is set for 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 1 with coverage on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

***

At Richmond Raceway (April 1)

MORE: Justin Allgaier hangs on for Dash 4 Cash payday at Richmond

Recap: It was a tough day at the Virginia short track for most of the Dash 4 Cash contenders, with Justin Allgaier taking home the first $100,000 prize of the season. Allgaier finished 13th after pit strategy shuffled the No. 7 back in the field following ill-timed cautions for the team’s race-winning hopes. Sammy Smith, leading 40 laps on the afternoon, finished 19th, not too far behind co-contender Sam Mayer in 17th. Daniel Hemric finished 24th. Richmond race winner Chandler Smith, John Hunter Nemechek, Josh Berry and Kaz Grala finished 1-2-3-4 and qualified for the next contest at Martinsville.

RICHMOND: See results

***

At Martinsville Speedway (April 15) 

MORE: John Hunter Nemechek dominates Xfinity Series race at Martinsville 

Recap: Quick laps, slick restarts and a touch of burning rubber was just what John Hunter Nemechek was looking for en route to his second Xfinity Series win of 2023 and the $100,000 prize. Josh Berry was the next highest Dash 4 Cash driver, with the No. 8 JR Motorsports driver finishing fourth. A late-race strategy of staying out during pit stops gave Allgaier a chance out front, and although he couldn’t cash in with another Dash 4 Cash win, he finished the race in sixth. Chandler Smith rounded out the Dash 4 Cash quartet, finishing 10th. Race winner Nemechek, in addition to Sammy Smith, Cole Custer and Berry, qualified for the next Dash 4 Cash race at Talladega.

MARTINSVILLE: See results

***

At Talladega Superspeedway (April 22)

MORE: Jeb Burton scores second career Xfinity win at Talladega | Custer ‘little bit of luck’ in Talladega payday

Recap: A collection of cautions eventually led to double-overtime in the circuit, with Jeb Burton eventually finding Victory Lane for the second time in his Xfinity career. Among the four Dash 4 Cash contestants, however, Custer was the only one that saw the checkered flag — thus winning the $100,000 prize —  after he finished fourth. The other three contenders, Josh Berry, John Hunter Nemechek and Sammy Smith, finished 30th, 32nd and 33rd, respectively. Following Burton for the final Dash 4 Cash contest (at Dover Motor Speedway) will be Sheldon Creed, Parker Kligerman and Custer, who all finished inside the top four.

TALLADEGA: See results

***

At Dover Motor Speedway (April 29)

MORE: Ryan Truex scores first Xfinity win at Dover | Custer wins back-to-back Dash 4 Cash bonuses

Recap: Ryan Truex took home his maiden Xfinity Series win in dominant fashion, leading 124 of 200 laps. Cole Custer pocketed a $100,000 prize for the second consecutive week as the Xfinity Series’ Dash 4 Cash program drew to a close for 2023. Custer topped the other three bonus-eligible drivers — Sheldon Creed (who led 41 laps and recovered from a spin to finish one lap down in 11th), Jeb Burton (last week’s Talladega winner and 18th place Saturday) and pole-starter Parker Kligerman (out early in a crash, 38th).

DOVER: See results

Posted on by Staff Report

UPDATE: Blaine Perkins was discharged from the hospital on Sunday evening.

***

Blaine Perkins was transported to a local hospital after a multi-car wreck in the Ag-Pro 300 Xfinity Series race on Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway.

A Lap 47 incident on the backstretch involved Perkins in addition to Jade Buford and Dexter Stacey. When Stacey’s No. 66 Chevrolet broke loose off the second turn, it swerved toward the apron and made contact with the inside retaining wall. As Stacey’s car lost control, it clipped Perkins’ No. 02 Our Motorsports Chevy, turning the car into the path of Buford’s No. 5 Big Machine Racing Camaro on the backstretch.

That contact caused Perkins’ No. 02 entry to lift, and the car flipped six times before coming to a stop. The resulting wreck brought out the red flag for approximately 12 minutes, with Perkins eventually climbing out of his car under his own power.

Perkins, Stacey and Buford were scored 34th, 35th and 36th, respectively, after the incident.

On Monday evening, Perkins released a statement to update fans on his well-being:

 

The Perkins family released a statement Sunday to provide an update, affirming the 23-year-old driver was “in good spirits” and appreciated the well wishes being sent his way.

Buford and Stacey were both evaluated and released from the infield care center.

Posted on by Zack Albert

TALLADEGA, Ala. — Austin Dillon rolled into Talladega Superspeedway 60 points lighter after L1-level penalties were issued to his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing team earlier in the week. The hit in the NASCAR Cup Series standings hasn’t altered his outlook for the rest of the regular season.

That must-win mission continues for the No. 3 team in Sunday’s GEICO 500 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the 10th race of the Cup Series campaign. Dillon has two top-10 finishes thus far in 2023, but the underwing assembly infraction after last weekend’s race at Martinsville dropped him from 21st to 29th in the points.

RELATED: Weekend schedule | What to Watch: Talladega

Dillon was largely mum about the violation itself Saturday, acknowledging that RCR has opted to take the penalty into the appeals process. But his goal for the Talladega weekend and subsequent races remains the same.

“I would probably would rather make a statement after the appeal process to really get a better grasp on the whole situation,” Dillon said before qualifying 14th for Sunday’s 500-miler. “So, as far as that goes, I’ll probably be waiting till after the appeal to really give you my thoughts on it. But right now, it’s (to) go after another win here at Talladega. … Just race hard this weekend and see what comes of it.”

Part of the penalty included a two-race suspension for crew chief Keith Rodden, a veteran who took over the role for the No. 3 team this season. In his place as interim crew chief this week is Justin Alexander, his predecessor who shifted to RCR’s director of vehicle performance in a move announced last October.

MORE: Sunday’s starting lineup

Alexander had been atop the pit box for all four of Dillon’s victories in his Cup Series career, and the 32-year-old driver said he expected him to shift back to his crew chief duties without much of a hitch.

“Justin has been on the competition side of things all year,” Dillon said. “He’s been running our competition meetings at the shop, so he’s very in tune, and him and Keith have had discussion during the week on how our process has been going this year. So I think he’s in a good position to just jump in for the current situation that we’re in and should be fine.”

Dillon qualified for the Cup Series Playoffs last season with a last-ditch victory in the regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway last August. That clutch moment filled out the 16-driver postseason grid with 15 winners.

So far this year, seven drivers have won in nine events, suggesting that the window for advancing to the playoffs on the basis of points may already be narrowing.

“I think NASCAR has really kind of made the series into a must-win anyways. Points aren’t really an option,” Dillon said. “I mean, there’s one guy that made it on points maybe last year. … So it’s kind of a must-win to make a good season, so I don’t think anything really changes truthfully on the points side.”

Posted on by Staff Report

TALLADEGA, Ala. – Bubba Wallace was in a free-wheeling mood during Saturday morning’s media scrums at Talladega Superspeedway, fresh from a top-10 finish at Martinsville a week before and buoyant about his chances for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series showdown.

As usual, he’ll be competing in the 23XI Racing No. 23 Toyota co-owned by friends and associates Michael Jordan, the NBA legend, and Denny Hamlin, who won the pole for Sunday’s GEICO 500 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) during Saturday’s qualifying session at the 2.66-mile track. The Wallace-Hamlin partnership is now in its third season, but hard racing between the two last weekend at Martinsville showed that the driver-owner spirit of kumbaya has its limits.

RELATED: Weekend schedule | What to Watch: Talladega

“Yeah, the 11 car is a competitor,” Wallace said, nodding toward Hamlin’s No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. “It’s a different organization, different race team. So, people say that’s the boss. Not when he’s driving. He’s a competitor, and that’s it.”

Hamlin led once during last week’s 400-lapper at Martinsville, which was won by Kyle Larson. Hamlin eventually placed fourth, and Wallace started and finished ninth in the ninth race of the year.

During Hamlin’s stint up front, he worked aggressively to keep other potential contenders a lap down. When he encountered Wallace’s No. 23, the two traded contact as Wallace tried to return to the lead lap.

Those bumps aside, Hamlin said he expects Wallace to drive hard and that he’s able to split the employee-employer viewpoints.

“Listen, as a car owner, I would say, ‘Man, you’re about to go a lap down in a track-position race, you better fight everything you can,’ ” Hamlin said. “Now, as a driver, I’m like, ‘Get the hell out of my way. I’m the leader. Like, I’m trying to make up some ground here.’ So that’s one where, while I may be, like, perturbed in the moment, in the bigger picture, I’m like, ‘Well, this is what I would expect him to do.’ So that’s how it gets separated, and people wonder how do you separate it? When I’m driving, I’m a race car driver. I’m not an owner.”

MORE: Talladega odds | Starting lineup

Wallace has high hopes for Talladega, where he scored his first career victory in October 2021. He’s led laps in six of his last seven starts here, and the superspeedway style of racing has long suited his skills. The confidence level at the other track types on the Cup Series schedule is still a work in progress.

“Speedway stuff, we’ve been able to build up a decent-sized resume for the speedways and other tracks, you know, we’re still building on that,” Wallace says. “Mile-and-a-halfs, we felt like we were pretty good at last year. Short tracks and road courses we needed a lot of work on. But, you know, a new track, new weekend, it’s a new opportunity, right? So you just go out and try to execute the best that you can.”

Posted on by Holly Cain

TALLADEGA, Ala. – Veteran Denny Hamlin earned the first Talladega Superspeedway Busch Light Pole Award of his celebrated 18-year career Saturday morning, besting the field by a slight .032-seconds to take the coveted starting position in Sunday’s GEICO 500 (4 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Hamlin’s No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota ran a lap of 180.751 mph (52.979 seconds) around the 2.66-mile speedway to claim the top starting position – his 37th career pole. Aric Almirola will start his No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford alongside him – marking the second consecutive week he’s qualified second fastest and fourth time in 2023 he’s qualified in the top 10.

RELATED: Full Cup Series lineup

“I was well aware I’d never gotten a speedway pole,” the two-time Talladega and three-time Daytona 500 winner Hamlin said with a smile.

“I don’t know that there is one [advantage], honestly” Hamlin continued. “If I had qualified 18th I’d have been just as optimistic. Although, I will say qualifying on the pole means my car is very capable and will be fast leading. I haven’t been fast in the Next Gen era while leading on superspeedways so certainly that gives me the confidence we should be able to lead the pack quickly, which will make it harder for them to pass us.”

MORE: Hamlin named one of NASCAR’s 75 greatest drivers

Hamlin’s JGR teammate, Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate Ty Gibbs was third fastest in the No. 54 JGR Toyota – the best NASCAR Cup Series starting position to date for the first-year full-time driver. He’ll start alongside Almirola’s teammate Chase Briscoe in the No. 14 SHR Ford.

Two-time Talladega winner Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell (who started on pole in both of last year’s Talladega races), Martin Truex Jr., Joey Logano, last week’s Martinsville winner Kyle Larson and Chris Buescher rounded out the top 10, all advancing to the final round of qualifying. The top group included all four JGR team cars (Hamlin, Gibbs, Bell and Truex).

Defending race winner, Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain, the only driver to earn top-five finishes in both 2022 Talladega races, qualified his No. 1 Chevrolet 22nd for Sunday’s grid.

Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott, who is making only his second start since returning to competition after a six-week recovery for a broken leg, will roll off 29th  in the No. 9 Chevrolet. He is a two-time Talladega winner, hoisting the trophy in last fall’s playoff race. He finished 10th in his return to racing last week at Martinsville.