Posted on by Reid Spencer

BROOKLYN, Mich. – Overcoming an early wreck, a late caution and an angry teammate, John Hunter Nemechek claimed a milestone victory in Saturday’s Cabo Wabo 250 at Michigan International Speedway.

The NASCAR Xfinity win was the 200th in the series for Joe Gibbs Racing. For Nemechek, it was the fifth victory of the season and the seventh of his career — all at different tracks.

RELATED: Race results | Weekend schedule

After Patrick Emerling pounded the Turn 3 wall to cause the seventh and final caution of the race on Lap 112, Nemechek pulled away from pole winner Josh Berry after a restart with seven of the scheduled 125 laps left.

Nemechek crossed the finish line 1.495 seconds ahead of Berry, with Brandon Jones, defending race winner Ty Gibbs and Sam Mayer finishing third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

After he took the checkered flag, however, Nemechek tempered his victory celebration with contrition for a Lap 11 incident where he, Gibbs and fellow JGR teammate Sammy Smith stacked up on the backstretch.

Nemechek slid up behind Gibbs and got Gibbs’ No. 19 Toyota loose. A tap from Nemechek sent his teammate spinning. When Nemechek checked up, Smith rear-ended the No. 20 Toyota and turned Nemechek down toward the apron.

WATCH: JGR trio sparks multi-car Michigan crash

As the cars circled under the ensuing caution, Gibbs pulled up beside Nemechek and expressed his displeasure with an angry gesture.

The wreck knocked Smith’s car out of the race and also critically damaged the No. 77 Chevrolet of Carson Hocevar, who finished two laps down in 32nd.

“I have to apologize to Ty,” Nemechek said after exiting his car. “I’ve been the one who’s been very vocal about teammates here recently. I put him in a bad aero spot. I got him loose, and he couldn’t check up.

“It’s my mistake. I hate that we both spun early, but at least we were able to rebound. I know he’s not too happy with me, and he has every right not to be.”

MORE: At-track photos: Michigan

Berry’s No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet wasn’t handling well enough to allow the polesitter to take advantage of the final restart.

“We just felt really tight that last run,” Berry said. “I was kind of inching in on him for a while (before the last caution), and then we kind of leveled out… Overall, we were a little too tight to make a run at him there.”

Berry’s teammate, Justin Allgaier, had ample reason to be the race’s most disappointed driver. Allgaier won the first 30-lap stage wire-to-wire, but a slow pit stop during the break cost him eight positions in the running order.

After Allgaier worked his way to second by the end of Stage 2, contact from Gibbs on pit road sent Allgaier for a spin. In the midst of his next recovery, a pit-road penalty for a crewman over the wall too soon during a green flag stop on Lap 97 sent him deep in the field. Allgaier finished 14th in arguably the fastest car in the race.

With the victory, Nemechek gained a tie with Austin Hill for the series points lead. Nemechek owns the potential tiebreaker with five victories to Hill’s four.

Riley Herbst, Ross Chastain, Parker Kligerman, Parker Retzlaff and Jeb Burton completed the top 10.

The Xfinity Series’ next race is scheduled next Saturday (5:30 p.m. ET, USA, IMS Radio, SiriusXM, NBC Sports App) at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Note: Post-race inspection in the Xfinity Series garage at Michigan was completed without issue, confirming Nemechek as the race winner.

Contributing: Staff reports

Posted on by Brandon White

Nu-Way Auto Parts 150

Lancaster Motorplex

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  • Qualifying results
Pos No. Name Sponsor Best Tm Best Speed
1 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. 17.293 104.088
2 60 Matt Hirschman Pee Dee Motorsports 17.311 103.98
3 64 Austin Beers Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical/Andrew James Interiors 17.317 103.944
4 14 Chuck Hossfeld Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking 17.391 103.502
5 7 Doug Coby Mayhew Tools 17.399 103.454
6 32 Tyler Rypkema Northeast Driling/MUSCO Lighting 17.429 103.276
7 3 Bryan  Narducci* Florida Connection 17.444 103.187
8 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprera 17.468 103.046
9 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine & Future Homes 17.499 102.863
10 77 Max McLaughlin Curb Records/Mowhawk Northeast 17.507 102.816
11 19 Anthony Sesely Wanick Construction Inc. 17.549 102.57
12 46 Anthony Nocella Riverhead Building Supply 17.574 102.424
13 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 17.577 102.407
14 25 Mike Leaty Northeast Industrial Technologies 17.582 102.377
15 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating, Inc. 17.583 102.372
16 4 Tim Connolly* Connolly Companies LLC 17.829 100.959
17 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood Market & Restaurant 17.854 100.818
18 26 Gary McDonald Lakeland Ave Landscape Supply/L.I. Wood Heat 18.309 98.312
19 9 Tommy Wanick* Wanick Construction Inc. 18.496 97.318
20 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 19.032 94.578
Posted on by Cameron Richardson

BROOKLYN, Mich. — August marks the final month in the NASCAR Cup Series regular season. Four races remain in the final push to the 16-driver postseason that begins on Labor Day weekend at Darlington Raceway.

Trackhouse Racing drivers Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez sit on inverse sides of the playoff elimination line but both are akin to a recent lull in performance over the last few races.

After scoring his first win of 2023 in June at Nashville Superspeedway, Chastain has a best finish of 13th (Pocono) and ran outside the top 20 in four of the last five races. Suárez placed second last month at Atlanta Motor Speedway and sat 15th in points. Since Atlanta, the driver of the No. 99 has two finishes outside the top 30 in the last three races.

Chastain and Suárez both said the team has lacked speed during the recent stretch.

RELATED: Cup playoff standings | Where bubble drivers stand

“We’ve been off on balance and we just can’t quite get the balance where we need to to go fast, and the window for being off and still having speed is closing with this new car,” Chastain said. “I think a year ago with the balance we have, I think we are actually a step better than we were a year ago, but everybody else took four steps.”

Suárez noted that recent races at New Hampshire and Richmond didn’t play into their hand.

“We’re not very surprised in the low downforce package because low downforce has been a little bit of a struggle,” he said.

Ahead of Sunday’s Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway (2:30 p.m. ET, USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App), Suárez sits 34 points below the elimination line.

With a pair of road courses still left on the regular-season calendar, Suárez is adamant he’s not in a must-win situation to reach the playoffs for the second consecutive year.

“We can easily do points,” Suárez said. “There’s a handful of races. If we have a good points race (Sunday), we can be on the other side of the (cutline). We have to be smart. I don’t think we are gonna be in a must-win situation in the next four weeks. But we’ll see. Thirty points can go either way in that race.

“I think we should be good (at Michigan). A win would be beautiful, but I think we can leave here with a top five, that would be very nice, especially heading into Indianapolis and Watkins Glen where we know we can be very competitive. I feel good about it.”

Chastain showed great pace in Saturday’s practice and qualifying sessions at Michigan, placing a top-five single lap in practice and backing it up with a front row starting spot alongside polesitter Christopher Bell. Suárez will start 14th and was in the midpack in terms of speed off the hauler.

MORE: Sunday’s starting lineup

Despite the recent cluster of feeble on-track performances, the Trackhouse duo continues to keep the morale up in the shop and around the team.

During the week, the organization held an event at Charlotte Motor Speedway that had families of Trackhouse employees in attendance.

“Trackhouse Tuesdays at the Charlotte Motor Speedway legends track with school bus races and watching (Trackhouse owner) Justin Marks go up on two wheels and “Squeaks,” one of our mechanics on the 1 car, plow it into the concrete pit wall,” Chastain said. “We had a blast out there. Everyone was down in the Turn 4 suite and we had dinner and bounce houses for all the kids. It was really, really awesome watching those guys bang into each other.”

On Sundays, Suárez may not welcome the roughhousing on display like his teammates on “Trackhouse Tuesdays,” but he said he’s up for the challenge that awaits in the final four races that include the fight for the final playoff spots among fellow road-course aces Michael McDowell, Chase Elliott, Ty Gibbs and AJ Allmendinger.

“It makes the challenge more fun. I know what I’m capable of,” Suárez said. “I know what my team is capable of and I know that we can be pretty strong and when we have the right strategy and moving in the right direction and in sync, we can be a team that is hard to beat. … I think that having a couple road courses in there I think that our chances can be as good as anyone.”

Posted on by Brandon White

Nu-Way Auto Parts 150

Lancaster Motorplex

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  • Practice results
Pos No. Name Sponsor Best Tm Best Speed In Lap Laps Diff
1 60 Matt Hirschman Pee Dee Motorsports 17.258 104.299 23 26
2 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. 17.266 104.251 47 54 0.008
3 32 Tyler Rypkema Northeast Driling/MUSCO Lighting 17.352 103.734 44 45 0.094
4 64 Austin Beers Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical/Andrew James Interiors 17.379 103.573 32 40 0.121
5 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprera 17.385 103.538 38 42 0.127
6 7 Doug Coby Mayhew Tools 17.394 103.484 36 47 0.136
7 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine & Future Homes 17.409 103.395 36 46 0.151
8 14 Chuck Hossfeld Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking 17.415 103.359 3 36 0.157
9 3 Bryan  Narducci* Florida Connection 17.427 103.288 38 50 0.169
10 25 Mike Leaty Northeast Industrial Technologies 17.468 103.046 25 28 0.21
11 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 17.482 102.963 34 43 0.224
12 77 Max McLaughlin Curb Records/Mowhawk Northeast 17.515 102.769 36 38 0.257
13 46 Anthony Nocella Riverhead Building Supply 17.524 102.716 29 29 0.266
14 19 Anthony Sesely Wanick Construction Inc. 17.543 102.605 38 39 0.285
15 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating, Inc. 17.594 102.308 38 47 0.336
16 4 Tim Connolly* Connolly Companies LLC 17.803 101.107 5 58 0.545
17 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood Market & Restaurant 17.84 100.897 32 35 0.582
18 9 Tommy Wanick* Wanick Construction Inc. 17.994 100.033 37 40 0.736
19 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 18.594 96.805 5 35 1.336
20 26 Gary McDonald Lakeland Ave Landscape Supply/L.I. Wood Heat 19.532 92.156 10 15 2.274
Posted on by Zack Albert

Martin Truex Jr. said Saturday that he will return to Joe Gibbs Racing to compete in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2024.

Truex, the 2017 series champion, said he had signed a contract extension Friday night with JGR that will keep him in the No. 19 Toyota through the end of next season. The news came Saturday at Michigan International Speedway after Busch Pole Qualifying for the FireKeepers Casino 400 (set to resume Monday at noon ET on USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).

RELATED: Cup Series standings | Weekend schedule

“It felt like the right thing to do was to keep going,” Truex said. “The more I thought about it, the more I was like — ‘don’t be stupid, go race another year and see how it goes.'”

Truex is a three-time winner this season and currently heads the Cup Series points standings. Next year will mark his sixth season with Coach Joe Gibbs’ organization.

Truex has been candid about his difficulty in determining the future of his racing career. Last week at Richmond Raceway, the 43-year-old driver acknowledged that the decision was “not an easy one, I can promise you that,” but also foreshadowing that he would make his choice “pretty soon.”

In recent interviews, both Gibbs and David Wilson, president of Toyota Racing Development (TRD) USA, said that they were not pressuring Truex in either direction, allowing him the time he needed to make his decision. Truex said of Gibbs’ reaction, “He’s thrilled. He’s a great guy to work for.”

Truex also admitted that he had been leaning in the direction of returning in the last handful of weeks, saying that nothing in his reasoning had surfaced to change his mind. He said the timing of signing an extension now had less to do with the approaching NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs than allowing the team and its sponsors time to prepare.

“I think it’s more so for the team, Coach and all of our partners, so we can just put that out of the way and go back and button up next year’s plans,” Truex said. “It’s pretty late in the season to be putting them in a spot where you keep them hanging. I think I did that as long as possible — not on purpose, but it is just how it worked out.”

Truex is a 34-time winner in NASCAR’s top division, and all but three of those have come with Joe Gibbs Racing or its affiliate teams. His consistency this year has combined with victories at Dover, Sonoma and New Hampshire to establish him as a front-runner for the regular-season championship and the overall crown.

In making his return, Truex said the commitment needed to compete at such a high level was something he planned to keep rolling.

“That is what takes so long to figure it out,” Truex said. “I’ve come to terms with all of that obviously, and I’m looking forward to continuing all of that. It is part of the job. It comes with the territory. You are not going to half-ass this job. I’m ready. I’m excited. We’ve got a great thing going. My team is amazing. They are doing great things. Love working with them, and happy to keep this going.”

Count his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates among those welcoming him back.

“After he came back last year, I figured that this year would be … not his farewell tour,” said JGR’s Christopher Bell, who won the Busch Light Pole for Sunday’s 400-miler. “You know, as good as he’s running, he’s got a couple more wins left in him, so I guess I was not expecting him to retire this year.”

Truex had spoken wistfully in recent weeks about the potential of riding into retirement on a winning note, possibly ending his career with a title-clinching triumph in the season finale on Nov. 5 at Phoenix Raceway. This week’s contract extension, he says, takes that storybook scenario out of the mix — at least this year.

“Apparently not. Once you sign on the dotted line, you are committed,” Truex said. “A lot of people are looking for big things, and hopefully I will deliver.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

BROOKLYN, Mich. — Saving his best performance for the last round of qualifying, Christopher Bell sped to the pole position for Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway (2:30 p.m. ET on USA, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Bell covered the 2.0-mile distance in 37.232 seconds in Saturday’s money round, translating to a top speed of 193.382 mph — the fastest qualifying lap at any track since the 2020 Daytona 500.

RELATED: Qualifying results | Weekend schedule: Michigan

Bell’s No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was 0.027 seconds faster than the Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet of Ross Chastain (193.242 mph). Ty Gibbs, who ran the fastest lap of the day in the first round (37.225 seconds at 193.418 mph) will start third after a final-round lap at 193.024 mph.

The pole-winning performance was a welcome turnaround for Bell, who has finished 18th or worse in four of his last five races.

“This is obviously a very important manufacturers race track, but more than that, it’s a big boost for this 20 team,” said Bell, who earned his second Busch Light Pole Award of the season, his first at Michigan and the sixth of his career.

“We’ve been on the struggle bus a bit lately, and a lot of that’s my doing.”

Chris Buescher, last Sunday’s winner at Richmond raceway, qualified fourth, followed by Martin Truex Jr., putting three Joe Gibbs Racing drivers in the top five, as the Toyota drivers positioned themselves to try to break Ford’s eight-race winning streak in the Irish Hills.

MORE: Truex announces 2024 return to Joe Gibbs Racing

The top five qualifiers all came from Group B of the split field. Joey Logano, who led Group A in the first round, backed that up with a sixth-place qualifying effort in the final round. William Byron will start seventh, followed by Kyle Busch, Ryan Blaney and Chase Elliott.

Currently 40 points out of the final playoff position on points, Elliott still believes he’ll have to win one of the next four races to qualify for the postseason.

“My stance has been the same since I got back,” said Elliott, who missed six races because of injury and one under suspension for wrecking Denny Hamlin at Charlotte. “I think we need to win.

“So, and like I have said a thousand times since I have been back, I think gaining a lot of points and contending for wins is very much one in the same. It’s not coincidence that the guys that are high up in points have race wins.”

Kevin Harvick, winner of five of the last seven Cup Series races at Michigan, is set to start 22nd in the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.

Xfinity Series regular Josh Berry, a late substitute for the suspended Noah Gragson, qualified 35th in the No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet.

Truex fastest in Michigan practice as JGR goes 1-2

Martin Truex Jr. led a 1-2 sweep of the practice leaderboard for Joe Gibbs Racing on Saturday, putting his No. 19 Toyota atop the speed charts at Michigan International Speedway.

Truex, the NASCAR Cup Series’ points leader, turned a best lap of 192.020 mph to set the pace at the 2-mile oval. He was just .007 seconds faster than JGR teammate Christopher Bell, who was second-fastest at 191.985 mph in the No. 20 Toyota.

MORE: Practice results | What to Watch: Michigan

William Byron clocked the third-fastest lap — 191.729 mph in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. He was also fastest in the consecutive 10-lap averages category.

Ty Gibbs was fourth-fastest in another JGR entry, just ahead of Ross Chastain rounding out the top five.

Corey LaJoie had the only incident of the split 20-minute sessions, losing control of the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet through Turns 3 and 4 and scraping the outside retaining wall during the second practice group. His car spun to the apron with slight right-rear damage.

Contributing: Staff reports

Posted on by Staff Report

Legacy Motor Club announced Saturday that it suspended NASCAR Cup Series driver Noah Gragson for “actions that do not represent the values of our team.” NASCAR officials announced later Saturday that Gragson was indefinitely suspended for violating the member conduct section of the NASCAR Rule Book.

The organization said in a statement that Xfinity Series regular Josh Berry would substitute in the No. 42 Legacy MC Chevrolet this weekend at Michigan International Speedway.

RELATED: Weekend schedule | What to watch: Michigan

Gragson’s infraction falls under Section 4.4.D. of the NASCAR Rule Book, which concerns member conduct. NASCAR officials released a statement Saturday afternoon that reads: “NASCAR fully supports Legacy Motor Club’s decision to suspend Noah Gragson. Following his actions on social media, NASCAR has determined that Gragson has violated the Member Conduct section of the 2023 NASCAR Rule Book and has placed him under indefinite suspension.”

Gragson, 25, is in his first full season in the Cup Series. He ranks 33rd in the series standings, and he missed a race earlier this year because of concussion-like symptoms.

Gragson issued a statement on social media shortly after Legacy Motor Club made its announcement.

Berry made his ninth Cup Series start this season in Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 (set to resume on Monday at noon ET on USA, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM). Berry, who will join Stewart-Haas Racing’s No. 4 team in the Cup Series next year, has filled in for Hendrick Motorsports in eight races this year — five in the No. 9 Chevrolet for Chase Elliott, and three in the No. 48 Chevy for Alex Bowman.

“Just trying to get reacclimated to the Next Gen,” Berry told NBC Sports after his Cup Series qualifying lap Saturday. “I mean, I found out like, it feels like an hour ago that I was even doing this, so the biggest goal is to keep the car in one piece. I know Luke (Lambert, No. 42 crew chief) and a lot of these guys really well, so after our Xfinity race tonight, we’ll talk some more and then just tomorrow, just try to run all the laps and learn all we can for next year and get the best finish we can.”

Posted on by Staff Report

Already clinched

The following five drivers have clinched a spot in the 16-driver postseason field: Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin, William Byron, Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson.

Can clinch via previous wins

The following drivers could clinch on previous wins with a win by a previous winner (Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin, William Byron, Christopher Bell, Kyle Busch, Ross Chastain, Kyle Larson, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Tyler Reddick, Chris Buescher or Ricky Stenhouse Jr.):

— Christopher Bell: Would clinch regardless of finish.

— Ross Chastain: Would clinch regardless of finish.

— Ryan Blaney: Would clinch regardless of finish.

— Joey Logano: Would clinch regardless of finish.

— Tyler Reddick: Would clinch regardless of finish.

— Chris Buescher: Would clinch regardless of finish.

— Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: Would clinch regardless of finish.

The following drivers could clinch on previous wins with a win by Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Bubba Wallace, Michael McDowell or Ty Gibbs:

— Christopher Bell: Would clinch with 25 points.

— Ross Chastain: Would clinch with 52 points.

— Ryan Blaney: Could only clinch with help.

— Joey Logano: Could only clinch with help.

— Tyler Reddick: Could only clinch with help.

— Chris Buescher: Could only clinch with help.

Can clinch via win

The following drivers would clinch on their win alone:

— Christopher Bell, Ross Chastain, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Tyler Reddick, Chris Buescher, Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

The following drivers could clinch with a win:

— Kevin Harvick: Would clinch with 44 points.

— Brad Keselowski: Could only clinch with help.

Posted on by Staff Report

August marks the final month in the push to the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Just four races remain until the 16-driver grid is set to determine who will compete for the Bill France Trophy.

Entering Michigan International Speedway on Sunday, 12 drivers had locked themselves into the postseason with a victory, leaving four spots still up for grabs. As the field looks to resume the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Lap 74 on Monday (noon ET, USA Network, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App), a handful of big names still have yet to solidify their playoff position. See who currently sits just above the elimination line, just below and on the outside looking in with stats provided by Racing Insights.

RELATED: Cup standings | Racing Insights’ projected Michigan results

✅ DRIVERS ABOVE ELIMINATION LINE

BUBBA WALLACE

Points above: 54

Trending: OK Recently

Michigan outlook — Hit or Miss Recently: Wallace had a huge points day at Richmond despite falling off in the race’s closing laps for a 12th-place result. With nearly a race in hand above the elimination line heading into Sunday, the No. 23 team can put its focus on redeeming itself from a missed opportunity at Michigan last year. Wallace still finished runner-up in the 2022 race but arguably had the fastest car on the day until a late restart bolted Kevin Harvick to his first win of 2022 instead. 

MICHAEL MCDOWELL

Points above: 18

Trending: Cold

Michigan outlook — Cold: On a completely opposite day from Wallace, McDowell went on a differing strategy than most of the field, and it backfired as he went a lap down to finish 22nd. Historically, Michigan doesn’t bode well either for the driver of the No. 34 as he hasn’t finished better than 20th in 16 career starts. 

☣️ ON THE BUBBLE

TY GIBBS

Points below: 18

Trending: Hit or Miss

Michigan outlook — Warm Start: Replacing an injured Kurt Busch in the second half of the 2022 Cup season, Gibbs flashed his talent with a top-10 run at Michigan last season and has continued to climb his way closer and closer to the elimination line. He’ll have a good chance to jump ahead of McDowell for that 16th spot on Sunday. 

AJ ALLMENDINGER

Points below: 22

Trending: Cold

Michigan outlook — It’s Been A While: Allmendinger all but turned Richmond into a throwaway as he forewent practice and qualifying to compete in the Xfinity Series race at Road America. While overcoming 22 points is definitely doable with four races to go, including two at road courses, Allmendinger hasn’t made a Cup start at Michigan since 2018. 

DANIEL SUÁREZ

Points below: 34

Trending: Cold

Michigan outlook — Cold: The last three races have been anything but pleasant for the No. 99 team, with no finish better than 16th and two finishes of 33rd or worse in the last two contests. Suárez finished 25th at Michigan last year but does own a best finish of fourth in the Irish Hills (June 2019). 

CHASE ELLIOTT

Points below: 40

Trending: OK Recently

Michigan outlook — Warm: Slowly but surely, Elliott continues to inch his way closer to the elimination line. Michigan has been a decent track for him recently, with four top 10s in the last five races at the 2-mile oval.  

🚩 MUST-WIN SITUATION

ALEX BOWMAN

Points below: 42

Trending: Cold

Michigan outlook — Cold Until 2022: An 18th-place run at Richmond continues a dismal run for Bowman since returning from injury. He finished ninth at Michigan last season, but don’t expect Sunday to be the shot in the arm the No. 48 team needs to finally get back on the path toward the postseason. 

AUSTIN CINDRIC

Points below: 64

Trending: Cold

Michigan outlook — Cold Start: A pair of road courses after Michigan will be Cindric’s last chance to shock the Cup field and make the postseason. He crashed out at Michigan in his first Cup start last year. 

JUSTIN HALEY

Points below: 70

Trending: Cold

Michigan outlook — Cold: Haley currently owns three consecutive finishes of 17th or worse, and that trend may hold at Michigan as he finished 17th in the Irish Hills last year. 

ARIC ALMIROLA

Points below: 86

Trending: Richmond Snapped Cold Streak

Michigan outlook — Cold: Almirola picked up a quality result at Richmond with an eighth-place finish on what was the banner day of the year so far for Stewart-Haas Racing. But the SHR camp has been abysmal on intermediate/2-mile ovals this season. Almirola currently has five finishes of 16th or worse in the last six races at Michigan. 

RYAN PREECE

Points below: 88

Trending: Richmond Snapped Cold Streak

Michigan outlook — Cold: A top-five run at Richmond is a welcome turnaround for the No. 41 team in what has been a forgettable year to date. Michigan isn’t optimal for Preece to keep the momentum up, but he does own a career-best seventh-place finish at the track (Aug. 2019).