Posted on by Dustin Albino

The story of the weekend thus far at Nashville Superspeedway has been Trackhouse Racing. Not only did the concept of Justin Marks’ vision begin in the city of Nashville in 2020, but Ross Chastain earned the team’s first career pole on Saturday. He was also incredibly pleased with his race pace in practice, having the best 15- and 20-lap averages. Conversely, Daniel Suárez backed into the wall off Turn 4 in the second round of qualifying on his warmup lap. 

RELATED: Listen to Chastain’s emotional interview after winning pole

Dustin Albino’s race-day lineup:

Starter 1: Ross Chastain
Starter 2: William Byron
Starter 3: Kyle Larson
Starter 4: Martin Truex Jr.
Starter 5: Tyler Reddick
Garage pick: Bubba Wallace

NEXT IN LINE: Denny Hamlin, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, Kyle Busch

RISING: It looks like a switch from Richard Childress Racing to 23XI Racing has paid off for Reddick when it comes to Nashville. In his first two starts at the 1.33-mile track, Reddick has a pair of 18th-place finishes. This weekend, however, he was quickest on single-lap speed and 10-lap averages. Because of that, he’s moved from the outhouse of my lineup to in it. The No. 45 car shares the front row for the start of the race with Chastain. 

In 88 Cup Series starts leading into Nashville, Justin Haley had a best qualifying effort of sixth at the Bristol Dirt Race last season. He shattered his best starting position at Nashville, as the No. 31 car will take the green flag from the third position. Haley tied Kaulig Racing’s best qualifying effort in team history, with AJ Allmendinger (Road America) and Daniel Hemric (Talladega) both having third-place efforts. For race pace, Haley thought he had one of the best cars off the hauler in Friday’s practice.  

FALLING: With the pace Suárez showed in the first round of qualifying, it was setting up for a potential front-row sweep for Trackhouse. However, he got loose over a bump in Turn 4 coming to the green flag during the final round and backed into the wall. Thus, the No. 99 car will be starting at the rear of the field. And though 400 miles is a considerable amount of time to race through the field, it’s hard to imagine his car will be better than it was before the crash.  

The only name that fell out of my lineup from this week’s Fastlane is Ryan Blaney. The No. 12 Ford looked mediocre in practice, setting the 25th-best single-lap speed but improved to 13th best on a 10-lap run. With the speed Blaney has displayed in recent weeks, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Jonathan Hassler-led crew improves on the car and makes it a top-10 threat. But I’m saving Blaney for later in the regular season. 

FEATURED MATCHUPS:  

Chase Elliott vs. Denny Hamlin

The No. 11 car led a race-high 114 laps in last year’s Nashville event and looks strong again this year. Hamlin starts eighth to Elliott’s 14th. For sheer speed, Toyota looks to have a slight advantage over Hendrick Motorsports this weekend, and I’m sticking to my pick from earlier this week with Hamlin. 

Christopher Bell vs. Joey Logano

For one-lap speed, the No. 20 team is still looking to hit the setup this weekend. Bell was 18th in practice and qualified 22nd. Over the long haul, he improved and ranked seventh out of the 15 cars to make a 20-lap run. Logano’s speed across the board was more consistent, and he got the most out of his car in qualifying to turn the fourth-best lap. The No. 22 team also rides a streak of consecutive top fives for the first time in 2023 entering Nashville, so momentum is on Logano’s side. 

Ryan Blaney vs. William Byron

Given Byron is still in my lineup, and Blaney has dropped out, it kind of gives my answer away. Byron had a steering issue last year at Nashville and was a non-factor in the race. The No. 24 Chevrolet has been in the mix at just about every venue this season and has shown true speed at intermediate tracks. I would think Byron outperforms Blaney on Sunday.  

Ross Chastain vs. Bubba Wallace

Even though Wallace spun out coming to the checkered flag of his qualifying run, the No. 23 car is fast this weekend. The good news is he should run well. Not ideal for Wallace, though, is Chastain has been the quickest car in Nashville, whether on the short or long run. Here’s a spoiler: Chastain is my pick to win the Ally 400. 

Posted on by Brandon White

RIVERHEAD, New York — In nearly two decades of competition with the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Riverhead Raceway, Ron Silk had never taken home a checkered flag from the Long Island quarter-mile.

The current series points leader finally added that milestone to his resume Saturday evening with a dominant victory in the Miller Lite Salutes Mike Ewanitsko 200, which also served as his second victory of the 2023 season.

Silk had come close to Victory Lane many times at Riverhead, including the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour’s most recent outing there in May, which is why he was relieved to put together a full race at a track that has meant so much to him during his career.

“I felt like we had the car to beat [at Riverhead] last time, but I got beat on those last restarts” Silk said. “Luckily, we didn’t have to face that again and my guys brought a great car. This is Eddie Partridge’s track and obviously we all wish he was still around, so it’s really cool to [win here].”

RELATED: Complete results from the Miller Lite Salutes Mike Ewanitsko 200

A staple of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour for many years, Partridge balanced out being a team owner in the series with overseeing the day-to-day operations at Riverhead up until his sudden passing on Sept. 10, 2021. Silk drove for Partridge when he won his lone NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship in 2011, making Saturday’s victory that much more special.

Since last year, Silk has never finished a Riverhead race worse than third, but was not able to claim that elusive win until Saturday evening.

Silk patiently bided his time behind polesitter Austin Beers before a mid-race restart provided him the perfect opportunity to take control and lead the entire second half of Saturday’s feature.

The only driver who could keep pace with Silk was Justin Bonsignore, who wrestled the lead away from Silk in May to earn his 10th NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Riverhead. A win on Saturday would have tied Bonsignore with his childhood hero Ewanitsko for most Tour victories at Riverhead with 11.

A different tire compound and the nighttime conditions made it difficult for Bonsignore to fight his way through the field. He managed to get to Silk’s rear bumper, but gradually lost ground as the laps clicked off.

“We were able to run a harder pace than we had in the past,” Bonsignore said. “I tried the bottom groove at around Lap 130 and I lost about six car-lengths. You’re just glued to the top, which is unfortunate. I would have loved to win with Mike [Ewanitsko] here tonight and I appreciate [Riverhead] for everything they did to honor Mike. He’s well deserving of it.”

Bonsignore commended Silk and his team for the work they put in to make his silver No. 16 so efficient in both trips to Riverhead this season, adding that Silk would have won in May if not for a late caution.

Bonsignore will have one more opportunity to match Ewanitsko’s win record at Riverhead this year in September, but he knows Silk will be the one to beat if he carries over the speed from the first two Riverhead events.

“Ron has been the best car here both times so far,” Bonsignore said. “We snuck away with one last time and even if there was a late caution, I don’t think I could have done anything with him. Maybe if we had track position, he might have had a tough time getting by us.”

Silk enjoyed the chance to celebrate with Ewanitsko in Victory Lane, who he considers to be one of the best to ever make a lap around Riverhead.

While Silk does not envision beating Ewanitsko’s Riverhead win record, he knows another championship is feasible with Haydt Yannone Racing and is confident he can further extend his advantage over Bonsignore during the summer.

“I’m so lucky to have such great owners,” Silk said. “I also lucked out to have a great crew chief like Phil Moran. These guys spend a lot of time on these cars and we work on them a lot together, so it’s a lot of fun.”

Doug Coby finished third in Saturday’s Miller Lite Salutes Mike Ewanitsko 200, where he was followed by Kyle Bonsignore and Riverhead regular Jack Handley Jr. Rounding out the top-10 were Roger Turbush, Tyler Rypkema, John Beatty Jr., Timmy Solomito and Beers.

The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour returns to action on July 8 for the Jersey Shore 150 at Wall Stadium. The green flag will fly at 8 p.m. ET with FloRacing providing the coverage.

Posted on by Staff Report

Miller Lite Salutes Mike Ewanitsko 200

Riverhead Raceway

  • Race results
Pos. Car No. Driver Sponsor Laps Diff.
1 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine & Future Homes 200 —
2 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. 200 1.245
3 7 Doug Coby Mayhew Tools 200 1.654
4 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 200 2.071
5 45 Jack Handley, Jr.* Hydro-Action/Suffolk Precast 200 11.089
6 88 Roger Turbush Rheem 200 11.381
7 32 Tyler Rypkema Northeast Driling/MUSCO Lighting 200 11.752
8 5 John Beatty, Jr. Elite Sound Studios, Inc. 200 12.477
9 66 Timmy Solomito Natural Designs/USNE Power/Kennedy Realty 200 12.651
10 64 Austin Beers AP Marquadt & Sons/Andrew James Interiors 200 12.957
11 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 199 1 Lap
12 34 J.B. Fortin A&R Materials/CYA Screen Printing/Queens Concrete 199 1 Lap
13 81 Mark Stewart* Mike Smith/Cromers Market 199 1 Lap
14 82 Craig Lutz Horton Ave Materials 199 1 Lap
15 60 Matt Hirschman Pee Dee Motorsports 199 1 Lap
16 26 Max Zachem Lakeland Ave Landscape Supply/L.I. Wood Heat 199 1 Lap
17 49 Chris Young* Sendlewski Architects 198 2 Laps
18 46 Justin Brown* Riverhead Building Supply 197 3 Laps
19 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Enterprises 196 4 Laps
20 3 Bryan Narducci* Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 194 6 Laps
21 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood Market & Restaurant 193 7 Laps
22 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 183 17 Laps
23 2 J.R. Bertuccio Gershow Recycling 59 141 Laps
Posted on by Sean Montgomery

LEBANON, Tenn. – Stewart-Haas Racing’s crew chief swap for Riley Herbst and the No. 98 team immediately paid dividends with a runner-up finish in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series showdown at Nashville Superspeedway.

Herbst ran inside the top 10 all afternoon, with a late strategy call putting his Monster Energy Ford on the front row for the final restart in NASCAR Overtime. He finished seventh in Stage 1 and improved to fifth in Stage 2, setting him up for a late charge after a slew of cautions re-racked the field in the closing laps.

Though he finished one spot short of his elusive first win in the series, the 24-year-old driver was proud of the entire effort.

“I don’t think anything there was given to me,” Herbst said. “It was all earned. It was hot, it was slick. Did all the small things right, but I wish I could have gotten a little better restart there at the end. The bottom just restarts a little better than the top.

“After the last seven weeks, it’s good to get back in the top five and good to see us going back in the right direction.”

RELATED: Official results | Photos from Nashville 

After opening the 2023 season with an impressive six consecutive top-10 finishes, including a season-best fourth at Phoenix Raceway, Herbst faded down the standings with six finishes outside the top 20 in the following nine contests.

“I don’t know if it’s been bad luck,” Herbst said. “It’s just been racing. The last three weeks have been self-inflicted wounds of my own doing, but we knew we had this pace. I mean, Cole (Custer) has been fast, we’ve been fast, Zane (Smith) was fast today, so we knew we could do it.”

But heading into a difficult summer stretch of the regular season, the team needed a breath of fresh air. Enter Davin Restivo.

Restivo had been with the SHR organization, serving as a lead engineer for the No. 10 Cup Series entry and driver Aric Almirola when he got the call to take charge of the Xfinity Series pit box. He was also a key component in Custer’s dominant 2019 Xfinity Series season.

It was a big shift for Herbst but a welcome one.

“I walked in the shop Monday morning, and he said, ‘Hi, I’m Davin,'” Herbst explained. “I said, ‘Hey, I’m Riley,’ and he said, ‘We’re gonna take a little bit to get our communication right, but I promise I’ll work extremely hard and give you fast race cars.'”

“And obviously, he did that this weekend.”

Riley Herbst climbs out of his car after the race at Nashville Superspeedway.
Sean Montgomery | NASCAR Studios

In their first race together, less than a week after joining forces, the pairing rallied for the best finish of the season for the No. 98 team. And it ties his best-ever finish in the Xfinity Series, achieved twice in 2020 at Auto Club Speedway and Kentucky Speedway.

Herbst looked re-energized and focused on making the most of a championship chase still within reach.

MORE: Ty Gibbs spins in fierce battle for lead

Entering Saturday, Herbst was 11th (one place above the 12-driver elimination line) in the projected playoff outlook. The strong finish, coupled with 10 stage points, moved him up one position to 10th.

Execution and strategy at the end of the race put them in a prime position to win, which Herbst is certain they can do more regularly.

“We just need to do what we did right there,” Herbst said. “Do all the small things right and continue to drive our race car and race our race and keep our head down.”

Herbst and the Xfinity Series head north to Illinois on July 1 for The Loop 121 on the Chicago Street Course (5 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Posted on by Staff Report

Miller Lite Salutes Mike Ewanitsko 200

Riverhead Raceway

  • Qualifying Results
Pos No. Name Sponsor Best Tm Best Speed
1 64 Austin Beers AP Marquadt & Sons/Andrew James Interiors 11.872 75.809
2 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine & Future Homes 11.907 75.586
3 32 Tyler Rypkema Northeast Driling/MUSCO Lighting 11.908 75.579
4 45 Jack Handley, Jr.* Hydro-Action/Suffolk Precast 11.909 75.573
5 7 Doug Coby Mayhew Tools 11.926 75.465
6 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. 11.945 75.345
7 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 11.952 75.301
8 34 J.B. Fortin A&R Materials/CYA Screen Printing/Queens Concrete 11.952 75.301
9 66 Timmy Solomito Natural Designs/USNE Power/Kennedy Realty 11.957 75.27
10 5 John Beatty, Jr. Elite Sound Studios, Inc. 11.964 75.226
11 81 Mark Stewart* Mike Smith/Cromers Market 11.995 75.031
12 60 Matt Hirschman Pee Dee Motorsports 12.006 74.963
13 82 Craig Lutz Horton Ave Materials 12.011 74.931
14 88 Roger Turbush Rheem 12.018 74.888
15 49 Chris Young* Sendlewski Architects 12.034 74.788
16 26 Max Zachem Lakeland Ave Landscape Supply/L.I. Wood Heat 12.048 74.701
17 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 12.052 74.676
18 46 Justin Brown* Riverhead Building Supply 12.054 74.664
19 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Enterprises 12.087 74.46
20 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood Market & Restaurant 12.097 74.399
21 3 Bryan Narducci* Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 12.135 74.166
22 2 J.R. Bertuccio Gershow Recycling 12.237 73.547
23 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 12.451 72.283
Posted on by Holly Cain

LEBANON, Tenn. – Kaulig Racing’s A.J. Allmendinger held off an especially spirited field in double NASCAR Overtime to claim his first oval race victory of the season in a dramatic Tennessee Lottery 250 at Nashville Superspeedway Saturday evening.

The popular veteran led the final 20 laps and got an impressive final restart to launch his No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet from the pack and drive off to a 1.323-second win over runner-up Riley Herbst in a race that included a record-tying 11 cautions and 17 lead changes among 11 different drivers.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

The caution-punctuated ending was perhaps suitable for a race that saw three yellow flags within the first 20 laps. Fifteen cars in the 38-car field had been involved in incidents before the Stage 2 break.

Yet, ultimately, it came down to a veteran’s purposeful, patient afternoon-long pursuit. And the 41-year-old Californian Allmendinger was up for the challenge, claiming his 17th victory in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and second of the season.

“I love winning on ovals because I know a lot of people doubt me on an oval,” a smiling Allmendinger said, a nod to his former open-wheel days and his reputation as one of the best road-course drivers in the history of the sport.

Certainly, his experience paid off on Saturday with an especially active day. Ty Gibbs, the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion and now a NASCAR Cup Series rookie, won the first stage and showed himself among the class of the field.  But on the next restart, his No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was hit while racing for the lead with one of this year’s championship favorites in Austin Hill, who was restarting up front on older tires. Allmendinger’s Chevy also suffered damage in the five-car melee near the front of the pack, but he – and Hill – were able to continue, while Gibbs’ car suffered too much damage.

MORE: Gibbs spins, collects Hocevar | Herbst, new crew chief mesh for runner-up finish

Chandler Smith, Allmendinger’s Kaulig Racing teammate, won the race’s second stage and kept the lead pack honest for most of the day. He and Allmendinger exchanged the lead and ran 1-2 for much of the second half of the race around the 1.33-mile oval.

After a series of final scheduled pit stops, Parker Kligerman settled in for the biggest strategic gamble of the day. While the lead cars were making their way back through the field following stops, Kligerman kept his No. 48 Big Machine Racing Chevrolet out front, willing to take a chance on a fuel-saving strategy. But with 12 laps remaining, Kligerman’s team told him to drop in line behind Allmendinger to start conserving, and the No. 10 passed him for the lead with 11 laps of regulation to go.

JR Motorsports driver Sam Mayer finished third, with Hill fourth and JR Motorsports’ – and Tennessee native – Josh Berry rounding out the top five.

“That was the most up and down day I’ve ever had in racing,” Mayer said, managing a smile on pit road afterward.

John Hunter Nemechek finished sixth in the No. 20 JGR Toyota. Although he never led a lap, his rally forward after a 21st starting position was good enough for him to hold onto the championship lead by nine points over Hill.

Reigning NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Zane Smith turned in an impressive seventh-place finish in the No. 28 Ford. Allmendinger’s Kaulig teammate Daniel Hemric was eighth. Herbst’s Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Cole Custer was ninth, followed by rookie Parker Retzlaff.

“We got a little fortunate there when the accident happened, it didn’t really do anything too bad to the quarter panels .. and the guys did a good job of fixing it there,” Allmendinger said of the early damage, noting that the rash of early cautions actually helped his team have time to restore his car competitively.

LISTEN: Allmendinger discusses victory | Allmendinger: ‘This is why you go out here and do this’ 

“I will be honest, I was shocked on the initial start, I went down and made it three wide and thought nothing on it, didn’t even drive my car that hard and started wrecking, so that kind of raised my eyebrows, it’s a lot slicker than I expected,” Allmendinger said. “So the next couple starts, just tried to chill and get into the rhythm of the race.

“I just knew more than anything I needed a good re-start and to get in Turn 1 clean,’’ he said of the final restart and ultimate winning move.

The Xfinity Series will next take to the streets of Chicago for The Loop 121 on July 1 (5 p.m. ET, USA Network, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).

Note: Post-race inspection concluded without issue, confirming Allmendinger as the winner. The No. 00 car of Cole Custer will be taken back to the NASCAR R&D Center for further evaluation.

Posted on by Holly Cain

LEBANON, Tenn. – With cars ranked 11th (Chris Buescher) and 12th (Brad Keselowski) in the championship standings, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing team co-owner Keselowski said he was optimistic about the pair’s chances of qualifying for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. But he acknowledges it’s a big step for the team.

Although both drivers and their teams are still looking for that first trophy of 2023, they have combined for six top fives (three each) and 13 top-10 finishes (Buescher, seven and Keselowski, six) – a huge improvement over last season leading up to this 10-race push to the postseason.

RELATED: Cup Series standings | Sunday’s starting lineup

Keselowski has already equaled his top-10 total of a year ago – with 20 races remaining. And his three top fives exceed the lone top five he posted in 2022. Similarly, Buescher’s three top-five finishes equal his 2022 season total, and his seven top 10s are well within the 10 top 10s he had a year ago.

“We’ve got some good vibes going,‘’ said the 2012 series champion Keselowski, who will start Sunday’s race 24th. “Chris is on a really big hot streak. He’s run really well here the last three or four races and been in contention to win. He won a stage in the Coke 600, won part of the All-Star Race and ran really good at Sonoma, just really good energy there, making their way up in the points. A lot of excitement there.

“Been up and down with my car, the 6 car and felt like we were really strong at Charlotte and not as good as I’d like to be a couple other places. But either way, it’s better to be in than to be out, looking in. But we’re not as comfortable as we’d like to be. We’d like to have wins. That’s really what the sport is about.

“We’ve done a great job elevating ourselves from irrelevant to relevant, but I don’t want to stop there. We’ve got another step to take.‘’

Posted on by Staff Report

Miller Lite Salutes Mike Ewanitsko 200

Riverhead Raceway

  • Practice Results
Pos No. Name Sponsor Best Tm Best Speed In Lap Laps Diff
1 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. 11.786 76.362 38 45  —
2 32 Tyler Rypkema Northeast Driling/MUSCO Lighting 11.819 76.149 43 44 0.033
3 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 11.829 76.084 8 50 0.043
4 2 J.R. Bertuccio Gershow Recycling 11.835 76.046 22 49 0.049
5 64 Austin Beers AP Marquadt & Sons/Andrew James Interiors 11.848 75.962 23 59 0.062
6 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine & Future Homes 11.864 75.86 59 59 0.078
7 7 Doug Coby Mayhew Tools 11.866 75.847 43 43 0.08
8 66 Timmy Solomito Natural Designs/USNE Power/Kennedy Realty 11.9 75.63 46 60 0.114
9 45 Jack Handley, Jr.* Hydro-Action/Suffolk Precast 11.907 75.586 20 49 0.121
10 88 Roger Turbush Rheem 11.911 75.56 43 54 0.125
11 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 11.916 75.529 26 58 0.13
12 82 Craig Lutz Horton Ave Materials 11.917 75.522 28 28 0.131
13 5 John Beatty, Jr. Elite Sound Studios, Inc. 11.939 75.383 43 59 0.153
14 46 Justin Brown* Riverhead Building Supply 11.939 75.383 66 67 0.153
15 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Enterprises 11.956 75.276 24 57 0.17
16 60 Matt Hirschman Pee Dee Motorsports 11.973 75.169 9 52 0.187
17 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood Market & Restaurant 12.01 74.938 40 48 0.224
18 34 J.B. Fortin A&R Materials/CYA Screen Printing/Queens Concrete 12.019 74.881 24 41 0.233
19 3 Bryan Narducci* Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 12.023 74.857 19 49 0.237
20 26 Max Zachem Lakeland Ave Landscape Supply/L.I. Wood Heat 12.031 74.807 32 41 0.245
21 81 Mark Stewart* Mike Smith/Cromers Market 12.054 74.664 21 59 0.268
22 49 Chris Young* Sendlewski Architects 12.114 74.294 12 59 0.328
23 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 12.483 72.098 33 35 0.697
Posted on by Sean Montgomery

LEBANON, Tenn. — A solid effort from Daniel Suárez in NASCAR Cup Series qualifying was quickly erased Saturday when the No. 99 Chevrolet Camaro spun and clipped the outside wall.

After limping the car back to pit road and assessing the damage, Suárez was justifiably upset.

“I knew I was loose,” Suárez said. “I was expecting it to be a little better, and I just trusted probably a little too much. I was free, and I just got into the corner a little bit faster than the previous time expecting it to stick, and it didn’t stick.”

RELATED: Starting lineup for Sunday | Photos from Nashville

During practice and qualifying, drivers noticed a bump in the track near Turn 4, leading to a number of spins during Saturday’s session, including Bubba Wallace as he was closing in on the Busch Light Pole.

“There is a bump, but if you are free before you get to the bump, you get to the bump, and you are already spinning out,” Suárez explained. “And I was free before the bump, and then the bump, that’s what made me spin.

“Very unfortunate,” said Suárez. “But yeah, it is what it is. We have to bounce from here.”

Suárez posted the fastest lap in Group A qualifying, preceded by a 16th-place effort in practice on Friday afternoon. The weekend was shaping up to be a solid pre-race effort for both Trackhouse Racing entries, as Ross Chastain landed the organization’s first pole.

Even after the unfortunate incident, Suárez remained optimistic about the speed shown at the team’s home track.

“Right now, the question is are we gonna be able to fix it or not?” asked Suárez rhetorically. “Hopefully, we do. If we can fix the car and the car is the same, we should be fine.”

Mid-afternoon Saturday, the No. 99 team decided to proceed with preparing a backup car for Sunday’s race. Suárez will start at the rear of the field.