Posted on by Dustin Albino

Based on the spring race at Martinsville Speedway, track position is going to be at a premium in Sunday’s Xfinity 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Many teams put themselves in traffic during practice on Saturday to get a sense of feeling in dirty air. Of the playoff cars needing to win, Chase Briscoe had the best Saturday and will start the race in third, as Ryan Blaney, likely needing to win, will start in fourth and had the best long-run speed. William Byron will start worst of the championship-eligible drivers in 25th, and his closest nemesis Denny Hamlin was the first driver to miss the final round of qualifying.

Dustin Albino’s race-day lineup:

Starter 1: Denny Hamlin
Starter 2: Chase Elliott
Starter 3: Ryan Blaney
Starter 4: William Byron
Starter 5: Chase Briscoe
Garage pick: Brad Keselowski

NEXT IN LINE: Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, Ross Chastain, Joey Logano.

RELATED: Fantasy Fastlane | Betting odds for Martinsville

RISING: Stewart-Haas Racing hasn’t won at Martinsville since Clint Bowyer dominated the spring race in 2018. Before that, it was Kurt Busch in 2014. Kevin Harvick has struggled adequately over the last handful of races at the track. But the SHR camp put three of its four entries inside the top 10 in qualifying, with Chase Briscoe leading the charge in third — and Kyle Larson thought the No. 14 car was the best car in practice. In fifth, Cole Custer has his best qualifying effort since winning the pole at the Bristol dirt race on Easter. Harvick was eighth on the board.

Admittedly, Larson has struggled at Martinsville. After scoring the pole, he says his No. 5 Chevrolet is better than he is at Martinsville. But he did win his first career pole at the paperclip for Sunday’s 500-lap event and is coming off a dominant performance at Homestead last weekend.

FALLING: Byron put together the most dominant performance of his Cup career in the spring at Martinsville, leading 212 of 403 laps. The No. 24 team brought speed in practice, ranking seventh on single-lap speed and second on 10-lap averages. Unfortunately for him, he had a slip up in qualifying and will take the green flag from 25th — his worst qualifying effort since Road America. With track position being premium, Saturday was a net loss for Byron.

Compared to recent years, Truex and Toyota have struggled on short tracks in 2022. The No. 19 car ranked 22nd in single lap and long-run speed, but qualified 27th (worst of the Toyota drivers). Given his track record at Martinsville over the past six races, Truex should still get the benefit of the doubt and be considered for your lineup.

FEATURED MATCHUPS

Kyle Larson vs. Martin Truex Jr.: Based on Saturday, all signs would point to Larson. But he often out qualifies where he finishes at Martinsville. With his pole run, this will be the ninth time Larson has qualified inside the top 10 in 16 Martinsville starts. He has a trio of top 10s. Stick with consistency and select Truex.

William Byron vs. Denny Hamlin: This got more interesting with Byron being buried in traffic to start the race. Hamlin was the best of the Toyota bunch in qualifying and will start 11th. Based on track position and ability of scoring stage points (something that’s admittedly hindered the No. 11 team in the playoffs), Hamlin should have a slight advantage heading into the race. Don’t be surprised, however, if the No. 24 moves through the field early.

Ross Chastain vs. Chase Elliott: In seven Martinsville starts, Chastain has one top-15 finish — a fifth-place outing in the spring. Elliott has a knack for finding his way at the front of the field at Martinsville, so fully believe he will be a factor for the win. The No. 9 car will start from the front row with Chastain lining up ninth.

Christopher Bell vs. Ryan Blaney: Despite qualifying 20th, Bell said he liked the handling of his Toyota. But Blaney will have the early advantage starting fourth. Blaney is always competitive at the famed short track, and it seems like he’s due for some good fortune after driver errors in the first two races in the Round of 8. Blaney should be the layup choice, though Bell had a walk-off win in the last round.

Posted on by Zack Albert

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Brandon Jones’ last-ditch bid for a spot in the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship race nearly had its Hail Mary moment Saturday at Martinsville Speedway. He had the lead in overtime, a fast car that started from the pole and seemingly friendly competition in teammate Ty Gibbs.

By the time the checkered flag flew, Jones’ lead was gone, his fast car was significantly shorter and the word “teammate” was bracketed by air quotes.

A captivating battle for the final Championship 4 berth went down to the wire in Saturday’s Dead On Tools 250, and Gibbs’ forceful last-lap bump in overtime sent Jones’ No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and his playoff hopes spiraling. Gibbs celebrated his sixth victory of the season, but Jones was eliminated on a day when only a win would have placed him in the title race next Saturday at Phoenix Raceway.

RELATED: Official results | Weekend schedule

Jones has just one more race — Phoenix — with JGR before he moves to the JR Motorsports team in 2023. “You guys are like family,” he told his No. 19 team on the radio, before adding, “I’m damn sure glad to be out of this place.”

“Man, I don’t know. I didn’t expect to get wrecked into (turn) one. That’s for sure,” Jones said post-race. “Me and Ty have always been kind of friends, but lost all respect today. I know a lot of guys on pit road have for him. So I’m looking forward to getting first to Phoenix and trying to win that race, but then transitioning over to JRM next year. I’m gonna have a good time over there.”

Gibbs added his name to the list of Championship 4 contenders before the race’s end, thanks to attrition that mathematically sealed his fate. He’ll battle JRM teammates Josh Berry, Noah Gragson and Justin Allgaier for the Xfinity crown. Berry and Gragson clinched with victories earlier in the Round of 8, and Allgaier edged AJ Allmendinger for the final playoff spot after a hard-nosed, late-race contest for position.

How Gibbs got there, though, was the buzz of south central Virginia. A flurry of late crashes sent the event to a third overtime, and the two JGR teammates — current and lame-duck — had traded turns choosing the low lane for restarts, forcing the action three-wide and making full-contact bids for the lead and the win.

The final push was enough to send Jones’ No. 19 Supra backward into the outside retaining wall. Gibbs collected his first Martinsville grandfather clock trophy, but drew a downpour of boos from the home crowd.

“I feel like, you know, after we got shoved out of the way for the first time, I feel like that was on, we’re racing for wins after that,” said Gibbs, who led a race-high 102 laps. “And I mean, going into Turn 1, I definitely didn’t want to clean him out, but definitely wanted to move him. So I just crossed that line a little bit too much.”

Brandon Jones gets a hug from his girlfriend, Ashley Safin, post-race at Martinsville Speedway
Zack Albert | NASCAR Studios

Jones took exception to the aggression level, especially since Gibbs had already advanced.

“He was locked in, right? I mean, there was really no need for it,” Jones said. “I get you want to win the race, you want to go for it. I want to race against the best. I want to try to beat the best out here. But man, you gotta give me an opportunity and a chance. You know, it’s not really even having a chance to go race for a win and at least we could have been side by side or something.

“So second place, last place, didn’t matter for us today. We had to win the race. So that part of it is what it is, but I would have liked to at least have had a chance to race against him and try to try to hold him off. To me that’s what’s fun is door-to-door racing and doing that, not just wrecking somebody.”

Had Jones won the race and secured an automatic berth, both Allgaier and Allmendinger would have been eliminated. As it evolved, Jones’ misfortune was a boon for Allgaier, who placed fifth to edge the 15th-finishing Allmendinger by 12 points for the last final-four berth. He made a point to offer a consoling hug to Jones on pit road.

“Honestly, future teammate or not, he’s a good friend,” Allgaier said. “You know, we missed out on making the final four last year, just because of the way the race worked out and I know the emotions right now from his side, so I hate it for those guys. Obviously it was to our benefit, right? It puts us in and (we’ve) got a shot at going for a championship next week at a race track that’s really, really good for us. But today’s race was definitely one for the record books. It was about as wild as I think you can get.”

MORE: At-track photos | Championship 4 field

Allgaier experienced the chaos firsthand in a fender-clanging duel with Allmendinger that had the two drivers swapping for position lap after lap. That fray reached its peak when Allmendinger’s No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet skidded and slowed with a flat left-rear tire with just 17 laps left in regulation.

Allmendinger’s hopes for a return trip to the Championship 4 evaporated, but he shook hands with Allgaier after their close-quarters clash.

“I mean, this is the way the format is, and I thought it was fair,” said Allmendinger, a five-time Xfinity winner this season. “I leaned on him to begin with, and he would give it back to me, and we knew whoever beat who was going to make it, the way that was playing out at that point. So yeah, I mean, it’s disappointing the tire got cut down, but I was trying to pinch him to kind of get them loose, see if I could clear him. And you know that’s a possibility. So overall, we did everything we could. Congrats to them for making it and came up short.”

The outcome sets up a lopsided Championship 4 field for Phoenix in terms of the organizations involved, with three JR Motorsports teammates facing off with the 20-year-old Gibbs, the lone representative from his grandfather’s team. Jones will be Gragson’s successor next year with the No. 9 team, which has had its share of run-ins with Gibbs during Gragson’s tenure.

“I’d be very, very mad right now if I was in the 19’s shoes, where he wouldn’t be smiling and taking pictures next to a clock right now,” Gragson said. “He’d be behind the stage with some extracurricular activities in mind, but that’s not my battle. I’m just glad three JR Motorsports cars got into the final four and excited to go race for a championship. …

“I mean, I don’t think I’m the biggest worry for the 54 right now. We’ve been collected in his stuff. Pretty much everyone down pit road has. Just … dirtbag move and it’ll catch up to him.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Ty Gibbs took no prisoners Saturday with a race-winning move that dramatically altered the composition of the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship 4 field.

On the final lap of the third attempt at overtime, Gibbs rammed soon-to-be-ex-teammate Brandon Jones so hard the contact buckled the hood of Gibbs No. 54 Toyota.

The contact sent Jones, who had taken the lead on the previous lap, into the outside wall in Turns 1 and 2, and Gibbs had the lead when NASCAR called the 14th caution of the race because of the wreck.

MORE: Race results | At-track photos

By then, Gibbs already had clinched one of the two remaining spots in the Championship 4 Round, but the bulldozing move deprived Jones of an opportunity to race for the series title next Saturday at Phoenix Raceway.

As a chorus of boos rained down from the grandstand, Gibbs was unapologetic for that tactic that made him a race winner for the sixth time this season, for the first time at Martinsville and for the 10th time in 50 Xfinity Series starts.

“It was definitely not a clean move, for sure,” Gibbs said. “I definitely didn’t want to wreck him, but I definitely wanted to move him out of the groove so I could go win. I felt like we lost the spring race getting moved by him.

“He’s my teammate, but definitely want to get the win here. It’s important to get the win. And now we’re going to the championship. It’s cool. Hopefully, I don’t get hit by any cans or anything right here.

“We got moved out of the way earlier this year, so it’s part of it.”

Jones won the pole and led 98 laps to Gibbs’ 102 but finished 23rd, the last driver on the lead lap.

“I know Ty enough to where I know he doesn’t care about what he did,” said Jones, who will move to JR Motorsports next season. “He’s pretty much, well — he wasn’t ‘pretty much’ — he was locked into the next round. So really, what did that do?

“I don’t really understand the move. I understand trying to get aggressive — you want to win the race. But to just destroy the race car, I don’t see it. I don’t get any satisfaction from it. Maybe he does. Maybe he likes to win that way? But I never have and never felt strong about racing that way. So, we’ll just take it and go for it.”

Jones’ misfortune elevated veteran Justin Allgaier, his soon-to-be-teammate at JR Motorsports, into the final Championship 4 berth. Jones needed a victory to claim the spot, but Allgaier was in a position to advance on points, which he did by 12 points over regular-season champion AJ Allmendinger.

Allgaier finished fifth and Allmendinger 16th after contact between their cars cut Allmendinger’s left-rear tire as the drivers played bumper tag and swapped positions during the closing stages of the race. Allgaier was happy to advance but less than thrilled with the way it happened.

“I can’t even describe it,” Allgaier said. “It’s disappointing that it’s gotten to the point where it’s — unfortunately, easier to drive through somebody than it is to pass them. Really proud of our team. We never gave up until the checkered flag fell. Had a ton of damage right there (from a collision on Lap 262 in the second overtime) but made it to the final round.”

After the race, Allmendinger sought Allgaier out on pit road and congratulated him.

“You get down to the end, (Allmendinger) was pushing pretty hard,” Allgaier said. “He chose to run into us enough times that you get to the point where you have to go for it. He knew when he turned back left that we were going to hit.

“I hate it for those guys. I don’t know if we could have run 25 laps battling as hard as we did there at the end. They’ve had a great season. We’ve had a great season. It’s just so hard when it comes to the last race, especially at a place like Martinsville.”

Gibbs and Allgaier will race for the series championship at Phoenix against Josh Berry and Noah Gragson, who earned their spots in the Championship 4 with respective victories at Las Vegas and Homestead-Miami in the Round of 8.

Non-playoff drivers Sheldon Creed and Riley Herbst finished second and third after the late-race melee, followed by the JR Motorsports trio of Gragson, Allgaier and Sam Mayer. Nick Sanchez, Daniel Hemric, Austin Hill and Blaine Perkins completed the top 10.

Along with Allmendinger and Jones, Hill and Mayer were eliminated from the playoffs.

NOTE: Post-race inspection concluded without issue, confirming Gibbs as the race winner. His No. 54 Toyota had one lug nut not safe and secure, which will result in a monetary fine.

Posted on by Zack Albert

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Seven of the eight drivers who still hold Cup Series title aspirations remain in limbo heading into Sunday’s race at Martinsville Speedway. The two closest to the provisional elimination line – on opposite sides – have been tethered together on multiple levels.

Just five points separate William Byron on the plus end and Denny Hamlin on the outside of the playoff bubble entering Sunday’s Xfinity 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM) – the last race in the postseason’s Round of 8. The title-eligible field will be chopped from eight to four after the 500-lap event.

RELATED: Weekend schedule | At-track photos

Byron is the NASCAR Cup Series’ most recent victor at the .526-mile track, and Hamlin is the circuit’s top winner among active drivers – a five-time collector of the venue’s grandfather clock trophy. Their Martinsville successes aside, the two have been linked by a well-publicized run-in – an intentional bump by Byron that sent Hamlin spinning late last month at Texas Motor Speedway.

Sunday, they’ll each try to clinch a shot at their first Cup Series crown after qualifying outside the top 10. Hamlin was fastest in practice and is set to start 11th in the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, with Byron in an uncharacteristic 25th starting position in his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.

“It’s a big deal, but man, just as far off and terrible as we were in the spring, plus the 24 being buried, we’ve kind of got some decent momentum,” said Hamlin. “We’re better off now than what we started the day. So we’re gaining on it.”

Byron has top-five finishes in his last three starts here, capped by a convincing victory back in April when he led 212 of the 403 laps. The 24-year-old driver shrugged when asked if his recent run give him the edge — “I don’t know. You tell me.” – but he admitted that after some rookie struggles at the tight oval, he had found a groove that clicked.

Replicating that rhythm under the scope of Sunday’s playoff pressure is still an uncertainty, Byron says.

“Yeah, there’s a little bit of confidence going into this race since we had a good race in the spring,” said Byron, who is seeking his first berth in the Championship 4 field. “But at the same time, we had a test here, and you don’t know who’s going to be good or not based on that test. It’s kind of up in the air. I feel good about this race track, but you just don’t know until you get out there. That’s honestly my mentality, just try to get in the car and not think too much.”

MORE: Playoff standings | What to Watch: Martinsville

Hamlin has been a perennial favorite in his home state, but while Byron was dashing to a springtime victory earlier this season, the No. 11 was languishing on the way to a 28th-place finish – three laps off the pace. That outcome typified the win-or-bust performance that shadowed the 41-year-old veteran through the first half of the season. Hamlin had two wins in the first 22 races but just one other top-five result in that span – an erratic stretch that kept him deep in the Cup Series standings.

Since then, the postseason has brought a pronounced turnaround for Hamlin & Co., who have landed top-10 results in seven of the eight races.

“From the beginning of the playoffs, we were going to have to defy the odds,” said Hamlin, who has reached the Championship 4 the last three seasons. “I mean, we’ve had more playoff points, we’ve been stronger, had more wins — all that stuff — you know, so I knew that this playoff was going to be tough because we were going to have to defy the odds. We know our car’s not as fast as the competition’s, so we’re just gonna have to out-execute them. That’s why I’m here to run the race because we’re not conceding anything, and I think that we’re going to show that we’ve got … there’s nothing left in the tank after tomorrow night’s race.

“So we’re going to do the best. We’re gonna keep fighting because that’s what I’m here for. You know, these opportunities are few and far between, and certainly, we’d love to make it for four years in a row.”

Posted on by Sean Montgomery

Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway
(⏰ 2 p.m. ET | 📺 NBC, NBC Sports App | 📻 MRN, SiriusXM)

Everything you need to know for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville, the penultimate race of the 2022 campaign.

Where: Martinsville, Virginia
Approximate start time: 2 p.m. ET | Weekend schedule
TV/Radio: NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio | Full TV schedule
The purse: $8,132,735
Forecast: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 59 degrees, according to NOAA.gov | Weather tracker
Race distance: 500 laps | 263 miles
Stages: 130 | 260 | 500
Pit-road speed: 30 mph
Caution car speed: 35 mph
Martinsville 101: Get the full lowdown
Starting lineup: Kyle Larson races to P1
Pit stalls: Where drivers will pit
Playoff grid: Print yours now

Key things to watch 🔑

Big story line

Sunday’s race settles which three drivers will race in the Championship 4 at Phoenix Raceway, alongside already locked-in Joey Logano. Coincidentally, two drivers battling on the elimination line, William Byron and Denny Hamlin, have had success at the track. Hamlin is perhaps the most decorated driver at the 0.526-mile Virginia race track, racking up the most wins, top-10 finishes and laps led among active drivers. But Byron dominated the spring race by leading a race-high 212 laps in an emotional victory. Many eyes are on the points battle between these title hopefuls, but underdogs Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe are purely aiming for the win. Will the Bill France Cup contestants settle in their current order, or will Sunday’s race see a new star rise before Phoenix?

Who’s hot? Who’s not? 

Ross Chastain has been in incredible form lately, finishing runner-up at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway. Nineteen points ahead of the elimination line, Chastain is in a solid position to advance to his first-ever title bid at Phoenix. However, Martinsville has been far from his best track, finishing 17th or worse in six of seven Cup starts and never leading a lap. The No. 1 team will need to put together a solid run on Sunday to stave off the others, especially if a driver below the elimination line wins the race.

Since his statement win at the Charlotte Roval, Christopher Bell has been trending in the opposite direction — especially due to some unfortunate circumstances. Bell once again has his back against the wall in a must-win situation at a track he has been mostly cold at throughout his career. In his five Martinsville starts, Bell has four finishes of 15th or worse but bucked this trend with a seventh-place result in April. To advance to Phoenix, they will need to find the speed to improve those six positions from the spring race. The No. 20 team has beaten the odds before.

Driving under the radar

Blaney, Bell and Briscoe virtually need a win to advance on Sunday. If you’re looking for a non-playoff driver to spoil their championship hopes by beating them to Victory Lane, look at Kyle Busch. Busch has been masterful at Martinsville over the last few years, reeling off a pair of wins and 12 top 10s in his last 14 starts in Virginia. Only two races remain in his Joe Gibbs Racing career and Martinsville and Phoenix line up perfectly for the No. 18 wheelman to make his final statement with the organization. In the whirlwind of championship story lines, don’t forget about a two-time series champ who can still have a massive impact on this season’s outcome.

Spotters look down at the track as the sun sets behind them.
Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images

Race-day staples ✅

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

• Paint Scheme Preview: See some new schemes with a spooky twist | Pick a favorite
• Power Rankings: Bubble battle looming between Byron, Hamlin | Updated driver rankings
• NASCAR betting: Best odds for Sunday’s race at Martinsville | Underdogs, value bets
• Fantasy Fastlane: Denny Hamlin needs points on Sunday | Must starts, sleepers
• Bubble Watch: Examining the playoff outlook before Sunday | Elimination analysis

Catch the pack 💨

Read up on the top headlines from the week leading up to Sunday’s race.

• Bubba’s back: Driver returns from suspension, reflects on lessons | Read more
• Playoff rivalries: Season-long rivalries could flare up on Sunday | Read more
• Penalty upheld: Appeals Panel weighs in on No. 41 SHR team ruling | Read more
• BJFHA: Foundation recognizes four finalists for award | Learn more, vote
• Manufacturers’ championship: Chevrolet clinches back-to-back | Read more
• Trackhouse: Justin Marks talks about Ross Chastain’s potential | Read more
• Alex Bowman: No. 48 driver will return to action at Phoenix | Read more
• New Next Gen: NASCAR discusses changes for 2023 season | Learn more
• Crew changes: Austin Dillon gets new crew chief for 2023 season | Read more
• Roots: Corey LaJoie wins Modified race at Martinsville, earns clock | Watch the interview
• Lights, cameras: Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum to be held under the lights | Read more
• eNASCAR: Kirwan wins Coca-Cola iRacing Series championship | Read more

Get in on the action 💰

Think you know NASCAR? Put your mettle to the test with gaming, fantasy.

• Fantasy preview: Top tips, strong picks for Sunday’s race | Hear the advice
• The Action Network: Betting Chase Elliott vs. Ross Chastain | Expert betting insight
• Play it LIVE: Full guide to 2022 NASCAR Fantasy Live game | New rules for playoffs
• Going all the way: 2022 Cup Series championship odds | See them here
• Prop picks: Championship contenders’ final push | Make your picks

Conquering the ‘Clip 📎

Not many tracks on the schedule have a history as deep as “The Paperclip.” Dive into some details.

• Tense history: Martinsville scuffles, pit-road feuds and more | See them here
• Faith in the fall: Every fall winner in Martinsville history | See the list
• Throwback: Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano exchange words on pit road | Watch the video
• Spring winner: William Byron holds onto momentum late in emotional victory | Full spring race recap

Fast facts ⏩

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

• Joe Gibbs Racing’s next win is their 200th and would make them the third organization with at least 200 wins.
• AJ Allmendinger finished top 10 in his last six starts, his longest top-10 streak in Cup.
• This will be the 148th Cup race at Martinsville, second most to Daytona’s 151 all-time.
• There were at least eight speeding penalties in each of the last four races at Martinsville, and at least 10 in each of the last two playoff races.
• At least two drivers will make it to the Championship 4 on points.

Say what? 🎙

Notable quotes from the stars of the sport heading into Sunday’s race.

• “Even the first race here we were coming to win, anyway, so I don’t think it changes your outlook. Every weekend you’re trying to win. I think maybe knowing that you’re in a must-win makes it a little bit easier to maybe try to win the race just from a strategy standpoint because you don’t have to go for the points, where like on a road course at the Roval you kind of shoot yourself in the foot to try to get points and you don’t really have a shot to win the race, so I think for us this week knowing that we’re in a must-win it maybe makes it a little bit easier from a strategy standpoint if the cautions fall the right way, but we go to the racetrack every weekend looking to win.” — Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

• “It’s going to be a fight. It’s definitely not going to be easy. I expect that passing is going to be very difficult, so track position is going to be super important. We’ve got to go in there Saturday and qualify up front and have good short-run speed in addition to the long-run speed. That has hurt us pretty bad the last couple of weeks but knowing how difficult it’s going to be to pass, I think we’ll put a little more emphasis on that and hopefully be able to get some stage points to give ourselves a chance to advance.” — Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

• “We set goals of winning championships at the beginning of every season, and the NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer’s Championship is one that’s a high priority. This championship is a result of a one-team effort from Hendrick Motorsports, Richard Childress Racing, Trackhouse Racing, Petty GMS, Kaulig Racing, JTG Daugherty and Spire Motorsports. We’d also like to thank the Chevrolet engineers, drivers, crew chiefs and owners who are part of this championship.” — Jim Campbell, U.S. vice president of performance and motorsports

Posted on by Reid Spencer

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Kyle Larson backed up last Sunday’s victory at Homestead-Miami Speedway with a pole-winning run at Martinsville Speedway.

Though Larson has been eliminated from the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, he’ll lead the field to green in Sunday’s Xfinity 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the race to decide which three drivers will join Joey Logano in the Nov. 6 Championship 4 event at Phoenix Raceway.

MORE: Weekend schedule | Starting lineup

After locking up on his first lap in the final round, Larson was less aggressive on the lap that gave Larson his fourth Busch Light Pole Award of the season, his first at Martinsville and the 14th of his career.

“I kind of backed it down the second lap,” said Larson, who navigated the tight paper-clip-shaped .526-mile short track in 19.709 seconds (96.078 mph). “I feel like a lot of times here, slower is faster.

“I was just trying to be smooth with it. I’m surprised that I did anything good here at Martinsville. It’s a good start so far, and hopefully, we can keep it going tomorrow.”

Playoff drivers Chase Elliott and Chase Briscoe tied for second fastest at 19.721 seconds (96.019 mph), with Elliott getting the front row nod because of higher standing in owner points. Elliott is 11 points above the current cutoff for the Championship 4 Round; Briscoe is 44 points below, needing a victory to advance to the title race.

Playoff driver Ryan Blaney qualified fourth at 95.927 mph. Non-playoff drivers claimed five of the next six positions, with ninth-place qualifier Ross Chastain the only other title-eligible driver to advance to the final round.

Denny Hamlin, five points behind William Byron for the final Championship 4 spot, will start 11th on Sunday. After a disappointing qualifying effort, Byron will take the green from 25th, five positions behind Christopher Bell, another playoff driver in a likely must-win situation.

Notes: Though Larson has been eliminated from the drivers’ championship, his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet is still eligible for the owners’ title… Larson has started first at Martinsville on two previous occasions that don’t count as poles won. He was first in owner points in 2017 when time trials were rained out, and he started first in 2021 when grid positions were determined by metrics.

PRACTICE

Denny Hamlin posted the fastest lap in practice at 95.079 mph, his 19.916-second lap time besting Ryan Blaney by just .001 seconds on the leaderboard to the No. 12 Ford’s 95.075 mph lap. Chase Elliott (94.922 mph), Kyle Larson (94.870 mph) and Tyler Reddick (94.827 mph) completed the top five on the single-lap leaderboard.

With 500 laps ahead on Sunday, long-run speed will prove critical. Blaney excelled Saturday, boasting the best 10-lap average at 94.770 mph. William Byron, Chase Briscoe, Aric Almirola and Chase Elliott rounded out the top five on the long run, while Christopher Bell, Larson, Cole Custer, Reddick and Hamlin completed the top 10.

Ross Chastain struggled the most of the playoff contenders not yet locked into the Championship 4. The No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet was 18th-quickest on the single-lap leaderboard and only improved to 16th overall on the 10-lap averages at 93.879 mph.

Joey Logano was slowest of all playoff drivers, placing 23rd in single-lap speeds at 94.153 mph and 18th in 10-lap averages at 93.835 mph.

Contributing: Staff reports

Posted on by Zack Albert

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Bubba Wallace said Saturday that he had a productive conversation with Kyle Larson after their on-track altercation two weeks ago, and that he has a better understanding of how to handle heated moments after NASCAR officials suspended him from last weekend’s Cup Series event.

Wallace was back at the track Saturday at Martinsville Speedway, returning to the NASCAR Cup Series garage after a one-week absence. He held court with reporters outside the 23XI Racing team haulers before practice and qualifying for Sunday’s Xfinity 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM), the next-to-last race of the season.

RELATED: Weekend schedule | At-track photos

Wallace retaliated after an on-track incident with Larson two weeks ago at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, first with an intentional bump that wrecked both their cars and the No. 20 entry of Toyota teammate Christopher Bell. He later shoved Larson multiple times after both drivers exited their cars.

Wallace apologized for the incident through his social media channels. Larson had said last weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway that he didn’t feel an apology was necessary but considered the matter done.

“There’s a lot of good things going into this weekend. I’m not coming back with a vengeance or anything like that,” said Wallace, who was replaced by John Hunter Nemechek in the No. 45 Toyota last weekend. “I’m just going to continue to do what we’ve been doing. And for the record, I have talked to Larson, and we had a great conversation this week. I think the best thing for us is we both understood where our frustrations were and moving forward and how we both can handle those situations better.”

Larson won last weekend’s race at Homestead-Miami, and he claimed the pole position in Saturday’s qualifying session at Martinsville. After his pole lap, Larson said that he felt he had reached some common ground with Wallace as they look to turn the page.

“Yeah, it was great to have that talk,” Larson said. “I said the same thing. I came downstairs and told my wife that Bubba and I had a great conversation. I thought it went really well, and I think we’ve both moved on from it really fast. It was good to have a talk, good to just talk over the frustrations and mistakes on both of our parts. Move on and forget about it, and get back to racing. I feel like we’ve raced really well together in the past. Hopefully I don’t make any more mistakes and we can continue to race good.”

Wallace said that after the Vegas incident, conversations also took place during team meetings with 23XI management, who reminded him of the repercussions of placing the organization and its backers “in a bad light,” as he termed it. Wallace is in his second year with the Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan-owned team, and he was re-signed to a long-term contract extension in August.

“They were understanding of the heat-of-the-moment type things, but they were very adamant about how we need to handle those five seconds later,” Wallace said. “You need to think, like I said earlier, you need to think before you do. That was the biggest thing. They still support me, and we’re here. Just have to go out and continue to build this team up.”

Said Hamlin: “Listen, I trust Bubba’s words. We had long conversations with him internally, and I think that he would do things differently. This is not just words and PR talk. This is Bubba. You know, nobody asked him to tweet that he took a bite of humble pie. It’s something that Bubba has not had a whole lot of say, you know, those words in the past. I truly believe that he’s learned his lesson, he would do things differently. He’s young, and this is part of his growth.”

Wallace said that sitting out and disrupting his in-season weekly routine were among the toughest parts of his suspension. He added that he accepted the penalty and had discussions with NASCAR President Steve Phelps and Chief Operating Officer Steve O’Donnell about the ruling.

“I definitely learned my lesson, but we have to be consistent with this no matter if it’s here at Martinsville or if it’s at Daytona or Talladega,” Wallace said. “We have to keep it consistent across the boards and across the series. That was the conversation; it was a good conversation.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – There won’t be any more ride-sharing for Big Machine Racing in 2023.

On Saturday at Martinsville, team owner Scott Borchetta revealed that Parker Kligerman has been hired as the full-time driver of the No. 48 Big Machine Chevrolet in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for 2023.

RELATED: Kligerman’s driver page | 2023 NXS schedule

Big Machine Racing joined the Xfinity Series in 2021, with Jade Buford as the primary driver. This season, the No. 48 team has divided up the schedule among 10 drivers, including Buford, Marco Andretti and a host of Cup Series regulars. Tyler Reddick delivered Big Machine its first win earlier this year, prevailing in May at Texas Motor Speedway.

Kligerman ran one race in the car this season, starting ninth and finishing sixth at Talladega Superspeedway. While doubling as a TV analyst and pit reporter for NASCAR on NBC, Kligerman also competed in 12 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series events for owner Charlie Henderson, winning the July race at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

“The mission has always been to be with one driver and build the race team,” said Borchetta. “Parker brings experience and a huge desire to do this, and that was our first conversation: ‘Hey, do you still have the fire to go and run for a championship?’”

Kligerman’s answer was an enthusiastic “Yes.”

The tipping point for Kligerman was the Talladega race.

“This happened so fluidly, so seamlessly — it felt like when we did Talladega, it was just so seamless,” Kligerman said. “And the short span from talking to signing was quick. We were all aligned with the same goals, the same thought process…

“For me, in my career right now, I’ve told everybody that will listen, in the last two years, I’ve never driven better in my life.”

As his schedule permits, Kligerman also will continue to race the No. 75 truck for Henderson. The 32-year-old driver delivered the Abingdon, Virginia-based team both of its Truck Series wins — a 2017 victory at Talladega Superspeedway in addition to his triumph this year at Mid-Ohio.

Kligerman’s only full-time Xfinity Series campaign was a 2013 run for Kyle Busch Motorsports.

Contributing: Staff reports

Posted on by Staff Report

The season-opening Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum will have a later start time next year, providing the opportunity to end the exhibition event under the stadium’s lights.

The main event is scheduled to start Sunday, Feb. 5 at 5 p.m. PT (8 p.m. ET), which is a half-hour before the typical sunset time for that time of year in Los Angeles. The move was announced on FOX Sports’ Race Hub news program on Friday night, exactly 100 days until the Clash is set to take center stage.

Last year’s feature was scheduled for a 3 p.m. PT (6 p.m. ET) start time. A full weekend schedule for practice, qualifying and heats for the 2023 Busch Light Clash will be announced at a later time.

NASCAR officials announced June 12 that the exhibition would return for a second edition at the historic LA Coliseum. Joey Logano won the inaugural running on the temporary quarter-mile asphalt track earlier this year.

The Clash was held at Daytona International Speedway from 1979-2021.