Posted on by Staff Report

Editor’s note: Tune in or set your DVRs for Episode 5 tonight at 10 ET on USA Network.

Episode five of USA Network’s unscripted series “Race for the Championship” airs tonight at 10 ET, and the fifth of 10 episodes provides exclusive looks and sounds with three drivers who qualified for this year’s NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

Each episode throughout the series will feature multiple drivers and their lives and stories away from the track. Kyle Busch, Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez will be the three spotlighted tonight as the series focuses on both their stories off the track and on the iconic Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

In tonight’s episode, you can also expect to see:

• Samantha and Kyle Busch discussing their infertility journey — and their first morning home with new baby Lennix;

• Meanwhile, the series gives an in-depth look at Busch’s pending free agency as it begins to look like he may not return to Joe Gibbs Racing;

• Ross Chastain shows off the family watermelon farm in Alva, Florida;

• Behind the scenes at Trackhouse Racing, where Justin Marks is attempting to build more than just a race team.

—

How to find USA Network | USA Network streaming on the go

Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs are set to roll into the wild card of all wild cards — Talladega Superspeedway.

Thirty-seven cars dot the entry list for Sunday’s YellaWood 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), serving as the middle race of the Round of 12.

With no driver locked into the penultimate playoff round yet, the organized chaos of superspeedway racing is sure to provide tense, close-quarters action. Get set for the weekend here:

RELATED: Weekend schedule | Cup Series standings

ONE SHOT

With no practice scheduled for Sunday’s race, the only pre-race track time teams will have this weekend will be qualifying.

The teams will be broken into Groups A and B for two rounds of single-car, single-lap qualifying set to begin at 10:30 a.m. ET (NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM) to set the starting lineup.

With the postseason underway, playoff drivers and teams will be ordered by their previous race metrics and assigned to Group A or B by the usual odd/even metric procedures. Playoff teams will be the final cars to qualify in their respective groups.

The five fastest overall drivers from each group will advance to the final round of qualifying, where those 10 drivers will each set one more timed lap to fight for the Busch Light Pole Award.

MORE: Paint Scheme preview | Qualifying order

TALLADEGA HISTORY

— Talladega Superspeedway was completed in 1969, built in a soybean growing area. Today, the facility covers about 3,000 acres, the most of any Cup track (Daytona is 482 acres). It cost $6 million.

— Bill Ward, an Alabama insurance salesman and part-time racer, convinced NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. to build the track in Alabama despite France’s initial ideas to build in South Carolina.

— Richard Brickhouse won the inaugural Cup race on Sept. 14th, 1969 at Talladega, an event run after most of the regulars decided not to compete due to concerns over the tires’ capability of withstanding the high speeds.

— The track was last repaved before the fall race in 2006. Mark Martin won the Truck Series’ inaugural race at Talladega in the first race on the fresh asphalt.

— Talladega is the largest oval on the schedule at 2.66 miles with the steepest banking (33 degrees), longest backstretch (4,000 feet), most lead changes (88, Spring 2010 and 2011), first-time winners (11) and is tied for the closest margin of victory (0.002 seconds, April 2011; top eight separated by 0.145 seconds).

Source: Racing Insights

GOODYEAR TIRES

Teams have plenty of tire data to work with heading into Sunday’s race at Talladega. Goodyear is bringing the same tire setup to the high-banked, 2.66-mile superspeedway that was used here in April as well as the two events at Daytona International Speedway.

“This is the fourth superspeedway race we’ve had on this tire setup this season and we’ve had good results in the first three,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing. “What we see at Talladega, as well as at Daytona, is teams being able to use tire strategy throughout the race to, depending on the situation, limit their time on pit road. With teams employing different strategies, it potentially jumbles up the field and leads to more passing, depending on the length of a run.”

TALLADEGA STORY LINES

— Nineteen different drivers have won this year, tied for the most all-time.

— Tyler Reddick has won three of the last 13 races, with teammate Austin Dillon picking up another victory (Daytona) for Richard Childress Racing in that span.

— The last seven races have each been won by different drivers — Kevin Harvick, Kyle Larson, Austin Dillon, Erik Jones, Bubba Wallace, Chris Buescher and Reddick.

— William Byron was penalized following last week’s race at Texas Motor Speedway for spinning Denny Hamlin under caution, losing 25 driver and owner points and dropping him from third (+17 to the elimination line) to 10th (-8) ahead of Sunday’s race at Talladega. Byron was also fined $50,000. Hendrick Motorsports is appealing the decision.

— The driver leading the most laps won the last two races after winning only one of the prior nine.

— Non-championship-eligible drivers have won the last four playoff races, the longest stretch in series history.

— Kyle Busch ranks third in laps led in 2022 but ranks 30th in laps completed. He is also the only driver to finish inside the top 10 in all three superspeedway races in 2022.

— Chase Elliott has one top-10 finish in the last five races, his worst stretch this season.

Source: Racing Insights

PREDICTABLE UNPREDICTABILITY?

Superspeedways provide plenty of pack racing, with competitors frequently side-by-side and often three-wide for position from green flag to checkered.

That makes picking favorites all the more difficult — evidenced by this week’s DraftKings odds, which list a half-dozen drivers as favorites at 12-1 odds: Ryan Blaney, William Byron, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, and Kyle Larson.

While there are never any truly safe picks at Talladega, the Team Penske duo of Blaney and Logano provides a pair of smart plays. Blaney is a two-time Talladega winner seeking his first triumph of 2022 while Logano enters in search of his fourth Talladega win.

Defending race winner Bubba Wallace enters at 18-1 odds but is worth consideration after finishing inside the top two in three of his last five superspeedway starts. There’s also Austin Dillon (25-1), the most recent superspeedway winner who won his way into the Cup Series Playoffs in August at Daytona.

MORE: Complete list of odds for Sunday

FANTASY LIVE

Want to manage a team and race your way to the top of the leaderboards? Check out NASCAR Fantasy Live, which reset for the playoffs. The free-to-play game lets you choose your drivers each week and show off your crew-chief instincts by garaging a driver by the end of Stage 2, and there is a $10,000 prize for the playoff winner.

The 2022 Fantasy Live points leaders are Chase Elliott (1,018), Joey Logano (923), and Ryan Blaney (916).

In addition to Fantasy Live, NASCAR.com is offering the Playoffs Grid Challenge presented by Ruoff Mortgage during the playoffs.

How to play: Fantasy Live | Set up a team today!

ALSO ON NASCAR.COM

Get additional camera views by logging on to NASCAR Drive, where each week the full field of in-car cameras will be available — as well as a battle cam and an overhead look.

NASCAR has partnered with LiveLike to add fan engagement in the NASCAR Mobile App. Log in to the mobile app during the race for polls, quizzes, the cheer meter and more — and see instant results from NASCAR fans like you.

Posted on by Brandon White

A veteran dirt racer like Granby, Quebec, native Steve Bernier does not exactly fit the typical narrative associated with a NASCAR rookie.

Autodrome Granby and RPM Speedway falling under NASCAR sanctioning this year enabled Bernier to compete in the Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series for the first time. Bernier made the most of the opportunity by winning the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Rookie of the Year presented by Jostens following efficient seasons at both tracks.

Steve Bernier
(Photo: 360NitroTv)

In a competitive Modified class at Granby and RPM, Bernier was one of the few to separate himself from the competition. He ended up tallying eight victories and 20 top fives between the facilities, which enabled him to finish fourth in the Weekly Series Division I national standings behind Layne Riggs, Peyton Sellers and Craig Von Dohren.

RPM is where Bernier found most of his success in 2022, as he ended up claiming the track championship with a comfortable, 19-point advantage over David Hebert, who ended up denying Bernier his third title at Granby by just two points.

The stellar campaigns Bernier put together at Granby and RPM enabled him to join a notable list of drivers who have won Weekly Series Rookie of the Year honors that includes last year’s recipient in Gunner Martin, as well as Travis Braden and current NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Chase Purdy.

Outside of the local shows at Granby and RPM, Bernier’s career has seen him compete in numerous high-profile dirt races across Canada and the United States. Among his accomplishments include two DIRTcar Sportsman Series wins in 2013, as well as titles in the DIRTCar 358-Modified Starter Series and the Series Canadienne Side Panel.

Bernier was not the only rookie to be recognized by NASCAR for efficiency in 2022, as the sanctioning body handed out Rookie of the Year honors to the best newcomer in the Midwest, Northeast, Southeast and West, respectively.

Below is the complete list of NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Regional Rookie of the Year recipients.

Weekly Series Rookies of the Year

  • Midwest Rookie of the Year: Bryce Blohm

In his debut season competing in Division I of the Weekly Series, Blohm started in every race at Elko Speedway. In 23 features, he tallied one victory to go along with seven top-10 performances against drivers like 2019 Weekly Series champion Jacob Goede.

  • Northeast Rookie of the Year: David Hebert

Like the driver he defeated for the Autodrome Granby title this year, Hebert is anything but an inexperienced competitor. Between Granby and RPM, Hebert visited Victory Lane on seven different occasions to claim the Northeast Rookie of the Year award.

  • Southeast Rookie of the Year: Junior Snow

For most of the 2022 season, Snow was merely a witness to the intense championship battle at Bowman Gray Stadium between Tim Brown and Brandon Ward. Despite this, Snow still managed to score a victory in his rookie campaign and claim three top fives.

  • West Rookie of the Year: Caity Miller

Miller spent her first season in the Weekly Series’ top division splitting time between Meridian Speedway and Magic Valley Speedway in Idaho. She stood out in Meridian’s Modified division by tallying four top fives, including three runner-up finishes.

Posted on by Adam Fenwick

A quartet of drivers who enjoyed successful NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series seasons now have additional reason to celebrate.

Layne Riggs, Craig Von Dohren, Jacob Goede and Neal Latham have been confirmed as regional champions of the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series for 2022.

NASCAR reintroduced regional championships last season for the first time since 2004, giving drivers from across the country who might not be able to contend for the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series national championship something else for which to race. Each regional champion earned $15,000 for his season-long efforts.

The regional championships are broken into four regions: Southeast, Northeast, Midwest and West.

Below is a closer look at each of the four NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Regional champions.

NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Southeast Region champion: Layne Riggs. (Photo: Joe Chandler/South Boston Speedway)

Southeast Region: Layne Riggs

A fantastic season for Riggs continues to get better, as the driver from Bahama, North Carolina, can now add the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series southeast region championship trophy to his case alongside the 2022 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series national championship trophy.

Riggs, who recently was confirmed as the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series national champion by four points ahead of Peyton Sellers, secured the southeast regional championships by eight points.

Riggs’ season included 16 victories at four tracks, including Dominion Raceway and South Boston Speedway in Virginia, plus Hickory Motor Speedway and Wake County Speedway in North Carolina. He also secured his first track championship at South Boston this year.

Sellers ranked second in the southeast region standings, followed by Doug Barnes Jr., Wake County Speedway champion Clay Jones and Bowman Gray Stadium champion Tim Brown.

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NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Northeast Region champion: Craig Von Dohren. (Photo: Grandview Speedway)

Northeast Region: Craig Von Dohren

For the second straight season, the king of the northeast is Von Dohren.

A veteran dirt Modified driver from Oley, Pennsylvania, Von Dohren dominated his competition at Pennsylvania’s Grandview Speedway this season. In 23 NASCAR-sanctioned starts this year at Grandview, Von Dohren collected 11 victories and only finished outside of the top 10 once.

In addition to collecting his second straight NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series northeast region championship, Von Dohren also secured his third straight Grandview Speedway track championship and 13th overall.

David Hebert, competing at RPM Speedway and Autodrome Granby in Canada, fell 18 points shy of the northeast region championship. Another Canadian driver, Steve Bernier, was third ahead of a pair of Grandview regulars, Brett Kressley and Jeff Strunk.

NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Midwest Region champion Jacob Goede. (Photo: Courtesy Madison International Speedway)
NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Midwest Region champion: Jacob Goede. (Photo: Jeff Taber/Madison International Speedway)

Midwest Region: Jacob Goede

When it comes to NASCAR racing in the Midwest, Goede continues to set the bar.

The driver from Carver, Minnesota, collected his second straight NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series midwest region championship this season following another banner year of Late Model racing.

Competing at three tracks — Minnesota’s Elko Speedway, plus Wisconsin’s LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway and Madison International Speedway — Goede scored six victories in 29 starts. He scored 20 top-five and 28 top-10 finishes in those 29 starts and secured his ninth consecutive Elko Speedway track title.

The 2019 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series national champion bested Adams County Speedway competitor Jesse Dennis by 18 points to secure the midwest region crown. Elko Speedway competitor Jake Ryan was third, followed by LaCrosse and Elko racer Chad Walen and Elko’s Jeremy Wolff.

NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series West Region champion Neal Latham. (Photo: Courtesy Latham Motorsports)
NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series West Region champion: Neal Latham. (Photo: Courtesy Latham Motorsports)

West Region: Neal Latham

For the first time in his career, Latham can call himself a NASCAR champion after laying claim to the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series west region championship this season.

Latham, who competes in the Modified division at Idaho’s Meridian Speedway, scored six victories in 21 races to put himself in position for his first regional championship. His results also included 16 top-five and 20 top-10 finishes.

Latham had the biggest advantage in the final standings of any regional champion, besting Irwindale Speedway racer Linny White by 30 points to claim the west region championship.

Another Irwindale racer, Trevor Huddleston, was third, followed by Magic Valley Speedway and Meridian racer Caity Miller and Meridian’s Colton Nelson.

Posted on by Adam Fenwick

CONCORD, N.C. — Jaiden Reyna’s parents did everything they could to convince him to pursue a different sport growing up.

They signed him up for basketball, tennis and swim. They even signed him up for tap dancing and theater.

However, none of those things could hold his attention quite like racing.

“I played a ton of sports,” said the 16-year-old Reyna, a Mexican-American from Yorktown, Virginia. “I played basketball, tennis, swim, even tap dancing, theater, stuff like that. But eventually [my parents] came to realize that racing was the only thing that kept my attention for a strong amount of time.

“I don’t want to say I didn’t take everything else seriously; it just couldn’t hold my attention for very long apart from racing. I said I wanted to become a race car driver, and that’s the only thing I wanted to do.”

Reyna is in his second season as part of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program, an academy-style training program for minority and female competitors designed to develop and train drivers both on and off the track.

His family originated in Mexico, with his grandmother on his father’s side coming to United States in 1968. She was sent to the United States by her mother to live with her grandmother in search of a better education. She later became a naturalized citizen in 1983.

Jaiden Reyna during the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway on September 24, 2022. (Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)
Jaiden Reyna pictured during the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway on Sept. 24, 2022. (Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)

Reyna’s father Pedro was the first member of his family to be born in the United States. He eventually became a member of the United States Army, which is where he met Reyna’s mother, Afton.

Fast forward to Sept. 6, 2006, and Jaiden Reyna joined the world.

The young racer is in his first season of racing Late Models for Rev Racing and veteran competitor and team owner Kres VanDyke. It’s a path few in his family would have predicted only a few years ago.

“My parents and not even my grandparents knew much about NASCAR,” Reyna said. “The only thing I can say is my grandmother’s husband, he was a big NASCAR fan. But that was on my mom’s side, which was America the whole way. He was a fan of Mark Martin. Whenever I went over to my grandmother’s house, NASCAR was always on the TV.”

Reyna got his start at his home track, Langley Speedway in Hampton, Virginia, where he joined and competed with the Hampton Road Kart Club when he was 6. By the time he was 8, Reyna began racing Bandoleros and, not long after that, Legend Cars.

RELATED: Jaiden Reyna’s Rev Racing driver profile

He did all that despite his family not having a lot of extra money to spare. He credits his parents with going the extra mile to make sure he could keep pursing his racing dreams.

“Their commitment to my dream was absolutely incredible,” Reyna said. “My mom ended up selling her car so I could get a trailer and my first go kart.”

His breakout season came in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, when he dominated the Young Lion division at Charlotte Motor Speedway’s Summer Shootout. He won 10 races that year at the Summer Shootout and captured the Young Lion division championship. He was selected for the Drive for Diversity program the following season.

“I’ve actually been in the [Drive for Diversity] Combine three times before I was accepted,” said Reyna, who raced Legend Cars in 2021 before making the move up to Late Models this year. “It’s been pretty decent so far, snagged a couple podiums. Battled for the win a couple times and choked it every single time. Still looking for that first career win in Late Models. I feel like I can definitely get a win with Rev Racing.”

Jaiden Reyna during the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway on September 24, 2022. (Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)
Jaiden Reyna (5) in action during the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway on Sept. 24, 2022. (Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)

In addition to the training and skills he has learned from his time at Rev Racing, Reyna got the opportunity this year to work with VanDyke. A multi-time NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series track and Tennessee state champion, VanDyke has been mentoring Reyna and helping him further prepare for a career in racing.

“He’s made me work on the cars a bit, and I’ve really been watching what he’s been doing car-wise so I can give better information,” said Reyna, who was among the 92 competitors who attempted to qualify for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 last weekend at Martinsville Speedway in a car prepared and fielded by VanDyke. “The equipment is good, and the learning is great, too.”

While he admits he’s still a long way from being ready to race in a NASCAR touring series, Reyna said he hopes his efforts will inspire others to pursue their dreams of working and competing in NASCAR or other forms of racing.

If he had to offer one piece of advice to those aspiring to be a part of NASCAR, it would be to start early and stay committed.

“If this is really what you want to do, you probably need to start working at a really early age,” said Reyna. “Obviously I’ve had a ton of help with everyone that was at Langley and all of my crew chiefs, too. They really taught me how to work the track, how to really get around a track in a car.

“Obviously you want to be paired with the right people and start working on your race craft, because people judge you very early.”

As far as what the future holds, Reyna said he hopes to continue racing Late Models while ultimately pursing opportunities to further his racing skills on dirt tracks and road courses.

Eventually he hopes to compete in Mexico, something he knows would make his grandmother on his father’s side especially happy.

In a way, it would bring his entire family full circle.

“I want to run races in Mexico; that would be pretty cool,” Reyna said. “Then my grandmother, she would definitely come down for that. We could have a big family reunion.”

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR announced today it is teaming up with Meta to bring a fully immersive race experience to Meta Quest 2 virtual reality (VR) headsets and Meta Horizon Worlds.

Beginning Sept. 29, fans with a Meta Quest 2 can view a VOD 45-minute VR version of this past weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race, the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, in Meta Horizon Worlds.

“NASCAR’s first foray into Meta Horizon Worlds offers fans an incredible new way to engage with the sport, whether they’ve attended races for years or are entirely new to NASCAR,” said Tim Clark, SVP and Chief Digital Officer at NASCAR. “It also marks an exciting evolution in our longstanding partnership with Meta as we continue building the fan experience of the future.”

To make this NASCAR dream a virtual reality, Meta is working with YBVR to produce the races in an immersive format. YBVR will be on site at the three featured tracks to capture the action with six 180-degree cameras.

Race recaps and other VR content from the Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway and the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway will follow each of those events, as well.

The VR race content will debut in Meta Horizon Worlds on the following dates:

  • Thursday, Sept. 29, 7 p.m. PST: Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 at Texas Motor Speedway
  • Thursday, Oct. 27, 7 p.m. PST: Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway
  • Thursday, Nov. 10, 7 p.m. PST: NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway

After its premiere, the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 VR experience will be available as “always on” in Horizon Worlds from Sept. 30-Oct. 2.

To access the NASCAR VR content, fans can download the Meta Horizon Worlds app for free in the Meta Quest store. Once in Meta Horizon Worlds, fans can navigate to Venues to watch these VOD races and additionally can subscribe to the AutoTrader Echo Automotive 500 HERE.

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR officials handed out two sizable penalties Tuesday for rough driving, docking William Byron and Ty Gibbs for their roles in separate incidents in last weekend’s Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.

Byron was hit with a 25-point penalty in both the driver and team owner standings for bumping Denny Hamlin out of position during a late-race caution period in Sunday’s AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 500 – a punishment that carries significant playoff implications. He was also fined $50,000.

RELATED: Updated driver standings

Byron was third in the Cup Series Playoffs with a 17-point cushion above the elimination line before the penalty. He’ll now enter Sunday’s YellaWood 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM) at Talladega Superspeedway ranked 10th out of the 12 remaining title-eligible drivers and eight points below the provisional elimination line. Two races are left in the Round of 12 – Sunday at Talladega and Oct. 9 at Charlotte Motor Speedway’s road course.

Hendrick Motorsports indicated later Tuesday that the team plans to appeal the penalty.

Gibbs, in his 10th Cup Series start for 23XI Racing in place of the injured Kurt Busch, was fined $75,000 for veering into the No. 42 Petty GMS Chevrolet of Ty Dillon on pit road. That aggressive contact came in close proximity to pit-crew personnel and NASCAR officials working in a nearby pit stall.

Gibbs, 19, was not issued a points penalty since he is an Xfinity Series regular who does not collect Cup Series points. But his No. 23 Toyota team was handed a 25-point deduction in the owner standings.

It’s the second time this year that Gibbs has been penalized for unsafe driving on pit road. He was fined $15,000 for making contact with Sam Mayer’s car in the pits after an Xfinity Series race at Martinsville in April. That retaliation led to post-race fisticuffs between the two drivers.

NASCAR officials did not penalize Byron during Sunday’s 500-miler, saying their spotters did not see the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet send Hamlin’s No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota spinning under yellow-flag conditions in retaliation for earlier contact. Hamlin was not restored to his original running position, and he finished 10th. Byron came home seventh.

MORE: Byron, Hamlin clash at Texas | Backseat Drivers debate

Each driver had strong words for the other post-race at Texas. Byron explained that he bumped Hamlin back to show his displeasure, but did not intend to spin Hamlin out. He added that he felt he was standing his ground, saying, “I’m pissed off, just not going to get run like that.”

Said Hamlin: “I’ll just add it to the list of guys when I get a chance. They’re going to get it.”

Additionally, competition officials indefinitely suspended Patrick Briody for violating the NASCAR Substance Abuse Policy – Sections 4.1 and 10.1.A in the NASCAR Rule Book. Briody is listed on the official team rosters portal as a mechanic on the road crew for the Our Motorsports No. 02 team in the Xfinity Series.

Posted on by Zack Albert

Cody Ware said Tuesday that he is recovering from soreness in his right foot after a severe crash two days ago, and that he is “heading in the right direction” as he undergoes physical therapy in an effort to return to competition this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.

RELATED: Ware released from care center | Talladega weekend schedule

Ware was helped from his No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford after a crash midway through last Sunday’s 500-miler at Texas Motor Speedway. He was treated and released from the Fort Worth track’s infield care center, and a team spokesperson said he would return home after X-rays showed no fractures.

In a Tuesday appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Ware said he was unable to put his full weight on his right foot and he was in a walking boot to provide extra support. He said he visited Ortho Carolina for prompt medical attention after returning home, and that physical therapy is helping him build the foot strength to work the car’s pedals for Sunday’s YellaWood 500 at Talladega (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM).

“Right now not dealing with too much pain, just trying to do some physical therapy and recover, you know,” Ware told SiriusXM. “More or less just dealing with some stretched ligaments and just a lot of bruising and swelling in my foot and ankle, but already been to physical therapy twice and gonna get the final approval today to get confirmation to race at Talladega.”

Ware said he believed the throttle on his No. 51 Ford was stuck open after his initial impact with the Turn 4 retaining wall. His car eventually came to rest after bouncing off the pit-road wall. “There wasn’t much I could do to get the car slowed down,” he said, “and I kind of, unfortunately I was just a passenger in my own car heading towards the pit-road wall.”

Ware said he was due for a final MRI scan this week, just to make sure nothing was missed in his initial assessments. The 26-year-old driver also indicated he may not be able to walk “on my own 100%” at Talladega, but cited the example of Camping World Truck Series driver Carson Hocevar, who did not miss a race after suffering a broken tibia near his right ankle after a crash at World Wide Technology Raceway.

Hocevar navigated the garage area using crutches and later a cane in the weeks after the wreck. Tuesday, he offered those crutches to Ware through social media.

Ware added that he’s been careful in preparing for this weekend’s race, trying to balance the workload.

“Obviously, I’m trying to be smart with just resting my ankle and the foot, not overworking it, but I’m not using that as an excuse to lounge around and not get things done,” Ware said. “Because I’m invested in this, I’m invested in being a NASCAR driver, and I’m not just gonna let a bump in the road stop me. Obviously, still have to be smart and safe, and that’s why I’ve got a great team of doctors and medical professionals that are overseeing the process. But I’m still gonna work as hard as I can and be involved as much as I can, and that’s not going to change, no matter what.”

Ware said that he was unsure if his wrecked race car would go to the NASCAR Research & Development Center, but that competition officials were at his family-owned team’s race shop Monday morning to inspect the car and record their findings.

“So they were involved with looking at the car, taking all the pictures and diagnosing everything that they could, guys like (official and former racer) David Green, looking at the interior of the car from the driver safety standpoint to see anything that we can learn and work on going forward with the future there,” Ware said. “And so I think all in all, they’ve been very proactive with seeing what they can learn and how they can fix the cars going forward and things like that. I know that they definitely took back my HANS (Head And Neck restraint System) and helmet to look at that at the R&D Center, so that did go back to the R&D Center. But overall, I’m pretty happy with the response to how quickly they were to try to learn and gather information on this wreck.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

CONCORD, N.C. — Kurt Busch provided an update on his health Tuesday, saying he is making strides in his recovery from a concussion but there is no clear timetable on his return to NASCAR competition.

Busch has been sidelined since a July 23 crash during qualifying at Pocono Raceway, a span of 10 Cup Series races. Xfinity Series regular Ty Gibbs has filled in for his 23XI Racing team.

“I’m doing good. Each week is better progress,” Busch said from pit road at Charlotte Motor Speedway. “I feel good, and I don’t know when I’ll be back, but time has been the challenge. He’s … Father Time is the one in charge on this one.”

Busch’s remarks came as he joined breast cancer survivors and their supporters to paint the Charlotte track’s pit wall pink to commemorate National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Busch also announced that his “Window of Hope” program will return for this year’s Oct. 9 Bank of America Roval 400, with the Cup Series field set to use pink window nets, which will be auctioned to fund better access to mammography screenings. The Roval circuit’s Oct. 8 race for the Xfinity Series will also be called the Drive for the Cure 250 presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina.

RELATED: Playoff standings | Pink window nets to return

Tuesday marked Busch’s first at-track media availability since his Pocono crash. 23XI Racing co-owner Denny Hamlin has indicated that a seat with the team will be ready for Busch when he is medically cleared to return.

“I feel hopeful,” Busch said when asked about a potential return this year. “I know that I have more doctor visits and more distance to go, and I keep pushing each week. And TPC, Toyota Performance Center, has been a group of angels that have helped me with the workouts and the vestibular (inner-ear and balance) workouts, different nutrition as well, the different supplements and things to help everything re-balance with my vision, my hearing and just overall balance in general.”

Busch is a 34-time winner in Cup Series competition, with his most recent victory coming May 15 at Kansas Speedway. That win landed the 44-year-old driver a provisional berth in the NASCAR Playoffs, and NASCAR competition officials had granted him a medical waiver for postseason eligibility.

Busch withdrew from the playoffs in late August, and his recovery period has extended into the 10-race postseason. His team remains alive in the team owner championship hunt, with teammate Bubba Wallace taking over the driving duties in the No. 45 Toyota.

Though he’s been out of the cockpit, Busch has remained involved with behind-the-scenes help for 23XI Racing’s efforts. Tuesday, he said his key learning from the recovery process has made him flash back to the start of his NASCAR career 20-plus years ago.

“It brought me back to my beginning days of, this is something I never knew would happen as far as an injury,” Busch said. “I never knew I would make it in racing, and you keep pushing based off of your instincts and the village of people around you, whether it’s the race team, and 23XI has been tremendous, Toyota, Monster Energy. It reminds me of the beginning of, I don’t know what journey I’m on, but I’m gonna keep pushing.”

Busch indicated that he has 20/20 vision in one eye, but that his other eye is not yet at that level. He also said he’s learning more about the nature of his injuries as he navigates through his recovery.

“Each situation is different,” Busch said. “It’s similar to a breast cancer survivor. Not every story is the same. Not every injury is the same. There’s been a bunch of military guys that have reached out to me, from all the years that I’ve worked with their different foundations, and you feel that village and that support. And so, it’s not just like a broken arm and you get your cast taken off, and then you can go bench-press 300 pounds. It’s a process.”

Busch — along with Xfinity Series drivers Bayley Currey, Ryan Vargas and Kyle Weatherman — helped the track get a fresh coat of paint on the pit walls, joining Blue Cross Blue Shield and a network of breast-cancer survivors in the 10th year of the awareness program at the speedway. It’s the second year for Busch’s “Window of Hope” initiative, which started as an idea sparked by a young fan that has now grown into a flourishing fundraiser.

“With NBC’s support behind the scenes last year, with the NASCAR Foundation, we were able to raise close to $100,000,” Busch said. “NASCAR helped us push it around the country; now we’re doing it locally with our Blue Cross Blue Shield family in North Carolina. It’s just neat to see the women come out and the stories that you hear and the support that everybody has in his community, and it’s just nice to see everybody out pushing and making all the walls pink.”

Posted on by NASCAR Foundation Release

CONCORD, N.C. — NASCAR Cup Series veteran driver Kurt Busch announced the Window of Hope pink window net program will return for a second year to show support for breast cancer survivors and those continuing to battle breast cancer. Thermal Control Products will provide each NASCAR Cup Series participating driver with a pink window net to display at next month’s running of the Bank of America ROVAL™ 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Following the Oct. 9 ROVAL race, each participating driver will sign their window net, which will be auctioned through The NASCAR Foundation with proceeds benefiting Atrium Health Levine Cancer Institute’s Project PINK. Project PINK was established to increase access to life-saving mammography screenings for uninsured women in the local area. Proceeds from Window of Hope will help fund “Free Mammography Days” in underserved communities where the need is highest.

The inspiration for “Window of Hope” came from a request from one of Busch’s young fans to support breast cancer awareness. In September of 2019, Kurt Busch received a letter from a young fan, Mason Bradley, expressing how big of a fan he was of the 2004 champion, and his hopes to one day meet Busch in-person. Mason’s letter included a hand-drawn image of Busch’s car with a note reading, “maybe you could do the window net pink.” Bradley’s request for the pink window net was an inspiration to support others, like his mother Stephanie, who was battling breast cancer at the time but is now in remission.

Through commitment and support from NASCAR, The NASCAR Foundation and Thermal Control Products, “Window of Hope” finally became a reality last year at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The 2021 program raised more than $100,000 benefiting breast cancer research and treatment.

“We started this program with the hopes to continue it for years to come, so I’m incredibly grateful the industry jumped on board to support us in bringing back the Window of Hope for the second year,” said Busch. “Last year was such a success in raising over $100,000 and I’m looking forward to seeing how much we can raise this year to support the Charlotte community through  Levine Cancer Institute’s Project PINK. We couldn’t do it without the support of NASCAR fans, drivers, teams and Thermal Control Products.”

The auction for the signed pink window nets will open Oct. 10 and close Oct. 17. For more information and a complete list of participating drivers, please visit: https://www.nascarfoundation.org/WindowOfHope.