Posted on by Cameron Richardson

CONCORD, N.C. — Entering the 2022 season, Chase Briscoe probably wasn’t on many people’s radar to reach the Round of 8, let alone, make the Cup Series postseason.

Briscoe accomplished the latter early in the season with an eye-opening win at Phoenix Raceway. His path to the Round of 8 Sunday at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course had just about the number of twists and turns that make up the 2.28-mile road course.

RELATED: Official results | Playoff standings

While Christopher Bell threw the ‘Hail Mary’ and got the clutch victory in overtime to lift himself from the trenches beneath the cutline, Briscoe was the one catching the ‘Hail Mary’ to send the No. 14 team to the Round of 8.

“I feel happier than I ever have when I’ve won a race before truthfully,” Briscoe said after the Bank of America Roval 400. “I know what this team is capable of, especially in the next round.

“To have a one-in-eight chance to win a NASCAR [Cup Series] championship is an unbelievable feeling and why it feels bigger than winning a race.”

When the caution flag flew with five to go, all bets were off in how the points would play out when the checkered flag flew. Through a handful of cautions and restarts, getting spun in the closing laps and fighting tooth and nail to make up as many positions as possible, Briscoe wheeled himself two points in front of the elimination line over defending series champion Kyle Larson.

“I just knew I had to go. It was a tough spot for the non-playoff guys,” Briscoe said. “I put the No. 43 in a bad spot and myself in a bad spot and I was just shoving him because I had to get going knowing that every spot was going to make a difference. I shoved him out of the way and then it got the No. 3 by both of us. “Then I had the back straightaway left to do a ‘Hail Mary.’ I locked the rear tires up. I thought I was going over the curb and have to serve a stop-and-go. Somehow, the thing stuck. Definitely drove it in way further than I had all day knowing that every point was going to matter. Luckily, the ‘Hail Mary,’ we caught it and we’re able to move on. What a day.”

Briscoe’s crew chief Johnny Klausmeier said the goal for the team was to manage their points through the day as they entered Sunday’s elimination race 12 points below the Round of 8 cutoff.

Briscoe was able to chip away at his deficit with seventh- and eighth-place finishes in the first two stages to grab seven points to go add on to his finishing total. With Kyle Larson and Daniel Suárez tallying more stage points than Briscoe, the No. 14 team needed some luck to go their way if they were to find themselves in the Round of 8 when all 112 laps were complete.

That luck came in the final stage as both the No. 5 and No. 99 endured mechanical issues that hampered them, leaving them outside the top 30 on the final result sheet while Briscoe soared to a ninth-place finish.

“We’re ecstatic obviously,” Klausmeier told NASCAR.com. “We were floating around the plus-three mark just kinda doing everything we needed to do and then got wrecked by the No. 3 car. So it’s kinda the highest of highs and lowest of lows right there in that moment. We came and got tires on it and let him know what he needed to do to advance and with the No. 20 car winning, there were a couple of scenarios. Chase and everybody just rallied behind him there and he had a heck of a drive at the end.”

RELATED: Briscoe embraces underdog role | Larson ousted at Roval

As his first two years have gone at the Cup level, Briscoe’s had to fight to keep climbing up the ranks and making his name in NASCAR’s premier series. In just his sophomore season, Briscoe is carrying the banner, not only for this No. 14 team, but for all of Stewart-Haas Racing as he’s the lone competitor in the four-car stable that’s still championship-eligible.

“It shows the amount of grit that he has,” Klausmeier said. “He has scratched and clawed, and it’s no secret, just to get here and get this opportunity and he makes the most of every opportunity. That’s huge, it goes a long way and he’s got a lot of talent to back it up.”

The Round of 8 in the Cup Series playoffs opens with the South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR competition officials said that a last-lap incident involving the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford of Cole Custer in Sunday’s Cup Series race is under review.

RELATED: Official results | At-track photos

Officials indicated that any potential penalties would not alter the Cup Series Playoffs field, which was trimmed from 12 title-eligible drivers to eight after Sunday’s Bank of America Roval 400. The details of the review were released in a NASCAR statement roughly an hour and a half after the race.

“NASCAR is reviewing data, video and radio transmissions from the 41 car following its incident on the backstretch during the final lap,” the statement read. “NASCAR will communicate the results of the review early this week. Any potential penalties would not affect the Round of 8 field.”

Custer finished 24th in Sunday’s race. SHR teammate Chase Briscoe placed ninth in the No. 14 Ford, sealing the last berth in the Round of 8 by a two-point margin over 2021 champ Kyle Larson. Officials were investigating whether Custer’s actions on the final lap, in which the car appeared to slow down, intentionally held up others and aided Briscoe’s bid to advance.

The No. 41 appeared to slow entering the backstretch chicane on the final lap, letting Briscoe’s No. 14 Mustang slip by to gain positions.

Posted on by Staff Report

Daniel Suárez dropped from championship contention Sunday with power-steering trouble that hampered his No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

Suárez’s car began to slow shortly after the start of the last stage of Sunday’s Bank of America Roval 400, the final race in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 12. As he wrestled the No. 99 Chevy around the 17-turn, 2.32-mile circuit, he lost ground to the front runners and made a pair of extended pit stops as his crew tried to fix the problem.

Suárez entered the race with a 12-point cushion above the elimination line. His 36th-place finish — five laps off the pace — left him nine points out of the playoff picture.

Posted on by Adam Fenwick

THOMPSON, Conn. – Eric Goodale entered Sunday’s Phoenix Communications 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park fourth in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings, 22 points behind leader Jon McKennedy.

He knew that to have any shot at the championship when the Tour rolled into Martinsville Speedway on Oct. 27, he had to gain maximum points Sunday afternoon at Thompson.

Mission accomplished.

Goodale stormed from 13th at the start, drove by Doug Coby just past the halfway point and saved just enough fuel to secure his first Tour victory of the season in the Phoenix Communications 150.

RELATED: Complete results from the Phoenix Communications 150 at Thompson

“It’s a damn good feeling,” Goodale said in Victory Lane. “Thompson Speedway, I’ve been racing here, SK (Modifieds), since I’ve been 20 years old and have never won here. This one is for my dad. He has wanted this race track more than anything. This is freaking awesome.”

Things didn’t start off great for Goodale, who got swept up in an incident on Lap 13. Thankfully his car sustained no damage and he was able to continue unscathed.

When the green flag waved again Goodale quickly found his mojo and slowly began picking off cars. It wouldn’t be long before he was in the top-10 and shortly after that, the top-five.

Goodale continued picking up positions and moved into second just past the Lap 60 mark. Now all that remained in front of him was Doug Coby, who had taken the lead from polesitter Ronnie Williams on the fourth lap.

It wasn’t long before Goodale chased down Coby and after a few laps of side-by-side battling, Goodale dispatched Coby on Lap 78 to take the race lead.

Once in front Goodale set sail, quickly pulling away from Coby and the rest of the field. However, there was still a bit of drama to play out as most in the field expected there to be additional cautions to allow teams to add fuel to their respective race cars.

As it turned out, those additional cautions never came.

With that in mind, Goodale backed his pace down during the final 10 laps in an effort to save fuel. His efforts proved successful as he crossed the finish line 3.383 seconds ahead of runner-up Mike Christopher Jr.

“We got caught up in that early accident or spin back there,” said Goodale following his fifth career NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory. “I was contemplating pitting. I didn’t like the way the car was handling. We were so tight. Jason (Shepphard, crew chief) said we were staying out.

“We’ve had a long run car. I didn’t know what place I was passing up to until they told me the 10 (Coby) was the leader and I got up to him.”

Christopher, making his first Tour start since the sixth race of the season at New Hampshire’s Monadnock Speedway in June, was able to finish second aboard Tommy Baldwin Jr.’s No. 7.

“I definitely didn’t expect the race to go green to checkered like that after that yellow,” Christopher said. “Just got shuffled back in the beginning there. Just like Jennerstown, picking cars off as the race went. Turned out it went all the way to the end.”

New Hampshire Motor Speedway victor Anthony Nocella came from 16th at the start to finish third, with Patrick Emerling and Kyle Bonsignore completing the top-five finishers. Only the top-five drivers in the field finished on the lead lap.

Championship leader McKennedy came home sixth, followed by Kyle Soper, Coby, Ron Silk and Bobby Santos III.

A replay of the Phoenix Communications 150 can be seen on USA Network on Friday, Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m. ET.

The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will wrap up the 2022 season on Thursday, Oct. 27 at Virginia’s Martinsville Speedway with the running of the Virginia is for Racing Lovers 200.

That event will be available live on FloRacing at 8 p.m. ET.

Posted on by Staff Report

Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course resulted in the second group of four drivers being eliminated from the 2022 playoffs, finalizing the eight remaining championship contenders.

WINNER

Christopher Bell entered Sunday’s race needing a win and nothing else. After a masterful strategy call on the second-to-last restart, Bell pulled ahead of race leader Kevin Harvick and sailed off into the sunset for a dramatic, walk-off victory to advance to the Round of 8. It was Bell’s second victory of the 2022 season and first on a road course since his Daytona International Speedway road course win in February 2021. The win shuffled the standings, resulting in defending series champion Kyle Larson left on the outside of the elimination line and out of the championship hunt.

RELATED: Race results | Photos from Charlotte

ELIMINATED DRIVERS

Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports
Daniel Suárez, Trackhouse Racing
Austin Cindric, Team Penske
Alex Bowman, Hendrick Motorsports (missed Talladega Superspeedway and Charlotte Roval)

ADVANCING TO THE ROUND OF 8
(Ordered by the points reset after Charlotte Roval)

Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports, 4,046
Joey Logano, Team Penske, 4,026
Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing, 4,021
Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing, 4,018
William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports, 4,015
Ryan Blaney, Team Penske, 4,015
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing, 4,013
Chase Briscoe, Stewart-Haas Racing, 4,009

WHO’S HOT?

Christopher Bell. In a season where parity has written most of the story lines, you can put a premium on the type of momentum Bell gained with his victory. Bell strung together a near-flawless Round of 16 performance, stalled by a mishap at Texas Motor Speedway and an unfruitful Talladega, leaving him in the win-or-go-home situation at the Roval. But with the Round of 12 behind him, Bell and the No. 20 team are right back on track and climbing toward the top of title talks. He now has six finishes of eighth or better in the last nine races and his top-10 result at Las Vegas in March should have them trending upward in the playoff outlook.

WHO’S NOT?

Ryan Blaney. Remembering that this is relative to the other remaining contenders, questions still surround the No. 12 team and Blaney on if they will reach Victory Lane this season. Blaney is the only winless driver remaining in the playoffs and slides down in the standings a bit on the reset because of this. After starting the playoffs 0-for-4, playoff drivers have once again reasserted that winning is the standard in the tight playoff push. Yes, Blaney had a solid Round of 12 with top-four finishes at Texas Motor Speedway and Talladega. But it may have been his best round with three tracks he has won at in his career. As the field slims down, the pressure is on for Blaney to get a win sooner rather than later.

NEXT RACE

The Round of 8 opens Sunday, Oct. 16 with the South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

WHO IT FAVORS

Joey Logano. Although Denny Hamlin won the Las Vegas playoff race in 2021 and led 31 laps in the spring before drivetrain issues, the track edge among remaining title contenders goes to Logano. Logano has been stellar at the Nevada track, leading the series with an 8.9 average finish to go along with a pair of wins (spring 2019 and 2020) and nearly 500 laps led. In 18 starts, Logano finished outside the top 16 just once all the way back in 2011. If anything, the 2022 season has rewarded consistency in a year where it has been pretty hard to come by. Based on that and the No. 22 Team Penske team’s speed in recent weeks, they should get off to a great start in the Round of 8.

WHO IT HURTS

Chase Briscoe. In three starts at Las Vegas, Briscoe hasn’t found much success with a 23.3 average finish and an unfortunate crash in the spring race. Already on the outside looking in, the No. 14 team will need to pick up the pace and contend for wins if they hope to make it into the Championship 4. On the bright side, Briscoe does have two Xfinity Series wins at the Nevada track, but it is a different story competing against the top talent at the Cup Series level — especially in pursuit of a title. Though he has flashed solid speed at times throughout the year, his lack of experience and routine success in Vegas compared to the remaining contenders hurt him heading to one of the toughest tests of his career.

Posted on by Staff Report

Phoenix Communications 150

Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park

Thumbnail

  • Race Results
Pos No. Name Sponsor Laps Diff
1 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 150 —
2 7 Mike Christopher, Jr.* Stuart Automotive 150 3.383
3 92 Anthony Nocella Nocella Paving/K&D Associates/Airgas 150 11.298
4 07 Patrick Emerling Captain Pip Marina & Hideaway 150 17.245
5 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munn’s Auto 150 17.785
6 79 Jon McKennedy Middlesex Interiors 150 19.388
7 15 Kyle Soper Eastport Foods 149 1 Lap
8 10 Doug Coby Mayhew Tools 149 1 Lap
9 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine and Future Homes 149 1 Lap
10 44 Bobby Santos III Harshaw Paving/Olivas Market 149 1 Lap
11 64 Austin Beers* Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical 149 1 Lap
12 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Enterprises 148 2 Laps
13 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood Market & Restaurant 148 2 Laps
14 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communication Inc. 148 2 Laps
15 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara 148 2 Laps
16 50 Ronnie Williams Empower Financial Services/RB Enterprises 147 3 Laps
17 3 Ryan Preece Propane Plus/ACG/Island International 147 3 Laps
18 32 Tyler Rypkema Northeast Drilling/MUSCO 146 4 Laps
19 78 Walter Sutcliffe, Jr. Last Minute Racing 146 4 Laps
20 34 J.B. Fortin Red Camel Racing/Johns Fuel/John Tree Removal 144 6 Laps
21 27 Gary McDonald Lakeland Landscape Supply 139 11 Laps
22 26 Ed Brunnhoelzl III Lakeland Landscape/TRC Electrict 136 14 Laps
23 82 Craig Lutz Horton Avenue Materials 121 29 Laps
24 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 30 120 Laps

RACE STATISTICS

Time of Race: 0 hrs., 52 mins, 52 secs

Average Speed: 106.400 mph

Margin of Victory: 3.383 Seconds

Caution Flags: Laps 13-15 (Car #54, #58, #34, #79 turn 4, no FP). 1 for 3 laps.

Lap Leaders: Doug Coby 1-77, Eric Goodale 78-150.

Total Laps Led: Doug Coby 77, Eric Goodale 73. 1 change involving 2 drivers.

Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

CONCORD, N.C. – Kyle Larson will not repeat as the NASCAR Cup Series champion in 2022.

A 35th-place finish, five laps down, in the Round of 12 elimination race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course on Sunday relegated the No. 5 team beneath the elimination line as Chase Briscoe charged through the field. When the checkered flag waved, Larson was ousted by two points as Briscoe was the final driver to advance.

RELATED: Charlotte race results | Bell nets clutch Roval win

Larson got loose at the exit of Turn 7 and contacted the wall with the right-rear quarter of the car, resulting in a broken toe link in the rear suspension. The No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet hit pit road at Lap 98 to repair the damage and lost five laps in the process.

The defending title winner lamented the on-track mistake, one in a series this year, he said.

“The only thing that I could have done differently was not crash and hit the wall and break the toe link,” Larson said. “So yeah, it’s all on me and then you know the team repaired it as quickly as they could and yeah, then at that point they’re just along for the ride as far as points go. Just dumb mistake on my part.”

This season was never going to replicate the team’s dominance of the 2021 season, a year that produced a stunning 10 wins, an All-Star Race victory and a championship celebration in Phoenix. A new car provided different challenges, and Larson at times found himself playing catch-up.

“It’s frustrating to end like this but as up-and-down as I was this season, I’m not surprised that I made another mistake — and a costly one at an important time.”

While crew chief Cliff Daniels appreciated Larson’s accountability to a degree, the longtime Hendrick Motorsports crewman noted many issues that plagued the team that were out of Larson’s control.

“As far as him taking so much of the blame, I stand by it that there’s probably nobody better than — and only a few similar to — the talent level of Kyle Larson in the world right now, much less in NASCAR in Cup racing,” Daniels told NASCAR.com. “So I will always stand behind him. I have every reason to stand behind him. He’s been incredible, you know, since we’ve been together, and I know that he’s owning some of his mistakes.

“But look, me as the leader of the team, I have to own the mistakes of you know, things on pit road, and when we miss the setup or miss the call or whatever the situation would be. And again, we’ve had some mechanical issues that you just can’t have. So no, it doesn’t fall all of it on his shoulders. And I know he’s trying to take a lot of the blame. But man, you know, the way it all shook out for us, there’s no single individual — not even him — that’s to blame.”

Indeed, Larson suffered three engine failures this season. Mechanical issues had historically been uncommon with the powerhouse Hendrick organization, but Larson found trouble as recently as the regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway.

The results have ultimately been spotty at best — two wins nearly six months apart with 16 top-10 finishes in 32 races and just three such results in the six postseason events.

MORE: Playoff Pulse: Round of 8 set

“It’s been tough,” Larson said. “I mean, there’s been no real rhythm to it for me and our team, but we fought hard all year to get better. And we’re gonna continue to fight, continue to work hard to be better for the rest of the season as well as be more prepared for next year.”

It’s been a season of introspective moments for Larson, renowned over the past 19 months (at least) for his world-class abilities.

“I’ve learned that there’s still a lot of area to get a lot better and just smarter,” Larson said. “Just doing a better job. Last year, seemed good. I was on my game and things were working out, restarts, everything. Every area was better as far as the driver goes last year. So just got to figure out how to get back to that point.”

Nonetheless, Larson and Daniels see chances to grow from the adversity that ended the No. 5 team’s championship hopes prematurely. Seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson is the last driver to repeat as Cup champion, winning five straight titles from 2006-10.

“It’s only gonna make us stronger because what do you get when you don’t get what you want? You get experience,” Daniels said. “And you can use that to build your character and to build your grit, or you can let it sidetrack you. And like not even 1% is this going to sidetrack us. We’re going to continue our process, our system, keep our team strong, which they are. I cannot say enough about the guys at the shop, the guys on the road, the guys that prepare this car every week. They’re an incredible group.”

“Cliff is an extremely good leader, a great leader,” Larson said. “He’s gonna continue to hold ourselves to a high standard and continue to push us along throughout the rest of the season and throughout the offseason to where we’re in much better shape.

“It’s definitely tough moments like today that are gonna shape our team into contending again next year.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

CONCORD, N.C. – In a turn of events that bordered on the unbelievable, Christopher Bell found his only path to the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

On fresh tires, thanks to a strategic pit stop under caution on Lap 105, Bell passed Kevin Harvick to the outside through Turns 1 and 2 after a restart on Lap 111 and pulled away to win Sunday’s Bank of America Roval 400 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course.

With the victory, Bell transferred to the Round of 8 and simultaneously eliminated reigning series champion Kyle Larson, who brought his No. 5 Chevrolet to pit road on Lap 98 after hitting the wall and breaking the right-rear toe link on his car.

RELATED: Official results | At-track photos

Larson finished five laps down in 35th and was ousted from the playoffs by two points. After spinning in the backstretch chicane on Lap 107, Chase Briscoe recovered to finish ninth on fresh tires and grabbed the eighth and final berth in the Round of 8 by the two-point margin over Larson.

The NASCAR Playoffs Grid, with the Round of 8 updated

Bell didn’t have the fastest car on Sunday, but he and crew chief Adam Stevens took advantage of two late cautions to make the winning move.

“Man, you’ve just got to be there at the end of these things,” said Bell, who entered the race 45 points below the cut line for the Round of 8. “I keep watching all these races where the fastest car doesn’t always win. No secret that road courses have not been our strength this year.

“We were just there at the right time. We obviously weren’t in position to win (before taking tires). We rolled the dice, gambled, and it paid off for us.”

A chagrined Larson blamed himself for his ouster.

“I just made way too many mistakes all year long,” Larson said. “Made another one today. Ultimately cost us an opportunity to go chase another championship.

“Just extremely mad at myself. I let the team down a number of times this year, and let them down in a big way today.”

Austin Cindric and Daniel Suárez also suffered elimination. Cindric spun entering the backstretch chicane after the final restart on Lap 111 and finished 21st, missing the Round of 8 by 13 points. Suárez fought his No. 99 Chevrolet after his power steering failed during the third stage and came home 36th, leaving him nine points behind Briscoe for the final transfer spot.

Christopher Bell's No. 20 Toyota leads the pack at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course
Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

Briscoe restarted outside the top 20 on Lap 111 and took advantage of Cindric’s spin, his own aggression and a block from Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Cole Custer, who held up cars Briscoe needed to pass on the final lap.

“Yeah, man, what a wild day,” Briscoe said. “It took every bit of it there at the end. To be easily in, then that debris caution comes out (on Lap 104). Still, I thought we had a really good shot of making it in. Get wrecked on the backstretch. Crazy at the end of these races, especially the road-course races, how much can change so quickly.

“I had no idea we were even going to have a shot (on the final restart). Truthfully, I knew we were probably out. I saw the 2 (Cindric) wreck, I thought maybe there’s still a chance. We had so much fresher tires than anybody. (Crew chief) Johnny (Klausmeier) pumped them way up to qualifying pressures, let me go attack, have the ball in my hands.”

What had been an orderly race for 103 laps descended into chaos after NASCAR called the third caution of the race on for debris in Turn 6, ending a 50-lap green-flag run.

That’s when Bell brought his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota to pit road for tires. He restarted 12th on Lap 107, and by the time he returned to the finish line — due in part to a pile-up in Turn 1 — Bell was pursuing Tyler Reddick for the second position.

On Lap 108, Bell slipped past Reddick and was chasing Harvick when a second debris caution for a melee in Turn 2 forced the race to overtime. On the final restart, Harvick was a sitting duck on older tires, but he managed to hold off Kyle Busch for the second spot.

Joining Bell and Briscoe in the Round of 8 are Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, William Byron and Ross Chastain. Elliott led a race-high 30 laps and appeared headed for his third victory at the Roval before the caution on Lap 104.

After the Lap 107 restart, Elliott, who had qualified for the Round of 8 with last Sunday’s victory at Talladega, spun through the grass outside Turn 6 after contact from Reddick and came home 20th.

Logano, the pole winner, took the first stage wire-to-wire but was buried in traffic after a pit stop on Lap 27 and finished 18th.

AJ Allmendinger ran fourth after leading 24 laps, followed by Justin Haley, Chris Buescher, Bubba Wallace, Reddick, Briscoe and Austin Dillon.

With points reset entering the Round of 8, Elliott holds the top spot in the NASCAR Cup standings with a 20-point edge over second-place Logano.

The Cup Series’ next race is the South Point 400, scheduled next Sunday, Oct. 16 (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM) at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The event opens the three-race Round of 8, which will determine the Championship 4 field for the season-ending title race Nov. 6 at Phoenix Raceway.

NOTE: Inspection is complete in the Cup Series garage with no issues, confirming Bell as the race winner. The Nos. 2 and 48 will be taken back to the NASCAR R&D Center for further inspection.

Contributing: Staff reports


Posted on by Staff Report

Which channels have NASCAR programming this week? We answer that and give the weekly NASCAR television listings here in the NASCAR TV schedule.

Note: All times are ET.

MORE: How to find USA Network | How to find FS1 | Get FOX Sports App | Watch on USA Network | Get the NBC Sports App | Watch on Peacock | FloRacing | How to watch NASCAR International

Monday, Oct. 10
10 a.m., IMSA: Prototype Challenge at Road Atlanta (tape delay), USA
11 a.m., IMSA: Michelin Pilot Challenge at Road Atlanta (tape delay), USA
1 p.m., ARCA Menards Series West: NAPA Auto Care 150 at All American Speedway (tape delay), USA
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

Wednesday, Oct. 12
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

Thursday, Oct. 13
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
10 p.m., Race for the Championship: The Cutoff, USA

Friday, Oct. 14
1:01 a.m., Race for the Championship: The Cutoff (re-air), USA
7:30 p.m., Whelen Modified Tour at Thompson Speedway (tape delay), USA
8:30 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series: Qualifying at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, USA

Saturday, Oct. 15
12:30 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series: Qualifying at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, USA
3:30 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series: Alsco Uniforms 302 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, NBC

On PRN:
2:30 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series: Alsco Uniforms 302 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway,

Sunday, Oct. 16
6 a.m., NASCAR Race Hub: Best of Radioactive — Las Vegas Motor Speedway, FS2
7 a.m., NASCAR Race Hub: Best of Features — 2022 season, FS2
8 a.m., NASCAR Race Hub: Boundless — Betty Skelton, FS2
9 a.m., NASCAR Race Hub: Best of Radioactive — Las Vegas Motor Speedway (re-air), FS2
Noon, NASCAR RaceDay: Las Vegas Motor Speedway, FS1
2 p.m., Countdown to Green, NBC
2:30 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series: South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, NBC

On PRN:
1:30 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series: South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Posted on by Staff Report

Kaulig Racing announced Sunday that Daniel Hemric will return to its No. 11 Chevrolet in the 2023 Xfinity Series.

The agreement was revealed Sunday morning at Charlotte Motor Speedway, ahead of the Bank of America Roval 400 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM) in the Cup Series Playoffs.

RELATED: Xfinity playoff standings | At-track photos

Hemric, 31, was last year’s champion in the Xfinity Series. He transitioned away from Joe Gibbs Racing after his title-clinching win to his first year with Kaulig Racing this season.

News of the extension came as part of the Kaulig Giving philanthropic group’s announcement that it would provide additional support to Hemric’s Be The Change Scholarship endowment. The annual scholarship program began in 2019, and will now assist two students on a path through the Rowan-Cabarrus Community College’s motorsports, welding or mechanical engineering fields of study.

“I was going to come here today and talk about the scholarship program with the Be The Change Scholarship and all that Kaulig Giving has done for myself, my family and our community,” Hemric said. “When they told me they wanted to bring me back on top of that, well that was … let’s tie it all together, right? So knowing this was happening today made it a little easier to sleep last night, given what had happened, but I also don’t rest easy on that, either. I know that there’s a lot for this race team, a lot for Kaulig Racing to do still left in this year.”

Hemric was eliminated from championship eligibility in Saturday’s Xfinity Series playoff race at the Charlotte road course. He has two top-five and 10 top-10 finishes with the Matt Kaulig-owned No. 11 team this year, including a pole in their first race together at the season-opener at Daytona.

The announcement shores up the Kaulig Racing lineup for 2023. AJ Allmendinger was introduced Wednesday as a full-time Cup Series teammate to Justin Haley next year. Chandler Smith will debut next season as a full-time replacement for Allmendinger on the Xfinity side, joining Hemric and the returning Landon Cassill in its three-car lineup.

“We thought it was no better time to announce that with what he does, and all of the givings that they do,” said Kaulig Racing president Chris Rice. “We think Daniel has had a year that’s probably been trying. That’s no means … it’s not where everybody wants to be, but we don’t take that lightly. We know as a race team, we’ve got to be better and we feel like with AJ Allmendinger going to Cup, Daniel Hemric can continuously help us with Chandler Smith, with those guys in the Xfinity Series just to continue the wins and continue to compete for championships.

“So really excited for Kaulig Racing. Super cool what Matt does for the racing program each and every week, but also all the givings he does. So just really excited to have Daniel back next year.”