NASCAR Hall of Famer and NBC analyst Dale Earnhardt Jr. will serve as an executive producer for the USA Network’s new unscripted series “Race for the Championship,” which will premiere Thursday, Sept. 1, 2022 at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
The 10-episode series will tell the story of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season and NASCAR Playoffs, from the competitive introduction of the Next Gen car at the Busch Light Clash at the LA Coliseum through the treacherous postseason road that brings four drivers their chance at championship glory in Phoenix.
“I have such a passion and love for the sport that I feel like this type of content is something that our fans are starving for,” Earnhardt Jr. told Variety. “It’s always a lot of fun to work on a project that is unique and about something you’re passionate about. So that makes it easy to want to dive in, give input and get feedback — and be a part of the process.”
I’m excited to be included as an Executive Producer for #RaceForTheChampionship! Kudos to all the drivers and teams for giving a look into their lives for this docuseries.
As “Race for the Championship” documents the lives of NASCAR’s best on and off the track, viewers will get a rare glimpse of what it takes to balance personal relationships with the pressure to perform in the high-stakes world of NASCAR Cup Series racing.
The series will feature a variety of drivers at different points as the drama of the 2022 season unfolds, including past champions like Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson, Kyle Busch, Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski, along with others eager to write their own NASCAR legacies such as Ryan Blaney, Daniel Suárez, Ross Chastain, Corey LaJoie and others.
“We need to give everyone a better opportunity to get to know the individuals that are involved in NASCAR,” Earnhardt Jr. said in the same interview. “I think this is a great opportunity to put a very human element into what we do and into our identity. It’s something I think that should have a profound impact on perception of the sport and also to give our fans a deeper dive into each individual.”
The premiere episode serves as a perfect primer for the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, which begin three days later at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, Sept. 4. That opening race airs at 6 p.m. ET and will also be broadcast on USA.
Editor’s note: This year’s playoff field will be spotlighted in USA Network’s new unscripted series “Race for the Championship” airing this fall. The first episode is Thursday, Sept. 1, at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Watch the trailer here.
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Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect Thursday’s news that 23XI Racing has withdrawn its request for Kurt Busch to receive a medical waiver for the postseason.
Two spots remain in the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs field, and the hope for most of the drivers not already locked in is simple: Win.
In what has been likely the most unpredictable regular season in the history of NASCAR’s playoff era, only Daytona remains before the 16-driver playoff field is set. And despite 15 Cup Series winners so far this season, there are two playoff spots up for grabs, not just one. All of which makes Sunday’s regular-season finale (10 a.m. ET, CNBC, Peacock, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) as high-stakes as it gets.
Kurt Busch won earlier this year, but 23XI Racing announced Thursday that the veteran driver will miss the start of the playoffs as he recovers from concussion-like symptoms. As a result, the team is withdrawing its request for a medical waiver, which is what Busch needed to keep his playoff spot.
With two playoff spots available, here’s everything you need to know about how the field will be set on Sunday.
These 14 drivers have all locked into the playoff field by virtue of wins: Chase Elliott (4 wins), Kyle Larson (2), Ross Chastain (2), Joey Logano (2), William Byron (2), Kevin Harvick (2), Denny Hamlin (2), Tyler Reddick (2), Christopher Bell (1), Chase Briscoe (1), Kyle Busch (1), Daniel Suárez (1), Austin Cindric (1) and Alex Bowman (1). Kurt Busch has also won once, but is not eligible for the postseason due to missing multiple races (five so far) for medical reasons.
Scenario: No new winner at Daytona
If there is not a new winner at Daytona, then the final two spots will go to Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney and Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. There are no other drivers who can advance to the postseason by points.
If a driver notches his first Cup Series win of the season at Daytona, then he locks into the playoffs provided the rest of the criteria is met — that he is ranked 30th or better in the regular-season standings and has attempted to start all 26 Cup Series regular-season races.
If there’s a new winner at Daytona that fits those qualifications, that winner would get one of the two remaining playoff spots. The final entrant would be either Blaney or Truex Jr. based on points (provided one of these two drivers isn’t the new winner in this scenario).
Blaney sits 25 points ahead of Truex with one race to go.
Scenario: Tied in points
As noted above, if there is a new winner at Daytona outside of Blaney and Truex Jr., then either Blaney or Truex Jr. will claim the final postseason spot via points. But what if the two tie in the regular-season standings?
Then we’d go to the tiebreaker, which is best finish in the regular season.
Heading into Daytona, Ryan Blaney holds the tiebreaker in this scenario. His third-place finish at Nashville Superspeedway is his best of the year, which is better than Truex’s best finish of fourth place.
However, if the two drivers finish in a points tie for the final spot andMartin Truex Jr. finishes second at Daytona, then that finish would be his best of the season and earn him the tiebreaker over Blaney.
If Truex Jr. finishes in third place, though, it won’t be enough in a tiebreaking scenario. Because the two drivers would have the same best finish of third, we’d go to the next best finish. Blaney would have four fourth-place finishes to fall back on as opposed to just two for Truex.
NASCAR Cup Series teams are set to participate in an organizational test this week at Martinsville Speedway.
Teams will plan to be on track from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET both Tuesday and Wednesday at the .526-mile Virginia oval. The sessions will be a key tune-up before the Cup Series returns Oct. 30 for the Xfinity 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM), the next-to-last event of the season and the deciding race that will lock in the Championship 4 field.
Organizations fielding one or two cars in the Cup Series are allowed to test one car this week at Martinsville; organizations with three or four Cup Series teams may test two cars. Officials indicated that multiple drivers from the same organization may test the same car. A full list of participating teams and drivers will be announced later.
A Goodyear tire test was held at Martinsville at the end of June, with Kyle Busch, Austin Cindric and Tyler Reddick — one driver representing each manufacturer — participating. NASCAR officials said no technical changes are planned for the two-day test this week, and that teams will use a new tire based on the findings from the Goodyear session.
William Byron is the most recent Cup Series winner at the historic short track, claiming a victory April 9 in the Next Gen car’s Martinsville debut.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — For the second time in as many days, AJ Allmendinger drove a No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet to a second-place finish behind Kyle Larson.
Allmendinger, a two-time NASCAR Cup Series winner, was runner-up in Sunday’s event at Watkins Glen International, a thriller to follow Saturday’s Xfinity Series race where the outcome mirrored the weekend headliner.
No one would have faulted him for some bitter feelings after coming so close to victory in consecutive days. But Allmendinger was far from downtrodden post-race.
“Finishing second sucks, let’s get that straight,” Allmendinger said. “But when it’s to Kyle Larson, I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times — he’s the most badass driver on the planet right now. I don’t care what you put him in. He can go win, and he pretty much shows it every day actually. It’s tough to finish second to him, but we were there.”
Indeed he was. A restart with five laps remaining meant limited time to find opportunity. Larson contacted Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott in Turn 1, sending the day’s dominant No. 9 Chevrolet wide and allowing Allmendinger to pounce.
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
A 2014 winner at the Glen, Allmendinger hounded Larson’s rear bumper in the closing laps, but Larson, the defending Cup champion, kept Allmendinger at bay to win by 0.882 seconds.
“(Saturday), we kind of got gifted a second place. Today, we earned it,” said Allmendinger, who recovered from a Lap 2 spin after contact from rookie Austin Cindric. “Honestly, I think it was the same deal. If I could’ve got in front of him, I don’t know if he passes me. We were pretty equal. It was just on different parts of the race track.”
As complimentary as Allmendinger was of Larson, the weekend winner was equally impressed with what Allmendinger accomplished.
“I’ve always had a lot of respect for AJ,” Larson said. “He does a really good job in the Xfinity Series, but I feel like he’s one of if not the most underrated guys in the NASCAR, any series in NASCAR, of my career that I’ve had in stock cars.
“You can just tell when drivers are really good. For AJ to put himself in position every single time on a road course, whether it be any series that he’s in, is amazing. As good of a job as he does in the Xfinity Series on ovals, I feel he really carries that car a lot of times. You can compare him to his teammates, and he’s always outrunning them. I feel like that’s a good way to kind of judge how good a driver is.
“There’s no doubt in my mind if he was in equipment equal to mine, he would be winning races frequently. He continues to get better. I love getting the chance to race him.”
After leading the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings for much of the season, Ron Silk has gone from the chased to the chaser.
Jon McKennedy, who picked up his first victory of the season on July 29 at Claremont Motorsports Park, has moved ahead of Silk and into the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship lead following last Thursday’s race at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park.
Silk and McKennedy were involved and not one, but two incidents during Thursday’s race. The second incident saw McKennedy make contact with the rear bumper of Silk’s Modified, sending him spinning in Turn 1. Silk was unable to recover from that incident and finished 12th. McKennedy would go on to finish fourth, which was enough to give him a five-point advantage on Silk in the battle for the championship.
Below is a breakdown of how the top 10 drivers in the standings fared during the Phoenix Communications 150, along with a complete look at the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings.
Craig Lutz, driver of the No. 82 Horton Avenue Materials Modified, celebrates in victory lane after winning the Phoenix Communications 150 for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park on Aug. 18, 2022. (Photo: Adam Glanzman/NASCAR)
Jon McKennedy: 414 points
Jon McKennedy made the best of an otherwise chaotic race to leave Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park as the new NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship leader. He led 17 laps at the midway point of the race, but was swept up in a multi-car crash on Lap 91 that started with contact between himself and Ron Silk, but was able to continue. He then made contact with Silk again later on Lap 133, but was able to avoid damage while Silk spun to bring out the caution. McKennedy ultimately finished fourth, his sixth top-five finish of the season.
Ron Silk: 409 points
Thursday’s race at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park is likely won Ron Silk would prefer to forget. He started second, but that was the highlight of the day. He was involved in the two aforementioned incidents with McKennedy and ultimately finished 12th, which cost him the lead in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings as a result.
Eric Goodale: 398 points
The Phoenix Communications 150 was a good race for Eric Goodale, who avoided several incidents on his way to a runner-up finish. It was his third top-five finish of the season and allowed him to close to within 16 points of McKennedy in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings.
Justin Bonsignore: 389 points
Justin Bonsignore was one of six drivers swept up in a crash in Turn 4 on Lap 91 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, but his car sustained minimal damage and he was able to continue. He ultimately crossed the finish line in fifth to earn his fourth top-five finish this season. He now sits 25 points behind McKennedy in the battle for the Tour championship.
Kyle Bonsignore: 374 points
Kyle Bonsignore was also one of the six drivers involved in the crash in Turn 4 on Lap 91, but like his cousin Justin he was able to continue. He brought his car home seventh after starting 14th, which allowed him to jump from seventh to fifth in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings.
Tommy Catalano: 373 points
Strategy allowed Tommy Catalano to lead five laps during Thursday’s Phoenix Communications 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, but he didn’t have the speed to keep up with the race leaders. He eventually fell one lap down and was unable to recover, resulting in a 15th-place finish. He dropped from fifth to sixth in the Tour standings.
Austin Beers: 368 points
What looked like a good race for Austin Beers turned bad late in the Phoenix Communications 150 when he was involved in the last accident of the night on Lap 139. He and veteran Donny Lia were involved in a crash that ended the night for Lia. Beers was able to finish the race one lap down, but he was scored 16th after starting seventh. He fell one position in the Tour standings as a result, going from sixth to seventh.
Craig Lutz: 353 points
A difficult season finally turned around Thursday for Craig Lutz, who dominated the Phoenix Communications 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park to earn his first victory of the season and his first win since a victory at Thompson in 2020. He took the lead for the first time on Lap 6 and took the lead for the final time on Lap 99. He led a race-high 119 laps on his way to victory.
Dave Sapienza: 291 points
It was another rough day for veteran Modified racer Dave Sapienza, who was involved in a crash on Lap 81 with J.B. Fortin and Gary McDonald. The damage was too much for Sapienza to continue and he was credited with a 23rd-place finish.
J.B. Fortin: 284 points
The only driver whose day was worse than that of Sapienza was J.B. Fortin, who admitted even before the race started that his Modified was down on power. Things only got worse for Fortin when he was swept up in the aforementioned crash with Sapienza and McDonald, ending his race and resulting in a 24th-place finish.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — Chase Elliott had little to say after winning his first NASCAR Cup Series Regular Season Championship on Sunday afternoon at Watkins Glen International.
The two-time track winner was muscled out of the lead in Turn 1 by Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kyle Larson on the final restart with five laps to go. On the inside lane heading into the 90-degree right-hander, Larson dove deep alongside Elliott and slid into Elliott’s door, pushing the No. 9 Chevrolet wide as Larson scurried to his second win of 2022.
The contact shipped Elliott as far back as fifth place before he rallied to a fourth-place finish.
After the event, Elliott spoke with team owner Rick Hendrick and vice chairman Jeff Gordon on pit road and appeared frustrated. In the media center, Elliott didn’t care much to express that displeasure.
“Just offer congratulations and get excited for next week,” Elliott said.
Larson, returning to Victory Lane for the first time since winning at Auto Club Speedway in February, was often burned by being in the right lane throughout the weekend, including in Saturday’s Xfinity race. That usually left him in the rear-view mirror by the time he got to Turn 2.
With five laps to go, Larson made a decision.
“I figured it was probably going to be the last restart of the weekend,” Larson said. “And I told myself if I had a nose ahead of him before we got to the braking zone, I was gonna have to try my best to maintain that and not let him get a nose ahead of me and pinch my corner off and end my chance of winning.
“So I had a good restart and got in there hot and did what I had to do to win. I’m not necessarily proud of it, especially with a teammate, but I feel like I had to execute that way to get the win.”
Larson, who went on a 10-race, championship-winning tear in 2021, contemplated the potentially frayed feelings that could stem from late-race rough driving. He accepted that risk in Turn 1, knowing Elliott likely won’t cut him a break any time soon.
“You have to weigh all that stuff out as you’re rolling under caution and that’s kind of all stuff that’s crossed my mind,” Larson said. “I don’t know. I think – and I hope it’ll be fine – but we’ll see. I didn’t end his day today, but I did probably take a win from him.
“So yeah, I don’t know. I think we’ve raced well in the past and in the next 11 weeks, but 10 weeks in the playoffs, there’s more than just me to worry about. But yeah, I know there definitely may be moments throughout the playoffs where – I feel like we’re around each other a lot because we’re pretty equal on track and stuff. So yeah, there may be moments, but in my position, you kind of have to accept it.”
Both of Larson’s wins this season have come at Elliott’s expense. At Auto Club, Larson slid high into Elliott on the frontstretch in a three-wide battle for the lead gone awry, plummeting Elliott to 26th. Contact Sunday wasn’t nearly as detrimental as Elliott still scored a top-five finish, but the history certainly persists.
“I feel like we’ve been in a good spot. We were able to talk after the incident at Auto Club and moved on past that pretty quickly,” Larson said. “… At Auto Club, it was more of an accident. Today it was hard racing at the end on a restart. So I’m sure it’ll warrant some conversation, but I don’t know.”
Elliott wasn’t concerned about the public’s perception of tying the two incidents together.
“It doesn’t matter. The day’s done,” Elliott said. “Just thinking about (Daytona) and learning what I need to do to be good there. There’s nothing I can do about today now. So doesn’t matter, does it? And I’ll answer that for you. It does not. It doesn’t matter.”
Jeff Andrews, president and general manager of Hendrick Motorsports, understood Elliott’s post-race demeanor but noted Larson’s move was nothing egregious.
“Tough, tough race track from a restart standpoint and Turn 1 is known for that kind of contact and shaking things up there at the end,” Andrews said. “And certainly hate that for Chase and Alan (Gustafson, No. 9 crew chief) and that team as hard as they worked all day and the car they had all day.
“At the same time, you know there was no intent by Kyle, certainly to have that happen. That’s the last thing we want to have happen. So as a team, we’ll work on that internally. But today and short-term here, we’re going to focus on the great race cars that were here today.”
The regular season ends with a highly-anticipated finale at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday (NBC, Peacock, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Editor’s note: Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott will both be spotlighted in USA Network’s new unscripted series “Race for the Championship” airing this fall. The first episode is Thursday, Sept. 1, at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Watch the trailer here.
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For the second consecutive day, Kyle Larson took his first lead of the race with five laps remaining and held off road-course ace and fellow Californian AJ Allmendinger for a trophy. Larson completed the rare weekend sweep at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International on Sunday afternoon with a clutch win in the NASCAR Cup Series’ Go Bowling at the Glen.
Larson made a dramatic pass on his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott on a restart with five laps to go on the historic road course. As the race leader, Elliott got to choose where to line up alongside Larson for the green flag and chose to start on Larson’s outside, setting up the dramatic contest for position.
Larson maneuvered past Elliott in the wide-sweeping first turn with both Allmendinger and Joey Logano able to get around Elliott as well. Allmendinger gave chase to Larson, but for the second day in a row, Larson, the driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, again proved too much.
It was the second consecutive NASCAR Cup Series victory for Larson, 30, at Watkins Glen as he finished .882 seconds ahead of Kaulig Racing’s Allmendinger. It’s Larson’s 18th career win and second of the 2022 season for the defending NASCAR Cup Series champion.
Team Penske’s Logano finished third just ahead of Elliott, who could take some considerable consolation in officially securing the 2022 Regular Season Championship – his first – at the end of Stage 1 on Sunday.
Larson immediately addressed the winning move.
That was really my only opportunity (to go for the lead), I’m not proud of it,’’ Larson said, “But being in the inside lane, the right lane, being the leader, choosing the left lane, it definitely wins out. But when it gets late in the race, it’s definitely risky.
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
“I knew that was my only opportunity to get by him. I feel like our cars were pretty equal today. Had a lot of fun after the green-flag cycle trying to chase him down. Kind of burned my stuff up a little bit.
“But the restarts kept me in it and kept our team in it. I’m proud of my guys. Good to get another win here at Watkins Glen and get some more bonus points going into the Playoffs, we haven’t had a lot here this year.’’
Larson said he anticipated having a conversation with Elliott and reiterated that he was only making a move, he felt necessary, to go for the victory — something he thought Elliott would have done as well.
“We have a competition meeting tomorrow,’’ Larson said. “I think if I was in his shoes, I would understand the risk that I’m taking, taking the left lane also. I’m not proud of it but I did what I felt like I had to do to get the win.’’
For his part after the race, Elliott said only, “Congratulations to Kyle and everybody on the 5 team and at Hendrick Motorsports for getting the win.’’
Elliott — who led a race-high 29 of the 90 laps — again took the company line when asked what he would say to Larson: “Congratulations. … always good to see HMS win. The boss [Rick Hendrick] deserves all the great wins that come for this company.’’
Trackhouse Racing driver Daniel Suárez finished fifth, followed by Front Row Motorsports’ Michael McDowell, who led 14 laps.
Richard Childress Racing’s Tyler Reddick, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell, RFK Racing’s Chris Buescher and Petty GMS Motorsports’ Erik Jones rounded out the top 10.
Formula One world champion Kimi Räikkönen had a solid effort in his NASCAR Cup Series debut – running as high as eighth place in Stage 2 before pitting. His day in the No. 91 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet came to an early end, however, when he was nudged off-track and into a tire barrier while racing among a large group of cars on the ensuing restart.
Räikkönen, 41, of Finland, climbed out of his car and appeared fine physically. Although disappointed with the finish to what looked like a promising day, he said he was still overall happy with his first start in NASCAR’s big leagues.
“It was good fun, you know, and I felt more confident all the time and had some good battles and the car felt like it had a lot of speed in there, but that’s how it goes sometimes,’’ said Räikkönen, who officially finished 37th in the 39-car field.
With one race remaining in the regular season and one spot still to be settled for the 16-driver playoff field, Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney holds a 25-point advantage over Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. for the final transfer position should no new winner emerge next week. They finished 23rd (Truex) and 24th (Blaney) on Sunday and both drivers are still looking for their first victory of the year.
Blaney heads into the regular-season finale next week at Daytona International Speedway as the defending race winner. The Coke Zero Sugar 400 in Daytona Beach is set for Saturday night (7 p.m. ET, NBC, Peacock, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), when the 16 drivers will be locked in for the 10-race playoffs that begin Sept. 4 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.
Notes: Competition officials indicated that post-race inspection in the NASCAR Cup Series garage was completed without major issue, confirming Larson as the winner. … Kevin Harvick’s bid for a third consecutive Cup Series win ended with an 12th-place finish at Watkins Glen. … Sunday’s race began in wet-weather conditions roughly one hour, 40 minutes after its scheduled start, because of a pair of delays for lightning and excessive rain.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — Kimi Räikkönen’s NASCAR Cup Series debut ended with a thud.
Räikkönen, the 2007 Formula One World Champion, was the victim of a stack-up exiting the inner loop at Watkins Glen International. Restarting 22nd to begin the final stage of Sunday’s race, Räikkönen found himself behind the contact from Trackhouse Racing teammate Ross Chastain to Austin Dillon. Dillon spun, cars slowed and Räikkönen couldn’t avoid the No. 27 Ford of Loris Hezemans, sending the 21-time F1 winner into the outside tire barrier.
“I had a good line there but everybody seemed to come to the left, unfortunately,” Räikkonen told NBC Sports. “I had no time to react. … The first impact, somebody hit the tire or the wheel and the wheel spun and something’s wrong with the wrist, but that’s how it goes.”
The event was Räikkönen’s inaugural Cup experience but not his first time spent in a NASCAR national series race. His first starts came in the Truck Series and Xfinity Series, making one-off starts for Kyle Busch Motorsports in 2011.
Now with Trackhouse’s PROJECT91, an endeavor meant specifically for the world’s elite drivers, Räikkönen was able to make his first foray into the United States’ premier motorsport league.
When asked by reporters what he enjoyed most, The Iceman had a simple response: “I think everything.”
“Everything is new and I got the full service with the rain and everything …,” he said.
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Räikkönen, who started 27th, spent a significant portion of his race inside the top 20 and even inside the top 10, working to as high as the eighth position. That featured battles with established Cup stars like Ryan Blaney, Chris Buescher and Chase Elliott, who clinched the Regular Season Championship in Sunday’s race.
A veteran racer himself, Räikkönen said he was able to learn plenty despite his shortened stint.
“Yeah, for sure, but it’s always hard to know especially now here like what states (of the pit) stop and you know the tire life on that,” he said. “I felt that we had very good speed and especially after the pit stops but maybe I was a bit too harsh on the tires on the one of the sets.”
Crew chief Darian Grubb beamed with pride through the frustration of a minimized race, noting how well the NASCAR newbie kept pace with seasoned stock-car aces.
“He was learning every lap,” Grubb told NASCAR.com. “You could see how he was racing those guys, how he was able to learn their styles, where they were fast, where they were slow. And he was able to maintain really well with them. So he’s obviously a very quick study.”
Elliott had a particularly spirited battle with Räikkönen down the backstretch that led to an Elliott pass in the carousel. The 2020 Cup champion was left with good impressions from the former F1 star.
“I thought he was doing great,” Elliott said. “He was right in the middle of a mess there and looked like he was right home. So I thought that was really cool.”
Grubb, who led Tony Stewart to a championship in 2011, was saddened to see the race end so early after the effort Räikkönen and the team put forth.
“It was amazing,” Grubb said of Räikkönen’s dedication. “He worked so hard trying to get ready for this. It’s really disappointing to end that way. The way the strategy scenario was working, I think he was gonna have a good chance to go race hard with guys. He had good tires and able to race his way up, he was able to make some passes and stuff already. And I think we had a good shot to be up in the top 10, which is what our goals were for the weekend.
“So disappointing end, but he did an amazing job all week preparing for it, coming in and ready to go.”
Monday, August 22 6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
6 p.m., NASCAR America Motormouths, Peacock
Tuesday, August 23
4 a.m., ARCA Menards Series: General Tire Delivers 100 (re-air), FS2
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
7 p.m., Best of Radioactive: 2022 season, FS1
Wednesday, August 24 1:38 a.m., Austin Dillon’s Life in the Fast Lane (re-air), USA Network
3:30 a.m., ARCA Menards Series: General Tire Delivers 100 (re-air), FS1
5 p.m., Best of Radioactive: 2022 season (re-air), FS1
5:30 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
6 p.m., NASCAR America Motormouths, Peacock
Thursday, August 25 7:30 a.m., Best of Radioactive: 2022 season (re-air), FS1
5:30 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1 6 p.m., Dale Jr. Download, Peacock
9 p.m., Austin Dillon’s Life in the Fast Lane: Horsepower and Baby Shower, USA Network
9:31 p.m., Austin Dillon’s Life in the Fast Lane: It’s a Swan-derful Life, USA Network
10:01 p.m., Race for the Championship Sneak Preview, USA Network
Friday, August 26
12:03 a.m., Austin Dillon’s Life in the Fast Lane: Horsepower and Baby Shower (re-air), USA Network
12:33 a.m., Austin Dillon’s Life in the Fast Lane: It’s a Swan-derful Life (re-air), USA Network
1 p.m., NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (re-air), USA Network
2 p.m., ARCA Menards Series West (re-air), USA Network
3 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series Qualifying at Daytona International Speedway, USA Network (CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER) | STORY
4:30 p.m., Dale Jr. Download: Ty Gibbs, USA Network
5 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series Qualifying at Daytona International Speedway, USA Network (CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER) | STORY
6:30 p.m., Austin Dillon’s Life in the Fast Lane: It’s a Swan-derful Life (re-air), USA Network
7 p.m., Countdown to Green, USA Network
7:30 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series: Wawa 250 powered by Coca-Cola from Daytona International Speedway, USA Network
10 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series post-race show, USA Network
10:30 p.m., Race for the Championship Sneak Preview, USA Network
On MRN: 5 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series: Pole Qualifying
7 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Daytona
Saturday, August 27 3 p.m., NASCAR RaceDay, FS1 7:15 p.m., Countdown to Green, NBC
7:30 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series: Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway, NBC, Peacock POSTPONED UNTIL SUNDAY
9:30 p.m., Race for the Championship Sneak Preview, USA Network
Sunday, August 28 1:32 a.m., Austin Dillon’s Life in the Fast Lane: Horsepower and Baby Shower (re-air), USA Network
10 a.m., NASCAR Cup Series: Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway, CNBC, Peacock
2 p.m., IMSA Michelin GT Challenge at Virginia International Raceway, CNBC
2 p.m., ARCA Menards Series: Sprecher 150 from the Milwaukee Mile, MAVTV, FloRacing
On Peacock: 10 a.m., NASCAR Cup Series Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway 2 p.m., IMSA Michelin GT Challenge at Virginia International Raceway
On MRN: 10 a.m., NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona
