Chase Elliott claimed the Busch Light Pole in Saturday qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series at Watkins Glen International.
Elliott, a two-time Watkins Glen winner, posted a best lap of 125.147 mph in the final round on the 2.45-mile New York road course with the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. The Cup Series points leader’s third pole of the season was the 12th of his Cup Series career.
“I feel like there’s still work to do there from where we were in practice,’’ the 26-year-old Elliott said. “Feel like there’s a couple parts of the track I want to put together better. Just really hard to hit all of it. It’s just so fast. The pace is just so high in this car here. I feel like from what I remember with so much throttle you’re carrying, a little bit really goes a long way.’’
Teammate Kyle Larson will start second in the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet when Sunday’s Go Bowling at The Glen gets the green flag (3 p.m. ET, USA, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM). Michael McDowell starts third in his best qualifying effort of the year, and William Byron and Tyler Reddick finished out the top five in time trials.
Former Formula One champion Kimi Räikkönen qualified 27th for his Cup Series debut in the No. 91 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet.
Qualifying was completed with just one stoppage, for a solo spin and barrier scrape by Kyle Tilley’s No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Ford in the bus stop chicane that halted Group A with 9:14 remaining.
Sunday’s event is the next-to-last race in the 26-race regular season. The 16-driver field for the Cup Series Playoffs will be locked in after next Saturday’s regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway.
Larson fastest in practice
Kyle Larson, defending race winner at Watkins Glen, was the fastest on the overall practice chart at 123.715 mph, leading a 1-2 sweep by Hendrick Motorsports drivers.
Larson led Group A in practice, edging Chase Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet (123.689 mph) for the top spot. AJ Allmendinger was third-fast in the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevy and Hendrick’s William Byron — tops in Group B — rounded out a top-four sweep by Chevrolet drivers.
The second group of practice was red-flagged for separate incidents involving a pair of Toyota-affiliated drivers. Christopher Bell’s No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Camry stalled at the top of the esses after the car’s engine expired. Nearly simultaneously, Ty Gibbs — a substitute for the injured Kurt Busch for the fifth consecutive week — crashed into the Turn 5 tire barriers with the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota.
Five minutes were added to the Group B session after clean-up for both incidents. Gibbs notched the fifth-fastest lap in practice before his crunch of the barrier.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — The next step for Aric Almirola’s racing career is still uncertain, the veteran driver told reporters Saturday at Watkins Glen International.
A Friday report from Motorsport.com indicated that Almirola is indeed due to return to the No. 10 Ford at Stewart-Haas Racing for the 2023 season. But Almirola, who announced retirement from the NASCAR Cup Series in January, affirmed Saturday nothing is final for next season.
“A lot of thinking, a lot of praying about it,” Almirola said. “That’s something that’s been very instrumental for me throughout my entire career and especially the last four or five years, I’ve (put) God first in a lot of the decisions, and I’m working on getting there to where He’s first in all of these decisions. Sometimes, I have a bad habit of thinking that I know what’s best. But certainly have prayed a lot about it and continue to think about it and still don’t have a final decision.”
Almirola, a three-time winner in NASCAR’s premier series, noted a reliance on his faith to navigate the decision-making process while keeping an open mind.
“I think a lot of that just stems from being smart enough to never say never and to be open to what doors God may or may not open — and to be accepting to whatever doors close, right?” he said. “And I think back to my whole career. There’s plenty of times where I shouldn’t have had another opportunity, and I did. And the only way I can explain it is by God’s grace. And there’s plenty of times that I should have had a door close, and it didn’t.
“And when I think back to when I was 19 years old and got the opportunity to move from Florida to North Carolina, that is without a doubt God working in my life to allow that opportunity. Because I should have went to school and finished and got my mechanical engineering degree and moved to North Carolina and been an engineer on one of these teams in the garage area. But that wasn’t the case.”
Instead, Almirola has gone on to accrue eight career wins across NASCAR’s three national series and currently finds himself as the second driver beneath the cut line for this year’s rendition of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. The bad news is pointing his way into the postseason is mathematically impossible.
With two races remaining in the regular season, Almirola is 214 points outside the playoffs, meaning he must win either at Watkins Glen on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) or on Aug. 27 at Daytona International Speedway.
His eyes, he admitted, are already on Daytona.
“I think for all the drivers that aren’t currently locked into the playoffs, you go to Daytona with a certain level of pressure that’s really high, feeling like that’s your last shot,” Almirola said. “And every single year, when we start the season, our goal is to win races, make the playoffs, go run for a championship. So Daytona’s the last opportunity to make the playoffs.”
The No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet for defending NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson failed pre-race inspection two times Saturday at Watkins Glen International.
NASCAR officials ejected Jesse Saunders, car chief for the No. 5 Chevy team, for the remainder of the race weekend at the 2.45-mile road course. The No. 5 outfit also lost pit-stall selection for Sunday’s Go Bowling at The Glen (3 p.m. ET, USA, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM).
Larson is the defending race winner at Watkins Glen.
One incredible thing about road courses is that they provide flexibility and promote access to many different areas of the track. If you are making the trip to Watkins Glen International, one of the premier road courses in the United States, there are five key things you should do when visiting the 2.45-mile New York track.
1. Make your own itinerary
Whether you are attending the track for an entire weekend or attempting to make the most out of a single day, planning a daily schedule beforehand can ensure you get to as many activities and areas as possible. Vast road courses like Watkins Glen often have events and fan festivities spread out throughout the property, so knowing where and when things are happening is important. If you are traveling as a family, planning can be inclusive, create new ideas for repeat guests and can make sure the experience is enjoyable for everyone. The best way to see a full rundown of the schedule, plan for any pre-race activities and learn about new or updated amenities is to visit the track’s website.
Having a map in your hand can make the track and facilities easier to navigate. It can also help you cross off the areas that you have already been to and keep track of where you want to go next. Facilities and amenities are often updated from year-to-year, so making sure you have the latest version of any map can help avoid confusion for guests already familiar with the property. For a fun family activity, the printed map can also be used to set up an interactive scavenger hunt and see who can visit the most areas throughout the weekend. Having a map is great for explaining the different areas to children and can even double as a simple souvenir. The 2022 track map can be found here.
3. Use a radio scanner
Radio scanners are useful for enhancing any race fan’s experience at the track, but they can be even more useful on large road circuits like Watkins Glen. With the leaders out of sight for a large portion of the course, unlike ovals, you can keep track of the action in real-time with a combination of broadcasters and in-car radio communication. This method makes it easy for families to stay engaged through the race and experience the race from a complementary angle. Learn more about scanners here.
4. Explore a different vantage point
It is essential for fans to get a different view of the twists and turns Watkins Glen has to offer. With over 2 miles of winding roads, every bit of the track has its own personality. Watkins Glen has seven turns, jump-started by an electric Turn 1, conveniently located near the start-finish line. Fans have an opportunity to straddle the course in designated areas to witness the high speeds and action-packed racing all the way through the final chute. You may have one established spot to enjoy for most of the race weekend, but getting around and seeing the on-track action from a completely different viewpoint is one thing that makes road courses so unique. Learn each turn here.
If you have time, getting outside of the track and exploring the historic Watkins Glen area is a special treat for any race fan. As one of the most historic racing venues in the United States, Watkins Glen provides access to notable attractions such as the Watkins Glen Drivers Walk of Fame and the International Motor Racing Research Center. You will find iconic NASCAR legends like Richard Petty and Roger Penske honored among racing’s best.
This weekend’s NASCAR action at Watkins Glen starts with the Xfinity Series’ Sunoco Go Rewards 200 at The Glen (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) on Saturday and wraps up with the Cup Series’ Go Bowling at The Glen (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) on Sunday.
Kimi Räikkönen will drive anything. And pretty much has.
From Formula One to rally to motorcycles to stock cars, Räikkönen is a pure racer. So consider it no surprise that the 2007 Formula One World Champion said yes to making his NASCAR Cup Series debut at Watkins Glen International this Sunday (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports App, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
A 21-time F1 winner, Räikkönen returns to American stock-car racing for the first time since 2011, when one-off stints saw the Finnish legend make one NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start and one NASCAR Xfinity Series venture at Charlotte Motor Speedway, both for the then-fledgling Kyle Busch Motorsports. In fact, his Xfinity start was KBM’s first dip into NASCAR’s second national series, then working closely with Joe Nemechek’s NEMCO Motorsports.
Now, more than a decade later, The Iceman is back.
BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER
On Aug. 21, Räikkönen will make his inaugural endeavor in the United States’ premier form of motorsports, thanks almost entirely to Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks’ wild idea to form PROJECT91, a non-Charter Cup Series endeavor only to be fielded for the world’s most elite drivers. For Marks, the program’s opening act needed to be a definitive shout to international racing stars with the highest accolades.
“I know and have known for a long time that there is significant global interest among the elite motorsports drivers of the world in participating in a NASCAR race,” Marks said earlier this month. “It’s a unique series. People in Europe and around the world look at NASCAR as this giant form of motorsports in America — which it is — and have an interest in trying that. But, and I’ve said this before, it’s been hard to break through. … The barrier of entry has been high.
“With a guy like Kimi, I figured if we were going to launch this thing, obviously, we needed somebody relevant globally to set it off. And the timing was right.”
Marks, a past winner of IMSA’s Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway and NASCAR national series competitor, had a mutual connection to Räikkönen. That kickstarted the process and eventually resulted in a plane ticket for Marks to convince a world-class talent to become his latest driver.
“I think a big part of it was me flying to Switzerland and spending time with him face-to-face and not putting any pressure on him, but just saying this is what Trackhouse is about,” Marks said. “This is the idea of PROJECT91. This is what we’re trying to do in America and this great opportunity that we have in this great motorsport. And I didn’t put any pressure on him. And I think that he thought about it.
“And you know, there was some unfinished business back in 2011, when he raced before. The whole idea was to do a Cup race, and he never got the opportunity to do that. So that’s all to say that the stars probably aligned pretty well. And I think he found somebody in me that he could trust and spoke his language. And ultimately, he made the decision to come do it. And I’m proud that he did and happy that he did.”
That 2011 excursion saw Räikkönen hustle the No. 15 Perky Jerky Toyota to a 15th-place finish in the Truck race, while the Xfinity Series event saw more struggles — in heat, control and hydration — that led to a 27th-place result, four laps down.
Clearly, nothing has deterred Räikkönen from returning to NASCAR — other than waiting for the right opportunity. That chance is here now.
“At first I wasn’t really looking into this in a serious way,” Räikkönen said in a press release. “Obviously, we had more talks about how it would work, where the race would be and all sorts of things. It was just one race so it made sense for all of us as a family. I enjoyed it when I had my few races there (in 2011). Hopefully, I’ll have a good race and good fun. There are new cars there and I have never been at the track and things like that, but I am sure we can figure it out quickly.”
Mark Thompson | Getty Images
PREPARATION IS KEY
No part of the readying process has been spared — by driver or team. Marks and Co. whipped up a “preparation protocol” — a detailed list of everything Räikkönen would need in his 12 days before taking the green flag in the Go Bowling at The Glen. That included seat fittings, pit practice, a Chevrolet simulation session and more — and fast.
The driver was doing his homework, too. When Räikkönen showed up to the Trackhouse shop on Aug. 9, he immediately inquired about the intricacies of recent on-track events to find a better understanding before he even stepped into the car.
“He was asking questions about the (No.) 1 car’s pit penalty at Michigan,” Marks said. “He had questions about short-pitting stages and how to work strategy backward on the road courses. I mean, he has really done a lot of work and preparation. And that’s not surprising to me, because that’s what it takes to be as successful as he’s been in Formula One for so long. So, you know, I think from a speed and sort of preparation and knowledge standpoint, I think he’s going to be right on par.”
Aug. 10 was spent at the Chevrolet simulator for Räikkönen, who worked closely with Trackhouse’s Daniel Suárez, who piloted the No. 99 Chevrolet to his first Cup victory in June at Sonoma Raceway.
Räikkönen also was allotted time behind the wheel of one of the original NASCAR Next Gen prototypes in an Aug. 11 test session around Virginia International Raceway, a session courtesy of a June 15 update to the NASCAR Rule Book that permits a driver orientation test for elite competitors. The car was provided by Action Express, an IMSA program, with limited Trackhouse representatives permitted to work with Räikkönen. Mike Rockenfeller, a German sports-car ace and Le Mans winner, tested the same car later that day as he makes his Cup debut in Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 Chevrolet.
It should come as little surprise that Räikkönen impressed everyone, quickly getting up to speed in an entirely different vehicle than he’s ever wheeled before — foreign even in comparison to his decade-ago ventures stateside.
“Maybe we did 50 laps or something today?” Räikkönen said of his test. “So without having those and the simulator, for sure going into 20 minutes (of) practice and then qualifying would be a lot more harder so at least we prepared as well as we could. So thanks to NASCAR, letting us have those few laps today. We’ve done the best that we could, the most that we can, so we’ll see what we get. And obviously a new track for me, so I need to learn it. But we’ll see what we get.”
Suárez was present for the test and left with perhaps higher expectations than anticipated.
“It was short, but it was good,” Suárez said of the test. “I feel like Kimi, I’ve been trying to learn as much as I can from him, because obviously he’s an amazing race car driver. But I believe that a race car driver that is great is not just because he’s good driving that thing; it’s everything else around it. How he thinks, you know how open- or closed-minded he or she is.
“In this case, honestly I’ve been very, very impressed with him. He’s having a great time. He’s not here just to have fun, but he’s here to … he’s a competitor, and he wants to do well. So it’s been a lot of fun to work with him the last few days, and I’m really looking forward to see what he can do [this] week.”
Streeter Lecka | Getty Images
BIGGER THAN ONE DRIVER
Trackhouse isn’t the only entity excited to see what Räikkönen can provide to the race weekend.
Kevin Harvick, the 2014 Cup Series champion and winner of each of the past two races, admitted some giddiness in competing against one of the world’s best racers.
“It’s pretty awesome to have Kimi in the race and be able to know how much success that he had on the Formula One side,” Harvick told NASCAR.com on Tuesday. “I think what Justin Marks is doing with Kimi is unbelievable for everybody in the sport and the PROJECT91 vehicle that they’re putting him in. I think for me, I’m really excited for everybody in the sport to be able to see how this all progresses because I think it’s great for our sport.”
That came in addition to some playful jabs at his son, Keelan, who at 10 years old is a Formula One fan but is too young to appreciate Räikkönen’s excellence.
“I think that’s probably one thing that kids don’t do a very good job with these days is they don’t pay attention to the history,” Harvick said. “It’s all about the now. And you know, I think for me, I’m probably more excited about seeing Kimi on the race track than Keelan. He probably will say, ‘well, who’s Kimi Räikkönen?’ And I’m like, that’s the most ignorant thing you can possibly say. If you say you’re an F1 fan, and you don’t know who Kimi Räikkönen is, you’re probably not paying enough attention to what’s going on.”
The younger Harvick, a kart racer in his own right, is busy rooting for 2021 F1 champion Max Verstappen to make an eventual appearance in the No. 91 car.
FUTURE OF PROJECT91
That begs the question of what’s next for PROJECT91.
Räikkönen’s entry gained sponsorship from tech companies Recogni and iLOQ, the latter of which is a Finnish-based company that has long partnered with The Iceman. Those partnerships with Trackhouse were unsecured until late in the process.
Streeter Lecka | Getty Image
“I was gonna personally backstop it just because I believed in (it),” Marks said. “I’m looking at PROJECT91 as sort of the launch of a new little tiny startup company within Trackhouse. And I was willing to sort of fund that out of our company just to get it going the right way, because I believed in its ability to attract corporate partners. And then in the 11th hour, we were basically able to sell all that inventory just at the end of last week.”
So who could be next to wheel the No. 91 Chevrolet?
There has been talk of four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Hélio Castroneves joining the team for a possible Daytona 500 entry in 2023. Lewis Hamilton is among the names Marks would like to feature behind the wheel. But no matter who the program’s next target may be, Marks’ foremost priority is seeing its first endeavor through completion.
“What I’ve told Hélio, and what I’ve told most of the people I’ve talked to, is that I can’t really have any meaningful discussions about what the future of PROJECT91 looks like until we get through Watkins Glen,” Marks said. “One of the things that I have learned that everybody in my company already knew is that it’s a lot of work to field one of these cars, to get one of these cars ready for a new driver, to get the interior fitted, to figure out where you’re gonna get pit crews from, where you’re gonna get your people from and where you’re going to pull your parts and pieces out of existing 99 car and 1 car inventory.
“This was just an idea that I had and I got Kimi to commit, and I just threw it at the team. And now I’m learning about how much work it is. So every day, it helps me figure out what the strategy moving forward is. And so with that being said, you know, I think we talked about a lot of concepts and a lot of ideas, and a lot of things that would be really cool. But you know, I spent some time with Hélio, and he’s a guy that’s a perfect fit for what the PROJECT91 thing is all about. But we haven’t had any meaningful discussions, because it’s just we’re focused on getting through Watkins Glen, then it’s going to be playoffs, and then we’ll kind of reassess.”
For now, the focus rests upon Watkins Glen. Räikkönen will get his first real laps around the 2.45-mile circuit in Saturday’s practice session (12:05 p.m. ET, NBC Sports App, USA Network at 12:30 p.m.) before qualifying.
Then comes time to execute in the 90-lap Cup Series contest Sunday afternoon, where the vision of PROJECT91 formally becomes a reality.
“I think that honestly, probably the easiest and simplest part of this whole thing is going to be his rate of adaptation, his aggression and the speed of the race car,” Marks said, “because his level of preparation has been impressive to everybody here. … I mean, the way that he showed up ready to get fitted in the car, I have high expectations. I think he’s gonna haul ass.”
Lutz formally reignited the long-standing tradition Thompson and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour have shared since 1985 by surviving a wild Phoenix Communications 150 on Thursday night for his first win on the 2022 season.
While Lutz was relieved to earn a victory after struggling for consistency through the first 10 races of the year, he said being able to reach Victory Lane at Thompson with veteran car owner Danny Watts was what made the night special.
“Danny Watts has put a lot into his Modified program for a long time,” Lutz said. “It’s been a while since he won. We got a win with him at New Smyrna, but to win a Tour race [at Thompson] is just incredible, and there’s so many people to thank. We’ve had a hell of a season so far, but we just turned it around right now.”
Once the field raced into Turn 1 on the opening lap, Lutz immediately knew he had a car capable of winning.
While Lutz quickly took control of the lead, raw speed alone was not going to be enough for him to pull off the win. A rash of cautions in the middle of the Phoenix Communications 150 created a handful of diverging strategies that mixed up the running order.
He won at @ThompsonSpdwy in 2020 and he won again tonight!
Lutz had to be both patient and lucky to resume his spot at the front of the field, but he successfully managed to survive the on-track chaos before passing Tommy Catalano for the win on a late restart.
Most of the carnage ended up happening in Lutz’s rearview mirror and did not exclude the two NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship frontrunners. Ron Silk and Jon McKennedy got together on two separate occasions, with the latter accident relegating Silk to 12th.
Silk’s misfortune ended up bringing Eric Goodale closer into the championship fight after he came home second. Goodale admitted his car was not quite strong enough to run down Lutz but stressed that victories are a top priority for him with just five races remaining.
“The points will take care of themselves,” Goodale said. “We’re just here to win races. We came up one short, but Craig had a rocket ship. I thought I was going to have a chance on that last restart, but the guys did a bang-up job on pit road and put me in a position to win. We’ll take it and move on.”
Although Goodale managed to keep his car clean for most of the night like Lutz, the third-place finisher in six-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Doug Coby was not as lucky.
Coby drew the ire of his Tommy Baldwin Racing teammate Jimmy Blewett after a three-wide maneuver between the two of them and Tyler Rypkema resulted in Blewett crashing hard into the outside wall on the frontstretch, ending a strong night for Blewett.
The last thing Coby wanted was to see Baldwin’s car get damaged with Blewett behind the wheel, but he chalked everything up as a racing incident that ultimately went against Blewett’s favor.
“I was on the bottom, and [Blewett] chose to go in the middle,” Coby said. “He was hoping I would lift, but I was in there pretty good, and I tried to stay as low as I could. There’s three drivers three-wide, and I wasn’t the one who made it three-wide. I feel really bad, and I’m not looking to wreck Tommy’s car, but [Blewett] chose to go in the middle, and I have to protect my equipment.”
The dispute between Coby and Blewett, as well as the shift in the championship battle, was far from Lutz’s mind. He was overjoyed to celebrate with Watts and his crew after having yet to record a top-five this year entering the Phoenix Communications 150.
Lutz said the chaotic nature of the race made him uneasy as to whether his strategy would work, but he was proud of how hard everyone worked during the week and hopes the speed he showed Thursday becomes a recurring theme through the end of the season.
“This was one of those cars that was just perfect,” Lutz said. “All the guys had an awesome pit stop, and they made a great strategy call. I was nervous when we stayed out and everyone came for tires, but [this car] was pretty badass.”
McKennedy took control of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings by a small margin over Silk after finishing in fourth on Thursday. Justin Bonsignore completed the top five. Ryan Preece, Kyle Bonsignore, Timmy Solomito, Patrick Emerling and Spencer Davis made up the top 10.
A replay of the Phoenix Communications 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park can be seen on the USA Network on Sunday, Aug. 21 at 1 p.m. ET.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour returns to action on Saturday, Aug. 27, at Langley Speedway. The race will be streamed live on FloRacing.
Caution Flags: Laps 59-65 (Car #26 turn 4 through grass on frontstretch, no FP); 68-71 (Car #78 backstretch through grass no contact, FP #34); 76-79 (Car #24, #10, #32, #50, #36, #07 and #18 turn 4 contact, FP #78); 82-88 (Car #24, #34 and #26 turn 4 contact, FP #18); 91-96 (Car #7, #79, #16, #22, #51 and #3 contact turn 4, FP #78); 100-105 (Car #7 and #32 contact front stretch, FP #78); 133-137 (Car #16 between turn 1 & 2 contact with wall, FP #78); 139-142 (Car #3 and #64 turn 3 contact, FP #29). 8 for 43 laps.
Lap Leaders: Jimmy Blewett 1-2, Justin Bonsignore 3, Ronnie Williams 4-5, Craig Lutz 6-72, Jon McKennedy 73-89, Jimmy Blewett 90-93, Tommy Catalano 94-98, Craig Lutz 99-150.
Total Laps Led: Craig Lutz 119, Jon McKennedy 17, Jimmy Blewett 6, Tommy Catalano 5, Ronnie Williams 2, Justin Bonsignore 1.
Editor’s note: Kurt Busch 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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Kurt Busch has been ruled out for the next two NASCAR Cup Series races at Watkins Glen International and Daytona International Speedway, the 23XI Racing driver announced Thursday.
Busch will not be behind the wheel of the No. 45 Toyota for remainder of the regular season while concussion-like symptoms persist from his July 24 crash at Pocono Raceway. The Watkins Glen and Daytona races will be the fifth and sixth event, respectively, the veteran has missed.
“As much as I want to be in the car, the time is still not right,” Busch said in a statement. “… This decision is not an easy one, but the right one.”
As expected, Xfinity Series regular Ty Gibbs is slated to drive the No. 45 Toyota for 23XI at Sunday’s Go Bowling at The Glen (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) and at Daytona. Gibbs started the last four events for the No. 45 team, collecting three finishes inside the top 17.
There are just two races remaining before the NASCAR Playoffs begin, leaving questions surrounding Busch and the No. 45 team’s playoff outlook.
As it stands with 15 winners, Busch has been granted a waiver should he qualify for the Round of 16 by way of his win at Kansas Speedway earlier this season.
