Ty Gibbs bumped his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, John Hunter Nemechek, out of the lead on the final lap to claim his third NASCAR Xfinity Series race win of the season – by a mere 0.116 seconds over Nemechek in the ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond Raceway.
The two JGR drivers dominated the afternoon – combining to lead all but one of the 250 laps on the 0.75-mile track – the first short-track test of the season. Nemechek paced the field for a race-high 135 laps in the No. 18 JGR Toyota and was within checkered-flag sight when Gibbs got into him, pushing Nemechek’s Toyota high up the track and then motoring on for his series-best third win of the season and seventh of his young career.
In his previous two victories (at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and at Atlanta Motor Speedway) this season, the 19-year old Gibbs had led only seven total laps. He was out front 114 Saturday.
“I definitely deserve one back but we’re racing for wins and they are hard to come by so you have to take it,” said Gibbs, after climbing out of his No. 54 JGR Toyota.
“Short-track racing,” he added with a smile. “Got our third win so want to keep it going. What a great car.
“I deserve one back for sure but we’re racing for wins and I’ve got to do what I can to win.”
The second-generation driver Nemechek, who races full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, climbed out of his car and offered a smile to the TV cameras, but the 24-year-old was clearly miffed at his teammate.
“Him and I will settle it one day,” Nemechek said. “I don’t want to say too much and get myself in trouble. Just got drove through. He didn’t even try and make the corner there.
It was a career day for another teenager as well. Not only did 18-year old JR Motorsports driver Sam Mayer earn a career-best third-place finish, but he also secured the $100,000 Dash 4 Cash incentive prize offered by series sponsor Xfinity.
“By the end of the day our Chevrolet Camaro was as fast as Xfinity internet, so that’s a really good, feels-good moment for us and obviously, my career-best finish,” Mayer said. “Unbelievable. This team definitely deserves it.”
Now the top four eligible drivers from Saturday’s race in Richmond – Mayer, race winner Gibbs, fourth-place finisher AJ Allmendinger and fifth-place finisher Riley Herbst will have an opportunity to contend for the prize money next weekend at Martinsville Speedway.
Although he won’t be eligible for bonus money, reigning series champion Daniel Hemric had to be happy with his results Saturday. Hemric rallied from the rear of the starting grid to finish sixth, followed by Josh Berry, Brandon Brown, Ryan Sieg and Parker Retzlaff.
Noah Gragson came into the weekend leading the points standings, but his No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet suffered brake problems all afternoon and ultimately finished 21st, a lap down. The misfortune cost him the championship lead. Allmendinger, the only driver to have top-10 finishes in all seven races this year, now leads Gibbs and Gragson atop the standings by 20 points.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series races next on Friday night in the Call 811 Before You Dig 250 (7:30 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Berry is the defending winner, earning his first career series victory there in 2021.
Note: Inspection in the NASCAR Xfinity Series garage is clear. Gibbs’ win is official. One lug nut was not safe and secure on both the Nos. 10 and 16 cars of Landon Cassill and Allmendinger.
The pressure is getting turned up this weekend as NASCAR Cup Series teams arrived at Richmond Raceway for some intense short-track action. This will be the shortest track the Next Gen car has seen in a points race so far, and the pressure will be on for drivers and pit crews as shorter tracks turn up the intensity not only from a braking perspective for the drivers but from a speed perspective for pit crews in order to gain or retain track position.
Richmond is one of the most intense tracks when it comes to braking, and drivers appeared to make good use of the larger brake package that is in use on the Next Gen car as they practiced and qualified early Saturday. Just like at Phoenix Raceway, we’ll see brake cooling opened up to keep up with the braking demands required here and keep the brakes cool, but we’re likely to see more tire fall-off than we saw at Phoenix, which should make things exciting. Stewart-Haas Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing had strong representation in the final qualifying session, but Ryan Blaney was able to outdo all of them in order to capture the pole in his Team Penske Ford Mustang. His pole run in qualifying came after strong results in practice, where he topped the charts in both short-run and long-run speed as he was fastest on all runs less than 30 laps.
That tire fall-off combined with fast speed on a short track is going to put the pressure on pit crews to perform, and Richmond is likely to bring out record times during pit stops as we get to our first track where track position is significant since alternate pit-stop choreographies have been made legal. We’ve seen speed in the mid nine-second range from multiple teams with crews from the Nos. 18 and 9 cars topping the charts most weeks. That No. 18 crew along with other Joe Gibbs Racing teammates are likely to deploy their alternate pit-stop choreography Sunday where we’ll see both of their tire changers coming around the front of the car, which should shorten pit-stop times. Those JGR crews have spent significant time practicing this alternate choreography, and considering they’ve been able to go as low as 9.4 seconds using a traditional choreography, it would not be surprising to see them dip into the eight-second range for a four-tire pit stop.
Richmond is likely to bring out the excitement both on the track and on pit road and will give us a great preview of what we can expect from the Next Gen car on short tracks this season.
For the second consecutive week and third time of the seven-race old season, Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney will start from the Busch Light Pole – earning the top position Saturday in qualifying for Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Blaney’s No. 12 Ford Mustang turned in a lap of 119.782 mph to take the top position by only .20 over William Byron in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.
Blaney – who, remarkably, has only a single top-10 finish in 11 starts at the 0.75-mile Richmond track – was fastest in his first group as well as topping the final qualifying session.
“It means a lot,” Blaney told FS1. “Honestly, I didn’t think I got a very good lap. It was kind of an ugly lap on my end. Really proud of the 12 group.
“Track position means a lot here,” he continued. “Especially how my past history is here, I need all the track position I can get. Good start to the weekend, just got to keep it up and keep tires under it, that’s the biggest thing. We’ll see what tomorrow holds. Should be fun.”
Kyle Busch will start the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota third, alongside Stewart-Haas Racing’s Chase Briscoe. Busch’s six wins at Richmond is most among active drivers and he is one of three former winners to advance to the top 10 in qualifying.
The Richmond track has historically been a good venue for the Joe Gibbs Racing team, which is still looking for its first victory of the 2022 season. Five different Gibbs drivers have accounted for eight wins in the last 12 Richmond races.
Petty GMS Motorsports’ Erik Jones will start fifth, alongside JGR driver Martin Truex Jr., who has won three times in the last five Richmond races. SHR’s Kevin Harvick, another three-time Richmond winner, will start sixth alongside last weekend’s COTA winner, Ross Chastain, driver of the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet.
Christopher Bell (No. 20 JGR Toyota) and Aric Almirola (No. 10 SHR Ford) rounded out the top 10 in qualifying. Defending race winner Alex Bowman will start the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28th in the 37-car field.
Busch set the tone in the lone 20-minute practice session, posting 26 laps at a best time of 22.558 seconds and a top speed of 119.691 mph. Chris Buescher and Blaney timed in just behind the No. 18 at 22.628 and 22.689 seconds, respectively. Busch’s teammate, Christopher Bell, and Briscoe rounded out the top five. Three-time and most recent Richmond winner Martin Truex Jr. finished eighth on the practice leaderboard.
Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway
(⏰ 3:30 p.m. ET | 📺 FOX | 📻 MRN, SiriusXM)
Everything you need to know for NASCAR’s return to the East Coast and the seventh regular-season Cup Series race of the 2022 campaign.
Race-day info 📝
Where: Richmond, Virginia Approximate start time: 3:30 p.m. ET TV/Radio: FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Forecast: A slight chance of showers before 9 a.m. ET. Sunny, with a high near 67 degrees, according to NOAA.gov Race distance: 400 laps | 300 miles Stages: 80 | 180 | 400 Pit-road speed: 40 mph Caution car speed: 45 mph The purse: $7,110,735 Richmond 101: Get the full lowdown | Weekend schedule
Starting lineup: Qualifying order for Saturday Pit stalls: Sunday’s stall assignments| Expert pit analysis
Key things to watch 🔑
Practice and qualifying: An important note that came from Saturday’s sessions was the attention to off-throttle time. Drivers who were able to roll through the center of the corner and pick the gas back up earlier looked much stronger throughout the morning. Ryan Blaney once again flashed his exceptional 2022 speed with a blazing pole lap, inching past William Byron to make up the front row for Sunday’s race. While three of the four Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas advanced to the Final Round of qualifying, drivers admitted they were a bit off from the usual dominance shown here. Nonetheless, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr. and Christopher Bell each start in the top 10. Virginia native Denny Hamlin was the odd one out in 13th. All told, these numbers aren’t concerning for the organization at one of its best tracks and wouldn’t be much of an ‘off day’ at all for many other teams.
Blaney now has a series-leading three Busch Light Pole Awards in just seven ’22 races but hasn’t seen much success at Richmond in the past. With only one top 10 and an average finish of 22.2, will this be the race he finally turns it around?
Big story line: What’s up with Joe Gibbs Racing? Through six races this season, the organization has zero wins and only one driver currently in the top 10 in Cup Series standings: Martin Truex Jr. in seventh. Though wins have been increasingly hard to come by with the parity seen in the Next Gen car, it’s surprising to see Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell sitting 22nd and 23rd, respectively, in points. Hamlin won 15 races in the three seasons prior to 2022 but has struggled to find a foothold this year with a trio of DNFs and six straight finishes of 13th or worse. As many questions have been asked to this point, they could all be answered at Richmond. JGR has won eight of the last 12 races at the Virginia track, with Truex’s 2021 playoff victory being the most recent, and Hamlin finished runner-up in both Richmond races a season ago.
All it could take for JGR is just one of its drivers getting to Victory Lane to spark that overall championship form we’re accustomed to seeing. | Full JGR, Richmond analysis
Who’s hot? Who’s not?: With a strong nod to Ross Chastain for being the most in-form driver on the planet right now, Chase Elliott has quietly begun to pick up the pace. Elliott ranks atop the board in the regular-season points standings and has three finishes of ninth or better in the last four races. The 2020 Cup Series champion has found an impressively strong run of consistency while he keeps searching for his first win of the season. On the cold front, Aric Almirola has slowed down from his blistering pace to start the season — from the only driver with three top 10s in the first trio of races to three straight finishes of 12th or worse. Looking to regain momentum at Richmond, he finished sixth in this race a season ago.
Driving under the radar: Steady as he goes. That has been the theme for Martin Truex Jr.’s season so far. The No. 19 pilot has led laps in half the races this year and reeled off back-to-back finishes inside the top eight to creep his way up the points leaderboard. Under the radar so far this season, Truex will be in full focus at Richmond, a track he has dominated lately more than anyone else. He won three of the last five races here, has six consecutive top fives and is primed to make his first big statement of 2022 on Sunday.
Race-day staples ✅
Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles.
• Paint Scheme Preview: Colors are ready to roll at Richmond | Choose a favorite
• Power Rankings: Alex Bowman proving to be weekly contender for wins | Where does he rank?
• Fantasy Fastlane: Expect a strong JGR showing at Richmond | Top plays, sleepers
• NASCAR betting: Odds for Richmond spring race | BetMGM odds
Catch the pack 💨
Read up on the top headlines from the week leading up to Sunday’s race.
• Suspensions: No. 23 team hit with penalties after loose wheel at COTA | Latest penalty report • Track profile: Richmond Raceway | Learn more about the Virginia track • Analysis: Is Richmond where JGR turns the season around? | See what the numbers say
• Time for No. 20?: Christopher Bell has a positive outlook for Richmond | Read what he said
• On the calendar: RFK Racing appeal of L2 penalties to be heard April 7 | Latest information
• Checking the boxes: Next Gen car passes key tests at COTA | Detailed analysis
• Giving back: 23XI Racing announces tuition program for 2022 | More details
• A star: Linda Beard shining as team owner | Full heartwarming story
• Hello, old friend: Where are they now? Catching up with Derrike Cope | See what he’s up to
• Richmond rally: Michael Conti holds off Graham Bowling for eNASCAR win |Watch the finish
• Backseat Drivers: What’s Trackhouse Racing’s ceiling in 2022? | Do you agree with their take?
• NASCAR Snapshot: Giselle Zarur of FOX Deportes | Hear her story
• ‘Rocket Man’ returns: Ryan Newman competing in Whelen Modified Tour action at Richmond | See how he got there | Results
Get in on the action 💰
NASCAR Creative Design
Think you know NASCAR? Put your mettle to the test with gaming, fantasy.
• Play it LIVE: Full guide to 2022 NASCAR Fantasy Live game | Get the FAQ
• BetMGM: Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano anchor Richmond’s featured matchups | Who’s got your vote?
• The Action Network: Early bets for Richmond | Catch up with tips from the experts
• Weekly props: Will Toyota top the field at Richmond? | Make your picks
• Going all the way: NASCAR betting: 2022 Cup Series championship odds |See them here
Returning to Richmond 🕷
Richmond Raceway has had its share of storied history, hosting 130 Cup races since 1953. Take a look at some important track information.
Hard-hitting, race-relevant statistics, brought to you by the experts at Racing Insights.
• Joe Gibbs Racing has won eight of the last 12 races at Richmond, including the 2021 playoff race won by Martin Truex Jr.
• Aric Almirola is the only driver to complete every lap this season. His last DNF came in May 2021. • In both races at Richmond in 2021, Denny Hamlin finished runner-up, led the most laps and won both stages in each. • The final green-flag run was 146 laps or more in three of the last five races at Richmond. • Chase Elliott leads the series standings despite having just one top-five finish this season, coming last week at Circuit of The Americas.
Say what? 🎙
Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
Notable quotes from the stars of the sport heading into Sunday’s race.
• “I’m always excited to go to Richmond. I have been fortunate to have had a lot of success there throughout my career and especially the last few years. No matter what car you’re racing, you’re always going to fight the same things there. You have to be able to turn the middle and have good drive off if you want to have any chance, especially on the long run. Richmond is very unique compared to the tracks we have been to so far with this car, so it’s really going to be up to us to unload close and fine tune on it during practice and qualifying to be ready for the race, but I have a lot of confidence in Chris (Gabehart) and our team that we can do that.” — Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, on his mindset heading into Saturday.
• “I think for me I feel like I needed to be a little bit more aggressive, understanding how important track position is. As soon as the race starts it’s time to go. It’s easy to say, ‘Oh, I’ve got 500 miles to go. I’ll figure it out.’ Well, if you lose a couple spots those guys that passed you are really smart. They’re really good and they’re hard to pass back, so you end up spending more time trying to pass them than you would trying to move forward or whatever it might be, so more recently that’s been my focus is to get a little bit more aggressive over time and get a little bit more on the offensive instead of the defensive against these guys – just kind of take the fight to them and see what we’ve got.” — Harrison Burton, driver of the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford, on his mentality at the track.
• “We have two incredible race car drivers. I’ve said this about Daniel (Suárez) all along, and I’ve said it about Ross (Chastain) for the 10 years that I’ve known him. These are championship-caliber talents. We just need to get them in a spot where they can shine. And Chevrolet is strong right now. Our preparation is on point. Everybody is super motivated, so workflow is super effective during the week.” — Justin Marks, owner of Trackhouse Racing, on his motivation and performance as a team and manufacturer.
Seven NASCAR Cup Series teams lost a crew member and pit selection for Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) after failing pre-qualifying inspection twice on Friday evening.
The No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet of Austin Dillon, the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet of AJ Allmendinger, the No. 17 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford of Chris Buescher, the No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota of Bubba Wallace, the No. 31 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet of Justin Haley, the No. 44 NY Racing Team Chevrolet of Greg Biffle and the No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. were the teams with the inspection infractions.
Car chief Ryan Chism (No. 3 RCR Chevrolet), car chief Andy Seuss (No. 16 Kaulig Chevrolet), car chief Josh Sisco (No. 17 RFK Ford), car chief Zach Marquardt (No. 23 23XI Toyota), car chief Jaron Antley (No. 31 Kaulig Chevrolet), engineer Nick Ollila (No. 44 NYR Chevrolet) and car chief Joe Gwilt (No. 47 JTG Chevrolet) were the crew members ejected.
The Nos. 31 and 44 failed three times. As a result, those teams will not be permitted to qualify and will have to serve a pass-through penalty after taking the green flag on Sunday.
UPDATE: On Sunday, the No. 2 Team Penske Ford of Austin Cindric was sent to the rear for unapproved adjustments. He was originally slated to start 20th.
RICHMOND, Va. — After finishing last in the opening race of the 2022 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season in February at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway, Justin Bonsignore was in need of a rebound.
That came Friday at Richmond Raceway, where Bonsignore triumphed in the Virginia is for Racing Lovers 150, the second race of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season.
Bonsignore started from the pole and led early, but pit strategy shuffled him out of the lead and into the pack for much of the race. Meanwhile, 24-year-old Tommy Catalano was the star of the race, taking multiple turns at the front of the field as he appeared destined for his maiden Tour win.
Restarting seventh with 49 laps left, Bonsignore worked his way to second and set off in pursuit of Catalano. It took Bonsignore 20 laps to run down Catalano, but once he did, the fight for the lead was on.
With 11 laps left, Bonsignore made the move to Catalano’s inside. The two stayed side-by-side for the next lap before Bonsignore ultimately emerged with the race lead. He led the rest of the way for his first Tour win of the year and 32nd of his career.
“It’s been a long seven weeks, just driving home from work every day and you’re like, ‘Man, we are dead last in points,’ ” Bonsignore said. “Deep down we know New Smyrna was out of our control. You’re going to have parts failures in this series. It was just important to come back and try and have a good day.
“It’s nice to bounce back. More than anything it’s the confidence that it’ll give our team.”
Catalano settled for second after leading a majority of the race. It’s his best Tour finish in 51 starts dating back to 2018.
“It’s one of those deals where you’re so excited, but at the same time, you’re disappointed,” Catalano said. “We came here with the goal of finishing in the top 10. A good day for us would have been a top-10 finish. To come 10 laps short of winning the race is definitely nothing to hang our heads on.”
Chuck Hossfeld rallied late to finish third, with Kyle Ebersole overcoming a spin during qualifying to finish fourth ahead of Tyler Rypkema in fifth.
Eric Goodale, Jimmy Blewett, Jon McKennedy, returning NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Donny Lia and Ron Silk completed the top 10.
Ryan Newman, making his first Tour start of the season for the debuting SS Racing team, led a few laps early in the race before fading to a 13th-place finish.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season resumes May 14 at New York’s Riverhead Raceway.
