Posted on by Pat DeCola

Twenty years ago, the United States experienced a series of coordinated terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, a day that will live on forever as one we’ll never forget.

NASCAR had raced at Richmond Raceway three days earlier in the Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400 (featuring a runner-up by future Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick) but elected not to run a race the next weekend out of respect for those affected by what had transpired. The series returned to the track Sept. 23 with the MBNA Cal Ripken, Jr. 400 at Dover International Speedway, famously won by Dale Earnhardt Jr.

With NASCAR returning to Richmond for Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400 Salute to First Responders (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio), the sport will race on the 20th anniversary of the attacks. Several drivers were asked about what they remember about that day in the weeks leading up to Saturday’s Round of 16 middle race of the NASCAR Playoffs, including Martin Truex Jr. — one of a handful of drivers who were racing in NASCAR at the time.

MORE: How NASCAR began to heal in September 2001 | Richmond schedule

The No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing driver not only remembers what he was doing that day, he also was, to a comparatively very small degree, impacted.

“Yeah, so, crazy story. We were actually at Dover at the race track testing,” Truex said during NASCAR Playoffs Media Day. “I think it was around 11 o’clock, we got the news and the ambulance that was there for the test actually had to leave. They called it off, like, ‘You gotta go. We gotta go. We’re sending the guys to New York City for this tragedy that just happened.’

“And we’re all wondering what the heck’s going on. This was a long time ago, there wasn’t like social media and all this stuff on your phone. You didn’t know. You had to turn on the news and see what was happening.”

Truex, a 21-year-old K&N Pro Series East full-time driver at the time, was at the Delaware track in preparation for his upcoming Xfinity Series debut. He later made that start on Sept. 22, finishing 38th after a wreck in a race that also included Harvick, Ryan Newman, Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth, Jamie McMurray and Jimmie Johnson.

“Just couldn’t believe it,” Truex said. “It was like we were in some crazy nightmare. I remember it obviously like it was yesterday. Crazy time for sure. Crazy day and it’s hard to believe it was that long ago.”

Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

On the heels of an electrifying Cook Out Southern 500, Richmond Raceway is set to host the second race of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs on Saturday night.

The Salute to American Heroes 400 rolls off at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. With one driver already locked into the Round of 12, let’s preview the action as the playoffs shift forward.

RELATED: Richmond weekend schedule | See the paint schemes for this weekend

STARTING UP FRONT

Kyle Larson will roll from the pole under the lights Saturday alongside Darlington Raceway winner Denny Hamlin. In Row 2 sit Martin Truex Jr. and Kurt Busch, while Kevin Harvick and Joey Logano make up Row 3. For the entire starting lineup, click here.

RICHMOND RACEWAY HISTORY

— The NASCAR Cup Series (then the Grand National Series) began racing at Richmond in 1953 when Lee Petty took the checkered flag, but the track was considerably different. The now-paved .75-mile D-shaped track was then a .5-mile dirt oval and part of the “Atlantic Rural Fairgrounds,” paved in between 1968 events and reconfigured to its current form before the fall race in 1988.

— The first scheduled night race on the .75-mile track was held in September 1991, won by Harry Gant as the second win in his streak of four straight that month.

— March 10, 1964 marks the actual date of the first “night race” at Richmond when the final 100 laps were completed on a Tuesday night after rain halted the race Sunday.

— The entire backstretch grandstands were removed after the 2015 season, following the removal of the Turn 3 grandstands in 2014. The removal of the backstretch grandstands reduced seating capacity by 9,000 seats.

Source: Racing Insights

RELATED: See every second race winner at Richmond | Memorable moments at Richmond

RULES PACKAGE

The NASCAR Cup Series cars will be fitted with the 750-horsepower, reduced-downforce package Saturday night at Richmond. Spoilers on the rear of the cars and splitters at the front end will be shorter than at the larger tracks on the circuit to minimize the aerodynamic impact on the vehicles.

GOODYEAR TIRES

Teams return to Richmond with the same tire compound that has been used at Richmond since 2020. But crew chiefs will still be paying close attention to how these tires respond, because this is the same compound that will be used for Championship Weekend at Phoenix Raceway in November.

This compound has been used at Richmond, Phoenix, New Hampshire Motor Speedway and World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway since the start of the 2020. Any laps on these tires will provide data teams may rely on for championship setups.

“Richmond has traditionally been known for putting on some great racing, and one of the reasons for that is that it has become what we consider a high tire-wear track,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing. “As tires wear at Richmond, lap times fall off. Drivers that manage their tires early in a run will have them fall off less and gain from that later in the run. Also, as the track takes rubber, drivers will be able to search around a little or move up the track, creating multiple lanes and more side-by-side racing.”

RICHMOND STORYLINES

– Alex Bowman’s Richmond win in May marked Chevrolet’s first at the “Action Track” in the last six races there and only its second in the last 11.

– Joe Gibbs Racing has won seven of the last 11 Richmond races.

– Carl Edwards’ win over Kyle Busch in April 2016 marks the only last-lap pass for the win in Richmond history.

– Martin Truex Jr. went 0-for-80 to start his career on short tracks but has now won five of the last 11.

– Denny Hamlin has won four of the last 16 playoff races, the most of any driver. Chase Elliott and Kevin Harvick each have three.

– Busch has seven consecutive top 10s at Richmond, while teammate Truex has five straight. No one else has more than two.

– Five of the last seven playoff races have been won from the front row.

– Two drivers who are winless in 2021 – Tyler Reddick and Harvick – are currently above the elimination line, while two drivers with multiple wins – Busch and Bowman – are currently below it.

Source: Racing Insights

PUTTING MONEY WHERE YOUR DRIVER IS

At 4-1 odds, according to BetMGM, Martin Truex Jr. is your must-pick of the weekend at Richmond. The 2017 Cup Series champion has won two of the last four races at the “Action Track” and hasn’t finished outside the top five in five straight Richmond contests. Other favorites by the odds are Denny Hamlin (11-2), Kyle Busch (6-1) and Kyle Larson (7-1).

Busch is a strong play this weekend, as he leads all active drivers with six Richmond victories. After crashing out at Darlington, the two-time Cup champion is in need of a bounce-back performance.

A driver under the radar to consider may be Austin Dillon, who sits at 50-1 odds and starts 19th Saturday night. Dillon has top 10s in four of his last five Richmond tries and led 55 laps in 2020.

On the other hand, steer clear of Ryan Blaney this weekend. His 25-1 odds might seem enticing, but Richmond is Blaney’s worst track statistically. He has yet to score a top-10 finish in 10 starts and holds an average finish of 23.4, second worst of all playoff drivers. That said, Blaney did earn a career-best 11th-place finish at Richmond in the spring.

RELATED: Odds for Saturday night’s race at Richmond

FANTASY LIVE

Want to manage a team and race your way to the top of the leaderboards? Check out the playoff version of NASCAR Fantasy Live, which is open now and offers a fresh start for those of you who played the regular-season contest. The free-to-play game lets you choose your drivers each week and show off your crew-chief instincts, and there is a $10,000 prize for the winner.

The 2021 Fantasy Live points leaders are Kyle Larson (1,067), Denny Hamlin (1,062) and Chase Elliott (890).

This year, NASCAR.com also has the Playoffs Grid Challenge game, presented by Ruoff Mortgage, where you can pick the winners for each round of the playoffs right up through the Championship 4. First prize is $10,000.

How to play: Playoffs Grid Challenge | Playoff Fantasy Live

ALSO ON NASCAR.COM

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

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

And finally, head over to the NASCAR Mobile App for AR Racing presented by Mobil 1, where you can design your own car and race the playoff drivers at the playoff tracks in augmented reality.

Posted on by Holly Cain

Only two races remain to set the 12-driver NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff grid and the Regular Season Championship remains very much up for grabs with only a single point separating five-race winner Austin Cindric and three-race winner A.J. Allmendinger.

That means there’s certainly a lot on the line in Saturday’s Go Bowling 250 (2:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at the 0.75-mile Richmond (Va.) Raceway – the Xfinity Series’ first trip to the track this season.

And to top it all off, one of the sport’s most popular drivers – ever – NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. returns to the track for his annual one-race competition. With four wins in eight NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Richmond, Earnhardt leaves the NBC television booth Saturday afternoon and climbs into his JR Motorsports team’s  No. 8 “United for America” Chevrolet an absolute favorite to win.

RELATED: Richmond schedule | Lineup for Xfinity race | Paint schemes for Richmond

His teammate, JR Motorsports driver Justin Allgaier, a two-time winner in 2021, swept both events at Richmond last year and is the only full-time series driver with a previous win at the track. He’s finished fourth or better in the last four Richmond races and his 494 laps led is second only to Earnhardt’s 829 laps led.

The competitive level for Saturday’s race will be extremely high with Team Penske’s Austin Cindric and Kaulig Racing’s AJ Allmendinger involved in a tight regular-season title fight. Cindric’s third-place effort at Darlington, S.C. last weekend along with Allmendinger’s 20th-place showing has certainly tightened the standings and increased the competitive drama for these final two regular-season races.

“It’s gonna be a fun two weeks,” Cindric promised with a smile.

Although he has yet to win at Richmond, Cindric has been very good at the track scoring five top-10 finishes in six starts. He was runner-up in both 2019 races and led 64 laps in the spring Richmond race last year, finishing fourth. Allmendinger, on the other hand, has only one Xfinity Series start – a 14th-place finish back in 2007. The veteran competed in 23 NASCAR Cup Series races at the track with only three top-10 finishes – his best showing a sixth place in 2014.

As productive as Allmendinger has been this year, it’s easy to forget he’s only had 51 total Xfinity Series starts in his career and that this is his first full season in Xfinity.

Conversely, the 12th and final Playoff position is also still very much up for grabs – via a new race winner who would automatically transfer in or simply the points battle between Riley Herbst and Michael Annett.

The JR Motorsports driver Annett held that Playoff position before a leg injury forced him to miss four of the previous six races. Meanwhile, Herbst, who drives the No. 98 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, has earned four top-10 finishes in the last six races. Herbst has two top-10 finishes in three Richmond starts. Similarly, Annett has scored top-10 finishes in the last three Richmond races.

The latest driver to lock himself into the postseason is Noah Gragson. Gragson, 23, earned his first NASCAR Xfinity Series victory of 2021 this past weekend at Darlington, S.C. and has top-10 finishes in four of his five Richmond starts, including a runner-up showing in 2018.

Gragson, as with the rest of the field, can count on a legitimate threat from his boss Earnhardt, who has been a master at Richmond. In eight Xfinity Series starts, he has four wins and seven top-10 finishes. He won three consecutive starts in three decades – 1999, 2002 and 2016 – four of five starts including a 1998 win as well.

And Earnhardt’s No. 8 carries a special nod to the Sept. 11 race date. The Chevrolet’s paint scheme will include tributes to the people lost in the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks – with the two World Trade Center Towers, the Pentagon and the Flight 93 Memorial in the design with the phrase, “Never Forget” on the quarter panels.

“It’s hard to believe it’s been 20 years since that terrible day,” Earnhardt said. “The spirit of unity and togetherness our country felt on Sept. 11 is just as relevant now as it was then. I’m honored to be driving this car and championing Unilever’s United for America program.”

Posted on by NASCAR.com

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin snapped a 31-race winless streak last weekend at Darlington Raceway, taking the trophy for the first NASCAR Playoffs race of 2021. With the victory came the spoils and, in this instance, Hamlin is the only driver to clinch a spot in the Round of 12 with his victory. Now the series heads to Richmond Raceway this weekend for the Federated Auto Parts 400 Salute to First Responders (Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) with 11 spots still up for grabs.

RELATED: Richmond weekend schedule | Darlington sets stage for Richmond | Latest on the playoffs

Already Clinched

The following driver has clinched a spot in the 12-driver field of the next round: Denny Hamlin. 

Can Clinch Via Points

If there is a repeat win by a previous Round of 16 winner (Denny Hamlin) or a win by a non-playoff driver, the following drivers could clinch by being 56 points above the 11th winless driver (in the playoffs) in the standings.

— Kyle Larson: Would clinch with 18 points if Denny Hamlin or Martin Truex Jr. wins, 19 points if Kurt Busch wins, 20 points if Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano or Kevin Harvick wins, 21 points if Brad Keselowski wins, 22 points if Christopher Bell, Chase Elliott or Aric Almirola wins.

— Martin Truex Jr., Kurt Busch, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Christopher Bell, Chase Elliott and Aric Almirola: Could only clinch with help.

If there is a new winner from Tyler Reddick or another winless driver lower in the standings but still eligible to advance to the next round, the following drivers could clinch by being 56 points above the 10th winless (in the playoffs) driver in the standings.

— Kyle Larson: Would clinch with 22 points.

— Martin Truex Jr., Kurt Busch, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Christopher Bell, Chase Elliott and Aric Almirola: Could only clinch with help.

Can Clinch Via Win

The following drivers would clinch on their win alone: Kyle Larson, Martin Truex Jr., Kurt Busch, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Christopher Bell, Chase Elliott, Aric Almirola, Tyler Reddick, Alex Bowman, Kyle Busch, William Byron or Michael McDowell.

Posted on by Marcus DiNitto

We’ve been writing in this space about a school of thought that many Cup Series Playoffs tracks are well-suited for Joe Gibbs Racing. Based on the betting odds for Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400 Salute to First Responders, Richmond Raceway fits that bill.

JGR drivers occupy the top three spots on most oddsboards, with Martin Truex Jr. commanding the most respect at prices ranging from +400 to +450. Denny Hamlin is the second betting choice at +500 to +550, as he looks to guide the No. 11 Toyota to its second straight trip to Victory Lane, and Kyle Busch is next, priced in the +600 to +700 range.

RELATED: NASCAR BetCenter | Odds for Saturday night at Richmond

Truex’s past Richmond performances justify his favorite status. In the six races at this three-quarter mile Virginia track since 2018, Truex has two wins, a total of five top-five finishes, a stellar 125.8 rating and has led 28.3 percent of laps. While Truex’s fifth-place finish in the spring race at Richmond didn’t reward bettors who played him at +400, he ran near the front all afternoon, leading 107 laps and finishing second in both stages.

Hamlin’s car, though, was the most dominant that Sunday in April, as he led 207 laps, won both stages, and finished second in his home state. Additionally, our friend Jim Sannes at numberFire compiled some data that makes Hamlin look pretty strong Saturday night:

Busch’s record at Richmond, meanwhile, rivals that of Truex: Two wins in the six races since 2018, no finishes outside of the top 10, a 111.6 rating and has led 20 percent of the laps run. He’s stellar on short tracks in general, boasting a 6.26 average finish and 108.1 rating in the 19 races on these layouts since 2018, both tops in Cup, per DriverAverages.com.

The No. 18 has been mired in inconsistency this season, however, crashing out of the two most recent Cup events, something bettors looking to take a shot at his relatively attractive odds must consider.

Odds shopping, value hunting

The oddsboard at the market-making SuperBook USA in Las Vegas may offer some hints on where to find value Saturday night in Richmond. 

This chart shows odds to win, for drivers priced at less than 100/1, at four betting shops around the country (as of 10:30 a.m. ET on Thursday, Sept. 9) – NASCAR’s three official betting partners (WynnBET, Barstool Sportsbook and BetMGM), plus the SuperBook. (* indicates a driver not in the playoffs)

Driver Wynn Barstool BetMGM SuperBook
Martin Truex Jr. +450 +450 +400 +450
Denny Hamlin +500 +500 +550 +500
Kyle Larson +500 +800 +700 +1200
Kyle Busch +650 +700 +600 +700
Joey Logano +700 +800 +800 +600
Brad Keselowski +900 +1000 +1000 +800
Kevin Harvick +1100 +1200 +1200 +1000
Chase Elliott +1200 +1100 +1000 +1400
William Byron +1500 +1600 +2000 +1400
Christopher Bell +1600 +1800 +1800 +1400
Alex Bowman +1800 +1800 +1800 +2000
Ryan Blaney +2000 +2000 +2500 +2000
Aric Almirola +3300 +3500 +5000 +2500
Kurt Busch +4000 +4000 +3300 +5000
Austin Dillon* +6000 +5000 +5000 +5000
Ross Chastain* +6600 +5000 +5000 +6000
Matt DiBenedetto* +6600 +8000 +8000 +6000
Tyler Reddick +6600 +6600 +6600 +6000

Plenty of public bettors will be enticed by the +800 on Kyle Larson or +1200 on Chase Elliott. Hendrick Motorsports, particularly the No. 5, has been the superior garage much of the season, and the opportunity to play these guys at such long odds doesn’t come around often. But the SuperBook’s +1200 and +1400 on Larson and Elliott, respectively, suggest NASCAR gamblers should keep looking.

That brings us to a pair of Team Penske drivers. 

Joey Logano is priced as the +600 third betting at the SuperBook and can be had for +800 elsewhere. Logano has an excellent short-track record – his 7.79 average finish and 107.6 rating since 2018 are both second to Busch – and he was a threat throughout the spring race at Richmond, leading 49 laps and finishing third for the race and in both stages.

At +1000 at BetMGM, Brad Keselowski is also worth a look. Kes has three short-track wins and has led 1,295 laps (second to Truex’s 1,505) on these ovals since 2018, and his Richmond-specific stats are also among the best.

And let’s come full circle back to JGR and the longest shot from that garage. Christopher Bell hasn’t been running well of late, finishing 20th, 32nd, 13th and 36th over the last four Cup races. But short, flat tracks seem to be his thing. This season, he’s finished ninth at Phoenix, seventh at Martinsville, fourth here at Richmond and second at Loudon, and the SuperBook certainly respects him with a +1400 price.

If you believe in Bell but not quite to the extent that you give him a realistic chance to win Saturday night, remember NASCAR betting goes beyond the outright market, and you can find some nice plus-money options on the No. 20. Barstool offers +500 odds (bet $100 to win $500) on Bell to finish in the top three, and BetMGM has +240 on a top-five.

Marcus DiNitto is a writer and editor living in Charlotte, North Carolina. He has been covering sports for nearly two-and-a-half decades and sports betting for more than 10 years. His first NASCAR betting experience was in 1995 at North Wilkesboro Speedway, where he went 0-for-3 on his matchup picks. Read his articles and follow him on Twitter; do not bet his picks.

Posted on by Davey Segal

Coming off two consecutive victories, Ron Silk is back to square one this weekend.

Silk –along with the rest of the drivers on the Whelen Modified Tour — will take to Richmond Raceway for the first time since 2002. All but two drivers (Chuck Hossfeld and Jamie Tomiano) have never turned laps in a modified at “The Action Track.” Justin Bonsignore, a two-time series champion and current points leader, has test laps in a tire test, but no competitive race laps.

It’s a bit of a catch-22 for Silk, who understands the lack of experience puts things on more of an evening playing field — himself included.

“Richmond is kind of an unknown for all of us,” Silk said. “The majority of haven’t raced there before, but it’s certainly nice to be rolling in there on a little bit of a hot streak.”

Silk’s victories at Beech Ridge and Oswego have him heading into Richmond as the hottest driver on the tour. Another win would mark the first time since 2015, when Doug Coby accomplished the feat, that a driver on the tour has won three straight races.

Sitting third in the standings, 57 points back of the lead, title hopes are slim to none for driver No. 85 Kevin Stuart Motorsports machine. That makes wins of the utmost priority for the final three races this season.

RELATED: Silk wins at Beech Ridge | Silk goes two straight at Oswego

In addition to his two wins, the Norwalk, Connecticut, native has scored three top-five finishes in a row and in five of his last six overall. He’s not too shabby at tracks for the first time, either. Recently, he finished 12th at Lancaster and sixth at Jennerstown last season, in addition to his Beech Ridge victory last month in Maine.

That’s why Silk is approaching Richmond with a positive mindset. Sure, he doesn’t know what he doesn’t know, but it seems to have worked out just fine for him in the past.

“It’s been pretty good for me over the years,” Silk said. “South Boston we went to two years ago for the first time, and I won there. We had a race in Canada (Delaware Speedway) 10 years ago that none of us had been to, and I won there. I normally acclimate to new tracks pretty quickly, so I’m hoping that works in my favor at Richmond.”

Besides the positivity, Silk isn’t changing his driving style any despite never turning a lap at the Virginia short-track.

“You still go down straightaway and turn left at the end,” he said. “Just try and make smart decisions when we get there. And hopefully, we’re close with the car when we get there. That’s kind of the real sticking point at a place you’ve never been to. That’s our main focus. And if not, we react quick and make the proper adjustments.”

RACING-REFERENCE: Ron Silk Career Stats

In addition to running every NWMT race thus far in 2021, Silk has kept himself busy elsewhere, running the Tri Track Open Modified Series, where he sits third in the standings with three top-fives in five races.

“I love to race and I am fortunate enough that people want me to drive their cars,” he said. “I feel very lucky that I have multiple opportunities to do this and hopefully can keep doing it for a while.”

The Virginia is For Racing Lovers 150, the 12th of 14 races on the Whelen Modified Tour this season, will go green this Friday at 7 p.m. ET with live coverage on NBC Sports Gold’s TrackPass.

Posted on by Terrin Waack

The Round of 16 showdown at Darlington Raceway sure shook up the 2021 NASCAR Playoffs picture – and it was literally the first race of the postseason. The point standings’ series of switcheroos is bound to make things even more interesting for Saturday’s short-track race at Richmond Raceway (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Out of the 16 drivers in the title field, only one remained stagnant in his spot in the standings.

RELATED: Richmond schedule | Keep up with all things playoffs

Take a look:

Screen Shot 2021 09 08 At 8.45.06 Pm

Now, to evaluate some highlights:

— Denny Hamlin went from being ranked seventh in the original playoff standings to now first after the opening race in the Round of 16. His jump is notable because his win at Darlington marked his first of 2021, and this is a driver who won seven races in 2020, six in the regular season alone.

— There are two drivers below the cutline with multiple wins from the 2021 regular season. Alex Bowman had three victories that qualified him into the postseason, and Kyle Busch had two. Bowman at least finished the race at Darlington running, albeit four laps short on the final distance. Busch, however, crashed out 125 laps into the 367-lap event. Busch dropping 10 spots in the standings is the biggest change, despite others either losing or gaining much more on the elimination line – like Kyle Larson gaining 33 points.

— The only two playoff drivers without a win remain above the elimination line: Tyler Reddick and Kevin Harvick. Both moved up thanks to Darlington results, just maybe not their own. Harvick had the top-five finish, so his rank increase was due to his own performance. Reddick, on the other hand, finished outside the top 15, so he benefited from others’ trouble.

— Reigning champion Chase Elliott sunk in the standings, unsurprisingly so because of his 31st-place finish at Darlington. Elliott is the only driver currently safe from elimination who lost points on the line. Tenth is the lowest he has been ranked all season, too.

— Martin Truex Jr. is that one driver who, out of the entire 16-drive field, did not move in the standings after Darlington’s race. Truex did add to his buffer on the elimination line, so he didn’t stay completely stagnant either.

After Saturday’s showdown at Richmond, only one race remains in the Round of 16: Bristol Motor Speedway (on Sept. 18), a wild-card venue for an elimination race that will trim the Cup Series playoff field from 16 to 12.

Posted on by Terrin Waack

NASCAR completed the second day of its two-day Next Gen test at Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday, as eight cars raced on the 2.5-mile track in Florida.

There were two goals for the trip. The first was to develop a tire with Goodyear that has the ability to return to Daytona in February. Secondly, NASCAR wanted to make sure it was able to hit its target speeds — both in single-car and multi-car runs — on the superspeedway, which normally flirts with the 200-mph mark.

“Overnight we changed the tapered spacer and made it smaller, to about 510 horsepower, and reduced the rear spoiler to seven inches,” said John Probst, NASCAR’s senior vice president of racing innovation. “That had the desired effect today, we did slow the cars down some. The feedback from the drivers was that it wasn’t a radical change from one to the next, so we feel like we now have that data to evaluate coming back here.”

RELATED: Photos from Next Gen test at Daytona

Probst said NASCAR will probably go back to Daytona in January for another test with even more teams, saying it was possible that session could feature 26 or more teams.

“It’s an important track for us to get right,” he said.

The drivers involved Wednesday were Chris Buescher (Roush Fenway Racing), William Byron (Hendrick Motorsports), Ross Chastain (Chip Ganassi Racing), Cole Custer (Stewart-Haas Racing), Austin Dillon (Richard Childress Racing), Denny Hamlin (Joe Gibbs Racing), Joey Logano (Team Penske) and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (JTG Daugherty Racing). Over half of the group has won a NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona before: Byron, Dillon, Hamlin, Logano and Stenhouse.

“I thought it went really well,” Byron said. “We got really aggressive there in that second drafting session. I feel like we were all pushing each other to make moves, and everyone was pretty comfortable with it, so that was really good to see.”

Teams tried out a few different methods to solve for the heat inside the vehicle, and Probst said NASCAR has some ideas to solve that issue.

Daytona marked the first Next Gen test with more than three cars on track at once. The first on-track test was back in October of 2019 at Richmond Raceway. The project was ultimately delayed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, pushing its competitive debut to 2022. NASCAR announced the development phase was complete on Feb. 1, 2021, and manufacturers unveiled their finished models on May 5, 2021.

RELATED: Complete timeline of Next Gen car’s progress

“I would say it’s kind of like jumping into the unknown,” Custer said. “There’s so many things you don’t know what it’s going to be like. It’s pretty much rethinking the whole way we race. We’re going over things we never would have thought of to go over with our other car.”

NASCAR will give teams their first organizational test with their own Next Gen cars in October at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval layout. There are then two more organizational tests tentatively scheduled after the 2021 season concludes to allow teams more prep time for next season.

“It’s a race car,” said Hamlin, a three-time Daytona 500 winner. “It’s got four tires and a steering wheel. So, from my standpoint, it doesn’t change greatly. But still, there are some nuances. Your vision is a little different. The shifting is going to be different, especially when you go into road courses. So you’re going to want to get as many reps as you can to learn that. Any chance that I can get to get in it to be better acclimated, the better off I’ll be.”

Posted on by Chase Wilhelm

Although a second-place finish was a disappointment for John Hunter Nemechek at Darlington Raceway, he took solace in the fact that he’s now locked into the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Playoffs Round of 8.

The runner-up run behind race winner Sheldon Creed was Nemechek’s 10th top five of the 2021 season. The regular-season champion can now enter the final Round of 10 race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Sept. 16 (9 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) with an all-or-nothing mentality.

“We’ll take the momentum, not going to dwell on this,” Nemechek said after Sunday’s race. “Just one race of the playoffs and now we’re focused on the next round. Bristol doesn’t mean anything to us other than to go out there and try to win. Then the next round starts and all that focus is on those three races to make it to Phoenix. Eyes on the big trophy at the end of the year.”

RELATED: Truck playoff standings

For No. 4 Kyle Busch Motorsports crew chief Eric Phillips, just surviving Darlington was mission accomplished.

“That was the biggest thing coming in here — don’t make any stupid mistakes,” Phillips told NASCAR.com “It’s easy to do.”

The second-place result means Nemechek will likely start on the front row for Bristol. After finishing 22nd at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, Nemechek and team were behind the 8-ball when it came to a starting spot and pit selection at Darlington.

With nothing to lose at Bristol, Phillips is already looking ahead to the first Round of 8 race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to potentially lock themselves into the Championship 4 with a victory, something the team accomplished at the 1.5-mile track in the spring.

“I think not finishing well at St. Louis (Gateway) hurt us a little bit there and you pay for it the next race,” Phillips said. “Just go to Bristol with a solid truck and have a good week. Our main focus will be Vegas. We were really good there in the spring. Obviously, going back there, we feel good about it. That will probably be the biggest focus because if we can lock in at Vegas, then everything is on to Phoenix at that point.”

Despite winning five races in the regular season, defending champion Creed has stolen the thunder from the No. 4 team with two consecutive race wins to kick off the postseason.

But Phillips feels consistency has played a major role in Creed’s recent streak due to how the starting lineup is calculated.

“The way the lineups go each week, when you rack up a couple wins, you put yourself in a good spot,” Phillips said. “Anytime you get toward the back in these you got guys racing hard. I mean everybody races hard, but it’s just racing with people you don’t know. I think that’s why you see it. If somebody wins a couple, they can win a few in a row.”

At the moment, Phillips has eyes on Creed as Nemechek’s stiffest competition as the race to Phoenix moves forward.

“We knew we were going to race him (Creed) going to Phoenix,” Phillips said. “I think he’s probably, especially with his momentum right now, he’s going to be tough. They’re all going to be tough, but now we can focus on the next round and make sure we’re ready to go.”

Posted on by Staff Report

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