Posted on by Staff Report

Ryan Blaney captured the Busch Pole Award for Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500 (6 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 16 opener at Darlington Raceway.

RELATED: Complete schedule for Darlington | Betting odds

Blaney will start his No. 12 Team Penske Ford from the first spot for the first time this season, in search of his first Darlington victory. Blaney, a playoff driver, is coming off back-to-back wins to close out the regular season.

Daniel Hemric claimed the pole for Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help A Hero 200 (3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM) in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, while Sheldon Creed, playoff driver of the No. 2 GMS Racing Chevrolet, earned the pole for Sunday’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series In It To Win It 200 (1:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM).

As NASCAR adapted to COVID-19 protocols last season, practice and qualifying were eliminated at a majority of national-series events to limit at-track time, exposure and to cut race weekend costs. To determine starting lineups, competition officials used grouped draws, added inversions for weekend doubleheaders, and eventually adopted a performance-metrics formula. That metrics format remains in place this season, drawing on performance from both individual races and season-long results.

NASCAR’s metrics formula for 2021 weighs:

  • 25 percent: Driver’s finishing position from the previous race
  • 25 percent: Car owner’s finishing position from the previous race
  • 35 percent: Team owner points ranking
  • 15 percent: Fastest lap from the previous race

See the full lineup for Sunday night’s Cup Series race below.

 

Start pos.
 Driver Car # Team
1 Ryan Blaney 12 Team Penske
2 Denny Hamlin 11 Joe Gibbs Racing
3 Kurt Busch 1 Chip Ganassi Racing
4 Chase Elliott 9 Hendrick Motorsports
5 Alex Bowman 48 Hendrick Motorsports
6 Kyle Larson 5 Hendrick Motorsports
7 Tyler Reddick 8 Richard Childress Racing
8 Aric Almirola 10 Stewart-Haas Racing
9 Kevin Harvick 4 Stewart-Haas Racing
10 Martin Truex Jr. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing
11 Joey Logano 22 Team Penske
12 Kyle Busch 18 Joe Gibbs Racing
13 Christopher Bell 20 Joe Gibbs Racing
14 William Byron 24 Hendrick Motorsports
15 Michael McDowell 34 Front Row Motorsports
16 Brad Keselowski 2 Team Penske
17 Bubba Wallace 23 23XI Racing
18 Ryan Preece 37 JTG Daugherty Racing
19 Ryan Newman 6 Roush Fenway Racing
20 Justin Haley 77 Spire Motorsports
21 Austin Dillon 3 Richard Childress Racing
22 Erik Jones 43 Richard Petty Motorsports
23 Ross Chastain 42 Chip Ganassi Racing
24 Chase Briscoe 14 Stewart-Haas Racing
25 Corey LaJoie 7 Spire Motorsports
26 Daniel Suarez 99 TrackHouse Racing
27 BJ McLeod 78 Live Fast Motorsports
28 Josh Bilicki 52 Rick Ware Racing
29 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing
30 Matt DiBenedetto 21 Wood Brothers Racing
31 Cole Custer 41 Stewart-Haas Racing
32 Anthony Alfredo 38 Front Row Motorsports
33 Cody Ware 51 Petty Ware Racing
34 Chris Buescher 17 Roush Fenway Racing
35 Joey Gase 15 Rick Ware Racing
36 James Davison 53 Rick Ware Racing
37 Quin Houff 00 StarCom Racing

Practice and qualifying are tentatively scheduled for eight Cup Series races this year. Just one race remains with Busch Pole Qualifying on the schedule — the season-ending championship race Nov. 7 at Phoenix Raceway.

Posted on by Pat DeCola

The 2021 NASCAR Playoffs are officially here, so we can probably go ahead and pencil in Kyle Larson as this year’s champion, right?

Wrong. So very, very wrong.

The No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports driver rolls into the 10-race jaunt to cap the year as the Regular Season Champion and heavy favorite (9-4) to hoist the trophy in November at Phoenix Raceway. Enjoying easily the best season of his career already, it’s not hard to picture a world in which Larson adds onto his series-leading five wins over the next two and a half months and battles for the title out in the desert, as the odds and every expert under the sun suggest.

MORE: Full championship odds | Latest Power Rankings

There’s no such thing as a guarantee in auto racing, however, and we don’t have to look too far to see that regular-season dominance doesn’t necessarily pave a clear path to a Bill France Cup.

At this point a year ago, Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick had combined to win 13 of the 26 regular-season races. In total, Harvick finished the year with nine victories to Hamlin’s seven, as the pair sat in a class of their own above the rest of the field.

Only one of them made it to the Championship 4 to compete for the title. Exactly neither of them walked away from the desert as champion.

Being the favorite is one thing. Fulfilling that destiny is another.

So, after seeing that drama unfold last fall, how does it feel to be the favorite before the postseason officially kicks off this Sunday for the Southern 500 (6 p.m. ET, NBCSN) at Darlington Raceway?

“Yeah, I don’t know, I mean, it means you’re in a fast race car and you’re doing a good job, so it’s good,” Larson said Tuesday during NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Media Day. “I mean, it’s not like everybody’s gunning for you and you have a target on your back or anything like that. It’s just a cool spot to be in.

RELATED: Meet the playoffs field | Full Darlington schedule

“It’s been a lot of hard work to get to this point. Now we’ve got a great opportunity to go chase a championship. We’ve been doing a great job doing what we’ve been doing. We’ve just got to continue that and execute well. Hopefully, it will all kind of take care of itself.”

Hearing Larson say he doesn’t think other top drivers are gunning for him is interesting, as he’s clearly been the driver to beat after Hamlin opened the season as a top-five machine before cooling slightly and remaining winless to present day.

Perhaps drivers have finally adjusted to the fickle nature of a 10-race, elimination-style format, knowing anything is possible and a season’s fortune can turn on a dime. Perhaps the top talent is just that — top talent — because focusing on things beyond one’s control, such as what other drivers are doing, only serves as a distraction from the ultimate goal.

That doesn’t mean they haven’t noticed what Larson has put in the books so far, just that the slate is now wiped clean to a degree, the focus turns forward and it’s anyone’s ballgame.

“Certainly the last 12-13 races (the No. 5 team has) been on top of their game,” said Hamlin. “Kyle’s been on top of his game and really evolved as a driver. He’s gotten better at all different types of race tracks and they’ve got super-fast race cars. Doesn’t matter whether it’s road courses or 550 (horsepower tracks) but I believe we’re slowly creeping in on that and I believe that we’re a team that is just as dangerous on all different types of race tracks.

“Ultimately, yeah, we’ll need to beat him in the end, and I wish we could race these last 10 races out like the regular season has been going; so tight back and forth these last six, seven weeks. It’s a reset now and it’s a three-race season. You’re not really racing him until the final race if he makes it and I make it. You’re racing that cut line.”

If he makes it.

That’s almost all you need to know right there.

Hendrick Motorsports has been sensational as a whole this year, and with its four cars comprising a quarter of the playoff field it seems extremely unlikely at least one of them won’t be competing in the Championship 4. It’s even possible one of Larson’s teammates — last year’s champion, for instance — could knock him out.

“It’s definitely unique, for sure. But I think we’ve all — a lot of us have been around racing long enough, have been doing it long enough, to kind of understand how that dynamic works,” 2020 champion Chase Elliott said Tuesday. “At the end of the day, I feel like for Mr. Hendrick especially, he’s done a lot for the sport, he’s changed a lot of people’s lives in the sport, mine included. If his cars are racing against each other for a championship, I think he deserves that.

” … I’m for it. And it really doesn’t matter who you’re racing against, you just hope you’re around at the end of this thing and have a shot. … Like, a lot of these teams have four cars. If you’re at a solid organization, there’s a good chance you’re going to be racing against your teammates for big moments, big opportunities. Ultimately, I think it’s a good thing. It means we’re at a great organization and you have a chance to win and have won some races.”

It could be Larson alone in the Championship 4. It could be Larson vs. Elliott. Heck, it could even be Alex Bowman (three wins) and/or William Byron (series-best top-10 streak from Miami to Dover). You just don’t know, and fate doesn’t play favorites.

Another note worth mentioning: only one of the tracks Larson has won at this season (Las Vegas) appears again the rest of the way, and it’s relatively early on as the Round of 12 opener. It’s potentially a dire need for him to be successful in that race, with a pair of wild cards in Talladega Superspeedway and the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval (which Larson hasn’t raced on since 2019) making up the back two-thirds of the Round of 12. He hasn’t raced on Bristol (Round of 16 cutoff) without dirt since ’19, too.

Nearly all of the remaining tracks appeared on the schedule earlier in the year, with all of the repeats ending with a current playoff driver in Victory Lane: Darlington (Martin Truex Jr.), Richmond (Bowman), Bristol, albeit dirt (Joey Logano), Las Vegas (Larson), Talladega (Brad Keselowski), Kansas (Kyle Busch), Martinsville (Truex), Phoenix (Truex). Texas (Round of 8 opener) hosted the All-Star Race, which Larson did win.

His competitors know he’ll be tough to beat despite some of the factors working against him.

They also know a team, when the pressure ramps up, can just as easily beat itself.

“Larson obviously is a top talent. We’ve all known that for a long time,” said 2015 champ Kyle Busch. ” … I think they won Vegas was their first one, so he’s been right there all season long and been competitive and fast, and probably could’ve had a few more wins. I think we stole one from him at Kansas; they lost one on the last corner of the last lap at Pocono, so things could’ve looked a hell of a lot worse for the rest of us if he had a few more wins under his belt with the playoff points. It is what it is, but we all know that he’s going to be a force to be reckoned with and it’s just going to be a matter of who are the other three that join him in the (Championship 4).

“And look, the wheels can fall off of it at any time. I’ve been there and done that. Look at the 2008 playoffs and I think there was another year where I got wrecked at Talladega and that took us out of the championship right there, so anything can happen. But those guys certainly have just got to be weighing their options as to limiting their mistakes.”

Nobody knows what’s to come over the next 10 weeks — but, if history has taught us anything, we know it won’t be a cakewalk for Kyle Larson.

Posted on by Reid Spencer

The only active driver to hold more than one NASCAR Cup Series title, Kyle Busch acknowledges the challenges he faces in trying to win a third, given the strength of the Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolets this year.

Though Busch has advanced to the Championship 4 race in five of the seven Playoffs conducted under the elimination format, he sees no margin for error for his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team in this year’s postseason run.

“The Hendrick guys, obviously they’re strong,” Busch said. “Look, we’ve had our years of dominance where you guys have probably asked those guys, ‘Where are those guys beating you—why is Toyota better?’

“I get it, but it’s just a thing where we’ve got to work hard with what we’ve got. Unfortunately, we feel as though we have to be perfect in order to be able to compete with them. They don’t have to be perfect, and they’re still going to be fast. We wouldn’t be close if we weren’t perfect.

“That lends itself to a much tighter box that we’ve got to race in.”

JGR teammate Christopher Bell enters the playoffs tied for 12th in the standings, sporting the five playoff points he earned by winning the second race of the season at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course.

Accordingly, Bell is a long shot to win the championship in his sophomore season—and his first in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. But Bell remains undeterred by his underdog status.

“You should bet on me because the tracks in the playoffs are all really good race tracks for us,” Bell said. “That’s number one. Number two, we’ve definitely been getting better over the course of the season. We haven’t put it all together yet to be a championship-caliber team, but I think we’re definitely headed in that direction.

“Looking at Round 1 of the playoffs, that should be a really, really good round for us. Darlington, Richmond, Bristol—we’ve been to two of those race tracks so far this year, and they’ve been two of our best races this year, and Bristol’s a great race track for Joe Gibbs Racing and a great race track for me.

“Looking forward, then we have the Charlotte Roval (cutoff race in the Round of 12), a road course that we should be extremely strong at. Then Texas, I almost won at Texas last year in the Cup Series. I think the path is there. We just have to see if we can execute and continue to get better.”

Posted on by Staff Report

The NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International was nearly a month ago, but the fallout from it may have yet to fully materialize.

As you may recall, dirt-racing rivals and opposing championship contenders for Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports, respectively, Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson tangled in the final stage when the No. 5 Chevrolet driver attempted to make a pass for second place on Bell’s No. 20 Toyota going into Turn 1. The two cars made contact, sending Bell spinning off the racing surface, while Larson went on to win his fifth race of the 2021 season.

RELATED: Meet the playoffs field | Full Darlington schedule

Bell recovered for a seventh-place result, but the sting of missing out on his second win of the season was evident — he dodged a text from Larson in the days after the incident.

According to the pair on Tuesday, they still haven’t hashed things out and it doesn’t appear there’s any plan to do so before the 10-race 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs begin this weekend at Darlington Raceway (Sunday at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM).

“I mean, we haven’t communicated,” Bell told reporters during NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Media Day. “I guess that’s that.”

Larson, the series’ Regular Season Champion and ’21 title favorite, seems to have almost put the incident out of mind completely.

“It’s been a long time since that, I don’t even know why we’re still talking about it,” the points leader said. “But yeah, I’m looking forward to the playoffs and I know he is, too. He’s got a great car; I’ve got a great car. It’s both of ours’ best opportunities to go chase a championship.”

MORE: Larson on Bell: ‘Not willing to talk to me’ 

Things have quieted down between Larson and Bell the past three races, with no obvious chances for fireworks to play out on the track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s road course, Michigan International Speedway or Daytona International Speedway. With a grueling Southern 500 and a pair of short tracks to open the Round of 16 — along with Larson’s near-guarantee of advancing to the Round of 12 — could now be an fortuitous time for Bell to race Larson a little more aggressively and show his displeasure the old-fashioned way?

“I mean, I don’t know. The opportunity hasn’t presented itself yet,” Bell said. “We haven’t raced around each other yet. So, I don’t know.”

In other words, stay tuned.

Posted on by Team Release

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Noah Gragson, a two-time winner in the NASCAR Xfinity Series with JR Motorsports, will contest the 2022 NXS season with JRM, the team announced Tuesday. It marks the fourth straight season for the driver with Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s organization. Bass Pro Shops, TrueTimber® Camo and Black Rifle Coffee will return to back the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro for the third straight season.

Gragson, 23, a native of Las Vegas, has made 89 starts with JRM since the 2019 season, his first full-time foray in the series. Bass Pro Shops, TrueTimber® Camo and Black Rifle Coffee have supported Gragson in 44 of those starts since 2020. The first start with the driver-sponsor combination, at Daytona International Speedway in 2020’s season opener, resulted in Gragson’s first career series victory.

“Johnny Morris believed in me enough to put Bass Pro Shops on my car to start the 2020 season, and it paid off with victory the first time out,” Gragson said. “It was special to stand in Victory Lane at Daytona with Johnny right beside me. Bass Pro Shops, Rusty Sellers at TrueTimber and Evan and Mat at Black Rifle Coffee Company have been fantastic to work with. We still have a lot to accomplish this season but I’m looking forward to battling for a series championship again in 2022.”

During his career at JRM, Gragson won at Daytona in 2020 and again that same season at Bristol Motor Speedway. The young driver has amassed 34 top-five and 61 top-10 finishes in that span and has made the playoffs in each of his three seasons with the team.

Gragson currently sits eighth in NXS points with three races remaining in the regular season, firmly inside the playoff field. So far this season, Gragson has earned eight top-five and 14 top-10 finishes, with his best result a second-place finish at Martinsville Speedway in April. Gragson also won three of the four Xfinity Dash 4 Cash payouts this season, pushing his career total to four after taking the $100,000 bonus at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 2020. JRM has won 17 of the bonus prizes over its history.

Additional details surrounding Gragson’s paint scheme will be announced at a later date.

Posted on by RJ Kraft

NASCAR Fantasy Live will reset for the 2021 playoffs with a new driver usage limit and a big prize for the 10-race battle to a championship in the NASCAR Cup Series. The reset is designed to help players start fresh for the postseason if they missed out on playing earlier in the season or had trouble keeping up with a revised regular-season slate.

Accessing the game to set your roster can be done by logging into your account and going to the Fantasy page (NASCAR.com/Fantasy). You can also access the game by opening the NASCAR Mobile App, clicking on the Fantasy icon in the bottom navigation and logging into your account. Mobile users can also opt in to receive fantasy alerts to help stay on top of rosters each week

What is new for the playoffs?
For the playoffs, driver uses will reset and you can only use a particular driver up to five times over the 10 races of the playoffs. Playoff rosters will consist of five starters and one garage driver. There will be no restrictions on how many playoff or non-playoff drivers you can or can’t use, but you will only be able to use drivers five times during the scheduled playoff portion of the season (from Darlington on Sept. 5 to Phoenix on Nov. 7).

What races make up the playoffs?
The playoffs consist of 10 races — Darlington (Sept. 5), Richmond (Sept. 11), Bristol (Sept. 18), Las Vegas (Sept. 26), Talladega (Oct. 3), Charlotte Roval (Oct. 10), Texas (Oct. 17), Kansas (Oct. 24), Martinsville (Oct. 31) and Phoenix (Nov. 7).

What is the prize for the playoffs?
The highest scoring player for the entire 10-race NASCAR Playoffs will win $10,000.

Are the rest of the rules the same as the regular season?
Yes, they are and a refresher on those is included below.

What is the roster composition?
The roster will consist of five starting drivers as well as a garage driver in reserve (more below on that). Driver and garage selections lock five minutes before the race start time.

How does the garage driver work?
Players can substitute their one garage driver for any starting driver up until the start of the Final Stage. Once the Final Stage starts, there are no more switches allowed.

So which drivers end up scoring points?
The drivers ending the race in your main roster will comprise the drivers who make up your total score. These are also the drivers who will be counted as being used for that particular race. A driver who ends the race in the garage would not count as being used nor would his or her results count toward your score.

What is the scoring system?
The scoring will reflect the NASCAR’s scoring system. For example, if Kyle Larson wins Stage 1 and Stage 2 and wins the race, he will earn players 60 fantasy points for that particular race just as he would earn 60 points for himself in the season standings.

Drivers running in the top 10 at the end of Stage 1 and Stage 2 receive points, starting with 10 points for first, nine for second, etc. The race winner receives 40 points, while second place receives 35 points, third receives 34 points and all the way down to 1 point for drivers who finish 36th through 40th.

Will the at-track post-race inspection model have an impact on scoring?
The results won’t be official until the at-track post-race inspection is complete — that should be about 90-120 minutes after the race. Since scoring mirrors that of the drivers in real life, if a driver in your lineup fails post-race inspection, your lineup would be subject to the same impact as the driver is — last-place points. On the positive side, if you didn’t have a penalized driver in your lineup, the rest of the finishing order moves up, meaning you could potentially pick up points.

Are there any bonus picks?
Yes, players can make bonus picks for the race winner, top finishing Chevrolet driver, top finishing Ford driver, top finishing Toyota driver, winning manufacturer and winning team. All bonus picks lock roughly five minutes before the race start time. Bonus picks DO NOT count against driver usage.

What is the value of each bonus pick?
Race winner (15 points for correct pick)
Top finishing Chevrolet pick (5 points for correct pick)
Top finishing Ford pick (5 points for correct pick)
Top finishing Toyota pick (5 points for correct pick)
Winning manufacturer (10 points for correct pick)
Winning team (10 points for correct pick)

Can I copy my roster for multiple leagues?
Yes, you can copy your picks from one entry to another by using the copy icon located next to your entry name.

Posted on by Staff Report

Eight NASCAR Cup Series teams will take part in next week’s Next Gen Goodyear tire test on the high banks of Daytona International Speedway in preparation for the 2022 season.

RELATED: Manufacturers unveil 2022 models | New number placement confirmed

Beginning next Tuesday, the highly anticipated 2022 Cup cars are scheduled to hit the track for the first time in an individual team-prepared fashion. The two-day test allows for Goodyear to continue making progress on the compound for next season, moving to an 18-inch wheel from the current 15-inch model currently used in the series.

Richard Childress Racing (Austin Dillon), Joe Gibbs Racing (Denny Hamlin), Roush Fenway Racing (Chris Buescher), Team Penske (Joey Logano), Hendrick Motorsports (William Byron), Stewart-Haas Racing (Cole Custer), Chip Ganassi Racing (Ross Chastain) and JTG Daugherty Racing (Ricky Stenhouse Jr.) are all scheduled to take part in the test.

RELATED: Next Gen features | Images from previous test at Daytona

Buescher was behind the wheel when the Next Gen car made its superspeedway debut last year at Daytona.

Posted on by Staff Report

RALEIGH, N.C. (August 30, 2021) – Advance Auto Parts (NYSE: AAP), a leading automotive aftermarket parts retailer and entitlement sponsor of the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series (NAAPWS), will award $1,200 to Limaland Motorsports Park in Elida, Ohio, and Bethel Motor Speedway in White Lake, N.Y., after Ryan Blaney’s third NASCAR Cup Series win of his season at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, Aug. 28.

Advance is using its associate sponsorship of Blaney and Team Penske’s No. 12 Ford Mustang to showcase NASCAR-sanctioned local tracks across the U.S. and Canada that are part of the NAAPWS. Limaland and Bethel were featured on Blaney’s car at Daytona.

For every Blaney victory in 2021, local NASCAR tracks featured on his car each receive $1,200 to be used for track operations, local driver winnings or supporting a charity of the track’s choosing. In addition to Limaland and Bethel, other tracks receiving winnings following Blaney victories this year include Berlin Raceway (Marne, Mich.), Elko Speedway (Elko New Market, Minn.), Greenville-Pickens Speedway (Easley, S.C.) and Florence Motor Speedway (Timmonsville, S.C.).

This season, Advance has also brought awareness to NASCAR’s local tracks through its “Advance My Track Challenge.” The program encouraged race fans to vote for their favorite NASCAR home track, with the track receiving the most votes claiming a $50,000 grand prize. Berlin Raceway was announced as the program’s inaugural winner in May 2021.

Posted on by Terrin Waack

Less than two years ago, Rajah Caruth was just another senior in high school. He took the train every day for class and did what he considered “normal high school stuff.” He had his eyes set on graduation and college.

Professional racing, at the time, stood as a dream.

On Monday, Caruth, now 19 years old, signed with the newly formed Alpha Prime Racing to run a part-time schedule in the NASCAR Xfinity Series next season.

“That’s pretty crazy,” Caruth told NASCAR.com. “It it surreal. I have to, I guess, pinch myself every time I get in an ARCA car or a late model, let alone getting this deal done. I can only imagine this is going to feel even more crazy next year.”

RELATED: Alpha Prime Racing joins Xfinity Series in 2022

Caruth is set to pilot the No. 44 Chevrolet in the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series races at Martinsville Speedway, Dover International and Richmond Raceway. There’s a possibility he competes in more events, with Pocono Raceway and Kansas Speedway mentioned as options, pending additional sponsorship. Regardless, he will maintain his rookie status.

In addition to his work in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Caruth will continue racing in the ARCA Menards Series in 2022 with Rev Racing as part of the NASCAR Drive for Diversity program, which he joined in 2018.

“I would not have gotten noticed off iRacing if not for the program,” Caruth said. “We would not be talking right now. I would not be able to race. So, both my family and NASCAR Drive for Diversity have made this possible, even getting to this point. I’m extremely appreciative of everybody.”

Caruth made his ARCA Menards East Series debut on Feb. 8, 2021 at New Smyrna Speedway, where he finished 11th. In his seven starts, he has two top-five and four top-10 finishes. He’s ranked sixth in the standings with one race left — Bristol Motor Speedway on Sept. 16.

Caruth also participates part time in the ARCA Menards Series and NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series.

“Overall, I think I feel ready to make the next jump,” Caruth said. “The people around me are going to work as hard as I am to ensure that I do what I’m supposed to do on the race track.”

RELATED: Track all Xfinity Series driver movement for 2022

Alpha Prime Racing co-owners Caesar Bacarella and Tommy Joe Martins will split the remaining seat time with Caruth. Both have history in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, combing for 132 starts, and Caruth anticipates picking up tips and tricks from them as the season progress.

An area of competition Caruth is most curious about is race length. NASCAR races are much longer than ARCA. For example, when both the NASCAR Xfinity Series and ARCA Menards East Series were at Dover back in May, the NASCAR race was 200 laps compared to ARCA’s 125. Caruth did crash out of his event that weekend, but it remains to be the only race he did not finish running. The point is, he’s eager to learn about how to handle longer distances physically and mentally, and he knows he’ll be surrounded by those with firsthand experience and advice.

“It don’t cost a dime to listen,” Caruth said.

Meanwhile, off the track, Caruth remains in school. He is a sophomore at Winston-Salem State University and plans to graduate in 2024. Normal stuff.

“My mom, dad, sister, girlfriend, extended family — they’ve been extremely supportive,” Caruth said. “Even from when I was like 10 or 12 — leaving church early to watch the Cup race on Sunday to skipping school to go to a Trucks race at Dover to leaving the school early during the week to go down to Charlotte for the All-Star Race — it’s really a thanks to … just everybody making time for me to do what I love.”

Posted on by Davey Segal

For the first time in over 30 years, the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will return to Oswego Speedway for a second time this season.

Having hosted four races in both 1988 and 1989, the 0.675-mile oval was not on the NWMT schedule for over three decades until it returned to the slate in 2016. In the last five races, the track has provided fans with some compelling open-wheel competition, only not running a race during 2020 due to COVID restrictions.

This weekend, the tour rumbles back to Oswego for the 11th race of the season, marking the first of four consecutive race weekends to close out the 2021 season and crown the champion.

RACE INFO: Race Center: Oswego

With Justin Bonsignore’s advantage over Patrick Emerling sitting at eight points, the battle remains hot for the championship trophy. Ron Silk sits third in the standings, over 60 markers back of the leader, further emphasizing the two-horse race heading to the final four events.

But, it may very well be a part-timer who challenges the top two for the win on Saturday. With both Bobby Santos III and Matt Hirschman looming large, in addition to Doug Coby, who did not participate in the initial Oswego race earlier this season, those two will have their hands full. The boiler plates located on the inside wall create for one of the weirdest, yet most exciting, set of corners on the schedule. 

Fans can watch the Toyota Mod Classic 150 live Saturday at 7:30 pm ET on TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold and tape delayed on Thursday, September 9 at 7 pm ET on NBCSN.

Toyota Mod Classic 150

WHAT TO WATCH FOR:

All eyes will be on Matt Hirschman when the cars hit the track this weekend. Not only does he enter the 150-lap event as the defending winner from June, but he’s won twice in his career at Oswego, and has yet to finish outside the top-five in Whelen Modified Tour action.Mod Classic Toyota Logo 3 (3)

In fact, his worst finish is second, twice. He’s also led the most laps in three of his four events at Oswego (326 total) and has finished first and second in his two races this season. Coming off a dominant, but runner-up performance at Beech Ridge, the Northampton, Pennsylvania, driver is looking to end his NWMT season on a high note.

RELATED: Matt Hirschman Making Most of Limited Opportunities on Whelen Modified Tour

Bobby Santos III doesn’t have quite the track record at Oswego like Hirschman, but two starts with a top-five finish and pole isn’t too shabby. Since his win at New Hampshire Motor Speedway last season, Santos has only run once on the Whelen Modified Tour — finishing eighth at New Hampshire earlier this summer. He is sure to be a force to be reckoned with when the green flag drops Saturday.

Patrick Emerling and Justin Bonsignore both finished inside the top-five at Oswego in June, but did so behind two part-timers in Hirschman and Ryan Preece. Following that event, Emerling held a three-point advantage over the No. 51, before the three-time and defending champion slowly and methodically worked his way past the No. 07 in the standings.

Bonsignore’s lone win at Oswego came in 2019, but he hasn’t finished worse than sixth across his five trips to the New York track. Emerling, though, has been a bit more inconsistent. Despite two top fives, including most recently in June, he’s also finished outside the top 10 twice and has only led six laps across five races.

There’s also Doug Coby, who didn’t participate in the June event while going to Victory Lane with the SRX Series at Stafford, but was sure to have been a contender. As he preps for his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series debut at Bristol Motor Speedway in a matter of weeks, he’s ready to run it back at one of his best tracks. Finishes of fourth, third and sixth followed his win in 2016 — his inaugural trip to the venue — but he’s yet to lead a circuit since that triumph five years ago.

Along with Coby is Beech Ridge winner Ron Silk, who has one top five in three starts at Oswego, and Jon McKennedy, who hasn’t finished better than 15th in his experience at the track, but is looking to buck that trend in his third career start. The Toyota Mod Classic 150 highlights the annual Budweiser Classic weekend at Oswego, which also includes a 200-lap special for the Supermodifieds on Sunday. The Whelen Modified Tour is the headlining division of a full Saturday night. 

RACING REFERENCE:

RACE FACTS

Race Toyota Mod Classic 150 at Oswego
Date Saturday, Sept. 4, 2021
Track Oswego Speedway
Layout .675-mile oval
Location Oswego, New York
Start time 7:30 p.m. ET
Laps 150
Miles 101.25
Tickets Click here
TV channel NBCSN (Delayed, Thursday, Sept. 9, 7 p.m. ET))
Live stream TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold (Live)

RACEDAY SCHEDULE: Saturday, Sept. 4 — Garage opens: 10:45 a.m. ET; Practice: 1:35-2:35 p.m.; Qualifying: 4:15 p.m.; Race: 7:30 p.m.

CREW CHIEF HANDOUT: The starting field for the Toyota Mod Classic 150 is limited to 28 starters, including provisionals. The field will be set by qualifying (1-22) and provisional process per the entry blank (23-28) for the Toyota Mod Classic 150. In the event that qualifying as stated on the entry blank does not take place for any unforeseen circumstance, the field will be set in accordance with the 2021 NASCAR Touring Series Rule Book.

QUALIFYING: Two consecutive qualifying laps. Faster lap determines qualifying position. Adjustments or repairs may not be made on the vehicle after the vehicle has taken the green flag at the start-finish line. NASCAR reserves the right to have more than one vehicle engage in qualifying runs at the same time.

The maximum tire allotment available for this event is as follows: The maximum tire allotment available for this event is eleven (11) tires per team. All tires used for qualifying and the race must be purchased at the track and scanned by Hoosier, unless otherwise approved in advance by the Series Director. Four (4) tires must be used for qualifying and to begin the race. All qualifying tires must remain in impound until released by NASCAR Officials. The remaining tire allotment may be used for practice and/or change tires during the event.

The tire change rule is four (4) tires, any position. To utilize the fourth (4th) change tire, the team will have to take a practice tire purchased at Oswego Speedway and turn in by the conclusion of practice.

QUALIFYING AND SPECIAL AWARDS

$400 Phil Kurze Halfway Leader Award presented by Josten’s per event award to the race leader at the halfway point of the event, regardless if the race is running under green or yellow.

$600 Hoosier Tire “Lap Leader” per event award to the eligible car owner whose driver leads the most laps in each event. In the event of a tie, the award will go to the highest finishing car in the event.

$500 Hoosier Tire “Hard Charger” per event award to the highest finishing eligible driver who advances the most positions during the course of the race. In the case of a tie, the highest finishing driver will receive the award.

$500 Hoosier Tire “Most Improved” per event award to the eligible new team/organization whose driver improves the most positions during the course of the race. In the event of a tie, the award will go to the highest finishing car in the event. If money is not awarded during this event, funds will roll over to the next event and will continue to roll over until an eligible new team/organization claims the money.

$1,000 Mayhew Tools Dominator Pole per event award to the driver with the fastest qualifying time eligible to participate under the Manufacturers’ Prize Money Conditions.

$550 Sunoco Spec Fuel award divided: 1st-$300 5th-$150 10th-$100.

$3,500 Whelen Engineering “Winner of the Race” award to the winning driver.

Whelen Non-Starter award will be paid to the first 15 competitors throughout the season who pass inspection, practice, attempt to qualify but fail to make the feature event.