NASCAR officials indicated that three drivers — William Byron, Erik Jones and Quin Houff — will drop to the rear of the field for Sunday’s Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway because of unapproved adjustments.
Byron was the top qualifier among those three, pushing the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet to a fourth-place starting berth for Sunday’s Ally 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM). But the penalty will drop his car to the back of the pack during pace laps.
Jones and Houff had each scraped the outside retaining wall during their qualifying laps, with Jones’ No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet brushing the barrier in Turn 4 and Houff tapping the Turns 1 and 2 wall with the No. 00 StarCom Racing Chevy.
Jones had secured the ninth starting spot in Busch Pole Qualifying. Houff did not post a qualifying speed and was already set to start last in the 39-car field.
Aric Almirola secured the Busch Pole Award and the No. 1 starting position for the NASCAR Cup Series’ debut at Nashville Superspeedway.
Almirola, the second driver to make a run, clocked a best lap of 161.992 mph in Sunday morning’s qualifying at the 1.33-mile Tennessee track. That speed places his No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford in the top starting spot for Sunday’s Ally 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM).
In landing his third career Cup Series pole, Almirola acknowledged the struggles that the No. 10 team has had this season. The 37-year-old driver sits 28th in the standings with just one top-10 finish through 16 races this year, but expressed hope that he and crew chief Mike Bugarewicz might be able to build on Sunday’s solid starting spot.
“We’ve been trying so hard to get back to the way we know how to run,” Almirola said. “Just proud of Buga and all the guys on this team. Something good finally happened to us, and hopefully we can put it together for a whole day.”
Kyle Busch will start alongside Almirola on the front row after logging the second-fastest speed — 161.910 mph in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Joey Logano, William Byron and Kyle Larson finished out the top five in qualifying.
Erik Jones scuffed the outside retaining wall exiting Turn 4 as he completed his qualifying lap. He posted the ninth-best time with the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet. Quin Houff also brushed the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2 during his qualifying run. He did not post a qualifying time and is scheduled to start last in the No. 00 StarCom Racing Chevrolet.
Martin Truex Jr., a three-time winner in the series this season, is set to start well back in 35th place after his No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota washed up out of the racing groove on his qualifying lap.
Sunday’s event — set for 300 laps (399 miles) — is the first for NASCAR’s top division at Nashville Superspeedway, which sprang back to life for its first NASCAR weekend since 2011. It’s the first Cup Series event in the Music City area since the circuit last raced at the Nashville fairgrounds in 1984.
Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway (⏰ 3:30 p.m. ET | 📺 NBCSN | 📻 MRN, SiriusXM)
Everything you need to know for Sunday’s inaugural Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway and 17th points-paying event of the season.
Where: Nashville Superspeedway, a 1.333-mile D-shaped oval just outside of Nashville, Tennessee Practice: Saturday at 2:05 p.m. ET on NBCSN | 50-minute open session | Practice recap Qualifying: Sunday at 11:05 a.m. ET on NBCSN | Single-car, one-lap qualifying | Starting lineup Grand Marshal: Luke Combs, country-music artist TV/Radio: NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Forecast: A 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 87 degrees. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph. Race Distance: 300 laps, 399 miles Stages: 90 | 185 | 300 Pit-road speed: 45 mph Caution car speed: 55 mph Nashville 101: Get the full lowdown
Entry list: See who’s in the field Pit-stall assignments: See who is pitting where| Past experience may be key on pit road
Tyson Winter | NASCAR Digital Media
Five to watch
Here are five big story lines we’ll be following at Nashville Superspeedway.
1. As the number in question has increased for the last month, this week we ask: Can Kyle Larson make it four wins in a row? Two victories came before the All-Star Race. Then, he dominated the $1 million exhibition. Just 16 races into the 36-race season and the newest driver at Hendrick Motorsports is only 190 laps away from his most-ever laps led in a single season. Surely a new, unfamiliar track will slow him down, right? The field, and his teammates, better hope so. Bring it on, Nashville.
2. Don’t be surprised if Kurt Busch, Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe run well early. The three drivers, each representing their manufacturer, participated in the Goodyear tire test back in March. Then, they even got to return in April for an additional tire test. With just a lone practice session and a single-lap qualifying, Busch, Bell and Briscoe will have by far the most 2021 track time out of any NASCAR driver at Nashville this weekend.
3. More good news for the Busch brothers. Kyle Busch and Kurt have enjoyed a ton of success at concrete-surfaced tracks (Bristol Motor Speedway and Dover International Speedway). Kyle leads all active drivers with 11 combined wins, and Kurt is not far behind at seven. Series veteran Kevin Harvick has also done well, historically, picking up six wins of his own. Kurt and Harvick are each winless in 2021 and need a key win to solidify a playoff push, and it shouldn’t be a surprise if one comes this week.
4. Alex Bowman is in the midst of a career year at Hendrick Motorsports. Already notching two wins earlier this year, he is on the verge of setting a new career-best top-10 streak if he can pull it off this weekend with his fifth consecutive. He has made massive strides this season, and what’s more motivating than a new contract through 2023? Teammate Chase Elliott is the current series-best streak holder for the season with six in a row, dating back to Kansas Speedway.
5. Even though Denny Hamlin‘s early season dominance has seemingly cooled off a bit, he still holds the best average running position this season at 6.38 — almost two whole positions ahead of second-place William Byron. Though without a win, Hamlin still has a 47-point lead on Larson in the regular-season points standings. The 2018 season was the last time Hamlin went winless, and even then it was the only time in his entire Cup Series career since joining full time in 2006. That’s no easy feat. Expect him to be in Victory Lane when the odds are stacked against him. It might even be this week.
Race-day staples
Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles. •Power Rankings: Brad Keselowski, Team Penske back on the rise | Scope the ranks •Paint Scheme Preview: Check out the Music City looks | See the schemes •Fantasy Fastlane: See which drivers to use, avoid | Full Fantasy advice |Set your roster •Preview Show: Will a driver with past success be singing in Victory Lane? | Watch the show
Get in on the action
Think you know NASCAR? Put your mettle to the test with gaming, fantasy. • Betting odds for Nashville race | See the odds
• Sportsbooks likely sweating Kyle Larson until Phoenix | Learn more • Experience at Nashville a betting factor? | See which drivers have raced here
• Take a shot at winning cash prizes with the free-to-play Jackpot Races app | Hit the jackpot
• Full guide to 2021 NASCAR Fantasy Live game | Get the FAQ
Nashville roots
Every track has a story to tell. Here’s what we’ve seen go down at Nashville Superspeedway in the past. • They’ve been here before: Active NASCAR drivers to win at Nashville | See them all • Takin’ it back to the early days: NASCAR’s history in Nashville | Learn more • Testing, testing: A first look at Cup Series cars turning laps at Nashville | View the images
Fast facts
Hard-hitting, race-relevant statistics, brought to you by the experts at Racing Insights. •Sunday will be the first-ever Cup Series event held at Nashville Superspeedway and the 175th different track in series history. • At 1.333 miles, Nashville Superspeedway is the longest concrete oval on the 2021 NASCAR schedule. •With the track formerly hosting Xfinity Series and Truck Series events, Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch lead all active drivers with 12 starts each. •Through 16 points-paying races, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Larson and Alex Bowman are the only repeat winners so far this season. •Starting position isn’t always key — eight races have been won by drivers who started the 10th or worse. •Only three races this season have had qualifying, and Chevrolet has raced on to the pole position in every one of them.
Catch the pack
Read up on all the headlines from the week leading up to Sunday’s race. • Get an inside look on how NASCAR made it’s way back to Music City with “The Return of Nashville Speedway“ • Hendrick Motorsports and Alex Bowman signed a contract extension, keeping Bowman in the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet through 2023 | Read more • Kaulig Racing makes big plans for 2022 season with Justin Haley and AJ Allmendinger | See them here • Jeff Gordon rumbled in the dirt, testing a sprint car at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway dirt track | See images • Track-by-track updates, protocols for grandstand seating and fan access as COVID-19 restrictions ease | Read more • Get Bioethanol set to wave green flag on new era | Read more
• Austin Dillon running Xfinity races at Watkins Glen International and Indianapolis Road Course | Read more
Say what?
Notable quotes from the stars of the sport heading into Sunday’s race.
“I am excited for the Nashville Superspeedway – we are getting back into the Nashville market. That track has been sitting there for a few years now, so to get back out there is going to be great. They have sold out for this race weekend. That is awesome to have all the fans and to have a packed house.” — Erik Jones, driver of the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet
“Nashville is a tricky place. It races like a short track and has short-track features, but it also has the characteristics of a mile-and-a-half track. That’s going to be your biggest issue: finding a setup that balances that line perfectly. You want it to handle similar to how it would at a concrete short track like Dover but also handle well aero-wise like a mile-and-a-half. While we have limited notes across the board, we do know that it will also be a very temperature-sensitive track as well. There’s going to be a lot of obstacles to overcome, but I think with William running the truck race and us having a practice session on the Cup side, we’ll be as prepared as we can be. I’m excited to get back to Nashville and see what we can do as a team.” — Rudy Fugle, crew chief of William Byron’s No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
“Nashville had pretty new concrete when we were there for those years. Since we’ve not been there in a while, it will be interesting to find out what has changed and see what new bumps are there and what new things have kind of come up over the years. Obviously, so many advancements have been made since I was there last time. I’m looking forward to getting back there this weekend with our M&M’S Supra in the Xfinity Series. We’ll be getting more track time with the Xfinity car on Saturday and hopefully it helps us learn for Sunday as well.” — Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
LEBANON, Tenn. — As the NASCAR Cup Series celebrates its inaugural weekend at Nashville Superspeedway, so far Joe Gibbs Racing isn’t having much fun at the party.
Chevrolet drivers consumed the top-seven speeds in practice for Sunday’s Ally 400 (3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at the 1.33-mile concrete oval. It was Toyota’s fleet that struggled to find any momentum.
JGR driver Denny Hamlin recorded the fastest speed amongst the Toyota brigade with an eighth-place run, but it was a different story for the rest of the organization.
Although Hamlin’s No. 11 car was the closest to the mark to kick off the weekend, the speed of the Chevys are his main focus point.
“We are off a-ways for sure,” Hamlin said. “My objective is to just get my car as good as I can get it. If I can’t run with them, I can’t run with them. If there are four cars in particular that are faster than us, then it’s my job to finish fifth.”
Hendrick Motorsports drivers continued their dominating form in the session as William Byron led the way at the top of the leaderboard, tied with teammate Kyle Larson. Chase Elliott finished the session in third to complete the 1-2-3 sweep, and fellow Hendrick driver Alex Bowman placed 10th.
Other Chevy drivers in the top 10 included Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (fourth), Tyler Reddick (fifth), Kurt Busch (sixth) and Ross Chastain (seventh).
On the other hand, Christopher Bell finished 20th with Kyle Busch right behind in 21st. 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace ticked off the 28th-fastest speed, while Martin Truex Jr. brought up the rear in 29th.
Truex’s No. 19 team was feverishly making significant adjustments before the cars were impounded ahead of Sunday morning’s qualifying session (11:05 a.m. ET on NBCSN).
“For us, we’re a little worried,” Truex said. “We’re about to do some wholesale changes, so we’ll see. Definitely not a good practice.”
After winning his 100th career Xfinity Series race Saturday at Nashville, Busch didn’t hold out great hope for Sunday, either.
“I’m like how can we correlate what we’re doing on the Xfinity side and being so good and being so fast to being able to put that stuff in a Cup car?” Busch said. “But it just doesn’t connect like that. It’s not that simple.
“Flat out, we suck. Tomorrow is going to be a rough day.”
That was the initial impression from many throughout the garage after getting an in-person look at Nashville Superspeedway.
The 1.33-mile concrete track sat dormant since the final NASCAR-sanctioned event — an Xfinity Series race won by now-retired driver Carl Edwards on July 23, 2011.
One of the highest marks the extensive renovations and fresh coats of paint received was from NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee and NBC Sports analyst Dale Earnhardt Jr. upon walking into the track on Friday.
Nashville Superspeedway looks amazing. Didn’t know what to expect after it sat idle for so long. They have done an incredible job preparing it for this weekend. It looks brand new. @NashvilleSuperS @NASCARonNBC @NASCAR
It was a well-earned compliment for track president Erik Moses and his fleet of employees, one that he didn’t take for granted.
“I would be lying to say I didn’t smile when I saw that,” Moses said on Saturday in the Nashville Superspeedway media center on Saturday. “It’s great to hear that kind of thing from people who are legends in the sport and for someone who really values this market as a market for NASCAR, it’s fantastic.
“We’ve thankfully heard that sentiment echoed out of people from NASCAR and our sport over the last couple days and we’re really grateful. It’s been a great team to get this to look like what you see here.”
If that wasn’t enough, NASCAR champion Brad Keselowski raved about the track’s condition after Cup Series practice on Saturday afternoon.
“I’m really impressed. The track is in amazing condition for having sat 10 years,” said Keselowski, a two-time Xfinity winner here. “I feel like it’s in better condition than I last was here. I don’t know how that’s possible. It’s like it reversed age. They’ve got the fountain of youth in here somewhere. The concrete is really good … last time I was here it was really bumpy and it doesn’t seem nearly as bumpy as it used to be.
“Somebody has been doing a lot of work around here and they’ve done an excellent job. Far surpassed my expectations coming here to Nashville.”
Chase Wilhelm | NASCAR Digital Media
The transformation came at a price — a mountain of work by many and a hefty investment to get the track back up to full song. Moses noted that it took $8 million-$10 million worth of improvements. The list of developments included the installation of WiFi and fiber networks, a revamp of the media center, infield care center and tower suites, light and sound systems just to name a few. The track also traded in traditional white outside retaining walls for a lighter, Tennessee blue coat.
No stone, or piece of concrete in this instance, was left unturned.
“There have been very few spaces on this campus that have not been touched as we’ve gotten this place ready to be reborn,” Moses said.
As the track enjoys the dawn of a new day, it also serves as a blast to NASCAR’s past in Music City. Twenty-two Xfinity Series races were held from 2001-11. Edwards was the winningest driver during that span with five career victories, including the final two events in 2011.
In the Camping World Truck Series, 11 different drivers won the 13 races held from 2001-11. Kyle Busch and Johnny Benson Jr. tied with a pair of victories, while Edwards also owns one triumph in a truck. Austin Dillon earned the victory in 2011 before the 10-year hiatus ended with Cup Series regular Ryan Preece’s win Friday night.
Keeping with tradition
The winner of each of those events received a custom guitar designed by the late Sam Bass and provided by Nashville-based guitar manufacturer Gibson.
While what was old is now new again, bringing back the Gibson tradition to Victory Lane and honoring Bass were constants that were important for Moses to keep intact.
“Without question it’s important to maintain the tradition of a Music City-made Gibson guitar for our race winners,” Moses said. “While everyone misses Sam and we could never recreate what he offered to our track champions, we are thrilled to rekindle our partnership with Gibson and to award their timeless guitars to our race winners.”
Moses also presented a special Gibson guitar that features Sam Bass’ iconic logo, which will be on display at the speedway for years to come.
Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
“Sam had a special place in this sport and certainly a special place at this track,” Moses said. “We thought that was worthy not only of a tribute to him, but one that would be permanent.”
Busch is a noteworthy story when it comes to the famous trophy’s past. After winning the Xfinity Series race at Nashville in 2009, Busch destroyed the guitar with a rock-star-style slam in Victory Lane. After making history by earning his 100th career Xfinity Series win in Saturday’s race, Busch jokingly pretended to crunch another one for the cameras, but better judgement prevailed.
“What’s the harm in having a little bit of fun?” Busch said after the race.
A look ahead
As renovations came to life and traditions were put back into place, an entitlement sponsor for the Cup Series race arrived as another integral part of the process. That’s where Ally Financial came into the fold, announcing their participation back in January, their first race entitlement sponsorship in company history.
“For an inaugural race and having the privilege to bring back Cup Series racing to Middle Tennessee for the first time in 37 years, it’s critically important that you have the right partner to help you lead that charge,” Moses said back in January. “I have no doubts that Ally is that right partner. They see this the same way we do, from investing in the community to making certain that we’re active in the promotion of this race.”
Moses was certainly right as we fast forward to Sunday where the Ally 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) will be run in front of a sold-out crowd, which will fill an additional 15,000 temporary grandstand seats to reach the roughly 40,000-seat capacity.
Chris Graythen | Getty Images
Now, with the re-imagining of Nashville Superspeedway finally realized and received with high accolades, what does the future hold for NASCAR in Middle Tennessee?
With a successful switch up to Nashville for the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series Awards banquet and talks ongoing between Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway, Speedway Motorsports Inc., and the City of Nashville, it appears the sport has a strong hold on Music City.
Moses continues to focus on reaching the highest level of success for his own facility, but he welcomes the opportunity for more racing in the heart of The Volunteer State.
“I will tell you, if any fans in the country deserve more Cup Series racing, it’s the fans in Middle Tennessee,” Moses said. “My view is a rising tide raises all boats. We’re going to put on a great show out here with our partners at Ally and make sure people want to come back to the Ally 400 year over year. If there’s more Cup Series racing in the marketplace, then that’s good for fans and good for our sport.”
Kyle Busch earned his historic 100th NASCAR Xfinity Series victory Saturday at Nashville Superspeedway in epic fashion – starting on the pole position, leading a race-high 122 of the 189 laps and bettering the field on three restarts in the closing 20 laps of the Tennessee Lottery 250.
For the second race in a row, Busch had to hold off veteran Justin Allgaier on a series of late-race restarts. The margin of victory was a mere 1.11 seconds – the two dueling side by side in the final laps and exchanging the lead seven different times in the final stage of racing. The victory makes Busch a perfect 3-for-3 in Xfinity Series starts this season, and it’s the second time he has won from the pole.
Appropriately for a Father’s Day weekend race, Busch was immediately greeted in Victory Circle by his 6-year-old son, Brexton.
“I remember growing up as a kid and watching (NASCAR Hall of Famer) Mark Martin win every week in that 60 car, just the domination he had,” said Busch, driver of the No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. “And he’s No. 2 with 49 wins.
“Wanted to give a huge shoutout to Rowdy Nation out there, we appreciate you, Rowdy Nation. I saw a lot of you standing up when Allgaier took the lead then a lot of you sat back down when I took the lead. So, an awesome day for Rowdy Nation.”
Moments later, after receiving the famed guitar awarded to Nashville winners, Busch strummed the strings, but he did not smash the guitar as he infamously did in 2009.
For his part, Allgaier left no doubt he was tired of being the race bridesmaid to Busch.
“Running second sucks, I’m not going to lie to you,” said Allgaier, who had both his daughters’ names – Harper and newborn Willow – on the car and at the track in recognition of the Father’s Day race weekend. “When we took the lead from Kyle I thought we were good, we were able to drive away. But then all those restarts at the end, he just held me down really hard in the middle of (Turns) 3 and 4 and we got loose and I think that was the difference-maker, after that we just didn’t have the speed after that.
“Again, just proud of my guys – to bring two fast race cars two weeks in a row to have a shot at it and have it come down to late in the races is a big deal. We’ll keep digging.”
The race marked the first time the series had competed at the 1.333-mile concrete Nashville, Tennessee, track since 2011.
Busch’s JGR Toyota teammate, Harrison Burton, finished third followed by Allgaier’s Chevy teammate, Josh Berry, who had a triumphant, if busy afternoon. He started 22nd but raced hard enough to earn points (eighth place) at the end of Stage 1. An unfortunately timed pit stop late in the race – a caution came out while he was on pit road – put him another lap down with just over 40 laps remaining. But the Tennessee native still rallied to a fourth-place finish – his fourth top five in 13 races this year.
AJ Allmendinger overcame an early race pit penalty to finish fourth in the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet. Brandon Jones, Jeb Burton, Noah Gragson, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series regular Austin Hill and Riley Herbst rounded out the top 10.
The current Xfinity Series championship leader Austin Cindric finished 32nd after being collected in an accident toward the front of the field late in the race. He led every lap in Stage 1 to earn his series-best seventh stage victory. The finish is his worst of the season.
“Pretty hard hit right at the start-finish line,” said Cindric, driver of the No. 22 Penske Racing Ford. “I hate it for all the Penske guys. We had made great strides after practice, obviously. Winning the first stage was great but kind of lost handling of the car. I learned a lot today. But kinda battling back through the field. … It was not our day.”
Despite the disappointing finish this week, Cindric remains the championship leader – 90 points over Allmendinger. With 11 races remaining until the playoffs begin, Jeremy Clements holds a 48-point advantage over Brandon Brown for the 12th and final playoff position.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series races next at Pocono Raceway in a doubleheader June 27 with the NASCAR Cup Series in the Pocono Green 225 (noon ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Note: Post-race inspection in the Xfinity Series garage was completed without major issue. The winning No. 54 Toyota driven by Busch was found with one unsecured lug nut, which — according to guidelines in the NASCAR Rule Book — should result in a fine for the team during next week’s penalty report.
Kyle Busch has picked up his 100th career win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series with his overtime victory at Nashville Superspeedway, making him the first driver in Xfinity Series history to reach triple-digit wins.
Busch is already the most decorated driver in Xfinity Series history. The 36-year-old also has the most all-time wins in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with 61 victories under his belt. In addition to that, Busch has the most wins across NASCAR national series history with 219.
Busch’s first Xfinity Series win came in 2004 at Richmond Raceway on May 14. In fact, his first five national series wins all came in the Xfinity Series driving for Hendrick Motorsports. His 100 Xfinity Series wins are a dominant 51 more than that of the next closest driver – NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, who has 49 wins. Kevin Harvick is next on the list at 47 wins, followed by Brad Keselowski with 39 and Carl Edwards with 38.
The 100 Xfinity Series wins make Busch the third driver in NASCAR national series history to earn 100 or more wins in one series. NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty (200 wins) and David Pearson (105 wins) have also accomplished that feat, but in the NASCAR Cup Series. Busch has 58 wins in the sport’s top series –tied with Harvick for ninth-most entering Sunday’s Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway.
Busch won the 2009 Xfinity Series championship before later winning the 2015 and 2019 NASCAR Cup Series championship – all of which have come while driving for Joe Gibbs Racing.
Last weekend at Texas, his 99th win in the Xfinity Series, also marked the 300th win for JGR with Toyota. He has three wins in as many Xfinity Series starts this season.
NASCAR Cup Series drivers hit Nashville Superspeedway for the first time Saturday afternoon, and Hendrick Motorsports teammates William Byron and Kyle Larson topped the practice leaderboard with identical lap times.
Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet and Larson’s No. 5 Chevrolet were clocked at 161.082 mph around the 1.33-mile concrete track just east of the Music City. The 50-minute session was the only practice scheduled for NASCAR’s top division before Sunday’s Ally 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM).
Chase Elliott logged the third-fastest lap in another Hendrick entry, the No. 9 Chevy. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. placed fourth on the practice leaderboard with Tyler Reddick fifth. Chevrolets swept the top seven spots on the practice chart.
Sunday’s event is the inaugural race for the Cup Series at Nashville Superspeedway, which is hosting its first NASCAR weekend since 2011. It’s the first Cup Series race in the Nashville area since 1984, when the circuit last visited the .596-mile fairgrounds track in town.
Busch Pole Qualifying to set the 39-car starting lineup is scheduled for Sunday at 11:05 a.m. ET (NBCSN, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM).
This weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series visits Nashville Superspeedway for the first time in the history of stock-car racing’s highest level. While the Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series have history at the venue since it opened in 2001, the Cup Series hasn’t visited — and it makes for some intriguing questions about who will do what this weekend.
With qualifying being held Sunday morning before the race, it’s anybody’s guess who will start where — but as we enter the weekend, there are some stud drivers who need no introduction that are perched atop the NASCAR betting odds. There are also some talented veterans who’ve had success at Nashville in the lower series ranks.
Kyle Larson again, eh? That’s right. Larson is quickly earning a reputation for being so talented he could probably wheel a fire truck with a flat tire around a track during a race and still be competitive. He’s that good.
Larson won the All-Star Race last weekend in Texas, and he’s won the last two NASCAR Cup Series points races (Sonoma and Charlotte). He hasn’t finished outside the top five in more than 45 days, has 11 top-10 finishes in 16 starts, and has shown he can win on just about any kind of track.
So why wouldn’t he be at the top of the NASCAR odds this week, right?
OTHERS: Along with Larson, Martin Truex, Jr. (+1000), and Chase Elliott (+550) have run well on a myriad of tracks this year and the odds reflect that. While the Cup Series hasn’t visited Nashville before, Truex, Jr. has. Back when he was dominating the Xfinity Series in the mid 2000s, Truex, Jr. took second at Nashville Superspeedway in 2004 and fifth in 2005. So it’s been awhile for Truex, but unlike a lot of his competitors this weekend — he at least has a solid record at the track. Like Larson, Elliott is solid just about anywhere.
That takes us to Kyle Busch (+1000), who I just can’t drop into the dark horse threat category below. Busch has won at Nashville in Xfinity (one time), the Camping World Truck Series (twice), and ARCA (once). We put him in the dark horse category last week and it just seemed … inappropriate. Or put more simply — weird.
THE DARK HORSE THREAT
Brad Keselowski (+1400)
Brad Keselowski’s very first win at any level in NASCAR was at Nashville in 2008. Talk about sentimental. Driving the No. 88 for JR Motorsports, he battled Clint Bowyer and David Reutimann for the win. That win launched what has become a big-time stock-car racing career. Up until then, he wasn’t much more than a stroker in the Camping World Truck Series.
Like Busch above, Keselowski has had success at Nashville before, just in a lower series. In 10 Xfinity starts, he had two laps, seven top-five finishes while leading 253 laps.
This venue helped launch a career that has seen him win a NASCAR Cup Series season championship (2012), an Xfinity Series title (2010) and grab 35 Cup Series victories along the way. And he’s still several years away from his 40th birthday, so there’s time to add to it.
OTHERS: Denny Hamlin (+850) was five-for-five when it came to finishing in the top 10 back when he raced at Nashville in the Xfinity Series. Granted, that was a long time ago (just like with Busch and Keselowski) but it may be just the mental edge he needs to secure that first 2021 victory so he’s firmly locked into the NASCAR postseason later this year. That’s right, he still doesn’t have a win, even though he’s leading the season’s points race.
THE INTRIGUING LONG SHOT
Aric Almirola (+15000)
Hear me out on this: Aric Almirola has the eighth-best average finish on intermediate-length tracks since the beginning of the 2018 season, and some of his best success has come at 1.5-mile, D-shaped oval tracks, which is as about close as it gets to Nashville’s 1.33-mile, D-shaped form. Almirola has led 175 laps at these tracks since 2018 (all with Stewart-Haas Racing), with seven top-10 finishes. He also has three career top-10 finishes in four attempts at Nashville in the Xfinity Series.
Ryan Preece took the lead from Grant Enfinger with seven laps remaining in the Rackley Roofing 200 at Nashville Superspeedway to earn his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory Friday night in his first race in the series.
Preece, the 30-year-old Connecticut native who competes full time in the NASCAR Cup Series, is only the fifth driver in history to win in his Truck Series debut.
“That was a lot of fun,” Preece said. “Really I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t know anything.
“I was just taking the guidance from (crew chief) Chad (Johnston) and my teammates and told them I’d be better in the race than I was in qualifying and practice. And fortunately, I lived up to that.”
Preece’s teammate, Todd Gilliland, who started at the rear of the field after a pre-race inspection violation, rallied all the way to second place, passing Enfinger with four laps remaining.
“It stings not to get that last spot, especially because I was under the 17 (Preece) and got too loose, but that’s racing,” said Gilliland, whose father, David, served as his crew chief after his normal crew chief was suspended as part of the inspection penalty.
The Preece-Gilliland work gave Ford its first one-two finish of the season. Enfinger finished third, followed by Zane Smith and Stewart Friesen.
Veteran Matt Crafton, two-race winner Ben Rhodes, Ty Majeski, Austin Hill and championship leader John Hunter Nemechek rounded out the top 10.
Preece, who drives the No. 37 JTG-Daugherty Chevrolet in the NASCAR Cup Series, was one of three full-time Cup Series drivers entered Friday – all wanting to get some extra laps at the 1.333-mile Nashville track, which is hosting its first-ever Cup race Sunday. Chip Ganassi Racing’s Ross Chastain finished 22nd driving for Niece Motorsports, and Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron finished last in the 36-truck field, his No. 27 Rackley W.A.R. Chevrolet experiencing a motor problem shortly after the Stage 1 break.
Nineteen-year-old Derek Kraus, who won his first career Camping World Truck Series pole position Friday afternoon, followed it up by leading the first 48 laps of the race and earning the Stage 1 victory – his second career stage win.
A slow pit stop during that stage break forced Kraus to play catch-up, but he rallied back inside the top 10. His race ended early after contact with the Josh Berry truck sent Kraus’ No. 19 Toyota hard into the wall with only 40 laps remaining.
Nemechek’s 10th-place finish retained the lead in the championship standings for the second-generation driver. A four-race winner so far in 2021, he leads Rhodes by 78 points with only three races remaining to set the 10-driver playoff field.
Chandler Smith, who finished 13th Friday, sits in the final playoff transfer position with a slim 15-point edge on former series champion Johnny Sauter, who finished 12th at Nashville.
The series races next in the CRC Brakleen 150 at Pocono Raceway (June 26 at 12 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
NOTE: NASCAR indicated there were no issues in its post-race inspection, thus confirming Preece’s victory.
