See where your favorite driver will pit for Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – NASCAR announced Wednesday the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule, a slate that spans 39 total events. The 2022 schedule builds on the steps taken in 2021 by adding more new and dynamic venues to host NASCAR’s premier series for the first time.
On Tuesday, NASCAR announced the Clash – NASCAR’s prelude event to the Daytona 500 since 1979 – will take place somewhere other than Daytona International Speedway when NASCAR visits the iconic Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Feb. 6, 2022.
The NASCAR Cup Series will visit another track for the first time when the green flag flies at World Wide Technology Raceway just outside St. Louis on June 5.
The 1.25-mile asymmetrical oval has hosted 21 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races since 1998 and was also a part of the NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule from 1997–2010. Numerous NASCAR legends and champions have visited Victory Lane over the years. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (1998, 1999), Kevin Harvick (2000, 2001, 2010), Kyle Busch (2009) and Brad Keselowski (2010) earned wins at World Wide Technology Raceway early in their careers.
“As we demonstrated last year, we are committed to creating the most dynamic schedule for our fans, long term,” said Ben Kennedy, NASCAR senior vice president of strategy and innovation. “With the addition of new and unique venues like the Coliseum and World Wide Technology Raceway, each in markets with passionate NASCAR fans, we’re continuing to build on bold changes to deliver the best racing in the world.
“This latest iteration of the schedule should lend itself to another season filled with drama and great racing on the track, starting with the Daytona 500 and culminating with NASCAR Championship Weekend at Phoenix Raceway.”
In another move – and a nod to recent history – Homestead-Miami Speedway will return to the NASCAR Playoffs mix. The popular 1.5-mile destination track will be a key venue when it hosts the second of three Round of 8 races on Oct. 23. In addition, Texas Motor Speedway (Sept. 25) and Las Vegas Motor Speedway (Oct. 16) will swap dates and lead off the Round of 12 and Round of 8, respectively.
In addition, Kansas Speedway will move up in the playoff schedule, becoming the second race in the Round of 16 (Sept. 11).
The 2022 season will officially kick off with the running of The Great American Race – the Daytona 500 – at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 20 live on FOX – an event that will also host the regular-season points-race debut of the Next Gen race car. The Cup Series will then immediately head back out West, beginning with a stop at Auto Club Speedway on Feb. 27 – the first time NASCAR will visit the high-speed 2-mile oval in nearly two years – followed by Las Vegas Motor Speedway (March 6) and Phoenix Raceway (March 13).
The Bristol Dirt Race returns to the schedule, this time under the lights on Easter Sunday Night (April 17). The NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race will also return to Texas Motor Speedway in 2022. The annual event featuring NASCAR’s biggest stars will shift to earlier in the season when festivities get underway on May 22.
After a natural off week (June 19) following the conclusion of FOX Sports’ Cup Series coverage, Nashville Superspeedway will again kick off the NBC Sports’ portion of the schedule on June 26. The action in the Music City will immediately be followed by another fan favorite, Road America, which will highlight Fourth of July festivities for the second consecutive season.
Watkins Glen International will host the penultimate race of the regular season (Aug. 21) followed by an intense regular-season finale under the lights at Daytona International Speedway (Aug. 27) – two distinctly different but equally pivotal tracks in determining the NASCAR Playoffs field.
As previously announced, Phoenix Raceway will be the home to NASCAR Championship Weekend for the third consecutive year, Nov. 4-6.
Start times and specific networks will be announced at a later date, as will the 2022 schedules for the NASCAR Xfinity and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Below is the full 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule (playoff races in bold font):
2022 NASCAR CUP SERIES SCHEDULE
| Date | Race / Track |
| Sunday, February 6 | Clash (L.A. Memorial Coliseum) |
| Thursday, February 17 | Duel at Daytona |
| Sunday, February 20 | Daytona 500 |
| Sunday, February 27 | Auto Club |
| Sunday, March 6 | Las Vegas |
| Sunday, March 13 | Phoenix |
| Sunday, March 20 | Atlanta |
| Sunday, March 27 | COTA |
| Sunday, April 3 | Richmond |
| Saturday, April 9 | Martinsville |
| Sunday, April 17 | Bristol Dirt |
| Sunday, April 24 | Talladega |
| Sunday, May 1 | Dover |
| Sunday, May 8 | Darlington |
| Sunday, May 15 | Kansas |
| Sunday, May 22 | All-Star (Texas) |
| Sunday, May 29 | Charlotte |
| Sunday, June 5 | World Wide Technology Raceway |
| Sunday, June 12 | Sonoma |
| Sunday, June 26 | Nashville Superspeedway |
| Sunday, July 3 | Road America |
| Sunday, July 10 | Atlanta |
| Sunday, July 17 | New Hampshire |
| Sunday, July 24 | Pocono |
| Sunday, July 31 | Indianapolis Road Course |
| Sunday, August 7 | Michigan |
| Sunday, August 14 | Richmond |
| Sunday, August 21 | Watkins Glen |
| Saturday, August 27 | Daytona |
| Sunday, September 4 | Darlington |
| Sunday, September 11 | Kansas |
| Saturday, September 17 | Bristol |
| Sunday, September 25 | Texas |
| Sunday, October 2 | Talladega |
| Sunday, October 9 | Charlotte Roval |
| Sunday, October 16 | Las Vegas |
| Sunday, October 23 | Homestead-Miami |
| Sunday, October 30 | Martinsville |
| Sunday, November 6 | Phoenix |
When Curtis Francois announced his intent to revive the former Gateway International Raceway in 2011, his task seemed daunting. A redevelopment plan was in its infancy, and a handshake deal with NHRA’s drag racing tour was all that went along with a starter one-year lease.
Nearly 10 years to the date later, the former racer and real-estate developer with deep ties to the St. Louis area can add a signature event to those bold plans — a NASCAR Cup Series date next June.
The 1.25-mile oval, part of a sprawling motorsports complex now called World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, will join the Cup Series schedule in 2022. The news, announced by NASCAR and track officials Wednesday morning, marks the culmination of Francois’ vision for the facility he has revitalized during the last decade.
RELATED: NASCAR unveils the 2022 Cup Series schedule
“You know I think with any business venture of this magnitude, there’s always going to be a challenge. I mean, in this case there were lots of challenges,” says Francois, who raced in IMSA and other sports-car tours plus Indy Lights. “But of all the business ventures I’ve been involved with, this has been the most satisfying and rewarding of anything that I’ve ever done. And I can tell you why: It is amazing to see how our community of racers and fans have come together to pull the rope with us. We never felt like we were in it alone, and there were so many people, really, just as part of the team making it happen.
“We’re just elated for the area, for the fans, and for all those that’ll benefit from having a Cup date here.”
The asymmetrical oval has hosted other NASCAR national series races in the past, but the June 5 event will be the first for NASCAR’s top division. The Xfinity Series ran 15 races at the Madison, Illinois, track from 1997-2010, and the Camping World Truck Series competed at Gateway from 1998-2010 before renewing its association with the track in 2014 to the current day. The venue has also hosted IndyCar events on the oval, and NHRA meets on the adjacent drag strip.
The gap in NASCAR’s tenure at the Gateway track came due to the change in ownership. Dover Motorsports group had operated the track but closed it in the fall of 2010, and Francois took over nearly 10 months later, staving off the facility’s demolition. The road back to hosting NASCAR events would be a difficult one, as Steve O’Donnell — NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer — indicated after Dover did not seek race dates for Gateway in 2011.
“It’s fairly challenging to get back on the schedule,” O’Donnell said then. “NASCAR is not in the business of pulling dates from someone. So once someone opts out, we fill those venues with what we feel like are going to do a good job and have done a good job, Once that schedule is full, it’s quite difficult to get back on there.”
Shortly after Francois’ one-year lease turned into full ownership, Gateway was back on NASCAR’s radar with an annual date for the Camping World Trucks that’s held steady since 2014. IndyCar racing returned three years later.
“It wasn’t until much later that I understood that it would be as big of a challenge as it would be,” Francois says. “I did not know that Steve had made those comments, and it was probably for the best, because I just went about it as saying we’re gonna work as hard as we can every single day, put on great races, provide a great place for fans to come out and enjoy racing, and really do the best that we can to integrate ourselves into the racing world. Certainly, you know, it’s just great to see that that has come now full circle, and coming back to seeing that a Cup date is coming to St. Louis.
“Frankly, the way we went about our business was pretty straightforward. We just put forth our best effort for more than a decade now and letting the results of hard work signal the most clear resounding message that can be heard, that really that the message is one of validation that the Cup Series belongs in St Louis. It just took a long time to really set the stage to make that happen.”
The hard work that Francois references often has come in the form of investments in the track’s facilities. For fans, that’s meant renovated concession areas, restrooms and seating, plus a calendar full of events on the grassroots level. On the competition side, both the oval and drag strip were repaved in 2017, and safety upgrades have been a continual focus.
“The facility’s made a lot of strides,” said Ben Kennedy, NASCAR senior vice president of strategy and innovation. “They had a repave a few years ago to the track, and I know Curtis has some plans as you think about the future of the track in the next two to three years. So, they certainly believe in the track and they believe in the market, and I think one of the great things about it is you’re so close to St. Louis area, only a five-minute drive from the arch and downtown St. Louis, and I think it’ll be a great crowd once we go out there. The truck crowd is always really impressive.”
Start times have not been released for the 2022 Cup Series schedule, but Francois says he anticipates a daytime start for his race-day Sunday. The track plans to take deposits on next year’s race tickets starting in the fall.
Track officials formally unveiled its place on the Cup Series schedule at a media event Wednesday morning in St. Louis’ Ballpark Village, between the home of baseball’s Cardinals and the iconic Gateway Arch. There’s plenty to do before NASCAR’s premier circuit arrives in 2022, but Francois’ vision extends beyond that June debut.
“I think this is just really only the beginning,” Francois says. “We followed our mission, and our mission really has been leading with authenticity. Our model has been to go right back to the grassroots racing fan, and to make sure that they found a home at World Wide Technology Raceway, and we anticipate that we will continue to deliver that going into the future. You know, just really being good listeners to the fans and delivering the best possible experience that we can, we’ll be certainly rock-solid stewards of the community. I think most importantly, while we’re doing all these things, we’ll have some fun doing it.”
NASCAR officials released the 2022 Cup Series schedule Wednesday, unveiling a new-look calendar of events that builds on the dynamic changes that debuted this season while making slight adjustments to the rotation of tracks in the 10-race playoffs.
World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway is the only new venue added to the schedule of 36 points-paying events. The 1.25-mile oval in Madison, Illinois, outside of St. Louis has hosted Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series events in the past, but next year will mark its Cup Series debut.
RELATED: Full 2022 Cup Series schedule | Clash heading to L.A.
Many of the settings will be familiar as teams and drivers introduce the Next Gen car that will debut next season in NASCAR’s top division. The list of points-paying events kicks off with the Daytona 500 on Feb. 20 and closes with the season-ending championship race Nov. 6 at Phoenix Raceway, which will host the finale for the third consecutive year. The three tracks new to the 2021 schedule — Circuit of The Americas, Nashville Superspeedway and Road America — will return for 2022, as will transformations of Bristol Motor Speedway to dirt and Indianapolis Motor Speedway to a road-course layout.
A radical change is coming to the season-opening Clash exhibition with Tuesday’s announcement of a one-off event at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Other shifts are more subtle, with a slight reworking of the postseason slate that will help determine the 2022 champion.
“The process has been very refreshing for me personally to see everyone work together from all the different industry stakeholders, getting feedback from our teams … and then a lot of feedback from our fans from different studies that we’ve done, too,” said Ben Kennedy, NASCAR senior vice president of strategy and innovation. “So it’s been a very collaborative process, and it’s been really neat to see how it’s been received, both the 2021 schedule and looking forward to see how everyone reacts to ’22.”
Kennedy said 2022 schedules for the Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series would be announced in two to three weeks. Among the noteworthy developments on the new Cup Series schedule:
- World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway will bring a St. Louis flavor to the Cup Series calendar when it debuts June 5. The asymmetrical oval has hosted the Camping World Truck Series the last eight seasons and has hosted the Xfinity Series, plus IndyCar and NHRA events at its expansive complex. The addition of Gateway to the schedule will remove an event from Pennsylvania’s Pocono Raceway, which drops from two annual races to one (July 24).
- As announced Tuesday on FOX Sports, the venerable Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum will mark the Next Gen car’s competition debut in the Clash exhibition on a temporary quarter-mile oval track on Feb. 6. The eligibility criteria and race procedures will be announced at a later date.
- Homestead-Miami Speedway returns to the postseason rotation, bringing its competitive 1.5-mile layout to the Round of 8 lineup on Oct. 23. The South Florida venue hosted season-ending Cup Series event from 2002-19, but had races in June last season and February this year.
Richmond Raceway will transition out of the playoff schedule after a four-year run, taking an Aug. 14 date. Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway will trade places in the postseason, with the Fort Worth track opening the Round of 12 on Sept. 25 and Vegas moving to the Round of 8 on Oct. 16. Kansas also shifts to earlier in the playoff rotation, taking the Sept. 11 slot.
“I think we have a really strong playoff slate right now,” Kennedy says. “That said, we want to keep it fresh, we want to keep it new, we want to keep it exciting, and I think with a lot of the great tracks that we have online, a lot of great tracks that we already have in our schedule, I think we’ve got a bunch of options to play with in the future. So excited about some of the changes we’ll see in ’22. I think, that said, as I think about ’23 and beyond, I think the opportunity for us to rotate some of those playoff venues will be there, something that we’ll definitely take a look at.”
- Auto Club Speedway is set to return to the schedule after a two-year absence because of the COVID-19 epidemic. The event, scheduled Feb. 27, re-establishes a three-race West Coast swing as a lead-in to March events for Las Vegas and Phoenix.
The event is slated to be contested on the 2-mile, D-shaped track in Fontana, California. Competition officials have studied redeveloping the facility into a short track, but the go-ahead for such a project has not been made final.
- Indianapolis Motor Speedway will return to the Cup Series schedule on July 31, using the grand-prix layout that combines parts of the oval and infield road course. It will mark the second straight year for the 2.439-mile configuration, which ran into issues with the curbing in the late stages of the Cup Series debut there last month, but Kennedy said the door remained open for an eventual return to the historic 2.5-mile IMS oval.
“I think the reason behind that is just, the racing product that we saw on the road course, I think fans liked it quite a bit,” Kennedy said. “I think a few things to work through, and we’ve been working hand in hand with (IMS track president) Doug Boles and the entire team ever since that event, but I think as we look towards the future, it’d be great to get back to the oval. Obviously, a ton of history and prestige around running on the oval and the Brickyard 400, so looking forward to seeing us back there sometime in the future.”
- Bristol Motor Speedway’s dirt-track event will be held for a second straight year, this time with a prime-time race under the lights on Easter Sunday, April 17. The 0.533-mile track’s annual night race on its usual concrete surface remains the Round of 16 finale on Sept. 17.
- The NASCAR All-Star Race returns to Texas Motor Speedway for the second consecutive year, slated for May 22. The Fort Worth track will become the first venue other than Charlotte Motor Speedway to host the non-points invitational more than once.
- Watkins Glen International and Michigan International Speedway return to the schedule, but the two tracks will swap their August race dates. Michigan moves to Aug. 7, while The Glen pushes back to Aug. 21, the next-to-last race before the playoffs field is set.
- Daytona International Speedway’s annual 400-miler will slot in as the regular-season finale for the third straight year, running Aug. 27. The annual Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway also stays intact as the opening race to the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, remaining a Labor Day weekend fixture on Sept. 4.
- The Cup Series will be idle for Father’s Day weekend on June 18-19. The off-weekend will serve as a natural divide for NASCAR’s broadcast partners — the FOX Sports portion of the 2022 slate will end June 12 at Sonoma Raceway, and NBC Sports will pick up the remainder of the schedule starting June 26 at Nashville Superspeedway.
Martin Truex Jr. captured the Busch Pole Award for Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 16 elimination race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
RELATED: Complete schedule for Bristol | Betting odds
Truex will start his No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota from the first spot in search of his first Bristol victory. Truex, a playoff driver, is coming off a win at Richmond Raceway to lock into the Round of 12.
Noah Gragson, fresh off back-to-back wins in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, claimed the pole for Friday night’s Food City 300 (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN and SiriusXM) in the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Sheldon Creed, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series reigning champion and a winner of back-to-back playoff races earned the pole for his No. 2 GMS Racing Chevrolet for Thursday night’s UNOH 200 presented by Ohio Logistics (9 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM). The Truck race is the elimination race for the Round of 10 in that series.
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 Saturday night’s Cup Series race below.
| Start pos. |
Driver | Car # | Team |
| 1 | Martin Truex Jr. | 19 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 2 | Denny Hamlin | 11 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 3 | Joey Logano | 22 | Team Penske |
| 4 | Chase Elliott | 9 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 5 | Kyle Larson | 5 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 6 | Christopher Bell | 20 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 7 | Ryan Blaney | 12 | Team Penske |
| 8 | Kevin Harvick | 4 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 9 | Kyle Busch | 18 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 10 | Brad Keselowski | 2 | Team Penske |
| 11 | Alex Bowman | 48 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 12 | Aric Almirola | 10 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 13 | Tyler Reddick | 8 | Richard Childress Racing |
| 14 | William Byron | 24 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 15 | Kurt Busch | 1 | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 16 | Michael McDowell | 34 | Front Row Motorsports |
| 17 | Ross Chastain | 42 | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 18 | Austin Dillon | 3 | Richard Childress Racing |
| 19 | Matt DiBenedetto | 21 | Wood Brothers Racing |
| 20 | Chase Briscoe | 14 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 21 | Daniel Suarez | 99 | Trackhouse Racing |
| 22 | Erik Jones | 43 | Richard Petty Motorsports |
| 23 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 47 | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 24 | Ryan Newman | 6 | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 25 | Chris Buescher | 17 | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 26 | Cole Custer | 41 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 27 | Ryan Preece | 37 | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 28 | Bubba Wallace | 23 | 23XI Racing |
| 29 | Justin Haley | 77 | Spire Motorsports |
| 30 | Anthony Alfredo | 38 | Front Row Motorsports |
| 31 | Corey LaJoie | 7 | Spire Motorsports |
| 32 | BJ McLeod | 78 | Live Fast Motorsports |
| 33 | Josh Bilicki | 52 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 34 | Quin Houff | 00 | StarCom Racing |
| 35 | JJ Yeley | 51 | Petty Ware Racing |
| 36 | Garrett Smithley | 53 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 37 | James Davison | 15 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 38 | David Starr | 66 | Motorsports Business Management |
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.
While big names on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour such as Justin Bonsignore, Patrick Emerling, Ron Silk and others ran into issues last weekend at Richmond Raceway, Ronnie Williams capitalized.
He didn’t win, but a third-place finish for the Ellington, Connecticut, native might as well have been one — with it being his best finish in his 37-race Whelen Modified Tour career to date.
“It’s just good to run well on the tour finally,” Williams said in the garage at the Virginia short-track, the first event in nearly 20 years at the venue for the tour. “We had a fourth-place at New Hampshire and now a third here. We’re definitely going in the right direction.”
The second top-five this season is the most in Williams’ career over a single season and third overall. A two-time Stafford Motor Speedway SK Modified champion and 2019 Tri Track Open Modified Series champion, Williams has run part-time on the Whelen Modified Tour for the last couple of seasons. And it’s results like Richmond that makes the No. 50 group want to prove themselves more on the big stage.
“I mean, this is an SK modified team out of Stafford,” he said. “And to come here and compete with these guys says a lot.”
Williams led three separate times for a total of 34 laps but wound up falling off towards the end, not being able to hold serve with eventual winner Ryan Preece down the stretch.
“We were really good in the middle part of the race and those laps that we led. We pulled away, but just missed it a little bit. Wish it was 100 laps, not 150. But solid effort overall.”
He did allow himself a daydream a little, though. The “what ifs” of the small, part-time team coming to a big NASCAR national series venue and doing the unthinkable. That was, until he was reminded of how long the race was.
“My spotter came over the radio and said, “it’s only lap 76.” I’m like, ‘crap, we have half way to go,’” he joked. “I’ve had two poles on the tour and I’d never led a lap. I don’t know how that makes sense. But it was kind of nice to go out there and just feel like we belong on the tour.”
Ronnie Williams and his No. 50 team plan to compete in the season-finale, the NAPA Fall Final 150, at Stafford on September 25.
The season-opening Clash exhibition race is about to get a taste of West Coast flavor in 2022, marking a historic first visit to the tradition-rich Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
The only venue to host two Olympic Games will add NASCAR Cup Series racing to its 98-year-old portfolio next season. The event is to be contested around a quarter-mile asphalt oval that will be built around the facility’s football field. The Los Angeles event will mark the first time the preseason Clash will be held outside of Daytona International Speedway since its inception in 1979, and it will give the sport its first competitive look at the Next Gen car on Feb. 6 for 2022 in a non-points event.
RELATED: Tickets: On pre-sale here (Use code: NASCAR)
Next Gen Chevrolet | Next Gen Ford | Next Gen Toyota
“We’ve been discussing the Clash for a while, and we’ve had it at the (Daytona) oval for a number of years,” said Ben Kennedy, NASCAR senior vice president of strategy and innovation. “We moved it to the road course this year, but really wanted to think outside the box as we thought about the Clash in the future — and seeing that it’s an exhibition event, we looked at a number of different places and locations that we could host it at, and ultimately narrowed it down to the L.A. Coliseum.
“I think the large fan base that we have here in Los Angeles, the largest that we actually have in the nation, paired with exciting racing and being here in the downtown Los Angeles market, I think will be really special.”
Kennedy said talks with Coliseum officials began two years ago, but negotiations and planning were delayed by the COVID-19 outbreak last spring. How those conversations started was by simpler means than one might think.
“We’ve had these discussions for a while, and they actually came about by us going to their website, finding their contact page and reaching out to them,” Kennedy says. “So, we started that in 2019, I had a few conversations, obviously with COVID put things on pause, but resurfaced and I would say early on this year, I’ve had a ton of dialogue. Over summer, we put a team together a couple of months ago, and really we’re off to the races and running now.”
The 77,500-seat venue has hosted motorsports events in the past, with both supercross and speedway motorcycle races within the stadium. Off-road trucks and rallycross events (including the X Games) have also been competed on temporary dirt courses at the Coliseum in recent years. But an impermanent paved track for big-league stock-car racing will be a first, and construction is scheduled to start on New Year’s Day in 2022.
Kennedy said series officials have considered two or three configurations for the quarter-mile bullring, with iRacing computer simulations helping to determine the track’s real-life profile. Simulated trials have taken place with 5 degrees, 2.5 degrees and no banking in the turns, he says. “You can only go so high, just because of the sight lines and the temporary construction, but we’ve played with a few different ones,” Kennedy says. “We’ll have more at a later date on that.”
RELATED: NASCAR’s history of racing in stadium venues
A handful of NASCAR Cup Series drivers and competitors in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series have already given the Coliseum track a virtual sim shakedown. “I think a lot of good feedback and intel that we’ve gotten from some of those test events, and I think that will ultimately help us kind of refine exactly what that model is going to look like,” Kennedy says. “So other than that, it’ll be asphalt, quarter-mile. We’ll have a few pit stalls, maybe eight to 10, inside but for non-competitive stuff. If someone has a loose wheel or needs to repair their car, they’ll be able to come in and do that.”
The track will be the shortest that the Cup Series has competed on in the modern era. Currently, Bristol Motor Speedway (0.533 mile) and Martinsville Speedway (0.526 mile) are the smallest layouts on the schedule. In previous years, the circuit visited quarter-mile Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, from 1958-1971 and tiny .2-mile Islip (N.Y.) Speedway from 1964-68, 71.
The format and eligibility for the L.A Coliseum preseason exhibition, which is typically shorter than a standard points-paying event, will be announced at a later date. The event has traditionally been open to Busch Pole Award winners from the previous year and other selected invitees. While the race procedures have yet to be made final, Kennedy says the unique venue’s debut will have a new-look structure.
“What I will say, though, is the format will be a little bit different from what we’ve traditionally seen at the Clash at Daytona,” Kennedy says. “So, looking at a few different options. The group has really, really been challenged to think kind of differently about how we have all the different events leading into the main event, and I think a lot of good thoughts and input that we’ve got on it so far, so more to come on all that.”
The non-points invitational will also provide a glimpse of the Next Gen car for the 2022 Cup Series in race conditions. Officials had initially targeted a competitive on-track debut during Daytona’s Speedweeks, but now the seventh-generation Cup Series model will have a Tinseltown premiere.
“I think given that it is a fresh concept, a fresh event, a fresh year, we wanted to start off with a fresh look with the Next Gen car,” Kennedy said.
NASCAR has a steeped tradition of racing in Southern California. National-series events are scheduled to return to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana this year, and the Cup Series also competed in the past at Ontario Motor Speedway and Riverside International Raceway, two venues east of L.A. that have since been redeveloped. The ARCA Menards Series West still competes at Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway, just east of the city limits.
The L.A. Coliseum underwent a $315 million renovation in 2018, replacing the general seating and adding luxury boxes and club-level suites. Series officials toured the facilities during last weekend’s college football matchup between the University of Southern California and visiting Stanford.
The 2022 season-opening Clash has a new look — and a new venue.
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, one of the most storied venues in all of sports and entertainment, will add a new event to its long and decorated list: The Clash at the Coliseum
NASCAR officially announced the news Tuesday evening, confirming the first NASCAR event held at the iconic Los Angeles stadium will take place Sunday, Feb. 6.
The Clash at the Coliseum will also be the first event as part of the venue’s centennial celebration and mark the first time NASCAR’s prelude event to the DAYTONA 500 will take place somewhere other than Daytona International Speedway.
When is the Clash at the Coliseum?
- Date: Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022
- Start time/TV channel: To be announced at a later date
- Tickets: On sale now! (Use code: NASCAR)
- More: Tickets start at $65 for adults and kids 12 & under starting as low as $10. The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum offers a variety of seating options from lower to upper bowl, midfield start/finish line seats to premium club seats with access to the exclusive Lou Galen Club Lounge. Premium Club seats will go on sale starting Sept. 29 at 1 p.m. ET following a special pre-sale to current Club Members.
NASCAR penalized two Cup Series teams and one Xfinity Series team Tuesday for infractions during last weekend’s events at Richmond Raceway.
RELATED: Cup Series standings | Bristol schedule
The No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of race winner Martin Truex Jr. was found with one unsecured lug nut in Saturday’s post-race check after the Federated Auto Parts 400 Salute to First Responders, resulting in a $10,000 fine for crew chief James Small.
The No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet of Justin Haley was found with two unsecured lug nuts after the race, resulting in a $20,000 fine for crew chief Kevin Bellicourt. In addition, Bellicourt is also suspended from the next NASCAR Cup Series Championship Points Event.
In the Xfinity Series, the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of Harrison Burton was found with a single unsecured lug nut after Saturday’s Go Bowling 250, resulting in a $5,000 fine for crew chief Jason Ratcliff.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour is heading into Riverhead Raceway for the third time this season, but with much heavier hearts compared to when the series was there in May and June.
Ed Partridge, Riverhead track owner and the tour’s most recent winning car owner, passed away on Friday, Sept. 10, just hours after Ryan Preece wheeled Partridge’s No. 6 car to victory lane at Richmond Raceway. Partridge owned Riverhead with his wife, Connie, and while his passion for motorsports has been highlighted in the passing days, so too has his kindness.
Preece, who won each of his final three races for Partridge this season, will not be able to compete at Riverhead this weekend, as he will be busy piloting the No. 37 Chevrolet for JTG Daugherty Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series at Bristol Motor Speedway.
RELATED: Car owner Ed Partridge passes away
With two races in the books already this year at Riverhead and only one winner, we know a little bit more of what to expect heading into Saturday night’s Miller Lite 200 at the New York bullring. With a former six-time champion knocking on the door of sweeping the season, and a points battle heading to the final stretch run, fans will be intrigued to see what happens over 200 laps at the quarter-mile.
The Miller Lite 200 is set for Saturday at 8 p.m. ET and can be seen live on TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold.
RACE INFO: Race Center: Riverhead | Entry List
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WHAT TO WATCH FOR
MILLER LITE 200
Six-time tour champion Doug Coby won the first two races of the year at Riverhead and is hoping to make it a clean sweep come Saturday night. After not winning in 19 previous Riverhead attempts, the Milford, Connecticut, native finally scored the checkered flag in May, leading 25 laps, and followed it up by dominating in June. Coby was at the front for 149 of the 200 laps in the June race and has proven that his Mayhew Tools team have figured out the setup at the tricky track. He will be heading to Riverhead fresh off his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series debut at Bristol on Thursday, which will come behind the wheel of the No. 24 Truck for GMS Racing.
Meanwhile, the Whelen Modified Tour championship battle comes into full focus, as Justin Bonsignore eyes his third tour championship in four years. The Holtsville, New York, native had an opportunity to truly widen his point lead over Patrick Emerling at Richmond, after Emerling broke a driveshaft at lap 47. Instead, a mechanical gremlin eliminated Bonsignore from the race just 13 laps later and only he finished one spot ahead of his championship rival.
Riverhead marks the penultimate race of the 2021 season, with only a September 25 race at Stafford Motor Speedway left to decide the title. Bonsignore enters with a 22-point cushion over second-place Emerling, and has a clear advantage this weekend on Long Island.
Bonsignore is an eight-time winner at Riverhead — most recently winning four straight tour races from July 2018 through September 2019, and he finished third in both races this season. Emerling, meanwhile, is winless in 11 starts at the ¼-mile oval, but finished runner-up in each of the races there earlier this season.
And while the driver’s title is where all sights will be set, the heat for the owners championship is still ablaze, too. Bonsignore’s No. 51 team owned by Ken Massa holds a 20-point advantage over Coby’s No. 10 team. And just two points behind Doug Coby Racing sits Emerling’s No. 07 team. That fight could last until the closing laps at Stafford.
Ron Silk won each of the two races prior to Richmond and sits third in points, but at 53 points behind Bonsignore, a title run seems out of the picture. Silk has yet to find victory lane at Riverhead, but turned in solid performances earlier this season, running seventh in May and fourth in June. Jon McKennedy enters off a runner-up finish at Richmond, his best result of the season and fourth top five in the past six races. McKennedy could use some of that momentum heading into Riverhead. In his two prior starts this year, McKennedy placed 16th and eighth respectively.
The race will also showcase some of Riverhead’s best local stars, as their NASCAR Modified division takes the night off, and drivers come to play with the Whelen Modified Tour. Kyle Soper leads the weekly track championship standings on the heels of a handful of wins this year, and will return to tour action on Saturday, driving for Wayne Anderson. Dylan Slepian, who is third in the track standings, will also compete in the Miller Lite 200.
Former multiple-time track champion and winner Tom Rogers Jr. is set to compete for the Darch family in their familiar No. 03, as Rogers extended a streak to 18 consecutive years of winning a race at the track earlier this year. Timmy Solomito, a longtime weekly regular at Riverhead, is busting out his own No. 66 family-owned ride for competition. The Islip, New York, native shook the car down last week during weekly competition and has three of his nine career tour wins at Riverhead.
RACING REFERENCE:
- 2021 Race 1: Doug Coby wins | 2021 Race 2: Coby makes it two
- Past NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Races at Riverhead
- NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Drivers at Riverhead
RACE FACTS
| Race | Miller Lite 200 |
| Date | Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021 |
| Track | Riverhead Raceway |
| Layout | Quarter-mile oval |
| Location | Riverhead, NY |
| Start time | 8:00 p.m. ET |
| Laps | 200 |
| Miles | 50 |
| Tickets | Sold at track |
| TV channel | NBCSN (Delayed: Thursday, Sept. 23, 5 p.m. ET) |
| Live stream | TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold (Live) |
RACEDAY SCHEDULE: Saturday, Sept. 18 — Garage opens: 12:45 p.m. ET; Practice: 3:15-4:30 p.m.; Qualifying: 6 p.m.; Race: 8 p.m.
CREW CHIEF HANDOUT:The starting field for the Miller Lite 200 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 Miller Lite 200. 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 eight (8) 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 zero (0) tires, any position.
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.
