All three NASCAR series competed this past weekend on the transformed Atlanta Motor Speedway for the first time. The 1.5-mile track was not only repaved since last season, but 28-degree banking and 40-foot wide corners were incorporated in the redesign. This changed the intermediate track to resemble a smaller version of Daytona and is now considered a “superspeedway” as well. The three races showed the drivers, teams and fans that they got it right. Three-wide high-speed racing for almost the entire races, multiple changes for the lead and, unfortunately, several multi-vehicle wrecks; just like Daytona and Talladega. Of the 37 cars that entered the Cup race, 28 had at least some collision damage by the end of the race. William Byron managed to avoid the chaos to score the win in Sunday’s Cup Series Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500.
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Sun, Mar 20, Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS) - 325 laps
- NCS qualifying was cancelled due to weather on Friday and the lineup was set by the NASCAR rule book. This placed Chase Briscoe (#14 Ford Mustang) P1 and Ryan Blaney (#2 Ford Mustang) P2 on the front row. #22 Joey Logano, #18 Kyle Busch, #8 Tyler Reddick, #9 Chase Elliott, #1 Ross Chastain, #4 Kevin Harvick, #45 Kurt Busch and #10 Aric Almirola rounded out the top-10 in the starting lineup. Did not make the 40-car race: None, only 37 entries.
- William Byron (#24 Chevrolet Camaro) scored his 3rd victory in 149 NCS races. This is his 1st victory and 2nd top-10 finish in 2022. It is his 1st victory and 2nd top-10 finish in six races at Atlanta. Ross Chastain (2nd) posted his 1st top-10 finish in five Atlanta races and his 3rd top-10 finish in 2022. Kurt Busch (3rd) posted his 17th top-10 finish in 32 races at AMS. Harrison Burton (25th) was the highest finishing Sunoco Rookie of the Year (ROTY) candidate. Polesitter Chase Briscoe led five laps and finished the race in 15th place.
- NCS points leader: Chase Elliott by 7 points over Joey Logano.
- Next: Sun, Mar 27, EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas - 68 laps
TOP-16 NCS Playoff Contenders (G/L):
1. Chase Elliott 2
2. Joey Logano -1
3. Chase Briscoe 2
4. William Byron 11
5. Kurt Busch 7
6. Ryan Blaney 1
7. Aric Almirola -1
8. Martin Truex Jr. 5
9. Alex Bowman 2
10. Ross Chastain 4
11. Kyle Busch -9
12. Kyle Larson -8
13. Daniel Suarez 9
14. Kevin Harvick -4
15. Tyler Reddick -6
16. Brad Keselowski 2
NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS)
Sat, Mar 19, Nalley Cars 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS) - 163 laps + 9 laps OT
- NXS qualifying cancelled due to weather. Lineup set by NASCAR rule book. This placed Noah Gragson (#9 Chevrolet Camaro) P1 and Josh Berry (#8 Chevrolet Camaro) P2 on the front row. #19 Brandon Jones, #54 Ty Gibbs, #18 Trevor Bayne, #7 Justin Allgaier, #16 AJ Allmendinger, #11 Daniel Hemric, #39 Ryan Sieg and #10 Landon Cassill round out the top-10 in the starting lineup. Did not make the 38-car race (43 entries): #08 David Starr, #47 Brennan Poole, #13 Chad Finchum, #77 Dillon Bassett and #52 Harrison Rhodes.
- Ty Gibbs (#54 Toyota Supra) scored his 6th victory in 23 NXS races. This is his 2nd victory and 3rd top-10 finish in 2022. Austin Hill (2nd), the highest finishing ROTY, posted his 2nd top-10 finish in 2022. AJ Allmendinger (3rd) posted his 3rd top-10 finish in four Atlanta races. Polesitter Noah Gragson led 38 laps, was caught up in a late-race multi-car wreck and finished 26th.
- NXS points leader: Noah Gragson by 19 points over Ty Gibbs.
- Next: Sat, Mar 26, Pit Boss 250 at Circuit of the Americas - 48 laps
TOP-12 NXS Playoff Contenders (G/L):
1. Noah Gragson 0
2. Ty Gibbs 0
3. AJ Allmendinger 1
4. Justin Allgaier -1
5. Josh Berry 0
6. Brandon Jones 1
7. Daniel Hemric -1
8. Austin Hill 3
9. Riley Herbst 1
10. Ryan Sieg -2
11. Landon Cassill 4
12. Sheldon Creed 2
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NTS)
Sat, Mar 19, Fr8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS) - 135 laps
- NTS qualifying cancelled due to weather. Lineup set by NASCAR rule book. This placed Chandler Smith (#18 Toyota Tundra) P1 and Stewart Friesen (#52 Toyota Tundra) P2 on the front row. #88 Matt Crafton, #66 Ty Majeski, #42 Carson Hocevar, #25 Matt DiBenedetto, #22 Austin Wayne Self, #23 Grant Enfinger, #15 Tanner Gray and #16 Tyler Ankrum round out the top-10 in the starting lineup.
- ARCA Menards Series regular Corey Heim (driving the #51 Toyota Tundra) won the Fr8 208, his 1st victory in five NTS races. It is his 1st top-10 NTS finish in 2022 and 1st at Atlanta. Ben Rhodes (2nd) posted his 6th top-10 finish in seven Atlanta races and his 2nd top-10 finish in 2022. Ty Majeski (3rd) posted his 1st top-10 finish in two races at Atlanta. Polesitter Chandler Smith, led 21 laps and finished 4th in the race.
- NTS points leader: Chandler Smith by 13 points over Tanner Gray.
- Next: Sat, Mar 26, XPEL 225 at Circuit of The Americas - 42 laps
TOP-10 NTS Playoff Contenders (G/L):
1. Chandler Smith 0
2. Tanner Gray 0
3. Ty Majeski 0
4. Stewart Friesen 1
5. Ben Rhodes -1
6. Christian Eckes 5
7. Austin Wayne Self 1
8. John Hunter Nemechek 2
9. Zane Smith 3
10. Matt Crafton -1
NASCAR Feeder Series
ARCA Menards Series: (Combo with ARCA Menards West)
Fri, Mar 11 General Tire 150 at Phoenix Raceway - 154 laps
Winner: Taylor Gray - P1: Sammy Smith - Points Leader: Daniel Dye
Next: Sat, Apr 23, General Tire 200 at Talladega Superspeedway - 76 laps
ARCA Menards East:
Sat, Mar 19, Pensacola 200 at Five Flags Speedway - 200 laps
Winner: Sammy Smith - P1: Leland Honeyman - Points Leader: Sammy Smith
Next: Fri, Apr 29, Dover 125 at Dover Motor Speedway - 125 laps
ARCA Menards West: (Combo with ARCA Menards Series)
Fri, Mar 11 General Tire 150 at Phoenix Raceway - 154 laps
Winner: Taylor Gray - P1: Sammy Smith - Points Leader: Taylor Gray
Next: Sat, Mar 26, NAPA Auto Parts 150 at Irwindale Speedway - 150 laps
Whelen Modified Tour:
Sat, Feb 12, New Smyrna Visitors Bureau 200 at New Smyrna Speedway - 200 laps
Winner: Matt Hirschman - P1: Matt Hirschman - Points Leader: Matt Hirschman
Next: Fri, Apr 1, Virginia is for Racing Lovers 150 at Richmond Raceway - 150 laps
NASCAR Pinty’s Series:
Season Opener: Sat, May 14, TBA at Sunset Speedway
NASCAR Mexico Series:
Season Opener: Sun, Apr 10, NASCAR Mexico Race 1 at Super Ovalo Chiapas
Track Details
Atlanta Motor Speedway - 1.54-mile oval - Hampton, Georgia
Circuit Of The Americas - 3.426-mile, 20 turn road course - Austin, Texas
Dover Motor Speedway - 1-mile concrete oval - Dover, Delaware
Five Flags Speedway - 0.5-mile oval - Pensacola, Florida
Irwindale Speedway - 0.5-mile oval - Irwindale, California
Las Vegas Motor Speedway - 1.5-mile tri-oval - Las Vegas, Nevada
New Smyrna Speedway - 0.5-mile oval - New Smyrna Beach, Florida
Phoenix Raceway - 1-mile tri-oval - Avondale, Arizona
Richmond Raceway - 0.75-mile oval - Richmond, Virginia
Sunset Speedway - 0.333-mile oval - Innisfil, Ontario
Super Ovalo Chiapas - 0.75-mile tri-oval - Tuxtla Gutierrez
Talladega Superspeedway - 2.66-mile tri-oval - Talladega, Alabama
