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CONCORD, NC – RIS – Ryan Preece was named to replace Cole Custer in the No. 41 Ford in the 2023 NASCAR Cup season.  Custer, who has raced in Cup for three seasons, will stay with the team but will drop down to the Xfinity Series and be a teammate to Riley Herbst.  Preece spent much of the 2022 season as SHR’s simulator test driver and as a stand-by driver. He was instrumental in the team’s development of the new Next Gen car.

This was first written as an exercise in historical research. Since then, we’ve tried to keep it updated. In light of past seasons’ somewhat controversial endings, especially where the 2004 championship is concerned, here’s the version for the year just ended.)

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AVONDALE, AZ – RIS – Joey Logano won four times this year, but this last one made him the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series champion for 2022.  Logano won the pole and  the first stage while winning the season’s final race at Phoenix Raceway.  It was the second time Logano had accomplished this feat, having won first in 2018.

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AVONDALE, AZ – RIS – Rookie Ty Gibbs held off Noah Gragson in the closing laps and went on to win not only the race, but the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship.  After controversial behavior in winning his ticket to become one of the four contestants to run for the championship, Gibbs showed his racing chops and won. He won six races and topped if off on Saturday at Phoenix Raceway.

Noah Gragson chased Gibbs over the final eight laps and made gains but couldn’t close the gap at the finish.

The closing miles featured fierce racing for the win — and the championship — by Jason Allgaier, Gibbs and Gragson. The lead swapped hands numerous times as each driver searched for the best lines through the one-mile track’s turns. Gragson and Allgaier followed Gibbs to the finish.

A caution with 45 laps to go opened the door for pit stops for the championship drivers. Allgaier held the lead over Gibbs and Gragson at that point. Gibbs’ team won that challenge in the pits, returning him to the track in first place ahead of Allgaier, Berry and Gragson. Berry’s move into third place gave him his best spot of the race, but Berry fell back with 30 laps to go, losing momentum and slapping the outside wall.

With 60 laps to go, the championship contenders filled the first four spots, with Gragson first, Allgaier second, Gibbs third and Berry fourth. Berry ran at the back of the top 10 for most of the first half of the race but rallied in the final stage.

A fast mid-race pit stop put Allgaier in front to start the last stage, but Gibbs needed only a couple of laps to pass him for the lead. A few laps later, a multi-car crash produced the day’s fifth caution. The wreck started with contact between Sammy Smith and Sam Mayer.

Gibbs, the pole winner, led the race’s first 45 laps to win Stage 1 and also got a boost during a later round of pit stops when all three JR Motorsports teams had issues.

“First off, I want to say thank you to my team, my pit crew. Everybody did an awesome job. They put us here. Awesome job to my team, Gibbs said.  I know what I did last week was unacceptable, and I apologize once again. It was unacceptable because we could have had two shots to win this deal, and it was stupid from an organization stand point. I will sit here and tell you I’m sorry as much as I can, but it is not going to fix it. I’ve got to fix my actions. I feel like today I had a good race. We made some good moves. Me and the 7 (Justin Allgaier) were racing really hard. Hopefully we put on a good show for you fans, thank you for all of what you guys do.”

Gibbs captured the second championship for the Toyota GR Supra and is the fourth Toyota driver to win a NXS driver’s championship. In addition to Gibbs, Daniel Suárez (2016) and Kyle Busch (2009) have also won Xfinity Series titles for Toyota in Camrys, while Daniel Hemric (2021) scored the title in the Toyota GR Supra last season.

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AVONDALE, AZ – RIS – Joey Logano was the first driver to qualify for the NASCAR Cup Championship Four and he will start from the pole fo4r Sunday’s final race of 2022 on Sunday.  With a hot lap of 134.389 mph in the second round of Saturday’s qualifying session, the 2018 Cup champion won the pole for Sunday’s Cup Series championship race at Phoenix Raceway. The pole marks Logano’s 26th in the Cup Series and fourth of 2022. Logano will not only lead the field to green, but he will also have the first pick for pit stalls, a key aspect for Sunday’s 312-lap race.

Ty Gibbs On Final 2022 Xfinity Pole Position

Zane Smith started from the pole and dominated the Lucas Oil 150

(PHOENIX, AZ – NOV 5, 2022 – RIS) Zane Smith took full advantage of a four tire stop with less than twelve laps left in the race to win the Lucas Oil 150 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race and the 2022 championship, beating out Ben Rhodes by less than a quarter of a second at the checkered flag in an overtime finish. Three of the four finalists for the championship finished one-two-three, with Chandler Smith third, ahead of John Hunter Nemechek.

Jimmie Johnson at a 2010 press conference

(PHOENIX, AZ - NOV 4, 2022 - RIS) Jimmie Johnson and the Petty GMS management met today to announce that Johnson will be assuming an ownership agreement and that Johnson will run a limited number of NASCAR Cup Series races with the team.

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 MARTINSVILLE, VA – RIS - Christopher Bell, driving the #20 DeWalt Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, won the 74th Annual Xfinity 500, for his fourth victory in 107 NASCAR Cup Series Races, his first victory at Martinsville Speedway and his third victory in 2022.  Second place finisher Kyle Larson posted his fourth top-10 finish in 16 races at Martinsville Speedway after starting from the pole position.

Third place finisher Ryan Blaney posted his eighth top-10 finish in 14 races at Martinsville Speedway but failed to advance to the Championship 4. His thought on the final restart was that it was wild but he just didn’t get through traffic as well as race winner Christopher Bell.

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Ty Gibbs Wrecked Teammate Brandon Jones For the Win

MARTINSVILLE, VA  - RIS Brandon Jones won the pole for the Dead On Tools 250 Xfinity race at Martinsville Speedway, led 6 times for 98 laps, including the next to lap 268 on the 3rd overtime restart, but then Gibbs Racing teammate Ty Gibbs hit the rear of leader Brandon Jones to knock the 19 up the track leaving #54 Gibbs with the lead and the race win under a shower of boos from fans and competitors.  This was Gibbs 10th career victory in the NASCAR  Xfinity series.

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MARTINSVILLE, VA - RIS - Kyle Larson, who was among the first five of the 10 drivers in the final round to qualify, posted an average speed of 96.078 mph to claim the top starting position in Sunday’s playoff elimination race. Larson has already been eliminated from the 2022 driver’s playoffs but his victory last weekend locked his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports team in the owner’s Championship 4 next week at Phoenix.

MARTINSVILLE, VA  - RIS 

NASCAR Xfinity Series Race Number 32

Race Results for the 3rd Annual Dead On Tools 250 - Saturday, October 29, 2022

Martinsville Speedway - Martinsville, VA - 0.526 - Mile Paved

Total Race Length - 269 Laps - 141.494 Miles

RACE (STAGES 60/120/250 LAPS = 131.5 MILES)

POS       CAR       DRIVER MANUF               DELTA   LAPS                           

1            54         Ty Gibbs (P)                     --           269             

2            2            Sheldon Creed #             1.919    269                           

3            98         Riley Herbst                     2.619    269             

4            9            Noah Gragson (P)           3.455    269             

5            7            Justin Allgaier (P)            3.938    269      

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MARTINSVILLE, VA – RIS - Brandon Jones enters Saturday’s Dead on Tools 250 in a must win situation if he is to become the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity champion. He did a good job.  Brandon Jones enters Saturday’s Dead on Tools 250 on the pole with no one ahead of him.  His speed of 95.482 mph in his No. 19 Toyota. And gives him on the pole.

Tony Stewart testing a Top Fuel car in 2021

Tony Stewart Second At Las Vegas In Top Alcohol Dragster Round One Qualifying

Terry Renna - Associated Press

HOMESTEAD, FL – RIS – For The second straight race, Kyle Larson found that he was dominating the headlines, but this was a good headline.  Last weekend, it was all about the contact with Bubba Wallace.  This week was about a dominating win at Homestead-Miami Speedway.  Larson was rarely out of the lead on Sunday, but another bump threatened his victory.

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HOMESTEAD, FL – RIS – Noah Gragson remains as the hottest driver in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. On Saturday, he won the race and punched his ticked to the final four when they run for the championship at Phoenix Raceway on November 5th. 

Ty Majeski during Friday's practice

(HOMESTEAD, FL – OCT. 22. 2022 – RIS) Ty Majeski dominated the second stage and the final laps of the Baptist Health 200 race for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at Homestead Miami Speedway to move to Phoenix in two weeks along with Chandler and Zane Smith and 2021 series champion Ben Rhodes in the Championship Four.

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HOMESTEAD, FL - RIS - William Byron will sit on the pole for Sunday's NASCAR Cup race at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday.  He ran a lap of 166.389 mph to start the playoff race.  Byron edged out Christopher Bell by just under five-hundredths of a second.  It was his eighth of his career. He’s six points below the cut line heading into Homestead. Byron’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott slots in third behind Byron and Bell. John Hunter Nemechek, who’s running in place of the suspended Bubba Wallace, got loose in his lap and ended up fourth quickest. Earlier in the morning, Nemechek was fastest overall in Cup practice. A third Hendrick driver, Kyle Larson, rounds out the top five. Larson brushed the wall during practice but the damage was not severe.

Nigel Kinrade Photo

Trevor Bayne won the NASCAR Xfinity Series pole at Homestead-Miami Speedway with a speed of 166.667 mph in Friday’s qualifying session. It’s his second pole of the season in nine starts and the ninth of his Xfinity career.  Noah Gragson will join him on the front row despite being nearly two-tenths of a second slower. He will be gunning for his first win at Homestead in Saturday’s race after numerous heartbreaks at Homestead in the past. Ty Gibbs and Brandon Jones qualified in third and fifth, respectively, to give Joe Gibbs Racing a 1-3-5 start for Saturday afternoon. Sandwiched in between the JGR cars is Daniel Hemric in fourth; it’s his third top five start in the last five races.

Nigel Kinrade Photo

HOMESTEAD, FL - RIS - Ryan Preece will start his 10th NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race of the 2022 season from the top spot, as he inherited the pole by way of the rulebook after qualifying was canceled due to rain.

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CONCORD, NC - RIS - Bubba Wallace has been suspended for one race due to his actions at Las Vegas Motor Speedway during Sunday's NASCAR Cup race.  he was suspended for intentionally wrecking Kyle Larson last weekend, making Wallace just the fourth driver in the past 11 years to be suspended for an on-track incident. NASCAR has a history of not wanting to suspend drivers. They know some fans save money to attend one race all year, and they want those fans to be able to see their favorite drivers. 

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LAS VEGAS, NV – RIS – Joey Logano battled Ross Chastain in the final laps of the NASCAR Cup race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and due to a tire change on a late caution to punch his ticket to the championship race at Phoenix Raceway in November.  Chastain, who led a race-high 68 laps, pushed to the front in the race’s final stage and built leads up to two seconds as the final miles approached, but Logano gained on him steadily over the last 10 laps and made the winning pass with relative ease. Logano becomes the first driver to fill one of the spots in the Championship Four. Three other drivers will earn the opportunity to race for the title in the next two weeks before the tour arrives at Phoenix Raceway the first weekend of November to decide the championship.

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LAS VEGAS, NV – RIS – Josh Berry won Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and qualified for the final four drivers to run for the championship at Phoenix Raceway next month.  It was his second win at LVMS this season. Right behind him were JRM teammates Noah Gragson in the No. 9 JRM Chevy and Justin Allgaier in the No. 7 Chevrolet. Gragson won Stage 2. Rounding out the top five were playoff contender and Stage 1 winner Ty Gibbs in the No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and Trevor Bayne in the No. 18 JGR Toyota.

Kurt’s decision to step away from full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition next year is certainly not something anyone expected when we started the season together and celebrated in victory lane at Kansas Speedway earlier this year. Unfortunate circumstances led Kurt to a difficult decision, but we know that he will continue to contribute to the entire program at Toyota, TRD and 23XI Racing. He brings a tremendous amount of knowledge and firsthand championship experience to his team and fellow Toyota competitors. We’re here to support Kurt in this next chapter of his career and look forward to continuing to work alongside him.

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LAS VEGAS, NV – Tyler Reddick might have missed the chance to be NASCAR Cup Series Champion, but proved he is still fast as he will start first in Sunday’s South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday.  Reddick turned a lap at 184.603 mph to win the first starting spot for Sunday’s 2:30 p.m. ET (NBC) race. Reddick was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs and is in his final few races for Richard Childress Racing before moving to 23XI Racing next season.

Nigel Kinrade Photo

LAS VEGAS, NV – RIS – A.J. Allmendinger won the NASCAR Xfinity Series pole on Friday night at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  Fresh off two straight wins in the series, Allmendinger is on a roll. He has back-to-back wins at Talladega Superspeedway and the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, and he continues his hot streak with a pole in the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ return to Las Vegas Motor Speedway with a speed of 181.720 mph in qualifying.

Christopher Bell celebrating in Victory Lane

(CONCORD, NC - OCT 9, 2022 - RIS) Christopher Bell came from third in the field to win the Bank of America ROVAL 400 after a late race caution and a red flag, both for debris, extended the 109-lap, 400 kilometer race by three laps. 

AJ Allmendinger celebrates in Victory Lane

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(CONCORD, NC – OCT 8, 2022 – RIS) After leading the time sheets in practice, his qualifying group and final qualifying, AJ Allmendinger went on to lead the most laps in the Drive for the Cure 250 presented by BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina, including the important final lap in an overtime finish, scoring his fourth straight victory on the ROVAL and fifteenth career Xfinity win.

Joey Logano scored his career first pole

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(CONCORD, NC – OCT 8, 2022 – RIS) Joey Logano and William Byron will head the field in the fifth NASCAR Cup Series race on Charlotte Motor Speedway’s ROVAL combination oval and road course layout.

CONCORD, N.C. (Oct. 4, 2022) – One world-class NASCAR driver will make his way to Victory Lane following the Bank of America ROVAL™ 400 on Sunday, but thanks to the efforts of Speedway Children’s Charities, he won’t be the only winner of the weekend. Through a variety of different initiatives, Speedway Children’s Charities will use the weekend to raise money to support local nonprofits in the community.

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TALLADEGA, AL – RIS – Finally, a playoff driver wins a playoff race.  Chase Elliott passed Ryan Blaney on the final lap to claim victory at Talladega Superspeedway.  That means that Elliott moves on to the next round, which starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway’s ROVAL—a half road course and banked speedway hybrid. That’s a cutoff race.

AP Photo/Butch Dill

TALLADEGA, AL – RIS -  A.J. Allmendinger slipped past Sam Mayer on the final lap to win on a superspeedway track for the first time at Talladega Superspeedway in today’s Xfinity playoff race.  As drivers in the lead pack scrambled for position approaching the finish line, Allmendinger pushed to the outside and, getting a push from Kaulig Racing teammate Landon Cassill, edged Mayer by a few feet. The win ended frustration for Allmendinger on superspeedways.

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TALLADEGA, AL – RIS – Matt DiBenedetto won his first Camping World truck race when the “Big One” happened on the last lap.  As the field swept to the finish line in overtime, a multi-car crash developed as Corey Heim lost control of his truck in the trioval. Several trucks crashed approaching the finish as the caution flag flew.

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TALLADEGA, AL – RIS – Christopher Bell will sit on the pole for Sunday’s Yellawood 500 NASCAR Cup Race at Talladega Superspeedway.  The format was the usual two rounds with the 5 fastest times in each round running for the pole. The first round began, and Denny Hamlin ran the fastest lap. The ten fastest finishers were Hamlin, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson, Ross Chastain, Tyler Reddick, Aric Almirola, Ty Gibbs, William Byron, and Noah Gragson. They advance to the second round to compete for the pole position. Christopher Bell was fastest overall and wil start first.

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TALLADEGA, AL – RIS – What a time for a first Xfinity Series pole position!  Austin Hill who led a race-high 67 laps in April’s event at Talladega, scored his first career pole position in Friday’s qualifying session at the 2.66-mile superspeedway, putting down a time of 52.605 seconds (182.036mph).

(TALLADEGA, AL – SEP 30, 2022 – RIS) A lap of 53.567 seconds at 178.767 mph earned John Hunter Nemechek his seventh 2022 pole and ninth of his career in 145 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races. 

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Jimmie Johnson,  a seven time NASCAR champion and IndyCar driver has decided t retire from full time racing.   Johnson, who joined Chip Ganassi Racing-Honda’s IndyCar team in 2021, competed only on road and street courses during that first season, earning best results of 17th in the final two rounds.

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FORT WORTH, TX – RIS – Tyler Reddick was fastest in the end of the NASCAR Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday.  In a race where every possible thing could go wrong, Reddick finished strong beating Joey Logano to the checkered flag on a record hot day which was fought with tire problems and driver feuds.  The tires weren't reliable, there was a rain delay of nearly an hour and passing wasn't plentiful. Teams were basically playing roulette with their tires and hoping they wouldn't be the next to crash because of a tire failure. Sunday's race set a Texas record with 17 cautions. Many of them were due to tire failures.

John Force on his second run Saturday

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Justin Ashley Leads Top Fuel, Brittany Force Sets zMAX Dragway Speed Record at Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals

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FORT WORTH, TX – RIS – Noah Gragson continued his winning streak in the NASCAR Xfinity Series on Saturday at Texas Motor Speedway by winning his fourth consecutive Xfinity race, something that hasn’t been done in nearly forty years.  After pit stops late in the race, Gragson took the lead with 11 laps left and went on to win again.  He led 85 laps enroute to his winning finish.