Phoenix Raceway was the venue for this past weekend’s NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series races. 2022 Rookie of the Year candidate Chase Briscoe scored his first career NASCAR Cup Series win in Sunday’s 200-lap Ruoff Mortgage 500. He becomes the fourth driver, joining Austin Cindric, Kyle Larson and Alex Bowman, as the only drivers locked into the 2022 CUP Playoffs that begin in September.
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Sun, Mar 13, Ruoff Mortgage 500 at Phoenix Raceway (PR) – 312 laps
– Ryan Blaney (#12 Ford Mustang) won the Pole Award for Sunday’s race with a lap of 27.127 seconds, 132.709 mph. This is his 7th pole in 238 NCS races and his 1st pole and 3rd top-10 start in 2022. It is his 3rd pole in 13 races at PR. Denny Hamlin (2nd) posted his 3rd top-10 start of 2022 and his 21st in 34 Phoenix races. William Byron (3rd) posted his 4th top-10 start at PR and his 2nd in four races this season. Austin Cindric (8th) was the fastest qualifying Sunoco Rookie of the Year (ROTY) contender. Did not qualify: No one – only 36 entries for the 40-car lineup.
– Chase Briscoe (#14 Ford Mustang) scored his 1st victory in 40 NCS races. This is his 2nd top-10 finish in 2022 and his 1st top-10 finish in three races at Phoenix. Ross Chastain (2nd) posted his 1st top-10 finish in eight PR races and his 2nd top-five finish in 2022. Tyler Reddick (3rd) posted his 1st top-10 finish in five races at Phoenix. Todd Gilliland (19th) was the highest finishing ROTY. Polesitter Ryan Blaney led a race-high 143 laps and finished the race in 4th place.
– NCS points leader: Joey Logano by 4 points over Kyle Busch.
– Next: Sun, Mar 20, Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway – 325 laps
TOP-16 NCS Playoff Contenders (G/L):
1. Joey Logano 2
2. Kyle Busch 3
3. Chase Elliott 4
4. Kyle Larson -3
5. Chase Briscoe 9
6. Aric Almirola 0
7. Ryan Blaney 6
8. Austin Cindric -4
9. Tyler Reddick 9
10. Kevin Harvick 6
11. Alex Bowman -3
12. Kurt Busch -1
13. Martin Truex Jr. -11
14. Ross Chastain 6
15. William Byron 6
16. Austin Dillon -7
NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS)
Sat, Mar 12, United Rentals 200 at Phoenix Raceway (PR) – 200 laps
– Trevor Bayne (#18 Toyota Supra) won the Pole Award for Saturday’s race with a lap of 27.306 seconds, 131.839 mph. This is his 8th pole in 154 NXS races. It is his 1st pole and 2nd top-10 start in 2022 and his 1st pole in 11 races at PR. Noah Gragson (2nd) posted his 3rd top-10 start of 2022 and his 6th in seven Phoenix Raceway starts. Ty Gibbs (3rd) posted his 1st top-10 start at PR and his 1st in four races this season. Sheldon Creed (9th) was the fastest qualifying rookie. Did Not Qualify: #34 Jesse Little, #33 Loris Hezemans, #13 Stan Mullis and #47 Brennan Poole.
– Noah Gragson (#9 Chevrolet Camaro) scored his 6th victory in 106 NXS races. This is his 1st victory and 4th top-10 finish in 2022. It is his 1st victory and 4th top-10 finish in seven races at PR. Brandon Jones (2nd) posted his 6th top-10 finish in 13 Phoenix races and his 2nd top-10 finish in 2022. Josh Berry (3rd) posted his 1st top-10 finish in two races at Phoenix. Sheldon Creed (14th) was the highest finishing ROTY. Polesitter Trevor Bayne, led 38 laps and finished in 4th place.
– NXS points leader: Noah Gragson by 39 points over Ty Gibbs.
– Next: Sat, Mar 19, Nalley Cars 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway – 163 laps
TOP-12 NXS Playoff Contenders (G/L):
1. Noah Gragson 0
2. Ty Gibbs 0
3. Justin Allgaier 1
4. AJ Allmendinger -1
5. Josh Berry 0
6. Daniel Hemric 0
7. Brandon Jones 5
8. Ryan Sieg 3
9. Sam Mayer 0
10. Riley Herbst -3
11. Austin Hill -1
12. Trevor Bayne 9
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NTS)
– NTS points leader: Chandler Smith by 5 points over Tanner Gray.
– Next: Sat, Mar 19, Fr8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway – 135 laps
TOP-10 NTS Playoff Contenders (G/L):
1. Chandler Smith 5
2. Tanner Gray 2
3. Ty Majeski 2
4. Ben Rhodes -2
5. Stewart Friesen 7
6. Matt DiBenedetto 8
7. Carson Hocevar 6
8. Austin Wayne Self 3
9. Matt Crafton 12
10. John Hunter Nemechek -3
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:
Tue, Feb. 15, Race to Stop Suicide 200 at New Smyrna Speedway – 200 laps
Winner: Sammy Smith – P1: Sammy Smith – Points Leader: Sammy Smith
Next: Sat, Mar 19, Pensacola 200 at Five Flags Speedway – 200 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
Daytona Int’l Speedway – 2.5-mile tri-oval – Daytona Beach, Florida
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