The NASCAR post-season is here and the next 10 weeks are known for producing some of the series’s wildest moments on the way to deciding the champion. Although it’s impossible to shine a light on every dramatic moment over the years, we picked those that had the biggest impact on the playoffs – or the sport as a whole.
Here’s a look at the ten most shocking moments in the history of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. (more…)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — After Tyler Reddick battled a stomach virus throughout the Southern 500 to eke out a 1-point win over Kyle Larson for NASCAR’s regular-season championship, he and the 23XI Racing ownership group went to collect the trophy.
Reddick stood next to the trophy, team co-owner Michael Jordan by his side. Co-owners Denny Hamlin and Curtis Polk were on the other side. Nowhere to be found? A NASCAR executive to present the hardware.
“You know, certainly, pretty disappointed to not see anyone from NASCAR present Tyler his trophy,” Hamlin said. (more…)
Practice; In similar fashion to the Spring race at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS) the NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) will receive no practice time for Saturday’s Focused Health 250. (more…)
Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway… In 163 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Richard Childress Racing has earned nine wins and four pole awards, including Kevin Harvick’s emotional victory in 2001. Dale Earnhardt won eight times at the Hampton, Ga., track under the RCR banner (1984-fall, 1986-fall, 1988-spring, 1989-fall, 1990-spring, 1995-fall, 1996-spring, 2000-spring). The Welcome, N.C., team has 31 top-five and 62 top-10 finishes at Atlanta and has led a total of 3,008 laps at the 1.54-mile oval.
RCR in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway… RCR has recorded six NASCAR Xfinity Series wins at Atlanta, led by Austin Hill’s three victories (2022-fall, 2023-spring, 2024-spring). Jeff Burton (2006 and 2007) and Kevin Harvick (2013) also secured victories at Atlanta with RCR. As an organization, RCR has piled up 17 top-five and 32 top-10 finishes over a span of 62 starts at the Peachtree State track.
The three-time Supercars champion has just three races remaining in the NASCAR Xfinity Series before the playoffs begin and will be part of the Round of 12 thanks to his win at Portland Raceway.
In the first round of the playoffs, there is just one road course-style race on the Charlotte Motor Speedway ‘Roval’ where he stands a good chance of winning.
However, beyond the Round of 12, there are no road courses. (more…)
Justin Haley, driver of the No. 51 Grady Health System Ford Mustang Dark Horse, will make his eighth NASCAR Cup Series start at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Sunday’s Quaker State 400. In the season’s first outing at Atlanta in February, Haley earned his first top-20 for Rick Ware Racing (RWR). The 25-year-old racer has two top-10 finishes at Atlanta, both earned on the current configuration. The first was a seventh-place finish in July 2022, the second an eight-place finish in July 2023. The track was reconfigured following the 2021 season, which resulted in the 1.54-mile oval producing superspeedway-type racing.
Mighty Fire Breaker partners with RWR and driver Cody Ware as the primary sponsor of the No. 15 Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Sunday’s Quaker State 400. Mighty Fire Breaker LLC is a leading provider of environmentally safe and sustainable solutions for proactive wildfire defense. The Mighty Fire Breaker portfolio includes EPA Safer Choice Certified Citrotech® Wildfire Inhibitors, mobile and stationary spray application systems, and GPS-tracking, recording and mapping technologies that support intelligent proactive wildfire defense management practices. (more…)
BELL AT ATLANTA: Christopher Bell has one top-five and two top-10 finishes in his previous eight starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS). In the spring race this year Bell suffered damage from an incident early in the race, resulting in a 34th-place finish. Bell’s best finish of third came in the spring of 2023 at the 1.54-mile track.
BACK ON THE BOX: Crew chief Adam Stevens will return to the track this Sunday at Atlanta.
STEVENS PLAYOFF HISTORY: Adam Stevens has guided his teams to playoff berths in each of his 10 seasons as a NASCAR Cup Series crew chief. The 2015 and 2019 championship-winning crew chief also holds the record for most Championship 4 appearances by a crew chief with seven, including the past two years with Christopher Bell. (more…)
TRUEX AT ATLANTA: Ryan Truex and the No. 20 Gazoo Racing Toyota GR Supra crew head to Atlanta this weekend for the Focused Health 250, fresh off back-to-back wins for the No. 20 car at Daytona and Darlington. Truex has five starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway, including three on the new configuration. In five starts at the track, Truex has two top-fives, four top-10s, eight laps led, and an impressive finish of 7.0. Truex has a best finish of third which he has earned twice in 2022 and 2023. Since joining JGR and running on the track’s new configuration, Truex’s worst finish at Atlanta is ninth which came earlier this year when he ran out of fuel coming to the checkered flag.
LAST TIME OUT: Truex’s last start at Daytona turned into a career highlight as he scored his third career Xfinity Series win, and his second win in just eight starts this season. Truex ran up front for most of the night as he started sixth and earned sixth and third place finishes in the first two stages, respectively. Truex led 28 laps en route to his victory, which included the final eight laps to secure the sixth win on the year for Tyler Allen and the No. 20 Toyota GR Supra crew. (more…)
CREED AT ATLANTA: Sheldon Creed takes his summer hot streak and his CW Sports Toyota GR Supra to Atlanta this weekend for the Focused Health 250. In five starts at the track, Creed has scored one top-five, two top-10s, 55 laps led, and an average finish of 16.2. In his last start at the track earlier this season, Creed scored his best finish at Atlanta, which was a fourth-place performance.
DARLINGTON RECAP: Creed showcased one of the greatest Xfinity Series performances as well as perhaps the worst heartbreak of his career last week at Darlington. After starting second, Creed ran in the top-five for the entire day, proving to be the class of the field along with teammate Christopher Bell. After a fifth-place finish in stage one, Creed came back to score his first stage win of the year in stage two. In the final stage, Creed chased down Bell from four seconds behind to take the lead with eight laps to go before a late-race caution sent the race in overtime. Creed lost the lead on the last minute round of pit stops and could not overcome the setback in overtime, leaving him to finish third despite leading 30 laps on the day. (more…)
