NASCAR Cup Series
Next Race: DuraMAX Drydene 400 presented by RelaDyne
The Place: Dover Motor Speedway
The Date: Sunday, May 1
The Time: 3 p.m. ET
The Purse: $7,205,230
TV: FS1, 2 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 400 miles (400 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 120),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 250), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 400)
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Next Race: A-GAME 200
The Place: Dover Motor Speedway
The Date: Saturday, April 30
The Time: 1:30 p.m. ET
The Purse: $1,419,713
TV: FS1, 12:30 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 200 miles (200 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 45),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 90), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 200)
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Next Race: Dead On Tools 200
The Place: Darlington Raceway
The Date: Friday, May 6
The Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
The Purse: $1,273,583
TV: FS1, 7 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 200 miles (147 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 45),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 90), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 147)
NASCAR Cup Series
NASCAR Cup Series dives into the Monster Mile at Dover Motor Speedway
Next up on the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is Dover Motor Speedway for Sunday’s DuraMAX Drydene 400 presented by RelaDyne (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio); the 11th race of the year.
Aptly nicknamed the Monster Mile, Dover Motor Speedway is a one-mile concrete paved oval located in Dover, Delaware. Dover Motor Speedway, originally known as Dover Downs International Speedway, has hosted 103 NASCAR Cup Series races dating back to the inaugural event on July 6, 1969. The first Dover Cup Series race was won by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty driving a Petty Enterprises Ford (115.772 mph, 02:35:28). Petty actually won the first two Cup events at the track (1969, 1970).
In total, the 103 NASCAR Cup Series races at Dover Motor Speedway have produced 42 different pole winners and 39 different race winners. NASCAR Hall of Famer David Pearson leads the series in poles at Dover Motor Speedway with six (1969, 1973 sweep, 1974, 1975, 1981). Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin leads all active series drivers in poles at Dover with four (2012, 2013, 2015, 2019). Seven of the 42 NASCAR Cup Series Dover Motor Speedway pole winners are active this weekend.
Recently retired driver, Jimmie Johnson, holds the NASCAR Cup Series record for the most wins at Dover Motor Speedway with 11 victories (2002 sweep, 2005 Playoffs, 2009 sweep, 2010 Playoffs, Spring of 2012, 2013 Playoffs, Spring of 2014, Spring of 2015, and Spring of 2017). Three drivers are tied for the most wins among active competitors at Dover – Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch – each have three wins. Of the 39 different NASCAR Cup Series winners at Dover Motor Speedway, nine are active this weekend.
This weekend’s DuraMAX Drydene 400 will be 400 laps (400 miles) and will be broken up into three stages. The first stage will be 120 laps, the second stage will be 130 laps and the final stage will be 150 laps.
All the on-track action begins for the NASCAR Cup Series on Saturday, April 30 with practice from 10:30 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. ET directly followed by Busch Light Pole Qualifying at 11:15 a.m. ET. Both practice and qualifying will be televised on FS1.
Three teams have dominated Dover over last 17 Cup races (2013-2021)
In the last 17 NASCAR Cup Series races at Dover Motor Speedway (2013-2021) only three teams have visited Victory Lane – Hendrick Motorsports (eight wins during that time), Joe Gibbs Racing (five wins) and Stewart-Haas Racing (four wins).
The most recent to win at Dover Motor Speedway was Hendrick Motorsports, when Alex Bowman drove to the win last season. It was the organization’s, NASCAR Cup Series leading, 21st victory at Dover among seven different drivers – Jimmie Johnson (11 wins), Jeff Gordon (five), Geoff Bodine (one), Ken Schrader (one), Ricky Rudd (one), Chase Elliott (one) and Alex Bowman (one). Eight of the 21 wins have come in the last 17 races (47%), nearly half of the events from 2013-2021.
Not far behind HMS in wins at Dover is Joe Gibbs Racing with a total of nine NASCAR Cup Series Dover victories; five of them coming in the last 17 events at one-mile facility (2013-2021). The most recent Joe Gibbs Racing driver to win at Dover was Denny Hamlin in 2020.
The third organization to jump in on the wins at Dover Motor Speedway from 2013-2021 was Stewart-Haas Racing with four victories among two drivers – Tony Stewart (2013) and Kevin Harvick (2015, 2018, 2020).
This season, five different organizations have won at least one race in the NASCAR Cup Series, led by Hendrick Motorsports with four victories; followed by Trackhouse Racing (two wins), Joe Gibbs Racing (two wins), Team Penske (one win) and Stewart-Haas Racing (one win).
Points leader Chase Elliott still winless 10 races into the 2022 season
Atop the NASCAR Cup Series standings this season following Talladega is Hendrick Motorsport’s driver Chase Elliott, holding a 21-point lead over second place Ryan Blaney as the series heads to Dover Motor Speedway for the DuraMAX Drydene 400 (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Elliott returns to Monster Mile looking for his first win of the 2022 season, riding a winless streak that dates back to Road America on July 4, 2021 – 26 races ago.
Taming the concrete mile at Dover has come naturally for Elliott. In 11 series starts at the Monster Mile, he has collected one win (2018) and eight top-five finishes; including a third-place result last season.
Bell, Reddick teeter Playoff cutline heading to Dover
A scant one-point separates Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell in the 16th and final NASCAR Cup Series Playoff position from Richard Childress Racing’s Tyler Reddick in 17th, the first spot outside the postseason cutoff as the series heads to Dover Motor Speedway for the DuraMAX Drydene 400 presented by RelaDyne on Sunday, May 1 at 3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Both Bell and Reddick earned spots in last season’s NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs for the first time in their careers and intend to do the same this season as well.
Bell has made three Cup Series starts at the Monster Mile posting an average finish of 23.3. The young Oklahoman also has back-to-back wins at the 1.366-mile track in the NASCAR Xfinity Series (2018-2019) on his resume.
Reddick has made three Cup Series starts at Dover posting one top-10 finish. His average finish at the track is 13.0.
NASCAR Cup Series, Etc.
Reminiscing about Hendrick Motorsports’ 1-2-3-4 finish – Last season, Hendrick Motorsports flexed its competitive muscles becoming the third team all-time in the NASCAR Cup Series to finish a race with all four of its cars in the top-four positions; joining Peter DePaolo Racing (Dec. 30, 1956 at Titusville, April 7, 1957 at North Wilkesboro) and RFK Racing (Nov. 20, 2005 at Homestead-Miami). Alex Bowman led Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott and William Byron to a 1-2-3-4 finish for Hendrick Motorsports at Dover Motor Speedway last season.
NASCAR Cup Series Featured Matchups: 2022 DuraMAX Drydene 400 – Below is a close look at the featured matchups fans can bet on heading into this weekend’s event.
· 1 – Ross Chastain vs. 5 – Kyle Larson
· Chastain’s dream season continued this past Sunday at Talladega, as he collected his second win of the year after a tight battle for the win on the final lap against Kyle Larson and Erik Jones. Chastain has shown speed in nearly every race this season, but can he topple Larson for a second week in a row on one of Larson’s best tracks statistically? That’ll be the question leading into our headline matchup of the week.
· 48 – Alex Bowman vs. 24 – William Byron
· Before last year, most people thought that Alex Bowman was the clear fourth-best driver at Hendrick Motorsports. A lot of that narrative has changed over the past 24 months. Both drivers are as consistent as they come and are always in the mix late in races, no matter the track. While Byron has two wins to Bowman’s one this year, Bowman may have the edge at Dover. Bowman returns to defend his win, while Byron owns two top fives and looks to break through at the Monster Mile.
· 4 – Kevin Harvick vs. 19 – Martin Truex, Jr.
· Both of these drivers are looking for their first win this year. Harvick started the season slow but has come alive as of late. Truex, on the other hand, has been as close as anyone to a win this year but has found some troubles and bad luck late in races. These veterans hoist two of the best driver averages at Dover and will certainly be looking forward to this track in hopes to get a much needed win this season.
· 9 – Chase Elliott vs. 8 – Tyler Reddick
· Tyler Reddick has been a magnet for heartbreak over the past two weeks, as he got taken out while battling for the lead on the final lap two weeks ago in Bristol, and then followed that up with a part failure at Talladega that took him out of contention in the opening stage of the race. With how much speed Reddick has shown this season, it seems likely that he’ll regain his footing this weekend at Dover – but can he outgun Chase Elliott head-to-head? Elliott was stellar in this race last year, posting a third-place finish, and has a win in 2018 at the facility to his credit. This matchup will be a fascinating battle between a driver who has been consistently solid all year long (Elliott) versus an inconsistent driver who has at-times appeared to have dominant speed (Reddick).
Grammy-Nominated & CMA New Artist of the Year Jimmie Allen to perform pre-race concert – Delaware native and multi-platinum selling, award-winning country music superstar Jimmie Allen will perform a pre-race concert at the Monster Mile before the DuraMAX Drydene 400 presented by RelaDyne NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday, May 1 at 12:45 p.m. on the Embrace Home Loans stage in Victory Plaza.
“We are so excited to have Jimmie come home to provide all of us such great entertainment. He is an outstanding individual as well as a performer and we’re so happy he is coming,” said Mike Tatoian, president and general manager of Dover Motor Speedway.
Allen, a Milton, Del., native, was most recently nominated for Best New Artist at the GRAMMY Awards in April and co-hosted the ACM Awards with Dolly Parton in March. Other 2022 nominations for Allen have included ACM Male Artist of the Year and Outstanding New Artist at the NAACP Image Awards. He is the reigning CMA New Artist of the Year and also won ACM New Male Artist of the Year in 2021. His third album “Tulip Drive” will be released June 24 and the record’s lead single “Down Home” is available everywhere now.
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Xfinity race at Dover Motor Speedway the 200th NASCAR event at the Monster Mile
Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race, the A-Game 200, at Dover Motor Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) will go down in the record books as the 200th NASCAR national series race held in the state of Delaware, all of which have been at the Monster Mile – Dover Motor Speedway.
The first NASCAR national series event in Delaware was the first NASCAR Cup Series race held at the 1-mile Dover Motor Speedway on July 6, 1969. The race was won by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty driving a Ford for Petty Enterprises.
The first NASCAR Xfinity Series race was held on May 15, 1982 at Dover Motor Speedway and the event was won by Joe Ruttman driving a Pontiac for car owner Butch Mock.
The first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Dover was held on September 22, 2000 and the race was won by Kurt Busch driving a Ford for Jack Roush.
The 50th NASCAR national series race at Dover Motor Speedway was the June 4, 1989 NASCAR Cup Series race that was won by NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt.
The 100th NASCAR national series race at Dover Motor Speedway was the June 3, 2001 NASCAR Cup Series race that was won by NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon.
The 150th NASCAR national series race at Dover Motor Speedway was the May 15, 2011 NASCAR Cup Series race that was won by Matt Kenseth.
Dover’s Monster Mile is up next for the NASCAR Xfinity Series
NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers will need to bring their A-game this weekend for the A-Game 200 at Dover Motor Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 30 on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) for the 10th race of the 2022 season. Five drivers have secured their spots in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs this season, leaving seven positions still open.
Last year at the Monster Mile, it was Team Penske’s Austin Cindric who worked his way up from the 16th starting position to win for the third time in the 2021 season (Cindric went on to win two more times that year).
There have been 75 NASCAR Xfinity Series races at Dover Motor Speedway with 48 different pole winners and 51 different race winners. Eight races have been won from the pole at Dover in the Xfinity Series, the most recent by Kyle Larson in 2017.
Kyle Busch has the most wins at the track (2008, 2010 sweep, 2014 sweep), has posted the most top 10s (15), and has led the most laps at the Monster Mile (1,349).
Joey Logano holds the race record at 131.219 mph in 2013 and Erik Jones holds the qualifying record at 158.318 mph in 2016.
This weekend, two former Xfinity Series Dover pole winners are entered in the A-Game 200 – Daniel Hemric (10/06/18) and Brandon Jones (05/05/18). And just one former Xfinity Series Dover winner is entered this weekend – Justin Allgaier, a two-time Monster Mile winner (2018, 2020).
On-track activity for the NASCAR Xfinity Series will get started on Friday, April 29 with practice scheduled from 3 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. ET, directly followed by qualifying at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Noah Gragson keeps finding Victory Lane
Holding off a hard charging Jeffrey Earnhardt in the famous No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet at Talladega Superspeedway, JR Motorsport’s driver Noah Gragson took the checkered flag and became the second NASCAR Xfinity Series driver this season with multiple wins (Phoenix-1, Talladega); making 2022 his third consecutive season with multiple victories.
Back in his No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet this weekend at Dover Motor Speedway, Gragson is looking to make his way to Victory Lane for the third time in just 10 races this season and tie Ty Gibbs on the season’s wins list.
Gragson has done well on one-mile tracks and has the wins to show for it. His first win this season was at Phoenix Raceway, a track where he has posted a top-15 finish in all but one race since 2019. The same can be said about his stints at Dover Motor Speedway. His only finish outside of the top-15 on the Monster Mile was the 2019 Spring race where he placed 19th.
Gragson might be hot right now, but 19-year-old Ty Gibbs isn’t going to make it easy for him this weekend. Like Gragson, Gibbs also has a good track record on one-mile circuits. Although he doesn’t have too much history to look back on as last year was his rookie season, he posted a fifth-place finish last year at Dover and had a runner-up finish in Phoenix. This season, his run at the one-mile track in Phoenix resulted in a top-10 finish. Gibbs has posted three wins, three top fives and five top 10s in the first nine races of the season and after a crash in Talladega that left him near the back of the pack, he’s likely to come into this weekend’s race at Dover fierce and focused.
To add even more fuel to the fire between these two competitors, they are within five points of each other in the NASCAR Xfinity Series driver standings. Although both are already locked into the Playoffs with their respective wins, Gragson (344 points) has a slight edge over Gibbs’ 339 points.
Justin Allgaier has conquered the Monster Mile before
Only one active NASCAR Xfinity Series driver this weekend can tout they have conquered the Monster Mile and that’s JR Motorsport’s driver Justin Allgaier. The Illinois native grabbed wins at the one-mile concrete track in 2018 and 2020.
Allgaier has undoubtedly perfected his strategy for the one-mile track at Dover Motor Speedway, currently riding an eight race streak of top-10 finishes and what is more impressive is that he has finished third or better in seven of those eight top-10 finishes.
It also shouldn’t shock you that he’s also done well on other one-mile tracks, such as Phoenix. In 24 starts at Phoenix Raceway, he’s posted two wins, eight top fives and 16 top 10s.
Allgaier had a strong start to the 2022 season, posting top-10 finishes through the first four races but has since struggled to keep up the momentum. Perhaps Dover Motor Speedway will be a turning point for him to get back on track. In total, Allgaier has made 21 series starts at Dover posting two wins, 10 top fives and 14 top 10s.
Winner, Winner, Allmendinger; Dover to host final round of Dash 4 Cash
Another driver looking for a three-peat this weekend at Dover Motor Speedway is veteran AJ Allmendinger who took home the Dash 4 Cash $100,000 prize for the second-time this season (Martinsville and Talladega).
Prior to Allmendinger winning two Dash 4 Cash rounds this year, only eight drivers had won multiple rounds in a single season: Reed Sorenson (2011: Daytona, Iowa), Elliott Sadler (2013: Daytona, Chicago), Regan Smith (2015: Dover, Indianapolis), Erik Jones (2016: Bristol, Dover), Justin Allgaier (2017: Phoenix, Richmond), Christopher Bell (2019: Bristol, Dover), Ross Chastain (2020: Atlanta, Pocono) and Noah Gragson (2021: Martinsville, Talladega, Darlington).
If Allmendinger wins the fourth and final Dash 4 Cash round of the 2022 season, he will join Gragson as one of only two drivers to win three of the four rounds banking $300,000 in bonus winnings.
This weekend, Allmendinger will battle it out at the Monster Mile with Gragson, Landon Cassill and Ryan Sieg in the final Dash 4 Cash opportunity of the 2022 season.
Of the four drivers vying for the Dash 4 Cash this weekend at Dover, Noah Gragson has the best average finish at the track with a 9.7; followed by Allmendinger (12.5), Sieg (14.6) and Cassill (21.2).
NASCAR Xfinity Series, Etc.
Cup Series regulars to make a few Xfinity Series appearances – JR Motorsports will be fielding a fifth car, the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro, in five additional NASCAR Xfinity Series races this season. Behind the wheel will be Chase Elliott at Darlington Raceway (May 7), William Byron at Texas Motor Speedway (May 21) and New Hampshire Motor Speedway (July 16), and Kyle Larson at Watkins Glen International (Aug. 20) and Darlington Raceway (Sept. 3).
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Five different Camping World Truck Series winners in the last five races
Since the second race of the season, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series has rallied off five different winners and when the series returns to action next weekend at Darlington Raceway for the Dead On Tools 200 (7:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), it could very well see a sixth.
ThorSport Racing’s Ben Rhodes is the only active driver entered at Darlington Raceway with a Camping World Truck Series win at the 1.366-mile track (2019). The last two Truck Series races at Darlington have been won by Sheldon Creed, who has moved fulltime into the NACAR Xfinity Series this season with Richard Childress Racing.
Three drivers are tied for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series best average finish among active drivers at Darlington Raceway with a 5.0, and all three are looking for their first win of the season – Grant Enfinger, John Hunter Nemechek and Christian Eckes.
Six races in, seven spots still open in the Camping World Truck Series Playoffs
With six races in the books, seven spots are still up for grabs in the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Playoffs following the Bristol Dirt race.
Locked In:
Three drivers have locked themselves into the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series by virtue of win this season – Zane Smith (two wins), Ben Rhodes and Chandler Smith (one win each).
Currently In On Points:
Four drivers have built up a points cushion of 25 points or more over the Playoff cutoff following Bristol – Stewart Friesen (+60 points from the Playoff cutoff), John H. Nemechek (+49), Christian Eckes (+39), Ty Majeski (+33) and Tanner Gray (+25).
Niece Motorsport’s Carson Hocevar is currently ranked ninth in the Camping World Truck Series Playoff outlook just 16 points up on the postseason cutoff. Right behind Hocevar is ThorSport Racing’s two-time series champion Matt Crafton, a mere nine points ahead of GMS Racing’s Grant Enfinger in 11th – the first spot outside the Playoff cutoff.
Outside Looking In:
Nine different drivers outside the top-10 in the postseason outlook are still eligible to race their way into the Playoffs by the end of the regular season.
GMS Racing’s Grant Enfinger is currently 11th in the Playoff outlook, nine points back from Matt Crafton in 10th – the final Playoff transfer position.
Following Enfinger is Derek Kraus (-23 points back from Playoff cutoff), Tyler Ankrum (-25). Matt DiBenedetto (-53), Timmy Hill (-57), Austin Wayne Self (-62), Tate Fogleman (-74) and Kris Wright (-76).
Keep in mind, a driver must be ranked in the top 20 in points to be eligible to earn a way into the Playoffs.
All Rhodes lead to Darlington
Looking ahead to next weekend’s Dead On Tools 200 (May 6, at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Darlington Raceway, current NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver standings leader, defending series champion and ThorSport Racing driver Ben Rhodes is the only active winner entered in the race.
Rhodes is also the most recent winner in the series taking the checkered flag at Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt. In six starts this season, Rhodes has put up one win (Bristol) and five top fives.
Rhodes will be looking to add another win to his stats sheet at Darlington next weekend. The Kentucky native has made three starts at the 1.366-mile track posting one win (2019), two top fives and two top 10s.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Etc.
Four NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers competing this weekend at Dover – This weekend at Dover Motor Speedway, four NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship drivers will be competing in either the NASCAR Cup Series or NASCAR Xfinity Series races.
Kyle Busch Motorsport’s drivers John Hunter Nemechek and Chandler Smith will be in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race this weekend at Dover. Nemechek will be competing in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with crew chief Jason Ratcliff. Nemechek has made three NASCAR Xfinity Series starts this season posting two top fives. He has also made five Xfinity Series starts at Dover posting three top-10 finishes.
Nemechek’s KBM teammate, Chandler Smith, will pilot the No. 26 Sam Hunt Racing Toyota this weekend in the Xfinity Series race at Dover. Smith made his Xfinity Series career debut last weekend at Talladega. This weekend will be his Xfinity Series track debut at Dover.
Young Motorsport’s Kaz Grala will be driving the No. 48 Big Machine Racing Chevrolet in this weekend’s Xfinity Series. Grala has made four starts in the Xfinity Series this season posting an average finish of 27.5. He also has two Dover Xfinity starts posting an average finish of 25.5.
Then on Sunday, David Gilliland Racing’s Ryan Preece will be back in the NASCAR Cup Series driving the No. 15 Rick Ware Racing Ford with crew chief Kevyn Rebolledo. Preece made his season debut in the Cup Series at Richmond Raceway posting a top-20 finish. Preece has made five NASCAR Cup Series starts at Dover posting an average finish of 23.2.
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