Good news, bad news for NASCAR Cup teams ahead of All-Star Race
Here’s a look at where things stand for each Cup organization heading into the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway:
23XI Racing — Good news: Bubba Wallace finished second and Tyler Reddick was third in last year’s All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro. Bad news: Reddick’s 32nd-place finish at Darlington was his third consecutive race without a top-10 result, his longest drought of the season.
Front Row Motorsports — Good news: Michael McDowell has had back-to-back top-10 finishes for the first time this season. He placed 10th at Kansas and at Darlington. … Todd Gilliland has scored back-to-back top-15 finishes for the first time this season. He was 14th at Kansas and 15th at Darlington. Bad News: Todd Gilliland was 22nd in points at this time last year, the same position he is in this year. The difference? Last year, he was 35 points from the cutline. This year, he’s 105 points from the cutline.
Hendrick Motorsports — Good news: Kyle Larson is the defending All-Star Race winner and has won the event two of the last three years. … Due to Larson remaining in Indianapolis for Indy 500 practice, future Hall of Famer Kevin Harvick is coming out of retirement to drive Larson’s car on Friday in practice and qualifying. … Larson is the points leader at the midpoint of the regular season. … Chase Elliott has five top-five finishes in the last seven races. … William Byron and Alex Bowman both have a series-high eight top-10 finishes this season. Bad news: Byron, who has three victories this year, has gone five races without a win. That’s his longest drought of the season.
Kyle Larson maintains top spot in NASCAR Power Rankings after Darlington
A new team celebrated a win at Darlington Raceway.
Joe Gibbs Racing — Good news: Ty Gibbs’ runner-up finish at Darlington is his fourth top-five result of the season. He had four top fives all of last year. … Martin Truex Jr. is second in the points at the midway point. … Denny Hamlin’s 18 playoff points are the most at this point in the year. … Hamlin has led at least one lap in 17 consecutive races. Bad news: No JGR driver finished better than ninth in last year’s All-Star Race.
JTG Daugherty Racing — Good news: This is the third consecutive year Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will compete in the All-Star Race. Bad news: Stenhouse finished last in last year’s All-Star Race.
Kaulig Racing — Good news: AJ Allmendinger will drive the No. 16 car this weekend at the All-Star Race. Bad news: Shane van Gisbergen was eligible for the All-Star Race with his Chicago win last year but the team isn’t fielding a car for him for this event.
Legacy Motor Club — Good news: Erik Jones has four top-20 finishes in his last five starts. Bad news: John Hunter Nemechek has placed outside the top 30 in four of the last six races.
Richard Childress Racing — Good news: Kyle Busch has started 11th or better in five of the last six races. Bad news: While Busch is 13th in points, teammate Austin Dillon is 31st in points. … Dillon is ahead of only three of 33 drivers who have started all 13 points races this season.
Rick Ware Racing — Good news: Justin Haley finished a season-best ninth at Darlington, the first time that the organization has scored a top-10 result at a non-drafting track. Teammate Kaz Grala was 18th, giving RWR two top-20 finishes last weekend. Bad news: Haley and Grala have yet to score any stage points this year.
RFK Racing — Good news: Brad Keselowski snapped his 110-race winless streak with his victory at Darlington, his first since becoming a part owner of RFK Racing. Bad news: Chris Buescher suffered heartbreak a second week in a row. A week after losing by .001 seconds at Kansas to Kyle Larson, Buescher lost the lead in an incident with Tyler Reddick just 10 laps from the finish at Darlington.
Brad Keselowski’s journey to Darlington win was years in the making
The former Cup champion scored his 36th career Cup victory but first as co-owner of RFK Racing this past weekend.
Spire Motorsports — Good news: The organization has had at least one car finish in the top 20 in four of the last six races. Corey LaJoie was 16th last weekend at Darlington. Bad news: Zane Smith, on loan from Trackhouse Racing, is the only driver to have started every Cup points race this season without a top-10 finish.
Stewart-Haas Racing — Good news: Josh Berry is coming off a season-best third-place finish at Darlington. … Berry won last year’s All-Star Open to advance to the All-Star Race. … Noah Gragson has four consecutive top-15 finishes.… Chase Briscoe remains in a playoff spot at the midpoint of the regular season after his fifth-place finish at Darlington. Bad news: Briscoe is only six points above the cutline.
Team Penske — Good news: Joey Logano has the best average finish in the All-Star Race among active drivers at 6.5. Logano is tied with Matt Kenseth for most consecutive top-10 finishes at nine. Bad news: Ryan Blaney is the organization’s only driver in a playoff spot at the season’s midpoint.
Trackhouse Racing — Good news: Ross Chastain’s 11th-place finish at Darlington is his best result in the last seven races. Bad news: Daniel Suarez has had an average finish of 23.8 in the past four races. After Sunday’s race at Darlington, Suarez posted a video on social media apologizing to teams for the team’s performance.
Wood Brothers Racing — Good news: Harrison Burton’s 22nd-place finish at Darlington was the fourth time he’s placed 22nd or better in five Darlington starts. Bad news: Burton is 33rd in points.
