The three top-level NASCAR series were active at Long Pond, Pennsylvania’s 2.5-mile tri-oval Pocono Raceway. Chase Elliott won the M&M’S Fan Appreciation 400 on Sunday. He leads the Cup Series point standings and his 4 victories top the rest of the Cup drivers this season. The Truck Series held it’s last regular season race and will return next weekend to begin their Playoffs with the top 10 drivers eligible to compete for the 2022 series championship.
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Sun, Jul 24, M&M’S Fan Appreciation 400 at Pocono Raceway – 160 laps
– Denny Hamlin (#11 Toyota) won the Pole Award for the Sunday’s race with a lap of 169.991 mph for his 36th pole in 599 NCS races. It is his 3rd pole and 11th top-10 start in 2022 and his 4th pole in 33 races at Pocono. Kyle Busch (2nd) posted his 9th top-10 start of 2022 and his 22nd in 35 races at Pocono. Chase Elliott (3rd) earned his 5th top-10 Pocono start and his 12th in 21 races this season. Austin Cindric (20th) was the fastest qualifying Sunoco Rookie of the Year (ROTY) contender. Did Not Qualify: No one. Only 36 teams entered for the NCS 40-car lineup.
– Chase Elliott (#9 Chevrolet) scored his 17th victory in 242 NCS races. This is his 4th win and 15th top-10 finish in 2022. It is his first win and 8th top-10 finish in 14 races at Pocono. Tyler Reddick (2nd) posted his 2nd top-10 finish in six Pocono races and his 8th top-10 finish in 2022. Daniel Suarez (3rd) posted his 4th top-10 finish in 12 races at Pocono. Harrison Burton (23rd) was the highest finishing ROTY.
– NCS points leader: Chase Elliott by 105 points over Ross Chastain.
– Next: Sun, Jul 31, Verizon 200 at The Brickyard – Indianapolis Road Course
Top-16 NCS Playoff Contenders (G/L):
1. Chase Elliott
2. Ross Chastain
3. Ryan Blaney
4. Kyle Larson +1
5. Martin Truex Jr. -1
6. Christopher Bell +2
7. Joey Logano
8. Kyle Busch -2
9. William Byron +1
10. Kevin Harvick -1
11. Alex Bowman
12. Daniel Suarez +3
13. Aric Almirola -1
14. Tyler Reddick +2
15. Austin Cindric -2
16. Chase Briscoe +1
NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS)
Sat, Jul 23, Explore the Pocono Mountains 225 at Pocono Raceway – 90 laps
– Justin Allgaier (#7 Chevrolet) won the Pole Award for Saturday’s race with a lap of 168.669 mph. This is his 7th pole in 391 NXS races and his 12th top-10 start in 2022. Ty Gibbs (2nd) posted his 14th top-10 start of 2022 and his first in two races at Pocono. Brandon Jones (3rd) earned his 5th top-10 start at Pocono and his 13th in 19 races this season. Sheldon Creed (6th) was the fastest qualifying ROTY. 39 cars entered for the NXS 38-car lineup. Did Not Qualify: #47 Brennan Poole.
– Noah Gragson (#9 Chevrolet) led a race-high 43 laps and scored his 8th victory in 121 NXS races. This is his 3rd win and 13th top-10 finish in 2022. It is his first win and 3rd top-10 finish in four Pocono races. Ty Gibbs (2nd) posted his 2nd top-10 finish in two Pocono races and his 11th top-10 finish in 2022. Josh Berry (3rd) earned his 2nd top-10 finish in two races at Pocono. Sheldon Creed (5th) was the highest finishing ROTY. Polesitter Justin Allgaier led 22 laps and finished in 7th place.
– NXS points leader: AJ Allmendinger by 16 points over Justin Allgaier.
– Next: Sat, Jul 30, Pennzoil 150 at The Brickyard – Indianapolis Road Course
Top-12 NXS Playoff Contenders (No G/L this week):
1. AJ Allmendinger
2. Justin Allgaier
3. Ty Gibbs
4. Josh Berry
5. Noah Gragson
6. Austin Hill
7. Brandon Jones
8. Sam Mayer
9. Riley Herbst
10. Daniel Hemric
11. Ryan Sieg
12. Landon Cassill
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NTS)
Sat, Jul 23, CRC Brakleen 150 at Pocono Raceway – 60 laps
– Truck Series qualifying at Pocono cancelled due to rain. The lineup for Saturday’s race was set based on the NASCAR rulebook. This placed Zane Smith (#38 Ford) P1 and #18 Chandler Smith P2 on the front row. #42 Carson Hocevar, #52 Stewart Friesen, #98 Christian Eckes, #66 Ty Majeski, #19 Derek Kraus, #23 Grant Enfinger, #02 Kaz Grala and #91 Colby Howard round out the top-10 in the starting lineup. Did not make the 36-truck lineup: #28 Bryan Dauzat and #6 Norm Benning.
– Chandler Smith (#18 Toyota) led a race-high 49 laps and scored his 4th victory in 54 NTS races. This is his 2nd win and 11th top-10 finish in 2022. It is his first top-10 finish in two races at Pocono. Ryan Preece (2nd) posted his 2nd top-10 finish in two Pocono races and his 6th top-10 finish in 2022. John Hunter Nemechek (3rd) earned his 4th top-10 finish in five races at Pocono. Corey Heim (4th) was the highest finishing ROTY. This was the final regular season race before next weekend’s NTS Playoffs. Zane Smith won the 2022 NTS Regular Season Championship. He is the sixth different driver to accomplish the feat. The 10 drivers eligible to compete for the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship, which starts July 29th at the Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, are list below.
NTS Playoffs (Round of 10) based on reseeded points:
1. Zane Smith
2. Chandler Smith
3. Ben Rhodes
4. John Hunter Nemechek
5. Stewart Friesen
6. Christian Eckes
7. Ty Majeski
8. Carson Hocevar
9. Grant Enfinger
10. Matt Crafton
Track Details
Indianapolis Motor Speedway – 2.41-mile, 14-turn road course – Speedway, Indiana
Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park – 0.686-mile oval – Brownsburg, Indiana
Pocono Raceway – 2.5-mile tri-oval – Long Pond, Pennsylvania