TRUCKS: Suspension issue prevents IndyCar’s Ed Jones from completing a lap of NASCAR debut

ALL PHOTOS: Jared Haas, @RealJaredHaas

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

Ed Jones picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career in Saturday’s XPEL 225 at the Circuit of the Americas when his #20 Little Caesars Chevrolet suffered suspension issues without completing any of the 42 laps.

The finish came in Jones’ series debut. In the Truck Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 11th for the #20, the 15th from suspension problems, and the 431st for Chevrolet. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 51st from the suspension, the 56th for the #20, and he 1,877th for Chevrolet.

Among the international cadre of “road course ringers” set to compete in all three of NASCAR’s national series at COTA was Ed Jones of Dubai, who on Saturday would make his first-ever NASCAR start. Prior to Saturday, Jones was most known for his open-wheel exploits, most notably his championship in Indy Lights in 2016, where he bested runner-up Santiago Urrutia by just two points. He then graduated to the NTT IndyCar Series, making 63 starts over four seasons. This included a trio of 3rd-place finishes, including top rookie honors at the Indianapolis 500, where his Dale Coyne Racing entry followed Takuma Sato and Helio Castroneves across the yard of bricks. More recently, he’s competed in sports cars, including the last three runnings of the 24 Hours of Daytona and last week’s 12 Hours of Sebring.

Jones would team up with Young’s Motorsports to drive the #20, becoming the entry’s fourth different driver in as many races. Following Derek Kraus’ 18th-place showing in Daytona, the team had experienced declining results, starting with a 26th by Matt Mills in Las Vegas and a next-to-last-place finish in Atlanta by Mason Maggio, who suffered right-front fender damage after a rough start to the event. Driver and team looked for a turnaround in a bright orange-and-white Chevrolet sponsored by pizza chain Little Caesar’s.

Jones was one of 39 drivers entered to attempt the 36-truck field. He ran 31st in opening practice, then ranked 14th of 20 drivers in Qualifying Group 1B, putting up a time of 89.057mph (137.844 seconds). This secured Jones the 23rd spot, more than enough to best the three teams sent home. The DNQ list included Samuel LeComte, still seeking his Truck Series debut in what would have been the return of NEMCO Motorsports in the #8 Concierge Motorsports Chevrolet. LeComte spun at the end of practice and backed into the Turn 7 wall. Mason Massey was sent home after he couldn’t complete a lap in the #33 Ford for Reaume Brothers Racing. Cup regular Alex Bowman cut a right-front tire on his #7 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet during his timed lap, putting his Spire Motorsports entry out of the show.

Securing the 36th and final starting spot was rookie Daniel Dye, whose #43 Dell Children’s Medical Center / Nyle Maxwe Chevrolet blew an engine in practice and wasn’t able to take a qualifying lap. The resulting engine change made Dye’s one of eleven trucks sent to the rear for various issues:

Unapproved adjustments docked 17th-place Parker Kligerman in the #75 Food Country USA / Utz Chevrolet, 19th-place Taylor Gray in the #17 Dead On Tools Toyota, 21st-place Chase Purdy in the #4 Bama Buggies Chevrolet, 24th-place Kaden Honeycutt in the #04 CarQuest Ford, 25th-place Colin Garrett in the #30 11/11 Veteran Project / UnBroken Toyota, 28th-place Matt DiBenedetto in the #25 Rackley Roofing Chevrolet, 31st-place Bret Holmes in the #32 Pate Holdings Chevrolet, 34th-place Matt Crafton in the #88 Ideal Door / Menards Ford, and 35th-place Kris Wright, one of Jones’ teammates, in the #02 F.N.B. Corporation Chevrolet. Like Daniel Dye, Wright didn’t complete a lap in qualifying, but unlike Mason Massey’s #33 still qualified for the race. Spencer Boyd, the third of Jones’ teammates, dropped to the back in the #12 Record Rack Chevrolet as travel delays kept him from practicing on Friday. Stefan Parsons climbed into Boyd’s truck and placed it 26th on the grid.

While the net result of all these pre-race penalties still put Wright and Dye in the final two spots – exactly where they originally qualified - NASCAR had some difficulty getting other drivers to line up properly, including Crafton and Purdy. Coming to the green flag, Dye was ahead of four other trucks, including Purdy, Kligerman, Boyd, and Taylor Gray. Based on intervals, Gray and Kligerman took the green ahead of Dye, who was now 34th ahead of Purdy and new last-place starter Boyd, 4.05 seconds back of the lead. 

The following were the intervals across the stripe for these trailing trucks, including their originally scheduled starting spots:

29-34) 88-Crafton 3.037

30-35) 02-Wright 3.041

31-17) 75-Kligerman 3.262

32-28) 25-DiBenedetto 3.364

33-19) 17-Taylor Gray 3.527

34-36) 43-Dye 3.746

35-21) 4-Purdy 3.773

36-26) 12-Boyd 4.05

The action started early as Bret Holmes’ #32 spun entering the Esses and dropped to last place behind Boyd. But, a moment later, Ed Jones’ #20 started to trail smoke from what appeared to be an oil leak. Jones dropped off the pace, pulling out of traffic as the rest of the field rushed past. He was next shown with his truck driving crooked, indicative of a suspension issue. He tried to make it back to pit road, but the left-rear tire then cut down, stranding him in Turn 15 and drawing the first caution of the day. Jones was brought to the garage for what was declared to be a mechanical issue, allowing the Young’s Motorsports crew to jack up the left side of his truck and attempt repairs.

The damage to Dean Thompson's truck that put him
out of the race.

As the Young’s team worked, the Bottom Five filled rapidly due to a series of equally perplexing mechanical issues. Dean Thompson’s #5 Thompson Pipe Group Toyota rear-ended another truck, puncturing the radiator. The crew attempted a replacement, but the moment he was pushed backwards behind the wall on Lap 7, was declared out under the “Damaged Vehicle Policy.” Carson Hocevar’s #42 Worldwide Express Chevrolet was running 5th when he lost the brakes and skated into a gravel pit. He, too, made it to pit road, only to be pushed to the garage with a busted axle on Lap 13. Matt Crafton’s own off-track excursion in Turn 4 forced an unscheduled pit stop, during which time NASCAR said he hadn’t reached minimum speed. Crafton, too, was then pushed backwards behind the wall, where on Lap 17 he joined Thompson as out of the race under the “Damaged Vehicle Policy.” Hocevar was declared out on Lap 19.

Around Lap 22, the Young’s team’s work doubled when Spencer Boyd pulled behind the wall, the crew looking under the hood of his #12. Just three laps later, Jones’ #20 was finally declared out of the race. Boyd, too, ultimately didn’t return to the track, and completed he Bottom Five. None of those five drivers completed more than 12 of the day’s 42 laps.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the second-consecutive last-place finish for Young’s Motorsports’ #20 team in the Truck Series race at COTA. Last year, when Sheldon Creed drove the truck, his drive train failed after just one lap.

*Jones is the first driver from the United Arab Emirates to finish last in a NASCAR national series race.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

36) #20-Ed Jones / 0 laps / suspension

35) #5-Dean Thompson / 4 laps / crash

34) #42-Carson Hocevar / 8 laps / axle

33) #88-Matt Crafton / 11 laps / crash

32) #12-Spencer Boyd / 12 laps / electrical

2023 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Reaume Brothers Racing (2)

2nd) TRICON Garage, Young’s Motorsports (1)

2023 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Ford (2)

2nd) Chevrolet, Toyota (1)

2023 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

PREVIEW: COTA fields stacked with ringers, champions, and entirely too many Cup regulars

IMAGE: Pardus Racing, Inc. Press Release

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

Saturday, March 25, 2023 (1:30 P.M. ET, FS1)

TRUCKS Race 4 of 23

XPEL 225 at the Circuit of the Americas

2022 Last-Place Finisher: Sheldon Creed

ENTRY LIST

There are 39 drivers entered for 36 spots as the Truck Series kicks off the first road course weekend of 2023, meaning three will fail to qualify.

DRIVER CHANGE: #1-TRICON Garage

Kaz Grala will make his 50th career Truck Series start and first since his 17th-place run in Las Vegas as he rejoins TRICON Garage as driver of the #1 entry, taking the place of 28th-place Atlanta finisher Layne Riggs. Grala, who finished 14th in this race last year and was runner-up to Todd Gilliland in the 2021 inaugural, carries sponsorship from Island Coastal Lager.

RETURNING: #7-Spire Motorsports

Alex Bowman, who came within a couple turns of winning last year’s Cup race at COTA, makes his 5th career Truck Series start ad first since his 29th-place showing at Sonoma last June. Bowman’s other Truck start last year came at COTA, where he ran 25th after qualifying 3rd.

RETURNING: #8-NEMCO Motorsports

The 62-year-old Texas native Samuel LeComte makes his fourth attempt at an elusive Truck Series debut. This time, he joins Joe Nemechek’s team NEMCO Motorsports, which has not started a Truck Series race since February 19, 2021 on the Daytona Infield Road Course, where Camden Murphy took a strong 13th.

DRIVER CHANGE: #17-TRICON Garage

Speaking of the Nemecheks, John Hunter Nemechek is not entered in the Truck Series race following a close 3rd-place run last week in Atlanta. Taking his place is a returning Taylor Gray, who joins his brother and teammate Tanner Gray for his first Truck Series start of the season. Tanner ran 26th in this race last year and most recently took 17th in the 2022 finale at Phoenix.

DRIVER CHANGE: #20-Young’s Motorsports

One of the many interesting road course “ringers” on this week’s entry list is 2016 Indy Lights Series Champion Ed Jones of the United Arab Emirates – the very driver who scored three podium finishes in 63 career IndyCar Series starts including a 3rd behind Takuma Sato and Helio Castroneves in the 2017 Indianapolis 500. While this will be Jones’ first NASCAR start, it will not be his first in closed-fendered competition. In sports car ranks, Jones has competed in the last three runnings of the 24 Hours of Daytona and just recently ranked 6th in the 12 Hours of Sebring. Little Caesars sponsors Jones, who takes the place of 35th-place Atlanta finisher Mason Maggio.

DRIVER CHANGE: #22-AM Racing

Logan Bearden made his Truck Series debut in this race last year, taking the 28th spot in a second AM Racing entry. This year, he runs the flagship #22 for the AM team, taking the place of 23rd-place Atlanta finisher Josh Reaume.

DRIVER CHANGE: #30-On Point Motorsports

Among the many bizarre driver changes caused by delayed drug test results last June in Sonoma was that of Colin Garrett, who handed the wheel of his 11/11 Veteran Project / UnBroken Toyota to Josh Bilicki. This week, Garrett makes up for lost time, bringing the same sponsors to the same entry he was slated to run that day – On Point Motorsports’ #30 Toyota. Garrett, who seeks his first Truck Series start since 2020 at Kansas, when he ran 24th for Niece Motorsports, takes the place of Ryan Vargas, who earned a sterling 14th-place finish in his Truck Series debut at Atlanta.

DRIVER CHANGE: #34-Reaume Brothers Racing

Speaking of Sonoma, Mason Filippi is back in the Truck Series for the first time since a disastrous afternoon in Mid-Ohio last year, where engine issues caused him to pull off the track in the early laps, and an equally difficult Sonoma where he handed the wheel over to Stefan Parsons before the race. Both races were with G2G Racing, for whom he is not racing this time around. For Saturday, he joins with Reaume Brothers Racing, taking the place of last week’s last-place finisher Keith McGee.

DRIVER CHANGE: #41-Niece Motorsports

After Bayley Currey’s career-best 4th-place finish in Atlanta’s frantic final laps, defending Cup Series COTA winner Ross Chastain will pull double-duty, taking to the controls of the #41 Worldwide Express Chevrolet.

DRIVER CHANGE: #46-G2G Racing

Akinori Ogata also earned a respectable finish at Atlanta, running in the Top 20 and overcoming an incident where he spun into the inside wall to finish 17th, a new career-best for him in the Truck Series. This week, the ride goes to longtime short tracker Dale Quarterley, whose Toyota will carry sponsorship from Van Dyk Recycling and Motul. This will be Quarterley's first Truck Series start.

DRIVER CHANGE: #51-Kyle Busch Motorsports

Looking to spoil the party on Saturday is a returning Kyle Busch, who last time out won from the pole and led 84 laps at Las Vegas. Busch takes the place of Jack Wood, who finished 10th in this truck at Atlanta.

RETURNING: #75-Henderson Motorsports

Road course racing means last year’s Mid-Ohio winner Parker Kligerman, who will run double-duty on Saturday between his full-time XFINITY effort for Big Machine Racing and his longtime part-time entry with Charlie Henderson. This will be Kligerman’s first Truck Series start since he ran 32nd in this year’s Daytona opener and follows a 19th in this race last year.

CUP INVADERS: #7-Alex Bowman, #41-Ross Chastain, #51-Kyle Busch

Saturday, March 25, 2023 (5:00 P.M. ET, FS1)

XFINITY Race 6 of 33

NASCAR XFINITY Series 250 at the Circuit of the Americas

2022 Last-Place Finisher: Bayley Currey

ENTRY LIST

There are 42 drivers entered for 38 spots, meaning four will fail to qualify.

DRIVER CHANGE: #10-Kaulig Racing

After, like Alex Bowman, last year’s Cup win at COTA just slipped from his grasp, defending COTA XFINITY race winner A.J. Allmendinger will likewise pull double-duty on the track, his in both XFINITY and Cup. Saturday marks Allmendinger’s first XFINITY start since last November’s championship race marked the handing over of his full-time entry to current rookie Chandler Smith. He takes the place of his Cup teammate Justin Haley, who ended up 10th in Atlanta.

RETURNING: #17-Hendrick Motorsports

While his Cup teammate Bowman runs a Hendrick-sponsored entry in the Truck Series race, William Byron – the only two-time race winner in 2023’s young Cup season – will do the same in XFINITY. This #17 entry last ran at Darlington last September, where Kyle Larson finished 5th.

DRIVER CHANGE: #19-Joe Gibbs Racing

Like Allmendinger, Ty Gibbs will make his first XFINITY start since last November’s championship race – his the scene of his title-clinching effort over three JR Motorsports teammates. Gibbs takes the place of Ryan Truex, who ran a strong 3rd in Atlanta.

DRIVER CHANGE: #35-Emerling-Gase Motorsports

Parker Chase brings sponsorship from nativity to the lead Emerling-Gase entry this week, taking the place of Patrick Emerling himself, who ran 18th in Atlanta. Chase rejoins the circuit for the first time since this year’s Daytona opener, where he ran 16th for Sam Hunt Racing.

DRIVER SWAP: #44-Alpha Prime Racing

DRIVER SWAP: #45-Alpha Prime Racing

Two of the three Alpha Prime entries swap drivers as Jeffrey Earnhardt, 34th in Atlanta, takes the wheel of the #45 and Sage Karam, 31st after radiator issues last Saturday, pilots the #44.

NEW TEAM: #50-Pardus Racing, Inc.

Three-time SCCA national champion Preston Pardus, long a road course entry for DGM Racing, will this year drive for his family’s own brand-new team. Pardus Racing, Inc. will run the #50 – a number crew chief and NASCAR veteran Dan Pardus ran in 1999 – and carries a vibrant paint scheme with Texas-based sponsor Garage Oil Spirits. If they qualify, this will be Preston’s 20th XFINITY start following a pair of 14th-place runs in the last two COTA races.

DRIVER CHAGE: #53-Emerling-Gase Motorsports

Welcome back the popular Brad Perez, who last year made his first NASCAR national series start in COTA’s Truck Series race driving for Reaume Brothers Racing. This time around, Perez seeks his third XFINITY start and first of the year. As with his previous two starts, where he ran 20th at Watkins Glen and 23rd on the Charlotte “Roval,” Perez drives for Emerling-Gase, though this time in the second entry which in Atlanta was driven by Joey Gase before he was collected in a Lap 2 crash. APEX Coffee Roasers and Weiss Sand & Clay LP join as sponsors.

DRIVER CHANGE: #66-Motorsports Business Management

DRIVER SWAP: #74-CHK Racing

It’s been a particularly rough first few races for Motorsports Business Management. Last week, in partnership with Alpha Prime Racing, Caesar Bacarella fell victim to a freak axle issue that triggered his Lap 2 crash with Joey Gase, leaving Bacarella in last place. MBM had planned to enter Argentinian driver Baltazar Leguizamon for Saturday, but the deal fell through due to lack of sponsorship. Cameron Lawrence has since stepped into the #66, seeking his own XFINITY debut at the track where he finished last in the inaugural Truck Series race in 2021. While Leguizamon is expected to run for MBM later this season, he has also landed another ride for Saturday as he takes the place of Atlanta DNQ Dawson Cram in CHK Racing’s #74.

RETURNING: #88-JR Motorsports

Miguel Paludo continues his road course part-time schedule for JR Motorsports, returning to the site of a 34th-place run in 2021 and a 9th just last year. Last seen in last year’s race on the Indianapolis Grand Prix Circuit, where he took 24th, Paludo will again share BRANDT Agriculture sponsorship with Justin Allgaier.

DRIVER CHANGE: #91-DGM Racing

Josh Bilicki returns for only his second XFINITY start of the year following a 31st-place run in Las Vegas, again as driver of DGM Racing’s #91 Chevrolet. The road race ace takes the place of Chad Chastain, who finished 24th last week in Atlanta.

DRIVER CHANGE: #92-DGM Racing

Following the well-publicized incident in Atlanta where NASCAR’s controversial decision to park his #92 led to him stopping on the starting line and walking away from his car, Josh Williams has been suspended for one week and will not run the Alloy Employer Services Chevrolet this Saturday. As sales from his charity benefitting t-shirts continue to rise, longtime DGM driver Alex Labbe will run in Williams’ place.

DRIVER CHANGE: #07-SS-Green Light Racing

After a disastrous start to the 2023 season where he’s ranked 37th in Owner Points and been on the verge of LASTCAR title contention, Blaine Perkins has parted ways with the Bobby Dotter team, effective immediately. Stepping aboard is Truck Series regular Carson Hocevar, whose planned XFINITY debut with Spire Motorsports has effectively been moved up to this weekend. Hocevar’s first XFINITY race will be a double-duty effort on Saturday.

DRIVER CHANGE: #08-SS-Green Light Racing

The second Dotter entry has been made available to one of Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cup drivers in Aric Almirola. Almirola, who enjoyed a strong run at Atlanta before a blown right-rear tire nulled his chances, will take the place of 20th-place Atlanta finisher Gray Gaulding. Rush Truck Centers is the sponsor for this fourth entry fielded by a Cup Series regular. This will be Almirola’s first XFINITY start since August 4, 2018 at Watkins Glen, when he ran 5th for Biagi-DenBeste.

CUP INVADERS: #10-A.J. Allmendinger, #17-William Byron, #19-Ty Gibbs, #08-Aric Almirola

Sunday, March 26, 2023 (3:30 P.M. ET, FOX)

CUP Race 6 of 36

EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas

2022 Last-Place Finisher: Andy Lally

ENTRY LIST

There are 39 drivers entered for 40 spots, the biggest Cup field since Daytona, but also its fifth consecutive short field.

DRIVER CHANGE: #9-Hendrick Motorsports

As planned following the race in Las Vegas, endurance racing star Jordan Taylor will make his NASCAR Cup Series debut this Sunday as driver of Chase Elliott’s fleet #9 UniFirst Chevrolet, replacing 18th-place Atlanta finisher Josh Berry. Wearing a Jeff Gordon-themed helmet adorned with his alter ego “Rodney Sandstorm,” Taylor will certainly be one to watch.

DRIVER CHANGE: #15-Rick Ware Racing

Another major storyline for Sunday are the entries of not one but two Formula One World Champions in this week’s race. Running the RWR #15 affiliated with RFK Racing is 2009 World Champion Jenson Button, winner of 15 Grands Prix including his storybook 2009 title with upstart Brawn GP. Mobil 1 extends its sponsorship for what will be Button’s first start in any of NASCAR’s top three series. He takes the place of J.J. Yeley, who ran 26th in Atlanta.

RETURNING: #50-The Money Team Racing

Welcome back Conor Daly and The Money Team, back at the track for the first time since their tumultuous SpeedWeeks at Daytona. Bitnile.com will again sponsor the #50 this week as Daly makes his first Cup laps on the Austin track.

DRIVER CHANGE: #78-Live Fast Motorsports

Josh Bilicki pulls double-duty with his XFINITY effort for DGM as he looks to turn around a rough stretch for the Live Fast team, which has finished last the previous two races with B.J. McLeod. Bringing back his familiar sponsorship from Zeigler Auto Group, which backed him last year at Spire Motorsports, Bilicki finished 22nd in this race last year and seeks his first Cup start since last August at Michigan, where he was 21st.

RETURNING: #84-Legacy Motor Club

Also back for the first time since Daytona is Jimmie Johnson, who this time around will make his first Cup laps at COTA. Carrying sponsorship from Club Wyndham, Johnson continues his pursuit of an 84th victory, his first on a road course since Sonoma in 2010.

RETURNING: #91-Trackhouse Racing (Project 91)

Last but certainly not least, Trackhouse’s Project 91 is back for the first time since last summer at Watkins Glen, and as they had that day brings with them 2007 Formula One World Champion Kimi Raikkonen. At The Glen, Raikkonen made it just short of halfway before teammate Ross Chastain triggered a wreck in the Inner Loop, leaving Kimi in 37th. He looks to improve in his second Cup start, which will mark the first time he’s raced Jenson Button in professional competition since the Grand Prix of Monaco on May 28, 2017. That day, Button crashed out of his final Grand Prix while Raikkonen ran 2nd to Sebastien Vettel.

TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (March 23, 1996): Jeremy Mayfield picked up the 2nd last-place finish of his NASCAR Busch Grand National Series career in the Dura Lube 200 at Darlington when his #98 Northstar Motorsports Ford crashed after 50 laps. 

CUP: B.J. McLeod’s lead-lap run spoiled when leaders wreck at Atlanta

PHOTO: @teamlivefast

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

B.J. McLeod scored the 11th last-place finish of his NASCAR Cup Series career in Sunday’s Ambetter 400 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway when his #78 B’laster Chevrolet was involved in a multi-car accident after 189 of 260 laps.

The finish, which came in McLeod’s 119th series start, was his second of the season and second in a row. In the Cup Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 32nd for the #78, the 642nd from a crash, and the 834th for Chevrolet. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 47th for the #78, the 1,321st from a crash, and the 1,876th for Chevrolet.

Following a frustrating afternoon in Phoenix where a faltering fuel pump sent his ill-handling car behind the wall in the opening stages, McLeod looked to regain his superspeedway speed in Atlanta. He’d again be sponsored by B’laster Products, the chemical company which backed his Live Fast Motorsports entry five times last year. This included Atlanta last July race, where the car got away from him in the early laps, resulting in a crash that left him last. 

With no practice, McLeod’s first laps would be in qualifying – and he’d have to be first on track. But the surface proved so dirty that McLeod spun, ultimately preventing him from logging a time. This secured him the 36th and final starting spot. Joining McLeod in the back was Christopher Bell, who like McLeod spun in qualifying, but did so in Round 2 and suffered damage to his #20 DeWalt Toyota. The team received an unapproved adjustments penalty for repairs to the diffuser strakes and replacement of the splitter. During the pace laps, Bell dropped to the back, but McLeod let the #20 slot in front of him, second-to-last on the outside line.

When the race started, McLeod crossed the stripe in 35th, just ahead of 35th-place starter Ty Gibbs, whose #54 Monster Energy Toyota turned in the slowest completed lap in qualifying. Gibbs cleared McLeod on the first lap, but McLeod stayed in his draft and kept the #54 in his view. On Lap 4, Gibbs passed Bell, who McLeod drew alongside on Lap 7, the two just 0.071 second apart. The next time by, with the field still locked in a two-wide pack, Bell pulled away from McLeod and also passed J.J. Yeley’s #15 Barnett Southern Corporation Ford. McLeod pulled to Yeley’s inside, and for the next two circuits the two were just a few hundredths of a second apart.

On Lap 11, the first caution fell when 19th-place Bubba Wallace lost control of his #23 Door Dash Toyota down the backstretch. He slid into the inside wall and made contact with the left-front fender, then needed a push to make it back to pit road. Wallace immediately took last from the McLeod and Yeley battle, and lost a lap in the process. On Lap 13, the crew sent Wallace back on track to try and make minimum speed (35.16 seconds), telling him “crazy shit’s gonna happen” to allow them to gain some spots. Wallace cleared minimum speed on Lap 16, at which point he was two laps down. But something was still dragging on his #23, causing him to lose touch with McLeod and Yeley as they resumed their side-by-side battle on the restart, now for 34th and 35th.

By Lap 38, the tail end of the field began to lose touch with the main pack. The gap began with 33rd-place Cody Ware, whose #51 Biohaven Ford was now a second behind the 32nd-place car. Behind Ware, both McLeod and Yeley formed up into a draft with Wallace some distance behind, waiting for a caution to make further adjustments. Stranded, Wallace lost a third lap by the 44th circuit, and by Lap 52, the draft of Ware, McLeod, and Yeley had dropped 12.965 seconds back of 32nd-place Ty Dillon in the #77 Ferris Commercial Mowers Chevrolet. The caution didn’t fall until the end of Stage 1, when the crew asked what Wallace needed to improve the car’s handling. The team elected to put rounds in both the right-front and right-rear, and also work more on the splitter.

When the race restarted on Lap 68, Wallace passed a couple of cars, but by Lap 74 had dropped to the tail end of the line again. This time, he remained in touch with the trailing cars of McLeod, Yeley, and Ware, and the group began to draft. On Lap 81, Wallace pulled to McLeod’s inside off Turn 2, but McLeod charged back. McLeod defended another pass off Turn 4. Two circuits later, another driver found trouble. This was Ryan Preece, whose #41 Autodesk / HaasTooling.com Ford fell off the pace on Lap 83. “41’s gone,” said Wallace’s spotter. “He’s got some kind of issue.”

Wallace (right) passes Preece, putting the #41 in last.
IMAGE: NASCAR Drive

By Lap 85, Preece had fallen to 35th, 7.61 seconds back of the lead and 2.216 seconds back of 34th-place McLeod, who still racing the lapped Wallace. Like Wallace, Preece waited for another caution to fall, but also didn’t get it. By Lap 89 – just four laps later – he had fallen a full 11.972 seconds back of McLeod and was completely by himself on track. Reading off the data from his digital dash, Preece was soon told the leaders were catching him. On Lap 93, Preece held the low lane as the leaders rushed past up high in single-file formation. Preece said his issue felt like what Briscoe experienced in Fontana last month – the engine running low on power. He estimated this was an injector issue, perhaps an injector not clogged or stuck open. 

Behind Preece, Ware now led the trailing pack of Wallace, McLeod, and Yeley as the leaders bore down to put them a lap down. As they did, the group attempted to merge into the lead draft. This caused the quartet to rush past the stranded Preece down the backstretch. And with Preece now on the same lap as Wallace, the #23 moved Preece to last off Turn 2. Green-flag pit stops ensued, and Wallace briefly retook last place on Lap 132, but Preece ran out of fuel and then incurred a pass-though penalty when he had to steer around Harrison Burton at the new pit entrance on the apron of Turn 3. This put Preece back to last on Lap 136, and the crew elected to look under the hood. The stop meant he still had to serve the pass-through, after which he was told the number two cylinder on the right side was dead, and he was now nine laps down to the leader, three behind 35th-place Wallace.

Stage 2 ended on Lap 162 with Preece still in last and all 36 cars under power. Preece’s crew brought him back in to change the spark plug for the dead cylinder, then changed the tires after. With Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. now leading the race on the restart, Preece anticipated the aggressive driver would draw a caution, but again, yellows were far from guaranteed. On Lap 181, Preece was now a full 13 laps down. He was still stranded, running by himself well off the pace, and on Lap 188 saw teammate Chase Briscoe pit his #14 High Point Ford for a bent toe link after contact with the wall. No sooner had Briscoe made it to pit road when the spotter broke in, saying, “Big wreck, big wreck. Whole field’s wrecked behind you.”

Trouble had broken out up front, but Stenhouse wasn’t to blame. The leaders were Kevin Harvick, who had a hard charging Ross Chastain filling his rear-view mirror. Coming off Turn 2, with Chastain a few inches behind Harvick’s rear bumper, Harvick’s #4 Busch Light Ford broke loose and was collected by Chris Buescher’s #17 Violet Defense Ford, triggering a multi-car pileup. Further back, coming off Turn 2, McLeod’s #78 spun sideways in a second wreck that also included Kyle Busch’s #8 Lenovo Chevrolet. Of those involved, both Buescher and McLeod’s cars failed to complete another lap, and were both towed to the garage, done for the day. McLeod was classified lower, and was first to close the gap on the lapped machines of Wallace and Preece. At the time of the wreck, McLeod was still running on the lead lap.

On Lap 204, Preece finally passed McLeod, putting the #78 in last place. That same time by, NASCAR confirmed McLeod was out due to the accident along with Buescher, Harvick, Burton, and the #24 Liberty University Chevrolet of William Byron. Burton had attempted to clear the “Crash Clock,” but was told on track that his time had expired, meaning NASCAR would no longer score his laps. This filled the Bottom Five, and ultimately lifted Wallace and Preece to 27th and 28th in the final running order.

LaJoie and the rookies survive Atlanta with great finishes

Finishing 4th was the #7 Celsius Chevrolet of Corey LaJoie, who for a third-straight Atlanta superspeedway race was a factor in the battle for the win. This time, it netted LaJoie his career-best Cup finish, improving on his first career Top Five in the 2022 running of this race. 

Both top Rookie of the Year contenders also enjoyed strong runs. After his poor performance in qualifying, Ty Gibbs rallied to a career-best 9th in his #54, besting his previous mark of 10th last summer in Michigan. Three spots behind came Noah Gragson, who turned around a frustrating start to 2023 with a 12th-place finish – his best run with Legacy Motor Club and third-best in a Cup race behind his 5th for Beard Motorsports in a crash-marred Daytona race and 11th last fall in Las Vegas substituting for Alex Bowman.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the second-straight last-place run for McLeod and the #78 in a Cup race at Atlanta.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

36) #78-B.J. McLeod / 189 laps / crash

35) #17-Chris Buescher / 189 laps / crash

34) #21-Harrison Burton / 190 laps / crash

33) #4-Kevin Harvick / 190 laps / crash

32) #24-William Byron / 192 laps / crash

2023 LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Live Fast Motorsports (2)

2nd) Kaulig Racing, Penske Racing, Spire Motorsports (1)

2023 LASTCAR CUP SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (4)

2nd) Ford (1)

2023 LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

TRUCKS: Keith McGee out early in Atlanta after Reaume team faces recurring transmission issue

PHOTO: Dominick Howe, @iDomHowe

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

Keith McGee picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career in Saturday’s Fr8 208 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway when his unsponsored #34 Reaume Brothers Racing Ford fell out with transmission issues after 7 of 137 laps.

The finish came in McGee’s ninth series start. In the Truck Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 8th for the #34, the 39th for transmissions issues, and the 117th for Ford. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 54th for the #34, the 170th for the transmission, and the 1,006th for Ford.

The Alaska-born McGee is relatively new to NASCAR, but has already distinguished himself in his efforts to both activate sponsorship and make it to the track. At Texas in June 2021, McGee was sponsored by “The Mullet That Changed My Life,” and brought with him a group of four supporters wearing t-shirts and checkered-flag shorts decorated with images of his Reaume Brothers Racing entry. That fall in Las Vegas, he teamed up with professional gambler Mikki Mase and took home $81,000 in casino winnings, enough to run for CMI Motorsports. Another quirky collection of sponsors joined him, including Dirty Goth Boi, Banger Buddy, and Hey Big Mike. McGee was even on hand at Sonoma last summer, where he nearly became G2G Racing’s substitute driver during a disastrous and controversial weekend for the team.

McGee’s most recent appearance came last fall at Phoenix, where his reunion with the Reaume team ended early after a tangle with Armani Williams. He’d drive for Reaume again in Atlanta, but this time in a comparatively bland-looking Ford. He would run the #34, which remained unsponsored as it had when Josh Reaume drove it earlier this month in Las Vegas. That night, Reaume only completed four laps, eliminated by a transmission that kept jumping out of gear.

With practice and qualifying rained out on Friday, McGee secured the 36th and final starting spot. Mason Massey, taking the controls of Reaume’s #33 Wespro JCB Ford, lined up 26th. No teams were sent home in qualifying, and none were sent to the rear for pre-race penalties. 

However, while McGee crossed the stripe in last, 5.124 seconds back of the lead, first-lap intervals indicated a few trucks did take the green in different spots. Ryan Vargas, making his Truck Series debut in On Point Motorsports’ #30 Leargas Security Toyota, crossed the line 30th after lining up 35th. Kris Wright was to start 25th in the #02 F.N.B. Corporation Chevrolet, but crossed the stripe in 35th, 4.695 seconds back of the lead and about a half-second ahead of McGee. The following were the interval from 30th on back, compiled from the NASCAR.com leaderboard, with their original starting spots listed:

30-35) 30-Vargas 4.022

31-28) 22-Reaume 4.186

32-32) 13-Deegan 4.388

33-34) 46-Ogata 4.477

34-33) 32-Holmes 4.538

35-25) 02-Wright 4.695

36-36) 34-McGee 5.124

On the first lap of the race, McGee was first warned of a group of trucks going three-wide, then another truck bouncing off the outside wall. This was Mason Maggio, who rolled off 31st in the #20 HMY Yachts Chevrolet. During a close battle into Turn 3, Maggio bounced off the wall, then kept going, only to reportedly hit the wall a second time on Lap 3. This second hit, which caused McGee’s spotter to worry about a cut tire on the #20, forced Maggio to make a green-flag stop on Lap 4, when he took last from McGee. “I’m sorry, guys,” said the driver.

Maggio returned to the track on Lap 6, only to incur a pit road speeding penalty both on entry and exit, specifically Sections 1 and 13-18. Already four laps down, Maggio served his pass-through penalty on Lap 8. But by that lap, McGee had also come down pit road and lost two laps of his own. The reason was the transmission was popping out of gear – Reaume’s issue from Vegas back once more. On Lap 10, McGee’s team asked to look over the truck for another minute before going to the garage. “It feels like something in fourth gear is broken or slipping,” said McGee. On Lap 14, the #34 was pushed to the garage at an entrance just past one of the ThorSport Racing team’s boxes.

Behind the wall, McGee was told to stay in the truck as the crew jacked up the left side. “It almost feels like a broken gear, or a part of the gear is sheared off,” said McGee on Lap 19. “All right, we’ll call it,” said the team in response. On Lap 22, the driver asked his team if they wanted him to get out. “If you can nurse it, I would leave that window net up for at least the next 30 seconds,” the crew answered. But McGee had already dropped the net and was climbing out. A moment later, the first caution came out for a wreck in the quad-oval between Layne Riggs and Tanner Gray. Both would ultimately continue. 

It wasn’t until much later that McGee was declared out of the race. The official in the garage was about to report it on Lap 48, but didn’t relay the message to the tower. The word came on Lap 103, along with official word of the retirements of both Maggio’s #20 and Corey Heim in the #11 Safelite Toyota. After his Lap 1 damage and subsequent penalty, Maggio came down pit road at the end of Stage 1 on Lap 60 with heavy right-front damage. The crew examined the a-frame, and when they saw the lower control arm was bent and rubbing against another part, the team pushed him to the garage on Lap 63. As they did, the crew bucked up their driver, who continued to apologize for the run. “It's all right, kiddo,” they said. “We'll fight another day.”

Heim’s day ended on a Lap 84 restart where, following a pit road incident with Stewart Friesen and Colby Howard, Heim was pushed into the rear of Nick Sanchez, who was slow though the gears. The impact stoved in the nose of Heim’s Toyota and ruptured something in the engine, causing oil to spray on the windshield. He parked on the apron of Turn 1 and climbed out, done for the day.

Finishing 33rd was Kayden Honeycutt, whose #04 Carquest Ford briefly battled for the lead when he restarted on the front row, only to suddenly stall on the backstretch. The reason was a stray piece of aluminum which fell between the alternator and engine block, causing a short in the system. Honeycutt went to the garage on Lap 59 – just moments before Maggio came in with his right-front damage – and returned to the track on Lap 61, just before Maggio’s retirement. Honeycutt crossed the line 14 laps down, three behind Lawless Alan, whose #45 AUTOChargit Chevrolet tangled with teammate Carson Hocevar in Turns 3 and 4.

Currey’s 4th-place finish among many standout runs

Just days after parting ways with JD Motorsports’ XFINITY Series team, Bayley Currey earned a career-best 4th in Al Niece’s #41 Unishippers Chevrolet, bouncing off the wall just before the stripe after a tight battle with 3rd-place finisher Ben Rhodes. This was the first of many strong runs for several teams.

Timmy Hill took home 8th in his #56 UNITS Storage Toyota, his first top-ten finish since October 30, 2021 at Martinsville. 

Ryan Vargas’ Truck Series debut in On Point Motorsports’ #30 Leargas Security Toyota yielded a strong 14th-place finish.

Kris Wright, who nearly took the green flag in last, climbed back to finish 15th, which is tied for his third-best Truck Series finish.

Taking home 17th for G2G Racing was a surprising Akinori Ogata, who was running inside the Top 20 on the lead lap when he spun down the backstretch, suffering damage to both the left-front and left-rear. Ogata cleared the “Crash Clock” and not only finished on the lead lap, but earned his career-best Truck Series finish in his 14th start. His previous best mark of 18th came at Loudon back on September 26, 2015.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the first last-place finish for the #34 in a Truck Series race at Atlanta.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

36) #34-Keith McGee / 7 laps / transmission

35) #20-Mason Maggio / 40 laps / crash

34) #11-Corey Heim / 83 laps / crash

33) #04-Kaden Honeycutt / 123 laps / running

32) #45-Lawless Alan / 126 laps / crash

2023 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Reaume Brothers Racing (2)

2nd) TRICON Garage (1)

2023 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Ford (2)

2nd) Toyota (1)

2023 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

XFINITY: Freak axle issue leads to first-lap tangle between Caesar Bacarella and Joey Gase

PHOTO: @MBMMotorsports

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

Caesar Bacarella picked up the 3rd last-place finish of his NASCAR XFINITY Series career in Saturday’s Raptor King of Tough 250 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway when his #66 Prime Bites Protein Brownie Chevrolet was involved in a multi-car accident after just 1 of 163 laps.

The finish, which came in Bacarella’s 27th series start, was his first of the season and first in a XFINITY Series race since February 19, 2022 at Daytona, 37 races ago. In the XFINTY Series rankings, it was the 15th for the #66, the 376th from a crash, and the 612th for Chevrolet. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 85th for the #66, the 1,320th from a crash, and the 1,875th for Chevrolet.

With his investment in the former Martins Motorsports team, now reorganized as Alpha Prime Racing, Bacarella has remained an infrequent competitor in the XFINITY Series’ superspeedway races. His last-place run at Daytona was followed by a season-best 25th at Talladega despite a late-race crash. His schedule also included the summer race at the Atlanta track, whose reconfiguration had transformed it to an unofficial “mini-superspeedway” of its own. That race, which saw Bacarella finish 28th, was one of two he finished under power. 

Following successful completion of NASCAR’s “Road to Recovery” program after he reportedly unknowingly took a workout supplement on the banned substances list, Bacarella was reinstated in time to attempt this year’s Daytona opener. But an illness sidelined him, and Stefan Parsons finished 13th in his Chevrolet.

The news came this past week that Bacarela would run a fourth entry for Alpha Prime Racing – though unofficially. Perhaps due to the bad weather predicted for qualifying day, Bacarella’s new #42 entry was withdrawn, replaced by the #66 to be crewed by Carl Long’s team Motorsports Business Management (MBM). MBM’s #66 team had made just one start in the first four races, taking 32nd in Fontana, and wasn’t entered last week in Phoenix. Bacarella’s Atlanta car carried a neon-hued paint scheme for sponsor Prime Bite Protein Brownies, a new protein snack sold by his company Alpha Prime Supplements.

Just like with the Truck Series race run earlier on Saturday, XFINITY practice and qualifying were rained out on Friday. This secured Bacarella the 38th and final starting spot. The lone DNQ was Phoenix last-place finisher Dawson Cram, whose #74 Chevrolet didn’t have a driver listed all week, and had just picked up sponsorship from ServiceMaster Restore. 

Incurring pre-race penalties for unapproved adjustments were RSS Racing teammates Joe Graf, Jr., who was set to start 27th in the #38 Jacob Companies Ford and 26th-place Kyle Sieg in the #28 Cedar Ridge Landscaping Ford. Graf was last across the stripe, 3.866 seconds back of the lead with Sieg just ahead of him in 37th, moving Bacarella to 35th ahead of Chad Chastain in the #91 Protect Your Melon Chevrolet. Coming off Turn 4 to complete the first lap, Graf was still running in last, 4.1 seconds back of the lead, when the spotter told him to “check up.”

Just past the starting line in the middle of the quad-oval, Bacarella’s #66 suddenly broke loose, cut left and his left-front struck the right-rear corner of Joey Gase’s passing #53 Donate Life GA Chevrolet, which started 33rd. The contact hooked Gase to the right, sending him nose-first into the wall before the left-rear hit the barrier. The damage caused Bacarella to slow in front of Kyle Sieg, whose #28 bumped the #66 in the left-rear with his right-front, sending Bacarella into a second spin that put him into the outside wall.

While Gase climbed from his car on the apron near pit exit, Bacarella made it back to pit road and soon after pulled behind the wall on Lap 3. Through it all, Bacarella was ranked one spot behind Gase, and the two dropped to the final two spots on that same third lap. On Lap 4, MBM’s spotter talked with Carl Long, explaining that Bacarella was on the “Crash Clock” once he entered pit road, so he was out of the race under the “Damaged Vehicle Policy.” Long responded, saying “It’s fucked up more than a soup sandwich. We’re not coming back out.”

While Gase’s crew tried to make sense of the wreck and asked who was driving the #66, Bacarella explained that something broke in his car coming to the stripe. This was reportedly a broken axle, which explained he car’s sudden turn. 

The rest of the Bottom Five was filled by another wreck on Lap 12 in Turns 3 and 4. The wreck began with Jeffrey Earnhardt, whose #44 Advanced Material Handling Chevrolet blew a tire and spun, collecting Kaz Grala in the #26 Crush Lime Margarita Toyota. Closing in was Gray Gaulding in the #08 FollowMe Global Business Solutions Chevrolet and Garrett Smithley, reunited with JD Motorsports in the #4 Trophy Tractor Chevrolet. While Gaulding skirted the wreck by cutting left, Smithley’s spotter told him to go high. Smithley ended up striking Grala’s car in the door. Both Grala’s and Smithley’s days were done, their cars both trailing fluid. Earnhardt made it to pit road, but his “Crash Clock” expired on Lap 16. “Push it behind the wall, guys,” said the team.

PHOTO: @Josh6williams

All of this was settled before perhaps the most memorable moment of the race involving Josh Williams, driver of the #92 Coolray / Alloy Employer Chevrolet. Both Williams and Jeb Burton had suffered damage in the Lap 11 accident, perhaps colliding with each other. Williams was left with right-front fender damage, requiring some taping on pit road. He returned to the track, but dropped a piece of debris on the track as the tape came apart. After the Lap 32 restart, the caution quickly flew for another piece off the Williams car. On Lap 33, NASCAR reported that Williams would be heading to the garage. The next time by, NASCAR said they were no longer scoring the #92, again telling him to go to the garage. “Spotter for the 92, let’s not mess this up for everybody else,” the official said. The lap after, NASCAR told Williams, spotter Reed Sorenson, and team owner Mario Gosselin to report to the XFINITY Series hauler after the race. Williams stopped his car at the starting line, climbed out, and walked back to pit road. As reporters sought an interview, Williams was being directed to the infield care center. Instead, he was brought to the XFINITY hauler, where he remained until after the race to speak with Wayne Auton. Well after the finish, Williams was released for interviews, but his car remained parked by the XFINITY hauler. Williams, whose entry was parked after the incident, was listed out with “crash” damage as the reason, ranking him 33rd.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the first last-place finish for the #66 in a XFINITY Series race since October 22, 2022, when J.J. Yeley crashed after 3 laps at Homestead. The number had never before finished last in a XFINITY race at Atlanta.

*This was only the fifth time the last-place finisher of a XFINITY Series race at Atlanta completed just the opening lap. The last time was on February 27, 2016, when Jeff Green had electrical issues. 

THE BOTTOM FIVE

38) #66-Caesar Bacarella / 1 lap / crash

37) #53-Joey Gase / 1 lap / crash

36) #4-Garrett Smithley / 11 laps / crash

35) #26-Kaz Grala / 11 laps / crash

34) #44-Jeffrey Earnhardt / 11 laps / crash

2023 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) CHK Racing, Emerling-Gase Motorsports, JD Motorsports, Motorsports Business Management, SS-Green Light Racing (1)

2023 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (3)

2nd) Ford, Toyota (1)

2023 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP