ARCA WEST: Armtrout’s last-place finish guarantees wide-open title battle at Phoenix

Armtrout bringing up the rear of the field on the pace laps.
SCREENSHOT: FloRacing

by Ben Schneider

LASTCAR.info Staff Writer

Brody Armtrout finished last for the 1st time in his ARCA Menards Series West career in last Saturday’s 51FIFTY Jr Homecoming ARCA 150 at Madera Speedway when his No. 77 REX MD / Fiddler on the Roof / Jan’s Towing Toyota fell out with brake issues after completing 93 of 150 laps.

The finish came in Armtrout’s West Series debut.

A former Jr. Late Model Series champion, Armtrout first made headlines on the West Coast during the 2021 season, during which he won five races en route to the title. The series' 2019 and 2020 series champions - Joey Iest and Bradley Erickson - have also gone on to compete in the ARCA Menards Series West. While ARCA West had not competed at Madera since 2009, Armtrout’s own experience at the one-third mile track made it a natural choice for him to make his debut.

In all, 22 cars originally appeared on the entry list. However, due to the withdrawals of Paul Pedroncelli Jr., R.J. Smotherman, and Nick Joanides, only 19 started the race. In practice, Armtrout’s 15.109-second fastest lap placed 18th of the 19 remaining entries, followed only by David Smith, who anchored the field with a fastest lap time of 15.378. While their qualifying positions carried over from practice, Armtrout broke into the 14-second range with a time of 14.954, while Smith’s pace dropped a bit as the Canadian driver clocked in roughly half a second behind at 15.464. Monty Tipton, Nick Joanides, and Takuma Koga rounded out the Bottom Five on the grid.

In the race, as Armtrout retired with brake issues, Dustin Ash also pulled behind the wall due to crash damage sustained after hitting the outside wall in a chain-reaction stackup. Ash and Armtrout were both scored with 93 laps completed, though Ash edged Armtrout by virtue of completing his 93rd lap first, narrowly avoiding a last-place finish. In 17th was Tanner Reif, who lost out on a potential top-five finish when his car came to a stop and brought out a caution on Lap 78. However, the Bill McAnally Racing team was able to get Reif back out on track to be running at the finish with 100 laps completed. Rounding out the Bottom Five were Robbie Kennealy and Takuma Koga, who completed 129 laps before their nights ended early in a crash with Ethan Nascimento.

Up front, Kaden Honeycutt picked up another victory, taking the lead from polesitter Eric Nascimento in the opening laps and leading every lap that followed to take his second win in three West Series starts. Sean Hingorani, meanwhile, opened up his points lead to 30 with a strong fifth-place finish. With 30 cars entered at Phoenix, Hingorani will likely only need to take the green flag and survive the opening laps to clinch the ARCA West drivers’ championship.

LASTCAR CHAMPIONSHIP SCENARIOS

The West Series now heads into Phoenix with 30 cars entered in the season finale. With 11 different last-place finishers in 11 races, any driver who has previously finished last this season can win the LASTCAR ARCA West Drivers’ Championship by simply finishing last at Phoenix. With part-timers Tim Monroe, Jake Drew, Jalen Mack, and Armtrout not currently on the entry list, Kyle Keller, Nick Joanides, Bradley Erickson, Tanner Reif, Trevor Huddleston, and Todd Souza make up the seven competitors that have a chance to clinch the title with a last-place finish. R.J. Smotherman had been eligible but has withdrawn as of Thursday.

Additionally, with nine Bottom Ten finishes to Keller’s five, a last-place finish would be enough to give David Smith or Takuma Koga the title on countback even if Keller also finishes in the Bottom Five. Finally, Ethan Nascimento has an outside shot at the championship, but with only three Bottom Five finishes to Keller’s four, he must finish last and have Keller finish outside the Bottom Five to claim the championship.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

19) #77-Brody Armtrout / 93 laps / brakes

18) #5-Dustin Ash / 93 laps / crash

17) #16-Tanner Reif / 100 laps / running

16) #1-Robbie Kennealy / 129 laps / crash

15) #7-Takuma Koga / 129 laps / crash

2023 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES WEST MANUFACTURERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Ford (6)

2nd) Toyota (4) 

3rd) Chevrolet (1)

2023 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES WEST OWNERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Lowden-Jackson Motorsports, Performance P-1 Motorsports (2)

2nd) Fast Track Racing, Central Coast Racing, High Point Racing, Jerry Pitts Racing, Bill McAnally Racing, Nascimento Motorsports, Sigma Performance Services (1)

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Click HERE to view the full standings for both the main ARCA Menards Series and the ARCA Menards Series East and West divisions. You can also find the full manufacturers’ and owners’ standings HERE.

2023 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES WEST DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

CUP: B.J. McLeod clinches third LASTCAR title after car overheats on hot Martinsville track

PHOTO: @teamlivefast

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

B.J. McLeod picked up the 14th last-place finish of his NASCAR Cup Series career in Sunday’s XFINITY 500 at the Martinsville Speedway when his #78 Falk’d Up Garage Chevrolet fell out with overheating issues after 147 of 500 laps.

The finish, which came in McLeod’s 136th series start, was his fifth of the season and first since Darlington, eight races ago. In the Cup Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 36th for the #78, the 119th from overheating, and the 850th for Chevrolet. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 51st for the #78, the 180th from overheating, and the 1,921st for Chevrolet.

With the finish, McLeod has secured his third LASTCAR Cup Series Championship with one race still to go. His only two remaining challengers were brothers Ty Dillon and Austin Dillon. Ty could have taken the lead from McLeod with a last-place run on Sunday, but McLeod would have been able to respond in Phoenix.

Just days after the team’s most recent last-place finish in Darlington, the Live Fast Motorsports team announced that they had sold their Charter to Spire Motorsports, which would expand from two to three entries. As the team prepares to scale back to a part-time “open” entry in 2024, the team has continued to fight near the back of the pack. Live Fast gave Sheldon Creed his first Cup start at Kansas, yielding a 29th-place finish. McLeod finished 22nd in Texas coming home on the lead lap. And on the Charlotte “Roval,” Josh Bilicki was battling inside the Top 20 before contact from Corey LaJoie left him 26th.

For Martinsville, the team carried a special Halloween-themed paint scheme featuring McLeod himself. Joining a returning Superior Logistics Services, Inc. as sponsor was the YouTube channel Falk’d Up Garage.

With only the 36 Chartered entries arriving at the track once more, McLeod was slowest in both practice and qualifying, securing the last spot on the grid with a lap of 91.660mph (20.659 seconds) in Qualifying Round 1A. The field remained so close that he was just two-hundredths of a second slower than 35th-place J.J. Yeley in the #15 IFCJ.org Ford and just over a half-second off the pole.

No drivers incurred pre-race penalties, so McLeod and Yeley rolled off side-by-side in the final row. When the race started on an unseasonably hot afternoon, McLeod’s outside line got a better start, pulling him 4.086 seconds back of the lead at the stripe ahead of 33rd-place starter Ryan Newman in the #51 Biohaven / Jacob Companies Ford (4.118 seconds) and the now last-place Yeley (4.331). Newman dropped McLeod back to 35th by Lap 3, when the #78 was now locked in a side-by-side battle with Yeley. That time by, the gap from McLeod to the last-place Yeley was 0.075 second, then 0.095 on Lap 4 and 0.041 on Lap 5. Yeley finally cleared McLeod on Lap 7, opening a gap of 0.244.

On Lap 12, McLeod maintained a half-second gap behind Yeley and began to report on his water temperature, citing it at 270 degrees. “Everything feels fine,” said the driver. On Lap 21, McLeod pulled to within 0.355 second of Yeley, then cut it to 0.211 on Lap 22. But now, the leaders had caught them both, and McLeod and Yeley were the first to be lapped on the 28th and 29th circuits. In traffic, McLeod reported his car was now “free in, tight center, free off.” The positions remained unchanged until the first caution on Lap 104.

Heading through Turns 1 and 2, the battle for 22nd turned physical. Holding the spot was last week’s last-place finisher Harrison Burton in the #21 Motorcraft / Quick Lane Ford, who had a mirrorful of Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.’s #47 Kroger / Reese’s Chevrolet. As Stenhouse moved by, Burton cut in front of an approaching Alex Bowman in the #48 Ally Chevrolet, who then bumped his way under Burton as Austin Dillon closed from behind in the #3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet. As Bowman banged doors with Burton, a stack-up ensued where Dillon spun Bowman, then hooked Burton into a spin. Squeezing past was then-leader Denny Hamlin before Corey LaJoie’s #7 Gainbridge Chevrolet locked the brakes behind a stopped Burton. All involved drivers escaped with little damage, though each were first shown one lap down. Under caution, Burton took last on Lap 106, followed by McLeod on Lap 107, then Burton on Lap 108, Bowman on Lap 109, and Burton on Lap 111. The race restarted the next time by with Burton last in line, at which point NASCAR declared all cars had met minimum speed. 

With the end of Stage 1 fast approaching, Burton set after Bowman. Both were now the only two cars off the lead lap, and now fighting for the Lucky Dog. Burton caught Bowman by Lap 123, but five laps later, leader Hamlin caught and passed 34th-place McLeod, putting him a lap down. By the end of Stage 1 on Lap 131, Hamlin had also lapped 33rd-place Carson Hocevar in the #42 Sunseeker Resort Chevrolet and, coming off Turn 4 the final time, 32nd-place Yeley in the #15. This gave Yeley the Lucky Dog, putting him back on the lead lap.

This stage caution saw McLeod retake last place on Lap 136, the crew clearing rubber off the grille as they continued to track a overheating issue. Scoring showed Bowman in last on Lap 138, then McLeod again on Lap 139 just before the Lap 141 restart. Right when the field went green, Kyle Busch made an unscheduled stop for a flat left-front tire on his #8 BetMGM Chevrolet, immediately taking last again from McLeod. Busch quickly returned to the track, and by Lap 147 had caught and passed McLeod, climbing to 35th. 

Then on Lap 149, McLeod made a sudden turn into the garage at the entrance of Turn 3. “I don’t want to oil the track down,” said McLeod, reporting the water was now at 385 degrees. “See you at Phoenix.” With the car parked behind the team’s hauler, McLeod’s camera was shut off on Lap 156, then was declared out by NASCAR on Lap 180.

McLeod's car shortly after pulling into the garage.
SCREENSHOT: NASCAR Drive

Yeley finished 35th after a frustrating series of events led to his car being towed behind the wall prematurely. It began on Lap 273, when entering Turn 3, Joey Logano spun 3rd-place running Ty Gibbs’ #54 Monster Energy Toyota, which was then struck by Daniel Suarez’ #99 Jockey Outdoors by Luke Bryan Chevrolet that had been pushed by Brad Keselowski’s #6 King’s Hawaiian Ford. Yeley was among those involved, though he only suffered flat tires. While Suarez’ car was allowed to drive around the track with broken toe links, Yeley was told be track officials to climb from his car, ending his race. Yeley fell to 35th with Suarez only completing three more laps in 34th. Keselowski continued with nose damage, then briefly caught fire on pit road, only to return to the track in the final four laps. Completing the group was Bowman, who took the checkered flag four laps down. 

Burton rallies, Gilliland finishes 10th

After competing for last place early in the event, Harrison Burton rebounded nicely to take home a 15th-place finish – his best run since an 8th at Pocono. The fall race at Martinsville seems to suit the newcomer well, one year after he finished 11th in the 2022 running.

Sunday’s race also saw Todd Gilliland pick up the sixth top-ten finish of his career and first since Talladega in the spring when he crossed the line in 10th in the #38 Quincy Compressor Ford. Gilliland scored his first career Truck Series victory at the track in 2019.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked McLeod’s second last-place finish in a Cup race at Martinsville, following April 9, 2022 where handling issues were to blame after 132 laps.

*This was the first Cup last-place finisher at Martinsville to finish last due to overheating issues since October 26, 2014, when Clay Rogers’ #93 Burger King Toyota dropped out after 25 laps.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

36) #78-B.J. McLeod / 147 laps / overheating

35) #15-J.J. Yeley / 271 laps / crash

34) #99-Daniel Suarez / 274 laps / dvp

33) #6-Brad Keselowski / 305 laps / running

32) #48-Alex Bowman / 496 laps / running

2023 LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Live Fast Motorsports (5)

2nd) Joe Gibbs Racing, Richard Childress Racing, Rick Ware Racing, Spire Motorsports (4)

3rd) Legacy Motor Club, Penske Racing (3)

4th) Stewart-Haas Racing (2)

5th) Front Row Motorsports, Hendrick Motorsports, Kaulig Racing, Trackhouse Racing, Wood Brothers Racing (1)

2023 LASTCAR CUP SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (19)

2nd) Ford (11)

3rd) Toyota (4)

2023 LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

XFINITY: Kyle Sieg’s first career last-place finish precedes late-race Martinsville chaos

PHOTO: Steven Taranto, @STaranto92

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

Kyle Sieg picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR XFINITY Series career in Saturday’s Dead On Tools 250 at the Martinsville Speedway when his #29 Night Owl Ford crashed after he completed 40 of 256 laps.

The finish came in Sieg’s 49th series start. In the XFINITY Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 5th for the #29, the 166th for Ford, and the 388th from a crash. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 27th for the #29, the 1,026th for Ford, and the 1,359th from a crash.

The 22-year-old younger brother of Ryan Sieg has shown steady improvement during the expansion of their family’s team RSS Racing. The younger Sieg showed immediate promise in ARCA, finishing 10th in his 2020 series debut at IRP, then took his first Top Five in the 2021 opener at Daytona. That May, this led to Sieg’s first XFINITY start at Dover, where he finished 34th in a joint effort between RSS and Mario Gosselin’s team DGM Racing. He ran a partial schedule last year, finishing a season-best 10th in another Daytona run that summer, and this year has run most of the calendar, swapping between three of the team’s four entries. He earned a career-best 7th in Atlanta in July, but also threatened for the win at Talladega before he slipped to 15th.

For Martinsville, Sieg would drive the team’s newest entry, the #29, with returning sponsorship from Night Owl National Contractors, Inc. He would compete against brother Ryan in the flagship #39 Sci Aps Ford – a sponsor that will step up to full-time backer in 2024 – plus Joe Graf, Jr. in the #38 Bucked Up Energy Ford and C.J. McLaughin in the #28 Sci Aps Ford. Coming into this race, all four of these teams had not once finished last in 2023.

Sieg was one of 40 drivers on the preliminary entry list, which was cut to 39 after CHK Racing withdrew Dawson Cram’s #74 Chevrolet. In practice - which was led by a surprising Blaine Perkins in Our Motorsports’ #02 PayDay Salutes Chevrolet – Sieg ranked just 30th, then qualified 28th with a lap of 92.213mph (20.535 seconds). The only DNQ was a frustrated Timmy Hill, whose #66 Cole Enterprises Toyota ran a strong 8th in practice, only to struggle with changing track conditions as the first car to take time.

Securing the 38th and final starting spot was Jeb Burton, whose #27 State Water Heaters Chevrolet was unable to take time in qualifying due to a radiator change. This change also handed him a redundant tail-end penalty for unapproved adjustments. The same penalty was handed to 16th-place Brett Moffitt in the #25 AM Technical Solutions Ford (3rd in practice), 29th-place Jeffrey Earnhardt in the #45 ForeverLawn Cleveland Chevrolet (slowest in practice), 35th-place Chris Hacker in the #35 Emerling-Gase Motorsports Chevrolet, and 37th-place Devin Jones in the #07 Verinext Chevrolet. For both Hacker and Jones, it was their first series return after an absence: Hacker after a more than 70 days sobriety following a suspension for a DWI in August, and Jones following a DNQ on the “Roval” which was his first series attempt since 2017.

After some difficulty getting the final two rows organized, NASCAR had Moffitt line up ahead of Burton on the outside lane with Earnhardt ahead of Hacker on the inside line. On the break, Burton on the outside pulled ahead of Hacker, putting the #35 in last place. By the end of Lap 1, the spot fell to Devin Jones, who was 5.732 seconds back of the lead and already 0.395 behind Hacker. Jones remained in last through Lap 5, when he now trailed Akinori Ogata in the other Emerling-Gase car, the #53 Pneumatic Tools Shinano Chevrolet. The next time by, the first caution fell for Joe Graf, Jr. in the RSS #38. Running 30th at the time, Graf cut down a left-rear tire and spun off Turn 2. He got going again, but didn’t start rolling until then-leader Sammy Smith put him a lap down off the corner. Graf pitted for fresh tires and returned to the track the only car one lap down. Also pitting under yellow were Jeb Burton’s #27 and Ryan Ellis in the #43 KeenParts.com Chevrolet, who took the final spots on the lead lap from Devin Jones.

On the Lap 11 restart, Graf looked to stay in the Lucky Dog spot, but he began to have brake issues that forced him behind the wall on Lap 33. He entered the garage on the Turn 4 side, where the crew removed one of the wheels and retrieved more brake fluid. He was still in the garage on Lap 42, when Kyle Sieg was running 30th when his car pulled straight entering Turn 2. The #29 slammed the outside wall with the right-front, and the driver soon dropped the window net, signaling the end of his race. The car was then towed to the garage, where it sat in the open as the team’s hauler was parked outside the track. Under the caution, Graf’s crew continued to have the driver pump the brakes. On Lap 47, Graf returned to the track showing 16 laps down. He caught and passe Sieg on Lap 58, putting the #29 into last place.

This pass also proved critical in the LASTCAR XFINITY Series Championship. Graf came into the race with the most Bottom Fives (6) and Bottom Tens (13) of all XFINITY drivers without a last-place finish in 2023. The last-place run would have put him in title contention. Instead, he’s now eliminated along with all other drivers without a last-place finish this year. He finished in 29th.

Finishing 37th was Devin Jones, who pulled the #07 behind the wall on Lap 142, then was declared out by NASCAR with 79 to go in regulation. Playoff contender Chandler Smith was the first of his group to find trouble when overheating issues forced his #16 Quick Tie Products, Inc. Chevrolet pulled behind the wall just short of the 200-lap mark to save the engine. This ended Smith’s “must-win” bid at the Championship Four. Ryan Sieg made to two RSS cars in the Bottom Five due to late-race steering issues on the #39 while 34th went to J.J. Yeley after his #4 Old House Life Chevrolet had a hard crash with Ryan Ellis off Turn 4.

Heartbreak for Perkins, but Alfredo, Burton, Caruth, and McLaughlin capitalize

After leading practice and running inside the Top 10 for much of the final stage, Blaine Perkins took the white flag in 10th place, just under 1.2 seconds back of the leader. Instead, he was collected in the massive pileup triggered by the Playoff contenders up front. Perkins car ended up pointed backwards against the inside wall just 100 feet or so from the finish line, dropping him to a disappointing 22nd. 

When the smoke cleared, a few other drivers did earn solid finishes, though some were spinning across the finish line as they did. Among these was Anthony Alfredo, whose #78 Chevrolet carried race sponsor Dead On Tools. Alfredo was sideways across the stripe ahead of 9th-place Jeb Burton, who after starting in the back slammed the inside wall flush with the passenger side. Like Perkins, both drivers walked away uninjured.

Just behind the Top 10 came Layne Riggs, who overcame a spin to finish 11th in his #11 Infinity Communications Group Chevrolet. Rajah Caruth’s last start of the year for Alpha Prime Racing saw him take 12th after starting 26th on the grid in the #44 Virginia State Chevrolet, tying Caruth’s series-best run in this same race last year. And on a rough evening for RSS Racing, C.J. McLaughlin came back from mid-race overheating issues to take 13th - tied for the second-best run of his own XFINITY career – in the #28 Sci Aps Ford.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the first XFINITY Series last-place finish for the #29 since October 4, 2014, when Milka Duno’s #29 CanTV Toyota crashed after 3 laps around Kansas in what was her series debut.

*This was the first last-place finish of the season for RSS Racing.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

38) #29-Kyle Sieg / 40 laps / crash

37) #07-Devin Jones / 131 laps / engine

36) #16-Chandler Smith / 187 laps / crash

35) #39-Ryan Sieg / 203 laps / steering

34) #4-J.J. Yeley / 207 laps / crash

2023 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) SS-Green Light Racing (4)

2nd) Alpha Prime Racing, Emerling-Gase Motorsports, Motorsports Business Management (3)

3rd) Big Machine Racing, CHK Racing, DGM Racing, JD Motorsports (2)

4th) AM Racing, B.J. McLeod Motorsports, Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, Jordan Anderson Racing, JR Motorsports, Kaulig Racing, Our Motorsports, RSS Racing, Sam Hunt Racing, Stewart-Haas Racing (1)

2023 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (23)

2nd) Ford (5)

3rd) Toyota (4)

2023 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

PREVIEW: LASTCAR championship battles set to intensify in Martinsville

IMAGE: @teamlivefast

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

Saturday, October 28, 2023 (3:30 P.M. ET, USA)

XFINITY Race 32 of 33

Round of 8: Race 3 of 3

Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville

2022 Last-Place Finisher: Bayley Currey

LASTCAR CHAMPIONSHIP SCENARIOS

With two races to go, Parker Kligerman leads the LASTCAR XFINITY Series Championship by three bottom-ten finishes over Greg Van Alst. The standings remain so close that the 17 drivers behind them can take the lead in the standings simply by finishing last at Martinsville: Blaine Perkins, Anthony Alfredo, Patrick Emerling, Kyle Weatherman, Brett Moffitt, Riley Herbst, Sam Mayer (already locked into the Championship Four), Dawson Cram, Brennan Poole, Parker Retzlaff, Sammy Smith, Stefan Parsons, Gray Gaulding, Sage Karam, Joey Gase, Carson Hocevar, and Parker Chase. 

As to all 17, both Kligerman and Van Alst can reclaim the title by finishing last at Phoenix. Depending on who finishes last at Martinsville, Kligerman and Van Alst may need only a Bottom Five or Bottom Ten at Phoenix. Brad Perez and Timmy Hill can tie Kligerman for the lead if either of them finish last, but Kligerman will prevail since he’s full-time while Perez and Hill are not. Thus, Perez, Hill, and the eight other drivers behind them can only win the title if any one of them finish last at both Martinsville and Phoenix.

With the entry list now posted, these nine drivers are both entered in Martinsville and in position to take the lead from Kligerman on Saturday. Stefan Parsons, Gray Gaulding, Sage Karam, Joey Gase, Carson Hocevar, and Parker Chase may still be in contention at Phoenix if Kligerman leads with just two last-place finishes going into that race.

ENTRY LIST

There are 39 drivers entered for 38 spots, meaning one will fail to qualify.

DRIVER CHANGE: #11-Kaulig Racing

Layne Riggs jumps back behind the wheel of Kaulig’s #11 entry for his third series start with Infinity Communications Group as sponsor. He takes the place of 11th-place Homestead finisher Derek Kraus, recently announced as the driver of Spire Motorsports’ second Truck entry at Phoenix.

DRIVER CHANGE: #19-Joe Gibbs Racing

DRIVER SWAP: #29-RSS Racing

DRIVER SWAP: #38-RSS Racing

Myatt Snider will make his fifth series start of the year, his first since his 11th-place showing at Las Vegas. Snider enters this race completing all but one of his 470 attempted laps with no finishes worse than 14th. Snider’s return moves 10th-place Homestead finisher Joe Graf, Jr. back to RSS Racing’s #38 in place of 22nd-place Kyle Sieg, who returns to the RSS #29 in place of 33rd-place Mason Maggio, who isn’t entered.

DRIVER CHANGE: #35-Emerling-Gase Motorsports

Suspended in August for a DWI charge, Chris Hacker was reinstated by NASCAR on Wednesday, reporting that he’s been 71 days sober. Hacker began the year with his first two XFINITY Series starts, taking 14th in his Richmond debut and 30th in Loudon, both for RSS Racing. He now returns to action with Emerling-Gase Motorsports, a car which had no driver listed in place of 25th-place Homestead finisher Patrick Emerling.

DRIVER CHANGE: #44-Alpha Prime Racing

DRIVER SWAP: #45-Alpha Prime Racing

Rajah Caruth will make his last 2023 start with Alpha Prime Racing before he drives for Hendrick in the Phoenix finale, carrying sponsorship from Virginia State. Caruth will pilot the #44, moving 18th-place Homestead finisher Jeffrey Earnhardt to the #45 in place of 23rd-place Leland Honeyman, who’s not entered. Earnhardt will run a Cleveland Browns paint scheme on his ForeverLawn Chevrolet.

DRIVER CHANGE: #53-Emerling-Gase Motorsports

Martinsville will see Akinori Ogata attempt his seventh series start and second of the year, following his 29th-place showing in the July race at Atlanta, also in this Emerling-Gase #53. Ogata takes the place of Matt Mills – fastest among the three DNQs in Homestead – and carries sponsorship from Pneumatic Tools Shinano. Ogata finished 26th in his lone Martinsville start two years ago.

DRIVER CHANGE: #66-Motorsports Business Management

For the second-straight Homestead race, MBM’s #66 team showed speed in qualifying at Homestead, only to finish last with early misfortune. This time, the issue was a piece of debris striking the gear pump, leaking fluid under the rear tires. Taking the place of last week’s Ryan Newman is a returning Timmy Hill with sponsor CRC Brakleen. This would be only the fifth XFINITY start of the season for Hill and his first since rear gear issues of his own ended his race in Bristol.

WITHDREW: #74-CHK Racing

An apparent axle issue was to blame for the loose left-rear wheel that sent Dawson Cram into the Turn 2 wall last week – a rare accident for the Harmon team. Cram had been entered in this week’s race, but withdrew by Wednesday, cutting the entry list to only 39 cars. 

MISSING: #88-JR Motorsports

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. finished 5th in his second and final XFINITY start of 2023, and the #88 is not entered with another driver this week.

DRIVER CHANGE: #91-DGM Racing

Taking the place of 16th-place Kyle Weatherman is a returning Josh Bilicki, who seeks his 90th career XFINITY Series start and first since a 25th-place run for Bobby Dotter on the Charlotte “Roval.” Bilicki and teammate Josh Williams are among the drivers running special Halloween-themed paint schemes, joined by at least Ryan Ellis in Alpha Prime’s #43 Keen Parts Chevrolet and Jeremy Clements in the #51 Spartan Waste / FOX Sports 98.3 Chevrolet. Alongside the return of Josh Williams’ Beetlejuice paint scheme on the #92, Bilicki’s #91 features aliens along with sponsors Evolution Edges and Chemung Supply.

DRIVER CHANGE: #07-SS-Green Light Racing

The Dotter team swaps both drivers once more, this time bringing on Devin Jones, who failed to qualify in his attempted series return at the Roval with CHK Racing. Jones’ VERINEXT sponsorship joins him on the #07, taking the place of Homestead DNQ Natalie Decker.

DRIVER CHANGE: #08-SS-Green Light Racing

In the second Dotter car comes Chad Finchum with sponsor Garrison Homes on the #08, taking the place of 27th-place Homestead finisher Mason Massey. Massey had been in the running to drive this car next week at Phoenix, but lost a determining online contest to J.J. Yeley from sponsor Control App. Finchum seeks his fourth start of the season and first since Bristol, where he ran 29th with this same team.

CUP INVADERS: None

Sunday, October 29, 2023 (2:30 P.M. ET, NBC)

CUP Race 35 of 36

Round of 8: Race 3 of 3

XFINITY 500 at Martinsville

2022 Last-Place Finisher: Brad Keselowski

LASTCAR CHAMPIONSHIP SCENARIOS

Coming into last week’s race at Homestead, all Cup drivers without a single last-place finish were eliminated from championship contention. After Homestead, the drivers with one last-place finish after the race were also eliminated, plus any of the two-time last-place finishers with too few Bottom Fives and Bottom Tens. 

With that, the title will come down to current leader B.J. McLeod – the only driver with four last-place finishes – and brothers Ty Dillon and Austin Dillon. McLeod can lock-up the title early by finishing last at Martinsville. Ty can take the lead by finishing last in either race no matter where McLeod finishes - so long as McLeod doesn’t finish last in either. Austin’s only path is to finish last in both Martinsville and Phoenix, but even in that scenario, McLeod can still beat him by finishing Bottom Five in both races. If neither Austin nor McLeod finish last in Martinsville, the title will come down to Ty and McLeod in Phoenix.

ENTRY LIST

The penultimate Cup race features only the 36 Chartered entries, the 22nd of 35 Cup races to do so. The Daytona 500 still stands alone as the only 40-car Cup starting grid in 2023.

DRIVER CHANGE: #42-Legacy Motor Club

Fresh off punching his ticket into the Truck Series Championship Four with his win last Saturday in Homestead, Carson Hocevar rejoins the #42 team which finished 32nd after a late-race crash by John Hunter Nemechek. Hocevar’s eighth Cup start of the year and first since his last-place run in Las Vegas will be his first on a short track since Bristol, when he ran a season-best 11th.

DRIVER CHANGE: #78-Live Fast Motorsports

Another Halloween paint scheme features driver B.J. McLeod, who returns to his #78 in place of 35th-place runner Josh Bilicki and carries sponsorship from Falk’d Up Garage. McLeod enters the race in position to secure his third LASTCAR championship and second in a row with a fifth last-place run in 2023.

Friday, November 3, 2023

TRUCKS Race 23 of 23

Championship Race

Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix

2022 Last-Place Finisher: Armani Williams

The Truck Series returns next week in Phoenix to crown their champion for 2023.

TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (October 27, 2001): Mark Voigt picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Busch Series career in the Outback Steakhouse 200 at Phoenix when his #8 Channellock Chevrolet fell out with shock issues after 6 laps. This was the third and last of Illinois-born driver’s starts, and came driving for Armando Fitz after fielding his own equipment at Darlington and Memphis.

CUP: Harrison Burton claims first Cup last-place finish in 71st series start

Burton at Talladega earlier this month.
PHOTO: Sean Gardner, Getty Images

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

Harrison Burton picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Cup Series career in Sunday’s 4EVER 400 Presented by Mobil 1 at Homestead-Miami Speedway when his #21 DEX Imaging Ford had overheating issues after 165 of 267 laps.

The finish came in Burton’s 71st series start. In the Cup Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 23rd for the #21, the 118th from overheating issues, and the 737th for Ford. In the NASCAR all-time rankings, it was the 39th for the #21, the 179th from overheating, and the 1,025th for Ford.

Coming into Sunday’s race, Burton had only once finished last in a combined 185 Cup, XFINITY, or Truck Series races – a first-lap crash in the XFINITY race at Dover on October 5, 2019. At the time, Burton was completing his last full-time Truck Series campaign for Kyle Busch Motorsports, and was preparing to go full-time for Joe Gibbs Racing in the XFINITY Series. 

Had his timing been just a little better, Burton could have won the title that year. His first two career victories came early in the season at Fontana and Homestead, giving him a solid rank in points for the Playoffs. But in the opening round, his 9th-place run at Las Vegas was followed by 23rd at Talladega, then a transmission failure in the cutoff race on the Charlotte “Roval,” knocking him out of title contention with a season-worst 33rd. Just two rounds later, on the outside looking in, Burton rocketed past Noah Gragson on the final lap at Texas to take the win, then won the XFINITY Series’ first race at Martinsville since 2006. 

Though winless in 2021, Burton also made his Cup Series debut at Talladega, where he finished a solid 20th for Gaunt Brothers Racing. And after a career running Toyotas, he then jumped to the most legendary Ford team still in operation – Wood Brothers Racing – just in time for the introduction of NASCAR’s NextGen car. Burton was the first Cup driver to practice official laps at the L.A. Coliseum, then qualified 8th in the Daytona 500, where his race ended with a spectacular series of barrel rolls. After a season-best 3rd at Indianapolis and a 27th-place rank in points, he’s performed about the same in 2023 with a pair of top-ten finishes. His season-best 6th came in “throwback weekend” at Darlington, where he drove a paint scheme resembling his father Jeff’s Exide Batteries Ford from 1999. He entered Sunday’s race a distant 31st in points.

With only the 36 Chartered entries arriving in south Florida, Burton began his weekend 23rd in practice, then qualified 14th in Round 1B, securing him 28th on the starting lineup with a lap of 166.287mph (32.474 seconds).

Securing the 36th and final starting spot was Joey Logano, who in the final minutes of practice broke loose off Turn 2 and slammed head-on into the inside wall. Logano was uninjured, but the team immediately unloaded their unwrapped backup car – the first backup for Penske’s Cup team in 2023. Unable to turn a qualifying lap, Logano would roll off last and incur a redundant tail-end penalty – the only pre-race penalty for the day. “Thanks for the hard work getting this back together - I'm sure it'll be a quick one,” said Logano just before start.

The view from Logano's backup car before the start.
SCREENSHOT: NASCAR Drive

When the green flag dropped, Logano was last across the stripe, 3.079 seconds back of the lead. By the end of the lap, Logano was working his way through traffic on the inside lane. Now 36th went to Josh Bilicki, whose #78 Zeigler Auto Group Chevrolet sat 4.218 back of the lead. Bilicki reported a tight condition as he lost ground to new 35th-place runner Todd Gilliland in the #38 Serial1.com E-Bikes Ford. The gap between Bilicki and Gilliland remained about half a second until Lap 10, when Gilliland dropped J.J. Yeley to 35th in the #15 IFCJ.org Ford. Bilicki caught Yeley in earnest, and on Lap 12 the two were side-by-side, just 0.049 second apart. Yeley held off Bilicki and opened an advantage over the #78. On Lap 13, NASCAR reported John Hunter Nemechek – making a one-off in the #42 Sunseeker Resort Chevrolet in anticipation of his full-time effort in 2024 – had bounced off the wall in Turn 2. On Lap 16, Bilicki and Yeley were again side-by-side for the 35th spot – now just 0.032 second apart, and this time Bilicki put Yeley to last on Lap 17. Both drivers then set after the now 34th-place Nemechek, who was losing ground after his wall contact. On Lap 28, Bilicki dropped Nemechek to 35th, and despite heavy static on the driver’s end of the radio, Nemechek prepared to make his first pit stop soon after. 

On Lap 31, Ryan Preece took over last place when he pitted his #41 United Rentals Ford along with Kyle Busch in the #8 3CHI Chevrolet. Nemechek’s stop came soon after, where he overshot his stall. Since he was in Stall 2, this forced polesitter Martin Truex, Jr. to pull into his stall at an angle as Nemechek backed-up. Worse, Nemechek incurred a speeding penalty in Section 7. Moments after taking last on Lap 33, the #42 came in for his pass-through and returned to action three laps down, now behind 35th-place Ty Dillon in the #77 Raze Shot Focus Chevrolet.

Nemechek was still running last on Lap 76, when the caution fell for Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. in the #47 Boost by Kroger / Vitamin Water Chevrolet. Stenhouse twice bounced off the Turn 2 wall and spun to the apron, revealing what appeared to be a broken toe link on the right-rear wheel. Stenhouse made it to pit road and returned to the track on Lap 79 in 34th place, two laps down. Stenhouse didn’t beat the pace car off pit road, so NASCAR had him stop on the track, dropping him a fourth lap behind and taking last from Nemechek on Lap 80. Stenhouse incurred a redundant tail-end penalty for pitting when pit road was closed, and scoring reset to show him three laps down for the Lap 86 restart. One lap later, Stenhouse met minimum speed, clearing the “Crash Clock” for his spin.

Stenhouse remained in last on Lap 119, when he reportedly bounced off the wall again in Turn 2. He made a stop by Lap 123, when he returned to the track now five laps down and still holding down last. That position remained unchanged when Stage 1 ended on Lap 165. During those final green-flag laps, Stage 1 winner Kyle Larson was falling off the pace with worn tires. Among the last few cars to slip by him was Harrison Burton, who by then was at least one lap down. Burton continued to lose laps under the ensuing caution, then on Lap 170 went behind the wall. The crew lifted the hood and began to remove components from the top of the engine. One lap later on the 171st circuit, Burton took last from Stenhouse, and Burton climbed from the car on Lap 174. By Lap 180, NASCAR reported Burton the first car out with overheating issues.

Harrison Burton (right) out of his car after he pulled into the garage.
SCREENSHOT: NASCAR Drive

Burton entered Sunday’s race with more Bottom Fives (6) and Bottom Tens (14) than any other Cup driver who had not yet finished last in 2023. While not in championship contention, he jumped to 10th in the standings, and moved Ty Gibbs into his former spot.

Finishing 35th was Bilicki, whose #78 spun trying to make a green-flag pit stop and bumped the wall at pit entrance. The incident didn’t draw a caution and Bilicki continued on, running the apron. He then pulled behind the wall on Lap 208, done for the day. Moments later, race leaders Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson also attempted a green-flag stop. But Larson misjudged how slow Blaney approached the entrance, and Larson cut left, slamming the sand barrels with the right-front corner of his #5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet. Larson’s team attempted repairs, then pulled behind the wall under the ensuing red flag. Completing the Bottom Five were Yeley and Nemechek, who both struck the inside wall down the backstretch after several cars tangled coming off Turn 2.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the first last-place finish for the #21 in a Cup Series race since November 8, 2015, when Ryan Blaney’s #21 Snap-on Tools Ford crashed after 26 laps at Texas. The number had never finished last in a Cup race at Homestead.

*Burton is the first Cup driver to finish last with overheating issues since September 27, 2020 with Chad Finchum and his #49 RoofClaim.com / LasVegas.net Toyota after 19 laps at Las Vegas. The only Homestead Cup Series last-place finisher exiting with overheating issues was Michael McDowell on November 22, 2009 after 35 laps in the #36 Wave Energy Drink Toyota.

*Burton is only the fourth first-time Cup Series last-place finisher in 2023, joining Brennan Poole, Carson Hocevar, and Austin Hill.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

36) #21-Harrison Burton / 165 laps / overheating

35) #78-Josh Bilicki / 201 laps / crash

34) #5-Kyle Larson / 214 laps / crash / led 96 laps / won stage 1

33) #15-J.J. Yeley / 218 laps / crash

32) #42-John Hunter Nemechek / 218 laps / crash

2023 LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Joe Gibbs Racing, Live Fast Motorsports, Richard Childress Racing, Rick Ware Racing, Spire Motorsports (4)

2nd) Legacy Motor Club, Penske Racing (3)

3rd) Stewart-Haas Racing (2)

4th) Front Row Motorsports, Hendrick Motorsports, Kaulig Racing, Trackhouse Racing, Wood Brothers Racing (1)

2023 LASTCAR CUP SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (18)

2nd) Ford (11)

3rd) Toyota (4)

2023 LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP