It’s the race that will end the 2023 season with the Cup Series at Phoenix Raceway.
Kyle Larson, William Byron, Ryan Blaney, and Christopher Bell will all compete for the championship. Kyle Larson is the only one of the four who has previously won a championship. It is the youngest championship four in Cup Series history.
The teams all get three sets of tires for a full 50 minutes practice session.
The drivers are practicing at 5pm local time; will qualify at 1pm local time, and will begin the race at noon local time on Sunday.
AJ Allmendinger spins out during practice after making contact with Kyle Busch but keeps the car off the wall. Both drivers are in the garage for repairs.
Cole Custer will be qualifying the number six car after Brad Keselowski headed home to Charlotte to be with his wife who has gone into labour with their third child. It is unknown at this time whether or not Keselowski will be back for the final race of the season.
Normally the drivers pick their pit stalls according to qualifying order; however, for this race the Championship Four will choose first no matter where they qualify. The number one pit stall is a coveted spot for the drivers.
The 36 drivers have been divided into two groups for qualifying. The top five from each group will move on to a second round of qualifying to set the pole.
The first driver on the track to make a qualifying run is BJ McLeod who posted a time of 29.248 seconds around the one mile track.
This is Kevin Harvick’s final race as a full time driver; his two children Keelan and Piper were given sharpies and were allowed to write messages on Harvick’s car.
Kevin Harvick, Bubba Wallace, Erik Jones, William Byron, and Kyle Larson will move on to round two of the playoffs from Group A.
The Group B drivers moving on to round two of qualifying are Ross Chastain, Chris Buescher, Denny Hamlin, Tyler Reddick, and Martin Truex Jr.
Playoff drivers Christopher Bell and Ryan Blaney will start the race outside of the top 10.
The first of the top 10 drivers to make a qualifying run is Erik Jones who posted a time of 27. 368 seconds.
With a time of 27.150 seconds, William Byron will sit on the pole and bring the field to green with Martin Truex Jr starting alongside on the front row.
The starting lineup for the Cup Series Championship race:
William Byron
Martin Truex Jr
Kevin Harvick
Kyle Larson
Bubba Wallace
Denny Hamlin
Erik Jones
Ross Chastain
Chris Buescher
Tyler Reddick
Ty Gibbs
Ryan Preece
Christopher Bell
Todd Gilliland
Ryan Blaney
Daniel Suarez
Joey Logano
Kyle Busch
Michael McDowell
Chase Elliott
Austin Dillon
Carson Hocevar
Alex Bowman
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Harrison Burton
Chase Briscoe
Austin Cindric
Aric Almirola
Corey LaJoie
Ryan Newman
Cole Custer
AJ Allmendinger
Ty Dillon
JJ Yeley
Justin Haley
BJ McLeod
The stands were sold out six months ago and there was a waiting list for spots in the camp grounds as NASCAR closes out their 75th anniversary season.
After making it back home in time for the birth of his son, Brad Keselowski has returned to Phoenix and will be driving the number six car. He will have to start the race from the back of the field for a driver change after Cole Custer qualified the car on Saturday.
Stage one is just laps long, stage two is 125 laps long, and stage three is 127 laps for a total of 312 laps around the one mile track. Thre drivers can run 90 to 94 laps on a single load of fuel.
Stage points don’t matter to the playoff drivers…just which one of them can finish in front of the other three.
William Byron brings the field down for the green flag start of the race from the inside lane with Martin Truex Jr alongside. Drivers are spread out five and six wide going into turn one with William Byron in the lead with Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr in a battle for second, but Kyle Larson has plans of his own and comes up on the inside to make it a three wide battle for second.
Lap three, the top five are William Byron, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, and Martin Truex Jr.
Lap five, William Byron has pulled out to a led of nearly a second on Kevin Harvick; Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, and Martin Truex Jr round out the top five. Playoff driver Ryan Blaney is in 16th with Christopher Bell in 14th.
After starting from the back of the field, Brad Keselowski has entered the top 30 in 29th on lap eight.
Lap nine, William Byron now has a lead of nearly a second and a half on Kevin Harvick; Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, and Denny Hamlin round out the top five.
Lap 13, William Byron has a lead of over a second on Kevin Harvick; Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, and Denny Hamlin round out the top five. Christopher Bell is in 13th and Ryan Blaney is in 14th.
Lap 20, William Byron has a one second lead on Kevin Harvick; Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, and Martin Truex Jr round out the top five. Christopher Bell and Ryan Blaney are mired back in 13th and 14th.
Lap 24, all 36 drivers are on the track and on the lead lap. Brad Keselowski is up to 22nd.
Lap 27, William Byron holds a one second lead on Kevin Harvick; Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, and Martin Truex Jr round out the top five. Byron has begun lapping slower cars.
Lap 31, Christopher Bell is just outside the top 10 in eleventh; Ryan Blaney is in 13th.
Lap 40, William Byron has led every lap so far and holds on to a one second lead on Kevin Harvick; Bubba Wallace, Kyle Larson, and Ross Chastain round out the top five. Christopher Bell has entered the top 10 with Ryan Blaney in eleventh.
Kyle Larson is reporting a loose condition in his car.
Ross Chastain passes Kyle Larson for fourth.
There are 30 cars on the lead lap with all 36 drivers on the track.
Brad Keselowski has entered the top 20.
Ryan Blaney is also reporting a loose condition; adding that he has no grip.
Lap 47, William Byron continues to hold a one second lead on Kevin Harvick; Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain, and Kyle Larson round out the top five. Christopher Bell is in ninth and Ryan Blaney is in eleventh.
Lap 50, all four of the playoff drivers are now in the top 10 with William Byron leading the way with a lead of less than half a second on Kevin Harvick; Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain, and Kyle Larson round out the top five. Christopher Bell is in ninth with Ryan Blaney in 10th.
Kyle Larson is reporting a very loose condition.
Lap 56, Kevin Harvick has closed the gap on leader William Byron to a quarter of a second with 28 cars on the lead lap.
Ross Chastain has also closed to within less than a second behind William Byron.
William Byron wins stage one.
The top 10 at the end of stage one:
William Byron
Kevin Harvick
Ross Chastain
Bubba Wallace
Kyle Larson
Martin Truex Jr
Chris Buescher
Erik Jones
Christopher Bell
Ryan Blaney
Drivers come down pit road for service with William Byron winning the race off of pit road from pit stall number one.
William Byron brings the field down for the green flag start of stage two with Kevin Harvick alongside on lap 69. After the field spread out across the track, William Byron holds on to the lead with Kevin Harvick in second.
Lap 70, the top five are William Byron, Kevin Harfick, Ross Chastain, Kyle Larson, and Bubba Wallace. Ryan Blaney is in sixth place with Christopher Bell in seventh.
Ryan Blaney passes Bubba Wallace for fifth with Christopher Bell taking sixth.
After Austin Cindric earned the “lucky dog”, there are 29 cars on the lead lap.
Lap 74, William Byron has a near one second lead on Kevin Harvick; Ross Chastain, Kyle Larson, Ryan Blaney, and Christopher Bell round out the top six.
Lap 80, William Byron has pulled out to a lead of nearly a second and half on Kevin Harvick; Ross Chastain, Kyle Larson, Ryan Blaney, and Chriistopher Bell round out the top six.
Leading every lap so far (lap 85), William Byron has now led over 1,000 laps this season; he has also won the most races with six.
Lap 86, Christopher Bell passes Ryan Blaney for fifth.
Lap 91, William Byron has a lead of under half a second on Kevin Harvick; Ross Chastain, Kyle Larson, and Christopher Bell round out the top five with Ryan Blaney in sixth. There are 29 cars on the lead lap.
Lap 93, Kevin Harvick passes William Byron for the lead!
Running his final race as a full time Cup Series driver, Kevin Harvick has been driving nearly as long as the championship four drivers have been alive.
Lap 97, Kevin Harvick has pulled out ot a lead of nearly a second on William Byron; Ross Chastain, Ryan Blaney, and Christopher Bell round out the top five with Kyle Larson in sixth.
Lap 98, Chris Buescher passes Kyle Larson for sixth.
Lap 101, Kevin Harvick has pulled out to a lead of over a second and a half on Ross Chastain; William Byron, Ryan Blaney, and Christopher Bell round out the top five with Kyle Larson in seventh.
Lap 105, Kevin Harvick has a second and a half lead on Ross Chastain; William Byron, Ryan Blaney, and Chris Buescher found out the top five. William Byron and Ryan Blaney battle for third. Christopher Bell is in sixth with Kyle Larson in seventh.
The caution flag comes out on lap 108 when Christopher Bell gets into the wall after reporting possible brake issues. The right front brake rotor exploded. Bell becomes the first driver out of the race.
Drivers come down pit road for service with Kevin Harvick winning the race off of pit road.
During the March race at Phoenix there were 10 speeding penalties; so far today after two pit stops, there have been no speeding penalties.
Ryan Blaney had a slow pit stop when the crew had an issue with the left front tire.
Kevin Harvick brings the field down for the green flag restart on lap 117 and battles with Ross Chastain for the lead.
Drivers are five and six wide going into turn one.
Ryan Preece and Chase Briscoe make contact on the track but the track stays geen.
Lap 118, the top five are Ross Chastain, Kevin Harvick, William Byron, Chris Buescher, and Martin Truex Jr. Kyle Larson is in sixth and Ryan Blaney is in seventh.
Lap 122, Ross Chastain has a lead of half a second on Kevin Harvick; Chris Buescher, William Byron, and Martin Truex Jr round out the top five.
While the stage points mean nothing to the playoff drivers today, it can mean a great deal for the non-playoff drivers since any points earned help in the final standings.
Out of the infield care center, Christopher Bell said that it was the first time he has had a brake rotor explode in his career.
Lap 130, Ross Chastain has a lead of over half a second on Kevin Harvick; Chris Buescher, William Byron, and Martin Truex Jr round out the top five.
Lap 134, Austin Cindric makes an unscheduled trip down pit road after making contact with the wall.
Lap 135, William Byron and Martin Truex Jr battle for fourth.
The three remaining playoff drivers are running 5th, 6th,and 7th with William Byron leading the way.
Joey Logano brushes the wall but the track stays green and his is still running.
Lap 150, Ross Chastain has a half second lead on Kevin Harvick; Chris Buescher, Martin Truex Jr, and William Byron round out the top five. Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson battle for sixth.
Austin Cindric returns to the track 12 laps down.
Chris Buescher pass es Kevin Harvick for second.
Lap 158, Ross Chastain has a lead of over a second on Chris Buescher; Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr, and William Byron round out the top five.
The sun is beginning to become an issue for the drivers and will continue until it drops below the grand stands.
Kyle Larson reports some issues with the car in traffic.
Lap 165, Ross Chastain has a lead of over half a second on Chris Buescher; Kevin Harvick Martin Truex Jr, and William Byron round out the top five.
Brad Keselowski is now in the top 10.
Lap 171, Chris Buescher passes Ross Chastain for the lead.
Lap 178, Chris Buescher has a near half second lead on Ross Chastain; Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr, and William Byron round out the top five.
Ryan Blaney reports to his crew chief that they need to work on everything.
Lap 179, William Byron passes Martin Truex Jr for fourth.
With four laps remaining in stage two, Chris Buescher has a near one second lead on Ross Chastain; Kevin Harvick, William Byron, and Martin Truex Jr rounds out the top five.
There are just 24 cars on the lead lap.
Chris Buescher wins stage two.
The top 10 at the end of stage two:
Chris Buescher
Ross Chastain
Kevin Harvick
William Byron
Martin Truex Jr
Ryan Blaney
Kyle Larson
Bubba Wallace
Brad Keselowski
Erik Jones
Drivers come down pit road for service with Ross Chastain winning the race off of pit road with William Byron coming out second.
Ross Chastain brings the field down for the green flag start of stage three with William Byron alongside on lap 194 with Chastain getting out in front for the lead. William Byron and Martin Truex Jr battle for second.
Lap 195, the top five are Ross Chastain, William Byron, Martin Truex Jr, Ryan Blaney, and Kyle Larson.
Lap 200, Ross Chastain has a lead of over half a second on William Byron; Martin Truex Jr, Ryan Blaney, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Lap 207, Ryan Blaney battles with Martin Truex Jr for third.
Ryan Blaney passes Martin Truex Jr and on lap 211 Blaney passes William Byron for second. Ross Chastain has a second and a half lead on the second place driver.
With 100 laps remaining in the race, Ross Chastain has a lead of over a second on Ryan Blaney; William Byron, Martin Truex Jr, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Lap 203, Martin Truex Jr passes William Byron for third.
Lap 221, Ryan Blaney has closed the gap on leader Ross Chastain to just a quarter of a second; Martin Truex Jr, William Byron, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
With 25 cars on the lead lap; Christopher Bell is the only driver out of the race.
Lap 226, Ross Chastain has increased the lead on Ryan Blaney to nearly half a second; Martin Truex Jr, William Byron, and Kyle Larson continue to round out the top five.
Lap 224, Ross Chastain has a third of a second lead on Ryan Blaney; Martin Truex Jr, William Byron, and Kyle Larson round out the top five. There are 78 laps remaining in the race, but the drivers have to make one more pit stop for fuel…and fresh tires.
Lap 238, Ross Chastain holds on to a lead under half a second on Ryan Blaney; Martin Truex Jr, William Byron, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Lap 241, playoff drivers William Byron and Kyle Larson begin the cycle of green flag pit stops. Martin Truex Jr is the new leader.
With 67 laps remaining in the race, Denny Hamlin, Chase Briscoe, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr have yet to make their pit stops.
Lap 252, leader Denny Hamlin makes his green flag pit stop. Chase Briscoe is the new leader but still needs to make a pit stop; Ross Chastain, Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Chase Briscoe comes down pit road for his pit stop and completes the cycle of green flag pit stops. Ross Chastain leads the race by just a quarter of a second; Martin Truex Jr, Kyle Larson, and William Byron round out the top five.
With 55 laps to go, Ryan Blaney and Ross Chastain battle for the lead.
With 53 laps to go, Martin Truex Jr comes up to make it a three way battle for the lead. Blaney gets out in front but Chastain is not giving up the battle.
With 51 to go, Ross Chastain retakes the lead with Martin Truex Jr taking second and Ryan Blaney in third; Kyle Larson and William Byron round out the top five.
Just 45 laps remain in the race; Ross Chastan has a quarter of a second lead on Martin Truex Jr; Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson, and William Byron round out the top five as the leaders approach slower traffic.
Forty-three to go, Ryan Blaney and Martin Truex Jr batt for second with Ross Chastain in the lead.
Ryan Blaney has gotten around Martin Truex Jr and is aiming for Ross Chastain as Chastin puts Chase Elliott a lap down.
The caution flag comes out with 38 laps to go when Kyle Busch spins out.
Taking only two tires, Denny Hamlin and Erik Jones win the race off of pit road. Kyle Larson is the first of the playoff drivers off of pit road.
Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the green flag restart with Erik Jones alongside with 31 laps remaining in the race. Hamlin gets out in front but Ross Chastain and Kyle Larson come up to make it a three wide battle for the lead.
Kyle Larson and Ross Chastain battle for the lead with Denny Hamlin in third; Ryan Blaney and William Byron battle for fourth.
Ross Chastain takes the lead with Kyle Larson in second; Ryan Blaney, William Byron, and Denny Hamlin round out the top five.
Ryan Blaney comes up to battle with Kyle Larson for second; Ross Chastain has a lead of over half a second.
With 26 to go the three playoff drivers are separated by about half a second.
Just 25 laps to go, Ross Chastain has a one second lead on Kyle Larson; Ryan Blaney, William Byron, and Chris Buescher round out the top five.
With 21 to go, Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson battle for second…and the lead in the championship race.
Ryan Blaney takes second.
William Byron has fallen to a second behind Blaney and Larson.
With 19 to go, Ross Chastain has pulled out to a lead of over two seconds on Ryan Blaney; Kyle Larson, William Byron, and Chris Buescher round out the top five. There are 24 cars on the lead lap.
Just 15 to go, Ross Chastain has a two second lead on Ryan Blaney; Kyle Larson, William Byron, and Chris Buescher round out the top five.
Ten to go, Ross Chastain continues to lead the race with Ryan Blaney in second by over a second and a half; Kyle Larson, William Byron, and Chris Buescher round out the top five.
Just seven laps to go in the 2023 Cup season with Ross Chastain nearly a second and a half in front of Ryan Blaney; Kyle Larson, William Byron, and Chris Buescher rounding out the top five.
In seventh place, Kevin Harvick is looking to extend his streak of 20 consecutive top 10 finishes.
Three to go, Ryan Blaney has put over a second between him and Kyle Larson. Melon Man Ross Chastain is dominating the race.
Ross Chastain takes the white flag.
Ross Chastain wins the race.
Ryan Blaney can add his name to the family legacy as a champion!
With Ryan Blaney’s championship, car owner Roger Penske has his first back to back championship in the Cup Series.
The unofficial results of the Cup Series Championship Race:
Ross Chastain
Ryan Blaney
Kyle Larson
William Byron
Chris Buescher
Martin Truex Jr
Kevin Harvick
Denny Hamlin
Michael McDowell
Bubba Wallace
Daniel Suarez
Austin Dillon
Aric Almirola
Ryan Preece
Brad Keselowski
Chase Elliott
Alex Bowman
Joey Logano
Carson Hocevar
Erik Jones
Ty Gibbs
Tyler Reddick
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Chase Briscoe
Kyle Busch
Harrison Burton
JJ Yeley
Ty Dillon
Justin Haley
Todd Gilliland
Corey LaJoie
AJ Allmendinger
BJ McLeod
Ryan Newman
Austin Cindric
Christopher Bell
The 2023 season is over, but in less than 100 days, the drivers will take to the trackonce again for the Busch Light Clash at the Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles.