The Cup Series heads west for another week of road course racing with the Toyota Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway in the Napa Valley.
Thirty-seven teams brought cars to Sonoma for 40 starting spots.
Last year the course was repaved and the drivers are running five miles per hour faster.
Last week at Chicago Cody Ware had a very hard hit into the tire barrier. One of the hardest front on hits, Ware broke his helmet and hans device.
The drivers have been divided into two groups for a 25 minute practice session before making qualifying runs.
Several of the drivers are having issues staying on the course.
Katherine Legge will not make a qualifying run with some brake issues.
With the top seven drivers in the 75 second range, William Byron puts his number 24 car at the top of the leaderboard in Group 1 qualifying with a time of 75.025 seconds around the 1.99 mile course.
In Group 2, Shane van Gisbergen tops the leaderboard with a time of 74.833 seconds with over half the 20 minute session remaining.
When the green flag drops on Sunday, Kyle Busch will be making road course start number 62, just two behind leader Terry Labonte.
And on his second lap out, Shane van Gisbergen tops his speed with a time of 74.594 seconds to put his number 88 on the pole to sweep the poles of both races for the second week in a row. Chase Briscoe will start alongside van Gisbergen on the front row.
The starting lineup for the Toyota Save Mart 350:
Shane van Gisbergen
Chase Briscoe
William Byron
Ross Chastain
AJ Allmendinger
Ty Gibbs
Ryan Blaney
Tyler Reddick
Alex Bowman
Christopher Bell
Kyle Larson
Zane Smith
Chase Elliott
Chris Buescher
Michael McDowell
Denny Hamlin
Kyle Busch
John Hunter Nemechek
Daniel Saurez
Ryan Preece
Brad Keselowski
Joey Logano
Carson Hocevar
Austin Cindric
Josh Berry
Ty Dillon
Cole Custer
Riley Herbst
Justin Haley
Bubba Wallace
Erik Jones
Noah Gragson
Austin Dillon
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Todd Gilliland
Cody Ware
Katherine Legge
Stage one is 25 laps, stage two is 30 laps, and stage three is 55 laps for a total of 110 laps around the 1.99 mile course.
After a rousing command to start engines, Shane van Gisbergen leads the field down for the green flag start of the race for the second week in a row with Chase Briscoe alongside. SVG takes the lead as the drivers get sorted out going into turn one.
Chris Buescher gets off the course and brings some dirt back on the course with him.
Lap two, the top five are Shane van Gisbergen, Chase Briscoe, William Byron, Ross Chastain, and Ty Gibbs.
AJ Allmendinger passes Ty Gibbs for fifth.
Lap three, Shane van Gisbergen has pulled out to a near one second lead on Chase Briscoe; Willaim Byron, Ross Chastain, and AJ Allmendinger round out the top five.
William Byron passes Chase Briscoe for second on lap four.
Lap four, Shane van Gisbergen’s lead is now one second over William Byron.
Ross Chastain passes Chase Briscoe for third.
Dale Earnhardt Jr notes that one of the most important pieces of information he received in relation to running road course races was to “stay on the pavement”.
Lap 10, Shane van Gisbegen has increased his lead to over a second and a half on William Byron; Ross Chastain, Chase Briscoe, and AJ Allmendinger.
SVG reports that he is not happy with the rear of his car; but he maintains the lead of the race by over a second.
Lap 12, Chase Briscoe passes Ross Chastain for third.
AJ Allmendinger and Christopher Bell battle for sixth.
AJ Allmendinger is reporting a loose and balance condition.
Lap 13, Shane van Gisbergen has increased his lead to over a second and a half on William Byron; Chase Briscoe, Ross Chastain, and Christopher Bell round out the top five. AJ Allmendinger has dropped to seventh.
Christopher Bell passes Ross Chastain for fourth.
Ross Chastain and Ryan Blaney battle for fifth with Blaney taking the spot.
Lap 15, the top five are Shane van Gisbergen, William Byron, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, and Ryan Blaney.
Lap 17, leader Shane van Gisbergen now has a lead of nearly four seconds over William Byron; Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, and Ryan Blaney round out the top five.
SVG reports that he has an issue with rear grip; his crew chief reports that the whole field is having rear grip issues. Worn left rear tires has been an issue all weekend. Balance has also been an issue.
Lap 20, Shane van Gisbergen continues to expand his lead and is now nearly five seconds out in front.
Lap 21, Austin Cindric is the first driver to come down pit road and flip the stage.
Lap 22, more drivers come down pit road to flip the end of stage one.
Christopher Bell is the first driver in the top five to come down pit road before the end of stage one.
Lap 23, with a seven second lead, leader Shane van Gisbergen comes down pit road for service. Ross Chastain is the new leader.
Christopher Bell gets turned around but gets the car moving again.
Ross Chastain wins stage one.
The top 10 at the end of stage one:
Ross Chastain
Shane van Gisbergen
Bubba Wallace
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
William Byron
Ty Dillon
Chase Briscoe
Ryan Blaney
Ty Gibbs
Chase Elliott
Drivers who did not short pit the end of stage one come down pit road for service. Ross Chastain wins the race off of pit road.
Shane van Gisbergen retakes the lead.
Cole Custer and Katherine Legge were caught speeding on pit road and will have to restart the race from the back of the longest line.
Shane van Gisbergen brings the field down for the green flag start of stage two with Ryan Blaney alongside on lap 29. SVG holds on to the lead as the drivers get single file.
Ryan Blaney drops back after getting off of the course.
Lap 30, the top five are Shane van Gisbergen, William Byron, Chase Briscoe, Ty Gibbs, and AJ Allmendinger.
AJ Allmendinger gets off the course after getting loose. He gets the car moving again and the track stays green.
Lap 31, John Hunter Nemechek spins out but gets the car moving again after a three wide battle.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr gets locked up and blocks the track but the drivers work their way around him.
Lap 33, Shane van Gisbergen has just a quarter of a second lead on William Byron; Chase Briscoe, Ty Gibbs, and Christopher Bell round out the top five.
Ty Gibbs passes Chase Briscoe for third.
Lap 37, leading 32 of 37 laps, Shane van Gisbergen has just a half second lead on William Byron; ty Gibbs, Chase Briscoe, and Christopher Bell round out the top five.
Kyle Busch has moved up eight spots since the start of stage two after having adjustments for no grip anywhere during stage one.
The field is much closer in stage two because leader Shane van Gisbergen is pacing himself to save the tires.
Chase Briscoe passed Ty Gibbs for third.
Lap 41, Shane van Gisbergen has a lead of over half a second on William Byron; Chase Briscoe, Ty Gibbs, and Ryan Blaney round out the top five..
Ryan Blaney passes Ty Gibbs for fourth.
When Ryan Blaney got off the course, he had a little help from Chase Briscoe and sent the radio message that he remembered what happened…
Lap 44, Shane van Gisbergen continues to lead the race with Chase Briscoe in second nearly two seconds back; Ryan Blaney, William Byron, and Christopher Bell round out the top five.
Daniel Suarez spins out after some contact with Ross Chastain. Chastain had no where to go but to hit Suarez from the rear. Suarez gets the car turned around and moving again.
Carson Hocevar has had to make several stops on pit road for repairs after some damage to the car.
Lap 48, Shane van Gisbergen now has a lead of over two and a half seconds on Chase Briscoe; Ryan Blaney, William Byron, and Christopher Bell rounds out the top five.
The new “Superman” movie is now in theatres, but the driving Superman is leading the field on the road course at Sonoma with a three second lead on Chase Briscoe.
The top five are Shane van Gisbergen, Chase Briscoe, Ryan Blaney, William Byron, and Chris Buescher.
Lap 51, Cole Custer comes down pit road as drivers begin to short pit the end of stage two.
Lap 54, leader Shane van Gisbergen makes his pit stop and gives the lead over to Ross Chastain. During this stage, SVG made no mention about the handling of the car.
Van Gisbergen comes back out on the track in second place behind Kyle Larson.
Shane van Gisbergen passes Kyle Larson for the lead and wins stage two.
The top 10 at the end of stage two:
Shane van Gisbergen
Kyle Larson
Kyle Busch
Bubba Wallace
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Chase Briscoe
Ty Dillon
Chris Buescher
Ryan Blaney
William Byron
Drivers who stayed out on the track before the end of the stage make their pit stops with Kyle Larson winning the race off of pit road.
Chris Buescher and Ty Gibbs make contact coming down pit road; later on coming into the pit box, Ty Gibbs hits the tire carrier.
Shane van Gisbergen brings the field down for the green flag start of stage three with Chase Briscoe alongside on lap 60. SVG and Briscoe battle for the lead but SVG gets out in front on the turn.
Noah Gragson gets off the course but the track stays green.
The top five are Shane van Gisbergen, Chase Briscoe, Chris Buescher, Ryan Blaney, and William Byron.
The drivers can run around 40 laps on a single load of fuel and will have to make a pit stop at some point during stage three.
The first caution flag of the day for an on track incident comes out on lap 62 when Ryan Blaney makes contact with Chris Buescher and gets off the course and stuck in the dirt.
Bubba Wallace gets off the course.
Denny Hamlin gets turned around.
A few drivers come down pit road for service.
Shane van Gisbergen brings the field down for the green flag restart with Chase Briscoe alongside on lap 66 and gets out in front after a brief battle.
The top five are Shane van Gisbergen, Chase Briscvoe, William Byron, Chase Elliott, and Christopher Bell.
La 67, Shane van Gisbergen has pulled out to a lead of over a second on Chase Briscoe; William Byron, Chase Elliott, and Christopher Bell round out the top five.
Lap 70, Shane van Gisbergen has a near two second lead on Chase Briscoe; William Byron, Chase Elliott, and Christopher Bell round out the top five.
Today is race start number 200 for Ricky Stenhouse Jr in the number 47 car. Tyler Reddick and Christopher Bell are making Cup Series start number 200 today.
With 38 laps to go, all of the drivers can make it to the end of the race from here…but who will be the first to make the stop?
Kyle Busch spins out in turn seven but the track stays green.
Lap 75, Shane van Gisbergen has a two and a half second lead on Chase Briscoe, William Byron, Chase Elliott, and Chrisotpher Bell round out the top five.
Ty Gibbs is having some handling issues.
Lap 77, Shane van Gisbergen now has a lead of over three seconds on Chase Briscoe.
Lap 78, Shane van Gisbergen continues to extend his lead on Chase Briscoe and is now over four seconds out in front.
Thirty-one laps to go, Ryan Preece makes his pit stop; saying it is easier to pass on pit road than on the track.
Shane van Gisbergen over shot turn four and lost nearly two seconds to Chase Briscoe.
Lap 80, more drivers make their pit stops.
Lap 82, Shane van Gisbergen has recouped after his driving error and is back to over four seconds out in front of Chase Briscoe; William Byron, Christopher Bell, and Ty Gibbs round out the top five as green pit stops continue.
Lap 83, Chase Briscoe makes his pit stop. Shane van Gisbergen has a lead of over eleven seconds on William Byron.
Lap 84, with a lead of nearly 12 seconds, Shane van Gisbergen makes his green flag pitstop. Christopher Bell is the new leader.
NASCAR reported to the 54 team that when he hit the crew member, he did nothing wrong.
Shane van Gisbergen returns to the track in seventh place.
Lap 86, the top five are Kyle Larson, Carson Hocevar, Michael McDowell, Shane van Gisbergen, and Daniel Suarez. The top three drivers have yet to make a pit stop.
Lap 88, leader Kyle Larson makes his green flag pit stop; as does Carson Hocevar. Michael McDowell is the race leader with Shane van Gisbergen in second over two seconds back.
Twenty to go, Shane van Gisbergen passes Michael McDowell to retake the lead; Chase Briscoe, Chase Elliott, and Chris Buescher round out the top five.
Chase Briscoe passes Michael McDowell for second.
With 19 laps remaining in the race, Chase Elliott passes Michael McDowell for third.
The last driver to win three road course races from the pole was Jeff Gordon 26 years ago…a feat SVG is trying to achieve today.
Lap 95, Shane van Gisbergen has a two and a half second lead on Chase Briscoe; Chase Elliott, Chris Buescher, and Michael McDowell round out the top five.
There’s a tire rolling down the course and brings out the caution flag. The tire is from Cody War’s car; the same driver who had a hard crash into the tire barrier last week at Chicago. The impact of the car was exacerbated by Ware’s large size. The helmet, hans device, steering wheel, belts, and seat were all damaged in the crash. The crew will put the car back together and use it as a show car.
With 14 laps to go, several of the drivers come down pit road for fresh tires. Leader Shane van Gisbergen stays out on the track. A total of 13 drivers stayed out on the track.
There is a fire on pit road in Michael McDowell’s pit.
Shane van Gisbergen brings the field down for the green flag restart with Chase Briscoe alongside on lap 100. SVG jumps out in front for the lead and clears Chase Briscoe after turn two.
The top five are Shane van Gisbergen, Chase Briscoe, Chris Buescher, Christopher Bell, and William Byron.
The caution flag comers out on lap 100 for a big pile up. Noah Gragson makes contact with Ryan Preece, sending Gragson spinning to cause a pile up. Kyle Larson, Josh Berry, Bubba Wallace, and Erik Jones were also involved as drivers went spinning.
Shane van Gisbergen brings the field down for the green flag restart with Chase Briscoe alongside and just seven laps remaining in the race. In a side by side battle, SVG gets out in front for the lead.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr gets turned around and into the tire barrier after contact with Ty Gibbs to bring out the caution flag. He reports a steering issue when he wrecked. Safety crews work feverishly to repair the tire barrier.
Shane van Gisbergen brings the field down for the green flag restart with just four laps remaining in the race. Shane van Gisbergen battle for the lead with SVG getting out in front.
The top five are Shane van Gisbergen, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, Chase Elliott, and Carson Hocevar.
Kyle Larson spins out after contact from John Hunter Nemechek.
Carson Hocevar spins out after contact from Josh Berry.
Three to go, Shane van Gisbergen has a lead of over a second on Chase Briscoe; Chase Elliott, Christopher Bell, and Michael McDowell round out the top five.
Chase Elliott gets off into the gravel but gets moving again.
Two to go, Shane van Gisbergen has a near second and a half lead on Chase Briscoe.
Shane van Gisbergen takes the white flag.
Shane van Gisbergen goes from pole to win for three in a row!
He is the fastest driver to reach four wins since Parnelli Jones in 1967 and ties the record for three in a row road course wins with Jeff Gordon.
The unofficial results of the Toyota Save Mart 350:
Shane van Gisbergen
Chase Briscoe
Chase Elliott
Michael McDowell
Christopher Bell
Tyler Reddick
Ty Gibbs
William Byron
Joey Logano
Kyle Busch
Brad Keselowski
Ryan Preece
Josh Berry
Daniel Suarez
Justin Haley
Chris Buescher
Ty Dillon
AJ Allmendinger
Alex Bowman
Denny Hamlin
Austin Dillon
Todd Gilliland
Cole Custer
Ross Chastain
Riley Herbst
Bubba Wallace
Zane Smith
John Hunter Nemechek
Erik Jones
Austin Cindric
Katherine Legge
Carson Hocevar
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Cody Ware
Kyle Larson
Ryan Blaney
Noah Gragson