GFT Facts & Stats Friday: NASCAR Cup Series Shriners Children 500 at Phoenix Raceway
8 March 2024
By Bob Francis, Managing Editor
Go Full Throttle Racing News
AVONDALE, AZ — The NASCAR Cup series arrives in Arizona with Kyle Larson looking to keep the momentum going this weekend at Phoenix Raceway, the track that will play host to the Championship Race later this season. In 19 career Cup starts at Phoenix, Larson has captured two poles, one win (2021), eight top-five and 12 top-10 finishes. His average finish at the 1-mile track in Arizona is 11.263 — fourth-best among active drivers this weekend.
ABOUT THE RACE
Shriners Children’s 500 at Phoenix Raceway
Sunday, March 10 3:30 p.m. ET
The Purse: $7,806,252
TV: FOX, 2:30 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 312 miles (312 laps)
Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 60)
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 185)
Final Stage (Ends on Lap 312)
So far in the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series, Ford owns Poles, Chevy the Wins
Last week in Las Vegas, Hendrick Motorsports displayed their 1.5-mile package prowess by dominating the NASCAR Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with Kyle Larson leading 181 of the 267 laps and becoming the third different driver to secure a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Larson joins his Hendrick Motorsports teammate and DAYTONA 500 winner William Byron and Atlanta Motor Speedway winner Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suárez. The Las Vegas win also jumped Larson to the point standings lead, up eight points on Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney, the 2023 Cup Series Champion.
Although the Ford teams have captured pole position for the points paying races, Toyota showed early strength with wins at The Clash and the two Duals in Daytona. But NASCAR is all about wins as fictional NASCAR personality Ricky Bobby says “If you ain’t first, you’re last” from Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, the 2006 film directed by Adam McKay who co-wrote the film with Will Ferrell playing the role of Ricky Bobby.
The GFT NASCAR AI Driver Rankings after Las Vegas Motor Speedway
STATS
Laying Down A Lap: Starting up front has its perks at Phoenix
Qualifying each week is important, and this week is no different, especially if you qualify for the first or third positions. A total of 23 different starting positions have produced wins, but the first and third starting positions are the two most proficient starting positions at Phoenix Raceway in the NASCAR Cup Series, producing more winners (eight wins each) than any other positions on the starting grid (14.55% winning percentage) — including this race last season, when the winner William Byron started from third.
Veteran driver Ryan Newman (2002, 2003, 2004, 2008) and Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch (2006, 2012, 2016, 2019) lead the NASCAR Cup Series in poles at Phoenix Raceway with four each. In total, 27 different drivers have won the Cup Series pole at Phoenix. Eleven of the 27 Phoenix Raceway pole winners are active this weekend.
Kings of the competition in the desert
Phoenix Raceway has hosted 55 NASCAR Cup Series races prior to this weekend producing 27 different pole winners and 30 different race winners.
The recently retired Kevin Harvick leads the NASCAR Cup Series in wins at Phoenix Raceway with nine victories. Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch (2005, 2018, 2019) and Team Penske’s Joey Logano (2016, 2020, 2022) lead all active drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series in wins at Phoenix Raceway with three each.
Nine of the 30 NASCAR Cup Series Phoenix Raceway winners are active this weekend:
Chastain looks to become the seventh driver to win consecutive races at Phoenix
Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain is the most recent winner at Phoenix Raceway, grabbing his first career win (2023 Championship Race) at the 1-mile track back in November. Now, the Watermelon famer turned driver returns to the desert to defend his win and become the seventh different driver to win consecutive NASCAR Cup Series races at Phoenix Raceway.
If Chastain accomplishes the feat, he will join Davey Allison (1991, 1992), Jeff Burton (200, 2001), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2003, 2004), Kevin Harvick (2006 sweep, then four straight from the 2013 Playoff race to the 2014 sweep to the 2015 spring race), Jimmie Johnson (Fall of 2007 and 2008 sweep) and Kyle Busch (2018, 2019).
NASCAR’s new package for short tracks and road courses to debut in Phoenix
Collaborating with drivers and teams over the offseason, NASCAR has announced the following changes to the Next Gen car short track and road course package — starting in 2024 the NASCAR Cup Series cars will run a simplified diffuser at a majority of tracks measuring one-mile or shorter, as well as all road courses. (Note: Bristol and Dover excluded.) The simplified diffuser was not used at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
The details of the components updated:
- 2023 short track/road course splitter stuffers
- No engine panel strakes
- 3-inch spoiler
- Simplified Diffuser
- Simplified Diffuser Strakes
Eric Jacuzzi, NASCAR Vice President, Vehicle Performance: “At the test (at Phoenix during the offseason), we noticed an improvement in traffic. The car did not lose rear downforce when it yawed, which is an issue we fight with the current car. The drivers would be able to slide around more on the short tracks and really have to be less careful about putting power down. We felt that would be a benefit, and that was the big takeaway from the driver feedback. At the test, they felt they could really tell that it was more forgiving. They felt they could slide the car.”
NASCAR has also announced drivers will have additional track time to adjust to these new components, making Phoenix Raceway an ‘extended practice’ weekend. A 50-minute practice has been added, scheduled for Friday from 3:05 p.m. to 3:55 p.m. local time and can be viewed on FS1 from 5–6 p.m. ET.
Busch Light Pole Qualifying will be held on Saturday, March 9 at 2 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Spinning The Tires: Former champs Logano and Keselowski needing to rebound at Phoenix
Two former NASCAR Cup Series Champions, Team Penske’s Joey Logano (24th in points) and RFK Racing’s Brad Keselowski (28th in points) find themselves buried in the point standings after the first three races of the 2024 season. Now, the former champs head back to Phoenix Raceway, a track both have run-well at previously, looking to rebound and right their seasons.
Joey Logano has made 30 career Cup starts at Phoenix collecting three wins, eight top fives and 16 top 10s.
Brad Keselowski has made 29 Cup starts at Phoenix putting up eight top fives and 13 top 10s.
Breaking through under the sun in Phoenix
When it comes to first-time winners in the NASCAR Cup Series at Phoenix Raceway, only three of the 30 different series winners earned their first career Cup Series win at 1-mile track.
The first driver and probably the most famous to accomplish the feat of earning his first career win at Phoenix Raceway was NASCAR Hall of Famer Alan Kulwicki in 1988. Not only was accomplishment huge for himself and his organization AK Racing but it was also the first time Kulwicki introduced his famous ‘Polish Victory Lap’ where he would drive the track clockwise (or backwards), so that he could wave to the fans in his victory lap.
Bobby Hamilton’s first career Cup win at Phoenix Raceway, came while driving for the famous Petty Enterprises in 1996. It was one of the last few wins Petty Enterprises would produce. Hamilton would win once more for the Pettys in 1997 at Rockingham and then John Andretti would bring home the organization’s final win at Martinsville Speedway in 1999. Petty Enterprises reached 268 wins in total in the series — second-most all-time.
The third and final first-time Cup winner at Phoenix, was Stewart-Haas’s Chase Briscoe in 2022. It was Briscoe first and only win to this day. Briscoe has made six starts at Phoenix posting one win, two top fives and three top 10s.
NASCAR Cup Series Notes:
Sunoco Rookie Class Update: Hocevar takes rookie standings lead — Spire Motorsport’s Carson Hocevar has leaped to the NASCAR Cup Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings lead for the first time this season. Heading into Phoenix Raceway this weekend, Hocevar has an 11 point lead over second place Josh Berry, 16 points up on third place Zane Smith and 18 points up on fourth place Kaz Grala.
Bowman, McDowell are heading back home — The NASCAR fans from Arizona will have two drivers from their home state to root for this weekend at Phoenix Raceway in the Shriners Children’s 500 (March 10 at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
A total of 34 drivers in NASCAR national series history have their home state recorded as Arizona. Of the 34 Arizona drivers, only two drivers have won a NASCAR national series race — Alex Bowman (eight wins) and Michael McDowell (two wins). Most notably, McDowell won the 2021 DAYTONA 500.
Bowman has made 17 series starts at Phoenix collecting two top-10 finishes.
McDowell has made 26 series starts at Phoenix without a win, the second most starts at by an active driver without a win at Phoenix behind Brad Keselowski at 29. McDowell’s best finish at his home track is ninth in the race last November (2023).
Chevrolet off to a fast start winning first three races of 2024 — The first three races of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season has seen only one manufacturer in Victory Lane — Chevrolet.
In the Modern Era (1972–2023), a manufacturer has only swept a season’s first three races six times and Chevrolet drivers are responsible for five of them — Chevrolet (1995, 2001, 2010, 2023, 2024) and Ford (1992).
This season, William Byron won the DAYTONA 500, Daniel Suarez won Atlanta Motor Speedway and Kyle Larson won last weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
A manufacturer has only swept the first four races of a NASCAR Cup Series season in the Modern Era three times — Chevrolet (1995, 2001) and Ford (1992).
The record for the most consecutive wins by a manufacturer to start at NASCAR Cup Series season in the Modern Era is nine straight victories by Ford during the 1992 season.
The most consecutive victories to start a Cup Series season by Chevrolet was seven straight wins in the 1995 season — second-most in the Modern Era.
Laps Led
Three NASCAR Cup Series drivers can reach milestones in laps led this weekend:
NASCAR Fantasy Live — Go Full Throttle AI Bot Initial Picks
The GFT AI Models will rerun and make adjustments following Practice and Qualifying.
