March 26, 2022 By Holly Cain NASCAR Wire Service AUSTIN, Texas – Ultimately, Zane Smith was out front when it paid off Saturday afternoon at the Circuit of The Americas road course. He led only 11 of the 46 laps – winning Stage 1, Stage 2 and then took the race lead with two laps remaining in the second overtime period to earn the victory in the XPEL 225 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. It marked Smith’s second win of the 2022 season – fifth of his career - and the second consecutive win at the 3.41-mile, 20-turn COTA circuit for…

March 20, 2022 By Reid Spencer NASCAR Wire Service HAMPTON, Ga. – It was superspeedway racing with all the trimmings. “New” Atlanta Motor Speedway produced a fifth different 2022 winner—William Byron, who managed to keep an angry pack of drafting cars behind him for the final 10 laps of Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. In a race that produced 46 lead changes among 20 drivers—both track records—Byron crossed the finish line .109 seconds ahead of Christopher Bell and .145 seconds ahead of Ross Chastain. Bell, however, was penalized for passing below the boundary line on the backstretch on the final lap…

March 19, 2022 By Reid Spencer NASCAR Wire Service HAMPTON, Ga. – With a brilliant move to the inside of leader Ryan Sieg on the final lap of a second overtime, Ty Gibbs seized control of Saturday’s Nalley Cars 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway and won by .178 seconds over runner-up Austin Hill. Overcoming a mistake on pit road, where he overshot his stall, Gibbs rallied to run near the front as the race reached the end of regulation and moved into overtime. In the second extra period, which pushed the event nine laps past its scheduled distance of 163 laps, Gibbs…

March 19, 2022 By Reid Spencer NASCAR Wire Service HAMPTON, Ga. – Moments after taking the white flag in Saturday’s FR8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Corey Heim powered to the inside of Kyle Busch Motorsports teammate Chandler Smith, got a push from teammate John Hunter Nemechek and held on to win his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Heim’s No. 51 Toyota crossed the finish line .173 seconds ahead of the Toyota of Ben Rhodes, as Ty Majeski came home third and Smith slipped to fourth. Daytona winner Zane Smith completed the top five on the repaved and reconfigured track.…

March 13, 2022 By HOLLY CAIN NASCAR Wire Service There was no shortage of motivation as three drivers all vying for their first-career victory in the marquee NASCAR Cup Series decided the dramatic outcome at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday afternoon. Stewart-Haas Racing’s Chase Briscoe had to hold off the field on not one, not two, but three late race restarts on the one-mile desert oval, including the final restart with three laps remaining to earn his first career NASCAR Cup Series win in the Ruoff Mortgage 500. The 27-year-old Briscoe is the 200th different winner in NASCAR’s premier series and last year’s…

March 12, 2022 By HOLLY CAIN NASCAR Wire Service Noah Gragson came heartbreakingly close a week ago to his first NASCAR Xfinity Series victory of the 2022 season. On Saturday, his No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet left no doubt as to who would be hoisting the winner’s trophy. Gragson led 72 of the final 87 laps – a race best 114 of 200 laps on the day - to earn the win in the United Rentals 200 at Phoenix Raceway. He passed race runner-up Brandon Jones with 15 laps remaining, negotiated lapped traffic and ultimately pulled away to an impressive 2.555-second win.…