PREVIEW: Ryan Reed's first XFINITY start in nearly five years among Las Vegas storylines

SCREENSHOT: @teamlivefast

by Brock Beard

LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief

Saturday, October 14, 2023 (3:30 P.M. ET, USA)

XFINITY Race 30 of 33

Round of 8: Race 1 of 3

Alsco Uniforms 302 at Las Vegas

2022 Last-Place Finisher: Ryan Sieg

ENTRY LIST

There are 40 drivers entered for 38 spots, meaning two will fail to qualify.

DRIVER CHANGE: #4-JD Motorsports

DRIVER SWAP: #91-DGM Racing

Garrett Smithley rejoins JD Motorsports for his first XFINITY start since Kansas, where he took 25th, and brings sponsor Trophy Tractor Inc. He takes the place of Kyle Weatherman, 26th last week on the “Roval,” who moves back to the #91 with PORAC as sponsor, taking the place of 15th-place finisher Alex Labbe. 

DRIVER CHANGE: #11-Kaulig Racing

Both Truck Series drivers who made their XFINITY debuts in Texas are back in action this Saturday, starting with Layne Riggs, who takes the place of 16th-place “Roval’ finisher Jordan Taylor. Riggs, who finished 19th at Texas, will again be sponsored by Infinity Communications Group.

MISSING: #17-Hendrick Motorsports

The Hendrick team will not enter the #17 this week, which missed the cut after rear end issues stopped Boris Said’s effort at the “Roval.” The team will return in Phoenix with Rajah Caruth as driver.

DRIVER CHANGE: #28-RSS Racing

RETURNING / DRIVER SWAP: #29-RSS Racing

The Rod Sieg team brings back their part-time fourth entry, which Kyle Sieg will drive following his 32nd-place finish in Charlotte. Sieg leaves open the #28 for a returning C.J. McLaughlin and sponsor Sci Aps, back in action following their most recent 25th-place effort in Texas.

DRIVER CHANGE: #35-Emerling-Gase Motorsports

Joey Gase will again be sponsored by the Nevada Donor Network as he takes the controls of the #35 entry for the first time since his 26th in Texas, taking the place of 33rd-place Roval finisher Alex Guenette. This will be Gase’s 14th series start in Las Vegas, where his track-best finish of 15th came in 2018.

TEAM UPDATE: #43-Alpha Prime Racing

DRIVER CHANGE: #66-Motorsports Business Management

Welcome back Ryan Reed, who on Saturday seeks his first XFINITY Series start since he completed his final full-time effort with Roush-Fenway Racing at Homestead in 2018. The two-time Daytona winner this time runs for Alpha Prime Racing, which itself is joining forces with Carl Long’s team Motorsports Business Management. Reed and his sponsorship from Tandem Diabetes Care will run on one of Alpha Prime’s Chevrolets, but the cars will carry Long’s #66. The #43 team will fall to Long with Alpha Prime’s driver Ryan Ellis, plus sponsor Eclipse Claims Consulting. Swapped out from this arrangement is Sage Karam, who finished 27th for Long on the “Roval.” This will be the second such arrangement between Alpha Prime and MBM, following the spring race at Atlanta, where Caesar Bacarella ran the #66 with Long atop the pit box. 

DRIVER CHANGE: #44-Alpha Prime Racing

DRIVER SWAP: #45-Alpha Prime Racing

The remaining two entries from Alpha Prime have changed drivers, starting with the return of Daniel Dye for his second career XFINITY Series start, again in the #44 with Champion Container as sponsor. Dye takes the place of Rajah Caruth, 19th on the Roval, who this week takes the place of 21st-place Roval finisher Leland Honeyman in the #45.

MISSING: #50-Pardus Racing

Not making the trip west is the Pardus team after Preston Pardus failed to qualify on the Roval.

DRIVER CHANGE: #53-Emerling-Gase Motorsports

Fellow team co-owner Patrick Emerling will also drive this weekend, returning to the controls of the #53 for his first XFINITY start since a 35th-place run in Texas after early suspension issues. Emerling takes the place of Conor Daly, who likewise struggled last week on the Roval to take 35th.

DRIVER CHANGE: #74-CHK Racing

One week after Devin Jones came up just short of making his first XFINITY start in over six years, Dawson Cram is again the driver of the #74, aiming for his 10th series start and first since Texas, where he ran a season-best 21st for the second time in three races.

MISSING: #87-Peterson Racing Group

The Peterson team is not among this week’s entrants after Andy Lally DNQ’d by just 0.084 second.

DRIVER CHANGE: #07-SS-Green Light Racing

Las Vegas looks to be the 80th series start for Gray Gaulding, just his second since Darlington in the spring and his first since a 9th-place showing at Daytona. Gaulding takes the place of Josh Bilicki, who finished 25th last time out on the Roval.

CUP INVADERS: None

Sunday, October 15, 2023 (2:30 P.M. ET, NBC)

CUP Race 33 of 36

Round of 8: Race 1 of 3

South Point 400 at Las Vegas

2022 Last-Place Finisher: Bubba Wallace

ENTRY LIST

It’s back to only the 36 Chartered entries for Sunday’s Cup Series race in Las Vegas, marking the 32nd straight short field in 2023.

DRIVER CHANGE: #15-Rick Ware Racing

Brennan Poole pulls double-duty with XFINITY for his seventh Cup start of the season and first since his 30th-place showing at Talladega, his first on a non-superspeedway since his 33rd in Nashville. He takes the place of Andy Lally, who finished 35th last time out on the Roval following a late-race crash. Macc Door Systems, which has backed Poole in some of his XFINITY races, is this Sunday’s sponsor.

DRIVER SWAP: #38-Front Row Motorsports

DRIVER CHANGE: #51-Rick Ware Racing

J.J. Yeley will make his 23rd Cup start of the year and first since a 36th-place run in Talladega due to fuel pump issues. He will run the #51 with ConectUS as sponsor in place of Todd Gilliland, who after his 23rd-place run on the Roval moves back to the #38 in place of Zane Smith, who ran 30th that day.

DRIVER CHANGE: #42-Legacy Motor Club

After one more road course start by Mike Rockenfeller, whose contact with Denny Hamlin left him 29th in the final running order, Carson Hocevar will complete the season in the #42. This week’s race comes fresh off the news that he’ll run for Spire Motorsports in the #77 next year, taking the place of Ty Dillon.

MISSING: #62-Beard Motorsports

The Beard team isn’t making the trip west as Austin Hill – 27th on the Roval – focuses on his Playoff run in Saturday’s XFINITY race.

DRIVER CHANGE: #78-Live Fast Motorsports

After Josh Bilicki’s battle for a top-fifteen finish was spoiled by contact from Corey LaJoie, still resulting in a 26th-place finish, B.J. McLeod returns to the driver’s seat for his 135th Cup Series start. McLeod carries sponsorship from Bret Baier’s latest book “To Rescue The Constitution.”  Speaking of books, my second NASCAR book “Cope” comes to Amazon on Tuesday, November 14.

Saturday, October 21, 2023

TRUCKS Race 22 of 23

Round of 8: Race 3 of 3

Baptist Health 200 at Homestead

2022 Last-Place Finisher: Spencer Boyd

Next week sees the penultimate round of the 2023 Truck Series season in Homestead.

TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (October 13, 1963): Roy Mayne picked up the 3rd last-place finish of his NASCAR Cup Series career when his #61 1963 Mercury had engine trouble after 3 laps of the National 400 at Charlotte. All three of those last-place finishes happened in the ’63 season – each with a different manufacturer - when he fell one finish short of Curtis Crider for the LASTCAR title.