PREVIEW: Returning series regulars - and even a longtime sponsor - on tap at Michigan
by Brock Beard / LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief
IMAGE: RSS Racing, @RSSRacing_
Saturday, August 17, 2024 (3:30 P.M. ET, USA)
XFINITY Race 21 of 33
Cabo Wabo 250 at Michigan
2023 Last-Place Finisher: Sammy Smith
ENTRY LIST
The XFINITY Series returns for the first time in nearly a full month to kick off the NASCAR action in Michigan, where 39 drivers are entered for 38 spots, meaning one will fail to qualify.
MISSING: #13-Motorsports Business Management
Neither of MBM’s part-time entries are among this week’s entrants, including the #13 that B.J. McLeod piloted to a 28th-place finish at Indianapolis last month.
DRIVER CHANGE: #14-SS-Green Light Racing
Logan Bearden will attempt his fifth career XFINITY Series start and first since Nashville, when he finished 32nd for Joey Gase Motorsports. This time around, Bearden drives for Bobby Dotter as he had in his previous three runs, including his season-best 22nd in his series debut at Richmond. He takes the place of David Starr, who finished 26th in Indianapolis.
DRIVER CHANGE: #15-AM Racing
Last time out at Indianapolis, Josh Berry wasn’t able to complete the opening lap before his Klutch Vodka Ford was swept up in a multi-car pileup at Turn 3, leaving him in last place. This time around, the ride goes to Truck Series regular Lawless Alan, who brings in his sponsor AUTOChargeIt.com. This would be Alan’s first career XFINITY Series start after 69 races in Trucks, though he’s also made three ARCA Menards Series races this year with the Reaume Brothers effort taking a season-best 8th in Charlotte.
DRIVER CHANGE: #19-Joe Gibbs Racing
Another Truck Series competitor joining the action this Saturday is Taylor Gray, fresh off securing his place in this year’s Playoffs last week in Richmond. Gray takes the place of Joe Graf, Jr., who finished 17th at Indianapolis, in what will be his ninth series start and first since Pocono, where he finished a strong 5th.
DRIVER CHANGE: #20-Joe Gibbs Racing
Pulling double-duty with Sunday’s Cup Series race is John Hunter Nemechek, the defending winner of this race. This will be Nemechek’s 111th series start and 11th of the year, returning to a division where he has earned 11 wins. He last took the green on the Chicago Street Course, where he finished 25th. Nemechek takes the place of Aric Almirola, who finished a close 3rd at Indianapolis after his late-race battle with the Stewart-Haas Racing teammates.
DRIVER CHANGE: #26-Sam Hunt Racing
Jeffrey Earnhardt seeks only the third series start of the year and first since Talladega this past spring, where engine trouble left him next-to-last. This time, he takes the place of IndyCar standout Conor Daly, who came home a solid 14th at Indianapolis.
SPONSOR UPDATE: #28-RSS Racing
For more than a decade, Bailey Excavating was a prominent sponsor of the late J.D. McDuffie, particularly when he raced at the company’s home track in Michigan. In fact, when McDuffie set out to compete at both Watkins Glen and Michigan in August 1991, plans were in place for the company to sponsor him once more. Tragically, McDuffie was killed in a crash during the early stages of the Budweiser at the Glen. Over the years, the Bailey family have helped maintain McDuffie’s legacy, even acquiring his famous hauler “Ol’ Blue,” and the car with which the driver raced at Dover in 1991. They also continued to sponsor race teams, including their own, both in ARCA and, as recently as 1987, in what is now the XFINITY Series. So it is particularly significant that Kyle Sieg will carry Bailey’s sponsorship on his black #28 Ford this Saturday, on the anniversary of the race weekend where McDuffie planned to compete in what would have been his 654th Cup Series start.
RETURNING: #30-Rette Jones Racing
Noah Gragson rejoins the Mark Rette effort for a third time this season, following a 10th-place debut in Charlotte and a season-best 5th his last time out in Nashville. The team has also finished on the lead lap in both those starts.
DRIVER CHANGE: #45-Alpha Prime Racing
After securing Owner Points from the shuttered JD Motorsports back at Indianapolis, Caesar Bacarella returns to the controls of the #45 for his 31st series start and first since his 7th-place showing at Talladega this past spring. Prime Bites Brownie is the listed sponsor as a legal battle develops between this brand of Bacarella’s and the Prime Hydration brand of Logan Paul and KSI fame. Bacarella takes the place of Garrett Smithley, who finished 31st in Indianapolis.
RETURNING: #53-Joey Gase Motorsports
While Joey Gase remains in his flagship #35, the team brings back its second entry, the #53, for its first attempt since Kenko Miura’s crash-marred DNQ at the Chicago Street Course. This time, the driver is Morgen Baird, who seeks his NASCAR national series debut. Carrying sponsorship from Alro Steel, Baird has made 13 ARCA Menards Series starts over the last eight seasons. In that series, he’s scored all three of his top-ten finishes on this same Michigan track, including his career-best 6th in last year’s running.
DRIVER CHANGE: #07-SS-Green Light Racing
Patrick Emerling carries sponsorship from Legacy Sensors as he returns to the driver’s seat for a 15th time this season, his first since a 33rd-place finish in Pocono. He takes the place of Greg Van Alst, who came home 32nd at Indianapolis after ignition failure forced him to pull behind the wall on the backstretch during the final laps.
CUP INVADERS: #20-John Hunter Nemechek, #30-Noah Gragson
Sunday, August 18, 2024 (2:30 P.M. ET, USA)
CUP Race 24 of 36
FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan
2023 Last-Place Finisher: Kyle Busch
ENTRY LIST
There are only 36 cars in Sunday’s Cup Series field, marking the 20th short field in 24 races this season, and the eighth points-paying race with only the 36 Chartered entries. This marks the shortest Cup field at Michigan since June 10, 2019.
DRIVER CHANGE: #15-Rick Ware Racing
Cody Ware carries sponsorship from Parts Plus on the Rick Ware Racing #15 entry this week for his fifth start of the season and first since his season-best 18th at Indianapolis. He takes the place of Indianapolis XFINITY race winner Riley Herbst, who finished three laps down in 33rd last Sunday in Richmond. This will be Ware’s fourth Cup start at Michigan, where he’s improved in each start. After finishing 36th in 2019, he was 27th in 2021 and 22nd in 2022.
DRIVER CHANGE: #16-Kaulig Racing
Fresh off news that he’s returning to full-time Cup Series competition in 2025, A.J. Allmendinger is back in the #16 this weekend, taking the place of 26th-place Richmond finisher Ty Dillon. Allmendinger has 22 previous Cup starts at Michigan and is still searching for his first top-ten finish at the track. His career-best 11th came in 2010 and was matched in 2011, both while driving for Richard Petty Motorsports.
MISSING: #66-Motorsports Business Management
Parker Retzlaff finished his Cup debut under power, 35th of 37 starters, six laps down. In addition to Saturday’s XFINITY Series race, he prepares for his impending double-duty showing in Daytona, where Funkaway will also sponsor his #62 entry with Beard Motorsports.
Sunday, August 25, 2024
TRUCKS Race 17 of 23
Round of 10: Race 1 of 3
LiUNA! 175 at the Milwaukee Mile
2023 Last-Place Finisher: Josh Bilicki
The Truck Series takes the week off and returns at the end of the month to begin their Playoffs.
TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (August 16, 1986): Mike Porter picked up the 3rd last-place finish of his NASCAR Busch Series career in the L.D. Swain 150 at the Orange County (North Carolina) Speedway when his #3 Adventure Land Video Pontiac started outside-pole, but fell out after 34 laps with a blown engine. Polesitter Dale Jarrett led all 150 laps on his way to his first series videos.
