TRACK: Phoenix Raceway (1 mile oval) DISTANCE: 312 Laps – STAGE 1: 75 Laps, Stage 2: 115 Laps, FINAL STAGE 122 LAPS, 312 Miles)

Track History:

Sunday will mark the 50th time the NASCAR Cup Series has raced at the Phoenix Raceway. They first started coming to the Arizona desert in the fall of 1988. The spring race though wasn’t added until 2005. Last season was the first that Phoenix hosted the championship round and they’ll do so yet again come November. 

We’ve had four straight different organizations win the spring race which all started with Ryan Newman (Richard Childress Racing) in 2017. Kevin Harvick (Stewart-Haas Racing), Kyle Busch (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Joey Logano (Team Penske) followed. 

Another key trend is that starting position matters here. Six of the last seven Phoenix winners have come from a top 10 starting spot. In fact, 10 of the last 13 have started in the first 5 Rows.

While we’ve seen some long green flag runs and only one overtime finish in the last seven races, expect a late race caution still. Six of the last 11 races have seen a finale green flag stretch to the finish of three or less laps.

Also, the driver to win the spring race in Phoenix has only went on to win the series championship just three times – Terry Labonte (1984), Dale Earnhardt (1990) and Jeff Gordon (1995). That may not bode well for Sunday’s victor. 

Track Comparison

The best comparison to Phoenix is likely Richmond. While Richmond is .25 miles shorter than Phoenix, they’re pretty close in shape and have similar corners. New Hampshire is another track that you can use past notes or data on with that being a 1 mile flat track.