Back for some road course action at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The NASCAR Xfinity Series will once again make left and right turns this weekend for the Pennzoil 150 Presented by Advance Auto Parts at Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course on Saturday, August 12 at 5:30 p.m. ET (USA Network, the NBC Sports App, IMS Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Indianapolis Motor Speedway has hosted the NASCAR Xfinity Series three times on its road course configuration. Chase Briscoe won the inaugural race in 2020, followed by Austin Cindric in 2021 and AJ Allmendinger in 2022.
Allmendinger is the only previous winner entered in this weekend’s Pennzoil 150 Presented by Advance Auto Parts. Known as the “road course ringer,” it’s no surprise that Allmendinger has already set records on the Indianapolis Road Course. He set the race record last season with a speed of 77.825 mph and has won both poles at the track (qualifying was canceled in the 2020 inaugural race due to the pandemic).
NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers will fire up their engines for practice at 9:35 a.m. ET followed by qualifying at 10:05 a.m. ET on Saturday, August 12 on the NBC Sports App and IMS Radio.
Two chances to kiss the bricks: double duty drivers
Some Cup Series drivers love the Indianapolis bricks so much that they want to give themselves two opportunities to take the checkered flag and kiss the bricks this weekend – AJ Allmendinger, Ty Gibbs and Ross Chastain.
Allmendinger will be piloting the No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet for his fifth Xfinity Series start of the 2023 season. Three of his four previous starts were on road courses – COTA (first place), Sonoma (runner up), and Road America (ninth). He has made all three starts on the Indianapolis Road Course in the Xfinity Series and has only gotten better time after time. He posted a fourth-place finish in the inaugural race in 2020, a runner up finish in 2021 and then finally snagged the checkered flag in 2022.
The 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion, Ty Gibbs, will be making his seventh Xfinity Series start of the season behind the wheel of the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Two of his Xfinity Series starts this season were on a road course – COTA (third place) and Sonoma (fourth place). He’s made two starts on the Indianapolis Road Course, posting a 19th-place finish and an eighth-place finish.
Chastain will be making his fifth Xfinity Series start of the season behind the wheel of the No. 91 Chevrolet for DGM Racing. He’s made one road course Xfinity Series start this season at Sonoma, where he finished 18th. He has made two series starts at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, posting a sixth-place finish (2020) and a fourth-place finish (2022).
Clinch Scenarios: Xfinity Series Playoff picture taking shape
Things are heating up in the NASCAR Xfinity Series as drivers only have five chances to race their way into the Playoffs that will kick off on Friday, September 15 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Drivers can secure their spot in the Playoffs by virtue of wins, but they must also finish out the regular season and clinch their spot on points. Let’s take a look at which drivers have mathematically clinched their spot in the postseason as we head into this weekend’s Pennzoil 150 Presented by Advance Auto Parts at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course.
Already Clinched
The following three drivers have clinched a spot in the 12-driver postseason field: John Hunter Nemechek, Austin Hill, Cole Custer.
Can Clinch Via Previous Wins
The following driver could clinch on previous wins with a win by John Hunter Nemechek, Austin Hill, Cole Custer, Sam Mayer, Chandler Smith or Sammy Smith:
- Justin Allgaier: Would clinch regardless of finish
The following driver could clinch on previous wins with a win by Josh Berry, Daniel Hemric, Riley Herbst, Sheldon Creed, Parker Kligerman or Jeb Burton:
- Justin Allgaier: Would clinch with 36 points
The following driver could clinch on previous wins with a win by Brandon Jones:
- Justin Allgaier: Would clinch with 11 points
The following driver could clinch on previous wins with a win by Brett Moffitt or a driver lower in the standings:
- Justin Allgaier: Would clinch regardless of finish
Can Clinch Via Win
The following drivers would clinch on their win alone:
- Justin Allgaier, Sam Mayer, Chandler Smith, Sammy Smith, Jeb Burton
Regular Season Champion Update
John Hunter Nemechek (5 Wins, 811 Points, +0 points ahead of second-place Austin Hill) cannot clinch the Regular Season Championship since there are still 300 points and 5 wins available.
John Hunter Nemechek strikes again
Joe Gibbs Racing’s John Hunter Nemechek, who is running his first full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule since the 2019 season, managed to land his car in Victory Lane for the fifth time this season last weekend at Michigan International Speedway. His other wins have come at Auto Club, Martinsville, Atlanta, and New Hampshire.
Nemechek is currently tied with Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill on points (811) but owns the tie breaker with his five wins to Hill’s four.
He has done well on a few road courses this season, finishing 10th at Portland and runner-up on the inaugural Chicago Street Race last month.
The Mooresville, N.C. native will look to keep his hot streak alive this weekend as he makes his debut on the Indianapolis Road Course. He has posted five wins, 11 top fives, 16 top 10s and las led 662 laps this season thus far.
NASCAR Xfinity Series, Etc.
Conor Daly to run Xfinity Series race at Indianapolis – IndyCar veteran Conor Daly will be making his first Xfinity Series start of the 2023 season this weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course behind the wheel of the No. 44 Alpha Prime Racing Chevrolet.
The Indiana native made his debut in the Xfinity Series in 2018 at Road America. He has since made starts in both the Cup Series and CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. His most recent start was in the Truck Series a few weeks ago at Mid-Ohio where he finished 18th.
The Xfinity Series race at IMS will be his first stock car stint on the road course.
Race Review Online 