This weekend at Dover Motor Speedway was a fun one, overall. The ARCA Menards Series joined the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series. It was a weekend that was major for a lot of young drivers.
Of course, there was a lot more going on than just young drivers having good runs. The Xfinity Series winner was Ryan Truex, he’s been trying to make the NASCAR thing work for so long. Now he has two wins in two years, running just seven races in that time.
Then we had Denny Hamlin make a statement once again on a short track. He has been dominant on the mile tracks and smaller. There is also the new weekly topic of discussion: air blocking.
ARCA Menards Series puts on fun show with one scary wreck
The ARCA Menards Series race at Dover was the most fun I’ve had watching an ARCA race in some time. There were many reasons for that.
Unfortunately, Amber Balcaen was in a scary wreck with the inside wall. She will need to get her foot checked out but hopes to race at Kansas this week. Carson Kvapil had damage to his right rear quarter panel and his crew replaced it with his pit sign.
Connor Zilisch wins over talented ARCA field
By the time the race ended, Connor Zilisch had put himself in position and was running away with the race. That is now two wins in IMSA, one win in CARS Tour, one win in ARCA, and a Truck Series track record and pole on debut.
Zilisch won over a talented field that included Brent Crews, William Sawalich, Carson Kvapil, and Gio Ruggiero. Dale Jr.’s CARS Tour is starting to produce/host some of the best young talent in the country. These names will likely all be in NASCAR at some point in the near future.
NASCAR Xfinity Series chaos at the Monster Mile
To begin NASCAR action, the Xfinity Series was entertaining as always. The cars are great, fast, the fastest cars and best drivers can pass and move up in the field. It’s great.
Hailie Deegan and JJ Yeley were involved in an early wreck . It wouldn’t be the only caution. Ryan Sieg’s car burst into flames at one point. It was all mixed in with the threat of rainfall ending everything early.
Ryan Truex beats Carson Kvapil late
Carson Kvapil had a great weekend. He was P3 in the ARCA race with that repaired quarter panel. Kvapil then started P26 in the Xfinity Series race, and had the lead on the final restart.
However, the young driver just got beat on the final restart. Ryan Truex was able to use experience and the bottom lane on the restart to get the lead and win in overtime. Kvapil and Zilisch are likely Chevy’s most promising prospects right now.
Anthony Alfredo wins $100K for Our Motorsports
This was another Dash 4 Cash race and Anthony Alfredo hit the jackpot. He has been great in that No. 5 Our Motorsports car. You can’t hype up his performance in 2024 enough.
Alfredo outlasted the other Dash 4 Cashers, earned a top-10 finish, and a $100K check. Our Motorsports only has 13 employees, and this money will be major for them moving forward.
Erik Jones out, Corey Heim in
Corey Heim made his Cup Series debut in a respectable P25 effort. With just a week’s notice, with a backup crew chief, at a track he has raced, and DNFd at, twice in the past – Heim was solid.
Heim was able to get back on the lead lap on his own at one point after going down. He was never able to move up too far, but he managed his car and made the most of his day. He was also punted on pit road by Tyler Reddick. Solid effort.
Kevin Harvick returning to NASCAR Cup Series… sort of
In other news, Kevin Harvick is coming back to the Cup Series. In a way. Harvick will practice at North Wilkesboro for Kyle Larson as Larson qualifies for the Indy 500. It will be quite a sight to see.
Harvick agreed to practice the car and he will help the 5 team get it dialed in. I’ll just be happy to see him driving a NASCAR racecar one more time. And it’s for Hendrick this time!
Miles the Monster feeds on NASCAR drivers’ woes
Now, the Cup Series didn’t have as many caution flags as the Xfinity Series. Honestly, it was not as enthralling as the Xfinity race, either. But this was a solid race. Not great, but not what we saw at Richmond or Martinsville.
The biggest wreck involved Bubba Wallace, Christopher Bell, and William Byron. They were all DNFs as a result of the incident.
Denny Hamlin earns 54th career win
The big story is the fact that Denny Hamlin won for the third time this season. He took another short track victory and looks to be a force this season.
It was the 54th time Hamlin won a Cup Series race. On the NASCAR all-time wins list, he is now tied for 12th with Lee Petty. Quite an accomplishment and there is still more to go. Is this the year Denny does it?
Air blocking is the new boogeyman in NASCAR
In the aftermath of the race, no one was really upset. Kyle Larson came up short. He was never able to get to Hamlin and make a move. However, Larson did have an idea for NASCAR.
Claiming that air blocking was too “easy” with the rearview camera in the cars, Larson wants NASCAR to remove them. Hamlin doesn’t think it makes much of a difference, getting most of his information from his spotter. But it is the new topic of the week, so buckle up.
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