CUP: Joey Gase takes LASTCAR Cup Series lead heading into Phoenix finale

PHOTO: @RickWareRacing

Joey Gase picked up the 10th last-place finish of his NASCAR Cup Series career in Sunday’s XFINITY 500 at the Martinsville Speedway when his #53 Adkins Chevrolet fell out with electrical issues after 10 of 501 laps.

The finish, which came in Gase’s 89th series start, was his third of the season and first since Texas, two races ago. In the Cup Series last-place rankings, it was the 23rd for the #53, the 42nd from electrical problems, and the 817th for Chevrolet. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 28th for the #53, the 135th from electrical problems, and the 1,816th for Chevrolet.

With the finish, Gase has taken the lead in the 2021 LASTCAR Cup Series Championship heading into next Sunday’s finale at Phoenix. In that race, Aric Almirola, Kurt Busch, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., and Justin Haley are the only drivers who could beat him for the title, and each would need to finish last at Phoenix.

The Martinsville triple-header weekend would see Gase only compete in the Cup race, where he again drove the #53 with Rick Ware Racing. Following a 32nd-place finish in Kansas, he’d roll off 34th on the short track with returning sponsorship from Adkins Automotive, which backed him in the Pocono double-header last year, plus Donate Life Virginia.

Taking the 38th and final starting spot was Timmy Hill, who a day earlier finished a strong 10th in his unsponsored #56 Chevrolet during the Truck Series race at the same track. Hill’s ride would be the #66 American Dream Leasing Toyota of Carl Long’s team, Motorsports Business Management. Joining him in the back would be 3rd-place starter Denny Hamlin for two inspection failures on his #11 FedEx Ground Toyota – one each for body issues and rear alignment.

When the race started, Hamlin took the green in 36th ahead of both Hill and new last-place runner Garrett Smithley in Rick Ware Racing’s #15 Boom Mobile Chevrolet. Smithley remained in last at the end of Lap 1, 6.332 seconds back, and the team reported the then-32nd-place Gase had smoke coming off one of his fenders. Around this time, as Hamlin charged through the field, he bumped Gase off Turn 2, and the #53 dropped to last on Lap 4, 9.375 seconds back of the lead and three-tenths back of Smithley. Gase lost even more ground by Lap 6, when he was 3.251 seconds back of new 37th-place runner Quin Houff in the #00 Sim Seats Chevrolet. He came down pit road, and was the first to be lapped on the 8th circuit.

Gase ended up staying on pit road for some time, at first reporting a wheel hop, then heading to the garage with a fuel pressure issue on Lap 17. Gase reported his car kept shutting off, and the team had the driver test the ignition. On Lap 25, Gase said “It has fuel pressure now, it's just when I go through the corner, I lose it.” According to the team, they had previously had a similar issue on the car of teammate Cody Ware in the #51 Nurtec ODT Chevrolet.

Since Gase’s team didn’t have a replacement fuel pump, they attempted a repair and sent Gase back on track on Lap 41, 35 laps down to the leaders. But just three laps later, Gase said he had the same issue, and the team said the engine still sounded rough. “They’re probably gonna park us,” said someone on the team as they sent him behind the wall again on Lap 45. Gase’s crew confirmed it was a fuel pump issue, and looked to replace the entire fuel cell. According to radio traffic from the team, the cell in the #53 had been used at Richmond, Bristol, and Las Vegas without serious incident. By Lap 90, the team called for fuel to prepare for another run. Gase re-fired the engine on Lap 98, and reported his fuel pressure was back. With that, he returned to the track on Lap 106, 96 laps down, and was instructed to drive onto pit road if the car started to sputter. Hardly had the message been relayed when Gase reported “Fucking done, same shit.” He pulled into the garage for the final time on Lap 109, and this time the crew took off the wheels in preparation to load the car on the hauler. NASCAR confirmed Gase out with electrical issues on Lap 116.

As Gase tweeted later that night, the short race had a silver lining as he was able to go “trick-or-treating” with his two children.

Timmy Hill finished 37th with engine trouble after 206 laps, but that was no indication of the run he had to that point. Despite the fast pace early on, Hill was still the last driver on the lead lap on Lap 83, when he was running 26th, and worked his way to 24th after he was lapped. Ryan Preece spent nearly 60 laps behind the wall after something broke on his car, then returned to complete nearly the rest of the event before the brakes failed in the left-front of his #37 Thomas’ / Kroger Chevrolet with just 27 laps to go.

All other starters finished under power, including 35th-place #52 Insurance King Ford of Josh Bilicki and 34th-place Quin Houff in the #00 Sim Seats Chevrolet, each 18 laps down. The two tangled on Lap 324, and Houff was held five laps by NASCAR for spinning Bilicki back under caution, where a safety truck was not far behind off Turn 2.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the first last-place finish for both Gase and the #53 in a Cup race at Martinsville.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

38) #53-Joey Gase / 10 laps / electrical

37) #66-Timmy Hill / 206 laps / engine

36) #37-Ryan Preece / 414 laps / brakes

35) #52-Josh Bilicki / 483 laps / running

34) #00-Quin Houff / 483 laps / running

2021 LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Rick Ware Racing (7)

2nd) JTG-Daugherty Racing, Motorsports Business Management, Spire Motorsports, Stewart-Haas Racing (4)

3rd) Chip Ganassi Racing, Roush-Fenway Racing (3)

4th) Front Row Motorsports (2)

5th) Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, StarCom Racing (1)

2021 LASTCAR CUP SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (19)

2nd) Ford (11)

3rd) Toyota (5)

2021 LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

XFINITY: Difficult gear change hands Tommy Joe Martins first last-place finish in three years

PHOTO: @TommyJoeMartins

Tommy Joe Martins picked up the 2nd last-place finish of his NASCAR XFINITY Series career in Saturday’s Dead On Tools 250 at the Martinsville Speedway when his #44 Gilreath Farms Red Angus Chevrolet fell out with rear gear issues after 36 of 257 laps.

The finish, which came in Martins’ 121st series start, was his first of the year and first in a XFINITY Series race since August 4, 2018 at Watkins Glen, 111 races ago. In the XFINITY Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 16th for rear gear issues, the 26th for the #44, and the 584th for Chevrolet. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 47th from a rear gear, the 65th for the #44, and the 1,1815th for Chevrolet.

Much has changed for Tommy Joe Martins since he was last featured here more than three years ago. After driving for both B.J. McLeod and Carl Long, Martins brought back his Martins Motorsports team just last year, fielding the #44 Chevrolet with multiple new sponsors, including AAN Adjusters and Gilreath Farms. After failing to qualify for the Daytona opener, his single-car effort gradually grew into a Top 20 effort, and drew the pole at Richmond. He ultimately scored the team’s first top-ten finish by passing Alex Labbe for 10th with three laps to go in Texas. 

This year, Martins has qualified for every race, starting with a 24th-place finish in his return to the Daytona opener, and a season-best 11th in Talladega. Returning to Richmond in September, Martins took the lead with five laps to go in Stage 1, set to score his first stage victory. But when he caught the lapped car of David Starr, A.J. Allmendinger caught and passed him at the stripe, leaving him a frustrated 2nd. A pair of accidents left him 37th at the checkered flag. He ran a new paint scheme that day following the August 30 announcement that Martins Motorsports would be reincorporated as Alpha Prime Racing for 2022, bringing on DGM Racing’s part-time driver Caesar Bacarella and up-and-coming Rajah Caruth. Martins started 19th at Martinsville, where he ran 16th last fall.

Rolling off 40th and last was the #74 Mike Harmon Racing entry, which for much of the week did not have a driver listed. That changed by Friday with Mike Harmon himself taking the wheel for his 289th series start, his first since a 17th-place showing at Talladega on October 3, 2020. Harmon’s #74 Findlay Cadillac / Lerner & Rowe Attorneys Chevrolet incurred a redundant tail-end penalty for the last-minute driver change, joined by two others with pre-race penalties for unapproved adjustments: 32nd-place Joe Graf, Jr. in the #07 Cover Seal Chevrolet and 37th-place Stephen Leicht in the #61 Jani-King “The King of Clean” Toyota.

During the pace laps, Harmon was told his engine might run flat at the start, but would run better once it warmed up. But shortly after the command, the engine cut off altogether. It refired, but the driver still felt it wasn’t running right, and discussed replacing the carburetor. The team decided against coming to pit road and took the green in 38th, two-tenths ahead of 39th-place Graf and three-tenths ahead of 40th-place Leicht. 

By Lap 3, Harmon was already 13.147 seconds back of the lead and 3.130 seconds back of 39th-place Akinori Ogata in the #78 Pneumatic Tools Toyota, and reported he was coming to pit road. He slowed on Lap 6 as he came down pit road, already two laps down, and had issues steering the car to the garage. The team believed Harmon was having an electrical issue, much as the #74 has had since the summer, and checked over the plug wires in the garage. “Damn, buddy,” said someone on the team. “I don’t know what to say, wire in the ignition or something.” The team got the car to re-fire on Lap 17, when he returned to the race 11 laps down.

As Harmon returned to race pace, he still wasn’t happy with the car. On Lap 30, he reported it was tight in the center, and believed the power steering wasn’t working. The crew said they set up the car with the splitter too high, choosing a conservative setup that needed significant adjustments. The team prepared to put on eight-lap scuffed tires on their next stop, but couldn’t find their jack. The driver called off the tire change, and the crew found the jack in time to make the needed adjustments. With this done, he drove through too many pit boxes coming off pit road, and incurred a tail-end penalty on Lap 34.

Two laps later, Tommy Joe Martins came to pit road with what was originally reported as a transmission issue. By Lap 43, he was pushed to the garage area, and now reported it was a rear gear failure. Harmon dropped Martins to last on Lap 49, and the #44 crew looked over the drive shaft. Unable to spin the shaft with the car in neutral, the crew knew they had to change the gear, but didn’t have a spare one on hand. Unable to get a replacement from another team, they secured one from JD Motorsports on Lap 65, but by Lap 83 had yet to remove the old gear from the car.

By then, Harmon had come back into the garage on Lap 52, this time citing an overheating issue that the team first believed was due to a faulty gauge. The #74 crew only noticed a brake duct hitting a shock, but by Lap 61 noted water spraying from the overflow. By the time the second Harmon car of Kyle Weatherman pulled behind the wall on Lap 94, Harmon was heard on the radio for Weatherman’s #47 Daa Bin Chevrolet, addressing the team’s brake issue. 

On Lap 101, NASCAR confirmed that both Harmon and Martins were out of the race, the pair just two laps apart. Four circuits later, Martins confirmed they were done, and instructed the team to sell their tires to another team. It was decided to sell to JD Motorsports for their help in securing a replacement gear. Harmon finished in 39th. 

The next two spots in the Bottom Five were filled after a big wreck on Lap 193. On the restart before that, Spencer Boyd had stayed out on old tires in Jimmy Means Racing’s #52 Sparrow Dynamics Chevrolet, giving Boyd the lead. After the first restart, Boyd had slipped back a few spots, but only to 6th place. When the race went green again, he was moved to the outside lane as Jeb Burton in the #10 Ntrien Ag Solutions Chevrolet and Michael Annett in the #1 PFJ Veterans Salute Chevrolet went to his inside exiting Turn 2. At the same moment, Riley Herbst threaded the needle between Annett and Burton with his #98 Monster Energy Ford, turning Annett into Burton, who collected Boyd. Burton and Annett were eliminated with crash damage while Herbst took 10th with Boyd 30th. Brandon Brown rounded out the Bottom Five in his #68 Larry’s Lemonade Chevrolet.

Alex Labbe finished 8th in his Halloween-themed #36 Rousseau / Prolon Controls / Globocam Chevrolet, taking his fourth top-ten finish of the year and first since Darlington, eight races ago. It had been just as long for Jeremy Clements, who finished 9th in his #51 Spartan Waste / Fox Sports Chevrolet. Labbe’s teammate Josh Williams finished not far behind in 11th in the #92 Alloy / Sleep Well / StarTron Chevrolet, which along with his 11th on the Charlotte “Roval” were his best finishes since Mid-Ohio. Colin Garrett’s 14th-place run in Sam Hunt Racing’s #26 Veterans Grow America Toyota matched his career-best last year at Homestead, and J.J. Yeley’s 16th-place finish in the #17 Alcova Mortgage Chevrolet was his third Top 20 in his last four starts.

But the biggest standout had to be Landon Cassill, whose 12th-place finish was his best since the spring race at Darlington, and came after a frustrating six-race stretch where he failed to finish four times for various mechanical issues on his #4 Voyager Chevrolet.

David Starr finished 24th, and remains the 2021 LASTCAR XFINITY Series Championship leader by a single finish heading into next Saturday’s season finale in Phoenix. Only three drivers are still in contention to take the title: Brandon Jones, Gray Gaulding, and Bayley Currey. All three could take the title by finishing last at Phoenix, no matter where Starr finishes.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the first last-place finish for the #44 in a XFINITY race since October 14, 2011, when Jeff Green – then driving for TriStar Motorsports – scored his 26th series last-place run in the Dollar General 300 Miles of Courage at Charlotte due to electrical issues on his Spirit Halloween Chevrolet after 3 laps.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

40) #44-Tommy Joe Martins / 36 laps / rear gear

39) #74-Mike Harmon / 38 laps / overheating

38) #1-Michael Annett / 192 laps / crash

37) #10-Jeb Burton / 194 laps / crash

36) #68-Brandon Brown / 204 laps / crash

2021 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) B.J. McLeod Motorsports (5)

2nd) Mike Harmon Racing (4) 

3rd) Motorsports Business Management (3)

4th) DGM Racing, JD Motorsports, Jimmy Means Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing, JR Motorsports, Our Motorsports, RSS Racing / Reaume Brothers Racing (2)

5th) Brandonbilt Motorsports, Martins Motorsports / Alpha Prime Racing, Sam Hunt Racing, Rick Ware Racing / SS-Green Light Racing, SS-Green Light Racing, Stewart-Haas Racing (1)

2021 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (23)

2nd) Toyota (8)

3rd) Ford (1)

2021 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

TRUCKS: Chase Purdy’s “cremated” rear gear hands him first last-place finish

PHOTO: @GMSRacingLLC

Chase Purdy picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career in Saturday’s United Rentals 200 at the Martinsville Speedway when his #23 BamaBuggies.com Chevrolet fell out with rear gear issues after 33 of 204 laps.

The finish came in Purdy’s 29th series start. In the Truck Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 14th for rear gear issues, the 19th for the #23, and the 415th for Chevrolet. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 46th from rear gear trouble, the 68th for the #23, and the 1,814th for Chevrolet.

In this very race three years ago, the then 18-year-old from Meridian, Mississippi made his Truck Series debut driving for MDM Motorsports and finished a solid 21st. He was sponsored by Bama Buggies, the Alabama-based powersports dealer that has backed him since at least 2016, when he was racing late models. In 2017, he drove for David Gilliland full-time in what is now the ARCA Menards Series East, scoring five runner-up finishes and four consecutive poles en route to a 4th-place rank in points. He again ranked 4th when he joined MDM in the 2018 ARCA national series schedule, finishing 2nd at both Toledo and Gateway.

Following the closure of MDM Motorsports, Purdy found his way to GMS Racing las year, when he picked up a part-time schedule in the #24 entry. In his series return at Pocono, he finished 21st, then four rounds later enjoyed a career weekend in Kansas. He started on pole and took the checkers in 10th, his first career top-ten in a NASCAR national touring series race. After closing out the year with a 12th in Texas, Purdy secured a full-season ride with GMS for this year, taking over the #23.

This season, however, has been a struggle. In the first 14 races of the year, he finished no better than 15th, and scored here DNFs, ranking him just 19th in the standings. A positive COVID-19 test put him on the sidelines for the next round at Watkins Glen, where A.J. Allmendinger drove in his place. When he returned, he showed immediate improvement, taking a new career-best 6th when he rejoined at Gateway, and other than a mid-race crash at Bristol, he’d finished no worse than 15th in the four races since heading into Martinsville. The improvement also helped in metric qualifying, placing him 13th on the grid for Saturday.

Starting 40th and last was Roger Reuse, who was making just his third start on an oval and first-ever at Martinsville. Spotting for Reuse’s #49 WCIParts.com Ford was brother Bobby Reuse, who has frequently raced alongside his brother on the road courses. 

The only driver sent to the back was 30th-place starter Parker Kligerman for unapproved adjustments on his #75 Luck’s Beans Toyota. Reuse was told to pull ahead of Kligerman before the start, but ended up starting nine-tenths of a second behind him in 39th. Reuse had still gained a position as 38th-place starter Jesse Iwuji had dropped to the back in the #33 eRacing Association Toyota. This created open track between the final two starters with Reuse 6.002 seconds behind the leader and Iwuji 6.445 behind.

At the end of Lap 1, Reuse was running ahead of Iwuji until around Lap 4, when the #33 dropped him back to last place. “All right, hustle up,” said Reuse’s crew. “Let’s go get one.” By Lap 8, Reuse had already dropped to 18.276 seconds back of the leader, 1.115 seconds back of Iwuji, and was in immediate danger of losing a lap. This occurred on Lap 10, followed two circuits later by both Iwuji and 38th-place Jennifer Jo Cobb in the #10 Fastener Supply Co. Ford. Iwuji then caught Cobb in traffic, passing her for 38th on Lap 17. Reuse then dropped Cobb to last on Lap 20, by which point she was shown 3 laps down and one lap back of Reuse. Cobb was by then having brake problems, and radioed that she was pumping them on the 26th circuit.

On Lap 26, Halie Deegan suffered a flat left-front tire on her #1 Monster Ford after contact from Kligerman in a three-wide battle entering Turn 3. She slowed on the apron, then made it to pit road, and took over last place on Lap 31. It was on this same lap that Chase Purdy entered the last-place battle, making an unscheduled stop for something smoking in his truck. Believing it to be a gear issue, the team pushed Purdy behind the wall on Lap 37, and put his truck on jack stands behind the pit box. That same time by, Colby Howard, whose #9 Grant County Mulch Chevrolet didn’t fire at first after the command, also went to the garage with brake trouble. Purdy took last from Deegan on Lap 38 with Howard slipping to 39th soon after, the two trucks three laps apart.

On Lap 51, Howard’s crew believed they had the brake issue solved, and the driver pulled back onto pit road after the leaders pitted under the Stage 1 ending caution. But on that same lap, the pedal went to the floor again, and he returned to the garage, now four laps ahead of Purdy. There was little traffic on Purdy’s channel until Lap 58, when someone radioed “It just cremated it. The right-rear axle came out like it did at Daytona.” With that, NASCAR confirmed they were out of the race on that same lap.

Howard returned to the race and climbed to 38th, passing John Hunter Nemechek, whose #4 Pye-Barker Fire & Safety Toyota was eliminated in the day’s most controversial crash. After bumping Austin Wayne Self’s #22 Go Texan / AM Technical Solutions Chevrolet in Turn 1, Nemechek tried to pass him entering Turn 3. The two made contact, sending Nemechek head-on into the outside wall, ultimately done for the night. Cory Roper finished 37th after a pair of early spins in his #04 CarQuest Auto Parts Ford, and Jennifer Jo Cobb rounded out the Bottom Five, 14 laps down. Despite 14 cautions for 89 laps, Purdy and Nemechek turned out to be the day’s only two DNFs.

After dropping to the back of the field before the start, Parker Kligerman battled back to finish 6th, his best finish in eight starts at the track dating back to 2011. Two spots behind him came the #17 Ford of Taylor Gray, who earned his first top-ten finish in just his fourth series start. Timmy Hill finished 10th, his third top-ten finish of the year and first since the spring race at Darlington, doing so in a #56 Chevrolet without any sponsorship. Also surprising was the #45 Sherfick Companies Chevrolet of Las Vegas last-place finisher Chris Hacker, who in his only third series start finished a career-best 16th, improving on his previous mark of 27th in his series debut at Gateway.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the first last-place finish for the #23 in a Truck Series race at Martinsville. The number hadn’t finished last in a Truck Series race since November 11, 2016, when Spencer Gallagher took his own first last-place finish after 11 laps of the Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

40) #23-Chase Purdy / 33 laps / rear gear

39) #4-John Hunter Nemechek / 129 laps / crash / led 2 laps

38) #9-Colby Howard / 174 laps / running

37) #04-Cory Roper / 188 laps / running

36) #10-Jennifer Jo Cobb / 190 laps / running

2021 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Niece Motorsports (5)

2nd) GMS Racing (4)

3rd) Rackley-W.A.R., Reaume Brothers Racing (2)

4th) CMI Motorsports, Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing, Kyle Busch Motorsports, Norm Benning Racing, Roper Racing, Young’s Motorsports (1)

2021 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (16)

2nd) Toyota (3)

3rd) Ford (2)

2021 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

PREVIEW: Spooky paint schemes and some intrepid road racers among the stories at Martinsville

IMAGE: @raceartist

Saturday, October 30, 2021 (1:00 P.M. ET, FS1)

TRUCKS Race 21 of 22

Round of 8 – Race 3 of 3

United Rentals 200 at Martinsville

2020 Last-Place Finisher: Josh Reaume

ENTRY LIST

There are 41 drivers entered for 40 spots in Saturday's return of the Truck Series, which means Norm Benning will be the one competitor left on the outside looking in. 

HALLOWEEN PAINT SCHEMES

#20-Spencer Boyd

#26-Tyler Ankrum

#33-Jesse Iwuji

#34-Josh Reaume

DRIVER CHANGE: #3-Jordan Anderson Racing

Martinsville marks the Truck Series debut for Sage Karam, whose impressive first three XFINITY races featured a 16th-place run in the night race at Bristol. There, as here, Karam runs for Jordan Anderson, taking the place of the owner-driver who ran 11th last time out in Talladega.

DID NOT QUALIFY: #6-Norm Benning Racing

While Benning will not race Saturday, he is currently preparing to make the season finale next week in Phoenix.

DRIVER CHANGE: #9-CR7 Motorsports

Colby Howard makes his third Truck start of the year and first since the night race at Bristol, where he ran 15th following a 13th-place season debut in Darlington. Taking the place of team owner Codie Rohrbaugh, who finished 16th after a last-lap wreck in Talladega, Howard will make his first Martinsville start in the Truck Series, a track where he’s run just 25th and 39th in two XFINITY races.

DRIVER CHANGE: #11-Spencer Davis Motorsports

Spencer Davis will make his 8th Truck start of the season and first since Las Vegas, again piloting the #11 Inox Supreme Lubricants Toyota. He takes the place of Clay Greenfield, who ran 23rd after a late-race wreck in Tallaega.

RETURNING: #17-David Gilliland Racing

Taylor Gray returns for his fourth career Truck start and first since his 29th-place run at Bristol.

DRIVER CHANGE: #25-Rackley-W.A.R.

Josh Berry rejoins the Rackley team for the first time since his 11th-place run in the night race at Bristol as part of a double-duty effort at the track he won his first XFINITY race this past spring (see below). Berry takes the place of Willie Allen, whose return to the series for the first time in seven years yielded an 18th-place finish.

MISSING: #28-FDNY Racing

Bryan Dauzat and Jim Rosenblum’s FDNY Racing are not entered following the crash that left them next-to-last in Talladega.

DRIVER CHANGE: #33-Reaume Brothers Racing

Jesse Iwuji returns to the Truck Series for the first time since Texas in June, when he ran 28th in the Reaume Brothers’ #34. This week, he drives the team’s primary #33 in place of Canada’s Jason White, who ran 27th in Talladega, and carries sponsorship from eRacing Association.

DRIVER CHANGE: #34-Reaume Brothers Racing

Team owner Josh Reaume swept both last fall’s XFINITY and Truck Series last-place runs, and this weekend returns to action for the first time since his last-place run at Bristol in September. He takes the place of Dylan Lupton, who was one spot ahead of Jason White in 26th at Talladega. Hardy Boy Consulting is the listed sponsor.

DRIVER CHANGE: #41-Cram Racing Enterprises

On Wednesday, Keith McGee reported he was unable to secure funding for another race this year, meaning his career-best 10th-place finish at Talladega would be his final start of 2021. Dawson Cram will resume driving duties of his own #41 Be Water Chevrolet. Cram ran 35th in his most recent race at Bristol, where a crash before halfway left him 35th.

DRIVER CHANGE: #45-Niece Motorsports

Chris Hacker returns to the Truck Series for the first time since his last-place run in Las Vegas, and will again run in Al Niece’s #45, this time replacing 38th-place Talladega finisher Lawless Alan. Sherfick Companies debuts as team sponsor.

RETURNING: #49-CMI Motorsports

The Reuse brothers – Bobby and Roger – are most often seen running the occasional NASCAR road course race. But this Saturday, Roger Reuse will make only his third series start on an oval, following runs of 27th and 24th in the last two Gateway races. This also signals a return of Ray Ciccarelli’s team to the series for the first time since Keith McGee’s run in Las Vegas.

DRIVER CHANGE: #51-Kyle Busch Motorsports

Martinsville marks the third Truck Series start for Corey Heim, following a 23rd in the spring race at Darlington and a career-best 18th at Watkins Glen. He takes the place of a struggling Drew Dollar, who ran 35th in Talladega.

DRIVER CHANGE: #56-Hill Motorsports

Timmy Hill makes his 10th Truck start of the season and first since Bristol, taking the place of his brother, Talladega runner-up Tyler Hill. Timmy looks for his third top-ten finish of the year and matching his own series-best run in this race two years ago, when he ran 5th.

CUP INVADERS: None

Saturday, October 23, 2021 (6:00 P.M. ET, NBCSN)

XFINITY Race 32 of 33

Round of 8 – Race 3 of 3

Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville

2020 Last-Place Finisher: Josh Reaume

ENTRY LIST

There are 41 drivers entered for 40 spots on the XFINITY side as well, which again excludes the #13 Motorsports Business Management entry.

HALLOWEEN PAINT SCHEMES

#6-Ryan Vargas

#11-Justin Haley

#16-A.J. Allmendinger

#31-Josh Berry

#36-Alex Labbe

#51-Jeremy Clements

#90-Preston Pardus

#92-Josh Williams

TEAM UPDATE: #1-JR Motorsports

Michael Annett debuts a military-themed Pilot / Flying J Veterans Salute paint scheme that he will also run at Phoenix to close out his full-time XFINITY career. With his strong runs of late, Annett will roll off 6th in Saturday’s race, second only to outside polesitter Ty Gibbs among non-Playoff drivers.

DRIVER SWAP: #5-B.J. McLeod Motorsports

DRIVER CHANGE: #99-B.J. McLeod Motorsports

Fresh off his return to the Cup Series last Sunday in Kansas, Ryan Ellis will make his sixth XFINITY start of the season and first since Labor Day weekend in Darlington, when he ran 35th. His season-best run was in the spring Darlington race, where he took 16th. Ellis will make his first XFINITY start at Martinsville in McLeod’s #99, moving 25th-place Kansas finisher Matt Mills back to his familiar #5, replacing Mason Massey, who finished 37th after a crash.

DID NOT QUALIFY: #13-Motorsports Business Management

Timmy Hill had been entered in the #13 that will not start Saturday, but Hill will himself run double-duty in both the Truck Series for his own team and in Sunday’s Cup race for MBM (see below).

DRIVER CHANGE: #17-Rick Ware Racing / SS-Green Light Racing

Alcova Mortgage, J.J. Yeley’s sponsor from the spring race at Martinsville, will back him again on Saturday. Yeley replaces Garrett Smithley, 18th after a last-minute deal to run Kansas. In just three series starts here, Yeley has completed all but one lap, and was out front for five circuits in this race last year, crossing the line in 14th.

DRIVER CHANGE: #23-Our Motorsports

While saddled with a costly four-race suspension for both crew chief and car chief following the loss of ballast on pit road prior to the start of last week’s Kansas race, Our Motorsports looks to close out a strong year for their new second team. Driving this week is Natalie Decker – back in the car for the first time since Road America – replacing 24th-place Kanas runner Patrick Emerling. After being sponsored by several musicians in the Reaume Brothers Racing team’s portion of the #23’s schedule, Decker carries sponsorship from the film “The Manson Brothers’ Midnight Zombie Massacre” for the Halloween race.

DRIVER CHANGE: #26-Sam Hunt Racing

Colin Garrett makes only his fifth XFINITY start of the year and first since September at Darlington, where he ran 17th. Veterans Grow America backs the #26 Toyota this week as Garrett takes the place of Dylan Lupton, who ran 27th in Kansas.

DRIVER CHANGE: #31-Jordan Anderson Racing

Josh Berry looks for a season sweep at Martinsville during a packed Saturday schedule. Following his return to Rackley-W.A.R.’s Truck Series team, he’ll hop aboard Jordan Anderson’s XFINITY car, which welcomes Solid Rock Carriers as an associate sponsor.

DRIVER SWAP: #52-Jimmy Means Racing

DRIVER CHANGE: #90-DGM Racing

One of the biggest surprises in the XFINITY field has to be Preston Pardus, who has made all 13 of his previous XFINITY starts exclusively on road courses, most recently a career-best 7th on the Charlotte “Roval.” The Spec Miata champion will make his NASCAR oval debut on one of the most demanding on the schedule, taking the place of Spencer Boyd in Mario Gosselin’s #90. Boyd will also run Saturday, replacing Joey Gase in Jimmy Means’ #52 that finished last in Kansas. Sparrow Dynamics will back the Boyd effort.

SPONSOR UPDATE: #54-Joe Gibbs Racing

JGR enters the cryptocurrency sponsorship craze for the first time with Smile Coin as sponsor for last week's winner and newly crowned ARCA champion Ty Gibbs.

DRIVER CHANGE: #61-Motorsports Business Management

Stephen Leicht has seen his XFINITY schedule reduced significantly in 2021 with this marking only his seventh attempt of the year, and his fifth actual start. He’s looking to improve on his season-best 26th at Road America with returning sponsor Jani-King. Leicht’s only NASCAR national series start at Martinsville came nine years ago today, when he ran 34th for Circle Sport. Leicht takes the place of Loris Hezemans, who ran 32nd in Kansas.

DRIVER CHANGE: #74-Mike Harmon Racing

While no driver was listed to take the place of 39th-place Kansas finisher Gray Gaulding as of this writing, Sci Aps was listed as sponsor, likely indicating a return for the brand’s frequent choice, C.J. McLaughlin. UPDATE: As of Friday, MHR announced that Mike Harmon himself will be driving the car on Saturday.

DRIVER CHANGE: #78-B.J. McLeod Motorsports

Akinori Ogata will make his third career XFINITY Series start for a third different team, and will do so in his first -ever race at Martinsville. Ogata and sponsorship from Pneumatic Tools will run B.J. McLeod’s flagship #78, taking the place of 30th-place Kansas finisher Jesse Little.

CUP INVADERS: None

Sunday, October 24, 2021 (2:00 P.M. ET, NBC)

CUP Race 35 of 36

Round of 8 – Race 3 of 3

XFINITY 500 at Martinsville

2020 Last-Place Finisher: Garrett Smithley

ENTRY LIST

There are 38 drivers entered for 40 spots, marking the 26th short field in 35 races this season.

HALLOWEEN PAINT SCHEMES

#6-Ryan Newman

#38-Anthony Alfredo

#52-Josh Bilicki

#78-B.J. McLeod

MISSING: #13-Motorsports Business Management

David Starr is not entered in MBM’s second car this week following a 34th-place showing in Kansas. Starr will instead focus on Saturday’s XFINITY race, where he will again pilot the #66, and could potentially lock-up the 2021 LASTCAR XFINITY Series Championship.

DRIVER CHANGE: #15-Rick Ware Racing

Defending last-place finisher Garrett Smithley makes his 26th Cup start of the season and his fourth at Martinsville, where his best finish came in his track debut in 2019 taking 32nd in Rick Ware Racing’s #52. This time around, Smithley runs Ware’s #15, taking the place of 36th-place Kansas finisher Ryan Ellis, who is exclusively running XFINITY this week for B.J. McLeod. Boom Mobile rejoins as sponsor.

DRIVER CHANGE: #66-Motorsports Business Management

Timmy Hill will pull double-duty this weekend, taking the place of Chad Finchum, who is expected to run the Cup race at Phoenix. American Dream Leasing is the listed sponsor for Hill’s Toyota in what will be his 12th series start of the year and first since his 27th-place run at Texas tied his season-best finish.

MISSING: #96-Gaunt Brothers Racing

Parker Kligerman is only entered in Trucks this week for Henderson Motorsports after his breakout 20th-place Cup run last Sunday in Kansas.

TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (October 28, 2000): Phil Bonifield picked up the 9th last-place finish of his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career in the season finale, the Motorola 200 at the California Speedway, when his #23 Red Line Synthetic Oil Chevrolet lost the engine after 11 laps. Bonifield was among the 39 entrants for the 36-truck field. One of the three DNQs was Rick Ware, current owner of Rick Ware Racing, who entered his own #81 Chevrolet.

PREVIEW: LASTCAR Championship Clinch Scenarios for Martinsville

TRUCK SERIES

With Jack Wood the only two-time last-place finisher of 2021 following his run at Talladega, Wood can lock-up the LASTCAR Truck Series title on Saturday with a third last-place finish in Martinsville. 

Jennifer Jo Cobb, Norm Benning*, and Talladega winner Tate Fogleman all have more Bottom Fives than Wood, and can each take the lead simply by finishing last at Martinsville. If Wood does not finish last at Martinsville, all three will still have a chance at the title if they finish last at Phoenix, regardless of where Wood finishes.

Chandler Smith can also take the lead from Wood by finishing last at Martinsville, but only if Wood doesn’t finish in the Bottom Five (thus taking a 4-3 lead in Bottom Fives). Unlike Cobb, Benning, and Fogleman, whether Smith will still be in contention at Phoenix after not finishing last at Martinsville depends on where Wood finishes on Saturday.

All remaining drivers with one last-place finish can only take the lead by finishing last at both Martinsville and Phoenix. Each will be eliminated if they do not finish last on Saturday.

If Wood does not finish last at Martinsville, at least 16 drivers who have yet to score a last-place finish would still be in mathematical contention if they finish last at both Martinsville and Phoenix, including Johnny Sauter, who has just one Bottom Five and four Bottom Tens.

*ENTRY LIST UPDATE: Norm Benning is the 41st entry for Saturday's race and the lone DNQ, meaning he can only take the lead at Phoenix by finishing last if Wood does not finish last and Cobb does not finish in the Bottom Five. Benning has confirmed he will run Phoenix, and is accepting sponsorship from fans. The one-time last-place finishers not entered are Timothy Peters, Cameron Lawrence, Conor Daly, James Buescher, Morgan Alexander, Ross Chastain, Ryan Reed, and William Byron. All other drivers with at least one last-place finish will start the race.

XFINITY SERIES

With two races to go, David Starr remains the only driver with three last-place finishes in this year’s XFINITY Series season, and picked up his sixth Bottom Five and eighth Bottom Ten last week in Kansas. Still, the only way he can lock-up the 2021 title at Martinsville is by finishing last. 

Brandon Jones and Gray Gaulding** both have more Bottom Fives than Starr and can take the lead simply by finishing last at Martinsville. 

Bayley Currey can also take the lead from Starr with a last-place run at Martinsville as he has more Bottom Tens than any of the top three. 

If Jones, Gaulding, and Currey do not finish last at Martinsville - and neither does Starr - all three may still have a chance at beating Starr in Phoenix, depending on where Starr finishes.

Brett Moffitt, Noah Gragson, Matt Mills, Joe Graf, Jr., Ryan Vargas, and Alex Labbe can only claim the title by sweeping both Martinsville and Phoenix, and may need extra help with Starr not picking up any more Bottom Fives or Bottom Tens. All six will be eliminated if they do not finish last on Saturday.

All other drivers ranked from C.J. McLaughlin and lower have been mathematically eliminated.

**ENTRY LIST UPDATE: Gray Gaulding is not entered in Saturday's race, but so long as David Starr, Brandon Jones, or Bayley Currey do not finish last, he could still take the title with a last-place run in Phoenix. All other drivers still in mathematical contention are all entered and will start the race.

CUP SERIES

The closest LASTCAR championship battle remains in the Cup Series, where Aric Almirola leads by a single Bottom Ten finish over Kurt Busch and by a single Bottom Five over Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. Almirola, Busch, and Stenhouse are the only three drivers with three last-place finishes this season. (UPDATE: Oct. 27): Any one of these three may be able to lock-up the championship by finishing last at Martinsville, but that depends on where the other two finish.

Directly behind them are four drivers with two last-place finishes – Justin Haley, Joey Gase, Ryan Newman, and Timmy Hill. All four of these drivers have more Bottom Fives and Bottom Tens than any of the lead trio, meaning any of them can take the lead in the standings simply by finishing last at Martinsville (or at Phoenix, if none of the Top 3 finish badly at Martinsville).

Josh Bilicki, Quin Houff, Cody Ware, Anthony Alfredo, Corey LaJoie, and James Davison*** each have one finish, and will be eliminated from LASTCAR championship contention if they do not finish last at Martinsville. These six drivers all have the same number or more Bottom Fives and Bottom Tens than anyone ahead of them, but can only compete if any one of them finishes last at both Martinsville and Phoenix.

Ryan Preece, Cole Custer, Michael McDowell, Chris Buescher, and Kyle Busch also have an outside chance at winning the title by sweeping both Martinsville and Phoenix, depending on where the drivers ahead of them finish. 

All drivers ranked from Chase Elliott and lower have been mathematically eliminated.

***ENTRY LIST UPDATE: Among those drivers still in mathematical contention, only James Davison is not entered. With only one last-place finish, he is eliminated from title contention.

ARCA: “Family” turn of events lead to Wayne Peterson in Brad Smith’s car at Kansas

ALL PHOTOS: @DnfRacers

by William Soquet
LASTCAR.info Staff Writer

Wayne Peterson finished last for the 49th time in his ARCA Menards Series career in Saturday’s Reese’s 150 at Kansas Speedway when his #48 A Story Worth Living Chevrolet did not start the race.

The finish came in Peterson’s 144th series attempt and was his first since Elko earlier this season, eleven races ago.

The story of Wayne Peterson’s last-place finish begins with Brad Smith. A confluence of factors were shaping up to make this weekend one of the best for Smith in recent memory. At the end of August, volunteer crew member Colby Evans created a GoFundMe to try and fund Smith for a full race allotment of tires. The goal was $2,000, and by the week of the race, the fundraiser had raised $3,800, nearly double the goal. Donations also rolled in from around the ARCA community, with team owner David Richmond and driver Zachary Tinkle chipping in. Additionally, the upcoming movie "A Story Worth Living" signed on as a quarter panel sponsor for the #48 team and used some footage of the car in the movie. On top of all that, content network Super Cars Today signed on as the hood sponsor for the car, bringing in additional funding for a team that has been perpetually short on it. The team was primed for one of its best runs of the season with perhaps the most single-race funding available in a long, long time.

On the flip side, there was also a lot happening with Wayne Peterson’s team. After a crash at Salem destroyed one car, Richmond Racing driver Zachary Tinkle was planning on running the David Gilliland Racing car that was gifted to the team after Thad Moffitt triggered a crash that ended in a broken tibia and a broken ankle for Tim Richmond. However, Tinkle was later informed that the gifted chassis was a restrictor plate chassis and was being saved for Richmond’s return at Daytona in 2022. In order to still run the race to accrue experience and keep both teams up in owner points, Tinkle then hopped behind the wheel of Wayne Peterson’s black Ford chassis using Richmond Racing’s number, 27. This was in addition to Peterson rolling out his white Chevrolet with the hallmark #06 on the side. Peterson later arrived at the track in a Penske Rent-A-Truck, epitomizing the shoestring nature of the team.

In total, 26 cars populated the initial entry list - a number that later dropped to 24 following the withdrawals of the family teams owned by Ryan Huff and Justin Carroll. Still, 24 was four more entries than the spring race at Kansas this year and six more entries than last year’s season finale. 

Along with the aforementioned Smith, Peterson, and Tinkle, several interesting storylines emerged. Rev Racing’s ARCA East driver, Rajah Caruth, made the step up to the main ARCA series, competing beside his full-time teammate, Nick Sanchez. IMSA driver Parker Chase took over the reins of Venturini Motorsport’s #25 car, and the team entered a fourth entry for Toni Briedinger, the #55. 

A number of part-time teams entered cars: Connor Mosack with Young’s Motorsports, Kris Wright with Rette Jones Racing, Dean Thompson with Niece Motorsports, and Kyle Sieg with RSS Racing. Family teams included Eric Caudell’s team, Greg Van Alst’s, and Andy Jankowiak’s. 

A couple full-time teams shuffled entries: Scott Melton took over Kimmel Racing’s #69 and J.P. Bergeron returned to David Gilliland Racing’s #46 car. Fast Track Racing filled its flagship #10 with South African pilot Arnout Kok, the #11 with Ron Vandermeir Jr., who had previously campaigned his own entry in ARCA competition, the #12 with Tony Cosentino, and the #01 car with D.L. Wilson, who brought his own chassis to the team this year. There was even a fifth Fast Track entry, the #66, for Kyle Lockrow, the lone series debut of the race. Lockrow's car was prepared by Fast Track Racing, but run with Ron Vandermeir Jr.’s owner points, a spin on the scenario last year when Corey Heim took a Venturini-prepared car with Fast Track owner points to victory lane at Kansas.

The promising stories each played out differently. Smith’s went awry early on. On the third lap of practice, the rocker arm on the #48 broke, seemingly ending the day for the team. The team announced that the names of everybody who donated to the tires GoFundMe would be on the car at Daytona instead. However, the ARCA community, just like it has so many times before, stepped up and made the best out of a bad situation.

Peterson never took a lap in practice or qualifying and did not start the race. Of the cars that took time, Kok was the slowest in practice, and Smith was the slowest in qualifying. As expected, both sessions were led by Ty Gibbs. Despite never hitting the track at all during the weekend, Peterson was still credited as a “did not start” on the official results, earning 20 points while being listed as the driver of the #48 car.

At the green flag, Tinkle was last on-track, his black #27 on the outside of Smith’s #06. Tinkle quickly climbed into the top 20, whereas Smith remained the last car on the track, falling about seventeen seconds behind before parking the car after four laps of racing. Three Fast Track cars of Cosentino, Lockrow and Kok all completed less than a quarter of the race, citing various mechanical issues.

With the last-place finish, Peterson became the only driver with two last-place finishes this year. Owen Smith won the LASTCAR championship as the only driver with three. Chevrolet clinched the title with the last-place finish, and Fast Track Racing had already clinched the owners championship for 2021. The championship was the second in a row for Smith, Chevrolet, and Fast Track.

THE ILLUSTRATED BOTTOM FIVE

24) #48-Wayne Peterson / 0 laps / did not start

23) #06-Brad Smith / 4 laps / vibration

22) #12-Tony Cosentino / 12 laps / brakes

21) #66-Kyle Lockrow / 21 laps / engine

20) #10-Arnout Kok / 23 laps / rear end

2021 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES MANUFACTURERS CHAMPIONSHIP - FINAL

1st) Chevrolet (8)

2nd) Ford, Toyota (6)

2021 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES OWNERS CHAMPIONSHIP - FINAL

1st) Fast Track Racing (8)

2nd) Smith Brothers Racing, Young’s Motorsports (2)

3rd) Bull Racing, Greg Van Alst Racing, Kimmel Racing, Kovski Racing, Rette Jones Racing, Richmond-Clubb Motorsports, Visconti Motorsports, Wayne Peterson Racing (1)

2021 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP - FINAL

NOTE: In total, 120 drivers made at least one ARCA Menards Series start in 2021, of which 83 had at least one Bottom Ten finish. The Top 20 in the LASTCAR standings are shown below:

CUP: Handling woes drop Chad Finchum below minimum speed at Kansas; Parker Kligerman impresses in 20th

PHOTO: @StartAndParkCar

Chad Finchum picked up the 2nd last-place finish of his NASCAR Cup Series career in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at the Kansas Speedway when his #66 Smithbilt Homes Toyota fell out with handling issues after 47 of 267 laps.

The finish, which came in Finchum’s sixth career start, was his first of the season and first in a Cup race since September 27, 2020 at Las Vegas, 40 races ago. In the Cup Series last-place rankings, it was the 55th for handling issues, the 65th for the #66, and the 172nd for Toyota. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 83rd for the #66, the 126th from handling, and the 367th for Toyota.

Last year, the Tennessee-born Finchum was showing steady signs of improvement. While he failed to qualify for his first attempt at the Daytona 500, he scored six finishes inside the Top 20 during his third season running the majority of the XFINITY Series schedule for Carl Long’s team Motorsports Business Management. These runs were capped by a career-best 11th in the fall race at Talladega and a 16th in Kentucky. By September, he was making his first Cup starts since 2018, all three of which in a second MBM entry that had been Timmy Hill’s “throwback” car at Darlington. The #49 ran no better than 35th, and twice dropped out with mechanical issues.

In 2021, Finchum has been much less present in the XFINITY Series. He’d made just six starts in the series heading into the October Kansas weekend, but again turned in a strong run with a 15th in Charlotte. There was also only a one-off attempt on the Cup side, when the series returned to the Nashville Superspeedway. 

After failing to qualify for the XFINITY race, Finchum started Nashville’s Cup race in a Toyota the team bought from Joe Gibbs Racing last year. Finchum ended up dropping out of the race due to a vibration, one that seemed to be due to the steering box. After the box was replaced, J.J. Yeley ran the car at Las Vegas, where he had the same issue, citing handling problems that made the car difficult to drive. This drew the team’s focus to a custom-made adaptor made so their bearings could fit the car’s spindles. Finchum would again drive this car in Kansas, where it was decorated in the same scheme from Nashville. The team certainly hoped the issue from both Nashville and Vegas had been resolved.

At Kansas, as at Nashville, Finchum would be teamed up with the second MBM car, the #13 Brown & Brown Dealer Services Ford of David Starr. Starr’s car ran the same paint scheme he campaigned on the #66 last week in Texas, but with the numbers and sponsors changed. Finchum would roll off 37th, one spot ahead of Starr.

Rolling off 40th and last was Parker Kligerman, who was likewise making his first Cup start in some time. Following a successful ad campaign with Fast.co at Watkins Glen, the company rejoined Kligerman at Gaunt Brothers Racing, placing QR codes for $1 hoodies on each corner of his #96 Toyota. The result would be Kligerman’s first Cup start since Texas n November 3, 2019, and the first for the Gaunt Brothers since this past August in Daytona.

Pre-race penalties sent three drivers to the rear, including 19th-place Chase Briscoe for unapproved adjustments on his #14 DeKalb Ford. Technical inspection also caught both 31st-place Ryan Newman in the #6 Violet Defense Ford and 35th-place Quin Houff in the #00 Creek / Chariton Chevrolet. Houff’s car failed inspection three times, meaning he’d have to serve a pass-through penalty after the green flag. Joey Gase also surrendered 39th on the grid to drop to the rear in the #53 Donor Network Chevrolet, but Houff crossed the line in last place, 3.862 seconds back of the leader to Gase’s 3.764.

On the first lap, Gase pulled away from Houff in the high lane as Houff made it down pit road, completing the circuit 18.364 second back of the leader and 11.732 behind Gase. He returned to the track on the apron to start Lap 3, letting the leaders go by to lap him. As Houff blended back into traffic, B.J. McLeod pitted his #78 NASCAR Ignition Ford, citing a tire rub. McLeod took last from Houff as he dropped two laps down, and there was a close call in Turns 3 and 4 when Denny Hamlin broke loose as McLeod ran the inside of a three-wide battle in traffic. Soon after, the caution fell for a pop-up rain shower, giving Houff the Lucky Dog as the field stopped on pit road under red.

Under the red flag, McLeod’s crew talked about making further repairs to the right-front fender, then the left-rear quarter panel. This was done when the race went back to caution, where one crewman brought out a baseball bat to make the repair. Too many crewmen were over the wall for this stop, and McLeod had to drop behind the only car that was trailing him, Ryan Preece, who was soon after shown with damage to the nose of his #37 Louisana Hot Sauce Chevrolet. With that, McLeod now took the green as the only driver off the lead lap, and Houff back on the same lap as the leaders.

During this run, Chad Finchum’s #66 was the last driver on the lead lap, and on Lap 19 was already 15.771 back of the leader, 6.225 back of 38th-place Gase. Finchum was about to lose a lap to the leaders when Kyle Busch slowed in Turns 1 and 2 after he bounced off the wall due to a flat tire on his #18 M&M’s Halloween Toyota. Busch dropped to 39th on Lap 24, then gained a few spots back during the ensuing pit stops before taking 39th again following a second stop under yellow. McLeod also earned one of his two laps back with the Lucky Dog.

Finchum (center) pulls behind the wall after
he was parked by NASCAR.
PHOTO: @DnfRacers

Back under green on Lap 38, Finchum was black flagged by NASCAR for not meeting minimum speed. The driver would later report that he could only stay at full throttle for two laps until the tires came up to temperature, and that each lap after the car was pushing too tight in the corners. He was 38th when he pitted for adjustments, just as Brad Keselowski made an unscheduled stop for a cut tire following contact with the wall in his #2 Discount Tire Ford. As Keselowski dropped into the Bottom Five, Finchum took last from McLeod on Lap 42 and returned to the track three laps down, soon to be four down. By then, the crew had bolted on four tires with white rims in place of the usual black.

On Lap 51, NASCAR radioed Finchum that he had failed to meet minimum speed a second time, and would have to pull into the garage, done for the day. The message was quickly relayed by the team, and he was shown pulling into the garage on Lap 53, just as still another Playoff driver in Martin Truex, Jr. made it to pit road with a flat right-rear tire on his #19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota. In the garage, Finchum debriefed with his team, saying he didn’t feel a vibration and the steering worked well, even saying he had Top 25 speed before the car started skating around the track. On Lap 72, NASCAR officials mistakenly declared Houff out instead of Finchum, a message that was then corrected. Houff finished 35th, 12 laps down.

Finishing 39th was Justin Haley, who along with Spire Motorsports teammate Corey LaJoie ran a fictional paint scheme from the 1983 film “Stroker Ace.” Haley’s #77 Circle B Diecast Chevrolet, resembling the car of character Aubrey James, lost the engine after 165 laps. Corey LaJoie ran 25th in Stroker’s #7. Anthony Alfredo took 38th after his #38 Speedy Cash Ford hit the frontstretch wall. Ryan Blaney looked assured of a solid rank in the Playoffs until contact from a sliding Austin Dillon put his #12 Menards / Cardell Cabinetry Ford into the outside wall in Turn 2, ending his race. 

Rounding out the group was Ryan Ellis, back in the Cup Series for the first time since November 6, 2016. Following last-lap contact from Cody Ware in this year’s XFINITY race where Ellis spun out of a good finish, the Rick Ware Racing team put Ellis in their #15 Arrowhead Brass Chevrolet, which ended up the last car to finish under power. 

Parker Kligerman Finishes Fast 20th For Gaunt Brothers

The most surprising run in Sunday’s race belonged to Parker Kligerman, who after the aforementioned 40th-place starting spot surged toward the Top 20. With five laps to go in Stage 1, he was in 17th spot, the last car on the lead lap. After race leader Kyle Larson lapped both he and Chase Briscoe, Kligerman caught and raced him for the Lucky Dog, prevailing in a close finish at the stripe. Kligerman remained in 17th on Lap 108, and while he did lose a lap for a second time, he held on to finish in 20th. This was the best finish for the Gaunt Brothers since Harrison Burton ran 20th at Talladega this past spring, and the best for Kligerman in a non-superspeedway race since he ran 13th for Swan Racing on November 3, 2013 – his Cup debut.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the first last-place finish for the #66 in a Cup race at Kansas since October 21, 2018, when Timmy Hill’s turn in the #66 Ternio Toyota ended with a blown backup engine after 3 laps.

*This marked the first time a Cup driver finished last at Kansas due to handling issues since October 22, 2017, when Derrike Cope fell out after 35 laps in the series debut for StarCom Racing.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

40) #66-Chad Finchum / 47 laps / handling

39) #77-Justin Haley / 165 laps / engine

38) #38-Anthony Alfredo / 171 laps / crash

37) #12-Ryan Blaney / 224 laps / crash

36) #15-Ryan Ellis / 254 laps / running

2021 LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Rick Ware Racing (6)

2nd) JTG-Daugherty Racing, Motorsports Business Management, Spire Motorsports, Stewart-Haas Racing (4)

3rd) Chip Ganassi Racing, Roush-Fenway Racing (3)

4th) Front Row Motorsports (2)

5th) Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, StarCom Racing (1)

2021 LASTCAR CUP SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (18)

2nd) Ford (11)

3rd) Toyota (5)

2021 LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

XFINITY: Electrical issues shut down Joey Gase’s Kansas race after 2 laps

PHOTO: @StartAndParkCar

Joey Gase picked up the 6th last-place finish of his NASCAR XFINITY Series career in Saturday’s Kansas Lottery 300 at the Kansas Speedway when his unsponsored #52 Jimmy Means Racing Chevrolet fell out with electrical problems after 2 of 200 laps.

The finish, which came in Gase’s 249th series start, was his first of the season and first in a XFINITY Series race since April 27, 2019 at Talladega, 88 races ago. In the XFINITY Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 24th for the #52, the 57th from electrical problems, and the 583rd for Chevrolet. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 62nd for the #52, the 134th for electrical issues, and the 1,813th for Chevrolet.

Gase entering pit road early in the race.
PHOTO: Dominic Aragon, @TheRacnExperts

While Gase has continued to increase his presence in the Cup Series, he’s significantly scaled back his XFINITY schedule over the last two years. After parting ways with Motorsports Business Management at the end of a full-time 2019 campaign, he made just four starts last year, splitting time between RSS Racing, B.J. McLeod Motorsports, and SS-Green Light Racing. His 2021 debut came at Talladega, where he’d run a Davey Allison “throwback” scheme in both the Cup and XFINITY races, each for Rick Ware Racing. His remaining XFINITY starts have all come with Jimmy Means Racing.

JMR opened the season with Gray Gaulding set for a second full-time campaign, but the year proved particularly challenging. While Gaulding finished 17th at Mid-Ohio and 18th under the lights at Bristol, he also failed to qualify four times, and his schedule was scaled back. This opened the door for other drivers to bring much-needed sponsorship, including Spencer Boyd, Akinori Ogata, and road racer Dave Smith. By the fall race at Las Vegas, Rick Ware Racing entered a car in Means’ place, bringing it to the track with one of the Cup cars and putting Carson Ware behind the wheel. Gase then brought a Ford of his own for Talladega, which yielded a 15th-place run, the team’s new season-best. But by then, the team had announced they were still looking for sponsors for the season’s final five races.

Gase pulls up to the team's hauler.
PHOTO: @DnfRacers

Just last week, Gase finished 30th at Texas with Donate Life Texas on the hood of Means’ #52. The paint scheme for Kansas was identical to the Texas car, though without the sponsorship logos in place. He would line up 37th in Saturday’s field of 40.

Rolling off 40th and last in Saturday’s field was Gray Gaulding, whose Mike Harmon Racing #74 Chevrolet has had similar sponsorship struggles in this second half of the season, limiting Bayley Currey’s own planned full-time effort. While Currey would finish 16th on Saturday with JD Motorsports, Gaulding would run the same Sci Aps paint scheme base most often used by C.J. McLaughlin, but with no logos on the hood and a decal for the local KOA campground on the quarter-panels. Findlay Cadillac was Gaulding’s listed sponsor on the entry list.

 

Gaulding would be joined in the back by two teams docked for driver changes. Loris Hezemans was swapped into MBM’s #61 Autoparts4less.com Toyota, replacing the listed Chad Finchum in the 36th spot, and 39th-place Garrett Smithley was named to the #17 Jacob Companies Toyota following Wednesday’s news involving Carson Ware’s arrest and subsequent indefinite suspension from NASCAR and both SS-Green Light Racing and Rick Ware Racing. Smithley would finish a solid 18th.

After some delays for both Hezemans and Jordan Anderson in the #31 Bommarito Automotive Group Chevrolet getting ready on pit road, Gaulding radioed that some spacers fell out of Patrick Emerling’s 34th-place #23 Spirit Snorkeling Chevrolet. He made requests for NASCAR to force Emerling back to pit road as the #23 crew retrieved the spacers from pit road, but there was no indication that anything was communicated to Emerling. Emerling's crew chief and car chief would both be handed four-race supensions for the issue after the race. 

Gaulding took the green flag ahead of the penalized Hezemans and Smithley, though Hezemans beat Gaulding to the line for 37th.

Gaulding in the garage with engine trouble.
He'd finish in 39th.
PHOTO: @StartAndParkCar

When the race started, however, last place had immediately gone to Gase, who was 6.259 seconds back of the lead and nearly two full seconds back of 39th-place Smithley as the field took the green. As Gase made it to pit road to complete Lap 1, NASCAR was checking with their spotters to see if there was any debris on the track. By the time Gase crossed the line, he was already 27.887 seconds back of the lead and 21.341 seconds back of new 39th-place driver Hezemans. On Lap 3, Gase was rolling again, but was told to “stay very low” as the leaders raced past him in the high lane. He was then called to pit road a second time on Lap 5, and pulled behind the wall. The crew radioed they were done for the day on Lap 10, followed two laps later by the confirming message from NASCAR’s garage official.

Gaulding ended up 39th when his engine let go before he could make it to the competition caution on Lap 20. LASTCAR XFINITY Series championship leader David Starr pulled into the garage after 23 laps with a misfire in the engine, but his #66 Brett Baier “To Rescue The Republic” Ford returned to the track before the halfway point and passed two more drivers. These were Jade Buford, who slammed head-on into the trioval wall, ending his race in the #48 Big Machine Spiked Coolers Chevrolet, and Mason Massey, who made it to pit road after a cut right-front tire put his #5 Gerber Collision & Glass Toyota into the fence, only to fall out. Starr crossed the finish line just in front of race winner Ty Gibbs, 48 laps down, but still under power.

LASTCAR STATISTICS

*This marked the first last-place finish for both Gase and the #52 in a XFINITY Series race at Kansas.

*Gase is the fourth driver to finish last in a XFINITY race at Kansas due to electrical issues and the first since October 15, 2016, when Timmy Hill dropped out after 11 laps.

THE BOTTOM FIVE

40) #52-Joey Gase / 2 laps / electrical

39) #74-Gray Gaulding / 13 laps / engine

38) #48-Jade Buford / 28 laps / crash

37) #5-Mason Massey / 133 laps / crash

36) #66-David Starr / 152 laps / running

2021 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) B.J. McLeod Motorsports (5)

2nd) Mike Harmon Racing (4) 

3rd) Motorsports Business Management (3)

4th) DGM Racing, JD Motorsports, Jimmy Means Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing, JR Motorsports, Our Motorsports, RSS Racing / Reaume Brothers Racing (2)

5th) Brandonbilt Motorsports, Sam Hunt Racing, Rick Ware Racing / SS-Green Light Racing, SS-Green Light Racing, Stewart-Haas Racing (1)

2021 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

1st) Chevrolet (22)

2nd) Toyota (8)

3rd) Ford (1)

2021 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

PREVIEW: Kansas sees the Cup return of Ellis, Kligerman, Finchum, and "Stroker Ace"

IMAGE: @SpireMotorsport

Saturday, October 23, 2021 (3:00 P.M. NBC)

XFINITY Race 31 of 33

Round of 8 – Race 2 of 3

Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas

2020 Last-Place Finisher: Noah Gragson

ENTRY LIST

There are 41 drivers entered for 40 spots, and under metric qualifying, the #13 team is once again not in the field. 

LASTCAR CHAMPIONSHIP UPDATE

In the LASTCAR XFINITY Series Championship, no driver is in position to lock-up the title on Saturday. However, if current leader David Starr finishes last, the only remaining contenders would be two-time last-placers Brandon Jones, Bayley Currey, Gray Gaulding, Brett Moffitt, and Noah Gragson. Those five drivers would then only be able to take the title by sweeping the last-place finishes at Martinsville and Phoenix. Of that group, Gragson and Moffitt may need extra help if Starr earns more Bottom Fives or Bottom Tens.

DID NOT QUALIFY: #13-Motorsports Business Management

Timmy Hill was the listed driver for the MBM #13 team’s 13th consecutive DNQ and 17th overall this season. Hill will likewise not run Sunday’s Cup race (see below).

DRIVER CHANGE: #17-Rick Ware Racing / SS-Green Light Racing

The preliminary entry list showed Carson Ware in place of Texas last-place finisher J.J. Yeley with Jacob Companies as sponsor. That changed Wednesday with news of Ware’s arrest on misdemeanor charges, leading to his indefinite suspension. SS-Green Light Racing made a statement indicating Garrett Smithley will drive, his first XFINITY start since a 19th earlier this month at Talladega.

DRIVER CHANGE: #23-Our Motorsports

Patrick Emerling returns for his third XFINITY start of the season and first since last month in Richmond, where he ran 32nd. He will again be sponsored by Spirit Snorkeling. Emerling takes the place of Tanner Berryhill, who finished 37th after he was involved in a wreck at Texas.

DRIVER CHANGE: #31-Jordan Anderson Racing

Following the 15th-place finish by Kaz Grala in a Halloween-themed car at Texas, team owner Jordan Anderson is back behind the wheel of his own #31 for the first time since his season-best 5th in Talladega. This will be Anderson’s first XFINITY start in Kansas.

PAINT SCHEME: #44-Martins Motorsports

Tommy Joe Martins will run a second "preview" scheme of the soon-to-be rebranded Alpha Prime Racing in 2022 - a "Stealth Fighter" scheme on his #44 Alpha Prime Chevrolet. The last time Martin ran a similar scheme was last month at Richmond, where he nearly won Stage 1.

DRIVER CHANGE: #54-Joe Gibbs Racing

Ty Gibbs and sponsorship from Monster Energy return to the #54 team that cruised to victory in Texas, where John Hunter Nemechek led 92 of 200 laps. After a breakout part-time season with three wins, Gibbs has only once finished in the Top 10 since his most recent victory at Watkins Glen – a 7th in Richmond.

DRIVER CHANGE: #61-Motorsports Business Management

Chad Finchum was originally entered in MBM’s #61 Autoparts4less.com Toyota, taking the place of Austin Hill who ran 20th in the Hattori Racing Enterprises partnership at Texas. It would have been Finchum’s 7th start of the year and first since the night race at Bristol, but he’ll be running Cup on Sunday instead. By Wednesday, Loris Hezemans was swapped into his XFINITY ride, rejoining the team for the first time since his 35th-place run on the Charlotte “Roval.”

MANUFACTURER CHANGE: #66-Motorsports Business Management

David Starr remains in the #66, which is a Ford for just the eighth time in 2021. The previous seven were in the spring Las Vegas race, July in Atlanta, both Darlington races, and the four superspeedway events.

DRIVER CHANGE: #74-Mike Harmon Racing

Gray Gaulding is back in the #74 for the first time since his last-place run on the Charlotte “Roval,” taking the place of C.J. McLaughlin, who was 35th after a difficult race in Texas. McLaughlin’s sponsor Sci Aps is still the listed backer.

CUP INVADERS: None

Sunday, October 24, 2021 (3:00 P.M. ET, NBCSN)

CUP Race 34 of 36

Round of 8 – Race 2 of 3

Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas

2020 Last-Place Finisher: Matt Kenseth

ENTRY LIST

For the first time since Talladega, and for only the ninth time all year, there are exactly 40 drivers entered for as many starting spots in a Cup Series race.

LASTCAR CHAMPIONSHIP UPDATE

The LASTCAR Cup Series Championship remains wide-open heading into Kansas, where Aric Almirola, Kurt Busch, and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. each have a season-leading three last-place finishes and are practically tied in Bottom Fives and Bottom Tens. The next 10 drivers in the standings all have more Bottom Fives and Bottom Tens than the three leaders. Of them, Justin Haley, Joey Gase, Ryan Newman, and Timmy Hill only need one last-place finish to take the lead. Josh Bilicki, Quin Houff, Cody Ware, Anthony Alfredo, Corey LaJoie, and James Davison need two.

PAINT SCHEME: #7-Spire Motorsports

PAINT SCHEME: #77-Spire Motorsports

Plan B Diecast will sponsor a pair of "throwback" paint schemes representing the cars driven by actors Burt Reynolds and Parker Stevenson in the 1983 film "Stroker Ace." Corey LaJoie will run the red #7 of the title character while Justin Haley stands in for nemesis Aubrey James in the #77.

DRIVER SWAP: #13-Motorsports Business Management

DRIVER CHANGE: #66-Motorsports Business Management

Chad Finchum will make only his second Cup start of the year and first since Nashville, where he ran 33rd. Finchum will again run the #66 for MBM with sponsor Smithbilt Homes, moving David Starr – 23rd in Texas - to the #13 in place of 27th-place finisher Timmy Hill, who isn’t entered. Both drivers will run Fords in place of their typical Toyotas. Starr will make his first Cup start at Kansas.

DRIVER CHANGE: #15-Rick Ware Racing

Welcome back Ryan Ellis, who on Sunday will make his first Cup start since November 6, 2016. This time, he’ll take the pace of Garrett Smithley, who ran 24th last Sunday. Smithley will not run Sunday’s race, but has since been swapped into the #17 XFINITY ride (see above). According to an article by Joseph Srigley, Ellis’ deal to run this Sunday came about after the XFINITY race at Mid-Ohio, where contact from Cody Ware accidentally sent Ellis spinning out of a career-best finish.

RETURNING: #96-Gaunt Brothers Racing

Parker Kligerman makes his own return to the Cup Series for the first time since November 3, 2019 at Texas, and will run for the Gaunt Brothers, which hasn’t started a Cup race since Landon Cassill’s 24th-place run earlier this month at Talladega. Kligerman will bring sponsor Fast Checkout into the Cup Series for the first time. Following up driver and sponsor’s successful promotion at Watkins Glen, Kligerman’s car is decorated in QR codes for fans to purchase the company’s $1 hoodie sweatshirts.

Saturday, October 30, 2021

TRUCKS Race 21 of 22

Round of 8 – Race 3 of 3

United Rentals 200 at Martinsville

2020 Last-Place Finisher: Josh Reaume

LASTCAR CHAMPIONSHIP UPDATE

With Jack Wood the only two-time last-place finisher of 2021 following his run at Talladega, and with two races left to go, Wood can lock-up the LASTCAR Truck Series title with a third last-place finish in Martinsville. Jennifer Jo Cobb, Norm Benning, and Talladega winner Tate Fogleman all have more Bottom Fives than Wood, and can take the lead by finishing last at Martinsville. All remaining drivers with one last-place finish can take the lead by finishing last at both Martinsville and Phoenix. If Wood remains the leader after Martinsville, at least 16 drivers who have yet to score a last-place finish would still be in mathematical contention if they finish last at both Martinsville and Phoenix, including Johnny Sauter, who has just one Bottom Five and four Bottom Tens.

TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (October 21, 2000): Hank Parker, Jr. picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Busch Series career when his #53 Team Marines Chevrolet crashed in Turn 3 after 24 laps of the Sam’s Club 200 at Rockingham. The race, which came in Parker’s 60th series start, was the first last-place run for the #53 in a Busch Series race since April 20, 1985 with Ronnie Thomas at South Boston, and the last until Max Tullman at Mid-Ohio on August 10, 2019.