Skip to content

In The Know – Phoenix

NASCAR CUP SERIES OVERVIEW:

●  Event:  NASCAR Cup Series Season Finale (Round 36 of 36)

●  Time/Date:  3 p.m. EST on Sunday, Nov. 5

●  Location:  Phoenix Raceway

●  Layout:  1-mile oval

●  Laps/Miles:  312 laps/312 miles (502 kilometers)

●  Stage Lengths:  Stage 1: 60 laps / Stage 2: 125 laps / Final Stage: 127 laps

●  TV/Radio:  NBC / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

SHR FAST FACTS:

Kevin Harvick:

Who owns Phoenix Raceway? NASCAR or Kevin Harvick? NASCAR owns the facility, at least on paper, but Harvick owns the track. The driver of the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) has won a record nine Cup Series races at the desert mile. No other active Cup Series driver has won more than three races at Phoenix. Former fulltime Cup Series driver Jimmie Johnson is the closest to Harvick with four wins at the track.

Aric Almirola:

This weekend’s season finale at Phoenix Raceway will be a bittersweet one for Aric Almirola. Last weekend, the 39-year-old announced via social media that he would officially step away from the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang Cup Series entry at Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) and is excited for his next adventure. More than a year ago, Almirola announced he would retire from fulltime cup series racing to spend more time with family. Through the course of the year, he discovered a new balance between his passion for racing and dedication to his family. His wife Janice, and kids Alex and Abby, joined him on most race weekends, oftentimes enjoying once-in-a-lifetime experiences together as they traveled the country. When SHR and sponsor Smithfield Foods asked him to reconsider, he did. This time around, the Almirola family is ready for the next adventure.

Chase Briscoe:

Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), returns to Phoenix Raceway for the final race of the 2023 season. Phoenix is the site of Briscoe’s first Cup Series win, earned in the March 2022 event, which was the first at Phoenix in the NextGen car. Since then, the 28-year-old driver has finished no worse than seventh at the 1-mile oval.

Ryan Preece:

Sunday’s race will mark Preece’s ninth Cup Series start at the Arizona track. His first came in 2015 and his 12th-place finish in March, after starting 25th, is his best Phoenix finish. In his eight previous Cup Series starts at Phoenix, Preece has completed 95.6 percent of laps attempted. He has also made three starts at Phoenix in the NASCAR Xfinity Series with a best result of fifth from the fifth starting position in the No. 18 for Joe Gibbs Racing in November 2018

 

OUR WEEKLY WRAPS:

WHAT OUR DRIVERS ARE SAYING:

Kevin Harvick, Driver of the No. 4 Busch Light HARVICK Ford Mustang:

Phoenix marks your final race as a NASCAR Cup Series driver. What’s it like to leave while still at the top of your game?

“That’s really one of the things I’m most proud of. Somebody asked me when did I ever feel like I’ve made it. This is really the only time that I’ve ever felt like I’ve made it because I got to choose how I ended it. I know that that’s rare, and as you look at it, I got to plan my last year and say this was it, and then we were still competitive, and then we went out and did what we were supposed to do. It’s really the first time I felt comfortable saying that I’ve made it.”

Aric Almirola, Driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang:

This is the last race of your fulltime Cup Series career. How do you want to be remembered in the series?

“Just as a genuine person, honestly. The wins and all of that stuff, that’s all temporary, it really is. I had to learn this the hard way, but you don’t gain happiness and satisfaction from going to victory lane. You gain momentary joy, but it’s not long-lasting. As soon as that weekend is over, you immediately are focused on the next week and wanting to go do it again and, if you don’t, the next week if you finish 25th you’re mad and you’re bummed out and you’re disappointed and so that cycle of emotions I’ve come to realize is very temporary. But what is lasting is friendships and people you care about and doing things that you enjoy with people you enjoy. And so, for me, that’s what I want to keep doing. I want to keep working. I want to get up in the morning with a purpose. I want to go do something. I want to try and make somebody else better. For 40 years of my life, I’ve focused on just me. I’ve served myself and worried about what’s best for me and what’s best for my career and all of those things, so as I look to the future, I want to make sure that I’m focusing on trying to help others achieve their goals. From what I’ve heard in talking to a lot of people and reading a lot of books about people’s next chapter in life, that’s typically how you get the most satisfaction, trying to figure out how to serve others.”

Chase Briscoe, Driver of the No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Ford Mustang:

Sum up the 2023 season for the No. 14 team.

“This year has been really trying for the No. 14 team. We had some really low moments and we’ve come back from that. I think we’re a lot stronger for it and, even if the results don’t show it, we are on the right track to finding the success that’s expected of us. There is still a long way to go. Everyone in this sport is always pushing and looking for new ways to find speed. We have to keep working to match that and eventually get ahead. It’s a never-ending fight to get better and we’ll keep working until we’re back to running up front every week and getting wins.”

Ryan Preece, Driver of the No. 41 United Rentals Ford Mustang:

What is one thing you can take from your first fulltime season in the Cup Series with SHR and implement heading into next season?

“Our short-track program has been our bread and butter. We’ve been really strong at those tracks and that’s where I feel like we’ve really shown progress. The exciting thing is that we have really improved all around this season. Our mile-and-a-half program got so much better throughout the season and we worked hard on that. We’ve always emphasized the short tracks on the schedule because that’s where I have a lot of confidence, but the mile-and-a-halves and the superspeedways and those 2-mile tracks, we’ve seen improvement. We’ve been in position to have solid days and we have had solid days, just always needed a little more. A lot of times, by the time we made the adjustments that worked best for me as a driver, we just needed some more laps in the race to get into those top-10 and top-five positions. Those improvements are what make next season really exciting for us. We have all worked so hard. This is about the whole team, it’s not just me. It’s about the people, I’ve always said that. We really are a team and we have busted our butts every week and it’s going to pay off.”