The official 2022 Ruoff Mortgage 500 NASCAR CUP Series entry list features top NASCAR drivers set to compete at Phoenix Raceway, highlighting the full lineup of race participants and teams.
Sunday, March 13th, 2022
Phoenix Raceway, Phoenix, AZ
There was no shortage of motivation as three drivers all vying for their first-career victory in the marquee NASCAR Cup Series decided the dramatic outcome at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday afternoon.
Stewart-Haas Racing's Chase Briscoe had to hold off the field on not one, not two, but three late race restarts on the one-mile desert oval, including the final restart with three laps remaining to earn his first career NASCAR Cup Series win in the Ruoff Mortgage 500.
The 27-year-old Briscoe is the 200th different winner in NASCAR's premier series and last year's Rookie of the Year earned the victory- by .771-seconds over Ross Chastain – in only his 40th start.
"It's unbelievable," said Briscoe, who drives the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.
"I was crying the whole last lap. This is definitely a team win, but I've got to thank everybody that's got me to this point. Just seven years ago I was sleeping on couches, volunteering at race shops and was literally driving home to give up.
"Unbelievable," he continued, smiling. "So blessed to be here driving for this organization this team and this car that was my hero's (NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart) growing up.
"To everybody that's believed in me, it's unbelievable."
Fast pit stops for Briscoe's John Klausmeier-led crew helped all day. His 101 laps out front was second only to pole-winner Ryan Blaney's 144 laps led. But Briscoe certainly had to earn this win on track holding off the field on those late race re-starts with cars sometimes fanning out seven-wide in the frenetic shuffle to the front.
Chevrolet drivers Chastain and Tyler Reddick took Briscoe three-wide on the final restart – all fueled by the motivation of that first win, but Briscoe's Ford was able to drive away leaving them to settle runner-up between themselves.
Chastain's runner-up finish is his second consecutive top-three finish for the Trackhouse Racing organization. Richard Childress Racing's Reddick placed third followed by polesitter, Penske Racing's Ryan Blaney and 23XI Racing's Kurt Busch.
"That was so much fun to get to race like that at this level," Chastain said, adding of the last lap competition, "That's so cool to race with Tyler and Chase. That's everything I've ever wanted."
Briscoe's veteran teammate Kevin Harvick finished sixth and that top-10 was good enough to tie a huge mark of success shared only by two NASCAR Hall of Famers. Harvick's 18th consecutive top-10 at Phoenix matches an all-time NASCAR Cup Series record set by both Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt at North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway.
Another former series champion, Kyle Busch finished seventh leading the Joe Gibbs Racing charge. Penske Racing's Joey Logano, Trackhouse Racing's Daniel Suarez and Roush-Fenway-Keselowski driver Chris Buescher rounded out the top-10 respectively.
Reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson, who ran up front for much of the race, suffered a DNF – pitting with 74 laps remaining with what his crew diagnosed as a broken valve spring in his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Larson was officially scored 34th – the second sub-30th place finish of the season, including a crash at the Daytona 500 (32nd place finish).
Larson already scored a victory at Auto Club Speedway this season, however, and is still ranked fourth in the championship, 10 points behind new leader Logano. Kyle Busch is third, five points back.
Both Hendrick Motorsports' William Byron and Penske's Blaney earned their first Stage wins of the season. There were 15 lead changes among six drivers.
ENTRY | # | DRIVER | HOMETOWN | DOB | AGE | MAKE | SPONSOR | TEAM | CREW CHIEF |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 16 | AJ Allmendinger | Los Gatos, CA | Dec 16, 1981 | 40 | Chevrolet | Built.com | Kaulig Racing | Matt Swiderski |
2 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Tampa, FL | Mar 14, 1984 | 37 | Ford | Rheem - Capitol Container | Stewart-Haas Racing | Drew Blickensderfer |
3 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | Auburn Hills, MI | Feb 12, 1984 | 38 | Ford | Bass Pro Shops | RFK Racing | Matt Mccall |
4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Chesterfield, VA | Nov 18, 1980 | 41 | Toyota | Fry's/ NOS | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chris Gabehart |
5 | 22 | Joey Logano | Middleton, CT | May 24, 1990 | 31 | Ford | Shell / Pennzoil | Team Penske | Paul Wolfe |
6 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Bakersfield, CA | Dec 8, 1975 | 46 | Ford | DeWalt | Stewart-Haas Racing | Rodney Childers |
7 | 45 | Kurt Busch | Las Vegas, NV | Aug 4, 1978 | 43 | Toyota | CommScope | 23XI Racing | Billy Scott |
8 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Las Vegas, NV | May 2, 1985 | 36 | Toyota | Ally/Best Friends | Joe Gibbs Racing | Ben Beshore |
9 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr | Mayetta, NJ | Jun 29, 1980 | 41 | Toyota | Nurtec ODT Ford | Joe Gibbs Racing | James Small |
10 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Phoenix, AZ | Dec 21, 1984 | 37 | Ford | Frontline Enterprises INC. | Front Row Motorsports | Blake Harris |
11 | 77 | Landon Cassill | Cedar Rapids, IA | Jul 7, 1989 | 32 | Chevrolet | Voyager: Crypto for All | Spire Motorsports | Kevin Bellicourt |
12 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Lewisville, NC | Apr 27, 1990 | 31 | Chevrolet | Autotrader | Richard Childress Racing | Justin Alexander |
13 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr | Olive Branch, MS | Oct 2, 1987 | 34 | Chevrolet | Menards\Maytag | JTG Daugherty Racing | Brian Pattie |
14 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Sacremento, CA | Jul 31, 1992 | 29 | Chevrolet | Get Bioethanol | Hendrick Motorsports | Cliff Daniels |
15 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Tuscon, AZ | Apr 25, 1993 | 28 | Chevrolet | Mahindra Tractors | Hendrick Motorsports | Greg Ives |
16 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | High Point, NC | Dec 31, 1993 | 28 | Ford | Dex Imaging | Team Penske | Jonathan Hassler |
17 | 7 | Corey Lajoie | Kannapolis, NC | Sep 25, 1991 | 30 | Chevrolet | Hunt Brothers Pizza | Spire Motorsports | Ryan Sparks |
18 | 42 | Ty Dillon | Lewisville, NC | Feb 27, 1992 | 30 | Chevrolet | Smithfield | Petty GMS Motorsports | Jerame Donley |
19 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Dawsonville, GA | Nov 28, 1995 | 26 | Chevrolet | Violet Defense | Hendrick Motorsports | Alan Gustafson |
20 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Prosper, TX | Oct 29, 1992 | 29 | Ford | Axalta | RFK Racing | Scott Graves |
21 | 43 | Erik Jones | Byron, MI | May 30, 1996 | 25 | Chevrolet | FedEx Office | Petty GMS Motorsports | Dave Elenz |
22 | 78 | BJ McLeod | Wauchula, FL | Nov 17, 1983 | 38 | Ford | MoneyLion | Live Fast Motorsports | Lee Leslie |
23 | 99 | Daniel Suarez | Monterrey, Mexico | Jan 7, 1992 | 30 | Chevrolet | Action Industries | TrackHouse Racing | Travis Mack |
24 | 51 | Cody Ware | Greensboro, NC | Nov 7, 1995 | 26 | Ford | FOCUSfactor | Rick Ware Racing | Billy Plourde |
25 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Alva, FL | Dec 4, 1992 | 29 | Chevrolet | K1 Speed | TrackHouse Racing | Phil Surgen |
26 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | Mobile, AL | Oct 8, 1993 | 28 | Toyota | Premier Business Investments | 23XI Racing | Bootie Barker |
27 | 24 | William Byron | Charlotte, NC | Nov 29, 1997 | 24 | Chevrolet | Guaranteed Rate | Hendrick Motorsports | Rudy Fugle |
28 | 41 | Cole Custer | Ladera Ranch, CA | Jan 23, 1998 | 24 | Ford | Black Rifle Coffee Company | Stewart-Haas Racing | Mike Shiplett |
29 | 15 | Garrett Smithley | Ligonier, PA | Apr 27, 1992 | 29 | Ford | ROOT Insurance | Rick Ware Racing | Ken Evans |
30 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Corning, CA | Jan 11, 1996 | 26 | Chevrolet | Valvoline | Richard Childress Racing | Randall Burnett |
31 | 31 | Justin Haley | Winamac, IN | Apr 28, 1999 | 22 | Chevrolet | UniFirst | Kaulig Racing | Trent Owens |
32 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Norman, OK | Dec 16, 1994 | 27 | Toyota | Voyager: Crypto for All | Joe Gibbs Racing | Adam Stevens |
33 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Columbus, OH | Sep 2, 1998 | 23 | Ford | ITsavvy | Team Penske | Jeremy Bullins |
34 | 14 | Chase Briscoe | Mitchell, IN | Dec 15, 1994 | 27 | Ford | Shell Pennzoil | Stewart-Haas Racing | Johnny Klausmeier |
35 | 21 | Harrison Burton | Huntersville, NC | Oct 9, 2000 | 21 | Ford | LeafFilter Gutter Protection | Wood Brothers Racing | Brian Wilson |
36 | 38 | Todd Gilliland | Sherrills Ford, NC | May 15, 2000 | 21 | Ford | HaasTooling.com | Front Row Motorsports | Seth Barbour |