NASCAR news September 2023: Byron enters the Round of 8 with Texas win
Here you find our NASCAR news ticker for September 2023 – Latest news: William Byron won the race at Texas Motor Speedway to advance in the playoffs
September 26, 2023: Byron wins at Texas
William Byron won the playoff race at Texas Motor Speedway to punch his ticket to the Round-of-8. The Hendrick driver benefited from a late yellow and ultimately prevailed over Ross Chastain and Bubba Wallace. The No. 24 driver thus recorded the 300th win for Rick Hendrick’s team in the NASCAR circuit. Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson and Ryan Blaney were involved in accidents at Fort Worth and are now below the famous playoff cut-line.
September 25, 2023: Silly Season Update
Sammy Smith will compete for JR Motorsports in the NASCAR Xfinity Series during the 2023 season. The 19-year-old from Iowa jumped right into NASCAR’s second division in 2023 without even running a full Truck season. The Johnston racer thus moves from Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota to Jr Motorsports and Chevrolet. Smith scored a season-opening win in his first Xfinity season right out of the gate at Phoenix. A few days ago, Kaulig Racing confirmed Daniel Hemric for the 2024 Cup season.
September 17, 2023: Hamlin wins at Bristol
Denny Hamlin won the short-track battle at Bristol Motor Speedway, punching his ticket to the Round of 12. With Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick, two former champions dropped out of title contention early, joined by Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Michael McDowell. Christopher Bell won both stages. In the Xfinity Series, Justin Allgaier won to advance to the semifinals, while in the Truck Series, Corey Heim secured the first of four final tickets with his victory. During the race weekend, Bristol Motor Speedway announced that there will be no more dirt track racing in 2024. As a result, the two races at Bristol will once again be held on concrete.
September 17, 2023: Zane Smith to Trackhouse and Spire
NASCAR Silly Season is in full swing with Trackhouse Racing securing the services of Truck Champion Zane Smith and will have him full-time for the 2024 Cup season thanks to a partnership with Spire Motorsports. Spire Motorsports is expected to purchase the charter contract from Live Fast Motorsports at a cost of approximately €37.5 million, according to information obtained by The Athletic. That would grow Spire Motorsports to a three-car team.
September 14, 2023: SVG joins Trackhouse
Shane van Gisbergen will be racing for Trackhouse Racing in NASCAR from 2024. The New Zealand Supercars star made history when he won his first Cup race on the brand new Chicago street circuit with Justin Marks’ team. He will join the development program for the 2024 season, which will allow him to compete in all three national series – Cup, Xfinity and Trucks – as well as Late Models. Trackhouse does not own any teams outside of the Cup series, so it is not yet known which organizations SVG will compete for in the lower series. The goal is to get the 34-year-old ready for the ovals, which are sure to be a big challenge for him.
September 13, 2023: Stage breaks back on road courses
The experiment with not having stage breaks on road courses appears to be over, as NASCAR has changed the rules again for the 2023 playoffs. As a result, there will again be scheduled cautions at the end of both segments on the Roval at Charlotte. Elton Sawyer, who is in charge of competition at NASCAR, says, “If we go back to stage breaks, the racing will be better on the track.”
September 13, 2023: Noah Gragson allowed to come back
Noah Gragson is no longer suspended as of now, NASCAR has announced. This means that the American, who had been suspended for liking a racist post on social media, should be able to compete again at Bristol. However, because he has terminated his contract with Legacy Motor Club, Gragson is without a cockpit.
September 12, 2023: Reddick wins in Kansas
Tyler Reddick prevailed in overtime in the race at Kansas Speedway and thus secured his place in the Round-of-12 of the 2023 playoffs after Kyle Larson. The final race of the Round-of-16 takes place at Bristol, where one more driver can make it to the next round via a win. Michael McDowell, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Bubba Wallace are in dire need of a triumph, although with a lot of luck they could still make it one round further via the points. Martin Truex Jr. is on the bubble seven points behind Kevin Harvick and cannot afford any more mistakes after his exit in Kansas.
September 9, 2023: Nemechek replaces Gragson
Legacy Motor Club has found a successor for the currently suspended Noah Gragson. Gragson had asked the team for his release, which is why the No. 42 car was vacant for the 2024 season. His successor will be John Hunter Nemechek, who thus returns to Cup after two years in the Truck Series and one year in the Xfinity Series. The 26-year-old already contested a full season at NASCAR’s highest level in 2020 for Front Row Motorsports.
September 8, 2023: Denny Hamlin extends contract
Kyle Busch’s move from Joe Gibbs Racing to Richard Childress Racing came as a shock to many. Just one year later, the team could have lost another driver in Denny Hamlin, but the US American remains with Coach Gibbs’ team – as does Fedex as sponsor of the No. 11 car. This also makes it clear that 23XI Racing will continue to use Toyota Camrys. “We will continue on the path we have chosen,” Hamlin says on his podcast.
September 4, 2023: Larson wins in Darlington
Kyle Larson won the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway and thus secured his ticket for the Round-of-12 in the first playoff race of the 2023 season. Actually, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was the dominating force on the venerable oval: The 42-year-old won both stages in his Toyota and thus secured important bonus points. However, after a red period due to the partial failure of the floodlights, it was Larson in the Hendrick Chevrolet who won a race at Darlington for the first time in his career.
