By David Morgan, Associate Editor
Following a marathon Sunday at the Circuit of the Americas last weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series heads back to the short tracks starting with Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway.
Often described as the perfectly designed race track by drivers, the 0.75-mile track lends itself to not only short track characteristics of beating and banging, but also the characteristics of a larger track with the side-by-side racing that will take place throughout the event.
Though the track has lost some of its luster in recent years, drivers and teams are hoping the introduction of the new short track/road course aero package will help to spice things up again. The package, which features a shorter rear spoiler and other underbody aero changes, has already been used at Phoenix and COTA, but this will be the shortest track yet that it has been implemented at.
Richmond kicks off a three-race stretch of short tracks for the Cup Series, with races at Martinsville and Bristol next up on the schedule after Sunday’s race.
Through the first six races of the season, five different drivers have won a race, but several big-name drivers have found themselves on the outside looking in.
Who will be the next driver to make a trip to Victory Lane? 400 laps on Sunday will tell the tale.
By the Numbers
What: Toyota Owners 400, NASCAR Cup Series race No. 7 of 36
Where: Richmond Raceway – Richmond, Virginia (Opened: 1946, First Cup race: 1953)
When: Sunday, April 2
TV/Radio: FOX Sports 1, 3:30 pm ET / MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Channel 90
Track Size: 0.75-mile oval
Banking: Turns: 14 degrees; Straights: 8 degrees (front), 2 degrees (back)
Race Length: 400 laps, 300 miles
Stage Lengths: First stage: 70 laps, Second stage: 160 laps, Final stage: 170 laps
August 2022 Race Winner: Kevin Harvick – No. 4 Ford – Started 13th, 55 laps led
April 2022 Race Winner: Denny Hamlin – No. 11 Toyota – Started 13th, five laps led
Track Qualifying Record: Jeff Gordon – No. 24 Chevrolet – 20.674 seconds, 130.599 mph – 9/4/2013
Top-10 Highest Driver Ratings at Richmond Raceway:
- Kevin Harvick – No. 4 Stewart Haas Racing Ford – 109.6
- Denny Hamlin – No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota – 109.2
- Kyle Busch – No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet – 109.0
- Christopher Bell – No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota – 99.0
- Brad Keselowski – No. 6 Roush Fenway…
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