Kansas Recap and Bristol Review, Big News Stories, and Texas Preview | Chasing The Cup S1:E29

In this episode of Chasing the Cat, the host Will Englund gives a recap of the Kansas races and a full review of the Bristol races. He discusses the winners of the Kansas races and shares his thoughts on Bubba Wallace's first well-earned victory. He also talks about the Bristol races and the challenges with the new car on the track. Will Englund also discusses the upcoming races at Texas and shares his predictions for the winners. He also covers news stories such as the NASCAR National Series schedules for next year and Kyle Busch joining Richard Childress Racing. He ends the episode with a preview of the Xfinity and Cup races at Texas and gives his picks for the winners. Hello everyone and welcome back to another episode of Chasing the Cat. I am your host Will Englund and I'm back after a week break because I was working on some other things because I was in a rush to get ready for the race. So I hope the Bristol Motor Speedway Locals Guide as well as the race vlog made up for that. So anyway in this week's episode I'll be doing a quick recap of the Kansas races. I'll do a full review of the Bristol races. I'm going to review some of the biggest stories that happened in the last couple of weeks. I'm going to preview this weekend's races at Texas. But first let's recap Kansas and then take a look at results from Bristol. The winners from Kansas are Bubba Wallace, Noak Gregson, and John Hennoniemicek who won their respective races in Cup, Xfinity, and Trucks. And overall all those races were pretty good. It was just as good, maybe a little better than the spring races at Kansas. Bubba Wallace probably gets his first well earned victory because his first career victory was last year at Talladega when it got rained out. So this time he truly earned this win. And although NASCAR fans hate him, you have to say he definitely has the talent to go out there and win if you give him some good equipment. So I'm excited what Bubba Wallace can do next year. He may be a threat to get in the playoffs. But we'll have to see about that. Noak Gregson wins a rain shortened race at Kansas. I didn't get to see much of this because I was traveling. And then John Hennoniemicek on fresher tires runs down Carson Husavar, passes him, and Carson Husavar runs out of fuel. Now him and Matt Crafton have been eliminated from the round of eight. If Carson Husavar would have held on for another lap, he would have made it in. But Christian Eckes passed a few cars and that allowed him to advance. So Husavar needed to win to get in and he failed. And Crafton was nowhere near the front to get in. Overall, a very good weekend at Kansas. Now let's take a look at your Bristol results. Starting off with the cup, Chris Buescher getting an advantage on Pit Road by getting two fresh tires gets his second career win in his first with Roush Finlay Kudlasky at Bristol, followed by Chase Elliott in second. William Byron finishes third. Christopher Bell finishes fourth. Kyle Larson finishes fifth. Ross Chastain finishes sixth. AJ Allmendinger has a good run at Bristol in the cup series and finishes seventh. Cole Custer has a good run and finishes eighth. Danny Hale finishes ninth. And Kevin Harvick rounds out the top ten. But it isn't enough for him to advance into the round of twelve. And so this race was pretty good for the Bristol standards. It didn't live up to previous races at Bristol, but I'd say it was still a pretty solid race. But this new car seemed to have some drawbacks at Bristol. Not sure what the problem was, but it was slightly too hard to pass. And that led to a lot of people complaining about how hard it was to pass. But Bristol's supposed to be hard to pass. It's a narrow track and you're supposed to move people out of the way with the bumpers. But I think it was just too hard and it was more harder than usual. And so I was listening to some of the drivers because I was at the race. And I heard some complaints about the tire wear because there was not much tire wear. So I think the first thing that needs to be done is to come up with a softer compound for Bristol because concrete is not asphalt. Concrete is a lot less rough than asphalt. And so it takes more to get tire wear. And Chase Ely had this complaint and said that he couldn't get into second gear when he got into turn one on the outside. And so when he restarted on the outside, he would not get a good start into turn one because he couldn't get into second gear. And so basically the top was a disadvantage for people restarting because of how the gear ratios are. So I'd say the gear ratios need to be fixed for first and second gear. So that way the bottom does not have the advantage on the restarts. Besides that, there's not really that much that could be changed. Besides that, the racing was pretty good for Bristol. It's not the greatest Bristol races like you had with the Gen 4, Gen 5, and Gen 6, but it wasn't bad. It kind of reminded me more like how Bristol was pre-2012 when they first put in the new asphalt in 2007. I went to four of the Bristol races with that configuration and it felt kind of like that. It was hard to pass and you got a little strung out at times. I think this race was slightly better than that, but it kind of reminded me of it. And so overall this was still a pretty good race, but there are some things that the next Gen card needs to fix. Next for the Trinity race, Noah Gregson gets his third win in a row and gets his sixth win of the season, followed by Brandon Jones in second, Austin Hill in third, Sam Mayer in fourth, Riley Herbst in fifth, AJ Almendinger in sixth, Josh Berry in seventh. Stephen Parsons has a good run and finishes eighth, Justin Allgaier finishes ninth, and Ryan Seig rounds out the top ten. And with that top ten, he barely squeaks in to get into the Xfinity Series playoffs. And that race was pretty fun. There's plenty of multi-groove racing and lots of action. Sitting there in the green stands, it was hard to pick out the action because it was everywhere. You had guys going three wide and they didn't make it work and they crash, cars get in spines, etc. Just a lot of action and Noah Gregson apparently threw up in the car because he could say that he soiled his pants and he looked wore out. He also shotgun a beer during the celebration. He shotgunned one of those Bushlight Apples. That's funny. And TV didn't really do the crowd justice. There was quite a bit of people there for Xfinity. And there was lots of cheers for Noah, so the fans loved him. And overall, it was a very fun race to watch. And I really love these Xfinity cars at Bristol. They're fun to watch. And finally for the truck race, Ty Majewski, a driver that has gone through many trials and tribulations during his career, finally gets his first career win at Bristol. Followed by Zane Smith in second, Parker Kligerman in third, Grant Enfinger in fourth, Matt Crafton in fifth, Derek Kraus in sixth, Stork Ferguson in seventh, Christian Ekges in eighth, Chandler Smith in ninth, and Corey Heim rounds out the top ten. And so this race was actually pretty good too. It didn't live up to the Xfinity race, but it was still a very good race. Although it looked like the trucks seemed to be more glued to the bottom than to the top. Kind of like how Bristol was back in the day. Probably because the PJ1 was fresh, and it basically gave us old Bristol with these trucks. Anytime that you'd get moved out of the group, either by yourself or by someone else, the whole field would freight train you as they went by you on the bottom, and you had to wait for an open spot to get back in line. And it was kind of like that for the truck race. It doesn't live up to how multi-groove Bristol is, but it's kind of like how old Bristol was, and it was still a pretty good race to watch. And so overall, a solid weekend for the Bristol Motor Speedway. My favorite race track, I've been to races there since 2010, and although the cup race was a little lackluster, it was still a solid weekend. And it shows how good Bristol is on the NASCAR schedule. Now before we get to the biggest news stories, let's take a look at how things stand for the cup playoffs after the end of the round of 16. Tyler Reddick, Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon, and Kevin Harvick have been eliminated. Reddick was involved in that big wreck, which pretty much put him several laps down. Kyle Busch blew up again. Austin Dillon got involved in that big wreck, and he was done. And Kevin Harvick had a loose wheel on pit road. Luckily he didn't get as bad as Blaney's, but that pretty much cost him from getting the win and moving on. And so now Chase Elliott is the number one seed. Logano's number two. Chastain is number three. Larsen number four. Byron number five. Hanlon number six. Bell number seven. Blaney number eight. Briscoe number nine. Bowman number ten. Soar is number eleven. And Sendrik number twelve. And now let's take a look at the Xfinity Series playoffs. Now that they have been sent, Noah Grigson is your number one seed. Ty Gibbs is your number two seed. Allgaier is your number three seed. H.A. Ambedagger is the number four seed. Josh Berry is the number five seed. Austin Hill is the sixth seed. Brandon Jones is the number seven seed. Jeremy Clements is the number eight seed. Sam Mayer is the number nine seed. Daniel Hemrick is the number ten seed. Riley Herbst is the number eleven seed. And Ryan Sieg is number twelve seed. And currently the cut line looks like this. Austin Hill is eleven points above the cut line. Brandon Jones is five points above the cut line. Jeremy Clements and Sam Mayer are tied. With currently Clements getting the advantage over his Mayer right now. Hemrick is two points below. Herbst is three points below. And Sieg is four points below. Going into Texas this weekend. And so with that out of the way, let's take a look at some of the biggest news stories. That have happened in the past couple of weeks. Let's first take a look at the NASCAR National Series schedules for next year. Which were released last week. And let's take a look at some of these highlights. On February 26th, the Cubs Series will be heading to Auto Club for the final time in its two mile configuration. Before it becomes a half mile short track. Because it has been announced that NASCAR will be moving forward with this renovation. Which is a smart business choice. Of course there's also the Chicago Street Course that will be happening on the July 4th weekend. And Texas Motor Speedway will be losing its All-Star date. Which means its only Cup date is the playoff race in October. Replacing the All-Star race is North Wilkesboro Speedway. Which will host a NASCAR Cup race for the first time since 1996. Although not a points paying race, this is huge for North Wilkesboro. That track has been laying there since 1996 without a Cup race. There's been some races locally. But after Racetrack Revival and how successful it was. They're not going to bring the Cup Series back to North Wilkesboro. And with this announcement, Racetrack Revival will not be running on the dirt. Because they're going to save the asphalt for the All-Star race. Before they decide to repayment, I guess, afterward. So those are the only changes with the Cup Series schedule. But there's some other changes with the Xfinity Series schedule. For the first time in its history, the Xfinity Series will be going to Sonoma Raceway. They have never went before. The Trek Series has gone before. But this will be the first time ever that the Xfinity Series has gone to Sonoma. Also, the Xfinity Series will be joining the Cup Series at Chicago. After the IMSA races were cancelled. And as well as the Cup Series. It'll be the Xfinity Series last race on the 2-mile configuration of Auto Club. And finally for the Trek Series schedule. For the return of Craftsman, there are a couple of changes as well. First, the Trek Series will be joining the Cup Series at North Wilkesboro. On that weekend, for the first time since 1996. And unlike the All-Star race, that race is a points paying date for the Trek. And finally, here's the surprise one. For the first time since 2009, the Trek Series will be returning to the Milwaukee Mile. And so that's all the notable changes for the schedules for next year. And next, Kyle Busch has finally announced where he is going next year. He will be joining Richard Childress Racing. To drive the number 8 for RCR. Replacing Tyler Raddick. Who will be going to a third car for RCR. Which will be an experimental car. And they're planning to buy a third charter for that car. But Richard has not said where he is buying it from. So 11 years after the Hold My Watch incident. Kyle Busch will be driving for the team runner that whipped his butt. And here's one of the controversial bits from the announcement. Richard said that he saw in his eyes the same look that Dale Earnhardt had. And he saw that he was hungry. He was hungry to win like Dale was. And a lot of people were comparing Kyle to Dale with that. But I know they're not the same. But they're similar in some aspects. But there's a lot that is different. And so now there are two big questions that I still want to know. First, will Tyler Raddick stay in that experimental car for a year. Before someone like Austin Hill or a free agent takes it. Or will 2311 buy his contract out. That is the big question right now. And if I was 2311, if Kurt Busch is not well, buy him out. But if Kurt is able to run next year before Raddick comes over. Then don't buy him out. Don't buy him out unless it's needed. Like say if Kurt Busch will never race again. If Kurt Busch can't race again, buy Raddick's contract out. If not, put Kurt back in the car and keep Raddick at RCR. And the other question I have is Kyle Busch Motorsports. Because KVM is probably about to lose all three of their drivers and some of their Toyota employees. I'd say most of Kyle's employees will stay. But some of the employees that were tied in with Toyota are probably going to leave and go elsewhere. Like the drivers, as well as sponsors and some other personnel. But I'd say it'll be mostly intact. But the big question is, is drivers. Who are the front runners for the 3KV InSpot? Because John Hunter, Yuma Chenk, Corey Haim and Chandler Smith are part of the TRD program. They ain't transitioning to Chevy with Kyle. So Kyle's about to lose all three of his drivers. But I'd say right now there are some free agents. As well as some guys in the lower series that may be interested in moving up. Or moving over to Chevy with Kyle. Especially with how good his program is. And it's probably right now too difficult to say who's going to be in those trucks. Of course, I could say that Carson Husavar or Haley Deegan or Grant Enfinger or Jack Whip could drive those trucks. But right now, I have no idea. And I'd say probably the biggest factors of Kyle going to RCR were probably Kyle's friendship with Austin Dillon. And him starting to talk. And Kyle's biggest factor was family. I guess because of the family aspect with RCR, that led to him signing with Richard. Although Richard kicked his butt once. And probably because Richard offered his son Braxton a ride in the future. I guess that may have been a factor, I'm not really sure. But that may have been the decision maker to put Kyle in that car. And finally, Brandon Jones will be joining Junior Motorsports to replace Noah Gregson in 2023. And so that was probably one of the most long awaited announcements. Besides Kyle, and as the announcement of who would be taking the JRM9. And it'll be Brandon Jones. And I'm guessing the big factor was that he brings in a good amount of sponsorship thanks to Menards. And I'd say Menards will probably stay with him. Of course, Brandon Jones used to be in the Chevy Pipeline when he drove for RCR. But then he went to the Toyota Pipeline with Joe Gibbs. And now he's back in the Chevy Pipeline with Junior Motorsports. And that pretty much has cleared up the Toyota Pipeline. Because it is expected that Ty Gibbs will be moving in to take Kyle's old ride. And with the 54 and 19 open, I think the 18 and the 54 switch back. And taking the 18 will probably be John Hunter Nemechik. And the 19 will probably go to the Chandler Smith. And Corey Heim, I think, will run part time in the 54. While also doing a full time stint in trucks with another Toyota team. Maybe Joe Gibbs Racing brings back its truck program for Corey. But I don't think Corey Heim is ready for a full time Xfinity ride. Because there are still some rough edges that need to be straightened out before he can move up. And so that's the biggest news stories that have happened in the past couple weeks. Now let's preview this weekend's races at Texas. The truck series has another week off. So we're going to start with the Xfinity series. Which is the Andy's Frozen Custard 300. The race will be 200 laps and 300 miles. And the race will be on September 24th at 3.30pm Eastern Time. And so for my pick, I'm going to go with Ty Gibbs. I think Ty Gibbs will break Noah Gregson's winning streak. Although I think Noah Gregson will be one of the favorites this weekend. I think this time, Ty Gibbs will break Noah Gregson's winning streak. And he'll get the victory at Texas. Because he's been so good at these mile and a halves. And finally for the Cup Race, we have the Autotrader Ecopark Automotive 500. The race will be 334 laps and 500 miles. And the race will be on September 25th at 3.30pm Eastern Time. So now let's take a look at the weather for the Cup Race. On Sunday, it will be partly sunny and remaining very warm. The high will be 94 degrees Fahrenheit. With average winds east to northeast at 7 miles per hour with a 5% chance of rain. So it's going to be hot in Texas. And there may be a little shade, but it's going to be hot. So stay cool in Texas. I'd say it won't be that hard to stay cool because I'd say in a MotoGP run, you can just go under the bleachers because the racing is just going to be so horrible. Because it is Texas. But to be more professional, please stay in some shady spots if possible. As well as drink plenty of water and use sunscreen. And so for my pick, I'm going to go with Ryan Blaney. Ryan Blaney won the All-Star Race. And he hasn't won a points-paying race yet. But I think this weekend will be his biggest chance. Because although he's won the next two races as well, he hasn't won any of them in at least two years. And I think this will be his biggest shot to move on to the Round of Eight. And I think he'll get it done and win at Texas. And so that's it for this week's episode. If you enjoyed it, please like and subscribe for more. And if you're going out to Texas this weekend, I hope you have a good time. And if you're not, have a good time wherever you are. And I'll see you next week.