The Xfinity series continued their playoff battle last Saturday at the biggest wildcard of the season, Talladega. The race was a good showing for the playoff drivers. A slow start led into a chaotic finish with a playoff driver locking his spot into the round of 8. The Xfinity series proved why Talladega is one of the most entertaining playoff tracks on the schedule. The race started out with a battle of teammates and manufacturers. Pseudo teammates Chase Briscoe and Austin Cindric, and the only two Ford drivers in the field, started nose to tail on the inside line. They went up against the JR Motorsports teammates of Noah Gragson and Justin Allgaier. Briscoe and Cindric proved to be the class of the field. Briscoe led nearly the entirety of the Stage with Cindric pushing him. Briscoe went on to win stage 1 and Cindric, Jones, Haley, Alfredo, Herbst, Sieg, H. Burton, Hemric, and Allgaier got stage points behind him. There wasn't caution for incident during the entire first stage of the race. The story was quite similar in Stage 2. Briscoe led the field to green and led the stage. Things were uneventful until lap 42 when Riley Herbst got turned into the inside wall by Austin Hill coming off of turn 4. This opened up the door for differing pit strategies as Noah Gragson and Michael Annett were among the drivers who opted to pit. Briscoe led the field to green but it wasn't for long as Ross Chastain got spun getting up to speed by Harrison Burton. Colby Howard got into Chastain having nowhere to go to avoid the contact. This led to a one lap shootout for the stage win. Briscoe and Cindric led the field to green and the two battled it out all the way back around. After quite a few blocks, Briscoe was able to pick up the second stage win with Cindric, Hemric, Haley, Allgaier, H. Burton, Jones, Sieg, Brown, and Gragson all received stage points. The heat was starting to ramp up and the intensity was slowly rising. Ross Chastain and Michael Annett were the only two playoff drivers who didn't receive any stage points. Pit strategy saw AJ Allmendinger and Timmy Hill lead the field to green to start off stage 3. The final stage started off fairly slow, but the action returned as green flag pit stops started. With 38 laps to go in the race, the majority of drivers slowed down to come to pit road. Some miscommunications between the teams led to Austin Hill and Austin Cindric getting turned into the inside wall, ending the race for both drivers. Justin Allgaier and Brandon Brown led the field to green with 30 laps to go and Chase Briscoe found his way back to the front. The caution came out once again with 22 to go for debris left by Ryan Vargas on the front stretch. Briscoe appeared to be the favorite to win with 18 to go as he led the field back to green. He held onto that lead for nearly the rest of the race. He eventually would fall to the bottom of the track after contact with Noah Gragson. Further contact between he and Gragson sent Briscoe into the outside wall. This handed the lead and the overall win to Justin Haley. This is Haley's third consecutive Talladega victory, matching a feat only reached by Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Sieg, Gragson, Jones, Hemric, Chastain, WIlliams, Smithley, Brown, and Labbe rounded out the Top 10. Briscoe (19th), Burton (23rd), Allgaier (29th), Cindric (34th), Herbst (35th), and Annett (37th) were the only playoff drivers to finish outside of the top 10. Michael Annett appeared to have a solid run in hand, but failed inspection after the race resulting in a surrendered finishing position and all points gained from the day. After Talladega the playoff grid looks like this: 1. Chase Briscoe - Advanced 2. Justin Haley - Advanced 3. Austin Cindric - +50 Points 4. Noah Gragson - +47 Points 5. Brandon Jones - +34 Points 6. Ryan Sieg - +27 Points 7. Justin Allgaier - +19 Points 8. Ross Chastain - +7 Points 9. Harrison Burton - -7 Points 10. Brandon Brown - -19 Points 11. Riley Herbst - -36 Points 12. Michael Annett - -38 Points With Chase Briscoe and Justin Haley locked into the next round, there are 6 more spots up for grabs. The final race of the round of 12 is the Charlotte Roval. This race could present a second wild card to the drivers. Austin Cindric is an incredible road racer, so I expect to see him in the mix. For Michael Annett and Riley Herbst, the situation appears to be a must win. The only playoff drivers that can be truly comfortable going into the Roval are Briscoe and Haley. Who will move on to the Round of 8?

After successfully competing to match his best career finish of second place for two consecutive weeks (Talladega finish was penalized), Matt Dibenedetto has announced with Wood Bros. Racing team a 1-year and final contract extension that will have him behind the wheel of the famed #21 Ford Mustang in 2021. Team Penske manages the driver rotation for the Wood Bros. entry and was expected to have driver Austin Cindric in the #21 car for 2021 season, but Sports Business Journal's Adam Stern has reported that a last minute decision was changed to have Dibenedetto in the car instead. It is unclear what 2022 and beyond hold for the the 29 year old from Grass Valley, California. His performance in each car he has raced has surpassed the expectations of the team, but he is still winless in a combined 276 Cup and Xfinity races. His performance indicates that he is poised to earn that elusive win. Racing Refresh will have more coverage on his future, be sure to subscribe and like our pages.

Team Penske announced on Thursday morning that they have reached an agreement to extend the contract for driver Austin Cindric. They did not specify on the terms of the agreement, but noted that this will be a multi-year opportunity that puts Cindric in a Cup Series car for the 2022 season. The team announced he will replace Matt Dibenedetto as driver of the Wood Bros. Racing #21 Ford after 2021. The 21 year old driver from Mooresville has 7 wins in 95 career Xfinity series starts and is currently competing for his first Xfinity Championship. Austin's father Tim is currently president of the Roger Penske owned racing team. Comments provided to the press by Team Penske are as follows. “As we continue to position our team for future success, it is important to make sure Austin continues his development in the Xfinity Series with Team Penske,” said Roger Penske. “Austin has made great strides in recent years and he has become a consistent winner and a true championship contender this season. He will continue his natural progression and get some Cup Series experience in 2021. That will help him prepare for a full season in 2022 with the new NextGen car, racing the No. 21 Ford Mustang for Wood Brothers Racing.”

Ford Racing's rising star Hailie Deegan will make her next step in the ranks of the NASCAR at Kansas Speedway on October 17th. She will be participating in her first NASCAR Truck Series event on the 1.5 mile oval. Deegan is the daughter of motorsport and marketing legend Brian Deegan and has been involved in stock car racing since 2017. She won 3 times in 42 starts in the then regional 'K+N' Tour in 2018 and 2019, and has 5 top-5 finishes in 25 career starts in the Arca Menard Series. The 19 year old from Temecula California will drive the No. 17 Ford for DGR-Crosley as part of her next step towards driving in NASCAR's Cup Series via the Ford Driver Development program.

Denny Hamlin wins a wild one in Talladega. In one of the most controversial finishes in NASCAR history, the double yellow line played a major impact in the finish of another Talladega race. The entire race was sloppy in the best way possible, as the race set a new track record of 13 cautions, and only two playoff drivers finished in the top 10. Stage 1 featured one of the messiest starts to a race I have ever seen. NASCAR had planned for a competition caution on lap 25, but NASCAR had three cautions before the competition caution. The early race wrecks lead playoff favorites Denny Hamlin, and Kevin Harvick to ride around in the back waiting. A late stage incident involving Alex Bowman and Aric Almirola gifted Chris Buescher the stage win. Stage 2 featured a scary wreck where Kurt Busch went airnorn, riding on the hood of Cole Custer's car. This brought out a short red flag to repair the track's wall. The second stage featured a lot of back and forth racing, but surprisingly Martin Truex Jr. ended up squeaking out a stage 2 win. This was surprisingly a calm stage for the day, and it arguably featured the best racing of the day excluding the finish. Stage 3. - What can I say? It was PEAK Talladega. We watch Talladega for the wild, crazy, unpredictable races and it delivered just that. The final stage featured a big one with playoff drivers Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, and Kyle Busch.Towards the end it almost looked like a few different underdogs could've won, but through a controversial finish, Denny Hamlin emerged victorious. In an attempt to avoid a potential wreck, Hamlin avoided Chris Buescher and Erik Jones by driving to the bottom of the track. At the same time Matt DiBenedetto pushed William Byron below the double yellow line, and somehow Denny made it through unscathed. It was his 44th career win, tying Hall of Famer Bill Elliott. The top 10 featured several underdogs including Ty Dillon in third, John Hunter Nemechek in eighth, Brennan Poole in ninth, and Ryan Preece in tenth. The wreckfest and wonky finishing order made the Roval virtually a must win for Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon, Aric Almirola, and Clint Bowyer. These drivers are outside of the playoff advancement line as we enter the elimination race next week. Denny Hamlin wins a wild one in Talladega. In one of the most controversial finishes in NASCAR history, the double yellow line played a major impact in the finish of another Talladega race. The entire race was sloppy in the best way possible, as the race set a new track record of 13 cautions, and only two playoff drivers finished in the top 10. Stage 1 featured one of the messiest starts to a race I have ever seen. NASCAR had planned for a competition caution on lap 25, but NASCAR had three cautions before the competition caution. The early race wrecks lead playoff favorites Denny Hamlin, and Kevin Harvick to ride around in the back waiting. A late stage incident involving Alex Bowman and Aric Almirola gifted Chris Buescher the stage win. Stage 2 featured a scary wreck where Kurt Busch went airnorn, riding on the hood of Cole Custer's car. This brought out a short red flag to repair the track's wall. The second stage featured a lot of back and forth racing, but surprisingly Martin Truex Jr. ended up squeaking out a stage 2 win. This was surprisingly a calm stage for the day, and it arguably featured the best racing of the day excluding the finish. Stage 3. - What can I say? It was PEAK Talladega. We watch Talladega for the wild, crazy, unpredictable races and it delivered just that. The final stage featured a big one with playoff drivers Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, and Kyle Busch.Towards the end it almost looked like a few different underdogs could've won, but through a controversial finish, Denny Hamlin emerged victorious. In an attempt to avoid a potential wreck, Hamlin avoided Chris Buescher and Erik Jones by driving to the bottom of the track. At the same time Matt DiBenedetto pushed William Byron below the double yellow line, and somehow Denny made it through unscathed. It was his 44th career win, tying Hall of Famer Bill Elliott. The top 10 featured several underdogs including Ty Dillon in third, John Hunter Nemechek in eighth, Brennan Poole in ninth, and Ryan Preece in tenth. The wreckfest and wonky finishing order made the Roval virtually a must win for Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon, Aric Almirola, and Clint Bowyer. These drivers are outside of the playoff advancement line as we enter the elimination race next week.

UPDATE - Daniel Suarez to drive #99 Chevrolet for Team Trackhouse in 2021. The team will be affiliated through a technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing Photo Source : Twitter.com/TeamTrackHouse Per Adam Stern of the Sports Business Journal, Justin Marks will announce formally today that he has started a new NASCAR Cup Series team called 'Team Trackhouse'. Marks, the successful multi-disciplined racer competed in NASCAR's premiere series a total of 6 times with a best finish of 12th in the 2018 Daytona 500. The 39 year old from St. Louis Missouri has one NASCAR win coming in an Xfinity deal at Mid-Ohio in 2016, and has found other success in sports car racing primarily. This is not Marks' first business venture, he and his father of operated and managed multiple businesses in the past. Currently, Marks co-owns GoPro Motorplex, located 30 miles north of Charlotte, North Carolina.

NASCAR veteran Alex Bowman will replace 7-time champion Jimmie Johnson at the wheel of the #48 Chevrolet in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Season. Bowman, who has 2 career NASCAR Cup Series victories has driven the #88 Chevrolet for the team since the retirement of Dale Earnhardt Jr. at the end of the 2017 season. The #88 and #48 teams work out of the same shop on the Hendrick property. While this will appear on track as a different setup, the only difference on paper is the sponsor and number change. Ally Financial is expected to be on the car for all 36 points races in 2021. The new driver for the remaining team at Hendrick Motorsports has not been announced at this time, but wide speculation is that suspended competitor Kyle Larson will join the team in 2021 behind the wheel of a new number. Stay with Racing Refresh for more details as that story develops.

Exhibition Races: Busch Clash on the Daytona Road Course, Texas All Star Race AJ -NASCAR's exhibition events are some of the most important on the schedule for the premier series of stock car racing. I believe that having the Clash on the road course sounded great at first. They were making a new event out of an iconic one. With the addition of the road courses in the regular season, there isn't as much of a need to do this with the Daytona Clash, though. I'm not let down, but I would have preferred it left alone. With the All-Star moving to Texas in 2021, it marks the third consecutive season the All-Star event will be held at a different track. In my opinion, they should keep this a tradition and move it somewhere new every year. Good move for short gain, but PLEASE don't keep it in Boss Hoss's back yard. Zach - When the Daytona Road Course was announced as the Busch Clash I was excited, but after NASCAR ran the Daytona Road Course this season I'm a bit down on this race, but maybe under the lights with a smaller field it could work. The Texas All Star race should be interesting the low expectations of the racing at Texas means that the potential for something exciting is high. Segment 1: Daytona 500, Homestead, Auto Club, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Atlanta, Bristol dirt, Martinsville AJ - The Daytona 500 is one of the most significant sporting events in the world. In my opinion, it carries prestige just shy of the Indianapolis 500 and the Super Bowl. Regardless of where we each rank the 'Great-American Race', there's no arguing that it is the premier series' most anticipated each season. There have been small talks in last couple of years about the potential of moving this race to another spot on the cup schedule. While just rumours, that topic comes up every year on social media or by independent writers. I'm thankful each time NASCAR sticks with the tradition and keeps it at the start of the race season. The other big moments in this schedule segment include the final running of Auto Club's 2.0 mile configuration as the track will transition into a high-banked short track beginning in 2022. Bristol's change to dirt will be one of the most discussed changes by far in 2021. I don't believe this type of event belongs on a national touring series calendar, but I believe I'm in the minority on that. I'll go into detail on my opinions another time. Zach- The first eight races of the schedule remain relatively unchanged from the 2020 schedule except for Homestead moving up the schedule, and the Bristol dirt race. Moving Homestead up is a fantastic idea with the shortening of the Daytona Speed Weeks is almost like a Spring Break road trip. The Bristol dirt race will absolutely be the most hit or miss event on the schedule. I tend to think it will be a miss because the fans know how great Bristol is on its own, and for the dirt race to be a success the best case scenario is that it is equal to a regular Bristol race. Segment 2: Richmond, Talladega, Kansas, Darlington, Dover, Circuit of the Americas (COTA), Charlotte, Sonoma, Nashville AJ - This portion of the schedule is interesting to me because it introduces two tracks to NASCAR's cup schedule that have never been involved in the history of the sport. NASCAR executives promised big changes to the schedule over the last couple of years and we were offered Charlotte's Roval. While there is no harm in adding the Roval event, the addition of brand new tracks is significant. Cota and Nashville will be embraced heavily by local fans, and the action they're sure to bring will be received well by the TV viewer as well. I am excited to see how NASCAR on Fox handles the coverage of this, as they haven't had a major shakeup in their broadcasting schedule in many years (outside of the Covid inspired iRacing events in 2020). Zach - This part of the schedule features three major changes; Darlington gets its second race back and the new tracks of Circuit of the Americas, and Nashville. COTA is the highlight here for me, and its simple we get a new racing opportunity in Texas, its the best racing facility in the U.S., and its another road course. Nashville is more of a long term plan track in my opinion, and I think its to test fan interest in the area to get a race date at the famed Nashville Fairgrounds, and if that is where this goes I'm in on Nashville. Segment 3: Pocono Double Header, Road America, Atlanta, New Hampshire, Watkins Glen, Indy Road Course, Michigan, Daytona AJ - I believe in and respect the Igdalsky and Mattioli families for their hard work and interest in promoting one of NASCAR's longest operating tracks in Pocono Pennsylvania. That being said, if I was asked which track on the circuit is least interesting to me, the answer would be 'The Tricky Triangle'. I've said for many years that Pocono should be removed from the Cup Schedule. I believe that it is a more endurance themed track that rewards pit strategy...and NASCAR's stage system has almost no pit strategy remaining. Unfortunately for my take, Pocono gets a weekend double-header with inverted starting lineups. A yawn of a race weekend to me personally, but a good decision for fans who enjoy their product. Three road courses in this portion of the track become the true headliner with the addition of Road America and the now traditional Brickyard 400 being replaced with a Indy Road Course event, it will be hard to promote Daytona's summer race against these races. It's interesting to me when Atlanta may be the least exciting race in a group of 8. Zach - This segment features three track changes again, and those are the additions of a Road America, a second Atlanta race, and moving from the Indy oval to the Indy Road Course. Adding Road America is massive for the Cup Series. The Xfinity Series has been putting on fantastic shows at Road America for a few years, and I'm curious what the Cup guys will do there. I am not too keen on a second Atlanta race, and I think Atlanta is remembered so fondly for what it was then what it is now. However; if Atlanta is supposedly trying to invest in this massive entertainment center then Atlanta deserves two dates. Lastly the Indy Road Course, and I am incredibly excited with this. I hope to see a great race there, but if we're being honest I doubt it will be worse than the oval was the worst few years. Losing the tradition of the Brickyard 400 is sad, but I think this is a chance for NASCAR to commit to a new tradition. Segment 4: Darlington, Richmond, Bristol, Las Vegas, Talladega, Charlotte Roval, Texas, Kansas, Martinsville, Phoenix AJ - We get back into the basics here. There's nothing wrong with any of these events..I see many fan favorite tracks and the return of two Darlington races is special for fans and race teams. No critique or comment outside of that. Zach- The playoffs remain unchanged except Kansas and Texas are flipped. I have enjoyed the playoff races so far this season, and assuming everything else remains roughly the same 2021 should be a success here. I think keeping the playoffs the same works well. If NASCAR looks to change the playoff schedule I expect those to to happen in 2022. Best Schedule Change: AJ - It's possible the best schedule change is a short-lived decision. From approximately 2000-2010, the two standard road course events of Sonoma and Watkins Glen were the least popular for fans. Something changed at the start of the decade and fans started embracing the left and right-turned endurance courses. I credit Aussie driver Marcos Ambrose and wild child AJ Allmendinger for the new-found fan love. Most fans seem to appreciate and want more road courses on the schedule, and NASCAR delivered big time. The question is...will fans get bored or lose interest if we aren't seeing the same side-by-side memorable finishes. If we have a race won by 15 seconds...will fans still be happy? I believe the best schedule change was to add more road courses. I'd love even more, personally. I'm intrigued to see if it is a temporary boost in revenue and ratings, or ends up being a dud. Zach- The best schedule change is undoubtedly the addition of Circuit of the Americas. COTA I think has the potential to be the best road course on the calendar, and has crown jewel event upside. COTA is arguably the best racing facility in the world, and NASCAR needs to be there. Leaving a 500 mile Texas race for the potential of COTA is the best part of the whole deal. Worst Schedule Change: AJ - The worst event on NASCAR's schedule in my opinion is the Bristol dirt race. I don't believe this is what NASCAR's touring series needs included in their schedule. They've tried it in ARCA and Truck events already and I simply cannot understand how these can be considered as part of the championship. The events are fun, exciting, competitive..I'm not bashing the promotion or the drivers. The issue I take is that stock car racing, for 50 years has been known for racing on asphalt and concrete. Millions of dollars are invested into research and development for these cars, and now there is going to be a saturday night bull-ring on dirt? It seems silly to me. I hope the fans enjoy it that attend and the drivers have a safe and exciting race, but I don't want it to stay on the schedule. Zach- In my opinion the worst schedule change is the Bristol dirt race. I have a long of apprehension coming into this race, but I hope it works. We know the Bristol spring race has been struggling with attendance, so it could work but I am definitely curious to see how it works. I know it will initially be fun, but the longevity is my major concern here.

(Photo Source : Twitter.com/NASCAR)

This week we return to Earnhardt Country... Talladega. Since its first race in 1969 Talladega has been filled with memorable crashes, speeds, finishes, and images its crazy past is what brings us back every time. These are my Top 5 Talladega moments, and a few honorable mentions. Honorable Mention - 1987 Winston 500 A race weekend that changed NASCAR and Talladega forever. This was the race where Bill Elliott qualified with an average speed of 212.809 MPH, and had the "World's Fastest Race Car." - 2013 Aaron's 499 The ICONIC Front Row Motorsports 1-2 finish. Talladega is home to the underdogs, and the 2013 Aaron's 499 was no different. A relatively new and underfunded team lead by David Ragan, and David Gilliland the two locked up and had an immaculate drive to the lead. This was an organization altering moment, and this finish perfectly encapsulates the underdog potential at Talladega. THE LIST 5. 2009 Aaron's 499 "Brad Keselowski has won this race," a truly unforgettable moment where Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards are racing to the finish. The two pulled ahead of the field coming into the trioval, and Edwards was trying to block Keselowski. Keselowski however; got his nose just underneath Edwards and it sent his car flying into the fence. Keselowski went on to win, but after the wreck Carl Edwards finished the race on foot to the cheers of thousands of fans. 4. 2003 Aaron's 499 This race is notable for two things primarily, and the first was the largest crash in Cup Series history. The crash was on lap 4 as Ryan Newman blew a tire, and involved 27 cars in total. The other, and honestly significantly more memorable is Dale Earnhardt Jr. setting a new record of winning 4 races in a row at Talladega. In a track that his dad dominated Jr. earned his own place in the record book, 3. 1985 Winston 500 Awesome Bill from Dawsonville rallied from two laps down to win the race. Rallying from two laps down to win is impressive, but what's even crazier is that he did all under green flag conditions. He had a car that was so dominant he was legitimately drove through the field three times. Awesome Bill truly was in a league of his own in 1985, and it shows here. 2. 2000 Winston 500 Dale Earnhardt's final win...enough said. Actually this race included Kenny Wallace and Dale Earnhardt sorting through the field going from 18th to 1st in four laps. An unforgettable run when Earnhardt pulled out in front of the field with the crowd screaming. We didn't know it was Dale's final win, but even then this race is an all time Talladega moment. 1. 2020 Geico 500 You may think this pick has recency bias behind it, but I think it is the most memorable Talladega moment. The unity, and support the drivers showed Bubba Wallace is a a borderline tear jerker. Wallace is leading NASCAR's social justice reform, and that reached a new high at Talladgea. After the garage stall noose incident every single driver walked down pit road with Bubba Wallace putting his car in front of the field. The NASCAR community made a major statement standing behind Bubba, and it has changed the sport forever.

(Photo Source : Twitter.com/NASCAR_Trucks)

(Photo Source : Twitter.com/NASCAR_Xfinity)