It will be announced today that Erik Jones and Richard Petty Motorsports have come to terms on a deal that will put the Byron, Michigan driver in the #43 Chevrolet beginning in 2021. Sources familiar to the dela indicate that specifics on contract lengths and sponsors are not yet announced. Jones has driven for Toyota for his entire career in NASCAR and will depart Joe Gibbs Racing at the end of the 2020 season. He has 2 wins in 144 career starts in NASCAR'S Cup Series and was the 2015 Nascar Truck Series Champion.

Race car driver Kyle Larson has been approved by NASCAR to return to sanctioned events beginning on January 1st, 2021. It was reported last week that Larson had applied for reinstatement after completing a mandatory sensitivity training in response to the usage of a racial slur in a virtual event earlier this year. Larson was serving an indefinite suspension from NASCAR and termination from his then employer Chip Ganassi Racing. There is much speculation as to which team Larson will race for in 2021, with most rumours pointing at Hendrick Motorsports. This news was first announced by Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass. NASCAR provided the below comment earlier today.

(Photo Source : Twitter.com/NASCAR_Trucks)

It was elimination Saturday for the NASCAR Xfinity Series. As if that pressure wasn't high enough, drivers had to take on the Charlotte Roval, a track that had only seen Xfinity competition twice prior to this event. With all the playoff drama, one would assume it would be the primary story of the afternoon. However, mother nature proved to be the driving factor of Saturday's race. It was a race full of twists, turns, slipping, and sliding. At the end of the day, eight drivers move on with hope that they will hoist the championship trophy in Phoenix. For four others, their championship hopes were dashed. The race at the Roval started as calmly as it possibly could've, given the circumstances. Prior to the race, NASCAR had stated that the track was in "dry" conditions. However, NASCAR could deem the track "wet" at any point in the race if they felt led to do so. Teams had 2 sets of rain tires, but it was the crew chief's call when to put them on their team's car. Noah Gragson and Justin Haley led the field to green. Gragson quickly proved that he had a fast car as he pulled away to a solid lead in the leading laps. With rain looming in the area, teams were already beginning to strategize when to put on rain tires. This call would become clear for most, as the caution came out on lap 3 when something broke underneath Brett Moffitt. Many teams used this as an opportunity to come get rain tires. Gragson led the field to green again. At this point, rain was coming down steadily across the track. Justin Haley, along with others, had issues early on with the windshield wiper on the car. This made visibility go from bad to worse for the drivers dealing with it. Cars were spinning all over the track. The caution was thrown on Lap 14 when a group of drivers all got into the wall one after another. Playoff contenders Brandon Jones, Noah Gragson, and Ross Chastain were among those who had spun at multiple places across the track. Differing pit strategies would cycle Justin Haley and Harrison Burton to the lead. The two battled for awhile, but Harrison would miss two chicanes which would lose him multiple positions. Kaz Grala, who was complaining about power steering issues a few laps before, was able to grab the lead and win stage 1. Gragson, Labbe, Haley, Allgaier, Chastain, Hemric, Williams, Pardus, and Brown all collected stage points behind them. More playoff drama occurred as NASCAR deemed that Harrison Burton did not come to a complete stop after missing the front stretch chicane. This meant that Burton would have to start at the tail end of the field. Stage 2 proved to be just as wild as the first, and even more so. Kaz Grala and Noah Gragson led the field to green. The two battled for the lead for a lap, but Gragson assumed control after Grala missed the front stretch chicane. Noah led for a few laps until Riley Herbst got to his back bumper. Herbst ended up spinning Gragson in turn 4 and the caution came out with Herbst in the lead. During this caution, NASCAR opted to throw out the red flag to attempt to dry out the standing water in certain areas of the track. After a nearly 40 minute delay, Riley Herbst led the field back to green. His lead was short lived as he and Justin Allgaier would spin as they fought for the lead. This brought out the caution with just a few laps left in the stage. AJ Allmendinger and Chase Briscoe led the field back to green with just a 1 lap shootout for the stage win. Briscoe would get the best of Allmendinger as AJ had some trouble on that last lap of the stage. Briscoe captured the stage 2 win and Chastain, Labbe, Cindric, Gragson, Hemric, Brown, Allgaier, Gaulding, Buford all got stage points. After the conclusion of Stage 2, both Austin Cindric and Noah Gragson locked up spots in the Round of 8. The final stage of the race kept the dramatic pace going as mother nature threw yet another curveball. The rain was still coming down over the track, but due to the 40 minute red flag earlier in the race, nightfall began to encompass the track. The oval portion of the track had the means to combat this, but the infield grew darker and darker. This decreased the already slim visibility of the drivers. The battle for the lead proved to be down to Chase Briscoe and AJ Allmendinger as the laps winded down. Briscoe clearly had the better car on the long run, but a series of cautions allowed AJ to stay in the mix. On the final restart of the race, Briscoe and AJ fought for the lead one more time. Unfortunately for Briscoe, he spun on the exit of turn 1 and thus ending his chances of winning the race. Allmendinger would hold on against a hard charging Noah Gragson and Daniel Hemric to secure the victory. To many's disbelief, this was actually AJ's first road course win of the year. Gragson, Hemric, Labbe, Chastain, Cindric, Ware, Buford, Annett, and Jones all grabbed a Top 10 finish out of the Roval. Seven of the 12 playoff drivers finished outside the Top 10. Those drivers were Herbst (12th), Briscoe (18th), Sieg (21st), Allgaier (23rd), Brown (26th), Burton (33rd), and Haley (35th). For Harrison Burton, Brandon Brown, Riley Herbst, and Michael Annett, their chance at a championship came to an end at the Roval. After the points reset the playoff grid looks like this: 1. Chase Briscoe - +37 Points 2. Austin Cindric - +27 Points 3. Justin Allgaier - +10 Points 4. Noah Gragson - +2 Points 5. Justin Haley - -2 Points 6. Brandon Jones - -5 Points 7. Ross Chastain - -15 Points 8. Ryan Sieg - -23 Points The round of 8 starts this weekend and will be the first opportunity for these 8 drivers to punch their ticket to Phoenix. The battle will get tighter each and every week. Soon we will crown a new NASCAR Xfinity Series Champion.

Road course racing has been a part of NASCAR for decades, but the upcoming 2021 season, it is more important than ever to be a good road course racer. There a a few drivers who stand out among the rest as the true road course ringers of NASCAR. Here's the Top 5 for Racing Refresh writers Justin Seger and Zachary Bell. Honorable Mention Justin - Clint Bowyer: Bowyer is never a bad pick for a road course event. He has a win at Sonoma and has a solid average finish at both Watkins Glen and Sonoma. He barely misses the cut this time around. Zach - Chase Briscoe: A guy that ford has significantly invested in, especially with his road racing. Combining that with his natural talent, Briscoe has won two road course racing in the Xfinity Series including the inaugural races at both the Charlotte Roval, and Indy Road Course. Briscoe having not competed in the Cup Series yet is what makes him my honorable mention, but were we to make this list again in a year or two I bet he'd jump to the top 5. Fifth Justin - Denny Hamlin: I must admit a few years ago Hamlin might not have been on my list at all. He doesn’t have as many wins as some on this list or even some off of this list, but Hamlin has proven that he can adapt well to situations. With the new tracks coming in 2021, I think Hamlin could be a favorite on many of the road courses. Zach - Austin Cindric: Arguably the best road course racer in the Xfinity Series Cindric has dominated in his two years at this level. He has won four road course races in the Xfinity Series at Watkins Glen, Road America, Mid Ohio, and the inaugural Daytona Road Course. He has shown his road course prowess routinely, and whenever he reaches the Cup Series I expect that he will compete with the best every time. Fourth Justin - Austin Cindric: This driver is a little more intriguing and somewhat controversial as Cindric has not proven himself at the highest level of NASCAR, the Cup Series. However, Cindric has proven himself to be a top talent when it comes to road courses in the Xfinity Series. I believe this talent will translate to future Cup success for Cindric and I expect big things from him. Zach - AJ Allmendinger: The Dinger a road course specialist through and through. Although Allmendinger is not a full time Xfinity Series competitor, but he does run all the road course races. Allmendinger has won Xfinity races at Mid Ohio, Road America, and the Charlotte Roval. What made me rank Allmendinger above Briscoe and Cindric is his Cup Series win at Watkins Glen. Third Justin - AJ Allmendinger: The Dinger is always a threat on road courses. He may not be racing full time in any of the NASCAR national series, but his deal with Kaulig Racing in the Xfinity Series makes sure that he’s a threat for all the road courses. He has a cup series victory at Watkins Glen to back up his Xfinity success as well. If you’re looking for a solid road racer, look no further than AJ Allmendinger. Zach - Kyle Busch: The younger Busch brother is locked into third place for me. His four Cup Series, and one Xfinity Series win shows how good he is. He has won two cup races at both Sonoma and Watkins Glen. His detractors are his performances at the Charlotte Roval, and the Daytona Road Course races he does not have a single top 10 at either track. I know those tracks have limited stats, but it is alarmingly bad. Second Justin - Chase Elliott: Sorry to disappoint the Chase Elliott fans out there, but I feel that currently, Chase is second best when it comes to road course. His performances at the Charlotte Roval in 2019 and Daytona Road Course earlier this year are definitely reasons to pick him. Add 2 back to back wins at the Glen and he is proven to be a road course talent. Zach - Martin Truex Jr.: This is where the real debate starts. Truex versus the number one guy Chase Elliott. Truex has been dominant at the road courses ever since he joined Furniture Row Racing, and Toyota. He has won four road course races in his career; three at Sonoma, and one at Watkins Glen. We all remember the finish to the 2018 Charlotte Roval, and Truex probably would've won, so he could have five. Truex's recent dominance at Sonoma is the most impressive to me. First Justin - Martin Truex Jr.: In my opinion, just slightly edges out Chase Elliott for this spot. Martin has 4 road course wins of his own, and nearly had the Daytona road course and 2018 Charlotte Roval victories. He and Chase have proven to be a class of their own in recent years, but due to the lengthy tenure of Martin’s road course success, I put him over Chase as the best current Road Course racer. Zach - Chase Elliott: It's hard to say he's best right now, but it's even harder to say he isn't the best. Chase's meteoric rise in his road course racing performance is impressive. He has won four Cup races on road courses including two at Watkins Glen, one at the Charlotte Roval, and the inaugural race at the Daytona Road Course. Chase's road course performance is silky smooth to watch. He has struggled a bit at Sonoma, but it has largely been mechanical related struggles. AJ - I had to sneak in on this great debate. Some great drivers come to mind in regards to the 'all-time' greatest on road courses. Ricky Rudd, Dale Earnhardt, Jeff or Robby Gordon, Tony Stewart, Juan Montoya, Marcos Ambrose, so many great names. In regards to who the best is that is active, look no farther than AJ Allmendinger. I think he belongs significantly higher on these lists. If we made a schedule of 36 points races ALL on road courses, I guarantee you he would be the first drivers teams wanted to sign.

Perhaps NASCAR's funniest man, Clint Bowyer announced yesterday in a gratuitous letter to the motorsports industry his intentions to formally retire from NASCAR Cup Series racing at the end of the 2020 season. In the letter, Bowyer mentioned every car owner and major sponsor that he has raced for in the Cup Series, and mentioned his unique relationship with all three major car manufacturers. Clint's season in the #14 Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing will be fulfilled before the seat becomes vacant for the 2021 season. Most industry rumours are saying that Chase Briscoe's relationship with both Ford and Strewart-Haas Racing make him the most likely candidate for that seat. Bowyer, the 41-year-old from Emporia Kansas won the 2008 Xfinity Series Championship with Richard Childress racing and has won 10 career cup races in 536 starts. He has a total of 21 wins in NASCAR's three national tours. Bowyer did not mention if he would return behind the wheel on an as-needed or part-time basis in the future, but emphasized that a new chapter of his life begins with Fox Sports Television. Bowyer has had experience working in the booth in the past, and will become a part of their weekend racing coverage in 2021. Details on his role on their weekly coverages has not been announced, but he did say he would be covering the cup events on Sundays.

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.