HAMPTON, Ga. — Chase Briscoe is facing a significant challenge as he enters the NASCAR Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway due to a hefty penalty that has left him with a noteworthy points deficit. Despite this setback, Briscoe maintains that he does not feel any additional pressure. He emphasizes that the expectations of winning are already high since joining Joe Gibbs Racing.
“I feel like I’m in a must-win situation just starting at JGR,” Briscoe remarked on Saturday. “You need to be winning at JGR, so I don’t feel like it changes anything from that standpoint.”
On the day before the race, Ryan Blaney secured the pole position, while his fellow Team Penske drivers, Austin Cindric and Joey Logano, will commence the race from second and fourth places, respectively. Blaney expressed hopes that the initial stage of the race could see teammates working together, acknowledging that coordinated efforts may not last throughout the entire event.
Briscoe’s previous race performance included a pole win at the Daytona 500, where he ultimately finished in fourth. However, NASCAR’s inspections uncovered that Briscoe had used an altered spoiler on his No. 19 Toyota during time trials, resulting in Joe Gibbs Racing receiving a penalty of 100 driver and owner points, as well as a fine of $100,000. The team’s crew chief, James Small, was also handed a four-race suspension. Despite these challenges, Small continues to strategize for Briscoe’s race while the team appeals the severe penalties, which have left Briscoe with a negative 67 points and a drop from 10th to 39th in the standings.
Reflecting on the adversity, Briscoe admitted that he felt dejected when the penalties were announced, but quickly recognized the necessity to shift focus to the Atlanta race with the same competitive mindset. William Byron, who captured the Daytona 500 title, emerged victorious in the previous year’s race, completing the overtime final lap from ninth position.
Daniel Suarez triumphed in Atlanta last February with a nail-biting finish, edging out Blaney and Kyle Busch by a mere 0.003 seconds—the tightest finish recorded at any 1.5-mile track. Additionally, Logano claimed victory in Atlanta’s second race last year during the opening of the NASCAR playoffs. Briscoe is set to start the race from the 25th position, while Suarez will begin from 29th.
In a strong showing for Ford drivers, Josh Berry qualified third, capturing 10 of the top 11 starting spots. Kyle Busch rounds out the top six, starting in his Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing.
Chase Elliott, who secured a win at Atlanta in 2022, kicked off this season with a victory in the Clash. The Hendrick Motorsports trio, featuring Byron, Larson, and Elliott, are looking to achieve a third consecutive win to start the season, marking a significant milestone reminiscent of Jeff Gordon’s winning streak in 1997.
Ryan Preece, who is starting the race in 11th, expressed relief after surviving a harrowing crash at Daytona where his Ford flipped in mid-air. After a close call earlier this year that left him with visible injuries, Preece joked about his luck, saying, “I feel fine,” while hoping to avoid further dangerous incidents.
Martin Truex Jr. is set to see his streak of 685 consecutive starts—the longest in the Cup Series—come to an end, as he retired from full-time racing after last season, marking an impressive legacy. Logano, meanwhile, assumes the title of the driver with the longest active starting streak, his participation in this race being the 578th consecutive.
In other news, NASCAR proudly reported that the Daytona 500 saw impressive television ratings, despite a long rain delay. The race garnered a 3.42 household rating, with an average of 6.8 million viewers, surpassing both the NBA All-Star game and an NHL match. Even during the rain delay, viewership remained strong, averaging around 4.95 million, which would have ranked as the week’s second-most viewed program if counted separately.
Looking ahead, Blaney and Logano are both regarded as co-favorites to win the race, according to odds from BetMGM Sportsbook.
