NASCAR’s New Hampshire weekend featured a pair of unique and interesting races between the Xfinity Series and Cup Series. A clean sweep for Christopher Bell only adds to his legacy at the Magic Mile.
For a weekend in New Hampshire, a lot happened this week. When you start the race weekend with a failed driver announcement, then you know it’s going to be a wild weekend.
Was this the most incredible race we’ve seen this season? No. But it was unique and fun and there was a lot of learning throughout. It was also a reminder to some teams that they are having horrendous seasons and not even a crazy wet weather race can fix that.
Christopher Bell makes a mistake on Chase Briscoe news
Oops. When answering a question about whether he will increase his leadership role at JGR, Christopher Bell accidentally mentions that “Chase” will be joining the team. The signing of Chase Briscoe has not yet been announced, but is expected. pic.twitter.com/fU7ZYYiZ8G
—Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) June 21, 2024
To start in New Hampshire, Christopher Bell grabbed the microphone in the press room and ruined it. Exactly what?
Bell let it slip “when Chase gets here” while answering questions from the media. Now Joe Gibbs Racing has a driver announcement for Tuesday and everyone knows what it is.
The Haas Factory team will maintain a contract
When asked about this week’s Haas Factory Team announcement (Gene Haas will retain a Stewart-Haas charter vehicle to race in 2025), Cole Custer says, “It would be a dream come true” to drive the NASCAR Cup Series model: pic.twitter.com/JfkDUxgQqg
—Joseph Srigley (@joe_srigley) June 21, 2024
Stewart-Haas Racing will no longer exist, but the Haas Factory Team will join the Cup Series in 2025 with a single contract. The team will also feature two Xfinity Series teams.
Cole Custer is said to be ending the Cup race. Could we see a driver like Ryan Preece get one of the two Xfinity seats?
NASCAR fights weather in New Hampshire
It was clear from the beginning that the weather was going to be an issue in New Hampshire. NASCAR was doing what it could to have practices and qualifying, but it failed.
Mother Nature wanted these teams to hit the track with minimal laps. It turned out to be a bit of a wild weekend as rain tires were needed.
JGR bus catches fire at NHMS
Facebook user Keith Clark captured this video of NHMS late Thursday or early Friday. @JoeGibbsRacing He confirmed to me that this is his team bus, used for meetings and meetings at the track, which is on fire in the video. There was no one on the bus at the time and there were no injuries. pic.twitter.com/EpBkJwCwHv
—Toby Christie (@Toby_Christie) June 22, 2024
As a brief comment, we cannot let this moment go unnoticed. Joe Gibbs Racing had a bus fire this weekend at the Magic Mile.
Fortunately, there was no one on the bus at the time and lifeguards on the tarmac turned it off. Unfortunate for JGR, but fortunately a situation that could have been much worse than it was was quickly resolved.
NASCAR Xfinity Series uses wet weather tires
To open the Xfinity Series race in New Hampshire, NASCAR put on wet-weather tires. It was a little preview of Sunday’s Cup race.
Regardless of which tires were used, Christopher Bell was clearly the favorite. He just gets the hint more than anyone.
Sam Mayer and Justin Allgaier survive crazy whistles
During the Xfinity Series race, JR Motorsports drivers Sam Mayer and Justin Allgaier went through something no one should go through.
The most annoying and harsh beeping kept ringing from their radios for many laps on Saturday. In the end it was resolved, but I’m sure the tinnitus has already appeared.
Christopher Bell completes first leg of sweep
In the end, Christopher Bell was inevitable. Four races, four wins in the Xfinity Series in New Hampshire. Nobody does it better than Bell.
The Magic Mile had some magic left in the final restart. Cole Custer and Sheldon Creed made valiant efforts, but Bell was too good.
Kyle Busch is in the gutter after another DNF
For the third time in four races, Kyle Busch finished P35 with one DNF. Involved in an incident with Noah Gragson early in the race, Busch didn’t stop there.
Under caution before the race restarted after a two-hour rain delay, Busch hit the wall on wet-weather tires, destroying his car.
NASCAR Cup Series uses wet weather tires in New Hampshire
This race could only take place on Sunday due to rain tires. We have to applaud NASCAR for that at least.
Now, there may be criticism for allowing teams to determine which tires to use, when to switch back to slicks, and more. Other motorsports do it, let’s bring NASCAR up to speed.
Devastated Bubba Wallace drives to Noah Gragson afterward
On lap 266 of 305, Bubba Wallace, Erik Jones, Austin Dillon and Austin Cindric were involved in a crash after Noah Gragson slid across the track.
Wallace was abandoned due to the accident. He then drove his wrecked car to Gragson’s pit stall and informed him about it.
Christopher Bell sweeps NASCAR weekend in New Hampshire
Despite the rain tires, despite the delay, and despite Mother Nature’s best efforts, Christopher Bell took the weekend by storm in New Hampshire. An absolute spectacle from Bell.
I think Bell deserves more credit than he’s getting for these wins. We shouldn’t overlook the fact that he could finish a Cup race on wet tires on an oval, and he did it better than anyone.
John Force injured in NHRA crash
Before we move on to Nashville Superspeedway, let’s take a moment to talk about John Force. The 16-time NHRA Funny Car champion was involved in a serious accident during qualifying.
The force was taken to a hospital after being conscious and alert with emergency medical personnel on scene. Let’s hope for a speedy recovery for the 75-year-old legend.
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