AUTO RACING: Last race for NASCAR drivers to make Final Four

Published Oct. 25, 2022 10:37 a.m. ET

Associated Press

All Times Eastern

NASCAR CUP SERIES

Xfinity 500

Site: Martinsville, Virginia.

Schedule: Saturday, practice, noon, and qualifying, 12:45 p.m.; Sunday, race, 2 p.m. (NBC).

Track: Martinsville Speedway.

Race distance: 500 laps, 263 miles.

Last year: Alex Bowman won after starting 13th.

Last race: Kyle Larson led 199 of 267 laps at Homestead-Miami and won for the third time this season.

Fast facts: Joey Logano remains the only driver to have clinched a spot in the four-driver championship finale, leaving seven others to battle for the final three spots on NASCAR's oldest and shortest track. ... Among the remaining playoff contenders, Denny Hamlin has won five times on the 0.526-mile paper clip-shaped track, but not since March of 2015. Logano, Chase Elliott and William Byron have each won once, with Byron's coming earlier this year. ... Logano leads Ross Chastain by five points, Elliott by 13 and Byron by 19. Eighth-place Chase Briscoe is 63 points off the lead. ... Ryan Blaney remains the only winless driver in contention for the championship;

Next race: Nov. 6, Avondale, Arizona.

Online: http://www.nascar.com

NASCAR XFINITY SERIES

Dead On Tools 250

Site: Martinsville, Virginia.

Schedule: Friday, practice, 4 p.m., and qualifying, 4:35 p.m.; Saturday, race, 3 p.m. (NBC).

Track: Martinsville Speedway.

Race distance: 250 laps, 131.5 miles.

Last year: Noah Gragson won after starting ninth.

Last race: Gragson gave JR Motorsports two drivers in the Xfinity Series championship finale with his series-best eighth win of the season Saturday at Homestead-Miami.

Fast facts: Gragson led 127 of the 200 laps, then held off Ty Gibbs and AJ Allmendinger on a late restart for his 13th career victory. ... He joined fellow JRM driver Josh Berry, who won at Las Vegas, as drivers locked into the championship finale, with teammates Justin Allgaier and Sam Mayer also still in contention. ... Gragson's points lead climbed to 31 over Ty Gibbs and 56 over Allmendinger, the regular season champ. ... Brandon Jones is last among the eight drivers still vying for a title shot, 94 points off the lead.

Next race: Nov. 5, Avondale, Arizona.

Online: http://www.nascar.com

NASCAR TRUCK SERIES

Last race: Ty Majeski led 67 of the 134 laps and stamped himself as the driver to beat with a runaway victory at Homestead-Miami. Chandler Smith, Zane Smith and defending series champion Ben Rhodes earned the other three spots in the championship final.

Next race: Nov. 4, Avondale, Arizona.

Online: http://www.nascar.com

FORMULA ONE

Mexican Grand Prix

Site: Mexico City, Mexico.

Schedule: Friday, practice, 2 p.m. and 5 p.m.; Saturday, practice, 1 p.m., and qualifying, 4 p.m.; Sunday, race, 4 p.m. (ESPN).

Track: Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

Race distance: 71 laps, 189.738 miles.

Last year: Max Verstappen won after starting third.

Last event: Verstappen, already the season champion for the second year in a row, passed Lewis Hamilton with six laps to go and won in Texas, his record-tying 13th victory of the season.

Fast facts: Verstappen tied the record shared by Michael Schumacher (2004) and Sebastian Vettel (2013) for most victories in a season and has three races remaining to break it. ... He raced in honor of Red Bull founder and team owner Dietrich Mateschitz after learning Saturday that Mateschitz had died. ... Charles Leclerc rallied from 12th at the start to finish third for Ferrari. Leclerc was second-fastest in qualifying, but drew a 10-place grid penalty after changing engines. ... Hamilton, a seven-time series champion, has three races remaining to extend to 16 his streak of seasons with at least one victory.

Next event: Nov. 13, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Online: http://www.formula1.com

INDYCAR

Last race: Outgoing champion Alex Palou won at Laguna Seca and Will Power finished third in the season finale to beat Team Penske teammate Josef Newgarden for the season championship by 16 points. It’s the second title for Power, who also won in 2014, and the 17th for the Penske organization.

Next race: March 5, 2023, St. Petersburg, Florida.

Online: http://www.indycar.com

NHRA DRAG RACING

Last event: Justin Ashley won in Top Fuel and Ron Capps won in Funny Car in Texas.

Next event: Oct 27-30, Las Vegas.

Online: http://www.nhra.com

WORLD OF OUTLAWS

Next events: Nov. 2, 4 and 5, Concord, North Carolina.

Online: http://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars

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