AUTO RACING: NASCAR moves to Atlanta after William Byron's Daytona 500 win
All Times Eastern
NASCAR CUP SERIES
Ambetter Health 400
Site: Hampton, Georgia.
Schedule: Saturday, qualifying, 11:35 p.m.; Sunday, race, 2:30 p.m. (Fox).
Track: Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Race distance: 260 laps, 400 miles.
Last year: Joey Logano won after starting on the pole.
Last race: William Byron crossed under the white flag denoting the final lap at the exact moment a crash broke out behind him and won the rain-delayed Daytona 500, giving team owner Rick Hendrick the win in the 40th anniversary year of Hendrick Motorsports.
Fast facts: Hendrick teammate Alex Bowman was second. ... The last Hendrick driver to win the 500 was Dale Earmhardt Jr. in 2014. ... Hendrick drivers have won the Daytona 500 nine times, tying the team with Petty Enterprises for the most ever. ... The fourth and final caution of the race began when Bowman hit Byron from behind and it caused Byron to sideswipe Brad Keselowski, triggering a 23-car crash that caused a red flag that lasted more than 15 minutes.
Next race: March 3 at Las Vegas.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
NASCAR XFINITY SERIES
RAPTOR King of Tough 250
Site: Hampton, Georgia.
Schedule: Friday, qualifying, 4:35 p.m.; Saturday, race, 5 p.m. (FS1).
Track: Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Race distance: 163 laps, 251 miles.
Last year: Austin Hill won after starting third.
Last race: Hill won at Daytona for the third consecutive year on Monday night after the race was postponed by rain.
Fast facts: The season-opening race was originally slated to be run Saturday. ... Hill has seven career victories, with two others coming at Atlanta. ... Shane van Gisbergen finished 12th as last year’s Cup winner at Chicago made his Xfinity Series debut. ... Frankie Muniz, the actor making a transition to motorsports, finished 33rd in his series debut.
Next race: March 2 at Las Vegas.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
NASCAR TRUCK SERIES
Fr8 208
Site: Hampton, Georgia.
Schedule: Friday, qualifying, 3:05 p.m.; Saturday, race, 2 p.m. (FS1).
Track: Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Race distance: 135 laps, 208 miles.
Last year: Christian Eckes won after starting fourth.
Last race: Nick Sanchez claimed the first Truck Series victory of his career, winning the season opener at Daytona when the race ended under caution.
Fast facts: Corey Heim was second, followed by Rajah Caruth. ... The final caution involved 12 trucks and was the record 12th of the race.
Next race: March 1 at Las Vegas.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
FORMULA ONE
Last race: Three-time champion Max Verstappen won the season finale in Abu Dhabi, his seventh consecutive victory and season-record 19th in 22 races in 2023.
Next race: Season opener at Sakhir, Bahrain, March 2.
Online: http://www.formula1.com
INDYCAR
Last race: Scott Dixon won last year's season finale at Laguna Seca, his third win of the season, all in the last four races. The six-time champion gave Chip Ganassi Racing a 1-2 finish in the standings. A week earlier, teammate Alex Palou had become the first driver in 18 years to clinch the title before the final race of the season.
Next race: Season opener at St. Petersburg, Florida, March 10.
Online: http://www.indycar.com
NHRA DRAG RACING
Next event: March 7-10, Gainesville, Florida.
Online: http://www.nhra.com
WORLD OF OUTLAWS
Next events: March 3-4, Barberville, Florida.
Online: http://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars
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