Ryan Blaney, the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series champion.Kyle Larson, finished second behind Blaney in the championship.William Byron, finished third in the championship.Christopher Bell, finished fourth in the championship.Martin Truex Jr. won the regular season championship, but finished eleventh in the championship.Ty Gibbs, the 2023 NASCAR Rookie of the Year.Chevrolet won the 2023 manufacturers' championship with 1328 points and 18 wins.
This was the final season for 2014 champion and Stewart–Haas Racing driver Kevin Harvick, who announced his plans to retire at the end of the season on January 12, 2023.[5] This was also the first season since 1999 without 2004 champion Kurt Busch, who announced on October 15, 2022, that he would retire from full-time Cup Series competition.[6] On August 26, 2023, Busch announced his complete retirement from the Cup Series.[7]
Due to safety concerns from the 2022 season with drivers suffering concussions and feeling sore due to rear-end crashes, NASCAR made changes to the Next Gen's rear structure for 2023 to create a bigger crumple zone in the hopes that it will prevent the energy from those impacts from affecting the driver. The adjustment also includes slight changes to the center section of the car. Changes to the front structure were also slated to be made for the 2nd race at Atlanta Motor Speedway to further decrease the risk of injury.[98][99]
NASCAR formally banned drivers from wall-riding (after Ross Chastain's "Hail Melon" stunt at the 2022 Xfinity 500). NASCAR cited previously existing rules that will now be enforced in a manner to ban the move.[100]
Loose wheel penalties have been reduced to a two-lap penalty and two-race suspension to crew members (instead of four-race crew chief suspension).
The requirement that drivers must be in the top 30 of the standings to be eligible for the playoffs has been removed.
Stage break cautions have been eliminated at all road course races. Stage points will still be awarded to drivers on predetermined laps, but no caution will be displayed. This was done in an effort to reduce the time spent under cautions at lengthy tracks and to increase strategy during the race.[97] On September 12, 2023, NASCAR officials announced that the playoff race at the Charlotte ROVAL will not have this rule and that there will be cautions at the stage ends. This was done due to there only be one caution in the previous two road course events at Indianapolis and Watkins Glen. Additionally, Elton Sawyer, NASCAR's senior vice president of competition, "noted the desire to officiate all 10 Playoffs races consistently – with each race having stage-break cautions."[101]
The choose cone rule, introduced in 2020, was extended to plate/superspeedway races for 2023, as well to dirt races.[102] On March 9, 2023, NASCAR announced that all road courses would have the choose cone rule for 2023, meaning that every race will have this rule.[103]
Schedule
The 2023 schedule was released on September 14, 2022.[104] The 2023 Daytona 500 was held on Sunday, February 19.[2] The season finale was held at Phoenix Raceway during the first weekend of November.[3] The Busch Light Clash returned to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the second year in a row and the race was held on February 5, which again was one week before the Super Bowl and two weeks before the Daytona 500.[1] This was the final season for Auto Club Speedway in its 2 mile configuration, as the track has since been dropped from the schedule to be reconfigured as a short track.
After NASCAR used a Chicago Street Course track in the 2021 eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series, it was speculated that NASCAR would like to make it a reality and have a street race in Chicago on the Cup Series schedule in the future. On July 7, 2022, Jordan Bianchi from The Athletic reported that an official announcement of this being added to the Cup Series schedule would come on July 19.[117] On June 17, Adam Stern from Sports Business Journal suggested that the Chicago Street Course could replace Road America on the 2023 Cup Series schedule as the street race would likely replace one of the road course races and Road America does not have a contract to have a Cup Series race in 2023.[118] Both the addition of the Chicago street race to the schedule and the fact that it would replace the race at Road America came on July 19.[111]
NASCAR All-Star Race
On June 24, 2022, Adam Stern also reported that Fox Sports, which has the TV rights to the All-Star Race, has been trying to convince NASCAR and Speedway Motorsports to move the NASCAR All-Star Race to a different venue each year as is the case in other sports. After the 2022 All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway, which was widely considered unpopular and controversial by fans and the industry, the track tweeted that they would be hosting the All-Star Race again in 2023. However, the tweet was deleted amidst negative reactions to the announcement, leading to speculation that plans could change.[119] On September 7, it was revealed that the All-Star race will take place on the renovated North Wilkesboro Speedway.[120] It would be the first NASCAR Cup race on the track since 1996, after its dates were replaced by races at Texas Motor Speedway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 1997.
Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400
On January 2, 2023, thespun.com reported that the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 at Texas Motor Speedway will be reduced to 400 miles. The article states that it is an attempted overall effort by NASCAR to hopefully reduce race times, so that they are closer to 2.5 hours, than the normal 3.5 to 4 hours.[121]
The Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway was likewise shortened from 500 miles for similar reasons.
Kyle Larson won the pole. William Byron won the first stage while Larson won the second stage. Aric Almirola had a tire come off after a pit stop. Kevin Harvick, who was looking for his 10th career win at Phoenix Raceway, was leading comfortably with 10 laps to go, but a caution came out for a Harrison Burton spin on the frontstretch. On the caution pit stops, Harvick took 4 tires and fell back to 7th. On the ensuing restart, A. J. Allmendinger and Noah Gragson got together and collected Ty Gibbs, sending the race to overtime. Byron took the lead from Larson and held off Ryan Blaney for his second straight win.[128] The Wednesday following the race, NASCAR handed L2 penalties to all 4 Hendrick Motorsports teams as well as the No. 31 Kaulig Racing team of Justin Haley for a loss of 100 points (owners only for No. 9, as Elliott was injured and Josh Berry, his replacement, is a Xfinity Series regular), 10 playoff points, and fined $100,000 for illegally modifying hood louvers prior to practice, while Denny Hamlin was fined $50,000 and docked 25 points for intentionally wrecking Ross Chastain on the final restart (Hamlin's penalty came after an admission on his Actions Detrimental podcast).[129]
Ryan Preece won the pole. Preece dominated and won the caution free first stage, but after leading the next few laps on the restart, Precce was penalized for speeding. Kevin Harvick won the second stage after a spin by Harrison Burton. Chase Briscoe took the lead and led a lot of laps. Joey Logano had the lead late, but Kyle Larson took the lead from Logano and pulled away to his second win of the season.[134]
Kyle Busch won the pole after qualifying was canceled due to rain. The race was postponed from Sunday to Monday due to rain. Brennan Poole got into the wall after contact with Ross Chastain and collected Kyle Larson. William Byron won the first stage while Chastain won the second stage. Joey Logano lost a tire and got into the wall. On the restart, Martin Truex Jr. held off Chastain for his third Dover win on a Monday to snap a 54-race winless streak and complete a brother sweep as his brother Ryan Truex won his first Xfinity Series race two days prior.[136]
William Byron won the pole. Kyle Larson spun from the lead early after contact with Tyler Reddick. Byron would get into the wall and fall back in the field. Denny Hamlin won the first stage while Joey Logano won the second stage. Kyle Busch spun and got into the wall after a flat tire. Late in the race, Noah Gragson got into the wall after contact with Ross Chastain. Larson and Hamlin battled for the lead and on the final lap, Larson got into the wall and Hamlin made the pass for the win, tying Tony Stewart on NASCAR's All-Time Wins List and earning the 400th NASCAR win for Joe Gibbs Racing.[137]
William Byron won the pole after qualifying was canceled due to rain. The race was postponed from Sunday to Monday due to rain. Jimmie Johnson spun twice early as Byron won the first stage. After a small delay due to rain, the race resumed. Denny Hamlin got turned into the wall by Chase Elliott, taking both out of the race. Chris Buescher won the second stage while Ryan Blaney won the third stage. Kevin Harvick spun after contact with Tyler Reddick. Kyle Larson spun and collected Joey Logano and Ty Gibbs. On the restart, Blaney pulled away and held off Byron for the win.[140]
Denny Hamlin won the pole. Hamlin won the first stage while Kyle Busch won the second stage. Hamlin spun and got into the wall after breaking the toe link. Tyler Reddick spun after a flat tire.
Martin Truex Jr. dominated, passing Chase Elliott for the lead and holding off Busch for his second win of the season and fourth at Sonoma.[142]
Ross Chastain won the pole. Tyler Reddick won the first stage. During Stage 2, Reddick spun coming down pit road due to a right rear wheel separation, resulting in a penalty. On the restart, Ryan Blaney spun and hit the bare concrete wall near the infield. Denny Hamlin won the second stage. Chastain would get the lead back in the final stage and held off Martin Truex Jr. for the win.[143]
Aric Almirola won the pole. Ryan Blaney won the first stage while Brad Keselowski won the second stage.
Kyle Larson spun after contact with Erik Jones. Alex Bowman got loose and spun into Denny Hamlin. Ryan Preece spun out and collected Bubba Wallace. William Byron, despite spinning out on Lap 80 and being dealt a pit road penalty, was in the race lead. The race went seven laps under caution before NASCAR officials waved the Red flag at Lap 185 and ordered all cars to pit road as rain began to hit the track and lightning was spotted several miles from the track. With heavy rain showers and lightning, NASCAR officials declared the race official after 185 laps with Byron named the winner.[145]
Christopher Bell won the pole. Kyle Busch slammed into the wall along with Corey LaJoie. Aric Almirola hit the wall hard due to a loose wheel while leading the race. Martin Truex Jr. dominated, leading 154 laps and winning both stages. Bell slammed into the wall late. On the restart, Truex would hold off Joey Logano for his third win of the season.[146]
William Byron won the pole. Joey Logano won stage one, but crashed out on a restart with Daniel Suárez. Kyle Larson would stretch his fuel and win the second stage. Austin Dillon crashed hard into the wall after contact with Tyler Reddick in the final stage, resulting in Dillon throwing his helmet at Reddick's car while the race was under caution. Various pit strategies would occur during the final stage with Larson cycling to the lead on a two tire gamble. On a late race restart, Denny Hamlin would force Larson into the wall for the lead. Hamlin would pull away on the final restart as Ryan Preece spun and was unable to get his car re-fired on the final lap. Hamlin won under caution for his second win of the season, his 50th career win, and earned his record seventh Pocono win, breaking a tie with Jeff Gordon.[147]
Tyler Reddick won the pole. Reddick led every lap in a caution-free stage 1 and won the stage. Brad Keselowski won a caution-free stage 2. At the start of the final stage, Keselowski stayed out front. During a pit stop on lap 285, Keselowski almost missed his stall and ended up partially sideways, resulting in a lengthy pit stop and never retook the lead. After differing tire strategies throughout the final stage, Chris Buescher cycled to the lead on lap 305. Daniel Suárez spun after contact with Noah Gragson. After pit stops and the restart with 3 laps to go, Buescher retained the lead and pulled away from Denny Hamlin for his third career win and locked himself into the playoffs.[148]
Christopher Bell won the pole. Kyle Busch and Chase Elliott both exited the race early due to damage from tire issues. Martin Truex Jr. won the first stage as William Byron got into the wall after a flat tire. Bell would get back to the lead, but got into the wall battling Alex Bowman for the spot. The race was red flagged due to rain and the remainder of the race was postponed until the following day. When the race resumed, Truex passed Daniel Suarez for the lead and won the second stage. Front Row teammates Michael McDowell and Todd Gilliland got together and collected Bowman. Chris Buescher would take the lead after the final round of green flag pit stops and held off a charging Truex for the second straight win.[149]
Denny Hamlin won the pole. Michael McDowell would win the first stage while William Byron won the second stage. McDowell exited the race due to an electrical issue. Chase Elliott ran out of fuel during the race and stalled on the track, causing the only caution of the day. Byron outdueled Kyle Busch and then pulled away to his fifth win of the season and his first career win on a road course.[151]
Christopher Bell won the pole. Denny Hamlin swept the stages and led the most laps. The race came to a halt as the lights inside the track in Turns 3 and 4 did not illuminate when the sun set. Hamlin later pitted because of a loose wheel and would never return to the front. Kevin Harvick, who was second at the time, went to pit during green flag stops. Tyler Reddick, who was the leader at the time, tried to do the same at the last second, resulting in him checking up, hitting Ryan Newman and causing him to spin. The caution came and closed pit road before Harvick crossed the pit entry line. Harvick was penalized as he took a full pit-stop, which placed him at the end of the lead lap. Kyle Larson was able to pass Reddick for the lead during pit stops. Alex Bowman and Daniel Suarez got together and collected Harrison Burton. Larson held the lead on the restart and won the race, advancing to the next round of the playoffs.[153]
Christopher Bell won his second straight pole. Martin Truex Jr. suffered a broken suspension and got into the wall on Lap 4, exiting the race and hurting his points. Kyle Larson won the first stage while Brad Keselowski won the second stage. Chris Buescher got into the wall after a flat tire, sending the race to overtime. Daniel Suarez stayed off pit road while the leaders pit and Erik Jones, Kyle Busch, and Joey Logano took two while everyone else took four. On the restart, Tyler Reddick made a three-wide pass on Logano and Jones and won the race to advance to the next round of the playoffs.[154]
Christopher Bell won his third straight pole. Bell dominated and won both stages. Denny Hamlin and Ty Gibbs both also had dominant cars. In the final stage, Corey LaJoie spun and slammed into Joey Logano, knocking Logano out of the race and ended his hopes of a second straight title. Martin Truex Jr. got into the wall after a flat tire. Hamlin would pull away from the field and score the win, advancing to the next round of the playoffs while Kevin Harvick, Logano, Michael McDowell, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. were eliminated.[155]
Bubba Wallace won the pole. RCR teammates Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch both got into the wall after tire issues, taking them both out of the race. Tyler Reddick won the first stage while Kyle Larson won the second stage. Wallace continued his dominance and late in the race was battling Larson for the lead when Larson got loose and spun hard into the wall. Bubba pulled away on the restart, but Reddick and Erik Jones got in the wall and collected Ryan Blaney, Austin Cindric, and A. J. Allmendinger. On the restart, William Byron made a three-wide pass on Wallace and Chase Briscoe and pulled away and held off Ross Chastain to advance to the next round of the playoffs and earning the 300th Cup Series victory for Hendrick Motorsports.[156]
Tyler Reddick won the pole. Reddick won the first stage while Chase Elliott won the second stage. However, Elliot just missed his planned stop when a caution came out just as he was approaching pit road, resulting in him being shuffled to the back of the pack due to pitting under caution. Denny Hamlin got stacked up, spun, and made contact with Mike Rockenfeller, taking him out of the race. Erik Jones spun after contact with Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and Michael McDowell, who had power steering issues, slammed into the back of Jones. A. J. Allmendinger took the lead from Kyle Busch halfway through the race and held off William Byron for his third career win. Ross Chastain, Brad Keselowski, Busch, and Bubba Wallace were eliminated from the playoffs.[158]
Christopher Bell won the pole, his fourth in the playoffs. Kyle Larson dominated, winning both stages. Legacy Motor Club drivers Erik Jones and Carson Hocevar both had flat tires along with Chase Briscoe, resulting in the latter two spinning. Alex Bowman slammed the wall and exited the race after losing power steering. Larson, despite minor damage after getting loose into the wall during Stage 2, held off a charging Bell to win and advance to the Championship 4 in Phoenix. Ryan Blaney, who had finished sixth, was originally disqualified after post-race inspection found his car's left front shock didn't meet the overall specified length, but NASCAR rescinded the disqualification after the damper template used for post-race inspection was discovered to have an issue.[159]
Martin Truex Jr. won the pole. Kyle Larson won the first stage while Ryan Blaney won the second stage. During green flag pit stops, Larson slammed into the sand barrels at the entrance of pit road, causing him to exit the race. Denny Hamlin got a flat tire and slammed the wall and Truex suffered a blown engine, taking them both out. Their teammate Christopher Bell took the lead from William Byron and held off Blaney to win the race and advance to the Championship 4 in Phoenix.[160]
William Byron won the pole. Byron won the first stage after leading every lap. On lap 109, Christopher Bell got into the wall hard due to a brake rotor failure, taking him out of championship contention early. Chris Buescher won stage 2. On lap 276, Kyle Busch spun, creating a late restart. On lap 292, Ryan Blaney passed Kyle Larson for second place, putting him in the championship lead. Ross Chastain won the race after leading 157 laps. Blaney became the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Champion after his second-place finish. Kevin Harvick finished 7th in his final race.[162]
(key) Bold – Pole position awarded by time. Italics – Pole position set by competition-based formula. * – Most laps led. 1 – Stage 1 winner. 2 – Stage 2 winner. 3 – Stage 3 winner.[N 1]1–10 - Regular season top 10 finishers. . – Eliminated after Round of 16
. – Eliminated after Round of 12
. – Eliminated after Round of 8
^"(Twitter post)". Twitter. Bob Pockrass. September 13, 2022. Archived from the original on September 13, 2022. Retrieved September 13, 2022. Austin Dillon said his current contract runs another three years through 2025.
^"(Twitter post)". Twitter. Jordan Bianchi. February 15, 2023. Archived from the original on February 20, 2023. Retrieved February 15, 2023. Todd Gilliland says he's going to run five Cup Series races for Rick Ware Racing, leaving just one race unaccounted for after Front Row Motorsports announced that Zane Smith would replace him for six races.
^"(Twitter post)". Twitter. Bob Pockrass. June 6, 2023. Archived from the original on June 7, 2023. Retrieved June 6, 2023. When Button is in the 15, Lally will be in the 51.
^"(Twitter post)". Twitter. 23XI Racing. January 13, 2023. Archived from the original on January 13, 2023. Retrieved January 13, 2023. 𝙏𝙃𝙍𝙀𝙀 is the magic number 👀🤫 @DAYTONA #Daytona500
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