In Another Stunning Race, Gragson Hits 3 Wins in a Row
Noah Gragson is on a winning streak, and we are here for it.
In his third consecutive win, this one at the Food City 300, Gragson set himself up for success in the NXS Playoffs — which begin next week.
Photo by Harold Hinson/Harold Hinson Photography.
After qualifying to ninth position at the beginning of the regular-season finale, Gragson worked his way up, taking fifth place after 36 laps. He finished the 85-lap Stage One in third place, earning nine stage points. In the Stage Two restart, he came out in fifth place and drove into fourth place by lap 130. During the second stage, a two-car incident nearly took Gragson out, but he managed to slide under the cars as they went up the track and took second place. This second-place finish for Stage Two earned him an additional nine points. During Stage Three, Gragson maneuvered back up to fourth place at lap 202, then caught third place at lap 232, and second place at lap 243. After a caution flag, Gragson stayed out and made a run for the finish when the rest of the lead-lap cars came to the pit.
This win makes Gragson the first JR Motorsports driver to earn three consecutive victories, and it’s his sixth win of the season, which is also a team record.
Photo by Harold Hinson/Harold Hinson Photography.
“Man, three in a row! When that last caution came out, I knew if we could run the top, it was going to be hard for Brandon (Jones) to get to me,” Gragson said. “I appreciate him racing me clean. He fed us the bumper with two laps to go, and I was hanging on, scrubbing the fence. We won here at Bristol in 2020, and there were no fans in the stands. This is 10 times cooler. Thanks to all the fans for coming out. Our Bass Pro Shops/TrueTimber/Coastalvir giniadriving Camaro was fast all night, and once we got up to the top, we were rolling. I had a blast! Thanks to everyone at JR Motorsports and the Hendrick Engine shop for tonight.”
Photo by Harold Hinson/Harold Hinson Photography.
Ty Dillon finished his practice race in 35th place and started 34th for the Bass Pro Shops Night Race on Saturday, Sept. 17. After a number of lead racers faced issues with the Next Gen cars (a new project across the industry for developing a car of single-source parts meant to help close the gap on the larger organizations competing within the industry), Dillon finished 26th in the race. Dillon is not a contender in the playoffs, by way of the Round of 12 Cutline, with one race remaining in this first series of the playoffs. Only 12 drivers will remain in the playoffs moving forward.
Photo by Harold Hinson/Harold Hinson Photography.
Matt Crafton came in 10th on his practice run for the UNOH 200 Presented by Ohio Logistics on Thursday. He started the race in 16th position and finished Stage One in 10th place. Stage Two saw him drop out of the top 10, but during the third stage, Crafton was able to pick back up and finish in fourth place. In the 2022 standings, Crafton is sitting at ninth place, with 2,125 points.
Photo by Harold Hinson/Harold Hinson Photography.
Where to find them next: Gragson and Dillon head to the Texas Motor Speedway for the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 and Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 next weekend (Sept. 24 and 25). Meanwhile, Crafton is back on the track at Talladega Superspeedway on Oct. 1.
