SRIGLEY: Top 5 #SrigleyStats of 2022
The FINAL piece of FREE #SrigleyStats content before the 2023 NASCAR season begins!
Last year, the NASCAR Cup Series rewarded its religious spectators with a number of intriguing plotlines: Starting with the inaugural Busch Light Clash at the LA Memorial Coliseum in February and continuing with a brand-new generation of vehicle, which brought with it some never-before-seen parity.
And, as expected, the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series provided their usual levels of excitement, rounding off what was a fantastic season of racing.
Combined, all of these factors parlayed the latest NASCAR season into one that will be remembered throughout the remainder of the sport’s history, and easily reviewed by a quick glance at the record books.
So, why don’t we take a look back at some of the best #SrigleyStats from 2022?
#5 - NASCAR BRINGS INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR TO WATKINS GLEN
The NASCAR Cup Series event at Watkins Glen International (August) was already set to be the series’ most publicized event of the year, with Kimi Raikkonen making his NASCAR Cup Series debut as part of Trackhouse Racing’s PROJECT91 entry.
However, the event went on to attract competitors from seven different countries - the most in a single event - with six international drivers competing for four different organizations.
Those six drivers were: Daniil Kvyat (Team Hezeberg), Loris Hezemans (Team Hezeberg), Mike Rockenfeller (Spire Motorsports), Kyle Tilley (Live Fast Motorsports), Kimi Raikkonen (Trackhouse Racing), Daniel Suarez (Trackhouse Racing).
Only Suarez (P5) and Rockenfeller (P30) would record finishes inside the top 30.
#4 - YOU GET A T10, YOU GET A T10, EVERYBODY GETS A T10!
When the NASCAR Cup Series returned to Daytona in August, things may have gotten a smidge out of control. Despite the looming threat of rain, the field continued clicking laps off as clouds moved closer to the track. Then, rain started falling in turn one, causing a massive crash.
After a long-winded rain delay, the race resumed with the cars that were still mechanically intact. Austin Dillon nabbed the victory, while Landon Cassill (#77), Cody Ware (#51), and BJ McLeod (#78) were all able to secure top-10s.
With those three drivers scoring top-10s, it marked the first time since the charter system was implemented (2015) that all 36 chartered entries scored a top-10 in a single season.
#3 - PARITY, PARITY, AND MORE PARITY
Throughout last year’s 36-race schedule, a total of 19 different drivers visited victory lane, tying the record for the most different winners in a single NASCAR Cup Series season. (1956, 1958, 1961, and 2001 also had 19).
Quite possibly the strangest part, though, is the number of high-caliber drivers that failed to breakthrough in 2022, including Martin Truex Jr, Ryan Blaney, and Brad Keselowski, all of which had opportunities to collect a checkered flag during the year.
Drivers who won in 2022: Ross Chastain, Austin Cindric, Austin Dillon, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Larson, Tyler Reddick, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Chase Briscoe, Chris Buescher, Kyle Busch, Christopher Bell, Joey Logano, Bubba Wallace, William Byron, Erik Jones, Kurt Busch, Alex Bowman, and Daniel Suarez
#2 - THEY ALL MADE IT BACK?!
In NASCAR, racing at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway has developed the - usually correct - sterotype of complete chaos. With the entire field racing inches away from each other, multi-car accidents (usually labeled as “The Big One”) are bound to happen.
During October’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Talladega, the 38-car field defied all reasonable expectations, putting on a mostly clean show for spectators, where every single car that started the event, finished it.
Prior to that Xfinity Series event, NASCAR’s top-three divisions had NEVER completed an event at Daytona or Talladega - despite 393 prior attempts - without a single driver being out of the event.
#1 - “THE HAIL MELON”
It was the buzzer-beater heard around the world…
Ross Chastain’s last-lap ‘gas-n-go’ move at Martinsville Speedway, which thrust him into the Championship Four, was so incredible that SportsCenter placed it first-place on its Daily Plays list.
A moment that will forever be enshrined in NASCAR history, which also generated a ton of global buzz for the sport, will also sit in the Martinsville Speedway record books - albeit probably in an unofficial capacity.
Putting down a bizarre time of 18.845 seconds, Chastain’s ridiculous-looking final lap smashed the NASCAR Cup Series track record at the half-mile paperclip, while not being far off of the fastest lap EVER at Martinsville Speedway.
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