2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race

2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race

Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
Race 36 of 36 in the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series
Date	November 5, 2023 (2023-11-05)
Location	Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona
Course	Permanent racing facility 1 mi (1.6 km)
Distance	312 laps, 312 mi (499.2 km)
Average speed	108.827 miles per hour (175.140 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	William Byron	Hendrick Motorsports
Time	27.150
Most laps led
Driver	Ross Chastain	Trackhouse Racing
Laps	157
Winner
No. 1	Ross Chastain	Trackhouse Racing
Television in the United States
Network	NBC
Announcers	Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Radio in the United States
Radio	MRN
Booth Announcers	Alex Hayden, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace
Turn Announcers	Dave Moody (1 & 2) and Mike Bagley (3 & 4)

The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on November 5, 2023, at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona. Contested over 312 laps on the one mile (1.6 km) oval, it was the 36th and final race of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season. Ross Chastain won the race, with Ryan Blaney finishing second and claiming his first Cup Series championship. This was also the final race for Kevin Harvick before his retirement from the Cup Series.

Phoenix Raceway – also known as PIR – is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. It is named after the nearby metropolitan area of Phoenix. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the IndyCar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series. The raceway is currently owned and operated by International Speedway Corporation.

The raceway was originally constructed with a 2.5 mi (4.0 km) road course that ran both inside and outside of the main tri-oval. In 1991 the track was reconfigured with the current 1.51 mi (2.43 km) interior layout. PIR has an estimated grandstand seating capacity of around 67,000. Lights were installed around the track in 2004 following the addition of a second annual NASCAR race weekend.

Phoenix Raceway is home to two annual NASCAR race weekends, one of 13 facilities on the NASCAR schedule to host more than one race weekend a year. The track is both the first and last stop in the western United States, as well as the fourth and the last track on the schedule.

• Kyle Larson was the first of four drivers to clinch a spot in the Championship 4, winning the first race of the Round of 8 at Las Vegas.
• Christopher Bell clinched the second spot in the Championship 4, winning the second race of the Round of 8 at Homestead.
• Ryan Blaney clinched the third spot in the Championship 4, winning the third race of the Round of 8 at Martinsville.
• William Byron clinched the final spot in the Championship 4, based on points.^[10]

• (R) denotes rookie driver.
• (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
• (CC) denotes championship contender.

Kyle Busch was the fastest in the practice session with a time of 27.520 seconds and a speed of 130.814 mph (210.525 km/h).^[11]

William Byron scored the pole for the race with a time of 27.150 and a speed of 132.597 mph (213.394 km/h).^[12]

• Note: Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson, and William Byron were not eligible for stage points because of their participation in the Championship 4.

For the first time since 2013, the final race of the season was not won by the eventual Cup Series Champion. Instead, Trackhouse driver Ross Chastain, who was eliminated in the second round of the playoffs, wound up dominating the second half of the race to take the win, his second of the season and his fourth overall. As Ryan Blaney, who placed second, had the highest finishing position of the drivers who qualified for the Championship 4, he was declared the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Champion.

Stage One Laps: 60

Stage Two Laps: 125

Stage Three Laps: 127

• Lead changes: 18 among 8 different drivers
• Cautions/Laps: 4 for 27 laps
• Red flags: 0
• Time of race: 2 hours, 52 minutes, and 1 second
• Average speed: 108.827 miles per hour (175.140 km/h)

NBC covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, two–time Phoenix winner Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and three-time Phoenix winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. called the race from the broadcast booth. Dave Burns, Kim Coon, Parker Kligerman and Marty Snider handled the pit road duties from pit lane.

MRN had the radio call for the race, which was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Alex Hayden, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace called the action from the broadcast booth when the field races down the front straightaway. Dave Moody called the action from turns 1 & 2 and Mike Bagley called the action from turns 3 & 4. Steve Post, Jacklyn Drake, Jason Toy, and Chris Wilner covered the action for MRN from pit lane.

Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 Ryan Blaney 5,035 1 2 Kyle Larson 5,034 (–1) 1 3 William Byron 5,033 (–2) 2 4 Christopher Bell 5,001 (–34) 5 Denny Hamlin 2,383 (–2,652) 6 Tyler Reddick 2,344 (–2,691) 1 7 Chris Buescher 2,310 (–2,725) 1 8 Brad Keselowski 2,302 (–2,733) 9 Ross Chastain 2,299 (–2,736) 10 Bubba Wallace 2,279 (–2,756) 1 11 Martin Truex Jr. 2,269 (–2,766) 1 12 Joey Logano 2,258 (–2,777) 1 13 Kevin Harvick 2,241 (–2,794) 1 14 Kyle Busch 2,232 (–2,803) 15 Michael McDowell 2,185 (–2,850) 16 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 2,168 (–2,867) Official driver's standings

Manufacturers' Championship standings Pos Manufacturer Points 1 Chevrolet 1,329 2 Toyota 1,249 (–80) 3 Ford 1,240 (–89) Note: Only the first 16 positions are included for the driver standings.