Alex Crapser's devastating frontstretch accident at Michigan didn't stop this team from earning immaculate glory! He and John Battista finished third and fourth in the 2023 standings, walloping the field with eight combined victories. Seven of them went to John Battista, capitalizing at Rockingham, Richmond, Martinsville, Talladega, Daytona, Watkins Glen and Bristol. Alex earned his at Chicagoland, with Adam Crapser nearly winning both Richmond events. If they can get Dalton Lucas into the Daytona 500 and qualify for the first six races, they will have their usual four-car arsenal for the 2024 season. If not, The #4 team will have to improve on their Speedway program to make up the difference. Expect the #39 and #04 to be Championship favorites.
Zakk Miller stepped up his game in 2023, earning a chase birth with two victories at Texas and New Hampshire. He will be the lone representative for Team Danger Zone in the 2024 Big Bud Shootout due to the teams focus on race setups, something they look to improve upon for the oncoming year. Zach Michael's consistency propelled him to a chase birth as well, dominating the mid-summer stretch with six top-6 finishes between Chicagoland and Watkins Glen. His back-to-back victories at the Brickyard 400 and a 46th-to-1st domination at Michigan were the highlights of the #20's Coca-Cola season. Teammate Markell Murphy raced inside the hornets nest from 15th to 25th all year long, looking to find more speed in 2024. With Steven Spears inside the top-35 in points, Team Danger Zone comes in as the only team with four guaranteed full-time entries. Look for Zach Michael and Zakk Miller to contend for the Championship.
Ryan Heuser finally earned his fourth Exravaganza Series Championship, dominating the show all year long in immaculate style! His victories at Atlanta, Darlington, Talladega and Rockingham combined well with his consistent finishes at short tracks, as well as his lack of engine failures. The #138 team was the saving grace, watching teammates Craig Lee and Dave Miller struggle early in the season. Both were outside the top-19 in points after the Brickyard 400, with Craig Lee and new crew chief Pokey Reese capturing victories at Pocono, Las Vegas and Martinsville to return to form. Hopefully, the #90 Marlboro team can do the same. Quicksilver Motorsports looks to earn their third-straight Championship crown in 2024!
All three drivers made the chase in 2023 for the first time in Race-2-Win Motorsports history. A blown camshaft at Rockingham destroyed Ken Pettit's Championship bid, though an vast improvement from 2022's 20th-place point performance earns a record-high morale for the team. Combining Pettit's Southern 500 victory was Rick Jackson's win at the Coke 600, and Tony Pizzaro's victory in the Daytona 500. Zach Michael's win at the Brickyard cost them the Extravaganza Grand-Slam, but their $143,815,000 in earnings for winning three Crown Jewel events may help the team in the furure. Expect more of the same results in 2024.
Matt Raboin pulled off a miracle run to earn Quantum racing's only 2023 chase birth! A second place finish at Lime Rock, a third at Watkins Glen and a victory at Richmond narrowly beat out Jimmie Stevens and teammate Matthew Dominique for the final spot for a run at the Championship. Unfortunately, the team would struggle for the remaining ten races, with Logan Sheets' second-place finish at Talladega as their only high point. Sheets and the #58 team earned eight top-5 finishes along with three second places, hoping to give new sponsor Quaker State their first career victory. Matthew Dominique and the #25 crew haven't won a race since Talladega in 2020. All three teams have the potential to reach victory lane in 2024, with Matt Raboin a factor at short tracks, Dominique's consistency, and Sheets eventually capitalizing on his second-place efforts.
Four drivers will enter the 2024 Daytona 500 for CFM Motorsports, including Kevin Corbat's #46 and Doug Spark's #03. Corbat has never qualified for the Great American Race after six years of trying, while Spark attempts his first qualification. The two full time drivers Timothy McDonnell and Johnny Reed Foley both come in as immaculate Championship contenders, with Timothy McDonnell first in points after 26 races in 2023. The #22 team earned ten-straight top-10 finishes between Talladega and Chicagoland, with five-straight top-3 finishes between Kansas and Sonoma. He earned victories at Kansas, Pocono, Lime Rock and a huge hometown victory at Extravaganza's second ever race at Gateway. Teammate Johnny Reed Foley saw himself up front early in races, earning 660 laps led but failing to close the deal. Former crew chief Ronnie Pressley joined the Molemar Diggs team, handing three-time Extravaganza Champion Rene Arnoux as the new crew chief for Foley. Look for both drivers to be Championship contenders in 2024.
Bink Lucas's victory at Phoenix propelled Lifesaver Racing to immaculate heights! It ended a winless drought beginning with Bink's victory at the Eddie Money Classic in 2022, slumping his way through the first half of 2023. By the halfway point, the #5 team earned zero top-5 finishes, with teammate Jimmie Stevens 8th in points and on the brink of a chase birth. By the end of the year, the #2 team slumped while Bink led 374 laps, dominating Martinsville and Rockingham and stealing the win away at Phoenix. Team Danger Zone continues to supply engines for the team. If Jimmie Stevens' reliability coagulates with Bink Lucas's late-season domination, both of these drivers may clinch a chase birth in 2024!
Rookie of the Year winner Chauncey Redmond Jr. was bliss or miss for the entirety of the 2023 season. His second place finish at Rockingham pushed him through a horrifying start to the campaign, finishing 35th or worse in the first three events. Slowly their results improved, finishing 2nd to Zach Michael in the Brickyard 400, and leading laps at the short tracks on speed. The team brings in Bonanza Series Champion Molemar Diggs into the fold, graduating from the same Lucas Racing #40 that Redmond drove the previous season. He will drove the #41 Pittsburgh Steelers Chevrolet. Lucas Racing continues to supply engines to the team, hoping to capitalize by earning Wizards of Speed's first career victory!
|