Austin Hill picked up his second win of the season last week at Vegas with a late pass on Chandler Smith. This week it is on to Phoenix where Hill will look to continue his 2023 success. I have picked 8 notable drivers to look at, 1 based on the 2023 point standings, 2 based on 2023 stats, 2 based on Small Track stats, 1 based on the last Phoenix race and 2 based on their overall Phoenix stats. Here is a look at those 8 notable drivers 2023 season statistics, along with ranks among drivers in 2023 with ranking through 3 races since the Playoffs started in 2016. We will also highlight notable streaks accomplished through the year/last year into this year, 2022 Small track (1.0-1.3 mile) statistics and Phoenix statistics.
1st in Points – Austin Hill
| Category | Statistic | 2023 Rank | ªRank Thru 3 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 2.67 | T1st of 35 | T5th of 294 |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 100% | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 96.42% | 1st of 35 | 10th of 294 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 124.57 | 1st of 35 | 4th of 294‡ |
| Wins | 2 | 1st of 49 | T1st of 409 |
| Poles | 1 | T1st of 49 | T5th of 409 |
| Top 2’s | 2 | T1st of 49 | T1st of 409 |
| Top 3’s | 2 | T2nd of 49 | T3rd of 409 |
| Top 5’s | 2 | T2nd of 49 | T7th of 409 |
| Top 10’s | 3 | T1st of 49 | T1st of 409 |
| DNF’s¹ | 0 | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Stage Wins | 2 | T1st of 49 | T1st of 351* |
| Stage T10s | 5 | T1st of 49 | T11th of 351* |
| Stage Pts | 45 | 1st of 49 | 1st of 351* |
| Playoff Pts² | 12 | 1st of 49 | 1st of 351* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 3 races
²Earned from races only
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
- Notable Streaks this/last year
- 7 straight Top 10 finishes (active streak)
- 2022 Small Track Stats (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 57 drivers)
- 4 Races, Avg. Finish 11.75(9th), 77.97% of Laps ran in Top15, Avg. Driver Rating 82.4(15th), Best 7th, Worst 17th, Laps Completed 99.88%, Led 0.00% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 0 Top 5’s, 2 Top 10’s, 3 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 0.13 Stage Pts Per Stage
- Phoenix Statistics
- 2022 Phoenix Championship Race
- Finished 9th, Started 14th, Led 0 laps, got 0 Stage T10’s, ran 155 Laps in Top15 (77.5% of laps he ran), had 87.5 Driver Rating
- Notable Phoenix Statistics (Ranks are of drivers with 1+ start this year)
- 2 Races
- 13.0 Avg. Finish (Ranks 12th)
- Best Finish: 9th, Worst: 17th
- Completed 99.75% of laps (% ranks 11th)
- 64.91% of Laps ran in Top15 (% ranks 17th)
- 80.35 Average Driver Rating (Ranks 14th)
- Led 0.00% of laps he’s run
- 0 Top 5’s
- 1 Top 10, 50.0% (% ranks 12th)
- 0 finishes outside Top 20, 0.00% (% ranks T1st)
- 0 DNF’s, 0.00% (% ranks T1st)
- 0 Stage Wins
- 0 Stage Top 10’s
Outlook
Austin Hill is notable because of his impressive 2023 stats thus far. Last week Hill ran near the front all day and coming to the white flag passed Chandler Smith to win his 2nd race of the season. This has his Avg. Finish at 2.67 which is tied with Justin Allgaier for the best this year. Furthermore he’s ran 96.42% of his laps in the Top 15, has a 124.57 Avg. Driver Rating, 45 Stage Pts, and 12 Playoff Pts all of which rank 1st this year. As a matter of fact his 45 Stage Pts and 12 Playoff Pts are the most ever thru 3 races. This week we head to a Small track though were Hill faired average last year as he had an 11.75 Avg. Finish with only 2 Top 10’s and a best finish of 7th in 4 races. In addition Hill only got 1 Stage Pt in those races and his 82.4 Avg. Driver Rating ranked 15th best. One of those Top 10’s was at Phoenix last Fall though where Hill finished 9th after being in the Top 15 for over 75% of the laps he ran. This was Hill’s best race here, but to be fair it was only his second race at Phoenix, both of which came last year. In all he has a 13.0 Avg. Finish and an 80.35 Avg. Driver Rating with 0 laps led and 0 Stage T10’s. Based on these stats Hill might not be too excited heading to Phoenix this weekend, but with the momentum he has the stats might not matter. I think Hill again bests his best finish here and finishes around 4th-8th to extend his Top 10 streak to 8.
Austin Hill is notable because of his impressive 2023 stats thus far. Last week Hill ran near the front all day and coming to the white flag passed Chandler Smith to win his 2nd race of the season. This has his Avg. Finish at 2.67 which is tied with Justin Allgaier for the best this year. Furthermore he’s ran 96.42% of his laps in the Top 15, has a 124.57 Avg. Driver Rating, 45 Stage Pts, and 12 Playoff Pts all of which rank 1st this year. As a matter of fact his 45 Stage Pts and 12 Playoff Pts are the most ever thru 3 races. This week we head to a Small track though were Hill faired average last year as he had an 11.75 Avg. Finish with only 2 Top 10’s and a best finish of 7th in 4 races. In addition Hill only got 1 Stage Pt in those races and his 82.4 Avg. Driver Rating ranked 15th best. One of those Top 10’s was at Phoenix last Fall though where Hill finished 9th after being in the Top 15 for over 75% of the laps he ran. This was Hill’s best race here, but to be fair it was only his second race at Phoenix, both of which came last year. In all he has a 13.0 Avg. Finish and an 80.35 Avg. Driver Rating with 0 laps led and 0 Stage T10’s. Based on these stats Hill might not be too excited heading to Phoenix this weekend, but with the momentum he has the stats might not matter. I think Hill again bests his best finish here and finishes around 4th-8th to extend his Top 10 streak to 8.
2nd in Points – Justin Allgaier
| Category | Statistic | 2023 Rank | ªRank Thru 3 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 2.67 | T1st of 35 | T5th of 294 |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 100% | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 88.63% | 4th of 35 | 40th of 294 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 122.17 | 3rd of 35 | 8th of 294‡ |
| Wins | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T23rd of 409 |
| Poles | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T14th of 409 |
| Top 2’s | 1 | T3rd of 49 | T7th of 409 |
| Top 3’s | 3 | T1st of 49 | T1st of 409 |
| Top 5’s | 3 | T1st of 49 | T1st of 409 |
| Top 10’s | 3 | T1st of 49 | T1st of 409 |
| DNF’s¹ | 0 | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Stage Wins | 1 | T3rd of 49 | T13th of 351* |
| Stage T10s | 4 | T6th of 49 | T31st of 351* |
| Stage Pts | 32 | 2nd of 49 | T14th of 351* |
| Playoff Pts² | 1 | 4th of 49 | T11st of 351* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 3 races
²Earned from races only
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
- Notable Streaks this/last year
- 4 straight Top 3 finishes (active streak)
- 5 straight Top 5 finishes (active streak)
- 8 straight Top 10 finishes (active streak)
- 2022 Small Track Stats (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 57 drivers)
- 4 Races, Avg. Finish 4.0(2nd), 98.88% of Laps ran in Top15, Avg. Driver Rating 121.45(1st), Best 1st, Worst 10th, Laps Completed 100%, Led 18.13% of laps he ran, 1 Win, 0 Poles, 3 Top 3’s, 3 Top 5’s, 4 Top 10’s, 4 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 1 Stage Win, 5.0 Stage Pts Per Stage
- Phoenix Statistics
- 2022 Phoenix Championship Race
- Finished 3rd, Started 11th, Led 26 laps (13.0%), Finished 3rd in Stage 1 and 2nd in Stage 2, ran 200 Laps in Top15 (100% of laps he ran), had 120.9 Driver Rating
- Notable Phoenix Statistics (Ranks are of drivers with 1+ start this year)
- 25 Races
- 8.48 Avg. Finish (Ranks 5th)
- Best Finish: 1st, Worst: 24th
- Completed 99.94% of laps (% ranks 6th)
- 92.84% of Laps ran in Top15 (% ranks 5th)
- 107.16 Average Driver Rating (Ranks 3rd)
- Led 10.45% of laps he’s run (% ranks 2nd)
- 2 Top Wins, 8.0% (% ranks 3rd)
- 6 Top 3’s, 24.0% (% ranks 4th)
- 9 Top 5’s, 36.0% (% ranks 5th)
- 17 Top 10’s, 68.0% (% ranks 8th)
- 23 Top 15’s, 92.0% (% ranks 5th)
- 1 finish outside Top 20, 4.0% (% ranks 10th)
- 0 DNF’s, 0.00% (% ranks T1st)
- 4 Stage Wins, 16.67% (% ranks T1st)
- 24 Stage Top 10’s, 100% (% ranks T1st)
- 6.04 Stage Pts Per Stage (Ranks 1st)
Outlook
Justin Allgaier is notable because of how he ran in the last Xfinity race here at Phoenix. Last week Allgaier was right behind Austin Hill in tracking down Chandler Smith and got his 4th straight Top 3, finishing 2nd. This was Allgaier’s 3rd Top 3 in 3 races this season which has his Avg. Finish at 2.67 and his Avg. Driver Rating at 122.17. In addition to these good stats Allgaier also has the 2nd most Stage Pts at 32, behind only Austin Hill. After Vegas Allgaier has many impressive streaks and the rest of his stats say those streaks will continue. In 4 Small track races last year Allgaier had a 4.0 Avg. Finish and ran all but 9 laps in the Top 15. In fact he had the best Avg. Driver Rating of any driver at 121.45, led 18.13% of the laps and he had 4 Top 10’s with 3 of those being a Top 5. Oh, he also had 5 Stage Pts Per Stage that includes the 0 he got for finishing 3rd in Stage 1 and 2nd in Stage 2 of the Championship race, since Championship 4 drivers don’t get Stage Pts. In that race Allgaier ran all 200 laps in the Top 15 and finished 3rd with a 120.9 Driver Rating. This is typical for him as he has an 8.48 Avg. Finish here with a 107.16 Avg. Driver Rating in 25 starts. In fact only twice has Allgaier finished out of the Top 15 here and a quarter of his races have ended with a Top 3. Basically Allgaier will do great this weekend if nothing goes wrong, and the race probably ends with Allgaier in the Top 5 and I wouldn’t be surprised if that Top 5 was a win.
Justin Allgaier is notable because of how he ran in the last Xfinity race here at Phoenix. Last week Allgaier was right behind Austin Hill in tracking down Chandler Smith and got his 4th straight Top 3, finishing 2nd. This was Allgaier’s 3rd Top 3 in 3 races this season which has his Avg. Finish at 2.67 and his Avg. Driver Rating at 122.17. In addition to these good stats Allgaier also has the 2nd most Stage Pts at 32, behind only Austin Hill. After Vegas Allgaier has many impressive streaks and the rest of his stats say those streaks will continue. In 4 Small track races last year Allgaier had a 4.0 Avg. Finish and ran all but 9 laps in the Top 15. In fact he had the best Avg. Driver Rating of any driver at 121.45, led 18.13% of the laps and he had 4 Top 10’s with 3 of those being a Top 5. Oh, he also had 5 Stage Pts Per Stage that includes the 0 he got for finishing 3rd in Stage 1 and 2nd in Stage 2 of the Championship race, since Championship 4 drivers don’t get Stage Pts. In that race Allgaier ran all 200 laps in the Top 15 and finished 3rd with a 120.9 Driver Rating. This is typical for him as he has an 8.48 Avg. Finish here with a 107.16 Avg. Driver Rating in 25 starts. In fact only twice has Allgaier finished out of the Top 15 here and a quarter of his races have ended with a Top 3. Basically Allgaier will do great this weekend if nothing goes wrong, and the race probably ends with Allgaier in the Top 5 and I wouldn’t be surprised if that Top 5 was a win.
3rd in Points – John Hunter Nemechek
| Category | Statistic | 2023 Rank | ªRank Thru 3 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 3.0 | 3rd of 35 | 9th of 294 |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 100% | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 90.74% | 3rd of 35 | 34th of 294 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 123.17 | 2nd of 35 | 6th of 294‡ |
| Wins | 1 | 2nd of 49 | T3rd of 409 |
| Poles | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T14th of 409 |
| Top 2’s | 2 | T1st of 49 | T1st of 409 |
| Top 3’s | 2 | T2nd of 49 | T3rd of 409 |
| Top 5’s | 2 | T2nd of 49 | T7th of 409 |
| Top 10’s | 3 | T1st of 49 | T1st of 409 |
| DNF’s¹ | 0 | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Stage Wins | 1 | T3rd of 49 | T13th of 351* |
| Stage T10s | 5 | T1st of 49 | T11th of 351* |
| Stage Pts | 26 | 4th of 49 | T23rd of 351* |
| Playoff Pts² | 6 | 2nd of 49 | T4th of 351* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 3 races
²Earned from races only
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
- Notable Streaks this/last year
- 2 straight Top 2 finishes
- 3 straight Top 10 finishes (active streak)
- 2022 Small Track Stats (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 57 drivers)
- 2 Races, Avg. Finish 21.0(T27th), 97.53% of Laps ran in Top15, Avg. Driver Rating 89.0(13th), Best 5th, Worst 37th, Laps Completed 70.75%, Led 3.89% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 1 Top 5, 1 Top 10, 1 Top 15, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 0 Stage Wins, 3 Stage T10’s
- Phoenix Statistics
- 2022 Spring Phoenix Race
- Finished 5th, Started 11th, Led 11 laps (5.5%), got 2 Stage T10’s, ran 194 Laps in Top15 (97.0% of laps he ran), had 113.6 Driver Rating
- Notable Phoenix Statistics (Ranks are of drivers with 1+ start this year)
- 5 Races
- 6.6 Avg. Finish (Ranks 2nd)
- Best Finish: 4th, Worst: 9th
- Completed 100% of laps (% ranks T1st)
- 97.61% of Laps ran in Top15 (% ranks 2nd)
- 108.32 Average Driver Rating (Ranks 2nd)
- Led 8.27% of laps he’s run (% ranks 3rd)
- 0 Top 3’s
- 2 Top 5’s, 40.0% (% ranks T2nd)
- 5 Top 10’s, 100% (% ranks T1st)
- 0 finishes outside Top 20, 0.00% (% ranks T1st)
- 0 DNF’s, 0.00% (% ranks T1st)
- 0 Stage Wins
- 9 Stage Top 10’s, 90.0% (% ranks 5th)
Outlook
John Hunter Nemechek is notable because he is 3rd place in the Xfinity points standings. Last week Nemechek had a pretty good run but finished 6th, and when finishing 6th seems disappointing that’s a good thing. On the season Nemechek has a 3.0 Avg. Finish (ranks 3rd) and a 123.17 Avg. Driver rating (ranks 2nd). In addition to these stats he has also ran over 90% of his laps inside the Top 15, has 1 Win, and a worst finish of 6th this season. Last year Nemechek only ran 2 races on a Small track and one of them ended in a DNF making his Avg. Finish to be 21.0. His Avg. Finish is not indicative of how he ran as he an 89.0 Avg. Driver Rating, was in the Top 15 for 97.53% of the laps he ran, and got 3 Stage T10’s. One of the two races was at Phoenix and that was where he didn’t DNF at. In the Spring Phoenix race last year Nemechek ran 97% of his laps inside the Top 15 in route to a 5th place finish and a 113.6 Driver Rating. In his career Nemechek has ran 5 races at Phoenix with a worst finish of 9th, but also a best finish of only 4th. His 6.6 Avg. Finish ranks 2nd among active drivers as does his 108.32 Avg. Driver Rating and his 97.61% of laps ran in the Top 15. Furthermore 2 of the 5 races ended in a Top 5 and he has led 8.27% of his laps ran here. In all Nemechek in JGR equipment should run well and based on the stats above he will likely finish Top 5 and very easily could pull off another win this year.
John Hunter Nemechek is notable because he is 3rd place in the Xfinity points standings. Last week Nemechek had a pretty good run but finished 6th, and when finishing 6th seems disappointing that’s a good thing. On the season Nemechek has a 3.0 Avg. Finish (ranks 3rd) and a 123.17 Avg. Driver rating (ranks 2nd). In addition to these stats he has also ran over 90% of his laps inside the Top 15, has 1 Win, and a worst finish of 6th this season. Last year Nemechek only ran 2 races on a Small track and one of them ended in a DNF making his Avg. Finish to be 21.0. His Avg. Finish is not indicative of how he ran as he an 89.0 Avg. Driver Rating, was in the Top 15 for 97.53% of the laps he ran, and got 3 Stage T10’s. One of the two races was at Phoenix and that was where he didn’t DNF at. In the Spring Phoenix race last year Nemechek ran 97% of his laps inside the Top 15 in route to a 5th place finish and a 113.6 Driver Rating. In his career Nemechek has ran 5 races at Phoenix with a worst finish of 9th, but also a best finish of only 4th. His 6.6 Avg. Finish ranks 2nd among active drivers as does his 108.32 Avg. Driver Rating and his 97.61% of laps ran in the Top 15. Furthermore 2 of the 5 races ended in a Top 5 and he has led 8.27% of his laps ran here. In all Nemechek in JGR equipment should run well and based on the stats above he will likely finish Top 5 and very easily could pull off another win this year.
4th in Points – Chandler Smith
| Category | Statistic | 2023 Rank | ªRank Thru 3 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 6.33 | 4th of 35 | 22nd of 294 |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 100% | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 88.21% | 5th of 35 | 44th of 294 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 106.03 | 4th of 35 | T21st of 294‡ |
| Wins | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T23rd of 409 |
| Poles | 1 | T1st of 49 | T5th of 409 |
| Top 2’s | 0 | T5th of 49 | T43rd of 409 |
| Top 3’s | 1 | T4th of 49 | T14th of 409 |
| Top 5’s | 2 | T2nd of 49 | T7th of 409 |
| Top 10’s | 2 | T5th of 49 | T18th of 409 |
| DNF’s¹ | 0 | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Stage Wins | 0 | T5th of 49 | T31st of 351* |
| Stage T10s | 5 | T1st of 49 | T11th of 351* |
| Stage Pts | 30 | 3rd of 49 | T16th of 351* |
| Playoff Pts² | 0 | T5th of 49 | T31st of 351* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 3 races
²Earned from races only
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
- Notable Streaks this/last year
- 2 straight Top 5 finishes (active streak)
- 2022 Small Track Stats (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 57 drivers)
- 1 Race, Avg. Finish 21.0(27th), 13.07% of Laps ran in Top15, Avg. Driver Rating 65.8(22nd), Best 21st, Worst 21st, Laps Completed 99.5%, Led 0.00% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 0 Top 5’s, 0 Top 10’s, 0 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 0 Stage T10’s
- Phoenix Statistics
- 2022 Phoenix Championship Race
- did not race
- Notable Phoenix Statistics (Ranks are of drivers with 1+ start this year)
- 0 Races
Outlook
Chandler Smith is notable because of his pretty good 2023 stats so far. Last week Smith came within 2 miles of getting his first Xfinity Series victory, but alas he ended up 3rd behind Austin Hill and Justin Allgaier. His stats for his rookie year have been impressive though. In 3 races he has a 6.33 Avg. Finish, a 106.03 Avg. Driver Rating, and ran 88.21% of his laps in the Top 15, all three of which rank either 4th or 5th on the year. In addition to these stats Smith also has 1 Pole, 2 Top 10’s, and 30 Stage Pts. Last year Smith only had 1 start on a Small track and in that race he ended up 21st only running 13% of his laps inside the Top 15. That is all there is to say about Smith for this weekend as he has never made an Xfinity start at Phoenix. So with that said it’s anyone’s guess as to how Smith will do this weekend but I think it will be okay. I think Smith runs back of the Top 10 most the race and ends up somewhere between 5th and 15th.
Chandler Smith is notable because of his pretty good 2023 stats so far. Last week Smith came within 2 miles of getting his first Xfinity Series victory, but alas he ended up 3rd behind Austin Hill and Justin Allgaier. His stats for his rookie year have been impressive though. In 3 races he has a 6.33 Avg. Finish, a 106.03 Avg. Driver Rating, and ran 88.21% of his laps in the Top 15, all three of which rank either 4th or 5th on the year. In addition to these stats Smith also has 1 Pole, 2 Top 10’s, and 30 Stage Pts. Last year Smith only had 1 start on a Small track and in that race he ended up 21st only running 13% of his laps inside the Top 15. That is all there is to say about Smith for this weekend as he has never made an Xfinity start at Phoenix. So with that said it’s anyone’s guess as to how Smith will do this weekend but I think it will be okay. I think Smith runs back of the Top 10 most the race and ends up somewhere between 5th and 15th.
5th in Owners Points – Kyle Busch
| Category | Statistic | 2023 Rank | ªRank Thru 3 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 4.0 | – of 35 | – of 294 |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 100% | – of 35 | – of 294 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 93.0% | – of 35 | – of 294 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 111.6 | – of 35 | – of 294‡ |
| Wins | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T23rd of 409 |
| Poles | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T14th of 409 |
| Top 2’s | 0 | T5th of 49 | T43rd of 409 |
| Top 3’s | 0 | T6th of 49 | T58th of 409 |
| Top 5’s | 1 | T6th of 49 | T30th of 409 |
| Top 10’s | 1 | T8th of 49 | T72nd of 409 |
| DNF’s¹ | 0 | – of 35 | – of 294 |
| Stage Wins | 0 | T5th of 49 | T31st of 351* |
| Stage T10s | 2 | T13th of 49 | T74th of 351* |
| Stage Pts | 0 | T17th of 49 | T110th of 351* |
| Playoff Pts² | 0 | T5th of 49 | T31st of 351* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 3 races
²Earned from races only
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
- Notable Streaks this/last year
- none
- 2022 Small Track Stats (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 57 drivers)
- 0 Races
- Phoenix Statistics
- 2022 Phoenix Championship Race
- did not race
- Notable Phoenix Statistics (Ranks are of drivers with 1+ start this year)
- 24 Races
- 5.63 Avg. Finish (Ranks 1st)
- Best Finish: 1st, Worst: 37th
- Completed 97.94% of laps (% ranks 23rd)
- 96.16% of Laps ran in Top15 (% ranks 3rd)
- 131.51 Average Driver Rating (Ranks 1st)
- Led 47.51% of laps he’s run (% ranks 1st)
- 11 Wins, 45.83% (% ranks 1st)
- 10 Poles, 41.67% (% ranks 1st)
- 15 Top 3’s, 62.5% (% ranks 1st)
- 20 Top 10’s, 83.33% (% ranks T3rd)
- 1 finish outside Top 20, 4.17% (% ranks 11th)
- 1 DNF, 4.17% (% ranks 23rd)
- 1 Stage Win, 16.67% (% ranks T1st)
- 6 Stage Top 10’s, 100% (% ranks T1st)
Outlook
Kyle Busch is notable because of his ridiculously impressive stats here at Phoenix. Last week Busch was considered a favorite to win the Xfinity race, but he ultimately wound up 4th. This is his only race of 2023 so far so his Avg. Finish is 4.0 and his Avg. Driver Rating is 111.6. Last year Busch did not run any races so I cannot say anything about his stats from last year. However at Phoenix there is a ton to say. Busch has dominated races here as in 24 starts he has 11 Wins, that is a 45.83 Win%. Most of his Phoenix ranks above are 1st including his 131.51 Avg. Driver Rating and his leading 47.51% of the laps he’s run here. Busch also has over 80% of his starts here ending in a Top 10 and over 60% of his starts ending in a Top 3. To add to this he has only finished outside the Top 20 once and that was in 2007 when he had his only DNF. When looking at the stats it is hard to deny that Busch is amazing here, but this year he will be racing with Kaulig Racing, not JGR. However, if Busch starts on Pole I will almost guarantee he wins the race, but if he starts between 2nd and 38th I think he finishes in the Top 5 and possibly wins. Overall I think Busch has a high chance at winning, but for sure will get a Top 5 if nothing goes wrong.
Kyle Busch is notable because of his ridiculously impressive stats here at Phoenix. Last week Busch was considered a favorite to win the Xfinity race, but he ultimately wound up 4th. This is his only race of 2023 so far so his Avg. Finish is 4.0 and his Avg. Driver Rating is 111.6. Last year Busch did not run any races so I cannot say anything about his stats from last year. However at Phoenix there is a ton to say. Busch has dominated races here as in 24 starts he has 11 Wins, that is a 45.83 Win%. Most of his Phoenix ranks above are 1st including his 131.51 Avg. Driver Rating and his leading 47.51% of the laps he’s run here. Busch also has over 80% of his starts here ending in a Top 10 and over 60% of his starts ending in a Top 3. To add to this he has only finished outside the Top 20 once and that was in 2007 when he had his only DNF. When looking at the stats it is hard to deny that Busch is amazing here, but this year he will be racing with Kaulig Racing, not JGR. However, if Busch starts on Pole I will almost guarantee he wins the race, but if he starts between 2nd and 38th I think he finishes in the Top 5 and possibly wins. Overall I think Busch has a high chance at winning, but for sure will get a Top 5 if nothing goes wrong.
7th in Points – Cole Custer
| Category | Statistic | 2023 Rank | ªRank Thru 3 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 16.0 | 12th of 35 | T90th of 294 |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 99.79% | T8th of 35 | T50th of 294 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 67.79% | 11th of 35 | 86th of 294 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 86.0 | 9th of 35 | 76th of 294‡ |
| Wins | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T23rd of 409 |
| Poles | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T14th of 409 |
| Top 2’s | 0 | T5th of 49 | T43rd of 409 |
| Top 3’s | 0 | T6th of 49 | T58th of 409 |
| Top 5’s | 0 | T10th of 49 | T86th of 409 |
| Top 10’s | 1 | T8th of 49 | T72nd of 409 |
| DNF’s¹ | 0 | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Stage Wins | 2 | T1st of 49 | T1st of 351* |
| Stage T10s | 4 | T6th of 49 | T31th of 351* |
| Stage Pts | 25 | 5th of 49 | T25th of 351* |
| Playoff Pts² | 2 | 3rd of 49 | T15th of 351* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 3 races
²Earned from races only
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
- Notable Streaks this/last year
- none
- 2022 Small Track Stats (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 57 drivers)
- 0 Races
- Phoenix Statistics
- 2022 Phoenix Championship Race
- did not race
- Notable Phoenix Statistics (Ranks are of drivers with 1+ start this year)
- 6 Races
- 8.33 Avg. Finish (Ranks 4th)
- Best Finish: 2nd, Worst: 21st
- Completed 100% of laps (% ranks T1st)
- 90.75% of Laps ran in Top15 (% ranks 7th)
- 101.62 Average Driver Rating (Ranks 6th)
- Led 0.5% of laps he’s run (% ranks 12th)
- 0 Wins
- 1 Top 2, 16.67% (% ranks 3rd)
- 5 Top 10’s, 83.33% % ranks T3rd)
- 1 finish outside Top 20, 16.67% (% ranks T13rd)
- 0 DNF’s, 0.00% (% ranks T1st)
- 0 Stage Wins
- 8 Stage Top 10’s, 66.67% (% ranks 9th)
- 3.92 Stage Pts Per Stage (Ranks 4th)
Outlook
Cole Custer is notable because of his overall Phoenix statistics. Last week at Vegas Custer finished 12th after getting only 3 Stage Pts. Thru the first 3 races Custer’s stats aren’t really all that great as his 16.0 Avg. Finish is only 12th best. Part of the reason for this is he only has 1 Top 10 and has 67.79% of his laps inside the Top 15. To that point other than Custer’s 2 Stage Wins at Auto Club he only has 5 Stage Pts in the other 4 stages this year. Last year Custer did not race in any Small track races so there isn’t any recent stats to talk about there, but overall at Phoenix he’s had some good success. Custer has raced at Phoenix 6 times and has an Avg. Finish of 8.33 with an Avg. Driver Rating of 101.62. In those 6 races Custer only has 2 Top 5’s, but he has only finished outside the Top 10 once. What is even better news is that Custer has 3.92 Stage Pts Per Stage meaning that he might be able to get those this weekend as well. In all I don’t see anything in the stats saying Custer will be a challenger for the win this weekend, but I definitely see one of his better results on the year. Based on the stats I think Custer runs in the Top 10 most the day and then ends up finishing somewhere between 4th and 8th.
Cole Custer is notable because of his overall Phoenix statistics. Last week at Vegas Custer finished 12th after getting only 3 Stage Pts. Thru the first 3 races Custer’s stats aren’t really all that great as his 16.0 Avg. Finish is only 12th best. Part of the reason for this is he only has 1 Top 10 and has 67.79% of his laps inside the Top 15. To that point other than Custer’s 2 Stage Wins at Auto Club he only has 5 Stage Pts in the other 4 stages this year. Last year Custer did not race in any Small track races so there isn’t any recent stats to talk about there, but overall at Phoenix he’s had some good success. Custer has raced at Phoenix 6 times and has an Avg. Finish of 8.33 with an Avg. Driver Rating of 101.62. In those 6 races Custer only has 2 Top 5’s, but he has only finished outside the Top 10 once. What is even better news is that Custer has 3.92 Stage Pts Per Stage meaning that he might be able to get those this weekend as well. In all I don’t see anything in the stats saying Custer will be a challenger for the win this weekend, but I definitely see one of his better results on the year. Based on the stats I think Custer runs in the Top 10 most the day and then ends up finishing somewhere between 4th and 8th.
8th in Points – Josh Berry
| Category | Statistic | 2023 Rank | ªRank Thru 3 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 12.0 | T7th of 35 | T61st of 294 |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 100% | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 84.84% | 7th of 35 | 55th of 294 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 99.5 | 6th of 35 | 39th of 294‡ |
| Wins | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T23rd of 409 |
| Poles | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T14th of 409 |
| Top 2’s | 0 | T5th of 49 | T43rd of 409 |
| Top 3’s | 0 | T6th of 49 | T58th of 409 |
| Top 5’s | 2 | T2nd of 49 | T7th of 409 |
| Top 10’s | 2 | T5th of 49 | T18th of 409 |
| DNF’s¹ | 0 | T1st of 35 | T1st of 294 |
| Stage Wins | 0 | T5th of 49 | T31st of 351* |
| Stage T10s | 3 | T8th of 49 | T54th of 351* |
| Stage Pts | 10 | T13th of 49 | T70th of 351* |
| Playoff Pts² | 0 | T5th of 49 | T31st of 351* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 3 races
²Earned from races only
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
- Notable Streaks this/last year
- 2 straight Top 5 finishes (active streak)
- 2022 Small Track Stats (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 57 drivers)
- 4 Races, Avg. Finish 12.0(T10th), 87.76% of Laps ran in Top15, Avg. Driver Rating 101.88(5th), Best 1st, Worst 31st, Laps Completed 90.88%, Led 9.08% of laps he ran, 1 Win, 1 Pole, 2 Top 3’s, 2 Top 5’s, 2 Top 10’s, 3 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 0 Stage Wins, 3.38 Stage Pts Per Stage
- Phoenix Statistics
- 2022 Phoenix Championship Race
- Finished 13th, Started 9th, Led 0 laps, Finished 4th in Stage 1 and 10th in Stage 2, ran 192 Laps in Top15 (96.0% of laps he ran), had 95.5 Driver Rating
- Notable Phoenix Statistics (Ranks are of drivers with 1+ start this year)
- 3 Races
- 17.33 Avg. Finish (Ranks 19th)
- Best Finish: 3rd, Worst: 36th
- Completed 91.0% of laps (% ranks 34th)
- 90.11% of Laps ran in Top15 (% ranks 9th)
- 93.7 Average Driver Rating (Ranks 11th)
- Led 0.00% of laps he’s run
- 0 Wins
- 1 Top 3, 33.33% (% ranks 3rd)
- 1 Top 10, 33.33% (% ranks T15th)
- 2 Top 15’s, 66.67% (% ranks 13th)
- 1 finish outside Top 20, 33.33% (% ranks T20th)
- 1 DNF, 33.33% (% ranks T41st)
- 0 Stage Wins
- 5 Stage Top 10’s, 83.33% (% ranks 6th)
Outlook
Josh Berry is notable because of how well he did last year on Small tracks. Last week Berry had a decent race and finished 5th. This was Berry’s 2nd Top 5 on the season, and 2nd in a row, but still he has a 12.0 Avg. Finish this year which ranks T7th. In fact Berry’s 99.5 Avg. Driver Rating only ranks one spot better, 6th, in the 2023 ranks above thus showing Berry has been around the 6th or 7th best driver so far. Last year in the 4 Small track races Berry had 1 Win and 2 Top 3’s, but those were his only Top 10’s. He had one finish outside the Top 20 which hurt his Avg. Finish making it 12.0. With that said Berry still had the 5th best Avg. Driver Rating at 101.88, showing that he did run well just didn’t always finish well. In the 2022 Fall Phoenix race Berry ran well most of the race as 96% of his laps were in the Top 15, but late wall contact hurt Berry’s finish as he ended up finishing 13th. This was only Berry’s 3rd start at Phoenix but was his 2nd Top 15. He has a best finish of 3rd here but his other finish was a DNF 36th place finish, so Berry has had a good, bad and decent finish here in his 3 races. In total he has a 93.7 Avg. Driver Rating and has ran 90.11% of his laps in the Top 15 here with 5 Stage T10’s. This weekend as long as Berry stays out of trouble he should finish well the stats say. I see him staying out of trouble and being a contender most the race and coming home around 5th.
Josh Berry is notable because of how well he did last year on Small tracks. Last week Berry had a decent race and finished 5th. This was Berry’s 2nd Top 5 on the season, and 2nd in a row, but still he has a 12.0 Avg. Finish this year which ranks T7th. In fact Berry’s 99.5 Avg. Driver Rating only ranks one spot better, 6th, in the 2023 ranks above thus showing Berry has been around the 6th or 7th best driver so far. Last year in the 4 Small track races Berry had 1 Win and 2 Top 3’s, but those were his only Top 10’s. He had one finish outside the Top 20 which hurt his Avg. Finish making it 12.0. With that said Berry still had the 5th best Avg. Driver Rating at 101.88, showing that he did run well just didn’t always finish well. In the 2022 Fall Phoenix race Berry ran well most of the race as 96% of his laps were in the Top 15, but late wall contact hurt Berry’s finish as he ended up finishing 13th. This was only Berry’s 3rd start at Phoenix but was his 2nd Top 15. He has a best finish of 3rd here but his other finish was a DNF 36th place finish, so Berry has had a good, bad and decent finish here in his 3 races. In total he has a 93.7 Avg. Driver Rating and has ran 90.11% of his laps in the Top 15 here with 5 Stage T10’s. This weekend as long as Berry stays out of trouble he should finish well the stats say. I see him staying out of trouble and being a contender most the race and coming home around 5th.
16th in Points – Sheldon Creed
| Category | Statistic | 2023 Rank | ªRank Thru 3 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 22.0 | 21st of 35 | T171st of 294 |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 82.32% | 30th of 35 | 230th of 294 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 71.37% | 10th of 35 | 78th of 294 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 76.33 | 12th of 35 | 107th of 294‡ |
| Wins | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T23rd of 409 |
| Poles | 0 | T3rd of 49 | T14th of 409 |
| Top 2’s | 0 | T5th of 49 | T43rd of 409 |
| Top 3’s | 0 | T6th of 49 | T58th of 409 |
| Top 5’s | 0 | T10th of 49 | T86th of 409 |
| Top 10’s | 1 | T8th of 49 | T72nd of 409 |
| DNF’s¹ | 1 | T25th of 35 | T161st of 294 |
| Stage Wins | 0 | T5th of 49 | T31st of 351* |
| Stage T10s | 5 | T1st of 49 | T11th of 351* |
| Stage Pts | 16 | T9th of 49 | T51st of 351* |
| Playoff Pts² | 0 | T5th of 49 | T31st of 351* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 3 races
²Earned from races only
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
- Notable Streaks this/last year
- none
- 2022 Small Track Stats (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 57 drivers)
- 4 Races, Avg. Finish 8.25(5th), 97.62% of Laps ran in Top15, Avg. Driver Rating 93.23(11th), Best 5th, Worst 14th, Laps Completed 99.88%, Led 1.25% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 1 Top 5, 3 Top 10’s, 4 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 1.38 Stage Pts Per Stage
- Phoenix Statistics
- 2022 Phoenix Championship Race
- Finished 6th, Started 8th, Led 0 laps, Finished 6th in Stage 1 and 9th in Stage 2, ran 200 Laps in Top15 (100% of laps he ran), had 104.0 Driver Rating
- Notable Phoenix Statistics (Ranks are of drivers with 1+ start this year)
- 3 Races
- 10.0 Avg. Finish (Ranks T6th)
- Best Finish: 6th, Worst: 14th
- Completed 99.83% of laps (% ranks 9th)
- 90.88% of Laps ran in Top15 (% ranks 6th)
- 88.87 Average Driver Rating (Ranks 12th)
- Led 0.00% of laps he’s run
- 0 Top 5’s
- 2 Top 10’s, 66.67% (% ranks T9th)
- 3 Top 15’s, 100% (% ranks T1st)
- 0 finishes outside Top 20, 0.00% (% ranks T1st)
- 0 DNF’s, 0.00% (% ranks T1st)
- 0 Stage Wins
- 2 Stage Top 10’s, 33.33% (% ranks 13th)
Outlook
Sheldon Creed is notable because of how he faired on Small tracks last year. Last week at Vegas Creed got his first Top 10 of the season with a 9th place finish. As this implies Creed’s 2023 stats aren’t all too good through 3 races. Creed has a 22.0 Avg. Finish that is 21st in the 2023 Ranks above. However, his 76.33 Avg. Driver Rating and 71.33% of laps run in Top 15 are 12th and 10th in the 2023 Ranks above, so Creed isn’t running as bad as his finishes indicate. This is good news as we head into Phoenix because Creed ran and finished well in the 4 Small track races last year. In these races he had 3 Top 10’s with a best finish of 5th and a worst of 14th which led to an 8.25 Avg. Finish that ranked 5th. In the races Creed also had a 93.23 Avg. Driver Rating and ran 97.62% of his laps in the Top 15, so he wasn’t just cherry picking good finishes. Creed was particularly good at the last Phoenix race as he finished 6th and ran every lap in the Top 15 leading to a 104 Driver Rating. In the race Creed also got his only 2 Stage T10’s at Phoenix in his 3 races here. In these 3 races Creed has a 10.0 Avg. Finish with 2 Top 10’s and every race finishing with a Top 15, he has also ran 90% of his laps in the Top 15. The stats say Creed is good here and Phoenix may be the turnaround he needs for his early season struggles. I see him running well most the day and ending up with a finish somewhere between 5th and 10th.
Sheldon Creed is notable because of how he faired on Small tracks last year. Last week at Vegas Creed got his first Top 10 of the season with a 9th place finish. As this implies Creed’s 2023 stats aren’t all too good through 3 races. Creed has a 22.0 Avg. Finish that is 21st in the 2023 Ranks above. However, his 76.33 Avg. Driver Rating and 71.33% of laps run in Top 15 are 12th and 10th in the 2023 Ranks above, so Creed isn’t running as bad as his finishes indicate. This is good news as we head into Phoenix because Creed ran and finished well in the 4 Small track races last year. In these races he had 3 Top 10’s with a best finish of 5th and a worst of 14th which led to an 8.25 Avg. Finish that ranked 5th. In the races Creed also had a 93.23 Avg. Driver Rating and ran 97.62% of his laps in the Top 15, so he wasn’t just cherry picking good finishes. Creed was particularly good at the last Phoenix race as he finished 6th and ran every lap in the Top 15 leading to a 104 Driver Rating. In the race Creed also got his only 2 Stage T10’s at Phoenix in his 3 races here. In these 3 races Creed has a 10.0 Avg. Finish with 2 Top 10’s and every race finishing with a Top 15, he has also ran 90% of his laps in the Top 15. The stats say Creed is good here and Phoenix may be the turnaround he needs for his early season struggles. I see him running well most the day and ending up with a finish somewhere between 5th and 10th.
