2023 Ambetter Health 400

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2023 Ambetter Health 400
Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]
Race 5 of 36 in the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series
Date March 19, 2023 (2023-03-19)
Location Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia
Course Permanent racing facility
1.54 mi (2.48 km)
Distance 260 laps, 400.4 mi (644.4 km)
Average speed 138.8 miles per hour (223.4 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Team Penske
Time 31.256
Most laps led
Driver Joey Logano Team Penske
Laps 140
Winner
No. 22 Joey Logano Team Penske
Television in the United States
Network Fox
Announcers Mike Joy, Clint Bowyer, and Tony Stewart
Radio in the United States
Radio PRN
Booth Announcers Doug Rice and Mark Garrow
Turn Announcers Rob Albright (1 & 2) and Pat Patterson (3 & 4)

The 2023 Ambetter Health 400 was a NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on March 19, 2023, at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia. Contested over 260 laps on the 1.54-mile-long (2.48 km) asphalt quad-oval intermediate speedway (with superspeedway rules), it was the fifth race of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season.

Report

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Background

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Atlanta Motor Speedway, the track where the race was held.

Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly Atlanta International Raceway) is a 1.54-mile race track in Hampton, Georgia, United States, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It has annually hosted NASCAR Cup Series stock car races since its inauguration in 1960.

The venue was bought by Speedway Motorsports in 1990. In 1994, 46 condominiums were built over the northeastern side of the track. In 1997, to standardize the track with Speedway Motorsports' other two intermediate ovals, the entire track was almost completely rebuilt. The frontstretch and backstretch were swapped, and the configuration of the track was changed from oval to quad-oval, with a new official length of 1.54-mile (2.48 km) where before it was 1.522-mile (2.449 km). The project made the track one of the fastest on the NASCAR circuit. In July 2021 NASCAR announced that the track would be reprofiled for the 2022 season to have 28 degrees of banking and would be narrowed from 55 to 40 feet which the track claims will turn racing at the track similar to restrictor plate superspeedways. Despite the reprofiling being criticized by drivers, construction began in August 2021 and wrapped up in December 2021.[9][10] The track has seating capacity of 71,000 to 125,000 people depending on the tracks configuration.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
  • (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
No. Driver Team Manufacturer
1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford
3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford
7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
9 Josh Berry (i) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford
14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
15 J. J. Yeley Rick Ware Racing Ford
16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford
19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
21 Harrison Burton Wood Brothers Racing Ford
22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford
23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota
24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford
38 Todd Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford
41 Ryan Preece Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
42 Noah Gragson (R) Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet
43 Erik Jones Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet
45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota
47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
51 Cody Ware Rick Ware Racing Ford
54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
77 Ty Dillon Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
78 B. J. McLeod Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet
99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Official entry list

Qualifying

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Joey Logano scored the pole for the race with a time of 31.256 and a speed of 177.374 mph (285.456 km/h).[11]

Qualifying results

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Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer R1 R2
1 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 31.348 31.256
2 2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford 31.527 31.262
3 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 31.276 31.284
4 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 31.369 31.323
5 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 31.353 31.324
6 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 31.528 31.363
7 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 31.386 31.367
8 14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 31.403 31.396
9 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 31.506 31.462
10 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 31.497 0.000
11 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 31.544
12 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 31.545
13 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 31.548
14 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 31.554
15 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 31.554
16 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota 31.574
17 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 31.583
18 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 31.597
19 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 31.636
20 31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 31.642
21 9 Josh Berry (i) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 31.662
22 42 Noah Gragson (R) Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 31.680
23 38 Todd Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 31.696
24 41 Ryan Preece Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 31.801
25 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 31.835
26 77 Ty Dillon Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 31.835
27 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 31.837
28 43 Erik Jones Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 31.853
29 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 31.859
30 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 31.939
31 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 31.945
32 51 Cody Ware Rick Ware Racing Ford 32.064
33 21 Harrison Burton Wood Brothers Racing Ford 32.540
34 15 J. J. Yeley (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford 32.559
35 54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 34.582
36 78 B. J. McLeod Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000
Official qualifying results

Race

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Race results

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Stage Results

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Stage One Laps: 60

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 10
2 2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford 9
3 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 8
4 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 7
5 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 6
6 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 5
7 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 4
8 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 3
9 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 2
10 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1
Official stage one results

Stage Two Laps: 100

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford 10
2 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 9
3 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 8
4 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota 7
5 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 6
6 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 5
7 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 4
8 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 3
9 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 2
10 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 1
Official stage two results

Final Stage Results

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Stage Three Laps: 100

Pos Grid No Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 1 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 260 59
2 4 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 260 45
3 10 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 260 39
4 31 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 260 34
5 16 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota 260 39
6 14 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 260 40
7 3 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 260 37
8 28 43 Erik Jones Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 260 29
9 35 54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 260 28
10 17 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 260 31
11 2 2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford 260 45
12 22 42 Noah Gragson (R) Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 260 25
13 18 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 260 24
14 15 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 260 31
15 23 38 Todd Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 260 22
16 30 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 260 21
17 27 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 260 20
18 21 9 Josh Berry (i) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 260 0
19 29 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 260 22
20 13 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 260 17
21 12 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 260 16
22 20 31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 260 15
23 26 77 Ty Dillon Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 260 14
24 8 14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 259 13
25 32 51 Cody Ware Rick Ware Racing Ford 258 12
26 34 15 J. J. Yeley (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford 258 0
27 19 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 255 10
28 24 41 Ryan Preece Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 242 9
29 25 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 213 10
30 5 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 208 7
31 9 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 208 6
32 11 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 192 11
33 6 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 190 4
34 33 21 Harrison Burton Wood Brothers Racing Ford 190 3
35 7 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 189 10
36 36 78 B. J. McLeod Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet 189 1
Official race results

Race statistics

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  • Lead changes: 20 among 13 different drivers
  • Cautions/Laps: 5 for 34 laps
  • Red flags: 0
  • Time of race: 2 hours, 53 minutes and 5 seconds
  • Average speed: 138.8 miles per hour (223.4 km/h)

Media

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Television

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Fox Sports was carried by Fox in the United States. Mike Joy, Clint Bowyer, and three-time Atlanta winner, three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing Tony Stewart called the race from the broadcast booth. Jamie Little and Regan Smith handled pit road for the television side, and Larry McReynolds provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte.

Fox
Booth announcers Pit reporters In-race analyst
Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy
Color-commentator: Clint Bowyer
Color-commentator: Tony Stewart
Jamie Little
Regan Smith
Larry McReynolds

Radio

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The race was broadcast on radio by the Performance Racing Network and simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Doug Rice and Mark Garrow called the race from the booth when the field raced down the front stretch. Rob Albright called the race from atop a billboard outside of turn 2 when the field raced through turns 1 and 2, and Pat Patterson called the race from a billboard outside of turn 3 when the field raced through turns 3 and 4. On pit road, PRN was manned by Brad Gillie, Doug Turnbull, and Wendy Venturini.

PRN
Booth announcers Turn announcers Pit reporters
Lead announcer: Doug Rice
Announcer: Mark Garrow
Turns 1 & 2: Rob Albright
Turns 3 & 4: Pat Patterson
Brad Gillie
Doug Turnbull
Wendy Venturini

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ "2023 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  2. ^ "Atlanta Motor Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Archived from the original on February 19, 2016. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
  3. ^ Taranto, Steven (14 September 2022). "NASCAR releases 2023 Cup Series schedule highlighted by new Chicago, All-Star race stops". CBS Broadcasting Inc. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  4. ^ "NASCAR unveils 2023 schedule for its national series". National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC. 14 September 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  5. ^ "Entry List" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  6. ^ "Qualifying Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR. March 18, 2023. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  7. ^ "Ambetter Health 400 Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR. March 19, 2023. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  8. ^ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. March 19, 2023. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  9. ^ "Atlanta Motor Speedway to re-profile track in 2022 and drivers are expressing frustration with the changes". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2021-09-06.
  10. ^ "Atlanta Motor Speedway track reprofile begins | NASCAR". Official Site Of NASCAR. Retrieved 2021-09-06.
  11. ^ Utter, Jim (March 18, 2023). "Logano wins pole as Fords dominate Atlanta Cup qualifying". Motorsport.com. Hampton, Georgia: Motorsport Network. Retrieved March 18, 2023.


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