The 2022 M&M's Fan Appreciation 400 was a NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on July 24, 2022, at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. Contested over 160 laps on the speedway, it was the 21st race of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season. Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports would win the race after Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch, who originally finished first and second respectively, were both disqualified for failing post-race technical inspection. Elliott became the first NASCAR driver to win a race after both the original first and second-place finishers were disqualified since 1955. Hamlin was also the first NASCAR Cup Series race winner to be disqualified since 1960, ending a 62-year streak. It was also the first disqualification of the Next Gen car since its debut earlier that year.
It was the final appearance of 2004 Cup Series champion Kurt Busch, who withdrew from the race after crashing in qualifying, eventually leading to his retirement the following year.
Report
Background
Pocono Raceway is a oval speedway located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, which has hosted NASCAR racing annually since the early 1970s. Nicknamed "The Tricky Triangle", the speedway has three distinct corners and is known for high speeds along its lengthy straightaways.
From 1982 to 2019, the circuit had two race weekends. In 2020, the circuit was reduced to one race meeting of two races. The first race was moved to World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis starting in 2022.
Entry list (R) denotes rookie driver. (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
Driver Team Manufacturer 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 2 Austin Cindric (R) 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 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 9 Chase Elliott 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 (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford 16 Noah Gragson (i) Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 21 Harrison Burton (R) 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 (R) Front Row Motorsports Ford 41 Cole Custer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 42 Ty Dillon Petty GMS Motorsports Chevrolet 43 Erik Jones Petty GMS Motorsports Chevrolet 45 Kurt Busch 23XI Racing Toyota 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51 Cody Ware Rick Ware Racing Ford 77 Josh Bilicki (i) Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 78 B. J. McLeod (i) Live Fast Motorsports Ford 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Team ChevroletOfficial entry list
Practice Ross Chastain was the fastest in the practice session with a time of 53.661 seconds and a speed of .
Practice results Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Time 1 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 53.661 167.720 2 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 53.688 167.635 3 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 53.781 167.345Official practice results
Qualifying Denny Hamlin scored the pole for the race with a time of 52.944 and a speed of .
During the second round of qualifying, Kurt Busch spun and the car made tail to wall contact to the Turn 3 wall. After further checkups on Sunday morning, he was medically disqualified and thereby suspended under a medical suspension that resulted in what became a career-ending injury, announcing his formal retirement on August 26, 2023. Ty Gibbs took over the 45 car for the remainder of the regular season.
Qualifying results Pos Driver Team Manufacturer 1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 53.145 52.944 2 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 53.173 53.098 3 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 53.237 53.140 4 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 53.532 53.250 5 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 53.522 53.279 6 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 53.601 53.457 7 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 53.410 53.472 8 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 53.577 53.579 9 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 53.473 53.590 10 45 Kurt Busch 23XI Racing Toyota 53.444 0.000 11 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 53.550 — 12 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 53.620 — 13 14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 53.655 — 14 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 53.669 — 15 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 53.678 — 16 8 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 53.708 — 17 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 53.834 — 18 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 53.835 — 19 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 53.878 — 20 2 Austin Cindric (R) Team Penske Ford 53.921 — 21 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 53.984 — 22 16 Noah Gragson (R) Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 54.000 — 23 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 54.009 — 24 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 54.020 — 25 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 54.049 — 26 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 54.061 — 27 42 Ty Dillon Petty GMS Motorsports Chevrolet 54.140 — 28 21 Harrison Burton (R) Wood Brothers Racing Ford 54.197 — 29 38 Todd Gilliland (R) Front Row Motorsports Ford 54.221 — 30 31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 54.440 — 31 77 Josh Bilicki (i) Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 54.639 — 32 41 Cole Custer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 54.763 — 33 15 J. J. Yeley (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford 54.769 — 34 43 Erik Jones Petty GMS Motorsports Chevrolet 54.816 — 35 78 B. J. McLeod (i) Live Fast Motorsports Ford 55.625 — 36 51 Cody Ware Rick Ware Racing Ford 56.166 — Official qualifying results
Race
Stage Results
Stage One Laps: 30
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 102 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 93 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 84 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 75 43 Erik Jones Petty GMS Motorsports Chevrolet 66 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 57 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 48 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 39 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 210 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 1Official stage one results
Stage Two Laps: 65
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 102 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 93 43 Erik Jones Petty GMS Motorsports Chevrolet 84 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 75 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 66 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 57 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 48 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 39 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 210 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1Official stage two results
Final Stage Results
Stage Three Laps: 65
Pos Grid Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points1 3 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 532 16 8 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 160 353 9 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 160 474 11 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 160 355 4 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 456 25 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 160 -687 8 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 160 358 7 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 160 299 34 43 Erik Jones Petty GMS Motorsports Chevrolet 160 710 15 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 160 2711 17 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 2612 18 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 3613 12 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 160 2414 26 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 160 2315 13 14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 160 2216 10 45 Ty Gibbs (i) 23XI Racing Toyota 160 017 32 41 Cole Custer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 160 2018 19 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 160 1919 23 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 160 2020 14 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 160 1721 30 31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 160 1622 27 42 Ty Dillon Petty GMS Motorsports Chevrolet 160 -2023 28 21 Harrison Burton (R) Wood Brothers Racing Ford 160 1424 22 16 Noah Gragson (i) Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 160 025 29 38 Todd Gilliland (R) Front Row Motorsports Ford 160 1226 36 51 Cody Ware Rick Ware Racing Ford 160 1127 24 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 160 2028 33 15 J. J. Yeley (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford 159 029 5 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 158 830 35 78 B. J. McLeod (i) Live Fast Motorsports Ford 158 031 20 2 Austin Cindric (R) Team Penske Ford 154 632 21 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 142 1533 6 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 135 2034 31 77 Josh Bilicki (i) Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 35 0DSQ (35) 1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 160 2DSQ (36) 2 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 160 1Official race results
Race statistics Lead changes: 15 among 10 different drivers Cautions/Laps: 9 for 37 Red flags: 0 Time of race: 3 hours, 15 minutes and 59 seconds Average speed:
Media
Television USA covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. called the race from the broadcast booth. Kim Coon, Parker Kligerman, and Marty Snider served as pit reporters.
USABooth announcersPit reporters Lap-by-lap: Rick AllenColor-commentator: Jeff BurtonColor-commentator: Steve LetarteColor-commentator: Dale Earnhardt Jr. Kim CoonParker KligermanMarty Snider
Radio Radio coverage of the race was broadcast by Motor Racing Network (MRN) and was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Alex Hayden, Jeff Striegle, and Todd Gordon called the race in the booth when the field raced through the tri-oval. Dave Moody called the race from the Sunoco spotters stand outside turn 2 when the field raced through turns 1 and 2. Mike Bagley called the race from a platform inside the backstretch when the field raced down the backstretch. Kyle Rickey called the race from the Sunoco spotters stand outside turn 3. Steve Post and Chris Wilner worked pit road for MRN.
MRN RadioBooth announcersTurn announcersPit reporters Lead announcer: Alex HaydenAnnouncer: Jeff StriegleAnnouncer: Todd Gordon Turns 1 & 2: Dave MoodyBackstretch: Mike BagleyTurn 3: Kyle Rickey Steve PostChris Wilner
Standings after the race
Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 Chase Elliott 787 2 Ross Chastain 682 (–105) 3 Ryan Blaney 676 (–111) 1 4 Kyle Larson 661 (–126) 1 5 Martin Truex Jr. 654 (–133) 2 6 Christopher Bell 605 (–182) 7 Joey Logano 599 (–188) 2 8 Kyle Busch 595 (–192) 1 9 William Byron 572 (–215) 1 10 Kevin Harvick 571 (–216) 11 Alex Bowman 536 (–251) 3 12 Daniel Suárez 526 (–261) 1 13 Aric Almirola 514 (–273) 2 14 Tyler Reddick 509 (–278) 2 15 Austin Cindric 495 (–292) 1 16 Chase Briscoe 487 (–300)Official driver's standings
Manufacturers' Championship standings Pos Manufacturer Points 1 Chevrolet 777 2 Ford 703 (–74) 3 Toyota 698 (–79)
Note: Only the first 16 positions are included for the driver standings. . – Driver has clinched a position in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.
Notes
References