The 2023 Toyota/Save Mart 350 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on June 11, 2023, at Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, California. Contested over 110 laps on the road course, it was the 16th race of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season.
Report
Background
Sonoma Raceway is a road course and drag strip located on the landform known as Sears Point in the southern Sonoma Mountains in Sonoma, California, U.S. The road course features 12 turns on a hilly course with of total elevation change. It is host to one of only seven NASCAR Cup Series races each year that are run on road courses. It is also host to the NTT IndyCar Series and several other auto races and motorcycle races such as the American Federation of Motorcyclists series. Sonoma Raceway continues to host amateur, or club racing events which may or may not be open to the general public. The largest such car club is the Sports Car Club of America. In 2022, the race was reverted to racing the club configuration.
Grant Enfinger replaced Noah Gragson for this race, after Gragson was diagnosed for concussion-like symptoms as a result of a brake failure the race prior.
Entry list (R) denotes rookie driver. (i) denotes the driver ineligible for series driver points.
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 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 Andy Lally 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 Zane Smith (i) Front Row Motorsports Ford 41 Ryan Preece Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 42 Grant Enfinger (i) 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 Todd Gilliland Rick Ware Racing Ford 54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 77 Ty Dillon Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 78 Josh Bilicki (i) Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing ChevroletOfficial entry list
Practice Kyle Larson was the fastest in the practice session with a time of 1:18.099 seconds and a speed of .
Practice results Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Time 1 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:18.099 91.730 2 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1:18.657 91.079 3 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 1:18.708 91.020 Official practice results
Qualifying Denny Hamlin scored the pole for the race with a time of 1:17.719 and a speed of .
Qualifying results Pos Driver Team Manufacturer 1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1:17.826 1:17.719 2 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota 1:18.295 1:17.812 3 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 1:17.768 1:17.819 4 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1:17.973 1:17.974 5 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 1:17.981 1:17.977 6 54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1:18.287 1:18.023 7 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 1:17.909 1:18.030 8 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1:18.091 1:18.094 9 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 1:18.364 1:18.339 10 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:17.894 1:18.460 11 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 1:18.056 — 12 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 1:18.122 — 13 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 1:18.359 — 14 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:18.398 — 15 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 1:18.426 — 16 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:18.431 — 17 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 1:18.476 — 18 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 1:18.506 — 19 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 1:18.616 — 20 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 1:18.650 — 21 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 1:18.680 — 22 41 Ryan Preece Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 1:18.680 — 23 31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 1:18.730 — 24 14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 1:18.762 — 25 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 1:18.980 — 26 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:19.100 — 27 77 Ty Dillon Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 1:19.138 — 28 43 Erik Jones Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 1:19.326 — 29 78 Josh Bilicki (i) Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet 1:19.370 — 30 38 Zane Smith (i) Front Row Motorsports Ford 1:19.498 — 31 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 1:19.599 — 32 51 Todd Gilliland Rick Ware Racing Ford 1:19.722 — 33 15 Andy Lally Rick Ware Racing Ford 1:19.787 — 34 2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford 1:19.955 — 35 42 Grant Enfinger (i) Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 1:20.223 — 36 21 Harrison Burton Wood Brothers Racing Ford 1:20.361 —Official qualifying results
Race
Race results
Stage results
Stage One Laps: 25
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 102 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 93 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 84 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 75 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 66 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota 57 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 48 54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 39 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 210 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 1Official stage one results
Stage Two Laps: 30
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 102 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 93 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 84 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 75 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 66 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 57 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 48 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 39 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 210 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 1Official stage two results
Final Stage results
Stage Three Laps: 55
Pos Grid Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points1 8 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 110 532 12 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 110 453 17 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 110 434 7 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 110 375 10 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 110 326 5 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 110 387 3 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 110 378 16 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 110 299 4 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 110 3910 15 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 110 3611 21 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 110 2812 13 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 110 3213 22 41 Ryan Preece Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 110 2414 26 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 110 3015 14 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 110 2416 25 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 110 2117 18 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 110 2018 6 54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 110 2219 11 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 110 2320 19 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 110 1721 23 31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 110 1622 9 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 110 1523 27 77 Ty Dillon Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 110 1424 32 51 Todd Gilliland Rick Ware Racing Ford 110 1325 34 2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford 110 1226 35 42 Grant Enfinger (i) Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 110 027 36 21 Harrison Burton Wood Brothers Racing Ford 110 1028 20 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 110 929 24 14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 110 830 29 78 Josh Bilicki (i) Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet 110 031 31 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 110 632 28 43 Erik Jones Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 109 533 2 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota 109 934 30 38 Zane Smith (i) Front Row Motorsports Ford 109 035 33 15 Andy Lally Rick Ware Racing Ford 109 236 1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 92 11Official race results
Race statistics Lead changes: 10 among 6 different drivers Cautions/Laps: 2 for 6 laps Red flags: 0 Time of race: 2 hours, 40 minutes, and 12 seconds Average speed:
Media
Television Fox NASCAR televised the race in the United States on Fox for the seventh year and the first since 2006. Mike Joy was the lap-by-lap announcer, while 2012 Sonoma winner Clint Bowyer and Jamie McMurray were the color commentators. Jamie Little and Regan Smith handled the pit road for the television side. Larry McReynolds provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte. This was Fox Sports' last Cup race for their portion of the 2023 season as NBC Sports and USA Network takes over NASCAR broadcasts for the rest of the season.
FoxBooth announcersPit reportersIn-race analystLap-by-lap: Mike JoyColor-commentator: Clint BowyerColor-commentator: Jamie McMurray Jamie LittleRegan Smith Larry McReynolds
Radio Radio coverage of the race was broadcast by the Performance Racing Network. PRN's broadcast of the race was also simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Doug Rice and Mark Garrow announced the race in the booth while the field was racing on the pit straightaway. Pat Patterson called the race from a stand outside of turn 2 when the field was racing up turns 2, 3 and 3a. Doug Turnbull called the race from a stand outside of turn 7a when the field was racing through turns 4a and 7a. Brad Gillie called the race when the field raced thru turns 8 and 9. Rob Albright called the race from a billboard outside turn 11 when the field was racing through turns 10 and 11. Heather DeBeaux, Alan Cavanna, Brett McMillan and Wendy Venturini reported from pit lane during the race.
PRNBooth announcersTurn announcersPit reporters Lead announcer: Doug RiceAnnouncer: Mark Garrow Turns 2, 3 & 3a: Pat PattersonTurns 4a & 7a: Doug TurnbullTurns 8 & 9: Brad Gillie Turns 10 & 11: Rob Albright Heather DeBeauxAlan CavannaBrett McMillanWendy Venturini
Standings after the race
Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 3 1 Martin Truex Jr. 525 2 William Byron 512 (–13) 2 3 Ryan Blaney 501 (–24) 1 4 Ross Chastain 501 (–24) 2 5 Kevin Harvick 500 (–25) 1 6 Kyle Busch 496 (–29) 1 7 Christopher Bell 493 (–32) 8 Denny Hamlin 462 (–63) 3 9 Joey Logano 444 (–81) 1 10 Kyle Larson 440 (–85) 2 11 Chris Buescher 430 (–95) 1 12 Brad Keselowski 424 (–101) 3 13 Tyler Reddick 420 (–105) 14 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 400 (–125) 15 Bubba Wallace 354 (–171) 1 16 Alex Bowman 331 (–194)Official driver's standings
Manufacturers' Championship standings Pos Manufacturer Points 1 Chevrolet 602 2 Toyota 563 (–39) 3 Ford 546 (–56)
Note: Only the first 16 positions are included for the driver standings. . – Driver has clinched a position in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.
References