The NASCAR Cup Series most recent race at Phoenix Raceway was a significant outing for several members of the NASCAR Cup Series’ talented Sunoco Rookie class.
Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cole Custer earned his first NASCAR Cup Series top 10 with a ninth-place finish on Sunday. The effort moved him to 22nd in the standings – best among rookies.
Richard Childress Racing’s Tyler Reddick earned points in the first two stages and ran among the top five for a portion of the race before a late accident cost him a fitting finish. The two-time and defending NASCAR Xfinity Series champion was ultimately 33rd in the finishing order and dropped him to 25th in the standings heading into this weekend at Darlington.
Christopher Bell had his best outing of the four-race season, finishing 24th in the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota, one position ahead of Front Row Motorsports’ driver John Hunter Nemechek.
Custer is tops among the rookies in the standings, followed by Reddick and Nemechek, who sit in 25th and 26th position, respectively.
Bell is currently 32ndin the NASCAR Cup Series standings. Bell has two starts at Darlington in the Xfinity Series posting one top five. He started on the front row (second) in both of those starts.
Custer has three starts at the track in the Xfinity Series and won in his most recent start in 2019 from the third position. In 2018, he finished runner-up and in his debut in 2017 he finished ninth. He never started outside of the top six in all three starts.
Reddick also has three starts in the Xfinity Series at Darlington and finished runner-up in 2019 and third in 2018.
Nemechek will head to Darlington for only the second-time of his career. His first start was last season in the Xfinity Series, and he finished 21st.
