2023 Coca-Cola 600
The 2023 Coca-Cola 600 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on May 29, 2023, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina and the 64th running of the event. Contested over 400 laps on the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) asphalt speedway, it was the 14th race of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, as well as the third of the four crown jewel races. The race was postponed from Sunday, May 28 to Monday, May 29, due to rain.
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 14 of 36 in the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | May 29, 2023 | ||
| Location | Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, U.S. | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.5 mi (2.4 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 600 mi (965.6 km) | ||
| Average speed | 120.465 miles per hour (193.870 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Hendrick Motorsports | ||
| Time | 2.550 (Pandemic Formula) | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | |
| Laps | 163 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Fox | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Clint Bowyer, Tony Stewart, and Danny McBride (Stage 2) | ||
| 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) | ||
Report
Background
The race was held at Charlotte Motor Speedway, located in Concord, North Carolina. The speedway complex includes a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) quad-oval track that was utilized for the race, as well as a dragstrip and a dirt track. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams based in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) with Marcus G. Smith serving as track president.
Similar to the Daytona 500, which was a four-stage race (with the first stage being the qualifying heat race), the Coca-Cola 600 is a four-stage race, with this the only race where all four stages are in the main race itself. All four stages are scheduled to consist of 100 laps. The race is official after the second stage.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes the driver ineligible for series driver points.
Practice
Practice was cancelled due to inclement weather.
Qualifying
Qualifying was cancelled due to inclement weather. William Byron was awarded the pole for the race as a result of NASCAR's pandemic formula with a score of 2.550.[9]
Starting lineup
Race
Ryan Blaney won the race driving a Ford for Team Penske. It was Blaney's first Cup Series race win since the 2022 NASCAR All-Star Race, and his first points-paying win since the 2021 Coke Zero Sugar 400.[10][11] Chase Elliott was suspended from the following race after he intentionally right-hooked Denny Hamlin's car in the dog-leg of the frontstretch, causing a crash.[12][13] On Wednesday May 31st, NASCAR levied an L3 penalty to the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing team of Chase Briscoe for counterfeiting a single-source part. The penalty is the largest single team penalty to occur in the Next Gen era, with Briscoe's team being docked 120 driver and owner points and 25 playoff points. In addition, Briscoe's crew chief, Johnny Klausmeier, was given a six race suspension and the team was fined $250,000.[14]
Stage results
Stage One Laps: 100
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 8 | Kyle Busch | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage one results | |||||
Stage Two Laps: 100
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 | Chris Buescher | RFK Racing | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 7 |
| 5 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 6 |
| 6 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 54 | Ty Gibbs (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 4 |
| 8 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 1 |
| Official stage two results | |||||
Stage Three Laps: 100
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 54 | Ty Gibbs (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 8 | Kyle Busch | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage three results | |||||
Final Stage results
Stage Four Laps: 100
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 400 | 64 |
| 2 | 1 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 55 |
| 3 | 18 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 400 | 48 |
| 4 | 7 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 400 | 34 |
| 5 | 15 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 400 | 48 |
| 6 | 5 | 8 | Kyle Busch | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 39 |
| 7 | 10 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 33 |
| 8 | 11 | 17 | Chris Buescher | RFK Racing | Ford | 400 | 39 |
| 9 | 33 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 28 |
| 10 | 29 | 38 | Zane Smith (i) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 400 | 0 |
| 11 | 2 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 400 | 38 |
| 12 | 31 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 26 |
| 13 | 22 | 41 | Ryan Preece | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 400 | 24 |
| 14 | 27 | 16 | A. J. Allmendinger | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 23 |
| 15 | 16 | 31 | Justin Haley | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 22 |
| 16 | 36 | 15 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 400 | 0 |
| 17 | 25 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 20 |
| 18 | 13 | 21 | Harrison Burton | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 400 | 19 |
| 19 | 3 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | Ford | 400 | 29 |
| 20 | 20 | 14 | Chase Briscoe | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 400 | -103 |
| 21 | 17 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 400 | 23 |
| 22 | 14 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 17 |
| 23 | 24 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 14 |
| 24 | 9 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 400 | 27 |
| 25 | 23 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 400 | 12 |
| 26 | 19 | 54 | Ty Gibbs (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 398 | 21 |
| 27 | 32 | 77 | Ty Dillon | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 397 | 10 |
| 28 | 30 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 396 | 9 |
| 29 | 34 | 78 | B. J. McLeod | Live Fast Motorsports | Chevrolet | 392 | 8 |
| 30 | 12 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 377 | 14 |
| 31 | 21 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Team Penske | Ford | 369 | 6 |
| 32 | 26 | 43 | Erik Jones | Legacy Motor Club | Chevrolet | 341 | 5 |
| 33 | 35 | 51 | Todd Gilliland | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 265 | 4 |
| 34 | 6 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 185 | 3 |
| 35 | 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 185 | 7 |
| 36 | 28 | 42 | Noah Gragson (R) | Legacy Motor Club | Chevrolet | 117 | 1 |
| 37 | 37 | 84 | Jimmie Johnson | Legacy Motor Club | Chevrolet | 115 | 1 |
| Official race results | |||||||
Race statistics
- Lead changes: 31 among 13 different drivers
- Cautions/Laps: 16 for 83 laps
- Red flags: 1 for 30 minutes and 48 seconds
- Time of race: 4 hours, 58 minutes, and 50 seconds
- Average speed: 120.465 miles per hour (193.870 km/h)
Media
Television
Fox Sports televised the race in the United States for the 23rd consecutive year. Mike Joy was the lap-by-lap announcer, while 2012 Fall Charlotte winner Clint Bowyer, three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing Tony Stewart, and actor Danny McBride in Stage 2 were the color commentators. Jamie Little, Regan Smith and Josh Sims reported from pit lane during the race. 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 Color commentator: Danny McBride (Stage 2) | Jamie Little Regan Smith Josh Sims | Larry McReynolds |
Radio
Radio coverage of the race was broadcast by the Performance Racing Network (PRN), and was also simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Doug Rice and Mark Garrow called the race in the booth when the field raced through the quad-oval. Rob Albright called the race from a billboard in turn 2 when the field was racing through turns 1 and 2 and halfway down the backstretch. Pat Patterson called the race from a billboard outside of turn 3 when the field raced through the other half of the backstretch and through turns 3 and 4. Brad Gillie, Brett McMillan, Wendy Venturini, and Alan Cavanna were the pit reporters during the broadcast.
| PRN Radio | ||
|---|---|---|
| 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 Brett McMillan Wendy Venturini Alan Cavanna |
Standings after the race
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References
- "2023 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
- "Charlotte Motor Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Archived from the original on September 29, 2015. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- Taranto, Steven (September 14, 2022). "NASCAR releases 2023 Cup Series schedule highlighted by new Chicago, All-Star race stops". CBS Broadcasting Inc. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
- "NASCAR unveils 2023 schedule for its national series". National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC. September 14, 2022. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
- "Entry List" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 22, 2023. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
- "Starting Lineup". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. May 27, 2023. Retrieved May 27, 2023.
- "Coca-Cola 600 Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR. May 29, 2023. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
- "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 29, 2023. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
- Utter, Jim (May 27, 2023). "Rain cancels Coke 600 qualifying; William Byron on pole". Motorsport.com. Charlotte, North Carolina: Motorsport Network. Retrieved May 27, 2023.
- Spencer, Reid (May 29, 2023). "Blaney ends 59-race NASCAR Cup Series drought with Coca-Cola 600 win". Racer magazine. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
- Utter, Jim (May 30, 2023). "NASCAR Cup Charlotte: Blaney caps Penske's big weekend with Coke 600 win". Autosport. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
- Bianchi, Jordan; Gluck, Jeff (May 30, 2023). "NASCAR suspends Chase Elliott 1 race for crashing Denny Hamlin: Why it's the right call". The Athletic. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
- Crandall, Kelly (May 30, 2023). "Chase Elliott given one-race suspension for Hamlin tangle". Racer. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
- Crandall, Kelly (May 30, 2023). "Hefty penalty for Briscoe, Stewart-Haas over Charlotte infraction". Racer. Retrieved May 31, 2023.