Chevy setting early pace in NASCAR series
• Two weeks into the new NASCAR season, Chevrolet heads into Las Vegas Motor Speedway undefeated.
And not just in the top Cup Series, where Daniel Suarez of Trackhouse Racing won a three-wide photo finish at the checkered flag last week at Atlanta and William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports won the Daytona 500.
But the Chevy winning streak crosses all three NASCAR national series, sweeping the start of the year in both the Xfinity and Truck Series as well. Nick Sanchez and Kyle Busch won the first two Truck Series races for Spire Motorsports, while Austin Hill of Richard Childress Racing is 2 for 2 with wins at Daytona and Atlanta.
It the first time in NASCAR history a manufacturer sweep stretched through the first two weekends of a season. The Daytona sweep by Chevrolet made the automaker the only manufacturer to accomplish that more than once. Chevy also swept Daytona in 2018.
Chevrolet has now won at least one race in the NASCAR national ranks every weekend since The Roval at Charlotte Motor Speedway last October.
But NASCAR shifts this weekend to Las Vegas Motor Speedway, which unlike Daytona and Atlanta is not a superspeedway. It’s a traditional 1.5-mile oval — the type of track that comprises the bulk of the NASCAR schedule and a closer indicator on where Ford and Toyota stack up against their rival.
Only thing is, Chevy was really good last year at Las Vegas. Byron won in March and Kyle Larson won in October for a Hendrick sweep of Las Vegas in Cup. Hill is the defending Xfinity Series race winner and can make it three-straight to open this season on Saturday.
The competition is hardly throwing in the towel and Ford and Toyota drivers are eager to get their new cars to victory lane this season. Ford and Toyota both unveiled new cars for the 2024 season, while Chevrolet made no changes to its 2023 model but has still beaten their updated rivals.