2022

The DRIVERS...

...THAT MAKE or "BREAK" our TEAM!
hey gang,  

This page represents the last of the 2022 NGFL STATistics.  

When ending the Stats for the year I always think that I have notes I wanted to share and forgot to until after I have linked everything.  I even found some notes that made no sense to me now in my "shorthand" version.  ugh.  Too short.  :(

NASCAR had its ups and downs this season.  For the most part, it was an up season.  The new car was awesome, at least as the season started.  The car raced well.  Racetracks were diverse.  More road courses and new venues.  

Then there were fires.  Cars slamming the wall for wheel and tire trouble.   And then we have to mention concussions.  Ugh. We had some drivers due to crashes that resulted in injuries serious enough for drivers to sit out for many races.  Heck, Kurt Busch didn't come back.  Thats not good and hopefully this is being addressed this winter.  I do not want a driver to lose his life in the name of my entertainment.

Did I mention the number of penalties we had this season!!  OMG, they were nothing to sneer at for sure!  NASCAR wasn't fooling around!  Killed a lot of scores!!  Mine included!  How many times did I have to do races over?  Thats a big UGH!

We changed up the tracks on the schedule, putting in races we haven't been to before.  More road courses and next year, NASCAR is adding a street course.  That ought to be interesting.

We had veterans that did not find victory lane.  Who would have thought Martin Truex and Ryan Blaney would go winless?  That Kyle Busch would struggle the whole 2nd half of the season!  WOW.

New owner Brad Keselowski struggled this season and that wasn't helped by two huge penalties.  But they did show improvement in their runs at the end of the season.  Ross Chastain became a contender and a story.  Erik Jones put Petty Enterprises back in victory lane!  Daniel Suarez and Chris Buescher found victory lane as well.  Veterans struggled.  Rookies showed signs of contending.  

I hope NASCAR does make some changes to the setups of the cars for maybe a better season next year.  Too much tweaking isn't always for the better, but some might help for sure.

I hope everyone enjoyed the end of the year wind down.  I wanted to get them done before Christmas and New Year's.  The holidays are coming and once we get thru that, we will be talking about the Daytona 500 again.  

The new schedule is out, so like NASCAR, I will be prepping for the 2023 season.  Really hope it will be as exciting as this season was with a little less of the drama.  Or is some drama good?  

So, with all the notes that I have kept, did you feel like an "official" racer, looking to see your name under the "congratulations" somewhere?  Did you find your name anywhere other than in the lists?  Maybe NOT under the "congratulations" but maybe somewhere else...lol.  I am hoping everyone had a special place somewhere, doing good or needing improvement.  I do enough stats in the hopes that everyone got an honorable mention.

I do not want to forget to mention how much I appreciated all the kind words many of you mentioned in your emails throughout the season.  I really do appreciate it!  You are all my biggest fans!!  I am hoping that I will see you all in the lineup next season.  And if you know someone who might be interested, please have them email me.  I am in the setup phase.   :)

To end the 2022 NGFL season, here are the drivers' stats and how they affected our teams, results and standings.
Starting out with the price list....
drivers Daytona1 Phoenix2 difference
1 #99 Daniel Suarez $1.4 $5.0 $3.6
2 #2 Austin Cindric $0.6 $4.1 $3.5
3 #1 Ross Chastain $3.3 $6.1 $2.8
4 #43 Erik Jones $1.5 $4.2 $2.7
5 #31 Justin Haley $0.5 $3.1 $2.6
6 #20 Christopher Bell $3.8 $6.0 $2.2
7 #14 Chase Briscoe $2.2 $4.3 $2.1
8 #23 Bubba Wallace $3.0 $4.6 $1.6
9 #21 Harrison Burton $0.1 $1.4 $1.3
10 #10 Aric Almirola $2.7 $3.7 $1.0
11 #38 Todd Gilliland $0.3 $1.1 $0.8
12 #22 Joey Logano $5.8 $6.5 $0.7
13 #34 Michael McDowell $2.0 $2.6 $0.6
14 #41 Cole Custer $1.2 $1.8 $0.6
15 #9 Chase Elliott $6.5 $7.0 $0.5
16 #48 Alex Bowman $4.1 $4.4 $0.3
17 #3 Austin Dillon $4.5 $4.8 $0.3
18 #8 Tyler Reddick $4.2 $4.5 $0.3
19 #12 Ryan Blaney $6.1 $6.3 $0.2
20 #77 Landon Cassill $0.1 $0.3 $0.2
21 #24 William Byron $5.4 $5.6 $0.2
22 #78 BJ McLeod $0.2 $0.1 ($0.1)
23 #17 Chris Buescher $3.5 $3.4 ($0.1)
24 #7 Corie Lajoie $0.8 $0.7 ($0.1)
25 #51 Cody Ware $0.3 $0.1 ($0.2)
26 #5 Kyle Larson $7.0 $6.7 ($0.3)
27 #42 Ty Dillon $1.3 $0.9 ($0.4)
28 #47 Ricky Stenhouse $2.4 $1.9 ($0.5)
29 #18 Kyle Busch $6.0 $5.2 ($0.8)
30 #19 Martin Truex $6.7 $5.7 ($1.0)
31 #11 Denny Hamlin $6.4 $5.4 ($1.0)
32 #4 Kevin Harvick $5.7 $3.9 ($1.8)
33 #6 Brad Keselowski $5.0 $2.8 ($2.2)
Of course I have notes on the DRIVERS too!
 
1. Daniel Suarez is the most improved driver for 2022, running the full time schedule. 
Daytona1 - $1.4  -  Phoenix2 $5.0

           (2021 - Kyle Larson)     (2020 - Tyler Reddick)     (2019 - William Byron)     (2018 - Joey Logano)
           (2017 - Erik Jones)       (2016 - Chase Elliott)      (2015 - Martin Truex)      (2014 - Denny Hamlin)     
           (2013 - Kurt Busch)      (2012 - Martin Truex)     (2011 - Brad Keselowski)

2. There were 22 drivers who cost more in Phoenix2 then in the Daytona 500.
(2021 - 10)     (2020 - 15)     (2019 - 15)     (2018 - 10)     (2017 - 13)     (2016 - 8)     (2015 - 8)
(2014 - 11)     (2013 - 15)     (2012 - 18)     (2011 - 18)     (2010 - 19)     (2009 - 16)
 
3. NO drivers price was the same in the opener as it was in the finale.   

4. Brad Keselowski was the biggest dropper of the 2022 season. 

5. There were 4 of the Chase drivers who dropped in price from the Daytona 500.  (2021 - 9)   (2020 - 6)   (2019 - 8)
Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch. Kyle Larson 

6.  There were 5 drivers who earned their first career CUP win in 2022. 
Austin Cindric (Daytona1), Chase Briscoe (Phoenix1), Ross Chastain (COTA),
Daniel Suarez (Sonoma),Tyler Reddick (Road America)

7.  Chase Briscoe made history when he won at Phoenix2.  He became the 200th CUP winner in NASCAR history!
                                                     PENALTIES , points or position.

R# Race driver points positions  - Stage   players
1 5 Atlanta1 Brad Keselowski 100       8
2 16 Sonoma Cody Ware 20       0
3 21 Pocono1 Erik Jones 35       3
4 21 Pocono1 Ty Dillon 35       2
5 21 Pocono1 Denny Hamlin 52 34 14   33
6 21 Pocono1 Kyle Busch 51 34 17   18
7 21 Pocono1 Michael McDowell 100         1
8 30 Texas2 William Byron 25         4
9 30 Texas2 Ty Gibbs 25         5
10 31 Talladega2 Kevin Harvick 100         15
11 32 CharlotteR Cole Custer 50         15
        12 33 Las Vegas2 Bubba Wallace   Homestead   race-----    0
        13 35 Martinsville2 Brad Keselowski 41 32   9   28
Total 534 100 40   124

Of course some notations on Penalities...

1. Brad Keselowski received 2 penalties.  Most of any driver.  Lost 141 points plus 32 positions!  Affected 36 players total.
2. Biggest point penalty...Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, Michael McDowell - 100 points.
3. Biggest position penalty...Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch - 34 positions.
4. The race where the penalty driver was picked the most...Pocono1.  Denny Hamlin was on 33 teams.
5. The race with the most penalties...Pocono1    5 drivers received a penalty in this race.   Affected 57 players total.
6. Sonoma & Las Vegas2 had the least players to suffer the penalty - 0 each.

DRIVER PICKED MOST ON A WINNING TEAM....

1.  #6 Brad Keselowski - 20 winning teams.
2.  #11 Denny Hamlin - 17 winning teams. 
3.  #5 Kyle Larson - 15 winning teams.
4.  #8 Tyler Reddick - 14 winning teams.
 
5.  #2 Austin Cindric was 1st this season to be picked on 2 winning teams.
6.  #2 Austin Cindric was the first driver to be on 5 winning teams.
7.  #11 Denny Hamlin was the first driver to be on 10 winning teams.
8.  #6 Brad Keselowski was the first driver to be on 15 winning teams.
9.  #6 Brad Keselowski was the only driver to be on over 20 teams.
 
NGFL Teams with the winner of the race on their team.......... 26
NGFL Teams without the winner on their team.....................10 
        
CUP TEAMS not on a winning NGFL team 15, 51, 77, 78
 
10. Chase Elliott won 4X.  He was on 3 out of 4 winning teams.  (Not Nashville)
11. Joey Logano also won 4X.  He was not on 2 of 4 teams.  (Not Las Vegas2, Phoenix2)
12. Ross Chastain had two wins and was not on a winning team either race.  (COTA, Talladega1)
13. Austin Dillon had one win and was not picked to win the race.  (Daytona2)

Who cost us $7.0 million on the price list?

#5 Kyle Larson - Daytona1 - 1 race   (defending NASCAR champion)
#19 Martin Truex - California - 1 race
#5 Kyle Larson - Las Vegas1, Phoenix1 - 2 races
#22 Joey Logano - Atlanta1 - 1 race
#9 Chase Elliott - COTA, Richmond1, Martinsville1 - 3 races
#11 Denny Hamlin - Bristol Dirt - 1 race
#9 Chase Elliott - Talladega1 - Darlington2 - 18 races
#22 Joey Logano - Kansas2 - 1 race
#20 Christopher Bell - Bristol2 - 1 race
#9 Chase Elliott - Texas2 - 1 race
#22 Joey Logano - Talladega2 - 1 race
#9 Chase Elliott - CharlotteRC, Las Vegas2 - 2 races
#22 Joey Logano - Homestead, Martinsville2, Phoenix2 - 3 races


1. There were just 5 drivers that led the field this season.  Chase Elliott led the most with 24 races.
Joey Logano led 6 races.  And he led the last 3 races to win the championship.   
Kyle Larson led 3 races.     Christopher Bell led 1 race.     Denny Hamlin led 1 race.     Martin Truex led 1 race.


(2021 - 3)   (2020 - 6)   (2019 - 4)    (2018 - 4)    (2017 - 5)    (2016 - 8)
(2015 - 6)     (2014 - 8)    (2013 - 4)    (2012 - 8)    (2011 - 6)    (2010 - 3)
 
2. Chase Elliott cost us $7.0 million the most.   24 of 36 races   
 
3. We had 12 leader changes this season.  
(2021 - 4)     (2020 - 7)     (2019 - 15)     (2018 - 10)     (2017 - 7)     (2016 - 15)
(2015 - 6)     (2014 - 15)     (2013 - 7)     (2012 - 14)     (2011 -17)     (2010 - 7)
 
4. Chevrolet won 19 races.  Ford won 9 races.  Toyota won 8 races.

Chevy -  Chase Elliott - 5, Kyle Larson - 3, Tyler Reddick - 3, Ross Chastain - 2, William Byron - 2, 
             Alex Bowman - 1, Austin Dillon - 1, Daniel Suarez - 1, Erki Jones - 1
Ford      Joey Logano - 4, Kevin Harvick - 2, Austin Cindric -1, Chase Briscoe - 1, Chris Buescher - 1
Toyota - Christopher Bell - 3, Denny Hamlin - 2, Kyle Busch - 1, Bubba Wallace - 1, Kurt Busch - 1

5. Drivers who won in 2021 and didn't win in 2022.  ( 6 )
#6 Brad Keselowski - #10 Aric Almirola - #12 Ryan Blaney - #16 AJ Allmendinger
 #19 Martin Truex - #34 Michael McDowell

6.  One driver won 2 consecutive races!  
                           Kevin Harvick - Michigan2, Richmond2
                         
7.  Erik Jones was the biggest mover in a race the most.  ( 4 times )  (Erik Jones was one of the biggest movers in 2021 too.)

8.  Kyle Busch, Tyler Reddick were the biggest droppers in a race the most.  (5 times)

9.  Corie Lajoie was the best "under $1.0" the most.  (9X)     Todd Gilliland was 2nd.  (6X) 

10.  Kyle Busch was the worst over $5.0 the most.   (6X)       Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson were next.  (4X)

11.  There were NO races with more than one Biggest Mover.

12.  There were 4 races with more than one Biggest Droppers
           Daytona1 - Harrison Burton, Kyle Larson      Bristol Dirt- Austin Dillon, Kurt Busch    
Pocono1 - Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch      Las Vegas2 - Austin Cindric, Bubba Wallace, Christopher Bell

13.  The 45 car won both races at Kansas WITH TWO different drivers.  Kansas1 - Kurt Busch    Kansas2 - Bubba Wallace

STAGE POINTS

1.  There were a total of 4015 stage points.  
Chevy earned 1716 points.  Ford earned 1235 points.  Toyotas earned 1024 points.  No points drivers earned 40 points.

2.  Chase Elliott earned the most stage points of all drivers.      297 points.  (He didn't earn stage points in just 6 races.)
     Ryan Blaney earned the most stage points for the Fords.      289 points.  (He didn't earn stage points in 8 races.)
     Martin Truex earned the most stage points for the Toyotas.   238 points.   (He didn't earn points in 12 races.)
     

3.  Of the drivers that didn't receive points but did earn stage points... AJ Allmendinger. Joey Hand earned the most.  
Allmendinger earned 14 points in 3 races.     Joey Hand earned 14 points in 2 races.
(We didn't get them, but they still earned them)

4.  Of all the drivers who ran in 2022 full time, each driver earned stage points. 

2nd and 3rd earners
Chevy.........Kyle Larson - 287 points                      William Byron - 248 points.
Ford..........Joey Logano - 287 points                     Chase Briscoe - 140 points.
Toyota........Christopher Bell - 211 points               Denny Hamlin - 195 points.
0 pointers...Justin Algaier, Landon Cassill - 4 points   

TRACK Info

1.  Qualifying was rained out at 3 tracks.  Atlanta1, Atlanta2, Daytona2
2.  There was only one race this season that was postponed to the following day.  Daytona2.
3.  At Phoenix, the rookies Todd Gilliland and Harrison Burton switched finishing positions.
Phoenix1 - Burton - 29th - Gilliland - 19th       Phoenix2 - Burton - 19th - Gilliland - 29th
4.  Kyle Busch finished at Phoenix 7th, 3 consecutive finishes.
5.  Cole Custer (16th) and Bubba Wallace (22nd) finished in the same position at both Phoenix races.

I hope you enjoyed the stats for 2022.
And hope to see you next season for the 2023 NGFL season.


                                                                                                        And that will be it!