Shutter Speed: Photos From a Scenic Championship Weekend in Phoenix
Sparks flew, smoke rose, and confetti fell. It was an amazing weekend at Phoenix Raceway, where the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, and ARCA Menards Series West championships were officially awarded.
Between the incredibly vivid paint schemes featured in the races, the beautiful evening sunset, and the desert scenery, there were some incredible shots that came out of the final NASCAR race weekend of the 2024 season.
Here are some of the very best photos, which were snapped by Racing America photographer Aaron Giffin, and TobyChristie.com photographer Tyson Gifford at the 1-mile oval in Avondale, Arizona.
Thursday, November 8
Thursday was a pivotal day for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series West competitors as they got a chance to tune their vehicles up for Friday's racing action in practice.
Nick Sanchez, who finished fifth in the year-end NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship standings was snapped here on his way back out to the race track during practice on Friday evening at Phoenix Raceway.
Sanchez would turn the 14th-fastest lap in the session in his No. 2 Rev Racing Chevrolet Silverado in a session that was paced by Championship 4 contenders Corey Heim, Grant Enfinger, and Ty Majeski.
Jack Wood, shown here zooming around the Phoenix Raceway in the No. 16 Bill McAnally Racing NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet, would record the third-fastest lap in ARCA Menards Series practice for Friday's race at the 1-mile oval.
Wood would go on to finish 11th in the race the following day.
Friday, November 9
Friday marked the first chance for the NASCAR Cup Series drivers and teams to tackle the Phoenix Raceway in preparation of Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race as the 40-cars on the entry list battled it out to see who could turn the fastest lap in practice.
While Joey Logano, shown here driving through the dusty garage area, would record the ninth-fastest lap of practice, it was his Team Penske teammate Ryan Blaney, who would lead the session with a 27.714 seconds (132.480 mph) lap time. Little did anyone know at the time that these two would be the ones to watch on Sunday.
Ty Majeski and the No. 98 ThorSport Racing team were flawless all race long in Friday night's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship Race. And at the end of the night, the prolific short track racer captured his first career NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship following an absolutely dominating performance.
In all, Majeski led 132 of 150 laps on the night, and was rewarded with the win by 3.945 seconds over fellow championship contender Corey Heim.
Saturday, November 10
On Saturday, it was time for the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship to be decided, and my, oh, my did they produce perhaps the most compelling race of the entire weekend.
The race was a wild one for Justin Allgaier, who had to start in the rear with a backup car after a practice crash. Allgaier would quickly climb to the top-five before more disaster would strike. The JR Motorsports driver would suffer a cut tire at the end of Stage 2, and on the impending restart, Allgaier would be busted for a restart violation, and then as he was serving that black flag, he would get caught speeding on pit road.
In an instant, Allgaier's championship hopes were done. Until they weren't. An opportune caution during a strategic call to stretch the fuel tank on track paid off for Allgaier and his crew chief Jim Pohlman, and after an amazing charge over the final few laps of the race, Allgaier would finish second to Riley Herbst, which was enough to secure him his first-career NASCAR Xfinity Series title.
Sunday, November 11
Sunday, a chance to be immortalized as a NASCAR Cup Series champion was at stake. While 40 drivers competed in Sunday's race, only four of them were alive in the Championship battle, and those four drivers were highlighted during driver introductions, where they all received their flowers from fans.
After strapping into the cars, there was nothing left for the NASCAR Cup Series drivers and teams to do besides take the green flag, and wage a 312-lap war at Phoenix Raceway. At the end of the day, somone was going to walk away with a lot of hardware.
One of the non-championship storylines heading into the weekend was the fact that this race would serve as the final one for Stewart-Haas Racing, a once juggernaut team in the NASCAR Cup Series. Ryan Preece (No. 41) was one of the four SHR cars in the field.
Ultimately, Noah Gragson scored the best finish for the organization in Sunday's race with a 12th-place finish.
Another key storyline was the end of Martin Truex Jr.'s full-time driving career. The driver, who was running a throwback paint scheme to his 2004 NASCAR Cup Series debut, started from the pole, and had a good effort before fading to a 17th-place finish.
Following the race, Truex was greeted by many including his brother Ryan Truex, and NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon.
Joey Logano, for the third time, hoisted the Bill France Cup as the NASCAR Cup Series champion. Logano, who worked his way to the lead late in the event, was able to hold off his Team Penske teammate Ryan Blaney for the race win.
The championship marked Logano's second in three seasons, and it was the third consecutive NASCAR Cup Series championship for Team Penske, which also won the title in 2023 with Blaney.
