TC Daily Pit Stop: Mother Nature Wipes Out Saturday Action; Cup and Xfinity Starting Lineups; Hemric Injured; Sunday's NASCAR TV Schedule

TC Daily Pit Stop: Sunday, February 26th, 2023

Feb 26, 2023

Photo Credit: Ben Earp, LAT images, Courtesy of Toyota Racing

We will now have a double header at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday, as rain (and even some snow) forced the cancelation of all on-track activity on Saturday.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series Production Alliance Group 300, which was set for Saturday afternoon, will not take place late on Sunday following the NASCAR Cup Series Pala Casino 400.

Cup Practice and Qualifying Axed, Christopher Bell Leading Field to Green at Auto Club

Photo Credit: Ben Earp | LAT Images | Courtesy of Toyota Racing

The NASCAR Cup Series Pala Casino 400 at Auto Club Speedway will have it’s starting lineup set by way of the rulebook after mother nature refused to cooperate on Saturday.

As a result, Christopher Bell will inherit the top starting spot in Sunday’s race, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who won last week’s Daytona 500, will start alongside in second.

Austin Hill Leading Field to Green at Auto Club, Xfinity Practice and Qualifying Canned

Photo Credit: Craig White / TobyChristie.com

Like the NASCAR Cup Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series will also utilize the NASCAR Performance Metric to set the starting lineup for the Production Alliance Group 300 at Auto Club Speedway.

In the NASCAR Xfinity Series race, which will now be run on Sunday, Austin Hill will lead the field to the green flag while John Hunter Nemechek will start on the outside of row 1.

NASCAR Television Schedule: Sunday, February 26, 2023

Daniel Hemric to Undergo MRI for Knee Injury Following Fontana

Photo Credit: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

While the focus was on the weather on Saturday, if you looked closely you would notice that Daniel Hemric was on crutches. Toward the end of Saturday’s TV broadcast, FS1 interviewed Hemric to ask about the crutches, and Hemric proceeded to explain that he has encountered a knee injury.

“In training, I planted my leg wrong and my knee folded up on me. It happened so late in the week on Thursday, got back on a plane on Friday and got out here, can’t have MRIs and all of that stuff done until I get back on the East coast on Monday or Tuesday, hopefully,” Hemric explained.

Hemric says he will have an MRI done on his knee after returning the North Carolina on Monday or Tuesday to determine how badly his knee is injured.

Mallozzi’s NASCAR Fontana DFS Plays: Three Picks and a Fade

Photo Credit: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

It’s time to set your fantasy roster on DraftKings or Fan Duel for the NASCAR Cup Series Pala Casino 400. But what do you do? There was no practice or qualifying to get an idea of who has a good car.

No fear, Stephen Mallozzi is here to help you out. Mallozzi says that the usual favorites for this track should be high on your list, but he has three sneaky picks that are due for a lot of position differential points and Mallozzi gives you one driver to absolutely stay away from on your rosters.