Photo: Courtesy of Trackhouse Racing.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla– The NFL season has come to an end, NASCAR will be taking center stage with the Daytona 500 kicking off the 2024 NASCAR season on Sunday, Feb. 18.
Since Covid, NASCAR has grown in popularity, seeing a boost in attendance and TV ratings. NASCAR has also grown a lot, adding new qualifying rules, adding dirt tracks as well as racing through the streets of Chicago. With all this growth, it’s hard not to get excited. But if you’re not a NASCAR fan or haven’t followed the sport in a while, where do you start?
For Nashville, this is one of the best times to be a NASCAR fan since the late 1970’s. The Ally 400 race is becoming a must-see and must-attend event and Music City has hosted the annual NASCAR Awards the past three years. Plus there are a handful of Nashville teams and drivers that fans can get pumped for.
Nashville-based Trackhouse Racing team and Ross Chastain
One team that is really easy to get behind is the Nashville-based Trackhouse Racing team. They launched in 2021 with Mexican-born driver Daniel Suarez. Ross Chastain joined in 2022 after a quiet debut season. Chastain gave Trackhouse its first win at the 2022 EchoPark Texas Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas. He would win again at Talladega before Suarez picked up his first-ever NASCAR Cup Series win at Sonoma. Chastain finished second in points and Suarez finished 10th.
Suarez’s No. 99 car was sponsored by famous honky tonk Tootsie’s at multiple races throughout the past two seasons.
In 2023, Trackhouse continued its success with a huge win at the Ally 400 at the Nashville Superspeedway when Chastain won the pole (the team’s first) and then won the race. He would finish the season ninth in points with 10 top-five finishes and a win in the final race of the season.
This season should be another big season for Trackhouse as Chastain has solidified himself as a legit championship contender and a driver who is not afraid to make enemies on the track. His rough-and-tumble personality has made him into a bit of a heel in NASCAR. This team and driver is a great choice to follow going into the 2024 season.
Chastain is starting 21st and Suarez is starting 13th at the 2024 Dayton 500.
Hendersonville native Josh Berry joins the Cup Series
Another highly anticipated driver going into 2024 is Hendersonville, TN native Josh Berry. Berry had major success the past two seasons with Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s team JR Motor Sports at the Xfinity Cup level. Last season he signed with Stewart-Haas Racing to take over the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Kevin Harvick who retired.
Berry won five races for JR Motor Sports including three races in 2022. These include wins at Dover, Martinsville, and two in Las Vegas. He finished 2022 and 2023 with 11 top-five finishes in each season. Now he has the chance to show off his skills in the Cup Series full-time.
He already has Cup experience, making 10 Cup Series starts, with a second-place finish on April 2 at Richmond Raceway while subbing for the injured Chase Elliott.
Berry is starting in 30th at the Dayton 500.
Big Machine Racing back with a new driver in 2024
Another Nashville team to keep an eye on this season is Big Machine Racing in the Xfinity Series. The team started in 2021 with driver and Nashville native Jade Buford.
It was founded by CEO and founder of Big Machine Label Group Scott Borchetta who is an avid racing fan and driver. He grew up racing in California and has raced in the Trans Am Series for a number of years.
Though the team didn’t see much success in 2021, it picked up its first win in 2022 when Tyler Reddick took over the No. 48 car and won at the Texas Motor Speedway. But in 2023, the team decided to make Parker Kligerman the full-time driver of the No. 48 car.
He went on to have a solid season, picking up seven top-five finishes including a second-place finish at Road America. His efforts put him and the team in the playoffs for the first time ever.
The team is entering its fourth season and will need to pick up steam if it wants to be a competitor in the increasingly competitive Xfinity Series. Kligerman has proven himself as the driver. The team will have a lot to prove to NASCAR if they want more sponsors and possibly a second driver.
Kligerman will start fourth at the United Rentals 300 at Daytona International Speedway.
Fans can catch the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 18 at 1 p.m. CT.
