2022 Sparks 300

Race details
Race 28 of 33 of the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series
Date	October 1, 2022
Official name	3rd Annual Sparks 300
Location	Talladega Superspeedway, Lincoln, Alabama
Course	Permanent racing facility 2.66 mi (4.28 km)
Distance	113 laps, 300.58 mi (483.74 km)
Scheduled Distance	113 laps, 300.58 mi (483.74 km)
Average speed	158.827 mph (255.607 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Austin Hill	Richard Childress Racing
Time	52.605
Most laps led
Driver	Austin Hill	Richard Childress Racing
Laps	60
Winner
No. 16	A. J. Allmendinger	Kaulig Racing
Television in the United States
Network	USA Network
Announcers	Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Radio in the United States
Radio	Motor Racing Network

The 2022 Sparks 300 was the 28th stock car race of the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series, the second race of the Round of 12, and the 3rd iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, October 1, 2022, in Lincoln, Alabama at Talladega Superspeedway, a 2.66 miles (4.28 km) permanent tri-oval shaped superspeedway. The race took the scheduled 113 laps to complete,as the race was rather clean. In a close finish, A. J. Allmendinger, driving for Kaulig Racing, would hold off Sam Mayer on the final lap to earn his 14th career NASCAR Xfinity Series win, along with his fourth of the season. Allmendinger would beat Mayer by 0.015 of a second.^[1] He would also earn a spot in the next round of the playoffs. Austin Hill dominated the majority of the race, leading 60 laps and winning both stages. To fill out the podium, Landon Cassill, driving for Kaulig Racing, would finish in 3rd, respectively.

Background

Talladega Superspeedway is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. A tri-oval, the track was constructed in 1969 by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family. As of 2021^[update], the track hosts the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and ARCA Menards Series. Talladega is the longest NASCAR oval, with a length of 2.66 miles (4.281 km), compared to the Daytona International Speedway, which is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long. The total peak capacity of Talladega is around 175,000 spectators,^[2][3][4] with the main grandstand capacity being about 80,000.^[5]

Entry list

• (R) denotes rookie driver.
• (i) denotes driver who are ineligible for series driver points.

Qualifying

Qualifying was held on Friday, September 30, at 4:30 PM CST.^[6] Since Talladega Superspeedway is a superspeedway, the qualifying system used is a single-car, one-lap system with two rounds. In the first round, drivers have one lap to set a time. The fastest ten drivers from the first round move on to the second round. Whoever sets the fastest time in Round 2 wins the pole.^[7] Austin Hill, driving for Richard Childress Racing, scored the pole for the race, with a lap of 52.605, and an average speed of 182.036 mph (292.959 km/h) in the second round.^[8]

Race results

Stage 1 Laps: 25

Stage 2 Laps: 25

Stage 3 Laps: 63

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 1 A. J. Allmendinger 2,134 1 2 Noah Gragson 2,134 3 Ty Gibbs 2,113 (-21) 4 Austin Hill 2,107 (-27) 5 Josh Berry 2,091 (-43) 6 Justin Allgaier 2,089 (-55) 7 Sam Mayer 2,076 (-58) 8 Ryan Sieg 2,070 (-64) 1 9 Daniel Hemric 2,064 (-70) 1 10 Riley Herbst 2,060 (-74) 11 Brandon Jones 2,060 (-74) 12 Jeremy Clements 2,023 (-111) Official driver's standings Note: Only the first 12 positions are included for the driver standings.