In the practice sessions for the Dover Cup race, Ryan Blaney zoomed ahead with the fastest average lap speed of 159.468 mph. He led the second session, where Tyler Reddick and Chase Briscoe followed closely behind. William Byron was the fastest in the first session with a speed of 158.954 mph.
Unfortunately, there were some crashes during the practice. Zane Smith and Kaz Grala both hit the wall hard in separate incidents. Smith’s tire went down, causing him to spin and hit the wall, while Grala lost control and slammed into the wall. They’ll have to use backup cars and start from the back in Sunday’s race.
In Group B, Blaney led the pack, with Reddick and Briscoe trailing. Jimmie Johnson and Michael McDowell rounded out the top five. Smith’s crash happened about six minutes into the session, damaging his car. Grala’s crash ended the session early.
In Group A, Byron set a fast pace, but he had a problem with his tire after his run. Ross Chastain and A.J. Allmendinger were also quick, but Allmendinger had tire trouble too. Corey Heim, subbing for the injured Erik Jones, finished 14th in his Cup debut.
Heim said the Cup cars felt very different from what he’s used to, but he sees this race as a chance to learn. Practice is short, so it’s hard to push the limits, but it’s a valuable experience to understand these cars better.