NASCAR’s Xfinity series returns to Portland for a second consecutive year when a field of 33 race for the checkered flag in the Pacific Office Automation 147 at Portland International Raceway this weekend.
Here are some race event details:
What: Xfinity, NASCAR’s second series behind Cup. Race is 75 laps, 147.75 miles.
Where: Portland International Raceway, located just off Interstate 5 near West Delta Park. PIR, which opened in 1960, is a 12-turn, 1.915-mile road course that has staged many high-profile auto races during its tenure.
Defending champion: A.J. Allemendinger navigated wet weather to pilot the Kaulig Racing No. 38 Chevrolet to victory.
Television: FS1, 1:30 p.m. Saturday
Tickets: General admission $40 Friday, $60 Saturday, $75 both days. Grandstand start at $50 Friday, $60 Saturday, $90 both days. More information here.
Race weekend schedule
Friday
8:30 a.m.: Gates open
9-9:30 a.m.: Miata practice
11-11:25 a.m.: Miata qualifying
11:35 a.m.-12:35 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series West practice
12:45-1:15 p.m.: Spec Miata race
1:30-2:15 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series West autograph session
3:10-3:30 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series West qualifying
4:55 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series West driver introduction
5 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series West race
7 p.m.: Brothers Osborne live concert
Saturday
8 a.m.: Gates open
8:30-9 a.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series practice
9-10 a.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying
10:30 a.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series autograph session
10:50-11:30 a.m.: Spec Miata race 2
1 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series driver introductions
1:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series race
4:30 p.m.: Sam Hunt live concert
Xfinity series leader: Through 12 of 26 regular-season races, John Hunter Nemechek has 477 points, 10 ahead of second-place Austin Hill
Last race: Justin Allgaier scored his first win of the season, rolling to a 7.829-second win over runner-up John Hunter Nemechek in the Alsco Uniforms 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Drivers to watch
John Hunter Nemechek: The son of veteran NASCAR driver Joe Nemechek, John Hunter has won two races this season and leads the Xfinity standings. Nemechek, 25, won the NASCAR Trucks regular season series title in 2021. He drives for Joe Gibbs Racing.
Austin Hill: He’s in his second season on the Xfinity series, and drives for Richard Childress Racing. Hill, 29, has a series-high three wins this season and six top-5 finishes.
Justin Allgaier: The 2018 Xfinity series regular season champ heads to Portland off his first series win of the season at Charlotte. Allgaier, 36, is a former NASCAR rookie of the year and has 20 career Xfinity wins.
Chandler Smith: A rookie who drives for Kaulig Racing, the 20-year-old Smith won his first Xfinity race earlier this season at Richmond.
Jeb Burton: A familiar family name in NASCAR and son of Ward Burton, the 30-year-old won at Talladega earlier this year.
Jordan Taylor: The three-time winner of Rolex 24 at Daytona makes his Xfinity series debut in Portland. He’ll drive for Kaulig Racing, which won last year’s race with A.J. Allmendinger.
Eric Johnson Jr.: There’s local flavor in the Xfinity race, as this Woodland, Wash. driver makes his series debut in Portland. Johnson, 20, has driven stock cars for several years in the Northwest.
Social media
Website: NASCARPortland.com
Facebook: facebook.com/PortlandGP
Twitter: @Race_Portland
Instagram: @race_portland
–Nick Daschel | ndaschel@oregonian.com | @nickdaschel
