2021 Federated Auto Parts 400
# 2021 Federated Auto Parts 400

The 2021 Federated Auto Parts 400 Salute to First Responders was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on September 11, 2021 at Richmond Raceway in Richmond, Virginia. Contested over 400 laps on the .75-mile (1.21 km) D-shaped short track, it was the 28th race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, second race of the Playoffs and second race of the Round of 16.

Martin Truex Jr. overcame an early drive-through penalty for jumping the start to win the race. Kyle Larson's sixth place ensured he would join Truex and Denny Hamlin in the round of 12.

## Report

### Background

Richmond Raceway (RR), formerly known as Richmond International Raceway (RIR), is a 3/4-mile (1.2 km), D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Cup Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and the IndyCar series. Known as "America's premier short track", it formerly hosted two USAC sprint car races.

**Entry list**

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

| No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| - | - | - | - |
| 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford |
| 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 15 | Joey Gase (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota |
| 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 51 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 53 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 77 | Justin Haley (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford |
| 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet |
| Official entry list ||||

## Qualifying

Kyle Larson was awarded the pole for the race as determined by competition-based formula.

### Starting Lineup

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 4 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 6 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 7 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 8 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford |
| 9 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 10 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 11 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 12 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 13 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 14 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 15 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 16 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 17 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 18 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 19 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 20 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 21 | 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 22 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet |
| 23 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 24 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 25 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 26 | 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 27 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota |
| 28 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 29 | 77 | Justin Haley (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 30 | 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 31 | 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 32 | 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford |
| 33 | 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 34 | 15 | Joey Gase (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 35 | 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 36 | 51 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 37 | 53 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| Official starting lineup |||||

## Race

Kyle Larson was awarded the pole for the race, but dropped to the rear at the start. At the start of the race, Martin Truex Jr. was penalized for crossing the start/finish line ahead of leader Denny Hamlin. Early in the race, Kurt Busch cut a tire and slammed the wall. Hamlin won both stages and led the most laps in the race. Kyle Busch was leading late in the race but was penalized for speeding on pit road during a round of green-flag pit stops. Truex Jr. gained the lead and went on to win the race, advancing to the next round of the playoffs. Larson also advanced to the next round of the playoffs on points.

### Stage Results

Stage One Laps: 80

| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 6 |
| 6 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 3 |
| 9 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage one results ||||||

Stage Two Laps: 155

| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 6 |
| 6 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage two results ||||||

### Final Stage Results

Stage Three Laps: 165

| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 400 | 51 |
| 2 | 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 400 | 55 |
| 3 | 10 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 400 | 39 |
| 4 | 13 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 42 |
| 5 | 6 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 400 | 46 |
| 6 | 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 45 |
| 7 | 17 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 39 |
| 8 | 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 400 | 32 |
| 9 | 15 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 400 | 37 |
| 10 | 8 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 399 | 33 |
| 11 | 19 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 399 | 26 |
| 12 | 12 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 399 | 27 |
| 13 | 7 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 399 | 28 |
| 14 | 9 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 399 | 27 |
| 15 | 11 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 398 | 22 |
| 16 | 26 | 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 398 | 21 |
| 17 | 22 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet | 398 | 20 |
| 18 | 28 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 398 | 19 |
| 19 | 14 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 398 | 18 |
| 20 | 24 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 398 | 17 |
| 21 | 31 | 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 398 | 16 |
| 22 | 21 | 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 397 | 15 |
| 23 | 23 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 397 | 14 |
| 24 | 18 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 396 | 13 |
| 25 | 20 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 396 | 12 |
| 26 | 30 | 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 396 | 11 |
| 27 | 29 | 77 | Justin Haley (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 396 | 0 |
| 28 | 16 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 395 | 9 |
| 29 | 25 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 395 | 8 |
| 30 | 32 | 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford | 393 | 0 |
| 31 | 36 | 51 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 389 | 0 |
| 32 | 27 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 388 | 5 |
| 33 | 34 | 15 | Joey Gase (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 387 | 0 |
| 34 | 37 | 53 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 386 | 0 |
| 35 | 35 | 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 386 | 2 |
| 36 | 33 | 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 385 | 1 |
| 37 | 4 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 40 | 1 |
| Official race results ||||||||

### Race statistics

* Lead changes: 21 among 8 different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 5 for 30
* Red flags: 0
* Time of race: 3 hours, 3 minutes and 6 seconds
* Average speed: 98.307 miles per hour (158.210 km/h)

## Media

### Television

NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and three-time Richmond winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. called the race from the broadcast booth. Parker Kligerman, Marty Snider and Dillon Welch handled the pit road duties from pit lane.

NBCSN :

| Booth announcers | Pit reporters |
| - | - |
| Lap-by-lap: Rick Allen Color-commentator: Jeff Burton Color-commentator: Steve Letarte Color-commentator: Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Parker Kligerman Marty Snider Dillon Welch |

### Radio

The Motor Racing Network had the radio call for the race, which was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Alex Hayden, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace called the race from the broadcast booth for MRN when the field races through the front straightaway. Dave Moody called the race from a platform when the field races down the backstraightaway. Steve Post and Kim Coon called the action for MRN from pit lane.

MRN Radio :

| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| - | - | - |
| Lead announcer: Alex Hayden Announcer: Jeff Striegle Announcer: Rusty Wallace | Backstretch: Dave Moody | Steve Post Kim Coon |

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| - | - | - | - |
| | 1 | Kyle Larson | 2,151 |
| | 2 | Denny Hamlin | 2,127 (–24) |
| | 3 | Martin Truex Jr. | 2,113 (–38) |
| 2 | 4 | Joey Logano | 2,093 (–58) |
| | 5 | Ryan Blaney | 2,081 (–70) |
| 1 | 6 | Kevin Harvick | 2,078 (–73) |
| 3 | 7 | Chase Elliott | 2,072 (–79) |
| 1 | 8 | Christopher Bell | 2,070 (–81) |
| 1 | 9 | Brad Keselowski | 2,066 (–85) |
| 4 | 10 | Kyle Busch | 2,061 (–90) |
| | 11 | Aric Almirola | 2,056 (–95) |
| 8 | 12 | Kurt Busch | 2,053 (–98) |
| | 13 | Alex Bowman | 2,053 (–98) |
| 2 | 14 | Tyler Reddick | 2,048 (–103) |
| | 15 | William Byron | 2,035 (–116) |
| | 16 | Michael McDowell | 2,015 (–136) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
| Pos | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | Chevrolet | 1,028 |
| 2 | Ford | 966 (–62) |
| 3 | Toyota | 960 (–68) |
