2021 FireKeepers Casino 400
# 2021 FireKeepers Casino 400

The 2021 FireKeepers Casino 400 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on August 22, 2021, at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. Contested over 200 laps on the two-mile (3.2 km) D-shaped oval, it was the 25th race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season.

## Report

### Background

The race was held at Michigan International Speedway, a two-mile (3.2 km) moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located in Brooklyn, Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is known as a "sister track" to Texas World Speedway as MIS's oval design was a direct basis of TWS, with moderate modifications to the banking in the corners, and was used as the basis of Auto Club Speedway. The track is owned by International Speedway Corporation. Michigan International Speedway is recognized as one of motorsports' premier facilities because of its wide racing surface and high banking (by open-wheel standards; the 18-degree banking is modest by stock car standards).

Josh Berry replaced Corey LaJoie for the race due to COVID-19 protocols; LaJoie, then unvaccinated, had been close to a person testing positive for the COVID-19 from his Stacking Pennies podcast a week prior.

**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 | Josh Berry (i) | 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 | Cody Ware (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 53 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 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 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 3 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford |
| 4 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 5 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 6 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 7 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 8 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 9 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 10 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 11 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 12 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 13 | 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 14 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 15 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota |
| 16 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 17 | 77 | Justin Haley (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 18 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 19 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 20 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 21 | 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 22 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 23 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 24 | 7 | Josh Berry (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 25 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 26 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 27 | 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 28 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 29 | 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 30 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet |
| 31 | 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 32 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 33 | 53 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 34 | 15 | Joey Gase (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 35 | 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 36 | 78 | B. J. McLeod | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford |
| 37 | 51 | Cody Ware (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| Official starting lineup |||||

## Race

Kyle Larson started on pole. Chase Elliott won the first stage while Kyle Busch won the second stage. At the end of the second stage, Brad Keselowski made contact with Austin Dillon and sent Dillon spinning into the wall, ending his race. In the final stage, drivers had different pit strategies, with William Byron gaining the lead. A caution came out for rain with 21 laps to go and for a multicar wreck with 14 laps to go. Following a restart with eight laps to go, Ryan Blaney gained the lead and held off Byron and Kyle Larson to win the race, his second win of the season.

### Stage Results

Stage One Laps: 60

| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 2 |
| 10 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage one results ||||||

Stage Two Laps: 60

| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage two results ||||||

### Final Stage Results

Stage Three Laps: 80

| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 3 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 200 | 40 |
| 2 | 18 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 43 |
| 3 | 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 51 |
| 4 | 6 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 36 |
| 5 | 9 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 200 | 45 |
| 6 | 4 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 200 | 36 |
| 7 | 7 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 200 | 42 |
| 8 | 2 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 46 |
| 9 | 20 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 200 | 33 |
| 10 | 5 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 200 | 27 |
| 11 | 21 | 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 200 | 26 |
| 12 | 12 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 25 |
| 13 | 28 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 200 | 33 |
| 14 | 8 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 200 | 23 |
| 15 | 11 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 200 | 22 |
| 16 | 10 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 21 |
| 17 | 23 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 200 | 20 |
| 18 | 13 | 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 19 |
| 19 | 15 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 200 | 18 |
| 20 | 25 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 200 | 17 |
| 21 | 32 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 16 |
| 22 | 30 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet | 200 | 15 |
| 23 | 27 | 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 200 | 14 |
| 24 | 16 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 200 | 13 |
| 25 | 17 | 77 | Justin Haley (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 |
| 26 | 24 | 7 | Josh Berry (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 |
| 27 | 37 | 51 | Cody Ware (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 199 | 0 |
| 28 | 36 | 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford | 198 | 0 |
| 29 | 14 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 198 | 11 |
| 30 | 31 | 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 196 | 7 |
| 31 | 29 | 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 195 | 6 |
| 32 | 33 | 53 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 194 | 0 |
| 33 | 19 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 188 | 9 |
| 34 | 35 | 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 178 | 3 |
| 35 | 22 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 152 | 2 |
| 36 | 26 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 14 |
| 37 | 34 | 15 | Joey Gase (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 32 | 0 |
| Official race results ||||||||

### Race statistics

* Lead changes: 20 among 11 different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 6 for 29
* Red flags: 0
* Time of race: 2 hours, 48 minutes and 27 seconds
* Average speed: 142.476 miles per hour (229.293 km/h)

## Media

### Television

NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and two-time Michigan winner, Dale Earnhardt Jr. called the race from the broadcast booth. Dave Burns, Parker Kligerman and Marty Snider 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. | Dave Burns Parker Kligerman Marty Snider |

### Radio

Radio coverage of the race was broadcast by Motor Racing Network (MRN) and simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Alex Hayden and Jeff Striegle called the race in the booth while the field was racing on the front stretch. Dave Moody called the race from a billboard outside of turn 2 when the field is racing through turns 1 and 2. Kyle Rickey called the race from a platform outside of turn 3 when the field races through turns 3 and 4. Steve Post and Kim Coon worked pit road for the radio side.

MRN :

| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| - | - | - |
| Lead announcer: Alex Hayden Announcer: Jeff Striegle | Turns 1 & 2: Dave Moody Turns 3 & 4: Mike Bagley | Steve Post Kim Coon |

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| - | - | - | - |
| | 1 | Kyle Larson | 1,004 |
| | 2 | Denny Hamlin | 976 (–28) |
| | 3 | Kyle Busch | 838 (–166) |
| | 4 | William Byron | 833 (–171) |
| | 5 | Chase Elliott | 820 (–184) |
| 1 | 6 | Martin Truex Jr. | 789 (–215) |
| 1 | 7 | Ryan Blaney | 787 (–217) |
| 2 | 8 | Joey Logano | 772 (–232) |
| | 9 | Kevin Harvick | 756 (–248) |
| | 10 | Brad Keselowski | 729 (–275) |
| | 11 | Tyler Reddick | 677 (–327) |
| | 12 | Alex Bowman | 674 (–330) |
| | 13 | Austin Dillon | 652 (–352) |
| | 14 | Kurt Busch | 643 (–361) |
| | 15 | Christopher Bell | 595 (–409) |
| | 16 | Matt DiBenedetto | 557 (–447) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
| Pos | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | Chevrolet | 927 |
| 2 | Ford | 862 (–65) |
| 3 | Toyota | 845 (–82) |
