# 2020 FanShield 500

The 2020 FanShield 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on March 8, 2020, at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona. Contested over 316 laps—extended from 312 laps due to an overtime finish, on the 1.022 mi (1.645 km) oval, it was the fourth race of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season. This was the last race to run before the season was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

## Report
### Background

Phoenix Raceway, is a 1.022 mi (1.645 km), low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the IndyCar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series. The raceway is currently owned and operated by International Speedway Corporation.
The race would be Kyle Larson's last race with Chip Ganassi Racing before the team axed him for using the racial slur "nigger" during the eventual season's hiatus.

#### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
* (i) denotes driver who are ineligible for series driver points.
| No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| 00 | Quin Houff (R) | 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 |
| 6 | Ross Chastain (i) | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | 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 |
| 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet |
| 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 15 | Brennan Poole (R) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford |
| 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 38 | John Hunter Nemechek (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 51 | Garrett Smithley | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 52 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 53 | Joey Gase (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 66 | Timmy Hill (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota |
| 77 | Reed Sorenson | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota |
| 96 | Daniel Suárez | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota |
| Official entry list ||||

## Practice

Ryan Newman made a return to the race track as a visitor for the first time after his crash at the Daytona 500, where he was injured, three weeks earlier.

### First practice

William Byron was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 26.747 seconds and a speed of 134.595 mph (216.610 km/h).
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.747 | 134.595 |
| 2 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.896 | 133.849 |
| 3 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 27.005 | 133.309 |
| Official first practice results |||||||

### Final practice

Chase Elliott was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 26.823 seconds and a speed of 134.213 mph (215.995 km/h).
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.823 | 134.213 |
| 2 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.825 | 134.203 |
| 3 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 26.935 | 133.655 |
| Official final practice results |||||||

## Qualifying

Chase Elliott scored the pole for the race with a time of 26.065 and a speed of 138.116 mph (222.276 km/h).

### Qualifying results

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time |
| 1 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.065 |
| 2 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 26.110 |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.117 |
| 4 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 26.162 |
| 5 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 26.190 |
| 6 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 26.190 |
| 7 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 26.197 |
| 8 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.216 |
| 9 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 26.222 |
| 10 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.230 |
| 11 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.257 |
| 12 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 26.278 |
| 13 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 26.287 |
| 14 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 26.289 |
| 15 | 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota | 26.295 |
| 16 | 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 26.339 |
| 17 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.364 |
| 18 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 26.388 |
| 19 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 26.448 |
| 20 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 26.449 |
| 21 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.481 |
| 22 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 26.502 |
| 23 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 26.512 |
| 24 | 6 | Ross Chastain (i) | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 26.527 |
| 25 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 26.528 |
| 26 | 38 | John Hunter Nemechek (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 26.541 |
| 27 | 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.635 |
| 28 | 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 26.668 |
| 29 | 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 26.693 |
| 30 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 26.772 |
| 31 | 96 | Daniel Suárez | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota | 26.873 |
| 32 | 15 | Brennan Poole (R) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.909 |
| 33 | 52 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 27.169 |
| 34 | 00 | Quin Houff (R) | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 27.211 |
| 35 | 77 | Reed Sorenson | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.395 |
| 36 | 51 | Garrett Smithley | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 27.464 |
| 37 | 53 | Joey Gase (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 27.533 |
| 38 | 66 | Timmy Hill (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 27.584 |
| Official qualifying results ||||||

## Race recap

Before the race, for the O'Reilly Pre-Race Party, the Arizonian band Harry Luge Band would play a concert in the InField two hours before the race. Wrestler Anthony Robles would try and break the Guinness record for most pull ups with an 80 pound bag, which he succeeded. Country music star Blake Shelton and Pitbull would perform Get Ready and introduce drivers. Skylar Astin, star from "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist", would sing the national anthem. Four F-35s from Luke Air Force Base would perform the fly over at the end of the national anthem. Hudson Derbyshire, son of the CEO of FanShield, Bryan (who accompanied him, along with his mom) would give out the starting command.

### Stage One

The start of the race showed pole sitter Chase Elliott pull out to the lead with Kevin Harvick following behind. Kyle Larson, in what would be his last race with Chip Ganassi Racing passed Harvick on lap 2. While the leaders were pulling away from each other, there were lots of battles for position in the midfield, including Martin Truex Jr. fighting his way up to the front after having to start at the rear. The traction compound poured on the track, PJ1, was a big factor throughout the race as it provided different grooves to run on. With around 40 laps to go in the stage, Denny Hamlin and Matt DiBenedetto were fighting for position. Also, Harvick had caught up to Elliott, and was battling him for the lead, and would keep fighting until lap 57, when Ricky Stenhouse Jr., trying to pass the lapped car of Joey Gase hit Gase's left quarter panel and spun into the wall, damaging the back end of his car.
During pit stops, all the lead lap cars decided to pit. Stenhouse was the leader coming off of pit road, but took no tires. Harvick would finally be able to grab the lead off of Elliott, with his crew having a faster time. Elliott would come up 2nd, then Hamlin in 3rd, DiBenedetto in fourth, and Logano rounding out the top 5.
During the lap 64 restart, Harvick would pull out to the lead; however, this would be short lived, as while Hamlin was battling for position, Hamlin's car got loose and went up the racetrack, collecting the nearby cars of Brad Keselowski and Ryan Blaney and sending all three into the outside wall. Keselowski would not suffer much damage, contrary to his teammate, Blaney who had to retire from the race. Hamlin would also be plagued with damage.
With a 4 lap dash to the end of the stage, Harvick and Elliott would duke it out, with Logano following closely behind. However, Harvick would pull out the lead and win the stage. Meanwhile, Erik Jones would win the final stage points in a tough battle with Clint Bowyer.

## Race
### Stage Results

Stage One Laps: 75
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 7 |
| 5 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 4 |
| 8 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 1 |
| Official stage one results ||||||
Stage Two Laps: 115
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage two results ||||||

### Final Stage Results

Stage Three Laps: 122
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| 1 | 13 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 316 | 52 |
| 2 | 2 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 316 | 54 |
| 3 | 10 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 316 | 46 |
| 4 | 4 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 316 | 35 |
| 5 | 18 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 316 | 35 |
| 6 | 7 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 316 | 31 |
| 7 | 1 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 316 | 39 |
| 8 | 6 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 316 | 37 |
| 9 | 16 | 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 316 | 29 |
| 10 | 17 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 316 | 27 |
| 11 | 14 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 316 | 36 |
| 12 | 21 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 316 | 25 |
| 13 | 9 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 316 | 31 |
| 14 | 8 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 316 | 28 |
| 15 | 25 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 316 | 22 |
| 16 | 22 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 316 | 21 |
| 17 | 23 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 316 | 20 |
| 18 | 20 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 316 | 19 |
| 19 | 27 | 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 316 | 18 |
| 20 | 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 316 | 17 |
| 21 | 31 | 96 | Daniel Suárez | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota | 316 | 16 |
| 22 | 19 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 316 | 15 |
| 23 | 24 | 6 | Ross Chastain (i) | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 316 | 0 |
| 24 | 15 | 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota | 316 | 13 |
| 25 | 26 | 38 | John Hunter Nemechek (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Chevrolet | 316 | 12 |
| 26 | 33 | 52 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 316 | 0 |
| 27 | 28 | 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 316 | 11 |
| 28 | 11 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 313 | 10 |
| 29 | 37 | 53 | Joey Gase (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 313 | 0 |
| 30 | 35 | 77 | Reed Sorenson | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 312 | 7 |
| 31 | 32 | 15 | Brennan Poole (R) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 292 | 6 |
| 32 | 12 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 282 | 17 |
| 33 | 29 | 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 264 | 13 |
| 34 | 34 | 00 | Quin Houff (R) | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 208 | 3 |
| 35 | 36 | 51 | Garrett Smithley | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 181 | 2 |
| 36 | 30 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 129 | 1 |
| 37 | 5 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 65 | 1 |
| 38 | 38 | 66 | Timmy Hill (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 51 | 0 |
| Official race results ||||||||

### Race statistics

* Lead changes: 20 among 7 different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 12 for 73
* Red flags: 0
* Time of race: 3 hours, 20 minutes and 50 seconds
* Average speed: 94.407 miles per hour (151.933 km/h)

## Media
### Television

Fox Sports covered their 16th race at the Phoenix Raceway. Mike Joy and two-time Phoenix winner Jeff Gordon called the race from the broadcast booth, the last time Fox would have commentators in the booth at the track for the season, and the last for either of NASCAR's television partners until the Charlotte road course race. Jamie Little, Regan Smith, Vince Welch and Matt Yocum handled the pit road duties. Larry McReynolds and Jamie McMurray provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte.
Fox :
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters | In-race analysts |
| Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon | Jamie Little Regan Smith Vince Welch Matt Yocum | Larry McReynolds Jamie McMurray |

### Radio

MRN covered the radio action for the race which was also simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Alex Hayden, Jeff Striegle, and 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Champion Rusty Wallace called the race when the field raced past the start/finish line. Kurt Becker called the action from turns 1 & 2 and Dan Hubbard called the action from turns 3 & 4. Pit lane was manned by Kim Coon, Steve Post, and Dillon Welch.
MRN :
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Alex Hayden Announcer: Jeff Striegle Announcer: Rusty Wallace | Turns 1 & 2: Kurt Becker Turns 3 & 4: Dan Hubbard | Kim Coon Steve Post Dillon Welch |

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| 3 | 1 | Kevin Harvick | 164 |
| | 2 | Joey Logano | 163 (–1) |
| 3 | 3 | Chase Elliott | 144 (–20) |
| 1 | 4 | Alex Bowman | 138 (–26) |
| | 5 | Jimmie Johnson | 131 (–33) |
| 5 | 6 | Ryan Blaney | 123 (–41) |
| 2 | 7 | Kyle Larson | 121 (–43) |
| 2 | 8 | Aric Almirola | 121 (–43) |
| 1 | 9 | Matt DiBenedetto | 118 (–46) |
| 2 | 10 | Brad Keselowski | 118 (–46) |
| 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | 111 (–53) |
| 7 | 12 | Kyle Busch | 111 (–53) |
| 3 | 13 | Clint Bowyer | 105 (–59) |
| 3 | 14 | Chris Buescher | 102 (–62) |
| 2 | 15 | Martin Truex Jr. | 96 (–68) |
| 5 | 16 | Kurt Busch | 90 (–74) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
| Pos | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | Ford | 147 |
| 2 | Chevrolet | 137 (–10) |
| 3 | Toyota | 131 (–16) |