On September 15, 2021, it was announced WWT Raceway at Gateway would be added to the NASCAR Cup Series schedule for the first time for the 2022 season.

Mike Joy, Clint Bowyer, and Michael Waltrip called the race from the broadcast booth, with Kenny Wallace joining for Stage 2.

Jamie Little and Regan Smith handled pit road for the television side, and Larry McReynolds provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte.

On the drive to his dealerships in Emporia, Kansas, Bowyer was involved that night in fatal crash where his car struck an impaired motorist in Osage Beach, Missouri that evening.

Because of an investigation into the incident, Bowyer was on leave for legal issues and did not make the trip to Sonoma for the ensuing week's race.