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  • Chris Buescher outduels Shane van Gisbergen in overtime for wild Cup victory at Watkins Glen

    Chris Buescher outduels Shane van Gisbergen in overtime for wild Cup victory at Watkins Glen

    In a season mired with missed opportunities that resulted in him missing the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs by a single points position, Chris Buescher took advantage of the chance to cap off this season on a strong note by winning the Go Bowling at The Glen (Watkins Glen International) on Sunday, September 15, amid a wild overtime shootout and a final lap bump and pass on Shane van Gisbergen.

    The 2015 Xfinity Series champion from Prosper, Texas, led three times for 19 of 92 over-scheduled laps in an event where he qualified 24th and utilized pit strategy to methodically carve his way up the leaderboard. With a bevy of Playoff contenders encountering on-track issues from start to finish, Buescher, who pitted prior to the second stage’s conclusion, utilized fresher tires than the leaders to briefly lead for the first time with 33 laps remaining before he pitted two laps later. He then cycled back to the lead with 17 laps remaining during a late round of green flag pit stops.

    Then among three late-race caution and restart periods, including the third and latest restart that sent the event into overtime, Buescher, who had maintained the lead during all restart periods, was bumped out of the lead by van Gisbergen, who proceeded to lead the penultimate lap while Buescher remained within striking distance. Van Gisbergen then made the slightest contact with the guardrails through the Bus Stop that got him loose through the curbs and the turns, which enabled Buescher to reassume the lead amid another round of contact between both through the Inner Loop. With van Gisbergen unable to return the favor within the course’s final pair of turns, Buescher drove away to claim his first victory of the 2024 Cup Series season and become the first non-Playoff competitor to win a Playoff event this season.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, September 14, Ross Chastain notched his first Cup Series pole position of the 2024 season and the second of his career after he posted a pole-winning speed at 122.279 mph in 72.130 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Playoff contender Martin Truex Jr., who posted the second-fastest qualifying speed at 122.052 mph in 72.264 seconds.

    Prior to the event, Todd Gilliland and rookie Carson Hocevar dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective entries.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Ross Chastain launched ahead with an early advantage through the frontstretch and he maintained the top spot through the opening set of turns through the Esses and the backstretch while the field behind jostled for early spots amid multiple lanes.

    Then through the Bus Stop corner, early trouble struck as Corey LaJoie bumped and sent Kyle Busch, who was running towards the top-15 mark, for a spin towards the middle of the turn, where he clipped Playoff contender Christopher Bell as Bell spun while his teammate and Playoff contender Denny Hamlin clipped Busch and sustained damage to his No. 11 FedEx Toyota Camry XSE entry after he got bumped by Ryan Preece. Among other competitors who were involved included Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Bubba Wallace, both of whom hit the guardrails while going off the course, while Busch’s wrecked No. 8 zone Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry was left stalled in the Inner Loop turn.

    During the chaos, Ryan Blaney, the reigning Cup Series champion and a 2024 Playoff contender, drove his No. 12 Menards/Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry off the course and came to a stop due to a broken steering column as a result of hitting Brad Keselowski while avoiding the opening lap carnage. The issue was enough for NASCAR to rule Blaney out of contention to continue without having completed the first lap, though Blaney was left heated at NASCAR for not allowing his team to repair the car despite not sustaining any significant damage from the carnage. By then, Bell continued without sustaining any significant damage to his No. 20 DeWalt Toyota Camry XSE entry while Hamlin and Busch dropped out of the lead lap category with damage to their respective entries.

    When the race restarted under green on the fifth lap, Chastain, who led the opening four laps under caution, rocketed ahead with another strong start through the frontstretch and the Esses while the rest of the field behind fanned out. In the process, Allmendinger, who restarted in the top five, was dropping off the pace due to a mechanical issue with his No. 13 Go Bowling Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry. With Allmendinger dropping out of contention, the rest of the field navigated smoothly through the backstretch, Bus Stop, Inner Loop and the final set of turns from Turns 5 to 7 as Chastain retained the lead and led the following lap.

    Over the next three laps, Chastain stabilized his early advantage to six-tenths of a second over Truex while van Gisbergen, Bowman and Playoff contender Chase Briscoe were running in the top five ahead of Playoff competitors Austin Cindric, Daniel Suarez and Chase Elliott. With Michael McDowell occupying ninth place, he was ahead of five Playoff contenders that included Tyler Reddick, Joey Logano, William Byron, Kyle Larson and Ty Gibbs while Erik Jones occupied 15th place ahead of Chris Buescher, rookie Zane Smith, Noah Gragson, Daniel Hemric and Corey LaJoie.

    Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Chastain continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over Truex while van Gisbergen, Bowman and Briscoe continued to run in the top five ahead of Cindric, Suarez, Elliott, McDowell and Reddick. By then, 11 of 15 remaining Playoff contenders on the track were running in the top 14 on the track while Brad Keselowski, Harrison Burton and Bell were mired back from 25th to 27th, respectively. In addition, Denny Hamlin was mired a lap down in 34th place following repairs to his No. 11 Toyota.

    Five laps later, Chastain extended his advantage to three seconds over van Gisbergen, who overtook Truex for the runner-up spot a lap earlier, while Bowman and Briscoe battled for fourth place in front of Suarez. Behind, Cindric, Elliott, McDowell and Reddick were racing in the top 10 ahead of Larson, Logano, Zane Smith, Byron and Ty Gibbs while Keselowski, Bell, Burton and Hamlin all continued to be mired outside the top-20 mark.

    Another lap later, McDowell pitted his No. 34 Benebone Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry under green from ninth place. A host of names that included van Gisbergen, Logano, Zane Smith, Byron, Buescher, Ty Gibbs, Corey LaJoie, rookie Carson Hocevar, Noah Gragson, rookie Josh Berry, Justin Haley, Keselowski, Juan Pablo Montoya, Harrison Burton, John Hunter Nemechek, Todd Gilliland and Austin Dillon pitted during the next lap period before the leader Chastain pitted his No. 1 Busch Light Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry on Lap 18. As a result, Truex cycled into the lead as he was followed by Bowman, Briscoe, Suarez and Cindric while Keselowski was penalized for speeding on pit road.

    When the first stage period concluded on Lap 20, Truex, who came into the event 19 points below the top-12 cutline in the Playoff standings, notched his fourth Cup stage victory of the 2024 season. Playoff rivals Bowman, Briscoe, Suarez, Cindric, Elliott, Reddick and Larson followed suit in the top eight, respectively, while non-Playoff competitors Erik Jones and Daniel Hemric were scored in the top 10. By then, the remaining Playoff contenders on the track that included Logano, Ty Gibbs, Byron, Keselowski, Bell, Burton and Hamlin were scored in 17th, 20th, 21st, 25th, 28th, 30th and 34th, respectively. Despite being mired a lap down, Hamlin was able to fend off Kyle Busch to be the first competitor scored a lap down at the first stage’s conclusion and receive the free pass to cycle back on the lead lap.

    Under the stage break, some led by Truex, including a host of competitors who remained on the track before the first stage’s conclusion, pitted while the rest led by Chastain, including those who pitted prior to the stage’s conclusion, remained on the track. Among the Playoff contenders who pitted with Truex included Bowman, Briscoe, Suarez, Cindric, Elliott, Reddick and Larson.

    The second stage period started on Lap 24 as Chastain and McDowell occupied the front row in front of van Gisbergen and Logano. At the start, Chastain fended off both McDowell and van Gisbergen through the frontstretch and the first set of turns including the Esses as the field fanned out while navigating up the Esses. With Suarez making contact and sending Reddick for a spin in the first turn amid a stack-up as the race remained under green flag conditions, Chastain would proceed to lead the first through the backstretch, the Bus Stop and the Inner Loop before he navigated his way through the final set of turns and led the following lap.

    Over the next five laps, starting on Lap 26, and with most of the field settling in a long single-file line, Chastain increased his advantage to as high as a second over van Gisbergen before the advantage shrunk to two-tenths of a second by Lap 29. Chastain would stabilize his lead to two-tenths of a second over van Gisbergen by the Lap 30 mark while McDowell, Logano, Zane Smith, LaJoie, Ty Gibbs, Byron, Hocevar and Buescher were scored in the top 10 ahead of Gragson, Bell, Berry, Montoya and Nemechek. By then, Playoff contenders Burton, Truex, Briscoe and Bowman were mired just inside the top-20 mark while Elliott, Cindric, Larson, Suarez and Keselowski were mired in the top-30 mark. In addition, Reddick was down in 33rd place in front of team owner Hamlin.

    At the Lap 35 mark, Chastain maintained the top spot by eight-tenths of a second over van Gisbergen while McDowell and Logano battled fiercely for third place. Behind, Zane Smith trailed in fifth place ahead of teammate LaJoie while Ty Gibbs, Byron, Hocevar and Buescher were running in the top 10. By then, Bell was in 13th as Burton, Briscoe, Truex and Bowman were mired inside the top-20 mark. With Elliott, Cindric, Larson and Keselowski trailing back in 22nd, 24th, 25th and 28th, respectively, Reddick was still mired in 32nd in front of Suarez and Hamlin.

    A lap later, a host of names including Buescher, Montoya, Erik Jones, Larson, Justin Haley, Keselowski and Kaz Grala pitted under green. More names including McDowell, Zane Smith, LaJoie, Noah Gragson, Bell, Berry, Nemechek, Truex, Gilliland, Elliott, Hemric, Cindric, Austin Dillon and Reddick pitted during the following lap before the caution flew due to Suarez spinning and getting his No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry stuck in the gravel trap in Turn 6. During the pit stops, Keselowski was penalized for a second time, this time for an uncontrolled tire violation as a tire rolled out of his pit stall. Larson was also penalized for causing vehicle interference.

    With the second stage period scheduled to conclude on Lap 40 officially concluding under caution, Chastain, who was unable to enter pit road to pit under green before the caution being flown for teammate Suarez spinning and instead remained on the track, proceeded to claim his second Cup stage victory of the 2024 season. Van Gisbergen, who was also trying to pit with Chastain, followed suit in second along with Playoff contenders Logano, Ty Gibbs, Byron, Burton, Briscoe and Bowman while Ryan Preece and Hamlin were scored in the top 10. By then, the remaining Playoff contenders on the track that included Bell, Truex, Cindric, Elliott, Larson, Keselowski, Reddick and Suarez were mired in 20th, 21st, 23rd, 24th, 25th, 26th, 33rd and 35th, respectively.

    During the stage break, some led by Ty Gibbs and Byron pitted while the rest led by Chastain remained on the track.

    With 48 laps remaining, the final stage commenced under green as Chastain and van Gisbergen occupied the front row. At the start and with the field fanning out through the frontstretch, Chastain maintained the top spot ahead of van Gisbergen and a hard-charging Briscoe while the rest of the field scrambled while bumping and navigating through the Esses, the backstretch and the Bus Stop corner. With the field still jostling for spots through the Inner Loop and the final set of turns, Chastain led the following lap ahead of van Gisbergen, Briscoe, McDowell and LaJoie.

    At the halfway mark with 45 laps remaining, Chastain retained the lead by nearly six-tenths of a second over van Gisbergen, Briscoe, McDowell and LaJoie while Buescher, Hocevar, Montoya, Gragson and Logano were running in the top 10 ahead of Truex, Nemechek, Berry, Bell, Elliott, Cindric, Haley, Bowman, Kaz Grala and Hemric. By then, Playoff contenders Ty Gibbs, Byron, Hamlin, Burton, Keselowski, Larson, Reddick and Suarez were mired outside the top 20.

    A lap later, the caution returned when Hamlin, who was pinned in a tight three-wide battle with Keselowski and Larson just outside the top-20 mark towards the entry of the Esses, was sent sideways and into the guardrails by Keselowski as he sustained more damage to his No. 11 FedEx Toyota Camry XSE entry. Despite continuing, the incident jeopardized Hamlin’s hopes of advancing to the Round of 12 in the Playoffs following his final lap accident at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

    During the caution period, some including Logano, Keselowski and Larson pitted while the rest led by Chastain remained on the track. Hamlin also pitted to continue to have more repairs made to his entry.

    The start of the next restart period with 41 laps remaining featured Chastain rocketing away from the field with the lead through the frontstretch and the first set of turns leading up to the Esses as the field scrambled for late spots. The field proceeded to navigate through the backstretch, the Bus Stop and the Esses smoothly as van Gisbergen and McDowell tried to keep the leader Chastain within close pursuit. As Chastain led the following lap, LaJoie and Buescher were scored in the top five while Briscoe was trying to fend off Hocevar and teammate Gragson for sixth place while Truex and Montoya were up into the top 10.

    With 35 laps remaining, Chastain retained a narrow lead by three-tenths of a second over a hard-charging van Gisbergen as McDowell, Buescher, LaJoie, Hocevar, Gragson, Briscoe, Truex and Elliott were scored in the top 10. By then, the following Playoff contenders that included Bell, Cindric, Bowman, Byron and Ty Gibbs were mired in the top-20 mark while Reddick, Logano, Larson, Keselowski, Suarez and Burton were mired in the top-30 mark. Meanwhile, Hamlin was down in 34th place.

    Two laps later, Buescher, who had fresher tires than the leader Chastain, rocketed past Chastain through the frontstretch as he assumed the lead. By then, van Gisbergen was down in third place and losing the spot to McDowell entering the first turn while LaJoie and Hocevar followed suit in the top six. Another lap later, Chastain and van Gisbergen pitted for fresh tires and fuel before Buescher pitted from the lead during the following lap.

    With 30 laps remaining, some including Montoya, Byron, Hocevar, Erik Jones and Haley pitted under green as Bell was bumped and sent for a spin by Austin Dillon in Turn 7 while trying to enter pit road. With the race remaining under green flag conditions, Bell pitted along with Nemechek and Ty Gibbs. As the pit stop cycle continued with a bevy of names including Gragson and Elliott pitting, McDowell retained the lead before he pitted with 25 laps remaining.

    Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Logano was leading ahead of Zane Smith as third-place Larson pitted under green. By then, Cindric, LaJoie, Bubba Wallace, Austin Dillon and Gilliland had pitted. Shortly after, Zane Smith pitted from the runner-up. With Buescher cycling his way up the leaderboard, he would then overtake Logano for the lead with 17 laps remaining while Keselowski, van Gisbergen, Hocevar and Chastain trailed in the top six. As Kaz Grala crashed in Turn 7 with help from Hemric, the race remained under green flag conditions.

    With 15 laps remaining, Buescher extended his advantage to four seconds over Logano as van Gisbergen, Keselowski and Hocevar were scored in the top five ahead of Chastain, McDowell, Preece, Briscoe and LaJoie. By then, Playoff contenders Truex, Byron and Elliott were scored in the top-14 mark on the track while Cindric, Bowman and Larson were trailing in the top-20 mark. Meanwhile, Ty Gibbs, Suarez, Bell, Reddick and Burton were mired in the top-30 mark while Hamlin was back in 33rd place.

    Four laps later, the caution flew due to debris reported in Turn 6 as a result of Playoff contender Harrison Burton blowing a left-rear tire and leaving debris scattered in the turn. By then, Keselowski and Logano had pitted while Buescher was leading ahead of a hard-charging van Gisbergen. During the caution period, some including Playoff contenders and teammates Bowman, Byron and Elliott pitted while the rest led by Buescher remained on the track. Among those who pitted included Playoff contender Reddick.

    With the race restarting with seven laps remaining, Buescher and Hocevar, both of whom restarted on the front row in front of van Gisbergen and Chastain, dueled for the lead through the frontstretch and the first turn as the field fanned out entering the Esses. In the midst of the battles, Buescher maintained the lead in front of Hocevar and van Gisbregen through the backstretch. Just then, the caution returned when Logano made contact with Keselowski in the Esses resulting in Keselowski turning into Byron and Byron’s No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry coming off the ground and on top of the left side of Keselowski’s No. 6 King’s Hawaiian Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry while being pinned towards the guardrails as both were left with heavily damaged race cars.

    The start of the next restart period with three laps remaining did not last long as Elliott and Berry, both of whom were running in the middle of the pack, were bumped into one another by Gilliland entering the Esses, which in turn ignited an accordion effect as both hit the guardrails along with Truex and Logano while Reddick was sent sideways and in front of Kyle Busch. Amid the incident, Buescher had maintained the lead ahead of Hocevar, Chastain, van Gisbergen, McDowell and Briscoe while the event was sent into overtime.

    The start of the first overtime attempt featured Buescher and Hocevar dueling for the lead through the frontstretch until van Gisbergen gave Buescher a little tap entering the first turn. The contact caused both Buescher and Hocevar to go wide as van Gisbergen made a three-wide pass on both to assume the lead through the Esses. With van Gisbergen leading, Buescher remained within striking distance of the former up the Esses and through the backstretch, Bus Stop and Inner Loop corners while the field behind jostled for late spots.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, van Gisbergen remained as the leader by three-tenths of a second over Buescher while Chastain was trying to fend off Hocevar and a bevy of competitors for third place. From the first turn to the backstretch, van Gisbergen maintained a reasonable lead over a hard-charging Buescher.

    Then through the Bus Stop, van Gisbergen made the slightest of contact with the right-side guardrails, which got him through the corner and the curbs as Buescher quickly closed the gap. Buescher then veered to the right and despite van Gisbergen’s effort to defend, made contact with the leader as he muscled his No. 17 BuildSubmarines.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry into the lead through the Inner Loop. Van Gisbergen then tried to close the gap back through a brief straightaway leading up to Turn 6, but he got loose in Turn 6 and had to step out of the gas to keep his No. 16 WeatherTech Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry running straight in Turn 7. With van Gisbergen losing ground after going sideways, Buescher was able to smoothly navigate his way through Turn 7 and muscle back to the frontstretch victorious and to his first elusive checkered flag of the 2024 Cup Series season by nine-tenths of a second over van Gisbergen.

    With the victory, Buescher, who missed the 2024 Playoff field by a single points position amid a strong regular-season stretch, notched his sixth NASCAR Cup Series career win in his 321st series start, his first both at The Glen and on a road course venue, and his first since winning the 2023 regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway. The victory was also the ninth of the season and the fourth in recent weeks for the Ford nameplate while Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing notched its second Cup victory of the 2024 season and first since teammate/co-owner Brad Keselowski won at Darlington Raceway in May. As an added bonus, this season marks the first time where Roush’s Nos. 17 and 6 entries won in the same Cup season since 2011.

    Buescher’s Cup victory at The Glen over van Gisbergen marked the first time a last-lap pass for the win was made since Joey Logano made the last accomplishment over Kevin Harvick in 2015. It also marked the first time a non-Playoff competitor won a Playoff event since AJ Allmendinger made the last accomplishment last October at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course.

    “I thought we lost it there on the last [restart],” Buescher said on the frontstretch on USA Network. “Man, to stay right there with [van Gisbergen]. [The Bus Stop] was the spot that he was better than us and he missed it, so I tried to cross over. He went to cut. Just hard racing there. Just such an awesome finish. To be that good for so much at the end of the race, all race. To get a win, it’s good. We came here to be [Playoff] spoiler. We’re going to do that. Man, we would’ve like to have won a couple of weeks ago, but this is huge. It’s such a big win for us. Everybody at [Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing]’s worked so hard. To finally get a road course win, we’ve been so close so many times. To finally pull that off is fantastic.”

    Meanwhile, as Buescher celebrated in Victory Lane, van Gisbergen, who only led the penultimate lap, managed to smile despite being left “gutted” after capping off his strong run with his first top-two result of the season. His previous best result through his last seven Cup starts was 20th, which occurred at Circuit of the Americas in March. The three-time Supercars champion from Auckland, New Zealand, is scheduled to compete at Talladega Superspeedway and at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in October, which will also mark his final pair of races of the season and with Kaulig Racing overall before he graduates to a full-time Cup campaign in 2025 with Trackhouse Racing.

    “I knew Chris [Buescher] was really going to send it and push me if [he] could get there,” van Gisbergen said. “As I turned [the car] and got a bit loose and clipped the inside wall, just driver error. I’m gutted. [The] WeatherTech Camaro was really good. The race was awesome with Ross [Chastain] and Chris and the others at the end. I’m gutted we couldn’t get [the win]. I had a lot of fun, but I’m pretty angry at myself. It was just a little bump to get [Buescher] wide [during the overtime shootout] and I knew I was going to get it back, so that’s why I was pushing so hard. It is what it is, but just gutted.”

    Rookie Carson Hocevar notched a career-best third-place result ahead of the pole-sitter Ross Chastain, who led a race-high 51 laps, while rookie Zane Smith achieved his second Cup career top-five result by finishing fifth.

    Chase Briscoe was the highest-finishing Playoff contender in sixth place while Michael McDowell, Corey LaJoie, Ryan Preece and Playoff contender Austin Cindric finished in the top 10.

    The remaining Playoff contenders on the track that included Kyle Larson, Daniel Suarez, Christopher Bell, Joey Logano, Alex Bowman, Chase Elliott, Martin Truex Jr., Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin, Harrison Burton, Brad Keselowski, Tyler Reddick and William Byron ended up finishing 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 18th, 19th, 20th, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 26th, 27th and 34th, respectively.

    As a result, the four Playoff competitors who enter next weekend’s Round of 16 finale at Bristol Motor Speedway below the top-12 cutline are Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Martin Truex Jr. and Harrison Burton. Currently, Hamlin is six points behind Chase Briscoe and teammate Ty Gibbs for the 12th and final transfer spot into the Round of 12 while Keselowski, Truex and Burton trail the cutline by 12, 14 and 20 points, respectively.

    There were 11 lead changes for nine different leaders. The race featured seven cautions 21 for laps. In addition, 31 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap.

    Results.

    1. Chris Buescher, 19 laps led

    2. Shane van Gisbergen, one lap led

    3. Carson Hocevar, one lap led

    4. Ross Chastain, 51 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    5. Zane Smith

    6. Chase Briscoe

    7. Michael McDowell, seven laps led

    8. Corey LaJoie, two laps led

    9. Ryan Preece

    10. Austin Cindric

    11. Noah Gragson

    12. Kyle Larson

    13. Daniel Suarez

    14. Christopher Bell

    15. Joey Logano, six laps led

    16. Todd Gilliland

    17. Bubba Wallace

    18. Alex Bowman, one lap led

    19. Chase Elliott

    20. Martin Truex Jr., four laps led, Stage 1 winner

    21. John Hunter Nemechek

    22. Ty Gibbs

    23. Denny Hamlin

    24. Harrison Burton

    25. Josh Berry

    26. Brad Keselowski

    27. Tyler Reddick

    28. Austin Dillon

    29. Justin Haley

    30. Kyle Busch

    31. Daniel Hemric

    32. Juan Pablo Montoya, one lap down

    33. Erik Jones, two laps down

    34. William Byron, two laps down

    35. Kaz Grala, five laps down

    36. AJ Allmendinger – OUT, Transmission

    37. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – OUT, Accident

    38. Ryan Blaney – OUT, Accident

    *Bold indicates Playoff contenders

    Playoff standings

    1. Joey Logano – Advanced

    2. Christopher Bell +46

    3. Austin Cindric +43

    4. Alex Bowman +41

    5. Daniel Suarez +36

    6. Tyler Reddick +30

    7. Chase Elliott +30

    8. Ryan Blaney +29

    9. Kyle Larson +26

    10. William Byron +25

    11. Chase Briscoe +6

    12. Ty Gibbs +6

    13. Denny Hamlin -6

    14. Brad Keselowski -12

    15. Martin Truex Jr. -14

    16. Harrison Burton -20

    The Round of 16 in the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs is set to conclude next Saturday, September 21, at Bristol Motor Speedway for the Bass Pro Shops Night Race and where the first of three elimination processes will occur. The event’s broadcast time is slated to occur at 7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Alex Palou: 2024 NTT IndyCar Series Champion

    Alex Palou: 2024 NTT IndyCar Series Champion

    A year after joining an exclusive club of 28 competitors to record multiple championships in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES division, Alex Palou elevated his status to another exclusive club, this time comprised of 13 names who have recorded three or more championships in IndyCar at the conclusion of an eventful and strong 2024 season.

    Palou, a native of Sant Antoni de Vilamajor, Spain, muscled through a season that was highlighted with two race victories, six podiums, three poles, 263 laps led and an average-finishing result of 6.5 throughout the 17-race schedule. Despite finishing outside the top-10 mark during the final two-scheduled events of the season, including an 11th-place run during the season-finale event at Nashville Superspeedway, Palou was not overthrown by a pair of Team Penske competitors (Scott McLaughlin and Will Power) serving as his title rivals as he wrapped up the big crown by 31 points.

    The start of the 2024 season featured an overhaul to Palou’s No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) Dallara-Honda livery as DHL ended its dozen-year partnership with Andretti Global by joining forces with CGR to serve as a primary sponsor for Palou. By then, the Spaniard was coming off his dominant season to date, where he won his second IndyCar championship and notched career-high season stats in race victories (five), podiums (10) and laps led (379) along with a personal-best average-finishing result of 3.7.

    When the 2024 season commenced at the Streets of St. Petersburg for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg during the second weekend of March, Palou kicked off his quest to win his third IndyCar title by initially finishing in sixth place. He would later be promoted to fourth place amid a massive penalty and disqualification layout levied on Team Penske and its race-winning competitor Josef Newgarden along with third-place finisher Scott McLaughlin due to both violating the IndyCar’s “Push to Pass” parameters.

    Then during IndyCar’s inaugural $1 Million Challenge at The Thermal Club in Thermal, California, in late March, Palou capped off a dominant weekend where he was the fastest competitor during the event’s practice sessions and led all the laps during both his heat event and the main event to win. He would proceed to notch his first podium result of the season at the Streets of Long Beach and finish fifth at Barber Motorsports Park, the site where he achieved his maiden IndyCar victory in 2021.

    Palou then commenced the series’ month of May competition at Indianapolis Motor Speedway by notching his first points-paying victory of the 2024 season in the Sonsio Grand Prix at Indianapolis’ Road Course venue. The victory was enough for him to assume the points lead for the first time of the season. After qualifying in 14th place for the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500, Palou would proceed to finish in fifth place during the main event.

    Despite stumbling to a 16th-place result during the following Grand Prix weekend at the Streets of Detroit which caused him to lose the championship lead, Palou responded with three consecutive top-four runs that allowed him to reassume the lead. Mired within the three-race span was his second victory of the season in the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, which marked his second victory at the venue overall.

    The series’ doubleheader feature at Iowa Speedway that occurred during the second weekend of July featured mixed results for Palou, who wrecked out of the first event and was strapped with his first DNF of the season in 23rd place. Initially having his points lead decrease from 48 to 37, the Spaniard would lose another two points during the second Iowa feature of the weekend despite rallying to finish second behind Will Power.

    Over his next four starts, Palou finished no lower than fifth while he picked up another podium result by finishing second at Portland International Raceway in late August. Despite Power winning at Portland during the four-race stretch, Palou both increased and maintained his points lead to 43 points.

    Then after finishing 19th during the second of a Milwaukee Mile doubleheader feature in late August, Palou had his points lead cut to 10 points over Power as Scott McLaughlin, Power’s teammate, kept himself within the championship game after he won the second Milwaukee feature. Despite qualifying in 24th place for the season-finale event at Nashville Superspeedway, where he started 20 spots behind Power and 15 spots behind McLaughlin, Palou quickly took care of early business by mathematically eliminating McLaughlin from title contention by starting the race.

    Then on Lap 13 of 206 of the finale, Power’s hopes for a third IndyCar championship and second in three seasons evaporated due to the Australian making an unscheduled pit stop under green to have a lap belt adjusted as he lost multiple laps in the process. Despite continuing, Power could only work his way up to 24th place in the final running order as he was trapped eight laps down. For Palou, he cruised his No. 10 DHL Honda entry to an 11th-place run, which was enough to wrap up the title by 31 points over Colton Herta, who leap-frogged McLaughlin and Power to end up a career-best second place in the final standings.

    Despite being aware of Power’s early issues, Palou did not hesitate nor let off the throttle for the remainder of the event on the track as he maximized all opportunities to cap off his championship season on a strong note.

    “We just had to keep on going,” Palou said on NBC. “I have to thank everybody working on the 10 car. Everybody at [Chip Ganassi Racing] back at the shop. Super proud. It’s been an amazing year and I’m happy we got the championship back home.”

    With his accomplishment, Palou, who became the first Spaniard to win an IndyCar title in 2021, became the first competitor to achieve three IndyCar championships and the first to defend a title since Dario Franchitti last made both accomplishments in 2011. Palou also delivered the fourth IndyCar drivers’ championship for Honda over the last six seasons and the 16th IndyCar title overall for Chip Ganassi Racing, which places the organization one title away from tying Team Penske for the most all-time at 17.

    Palou joins Louis Meyer, Ted Horn, Jimmy Bryan, Rick Mears, Al Unser, Bobby Rahal and Sam Hornish Jr. as competitors to currently have three IndyCar championships. The Spaniard is one away from tying Mario Andretti, Sebastien Bourdais and Franchitti for the third-most IndyCar titles all-time at four.

    Despite being pleased with adding another IndyCar championship to his resume, Palou sets his sights on being more competitive which would enable him to win more races compared to this season while also defending his crown.

    “What a year,” Palou said on the championship stage. “I think we’ve been really close. Just didn’t maximize in some places. We’ll learn from what we can improve from this year and hopefully next year, we can do it.”

    Palou’s 2024 IndyCar championship received high praise from team owner Chip Ganassi, whom Palou steered with to his 11 current victories and three championships in IndyCar since they first joined forces at the start of the 2021 season.

    “[Palou] never broke a sweat,” Ganassi said. “Just unbelievable [with] the way he drives. The way he came into our team a few years ago down in Alabama. Won his first race out. It’s been smooth sailing since. [The team] like winning. It helps.”

    With the NTT IndyCar Series’ teams and competitors entering an off-season period, Alex Palou’s quest to both win his fourth INDYCAR championship and defend his title is scheduled to commence at the Streets of St. Petersburg for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 2, 2025. While the event will be aired on FOX, the event’s start time remains to be determined.

  • Connor Zilisch muscles through two overtime attempts and late fuel drama to win in Xfinity debut at The Glen

    Connor Zilisch muscles through two overtime attempts and late fuel drama to win in Xfinity debut at The Glen

    On a day when Connor Zilisch made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut at Watkins Glen International, he added another pair of first-time accomplishments to his impressive racing resume, with his first career pole and first career win.

    The 18-year-old Zilisch from Charlotte, North Carolina, led three times for a race-high 45 of 90 over-scheduled laps in an event where he commenced his Xfinity Series debut by notching his first pole position and claiming the first stage victory after leading all of the stage’s laps. Despite enduring a slow pit stop while pitting during the first stage break period, Zilisch methodically raced his way back up the leaderboard and settled in third place when the second stage period concluded.

    The start of the final stage period with 38 laps remaining was where Zilisch’s opportunity to contend for the victory appeared to evaporate after he along with the leader Ty Gibbs and Sam Mayer were sent to the rear of the field due to driving through the Inner Loop’s off-course turn and not serving a “stop-and-go” penalty just as a caution flew for Justin Allgaier getting stuck in the Turn 6 gravel trap. However, since the following restart period with 33 laps remaining, Zilisch methodically carved his way back up the leaderboard with a fast car again. As fuel shortages became a highlighted topic in the closing laps, the Charlotte native, who had more fuel in his fuel tank compared to most of the front-runners who pitted, cycled back to the lead with 15 laps remaining. He would then maintain a healthy lead and conserve as much fuel in his fuel tank until a late-caution period with six laps remaining for Matt DiBenedetto stalling his car on the course briefly stalled his progress.

    Then through another caution period during an attempted two-lap shootout and two overtime shootouts, Zilisch had enough fuel and muscle within his No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro entry to fend off the field amid a series of on-track chaos and coast to the finish line during the event’s race-ending caution for a multi-car wreck to win the Mission 200 at The Glen on Saturday, September 14, for his first career victory and become the seventh competitor overall to win in an Xfinity debut.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup on Saturday, newcomer Connor Zilisch notched his first Xfinity pole position in his series debut with a pole-winning speed at 124.176 mph in 71.028 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Ty Gibbs, who posted the second-fastest qualifying speed at 123.927 mph in 71.171 seconds.

    Before the event, Ed Jones started at the rear of the field due to an engine change to his Sam Hunt Racing Toyota entry. The following names that include Jeb Burton, Ross Chastain, rookie Shane van Gisbergen, Joey Logano and Josh Williams also dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective entries.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Connor Zilisch and Ty Gibbs dueled for the lead through the frontstretch until Zilisch, who was among select front-runners who briefly went off the course entering Turn 1, managed to fend off Gibbs to retain the lead. He would proceed to lead the next set of turns that included the Esses before he navigated his way through the backstretch and both the Inner and Outer Loops. Following the final set of turns that included a left-hand turn following a brief straightaway and a right-hand turn through Turn 7 back to the frontstretch, Zilisch proceeded to lead the first lap in front of Gibbs, Justin Allgaier, AJ Allmendinger and Chandler Smith.

    Over the next four laps, Zilisch retained the lead ahead of a hard-charging Ty Gibbs, who trailed the leader by a second by the fifth lap mark, while third-place Allgaier followed suit by two seconds. With fourth-place Allmendinger trailing by five seconds, Chandler Smith retained fifth place ahead of William Byron while Sam Mayer, Aric Almirola, Sheldon Creed and Austin Hill were running in the top 10. Behind, rookie Jesse Love, Cole Custer, Riley Herbst, Ryan Sieg and Brandon Jones followed suit in the top 15 ahead of Sammy Smith, Parker Kligerman, Jeremy Clements, Parker Retzlaff and Mike Skeen while Shane van Gisbergen was up to 23rd place in front of Ross Chastain and Joey Logano.

    Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Zilisch extended his lead to three seconds over runner-up Gibbs while Allgaier and Allmendinger remained in third and fourth, respectively. Behind, Byron was up into fifth place ahead of Mayer while Chandler Smith dropped to seventh ahead of Almirola, Creed and Hill. Meanwhile, van Gisbergen cracked the top-20 mark as he was running in 19th place behind Jeremy Clements while Love, Herbst, Custer, Brandon Jones and Ryan Sieg were mired in the top 15 ahead of Sammy Smith and Kligerman.

    Five laps later, Zilisch continued to extend his advantage as he was now leading by over Gibbs while Allgaier, Allmendinger and Byron continued to run in the top five. Earlier, Herbst performed a stop-and-go on the course for missing the Inner Loop, which dropped him from 12th to 14th. In addition, Kligerman, who was reporting a gearing issue to his No. 48 Borchetta Bourbon Chevrolet Camaro entry, had dropped to 24th place from outside the top-15 mark. Amid the on-track battles, van Gisbergen carved his way up into the top-15 mark while Mayer, Chandler Smith, Almirola, Creed and Hill continued to run in the top 10.

    Before the Lap 17 mark, select front-runners including Gibbs, Allmendinger, Byron, Mayer, Hill, Brandon Jones, van Gisbergen and Austin Green pitted their respective entries while Zilisch kept his pole-winning No. 88 Carolina Carports Chevrolet Camaro entry on the track with the lead.

    When the first stage period concluded on Lap 20, Zilisch captured his first Xfinity stage career victory. Teammate Allgaier trailed by in second place by more than 10 seconds followed by a trio of Joe Gibbs Racing competitors that included Almirola, Chandler Smith and Creed while Custer, Love, Herbst, Ryan Sieg and Clements were scored in the top 10. By then, 36 of 38 starters were scored on the lead lap, with van Gisbergen remaining on the lead lap and in front of the leader Zilisch in 36th place.

    Under the stage break, Chandler Smith made an unscheduled pit stop from third place due to his No. 81 Smith General Contracting Toyota Supra entry overheating on water temperature due to a piece of debris lodged in his front grille. Once pit road became accessible for the field, a majority of the field led by Zilisch pitted for service while the rest led by Ty Gibbs remained on the track.  Following the pit stops, Allgaier exited pit road first while teammate Zilisch was the sixth competitor to exit the pits following a slow pit service. Amid the pit stops, Alon Day and Thomas Annunziata were penalized for speeding on pit road. Not long after, Sammy Smith made a second pit stop to have a right-rear shock repaired.

    The second stage period started on Lap 24 as Gibbs and Allmendinger occupied the front row. At the start, Gibbs and Allmendinger dueled for the top spot through the frontstretch and the first turn until Allmendinger managed to rocket his No. 16 Celsius Chevrolet Camaro entry ahead with the lead through the Esses. As the field behind jostled for spots through the backstretch and both the Inner and Outer Loops, Allmendinger retained the lead through the final set of turns that led back to the frontstretch as he led the following lap while Mayer and Byron battled for third place. Byron would manage to overtake Mayer for third place entering the first turn while Allmendinger retained a narrow lead over Gibbs. Meanwhile, Zilisch was back in 11th place as Allgaier, Brandon Jones, van Gisbergen, Creed, Custer and Herbst were scored in the top 10.

    At the Lap 30 mark, Byron, who dueled and overtook Allmendinger through the frontstretch a lap prior, was leading by a second over Allmendinger while Gibbs and Allgaier also followed suit by a second. Meanwhile, Mayer had dropped to fifth place after he went off the course just past the Outer Loop while van Gisbergen, Jones, Zilisch, Creed and Custer trailed in the top 10 ahead of Herbst, Almirola, Ryan Sieg, Hill and Clements. By then, Logano and Chastain were mired in 18th and 19th, respectively, while Kligerman was back in 21st place in front of Parker Retzlaff and Chandler Smith. In addition, Sammy Smith was trapped a lap down in 36th place.

    Five laps later, Byron stretched his advantage to more than two seconds over Gibbs while Allmendinger and Mayer trailed by four seconds. Behind, Zilisch navigated his way back into the top five after he overtook teammate Allgaier a lap earlier, while van Gisbergen, Jones, Creed and Custer were racing within the top 10 ahead of Herbst, Hill, Ryan Sieg, Clements and Love.

    Another lap later, select names including Allmendinger, van Gisbergen, Jones, Creed, Chandler Smith and Josh Bilicki pitted their respective entries under green. By then, Logano had also pitted under green as Byron kept his No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro entry on the track with the lead.

    When the second stage period concluded on Lap 40, Byron claimed his first Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season. Gibbs trailed in second place by more than three seconds while Zilisch, Mayer, Allgaier, Custer, Herbst, Hill, Ryan Sieg and Clements were scored in the top 10. By then, 34 of 38 starters were scored on the lead lap.

    During the stage break, Almirola made an unscheduled pit stop to address losing both his third and fourth gears on his No. 20 Go Bowling Toyota Supra entry. Once pit road became accessible for the field, some, led by Allgaier, pitted while the rest, led by Byron and including Gibbs and Zilisch, remained on the track. Amid the pit stops, Jeremy Clements was penalized for speeding on pit road. Not long after, Joey Gase filled in for Thomas Annunziata, who was taken to the care center due to feeling dehydrated. Allmendinger made a second pit stop to have a left-front tire changed.

    With 38 laps remaining, the final stage commenced as Byron and Gibbs occupied the front row. At the start, both dueled for the lead through the frontstretch until Byron got loose from Zilisch and went wide in Turn 1. This allowed Gibbs to move in front of the field as the field fanned out entering the Esses. Then after the field navigated through the backstretch and both the Inner and Outer Loops, trouble occurred as both Allgaier and Mike Skeen were sent sliding off the course in Turn 6, with Allgaier getting his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro entry stuck in the gravel trap. Amid the incident, the race remained under green flag conditions before the caution flew a lap later. By then, Gibbs was the leader ahead of Mayer, Zilisch and Custer while Byron had dropped to fifth place.

    Shortly after, however, the top three competitors including Gibbs, Mayer and Zilisch were penalized and sent to the rear of the field due to driving through the Inner Loop and not stopping for a stop-and-go penalty for missing the corner. The trio of penalties allowed Cole Custer to cycle into the lead as he was followed by Byron, van Gisbergen, and Austin Green.

    During the caution period, some including Hill, Creed, Brandon Jones, Love, Jeb Burton, Josh Williams, Allmendinger, Josh Bilicki and Almirola pitted their respective entries while the rest led by Gibbs remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Hill was penalized for speeding on pit road.

    The start of the next restart period with 33 laps remaining featured Custer retaining the lead following a strong start through the frontstretch and the first turn while van Gisbergen challenged Byron for the runner-up spot. With Herbst up to fourth place in front of Chandler Smith, Custer retained the lead through the backstretch and both the Inner and Outer Loop, with the field behind fanning out. As van Gisbergen was being intimidated by Herbst and Chandler Smith for third place, Byron retained second ahead of the trio battle while Custer led the following lap.

    Then with 30 laps remaining, Byron gained a strong run beneath Custer through the frontstretch to reassume the lead. With Byron leading, Custer was being challenged by van Gisbergen for the runner-up spot through the Esses and backstretch while Herbst and Chandler Smith remained within close pursuit in the top five. Meanwhile, Kligerman was up to sixth place while Ed Jones, Logano, Austin Green and Ross Chastain were scored in the top 10.

    A lap later, Byron surrendered the lead to pit under green, which allowed van Gisbergen, who overtook Custer for the runner-up spot a lap earlier, to cycle his No. 97 WeatherTech Chevrolet Camaro entry into the lead for the first time. Custer, Chastain, Austin Green, Mike Skeen, Kyle Sieg and Chandler Smith would all pit during the following two laps as Herbst, Kligerman, Ed Jones and Logano moved up into the top five. With Love and Creed following suit in sixth and seventh, respectively, Zilisch was up to eighth place ahead of Allmendinger and Brandon Jones while Gibbs and Mayer were mired in 14th and 15th, respectively. As more names including Logano and Brennan Poole pitted their respective entries, van Gisbergen retained the lead by three seconds over Herbst and Kligerman with 25 laps remaining.

    With 20 laps remaining, van Gisbergen continued to lead by four seconds over Herbst while Kligerman, Zilisch and Creed trailed in the top five ahead of Allmendinger, Gibbs, Brandon Jones, Mayer and Love. By then, Ed Jones, who was dealing with a cool suit malfunction, pitted under green from fourth place two laps earlier, though he would then encounter a mechanical issue while trying to exit his pit stall. In addition, Retzlaff pitted his Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet entry.

    A few laps later, Herbst surrendered the runner-up spot to pit his No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang entry for both tires and enough fuel to the event’s scheduled distance. Kligerman, who briefly inherited the runner-up spot, would also pit, which allowed Zilisch to move into the runner-up spot. Zilisch, who was also trying to stretch his fuel tank to the event’s scheduled distance, would then return atop the leaderboard with 15 laps remaining as van Gisbergen pitted for fuel under green, though the latter would be penalized for speeding on pit road. With Zilisch leading, Creed, Gibbs, Allmendinger, Brandon Jones and Mayer followed suit in the top six. By then, Byron returned to pit road to address a vibration concern.

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Zilisch continued to lead by more than five seconds over Creed while Ty Gibbs followed suit by within six-tenths of a second to teammate Creed. Behind, fourth-place Allmendinger trailed the lead by 13 seconds while JR Motorsports’ Brandon Jones and Mayer trailed in the top six by less than 20 seconds on the track.

    Two laps later, teammates Gibbs and Creed dueled for the runner-up spot, with the former prevailing with the spot while Zilisch retained the lead by more than six seconds as he was also trying to stretch his fuel tank to the distance. A lap later, Creed surrendered his top-three spot on the track to pit for a quick splash of fuel, which allowed Allmendinger, Brandon Jones and Mayer to move up the leaderboard in the top five.

    Then with six laps remaining, the caution flew due to Matt DiBenedetto coming to a stop in the Inner Loop after he endured a mechanical issue through the backstretch. The caution all but erased Zilisch’s steady advantage of six seconds over Gibbs as Allmendinger, Brandon Jones and Mayer were scored in the top five.

    During the caution period, some including Love, Custer, Hill, Josh Bilicki, Ryan Sieg, Ryan Ellis and Anthony Alfredo pitted while the rest led by Zilisch remained on the track.

    With the race restarting with two laps remaining, Allmendinger tried to throw a three-wide move beneath both Zilisch and Gibbs for the lead exiting the frontstretch and in Turn 1, but Zilisch managed to retain the lead as multiple competitors were sent spinning and colliding into one another, among which included Ed Jones, Josh Williams, Logano, Byron, Mike Skeen, Sammy Smith, Hill and Alfredo.

    Amid the incidents, the race remained under green flag conditions as Zilisch retained the lead through the Esses and the backstretch. Then caution returned for the incidents, that left carnage and leaked fluid left from Turn 1, with Alfredo and Hill sustaining the most damage to their respective entries. With the caution being flown, the race was sent into overtime. It was also sent into a red flag period to have the carnage and the spilled fluid cleared, with Alfredo hitting the guardrails while trying to nurse his damaged No. 5 Ferguson Chevrolet Camaro entry that was leaking fluid back to the infield.

    Twenty-two minutes later, the red flag was lifted and the field led by Zilisch proceeded under a cautious pace. During the caution period, select names led by Sammy Smith and including those involved during the previous caution period pitted while the rest led by Zilisch remained on the track.

    The start of the first overtime attempt featured Zilisch fending off Mayer through the frontstretch, the first turn and the Esses with the lead. By then, Gibbs ran out of fuel and dropped out of contention during the restart as the field scattered through the opening turns. Zilisch, who was continuing to try and stretch his fuel tank to the distance, would proceed to lead through the backstretch and both the Inner and Outer Loops just before teammate Brandon Jones was sent for a spin from the middle of the field through the Inner Loop. Jones was then hit hard by Mike Skeen as the caution returned and the event was sent into a second overtime attempt.

    Following an extensive caution period, the start of the second overtime attempt featured teammates Zilisch and Mayer dueling for the lead exiting the frontstretch before the former muscled ahead through the first turn, where Custer spun. Mayer, Allmendinger and van Gisbergen then went three wide through the Esses and backstretch in a battle for the runner-up spot. Shortly after, Mayer was seen slowly losing pace with the front-runners as he was shaking the car back and forth to keep it under power while Allmendinger and van Gisbergen continued to fiercely duel for the runner-up spot as Chandler Smith, Sheldon Creed and Kligerman joined the battle.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Zilisch remained as the leader by three seconds over Creed, who overtook Allmendinger, van Gisbergen and Chandler Smith for the runner-up spot through the frontstretch as Mayer spun entering Turn 7. Before this, Allgaier spun in the Inner Loop. Amid the chaos, the race remained under green flag conditions.

    Then with numerous bumps and on-track chaos continuing to ensue around the course, the event concluded under caution as a multi-car wreck erupted on the backstretch that started when Ryan Sieg, who was running inside the top 10, got Herbst loose as Herbst spun back in front of Sieg and both were sent wrecking hard against the guardrails while clipping Austin Green in the process as more names, including Ed Jones, Clements and Brennan Poole, would also get collected.

    With the caution being displayed, Zilisch, who was exiting the Outer Loop at the moment the event was deemed official, had enough fuel in his dry tank to coast his No. 88 Carolina Carports Chevrolet Camaro entry through the final two turns under reduced pace and back to the frontstretch for his first checkered flag in his debut in the Xfinity circuit.

    With the victory, Connor Zilisch, who inked a sponsorship deal with Red Bull a day ago and is set to become a full-time Xfinity Series competitor for JR Motorsports in 2025, became the 179th competitor overall to win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series division as he joined Jesse Love and Shane van Gisbergen as competitors to notch a first-time Xfinity victory in 2024. He also joined an exclusive list that includes Dale Earnhardt, Ricky Rudd, Joe Ruttman, Terry Labonte, Kurt Busch and recently Ty Gibbs as competitors to win in an Xfinity Series debut. As added bonuses, he also became the second-youngest winner in the Xfinity Series division at age 18 years, one month and 23 days while becoming the first competitor to record a first-time Xfinity victory at The Glen since Austin Cindric made the last accomplishment in 2019.

    Zilisch’s Xfinity victory at The Glen marked his second trip to Victory Lane of the weekend after he won Friday’s ARCA Menards Series event at The Glen, with the Charlotte native etching the fifth victory of the season for JR Motorsports, the first victory for JR Motorsports’ No. 88 Chevrolet entry in two seasons and the first ever for crew chief Andrew Overstreet.

    “Man, I don’t even have words,” Zilisch, who fought tears of emotions on the frontstretch, said on USA Network. “I worked so hard for this one. I’ve been working for this one for months. It’s so special. I don’t even have words right now. I don’t know how I saved enough [fuel]. I sputtered up the hill with two [laps] to go. I didn’t think I was gonna make it back to the line. I was saving the last two laps. I’m gonna enjoy this one for a while. That’s special. One-on-one [in the Xfinity Series], not bad.”

    “Coming into today, I just wanted to run all the laps,” Zilisch added. “I ran all the laps and I came home with a win too. I can’t complain about that. I just can’t thank everyone who’s helped me get to this point. It’s special [to] come out here and win my first race. Hopefully, the first of many.”

    With Zilisch winning the race, Sheldon Creed settled in second place for the 12th time in his career while AJ Allmendinger came home in third place. The top three results were enough for both Allmendinger and Creed to secure their spots into the 2024 Xfinity Series Playoffs by points.

    “[I was] Just trying to keep the nose on [the car] there,” Creed said. “[The race was] Actually really fun. I felt like that was the battle for the win probably if [Zilisch] ran out [of fuel]. I thought I put myself in really good position. To end up second again, I could be mad, but I’m actually happy for kind of how our day was going. We were a top-10 car, but I just didn’t know how good we were to run in the top three there. Another top five for our team. Just good momentum for the Playoffs and I can’t wait for Bristol next week. I’m having a lot of fun right now, so that’s what’s important.

    Chandler Smith settled in fourth place while Shane van Gisbergen ended up in fifth place. Ross Chastain, Parker Kligerman, Jesse Love, Joey Logano and Josh Bilicki completed the top 10 in the final running order.

    There were 10 lead changes for seven different leaders. The race featured seven cautions for 19 laps. In addition, 21 of 38 starters were scored on the lead lap.

    Following the 25th event of the 2024 Xfinity Series season, Justin Allgaier continues to lead the regular-season standings by 43 points over Cole Custer, 62 over Chandler Smith and 99 over Austin Hill.

    With next weekend’s Xfinity Series event at Bristol Motor Speedway marking the final regular-season event of the 2024 season, the following names that include Justin Allgaier, Cole Custer, Chandler Smith, Austin Hill, AJ Allmendinger, Sheldon Creed, rookie Jesse Love, Riley Herbst, rookie Shane van Gisbergen and Sam Mayer have clinched spots into the 2024 Xfinity Series Playoffs either by regular-season victories or by points.

    Currently, Parker Kligerman holds one of two vacant spots in the Playoffs by 85 points. Lastly, Sammy Smith, who fell back to 19th place in the final running order at The Glen, holds the 12th and final transfer spot into the Playoffs by 43 points over Ryan Sieg, who ended up in 22nd place after he was unable to complete the final lap amid his multi-car wreck.

    Results.

    1. Connor Zilisch, 45 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    2. Sheldon Creed

    3. AJ Allmendinger, five laps led

    4. Chandler Smith

    5. Shane van Gisbergen, 14 laps led

    6. Ross Chastain

    7. Parker Kligerman

    8. Jesse Love

    9. Joey Logano

    10. Josh Bilicki

    11. Austin Green

    12. William Byron, 16 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    13. Riley Herbst

    14. Parker Retzlaff

    15. Ryan Ellis

    16. Leland Honeyman

    17. Justin Allgaier

    18. Jeremy Clements

    19. Sammy Smith

    20. Sam Mayer, one lap led

    21. Cole Custer, six laps led

    22. Ryan Sieg, one lap down

    23. Brennan Poole, one lap down

    24. Ed Jones, one lap down

    25. Ty Gibbs, one lap down, three laps led

    26. Aric Almirola, two laps down

    27. RC Enerson, five laps down

    28. Brandon Jones – OUT, Accident

    29. Thomas Annunziata, six laps down

    30. Mike Skeen – OUT, Accident

    31. Jeb Burton – OUT, Oil Leak

    32. Josh Williams – OUT, Accident

    33. Austin Hill – OUT, Accident

    34. Anthony Alfredo – OUT, Accident

    35. Matt DiBenedetto – OUT, Rear Gear

    36. Alon Day – OUT, Brakes

    37. Kyle Sieg – OUT, Axle

    38. Kyle Weatherman – OUT, Rear End

    Next on the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is Bristol Motor Speedway for the Food City 300, which will serve as this year’s regular-season finale and determine the 12-car Playoff field. The event is scheduled to occur next Friday, September 20, and air at 7:30 p.m. ET on the CW Network.

  • NASCAR Weekend Schedule for Watkins Glen – September 2024

    NASCAR Weekend Schedule for Watkins Glen – September 2024

    This weekend NASCAR travels to Watkins Glen International for the second race of the Cup Series Playoffs.

    It will be the first time the 2.45-mile track has hosted a NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race and it will present unique challenges for the drivers. They have added new rumble strips and interchangeable curbing in the Inner Loop Chicane (the bus stop) and Goodyear is bringing a new tire that is designed to provide more fall-off than the previous tire.

    Due to these changes, Cup Series practice will be extended. The drivers will be divided into two groups and each group will have two 20-minute practice sessions, followed by qualifying in preparation for the Go Bowling at The Glen on Sunday afternoon.

    Saturday’s action will feature the Xfinity Series Mission 200 at The Glen with only two races remaining in the series regular season. Eight drivers have already clinched a spot in the 12-driver field – Justin Allgaier, Cole Custer, Chandler Smith, Austin Hill, Riley Herbst, Jesse Love, Shane Van Gisbergen and Sam Mayer.

    The ARCA Menards Series General Tire 100 will headline Friday’s on-track activities. The Craftsman Truck Series is off and will return to competition September 19 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
    NASCAR Press Pass will be available throughout the weekend.

    All times are Eastern.

    Friday, September 13
    2:00 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series Practice
    3:15 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series Qualifying
    5:00 p.m.: ARCA General Tire 100 at the Glen
    FS1/MRN

    Saturday, September 14
    9:30 a.m.: Xfinity Series Practice – NBC Sports App
    10:00 a.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying – NBC Sports App

    11:30 a.m.: Cup Series Practice
    USA/SiriusXM/MRN/NBC Sports App
    1:00 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying
    USA/SiriusXM/MRN/NBC Sports App

    3:00 p.m.: Xfinity Series Mission 200 at The Glen
    Distance: 200.9 miles (82 Laps)
    Stages end on Lap 20, Lap 40, Lap 82
    USA/SiriusXM/MRN/NBC Sports App
    Purse: $1,312,465

    Sunday, September 15
    3:00 p.m.: Cup Series Go Bowling at The Glen
    Distance: 220.5 miles (90 Laps)
    Stages end on Lap 20, Lap 40, Lap 90
    USA/SiriusXM/MRN/NBC Sports App
    Purse: $7,572,831

  • Austin Dillon to make 400th Cup start at Watkins Glen

    Austin Dillon to make 400th Cup start at Watkins Glen

    Austin Dillon is primed to achieve a milestone in his 11th full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series. By competing in this weekend’s Cup Playoff event at Watkins Glen International, the driver of the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing (RCR) Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 will make his 400th career start in NASCAR’s premier series.

    A native of Welcome, North Carolina, Dillon made his inaugural start in the Cup Series at Kansas Speedway in October 2011. At the time, he was campaigning in his second full-time season in the Craftsman Truck Series for Richard Childress Racing after clinching the Rookie of the Year title in 2010. Driving the No. 98 Chevrolet Impala for Curb Racing, Dillon finished 26th in his first Cup event.

    The following two seasons, Dillon competed full-time in the Xfinity Series for RCR, where he achieved the 2012 Xfinity Series’ Rookie of the Year title before notching the drivers’ championship a year later. During the two-year stint, he made 12 Cup Series starts, his first occurring at Michigan International Speedway in June 2012 as he piloted RCR’s No. 33 Chevrolet to a 24th-place finish. The remaining 11 Cup starts occurred in 2013, with his first being the 55th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway as he finished 31st.

    In total, Dillon made five Cup starts with RCR, four with Phoenix Racing and two with Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) as an interim competitor for the injured three-time Cup champion Tony Stewart. Within the starts, he notched a season-best 11th-place finish at Michigan in June with RCR and a 14th-place run at Michigan in August with SHR. At Talladega Superspeedway in October, Dillon, who was driving the No. 14 SHR Chevrolet SS, was running in third place on the final lap when he slipped sideways off the front nose of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., came back across the track in the backstretch and was sent airborne after being rammed by Casey Mears, with the result dropping Dillon to 26th place in the final running order.

    Less than a month after winning the 2013 Xfinity Series title, Dillon was announced as a full-time Cup Series competitor in RCR’s No. 3 Chevrolet SS for the 2014 season, which marked the return of the No. 3 in NASCAR’s premier series for the first time since the 2001 Daytona 500, last piloted by the late seven-time NASCAR champion Dale Earnhardt.

    Dillon commenced his rookie Cup season on a strong note by securing the pole position for the 56th running of the Daytona 500, which was his first in the series, and becoming both the fourth competitor to place a No. 3 entry and the fifth rookie candidate on the pole for the Great American Race. During the main event, Dillon, who led the opening lap, rallied after being involved in a late multi-car wreck to record his first top-10 result in the series with a ninth-place finish. He would then finish no higher than 11th three times during his next 16 starts before securing his first top-five result in the form of a fifth-place finish at Daytona in July.

    With only an additional top-10 result, being a 10th-place run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July, occurring in the final eight regular-season events, Dillon was unable to qualify for the 2014 Cup Series Playoffs. He would proceed to finish no higher than eighth during the final 10 events on the schedule before settling in 20th place in the final standings and the runner-up spot behind Kyle Larson for the Rookie-of-the-Year title. Overall, Dillon achieved a single pole, one top-five result, four top-10 results, 10 laps led and an average-finishing result of 17.5 during his first full-time Cup Series season.

    Dillon’s sophomore Cup season in 2015 was mired with a harrowing final lap accident at Daytona in July, where his car went airborne after colliding with a spinning Denny Hamlin. He flew over four competitors and smashed upside-down into the frontstretch’s catchfence before the car came back on the speedway on the roof and was hit by a spinning Brad Keselowski before coming to a rest on the roof. Amid the wild wreck that ripped the engine out of the No. 3 car, Dillon, who managed to finish seventh before the wreck, emerged uninjured as he only sustained a bruised tailbone and a bruised forearm.

    The Daytona result would serve as one of Dillon’s five total top-10 results he earned throughout the 2015 Cup season, with his best on-track result being a fourth-place finish at Michigan International Speedway in August after leading 19 laps. After missing the Playoffs, Dillon settled in 21st place in the final standings with an average-finishing result of 21.0.

    Like his rookie Cup season, Dillon commenced his junior Cup Series season with a ninth-place result during the 58th running of the Daytona 500. Two races later, he recorded a strong fifth-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March followed by a ninth-place run at Phoenix Raceway before notching his second Cup career pole at Auto Club Speedway, an event where he would finish 24th. Nabbing three additional top-five results and a total of six top-10 results during the final 21 regular-season events, Dillon was able to race his way into his first career Cup Series Playoffs based on points.

    After finishing 14th, 16th and eighth throughout the Round of 16, Dillon transferred into the Round of 12. With respective finishes of 32nd, sixth and ninth throughout the Round of 12, however, he did not transfer to the Round of 8 amid a tie-breaker against Denny Hamlin. Scoring his second pole of the season at Texas Motor Speedway in November, Dillon finished no higher than 12th during the final four events on the schedule before settling in 14th place in the final standings. Overall, Dillon achieved two poles, four top-five results, a career-high 13 top-10 results, 17 laps led and an average finishing result of 15.9. He had also surpassed 100 career starts in NASCAR’s premier series.

    Dillon began the 2017 Cup Series season with a 19th-place finish during the 59th running of the Daytona 500. Then after managing only one top-five finish during the first 11 events on the schedule, he scored his first Cup career victory in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May after overtaking seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson with two laps remaining and having enough fuel to coast his No. 3 Chevrolet across the finish line ahead of Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr.

    With the victory, Dillon became the 188th different competitor to win a Cup Series event and the seventh to notch a first Cup victory in the Coke 600. It was the first victory for the No. 3 since Dale Earnhardt won at Talladega Superspeedway in 2000. Despite finishing in the top 10 only twice during the final 14 regular-season events, the Coke 600 victory enabled Dillon to automatically advance to the Playoffs for a second consecutive season. After having his title hopes come to an early end after finishing no higher than 16th twice and not advancing past the Round of 16, Dillon proceeded to notch five top-15 results within the final seven events on the schedule before settling in a career-best 11th place in the final standings.

    Returning for a fifth full-time Cup campaign in 2018, Dillon commenced the season with a thriller after spinning Aric Almirola on the final lap to win the 60th running of the Daytona 500 and notch his second Cup career victory. With the accomplishment, Dillon, who only led the final lap and piloted a Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to its first NASCAR victory in its first event, became the 39th competitor to win the Great American Race as he delivered the third Daytona 500 victory for Richard Childress Racing and the first for the No. 3 since Dale Earnhardt won his first and only 500 event in 1998.

    The victory also occurred 11 years to the day when Kevin Harvick delivered the second and latest 500 victory for RCR. With the 500 victory guaranteeing Dillon and the No. 3 team a spot in the 2018 Cup Series Playoffs, the North Carolina native proceeded to finish in the top 10 three additional times during the remaining 25 regular-season events. Having his title hopes eliminated early after finishing 11th, sixth and 39th throughout the Round of 16, Dillon proceeded to finish in the top 11 five times during the final seven events on the schedule before settling in 13th place in the final standings. Despite achieving one less top-five result from his previous season (two), he doubled his top-10 results (eight) and improved his average-finishing result from 18.6 to 17.5.

    After missing the 2019 Cup Series Playoffs and finishing 21st in the final standings, where he notched a total of six top-10 results, a career-high three poles and surpassed 200 Cup career starts throughout the season, Dillon began the 2020 Cup season with a 12th-place finish in the 62nd running of the Daytona 500 before notching a fourth-place run during the following event at Las Vegas. Then after recording three additional top-10 results during his next 15 starts, Dillon snapped an 88-race winless drought and returned to the Victory Lane in the Cup Series at Texas for the third time in his career after leading 22 laps and fending off teammate Tyler Reddick during a two-lap shootout.

    The Texas victory also enabled Dillon to clinch a spot in the 2020 Cup Series Playoffs, which marked his fourth time making the postseason title battle, as he concluded the regular-season stretch with two additional top-10 results, amid being absent from the Daytona International Speedway Road Course event in August following a positive COVID-19 test. After notching a strong runner-up result during the Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway in September followed by a fourth-place finish at Richmond Raceway and a 12th-place run at Bristol Motor Speedway, respectively, Dillon transferred into the Round of 12. After being eliminated from the Playoffs due to finishing no higher than 12th throughout the Round of 12, he secured two 11th-place finishes during the final four-scheduled events before tying his career-best result in the final standings in 11th place. Overall, Dillon still managed to notch a career-high 135 laps led along with a total of four top-five results, nine top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 16.2.

    Throughout the 2021 Cup Series season, where he reached 300 Cup career starts at season’s end, Dillon accumulated a total of eight top-10 results and a season-best third-place finish in the 63rd running of the Daytona 500. Despite winning the second Bluegreen Vacations Duel at Daytona in February following a final lap where he overtook Bubba Wallace, Dillon did not make the 2021 Cup Series Playoffs and concluded the season in 17th place in the final standings. Nonetheless, he still secured a career-best average-finishing result of 14.4 on the strength of 27 top-15 results throughout the 36-race schedule.

    The 2022 Cup season began with a 25th-place finish during the 64th running of the Daytona 500, Dillon collected two runner-up results and a total of seven top-10 results throughout the following 24 regular-season events. Then during the regular-season finale at Daytona in August, he raced his way into the Playoffs after dodging a wreck that eliminated nearly the entire field with 23 laps remaining and withstanding a lengthy rain delay period to lead 10 laps and overtake Austin Cindric with three laps remaining before leading teammate Tyler Reddick across the finish line as part of a 1-2 finish for Richard Childress Racing.

    The victory was Dillon’s fourth of his Cup career and the fifth time he made the Playoffs. Although his title hopes were eliminated early after finishing no higher than 14th throughout the Round of 16, Dillon notched a fourth-place finish and two 10th-place runs during the final seven-scheduled events before ending up in 11th place in the final standings for the third time in his career. By then, Dillon notched career-high stats in top fives (five) and top 10s (11) while emerging with an average finishing result of 16.5.

    This past season, Dillon notched a strong runner-up result in the non-points Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Two weeks later, he was in contention and battling for the victory in the Daytona 500 before he was swept up in a multi-car wreck during an overtime shootout and ended up in 33rd place. Dillon proceeded to finish in the top five once and in the top 10 six times during the following 25 regular-season events but missed the Playoffs for the fifth time in his career. Finishing no higher than 10th throughout the 2023 Playoffs, Dillon ended up in 29th place in the final driver’s standings, the lowest of his career as a full-time Cup competitor.

    Dillon started the 2024 Cup Series season with only two top-10 results through the first 22 scheduled events, which left him mired outside the top-30 mark in the regular-season standings. Then at Richmond Raceway this past August, he endured a high-turned-low career moment that started when he assumed the lead from Denny Hamlin with 28 laps remaining. Initially poised the seal the victory during the event’s scheduled distance, the event was sent into overtime due to a late multi-car wreck. Despite retaining the lead during the event’s caution period, Dillon would lose the lead to Joey Logano at the start of the overtime shootout. Then on the final lap, Dillon stepped on the gas and bumped into Logano and sent him spinning through the final turn. Dillon then veered dead left and turned Hamlin into the frontstretch’s outside wall to reclaim the lead and streak across the finish line to win for the fifth time in his career.

    After initially guaranteeing himself and his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet team a spot into the 2024 Cup Series Playoffs, disaster struck three days later after NASCAR revoked his Playoff eligibility due to the North Carolinian’s deliberate actions to win and make the postseason. Following two appeal processes made by Dillon and Richard Childress Racing, both of which were denied, Dillon plummeted back down towards the top-30 mark in the regular-season standings. Despite finishing in 15th place in the regular-season finale at Darlington, Dillon was unable to race his way back into the Playoffs, which he missed for the sixth time in his career.

    Through 399 previous Cup starts, Dillon has achieved five victories, six poles, 23 top-five results, 78 top-10 results, 411 laps led and an average-finishing result of 18.4. He is currently ranked in 29th place in the 2024 drivers’ standings.

    Austin Dillon is scheduled to make his 400th Cup Series career start at Watkins Glen International for the Go Bowling at The Glen on Sunday, September 15, with the event’s broadcast scheduled to occur at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Todd Gilliland to make 100th Cup start at Watkins Glen

    Todd Gilliland to make 100th Cup start at Watkins Glen

    Todd Gilliland is poised to achieve a milestone start in his third full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series. By competing in this weekend’s Cup Playoff event at Watkins Glen International, the driver of the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang Dark Horse will make his 100th career start in NASCAR’s premier series.

    A third-generation racer from Sherrills Ford, North Carolina, Gilliland made his inaugural presence in the Cup Series at the start of the 2022 season, where he assumed the role of the driver of the No. 38 Ford Mustang for Front Row Motorsports. By then, he had achieved two victories in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and was a two-time champion of the ARCA Menards Series West.

    During the season-opening 64th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, Gilliland ended up 33rd after being involved in a late multi-car wreck. During his next 20 starts, he notched eight top-20 results with a best finish of 15th at Darlington Raceway in May. He achieved his first career top-five finish at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course by finishing fourth amid an overtime finish.

    Gilliland capped off the regular-season stretch with four consecutive results outside the top 20 and did not make the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs. He managed to notch his second career top-10 result at Talladega Superspeedway with a seventh-place finish and then finished 13th during the penultimate Cup event on the schedule at Martinsville Speedway. Gilliland concluded his first full-time Cup season in 28th place in the final standings. In addition, he settled in third place in the Rookie-of-the-Year battle behind Austin Cindric and Harrison Burton.

    This past season, Gilliland competed driving for Front Row Motorsports and Rick Ware Racing for the entire 36-race schedule, 31 of which occurred with FRM. The remaining five occurred with Rick Ware Racing as the reigning Craftsman Truck Series champion Zane Smith piloted Gilliland’s No. 38 entry for six events. Throughout the 36-race schedule, Gilliland achieved a season-best eighth-place finish at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course in April and earned four top-10 results. With an average-finishing result of 22.0, Gilliland, who did not make the Playoffs for a second consecutive season, ended up in 28th place in the final standings for a second consecutive season.

    Returning as a full-time Cup Series competitor for Front Row Motorsports this season, Gilliland commenced his junior season by finishing 35th in the 66th running of the Daytona 500 after being involved in a late multi-car wreck. He would then lead a race-high 58 of 260 laps during the following event at Atlanta Motor Speedway before he was involved in another late multi-car wreck that pinned him four laps down and mired in 26th place in the final running order. After finishing no higher than 13th during his next seven starts, Gilliland notched his first top-10 result of the season by finishing eighth at Talladega Superspeedway in April.

    The North Carolinian proceeded to record three top-10 results and seven top-15 results over his next 12 starts before he capped off the regular-season stretch with finishes no higher than 17th twice in four races. By then, he missed the Cup Playoffs for a third consecutive season. Nonetheless, Gilliland has recorded four top-10 results through 27 scheduled events this year, which ties his current record of top-10 results from his previous season. In addition, he has led 126 laps with an average finish of 19.9, both higher than his previous marks over the last two seasons.

    Through 99 previous Cup starts, Gilliland, who is set to remain at Front Row Motorsports in 2025, has achieved one top-five result, 10 top-10 results, 137 laps led and an average-finishing result of 21.8 as he continues his pursuit of his first Cup Series career victory. He is currently ranked in 21st place in this year’s standings, which would mark a career-best result for the competitor.

    Todd Gilliland is scheduled to make his 100th Cup Series career start at Watkins Glen International for the Go Bowling at The Glen on Sunday, September 15, with the event’s broadcast time set for 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Larson set for second Indy 500-Coke 600 bid with Hendrick Motorsports and Arrow McLaren in 2025

    Larson set for second Indy 500-Coke 600 bid with Hendrick Motorsports and Arrow McLaren in 2025

    Nearly four months after having his plans of competing in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day spoiled due to Mother Nature, Kyle Larson returns to Memorial Day weekend in May 2025 with “unfinished business” as he will make a second attempt at “The Double” between two motorsports’ regions in two iconic racing venues.

    In a press conference at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Tuesday, September 10, Hendrick Motorsports and Arrow McLaren will join forces to support Larson’s double-duty effort for a second consecutive season in 2025. The conference featured Larson, Hendrick Motorsports’ owner Rick Hendrick, Hendrick Motorsports’ vice chairman Jeff Gordon, McLaren Racing’s CEO Zak Brown and Arrow McLaren’s sporting director Tony Kanaan.

    The news comes as Larson, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion from Elk Grove, California, who first announced his double-duty plans in January 2023 for the 2024 season, attempted to become the fifth competitor to pull off motorsports’ iconic double this past May. With on-track precipitation delaying the start of Larson’s first double-duty leg at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500, Larson opted to remain at Indianapolis, which resulted in him missing the start of the Coca-Cola 600. Once the Indy 500 commenced amid the delay, he proceeded to finish in 18th place despite getting penalized for speeding on pit road in the closing stages.

    At the conclusion of the Indy 500, Larson hopped on a plane and was flown to Charlotte Motor Speedway, where the Coke 600 had commenced as Xfinity Series veteran Justin Allgaier was piloting Larson’s No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry as a fill-in competitor. By the time Larson arrived at Charlotte, however, the event was placed in a red flag period on Lap 249 of 400 due to on-track precipitation. Following an extensive rain delay period, the event was made official. As a result, Allgaier, who was credited with starting the Coke 600 and methodically carved his way up the leaderboard from the rear of the field, was awarded a 13th-place result while Larson was unable to turn in a single lap for his second leg of “The Double.”

    Despite being named the 2024 Indy 500 Rookie-of-the-Year recipient and being praised by many for his attempted double-duty efforts, Larson has since evoked a goal to plot a second attempt at “The Double” and compete in both events spanning a total of 1,100 miles in a single day.

    “I really enjoyed the Month of May in Indy and racing with Arrow McLaren, but I was really disappointed with missing the Coca-Cola 600 with the No. 5 HendrickCars.com team,” Larson said in a released statement. “I appreciate the second opportunity because we have unfinished business. I really want to complete all 1,100 miles, and I think we have the opportunity to battle for the win in both events.”

    Since the Indy-Charlotte double attempt, Larson did achieve a little redemption of his own at Indianapolis this past July when he won the Brickyard 400 for the first time in his career while sporting the exact blue, orange and white scheme to his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet entry that he was initially set to sport during the Coke 600. After celebrating in the frontstretch, Larson hinted at a potential return to the 2025 Indy 500 to the delight of the Indianapolis fans, which is now official and set for next season.

    Like this season, Larson’s NTT IndyCar Series and Cup Series entries will carry sponsorship support from HendrickCars.com. The Californian will also sport the No. 17 on his Arrow McLaren Dallara-Chevrolet IndyCar entry at Indianapolis for a second consecutive season before he travels back to Charlotte and climbs aboard his No. 5 Chevrolet entry in the Cup circuit.

    “Kyle had a great month of May and showed what a gifted race car driver he is,” Rick Hendrick, a 14-time Cup Series championship owner, said. “From a sponsorship perspective, we saw an incredible lift for HendrickCars.com and measured a three-to-one return on our investment. It was a monumental effort by all involved, but we didn’t have the opportunity to see it through [because of inclement weather]. Everyone learned a great deal that we’ll take into next year. Now that we’ve experienced it once, we know what to expect, which can only make us better and more prepared. Zak [Brown] and the team at Arrow McLaren are tremendous partners, and we’re looking forward to finishing the job together in 2025.”

    Currently, Larson is one of 16 competitors vying for the 2024 Cup Series championship in the Playoffs. Having earned four victories throughout the 2024 regular-season stretch, he is ranked in 10th place in the Playoff standings and is 15 points above the top-12 cutline to advance from the Round of 16 to 12, with the first Playoff’s round set to conclude less than two weeks from now at Bristol Motor Speedway on September 21.

    The 2025 season is set to mark the 12th time overall where a competitor will attempt to compete in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day, a motorsports’ challenge that started when the late John Andretti achieved the first feat in 1994. In addition, Larson is set to become the first competitor to attempt “The Double” for a second time since Robby Gordon made his fourth attempt in 2004 and had Jaques Lazier fill in for him for the remainder of the Indy 500 due to a rain delay period as he competed in the Coke 600 with Richard Childress Racing.

    To date, Kurt Busch, the 2004 Cup Series champion, is the latest competitor to achieve “The Double” in 2014 despite having his hopes of completing the double’s 1,100 miles spoiled due to a late engine failure during the Coke 600. Tony Stewart, a three-time Cup Series champion, is the only competitor to complete all 1,100 miles of both races on the same day, finishing sixth at Indy before notching a third-place effort at Charlotte.

    For the 2025 Indianapolis 500, Larson will be a teammate to Arrow McLaren’s NTT IndyCar Series driver lineup that consists of Pato O’Ward, Nolan Siegel and Christian Lundgaard, the latter of whom will be joining the organization next season. It will also mark the third consecutive season that Arrow McLaren will attempt to field four entries in the Indy 500 as the organization attempts to return the iconic McLaren name to Victory Lane at Indianapolis since Johnny Rutherford made the last accomplishment in 1976.

    Photo by Chris Jones | IMS Photo.

    “Kyle showed us all what he was capable of this past May, and given a second chance with better weather conditions, I think we’ll all be excited to see him fight for a win at the Indy 500 and then another one in Charlotte,” Zak Brown added. “He’s one of the most talented racing drivers out there, and it’s a privilege to do this again with Mr. Hendrick and Jeff Gordon, who are both world-class. We can’t wait for May.”

    *Note: Compared to this season, Rick Hendrick mentioned that the 2025 Coca-Cola 600 race will be Larson’s priority in the event that Mother Nature hinders the Californian’s double-duty effort for a second time. In an event of this nature, Tony Kanaan, the 2013 Indianapolis 500 champion and the 2004 NTT IndyCar Series champion with 17 victories who coached Larson during his attempted double, will pilot Larson’s No. 17 Chevrolet entry.

    With his Memorial Day weekend plans for next season set, Kyle Larson’s 2025 “The Double” campaign is scheduled to occur on May 25. The 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is slated to air at 11 a.m. ET on FOX before the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway will follow suit later in the day. While the Coke 600 will be aired on Amazon Prime Video, a start time remains to be determined.

  • Montoya scheduled for Cup return with 23XI Racing at Watkins Glen

    Montoya scheduled for Cup return with 23XI Racing at Watkins Glen

    The upcoming Go Bowling at The Glen is set to mark the third and final appearance of 23XI Racing’s No. 50 “all-star” entry for the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season. For the event, the entry will feature a familiar face returning to a Cup Series grid for the first time in a decade as Juan Pablo Montoya will assume the reigns of the entry at a road course venue where he achieved his latest NASCAR triumph 14 years ago.

    Montoya, a native of Bogota, Columbia, makes his return to the Cup Series level since he last competed in the series at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2014 and as a full-time competitor in 2013. He made his series’ debut during the 2006 season-finale event at Homestead-Miami Speedway before campaigning on a full-time basis with Chip Ganassi Racing the following season.

    Since the transition to full-time NASCAR competition, Montoya proceeded to notch two career victories in the sport’s premier series, with his first occurring during his rookie season at Sonoma Raceway in 2007 before he double down at Watkins Glen in 2010. By then, he became the first Columbian competitor to win in the Cup Series. He would also notch nine poles, 24 top-five results, 59 top-10 results, 1,124 laps led and an average-finishing result of 19.8 through a total of 255 Cup Series starts.

    Montoya’s other achievements across NASCAR include notching the Rookie-of-the Year title in 2007, becoming the first foreign-born competitor to make the Playoffs in 2009 before settling in a career-best eighth place in the season’s final standings and scoring his first Xfinity Series career victory at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City in 2007.    

    Having spent a bulk of his NASCAR career piloting Dodge or Chevrolet while driving for team owner Chip Ganassi before making his latest two starts in a Ford for Team Penske, Montoya will pilot a Toyota for the first time this upcoming weekend at The Glen for 23XI Racing, an organization that is in its fourth season in competition and notched the 2024 Cup Series Regular Season Championship with Tyler Reddick. The chance to compete at The Glen also marks an opportune time for Montoya to relive his previous excitement and competitiveness he delivered on the track in NASCAR while being sponsored by Mobil 1, one of his earliest sponsors in his racing career as the motor oil brand celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2024.

    “I’m looking forward to getting back in a Cup car and racing at Watkins Glen – a track I really enjoy and had the chance to experience earlier in my career,” Montoya, who was announced to drive at The Glen for 23XI Racing on August 2, said in a released statement. “It’s an honor to celebrate the Mobil 1 team’s remarkable legacy in racing and be recognized for my contributions to motorsports. The Mobil 1 brand was one of my first sponsors when I started racing, so to represent the brand again as they celebrate this milestone will be so special. I’m also excited to work with 23XI and experience what the team is building.”

    In addition to his previous success in NASCAR, Montoya joins 23XI Racing with a rich resume in motorsports competition that includes winning the Indianapolis 500 twice (2000 & 2015), claiming the 1999 IndyCar championship and achieving the 1998 International Formula 3000 title. During both his Indy 500 and IndyCar championship achievements, he also claimed the Rookie-of-the-Year title. He would also notch the 2019 IMSA SportsCar Championship and three Rolex 24 at Daytona titles (2007, 2008 & 2013). To date, Montoya has accumulated five IndyCar race victories and seven Formula One Grand Prixs, including the 2003 Monaco Grand Prix.

    “Juan Pablo Montoya is a world-class driver who has won in everything he’s driven, and he will be a great closer to the 50th-anniversary celebration we’ve had in NASCAR with the No. 50 Mobil 1 Toyota,” Steve Lauletta, President of 23XI Racing, added. “The events have highlighted racing legends as well as what’s next in motorsports, and 23XI has been honored to have been a part of adding to the Mobil 1 legacy and celebrating such a momentous occasion.”

    This season marks the second consecutive season where 23XI Racing is fielding a third part-time entry for select Cup Series events and to compete alongside the team’s two full-time entries: the No. 23 Toyota entry piloted by Bubba Wallace and the No. 45 Toyota entry piloted by Tyler Reddick. The entry debuted as No. 67 during the 2023 Daytona Speedweeks, where Rally Car champion Travis Pastrana qualified for the 65th running of the Daytona 500 and proceeded to finish in 11th place despite getting collected in a final lap multi-car wreck. Seven months after the Daytona 500, Kamui Kobayashi, a two-time FIA World Endurance champion and the 2021 24 Hours of of Le Mans winner, made his NASCAR debut at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, where he finished 33rd.

    For this season, the entry was renumbered to 50 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Mobil 1, which sponsored the entry during its previous two starts of this season and is set to sponsor Montoya at The Glen. The No. 50 Toyota’s first start of the 2024 season occurred at Circuit of the Americas in March, where Kobayashi returned and finished 29th in his second Cup career start. At Nashville Superspeedway in June, Corey Heim, a current NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoff contender for TRICON Garage, piloted the entry to a 29th-place result despite getting collected in a late multi-car wreck.

    23XI Racing’s current plans on fielding its third entry for another partial or full-time schedule in 2025 remains to be determined.

    Juan Pablo Montoya’s return to the NASCAR Cup Series with 23XI Racing is scheduled to occur this upcoming Sunday, September 15, at Watkins Glen International for the Go Bowling at The Glen, with the event’s broadcast time to commence at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Byron, Hendrick Motorsports scheduled for final Xfinity start of 2024 at Watkins Glen

    Byron, Hendrick Motorsports scheduled for final Xfinity start of 2024 at Watkins Glen

    The No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro entry from Hendrick Motorsports is scheduled to make its 10th and final appearance of the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series season this upcoming weekend at Watkins Glen International for the Mission 200 at The Glen with the reigning Daytona 500 champion William Byron at the helm of the wheel for the event.

    This past February, Hendrick Motorsports revealed its 10-race Xfinity Series schedule for its No. 17 “all-star” entry, which marked an increase to the organization’s third part-time campaign in the series after campaigning in four events in 2022 before returning for six in 2023. The 10-race schedule to the 2024 season featured all four of Hendrick’s Cup Series stars (Alex Bowman, William Byron, Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson) and road-course ringer Boris Said each taking turns pilot the No. 17 car at least once. Throughout the schedule, Brandon McSwain, the lead engineer of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry in the Cup Series piloted by Byron, worked as the No. 17 entry’s crew chief in four events Byron competed in while former Xfinity championship-winning crew chief Greg Ives returned to work with the rest of the organization’s “all-star” lineup in the remaining six events.

    Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 17 Chevrolet Camaro entry commenced the 2024 season at Phoenix Raceway in early March, where Byron finished in 23rd place after he scraped the backstretch’s outside wall while trying to dodge a late multi-car wreck.

    Then two weeks later, Kyle Larson, the 2021 Cup Series champion, capitalized on a last-lap tussle involving rookie Shane van Gisbergen and Austin Hill amid two overtime shootouts to steer the No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet entry to its first victory in the Xfinity Series at Circuit of the Americas. The victory occurred after Larson had pitted for fresh tires during a late-caution period prior to the overtime shootouts and was able to quickly weave his way to the front after restarting in 21st place. It also occurred after the Elk Grove, California, native started at the rear of the field due to his crew replacing a cracked brake rotor to the entry. With the victory, Larson recorded Hendrick Motorsports’ first Xfinity victory since Tony Stewart made the last accomplishment at Daytona International Speedway in 2009 and the organization’s first on a road course venue in the series.

    Two months later, Byron would finish in 11th place in his second start of the 2024 season at Darlington Raceway before Chase Elliott drove the No. 17 entry to his first Xfinity victory of the season at Charlotte Motor Speedway during Memorial Day weekend. Elliott’s Charlotte victory occurred after the 2020 Cup Series champion methodically drove his way from his 30th-starting spot and utilized pit strategy to lead the final 18 laps and beating runner-up Brandon Jones by half a second to notch his sixth career victory in the series and his first since winning the 2016 opener at Daytona. The victory marked a special moment for both Elliott and crew chief Greg Ives, both of whom won the Xfinity title with JR Motorsports in 2014, as the duo notched Hendrick Motorsports’ fifth series’ victory at Charlotte and the first since Kyle Busch made the last accomplishment in 2005. To date, Elliott also notched the 25th Xfinity career victory for Hendrick Motorsports.

    Two races later, Boris Said settled in 28th place at Sonoma Raceway after he started at the rear of the field in a backup car and was collected in a late multi-car wreck. Alex Bowman would then make his only Xfinity start of the season at New Hampshire Motor Speedway two races later, where he finished ninth, before Larson recorded a strong third-place run at the Chicago Street Course in early July after leading 12 laps. The Chicago event would mark Larson’s second and final Xfinity start of the 2024 season.

    A week later, Byron steered the No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet entry to a third-place result at Pocono Raceway. Recently, Elliott finished fourth in his second and final Xfinity start of the 2024 season at Darlington Raceway.

    Through nine starts this season, Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 17 Chevrolet entry notched two victories, five top-five results and six top-10 results. To go along with the pair of victories at Circuit of the Americas and Charlotte, the top-five and top-10 results recorded for the entry are more than the entry’s previous recordings over the previous two seasons with an expanded schedule. In total, Hendrick Motorsports has notched 11 top-five results, including the two victories, and 13 top-10 results in 19 on-track appearances.

    For Byron, this upcoming weekend will mark his third Xfinity career start at Watkins Glen International, with his best series’ result being a 10th place run during his championship season in 2017. The Charlotte native will also strive for redemption at this course after he nearly won at The Glen in 2022, where he started on pole position, led a race-high 35 of 82 laps and was battling for the victory during a five-lap shootout until contact with Ty Gibbs sent both spinning through the Inner Loop turn. Byron would continue and settle in 25th place as Larson, who was piloting a HendrickCars.com-sponsored entry for JR Motorsports, would proceed to win the race.

    Byron and the No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro team from Hendrick Motorsports are scheduled to compete in the upcoming Mission 200 at The Glen for a final pursuit of a checkered flag in 2024. The event is scheduled to occur this upcoming Saturday, September 14, and air at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

  • Connor Zilisch scheduled for Xfinity debut at Watkins Glen ahead of full-time campaign in 2025

    Connor Zilisch scheduled for Xfinity debut at Watkins Glen ahead of full-time campaign in 2025

    A month after being revealed as a full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series competitor for the 2025 season through his future team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s podcast, Connor Zilisch will campaign in his first of select starts in the series and behind the wheel of the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro entry for JR Motorsports in the upcoming Xfinity Series’ Mission 200 at The Glen (Watkins Glen International) on Saturday, September 14.

    The 18-year-old Zilisch from Charlotte, North Carolina, prepares to make his first on-track presence in the Xfinity circuit and to add to his impressive racing resume that started by competing in go-karts before he became the first American to win the CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy in 2020. He would then achieve the Mazda MX-5 Cup Scholarship and the Rookie-of-the-Year title over the next two seasons before he transcended his way up to Late Model competition during the 2022 season.

    This past January, Zilisch inked a multi-year development contract with Trackhouse Racing that would feature the Charlotte native making select starts across the CARS Tour, ARCA, Trans Am, IMSA and NASCAR Craftsman Truck and Xfinity Series divisions. After winning this year’s 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring, both in the LMP2 class, Zilisch notched an impressive fourth-place run in his Truck Series debut with Spire Motorsports at Circuit of the Americas in March during a weekend where he notched his first series career pole and rallied from both overshooting the first turn on the opening lap and spinning on the track while trying to navigate his way back to the front.

    In addition to his part-time Truck campaign with Spire and upcoming Xfinity starts with JR Motorsports, Zilisch is also competing on a full-time basis in the ARCA Menards Series East division for Pinnacle Racin Group, Currently, he leads the championship standings by 17 points through seven of eight-scheduled events and in a season where he has won four races and finished no lower than fourth. Through five ARCA Menards Series events, Zilisch has also notched four victories, where he has won at Dover Motor Speedway, Iowa Speedway, Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park and Michigan International Speedway.

    Now, the future is set to grow even brighter for Zilisch when he was named a full-time Xfinity Series competitor for JR Motorsports for the 2025 season on August 7, where he will commence his pursuit for his first Xfinity title at Daytona International Speedway on February 15, 2025.  

    “With so much support from Chevrolet and chances to race in Trucks, ARCA and Trans Am with the support of Silver Hare Racing, I was able to sign with Trackhouse and they went to work to secure an incredible opportunity for me,” Zilisch said in a press release. “I am so grateful and can’t wait to show them that their trust in me is warranted. It is mind-blowing to think that I will be driving for JR Motorsports and Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who is one of my heroes. I’m ready to put in the work.”

    The 2025 season will mark the first time since 2016 that JR Motorsports’ No. 88 Chevrolet entry will campaign on a full-time basis in the Xfinity Series and the first time the entry will be piloted by a single competitor throughout an entire Xfinity schedule since Cole Whitt competed in 2012. With JR Motorsports accumulating 85 Xfinity victories to date, the organization’s No. 88 entry last went to Victory Lane ironically at Watkins Glen with Kyle Larson in 2022 as Zilisch strives to add his name to an elite class of competitors who have piloted the No. 88 Chevrolet to Victory Lane, among which includes Earnhardt Jr.

    Competing at The Glen in the Xfinity circuit generates an opportunity for Zilisch to achieve redemption a year after he fell short of winning the ARCA event at the venue, where he assumed the lead during a one-lap shootout before he was overtaken by Jesse Love entering the final corner.

    “Connor is such an impressive driver at this young age,” Earnhardt Jr. added. “We’re excited for him to get behind the wheel full-time next season. He is on a path to sure success with support from Chevrolet, Silver Hare Racing, Trackhouse, and now JR Motorsports.”

    JR Motorsports’ No. 88 Chevrolet entry has made 10 starts through the first 24 events of the 2024 Xfinity Series season. Thus far, Bubba Pollard, Carson Kvapil and Connor Mosack have taken turns piloting the entry in select events, with Kvapil recording the team’s current best on-track result of second place at Dover Motor Speedway this past April. In addition to Zilisch, Kvapil and Mosack are also scheduled to make additional select starts in the entry for the remainder of the season. Earnhardt Jr. is also scheduled to make his lone Xfinity start of the season next Friday, August 20, at Bristol Motor Speedway a year after he made two starts in the No. 88 entry.

    Following Zilisch’s Xfinity debut at Watkins Glen, he will then compete in JR Motorsports’ No. 88 Chevrolet at Kansas Speedway in late September before he returns to race at Homestead-Miami Speedway in late October and the season-finale event at Phoenix Raceway during the second week of November. Zilisch, who made his second Truck career start at Richmond Raceway last August, is also set to make four additional Truck starts over the final six events on the schedule, beginning next week at Bristol Motor Speedway as he will also race at Talladega Superspeedway, Homestead and Martinsville Speedway between October and November.

    Connor Zilisch’s NASCAR Xfinity Series debut with JR Motorsports is scheduled to occur this upcoming Saturday, September 14, at Watkins Glen International for the Mission 200 at The Glen as the event’s broadcast time will air at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.