The NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship 4 is set after Saturday night’s Round of 8 finale at Martinsville Speedway.
Jesse Love and Carson Kvapil clinched the final two spots to race for a title at Phoenix Raceway with respective finishes of 23rd and 18th. Both drivers had to overcome adversity throughout the evening at the Virginia short track as Love lacked speed and had multiple early penalties, while Kvapil spun late in the race.
Kvapil rallied late after his Lap 227 spin and gained more than 10 positions before the checkered flag to outduel Brandon Jones by four points for the final Championship 4 spot.
JR Motorsports drivers Connor Zilisch and Justin Allgaier already punched their tickets to Phoenix on points after Talladega Superspeedway.
Jones, Sammy Smith, Sam Mayer and Sheldon Creed were eliminated from championship contention at Martinsville.
Mayer expressed his frustrations with racing Jeb Burton. Mayer spun the No. 27 Jordan Anderson Racing driver after the checkered flag and shared pointed words about Burton on pit road.
“It’s a principle thing. He’s the worst person to race around in the entire garage,” Mayer said of Burton. “He has a reputation of being over his head every single week and this was a prime example of it. He just can’t take no for an answer and a guy with a purple spoiler racing for something huge, moved him out of the way and went on and was faster than him in the end, and as soon as he got back to me, he gave it the beans and tried to wreck me three corners in a row.”
Mayer’s Haas Factory Racing teammate Creed said he just needed a little more to compete for the win Saturday night to advance, ultimately finishing fourth.
“We just needed to be a little better to maybe be in the position the 8 or the 20 were in,” Creed said. “I’m really surprised the 20 didn’t kind of try to push the 54 up or even the 8. I thought he was for sure gonna try. To see a Martinsville finish end like that is probably good for the series. I think guys are maturing and I feel like all of us are just trying to race each other a little better, but I just felt like the 20 or the 8 could have maybe pushed the issue a little more there.”
The Xfinity Series Championship takes place next Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET, The CW, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) and will be the final title race to take place at the 1-mile Arizona oval. It’s also the final race with Xfinity as the series title sponsor.
MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Not only did Taylor Gray have plenty of reason to celebrate his first NASCAR Xfinity Series victory Saturday night at Martinsville Speedway, but he also made Carson Kvapil’s day.
Driving the No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Gray pulled away from former nemesis Sammy Smith after an overtime restart on Lap 252 and held on to win the IAA & Ritchie Bros. 250 at the 0.526-mile short track.
When Gray took the checkered flag, keeping playoff contenders Smith and Brandon Jones behind him, Kvapil had a place in next Saturday’s Championship 4 race at Phoenix Raceway.
After a frenetic drive from 30th place in the final 17 laps of regulation, Kvapil advanced to the Xfinity title race by four points over Jones and five over Smith. Kvapil joins Jesse Love, Justin Allgaier and rookie Connor Zilisch in the championship event.
Eliminated along with Jones and Smith were Sam Mayer, who took out his frustrations on Jeb Burton’s car after the race, and fourth-place finisher Sheldon Creed, who couldn’t prevail in a must-win situation entering the event.
The playoff drama, however, did nothing to diminish the effort of Gray, who surged into the lead after a restart on Lap 202 and held it the rest of the way.
Gray was driving toward a probable victory in regulation when Daniel Dye’s Chevrolet began spewing sparks and stopped on the track to cause the ninth caution of the evening and force overtime.
With a great launch on the overtime restart, Gray pulled away to win by 0.344 seconds over Smith and 0.650 seconds over Jones.
“(Crew chief) Jason Ratcliff, all these guys — the pit crew did an awesome job tonight,” exulted Gray, who led a race-high 52 laps in his 45th start in the series. “They give me opportunities to win every time I walk through the gates to this race track.
“I knew I needed to get a good enough launch so that I wouldn’t have anyone in reach of me heading into Turn 1. At that point, I knew we had a good enough car to drive away from the guys behind me.”
Last spring, Gray was in a similar position before Smith knocked him out of the way in the closing laps with such aggression that NASCAR penalized the driver of the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet.
In Saturday’s race, Smith drove with more restraint in his pursuit, and Gray had his maiden victory in the series.
“I feel like we’re good enough to be in the final four,” Smith said. “We weren’t good enough in the playoffs to do that. It really sucks, so we’ll just regroup and keep digging.”
Love, who came to Martinsville with a 40-point cushion above the elimination line, suffered through an evening fraught with errors, including a pair of pit road penalties, and finished 23rd. Nevertheless, he advanced by 18 points over Jones.
Kvapil seemed secure in points until a chain-reaction collision involving Ryan Sieg and Harrison Burton sent his No.1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet spinning on Lap 227.
Kvapil restarted 30th and drove frantically through the field to finish 18th and preserve his spot in the Championship 4.
“That was probably the most nerve-wracking racing I’ve done in my career,” Kvapil said. “Obviously, we were sitting in a pretty good spot before we got turned around there…
“I think the sky’s the limit for these guys. Our season hasn’t been the flashiest … but you never know. It all comes down to one race and we’ve got a 25-percent chance of winning.”
Aric Almirola, who will battle for the Xfinity owners’ championship next Saturday against Allgaier, Zilisch and Austin Hill, finished fifth behind Creed. Jeb Burton, Mayer, Dean Thompson, Connor Zilisch and Modified Tour star Justin Bonsignore completed the top 10.
The Xfinity Series will crown a champion next Saturday at Phoenix Raceway (7:30 p.m. ET, The CW, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). It’s the final race with Xfinity serving as the series entitlement sponsor.
NOTE: Post-race inspection in the Xfinity Series garage concluded without issue, confirming Gray as the race winner and officially finalizing the Championship 4. No cars will return to the NASCAR R&D Center in Concord, North Carolina.
Track: Martinsville Speedway Location: Martinsville, Virginia Track length: 0.526 miles When: Sunday, 2 p.m. ET Where to tune in: NBC, Peacock, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App Race purse: $9,797,935 Race distance: 500 laps | 263 miles Stages: 130 | 260 | 500 Defending winner: Ryan Blaney, November 2024 Starting lineup: William Byron on pole at Martinsville
Hendrick Motorsports’ Championship 4 prospects hinge on Martinsville
MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Hendrick Motorsports has typically treated Martinsville Speedway as a friendly place, competition-wise. All four of the organization’s drivers have won here in the NASCAR Cup Series, and another victory Sunday would mark its 30th Martinsville victory — padding the team’s series-leading tally.
This time around, the stakes go beyond statistics, superlatives and the organization’s rich Martinsville history.
Postseason implications abound in Sunday’s Xfinity 500, the final race in the Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 8. Four drivers will be eliminated from playoff contention, while the other four will move on to vie for the Cup Series championship in the season finale Nov. 2 at Phoenix Raceway.
How many Hendrick Motorsports drivers make that title-shot trip remains among the top questions for Sunday’s 500-lap showdown. William Byron, Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson are all clinging to eligibility, but only two available spots remain. Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe snapped up two berths with Round of 8 wins the last two weeks, so Hendrick’s count of Championship 4-bound drivers could be two, one or at worst zero, depending on how Martinsville plays out for the organization that has had at least one championship-race qualifier each year since 2020.
Hendrick Motorsports has five victories in the last 14 Martinsville events, but the two other operations that hold out playoff hope this weekend have made some inroads. JGR has also won five races in that span, and Team Penske has four Martinsville wins in that stretch, including two straight from Ryan Blaney in the Virginia short track’s annual fall clash.
All three Hendrick Motorsports playoff drivers endured varying degrees of hardship last weekend at Talladega, between Byron’s last-lap spin, Larson’s final-lap fuel flutter and Elliott’s Stage 1 crash-out. The organization will have at least one odd man out after this weekend’s battle. With NASCAR’s winningest team heading to one of its traditional strongholds, here’s a driver-by-driver look at each of their prospects, listed in order of their percentages of advancing, according to statistical clearinghouse Racing Insights.
Kyle Larson (81.8%): As the only Hendrick driver above the provisional elimination line (by a plus-36 margin), Larson holds the best hope of the three for landing in Phoenix with title dreams intact, and he bolstered that by qualifying third Saturday. He also holds a hefty history of strong Martinsville performances in his favor, including a remarkable series-best average finish of 3.2 in the last six races here, with top-six finishes for the No. 5 Chevrolet in all of them.
Larson is currently fourth in the playoff standings, just one point behind Christopher Bell. That positioning creates an intriguing subplot, with each of those two longtime challengers needing to stay in front of the other, protecting against another winner below the cutline from knocking them out. All four drivers below the cut are former Martinsville winners, so that danger is real.
Chase Elliott (9.6%): Elliott’s last-place finish at Talladega leaves him in the playoffs cellar, 62 points below the elimination threshold and needing a win to stay in postseason contention. Martinsville could very well be a welcoming place for that: His lone win here served as a late-hour springboard to his Cup Series title campaign in 2020.
“Things haven’t really gone the way that we want them to, and it’s easy to feel sorry for yourself,” said No. 9 crew chief Alan Gustafson. “But that just doesn’t do any good. There’s no real value in that. So I think everybody understands that, and I can speak for myself and how I try to influence a team, but I think you still have a lot of opportunity, right? I mean, we’ve got a lot of opportunity to come in here and race for a win, and it’s best to spend that effort focusing on that. And I’m excited to be able to do it.”
His more recent record here suggests that the potential is there again for the No. 9 Chevy team, which led the way in Saturday’s practice session. Elliott’s last three Martinsville events have resulted in top-four finishes, and no Cup Series driver has earned more points in that stretch.
William Byron (8.5%): The Regular Season Champion’s points advantage has taken a pair of hard hits in the Round of 8 — a fluke crash at Las Vegas that dropped him below the cutline and a last-lap Talladega spin that knocked the rest of the stuffing from his playoff cushion, leaving him minus-36 loading into Martinsville.
Byron has won twice in the last seven races here, but those results are his only top-five finishes during that period. He’ll have a clear view at the green flag Sunday, starting from the pole position after topping the qualifying pack Saturday. Making the Championship 4 field for the third straight year will hinge on him righting the No. 24 team’s course in a hurry; his two top 10s in the playoffs are the fewest of the current postseason field.
What do crew chiefs have in focus to win Sunday’s race?
It’s been 15 years since one driver has swept both Martinsville races in a single season, dating back to Denny Hamlin’s double-up in 2010, lending credence to the prevailing thought that spring-seasonal dominance here doesn’t necessarily translate to similar performance in the fall.
“Yeah, I think that’s been the same way for as long as I’ve been going there,” says Rudy Fugle, crew chief for William Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet.
This time, though, two key differences stand out. Teams will come to grips in Sunday’s race with a new, softer-compound left-side Goodyear tire, one that should promise advanced wear and place a premium on tire management and strategy. The race will also stretch from the springtime 400-lap distance to a traditional 500-lapper, with all three stages longer to match.
The move to softer tire compounds follows a recent trend, and this setup emerged from a Goodyear tire test at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in July. Three months later, the combination is set to be used in much chillier conditions, with a daytime high barely cresting 60 degrees in the southern Virginia hills.
“It’s more just a wait and see, and we’ll see what the track temps are like and how it behaves when it rubbers in,” said James Small, crew chief for Chase Briscoe’s No. 19 Toyota, earlier in the week. “But obviously, same construction as what we’ve been using, but just slightly softer compound. I know the guys that did the Loudon Goodyear tire test, including (teammate) Christopher (Bell), they got a run on these tires. So we have some general feedback on how it compared to what we previously raced. So yeah, not expecting a huge amount of difference, just maybe a little more wear and falloff.”
A pair of 25-minute practice sessions in the cooler temps as Saturday’s sun set offered at least a glimpse. The track rubbered in slightly, and Byron speculated that warmer weather from a 2 p.m. ET start may help promote that. Hamlin gave the new tire setup a glowing initial review, saying practice felt like turning the clock back 15 years to a decidedly old-school feel.
That degree of wear and tire management will also be impacted by the length of Sunday’s race, 100 laps longer than when the Cup Series last visited here in March. In the spring, the stage breaks came at Laps 80 and 180 with the full distance at 400; Sunday’s event has stages ending at Lap 130, Lap 260 and a full 500 laps scheduled. With longer runs potentially in the pit-strategy mix Sunday, unloading fast or dialing in the setup quickly is paramount.
“It certainly does,” said Adam Stevens, crew chief for Bell’s No. 20 Toyota, “and then you factor in that new tire combination with the softer left side, you would think that they’re going to wear out quicker, and them wearing out quicker and then having longer runs, if you don’t have an opportunity in practice to run out the full 25 minutes and see how it really behaves, because maybe you need an adjustment or maybe the caution comes out because of some other reason, and you just can’t have a full understanding of that, chances are you’re going to acquire a full understanding of that when the race starts.
“We’ve seen in the past there, gosh, I can’t remember what year it was where I want to say one of the Penske cars started on the pole. This was not this era of car but the previous car, and we had some kind of tire change, and they got lapped on the first run. I think everybody was surprised at the degradation and the wear, and the track didn’t take rubber, and once the race started, you didn’t have a lot of tools to work on it, and certainly didn’t have any tools until the caution came out, and it really puts you in hang-on mode. That is a distinct possibility at Martinsville, especially with the temps that we’re going to have and a little bit of unknown with the new tire. So you hope that you unload close and you hope you have an opportunity to go out there and put 60 or 70 laps on your tires in practice and really develop some kind of understanding of what you’re really up against.”
The advantage we think it is? Typically, the first pit stall — the one nearest pit lane’s exit — is the prime choice for top qualifiers. While an unhindered pit-road egress is still a competitive edge, it hasn’t translated recently to victory since pit stall No. 1 is winless in the last 24 Martinsville races. That same span has also been a dry spell for pole winners. The last driver to win from the pole position (and the first pit-road stall) is Jimmie Johnson, who led 346 of 500 laps in the STP Gas Booster 500 in April 2013.
He may not be the favorite to win, but watch out for …
BUBBA WALLACE. The focus will naturally be on the eight drivers with playoff eligibility, but one of the Round of 12’s ousted pilots may have an opportunity to play spoiler. Wallace has finished among the top 10 in four of the last six Martinsville races with an average finish of 8.8 in that span, and he ran third in the Cup Series’ most recent trip here, capping off a 1-2-3 Toyota sweep. The 23XI Racing veteran has also won twice here in the Craftsman Truck Series, rolling to his first NASCAR national-series win back in 2013. He was also fourth-fastest overall in Saturday’s Cup Series practice. | See Wallace’s projected finish
Fantasy update
NASCAR Fantasy Live expert Dustin Albino provides insight for your Sunday lineup.
Five hundred laps around Martinsville is an eternity, but select Round of 8 drivers might need every one of them to be in the mix. Before turning in a stunning 31st-place starting position, Ryan Blaney couldn’t pinpoint why the No. 12 team has historically struggled to qualify well at Martinsville. Needing to win at Martinsville to advance to the Round of 8 will put Blaney’s long-run pace to the test. There’s a good chance he misses out on stage points entirely, but he had one of the best long-run cars, cracking the top three in 20- and 25-lap averages. That’s a category Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson dominated during practice. William Byron scored his third Busch Light Pole Award of the season and has moved into my lineup over Christopher Bell, who was grappling with his No. 20 Toyota during practice. I’m keeping Denny Hamlin out of my lineup with only one use left, and the No. 11 team also had starter issues when hitting the track for qualifying.
Lineup: Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson, William Byron, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney Garage: Chase Briscoe
Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles.
•NASCAR at Martinsville: Key info, qualifying reports and more | Read more • Bubble Watch: Three JGR drivers on the plus side of playoff picture | Read more • Paint Scheme Preview: Fresh designs set for short-track showdown | View gallery • Rivalry evolution: Larson on how competitive nature with Bell pushed him | Read more
• Hauler Talk: Martinsville a penultimate race worth monitoring | Read more • A legend’s legacy: Remembering Richie Evans’ Modified mastery | Read more
• Fresh grip: Goodyear debuts new left-side tire for Martinsville | Read more • At-track photos: Trackside sights, scenes from Round of 8 finale | View gallery
• Turning Point to Martinsville: JGR’s prospects for a Phoenix triple play | Read more • Power Rankings: Sizing up the eight postseason hopefuls | This week’s ranks • Neil Paine: Larson, Bell safe in the standings … to a point | Read more
• NASCAR Classics: Inside the video vault with Martinsville full-race replays | Watch now
• Playoff Pulse: Who’s hot, who’s not ahead of Martinsville | Read more
William Byron, one of four drivers realistically needing a victory at Martinsville Speedway to advance to the Championship 4 race in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, picked the ideal moment to win his first pole position at the historic short track.
Covering the 0.526-mile distance in 19.286 seconds (98.185 mph) on Saturday, Byron edged non-playoff driver Ty Gibbs (98.175 mph) by 0.002 seconds for the top starting spot in Sunday’s Xfinity 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, Peacock, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).
The Busch Light Pole Award was Byron’s third of the year and 16th of his career, but his first since the eighth race of the 2025 season at Darlington Raceway.
Though he’s starting up front, Byron was wary of placing too much emphasis on his pole-winning run.
“It’s nice, but it doesn’t count for anything yet,” said the driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, who starts Sunday’s race fifth in the playoff standings and 36 points below the cut line for the Nov. 2 Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway. “Yeah, it’s good. We’ve prepared well coming here, and I feel pretty good about my race car…
“You always want track position, and being on the pole is nice. It gives us a good pit stall — that’s probably the biggest key out of it — and it gives us a chance to control the race for a little bit.”
Byron’s teammate, Kyle Larson, fourth in the standings and 36 points above the elimination line, will start third after a lap at 98.038 mph. Playoff drivers Joey Logano (98.002 mph) and Denny Hamlin (97.876 mph) secured starting positions four and five for the final race in the Round of 8.
Logano is 38 points below the cut line in a virtual must-win situation. Hamlin and Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe have already made the Championship 4 with victories in the Round of 8.
“You’re never satisfied or never happy until we win, but that’s a good starting spot for our Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang,” said Logano, the defending series champion. “I can see the front from there, and hopefully we’ll get one of the pit stalls we’re looking for, but we’re all or nothing.
“You just kind of have to keep that attitude all day and see if we can put it up there. It seems like our short-run speed was in the game. Our long-run speed was less than great, so we’ve got some work to do there.”
Cole Custer qualified sixth, followed by Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Briscoe and Austin Cindric. Along with Byron and Logano, Elliott and 31st-place qualifier Ryan Blaney almost certainly must win the race to advance.
Blaney has won the last two fall playoff races at Martinsville. His victory in 2023 led to a series championship.
Christopher Bell, 37 points above the elimination line, was the only other playoff driver outside the top 10 in time trials. He qualified 12th.
Elliott tops practice leaderboard
Facing a must-win situation, Elliott turned the quickest time in Cup Series practice on Saturday. The field was split into two groups, with each group receiving 25 minutes of track time.
Elliott turned a lap of 95.796 mph, besting spring race winner Hamlin (95.791 mph). Gibbs was third fastest (95.782 mph), followed by Bubba Wallace (95.738 mph) and Larson (95.728 mph). AJ Allmendinger was sixth overall and the best among Group 1 drivers, while Byron, Ty Dillon, Logano and Todd Gilliland completed the top 10.
MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Team Penske is on the verge of missing the Championship 4 for the first time since 2021 — the same team that has won every championship under the Next Gen banner since 2022.
Defending champ Joey Logano sits 38 points beneath the cutline, with teammate Ryan Blaney 47 points out. The duo is in must-win mode entering Sunday’s Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway (2 p.m. ET, NBC, Peacock, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Both title winners and veterans of the sport, both enter Sunday’s 500-lapper focused on the task at hand.
“You just have to understand what needs to be done this weekend,” Blaney said Saturday. “You can’t control anything that happened last week. It’s in the past. It’s done. It’s how do we go into this weekend? We know what we have to do, and just go try to be 100% of what this 12 group can be. And I’d say that’s all I’ve ever asked of people in our group, is just give your best effort through the weekend. Just put up all of yourself. And if it’s enough, that’s awesome, and we were able to do it. If not, at least you know you did everything you could and nothing was left on the table, and you hold your heads high, win or lose.”
Logano enters as the reigning champion of the NASCAR Cup Series with one more chance to advance and defend his crown. The driver of the No. 22 Ford certainly feels the pressure attached to the moment — but he’s channeling that to his benefit.
“It affects some people negatively, sure,” Logano said of the pressure. “But to me, I’ve found ways to make it affect me in a positive way, where it just helps me find a little bit more. It gives me a little extra motivation. It’s a little fire, right? Those things are all good things. Some people might overdo it. Some people might do it to where they make mistakes. You see that throughout the playoffs all the time, the way the pressure affects everyone — teams, not just drivers, but teams all the way through. Crew members, the whole nine, everybody. I mean, that’s why I always say I love this format so much because it puts everyone in this crazy, really challenging position.”
Blaney has won each of the past two fall races at Martinsville to lock his way into the Championship 4. With that kind of track record, the No. 12 team is seen as a major favorite heading into the Round of 8 finale all over again. But after last week’s race at Talladega Superspeedway, the 2023 champion cautioned it’s simply not that easy. His crew chief, Jonathan Hassler, concurs.
“I agree entirely with what Ryan says about that,” Hassler said in a Wednesday teleconference. “Yes, we won there twice. It’s certainly not easy to do. It doesn’t come on its own. We don’t bring the same setup from the spring. It only comes with a lot of hard work, and the only way we’re gonna do it again is to bear down and work hard, have a good car, and make sure we’re in the picture at the end of the race.
“We have to focus on the fact and approach the race as if we haven’t done it before. We have to go and do it again.”
Hassler said Blaney has a specific feel he seeks at Martinsville, with an approach that allows him to pass, something he typically addresses in practice.
“Just a lot of previous notes (and) history,” Blaney said ahead of Saturday’s session. “I just try to have that feel. And hey, if I’m this way in practice, I need to be prepared for the track to take this little step in this certain direction, and let’s guard against that — or let’s work towards that. I need double what I think I need at the time. So a lot of track history and experience definitely helps that out, and you hope you hit it right.”
Few teams have the reputation of working in sync the way Team Penske does. There are no setup secrets between the teams of Blaney, Logano, Austin Cindric and Wood Brothers Racing’s Josh Berry. Logano has one win in his Martinsville starts, but has finished inside the top 10 in each of his last 12 appearances. What has he gleaned from Blaney’s recent run of success at the 0.526-mile short track?
“The majority of the last 10 races here or so have been really solid,” Logano said of Blaney’s Martinsville prowess. “So yeah, we naturally look at that and say, ‘OK, what can I apply as a driver?’ Obviously, we see setup stuff of what they’re doing and those type of things, but yeah, he’s got a couple traits that are pretty apparent that he’s really good at. And trying to fight your natural instincts to drive like someone, that’s hard to do, right? I mean, it’s asking a basketball player to shoot a different style, right? Like, this is how I do it. I’ve done this for years. And now you’ve got to try something different.
“That’s hard to do, but it doesn’t mean you can’t do it. It’s just that you’ve got to try to buy into it, understand why and try to apply certain things like that.”
In practice, Logano posted the 30th-fastest lap with Blaney 31st.
“I think it had decent short-run speed. Our long-run speed was a little off,” Logano told truTV during qualifying. “I think we can dial that in and get a little bit closer, but I think we’re in the game here.”
Their long-run speed was marginally better, with Blaney ranked 12th in 30-lap averages of the 25 drivers who ran 30 consecutive laps, and Logano 14th in 30-lap averages. Blaney acknowledged the impact of Goodyear’s new, softer left-side tire for this weekend that he observed in practice, but he remains optimistic for Sunday’s Xfinity 500.
“I feel like left-rear conservation is going to be a really big deal (Sunday),” Blaney told truTV. “I know a lot of guys were kind of killing left-rear tires and things like that. That’s good, though, with fall-off and things like that. We’ll see how it is tomorrow. But I feel like I’m decent speed-wise. I feel like we can really work on the car in a good direction to get better and be a little bit more in the game.”
Logano will start fourth, while Blaney will start 31st on Sunday.
See where your favorite NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series drivers will pit this weekend at Martinsville Speedway.
NASCAR Cup Series
Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday (2 p.m. ET, NBC, Peacock, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).
The NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and Craftsman Truck Series continue the playoff action this weekend in Virginia, each wrapping up their respective Round of 8s and finalizing the 2025 Championship 4 contenders at Martinsville Speedway. Bookmark this page and come back often for your race-week essentials — from links to qualifying order, average practice speeds, results and more.
Race day: Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on NBC. The categories listed below will be filled out with links as the information becomes available.
Tires: Eleven sets for the weekend (nine new race sets, one set transferred from qualifying, one for practice). Teams will also be allotted four wet-weather sets, if necessary.
Race day: Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on The CW. The categories listed below will be filled out with links as the information becomes available.
Tires: Five sets for the weekend (three new race sets, one set transferred from qualifying, one for practice). Teams will also be allotted three wet-weather sets, if necessary.
Race day: Friday at 6 p.m. ET on FS1. The categories listed below will be filled out with links as the information becomes available.
Tires: Four sets for the weekend (two new race sets, one set transferred from qualifying, one for practice). Teams will also be allotted three wet-weather sets, if necessary.
MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Sam Hunt Racing announced today that the organization will expand to two full-time entries in 2026, both with full-time drivers in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. Dean Thompson, who broke multiple organizational records in his rookie Xfinity Series season, will return to the No. 26 Toyota GR Supra. Harrison Burton, a Cup Series winner and 2025 Xfinity Series Playoffs driver, will pilot the No. 24 Toyota GR Supra full-time.
“It’s extremely fulfilling for me to not only see SHR’s on-track growth, but to witness the organization’s culture continue to blossom. We have created a competitive environment that attracts good people, and I believe the human element is the most important component to building a successful race team,” said Sam Hunt, owner/president of Sam Hunt Racing. “I couldn’t be prouder of Dean’s maturity, humility and work ethic this year. His on-track success is a direct result of his growth as a person and his buy-in to wanting not only himself but also this entire organization to succeed. He has more than earned his spot within this team and this garage. Bringing Harrison in full-time is another major step in this team’s growth process, and I couldn’t be more excited to have him. He not only brings a new level of experience to SHR but is the perfect fit for our team’s culture and vision. I am grateful to everyone involved and am ready to get to work on our next step.”
Sam Hunt Racing has been competing in the Xfinity Series since its debut at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2019. As each year passes, SHR continues to grow and break barriers in NASCAR’s second-tier national series, proving considerable strength and grit as the team fights for its much-anticipated first win.
“We are excited to provide support for Sam and the entire Sam Hunt Racing team on their expansion to two full-time teams in 2026,” said Jack Irving, general manager, Toyota Racing Development. “Sam has bought into the Toyota and TRD culture from our partnership’s early beginnings and is truly part of our family. We are thrilled to see how Dean has performed in their equipment this season, and with the addition of a talented driver like Harrison, we are confident they will continue that upward trajectory with many new firsts and team milestones achieved next season.”
Dean Thompson will return behind the wheel of the No. 26 Toyota after a breakout rookie season in the Xfinity Series alongside crew chief Kris Bowen. Thompson, who has become a well-respected competitor amongst the series’ veterans, has successfully broken many organizational records at Sam Hunt Racing. The 24-year-old captured the team’s first stage win at Rockingham Speedway, becoming the third driver in SHR history to lead laps and the first to lead laps in two different events. Thompson has elevated SHR at several tracks this season, including establishing a new team-best superspeedway finish with a seventh-place result at Daytona in the summer. He also recorded SHR’s first top five at Charlotte Motor Speedway and secured solid results at other intermediate tracks like Kansas Speedway. The Anaheim, California native has secured one top-five and seven top-10 finishes in his rookie season.
Harrison Burton, with Brian Gainey returning to lead the charge, joins Sam Hunt Racing as the first full-time driver of the team’s No. 24 Toyota entry in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series next year. The duo joined forces previously in the Xfinity Series at fellow Toyota organization Joe Gibbs Racing, where Gainey worked as a mechanic. During that time, Burton went on to win four races in 2020 and recorded 25 top 10s over two seasons. The North Carolina native has proven himself across NASCAR’s various series, most notably earning his first Cup Series win at Daytona International Speedway in 2024, locking him into the Cup Series Playoffs. Burton has competed in the Xfinity Series level for four years, making 2026 Burton’s fifth year in the series. This current season, Burton captured 10 top-10 finishes through 31 races, locking into the playoffs on points. Burton’s wealth of experience makes him a strong addition to Sam Hunt Racing’s lineup. Coming into next season, Burton is invested to build on his progress in the secondary series and make an immediate impact in his debut season with the team.
Additional information on Sam Hunt Racing’s 2026 plans, including team partnerships, will be released at a later date.
SEEKONK, Mass. — USNEPower Principal David J. Miller Jr. and NASCAR driver Patrick Emerling today announced the formation of USNEPower Motorsports, marking a new era for USNEPower’s racing involvement and a bold next step in its marketing strategy.
USNEPower Motorsports will field the No. 1 car for Patrick Emerling on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and select Monaco Modified Series races in 2026, representing a transition from multiple team sponsorships to a more strategic focus on ownership and select partnerships.
“This is the natural evolution of our relationship with the sport,” said Miller, principal of USNEPower and owner of USNEPower Motorsports. “We’ve sponsored dozens of teams over the years, but team ownership allows us to tell a more focused story about who we are – an organization built on reliability, precision, and showing up when it matters most. Motorsports is the perfect reflection of that.”
“USNEPower has long been one of the most visible names in Modified racing,” said Emerling. “They’ve supported so many racers and events, so bringing them in as an ownership partner feels like the right move. The No. 1 car paired with the company known for ‘One Call Does It All’—it just fits.”
Patrick Emerling will drive the No. 1 Modified for USNEPower Motorsports on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour in 2026.
Since its first sponsorship in 2017 with Rowan Pennink in Michael Boehler’s “Ole Blue” No. 3, USNEPower’s involvement in motorsports has always been about relationships—first as fans, then as partners, and now as team owners.
After supporting more than 27 drivers and six race events in 2025, USNEPower will strategically realign in 2026 to focus on team ownership and a smaller number of relationships, which will be highlighted by:
• Patrick Emerling – Driver for the USNEPower Motorsports-owned No. 1 (NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour / Monaco Modified Series)
• Tom Abele Jr. – USNEPower Super Late Model (Oxford Plains Speedway)
• John-Michael Shenette – Whelen Modified Tour and Open Events
• Timmy Solomito – Whelen Modified Tour
USNEPower will also return as the title sponsor of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Series Duel at the Dog 200 at Monadnock Speedway (NH) and the USNEPower Haunted Hundred XL at Seekonk Speedway (MA) in the 2026 Monaco Modified Series season.
Team ownership marks a decisive shift from pure brand visibility to deeper customer engagement and relationship-building. USNEPower’s Motorsports initiative mirrors its own work culture – meticulous planning, flawless execution, and rapid response under pressure.
“When fans see USNEPower on a car, we want them to know why,” added Miller. “We’re the first call for factory-authorized emergency repair and preventive maintenance of electrical equipment. Racing gives us a powerful way to demonstrate that precision, speed, and reliability aren’t just part of our work – they’re who we are.”
Emerling, who earned two wins, eight top-five finishes, and 10 top-tens in the 2025 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season, looks ahead to 2026 with high expectations.
“We’ve been close to a championship,” said Emerling. “With USNEPower Motorsports behind us, I believe we have everything it takes to finish the job.”
MARTINSVILLE, Va. — A tiebreaker was needed to decide the 2025 Championship 4 for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
The beneficiary? Kaden Honeycutt, whose second-place finish was enough to earn the nod over third-place finisher Layne Riggs to advance to the title round from Friday’s Round of 8 finale at Martinsville Speedway. He joins Tyler Ankrum, Martinsville winner Corey Heim and defending series champ Ty Majeski in this year’s championship quartet.
Honeycutt’s emotions were obvious climbing from the No. 52 Halmar Friesen Racing Toyota — a truck he never expected to drive to start the season. The 22-year-old Texan began the year driving the No. 45 Chevrolet for Niece Motorsports, but his decision to sign with Toyota for the 2026 season led Niece to release him before the Aug. 8 race at Watkins Glen International. After spending that race in the No. 02 Young’s Motorsports entry, Honeycutt pivoted to the No. 52 Toyota for the rest of the season with team co-owner and typical driver Stewart Friesen sidelined after a dirt-racing crash left him injured.
Those circumstances all flashed through Honeycutt’s mind after Friday’s race at Martinsville, now with a chance to chase a championship on the doorstep.
“It’s unbelievable, man,” Honeycutt said. “I should have very easily been on the couch in July after I made my decision on what to do. And I’m so grateful to be a part of Toyota and this amazing manufacturer. To carry on this championship now, we got a 50% chance of winning it at least. So I’m very much looking forward to next weekend. Regardless of how everything goes, I’m just extremely thankful.”
Just behind him at the checkered flag was Riggs. One point out entering the final lap, Riggs muscled past Brent Crews off the final corner to tie Honeycutt on points. But in the event of a tie, the edge goes to the driver who earned the best finish in the round, and both drivers earned their best at Martinsville on Friday.
Honeycutt said he was unaware just how close it was in the waning moments.
“All (spotter Chris) Lambert told me was don’t lose a spot, just fight like hell,” Honeycutt said. “And yeah, that last restart, I didn’t do the best job at executing that restart. I spun the tires a lot, and Corey did an excellent job of executing there. So yeah, just had to hold on and hope that everything worked out, and thankfully it did. Now we get to go have the chance to have fun next week and go try to mix it up.”
Riggs, a three-time winner this season, was “dejected” to miss the Championship 4, but ultimately felt bad for racing Crews so aggressively despite the stakes.
“I just don’t like racing like that,” Riggs said. “I want to race straight up and how it’s supposed to be, but I’m hearing, ‘got to get a spot; got to get one.’ I’m gonna do what my team tells me to do to get in this championship. And (I’m) roughing guys up I don’t really want to rough up. They’ve done nothing to me in the past. I just don’t like racing like that, man.”
Riggs said he would have carried that same disappointment even if he had advanced because he wants to race cleanly.
His race took a turn, though, on a Lap 29 restart. Leading the opening 27 laps, Riggs was on the front row in the inside lane, leading the field back to the green flag. But he struggled to shift his truck into both third and fourth gears. That caused a stack-up behind him with multiple trucks incurring damage, including playoff contenders Honeycutt, Rajah Caruth and Daniel Hemric.
“I don’t really know what happened on the restart,” Riggs said. “I mean, I’ve never missed a shift in the truck with these transmissions ever, and it just would not go into third gear. Wouldn’t go into fourth. Like, no matter what I’d do, it wouldn’t go into gear. I’ve never had that problem before. So, yeah, it just summarizes our Round of 8 of things that could have happened.”
Indeed, the No. 34 team struggled to find clean races in the opening two events of this semifinal round — with a strong argument that the events were out of Riggs’ control. Riggs started on the front row at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval on Oct. 3, but contact from Grant Enfinger turned Riggs sideways and into Heim, sending both trucks into the Turn 1 wall. He nearly recovered for a top-10 effort, but a mechanical issue in overtime plummeted him to a 21st-place finish. At Talladega Superspeedway on Oct. 17, Riggs was contacted by Front Row Motorsports teammate Chandler Smith on Lap 10, sending Riggs spinning before he eventually rebounded to finish fifth.
“We can’t look at tonight where it went wrong,” Riggs said. “You’ve got to look at the Roval, Lap 1. Break the sway bar, ride around in the back all day, break the axle. Go to Talladega, get turned on Lap 10. I mean, it’s really the culmination. I’m not going to place tonight (as) the reason why. That was our best race out of the Round of 8. Just a lot of things lead up to it.”
Ankrum, Heim, Honeycutt and Majeski will race for the 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway next Friday (7:30 p.m. ET, FS1, NRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
