Five thousand NASCAR-themed Teddy Bears will be delivered to hospitals across the United States, Mexico and Canada.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The NASCAR Foundation and Kaulig Giving are once again teaming up for National Teddy Bear Day, delivering 5,000 NASCAR-themed teddy bears to children in 135 hospitals across all 50 states, as well as Mexico and Canada, for the ninth annual “Speedy Bear Brigade.”
In addition to delivering Speedy Bears to multiple different hospitals, The NASCAR Foundation will be giving $10,000 grants to select hospitals participating in Speedy Bear Brigade. These donations are made possible through the Foundation’s Speediatrics Children’s Fund, which supports needs expressed by hospitals, specialty clinics, camps, and others providing children’s medical and health care services.
“Each year, Speedy Bear Brigade continues to grow and expand, allowing us to create more memories and craft special moments for children in hospitals across North America, and we truly couldn’t do it without the support of our friends at Kaulig Giving,” said Nichole Krieger, executive director and vice president, The NASCAR Foundation. “Seeing the joy and smiles that these NASCAR-themed Teddy Bears bring to a child’s face is what this program is all about.”
This year’s efforts mark the biggest to date with 135 hospitals participating across North America, topping last year’s number that previously held the highest sum. The Speedy Bear Brigade initiative honors National Teddy Bear Day, celebrated on Sept. 9, with hospital visits taking place in multiple race markets and communities surrounding NASCAR tracks.
The Brigade kicks off in Akron, Ohio, with the first Speedy Bear delivery of the year taking place in the home of Kaulig headquarters. This will be the fifth year Kaulig Giving has partnered with The NASCAR Foundation for Speedy Bear Brigade.
“It’s always special to kick off the Speedy Bear Brigade right here in our backyard at Akron Children’s,” said Matt Kaulig, executive chairman and founder of Kaulig Giving. “Our partnership with The NASCAR Foundation is a perfect fit, as Kaulig Giving shares the same mission of helping children live happier and healthier lives. A stay here is never easy for kids, and these bears are a simple way to deliver comfort, positivity and cheer to children across the country.”
NASCAR fans can join the Speedy Bear Brigade by making a $25 donation to sponsor a Speedy Bear and have that bear delivered to a child in participating hospitals. Fans can visit NASCARfoundation.org/speedybear to donate.
NASCAR Cup Series teams will race with a new, softer right-side tire from Goodyear this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway, a shift that brings a new wrinkle to the first elimination race of the 2025 playoffs.
The move to a slightly softer right-side rubber compound in Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App) marks the first change after four Bristol events with the same tire setup. Goodyear joined the track in announcing the decision last Friday, indicating that the new right-sides should promote greater wear — providing an extra opportunity for tire management to factor into the strategy for both teams and drivers.
The annual 500-lap night race on the 0.533-mile track is the last of three races in the postseason’s opening Round of 16. The outcome will determine the 12 drivers who advance to the playoffs’ next round and the four drivers who will be bumped from championship eligibility.
Goodyear officials noted weather changes as a prime reason for selecting the weekend’s tire setup. The Cup Series last raced at Bristol during the daytime on April 13, when high temperatures in the Tennessee hills only topped out in the mid-60s. Though the postseason’s Round of 16 finale this weekend will be an evening start as the sun sets, the green flag will wave after an afternoon with temps forecast to reach the low 80s.
Mark Keto, Goodyear Senior Project Manager for NASCAR, said that with cars putting down more rubber in warmer conditions on the high-banked concrete surface, a pivot toward more tread wear was the preference.
“The big thing is the track temperature difference between the spring races and the fall race,” Keto said. “We know concrete, particularly Bristol, is very finicky when it comes to track temp on this Next Gen car and the entire setup we’ve been running. As we saw in the spring of last year, we had significant higher wear, probably a little too heavy. Then, in the fall, kind of flipped the script because the warmer track temp. So we wanted to make a change. Drivers have asked us to be aggressive.”
An aggressive stance toward softer Goodyear rubber and advanced wear has been a trend in recent years, especially on NASCAR’s shorter ovals. A springtime meet on Bristol’s bullring last season provided a crossroads moment toward that direction, with Denny Hamlin prevailing in a wild 500-lapper with a record 54 lead changes and significant tire wear — “a drastic departure from what we expected,” Goodyear reps said at the time.
Goodyear officials and NASCAR have collaborated to find a happy medium ever since, and this weekend’s adjustment is part of that plan.
“I don’t think they want tire drama like we had a couple years ago,” said Trackhouse’s Ross Chastain, one of 16 drivers aiming to stave off elimination Saturday night. “At the end of the day, it all has to go through the tire to get to the track. I trust the folks at Goodyear to do what they do best. This is their wheelhouse, pun intended. I trust them to bring a good tire that’s going to work for me and be reliable, and also pay a penalty if I abuse it and it’s going to slow down later in the run. Whatever it is, we will learn from it. That’s why we have practice.”
Said Keto: “It’s softer, but not softer in the sense that we’re trying to add a bunch of grip. It’s softer in the sense of we’re trying to get more tread wear when we know the track takes rubber and is rubbered in, obviously tire wear and entire fall-off get reduced when the track takes rubber. So we’re trying to get more tread wear when the track does have rubber on it.”
The amount of rubber that will be worked in could be excessive. Four series will be in action at Bristol during a three-day span, with the Xfinity Series, Craftsman Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series scheduled as preliminaries to the Cup Series main event.
Cup Series director Brad Moran said Tuesday on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that competition officials plan to treat the track’s bottom lane — four feet off the apron — with a traction compound, with the potential to reapply the product each day depending on how the rubber reacts.
Goodyear officials indicated that the left-side tire will remain unchanged from the Cup Series’ most recent Bristol stop in April. The new right-side Bristol rubber will be making its only scheduled appearance this season. Cup Series teams will have 11 sets of tires available — nine fresh for the race, one for practice and another set that carries over from qualifying to the race.
Keto said that Goodyear tire tests have been held at Bristol in the summertime months the last two years. This summer, Goodyear was unable to schedule a test session at Bristol because of the major transformation that the venue underwent for last month’s Major League Baseball Speedway Classic.
Denny Hamlin showed out once again, collecting his series-best fifth win of 2025 and locking himself into the Round of 12 with Sunday’s World Wide Technology Raceway victory. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver maintains his perennial Championship 4 aspirations, but if he were to reach it this year, could he be joined by one of his 23XI Racing drivers alongside him for the first time?
Analysis: The veteran delivered yet another signature performance Sunday at Gateway, leading 75 laps to claim his fifth win of 2025 and punch his ticket to the Round of 12 alongside teammate Chase Briscoe. With four career Bristol wins and a proven track record of playoff prowess, Hamlin enters the elimination race with utmost confidence and the luxury of focusing purely on accumulating playoff points for future rounds.
Analysis: The now two-time defending Southern 500 champion rebounded from a mid-race mishap to finish a strong second at Gateway behind teammate Denny Hamlin, earning valuable stage points and maintaining his playoff points advantage from his Darlington victory and stage wins. Already locked into the Round of 12, Briscoe can attack Bristol with maximum aggression, using his short-track skills and proven ability to rise in big moments to potentially add another playoff point tally before the elimination race cuts his competition by a quarter.
Analysis: Larson bounced back from his Darlington struggles with a 41-point, 12th-place Gateway finish, enjoying a comfortable 60-point cushion above the cutline heading into Bristol. His dominant Bristol history — including leading a track-record 462 laps to a win in 2024’s night race — makes him the favorite to control Saturday’s elimination contest and potentially lock up his Round of 12 spot with another signature Bristol performance as this team looks to regain its early-season footing.
Analysis: The Team Penske driver grabbed a crucial fourth-place Gateway finish to strengthen his playoff position and leave with a 42-point margin above elimination. While Team Penske hasn’t translated much recent success into wins at Bristol (no current driver for the team has won there in a decade), Blaney’s consistent short-track skill and ability to stay clean under pressure make him a solid contender to advance through the cutoff race by accumulating necessary stage points and avoiding wrecks.
Analysis: An eighth-place Gateway performance moved Wallace into fourth in points with an astounding 50-point cushion, as he goes from a late-clinching playoff driver to sudden potential championship heavyweight. While Bristol hasn’t been his strongest venue historically, he’s clearly riding a hot streak and could actually back up his first Bristol top five, collected in this race last year. Either way, he appears destined for the Round of 12. And then some.
Analysis: The Regular Season Champion managed an 11th-place Gateway result to maintain his 39-point cushion, but his Hendrick Motorsports team still appears to be searching for the speed that helped it dominate earlier in the season. His improving Bristol record in recent years and Hendrick’s historical ability to peak during playoff pressure should provide the foundation needed to safely advance, but he’s not out of the woods just yet.
Analysis: Bell salvaged a seventh-place Gateway result — despite having a car extremely capable of winning — to maintain his 32-point advantage above elimination, rebounding from his Darlington disaster to reinvigorate his championship hopes. His ability to run up front at Bristol makes him a winning threat and a solid bet to advance, provided the mechanical gremlins and pit-road issues that have been cropping up stay away.
Analysis: The past champion delivered his best Gateway performance with a third-place finish, extending his playoff margin to 28 points and showcasing the speed that’s been missing for much of the season. His recent Bristol improvements and ability to rise in elimination scenarios position him well to secure Round of 12 advancement and potentially build momentum for deeper playoff runs, though he’s yet to win at the “Last Great Colosseum” through 16 starts.
Analysis: Reddick slipped to 16th at Gateway, which trimmed his playoff points cushion to 37 but kept him safely above the cutline for now. Despite the less-than-ideal result, his gritty driving style and recent resilience bode well for Bristol’s physical, short-track racing. He’ll need to stay out of trouble and score stage points to avoid last-minute elimination risk, but his form suggests he can handle the pressure and advance with a solid outing, even though his Bristol results are lacking (one top 10 in eight starts).
Analysis: The three-time champion clawed to fifth at Gateway, improving his cutline margin to 21 points and buying himself just a bit of breathing room for Bristol’s elimination battle. He’s arguably the most dangerous driver currently sitting near the bubble, so his competitors would love to see him run into trouble Saturday night and halt his quest for a third title in four years.
Analysis: Cindric managed to stay in 12th with an 11-point buffer above the cutline after Gateway, clinging to the final advancement spot by the thinnest of margins despite rolling into the track as the defending winner. He’s in position to advance for now, but Cindric likely must leverage both strategy and clean, aggressive driving at Bristol to survive the elimination race — which may be a tall task with a 22.6 average finish there.
Analysis: Chastain struggled to 24th at Gateway, dropping his playoff buffer to just 19 points and putting him dangerously close to elimination territory heading into Bristol. His historically aggressive style could either vault him to safety or create the chaos that ends his championship hopes, as he’s kind of caught in between needing to go for the win or play it safe, making him one of the most unpredictable wildcards in Saturday’s cutoff race.
Analysis: The No. 3 driver sits 11 points below the other Austin under the cutline after Gateway but has a legitimate reason for optimism heading to Bristol, where he scored a top 10 earlier this year. Dillon’s Bristol history is also remarkably clean given the track’s volatile nature, so he could theoretically capitalize on chaos to climb above the elimination line by the time the checkered flag falls.
Analysis: SVG likely could have survived a 25th at Gateway if Darlington had produced the top 10 he was hoping for there, but instead, he now drops 15 points below the cutline and deeper into elimination territory. With limited NASCAR short-track experience and no standout Bristol performances to lean on, van Gisbergen faces a steep climb requiring either a miracle drive or significant chaos ahead to extend his playoff run.
Analysis: Bowman’s 26th-place Gateway finish left him 35 points below the cutline, putting him in an essential must-win scenario for Bristol’s elimination race without a lot of help. While he’s delivered clutch victories before, his inconsistent Bristol record, the steep points deficit and struggling pit crew make his advancement chances slim without a dramatic Saturday night performance.
Analysis: The sophomore’s playoff nightmare continued with a 36th-place Gateway finish and early exit that left him 45 points below the cutline and virtually eliminated barring a long-shot Bristol victory. He’s a short-track racer at heart, and there’s no reason to say this won’t happen, but it’s quite unlikely.
With Corey Heim now locked into the Round of 8, time is dwindling for the rest of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs field to join him. This Thursday, the circuit heads to the “World’s Fastest Half-Mile” for its second playoff contest (8 p.m. ET, FS1, NASCAR Racing Network Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
After Bristol, only New Hampshire Motor Speedway remains in the opening round and two drivers will be eliminated following the conclusion of the Round of 10.
Brent Crews returns to the No. 1 Tricon Garage Toyota for his fifth start with the team. Corey Day will also be back behind the wheel of the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet. Parker Kligerman will make his sixth start driving the No. 75 Henderson Motorsports Chevrolet.
Thirty-seven trucks are entered for the event, but only 36 can qualify for the race, meaning one team will miss the show.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs begin under the lights at Bristol Motor Speedway in the Food City 300 on Friday (7:30 p.m. ET, The CW, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Regular Season Champion Connor Zilisch enters the postseason with a 59-point buffer over the cutline. Joe Gibbs Racing’s Taylor Gray currently holds the final provisional spot above the elimination line but is tied with JR Motorsports’ Carson Kvapil on the bubble. Sheldon Creed (minus-2), Harrison Burton (minus-3) and Austin Hill (minus-5) have three races to avoid elimination.
Brenden Queen, the 2024 CARS Late Model Stock Tour champion, will make his Xfinity debut driving the No. 11 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet. Jeffrey Earnhardt, grandson of seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt, returns to the No. 24 Sam Hunt Racing Toyota for his third start of the season. Josh Williams, who began the year driving the No. 11 Kaulig Chevrolet, will drive the No. 45 Alpha Prime Racing Chevrolet.
The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series will trim the playoff field from 16 drivers to 12 in the first elimination race of the season, Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).
Thirty-nine cars were initially entered into the 65th annual race, including Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs driver Corey Heim in the No. 67 23XI Racing Toyota, Xfinity Series Playoffs driver Austin Hill in the No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet and Chad Finchum in the No. 66 Garage 66 Ford.
MADISON, Ill. — Denny Hamlin spent much of his post-race press conference relishing the freedom he earned with Sunday’s victory in the Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.
With his ticket already punched for the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 12, Hamlin can race with abandon next Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, while others are scrambling to keep their title hopes alive.
Having secured his 59th career Cup victory at Gateway, Hamlin is free to pursue the distinction he covets most, a place in the top 10 all-time Cup race winners. With one more victory, Hamlin would tie Kevin Harvick for 10th on the career list.
Hamlin is a four-time winner at Bristol, with three of his victories coming in the Bass Pro Shops Night Race, which will serve as the Round of 16 elimination event on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).
“I would love to get 60 at Bristol — that would be fantastic,” Hamlin said. “I’m not going to change my preparation for Bristol. All this win (at Gateway) did was just add work to the week, ’cause it allows us to now get ahead to the next round.
“There’s no way I’m willing to go to Bristol compromising my normal routine. I feel as though being locked in, how many are locked into the next round? Just two … I mean, you cannot race Bristol thinking about points. If you do, you can finish pretty good, but you’re not going to win the race, because you have to run that track at 10/10ths all the time.
“You’re going to be pushing at the edge, up against the wall. It’s people that have to chase points (who) are not going to be able to push it to the edge like they need to to win at that track. I think there’s a small group of us that have an advantage now going into next week, because that’s what it takes to win there. … That’s just a massive advantage. It’s hard for me to put it in words.”
A Denny Hamlin who thinks he has an edge is a dangerous Denny Hamlin. True, his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Chase Briscoe, enjoys the same advantage, as does Kyle Larson, who is poised to clinch a Round of 12 berth unless absolute disaster strikes.
Briscoe won the playoff opener at Darlington, and Larson has a 60-point margin above the current elimination line, but neither seems as hungry for a Bristol win as Hamlin.
“I think there’s just some people that are different,” Hamlin said. “I talked about it at Dover in the post presser there (after his July 20 win) that I’m sure there’s someone more competitive than me. I just have never met them. …
“I just think that there’s a few people in every sport that are just built a little different, and they just won’t settle for anything but winning.”
Hamlin is approaching the end of his career. At 44 years old — soon to be 45 — he recently signed a contract extension limited to two years, declining to opt for more.
“I’m just not going to leave this sport on my deathbed, just leaking oil, running in the back of the pack,” Hamlin said. “I have way too much pride for that. I’m way too cocky for that. There’s just no way. I want to be able to win my last race.
“To do that, I’m going to have to retire when I’m racing like this.”
To the championship that has eluded him for 20 years, Hamlin seems almost indifferent. He prefers to measure his career with checkered flags.
“It’s always been about number of races,” Hamlin said. “The only one I thought about was this year and the Daytona 500, thinking that (I’m) probably only going to do this twice more. Brickyards, right? I haven’t won the freaking Brickyard (400). I’m going to have two more shots at it, and that’s it, to round this thing out.
“There are certain races that I do have countdowns for. Championships isn’t one of ’em. Obviously, it’s well-documented that I want to get the wins, and I feel like that will carry its weight long after.
“When you compare me to someone that’s maybe got one or two, maybe three championships, and half the wins, I don’t think that person’s better than I am.”
The results didn’t match the level of Christopher Bell’s performance Sunday at World Wide Technology Raceway.
According to NASCAR Insights, Bell ranked as the best passer of the Enjoy Illinois 300, had the second-best speed and posted the third-best average running position in the second race of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Despite that, Bell took the checkered flag in seventh place.
“We just [expletive] ran seventh with the best car on the track!” Bell radioed after the checkered flag. “Every [expletive] week, it’s the same [expletive]. We’re the last car to pit road. I’m over it!”
A verbal explosion reminiscent of the pre-race pyrotechnics might seem like an overreaction, but a heat-of-the-moment outburst was warranted after a series of finishes that have seen the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota lagging behind its teammates on the results sheet. Bell’s most recent top-five finish on an oval came in a second-place effort at Kansas Speedway on May 11. He did win the exhibition NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway and has three top fives since then, but each of those three came at road courses: second-place showings at Mexico City and Watkins Glen in addition to a fifth-place finish at Sonoma.
Sitting eighth in the playoff standings and 32 points above the provisional cutline, Bell sees his team’s capabilities and knows they have the equipment to perform. But after watching teammates Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe finish first and second at Gateway — one week after Briscoe won the Aug. 31 playoff opener at Darlington Raceway — Bell is left yearning for more.
“I just think we are underperforming,” Bell told NBC Sports. “Clearly, the JGR Camrys are amazing. I don’t know. Our team cars are really good, and I felt like I had what I needed to race with them, and we finished seventh and they finished one-two. I honestly think the cars are as fast as I’ve had in my Cup career, and we are just not getting results out of it. That is a bummer.
“But on a lighter note, we had a good points day and were able to increase our buffer to the cutline, which is really good. I think from that standpoint, mission accomplished. We had a great DeWalt Camry. Just didn’t get the finish that we probably could’ve and should’ve.”
Bell and the Cup Series next head to Bristol Motor Speedway for the Round of 16 elimination race on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App). Bell has scored five straight top 10s at the “Last Great Colosseum.”
Chaos reigned under the Gateway Arch as the NASCAR Cup Series made its inaugural playoff appearance at World Wide Technology Raceway on Sunday, as the middle race of the Round of 16.
All that remains for 14 drivers now is the round’s finale, this year’s first elimination race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night (7:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).
WINNER
Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Joe Gibbs Racing’s stellar start to the postseason continues, with the organization 2-for-2 after Hamlin won Gateway to join teammate Chase Briscoe as the only two drivers locked into the Round of 12. Hamlin led a race-high 75 laps Sunday and has established himself as a real threat for the 2025 championship all over again with a season-best fifth victory.
Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford. Logano charged onto the right side of the cutline Sunday with an impressive fifth-place run at Gateway, leaving the St. Louis-area track 21 points to the good. The three-time and defending Cup champion only led two laps but was a constant presence at the front of the field, a critical turnaround after a mediocre 20th-place day at Darlington in last week’s opener. At WWT Raceway, Logano boasted the day’s second-best average running position at 7.23, only behind Hamlin’s 5.54, and carries some needed momentum into Bristol, where he’s searching for his first top-20 finish since 2021.
Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota. Wallace was already in pretty good shape, up 25 points above the cutline after a sixth-place run at Darlington to open the postseason. But how about now? The Brickyard 400 winner left Gateway with double that cushion, sitting 50 points to the good in fourth place in the standings, second-best of the non-winners in the Round of 16. Wallace finished eighth at WWT Raceway and added 15 stage points to the tally, earning 10 of those and a playoff point by winning Stage 2. Nothing is guaranteed, but Wallace is in an incredible position to advance to the Round of 12 for the second time in his career.
WHO’S NOT?
Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford. For the second week in a row, an early crash put Berry behind the wall, and this time, out of the race. Contact from Chase Elliott at Lap 36 sent Berry from the middle of a three-wide situation to spinning and into the SAFER barrier. The damage was too significant to repair, and Berry’s best chance to advance to the Round of 12 will be a victory at next week’s elimination race.
Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Execution thwarted what seemed to be a strong run in the making for Bowman. The No. 48 team didn’t have quite the same debacle as the 40-second pit stop that hindered them last week, but multiple issues on pit road did unravel what may have been a top-15 finish into a 26th-place result. The first problem came when the jack was dropped before the left-rear tire was secured at Lap 136. At Lap 207, Bowman was nabbed for speeding, sinking him to the rear of the field. Coupled with his Darlington finish of 31st, Bowman is now 35 points below the cutoff line entering Bristol.
BUBBLE WATCH
RANK
DRIVER
+/-
7
Tyler Reddick
+39
8
Christopher Bell
+32
9
Chase Elliott
+28
10
Joey Logano
+21
11
Ross Chastain
+19
12
Austin Cindric
+11
CUTLINE
13
Austin Dillon
-11
14
Shane van Gisbergen
-15
15
Alex Bowman
-35
16
Josh Berry
-45
NASCAR INSIGHTS
Christopher Bell expressed some notable frustration over his radio after crossing the finish line: “We just [expletive] ran seventh with the best car on the track.” To Bell’s chagrin, analytics prove his point. The No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was ranked No. 1 in Passing Rating, according to NASCAR Insights, and scored second in speed. Bell ranked inside the top 10 in four of the five categories — seventh in pit crew and ninth in restarts — but ultimately placed just 15th on defense. Bell is optimistic in his team’s speed but is seeking better results: “I just think we’re underperforming,” Bell told NBC Sports. “… Our team cars are really good and I feel like I had what I needed to race with them, and we finished seventh and they finished 1-2.”
QUOTABLE
“We didn’t come here with a good race car for some reason. All of our cars were pretty off today; we just missed it. But this No. 3 Dow DayGlo Chevrolet team did a great job executing with what we had. We got stage points and finished the best we possibly could right there. We outran our day by a lot, so hard work and execution gives us a shot at Bristol (Motor Speedway). Just feel like we’ve missed some opportunities and could be in a better position, but we did all we could today.” — Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, after an 18th-place finish.
NEXT RACE
The first elimination of the 2025 season is here with 500 laps on deck in the Bristol Night Race. Third in the playoff standings and 60 points above the elimination line, Kyle Larson has dominated the Last Great Colosseum in each of his last two starts, winning both by leading a combined 873 of 1,000 laps. The 0.533-mile bullring will mark the end of four drivers’ championship hopes. For others, Bristol could represent a key step closer toward title glory.
SOUTH BOSTON, Virginia — In a winner-take-all race at South Boston Speedway, Peyton Sellers won the 100-lap Sentara Health Late Model Stock Car Division race that headlined Sunday’s Halifax County Farm Bureau Championship Night event and the track championship in one of the closest championship points battles in the track’s history.
In winning the 2025 South Boston Speedway Sentara Health Late Model Stock Car Division championship Sellers eclipsed the previous record of seven track championships held by David Blankenship who won his seventh division title in 1998.
“I still don’t feel I deserve to be in the same sentence with Blankenship and those guys that have done it,” Sellers remarked. “It’s been a long time coming. We’ve put a lot of effort into this track for a lot of years. We’ve tried to give it all we had every time.”
Sellers will receive $20,000 for winning the championship. The payout is part of over $75,000 in season-end bonuses that will be awarded to competitors at South Boston Speedway this season through a lucrative Championship Loyalty Bonus Program sponsored by Hitachi Energy and EMPOWER Broadband.
The unofficial points tally had Sellers finishing two points ahead of Trevor Ward who finished second to Sellers in the caution-free 100-lap race. Sellers and Ward entered the season’s final points race deadlocked at the top of the Sentara Health Late Model Stock Car Division point standings with Landon Pembelton sitting in third place, eight points back.
Pembelton opted to start at the rear of the field hoping he could rally through the field, win the race, earn bonus points toward the championship and top Sellers and Ward in the title chase. He finished fifth in the race, and unofficially finished third in the point standings.
Sellers started on the pole and led all 100 laps of the race. Ward stayed close on Sellers’ heels for most of the first half of the race, but Sellers increased his lead through the last 50 laps, building a lead of a quarter of a lap heading into the final 25 circuits.
Andrew Grady finished third behind Sellers and Ward, with Blake Stallings finishing fourth ahead of Pembelton.
Persistent rain forced track officials to reschedule the event from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon, and more rain Sunday pushed the start of the night’s racing action into Sunday night. Despite the weather and constantly changing track conditions Sellers and his team hit the right setup with his car.
“I think the rain played into our hand a little bit,” Sellers said. “H.C. (his brother and crew chief H.C. Sellers) has the ability to adapt on short notice and can come up with things quicker. This track changes so much with the weather and I think it played right into our hands tonight.”
Trevor Ward (77) races under Peyton Sellers (26) during the 100-lap Sentara Health Late Model Stock Car Division race that highlighted Sunday’s Halifax County Farm Bureau Championship Sunday event at South Boston Speedway. (Photo: Joe Chandler/South Boston Speedway)
The weather worked to Ward’s detriment.
“I think the weather threw us a curveball,” Ward said after finishing 3.6 seconds behind Sellers in Sunday night’s race. “At the end of the day we had two teams going into this deal and one capitalized on it and another one didn’t. It’s been a hard-fought battle all year. I think the race fans got what they were looking for.”
Zach Peregoy won the 2025 Budweiser Limited Sportsman Division championship with an eighth-place finish in the 50-lap Budweiser Limited Sportsman Division race that was part of Sunday night’s Halifax County Farm Bureau Championship Night event.
The 2025 Budweiser Limited Sportsman Division championship is Peregoy’s first career division title. Peregoy will receive a $3,000 prize as part of over $75,000 in season-end bonuses that will be awarded to competitors at South Boston Speedway this season through a lucrative Championship Loyalty Bonus Program sponsored by Hitachi Energy and EMPOWER Broadband.
He entered the race with an 18-point lead over 14-year-old Tristan Brunelli.
The win in the 50-lap race was the first of the season for the 21-year-old Centerville, Arkansas resident. Garretson led the entire race, finishing 2.1 seconds ahead of runner-up Bob Davis. Sunday’s win made him the tenth different winner in the division this season.
Eddie Slagle finished third, Brunelli finished fourth and Jared Dawson completed the top five finishers.
B.J. Reaves won his second straight Southside Disposal Pure Stock Division championship while Dillon Davis won the 25-lap race that wrapped up the points season for the Southside Disposal Pure Stock Division. Davis’ win was his second victory of the season.
Reaves entered Saturday night’s race with a 25-point lead over Davis and needed only to start the 25-lap race to clinch the division title and a $1,000 payout as part of over $75,000 in season-end bonuses that will be awarded to competitors at South Boston Speedway this season through a lucrative Championship Loyalty Bonus Program sponsored by Hitachi Energy and EMPOWER Broadband.
Pole winner Andrew Turner finished three car lengths behind Davis with Scott Phillips finishing third. B.J. Reaves finished fourth, with his brother, Zach Reaves rounding out the top five finishers.
Jason DeCarlo finished second in Sunday night’s 20-lap Dollar General Hornets Division race and earned his second career Dollar General Hornets Division championship.
DeCarlo will receive a $500 award as part of over $75,000 in season-end bonuses that will be awarded to competitors at South Boston Speedway this season through a lucrative Championship Loyalty Bonus Program sponsored by Hitachi Energy and EMPOWER Broadband.
DeCarlo entered the season’s final points race with a 14-point cushion over second-place driver Landon Milam. Milam won the race, capturing a division-high sixth win and finishing 3.622 seconds ahead of DeCarlo.
Max Sangillo, Dustin Davis and Andrea Ruotolo rounded out the top five finishers.
