Posted on by Brandon White

Late Model Stock veterans Ronnie Bassett Jr. and Woody Howard come from two similar but different backgrounds.

Bassett was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and diligently worked his way up to the NASCAR Xfinity Series before returning to his short track roots. Howard, a Chesapeake, Virginia, native, has spent his entire career competing on short tracks, whether that has been at the regional level or with the now-defunct USAR Pro Cup Series.

Despite their differences, the two competitors do share one thing in common heading into Saturday’s ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway (7 p.m. ET on FloRacing), they are tied for second in the Virginia Late Model Triple Crown standings with a 6.5 average finish.

Although Bassett has endured plenty of emotions at Martinsville during his career, he enters a busy weekend with plenty of optimism. Last year’s ValleyStar Credit Union 300 saw Bassett finish eighth, which is why he is confident about improving on that showing Saturday evening.

“We’ve had some really good runs [at Martinsville],” Bassett said. “We’ve gotten into some late-race incidents and have had some controversies go on between me and my brother [Dillon], but [the ValleyStar Credit Union 300] has always been a good race for us and we’re looking forward to getting back.

“Hopefully we can bring a grandfather clock back to Winston-Salem.”

RELATED: Everything to know before the ValleyStar Credit Union 300

A key difference for Bassett this year compared to his previous ValleyStar Credit Union 300 attempts is that he will not be bringing his family-owned car to Martinsville.

Instead, Bassett is teaming up with Shane Wilson, who has served as his Late Model Stock crew chief this year. Wilson previously worked with the Bassetts when they still had their Xfinity Series program but has also served as a crew chief for teams like Richard Childress Racing, Team Penske and ThorSport Racing, among others.

Martinsville will be Wilson’s first race with his own operation, but Bassett does not envision the two having many issues throughout the weekend. Wilson has been a vital resource for Bassett, so he wants to return the favor by delivering a strong performance in Wilson’s No. 62.

“Every time we go to the race track, I feel like we’ve got a chance to win the race,” Bassett said. “I don’t look at it no differently going to Martinsville. Shane [Wilson] has been around the Late Model [Stock] scene for a while and I have as well. With the help of a bunch of good people and his knowledge, we’ll be just fine.”

Ronnie Bassett Jr.
Finishes of fifth and eighth in the 2025 Virginia Late Model Triple Crown have Ronnie Bassett Jr. tied for second in the point standings. (Photo: Ted Malinowski/NASCAR)

The primary conundrum Bassett and others face with the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 is no matter how strong their car is, one wrong move in the qualifying races can end a promising weekend before it begins, especially with the quality of competition in the field.

Howard is among those Bassett will have to fight for a spot on the 40-car ValleyStar Credit Union 300 starting grid. Howard failed to qualify for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 during his most recent attempt in 2021, but he has enjoyed success at the track in the past, with his best performance being a seventh-place finish in 2009.

Originally, there was no plan for Howard to go for the Virginia Triple Crown until he was convinced by his team to head to South Boston Speedway in June for the Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200. Being in contention for the championship going into Martinsville is something Howard credits to all the hard work his team has put in.

“I’m kind of surprised we’re even in the running for the Triple Crown,” Howard said. “I kind of got out of racing 10 years ago but slowly started getting back into it. Over the last couple years, we got a lot of good partners that helped us step up our program. We’re all super motivated and I’m pretty excited to have a good showing out at Martinsville.”

Howard’s ninth place run at South Boston kicked off his pursuit for the Virginia Triple Crown. He backed that performance up with another stellar outing at his home track, Langley Speedway, where he successfully managed his tires all evening to secure a fourth-place finish in the Hampton Heat.

Having five USAR Pro Cup Series wins and countless Late Model Stock appearances to his name, Howard is no stranger to performing under pressure. Despite this, Howard understands how different Martinsville is compared to other races but feels a more concerted endeavor on his behalf will work as an advantage this weekend.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been [to Martinsville],” Howard said. “The last couple times I attempted, it was more for fun. This year though, we’re putting in a lot of extra effort and are trying to look at every little detail. It’s a long race, but we’ve got to make the race and stay out of trouble.”

Woody Howard
A local Langley Speedway competitor, Woody Howard has been pleasantly surprised by his consistent Virginia Late Model Triple Crown campaign. (Photo: Ryan M. Kelly/NASCAR)

Bassett has been equally as consistent as Howard. Although Bassett finished behind Howard at Langley in eighth, he earned a top five finish at South Boston, which was crucial towards him moving to second in the standings alongside Howard.

For as good as their respective Virginia Triple Crown campaigns have been, both Bassett and Howard still trail Connor Hall by a significant margin. Hall possesses an average finish of 1.5 following his South Boston victory and a runner-up showing at Langley.

Hall is also locked into the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 by winning at South Boston, so Howard and Bassett will need to execute in qualifying to make sure they make the race. From their own individual experiences, the two drivers know that making the field is by no means a guarantee due to circumstances within and outside of their control.

Expectations are high for Howard ahead of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300, but he is not feeling any stress before qualifying. Howard has enjoyed the journey towards this moment and intends to cherish the experience of having a competitive car for Martinsville, all while hoping he can find his way to Victory Lane.

RELATED: Full ValleyStar Credit Union 300 entry list

“I’ve got a lot of big wins, but [Martinsville] would be at the top of the list for me,” Howard said. “If you had asked me earlier this year, I would have said we weren’t going to Martinsville. We’re just excited to be a part of it no matter how it turns out, but we hope we can make the race and have a good showing.”

Like Howard, Bassett has been thrilled by his consistency in the Virginia Triple Crown this year and hopes to carry that into Martinsville with Wilson’s upstart program. With so many extraneous factors at play that will include an intense qualifying race, Bassett plans to control what he can and be methodical through all 200 laps.

Bassett remembers the mechanical issues Hall had at Martinsville last year. If everything goes his way, Bassett knows he can leave Martinsville with both a grandfather clock and a Virginia Triple Crown.

“We’ve kind of struggled the past couple months, so it would be awesome to win [Martinsville] for [Wilson] in this car’s first race out,” Bassett said. “My brother chased the Triple Crown deal a long time ago, so it’s kind of neat to be in a position to have a shot at it. All we can ask for is to go to Martinsville, do the best we can and see where we end up.”

Bassett and Howard may possess many similarities and differences, but they both remain stalwart, consistent competitors in the Late Model Stock discipline. One more strong run at Martinsville on Saturday evening is all that separates them from potentially earning two of the biggest accomplishments of their respective careers.

Posted on by Pat DeCola

Team Penske held all the power Sunday at the “Magic Mile,” with its championship-winning drivers dominating the 301-lapper and Ryan Blaney claiming his third checkered flag of the season. The No. 12 driver’s close friend, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott, had perhaps the drive of the race at Loudon, scraping together a top-five finish after arguably his most disappointing qualifying effort of the season. Will he keep the Round of 12 magic going in the Midwest?

NASCAR.com’s Pat DeCola ranks the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs contenders after the Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and before Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 Presented by ESPN Bet at Kansas Speedway (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).

HOW TO WATCH: NASCAR on NBC, USA | Driver Cams on HBO Max

Analysis: It’s hard to look much more powerful than Blaney did Sunday at Loudon, where he carried the fastest long-run speed car all weekend to his first New Hampshire victory, finally claiming “that (freaking) lobster” and punching an early ticket to the Round of 8. Blaney seems to have a rocket ship every week and gave every indication he intends to continue pressing at Kansas and the Charlotte Roval, so it’s possible this really could be the Round of “12.”

Analysis: Byron not only collected his first top 10 at Loudon in his eighth try Sunday, but he held one of the few cars that seemingly had a sniff of a chance against Team Penske and landed third on the results sheet. A runner-up at Kansas Speedway last fall, look for Byron to carry that speed into perhaps his first win there this weekend.

Analysis: The newfound Hendrick Motorsports speed at Loudon extended to Larson, who once again looks headed toward a potential Championship 4 appearance as the No. 5 team continues to dial things in when it matters. There’s a strong chance that’ll be the car to beat at Kansas as well, seeing as it’s the site of Larson’s most recent win and he’s been lights out there in Hendrick equipment (three wins since 2021).

Analysis: It’s a tough pill to swallow when a driver is one of three guys to test a track in July — a track at which he’s the unquestioned favorite — and then races at said track in September with his team riding three straight wins … and doesn’t lead a lap. Not the weekend Bell was hoping for, but he still walked out a respectable sixth on the pylon and now heads to a track at which he has eight top 10s in 11 starts. Could be worse.

Analysis: Logano was very much hoping to win Sunday and wasn’t pleased with not doing so, but he still secured three straight top fives for the first time since 2019, walking away well above the bubble with the second-most points of the race behind his race-winning teammate. The three-time Kansas winner could contend at the 1.5-mile facility this weekend, but the track has been hit-or-miss for him since his last victory there in 2020.

Analysis:  Along the same lines as Bell, Hamlin expected a much better result at Loudon on Sunday, though who knows what would’ve happened if this situation had played out a little smoother. The four-time Kansas winner has also led in five straight races there, so the 2025 wins leader should, in theory, get back to his dominant ways on Sunday.

Analysis: Elliott has a pair of single-point, dismal days in the past six races, and yet, there’s no denying that we saw a championship-capable performance out of him and the No. 9 team on Sunday to rally back from a whiff in qualifying on Saturday. When they’re on, there’s arguably no more fearsome group in the garage, and they now get to finish out the Round of 12 with two quite favorable race tracks ahead.

Analysis: A lot of eyes were tracking how Briscoe would be able to attack the “Magic Mile” now in JGR’s A-tier equipment, and the returns were reasonable (10th, 19 laps led), but a bit underwhelming after landing runner-up last year for the shuttered Stewart-Haas Racing. A similar story could play out this weekend at Kansas, where he owns a 19.6 average finish but finally nabbed his first top 10 earlier this year.

Analysis: Though Chastain wasn’t able to snap Chevrolet’s long-running Loudon drought, he did halt a five-race skid outside the top 10. It’s hard to see how this train keeps rolling into the Round of 8 with just 72 laps led on the season so far, but he does have one pretty good thing going for him: He enters the Kansas weekend as the defending race winner.

Analysis: Cindric moves up because of some dippers below him, but it was not a great weekend for the No. 2 team, which sits below the bubble after struggling to find the speed his pole- and race-winning teammates deployed all weekend at will. To make matters worse, Cindric has never led a lap or finished in the top 10 at Kansas and, short of a Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval win, now needs to.

Analysis: Reddick is unfortunately proving that his Darlington runner-up was perhaps more of a fluke than what to expect from him and the No. 45 team in these playoffs, because it’s his lone top 10 in the past six races, all of which were otherwise 15th or worse. Normally, on paper, Kansas would be a potential significant rebound spot for him and 23XI, but not with the way this team is running and with the organization’s loosening grip on the Kansas City track.

Analysis: Wallace opened the playoffs looking bound for his first Championship 4 appearance, and now doesn’t even appear likely to see his first Round of 8. A win at Kansas is still absolutely possible, but everything that was just said about Reddick applies here as well, with the one saving grace being that the No. 23 car had led in five straight races before Loudon. They’re capable, but they’re running out of time.

Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

A junction of Joe Gibbs Racing teammates during Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Playoff event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway has left Denny Hamlin seeking assistance from his team’s leadership.

Hamlin and Christopher Bell found themselves hounding fellow JGR teammate Ty Gibbs in a fight for 11th during Stage 2 of Sunday’s Mobil 1 301, doggedly trying to work past the No. 54 Toyota with cars that seemed far faster. But after a heated contest between Bell and Gibbs resulted in contact, Hamlin was next in line to attempt a clean pass on Gibbs before that proved fruitless. The two charged into Turn 1 on Lap 110 and ultimately tangled as a nudge from Hamlin sent Gibbs spinning into the outside SAFER barrier, bringing an end to Gibbs’ day as Hamlin, Bell and Chase Briscoe all carried on to finish inside the top 12.

MORE: Crash details from New Hampshire | Petty: ‘Both guys were wrong’

The crux of the dilemma is that Hamlin, Bell and Briscoe are all postseason contenders while Gibbs missed the cut for the NASCAR Playoffs and cannot chase a Cup Series Championship this season. In a Monday recording of his “Actions Detrimental” podcast on Dirty Mo Media, Hamlin said that he believes the only way forward for all parties is if members of JGR’s leadership get involved and clarify their expectations for on-track etiquette throughout the postseason.

“What I want to happen is leadership (to) step in and tell us, what do you want us to do?” Hamlin said. “If you want us all to just race each other cut-throat, no matter what your position is in the stature of the standings, we can definitely do that. Like I expect myself and the 19 (Briscoe) and the 20 (Bell) to race really, really hard because we’re all battling each other to get above this cutline or maintain our status above the cutline. If I get eliminated or the 19 gets eliminated or the 20 gets eliminated, and then we’ve established this ‘no rules — you guys just do whatever you wanna do,’ none of us are going to win.”

Hamlin said that in years past, team owner Joe Gibbs has addressed situations like this before, setting Hamlin’s expectations for how they race each other moving forward.

“He has had this conversation multiple times with everyone in the room, but I think it probably needs to be said again,” Hamlin said. “And so what I’ve heard is that if you’re a non-playoff car, any break that you can cut your teammates, please do.”

Adding to the unusual level of complexity in this scenario, though, are family ties. Joe Gibbs is the grandfather of Ty Gibbs, while Ty’s mother, Heather Gibbs, also serves as a team co-owner. But with such high stakes, Hamlin believes intervention from leaders within the company may be key to preserving JGR’s championship hopes for another six weeks.

In a post-race interview Sunday, Joe Gibbs said he believed it would be best if the drivers handled the fallout of the situation between themselves. Hamlin believes a conversation with Ty Gibbs wouldn’t solve the problem because “I don’t think we’re on the same page.”

“The challenge is that I think me and Ty are going to have different opinions,” Hamlin said. “Therefore, you need leadership to step in and say, ‘Well, this is how we want it done.’ And then we will play by those rules. Whatever those rules are, I will play by those rules. But I have been told in the past, if you’re not in it, you do everything you can to help your teammates that are in.”

Denny Hamlin drives by the towed car of Ty Gibbs.
Meg Oliphant | Getty Images

Hamlin reiterated he welcomes hard racing and agrees “everyone should race to win the race.” But fighting for 11th place in Stage 2 with a teammate “with nothing to gain” frustrated the veteran Hamlin.

“Me, the 20, the 19 — we’re all battling and scratching and clawing to try to get some stage points, which is going to be life or death for us,” Hamlin said. “It’s our air that we need to move on (in the playoffs). I felt as though (I was) a little bit wronged in the sense of my teammate out of the playoffs should not be the hardest car on the track to pass. I mean, for God’s sake, Ross Chastain let me by. If there’s anyone that probably — he’s on the cutline. But even in the first stage, I pressured him and pressured him, and more than likely, what he thought was ‘I’m not going to hold him up for this entire 60-lap run. I might as well just get back in line, try to keep it from someone else joining this party and passing me along with you.’

“This is the race-craft that I feel like is missing — that understanding (of) the situation. And certainly I felt as though this thing is hard enough to win anyway. But if you’re gonna have to race your teammates harder than anyone on the race track, then this will be really, really tough for any one of us to win.”

ANALYSIS: Playoff tensions bubble over in Round of 12 opener

Hamlin expressed that Gibbs’ aggressive aero-blocking — blocking the air from Hamlin’s car and creating unfavorable driving conditions for Hamlin — ultimately led to their collision in Turn 1. Hamlin had no intention of spinning out his teammate, he said, but added he was looking to move Gibbs out of the lane Hamlin wanted.

“Well, it was twofold because I was pretty much there into Turn 1, and then he moved down to the middle lane to cut the nose off to make me get really (tight),” Hamlin said. “If you cut someone’s nose, especially if they’re running really close to you, it’ll make their car kind of lift up and take off. So I think he was just trying to cross my nose to make me lose air just to further aero-block me. And I was so close to him that I’m like, ‘Hell no. You’re not gonna do that.’ So yeah, I tried to shove him up to the next lane to get my position, and I unfortunately spun him out.”

Hamlin recorded Monday’s episode ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing’s afternoon competition meeting, so no further discussions had yet commenced between Hamlin and Ty Gibbs. But as of Monday morning, Hamlin “just didn’t understand where the mindset was there” from Gibbs.

“It’s just too difficult to win naturally, much less if we’re going have the ‘everyone just races for themselves and it doesn’t matter whether you’re racing for a championship or not,'” Hamlin said. “And from my standpoint, I would think that Ty would want one of us to win a championship. His name’s on the building.”

Posted on by Staff Report

The NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs continue in America’s heartland at Kansas Speedway this Saturday for the second of three Round of 12 contests (4 p.m. ET, The CW, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

ENTRY LISTS: Cup Series | Xfinity Series 

No. 1 seed Connor Zilisch enters with an 85-point buffer over the cutline. Joe Gibbs Racing’s Taylor Gray currently holds the final provisional spot above the cutline, three markers to the good. Nick Sanchez (minus-3), Jesse Love (minus-3),  Austin Hill (minus-16) and Sammy Smith (minus-24) have two races to avoid elimination.

Craftsman Truck Series star Rajah Caruth will team up with Hendrick Motorsports for the first time this year in the No. 17 entry in what will be his third Xfinity Series start of 2025. ARCA Menards Series regular Brenden “Butterbean” Queen will additionally rejoin the Kaulig Racing fold and pilot the No. 11 Chevrolet this weekend. Queen made his Xfinity debut at Bristol Motor Speedway in September, finishing 20th in the No. 11 Kaulig machine.

HOW TO WATCH: NASCAR on The CW

See the full entry list for Saturday’s race:

Posted on by Staff Report

The NASCAR Cup Series returns to the Midwest to do battle at Kansas Speedway for the second Cup Series Playoffs Round of 12 race (Sun., 3 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).

ENTRY LISTS: Cup Series | Xfinity Series

NASCAR’s premier series raced at the 1.5-mile intermediate track in May, where Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson led 221 laps en route to a dominant victory. Larson currently sits third in the playoff standings, 41 points above the cutline. Ross Chastain (minus-12), Austin Cindric (minus-19), Tyler Reddick (minus-23) and Bubba Wallace (minus-27) rank below the eight-driver cutoff.

J.J. Yeley will get behind the wheel of the No. 44 NY Racing Team Chevrolet for the seventh time this season and the first since Watkins Glen International in August.

HOW TO WATCH: NASCAR on NBC, USA | Driver Cams on HBO Max

View the full entry list for the event:

Posted on by Pat DeCola

LOUDON, N.H. — “Game on.”

That was the message Ty Gibbs radioed to his team while spun around on track, sitting idly in his No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota while waiting for a tow in Stage 2 after a run-in with championship-seeking teammates Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell.

It might as well be a rallying cry for the 12 remaining NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs drivers, who capped a wild and tension-filled weekend of racing in New Hampshire Motor Speedway’s return to the postseason Sunday.

Hamlin’s level of patience — or perhaps lack thereof — with his non-playoff teammate, who had been racing him and Bell exceptionally hard during the Mobil 1 301, was surprising to see, given what was on the line. How Hamlin responded — by punting the No. 54 out of the way with urgency after several laps of working to get past him cleanly — was not.

MORE: Teammates tangle at Loudon | Hamlin on brush with Gibbs

“Does Ty know we’re going for a championship? What the (expletive)?” Hamlin boomed over the radio. ” … What the (expletive) is he doing? Are they afraid to talk to him? That’s what I feel like. They’re just scared of him.”

The playoffs may have begun over Labor Day Weekend in Darlington, South Carolina, but they’ve officially arrived in the crisp, autumnal postseason atmosphere New England fans have grown accustomed to.

*****

Bright and early on Saturday morning at 9 ET in the track’s media center, Bell was officially awarded his race-winning trophy (a 20-something-pound “Loudon the Lobster” lacquered and mounted on a plaque for eternity, of course) from last year’s New Hampshire victory. Smiles, photos, chuckles about accidentally leaking major news here last year, etc.

From that moment on, the smiles stopped and the tone of the weekend shifted entirely and palpably, with tension thicker than that undersea behemoth’s meaty, crustaceous claws. Clearly.

RELATED: Race results | Playoff standings

It wasn’t just that particular Stage 2 incident between JGR’s teammates, however.

When drivers came in for their media appearances before and after qualifying on Saturday, several remained in full playoff mode, answering the questions they were asked but still, obviously, locked in and in the zone, solely focused on Sunday’s checkered flag at all costs.

“I’m not worried about Phoenix right now,” 2020 champ Chase Elliott succinctly and abruptly responded to a prompt about what he might be able to learn for the similarly laid-out Phoenix Raceway, host of the 2025 Cup Series Championship Race.

Minutes earlier, Elliott had qualified 27th in what appeared to be a crucially important race for Hendrick Motorsports. The only thing on his mind? Figuring out how to fix that on Sunday.

Same thing with a typically gregarious Austin Cindric, instead stone-faced and serious after landing a P22 starting spot — with his fellow playoff teammates earning front-row honors.

“That was pretty terrible, actually,” Cindric said. “It’s a track-position race track, and it’s frustrating to not quite get a good enough lap to set us up well for points. We kind of needed to maximize every stage of the game here, and we’ve been behind compared to the competition.”

The edginess that accompanies the intensity that the playoffs bring was more than apparent on Saturday, and on Sunday it only ratcheted up once there were 36 cars out on the race track.

cup championship tropgy in foreground with track in back
Brittney Wilbur | NASCAR Digital Media

But that edginess comes from the pressure they’re all feeling, which also has a way of filtering out who’s able to lock in — and who could be sent packing from the playoffs at the end of the Round of 12. And for perhaps a foreshadowing of who that might be: Elliott and the No. 9 team scratched and clawed the entire 301 laps on Sunday to land inside the top five, just his third such Loudon finish in 12 starts. Cindric inched up a bit to finish 17th, but watched one of his teammates win the race (Blaney) and the other (Logano) score the second most points to vault to 24 points above the cutline after opening the day below it.

“That’s just part of the playoffs. There’s pressure. There’s expectations that you should run well. Expectations with yourself. Expectations from the outside world. It’s just, how do you handle that and how do you just clear all that stuff out and just go race at the end of the day?” Blaney said after collecting a third 2025 win to match a career-high. “That’s how I’ve always tried to think about it, like just go racing and go do the best job that you can. That’s what I judge my team off of. Did we do a great job collectively? Did we communicate well through the week, through the weekend? Did we do a good job on pit road? Did I do my job on the race track? That’s what I think we did a great job of today.

“Yeah, it’s a lot of pressure. This is your season. This is your year, everyone’s year, that can go win a championship. It’s nice that we could rise to the occasion today. Hopefully, we can continue to do it.”

The agita only ramps up from here, too, as the Round of 12 continues Sunday at Kansas Speedway (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App). And that goes beyond any barbecue-induced indigestion in Kansas, which has a history showcasing extreme playoff drama of its own.

That includes even Team Penske, which, sure, came alive in New Hampshire and has one driver sleeping easy this week — but two more to sweat slotting into the Round of 8.

MORE: Ford fires back in Round of 12 opener

“I said earlier my stress has been reduced by one-third,” said Michael Nelson, Team Penske president of NASCAR. “We’ve got two more to try to get in here these next couple weeks. No, this goes a long way. It’s really good to see this team get the win. They’ve had the fastest car quite a bit here recently. It’s good to bring it home for them just for the win’s sake, but also it’s huge to obviously have a little bit of breathing room for the next round.”

From this point on — and, really, since Bristol shook everyone’s expectations to close out the Round of 16 — the only thing we know is that we don’t know what to expect.

“I think this weekend is proof. You can’t take anything for granted,” said Cindric after his 17th-place run. “But I don’t think we’re in a position to be desperate. We’ve just got to go out the next two weekends and do better than we did this weekend. If we have a repeat of this weekend, it’s not gonna be enough to make it through. We’re capable of it, and I believe in that. I feel good about Kansas.”

In fact, things are so intense, electric and shrouded in mystery … that expectations within the same shop don’t even align.

“No, I don’t feel good about Kansas at all,” No. 22 crew chief Paul Wolfe told NASCAR.com. “That was why today was big for us. The win would have been really good for that, but I think we scored enough points that hopefully we can get through Kansas without killing ourselves, and then the (round-closing Charlotte) Roval we’ve been able to manage pretty well there in the past. So I don’t feel terrible about that, but Kansas will be a struggle.”

Game on.

Posted on by Brandon White

Every Late Model Stock competitor in the Southeast has one event circled on their calendar every year; the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway.

The event has served as the discipline’s equivalent to the Daytona 500 since its inaugural running in 1995. Each running regularly attracts more than 70 competitors from across the region and beyond with the goal of claiming a prestigious grandfather clock.

Previous winners of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 comprise Late Model Stock legends and drivers who would later progress into one of NASCAR’s national touring divisions. That list includes Timothy Peters, Dennis Setzer, Lee Pulliam, Peyton Sellers, Philip Morris and Josh Berry, among others.

For a select few on the entry list, the Virginia Late Model Triple Crown is also up for grabs at Martinsville on Saturday evening. Earning a grandfather clock and/or Virginia Triple Crown will require drivers to survive the unpredictability the ValleyStar Credit Union 30o brings and shine under the lights on Late Model Stock racing’s biggest stage.

Below is everything to know about the 2025 ValleyStar Credit Union 300.

Martinsville Speedway
Many of the best Late Model Stock competitors in the country will descend upon Martinsville Speedway for a shot at a grandfather clock. (Photo: Ted Malinowski/NASCAR)

What TV channel is the 2025 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 on?

Qualifying for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 will air live on FloRacing, the official streaming home for all NASCAR Regional properties.

FloRacing will broadcast Saturday’s on-track activity, which will also be streamed live on the NASCAR Channel, which is available on Tubi, The Roku Channel, Xumo Play, Samsung TV Plus, Prime Video and more.

Below is the complete broadcast schedule for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300.

Date Event Start time How to watch
Friday, Sept. 26, 2025 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 qualifying 7 p.m. ET FloRacing
Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 2:45 p.m. ET FloRacing/NASCAR Channel

Complete schedule for the 2025 ValleyStar Credit Union 300

On-track activity for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 will take place between Sept. 26-27, 2025.

The event is headlined by the 200-lap Late Model Stock feature, with four 25-lap qualifying races setting the field for the main event.

Below is the complete schedule at Martinsville Speedway (all times ET).

  • Friday, Sept. 26
Time Event
9 a.m. Ticket booth opens
1 p.m. Parking opens
2:30 p.m. Fan gate opens — Main gate only
3-6 p.m. Practice
7 p.m. Qualifying
  • Saturday, Sept. 27
Time Event
9 a.m. Ticket booth opens
10 a.m. Parking opens
12:30 p.m. Fan gate opens — Main gate and Turn 1 gate only
12:45-2:30 p.m. Autograph session on the frontstretch
3 p.m. First qualifying race (25 laps)
To follow Second qualifying race (25 laps)
To follow Third qualifying race (25 laps)
To follow Fourth qualifying race (25 laps)
5-5:20 p.m. ValleyStar Credit Union 300 hot laps
5:30-6:30 p.m. Martinsville Speedway Track Events (Pre-race/Driver intros)
6:35 p.m. All cars on the line (Race line-up)
7 p.m. Feature race (200 laps)

Race format

The field for Saturday’s ValleyStar Credit Union 300 will be set by a combination of qualifying and the four 25-lap qualifying races. Competitors will first qualify on Friday evening, with the fastest qualifier earning a $5,000 bonus.

Connor Hall and Matt Waltz are the only two drivers locked into the ValleyStar Credit Union 300. They earned their starting positions by winning the Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 at South Boston Speedway and Hampton Heat at Langley Speedway, respectively. Hall was the winner at South Boston, while Waltz won at Langley.

Starting positions for the 40-car field are determined by the qualifiers. The top 10 finishers in each qualifying race will secure a place in the ValleyStar Credit Union 300. There will not be a last chance qualifier.

If Hall and Waltz fail to race their way in, the first two qualifying races will have 10 transfers into the feature with the last two only having nine. Should only one of those two not finish top 10 in their respective qualifier, just the fourth qualifying race will have nine available transfer spots.

The 200-lap feature race includes three segments: 100 laps, 75 laps and 25 laps. Each segment winner receives a $1,000 bonus.

In the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 feature, the leader of each lap receives $25, with $5,000 available in the laps led bonus pool. If the race extends beyond the scheduled distance, there will be unlimited attempts at a green-white-checkered finish. The winner also takes home a $32,000 paycheck to go along with a grandfather clock.

Martinsville Speedway
Last year, Carson Kvapil joined a notable list of names won have won the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway. (Photo: Ted Malinowski/NASCAR)

ValleyStar Credit Union 300 entry list

The current entry list for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 features 74 cars.

Headlining the stacked group of competitors is Connor Hall, who currently leads the Virginia Triple Crown point standings with an average finish of 1.5. A two-time NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series National champion, Hall is still searching for his first ValleyStar Credit Union 300 win, with his best finish being a 12th-place effort in 2022.

Joining Hall on the JR Motorsports roster for Martinsville is Caden Kvapil, the younger brother of 2024 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 winner Carson Kvapil. Caden has competed in a handful of Late Model Stock events for JR Motorsports throughout 2025, but will look to make a strong impression in his maiden ValleyStar Credit Union 300 appearance.

Four-time NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series National champion Lee Pulliam returns to Martinsville after finishing 13th last year, which was his first Late Model Stock race since 2020. The car Pulliam is driving in the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 this year will resembles the one he drove during his first of two Martinsville triumphs in 2012.

Pulliam is one of six former winners on the 2025 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 entry list. The other previous Martinsville victors joining Pulliam at the track this weekend are Peyton Sellers, Trevor Ward, Landon Pembelton, Mike Looney and Jake Crum.

Reigning NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Ty Majeski is utilizing the off weekend to make his second ValleyStar Credit Union 300 start after his first attempt in 2022 ended behind the wall. Majeski is teaming up with Chad Bryant Racing on Saturday, the same organization he earned two consecutive South Carolina 400 victories with in 2020 and 2021.

Other names set to battle for a grandfather clock at Martinsville include Bobby McCarty, Matt Waltz, Landon Huffman, Ronnie Bassett Jr., Doug Barnes Jr., Tate Fogleman, Tristan McKee, Max Reaves and Carson Loftin.

Below is the complete 2025 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 entry list.

(Drivers in bold are eligible for the Virginia Triple Crown)

Car No. Driver Hometown Car Owner
0 Landon Pembelton Amelia, VA Brian Pembelton
1 Andrew Grady Youngsville, NC Tony Grady
1 Jamie York Reidsville, NC James Jason York, Sr.
1 Lee Pulliam Alton, VA Lee Pulliam
2 Matt Waltz Smithfield, VA Waltz Racing LLC
2 Brandon Pierce Kernersville, NC Justin Carroll
3 Trey Williams Powhatan, VA Ray Williams Jr.
4 Kyle Dudley Roanoke, VA Kyle Dudley
4 Kade Brown Lincolnton, NC Marcus Richmond
5 Dexter Canipe III Conover, NC Dexter Canipe Jr.
6 Bobby McCarty Madison, NC Bobby McCarty
7 Cory Pack Ridgeway, VA Cotton Rigney
7 Dylan Ward Walkertown, NC Dylan Ward
7 Connor Branch Lewisville, NC Connor Branch Racing
7 Tristan McKee Kannapolis, NC Matt Piercy
7 Blayne Harrison Bastian, VA Harrison Motorsports
8 Caden Kvapil Mooresville, NC Dale Earnhardt Jr.
8 Tate Fogleman Durham, NC JFG Motorsports
8 Conner Weddell Centerville, MD Weddell Motorsports
8 Thomas Scott Burlington, NC Thomas Scott
12 Jake Crum Hiddenite, NC Mike Darne
13 Chase Murphy Walkertown, NC Dylan Ward
14 Jared Fryar Trinity, NC Jimmy Mooring
15 Adam Murray Abingdon, VA VanDyke Racing
16 Cody Kelley Hartsville, SC Kendall Sellers
17 Daniel Silvestri Blacksburg, VA Kenneth Packer
17 Jason Myers Hurt, VA Jason Myers
17 Stacy Puryear South Boston, VA Stacy Puryear
17 Bryan Reedy Daleville, VA Bryan Reedy
19 Jessica Cann Kernersville, NC Bill Petroff
22 Carson Loftin Clemmons, NC Barry Nelson
23 Matt Leicht Asheville, NC Marvin Thomas
24 Diego Mendeztorres Huntersville, NC Justin Carroll
25 Jacob Borst Elon, NC Justin Borst
26 Peyton Sellers Danville, VA Bert Sellers
28 Landon S. Huffman Connelly Springs, NC Pinnacle Racing Group, Inc.
29 Stuart Crews Long Island, VA Stuart Crews
31 Cole Bruce Fredericksburg, VA Sylvia Bruce
33 Dillon Harville Kernersville, NC Zane Anthony
40 Ryan Millington Statesville, NC Bob Saville
41 Woody Howard Chesapeake, VA Woody Howard
41 Mason Diaz Manassas, VA Hedgecock Racing
44 Conner Jones Fredericksburg, VA Mike Darne
44 Dylan Newsome Goldsboro, NC Jack Newsome
50 Riley Neal Walkertown, NC Ross Dalton
50 Chuck Wall Lexington, NC Ross Dalton
51 Ryan Matthews Topping, VA Michael Matthews
57 Landon Huffman Claremont, NC Carroll Speedshop
57 Chase Johnson Midlothian, VA Richard Johnson
62 Ronnie Bassett Jr. Lexington, NC Shane Wilson
71 Parker Eatmon Mooresville, NC Hettinger Racing
73 Jimmy Mullins Bassett, VA Patrick & Henry Community College
74 Steve Zacharias Myrtle Beach, SC Mitchell Mote
75 Cory Dunn Salem, VA Larry Dunn
77 Trevor Ward Winston-Salem, NC Trevor Ward
77 Darren Krantz Jr. Huntington, NY Chad Bryant Racing
77 Blake Stallings Danville, VA Steve Stallings
81 Zack Clifton Walkertown, NC Zack Clifton
87 Mike Looney Catawba, VA Billy Martin
88 Connor Hall Hampton, VA Dale Earnhardt Jr.
88 Doug Barnes Jr. Wellington, FL Lee Pulliam
95 Sam Yarbrough Myrtle Beach, SC Cumberland-Elliott Racing
97 Michael Bumgarner Taylorsville, NC Keith Bumgarner
98 Ty Majeski Kaukauna, WI Chad Bryant Racing
98 Donovan Strauss Mooresville, NC Kendall Sellers
00 Chase Burrow King William, VA Chase Burrow Motorsports
01 Camden Gullie Durham, NC Jason Gullie
01 Thomas Beane Hudson, NC Jody Chandler
09 Riley Gentry Easley, SC Riley Gentry

Virginia Triple Crown point standings

Driver South Boston finish Langley finish Martinsville finish Average finish
Connor Hall 1 2 – 1.5
Ronnie Bassett Jr. 5 8 – 6.5
Woody Howard 9 4 – 6.5
Darren Krantz Jr. 2 13 – 7.5
Kade Brown 11 5 – 8
Brandon Pierce 8 10 – 9
Ryan Millington 4 15 – 9.5
Carson Loftin 14 6 – 10
Parker Eatmon 3 18 – 10.5
Doug Barnes Jr. 7 16 – 11.5
Trevor Ward 19 9 – 14
Peyton Sellers 24 7 – 15.5
Daniel Silvestri 23 11 – 17
Chase Burrow 16 20 – 18
Tate Fogleman 6 31 – 18.5
Matt Waltz 38 1 – 19.6
Deac McCaskill 28 17 – 22.5
Justin Carroll 20 27 – 23.5
Landon Pembelton 30 19 – 24.5
Blake Stallings 21 33 – 27
Jonathan Shafer 27 28 – 27.5
Trey Williams 36 25 – 30.5
London McKenzie 37 24 – 30.5
Mason Bailey 32 30 – 31
Bobby McCarty 29 35 – 32

 

Posted on by Cameron Richardson

After 301 hard-fought miles around New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the Cup Series playoff picture took a major swing.

Sweeping the first-round races, Joe Gibbs Racing struggled Sunday at the “Magic Mile”, opening the door for Team Penske to reassert itself into the championship picture. Before the Round of 12 moves on to a high-stakes race at Kansas Speedway next Sunday (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App), see who put together good days in Loudon and who’s on the back foot going to the Sunflower State.

WINNER

Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford. Team Penske had the cars to beat with Blaney and Joey Logano starting on the front row and owning Saturday’s session. Technical alliance teammate Josh Berry (Wood Brothers) was also among the fastest cars of the day, placing second and giving the No. 12 driver everything he had in the closing laps. It’s the fifth consecutive season Blaney has reached the semifinal round, and he’ll have three favorable tracks (Las Vegas, Talladega, Martinsville) to set himself up for his third consecutive berth to the Championship 4.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Loudon

WHO’S HOT?

Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford. Logano is teasing championship pace right now, nabbing a third consecutive top-five finish, which he hasn’t accomplished since the spring of 2019. The three-time titleholder won the pole Saturday, took a Stage 2 win and led a race-high 147 laps before settling for a fourth-place result at New Hampshire. Kansas is next as Logano looks for four straight top fives for the first time since 2017.

Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Entering Sunday’s race, it looked like Hendrick Motorsports would struggle on pace. Elliott started 27th but slowly crept his way through the field and tallied a massive fifth-place result. A call from crew chief Alan Gustafson to stay out after a Lap 255 caution placed vital track position to keep the 2020 series champion toward the front to close the day strong. Kansas will have some question marks for the No. 9 camp as they finished 15th earlier in the spring.

WHO’S NOT?

Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota. Base hits in the Round of 16 turned into a “golden sombrero” for Wallace at New Hampshire as the No. 23 team struggled to find speed all weekend. Wallace finished worst of the title-eligible drivers remaining — one lap down in 26th. With no stage points and minimal points to coincide with the finish, Wallace will need to find the speed in his Toyota that earned him a victory in the 2022 Kansas playoff race.

Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford. Penske and Wood Brothers had the speed to run up front, but Cindric was the lone wolf outside the top 10 among the four cars. Crew chief Brian Wilson tried taking a big swing with a two-tire call during the Stage 2 yellow, but it was all for naught as Cindric immediately lost spots and ultimately finished 17th at the “Magic Mile.”

BUBBLE WATCH

RANKDRIVER+/-
4Christopher Bell+29
5Denny Hamlin+27
6Joey Logano+24
7Chase Elliott+14
8Chase Briscoe+12
CUTLINE
9Ross Chastain-12
10Austin Cindric-19
11Tyler Reddick-23
12Bubba Wallace-27

NASCAR INSIGHTS

One of the key playoff story lines recently has been the suspect execution of Hamlin and the No. 11 crew on pit road. That wasn’t the case Sunday as they were the best on pit road at New Hampshire, according to NASCAR Insights. However, the lack of speed and a pedestrian 22nd in restarts deemed a perfect day on pit road null and void as Hamlin finished outside the top 10. Why is this key? Kansas awaits, and in last year’s playoff race at the 1.5-mile oval, the No. 11 had one of its worst days on pit road despite finishing inside the top 10. We will see if Hamlin and co. can keep up the momentum in the stall heading to the Sunflower State.

QUOTABLE

“That was the longest day I’ve had in a race car in a long time. Just a head-scratcher and that’s how it really was (since) the start of the weekend. In practice, I didn’t really know which way to handle the balance. I thought we were neutral, and we obviously fired off and didn’t really have much to speak for. So I hate that. It looks like our whole team struggled just to find the speed and the feel that we needed. This is a tricky place, but to be that far off, it kind of caught off all of us by surprise. — Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota, on trying to find pace at New Hampshire.

NEXT RACE

The Cup Series Playoffs continue next Sunday as the circuit returns to Kansas for its annual playoff race. Kyle Larson walloped the field in the spring as he led 221 of the 267 laps. Don’t underestimate Ross Chastain, however. The No. 1 Trackhouse Racing driver played spoiler in the Kansas playoff race last year as he took the checkered flag and will look to repeat his triumph in hopes of clinching a Round of 8 berth.

Posted on by Pat DeCola

LOUDON, N.H. — The empire has struck back, so to speak.

With Joe Gibbs Racing sweeping the Round of 16 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs opening round — decisively — and opening the Round of 12 at a track at which it had won three straight, it appeared on paper that the Toyota powerhouse would be dining on seafood once again after Sunday’s Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Put away those bibs, boys, because race winner Ryan Blaney and Team Penske are a force of nature.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

The “Star Wars” superfan Blaney and his pole-winning, New England native teammate Joey Logano combined to collect both stage wins, the race win and 263 laps led at the “Magic Mile,” with the closely aligned Wood Brothers Racing driver Josh Berry landing P2 with 10 laps led of his own. Austin Cindric, also chasing a championship in the No. 2 Penske Ford, struggled a bit throughout the weekend but rallied back for his best Loudon finish since his rookie season of 2022.

“Massive props to all of Team Penske, Wood Brothers. Really great job leading up to this race and preparing for practice, qualifying and the race car’s really fast. And as a whole company, that’s something they should really be proud of,” Blaney said in his post-race press conference. “I’m just in the fortunate situation I get to drive a fast race car, you know? But, yeah, it speaks volumes of the hard work that they’ve done. And I think for us to run first, Josh run second with Joey fourth with a stage win, like, that’s a great day. And so yeah, just huge, huge props to them. And couldn’t be prouder of them. And it’s nice to be able to capitalize on having such guys.”

All the talk leading into Saturday’s on-track action was, understandably, Toyota and Joe Gibbs Racing’s manhandling of the playoff field in the postseason’s first three races. Coming to Loudon, where Toyota had won all three races, all six stages and led 83% of the laps at New Hampshire in the Next Gen era to follow? Forget about it.

But that wasn’t how the Penske shop saw it, and that was not at all how it played out.

“Yeah, I mean, I think when you look at Loudon, you expect us to run well, and overall, it was a solid weekend, right? A pole, a race win, two stage wins, if you look at Team Penske as a whole there, so that’s a good day,” the two-time NHMS winner and Connecticut product Logano said on pit road after his third straight top five.

“… overall, I’m proud of the execution. We obviously got a ton of points today. I think we got a second and a first in the first two stages and a top-four finish, so we did what we needed to do. We’re plus to the cutline. I’d rather win. That’s just the greed in me, especially when it’s home.”

No. 22 crew chief Paul Wolfe told NASCAR.com on Saturday — before practice and qualifying, when Logano put his Ford on the pole, mind you — that he saw “no reason to think we shouldn’t be a contender tomorrow.” It certainly helped that Logano was one of just three drivers to test here in July.

Wolfe’s confidence was backed up — and then some.

“Well, I knew this was going to be a strong track for us, like I said yesterday, with the test and what we’re able to come up with there. Obviously, it played out today just like that, which was nice to see,” the championship-winning crew chief told NASCAR.com on pit road following the race. “Obviously, we had the best cars here, and I’m glad one of our cars got the win and we scored a lot of points. We were in contention all day, and go out of here with a good bit above the cutline. So not the win that obviously we want, but as good a spot, as you could say, aside from winning, as we head to Kansas. … There’s no mistakes. We’re operating at a high level right now.”

On the flip side, what exactly happened to Toyota? The results sheet will still show the three JGR drivers landing inside the top 12 — not catastrophic by any means — but seeing Penske flat-out dominate while “Magic Mile” masters Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin combine for exactly zero laps led, with the 23XI Racing playoff drivers Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace not even cracking the top 20 has to be disheartening. Especially after Bell was also one of the three drivers to test at Loudon.

And especially because the championship will be decided at Phoenix Raceway, a similarly flat 1-mile track that Penske has had dialed in for three straight titles, split between Logano (two) and Blaney.

“I think the biggest thing you’ve got to take away from today is, with this aero package, with the same tire as Phoenix at a 1-mile race track, the Penske cars are completely untouchable again,” JGR competition director Chris Gabehart said. “So, I know what it’s like to be untouchable. We’ve been fortunate enough to be on the right side of that. But the reality is, we got a lot of work to do with this package, and that’s the focus.

“While this is the aero package and the tire we’ll run at Phoenix, this is not Phoenix. It’s Loudon. And they have different race track tendencies. And when we were at Phoenix, the last time they were on the other side of the race track, and when we finished the race, we finished first. So you can’t throw the baby out with the bathwater here. But the reality is, it’s playoff season, and here come the yellow cars, with subpar metrics along the way, but those guys know how to get it done when it counts. And, you know, we’ll just have to race them the rest of the year and see how it goes, I guess.”

Posted on by Holly Cain

LOUDON, N.H. — Team Penske Fords were fast in practice, fast in qualifying and fastest in the Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway when it counted Sunday afternoon, with Ryan Blaney taking a 0.937-second victory over fellow Ford driver Josh Berry in the opening race of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 12.

It marked a distinct competitive turn in this year’s championship with three Fords finishing among the top five and three Chevrolets among the top seven at the 1-mile New Hampshire track after a Toyota sweep of the playoffs’ opening three-race round.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

Blaney’s No. 12 Team Penske Ford — which started on the outside of the front row — led 116 of the race’s 301 laps, including the final 39 laps, holding off the Wood Brothers Racing driver Berry, who had rallied back in his No. 21 Ford after a spin on Lap 82.

“Probably the hardest 20 laps I drove,” Blaney, 31, said of the race’s closing laps. “Was trying to bide my stuff and he [Berry] really started coming. He started to get super free, and it was all I could do to hold him off. It was good racing. Clean racing, and I appreciate Josh not throwing me the bumper when he could have.”

Blaney’s victory cashes the popular 2023 series champion’s ticket into the Round of 8 in pursuit of his second Cup Series title. Important both Sunday and likely further in the playoffs as the season’s three-race winner can expect fierce competition from his Penske teammate, three-time and reigning series champ Joey Logano, as the playoffs intensify.

SHOP: Ryan Blaney winner gear

The two were quickest throughout preparation for Sunday’s race and maintained that edge throughout the day — combining to lead 263 of the 301 laps.

The polesitter, Logano, led the most laps (147) and finished fourth. He crossed the line just behind another playoff-eligible driver, Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron, whose teammate, Chase Elliott, turned in an inspiring comeback performance with a fifth-place showing after a 27th-place starting position.

“We ran well, we just weren’t the fastest car,” Logano said. “The 12 [Blaney] was fastest in practice, and he showed that again in the race. Our only chance to beat him was on pit road and beat him on details. But they were able to make up their track position when they put four [tires] on. That last restart I could have started behind him and finished third in the race, but if I was behind the 12 [Blaney] I wasn’t going to win.”

It perhaps marked a significant turn in competition — early in this round, at least — with the top Toyota driver, the race’s defending winner Christopher Bell, leading that manufacturer with a sixth-place finish Sunday. He won just a week ago, capping a three-race Toyota winning sweep in the opening playoff series.

Hendrick’s Kyle Larson (also a playoff driver) was seventh, followed by Spire Motorsports’ Michael McDowell and playoff drivers Ross Chastain (Trackhouse Racing) and Chase Briscoe (Joe Gibbs Racing).

JGR’s veteran driver Denny Hamlin, who ran top-10 most of the day and was involved in an incident with his teammate Ty Gibbs mid-race, dropped from the championship lead coming into New Hampshire to now fifth place in the points with a 12th-place run. The season’s five-race winner had no comment, however, about the contact with Gibbs that put the young third-year driver into the wall and out of the race while they both raced among the top 10.

Blaney’s victory — the 16th of his career — automatically moves him into the next round of the playoffs. Byron is now second in the standings, 47 points above the cutline. Larson is 41 points up, and Bell is 29 points to the good.

“The Penske cars were super-fast, kind of in another zip code,” said Byron, whose third-place finish marks his first career top-10 showing in eight New Hampshire races.

“If we can just build on this, all our short tracks are coming together,” said Byron. “It’s no breathing room because you have to go out there and execute every week and keep your foot on the gas in this deal. But hopefully we can go to Kansas and be up front, contending for a win.

“… Definitely wasn’t expecting to be this strong here, so hopefully we can go to Kansas and be really good.”

Hamlin is now fifth in the standings with a 27-point cushion on the elimination line, followed by Logano (plus-24), Elliott (plus-14) and Briscoe, who holds a 12-point advantage over Chastain for the eighth and final playoff position to advance following the Kansas race next week and the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval race on Oct. 5.

Team Penske’s Austin Cindric (minus-19) and 23XI Racing teammates Tyler Reddick (minus-23) and Bubba Wallace (minus-27) are also below the playoff line heading to Kansas. Cindric finished 17th Sunday, Reddick was 21st and Wallace was 26th.

The Cup Series moves to the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway for next Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 Presented by ESPN Bet (3 p.m. ET on USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App). Chastain is the defending race winner.

NOTE: Inspection was completed in the NASCAR Cup Series garage with no issues, confirming Blaney as the winner. No cars were taken back to the NASCAR R&D Center in Concord, North Carolina, for further inspection.