The NTT IndyCar Series will join NASCAR’s top two national circuits for a crossover weekend next March at Phoenix Raceway, marking the open-wheel tour’s first visit to the Arizona oval since 2018.
The latest component of the Phoenix race weekend March 6-8 was added Tuesday, when IndyCar announced its 2026 schedule. The IndyCar Series event will share Saturday’s slate with the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (currently called the Xfinity Series), with the NASCAR Cup Series and ARCA Menards Series completing the weekend lineup.
The scheduling development means the Cup Series and IndyCar Series will share the weekend bill for the first time since 2023, when NASCAR last raced on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road-course layout. NASCAR and IndyCar will also hold crossover events on consecutive weeks on next year’s calendar, with the Craftsman Truck Series set to join the Indianapolis-based series for its debut at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg street course on Feb. 28-March 1.
“We’re thrilled to welcome the NTT IndyCar Series back to Phoenix Raceway,” Phoenix Raceway President Latasha Causey said in a release provided by the track. “This track has deep roots in open-wheel history, so we’re pleased to bring that tradition back to our race fans as part of a doubleheader Saturday with the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.”
IndyCar’s history at Phoenix spans back to the track’s opening season in 1964. The circuit last competed on the 1-mile oval in April 2018, when major renovations to the facility were in progress. Next year’s Phoenix event will be the first for IndyCar with those enhancements complete and with the start/finish line in its current location, just before the dogleg that was formerly part of the track’s distinctive backstretch.
“I loved when we had the doubleheader with them at Indy, just kind of being right there and going over and hanging out and watching practice in their box and stuff like that,” said Ryan Blaney, who drives for the Team Penske organization that fields teams in both NASCAR and IndyCar. “It was cool, and I think it’s going to be fantastic. And I like that IndyCar’s going back to Phoenix. It’s been a while since they’ve run in Phoenix, and I think it’ll put on a really good show. So I’m looking forward to that in the spring, and yeah, it’ll be fun to watch those guys run about six seconds at least faster than us around that place, and I’m looking forward to going and standing like in (turns) one and two. Those guys just haulin’ butt around on there will be pretty amazing to see. So yeah, I think it’s great for both series, IndyCar and on the NASCAR side.”
The Cup Series will visit Phoenix twice next year – March 8 and Oct. 18. Between now and then, the track is also set to host NASCAR Championship Weekend for the sixth consecutive year, with 2025 season finales set for the three national series Oct. 31-Nov. 2. NASCAR’s season-ending weekend will move to Homestead-Miami Speedway next year.
Kyle Larson drove an IndyCar at Phoenix Raceway during testing in February 2024, all as part of his preparations for his first attempt at the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 double that year. Phoenix was also the site of preseason IndyCar testing for many years until the series’ departure after the 2018 event.
One of the most anticipated races of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season, the Mohegan Sun 100 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, is on the docket this Saturday morning at 9:15 a.m. ET live on FloRacing.
The race, which serves as the 13th of 16 events on the 2025 calendar, marks the 77th visit by NASCAR’s oldest division to the 1.058-mile oval located in Loudon, New Hampshire. Mike McLaughlin won the first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event held at the track in 1990 and is one of only 24 drivers to win with the series at the track.
Mike Stefanik holds the series record with eight victories at New Hampshire. Other notable winners at the track include Tony Hirschman, Reggie Ruggiero, Bobby Santos III, Ted Christopher, John Blewett III, Doug Coby, Steve Park, Todd Szegedy, Mike Ewanitsko, Jeff Fuller, Chuck Hossfeld, Ron Silk and the most recent winner, Justin Bonsignore.
Tickets to Saturday’s Mohegan Sun 100 are available here. Below is everything you need to know about the 13th race of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season.
Cars in action during the Mohegan Sun 100 for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on June 22, 2024 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo: Adam Glanzman/NASCAR)
Mohegan Sun 100 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway
It’s been more than a year since six-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Doug Coby made his most recent start with the series. That changes Saturday when Coby returns to competition at the wheel of Tommy Baldwin Jr.’s No. 7NY at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
This won’t be the first time Coby has driven for Baldwin. The pairing worked together from 2022 to 2024, with Coby scoring four victories for Baldwin’s team. Coby is a four-time winner at the Magic Mile, with his most recent win at the track coming in 2016.
If Coby is going to earn his fifth New Hampshire Motor Speedway victory Saturday, he will have to go through the best the Modified Tour has to offer.
Leading the charge will be Justin Bonsignore, who has won the last two NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races at the track. Bonsignore enters Saturday’s race 17 points behind KLM Motorsports’ Austin Beers in the battle for the series championship and a win at New Hampshire would be exactly the type of momentum he needs to remain in the fight.
In addition to Coby and Bonsignore, other previous winners at the track who are entered include three-time winner Ron Silk, 2022 winner Anthony Nocella and 2014 winner Woody Pitkat.
Mike Christopher Jr., nephew of late NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Ted Christopher, will make his first start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Saturday morning in his family-owned No. 13. He’ll also be making his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut later Saturday afternoon.
Craig Lutz, who has won the first two NASCAR Cup Series companion events on the series schedule this year, will make his 150th career NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour start Saturday aboard Russell Goodale’s No. 46.
Other notable entrants for Saturday morning’s event include Patrick Emerling, Eric Goodale, Kyle Bonsignore, Matt Hirschman, Andy Seuss, Jon McKennedy, Jake Lutz and Tommy and Trevor Catalano, among others.
The complete entry list for the Mohegan Sun 100 is available here.
Cars in action during the Mohegan Sun 100 for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on June 22, 2024 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo: Adam Glanzman/NASCAR)
SCHEDULE: Friday, Sept. 19; Final practice from 11:30 a.m. – 12:20 p.m. ET … Qualifying at 3:05 p.m. ET … Saturday, Sept. 20; Start of the Mohegan Sun 100 at 9:15 a.m. ET.
QUALIFYING: Two consecutive qualifying laps. Faster lap determines qualifying position. Adjustments or repairs may not be made on the vehicle after the vehicle has taken the green flag at the start/finish line. NASCAR reserves the right to have more than one vehicle engage in qualifying runs at the same time. Starting field for the Mohegan Sun 100 is limited to 32 starters including Provisional Positions.
TIRE ALLOTMENT: The maximum tire allotment available for this event is twelve (12) tires per team. All tires used for qualifying and the race must be purchased at the track and scanned by Hoosier, unless otherwise approved in advance by the Series Director. Four (4) tires must be used for qualifying and to begin the race. All qualifying tires must remain in impound until released by NASCAR Officials. The remaining tire allotment may be used for practice and/or change tires during the event.
BRISTOL, Tenn. — The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs are in full force, with all the attention shining on championship contenders Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway as the Round of 16 came to a close.
Yet the stars who glistened brightest at the “Last Great Colosseum” were arguably those who didn’t qualify for the 2025 postseason.
The Bass Pro Shops Night Race featured significant performances from a multitude of non-playoff drivers who put themselves in position to win Saturday’s race, including Brad Keselowski, Zane Smith and Ty Gibbs. None are eligible to win this year’s championship after missing the cut to join the 16-driver grid, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t still fighting for wins of their own.
In the brightest spotlight when the checkered flag waved was Keselowski. The 2012 Cup champion had a monster run into Turn 3 on the final lap, charging to the back bumper of Christopher Bell. He slammed Bell’s bumper on entry in hopes of a bump-and-run pass, but the contact appeared too square, allowing Bell to maintain control and escape Keselowski’s clutches in the last corner.
“I thought I dumped him!” Keselowski told RACER.com. “I was like, ‘Oh, that was harder than I wanted to hit him.’ Didn’t even do a thing.”
Keselowski’s disappointment was evident when he climbed from his car, shook his head in disgust and threw his gloves back into the cockpit after finishing second for the second time this season (EchoPark Speedway near Atlanta in June). Running fourth before the race’s final restart with four laps remaining, Keselowski opted for the top lane behind leader Carson Hocevar and third-place runner Alex Bowman. That allowed Bell to take the inside of Row 2 behind front-row restarter Zane Smith.
“I’m just pissed,” Keselowski told reporters. “We did all the right moves and just kind of got screwed on the last restart. And it sucks to be that close.”
Ethan Smith | For NASCAR Digital Media
Equally close but less frustrated was Smith, who finished third behind Bell and Keselowski. Smith had an excellent night driving the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford, averaging a third-best running position of 7.88, only behind Gibbs (4.82) and Ryan Blaney (7.2). On a night when tire wear dominated the conversation, Smith and crew chief Ryan Bergenty managed their Goodyear rubber better than most, solidifying their first top-five finish of the season.
“Yeah, it’s big. Especially in the playoffs, there’s a lot of these guys bringing their best stuff,” Smith told NASCAR.com. “If it stays green there, we’re in a really good position to get my first Cup win. This 38 team’s first Cup win. And, yeah, it just unfortunately didn’t work out.”
On the restart, Smith launched perfectly alongside Hocevar. But on older left-side tires, Smith washed up the track in Turns 1 and 2, sending both him and Hocevar high and allowing Bell to charge through underneath before Keselowski capitalized as well. That slide may have cost him a chance to win, but it didn’t dull what may have been Smith’s best Cup race from start to finish.
“I think it’s our best to date all-around effort,” Bergenty told NASCAR.com. “I think (Saturday) was the pinnacle of driver-to-crew-chief and spotter communication to just management, strategy of when to put tires on, how fast to go, how slow to go, track position, right sides, four tires. It was a little bit of everything. And then your car has to have good potential. So I thought we had a little bit of all of that, and we just kind of hung around top 10 all day and had a good shot at it.”
Smith showed flashes of speed throughout the summer, but incidents not of his own doing often cost him late in the going, most notably at tracks like Sonoma Raceway, Dover Motor Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Iowa Speedway. That left a dearth of results to back up those otherwise strong efforts that had the No. 38 Ford inside the top 15. At Bristol, the box score backed what the numbers laid out: According to NASCAR Insights, Smith earned the No. 1 Defense Rating and No. 2 Passer Rating.
“It’s just a solidification of the last two months,” Bergenty said. “We can hypothetically speak that we’ve had speed, but you don’t have results, so you don’t get an asterisk on your results. I think tonight just kind of solidifies where we’ve been the last couple months. And then the hard part now is going home and moving on.”
Gibbs will want to put an asterisk on his 10th-place finish. The result is still great — it marks his third top 10 in the past four races and ninth overall this season. But the third-year driver of the No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota led a career-high 201 laps of Saturday’s 500, earning a Stage 2 win and finishing second in Stage 1.
Bristol has been an excellent track for Gibbs. This week’s race closely resembled the March 2024 event at the 0.533-mile bullring, with Gibbs wrestling through high tire wear to lead 137 laps before finishing ninth. In the 2023 Bristol Night Race, Gibbs wheeled the No. 54 car to a fifth-place finish after leading 102 laps.
But his chances to win this time vanished on Lap 435. After sinking down the leaderboard on old tires, Gibbs attempted to follow teammate Chase Briscoe to pit road with 65 laps remaining. But Gibbs carried too much speed and locked up his right-front tire under braking, flat-spotting the tire, missing pit entry and sliding up the track in front of Austin Hill. Gibbs nursed the car back to pit lane, but not before his right-front tire went flat and sank his hopes of scoring his first career Cup victory.
His performance shouldn’t be overlooked despite the mistake. NASCAR Insights ranked Gibbs the No. 1 passer of the Bristol Night Race with the No. 1 Speed Rating while being ranked second in both defense and restarts. That likely doesn’t soften the blow for the 22-year-old up-and-comer, who won his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut in 2021 before winning the 2022 series championship.
Also in the mix for their first visit to Victory Lane in the Cup Series Saturday were Hocevar and Corey Heim. When the race’s final caution flag waved on Lap 488, Hocevar stayed out when leaders Keselowski, Bell, Blaney and Joey Logano hit pit road. His tires were older, but the No. 77 Spire Motorsports team was out of fresh rubber on pit road, placing the sophomore racer in prime position to contend for his first triumph if the restart worked out. But after Smith pushed himself and Hocevar wide, Hocevar fell to seventh at the checkered flag.
“It sucks, but we had a shot to win,” Hocevar said. “We can only control what we can control. We don’t have a crystal ball up there with the yellows. I am just proud of this No. 77 Delaware Life Chevrolet team. We got caught out really early, and we were able to execute there with tire-saving, managing and just executing at a top caliber. If things go green there, we would have had a huge tire advantage, but it just didn’t work out.”
Heim’s full focus remains on chasing a Craftsman Truck Series championship this season. But in his seventh career Cup start, the 23XI Racing part-timer restarted eighth and charged the No. 67 Toyota to a sixth-place result, a career-best for the young pilot.
“Once everyone kind of realized the situation with the tires, we adjusted accordingly and did all of the right things and kept ourselves in it all day,” Heim said. “It was a claw to get back on the lead lap after we had a right front go down in Stage 1, but can’t thank these 23XI Racing guys enough — they stuck with it.”
Heim attempted five Cup races this year but made just four starts, failing to qualify for the Chicago Street Race. His first race of the year was at Kansas Speedway, where he finished 13th, but trouble at Nashville Superspeedway and Richmond Raceway placed him 37th and 29th, respectively.
“All the ups and downs that we had — to end on a high note is pretty special,” Heim said. “Hopefully, we can take that and move forward.”
Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell put himself back on top of the championship conversation on Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway for the first time since an early-season, three-race win streak. Bell should be able to keep it rolling this weekend in the “Granite State,” where he has excelled in recent years and tested in July. Fellow Round of 12 competitor and New England native — not to mention defending and three-time champion — Joey Logano was also part of that test, and could be the first to clinch a Round of 8 spot in search of a landmark fourth title.
NASCAR.com’s Pat DeCola ranks the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs contenders after the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway and before Sunday’s Mobil 1 301 (2 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).
Analysis: Bell’s dramatic Bristol win cements him as the driver to beat at the worst possible time for his competitors. The Round of 12 is tremendously suited for Bell’s skillset, with the No. 20 driver being in a class of his own at Loudon to start. The Oklahoman being in the Round of 8 by Sunday night is a realistic scenario — expect Bell to leverage his momentum and JGR’s supreme playoff hot streak into perhaps a second straight victory.
Analysis: After a rare off night at Bristol — finishing 31st and five laps down — Hamlin’s extensive history of success at Loudon offers optimism, even if mixed with a little phobia. A three-time NHMS winner (2007, ’12, ’17) with eight additional top fives and a total of 19 top 10s in 31 career starts, he knows how to manage tires and late restarts at the “Magic Mile,” even if he’s not thrilled about the creature that greets him in Victory Lane. Despite Bristol’s setback, his status as points leader and master of tire wear suggest he’ll rebound as a favorite at New Hampshire.
Analysis: A ninth-place result at Bristol added to Briscoe’s momentum after his Darlington win, completing a trio of top 10s in the Round of 16. A Loudon win feels imminent in his future, showing he is more than capable of competing there with his past team and now getting a chance to drive for the team to beat in JGR — a team that also just swept the Round of 16.
Analysis: Blaney thrived at Bristol with a fourth-place run, leading 30 laps and capturing Stage 1. Though much has been made of Team Penske’s flat-track program, Blaney has just one top 15 at Loudon this decade and has led laps in just two of his 12 starts there. That said, Blaney’s smooth driving and Penske’s generally strong history up north make him a dark horse for a New Hampshire victory.
Analysis: Larson endured a challenging Bristol, finishing a brutal 32nd in a race he was favored to win, but his record at Loudon is stout and a rebound should be in store. Despite having yet to win there, No. 5 owns six top fives in 14 starts — including a pair of top threes to open his career there as a 2014 rookie — and proven consistency on mile-long flat tracks bodes well for him in the “Granite State.”
Analysis: A mediocre 12th at Bristol underscored Byron’s playoff form, which thus far has not been great — he struck out on top 10s in the Round of 16. Another spot where he’s seen a dearth of top 10s? New Hampshire Motor Speedway: the track at which he has the most starts with no such finishes. Hendrick certainly has this one circled with that in mind, but there’s no guarantee one of the year’s best drivers gets it going again in time at this pivotal point.
Analysis: Logano, despite a rough recent Bristol resume and murky points outlook entering Saturday night, did what a champion does and survived to race another day, turning in a top-five run and moving on to the Round of 12. He now gets to go home to New England, to a track he tested at over the summer and one at which he’s one of a small handful of drivers to beat. We may be about to go from “is defending champ Joey Logano about to be eliminated in the Round of 16 at Bristol?” to “actually, he’s the first driver in the Round of 8” in a span of eight days.
Analysis: Despite a 38th-place DNF disaster at Bristol, Elliott advances by points after nobody below the cutline was able to advance and knock him out. He’s shown some decent capability at New Hampshire in the past — No. 9 has led double-digit laps in four of his 11 starts there — but it’s only translated to three total top 10s.
Analysis: Reddick started the Round of 16 hot with a runner-up at Darlington and was then held out of the top 10 the remaining two races, but he could be getting back on the horse this weekend at Loudon. No. 45 led 53 laps there last year en route to a second straight sixth-place finish at the track, and he’s seemed to pick things back up a bit overall the past month after a summer swoon. Don’t be surprised if Reddick claims his first lobster this weekend and starts carving out his Championship 4 path, with a favorable Round of 8 for him ahead as well.
Analysis: Wallace saw the power of a points cushion at Bristol, wrecking out for a 34th-place finish but moving on to the Round of 12 before the race even concluded. Loudon generally has not been a great track for him, with two finishes better than 22nd and no laps led, but those two results were in the past three races there and for an average finish of 5.5. He’s been strong lately, and there’s a good chance it continues.
Analysis: Chastain finished the Round of 16 with no top 10s and has just one of those since Chicago as well, yet here he is, still in championship contention with seven races remaining. With three top 10s in his four most recent NHMS starts, it’s quite likely he turns things around this weekend and could even re-enter the serious title talk.
Analysis: Maneuvering through a cockpit fire to finish 30th and advance, Cindric showed grit at Bristol as he defied the many who had him penciled in as a Round of 16 cut. He’s yet to lead a lap or finish in the top 10 at Loudon, but this race will be one that he and Team Penske absolutely have dialed in as a place to finally pounce, and it would be quite a surprise to see him not turn in a competitive weekend.
MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Six-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Doug Coby is making a comeback Saturday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Coby will pilot the historic No. 7NY for Tommy Baldwin Racing in the Mohegan Sun 100, the 13th race of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season.
The event is scheduled for 9:15 a.m, set to run before the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series playoff race on Saturday afternoon and the NASCAR Cup Series playoff showdown on Sunday.
It will be Coby’s first start of the season on the Whelen Modified Tour. The Tommy Baldwin Racing team competed in 11 of the first 12 events of the 2025 season with Luke Baldwin behind the wheel, scoring seven top-10 finishes. Baldwin is committed to racing for the championship on the SMART Modified Tour with Sadler-Stanley Racing and will be racing at Franklin County on Saturday.
Coby, a six-time Whelen Modified Tour champion, is no stranger to winning at New Hampshire. He has four previous wins at the ‘Magic Mile’, just some of his 35 career victories on the Whelen Modified Tour.
“I’m excited to do it at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and it’s actually my 40th year racing and I want to keep the streak going, it’s a cool milestone,” Coby said. “It’s been 40 years in a row of racing something competitive… definitely fired up to be racing with Tommy and his team.”
“We’re getting the band back together with Doug in the 7NY,” Tommy Baldwin Jr. said. “When we have raced with Doug in the past, we’ve always had a good opportunity to get to Victory Lane. There is no one better for us to have behind the wheel with Luke committed elsewhere. With his experience at New Hampshire and our newer PSR Chassis that has only one race on it, we are confident.”
The schedule for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Mohegan Sun 100 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway includes practice and qualifying on Friday. The race will take the green flag at 9:15 a.m. on Saturday morning, live on FloRacing. Tickets to see the race in person on NASCAR playoff weekend are available online at NHMS.com.
With one race remaining in the Round of 10, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs drivers are set to battle Saturday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (Noon ET, FS1, NASCAR Racing Network Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
The “Magic Mile” will serve as the Round of 8 scene setter, with only two drivers, Corey Heim and Layne Riggs, advancing to the next round by virtue of wins.
Christian Eckes returns to his Truck Series roots this weekend, piloting the No. 16 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing Chevrolet. Carson Kvapil will once again be in the No. 97 for CR7 Motorsports and Michael Christopher Jr. will drive a second entry for Halmar Friesen Racing in the No. 62 Toyota.
The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs continue in New England, where the remaining 12 title hopefuls will do battle at New Hampshire Motor Speedway to begin the Round of 12 (Sun., 2 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).
The Mobil 1 301 begins the first of three Round of 12 events, with Kansas Speedway (Sept. 28) and the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval (Oct. 5) to follow. Four drivers will be eliminated following the Round of 12’s conclusion; Austin Cindric (minus-1), Joey Logano (minus-2), Ross Chastain (minus-2) and Tyler Reddick (minus-3) currently sit below the playoff cutline.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — NASCAR today announced that the annual NASCAR Awards will take place in Scottsdale, Arizona, on Nov. 4, capping off what promises to be a thrilling Championship Weekend.
The prestigious event will bring together drivers, teams, industry executives and fans to celebrate the 2025 season and honor the newly crowned champions from the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Most recently held in Charlotte, North Carolina, this marks the first time the event will be held in Arizona, reflecting NASCAR’s continued commitment to delivering memorable experiences in new and dynamic markets.
The awards ceremony and preceding red carpet will be livestreamed exclusively at 6 p.m. ET on The NASCAR Channel, allowing fans to join in the celebration. The NASCAR Channel — a free ad-supported streaming channel — can be found on Xumo Play, Tubi, The Roku Channel, Samsung TV Plus and Prime Video.
“Scottsdale offers the perfect backdrop for this year’s NASCAR Awards,” said Tim Clark, executive vice president and chief brand officer for NASCAR. “The incredible excitement from Championship Weekend at Phoenix Raceway will immediately carry into this year’s Awards, adding a level of energy we’ve never seen for this celebration.”
Following the championship races at Phoenix Raceway, which conclude on Sunday, Nov. 2, with the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race, the move to Scottsdale allows for a seamless transition into the awards celebration. The city’s renowned hospitality, culture and scenic desert landscapes are expected to deliver an unforgettable experience for both guests and viewers.
NASCAR will host a celebration for the NASCAR Regional Series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East, ARCA Menards Series West, NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series) and the NASCAR International Series (NASCAR Brasil Series, NASCAR Canada Series, NASCAR Mexico Series and NASCAR Whelen Euro Series), on Friday, Nov. 21, in Charlotte, North Carolina, at the Charlotte Convention Center.
Don’t expect the Joe Gibbs Racing juggernaut to lose steam anytime soon.
After Christopher Bell charged to victory in Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway — completing the organization’s sweep of the first round of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs — team owner Joe Gibbs basked in the afterglow of yet another job well done.
“Yeah, just so excited about the start to the playoffs,” Gibbs said. “Just appreciate everybody back at our race shop. I talk about that all the time. We’ll hang a banner on Monday, and I get a chance to thank them, but it honestly takes everybody to be able to get our cars to the race track like this.
“We’ve got fast cars right now. It means a lot.”
All three of JGR’s playoff drivers had a hand in the sweep. Chase Briscoe opened the postseason with a victory in the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. Denny Hamlin followed with a win at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.
Bell completed the sweep by grabbing the lead after a restart with four laps left, as unexpectedly extreme tire degradation dictated a hodgepodge of strategies that produced 38 lead changes among 14 drivers and repeatedly shuffled the running order.
“I would have bet my house that it was going to be a normal Bristol race,” said Bell’s crew chief Adam Stevens, who was shocked by the fall-off of the new right-side tires Goodyear provided for the elimination race.
Fortunately, Stevens still has a place to live, and he and Bell will head to the Round of 12 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway with confidence born of two sources: Bell’s victory at Bristol and his overwhelming success at the 1-mile flat track in the Granite State.
In five Cup Series starts at the Magic Mile, Bell has two victories, a runner-up finish and a pole. Last year, he used his dirt-track background and ability to find optimal racing lines to win a Loudon race that concluded on wet tires.
In the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Bell is undefeated in four starts at New Hampshire. He also participated in a July tire test at the track, along with fellow playoff drivers Joey Logano and Ross Chastain.
To explain JGR’s blazing start to the playoffs, look no further than the choice of tracks this year.
After hosting the regular-season cutoff race in 2024, Darlington returned to its typical spot as the playoff opener, replacing Atlanta. Hamlin is the leading active winner at the “Lady in Black” with five victories, and Briscoe was the defending winner of the Southern 500, in a Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, before moving to JGR in 2025.
At Gateway, which supplanted the Watkins Glen road course as the site of the second playoff race, Hamlin was a two-time runner-up before winning last Sunday, and Bell showed potential race-winning speed and swept the first two stages last year before engine issues dropped him to seventh at the finish.
The change of venues in the Round of 16 certainly helped, but the speed in the Gibbs cars is also undeniable. JGR’s Ty Gibbs, who missed the playoffs, led a race-high 201 of 500 laps at Bristol before trouble accessing pit road and a collision with Austin Hill’s Chevrolet sapped his winning chances.
Briscoe led 127 laps and Bell 12 — including the one that counted.
At New Hampshire, the JGR drivers will try to extend their winning streak to four. Then it’s off to Kansas Speedway, where Hamlin is the leading active winner with four victories.
It’s convenient — not to mention encouraging to other teams — to recall the words of Hal Holbrook to Charlie Sheen in the movie Wall Street: “You’re on a roll, kid. Enjoy it while it lasts — because it never does.”
The current tidal wave at Joe Gibbs Racing, however, feels more enduring. The remaining tracks on the playoff schedule set up beautifully for the organization, which seems poised to break Team Penske’s three-year stranglehold on the series championship.
But which Gibbs driver will do the honors? That’s where the guesswork is involved.
It’s been more than a year since six-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Doug Coby made his most recent start with the series. That changes Saturday when Coby returns to competition at the wheel of Tommy Baldwin Jr.’s No. 7NY at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
