Bubble bursting? Chase gap widens with five races until reset

Posted on July 25, 2026July 25, 2026 by Dustin Albino

SPEEDWAY, Ind. — With Joey Logano turning back the clock at rustic North Wilkesboro Speedway, the battle for the final handful of NASCAR Cup Series Chase berths became even steeper. As one of the sport’s most accomplished drivers locked up valuable points, the gap between the cutline and those chasing it grew steadily with only five races remaining until the reset.

Logano’s 73-point performance proved monumental. He gained 57 points on the cutline, vaulting to 15th in the Cup Series standings and opening a 49-point cushion over Erik Jones, the first driver on the outside looking in, entering Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Sun., 2 p.m. ET, TNT Sports, truTV, HBO Max, IMS Radio Network, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The gap between 16th and 17th in the standings now sits at 33 points, the largest entering any race this season. The previous high was just 15 markers entering Nashville Superspeedway two months ago.

But just making The Chase isn’t what the three-time champion desires.

RELATED: Indianapolis lineup | At-track photos

“It’s not the goal just to make it. The goal is always to win the championship,” Logano said in a media availability at IMS. “We capitalized on a great car last week, which was awesome and proved you can score a ridiculous amount of points if you do this right. We can scratch and claw our way back into the top 10 if we continue to do that a few more times before The Chase starts. If we do that, we have a chance to win the championship.”

The victory dropped Logano’s Team Penske teammate Austin Cindric to the provisional bubble, 33 points above Jones. He gained a single point on the cutline with a 14th-place effort at North Wilkesboro. The homegrown Penske driver shares a similar sentiment to Logano, believing the No. 2 team is capable of a late-season push.

“Other than the deadline coming closer, I feel like I’m in no different position,” Cindric said on Saturday of his points position. “If anything, from a number of points standpoint, I’m better than I’ve typically been most of the year as far as that gap.

“You would think that the heat is one, but like I’ve always said, I want better than 16th. Sixteenth is still pretty far away from where my goals are as far as a shot to run for a good finishing position in the championship.”

The other driver that boosted his Chase hopes at North Wilkesboro was Shane van Gisbergen, who matched his career-best oval finish with a fifth-place result. He now sits 54 points above the cutline, though isn’t comfortable with that cushion given the demanding stretch of races ahead. One factor working in his favor, however, is the schedule’s abundance of short tracks over the final month of the regular season.

“I don’t [feel comfortable] because you saw what Joey did last week and he was more than that gap and now he’s right with us,” van Gisbergen said. “Thirty points sounds great, but it’s not a lot. It can evaporate pretty quickly, but it’s something we’re focused on because that’s our whole year. A lot of pressure these next five races just to execute, make no mistakes and try to get in genuinely.”

Chase aspirations were hurt for Jones, who placed 21st last weekend, tallying 16 points. He lost 41 points to the bubble entering Indianapolis, a venue that he considers a strong suit for Legacy Motor Club. He knows the upstart team is still a work-in-progress at short tracks, though, and needs to make the most out of the Brickyard 400 and Daytona International Speedway, as long as he’s mathematically still eligible.

MORE: Cup Series standings

“Penske has been one of the top groups in the Cup Series for years and champions in the sport, and we’re still getting there,” Jones said. “We know it’s going to be hard and going to be a battle to try to compete with them every week. They are bringing their A-game, I’m sure, to the 2 and the 22 and picking who their bullet is going to be every week.”

Meanwhile, RFK Racing — which had all three of its entries inside The Chase grid through the opening 13 races — has bled an array of points over the last two months. Even with a seventh-place effort at North Wilkesboro — stopping a three-month drought without a top 10 — Brad Keselowski is 19th in points, 58 tallies below the cutline. Damage was done for the No. 6 team when Keselowski had four straight finishes of 34th or worse between Nashville Superspeedway and Naval Base Coronado.

Yet a 34-point outing last weekend gives the 2012 Cup champion confidence with a trio of short tracks on the horizon.

“We’ve got to have more weeks like we had at North Wilkesboro,” Keselowski said. “If we do what we did at North Wilkesboro the next four or five weeks, we will be just fine.”

Preece has spent his entire career working toward a chance to compete for a championship. Now, despite sitting 48 points below the cutline with only a handful of races left, the first-time Chase hopeful refuses to go down without a fight.

“All it takes is one win,” Preece, the 2026 Cook Out Clash winner, said confidently. “I’m not saying that in the win-and-you’re-in sense, but I mean that – what happens if [Logano] wrecks and I have a strong points day? That’s where I actually have enjoyed this points system because we’re all going to go into Daytona, and if you only have a 10-point cushion to the guys you’re around, you are not comfortable. You need to go into Daytona with a 60, 70- point cushion to feel comfortable.

“It’s everybody on our team trying to find some speed because even though there [are] five races, I don’t go down until it’s done. I will keep swinging.”

Of the six drivers relatively close in points, Jones will have the clearest view of the front of the field for Sunday’s green flag in 14th. Preece and Cindric will start 34th and 35th, respectively, with the No. 2 Ford fighting an electrical issue throughout the weekend that they think has been resolved after qualifying.

Posted on July 25, 2026 by Staff Report

Duel at the Dog 200

Monadnock Speedway

Practice results

Pos	No.	Name	Sponsor	Best Tm	Best Speed	In Lap	Laps	Diff
1	79	Jon McKennedy	Stuarts Auto.; Christophers Towing; Levasseur HVAC; Boyle Electric; Hillsboro Ent.; J Young Landscaping	11.786	76.362	31	52	—
2	21	Stephen Kopcik	Wanick Construction; Newtown Pools	11.827	76.097	31	54	0.041
3	73	Paulie Hartwig III*	Professional Therapy Associates; Jersey Shore Contracting	11.849	75.956	40	46	0.063
4	5	Teddy Hodgdon*	Business Time Motorsports; The Landau Team of Re/Max; Montanari Fuel	11.863	75.866	38	45	0.077
5	54	Tommy Catalano	FX Caprara; USNE Power	11.871	75.815	17	52	0.085
6	1	Patrick Emerling	USNE Power	11.875	75.789	33	39	0.089
7	60	Matt Hirschman	Bar Harbor Bank & Trust; Pee Dee Motorsports	11.883	75.738	37	40	0.097
8	12	Craig Lutz	Elite Towing	11.884	75.732	21	33	0.098
9	3	Tyler Rypkema	Northeast Drilling; SYP	11.891	75.687	28	41	0.105
10	64	Austin Beers	Dell Electric; Lumiere Electrical; G&G Electrical Supply; AP Marquadt & Sons; Andrew James Interiors; Hughes Motors	11.898	75.643	50	60	0.112
11	50	Ronnie Williams	Empower Financial Advisory	11.927	75.459	29	42	0.141
12	58	Eric Goodale	GAF Roofing	11.976	75.15	42	45	0.19
13	56	Trevor Catalano	USNE Power	11.984	75.1	23	47	0.198
14	8	John-Michael Shenette	USNE Power South; Eighty-Two Services	11.992	75.05	35	55	0.206
15	17	Anthony Nocella	Keene Towing & Recovery; Bells Septic; Sontag Motorsports; Xtreme Autobody	12.011	74.931	8	26	0.225
16	28	Doug Coby	Nucar	12.018	74.888	15	38	0.232
17	95	Cory Plummer*	Tuckers Fabrication & Welding; Croteau Machine; Apex Race Cars; Apex Racing	12.023	74.857	44	54	0.237
18	82	Andrew Molleur	Horton Avenue Materials	12.043	74.732	25	54	0.257
19	18	Ken Heagy	Merkel Racing Engines	12.069	74.571	18	37	0.283
20	9	Jayden Harman*	Wanick Construction; Harman Funeral Home	12.222	73.638	49	49	0.436
21	31	Mike Christopher Jr.	Elite Towing; Elite Racing; Baker Racing	0	0	0	0	0

Posted on July 25, 2026July 25, 2026 by Staff Report

See where your favorite NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series drivers will pit this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as well as Craftsman Truck Series drivers at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.

NASCAR Cup Series

NASCAR Cup Series Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday (2 p.m. ET, TNT Sports, truTV, HBO Max, IMS Radio Network, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Pennzoil 250 Presented by Take 5 Oil Change at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday (4 p.m. ET, The CW, IMS Radio Network, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

RELATED: How to watch NASCAR on The CW

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series TSport 200 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park on Friday (8 p.m. ET, FS1, NRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Posted on July 25, 2026July 26, 2026 by Staff Report

SPEEDWAY, Ind. – RFK Racing co-owner Brad Keselowski told reporters at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday that Ryan Preece will return as driver of the team’s No. 60 Ford in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2027.

Keselowski stated that the team exercised the 35-year-old driver’s option after joining the organization on a multiyear contract.

“We had a multiyear contract with Ryan and we picked up his option a few months ago,” Keselowski said. “We’re going to continue to keep him as a part of the family for a while.”

Preece, who joined RFK in 2025 after two years at Stewart-Haas Racing, is in his seventh full Cup Series season. He won 26 races and the 2013 championship in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, which helped launch his national-series career.

The highlight of Preece’s year so far came at the outset, with a rousing victory in the preseason Cook Out Clash exhibition at Bowman Gray Stadium. He ranks 18th in the Cup Series standings this season, with a three-race stretch of DNFs from late May to early June bumping him from the provisional postseason picture.

Preece just missed the Cup Series playoffs in 2025, but assembled his strongest Cup Series campaign to date. The Connecticut native placed 18th in the final Cup standings, with a career-best three top-five finishes.

Posted on July 25, 2026July 25, 2026 by Reid Spencer

SPEEDWAY, Ind. — The magnitude of the Brickyard 400 isn’t lost on defending winner Bubba Wallace.

At the 16th Street entrance to Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a giant banner featuring Wallace in his driver’s uniform hangs on the back of the grandstand alongside other former winners of the race, many of them already members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

RELATED: Indianapolis lineup | At-track photos

There’s nostalgia involved with the most important of Wallace’s three NASCAR Cup Series victories. The image of son Becks, not yet one year old, lying on Wallace’s stomach on the asphalt near the iconic Yard of Bricks is indelible.

The one aspect Wallace remembers most about July 27, 2025, however, is distilled into a single word — winning.

“It’s a very boring answer, but winning in the regular season was something I’d never done in my previous two wins,” Wallace said. “That just allows you to unlock a new way of thinking inside the race car. The next four weeks after our Brickyard win, I didn’t really care how we finished, because I knew we were in the playoffs.”

As Wallace prepares to defend his victory, the rules have changed. With the return to The Chase format this year, no longer does a win guarantee a spot in the postseason.

“But, yeah, the biggest memory is just winning,” said Wallace, who held off Kyle Larson in two overtimes to earn the victory by 0.222 seconds.

Chase or not, a return to Victory Lane this year would be just as sweet.

Posted on July 25, 2026July 25, 2026 by Reid Spencer

SPEEDWAY, Ind. — Standing on pit wall as Denny Hamlin completed his qualifying lap at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Carson Hocevar raised his arms in exultation and turned to hug Spire Motorsports teammate Daniel Suarez.

Hocevar knew at that moment that Saturday’s time trials at the historic 2.5-mile oval would not be a repeat of Michigan in June, when Hamlin, as the final qualifier, knocked Hocevar off the provisional pole at the 23-year-old’s home track.

In fact, after earning his second Busch Light Pole Award of the season and the third of his career, Hocevar will lead the field to green in Sunday’s Brickyard 400 (2 p.m. ET, TNT Sports, truTV, HBO MAX, IMS Radio Network, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

RELATED: Starting lineup | At-track photos: Indy

“I got out of the car, and they were cheering,” Hocevar said of the crowd in the grandstands near the “Yard of Bricks” start/finish line. “I don’t know if they were cheering for me or because I beat Denny (who qualified fifth at 185.835 mph).

“Denny stole one from me at Michigan. That’s my home track, but this is my favorite track. I love Indy.”

With a pole-winning lap at 186.598 mph in the No. 77 Chevrolet, Hocevar edged Suárez (186.382 mph) for the top starting spot by 0.056 seconds. The session was a triumph for Spire Motorsports and owner Jeff Dickerson, an Indianapolis native.

With Michael McDowell qualifying sixth at 185.762 mph, Spire put all three of its cars within the first three rows of the grid.

“It felt really good,” Hocevar said of his blistering lap. “Michael McDowell went out early and gave me the confidence that the car was going to be able to stick with him putting up a good lap.

“I felt really comfortable. I love this place… You race differently if you’re comfortable and confident here. I’ve been confident since the first lap I’ve been here.”

MORE: Friday’s practice recap

Toyota driver Tyler Reddick posted the third fastest lap at 186.077 mph and will start next to Joe Gibbs Racing’s Ty Gibbs (185.966 mph). Naval Base Coronado winner Corey Heim (185.456 mph) claimed the seventh starting spot, followed by Alex Bowman (185.368 mph), AJ Allmendinger (185.345 mph) and Kyle Larson (185.315 mph).

The top 10 featured six Chevrolets and four Toyotas. Ryan Blaney, competing against Todd Gilliland for the $1-million In-Season Challenge prize, drove the fastest Ford (185.197 mph) to a 13th-place starting spot. Gilliland qualified 36th at 182.460 mph.

Blaney will make his 400th career Cup Series start on Sunday.

Defending race winner Bubba Wallace (183.861 mph) earned the 29th grid position.

Suarez was ahead of Hocevar’s pace early in his lap but lost time through the final two corners.

“I felt like I left a little bit out there,” Suárez said. “A little mistake in corner 3, but I’m very proud of my team.”

Posted on July 25, 2026July 25, 2026 by Zach Sturniolo

CLERMONT, Ind. — Front Row Motorsports teammates Layne Riggs and Chandler Smith both aspire to climb the ranks into the NASCAR Cup Series.

For now, they’re doing their parts in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, combining to win each of the last two races in dominant fashion. But at the sport’s upper echelon, there doesn’t appear to be any room at the inn — at least not as a driver for Front Row’s three-car effort in the Cup Series.

Jerry Freeze, general manager of Front Row Motorsports, is tasked with navigating his drivers’ aspirations through tough business decisions. Zane Smith signed a multiyear contract extension to keep him in the No. 38 Ford through at least 2027. Last week, the team announced Todd Gilliland signed a contract extension to remain in the No. 34 Ford through next season. And in an interview on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio this week, Freeze said Noah Gragson is nearing a contract extension that keeps him in the team’s No. 4 Ford through 2027 as well; a deal that will close the last open seat at the organization for at least another season.

With two eager drivers winning at the lower levels in Riggs and Smith, Freeze has to balance their success and desires with patience and a business sense.

“Yeah, that’s a big challenge,” Freeze told NASCAR.com Friday at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, site of Riggs’ latest romp. “That’s a big challenge because all these guys have ambition to be at the highest level for sure. And we’ve got five guys that are all anywhere from 24 to 28 years old, and so they all believe they can race on Sundays — and I believe they can all race on Sundays. And in this sport, unfortunately, sometimes you’ve got to have the whole package together with sponsorship and all the pieces have to work together to make it happen.

“And so for us, we really believe in Noah, and we just haven’t been able to get the success out of him and that team that I feel like is there. There’s some new stuff coming in the Ford camp next year that I think is going to help improve the overall product. Anyhow, we just wanted to give it another shot with Noah next year, and we’ve got a good group of sponsors around him. Todd’s been with us; it’ll be eight years total with Front Row starting next year, which is pretty long term. We really believe in him, and Zane’s doing a fantastic job.

“We’d love to see Layne get a chance — and he will get a chance. He will get a chance, and we see a bright, bright future with Layne for sure. Chandler’s capable of doing it too. But you’re right. That’s the hardest part.”

Riggs has made his ambitions known, particularly as he hunts for his first Craftsman Truck Series title in his third full-time season with a career-high five wins. But for now, he’s content to keep winning in hopes of eventually earning that trip up the career ladder.

“The desire is always there for any driver, anybody who wants to be racing on Sundays in top-notch equipment,” Riggs said. “My main focus is just to keep doing what I’m doing here. I don’t have any races planned to run any time soon. There’s nothing I can do there besides just work hard behind the scenes to put deals together. But right now, I’m fully focused on winning truck races and supporting Front Row Motorsports in all their endeavors.”

Smith, who spent the 2023 and 2024 campaigns in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, is content wherever he lands so long as he’s behind the wheel.

“I just want the Lord’s will, whatever that means,” Smith said. “If that’s to race trucks for the rest of my life, that’s what I want to do. If the Lord obviously presents me and pushes me into an opportunity that lands in my lap and is just there and it’s pretty evident, then I want to just submit myself and be a vessel. I mean that wholeheartedly, truthfully.”

In the meantime, Riggs leads the Truck Series standings by 100 points with just two races remaining in the regular season, while Smith sits third in the standings with two victories.

Posted on July 24, 2026July 25, 2026 by Dustin Albino

CLERMONT, Ind. — Connor Mosack finally had the white rabbit in sight. He just ran out of laps to chase it down in Friday night’s Craftsman Truck Series TSport 200 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.

Mosack finished runner-up, 1.148 seconds behind Layne Riggs, who surgically annihilated the field by leading a career-high 198 laps and sweeping all three stages. The No. 7 Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports was Riggs’ closest challenger, gaining multiple seconds on the No. 34 Ford over the final stint of the event.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Indy

The second-place effort was the best finish of Mosack’s NASCAR career, spanning 77 races in the lower two national touring divisions.

“I felt like we had the best truck on the long run, just struggled a bit to fire off,” Mosack said in defeat. “I don’t feel like we had the speed that he had for five to 10 laps, but if we got out front, I don’t think he could have gotten by us.”

Regardless, Mosack banked the best run of his career, giving all the credit to his experienced crew chief Brian Pattie. He clocked in fastest during practice, a precursor to his standout performance.

“I feel like it’s the best truck I’ve ever had,” Mosack stated. “When I have that, it makes everything easier when the truck does what you want. Wish we had a little more to go for the win, but overall it was a great day for us.”

This was Mosack’s seventh start of the season through 16 races, as he’s the primary driver for the No. 7 Chevrolet. Four of his other starts were at road and street courses, as he has a proven background when turning left and right.

In those seven starts, Mosack has a quartet of top 10s, matching his total from the 2025 season, when he ran the duration of the campaign for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing.

“Anytime you run good, it’s important,” he added. “It is tough being part-time. You feel like you get out of a rhythm, but I feel like we’ve made progress all year and I feel like the Spire trucks are getting better every race. Hopefully, we will have more runs like this in the fall.”

Outrunning the likes of 2024 series champion Ty Majeski and short-track ace Chandler Smith, Mosack believes he earned his place at the table. The Charlotte native will have five more opportunities to build on that performance in 2026 with Spire, with his next scheduled start coming at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in four weeks.

“I guess that I can run with the best guys here,” Mosack said of what he illustrated, “and I can be in contention for wins if my truck does what I need it to do.”

Posted on July 24, 2026July 25, 2026 by Reid Spencer

CLERMONT, Ind. — With a performance just a hair short of perfection, Layne Riggs dominated Friday night’s TSport 200 presented by Warn Industries and moved tantalizingly close to the No. 1 seed in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

The driver of the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford led 198 of 200 laps, swept both stages and took the checkered flag 1.148 seconds ahead of persistent runner-up Connor Mosack to claim his second straight victory at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.

“I think it’s just a statement win,” Riggs said of his fifth triumph of the season and the 10th of his career. “What a truck! I was just on cruise control … “

As far as the series championship goes, Riggs pulled no punches.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Indy

“I think we’re the ones to beat, for sure.”

Riggs’ only bobble of the race came on the Lap 72 restart after the first stage break. Choosing the preferred top lane for the restart, he spun the tires and allowed Front Row teammate Chandler Smith to take the lead for two laps.

On Lap 74, however, Riggs made an emphatic pass of Smith, diving underneath Smith’s No. 38 truck entering Turn 1 and sliding up in front of his teammate in Turn 2. From that point on, Riggs maintained control, though Mosack was able to stay close in the closing laps.

Ty Majeski, a two-time winner at the 0.686-mile short track, finished third and remained solidly in sixth place in the Truck Series standings with two races left in the regular season. Smith came home third, having clinched a berth in the postseason Chase — joining Riggs and Kaden Honeycutt — with a third-place run in Stage 1. Christian Eckes and Gio Ruggiero also added their names to the list of those who have clinched berths in The Chase.

Driving the same Ford F-150 he raced in last year’s IRP event, Riggs expanded his lead in the standings to 100 points over second-place Honeycutt, who pitted late for fresh tires and worked his way up to seventh by the end of Friday’s race.

With a solid sixth-place run, Stewart Friesen broke a tie with Tyler Ankrum (ninth Friday) for 10th in the standings, the last Chase-eligible position. With two races left to decide the issue, Friesen holds an eight-point advantage over the driver of the No. 18 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing Chevrolet.

Daniel Hemric’s hold on a Chase spot suddenly became more tenuous when he spun in Turn 3 to cause the only caution of the night for an on-track incident. With no way to escape the wreck, Landen Lewis plowed into Hemric’s Chevy, eliminating both drivers from the race.

Hemric finished 34th, fell to ninth in the standings and leads Ankrum, the first driver below the current Chase cutline by only 14 points.

Nick Sanchez finished fifth in the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet. Driving the No. 1 Tricon Garage Toyota, 18-year-old Gavan Boschele ran eighth in his Truck Series debut.

“I had a goal,” said Boschele, who will make his second start in the series Aug. 22 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. “I told myself I wanted to run top-10, and we did that. I can’t do without these guys — the No. 1 American Land Partners Toyota group helped me be really, really fast tonight.

“They did a really good job to get me everything I needed and make me comfortable. Everyone on this team was really solid, so I’m excited for the three more that I have left this year. We were really fast tonight.”

Friesen’s teammate and fellow modified driver Michael Christopher Jr. came home 10th in his third Truck Series outing.

The Truck Series races next on Aug. 14 at Richmond Raceway (7:30 p.m. ET, FS1, NRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

NOTE: Post-race inspection was completed without issue in the Craftsman Truck Series garage, confirming Layne Riggs as the winner.

Posted on July 24, 2026 by Brandon White

HAMPTON, Va. – Friday afternoon at Langley Speedway provided Late Model Stock teams nearly five hours to shake down their cars before tackling the second leg of the Virginia Late Model Triple Crown: Saturday’s prestigious Hampton Heat.

Although the marquee event is known for its extreme summer temperatures, the extended practice was unseasonably cool, with the high only reaching 78 degrees Fahrenheit. That trend is expected to continue into tomorrow evening’s 200-lap Late Model Stock feature, so race conditions will not be much different from what teams experienced Friday.

More than 30 drivers took time during the session, with the entry list consisting of numerous Langley regulars going up against the heavyweights of the Late Model Stock discipline. While the local heroes look to claim their track’s biggest prize, others look to use Saturday to build momentum in their pursuit for the Virginia Triple Crown.

Below are some key storylines following Friday’s on-track activity heading into Saturday’s Hampton Heat.

2019 Hampton Heat winner Connor Hall set the fastest lap of the Friday practice session at Langley Speedway with a 16.147. (Photo: Bill Carnes/Langley Speedway)

Connor Hall sets fastest lap on Friday, eager to earn second Hampton Heat win

For all the accolades Connor Hall has earned at Langley over the years, he only has one Hampton Heat triumph on his resumé, which occurred in 2019.

Hall won that race with the blue No. 77 Toyota he affectionately calls “Smurf,” the same car he brought to the Hampton Heat this weekend. With nine victories at Langley this year, Hall believes he can back up setting the quickest time in Friday practice and finally earn another Hampton Heat win if he stays ahead of everyone else on strategy.

“I think our car has been super competitive this year,” Hall said. “We’ve been super close with the three seconds in a row and four seconds since we won. We obviously understand what it takes to run up front, but there’s so many more factors to win this race than a [local] 50-lapper. There’s so much more chess match to the evening.

“We’re going to keep doing what we’ve been doing, maybe alter a thing or two, and be one spot better.”

Matt Watlz looks to defend his Hampton Heat victory and become the third driver with multiple victories in the event. (Photo: Kaydee Gawlik/NASCAR Regional

Matt Waltz ready to defend last year’s Hampton Heat victory

Entering the Hampton Heat as the event’s most recent winner put Matt Waltz’ mind at ease while making laps around Langley on Friday.

Despite this, Waltz came away from the afternoon searching for more speed after placing 24^th on the running order. The results have been mixed for Waltz across the handful of starts he has made in a Late Model Stock this year, but the 2017 Langley track champion remains optimistic he will be fast enough to defend his Hampton Heat checkered flag.

“The last race here at Langley we ran, we ended up second to Connor [Hall], so that was a little positive,” Waltz said. “We haven’t had the speed, and we’ve been trying to go through this thing as hard as we can to find out what we’re looking for. We’re trying to get it to where it’s comfortable, fast and something I can last 200 laps with.”

Brenden Queen will look to become the all-time winningest driver in Hampton Heat history Saturday with his fourth checkered flag in the event. (Photo: Ted Malinowski/NASCAR)

Brenden Queen chasing Hampton Heat history

One driver was noticeably absent from Friday’s Hampton Heat practice session at Langley: Brenden Queen.

The three-time Hampton Heat winner was occupied with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park the same evening. While Queen was in Indianapolis, eight-time Langley track champion Greg Edwards turned laps in his No. 03 Dodge, all while getting his own car dialed in for tomorrow’s race.

When Queen does arrive at Langley, he will be pursuing a pivotal milestone in the crown jewel race. A victory Saturday night will put Queen atop the Hampton Heat all-time wins list with four, breaking a tie he has held with C.E. Falk III since 2024.

Lee Pulliam seeks to claim his second Hampton Heat victory in his third start. (Photo: Kaydee Gawlik/NASCAR Regional)

Lee Pulliam looks to shake off poor start to Virginia Triple Crown

The last time Lee Pulliam attempted the Hampton Heat at Langley was back in 2019, when he finished sixth after leading 36 laps.

A past Hampton Heat winner in 2015, Pulliam enjoyed a decent practice session on Friday after placing 13^th of 32 cars in his No. 8 NASCAR Channel Chevrolet. Despite this, Pulliam has faith in his JR Motorsports crew to get the car to his liking for the 200-lap feature so he can properly rebound from an early crash at South Boston Speedway.

“To have the honor to be able to drive for JR Motorsports and do it at such a prestigious event is something I don’t take for granted,” Pulliam said. “I’ve run two Hampton Heats and had a shot to win both of them, but there’s a lot of cool memories here over the years. A special place and a special team to drive for.”

Trevor Ward looks to take control of the Virginia Triple Crown standings with a win in the Hampton Heat at Langley Speedway. (Photo: Krista Jasso/NASCAR)

Trevor Ward looks to solidify Virginia Triple Crown points lead

With Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 winner Kaden Honeycutt not participating in this year’s Hampton Heat, Trevor Ward enters Saturday evening as the driver highest in the Virginia Triple Crown points.

Ward surprised many when he won both the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway and the Virginia Triple Crown in 2023, two milestones he looks to claim again this year. Although Langley is not a track he regularly competes at, Ward is determined to add a Hampton Heat victory to his list of short track accomplishments.

“We’ve been [to Langley] four times total and had two top 10s out of the four,” Ward said. “We’ve got a new car we’re bringing out for this race that hasn’t had a lap on it. Obviously, it’s a little nerve-wracking because we want to keep these points going for the Triple Crown and top it off at Martinsville.”

Langley Speedway points leader Woody Howard was second quickest in Hampton Heat practice on Friday. (Photo: Kaydee Gawlik/NASCAR Regional)

Langley points leader Woody Howard starts weekend on strong note

It has been 17 years since Woody Howard won his lone Hampton Heat at Langley to date, yet the veteran racer showed on Friday he is more than capable of earning another one.

Howard, who currently holds a 13-point lead in Langley’s track standings, only trailed Connor Hall in practice times on Friday afternoon. The last thing Howard wants is to follow Hall across the start-finish line in Saturday’s 200-lap feature, but that is only fueling his motivation towards becoming only the third driver to win the Hampton Heat multiple times.

“It’s probably an advantage for us that we race [at Langley] on a regular basis,” Howard said. “We’ve been trying to chase Connor [Hall] every week and we’re working hard to catch him. I feel like we’re in a good place. [The Hampton Heat] is as tough as it’s ever been, but if we pull off a win Saturday, it would be right up at the top of my list for wins in late model racing.”