Three Up, Three Down: Drivers in focus leaving Atlanta

Posted on February 23, 2025February 24, 2025 by Zach Sturniolo

The second race of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series campaign featured an electric overtime finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway, delivering Christopher Bell his first win of the new year.

RELATED: Official results | Atlanta photos

Some notable drivers mastered the draft to their advantage in Sunday’s Ambetter Health 400, but others left in a hole ahead of Circuit of The Americas, where the Cup circuit heads next Sunday (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

THREE UP ⬆️

1. Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Started: 17th

Finished: 3rd

What happened: Larson has handled a fair share of criticism for his lack of success at drafting-style tracks in the week since a 20th-place finish in the Daytona 500. He erased that with a mighty third-place finish Sunday, just inches shy of nabbing the win over Christopher Bell and Carson Hocevar when the caution flag flew in overtime.

What’s next: A new layout at COTA will present a new challenge for the entire Cup field, but Larson’s results at the road course in Austin, Texas, have not been great in the Next Gen car. Since 2022, Larson’s best finish at COTA is 14th (2023), reflective of his average starting spot of 13.6 in his last three starts there.

Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images

2. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet

Started: 34th

Finished: 5th

What happened: Despite contact with Chase Briscoe and Chase Elliott in Stage 2, Stenhouse powered to his first top-five finish of 2025 with a strong run for Hyak Motorsports at Atlanta. Stenhouse worked his way to the front late after averaging an 18.36 running position, according to NASCAR’s loop data, rebounding well from a poor qualifying effort.

What’s next: Stenhouse has never excelled at road courses but had a respectable seventh-place showing in 2023 at COTA. However, his other two Austin starts in the Next Gen car have produced finishes outside the top 25.

Alex Daus | NASCAR Digital Media

3. Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports

Started: 24th

Finished: 13th

What happened: McDowell and his team pulled off one of the most impressive comebacks to date. After going to the garage early for a broken power-steering hose, the No. 71 repaired the issue and returned to the track six laps down. McDowell tied a record by receiving the free pass to get a lap back six times Sunday, according to Racing Insights, allowing the 2021 Daytona 500 champ back onto the lead lap and into a top-20 finishing position after spending 122 of Sunday’s 266 laps off the lead lap.

What’s next: McDowell is a threat to win when NASCAR heads to a road course, as evidenced by his 2023 win on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. A mechanical issue thwarted him last season, but he returns to the course in 2025 with a new team and with a new layout ahead.

Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images

THREE DOWN ⬇️

1. Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford

Started: 2nd

Finished: 28th

What happened: Cindric was in the right place but at the wrong time all over again in Atlanta. Cindric led 46 laps Sunday and was out front when Larson attempted to clear him for the top spot with three laps remaining. But at the exit of Turn 2, Larson washed Cindric into the outside wall, bouncing his Ford into the path of William Byron and sending both into a slide and into the inside SAFER barrier. He was unable to continue and finished 28th.

What’s next: COTA has been good to the 2022 Daytona 500 champion, who has top-10 finishes in two of his last three starts in Austin, Texas. Cindric was out front on the final lap of this year’s “Great American Race,” too, so he’s just hoping for a finish relative to his dominant 5.4 average running position — best of the Cup Series by four spots over teammate Ryan Blaney.

Chris Graythen | Getty Images

2. Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Started: 13th

Finished: 26th

What happened: A strong day quickly went south for Bowman at the southern 1.54-mile superspeedway. Chris Buescher was sent spinning off Turn 4 after a stack-up in front of him caused a significant slowdown. Buescher’s No. 17 Ford landed right in the nose of Bowman’s No. 48 Chevy, creating damage to Bowman’s car that he could never overcome.

What’s next: Bowman’s most recent race win came on the Chicago Street Course in July 2024, so there’s no fear in any right turns ahead for this bunch. If anyone is upset that COTA is getting a layout change, it might be Bowman, who has finishes of second, third and fourth in his last three COTA starts, all in the Next Gen car.

Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images

3. Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford

Started: 9th

Finished: 39th

What happened: Typically a drafting ace, Keselowski found no luck Sunday at Atlanta when Chase Elliott was put into the wall as a victim of Stenhouse’s contact with Briscoe. Elliott broke a right-rear toe link, lost control and spun right in front of Keselowski, leaving the 2012 champion with nowhere to go.

What’s next: Contrary to Bowman, perhaps Keselowski is looking forward to new twists and turns at COTA. Previous starts have not gone well for Keselowski, who has finished 33rd (2024) and 35th (2023) in his last two trips to Austin.

Alex Daus | NASCAR Digital Media

Posted on February 23, 2025February 24, 2025 by Cameron Richardson

HAMPTON, Ga. — Dirt to … Atlanta?

Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson are known for their success in the dirt-racing ranks and have taken those talents to become two of NASCAR’s superstars.

In 2021, Larson put together a historic 10-win season culminating in his first Cup Series championship.

From the Truck Series, Xfinity Series and now a Cup veteran for six seasons, Bell has proven he can win in any vehicle and has already competed in the Cup Series Championship 4 twice (2022, 2023). Despite falling short of a title, Bell has only shown he’s improving across the 36-race schedule.

But there has been a kink in the armor for the two talents — drafting tracks.

MORE: Race results | At-track photos

Before Bell’s victory Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the two drivers were a combined 0-for-75 on drafting tracks. The average finishes for both weren’t anything to write home about, either, with Bell at 18.9 and Larson at 22.9. However, instead of entering this weekend with a negative attitude, Bell and Larson were able to accept the racing discipline and walked away with top-three results at the 1.5-mile track. Now, it seems like their friendly rivalry knows no bounds.

“Honestly, I think he genuinely likes it,” crew chief Cliff Daniels told NASCAR.com about Larson’s mindset on big tracks. “He hopped out of the car just now, even finishing third, and had a smile on his face and said he had a lot of fun. The racing is intense, but because it is intense, there’s just so many things happening, and a lot of moving around. It’s fun to watch, and I can only imagine that it’s fun to drive. So I don’t think Kyle has any negative outlook on these races. We’ve just had a hard time getting finishes. And honestly, a lot of these races we’ve run up front, and today was no different. The difference was we were in the right place at the right time to get a good finish and not get taken out. It’s a lot of fun with what this track and what this package has kind of evolved to.”

Completing every lap at Atlanta had been a struggle for Larson entering Sunday. He finished only one of the first six races since the reconfiguration in 2022, a 13th place in the summer of 2022.

But as the Atlanta surface continues to age after its 2022 repave, handling issues and tire wear are slowly beginning to reappear. With the best drivers being able to manage those obstacles, Sunday allowed for Larson and Bell to showcase those skills amid quick thinking in a large pack, finding themselves 1-2 on the final lap.

“Those two are so good at finding different lanes and finding grip and building a run and all those things,” Daniels said. “They’re both so good at it and they push each other a lot at it. Kyle and I talked about it over the winter, it’s a lot of fun to see Bell back in the mix on dirt tracks. I know that those two are going to push each other in a great way competitively, dirt, pavement, whatever they drive. It’s fun to watch those two battle.”

Entering the weekend, Bell’s crew chief Adam Stevens emphasized a mistake-free day on pit road and an optimal pit stall were keys to success at Atlanta.

However, Bell and the entire Joe Gibbs Racing camp started outside the top 25, leaving the No. 20 team with the 33rd pit stall smack in between multiple competitors on a tight pit lane.

“He just stayed really, really patient, and never asked more out of his car than it was capable, and never put himself in the spot he was going to regret,” Stevens said of Bell getting to the front after starting 32nd on Sunday. “As it turned out, we had a competitive car with decent balance at the end and he was just really on top of getting the runs and finding the pushes from behind and taking those runs and passing cars and getting himself cleared on the other side. That was a real testament to how much work he’s put into it. I think we saw a little bit of it last week, and then a continuation of it this week here at the speedway races.”

MORE: Three Up, Three Down: Atlanta in focus

Next up, the series heads to Circuit of The Americas, a road course that concludes a trilogy of “wild card” events to start the 2025 Cup season. But both Larson and Bell own multiple wins at road courses, and with Phoenix and Las Vegas on the horizon after that, the tandem could separate themselves from the rest of their Cup competitors.

“We’ve finished 1-2 a lot already this year, and honestly, would have been cool to be 1-2 again in the Cup Series here this week,” Larson said, also referring to their dirt battles in the opening months of 2025. “But he’s a really good driver, really good team and we are with our team. It’s fun to get to race with a guy I have raced with for a long time. Hopefully, you know, we’ll be battling for a lot more wins.”

For Bell, getting back to dirt racing was a passion of his, and after JGR lifted the restrictions on its drivers in the offseason, it offered the Norman, Oklahoma, native a chance to get back to his roots that fired him up even more for 2025 after a season where he said he left “a ton on the table.”

Just two races down this season … so far, so good.

“I definitely feel the best I have as a race car driver,” Bell said after his Atlanta win. “I’m sure that part of it is due to the fact that I’ve been racing through the offseason. So it’s a dream come true to be able to drive for Joe Gibbs Racing in these Cup Series cars, and I’m honored and privileged to be able to have some fun outside of the Cup Series cars now. I hope that I can make this the best year ever and prove to the company that it’s the right thing for me to do to be out there racing.”

Posted on February 23, 2025February 24, 2025 by John Crane

HAMPTON, Ga. — Immediately after exiting his No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet, Carson Hocevar walked toward the frontstretch and conversed with Ross Chastain in a multi-minute conversation. Following the discussion, the 22-year-old swiftly met up with Ryan Blaney for another one-on-one dialogue.

The fruits from both conversations, which included a handshake with Chastain, stemmed from Hocevar’s utilization of aggressive — and controversial — bumps and maneuvers to clinch a runner-up finish in Sunday’s Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

“We’re here to win races, not be a boy band and love each other and play on the playground together,” Hocevar said after the race. “So obviously, there’s learning lessons. You don’t want to piss anybody off or frustrate anybody, and there’s things I would clean up for sure. But it’s just going to come with learning …

“Again, I’m normally 40th, waiting for them to crash and hoping they crash, and I finish in the teens. So, to be up front and get stage points in both stages and have a shot to win is something to hold my (head) high. … And I’ve always said I’m a really bad superspeedway racer, so this at least gives me a little bit more confidence.”

Hocevar, racing in his sophomore Cup Series campaign, started the 266-lap affair in 26th. The Michigan native began his maneuvers early and often, eventually culminating with ninth- and seventh-place finishes in Stages 1 and 2, respectively.

However, these bumps quickly drew the ire of several drivers, including Kyle Busch and Ryan Blaney, who made their frustrations regarding the No. 77 known on their respective team radios. Blaney and Busch finished fourth and seventh, respectively.

In the case of Blaney, in-race contact between the pair reached a head on Lap 234 when Hocevar bumped into the No. 12’s right-rear quarter panel, resulting in Blaney spinning out.

WATCH: Blaney goes for slide after Hocevar push | Blaney: ‘He’s just a moron’

“I wasn’t slowing,” Blaney said after the race. “He was drafting to me, and he didn’t lift and just gave me a shot when I’m turning into [Turn] 1, and it spun me out. I was just happy I didn’t hook a right back into everybody and was able to stay on the apron.”

“He’s been around enough now that you know he’s going to, you know, be the aggressor,” Atlanta race winner Christopher Bell said in his press conference. “If there’s a hole, he’s going to take it. If there’s not a hole, he’s going to make one, and he ultimately gave me the shove to pass or break through to lead the side-draft tandem with myself and Kyle down the back straightaway, and then I didn’t realize Kyle had opened up the bottom like he did, getting into (Turn) 3 and allowed Carson to sneak middle of three-wide.”

Hocevar said he apologized to Blaney during their conversation, saying there are areas he could probably clean up.

Chastain, whose No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet finished eighth, battled up front with Hocevar’s No. 77 during the waning portions of Sunday’s contest. Hocevar declined to delve into the conversation specifics, instead quipping that the conversation was about the Chili’s Triple Dipper.

“Sometimes you agree and disagree at things,” Hocevar said regarding Chastain, who has been a mentor for the young driver. “Ultimately, I felt like I made the decision that was to win the race, and I think we’ll be able to continue to talk about it because, obviously, we have each other’s phone numbers.”

Hocevar tallied his best finish in the Cup Series to date, eclipsing his third-place result in September 2024 at Watkins Glen International.

The finish marked a building block for Hocevar on superspeedway-style tracks, an area he has struggled through the early portion of his Cup Series career. Hocevar finished 30th in the 2025 Daytona 500 last weekend.

“I called Jeff Dickerson (Spire Motorsports co-owner) right after Monday, and I was like, man, well, I told my team I was not riding at all after the 500 … I said I wasn’t riding,” Hocevar explained. “And I called Jeff, and I said, ‘Hey, man, like, what do you think I do?’ And he’s like, ‘Well, you just ride. You do what you normally do.’ And I said, I think I’m just gonna go race, and I’m just gonna go see what happens.

“So, they have full faith in me on the riding thing, and they have full faith in me going forward, and I felt like our car was capable enough to do what we just did. Last year, I still probably ride because I think we weren’t there yet, but now I felt like I was racing the race car. I was racing again, so lots of hold our head high on.”

MORE: Cup Series standings | Cup Series schedule

Aggression, frustration and post-race discussion were the themes from the No. 77 team’s Atlanta performance, with Hocevar next trekking to Circuit of The Americas on March 2 (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Hocevar sits 15th in the driver standings heading to the Texas road course.

To Hocevar, the goal will be continuing to learn as a driver looking to find his footing in NASCAR’s premier series.

“Again, there’s things I would clean up,” Hocevar said. “But you’re not gonna make the right decisions every time, especially with how fast we’re going and how many runs is happening, and I can only apologize and say I’m gonna get better.”

Posted on February 23, 2025February 24, 2025 by Holly Cain

HAMPTON, Ga. – Christopher Bell prevailed in overtime to claim the victory in Sunday’s Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway – officially leading only the final lap and getting the photo nod in a three-wide run as a caution flag came out on the last lap to end the NASCAR Cup Series race.

It marks the second year that this race featured a three-wide run to the end. This time Bell was out front over second-year driver Carson Hocevar and 2021 series champion Kyle Larson as the final yellow flag flew. It was the the 10th career series victory for Bell, a 30-year-old Oklahoma native, and his first on a drafting-type track like Atlanta, Daytona or Talladega. It also marked the first victory for Joe Gibbs Racing since June of last year.

“I’ll tell you what, that right there is what you dream of,” an elated Bell said afterward. “To be able to restart on the first or second row on a restart at a speedway, you never know how those things are going to play out.

“But,” he added looking directly into the FOX television cameras with a huge smile, “I’ll be the first to tell you, ‘I love superspeedways.’

“I don’t know,” he conceded, “but this style of racing has always been a little bit of a struggle for me. Throughout the beginning of the day, obviously today we were just stuck way in the back. But [crew chief] Adam [Stevens] and these boys just did an incredible job of getting this thing fixed up so I could just hold my foot down and you’ve got to be able to just stay in the throttle and that last half of the race we ran our best.”

STORE: Buy winner’s gear

Despite his near-miss third-place showing, Larson was pleased with the finish. He’s 0-for-48 in speedway-type races, including 16 previous DNFs. So all said, it was a successful, if eventful, day. He had contact with one of the race’s strongest cars, Austin Cindric’s No. 2 Team Penske Ford, with three laps remaining to make the overtime finish necessary, but led 12 laps.

Hocevar’s runner-up finish was a career-high mark for the 22-year-old driver of the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet.

However, shortly after the young Michigander climbed out of his car, he was confronted post-race by both Ross Chastain and former series champ Ryan Blaney in separate discussions. Although Chastain declined to share what was said, Blaney confirmed he suggested that Hocevar work on his decision-making.

“I just said, ‘Hey, you got to calm down.’ I told him a couple moves he made earlier in the race that were really, really sketchy,” said Blaney, who rallied to a fourth-place finish after being spun out from contact with Hocevar with 27 laps remaining.

“Obviously, me getting spun. He should know better than to hit me in that spot. He can’t just run into my bumper as I’m turning into a corner. I’m going to wreck. So, I just told him you’ve got to calm down. You got a lot of talent, but you got to be a little bit easier in this certain moment. Be smarter.”

Hocevar also said he preferred to keep the two conversations with his veteran competitors to himself, but immediately offered an apology for any contact with Larson on the final lap.

“I didn’t realize we weren’t racing back to the line,” he said of the last-lap fender rub with Larson, adding, “Some stuff I’ve got to learn and clean up a little bit, but I feel like we put ourselves in a perfect opportunity to win a race and I’ve never really had that opportunity before, especially on superspeedways. So, thanks to everybody at Spire Motorsports.”

MORE: Hocevar, feather-ruffling runner-up at Atlanta

The early portion of the race was dominated by the Ford contingent, which included 10 of the top 11 qualifiers including Blaney’s pole position in the No. 12 Team Penske Ford. Blaney’s teammate, reigning series champion Joey Logano led a race-best 83 laps – the second time in as many races this season he outpaced the field, but finished 12th.

The final yellow flag flew to end the race when Stage 1 winner Josh Berry, Justin Haley and Ryan Preece collided on the backstretch during overtime.

Hyak Motorsports’ Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished fifth, followed by Denny Hamlin, a strong showing for the veteran who like his JGR teammates all started 25th or worse on the grid.

The race was slowed by 11 caution periods, including eight for wrecks. One of those crack-ups snared Daniel Suárez, who won this race last year at Atlanta in a narrow three-wide finish, but was sidelined Sunday in a Lap 184 tangle involving seven other cars. Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch was the only one of three drivers (with Blaney and Suárez) from last year’s three-wide photo finish not to be collected in an accident. The two-time series champion finished seventh, followed by Trackhouse Racing’s Chastain, 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace, and Legacy Motor Club’s John Hunter Nemechek, who scored his second top-10 finish in as many races this year – already half of his single season high in two previous full-time seasons at the NASCAR Cup Series level.

With his fourth-place showing Sunday, Blaney now leads the championship by 12 points over Daytona 500 winner William Byron. Kaulig Racing’s AJ Allmendinger set the Xfinity Fastest Lap of the race.

The NASCAR Cup Series heads west for its first road course race of the season, the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix next Sunday (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Byron is the defending race winner at Circuit of The Americas.

Notes: Post-race inspection in the Cup Series garage was completed without issue, confirming Bell as the race winner. Competition officials indicated that two cars — the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet and the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford — would return to the NASCAR Research & Development Center for further inspection this week. … Michael McDowell rallied from a six-lap deficit after his Spire Motorsports crew made an extended stop to repair the No. 71 Chevrolet’s power steering to finish 13th on the lead lap. McDowell was the free-pass beneficiary in six consecutive caution periods during the second and third stages to get back into contention at the end.

Contributing: Staff reports

Posted on February 23, 2025February 23, 2025 by Staff Report

Defending race winner Daniel Suárez was involved in a multicar crash with Ty Gibbs, Cole Custer and others at Lap 184 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday.

Exiting Turn 4, Suárez was running the high line when Gibbs darted to the middle between Suárez and Gilliland. That contact sent Suárez’s No. 99 Chevrolet into a slide at the start/finish line, collecting over a half-dozen cars in a mid-pack pileup in the final stage of the Ambetter Health 400.

MORE: Atlanta results | At-track photos

Suárez’s car blocked much of the track as he slid toward Turn 1, leaving Noah Gragson, Cole Custer, J.J. Yeley and Cody Ware nowhere to go but directly into the crash.

Through Turns 3 and 4, Riley Herbst’s No. 35 Toyota had to slow due to a handling push in the top lane, two cars in front of Suárez. Suárez had to roll off the throttle to avoid hitting Bubba Wallace just in front of him, allowing Gibbs’ No. 54 Toyota a run to the middle. The hole closed too quickly, leading to the incident.

“I didn’t know the 54 was there. I think that was on me,” Suárez told FOX Sports while watching the replay. “Today, we were just not good enough. I mean we struggled a lot with the balance of the car since the first stage. We worked a lot to make it better. We made it better, but never quite the way that we normally are here. We will have to review everything.”

Gibbs was able to continue before a separate issue ended his day, leading to a 32nd-place finish. Suárez (33rd), Gragson (34th), Ware (35th), Custer (36th) and Yeley (37th) were unable to continue.

Ware was treated and released from the infield care center. All other drivers were evaluated and released from the care center.

Posted on February 23, 2025February 23, 2025 by Staff Report

Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Corey LaJoie were involved in a multicar crash at Lap 150 during Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

With just 10 laps remaining in Stage 2 of the Ambetter Health 400, Elliott was running 11th through Turns 3 and 4 in the high lane of a three-wide situation, while Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Chase Briscoe raced to his left. Briscoe’s car washed up the track into Stenhouse’s Chevrolet, which then sent Elliott into the SAFER barrier.

MORE: Atlanta results | At-track photos

The initial contact with the wall appeared to break Elliott’s right-rear toe link, rendering his handling uncontrollable. At the start/finish line, Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet broke sideways and contacted LaJoie’s No. 01 Ford and Keselowski’s No. 6 Ford.

“There’s, like, a million of those decisions during one of these races, and you just try to get a feel for it and I guessed wrong,” Keselowski said after being evaluated and released from the infield care center.

Elliott and LaJoie were able to drive their vehicles to the attention of their respective pit crews on pit road. Keselowski was unable to do the same and instead had his car towed to the garage area, where the team was permitted to repair the RFK Racing machine under new Damaged Vehicle Policy rules for the 2025 season.

Elliott rallied to a 20th-place finish. However, both LaJoie’s and Keselowski’s crews determined their damage was too severe and did not return to the race. LaJoie finished 38th and Keselowski, the 2012 Cup Series champion, finished 39th, last.

Keselowski’s disappointment didn’t deter him enjoying the tight-quarters racing at the 1.54-mile superspeedway. The field largely stayed double- and triple-wide, which Keselowski took joy in.

“It’s just intense racing. It’s great racing,” he said. “It’s fun to be a part of. Just hate we didn’t come out on top.”

Keselowski entered Sunday’s race 20th in the points standings and will take a hit with just one point earned at Atlanta. The team co-owner of RFK Racing is not concerned about his standings only two races into the 26-race regular season, though.

“We started off last year in a big points hole,” he said. “The potential in our cars seems to have increased from where we were last year. So, for us, we want to go out and run well at COTA (Circuit of The Americas). But I think everybody kind of knows that the real metric for the season is probably going to be more when we get through Phoenix and Vegas.”

Posted on February 23, 2025 by Holly Cain

HAMPTON, Ga. — Joey Logano’s start at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday makes him the new longest consecutive start streak in the NASCAR Cup Series, with the previous holder of that mark, Martin Truex Jr. ending his own at 685 straight starts — sixth on the all-time list.

MORE: Current active Cup streaks | Atlanta photos

Truex, the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion, retired from full-time competition at the end of 2024 but started last week’s season-opening Daytona 500. His mark began with the 2006 Daytona 500.

“It’s obviously a long way to go to catch those guys, but it’s kind of cool it’s happening at Atlanta because I grew up racing Legends cars here,” said Logano, who made his 578th start and remembers parking his Legends Series car outside Atlanta’s media center as a kid hoping to race in the NASCAR Cup Series one day.

“That was the dream and now pretty cool to see that come full circle here in Atlanta.”

Logano’s former Penske teammate, Brad Keselowski, now an owner driver with Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, is next behind Logano at 546 consecutive starts.

Posted on February 23, 2025February 23, 2025 by PJ Walsh

While the Daytona 500 may be in the books, I’m approaching NASCAR odds for Atlanta Motor Speedway in a very similar fashion.

My personal betting strategy is to have lighter cards for superspeedway races due to the sheer unpredictability of tracks like Atlanta, Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway, and that’s exactly how I’m making my NASCAR picks for Sunday’s Ambetter Health 400 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

ATLANTA: Starting lineup | Full projected results

Action Network’s Nick Giffen has already laid out a handful of bets I like, and I’m tacking on one more long-shot pick for Sunday’s race.

NASCAR Odds, Best Bet Pick for Atlanta

*Odds as of Saturday night

I’m quite surprised to see a driver like Tyler Reddick available at 40-1 odds (ESPN BET) heading into Sunday’s race.

Yes, Reddick and the entire Toyota organization struggled in qualifying but likely sacrificed one-lap speed for handling, which could very well give them an advantage on older tires at Atlanta.

Does qualifying matter? Sure. But at a track like Atlanta, it’s not as important as non-superspeedway tracks, especially for cars set up to race well as opposed to posting one fast lap for starting position.

Reddick is also no slouch on superspeedways, notching a win at Talladega and a sixth-place finish at Atlanta in 2024, as well as a runner-up finish in last weekend’s Daytona 500.

To be frank, I’m looking for reasons to talk myself out of this bet but simply cannot pass on a driver with Reddick’s talent, in very fast 23XI Racing equipment and with recent success on superspeedways at a long-shot price of 40-1.

NASCAR Pick: Tyler Reddick (40-1) to Win — ESPN Bet

Posted on February 23, 2025February 23, 2025 by Staff Report

23XI Racing announced Sunday that Craftsman Truck Series regular Corey Heim will drive for the organization in a part-time NASCAR Cup Series schedule this season.

The announcement came in the hours before Sunday’s Ambetter Health 400 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the 1.54-mile track that’s roughly an hour’s drive from Heim’s hometown of Atlanta suburb Marietta.

Heim is set to drive the No. 67 Toyota for the organization co-owned by NBA legend Michael Jordan and Cup Series veteran Denny Hamlin. Fellow veteran Robert “Bootie” Barker will serve as the crew chief for the part-time effort. Barker was crew chief for 23XI driver Bubba Wallace on the No. 23 team for the last three seasons before taking a new role in the organization’s competition department.

The rising star will also compete in multiple Xfinity Series races with Sam Hunt Racing (SHR) in a Toyota GR Supra supported by 23XI. Last season, Heim competed in 13 races with SHR and has 17 total starts in the Xfinity Series, earning three top-five and five top-10 finishes. Heim’s first race with SHR will be at Circuit of The Americas, where he will compete in his first road-course event in the Xfinity Series.

“It’s a dream come true to be a part of 23XI, and I’m excited for the opportunity to race more Cup and Xfinity races this year,” Heim said in a team release. “I’m blessed to have the chance to compete in all three series as I continue to set my sights on full-time Cup racing when that time comes. The success that 23XI has shown in only a few short years has been impressive and I’m excited to learn from the organization. I’m also grateful to everyone at Toyota for their ongoing support in my development both on and off the track, and I look forward to strengthening that relationship for years to come.”

Heim has impressed in his short Craftsman Truck Series career, winning 12 times in 66 starts and reaching the Championship 4 round of the playoffs the last two seasons. The 22-year-old driver’s most recent victory with his Tricon Garage team came in the season-opening event nine days ago at Daytona International Speedway.

Heim made the first three Cup Series starts of his career last season — two as a substitute for Toyota affiliate Legacy Motor Club after Erik Jones suffered a broken vertebra in a crash, and another for 23XI’s No. 50 team later in the 2024 campaign.

“Our team was fortunate to work with Corey last year, and we look forward to growing our relationship with him as our development driver starting in 2025,” said Steve Lauletta, president of 23XI Racing. “Corey continues to prove he is a talented, hard-working driver, and we plan to make all the resources of 23XI available to support his development within the Toyota family as he progresses in NASCAR.”

Heim believes now was the opportune time to progress his trajectory as a young star within the NASCAR ranks.

“I don’t know if there’s any one specific thing that has made me feel like this is the right time to advance my career, but I know I’ve worked very hard over the last couple years to develop myself and get better and continue to grow as a race car driver,” Heim said. “I feel like a lot of people have seen some drivers maybe be rushed up and kind of struggle. I don’t want to be that guy, you know. I feel like I’m on the right career path to grow and get better. And you know, when I’m ready, the time will come, sort of deal. So, yeah, I feel like this structure and this development for me is the right plan for me. … Just really feels comfortable, you know, just being a part of the family and the opportunities that have been granted over the last couple years, I’ve felt confident in my career path, and I continue to do so.”

23XI Racing is in its first Cup Series season as a newly expanded three-car team. The organization added the No. 35 Toyota for rookie Riley Herbst in the offseason, teaming him with incumbents Bubba Wallace (No. 23) and Tyler Reddick (No. 45) for the 2025 campaign.

Posted on February 23, 2025February 21, 2025 by Adam Fenwick

Steve Andrews has always been a fan of racing, and he hoped to one day be involved in the sport he loved so much.

That’s why Andrews couldn’t resist the opportunity to lease and later buy Missouri’s Monett Motor Speedway.

“I’ve just grown to love it,” he said. “My friends and I would leave a race, and we’d say, ‘The experience would be so much better if they just did this or they just did that.’ We joked one day we’d buy a track.

“Low and behold, a year ago, Monett Motor Speedway was available, so I decided to just take a leap of faith. These tracks are kind of dying, so it was an opportunity to keep a track alive. I leased it for a year with the option to buy it, and I executed that option in the last year, and now we’re all in.”

Andrews has managed operations at Monett since his lease began. He officially purchased the 3/8-mile red clay oval in January, just in time for the track to celebrate its 55th anniversary season.

B Mods will serve as the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Division I class at Monett Motor Speedway during the 2025 season. (Photo: Monett Motor Speedway)

The shift in ownership is one of many changes coming to Monett, known in Missouri as ‘The Grand Ol’ Lady.’ Another major development is the track joining the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series this year.

“We looked at what we were doing and what everybody else was doing, and the sanctions that were out there just didn’t seem to benefit the racers, let alone the track, as much as we felt the opportunities that NASCAR presented (did),” Andrews said. “We wanted something this year that was going to set us apart from everybody else, and we really felt NASCAR was the right direction.”

In advance of Monett’s first season under the NASCAR banner, plans are well underway to make several major improvements.

Among them are a new racing surface thanks to 150 loads of fresh clay, a concession stand remodel, a new announcer’s booth and scoring tower, an updated tech area and an updated pit entrance.

Andrews has also brought in some familiar faces to help whip the facility into shape.

Jesse Stovall, a veteran dirt racer and multi-time feature winner at Monett, has been named general manager. Dan Robinson, who previously worked at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Missouri, has been brought on as a transformation consultant.

Stovall will be directly involved in the day-to-day operations at the track, specifically preparing the racing surface for each night of racing. His goal is simple: Give racers and fans the best track possible to put on a good show.

“I went over there one day because I have a friend who races, and I went over to watch him,” said Stovall, who retired from full-time racing a few years ago after suffering a head injury. “The track was a little dusty, and they were having some issues trying to get the track right. Next thing you know, the guy that was doing the track work decided it was too much for him.

“Steve called me, and we worked out a deal to get the track ready each week, and it kind of morphed into … he learned that I was pretty knowledgeable about racing in all aspects and he leans on me pretty hard at this point.”

Monett Motor Speedway opened in 1970 and is considered the oldest operating dirt track in the state of Missouri. (Photo: Monett Motor Speedway)

Andrews has already announced a handful of major events for Monett’s 2025 season, including the second running of the Larry Phillips Memorial on June 27-28.

The event is held in honor of the late five-time Weekly Series national champion from Springfield, Missouri. Phillips passed away in 2004 at age 62 after a battle with lung cancer.

“Larry was just such a big part of this community up here, and he’s so well known,” Andrews said. “The response we received from the community when we held the inaugural (race) last year was just overwhelming. We had Mark Martin there. It was just a spectacular event. It was an honor to be able to honor him.

“Unlike last year, this year, it is going to be a two-day event. I would liken that to the Super Bowl of our season.”

Monett will host Weekly Series racing on Friday nights throughout the season starting April 4. B Mods will serve as the track’s Division I class. Other NASCAR-sanctioned Weekly divisions will include Midwest modifieds, pure stocks and bombers.

A full 2025 schedule will be available on Monett Motor Speedway’s website soon.

Stovall has seen many promoters come and go from race tracks around the Midwest, but he believes Andrews is committed to making Monett one of the region’s premier dirt-racing facilities.

That commitment is what Stovall hopes will attract racers and fans to ‘The Grand Ol’ Lady’ in 2025.

“I used to tell everybody, if you could go win a race at Monett, you could pretty much go anywhere and win a race,” Stovall said. “It’s just unique in shape, and the shape of the race track is just absolutely wonderful.

“We’re doing everything we can to make this place like it once was and have the best quality shows that we can possibly have.”