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NBC Sports
05-07-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Examining NASCAR Cup 2nd-round In-Season Challenge matchups at Chicago
After a wild opening round that saw the top two seeds eliminated, along with a few other favorites, the In-Season Challenge heads to Chicago for the second round. The 32-team field has been cut to 16 for Sunday's street race. The third round (eight remaining drivers) is at Sonoma. The fourth round (four remaining drivers) is at Dover. The final round (two remaining drivers) is at Indianapolis. The winner will collect $1 million. Here is a look, with the help of Racing Insights, at the second-round pairings for Sunday's race: No. 3 Chris Buescher vs. No. 14 Zane Smith At the front: Chris Buescher has the best average finish on road courses in the Next Gen car at 8.8. On a roll: Buescher has scored four consecutive top-10 finishes. Zane Smith has finished seventh twice in the last four races. Winner ... advances to meet winner of AJ Allmendinger - Ty Gibbs matchup. No. 5 Chase Elliott vs. No. 12 John Hunter Nemechek Streaking: Atlanta winner Chase Elliott has scored three consecutive top-five finishes entering this weekend. Road trip: Elliott has finished in the top five in both road course events this year, finishing third in Mexico and fourth at Circuit of the Americas. Nemechek finished sixth at Mexico for his best road course finish in Cup. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Erik Jones - Ricky Stenhouse Jr. matchup. No. 6 Ty Gibbs vs. No. 22 AJ Allmendinger Top dog: Ty Gibbs has the best average finish on the streets of the Chicago at 6.0 in two races, placing third last year and ninth in the inaugural event. Three of a kind: All three of AJ Allmendinger's Cup victories have come on road courses: Watkins Glen, Indianapolis Road Course and Charlotte Roval. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Zane Smith - Chris Buescher matchup. No. 8 Alex Bowman vs. No. 9 Bubba Wallace Spicy history: NASCAR fined Bubba Wallace $50,000 for his retaliatory actions after Alex Bowman won last year's Chicago Street Race. Wallace was upset with Bowman for contact during the race that turned him. Wallace door-slammed Bowman's car on the cool-down lap and sent it into the wall. Two-for-two: Alex Bowman has top-10 finishes in both road course events this season, placing fourth in Mexico and ninth at COTA. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Brad Keselowski - Ty Dillon matchup. No. 15 Ryan Preece vs. No. 31 Noah Gragson I know you: Matchup of former Stewart-Haas Racing teammates. Opposite directions: Noah Gragson has five consecutive finishes outside the top 20. Ryan Preece has four top-20 finishes in the last five races. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Carson Hocevar - Tyler Reddick matchup. No. 17 Brad Keselowski vs. No. 32 Ty Dillon By the numbers: Brad Keselowski's average finish on road courses in the Next Gen car is 20.6 with one top-10 finish. Ty Dillon's average finish on road courses in the Next Gen car is 27.7 with no finish better than 16th. Back-to-back: Keselowski has finished in the top 10 in each of the past two races this season. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Alex Bowman - Bubba Wallace matchup. No. 20 Erik Jones vs. No. 29 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Mirror image: Erik Jones' average finish this season is 18.4. Stenhouse's average finish this season is 18.9. Both drivers have three top-10 finishes this year. Turning the corner: Jones has finished in the top 15 in five of the last six races. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Chase Elliott - John Hunter Nemechek matchup. No. 23 Tyler Reddick vs. No. 26 Carson Hocevar Familiar ground: Tyler Reddick finished second in last year's race on the streets of Chicago. Tough matchup: Carson Hocevar has finished ahead of Reddick on a road course just once in seven Cup races. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Noah Gragson - Ryan Preece matchup.
NBC Sports
27-06-2025
- Automotive
- NBC Sports
Examining NASCAR Cup first-round In-Season Challenge matchups
NASCAR's In-Season Challenge makes its debut this weekend at EchoPark Speedway, the track formerly known as Atlanta Motor Speedway. Thirty-two drivers were seeded based on their best finish in the last three weeks (Michigan, Mexico and Pocono). The drivers were paired based on those seedings. The driver who finishes the best in his matchup advances to the next round. The second round (16 remaining drivers) is at the Chicago Street Race. The third round (eight remaining drivers) is at Sonoma. The fourth round (four remaining drivers) is at Dover. The final round (two remaining drivers) is at Indianapolis. The winner will collect $1 million. Here is a look, with the the help of Racing Insights, at the first-round pairings: No. 1 Denny Hamlin vs. No. 32 Ty Dillon Hot streak: Denny Hamlin has finished in the top three in each of his last three starts this season. Long odds: The last time Ty Dillon finished ahead of Denny Hamlin at Atlanta was March 2017 when Dillon placed 15th and Hamlin was 38th — well before EchoPark Speedway ˜was reconfigured and became a drafting track. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Kyle Busch - Brad Keselowski matchup. No. 2 Chase Briscoe vs. No. 31 Noah Gragson Fun fact: James Small, crew chief for Chase Briscoe, has 95 career top-10 finishes. Noah Gragson will be making his 93rd career Cup start this weekend. Former teammates: This is the only first-round matchup involving former Cup teammates. Both raced at Stewart-Haas Racing in 2024. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Ryan Preece - William Byron matchup. No. 3 Chris Buescher vs. No. 30 Todd Gilliland Third time a charm for Buescher? Todd Gilliland has finished better than Chris Buescher in the last two races at a drafting track. Gilliland was 16th at Talladega and Buescher was 34th due to an accident. At Atlanta in February, Gilliland placed 15th, while Buescher was 30th after his car was damaged in an incident. Strong start: Chris Buescher has nine top-10 finishes this season in the first 17 races. That's his most top 10s through the first 17 races of a Cup season. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Zane Smith - Austin Cindric matchup. No. 4 Christopher Bell vs. No. 29 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Familiar face: This is a matchup between spotter Tab Boyd's former driver (Ricky Stenhouse Jr.) and his new driver (Christopher Bell). This will be Boyd's first race with Bell. See ya in Victory Lane: These two have combined to win two of the last four points races on a drafting track. Bell won at Atlanta in February. Stenhouse won at Talladega last fall. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Ross Chastain - Erik Jones matchup. No. 5 Chase Elliott vs. No. 28 Austin Dillon Dominant: Chase Elliott has finished better than Austin Dillon in 13 of the 17 points races this season, including six in a row. Consistent: Elliott has an average finish of 10.5 on the reconfigured Atlanta track, which ranks second among drivers who have made at least three starts on it. He has the best average finish in the series this season at 10.8. Winner ... advances to meet winner of John Hunter Nemechek - Josh Berry matchup No. 6 Ty Gibbs vs. No. 27 Justin Haley Streaking: Ty Gibbs has finished better than Justin Haley in each of the last six races. Five for five: All five of Haley's Cup (one win) and Xfinity (four) victories have come at drafting tracks. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Michael McDowell - AJ Allmendinger matchup. No. 7 Ryan Blaney vs. No. 26 Carson Hocevar Familiar foes: Ryan Blaney was one of the drivers upset with Carson Hocevar at Atlanta in February after Hocevar's contact spun Blaney. Close duel: Hocevar finished second at Atlanta in February. Blaney placed fourth in that race. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Kyle Larson - Tyler Reddick matchup. No. 8 Alex Bowman vs. No. 25 Joey Logano Better days ahead? Since winning at Atlanta in last year's playoff race, Joey Logano has finished 33rd or worse in three of the last four races on drafting tracks. The exception was a 12th-place result at Atlanta in February. Close duel: Alex Bowman has finished better than Joey Logano in nine of the 17 points races this season. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Bubba Wallace - Daniel Suarez matchup. No. 9 Bubba Wallace vs. No. 24 Daniel Suarez Better run lately: Bubba Wallace has finished better than Daniel Suarez in five of the last six races. Recent Atlanta winner: Suarez won at Atlanta last year in the closest 1-2-3 finish in Cup history. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Alex Bowman - Joey Logano matchup. No. 10 Kyle Larson vs. No. 23 Tyler Reddick Good time for a win: Kyle Larson is winless in 50 Cup starts on a drafting track. Also, Larson's five-race winless streak entering this weekend is tied for his longest of the season. In need of a turnaround: Tyler Reddick has one top-10 finish in the last nine points races. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Ryan Blaney - Carson Hocevar matchup No. 11 Michael McDowell vs. No. 22 AJ Allmendinger Looking to improve: Michael McDowell has one top-10 finish in his last nine races on drafting tracks, dating back to last season. Intriguing matchup: With two road courses after this weekend (Chicago Street Race and Sonoma), the winner of his matchup could be in a good position to advance deep in the tournament. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Ty Gibbs - Justin Haley matchup. No. 12 John Hunter Nemechek vs. No. 21 Josh Berry Opposite directions: John Hunter Nemechek comes into the weekend off back-to-back sixth-place finishes. He has four top-10 finishes in the last seven races. Josh Berry has one top-10 finish in the last 12 races. Drafting tracks: John Hunter Nemechek has two top 10s in three races on drafting tracks this season. Josh Berry won a stage at Atlanta in February but has yet to score a top-20 finish this year on a drafting track. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Chase Elliott - Austin Dillon matchup. No. 13 Ross Chastain vs. No. 20 Erik Jones Friendly track: Ross Chastain has four top-10 finishes, including a pair of runner-up results, in the seven races since the Atlanta track was reconfigured. Close duel? Chastain and Jones have finished within four positions of each other in four of the last eight races. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Christopher Bell - Ricky Stenhouse Jr. matchup. No. 14 Zane Smith vs. No. 19 Austin Cindric Teammate tussle? If Zane Smith and Todd Gilliland can each win their first-round matchups, the Front Row Motorsports drivers would meet in the second round. Tough draw: Smith won't have it easy with Austin Cindric, who won at Talladega in the most recent race at a drafting track, led the most laps in the Daytona 500 and ranked third in laps led at Atlanta in February. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Chris Buescher - Todd Gilliland matchup. No. 15 Ryan Preece vs. No. 18 William Byron Up and down: While William Byron has two wins at Atlanta since the track was reconfigured, he's also placed 27th or worse three times. Challenging draw: Ryan Preece has never finished better than 16th in nine career Cup starts at Atlanta. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Chase Briscoe - Noah Gragson matchup. No. 16 Kyle Busch vs. No. 17 Brad Keselowski Heavy hitters: This is the only first-round matchup between two former Cup champions. Streaking: Kyle Busch has scored five consecutive top-10 finishes at Atlanta. Brad Keselowski has finished 19th or worse in his last three starts there. Winner ... advances to meet winner of Denny Hamlin - Ty Dillon match.
NBC Sports
23-06-2025
- Automotive
- NBC Sports
Long: Victory is as much relief as a celebration for Chase Briscoe
LONG POND, Pa. — It was a year and a day ago Christopher Bell let slip that Chase Briscoe would join Joe Gibbs Racing for the 2025 season, taking the spot vacated by Martin Truex Jr. Briscoe would join a team that entered this season on a 52-race winless streak. There had been chances to win. Sometimes circumstances prevented a victory. Other times it was a lack of execution. Through the first 16 races this season, Briscoe and crew chief James Small won four poles and scored five top-five finishes but had yet to win. Briscoe talked of how challenging it was to adjust to the Joe Gibbs Racing cars after having spent the past four seasons at Stewart-Haas Racing. The pressure built on Briscoe. And Small. As Sunday's rain-delayed race at Pocono moved into the evening, Briscoe was in position to deliver a victory. And then came the final pit stop. Briscoe left too early. He didn't have enough fuel to make it to the end unless there was a caution. Behind him was teammate Denny Hamlin, the winningest driver at Pocono. Yet, just as it seemed the No. 19 team would be foiled again, Briscoe got a key caution, saved enough fuel and held off Hamlin to win. Nate Ryan, The celebration was as much relief as joy. Briscoe called it his 'least-enjoyable' Cup win. Of course, it's a small sample. Sunday was his third series victory. Don't be misled. Briscoe still enjoyed the victory but the expectation of winning is different at Joe Gibbs Racing. The 30-year-old driver from Indiana felt that pressure. 'Last couple weeks especially, I've just been like this huge weight on my shoulders, unlike anything I've ever experienced before,' Briscoe said. 'My wife is, 'What is going on with you?' I'm like, I have to win. I don't think you realize how bad it is if we don't win a race and lock into the playoffs.' 'I feel like I honestly weigh a hundred pounds less already (after the win0. Literally when I was doing my contract with JGR, I remember them showing me the stat thing about how about out of 40 attempts for playoffs, they have made it 38 times. The expectation is if you don't make the playoffs, you're not going to be in this car anymore.' That's no longer a worry Briscoe's performance is why Joe Gibbs Racing signed him shortly after SHR announced that it would cease operations after the season. 'We did a total research on it,' car owner Joe Gibbs told NBC Sports about the pursuit of Briscoe. 'We came down to, 'Hey, Chase was the person that we thought was young and could give us a real future.'' Briscoe provided another piece for an organization that had Christopher Bell, likely a future series champion, youngster Ty Gibbs and Hamlin, the winningest driver at JGR and future Hall of Famer. Briscoe's hire also provided JGR with the opportunity to pair him with a crew chief other than Small had it wanted. This was the same organization that moved Chris Gabehart from being Hamlin's crew chief after last season to overseeing the competition department. But Small was kept with Briscoe. 'It's been a lot of work,' Small said. 'From where he came from, there wasn't much accountability. Nobody was holding his feet to the fire. That's probably been a big wake-up call for him.' Said Briscoe of the change: 'It's definitely more work, but it's because they are at such a high level. So yeah, it's been an adjustment for me. Even just racing with teammates that are winning has been an adjustment for me. It's definitely been a big learning curve.' There's more to do. 'We're still a work in progress,' Small said of he, Briscoe and the No. 19 team. 'We're far from being where we think we can be. At this point he's meeting our expectations. I still expect a lot from him. He's only going to get better, I know.' One thing they can work on is when Briscoe leaves his pit stall. On the final stop, which came at Lap 119 of the 160-lap race, Briscoe was to stay in the pit stall until Small told him to go as they waited on fuel. That didn't happen. 'As the tires got done, I knew we were sitting there waiting on fuel,' Briscoe said. 'I started revving the engine up so I wouldn't stall it when I left. I think James said, 'Wait.' As soon as I heard anything, I just went.' Small said when Briscoe left pit road he was nine laps short of making it to the finish on the 2.5-mile track. Hamlin pitted the next lap and waited for fuel. Briscoe soon realized his issue when he saw Hamlin well behind him — the benefit of a shorter pit stop than Hamlin since Briscoe didn't wait for fuel. 'I knew I was probably not in the best of shape,' Briscoe said. 'I instantly started saving fuel down the straightaways.' A caution helped Briscoe get closer to making it. He maintained the lead on the restart and Hamlin could not get by and finished second. 'Just too aero tight,' Hamlin said of the condition of running behind another car. 'Didn't have enough really fall-off in the tire to make it to where handling was a big issue. … I tried to the best I could make runs at him. I'd back off, cool everything down to make another run and as soon as I'd get within one or two car lengths, it would heat the tires up and then I couldn't make a run on him. 'Truthfully, I thought he'd run out of gas.' He wasn't the only one. 'I fully expected to run out of fuel,' Briscoe said. Instead, he had enough to win. And do a burnout.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
A year after SHR's stunning announcement, its drivers have found new homes, success in Cup
CONCORD, N.C. — Chase Briscoe grew up a Tony Stewart fan, his bedroom decorated with Stewart memorabilia. So when Stewart-Haas Racing selected Briscoe ahead of the 2021 season to drive the No. 14 car Stewart had, it was a special day. 'I thought that was the car I was going to potentially retire in,' Briscoe told NBC Sports. Advertisement That changed on May 28, 2024. Stewart-Haas Racing, a four-car Cup operation that won series titles with Stewart in 2011 and Kevin Harvick in 2014, announced it would shut down after the 2024 season. Among the team's 323 employees looking for work were its four Cup drivers — Briscoe, Josh Berry, Ryan Preece and Noah Gragson. 'At the time I was bummed,' Briscoe said. 'Just the whole team shutting down. I felt like that was really my family.' AUTO: MAY 24 NASCAR Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 Austin Cindric, Team Penske drivers focused on Coke 600 after tumultuous week for organization The dismissal of three high-ranking Team Penske executives, including Austin Cindric's father, came after a rules violation with Penske's IndyCar program. Advertisement A year later, three of those four former SHR drivers are in a playoff spot heading into Sunday night's Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. 'It's just crazy how quickly things can change,' Berry said. Berry won at Las Vegas in March for the Wood Brothers to all but assure himself his first Cup playoff spot. Briscoe is 12th in points with Joe Gibbs Racing near the midpoint of the regular season. Preece, 15th in points, also holds a playoff spot for RFK Racing. Only Gragson is outside a playoff spot at this time of the season with Front Row Motorsports. Tonight, Briscoe will lead the field to the green flag for the Coca-Cola 600 after winning the pole. It's his second pole of the season after claiming the top spot for the Daytona 500 in February. Advertisement 'I think last year a lot of people looked at us as underperforming and now we're overperforming,' Berry said. 'It changes just like that. The perception has changed completely.' AUTO: MAY 17 INDYCAR 109th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Jeff Gordon: Kyle Larson is 'going to be' at Charlotte for Coke 600 well ahead of start Jeff Gordon addresses Kyle Larson's travel from the Indianapolis 500 to the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday. Berry has been strong on the 1.5-mile tracks, the same length as Charlotte Motor Speedway. Along with his Las Vegas win, he finished sixth at Kansas in the most recent Cup race. He was leading at Texas when he crashed earlier this month. Advertisement Briscoe's has finished a season-best fourth four times, including twice on 1.5-mile tracks, doing so at Homestead and Kansas. Three of Preece's four top-10 finishes this season have come at a 1.5-mile track. NASCAR: Coca-Cola 600 How to watch Sunday's Cup race at Charlotte: Start time, TV info and weather The focus will be on Kyle Larson seeking redemption at the 1.5-mile oval. For Preece, going through the unsettled situation last year at Stewart-Haas Racing, in a way, wasn't new for him. 'Really, my situation has been a one-year contract since '22,' he said. 'In all reality, it's been one year on and on and on. That hasn't changed me a whole lot. … It's very satisfying to be with this group (at RFK Racing). We all kind of came together very last minute. Derrick (Finley, the crew chief) even joked about it, he said, 'We didn't pick the team, the team chose us.'' Advertisement While Gragson has had his struggles this season, he'll start eighth in tonight's race. He's had only one better starting position this season. 'I think we've all fallen into really good positions with great teams and I'm thankful for that,' Berry said. 'Thankfully, we all did enough last year to find those opportunities and come out on the other side of it.'
NBC Sports
25-05-2025
- Automotive
- NBC Sports
A year after SHR's stunning announcement, its drivers have found new homes, success in Cup
CONCORD, N.C. — Chase Briscoe grew up a Tony Stewart fan, his bedroom decorated with Stewart memorabilia. So when Stewart-Haas Racing selected Briscoe ahead of the 2021 season to drive the No. 14 car Stewart had, it was a special day. 'I thought that was the car I was going to potentially retire in,' Briscoe told NBC Sports. That changed on May 28, 2024. Stewart-Haas Racing, a four-car Cup operation that won series titles with Stewart in 2011 and Kevin Harvick in 2014, announced it would shut down after the 2024 season. Among the team's 323 employees looking for work were its four Cup drivers — Briscoe, Josh Berry, Ryan Preece and Noah Gragson. 'At the time I was bummed,' Briscoe said. 'Just the whole team shutting down. I felt like that was really my family.' Dustin Long, A year later, three of those four former SHR drivers are in a playoff spot heading into Sunday night's Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. 'It's just crazy how quickly things can change,' Berry said. Berry won at Las Vegas in March for the Wood Brothers to all but assure himself his first Cup playoff spot. Briscoe is 12th in points with Joe Gibbs Racing near the midpoint of the regular season. Preece, 15th in points, also holds a playoff spot for RFK Racing. Only Gragson is outside a playoff spot at this time of the season with Front Row Motorsports. Tonight, Briscoe will lead the field to the green flag for the Coca-Cola 600 after winning the pole. It's his second pole of the season after claiming the top spot for the Daytona 500 in February. 'I think last year a lot of people looked at us as underperforming and now we're overperforming,' Berry said. 'It changes just like that. The perception has changed completely.' Berry has been strong on the 1.5-mile tracks, the same length as Charlotte Motor Speedway. Along with his Las Vegas win, he finished sixth at Kansas in the most recent Cup race. He was leading at Texas when he crashed earlier this month. Briscoe's has finished a season-best fourth four times, including twice on 1.5-mile tracks, doing so at Homestead and Kansas. Three of Preece's four top-10 finishes this season have come at a 1.5-mile track. Nate Ryan, For Preece, going through the unsettled situation last year at Stewart-Haas Racing, in a way, wasn't new for him. 'Really, my situation has been a one-year contract since '22,' he said. 'In all reality, it's been one year on and on and on. That hasn't changed me a whole lot. … It's very satisfying to be with this group (at RFK Racing). We all kind of came together very last minute. Derrick (Finley, the crew chief) even joked about it, he said, 'We didn't pick the team, the team chose us.'' While Gragson has had his struggles this season, he'll start eighth in tonight's race. He's had only one better starting position this season. 'I think we've all fallen into really good positions with great teams and I'm thankful for that,' Berry said. 'Thankfully, we all did enough last year to find those opportunities and come out on the other side of it.'
