EVENT: FireKeepers Casino 400
DATE: June 8, 2025
TRACK: Michigan International Speedway | 2-mile intermediate oval
CLUB MINUTES:
JJ AT MICHIGAN: LEGACY MC co-owner and seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson owns 38 starts in NASCAR’s elite series at the 2-mile oval in Brooklyn, Michigan. He has one win at Michigan from June 2014, where he started seventh and led 39 laps en route to a 1.214-second margin of victory over runner-up Kevin Harvick. Overall, Johnson has scored five top-fives, 12 top-10s and led 700 laps at Michigan in his career.
KENSETH – THREE-TIME WINNER WINS BIG IN MICHIGAN: LEGACY MC’s competition advisor Matt Kenseth found success at the 2-mile oval in Michigan as well. With 40 NASCAR Cup Series starts at the track, Kenseth owns three victories from his June 2002, August 2006, and August 2015 starts. He’s earned 14 top-fives, 20 top-10s, and led 443 laps at Michigan.
THE KING WINS AT MICHIGAN: Richard Petty has a total of 47 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Michigan in his career. The LEGACY MC ambassador earned a total of four victories, 19 top-fives, and 25 top-10s during his legendary career. His victories at the track came in June 1974, August 1975, August 1979, and August 1981.
NEVER SETTLE: Join ESPN’s Marty Smith and LEGACY MOTOR CLUB’s co-owner Johnson for their weekly podcast, “Never Settle”. The podcast airs live on SIRIUS XM NASCAR Radio Ch. 90 at 2 p.m. ET every Wednesday and can be downloaded wherever fans source their podcasts. This week’s guest is Rodney Scott a renowned pitmaster and restaurateur, widely recognized for his expertise in whole hog barbecue. He gained national fame after opening Rodney Scott’s BBQ in Charleston in 2016. His barbecue journey began at his family’s restaurant in Hemingway, South Carolina, where he learned the art of whole hog cooking from a young age.
JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
NO. 42 PYE-BARKER FIRE & SAFETY TOYOTA CAMRY XSE
NATIONAL SAFETY MONTH: June is National Safety Month, a time dedicated to raising awareness and promoting safety at work, at home, and everywhere in between. Since 1996, this annual observance has offered free resources to spotlight the leading causes of preventable injuries and deaths. One of LEGACY MC’s primary partners, Pye-Barker Fire & Safety is committed to making safety a priority this June and throughout the year.
JHN AT MIS: John Hunter Nemechek heads to Michigan International Speedway with three prior NASCAR Cup Series starts, two from his rookie season in 2020 and one from last year. Beyond the Cup Series, the 27-year-old has made 10 more appearances at the track, with five starts each in the NASCAR Truck Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Nemechek visited Victory Lane in 2023 when driving for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR).
JHN IN THE POINTS: During this time last year, Nemechek sat 27th in driver points and ultimately finished in 34th. As the team heads into Michigan, Nemechek and the No. 42 team sit in 22nd in points and just 22 points back from the playoff cut line.
TMACK AT MIS: Crew chief Travis Mack has visited the Brooklyn, Michigan, speedway on six occasions as a crew chief. Five of those came in the Cup Series. Among those five starts, he has an average starting spot of 24 and finishing spot of 21. In the one Xfinity Series race with Michael Annett behind the wheel, the team started seventh and finished third (2019).
JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK QUOTE:
“Last year at Michigan, we went in and had some speed but got caught up in a wreck early that ruined our race. We managed to continue to run and learn and gain some experience there. Our team continues to prep and try to find new speed. We’re hoping that we can unload with some speed and have a solid weekend.”
TRAVIS MACK QUOTE:
“Michigan always seems like it turns into a fuel mileage race. We should have the speed, and we should race good, but it seems like it turns into a strategy race. I am looking forward to going to Michigan and seeing what we have.”
ERIK JONES
NO. 43 DOLLAR TREE TOYOTA CAMRY XSE
TOP-10 AT NASHVILLE: Erik Jones is riding a wave of momentum into Sunday’s race at Michigan International Speedway after his seventh-place finish last Sunday night under the lights at Nashville Superspeedway. After qualifying 14th for the Cracker Barrel 400, he went on to score his second top-10 of the 2025 season. Both of these finishes have come on intermediate tracks with his first being his fifth-place result on May 4 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth.
HOMETOWN HERO: Jones is returning to his home track of Michigan for Sunday’s Firekeepers Casino 400. The Michigan native grew up just 73 miles north of the track in the small town of Byron, where he started his racing career at a young age before transitioning to stock cars at age 13. He quickly moved up the ranks in NASCAR but never forgot his Michigan roots along the way. He is one of only three Michigan natives racing in the Cup Series fulltime along with Brad Keselowski and Carson Hocevar.
JONES MICHIGAN STATS: Sunday’s Firekeepers Casino 400 will mark Jones’ 13th NASCAR Cup Series start at Michigan. In his prior 12 starts, Jones earned a best finish of third in August 2017 after starting eighth. He owns another two top-10 finishes with his finishes of eighth in August 2022 and 10th in August 2023. He has an additional two starts outside of the Cup Series at Michigan – one in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and one in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. He earned a finish of fourth in his one and only Xfinity Series start in June 2016 after starting second and leading 18 laps. In the Craftsman Truck Series, Jones finished third in August 2015 after starting seventh and leading 16 laps.
CLAYS FOR CAUSES: On Friday, Jones will host his third annual “Clays for Causes” fundraiser in Dryden, Michigan at the Huntsman Hunt Club starting at 8 a.m. CT. As a proud Michigan native with a deep appreciation for the outdoors, Jones uses this event to reflect both his roots and his passion for giving back. Clays for Causes raises funds to support the foundation and their efforts to change lives by igniting children’s passion for reading, encouraging early cancer detection and care, and promoting animal welfare. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit ErikJonesFoundation.org.
BESHORE AT MICHIGAN: Crew chief Ben Beshore has a total of four races under his belt at Michigan as a crew chief in the NASCAR Cup Series. His best results are a pair of seventh-place finishes with Kyle Busch from the June 2017 and August 2021 races, where they started fourth and seventh, respectively. He has an additional two races on top of the box in the Xfinity Series as the crew chief for Riley Herbst and John Hunter Nemechek. He won at Michigan in August 2023 with Nemechek after the team started 10th.
GRADUATION AT THE TRACK: This Friday will mark the 11-year anniversary of Jones’ makeshift graduation ceremony held on the driver introductions prior to the WinStar World Casino 400K Craftsman Truck Series race at Texas Motor Speedway. On June 6, 2014, Jones missed his graduation at Swartz Creek Academy to run the race while still running a part-time schedule in the series. After he walked the stage in a graduation cap and gown to receive his diploma, he went on to start the race fifth and finished 11th.
TOYOTA IN-CAR CAMERA: Ride along with Jones this weekend in the No. 43 Dollar Tree Toyota Camry XSE with the Toyota in-car camera. His view from inside the car will be featured on the Amazon Prime broadcast and on HBO Max.
ERIK JONES QUOTE
“I always look forward to Michigan. Obviously, it’s a home race for me and my home track. It’s a lot of fun to get up there and be with family and friends. I typically get there earlier in the week to go spend more time with them and get to see them before the busy weekend. It’s always exciting and a lot of fun. The race itself – I just really enjoy the track. It’s come into its own here as it’s aged and widened out. Racing there with this NextGen car has been good. I’m looking forward to it. This one is high on my bucket list of tracks to win at one day. I just look forward for the chance to be out there every year.”
BEN BESHORE QUOTE
“Michigan is a high-speed oval where speeds are as fast as they can get at a sorta repaved-type track. It’s more strategy driven and trying to keep your car in the best position possible throughout the race plus playing the strategy so you’re out front and need the least fuel possible on the last stop. You can kind of leapfrog your way to track position with that. I know Erik’s super excited for that one with it being his home track and us having some speed at mile-and-a-halves this year, so we’re really looking forward to that one.”
CLUB APPEARANCES:
Nemechek will make a stop out at the NASCAR Classics Merchandise hauler on race day at 11:00 a.m. to meet with the fans and sign some autographs.
TUNE IN:
The NASCAR Cup Series will head to Michigan International Speedway for the Firekeepers Casino 400 on Sunday, June 8. The race broadcast will take place on Amazon Prime, MAX, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90) at 2 p.m. EDT.
ABOUT LEGACY MOTOR CLUB: (LEGACY MC) is a premier auto racing organization co-owned by seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and 2024 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee, Jimmie Johnson and Knighthead Capital Management, LLC. Drawing from a rich tradition of success, LEGACY MC is dedicated to pushing the boundaries of motorsport and setting new standards of excellence. The CLUB competes under the Toyota Gazoo Racing banner in the NASCAR Cup Series with the No. 43 Toyota Camry XSE piloted by Erik Jones and the No. 42 Toyota Camry XSE driven by John Hunter Nemechek. Johnson also races on a limited basis in the No. 84 Toyota Camry XSE. With NASCAR legend and Hall of Famer Richard Petty, “The King”, serving as CLUB Ambassador, LEGACY MC blends timeless racing traditions with a new forward-thinking vision. As an inclusive community for motorsport enthusiasts, LEGACY MC honors both its storied past and the promising future of its members, always striving for victory and championship glory at the pinnacle of NASCAR competition.
