RICK WARE RACING
Straight Talk Wireless 500k
Date: March 8, 2026
Event: Straight Talk Wireless 500k (Round 4 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Phoenix Raceway (1-mile oval)
Format: 312 laps, broken into three stages (60 laps/125 laps/127 laps)
Race Winner: Ryan Blaney of Team Penske (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Ryan Blaney of Team Penske (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner: Christopher Bell of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
RWR Finish:
● Cody Ware (Started 34th, Finished 24th / Running, completed 312 of 312 laps)
RWR Points:
● Cody Ware (32nd with 50 points)
RWR Notes:
● Ware earned his second top-25 of the season and his second top-25 in 10 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Phoenix.
● Ware’s 24th-place result equaled his best finish at Phoenix, originally earned last March.
Race Notes:
● Ryan Blaney won the Straight Talk Wireless 500k to score his 18th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his first of the season and his second at Phoenix. His margin over second-place Christopher Bell was .399 of a second.
● There were 12 caution periods for a total of 86 laps.
● Twenty-five of the 37 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
● Tyler Reddick remains the championship leader after Phoenix with a 60-point advantage over second-place Blaney.
Sound Bites:
“There was just a lack of platform control there. Our car was bouncing in and out of the racetrack, which we fought all day, even in clean air. Aero balance is already tough when you’re in traffic, but especially when you’re bouncing the nose up and down. Every time my nose pops up, you go from being 8 out of 10 tight in the aero wash to 12 out of 10 tight. So, fought that all day. I think the team did the best they could to make adjustments on it, but the result wasn’t bad. We were able to at least capitalize on some others’ misfortune. So we’ll keep looking forward and get ready for Vegas.” – Cody Ware, driver of the No. 51 Super.com Chevrolet
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Pennzoil 400 on Sunday, March 15 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The race begins at 4 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
