NASCAR CUP SERIES NORTH WILKESBORO SPEEDWAY TEAM CHEVY HEAT RACE QUOTES MAY 17, 2025
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 3rd
“I thought our No. 9 Amazon Prime Video Chevrolet was pretty good. I think it was worth fixing it. We knew we had a little bit of damage. We weren’t exactly sure to what extent or how much it was going to hurt us, but we just didn’t want to have to wonder about it. I certainly think it was the right call. To come from 10th to third was pretty good, with all things considered. We had a good pit stop and gained a couple spots on pit road, and we got a couple spots on track. We start sixth tomorrow, and we’ll try to go to work from there.”
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 4th
“In the truck, entering high and staying high in (turns) one and two, was sort of better for me. In the Cup car, I kept trying that and it was just too loose, so I had to be a lane down. That’s where I found the best speed, being a lane down, so what I learned in the truck didn’t really translate to the Cup car. But still getting the track time and being able to move around; knowing what to expect, feeling tire chatter and all that sort of stuff was helpful.
Overall, it was a good effort by this No. 8 SENIX Chevrolet team. We certainly want more. I felt like we fell off a little too much there at the end. We just got too tight. We’ll go to work on it and get ready for tomorrow.”
About General Motors
General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.
NORTH WILKESBORO, NC (May 17, 2025) – Christopher Bell won the second heat race on Saturday evening and the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry XSE will start on the front row for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
TOYOTA QUOTES
CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 1st
How was the car for you in today’s heat race?
“Maybe the Mobil 1 Camry is a million-dollar Camry. It’s feeling really good. I knew yesterday in practice that if they could get some rear grip in it, I felt like I had a lot of car potential. The guys did an amazing job on just making the car better overnight and it was really refreshing to get out there and just cruise those first 30 laps. Then, I didn’t know how it was going to work with having Joey (Logano) right behind me, but this thing was on rails. I’m really happy and excited about the opportunity tomorrow.”
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for nearly 70 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.
Toyota directly employs nearly 64,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 49 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants. In spring 2025, Toyota’s plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 31 electrified options.
BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 6 Solomon Plumbing Ford Mustang Dark Horse – THAT WENT ACCORDING TO PLAN. IS THIS A SHOT IN THE ARM FOR THIS TEAM? “Yeah, it doesn’t hurt. It’s been a good two days for everyone on this 6 crew and hopeful the other two cars can have good runs – the heat race and the Open so that we can get a great day for tomorrow. It’s good to be starting up front with the Solomon Plumbing Ford Mustang and to be running fast. This is fun.”
YOU TRIED SOMETHING DIFFERENT. WHAT DID YOU LEARN ABOUT THIS SETUP AND MAYBE TIRES. DO YOU WANT TIRES TOMORROW? “Those guys that put tires on, they were really hard to hold off. I had the preferred groove and just tried to use it to my advantage. We’ll see if that’s the case tomorrow.”
KESELOWSKI WINNER’S PRESS CONFERENCE
IS THIS STILL A ONE-GROOVE TRACK? “Oh, no. It’s definitely not a single groove racetrack. They were running me real hard. We had good pace and that was a little bit of a dogfight, so I thought it was great racing.”
HOW MUCH FUN WAS IT RACING SIDE-BY-SIDE WITH THOSE GUYS FOR ALL THOSE LAPS? “That’s what this is supposed to be. It’s supposed to be a fun race and I think I ran beside the 45, the 1, the 24 for at least a dozen or maybe two dozen laps. It was a good battle. I’m glad that we came out on top, but that’s the way it’s supposed to be, right?”
BEING OUT FRONT YOU GET BETTER AIR BUT IS IT ALSO TIRE THING? “Those guys were running hard and that’s what they’re supposed to do. It’s always a battle on these short tracks to have the right balance between driving the car hard enough to stay up front, but not driving it too hard to run the tires off of it and that’s part of the challenge of being a race car driver and I welcome it.”
ARE YOU GOING TO NEED TIRES TOMORROW NIGHT? “We’re gonna find out. It’s always hard to say. The track conditions are always changing, particularly when we’ll have the Open before the race tomorrow. I suspect the track will just become more and more favorable to tire wear.”
HEAT RACE 2
Ford Finishing Results:
2nd – Joey Logano 5th – Chris Buescher 8th – Austin Cindric 9th – Harrison Burton
JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse – HOW DID IT FEEL UP FRONT AND DO YOU THINK YOU’LL HAVE SOMETHING FOR THE LEADERS TOMORROW? “Yeah, it was really just seeing the front to start the race is what we wanted to do. There’s a lot of opportunity there with different strategies. We saw the 19 stay out and go for it there, and it didn’t work out for him. That’s kind of an all or nothing call and we were debating about it as well, so once we couldn’t get the lead we knew we were gonna pit. We made a good adjustment on our car and learned something for tomorrow night, so that’s a good thing. We’re in a good spot. We’re gonna start on the outside lane, which isn’t a bad thing to fire off and we’ll try to get the old 22 rolling and tune on it as the night goes along.”
HOW DID YOU FEEL THE TRACK WIDENED OUT AND HOW HAS IT CHANGED FROM LAST YEAR? “The track is super wide. I mean, you saw the 20, he was up by the wall. I was surprised three and four hasn’t widened out much more than it has. It may tomorrow night because I feel like last year was a little wider in three and four, but one and two is serviceable in every single lane, so that makes it pretty fun. It’s hard to pass because every lane is strong, so it’s hard to complete passes, but there are definitely options to try to get clean air.”
DO YOU THINK CLEAN AIR WILL BE KEY TOMORROW NIGHT? “It was last year. I’ve got to assume it will be again this year.”
No. 66 Spectrum Honda crew rebuilds car after practice incident
Indianapolis, Ind. (17 May 2025) – Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) used nearly every single minute of the longest day of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule in Saturday’s attempt to qualify all three of its cars for next Sunday’s Indianapolis 500, but despite yeoman’s work over the seven-hour session, MSR will have to return to the 2.5-mile oval tomorrow to fill its dance card.
However, the day will also feature a chance for the Ohio-based team to earn its best-ever starting spot for the Memorial Day Classic as a strong run from Felix Rosenqvist (No. 60 SiriusXM Honda), who ran the fastest single lap of the day, punched his ticket for tomorrow’s 12-car shootout for the pole position.
The degree of difficulty ratcheted up quickly for MSR when Marcus Armstrong (No. 66 Spectrum Honda) crashed hard in the morning practice session, causing the team to pull the backup car – which was in road-course configuration – off the truck and get it ready for a four-lap qualifying run. The team completed the arduous task with an hour left in the day’s running, but after five laps spread over two aborted attempts, Armstrong was left wait until tomorrow to cement a spot in the 33-car field.
Meanwhile, four-time Indy 500 champion Helio Castroneves (No. 06 Cleveland-Cliffs Honda), solidified a spot in the field with his first qualifying run of the day, then came back later and ran more than 1.3mph faster, vaulting his MSR machine into the 24th starting spot as he looks to become the first driver to ever win five Indy 500 crowns.
The unique Indy 500 qualifying format saw the 13th through 30th starting positions set Saturday, while the fastest 12 drivers advanced to Sunday’s opening session. The slowest four cars in the field will also attempt to earn the 31st through 33rd positions on Sunday.
Rosenqvist ran a blistering opening lap on his run (233.334mph) and followed that up with another orbit at more than 233mph on his way to a four-lap average of 232.449mph – a speed that put him eighth among the 34 qualifiers.
The MSR drivers will have a practice session available Sunday prior to Sunday’s final qualifying runs that will set the top 12 along with the final three cars in the 33-car field. Teams can practice from 1 – 4 p.m. ET, tomorrow, followed by two hours of final qualifying. Fans can follow the practice live on FS2, with the qualifying shown live on Fox. SiriusXM will also host live INDYCAR Radio coverage on XM Ch. 218.
Felix Rosenqvist (No. 60 SiriusXM Honda) – Starting TBD, Four-Lap Avg. Speed 232.449 mph: “Qualifying went pretty good for us, but bit of a tough day for the team. A lot of work by everyone in the garage and we were all a little nervy today with the tricky conditions. But we did a good job and I think the car is quite a bit quicker than P8. So I’m pretty excited to go back tomorrow with a new attempt and see if we can get on the front row.”
Helio Castroneves (No. 06 Cleveland-Cliffs Honda) – Starting 24th, Four-Lap Avg. Speed 230.978mph “Definitely an interesting day for us. However, the team did a great job to find a lot of the issues we had and we were able to execute. Unfortunately was a little late in the day for us to keep trying to improve, so we have to start in a position we were not expecting. But we have a really good race car and can do well next weekend. And hopefully now I can help Marcus to get back on the saddle and put this car in the show tomorrow.”
Marcus Armstrong (No. 66 Spectrum Honda) – No Time: “It was a rather large hit but I’m OK. One of my first reactions when I got to the medical unit was that I’m ready to go flat into Turn One again. We have fast cars and I am looking forward to the race. Massive credit to the MSR crew for putting the car together so quickly. We made our two attempts, the first one we didn’t have telemetry and the second we went out with the same exact set up. I said ‘if the car is good enough to do it, then I’m not going to be the reason we can’t.’”
BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 6 Solomon Plumbing Ford Mustang Dark Horse – THAT WENT ACCORDING TO PLAN. IS THIS A SHOT IN THE ARM FOR THIS TEAM? “Yeah, it doesn’t hurt. It’s been a good two days for everyone on this 6 crew and hopeful the other two cars can have good runs – the heat race and the Open so that we can get a great day for tomorrow. It’s good to be starting up front with the Solomon Plumbing Ford Mustang and to be running fast. This is fun.”
YOU TRIED SOMETHING DIFFERENT. WHAT DID YOU LEARN ABOUT THIS SETUP AND MAYBE TIRES. DO YOU WANT TIRES TOMORROW? “Those guys that put tires on, they were really hard to hold off. I had the preferred groove and just tried to use it to my advantage. We’ll see if that’s the case tomorrow.”
KESELOWSKI WINNER’S PRESS CONFERENCE
IS THIS STILL A ONE-GROOVE TRACK? “Oh, no. It’s definitely not a single groove racetrack. They were running me real hard. We had good pace and that was a little bit of a dogfight, so I thought it was great racing.”
HOW MUCH FUN WAS IT RACING SIDE-BY-SIDE WITH THOSE GUYS FOR ALL THOSE LAPS? “That’s what this is supposed to be. It’s supposed to be a fun race and I think I ran beside the 45, the 1, the 24 for at least a dozen or maybe two dozen laps. It was a good battle. I’m glad that we came out on top, but that’s the way it’s supposed to be, right?”
BEING OUT FRONT YOU GET BETTER AIR BUT IS IT ALSO TIRE THING? “Those guys were running hard and that’s what they’re supposed to do. It’s always a battle on these short tracks to have the right balance between driving the car hard enough to stay up front, but not driving it too hard to run the tires off of it and that’s part of the challenge of being a race car driver and I welcome it.”
ARE YOU GOING TO NEED TIRES TOMORROW NIGHT? “We’re gonna find out. It’s always hard to say. The track conditions are always changing, particularly when we’ll have the Open before the race tomorrow. I suspect the track will just become more and more favorable to tire wear.”
Chandler Smith capitalized on a final-lap skirmish involving teammate Layne Riggs and Corey Heim to win the Window World 250 at North Wilkesboro Speedway on Saturday, May 17.
The 22-year-old Smith from Talking Rock, Georgia, led only the final lap. He started at the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to his entry. Smith then methodically worked his way up the leaderboard and posted top-five results through the event’s first two stage periods.
Racing upfront throughout the final stage period, Smith was poised to overtake Heim for the lead with five laps remaining. However, a late caution for an incident involving newcomer Brent Crews and Ben Rhodes sent the event into overtime. Despite dropping to third place at the start of an overtime shootout, Smith kept both Heim and teammate Riggs within striking distance. Then after Riggs rubbed and sent Heim for a spin through the first two turns on the final lap, Smith navigated his way to assume the lead. It was Smith’s second NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory of the 2025 season both under caution and in dramatic fashion.
On-track qualifying initially scheduled to occur on Saturday morning was canceled due to on-track precipitation. The starting lineup was determined by a metric system per the NASCAR rule book. As a result, Corey Heim was awarded the pole position and he shared the front row with Kyle Busch.
Chandler Smith dropped to the rear of the field before the event began due to unapproved adjustments made to his No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford F-150 entry.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Corey Heim launched his No. 11 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro entry ahead through the first two turns from the outside lane. He quickly cycled his way through North Wilkesboro’s backstretch and final pair of turns (Turns 3 and 4). Heim led the first lap while Kyle Busch and rookie Giovanni Ruggerio followed suit.
Over the next four laps, Heim extended his early advantage to more than a second. Meanwhile, teammate Ruggerio overtook Busch through the frontstretch for the runner-up spot. Heim stretched his lead to nearly two seconds at the Lap 10 mark ahead of Ruggiero and Busch. Stewart Friesen, Sammy Smith and Jake Garcia followed suit in the top-six mark. Meanwhile, newcomer Brent Crews occupied seventh place ahead of Grant Enfinger, Ty Majeski and Ben Rhodes while Tyler Ankrum, Daniel Hemric, Kaden Honeycutt, Rajah Caruth and Matt Crafton occupied the top-15 spots ahead of Luke Baldwin, Tanner Gray, Matt Mills, Layne Riggs and Dawson Sutton.
Through the first 20-scheduled laps, Heim’s advantage grew to more than two seconds over teammate Ruggiero. Friesen, who overtook Busch for third place on Lap 11, trailed by more than three seconds. Meanwhile, Busch trailed by more than four seconds in fourth place ahead of teammate Sammy Smith. Garcia, Crews, Enfinger, Majeski and Rhodes followed suit in the top 10, respectively.
Fifteen laps later, Heim continued to extend his advantage, leading by more than four seconds over Ruggerio. The latter started to have Friesen closing in for third place. Despite being mired in lapped traffic, including teammate Toni Breidinger, Heim added another second to his advantage. He led by more than five seconds just past the Lap 40 mark.
On Lap 46, the event’s first caution flew when Tyler Tomassi stalled his entry below the track in Turn 2. During the caution period, some led by Heim and including Sammy Smith, Busch, Crews, Grant Enfinger, Ty Majeski, Layne Riggs, Tyler Ankrum, Rhodes, Honeycutt, Tanner Gray, Caruth, Crafton, Baldwin, Conner Jones and Dawson Sutton pitted while the rest led by Ruggerio remained on the track.
The start of the ensuing restart on Lap 54 featured Friesen getting loose and sliding up the track. He nearly made contact with the leader Ruggiero entering the first two turns. With all the front-runners managing to keep their respective trucks racing straight, Ruggiero retained the lead. As the field fanned out to multiple lanes, Friesen maintained second place. Meanwhile, Heim, who restarted in the top 10, carved his way up to fourth place. He pursued Jake Garcia for more while Ruggiero led at the Lap 60 mark.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 70, Ruggiero, who maintained the lead over the previous 10 laps, notched his first Truck stage career victory. Heim executed a final lap, final corner pass on Freisen for second place. Garcia, Chandler Smith, Riggs, Ankrum, Daniel Hemric, Enfinger and Kyle Busch followed suit in the top 10, respectively.
Under the stage break, some led by Ruggiero and those who did not pit during the previous caution period pitted. The rest, led by Heim and those who pitted during the previous caution, remained on the track.
The second stage period started on Lap 80 as Heim and Riggs occupied the front row. At the start, Heim briefly muscled ahead of Riggs from the outside lane through the frontstretch before Riggs slid up the track from the inside lane and made contact with Heim. With Heim nearly getting into the outside wall and the field fanning out while stacked up in multiple lanes, Enfinger capitalized on the wild start by moving into the lead. Behind, Crews muscled up to the runner-up spot and Heim dropped to third place while Enfinger led the following lap. Enfinger proceeded to lead just past the Lap 85 mark over Crews and Heim while Riggs was back in seventh place.
By Lap 90, Enfinger was leading by nine-tenths of a second over Crews as the latter maintained the spot ahead of teammate Heim. Behind, Ankrum and Caruth were in the top five ahead of Riggs, Busch, Sammy Smith, Rhodes and Chandler Smith, respectively, while Luke Baldwin, Kaden Honeycutt, Conner Jones, Garcia and Ruggiero followed suit in the top 15.
Ten laps later, Enfinger extended his lead to more than a second over Crews and Heim. Ankrum and Riggs were also racing in the top five. Enfinger added another second to his advantage as he led by two seconds by Lap 110 over both Heim and Crews. By then, Ankrum retained fourth place while Chandler Smith overtook teammate Riggs to move into fifth place.
At the halfway mark on Lap 125, Enfinger maintained his lead by more than a second over Heim. Chandler Smith, Ankrum and Riggs were racing in the top five ahead of Crews, Busch, Caruth, Rhodes and Sammy Smith, respectively. By then, Friesen, Baldwin, Honeycutt, Garcia and Ruggiero occupied the top-15 spots ahead of Hemric, Jones, Matt Crafton, Majeski and Tanner Gray while Connor Mosack, Toni Breidinger, Jack Wood, Patrick Emerling and Matt Mills trailed in the top-25 mark.
Then on Lap 137, the caution flew when Conner Jones, who was driving the No. 44 Chevrolet Silverado RST entry for Niece Motorsports and was scored in the top-20 mark, blew a right-front tire and hit the outside wall in Turn 2. Jones’ incident was enough for the second stage period scheduled to conclude on Lap 140 to officially conclude under caution. As a result, Enfinger cruised to his second Truck stage victory of the 2025 season. Heim, who was challenging Enfinger for the lead prior to the caution, settled in second place ahead of Chandler Smith, Ankrum, Riggs, Busch, Caruth, Crews, Rhodes and Sammy Smith, respectively.
During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Enfinger returned to pit road for service. Following the pit stops, Enfinger edged Heim off of pit road first. Chandler Smith, Busch and Riggs followed suit, respectively. Amid the pit stops, Busch was sent to the rear of the field for speeding on pit road.
With 101 laps remaining, the final stage period commenced as Enfinger and Heim occupied the front row. Enfinger used the outside lane to launch ahead of Heim and the field through the first two turns. Heim fought back from the inside lane. Chandler Smith then ran into the rear of Enfinger through Turns 3 and 4, which shot the latter up the track and allowed Heim to rocket ahead and reassume the lead. Smith would also move into the runner-up spot before he pursued Heim for the lead. With less than 100 laps remaining, Smith drew his No. 38 QuickTie Ford F-150 entry even with Heim. They battled side-by-side for the lead before he settled behind Heim and kept close pursuit of the latter with nearly 95 laps remaining.
With 90 laps remaining, Heim maintained the lead by a tenth of a second over Chandler Smith. Riggs, who moved up to third place, trailed by more than a second. Behind, Friesen, Ruggiero and Ankrum occupied the top-six spots while Enfinger dropped to seventh place in front of Crews, Garcia and Baldwin.
Fifteen laps later, Heim retained the lead by four-tenths of a second over Chandler Smith. Riggs, Friesen and Ruggiero continued to pursue in the top five. With the leaders navigating through lapped traffic, Heim would slightly increase his lead to nine-tenths of a second over Smith with 60 laps remaining while Riggs, Friesen and Ruggiero trailed by as far back as five seconds.
Down to the final 50 laps of the event, Heim’s lead increased to nearly two seconds over Chandler Smith while Riggs trailed in third place by more than three seconds. Behind, Ruggerio and Friesen trailed in the top five by more than six seconds while Ankrum and Enfinger, both of whom were racing in seventh and eighth, respectively, trailed by nine seconds. As Garcia and Rhodes occupied the remaining top-10 spots, Heim led by more than two seconds with nearly 40 laps remaining.
During a caution period which started with 39 laps remaining when Tyler Tomassi lost a right-front tire and made contact with the Turn 1 outside wall, some led by Chandler Smith pitted their respective entries while the rest led by Heim remained on the track.
The start of the next restart with 32 laps remaining featured Heim fending off Riggs through the first two turns to maintain the lead. As Chandler Smith pursued in third place, Heim led the following lap and he proceeded to lead with less than 25 laps remaining while the field behind jostled for late positions.
Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Heim maintained the lead by three-tenths of a second over Chandler Smith while Riggs trailed in third place by more than a second. Behind, Ankrum and Crews trailed in the top five ahead of Ruggiero, Enfinger, Rhodes, Hemric and Caruth while Smith started to close in on Heim for the lead.
With 10 laps remaining, Heim continued to lead by half a second over Chandler Smith while third-place Riggs continued to trail by more than a second. Smith would slightly cut his deficit down to three-tenths of a second over the next five laps, but Heim kept the top spot during the span.
Then with five laps remaining, the caution flew and the event was sent into overtime when Rhodes bumped and sent Crews for a spin in Turn 2 as the latter was having a stellar run in sixth place during his Truck Series debut. At the moment of caution, Heim, who had Chandler Smith bumping and challenging him for the lead from his inside lane in Turn 3, had managed to retain the top spot over Smith.
The start of the first overtime attempt featured Heim using his preferred outside-starting lane to muscle ahead of Chandler Smith entering Turn 1. Behind, however, Riggs, who restarted behind Heim, boosted his No. 34 UNC Charlotte Ford F-150 entry into the runner-up spot over Smith. Riggs proceeded to pursue Heim for the lead entering Turn 3 while Smith and the rest of the field pursued.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Heim, who got sideways entering Turn 4, remained in the lead by a narrow margin over both Riggs and Chandler Smith. Then as Riggs made his move beneath Heim for the lead through Turn 1, he slipped up the track and made contact with Heim. The contact sent Heim spinning in Turn 2 as Smith capitalized on the dust-up to overtake and fend off Riggs with the lead through Turns 3 and 4. With the caution flying along with the checkered flag and the event being ruled official, Smith, who was leading at the moment of caution, was able to cruise back to the frontstretch victorious for a second time of the 2025 season.
With the victory, Smith, who became the fifth competitor overall to win a Truck race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, notched his seventh career win in the Craftsman Truck Series division and his first since he won at Bristol Motor Speedway in April. The victory was the 12th overall in the Truck division for Front Row Motorsports and the second of the year for the Ford nameplate.
Photo by John Knittel for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“We fought and clawed today,” Smith said on the frontstretch on FS1. “For us to come from the back to mid-pack twice says a lot of how good this Ford F-150 was today. That last restart, I did everything but the right thing. My teammate, Layne Riggs, executed perfectly and we came out on the right end of the stick. Happy we could bring one home for Front Row Motorsports. Second win for QuickTie Products and second win for this new No. 38 team.”
Teammate Layne Riggs settled in second place following his final-lap skirmish with Heim while Heim, who led a race-high 162 laps, dropped to 17th place in the final leaderboard. In the aftermath of the contact, Heim confronted Riggs and exchanged brief harsh words with the latter before walking away.
“[Riggs] tried to [wreck Hocevar] for the win,” Heim said. “Mission accomplished for him, I guess, this week and it cost him [the win] too. Brutal. We’ve given up so many [wins] this year after pretty much dominating most of this race. [Chandler Smith] was the only other guy that was rightfully good. I felt like he probably deserved to win if anybody, not [Riggs]. Just disappointed.”
“I had a huge run, I went [to the] bottom [lane] and I didn’t fence him,” Riggs said. “I slid him up the track and gave him one lane there. We’re in North Wilkesboro and on the last lap for a Truck win, I feel like I didn’t really do anything wrong there. He continued, “I think that roles reversed, it was hard racing all day. I felt like everybody came out of there alive and we had a good finish. I really only care about my team.”
Tyler Ankrum, Daniel Hemric and Grant Enfinger finished in the top five while Ty Majeski, rookie Giovanni Ruggiero, Kaden Honeycutt, Kyle Busch and Sammy Smith completed the top 10 in the final running order.
There were seven lead changes for four different leaders. The race featured six cautions for 42 laps. In addition, 17 of 34 starters finished on the lead lap.
Following the 10th event of the 2025 Craftsman Truck Series season, Corey Heim leads the regular-season standings by 47 points over Chandler Smith, 87 over Daniel Hemric, 93 over Tyler Ankrum and 111 over Grant Enfinger.
Results:
1. Chandler Smith, one lap led 2. Layne Riggs 3. Tyler Ankrum 4. Daniel Hemric 5. Grant Enfinger, 68 laps led, Stage 2 winner 6. Ty Majeski 7. Giovanni Ruggiero, 24 laps led, Stage 1 winner 8. Kaden Honeycutt 9. Kyle Busch 10. Sammy Smith 11. Tanner Gray 12. Jake Garcia 13. Luke Baldwin 14. Stewart Friesen 15. Rajah Caruth 16. Connor Mosack 17. Corey Heim, 162 laps led 18. Matt Crafton, one lap down 19. Patrick Emerling, one lap down 20. Jack Wood, one lap down 21. Toni Breidinger, one lap down 22. Brent Crews, one lap down 23. Ben Rhodes, one lap down 24. Andres Perez de Lara, two laps down 25. Matt Mills, two laps down 26. Dawson Sutton, two laps down 27. Conner Jones, four laps down 28. Spencer Boyd, four laps down 29. Frankie Muniz, seven laps down 30. Jayson Alexander, 13 laps down 31. Tyler Tomassi – OUT, Suspension 32. Ryan Roulette – OUT, Brakes 33. Derek White – OUT, Too Slow 34. Norm Benning – OUT, Vibration
Next on the 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series schedule is Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, for the North Carolina Education Lottery 200. The event is scheduled to occur next Friday, May 23, and air at 8:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
TAKE US THROUGH THAT WILD LAST LAP. “I did everything wrong, to be completely honest with you. I spun the tires. The 11 cleared me right off the rip. My teammate cleared me right off of two and going down the backstretch I was like, ‘You know, I’m gonna let these guys race it out now.’ The 34 let me by. When I had a tire advantage they beat me straight up here. If an opportunity presents itself to go win, I’ll take it. But if it don’t, I’m gonna let these guys race it out. It’s the right thing to do. I ended up getting a decent run through three and four and was able to get about half to a car length back and they went into turn one and raced really hard. The seas parted and here we are.”
WAS THERE CONTACT BETWEEN LAYNE AND COREY? IT WAS HARD TO TELL FROM THE CAMERA ANGLE. “I had a good view of it. From everything that I saw before I ducked down and went super low and made my move to go to the inside of Layne, the 34 was just chasing the 11 all the way up the track and Corey’s got as good a sense if a guy is loose underneath him to give room and Layne just kept running him up and he kept going up and up and up. I don’t know. I think it was super slick in one all day today, especially when it rubbered up and it was super greasy. I’m not saying this because he’s my teammate and I won the race. I’m saying I actually understand it’s the last lap, sending it in there, trying to just rub him a little bit and I about did the same thing. I personally didn’t see anything egregious, but, at the same time, I had a very early apex of the corner and was able to get pointed and get to the inside of the 34 pretty quick.”
HOW DO YOU SUM UP THE RACING EXPERIENCE HERE AT NWS? “It’s good. The only experience I had here before was in the No. 13 Kaulig car when I was trying to qualify for the All-Star Race and that was before they even repaved this place. Man, it wore tires out and was super wore out. Honestly, I loved that, but I haven’t been here since they repaved it, so I was surprised how wide the track got. I liked how wide it got because you could race from the bottom or the top. Our truck favored the bottom all day and that made it a huge advantage for us being able to come from the back and get to the front, so a big tip of the cap to everybody at Front Row Motorsports for giving me a truck that’s got good maneuverability so we can make the most of it today.”
RUGGIERO SCORES FIRST STAGE WIN, LEADS TOYOTA AT NORTH WILKESBORO Heim leads most laps, loses win on final lap after contact
NORTH WILKESBORO, NC (May 17, 2025) – Gio Ruggiero (seventh) scored his first career stage win and led Toyota with a top-10 finish in the NASCAR Truck Series race at North Wilkesboro. It is the Toyota Development Driver’s fourth top-10 in the last five races as he closes in on a provisional Playoff berth.
Corey Heim continued to run strong as he led the most laps (162 of 250) and was in the lead on the final lap when another driver made contact with Heim, which resulted in a spin. Heim was scored in 17th. He does maintain the points lead.
Toyota Development Driver Brent Crews also made his Truck Series debut, as the 17-year-old ran as high as second before being involved in the next-to-last caution of the race. He finished 22nd.
Toyota GAZOO Racing Post-Race Recap NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) North Wilkesboro Speedway Race 10 of 23 – 156.25 Miles, 250 Laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS 1st, Chandler Smith* 2nd, Layne Riggs* 3rd, Tyler Ankrum* 4th, Daniel Hemric* 5th, Grant Enfinger* 7th, GIO RUGGIERO 11th, TANNER GRAY 14th, STEWART FRIESEN 17th, COREY HEIM 21st, TONI BREIDINGER 22nd, BRENT CREWS *non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
GIO RUGGIERO, No. 17 First Auto Group Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, TRICON Garage
Finishing Position: 7th
First stage win, and another top-10. How was your race?
“I felt like we were good there in the beginning and just fought hard. Strategy could have played out a little differently for us there. Had a lot of cautions there at the end. I’m just proud of all of the guys. I felt like we had a strong First Auto Group Tundra and had a lot of speed. Probably should have finished up in the top-five, but the way the strategy worked out for us there at the end, got passed by a couple of guys with newer tires. Another top-10 for us to build off of, going into the next one.”
COREY HEIM, No. 11 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, TRICON Garage
Finishing Position: 17th
What is the conversation you want to have with Layne Riggs?
Just why? More than anything. He tried to do it to the 7 (Carson Hocevar) last week for the win, and mission accomplished for him, I guess, this week – and it cost him one too. I don’t know. We’ve given up so many of them this year, after dominating the race. The 38 (Chandler Smith) was the only other guy that was rightfully good. I felt like he deserved to win over anyone else, not the 34 (Layne Riggs). I got really loose into (turn) three. Just struggled being loose on the short runs, and he had an opportunity, and he wrecked me. Just disappointed.”
What are your thoughts on the racing at the end there?
“Just scum racing on his part. He did it to me earlier in the race, and didn’t learn his lesson. I’ve raced him so clean throughout my years to continue to get used up by him. He tried to do it to the 7 (Carson Hocevar) last week, and he comes back and does the same thing. I’ve got no words to be honest with you.”
“It was good. I got practice, no qualifying. I felt like we had a really good truck. Ran in the top-seven or eight all day. I felt like we were on track for a fifth or sixth place finish, and ultimately kind of got used up there going into (turns) one and two by the 99 (Ben Rhodes), but learning a lot, grateful to be here. Thankful to everyone for getting me here – Toyota GAZOO Racing, JBL, Mobil 1 – everyone who put this car here. I can’t thank my guys enough.”
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for nearly 70 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.
Toyota directly employs nearly 64,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 49 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants. In spring 2025, Toyota’s plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 31 electrified options.
Michael McDowell's No. 71 Spire Motorsports crew, (from left) Rear Tire Changer Ty Boeck, Front Tire Changer Max Marsh, Tire Carrier Luke Bussel, Crew Chief Travis Peterson, Engineer Adam Sturgill, Jackman Dax Hollifield, Fueler Brandon Chapman and Pit Crew Coach Keith Flynn, celebrate after posting a 12.587-second pit stop to win Friday's NASCAR Pit Crew Challenge presented by Mechanix Wear at North Wilkesboro Speedway. (Chris Owens/HHP photo)
Michael McDowell’s No. 71 Spire Motorsports pit crew claimed victory in Friday’s NASCAR Pit Crew Challenge presented by Mechanix Wear; Brad Keselowski will start Sunday’s All-Star Race from the pole after posting a one-minute, 27.362-second run in the three-lap, four-tire pit stop format
Shane van Gisbergen was quickest among All-Star Open teams in Friday’s qualifying, and will roll off first in Sunday’s All-Star Open
Tickets and camping packages to Saturday’s and Sunday’s NASCAR All-Star Race events are on sale at northwilkesborospeedway.com
NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C. (May 16, 2025) — Michael McDowell still has work to do to qualify for the NASCAR All-Star Race, but McDowell’s pit crew left North Wilkesboro Speedway on Friday with 100,000 reasons to celebrate. Despite entering NASCAR All-Star Open qualifying as a heavy underdog, McDowell’s No. 71 Spire Motorsports crew collected a $100,000 bonus for changing four tires in 12.587 seconds to win the NASCAR Pit Crew Challenge presented by Mechanix Wear.
McDowell will start fourth in Sunday’s All-Star Open after Shane van Gisbergen, Carson Hocevar and Noah Gragson topped the No. 71 team’s overall time across three laps and a four-tire pit stop. McDowell has to finish in the top two in the Open to advance to Sunday night’s $1 million NASCAR All-Star Race, but his team stole the spotlight on Friday.
“This is awesome,” said Dax Hollifield, the jackman on the No. 71 crew and a former Virginia Tech football player. “It’s definitely beyond my wildest dreams. We’ve been working hard this year. We’re probably the youngest team on pit road.
“It was just hard work and determination that made the difference. I’ve got no words. I can’t breathe. I blacked out during the stop.”
Keselowski Surges To First All-Star Race Pole
Brad Keselowski hasn’t had much to smile about in 2025, entering All-Star Race weekend ranked 33rd in NASCAR Cup Series points. The 2012 series champion managed a big smile on Friday, though, after his No. 6 RFK Racing Ford blistered North Wilkesboro’s five-eighths-mile oval in NASCAR All-Star Race qualifying.
Keselowski finished the unique qualifying session — with the same format as was used in the Open – in a scintillating one minute, 27.362 seconds to score his first career All-Star Race pole. Christopher Bell’s No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota finished 0.89 seconds in arrears of Keselowski’s machine.
“It’s pretty cool to win the pole,” Keselowski said. “I’ve never won an All-Star Race pole, so this is something new for my career. It was a total team effort. The pit crew, (Crew Chief) Jeremy Bullins, everyone gave me a rock-star car. I’m so happy for everybody on this team.”
Keselowski will also start Saturday’s first of two All-Star Heat Races from the pole, with Bell leading Heat No. 2 to green.
Alex Bowman, Chase Briscoe and William Byron completed the top five in qualifying.
‘SVG’ Rules The Roost In Open Time Trials
Three hours after Shane van Gisbergen saw North Wilkesboro Speedway for the first time, he qualified on the pole for his debut race at the iconic track. The rookie from New Zealand will lead the field to green for Sunday’s All-Star Open, after his No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet posted the quickest time in the three-lap, four-tire pit stop format to set the grid.
Van Gisbergen’s 1:28.684-second run over three laps and a four-tire pit stop beat Carson Hocevar by 0.2 seconds.
“I think we got all the things right,” van Gisbergen said. “Thanks to WeatherTech and the Trackhouse pit crew. I’ve never started up front on an oval, so I’ll have to figure that one out.”
The 2025 NASCAR All-Star Race Week continues Saturday with the Window World 250 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race, two All-Star Heat Races and a Jake Owen concert presented by Raymer Oil. Sunday’s racing action begins with the FaithFest Evangelistic Ministries 150 preceding the All-Star Open and All-Star Race.
TICKETS: Race week packages or individual event day tickets and camping can be purchased online at www.NorthWilkesboroSpeedway.com.
MORE INFO: Fans can connect with North Wilkesboro Speedway and get the latest news regarding NASCAR All-Star Week and North Wilkesboro Speedway by following on X and Instagram or by becoming a Facebook fan.
Ford Performance Notes and Quotes NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race Qualifying Friday, May 16, 2025
KESELOWSKI WINS ALL-STAR RACE POLE
Brad Keselowski won the pole for this weekend’s NASCAR All-Star Race. This marks the second straight year Ford has won the pole after Joey Logano did it in 2024.
Ford All-Star Race Qualifying Results
1st – Brad Keselowski 6th – Joey Logano 13th – Josh Berry 14th – Harrison Burton 16th – Chris Buescher 18th – Austin Cindric 19th – Ryan Blaney
POLE-WINNING PRESS CONFERENCE
BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 6 Solomon Plumbing Ford Mustang Dark Horse – IS THIS A MOMENTUM BUILDER AND IT APPEARED ENTRY AND EXIT OF PIT ROAD WERE CRITICAL TO YOUR LAP. DID YOU FEEL THAT WAY? “It doesn’t hurt. Being on the pole feels really good, especially to win the pole by that much. It’s just a total team effort. This event, this format pushes you to your limits from a driver perspective, team perspective and pit crew. I stuck my part. That felt really good. I knew I stuck the entry. I was like, ‘That’s gonna be good if it’s not a speeding penalty.’ And then on the exit I was like, ‘I may have left a little on the table.’ It was really hard to tell, but it all came together for just an excellent run. The pit crew, they didn’t try to be heroes. They just gave me a really solid stop and Jeremy Bullins and the team gave me a car that was pretty fast and, like I said, they just gave me the ball and said, ‘Go play.’ And that’s what we did.”
YOUR CAR HAS BEEN DUBBED THE PIRATE SHIP WITH ECU COLORS WITH A LOT OF SOLOMON PLUMBING EMPLOYEES HAVING GONE THERE. HOW DOES THAT MAKE YOU FEEL? “My wife is an ECU grad. It’s super cool. We’re on the other side of the Carolinas, but still there are a lot of ECU fans out there and it’s good to be able to recognize them. It’s really good for Solomon Plumbing. I feel so bad for them. Danny Allor, the founder, passed away a couple weeks ago and it was a real shock. This is the first time they’ve been on our car since that happened. Their whole family is planning to be here, so it’s really cool to give them something to be joyful about.”
HOW CHALLENGING HAS IT BEEN FOR YOU THIS SEASON AND HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO PUT ANY KIND OF MORAL POINTS ON THE BOARD TODAY? “I’m not gonna say it’s been easy for me to weather the storm the last few months, but part of the juice is going through the struggles because it makes you appreciate the good times. Yeah, we’ve had some struggles, but there’s a lot to be optimistic about. I knew it wasn’t gonna be a walk in the park when we started this year with all the changes that we had. I didn’t expect it to be as big of a struggle as it has been, but that said, I see a lot of pieces that are coming together and this obviously demonstrates that. But even beyond today I feel a lot of pieces that are coming together and bode well for us in being able to make a really strong run here from here on out for the 2025 season. I’m not losing my cool. I’m putting ourselves in position and our team is putting ourselves in position to grow and hopefully go out and win races. We’re gonna have a shot to win this race come Sunday.”
HOW VITAL IS WINNING THE HEAT AND BEING ABLE TO START UP FRONT AND HAVE THAT TRACK POSITION? “Yeah, we saw that last year. I think Joey Logano led almost every lap – all but one. I don’t know which one, but it sure wasn’t after he pitted. This race really lends itself to track position for a number of reasons, particularly because the field size is so small and the way the race runs out the leader generally does not catch the back of the field, so that puts a premium on being the leader that doesn’t necessarily ever have a chance to wash back out, so starting on the pole here, among many other races, but here specifically is a significant advantage.”
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE FROM THIS TRACK GOING FORWARD? “I think this needs to be a points racetrack. I’d like to see the All-Star Race most likely return to Charlotte. That’s my personal opinion. I think the Charlotte racetrack, particularly since it only has one race on the oval, I think that’s a miss for our sport. It’s a great racetrack and puts on some of the best racing, so it would make sense to me if we were to revert back to that and make this a season race, and probably get rid of a race like the Roval or something like that.”
WHY GET RID OF THE ROVAL? IT’S CREATED SOME MOMENTS. “Has it really? I look at the stands and there are more fans that come to the oval race and better ratings too, than come to the Roval races. I thought that’s what we judge the sport by. I’m very strong about the Roval has got to go.”
HOW SIGNIFICANT IS SOMETHING LIKE TONIGHT AFTER EVERYTHING THAT’S HAPPENED THIS SEASON? “I feel like we’ve had other bright spots. This one is one that’s tangible. It’s visible outside of our own team circle, but they build up. They build momentum. They build positivity inside the group that manifests itself in a higher level of teamwork and craftsmanship just naturally. I think the team is a pretty resilient group, but I don’t care who you are as a team we all need some positive reinforcement and encouragement and there’s nothing negative about today.”
YEARS AGO YOU HELPED WITH THE FORMAT OF THE ALL-STAR RACE. THIS YEAR IT’S A RANDOM CAUTION. IS THERE MORE THAT CAN BE DONE FOR THIS RACE OR SHOULD THIS JUST BE A RACE? “I think it’s always a great opportunity to do something fun. I hate to put borders on it. I just think that it should probably be back at Charlotte.”
IT SEEMS THERE HAVE BEEN MORE PENALITIES THIS YEAR. IS THAT A GOOD THING FOR THE SPORT IN THAT NASCAR IS CRACKING DOWN OR IS IT BECOMING A THING WHERE IT’S TOO MUCH? “I don’t have a great answer for that. There are things to like about penalties. There are things not to like. You just want the penalties to make a difference. The whole goal of penalties in general is to create a level playing field and manage the competition for the teams so that it’s cost effective and for the fans so that the winner demonstrates some kind of distinguishing level of ability better than someone else, and not out of bounds with respect to things that we don’t necessarily value. So, it’s important to have penalties. It’s also very important that those penalties align with those goals. I think for the most part they do, but I’m not close enough to any of the other teams outside of our sphere to always know that.”
WHAT WAS THE COMMUNICATION LIKE IN REGARDS TO THE IDEA OF A RUN WHAT YOU BRUNG TYPE OF RACE? “I wasn’t aware of it being a run what you brung. I think that might be a bit oversold. I was aware of some rules being opened up, but I was not aware of any rule being opened up that we thought was significant enough to justify an expenditure. If it was take a plate off an engine or something to that degree that wouldn’t have cost us anything and would have moved the needle, I think we would have been generally fairly supportive, but, for the most part, it was things that I’m aware of at least, I think I’m limited to that sphere, it was all things that I’m not entirely confident would have moved the sport forward.”
