Ford Racing Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Enjoy Illinois 300 Race
Sunday, September 7, 2025

Ford Unofficial Finishing Results:

4th – Ryan Blaney
5th – Joey Logano
9th – Chris Buescher
13th – Ryan Preece
17th – Brad Keselowski
19th – Austin Cindric
27th – Cole Custer
29th – Cody Ware
30th – Noah Gragson
32nd – Todd Gilliland
33rd – Zane Smith
36th – Josh Berry

Ford Racing Notes and Quotes

NASCAR Cup Series

Enjoy Illinois 300 – World Wide Technology Raceway

Sunday, September 7, 2025

AUSTIN CINDRIC, No. 2 Freightliner Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “I feel like our Freightliner Ford Mustang was definitely capable of a top ten. I felt like we were capable of getting points in both stages and didn’t do any of the three. A bit of a frustrating day to miss out on some points that we probably should have gotten. We could have put ourselves in a place where Bristol would have been much less of a risk but that’s racing. We are still in a decent spot. No tragedies from the day. We just need to keep improving if we want to keep advancing through the rounds.”

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Menards/Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “I got turned around. He made a mistake but I paid the penalty for it. I am happy we were able to rebound and come away with a pretty good finish. Next week we just want to go run another race and run where we should run. We will approach it like a normal weekend and see where we end up after Bristol.”

JOSH BERRY, No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “It’s just been a tough couple of weeks for the Motorcraft/ Quick Lane Ford Mustang. I feel like we have had decent cars. We’ve just had issues. Today, you pit there and it’s just a chaotic restart. You’re just trying to wait for everything to settle out. The 9 got in there, got a little loose, and just slid up and he got into us. Obviously, I don’t think that was intentional or anything. It was just a racing deal and unfortunately we were just on the receiving end.”

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “The strategy gave us a shot to win. We were up there racing against the 11. I thought maybe on that green flag cycle we could get him but he short pitted us a lap and we just weren’t able to get ahead of him. That would have been the control of the race. We gave up control on the restart and we just couldn’t regain it. Overall, we needed to score points with the Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford Mustang here and we did that. We got some stage points in the second stage and a top five finish. It is a pretty cool top five string we have going here at Gateway [WWTR] but wish it was a win.”

Denny Hamlin now tied for the most Toyota Cup Series victories

MADISON, Ill. (September 7, 2025) – Denny Hamlin delivered yet another milestone for Toyota – scoring the 200th NASCAR Cup Series victory for Toyota at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway on Sunday evening. Hamlin, who is now tied for the most wins in Toyota’s Cup Series tenure with 56, also scored the 600th Toyota NASCAR victory for Toyota at Pocono Raceway last summer.

It was another strong race for Team Toyota with six Camrys in the top 10 finishers – Hamlin, Chase Briscoe (second), John Hunter Nemechek (sixth), Christopher Bell (seventh), Bubba Wallace (eighth) and Ty Gibbs (10th).

With one race remaining in the Round of 16, all five Toyota Playoff drivers sit in good positions to advance to the Round of 12. Briscoe and Hamlin have clinched with their victories, while Bubba Wallace (+50), Tyler Reddick (+37) and Christopher Bell (+32) all sit with strong point advantages.

Toyota GAZOO Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway
Race 28 of 36 – 300 miles, 240 laps

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS

1st, DENNY HAMLIN
2nd, CHASE BRISCOE
3rd, Chase Elliott*
4th, Ryan Blaney*
5th, Joey Logano*
6th, JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
7th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
8th, BUBBA WALLACE
10th, TY GIBBS
16th, TYLER REDDICK
21st, ERIK JONES
31st, RILEY HERBST
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 Progressive Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 1st

59, is big for you, but what does this mean to you to get number 200 for Toyota?

“Yeah, it’s so big for everyone at Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Progressive Toyota was great there at the end. So happy to get this victory. My dad’s not feeling well at home. Just shout-out to him. The whole family’s here. Fantastic day. Man, couldn’t be better.”

CHASE BRISCOE, No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 2nd

What more did you need?

“That just shows how fast our Bass Pro Shops Toyota was. I felt like if we never had to go to the back two or three different times – if I could have just maintained control of the race, I definitely felt like we had the car to beat. Wish it would have been us. It would have been cool to win the 200th race for Toyota, but it is crazy what a year can make, to be disappointed with second place says a lot. Congrats to Denny (Hamlin), Coach (Joe Gibbs, owner and founder, Joe Gibbs Racing) and congrats to Toyota as well on 200.”

JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK, No. 42 Pye Barker Fire & Safety Toyota Camry XSE, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB

Finishing Position: 6th

Can you tell us about your race?

“Really solid day. Executed strategy very well. I think we knew coming into this race we knew that it would be a strategy, track position type race. I’m really proud of the effort on this No. 42 Pye-Barker Toyota team, everyone at LEGACY MOTOR CLUB. Sixth-place finish, another top-10 to add to the year. We ran inside the top-10 almost all day, got stage points and executed very well, so proud of the effort. Proud of the whole team, excited to continue to build on this momentum from Darlington and Gateway. We should be pretty good next week in the metric standpoint for Bristol, hopefully, group two qualifying. That was an emphasis this week. Looking forward to it.”

CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 DEWALT Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 7th

I’m curious about your thoughts on today. How would you evaluate a seventh-place run?

“I just think we are under-performing. Clearly, the JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) Camrys are amazing, and I don’t know. Our team cars are really good, and I felt like I had what I needed to race with them, and we finished seventh and they finished one-two. I honestly think the cars are as fast as I’ve had in my Cup career, and we are just not getting results out of it. That is a bummer, but on a lighter note – we had a good points day and were able to increase our buffer to the cutline, which is really good. I think from that standpoint mission accomplished. We had a great DEWALT Camry, just didn’t get the finish that we probably could’ve and should’ve.”

BUBBA WALLACE, No. 23 McDonald’s Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing

Finishing Position: 8th

How was your race?

“We are plus 50 that is a good sight to see. Solid execution all day with varying strategies from the whole field. My little restart mishap – I just got stuck between gears, and that hurt myself, the 5 (Kyle Larson), the 24 (William Bryon) on strategy for all of us involved, but we recovered. Looking at big picture, if you would have told me we would have led laps and had the car maybe to win today after practice, I would have said hell no. All-in-all, solid day for our McDonald’s Toyota Camry team. Just came up short.”

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 2025, Toyota’s plant in North Carolina began to assemble automotive batteries for electrified vehicles.

For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.

MADISON, IL (September 7, 2025) – In the shadow of the famed St. Louis Gateway Arch, Haas Factory team showcased their efforts at the World Wide Technology Speedway. During Xfinity action Saturday, Sam Mayer and Sheldon Creed capped their regular seasons, solidifying their playoff positions for the Round of 12 that begins next week. On Sunday Cole Custer strived to become a Cup Series playoff spoiler, while working to overcome handling challenges.

Cup Series

41 Cole Custer

Cole Custer’s return to World Wide Technology Raceway began from the 29th starting position, and he used the opening stage to settle in. While the car started off on the tight side, he was able to maintain pace and his position. A two-tire pit stop on lap 29 gave his crew a chance to adjust the balance, and Custer closed out Stage One in 29th.

Stage Two brought more chances for Custer and his team to fine-tune the Haas/Andy’s Ford. Restarting mid-pack after a caution on lap 78, he worked to manage a car that shifted from tight early to free as the laps wore on. Despite the challenge, Custer held his ground inside the top 30. Multiple pit stops throughout the stage allowed his crew to continue making adjustments, and he finished 28th while keeping his car clean and positioned for the longest run of the day.

The final stage was highlighted by team strategy. Staying out between stages gained Custer track position, and after cycling through pit stops, he climbed as high as 11th with just over 50 laps remaining. Although he continued to manage a tight-handling car, Custer fought hard to the finish. He ultimately crossed the line in 27th, capping off a gritty effort.

“Overall, a challenging day,” said Custer”We didn’t have many things go our way. We’ll move on to the next one and I feel like Bristol is definitely a place we can rebound at so we’ll see what we can do.”

Xfinity Series

41 Sam Mayer

Sam Mayer’s had already secured a playoff position and entered Saturday’s World Wide Technology Raceway event looking to gain momentum heading into next week’s opener. He started fourth and wasted no time moving the Audibel Ford forward. Mayer climbed to third with a strong pass on Nick Sanchez in the opening circuits. Though the car began to tighten up as the run wore on, Mayer remained competitive, securing a solid sixth-place finish in Stage One.

Quick adjustments between stages kept Mayer moving forward in Stage Two. Restarting ninth, he quickly gained ground and raced up to fifth by lap 55. Mayer noted the car felt better in traffic, and he used that to his advantage while holding steady inside the top 10. Although the car tightened up again late in the run, he still closed out the stage 10th.

The closing stage Mayer continued to run inside the top 10 and was ninth with just over 30 laps remaining. He was positioned for another strong finish before a multi-car crash ahead collected him, leaving his car heavily damaged. Mayer finished 35th but optimistic heading into the playoffs as him one of the series’ most consistent and competitive drivers this season.

“We had a rough one, we went through the ringer,” said Mayer. “Obviously it didn’t end the way we wanted it to but still really proud of everybody for staying in the game all day. I feel that we were at our best at the very end. So, we were going to come and make it interesting there at the end. Super proud of everybody and looking forward to the playoffs. It’s going to be a heater.”

00 Sheldon Creed

Sheldon Creed locked up a playoff spot during Saturday’s race at World Wide Technology. Starting 15th, he quickly settled into a rhythm and gained ground early, moving the Road Ranger Ford into 14th in the opening laps. Feeling the car out throughout the stage, Creed wanted a little more ability to maintain throttle through the turns. Adjustments were planned as Creed ended Stage One just outside the top-10.

At the stage break, Creed’s team made chassis and air pressure adjustments that paid immediate dividends. Restarting 12th, he maintained his position and ran strong through the segment. Though the car continued to tighten up as the run progressed, Creed kept the No. 00 in striking distance and closed Stage Two in 13th. His ability to hold steady in the mid-pack set the foundation for a strong push in the final and longest stage.

As Stage Three progressed, Creed adjusted his line through Turn 3, and quickly surged into the top 10 and was running as high as eighth. After a caution and pit stop, he restarted sixth and wasted no time powering into the top five. Another caution though, and the subsequent restart proved to be a defining moment for the double zero. Creed experience a mechanical issue on the restart and couldn’t take off in third gear, causing others to collide with him from the rear. Despite the damage Creed fought hard to the finish, ultimately coming home 30th.

“We were looking at a top-five finish there in our Road Ranger Ford Mustang,” said Creed. “Yeah, never had that happen before, I just went to go shift to third and I don’t know if the gear broke right away or something broke in there and kind of jammed me in third and I didn’t have third gear. I hate that it tore up so many cars and got our teammate. Just ruined what was going to be a decent night for us.”

Up Next

Bristol Motor Speedway (Bristol, TN)

The Xfinity series – Friday, September 12th at 6:30PM on the CW Network.

The NASCAR Cup Series – Saturday, September 13th at 6:30pm on USA Newtwork

About Haas Factory Team

The Haas Factory Team is a NASCAR Cup and Xfinity program owned by Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. Beginning in 2025, the team will feature Cole Custer driving the No. 41 Ford Mustang Dark Horse in the NASCAR Cup Series, while Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer take on the Xfinity Series in the No. 00 and No. 41 Ford Mustangs, respectively. Based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, the Haas Factory Team reflects a commitment to performance and engineering excellence, carrying forward Gene Haas’s commitment to motorsports.

No. 16 Celsius Camaro ZL1

Start: 17th
Stage 1 Finish: 23rd
Stage 2 Finish: 32nd
Finish: 23rd

AJ Allmendinger qualified 17th for the Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway. He battled a tight handling race car throughout the first two stages. In the final stage, Allmendinger was able to race competitively and went on to earn a 23rd-place finish.

No. 10 DraftKings Camaro ZL1

Start: 35th
Stage 1 Finish: 25th
Stage 2 Finish: 34th
Finish: 34th

Ty Dillon and the No. 10 DraftKings team started Sunday’s race at World Wide Technology Raceway from the 35th position. Following adjustments after Saturday’s practice and early in the race to improve the handling of the DraftKings Chevy, Dillon was running just outside the top-20 when contact from a competitor sent the No. 10 for a spin on lap 75. The team pitted for damage repairs and Dillon returned to the track, but a brake issue late in the race ended the team’s day early. Dillon was credited with a 34th-place finish.
 
About Kaulig Racing

Kaulig Racing™ is a full-time, multi-car NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) and NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) team, owned by award winning entrepreneur, Matt Kaulig. Established in 2016, Kaulig Racing™ has earned 27 NXS wins, made the NXS Playoffs consecutively each season since the playoff system started, and won two regular-season championships. In 2021, the team competed in select NCS events, before expanding to a two-car, full-time NCS team in 2022 and adding a third, part-time entry during the 2023 season. Since its first NCS start in 2021, the team has earned two wins. Kaulig Racing is currently fielding two full-time entries in the NCS and continues to field three full-time NXS entries. To learn more about the team, visit kauligracing.com.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY
ROUND OF 16: RACE TWO
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE REPORT
SEPTEMBER 7, 2025

Elliott Earns Podium Finish at World Wide Technology Raceway

•  Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott earned his career-best finish at World Wide Technology Raceway – driving his No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet to a third-place finish in the Enjoy Illinois 300. The result – Elliott’s eighth top-five finish of the season – moved the former series champion up to the ninth position in the playoff standings with a 28-point cushion heading into the Round of 16 elimination race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
• Four Team Chevy playoff contenders will enter the first elimination race of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs with a double-digit cushion over the cutline with Kyle Larson in the third position n(+60 points), William Byron in the sixth position (+39 points), Chase Elliott in the ninth position (+28 points) and Ross Chastain in the 11th position (+19 points).
• Despite struggling with the handling of his No. 3 Dow DayGlo Chevrolet through much of the race, the Richard Boswell-led team collected stage points and took home an 18th-place finish head to Bristol Motor Speedway in the first spot below the cutline with just an 11-point deficit.
• Part Two of the Round of 16 saw Kyle Larson and the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team lead the field to the green-flag from a front-row starting position. Settling into the second position on the opening lap, it took just seven laps for the 33-year-old Elk Grove, California, native to make a pass for the lead – going on to pull his Chevrolet-powered machine to a nearly three-second lead over pole-sitter, Denny Hamlin, within the following 10 laps around the 1.25-mile oval. Giving up the lead to hit pit road under the first caution of the day, Larson took his four fresh Goodyear tires to drive from 11th to the runner-up position to take the first green-white checkered flag of the day to end Stage One.
• With a call from crew chief, Cliff Daniels, to stay out during the stage break, Larson found a spot back on the front-row to take the green-flag for Stage Two. With a powerhouse restart, Larson quickly reclaimed the top position over his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Williams Byron, on the opening lap of the stage. A pair of cautions near the midway point of the stage produced a mix bag of pit strategy throughout the field. Not favoring the strategy set forth by the Daniels-led team, the No. 5 Chevrolet team opted to hit pit road under the Lap 76 caution for four tires and fuel – putting them in the 20th position for the restart. Despite the loss of track position, the speed prevailed in the No. 5 Chevrolet with Larson reentering the top-10 with 40 laps remaining in the stage. With a two-lap dash to close out Stage Two, Larson once again led the Bowtie brigade to the green-white checkered flag in the fourth position. Four Team Chevy playoff drivers collected stage points with Larson leading Austin Dillon in sixth, Chase Elliott in eighth and Ross Chastain rounding out the top-10.
• Back in a familiar position to start the final stage was Larson, who lined up on the inside lane of the second row for the green-flag with 93 laps to go in the race. Larson lost his track position when the team had to pay a second visit to pit road under the caution to fix the rear diffuser flap – forcing the team to restart in the 29th position with 76 laps to go. Varying pit strategies came into play when the final green-flag pit cycle approached at the 200-lap marker. With a caution flying amidst the green-flag pit cycle, strategy came to the forefront once again. With just four laps on his set of tires, crew chief, Alan Gustafson, called for Elliott to stay out under the caution to lineup in the fifth position for the restart with 25 laps to go – going on to lead Chevrolet to the finish to score their eighth top-five finish of the season.

TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10 RESULTS:

POS. DRIVER
3rd – Chase Elliott

Chevrolet’s season statistics with 28 NASCAR Cup Series races complete:
Wins: 12
Poles: 10
Top-Fives: 54
Top 10s: 115
Stage Wins: 22

UP NEXT: The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of 16 will conclude at Bristol Motor Speedway with the Bass Pro Shops Night Race on Saturday, September 13, at 7:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on the USA Network, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Post-Race Driver Quotes:

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Finished: 18th

“We didn’t come here with a good race car for some reason. All of our cars were pretty off today, we just missed it. But this No. 3 Dow DayGlo Chevrolet team did a great job executing with what we had. We got stage points and finished the best we possibly could right there. We outran our day by a lot, so hard work and execution gives us a shot at Bristol (Motor Speedway). Just feel like we’ve missed some opportunities and could be in a better position, but we did all we could today.”

Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Finished: 12th

Are you encouraged by the speed we saw today?

“Yeah, I definitely think we took a massive step in the right direction. I would just love to get to Phoenix to have an opportunity to see. Just proud of this No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet team. It’s been a struggle here (at Gateway) and this particular style of track, but it’s really been a struggle in general for us at a lot of places lately. Not the finish we obviously wanted, but I feel like we were back to looking like the No. 5 team today.”

Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Finished: 22nd

“The entire No. 8 Rebel Bourbon Chevrolet team battled from the moment we started today at World Wide Technology Raceway. We qualified deeper in the field and had an early spin in Stage 1, but the Richard Childress Racing team never quit. We drove into the Top 10 towards the final laps, but came up short, finishing 22nd. Our focuses are now on Bristol as we look to get a win in 2025.”

Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Finished: 3rd

“It felt good to just have a solid day for this No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet team. I thought we were really good at times; certainly more competitive than we’ve been in a minute. It was a lot of fun to be up in the mix. We just needed a little bit more there at the end, but we were way, way better than we’ve been here lately, so that’s nice.”

William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Finished: 11th

What more did you need there at the end?

“I think we had pace this weekend, we just couldn’t get our balance. We really struggled the first two stages with that. We started losing track position in the second and third stages, and it was really hard to overcome. In the final stage, we had a pretty good balance on the car, all things considered, and we were kind of able to go forward, if not maintain. I think there was a lot to learn there in the final stage with how we managed that.”

Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Finished: 26th

“It was just really poor execution on all angles today. It was a bummer. I thought our No. 48 Ally Chevrolet was OK once we were kind of towards the front-half. We just struggled in the back. Super frustrating, but all we can do is keep digging. There’s a lot of people working really hard to continue to be better. I thought, race car-wise, we were heading in the right direction once we had some air on it. We just have to go to Bristol (Motor Speedway) and go to work.”

Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

Finished: 25th

“We were too tight in traffic, and then eventually got on the other side of it and I made an error and spun. We just couldn’t get it back. We weren’t amazing. We were probably a 15th-place car, but then detuned it a little bit and ended up where we did. Little frustrating, but it’s kind of where we’re at. 20th and 15th is a huge improvement for us, but obviously in the playoffs, you expect more. There’s that pressure there.”

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.