Team Penske driver Will Power shows off the NTT P1 sticker after winning the pole position for Sunday’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway. Photo credit: Tyson Gifford / World Wide Technology Raceway.
Will Power earns fifth career NTT INDYCAR SERIES pole position at World Wide Technology Raceway and 71st of his career.
Scott McLaughlin qualifies second to give Team Penske front-row sweep for Sunday night’s primetime Bommarito Automotive Group 500 race.
INDYCAR Video News Feed qualifying recap available to media for download here.
MADISON, Ill. (June 14, 2025) – Will Power collected his record fifth career pole at World Wide Technology Raceway and Team Penske secured a front-row sweep during Saturday’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES qualifying for the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline.
Power posted a two-lap average speed of 180.329 miles per hour (49.9088 seconds) on the 1.25-mile oval to secure his first pole of the season and record-extending 71st of his career. It also was his first pole position at World Wide Technology Raceway since 2022, with his others coming in 2017, ‘20 and ‘21.
“I sent it a lot,” said Power, who won this event in 2018. “I knew you would have to. You’d have to drive it flat in (Turns) 3 and 4. I wasn’t quite flat, but I was very, very close.
“Cool, man. It’s been a while since I’ve had a pole, so really, really excited. Hopefully we can execute in the race. Man, it would be awesome to get a win here.”
Power will lead the 27-car field to the green flag for the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 in the first-ever scheduled primetime NTT INDY SERIES race to be held on a Sunday night (7 p.m. CT, TV: FOX, Radio: INDYCAR Radio Network, SiriusXM). It also will be the first scheduled evening race at World Wide Technology Raceway since 2019.
Scott McLaughlin fell just 0.1515 of a second shy of Power but his two-lap qualifying effort of 179.783 mph (50.0603 secs.) gave him his third front-row start of the season.
Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward (179.190 mph / 50.2261 secs.) qualified third for his third top-three start of the season. AJ Foyt Racing’s David Malukas (179.079 mph / 50.2572 secs.) earned his third consecutive top-seven start by qualifying fourth.
Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden, the defending race winner who has won four of the last five at WWTR, qualified a season-best fifth with a two-lap average of 178.910 mph (50.3046 secs.). The group gave Chevrolet a sweep of the top-five qualifying positions.
In INDY NXT by Firestone qualifying, championship points leader Dennis Hauger continued to impress as the rookie won the pole position at World Wide Technology Raceway in his oval debut. Andretti Global’s Hauger had a two-lap average speed of 166.162 mph for his fourth pole of the season. “First time on an oval, and we got the pole,” said Hauger, who has won four of the first five races this season. “Super happy about that. Didn’t really know what to expect, but we got up to speed in practice, and we really made improvements for qualifying. Looking forward to seeing how we get on tomorrow. It’s going to be a bit of a different game.” Joining Hauger on the front row is HMD Motorsports driver Caio Collet, whose two-lap average was 165.735 mph. The 75-lap race begin at 3:30 p.m. Sunday (TV: FS1, Radio: INDYCAR Radio Network).
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO - JUNE 14: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #9 Quaker State Chevrolet, celebrates after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series The Chilango 150 at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on June 14, 2025 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images).
Daniel Suarez notched a monumental, full-circle moment in his NASCAR career after motoring his way to a hard-earned victory in The Chilango 150 at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City on Saturday, June 14.
The 2016 Xfinity Series champion from Monterrey, Mexico, led 19 of 65 scheduled laps. It was a homecoming event that commenced on a rough note. Suarez wrecked his primary car while qualifying for the main event. As a result, he was forced to start at the rear of the field in a backup car. Suarez, however, methodically carved his way up the leaderboard. He continued, keeping his No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet entry intact through the event’s first two stage periods.
Then during the start of the final stage period with 19 laps remaining, Suarez navigated his way into the lead. He did this despite sustaining cosmetic damage while being bumped into by front-runners Ty Gibbs and Connor Zilisch, with the latter two proceeding to be swept in a multi-car wreck. Amid the damage, Suarez remained on the track and retained the lead during the following restart with 14 laps remaining. Despite enduring another late-race restart with four laps remaining, Suarez had enough horsepower to fend off a hard-charging Taylor Gray. He went on to score his first NASCAR Xfinity Series victory in nine years. As a bonus, he was able to share the thrills of his victory in front of his home crowd.
On-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurred on Saturday. Rookie Connor Zilisch claimed his fourth Xfinity pole position of the 2025 season with a 94.314 mph lap in 92.372 seconds. Ty Gibbs joined him on the front row after a qualifying lap at 94.209 mph in 92.475 seconds.
Before the event, Daniel Suarez dropped to the rear of the field in a backup car. This was due to wrecking his primary car during qualifying. The following drivers, including rookie Christian Eckes, Anthony Alfredo, Brennan Poole, Thomas Annunziata and newcomer Andres Perez de Lara also dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective entries.
Green Flag
When the green flag waved and the event commenced, the field fanned out in a three-wide formation. Pole-sitter Connor Zilisch and Ty Gibbs dueled against one another for the lead through the course’s frontstretch. As both Zilisch and Gibbs navigated through the course’s first three sets of turns, Gibbs muscled ahead. He then led through another straightaway that led to a right-hand braking turn, which was Turn 4.
Through the Esses (a series of right and left-hand turns from Turns 5 to 9), a short straightaway just past Turn 10 and a final set of right and left-hand turns from Turns 11 to 15 that featured a large stadium section with fans in attendance, Gibbs maintained the lead. When the field returned to the frontstretch, Gibbs led the first lap over Zilisch. Rookie Carson Kvapil, Christopher Bell and Sammy Smith followed suit in the top five, respectively.
During the second lap, Zilisch drove to Gibbs’ right side in a bid to reclaim the lead. After dueling with Gibbs through the frontstretch, Zilisch assumes the lead in the first turn before contact from Gibbs. The contact sent Zilisch off the track through the following two turns. Despite blending back on the track without spinning, Zilisch dropped to fifth place as Gibbs maintained the lead. This also allowed Bell to navigate into the runner-up spot while teammates Sammy Smith and Kvapil battled for third place.
On the third lap, the event’s first caution flew. Sam Mayer, who was racing in sixth place, wheel-hopped entering Turn 11, spun and hit the barriers on the driver’s left side. In the process, he barely avoided collecting both Kvapil and Jesse Love while sideways. Amid the incident, Mayer continued despite plummeting below the leaderboard.
The start of the next restart on the fifth lap featured the field fanning out in three-wide formation for a second consecutive time. Gibbs, Bell and Sammy Smith all battled dead-even through the frontstretch. Exiting the frontstretch, Bell appeared to have a slight advantage. However, Gibbs drew alongside the latter through the first three turns. Jeremy Clements dropped off the pace due to a mechanical issue. Gibbs muscled his No. 19 Monster Energy Toyota Supra entry ahead of Bell in Turn 4.
Throughout the following four laps, Harrison Burton spun just past the exit of the stadium section (Turns 13 and 14) while both rookie Nick Sanchez and Andres Perez de Lara missed the first turn. Amid the on-track incidents, the event remained under green flag conditions as Gibbs continued to lead.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Gibbs was leading by eight-tenths of a second over Zilisch. Bell, Sammy Smith and Jesse Love raced in the top five. Behind, rookie Carson Kvapil, Justin Allgaier, rookie Taylor Gray, Sanchez and Sheldon Creed pursued in the top 10. Austin Hill, Matt DiBenedetto, Sage Karam, Jeb Burton, Brandon Jones, Daniel Suarez, rookie Christian Eckes, Alex Labbe, Perez de Lara and rookie Dean Thompson were scored in the top 20, respectively.
Two laps later, Bell spun from third place while exiting the stadium section in Turn 14. The incident occurred as Bell was reeling in both Gibbs and Zilisch for the lead before he veered sideways while running over the course’s curbs. Amid the incident, Bell managed to continue while remaining in the top 10.
Shortly after, Justin Allgaier pitted his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro entry under green. By Lap 15, however, Allgaier steered his entry to the garage due to a left-rear axle issue. Seconds after Allgaier’s turn to the garage, on-track trouble occurred for his teammate Sammy Smith. Love bumped and sent Smith for a spin while battling for third place in Turn 2. Amid the pair of issues for JR Motorsports’ entries, Gibbs retained the lead over Zilisch. Kvapil, Love and Gray were scored in the top-five mark by Lap 16.
Within the Lap 17 mark, a series of green flag pit stops ensued as Bell, Sheldon Creed, Sammy Smith, Suarez, William Sawalich, Dean Thompson, Ryan Ellis and rookie Daniel Dye all pitted their respective entries. The leaders Gibbs and Zilisch pitted during the next lap just before pit road closed for the conclusion of a stage period. By then, Kvapil, who has not yet pitted, cycled into the lead.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 20, Kvapil notched both his first Xfinity stage victory of the 2025 season and the first of his career. Taylor Gray navigated his way into the runner-up spot over Love. Hill, Sanchez, Brandon Jones, Sage Karam, DiBenedetto, Jeb Burton and Alex Labbe were scored in the top 10, respectively. By then, Zilisch and Gibbs were mired in 13th and 14th, respectively, while Bell was scored in 21st.
Under the stage break, Ruben Rovelo endured a broken track bar while the field paced on track under caution. It was an issue that would take Rovelo out of contention. When pit road became accessible for the field, some, led by Kvapil, including those who did not pit prior to the first stage’s conclusion, pitted their entries. The rest led by Zilisch remained on the track.
Stage 2
The second stage period started on Lap 25 as Zilisch and Gibbs occupied the front row. At the start, Bell shoved Zilisch ahead of Gibbs through the early portions of the frontstretch . Bell then veered left and tried to challenge Zilisch for the lead entering the first braking turn. Through the first three braking turns, Zilisch managed to fend off Bell to retain the lead. Suarez, Sammy Smith, Gibbs and Creed bumped and jostled from third to sixth on the track. As Suarez boldly muscled his way up to third place, Zilisch proceeded to lead the next set of turns and lead the next lap over Bell.
During the Lap 28 mark, a pair of on-track incidents occurred as Austin Green spun Kris Wright amid contact in Turn 3. Anthony Alfredo would then spin in the Esses, but all continued without drawing a caution. Back at the front, Gibbs assumed third place from Suarez. Zilisch proceeded to lead to the Lap 30 mark by three seconds over Gibbs while Bell, Suarez and Sammy Smith trailed in the top five.
At the halfway mark between Laps 32 and 33, Zilisch was leading. He was ahead of Gibbs while Bell, Suarez, Sammy Smith, Creed, Sawalich, Gray, Dye and Love all pursued in the top 10, respectively. By then, Christian Eckes, Brandon Jones, Mayer, Thompson, Sanchez, Thomas Annunziata, Ryan Ellis, DiBenedetto, Austin Green and Jeb Burton were scored in the top 20, respectively. Meanwhile, Kvapil was down in 27th after spinning in the stadium section. Hill, who pitted under green due after sustaining a flat right-front tire a few laps earlier, was mired back in 35th place.
By Lap 37, front-runners Bell and Suarez along with Sawalich, Love, Mayer, Ellis, Austin Green, Perez de Lara, Josh Williams, and Harrison Burton all pitted their respective entries under green. During the pit stops, Bell’s car went up in smoke as the driver was exiting his pit stall. With the smoke continuing, Bell would steer his car into another pit box, and park it. As a result, he was eliminated from further contention.
As the pit stops ensued, the leaders Zilisch and Ty Gibbs pit before the final two laps of the second stage period. Zilisch just managed to fend off Gibbs entering the first turn. Amid a duel with the latter. he exited the frontstretch from the pit road exit, handing the race lead to Sammy Smith.
When the second stage period concluded on Lap 40, Sammy Smith claimed his second Xfinity stage victory of the 2025 season. Gray and Creed trailed in second and third by three and four seconds, respectively, while Jones, Eckes, Dye, Thompson, Sanchez, Zilisch and Gibbs were scored in the top 10, respectively.
During the stage break, most of the field led by Sammy Smith, including those who did not pit before the second stage’s conclusion, pitted their respective entires. The rest led by Zilisch and Gibbs remained on the track.
Final Stage
With 19 laps remaining, the final stage period commenced as Zilisch and Gibbs occupied the front row. At the start, the latter two dueled through the early portions of the frontstretch. Then Suarez, who was pushing Gibbs, steered to the left engaging in a three-wide battle with Zilisch and Gibbs for the lead entering the first braking turn.
Then in the first turn, trouble at the front ensued. Zilisch hopped the curb and bumped into the side of Gibbs who then bumped into the side of Suarez. The contact got Zilisch sideways as he spun in front of Sawalich. But Sawalich then ran into Zilisch allowing the latter to get his car straightened and continue. The incident, however, triggered a stack-up and chain reaction within the field through the first three turns. Creed, Sammy Smith, Sawalich, Brandon Jones, Kyle Sieg, Mayer, Ryan Sieg, Thomas Annunziata and Zilisch all wrecked and sustained damage to their respective entries. Exiting Turn 3, Gibbs and Kvapil both collided with one another as Gibbs got T-boned in the rear by Parker Retzlaff.
Amid the chaos that wiped out multiple competitors, including the top two leaders of Zilisch and Gibbs, Suarez escaped with the lead and he was followed by Eckes, Taylor Gray, Harrison Burton and Sawalich, respectively.
The start of the next restart with 14 laps remaining featured Suarez outdueling Eckes and the field through the frontstretch and the first three turns. Suarez would proceed to lead through Turn 4, the Esses and the final set of turns through the stadium section before he returned to the frontstretch and led the next lap. With Suarez leading, Eckes retained second place while Gray, Harrison Burton and Sanchez pursued in the top five ahead of Sawalich, Austin Hill, Thompson, Jeb Burton and Brandon Jones.
Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Suarez was leading by one-and-a-half seconds over Gray while Eckes, Hill and Sanchez raced in the top five. While Sawalich, Harrison Burton, Jones, Thompson and Zilisch trailed in the top 10, Kvapil and Gibbs were mired back in 20th and 22nd, respectively.
Then with seven laps remaining, the caution returned due to Love spinning his No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Camaro entry in Turn 15. By then, Suarez retained the lead by more than a second over Gray, with Hill, Eckes and Sanchez following suit.
As the event restarted with four laps remaining, Suarez dueled with Gray through the frontstretch before he started to have a slight advantage through the first braking turn. Entering the second turn, Suarez then made contact with Gray. It resulted in the latter going off the course before he blended his No. 9 Quaker State Chevrolet Camaro entry back on the track ahead of Gray just past the third turn.
Amid the contact, NASCAR ruled that Suarez would not be penalized due to his course of action in going off the track being due to on-track contact. With Suarez maintaining the lead, he would proceed to lead through the Esses and the stadium section turns before he cycled back to the frontstretch and led the next lap. As Suarez led, Gray tried to reel in from second place while Eckes, Zilisch and Hill trailed in the top five.
With two laps remaining, Brandon Jones spun his No. 20 Menards Toyota Supra entry from sixth place, but the race remained under green flag conditions as Suarez maintained a steady advantage over a hard-charging Gray through every corner and straightaway.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Suarez remained in the lead by seven-tenths of a second over Gray. Despite Gray’s efforts to reel in Suarez’s rear bumper, Suarez continued to lead from the first three turns through the stadium section turns. As Suarez exited the stadium section turns, Gray mounted a final lap effort to bump Suarez in the rear bumper but briefly lost his momentum.
Victory
With Gray losing track of Suarez approaching the final turn, Suarez was able to cycle back to the frontstretch and claim the checkered flag by half a second to claim the victory to the delight of his home crowd.
With the victory, Suarez notched his fourth career win in the Xfinity Series division, his first driving for JR Motorsports and his first in the series’ since he won both the finale and the championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November 2016. The victory was also the 13th of the year for the Chevrolet nameplate and the seventh of the 2025 season for JR Motorsports.
Suarez’s Mexico City victory was an emotional one for the Monterrey, Mexico native as he performed a series of burnouts through every turn before he saluted his home crowd in the stadium section turns and was welcomed with a chorus of cheers from the crowd. Suarez will now bid to sweep the weekend as he competes in the Cup Series’ inaugural Mexico City event at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez on Sunday, June 15.
“It’s everything about teamwork,” Suarez said on the CW Network. “These [No. 9] guys worked extremely hard to get this car ready. The car wasn’t supposed to be a winner today and look at where we are right now. It’s been a special day. I can’t wait to enjoy [the win] for a little bit and then do it again tomorrow [for the Cup event]. It’s very, very special to be here in front of my people. All these people, they have supported me for many, many years. They have loved me since my NASCAR Mexico [Series] days and now fighting with the big boys. It feels good.”
Taylor Gray tied his career-best result in the Xfinity Series by posting a strong runner-up result while Austin Hill rallied from his early tire issues to finish in third place. Both Gray and Hill would celebrate with Suarez on the podium as part of NASCAR’s first inception of featuring podium celebrations following a race.
Rookie Christian Eckes notched a career-best fourth-place result while pole-sitter Connor Zilisch made a late rally from his multi-car wreck at the start of the final stage period by finishing in fifth place.
Rookie William Sawalich, Austin Green, Jeb Burton, Harrison Burton and Sammy Smith completed the top 10 in the final running order.
There were seven lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured five cautions for 17 laps. In addition, 30 of 39 starters finished on the lead lap.
Following the 15th event of the 2025 Xfinity Series season, Justin Allgaier leads the regular-season standings by 55 points over Austin Hill, 102 over Sam Mayer, 130 over Jesse Love and 157 over Connor Zilisch.
Results:
1. Daniel Suarez, 19 laps led 2. Taylor Gray, one lap led 3. Austin Hill 4. Christian Eckes 5. Connor Zilisch, 17 laps led 6. William Sawalich 7. Austin Green 8. Jeb Burton 9. Harrison Burton 10. Sammy Smith, five laps led, Stage 2 winner 11. Sheldon Creed 12. Dean Thompson 13. Daniel Dye 14. Ty Gibbs, 18 laps led 15. Alex Labbe 16. Matt DiBenedetto 17. Kris Wright 18. Jesse Love 19. Carson Kvapil, five laps led, Stage 1 winner 20. Josh Williams 21. Anthony Alfredo 22. Thomas Annunziata 23. Sam Mayer 24. Josh Bilicki 25. Brandon Jones 26. Brad Perez 27. Blaine Perkins 28. Kyle Sieg 29. Ryan Sieg 30. Andres Perez de Lara 31. Nick Sanchez, one lap down 32. Ryan Ellis, four laps down 33. Sage Karam – OUT, Accident 34. Justin Allgaier, 15 laps down 35. Parker Retzlaff – OUT, Accident 36. Jeremy Clements, 22 laps down 37. Ruben Rovelo, 22 laps down 38. Brennan Poole – OUT, Suspension 39. Christopher Bell – OUT, Engine
Next on the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, for the Explore the Pocono Mountains 250. The event is scheduled to occur next Saturday, June 21, and air at 3:30 p.m. ET on the CW Network.
MADISON, Ill. - JUNE 14: Will Power, driver of the #12 Team Penske Chevrolet, poses with the P1 pole award sticker after winning the pole for the NTT IndyCar Series Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway on June 14, 2025, in Madison, Illinois. Photo: Chris Jones/Penske Entertainment
MADISON, Ill. —Will Power cracked a smile after Alex Palou ran a slower first lap and celebrated when the points leader ran a slower second lap to give the driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet his first pole in two years.
“Yeah, it has been a while,” he said. “I mean, been on the front row a few times. Yeah, it’s nice to get a pole always. One point, and get to lead the field to green.”
Scott McLaughlin joins his teammate on the front row with a speed of 179.783 mph.
“Yeah, of course, I’d love to be up front,” he said. “Team Penske 1-2 is always good. Will, a while since he’s been on pole. He’s super quick around here. Anytime you go up one on one against Will Power in qualifying, it’s always tough.
“Felt really good. Car has been good basically since the drop. I think we’re in a really good spot for tomorrow regardless. We’ll see what we’ve got.”
Pato O’Ward clocked in third at 179.190 mph. David Malukas timed in fourth at 179.079 mph and Josef Newgarden, who topped the chart in first practice, rounded out the top five at 178.910 mph.
Marcus Armstrong, Felix Rosenqvist, Colton Herta, Palou and Kyle Kirkwood rounded out the top-10.
The NTT INDYCAR Series Bommarito Automotive Group 500 goes green, on Sunday, at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.
DETROIT - JUNE 1: Will Power's #12 Team Penske crew services his car during the NTT IndyCar Series Detroit Grand Prix on June 1, 2025, in Detroit. Photo: Paul Hurley/Penske Entertainment
MADISON, Ill. — Overcast skies with humid heat and drizzling rain covered World Wide Technology Raceway. The driver interview area inside the garage area, however, was dry as could be. Will Power strolled into the room with his clean pressed, red Team Penske shirt and black pants.
He and teammate Josef Newgarden showed no sign of reeling from Tim Cindric’s dismissal from the team.
“Obviously, people have had to step up, obviously not the best situation,” Power said.
Roger Penske fired Cindric, along with two other top officials of Team Penske’s IndyCar operations, on May 21, in the wake of a second cheating scandal in the span of a year.
At press time, Team Penske hasn’t tapped anyone to replace Cindric or Ron Ruzewski and Kyle Moyer to take over the INDYCAR operations, but it’s motivated others at the team to show they can move into those higher positions.
“So, you know, I think in the off season, obviously start to fill from the bottom, very deep talent there, so people are able to take up the slack,” Power said.
It’s probably too early to judge whether or not Cindric’s dismissal affected the performance of Team Penske, as two races is too small a sample size. In that time, however, Power finished 16th in the Indianapolis 500 and fourth in the Detroit Grand Prix (where he led his first lap of the season).
Power followed Friday’s interview by taking pole position for Sunday’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500 with a two-lap average speed of 180.329 mph.
GRAY, SAWALICH SCORE BEST CAREER FINISHES IN MEXICO Gray moves into the provisional Playoff field with his runner-up finish
MEXICO CITY (June 14, 2025) – Taylor Gray (second) matched his career-best result with an impressive debut in Mexico City to lead Toyota in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race on Saturday evening. With the finish, Gray moved inside the provisional Playoff field heading into Pocono Raceway next weekend.
His teammate, William Sawalich, also had a strong run and earned a career-best sixth-place finish.
Toyota GAZOO Racing Post-Race Recap NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez Race 15 of 33 – 157.3 miles, 65 laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Daniel Suarez*
2nd, TAYLOR GRAY
3rd, Austin Hill*
4th, Christian Eckes*
5th, Connor Zilisch*
6th, WILLIAM SAWALICH
12th, DEAN THOMPSON
14th, TY GIBBS
25th, BRANDON JONES
33rd, SAGE KARAM
39th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
TAYLOR GRAY, No. 54 Operation 300 Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 2nd
That might have been the closest you have been to your first career win. How was that finish?
“Besides Martinsville (laughter). Just sucked, right – to come so close and I feel like have the car capable of winning, and I don’t know – I’m mad, frustrated, sad, all of it at the same time, but it was a good points day overall for us. I can’t thank everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing enough. They brought me a really fast Operation 300 Toyota GR Supra – as fast as Xfinity Mobile. Just going to take this momentum and keep it rolling.”
WILLIAM SAWALICH, No. 18 Starkey Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 6th
Best career finish, how was the race?
“Yeah, the Starkey GR Supra was pretty good today. Not too good in stage one, but we made some good changes on our second and third stop. We made some good strategy calls by Jabo (Jeff Meendering, crew chief) to get us up there but just got tangled in a little bit of a mess a lot of times, actually, going into turn one and had that spin early. I thought it was good day for everything that was thrown at us.”
CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 24 Mobil 1 Toyota GR Supra, Sam Hunt Racing
Finishing Position: 39th
Was there any indication that there was a problem before there was?
“No, and let it be known, that I didn’t miss a shift with the h-pattern (laughter). I don’t know – it just let go getting into the stadium section, so it is a bummer. It was obviously going to be a really good run for the Sam Hunt Racing group. I thought our Mobil 1 Supra did some things really well, and some things it needed to be a little bit better. Clearly the 19 (Ty Gibbs) and the 88 (Connor Zilisch) are the class of the field but seemed like we were really the best of the rest.”
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.
NASCAR Cup Series Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez Team Chevy Post-Qualifying Report June 14, 2025
Shane van Gisbergen Puts Chevrolet on the Pole in Mexico City
TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10 STARTING LINEUP: POS. DRIVER
1st – Shane van Gisbergen 3rd – Ross Chastain 5th – Michael McDowell 6th – Kyle Larson 8th – AJ Allmendinger 10th – Daniel Suarez
Gearing up for a history-making race in Mexico City, Shane van Gisbergen captured his first pole win of the 2025 season to lead the field to the green flag in Sunday’s Viva Mexico 250. Turning in a best lap of 93.904 seconds, at 132.776 mph, in his No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet, the qualifying effort delivered the 36-year-old Auckland, New Zealand, native his second career pole in NASCAR’s top division.
Chevrolet owns half of the pole wins this season in NASCAR’s top division, with Shane van Gisbergen giving the manufacturer its eighth pole award heading into the 16th points-paying race. The pole triumphs have come on now three different racetrack configurations, with the road course of Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez being accompanied by one short-track pole win, as well as six on intermediate ovals.
The Bowtie brand’s speed prevailed in qualifying with Chevrolet drivers taking six of the top-10 starting positions for the NASCAR Cup Series’ first-ever international points-paying race. Accompanying Shane van Gisbergen with strong qualifying efforts includes his Trackhouse Racing teammates, Ross Chastain and Daniel Suarez, who piloted their Chevrolet-powered machines to third and 10th-place qualifying efforts, respectively. Spire Motorsports’ Michael McDowell qualified fifth, Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson qualified eighth and Kaulig Racing’s AJ Allmendinger qualified eighth to give four different Chevrolet organizations representation in the top-10 of the starting lineup.
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet – Pole Winner Quotes
Where were the improvements in your car today for qualifying?
“We made some big swings last night. Our No. 88 Safety Culture Chevrolet was a bit better. We had a lot more front grip, which is what I needed. But my laps were average.. like you’ll see everyone was beating me on the first-half of the lap, and then my lap gets good at the end. We had a lot of speed today, which is good. It’s been a great improvement. What a really cool achievement for us and a great start for tomorrow. I’m excited.. that’s really cool.”
What are the tough parts of this track, and how much of an advantage is it starting on the pole tomorrow and having that No. 1 pit stall?
“Yeah, going into turn one, it’s crazy. The brake zone there, there’s going to be a lot of action there tomorrow. And then looking after the brakes, there’s no air, so the brakes are really going to struggle. We struggled yesterday on the long run, but being out front, you’ll get the most air in 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.
NASCAR Cup Series Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez Team Chevy Driver Quotes June 13, 2025
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series qualifying session at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.
Media Availability Quotes:
Is there anything you’re going to be looking at for the Xfinity race today, just to see how NASCAR officiates things or how things go in order to potentially recommend or see if any changes should be made for Sunday?
“Yeah, I think you definitely try to pay attention to all that you can. I think as you mentioned, the officiating track limits is something, but also more from the competitive side of things. You notice how people are shaping corners, passing or things like that. Pit road entry, all the little details that matter for the race on Sunday. I felt like walking the track yesterday, there were a few areas where I was like — oh, this could be a concern. But once we got at speed, I didn’t think some of the barriers were in awkward spot outs or the tire packs were in awkward spots. I thought all that felt fine.”
You’re a veteran of international-type races. You’ve raced all over. Is this any different than going to Australia and doing a sprint car race?
“Well, we haven’t really quite gotten to the race yet. Obviously, the atmosphere will be a lot different, but the difference would be just the logistics of it; the shuttles and all of that. When I go race in Australia, it’s really no different, as far as driving to the racetrack or the people that you see and things like that. I imagine the atmosphere on Sunday will be quite a bit different from what we’re used to seeing in a NASCAR event.”
What’s your comfort level with the track at this point?
“Yeah, I think there’s still areas probably that you can fine tune and get a little better. But overall, I felt like it related well to the simulator. The feel of the car is somewhat similar and all of that. I was lucky enough that they got to put in some tire packs on the simulator on Tuesday for me to get in and visually get a feel for that. I thought it all looked normal to what I was used to in the sim, so I think that helped make the learning curve a little bit better. At this point, I think we’ve had to work on our car quite a bit to try and get it more comfortable. I think the altitude and what that does to the downforce itself is a real thing. It definitely feels different out there; braking, the initial turn into the corners and stuff. So yeah, it feels a little different and something I could adjust to.”
The forecast for tomorrow has the potential for rain. And even if it’s not raining during the race, it could be a wet track. What are the challenges and how might this track change under wet or rainy conditions?
“Yeah, I don’t know. Being not that experienced on wet, I would like for it to not rain or be wet. But I think at the same point, that opens up an opportunity. If you do hit on it or get comfortable, you can make a big difference behind the wheel.
I don’t know, but I’m a pretty risky driver. You could see that at Chicago in that crash last year.
I don’t know… I can take it or leave it. I would rather leave it. But yeah, we’ll see. We’ll just be ready for whatever conditions come.”
How did you feel with the elevation in the car yesterday?
“Yeah, I think when you’re in the car and after, I don’t know. I think you’re not focused on that, so I didn’t notice anything. It’s more like when I walk up the stairs to come here or walk up the stairs to go to the driver’s lounge, by the time you get to the top, you breathe a little bit heavier.
But in the car, no, it felt fine. I tracked my heart rate and all that normally. So yeah, I’m not sure. I think it’s just you’re not focused on that when you’re driving.”
What do you think about the track? What is the most difficult part of the track here in Mexico City? And if you can tell me as well, what’s your favorite part about Mexico?
“Yeah, I think that so far the most difficult thing or different thing to a typical road course that we feel would be I think that lack of downforce and then how that affects the brake zones. So that’s kind of challenging. I think you can see a lot of drivers kind of struggling with that yesterday. I think the sim kind of under-predicted that. So all the brake zones, we had to work to kind of back up, and then so you don’t lock up your rear tires and your front tires and whatnot. So yeah, that’s been the most challenging piece I think for most everybody.
And then yeah, Mexico’s been fun. It’s a different feeling weekend for us here. We don’t have our motor coaches and all that, so we’re all kind of put up in the same place. You’ve got to ride shuttles together. It’s honestly really fun and enjoyable to be around your competitors and get to know each other a bit better because on a typical weekend, we just kind of lock ourselves in wherever we’re at. We don’t talk to anybody or anything. So it’s nice that, yeah, you’re almost forced to hang out with each other. It’s cool. You get to know them, so I’ve enjoyed that.”
Does it feel like a school trip?
“Yeah, yeah, I guess you could compare that. It’s been a long time since I’ve been on a school field trip, but it does feel like that.”
What are the challenges in pitting off the right side of the car? Did you participate in pit stop practice this week?
“I did not participate in pit stop practice. Yeah, I mean, it’s different. I wouldn’t say it’s any more or less challenging. It’s different. And the pit stalls here are extremely short, so I think that’s where the challenge comes from. Combining that with, you know, turning right with your right front being out there, it’s kind of hard to judge your distance and things; your angles and getting those correct if you have to come around somebody. So, yeah, I think on pit road, caution flag pit stops will be difficult. I think you’ll see some penalties and see some guys boxed in and a little bit or a lot of congestion. The end of pit road narrows up too, so if you’re side-by-side two-wide and somebody pulls out three-wide, it’s going to get jammed up a lot. So, yeah, that will be interesting to see.”
You talked about how this is kind of a different weekend for the drivers. Is there anything you can pull from this weekend that you would like to see incorporated at other NASCAR races?
“I don’t know… I’m not sure. I think maybe things will come up tomorrow and seeing how, you know, driver intros go or the post-race podium and stuff. I think that could be a piece, an easy piece, to incorporate to other weekends.
I don’t know… I don’t know. I like hanging out with the other drivers, but I don’t know how you ban motorhomes and force us to stay at the same hotel in places like Pocono (laughs). But it’s fun.”
I was wondering if you believe you have some sort of an edge, you know, especially with other drivers, because you race a lot, a lot of different series, a lot of different type of cars. This is a new facility for most NASCAR drivers….
“I don’t. I think I can see how that could be a topic, but no, I don’t feel that way.
Obviously, I was slow yesterday, so no, I don’t think it matters. I just think everybody in the Cup Series is really good, and, you know, although, yes, it’s our first time here on the real-life surface, everybody probably spent time in the simulator at some point over the last couple weeks, so you learn the corners, you learn the gearing, you learn enough to where you come here and get up to speed pretty quickly. So I felt like it didn’t take but three or four laps for everybody yesterday to kind of get to a steady pace. I think that just shows the level of talent and ability in the Cup Series.”
You referenced the podium celebration earlier. Is that something that you would like to see, potentially, for all Cup races, or is that something that’s just maybe the compromise of you doing it for road course races and leaving it as is for others? Is that something that intrigues you, or what’s your thoughts on that?
“I don’t know. You know, maybe just your crown jewels events would be a good start, but I’m not sure. You know, I come from dirt racing where the top three have to stop on the frontstretch every night and, you know, do your interview, which we do interviews on pit road and stuff, so that’s not way different.
But, yeah, although it stinks sometimes when you’re frustrated and you’ve got to force a smile, I think the fans appreciate seeing the top three drivers on the frontstretch, the photos and whatnot. You look at other forms of motorsports, and, yeah, the post-race podium celebration — like I look at Formula 1, you kind of celebrate the country that you’re from, too, playing the national anthem. But I just think that’s a nice added touch. So, yeah, I think there’s ways to look at it and make it kind of feel like our own. You know, we’re not completely copying other forms of motorsports. But, yeah, I think I heard Ross (Chastain) say it, but, like, it’s tough to run the top three in the Cup Series, so I think it should definitely be celebrated a little bit more. You know, second and third should be celebrated a little bit more than it is, not only for yourself and your team, but your partners and whatnot. So, again, I think there’s ways that NASCAR can look at making it have their own kind of touch and feel. But, yeah, I think we’ll see how it goes tomorrow. I thought the L.A. Clash thing was awesome, too. So, yeah, we’ve done it before. I think we can do it at other places.”
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.
NASCAR Cup Series Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez Team Chevy Driver Quotes June 13, 2025
Daniel Suarez, driver of the No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet, and Ross Chastain, driver of the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet, met with the media in following the NASCAR Cup Series practice session at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.
Media Availability Quotes:
I only wanted to ask you something simple. It’s about drivers. What would you say to a young child, especially now that we are in Mexico, that wants to be part of the motorsports world, whether it’s by being a driver, an engineer, a PR person, or social media specialist?
ROSS CHASTAIN: “I think right here in Mexico City you better be going to the go-kart track in the mall. What’s it called?”
DANIEL SUAREZ: “Go Kart Mania.”
ROSS CHASTAIN: “Go Kart Mania. We were there last night. That place is awesome. I would be ripping laps there. I would have my kids there.
Then as a driver you just have to start racing, whatever level you can afford. Everybody has a different path. There’s no right or wrong way to do this.
There’s multi-generation families that are racing that Daniel and I are racing against. There’s guys like Daniel and I that our dads liked racing and helped us get going and worked to make money so they could spend on go-karts for Daniel, Pro Trucks for me, late models, asphalt late models in the States.
Whatever you can race, keep moving up. If you are successful, if you can win, keep moving up. Be around older racers.
Then on the other fronts as far as PR or engineering, yeah, there’s definitely going to be scholarship — or you’re going to need to have some sort of degree, so finding scholarships to go get those degrees and go to school to know what to do when you get to the team.
And mechanics, some have degrees, and some just know how to turn wrenches, and they are really good at it. You got to be willing to be really good at it to be on our teams. We put them through a lot.”
DANIEL SUAREZ: “You know, for me I think this is a very good opportunity not just for drivers, but also for mechanics, for engineers, even pit crew members.
You know, right now we are racing in a stage that is different than 90% of the races that we do, so in my mind this is a great opportunity for the Mexico Series and, just like Ross mentioned, drivers, mechanics, engineers, pit crew members, everything to hopefully, for those that really want to exceed Mexico and go to the United States, trying to build some connections somehow.
I remember when I was going to United States, I feel my mechanics of NASCAR Mexico, they really wanted to go to United States. At that time I didn’t have the connections. I didn’t know anyone. I was just trying to survive myself, but right now I feel like I’m in a little bit different position. I would love to help.
I think that this is very important to continue to grow the diversity in the sport, and we need more people from Mexico. We need more Latinos in the sport. Not just drivers, everything across the board.
Hopefully this race really opens the eyes for many young guys or girls that want to do something in NASCAR in the U.S.”
ROSS CHASTAIN: “If there’s somebody in a NASCAR Mexico team, I think you never — you miss every shot you don’t take. So walk up to our garage, they’ve been out on pit road, and find the guy in like a nice shirt that’s not getting dirty and, like, shake his hand, introduce yourself. Okay, they say no. Okay, they say we don’t have a spot. Okay, find the next ones.
Find the guys in the clean shirts and introduce yourself. You have a business card. Write your name and number on a piece of paper. Ask how to submit a résumé. What would it take?
It’s going to take moving to the States to work in NASCAR. Ask. It’s scary. I get it, I know. We’ve been there, but go ask, and if they say no, you got a cool story to tell when you’re drinking beer.”
There’s been a lot of hype and build-up to the race. You’ve been the central focus of this. Now that you’re here and this week, what has it been like? Has it been even more or less than what you anticipated?
DANIEL SUAREZ: “Man, it’s very hard to put into words. I had an expectation on the hype of the people and energy and the fans coming and the media, you guys. The entire week and weekend now, it has exceed every single expectation that I had. For that I want to say thank you to you guys.
This event I feel like it hasn’t even started yet, and it has been — I’ve been living a dream. That’s exactly what has been happening for me the last few days. I feel very blessed, very happy to be here racing in front of you guys.
I feel that finally I was able to drive the car, not just talk about it. I feel really a fish in the water. Hopefully I ask just continue to have fun and continue to enjoy this moment. We’re making history right now together. Not just NASCAR, not just me, but the entire country of Mexico.
This is something very special, and it’s also a very good example when these two countries work together, the sky is the limit. I think that it’s a great example of the work that NASCAR and Mexico Series and all the promoters have been doing together.”
With all the stuff going on this week, how hard has it been to focus in for practice and qualifying this weekend, and how are you feeling for Sunday’s race?
DANIEL SUAREZ: “Honestly, a lot of people has been worried about that, but I haven’t. I have had a plan in my mind of what I was going to do, and I’ve been following that plan since Tuesday.
You know, you have no idea how many people has been telling me, Daniel, you’re going to be burned out. Daniel, slow down a little bit. I know, I have a plan in my mind, and I already know what I need to do, how much to push. I’m just enjoying it.
I’m like a kid on Christmas. That’s why you guys see me with a smile pretty much everywhere I go. It’s been a blast so far. Like I said, this is just getting started. This is only the first day of the weekend.”
I want to do English and Spanish. I want to start with Ross. How has it been adapting physically to Mexico City? One thing is what they tell you it’s going to be like, and the second it’s ride in the car. I guess the second one is, how are the Spanish lessons going with Daniel?
ROSS CHASTAIN: “No Spanish lessons. I’m honest with everybody. I didn’t even try. I know a lot of people that I know, they say, Oh, I’m going to try, I’ve got an app. No, not me.
And I don’t feel very good, I’ll be honest. I’ve had a headache ever since I woke up the first morning. I did go for a run, and I had to run slower at a higher heart rate than normal.
Yeah, I mean, I feel tired, and we haven’t done a whole lot. I’m ready for bed right now after a Frosty. Yeah, I feel pretty bad, honestly.”
DANIEL SUAREZ: “You want a Chamoy Frosty, like the one that you tried of myself?”
ROSS CHASTAIN: “No. Actually, I want a Baconator, if I’m being honest.”
Daniel, so much build-up for you this week, and then your team nearly doesn’t get here, and some of them aren’t even here yet. What were your emotions the last 24 hours knowing you might be without some team members, who knew if your car was getting on track, what NASCAR was going to do, or did you just say, What happens, happens?
DANIEL SUAREZ: “Listen, one of my main mechanics is not here yet. All my engineers are not here yet. So definitely today we’re running, limping a little bit (laughing), but I love adversity. I love it.
You put me against the world, and I’m going to come at you swinging, and my team is the same way. I’m good with it. This is just going to be a better story.
You know, we win on Sunday, and then we’re going to be laughing about, Hey, hey, we almost didn’t make practice (laughing). I’m okay with it.
It’s a shame that it happened, but we don’t blame anyone. We just find solutions, and we continue to move forward.”
For both of you, what needs to happen after these practices today between now and Sunday for you have a chance to win on Sunday?
DANIEL SUAREZ: “Well, for me it’s everything about execution, you know, and continue to improve our race cars. My car in the first practice, I was not happy at all with it, but second practice I was okay with it. I’m not — I’m happier. I’m not super happy, but I’m happier.
So I’m okay with it. I’m okay starting here and making progress here. Now we have to continue to make the car a little bit better. I don’t believe that we fire up as the best car, but I believe that we are slowly heading into that group of cars.
So once we get into that group of cars, it’s a free game. You know, it’s anyone’s race. I feel like my job is to continue to push our groups to continue to make these cars better and execute the best possible race that we can.
Tomorrow is going to be qualifying, and then on Sunday it’s going to be a (indiscernible) and everything in between. So it’s going to be just important to execute the best possible weekend that we can possibly do.”
ROSS CHASTAIN: “Qualify. I have to qualify good. Or we have to play the strategy to put me up there on equal tires because how do you do that? I don’t know.
So it all goes to qualifying for me, and then we’ll figure it out in the race. Then from the driving, like, feedback side, I have the two best road course drivers in the garage, so I don’t give my team much feedback at these places. I’m, like, Please build it like theirs. Whatever you think they say is better, do it. I’ll just go drive it.
You saw me — I don’t know if you saw. It was chaotic, but I was trying to follow SVG in first practice. Couldn’t find him. He didn’t have a spotter, so he wasn’t even on the track. So I found Daniel and followed him.
Actually, I got confident to drive by myself, which I usually need, like, Rudolph out there in front of me.”
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.
Toyota GAZOO Racing – Bubba Wallace NASCAR Cup Series Quotes
MEXICO CITY (June 13, 2025) – 23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace was made available to the media on Friday prior to this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.
BUBBA WALLACE, No. 23 Chumba Casino Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing
What motivates you to be one of the fan favorite drivers based on your liveries?
“That’s a good question. I think our team does a really good job with our partners – to represent, one, the brand the right way, but also, in just a fun, innovative way that are different, and not your same traditional things that you have been seeing – whether it is plastered around the town or just things you have seen over the years. I think we do a really good job – all of our paint schemes on all of our cars for the most part are really, really sharp and out there, and different and that’s what we want to be. We are big on being different.”
Has your mindset changed going into road courses now?
“Yeah, for sure. I mean, I’ve always said – no matter how pissed off I was after practice or qualifying or a race on a road course in years past, I always said that I enjoyed them because it was different. It’s not just turning left and the same old stuff that we are used to. It was just when the competitive side kicked in, which was always lap one, it was really hard for me to find the enjoyment inside said weekend. When you look at Chicago, we’ve been fast every time we’ve unloaded – bad luck has struck twice there. ROVAL – really good finishes there, multiple top-10 finishes there I believe, always have speed there. Hell, COTA qualified second this year – it is starting to click. It takes me back to 2018, my rookie year – Kasey Kahne was driving the 95 car, and we were sitting down in the drivers meeting, I had qualified next to last or something and he walks up and says, I was in the same boat once, and all of a sudden it just clicked and I think he has won a couple of road course races – I think he won at Sonoma one year. Like you don’t know what it is, but it just clicks. I feel like we are in that transition period where it is clicking, we are putting a lot of work and a lot of prep into every road course weekend, we are already starting to prep for Chicago coming up, prepped for this for the last month and change, so yeah, I embrace it every time it comes up because it is a race. There is points on the line, and I don’t have the mindset to just ride around with the top down. I might suck but I’m going to give it my all, and I think that is where I would get in trouble before, is I would try too hard with no plan – I’m just like let’s see if this works, and it doesn’t, and so now, kind of understanding where to position the car and what to do on five-lap tires versus 20-lap tires is different now. I have all of those bullet points built up, so all that being said – excited to get on track. Looking forward to it. For me, it’s just another opportunity another set of downs to go and capitalize on.”
What should we call you now?
“Whatever you want. I’m embracing it. I’m having a good time. Being down here has been a lot of fun. I think, honestly, I’m excited to see (Daniel) Suarez in his element. Away from the race track and embracing his home culture – like I can’t imagine how big this is for him, and I get joy out of just thinking about that for him. I’ve seen Ryan’s (Blaney) video this morning, and there is one rule this week – is to not wreck Suarez, and I’m like I didn’t think about that, but definitely adopting that rule too.”
When did you get here and what have you enjoyed so far?
“We got here on Wednesday afternoon, and Thursday morning, Mobil 1, a partner of ours – we had an early morning and spent time on a Trajineras, hopefully, I said that right to my locals here. Did some racing on the water with Ruben – that was a lot of fun and just got to dive deeper into the Mexican culture and understand eating different foods and candies. They love their spice here, and it is good. I think the spice levels here compared to back home in the States – is they will bring out three different sauces, right, and they will be like this one is good, this one is medium and this one is really hot – they warn you beforehand, and we do the same – this one is really hot, well when you get home, ours is stupid hot – no flavor, nothing at all. Their hottest one has a decent kick to it, but it has a tremendous amount of flavor to go with it, and so I’m like they are doing it right down here. I do appreciate that fact. I think we are just looking for who can be in the most pain in the States, and that is good for us (laughter). “
Where did you get the mask?
“I was just handed it as I was walking over here from NASCAR themselves. The NASCAR team gave this to me, so I appreciate that.”
Can you talk about the track limits and the tire packs?
“So, to the tire packs, I will answer that really quick because we were just talking about that in the hauler, I think it is good for us. Us Cup drivers, we push to find the limits of the race cars and the race tracks, and it seems like we are always revamping the race tracks to meet the driver’s needs – like, well the track needs to be wider here for us. Slow down, slow down and we can make the corner. We are taking a race track and making it – cup cars 2.0 and it doesn’t make sense to me, so I was a big fan of the tire packs. It forces you to stay on the track limits and I spent the majority of my time on the sim, staying tidy and staying on the racing surface, and I think hopefully that pays dividends for when we get on track later. But I’m a big fan of the tire packs, keeping us on line and keeping us on the racing surface.”
Do you think NASCAR is ready to go to other countries, and which country should they go to?
“I think this is a massive step to be in this demographic, in this market. I think if we can work out the kinks of logistics and traveling – we’ve all seen the traffic nightmares that some teams have had over the last 24 hours. I think if we can all come together and come up with some solid plan that we won’t have to run into that issue again. Nothing is ever the same. I think it can be done. I think the leadership has done a good job with everything that is in place for us to get here and put on an event for the local crowd here in Mexico. The real answer to that will be post-race once we all see it all – like this is my first couple of hours on the race track grounds, and I’ve enjoyed it so far. I’ve enjoyed being away from the race track, I’ve enjoyed my time at the race track, so there is no reason that we can’t create this environment somewhere else across the seas – it’s just the logistics of it all is really, really hard. I know the teams go through a lot of stress. Our truck drivers are the real heroes for this week traveling 2500 miles, or somewhere around that number if I’m correct, just to not go home and have an off weekend, we go right back to Pocono – it is still game on for the next several weeks. Logistics need to be worked out for sure, but I think we can do it.”
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NASCAR Cup Series Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez Team Chevy Driver Quotes June 13, 2025
Shane van Gisbergen, driver of the No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series race weekend at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.
Media Availability Quotes:
Walk us through your travel day getting here and what that was like…
“Yeah, it wasn’t real fun. Yesterday was a long day. But yeah, pretty scary when the plane launched itself on take-off.
But yeah, they stopped and were trying to just get another plane. And then it was first thing this morning, so early start this morning. I think we got up at 3:30 a.m. at home and got on an early flight down here.”
Shane, welcome to Mexico. I know the road course is more like your Australian style for your career. How do you feel about this road course?
“Yeah, it’s cool to be here. Always good to come to a new track. I haven’t been here before and trying to study the place and learn what it’s like. Unfortunately, I missed the track walk this morning, so the first look will be on the drive around. But yeah, it looks great. Should be some good racing. Nice to have a little break from the ovals for me, even though we’ve been getting a lot better the last few weeks. We’ve got a good run of road courses coming up. Time for us to start getting some good results. Looking forward to putting some good races together, and hopefully this weekend being competitive.”
Do you feel behind at all? There’s only a few guys working on your car right now…
“Not really. They’ve got it all pretty under control. Obviously, it’s not ideal, but it’s fine. Thankfully, practice being delayed has given us more than enough time to get everything sorted. It’s fine.”
Are you good with the way NASCAR has handled this whole situation?
“Yeah, I’m fine with it. You can’t predict that kind of stuff happening. You know, there’s so many moving parts. I think what they got us, everyone’s down here now. I think it’s all the important people, I guess, needed for today, so I think they’ve done a good job salvaging it.”
I saw Ryan Ellis was also on that plane. He said your way to take off speed, all of a sudden you hit the brakes, and you heard the boom. He likened it to a bunch of crazy people that hit walls for a living… o one really panicked. What was your take on the way that everybody on the plane acted, and what happened?
“Yeah, I don’t know. I guess it’s a big deal when you think about it, but I’m not really too fussed about it. I’m already focused on today. But yeah, obviously not ideal, but it happened and we fixed it.”
Shane, after you went to Chicago and won that race, and that was a new circuit to everybody else in the field, there’s a lot of speculation that you’re going to have an edge or be the favorite here this weekend. Do you agree with that at all?
“I don’t know, that’s your guys’ jobs, but I do know that we will be competitive if we get everything right. It’s so hard to know what the car’s going to be like – it’s a different track, how it’s going to be affected by the altitude and the surface. Watching those NASCAR Mexico cars drive around, they look like they’re driving on ice. It’s going to be interesting to feel what our cars are like in these conditions. But yeah, we should be up front. These are the types of tracks I’m good at, so we’ll see.”
There’s the potential of rain, as well. Is that something you actively root for, given your proficiency there?
“I absolutely hate racing in the rain, but I’m good at it. I’d rather it didn’t rain, but if it happens, we put the wets on and go.”
You say you hate it. Clearly, you’ve proven you’re really good at it. How can you hate something that you’re very good at?
“I just don’t enjoy it. It’s just never fun. You’re always sliding around, and it just turns stuff into chaos. It’s fun to watch, but I don’t really enjoy driving.”
And then kind of a big-picture question… How would you evaluate where you are in your transition to a full-time NASCAR career?
“Yeah, it’s been definitely a big upswing the last few weeks. I feel like I’ve had to start again.
Last year taught me a lot and helped me get acclimated into American racing, but the cars are just chalk and cheese different. There’s no comparison to how they drive; how they react in the air. I feel like I’m learning everything again. I went to Nashville the other weekend and the cars drive nowhere similar. I feel like I’m not a complete rookie altogether, but the results are improving and the pace is getting better. I feel like we’re not forcing it. I’m not doing stupid stuff trying to keep up every week. I think we’re being methodical; getting better every week, learning our processes and our genuine competitiveness has gotten a lot better. We’ve been frustrated with 18th or whatever it’s been the last couple of weeks because we had potential to be at the back end of the top-10 or 15th, which is a decent result for how it’s been going. If we keep progressing on the ovals and with these road courses coming up, anything can happen. I’m relatively happy.
Justin has been amazing in supporting me and just giving me all the time I need and not putting pressure on me. It’s been really cool.”
My question is kind of along those lines, but the progress that you’ve made on the ovals and the confidence obviously that you’re picking up, is it good to take a break and go on a road course, or do you kind of wish you were still only going over the ovals, or is this kind of a good spot to come for you to continue with the confidence?
“A bit of everything. You just feel the confidence in the team and even the pit crew guys. Everyone’s just uplifted the last few weeks. Not that everyone was down, but it was a bit of a grind. The last few weeks, things have started to come a lot easier. Our pit stop averages are much quicker. Just all the simple things were getting a lot better and better. My restarts are finally in the positive, with it being well negative for the first half of the year. Every single area, we seem to be getting a lot better in, so it’s been fun.”
On the stretch of road courses coming up to end the regular season…
“It feels like a holiday for me, I guess. Yeah, it’ll be fun. There’s some good tracks coming up. Sonoma, I haven’t raced a Cup car at, but looking forward to that. Obviously I’ll be in a competitive Xfinity car, as well, to do some fun races. Looking forward to being out there.”
I understand you haven’t been on the track, but what are you curious to see on track and how it compares to the sims, since that’s your only point of reference at this point?
“Yeah, we didn’t do all that much sim racing. Just study as much film as I can. There was a TCR race here not long ago, trying to understand what they can do. But it’s more about the bundles and how they’re going to move. And then also there’s some corners that don’t have bundles, how they’re going to police them, and if you can use the curbs. But the best thing is, which I really enjoy, is the long practices. We get time to try some stuff, not only with car setup, but with driving. Every time we’ve had a long practice, I’ve been at my most competitive, especially on ovals, as well. So yeah, I’d love if we had more weekends like this, where we could try some stuff and play with the cars a bit more.”
What might it be like to race your teammate Daniel (Suarez) for the win at this place, and how aggressive could you be, or how easy would it be, to put it out of line that it’s Daniel and it’s just another car?
“Yeah, when you’ve got the helmet on, I normally have no problem with whoever it is. Obviously, you’d race your teammates a bit with a little bit more leniency. But yeah, if I spin out the No. 99, I’ll be hiding under cover trying to get out of this place (laughs). But I won’t be doing that.”
You talked about the ovals, and you talked about the other courses, but next week we’re at the Triangle. Have you studied Pocono at all, or are you prepared for that?
“Yeah, I enjoyed that place last year. It was very difficult, that track. It’s so hard to get in the rhythm, and every corner was different, but it was awesome. The speed that you’re going down into turn one is crazy. So yeah, I’m looking forward to that track. I like the variety of our schedule. You’re not just doing mile-and-a-halves every week, every track, and the style of the racetrack is so different. So yeah, you never get bored of what we do in this series, so I’m looking forward to that.”
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