Ontario, a bustling city in California, sits at the heart of the Inland Empire. With a population exceeding 175,000, this thriving area is a major hub for transportation, logistics, and commerce.
The Ontario International Airport fuels economic growth, while a vast network of highways keeps traffic flowing. Rideshare services remain popular among residents and visitors, leading to frequent Lyft-related accidents.
Determining liability in a Lyft accident involves multiple factors. Drivers, passengers, other motorists, and even the rideshare company might have a role to play. Insurance policies, state regulations, and the driver’s status during the accident all impact a claim. An Ontario Lyft accident attorney helps victims sort through these legal complexities to secure fair compensation.
This piece breaks down liability in Lyft accidents and explains how victims protect their rights after a crash. Read on.
Lyft Driver Liability
A Lyft driver holds responsibility if reckless or negligent behavior causes an accident. Speeding, running red lights, distracted driving, or driving under the influence creates grounds for liability. Drivers must follow all traffic laws and prioritize passenger and pedestrian safety.
Victims may seek compensation through the insurance policy if a Lyft driver causes a crash while actively transporting a rider. However, if the driver was off-duty or using their vehicle for personal reasons, their auto insurance applies instead.
Lyft’s Insurance Coverage
Lyft provides insurance coverage based on a driver’s status during the accident. If the driver operates the vehicle while off-duty, personal auto insurance applies. Lyft provides limited coverage if the driver has the app on but has not approved a ride. If the driver has approved a ride or has a passenger in the car, Lyft’s entire insurance policy takes effect.
These coverage levels determine where compensation comes from and who is financially responsible. Lyft’s insurance covers medical expenses, property damage, and other losses under specific conditions. Victims must review these policies carefully to ensure fair compensation.
Third-Party Driver Responsibility
Not all Lyft accidents result from the actions of the rideshare driver. If another driver collides with the Lyft vehicle, their insurance policy carries responsibility. Victims must collect information from all parties and gather evidence to support their claims.
A third-party driver may bear full or partial liability if they engage in reckless driving, fail to yield, or ignore traffic signals. When multiple drivers contribute to an accident, liability becomes more complex, requiring thorough documentation and witness statements.
Pedestrian and Cyclist Accidents Involving Lyft Vehicles
Lyft drivers must share the road with pedestrians and cyclists. If a rideshare driver strikes someone due to distracted or reckless driving, they bear responsibility. If another motorist’s negligence forces a Lyft driver into a pedestrian or cyclist, liability shifts to that driver.
Pedestrians and cyclists who participate in an accident with a Lyft vehicle should report the crash immediately, seek medical care, and gather witness statements. Establishing liability often depends on traffic camera footage, police reports, and medical records.
Employer Liability in a Lyft Crash
Lyft classifies its drivers as independent contractors, reducing its direct liability. However, certain situations shift responsibility to Lyft. If the company fails to screen drivers properly or allows unsafe individuals to remain active, victims have grounds for a case against the company.
If Lyft knowingly hires drivers with a history of reckless behavior, they may share responsibility for an accident. Investigating the driver’s background, prior complaints, and company policies can reveal if Lyft contributed to the crash.
In conclusion, liability in a Lyft accident depends on several factors, including driver actions, third-party involvement, and company policies. Victims must determine responsibility to secure fair compensation, substantial evidence, and a clear claim to increase the chances of a successful outcome. Holding the proper party accountable ensures victims receive the financial support needed for recovery.
Christopher Bell found himself at the right place at the right time to win the Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday, February 23, following a wild overtime finish.
The 2024 Coca-Cola 600 champion from Norman, Oklahoma, led only the final lap of 266 over-scheduled laps in an event where he qualified in 32nd place but kept his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota entry intact through a multitude of on-track actions that featured 50 lead changes and a multitude of competitors racing across multiple lanes to gain any advantage and draft to the front.
After navigating his way through four incidents throughout the final stage period, Bell, who restarted in fourth place at the start of the event’s single overtime shootout, drafted Kyle Larson on the outside lane for nearly a full lap before Larson transitioned to the inside lane. This allowed Bell to draw even and duel with Larson at the start of the final lap.
Bell would continue to duel with Larson through the first two turns before he then received a big push from Carson Hocevar to storm ahead of Larson. Seconds later, the event concluded under caution due to a multi-car wreck on the backstretch. At the moment of caution, Bell was shown to be ahead of both Hocevar and Larson with the lead. As a result, he was awarded the first NASCAR Cup Series victory of the 2025 season for himself, Joe Gibbs Racing and the Toyota nameplate.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, February 22, Ryan Blaney notched his first Cup pole position of the 2025 season after he posted a pole-winning lap at 179.371 mph in 30.908 seconds. Joining him on the front row was teammate Austin Cindric, who clocked in his best qualifying lap at 179.359 mph in 30.910 seconds.
When the green flag waved and the event commenced, teammates Ryan Blaney and Austin Cindric dueled through the first two turns until Cindric gained an advantage from the inside lane entering the backstretch. Blaney would try to muscle back from the outside lane through Turns 3 and 4, but Cindric would proceed to lead the first lap in front of two-stacked lanes.
Over the next four laps, Cindric would fend off a hard-charging Josh Berry and two-stacked lanes that included his Team Penske teammates Blaney and Joey Logano to retain the lead. Following the fifth lap period, a bevy of three wide actions within the midfield region occurred while a majority of the competitors racing towards the front migrated towards the outside lane.
Amid the long single-file line towards the outside lane, Cindric continued to lead in his No. 2 Menards Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry by the 10th lap while Berry, Blaney, Logano, Todd Gilliland, Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, Chris Buescher, Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick followed suit in the top 10, respectively.
Through the first 20 scheduled laps, the top 14 competitors were separated by less than one second of one another while the top 25 were separated by two seconds. Amid the action, Cindric continued to lead both the overall event and a long line of competitors racing toward the outside wall. Behind, Berry, Gilliland and William Byron followed suit on the outside lane while Logano was trying to mount a charge from the inside lane. Gilliland would then move to the inside lane and challenge Cindric for the lead through the first two turns a lap later.
Cindric, however, would maintain the top spot over Gilliland, Berry and Logano over the following two laps before Gilliland, who swapped lanes with Cindric, used the outside lane to lead for the first time in his No. 34 Aaron’s Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry on Lap 24.
At the Lap 30 mark, Cindric, who reassumed the lead from Gilliland four laps earlier, was leading ahead of Ford teammates Berry, Logano and Gilliland while Bubba Wallace, the highest-starting Toyota competitor, cracked the top five in fifth place. Meanwhile and as both Cindric and Berry dueled for the lead, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, William Byron, Blaney and Tyler Reddick followed suit in the top 10 while Carson Hocevar, Kyle Busch, AJ Allmendinger, Ryan Preece, Alex Bowman, Chase Elliott, AJ Allmendinger, John Hunter Nemechek, Christopher Bell, Chris Buescher and Erik Jones all jostled within the top-20 mark.
By Lap 35, Berry, who reassumed the lead from Cindric two laps earlier, was leading ahead of both Cindric and Gilliland while Keselowski and Logano were in the top five. By then, a series of two-wide actions towards the front ensued as Wallace, Byron and Larson would all overtake Keselowski for top-six spots. With all 39 starters being separated by within seven seconds, Berry continued to lead at the Lap 45 mark.
Just past the Lap 50 mark, Berry retained the lead over Cindric as Byron, Wallace and Reddick followed suit in the top five, respectively. By then, Hocevar carved his way up to sixth place as Logano, Gilliland, Busch and Elliott were racing in the top 10. With the field racing in two-stacked lanes, Wallace tried to duel with Berry for the lead a lap later, but Berry muscled back to the front due to Wallace not having any drafting help.
As Wallace transitioned back up to the outside lane within the top-five mark on the track, Gilliland would be the lead competitor on the inside lane as he tried to mount to the front. Elliott would then move in front of Gilliland and lead the inside lane as he challenged Wallace for fourth place while Berry led at the Lap 55 mark.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 60, Berry, who retained the lead over the previous four laps, fended off the field to claim his first Cup victory of the 2025 season. Cindric, Byron, Wallace and Elliott followed suit in the top five while Reddick, Gilliland, Blaney, Hocevar and Logano were scored in the top 10, respectively. By then, all 39 starters were still scored on the lead lap while the event featured five lead changes for three different leaders.
Under the stage break, nearly the entire lead lap field led by Berry pitted for a first round of service, primarily involving four tires and fuel, while the rest that included Cody Ware, BJ McLeod and JJ Yeley remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Logano exited pit road first as he was followed by Berry, Cindric, Reddick, Byron, Elliott, Bowman, Blaney, Hocevar and Keselowski, respectively.
Amid the pit stops, Bowman made contact with Cindric while trying to exit his pit stall. In addition, Keselowski was sent to the rear of the field due to removing his gas can from his pit stall while Michael McDowell, who lost pace with the field prior to the first stage’s conclusion, took his car to the garage due to a power steering issue.
The second stage period started on Lap 68 as Berry and Logano occupied the front row. At the start, both dueled for the lead through the first two turns before Logano barely moved ahead with drafting help from teammate Cindric on the outside lane. Berry, however, fought back from the inside lane as he was being followed by Byron, but Logano would manage to lead the following lap by a hair. Logano would proceed to lead at the Lap 70 and 75 marks while the field behind pursued amid two- and three-stacked drafting lanes.
On Lap 81, the caution flew when Ty Dillon, who was racing at the rear of the field, slid sideways due to losing a right-rear tire and spun to the bottom of the apron in between Turns 3 and 4, where he then blew a right-front tire and damaged his quarter panel in the process. Unable to pull away from his wreckage scene, Dillon would have his No. 10 Sea Best Chevrolet entry towed back to the garage. By then, Logano had maintained the lead over Berry, Cindric, Gilliland, Bowman and the rest of the field that was stacked up to two lanes.
During the caution period, nearly the entire field led by Logano returned to pit road for another round of pit service, primarily for fuel, while BJ McLeod remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Logano retained the lead by exiting pit road as he was followed by Berry, Bowman, Byron, Gilliland, Reddick, Cindric, Larson, Blaney and Wallace, respectively, while Denny Hamlin was penalized for driving through too many pit stalls. Not long after, McLeod pitted as Logano cycled back into the lead.
As the event restarted under green on Lap 88, Logano and Bowman, the latter of whom moved up to restart on the front row, briefly dueled before the former muscled ahead. Through the backstretch, Gilliland would carve his way into a battle with Bowman for the runner-up spot. As Logano led the following lap, Gilliland mounted a charge to Logano from the inside lane while Bowman, Byron and Larson all lined up behind Logano on the outside lane.
Meanwhile, Gilliland had Cindric, Wallace and Berry drafting him as he would nearly claim the lead over Logano on Lap 93. Amid the battles, Reddick, who was battling for a top-10 spot, barely scrubbed his No. 45 Xfinity Toyota Camry XSE entry towards the outside wall entering the frontstretch, but he proceeded without drawing a caution as both Logano and Gilliland dueled for the lead through Lap 95.
By Lap 100, the top 27 competitors were racing within one second of another while the top 15 were separated by less than a second. Amid the drafts and on-track battles, Logano led Gilliland, Cindric, Bowman and Wallace, respectively, while Byron, Hocevar, Larson, Blaney and Elliott were scored in the top 10 ahead of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Berry, Reddick, Bell and Preece.
A lap later, the caution returned when Erik Jones, who was racing in 20th place and briefly had to step out of the gas to avoid hitting rookie Riley Herbst, made contact with Chris Buescher in Turn 2 as Jones spun his No. 43 AdventHealth Toyota Camry XSE entry below the track and hit the backstretch’s inside wall while also flat-spotting his tires. The damage was enough for Jones to have his car towed back to the garage.
During the caution period, some including Kyle Busch, Noah Gragson, Zane Smith, AJ Allmendinger, Cole Custer and Hamlin pitted while the rest led by Logano remained on the track.
When the event restarted under green on Lap 107, Gilliland was pushed by Bowman ahead of Logano as both would move in front of Logano towards the outside wall through the backstretch. As Gilliland led the following lap, Logano transitioned to the inside lane and he rocketed back ahead of Gilliland with drafting help from teammate Cindric. Gilliland crossed back over to the inside lane through the first two turns, but he had no drafting help as Logano stormed back ahead and led to the Lap 110 mark.
By Lap 120, a majority of competitors posted their fastest lap times of the event and a majority of the front-runners were racing in two-stacked lanes as Logano continued to lead ahead of teammate Cindric, Bowman, Gilliland and Berry. Hocevar would then flirt for a top-five spot over Berry as Wallace, Larson, Elliott and Byron followed suit in the top 10. With Reddick, Keselowski, Ross Chastain, Blaney, Ty Gibbs, Busch, Stenhouse, Bell, Chase Briscoe and Noah Gragson battling within the top-20 mark, Logano led at the Lap 125 mark.
At the halfway mark on Lap 130, Logano maintained a steady lead over teammate Cindric, Gilliland, Bowman, Larson, Wallace, Hocevar, Byron, Elliott and Berry, respectively, as a majority of the competitors racing towards the front had fanned out to multiple lanes and were using the draft to try and charge to the front. By then, the top 23 competitors were racing within one second of another.
Four laps later, the caution returned when Gilliland, who was racing in fourth place, had a flat right-rear tire, which caused him to fall off the pace through the frontstretch, and scattered debris across the backstretch while trying to limp his No. 34 Aaron’s Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry back to pit road. During the caution period, some led by Elliott pitted while the rest led by Logano remained on the track.
With the race restarting under green with 20 laps remaining in the second stage period, Logano received a push from teammate Cindric to draft ahead of Bowman entering the first turn. As Bowman tried to fight back from the outside lane with drafting help from teammate Kyle Larson, Logano tried to move up the track to block Bowman, but Bowman would lead the following lap. With the field stacked up, Logano would both return and retain the top spot over Bowman, Cindric, Hocevar, Larson and Blaney over the next four laps.
Then with 12 laps remaining in the second stage period, the caution flew when Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who was dueling fiercely with Chase Briscoe for a top-10 spot as both were racing behind Blaney, made slight contact with Briscoe that got Stenhouse loose and sliding up the track, where he forced Chase Elliott into the outside wall entering the frontstretch.
After scraping the wall, Elliott was trying to keep his No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet driving straight before he barely clipped Corey LaJoie and veered back towards the outside wall past the start/finish line. In the ensuing mayhem, he was hit by Brad Keselowski. During the caution period, some led by Chase Briscoe pitted while the rest led by Logano remained on the track.
With four laps remaining in the second stage period, the event restarted under green as Logano received another push from teammate Cindric to launch ahead through the first two turns. With the field fanning out as those who pitted were trying to scramble to the front, Bowman challenged Logano for the lead from the outside lane. Bowman would then receive a push from teammate Larson exiting the backstretch to move ahead of Logano with two laps remaining in the second stage period.
During the final lap of the second stage period, Larson started to duel with teammate Bowman for the lead as Logano drove up to Bowman’s rear end through the frontstretch. Then following the first two turns, the field fanned out through the backstretch as Larson powered his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet entry into the lead. By then, Bowman was pinned in the middle lane while Wallace, Logano, Byron and Cindric boosted themselves to the front in pursuit of Larson.
As the field continued to fan out through the frontstretch, Larson fended off the competition to capture his first Cup stage victory of the 2025 season and his first on a superspeedway venue. Wallace carved his way into second place as he was followed by Logano, Byron, Bowman, Reddick, Hocevar, Stenhouse, Cindric and Gragson, respectively. By then, the event featured 24 lead changes for eight different leaders while 33 of 39 starters were scored on the lead lap.
During the stage break, the front-runners led by Larson pitted while the rest led by Briscoe, who was among several who opted to pit before the second stage’s conclusion, pitted.
With 92 laps remaining, the final stage period commenced as Briscoe and Ross Chastain occupied the front row. At the start, Briscoe launched his No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry XSE entry ahead, where he then blocked Chastain to maintain the lead through the first two turns. Through the backstretch, however, Chastain and teammate Shane van Gisbergen rocketed to the front as Chastain overtook Briscoe and led the following lap. With Chastain leading, van Gisbergen pursued in second ahead of Busch, Buescher and Austin Dillon while Briscoe was mired in sixth with 90 laps remaining.
With 80 laps remaining, the field fanned out to three tight-packed lanes as Chastain, who led the 10 previous laps, was barely leading ahead of Busch and van Gisbergen while Buescher, Austin Dillon, Briscoe, Berry, Herbst, Nemechek and Bell, the latter of whom scraped the wall two laps earlier, all pursued in the top-10 mark. Meanwhile, initial front-runners that included Wallace and Logano were mired within the top-20 mark and Cindric had carved his way back into the top-10 mark as van Gisbergen started to challenge teammate Chastain for the lead.
Then with 77 laps remaining, the caution returned when Daniel Suarez, the reigning spring Atlanta winner, made contact with Ty Gibbs entering the frontstretch while battling just outside of the top-20 mark. The contact sent Suarez’s No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet entry bouncing against the outside wall before he was hit again by Gibbs and sent spinning in the middle of the track.
As the field scattered to avoid Suarez, the latter was clipped by Noah Gragson before he was hit by Cole Custer, Cody Ware and JJ Yeley. During the caution period, the lead lap field returned to pit road, where Busch exited pit road first ahead of Briscoe, Byron, Blaney, Austin Dillon, Cindric, Berry, Buescher, Reddick and van Gisbergen.
During the next restart with 68 laps remaining, Busch and Briscoe occupied the front row, where Busch received a strong push from Byron from the inside lane to storm his No. 8 Cheddar’s Chevrolet entry into the lead. Then as the field fanned out, Byron navigated his way past Busch as he led the following lap while Briscoe pursued with Busch. The field would then get jumbled in a three-wide formation over the next three laps as Byron, who kept battling with Busch, retained the lead. Soon after, Berry would navigate his No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry back into the lead with 60 laps remaining.
With nearly 55 laps remaining, the caution returned due to another multi-car wreck that started when Briscoe scrubbed the outside wall entering Turn 3 while racing in the top six. Despite keeping his car straight, Briscoe was then trying to maintain pace and fend off Buescher when he made contact with the latter.
As a result, Buescher got turned sideways in front of Bell and spun his No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry into the path of Bowman’s No. 48 Ally Chevrolet entry, which damaged both competitors’ entries as Bowman was pushing Buescher’s entry that was spinning sideways. Meanwhile, Ty Gibbs spun in the backstretch.
The start of the next restart with 48 laps remaining featured Berry and Busch dueling in front of the field for the lead. Amid their battles, Berry would muscle ahead and lead the following lap before Busch surged ahead. With Busch leading, he then went into defensive mode to fend off charges from both Chastain and Berry through two-stacked lanes. With spotter Derek Kneeland navigating Busch and giving his driver instructions on where and when to block, Busch proceeded to lead with 45 laps remaining.
With less than 40 laps remaining, Busch maintained the lead ahead of Blaney, Berry, Bell and Chastain, respectively, while Preece, Hocevar, Cindric, Byron, van Gisbergen, Larson and Reddick followed suit within the top 12. Blaney would then make his way beneath Busch exiting the backstretch with 37 laps remaining and he moved into the lead. The following lap, Chastain slid in front of Blaney as he moved into the lead. Berry would then move back into the lead with 33 laps remaining and he would retain the top spot in front of a fanned-out field with 30 laps remaining.
Then with 27 laps remaining, the caution flew due to Blaney getting bumped by Hocevar and sliding his No. 12 BodyArmor Zero Sugar Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry below the apron in Turn 1. Amid his spin, Blaney managed to avoid veering back across the track in front of the field and he continued, though he was quick to vent his displeasure towards Hocevar.
The start of the next restart period with 22 laps remaining featured Berry and Chastain occupying the front row, where both dueled in front of two lanes. Chastain proceeded to lead next lap before Larson rocketed his way to the front. With Larson leading, Hocevar navigated his way into second place followed by Cindric, Chastain and Berry before Hocevar assumed the lead with 20 laps remaining.
Cindric then passed Hocevar to lead during the following lap and he would proceed to lead with 15 laps remaining while the majority of the field started to migrate in a single-file line towards the outside wall.
Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Cindric continued to lead a stacked field as he was pursued by Berry, Larson, Chastain, Byron, Wallace, Reddick, Hamlin, Bell and Busch, respectively. With a majority of the front-runners racing in single-line formation while those in the mid-pack region fanned out to nearly three lanes through every turn and straightaway,
Bell, who was in the top 10, launched his way to the front as he was being drafted by Blaney. Chastain would also make a move to the inside lane and he would make contact with Berry. With Chastain falling back, Bell moved to within the top-three mark and he would overtake Berry for the runner-up spot while Cindric maintained the lead with five laps remaining.
Then with three laps remaining, the caution flew when Larson, who was starting to muscle ahead of Cindric from the inside lane through the first two turns and amid a side-by-side battle, slowly drifted up the track and forced Cindric wide before the latter hit the outside wall. As a result, Byron made contact with Cindric and both were sent spinning and hitting the backstretch’s outside wall head-on. The wreck sent the event into overtime as Larson escaped with the lead, where he was followed by Chastain, Bell, Hocevar and Berry.
The start of an overtime shootout featured Larson and Chastain dueling for the lead in front of two-stacked lanes, where Chastain was being drafted by Hocevar, Berry and Blaney on the inside lane while Larson had drafting help from Bell, Stenhouse and Hamlin on the outside lane. Through the backstretch, Larson would rocket ahead and Hocevar was split himself in between Bell and Chastain for second place.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Larson remained in the lead by a steady margin before Bell made his move to the outside lane for the lead. Behind, Stenhouse, Berry and Hocevar rubbed for third place, but they kept their cars racing straight as Bell drew even with Larson through the first two turns. With Chastain losing ground and Blaney battling Hocevar for third place, Bell and Larson remained dead even against one another for the lead through the backstretch.
Then exiting the backstretch, Hocevar gained a run on the two leaders and bumped Bell’s No. 20 DeWalt Toyota Camry XSE entry ahead of Larson entering Turn 3. Just as Hocevar was trying to split himself in between Bell and Larson, the caution flew and the event concluded as a multi-car wreck that involved Berry, Justin Haley and Ryan Preece ensued on the backstretch.
Following a review of the footage for when the caution was displayed, Bell was shown to have been the leader over Hocevar and Larson when the caution lights were displayed. Ultimately, this resulted in Bell being declared the event’s winner.
With the victory, Bell notched his 10th NASCAR Cup Series career victory, his first at Atlanta, his first on a superspeedway venue and his first since he won at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in June 2024. The Oklahoma native also recorded the first victory of the 2025 campaign for the Toyota nameplate. The victory was the 215th overall for Joe Gibbs Racing as the organization achieved its first victory at Atlanta since September 2013 with Kyle Busch.
Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“I’ll tell you what, that right there is what you dream of, to be able to restart on the first or second row at a green-white-checkered [shootout] at a speedway,” Bell said on the frontstretch on FOX. “You never know how those things are going to play out, but I’ll be the first to tell you [that] I love superspeedways. This style of racing has just always been a little bit of a struggle for me.
“Throughout the beginning of the day, we were just stuck way in the back. [Crew chief] Adam [Stevens] and these [No. 20] boys back here, they did an amazing job getting this [car] fixed up to where I could just hold my foot down. That’s what it’s all about. You got to be able to stay in the throttle. That last half of the race, we were at our best.”
Meanwhile and as Bell celebrated with his team, Hocevar was confronted by Ross Chastain and Ryan Blaney on pit road as the latter two expressed their displeasure over Hocevar’s aggressive driving and on-track contact. Amid the post-race discussions, Hocevar, the 2024 Cup Series Rookie-of-the-Year recipient, was left pleased in notching a career-best second-place result in his 47th Cup career start.
“There’s some stuff I got to learn and clean up a little bit, but I feel like we put ourselves in the perfect opportunity to try and win a race,” Hocevar said. “I never had that opportunity really before, especially on a superspeedway. Just big thanks to everybody at Spire Motorsports. They deserve all the praise. I just get to hold the wheel and run wide open and try to put myself in a decent spot. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the best spot, but it was just one spot short.”
Like Hocevar, Larson was also left pleased with his third-place finish at Atlanta. The result marked Larson’s career-best result on a superspeedway venue and his best result overall at Atlanta since he finished second in March 2021.
“I don’t know what I did wrong or right [during the overtime finish],” Larson said. “I thought maybe if [Bell] picked me up, he was just gonna push me and get clear of me into [Turn] 1 anyways. I think it kind of worked out OK, and [I] just didn’t get the caution to come out late enough till I got around back to the inside. Came up a little bit short, but proud of the effort today by everybody on our HendrickCars.com Chevy. [I] Finally finished Atlanta and finally got to run up front.”
Ryan Blaney rallied from his late spin to finish in fourth place while Ricky Stenhouse Jr. settled in fifth place. Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Ross Chastain, Bubba Wallace and John Hunter Nemechek completed the top 10 in the final running order.
Notably, Joey Logano settled in 12th place and Todd Gilliland rallied from his tire issue near the conclusion of the second stage period to finish in 15th place while Michael McDowell rallied from being six laps down due to his power steering issue to claim a 13th-place finish. In addition, Riley Herbst was the highest-finishing rookie competitor in 17th place and Josh Berry ended up in 25th place after he was involved in the final lap accident while Austin Cindric fell back to 28th place behind William Byron after his late incident that sent the event into overtime.
There were 50 lead changes for 15 different leaders. The race featured 11 cautions for 61 laps. In addition, 24 of 39 starters finished on the lead lap.
Following the second event of the 2025 Cup Series season, Ryan Blaney leads the regular-season standings by 12 points over William Byron, 15 over Tyler Reddick, 19 over Austin Cindric, 23 over Bubba Wallace and 26 over Kyle Larson, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and John Hunter Nemechek, respectively.
Results:
1. Christopher Bell, one lap led 2. Carson Hocevar 3. Kyle Larson, 12 laps led, Stage 2 winner 4. Ryan Blaney, one lap led 5. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 6. Denny Hamlin 7. Kyle Busch, 13 laps led 8. Ross Chastain, 25 laps led 9. Bubba Wallace 10. John Hunter Nemechek 11. Zane Smith 12. Joey Logano, 83 laps led 13. Michael McDowell 14. AJ Allmendinger 15. Todd Gilliland, seven laps led 16. Austin Dillon 17. Riley Herbst 18. Ryan Preece 19. Tyler Reddick 20. Chase Elliott 21. Chase Briscoe, five laps led 22. BJ McLeod, one lap led 23. Shane van Gisbergen, two laps led 24. Justin Haley 25. Josh Berry – OUT, Accident, 56 laps led, Stage 1 winner 26. Alex Bowman, one lap down 27. William Byron, three laps down 28. Austin Cindric, nine laps down, 47 laps led 29. Ty Dillon, 24 laps down 30. Chris Buescher, 26 laps down 31. Erik Jones, 26 laps down 32. Ty Gibbs – OUT, Accident 33. Daniel Suarez – OUT, Accident 34. Noah Gragson – OUT, Accident 35. Cody Ware – OUT, Accident 36. Cole Custer – OUT, Accident 37. JJ Yeley – OUT, Accident 38. Corey LaJoie – OUT, Accident 39. Brad Keselowski – OUT, Accident
Next on the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the fifth annual EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. The event is scheduled to occur next Sunday, March 2, and air at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Get Bioethanol Chevrolet Team Earn 16th-Place Result at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Finish: 16th Start: 15th Points: 20th
“We had a decent No. 3 Get Bioethanol Chevrolet tonight. We struggled with a tight aero balance early. Richard (Boswell) made good strategy calls that allowed us to run longer on fuel mid-way through the race. The adjustments our team made changed the balance once the sun went down. We were able to make up a lot of track position, had the chance to race inside the top 10, and helped Kyle (Busch) take the lead a few times with pushes. My car handled the best on the bottom and when I had to move up a lane, the car wouldn’t react how I needed it to which cost us positions at the end. To finish 16th with all the craziness that happened in the last 50 laps is a positive we can leave with. The last two races here were not that good, and we still have work to do with our Chevrolet. We can carry this momentum to the Circuit of the Americas next weekend though.” -Austin Dillon
Kyle Busch and the No. 8 Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen Chevrolet Team Score Top-10 Finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Finish: 7th Start: 6th Points: 23rd
“It was a better finish than I thought we were going to get tonight. There were a lot of crashed cars there, so we kind of cycled our way forward with some guys that wrecked out. Overall, the No. 8 Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen Chevrolet had really good speed. I just had a hard time opening it up. When I got back in traffic, worse than third in line, I really had to lift out of the throttle and that was holding me and my lane up. Not a lot of guys were willing to deal with that and have the patience for that, so it shucked us back there a few times. But we were able to rally and get what we could for our Cheddar’s Chevrolet. Just wish we were closer to the front at the end, but that’s where all the wrecks were happening too, so maybe not.” -Kyle Busch
RICK WARE RACING Ambetter Health 400 Date: Feb. 23, 2025 Event: Ambetter Health 400 (Round 2 of 36) Series: NASCAR Cup Series Location: Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia (1.54-mile oval) Format: 260 laps, broken into three stages (60 laps/100 laps/100 laps) Note: Race extended six laps past its scheduled 260-lap distance due to a green-white-checkered finish.
Race Winner: Christopher Bell of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota) Stage 1 Winner: Josh Berry of Wood Brothers Racing (Ford) Stage 2 Winner: Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports (Ford)
RWR Race Finish:
● Cody Ware (Started 31st, Finished 35th / Accident, completed 183 of 266 laps) ● Corey LaJoie (Started 35th, Finished 38th / Accident, completed 149 of 266 laps)
RWR Points:
● Corey LaJoie (32nd with 21 points) ● Cody Ware (37th with four points)
Race Notes:
● Christopher Bell won the Ambetter Health 400 to score his 10th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his first of the season and his first at Atlanta. ● There were 11 caution periods for a total of 62 laps. ● Twenty-four of the 39 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap. ● Ryan Blaney remains the championship leader after Atlanta with a 12-point advantage over second-place William Byron.
Sound Bites:
“I honestly have no idea (what happened). I know that the 99 (Daniel Suárez) was spinning out ahead of us. I felt like we slowed down. I’m not sure if we got hit from behind, but next thing I know, I’m in the outside wall. So just another frustrating weekend of superspeedway racing for the 51 Arby’s team. I felt like we should not have been racing like that at that part of the race, but it is what it is and that’s what this kind of style of racing breeds. So, just thankful to be getting away from superspeedway racing and onto a road course next week at COTA.” – Cody Ware, driver of the No. 51 Arby’s Ford Mustang Dark Horse
“Oh man, we were racing like hell. There’s nothing to get your heart rate up in a racecar more than this. I mean, you can talk about restarts at Dover, where it’s really hectic and stuff’s happening at lightning speed, but man, Atlanta, you have to be so precise and so instinctive with the moves you make. And we were making our way forward. I thought we got our car driving good after the first pit stop and we finally broke into that bubble, that top-20 bubble to where you can start really getting some fresh air, clean air on occasion, and then that is when you can really maneuver. We got there, and we also got there with a pretty decent strategy to then flip some guys and maybe even find ourselves on the edge of the top-10. But something about the 9 (Chase Elliott), I know everybody was kind of gummed up. I was just in line pushing, and next thing I know I went by him, and next thing I know, he caught me in the right rear.” – Corey LaJoie, driver of the No. 01 AirMedCare Network Ford Mustang Dark Horse
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix on Sunday, March 2 at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas. The race begins at 3:30 p.m. EST with live coverage provided by FOX and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
February 23, 2025: Bennett Transportation & Logistics 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Atlanta, Georgia.
(HHP/Blake Harris)
HAMPTON, Ga. (Feb. 23, 2025) – Christopher Bell emerged as the winner of another wild overtime finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway Sunday, as he dueled with Carson Hocevar and Kyle Larson in the closing lap of the Ambetter Health 400.
As the trio of lead cars spread out three-wide half way through the white flag lap, the final caution of the race flew when Josh Berry’s car slammed into the wall back in the pack. Berry won Stage 1 in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford and ran in the front most of the night.
As NASCAR hit the caution button, Bell was in the lead at the time and was declared the winner in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
It was the only lap that Bell led in the race after starting 32nd. He was one of 15 different leaders for a track-record 50 lead changes.
Bell was half-a-car-length ahead of Hocevar and Larson was a couple more inches back as they were charging to the checkered flag.
The win is the first Cup Series victory for Bell on a superspeedway, his first win of the season and 10th win of his career.
“This place is just bonkers and every time we come here it gets wilder and wilder,” Bell said. “It can be risky to be on the top or bottom. You can pick wrong either way. First half of the race I couldn’t do anything right. We kept working on it and then these boys got it tuned up.”
The drama started to unfold as the field charged around the track with four laps to go. As the cars up front shuffled around, Austin Cindric’s machine grazed the outside wall and slid to his left where he made contact with Daytona 500 winner William Byron, who was positioning himself behind teammate Larson to begin pushing him. The two cars careened down the track and brought out a caution to set up the green, white, checker finish.
Larson and Bell were lined up side by side on the final restart and Hocevar, pole winner Ryan Blaney, and Ross Chastain were also in the mix. Bell was in the right place at the right time when caution waved on the white flag lap.
“That right there is what you dream of to restart on the first or second row of a superspeedway race,” Bell said. “I love superspeedways. This style of racing has been a struggle for me. Adam (Stevens, crew chief) and the boys had this car tuned up and I just had to hold my foot to the floor and that’s how you like it. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought I would win a superspeedway race.”
Larson, who won stage two and has also had his struggles with superspeedways, will remain winless on them, but he will take his third-place finish. It’s his third top-five at Atlanta after posting five recent finishes in the 30th place spot or worse.
“Bummer not to get a win,” Larson said. “I’m proud of the effort today by this No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevy team. We had a lot of fun. It was super intense. It was my first legit finish here at Atlanta Motor Speedway since the reconfiguration, so I’ll take it. I feel like we learned a lot and I feel like we can be a lot better with the balance of our racecar to be a little bit more on offense while we are in traffic. We just came up a little bit short. Congratulations to Bell.”
Last year’s Cup Rookie of the Year Hocevar was aggressive in the overtime period and several drivers spoke to him after the race. He says he is still learning but was thrilled to be in the mix at the end.
“Apologies to Larson and Mr. H (Rick Hendrick, team owner),” Hocevar said. “I didn’t realize we weren’t racing back to the line. A little longer and maybe we win the race. I normally ride in the back and run last and try to get a decent finish. There’s some stuff I have to learn and clean up a little bit. We put ourselves in a good position to win a race tonight and I’ve never done that before, especially in a superspeedway race.”
Local favorite Chase Elliott saw his chances of winning his hometown race go away after his No. 9 Chevy got caught up in a caution late in Stage 2 around lap 150. He and Brad Keselowski, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and Corey LaJoie were among the drivers involved in that incident.
Defending winner Daniel Suárez’s quest to repeat his victory here from last spring ended when his No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevy was involved in a crash with Noah Gragson, Cole Custer, Ty Gibbs, and Todd Gilliland on lap 185.
Of the notables who were involved in cautions, their final finish spots included 20th place Elliott, 25th place Berry, Byron at 27th, Cindric at 28th and Keselowski at 39th.
Joey Logano led the most laps at 83 but finished 12th in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford.
Blaney finished fourth and was followed by Stenhouse, Denny Hamlin, Saturday truck winner Kyle Busch, Chastain, Bubba Wallace and John Hunter Nemechek in the top 10.
Ambetter Health 400 NASCAR Cup Series results Sunday from Atlanta Motor Speedway:
BELL CLAIMS VICTORY IN ATLANTA Christopher Bell leads just the final lap on his way to his 10th career Cup Series victory
HAMPTON, Ga. (February 23, 2025) – Christopher Bell drove his Toyota Camry XSE to the front when it counted – as the Oklahoma-native was scored the leader on the final lap when the caution fell, giving Bell his first Atlanta Motor Speedway victory and 10th victory of his young career. Bell drove through the field after starting 32nd and earned his first superspeedway win.
Bell led four Toyotas in the top-10 finishers as Denny Hamlin finished sixth, Bubba Wallace was scored ninth and John Hunter Nemechek finished 10th. Nemechek is one of two drivers (Ryan Blaney) to finish in the top-10 in both of the first two races this season.
Toyota Post-Race Recap NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Atlanta Motor Speedway Race 2 of 36 – 400.4 miles, 260 laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, CHRISTOPHER BELL 2nd, Carson Hocevar* 3rd, Kyle Larson* 4th, Ryan Blaney* 5th, Ricky Stenhouse Jr.* 6th, DENNY HAMLIN 9th, BUBBA WALLACE 10th, JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK 17th, RILEY HERBST 19th, TYLER REDDICK 21st, CHASE BRISCOE 31st, ERIK JONES 32nd, TY GIBBS *non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 DeWalt Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 1st
It took a couple of seconds, but you are the official winner here. What are the emotions like?
“I definitely wasn’t going to start a burnout till they told me for sure that I won. I felt like I had it because I was gauging off the guys besides me – whenever I saw the yellow flag. I don’t know – for the last lap or so, I kept seeing smoke in my rear-view mirror, and I was like, oh my gosh, please don’t crash, please don’t crash. This place is just bonkers. Every time we come here, it gets wilder and wilder, and I never in my wildest dreams would have thought I would have won a superspeedway race.”
Why was it so important to you to start in the high lane?
“You just have to keep the momentum. I can be risky to be on the top or the bottom, because sometimes it forms in the middle, sometimes it forms on the top. It forms on the top, you don’t want to be on the bottom. If it forms in the middle, you don’t want to be on the top. I don’t know – you can kind of pick wrong either way. It seemed like the first half of the race, I couldn’t do anything right, and I was just mired back in the pack, and then these boys got the DeWalt Camry tuned up. They got it going really well where I could drive it hard. The DeWalt Camry was fastest when it needed to be at the end.”
What momentum does this give your team?
“We are just getting started. We are going to our bread-and-butter next week. I’m super excited about it.”
JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK, No. 42 Dollar Tree Toyota Camry XSE, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB
Finishing Position: 10th
How was your race?
“I’m not sure where we officially got scored, but looks like p10. Solid day. Really proud of Hayden (Reeves, spotter), he worked hard today. Way more intense than Daytona. Hats off to all of the men and women at LEGACY MOTOR CLUB. Road crew, pit crew – everyone did a solid job all day. We were able to keep it straight all day and salvaged another top-10. Two really good runs to start the season and looking forward to COTA next week.”
TY GIBBS, No. 54 SAIA LTL Freight Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 32nd
Can you tell us what happened? “I think I just got really squeezed there. I feel like I was in position to run three wide and make up some positions that I lost. I don’t know. I haven’t seen a replay. I feel like I got squeezed there.”
How was it before the incident?
“Before I got wrecked, I felt like our SAIA Camry was really good. I felt like I could make really good charges and my balance was good. I felt like we were really fast, and I could charge through the field and make really good passes.”
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 ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE REPORT FEBRUARY 23, 2025
Hocevar Leads Chevrolet with Runner-Up Result At Atlanta Motor Speedway
TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10 RESULTS: POS. DRIVER 2nd – Carson Hocevar 3rd – Kyle Larson 5th – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 7th – Kyle Busch 8th – Ross Chastain
In yet another photo finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Carson Hocevar led Chevrolet to the checkered-flag in the NASCAR Cup Series’ Ambetter Health 400 – driving his No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet to a runner-up result.
Kyle Larson earned his career best superspeedway finish in NASCAR’s top division – tallying a third-place result in his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.
Larson delivered Chevrolet its first stage win of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season. After a 17th place finish in Stage One, Larson progressively maneuvered his No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet towards the front of the pack throughout the stage – ultimately taking the lead on the final lap to earn his first career superspeedway stage win.
Michael McDowell and the No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet team endured a power steering issue during the early laps of race. Making quick repairs to return to the track six laps down, the No. 71 Chevrolet team collected a record-tying six-straight free passes to rejoin the lead lap in the final stage – ultimately taking the checkered-flag for a 13th-place finish.
UP NEXT: The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season continues at Circuit of The Americas with the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix on Sunday, March 2, at 3:30 P.M. ET. Live coverage can be found on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
Post-Race Driver Quotes:
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 8th
“To qualify 33rd and drive through the field – I made some bad decisions throughout the race. The car was good enough in traffic to keep cycling forward. Great call by Phil Surgen (crew chief) there at the beginning of the final stage to come and get four tires. I was definitely second guessing that in the moment, but it was definitely the right call. So I am glad he is the one making the calls on the No. 1 Moose Chevrolet.”
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 3rd
“I think if I didn’t let the No. 20 (Christopher Bell) get to my outside, I would have had an opportunity, but he would probably split to my inside into (turn) one and clear me. If I don’t hesitate, the wreck probably doesn’t happen. So yeah, I don’t know.. I haven’t seen a replay yet. But yeah, bummer not to get a win. I’m proud of the effort today by this No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevy team. We had a lot of fun. It was super intense. It was my first legit finish here at Atlanta Motor Speedway since the reconfiguration, so I’ll take it. I feel like we learned a lot and I feel like we can be a lot better with the balance of our racecar to be a little bit more on offense while we are in traffic. We just came up a little bit short. Congratulations to Bell. Thank you to HENDRICKCARS.COM, Chevrolet and all the Chevy partner teams, too. It’s been a good night, just wish we could have been a couple spots better.”
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 7th
“It was a better finish than I thought we were going to get tonight. There were a lot of crashed cars there too, so we kind of cycled our way forward a little bit with some guys that wrecked out. Overall, the No. 8 Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen Chevy had really good speed, I just had a really hard time opening it up. When I got back in traffic, worse than third in line, I just really had to lift out of the throttle a lot and that was holding me up and holding my lane up. Not a lot of guys were willing to deal with that and have the patience for that, so it kind of shucked us back there a few times. But we were able to rally and get what we could for our Cheddar’s Chevrolet. Just wish we were closer to the front for the end, but that’s where all the wrecks were happening too, so maybe not.”
AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet Finished:
“Hard fight all night, just struggled with balance overall. Then when you get back there in traffic, it’s hard to make the right moves. I definitely need to be a little bit better making the right moves. I’m proud of the guys; we made a lot of changes to make the car as good as we could. We salvaged a decent finish there at the end, but we need to be a little bit better overall.”
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 5th
“It was an up-and-down day for the No. 47 Chevy team. We were at the back. We were at the front. We got some stage points. All-in-all, our Martin’s Famous Potato Rolls Chevy was really, really good. I could go anywhere I wanted to on the race track. I thought we had a shot at the end. I was bummed.. I wanted the No. 5 (Kyle Larson) or us to win. I thought my only shot was to push the No. 20 (Christopher Bell) as hard as I could, which I did. And then I was hoping to get to the outside of the No. 20 in (turns) one and two, but somebody got me in the fence down the frontstretch, and then we were just trying to hold on for a top-five. Our car was really good and I had a lot of fun today.”
Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 13th
“That was an eventful day for the No. 71 Group 1001 Chevy team. We had an issue early on with the power steering pump. We actually lost the hose; came in the garage and went down seven laps. We got all of our laps back, nothing short of miraculous, and capitalized there at the end. So thankful to get a good finish, given that it could have been a disaster there. Really proud of Carson (Hocevar). He had a great race. I didn’t see the ending of it, but I know he was up front racing for the win all night long. Really proud of Spire Motorsports for bringing fast Chevy’s. We got some good notes for us for when we come back here. I’m proud of my team and their effort – just grinding through it, getting laps back, fixing a mechanical issue and never giving up. That’s what it’s all about.”
Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 2nd
CAREER BEST FINISH FOR YOU, BUT I HAVE TO ASK YOU — THERE WAS A LONG LINE OF DRIVERS HERE TO TALK TO YOU. RYAN BLANEY, ROSS CHASTAIN, VERY AGGRESSIVE RACE OUT THERE, WHAT DID THEY HAVE TO SAY?
“I will just leave those to myself. But first off, apologies to (Kyle) Larson, HMS, Mr. H and everybody. They help us out a lot and I didn’t realize we weren’t racing back to the line. The last two nights were kind of that way, and I hit the No. 20 to get him out of the way and filled the middle. A little bit longer and maybe we win the race. But big thanks to Spire Motorsports, Chevrolet and Delaware Life. I normally ride in the back and run last, so I was just trying to get a good, decent finish. For how bad we were at Daytona, I was not riding. But yeah, there is some stuff I have to learn and clean up a little bit, but I feel like we put ourselves in the perfect opportunity to win the race. I have never had that opportunity really before, especially on a big superspeedway. So just big thanks to Spire Motorsports. They deserve all the praise, and I just get to hold the wheel, run wide open and try to put myself in a decent spot. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the best spot but was just one spot short.”
Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in the final stage.
Finished: 33rd
What was your take on the accident that ultimately ended your day early? It seemed like it went three-wide pretty quickly..
“Yeah, I mean it was quickly, definitely, but the No. 54 (Ty Gibbs) was there. He was in the middle, and I didn’t know he was in the middle. That’s on me and my spotter. I think we have to do a better job in those situations. It’s part of it. I think that, overall, we just put ourselves in very bad situations throughout the race. We were not fast enough. The No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevy wasn’t handling the way I was hoping it would. Normally our speed is good and our handling is great, and that’s how we’ve been successful here. Today, that just wasn’t the case. We have to go through everything and see what we can do better for next time.”
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.
AUSTIN CINDRIC, No. 2 Menards/Delta Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “It was unfortunate. As a team, as Fords, we had the best cars here this weekend. We put ourselves into position to win the race and got used up and into the fence and didn’t win the race. It’s a shame. Two weeks in a row I feel like we have had the car to beat and haven’t done it. One way or another it is disappointing.”
RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 BodyArmor Zero Sugar Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “It was a good comeback. I just fell back from getting spun there and I was able to pick our way through and ended up scrounging a good finish out of it, so not a bad recovery.”
YOU SLOWED AND THEN GOT HIT BY THE 77. WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH YOUR MIND? “I wasn’t slowing. He was drafting to me and he didn’t lift and just gave me a shot when I’m turning into one and it spun me out. I was just happy I didn’t hook a right back into everybody and was able to stay on the apron.”
ARE YOU HAPPY WITH THE RESULT? “I’m happy with the result after being spun with 20 to go, so a decent comeback.”
YOU GOT BACK TO THE FRONT TOWARDS THE END. HOW WAS YOUR DAY? “It was a little bit of a struggle getting to the front after I lost some track position in the first and second stage, and then we got spun when I finally got track position by the 77 and we were able to make it back up and run forward, so it was an up and down day, that’s for sure. I’m happy we were able to make a recovery.”
JOSH BERRY, No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “We had a really fast car. We saw yesterday that all of our cars were fast. We were able to stay aggressive, stay on the offense, stay up front. I feel that I am in a situation now where I can succeed. We tried to make the most of it there, but we obviously didn’t get the finish that we deserved. It was just crazy. Honestly, it was a lot of fun, but it was just crazy. A lot of aggressive moves racing there at the end. The [number] 77 threw the [number] 1 out of line and I kind of pushed him through the middle and then we just got squeezed together once into [turn] one and then again off of [turn] two. We all just ran out of room there. It’s just disappointing. I have to go back and look to see if there is something I could have done better. I mean, what’s the use of wrecking for eighth or whatever? I hate that we didn’t get the finish we deserved.”
JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “It was just challenging all day. We had a really fast car and when we were up front we could control it really well. When we had a couple Fords up front it was domination and then when I got in the back I didn’t handle good enough. It just cost us too much back there and I couldn’t move my way back up. Every time I got a gap it just wasn’t good enough to get back up there handling-wise, so the car was fast but we just needed more steering.”
BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 6 BuildSubmarines.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “Somebody got into the 9 car and put him into the fence off of turn four. I saw it and lifted for that but he seemed to regroup and was fine. As soon as I went to take off again he blew a right rear rear or broke a toe link and hooked left right in front of us. So, we hit him trying not to hit him and broke a radiator. That was the end of our day. The racing is definitely intense. It is actually phenomenal racing. Just wish we would have gotten up front.”
COREY LAJOIE, No. 01 AirMedCare Network Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “There is nothing to get your heart rate up in a race car more than this. You can talk about restarts at Dover where it is really hectic and stuff is happening at lightning speed but at Atlanta you have to be so precise and so instinctive with the moves that you make. We were making our way forward. I thought we got our car driving good after the first pit stop and broke into that top 20 bubble where you can get some fresh air, some clean air, on occasion. That is when you can really maneuver. And we got there. We also got there with a pretty decent strategy to get into the top ten.”
ABOUT THE INCIDENT “Everyone was sort of gummed up and I was just in line pushing. I got by him [number 9] and the next thing I know he caught me in the right rear somehow.”
NOAH GRAGSON, No. 4 TitleMax Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “I saw the 99 get turned through the trioval and I don’t know if he was coming back up or if I clipped him with the left-rear, but I had a lot of left-rear damage and couldn’t continue.”
COLE CUSTER, No. 41 3D Systems Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “That was really big. I’m just thankful for everybody at our shop. It was a lot of work they had to do this offseason, but they took the time and made all the seat stuff right. Everybody did a great job on our interior stuff, so happy that we’re all OK, but I’m just disappointed. I hate it for 3D Systems and everybody at the shop. We struggled a little bit, but to get caught up in a wreck just stinks.”
WHAT DID YOU SEE? “I just saw the 99 come up the track and from there I clipped him and went straight head on into the wall. I don’t know what started it.”
ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO MORE TRADITIONAL NASCAR RACING? “It will be nice to get off the superspeedways for a little bit and get to a road course and then to normal racetracks.”
CODY WARE, No. 51 Arby’s Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “I honestly have no idea. I know the 99 was spinning out ahead of us. It felt like we slowed down. I’m not sure if we got hit from behind, but the next thing I know I’m in the outside wall. It’s just another frustrating weekend of superspeedway style racing for the 51 Arby’s team this week.”
Heim Set to Compete in Multiple Cup Series Races with 23XI and Xfinity Series Races with Sam Hunt Racing
Atlanta, Ga. (Feb. 23, 2025) – 23XI Racing announced today that Corey Heim has signed a multi-year deal to join the team as 23XI’s first development driver. The 22-year-old, who will continue as part of the Toyota Driver Development Program (TD2), will also race in multiple events throughout the season in the NASCAR Cup Series and the Xfinity Series. A 12-time winner in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and winner of the season-opening event at Daytona, Heim will also continue to serve as 23XI’s reserve driver.
Heim, who raced with 23XI last season at Nashville Superspeedway, will run multiple Cup Series races behind the wheel of the No. 67 Toyota Camry XSE, with veteran crew chief Bootie Barker set to lead the team. Heim is set to make his first Cup Series start of the season in May at Kansas Speedway, where he raced last spring while filling in for Erik Jones in the No. 43 Toyota Camry.
Additionally, as part of his development process, Heim will compete in multiple Xfinity Series races with Sam Hunt Racing (SHR) in a Toyota GR Supra supported by 23XI. Last season, Heim competed in 13 races with SHR and has 17 total starts in the Xfinity Series, earning three top-five and five top-10 finishes. Heim’s first race with SHR will be at Circuit of the Americas, where he will compete in his first road course event in the Xfinity Series.
“It’s a dream come true to be a part of 23XI, and I’m excited for the opportunity to race more Cup and Xfinity races this year. I’m blessed to have the chance to compete in all three series as I continue to set my sights on full-time Cup racing when that time comes,” said Heim. “The success that 23XI has shown in only a few short years has been impressive and I’m excited to learn from the organization. I’m also grateful to everyone at Toyota for their ongoing support in my development both on and off the track, and I look forward to strengthening that relationship for years to come.”
“Our team was fortunate to work with Corey last year and we look forward to growing our relationship with him as our development driver starting in 2025,” said Steve Lauletta, President of 23XI Racing. “Corey continues to prove he is a talented, hard-working driver, and we plan to make all the resources of 23XI available to support his development within the Toyota family as he progresses in NASCAR.”
“I couldn’t be more excited to have Corey back with us at SHR this year, working alongside 23XI on his professional development,” said Sam Hunt, owner of Sam Hunt Racing. “Corey has become like a little brother to me — we understand each other’s journeys, and he genuinely cares about the growth and success of SHR long-term. We have had some very strong performances together in the past, so we are looking to continue maximizing our resources and flexing strength as we chase that first organizational win and develop Corey as a Sunday driver.”
While Heim will run several races with 23XI and SHR, TRICON will continue to be his primary home for the third straight season, where he drives the No. 11 Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. His performance has been impressive in the NASCAR Truck Series, including twelve wins and 33 top-five finishes. Heim, the 2023 Regular Season champion, is the youngest driver in Truck Series history to earn 10 wins, and has made back-to-back appearances in the Championship 4 the last two seasons.
Heim will also continue to be a valued part of the TD2 program, which has helped support drivers achieve their dreams of earning full-time NASCAR Cup Series rides. TRD takes an active role in each TD2 driver’s development to help them achieve their goals of long-term success in motorsport. The mutual long-term commitment allows TRD to provide additional opportunities on and off the track to encourage and support their personal development.
“Corey continues to impress on-track with his racing acumen and talent behind the wheel and also continues to work hard behind the scenes with TRD partners, at TPC, and on the simulator,” said Tyler Gibbs, president, TRD U.S.A. “We are pleased to have a robust schedule in place for Corey this year and know that he will take advantage of every opportunity to continue to grow as a race car driver. Everyone at TRD looks forward to a long tenure with Corey as we support him in reaching his ultimate goals in NASCAR competition.”
About 23XI Racing
23XI Racing – pronounced twenty-three eleven – was founded by NBA legend Michael Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin in 2020. With rising NASCAR star Bubba Wallace selected to drive the No. 23 Toyota Camry, the team made its NASCAR Cup Series debut in the 2021 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Wallace made history on October 4, 2021, when he captured his first career Cup Series win, becoming just the second African American to win in the Cup Series, and earning 23XI its first-ever victory. 23XI expanded to a two-car organization in 2022 with Cup Series Champion Kurt Busch driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry. With a win at Kansas Speedway in May of 2022, Busch earned 23XI the team’s first-ever playoff berth. In 2024, Tyler Reddick won the Regular Season Championship and raced to a spot in the Championship 4, a first for both the team and Reddick. 23XI currently features the lineup of Bubba Wallace in the No. 23 Toyota Camry, Tyler Reddick in the No. 45 Toyota Camry and Riley Herbst in the No. 35 Toyota Camry. The team operates out of Airspeed, a state-of-the-art facility in Huntersville, N.C. that opened in January of 2024.
Jesse Love and the No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Team Earn Pole Position and Stage Points at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Finish: 16th Start: 1st Points: 3rd
“We had a fast No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet tonight at Atlanta. Our car drove great, and handling wasn’t an issue. We were able to lead laps and gain stage points. On our last pit stop, we took four tires and many guys took two. We felt like our car was strong enough to move through the field and get back up there to the No. 21 car. It turned out to be very tough to pass and get runs deep in the field. Once we lost control of the race by taking four tires, we were unable to make that ground back up. It was still a decent points day. I’m happy for Austin (Hill) and the No. 21 team for getting the win and having both Richard Childress Racing cars locked into the playoffs this early in the season. We learned a lot today on how this race played out and we will come back stronger the second time around.” -Jesse Love
Austin Hill and the No. 21 Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet Team Secure Fifth Victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway in the Bennett Transportation & Logistics 250
Finish: 1st Start: 2nd Points: 1st
“It’s just so much fun to strap into my Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet. To do what we did tonight is very special. Not only for our team, but more importantly for everyone at Bennett Family of Companies. To win the Bennett 250 is huge. To be honest, I left Daytona pretty mad last week. I was frustrated, not at the team, but just because we didn’t lose the race on our own terms. I hated it for the No. 21 guys and pumped everyone up coming into this weekend. Our entire group had a little extra oomph and pep in their step that we were going to win this one. I want to give a huge shoutout to everybody at Richard Childress Racing and ECR Engines. Tonight was Chad Haney’s first career win as a crew chief. This is so cool for him. He’s been working his tail off this offseason. Him and I are going to work great together this season. We are going to soak this one up, enjoy it, and get ready for the next one.” -Austin Hill
