Denny Hamlin scores 60th Cup victory at Las Vegas; clinches Championship 4 berth

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October 12, 2025

20251012211943-bd5ad7cd-me — Photo by Ron Olds for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Denny Hamlin earned a one-way ticket to the 2025 Championship 4 round with a clutch NASCAR Cup Series victory in the South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, October 12.

The three-time Daytona 500 champion from Chesterfield, Virginia, led four times for nine of 267 scheduled laps in an event where he lost the lead at the event’s start from pole position and dealt with early handling issues despite racing upfront and recording stage points during the event’s first two stages.

Hamlin’s race-winning move then occurred within the final 30 laps after he pitted for four fresh tires during a caution and amid a harrowing accident that knocked Playoff contender William Byron out of race-winning contention. Then, through a brief restart with 23 laps remaining before the final one that occurred with 14 laps remaining, Hamlin, who restarted sixth, methodically bolted his way to the front. Following a late duel with Playoff contender Kyle Larson and teammate Chase Briscoe, the latter of whom was strategically on two fresh tires, Hamlin navigated his way to the lead with four laps remaining. From there, Hamlin captured a victory that enabled him to cross off 60 victories from his bucket list and place him in a prime position to achieve his first elusive championship.

With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, October 11, Denny Hamlin notched his fourth Cup pole position of the 2025 season and the 47th of his career with a pole-winning lap at 184.849 mph in 29.213 seconds. Joining Hamlin on the front row was teammate Chase Briscoe, the latter of whom clocked in his best qualifying lap at 184.622 mph in 29.249 seconds.

Prior to the event, Ross Chastain dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments that were made to his entry.

When the green flag waved and the event commenced, Denny Hamlin, who started on the inside lane, launched ahead of the field with the lead through the frontstretch and the first two turns. As the field fanned out through the backstretch, Hamlin retained the lead until teammate Chase Briscoe overtook Hamlin through Turns 3 and 4, which allowed Briscoe to lead the first lap.

Over the next four laps, Briscoe maintained a steady advantage over Hamlin as both were pursued by Playoff contenders Chase Elliott, William Byron, and Christopher Bell, respectively, in the top five. With Tyler Reddick, Playoff contender Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, Playoff contender Joey Logan,o and Alex Bowman racing in the top 10, Briscoe proceeded to lead by three-tenths of a second over Hamlin on the 10th lap.

Through the first 25 scheduled laps, Briscoe extended his lead to three seconds over Hamlin while Byron, Elliott, and Bell trailed by as far back as four seconds in the top five, respectively. Meanwhile, Reddick, Larson, Logano, Bowman, and Wallace continued to race in the top 10 ahead of Ty Gibbs while Ryan Blaney, the lone Playoff contender racing outside the top 10 on the track, was mired back in 12th place ahead of Chris Buescher, Ryan Preece, and Shane van Gisbergen.

Then on Lap 33, a first round of green-flag pit stops occurred as select names led by Larson, Logano, Ross Chastain and Reddick pitted their respective entries. More names that included Wallace, Zane Smith, Austin Cindric, Byron, Hamlin, Elliott, Bell, Blaney, Ty Gibbs, Preece, van Gisbergen, Erik Jones, Austin Dillon and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. pitted throughout the next two laps before the leader Briscoe pitted on Lap 36. Briscoe, though, endured a slow pit service after his pit crew had issues getting the left-rear wheel adjusted and secured on the No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry XSE entry.

By the time Briscoe exited pit road, he had been overtaken by Byron, Reddick and Larson on the track. Once the first round of green flag pit stops cycled through as Todd Gilliland pitted, Byron cycled to the lead on Lap 41. As Byron led, Reddick trailed the latter by within seven-tenths of a second while Larson, Briscoe and Hamlin were scored in the top five over Elliott, Bell, Wallace, Bowman and Logano, respectively. Meanwhile, Blaney, who cracked the top 10 prior to the pit stops, was mired back in 12th place behind Ty Gibbs.

At the Lap 50 mark, Byron was leading by more than a second over Reddick while Larson, Briscoe and Hamlin trailed in the top five, respectively, by as far back as four seconds. Byron proceeded to add another second to his advantage over Reddick by Lap 65. By then, Elliott navigated his way up to fourth place behind teammate Larson and in front of Briscoe, Hamlin and Bell while Logano was back in 10th place.

On Lap 71, the event’s first caution flew when Blaney, who was racing in 12th place, cut a right-front tire and went dead straight into the outside wall through Turns 3 and 4. The damage to Blaney’s No. 12 Menards Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry was enough to terminate Blaney’s start to the Round of 8 and his hopes for a second Cup Series championship.

“No warning. The left-front tire blew into [Turn] 3 and yeah, [it’s] unfortunate [to] going home early,” Blaney said in the infield care center. “Obviously, we have to look forward to [Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway]. [It’s] Not the spot you want to be in. I actually thought we got our car fairly decent and was looking forward to keep going and never got it. Pretty simple: [I] Got to go win one of the next two weeks and hopefully, we can rebound and do it.”

During the caution period, the lead lap field led by Byron pitted for service and Byron retained the lead by exiting pit road first ahead of Larson, Briscoe, Elliott and Reddick.

With three laps remaining in the first stage period, the event restarted under green. At the start, Byron fended off Briscoe, Larson and the field through the first two turns to retain the lead. As the field fanned out through the backstretch, Larson, Briscoe, Hamlin and Elliott all fiercely battled for the runner-up spot, with Hamlin and Elliott making contact through the frontstretch, while Byron retained the lead. In the process of the runner-up battle, Wallace, Bell and Reddick joined the battle while Logano was trying to maintain a top-10 spot for a stage point.

When the first stage period concluded on Lap 80, Byron captured his eighth Cup stage victory of the 2025 season. Teammate Larson settled in second ahead of Briscoe, Hamlin and Elliott while Wallace, Bell, Reddick, Ty Gibbs and Logano were scored in the top 10, respectively.

Under the first stage break period, the front runners led by Byron remained on the track while some racing within the midfield region, including Noah Gragson, Erik Jones, Austin Dillon, Brad Keselowski, Josh Berry, Michael McDowell, Justin Haley, Cody Ware, Ross Chastain, Zane Smith, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Kyle Busch, Austin Cindric, Cole Custer, Riley Herbst, Todd Gilliland and Ty Dillon pitted.

The second stage period started on Lap 86 as Byron and Larson occupied the front row. At the start, Byron was nearly turned by Briscoe as the latter was pushing the former through the frontstretch. Amid Briscoe’s contact, Byron kept his No. 24 Relay Chevrolet entry racing straight and he dueled with Larson through the first two turns and the backstretch. Then as Briscoe tried to make a three-wide move beneath both Byron and Larson for the lead entering Turn 3, Larson rocketed his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet entry ahead and he led the next lap (Lap 87) while Byron was mired in a battle with Briscoe and Hamlin for the runner-up spot. As the field fanned out and battled fiercely for spots, Larson retained the lead by a tenth of a second over Briscoe at the Lap 90 mark while Byron, Hamlin and Wallace trailed in the top five.

At the Lap 100 mark, Larson was leading by seven-tenths of a second over teammate Byron while Briscoe, Hamlin and Elliott trailed in the top five, respectively. Behind, 23XI Racing’s Reddick and Wallace were racing in sixth and seventh ahead of Ty Gibbs, Logano and van Gisbergen while Bell was mired in 11th place ahead of Carson Hocevar, Chris Buescher, Preece, Noah Gragson, Brad Keselowski, Austin Dillon, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., John Hunter Nemechek and Daniel Suarez.

By Lap 115, another round of green flag pit stops slowly commenced as some including Bell and Buescher pitted their entries. On Lap 119 and as more competitors, including a bevy of Playoff contenders pitted, Larson pitted from the lead. During the pit stops, Elliott was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation. Once the second round of green flag pit stops concluded as Wallace and Cole Custer pitted from the lead, Larson cycled back to the lead on Lap 126.

At the halfway mark between Laps 133 and 134, Larson was leading by a tenth of a second over a hard-charging Reddick while Byron, Hamlin, Briscoe, Ty Gibbs, Bell, van Gisbergen, Logano and Buescher followed suit in the top 10, respectively. Meanwhile, Elliott, who served a drive-through penalty from his uncontrolled tire violation penalty, was scored the first competitor a lap down in 29th place while Wallace, who was penalized for speeding on pit road during his latest pit service, was strapped back in 34th place.

Through the Lap 145 mark, Larson stretched his lead to a second over Reddick while third-place Byron trailed by one-and-a-half seconds. Behind, teammates Hamlin and Briscoe were scored in the top five and both Bell and Logano were racing in seventh and eighth while Elliott was ranked the second competitor scored a lap down in 28th. Larson proceeded to stabilize his lead to a second over Reddick by the lap 155 mark. By then, Elliott was ranked the third competitor mired a lap down in 27th as he had both Todd Gilliland and Austin Cindric to overtake before the second stage’s conclusion and to have any opportunity to receive the free pass.

When the second stage period concluded on Lap 165, Larson cruised to his eighth Cup stage victory of the 2025 season. Reddick followed suit in second place while Byron, Hamlin, Briscoe, Bell, Ty Gibbs, Alex Bowman, Logano and Hocevar were scored in the top 10, respectively. By then, Elliott was awarded the free pass as he was the first competitor scored a lap down in 25th place.

During the second stage break period, the lead lap field led by Larson pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Larson exited pit road first and he was followed by Reddick, Hamlin, Briscoe and Byron. Amid the pit stops, Daniel Suarez was penalized for equipment interference.

With 95 laps remaining, the final stage period commenced as Larson and Reddick occupied the front row. At the start, Larson retained the lead over Reddick, Hamlin and the field through the frontstretch, the first two turns and the backstretch. As the field fanned out, Hamlin challenged Larson for the lead and he led the next lap from the outside lane by a hair before Larson reassumed the top spot. Hamlin then went from second to fifth over the next two laps as Reddick, Bell and Byron overtook him. With Briscoe mired in sixth place behind Hamlin, Larson retained the lead by a tenth of a second over a hard-charging Reddick with 90 laps remaining.

As the event reached its final 75 laps, Larson continued to lead by four-tenths of a second over teammate Byron while Reddick, Hamlin and Bell followed suit in the top five, respectively. Behind, Briscoe, who reported a potential toe link issue to his entry after he scrubbed the wall during the latest restart, retained sixth place ahead of Gibbs, Bowman, Hocevar and Buescher while Logano and Elliott were mired in 16th and 21st, respectively.

With approximately 57 laps remaining, a late cycle of green flag pit stops commenced as Playoff contenders Briscoe and Logano pitted their respective entries. More names that included Bowman, Gibbs, Stenhouse, Cindric, Gilliland, Chastain, Wallace, Reddick, Byron and Bell pitted over the next three laps before Larson pitted from the lead with 53 laps remaining. By the time Larson returned to the track, teammate Byron overtook him on the track.

With 50 laps remaining, Hamlin, who was among a handful of competitors who have not yet pitted, pitted under green. Elliott also pitted with Hamlin while Hocevar and Keselowski, both of whom have yet to pit, cycled to first and second on the track. As Hocevar pitted with 48 laps remaining before Keselowski pitted a lap later, Byron cycled to the lead with 46 laps remaining.

Down to the final 40 laps of the event, Byron was leading by seven-tenths of a second over Larson while third-place Bell trailed by more than a second. Bowman and Reddick followed suit in the top five ahead of Gibbs, Briscoe, Hamlin, Buescher and Austin Dillon while Logano and Elliott were mired in 14th and 18th, respectively.

Six laps later, Larson assumed the lead from teammate Byron after Byron got loose entering Turn 2. Another five laps later, the caution flew for a harrowing accident when Byron, who was racing in the runner-up spot, T-boned into the rear of Ty Dillon in Turn 4. The incident occurred as Dillon, who did not give any indication through the radio that he was pitting, was reducing pace and preparing to pit, which was unbeknownst to Byron as the latter was approaching the former at full speed. Amid Dillon and Byron’s collision, John Hunter Nemechek spun through pit road to avoid the carnage.

Despite emerging uninjured, Byron was left visibly frustrated on receiving no radio communication nor any hand signals from Ty Dillon prior to the collision.

“I never saw [Dillon] wave,” Byron said in the infield care center. “I didn’t see any indication he was pitting. I thought the [pit] cycle was fully over. Nobody said anything to my spotter from what I know. I had zero idea. I was watching him, thinking he missed the bottom a little bit, and then he just started slowing, and I just had no idea what was going on. I’m just devastated. I had no indication.”

During the caution period, the leaders peeled off the track and onto pit road for service. Following the pit stops and with mixed strategies occurring, Briscoe, who opted for only a two-tire pit service, exited pit road first with the lead. Briscoe was followed by Logano and Keselowski, the latter two of whom also opted for two fresh tires, while Larson followed suit on four fresh tires. Van Gisbergen and Bowman while Bell, Gibbs, Reddick and Hamlin followed suit in the top 10.

The start of the next restart with 23 laps remaining did not last long as Bell, Gibbs, and van Gisbergen, all of whom were restarted in the top-10 mark, made contact against one another amid a tight squeeze. The contact sent Gibbs spinning and hitting the outside wall through the first two turns backwards while van Gisbergen spun from the top to the bottom of the track, which ignited a multi-car wreck that involved Chastain, Austin Dillon, Elliott, AJ Allmendinger, Gilliland, Zane Smith, Cody Ware, and Hocevar. At the moment of caution, Briscoe retained the lead over Logano while Bowman, Larson, Keselowski, Bell and Hamlin followed suit.

As the event restarted with 14 laps remaining, Briscoe and Logano battled for the lead in front of Larson, Bowman, Keselowski and Hamlin while the field fanned out and dueled amongst one another for late spots. With the field returning to the frontstretch, Briscoe received the upper hand from the inside lane that enabled him to lead the next lap over Logano. As Briscoe then led the next two laps, Larson, Hamlin and Reddick navigated their way past Logano, which dropped the latter to fifth place as Logano was beginning to fade on only two fresh tires.

Down to the final eight laps of the event, Hamlin reeled in Larson for the runner-up spot through the backstretch. As Larson tried to force Hamlin up the track to stall Hamlin’s momentum, the latter instead drag-raced with Larson through the frontstretch before Larson used the inside lane to muscle back ahead and slide in front of Hamlin through the first two turns. Hamlin would then continue to reel Larson back in before he executed his overtake on the latter from the inside lane entering Turn 1 with five laps remaining. Amid the battle, Briscoe retained a steady advantage.

Then with four laps remaining, Hamlin, who reeled in and gained lots of ground on Briscoe from Turns 3 and 4, made his move to Briscoe’s outside through the frontstretch. With four fresh tires working to his advantage compared to Briscoe’s two tires, Hamlin used the outside lane through the first two turns to rocket his No. 11 ampm Toyota Camry XSE entry ahead entering the backstretch. From there, Hamlin proceeded to slowly stretch his advantage as Larson started to reel in Briscoe for the runner-up spot.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Hamlin remained in the lead by a second over both Larson and Briscoe. With the latter two unable to reel in Hamlin as Hamlin had clean air all to himself, Hamlin was able to cycle his way around Las Vegas Motor Speedway smoothly for a final time before he returned to the frontstretch and claimed the checkered flag by one-and-a-half seconds over Larson with Briscoe trailing by nearly two seconds.

With the victory, Hamlin notched his 60th NASCAR Cup Series career victory. In doing so, he became the 11th competitor overall to achieve the feat, and he moved into a tie with Kevin Harvick for 10th place on the all-time wins list. Hamlin also notched his second victory at Las Vegas, his sixth of the 2025 season and his first since he won at World Wide Technology Raceway in early September.

By winning the Playoff’s Round of 8 opener at Las Vegas, Hamlin, who is in his 20th consecutive season of Cup Series competition, earned an automatic berth to the Championship 4 round. In doing so, he will race for his first elusive Cup Series championship at Phoenix Raceway on November 2.

“[The win] Definitely means a lot,” Hamlin, who fought tears of joy on the frontstretch, said on NBC. “Obviously, [I] want to say hi to my dad, family back at home, all the friends that came out here for Vegas, hoping we get 60 [wins]. I didn’t think we were. [I] Just put the pedal down those last 10 laps and made it happen.”

“[Crew chief] Chris [Gayle] did an amazing job on that final [pit] stop getting the car just right,” Hamlin added. “I just held it down. That’s all I could do is just to go for it. I felt like I had nothing to lose. Just go for it and try to punch a ticket now. Man, this one feels great. I just don’t know what to say. It was very unexpected with those last 15 laps. I didn’t think we were going to win, but I knew I was going to give it all I had.”

Kyle Larson, who led a race-high 129 laps, settled in second place while Christopher Bell came home in third place. Chase Briscoe, who led 57 laps, settled in fourth place while Tyler Reddick completed the top five on the track.

Despite falling short of winning the Round of 8 opener, both Larson and Briscoe remained cautiously optimistic over their championship hopes for this season as they, along with six other Playoff contenders, look ahead to the upcoming events at Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway.

“I thought I had a big enough gap down the backstretch to go to the top [lane] and get rolling momentum,” Larson said. “[Hamlin’s] car, the Toyotas in general, were really, really, really fast on a short run and had a lot of speed. He must have nailed the bottom behind me, got to my inside. It was over from there…Happy, though, to still get a good finish. It was getting hectic there. Obviously, [the Playoffs] could completely flip next week. I do feel like our superspeedway stuff has gotten a lot better. We’ve done really well on them this year. You can never expect a good finish or a finish at all when you go there. We’ll just try and go and execute like we have been this year at [Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway]. Hopefully, we can have another good points day and maybe Martinsville will be a little bit easier.”

“I was hanging on,” Briscoe added. “I thought I was in a really good spot there. The first three or four laps after the restart, my car drove really good. As I ran, I was just absolutely sideways. I thought there for a while when [the competitors] were racing hard enough, maybe I was going to sneak one off on them. Just really loose at the end. Glad at least a [Joe Gibbs Racing] car won. That one will sting for a while. We got to go [to Talladega], race and see what happens. Obviously, that’s where the biggest points swing is probably going to come for. Luckily for us, we didn’t use our one mulligan, I guess, today. We’ll just go there, see what we can do and hopefully, come out there on the plus side, maybe even win it, and go on to Martinsville and see what we can do.”

Joey Logano notched a sixth-place result while Alex Bowman, Kyle Busch, Ryan Preece, and Brad Keselowski rounded out the top 10 on the track. Notably, Chase Elliott finished in 18th place, while William Byron and Ryan Blaney, both of whom were unable to complete the event due to their respective incidents, settled for 36th and 38th, respectively.

There were 21 lead changes for 11 different leaders. The event featured five cautions for 32 laps. In addition, 25 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap.

Results:

1. Denny Hamlin, nine laps led
2. Kyle Larson, 129 laps led, Stage 2 winner
3. Christopher Bell
4. Chase Briscoe, 57 laps led
5. Tyler Reddick, one lap led
6. Joey Logano, one lap led
7. Alex Bowman
8. Kyle Busch
9. Ryan Preece
10. Brad Keselowski, two laps led
11. Austin Cindric
12. Chris Buescher
13. Noah Gragson
14. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
15. Erik Jones
16. Michael McDowell
17. Riley Herbst
18. Chase Elliott
19. AJ Allmendinger
20. Daniel Suarez
21. Todd Gilliland, one lap led
22. Bubba Wallace, five laps led
23. Ross Chastain
24. Zane Smith
25. Austin Dillon
26. Josh Berry, one lap down
27. Justin Haley, one lap down
28. Cole Custer, one lap down, one lap led
29. John Hunter Nemechek, two laps down
30. JJ Yeley, four laps down
31. Katherine Legge, six laps down
32. Carson Hocevar – OUT, six laps led, Accident
33. Shane van Gisbergen – OUT, Accident
34. Ty Gibbs – OUT, Accident
35. Cody Ware – OUT, Accident
36. William Byron – OUT, Accident, 55 laps led, Stage 1 winner
37. Ty Dillon – OUT, Accident
38. Ryan Blaney – OUT, Accident

*Bold indicates Playoff contenders.

Playoff standings:

1. Denny Hamlin – Advanced
2. Kyle Larson +35
3. Christopher Bell +20
4. Chase Briscoe +15
5. William Byron -15
6. Chase Elliott -23
7. Joey Logano -24
8. Ryan Blaney -31

The Round of 8 in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs continues next Sunday, October 19, at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama, for the YellaWood 500. The event’s broadcast time is slated to commence at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN Radio, SiriusXM and HBO Max.

Mayer Finishes Top 10 at Las Vegas; Creed 11th in Round of 8 Opener

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Official Release

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October 12, 2025

Custer Finishes 28th in Cup Series Race on Sunday at LVMS

LAS VEGAS, NV (October 12, 2025) – Haas Factory Team posted strong results at Las Vegas Motor Speedway while proudly representing Ford Racing throughout the weekend. In the Xfinity Series, Sam Mayer secured top-10 finishes in all stages, strengthening his playoff position, while Sheldon Creed rebounded from early handling issues to finish 11th. On Sunday, Cole Custer persevered through the Cup race, ultimately finishing 28th.

Xfinity Series

41 Sam Mayer
Sam Mayer finished among the top 10 in all three stages Saturday, gathering valuable stage points and fortifying his playoff hopes as the Round of 8 began. Rolling off 16th in the Audibel Ford, he quickly began picking off positions. An oil light issue surfaced on lap 16, but after resetting the gauges, Mayer continued to clock fast laps and it appeared there were no serious concerns. As the run progressed, his pace improved and he climbed to eighth by the end of the stage, earning three valuable stage points.

In Stage Two, Mayer’s team went to work on pit road, sending him back out in seventh. He continued to showcase speed, turning some of the fastest laps in the field. As the sun began to set, Mayer adapted well to the changing track conditions. He was able to smoothly navigate the turns, wrapping the corners tightly. Running consistently inside the top 10, Mayer finished eighth once again, banking more stage points.

The final stage brought a mix of challenges and opportunities, and Mayer rose to meet them. Restarting sixth, he initially slipped back to 10th as the car felt “edgy,” but he regained his rhythm as the run developed, working his way to ninth and eventually overtaking Brandon Jones for eighth with just over 60 laps remaining. After a green-flag pit cycle, a late caution bunched the field, and Mayer restarted 10th with 29 laps to go. He held his ground through the closing laps, bringing home a solid ninth-place finish. He now sits fourth in the standings, eight points above the cutline with two races remaining in the Round of 8.

“Everyone did a great job of getting this Ford Mustang ready to roll. We weren’t the best, but I think we deserved a little bit better than where we finished,” said Mayer. “Everybody did a great job getting us ready for this. We have some things to work out on pit road, but I’m excited for the next couple of weeks for sure since we’re coming out of here with a decent day.”

00 Sheldon Creed
A determined effort in Las Vegas helped Sheldon Creed move from eighth to sixth in the playoff standings, with two races remaining in the Round of 8. Starting 10th in the Ollie’s Ford, he initially slipped back through the field while searching for grip in the early laps. A timely caution allowed the team to make chassis adjustments, and he immediately noticed better drivability on the restart. Although Creed finished Stage One in 26th, his lap times improved as the run went on, setting the foundation for a comeback effort.

Stage Two saw Creed and his team continue to fine-tune the car. After pitting between stages for additional adjustments, he restarted 19th and steadily worked his way forward. As the sun began to set and track temperatures cooled, the No. 00 Ford adapted well to the changing conditions. The car displayed stronger pace, and Creed reported that it fired off much better. It was clear the team had made meaningful progress, improving by 11 positions to finish the stage 15th.

The final stage showcased just how far Creed and his team had come. Restarting 11th after another pit stop, he navigated a chaotic restart and settled into 12th. Midway through the stage, the team made more adjustments during a green-flag pit stop. When the pit cycle played out, Creed had climbed as high as fifth. After a late caution shuffled positions, he restarted sixth, briefly reclaimed fifth, and ultimately crossed the line 11th after the car tightened up in the closing laps. Sitting sixth in the standings, Creed’s playoff hopes remain strong after rebounding from a slow start Saturday.

“After practice and qualifying I thought we were going to be really strong there and that’s twice now that this new tire has thrown us for a loop like that. We’ll be pretty good in practice and then we start the race like 10 out of 10 loose, so that was challenging to start,” said Creed. “That’s twice that we’ve done that. I’m not blaming it on anyone because I’m equally telling the guys what I think I need for the race and it’s kind of sending us for a loop. Overall, not a terrible finish for our Ollie’s Ford Mustang and I appreciate everyone for the effort.”

Cup Series

41 Cole Custer
Cole Custer and the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford team battled handling issues and a tough track position all afternoon at Las Vegas, ultimately bringing home a 28th-place finish in Sunday’s 267-lap event. Custer rolled off 21st but quickly found the balance of his car too loose in the opening laps, dropping to 26th by lap 15 and reporting the car was edgy and unstable over the bumps.

The team made its first pit stop on lap 35 for four tires and fuel, opting to stay out a few extra laps before pitting. The strategy left Custer a lap down to the leader shortly after, and he cycled back to 31st once pit stops completed. A timely caution on lap 71 allowed Custer to take the wave around and regain lead-lap status, ultimately ending Stage One in 29th place.

Stage Two adjustments provided slight improvements to the car’s handling, particularly on initial restarts and over long runs. Custer hovered around 30th for much of the stage and briefly led a lap during the green-flag pit cycle before settling into 28th at the stage’s conclusion. The team made a wedge adjustment during the caution in hopes of continuing to dial in the balance for the final run.

In the closing stage, Custer restarted 30th but dropped a few spots as the field spread out and track position became increasingly difficult to recover. He continued to battle through a long green-flag stretch until a caution on lap 235 allowed the team to take a wave around to gain a lap back. Another quick caution helped him gain a few more positions, and Custer ultimately came home 28th to close out a challenging day in Las Vegas.

“Everyone fought hard all day, but Las Vegas hasn’t been our place both times this year,” Custer said. “We’ll learn from it and move on to Talladega and try to have a good race there.”

Up Next
Talladega Superspeedway (Talladega, AL)

The Xfinity Series – Saturday, October 18th at 4:00 p.m. ET on the CW Network.

The NASCAR Cup Series – Sunday, October 19th at 2:00 p.m. ET on NBC.

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

RCR NCS Race Recap: Las Vegas Motor Speedway

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Official Release

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October 12, 2025

Late-Race Wreck Ruins Top-10 Run for Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Get Bioethanol Chevrolet Team at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Finish: 25th
Start: 25th
Points: 15th

“It never fails that when we have a great day going, something happens out of our control. Our Get Bioethanol Chevrolet was really good. The balance started on the free side and then we got it a little too tight. After our green flag stops, the car would fire off good. Almost too good, which is what caused us to fade at the end of the run. We were in position to get a top-10 finish but got caught up in that multi-car wreck with less than 25 laps to go. I hate it for our No. 3 team but it’s a positive that our Chevy had speed on an intermediate. Everyone did a great job today and this is something we can build off moving forward.” -Austin Dillon

Hometown Favorite Kyle Busch and the No. 8 zone Chevrolet Team Sail to Top-10 Finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Finish: 8th
Start: 32nd
Points: 22nd

“I’m proud of the entire No. 8 zone Chevrolet team for getting us to a place from qualifying 32nd to finishing eighth today at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. We worked throughout the race to correct rear grip issues and a loose-handling Chevy to get the car to a competitive pace by race’s end. Now, the name of the game is consistency and continuing to finish out front the remainder of the season, and of course get our Richard Childress Racing machine back to Victory Lane.” -Kyle Busch

CHEVROLET NCS AT LAS VEGAS 2: Post-Race Report

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Official Release

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October 12, 2025

NASCAR Cup Series
Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Round of Eight: Race One
Team Chevy Post-Race Report
October 12, 2025

Larson Opens NASCAR Cup Series Round of Eight with Runner-Up Finish at Las Vegas

A valiant effort by Kyle Larson and the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team ended with a runner-up finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to open the NASCAR Cup Series Round of Eight. The finish – Larson’s 13th top-five result of the season – came with a strong points day that puts the 2021 champion in the top provisional points positions in the playoff rankings with a 35-point cushion heading to Talladega Superspeedway.
Kyle Larson led a lineup of three Team Chevy drivers with top-10 results at the 1.5-mile Nevada oval, with Alex Bowman crossing the line in seventh and the Las Vegas native, Kyle Busch, driving from the 32nd starting position to a strong eighth-place finish.
To get the NASCAR Cup Series Round of Eight underway, all three Team Chevy playoff contenders unloaded with speed that translated into top-six qualifying efforts – led by Chase Elliott, who lined up his No. 9 Chevrolet in the fourth position to take the green-flag at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Settling into the fourth position on the opening lap, Elliott was quickly challenged for position by his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, William Byron, who also earned a top-five starting position. With an early report of a good handling Chevrolet, Byron steadily made his way up into the runner-up position by Lap 29. The first green-flag pit cycle began shortly thereafter, with Crew Chief, Rudy Fugle, calling his driver down pit road for four tires and fuel on Lap 34. With a masterful 9.6-second stop by the No. 24 pit crew, Byron took advantage of a pit road mishap by then-race leader, Chase Briscoe, to inherit the lead once the pit cycle was complete. Byron’s long run speed prevailed as the Charlotte, North Carolina, native paced the field until a late-stage caution fell with nine laps to go. With the lead pack making the trip down pit road, the No. 24 pit crew put Byron on the front-row for the restart with the Team Chevy driver going on to pick up his seventh stage win of the season.
It was as an all-Hendrick Motorsports front-row with William Byron and Kyle Larson leading the field to the green-flag for Stage Two. A stellar start positioned Larson in the top spot to lead his first laps of the day. Sitting comfortable at the top of the leaderboard, Larson pulled away to nearly a two-second lead over teammate, Byron, at the 30-lap marker of the stage. With yet another green-flag pit cycle near the halfway mark of the stage, a clean stop by the No. 5 pit crew kept Larson in the top position once the field cycled through. Quiet on the radio, Larson went on to maintain an average one-second gap to second en route to a Team Chevy stage sweep at the 1.5-mile Nevada oval.
The first to exit pit road under the stage break, Kyle Larson resumed position in the lead, but saw a hard-charging William Byron in his rear-view mirror. Byron held the margin of Larson’s lead to under one-second for most of the run as the third green-flag pit cycle of the day was on the horizon. A 9.7-second stop for the No. 24 team was enough for Byron to make the pass on his teammate during the cycle that ultimately put him at the top of the leaderboard as the driver crossed the line to mark 45 laps to go. But his journey to an early Championship Four berth ended when a massive hit with a lap car ended the No. 24 team’s day early. Varying pit strategies among the lead pack saw Larson lineup in the fourth position as the first car with a set of four fresh Goodyear tires for the restart. With a short-run to the checkered-flag, Larson went on to cap-off a strong day with a runner-up finish.

Team Chevy Unofficial Top-10 Results
Pos. Driver

2nd – Kyle Larson
7th – Alex Bowman
8th – Kyle Busch

Chevrolet’s season statistics with 33 NASCAR Cup Series races complete:

Wins: 14
Poles: 11
Top-Fives: 61
Top 10s: 135
Stage Wins: 25

UP NEXT: The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of Eight will continue at Talladega Superspeedway with the YellaWood 400 on Sunday, October 19, at 2 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
Post-Race Driver Quotes:

Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

Finished: 23rd

“It certainly wasn’t an ideal finish today for our Tootsie’s Chevy. In the final stage of the race, we got the handling figured out and were moving forward, then we got caught up in the accident and had some damage we had to work on. But, we rallied to finish 23rd.”

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Finished: 25th

“It never fails that when we have a great day going, something happens out of our control. Our Get Bioethanol Chevrolet was really good. The balance started on the free side and then we got it a little too tight. After our green flag stops, the car would fire off good. Almost too good which is what caused us to fade at the end of the run. We were in position to get a top-10 finish but then got caught up in that multi-car wreck with less than 25 laps to go. I hate it for our No. 3 team but it’s a positive that our car had speed on an intermediate. Everyone did a great job today and this is something we can build off moving forward.”

Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Finished: 2nd

“I thought we did everything that we could do. The Toyota’s were really fast for the short-run there. I saw the No. 11 (Denny Hamlin, race winner) line up behind me and I knew he’d be difficult to hold off. If any one of the Toyota’s got clear and could get rolling, I knew it would be tough. He did a great job, though. He still had to make the right moves, which he did. I felt like I was doing all I could to stay in front of him, while also trying to track down the No. 19 (Chase Briscoe). We just came up a little bit short, but overall, it was a great day for the No. 5 Chevrolet team.”

Are you encouraged heading into Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway?

“We did have a great points day, but it could easily change next week. We’ll just try to execute again; have a good points day at Talladega (Superspeedway) and be in a good position heading into Martinsville (Speedway).”

Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Finished: 8th

“I’m proud of the entire No. 8 zone Chevrolet team for getting us to a place from qualifying 32nd to finishing eighth today at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. We worked throughout the race to correct rear grip issues and a loose-handling Chevy to get the car to a competitive pace by race’s end. Now the name of the game is consistency and continuing to finish out front the remainder of the season, and of course get our Richard Childress Racing machine back to victory lane.”

Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Finished: 18th

“We started our day strong. I thought we had the balance of our No. 9 NAPA Chevy in a really good spot. I was just happy with the way it was driving. Unfortunately, we got a pit road penalty in Stage Two and we just got back in traffic. I needed something pretty different, balance-wise, to be good back there. I probably missed a little bit on my first read and we only had a couple shots to try and help that. Just got behind on adjustments for track position. We’ll regroup and try again next weekend at Talladega (Superspeedway).”

William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in the final stage.

Finished: 36th

Walk us through how all of that went down and how much time you had to react when you saw the No. 10 (Ty Dillon) coming to pit road…

“Yeah, I never saw him (Ty Dillon) wave. I didn’t see any indication that he was pitting. It was probably 12 to 15 laps after we had pitted, so I thought the cycle was fully over. Nobody said anything to my spotter, from what I know. I had zero idea. Everyone has been wrapping the paint really far around the corner and that’s what I was doing to have a good lap. I was watching him thinking – okay, he missed the bottom a little bit here. He just started slowing and I had no idea what was going on. I’m just devastated. I had no indication. Obviously, I wouldn’t have just driven full-speed into the back of him like that.”

When you talk about the devastation, are you thinking you had a winning race car today?

“We were right there with the No. 5 (Kyle Larson). I got loose a few laps before and lost the lead, which I was bummed about. But I was going to try and get my balance back to a reasonable place. I was a little bit loose that run, looser than I was expecting to be, and I was just kind of pacing it. With as good as we were and as good as the race was going, for random things like that to happen, it just sucks. I can’t believe it. Obviously I would never do that. During the cycle, you’re anticipating guys pitting. It just sucks.”

Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in the final stage.

Finished: 33rd

“Frustrating end to the day. My 88 Jockey Chevy was so good there at the start, then towards the end it was a bit tight but we were still in a position to get a good finish. Wish our result would’ve shown the race we had. Proud of my 88 team for bringing another rocket ship.”

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.

Ford Racing Notes and Quotes – Las Vegas Cup Series Post-Race Quotes

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Official Release

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October 12, 2025

Ford Racing Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
South Point 400
Sunday, October 12, 2025

Ford Finishing Results

6th – Joey Logano
9th – Ryan Preece
10th – Brad Keselowski
11th – Austin Cindric
12th – Chris Buescher
13th – Noah Gragson
21st – Todd Gilliland
24th – Zane Smith
26th – Josh Berry
28th – Cole Custer
35th – Cody Ware
38th – Ryan Blaney

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse – THAT TWO TIRE STOP MADE A LOT OF DIFFERENCE. “We had nothing to lose. We were kind of at the spot where we scored only a couple stage points, I think we were eighth and ninth in both stages and that’s not enough points to points race I didn’t think, so Paul made a good call and put us on the front row. That’s all you can hope for and you hope the two tires are decent. You hope that you can get clean air and maybe block your butt off to where you can do something. I didn’t get the push down the backstretch. The 48 had the option of who to push and he went with the 19, unfortunately, and that was enough to shove him ahead into three and be able to clear me. At that point, it was just kind of trying not to bleed very many spots there at the end. I was just trying to hang on to what I had there to get as many points as possible, so, overall, there were points in the race where I thought we were good enough to go up there and run with those guys on the long haul, and then the third stage we just got really loose and lost a ton of track position and it took us a minute to get the balance back.” EXPECTATIONS GOING INTO TALLADEGA? “The closer we get, the more we’ve got to win. I think we closed the gap a little bit today. I heard we were 21 points out. I’m not sure if that’s right or not, but I haven’t really looked at all the spots yet. It’s still possible to point in, but one of the spots are obviously taken up now.”

RYAN PREECE, No. 60 Sysco/crumbl Ford Mustang Dark Horse –”We had a phenomenal Ford Mustang today. I had a penalty and I made a mistake and sped, which put us in a bad spot. We had that little opportunity with 15 to go and we took advantage of it and drove from 20th to ninth and really, I thought, probably could have been top six. I just need to be a little bit more patient with some of the things I’m learning, but I’m really proud of this Sysco/crumbl Ford Mustang.” AND NOW YOU GO HOME TO A NEW BABY. A BIG WEEK FOR YOU. “Yeah, I think I’m gonna go home to a wife who is gonna be pretty upset that I sped, but I am gonna be happy to be home with my wife and kids.”

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Menards/Cardell Cabinetry Mustang Dark Horse – DID YOU HAVE ANY WARNING THE TIRE WAS GOING DOWN? “No, I didn’t have any thoughts that it was gonna blow. As soon as I lifted into three it blew out.” YOU’VE BOUNCED BACK BEFORE AND MADE IT TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP 4 AFTER HAVING A CRASH IN THIS ROUND. CAN YOU DO IT AGAIN? “I hope so. It’s unfortunate we’ve got to be in these spots, but we’ve got to bounce back.” WHAT DID YOU FEEL BEFORE THE TIRE WENT? “Nothing. It blew as I lifted into three.” HOW DISAPPOINTED ARE YOU? “I’m not overjoyed, I tell you that. We’ll have to come from behind like we did last year. Hopefully, we can win one of the next two weeks. We just can’t have a smooth day it seems like.” GIVEN YOUR PERFORMANCE AT TALLADEGA AND MARTINSVILLE IN THE PAST ARE YOU OPTIMISTIC? “You’ve got to be optimistic. I’m not very happy right now, but tomorrow morning I’ll be optimistic to go to the next race. We’ve had good success at the next two events, so hopefully we can come and bring the speed and try to overcome the hole we put ourselves in today.” IS THIS NOW MUST-WIN TERRITORY? “Yeah. No doubt.” IT SOUNDED LIKE YOU DIDN’T HAVE ANY STEERING. “It destroyed the right-front, the right-rear. It destroyed everything.” WHAT IS IT ABOUT THIS PLACE THAT SEEMS TO BITE YOU SO MUCH? “If I knew, I’d try to figure it out, but I have no idea.” WAS IT A LEFT-FRONT OR RIGHT-FRONT THAT BLEW? “I think it was the left-front.”

BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 6 Nexlizet Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “It was a pretty good day. We started in the back and drove up and made a gamble at the end with two tires and ended up 10th. That’s probably all we had. Those guys were really fast and even when we had four tires it was a lot to hold them off.”

CODY WARE, No. 51 Arby’s Steak Nuggets Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “It was a long day and definitely hard fought. We were hopefully gonna get a chance to throw tires on it, but unfortunately the 54 came down off the wall and came down and collected us in a bad wreck. It’s a really disappointing day. We had a decent No. 51 Arby’s Steak Nuggets Ford Mustang today. I wish we could have gotten to the end to see where we would have shaken out, but I’m looking forward to getting to Talladega next weekend and hopefully end up in Victory Lane.”

AARON STANFIELD TAKES ELITE MOTORSPORTS TO FINAL ROUND AT TEXAS NHRA FALLNATIONALS

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Official Release

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October 12, 2025

ENNIS, Texas (Oct. 12, 2025) – Aaron Stanfield and the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage / Melling Performance / Janac Brothers Racing Pro Stock team made their second final round appearance of the season Sunday at the Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex.

Stanfield, who remains fourth in points but cut his deficit from third to just five, took on points leader Dallas Glenn in the final round. Stanfield and the JHG / Melling machine had the starting line advantage and the race stayed close until the end with Glenn taking the victory by only .007-seconds. Stanfield ran 6.622-seconds at 208.75 mph with a .024 reaction time while Glenn was .034 on the starting line but pulled off the win with a 6.605 pass at 208.89.

“Overall, a good day. Coming in No. 12, to get to the finals, these Elite boys really hustled. The whole pit was working hard. Obviously disappointed with the final result but two races left and points and a half in Pomona, a runner-up finish keeps us in the conversation for a top three finish for the time being,” Stanfield said. “We’ve got our work cut out for us, that’s for sure but I have all the confidence in this team. I wouldn’t want to be out here racing with anyone but this group at Elite.”

Stanfield entered raceday from the No. 12 qualifying position and had to battle teammate and six-time world champion Erica Enders in the first round. Stanfield got his JHG / Melling machine off the starting line in .013-seconds and rallied to a 6.567-second pass at 209.13 mph, enough for a holeshot win over Enders in her JHG / Melling / SCAG Power Equipment hot rod who had a .028 reaction time with a stout 6.555 pass at 208.91.

In the second round, Stanfield faced off with No. 3 in points, Matt Hartford. Hartford handed Stanfield the victory on the starting line when he flickered the bottom bulb and went red by -.064 seconds. Stanfield had a clean 6.603-second run at 208.89 mph setting him up with a semifinal matchup against rival and six-time reigning world champion Greg Anderson. Stanfield and the JHG / Melling team had the better car in their seventh semifinal appearance of the season. Their 6.614-second pass at 208.77 was enough to outrun Anderson’s 6.632 at 207.70.

Jeg Coughlin Jr., the 2024 event winner, took the SCAG Power Equipment / Outlaw Light Beer machine to a semifinal finish, their second of the season. The No. 10 qualifier, Jeg Jr. took down Matt Latino (6.578 at 209.06 def. 6.596 at 208.25) and then Cory Reed on a holeshot (0.046 reaction time, 6.602 at 208.74 def. 0.099 reaction time, 6.565 at 208.36) before coming up short to Glenn. The SCAG machine had the starting line advantage but shook the tires and Jeg Jr. had to push the clutch in to coast to a 11.520-second pass at 92.02 mph while Glenn shook but was able to drive through it for a 6.632 pass at 207.70 for the win.

The Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series continues with the Dodge NHRA Nevada Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway October 31 to November 2, the fifth of six races in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship.

PROCK, KALITTA, GLENN & GADSON WIN PLAYOFF RACE AT TEXAS NHRA FALLNATIONALS

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Official Release

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October 12, 2025

Prock gets first Dallas FC win
Kalitta rolls to Dallas TF victory
Glenn notches 20th career PS win
Gadson extends PSM lead with victory

ENNIS, Texas (Oct. 12, 2025) – Funny Car points leader Austin Prock rolled to his ninth win of the season on Sunday at Texas Motorplex for John Force Racing, defeating Ron Capps in the final round of the 40th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals.

Doug Kalitta (Top Fuel), Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) and Richard Gadson (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won the 18th of 20 races during the 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season, as all four points leaders celebrated victories at the fourth of six races in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

Prock went 3.959-seconds at 328.30 mph in his 12,000-horsepower Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS, powering past Capps’ run of 4.405 at 199.80 to move a step closer to his second straight world championship. It’s Prock’s ninth win of the season and the 21st in his career, as well as his first career victory at the famed Texas Motorplex.

Prock, who qualified No. 1, defeated Blake Alexander, Spencer Hyde and Chad Green to reach the final before putting together a dominant performance in the final round. After starting the weekend just 20 points ahead of Matt Hagan, who fell in the first round, Prock had a remarkable answer in Dallas, making the quickest run in every round of eliminations and the last three rounds of qualifying. His points lead now stands at 112 points over Hagan with two races remaining.

“We went out there and won and all of the cards fell right today, and we were able to extend our points leads, so that definitely feels really good,” Prock said. “You always want to extend your points lead even if it’s by one point, but we did a lot more than that. I said earlier this weekend that whoever gets the most wins in these next three races is going to be crowned the world champion, and we knocked one off, so got two more to go. I have all the faith in the world in this team and this race car, and I’m going to go up there and try and do my job.

“After Q1, we were low E.T. every time we went down the track, and not just by a little bit. That’s an OG Jimmy Prock move right there. I’m just really proud to drive this race car for Cornwell Tools, so now we need to keep turning on win lights and bringing home race wins.”

Capps reached the finals for the fifth time in 2025 after defeating Alex Laughlin, Cruz Pedregon and Dan Wilkerson. Jack Beckman is 131 points back in third.

Top Fuel’s Doug Kalitta continued a spectacular run in the Countdown to the Championship, advancing to his fourth straight final and winning a second straight race after a run of 3.777 at 333.04 in his 12,000-horsepower Mobil DELVAC 100th Anniversary dragster to take down Texan Steve Torrence.

Kalitta has advanced to the final in every playoff race thus far and now has four wins this season and 59 in his career – as well as a 141-point lead over Justin Ashley with two races remaining.

On a hot day at Texas Motorplex, Kalitta and his team were locked in, as he went in the 3.70s three different times, picking up round wins against Jasmine Salinas, Ida Zetterstrom and teammate Shawn Langdon in a crucial semifinal matchup.

Kalitta won that round with a run of 3.805 at 332.59 and then powered past Torrence in the final round en route to his third career victory at Texas Motorplex. On the verge of a second career world championship, Kalitta was thrilled with his team’s performance on Sunday and eager to keep pushing ahead.

“Alan [Johnson, crew chief] and my guys, they really have a handle on this thing and it’s fun to drive, so I’m just trying to do my best,” Kalitta said. “It’s really impressive with the temperature swing with what we had today, and to be able to run that [3.]77 in the final. I’ve watched Alan a lot of years and I’m real thankful to be driving the car that he’s tuning, that’s for sure.

“I’ve finished second six or seven times a lot, so I’m definitely not going to count my chickens until they’re hatched, but this is definitely where we want to be. We’re just trying to get as many points as possible and stay ahead of whoever ends up in second. You’ve got to keep your head down and stay focused and just take one qualifying run at a time or whatever it takes. It’s all important.”

Torrence reached the final round for the second time in 2025 and the 92nd time in his career after defeating Josh Hart, Shawn Reed and Brittany Force. Langdon trails Kalitta by 159 points.

In Pro Stock, Dallas Glenn moved a step closer to a first world championship, driving past Aaron Stanfield in the finals with a run of 6.605 at 208.89 in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet Camaro. It handed Glenn his seventh win this season in what has become an incredible year and gave the young standout his 20th career victory. The win, also his first at Texas Motorplex, gives Glenn a 60-point advantage over KB Titan Racing teammate Greg Anderson, who lost in the semifinals to Stanfield.

Glenn took advantage in a major way, chasing down Stanfield to pick up the victory. Earlier in the day, Glenn defeated Cody Coughlin, Eric Latino and defending event winner Jeg Coughlin Jr., setting up the marquee matchup with Stanfield. Glenn has now won three of the four races in the playoffs, putting him in the driver’s seat in the championship hunt with two events remaining.

“I just need to keep turning on win lights,” Glenn said. “I just need to go up there and just take everything one round at a time and do everything I can and let the crew chiefs do their job.

“I feel like I’m good and consistent, but don’t feel like I’m as good as I should be or was last year. But I think the car has definitely come around a little bit better. We’ve got a little bit better handle on I’ve got some more experience, and I feel a little bit more relaxed this year. If I can continue to do that, continue to turn on win lights, continue to have a little bit of luck on my side, I think we can wrap it up.”

Stanfield reached the finals for the second time this season and the 27th time in his career thanks to round wins against Erica Enders, Matt Hartford and Anderson.

It was nearly a picture-perfect weekend for Pro Stock Motorcycle’s Richard Gadson, who extended his points lead by defeating rookie Brayden Davis in the final round with a run of 6.796 at 200.37 on his RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki. It handed Gadson his fourth victory in what has been a dream season for the second-year rider, as he also extended his points lead to 72 points over Gaige Herrera.

Gadson, who qualified No. 1, was in command all weekend at Texas Motorplex, defeating Lance Bonham, Clayton Howey and Matt Smith en route to the final round. When Davis beat a red-lighting Herrera in the semifinals, it opened the door for Gadson to extend his points lead and he did just that, unleashing an .011 reaction time and rolling to his first career Dallas win.

It’s Gadson’s second win in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs, as Gadson has turned into a standout performer in pressure situations.

“You watch this happen for other people and you want it for yourself, but I try to live in the moment. I try to remember: This is the stuff you watched Gaige [Herrera] do, stuff you watched Andrew [Hines] and Eddie [Krawiec] do, and you’re doing it right now,” Gadson said. “I just try to be present mentally in that moment and just say you’re living that dream.

“I woke up this morning and I looked at the ladder and said, ‘It’s going to be a long day’ because I know everybody’s tough right now. I’m just trying to keep my foot on the gas and hold on for their life. I’m extremely motivated right now. I feel like I have something to prove.”

Davis advanced to his third final round in his debut season thanks to victories against Ryan Oehler, John Hall and Herrera.

The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series returns to action Oct. 30-Nov. 2 with the 25th annual Dodge NHRA Nevada Nationals powered by Direct Connection at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

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ENNIS, Texas — Final finish order (1-16) at the 40th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex. The race is the 18th of 20 events in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.

TOP FUEL:

Doug Kalitta; 2. Steve Torrence; 3. Shawn Langdon; 4. Brittany Force; 5. Ida Zetterstrom; 6. Justin Ashley; 7. Shawn Reed; 8. Clay Millican; 9. Tony Stewart; 10. Josh Hart; 11. Doug Foley; 12. Antron Brown; 13. Tony Schumacher; 14. Jasmine Salinas; 15. Mitch King; 16. Kyle Satenstein.

FUNNY CAR:

Austin Prock; 2. Ron Capps; 3. Daniel Wilkerson; 4. Chad Green; 5. Jack Beckman; 6. Cruz Pedregon; 7. Spencer Hyde; 8. Paul Lee; 9. Matt Hagan; 10. Alexis DeJoria; 11. Blake Alexander; 12. Dave Richards; 13. Bob Tasca III; 14. Alex Laughlin; 15. Terry Haddock; 16. J.R. Todd.

PRO STOCK:

Dallas Glenn; 2. Aaron Stanfield; 3. Greg Anderson; 4. Jeg Coughlin; 5. Cory Reed; 6. Deric Kramer; 7. Eric Latino; 8. Matt Hartford; 9. Erica Enders; 10. Cody Coughlin; 11. David Cuadra; 12. Matt Latino; 13. Troy Coughlin Jr.; 14. Chris Vang; 15. Stephen Bell; 16. Greg Stanfield.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE:

Richard Gadson; 2. Brayden Davis; 3. Gaige Herrera; 4. Matt Smith; 5. John Hall; 6. Angie Smith; 7. Clayton Howey; 8. Steve Johnson; 9. Kelly Clontz; 10. Jianna Evaristo; 11. Ryan Oehler; 12. Chase Van Sant; 13. Marc Ingwersen; 14. Lance Bonham; 15. Chris Bostick; 16. Charles Poskey.

ENNIS, Texas — Sunday’s final results from the 40th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex. The race is the 18th of 20 in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series:

Top Fuel — Doug Kalitta, 3.777 seconds, 333.04 mph def. Steve Torrence, 3.874 seconds, 317.46 mph.

Funny Car — Austin Prock, Chevy Camaro, 3.959, 328.30 def. Ron Capps, Toyota GR Supra, 4.405, 199.80.

Pro Stock — Dallas Glenn, Chevy Camaro, 6.605, 208.89 def. Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.622, 208.75.

Pro Stock Motorcycle — Richard Gadson, Suzuki, 6.796, 200.37 def. Brayden Davis, Suzuki, 6.817, 200.34.

Top Alcohol Dragster — Joey Severance, 5.470, 208.03 def. Jon Bradford, Foul – Red Light.

Top Alcohol Funny Car — Sean Bellemeur, Chevy Camaro, 5.528, 267.36 def. Stan Sipos, Camaro, 5.893, 250.70.

Competition Eliminator — Jeff Taylor, Dragster, 7.049, 152.28 def. Joe Carnasciale, Chevy Cavalier, 9.612, 148.28.

Super Stock — Darrell Stobbe, Chevy Chevelle, 10.260, 126.75 def. Harvey Emmons III, Chevy Cavalier, 9.496, 124.70.

Stock Eliminator — Jerry Emmons, Chevy Camaro, 10.513, 117.67 def. Doug Lambeck, Camaro, 10.148, 126.88.

Super Comp — Wayne Landry, Dragster, 8.913, 178.46 def. Thomas Marlow, Dragster, 8.975, 162.78.

Super Gas — Trisha Owens, Chevy Corvette, 9.919, 157.45 def. Bill Dennis, Cadillac XLR, 9.914, 162.33.

Super Street — James Gonzales, Chevy Vega Wagon, 10.921, 121.62 def. Jimmy Denham, Chevy S-10, 10.893, 126.90.

Top Sportsman — Doug Crumlich, Chevy Corvette, 6.639, 193.05 def. Bradley Johnson, Cobalt, 6.641, 212.37.

Top Dragster — Blake Peavler, Dragster, 6.206, 230.26 def. Michael Kile, Dragster, 6.145, 208.57.

Factory X — Lenny Lottig, Chevy Camaro, 6.973, 196.18 def. Conner Statler, Camaro, 7.005, 197.51.

Junior Dragster Shootout — Clay Burrell, 12.126, 53.64 def. Abigail Wilson, McIlivan, 7.977, 82.43.

ENNIS, Texas — Final round-by-round results from the 40th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex, the 18th of 20 events in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series:

TOP FUEL:

ROUND ONE — Clay Millican, 3.700, 335.32 def. Tony Stewart, 3.774, 321.52; Brittany Force, 3.729, 340.14 def. Tony Schumacher, 5.441, 125.47; Shawn Reed, 3.717, 338.83 def. Kyle Satenstein, Foul – Centerline; Justin Ashley, 3.732, 334.25 def. Doug Foley, 4.857, 160.19; Shawn Langdon, 3.697, 336.00 def. Mitch King, 10.680, 79.99; Ida Zetterstrom, 4.257, 206.86 def. Antron Brown, 5.127, 158.61; Doug Kalitta, 3.751, 333.93 def. Jasmine Salinas, 6.219, 99.89; Steve Torrence, 3.993, 264.07 def. Josh Hart, 4.194, 208.21;

QUARTERFINALS — Kalitta, 3.757, 332.37 def. Zetterstrom, 3.845, 323.37; Torrence, 3.833, 330.37 def. Reed, 4.076, 257.84; Force, 3.828, 332.79 def. Ashley, 3.943, 292.85; Langdon, 3.790, 333.38 def. Millican, 4.385, 187.38;

SEMIFINALS — Torrence, 3.836, 328.08 def. Force, Broke; Kalitta, 3.805, 332.59 def. Langdon, 4.545, 193.10;

FINAL — Kalitta, 3.777, 333.04 def. Torrence, 3.874, 317.46.

FUNNY CAR:

ROUND ONE — Chad Green, Ford Mustang, 4.032, 311.48 def. Terry Haddock, Mustang, 5.380, 132.52; Jack Beckman, Chevy Camaro, 3.911, 330.57 def. Dave Richards, Mustang, 4.046, 318.72; Ron Capps, Toyota GR Supra, 4.224, 227.28 def. Alex Laughlin, Dodge Charger, 4.580, 193.52; Austin Prock, Camaro, 3.867, 335.70 def. Blake Alexander, Charger, 4.030, 319.24; Paul Lee, Charger, 3.908, 331.25 def. Matt

Hagan, Charger, 3.934, 330.35; Daniel Wilkerson, Mustang, 3.924, 329.28 def. Alexis DeJoria, Charger, 3.958, 329.60; Cruz Pedregon, Charger, 4.034, 315.44 def. J.R. Todd, GR Supra, Broke; Spencer Hyde, Mustang, 4.291, 244.21 def. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.466, 205.33;

QUARTERFINALS — Wilkerson, 3.944, 327.46 def. Beckman, 3.993, 323.14; Prock, 3.939, 329.48 def. Hyde, 5.241, 150.66; Green, 4.082, 296.38 def. Lee, 6.777, 93.93; Capps, 4.042, 314.97 def. Pedregon, 4.994, 159.98;

SEMIFINALS — Capps, 4.019, 315.81 def. Wilkerson, 3.983, 325.73; Prock, 3.963, 328.88 def. Green, 4.068, 308.09;

FINAL — Prock, 3.959, 328.30 def. Capps, 4.405, 199.80.

PRO STOCK:

ROUND ONE — Deric Kramer, Chevy Camaro, 6.564, 209.23 def. Chris Vang, Camaro, 6.601, 208.22; Jeg Coughlin, Camaro, 6.578, 209.06 def. Matt Latino, Camaro, 6.596, 208.25; Eric Latino, Camaro, 6.559, 209.23 def. Greg Stanfield, Camaro, 6.636, 210.03; Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.554, 208.51 def. Stephen Bell, Camaro, 6.602, 209.33; Dallas Glenn, Camaro, 6.537, 208.97 def. Cody Coughlin, Camaro, 6.571, 208.29; Cory Reed, Camaro, 6.534, 208.65 def. Troy Coughlin Jr., Camaro, 6.598, 209.34; Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.532, 208.20 def. David Cuadra, Camaro, Foul – Red Light; Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.568, 209.13 def. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.556, 208.91;

QUARTERFINALS — A. Stanfield, 6.603, 208.89 def. Hartford, Foul – Red Light; Glenn, 6.574, 208.66 def. E. Latino, 6.601, 209.38; J. Coughlin, 6.602, 208.74 def. Reed, 6.565, 208.36; Anderson, 6.547, 208.73 def. Kramer, 6.585, 209.31;

SEMIFINALS — Glenn, 6.627, 208.70 def. J. Coughlin, 11.520, 92.02; A. Stanfield, 6.614, 208.77 def. Anderson, 6.632, 207.70;

FINAL — Glenn, 6.605, 208.89 def. A. Stanfield, 6.622, 208.75.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE:

ROUND ONE — Clayton Howey, Suzuki, 6.863, 197.38 def. Chase Van Sant, Suzuki, 6.881, 198.11; Angie Smith, Buell, 6.803, 200.70 def. Chris Bostick, Suzuki, Foul – Red Light; Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 6.804, 197.32 def. Marc Ingwersen, 6.899, 194.66; John Hall, 6.819, 199.42 def. Kelly Clontz, Suzuki, Foul – Red Light; Matt Smith, Buell, 6.801, 201.25 def. Jianna Evaristo, Buell, 6.855, 200.11; Brayden Davis, Suzuki, 6.790, 201.15 def. Ryan Oehler, 6.863, 197.79; Gaige Herrera, Suzuki, 6.749, 202.52 def. Charles Poskey, Suzuki, Foul – Red Light; Richard Gadson, Suzuki, 6.750, 202.00 def.

Lance Bonham, Buell, 7.306, 177.15;

QUARTERFINALS — M. Smith, 6.888, 198.37 def. A. Smith, 6.889, 197.98; Davis, 6.816, 199.25 def. Hall, 6.867, 198.28; Gadson, 6.817, 199.00 def. Howey, 6.947, 197.26; Herrera, 6.780, 200.95 def. Johnson, Broke – No Show;

SEMIFINALS — Gadson, 6.813, 198.62 def. M. Smith, 6.873, 198.03; Davis, 6.831, 199.72 def. Herrera, Foul – Red Light;

FINAL — Gadson, 6.796, 200.37 def. Davis, 6.817, 200.34.

ENNIS, Texas — Point standings (top 10) following the 40th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex, the 18th of 20 events in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series –

Top Fuel

Doug Kalitta, 2,525; 2. Justin Ashley, 2,384; 3. Shawn Langdon, 2,366; 4. Steve Torrence, 2,297; 5. Brittany Force, 2,291; 6. Tony Stewart, 2,289; 7. Clay Millican, 2,279; 8. Shawn Reed, 2,255; 9. Antron Brown, 2,242; 10. Josh Hart, 2,152.

Funny Car

Austin Prock, 2,485; 2. Matt Hagan, 2,373; 3. Jack Beckman, 2,354; 4. Ron Capps, 2,336; 5. Daniel Wilkerson, 2,296; 6. Paul Lee, 2,257; 7. Cruz Pedregon, 2,252; 8. Chad Green, 2,236; 9. Spencer Hyde, 2,217; 10. Alexis DeJoria, 2,195.

Pro Stock

Dallas Glenn, 2,548; 2. Greg Anderson, 2,488; 3. Matt Hartford, 2,323; 4. Aaron Stanfield, 2,318; 5. Cory Reed, 2,275; 6. Eric Latino, 2,250; 7. Erica Enders, 2,243; 8. Cody Coughlin, 2,221; 9. Jeg Coughlin, 2,203; 10. Troy Coughlin Jr., 2,145.

Pro Stock Motorcycle

Richard Gadson, 2,507; 2. Gaige Herrera, 2,435; 3. Matt Smith, 2,402; 4. Brayden Davis, 2,321; 5. John Hall, 2,319; 6. Angie Smith, 2,318; 7. Jianna Evaristo, 2,241; 8. Chase Van Sant, 2,211; 9. Steve Johnson, 2,173; 10. Chris Bostick, 2,148.

KALITTA EXTENDS POINTS LEAD WITH TEXAS FALL NATIONALS VICTORY

By

Official Release

-

October 12, 2025

Earns fourth win of 2025 and 59th of his career

ENNIS, Texas (Oct. 12, 2025) – Doug Kalitta extended his Top Fuel points lead by winning the Texas Fall Nationals at Texas Motorplex on Sunday, his fourth of the season, second consecutive, and 59th of his career. The win puts Kalitta 141 points ahead with just two races remaining as he inches closer to a second career world championship. The win by Kalitta is also the 10th Top Fuel win in the last 11 races for Toyota, who extended its consecutive final rounds made streak across Top Fuel or Funny Car to 15 on Sunday.

Kalitta had to defeat Toyota teammate and Texas native Steve Torrence, who made his final start of the 2025 season this weekend. The result was Torrence’s second final round of 2025. Shawn Langdon (semifinals) and Justin Ashley (second round) were the other Toyota Top Fuel Dragsters to advance out of round one in Top Fuel on Sunday.

In Funny Car, Ron Capps made the final round and was within reach of his second race victory this season after having to switch to a backup GR Supra body after round one. The fifth final round of 2025 by Capps today keeps him fourth in the Funny Car points standings heading to Las Vegas.

The NHRA Countdown to the Championship continues at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with eliminations on Sunday, November 2.

Toyota Post-Race Recap
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series
Texas Motorplex
NHRA Texas Fall Nationals
Race 18 of 20

TOYOTA TOP FUEL FINISHING POSITIONS

Name	Car	Final Result	Round-by-Round
Doug Kalitta	Mobil Delvac Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Winner	W (3.751) v. J. Salinas (6.219) W (3.757) v. I. Zetterstrom (3.845) W (3.805) v. S. Langdon (4.545) W (3.777) v. S. Torrence (3.874)
Steve Torrence	CAPCO Contractors Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Runner-Up	W (3.993) v. J. Hart (4.194) W (3.833) v. S. Reed (4.076) W (3.836) v. B. Force (No Time) L (3.847) v. D. Kalitta (3.777)
Shawn Langdon	Kalitta Air Careers Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Semi-finals	W (3.697) v. M. King (10.680) W (3.790) v. C. Millican (4.385) L (4.545) v. D. Kalitta (3.805)
Justin Ashley	SCAG Power Equipment Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Second Round	W (3.732) v. D. Foley (4.857) L (3.943) v. B. Force (3.828)
Antron Brown	Matco Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	First Round	L (5.127) v. I. Zetterstrom (4.257)

TOYOTA FUNNY CAR FINISHING POSITIONS

Name	Car	Final Result	Round-by-Round
Ron Capps	NAPA Auto Care Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	Runner-Up	W (4.224) v. A. Laughlin (4.580) W (4.042) v. C. Pedregon (4.994) W (4.019 – holeshot) v. D. Wilkerson (3.983) L (4.405) v. A. Prock (3.959)
J.R. Todd	DHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	First Round	L (No Time) v. C. Pedregon (4.034)

TOYOTA QUOTES

DOUG KALITTA, Mobil Delvac Toyota Top Fuel Dragster, Kalitta Motorsports

TF Final Result: Winner

How important is this victory in your quest for another championship?

“Yeah, we’re trying to go rounds and stay ahead of these guys! Everybody’s hungry right now. Hats off to Toyota, Mac Tools, Mobil 1, Revchem, Kalitta Air, everybody that supports us. A huge relief to get this win here in Ennis. Really big deal for us.”

RON CAPPS, NAPA Auto Care Toyota GR Supra Funny Car, Ron Capps Motorsports

FC Final Result: Runner-Up

An eventful day. How would you assess the day, weekend and what’s your outlook heading into Las Vegas?

“Just one of those gut check days for the NAPA Auto Care Toyota guys. It was driver error in the first round, but we got by. Unfortunately, damaged the NAPA Toyota GR Supra Funny Car body – not badly, as it’s fixable, but we couldn’t run it second round. We brought out the Carlyle Tools body which we’re going to run in Las Vegas and we were hoping to get a win there. It was cool that a lot of fans have bought our Carlyle shirts and, I guess the positive thing is, they got to see the Carlyle car in-person make the final round today. Strange in the final. Prock poked his nose out there, but the car felt like it was running well. We came in, wanting to make up ground in the points and we had to, and that’s exactly what we did. So proud of our NAPA Toyota team and let’s see if we can keep this momentum going into Las Vegas.”

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 32 electrified options.

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

Tony Stewart & Matt Hagan Dallas Event Recap for the Texas NHRA FallNationals

By

Official Release

-

October 12, 2025

Tony Stewart & Matt Hagan
Top Fuel | Funny Car
Texas NHRA FallNationals
Oct. 10-12 | Dallas

Event Recap

Tony Stewart, driver of the Mobil 1 Dodge//SRT Top Fuel Dragster:

Earned No. 4 provisional qualifying position in Q1 on Friday (3.817 ET – there was a timing malfunction with the mph)
Fell to No. 8 provisional qualifying position in Q2 on Friday (3.724 ET at 331.86 mph)
Maintained No. 8 provisional qualifying position based off of Friday’s Q2 run. In Q3 on Saturday, Stewart ran a 3.936 ET at 250.42 mph.
Secured No. 8 qualifying position based off of Friday’s Q2 run. In Q4 on Saturday, Stewart ran a 4.478 ET at 177.18 mph.
Eliminated following Round 1 on Sunday:
Round 1: 3.774 ET at 321.52 mph, lost to Clay Millican (3.700 ET at 335.32 mph)
Currently sixth in the Top Fuel championship standings, 236 points behind leader Doug Kalitta

Matt Hagan, driver of the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Dodge//SRT Hellcat Funny Car:

Earned No. 4 provisional qualifying position in Q1 on Friday (3.970 ET at 325.36 mph)
Fell to No. 12 provisional qualifying position based off of Friday’s Q1 run. In Q2 on Friday, Hagan ran a 4.086 ET at 269.64 mph.
Maintained No. 12 qualifying position based off of Friday’s Q1 run. In Q3 on Saturday, Hagan ran a 4.565 ET at 184.87 mph.
Secured No. 12 qualifying position based off of Friday’s Q1 run. In Q4 on Saturday, Hagan ran a 4.017 ET at 300.16 mph.
Eliminated following Round 1 on Sunday:
Round 1: 3.934 ET at 330.35 mph, lost to Paul Lee (3.908 ET at 331.25 mph)
Currently second in the Funny Car championship standings, 112 points behind leader Austin Prock

Notes of Interest

Despite losing in Round 1, Hagan earned back-to-back wins at the Texas NHRA FallNationals in 2023 and 2024. He has recorded five career wins at the Texas NHRA FallNationals, which came in 2010, 2015, 2019, 2023, and 2024. He has gone to the final round the last six years heading into Sunday’s FallNationals and has appeared in more final rounds in Dallas than in any other event in the series (nine times in 17 appearances). Augmenting his five wins are four runner-ups (2012, 2020, 2021 and 2022).
In 2023, Hagan won TSR’s first and only double-up victory thus far with Leah Pruett in Top Fuel.
Ahead of the Texas NHRA FallNationals, Stewart participated in his 15th “Smoke Show” event. For the past 14 years, the event took place at Texas Motor Speedway. This year’s event featured the inaugural bowling tournament. The event benefitted Speedway Children’s Charities. Since 1997, Speedway Children’s Charities at Texas Motor Speedway has distributed more than $12.4 million in funding to non-profit organizations in Collin, Dallas, Denton and Tarrant counties supporting children in need.

Tony Stewart, Driver of the Mobil 1 Dodge//SRT Top Fuel Dragster

“This wasn’t the weekend we were looking for at the FallNationals. We were able to qualify the Mobil 1 machine in the top-half of the field during Friday’s night session. We knew Clay (Millican) was going to be a tough opponent in round one today. We just didn’t have enough for him. We have two races left to try and capitalize on points and try to bring home a couple more wins.”

Matt Hagan, Driver of the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Dodge//SRT Hellcat Funny Car

“This was a really challenging weekend and obviously not what we set out to do losing first round. It all started with Friday night when we missed it because we had a big explosion in the first session. It wasn’t a tune-up issue or parts being put on wrong, but just a parts failure. It’s hard to swallow when we keep having part failures from manufacturers, but it’s the hand we’re dealt. In the second session on Friday night, we had all new parts on the car. It was an unrealistic challenge to think we could go up there and row low (ET). We had cylinders out and had to shut the car off, so we didn’t qualify well. On Saturday in the heat of the day, we were making half-track pulls because we’re out of parts and pieces. We don’t have any more blowers, so we were trying to salvage the two we have to get through race day. That’s challenging because you’re going up there at kind of half-go. We’ve blown up six times this year. We had a close drag race today against Paul (Lee). We did the best we could in the right lane. I got him a little on the tree, but he had more for the racetrack. That’s how it goes sometimes and I’m not mad. I know it’s easy for my guys put their heads down, but we have two races to go. No matter how the points hunt shakes out, we can still win two more races, so that’s what we’re focused on.”

Next Up
The next event on the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series schedule is the NHRA Nevada Nationals Oct. 30-Nov. 2 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It is the fifth event in the Countdown to the Championship and the second-to-last race of the season.

Repeat IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD Titles for Winward Racing and Mercedes-AMG

By

Official Release

-

October 12, 2025

BRASELTON, Georgia – Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing team Winward Racing clinched repeat IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GT Daytona (GTD) championships on the first lap of Saturday’s Motul Petit Le Mans and then spent the next 10 hours wrapping up encore championship honors for Mercedes-AMG. The No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 team, full-season co-drivers Russell Ward and Philip Ellis and Mercedes-AMG won the IMSA WeatherTech GTD team, driver and manufacturer titles for the second-straight year.

Bringing a class-leading three GTD wins and season-high championship leads to the Motul Petit Le Mans IMSA WeatherTech finale, Winward improved its points position even more in Friday afternoon qualifying. Ellis, who seldom qualifies in GTD races, was chosen to drive the No. 57 in the quick 15-minute session and delivered.

Clocking in fifth fastest in the 19-car GTD field, Ellis outqualified some of Winward’s nearest challengers to further build its championship leads. The end result was that the No. 57 squad and drivers needed to only finish 18th or higher, out of the 19-car GTD class, in order to claim the back-to-back class championships in Saturday’s race.

Winward could seal the championships with the first retirement of a GTD car in the race, and that and more happened just seconds into the 10-hour Petit Le Mans finale. A multi-car accident in the quick MRRA esses on the first lap of the race led to the immediate retirement of two GTD cars and the ultimate demise of four class competitors in total.

The repeat titles for Winward were sealed before an official green flag lap in the race was completed. Then the No. 57 team and drivers settled in on delivering Mercedes-AMG its second-straight GTD manufacturer championship.

Joined by the team’s longtime endurance race driver Indy Dontje, Ellis, Ward and the Winward team battled hard throughout the 10-hour race to secure the repeat GTD manufacturer crown for Mercedes-AMG.

Once again fully understanding the mission at hand, Winward and its drivers focused on staying on the lead lap and steering clear of trouble in a race that had several multi-car contact incidents. The Winward No. 57 only led the GTD field twice in the 10 hours for just three laps, which was more about tracking and staying in touch with their manufacturer championship rivals rather than battling for the race win.

With Ward competitively completing his driving time in the first parts of the race, Dontje and Ellis drove the final stints in the race’s closing hours. The team settled into top-five contention, which was enough to wrap up the manufacturer honors, and Ellis took the checkered flag in fifth for the second race in a row.

In the end, the Ward and Ellis sealed their championships 189 points ahead of their nearest challenger, 3,103 – 2,908. The team title margin was 205 points ahead of the runner-up, 3,103 – 2,898. Mercedes-AMG took its second-straight championship by 39 points, 3,363 – 3,324.

The successful Mercedes-AMG title defense was competitively supported by IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTD contenders Lone Star Racing. Debuting team driver Lin Hodenius qualified the No. 80 Lone Star Racing, which he co-drives with Scott Andrews and Wyatt Brichacek, to a Mercedes-AMG brand-best third in GTD last month at Indianapolis.

Lone Star’s Indianapolis qualifying performance gave Mercedes-AMG 30 valuable points that were needed to seal the manufacturer crown Saturday for the second-straight year.

Ward, Ellis and Winward are the first drivers to secure consecutive GTD championships since Mario Farnbacher, who has race-winning Mercedes-AMG GT3 experience, and his team co-drove to the class driver and team championships in 2019 and 2020.

This year’s repeat-championship season saw Winward and its drivers take a points lead they would never lose with their first win in the second race of the year at the 12 Hours of Sebring. Win number two followed two races later at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca where Winward left with then season-high GTD championship leads of 124 points.

A major challenge emerged, however, in the mid-season Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen where Winward rallied after getting caught up in an early contact incident to make it to the checkered flag. The Glen setback still cost Winward more than half of its championship lead, but the No. 57 Winward team and drivers fought to rebuild the margin starting at the very next race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park with a runner-up finish.

From there, Winward never failed to rebuild its points lead in every remaining round of the season. The points haul included the team’s third win of the year at VIRginia International Raceway and fifth in the Battle on the Bricks 6 Hour at Indianapolis Motor Speedway last month, the two lead-in races to Petit Le Mans.

Next up for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing in IMSA is tonight’s IMSA WeatherTech Night of Champions Awards Celebration at Château Élan Winery & Resort. There Winward Racing and Mercedes-AMG will formally accept their 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season honors and awards.

Christoph Sagemüller – Head of Mercedes-AMG Motorsport: “North American motorsport is a very important platform for us as a global brand. We are therefore delighted that we were able to defend the drivers’, teams’ and manufacturers’ titles despite the strong competition. These successes in the IMSA strengthen the visibility of our products. Thank you to our Customer Racing Teams and drivers, who have represented Mercedes-AMG with outstanding performances.”

Stefan Wendl – Head of Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing:

“Congratulations to Winward Racing, Philip and Russell on their well-deserved title defense. They were not only flawless in Saturday’s race, but competitive and capable of winning throughout the entire season with the Mercedes-AMG GT3. This underlines the intensive and successful work we have done in integrating the new torque sensors. Accordingly, we are very proud of the results and successes achieved this season.”

Russell Ward, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “It’s easier to get to the top than it is to stay there. This season had many tough races with strong competition, but we achieved goals and helped defend the manufacturer title for Mercedes-AMG. We would have loved to win the Michelin Endurance Cup as well, but with three championships, we are of course more than happy. This is really about our unsung heroes of racing. These are our team guys who are working until at least 9 o’clock every night working on the car, making it perfect and getting everything 100 percent. We have the same group as last year, and we are going to have the same group again next year. We are going to be a force again next year. The crew always provides such an amazing piece of equipment for us to drive, and as long as we don’t put a foot wrong, it tends to come our way.”

Philip Ellis, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “Defending the title is definitely one of the greatest achievements of my career. Winning the championship is great but repeating it is indescribable, especially because some of the parameters were new to us this season due to the new regulations. There is always something that can go wrong in a race, so it was nice to get it done early, but then we had the manufacturer title to fight for. So that is what we raced for, and it was great we got that as well for Mercedes-AMG. It would have been nice to finish on the podium, but it is still our best finish to date in Atlanta. That’s something to work on for next year. Thank you to the team that did a great job throughout. We will work hard and aim for the third championships.”

Indy Dontje, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “It’s really special to help these guys win their second championship. There was some pressure, but Winward Racing gave us a great car, the team made great pit stops and my teammates also did a fantastic job. We didn’t quite make it to the front in the race, but fifth place is our best result on this track so far. In the end, it almost felt like an easy job for the championships. We made it stick, and it was really nice to be part of it. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 felt very good throughout the entire season. When I participated, we were always able to compete for top positions. I am delighted for Winward Racing and my teammates.”

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Denny Hamlin scores 60th Cup victory at Las Vegas; clinches Championship 4 berth

Results:

Playoff standings:

Mayer Finishes Top 10 at Las Vegas; Creed 11th in Round of 8 Opener

Xfinity Series

Cup Series

RCR NCS Race Recap: Las Vegas Motor Speedway

CHEVROLET NCS AT LAS VEGAS 2: Post-Race Report

Ford Racing Notes and Quotes – Las Vegas Cup Series Post-Race Quotes

AARON STANFIELD TAKES ELITE MOTORSPORTS TO FINAL ROUND AT TEXAS NHRA FALLNATIONALS

PROCK, KALITTA, GLENN & GADSON WIN PLAYOFF RACE AT TEXAS NHRA FALLNATIONALS

KALITTA EXTENDS POINTS LEAD WITH TEXAS FALL NATIONALS VICTORY

Tony Stewart & Matt Hagan Dallas Event Recap for the Texas NHRA FallNationals

Repeat IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD Titles for Winward Racing and Mercedes-AMG

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