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Connor Zilisch rallies for breakthrough Xfinity victory at COTA

By
Andrew Kim
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Photo by Mitchell Pavel for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Connor Zilisch was not to be denied a breakthrough moment. Amid a difficult start to the 2025 campaign, he notched a comeback victory in the fifth annual running of the Focused Health 250 at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, on Saturday, March 1st.

The 18-year-old Zilisch from Charlotte, North Carolina, led three times for a race-high 26 of 65-scheduled laps. He started on the pole and led 16 of the first 17 laps. However, before the first stage’s conclusion, he was penalized for pitting when pit road was closed due to a caution as Baltazar Leguizamon stalled on the frontstretch. Despite restarting towards the tail end of the field, Zilisch methodically maneuvered and carved his way back towards the front amid on-track carnage, including one with teammate Justin Allgaier, during the second stage period.

Then after restarting in third place at the start of the final stage period with 20 laps remaining, Zilisch attempted to execute a bold move beneath teammate Carson Kvapil for the lead. The move, however, resulted in both JR Motorsports’ competitors making contact, briefly going off the track and slipping back to the top-four mark. After rallying from the brief off-track excursion and making contact with Corey Heim that damaged his right-front fender, Zilisch would navigate his way back into the runner-up spot with 14 laps remaining as he proceeded to set his sights on Kvapil for the lead.

After dueling and overtaking Kvapil for the lead through the frontstretch with nine laps remaining, Zilisch would fend off another attack by Kvapil entering COTA’s new National layout during the following lap to retain the top spot. When Kvapil fell off the pace due to losing a right-front tire with five laps remaining, Zilisch maintained a steady gap over William Byron for the remainder of the event that enabled him to achieve his first NASCAR Xfinity Series race victory of the 2025 season.  

With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, February 28, rookie Connor Zilisch scored his first Xfinity pole position of the 2025 season and the second of his career with a pole-winning lap at 88.832 mph in 97.262 seconds. Joining him on the front row was teammate Ross Chastain, who clocked in his best qualifying lap at 88.664 mph in 97.446 seconds.

Prior to the event, a bevy of names, including Jesse Love, Kris Wright, Harrison Burton, Kyle Sieg, Austin Green, Baltazar Leguizamon, Ryan Sieg, Preston Pardus, Ryan Ellis, and Josh Bilicki, dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective entries.

When the green flag waved and the event commenced, teammates Connor Zilisch and Ross Chastain dueled for the lead through the uphill climb to the first turn. Through the first turn, Zilisch managed to fend off Chastain to retain the top spot entering the second turn as William Byron overtook Chastain for the runner-up spot. Zilisch would proceed to lead the field through the Esses (Turns 3 to 6) before he navigated his way through Circuit of the America’s new National layout (Turns 6A and 6B) and back onto the circuit’s traditional course, starting in Turn 12.

Through the final set of turns from Turn 12 to 20, Zilisch would keep his No. 88 WeatherTech Chevrolet Camaro entry out in front and return to the frontstretch to lead the first lap. Meanwhile, Chastain, who reassumed the runner-up spot from Byron through Turn 12, pursued Zilisch as Byron and Justin Allgaier followed suit in the top four. Meanwhile, Corey Heim, Sam Mayer, rookie Carson Kvapil and AJ Allmendinger all battled fiercely for fifth place.

Over the next three laps, Zilisch would extend his early advantage to nearly a second over teammate Chastain as Byron, Allgaier and Heim pursued in the top five. Behind, Mayer was in sixth place ahead of Kvapil, Austin Hill, rookie Christian Eckes and Sheldon Creed while rookie Taylor Gray, Nick Sanchez, Sammy Smith, Riley Herbst, Anthony Alfredo, Brandon Jones, rookie Daniel Dye, Josh Williams, Blaine Perkins and rookie William Sawalich rounded out the top 20, respectively. Amid the racing towards the front, Ryan Ellis spun in Turn 20, but he proceeded without drawing a caution.

On the fourth lap, the event’s first caution flew when Carson Hocevar, who was filling in for Garrett Smithley in the No. 14 SS-Green Light Racing Chevrolet entry, made contact with Jeb Burton and hit the Turn 6A tire barriers head-on as his event came to an early end.

The start of the following restart period on the sixth lap featured teammates Chastain and Zilisch dueling for the lead through the uphill climb to the first turn for a second time. With the field fanning out, Chastain nearly overtook Zilisch for the lead from the outside lane in Turn 1, but Zilisch fought back entering Turn 2 and the Esses as he maintained the top spot. Behind, Heim and Allgaier made contact while battling for fourth place through the Esses, but both kept their cars racing straight.

Back at the front, Zilisch fended off Chastain through the National layout and a series of right- and left-hand turns, starting in Turn 12, to maintain the top spot and lead the following lap. While Byron pursued in third place, trouble ensued in Turn 20 as Creed made contact with Hill, which caused Creed to spin as Kvapil and Nick Sanchez also spun in the ensuing chaos. The race, though, remained under green flag conditions as the trio who spun proceeded from the carnage scene. Meanwhile, Zilisch continued to lead Chastain and Byron during the next lap.

Through the first 10-scheduled laps, Zilisch was leading by more than a second over Chastain while third-place Byron trailed by more than two seconds. Behind, Heim and Allgaier trailed in the top five by more than four seconds as Mayer, Hill, Herbst, Sammy Smith and Eckes raced in the top 10 ahead of Taylor Gray, Alfredo, Dye, Jesse Love, Perkins, Alex Labbe, Josh Williams, Brandon Jones, Jeb Burton and Sawalich, respectively.

Five laps later, Zilisch stretched his advantage to nearly four seconds over Chastain while Byron, Heim and Allgaier continued to follow suit in the top five. As Mayer, Herbst and Hill trailed in the top-eight mark, Eckes, who rubbed fenders with Sammy Smith earlier, occupied ninth place in front of Gray while Smith was in 11th place.

Another two laps later, early pit strategy ensued as Kvapil and Herbst pitted their respective entries under green. By then, Byron overtook Chastain for the runner-up spot as Heim tried to close in on Chastain for the runner-up spot as more names that included Gray, Love, Ryan Sieg, Brandon Jones, William Sawalich and Jeb Burton all pitted.

With three laps remaining in the first stage period, the caution returned when newcomer Baltazar Leguizamon came to a stop on the frontstretch. By then, Zilisch, who steered his entry to pit road as it was closed due to the caution, pitted his entry from the lead as Byron, who was among many who had yet to pit, cycled into the lead.

The caution by Leguizamon was enough for the first stage period scheduled to conclude on Lap 20 to officially conclude under caution as Byron, this year’s two-time Daytona 500 champion, claimed the stage victory. Chastain, Heim, Mayer and Allgaier followed suit in the top five while Hill, Eckes, Sammy Smith, Alfredo and Alex Labbe were scored in the top 10, respectively.

Under the stage break, nearly the entire field led by Byron pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Byron exited pit road first and he was followed by Hill, Chastain, Allgaier, Mayer, Sammy Smith, Heim, Dye, Eckes and Williams, respectively. Following the pit stops, Gray, who pitted before the first stage’s conclusion, cycled into the lead while Zilisch, who returned to pit road for fuel, was penalized for pitting when pit road was closed on Lap 17.

The second stage period started on Lap 24 as Gray and Love occupied the front row. At the start, Gray and Love dueled for the lead through the uphill climb to Turn 1 until Gray muscled ahead of Love and the field prior to entering Turn 2 and the Esses. Gray would continue to lead through the National course and through Turns 12 to 16 until Love drew his No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Camaro entry beneath Gray’s No. 54 Operation 300 Toyota Supra entry in a side-by-side battle for the lead through Turns 17 and 18. Both would remain dead even for the lead through the final two turns as Gray led the following lap by a hair.

Shortly after, Love pulled a bold crossover move in front of Herbst to get underneath Gray entering Turn 1. The move allowed Love to force Gray off the track as the former assumed the top spot while also fending off Herbst’s No. 19 Monster Energy Toyota Supra entry entering Turn 2. Despite getting bumped by Herbst in Turn 6A, Love maintained the lead and would lead the following lap over Herbst. Behind, Kvapil battled and overtook Gray for third place as Creed tried to close in. Amid the action towards the front, the race remained under green flag conditions as rookie Dean Thompson spun in Turn 1.

Just past the Lap 27 mark, Love was leading by more than half a second over Herbst. Kvapil, Gray and Creed continued to race in the top five ahead of Ryan Sieg, Brandon Jones, Harrison Burton, Chastain and Byron, respectively. Meanwhile, Zilisch was up to 17th place after he restarted towards the tail end of the field following his pit road penalty.

A lap later, however, the caution flew when Jeremy Clements, who was making his 500th Xfinity career start, spun and hit the tire barrier in Turn 6A, but managed to continue despite knocking down a banner on the barrier.

As the event resumed under green flag conditions on Lap 31, Herbst, who restarted alongside Love on the front row, went on early defense as he rocketed into the lead through the uphill climb to Turn 1. Despite getting bumped by Kvapil through the uphill climb, Herbst fended off Love and Gray to retain the lead through the Esses.

With Herbst leading, Kvapil and Creed pursued Love for the runner-up spot while Gray was overtaken by Chastain for fifth place. Through Turns 12 to 20, Zilisch would return to the top-10 mark as he battled teammate Justin Allgaier and Ryan Sieg for eighth place, though Allgaier had a left-front tire rub due to making contact with Zilisch during the restart. Amid the action within the middle of the field, Herbst led the following lap, which marked the event’s halfway mark, over Love and Kvapil.

By Lap 35, Herbst stabilized his lead to nine-tenths of a second over Kvapil as Chastain, Byron and Creed followed suit ahead of Gray, Love, Hill, Zilisch and Heim, respectively. Meanwhile, Allgaier, who pitted to have his left-front damage diagnosed, was down in 35th place. Allgaier, however, would make a second trip to pit road during the following lap after he cut a right-rear tire to his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro entry while racing off the course in Turn 19.

Once he returned to the track, Allgaier battled fiercely with Herbst to avoid losing a lap to the leaders, which started through the Esses. This allowed Kvapil and Chastain to close in as Herbst was placed on defense to fend off the latter two for the lead. Despite nearly losing the lead to Kvapil from Turns 12 to 19, Herbst maintained the lead as Kvapil pitted his No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Clarience Tech Chevrolet Camaro entry under green. In addition, Allgaier remained in front of Herbst to stay on the lead lap category as Chastain then overtook Herbst for the lead on Lap 37.

Soon after, multiple names that included Creed, Love, Zilisch, Gray, Jones, and Eckes pitted with Kvapil under green. With more names that included Chastain, Herbst, Byron, Heim and Hill pitting, Harrison Burton assumed the lead with two laps remaining in the second stage period.

When the second stage period concluded on Lap 40, Harrison Burton, who finished in the top 10 through the first two scheduled events of the 2025 season and is driving for AM Racing, captured his first Xfinity stage victory of the 2025 season. Rookie Daniel Dye followed suit in second along with Sammy Smith, Jeb Burton and Ryan Sieg while Brennan Poole, Alex Labbe, Josh Williams, Sage Karam and Kyle Sieg were scored in the top 10, respectively. By then, Kvapil, Chastain, Byron and Zilisch were mired in the top 15 while Herbst was ranked in the top 20 mark.

During the stage break, some led by Harrison Burton and including Chastain and Herbst pitted while the rest led by Kvapil remained on the track.

Down to the final 20 laps of the event, the final stage commenced as Kvapil and Byron occupied the front row. At the start, Zilisch, who restarted in third place behind teammate Kvapil, wasted no time making his move beneath Kvapil through the uphill climb. Entering Turn 1, however, Kvapil and Zilisch rubbed fenders as both along with Byron went wide and briefly off the course.

This allowed Austill Hill to muscle his No. 21 Global Industrial Chevrolet Camaro entry ahead with the lead and Heim to move into second place while Kvapil, Zilisch, Gray and Byron followed suit through the Esses. As Hill continued to lead through the Esses, the National layout and Turns 12 to 20, Zilisch bumped and sent Heim for a spin in Turn 15. As Heim continued without drawing a caution, Byron and Kvapil overtook Zilisch from Turns 16 to 18 while Hill led the following lap.

Over the next four laps, Hill stretched his late advantage to nearly a second over Kvapil while Zilisch, who sustained damage to his right-front fender amid the contact with Heim, continued on the track in third place ahead of Byron and Gray. Behind, Mayer, Love, Eckes, Blaine Perkins and Sanchez followed suit in the top 10 ahead of Sawalich, Alfredo, Harrison Burton, Ryan Sieg and Chastain. Herbst was mired back in 19th place in front of Creed while Heim pitted his No. 24 Upper Deck Toyota Supra entry under green. Meanwhile, Hill stabilized his lead to nine-tenths of a second over Kvapil with 15 laps remaining.

Then with 14 laps remaining, Kvapil, who had been narrowing Hill’s advantage through every turn, overtook Hill to assume the lead through Turn 12 after Hill got loose and almost missed the turn, which caused him to deviate from his racing line. Teammate Zilisch would follow suit as he rocketed past Hill entering Turn 13. With Hill falling back to third place, Kvapil maintained the lead through the final seven turns to lead the following lap as Zilisch, who had a faint right-front tire rub, was trying to close back in for the lead.

Over the next three laps, Zilisch kept teammate Kvapil close within his sights, but he could not narrow the gap further through every turn, even going as far as smoking his front tires in Turn 20 with 12 laps remaining, as Kvapil maintained the lead. Kvapil would proceed to retain the lead over Zilisch by three-tenths of a second with 10 laps remaining while third-place Hill trailed by more than two seconds. Meanwhile, Byron trailed in fourth place by four seconds while Gray trailed by six seconds in fifth place.

Then a lap later, Zilisch dueled with teammate Kvapil for the lead after Kvapil locked his front tires and nearly missed Turn 20. Zilisch would then lock his front tires through the uphill climb, though he returned atop the leaderboard. Kvapil would keep Zilisch within close distance through the Esses and the National turn, but Zilisch maintained the lead and he would proceed to fend off Kvapil from Turns 12 to 20. With Zilisch leading Kvapil by half a second with eight laps remaining, Hill was racing ahead of Byron in third place while Mayer was in fifth place.

With eight laps remaining, Kvapil got alongside Zilisch as both made light contact in Turn 6A. Zilisch, though, maintained the lead and he would continue to fend off Kvapil’s repeated challenges over the next lap. Zilisch would then slightly extend his lead to eight-tenths of a second with six laps remaining and by more than a second with five laps remaining as Kvapil started to lose ground.

Shortly after, Kvapil’s strong race went south after he lost a right front tire and fell off the pace. As Kvapil was limping his No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Clarience Tech Chevrolet entry back to pit road, Byron zipped by for the runner-up spot along with Hill, Mayer and Gray. In the process, Zilisch was now leading by more than four seconds with four laps remaining.

With three laps remaining, Zilisch maintained his lead to nearly four seconds over Byron as Mayer fended off Hill for third place. Despite having his advantage decreased to three seconds to Byron during the next lap, Zilisch kept his No. 88 WeatherTech Chevrolet entry atop the leaderboard.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Zilisch remained as the leader by more than two seconds over Byron. Throughout the 17-turn course, Byron closed the deficit to within two seconds, but Zilisch’s large gap was enough for him to smoothly navigate his way through the circuit for a final time as he cycled back to the frontstretch and streaked across the finish line to claim the checkered flag in first place and by more than a second over Byron.

With the victory, Zilisch, who rallied from sustaining DNFs through the first two-scheduled events of the 2025 season, notched his second Xfinity Series career win in his seventh series start and his first since winning his first event at Watkins Glen International in September 2024. Ironically, both of Zilisch’s Xfinity victories have come from pole position and on road-course events. In addition, the Charlotte native recorded the first win of the 2025 season for JR Motorsports and extended Chevrolet’s early winning streak through this season’s first three scheduled events.

Photo by Mitchell Pavel for SpeedwayMedia.com.

“That was tough,” Zilisch said on the frontstretch on the CW Network. “That was way harder than I wanted it to be. I did not drive a clean race at all. I’m sorry to everyone that I hit. I was, kind of, mentally fogged halfway through that race. [I’m] Glad we were able to fight back. This JR Motorsports team gave me a car as fast as Xfinity Mobile. So proud of everyone. WeatherTech, thank you for coming on board. It’s been such a fun weekend, but we got a big race tomorrow. Looking forward to that as well.”

The Xfinity victory accomplished half of Zilisch’s big weekend at COTA. He is scheduled to start in 14th place for his NASCAR Cup Series debut at the circuit while driving the No. 87 Red Bull Chevrolet entry for Trackhouse Racing on Sunday, March 2. Despite having the spotlight being directed to him over his highly anticipated Cup debut while trying to rebound from his difficult Xfinity campaign, Zilisch, who was a favorite during Saturday’s Xfinity event, ignored the talks surrounding him and let both his preparations and on-track performance speak on behalf of him.

“You just can’t let the noise get to you,” Zilisch added. “You got to keep doing your thing no matter what. Whether it’s good talk or bad talk, you just got to keep doing it, prepare the same way and the results will come. I’m so grateful to have so many great people in my life. It’s been a long journey, but grateful to get this one today.”

William Byron, who was making his first of two Xfinity starts in the No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro entry for Hendrick Motorsports, settled in second place while Sam Mayer, Austin Hill and rookie Christian Eckes finished in the top five.

Jesse Love, rookie Taylor Gray, Ross Chastain, rookie William Sawalich and Blaine Perkins completed the top-10 spots in the final running order.

Meanwhile, Carson Kvapil, who led seven laps and contended for his first Xfinity victory before his flat right-front tire issue, ended up in 23rd place.

“Man, it’s tough,” Kvapil said. “It’s tough to get over that one, right? We flat-spotted the right front [tire] just trying to stay with [Zilisch] there. I felt like we were a little bit better in some places, but in others, he could really get away from us. I knew if I just tried to keep my ground up, I would be able to catch him through the Esses. Ultimately, [I] just used [the car] up a little too much there. I feel like we shouldn’t have ran that good, maybe. I guess it was a little bit expected, but at the same time, it’s a little bit of a surprise. Just can’t thank everybody on this whole No. 1 car for making this thing as fast as Xfinity Mobile and all the hard work they put in today.”

Riley Herbst, who also led seven laps, settled in 13th place behind Sammy Smith and Sheldon Creed. In addition, Justin Allgaier came home in 29th place behind Jeremy Clements, Corey Heim ended up in 31st place and Harrison Burton fell back to 35th place due to falling off the pace in the closing laps amid an axle issue.

There were 14 lead changes for nine different leaders. The race featured four cautions for 14 laps. In addition, 32 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap.

Following the third event of the 2025 Xfinity Series season, Austin Hill leads the regular-season standings by 13 points over teammate Jesse Love, 14 over Sheldon Creed, 28 over Sam Mayer and 32 over Justin Allgaier.

Race Results:

1. Connor Zilisch, 26 laps led
2. William Byron, three laps led, Stage 1 winner
3. Sam Mayer
4. Austin Hill, six laps led
5. Christian Eckes
6. Jesse Love, six laps led
7. Taylor Gray, three laps led
8. Ross Chastain, two laps led
9. William Sawalich
10. Blaine Perkins
11. Sammy Smith
12. Sheldon Creed
13. Riley Herbst, seven laps led
14. Alex Labbe
15. Josh Williams
16. Ryan Ellis
17. Daniel Dye
18. Dean Thompson
19. Ryan Sieg
20. Brennan Poole
21. Anthony Alfredo
22. Josh Bilicki
23. Carson Kvapil, seven laps led
24. Nick Sanchez
25. Jeb Burton
26. Austin Green
27. Kyle Sieg
28. Jeremy Clements
29. Justin Allgaier
30. Brandon Jones
31. Corey Heim
32. Matt DiBenedetto
33. Kris Wright, one lap down
34. Sage Karam – OUT, Transmission
35. Harrison Burton – OUT, Axle, five laps led, Stage 2 winner
36. Preston Pardus – OUT, Rear End
37. Baltazar Leguizamon – OUT, Suspension
38. Carson Hocevar – OUT, Accident

Next on the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona, for the GOVX 200. The event is scheduled to occur next Saturday, March 8, and air at 5 p.m. ET on the CW Network.

Toyota GAZOO Racing – NXS COTA Post-Race Report – 03.01.25

By
Official Release
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TWO TOYOTA TOP-10s AT CIRCUIT OF THE AMERICAS
Taylor Gray, William Sawalich Score Top-10s in First Road Course Race of Season

AUSTIN (March 1, 2025) – Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Taylor Gray (seventh) and William Sawalich (ninth) earned top 10 finishes in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Circuit of the Americas (COTA).

Corey Heim ran among the top five during the first two stages of the race before contact with a fellow competitor sent his Sam Hunt Racing No. 24 Toyota GR Supra spinning, and he went on to finish 31st in Saturday’s 156-mile Xfinity Series race.

Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS)
Circuit of the Americas
Race 3 of 33 – 156 miles, 65 laps

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS

1st, Connor Zilisch*
2nd, William Byron*
3rd, Sam Mayer*
4th, Austin Hill*
5th, Christian Eckes*
7th, TAYLOR GRAY
9th, WILLIAM SAWALICH
13th, RILEY HERBST
18th, DEAN THOMPSON
30th, BRANDON JONES
31st, COREY HEIM
34th, SAGE KARAM
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

TAYLOR GRAY, No. 54 Operation 300 Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 7th

“I feel like we really struggled the first three quarters of the race just being really tight everywhere and just kept working all day. I can’t thank my Joe Gibbs Racing guys enough. They kept working on the Operation 300 Toyota GR Supra all day and we never gave up. I feel like we got the car okay there at the end and unfortunately, we got in a little bit of a tight fuel spot and started having to save quite a bit of fuel and gave up quite a bit of track position there. And, then whenever I’d go to take back off, I just didn’t really have any rear grip to support me in going fast. Again, I can’t thank my Joe Gibbs Racing guys enough. Just gotta regroup and refocus toward Phoenix and get after it.”

WILLIAM SAWALICH, No. 18 Starkey Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 9th

How was your race today?

“It was pretty good. We had a good Starkey GR Supra today. It was as fast as Xfinity Mobile so I really can’t thank the JGR guys enough on the No. 18 team. We had four total tires fall apart during the first and second stage so that set us back a little bit, but we regained our ground through a little bit of strategy, and they put me in position to get a good top-10 and a solid finish at the end.”

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.

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

McLaughlin, Team Penske Rally for St. Petersburg Pole

By
Official Release
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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (Saturday, March 1, 2025) – On Friday afternoon, Scott McLaughlin’s race car was in the paddock, the front end in tatters after he crashed during practice for the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding.

Fast-forward 24 hours, and McLaughlin was holding the NTT P1 Award.

McLaughlin earned the 11th pole of his career during Firestone Fast Six qualifying Saturday, turning a top lap of 59.4624 seconds in the No. 3 DEX Imaging Team Penske Chevrolet. He won this race from the pole in 2022, the first victory and No. 1 qualifying spot of his NTT INDYCAR SERIES career. The pole marked Team Penske’s 699th pole position across all motorsports series and the 70th Team Penske pole for McLaughlin across his career with the team.

“Huge amount of respect; we have so much trust in each other, and they trusted I could do the job today,” McLaughlin said. “The guys and girls on this team, they’re stars. I had to repay them. I made a little silly mistake there, and I was glad to come back with them.

“I just wanted to get pole first race of the year. Good vibes. It’s just great vibes – immaculate vibes, we like to say. I’m very excited.”

The 100-lap race starts at noon ET Sunday on the 14-turn, 1.8-mile temporary circuit (FOX, FOX Deportes, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). A 30-minute warmup begins at 9 a.m. ET (FS2, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network).

2021 St. Petersburg winner Colton Herta will share the front row with McLaughlin, qualifying second at 59.6393 seconds in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda of Andretti Global.

Meyer Shank Racing produced one of its best days in team history, locking out the second row as the only team to place two drivers in the Firestone Fast Six. Felix Rosenqvist qualified third at 59.6989 in the No. 60 SiriusXM Honda, followed by new teammate Marcus Armstrong at 59.8278 in the No. 66 SiriusXM/Root Insurance Honda.

Christian Lundgaard got off to a good start in his first race with Arrow McLaren, qualifying fifth at 59.8663 in the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. Six-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Scott Dixon rounded out the Firestone Fast Six at 59.9216 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.

The thrilling Firestone Fast Six session featured the pole exchanging hands twice in the last minute. Rosenqvist was on pole with one minute to go before Herta snatched the top spot with 30 seconds remaining. Then McLaughlin came through with his pole run on his final lap, with mere seconds to spare on the session clock.

There was just as much drama in the first two rounds of qualifying, as a number of high-profile drivers failed to advance. Two-time St. Petersburg winner Josef Newgarden was eliminated in the round of 12 and will start 10th in his No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet. Two-time reigning series champion Alex Palou also was ousted in the second round and will start eighth in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.

Eliminated in the first round were two-time series champion Will Power, who has won the pole nine times in the last 15 years at this race, and defending race winner Pato O’Ward. Power will start 13th in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, while O’Ward will take the green flag from the 23rd starting spot in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet.

Rosenqvist and Armstrong Lock Out The Second Row for Meyer Shank Racing at St. Pete

By
Official Release
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#60: Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing Honda February 27-March 2, 2025 Saint Petersbury, FL IndyCar Grand Prix of Saint Petersburg Photo: Rick Dole/StillHouse

Meyer Shank Racing only team to have both team cars in the Firestone Fast Six

St. Petersburg, Fla. (1 March 2025) – Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) opened the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season with a strong qualifying performance, as Felix Rosenqvist put the No. 60 SiriusXM Honda third on the grid, with teammate Marcus Armstrong securing fourth place in the No. 66 SiriusXM / Root Insurance Honda for Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (12:00pm ET, FOX, SiriusXM Channel 218).

The qualifying effort marked the sixth time that MSR has had two of its cars qualify in the top six in the last two INDYCAR seasons.

Rosenqvist continued to showcase his speed on the tight and technical 1.8-mile, 14-turn street course, advancing through all three rounds of qualifying before locking in his third-place starting position. The sophomore MSR driver, once again showcased his speed around the St. Petersburg road course after qualifying second in last year’s race, missing out on the pole by just six one-thousandths of a second.

Armstrong impressed in his MSR debut, delivering a career-best INDYCAR street course qualifying result with fourth place. The young Kiwi demonstrated rapid adaptation to his new team and machinery, making a statement in his first race with MSR by earning a spot on the second row.

Sunday’s 100-lap Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will air live on FOX starting at 12:00pm ET, with SiriusXM also carrying INDYCAR Radio coverage on SiriusXM Channel 218.

Meyer Shank Racing Driver Quotes:

Felix Rosenqvist: “Great qualifying for us, P3. I don’t know if I could have gotten the pole, but it’s a really exciting day for Meyer Shank Racing with us qualifying P3 and P4. We have Shinedown on the car this weekend which was one of my favorite bands growing up. But it was a hell of a start to the season for us.”

Marcus Armstrong: “There was more available for us today, but I’m happy to be inside the Top 6 in my first weekend in the No. 66 SiriusXM / Root Insurance Honda. We left a little bit on the table, but it’s okay because we get to fight for it from this position. The alternate tire is extremely soft, it looks like it could be around five laps and you might start thinking about changing them straight away. We will see how it goes, but we will be pushing tomorrow.”

Scott McLaughlin wins pole for Sunday’s race

By
Tucker White
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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - MARCH 1: Scott McLaughlin, driver of the #3 Team Penske Chevrolet, poses with the P1 sticker after winning the pole for the NTT INDYCAR Series Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 1, 2025, in St. Petersburg, Florida. Photo: Chris Owens/Penske Entertainment

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — What a difference a day makes.

A day after destroying the front of his car in practice, Scott McLaughlin wins the pole for the NTT INDYCAR Series’ Firestone Grand Prix, on Sunday. The driver of the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet clocked in the fastest lap of the entire session at a time of 59.462.

It’s the 11th career INDYCAR pole for the New Zealand native, 12th for Team Penske on the streets of St. Petersburg and McLaughlin’s first pole as a dad.

Colton Herta clocked in second at a time of 59.639. Felix Rosenqvist clocked in third at 59.699. Marcus Armstrong placed fourth at 59.828. Christian Lundgaard came home fifth at 59.866 and Scott Dixon rounded out the Firestone Fast 6 at 59.922.

Second round

Herta, on used Firestone reds, clocked in to open the second round at 1:00.564, a second slower than he went in Round 1. With four minutes to go, Lundgaard timed in at 1:00.070. With 90 seconds left, Marcus Ericsson clocked in a lap of 1:00.003.

In the final minute, Herta ran the fastest lap of Round 2 at 59.545. He, Lundgaard, Armstrong, Dixon, Rosenqvist and McLaughlin advanced to the Firestone Fast 6.

Nobody in Round 2 ran a sub one-minute lap until the final minute of the round.

First round

Group 1

For most of the session, Kyffin Simpson held the top spot with a time of 1:00.104, on Firestone reds. Josef Newgarden usurped him with roughly four and a half minutes to run with a lap of 59.721, also on Firestone reds. With less than a minute to run, Nolan Siegel jumped to the top with a lap of 59.625.

McLaughlin ended the session on top with a lap of 59.469. Herta, Siegel, Newgarden, Lundgaard and Rinus VeeKay advanced with him to the second round.

Everybody turned their fastest lap on Firestone reds, and the first seven cars posted a sub one-minute lap.

Group 2

Dixon clocked in the fastest lap to open Group 2 with a time of 1:01.396, on Firestone blacks. Louis Foster, on Firestone reds, turned in a lap of 1:00.456. Devlin DeFrancesco clocked in at 1:00.168.

Dixon, on Firestone reds, clocked in a lap of 59.841. With a minute left, Alex Palou timed in the fastest lap of Group 2 at 59.600. Along with him advanced Dixon, Rosenqvist, Ericsson, Armstrong and Kyle Kirkwood.

Only four drivers in Group 2 posted a sub one-minute lap.

Texas Two-Step: Reddick, Wallace Set Up All 23XI Racing Front Row at EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix Qualifying

By
Official Release
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Photo Courtesy of NASCAR at COTA and Harold Hinson Photography

AUSTIN, Texas (March 1, 2025) – Tyler Reddick blistered the 2.4-mile National Course during qualifying for Sunday’s EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas (COTA), posting a lap time of 98.076 seconds at 88.095 mph to claim the pole. With the lap, the Corning, Calif. native also showed the way for his teammate, Bubba Wallace, who posted his best qualifying effort since Darlington last season and will start alongside Reddick in an all-Toyota front row.

“All in all, it felt like it was hard for anybody today to have the perfect lap,” Reddick said. “We hit the right areas to put together a good lap. We were able to hang on to it throughout the whole session.”

The triumph marked Reddick’s 10th pole in 185 NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) starts and his second at COTA.

Reddick said managing tire falloff will be key to repeating the success he found in 2023, when he won the event.

“It’s a lot more than we’ve had here in the past,” he said. “It really does go away and it goes away quick. That will be important tomorrow. Taking care of the tires, staying up front does help. We were not where we wanted to be in the first practice. The team worked really, really hard today to find some handling, find some speed.”

Wallace, who’s previous best start at COTA was 10th last season, was chasing Reddick through the 17-turn circuit during qualifying, nearly catching him in a couple of spots.

“He slowed me up, for sure,” Wallace joked after qualifying. “I thought I slowed him up, just being that close. It all worked out – a good one-two start for our team.”

Chase Elliott, who won the inaugural EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix in 2021, Carson Hocevar and Daniel Suarez round out the top five. Road course ringers Shane van Gisbergen and AJ Allmendinger start sixth and 12th respectively, while 18-year-old Connor Zilisch, making his NCS debut, starts 14th.

EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix action continues at 2:30 p.m. CT Sunday with the first-ever running on the new National Course.

Fuel Issues Spark Wild Finish in IMSA’s VP Racing SportsCar Challenge Race 1:

In a shocking finish to the first of two 45-minute IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge races, Canadian Jonathan Woolridge collected his second career victory in the series as the cars running first and second ran out of fuel coming to the white flag.

Woolridge trailed race-leading teammates Oscar Tunjo and Valentino Catalano by more than a minute on the second-to-last lap. Tunjo, who started the race from the pole position, led most of the race until Catalano took over out front with just over six minutes remaining.

The two ran nose-to-tail before Tunjo briefly claimed the lead from Catalano with 1:40 left on the clock. Seconds later, both cars ran out of fuel and slowed to a stop on course.

That opened the door for Woolridge to take the white flag as the new leader, and 2.4 miles later, he claimed the victory, his first since winning at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in 2023.

“I was a little surprised coming around the carousel there and finding those two parked there,” Woolridge said. “But I feel like that’s racing. Sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you don’t and today we got lucky.”

Brian Thienes finished second in the P3 class and won the Bronze Cup race. Mirco Schultis rounded out the P3 podium with a third-place.

Full Recap of IMSA Race One Action from Saturday at COTA.

Tickets:

Tickets for children ages 12 and under start at just $10 for Sunday’s EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix NCS race. For individual tickets, weekend packages and camping, fans can visit NASCARatCOTA.com.

Follow Us:

Keep track of all things NASCAR at COTA by following on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@NASCARatCOTA). Keep up with all the latest information on the NASCAR at COTA website and mobile app.

Hauger Wins St. Petersburg Pole in Series Debut

By
Official Release
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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (Saturday, March 1, 2025) – Dennis Hauger continued his strong first weekend in INDY NXT by Firestone, winning the pole for the season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on Saturday with a track-record lap for the INDYCAR development series.

Hauger turned a top lap of 1 minute, 3.8801 seconds in the No. 28 Rental Group car fielded by Andretti Global to earn the top spot in his series debut. The 45-lap race on the 14-turn, 1.8-mile temporary street circuit starts at 10 a.m. ET Sunday, with live coverage on FS1, the FOX Sports app and the INDYCAR Radio Network.

SEE: Qualifying Results

“The team did a great job getting a good car for qualifying,” Hauger said. “We did the job. I’ll take that. Overall, I think there was a bit more in there for me, but it’s the first race weekend. We’re getting up to speed. Happy overall.”

Hauger’s top lap in the first of two qualifying groups broke the INDY NXT track record of 1:04.5759 set by Nolan Siegel last year before he climbed to the NTT INDYCAR SERIES with Arrow McLaren. Hauger also led practice Friday and was second in the pre-qualifying session this morning.

A climb to the NTT INDYCAR SERIES also is Hauger’s goal. The Norwegian joins INDY NXT by Firestone this season after winning the FIA Formula 3 Championship in 2021 and earning five wins and 13 podium finishes in FIA Formula 2 – the last official ladder step before Formula One – in the last three seasons.

2024 USF Pro 2000 champion Lochie Hughes locked out the front row for Andretti Global by qualifying second at 1:04.0209 for his series debut in the No. 26 McGinley Clinic/USF Pro Championship machine.

Caio Collet, the top returning driver to the series this season, qualified third at 1:04.3851 in the No. 76 HMD Motorsports car. Fellow series veteran Myles Rowe will join Collet in the second row after qualifying fourth at 1:04.2053 in the No. 99 Abel Motorsports/Force Indy car.

Rookie Liam Sceats qualified fifth at 1:04.5451 in the No. 30 HMD Motorsports car. Jack William Miller will start sixth in the No. 40 Abel/Miller/Vinatieri Motorsports car after his best lap of 1:04.3300.

Toyota GAZOO Racing – NCS Qualifying Quotes – Tyler Reddick – 03.01.25

By
Official Release
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Toyota GAZOO Racing – Tyler Reddick
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

AUSTIN (March 1, 2025) – 23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick was made available to the media after winning the pole for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Circuit of the Americas.

TYLER REDDICK, No. 45 The Beast Unleashed Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing

Can you take us through your lap?

“Yeah, all in all it felt like it was hard for anybody in the field today to have a perfect lap. Certainly, it wasn’t that for me but hit the right areas that matter the most. Fortunately, put together a pretty good lap that was able to hold on there. Certainly, didn’t know the 9 (Chase Elliott) and some of the other cars, the capability of re-running a good time and what that was going to look like. All in all, we had a really good lap, and we were able to hang onto it throughout the whole session. “

How noticeable was the fall off of the new tire compound from your perspective?

“Yeah, it’s a lot more than I feel like we’ve had here in the past. Even last year’s tire was a good step to help that. Yeah, it really does go away, and it goes away quick. That will be a handful tomorrow. Qualifying is important, but one lap speed is not really going to be something that I feel like is going to matter much in the race. Obviously with the tire fall off and taking care of the tires starting upfront does help. You’re not having to push through the field to try to get to where you’re going to run for the day. We’re going to look back at just some of the things we did during practice. It felt like on our end, we were not where we wanted to be the first practice and starting off the second practice, I think around a lap and a half I said we’ve got to change a lot. And we made it a lot better. I’m proud of everybody on this Beast Camry. They worked really, really hard today to find some handling, find some speed. It’s nice to get poles, it’s nice to have good days but for us something that has been happening more times than not recently is having a day that starts off not well and being able to fight your way through it and make it better by the time the day ends. Those kinds of days have been fun. We’ve had a couple of those already this year for sure.”

Were you watching your mirrors at all when Bubba Wallace went out nearby you?

“I was but not in areas that would take away from my lap. I remember going into (turn) 1 and I’m like, ‘Dang, I wish he would’ve gapped himself a little bit more,’ because I felt like I was messing his lap up for sure. Talking to him after the fact, his focus was to go out and follow me and kind of see what I was going to do and try to mimic it. Certainly, he’s on the path to getting better at the road courses. He’s learning and if he keeps it up here soon, I’ll be having to try to battle him head-to-head for these poles. It’s been really nice to see his growth and him improve and embrace the way we have to do things and how we learn through our simulator program at Airspeed and in Salisbury. It’s just been nice to see those gains happen. Riley (Herbst) is going to go through the same process, and he’s going to learn and get better as well.”

Were you trying to be the ghost car for Riley Herbst or were you trying to improve your lap?

“I was trying to improve, yes. But, I mean, it kind of just worked out that way where I gave Riley (Herbst) a ghost car. I didn’t get to see how it really helped him or not. For myself, I felt like I left a little bit on the table, and I wanted to give it a shot at improving. Obviously, we didn’t, but I still think we learned some things from the re-run even though we didn’t go faster that can help us maybe tomorrow or the maybe the next road course qualifying session that we have.”

Are you expecting dive bombs in turn 6A during the race and is that tire pack coming right at you?

“Oh no. It’s not that bad at all. If it was shaped like that, yeah, we’d be heading right towards it but you kind of come out of 6 and straight shot into 6A. It’s honestly kind of fun playing the game of how close you can get to the tire pack before you can hit it. Haven’t got it yet, so hopefully I don’t the rest of the weekend.”

How do you prepare for that turn and do you expect dive bombs during the race?

“We’ll see. I think today will be very telling of what that’s going to look like in the Xfinity race later. I think you just have to be ready for someone to make a move anywhere around this race track. Today there were sports cars racing a little bit earlier – the sports car challenge was out there a little earlier today. I didn’t get to catch a lot of that as we were going over some things for practice. This layout is fairly new. I don’t know if there’s a lot of races that have been done on it. I think everybody is going to be learning. The Xfinity cars are going to go out there and race, and the Cup guys are going to watch that and observe and see what that looks like and how that move looks. I think it’s definitely a place where it’s going to be really hard for the car on the outside to win. If you end up on the outside of (turn) 6A or B with the double left. We’ll see.”

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.

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

Tyler Reddick leads 23XI Racing front row sweep with Cup pole at COTA

By
Andrew Kim
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Photo by Mitchell Pavel for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Tyler Reddick led a historic front-row sweep for 23XI Racing at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) by capturing the Busch Light Pole Award for the fifth annual running of the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix on Saturday, March 1.

The event’s starting lineup was determined through a single qualifying round, where the entered competitors were split into two groups, Group A and Group B, after the event’s two practice sessions. The competitors in each group were given 20 minutes to post a qualifying lap. After the time trials, the driver posting the overall fastest lap time is awarded the pole position.

Reddick, who qualified in Group B, navigated his No. 45 The Beast Toyota Camry XSE entry around COTA’s new 17-turn layout to a pole-winning lap at 88.095 mph in 98.076 seconds, which was enough to claim the top-starting spot over his 23XI Racing teammate, Bubba Wallace, as both performed their respective qualifying laps at the exact time while racing within reach of one another.

As a result, Reddick, a two-time Xfinity Series champion from Corning, California, notched his 10th NASCAR Cup Series career pole, his fourth on a road-course venue, his second at COTA and the first of the 2025 season for both himself and 23XI Racing. Ironically, Reddick achieved the Cup Series’ first pole at COTA in 2021 and he would capture his first race victory driving for 23XI Racing in 2023.

After being the 16th fastest during both of the event’s practice sessions earlier on Saturday, Reddick was pleased with the pace gained during his qualifying session which enabled him to claim the pole as he will lead the field to the start of Sunday’s main event.

“I think today, it threw [the team] for a loop,” Reddick said on Prime Video. “The pace was nowhere what we thought it was going to be. Everybody here on this No. 45 [team] and everyone here at 23XI [Racing] really had to go to work on our Toyota Camrys. We made massive improvements from practice 1 to practice 2. Obviously, we didn’t have the fire-off lap we were wanting and then, we’re gonna have to go out [to the track] and find it right away. Just really glad today went like it did. It’s gonna be a great track position for us tomorrow.”

AUSTIN, TEXAS – MARCH 01: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #45 The Beast Toyota, poses for photos after winning the pole award during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas on March 01, 2025 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images).

Reddick will share the front row with teammate Bubba Wallace, the latter of whom clocked in his best qualifying lap at 87.894 mph in 98.300 seconds. As a result, both of the latter two competitors notched the first front-row sweep for 23XI Racing for an upcoming Cup Series event.

The second-place starting spot marks Wallace’s current best of the 2025 season and his second top-three starting spot achieved after he started in third place during this year’s 67th running of the Daytona 500 due to winning the first Daytona Duel event in February. Compared to Reddick, the Mobile, Alabama native’s best result at COTA is 15th place, which occurred during the 2024 event. After sustaining DNFs during his first three trips in Austin between 2021 to 2023, Wallace will attempt to bid for his first road-course victory for Sunday’s main event.

Like Reddick, Wallace was also pleased with the pace gained in comparison to the event’s two practice sessions, where he ranged within the top-20 mark, to launch himself to a front-row starting spot.

“When we come to the road course races, I think everybody on the Toyota camp leans on Tyler [Reddick],” Wallace said. “He does a great job of giving us the right information to chase, sometimes. I was way out in left field in practice, so we made some big gains on our Mobil 1 Toyota. Now, tomorrow’s a different pace for me, the racing and being aggressive and staying up front. That’ll be the new challenge, but all in all, just continuing to get speed and getting more comfortable on these types of places, it’s what it’s all about. [It’s] All about the men and women at 23XI Racing.”

Chase Elliott, winner of the inaugural COTA event in 2021, leaped his way to being the third-fastest competitor on the final qualifying chart with his best lap occurring at 87.842 mph in 98.358 seconds. Carson Hocevar, who is coming off a career-best second-place result from Atlanta Motor Speedway, qualified in fourth place with his best lap occurring at 87.758 mph in 98.453 seconds while Daniel Suarez, who was the fastest competitor during Group A, claimed the fifth-starting spot with his best lap occurring at 87.732 mph in 98.482 seconds.

Rookie Shane van Gisbergen, Kyle Larson, Kyle Busch, Ross Chastain and Todd Gilliland rounded out the top-10 starting spots.

The following names that include Denny Hamlin, AJ Allmendinger, Ty Gibbs, William Byron, Michael McDowell, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, Alex Bowman, Joey Logano, Chris Buescher, Ryan Blaney, Brad Keselowski, Erik Jones and Austin Cindric qualified 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th, 18th, 19th, 21st, 23rd, 24th, 25th, 26th, 32nd and 36th, respectively.

Notably, Connor Zilisch qualified in 14th place for his Cup Series debut. In addition, rookie Riley Herbst, who was initially the fastest qualifier until he was penalized for cutting the course, will start in 31st place after he made a second qualifying attempt.

With 37 competitors vying for 37 starting spots, all of the competitors made the main event.

Qualifying position, best speed, best time:

1. Tyler Reddick, 88.095 mph, 98.076 seconds

2. Bubba Wallace, 87.894 mph, 98.30 seconds

3. Chase Elliott, 87.842 mph, 98.358 seconds

4. Carson Hocevar, 87.758 mph, 98.453 seconds

5. Daniel Suarez, 87.732 mph, 98.482 seconds

6. Shane van Gisbergen, 87.699 mph, 98.519 seconds

7. Kyle Larson, 87.645 mph, 98.579 seconds

8. Kyle Busch, 87.637 mph, 98.589 seconds

9. Ross Chastain, 87.536 mph, 98.702 seconds

10. Todd Gilliland, 87.522 mph, 98.718 seconds

11. Denny Hamlin, 87.503 mph, 98.74 seconds

12. AJ Allmendinger, 87.463 mph, 98.785 seconds

13. Ty Gibbs, 87.407 mph, 98.848 seconds

14. Connor Zilisch, 87.336 mph, 98.928 seconds

15. William Byron, 87.186 mph, 99.098 seconds

16. Michael McDowell, 87.111 mph, 99.184 seconds

17. Noah Gragson, 87.092 mph, 99.205 seconds

18. Chase Briscoe, 87.088 mph, 99.21 seconds

19. Christopher Bell, 87.084 mph, 99.215 seconds

20. Zane Smith, 87.064 mph, 99.237 seconds

21. Alex Bowman, 87.063 mph, 99.239 seconds

22. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., 86.949 mph, 99.369 seconds

23. Joey Logano, 86.899 mph, 99.426 seconds

24. Chris Buescher, 86.873 mph, 99.456 seconds

25. Ryan Blaney, 86.843 mph, 99.49 seconds

26. Brad Keselowski, 86.798 mph, 99.541 seconds

27. Austin Dillon, 86.791 mph, 99.55 seconds

28. Ryan Preece, 86.596 mph, 99.774 seconds

29. Justin Haley, 86.53 mph, 99.85 seconds

30. Cole Custer, 86.485 mph, 99.902 seconds

31. Riley Herbst, 86.459 mph, 99.932 seconds

32. Erik Jones, 86.408 mph, 99.991 seconds

33. John Hunter Nemechek, 86.362 mph, 100.044 seconds

34. Ty Dillon, 86.346 mph, 100.062 seconds

35. Josh Berry, 86.149 mph, 100.291 seconds

36. Austin Cindric, 85.798 mph, 100.702 seconds

37. Cody Ware, 84.654 mph, 102.062 seconds

The 2025 EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas is set to occur on Sunday, March 2, and air at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

Rinus VeeKay ‘going into it head first’ to acclimate with new team

By
Tucker White
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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - FEBRUARY 28: Rinus VeeKay, driver of the No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing Honda during first practice for the 2025 Firestone Grand Prix of St Petersburg presented by RP Funding on Feb. 28, 2025, in St. Petersburg, Florida. Photo: Travis Hinkle/IMS Photo

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A little more than two weeks ago, Rinus VeeKay didn’t have a ride for the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. While he was in talks since October of 2024, he grew worried as time passed with no deal in place.

“I mean, seasons approaching, you’re getting closer,” he said. “You got some demons in your head, you know?”

Friday, he arrived at the Mahaffey Theater sporting a grey Dale Coyne Racing shirt, “just going into it head first.”

In the 14 days since Dale Coyne Racing announced it signed VeeKay, he embraced his new role as leader to his new team and rookie teammate, Jacob Abel.

“The engineers and I, you know, they do what I what I ask and what I need from the car they give me,” he said. “So I think it’s a very straightforward way of engineering. You know, it’s very simple and very effective.”

So what are the goals for a driver who’s in the midst of a four-year winless drought in the NTT INDYCAR Series? It’s hard to say, because he doesn’t know what to expect from his new team.

“I think nobody really knows what to expect,” he said. “You can really work off what they did last year with nine drivers. But I think for this weekend, we can, we have legitimate shots at top 10. I think for the championship, a safe goal, a realistic goal, I think is top 16 is a great job for them as a team, but it might change. It might go to towards the top 10 or top 12 in a championship.”

VeeKay got off to a rough start with Dale Coyne Racing. In Sebring testing on February 17, he clocked in 23rd out of 27. Furthermore, he timed in 25th in first practice for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, Friday.

He ended second practice, however, second fastest.

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