Latest news with #HendrickCars
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Rajah Caruth wins NASCAR Truck race at Nashville in tense finish
Rajah Caruth has earned his first victory of the 2025 season and just the second of his career, fending off both Corey Heim and Layne Riggs in the closing laps at Nashville. Driving the No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet, Caruth grabbed the lead on pit road at the end of the second stage. The driver made the most of what his pit crew did for him, never surrendering the race lead. Advertisement "I didn't expect that at all," said Caruth. "Those guys were breathing down my neck the whole run. My pit crew won that race -- Jarius, Zico, Dawson, Josh, Cody -- they won that race for us. Thanks to them, thanks to everyone at the men and women at Spire Motorsports. We've been off this year but good to get a dub tonight, man. I'm out of breath." Heim is the winningest driver of the 2025 season with four wins in the first 11 races, including last weekend's event at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Speaking on the runner-up finish at Nashville, he said, "I feel like clean air was the thing (we needed) tonight. With the third stage being so straightforward, and the lack of strategy going green there, it was tough to come back from not having the lead. I slid through my box in the last stop and didn't do my guys any favors. Just something to reflect on -- on my part. "But big congrats to Rajah. He did an awesome job managing from the lead and I was really free behind him and he made pretty much the right choice every time as for where I was gonna go. It's nice racing against people that aren't going to wreck you, racing for the race lead." Layne Riggs finished a close third with Daniel Hemric fourth and Corey Day fifth. Kaden Honeycutt, Chandler Smith, Ty Majeski, Bayley Currey, and Grant Enfinger filled out the remainder of the top ten. Advertisement Kyle Busch, who had to fight back from a penalty for a restart violation, finished 15th. A straightforward race Rajah Caruth, Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Rajah Caruth, Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Sean Gardner / Getty Images Sean Gardner / Getty Images The race itself got off to a slow start after Frankie Muniz's #33 truck dumped oil all over the track, with Muniz forced to pull out of the race without completing a single lap under speed. The only on-track accident occurred on Lap 55 when Jack Wood and Akinori Ogata spun. Riggs went on to win the opening stage while Heim claimed the Stage 2 win, adding another playoff point to his impressive total. While Caruth never lost the lead in the final 47-lap run, Heim certainly came close as he got to the outside of him with just six laps to go. Caruth ran him high and Heim chose to lift. From that point onward, he had his hands full with Riggs in the battle for second and never got back alongside Caruth. Read Also: Time to worry: Playoff hopes are slipping away for these NASCAR Cup drivers To read more articles visit our website.
Forbes
26-05-2025
- Automotive
- Forbes
Kyle Larson's Long Day Ends Short At Charlotte
CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - MAY 25: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #99 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet, and ... More Kyle Larson, driver of the #5 Hendrick 1100 Chevrolet, spin after an on-track incident during the NASCAR Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 25, 2025 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by) Kyle Larson had to keep looking forward. Indiana was behind him—along with the heartbreak of missing the end of the Indianapolis 500. The much-hyped 'double' was no longer in play, but there were still 600 miles to run in Charlotte. A full workday behind the wheel. Focus forward. Try to salvage something. But the night didn't get much better. Larson rolled off second for the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway and quickly jumped to the lead by lap 9, as if the racing gods were offering him a shot at redemption. For a moment, it looked like a story straight out of Hollywood: heartbreak in Indy, triumph in Charlotte. The kind of thing that ends with slow-motion confetti and dramatic orchestral music. What happened instead was more like a country song with a wrecked Chevy in the chorus. On lap 36, Larson scraped the wall coming into Turn 3—nothing dramatic, just enough to rattle the sheet metal and let everyone know he was pushing. No lift, no hesitation. Because he's Kyle Larson, and that's what he does. CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - MAY 25: Crew members work to repair the #5 Hendrick 1100 ... More Chevrolet, driven by Kyle Larson after an on-track incident during the NASCAR Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 25, 2025 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by) But Turn 4 had other ideas. On lap 43, with Larson leading and seemingly in control, the rear end stepped out and the No. 5 car skated sideways across the frontstretch grass like a hockey puck on a bad breakaway. To the naked eye, it looked cosmetic. But underneath, a broken toe link had turned a top-tier race car into a wounded animal. The Hendrick Motorsports crew went into triage mode. Wrenches flew. Metal bent back into shape. Larson eventually rejoined the field, down but not out. He made up the lost laps and continued on, no longer a contender, but at least still in the race. If the win wasn't possible, maybe a finish was. Then came lap 247. Daniel Suárez, running three-wide on the bottom out of Turn 4, drifted up into Chase Briscoe, who then bumped into Ryan Blaney, who promptly bounced off the wall like a pinball. Suárez spun down across the frontstretch and into Justin Haley. Then into Larson. Again. This time, there was no recovery. INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - MAY 25: Kyle Larson #17 of Arrow McLaren Chevrolet crashes along with Sting ... More Ray Robb #77 of Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet during the NTT IndyCar Series 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 25, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Brandon Badraoui/Lumen via Getty Images) 'I don't know... I saw smoke and I tried to get left through the infield and I just didn't get far enough left,' Larson said after being released from the infield care center. 'I got tagged and it ended our night. Just a bummer of a day all around.' It wasn't just the final crash—Larson had been fighting an uphill battle from early on. 'I just got super loose into Turn Three out of nowhere early in the race. I caught the wall and got some toe damage,' he explained. 'I thought the No. 5 Chevrolet team did a great job in getting us back to where we were somewhat comfortable there the last 200 laps. We just needed to kind of chip away at it and I thought we could still end up OK.' Ultimately, his effort to complete 1,100 miles of racing across two iconic tracks came to a premature end after 336 total laps—91 at Indianapolis, 245 at Charlotte. 'Just not the day that I wanted,' Larson said, 'but huge thanks to Rick and Linda Hendrick, all of Hendrick Motorsports, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet, everybody involved in making the day memorable. It's just unfortunate, but hopefully we can run it back someday.'
Forbes
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- Forbes
Kyle Larson Returns To Indianapolis 500 After NASCAR All-Star Race
Team Arrow McLaren drivers Pato O'Ward (left) and Kyle Larson (right) talk before practice for the ... More 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 19, 2025, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (Photo by Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) INDIANAPOLIS – It was just about 12 noon and Kyle Larson was ready to go as the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Champion returned to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the Indianapolis 500 full field practice session on Monday. He flew back from Sunday night's NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina and was ready to continue his quest for a second-straight Indianapolis 500. As Larson was walking down pit lane, he was reminded that he had a nice, leisurely Sunday without the pressure of rushing from Indianapolis to North Wilkesboro in a limited amount of time. That would have happened if Larson had made the Fast 12 Qualifying and advance into the Fast 6 run for the pole, that didn't conclude until 6:55 p.m. Eastern Time. Larson said he would have rather been rushed. 'I like hectic,' Larson told me as he walked down pit lane. 'I race all the time, so I'm used to hectic. 'Yesterday was very, very relaxed.' Kyle Larson, driver of the #5 Chevrolet, races during the NASCAR Cup Series ... More All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway on May 21, 2023 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) Larson had to start last in the All-Star Race because his Indy 500 effort kept him out of the qualifying races but was assured of a starting position in the All-Star Race. Larson raced his way to third place after a two-tire stop on Lap 178. While running third, he hit the wall on Lap 214 and finished 21st, three laps down. 'It was a really fun race,' Larson said. 'I really enjoyed it. That's by far the best short track we have in NASCAR. It's really racy. We have grip, can run multiple lines. Yeah, it was fun. 'We were running third after taking two tires. Was just starting to rip the top really fast and got loose in and smashed the wall, ended our race.' Monday meant back to work for his second Indy 500 with Arrow McLaren. Larson qualified 21st fastest on Saturday and did not advance into the Fast 12, so his weekend ended early. But he has already moved up two positions because IndyCar penalized Team Penske's Josef Newgarden and Will Power for unapproved modifications to the rear attenuator of their race cars, sending them to the back of the 33-car starting lineup. Those two drivers were qualified to start alongside teammate Scott McLaughlin in Row 4. By penalizing Newgarden and Power, everyone who qualified behind them moves up two positions. 'I really don't have, like, an opinion on it,' Larson said of the penalties. 'I don't. Even in the NASCAR side of it, Chris Buescher got hit with his penalty, but I don't even know what it was and don't really care. 'It doesn't affect me in our team, so I don't really get too involved when it's other teams.' IndyCar driver Kyle Larson (17) poses for his qualifying photo after qualifying for the 109th ... More Running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 17, 2025, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) When asked if he thought the Team Penske cars would remain a threat in the race, Larson laughed. 'Did you guys see Josef out there today? He'll be just fine,' Larson said, referring to Newgarden's speed of 225.597 mph in the No. 2 Shell Chevrolet. That was the eighth-fastest speed in the two-hour practice session. IndyCar Series points leader Alex Palou was the fastest at 226.764 mph in the No. 10 DHL Honda. Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves was second at 226.441 mph in the No. 06 Honda for Meyer Shank Racing followed by Takuma Sato, Jack Harvey and Ryan Hunter-Reay. Larson was 11th, with a best lap of 225.056 mph. All 33 cars were on the track and ran a total of 2,067 laps in the two-hour session. 'I thought it was decent,' Larson said of his car. 'I feel like when you're out there, everybody kind of looks pretty similar. Yeah, just try to get a little racy at times to learn a little bit for the race. 'But it's so different in practice. I feel like there's more accordion and all that that opens up passing, where the race is a little bit more difficult to pass so… 'Balance definitely feels a little different than last year. There's more of a balance shift throughout the run that I remember having.' Instead of starting near the front as he did last year, Larson is starting mid-pack and will have to contend with traffic at the start of the race. It will be a difficult time to advance toward the front, but the NASCAR Cup Series points leader for Hendrick Motorsports loves a good challenge. 'It's fun,' he said. 'It seems more challenging. It definitely presents challenges. I had that horrendous restart last year. I think I fell back to close to where I'm starting. We were able to get closer to the front by the three-quarter point of the race. 'I think if you do just normal kind of race stuff, execute good restarts and pit stops and things, you can work your way forward without having to work too hard. 'Hopefully myself and our team can do a good job on Sunday and just chip away at it.' After Monday's full-field practice, Larson flew to New York City for an Indy 500 Media Tour on Tuesday. After that concludes, he flies back to Indianapolis and will attend Tuesday night's Indiana Fever WNBA game against the Atlanta Dream at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Indy 500 starting field of (front) #6: Nolan Siegel, Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, #17: Kyle Larson, ... More Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, #5: Pato O'Ward, Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, #83: Robert Shwartzman, PREMA Racing Chevrolet, #3: Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske Chevrolet, #12: Will Power, Team Penske Chevrolet, #2: Josef Newgarden, Team Penske Chevrolet, #9: Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, #75: Takuma Sato, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda, #10: Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, #76: Conor Daly, Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet, #66: Marcus Armstrong, Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb-Agajanian Honda, #60: Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb-Agajanian Honda, #30: Devlin DeFrancesco, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda (back) #45: Louis Foster, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda, #15: Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda, #18: Rinus VeeKay, Dale Coyne Racing Honda, #7: Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, #90: Callum Ilott, PREMA Racing Chevrolet, #21: Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet, 33/, #20: Alexander Rossi, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet, #23: Ryan Hunter-Reay, DRR-Cusick Motorsports Chevrolet, #06: Helio Castroneves, Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb-Agajanian Honda, #28: Marcus Ericsson, Andretti Global Honda, #26: Colton Herta, Andretti Global w/ Curb-Agajanian Honda, #98: Marco Andretti, Andretti Herta w/ Marco & Curb-Agajanian Honda, #27: Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global Honda, #8: Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, #24: Jack Harvey, DRR-Cusick Motorsports Chevrolet, #4: David Malukas, A.J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet, #77: Sting Ray Robb, Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet pose for a photo before practice for the NTT IndyCar Series 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 19, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael L. Levitt/Lumen via Getty Images)
Forbes
06-05-2025
- Automotive
- Forbes
Homestead-Miami Speedway Returns As Nascar's Championship Race In 2026
Tyler Reddick, driver of the No. 45 The Beast Killer Sunrise Toyota, and Kyle Larson, driver of the ... More No. 5 Chevrolet, lead the field on a pace lap prior to the Nascar Cup Series Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Oct. 27, 2024 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by) Getty Images Nascar's championship weekend is about to have a new (but old) look. The sanctioning body on Tuesday announced the long-awaited news that the championship race for all three series will return to Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2026. Homestead, which is less than an hour south of Miami, lost the season finale race after the 2019 season in lieu of Phoenix Raceway. Not only did Phoenix spent $178 million on a major renovation of the facility, but the city has invested heavily in promoting the race, which has been a sell-out for several years. 'Homestead-Miami Speedway has a history of competitive, championship racing that will provide nostalgia for veteran drivers and fans and exhilaration for Nascar's new generation,' Ben Kennedy, executive vice president, chief venue and racing innovation officer, said in a statement. 'As we move forward, the rotating model will provide new challenges for competitors as well as opportunities for unique venues to host our loyal fans at Nascar Championship Weekend.' Homestead-Miami Speedway is a popular track for both drivers and fans. The 1.5-mile track puts on fantastic racing, with multiple lanes for drivers to choose from during a 400-mile spectacle. The three championship races will be held from Nov. 6 to 8, 2026. Phoenix will remain on the schedule with two events. The Athletic's Jordan Bianchi, who initially broke the news that this will happen, spoke with Homestead vice mayor Sean Fletcher. Fletcher stated that there is 'an estimated $350 million economic boost to the area' for the championship weekend. Bianchi also reported that Phoenix was paying Nascar several million dollars to host the title finale for all three Nascar series. In 2027, Nascar is expected to announce a different facility as the host of the Championship Weekend. 2026 may be the start of a rotation for the season finale, similar to other sports.
