Venturini Motorsports, one of the most successful organizations in the history of the ARCA Menards Series, have run into some major issues heading to this weekend’s Shore Lunch 250 at Elko Speedway in Minnesota.

While on the way to Elko New Market, Minnesota, a hauler carrying a racecar and equipment for Venturini Motorsports caught fire, briefly shutting down a part of Interstate 40 in Jefferson County, Tennessee, on Friday.

The exact location of the fire was on Interstate 40 West at Exit 417 near Dandridge.

According to the Dandridge Fire Chief, Andy Riley, a semi-truck hauling a trailer with an ARCA Menards Series vehicle inside caught fire at about 11:00am ET, which subsequently shut down the interstate as cleanup efforts began.

Inside of the hauler was the No. 55 Yahoo! Toyota Camry XSE that Toyota Driver Development (T2D) competitor Isabella Robusto will pilot in this weekend’s short track race. Despite the fire, the fire department says that the racecar was undamaged.

The Dandridge Fire Department says that one of the wheels of the trailer blew out while traveling on Interstate 40 and sparked the fire. That fire weakened the floor of the trailer, but fire crews on the scene were able to extinguish the fire before it reached the inside.

As of 11:30am ET, one lane of Interstate 40 West had been reopened for traffic and was moving again. However, traffic remained backed up past the Interstate 81 split.

Racing America On SI has reached out to Venturini Motorsports in hopes of obtaining comment on the incident, as well as whether or not this fire will have any ramifications on the No. 55’s ability to compete in Saturday’s event. As of the time of publishing, no response has been received.

A native of Fort Mill, South Carolina, Isabella Robusto is in her rookie season of competition in the ARCA Menards Series, where she joins Lawless Alan as the two full-time drivers for Venturini Motorsports.

After a tough start to the season, Robusto sits sixth in ARCA Menards Series point standings on the strength of one top-five finish (a third at Talladega) and three top-10 finishes. Robusto is one of three drivers that will be driving for Venturini Motorsports this weekend, joining the aforementioned Lawless Alan and 2024 KDDP Champion Ty Fredrickson, who will drive the No. 25

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23XI Racing, Front Row Motorsports and NASCAR went to court on Tuesday for a hearing as part of the teams’ antitrust lawsuit against the stock car racing series and its CEO Jim France. Judge Ken Bell of North Carolina’s Western District urged both sides to settle before the case is scheduled to go to trial Dec. 1.

“It’s hard to picture a winner if this goes to the mat — or to the flag — in this case,” Bell said, via Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports. “It scares me to death to think about what all this is costing.”

Details of Tuesday hearing between 23XI, Front Row vs. NASCAR

23XI and Front Row requested Tuesday’s hearing to dismiss NASCAR’s countersuit, which accuses the Cup Series teams of illegally conspiring to get better charter terms in the 2025-31 agreement. NASCAR attorneys argued that all the teams boycotted a council meeting in February 2024, per Pockrass. To NASCAR, that indicated the teams had the power to boycott a race. Jeffrey Kessler, attorney for 23XI and Front Row, argued the following:

“Kessler argued that because the teams did negotiate individually with NASCAR and because NASCAR negotiated with the Race Team Alliance and its Team Negotiating Committee, that there was nothing illegal about the teams trying to be aligned in their stance,” Pockrass wrote.

Bell said he would rule soon. The ongoing legal battle has taken several twists and turns since the teams filed the lawsuit Oct. 2, 2024, and this is just another step in the process.

“NASCAR knows it has no defense to the monopolization case. So, they have come up with this claim about joint negotiations, which they agreed to, never objected to, and now suddenly it’s an antitrust violation,” Kessler said, via Alex Schiffer of Front Office Sports. “It makes absolutely no sense. It’s not going to help them deflect from the monopolizing they have done in this market and the harm they have inflicted.”

23XI, Front Row vs. NASCAR: How we got here

The antitrust lawsuit stemmed from 23XI and Front Row opting not to sign NASCAR’s final charter proposal last September at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Teams negotiated an extension of the original 2016 charter agreement for two years ahead of its Dec. 31 expiration. They made demands such as making charters permanent, which NASCAR refused to include in its proposals.

The final proposal came Sept. 6 at 6 p.m. ET. NASCAR allegedly gave teams a six-hour deadline to sign, threatening to “eliminate the charter system altogether for 2025 and beyond” if they did not. 23XI and Front Row were the two holdouts among the 15 Cup Series teams. The final offer included a nearly 50 percent increase that teams earned from NASCAR’s record $1.1 billion per year television deal that went into effect in 2025 and also runs through 2031.

Both teams secured a preliminary injunction to continue racing while the lawsuit is pending. The U.S. Court of Appeals made a major decision June 5, vacating the preliminary injunction that granted charter status to 23XI and Front Row. The teams have until Friday to submit a request for a rehearing by all judges in the U.S. Court of Appeals fourth circuit. Both sides are due back in court June 24.

Denny Hamlin is set to return to NASCAR Cup Series action this week, with Joe Gibbs Racing having announced a new sponsor for the No. 11 Toyota ahead of his comeback

Denny Hamlin, along with Joe Gibbs Racing, has unveiled a significant sponsorship agreement as he gears up to make his return to the NASCAR Cup Series. Hamlin skipped the recent Viva Mexico 250 over the weekend to support his wife during the birth of their third child, leading Ryan Truex to step in and drive the No. 11 Toyota.

This week marks Hamlin’s return to the wheel for JGR, which coincides with the announcement of a multi-year sponsorship deal with Bob’s Discount Furniture. The huge retailer, reported to be valued at more than $350 million, will first appear as a primary sponsor at the Iowa Corn 350 on August 3.

The latest boost comes after Hamlin put himself in an awkward situation with Michael Jordan and his legal team, and also delivered a candid verdict on rising star Carson Hocevar.

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Bob’s Discount Furniture President and CEO Bill Barton joined in the excitement, stating: “Partnering with Joe Gibbs Racing is a natural fit for Bob’s. We’re both committed to excellence, delivering value, and engaging with communities in meaningful ways. Debuting the Bob’s-branded No. 11 car at Bob’s Grand Opening in Winston-Salem, a region with deep NASCAR heritage and our newest store location, makes this moment even more special.”

In alignment with their new partnership, Hamlin and Gibbs are scheduled to attend the grand opening celebration of the Bob’s Discount Furniture outlet in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, set for July 17.

“We’re excited to welcome Bob’s to our No. 11 team and to have their new locations opening up close to home,” Hamlin said. “If you look at their marketing and social media, they do a great job being creative, so we’re really looking forward to what kind of ideas we can work on together both on and off the racetrack.”

As the 2025 Cup Series season approached, Hamlin had bid farewell to long-time sponsors FedEx and Mavis Tires but has since successfully inked new partnerships with Sports Clips, King’s Hawaiian, and National Debt Relief. Addressing the media before The Clash at Bowman Gray at the start of the season, he conceded that JGR’s sponsorship challenges were “maybe a little bit” worrisome.

“I mean it’s tough out there. Sponsorship is hard to come by and certainly while it’s such an important time in our sport to recognize the sponsorship dollars are not flowing like they used to, for sure. Everyone’s had to adjust quite a bit,” Hamlin remarked.

“Obviously you’ve got certain aspects that JGR has to price into their pricing as well that it’s probably tough. I don’t know, it’s just part of it. But certainly having one sponsor for 20 years made things pretty easy and now it’s all kind of catching up.

“Is it concerning from my end? Maybe a little bit, but it’s probably more concerning from JGR’s standpoint.” And he will be relieved those problems have since eased with Progressive and now Bob’s Furniture Discount on board.

Chase Elliott is making an extra appearance for Hendrick Motorsports in the Xfinity Series this weekend at Pocono and has been given a chance to work with a potential replacement for his crew chief

Chase Elliott is set to make an additional appearance for Hendrick Motorsports in the Xfinity Series this weekend at Pocono, driving the No. 17 car.

And the extra race provides him with another opportunity to collaborate with up-and-coming crew chief Adam Wall, who is working his way into the picture as a potential successor amidst increasing pressure on Alan Gustafson.

Despite the No. 9 car’s consistent performance in the Cup Series, a dearth of race wins and front runs has led many of Elliott’s dedicated fans to question if changes are necessary, while Jeff Gordon recently compared Elliott to his Hendrick teammates. Elliott recently put the ball in Hendrick’s court with a simple comment on his future, and has consistently defended Gustafson and his team from criticism.

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But Wall has achieved significant success with the No. 17 car, despite working with a variety of drivers, which has significantly enhanced his reputation. While there’s no current indication of any changes within Elliott’s team, Wall is positioning himself as a clear contender should Hendrick decide to make adjustments.

Elliott will now have a second opportunity this season to work under Wall’s direction, having previously driven the No. 17 car to a second-place finish at Darlington earlier this year.

With Kyle Larson, Alex Bowman, and William Byron all having raced in the car, along with several races for rising dirt track star Corey Day, it’s been a significant opportunity for Wall, who worked for JR Motorsports last season.

He has climbed the ranks from multiple positions within the race shop, and contributing to Larson’s No. 5 team that clinched the Cup Series title in 2021.

Wall expressed his excitement about his career progress earlier this season, stating “It’s a huge opportunity for me. I’ve been a lot of places in this organization, kind of worked my way up through it, so to get to this point, it’s the whole goal of my journey through this place was to get here. It’s a cool spot to be in.”

The upcoming races are set to turn all eyes on Elliott as he teams up with Wall, maneuvering the No. 17 car through the ‘Tricky Triangle’, tackling double duty ahead of Sunday’s Cup showdown.

MEXICO CITY — If you can win a race by the largest margin of victory in two decades, you have proven you are among the best of the best in your discipline.

Shane van Gisbergen did just that in Mexico City. He punched his ticket to the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs by 16.567 seconds. It was the largest margin of victory in a Cup race since Kurt Busch won at Texas Motor Speedway in November 2009 by a fuel-mileage-aided 25.686-second margin of victory.

The playoffs is supposed to include the best of the best of the series, isn’t it? Now Shane van Gisbergen is in.

SVG held off past road course winners and playoff qualifiers Christopher Bell and Alex Bowman when they hounded him. Then, he proceeded to drive away from them by as much as a second a lap and buried past champion Chase Elliott’s chances of winning in a far, far distant third-place.

The New Zealander admittedly has an advantage. SVG became an 81-time winner and a three-time champion running Supercars Championship cars that have essentially the same tube-style chassis as the current Cup Series cars. Even still, in his lone NASCAR Xfinity Series season with cars most akin to traditional American stock cars generations of drivers and champions have grown up on, SVG was one of the series’ leading winners with three checkered flags in 2024.

SVG is not a traditional driver in any sense. He is 36 years old in his rookie Cup season and just jumped from 33rd in the championship points standings to being virtually locked into the playoffs. Even after the win, he is 30th in points — far away from even whiffing the playoffs for the first 10 years of it.

For 10 years, the playoffs were about taking the top-10 or top-12 drivers in the series — with points used to effectively determine the top drivers. The 2014 format shift meant winners effectively determined the top drivers more.

Winning is valuable. Fans clamored for it to mean more after Matt Kenseth’s 2003 championship, leading to the playoffs.

Winning proves a point. SVG could easily affirm his place in the playoffs and detract any haters at the three road courses coming up where he is a favorite.

Winning is tough. In the 77-year history of the Cup Series, only 206 drivers have ever won a single race. 144 drivers have won multiple races. For reference:

• 2,997 drivers have made at least one start
• 1,945 drivers have multiple starts
• 418 drivers have made 30 or more starts
  • Sunday marked SVG’s 30th Cup start

There are more drivers who have made any starts as SVG and never won than there are drivers who have made as many starts as him and won.

NASCAR has continuously swung the pendulum on rewarding wins in the playoffs. The original format didn’t seed the playoffs based on wins. The second through fourth formats did but the fourth format didn’t beyond the first round of the playoffs, leading us to the balance NASCAR has struck — drivers get into the playoffs on the strength of the win but get into the championship round on the strength of their performance throughout the season.

SVG has been improving on ovals but is unlikely (for now) to steal a spot in the Championship 4 – let alone the Round of 16. Historically, the Round of 16 is a time for some teams and their partners to revel in the playoff glory before their subsequent elimination.

Again, it’s a reward for achieving something tough — winning. In the respective years that drivers like Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Harrison Burton got it done, former champions like Chase Elliott and Kyle Busch didn’t and paid for it — albeit in different circumstances than each other.

Beyond a win and glory, a playoff berth guarantees extra money over the next three years. That extra money arguably allowed a team like Hyak Motorsports to survive and contend for the playoffs this year despite losing many of their major partners.

For Trackhouse Racing, a team that has been struggling with finding raw speed, losing key higher-ups like Pitbull and Ty Norris and failing to get multiple cars in the playoffs the last two seasons, this is just as huge for them. Two cars in the playoffs puts them on-par with heavyweights like Joe Gibbs Racing, Team Penske and Hendrick Motorsports. With contract talks swirling within the team as they look to find a spot for hotshot Connor Zilisch, SVG and Trackhouse are securing their future in real-time.

As some have said, “don’t hate the player, hate the game” — but how do you change the game? Proposals have swirled and people have called for past formats to return. But NASCAR usually never looks back, especially when their format has promoted parity in the sense of what a burgeoning or smaller team can do with playoff money that they couldn’t do without it.

Not to, crossovers like SVG can bring a new audience and excitement to the sport for more than a handful of races.

So welcome to the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, Shane van Gisbergen! You’re here at the right time when a ringer like yourself can be hired for your talents and to deliver for a huge, new opportunity for a team like yours.

Again, “don’t hate the player, hate the game.” Play on, SVG.

Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.

A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.

Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick’s final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen’s stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers’ stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.

Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com

It’s been an up and down year for Denny Hamlin on and off the track in 2025, but the 44-year-old has been boosted with news of a Joe Gibbs Racing deal this week.

The veteran racer has already won three of the first 15 NASCAR Cup Series races this year, finishing second in another two, and is fifth in the drivers’ championship points standings despite missing last weekend’s race in Mexico City.

The reason for missing that race was one of the major ‘ups’ in Hamlin’s 2025, with his fiancee Jordan Fish giving birth to their third child in the days leading up to the road course event.

Hamlin’s issues have been more focused around 23XI Racing, the team he co-owns with Michael Jordan, but the Joe Gibbs Racing team he drives for have gone from strength to strength this week with a new partnership with Bob’s Discount Furniture.

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Hamlin opens up on new Joe Gibbs deal

Hamlin will debut the No. 11 Bob’s Discount Furniture Toyota Camry XSE at Iowa Speedway in August, with fans getting a first glimpse of it at the grand opening of the Bob’s Discount Furniture location in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on Thursday, July 17th.

In a statement announcing the deal, Joe Gibbs said: “We are thrilled to partner with Bob’s Discount Furniture. Racing every weekend all across the country, we will have the opportunity to promote their great furniture at everyday low prices to race fans everywhere.

“We are especially excited to have the opportunity to celebrate their expansion into North Carolina at the grand opening event at their new Winston-Salem store on July 17th.”

Hamlin added: “We’re excited to welcome Bob’s to our No. 11 team and to have their new locations opening up close to home. If you look at their marketing and social media, they do a great job being creative, so we’re really looking forward to what kind of ideas we can work on together both on and off the racetrack.”

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