Sabatino Moto sells a lot of motorcycles. The shop is often the top seller of Royal Enfields in the Western United States. In some months, Sabatino is the top Royal Enfield seller in the whole United States. Sabatino does more with less – the dealership only has five employees. In a world of Goliaths, this David is doing well.

Eric Sabatino started out working on classic Vespa and Lambretta scooters, then branched out into older British motorcycles. At first, he lived in an RV next to his shop. Sabatino’s first step up was a contact with Tomos mopeds, who talked him into renting a small commercial space. The nascent dealership prospered, and Tomos mopeds were soon joined by Sym lightweights.

Sabatino Moto was then located in one unit of a larger building. When the pandemic hit, the other tenants gradually moved out, and the dealership rented the rest of the building. Eric then convinced Royal Enfield to give him a franchise, which they agreed to if he would move to a larger space across the street.

“I was in the right place at the right time,” Sabatino says. When Sabatino got its franchise, Royal Enfield was selling motorcycles geared to Western roads and riding styles and offering a quality product, a three-year warranty and very attractive pricing. Shortly afterwards, the dealership picked up a Moto Morini franchise.

At present, Sabatino sells Royal Enfield, Moto Morini, Sym and Royal Alloy scooters, and a wide range of pre-owned motorcycles and scooters, some of which qualify as vintage machines. The shop also continues to work on the classics.

“We like vintage bikes,” Sabatino admits. “The other vintage repair shops in this area closed this year, and we are now the only shop in town. It’s not the most profitable part of the shop, but we do make money – and vintage people will often want to buy an Enfield to ride when the BSA or 1960s Ducati single is down.”

Sabatino Moto quickly established itself as a people-friendly space, and soon became a hub for riders and friends. The dealership is right next to a motorcycle-themed coffee shop. Riders come for the coffee and pastries and then go look around the dealership.

“Our slogan is ‘Sell motorcycles and be nice to people,’ Eric says. “We are successful because people can come here, hang out and talk bike, and we have competitive prices. There are even two retired guys who are here a lot and act as volunteer salespeople.”

Besides the customer stream that results from having a dealership right next to a biker hangout and word of mouth from enthusiastic owners, Sabatino gets door swings from events the shop either puts on itself or sponsors. The dealership puts on a variety of events, including hot dog evenings, where the dealership brings out a grill, hot dogs, buns and condiments, and invites anyone with a motorcycle to show up, and demo days. The shop also sponsors most motorcycle-oriented local events, including charity rides, such as the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride, the Spring Scooter ride, and bike nights.

“It gets our name in front of people,” he says. “Our shop location is key. We are near a suspension bridge that leads directly out of town and onto great, twisty roads.”

Once a potential customer walks in, the dealership wants that person to feel comfortable. Sabatino works hard to make his shop an unintimidating place for any potential customer. “I try to push back on machismo. I like making bikes accessible.” Women make up 30-40% of Sabatino Moto’s customer base, drawn by the friendly atmosphere, the variety of new and old scooters and smaller and pocketbook friendly motorcycles – and the sight of women employees.

“Women like to see women at a dealership,” he notes. “They don’t like walking into what looks like a men’s club.” New employees are trained never to assume that the male member of a couple is the one who wants to buy a motorcycle, and to make sure to talk to both people.

Sabatino’s customers are a cross section of the Portland public – old riders, first time riders, all sorts of people. Sabatino Moto started to see a lot of new riders during the pandemic. While this has tapered off a bit, the shop still sees a lot of new riders and has Team Oregon motorcycle training brochures to pass out to interested people.

Team Oregon is the trademark of the joint program of Oregon State University and the Oregon Department of Transportation to provide motorcycle training to new riders. The dealership also advertises with Team Oregon, which means that Sabatino Moto is featured on the Team Oregon website, seen by every new rider in Oregon as a Supporting Dealer, with a link to Sabatino’s website.

Sabatino does not have an extensive website, and there are few bells or whistles. It lists new and used machinery for sale. There is an application to take a test ride, a finance application, an application for an insurance quote, a page to contact the dealership, and not much else.

It doesn’t seem to matter – eager buyers flock to Sabatino Moto regardless. Sabatino has a 4.5 star rating on Yelp and a 4.8 star rating on Google. Reviewers cite being greeted on arrival, the friendly staff and intelligent answers to questions. Kudos were given to the shop for giving a realistic time for pickup after completion of maintenance work and for making phone calls to customers stating their bike was ready. 

“We are a small dealership,” Sabatino says. “We work hard. I have no idea what will be happening in five years, because everything is a surprise. I hope in the next five years I pay off debt, keep my crew and keep doing what I am doing.”

Sabatino Moto
8501 N Lombard St,
Portland, OR 97203
(971) 266-4345

OEM: Royal Enfield, Moto Morini, Sym and Royal Alloy

Aftermarket: Shoei, HJC, AGV, Torc, Icon and RST. In-helmet communication systems from SENA, and RAM handlebar mounts for cell phones.

Number of employees: 5

In the end, Denny Hamlin had enough horsepower to get by William Byron at Michigan.

And then he had enough gas in the tank to complete the 400 miles and bag his third trophy of the season. It’s also the 57th win of his career, which is 11th best all-time and three away from catching Kevin Harvick and reaching the top 10.

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After the checkers, he revved it and smoked it just enough to run out of gas and his No. 11 Toyota needed a tow to Victory Lane. No big deal, you likely say.

Well, probably not. But all the same, Denny might want to start saving on that Sunoco bill because his accompanying NASCAR job — team co-owner — might come with some financial headwinds in the coming weeks.

LIKE PRIME? VOTE: Do you like NASCAR TV broadcasts on Amazon Prime Video?

That’s right, Denny will be going right from post-victory interviews to a chat with the lawyers. But not before first checking in with the obstetrician.

Huh?

Let’s get up to speed …

First Gear: Worried? Not Denny

Michigan International Speedway is NASCAR’s fastest track, and no, we couldn’t say that if speeds weren’t restricted at the two highest-banked superspeedways (Daytona and Talladega) as well as the newest too-fast-for-sanity track (Atlanta).

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In-car telemetry showed cars tickling and even surpassing 200 mph on the Michigan straights. Stressing the horses to such degrees naturally takes a lot of fuel, which is why Michigan occasionally comes down to who’s done a better job of calculating the mileage and, when needed, loosening the laces on the right shoe in order to feather that throttle.

A final caution with 53 laps remaining around the 2-mile oval left no room for error on fuel. William Byron, who reluctantly gave up the lead to Hamlin with four laps left, ran out of gas and had to quickly dive to the pits coming off Turn 4 with the white flag in sight.

Denny being Denny, he claimed afterward he wasn’t worried about his own gas gauge, even after Byron disappeared from his mirror for obvious reasons.

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“No, not really,” he suggested.

He has other issues on his mind, you know. Longtime fiancee Jordan Fish spent the weekend back home, awaiting the birth of the couple’s third child.

And there’s that other thing …

Second Gear: Courtroom setback precedes on-track victory

We haven’t revisited the courtroom for a few weeks, so let’s check in.

Uh-oh, we have actual movement, and not just paperwork involving the ongoing antitrust case filed by 23XI and Front Row Motorsports against NASCAR.

Last week, a federal appeals court overturned an earlier judgement that allowed 23XI (owned by Hamlin and Michael Jordan) and Front Row to keep their coveted charters and all the benefits that come with those Cup Series “franchises” — each is a three-car team.

The teams were given until June 19 to file for a rehearing. If they don’t file, or if they do file and get another negative judgement, the appeals court’s verdict is set and the two teams can have their charters stripped by NASCAR, which would take away their automatic entry into each race and, more importantly, cost them the financial benefits of being a chartered team (bigger weekly payouts, etc.).

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The automatic race entry isn’t likely a big deal, since Cup races rarely reach the maximum 40-car limit. Lost revenue streams, however, is another thing entirely.

Beyond the current dust remains the early-December trial date that will ultimately settle the ugliness, unless something is worked out before then.

Third Gear: NASCAR stretches its southern boundary

For the first time since early March, the Cup Series visits a road course this coming weekend. But this isn’t Watkins Glen, Sonoma or any of the other familiar layouts. It’s the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City.

Hopefully we’ll talk more about those Rodriguez brothers later in the week.

Meanwhile, if it all sounds a tad familiar, it’s because NASCAR’s Xfinity Series raced at the Mexico City track four straight years, from 2005-2008. The race winners were Martin Truex Jr., Juan Pablo Montoya, and two dudes still very active today — Kyle Busch and, yes, Denny Hamlin.

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This effort poses a ton of logistical lifting for the Boys in Operations, who must navigate the distance and, more cumbersome, the chore of getting those packed haulers through customs at the border. What could go wrong?

Hopefully nothing.

Fourth Gear: Dodge racing back to NASCAR … in a Ram

“That thing got a Hemi?”

Man oh man, you could hardly go to a commercial break 20 years ago without hearing that phrase during an ad for Dodge Ram.

And now it’s coming back. About every half-generation, it seems, there’s a breakthrough in NASCAR’s manufacturer roll call. Dodge is the newest, announcing this past weekend that the Ram is returning to the Truck Series next season.

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Dodge was last in the Truck Series in 2013, and last raced the Cup Series in 2012. The Ram returns next February at Daytona. How long before the Charger makes its way to the Xfinity or Cup Series? No word yet, but you have to assume it’s part of the grand plan.

And yes, they’re also bringing back the 5.7-liter Hemi V-8.

Hubba-hubba.

— Email Ken Willis at ken.willis@news-jrnl.com

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR: Denny Hamlin gives it the gas. Mexico next. Yep, it’s a Hemi

CONCORD, N.C. – A lot of unknowns surround the upcoming NASCAR Cup Series race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, so teams will have to rely on their general knowledge of road courses to help them with this one.

Chase Elliott has an average finish of 9.0 at road courses, the highest amongst the Hendrick Motorsports quartet. Being known for his mastery of the left and right turn tracks, Elliott will be looking to earn his first win of the year and punch his ticket into the playoffs. At Circuit of The America’s earlier in the year, he finished one position outside the podium in fourth.

RELATED: William Byron still leads points standings after Michigan

Kyle Larson is no stranger to the varying corners and changing elevations that road courses bring to the table. Boasting the team’s highest average start of 7.6 on serpentine layouts, Larson is always a threat to win at one of these tracks. While issues took him out of contention to win at COTA in round three, don’t count Larson and his six road course wins out.

William Byron has recently become more akin to the twists turns of road courses. Two victories and six poles ought to be enough to show his improvement on NASCAR’s wildcard venues. He also finished second at COTA this year after working his way upfront for the latter half of the race.

RELATED: First to the party: Hendrick Motorsports’ history of success in inaugural races

Alex Bowman has quietly become a top road course racer over the course of his Cup Series career. After a slew of near misses, the Tucson, Arizona, native broke through at the Chicago Street Course for his first win on a track turning left and right. He’ll aim to do the same in Mexico this weekend.

History is about to be made at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Here’s a look at Hendrick Motorsports history at road courses:

The decision to add a Mexico City Cup race at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez for 2025 season is a big step in NASCAR’s plans for international expansion. It’s also quite the undertaking, especially with roughly 80 haulers driving over 2,000 miles directly from Michigan International Speedway to Mexico City.

Besides, the Cup Series hasn’t raced outside of the United States in over 25 years, and the category hasn’t held a points-paying championship event outside the U.S. since 1958. 

Prior to the Mexico City announcement, the series had also been considering a date at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, Canada and showcased ambitions for expanding into Brazil. 

Daniel Suarez is NASCAR’s top international driver as the 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion with race wins across all three national divisions. But there are only a handful of international drivers who have won at the top level of the sport, and the list of international races is even shorter. Here are the few tracks outside the U.S. where NASCAR has managed to get its passport stamped:

1952 Unnamed 100-mile event – Stamford Park – Niagara Falls, Canada

Canadian flag

Photo by: FIA World Rallycross

The first Cup race outside of the United States took place on July 1st, 1952. The Ontario half-mile dirt track had been around since 1923, but closed one year after the Cup Series visited. Known as a ‘car killer,’ it lived up to its name against the early pioneers of NASCAR. Paying an admission of one dollar for adults and 50 cents for children, spectators watched on as only three of the 17 starters made it to the finish line in the 200-lap race. Buddy Sherman made his ’52 Hudson last, averaging a speed of 45.610mph and winning by two laps over NASCAR Hall of Famer Herb Thomas. It was Sherman’s only victory in the Cup Series.

1958 Jim Mideon 500 – Exhibition Stadium – Toronto, Canada

Race winner Lee Petty

Photo by: NASCAR Media

On July 18th, 1958, NASCAR returned to Canada to race inside the now-demolished Canadian National Exhibition Stadium, competing on a 0.333-mile asphalt oval that had a striking resemblance to Bowman Gray Stadium. Lee Petty would take victory, leading 29 of 100 laps in a race that only lasted 46 minutes. 

However, the most important story of this race may not be who won, but who made their debut. The 21-year-old son of Lee Petty — Richard Petty — made his first of 1,184 starts in NASCAR’s last points-paying Cup race outside of the United States. The future ‘King’ of NASCAR was wrecked out of the event when he got in the way of the fastest man in the field — his father. 

1988 Goodyear NASCAR 500 – Calder Park Thunderdome – Melbourne, Australia

Marcos Ambrose, the only Australian driver to win at the Cup level

Photo by: Chris Graythen – Getty Images

30 years after the last Cup race on international soil, the sport made the bold step to host a non-points race on the other side of the planet. On February 28th, 1988, NASCAR ventured far beyond the continent of North America to race in Australia. The 280-lap race took place on the oval at Calder Park Raceway with 24-degree banked corners. 

The 32 starters featured several stars from the Australia/New Zealand motorsport world, including Bathurst 1000 champions Dick Johnson, Jim Richards, and Allan Grice. But it was the NASCAR regulars who dominated the event with Neil Bonnett capturing the checkered flag just ahead of  Bobby Allison in a 1-2 finish for the Alabama Gang. The event led to the creation of a NASCAR Australia racing division, which operated from 1989 to 2002.

In modern NASCAR, several drivers from ‘down under’ have made the trek across the ocean to race in NASCAR, showing how the bond remains strong between the two. Australian Marcos Ambrose and New Zealander Shane van Gisbergen, both champions of the Supercars division, have gone on to become winners at the top level of NASCAR.

1996 & 1997 NASCAR Thunder Special – Suzuka Circuit – Suzuka, Japan

NASCAR Suzuka race

Photo by: Yukio Yoshimi

In the next decade, NASCAR shifted focus to Japan as its next destination for an exhibition race. Following the completion of the 1996 season, the sport sanctioned a race on the East Course layout of the Suzuka Circuit on November 24th.

The interest around the event was electric. It attracted Japanese racing stars such as ‘Drift King’ Keiichi Tsuchiya, as well as Hideo Fukuyama, Akihiko Nakaya, and Kazuteru Wakida. Rusty Wallace beat Dale Earnhardt by just over a second, leading 84 of 100 laps en route to the victory.

Due to the success of the race, NASCAR returned one year later to do it all again. However, rain became an issue for the sequel. The sanctioning body broke out the wet-weather tires for the special event, and most of the NASCAR drivers in the field were about to get their first experience racing in the rain. Mike Skinner won the day, beating Mark Martin by 3.7s.

These races served as inspiration for future F1 driver and Le Mans 24 champion Kamui Kobayashi, who was a spectator there. In 2023, he fulfilled a lifelong dream when he finally made his NASCAR Cup debut.

1998 Coca-Cola 500 – Twin Ring Motegi – Motegi, Japan

Motegi circuit logo

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

For the third consecutive year, NASCAR returned to Japan on November 22nd, but this time, they went oval racing. After two years at Suzuka, the race moved to the oval track at Twin Ring Motegi for a 201-lap event.

31 drivers started the race in a field that saw Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Dale Earnhardt Jr. compete against each other in Cup cars for the very first time. The race came down to a showdown between Jeff Gordon and Mike Skinner. Gordon was fresh off his third Cup title and ran Skinner down in the closing laps. He got all the way to the right-rear of his fellow Chevrolet driver, but could not quite get alongside as the checkered flag flew.

After Japan

NASCAR’s three-year experiment in Japan was over and while many thought it was the beginning of something, it turned out to be the end. Cup cars have not raced outside of the US since that day in November, almost 27 years ago.

In the years that followed, the Xfinity Series raced in Mexico City and Montreal. The Truck Series also journeyed north for an event at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. NASCAR has since formed international stock car racings divisions in Mexico, Brazil, and even Europe. In 2016, the sport had its first foreign-born driver win a national-level title when Suarez became champion of the Xfinity Series. New Zealander Shane van Gisbergen made history as the first driver in 60+ years to win on debut when he won the 2023 Cup race at the Chicago Street Course. And at Watkins Glen in 2022, the series set a record for countries represented in a single Cup race with seven total.

NASCAR has been edging closer to an international race in recent years and the powers that be have shown renewed interest in global expansion. When the Cup Series races in Mexico later this week, they will make history and hopefully, mark the start of a new era of NASCAR racing in the country.

The clash between Formula 1’s 2026 Canadian Grand Prix and IndyCar’s Indianapolis 500 will only happen once every five years, Motorsport.com understands.

On Tuesday, F1 announced its 24-race calendar for next year, which sees Imola drop out in favour of a new race in Madrid as Spain’s capital takes over the Spanish Grand Prix moniker from Barcelona. The calendar also features date changes in May and June, with Monaco moving back by two weeks and Canada taking its place on 22-24 May.

Before the calendar was published in full, Monaco’s already announced move seemed to be encouraging news for IndyCar, as no F1 clashes would perhaps lead to more international media attention and potentially even left-field drivers if qualifying was also on a non-F1 weekend.

But the confirmation that the Canadian Grand Prix will now run on the same day as the Indy 500, and given the time zones will therefore directly clash with IndyCar’s crown jewel, will be a bitter pill to swallow for avid motorsports fans.

Motorsport.com understands, however, that said clash will be an exception rather than the new norm, and as the calendar ebbs and flows it is only expected to occur once every five years, with Montreal expected to run the weekend before Indy in 2027.

By moving Montreal to May, F1 management achieved a long-standing objective of bringing the Canada round closer to Miami, which is seen as a key element in making the 24-race calendar more sustainable.

Being able to ship a bigger portion of freight directly from Florida to Quebec without having to return to Europe helps as F1 works towards it Net Zero 2030 campaign, although the series will have wanted the two rounds to be closer together than the current compromise: Miami runs on 3 May, with Canada on 24 May after a two-week gap.

Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren

Photo by: Brandon Badraoui / Motorsport Images via Getty Images

That means that while the situation improves for CO2 emissions and the flow of freight, travelling personnel will still have to make two standalone trips across the pond in May.

The biggest reason for Montreal’s insistence on running as late as possible that month is primarily for operational reasons. As anyone who has travelled to Montreal can attest to, the weather in May can be rather unpredictable. Coming off the month of April in which severe snowstorms are not uncommon, every week the race is brought forward increases the risk of inclement weather and glacial temperatures.

That also eats into the preparation time required to run the event, which has seen several logistical issues in recent years that the organisers are hoping to address at this weekend’s edition. Settling on the last weekend of May presents a compromise on both accounts. Additionally, it is understood Montreal was hesitant to run back-to-back with Miami due to concerns over the two events competing over ticket sales.

So, what of the Indy 500, which starts over an hour earlier but due to its length will clash fully with the Canadian Grand Prix? The fact is that F1 doesn’t really seem to mind and certainly wouldn’t be expected to take other racing series into consideration. As a case in point, it has also been happy to run in Montreal during the Le Mans 24 Hours, as is the case once more this weekend.

At the end of the day the large majority of TV viewers will simply pick their favourite event, and it is a smaller segment of hardcore fans that will really be affected.

Losing some North American viewers seems like a price worth paying for the overall goal of streamlining its congested calendar, as it is understood that F1 feels the demographic it is chasing doesn’t overlap all that much with that of the Indy 500 anyway.

Why Madrid’s Spanish Grand Prix is held in September

IFEMA Madrid

Photo by: Formula 1

Intriguingly, the two-week gap between Miami and Montreal does seem to leave wiggle room for another race should F1’s new kid on the block, Madrid, not be ready. There had been some concern over the time it took to finally break ground on the Madring circuit near its Barajas airport, with suggestions the departing Imola might return after all in 2026.

But those fears have eased now construction finally appears underway, and the whole point of moving Montreal in the first place, which has taken a long time for the organisers to agree to, was not to return to Europe after Miami.

One emergency alternative, however, could be to move Barcelona to Madrid’s September slot and bring back Imola in June.

Madrid’s place on the calendar was celebrated last weekend with a show run by Williams driver Carlos Sainz on the already existing street portion of the hybrid street/permanent track, which will also feature a fast purpose-built section including a flat-out high-speed banked corner.

The Spanish Grand Prix is now set for 13 September, which makes it a logical double-header with Monza’s Italian Grand Prix a week prior. That date, as the last European race of the year – unless one counts Baku – means it gives organisers the best chance of getting ready in time and it will also create a healthy three-month gap with Spain’s existing race in Barcelona, which is heading into its final contract year.

The race at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is yet to receive a new name, with ‘Catalan Grand Prix’ a sensible option given the regional government’s backing of the event.

How many triple-headers does F1 2026 have?

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24, George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15, Pierre Gasly, Alpine A524, the remainder of the field at the start

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

Calendar tweaks in May and June do have one positive effect for F1 staff, as the European season no longer features a triple-header. Monaco and Barcelona are both moving back to form a double-header, followed by a one-week gap into Austria and Silverstone, with the latter double-header remaining tricky for trucking logistics.

What hasn’t improved is F1’s brutal end to the year, with a run-in of six races in the space of seven weeks between mid-October and early December. After one year of running as a standalone, Brazil is reconnected with the logical Austin-Mexico double once more, while the trio of Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi remains in place for the third consecutive year.

What was once seen as an emergency measure during the pandemic is now something that has begrudgingly been accepted. Triple-headers are inevitable if F1 remains keen on hosting 24 races – which it very much is – while still maintaining a mandatory summer shutdown and a reasonable length off-season break.

Instead, teams are rotating more and more travelling personnel while some roles have moved to the factory thanks to modern communication technology.

The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Mexico City this weekend for its first points race outside the U.S. since 1958.

The series will race at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Drivers will compete on a 15-turn, 2.42-mile course. The frontstretch is 3,937 feet, making it the longest in the series (Pocono’s frontstretch is 3,740 feet).

Chase Elliott (three wins), Ryan Blaney (two) and Joey Logano (two) have combined to win seven of the last 11 races at a new track for the Cup Series.

Here is a look at the good news and bad news for Cup teams heading into Sunday’s race at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

23XI Racing — Good news: Bubba Wallace has scored back-to-back top-10 finishes for the second time this season. … Wallace continues to have the No. 1 pit crew in the series as ranked by Racing Insights. … Tyler Reddick is tied with Kyle Larson for most wins on a road course in the Next Gen car at three. … Reddick’s 13 top 10s on road courses in the Next Gen car ranks second to Chris Buescher. Bad news: Reddick has one top-10 finish in the last seven races. … Wallace has three top-10 finishes in 33 road course starts. … Riley Herbst enters the weekend 34th in points.

Three year ago frustrations were high with the pit crews at 23XI Racing but a novel hire helped build those units to be among the sport’s best.

Front Row Motorsports — Good news: Zane Smith finished a season-best seventh last weekend at Michigan. … Smith has five top-20 results in the last six races. … Noah Gragson finished eighth at COTA earlier this year for his best result on a road course in Cup. … Todd Gilliland finished 10th at COTA, tying his season best. Bad news: Gilliland has qualified 30th or worse in five of the last seven races. … Gragson has finished 27th or worse in each of the last two races.

Haas Factory Team — Good news: All three of Cole Custer’s top-20 finishes this season have come in the last six races. Bad News: Custer’s 35th-place finish at Michigan snapped a streak of seven consecutive top-30 finishes.

Hendrick Motorsports — Good news: The organization has won four of the last six races on a road or street course. … Kyle Larson’s six road course wins puts him tied for fourth on the all-time list. … Chase Elliott has completed all but one of the 4,231 laps run this season. … Elliott ranks third all-time with seven road course victories. … William Byron has won four of the last seven stages and is averaging 9.3 points per stage in that period. … Byron ranks first for the season in speed and restart rankings, according to Racing Insights. … Alex Bowman has five top 10s, including a win, in his last nine road course starts. Bad news: Bowman has finished 27th or worse in seven of the last nine races, dropping him from third in the points to 13th. … Byron has led 83 or more laps in four races this season but won none of those events. … Larson has two top 10s in his last eight road course starts. … Elliott has two top 10s in the last seven races.

Alex Bowman walked away from a vicious crash in Sunday’s crash at Michigan.

Hyak Motorsports — Good news: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has five top-20 finishes in the last six races. Bad news: Stenhouse has fallen from 15th to 20th in the playoff standings in the past two races. … Stenhouse has two top-10 finishes in 43 career Cup road course/street course races.

Joe Gibbs Racing — Good news: Denny Hamlin has won three of the last nine races this season. … Hamlin has scored points in nine consecutive stages. … Hamlin said Tuesday on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that if fiancee Jordan Fish has not delivered their baby boy by the time he has to leave for Mexico later this week, he will skip the race. NASCAR has stated in the past that missing a race for the birth of a child is acceptable and they would grant a playoff waiver in such a case. … Should Denny Hamlin miss Mexico, JGR’s reserve driver, Ryan Truex, would drive the No. 11 car. … Christopher Bell won at Circuit of the Americas in the only road course race run so far this season. … Chase Briscoe finished first in passing, according to Racing Insights, earlier this year at COTA. … Briscoe has won the pole for the last three races (Charlotte, Nashville and Michigan). … Christopher Bell has seven top 10s in the last nine races. … Ty Gibbs tied his season-best finish by placing third at Michigan. Bad news: Bell has led 10 laps in the last eight races, a stretch of 2,423 laps. … Gibbs has placed 22nd or worse in four of the last five Cup road course races.

Denny Hamlin told fans he beat their favorite driver and did part of an Ohio State cheer in front a crowd that featured many University of Michigan fans.

Kaulig Racing — Good news: All three of AJ Allmendinger’s Cup victories have come on road courses. … Allmendinger has five top 10s in his last eight starts on a road course. … Allmendinger finished second in Mexico City in a Champ Car race in 2005. Bad news: Ty Dillon has not finished better than 15th in 26 road course starts in Cup.

Legacy Motor Club — Good news: Erik Jones’ 11th-place finish at Michigan gives him four top-15 results in the last five races. Bad news: Jones has no top 10s in his last 13 road course starts. … John Hunter Nemechek’s best finish in eight career Cup road course starts is 21st. … Jones has no top 10s in his last 13 road course starts.

Richard Childress Racing — Good news: Kyle Busch ranked first in speed, according to Racing Insights, earlier this season at COTA, the only road course race run so far. … Busch’s best finish this year is a fifth-place result at COTA. … Busch won the most recent Xfinity race at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in 2008, although that course was a little different from what teams will race this weekend. Bad news: Austin Dillon has never finished better than 10th at a road course race in 40 starts. … Dillon has finished 19th or worse in the last four races. … Kyle Busch fell out of a playoff spot after last weekend’s race at Michigan.

Rick Ware Racing — Good news: Cody Ware has finished 26th or better in two of the last three races, the first time he’s done that this season. Bad news: Ware’s best finish in 16 career road course starts in Cup is 24th.

RFK Racing — Good news: Placed three cars in the top 10 at Michigan, marking the first time the team has done that in a Cup race since July 2016 at Daytona. … Ryan Preece moved into the final playoff spot with his ninth-place finish at Michigan. … Preece has three top 10s in the last four races. … Brad Keselowski has scored top-10 finishes in two of the last three races. … Chris Buescher has the best average finish (8.7) on road courses in the Next Gen era. … Buescher won at Watkins Glen last September, his only road course win. … Buescher is coming off a season-best second-place finish at Michigan. Bad news: Keselowski is winless in 49 career Cup road course starts.

Spire Motorsports — Good news: Michael McDowell has finished 15th or better in each of the last five road course races. … McDowell won a Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series race in Mexico City in November 2005. … Justin Haley finished second in Chicago in 2023 for his best road/street course result. … Carson Hocevar has scored points in 10 of the last 15 stages. … Hocevar’s best finish on a road course is third at Watkins Glen last September. Bad news: McDowell has finished 21st or worse in six of the last eight races this season.

Team Penske — Good news: Ryan Blaney has five top-five finishes in the last eight races. … Blaney has four top 10s in his last eight starts on a road course. … Austin Cindric has nine top 10s in 21 career road course starts. Bad news: Blaney has three finishes outside the top 30 in the last eight races. … Joey Logano has five finishes outside the top 10 in the last eight races. … Cindric’s Talladega win is his only top-10 finish in the last 10 races.

Trackhouse Racing — Good news: Ross Chastain has scored six top-10 finishes in the last nine races. … Chastain has scored all eight of his top-10 finishes this season after starting the race outside the top 15. … Shane van Gisbergen has been the best finishing rookie in three of the last four races. … In the last three road course races, van Gisbergen has finished no worse than seventh. … Daniel Suarez has scored back-to-back top-20 finishes heading into Mexico. Bad news: Suarez has only one top-10 finish in the last 13 road course races.

Wood Brothers Racing — Good news: The 169 laps that Josh Berry has led this year is a career high. Bad news: Berry has one top-10 finish since his Las Vegas victory. … Berry has not finished better than 22nd in six Cup road course starts.