2025 Barber Motorsports Park qualifying, full starting lineup
After the third consecutive three-week break to start off the 2025 NTT IndyCar Series season, the series is set to visit Barber Motorsports Park, also known as the Augusta National of Motorsports, for Sunday afternoon’s Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix. This 90-lap race around the 17-turn, 2.38-mile (3.83-kilometer) natural terrain road course in Birmingham, […]
After the third consecutive three-week break to start off the 2025 NTT IndyCar Series season, the series is set to visit Barber Motorsports Park, also known as the Augusta National of Motorsports, for Sunday afternoon’s Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix.
This 90-lap race around the 17-turn, 2.38-mile (3.83-kilometer) natural terrain road course in Birmingham, Alabama was won by Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin from pole last year, making him the sixth polesitter to win at Barber since the track was added to the schedule in 2010.
In fact, no driver has won at Barber from lower than fourth place on the grid since Josef Newgarden earned his first win as a Team Penske driver back in 2017 after starting seventh. Ninth is the lowest grid spot for a Barber winner, with Team Penske’s Will Power having achieved that in 2012.
Bottom line, qualifying matters at Barber, probably more than it does at most other tracks. Strategy is usually just as important, but barring any impromptu interference from rogue mannequins, the cream always seems to rise to the top.
And in a series that hasn’t seen a caution since the opening lap of race number one of the season, qualifying is that much more important for race number four.
Follow along four our live qualifying updates.
IndyCar at Barber: Full Round 1, Group 1 results
1st – Alex Palou – No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
2nd – Scott McLaughlin – No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet
3rd – Marcus Armstrong – No. 66 Meyer Shank Racing Honda
4th – Pato O’Ward – No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet
5th – Nolan Siegel – No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet
The Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix is set to be broadcast live on Fox from Barber Motorsports Park beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 4. Begin a free trial of FuboTV now and don’t miss any of the action from the 2025 IndyCar season’s fourth race!
Rockingham Speedway listed for sale weeks after NASCAR return –
Contributed Rockingham Speedway is back on the market after Rockingham Properties LLC listed the track for sale last week, less than two months since NASCAR racing was brought back to the venerable track in April. The track was purchased by Rockingham Properties and owner Dan Lovenheim in 2018 for $2.8 million. Lovenheim, who built his […]
Rockingham Speedway is back on the market after Rockingham Properties LLC listed the track for sale last week, less than two months since NASCAR racing was brought back to the venerable track in April.
The track was purchased by Rockingham Properties and owner Dan Lovenheim in 2018 for $2.8 million. Lovenheim, who built his wealth owning and operating night clubs in Raleigh, told the Charlotte Observer that, “The time is right to pass the baton to someone who can take it farther than we can.”
Bids will be placed for the track, with an expected new owner being selected by July 1.
After the purchase of the track, private and state funds were put into the track to build up to NASCAR’s return to the Sandhills.
Former Gov. Roy Cooper directed $9 million in pandemic recovery spending to the track for infrastructure upgrades in 2021. In 2022, the track was repaved for $3.5 million. Other upgrades to the infield buildings and the installation of more SAFER barriers around the track brought the track up to standards for NASCAR’s two developmental series.
The track has requested the General Assembly for $12 million to pay for more infrastructure upgrades to “get the Rockingham Speedway ‘cup ready’ for a potential NASCAR Cup Series race in 2026 or 2027,” the listing through CRBE says.
When the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series took to the rack on April 18, it ended a 12-year drought of the national series racing at The Rock. The Xfinity Series raced in front of a sellout crowd of more than 25,000 people, marking the first time since 2004 that series came to Rockingham. The race on Saturday led up to the running of the ARCA Menards East series running a 125-lap race on the sellout day.
“I think that the three national series that we had there were second to none. We always have Cup to look forward to, but I think the three that we had put on a great event, and it was well received by the fans,” Track Enterprises president Bob Sargent told The Pilot. “I just feel like we all put together a good product for that weekend. And leading up to that too with promotions and the community support, that was phenomenal.”
A newly released economic study, done in part with the Pinehurst, Southern Pines, Aberdeen Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB), showed an economic impact of nearly $40 million from that weekend. Moore County’s share of that was more than $28 million, of which lodging was the largest part.
The weekend sold 40,000 tickets for the two-day event. Along with Saturday’s sell-out, the event also employed 500 workers each day.
According to Richmond County tax records, the track and the 253 acres the track sits on has a tax value of $4.96 million
The site has full ABC permits and is the ninth location in North Carolina to be approved for a sports wagering license, according to the listing for the track. That listing also says that the track generates $1.6 million yearly in revenue from its weekly events, like the Crown 9 Series and MB Drift racing events, as well as the return of NASCAR. Concerts and circuses have been hosted on or used the property in the past, including the 2019 Epicenter Music Festival.
Sargent said that Track Enterprises wants to be involved with the future of Rockingham Speedway and is even exploring the possibility of putting in a bid for the track.
“We knew that Dan and his group were thinking about selling before our event. We’re definitely interested, and we obviously feel like we did a lot with our team and his together to bring NASCAR to the facility,” Sargent said. “We feel vested here, and want to continue that relationship, whether we take a run at the sale or we work with the new owner.”
When Lovenheim and the ownership group purchased the track, weeds were growing through cracks in the asphalt of the track, and bleachers in turns one and two were slowly compromising the backing of the track. Work was done slowly to resurrect the track, putting it into a better spot than where it was on closing day in 2018.
“Anytime you take a facility that was sitting vacant and neglected, and you work slowly to rebuild and work methodically to try to get to the level where we could have national events there, they did a great job,” Sargent said.
Sargent’s company leases 26 tracks in 15 states, varying from dirt tracks to asphalt, and from large ovals to short tracks. He knows there is a list of items that needs to be done by whoever has the winning bid to bring the pinnacle NASCAR series back to the track.
“There’s quite a bit to do. NASCAR has a long list of things that need to be done,” Sargent said. “SAFER walls and lighting are some big things that we’ve all pointed out that need to be addressed.”
Andretti Global showed their street course dominance during INDYCAR’s Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix on the 1.645-mile, 9-turn temporary street course. Colton Herta captured the pole, while teammate Kyle Kirkwood won the race by a 3.6-second margin over second-place Santino Ferrucci; Herta finished third. “We had awesome strategy and pit stops,” exclaimed Kirkwood, who is the […]
Andretti Global showed their street course dominance during INDYCAR’s Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix on the 1.645-mile, 9-turn temporary street course. Colton Herta captured the pole, while teammate Kyle Kirkwood won the race by a 3.6-second margin over second-place Santino Ferrucci; Herta finished third.
“We had awesome strategy and pit stops,” exclaimed Kirkwood, who is the only driver besides Alex Palou to win a race this season (also won Long Beach Grand Prix). “We had to work for this one. My hats off to Andretti. The car just came alive on restarts. My front wing was damaged but it wasn’t causing an issue (from contact in trying to pass Kyffin Simpson for second place on Lap 77).
“I was never more disappointed by qualifying third,” continued Kirkwood. “I was on a lap that was about four-tenths quicker than what ended up being the pole, but I hit the wall.
“We’ve always had good race cars here, and Honda continues to give us the power we need, especially at tracks like this where getting off the corner matters. The car was phenomenal. There were some challenges out there. We had to pass our way back through a handful of times. Had to make some low percentage moves but any move on a street course is low percentage. It was definitely not a walk in the park.”
The Detroit GP has a unique dual pit lane, which runs alongside the race restart section of the track, from Turn 9 (at the Kaiser structure) to Turn 1. CREDIT: Penske Entertainment/Joe Skibinski
Drivers could have used a two-pit stop strategy for the 100-lap race but were required to run at least two laps on a new set of the softer, alternate green tires, which degraded much sooner than the primary tires. Twelve drivers started on those alternate tires, planning to pit early, expecting a caution, to switch to primaries (black tires). Most pitted by Lap 13, requiring a three-stop strategy, only to have the first caution come out on Lap 14. Those on primaries pitted around Lap 32 to 36.
There were five caution periods for 19 laps total. The biggest accident occurred when Louis Foster had a right-front suspension failure under braking at the fastest section of the track, 180 mph on the long Jefferson Ave. straight, and ran into the back of Felix Rosenqvist entering Turn 3. Both escaped injury but the incident brought out the red flag so that the walls and tire barriers could be restored.
“The stand was amazing,” said Ferrucci of his strategists and engineers, who had him pit under caution on Lap 15. “Perfect strategy. Obviously got lucky with that yellow (on Lap 67, when he stayed out and moved from 16th to 3rd as most of the field pitted). I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy to see a red flag. I was really struggling. I couldn’t get the tires to come back to life. Kyle was so fast today. Congratulations to him and his team on this win.”
Winner Kyle Kirkwood (R), second-place Santino Ferrucci (M), and third-place Colton Herta (L) celebrate in an elevated victory circle. CREDIT: Penske Entertainment/Paul Hurley
Kirkwood’s teammate also joined him on the podium in the Motor City.
“I’m happy to finally get a good result this season,” said Herta. “It’s a weight off my shoulders but I’m disappointed not getting a win, having started on the pole. This is such a crazy race, I’m glad to just survive it.”
Canadian Devlin DeFrancesco started and finished 23rd on the rough and narrow course due to a long pit stop for a rear wheel hub issue. He struggled in qualifying in the colder conditions on Saturday, when it took many laps to get heat in the tires.
“It was a very interesting day,” stated DeFrancesco, who’s from Toronto. “We had a right-rear wheel issue and, overall, it was a difficult day. It’s just a big bummer. I didn’t transfer in qualifying (from the first group). We clearly were not very good, not able to be as good on power down and getting off the corners as Graham (Rahal, teammate who qualified 5th).”
Christian Lundgaard (R) lunges for the lead, passing polesitter Colton Herta (middle right) entering Turn 3, at the start of the Detroit GP. CREDIT: Penske Entertainment/Chris Owens
Although similar in track length to the Long Beach Grand Prix, which has less than ten manhole covers, Detroit has 264, all of which had to be sealed down. There were the usual elbows out, with 181 passes for position on the very low grip and extremely bumpy surface, making for one of the most exciting races of the season.
David Malukas, driving for AJ Foyt Racing, ran into the back of Alex Palou (in seventh-place) on the Lap 72 restart, entering Turn 1, which took the 109th Indianapolis 500 winner out of contention. Palou finished 25th, earning only five points.
“I was hit from behind and there was not much I could do differently,” explained Palou. “I didn’t have the best car this weekend (qualified 5th). We didn’t have much pace at the beginning (on Friday). But the team made an amazing recovery. I was looking for a podium here.”
Kirkwood is the only driver to challenge Palou, now earning two victories to the Spaniard’s five wins so far in the 17-race NTT INDYCAR season. Palou has 311 points, Pato O’Ward 221, Kirkwood 209, Christian Lundgaard 205, and Will Power 175. Honda (630 points) has now won all seven events to date, leading Chevy (509 points) in the Manufacturer’s title race.
Next up is the World Wide Technology Raceway oval on June 15th, a Sunday evening, in St. Louis, MO.
(From Garner Trucking) Garner Trucking is thrilled to welcome back the NASCAR haulers for Spire Motorsports on Thursday, June 5th, and we’re inviting the public to join us for this exciting event! Come out to Garner Trucking (9291 County Road 313, Findlay, OH 45840) between 11AM and 1PM to get an up-close look at the […]
Garner Trucking is thrilled to welcome back the NASCAR haulers for Spire Motorsports on Thursday, June 5th, and we’re inviting the public to join us for this exciting event!
Come out to Garner Trucking (9291 County Road 313, Findlay, OH 45840) between 11AM and 1PM to get an up-close look at the #7 and #71 Spire Motorsports Haulers before they head to Michigan International Speedway for this weekend’s FireKeepers Casino 400.
This is a great opportunity to meet the hauler drivers, snap some photos, and tour these impressive NASCAR rigs before they hit the road to the track.
As the official Transportation Partner of Spire Motorsports, Garner Trucking is proud to sponsor the #7 Chevrolet driven by Justin Haley, which will feature the Garner Trucking premiere car this weekend.
Tune in to Prime Video on Sunday to catch all the action and cheer on the Garner car as it races around MIS!
Front Row Motorsports: Nashville Superspeedway Race Report – Noah Gragson, Todd Gilliland, Zane Smith – Speedway Digest
Zane Smith Key Takeaways Stage One: 18th / Stage Two: 8th / Race Result: 13th Zane Smith made his second Nashville Superspeedway NASCAR Cup Series start on Sunday, qualifying 27th for 300-lap race. Smith drove his way into the top-20 in Stage One, finishing the stage in 18th. In Stage Two, with strategic calls from […]
Zane Smith made his second Nashville Superspeedway NASCAR Cup Series start on Sunday, qualifying 27th for 300-lap race. Smith drove his way into the top-20 in Stage One, finishing the stage in 18th. In Stage Two, with strategic calls from Crew Chief Ryan Bergenty and hard racing from Smith, the No. 38 Ford finished eighth in the second stage, earning Smith stage points before heading into the final stent. Miscues on pit road under the stage break caution put Smith 18th to start the final stage. Smith recovered to finish the race in 13th.
“Way better car than a 13th place finish shows,” said Smith. “We’ve got a few things to clean up but overall, I’m pretty excited about the speed we’ve showing up to the track with.”
Todd Gilliland qualified 35th for his fourth Nashville Superspeedway NASCAR Cup Series start Sunday night. Throughout the first two stages, Gilliland struggled with the handling of his Ford Mustang Dark Horse, finishing the stages in the 30’s. The team made adjustments on pit road to start the final stage and recovered to finish 22nd.
“It was a blue-collar type of race for this No. 34 team,” said Gilliland. “We put our nose to the grindstone and made small gains but just weren’t able to get the track position we needed to get a better finish. We’ll come back stronger at Michigan.”
Noah Gragson made his third Nashville Superspeedway NASCAR Cup Series start this past weekend. It was his second start at the track with Crew Chief Drew Blickensderfer. Qualifying 30th for the event, Gragson spent Stage One working his way into the top-25, finishing the stage in 23rd. In Stage Two, on lap 113, Gragson was involved in a multi-car incident and took significant damage to his No. 4 Ford. Gragson retired from the race and was credited with a 38th place finish.
“I thought our race in Nashville was going well until it wasn’t,” said Gragson. “I felt like the speed was there for us to have a decent night, but we got the short end of the stick from someone else’s mistake. Thankful for our team and the hard work they put in each week, really unfortunate way to end the night. On to Michigan.”
2025 NASCAR Michigan Entry List: All 36 drivers for Firekeepers Casino 400
The NASCAR Cup Series is set to take on the Michigan International Speedway for the next race of the 2025 season, with 36 cars registered for the race. Check out the entry list for this year’s Firekeepers Casino 400. 2025 NASCAR Michigan Entry List Ross Chastain (#1, Trackhouse Racing) Austin Cindric (#2, Team Penske) Austin […]
The NASCAR Cup Series is set to take on the Michigan International Speedway for the next race of the 2025 season, with 36 cars registered for the race.
Check out the entry list for this year’s Firekeepers Casino 400.
2025 NASCAR Michigan Entry List
Ross Chastain (#1, Trackhouse Racing)
Austin Cindric (#2, Team Penske)
Austin Dillon (#3, Richard Childress Racing)
Noah Gragson (#4, Front Row Motorsports)
Kyle Larson (#5, Hendrick Motorsports)
Brad Keselowski (#6, RFK Racing)
Justin Haley (#7, Spire Motorsports)
Kyle Busch (#8, Richard Childress Racing)
Chase Elliott (#9, Hendrick Motorsports)
Ty Dillon (#10, Kaulig Racing)
Denny Hamlin (#11, Joe Gibbs Racing)
Ryan Blaney (#12, Team Penske)
AJ Allmendinger (#16, Kaulig Racing)
Chris Buescher (#17, RFK Racing)
Chase Briscoe (#19, Joe Gibbs Racing)
Christopher Bell (#20, Joe Gibbs Racing)
Josh Berry (#21, Wood Brothers Racing)
Joey Logano (#22, Team Penske)
Bubba Wallace (#23, 23XI Racing)
William Byron (#24, Hendrick Motorsports)
Todd Gilliland (#34, Front Row Motorsports)
Riley Herbst (#35, 23XI Racing)
Zane Smith (#38, Front Row Motorsports)
Cole Custer (#41, Haas Factory Team)
John Hunter Nemechek (#42, Legacy Motor Club)
Erik Jones (#43, Legacy Motor Club)
Tyler Reddick (#45, 23XI Racing)
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (#47, HYAK Motorsports)
Alex Bowman (#48, Hendrick Motorsports)
Cody Ware (#51, Rick Ware Racing)
Ty Gibbs (#54, Joe Gibbs Racing)
Ryan Preece (#60, RFK Racing)
Michael McDowell (#71, Spire Motorsports)
Carson Hocevar (#77, Spire Motorsports)
Shane van Gisbergen (#88, Trackhouse Racing)
Daniel Suárez (#99, Trackhouse Racing)
NASCAR Cup Series: Cracker Barrel 400 Highlights | NASCAR on FOX
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NASCAR team facing penalty after Nashville inspection
A NASCAR team is facing a penalty following an infraction discovered in post-race technical inspection at Nashville.
All three NASCAR national series were in action at Nashville Superspeedway this past weekend, with the Xfinity Series race, known as the Tennessee Lottery 250, taking place on Saturday night.
The race was won by Justin Allgaier, making […]
A NASCAR team is facing a penalty following an infraction discovered in post-race technical inspection at Nashville.
All three NASCAR national series were in action at Nashville Superspeedway this past weekend, with the Xfinity Series race, known as the Tennessee Lottery 250, taking place on Saturday night.
The race was won by Justin Allgaier, making it three victories in 2025 for the 38-year-old on what was a dominant night for the No. 7, who led home a JR Motorsports one-two alongside Connor Zilisch.
However, post-race at Nashville, officials were kept busy, with Daniel Dye being disqualified after his ninth-place finish on the road, whilst elsewhere, there was an infraction discovered on the No. 88.
As per NASCAR, in post-race inspection, the No. 88 car of Zilisch had two lug nuts not safe and secure.
READ MORE: Kyle Larson and Bubba Wallace among NASCAR Cup Series stars hit with penalties at Nashville
JR Motorsports/Connor Zilisch facing penalty
As a result of the above, the team are now facing a penalty in this week’s penalty report when it drops, with several punishments already issued this season for similar infractions.
For example, back in March, two of Joe Gibbs Racing’s Xfinity Series cars were fined $5000 each for lug nut infractions at Phoenix Raceway under Sections 8.8.10.4a in the NASCAR Rule Book.
Under the same sections of the rule book, later that month, four Xfinity Series teams were hit with penalties following post-race inspection at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
On that occasion, once again, each team in question was hit with a $5000 fine.
Given the above precedent, it seems likely that Zilisch and JR Motorsports’ penalty will be along similar lines, and a financial punishment given rather than a sporting one.
READ MORE: NASCAR announce driver disqualification at Nashville as official statement released
