Motorsports

Carolina Handling Partners with Michael McDowell and Spire Motorsports for 2025 YellaWood 500 at Talladega

In a sport where milliseconds matter, NASCAR’s elite athletes regularly complete four-tire pit stops in under nine seconds—an incredible display of speed, precision, and teamwork. Off the track, that same level of performance and dedication can be seen in Carolina Handling’s average 1.1-hour response time to breakdown calls, far outpacing the competition and reaffirming its […]

Published

1 month ago

May 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Carolina Handling, a leader in integrated material handling solutions and a key player within the Raymond Solutions network in the Southeast, has announced a new partnership with Spire Motorsports and NASCAR Cup Series driver Michael McDowell. McDowell will pilot the No. 71 Chevrolet ZL1 during the YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on October 19, 2025.

“Carolina Handling is thrilled to partner with Spire Motorsports, an organization that shares our core values of respect, teamwork and innovation,” said Brent Hillabrand, President and CEO of Carolina Handling. “Our affiliation with Spire Motorsports and winning NASCAR driver Michael McDowell gives the Carolina Handling brand significant visibility and offers us the opportunity for dynamic customer, associate and consumer engagement.”

The YellaWood 500 at Talladega is one of the crown jewels on the NASCAR Cup Series calendar. Known for its high-octane, nose-to-tail racing, the 2.66-mile high-banked oval demands precision and strategy, where races can be decided by mere inches.

Veteran driver Michael McDowell, the 2021 Daytona 500 champion, joined Spire Motorsports for the 2025 season, bringing with him 18 years of top-tier NASCAR experience. Under the guidance of crew chief Travis Peterson, McDowell has consistently been a contender on superspeedways. His recent 11th-place finish at Talladega reinforces his status as a driver to watch when the green flag drops.

Carolina Handling’s story began humbly in 1966 with just five associates at a North Carolina gas station. Today, headquartered in Charlotte, the company has grown into a trusted provider of advanced warehouse solutions across the Southeast. Its offerings include forklifts, automation systems, and fleet management services, all tailored to meet the evolving demands of the logistics and supply chain industry.

The synergy between Carolina Handling and NASCAR is evident—both demand speed, precision, innovation, and a relentless commitment to excellence. This partnership with McDowell and Spire Motorsports represents more than a branding opportunity; it’s a celebration of shared values and high-performance standards.

“I think this is the perfect opportunity to showcase how our industries can continue to integrate technology into our workforce with confidence,” said McDowell. “Being able to represent a company that has such a strong tie to the Carolinas is important for not only our industry, but our community as well. I am excited to represent the hardworking men and women of Carolina Handling. It should be a great race at Talladega this fall, and we are looking forward to having them join the Spire team.”

Fans can catch all the action of the YellaWood 500 live on NBC at 2 p.m. EDT on Sunday, October 19. The race will also be broadcast on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. As the 34th event in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season, it promises to be a pivotal and electrifying showdown.

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William Byron leads half of the Michigan Cup race before running out of fuel

At Michigan on Sunday, it was clear that the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was going to be difficult to beat. He won a stage, collected the fastest lap bonus, and led 98 of 200 laps. He fought hard to hang on to the race lead in the closing stages, but Byron couldn’t hold back […]

Published

8 minutes ago

June 9, 2025

Your Sports Nation

At Michigan on Sunday, it was clear that the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was going to be difficult to beat. He won a stage, collected the fastest lap bonus, and led 98 of 200 laps.

He fought hard to hang on to the race lead in the closing stages, but Byron couldn’t hold back a charging Denny Hamlin. Byron was still going to finish second or third when the car finally ran out of fuel at the exit of Turn 4, despite his best efforts to save, coming just over two miles shy of the race finish. He dove into the pits and finished 28th instead.

Never had enough in the tank

Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Meg Oliphant / Getty Images

“No, we didn’t have enough,” said Byron when asked if there was anything different he could have done. “We were going to run out with 1.5 laps to go and I was just trying to manage both — trying to keep the lead and manage the gap and save fuel down the straight and on (corner) exit and everything. We just didn’t … ultimately, not as good mileage as the guys that were further back to start that run. And that’s just the way the cautions go and the nature of being closer to the front and burning more fuel.

“I don’t know, that one is like, you can’t really do a lot about (it). It sucks, it really stings but we had a really good car. I thought we executed well. It seemed like we waited a little bit on fuel for the last stop, and jsut burned more and not able to do much about that. It is what it is.”

Byron leads the regular season standings, but since earning victory in the season-opening Daytona 500, he’s had several almost-wins slip through his fingers. He led the most laps at Darlington, Charlotte, and now Michigan, but failed to reach Victory Lane each time

The good news is that he remains comfortably ahead in the championship, now leading teammate Kyle Larson by 41 points.

Motorsports

Alex Bowman hits wall at Michigan as his rough stretch continues in NASCAR Cup Series

BROOKLYN, Mich. (AP) — Alex Bowman hit a wall with the front end of his No. 48 Chevrolet as part of a multi-car crash in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan on Sunday. Bowman got out of the car on his own and walked to an ambulance that transported him to the infield for […]

Published

30 minutes ago

June 9, 2025

Your Sports Nation

BROOKLYN, Mich. (AP) — Alex Bowman hit a wall with the front end of his No. 48 Chevrolet as part of a multi-car crash in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan on Sunday.

Bowman got out of the car on his own and walked to an ambulance that transported him to the infield for an evaluation, which he passed.

“That hurt a lot,” he said. “I’ve taken a lot of hits.”

Austin Cindric’s No. 2 Ford made contact with Cole Custer’s No. 41 Ford and Daniel Suarez’s No. 99 Chevrolet, leading to Bowman colliding with the wall on lap 67 of the 200-lap race.

Bowman, who drives for Hendrick Motorsports, came to Michigan 12th in points and will drop in the standings after this latest setback.

He has finished 27th or worse in seven of his last nine starts and didn’t finish for a third time during the rough stretch.

Bowman was in the top 10 in five of the first six races this year, including a runner-up finish at Homestead-Miami in March. He earned his eighth career Cup Series victory last year at Chicago.

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

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Motorsports

Denny Hamlin wins NASCAR Michigan race with fuel strategy

Denny Hamlin triumphs at Michigan by overtaking William Byron and Kyle Larson in the final laps, managing fuel perfectly. BROOKLYN, Mich — With just enough fuel in the tank, Denny Hamlin pulled off the win in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway. Hamlin passed William Byron and Kyle Larson in the final […]

Published

31 minutes ago

June 9, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Denny Hamlin triumphs at Michigan by overtaking William Byron and Kyle Larson in the final laps, managing fuel perfectly.

BROOKLYN, Mich — With just enough fuel in the tank, Denny Hamlin pulled off the win in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway.

Hamlin passed William Byron and Kyle Larson in the final 10 laps, as most of the field was running off full-pace in order to save fuel. Byron ran out of gas with two laps to go. Larson saved enough and finished fifth.

“I was going all out the entire time,” Hamlin said after the win. “Once I got to the lead, that’s when I started saving. I knew I was going to have to go 100 percent to get around everybody.”

Chris Buescher finished second, one second behind Hamlin. Ty Gibbs and Bubba Wallace finished third and fourth, respectively.

Carson Hocevar, a native of nearby Portage, Mich., led late in the final stage until a flat tire doomed his chance at a win.

Chase Briscoe started on the pole for the third week in a row. Unfortunately for him, it was the third week in a row he was shuffled out of the lead early. Byron then took the lead and held it for much of the first stage.

Buescher later challenged and passed Byron to win the first stage.

While the first stage ran caution-free, the second stage was full of chaos. Soon after the stage restart, Noah Gragson and John Hunter Nemechek spun out to bring out a caution.

Alex Bowman took the hardest hit of the day during a wreck on the next restart. Austin Cindric made contact with Cole Custer, sending the latter driver into Bowman, Briscoe, and Daniel Suárez. Bowman’s car slammed into the outside wall and briefly lifted off the ground. Bowman and Custer were knocked out of the race, but the rest of the involved drivers were able to continue.

The crash forced a brief red flag period as crews cleaned up the wreckage. Nemechek wrecked again after the ensuing restart. Ryan Blaney, last week’s winner at Nashville, spun out on his own shortly after the next restart.

Cindric gained the lead by staying off pit road as the rest of the field pitted. He was able to hold the top spot for a bit, but ultimately was passed by Byron and his better tires.

The only caution in the last stage happened when Todd Gilliland lost a tire and hit the wall. This left a 50-lap run to the finish with some teams in position to make it on fuel and others needing to save.

Hocevar gained the lead on the restart but knew he was short on fuel for the finish. He tried saving, but faced pressure from Byron and Larson. Hocevar’s hopes for his first career win were dashed when a tire went flat with 18 laps to go.

Byron then held the lead, but Hamlin moved closer to the front and gained the lead with four laps to go. The only driver near the front who had enough fuel to push all the way was Buescher, but he was too far behind to challenge Hamlin.

The NASCAR Cup Series is next in action at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City. It’s the first-ever Cup Series race in Mexico.

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Motorsports

Corey LaJoie Makes Odd ‘Wife’s Boyfriend’ Comparison on Truck Series Return

Corey LaJoie, who parted ways with Spire Motorsports while racing in the Cup Series last year, has returned to the same team this year. However, LaJoie will race in the NASCAR Truck Series in the No.7 Chevy Silverado. LaJoie will participate in nine Truck Series races, beginning at Michigan International Speedway, followed by his second […]

Published

47 minutes ago

June 9, 2025

Your Sports Nation

LaJoie will participate in nine Truck Series races, beginning at Michigan International Speedway, followed by his second race at Richmond Raceway on August 8. While he looks forward to a fresh chapter with Spire this year, his analogy offers an insight into his current emotions.

Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass shared a video on X where LaJoie talks about his return to Spire Motorsports. He said:

Corey LaJoie, driver of the #7 Gainbridge Chevrolet, waves to fans as he walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Powered by Precision Vehicle Logistics…

Meg Oliphant/Getty Images

“So yeah. It’s been, you know, a lot of emotions going back in there [at Spire]. Can I give you my analogy? … Here’s my analogy. It’s like when you work building a house for five years, and then your wife becomes a TikTok star and says she’s not happy anymore, she kicks you out. Then she calls you back a year later, and you have to go live in the guest room, and she’s there with a new boyfriend. That’s how this thing goes.”

LaJoie added that he missed working with the team. He said:

“But I’ve missed the, just like, the trenches of trying to work together for a common goal. Because it’s the only thing, racing’s the only thing in life that you can be measured by your effort, good, bad, or indifferent. So, I’ve missed like, the working collectively trying to get a truck faster, car faster, yourself faster, figuring out what your weaknesses are and making them better.”

LaJoie has driven for Spire in the Cup Series since 2021, making him a part of the team’s initial years in NASCAR. He said in a statement:

“I’m looking forward to getting back in the seat and chasing some NASCAR Craftsman Truck series wins.

“I put in a lot of work in the early days to help shape Spire Motorsports, and I still have some friends that have been there since day one, so it’ll be good to see them. The No. 07 team has been bringing some fast trucks to the track this year and are looking for a spot in the owner’s playoffs.

“It’ll be nice to have some consistency with the team to get acclimated to these vehicles, chase some wins and hopefully, a Craftsman Truck series owner’s championship.”

Spire Motorsports co-owner Jeff Dickerson added:

“While discussing our best path to bring Spire our first Craftsman Truck series championship and describing what we needed in a driver, the driver we were all talking about without saying his name was Corey LaJoie.

“So, when I ran into Corey in the motorhome lot one morning earlier this spring, I asked him what he thought about coming home and doing this.

“He is synonymous with what we’ve built here over the last few years and deserves this opportunity. I’m looking forward to getting him in the truck at Michigan to work out some kinks and start getting a game plan together for the playoffs.”

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Motorsports

Cup results, points after Michigan as Denny Hamlin takes third win of 2025

Denny Hamlin led only twice for five laps at Michigan International Speedway, but the final four were the ones that mattered as he earned his third victory of the 2025 season and 57th of his career. Hamlin, who earlier scored consecutive victories at Martinsville and Darlington, is tied with Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell for […]

Published

48 minutes ago

June 9, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Denny Hamlin led only twice for five laps at Michigan International Speedway, but the final four were the ones that mattered as he earned his third victory of the 2025 season and 57th of his career.

Hamlin, who earlier scored consecutive victories at Martinsville and Darlington, is tied with Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell for the lead in NASCAR Cup Series victories this season.

It’s Hamlin’s ninth season with at least three victories, and he became the 18th driver with at least three wins at Michigan (his 11th track with at least three Cup wins). At 5,104 days since Hamlin’s June 19, 2011 win at the 2-mile oval, it’s the longest gap between wins at a track since Kyle Busch won at Talladega in 2023 (his first win there since 2008, a stretch of 5,474 days.

NASCAR: NASCAR Cup Series Race at Michigan

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver earned his third victory of the season.

Joe Gibbs Racing got its first win at Michigan since August 2015 with Matt Kenseth. The team has six wins this season between Bell and Hamlin.

Despite running out of fuel and finishing 28th, William Byron still leads the regular-season standings by 41 points over Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kyle Larson. Hamlin improved a spot to third in the standings ahead of Bell and Chase Elliott.

The Joe Gibbs Racing star took the lead from William Byron on Lap 197 of 200.

Here is the finishing order for the Cup race at Michigan:

1. Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Toyota
2. Chris Buescher, No. 17 Ford
3. Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Toyota
4. Bubba Wallace, No. 23 Toyota
5. Kyle Larson, No. 5 Chevrolet
6. Ross Chastain, No. 1 Chevrolet
7. Zane Smith, No. 38 Ford
8. Kyle Busch, No. 8 Chevrolet
9. Ryan Preece, No. 60 Ford
10. Brad Keselowski, No. 6 Ford
11. Erik Jones, No. 43 Toyota
12. Josh Berry, No. 21 Ford
13. Tyler Reddick, No. 45 Toyota
14. Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Chevrolet
15. Chase Elliott, No. 9 Chevrolet
16. Christopher Bell, No. 20 Toyota
17. AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Chevrolet
18. Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Chevrolet
19. Austin Dillon, No. 3 Chevrolet
20. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Chevrolet
21. Justin Haley, No. 7 Chevrolet
22. Joey Logano, No. 22 Ford
23. Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Toyota
24. Ty Dillon, No. 10 Chevrolet
25. Riley Herbst, No. 35 Toyota
26. Cody Ware, No. 51 Ford
27. Noah Gragson, No. 4 Ford
28. William Byron, No. 24 Chevrolet
29. Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Chevrolet
30. Michael McDowell, No. 71 Chevrolet
31. Austin Cindric, No. 2 Ford
32. Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Ford
33. Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Ford
34. John H Nemechek, No. 42 Toyota
35. Cole Custer, No. 41 Ford
36. Alex Bowman, No. 48 Chevrolet

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Denny Hamlin surges to win at MIS; late trouble costs Michigan’s Carson Hocevar

Brooklyn, Mich. – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Carson Hocevar had a little chat Wednesday night. Stenhouse told Hocevar he might get a punch thrown his way and his NASCAR Cup friends might not allow him a chance at winning if he didn’t calm down his aggressive driving. Well, the 22-year-old Hocevar, from Portage, Michigan, stayed […]

Published

1 hour ago

June 9, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Brooklyn, Mich. – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Carson Hocevar had a little chat Wednesday night. Stenhouse told Hocevar he might get a punch thrown his way and his NASCAR Cup friends might not allow him a chance at winning if he didn’t calm down his aggressive driving.

Well, the 22-year-old Hocevar, from Portage, Michigan, stayed with his style and it had him leading the FireKeepers Casino 400 Sunday at Michigan International Speedway.

Hocevar led in his No. 77 Zeigler Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports with 20 laps remaining, trying to save fuel to get the chance to reach Victory Lane for the first time in his career.

But Hocevar suffered from tire problems with his left rear going down with 19 laps left, opening the door for William Byron and Denny Hamlin to fight it out for the win.

Byron, who led more than 100 laps at the two-mile superspeedway, was forced to save his fuel and Hamlin, in his No. 11 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, reached Byron, then went side-by-side and passed Byron with four laps left to earn the win, his third of the season and first at MIS since 2011.

It was a great early present for Hamlin, who had been in baby watch mode, awaiting the arrival of his third child with fiancé Jordan Fish. He won his 57th Cup race on start No. 701.

“It feels great to come to Michigan, where we’ve been close (in past years), especially coming back from 12^th on the final restart,” said the 44-year-old Hamlin, who led for five laps, the ones that mattered most, beating runnerup Chris Buescher by 1.099. “I wanted, obviously, to take the lead and (Byron) did a great job of defending. I gave him all kinds of different looks.

“Truthfully, I just tried to pick them off one by one, especially since I had some damage to the right side from the last pit stop.”

Byron entered the day as the points leader with three wins in his No. 24 Chevrolet for Joe Gibbs Racing, including the Daytona 500.

“I was looking to find the balance between saving fuel and holding the lead and then ran out with a lap and a half remaining,” Byron said. “There’s things that you can’t do anything about.”

The reason for all the drama concerning Hocevar? He made contact with Stenhouse in last Sunday’s race at Nashville, ending Stenhouse’s day while Hocevar earned his second runnerup finish of the season.

Hocevar had earlier issues this season, including one at Atlanta with Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney where he also finished second. Blaney settled for fourth after spinning down the race track.

And then there’s JGR driver Chase Briscoe, who hasn’t had a problem winning poles, it’s just holding on to the top spot during race day.

Briscoe earned the pole for the FireKeepers 400, pushing his streak to three straight poles.

Briscoe led the first 13 laps but that was the highlight of his day, as he was a part of a four-car wreck early in Stage 2, which sent him near the back of the field.

Byron passed Briscoe on Lap 14 and continued to hold the lead until Buescher took the lead, going on to win Stage 1, his first stage win of the season.

Hocevar made the biggest gain coming out of the pits following Stage 1 when he moved up seven positions to start Stage 2 in third place.

Alex Bowman has been fortunate to run for one of the top teams in Rick Hendrick Motorsports, but time could be running out for him after winning just one race last year and still in search of his first win of this season.

It didn’t happen for Bowman Sunday, either, and now he more than likely needs a win to make a playoff spot since he’s sliding downward in points with an average finish of 27 in the last nine races.

Bowman was an innocent bystander early in Stage 2 when Cole Custer and Austin Cindric touched, sending Bowman head on into the wall with Briscoe also suffering minor damage to his car in the melee.

Rochester Hills native Brad Keselowski finished 10^th and Erik Jones, from Byron, Michigan, finished 11^th.

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