BACK in August 2023, Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. (TMP) staged the country’s first-ever Toyota Gazoo Racing Festival, headlined by no less than Toyota Motor Corp. Chairman Akio “Morizo” Toyoda. Fans packed the Quirino Grandstand in Manila to witness works team machines like the WRC GR Yaris rally car and Red Bull GR Corolla in action — an unforgettable experience for more than 6,000 attendees.

The Novice Class racers head
toward the checkered flag. TOYOTA PHOTO

Fast forward almost two years later, and TMP has proven that the spirit of Gazoo Racing in the Philippines doesn’t hinge on celebrity appearances or globally shipped race cars. It thrives in the roar of local engines, the energy of the crowd, and the unmistakable pulse of Filipino motorsport culture.
Held last May 24-25 in Villar City, the second round of the 2025 Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) Philippine Cup marked a historic return to the streets — seven years since the last urban race in 2018. A section of Villar Avenue was transformed into a tight, technical, 2.4-kilometer street circuit. And for the first time in the racing series’ 11-year history, fans experienced a full-fledged motorsport festival right outside Metro Manila.
What TMP pulled off wasn’t just another race — it was a full-throttle celebration of speed and culture. Over 12,000 people filled the venue across the weekend, with millions more tuning in via livestream. Families, gearheads, and first-time fans were treated to a wide array of attractions beyond the main races: gymkhana showdowns, sim racing sessions, car club displays, and live performances by OPM icons like Rico Blanco, Ely Buendia, Bamboo, and Parokya Ni Edgar.

The event was proof that motorsport isn’t just a niche interest — it’s a community waiting to be tapped.
Bleachers placed along key sections of the track allowed spectators to witness close wheel-to-wheel action from the Vios Cup categories: Promotional, Sporting, Super Sporting, and Legacy. It was racing at its most raw and exciting, made even better by the visceral environment of a street circuit.

As a motoring journalist who first covered the Vios Cup’s 2018 street race as a rookie on the beat, I never imagined that seven years later, I’d find myself on the other side of the barrier — behind the wheel of a one-make race (OMR) Vios. And let me tell you: there’s nothing quite like it.
Heading into the weekend, I was nervous. I’ve had limited experience on street circuits, and the technical layout, lined with unforgiving barriers, left no room for error. But once the green flag dropped, the nerves faded. Each lap through the chicanes, especially the quick flicks through the course’s “Eau Rouge”-like section, was pure adrenaline.

Did I perform well? Not exactly. I had my fair share of missteps and even kissed the barriers twice. I learned the hard way that having pace isn’t enough — you need racecraft, patience, and a bit of luck. But in spite of the setbacks, I loved every minute behind the wheel. Seeing the crowd cheer as we raced past was electric.
What TGR Philippines has done goes far beyond racing. By taking the sport out of secluded tracks and into the streets, they’ve made motorsports accessible to the everyday Filipino. This isn’t just a corporate branding exercise — it’s a sincere push to grow the sport from the grassroots up.

TMP Assistant Vice President for Marketing Services Andy Ty said there are plans to expand TGR’s footprint across different racing disciplines in the Philippines. Circuit racing may just be the beginning. With Toyota Gazoo Racing’s DNA deeply rooted in “pushing the limits for the better,” TMP is laying the groundwork for a motorsport ecosystem that could one day rival our neighbors in Southeast Asia.

Whether you’re a die-hard racer, a casual fan, or just someone looking for a fun weekend, the message is clear: motorsports in the Philippines is alive and kicking — and Toyota Gazoo Racing is leading the charge.

June 8, 2025

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

Ultimately Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota had just enough fuel to claim the checkered flag at Michigan International Speedway and do one celebratory series of burnouts in front of the huge grandstand crowd before running out of gas on his encore celebration and needing a tow to his ultimate destination: Victory Lane.

The 44-year-old put on a master class in fuel saving and end-of-race pressure at the two-mile oval – taking his third win of the season and 57th of his career. Hamlin crossed the line 1.099-second ahead of Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing’s Chris Buescher and his JGR teammate, Ty Gibbs, after the day’s most dominant driver, Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron had to pit for fuel on the last lap.

“No, not really,’’ Hamlin said, insisting he wasn’t overly worried about running out of fuel in the closing laps. “I wanted to get the lead and obviously he [William Byron] was doing a really good job defending.

“Sorry, but I beat your favorite driver,’’ a grinning Hamlin – in his 701st career series start – addressed the rowdy Michigan crowd.

“This whole team just stepped up,’’ he said. “Great job. We’ve been so fast this entire year, just haven’t finished it for one reason or another, so it feels good to come to Michigan where we’ve been so close the last couple of years.

“Such a gratifying day to restart 11th or 12th and charge to the front,’’ added Hamlin, who has now won multiple races in the last seven consecutive seasons.

With 20 laps remaining, Hamlin had made his way from 11th place to fifth in the running order, behind the day’s most dominant cars – Carson Hocevar in the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet and Byron in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.

Both Hocevar, a Michigan native racing for his first career NASCAR Cup Series win, and Byron were told by their crew chiefs they were going to run out of fuel before the end of the race. Instead of a fuel issue however, Hocevar, who led 32 laps, had to pit from the race lead with 19 laps remaining for a flat tire.

Byron, who led a race best 98 of the 200 laps, inherited the lead from Hocevar and then had to try to fend off Hamlin – who methodically started moving forward – racing Byron hard and forcing the championship leader out of any sort of fuel-save mode.

Hamlin got by Byron with four laps to go and Byron dove down pit road for fuel on the final lap, having to settle for a 28th place finish. Hocevar finished 29th.

“Ultimately, maybe not as good mileage as the guys farther 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 a lot of fuel,’’ Byron said. “That one, you can’t really do a lot about. It sucks. It really stings.

“But we had a really good car. I thought we executed well It seemed like we waited a little more on fuel on that last stop and just burned more, not able to do much about that. So it is what it is.’’

Bubba Wallace drove the No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota – a team Hamlin co-owns – to fourth place. Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson was fifth.

Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain was sixth. Front Row Motorsports’ Zane Smith finished a season-best seventh place. Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch was eighth followed by RFK teammates Ryan Preece and Brad Keselowski – marking the first time all three RFK cars finished among the top-10 this season.

There were 13 lead changes among 11 drivers and Hamlin led only five laps on the day.

A nearly 12-minute red flag period occurred early in the race while workers ensured the track was race-worthy after a four-car incident that sent the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, driven by Alex Bowman, hard into the wall after being clipped by Cole Custer’s spinning No. 41 Haas Factory Team Ford. Bowman spoke to reporters after being checked out at the medical center. It marked the seventh time in the last nine races, however, that the perennial championship contender Bowman has finished 25th or worse.

With 11 races remaining in the regular season, Byron holds a 41-point lead over Larson in the championship points standings. There have been nine race winners. Team Penske’s Austin Cindric currently holds the 16th and final spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs point standings.

The NASCAR Cup Series will make its first international points-paying trip next weekend with Sunday’s Viva Mexico 250 at Mexico City’s renowned Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez road course (3 p.m. ET, Amazon Prime, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, MAX).

In many ways, William Byron and the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports group were the team of the day at Michigan International Speedway. Byron led a race-high 98 of 200 laps, won a stage, set the Xfinity Fastest Lap with a 37.30s trip around the two-mile oval and led in the closing stages of the race.

But in the end, there was something the No. 24 team didn’t execute as well as its rivals – fuel management – and it made all the difference.

Byron spent the bulk of Sunday’s final run in the shadow of Carson Hocevar, who led from laps 151 through 181 as he chased his first Cup win. But when Hocevar suffered an ill-timed flat tire, it was Byron that shot to the front.

From there, the two-time Championship 4 qualifier set the pace, but a challenge arose from behind, with Denny Hamlin chasing the North Carolinian down to challenge for the top spot.

With four laps to go, Hamlin prevailed. After a multi-lap battle with Byron, the Virginian finally snuck past with four laps to go and marched off to a victory in his 701st start.

Byron was forced to fight for second from there, defending against a hard-charging Chris Buescher. It was a disappointing result, but one the Daytona 500 winner could benefit from with the points haul.

Coming to the white flag, that quickly changed. Byron ran out of fuel and had to drive down to pit road for a splash of gas as he rolled off turn 4. He made it to the checkered flag, but wound up 28th at race’s end.

“We didn’t have enough,” Byron told Prime Video team after the race. “We [ran] out with a lap-and-a-half left. It was just trying to manage both, right? Trying to keep the lead, manage the gap and save fuel down the straights, on exit, and everything. We just didn’t.

“Ultimately, I guess [we maybe had] not as good mileage as the guys that were further back to start that fun. That’s just the way the cautions go and the nature of being closer to the front and burning more fuel.”

Despite the setback, Byron didn’t lose many points at day’s end. Aided by stage points, the Hendrick Motorsports star tallied 29 points, the 12th-highest points haul on the day. He left Michigan with his regular season championship lead intact.

In the end, Byron didn’t even feel that bad about the loss. Given the way the race came undone, the 27-year-old wasn’t sure what he could have done differently.

“That one you can’t really do a lot about,” Byron said. “It sucks. It really stings, but we had a really good car. I thought we executed well. It seemed like we waited a little on fuel [during] the last stop.

“[We] just burned more. Not able to do much about that. It is what it is.”

BROOKLYN, MI — In a weekend full of speed, where the rubber literally meets the road, three winners came out on top at Michigan International Speedway: Brenden Queen, Stewart Friesen and Denny Hamlin.

Queen won the ARCA Menards Series Henry Ford Health 200 on Friday, June 6. Corey Heim came home in second with a 0.313-second margin of victory in the 100-lap race.

To see the full gallery from Friday click here.

On Saturday, Friesen won the Craftsman Truck Series DQS Solutions and Staffing 250 Powered by Precision Vehicle Logistics.

The truck race was scheduled for 125 laps, but after nine cautions and three overtimes, it ended in 139. The total distance covered was 278 miles, the most in any Truck Series race in series history.

To see the full gallery from Saturday click here.

In addition to taking home the first-place prize on Sunday, Hamlin also earned Toyota the Michigan Heritage Trophy by winning the race. It’s the second year in a row Toyota has won the award.

Hamlin topped Chris Buescher and Ty Gibbs to win the 200-lap race.

To see the full gallery from Sunday, click here. For more stories from the weekend, click here.

What’s Happening?

Blake McCandless, driver of JR Motorsports’ No. 8 in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, has won his appeal of a major penalty handed down to him last week.

BROOKLYN, Mich. — When 44-year-old Denny Hamlin recently went 11 months without winning a NASCAR Cup Series race, his most sought-after career goal seemed to be slipping away.

No, we’re not talking about a Cup championship — even though Hamlin is the best NASCAR driver never to win one. Hamlin would love a title, of course, but championships have a different meaning to some drivers these days with the playoff elimination system.

What does Hamlin want the most? To finish his career among the top 10 on NASCAR’s all-time Cup Series wins list. And reeling off three more victories in less than two and a half months, including Sunday at Michigan International Speedway, suddenly makes that goal a bit more realistic.

Hamlin now has 57 career wins, which is three away from tying Kevin Harvick for 10th on the all-time list. And the burst of momentum has left him discussing it in a slightly different way.

Initially, Hamlin repeatedly stated that the goal was to reach the 60-win mark. Then he said he’d like to win 61 so he could be in sole possession of 10th.

But listen to him now after Sunday’s win.

“At least while I’m alive, I want to be in the top 10 for the most wins,” he said.

OK, but that’s going to take even more than 61, Hamlin figures.

“I’ve got to count on possibly (Joey) Logano, more than likely (Kyle) Larson overtaking us in wins,” he said. “You’ve got to budget for at least a couple of these guys who started so much younger than I did to beat us on the win total.”

After Harvick, Kyle Busch is ninth with 63 career wins. Can Hamlin finish with more than Busch, who is still trying to add more himself? That seems like a big ask for someone who might only race for another couple of seasons.

After all, Hamlin recently passed 700 starts and said he won’t be around for 800 (there are 36 races per year).

“I’m going to hate it when I’m not at the level I’m at now,” Hamlin said. “I certainly will retire very, very quickly after that. I’m not going to hang around and do it just to do it. This is how I want to spend my last season — still winning.”

We’ve seen other drivers suddenly stop winning in their mid-40s with virtually no warning, and Hamlin is already in rare territory: Only 10 of the 20 drivers who have made more than 700 career starts have won after their 700th race (a list which now includes Hamlin) and only six have even won multiple races.

Hamlin likes his chances of getting a few more, but he’s also realistic: These races are challenging to win, and Sunday could have been it.

“You have another birthday (and) you keep wondering how long are you going to be able to keep doing this at this level?” said Hamlin, who turns 45 in November. “Listen, 57 (wins) might be it. None of us in this room knows. I’m at least going to enjoy it as if it’s my last, then I’ll go to work on Monday, just like I always have.”

Denny gets it done at @MISpeedway! pic.twitter.com/Ju16gklU3m

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) June 8, 2025

Gibbs glum

As Hamlin celebrated in victory lane, his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Ty Gibbs was parked just behind the winner’s circle backdrop — and in a much less cheerful mode.

Gibbs was outright pissed. He wasn’t having any of the consolation talk from his team or family, was uninterested in the moral victory of finishing third and brushed off a rear-end smack from his grandfather, Hall of Fame football coach Joe Gibbs.

Gibbs, expected to contend for a playoff spot this year and win his first career race, has had a frustrating season. Michigan was only his second top-five finish, and he felt he was close enough to compete for the victory, especially since his teammate Hamlin was on a similar fuel strategy.

“I would rather go win,” the driver said. “I don’t come here to run third and run half-throttle on the straightaway, but it’s what they thought we needed to do.”

Gibbs was continuously instructed to save more gas, even when he was tracking down race leaders Hamlin and William Byron with four laps to go; the team urged him to back off just when it looked like he could have made a pass.

“He doesn’t know how much we saved or if we were going to run out,” crew chief Tyler Allen said. “So he’s frustrated because he could see it and he was fast enough to go take it. Unfortunately, we weren’t going to make it on fuel, and that wouldn’t have done any good to our team and our points situation.”

But Gibbs disagreed, saying he saved enough fuel to go harder and ended the race without having to flip his reserve fuel switch (indicating there was perhaps another lap or so remaining).

“I was told to save more, and it’s just frustrating for me,” Gibbs said. “I would have loved to be more aggressive there.”

The Carson convo

Carson Hocevar was again a hot topic at Michigan after he led a career-high 32 laps before getting a flat tire while leading the race. However, one thing that didn’t happen, at least for now: an on-track payback from Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

After it seemed destined for Stenhouse to retaliate against Hocevar for their Nashville incident, the two spoke last week by phone — as did their crew chiefs and Spire Motorsports owner Jeff Dickerson with Stenhouse.

The bottom line: Given their positions on the playoff bubble, it would be silly to continue the war.

“They all feel really bad about it and they can’t give us back our points that we lost,” Stenhouse said Saturday. “But if we get in a pissing match and I crash him this weekend and then we go back and forth, that does none of us good.”

Still, Stenhouse said, Hocevar is on thin ice — not just with him, but the garage.

After their Nashville incident, Stenhouse said, he received numerous texts from other competitors and team members who urged the veteran to either wreck Hocevar on purpose or fight Hocevar like Stenhouse did with Kyle Busch at last year’s All-Star Race.

“It was a lot,” Stenhouse said of the volume of texts. “It was kind of shocking. So I just told him that.”

Hocevar reminded Stenhouse they’ve had no issues previously, and they communicate on occasion when Hocevar asks Stenhouse about his sprint car team. Stenhouse agreed they haven’t had a problem before, but there’s no third chance coming.

“If it becomes a routine or it happens again …” Stenhouse said. “As fast as your cars have been, you don’t want to keep making people mad.”

One group that doesn’t seem mad? The fans at Michigan. Hocevar got one of the loudest cheers in driver introductions when walking out in front of his home crowd.

Carson Hocevar led a career-high 32 laps Sunday before a flat tire spoiled his chances at a first Cup Series victory. (Meg Oliphant / Getty Images)

Messy charter situation

23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports were dealt a blow last week when the U.S. Court of Appeals’ Fourth Circuit overturned a preliminary injunction that allowed the teams to race as charter teams in 2025. Barring any further appeals, the teams could be reduced to running as “open” cars as soon as next month.

But 23XI co-owner Hamlin said the teams remain “very confident” in their lawsuit overall, drawing a sharp distinction between the case and the preliminary injunction decision.

“That’s just such a small part of the entire litigation,” Hamlin said of the appeals court’s decision. “So I’m not deterred at all that we’re in good shape.”

What changes can be expected for the teams? Aside from taking a significant dip in money earned from each race, Hamlin said there won’t be much difference.

“Same as what we said in December: We’re committed to run this season open if we have to,” Hamlin said. “We’re going to race and fulfill all of our commitments no matter what. Our team is going to be here for the long haul, and we’re confident of that.”

As for the 23XI drivers, whose contracts allow them to become free agents if the organization does not provide them with charter cars, they were tight-lipped.

“I’m going to keep doing my part to try and show up as prepared as possible and continue winning races,” Tyler Reddick said. “… I’ve got to stay focused on what I can control. And that’s my preparation.”

Bubba Wallace cited Marshawn Lynch’s “I’m just here so I don’t get fined” and said, “You’re not going to get an answer you want to hear from us.”

“Come on, now,” Wallace said when another reporter tried to broach the topic. “Let’s talk about Michigan, dawg. You ain’t getting no comment.”

However, whether they want to discuss it or not, losing charters could have a significant long-term impact. The ripple effect if 23XI and Front Row don’t regain those charters during the legal process would last for years and threaten the organizations’ existence.

Bubba the troll

Before finishing fourth on Sunday to record back-to-back top-six finishes, Wallace had some fun on X when NASCAR released the list of its inaugural in-season tournament competitors last week — in alphabetical order, meaning his name was last.

“Bubbles last like he always is,” Wallace captioned the tournament list in a quote-tweet.

“Bubbles” is just one of the derogatory nicknames used by Wallace’s detractors, but he hasn’t relinquished his trolling nature on social media. After all, he pointed out, even his X header image is a troll post: a cartoon depiction of NASCAR’s Mount Rushmore — showing Petty, Earnhardt, Johnson and … Wallace.

Wallace said he sticks his shoe in ant hills in real life, and this is no different.

“It’s the boomers who are pissed off,” he said. “They’re probably just punching air because I beat them to their own comments. So yeah, that brings me joy.”

Pacing the field

Chase Briscoe became the first driver in more than two years to win three consecutive pole positions (Kyle Larson in spring 2024), starting first at the Coke 600, Nashville and now Michigan.

But Briscoe, who is yet to win this season, is too close to the playoff bubble for comfort after another disappointing result on Sunday (23rd). He said he’s taken note of the mentality carried by his beloved Indiana Pacers, which stunned the Oklahoma City Thunder with a Game 1 comeback in the NBA Finals before being blown out in Game 2 on Sunday night.

“It’s the ‘never give up’ part,” he said. “We’ve seen that even throughout my career. There was a time we were four laps down in one race and got back on the lead lap. It’s been fun to see a basketball team have that same mentality of never giving up.

“A lot of teams (give up) if they’re down nine points with two minutes left, but the Pacers have continued to come back from huge deficits even when the other team thinks the game is already over. There’s definitely something to that.”

(Top photo of Denny Hamlin: Chris Graythen / Getty Images)