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Automakers target India's premium car buyers as broader market slows

This shift toward more expensive vehicles with state-of-the-art features such as advanced driver assistance systems, better safety tech and more powerful engines was on display at India’s flagship auto exhibition, which kicked off in New Delhi on Friday.NEW DELHI — Carmakers are rolling out pricier models to win over affluent Indians, as they look to […]

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Automakers target India's premium car buyers as broader market slows

This shift toward more expensive vehicles with state-of-the-art features such as advanced driver assistance systems, better safety tech and more powerful engines was on display at India’s flagship auto exhibition, which kicked off in New Delhi on Friday.NEW DELHI — Carmakers are rolling out pricier models to win over affluent Indians, as they look to buffer their revenue against an economic slowdown that analysts warn could weigh on growth in the world’s third-biggest auto market.

Motorsports

Fresh look entering the Playoffs – Speedway Digest

CRAFTSMAN Truck Series rookie Kaden Honeycutt goes into his first Playoff appearance in rather unusual circumstances. The talented 22-year-old drove a truck for Niece Motorsports the first 16 weeks of the season and is now steering the No. 52 Halmar Friesen Racing Toyota for the Playoffs. Honeycutt addressed the change in teams Tuesday and said […]

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CRAFTSMAN Truck Series rookie Kaden Honeycutt goes into his first Playoff appearance in rather unusual circumstances. The talented 22-year-old drove a truck for Niece Motorsports the first 16 weeks of the season and is now steering the No. 52 Halmar Friesen Racing Toyota for the Playoffs.

Honeycutt addressed the change in teams Tuesday and said he was optimistic going forward, driving the truck for the injured owner-driver Stewart Friesen.

In his first fulltime season the Texan has earned a pair of top-five finishes and 10 top-10 showings. His best showings of third-place were at Charlotte and Pocono, Pa. He finished an encouraging 10th-place in his debut with HFR last weekend at Richmond. He enters the Playoffs ranked ninth among the 10-drivers, but only two points below the cutoff line.

“I’m pretty passive person when it comes to situations and stuff happening to me,” Honeycutt said. “I’m pretty much able to put that behind me as much as possible, and you know, everything ended on a good note so there’s definitely no issues on any side of mine, personally.

“I think that makes it a lot easier for myself. It was definitely hard at first, but now that we’re moved on, everyone’s doing what they need to do and we’re just looking forward to the rest of these Playoffs with this No. 52 crew.”



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Legendary NASCAR Truck Driver Set to Retire After 2025 Season

ThorSport Racing announced the retirement of Matt Crafton, the driver of the No. 88 Craftsman Truck Series entry, who has been behind the wheel for his 26th year. Crafton will finish the 2025 season and step aside for the following campaign, allowing his current teammate and defending champion, Ty Majesk, to take over the No. […]

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ThorSport Racing announced the retirement of Matt Crafton, the driver of the No. 88 Craftsman Truck Series entry, who has been behind the wheel for his 26th year.

Crafton will finish the 2025 season and step aside for the following campaign, allowing his current teammate and defending champion, Ty Majesk, to take over the No. 88.

“ThorSport Racing today announced a new chapter for its storied No. 88 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series entry,” ThorSport Racing said in a statement.

“Three-time series champion Matt Crafton will conclude his full-time driving career after the 2025 season. Beginning in 2026, teammate and 2024 series champion Ty Majeski will take the wheel of the No. 88 full-time.”

NASCAR driver Matt Crafton
Matt Crafton, driver of the #88 Chi Chis/Menards Ford, speaks to a crew member during practice for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 23, 2025…


Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images

As the longest-running driver in truck series history, Crafton has accomplished a lot in the sport – winning titles in 2013, 2014, and 2019 – sitting second all-time in series championships.

He is also the only driver in the Craftsman Truck Series to win back-to-back titles.

His 23-year partnership with Menards is the longest driver/sponsor relationship in NASCAR history.

By the end of the season, he is projected to have more than 560 consecutive career starts.

Crafton is at the top of series history in wins with 15, 328 top-10 finishes, 16 poles, and 2,716laps led.

He isn’t done yet – the truck series legend qualified for the 2025 playoffs and can add to a storied career so far.

Who is Ty Majeski?

As the driver of the No. 98 car, Majeski has climbed up the ranks as a driver and has established himself in the upper echelon.

He won the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series title after breaking into the racing series back in 2022.

In 2024, he closed the season on an impressive run of results, which landed him the title.

“This is so much fun racing with this group,” Majeski said after his championship win.

“So proud to have the opportunity to drive these great race trucks. There’s a lot of times in my career where this looks like a far dream, and [team owners] Duke and Rhonda [Thorson] really gave me my third opportunity after I had two opportunities that failed. I can’t thank them enough.

“It’s been a long road here. These people behind me, everybody at Ford, really gave me another opportunity when my career looked like it could have ended, and they brought me on as an engineer in 2021 with a few races and turned into a full-time deal.

“We made our first Championship 4 in ’22, and now we’re sitting here as champions.”

Now, Majeski steps into some big shoes with the No. 88 car.

For more NASCAR news, head on over to Newsweek Sports.



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HFT Advance | Daytona II – Speedway Digest

Daytona II Event Info:Date: Saturday, Aug. 23Time: 7:30 p.m. ETSeries: NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)Location: Daytona Beach, Florida Format: 160 Laps, 400 Miles, Stages: 35-90-160TV: NBCRadio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90) Weekend Schedule:Friday: 3 p.m. ET, Xfinity Qualifying (CW App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)Friday: 5:05 p.m. ET, Cup Qualifying (TruTV, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)Friday: 7:30 […]

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Daytona II Event Info:
Date:
Saturday, Aug. 23
Time:
7:30 p.m. ET
Series:
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Location:
Daytona Beach, Florida
Format:
160 Laps, 400 Miles, Stages: 35-90-160
TV:
NBC
Radio:
MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)

Weekend Schedule:
Friday: 3 p.m. ET, Xfinity Qualifying (CW App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Friday: 5:05 p.m. ET, Cup Qualifying (TruTV, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Friday: 7:30 p.m. ET, Xfinity Race (CW, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Saturday: 7:30 p.m. ET, Cup Race (NBC, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

Pace Laps:

  • NASCAR heads to Daytona International Speedway this weekend for the annual summer event, and the last regular-season Cup Series race before the start of the playoffs.
  • Sam Mayer (9.5) is tied with Connor Zilisch (9.5) for the best average finish among full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers this season.
    • Mayer has finished inside the top two in each of his previous three races at Indianapolis (2nd), Iowa (1st) and Watkins Glen (2nd).
    • He has started inside the top 10 in nine of his last 10 starts dating back to Nashville Superspeedway in May, including his lone pole of the season at Indianapolis Motor Speedway three weeks ago.
    • Mayer (799) sits third in the regular-season points standings behind Justin Allgaier (816) and Zilisch (823) with just three races remaining before the start of the playoffs.

Cole Custer Team Info:
Crew Chief: Aaron Kramer
Partner: Haas/Bonanza

Sheldon Creed Team Info:
Crew Chief: Jonathan Toney
Partner: Ollie’s

Sam Mayer Team Info:
Crew Chief: Jason Trinchere
Partner: Audibel

Custer at Daytona (Cup)
Starts: 7
Wins:
Top-10s:

Poles:

  • Custer makes his eighth Cup start at Daytona this weekend, where he has a best finish of 11th and led a lap in 2021. Earlier this season, he was leading on the final lap before an incident resulted in a 21st-place finish.
  • His best start came in 2020 (12th), and he boasts a 22.3 average starting position.
  • Custer has two top-10 results in 10 Xfinity Series starts at Daytona, while also making one Truck start in 2016.

Creed at Daytona (Xfinity)
Starts: 8
Wins:
Top-10s:
5
Poles:

  • Creed is set to make his ninth Xfinity start at Daytona on Saturday, where he is coming off a third-place finish earlier this year. In his last four starts, he has led 30 laps and finished inside the top-10 in each race.
  • He has started inside the top 10 in seven of his eight starts and carries a 6.6 average starting position into the weekend.
  • Creed also has a pair of top-10 results in three career Truck Series starts.


Mayer at Daytona (Xfinity)
Starts: 8
Wins:
Top-10s:
1
Poles:

  • Mayer is in line for his ninth Xfinity start at Daytona this weekend, coming off a runner-up finish in the first race of the season. He has led 28 total laps across eight career starts and has an average finish of 21.6.
  • His best start was on fourth in 2022, and he holds an average starting position of 18.6.

Where They Stand
Cup Points Standings (41: 34th): Custer is 34th in the Cup Series points standings with 307 points heading into Daytona this Saturday.

Xfinity Points Standings (41: 4th, 00: 10th): Mayer sits fourth in the Xfinity points standings with 799 total points on the season, behind the three multi-winners, while Creed is in 10th place with 625 points.

HFT PR



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NASCAR says Jordan wants what no team has

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR argued in its latest court filing that Michael Jordan is suing the stock car series to earn a permanent charter that no other teams possess, and that neither 23XI Racing nor Front Row Motorsports has suffered any harm by racing as “open” entries. NASCAR also indicated in its 34-page response filed […]

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR argued in its latest court filing that Michael Jordan is suing the stock car series to earn a permanent charter that no other teams possess, and that neither 23XI Racing nor Front Row Motorsports has suffered any harm by racing as “open” entries.

NASCAR also indicated in its 34-page response filed late Monday that it has buyers interested in the six charters that have been set aside as a federal judge decides if the two teams can have them back for the remaining 11 races of this season. NASCAR is prepared to immediately begin the process of allocating the charters elsewhere.

These latest arguments are part of the ongoing federal antitrust lawsuit filed by 23XI and Front Row against NASCAR in a fight over charters, which are essentially franchise tags. Front Row, owned by entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, and 23XI, owned by basketball Hall of Famer Michael Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, were the only two organizations out of 15 not to sign extensions on new charter agreements.

All the teams were fighting to have the charters made permanent during more than two years of extension negotiations, but NASCAR refused and its final offer was simply through 2031. Front Row and 23XI won a temporary injunction to be recognized as chartered as the case heads toward a Dec. 1 trial date.

The injunction was eventually overturned, appealed by the teams and U.S. District Judge Kenneth Bell will hear arguments Aug. 28 on the matter. Front Row and 23XI, as “open” teams, do not receive the same financial percentages as chartered teams.

A rule book change in July after the chartered status was stripped from the two organizations ensured that the six cars aren’t in danger of not qualifying for a race; starting spots are guaranteed to the 36 chartered cars in every 40-car field.

“Mr. Jordan has said he wants to use the litigation to grant him a permanent Charter that no other team has,” NASCAR alleged.

Front Row and 23XI have maintained they will continue to race even if they must do so as open teams. NASCAR has argued that when the two organizations did not sign the extensions they lost all rights to charters and the sanctioning body should be free to move them.

“Plaintiffs’ theoretical inability to obtain Charters post-trial also does not justify NASCAR from selling or transferring Charters, because Plaintiffs do not have Charters now because of their own strategic choice,” NASCAR said in its filing. “Plaintiffs had multiple opportunities to acquire 2025 Charters, and they squandered them.”

NASCAR also argued that a court cannot order the private company into a partnership with teams it is not interested in doing business with. Another argument by NASCAR is that 23XI and Front Row have not been harmed by not being chartered because their drivers have not left the team and the rule change protects them from missing races; Tyler Reddick of 23XI has clauses in his contract that he can leave if his car is not chartered.

Additionally, NASCAR said it pays teams a higher percentage than even Formula 1 does and that its payout structure to teams proves it is not a monopoly because it was increased first by 28% in the 2016 charter agreement, and then by 62% in the 2025 agreement.

“NASCAR pays Teams more than even Formula 1 as a percentage of profit,” NASCAR said. “Plaintiffs ignore the pay raises the Teams received. Instead, they focus on a text during negotiations for the 2025 Charter that said an internal version of the May 2024 draft contained ‘zero wins’ for Teams.

“Plaintiffs ignore that the actual May 2024 draft proposed to Teams carried forward the biggest win for the Teams — a massive pay increase — that was set out in the December 2023 draft. It also gave Charter holders an opportunity to obtain any improved extension terms NASCAR offered to third parties and increased Teams’ ability to receive investor funding, among other benefits.”

FILE - Bob Jenkins, owner of Front Row Motorsports and Co-Owner Michael Jordan, of 23XI Racing, pose before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway, Oct. 6, 2024, in Talladega, Ala. (AP Photo/ Butch Dill, File)
FILE – Bob Jenkins, owner of Front Row Motorsports and Co-Owner Michael Jordan, of 23XI Racing, pose before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway, Oct. 6, 2024, in Talladega, Ala. (AP Photo/ Butch Dill, File)



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Denny Hamlin fires shot at NASCAR after court filing vs. 23XI, Front Row

NASCAR filed their response to the preliminary injunction requested by 23XI and Front Row Motorsports on Monday, ahead of the scheduled Aug. 28 hearing. Denny Hamlin believes we’re going to see some ulterior motives in short order. The 23XI Racing co-owner took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to throw some shade at NASCAR. Hamlin […]

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NASCAR filed their response to the preliminary injunction requested by 23XI and Front Row Motorsports on Monday, ahead of the scheduled Aug. 28 hearing. Denny Hamlin believes we’re going to see some ulterior motives in short order.

The 23XI Racing co-owner took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to throw some shade at NASCAR. Hamlin believes we might see NASCAR try to distract the general public from the lawsuit.

“This is where a schedule would come out to divert your attention,” Hamlin posted. Evidently, the 44-year-old believes NASCAR is going to try and control the narrative after their latest filing.

Alas, Jeff Gluck of The Athletic broke down NASCAR’s response, as the sport’s governing body opposes the team’s preliminary injunction requested on several fronts. Gluck stated that NASCAR believes there’s no irreparable harm to the teams because they’re running as Open cars, and no driver has left the team. Additionally, there’s been no danger of them failing to qualify for a race yet.

Moreover, NASCAR even took a bit of a shot at Hamlin’s business partner in NBA legend Michael Jordan. Per Gluck, they’re claiming that he “wants to use the litigation to grant him a permanent Charter that no other team has.”

Suffice to say, it doesn’t feel like both parties are on the same page, but that hasn’t hindered Hamlin or 23XI Racing in 2025. The veteran wheelman has four wins on the year, while 23XI’s Bubba Wallace was victorious at Indianapolis Motor Speedway earlier this summer.

One caveat is last season’s regular season champion in Tyler Reddick is without a win, but he’s come close. He’s still slated to make the playoffs at the moment, as long as he doesn’t have a disastrous result at Daytona International Speedway this coming weekend.

Regardless, Hamlin, Jordan and 23XI, along with FRM, are fighting for what they believe to be right. They haven’t backed down, and NASCAR hasn’t either. Which side wins out in court remains to be seen, but it’s certainly a bit of a seesaw battle at the moment.

The latest filing from NASCAR will cause a stir, as they make some pretty heavy accusations against Hamlin’s team. In response, the driver won’t stay quiet, and that’s a good thing for fans of the sport.

Time will tell what the final decision is, but Denny Hamlin, Michael Jordan, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports are trying to hold their ground. We’ll see if they’re successful in the end.





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NASCAR President Teases O’Reilly Catchphrase Incentive as Xfinity’s Viral Slogan Sets the Bar

The departure of Xfinity and arrival of O’Reilly Auto Parts marks a pivotal shift for NASCAR’s secondary series. After 11 years of partnership, fans are wondering if the beloved “Fast as Xfinity Internet” catchphrase will be replaced with something equally memorable. The NASCAR President hints that something special is brewing for 2026. Will O’Reilly Auto […]

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The departure of Xfinity and arrival of O’Reilly Auto Parts marks a pivotal shift for NASCAR’s secondary series. After 11 years of partnership, fans are wondering if the beloved “Fast as Xfinity Internet” catchphrase will be replaced with something equally memorable. The NASCAR President hints that something special is brewing for 2026.

Will O’Reilly Auto Parts Create a New Driver Catchphrase?

NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell made the formal announcement on August 18, revealing that O’Reilly Auto Parts will become the title sponsor of what will be known as the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series beginning January 1, 2026. This transition ends Xfinity’s remarkable 11-year run as title sponsor, a partnership that began in 2015.

When asked about potential catchphrase programs similar to Xfinity’s popular “Fast as Xfinity Internet” initiative, O’Donnell offered an intriguing response.

“It’s interesting — Xfinity did a great job with that and we’ve certainly passed that along to O’Reilly in terms of what we can do with the drivers and industry,” he explained. “So, not sure yet exactly how that will look and feel but certainly something to build on there.”

The Missouri-born automotive retailer brings impressive credentials to the partnership. Founded in Springfield, Missouri, in 1957, O’Reilly Auto Parts has grown from a single storefront into an industry powerhouse. Today, the company operates more than 6,400 locations across 48 states, Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Canada.

The operation is supported by 31 distribution centers and employs over 92,800 team members dedicated to top-tier customer service. O’Reilly Auto Parts becomes the fourth title sponsor in the series’ history, following Anheuser-Busch, Nationwide, and Xfinity.

The partnership extends beyond simple title sponsorship. Cross-promotional initiatives and brand integrations will collaborate with The CW Network, the exclusive broadcaster of the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

O’Reilly’s connection to NASCAR runs deeper than this new partnership might suggest. The brand has maintained a history of race sponsorship spanning multiple series across different years, making this title sponsorship a natural evolution of their motorsports involvement.

MORE: Fans Reject NASCAR’s New Xfinity Rebrand With Hilarious Reactions

O’Donnell emphasized the cultural alignment between the two organizations. “Like the great sport of NASCAR, O’Reilly Auto Parts was born in America and built on the hard work and drive of passionate people,” he said. “This new partnership allows us to continue to fuel that passion for the next generation of NASCAR’s stars and fans while celebrating the journey we’ve been on together for decades.”

With O’Reilly’s extensive retail network and NASCAR’s dedicated fanbase, the 2026 season could introduce innovative ways to connect drivers with supporters across the country.





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