Motorsports

Cadillac Makes Some Necessary Noise at the Miami Formula 1 Race

You can’t blame Cadillac for wanting to take center stage at the Miami Grand Prix last weekend: After all, it’s the first of three U.S. races on the Formula 1 schedule, and South Florida is a good place to make a big splash. Also, next time the F1 circus rolls into town, Cadillac won’t just […]

Published

1 month ago

May 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Also, next time the F1 circus rolls into town, Cadillac won’t just be an appealing sideshow—the brand will have a couple of cars on the track, taking its place as the eleventh team in F1, which will have a 22-car grid next year instead of the semi-traditional 20 (F1 requires that each team field two cars).

Saturday night, Cadillac hosted a red-carpet gala at a Miami steakhouse, an event Formula1.com called “dazzling”. The team unveiled its logo, which the same Formula1.com story called “striking,” which is what you might say when you are shown a photo of a friend’s less-than-cute baby. The black-and-white logo, a Cadillac crest above type that spells out “CADILLAC FORMULA 1 TEAM,” looks more like a placeholder for the real logo, but this is it:

Perhaps the only real news revealed in Miami was at a press conference with General Motors President Mark Reuss, a race fan who has actively supported the effort for the F1 team, who said the initiative will proceed despite a big potential hit for GM from the proposed federal tariffs: “You probably would have seen over the last few days, we did earnings in the early part of the week, and then we came back and did the earnings review and guidance, and so in that second one, there’s about $5 billion of impact for us. But it’s not going to affect this project.”

Indeed, it has been a long and very expensive road to F1, with the project announced in early 2022, long before Cadillac signed up. It began, as you will likely recall, with ex-driver and IndyCar team owner Michael Andretti’s goal of heading an F1 team, going so far as to hire the technical help in Europe, and building a car to test in the wind tunnel, to show how serious he was. He enlisted his father, Mario, one of only two American F1 champions (the other was Dan Gurney), and Cadillac came aboard to back the project.

Immediately, there were challenges, especially from the existing 10 teams, and it was understandable: Why cut the F1 prize-money pie 11 ways, instead of just 10? It cost Cadillac and the team a lot of money to warm the other teams up to their presence.

The powers behind F1 put one roadblock after another in front of Michael, and he dealt with a series of setbacks. Until he couldn’t. The message from F1 was clear: We want Cadillac, but we don’t want you. It did not help when, during the negotiations, Michael said F1’s resistance was “all about greed,” a comment he apologized for in a subsequent interview with Hagerty. Many casual fans in America were amazed to learn that F1 is not a democracy: After all, when new teams want to join NASCAR, IndyCar, IMSA or the NHRA, aren’t their checkbooks welcomed with open arms?

So Michael exited the project and has scarcely been heard from since; he’s apparently “enjoying retirement.” With Andretti Global out, affiliate partner TWG Global took control, headed by two billionaires: Guggenheim Partners CEO Mark Walter and businessman/film producer Thomas Tull. Dan Towriss, who had been a minority partner with Andretti, became CEO of Cadillac F1.

AUTO-PRIX-F1-USA-QUALIFYING — Shawn Threw/AFP/Getty Images

The team cut a deal with Ferrari to supply the powertrain, or “power unit and gearbox,” as Ferrari said it in the announcement of the multi-year deal. Besides Ferrari’s own team, Ferrari engines power Haas, the other U.S.-based F1 team, as well as Sauber, but that team will switch to Audi engines in 2026. Cadillac says it will have its own engines ready for 2029.

Ferrari is no longer quite at the sharp end of the stick with its team and engines. Ferrari’s own team has finished a best of third and a low of 10th in the six races it has contested this season—or five, actually, since both cars were disqualified for too-low weight (Charles Leclerc) and excessive wear on the rear skid block (Lewis Hamilton) in China. Still, Cadillac could do worse than have Ferrari as a partner.

So ostensibly everything is in place for Cadillac to join F1 beginning with the first race in 2026, presumably at the site of 2025’s opener, Melbourne, Australia, which was held March 26. It hasn’t been formally announced, but most likely the 2026 season will begin there on March 22. Cadillac and TWG insist that everything’s in place, though it was announced in Miami that the team has hired about 350 or 400 employees so far, with an ultimate target of about 1000.

F1 Grand Prix of Brazil hamilton leclerc sainz — 2023: Valtteri Bottas (L) of Finland and Alfa Romeo F1, Logan Sargeant, Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz look on in the Drivers Press Conference during previews ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Brazil.Clive Mason/Getty Images

One critical detail that hasn’t been decided is the drivers. Cadillac definitely needs a veteran who knows what a proper F1 car feels like, and knows the tracks F1 races on—that is a big requirement, since there are 24 of them. Odds are on Sergio Perez, from Mexico, who drove for Red Bull and has six F1 wins, and Valtteri Bottas, from Finland, who drove for Mercedes and has 10 wins. Both drivers are 35. Presently, Perez seems to be the favorite—he can likely bring his own sponsorship money, and he has massive support from Mexican fans. Some of those fans were vocal in Miami, standing outside the exclusive Cadillac event and shouting Perez’s nickname: “Checo, Checo, Checo!”

Since age 35 is nearing the sell-by date for F1, the other Cadillac driver is expected to be younger. IndyCar racer Colton Herta, who drives for Andretti, has repeatedly been mentioned as a candidate, but that seems less and less likely. As much as Cadillac would like an American racer, the cupboard is relatively bare.

Sergio "Checo" Perez — Sergio “Checo” PerezF1/Getty Images

They could bring on a young driver with some F1 experience who isn’t an American, but also hire a very young American, such as Zak Crawford, 20, to be, say, a reserve driver. Crawford raced karts here in the U.S., but began racing in Europe at age 9. He’s raced in multiple European formula car series, and currently has a developmental-driver contract with Aston Martin.

That’s a central problem with hiring a proper American F1 driver: To truly get noticed on an international stage, it’s almost mandatory that drivers must race in Europe, which often means that American drivers are virtual unknowns in their home country, such as Florida’s Logan Sargeant, who raced in F1 for Williams in 2023 and the first half of 2024. Cadillac could end up with a foreign driver who nonetheless has a large footprint in the U.S., like IndyCar champ Alex Palou of Spain.

There are still employees of Cadillac who remember the embarrassing attempt in 2000 when the manufacturer engineered a largely unprepared return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the world’s premiere sports car endurance race. The effort was announced at the 1999 running of Le Mans, which I attended with Mercedes. I took a friend, who was a Cadillac executive, into Mercedes’ garage, and watched his eyeballs get big at the team’s opulent presence; the garage floors had actually been carpeted. “Do you think Cadillac is prepared to make this sort of investment?” I asked him. He didn’t answer.

Cadillac Northstar LMP 2000 Le Mans racing action — Flickr/Martin Lee

In 2000, all three of their Northstar LMP cars ran into trouble, with the lone survivor finishing 29 laps behind. In 2001, the three Cadillacs finished 19th, 21st and 22nd. Down to two cars in 2021, one crashed, the other finished 15th. In 2002, they finished ninth and 12th, which was better, but at the end of that year, Cadillac gave up and cancelled the program. They had gone up against the best sports car teams in the world, and had fallen short.

Today, though, this is a different Cadillac. The brand’s current return to the top class at Le Mans has been much more measured and carefully developed, and its teams have proven that they belong, and should be a factor in the race next month. And Cadillac itself, with such world-class vehicles as the remarkable Celestiq and Lyriq, has again cemented the brand’s place as one of the best premium brands, anywhere. Cadillac does not want to be embarrassed next March when they dive into Formula 1, but they—and their fans, and especially their critics—must be patient. In this modern era, nobody’s initial F1 race will put them on the top step of the podium.

It appears that Cadillac is doing everything right, though we’ll withhold final judgment until we see the driver lineup. But more importantly, we will finally have a true home team to cheer for, and hopefully someday the company can make news at the Miami Grand Prix with more than dazzling parties and striking logos.

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Motorsports

NASCAR hopes for Cup Series race in Brazil, but unsure of timeline

Published

4 minutes ago

June 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

NASCAR Commissioner Steve Phelps said he doesn’t “know when we’ll get to Brazil” for a Cup Series race, but added that he would “like to see it happen” as NASCAR prepares for its race in Mexico City, according to Erick Gabriel of MOTORSPORT. Phelps, who came to Brazil during the NASCAR Brazil round at Interlagos, said, “Obviously, we need all parties to come together and understand how important that would be for NASCAR in general and for the category.” There were “previously talks to get ‘The Clash’ to Brazil, but those talks never advanced” and the race will remain at Bowman Gray Stadium for 2026. NASCAR VP & Chief International Officer Chad Seigler said, “I personally think we are exceeding expectations of where we thought we would be.” Seigler: “You could hear this week the excitement when overtaking was done. You can see that the fans are getting used to our style of racing.” On June 15, for the first time in the “modern era of the Cup Series,” a points race will take place “outside the borders of the United States as they head to Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City” (MOTORSPORT, 6/5).

NEW ON PRIME: In Daytona Beach, Ken Willis wrote NASCAR’s partnership with Amazon’s Prime Video involves “just five midseason races” within a 36-race season, but it has “thrown a definite monkey wrench into the clutch assembly.” The reviews of Prime’s coverage “are solid to great, and the reviewers aren’t wrong.” The product is “really good.” Willis: “Struggling with the labyrinth of streaming TV offerings isn’t a made-up malady. It’s a real thing, and quite maddening for folks who are already being nickel-and-dimed to death by phone and cable companies selling us air at ever-increasing prices.” Viewership numbers are OK through two weeks of NASCAR on Prime.” Prime is “averaging between” 2-3 million viewers per race, which is “right in line” with races on Fox’s cable arm, FS1. If the numbers were “in the ditch, meetings would be held.” Most important is “future potential,” and the parties are “betting that Prime offers the opportunity to attract new viewers and fans that might not otherwise pay attention” (Daytona Beach NEWS-JOURNAL, 6/5).

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Motorsports

NASCAR Sets Sight On International Drivers as Commissioner Speaks Out On Expansion

NASCAR Commissioner Steve Phelps has spoken about his hopes of attracting Brazilian drivers to the sport with the possibility of the country hosting a race in the future. As one of NASCAR’s four international series alongside Canada, Mexico, and the Euro Series, Brazil has hosted the NASCAR Brasil Series since 2012, and Phelps is keen […]

Published

27 minutes ago

June 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

NASCAR Commissioner Steve Phelps has spoken about his hopes of attracting Brazilian drivers to the sport with the possibility of the country hosting a race in the future.

As one of NASCAR’s four international series alongside Canada, Mexico, and the Euro Series, Brazil has hosted the NASCAR Brasil Series since 2012, and Phelps is keen to see some of the drivers from the series join either the Craftsman Truck, Xfinity, or Cup Series.

During an interview with Motorsport.com, Phelps explained:

“We have a driver who is from Mexico, Daniel Suarez, and that’s a great victory for us. Not through our driver development program, [but] we also have Shane Van Gisbergen from New Zealand [who] used to race in Australia.

Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, and Erik Jones, driver of the #43 Dollar Tree Toyota, race during the NASCAR Cup Series Cracker Barrel 400 at Nashville Superspeedway on June 01, 2025…

James Gilbert/Getty Images

“We’d like to have drivers from all over the world coming to race with us, in our three national categories, but in particular in our main category, like what Daniel and SVG are doing.”

He added:

“We’d like to have a Brazilian come out of NASCAR Brazil, come and race with us full-time, and, you know, compete for wins and championships. So we’re excited about this prospect, I was very impressed with the number of drivers I saw and how fast they were and their abilities, and we’re excited about this happening in the future.”

Phelps was promoted to the newly formed role of NASCAR Commissioner in March. He commented at the time of the announcement:

“I’m honored to take this next step in helping to guide NASCAR, the sport I’ve loved since my father took me to my first race at 5 years old, continue to grow and welcome new fans, competitors and partners that together create some of the most extraordinary moments in sports.

“I cannot thank the France family enough for their unwavering commitment to our fans, their steady leadership, and most importantly, their stewardship of stock-car racing since its inception nearly eight decades ago. This sport is truly one of the great American business stories and I’m privileged to continue as part of that legacy – and especially its bright future.

“We are thrilled to name Steve Phelps as NASCAR’s first Commissioner. His leadership, professionalism and well-earned respect from across the sports industry speak to his unique value for the sport,” said NASCAR Chairman & CEO Jim France added.

“With more than 50 years of expertise between them, both Steve Phelps and Steve O’Donnell bring tremendous expertise, stability and a commitment to the bold racing innovations that will continue to serve fans, teams and stakeholders for many years to come.”

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Motorsports

TNT Sports & Max Announce NASCAR Driver Cam “Featured Multiview” Selections for FireKeepers Casino 400 on Sunday, June 8 – Speedway Digest

TNT Sports and Max today announced the driver selections for NASCAR Driver Cam’s Featured Multiview during this Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 from Michigan International Speedway, with streaming coverage beginning approximately 30 minutes before the green flag: Brad Keselowski, with a top 15 finish at Circuit of the Americas this season (March 2). Joey Logano, looking […]

Published

1 hour ago

June 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

TNT Sports and Max today announced the driver selections for NASCAR Driver Cam’s Featured Multiview during this Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 from Michigan International Speedway, with streaming coverage beginning approximately 30 minutes before the green flag:

Brad Keselowski, with a top 15 finish at Circuit of the Americas this season (March 2).
Joey Logano, looking for another strong finish to follow his May 4^th win at Texas Motor Speedway.
Bubba Wallace, currently 12th in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series standings, with a couple top 10 finishes at Martinsville Speedway (March 30) and Talladega Superspeedway (April 27) this season.
Ty Gibbs, looking to gain momentum following his two top 10 finishes in April at Briston Motor Speedway and Darlington Raceway.

B/R Racing’s X and Instagram platforms will also host four head-to-head polls through this Friday featuring eight additional drivers for fans to vote on which four will be featured on a special “Fan Selected” Multiview stream on Max.

Individual Driver Cams will also be available for all drivers in the NASCAR All-Star Open earlier in the evening on Sunday.

The NASCAR Driver Cam experience — exclusive to Max — offers motorsports fans the ultimate all-access pass to every driver for every race throughout the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series schedule, including a layered audio mix of scanner team radios and ambient car noise, all synced up with a 1080p Driver Cam feed (on supported devices). 

Fans will be able to choose between the up to 40 individual Driver Cams or the two pre-set Multiview stream options featuring four drivers each. Each individual driver stream features integrated live stats— stage, lap number, position and race status — along with telemetry data including speed, RPM, gear, and more. Users can pause, rewind and fast forward as well, and a replay of each individual driver stream will be available following each race.

The NASCAR Driver Cams and Multiviews are available to stream within Sports on Max. Users can find all NASCAR Driver Cam on Max live content on the upcoming schedule at https://play.max.com/live-sports-schedule.

TNT/WB PR

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Motorsports

NASCAR Michigan qualifying live results: Cup Series starting lineup

The NASCAR Cup Series’ only race weekend at Michigan this year begins June 7 with practice and qualifying for the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Ryan Blaney is coming off his first win of the 2025 season with the June 1 win at Nashville Superspeedway. Tyler Reddick is the defending winner of the […]

Published

2 hours ago

June 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

The NASCAR Cup Series’ only race weekend at Michigan this year begins June 7 with practice and qualifying for the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway.

Ryan Blaney is coming off his first win of the 2025 season with the June 1 win at Nashville Superspeedway. Tyler Reddick is the defending winner of the Michigan race, but has not yet won in 2025.

The Michigan race is the first of three to set the field for the NASCAR in-season tournament.

Follow the practice and qualifying sessions for the NASCAR Michigan race with our live updates.

NASCAR Cup Series Michigan qualifying live results, updates

On track action begins at 8:30 a.m. CT from Michigan International Speedway.

NASCAR Michigan entry list for FireKeepers Casino 400

Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Brad Keselowski, No. 6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford
Justin Haley, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Chris Buescher, No. 17 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford
Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota
Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Ford
John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 HYAK Motorsports Chevrolet
Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford
Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford
Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

What channel is qualifying on today for the NASCAR Cup race at Michigan?

Qualifying time: 9:40 a.m. CT Saturday (Practice begins at 8:30 a.m. CT)
TV: Amazon Prime Video (streaming) (Watch Amazon Prime with a free trial) | Radio: SiriusXM and MRN
Streaming: Amazon Prime Video; NASCAR.com and SiriusXM for audio (subscription required)
Track: Michigan International Speedway (2-mile oval) in Brooklyn, Michigan

NASCAR Michigan news, stories

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Motorsports

NASCAR Is Coming to Michigan International Speedway This Weekend

Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, MI — June 6, 2025 Race fans, Friday, June 6th through Sunday, June 8th, NASCAR makes its annual stop at Michigan International Speedway. It’s a “Home Game (Race)” for us locals. Let’s start with some important announcements. Speedway Traffic Updates Michigan International Speedway worked closely with Michigan State Police and a […]

Published

3 hours ago

June 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, MI — June 6, 2025

Race fans, Friday, June 6th through Sunday, June 8th, NASCAR makes its annual stop at Michigan International Speedway. It’s a “Home Game (Race)” for us locals. Let’s start with some important announcements.

Speedway Traffic Updates

Michigan International Speedway worked closely with Michigan State Police and a logistics company to update the traffic patterns and parking lots to ensure that your trip in and out of the facility is as quick as possible on Sunday, June 8th. These changes include opening additional parking lots (Yellow Lot 8 & 9) and directing traffic into specific parking lots depending on the direction you arrive at the property.

Be sure to review the Traffic Maps and detailed directions on the Speedway’s website so you approach the track and park in your preferred parking lot. If there is a specific parking lot you typically park in, you may need to change the route you typically use. All parking will be one direction inbound and one direction outbound.

Patterns may change due to traffic situations and capacity of parking lots.

Day parking on Michigan International Speedway property is FREE to Speedway guests! Please follow the parking attendant’s directions. A one-way traffic pattern will be implemented if deemed necessary on Sunday.

Busch Light Summer Music Series Concert News

Michigan International Speedway announced today that award-winning country singer and songwriter Ashley Cooke is stepping in to headline the Busch Light Summer Music Series performance prior to Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 NASCAR Cup Series race.

Cooke replaces Nate Smith during pre-race festivities after he announced Wednesday afternoon that he’s going on strict vocal rest through the rest of June, thereby canceling his performances for the month.

“It means a lot that Ashley is stepping up to the plate to perform for our passionate fans before our NASCAR Cup Series stars hit the track,” said Joe Fowler, Michigan International Speedway President. “Ashley is one of the most exciting rising stars in country music and her show will have everyone singing along before the race on Sunday. We also wish Nate the best in his recovery and hope to see him out at the track soon.”

Since her debut album shot in the dark earned her critical acclaim, Cooke has been recognized as MusicRow’s Discovery Artist of the Year and Next Big Thing, Billboard’s Rookie of the Month and iHeartCountry’s On The Verge Artist.

Cooke won her first CMT Award for Breakthrough Female Video of the Year at the 2024 CMT Awards before being nominated for ACM New Female Artist of the Year, and is currently up for Best New Country Artist at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards.

In 2024, Cooke earned her first No.1 at Country radio with her single, “your place,” making her one of the only women to reach the top of the charts that year. With national TV appearances on NBC’s TODAY and ABC’s The Bachelorette, as well as tours with Luke Bryan, Cole Swindell and Jordan Davis under her belt, Cooke is ready to take 2025 by storm. Cooke started her year headlining her “your place Tour,” before hitting the road with Cody Johnson in Australia and Kane Brown throughout the US. She’ll be Performing at festivals all summer long, before heading out on the road with Parker McCollum and Lee Brice in the fall.”

“We enjoyed collaborating with Ashley Cooke last year to surprise our fans in Nashville through the ‘Busch on Broadway’ pop-up series, right after her big CMT award win,” said Krystyn Stowe, Head of Marketing, Busch Family & Natural Family at Anheuser-Busch. “With the second show of our Summer Music Series coming up this weekend, we know she will give our fans in Michigan a pre-race experience they won’t forget.”

The inaugural Busch Light Summer Music Series consists of five full-length concerts at NASCAR races throughout the country. The series is an exciting new fan experience born from the renewed partnership with NASCAR’S Official Beer Sponsor.

Since the 1990s, the Anheuser-Busch family of brands has created countless opportunities for 21+ NASCAR fans to get closer to the sport they love. The first performance in the series took place earlier this spring, with ERNEST taking the stage at Texas Motor Speedway. After Michigan, the series moves to Chicago Street Race (Zac Brown Band – July 5), Iowa Speedway (Corey Kent – Aug. 3) and will conclude in Busch Light’s hometown of St. Louis at World Wide Technology Raceway (Sept. 7). Artists and details on the final concert will be announced at a later date.

Race Schedule and News

The June race weekend at Michigan International Speedway begins with the ARCA Menards Series Henry Ford Health 200 on Friday, June 6, followed by the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Powered by Precision Vehicle Logistics on Saturday, June 7. The NASCAR Cup Series will cap off the weekend’s action with the FireKeepers Casino 400 on Sunday, June 8.

Tickets are available for purchase via phone at 888-905-7223 or online at mispeedway.com.

Fans can view the full 2025 NASCAR Cup Series schedule and purchase tickets at nascar.com/tickets, and can stay connected to Michigan International Speedway on Facebook, Instagram and X.

The FireKeepers Casino 400 will be streamed live on Amazon Prime, Sunday, June 8 beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The 15th of 36 points-paying races on the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series calendar will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Beginning this weekend at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn and continuing through the Mexico City and Pocono races, the top 32 drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series point standings will race for seeding in the $1 million, five-race, in-season tournament that begins June 28 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Seeding will be based on the best finish in the upcoming three races, with tiebreakers determined by the next-best finish, followed by the season points position.

The 32 seeds will race head-to-head in a knockout-style format beginning at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The field will be narrowed to 16 after Atlanta, eight after the July 6 Chicago Street Race, four after the July 13 road course race at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway and two after the July 20 race at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway.

The remaining two drivers will battle for the in-season title and the $1 million prize on July 27 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Trackhouse drivers Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez are part of the 32 drivers in the tournament.

Amazon’s Prime Video will broadcast all three upcoming seeding races before TNT Sports, and Max will broadcast the five in-season tournament races.

HOMETOWN HERO: Jones is returning to his home track of Michigan for Sunday’s Firekeepers Casino 400. The Michigan native grew up just 73 miles north of the track in the small town of Byron, where he started his racing career at a young age before transitioning to stock cars at age 13. He quickly moved up the ranks in NASCAR but never forgot his Michigan roots along the way. He is one of only three Michigan natives racing in the Cup Series fulltime along with Brad Keselowski and Carson Hocevar.

ERIK JONES QUOTE: “I always look forward to Michigan. Obviously, it’s a home race for me and my home track. It’s a lot of fun to get up there and be with family and friends. I typically get there earlier in the week to go spend more time with them and get to see them before the busy weekend. It’s always exciting and a lot of fun. The race itself – I just really enjoy the track. It’s come into its own here as it’s aged and widened out. Racing there with this NextGen car has been good. I’m looking forward to it. This one is high on my bucket list of tracks to win at one day. I just look forward for the chance to be out there every year.”

Ryan Blaney: Blaney heads to Michigan coming off his first win in 2025 at Nashville Superspeedway. The 2023 Cup Series champion has secured a playoff spot and looks to ride the momentum into the Irish Hills this weekend. Blaney was last victorious at Michigan in 2021.

Christopher Bell: Bell has remained a strong force throughout the first half of the 2025 season. Bell has three wins and currently sits third in points standings. He looks to earn his first career victory at Michigan this weekend.

Carson Hocevar: Carson returns to his native state after a strong 2nd place finish in Nashville. Sitting 17th in the points standings, he looks to head to victory lane in front of a home crowd and lock himself into the playoffs.

Brad Keselowski: Brad has been chasing a win in the Cup Series at Michigan his entire career. Keselowski returns home looking to add to Ford’s dominance in the Cup Series at MIS as the OEM has won 9 of the last 10 races at MIS. Keselowski has just one top five finish this year and looks to strike gold at MIS.

Chase Elliott: The fan favorite is still searching for his first win in 2025 and sits 5th in the points standings. Elliott has 7 top 10 finishes and 3 top five finishes while leading 76 laps this season. Elliott also has never won at Michigan and is hungry to visit Victory Lane as his last win came at Texas Motor Speedway in 2024.

Tyler Reddick: Reddickreturns to Michigan as the defending champion of the FireKeepers Casino 400. Reddick is winless in 2025 but sits 6th in points standings currently.

The Heritage Trophy

Since Michigan International Speedway began handing out the Heritage Trophy to the winning manufacturer in August 2013, Ford has taken it back to World Headquarters in nearby Dearborn more times than any other manufacturer. Ford has won 11 races since the trophy came into existence while Chevrolet has won six and Toyota two. Joey Logano’s win in the Pure Michigan 400 on Aug. 18, 2013 was his first win with Ford and new car owner Roger Penske, but it also marked the first time the trophy was awarded. Logano, who won the pole and led a race-high 51 laps, passed Mark Martin for the lead with four laps to go after Martin’s car ran out of gas.

Ryan Blaney’s victory on Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway means that all three Team Penske drivers have a win this season. Blaney followed Austin Cindric (Talladega) and Joey Logano (Texas) in clinching a playoff berth, and it continues an impressive record for the organization. Since Team Penske went to three NASCAR Cup Series cars in 2018, it has seen each team win at least one race in the same season six times. Overall, Team Penske has won 104 races with Ford and the current lineup of Blaney, Cindric and Logano have combined for 51 of those.

JOEY LOGANO QUOTE: IS MORE EMPHASIS PUT ON THE RACE AT MICHIGAN? “No more emphasis than any other race. We try to win them all. It’s not like we say, ‘Ah, this one doesn’t matter. We’ll just coast this one through.’ That’s not who we are. We don’t do that because every race matters, especially with the playoff format we have. Every win, every playoff point that you can get can be the difference at the end of the day, so we don’t really put more into any of them. I will say though that the manufacturers take pride in that trophy that they hand out there to the winning manufacturer, so it’s always a topic of discussion. We go up there early more times than not and go visit Ford headquarters and it’s a topic that comes up. They want that trophy in their main lobby, so when people walk in they can walk by it.”

The Lasco Press will be live all weekend at the track, follow Sports Editor Steve Sweitzer on Facebook, and look for his Cup Series Race Report of the FireKeepers Casino 400 on Sunday evening after the race. Only at thelascopress.com.

If you see us at the track, be sure and say hi, we will capture your picture.

NASCAR Fan at Michigan International Speedway / Lasco Press Photo

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Driver nicknamed ‘Butterbean’ wins Friday Michigan NASCAR race, climbs fence

BROOKLYN, MI – A racer known for celebrating his wins at Waffle House was victorious Friday, June 6, at Michigan International Speedway – in a state with zero Waffle Houses. Brenden “Butterbean” Queen held off a hard-charging Corey Heim in the closing laps of the ARCA Series race at MIS to win by 0.3 seconds. […]

Published

3 hours ago

June 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

BROOKLYN, MI – A racer known for celebrating his wins at Waffle House was victorious Friday, June 6, at Michigan International Speedway – in a state with zero Waffle Houses.

Brenden “Butterbean” Queen held off a hard-charging Corey Heim in the closing laps of the ARCA Series race at MIS to win by 0.3 seconds.

Brenden Queen (28) celebrates after the ARCA Menards Series Henry Ford Health 200 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn on Friday, June 6, 2025. Ayrton Breckenridge | MLive.com

Queen, 27, pumped up the fans in the grandstands during his TV interview.

“It’s Bean Nation time tonight, boys!” Queen said. “It’s insane. I mean, I think I’ve got to climb the fence before I’m done.”

Queen was true to his word. He scaled the fence in front of cheering fans just after his interview.

The mullet-donning driver brings an energy to the series – living up to the hype of his “Butterbean” nickname. His family gave him the nickname as a baby, as they thought he looked a bit like professional boxer Eric “Butterbean” Esch.

This is Queen’s third career ARCA Series win, all coming in 2025. After the first two, he took his team and the trophy to Waffle House to celebrate.

“It’s been a thing I’ve done since I was late model racing … we’d just always take the trophy to Waffle House. It was the only thing open (that late),” Queen said. “We try to enjoy the night, reflect on it and then get ready for the next one.”

While Michigan doesn’t have a Waffle House, Queen has a plane to catch tonight, anyway, to get back to North Carolina.

It’s yet-to-be-determined if he’ll end up at one before the night ends. Queen was asked what his favorite thing is at Waffle House after he finished speaking with the media.

“Chocolate milk! We’re going to go get a chocolate milk,” Queen said.

How he got there

Queen took the lead with 23 laps to go on the final restart. While side by side with Gio Ruggiero, the pair slapped doors entering Turn 3, and Queen cleared him for the lead off Turn 4.

Second-place Heim, who has four Truck Series wins this year and is the favorite for Saturday’s race, wasn’t even supposed to be racing Friday. He was a substitute driver for Jake Finch, getting the call just hours before the race, since Finch had a viral infection.

Morgen Baird, who grew up in nearby Grass Lake, was the top finishing Michigander on Friday, with a 13th-place result. Baird will also race in Saturday’s Craftsman Truck Series race, which starts at noon on Fox.

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