TV Viewers for this past weekend, where NASCAR raced on the Monster Mile in Dover, Delaware, and IndyCar raced around Exhibition Place in Toronto, Canada.

NASCAR

TNT plus TruTV got 2.009 million viewers for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race in Dover, Delaware, down 16.3% from 2.401 million last year when the race was held in April on FS1.

The finish of the race was rain delayed for nearly an hour toward the end.

Viewership dropped 27% during the delay with 13 laps to go.

IndyCar

Fox TV got 734,000 TV viewers for Sunday’s NTT IndyCar Series race at Toronto, up 45.6% from 504,000 the last time it aired on linear TV in 2019 on the loser channel NBCSN. Anything under 1 million viewers is considered horrible for linear TV.

It was down 35% from the 1.129 million viewers watching in 2012 on the last real network, ABC.

Denny Hamlin celebrates in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover Motor Speedway on Sunday in Dover, Del. (AP photo)

DOVER, Del. — Denny Hamlin has stood his ground that wins — enough of them to soon earn his place inside NASCAR’s career top-10 list — matter more to his legacy than a championship.

Easy to say, of course, with 58 race victories to zero titles.

The 44-year-old Hamlin, still driving the No. 11 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing as he’s done since his rookie season in 2006, is motivated to reach the top 10 this season over the final 15 races of the Cup season. Kevin Harvick is 10th on the career list with 60 and Kyle Busch, still active with Richard Childress Racing, is ninth with 63, giving Hamlin realistic numbers to shoot for the rest of the season.

Best to take advantage at tracks where he’s had success, such as Dover Motor Speedway, where he won Sunday for the second straight year and third time overall, compared with a track like this weekend’s race on the Indianapolis oval, where Hamlin is 0 for 16.

“I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to go back to back so bad,” Hamlin said of Dover. “(Indy’s) a track that I’ve just come so fricking close to winning. I just want to cross off all the major racetracks on our schedule.”

Hamlin is a driver who thrives in the chaos like few others — if any can — in the series. His win at Dover came days after the race team he owns with Michael Jordan suffered a setback in its court fight with NASCAR. He insisted ahead of the race that the legal issues never caused a distraction for him in the race car, then proved it on the mile concrete track with a series-best fourth win of the season.

Maybe more dark clouds — like the ones that opened up Sunday, causing a rain delay just laps ahead of the scheduled finish — can fuel Hamlin at Indy.

“All I can hope is that something happens this week that derails everything and then I’ll do better,” Hamlin said.

Hamlin then turned to a NASCAR employee and cracked, “Maybe it’ll come from them.”

Can Hamlin realistically get to 60 in 2025? He won eight times in 2010, six times in 2019 and seven in 2020, all totals that would get him to 60 this year.

“When you get him in a situation where he’s got the ball in his hands and it’s time to go win the race, he finds a way to do that most times,” crew chief Chris Gayle said.

It’s a fitting analogy for a race team owned by a former NFL coach.

At his pace, Hamlin remains a contender to cash in this November at Phoenix Raceway and win his first NASCAR championship — even if he lost out on the $1 million prize in the series’ first In-season challenge.

$1 million is on the line

The idea for the challenge was largely championed by Hamlin, a three-time Daytona 500 winner who floated the idea of a midseason tournament on his “Actions Detrimental” podcast. When NASCAR bought into the idea and announced the creation of the tournament last year, Hamlin called the tournament on social media “such a win for our sport and drivers.” He jokingly added, “I will collect my 1M royalty next season.”

Hamlin earned the No. 1 seed — and was promptly eliminated in the first race by Ty Dillon, the No. 32 seed.

Dillon faces Ty Gibbs next week at Indianapolis to decide the first winner of the tournament.

Was the In-season challenge a success?

Hamlin said the five-race, bracket-style tournament overall was a success — but not without a few kinks. Some of the seeding was off, such as Shane van Gisbergen not qualifying for the field, then ripping off consecutive wins on the Chicago street race and Sonoma Raceway during the tournament races.

And sure, everyone loves a Cinderella in March. But two in July isn’t necessarily making the tournament the NASCAR story of the summer.

“I think it has been unfortunate, right, you probably had a lot of the top seeds get knocked out pretty early in it, but overall, I thought the implementation of it has been good,” Hamlin said.

___

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

CLUB MINUTES:

JJ KISSES THE BRICKS: LEGACY MOTOR CLUB co-owner and seven-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion Jimmie Johnson knows what it’s like to kiss the yard of bricks at the Crown Jewel race of the Brickyard 400. Johnson has a total of 19 Cup Series starts at the 2.5-mile oval resulting in four victories, six top-fives, and seven top-10s with 306 laps led. He earned his first win at Indianapolis in August 2006 where he bested LEGACY MC competition advisor and runner-up Kenseth as the race ended under caution. He followed that up with back-to-back victories in July 2008 with a .332 of a second margin of victory over Carl Edwards and July 2009 with a .400 of a second margin of victory over Mark Martin. His final victory at Indianapolis came in July 2012 where he started sixth and bested runner-up Kyle Busch by 4.758 seconds after leading 99 laps.

JJ IN INDYCAR AT INDY: Johnson has not only experienced the iconic Brickyard in the NASCAR Cup Series, but also in the INDYCAR Series for the Indianapolis 500 which is raced on the same weekend as the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. He qualified on the fourth row for the May 2022 Indianapolis 500 where he ended up earning a 28th-place finish after contact on lap 193 ended his day early. Johnson did return to Indianapolis in 2024 and 2025 for their broadcast though. In 2024, he contributed to NBC’s pre-race and race coverage for the 108th Running of the Indianapolis 500. Earlier this year, he flew up to Indianapolis to participate in Tom Brady’s Fastest Seat in Sports – aka the G.O.A.T. RIDE – where Johnson and Brady led the field to green in a two-seat INDYCAR prior to Johnson flying back to Charlotte to race in the Coca-Cola 600 that evening.

KENSETH AT INDY: LEGACY MC competition advisor Matt Kenseth has a total of 20 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Indianapolis in his career. He earned a total of 10 top-fives and 13 top-10s while leading 77 laps. Besides his second-place finish to Johnson in August 2006, he earned the runner-up spot in three other Brickyard 400 races. In August 2003, Kenseth finished 2.758 seconds behind Kevin Harvick. He finished second again in the July 2016 race 2.126 seconds behind Kyle Busch. Finally in July 2020, he finished .743 of a second behind Harvick once again.

CROWN JEWEL NUMBER SHADOWING: LEGACY MC’s Number Shadowing program will be back this weekend at Indianapolis for the Crown Jewel race of the Brickyard 400. As part of the program that was announced prior to the 2025 NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway, the shadows of Richard Petty’s Parts Blue on the No. 43 Toyota Camry XSE and Lee Petty’s red on the No. 42 Toyota Camry XSE will be on the door for NASCAR’s select Crown Jewel races – which will include the Brickyard 400, the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, and the Southern 500 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

ULTIMATE CANINE: After Friday’s NASCAR Cup Series practice at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LEGACY MC drivers Erik Jones and John Hunter Nemechek will road trip up to the Ultimate Canine Training Facility in Westfield, IN to interact with a group of graduating K9 officers and partake in a friendly competition. Ultimate Canine is an award-winning training facility just an hour north of the track founded by Julie Case. She has been training dogs for over 27 years. Jones will bring his four-legged companion Oscar to the activity to run him through some training exercises alongside the graduating K9 officers.

DOLLAR TREE VENDOR SPOTLIGHT: Dollar Tree will serve as the primary partner on the No. 43 Toyota Camry XSE, driven by Erik Jones, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The bold green and white Dollar Tree scheme will hit the track alongside support from vendor partner Jack Links, showcasing a strong collaboration for the race weekend across LEGACY MC’s social platforms.

NEVER SETTLE: Join ESPN’s Marty Smith and LEGACY MOTOR CLUB’s co-owner Jimmie Johnson for their weekly podcast, “Never Settle”. The podcast airs live on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Ch. 90 at 2 p.m. ET every Wednesday and can be downloaded wherever fans source their podcasts. This week’s guest is Carolina Hurricanes head coach and 2006 Stanley Cup Champion pick Rod Brind’Amour.
JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
NO. 42 PYE-BARKER FIRE & SAFETY TOYOTA CAMRY XSE

JHN AT INDY: John Hunter Nemechek has two starts at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the NASCAR Cup Series, one in 2020 where he finished 15th, and one in 2024 where he was running in the front half of the pack all day and led 16 laps before ultimately finishing 29th due to a late-race wreck. In the NASCAR Xfinity Series, he has also made two starts at the track in 2018 and 2019, where he finished 25th and 31st, respectively.

T-MACK INDIANAPOLIS STATS: Sunday’s race will be Crew Chief Travis Mack’s second NASCAR Cup Series race at the Brickyard. His first outing was in 2024 with AJ Allmendinger, who earned a 30th-place finish after a crash in the middle of Stage 2. In the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Mack has two starts with Michael Annett, where he finished 31st in 2018 and 12th in 2019.

JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK QUOTE:
“We had a really good run going in Indy last year. Ended poorly, result-wise, but led some laps. We had a really fast car though, so I’m looking forward to going back there. We have a long practice session this weekend, so we get to try some things. This has been a race that has been circled on our calendar all year. Hopefully we have a shot to win. If we don’t have a shot to win, we want to make the best day out of it that we possibly can and have a solid result in our No. 42 Pye-Barker Toyota Camry XSE.”

TRAVIS MACK QUOTE:
“I feel good about Indy. It’s going to come down to qualifying and pit strategy. John Hunter led laps here last year, and I feel like we’ve made lots of improvements since then. I look at this as one of our top races that we could clinch our way into the playoffs.”
(Graphic Credit: LEGACY MOTOR CLUB)
ERIK JONES
NO. 43 DOLLAR TREE TOYOTA CAMRY XSE

JONES INDIANAPOLIS STATS: Sunday’s Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway will mark Jones’ sixth NASCAR Cup Series start at the iconic, 2.5-mile oval. In his five prior starts, Jones earned a best finish of second after starting 13th in the September 2018 race. He finished just .904 of a second behind race winner Brad Keselowski. He has an additional three starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Indianapolis where he earned a best finish of 22nd in July 2016. In his three Xfinity Series starts though, he never qualified worse than third.

BESHORE AT INDY: Crew Chief Ben Beshore has not only been on top of the box for one NASCAR Cup Series race on the oval at Indianapolis, but also one NASCAR Xfinity Series race which resulted in him kissing the bricks. His one Cup Series start with John Hunter Nemechek and the No. 42 team in July 2024 resulted in a 29th-place result after starting 10th, when a wreck took the team out on lap 161 after an incredible day that saw Nemechek lead 16 laps. In the September 2019 NASCAR Xfinity Series race, Beshore started from the pole with Kyle Busch. The team led 46 laps on its way to a .132 of a second margin of victory over Justin Allgaier.

ZIGAZOO AT INDY: In addition to his activities with Ultimate Canine, Jones will welcome social media influencer Elyse Hofer to the racetrack as his guest for the weekend. Hofer is an Indiana-native model and social media influencer who is well known on Instagram, TikTok, and Zigazoo. With over 250K followers on Zigazoo alone, the young social media starlet is making her name known and racking up a following on all three platforms.

GOODNIGHT RACETRACK: In collaboration with the Newgardens, Jones will post a special #READwithErik on his channels where he reads “Goodnight Racetrack” by Andy Amendola and Ashley Newgarden. This is the latest installment of Jones’ program that he started in 2020 during the COVID-19 Pandemic. He began reading children’s books live on social media for those kids who were stuck at home, and it has since transitioned into a pillar of the Erik Jones Foundation to promote literacy. Watch all of his #READwithErik episodes HERE.

ERIK JONES QUOTE
“Indy’s such a great track, and I’m so happy for it to be back on the oval. Last year getting back to it, we didn’t have much of a race, unfortunately. We had a mechanical issue from Lap 1 that kept us from getting much experience, but I feel like where we’re at this year and our strengths, Indy should be a really good track for the No. 43 Dollar Tree Toyota team. I’m excited to get there and see what the race is going to bring. This is a race win that is on everyone’s bucket list, including mine. I grew up just four hours away and raced there as a kid in quarter midgets in the parking lot. So, it’s always fun to go back there and just get a chance to race on the oval. I want to have a shot to win at the oval, so I’m looking forward to it. Hoping we can go there and execute well.”

BEN BESHORE QUOTE
“Indianapolis is a track where you can pull a lot of similarities from Pocono. It’s sort of that bigger, 2-mile track with a lot of straightaway time. Qualifying is going to be important at Indy. It’s going to be tricky to pass during the race. If you find yourself off sequence, it’s hard. You’ll have guys who will go back-and-forth on strategies, but you kind of just have to pick a strategy and ride it out. You have to hope that cautions fall in your favor. I love Indy. It’s a really cool track with a lot of tradition. Just seeing those cars come down the front straightaway with grandstands on both sides, there’s nothing like it. The yard of bricks at the start-finish line is iconic. It’s just a really cool place and probably one of my favorite tracks on the schedule.”
(Photo Credit: LEGACY MOTOR CLUB)
CLUB APPEARANCES:

Jones will visit the NASCAR Classics trackside merchandise rig to sign for fans at 10:30 a.m. local time on Sunday, July 27.

Nemechek will visit the NASCAR Classics trackside merchandise rig to sign for fans at 11:30 a.m. local time on Saturday, July 26.
TUNE IN:

Fans can tune in to watch the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, July 27 at 2 p.m. ET on TNT, MAX, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).

LMC PR

Jim Campbell (pictured) was named Vice President, Performance and Motorsports Commercial Operations by General Motors, including oversight of the Cadillac F1 team.

Campbell had been the longtime motorsports head at General Motors focusing on IndyCar, NASCAR, Sports Cars and NHRA.

Under his new role, Campbell will oversee commercial operations for GM’s motorsports programs, with a strategic focus on leveraging the Cadillac Formula 1 Team to elevate the Cadillac and GM brands.

Campbell’s job before his new appointment was Chief Product Officer for GM China and President of the Durant Guild. Previously, he’s held various leadership roles in General Motors, some of which have been in motorsports operations. His motorsport resume spans NASCAR, INDYCAR, IMSA, NHRA, FIA WEC, and off-road racing, making him well-suited for his new role.

“Jim’s experience and leadership will be invaluable as we prepare to join the Formula 1 grid in 2026 with the Cadillac Formula 1 team, a uniquely American venture,” GM President Mark Reuss said. “While racing is deeply rooted in our history, F1 marks a bold new frontier, on a worldwide stage, and is the pinnacle of motorsports. Having Jim in this position working with our collective team makes me feel even more confident in our capabilities and plans to succeed, and to win.”

Although General Motors is giving a lot of hype to the Cadillac Formula 1 team, Campbell will presumably also be working with GM’s other motorsports operations. These include Cadillac and Corvette’s presence in IMSA and WEC, as well as Chevy’s participation in NASCAR and as an INDYCAR engine supplier.

Before Sunday’s race at Dover Motor Speedway, Kyle Busch proposed a NASCAR rule change that would give drivers the choice between having a rearview mirror camera in their car or having a spotter. After a camera-aided win at Dover, Denny Hamlin weighed in on Busch’s idea.

In Monday’s episode of Actions Detrimental, Hamlin said he would support removing the rearview cameras because of how much of an advantage leaders have with the Next Gen car.

“Cameras, I’d be okay with getting rid of those….Especially with Next Gen, there is such an advantage by moving your car in the wake of the car behind you…You don’t want to make it easier for the drivers to do that.”

Denny Hamlin on kyle Busch’s proposal for getting rid of rearview mirrors/cameras

Related: NASCAR Predictions for Brickyard 400, including Denny Hamlin

As Hamlin’s last two wins at Dover have shown, mirror driving gives the leader an added advantage with the Next Gen car. This effect is more pronounced on certain tracks, but the current Next Gen build gives a massive edge to the leading car in clean air.

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It has made passing even harder, reducing the number of lead changes during races. Drivers noted during the hour-long rain delay at Dover that the car that got ahead on the restart and had clean air was likely to win well before the checkered flag waved.

Related: NASCAR Rule Change Helps Denny Hamlin’s 23XI Team

Technically, Busch left the door open for some peers to keep the rearview camera if they gave up their spotter. However, no driver is willing to sacrifice everything a spotter brings at oval tracks.

Currently, drivers in the Cup Series leading the field should use their rearview cameras to aero-block, as it increases their chances of protecting the lead and winning. Since NASCAR is unlikely to make changes to the Next Gen car that would make passing easier, removing the rearview cameras would at least reduce the effectiveness of aero-blocking somewhat.

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