Spire Motorsports used the off week to evaluate where they were as a race team. And ahead of Sunday’s Jack Link’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, Spire made the decision to part ways with No. 7 team crew chief Rodney Childers.

Childers explained the sudden split during a Monday appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Just a few races into their nine-race stint, Childers knew something was off.

“Everything was going fine,” Childers said. “You could kind of tell after we got racing a little bit that maybe it wasn’t going the way that we all wanted. You know, and a lot of times, that’s performance-based or that can be how things are going at the shop or how things are going at the racetrack, and what’s the communication like? And just the chemistry of all of it. It’s not one person, it’s not two people, you know it’s 200 people. Just figuring that out as we went.”

The chemistry did not improve as the season wore on. Eventually, it reached a point where both sides knew it was time for a breakup, Childers said.

“It finally [came to] a point where they could kind of tell I wasn’t happy, and I could kind of tell that maybe they weren’t happy. And it just started falling apart a little bit,” Childers said. “And I could sense it a little bit. Maybe a couple of weeks before [parting ways], it had kind of [gotten] quiet around. And anytime it gets quiet, you kind of start wondering, you know?”

Rodney Childers reveals future plans for NASCAR career

Childers, 48, was seen as a big coup for Spire when it signed him to a multi-year deal this past June. Childers joined Spire after Stewart-Haas Racing announced it would be closing its doors after the 2024 season. In September, Justin Haley and Corey LaJoie traded places.

Haley, who at the time was overperforming at Rick Ware Racing, was now driver of the No. 7 car. That meant that 2025 would be the first year of the Childers/Haley pairing. Haley sat 23rd in the points standings through nine races alongside Childers, with one top 10 finish. He finished 25th at Talladega, his first race with Ryan Sparks back atop the pit box.

For Childers, he’s a crew chief with 40 career victories. He won the 2014 Cup Series Championship with Kevin Harvick. He still wants to continue his career as a crew chief, hopefully finding his way back to Victory Lane in the future.

“I think in my statement, it was not really clear what I wanted, and I want to be clear in that I want to be a crew chief in the Cup Series like I’ve been,” Childers said. “I want to get past that 700 races [milestone]. Want to get to that 50-win mark. I want to be with a good team, a good driver that can win races. And I want that to be clear. I’m looking forward to figuring that out over the next six months and hopefully get back in Victory Lane.”

By The Associated Press

All Times Eastern

NASCAR CUP SERIES

Würth 400 presented by LIQUI MOLY

Site: Fort Worth, Texas.

Schedule: Saturday, practice, 11:05 a.m., qualifying, 12:10 p.m.; Sunday, race, 3:30 p.m. (FS1).

Track: Texas Motor Speedway.

Race distance: 267 laps, 400.5 miles.

Last year: Denny Hamlin survived a late surge from Kyle Larson to take the checkered flag, earning him his 54th career Cup victory.

Last race: Austin Cindric’s last-lap overtake of Ryan Preece secured him a photo-finish win in Talladega.

Next race: May 11, Kansas City, Kansas.

Online: http://www.nascar.com

NASCAR XFINITY SERIES

Andy’s Frozen Custard 300

Site: Fort Worth, Texas.

Schedule: Friday, practice, 5:05 p.m., qualifying, 6:10 p.m.; Saturday, race, 2 p.m. (CW).

Track: Texas Motor Speedway.

Race distance: 200 laps, 300 miles.

Last year: Sam Meyer inched ahead of Ryan Sieg a mere .002 seconds for a neck and neck win that was confirmed by photo review.

Last race: Connor Zilisch spun out and hit the wall on the last lap giving the lead to Austin Hill who crossed the line in three-way sprint to a photo finish.

Next race: May 24, Concord, North Carolina.

Online: http://www.nascar.com

NASCAR CRAFTSMAN TRUCK SERIES

SpeedyCash.com 250

Site: Fort Worth, Texas.

Schedule: Friday, practice, 2:35 p.m., qualifying, 3:40 p.m., race, 8 p.m. (FS1).

Track: Texas Motor Speedway.

Race distance: 167 laps, 250.5 miles.

Last year: Kyle Busch took the lead with 8 to go holding off a challenging Corey Heim for his record-tying sixth win at the Motor Speedway.

Last race: Tyler Ankrum broke his 130-race winless streak at Rockingham in a fuel-saving push to the finish line.

Next race: May 10, Kansas City, Kansas.

Online: http://www.nascar.com

FORMULA ONE

Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix

Site: Miami.

Schedule: Friday, practice, 12:25 p.m. sprint qualifying, 4:25 p.m.; Saturday, sprint race, 11:55 a.m., qualifying, 3:55 p.m.; Sunday, race, 4 p.m. (ABC).

Track: Miami International Autodrome.

Race distance: 57 laps, 191.5 miles.

Last year: Lando Norris earned his first-ever F1 win after capturing the lead from Verstappen and successfully defending his position.

Last race: Oscar Piastri takes his second win in a row and first ever lead in the standings after capitalizing on Verstappen’s five-second penalty in Jeddah.

Next race: May 18, Imola, Italy.

Online: http://www.formula1.com

INDYCAR

Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix

Site: Birmingham, Alabama.

Schedule: Friday, practice, 3:30 p.m.; Saturday, practice, 11:30 a.m., qualifying, 2:30 p.m.; Sunday, warmup, 10 a.m., race, 1:30 p.m. (FOX).

Track: Barber Motorsports Park.

Race distance: 90 laps, 207 miles.

Last year: Scott McLaughlin managed to hold off teammate Will Power, giving him his second consecutive win in Birmingham.

Last race: Kyle Kirkwood led a race-high 46 laps, ending Alex Palou’s hot streak in a dominant performance at Long Beach.

Next race: May 10, Indianapolis.

Online: http://www.indycar.com

NHRA DRAG RACING

Next race: May 18, Elwood, Illinois.

Online: http://www.nhra.com

WORLD OF OUTLAWS

Dairyland Showdown

Site: Fountain City, Wisconsin.

Track: Mississippi Thunder Speedway.

#LETSRACETWO

Site: Rossburg, Ohio.

Track: Eldora Speedway.

Next events: May 6, May 9, Abbottstown, Pennsylvania, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.

Online: http://worldofoutlaws.com

_____

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/apf-AutoRacing

Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) is set for round four of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season this weekend as the team heads to the scenic Barber Motorsports Park for the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix (May 4, 1:00pm ET, FOX, SiriusXM channel 218).

Coming off of Indianapolis 500 oval testing at IMS last week, MSR is back with its two full-season entries – Marcus Armstrong in the No. 66 SiriusXM / Root Insurance Honda and Felix Rosenqvist in the No. 60 SiriusXM Honda.

Rosenqvist will make his seventh INDYCAR start at Barber, having qualified in the top ten on four occasions and scoring a best finish of sixth in 2021. Known for his ability to extract speed on technical circuits, the Swede is aiming to convert qualifying strength into a strong race-day result for MSR.

Armstrong will make his third career start at Barber Motorsports Park after making his debut at the circuit in 2023. The New Zealander showed promising pace in that outing, gaining six positions to finish 11th. With a strong road course background and continued progress from MSR, Armstrong is targeting another step forward on the 2.3-mile, 17-turn circuit.

Meyer Shank Racing made its debut at Barber in 2019 and has steadily built its program at the picturesque venue. MSR’s 2024 outing at Barber saw Rosenqvist finish fourth and just shy of a podium finish. The result was the team’s best finish to date at the Birmingham circuit.

The Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix weekend kicks off with practice on Friday, May 2, followed by qualifying on Saturday at 2:30pm ET on FS2. Sunday’s 90-lap race will be broadcast live on FOX and SiriusXM (channel 218) beginning at 1:00pm ET.

Meyer Shank Racing Driver Quotes:

Felix Rosenqvist: “We have some good momentum going into the start of the season, and we are looking forward to keeping that going through Barber. We got to test there a while back, but the temperatures I don’t think were very representative of what we will see next week. Barber is another track that will be a lot different for us now with the hybrid, so we will see how everything goes.”

Marcus Armstrong: “Barber is one of my favorite circuits on the calendar. It’s high speed and flowing, kind of what I used to race on in Europe. We tested there a little bit ago and we got some good data from that which will hopefully help us get through the weekend. I’m really looking forward to heading there this weekend.”

MSR PR

Bob Pockrass

FOX Motorsports Insider

Austin Cindric earned a big victory Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway and that is enough of a flex to put him in these power rankings.

Albeit he’s in 10th, but he’s there.

Here are rankings following Talladega as the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Texas this weekend: 

Dropped out: 10. Chase Briscoe (LW: 10)

On the verge: Chris Buescher, Kyle Busch, Ty Gibbs, Joey Logano, Ryan Preece, Bubba Wallace

10. Austin Cindric (Last Week: NR)

Cindric earned his first win of the year and the third of his career. It was his first top-5 of the season. But he has three top-10s in the 10 races.

Austin Cindric breaks down EMOTIONAL win at Talladega w/ Kevin Harvick: ‘The pressure is on now!’

9. Ross Chastain (LW: 6)

Chastain finished 20th at Talladega, a disappointing result for him. But he’s 10th in the standings and the next two tracks will be more telling of whether the Trackhouse driver will be more of a contender this year.

8. Tyler Reddick (LW: 9)

The defending winner of the Talladega spring race finished 14th this time at the track. But he did better than some on this list, so he moved up a spot.

7. Alex Bowman (LW: 8)

Bowman was seventh at Talladega for his sixth top-10 of the season. The Hendrick driver didn’t get any stage points in the race, so the top-10 finish was key as he still seeks his first win of the year.

6. Ryan Blaney (LW: 4)

Blaney got caught up in the wreck when Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski appeared to have contact as they entered pit road for a green-flag stop in the first stage. He has four races this year in which he has not finished.

5. Chase Elliott (LW: 7)

Elliott finished fifth at Talladega, another solid finish even if he wasn’t a huge factor for much of the day. He’s grinding out more-than-respectable finishes.

4. Christopher Bell (LW: 3)

Bell got turned (accidentally) by Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin near the end of the first stage and his Talladega ended early. Good thing he has three victories this year.

William Byron’s post-race interview from Talladega Superspeedway

3. Denny Hamlin (LW: 1)

Hamiln thought he had the strategy that would prove fruitful with the Toyotas pushing the pace and pitting early. Chastain foiled that plan and Hamlin wound up 21st.

2. William Byron (LW: 5)

Byron led for 10 laps but lost the lead with seven laps remaining and settled for third in the race. He’ll still take that at Talladega as he leads the Cup standings by 31 points ahead of his teammate Kyle Larson.

1. Kyle Larson (LW: 2)

Larson finished second (third on the track before Ryan Preece disqualification) and to him, that is nearly as good as a win as he had only one top-5 finish at Talladega — which came in his previous start. With a first and a second in his last two Cup races (and four top-5s in his last five races), he’s back atop the list. 

Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and IndyCar for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.

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TALLADEGA, Ala. — The final laps of the Jack Links 500 turned into an all-out Ford-vs.-Chevy battle, and when the checkered flag flew, Ford’s Austin Cindric and Ryan Preece held off Chevy’s Kyle Larson and William Byron in a photo finish. Cindric, who snapped a 30-race winless streak, won by about a yard — or 0.022 seconds on the clock — just holding off Preece as the pack approached lapped traffic.

“That bright yellow car looks great up front. I’m thankful for everyone’s support,” Cindric said after the race. “Having a photo finish at Talladega, to be able to do it, get in the playoffs in front of this amazing crowd on a beautiful day in Alabama.”

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UPDATE: The cars of Preece and Joey Logano were both disqualified after post-race inspections. Logano had finished fifth. The cars will now be scored in 38th and 39th place, respectively.

There’s an unspoken subtext to every Talladega race: The Big One. The massive, high-banked superspeedway provides perfect conditions for enormous, field-swallowing wrecks. They’re the kind of wrecks that both horrify and entice viewers, even if nobody really wants to admit it. This time around, while there were 67 lead changes and 23 leaders over the course of the race, the Big One didn’t happen, setting up a final sprint to the finish. There were only four cautions the entire race, two of which were for stage endings, a remarkably “clean” Talladega outing.

For the first two stages, the only wrecks were relatively minor errors of judgment and execution. On lap 43, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch and Ryan Blaney got tangled up during an attempted move onto pit road:

Nine laps later, Christopher Bell hit the wall hard following a push from Denny Hamlin:

“Denny didn’t do anything wrong,” Bell said after getting out of the car. “You have to push, you have to push to be successful. It’s a product of the cars we race with this rules package.”

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The opening stages were as routine as Talladega gets; although the field ran as much as four-wide, the mistakes were few. Larson ended up winning the first stage, and Bubba Wallace the second.

Aside from the early collisions that took out some of the race favorites, the only fireworks came from Joey Logano’s microphone. Incensed that Cindric, his teammate, didn’t push him to a stage win, he lit up his radio:

“Way to go Austin, way to go, you dumb [expletive]! Way to [expletive]ing go,” Logano bellowed. “What a stupid [expletive]. You just gave it to him. Gave a Toyota a stage win. Nice job. Way to go. What a [expletive].”

“That was all I could do not to wreck Joey,” Cindric protested, perhaps thinking of the Hamlin push that sent Bell into the wall. “I was obviously trying to stay there, I was trying not to wreck everybody.”

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Logano, Ty Gibbs and Chase Briscoe were among the lap leaders; Anthony Alfredo, driving for Beard Motorsports, even managed a few laps at the front of the pack.

As the laps wound down, a Chevy brigade of Byron, Larson and Alex Bowman challenged Ford’s Cindric for the lead. Cindric held the low line while Byron led the high line. Preece, a fellow Ford driver, slid high alongside Cindric for the final few laps, setting up the furious finish.

The Chevy contingent opted not to make a move into a third lane to catch Cindric and Preece, in part because of the lapped traffic right in front of the pack. That left Cindric and Preece free to duel one another for the victory, and Cindric came out on top.

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“I don’t think there was anything I could have done on the final lap,” Larson said. “I needed something else to kind of happen, maybe them blocking each other or something.”

Byron still leads the season standings with 388 points; Larson moved past Denny Hamlin into second place. Cindric moved into 15th place, up seven spots, thanks to his victory.

After the race, Preece’s car was found to fail Rule 14.5.8.F, having three shims instead of the required two, while Logano’s car violated Rules 14.5.8.E and 14.1.P as it was missing a spoiler bolt.

Team Penske indicated it will not appeal the disqualifications. “The No. 22 Team Penske Ford Mustang was disqualified following post-race inspection at Talladega today. One of the 18 bolts on the surface of the spoiler that connect to the base was found to be loose, and NASCAR penalized the team as a result. This was not intentional and happened throughout the course of the race event. Team Penske accepts the disqualification.”