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Kurt Busch headlines NASCAR Hall of Fame class

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Given his resume, Kurt Busch knew it was a matter of when, not if, he would be selected into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Still, getting voted in on the first ballot on Tuesday was a huge relief for Busch, who let out an emotional sigh of relief after hearing his […]

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Given his resume, Kurt Busch knew it was a matter of when, not if, he would be selected into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Still, getting voted in on the first ballot on Tuesday was a huge relief for Busch, who let out an emotional sigh of relief after hearing his named called at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

“I’m very grateful and thankful that it happened this first time,” Busch said. “You want to have that answer as fast as you can.”

Ray Hendrick and Harry Gant were also voted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame on Tuesday, while executive Humpy Wheeler was named the Landmark Award winner for his contribution to the sport. A ceremony will be held to officially induct the Class of 2026 into the Hall of Fame in March.

The 46-year-old Busch held off Jimmie Johnson to win the 2004 Cup Series championship and went on to win 34 Cup races, including at least one victory in 19 of his 21 full-time seasons on the premier circuit before he retired in 2023.

His journey to NASCAR stardom began in 2000 with a Truck Series rookie season that foreshadowed greatness. His big breakthrough came in 2004, when he became the first driver to win the title under NASCAR’s “playoff” system – a feat that proved both his excellence and adaptability.

The consistent Busch finished in the top 10 in the Cup Series standings 10 times.

“Things happened fast for me in this sport and I don’t know how or why,” Busch said. “There was no template, there wasn’t the ladder that these days you see the kids that have a system where it is going to be this or that. For me it was being in the right place at the right time and the universe smiled down on me.”

Hendrick, who died in 1990 at age 61, was the original “Mr. Modified.”

He is one of the winningest drivers of all time, with than 700 modified and late model sportsman wins between 1950-88. His success started in his home state of Virginia, where his No. 11 was well know. He won five track championships at South Boston Speedway — four modified and one late model sportsman.

He was known as a driver that was willing to race “anywhere and everywhere,” and did just that. He filled his schedule with modified and late model sportsman races across the East coast. Hendrick was known best for his wins on short tracks, but also produced victories at Talladega, Charlotte and Dover.

Despite never winning a Modified Division championship, Hendrick finished in the top 10 in the standings nine times from 1960-69.

The 85-year-old Gant, known as the “Bandit” for his long-time sponsorship with Skoal Bandits, won 18 Cup Series races, including the Southern 500 in 1984 and 1991. In the five seasons from 1981 through 1985, he finished in the top five in points four times, including a runner-up championship finish to Terry Labonte in 1984.

He also won 21 Xfinity Series races.

Members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel met Tuesday in an in-person closed session at the Charlotte Convention Center to debate and vote on the 15 nominees for the induction class of 2026 and the five nominees for the Landmark Award.

The 49-person voting panel included representatives from NASCAR, the Hall of Fame, track owners from major facilities and historic short tracks, media members, manufacturer representatives, competitors (drivers, owners, crew chiefs), recognized industry leaders, a nationwide fan vote conducted through NASCAR.com and the reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion (Joey Logano).

Busch and Gant both received 61% of the “modern era” ballot votes. Jeff Burton finished third, followed by Harry Hyde and Randy Dorton.

Hendrick received 31% of the “pioneer” ballot votes. Bob Welborn finished second.

Gant raced into his 50s, and still holds premier series records for oldest driver to win a race (52 years old) and a pole (54). He drove the first race car with a telemetry system installed in it at Talladega in 1985 and relayed the data to CBS during its coverage of the event.

This was the Gant’s seventh time on the ballot. He did not attend the announcement ceremony on Tuesday and was not available for comment.

All three were among NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers and one of NASCAR Modified’s All-Time Top 10 Drivers.

Wheeler became synonymous with promotion and innovation.

He spent 33 years as the president and general manager of Charlotte Motor Speedway and played a pivotal role in transforming the venue into a world-class facility.

Wheeler added a new dynamic to the sport, a visionary whose leadership and creativity helped shape today’s fan experience with the introduction of dramatic prerace ceremonies and the development of night racing at superspeedways.

He was known for his innovative promotions and stunts.



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Brad Keselowski ripped over his NASCAR road course take – Motorsport – Sports

Michael McDowell clapped back at Brad Keselowski after the latter posted his disdain for road courses. The NASCAR Cup Series schedule recently featured a bevy of road courses, which saw star Shane Van Giisbergen dominate the field in historic fashion. That said, Keselowski, who has had less-than-desirable finishes this season on road courses, went to […]

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Michael McDowell clapped back at Brad Keselowski after the latter posted his disdain for road courses.

The NASCAR Cup Series schedule recently featured a bevy of road courses, which saw star Shane Van Giisbergen dominate the field in historic fashion. That said, Keselowski, who has had less-than-desirable finishes this season on road courses, went to social media to express his frustration about how many road courses there are. 

It didn’t take long for McDowell, who has had two top-five finishes on road courses, to hit back at Keselowski’s comments. 

“Brad is one of those guys that when this Next Gen car came, the road course stuff was over for him,” McDowell said on a recent appearance on the ‘Door Bumper Clear’ podcast [h/t on3]. “When it comes to the crowds, if you ask the fans, the fans love road races. They love it.

“Sonoma doesn’t hold 100,000 people or have stands for 100,000 people. That place was packed, and it’s a good crowd, and put on a good show. …I mean, you can’t ask a guy that’s not very good at road courses if he thinks there should be more road courses. It’s like asking me if there should be more Dovers. There shouldn’t be more Dovers.”

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The subject of road courses has been one that many around the sport have been commenting on in recent months. NASCAR legend Richard Petty slammed the inclusion of the road courses in the Cup Series and the current playoff system as it stands. 

Among those who believe there are too many road courses is Denny Hamlin, who mirrored Keselowki’s sentiments on a recent episode of his ‘Actions Detrimental’ podcast. “I’m not a road course fan. I still believe we have too many of them on the schedule,” he said on his show.

“The only reason people loved them was because we had green and white checkered finishes, because people would get wiped out, and it created this excitement. … I just think it was fake news, and we added a bunch to the schedule, we did cut back maybe one this year? But still six is a lot considering that we are NASCAR, we are short track racing, oval racing, full contact type racing.”



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​​NASCAR Claims IndyCar and Xfinity Series Teams Interested in Buying 23XI and FRM’s Charters

What’s Happening? Late Wednesday afternoon, NASCAR filed its response to 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports’ motion for a temporary restraining order to maintain charter status. In this filing, NASCAR’s legal team answered several questions NASCAR fans had about the future of the teams’ six charters and both teams. According to NASCAR filing today: Both […]

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What’s Happening?

Late Wednesday afternoon, NASCAR filed its response to 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports’ motion for a temporary restraining order to maintain charter status. In this filing, NASCAR’s legal team answered several questions NASCAR fans had about the future of the teams’ six charters and both teams.

Following a Jun. 5 ruling that overturned a preliminary injunction granting the two teams charter status for 2025, the two teams, who own a combined six charters, motioned for a rehearing that would be denied on Jul. 9. Facing the loss of their charters for this weekend’s race, the two teams requested a temporary restraining order on Monday.

In their response, filed Wednesday afternoon, NASCAR’s legal team reiterated several points they have made throughout this process. They claimed that the teams never had these charters as they did not sign the 2025 NASCAR Charter Agreement last fall, and that there is no “credible risk” that drivers such as Tyler Reddick could leave should the teams lose charter status.

This potential loss of drivers and sponsors helped push the Dec. 18 injunction ruling that granted the teams their charters across the finish line. During the litigation of the team’s initial Preliminary Injunction Motion, their lawyer, Jeffery Kessler, claimed on Nov. 4 that Reddick had an out in his contract should the team lose charter status.

As of press time, the future of 23XI and FRM’s Charter status is in the air, though this filing clarifies that the teams have filed the paperwork to compete as open entries. If they do enter this weekend as unchartered teams, they will lose the larger share of revenue given to charter-owning entries and automatic entry to races.

What’s Happening?

Today, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled in favor of NASCAR, overturning a Dec….

Charter Sales and IndyCar Team Interest

On Monday, the teams claimed that NASCAR was already attempting to sell the six charters to other entities. In this filing, NASCAR claims that it will not do so until the court rules on the teams’ latest motion for preliminary injunction. Perhaps most interesting of all, the filing claims that there are teams, some already in NASCAR and some not currently involved in the sport, interested in buying charters.

“Although based on the false premise that Plaintiffs have Charters, and notwithstanding the substantial interest in Charters from motorsports companies racing in INDYCAR, Xfinity, and other series, NASCAR has represented it will not sell any Charters before the Court can rule on Plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary injunction.”

After reading such a quote, the first question likely on the minds of NASCAR fans is who. On the NASCAR Cup Series side, there are teams publicly seeking new charters, such as Legacy Motor Club and Rick Ware Racing, which are tied up in a legal battle themselves.

Some could assume that Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s JR Motorsports could be one of the Xfinity Series teams. But most interesting of all is the claim that an IndyCar team is interested in the charter. Notably, this comes just one week after RACER reported that Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing was interested in racing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

We have extensively covered all aspects of this lawsuit via the timeline linked below.

What’s Happening?

The 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports lawsuit will continue for some time. However, many developments will occur along…

What do you think about this? Let us know your opinion on Discord or X. Don’t forget that you can also follow us on InstagramFacebook, and YouTube.





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Formula 1’s 75th Anniversary Celebration at Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California, will celebrate the 75th anniversary of Formula 1. The event, which will be hosted Aug. 13-16, will see some of the most iconic cars in F1 history race again and feature a stunning exhibition of rarely seen cars, event organizers stated in a […]

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The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California, will celebrate the 75th anniversary of Formula 1. The event, which will be hosted Aug. 13-16, will see some of the most iconic cars in F1 history race again and feature a stunning exhibition of rarely seen cars, event organizers stated in a press release.

Twenty-five authentic F1 cars from the 1966-85 non-turbo era will race daily in the Mario Andretti Trophy race. These include the 12-cylinder-powered cars from the likes of Tyrrell, Williams, Ferrari, Lotus and Brabham.

Historic F1 Cars From Private Collections & Museums

There will also be an exhibition of more than 30 rarely seen historic F1 cars from museums and private collections. This exhibit marks the first time many of these cars have been displayed together in one place, noted the release. The collection will feature models ranging from the 1956 Maserati 250F, 1966 Eagle Mk1 and 1986 Benetton B186 to more modern machinery like the 2024 Formula 1 World Constructors’ Championship-winning McLaren MCL38, driven by Lando Norris.

1988 McLaren MP4 - Prost in period
Photo courtesy WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca

“The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion is the premier showcase for authentic, original, period-correct race cars, and it is an incredible honor to host an official celebration for the 75th anniversary of Formula 1,” said Mel Harder, WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca president and general manager. “It will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience to see this jaw-dropping collection of cars and F1 history.”

Formula 1 chief commercial officer, Emily Prazer, said, “I am delighted that Formula 1 will be represented at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion to celebrate our 75th anniversary. It is an amazing event, and to see historic cars back where they belong, pushing the limits of speed and performance, is always a special moment for our fans. This is a fitting commemoration of 75 incredible years of Formula 1 and the sport’s evolution, and I want to thank everyone involved in making this moment a reality.”



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SVG: The New ‘King’ of the road in NASCAR? | Sports

Sunday in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Sonoma Raceway in California, something happened for the first time since 1998. Shane Van Gisbergen won his third race of the 2025 season from the pole position. The last driver to do that was Jeff Gordon.  Van Gisbergen dominated the Toyota/Save Mart 350, leading 97 of the […]

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Sunday in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Sonoma Raceway in California, something happened for the first time since 1998. Shane Van Gisbergen won his third race of the 2025 season from the pole position. The last driver to do that was Jeff Gordon. 

Van Gisbergen dominated the Toyota/Save Mart 350, leading 97 of the 110 lap race. The former V8 Supercar driver from New Zealand has now four Cup series victories in just 34 starts. 

Van Gisbergen won last week on the streets of Chicago and last month in Mexico City, with three victories. As a result, Van Gisbergen finds himself as the third seed in the playoffs if the regular season ends right now. Before winning three of the last five races, he had only posted one other top-10 finish, which was in the road course race at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, in March.

Some experts and others in the industry of NASCAR say that it’s not fair for a driver who is 27th in the regular season points standings to be seeded third in the playoffs. 

I say that’s the rules, and Van Gisbergen is playing by the rules and the system that NASCAR has in place. What he has done in a racecar turning right and left since coming to NASCAR full-time last season has been very impressive. His results on ovals are improving with each race. And I think that will continue as the season goes on. 

NASCAR has a road course race next month at Watkins Glen and one at Charlotte in October, I also think that Van Gisbergen could win two more races this season and that could turn over the apple cart in the playoffs later this season. 

I’m pulling for Van Gisbergen to do just that. It may be too early to say but I think that NASCAR has a new “King of the Road.”

NASCAR needs Van Gisbergen (SVG), he is good for the sport and as a fan, I hope he stays for a long time. 



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Montreal F1: The Fan Experience

Since 1990, I’ve attended hundreds of races as a journalist—but rarely as a fan. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of all forms of motorsports. But when I’m at a track, most of the time, I’m there to work. I made an exception during the recent Montreal GP F1 weekend. The Netflix series has […]

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Since 1990, I’ve attended hundreds of races as a journalist—but rarely as a fan. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of all forms of motorsports. But when I’m at a track, most of the time, I’m there to work.

I made an exception during the recent Montreal GP F1 weekend. The Netflix series has gotten my wife (Melody) and me engaged to the point where we thought it would be fun to experience a race weekend in person, as fans. This is a story and some galleries about our experience.

In short: it was fantastic. All of it.

More than just a race, it was a three-day party/festival that brought the entire city to life.

We arrived downtown late Thursday afternoon. Our hotel was on Crescent Street, just below where the main Grand Prix Street Festival was happening. Once we checked in, we parked the car—and didn’t go near it again until after the race on Sunday.

The only exception to the “not working” thing was the excellent Puma/Aston Martin event I attended Thursday evening. Held at the beautiful Dorsia Restaurant in Old Montreal, the event featured an incredible five-course meal with premium wine and cocktail pairings from the LVMH (Louis Vuitton/Moët Hennessy) portfolio.

Alongside great food and company, former World Champion Fernando Alonso made a brief appearance for a Q&A and photo session. Aston Martin’s Head of F1 Academy and Driver Ambassador, Jessica Hawkins, spoke after Alonso. An impressive young woman, she shared stories about driving an F1 car and her experiences across various forms of racing. Canadian swimmer Penny Oleksiak (7 Olympic medals!) was also there, celebrating her 25th birthday! It was a memorable night—and a fun kickoff to the F1 weekend.

And once dinner was over, I was officially “off the clock” for the weekend.

Everywhere you looked, you knew Formula 1 was in town. This was in a Metro station.

To get around, we bought three-day Metro passes—highly recommended. A labour disruption had threatened the transit system, but thankfully, subways and buses continued running during F1 weekend. Without transit, I can’t imagine how the event would have gone ahead. Or at least, not with full grandstands.

I don’t know the exact numbers, but it felt like 95% of attendees arrived at the track via the Metro. The closest station to the track is Jean-Drapeau, located on Île Sainte-Hélène—adjacent to Île Notre-Dame, home of Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

I’ve been to the Daytona 500 and many large sporting events, and the crowds in Montreal felt just as massive. The promoter reported a three-day attendance of 352,000. I believe it.

Every practice and qualifying session on Friday and Saturday had packed grandstands, just like the main event on Sunday. We sat in Grandstand 34, on the inside of the hairpin (Turn 10), so we could witness the incredible braking and acceleration—and hopefully some passing. It did not disappoint.

The only downside—and I’m sure the promoters will smile reading this—was how tight the seating was. Every hard, aluminum seat was filled, and the bench space per person was very limited. You were literally shoulder to shoulder, hip to hip, and knee to back with those around you. I now sympathize with sardines.

With everyone squeezed butt cheek to butt cheek, there were people who purchased seats but had to sit in the aisles, all weekend long.
The $4 Seahorse and Shark seat cushions, from Dollarama did the trick on the aluminum grandstands.

And God help you if your row had a few Kim Kardashian-types in it. People were literally spilling into the aisles. Pro tip: bring seat cushions! Our sore bums sent us to Dollarama, near our hotel, after Friday’s sessions. We paid $4 for foam pads, which beat the $45 CGV cushions at the concession stands. Bonus: our cheap, goofy seat cushions got a few laughs throughout the weekend.

Speaking of crowds—as Toronto tries to fine-tune its new Rogers Stadium venue in Downsview Park, it’s impressive how smoothly Montreal handles 115,000+ people per day. No one complained about the 20+ minute walk from the Metro station to the track. The flow of people through fences and pathways was clearly the result of decades of fine-tuning. Well done.

The weather was incredible all three days: blue skies, 20°C, and a light breeze off the St. Lawrence River. Apparently, that’s rare for Montreal GP weekend—no complaints from us!

After spending Friday at the track, we returned to the hotel and headed up to Crescent Street for the street festival. It felt like the entire crowd from the track—plus more—was there. We made a point to see The Hip Trip, a Tragically Hip tribute band. They delivered a fantastic one-hour set of high-energy classics. The lead singer did Gord Downie proud.

After the concert, we kicked off our Montreal smoked meat tasting tour. Friday’s stop was Reuben’s Deli & Steakhouse on Sainte-Catherine Street—delicious and close to the action. Saturday night, we walked up St. Laurent to Schwartz’s (the best!). And after the race on Sunday, we stopped at Smoke Meat Pete’s on Hwy. 20 in L’Île-Perrot. I’m drooling again just thinking about it.

Back at the track, there was plenty to do and enjoy. The sponsor activations were great—DJs, lounge areas, food and drink stalls. The $14 Heineken Silver tallboys felt like buying overpriced water, but they were the only game in town—and probably helped keep the crowd relatively sober.

As for the racing—it was excellent. There’s nothing like F1 cars: the speed, the braking, the acceleration. Even qualifying is something to behold—the way cars weave around each other, some flying, others crawling, all on the same track at the same time. It’s almost terrifying.

George Russell won on Sunday, in a race highlighted by the McLarens colliding with each other. Lewis Hamilton’s race went south after hitting a gopher on the way into the hairpin. Yes, a gopher. I know they’re a known “thing” at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, but it was wild to see how many were darting across or near the track. I’m shocked they don’t round them up for the weekend.

We had a great time and look forward to doing it all again in the future.

The F1 Academy and the Porsche Carrera Cup North America support races were also very entertaining.

When the checkered flag flew at 4 p.m. Sunday, we skipped the podium ceremonies and headed straight for the exit. By 5 p.m., we were back in our car on Crescent Street and headed home to Toronto. Again, kudos to Montreal and the organizers for how efficiently they move crowds. Bravo.

Looking back, it was an incredible experience. If you get the chance, I highly recommend doing it at least once. We’re already thinking about doing it all again next year.



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NASCAR at Dover Motor Speedway: Key info, links, results for race weekend

The NASCAR Cup and Xfinity series trek to the Mid-Atlantic for their annual stop at Dover Motor Speedway this weekend. Bookmark this page and come back often for your race-week essentials — from links to qualifying order, average practice speeds, results and more. RELATED: Full weekend schedule | In-Season Challenge hub NASCAR Cup Series Race […]

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The NASCAR Cup and Xfinity series trek to the Mid-Atlantic for their annual stop at Dover Motor Speedway this weekend. Bookmark this page and come back often for your race-week essentials — from links to qualifying order, average practice speeds, results and more.

RELATED: Full weekend schedule | In-Season Challenge hub

NASCAR Cup Series

Race day: Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on TNT Sports. The categories listed below will be filled out with links as the information becomes available.

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Tires: Nine sets for the race (eight race sets plus one set transferred from qualifying). Teams will also have one set for practice.

Entry List
Qualifying Order
Practice Results
Practice Lap Averages
Practice Lap Times
Qualifying Results

Pit Stalls
Stage 1 Results
Stage 2 Results
Race Results

NASCAR Xfinity Series

Race day: Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET on The CW. The categories listed below will be filled out with links as the information becomes available.

Tires: Four sets for the race (three race sets plus one set transferred from qualifying). Teams will also have one set for practice.

Entry List
Qualifying Order
Practice Results
Practice Lap Averages
Practice Lap Times
Qualifying Results

Pit Stalls
Stage 1 Results
Stage 2 Results
Race Results



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