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NASCAR working to host street-course race in San Diego: Report

Could NASCAR have a new street-course race next season? According to The Athletic, the sanctioning body is working with San Diego to host a race on the streets of the city. NASCAR currently has just one points race in the state of California and no races in Southern California. NASCAR and the city of San […]

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Could NASCAR have a new street-course race next season?

According to The Athletic, the sanctioning body is working with San Diego to host a race on the streets of the city. NASCAR currently has just one points race in the state of California and no races in Southern California.

NASCAR and the city of San Diego have not yet agreed on a deal, but discussions are ongoing, and it is expected that an agreement will be reached, according to those sources. An announcement is tentatively slated for next month, pending a finalized deal.

NASCAR and Sports San Diego, the city’s sports tourism commission, declined comment.

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NASCAR hasn’t raced in Southern California since Auto Club Speedway closed in 2023. The exhibition Clash was briefly held at the Los Angeles Coliseum, but it was at North Wilkesboro Speedway in 2025 and appears to be in line to rotate among other short tracks.

The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule has not been announced and a race in San Diego could be one of many different pieces on the schedule. The Chicago street-course race is entering its third year in 2025, but there is no long-term agreement beyond this season to keep NASCAR racing in Chicago. The first Chicago race weekend in 2023 was plagued by rain.

The Chicago street-course race was added after NASCAR stopped racing at Chicagoland Speedway in 2020. Unlike Auto Club Speedway, the 1.5-mile Chicagoland Speedway has not been torn down.

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If San Diego is added to the schedule in 2026, would it take the place of an existing road-course race? Simple math reasons that it would. Among the 36 races on the 2025 Cup Series schedule, five are being held on road and street courses. While it’s not impossible NASCAR would go to a sixth road-course race, it also may create too much of an imbalance between traditional oval racing and road-course racing.

Last week’s race in Mexico City became the fifth road race on the schedule. The race won by Shane van Gisbergen was the first Cup Series race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. At the moment, NASCAR and race officials have not agreed on a contract to return for 2026.



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Winners, losers from Brickyard 400 won by Bubba Wallace

INDIANAPOLIS — A look at the winners and losers from Sunday’s Cup race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. WINNERS Bubba Wallace — Snaps 100-race winless streak by scoring his third career Cup victory and first crown jewel win. He does it by holding off Kyle Larson on two overtime restarts to kiss the bricks. This also […]

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INDIANAPOLIS — A look at the winners and losers from Sunday’s Cup race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

WINNERS

Bubba Wallace — Snaps 100-race winless streak by scoring his third career Cup victory and first crown jewel win. He does it by holding off Kyle Larson on two overtime restarts to kiss the bricks. This also is his first career Cup victory in the regular season and puts him in the playoffs.

AUTO: JUL 27 NASCAR Cup Series Brickyard 400

Bubba Wallace’s trip to victory lane at Indianapolis was more than a 400-mile trip, it was a journey of years.

23XI Racing — Two weeks after losing its charter status in its legal dispute with NASCAR, 23XI Racing scores its first victory of the season. Tyler Reddick is 138 points above the cutline with four races to go. While he has yet to secure a playoff spot, he’s in good position to make it and give 23XI Racing two cars racing for a championship.

Syndication: The Indianapolis Star

He holds off Kyle Larson for win at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Kyle Larson — Runner-up finish gives him back-to-back top-five results for the first time in the last 10 races.

Cup drivers recap Indianapolis race won by Wallace

Hear from Kyle Larson, Ryan Preece, Alex Bowman, Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin and Bubba Wallace following the NASCAR Cup Series race at Indianapolis.

Denny Hamlin — Goes from last to third in a backup car after crashing his primary car in qualifying Saturday and sees his 23XI Racing team win its first race of the year.

Ryan Preece — His fourth-place finish gives him two top-five results for the year, the most in his career. He entered the race with a 27.3 average finish at Indy, his worst among active tracks.

Brad Keselowski — His fifth-place finish gives him six top 10s in the last 10 races after he did not have a top-10 finish in the first 12 races of the season.

Todd Gilliland — Came back from a lap down to finish sixth at Indy for the second year in a row. Gilliland also snapped a streak of eight consecutive finishes of 22nd or worse this season.

LOSERS

William Byron — Lost a top-five finish when he ran out of fuel on the final lap. He also ran out of fuel and had to pit just before the finish at Michigan in June, giving up a runner-up result there.

Ross Chastain — Finished last after an accident. It’s his third DNF in the last five races.

Erik Jones — Finished 36th due to an accident after his right front tire was not tightened. It’s his fourth consecutive finish of 25th or worse.





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All About Bubba Wallace’s Wife, Amanda Wallace

NEED TO KNOW Bubba Wallace and Amanda Wallace got married in 2022 Amanda is a former financial analyst and an artist They welcomed their first child, son Becks Hayden, in September 2024 Bubba Wallace and his wife, Amanda Wallace, have a lot to celebrate. On July 27, the NASCAR driver won the Brickyard 400, making […]

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NEED TO KNOW

  • Bubba Wallace and Amanda Wallace got married in 2022
  • Amanda is a former financial analyst and an artist
  • They welcomed their first child, son Becks Hayden, in September 2024

Bubba Wallace and his wife, Amanda Wallace, have a lot to celebrate.

On July 27, the NASCAR driver won the Brickyard 400, making him the first Black driver to win a major race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s 2.5 mile oval, per the Associated Press. In a video shared by NASCAR on Fox on X, Bubba can be seen kissing his wife after his win.

The victory came nearly a year after the couple welcomed their first child, son Becks Hayden, in September 2024.

Bubba and Amanda’s relationship goes back to high school before he became a professional NASCAR driver. Though they didn’t date at the time, the two stayed in touch after graduating and reconnected properly several years later.

They began dating in 2016, got engaged in 2021 and wed on New Year’s Eve the following year.

“It’s special,” Amanda told PEOPLE of the couple’s history in January 2023. “We still reminisce or talk about things from the past. We just know so much about each other’s lives from so long ago.”

So, who is Bubba Wallace’s wife? Here’s everything to know about Amanda Wallace.

She went to high school with Bubba

Bubba Wallace and Amanda Wallace.
Amanda Carter Instagram

Bubba and Amanda first met in high school, when he was a sophomore and she was a freshman.

“She thought I was nice, but not attractive,” Bubba told PEOPLE. “I just remember seeing her and I was like, ‘Wow, she’s beautiful.’ ”

Amanda recalled: “We were in Spanish class in high school, and we sat near each other. I don’t remember first meeting, but he would always try to cheat. We were friends. There was three or four of us that did all of our projects together and he always would try to cheat off my exams because I was much smarter than he was!”

Still, they didn’t date while in school. “It never worked out. It never hit or landed in high school,” he recalled. “I even went to his prom with somebody else from his school.”

She reconnected with Bubba in 2015

Bubba Wallace and Amanda Wallace.
Amanda Carter Instagram

Bubba and Amanda stayed in touch after high school and talked occasionally before they reconnected properly at a college football game in 2015. The duo began to spend more time together, and Bubba soon invited Amanda to a race in Las Vegas while she was a senior in college.

“It was my senior year spring break. And I didn’t have plans at the time. And he was like, ‘Well, I’ll be out in Vegas while you’re on spring break, do you want to come?’ And I said, ‘No,’ ” Amanda told PEOPLE.

“And then he asked a few times again, and I eventually said yes,” she added. “I was like, well, I have to get to know him more if we’re going to be on vacation for a week together. And we started dating when we got out to Vegas, because we had been talking so much. We had really started to really like each other.”

Bubba proposed to Amanda in June 2021

Bubba Wallace and Amanda Wallace.
Amanda Carter Instagram

In June 2021, Bubba proposed to Amanda in front of a waterfall in Oregon. He announced the news on X, writing: “Why I waited so long..we will never know. The wait is over!! Here’s to forever! Forever ever!”

He also shared a series of four images, including one where he’s down on one knee and another of Amanda showing off her engagement ring.

She married Bubba in December 2022

Bubba Wallace and Amanda Wallace.
Anastasiia Photography

Bubba and Amanda got married in Charlotte, N.C., on New Year’s Eve 2022 in front of 250 guests. Bubba wore a custom suit by Stitched by Mitch, while Amanda donned a gown by Madam Burcu.

After exchanging handwritten vows in front of their guests, they had a cocktail hour with an open bar and four tapas-style bars rather than a formal dinner. They rang in 2023 with a champagne toast and arranged for a McDonald’s food truck to serve chicken nuggets and French fries at 1 a.m.

“Getting married, and starting a new life together, I’m just so excited to have a good one in my corner,” said Bubba to PEOPLE. “We have so much fun together.”

She and Bubba share a son

Bubba Wallace and his wife Amanda with their son.

bubba wallace/instagram


Amanda gave birth to the couple’s first child on Sept. 29, 2024.

“Amanda and I would like to introduce you to Becks Hayden!” Bubba wrote on Instagram alongside photos of their baby boy.

The couple announced they were expecting in April 2024 with a cute poem on Instagram that said: “Spring has sprung. Summer will be rad. Fall is the first time, we’ll be mom and dad!”

Becks was there to see his dad win the Brickyard 400. After the race, Bubba shared a series of black-and-white photos on Instagram, which showed the driver, Amanda and their son laying down on the racetrack.

“This is everything,” he wrote.

She’s an artist and a former financial analyst

Amanda Wallace.
Amanda Carter Instagram

In 2016, Amanda graduated with a bachelor’s degree in finance and banking from Appalachian State University. According to USA Network, she then worked as a financial analyst at the Bank of America.

She reportedly left the company in April 2022 and now focuses on her art, often sharing her work on Instagram.

She shares a puppy with Bubba

Bubba Wallace and Amanda Wallace.
Bubba Wallace/Twitter

In July 2020, Bubba and Amanda adopted an Australian shepherd-poodle puppy. Bubba announced the new addition on X, writing, “Let me tell ya bout my best friend. Asher meet the world.”

He also shared a photo of the couple holding Asher, who was wearing a puppy-sized red bandana.

“We’ve just been really enjoying Asher,” Bubba told PEOPLE in March 2021. “He’s been a really good dog, like an extremely good dog. He makes it really hard to leave during the day. But he’s a blast and we’ve just been really enjoying our time together with him.”

She supports her husband’s career on social media

Bubba Wallace and Amanda Wallace.
Amanda Carter Instagram

Amanda frequently posts about Bubba’s victories on social media. In October 2021, Bubba became the first Black race car driver to win a NASCAR Cup Series race since Wendell Scott in 1963.

Amanda posted a photo of the pair with the caption, “So proud of @bubbawallace !!!!!! You did it, CUP WINNER!!!!!!!!!!!!”

In February 2023, she posted an Instagram photo of her kissing Bubba at the Daytona International Speedway.

“We were in position for a top 5 last last and barely got caught in the last wreck!” she wrote. “So excited to see what this team is gonna do this year!”





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NASCAR at Iowa 2025: Odds and more info

NASCAR returns to Iowa Speedway for Cup Series and Xfinity Series action this weekend. Photo: Josiah Kopp/TRE The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series returns on Friday, August 8 at Watkins Glen International. NASCAR Cup Series’ Iowa Corn 350 Sunday, August 3 3:30 p.m. (All times Eastern) 160 laps Stages end on laps 70, 210, 350 USA […]

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NASCAR returns to Iowa Speedway for Cup Series and Xfinity Series action this weekend.

Photo: Josiah Kopp/TRE

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series returns on Friday, August 8 at Watkins Glen International.

NASCAR Cup Series’ Iowa Corn 350

  • Sunday, August 3
    • 3:30 p.m. (All times Eastern)
  • 160 laps
    • Stages end on laps 70, 210, 350
  • USA Network, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90
  • Last year’s winner: Ryan Blaney
Photo: Josiah Kopp/TRE

The entry list features 37 drivers, with Joey Gase racing the No. 66 Ford entry for Garage 66.

Odds for NASCAR Cup Series at Iowa 2025

Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson the odds-on co-favorites prior to any on-track activity, per Caesar’s Sportsbook. Below are the opening odds for all drivers as of Monday, July 28.

  • Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson +450
  • Ryan Blaney +500
  • Denny Hamlin +650
  • William Byron +1000
  • Chase Elliott, Joey Logano +1200
  • Tyler Reddick +1400
  • Chase Briscoe +1600
  • Josh Berry +2000
  • Chris Buescher +2200
  • Ross Chastain, Carson Hocevar +2800
  • Kyle Busch +3000
  • Brad Keselowski +3300
  • Ty Gibbs +3500
  • Alex Bowman +4000
  • Bubba Wallace +4500
  • Austin Cindric +5500
  • Ryan Preece, Daniel Suarez +7500
  • Josh Berry +5000
  • Austin Dillon, Noah Gragson, Erik Jones +15000
  • John Hunter Nemechek +20000
  • Todd Gilliland, Michael McDowell, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., +25000
  • Zane Smith +30000
  • Justin Haley +35000
  • A.J. Allmendinger, Cole Custer, Shane Van Gisbergen +50000
  • Riley Herbst+75000
  • Ty Dillon +100000
  • Cody Ware +150000
  • Joey Gase +250000

NASCAR Xfinity Series’ Hy-Vee Perks 250 at Iowa

  • Saturday, August 2
  • 250 laps
    • Stages end on laps 60, 120, 250
  • CW, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90
  • Last year’s winner: Sam Mayer
Photo: Dominic Aragon/TRE

No cars will miss the race with 38 drivers entered for the 38 available spots.

Notable on the entry list includes:

  • Patrick Emerling: No. 07 for SS-Green Light Racing
  • Ross Chastain: No. 9 for JR Motorsports
  • Garrett Smithley: No. 14 for SS-Green Light Racing
  • Corey Day: No. 17 for Hendrick Motorsports
  • Justin Bonsignore: No. 19 for Joe Gibbs Racing
  • Tyler Tomassi: No. 35 for Joey Gase Motorsports
  • Mason Massey: No. 45 for Alpha Prime Racing
  • Joey Gase: No. 53 for Joey Gase Motorsports
  • Thomas Annunziata: No. 70 for Cope Family Racing
  • Dawson Cram: No. 74 for Mike Harmon Racing
  • Josh Bilicki: No. 91 for DGM Racing x JIM


Discover more from The Racing Experts

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Dominic Aragon is currently the editor-in-chief for The Racing Experts.

From Grants, New Mexico, USA, Aragon started watching NASCAR in 2004 and has been covering the sport since 2009. Aragon is a 2012 graduate of Grants High School and a May 2016 graduate of the University of New Mexico with a B.A. in Mass Communications & Journalism. Aragon has worked in local and national media, as a musician, and an educator. He is co-author of the 2024 book “All of It: Daytona 500 Champion Tells the Rest of the Story” with racer Geoff Bodine.

Aragon, his wife Feliz, and son Christopher currently reside in Grants, New Mexico, USA.

You can reach Dominic at daragon@theracingexperts.net.



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Long: Bubba Wallace takes pre-race message to heart to claim Brickyard 400 victory

INDIANAPOLIS — Amid the formality of the NASCAR Cup pre-race drivers meeting, Doug Boles had a message for competitors. The president of Indianapolis Motor Speedway noted that this year marked the 30th anniversary of Dale Earnhardt’s 1995 victory at the track, Boles then highlighted Tony Stewart’s win here in 2005 and Kyle Busch’s victory in […]

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INDIANAPOLIS — Amid the formality of the NASCAR Cup pre-race drivers meeting, Doug Boles had a message for competitors.

The president of Indianapolis Motor Speedway noted that this year marked the 30th anniversary of Dale Earnhardt’s 1995 victory at the track, Boles then highlighted Tony Stewart’s win here in 2005 and Kyle Busch’s victory in 2015 at the Brickyard.

“So the people that win on the fives tend to be iconic people in our sport,” Boles said to the drivers. “Hopefully, you are already right on your way to being iconic or at the beginning of that. And you look back at the Brickyard 400 … and think it started right here.”

Boles’ message resonated with a driver.

The one who bear hugged him after a 420-mile Sunday drive — in a race extended by two overtimes.

“I heard all that you said in the drivers meeting,” Bubba Wallace told Boles after Wallace scored his third career Cup victory and snapped a 100-race winless streak. “I thought I’m going to be the guy that wins and makes this an iconic event.”

A different viewpoint

When Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan hired Wallace to be the team’s first driver ahead the 2021 season, Hamlin said Sunday that “I believed in his capability, not necessarily the results that (he’d) shown, but I understood his potential.”

Unlocking that potential was another thing.

“It was kind of a time where we were wrestling like, ‘Man do I want it worse than him or not,’” Hamlin said of Wallace. “I can’t make him want it. … That’s going to have to come from within.”

Syndication: The Indianapolis Star

He holds off Kyle Larson for win at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Hamlin saw Wallace start to show that increased drive the next year when Kurt Busch joined the team and again when Tyler Reddick came to 23XI Racing in 2023 — teammates providing motivation.

Even so, Wallace didn’t win. His last Cup victory came in 2022.

“We want to win and we put a lot of resources into doing that,” Hamlin said. “So he’s felt pressure. I think he’s felt the pressure not only from me but Michael and everyone.”

Although Wallace missed the playoffs last year for the third time in four seasons at 23XI Racing, Hamlin said he saw a change in the driver.

“His valleys weren’t as low,” Hamlin said. “It seemed like on the bad days, he was able to compartmentalize that and then think about the positives vs. everything sucks all the time.

“That’s a tough way to live. We’re in a business that if you can win 5% of the time you’re a Hall of Famer. You’re going to lose. This is a losing business. You have to find happiness in some other way than actually winning.”

The change happened around the time Wallace became a father.

“Putting family first, that’s all that matters,” Wallace said. “Makes things easier. It gives you something to kind of focus onto.”

A new voice

With the pressure to succeed, Wallace faced another challenge this season. The team hired Charles Denike, who had no Cup experience, to be Wallace’s crew chief.

From the beginning, Hamlin touted Denike, a former military officer, as a game-changer for Wallace.

Wallace started the season strong. Winning seemed likely.

But then it didn’t come. Even after being among the leaders in stage points early in the season, Wallace found himself in the same place he has been in past summers — at or near the playoff cutline late in the regular season.

Entering Sunday’s race at Indianapolis, Wallace held the final playoff spot by 16 points on Ryan Preece.

Syndication: The Indianapolis Star

The 23XI Racing driver held off Kyle Larson on multiple restarts in overtime.

Adding to the pressure was the weather that changed the weekend schedule for teams.

Rain canceled Friday’s 50-minute practice, so NASCAR gave teams a 25-minute session Saturday. Even a 2.5-mile track can be crowded with traffic and not give teams a good read on their qualifying setup. With track position key, qualifying carries a heightened importance.

But Wallace told Denike before qualifying: “I don’t completely know what I have in the car.”

“This is superstar qualifying,” Denike told Wallace. “This is what we show up to do.”

Wallace qualified second. He would be a contender in Sunday’s race.

Quieting the doubts

Wallace was strong all race. He had the best average running position (4.93) of any driver Sunday and led 30 laps.

Denike’s strategy kept Wallace toward the front and gave him a shot to win.

That forced others to react.

When the third stage began 55 laps from the scheduled end, leader Kyle Larson was told not to save fuel. Crew chief Cliff Daniels wanted Larson to build a gap between he and Wallace, who was running sixth after the restart but had had pitted later than Larson and many others ahead. That meant Wallace needed less time for his final pit stop because he didn’t require as much fuel as others.

Syndication: The Indianapolis Star

Here’s what NASCAR drivers were saying after the 23XI Racing driver’s victory in the crown jewel event.

Wallace moved to the lead at Lap 143 as others pitted in what became a 168-lap race after the two overtimes.

Although he led, thoughts of losing struck him.

Why would he think that?

“I wish I had the answer to that,” Wallace said. “I think that’s my biggest downfall. We’re all human, and we’re all super hard on ourselves.”

He found a way to counter those negative thoughts.

“I’m like, (expletive) right, we can do this,” Wallace said. “It was kind of like the angel and devil on your shoulder. It wasn’t all negative. But to even have that thought, it’s like, ‘Man, come on, focus.’”

Dueling a champion

Wallace led when rain in Turn 1 stopped the race four laps from the scheduled distance. Most of the track didn’t get wet but Turn 1 had enough rain NASCAR stopped the race for 18 minutes to dry that part of the speedway.

When the race resumed, Wallace had Larson aligned next to him on the front row.

Wallace and Larson ran side by side into Turn 1 on the restart before Wallace pulled ahead at the exit of Turn 2.

“He was first gear on both (of the overtime restarts),” Larson said, “but the first one, he was just a little bit faster paced for the restart zone. I stayed second gear and he got a launch and I was able to just kind of barely hang on his right rear quarter and then drag him back and kind of pull my momentum.”

But it wasn’t enough to get by Wallace.

A crash on the backstretch gave Larson another chance with a second overtime restart.

Cup drivers recap Indianapolis race won by Wallace

Hear from Kyle Larson, Ryan Preece, Alex Bowman, Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin and Bubba Wallace following the NASCAR Cup Series race at Indianapolis.

Wallace had to outduel Larson — who won this race last year — on another restart to have a chance to win.

On the second restart, Wallace took the lead easily by Turn 2 on Larson.

The difference was a tactical change Wallace made on his restart that Larson could not counter.

“He brought the pace down so slow I had to be in first gear as well (as Wallace) and just kind of launched with him,” Larson said. “So I had no momentum that time.”

As Wallace raced to the finish line, there were no negative thoughts. He credits reading “The Daily Stoic,” a book that states it’s designed to help make people happier, along with better parents and professionals.

“It just kind of got me in the philosophical mindset today, trying to understand things from a different perspective,” Wallace said.

“Walking out of the motorhome, I felt different. Walking into the drivers meeting and finding a seat by myself, pulling up my phone and looking at my race notes of what to do, what to expect. Doug (Boles) has been a huge supporter of mine, and I appreciate that.

“So when he was speaking, he mentioned a caveat (about the victories by Earnhardt, Stewart and Busch at this track), and I thought it was interesting. He said, This could be the start of becoming a legend. … I don’t think I’m a legend by any means. I’ve got a lot of work to do, but it all starts with days like today.”





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Big Day for Elite Motorsports

The father-son Pro Stock tandem of Greg and Aaron Stanfield delivered the most promising performance of 2025 for Elite Motorsports Sunday at Somoma, Calif., with multi-time and multi-class champion dad tutoring his son in the final round of the Denso Sonoma Nationals. Elite Motorsports had to stand all season long and watch keen rival KB […]

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The father-son Pro Stock tandem of Greg and Aaron Stanfield delivered the most promising performance of 2025 for Elite Motorsports Sunday at Somoma, Calif., with multi-time and multi-class champion dad tutoring his son in the final round of the Denso Sonoma Nationals.

Elite Motorsports had to stand all season long and watch keen rival KB Titan Racing hog all the trophies and all the glory and all but two of the 22 final-round berths. And neither Elite driver—Erica Enders at Epping, N.H., nor Jeg Coughlin at Seattle, who have 11 champions between them—could win. Elite owner Richard Freeman said, “We have sucked all year long.”

auto: jul 27 denso nhra sonoma nationals

Greg Stanfield celebrates his Pro Stock win on Sunday at Sonoma. Icon Sportswire – Getty Images

But the Stanfields assured Elite Motorsports its first victory in 14 races, since last November, when Aaron Stanfield won at Las Vegas. Winner Greg Stanfield earned his fourth Pro Stock trophy and first since November 2011 at Pomona, Calif., validating his return to the class after a lengthy absence.

“It was special, running Aaron—big time,” the emotional Greg Stanfield said. “That was breathtaking.”

It marked the first time all season that neither Greg Anderson nor Dallas Glenn was in the final round, and both Stanfields said they were dedicating the performances to Elite engine builder Jake Hairston, who’s battling cancer.

Stanfield joined Doug Kalitta (Top Fuel), Austin Prock (Funny Car), and Richard Gadson (Pro Stock Motorcycle) in the winners circle.

Funny Car

And while Brittany Force’s fortunes fizzled in the first round of Top Fuel and Jack Beckman’s Funny Car crossed the center line in the semifinals and was disqualified, John Force Racing salvaged a victory with Austin Prock in Funny Car.

In the final round, Prock defeated class rookie Spencer Hyde, who like Prock broke into the NHRA pro ranks as a Top Fuel driver. Arguably the leading Rookie of the Year candidate and pleasant surprise of the season in Jim Head’s Ford Mustang, Epping, N.H., runner-up, Hyde was making his second final-round appearance.

Earlier in the day, points leader Prock recorded the class’ second-fastest speed at 340.90 mph. But Hyde jumped into the top 10 in the standings, from 12th place to eighth. Hyde advanced to the final round as Jack Beckman’s Chevrolet crossed the center line and was disqualified from the semifinal.

Before the final round, Hyde called Prock “the best Funny Car driver in the world right now.” After clutching his 13th Funny Car trophy in 32 starts, Prock said that he has been working his whole life to live this dream, and “for someone to give you a compliment like that is unbelievable.”

auto: jul 27 denso nhra sonoma nationals

Doug Kalitta was tops in Top Fuel. Icon Sportswire – Getty Images

Top Fuel, Pro Stock Motorcycle Winners

Kalitta, facing Brown for the 10th time in a final round, became the eighth different Top Fuel winner this season. It came at the site of his first victory.

Bristol winner Gadson, captured his second victory, denying Norwalk, Ohio, champion John Hall his second triumph in five weeks.

Brittany Force’s Magic Vanishes Early

Brittany Force, operating in the Top Fuel stratosphere for the past two weeks with her string of 340-plus-mph runs at Seattle and Sonoma, came back down to Earth Sunday morning. Her elation from her 343.16-mph speed in qualifying that is the fastest-ever in drag racing came to an abrupt end as she lost to points leader Shawn Langdon, uncharacteristically the field’s slowest qualifier.

It was a triple play for Langdon. He not only topped Force, but he also earned a bye run into the semifinals because of the short field (only 10 cars for the 16-car line-up) and took advantage of Tony Stewart’s first-round defeat just before. Josh Hart ended Stewart’s streak of Round 1 victories at 11 races.

John Force Racing’s Jack Beckman records milestone victory

Funny Car racer Jack Beckman hit the 500-round-win plateau with his victory in the first round against Jason Rupert. Beckman quipped that he was “half of John Force” and said, “I’d have to live to be 103 to catch Greg Anderson, let alone John Force.” Pro Stock veteran Anderson had 1,104 round-wins as of Round 1 Sunday, and the inactive Force leads the sport with 1,460.

Dan Wilkerson Ends Costly Weekend with Second Engine Explosion

Funny Car bodies are pricey at about $75,000 each, so it’s no wonder Dan Wilkerson was distraught Sunday after his second major engine explosion this weekend. The body of his SCAG Jackal cracked in two as he pushed his luck, falling behind Bob Tasca III in the opposite lane and thinking he could catch him.

“I don’t think I’ve done such a piss-poor job in my entire life of driving one of these things,” a dismayed Wilkerson said. “I was driving with my heart instead of my head. The thing juts blew up in my face again. I can’t believe how bad I let everybody down. Now, tice this weekend, I’ve done a pitiful job.”

Antron Brown Gets Rare Jump on Justin Ashley

With his quarterfinal victory over Justin Ashley, Brown became only the second Top Fuel driver to beat Ashley off the starting line this season.

Known as the sport’s best “leaver,” Ashley has launched first in 30 of his 32 passes. The only other driver to have a better reaction time than Ashley this year was Shawn Langdon, the other notorious leaver, who got the jump on Ashley 11 races ago, April 7 at Phoenix.

Brown said about Ashley, “That kid’s unbelievable. He’s an all-star.”



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MLB Speedway Classic at NASCAR track will break attendance record – NBC Bay Area

Baseball is coming to Bristol — and historic attendance is expected. The MLB Speedway Classic between the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves at Bristol Motor Speedway will break the all-time regular season single-game attendance record, MLB announced Monday. The game, set for Saturday, Aug. 2, has already sold more than 85,000 tickets for the first American or […]

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Baseball is coming to Bristol — and historic attendance is expected.

The MLB Speedway Classic between the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves at Bristol Motor Speedway will break the all-time regular season single-game attendance record, MLB announced Monday.

The game, set for Saturday, Aug. 2, has already sold more than 85,000 tickets for the first American or National League game played in Tennessee. The will break the previous record of 84,587 set on Sept. 12, 1954, when Cleveland Stadium hosted the New York Yankees.

MLB added that fans have purchased tickets from all 50 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and nine countries on four continents.

Bristol Motor Speedway has held NASCAR races since 1961, but the venue — which holds 146,000 seats for races — has hosted more than just motorsports. There were 156,990 fans at the Battle of Bristol college football game between Tennessee and Virginia Tech in 2016.

The game will have several unique features for fans in attendance, too. There will be a pregame concert with performances by Tim McGraw, Pitbull and Jake Owen, as well as a pregame player parade — similar to NASCAR-style driver introductions. After the game, the winning team will be presented with a custom Speedway Classic trophy in a NASCAR victory lane celebration.

Hall of Famers Chipper Jones (Braves) and Johnny Bench (Reds) will throw out the ceremonial first pitches.

The game is set for Saturday, Aug. 2, at 4 p.m. PT, airing on FOX, with pre-game coverage starting at 5 p.m. PT. You can still get tickets to the game here.

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