INDIANAPOLIS — The challenges will be immense for NASCAR Cup drivers and teams in today’s race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

A narrow track and high speeds make it tough to pass. That impacts what happens on the track and how the strategy goes.

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Here’s a look at what to watch for today.

Cautions breed cautions

Last year’s race saw half of the 10 cautions come after restarts, including crashes that eliminated, among others, William Byron, Joey Logano, Alex Bowman and Denny Hamlin.

Logano was eliminated by a crash on a restart that started behind him.

“It came forward,” Logano said of the accident that ended his race a year ago. “You don’t see that every day, do you?

“I think everyone knows it’s hard to pass. If (a restart is) your opportunity to pass, everybody’s willing to ship it in there and figure it out later. Unfortunately, it causes accidents.

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“If there’s ability to pass later on, then everybody probably would have a little more respect for each other, more grace out there, a little more give and take.”

The last three Cup races on the Indy oval have seen at least one crash on a restart.

“I think without fuel saving, restarts are kind of one of your only opportunities to pass here,” Bowman said. “They got super crazy there at the end (last year).”

Tight pit road

A majority of the fast cars selected pit stalls near pit exit because the width of pit road at Indianapolis (not including the pit boxes) is 24 feet. Only World Wide Technology Raceway has a narrower pit road width at 22 feet.

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Ryan Blaney knows the challenges of pitting near pit entrance. In the 2020 race at Indianapolis, Zach Price, who remains the rear tire changer for Blaney, was struck on pit road when there was a chain-reaction crash just after pit entrance that blocked pit road.

“I’m like ultra vigilant here,” Blaney said of pit road. “Let’s say I’m done with my stop and I’m cruising down pit road (in the far right lane), I’m always watching those cars on the left who are in their stall. I’ve got to look at are they about to drop the left-side jack, and what that looks like because you can’t bail anywhere. The only way you can bail is to slow down and stop. It makes it pretty tough. Hopefully … you don’t see any issues on pit road and guys stay safe.”

Indianapolis starting lineup: Chase Briscoe claims NASCAR Cup pole at home track

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Chase Briscoe has won five poles this season, including at the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600 and now the Brickyard 400.

Teams pick pit stalls based on how they qualify. The pole winner gets first choice, the No. 2 starter the second choice and on down to the final car.

Most teams select closer to pit exit to avoid potential incidents near pit entrance or the middle of pit road.

Bubba Wallace will start second and that gives him a good pit stall. He will be in pit stall 5, which has an opening in front of it, allowing Wallace to exit his stall without worry of being blocked in.

“This is probably the sketchiest pit road, for sure,” Wallace said. “Obviously, we’ve seen a lot of crashes (on pit road) here, a lot of injuries. So, we can keep ourselves out of harm’s way, the better. I’m excited. That’s what we want, a good qualifying effort.”

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Guess the right strategy

Crew chiefs will be busy devising the strategy they think gets their car to the finish line first. Brad Keselowski tried to stretch his fuel in last year’s race but a late caution sent the race into overtime. As the field headed toward the restart zone, Keselowski, who led, pulled off to pit road because he was out of fuel.

How to watch Sunday’s Brickyard 400 Cup race at Indianapolis: Start time, TV info and weather

There are only three former winners in the field of the crown jewel event.

“I think we were really aggressive last year and we almost won the race,” Keselowski said. “I wouldn’t expect anything to change there, and we’ve got no reason not to be very aggressive. I certainly don’t want to just do dumb things just to do them, but this is a race that lends itself to aggressive moves on the track and off the track with pit strategy.”

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Playoff picture

Twelve drivers have won this season, leaving four playoff spots open at this time via points. Those in a playoff spot without a victory this season are Tyler Reddick (156 points above the cutline), Alex Bowman (+63), Chris Buescher (+44) and Bubba Wallace (+16).

Ryan Preece is the first driver outside a playoff spot. He lost 13 points to Wallace last weekend at Dover and is 16 points back. Kyle Busch is 39 points below the cutline. Ty Gibbs is 52 points below the cutline.

$1 million at stake

NASCAR’s inaugural In-Season Challenge comes to an end at Indianapolis. Ty Dillon, the last seed in the 32-driver event, faces Ty Gibbs. Whoever finishes better will claim the $1 million prize.

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“If we execute our race and do the best to our abilities – no mistakes and out execute everybody in the field – we might not have the most speed to win the race, but we’re going to do plenty to put pressure on him,” Dillon said of Gibbs.

INDIANAPOLIS — Bubba Wallace was filled with doubt during the last 20 laps of the Brickyard 400, haunted by the mental demons of low confidence and a 100-race winless drought.

“I kept telling myself ‘I’m not going to be able to do it,’” he said.

As it turned out, Wallace was wrong.

Wallace drove to a surprising victory in one of NASCAR’s “majors” on Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, putting himself and his Michael Jordan-owned 23XI Racing team into victory lane — and back into NASCAR’s playoffs.

It was the first win for Wallace since 2022, a stretch that eroded his self-belief and had left him searching for a mental reset.

He found it this year through being a first-time father, getting a new crew chief — nine-year U.S. Army veteran Charles Denike — and reading Ryan Holliday’s “The Daily Stoic.”

BUBBA WALLACE IS A WINNER AT THE BRICKYARD! pic.twitter.com/5ITVgH9m8f

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 27, 2025

So while Wallace was fighting the other competitors for the win on Sunday, he was also fighting himself — except this time, he won on both accounts.

“We’re all human and we’re all super hard on ourselves,” Wallace said. “You guys know how hard I (can be) on myself. … It’s still working out those kinks and growing as a person.”

However, Wallace said he wasn’t at all thinking negatively on two crucial overtime restarts — where he twice outdueled NASCAR’s best driver, Kyle Larson. There was no questioning how Wallace had to earn this one.

Wallace got out of the car, stood on the roof, flexed his muscles and then made a hush sign at the crowd — who booed him during the pre-race driver introductions.

An emotional Wallace then greeted his infant son, Becks, and held him up to the crowd like Simba in “The Lion King.”

Bubba Wallace celebrates winning the Brickyard 400. pic.twitter.com/Nh0nMhRpJw

— Jordan Bianchi (@Jordan_Bianchi) July 27, 2025

“To win here at the Brickyard, knowing how big this race is, knowing all the noise that’s going on in the background — to set that all aside is a testament to these people here on this No. 23 team,” Wallace said.

The “noise” refers to 23XI Racing’s federal antitrust lawsuit against NASCAR, which resulted in the team losing its chartered status two weeks ago after its appeals were exhausted and a temporary restraining order was denied.

However, even running as an “Open” car, Wallace won in NASCAR’s regular season for the first time in his career. His previous NASCAR Cup Series wins, at Talladega and Kansas, came during the playoffs while he was competing as a non-playoff driver.

Now he’s into the 16-driver postseason with four races remaining and doesn’t have to worry about the points bubble.

“It’s been getting old running on the cutline,” Wallace said.

To win his first NASCAR major — the others are the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600 and Southern 500 — Wallace had to survive two overtime restarts against NASCAR champion Larson.

Earlier, Wallace was cruising en route to a 4.5-second victory, but a caution suddenly flew for light rain with six laps remaining, erasing his lead.

“It’s fine, it’s fine!” he protested, obviously upset to see a yellow flag. Still, indeed, there was enough rain for NASCAR to dry the track.

Bubba Wallace kisses the bricks after winning his first #NASCAR major. #Brickyard400 pic.twitter.com/Yolx7Knl5u

— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) July 27, 2025

When the race restarted in the first attempt at overtime, Wallace and Larson raced side-by-side through Turns 1 and 2, and Wallace ended up clearing for the lead. But just when Wallace was a half-lap from the white flag, a crash in the middle of the field with Zane Smith and Tyler Reddick brought out another caution flag and triggered a second overtime.

With all of the leaders close on fuel, Wallace, Larson and others decided to stay out and gamble again. This time, Wallace got an even better restart, cleared Larson and sailed to the biggest victory of his life.

“To overcome so much and put these people here in victory lane, that’s what it’s about,” Wallace said. “It’s about these people who continue to push me and believe in me.”

Wallace had a good car from the start. He qualified second on Saturday, barely missing the pole position, then finished second in Stage 1 and 10th in Stage 2. He was able to cycle to the race lead after the final set of pit stops, with an assist from a blown Joey Logano tire after it looked like Logano was in control of the race.

On the cooldown lap, many of the drivers raced up alongside Wallace and stuck a thumbs up or waved out the window to congratulate him, with some giving a celebratory door rub. Wallace may not be beloved by some NASCAR fans, but he is popular inside the garage.

“Wish it could have been one spot better, but congrats to Bubba,” Larson said. “That’s so cool. This is a big race, and he’s a good dude.”

“If we couldn’t do it, obviously, he was the one guy I wish could do it. And it’s awesome he did,” said Wallace’s best friend Ryan Blaney, who finished seventh. “It’s cool he was able to finish it, especially at such a big place like this. It’s been a tough year for him and for him to step up today and get it done, that’s got to feel pretty f—ing good.”

Now, as 23XI continues to battle NASCAR in the courts, it is poised to have two of its drivers in the playoffs. Reddick is currently the top driver in the standings who has not already qualified, and should make the field unless there are three new winners in the next four races.

(Photo: Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images)

BEARD MOTORSPORTS
Brickyard 400
Date: July 27, 2025
Event: Brickyard 400
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (2.5-mile rectangular oval)
Format: 160 laps, broken into three stages (50 laps/50 laps/60 laps)
Note: Race extended eight laps past its scheduled 160-lap distance due to a green-white-checkered finish.

Race Winner: Bubba Wallace of 23XI Racing (Toyota)
Stage 1 Winner: Chase Briscoe of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 2 Winner: Ryan Blaney of Team Penske (Ford)

Beard Motorsports Finish:

● Jesse Love Jr. (Started 35th, Finished 24th / Running, completed 167 of 168)

Notes:

● Love made his fourth career Cup Series start and second with Beard Motorsports from 35th on the grid. He held that relative position over the opening green-flag run of the race, which ended on lap 19 when the spinning car of Ross Chastain brought out the first caution flag of the day. Love reported being a little tight in traffic during the opening run but overall felt pretty happy with the handling of the No. 62 C4 Ultimate Energy Chevrolet. He pitted for four tires and fuel before restarting 32nd on lap 23.

● After dropping a pair of positions on the ensuing restart, Love climbed to 27th by the end of Stage 1 on lap 50, reporting that as more and more rubber was laid down on the racing surface, he felt the track was “coming to us.” Love pitted for four tires and fuel during the stage break, again reporting he was happy with the car’s balance.

● Stage 2 went green with Love in the 32nd spot, from where he advanced steadily to 19th by the time he pitted under green for four tires and fuel on lap 80, 20 laps ahead of the second stage break. He rejoined the race in 31st, one lap down, with the top 16 cars yet to make their green-flag stops. Love reported still being a tad tight in traffic but also still feeling good with the overall handling of the No. 62 Chevrolet.

● The caution flag flew on lap 90, 10 laps ahead of the stage break, with Love running 25th. He found himself in 24th, the first car a lap down, as cars throughout the field employed varying pit strategies during the caution. The No. 62 team opted to stay out on track as it was in position to earn the “lucky dog” free pass back onto the lead lap if Love could hold his spot over the final laps of the stage. The race returned to green on lap 96, with four laps to go in the stage, and from there Love couldn’t hold off a handful of cars that did pit and restarted on fresh tires. He finished Stage 2 in 27th, one lap down.

● Love started the final stage 27th, the third car one lap down, and drove up to 25th when he came down pit road for a two-tire, green-flag stop on lap 140. Rain that wetted a portion of the track brought out the red flag with four laps to go in regulation. When the race went back to green for the first attempt at a green-white-checkered finish on lap 161, Love restarted 25th and emerged from multicar mayhem on that lap with slight front-end damage and was able to continue. He restarted 23rd for the second attempt at a green-white-checkered finish on lap 166 and took the checkered flag in 24th, his best finish in four career Cup Series starts, all this season.

Race Notes:

● Bubba Wallace won the Brickyard 400 to score his third career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his first of the season and his first at Indianapolis. His margin of victory over second-place Kyle Larson was .222 of a second.

● There were six caution periods for a total of 30 laps.

● Only 22 of the 39 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.

● Chase Elliott remains the championship leader after Indianapolis with a four-point advantage over second-place William Byron.

Jesse Love Jr., driver of the No. 62 C4 Ultimate Energy Chevrolet:

“It absolutely smoked us getting trapped a lap down pretty early. We short-pitted trying to gain some track position under caution. But unfortunately a caution came out right before the stage break and that knocked us a lap down. Yeah, super unfortunate that happened but I felt like we could have somehow battled back into the top-20. We had a good bit of speed and I felt like we had the right strategy after that. Just a bummer that happened early on, but still a really cool day in the Cup car and we felt competitive.”

Next Up:

Beard Motorsports is scheduled to make its next appearance at the Aug. 23 Coke Zero Sugar 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. Driver and sponsor information are to be announced.

Mother Nature wasn’t going to deprive Bubba Wallace of the most important win of his career, not on this Sunday afternoon. 

Unsure of the amount of fuel left in his No. 23 Toyota, Wallace survived a rain shower and two overtime restarts at Indianapolis Motor Speedway to win the Brickyard 400 presented by PPG in two overtimes he punched his ticket to the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

Wallace was comfortably ahead of runner-up Kyle Larson with four laps left in regulation, but the sudden shower forced NASCAR to call the fifth caution of the afternoon.  

The rain was gone almost as quickly as it appeared, and after a short stoppage to dry the track, Wallace pulled ahead of Larson on the first overtime restart. A five-car accident on the backstretch, however, sent the race to a second extra period.

Wallace stayed on track for the next restart – hoping his fuel would last – again pulled away from Larson and this time took the white flag without incident. After one more circuit, he crossed the finish line 0.222s ahead of Larson to claim the trophy in the Crown Jewel event.

The third victory of Wallace’s career ended a 100-race dry spell dating to Sept. 11, 2022 at Kansas Speedway. He led 30 laps, including the last 26, as the race went eight circuits beyond the scheduled 160.

“Oh, my gosh, I’m just so proud of this team,” Wallace said. “That adrenaline rush is crazy, ‘cause I’m coming off that right now, and I’m worn out.”

After pausing to hug wife Amanda and hold his 10-month-old son Becks aloft in front of the cheering crowd in the grandstands, Wallace continued.

“It’s unbelievable,” he said. “To win here at the Brickyard, knowing how big this race is, knowing all the noise that’s going on in the background, to set that all aside is a testament to these people here on this No. 23 team. It’s been getting old right around the cut line (for the Playoffs).”

Wallace, who started on the front row beside pole winner Chase Briscoe, ran consistently in the top five but didn’t take control of the race until after he pitted on lap 119 during a cycle of green-flag stops early in the final stage.

He took the lead for good when Ryan Blaney pitted on lap 142 and enjoyed an advantage of more than 5s after the stops cycled out. Though Larson made inroads into Wallace’s advantage, he wasn’t in position to challenge for the victory until the rain came.

After the shower, Wallace prevailed on the restarts against one of the top drivers in motorsports.

“There’s nothing you can do here to pass, so, no, I don’t really think there was anything I could do differently,” said Larson, the defending Brickyard 400 winner. “I was second gear on the first restart, and honestly, that one worked out a little bit better, but he almost got clear of me down the frontstretch.

“And then on the second restart, he brought the pace down a little bit slower, so I needed to be first gear. It was kind of the same thing with me last year – he had the preferred lane on the inside, and it’s really hard to beat that.”

Denny Hamlin, who co-owns Wallace’s 23XI Racing car with former NBA superstar Michael Jordan, finished third after crashing in Turn 2 during qualifying and starting the race from the rear in a backup car.

In the finals of the NASCAR Cup Series In-Season Challenge, Ty Gibbs claimed the $1-million prize by finishing 21st to Ty Dillon’s 28th. The battle wasn’t as close as the respective finishing positions might suggest.

Dillon went a lap down to then-leader Austin Cindric on lap 78, sustained damage to the nose of this No. 10 Chevrolet during a restart and finished three laps in arrears.

“One million is a lot of money, so I’m going to donate $10,000 to whichever charity Ty Dillon wants to give to,” Gibbs said. “It’s his choice.”

“But we had a fast SAIA LTL Freight Toyota Camry. Didn’t end up where we wanted to in the end. We just lost track position and [were out of the running] to win the race.” 

Ryan Preece finished fourth on Sunday but remains 42 points below the current elimination line for the Playoffs with four races left in the regular season. Brad Keselowski was fifth, posting his third top-five result of the season.

Todd Gilliland, Blaney, Christopher Bell, Alex Bowman and Carson Hocevar completed the top 10.

Cindric led a race-high 40 laps to 34 for Briscoe.

William Byron saw his bid to retake the series lead from Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott fall apart on the final lap. Byron took the green flag for the final overtime restart in third but ran out of fuel and fell to 16th at the finish.

Byron trails Elliott by four points in the chase for the regular-season championship. Larson is 15 points back in third.

RESULTS

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