• The Quaker State 400 will take place at EchoPark Speedway (formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway) on June 28.
• Four open entries (Connor Zilisch, Corey LaJoie, BJ McLeod and David Starr) will participate in the race.

Forty cars will christen the new name of the former Atlanta Motor Speedway when the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Georgia this weekend.

Starting in Chicago, Fans Can Expect Five Epic Races Packed with Exclusive Content, Behind the Scenes Moments, and a Fresh Spin on Post-Race Celebrations

BURBANK, CA (June 26, 2025) – The CW Network and Mobil 1™ teams are joining forces to bring fans closer to the heart of the action with “Mobil 1 Victory Lane” driver interviews at five NASCAR Xfinity Series races this season. Starting Saturday, July 5 in Chicago, the integration will put the Mobil 1 brand front and center for one of motorsport’s most celebrated traditions, the winner’s ride down Victory Lane.

Together with the Mobil 1 brand, The CW Network will highlight one of racing’s most memorable moments in the NASCAR Xfinity Series with custom storytelling and fan-focused content. Additionally, fans can look for a variety of media integrations including the “Keys to Mobil 1 Victory Lane” segment before the green flag with tips and tricks from the brand, “Mobil 1 Victory Lane Leaderboard Updates” after Stages 1 and 2 of each race, “Mobil 1 Winning Moment” featuring a replay of the race to the finish line or a crucial pass, and the ultimate “Mobil 1 Victory Lane Interview & Celebration” with the winning driver. Through these initiatives, Mobil 1, the official motor oil of NASCAR, continues to build on its commitment to the sport and elevate the racing experience for fans and drivers alike.

“We are thrilled to work with a world-class brand such as Mobil 1 to bring the fan-favorite ‘Mobil 1 Victory Lane’ driver interviews back to the NASCAR Xfinity Series on The CW,” said Dan Lanzano, Senior Vice President of Ad Sales, The CW Network. “This initiative is the result of continued collaboration and innovation between The CW, Mobil 1 and NASCAR Productions teams to enhance the Xfinity Series viewing experience for race fans around the country. We look forward to the rest of this season’s adrenaline-packed moments culminating with unforgettable celebrations in ‘Mobil 1 Victory Lane.’”

Following its launch at the Chicago Street Race on Saturday, July 5, “Mobil 1 Victory Lane” driver interviews will continue throughout the season at Watkins Glen International on Saturday, August 9, Daytona International Speedway on Friday, August 22, Talladega Superspeedway on Saturday, October 18, and the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway on Saturday, November 1.

“As a longtime NASCAR partner, we’re excited to team up with The CW Network to bring ‘Mobil 1 Victory Lane’ to five NASCAR Xfinity Series races this season,” said Austin Johansen, North America Marketing Manager for the Mobil 1 brand. “Our goal is to provide fans with new ways to experience the sport we love – bringing them closer to the action and celebrating the energy that makes NASCAR so memorable.”

“’Mobil 1 Victory Lane’ has become a signature celebration in our sport, and we’re thrilled that our partners are committed to showcasing this iconic experience during the NASCAR Xfinity Series on The CW,” said Michelle Byron, NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Partnership Officer. “This expansion reflects the strength of our partnership with Mobil 1 and the exciting new chapter we’ve begun with The CW. Together, we’re bringing fans even closer to the emotion, energy, and authenticity of winning in NASCAR.”

Throughout its first full season as the broadcast home of the NASCAR Xfinity Series, The CW has built meaningful partnerships with top tier brands to create authentic brand integrations and experiences that resonate with fans. The season launched in Daytona with 17 different brands activating throughout the race, and that level of support has remained consistent throughout the year. The success of the live pre-race show NASCAR COUNTDOWN LIVE has also helped create new organic brand integrations featuring The CW’s on-air broadcast talent and some of the top drivers in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

To date, the NASCAR Xfinity Series on The CW is averaging 1.144 million total viewers, a 21% increase over last season’s total average. The first 13 straight races of the season on The CW all drew more than 1 million total viewers, marking the best start to the NASCAR Xfinity Series in nine years. The series continues this weekend with Focused Health 250 live from EchoPark Speedway in Atlanta on Friday, June 27 (7:00-10:00pm/ET).

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About The CW Network
The CW is America’s fifth major broadcast network and reaches 100% of US television households. The CW delivers 15 hours of primetime entertainment programming per week in addition to nearly 400 hours of sports per year as the broadcast home to NASCAR Xfinity Series, WWE NXT, ACC football and basketball games, Pac-12 football games, Grand Slam Track and AVP beach volleyball. The fully ad-supported CW App, with more than 100 million downloads to date, is available for free to consumers on all major platforms and is home to the latest episodes and seasons of The CW’s primetime programming and a library of entertaining film and television content for on-demand viewing. The CW is 75%-owned by Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST), a leading diversified media company and largest CW affiliate group. For more information about The CW, please visit www.cwtv.com.

About Mobil 1™
For 50 years, the Mobil 1 brand has been trusted by drivers to keep their engines running longer. Our products combine the latest technology and innovation to exceed the toughest standards of vehicle manufacturers and tuning shops—so consumers can get the most out of their time behind the wheel, both on the road and on the track. Turn every day into an adventure with Mobil 1 products, the world’s leading synthetic motor oil brand. Learn more at www.mobil1.us and follow @Mobil1Racing on Instagram and X.

The CW Media Contacts:
Beth Feldman                                                                            Rob Moynihan
646/563-8334                                                                            760/519-5543
Beth.Feldman@cwtv.com                                                      Rob.Moynihan@cwtv.com

Tab Boyd is one of the most experienced spotters in the sport, previously working with Hendrick Motorsports, but he most recently worked with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at Hyak Motorsports. 

With Stenhouse, they won the 2023 Daytona 500 and continued this partnership until after the Cup race at Mexico City. Hyak let Boyd go ahead of the race at Pocono, replacing him with Clayton Hughes. No official reason was given for the change, but it’s worth noting that Boyd was in the news earlier that same week for some controversial comments he made about Mexico City.

At the other end of the garage with Joe Gibbs Racing, Christopher Bell was getting adjusted to a world without long-time spotter Stevie Reeves, who quit the team. He was informed that his contract would not be extended at the end of the 2025 season and so, he made the decision to leave early. Matt Philpott, a former JGR mechanic with limited spotter experience took on the role atop the spotter’s stand for the No. 20 Toyota.

However, rosters for this weekend’s race at EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta) show that JGR has changed it up once again. Enter Boyd, who will spot for Bell for this weekend and beyond. The exact terms of the deal are not known, but the change has been confirmed by JGR.

LONG POND, Pa. — A rare thing happened five weeks ago. As NASCAR’s longest race unfolded, social media discourse about the sport — often overflowing with negativity and snark — instead exuded approval over what was playing out on Amazon Prime.

Fans were witnessing a polished, professional broadcast that they felt was unlike anything they’d seen in recent years. And it wasn’t just fans who took notice.

“Everyone who has come up to me — friends or fans or whoever — and has watched the races over the last few weeks has had nothing but incredible things to say,” Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott said. “And it seems like it’s been really well done, at least that’s kind of been the perception that’s out there that I’ve heard.”

Complaining about a race broadcast is like catnip for many NASCAR fans. Regardless of who is handling the coverage, a vocal contingent will make their criticisms known.

It seemed certain Prime would be subject to such scrutiny when it began broadcasting its five-race package of Cup Series events as part of NASCAR’s new seven-year media rights deal that split up the 38 Cup races among Fox Sports (14 races), NBC Sports (14), Prime (five) and Warner Bros. Discovery (five, on TNT). Prime’s foray into NASCAR marks the first time the league’s premier division had its races carried exclusively on a streaming service.

Yet from Prime’s first race on May 25 — the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway — and through the following four weeks, a NASCAR community known to be averse to change largely embraced Prime’s presentation.

“They (Prime) do a good job of telling the stories and getting you excited about strategy and showing how one driver may catch another,” said Denny Hamlin, driver for Joe Gibbs Racing and 23XI Racing co-owner, last week before Prime’s last broadcast at Pocono Raceway. “They are doing a great job so far.”

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (right) interviews winning driver Shane van Gisbergen on Prime after the Cup Series race in Mexico City on June 15. (James Gilbert / Getty Images)

How did Prime resonate with a fan base that’s often skeptical about any outside entity coming into the sport and trying to be different? First, Prime recognized it knew what it didn’t know. For Prime to produce a successful NASCAR broadcast, its leaders knew it was best to lean on experience.

Utilizing a strategy similar to the one it employs for its NFL “Thursday Night Football” broadcasts, Prime partnered with NBC Sports to bring on many of the same behind-the-scenes staffers who make that network’s coverage top-notch. This gave Prime a strong start, only needing to fine-tune how it wanted the broadcasts to look.

To put its own spin on the broadcasts, Prime also introduced new technological elements. The most notable is the “Burn Bar,” which measures a team’s fuel consumption through the course of a race, then conveys the information to viewers in a digestible manner.

“How do we take really complex things and present them in a really simple way,” Prime Video senior coordinating producer Alex Strand said of the broadcast’s goal. “And that to me is the fun challenge of it. … I think most people would be pretty excited and surprised by how much opportunity there is to really get technical, but make it approachable.”

Prime has one big advantage over NASCAR’s other broadcast partners: It’s not bound by the same constraints as linear television and doesn’t have to adhere to strict broadcast windows. As a streaming service with no cap on when it needs to sign off, Prime has more freedom to go deeper in its post-race analysis.

“We, obviously, heard fans talking about it. We also just saw it ourselves,” Strand said. “I want to hear analysts break down how that race ended. We just saw that as an opportunity. And it was already in our DNA, so it was a pretty easy decision to make.”

To figure out how to fill that time, Strand looked at how Prime has covered the NFL, European soccer and other sports properties. Its NASCAR broadcasts featured an extended pre- and post-race show, so its hosts and analysts could first inform viewers on what was to come, then thoroughly recap the races. The run times varied depending on what happened in the race and how much there was to talk about.

Booth analyst Steve Letarte (second from right) joins the Prime studio show after the June 1 race at Nashville Superspeedway. (James Gilbert / Getty Images)

The thoroughness of the post-race show became Prime’s calling card. Anchored by Danielle Trotta and with NASCAR Hall of Famer Carl Edwards and current driver Corey LaJoie as studio analysts — and sometimes joined by booth analysts Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Steve Letarte — the group breaks down the just-completed race to a depth viewers don’t typically get from a post-race show on a network facing time restrictions.

The numbers have reinforced Prime’s decision to produce an elongated post-race show. Prime said the program retained an average of 43 percent of its audience from the race.

“I personally like the pre- and post-race show the most,” Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron said. “Having a professional desk like that and having a chance to recap the race in a more relaxed setting just adds to the value and adds to the energy of the event. It just captures the sights and sounds.”

The post-race show has afforded Edwards and LaJoie, both television newbies, a platform to shine. For LaJoie, who has hosted podcasts and radio shows, this was not a completely new endeavor. Edwards, though, had largely been away from the sport since retiring from racing after the 2016 season.

But Edwards has used his time away as an asset. On the show, he takes an inquisitive approach as he re-acclimates to a sport that’s changed considerably since he raced. This, in a way, makes him serve as a conduit for fans in getting to know drivers better and explaining ongoing storylines.

“You know how in filmmaking they always need a character that doesn’t know anything so they can ask the questions?” Edwards said. “I think this has been just this perfect timing and opportunity for me because I’m literally learning about the sport again. So much has changed.”

NASCAR and Prime hoped that a strong broadcast aired over a streaming service would yield a younger demographic. And so far, it has. According to Prime, the median age for a viewer of its five races was 56.1, nearly seven years younger than audiences watching Cup Series races on linear networks in 2025 (62.8). And its five races represented the five youngest audiences of any Cup race this season. The five-race slate averaged 2.16 million viewers, on par with typical broadcasts on traditional cable networks but down from the 2.56 million average for the same five-week stretch in 2024. Last year, one of those races (the Coke 600) aired on Fox, with the other four on FS1.

“It was rewarding to see NASCAR’s fan base shift over to a new platform,” said Brian Herbst, NASCAR executive vice president, chief media and revenue officer, “not only achieving the viewership levels that NASCAR delivers on cable TV today, but bringing in younger demos and new fans to our sport.”

With NASCAR and fans responding favorably, what will Prime do for an encore next summer? Sitting inside Prime’s production trailer on-site at Pocono Raceway last weekend, Strand shook his head and smiled at the question.

The answer will come later. There’s plenty of time to sort that out.

“We’ve had so much fun,” Strand said. “I’m excited about what TNT will bring (beginning Saturday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway). I’m excited about how NBC will finish the season. … Our hope is that this season of NASCAR really represents a growth in excitement around the sport that rolls into 2026.”

(Top photo of Prime’s NASCAR studio crew; from left, Danielle Trotta, Carl Edwards, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Corey LaJoie: Meg Oliphant / Getty Images)

T.J. Puchyr, one of the founders of Spire Motorsports, and Rick Ware have an agreement for Puchyr to purchase the team, according to a report from the Associated Press.

The deal is for the 2027 season, and the plan is to expand to a three-car NASCAR Cup Series operation, with Ware remaining involved and all Ware employees being retained. Cody Ware, who drives the team’s primary car, the No. 51, would also remain.

“I am bullish on wanting to build a three-car team,” Puchyr told the AP. “I believe in the France family and the direction of the sport and I want the rest of the shareholders and industry to know that I believe the charters are worth $75 million or more.

Ware owns two charters. As the team competes with one, for Cody Ware, the other is currently being leased to RFK Racing. A charter can be leased for one year and then returned to the team that owns it.

However, there is ongoing litigation between Ware and Legacy Motor Club over one of the charters. Legacy Motor Club filed a lawsuit against Ware in April, alleging that Ware backed out of a deal to sell one of his charters. In a countersuit filed by Ware earlier this month, he alleges that the deal was intended for the 2027 season, but the terms of the agreement were changed for the 2026 season, in addition to a dispute over which charter number the agreement pertained to.

“If anybody deserves a pass it is Jimmie [Johnson] and if he wants to sit down and talk about it like men, I’d entertain the conversation,” Puchyr told the AP about Johnson, who is the owner of Legacy Motor Club. “I don’t think Jimmie has all the facts, doesn’t understand the deal we had, and they tried to humiliate Rick publicly. We don’t do business that way.”

Puchyr sold his shares of Spire Motorsports last year to Dan Towriss, the CEO of TWG Motorsports. Since then, he has served in a consulting role for various teams, including Rick Ware and Legacy Motor Club.

Rick Ware Racing couldn’t be reached for comment on the Associated Press report.

You’ve heard of the NBA Cup, soccer’s FA Cup and the WNBA’s Commissioner’s Cup.

Now, it’s time for the NASCAR In-Season Challenge.

The top auto racing series in America is joining other popular sports in adding a tournament in the middle of its season. NASCAR’s brightest stars, from Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson to Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney, will battle it out in a knockout-style challenge for $1 million.

Here are all the details for the inaugural NASCAR In-Season Challenge:

What is the NASCAR In-Season Challenge and how does it work?

The In-Season Challenge is new for 2025, and it’s been inspired by other leagues. NASCAR will have 32 drivers competing in a single-elimination, bracket-style format.

Over five races, the field will dwindle down from 32 to 16 to eight to four to two before the winner receives the $1 million prize. Every driver has a direct opponent in each round. To advance, all you have to do is beat your opponent. So, while there will be all 32 drivers on the track for each race, all you have to do to move on is win your matchup.

Which drivers are competing in the NASCAR In-Season Challenge?

The 32-driver field was determined three weeks ago, with the top 32 drivers in the overall points standings being locked in.

Seeding for the In-Season Challenge was set based on the last three races, with drivers ranked based on their best finishes.

NASCAR In-Season Challenge bracket, seeds, matchups

With just three races used to determine the seeding, there are some wonky matchups that could lead to major upsets. Here’s the seeding and matchups for the first round:

• Denny Hamlin (1) vs. Ty Dillon (32)
• Chase Briscoe (2) vs. Noah Gragson (31)
• Chris Buescher (3) vs. Todd Gilliland (30)
• Christopher Bell (4) vs. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (29)
• Chase Elliott (5) vs. Austin Dillon (28)
• Ty Gibbs (6) vs. Justin Haley (27)
• Ryan Blaney (7) vs. Carson Hocevar (26)
• Alex Bowman (8) vs. Joey Logano (25)
• Bubba Wallace (9) vs. Daniel Suarez (24)
• Kyle Larson (10) vs. Tyler Reddick (23)
• Michael McDowell (11) vs. AJ Allmendinger (22)
• John Hunter Nemechek (12) vs. Josh Berry (21)
• Ross Chastain (13) vs. Erik Jones (20)
• Zane Smith (14) vs. Austin Cindric (19)
• Ryan Preece (15) vs. William Byron (18)
• Kyle Busch (16) vs. Brad Keselowski (17)

NASCAR In-Season Challenge schedule and tracks

There are five races in the tournament, which takes place over five weeks. Here’s the schedule:

How to watch NASCAR In-Season Challenge races

Another new broadcast partner is joining the rotation for the In-Season Challenge.

All five races will air on TNT with Adam Alexander (play-by-play), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (analysis) and Steve Letarte (analysis) on the call. There will also be an alternate broadcast on truTV focusing solely on the In-Season Challenge, with Jeff Burton, Larry McReynolds and special guests. Everything can also be streamed live on Max.

How to fill out NASCAR bracket

Just like March Madness, you can fill out your bracket for the NASCAR In-Season Challenge.

The contest is being run through NASCAR’s website here, and the prize for a perfect bracket is $1 million. NASCAR says there will be additional prizes for top scorers, too. If you prefer to write it out the old-fashioned way, you can print your bracket here.

Ahead of the NASCAR Chicago Street Race, iRacing executive vice president Steve Myers shared how the simulator game is making an impact in the real world.