It's official: The stars of the NASCAR Cup Series will battle it out for $1 million in a five-race, 32-driver tournament in the middle of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season.

• The three seeding races will be broadcast on Amazon Prime, while Turner Sports will televise the five races that comprise the tournament, all leading up to one driver taking home a big paycheck.

  NASCAR fans immediately thought back to the days of Winston's "No-Bull 5," a program that followed the "Winston Million" campaign of the 1980's. The No-Bull 5 ran from 1998 to 2002, pitting five drivers against one another in NASCAR's five crown jewel races: The Daytona 500, the Coca-Cola 600, the Brickyard 400, the Southern 500 and the Winston 500 at Talladega. A driver who was eligible for the prize that won one of the listed races would win a $1 million bonus, as well as $1 for the lucky fan who was paired with the driver.

  The No-Bull 5 might be the closest thing NASCAR has seen to the NBA's In-Season tournament so far, which debuted during the 2023-24 season and saw considerable gains in the NBA's TV ratings. NASCAR is hoping their in-season tournament will give the sport a much needed boost during a normally mundane summer stretch.

  NASCAR's new tournament will be straightforward -- a good thing considering the complexity of the sport's playoff system. Simply put, the driver who finishes ahead of the driver they're paired with moves on, knocking their competitor out. While the tournament will make every spot on the racetrack that much more valuable, fans are wondering if the race for a $1 million bonus could impact the championship battle.

  Sixteen playoff spots are made available in the NASCAR Cup Series each season, with a race win equaling a guaranteed spot in the postseason. Wins matter more in modern-day NASCAR than they ever have. With the ability to lock a driver into the playoffs, advance him from round to round and even win him the championship, winning races by whatever means necessary has been incentivized as much as possible by NASCAR.

  It's what makes moves like Chris Buescher's three-wide pass at Darlington or Tyler Reddick's failed slide job later in the same race that much more meaningful -- second is still a good points day, but it doesn't have a major impact in the grand scheme of things.

  Even in a sports world where the value of $1 million seems to be decreasing by the hour, the only other NASCAR events that pay close to it are the All-Star Race, which pays an even $1 million to the winner, as well as the Daytona 500 and the Cup Series championship.

  Putting an extra $1 million on the line during a stretch of the season where most title contenders have already locked up a playoff spot will only make the top drivers in the sport that much more hungry for victory lane.

  However, for the "bubble" drivers -- those that are hovering around the 14-20th range in points, hoping to point their way into the playoffs -- no such comfort exists.

  Being locked into the postseason provides an inherent advantage in modern-day NASCAR of being able to go for broke until the playoffs start. If you win the Daytona 500, you have the ability to use the next 25 weeks as a regular-season test session, experimenting with pit strategy and setups can help the top contenders better prepare for the championship push over the final 10 races of the season.

  While the bubble drivers certainly want to park their cars in victory lane on Sunday afternoon, they may not have the speed under the hood to do so. While these drivers need every point they can get to try and make the postseason field, the in-season tournament could force crew chiefs and drivers to make a difficult choice -- do you play it safe for a good points day that will contribute to your effort to make the playoffs, or do you take a gamble in an effort to advance through the in-season tournament?

  As the tournament progresses, that decision could prove easier, as taking a chance for a $1 million payday sounds better than taking a risk just to advance through the first round. But it will certainly be interesting to see what strategies are employed when next summer comes around, and if any teams can find a way to both race for points and a payday.

  The third tier of drivers -- those from 20th on back in the standings that need a win to make the playoffs regardless once summer rolls around -- will have even more reason to make bold moves, try a unique pit strategy, or stay out with rain approaching than ever before.

  Think about a small team, such as Rick Ware Racing or Spire Motorsports, and how far $1 million could go toward improvements. To Hendrick Motorsports or Joe Gibbs Racing, $1 million is a drop in the bucket. But for a team still looking to prove they belong in the Cup Series, $1 million could be the funds they need to take the next step.

  Of course, it's unlikely that one of those cars could get to the finals of the tournament without a wild turn of events, but modern-day NASCAR certainly isn't shy about letting chaos unfold on a weekly basis.

  We don't yet know what races the 2025 schedule -- and hence, the tournament itself -- will entail, but regardless of the tracks NASCAR decides to visit over the course of the tournament, expect drivers to be driving harder than ever to try and grab that $1 million check.

  --By Samuel Stubbs, Field Level Media

After driving the No. 6 Arrow McClaren car in last month's April open test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Callum Ilott will be behind the wheel at the Indianapolis 500 on May 26.

• Arrow McClaren on Monday announced the decision to have Ilott replace the injured David Malukas, who was dropped by the team on April 29 after sustaining multiple injuries in an offseason mountain bike accident.

  "It is any driver's dream to race in the Indianapolis 500, and I'd like to extend a thank you to [team owner] Zak [Brown], [team principal] Gavin [Ward] and Tony [Kanaan] for making this happen," Ilott said in a statement. "I'm grateful to step into this race with a familiar car and a familiar team now in Arrow McLaren. ... I feel comfortable with the team and know that we can come together throughout the Month of May to put our best foot forward come Race Day."

  Ilott, 25, finished 12th last season at the Indy 500 with Juncos Hollinger Racing, an improvement over his 32nd-place finish as a rookie.

  This season, Ilott is second in this season's series standings at the World Endurance Championship.

  Reigning Formula 2 Theo Pourchaire has been driving the No. 6 during the IndyCar season, but has a scheduling conflict for Indy 500 qualifying, which will be held Saturday and Sunday. Pourchaire will return to the No. 6 car following the Indy 500, which will be Ilott's final IndyCar race this season.

  There will be 34 drivers competing for 33 spots at this weekend's qualifying events.

  --Field Level Media

NASCAR is launching an in-season tournament with a $1 million first-place prize during the 2025 season.

• NASCAR announced the tournament on Monday. It will slot 32 drivers in a single-elimination bracket format, and over the course of five races, drivers will advance in the bracket based on their head-to-head finish against their rival driver.

  Results of the three races preceding the tournament will determine the drivers who qualify and how they're seeded. Those three races will air on Amazon Prime Video, while TNT will have all five races in the tournament itself.

  The races and tracks to be utilized for the tournament were not yet announced.

  "With the launch of our new media rights partnerships in 2025, we were excited to partner with Prime Video and TNT Sports to collaborate on fan engagement concepts that drive story lines in our sport and innovation from a production perspective," NASCAR senior vice president of media and productions Brian Herbst said in a press release.

  "Having head-to-head driver matchups for each one of TNT's NASCAR Cup Series races will add a compelling fan engagement element across media platforms like TNT, Bleacher Report, House of Highlights and NASCAR digital platforms."

  --Field Level Media

DARLINGTON, S.C. - Driving a No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota, with a paint scheme reminiscent of the late Tim Richmond's 1982 Buick, Tyler Reddick emulated the driver he was honoring.

• Reddick won the pole position for Sunday's Goodyear 400 NASCAR Cup Series race (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

  Turning a lap at Darlington Raceway in 28.906 seconds (170.124 mph) in the final round of qualifying, Reddick edged Brad Keselowski (170.018 mph) for the top starting spot by 0.018 seconds.

  The Busch Light Pole Award was Reddick's first of the season, his first at the "Track Too Tough to Tame" and the seventh of his career. Richmond won Darlington poles in 1983 and 1986.

  "Just really excited that this Tim Richmond throwback Camry is going to be starting on the pole," said Reddick, who added to the tribute with his own Richmond-style mustache.

  "It's really nice to put the work in this week to have that kind of qualifying effort. Last week was tough (20th-place finish at Kansas). We didn't lack any effort in trying to find ways to have a good week this week."

  Chris Buescher qualified third at 169.543 mph, giving Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing two of the top three grid positions for Sunday's race, the 13th of the season. Buescher finished second to Kyle Larson by 0.001 seconds last Sunday at Kansas Speedway in the closest finish in Cup Series history.

  Ty Gibbs (169.491 mph) will start fourth, followed by William Byron, Larson, Denny Hamlin, Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain and Martin Truex Jr. Chastain edged Kyle Busch for the final Group B spot in the second round after both drivers ran identical times to the thousandth of a second in the opening round.

  Chastain got the nod on an owner points tiebreaker.

  Returning to competition after a two-race injury absence, Erik Jones will start 30th in the No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota. Jones suffered a compression fracture of a lower vertebra during a multicar wreck at Talladega in April.

  Reddick's paint scheme is his second honoring Richmond.

  "He was the type of driver, in my opinion -- when he was at the track or away from the track -- he was always living life to the fullest and really happy living the life he (led)," Reddick said.

  "Obviously, what he could do inside of a race car, too, is something that I always extremely appreciated about him."

  There's one more way Reddick can emulate Richmond -- do what Richmond did in 1986 and win at Darlington from the pole.

  Erik Jones returns with seat adjustment

  Discretion was the better part of valor for Erik Jones, who sat out last Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway despite having been cleared to compete.

  Jones suffered a compression fracture of a lower vertebra in a violent collision with the outside wall during a multicar accident April 21 at Talladega and missed the last two races, at Dover and Kansas.

  He returns this weekend at Darlington, where he has claimed two of his three career victories, both in the Southern 500.

  "There was probably a possibility coming back right away with the injury, but Dover was not a place where that was going to happen," Jones said before qualifying on Saturday at Darlington. "Even Kansas was a place that was going to be challenging with high speed and a lot of risk of being an incident-not of your own doing necessarily.

  "Coming to Darlington, I feel like you can control your own destiny a bit. There is less risk for an accident like that. Also, three weeks in, I feel like we are on the safe side of 100 percent, and I feel 100 percent."

  After a significant accident, there's always evaluation, and Jones' Legacy Motor Club team has made changes to increase Jones' comfort in the No. 43 Toyota.

  "We've changed the seat a lot," Jones explained. "This will be the first race on that seat. I'm sitting in a pretty different position than I'm used to for almost all of my racing career. Guys that have (gone) through this similar injury have gone through the same transition to their seating position as well.

  "Fortunately -- it's not a short race, it's 400 miles -- but it feels short here, I feel like. It will be a good test here, and next week at (North) Wilkesboro (in the NASCAR All-Star Race). How does the seat feel, what can I change before the (Coca-Cola) 600?

  "I would say it is two good weeks of that, seeing how I feel, seeing what is bothering me, especially after Darlington tomorrow, and saying this what hurts, this is what we are going to change, and this is how we are going to move forward."

  Todd Gilliland open to leadership role at Front Row

  When Front Row Motorsports mainstay Michael McDowell announced earlier this week that he was leaving the organization after seven seasons, it took teammate Todd Gilliland by surprise.

  "Part of me is surprised he's leaving, just because - same as you guys see - he's been there a long time, and he's really built the organization up into what it is today, in my opinion," Gilliland said on Saturday at Darlington Raceway. "He's been a huge part of that.

  "Yes, I am surprised he's leaving, but at the same time, he's been doing so well you have to think there's going to be opportunities. So, yes, I'm definitely sad to see him go just based on how much his does, his leadership within the team."

  McDowell's exit to Spire Motorsports potentially thrusts Gilliland into a leadership role at Front Row, where his father, David Gilliland, drove for six full seasons.

  "I did some interview where I said hopefully I can take the torch where I can do the leadership deal, and I joked at the moment (to McDowell), ‘I didn't want it to be this soon-you didn't need to leave this early.'"

  Before he can assume a leadership position at Front Row, however, Gilliland has to have a deal in place for next season. Team owner Bob Jenkins operates on a year-to-year basis, and one of the reasons the 2021 Daytona 500 winner chose was the offer of a longer-term deal with Spire.

  Kyle Busch seeking stability in Next Gen Cup Car

  The transition to NASCAR's Next Gen race car hasn't been kind to Kyle Busch.

  In 2022, the year of the Next Gen's introduction into the NASCAR Cup Series, Busch stole a win on Bristol dirt when Chase Briscoe and Tyler Reddick collided in front of him. That was his only victory in his final season with Joe Gibbs Racing.

  Busch won three times in 2023 after a move to Richard Childress Racing, but he feels that other teams have made progress with the setups of the car that RCR hasn't matched.

  "Last year, we were good out of the gate," Busch said. "We had some good stuff, and then as times have changed, the setups have evolved, and guys have found how to make their stuff go faster. We just haven't been able to do that."

  Busch has 63 victories to his credit, most among active Cup Series drivers, but he hasn't achieved the level of comfort with the new car that Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson have, for example.

  "It definitely drives different than the old car," Busch said. "What that is, I'm not exactly sure. ... When you lean into the corner and the right-front is outside the right-rear, the car is much tighter. When you get to the center off of the corner and the right-front is inside the right-rear coming downhill, it's much looser.

  "And so, trying to find that balance of that has been difficult, trying to get that right. But the old car didn't have that sensation. It was easy to just make a smooth corner and have the balance stay the same the whole time, where now I feel like I'm fighting many more balance issues."

  The last two weeks have showed promise, however. Busch won the pole and finished fourth at Dover. At Kansas last Sunday, he ran consistently in the top five and rallied from a late spin to finish eighth.

  --By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service, Special to Field Level Media

DARLINGTON, S.C. -- Justin Allgaier finally beat Murphy's Law to the checkered flag in Saturday's Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200 at Darlington Raceway.

• This time, there were no bizarre circumstances to keep the driver of the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet out of Victory lane, like the late cut tire that deprived Allgaier of a near-certain win at Phoenix in the fourth race of the season.

  After crossing the finish line 3.407 seconds ahead of runner-up Austin Hill, Allgaier had his first victory of the season, his third at the Lady in Black and the 24th of his career, tying him with his car owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr., for 10th most in NASCAR Xfinity Series history.

  Allgaier, 37, also leaves Darlington as the career leader in top-10 finishes in the series with 267, having broken a tie with Kyle Busch in that statistical category.

  "I just wanted (spotter) Eddie (D'Hondt) to call 'White flag,'" said Allgaier, who had led laps in seven of 10 events this season without winning. "We've had such a heck of a year. We've led a ton of laps, and we haven't been able to do it. ...

  "I think having a little gray hair today helped me out, though. Those long green-flag runs, and being able to know what's worked in the past here. ... I didn't know if the day would come when I'd be able to match Dale Jr. Not only is he a great boss but a really good mentor.

  "To come here and be able to tie him, to be able to take over the all-time top 10s, man, there's nothing better."

  Hill, who led six laps to Allgaier's 119 of 147, blamed himself for not being able to challenge his fellow Chevrolet driver for the victory.

  "I just couldn't get into Turn 1 on restarts like I really needed to all day," said the driver of the No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Camaro. "It was just me. I've just got to figure out what to do differently getting into Turn 1.

  "I did really good with my launches. That's something that I struggled with here where I'd buzz the tires late in the zone. Didn't do that all day -- I felt pretty good about my restarts -- but I would get down into (Turn) 1 and I'd get tight. ...

  "More than anything, I've just got to do a better job inside the race car. I thought we were just as good as the 7 all day. Congrats to those guys. We were just that little bit off today, and I think most of it was me."

  Polesitter Cole Custer recovered from a disastrous pit stop under an early competition caution to finish third, followed by Sam Mayer and Aric Almirola.

  "Every time I get in this car, I plan to win and expect to win," Almirola said. "Fifth is great, but I want to win -- but Justin was so fast."

  Parker Kligerman, Riley Herbst, Sunoco rookie Jesse Love, Sheldon Creed and Brandon Jones completed the top 10. Rookie Shane van Gisbergen finished 15th in his first Darlington start. Carson Kvapil was 19th in his third race in the series and his first at Darlington.

  Hill took the series lead by three points over Custer in second.

  NASCAR Xfinity Series Race -- Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200

  Darlington Raceway

  Darlington, South Carolina

  Saturday, May 11, 2024

  1. (7) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 147.

  2. (5) Austin Hill, Chevrolet, 147.

  3. (1) Cole Custer, Ford, 147.

  4. (6) Sam Mayer, Chevrolet, 147.

  5. (18) Aric Almirola, Toyota, 147.

  6. (11) Parker Kligerman, Chevrolet, 147.

  7. (9) Riley Herbst, Ford, 147.

  8. (12) Jesse Love #, Chevrolet, 147.

  9. (3) Sheldon Creed, Toyota, 147.

  10. (14) Brandon Jones, Chevrolet, 147.

  11. (38) William Byron(i), Chevrolet, 147.

  12. (2) Chandler Smith, Toyota, 147.

  13. (26) Ryan Sieg, Ford, 147.

  14. (8) Anthony Alfredo, Chevrolet, 147.

  15. (17) Shane Van Gisbergen #, Chevrolet, 147.

  16. (16) Jeb Burton, Chevrolet, 147.

  17. (15) Kyle Weatherman, Chevrolet, 147.

  18. (24) Taylor Gray(i), Toyota, 147.

  19. (13) Carson Kvapil, Chevrolet, 147.

  20. (21) Brennan Poole, Chevrolet, 147.

  21. (25) Josh Williams, Chevrolet, 147.

  22. (30) Josh Bilicki, Chevrolet, 147.

  23. (34) John Hunter Nemechek(i), Toyota, 147.

  24. (27) David Starr, Ford, 147.

  25. (31) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, 147.

  26. (37) Chad Finchum, Chevrolet, 147.

  27. (36) Blaine Perkins, Ford, 147.

  28. (33) Dawson Cram #, Chevrolet, 147.

  29. (35) Garrett Smithley, Chevrolet, 146.

  30. (22) Leland Honeyman #, Chevrolet, 146.

  31. (10) Parker Retzlaff, Chevrolet, 146.

  32. (29) Kyle Sieg, Ford, 146.

  33. (28) Patrick Emerling, Chevrolet, 146.

  34. (23) Sammy Smith, Chevrolet, 146.

  35. (4) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 126.

  36. (32) Hailie Deegan #, Ford, Accident, 102.

  37. (19) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 94.

  38. (20) Ryan Ellis, Chevrolet, Driveshaft, 71.

  Average Speed of Race Winner: 110.567 mph.

  Time of Race: 1 Hrs, 48 Mins, 58 Secs. Margin of Victory: 3.407 Seconds.

  Caution Flags: 5 for 31 laps.

  Lead Changes: 5 among 4 drivers.

  Lap Leaders: C. Custer 1-21;A. Allmendinger 22;A. Hill 23-25;J. Allgaier 26-49;A. Hill 50-52;J. Allgaier 53-147.

  Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Justin Allgaier 2 times for 119 laps; Cole Custer 1 time for 21 laps; Austin Hill 2 times for 6 laps; AJ Allmendinger 1 time for 1 lap.

  Stage #1 Top Ten: 7,21,1,16,48,81,20,2,98,18

  Stage #2 Top Ten: 7,21,48,1,20,16,2,9,98,81

  --By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service. Special to Field Level Media.

Michael Jordan's 23XI Racing will enter a third car in next month's NASCAR Cup Series race in Nashville, Tenn., with Corey Heim behind the wheel in his first appearance for the team.

• It will be the fourth time 23XI has entered a third car. Travis Pastrana finished 11th at the 2023 Daytona 500, while Kamui Kobayashi had a pair of finishes in the back of the pack, including a 29th-place result in March at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.

  The 21-year-old Heim has been making a name for himself in the NASCAR Truck Series, where he has seven career wins.

  Heim made his NASCAR Cup Series debut at Dover Motor Speedway on April 28 as a fill-in driver for Legacy Motor Club and finished 25th. He also raced at Kansas on Sunday and finished 22nd after a spin-out on the last lap.

  When he takes part in the Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway on June 30, Heim will be behind the wheel of the No. 50 car with Mobil 1 as primary sponsor.

  23XI's full time drivers are Bubba Wallace in the No. 23 car and Tyler Reddick in the No. 45. Reddick is currently fifth in the overall standings with a win at Talladega on April 21 and has four top-10 finishes. Wallace is currently 16th overall standings with three top-10s.

  --Field Level Media

Michael McDowell announced Wednesday that he has joined Spire Motorsports on a multi-year deal that will have him driving the team's No. 71 Chevrolet starting in 2025.

• McDowell and Front Row Motorsports had announced that they would not be teaming up after this season just hours before news came in that McDowell would be joining Spire. He has been with Front Row for seven years.

  "This is a new chapter for my family and me, and we're incredibly thankful for the opportunity that's in front of us," McDowell said. "It's going to take some hard work, but I feel like everything is in place for us to be successful as a race team -- to win races and contend for championships.

  "People are the greatest asset to any organization, and with Spire's vision, ambition, knowledge, and dedication, we will achieve great things. Failure is not an option, and that's the mindset that it will take to achieve our goals."

  In 477 NASCAR Cup Series starts, the 39-year-old McDowell has posted a pair of wins -- at the 2021 Daytona 500 and the 2023 Verizon 200 at the Brickyard in Indianapolis. He has also participated in the NASCAR Xfinity Series (94 races) and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (two).

  Spire Motorsports has one Cup Series win, prevailing in 2019.

  "Michael McDowell is a proven winner and brings a NASCAR playoff pedigree," Spire Motorsports president Doug Duchardt said. "Michael has always been committed to elevate his teams. His experience and enthusiasm are a perfect fit for Spire Motorsports, and we are sure he will be a great teammate to both Corey LaJoie and Carson Hocevar.

  "We're thrilled to keep up the positive momentum by adding someone as accomplished as Michael to our driver lineup."

  --Field Level Media

Team Penske president Tim Cindric, managing director Ron Ruzewski and two others were suspended for two races -- including the Indianapolis 500 -- following an internal review of the recent push-to-pass penalties levied by IndyCar.

• Engineers Luke Mason and Robbie Atkinson also will not participate in this weekend's Sonsio Grand Prix or the Indy 500 on May 26.

  "Following the penalties to the Team Penske IndyCar team and drivers after Long Beach, Team Penske has completed an internal review," the team said in a statement on Tuesday. "After a full and comprehensive analysis of the information, Team Penske has determined that there were significant failures in our processes and internal communications.

  "As result, Luke Mason (No. 2 race engineer) and Robbie Atkinson (senior data engineer) will be suspended from Team Penske for the next two IndyCar races, including the Indianapolis 500. In addition, Ron Ruzewski (managing director, Team Penske IndyCar) will also be suspended for these two races along with Tim Cindric (president of Team Penske), who has accountability for all of Team Penske's operations."

  Roger Penske, who owns IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, apologized for his team's actions in a statement:

  "I recognize the magnitude of what occurred and the impact it continues to have on the sport to which I've dedicated so many decades," he said. "Everyone at Team Penske along with our fans and business partners should know that I apologize for the errors that were made and I deeply regret them."

  Pato O'Ward was credited with the win on the Streets of St. Petersburg following a rules violation that disqualified Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin from the March 10 race in Florida.

  All three Team Penske cars were flagged for inspection. Newgarden (driver of the No. 2) won the race and McLaughlin (No. 3) finished third behind O'Ward, but those results were tossed by the circuit after an investigation showed they violated push-to-pass parameters.

  Will Power's No. 12 was penalized 10 points as officials found he did not benefit from the violation, IndyCar said.

  --Field Level Media

With NASCAR headed to the historic Darlington Raceway this weekend, many teams and drivers in the Truck, Xfinity and Cup Series are sporting paint schemes that throw it back to iconic cars from the 76-year history of NASCAR.

• While there are many eye-catching schemes this year, five stand out among the rest. Here are the best NASCAR throwback schemes of 2024.

  5. Harrison Burton, No. 21 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, Wood Brothers Racing (Cup Series). Throwback: Leonard Wood's 1953 "Leonard Wood Special"

  While Burton's performance on the racetrack has been less than stellar this season, he and the Wood Brothers delivered with a throwback scheme that winds back the clock 71 years. As one of the oldest and most historic teams in the garage area, the Wood Brothers always have an abundance of old schemes to choose from, and they nailed it this season. While Burton likely won't contend for the win on Sunday at Darlington, he did finish sixth there in the spring race last year, so he'll have more expectations placed on his shoulders than usual.

  4. Jack Wood, No. 91 Chevrolet Silverado, McAnally-Hilgemann Racing (Truck Series). Throwback: Tim Flock's 1952 "Hudson Hornet"

  NASCAR Hall of Famer Tim Flock drove his 1952 Hudson to the NASCAR Strictly Stock (now NASCAR Cup Series) championship in 1952. In a car owned by Ted Chester, Flock quickly carved out a name for himself, and both he and his famous racecar are forever immortalized in racing history. Wood didn't run the Truck Series race at Darlington in 2023 but did so in 2022, finishing 18th for the now defunct GMS Racing. While Flock never won at Darlington in the Cup Series, he did finish top five twice and top 10 four times in his nine Darlington starts. Regardless of where Wood runs on Friday night, though, the No. 91 truck will look fantastic as it pays homage to one of the greatest pioneers of stock-car racing.

  3. Chase Elliott, No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro, Hendrick Motorsports (Cup Series). Throwback: Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s 2014 Daytona 500-winning car

  One of the more recent throwbacks of the weekend, NASCAR's current most popular driver will pay tribute to its former most popular driver at Darlington. Earnhardt Jr. won the 2014 Daytona 500 in a beautiful red, white and gold car that was sponsored by the National Guard. While it will be UniFirst on the hood of Elliott's car this weekend, his No. 9 car nearly perfectly resembles the car that Earnhardt drove to victory in the 2014 Great American Race. Elliott finished third at Darlington last May, so expect him to have a chance at putting an iconic scheme back in victory lane for the first time in a decade.

  2. Ryan Ellis, No. 43 Chevrolet Camaro, Alpha Prime Racing (Xfinity Series). Throwback: Cole Trickle's City Chevrolet scheme from "Days of Thunder"

  The only thing keeping this scheme from the No. 1 slot is the fact that it's not an actual piece of racing history, but a scheme that has been perfectly recreated from an iconic NASCAR film will still score high with fans. Ellis' sponsor, Classic Collision, has even willingly played along, forming their logo to fit inside the classic Chevy bowtie that will adorn the hood of Ellis' car in Saturday's Xfinity Series race. The only thing that could make this scheme any better is if the No. 43 team somehow got Tom Cruise, who played Trickle in the 1990 film, to the racetrack. Ellis will be looking to "drop the hammer" on Saturday as he searches for his first Xfinity Series win.

  1. Kyle Larson, No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro, Hendrick Motorsports (Cup Series). Throwback: Terry Labonte's 1990s Kellogg's scheme

  Two-time Cup Series champion "Texas Terry" Labonte will hand over the reins of his iconic scheme to 2021 champion Kyle Larson, who beat Chris Buescher to the line in the closest finish in NASCAR Cup Series history on Sunday at Kansas. Labonte drove the red and green car from 1994 to 1999, winning the 1996 NASCAR Cup Series championship with Kellogg's proudly displayed on the hood. Aside from the obvious difference in sponsor logos, the cars of Larson and Labonte look nearly identical, and Larson has a good shot of putting the 2024 version in victory lane on Sunday. He won the Southern 500 at Darlington last September, so expect him to be in the mix for another win at The Lady in Black.

  --Samuel Stubbs, Field Level Media

Aston Martin/Mercedes had a rough qualifying period Saturday at the Miami International Autodrome, and its team members are trying to remain positive ahead of the Miami Grand Prix Sunday.

• At Miami Gardens, Fla. on Saturday, Fernando Alonso, who suffered the worst qualifying performance of his year by falling into the P15 slot in the grid, didn't mince words in calling his performance "poor," but also tried to find a silver lining.

  "So yeah, let's take it, let's learn some things tomorrow in the race and we'll see," Alonso said.

  Alonso and teammate Lance Stroll made contact during a multi-car collision on Lap 1 of the Sprint, and neither racer could advance past Q2 during qualifying. Alonso pointed to changes made to his car following the Sprint as not proving beneficial, ultimately.

  "I could not improve that much," Alonso said. "We made some set-up changes also from the session this morning to now -- looking at the times, I would say that didn't work as expected. But, yeah, this is a Sprint weekend and it's tough."

  Stroll was in similar spirits about a potential rally to salvage some points on Sunday.

  "It looks like we weren't super competitive today, so we've got to look into it," Stroll said. "Hopefully we can try and score some points tomorrow."

  Stroll will start at 11th, while Alonso will do his best to factor in at 15.

  "I think it's going to be very difficult to score points in my case," Alonso acknowledged.

  Two-time defending Miami Grand Prix winner and reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen captured the pole, his seventh straight, but his first pole in Miami.

  The Red Bull Racing driver finished with a 0.141-second edge over Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc (1:27.382), with his Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz Jr. in third (1:27.455).

  --Field Level Media

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Christopher Bell lives for the thrill of qualifying on intermediate speedways.

• But at this point, he'd probably give his eye teeth just to finish a race on Sunday.

  Navigating Kansas Speedway in an impressive 29.491 seconds (183.107 mph) in the final round of NASCAR Cup Series time trials on Saturday afternoon, Bell won the pole position for Sunday's AdventHealth 400 (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

  He'll share the front row with Chevrolet driver Ross Chastain (182.704 mph), whose lap was 0.065 seconds off Bell's blistering pace.

  The pole is Bell's first of the season, his third at the 1.5-mile track and the 11th of his career, all coming since NASCAR introduced the Next Gen race car into the Cup Series in 2022.

  Even as he accepted congratulations for his effort, however, Bell already was looking ahead to Sunday's race, the series' 12th of the season.

  "I love the high-speed places, the places where you're on the verge of being wide open or not being wide open, and the intermediates have been really good for us," said Bell, who has more poles in the Next Gen era than any other driver.

  Since winning the third race of the season at Phoenix in March, however, Bell and his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team have suffered a litany of misfortunes. In his last four starts, Bell has posted a best finish of 17th at Texas and three results of 34th or worse.

  "Honestly, at this point, I'm not looking for a race win, guys," said Bell, who described his 34th-place run last Sunday at Dover as "the bottom of the barrel."

  "I'm just looking to see the checkered flag. I know my car has great capability, and if I just see the checkered flag with a clean car, we're going to have a good, solid day, and that's definitely what we're after tomorrow."

  Ford driver Noah Gragson (182.451 mph) qualified third, sustaining the momentum from a pair of top-10 performances at Talladega and Dover. Kyle Larson was fourth fastest at 182.383 mph, followed by Kyle Busch, Ty Gibbs and Austin Cindric.

  Michael McDowell, Chase Elliott and Chase Briscoe will start from positions eight through 10, respectively.

  --Johnson lauds injured Jones for postponing return

  Though Legacy Motor Club announced that Erik Jones has been cleared to return to racing by doctors and NASCAR, the team convinced Jones it would be in his best interest to sit out Sunday's AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

  Jones suffered a compression fracture in a lower vertebra when his No. 43 Toyota rocketed into the Turn 3 wall during a four-car accident on Lap 155 at Talladega on April 21. He missed last Sunday's race at Dover, where NASCAR Truck Series driver Corey Heim finished 25th in relief.

  Heim will continue in that role on Sunday. The plan is for Jones to return May 12 at Darlington, where he has scored two of his three NASCAR Cup Series victories.

  Team co-owner Jimmie Johnson helped convince Jones that a cautious approach was best, given the high-speed nature of 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway.

  "Yeah, I don't envy his position, but I really do appreciate his willingness to hear us out," said Johnson, who will compete on Sunday in his second straight Cup event in the No. 84 Legacy Camry. "It's not a fun process, and as far as he's concerned, he should have never missed a race. He's just eager to do it. I've played hurt before, so I get it and have seen both sides of it.

  "My concern is that we're at a fast track and an impact like that could happen again, and is his body really ready for that? And that's kind of the question he came to his own answer on and realized that it's probably early.

  "There's a lot of other bits and pieces to that, but ultimately, he feels great and is moving around really well. He was able to get in the gym and exercise, but to really take a shot like you can at this place, it's just early."

  --Toyota drivers look to continue Next-Gen era dominance at Kansas

  Ask Tyler Reddick to account for the recent success of 23XI Racing at Kansas Speedway, and he'll give you a succinct answer.

  "I think it's our boss," Reddick said, referring to team co-owner Denny Hamlin. "He's just really great. I think that's just a big part of it. Denny's just great, so we're great, too."

  To Reddick's point, Hamlin is the defending winner of Sunday's AdventHealth 400 (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Reddick is the most recent winner at the 1.5-mile intermediate track, having triumphed in the playoff race last fall.

  In 2022, the first year of Next Gen race car in the NASCAR Cup Series, Kurt Busch and Bubba Wallace carried the 23XI banner into Victory Lane as the organization swept both Kansas races.

  Hamlin comes to Kansas as the series' most recent winner, having taken the checkered flag last Sunday at Dover to tie William Byron in Cup victories this season with three. Hamlin also boasts a record four wins at Kansas.

  Hamlin predicted a victory for his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team at Dover and delivered. But on Saturday at Kansas, he wasn't ready to call his shot for a second straight week.

  "I thought (crew chief) Chris (Gabehart) gave me the task of winning one of the next three races before we had the All-Star break, and we got the first week," Hamlin said. "Now, from here on out, I think we can be in a good mood once we get to the All-Star break.

  "Certainly, these next two tracks (Kansas and Darlington) are set up really nicely for us. So, I'm certainly encouraged by it. You don't want to use up all of your promises too early on in the season, so I'll try to save a few."

  --Visit to Arlington National Cemetery had significant impact on Blaney

  At the invitation of Charlotte Motor Speedway and Speedway Motorsports CEO Marcus Smith, NASCAR Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney visited Arlington National Cemetery and participated in a wreath-laying ceremony on Wednesday as part of the NASCAR Salutes initiative.

  The experience clearly had a significant impact on the 30-year-old Team Penske driver.

  "That was a really, really neat experience to go do," Blaney said Saturday at Kansas Speedway. "I was really happy that Charlotte and Marcus invited me out there. It was my first time to Arlington.

  "It puts things into perspective, that's for sure -- very quickly. You just see the vast size of that place, and you understand how many men and women have laid their lives down for us to do what we do.

  "So it was neat. The wreath-laying ceremony was amazing. Watching the changing of the guard was really special. So I was happy they were able to line that up. I met a lot of great people out there who gave me a lot of the history of it -- definitely a very humbling experience."

  --Field Level Media

Two-time defending Miami Grand Prix winner and reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen helped his chances for a third straight victory by capturing the pole in qualifying Saturday in Miami Gardens, Fla.

• Verstappen has taken seven consecutive poles and a record-tying six to start a season. Alain Prost last accomplished the feat in 1993.

  It was the Dutchman's first pole at Miami.

  He started the day by winning the sprint race at the 3.363-mile Miami International Autodrome. He also was fastest in afternoon qualifying for Sunday's race, posting a lap of 1 minute, 27.241 seconds.

  The Red Bull Racing driver finished with a 0.141-second edge over Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc (1:27.382), with his Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz Jr. in third (1:27.455).

  Verstappen, who has victories in four of the first five F1 races this season, said gaining the pole was the most important thing coming out of a difficult experience, calling it "not the most enjoyable lap of my career."

  "I think we've definitely improved the car a bit," he said. "I don't know what it is here, every year we come here I find it extremely difficult to be very consistent with the tire feeling, the car feeling over one lap. It's just super hard to make sure sector one feels good and sector three to make that happen together is incredibly tough and again today."

  Sergio Perez, Verstappen's Red Bull Racing teammate, said he felt like he could have gone faster after his lap of 1:27.450. He will start fourth, ahead of McLaren Mercedes drivers Lando Norris (1:27.594) and Oscar Piastri (1:27.675).

  "I knew that in qualifying I could be in the top three and we managed to do some clean laps -- which is really tricky around here with the new soft (tire)," Perez said. "Every lap is a bit of adventure with the wind, you don't know what's going to happen and keeping all this in mind, it wasn't too bad."

  --Field Level Media

Valtteri Bottas said he was surprised by the timing of his Sauber team's signing of fellow Formula One driver Nico Hulkenberg.

• Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber confirmed last week that Hulkenberg is leaving Haas to join its ranks in 2025, ahead of the organization's takeover by Audi in 2026.

  Hulkenberg's arrival likely means either Bottas or current F1 teammate Zhou Guanyu will be looking for a new seat next year.

  "Of course, the timing is quite early and a little bit surprising, but the driver market is starting to move, obviously, and it also kind of makes sense," Bottas said, per RacingNews365.

  The 34-year-old Finland native said adding Hulkenberg was a natural move for Germany-based Audi.

  "He's German, and Audi has made it pretty clear that they want a German driver, so it's all good," Bottas said. "Let's see what happens next."

  Bottas joined the Sauber Ferrari team in 2024 following stings with Alfa Romeo, Mercedes and Williams. He has 10 Formula One wins, most recently at the 2021 Turkish Grand Prix.

  --Field Level Media

JTG Daugherty Racing announced a multiyear contract extension Thursday with driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr., winner of the 2023 Daytona 500.

• Details were not provided as Stenhouse, 36, will continue behind the wheel of the No. 47 Chevrolet.

  "When I joined this team in 2020, I knew both the team and I were capable of putting the No. 47 in Victory Lane," Stenhouse said in a statement. "Although I wish it came sooner, winning the Daytona 500 last year proved that we can win together.

  "We have a fantastic group of guys at the shop, great management, solid partners and an ever-improving program," he continued. "I'm very excited to continue my relationship with the team. I think everyone will be pleasantly surprised to see what we have in store for the future."

  Stenhouse, driving in the NASCAR Cup Series since 2011, has three career wins. He is in 27th place, 245 points behind leader Kyle Larson, in the current standings. Stenhouse has one top-five and two top-10 finishes in 11 starts this season, including fourth place on April 21 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.

  "I am looking forward to continuing with Ricky as our driver of the No. 47," team owner Gordon Smith said in the statement. "He has been an asset to our team on and off the racetrack since joining us in 2020.

  "Winning the Daytona 500 was a huge accomplishment for our small team, and I know we have more trips to Victory Lane in our future with Ricky at the wheel."

  --Field Level Media

Top F1 driver Max Verstappen "would have preferred" for Red Bull's famed design expert Adrian Newey to stay with the team, but downplayed any impact on Verstappen's future with Red Bull.

• Newey, Red Bull said, will depart in April next year after almost two decades with the dominant racing team.

  Verstappen said Newey's departure should not inspire unnecessary drama and would have no impact "at the moment" on his status at Red Bull.

  He also cautioned against any conclusions at this point.

  "I think people in the press, they are making up a lot of things at the moment because they don't understand how the roles were in the team," Verstappen said. "I cannot deny that I would have preferred him to stay, just for how he is as person, his knowledge and of course what he would bring to potentially another team if he wants to join.

  "If someone really wants to leave they should leave. That's also what I wrote to him ... If you think that is the right decision for yourself and your family, you have to do it.

  "But I also really trust that the technical team we have outside of Adrian is very, very strong. They have basically shown that with the last few years with how competitive the car is. From the outside, it looks very dramatic. But I think if you know what is happening inside the team it is not as dramatic as it seems."

  ESPN reported that Red Bull and technical director Pierre Wache agreed on a five-year contract at the start of this year.

  --Field Level Media

Erik Jones is targeting a return to racing on May 12 at Darlington, missing this weekend's NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway as a precaution after doctors cleared him in his recovery from a back injury.

• His Legacy Motor Club team made the announcement Thursday, with Corey Heim to replace Jones in the No. 43 Toyota for the AdventHealth 400 on Sunday. Heim, 21, made his Cup debut last week at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway, qualified 32nd and placed 25th in an incident-free race.

  Jones sustained a compression fracture in his lower vertebra on April 21 in a crash at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. Late in the race, John Hunter Nemechek's car appeared to contact the back of Bubba Wallace's car, which then clipped Jones' car and sent it into the outside wall.

  Jones, 27, made the trip to Dover last weekend to support Heim and the racing group and plans to do the same in Kansas City, Kan.

  "As far as coming back, I think it is week-to-week," Jones said at Dover. "My injury fortunately, is on the mild side, so we'll just have to see how it's healing up, how I'm feeling. Again, I'm feeling better and better every day."

  Jones has one top-10 finish in 11 starts and is in 23rd place, 229 points behind leader Kyle Larson in the NASCAR Cup Series standings.

  --Field Level Media

The talent crop in modern-day NASCAR is arguably as deep as it has ever been, with the ARCA, Trucks and Xfinity Series fields stacked with young talent.

• Here are the five best young prospects in the sport to keep an eye on across the series:

  5. Carson Kvapil, No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro, JR Motorsports (Xfinity Series): The son of 2003 Craftsman Truck Series champion Travis Kvapil, the younger Kvapil has an average finish of third through his first two NASCAR Xfinity Series starts in 2024. After a fourth-place run at Martinsville, Kvapil was barely edged out by Ryan Truex for the win at Dover, finishing runner-up in just his second NASCAR start. Recruited by NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt, Jr, Kvapil has proven himself on the short tracks thus far and a full-time Xfinity Series ride could be on the horizon in 2025.

  4. Connor Zilisch, No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado, Spire Motorsports (Truck Series): Zilisch's experience in NASCAR-sanctioned races is minimal, but his results thus far show that the 17 year-old may be one of the sport's future stars. The winner of the ARCA Menards Series race at Dover last weekend, Zilisch also won the pole for his first Truck Series start at COTA, where he finished fourth despite an early setback. Without a lap one mistake, Zilisch may have found himself in victory lane. The speed and talent is there, and with a development deal already signed with Trackhouse Racing, Zilisch has a bright future ahead of him. He'll run five more Truck Series races in 2024, giving the NASCAR world five more opportunities to see what he brings to the table.

  3. Christian Eckes, No. 19 Chevrolet Silverado, McAnally-Hilgemann Racing (Truck Series): After winning four races in the Truck Series in 2023, Eckes already has two wins so far in 2024, including a race at Bristol where he straight up outdrove Kyle Busch for the trophy. At the ripe old age of 23, Eckes is on the older side of current prospects, but he consistently puts himself in a position to win. His upside might not be strong enough for a Cup team to take a risk on him in the next three or four seasons, but if he keeps winning he'll get a phone call from a Cup team soon enough.

  2. Chandler Smith, No. 81 Toyota Supra (Xfinity Series): While Smith did win his first career Xfinity Series race in 2023, he struggled mightily with consistency, notching only 13 top-10's in 33 races. Through the first 10 races of the 2024 season, Smith has two wins, six top-fives and eight top-10's, along with an incredible average finish of 7.0. He has also finished all 10 races so far, an invaluable trait in modern-day NASCAR. At 21 years old, Smith is primed to be the next great Toyota driver, and with the possible retirement of Martin Truex Jr. looming he could be next in line to drive the famed No. 19 car.

  1. Corey Heim, No. 11 Toyota Tundra, Tricon Garage (Truck Series): Speaking of consistency, Heim had 19 top-10's in 22 Truck Series races a year ago, and through seven races in 2024 he has finished top-10 in every single one. An increase in wins might be nice, but he'll find victory lane consistently if he keeps running inside the top-five. His average finish through the first seven events is 3.9, a number that before only seemed possible in a NASCAR video game. The Truck Series seems more like a formality for Heim, as a solid showing in his Cup Series debut at Dover in place of injured Erik Jones proves that he has the chops to be a top-level driver in the premier stock-car racing series in the world.

  --Samuel Stubbs, Field Level Media

Red Bull Racing confirmed Wednesday that chief technical officer Adrian Newey is leaving the Formula One team in early 2025.

• Including his work with three-time defending champion Max Verstappen, Newey has designed more championship-winning cars than anyone in F1 history.

  Newey, 65, joined Red Bull in 2006 after stints on the design teams at McLaren (1997-2005), Williams (1991-96) and March Racing/Leyton House (1988-90).

  His tenure with Red Bull has included seven F1 driver's championships, six constructors' championships, 118 victories and 101 poles.

  "Ever since I was a young boy, I wanted to be a designer of fast cars," Newey said in a statement. "My dream was to be an engineer in Formula One, and I've been lucky enough to make that dream a reality.

  "For almost two decades it has been my great honour to have played a key role in Red Bull Racing's progress from upstart newcomer to multiple title-winning team. However, I feel now is an opportune moment to hand that baton over to others and to seek new challenges for myself."

  Red Bull said "the engineering supremo" will step back from his design duties to focus on the final development and delivery of the RB17, Red Bull's first hypercar.

  "All of our greatest moments from the past 20 years have come with Adrian's hand on the technical tiller," team principal and CEO Christian Horner said in a news release.

  "His exceptional ability to conceptualise beyond F1 and bring wider inspiration to bear on the design of grand prix cars, his remarkable talent for embracing change and finding the most rewarding areas of the rules to focus on, and his relentless will to win have helped Red Bull Racing to become a greater force than I think even the late Dietrich Mateschitz might have imagined."

  Heading into Sunday's Miami Grand Prix, Verstappen leads the F1 driver standings and Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez is second. Red Bull holds a comfortable lead over Ferrari in the constructors' standings.

  --Field Level Media

It is a fitting description.

• "We're in the groove right now," Denny Hamlin said during his race winner's press conference at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway on Sunday. And who could argue with that? The driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota had just hoisted his third trophy in 11 NASCAR Cup Series races, tying him with Hendrick Motorsports' William Byron for most wins on the season.

  Only a week earlier he and his 23XI Racing team co-owner, NBA legend Michael Jordan, were celebrating a win with their driver Tyler Reddick at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. It's been a heck of a season start with every reason to expect the good times to keep rolling -- whether it's Hamlin or his 23XI Racing team winning.

  Hamlin heads to Kansas Speedway for Sunday's AdventHealth 400 (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) as the defending winner of that race, and he's a former winner everywhere the series has a points race for the next month. He's got four victories at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, and he is the defending winner of the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway held on Memorial Day weekend.

  "It's been a good season," Hamlin conceded with a smile. "I don't know how else to explain it. ... Half of 'em we've been in Victory Lane. The other ones I've been right there with a shot to win 'em."

  Hamlin is feeling so confident in himself and his team, he even called his shot -- like Babe Ruth -- predicting a win Sunday on his podcast "Actions Detrimental" leading into Dover. Some may have thought it brash, but Hamlin backed it up and there's a lot of reason to understand why he's feeling so good.

  "I expect to win every week," said Hamlin, 43, who currently sits No. 4 in the Cup Series standings as he chases his first championship. "There's no reason I shouldn't expect to win.

  "This little stretch right here before the All-Star break between Dover, Kansas, Darlington, I mean these are all kind of right in my wheelhouse. Certainly, feel pretty good about it."

  The truth is, Hamlin is feeling pretty good in general. His confidence, however, is matched by a strong motivation that is partly a result of realizing it's "go time" in his 20-year fulltime career.

  The Dover win was Hamlin's 54th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, tying him with NASCAR Hall of Famer and one of the sport's great pioneers, Lee Petty. Reaching that kind of elevated status -- such an important accomplishment -- isn't something Hamlin takes lightly.

  Only Kyle Busch has more wins in the NASCAR Cup Series (63) than Hamlin (54) among active drivers. And only 11 more drivers in all of NASCAR history have more. And there's every reason to believe Hamlin will move farther up that list this season.

  "If you put all the names on the list in the order of the wins that they have, I don't know, I see my name as just an outlier, one that sticks out like it doesn't really belong there," Hamlin said.

  "I've been doing it a long time. You take for granted all the wins that you've had. All we think about is the ones we didn't win. I'm like, 'Man, I feel like I should have 80 to 90 realistically.' But everyone has those stories.

  "It's my personal goal, in my career, I want to get to a number that puts me well inside that top-10 of race winners. I think that will speak for itself and the resume."

  --By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service. Special to Field Level Media

Arrow McLaren released David Malukas from his contact Monday after the IndyCar driver was not available for the first four races of the season because of a wrist injury that occurred during an offseason mountain bike accident.

• Malukas was given his opportunity with Arrow McLaren last September when Alex Palou decided to not race for the team in 2024.

  "The past three months have been challenging," Malukas said, according to F1.com. "... I've done everything possible to speed up the rehab process -- treatments, physiotherapy, strength training -- but my recovery has taken longer than anticipated."

  Callum Ilott took over Malukas' seat for the first two races of the season -- St. Petersburg, Fla., and Thermal, Calif. -- while Theo Pourchaire raced for Arrow McLaren at Long Beach, Calif., and this past weekend at Birmingham, Ala.

  At the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix on Sunday, Pouchaire finished 22nd in a field of 27.

  Arrow McLaren has not settled on a permanent driver for Malukas' seat. The team also races with drivers Alexander Rossi and Pato O'Ward, who won the season-opening race at St. Petersburg on March 10.

  --Field Level Media

As the NASCAR Cup Series returns to the Monster Mile this weekend, there are many storylines to follow. From favorites looking for a win, a former champ looking to relive the glory days, and a young phenom making his first Cup Series start, here are five drivers that you should keep up with during the Wurth 400 at Dover Motor Speedway on Sunday.

• 5. Jimmie Johnson, No. 84 Toyota Camry XSE, Legacy Motor Club: Nobody has conquered Dover more than Johnson, who has 11 wins at the track. Making his first start at Dover since 2020, Johnson is hoping that the Sunday race will be a return to his Dover dominance, rather than a continuation of his streak of poor showings in NASCAR's seventh generation car. In five starts with the Next-Gen car, Johnson's best finish is 28th, which occurred in the 2024 Daytona 500. He did earn his first lead-lap finish with the Next-Gen car on April 14 at Texas, but that was still a lackluster 29th-place run. Nobody is asking the 48-year-old driver to win on Sunday, but an incident-free, top-25 day would be much appreciated for a driver who has struggled mightily in his part-time role.

  4. Corey Heim, No. 43 Toyota Camry XSE, Legacy Motor Club: Heim makes his first Cup Series start on Sunday in a similar fashion to Bubba Wallace, a current Cup Series star. Wallace made his Cup debut at Pocono in 2017 after Aric Almirola sustained a back injury at Kansas, while Heim will make his first Cup start as a substitute for Erik Jones, who injured his back in a crash at Talladega last Sunday. While not the circumstances Heim was hoping for going into his Cup Series debut, the 21-year-old phenom has proven he has what it takes behind the wheel, and has the opportunity to show his talent to the world on Sunday.

  3. Chase Elliott, No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro, Hendrick Motorsports: A two-time winner at Dover, Elliott broke a 42-race winless streak just two weeks ago at Texas. Despite a mediocre 15th-place finish at Talladega, Elliott has three top-five results in the past four races and is seemingly back to being the championship threat that he was from 2020-2022. With the winless streak snapped, he is one of the favorites heading into the weekend -- and oh by the way, he won the first race at Dover with the Next-Gen car in 2022.

  2. Martin Truex Jr., No. 19 Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing: A Mayetta, N.J., native, Dover is a home race for Truex, which could be part of the reason why he has won there four times, including a victory there last year that completed a Truex family weekend sweep. His brother Ryan won the 2023 Xfinity Series race at Dover. Truex is always a contender at the Monster Mile but has lost some pace since his heartbreaking Richmond defeat on Easter, with three straight finishes outside the top 10 since the March 31 race. Dover could be a "get-right" race for the veteran driver, and a win would be huge for a team looking to rebound from its embarrassing playoff run in 2023.

  1. Kyle Larson, No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro, Hendrick Motorsports: Perhaps the favorite for Sunday's race, Larson won at Dover in 2019 and finished second to Alex Bowman in Hendrick's iconic 1-2-3-4 finish at Dover in 2021. Unfortunately for Larson, he didn't get to show how fast his car was at Dover a year ago, as an early incident with Ross Chastain took the No. 5 car out of contention. After two straight 21st-place finishes at Texas and Talladega, -- neither of which can be blamed solely on Larson -- the 2021 Cup Series champ is looking to avenge his 2023 Dover defeat and notch his second win of the 2024 season.

  --Samuel Stubbs, Field Level Media

First out for final qualifying and first on the scoring chart, Kyle Busch earned his first pole position of the season Saturday with a lap of 162.191 mph in the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet around the one-mile Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway.

• It's the 34th career pole position for the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and he'll start on the front row for Sunday's Wurth 400 (2 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) alongside Team Penske's Ryan Blaney, whose fast lap (161.951 mph) in the No. 12 Ford Mustang was a mere .033-second off Busch's pole speed.

  "The last month or so there's definitely been a struggle with speed," Busch said. "It's pretty funny we were standing here talking about sitting on the pole last year too with the rainout and started first. And then my over-excitement of coming down pit road for the first time, speeding on pit road, sent us to the back and didn't quite have the race we wanted.

  "Don't want to make that same mistake this year. The guys here did a great job. ... we're wanting to trend the right way and putting in the effort, the hours and all the extra work to figure out what's going on and why. This is our first test. We felt like Dover and (next week's venue) Kansas would be a really good test of some stuff. And what do ya know? It worked. Let's go."

  This season's three-race winner, Hendrick Motorsports' William Byron will start his No. 24 Chevrolet third, alongside last week's Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway race winner, 23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick in the No. 45 Toyota. Noah Gragson in the No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford and former Dover winner, Denny Hamlin in the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota will start fifth and sixth.

  The Fords of SHR's Chase Briscoe and last week's Talladega pole-winner, Front Row Motorsports' Michael McDowell were next fastest in qualifying, followed by Hendrick Motorsport's Alex Bowman -- the 2021 Dover winner -- and Kaulig Racing's A.J. Allmendinger.

  It was a strong qualifying outing for the Ford Mustang, which is still looking to score its first series victory of 2024. Not only were there four Fords in the top-10, but fellow Ford drivers Austin Cindric, Josh Berry and Joey Logano will line up 11th-13th on the 37-car grid.

  Of note, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell -- a winner at Phoenix this year -- spun on his qualifying lap and will have to start 33rd. Seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson, an 11-time Dover winner, is making one of his limited season starts and will start the No. 84 Legacy Motor Club Toyota 27th. Defending race winner, JGR's Martin Truex Jr. will start 15th.

  And 21-year old Corey Heim, who is making his NASCAR Cup Series debut filling in for injured Legacy Motor Club driver Erik Jones, will start the No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota 32nd -- a row ahead of the team's fulltime driver John Hunter Nemechek.

  Heim was 14th fastest of the 16 cars in the opening practice but reasonably close on speed to the pack. Several of the veteran NASCAR Cup Series drivers -- former champion Kyle Larson and this year's three-time race winner William Byron, in particular -- were very complimentary of Heim, despite the young driver's challenging circumstances.

  "Just so much different, a lot of fun, a lot of grip," Heim said after his first official practice in the car, adding, "Just trying to find my limits but in these 20-minutes practices, it's tough."

  Jones spoke to the media at track and said he is feeling better after a hard crash at Talladega last week that left him with a compression fracture in his lower vertebrae. He did not give a timetable for a return.

  NOTEBOOK

  *Jones, 28, was in the pits Saturday at Dover and will be trackside for Sunday's Wurth 400, assisting the team as needed while NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series championship contender Heim drives Jones' No. 43 Toyota.

  Jones -- a three-time NASCAR Cup Series race winner- conceded the hard racing on the unforgiving one-mile Dover oval did not present the best situation to be back in the car and testing his injury.

  "To be honest right now, I'm feeling pretty good," Jones said. "As a driver, probably any driver, they want to just hop back in. I would love to say that I could get back in and do it right now. Is that possible? I don't know. I don't know how I would truly feel in the car, especially a place like Dover.

  "I get pretty sore at night and when I'm not moving around. My range of motion is a bit limited right now, but the soreness has faded away. It was pretty bad earlier in the week and I was just resting. By yesterday and today, I'm feeling better and better."

  This is the first race Jones has missed since becoming a fulltime NASCAR Cup Series driver and described it as "a unique perspective for me."

  "It is definitely more challenging I thought, waking up this morning to be honest, and getting ready for today and realizing that you are not getting in the car," he said.

  Team co-owner Johnson would not predict how long Jones may be out of the car, but did confirm Saturday, should Jones be unable to race at Kansas Speedway next week, Heim would indeed be back in the No. 43 for that race too.

  Jones received a medical waiver from NASCAR this week that would allow him to still participate in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs should he qualify.

  *The seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and NASCAR Hall of Famer Johnson confirmed this week he will compete in back-to-back events for the first time since he retired from fulltime NASCAR competition in 2020 -- Sunday's race at Dover and then next week at Kansas Speedway. Johnson has a record 11 victories at the concrete Dover mile and is a three-time winner at Kansas.

  Yet even with all that success, the 48-year old Johnson concedes he's still learning this NextGen race car with finishes of 28th (Daytona) and 29th (Texas) in his only other 2024 starts in the No. 84 Toyota. He competed only three times in 2023 with a best finish of 31st coming in the Daytona 500 -- a race he's won twice.

  "It's just so different," Johnson said of the new car compared to the ones he drove to 83 wins and the record-tying seven titles. "I realized that quickly at Texas. I have a few wins at Texas that didn't carry in. It is really on me. It is such a different environment as a driver and to spot these drivers in the garage, a two-year head-start on the little nuances that you need from the prep side on a Tuesday, all the way to the completion on a Monday when you debrief and work through it all.

  "There is just a lot of distance to make up and first and foremost, I need to do my part and get in tune with this car. Through this stretch, I will be able to do so."

  Johnson last raced at Dover in 2020 with finishes of seventh and third place. His earned the last win of his career there in 2017.

  *Bowman credits his former Hendrick Motorsports teammate Johnson with being a big help with his Monster Mile education. Bowman, 31, who won at Dover in 2021 and has five top-10 finishes in the last six Dover races, missed this race last year because of injury, but is very optimistic about his chances Sunday in what will be his 300th career series start.

  "I think it's just a place where I enjoy going to," said Bowman, driver of the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. "I feel like I bring a little something to the table and know what I want and know what I need in my race car to be successful here."

  "I attribute a lot of my success here to Jimmie (Johnson) as well," he said of the 11-time Dover race winner and NASCAR Hall of Famer. "Definitely a special place for the No. 48 car. When you think of think of the dominance that team had kind of throughout that whole era, this is a place that comes top of mind. So, it's super cool to have also been successful here in the No. 48 car. I think even my own successes here, I definitely attribute to him as well."

  Bowman's fifth-place finish at Talladega Superspeedway last week made him one of the strongest movers inside the championship standings -- vaulting him four positions from 14th place to 10th place.

  --By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service, Special to Field Level Media

Nico Hulkenberg is leaving Haas to get behind the wheel with Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber, both Formula One teams announced Friday.

• The 36-year-old German driver with more than 200 F1 races under his belt signed a multi-year contract starting in 2025.

  Following a three-year absence from the sport, Hulkenberg joined Haas last year and currently sits 13th in the driver's standings with three top-10 finishes through five races in 2024.

  Haas, who previously raced for Sauber in 2013, will be part of the organization's new Audi team when it debuts in 2026.

  "We are very pleased to welcome Nico back here," Sauber Motorsport AG CEO Andreas Seidl said. "... With his speed, his experience and his commitment to teamwork, he will be an important part of the transformation of our team -- and of Audi's F1 project."

  Hulkenberg's current employer, Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu, wished him luck with the move.

  "I'd like to extend my thanks to Nico for his contributions to the team in the time that he's been here with us -- he's been a great team player and someone we very much enjoy working with," Komatsu said. "His experience and feedback have proved invaluable to us in terms of improving our overall performance -- a fact that's clearly evident in both his qualifying and race performances in the VF-24 this season.

  "There's lots more racing to go this year so we look forward to continuing to benefit from his inputs throughout the remainder of the 2024 season."

  Hulkenberg, the 2015 winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, began his F1 career in 2010 racing for Williams. He is still looking for his first podium finish in F1.

  --Field Level Media

Pato O'Ward was credited with the win on the Streets of St. Petersburg following a rules violation that disqualifies Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin from the March 10 race in Florida, IndyCar said in a release Wednesday.

• All three Team Penske cars were flagged for inspection. Newgarden (driver of the No. 2) won the race and McLaughlin (No. 3) finished third behind O'Ward, but those results are being tossed by the circuit after an investigation showed they violated "push to pass" parameters.

  Will Power's No. 12 was penalized 10 points as officials found he did not benefit from the violation, IndyCar said.

  "An extensive review of data from the race on the Streets of St. Petersburg revealed that Team Penske manipulated the overtake system so that the No. 2, 3 and 12 cars had the ability to use Push to Pass on starts and restarts. According to the INDYCAR rulebook, use of overtake is not available during championship races until the car reaches the alternate start-finish line," a release confirming the penalties reads.

  "It was determined that the No. 2 and the No. 3 gained a competitive advantage by using Push to Pass on restarts while the No. 12 did not. Additionally, all three entries have been fined $25,000 and will forfeit all prize money associated with the Streets of St. Petersburg race."

  The delay in announcing the penalties and updated official race results was prompted by a review of data and another look at the Team Penske cars, which took place Sunday during the warmup session at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

  --Field Level Media

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- There's a good argument to be made that one of the hottest drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series right now hasn't even hoisted a trophy yet. But Brad Keselowski has been awfully close.

• Sunday at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, he was in prime position to claim his first victory since 2021 -- running second to fellow Ford driver Michael McDowell as the field came to the checkered flag. But a typically frantic Talladega finish instead left him runner-up by a fraction of a second to winner Tyler Reddick.

  It wasn't a victory, but it was the second consecutive second-place finish for the owner-driver of the RFK Racing team and fifth top-10 finish through the season's first 10 races. Four of those have been top-five finishes, a run of success Keselowski takes to Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway for Sunday's Wurth 400 (2 p.m. ET on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

  Keselowski has a victory at Dover in 2012 -- the same season he captured the NASCAR Cup Series championship. He's finished inside the top 10 in three of the last five races there.

  And yet for all the recent positives to consider, Keselowski has not wavered in his stance.

  "Good finishes are important, but we want wins," Keselowski, 40, said after climbing out of his No. 6 RFK Racing Ford Mustang at Talladega. "We could really taste it today, but it just didn't happen."

  This is not to say that Keselowski, whose last race win was at Talladega in 2021, is not proud of the effort or encouraged by the recent results. He just has high expectations. And good reason for them.

  His work this year is a strong sign that the team has absolutely progressed on-track. Keselowski became a partner with NASCAR Hall of Fame team owner Jack Roush only three years ago and has already infused exactly the kind of high-level expectation and championship thinking to help bring about a racing renaissance of sorts.

  His four top-five finishes through 10 races this season is already half of the total he tallied in all of 2023. His five top-10 efforts are on-track to better the mark of 16 he had last year. He's ranked 14th in the NASCAR Cup Series driver standings, but only seven points behind 10th place Alex Bowman.

  Keselowski's RFK Racing teammate Chris Buescher won three races last year and qualified for the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. And he's got five top-10 finishes this season and is ranked 16th -- only 16 points behind Bowman in 10th.

  "I feel like the last two weeks especially, we've earned finishes we probably didn't deserve," said Keselowski, one of the most analytical drivers on the NASCAR Cup Series grid. "It kind of ebbs and flows as the season goes. But when you have cars that are capable of winning, in general, you need to make it count."

  Keselowski -- a 35-race winner -- closes out the Spring schedule with a good track record at promising venues. He's scored victories at all four of the next four points-paying tracks (excluding the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro, N.C.). He's won at Dover and Darlington (S.C.) Raceway and has two victories at both Kansas and Charlotte.

  Combine that with his strong current run and Keselowski has plenty of reason to feel positive. He characterized his organization two weeks ago at Texas as being filled with that same "kind of never-give-up spirit" that Keselowski the driver has cultivated and flourished from. Certainly, things seem absolutely headed in the right direction.

  --By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service. Special to Field Level Media