Reddick wins Phoenix on two tires, Larson's lead falls to five, Brown ends Langdon's streak: Week 43
Tyler Reddick wins Phoenix on a two-tire call, Kyle Larson's Chase lead falls to five points with Talladega next, and Antron Brown ends Shawn Langdon's winning streak at the Texas NHRA FallNationals.
Tyler Reddick won the Freeway Insurance 500 at Phoenix Raceway on Oct. 18, taking two tires on the last stop and beating Ryan Blaney to the line by 0.801 seconds. 1 It was his sixth win of the season, his first at the 1-mile oval and the 14th of his career. 1
The afternoon wrecked the two drivers ahead of him in the Chase. Kyle Larson, the points leader, blew a tire in Turn 1 with 30 laps left and finished 34th, scoring three points. Denny Hamlin, second coming in, cut a right rear on Lap 221 and drew a speeding penalty entering the pits with it. He finished 28th. 1
Christopher Bell led a race-high 85 laps, finished fourth, and now trails Larson by five points with three races left. 2
At the same track, Jesse Love took over the O'Reilly Chase when Sheldon Creed's engine quit under caution. Kaden Honeycutt won the Truck race and pushed his lead over Layne Riggs to 39 points. 34
Antron Brown ended Shawn Langdon's four-race NHRA winning streak, Rico Abreu clinched a second straight High Limit title, and Brandon Sheppard took the Lucas Oil Late Model championship in the season finale. 567
Results below cover Oct. 12-18; the watch list covers Oct. 19-25, with times converted to UTC. 8
Cup: Reddick takes two tires, and the Chase compresses
The last caution fell on Lap 283 for Larson's tire failure. On the Lap 294 restart, Chase Briscoe and two others stayed out on old tires. Reddick came off pit road third on two fresh ones. 9
He went four wide into Turn 1 for second, then drove inside Briscoe in Turn 3 a lap later. Briscoe's car got loose, Reddick cleared him, and the No. 45 Toyota led the final 18 laps. Briscoe faded to eighth. 19
Reddick won five of the season's first nine races, including the first three, then went 23 races without one. "That's way too long," he said after the burnout. 1
Blaney started from the pole, led the first 44 laps and finished second, 40 points back. Joey Logano swept both stages and led 84 laps, then lost track position on the final stop and came home sixth, 44 back. 12
Larson started 22nd and never got forward. He ran 22nd at the end of Stage 1, took the wave-around to stay on the lead lap, then hit the wall in Turn 1 on Lap 283. He scored three points to Reddick's 61. 1
Bubba Wallace led 52 laps in the final stage. A speeding penalty under the caution for Larson dropped him to 17th. 1
| Finish | Driver |
|---|---|
| 1 | Tyler Reddick 9 |
| 2 | Ryan Blaney, +0.801 9 |
| 3 | Chase Elliott, +2.924 9 |
| 4 | Christopher Bell, +3.707 9 |
| 5 | Corey Heim, +4.193 9 |
| 6 | Joey Logano, +5.076 9 |
| 7 | Daniel Suárez, +5.549 9 |
| 8 | Chase Briscoe, +7.083 9 |
| 9 | Ross Chastain, +7.151 9 |
| 10 | Ty Gibbs, +7.258 9 |
There were six cautions for 43 laps and 21 lead changes among 10 drivers. Post-race inspection closed with no issues. 1
After the checkered flag, Zane Smith stayed on the throttle and ran into the back of Carson Hocevar's car on the way to pit road. The two had been shuffled in Turn 3 on the last lap. 10
Phoenix was the seventh of ten Chase races. The 2026 format is a straight ten-race points battle with no eliminations, and the champion is decided at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 8. 1 Six drivers sit within 56 points of Larson. 2 The line that separates contenders from the rest falls between seventh and eighth, where Austin Cindric is 74 points behind Reddick. 11
| Pos. | Driver | Behind Larson 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kyle Larson | Leader 2 |
| 2 | Christopher Bell | −5 2 |
| 3 | Chase Briscoe | −24 2 |
| 4 | Denny Hamlin | −31 2 |
| 5 | Ryan Blaney | −40 2 |
| 6 | Joey Logano | −44 2 |
| 7 | Tyler Reddick | −56 2 |
| 8 | Austin Cindric | −130 2 |
| 9 | Ty Gibbs | −132 2 |
| 10 | Chase Elliott | −149 2 |
| 11 | Carson Hocevar | −158 2 |
| 12 | Bubba Wallace | −162 2 |
| 13 | Daniel Suárez | −188 2 |
| 14 | William Byron | −190 2 |
| 15 | Chris Buescher | −204 2 |
| 16 | Ryan Preece | −211 2 |
The Chase goes to Talladega Superspeedway on Oct. 25 for the YellaWood 500. Green flag is 18:00 UTC on NBC and HBO Max. 8
O'Reilly: Love takes charge as Creed's engine quits
Jesse Love swept both stages and led 156 of 200 laps, scoring 75 of a possible 76 points. His margin over Sam Mayer at the line was 0.128 seconds. 3
Mayer started from the rear after an engine change and closed to Love's bumper off the last corner. He stayed sixth in the standings, 86 points back. 3
Sheldon Creed arrived with a two-point lead. A kill switch failure shut off his engine during the stage-break caution, and his crew lost three laps on pit road getting it refired. He finished 32nd, two laps down, and fell to fourth, 59 points behind Love. 3
Justin Allgaier finished third and is second in the standings, 36 back. Corey Day finished fourth and is third, 39 back. 12
| Finish | Driver |
|---|---|
| 1 | Jesse Love 12 |
| 2 | Sam Mayer, +0.128 12 |
| 3 | Justin Allgaier, +2.200 12 |
| 4 | Corey Day, +4.351 12 |
| 5 | Sammy Smith, +8.258 12 |
| 6 | Brandon Jones, +9.066 12 |
| 7 | Dean Thompson, +11.231 12 |
| 8 | William Sawalich, +11.772 12 |
| 9 | Rajah Caruth, +12.642 12 |
| 10 | Carson Kvapil, +12.957 12 |
The O'Reilly Chase runs nine races this season, and three remain. 3
| Pos. | Driver | Behind Love 12 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jesse Love | Leader 12 |
| 2 | Justin Allgaier | −36 12 |
| 3 | Corey Day | −39 12 |
| 4 | Sheldon Creed | −59 12 |
| 5 | Carson Kvapil | −79 12 |
| 6 | Sam Mayer | −86 12 |
| 7 | Sammy Smith | −137 12 |
| 8 | Taylor Gray | −141 12 |
| 9 | Austin Hill | −143 12 |
| 10 | Parker Retzlaff | −173 12 |
| 11 | Brandon Jones | −183 12 |
| 12 | Rajah Caruth | −213 12 |
Post-race inspection confirmed Love as the winner. The No. 42 Chevrolet was cited for one lug nut not safe and secure and loses pit selection at Talladega. 3
Next is The Progress Group 250 at Talladega on Oct. 24. Green flag is 19:30 UTC on The CW and ESPN Unlimited. 3
Truck: Honeycutt's pit crew and a 53-lap final run
Kaden Honeycutt came out of the second stage break second overall and first among Chase drivers. He passed Stewart Friesen, who had taken two tires and jumped 12 spots, on the Lap 99 restart and led the rest. 4
Honeycutt led a race-high 53 laps, all on the final green-flag run, and beat Christian Eckes by 1.556 seconds. It was his first win at Phoenix and the fourth of his career, all in 2026. 4
Layne Riggs led the first 43 laps from the pole before Ty Majeski got by him for the Stage 1 win. Majeski swept both stages and led 49 laps, then finished fourth. Riggs ended up third and is 39 points back. 4
Eckes has finished second in three straight races and is third in points, 112 back. Chandler Smith drew a pit road penalty for too many men over the wall, finished 15th and fell one place to fourth, 117 back. 4
| Finish | Driver |
|---|---|
| 1 | Kaden Honeycutt 13 |
| 2 | Christian Eckes, +1.556 13 |
| 3 | Layne Riggs, +1.957 13 |
| 4 | Ty Majeski, +2.339 13 |
| 5 | Jake Garcia, +3.687 13 |
| 6 | William Sawalich, +12.581 13 |
| 7 | Daniel Hemric, +14.272 13 |
| 8 | Giovanni Ruggiero, +14.388 13 |
| 9 | Grant Enfinger, +15.022 13 |
| 10 | Brent Crews, +17.349 13 |
The race ran under two cautions for 16 laps with six lead changes among five drivers. Post-race inspection closed with no issues. 4
| Pos. | Driver | Behind Honeycutt 13 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kaden Honeycutt | Leader 13 |
| 2 | Layne Riggs | −39 13 |
| 3 | Christian Eckes | −112 13 |
| 4 | Chandler Smith | −117 13 |
| 5 | Ty Majeski | −135 13 |
| 6 | Daniel Hemric | −148 13 |
| 7 | Giovanni Ruggiero | −151 13 |
| 8 | Grant Enfinger | −184 13 |
| 9 | Ben Rhodes | −188 13 |
| 10 | Tyler Ankrum | −201 13 |
Three races remain in the Truck season. The next one is the Love's RV Stop 225 at Talladega on Oct. 23, with the green flag at 20:00 UTC on FS1. 4
NHRA: Brown ends Langdon's streak, Glenn takes Pro Stock
Antron Brown went 3.706 seconds at 335.75 mph in the Top Fuel final, and rookie Maddi Gordon went red. Brown beat Dan Mercier, Leah Pruett and points leader Shawn Langdon to get there. 5
It was Brown's second win of the season and the 83rd of his career. Langdon's four-race winning streak ended, and his points lead is still 139 over Doug Kalitta, with Brown third at 224 back. 5
J.R. Todd beat Funny Car points leader Matt Hagan in the final, 3.931 at 331.76, with a .059 reaction time. Todd is the fourth driver to win in both Top Fuel and Funny Car at Texas Motorplex. 5
Dallas Glenn set the Pro Stock national record at 6.434 seconds in Saturday qualifying, took the No. 1 spot, then beat Matt Hartford in the final with 6.478 at 212.30. The win moved Glenn back into the points lead. 5
Matt Smith holeshot Richard Gadson in Pro Stock Motorcycle, .006 to Gadson's quicker 6.654, winning on a 6.660 at 203.08. It was Smith's fourth win of the season and 46th of his career. 5
| Class | Winner | Runner-up | Points after Texas 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top Fuel | Antron Brown, 3.706 | Maddi Gordon (red light) | Langdon leads Kalitta by 139; Brown −224 |
| Funny Car | J.R. Todd, 3.931 | Matt Hagan | Hagan leads Vandergriff by 98; Todd −119 |
| Pro Stock | Dallas Glenn, 6.478 | Matt Hartford | Glenn leads Greg Stanfield by 14; Hartford −41 |
| Pro Stock Motorcycle | Matt Smith, 6.660 | Richard Gadson | Gadson leads Herrera by 58; Smith −85 |
The Countdown has two races left. NHRA returns at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the MoparNHRA Las Vegas Nationals on Oct. 29-Nov. 1. 5
Dirt: Abreu's second title, Kofoid's first night at Belle-Clair
- High Limit Racing, All-In Championship finale, Texas Motor Speedway Dirt Track, Oct. 17: Giovanni Scelzi led all 30 laps and won, but Rico Abreu's second place was enough to clinch a second straight series title; with Scelzi winning, Abreu needed to finish 16th or better. Scelzi's lead never reached half a second over the last seven laps. 614
- World of Outlaws Sprint Cars, Battle at Belle-Clair, Belle-Clair Fairgrounds Park Speedway, Oct. 17: Michael Kofoid won the 40-lap feature at the rebuilt quarter-mile in Belleville, Illinois, on the series' first visit there. Parker Price-Miller was second and Karter Sarff third; Sheldon Haudenschild came from 24th to fourth. Two cars flipped during the night, Cole Macedo early and Garet Williamson on Lap 30, and both drivers climbed out. 15
- Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, Dirt Track World Championship, West Virginia Motor Speedway, Oct. 18: Ricky Thornton Jr. won the 100-lap, $100,000-to-win finale. Brandon Sheppard finished second and took the 2026 series championship, with Devin Moran, who had trailed by 45 points coming in, third. 7
ARCA West: Reaves wins a rain-shortened 100
Max Reaves won the Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 100 at Phoenix on Oct. 17 after the race was called for rain in overtime. Taylor Reimer finished 0.072 seconds back after the two swapped the lead late, and Mason Massey was third. 16
Six women were in the field, a record for the series. Hailie Deegan finished sixth. 16
Announcements
- Blaine Perkins to Sam Hunt Racing. Perkins signed a multi-year deal for the 2027 O'Reilly season and will drive the No. 24 Toyota GR Supra, leaving Jordan Anderson Racing with two open seats. Announced Oct. 14. 17
- Ryan Ellis to Alpha Prime Racing. Ellis joins Alpha Prime for the 2027 O'Reilly season, with Tablo TV sponsoring more than 10 races. Car number and other sponsors are still to come. Announced Oct. 15. 17
- Tristan McKee to JR Motorsports, part-time. McKee will run a partial O'Reilly schedule in the No. 9 starting at Bristol in August 2027, part-time again in 2028 and full-time in 2029. Announced Oct. 16. 17
- Brennan Poole to Jordan Anderson Racing. Poole, who told Alpha Prime on Oct. 12 that he was leaving, will drive for Jordan Anderson in the 2027 O'Reilly season with Macc Door Systems, Toxic Waste Candy and CW & Sons Directional Boring. Announced Oct. 16. 17
- Jordan Anderson adds a development car. The team's No. 27 entry becomes an all-star development car in 2027, the role the No. 32 filled in 2026. Announced Oct. 16. 17
Rules and the garage
- No penalties for the Charlotte cool-down lap. NASCAR reviewed in-car cameras and an overhead shot of Michael McDowell and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. making contact after the Oct. 11 race and decided against penalties. NASCAR vice president of racing communications Mike Forde called it "the closest it's gotten to being a penalty without it being a penalty." Both drivers were to meet with NASCAR at Phoenix. 18
- The 2027 TV question. NASCAR is in year two of a seven-year deal. After a corporate merger put CBS and TNT Sports under the same ownership, NASCAR CEO Steve O'Donnell said he will meet with CBS about airing the five TNT races on the broadcast network. 19
- Inspection results at Phoenix. Cup and Truck post-race inspections closed clean. In the O'Reilly series, the No. 42 lost pit selection at Talladega over one lug nut not safe and secure. 134
What to watch: Oct. 19-25
| Date and time (UTC) | Event | Venue | Where to watch 8 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Oct. 23, 20:00 | Truck Series: Love's RV Stop 225 | Talladega Superspeedway | FS1, FOX One |
| Sat, Oct. 24, 17:00 | Cup Series qualifying | Talladega Superspeedway | truTV, HBO Max |
| Sat, Oct. 24, 19:30 | O'Reilly Series: The Progress Group 250 | Talladega Superspeedway | The CW, ESPN Unlimited |
| Sat, Oct. 24, 22:50 | Porsche Carrera Cup North America, Race 1 | Circuit of The Americas | Peacock |
| Sun, Oct. 25, 16:45 | Porsche Carrera Cup North America, Race 2 | Circuit of The Americas | Peacock |
| Sun, Oct. 25, 18:00 | Cup Series: YellaWood 500 | Talladega Superspeedway | NBC, HBO Max |
Truck qualifying runs Friday at 16:30 UTC on FS2, and O'Reilly qualifying Saturday at 15:00 UTC on ESPN Unlimited. 8
Talladega is the eighth of ten Chase races, with Martinsville on Nov. 1 and the Homestead-Miami finale on Nov. 8 to follow. 11
The scoring makes a superspeedway weekend expensive. A win pays 55 points, second pays 35 and a stage win pays 10, so the gap between the best and worst afternoon at Talladega runs about 72 points. 11 That is wider than the spread from Larson down to Reddick in seventh. 11
References
- 1
- 2NASCAR standings after Phoenix Raceway
racingnews.co
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15
- 16
- 172027 NASCAR Silly Season Blog
josephsrigley.com
- 18
- 19NASCAR TV networks could change in 2027
racingnews.co
- 20WeatherTech: 2027 Schedule
imsa.com
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