PREVIEW: Kyle Larson’s double-duty effort just one of many at Indianapolis
by Brock Beard / LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief
IMAGE: Declan Wayman, @declan_wayman
Friday, July 25, 2025 (Green Flag 8:17 P.M. ET, FS1)
TRUCKS Race 16 of 25
TSport 200 at IRP
2024 Last-Place Finisher: Mason Massey
ENTRY LIST
The Truck Series returns after nearly a month off since the last race at Lime Rock Park by opening Indianapolis weekend at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. Here, 35 drivers are entered for 36 spots, so all will qualify for the 15th short field in 16 races this season.
DRIVER CHANGE: #2-Reaume Brothers Racing
Cody Dennison, fresh off an appearance at the Southeast Game Exchange convention, returns in place of William Lambros, who finished 27th in his series debut at Lime Rock. Dennison will also join fellow Truck Series entrants Brent Crews (#1) and Brenden Queen (#07) in today’s ARCA race at IRP.
RETURNING: #6-Norm Benning Racing
Norm Benning seeks his first start since Pocono, having withdrawn his #6 from the most recent round at Lime Rock. Benning hasn’t started this race at IRP since 2011, when he finished 31st, but has finished all three of his races here under power.
DRIVER CHANGE: #7-Spire Motorsports
Corey Day returns to the Truck Series for the first time since his career-best 5th-place showing in Nashville, taking the place of 20th-place Lime Rock finisher Jordan Taylor.
RETURNING: #20-Young’s Motorsports
An overlooked storyline heading into this weekend involves current XFINITY team owner Jordan Anderson, who today makes his first Truck Series start since October 1, 2022, when he suffered serious burns in an early fire at Talladega. Anderson this time drives for Randy Young in the team’s part-time #20 entry, bringing with him team sponsor Bommarito.com.
DRIVER CHANGE: #22-Reaume Brothers Racing
Alan Waller returns to the Truck Series for the first time since his 31st-place series debut at Martinsville this past spring, and will again drive the #22 entry for Josh Reaume. Waller replaces Lime Rock last-place finisher Alex Labbe, who made his own series debut in that race.
MISSING: #32-NDS Motorsports
Not among this week’s entrants is veteran road racer Dale Quarterley, who finished 32nd at Lime Rock after electrical issues in NDS Motorsports’ return to the series.
NEW TEAM: #35-Greg Van Alst Motorsports
Similar to Akinori Ogata, who debuted his own Akinori Performance team earlier this year (#63), Greg Van Alst will tonight field his own truck after a series of struggles driving for other teams in the XFINITY Series. Earlier this year, Van Alst made eight starts for Joey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen – only one of which yielding a finish better than 31st. Top Choice Fence is the listed sponsor.
DRIVER CHANGE: #44-Niece Motorsports
The lone Cup Series regular in tonight’s field is Ross Chastain, who takes the wheel of Al Niece’s #44 in place of Josh Bilicki, who earned a strong 7th in Lime Rock Park. This year’s Coca-Cola 600 winner finished 11th in this race last season, then driving Niece’s #45. The Illiana Watermelon Association is the listed sponsor. Meanwhile, Bilicki will turn his attention to the big track as he runs double-duty with Cup and XFINITY (see below).
MISSING: #56-Hill Motorsports
Timmy Hill will not run tonight’s race following a 25th-place finish in his team’s most recent outing at Lime Rock.
MISSING: #62-Halmar Friesen Racing
Also not entered this week is the second HFR entry with which Wesley Slimp took 33rd in his series debut at Lime Rock, driving a backup truck after an engine fire in practice.
DRIVER CHANGE: #66-ThorSport Racing
Like Corey Day, Luke Fenhaus makes his series return for the first time since his career-best run, his being a 3rd-place finish at Michigan where he won the pole. He again drives ThorSport’s #66, this time in place of Cameron Waters, a strong 5th in Lime Rock.
RETURNING: #74-Mike Harmon Racing
Mike Harmon Racing’s bid at a double-duty weekend – their first since Pocono – was nearly jeopardy. The team messaged Thursday that the dually towing their hauler has broken down near Mile Marker 70 on Black Mountain near Asheville. All crew members were safe, and they since received assistance to make it the rest of the way. The team’s Truck Series entry showed “TBA” in the driver’s column, but has since shown Boston Oliver as the driver making his series debut in the blue G2G Racing truck run in Pocono.
DRIVER CHANGE: #02-Young’s Motorsports
Jayson Alexander makes only his third series start, his first since a 30th-place showing in North Wilkesboro. He again drives the #02 for the Young’s team with sponsorship from Constant Contact. He takes the place of Ben Maier, who finished 18th last time out in Lime Rock.
DRIVER CHANGE: #07-Spire Motorsports
Brenden “Butterbean” Queen (not TBA) returns for his fourth series start and first of the season, following a three-race debut with TRICON Garage’s #1 last year. This time around, Queen takes the place of 15th-place Lime Rock finisher (and ARCA race winner) Thomas Annunziata. BestRepair.com is the listed sponsor.
CUP INVADERS: #44-Ross Chastain
Saturday, July 26, 2025 (Green Flag 4:50 P.M. ET, CW)
XFINITY Race 21 of 33
Pennzoil 250 at Indianapolis
2024 Last-Place Finisher: Josh Berry
ENTRY LIST
There are 38 drivers entered for as many spots, so all will qualify.
TEAM CLOSED: #5-Our Motorsports
As reported last week, Our Motorsports has ceased operations after parting ways with driver Kris Wright, then leaving Dover in 31st with substitute driver Kaz Grala.
MISSING: #9-JR Motorsports
Also not making the trip at least this week is JRM’s part-time third entry, the #9, with which Ross Chastain finished last at Dover due to rear gear issues past the halfway point.
DRIVER CHANGE: #17-Hendrick Motorsports
Kyle Larson, who won the return of the Brickyard 400 last season, then struggled in his second and perhaps last attempt at “The Double” this past May, will run a different “double” this weekend. Prior to Sunday’s Cup race, he’ll take the place of 17th-place Dover finisher Jake Finch in Hendrick’s #17 in a bid to sweep both wins. Larson is the lone Cup regular in the field, which will surely be a storyline tomorrow.
MISSING: #24-Sam Hunt Racing
The SHR team will not field its second car this week with which Ryan Truex finished 18th last Saturday, ending his streak of consecutive Dover victories at two.
DRIVER CHANGE: #32-Jordan Anderson Racing
After competing in tonight’s Truck Series race, Jordan Anderson will field his part-time #32 as he had at Dover, this time bringing back Katherine Legge with sponsorship from Desnuda Tequila to kick off her double-duty weekend with the Cup Series (see below). Legge takes the place of Rajah Caruth, who finished 22nd last week in Dover.
DRIVER SWAP: #35-Joey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen
DRIVER CHANGE: #53-Joey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen
It’s been a rough couple weeks for the Gase team, which saw one of its cars fail to qualify at Sears Point, then both in Dover. This week’s short field will put both cars into the show. Driving the #35 in place of Glen Reen is David Starr (not TBA), who moves over from the #53 from last week along with his sponsorship from Alarm Tech Systems, Inc. Gase himself takes Starr’s place in the #53.
DRIVER CHANGE: #45-Alpha Prime Racing
Mason Massey returns to the #45 at Alpha Prime for his 65th career XFINITY start and 10th of the season, his first since back-to-back 20th-place showings in Pocono and Atlanta. Massey takes the place of Lavar Scott, who qualified for his series debut last week and came home 28th.
RETURNING: #74-Mike Harmon Racing
Pending the team’s arrival, the #74 on the XFINITY Series side will again be Dawson Cram, who ended a streak of DNQs with his most recent start at Pocono, yielding a 33rd-place finish, just one lap down at the checkered flag. This would be Cram’s first start on Indianapolis’ oval.
DRIVER CHANGE: #07-SS-Green Light Racing
Logan Bearden makes his third start of the season and first since his own race at Pocono, here he took 27th driving the Gase #53. He takes the place of Nick Leitz, who took 33rd when the rain fell in Dover. Patriot Crew is the listed sponsor.
CUP INVADERS: #17-Kyle Larson
Sunday, July 27, 2025 (Green Flag 2:20 P.M. ET, TNT)
CUP Race 22 of 36
Brickyard 400 presented by PPG at Indianapolis
2024 Last-Place Finisher: B.J. McLeod
ENTRY LIST
There are 39 drivers entered for 40 spots, so all will qualify for the 18th short field in 22 races this season.
TEAM UPDATE: #10-Kaulig Racing
TEAM UPDATE: #54-Joe Gibbs Racing
The battle of the “Tys” is set to play out as Ty Dillon and Ty Gibbs will battle for the $1 million bracket challenge in this, TNT’s final race of the season. The best finishing of the two takes home the prize.
MISSING: #44-NY Racing Team
Not among the entrants this week is J.J. Yeley, who had to pull off the track in Dover’s final laps due to heat exhaustion. Yeley, one of the few drivers to run without a “cool suit,” endured the stifling weather for most of the afternoon and gained positions before the competition caution. He finished in 34th.
RETURNING: #62-Beard Motorsports
Jesse Love makes his fourth career Cup Series start in his own double-duty effort with the XFINITY Series, his first in the top division since Kansas, where he took a career-best 29th in RCR’s #29. This time around, he drives Beard Motorsports’ #62 – the same entry he ran in his second start in Texas – with C4 Ultimate Energy rejoining as sponsor. This marks the Beard team’s first start since that Texas event.
RETURNING: #66-Garage 66
Josh Bilicki and the Garage 66 team look to bounce back from their last-place effort in this race last year, when B.J. McLeod was driving before early engine trouble. It was at this track in 2014 when driver Timmy Hill steered one of Carl Long’s cars from 37th on the grid to 14th at the checkered flag.
RETURNING: #78-Live Fast Motorsports
Speaking of McLeod, his #78 entry is also making the trip to Gasoline Alley as Katherine Legge completes her double-duty effort with the XFINITY Series. Droplight is the sponsor for this, Legge’s first series start since Sonoma and fifth of her career. The brand was last her primary for her series debut in Phoenix.
TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (July 25, 1998): Jerry Glanville, former coach of the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career in the Tempus Resorts 300K at Pikes Peak (Colorado) when his #81 Unifirst Uniforms / HBO Sports Ford crashed after 18 laps. Glanville made the final four of his 27 series starts the following year.
