CHASE ELLIOTT AT POCONO – MOTORSPORT AMERICA PHOTO
Closing the chapter on a historic weekend on the international stage,
all three NASCAR national touring series will come back together to
venture to the mountains of Pennsylvania to take on Pocono Raceway.
Team Chevy will tackle the “Tricky Triangle” with momentum from a
weekend sweep in Mexico City courtesy of victories by Shane van
Gisbergen and Daniel Suarez. NASCAR’s 10th tripleheader weekend of the
2025 season will get underway with the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series on Friday
evening with the MillerTech Battery 200, followed by the Xfinity Series
on Saturday with the Explore the Pocono Mountains 250 and the Cup Series
capping off the three-day event on Sunday with The Great American
Getaway 400 Presented by VISITPA.com.
Trackhouse Racing Drivers Hitting Early Summer Stride
A trip south of the border ended with a shakeup in the NASCAR Cup Series
playoff standings courtesy of a dominant victory by Trackhouse
Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen. Further proving his mastery on road
courses, the 36-year-old Auckland, New Zealand, native powered his No.
88 Chevrolet to the pole position – going on to tally a race-high 60
laps led and a record-setting margin of victory in the Next Gen era of
16.567 seconds to become the series’ 10th different winner of the
season. Van Gisbergen is the fourth different Chevrolet driver to reach
victory lane thus far this season – matching the series’ lead in
early playoff berths by a manufacturer. Van Gisbergen will make his
first appearance in the series’ postseason competition alongside his
Trackhouse Racing teammate, Ross Chastain, who punched his ticket into
the title hunt with his crown jewel victory at Charlotte Motor Speedway
just a few weeks ago.
Team Chevy Drivers Finding Success on All Configurations:
In just 16 points-paying races, Chevrolet has been able to earn a trip
to victory lane in each track configuration found on the NASCAR Cup
Series schedule. The Bowtie brand’s series-leading six wins kicked off
with Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron, who drove his No. 24
Chevrolet to back-to-back DAYTONA 500 victories. His teammate, Kyle
Larson, is one of three, three-time winners this season, with his
victories earned on two traditional 1.5-mile ovals (Homestead-Miami
Speedway and Kansas Speedway) and the short track of Bristol Motor
Speedway. Van Gisbergen checked off the final box by earning the
manufacturer’s first road course win of the season in Mexico City.
QUOTABLE QUOTES:
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Are you looking forward to Pocono?
“Absolutely! We have Busch Light Apple back on the car this weekend so
it’s another opportunity for all of the Busch Light Apple fans to
rejoice. I’m sure I’ll run into a lot of fans cracking open their Busch
Light Apple cans in the infield at Pocono. I actually enjoy racing at
Pocono. It’s one of our most unique tracks with each corner being so
different. Still looking for that top-five finish there though. We
typically have a good car but it seems like something just doesn’t go
our way the last few races. We have the win from Charlotte under our
belt and have some momentum so I’m looking forward to this weekend.”
What do you think about Mexico City now that it is over?
“Mexico City was a lot of fun. It was fun to experience the culture away
from the racetrack and it was fun to drive on the road course.
Obviously, having Daniel as a teammate and him looking forward to the
race and the market all year was cool. He was embraced by his home
country and that was neat to see. And then Shane getting the win on
Sunday was even more unique. Both of those guys had a great weekend in
Mexico City and it was fun to watch them.”
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
What has been the biggest challenge for you at Pocono Raceway?
“Pocono Raceway is a challenging track from the standpoint of trying
to get all three corners tied together with the racecar. It’s tough on
the drivers, and tough on the crew chiefs. You’re never going to be
completely comfortable with Pocono Raceway because you’ve got to be able
to deal with an issue in one of the three corners. Our No. 3 Bass Pro
Shops / Winchester team will do a very good job of trying to get a happy
medium between all three, but I think the Tunnel Turn is probably the
most important.”
Now that we’re this far into the season, is there still room for
points racing, or is winning races the primary goal?
“Victory is the main goal every weekend, but you also want to
consistently move forward in the point standings, and earning stage
points is a good way to try and do that. A win locks you into one of
those coveted top 16 spots. We’re going to do what we can to bring
more speed to the racetrack, and try to create opportunities, both to
earn stage points, and to find Victory Lane.”
Justin Haley, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Coming off of Mexico, how do you feel about Dorman aboard your Chevy and
thoughts on Pocono?
“I’m excited to have Dorman on our No. 7 Chevrolet. Dorman has been
a great partner for Spire and it’s really cool to give them their
first chance to be on the car at their home track where I’ve had
success in the past. We learned a lot over the past couple of weekends
on the No. 7 car and I’m looking forward to a solid weekend in
Pocono.”
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Which end of the racetrack in Pocono is most critical for a good lap?
“Pocono has three very distinct corners and you need to be fast in
each one in order to have a fast race car and to have a good day. I
would say the biggest compromise between turns is between Turn 1 and
Turn 3.”
The last couple of years at Pocono, the track had a huge crowd. Do you
think that’s because the facility has just one race a year?
“I was pleasantly surprised to see such a good crowd at Pocono the
last couple of years. I do believe it has to do with us only going there
once a year. When we go to some of these tracks twice a year, fans will
decide which one they want to go to Instead of just knowing that they
only have one chance to go so they better get their tickets as soon as
they can.”
There’s a lot of shifting at Pocono. Would you be in favor of NASCAR
making rules change to limit that or is that something that you enjoy?
“I think at Pocono, since the track is so big and with the three
corners being as different as they are, it needs shifting. I think
shifting at Pocono is an okay thing.”
AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
“Pocono is a racetrack that we have been very strong at in the past.
Over the last several weeks, we’ve had good speed in the race car, so
we’ll look to execute overall. It’s a racetrack I’m comfortable
with and one I enjoy racing. We have a chance to put together a strong
weekend and run inside the top 10.”
Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Coming off your first top-five as a Spire Motorsports driver last week
in Mexico, what are your thoughts heading into Pocono?
“I think Pocono is another great opportunity to put together a strong
week. It is a unique place, especially over the tunnel turn with how
narrow the track gets, but it is a track we have had success at in the
past. I hope that we can continue to build off of our top-five run in
Mexico and if you look at the next couple of tracks, there are a lot of
places where we have had success. Atlanta, Chicago, Sonoma are real
opportunities for us to earn some points, shake up the in season
tournament, and win races for Spire Motorsports. I am really looking
forward to this stretch.”
Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
How will another double-duty weekend help you at a track as tricky as
Pocono?
“Track time is going to be an advantage this weekend. Pocono can be
really difficult, you have to be able to get through each corner and
they’re all different. The way the car or truck gets through the
tunnel turn is going to feel completely different from how it gets
through Turn One or Three. Then there’s the long straightaway and the
bumps, and all the unique things that can impact a race at Pocono. I
think we’ll do well. We’ve been able to find things at each type of
track that play in our favor and I feel like we’ll be able to build on
all of those things to make the adjustments we need.”
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
How special was last weekend’s win?
“It was a brilliant weekend for us with a pole and a win! I really am
stoked to get a great result for SafetyCulture. We’ve had speed with
them on the car but never had a great finish. Amazing to win with an
Australian company on the car. Thank you so much to the Trackhouse guys,
Chevy, ECR Engines, and everyone who’s supported us and dug deep. It’s
been a tough start to the year, but there’s been a lot of bright spots
lately, a lot of progress. I struggled to enjoy that last stint it
because I was just praying that a yellow wouldn’t come out, but the car
was just unreal, just so balanced. The last 10 to 15 laps were really
special.”
After listening to your radio this past weekend in Mexico City, it seems
you and your crew chief, Stephen Doran have a great relationship. What
is that like?
“It’s a collaboration. We really have to work together with not only
Stephen (Doran) but Josh (Williams) my spotter. Especially on Sunday
with the weather, we had different tire choices and what was going to
happen with strategy. When we decided not to flip the second stage
obviously, I questioned that, because that’s a normal thing to do on
road courses. But from the driver’s seat, I don’t have the bigger
picture, and Stephen painted the picture in my head. Just have to work
together closely with those guys. They really lead the way on oval stuff
with me because I’m still learning a lot, but on road courses I think I
can provide a lot of valuable input.”
You’re now locked into the Playoffs but only have six Playoff points –
What is your mindset after this win, heading into Pocono and the rest of
the regular season?
“Great question! Last year, when we were in this position in Xfinity, we
really started to gather more stage points as the weekends went on.
Obviously, we want to keep winning races and keep getting better at the
ovals. The first round of the playoffs are some really tough ovals and
also a track I haven’t been to before with World Wide Technology
Raceway. We just need to keep focusing on improving so when the Playoffs
come around, we are a solid contender on ovals.”
Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Did Mexico go as you expected?
“Everything about this weekend exceeded my expectations: the people, the
fans, the sponsors, the excitement and the energy. I had expectations
for this weekend, not the results but, like, the event, and I can tell
you that I personally believe it exceeded those expectations and so I’m
very, very happy for that. I feel so blessed and I hope that we can do
race in Mexico City many more times. I hope that we come back many, many
times.”
What are your goals for Pocono?
“We need to win in these next weeks. We know we are capable and we have
done it before.”
What does having Very Good Ventures as a sponsor mean to you and
Trackhouse?
“Very Good Ventures has been working with Trackhouse to improve our race
day experience for guests on the pit boxes. The guests will have iPads
and the ability to hear what we are saying on the radios, follow along
on timing, scoring, and other things. They also work with the
competition side, improving our processes with new technology. We
believe Very Good Ventures will make our cars faster.”
Connor Zilisch, No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet
“I think Pocono will be a good track for us. We’ve had some good
momentum lately. We’re coming off three top-fives in a row and we’re
looking to keep that up and have another good showing. I’ve never been
to Pocono, but I’ve done quite a bit of SIM time preparing for this
weekend. Pocono is definitely a unique racetrack. All three corners are
different and it’s one that I’m going to have to learn quickly
because a lot of guys have raced there in ARCA and other series.”
What is the most challenging part of Pocono Raceway?
“I think the Tunnel Turn is pretty tough. It’s got a big bump and
that can be challenging.”
TUNE-IN:
NASCAR Cup Series
The Great American Getaway 400 Presented by VISITPA.COM
Sunday, June 22, at 2 p.m. ET
(Amazon Prime, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Pocono Mountains 250
Saturday, June 21, at 3:30 p.m. ET
(CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
Millertech Battery 200
Friday, June 20, at 5:00 p.m. ET
(FS1, NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90).
BOWTIE BULLETS:
· Chevrolet will serve as the official pace vehicle for the
tripleheader weekend at Pocono Raceway, with the Corvette Stingray
pacing the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series and the Silverado RST pacing
the Craftsman Truck Series.
· NASCAR Cup Series victories by active Chevrolet drivers at
Pocono Raceway:
Kyle Busch – four wins (2021, 2019, 2018, 2017)
Chase Elliott – one win (2022)
Alex Bowman – one win (2021)