NASCAR Cup Series
Next Race: The Great American Getaway 400 Presented
By VISITPA.com
The Place: Pocono Raceway
Track Length: 2.5 Mile Asphalt Paved Tri-oval
The Date: Sunday, June 22
The Time: 2 p.m. ET
The Purse: $11,055,250
TV: Amazon Prime, 1:30 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR (Channel 90)
Distance: 400 miles (160 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 30),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 95), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 160)
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Next Race: Explore The Pocono Mountains 250
The Place: Pocono Raceway
Track Length: 2.5 Mile Asphalt Paved Tri-oval
The Date: Saturday, June 21
The Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
The Purse: $1,651,939
TV: CW, 3 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR (Channel 90)
Distance: 250 miles (100 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 25),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 50), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 100)
NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series
Next Race: MillerTech Battery 200
The Place: Pocono Raceway
Track Length: 2.5 Mile Asphalt Paved Tri-oval
The Date: Friday, June 20
The Time: 5 p.m. ET
The Purse: $782,900
TV: FS1, 5 p.m. ET
Radio: NRN, SiriusXM NASCAR (Channel 90)
Distance: 200 miles (80 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 20),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 40), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 80)
Where To Watch NASCAR This Weekend:
Friday, June 20
NCTS Practice & Kennametal Pole Qualifying (FS2 at 12:30 p.m. ET)
NCTS Race: MillerTech Battery 200 (FS1, NRN, SiriusXM at 5 p.m. ET)
Saturday, June 21
NXS Practice & Kennametal Pole Qualifying (CW App at 10 a.m. ET)
NCS Practice & Busch Light Pole Qualifying (Amazon Prime, MRN, SiriusXM at 12:30 p.m. ET)
NXS Race: Explore The Pocono Mountain 250(CW Network, MRN, SiriusXM at 3:30 ET)
Sunday, June 22
NCS Race: The Great American Getaway 400 (Amazon Prime, MRN, SiriusXM at 2 p.m. ET)
NASCAR Cup Series
Pocono Storylines and Insights:
· This weekend marks the 92nd running of a NASCAR Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway (1974-2025).
· The race to the Playoffs is officially underway, only 10 races remain before the Playoffs.
· 2025 is the fourth straight year that Pocono held one race.
· Denny Hamlin’s seven wins at Pocono are the most all-time.
· Denny Hamlin has more wins at Pocono (7) than any other track.
· Denny Hamlin is the only repeat winner in the last eight Pocono races; he won three races during that time.
· Four organizations won the last 10 Pocono races: Joe Gibbs Racing (six wins), Hendrick Motorsports (two wins), Stewart Haas Racing and Team Penske (one win each).
· Denny Hamlin ended a 406-race streak of consecutive starts after missing Mexico City.
· Team Penske went 22 races between their Pocono wins from 2011 to 2024.
· Last year’s Pocono race had only 24 cars running at the finish, the fewest for a Pocono Cup race since June 1993.
· 19 different drivers finished in the top-10 in the last two races, only Chris Buescher finished top-10 in both.
· Three drivers outside the top 16 in regular season points won this season (J. Berry, A. Cindric and Shane van Gisbergen).
· Chase Elliott won at Pocono in 2023 after crossing the line thirdand failing to lead a lap after Denny Hamin (1st) and Kyle Busch (2nd) were both disqualified in post-race inspection.
· Chase Elliott leads all drivers in points earned at Pocono in the Next Gen car.
· There was a caution in the first 15 laps in each of the last seven Pocono races.
· The stage 2 winner is winless at Pocono.
· William Byron’s average finish of 9.36 at Pocono is the best all-time.
· Kyle Larson leads all drivers with nine top-five finishes in 2025, William Byron, Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin rank second with seven.
· Kyle Larson’s 11 top-10 finishes in 2025 are tied for the most with Christopher Bell.
· This weekend, eight of the 40 NASCAR Cup Series Pocono Raceway winners are active:
| Active Pocono Winners (8) | Wins | Seasons |
| Denny Hamlin | 7 | 2023, 2020, 2019, 2010, 2009, 2006 sweep |
| Kyle Busch | 4 | 2021, 2019, 2018, 2017 |
| Ryan Blaney | 2 | 2024, 2017 |
| Chase Elliott | 1 | 2022 |
| Alex Bowman | 1 | 2021 |
| Chris Buescher | 1 | 2016 |
| Joey Logano | 1 | 2012 |
| Brad Keselowski | 1 | 2011 |
· The difference between the last driver in the Playoffs on points and the first driver out is 19 points, the largest gap of the season, the two drivers were tied in points entering Mexico City.
· Three of the top-four drivers in regular season standings drive for Hendrick Motorsports: Byron-first, Larson-second, and Elliott-fourth.
· William Byron’s 604 points earned through 16 races in 2025 are the most at this point in the season by a driver in the Next Gen era (2022-2025).
· William Byron’s 67 point lead over second place (Kyle Larson) in regular season points is the largest gap this year.
· Chase Elliott is the only driver to finish top-20 in all 16 races this season.
· 2025 is the second straight season that Chase Eliott completed all but one lap of the season entering the 17th race of the season.
· In the stage era, only one driver has won at Pocono from below the cutline (Ryan Blaney, 17th in 2017).
· The last 11 races at Pocono were won by a driver ranked sixth or better in the Playoff standings.
· Denny Hamlin has been in the top five in Speed, Long Run, and Restart rating for each Pocono race in the Next Gen car.
· Bubba Wallace has gained an average of 11 spots per race on Restarts in the Next Gen, most of all drivers.
· Denny Hamlin has gained an average of nine spots per race on Restarts in the Next Gen.
· Ty Gibbs has been top five in Speed and Long Run Speed in each of the last two Pocono races.
· Tyler Reddick and William Byron have been top 10 in Speed in all three Next Gen races at Pocono.
· Since swapping pit crews before Darlington, the #5 team has had the number 1 ranked Pit Crew.
· A total of four NASCAR Cup Series drivers have posted their first career win at Pocono Raceway; three of which are active this weekend: Ryan Blaney (2017), Chris Buescher (2016), Denny Hamlin (2006), Jeremy Mayfield (1998).
The Playoff Picture (10 Races Remain Before Playoffs):
· 10 of the 16 spots are filled by winners.
· The bubble is now 19 points between Chris Buescher and his RFK Racing teammate Ryan Preece
· 14th to 17th in the Playoff standings are separated by 39 points
· William Byron leads the regular season points by 67 over Kyle Larson
· William Byron has 172 stage points in 2025, 27 more than any other driver
· Kyle Larson has 23 playoff points, the most of all drivers
· Three drivers holding playoff spots with wins are currently outside the top-16 in points (Austin Cindric, Josh Berry & Shane van Gisbergen)
Understanding the In-Season Challenge:
· The top 32 in driver points following Nashville last week are eligible (Shane van Gisbergen, Cole Custer, Riley Herbst and Cody Ware failed to qualify among full-time drivers).
· The next three races (Michigan, Mexico City, Pocono) establish the seeding for the challenge based on the best driver finishing positions over those races. Tiebreakers are decided by the second-best finish and then the third-best finish among those races. If needed, the final tiebreaker is points standings after Pocono.
· The first of five races for the In-Season Challenge is Atlanta, with drivers competing in a bracket-style tournament until the final two drivers face off in the finale at Indianapolis with the best-finishing driver winning $1 million.
· Select this link for the In-Season Challenge Infographic & Bracket
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Pocono Storylines and Insights:
· This weekend marks the 10th running of a NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway, all since 2016.
· This weekend’s race is scheduled for 100 laps, after it was 90 in each of the last five races at Pocono, the first four races there were scheduled at 100 laps.
· There have been eight different winners in nine Pocono races – Cole Custer is the only repeat winner.
· Austin Hill is the only past Xfinity Series Pocono winner in the field.
· Of the eight former Pocono winners, seven are current full-time Cup Series drivers (Austin Hill is the only exception).
· Chase Elliott will be driving the Hendrick Motorsports #17. His second Xfinity start of 2025.
· Dale Earnhardt Jr. will serve as crew chief as Mardy Lindley serves suspension for lug nuts at Nashville.
· Eight drivers on the entry list have won at Pocono in Cup (Elliott), Trucks (B. Jones) or ARCA (7 drivers).
· The last six Pocono winners were under the age of 30.
· Taylor Gray has never finished outside the top five at Pocono in Xfinity, Trucks or ARCA.
· Justin Allgaier needs four laps led at Pocono to pass Cole Custer for most led there all-time.
· Eight drivers will be making their first career Xfinity Series start at Pocono.
· Six of nine Pocono races were won by the driver that led the most laps.
· Three of the last six Pocono races went to overtime.
· Three of the last eight Pocono races featured a pass for the win in the final two laps.
· JGR (1), JRM (1) and RCR (1) have combined for just three wins at Pocono.
· Ford has won five of the nine Pocono races but are winless this season.
· There are 11 races left in the regular season and six Playoff spots remain open.
· Taylor Gray and Ryan Sieg are tied at the cut line.
· The drivers from 8th-14th are separated by 57 points, less than one race.
· The four drivers behind Ryan Sieg in the points are all rookies.
· JR Motorsports has won seven races this season with five different drivers, tied for most different drivers in a season all-time: Justin Allgaier 3, Connor Zilisch 1, Sammy Smith 1, Kyle Larson 1 & Daniel Suarez 1.
· JR Motorsports is five wins away from 100, only three other teams won at least 100 NXS races (Joe Gibbs Racing-217, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing-138, Richard Childress Racing-100).
· Four crew chiefs got their first NXS win in 2025: Chad Haney at Atlanta, Sam McAulay at Darlington, Adam Wall at Bristol & Cory Shea at Mexico City.
· Taylor Gray (2nd – tied), Christian Eckes (4th) and William Sawalich (6th) scored or matched their career- best finish at Mexico City.
· Austin Hill finished in the top-10 in six straight races, his fifth time with a streak of 6+ consecutive races.
· Justin Allgaier’s 28 career wins are ninth on the all-time wins list and one away from tying Matt Kenseth.
· Justin Allgaier is eight top 10s away from 300 in his career, he would be the first driver with 300 top 10s.
· Justin Allgaier leads all drivers with 10 top-five finishes and 638 laps led in 2025.
· Justin Allgaier’s 10 top-five finishes in 2025 are his most ever after 15 races in a season.
· Justin Allgaier has won the Fastest Lap Award five times this season, no other driver has more than two.
· Sam Mayer is the only driver to finish top-15 in 12 of 15 races this season.
· Five races this year ended with a last lap pass.
· Three of the last five races this season had a pass for the win in the final two laps.
· Seven of the 15 races this season went to overtime.
· Chevrolet led 2,107 of 2,701 laps this season.
· Chevrolet has won 13 of 15 races, the most all time by a manufacturer through 15 races in series history.
· 2025 is the first season since 2003 without a first-time winner in the first 15 races.
NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series
Pocono Storylines and Insights:
· This weekend marks the 16th running of a NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race at Pocono Raceway, and the first at 200 miles.
· Stages for Pocono: Lap 20, Lap 40 Lap 80.
· 10 laps have been added to the race for 2025, 70 laps in 2024, 60 laps 2014-2023, 50 Laps 2010-2013.
· There are three past Pocono winners entered: Brandon Jones, Chandler Smith and Corey Heim.
· 12 drivers entered are racing in the Truck Series at Pocono for the first time.
· The driver who led the most laps won seven races in 2025.
· The last five races of 2025 were won by different drivers.
· Six of 10 Playoff positions are now held by race winners with five to go in the regular season.
· Two of the remaining six regular season races are on road courses.
· Rajah Caruth was 13th in Playoff standings -17 to the bubble before winning Nashville.
· Stewart Friesen was 12th in Playoff standings -49 to the bubble before winning Michigan.
· Ty Majeski has gone from +43 to +4 to the bubble in the last two races.
· Jake Garcia has gone from +48 to -4 to the bubble in the last two races.
· The last six Pocono races were won by six different drivers.
· Three of the last four Pocono races were won by full time NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series drivers.
· The average starting position of the winner at Pocono is 3.7. 11 of 15 races were won from the first two rows.
· Qualifying at Pocono has only been held once in the last five years.
· Tyler Ankrum will make his 150th start this weekend. Two drivers have won in their 150th Truck Series start: Mike Skinner (Martinsville – 10/07) and Kyle Busch (Charlotte – 05/19).
Clinch Scenarios Following Michigan:
Already Clinched
· The following two drivers have clinched a spot in the 10-driver postseason field: Corey Heim, Chandler Smith.
Can Clinch Via Win
· The following drivers would clinch on their win alone: Daniel Hemric, Tyler Ankrum, Stewart Friesen, Rajah Caruth.
Charlie Henderson Bio:
· Born and raised in Meadowview, Virginia.
· Veteran of the United States Army.
· Married to wife Brenda for 62 years.
· Two children: son David, daughter Debbie.
· Owned and operated Food Country USA, a 10-store grocery chain in Virginia and Tennessee.
· Formed Henderson Motorsports in 1982, initially running part-time in the Cup Series with Brad Teague.
· Operated in the Xfinity Series from 1982-2007 with drivers including future Cup winners Geoff Bodine, Ernie Irvan, Jimmy Spencer and Ward Burton.
· Won three Xfinity Series races with Brad Teague (Martinsville 03/87) and Rick Wilson (Bristol 04/89 and Dover 06/89).
· Best NXS points result: 7th – Brad Teague 1987 & Butch Miller 1992.
· Formed a part-time Truck Series team in 2012 with driver Caleb Holman.
· Two Truck Series wins with Parker Kligerman (Talladega 10/17 & Mid-Ohio 07/22).
· Truck team (Henderson Motorsports) currently runs part-time with driver Parker Kligerman.
NASCAR & Pocono, Etc.
Historical & Significant Events at Pocono Raceway:
- Opened in 1968 as a three-quarter-mile track, Pocono Raceway is operated by the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli.
- Pocono Raceway held the first race on the 2.5-mile track in 1971.
- In 1972, Pocono Raceway held Concert 10, a two-day rock music festival that had an estimated attendance of 200,000.
- The first NASCAR Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway was on August 4, 1974, and the event was won by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty driving the famous Petty Enterprises’ No. 43 Dodge. The average speed of the 192-lap race was 115.593 mph. Petty led 152 of the 192 laps on his way to the win.
- The 2.5-mile track was repaved during the fall of 2011.
- 2012 marked the first season the NASCAR Cup Series races at Pocono were scheduled for 400 miles. Prior to 2012, all NASCAR Cup Series races were 500 miles at Pocono Raceway.
- There have been 91 NASCAR Cup Series races at Pocono Raceway, one race from 1974 through 1981, and two per year from 1982-2021.
- 2020 marked the first season the NASCAR Cup Series held a doubleheader weekend at Pocono Raceway, with races running Saturday and Sunday.
- Since 2022, Pocono Raceway has hosted the Elements Music Festival, an EDM music and arts festival.
- Since 2022, the NASCAR Cup Series has only competed at Pocono Raceway once a season.
American Thunder: NASCAR to Le Mans Now Available on Prime Video:
- American Thunder: NASCAR to Le Mans – the feature-length documentary chronicling NASCAR’s special entry at the 100th anniversary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2023 – is now available on Prime Video.
- The 24 Hours of Le Mans is one of the crown jewels of international motorsports. It’s a showcase of sports car racing excellence that tests the limits of man and machine.
- For the race’s 100th anniversary running in June 2023, an invitation was extended to NASCAR to bring an American stock car Chevrolet Camaro to compete against the futuristic Ferrari and Porsche prototypes and attempt to complete the grueling 24-hour challenge that is Le Mans.
- It was NASCAR Chairman and CEO Jim France’s dream since childhood to have one of his cars race at Le Mans, so he recruited NASCAR’s most successful team, Hendrick Motorsports, to build and race the car. Along with world-class drivers Jenson Button, Jimmie Johnson, and Mike Rockenfeller, Hendrick Motorsports embarked on an eighteen-month journey to develop a race car designed to run three-hour races on ovals in the United States into one that could survive the challenge of racing 24 hours straight on an unforgiving road course.
- American Thunder: NASCAR to Le Mans is produced by NASCAR Studios and Griffin Van Malssen and directed by Brad Lockhart. The film is executive produced by Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports and Tim Clark, John Dahl, Amy Anderson, Tally Hair, and Matt Summers of NASCAR.
