The first true-blue intermediate track this season for the NASCAR Cup Series is in the books, and the record reflects a familiar winner. Denny Hamlin secured his second consecutive victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, pushing his career win total to 61 — good for sole possession of 10th place on the circuit’s all-time list.
Other drivers found positives from the first of two trips this year to the 1.5-mile Nevada oval, while others left Sin City out of the groove and with empty pockets. Here’s a glance at three drivers on the upswing, plus three more who hope for better early-season fortunes in this weekend’s Goodyear 400 (Sunday, 3 p.m. ET, FS1, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Darlington Raceway.
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RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Vegas
THREE UP ⬆️
1. Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Started: 3rd
Finished: 5th
What happened: Like Hamlin, Gibbs drew an early penalty when his No. 54 Toyota was clocked too fast on pit road. That infraction came during the first stage break on the 83rd of 267 laps — same as Hamlin — but he also followed his teammate’s lead in assembling a measurable rally. By the checkered flag, Gibbs had worked his way back to fifth — matching his career-best Vegas finish and giving him three consecutive top-five results for the first time in his Cup career.
What’s next: Gibbs is more than halfway to equaling his top-five total of five from a year ago, and the season is just five races old. His Vegas result bumped him up five spots in the Cup Series standings to 10th. He was ninth in Darlington’s springtime 400-miler a year ago.
Ty Gibbs waves during prerace driver introductions
2. Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford
Started: 10th
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Finished: 6th
What happened: Buescher’s knack for consistency is rising, and he just missed a top-five finish after Ty Gibbs slipped by him with 17 laps to go at Vegas. The Texas native’s best finish of the season led what ended up being a solid all-around day for RFK Racing, with teammate Ryan Preece 11th and RFK Racing co-owner Brad Keselowski 10th.
What’s next: The No. 17 driver has a modest streak of three consecutive top-10 finishes going at the 1.366-mile Darlington oval, though he’s led multiple laps there just once in 17 career starts. He heads into Sunday’s race ninth in Cup Series points.
Chris Buescher loads into the No. 17 Ford for practice and qualifying at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
3. Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Started: 1st
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Finished: 4th
What happened: Bell won the pole and led five times for 31 laps, flexing some strength for the third straight week. Though he expressed post-race regret for how several pivotal restarts went, the No. 20 driver placed first and third at the stage breaks, giving him a 51-point day, second only to Hamlin’s 70-point total.
What’s next: Bell and Co. have rallied significantly after finishing 35th (Daytona) and 21st (Atlanta) to open the season. Three consecutive top fives have Bell up to sixth in the standings heading to Darlington, where he has two poles and one win (2024) in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.
Christopher Bell looks on during post-race interviews at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
THREE DOWN ⬇️
1. Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Started: 32nd
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Finished: 31st
What happened: A Lap 122 speeding penalty during a green-flag cycle of pit stops didn’t help in Berry’s hopes for a repeat performance after his breakthrough Las Vegas win a year ago. The costly infraction knocked the No. 21 Ford off the lead lap, and Berry wound up three laps down at the checkers.
What’s next: Since opening the season with a ninth-place finish at Daytona, Berry has free-falled to 32nd in the standings after four straight results outside of the top 25. Darlington has been a similar blend for Berry. The veteran has a top-five outcome there (third, spring 2024), but has been involved in crashes his last three times, including a Lap 1 crack-up in the Southern 500 last Labor Day weekend.
Josh Berry looks on, strapped into the No. 21 Ford at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
2. AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Started: 29th
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Finished: 24th
What happened: Allmendinger had surged to a high-water mark of fifth in the early Cup Series points, but a P19 at Phoenix Raceway and this past Sunday’s tumble to outside the top 20 have staggered the No. 16 team’s early roll. The 44-year-old veteran slipped five positions to 18th in the standings after finishing two laps down in Las Vegas.
What’s next: Allmendinger had gone 14 consecutive Darlington races without a top-10 finish, but filled that void in last year’s Southern 500 when he drove the No. 16 Chevy to an admirable fifth place. That said, he’s completed 5,115 laps there and hasn’t led any of them.
AJ Allmendinger wheels the No. 16 Chevrolet in practice and qualifying at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
3. Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Started: 25th
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Finished: 32nd
What happened: The Trackhouse rookie was running in the same position he started with 56 laps remaining, when he closed quickly on Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s No. 47 Chevy and spun after contact near the pit entrance. “There was no signal he was pitting,” Zilisch told his No. 88 team, which made enough repairs to get him to the end, three laps down. “Days like today’ll just make the good days that much better,” his crew told him before the final green-flag run.
What’s next: Zilisch’s first Cup Series season has been a rough go at nearly every turn, with two DNFs and finishes of 29th or worse in four of the five races. He’s down to 35th in the points as he heads to Darlington, a treacherous track that’s historically been unforgiving for newcomers and veterans alike.
Connor Zilisch loads into the No. 88 Chevrolet at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
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