Despite Team Backlash, NASCAR Ownership Could Still Enter Their Own Race Later This Season

LE MANS, FRANCE - JUNE 11: Jim France, Chairman and CEO of NASCAR and team owner Rick Hendrick celebrate as the #24 NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet ZL1 finishes the 100th anniversary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans at the Circuit de la Sarthe June 10, 2023 in Le Mans, France. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

What’s Happening?

Thursday morning, a shocking report revealed that NASCAR owner Jim France almost entered a car for the upcoming Cup Series race at Sonoma. However, backlash from other team owners prevented the partnership from happening.

  • The report from Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic claims that Jim France, in collaboration with Spire Motorsports, almost entered a car for the upcoming July 13 race at Sonoma Raceway. While Spire covered the technical side, France would have supplied the driver and financial support, including a sponsor.
  • There were frequent rumors this past silly season that France was interested in entering a car in races this season. These rumors raged forward after reports that the new Charter Agreement would allow a member of the France family to own a charter. Furthermore, prior to this season, Spire Motorsports registered the No. 07 for Cup Series Competition.
  • The report claims that France was initially interested in entering this car with Hendrick Motorsports. However, due to rules restricting teams to four entries, France opted for Spire, which shares a technical alliance with HMS.
  • For their driver, France would have opted for 29-year-old IMSA regular Jack Aitken to pilot this entry. Aitken, a former IMSA winner, currently races for Action Express Racing, a team owned by Jim France, in a racing series also owned by the France family.
  • Deeming this entry a clear conflict of interest, the garage area was “uncomfortable” and resisted this now-shuttered idea. However, this report does state that “it still could come together for another Cup race later in the season.” It lists two dates, the races at Watkins Glen and the ‘home’ race at the Roval, as dates that do not conflict with Aitken’s schedule.

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SPARTA, KY - JUNE 26: Chase Pistone, driver of the #9 NTS Motorsports Chevrolet, talks with his crew during practice for the NASCAR Camping World Series UNOH 225 at Kentucky Speedway on June 26, 2014 in Sparta, Kentucky. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

Chase Pistone, NASCAR Trucks and Nationwide Series Driver, Passes Away

What’s Happening?

Chase Pistone, a former competitor on the short track racing circuit in addition to NASCAR’s National Series, has passed away. Pistone, now a successful Legends Car owner, was 42.

  • Chase’s brothers Nick and Tom Pistone confirmed the North Carolina natives’ passing to LegendsNation.com. The cause of Pistone’s passing is unknown. The family asked that media share the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline number, which is 988.
  • Pistone, the grandson of NASCAR legend “Tiger” Tom Pistone, made his way to NASCAR after competing on short tracks in Legends cars and Late Models. He would make his jump to NASCAR via the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2005, racing for Green Light Racing at Martinsville Speedway.
  • Pistone would continue his NASCAR pursuits in 2006, racing in ARCA and the NASCAR Busch Series. Unfortunately, these two starts, at Martinsville with the Busch Series and Iowa with ARCA, would be his last for nearly a decade.
  • Pistone returned to NASCAR in 2014, racing in a combined eight NASCAR Camping World Truck and Nationwide Series races. During this season, his final in NASCAR, the then 30-year-old scored his best National Series finish, ninth place in the Truck Series annual trip to Gateway.

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8 Takeaways From NASCAR At COTA

Three races in, the 2026 season is finally starting to show its hand. COTA shifted narratives, exposed weaknesses, and raised new questions about contenders, pretenders, and everything in between.

  • Has Shane van Gisbergen officially been proven mortal after getting outraced late at Circuit of the Americas?
  • Is 19-year-old Connor Zilisch already ahead of schedule after slicing through the field multiple times?
  • With three straight wins, is Tyler Reddick basically a lock for the postseason this early?
  • And how concerned should the 48 team be after a rough weekend for Alex Bowman?

From substitute drivers being forced into action to points gaps growing faster than expected, COTA delivered more than just a road course chess match. There were momentum swings, reputation hits, and at least one young driver stacking up enemies before stacking up results.

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AVONDALE, ARIZONA - MARCH 09: Christopher Bell, driver of the #20 Reser's Fine Foods Toyota, takes the checkered flag to win the NASCAR Cup Series Shriners Children's 500 at Phoenix Raceway on March 09, 2025 in Avondale, Arizona. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)

Horsepower and IndyCar Highlights NASCAR’s Return to Phoenix Raceway

What’s Happening?

NASCAR’s top two National Series head to the deserts of Arizona for the first short track race of the season at Phoenix Raceway. Here are the major storylines you need to keep in mind ahead of this weekend.

NASCAR Cup Series

More Horsepower

This weekend, NASCAR’s new Next Gen short track package makes its points-paying race debut at Phoenix.

Now, this package was first used in a race in the preseason clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, and last week at Circuit of the Americas (as it is used at all road courses this season). But this race will make its first use on a short track during the regular season.

With the increase in horsepower from 670 to 750, teams would like to get a handle on any potential changes that could come their way, as Phoenix is not only similar to tracks like Richmond, but is one of a handful of tracks that will make a regular season and Chase appearance.

IndyCar Crossover

The NTT IndyCar Series kicked off its 2026 season last weekend, in a joint event with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at the St. Petersburg Grand Prix in Florida.

While the Trucks have the weekend off, the NTT IndyCar Series takes on Phoenix Raceway for their first race at the iconic venue since 2018, and their first joint weekend with the Cup Series since July 2020 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Even though this is not the first time the Cup Series and IndyCar have shared a weekend, it is the first weekend the top two divisions of oval racing in the United States will share a track during a weekend, as, in 2020, IndyCar and the NASCAR Xfinity Series raced on the IMS Road Course, while the Cup Series raced on the oval.

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series

Nobody Standing Out

We are three races into the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season, and as of right now, no team has looked particularly dominant.

While Austin Hill has a commanding lead after solid outings at Daytona, EchoPark, and COTA, Phoenix kicks off a stretch of races in which the series heads to more and more tracks that better reflect the bulk of the 2026 calendar.

This stretch could supply fans with a better look at who might be a real title contender, and who was propelling themselves on drafting tracks and road courses to kick off the season.

A Truck Series Ringer?

Joining the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series this weekend is one of the best drivers at Phoenix Raceway in all of NASCAR’s three National Series.

Front Row Motorsports driver and current Craftsman Truck Series points leader, Chandler Smith, will drive Hettinger Racing’s No. 5 Mustang this weekend, in his first OAP Series start since the 2024 season finale at Phoenix.

That season, with Joe Gibbs Racing, Smith pieced together a career season, with two wins, 17 top fives, and 22 top tens, but fell short of making the Championship Four. Though he didn’t win the title, an early-season win at Phoenix propelled Smith into this great season.

In his combined nine starts at Phoenix across the Truck and OAP Series, Smith has two wins, seven top-fives, and nine top-tens. Expect Smith to be some form of threat this weekend at the 1-mile oval.

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