By Roy J. Akers — www.skyviewsports.net
This is it. Week 36 of the regular season began in February with the Bowman Gray exhibition race. The regular season, the Playoffs, and even the bracket challenge that took place in June and July. Here is how the teams see their final week of the season.
| The 2025 NASCAR tour will come to a close this weekend as the Cup, Xfinity and Craftsman Truck Series will make the trek out west to Phoenix Raceway to crown the season’s champions in all three divisions. Chevrolet stands tall entering the championship weekend as the only manufacturer to have the opportunity to compete for all three titles. |
| Coming off a ‘walk-off’ win, William Byron and his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Kyle Larson, will represent Chevrolet in the fight for the coveted Bill France Cup. In the Xfinity Series, the Bowtie brand added onto an already record season by sweeping the Championship Four with the series’ reigning champion, Justin Allgaier, and three first-time title contenders, Connor Zilisch, Carson Kvapil and Jesse Love, competing for the manufacturer’s 23rd driver championship in the division. Carrying an already career season, Tyler Ankrum is set to make his first Championship Four appearance in the Truck Series. |
 Byron Beaming with ConfidenceWilliam Byron drove arguably the race of his career at Martinsville Speedway. With his back against the wall, the 27-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina, native turned a ‘must-win’ situation into an opportunity to compete for his first career championship title in NASCAR’s top division. The victory, his third of the season, came in nearly dominate fashion including a pole win, a sweep of the stages and a tally of 304-laps led en route to a position in this weekend’s title-deciding race. Byron has competed in the playoffs for the past seven consecutive seasons, including three-straight Championship Four appearances. In 15 career starts at Phoenix Raceway, Byron has earned one trip to victory lane and an average finish of 10.8 (third-best of the series). The Next Gen era has fared well for the driver at the one-mile venue – recording results no worse than sixth in five of the seven events. Byron has also earned top-10 finishes in each stage for the past nine consecutive races at the track – helping to boost a series-best running position of 9.178. |
 Larson Eyeing Second Career TitleA strong pair of rounds ultimately delivered Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson a spot back in the Championship Four for the third time in his NASCAR Cup Series career. The 33-year-old Elk Grove, California, native will have the opportunity to earn a spot on a very elite list in series’ history with the Team Chevy driver looking to become just the third active and 18th driver all-time to become a multi-time champion in NASCAR’s premier series. Larson has 22 career starts at Phoenix Raceway under his belt, with his most memorable coming in 2021 when he earned his first victory at the track en route to his championship title. Similar to his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Larson’s numbers in the Next Gen era at the track include an impressive four top-five and five top-10 finishes in seven events. |
NASCAR National Series – NCS/NXS/NCTS
Briscoe, Hamlin vie for title … Joe Gibbs Racing’s (JGR) Chase Briscoe and Denny Hamlin make up half of the Cup Series Championship 4 at Phoenix Raceway this weekend. In his first season with JGR and Toyota, Briscoe makes his first career appearance in the Championship 4 as he looks to bring JGR its sixth Cup Series drivers’ title and the fourth for Toyota. Seeking the same for JGR, Hamlin makes his fifth appearance in the Championship 4 as he also looks to bring home that long-awaited first title.
Bell seeks Phoenix sweep … Christopher Bell returns to Phoenix this weekend looking for a season sweep after his triumph at the one-mile oval back in March. That win, where he led 105 laps on the way to victory, was Bell’s third consecutive victory during his hot streak to begin the 2025 season. Bell also enters this weekend with eight consecutive top-10 finishes, the best streak of such finishes in his career.
JGR aims for owner’s title … Aric Almirola and the No. 19 JGR team have a championship in play in Saturday’s Xfinity Series finale at Phoenix, looking for the series owners’ championship. This is the second consecutive season Almirola will compete for the owners’ title with JGR, having a shot at the championship last season in the No. 20 GR Supra. Almirola also returns to Phoenix looking for a season sweep after claiming victory in March.
Heim, Honeycutt seek maiden titles … In Friday night’s Truck Series finale, Corey Heim and Kaden Honeycuttwill pilot their Toyota Tundra TRD Pros in hopes of winning their first Truck Series drivers’ championship. Heim, the regular season champion and coming off his 11th win of the season, makes his third consecutive appearance in the title race while Honeycutt makes his first appearance in his first full-time Truck Series season.
NASCAR is rooted in family values, so when you look at the sport’s storied history, it shouldn’t come as any surprise that some of the most successful drivers share the same last name.
Petty, Wood, Jarrett, Pearson, Allison, Elliott, Waltrip, Earnhardt, Labonte, Wallace, and Busch are some of the names that have dotted the NASCAR landscape through the decades. And while they’ve all won major races and championships, only one father and son duo can say they’ve won a NASCAR Cup Series championship with Ford Racing — Ned and Dale Jarrett.
Ned made manufacturer history when he became the first Ford driver to win a championship in NASCAR’s top division, achieving that milestone in 1965. In addition, he still stands as Ford’s all-time leader for career wins with 43.
“The Pettys are certainly great company to be in. There’s no doubt about that because they’ve been such icons in the sport and so good for the sport over the years,” said Ned about following in the footsteps of Lee and Richard Petty. “For Dale and I to become only the second father-son to win championships is a special feeling to us also. We’re just so thankful for the opportunities that came about to allow us to do that.”
Dale captured his championship in 1999 while driving for Robert Yates Racing and ranks fifth on the all-time Ford win list with 30.
“You think about all the things that have happened in motorsports and in NASCAR racing over the years, and to be part of a select group like that is very rewarding. I was obviously very proud of everything my dad had accomplished. When you go in and kind of follow in what your father did, especially when they were very successful, it can be difficult at times,” said Dale. “I didn’t know if I could drive a race car, but when I got the opportunity to drive it, I thought I could become good enough to one day win races. It’s almost hard to sometimes put it into words, but anytime you can do something for your father, who had done so much for you, I think that makes it even more special.”
Even though the Jarretts won their championships with Ford more than 30 years apart, there were some similarities in how they got there. Despite the fact that Ned won 15 races in 1964, he did not win the championship because his team was not as consistent as it needed to be throughout the season. Likewise, Dale won seven races in 1997, but finished second to Jeff Gordon in the championship chase by a mere 14 points.
