Best of the Rest: Trucks and Cup at Darlington, Xfinity at Portland

With NASCAR’s playoff season in full swing now, the Craftsman Trucks and Cup Series teams headed to Darlington (also known as the “The Lady in Black”). Meanwhile, the Xfinity Series headed west to the 2-mile road course in Portland.

Mixed results were the trend, as some surprises emerged in the Xfinity and Cup races, Heim Time dominated yet another Truck event.

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Sober or Slammer 200 | Darlington

Winner: Corey Heim

#1 Trevor Bayne: Former Cup Series driver, broadcaster, and coach for TRICON Garage, stepped into TRICON’s #1 Toyota in Darlington. Bayne did not appear to miss a step behind the wheel, qualifying 16th and finishing 5th. 

This was Bayne’s first truck start since 2023, where he finished 14th in Homestead with Rackley W.A.R. Racing.

#56 Timmy Hill: One of the biggest and best surprises of the weekend was veteran driver Hill. Running a partial schedule in 2025 with his own team, Hill started his Toyota 23rd, and showed speed quickly, collecting an 8th-place finish.

Darlington was huge for the Hill Motorsports team, who made their sixth start of the season. With 117 career truck starts, Hill’s last top ten came at Daytona in 2024 (he finished 8th).

#7 Corey Day: Hendrick Motorsports prospect Day made his eighth start of season at Darlington, and had another strong finish at NASCAR’s toughest tracks. Qualifying his Spire Motorsports Chevrolet in 15th, Day survived the “lady in black” and collected a 9th-place finish

This was Day’s third straight top ten run in his last three starts as well, with a second-place coming at Indianapolis Raceway Park.

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Pacific Office Automation 147 | Portland 

Race Winner: Connor Zilisch

#16 Christian Eckes: A rookie in the series this season, Eckes’ season has truly been in the trenches and grinding. The road course in Portland provided a surprising boost for the Kaulig Racing driver, as he placed his #16 Chevrolet 15th on the grid, and brought home a 4th-place finish.

Through 25 starts in his rookie season, Eckes currently sits 15th in points with 11 top tens.

#28 Joey Hand: Hand took over the reigns of RSS Racing’s #28 Ford for Portland, making his series debut. Carrying limited sponsorship from Ford itself, Hand started and finished the RSS in 19th

Hand has limited NASCAR experience at the Cup level, the most recent being in Chicago in 2024, where he finished 4th.

Jordan Anderson Racing (#27, 31, 32): The Jordan Anderson Racing crew as a whole had an impressive day in Portland, with all three Chevrolets finishing in the top ten. Full-time drivers Jeb Burton (#27), and Blaine Perkins (#31) finished 7th and 9th respectively, while Austin Green returned to the #32 and finished 8th.

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Southern 500 | Darlington

Race Winner: Chase Briscoe

#43 Erik Jones: Showing a dramatic improvement in results as of late, the trend continued in Darlington for Jones and his Legacy Motor Club crew. A track where Jones’ has a reputation as a contender, the #43 Toyota started 19th, and finished 3rd. 

This was Jones’ second straight top five finish after several weeks of fighting for a mid-pack run.

#16 A.J. Allmendinger: While Allmendinger’s dislike for Darlington had been well noted, some strong Xfinity runs the last few seasons boosted confidence for Kaulig Racing’s flagship driver. The 2025 Cup event was no different for “the Dinger”, as he notched a 5th-place run after qualifying 22nd. 

This was by far Allmendinger’s best run as of late, with the previous being a 6th place effort in Chicago.

#4 Noah Gragson: Gragson’s move to Front Row Motorsports’ new #4 Ford team in 2025 has not been what was hoped. Darlington however, showed flashes of the Xfinity Series champion Gragson, with a 14th-place finish after starting in 34th.

While the season started somewhat strong, the growing pains quickly started to show. Heading into Darlington, Gragson’s best run in his Ford was a 10th in the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte.