What Happened?
Bubba Wallace saved barely enough fuel and defeated Kyle Larson in two overtime restarts to win the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, July 27. Wallace’s team owner Denny Hamlin finished third with RFK Racing drivers Ryan Preece and Brad Keselowski in fourth and fifth.
Ty Gibbs also defeated Ty Dillon in the NASCAR In-Season Challenge finale and took home one million dollars.
The victory is Wallace’s first in 101 races and 23XI Racing’s first of 2025.
What Really Happened?
Put yourself in the mind of the 32-year-old Wallace for a moment.
Amidst all the pressure, he finally broke a winning streak on the biggest stage in motorsports.
It just makes you appreciate the Brickyard a little bit more, doesn’t it?
Let’s list the obstacles.
For almost three whole years, the driver of the No. 23 Toyota was winless. Amidst the pressure of a constantly hostile fanbase while racing for a team that is not only championship caliber, but also currently unchartered and locked in a legal battle with the very business it relies on, Wallace couldn’t find the success he needed.
And there, on Sunday, as the laps winded down with less than 10 to go, he was about to win on the racing world’s biggest and most hallowed stage – Indianapolis.
Then the caution came out for what was the smallest rain shower physically possible.
So, on a restart where he was low on fuel, Wallace had to not only take the lead from Larson, a 32-time race winner and defending champion of the Brickyard 400, but had to keep all while not running out of gas.
And then he did it not once, but twice, to win.
For a guy with only two wins under his belt before Sunday, that was a tall order, yet it’s one he fulfilled, and what better place to do it than at Indy?
In a weekend where many put into the question of whether NASCAR should even be racing on the IMS oval – again – it’s a healthy reminder of what this race, let alone this track, means.
There was plenty of talk at the beginning of the day about the scarcity of fans in the stands. Admittedly, at first glance, it’s not a good look to see NASCAR travel to a track that is known for its giant crowds and not see said giant crowd.
Even if most of them were just hiding in the shade.
But ask any driver what they think of Indianapolis, and you’ll surely get the same answer: the Brickyard 400 is a crown jewel race, and NASCAR should absolutely be there racing on the oval.
And that makes Wallace’s overcoming of obstacles all the more noteworthy.
Who Stood Out?
Wallace’s win will be the highlight for many in media – both NASCAR and not – for the next week and maybe more.
But he wasn’t the only driver that won. It might be hard to remember, but there was this whole tournament thing going on, too.
The No. 54 team of Gibbs made what was perhaps the easiest million dollars a driver has ever made in NASCAR history.
His rival Dillon started low in the lineup on Sunday afternoon in 26th, a tall order to overcome in comparison to Gibbs’ fifth-place starting spot. However, after four straight weeks of Dillon overcoming the odds to become the underdog story of the tournament, everyone knew better than to count him out early.
But they probably should have, because Gibbs was ahead of Dillon for the entire 168 laps. At the end, Dillon finished three laps down in 28th after suffering some damage during a restart near the middle of the event. Gibbs only had to ride around on the lead lap to finish 21st.
It was a long five weeks of buildup that resulted in a resounding thud with an uncontested Gibbs victory. It makes you wonder if NASCAR will attempt the tournament again next year – something I pondered last week. Regardless, Gibbs certainly appreciates the ride.
Who Fell Flat?
At the conclusion of the final green flag pit stop cycle, it was Joey Logano‘s race to lose.
And lose it he did.
Before the final round of green flag pit stops close to the beginning of the final stage, it was Larson who seemed to have the advantage of the race. However, less than 20 laps of the way through to the final segment, Logano pitted shortly after pseudo-teammate Josh Berry did the same.
The No. 22 Ford wasn’t on many radars by then, but when the leaders pitted and returned to the racetrack behind him, he certainly turned some heads.
With passing under green seemingly impossible and no other pit stops remaining, Logano only needed a full green flag run to carry him to Team Penske’s second Brickyard 400 victory.
Yet with 25 laps to go, his tire went down.
It was a sure win taken away by terrible luck.
Or so you’d think. Austin Cindric, Logano’s Penske teammate, suffered from the exact same twist of fate.
The No. 2 was leading at IMS at the beginning of stage two when his right rear also suffered a puncture. It would turn his day upside down, and he couldn’t completely recover.
Cindric and Logano had to settle for 15th and 32nd-place finishes, respectively.
Paint Scheme of the Race
It’s not as special the second time, but it’s still special, nonetheless.
Larson’s Indianapolis 500 / Coca-Cola 600 double attempt earlier this year may not have gone well for him in either event, but at least his cars looked great while doing it.
It’s slightly different than last year, with more white being featured on the primary much like his IndyCar Chevrolet from earlier this year.
But mostly, the design itself is a reminder of something we don’t get to see very often in the double attempt. Anytime we get to witness it is cool to see and worth a moment to celebrate, especially if it’s done with a one-off design.
Although, it’s worth a little more when the NASCAR Xfinity Series version is even better.
Whatās Next?
NASCAR heads deeper into the Midwest.
For the second time ever, the Cup Series will race at the high-banked short track of Iowa Speedway. The NASCAR on NBC team will begin their leg of the broadcast season next week as well, as the 350-lap event will be presented live on USA Network with coverage beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, Aug. 3.
Dalton Hopkins began writing for Frontstretch in April 2021. Currently, he is the lead writer for the weekly Thinkin' Out Loud column, co-host of theĀ Frontstretch Happy Hour podcast,Ā and one of our lead reporters. Beforehand, he wrote for IMSA shortly after graduating from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2019. Simultaneously, he also serves as a Captain in the US Army.
Follow Dalton on Twitter @PitLaneCPT