“It’s huge for us,” said Reddick of winning the regular season championship. “This has been one of my best tracks and we just had an all off night. I hated to use that buffer up that we had coming in here, but this is what this team is kind of all about. I feel like this is the worst night we’ve had in months and months speed wise, and I still finished 10th, and it was an all-out struggle for us. Just really proud of everybody on this team standing behind me. I couldn’t give great feedback, and it was just really, really hard to focus and keep it out of the wall there all night. It’s a shame we gave some points up. I felt like this is a race we could win, but it’s really nice in year two for me here at this team and year four of this team to get the regular season championship like we did.”
- Tyler Reddick
It was a busy weekend of racing action for Toyota that was highlighted by multiple wins and Tyler Reddick securing the NASCAR Cup Series Regular Season Championship.
NASCAR
Reddick won the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Regular Season Driver’s Championship with a 10th-place result on Sunday night at Darlington Raceway. Reddick overcame fighting an illness during the 500-mile race, persevering by one point in the championship standings to earn the regular season driver’s title.
“That was wild for sure,” said Bell. “Darlington is just such a tough race track and off of (turn) two whether you’re on the bottom or the top, it like flushes you toward the wall and you kind of get a wiggle coming down. Once again, I feel terrible for Sheldon (Creed) to essentially win the race. He passed me on the long run there and then then to lose the lead on pit road is a big bummer. Really, really happy to win in this Sport Clips Supra. Tyler Allen (crew chief), what can I say, man. He’s been killing it this year and I’m just lucky I get to drive for him.”
- Christopher Bell
Reddick is joined in the Cup Series Playoffs by four other Camry drivers, including Christopher Bell, Denny Hamlin, Ty Gibbs and Martin Truex Jr.
Bell led all Camrys Sunday night at Darlington with a third-place result. Gibbs and pole-sitter Bubba Wallace were involved in a multi-car incident late in the race, and both were able to continue and cross the finish line in the top 20. Wallace fell just outside the Playoff cutoff, while Truex had an incident early in the race, but was able to secure the final spot in the Playoff field.
Bell won Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) race from the pole at Darlington after leading a race-high 108 laps (of 150) in the Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) No. 20 GR Supra. Sheldon Creed passed Bell late in the race and was leading before a caution came out with three laps to go, eventually finishing third after leading 30 laps. Bell’s victory is the 19th Xfinity Series win of his career and his second this year.
“Great day, great weekend for the CAPCO Contractors Toyota Dragster,” said Torrence. “Would’ve been our third win here (U.S. Nationals) and I think this was my fourth or fifth final, or maybe more. Congrats to Clay Millican and that whole team. They work really hard. We had a parts failure there in the final. I think if that didn’t happen, we would’ve won, but that’s just not the way it fell. I think we moved up a spot (in the points standings) going into the Countdown, which is very valuable for us. We have a good race car right now and I’m looking forward to going into the Countdown.”
- Steve Torrence
Chandler Smith also finished in the top-10 for Toyota with an eighth-place result in the JGR No. 81 GR Supra.
NHRA
Steve Torrence and Ron Capps each made the final round on Monday in the Toyota U.S. Nationals for Team Toyota. The appearances by both mark 37 consecutive NHRA races in either Top Fuel and/or Funny Car. The finals appearance for Capps was also the 150th in his legendary career.
All nine Toyota NHRA racers advanced to the six-race Countdown to the Championship, which begins in two weeks at Maple Grove. Doug Kalitta leads the Toyota dragster contingent as the No. 1 seed in Top Fuel, while J.R. Todd will start the postseason in fourth in Funny Car.
ARCA
Toyota Development Driver Brent Crews led every lap of the ARCA Menards Series race at DuQuoin State Fairgrounds to score his first ARCA win of the season on Sunday night.
FORMULA DRIFT
Fredric Aasbo made the finals at Utah Motorsports Campus, falling just short of a marquee win. Aasbo now sits third in the PRO points, while Toyota holds a commanding lead in the Auto Cup.
OFF-ROAD
The weekend in Crandon, Wisconsin, was one to remember for CJ Greaves. The Wisconsin-native captured the PRO4 Championship after finishing third on Saturday and was victorious Sunday in the Red Bull Crandon World Cup that featured the PRO2 and PRO4 classes battling against one another. The PRO4 title is the ninth in Greaves’ career and his third consecutive championship.
USAC
Toyota drivers swept the USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget Series Firemen's Nationals at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, this weekend. Rookie Zach Wigal led Cannon McIntosh in a Toyota one-two finish on Sunday night. McIntosh led 29 of 30 laps on his way to the victory Monday with Daison Pursley placing second and Wigal finishing third as Toyota drivers swept the podium. With 10 races remaining, Pursley holds the championship lead with McIntosh currently second.
What’s Next
NASCAR begins its 10-race Cup Series postseason Playoff run at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend. The Xfinity Series opens up action in Atlanta with a race on Saturday, September 7 at 3:00 p.m. ET on USA Network, and the Cup Series is set to compete on Sunday, September 8 at 3:00 p.m. ET on USA.
Toyota GR Cup is also in action this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park with races on Saturday at 2:55 p.m. ET and Sunday at 1:05 p.m. ET.