Trackhouse Racing rolls into Pocono (Pa.) Raceway this weekend with as much momentum as any team in NASCAR.
Last weekend in Mexico City, Daniel Suárez became the first driver in the history of any NASCAR Series to drive from last to first on a road course when he won the Xfinity Series race at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. The Monterrey, Mexico native's victory driving the No. 9 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports set off a raucous victory lane celebration in front of his fellow countrymen.
About 24 hours later, in this year's most dominating performance, Shane van Gisbergen led 60 of 100 laps and won the Cup Series race driving Trackhouse Racing's No. 88 Chevrolet. It was his second career Cup victory, marking Trackhouse's 10th victory since forming in 2021.
Just three races ago, Ross Chastain drove from last to first to win the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. Chastain continues as one of the sport's best drivers, scoring the eighth most points of any driver in 2025 and sure to be a threat in the 2025 NASCAR Playoffs.
ROSS CHASTAIN
Busch Light Apple at Pocono: At this weekend’s race at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, Ross Chastain will show off the Busch Light Apple paint scheme on the No. 1 car in celebration of the long-awaited and eager return of Busch Light Apple. This vibrant paint scheme serves as a reminder to NASCAR fans that Busch Light Apple is back and available nationwide, a perfect beer for the pre-race tailgate. Whether at the track or exploring the trails of the Pocono Mountains this summer, Busch Light Apple tastes refreshing-to-the-core, offering a familiar cold, smooth sip that Busch Light fans know and love.
Pocono Stats: This weekend marks Chastain's 10th Cup Series start at the Tricky Triangle track. He has a best finish of 13th, earned in July 2023. Since driving the No. 1 for Trackhouse Racing, Chastain has led 16 laps at Pocono but it still looking for his first top-10. The Florida native has one win in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series at Pocono (2019).
Meet Chastain: On Saturday at 11 a.m. ET, Chastain will sign autographs at the Trackhouse Racing Merchandise hauler located in the Fan Zone - wristband required and distribution begins on Friday. On Sunday at 10:15 a.m., Chastain will participate in a Q&A at the Pocono Fan Zone stage. At 10:35 a.m. he will sign autographs at Trackhouse Racing merchandise hauler located in the fan midway - wristband required and distribution begins on Friday.
Last Weekend at Mexico City: Chastain qualified the No. 1 Chevrolet third for the inaugural race at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. He finished the first stage in third. After being spun, Chastain was towards the back of the field. He was able to recover and run in the top-10 until a long green flag run wore his tires out and he finished 16th in his first ever international race.
Crew Chief: Chastain and crew chief Phil Surgen have worked together since 2021. The duo are the third longest active driver and crew chief pairing.
Most Wins for No. 1 Car in Cup Series: The No. 1 car has been to victory lane six times with Chastain since 2022, the most wins by a driver with that number. Jamie McMurray previously held the record with four victories in the No. 1 car.
Chastain Quotes
Are you looking forward to Pocono?
"Absolutely! We have Busch Light Apple back on the car this weekend so it's another opportunity for all of the Busch Light Apple fans to rejoice. I'm sure I'll run into a lot of fans cracking open their Busch Light Apple cans in the infield at Pocono. I actually enjoy racing at Pocono. It's one of our most unique tracks with each corner being so different. Still looking for that top-five finish there though. We typically have a good car but it seems like something just doesn't go our way the last few races. We have the win from Charlotte under our belt and have some momentum so I'm looking forward to this weekend."
What do you think about Mexico City now that it is over?
"Mexico City was a lot of fun. It was fun to experience the culture away from the racetrack and it was fun to drive on the road course. Obviously, having Daniel as a teammate and him looking forward to the race and the market all year was cool. He was embraced by his home country and that was neat to see. And then Shane getting the win on Sunday was even more unique. Both of those guys had a great weekend in Mexico City and it was fun to watch them."
About Busch Light:
Busch Light is made with exceptional ingredients and has a crisp, refreshing taste that is as cold and smooth as a mountain stream. The beer brewed for the great outdoors takes cracking a cold one and heading for the mountains seriously, with passion points rooted in fishing, hunting, farming, NASCAR and country music. With focus and investment on meeting fans where they already are with a Busch Light in hand, the brand has experienced consistent growth since 2019. The Busch brand name represents a family of products including Busch Beer, Busch Light, Busch Ice and Busch NA. For more information, visit www.busch.com and follow Busch Light on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
SHANE VAN GISBERGEN
Heading to the Tricky Triangle: Shane van Gisbergen will make his first Cup Series career start at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway this Sunday. Van Gisbergen owns one Xfinity Series start on the 2.5-mile track, where he started 26th and was involved in a late race incident, finishing 31st.
Dominance in Mexico City: Van Gisbergen won Sunday's inaugural NASCAR Cup Series race on the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez road course in Mexico City. Van Gisbergen led 60 of 100 laps and won by 16.5 seconds, the largest margin of victory in the Cup Series since Texas in November 2009. It is his first victory of the season and second Cup Series career victory.
Two-Time Inaugural Race Winner: Van Gisbergen has etched himself into the NASCAR history books. The New Zealand native is now a two-time NASCAR inaugural race winner after capturing last weekend's victory. In 2023, Van Gisbergen won his debut Cup Series race with Trackhouse's PROJECT91 at the Chicago Street Race, becoming one of six foreign-born drivers to win a Cup Series race and the first driver since Johnny Rutherford in 1963 to win his first Cup Series start.
Pole Sitter: Van Gisbergen won the Busch Light Pole Award in Saturday's qualifying for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race in Mexico City with a lap of 93.904 mph. It was Trackhouse Racing's first pole award of the 2025 season and fourth since the company was formed in 2021. It marked Van Gisbergen's second Busch Light pole of his career and first in the No. 88 Chevrolet.
Playoff Bound: Van Gisbergen's victory locked him into the 2025 Cup Series Playoffs. This will be the rookies first appearance in the Cup Series Playoffs. Last season, he clinched a playoff spot in his full-time season in the Xfinity Series.
The Partnership: As Trackhouse Racing expanded to a three-car NASCAR powerhouse, the team has leaned on SafetyCulture to help turn data into speed on and off the track. With the SafetyCulture platform in their toolbox, Trackhouse is uniting tech and data to make decisions both on and off the track. Learn more about the Trackhouse and SafetyCulture partnership at safetyculture.com.
Meet SVG: On Sunday at 11:00 a.m. ET, Van Gisbergen will sign autographs at the Trackhouse Merchandise Hauler - wristband required.
Doran's First Win: Stephen Doran won his first race as a Cup Series Crew Chief last weekend in Mexico City with Van Gisbergen. Doran is in his first season as Van Gisbergen's crew chief on the No. 88 Chevrolet and his second year as a crew chief at the Cup level.
Rookie Year: Van Gisbergen is a Sunoco Rookie of the Year Contender during the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season. Van Gisbergen leads Riley Herbst in the rookie standings (242-196) entering Pocono.
Van Gisbergen Quotes
How special was last weekend's win?
"It was a brilliant weekend for us with a pole and a win! I really am stoked to get a great result for SafetyCulture. We've had speed with them on the car but never had a great finish. Amazing to win with an Australian company on the car. Thank you so much to the Trackhouse guys, Chevy, ECR Engines, and everyone who's supported us and dug deep. It's been a tough start to the year, but there's been a lot of bright spots lately, a lot of progress. I struggled to enjoy that last stint it because I was just praying that a yellow wouldn't come out, but the car was just unreal, just so balanced. The last 10 to 15 laps were really special."
After listening to your radio this past weekend in Mexico City, it seems you and your crew chief, Stephen Doran have a great relationship. What is that like?
"It's a collaboration. We really have to work together with not only Stephen (Doran) but Josh (Williams) my spotter. Especially on Sunday with the weather, we had different tire choices and what was going to happen with strategy. When we decided not to flip the second stage obviously, I questioned that, because that's a normal thing to do on road courses. But from the driver's seat, I don't have the bigger picture, and Stephen painted the picture in my head. Just have to work together closely with those guys. They really lead the way on oval stuff with me because I'm still learning a lot, but on road courses I think I can provide a lot of valuable input."
You're now locked into the Playoffs but only have six Playoff points - What is your mindset after this win, heading into Pocono and the rest of the regular season?
"Great question! Last year, when we were in this position in Xfinity, we really started to gather more stage points as the weekends went on. Obviously, we want to keep winning races and keep getting better at the ovals. The first round of the playoffs are some really tough ovals and also a track I haven't been to before with World Wide Technology Raceway. We just need to keep focusing on improving so when the Playoffs come around, we are a solid contender on ovals."
About SafetyCulture:
SafetyCulture is a global technology company that helps frontline teams find a better way of working. Its mobile-first workplace operations platform gives teams the knowledge, tools, and confidence they need to meet higher standards, work safely, and improve every day.The SafetyCulture platform powers over a billion checks each year, delivers approximately 85,000 lessons per day, and informs millions of corrective actions. SafetyCulture gives leaders visibility and workers a voice in driving safety, quality, and efficiency improvements. A recent analysis by Forrester found that SafetyCulture’s flagship products provide customers with a 214% return on investment and $3.6M in cost savings from operational improvements.
DANIEL SUAREZ
Mexico Last Weekend: Daniel Suárez returned to his native country last week as NASCAR held its inaugural race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City. A week of fan and media activity included a 19th-place finish in Sunday's race. But few will forget his drive from last place to first in the No. 9 Quaker State Chevrolet for JR Motorsports in Saturday's Xfinity Series race and the celebration in front of the raucous fans. It marked the first time in any NASCAR series that a driver has done that on a road course. His victory, coupled with Van Gisbergen's, is the first time since 2009 when international drivers swept a race weekend.
Very Good Ventures Joins the No. 99: Very Good Ventures, a company known for designing and building world-class digital experiences for every screen, and as the global leaders in Flutter development, will serve as the primary sponsor of Suárez's No. 99 Chevrolet this weekend at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. VGV and Trackhouse formed a strategic partnership in January, making the company an official digital design and development partner. This collaboration aims to accelerate Trackhouse’s digital transformation and deliver AI-powered technology-forward experiences across all platforms. It will fuse live sports and entertainment experiences with next-generation digital product design and technology, setting a new standard for digital engagement.
Pocono History: In 13 starts, Suárez owns two top-five and four top-10 finishes and earned a Busch Light Pole Award in 2018.
Pocono 2024: Suárez ran in the top half of the field early in the race, but fell to the back midway through the final stage. He rallied in the closing laps by dodging two accidents and climbing to 16th when the checkered flag fell.
Cup Career Highlights: Suárez owns two victories (Sonoma 2022 and Atlanta 2024) and three Busch Light Pole Awards - Pocono (Pa.) Raceway July 2018, Kentucky Speedway July 2019, and on the road course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway August 2023.
Personal Life: Suárez married Julia Piquet, daughter of three-time Formula One World Champion Nelson Piquet, at a ceremony on July 30 in Brazil. The couple took a delayed honeymoon trip to Japan in the offseason. He is also now a dual citizen of Mexico and the United States. He took the American Oath of Allegiance at a naturalization ceremony on June 18 in front of media, friends, the NASCAR industry and NASCAR Commissioner Steve Phelps who gave the keynote address to the 48 new citizens from 28 countries who joined Suárez at the ceremony. The 33-year-old, Monterrey, Mexico native came to America about 13 years ago without speaking English.
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Suárez Quotes
Did Mexico go as you expected?
"Everything about this weekend exceeded my expectations: the people, the fans, the sponsors, the excitement and the energy. I had expectations for this weekend, not the results but, like, the event, and I can tell you that I personally believe it exceeded those expectations and so I'm very, very happy for that. I feel so blessed and I hope that we can do race in Mexico City many more times. I hope that we come back many, many times."
What are your goals for Pocono?
"We need to win in these next weeks. We know we are capable and we have done it before."
What does having Very Good Ventures as a sponsor mean to you and Trackhouse?
"Very Good Ventures has been working with Trackhouse to improve our race day experience for guests on the pit boxes. The guests will have iPads and the ability to hear what we are saying on the radios, follow along on timing, scoring, and other things. They also work with the competition side, improving our processes with new technology. We believe Very Good Ventures will make our cars faster."
About Very Good Ventures:
Very Good Ventures (VGV) is a global leader in digital product design and development. As pioneers in Flutter, experts in scalable technology, and strategic design-minded innovators, VGV helps top brands craft beautiful, impactful, and future-ready applications across every platform. From strategy to execution, VGV delivers world-class digital experiences that engage, delight, and grow audiences.
