We’re Having Strong Deja Vu Right Now

We love such weekends. Twisty turns, breathtaking views, and the Next-Gen car tearing up the track through the hills surrounding Sonoma Raceway. You can definitely count us in. And going by all your DMs and comments, you’re just as hooked on these post-race breakdowns as we enjoy putting them together.

But enough chit chat. Since we’re in ‘Wine Country’, let’s uncork the good stuff and get down to what took place at the Toyota/Save Mart 350.

🏟️ In-Season Challenge

The buzz in the garage, grandstands, and all over social media was all about Round 3 of NASCAR’s in-season bracket challenge heading into Sonoma. If you’re still wondering what the mini-tourney is all about, check it out here!

Ty Gibbs went up against Zane Smith. Gibbs had made it look easy so far, knocking out Justin Haley and AJ Allmendinger. But Zane Smith had been the underdog story, crashing the party by eliminating Cindric and Buescher.

Then there was Ryan Preece vs. Tyler Reddick. Everyone knew Reddick was a beast on road courses, but Preece had quietly taken out Briscoe and Suárez to earn his shot.

Over on the other side, Alex Bowman took on Ty Dillon. Bowman had been smooth and steady, beating Logano and Bubba Wallace. But Dillon was a real dark horse too, knocking out heavyweights like Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski like it was no big deal.

But the most intriguing matchup came from Legacy Motor Club. Teammates-turned-rivals John Hunter Nemechek and Erik Jones went wheel-to-wheel in a high-stakes showdown, and with a million dollars on the line, neither driver was willing to back down.

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Shane van Gisbergen started the race from pole and cemented his advantage. He cleared Chase Briscoe through Turns 1 and 2 right after the green flag dropped, settling into the lead immediately. Meanwhile, William Byron muscled past Briscoe on Lap 4 to take over second place.

Strategy came into play by the end of Stage 1. Ross Chastain made the bold call to stay out, becoming the only driver in the top 15 to do so. The gamble paid off as he took the stage win and picked up a valuable playoff point.

Van Gisbergen chose a different route. He pitted with three laps to go in the stage but managed to cycle back out in second like nothing ever happened. Christopher Bell also made his stop around the same time, but things didn’t go as smoothly as he spun shortly after exiting pit road.

All the drama we witnessed in stage 2 surely made up for the uneventful stage 1. On Lap 31, A.J. Allmendinger, who had been running inside the top five, went for a spin through Turn 2 after Ty Gibbs got into dirt ahead of him. The Kaulig Racing driver wasn’t too happy about it, and he made that clear over the team radio. Here are the harsh words he used for himself.

At the same time, Chase Elliott reported a rear toe link issue just as the action started to heat up. And to top it off, John Hunter Nemechek also lost control coming out of Turn 7, which you can watch here! Despite all the chaos in that one lap, NASCAR didn’t wave the yellow flag.

The chaos continued as the race went on. On Lap 46, tensions flared between the Trackhouse Racing teammates. Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez made contact in Turn 11, sending Suárez spinning. He dropped from 15th to 29th and vowed to take revenge over the radio. His words were something out of a movie script.

As Stage 2 neared its end, strategy took center stage. Shane van Gisbergen, Chase Briscoe, and Ryan Blaney, all running up front, dived into the pits with three laps to go. It looked like a gamble, but the No. 88 team got it just right. Van Gisbergen cycled back to the lead and chased down Kyle Larson to win the stage and secure a valuable playoff point.

Meanwhile, there was some unexpected drama on pit road. A brief scuffle broke out between Brad Keselowski and Ty Gibbs’ crew after the No. 54 Toyota appeared to clip a tire that one of the crew members was holding during the stop. The incident created quite the outrage among fans, as RFK Racing even posted a video of what went down. See this…

Ty Gibbs later revealed over the team radio what really led to the contact, and let’s just say it was pretty unexpected. But despite the drama, NASCAR reviewed the stop and saw nothing wrong, so it looks like no further action will be taken.

Stage 3 at Sonoma Raceway didn’t disappoint either. The madness began early when Chris Buescher got loose heading into Turn 1 and slid into Ryan Blaney, sending the No. 12 car off into the dirt. Things got even messier in the very next corner. Bubba Wallace and Denny Hamlin both spun entering Turn 2, triggering a caution and resetting the field. Here are both the incidents.

It didn’t stop there. On Lap 95, Cody Ware’s wheel overtook him when a loose lug nut sent his wheel rolling off. That brought out another caution. While many cars pitted, Shane van Gisbergen, Chase Briscoe, and 13 others stayed out. The rogue wheel moment was quite funny to watch.

Just four laps later, the caution flew again. This time it was for a multi-car wreck in Turn 7. Noah Gragson took the brunt of the damage, Erik Jones spun, and Ryan Preece’s car also got banged up in the mess. Several other drivers had to go off-road through the dirt just to avoid it all.

The carnage continued with Ricky Stenhouse Jr, who restarted in the top 10 on older tires. That gamble didn’t pay off, as he lost control and spun into the tire barrier at Turn 8, bringing out yet another caution. 

Then came Lap 107, and with it, another big moment, though surprisingly, no caution. Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson crashed after the No. 5 Chevy made contact with John Hunter Nemechek. Larson’s car suffered major damage to the rear, but the race stayed green.

Through it all, one driver kept calm and in control: Shane van Gisbergen. The Kiwi led a dominant 97 laps and held off a late charge from Chase Briscoe and Chase Elliott to finish 1.3 seconds ahead. With the victory, he locked in the No. 3 seed in the playoffs and proved once again that he was a force to be reckoned with on road courses.

With this result, Shane van Gisbergen tied Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon’s record of three straight road course wins from pole. It brought back memories of the 1998–99 season, when Gordon pulled off the same feat.