Haas Factory Team News
Custer Finishes 28th in Cup Series Race at Bristol on Sunday Afternoon.
By Haas Factory Team
BRISTOL, TN (April 12, 2026) – Cole Custer and the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Chevrolet team turned in a strong effort, finishing 28th in the NASCAR Cup Series on Sunday afternoon.
Cole Custer made his seventh NASCAR Cup Series start from the 30th position and showed early speed in the No. 41 Haastooling.com Chevrolet, gaining six spots in the opening laps. After an early caution shuffled strategy, Custer remained focused on track position and ended Stage One as the first car two laps down, keeping himself in position to regain ground.
Utilizing the wave around to return to one lap down, Custer maintained a steady pace through Stage Two and capitalized on timely cautions to manage his pit strategy. He raced competitively among the lapped cars and continued to battle for improved track position through the middle portion of the event.In the final stage, Custer once again used the wave around to stay within reach and navigated multiple cautions and pit cycles. After 170 laps of sustained effort and a late race stop under yellow, he carried that momentum through an overtime finish to finish 28th.“It was a hard-fought day in Bristol. We got our car better from practice, but the start of the race didn’t play out our way,” Custer said. “We couldn’t quite get it where we needed in the end, but I’m looking forward to Kansas next weekend.”
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Kansas Speedway next Sunday, April 19th, with race coverage on the FS1 at 2 p.m. ET.
Haas Factory Team is a NASCAR Cup and O'Reilly Auto Parts Series program owned by Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. New in 2026, Haas Factory will align with Chevrolet. As part of the manufacturer switch, HFT will have a technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports, which will include using Hendrick-built engines across both series. The team will feature Cole Custer driving the No. 41 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the NASCAR Cup Series, while Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer take on the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series in the No. 00 and No. 41 Chevrolet Camaros, respectively. Based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, the Haas Factory Team reflects a commitment to performance and engineering excellence, carrying forward Gene Haas’s commitment to motorsports.
- 41 Cole Custer
Cole Custer made his seventh NASCAR Cup Series start from the 30th position and showed early speed in the No. 41 Haastooling.com Chevrolet, gaining six spots in the opening laps. After an early caution shuffled strategy, Custer remained focused on track position and ended Stage One as the first car two laps down, keeping himself in position to regain ground.
Utilizing the wave around to return to one lap down, Custer maintained a steady pace through Stage Two and capitalized on timely cautions to manage his pit strategy. He raced competitively among the lapped cars and continued to battle for improved track position through the middle portion of the event.In the final stage, Custer once again used the wave around to stay within reach and navigated multiple cautions and pit cycles. After 170 laps of sustained effort and a late race stop under yellow, he carried that momentum through an overtime finish to finish 28th.“It was a hard-fought day in Bristol. We got our car better from practice, but the start of the race didn’t play out our way,” Custer said. “We couldn’t quite get it where we needed in the end, but I’m looking forward to Kansas next weekend.”
- Up Next
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Kansas Speedway next Sunday, April 19th, with race coverage on the FS1 at 2 p.m. ET.
- About Haas Factory Team:
Haas Factory Team is a NASCAR Cup and O'Reilly Auto Parts Series program owned by Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. New in 2026, Haas Factory will align with Chevrolet. As part of the manufacturer switch, HFT will have a technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports, which will include using Hendrick-built engines across both series. The team will feature Cole Custer driving the No. 41 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the NASCAR Cup Series, while Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer take on the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series in the No. 00 and No. 41 Chevrolet Camaros, respectively. Based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, the Haas Factory Team reflects a commitment to performance and engineering excellence, carrying forward Gene Haas’s commitment to motorsports.