HFT Weekend Preview: Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
By Haas Factory Team.
Saturday O’Reilly Series Action:
Date: Saturday, July 25th at 4 p.m. ET
Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway, IN
Race Distance: 100 laps / 250 miles
Broadcast: CW | SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Sunday Cup Series Action:
Date: Sunday, July 26th at 2 p.m. ET
Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway, IN
Race Distance: 160 laps / 400 miles
Broadcast: TNT | SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
On-Track Activity:
Friday:
12 p.m. ET – O’Reilly Practice
CW App | SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
1 p.m. ET – Cup Practice
TruTV | SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Saturday:
12 p.m. ET – O’Reilly Qualifying
CW App | SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
1:30 p.m. ET – Cup Qualifying
TruTV | SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
4 p.m. ET – O’Reilly Race
CW | SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Sunday:
2 p.m. ET – Cup Race
TNT | SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Race Weekend Quick Hits:
NASCAR returns to the famed 2.5-mile oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the third consecutive running of the Brickyard 400 since the NASCAR Cup Series returned to the oval.
Sheldon Creed (693 points) enters the weekend third in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series standings, trailing only Jesse Love (726) and Justin Allgaier (966) with three regular-season races remaining.
Creed is tied for the second-most top-five finishes (8) and second-best average finish (11.0) and in the series this season.
Sam Mayer has finished inside the top 10 in two of his last three starts and sits 10th in the O’Reilly Series standings, 33 points above the cutline.
Mayer earned the NOAPS pole at Indianapolis last season, leading a race-high 32 laps before finishing second.
Cup Driver Lineup:
No. 41 Driver: Cole Custer
Hometown: Ladera Ranch, CA
Crew Chief: Aaron Kramer
Partner: Haas / Standard Nuclear
Cup Series Points Standings: 32nd
Custer’s Indianapolis Cup Series History:
Starts: 2
Wins: —
Top-10s: 1
Poles: —
Key Numbers:
Custer makes his third career Cup Series start this weekend at the Indianapolis oval, where he crossed the line in fifth in July 2020. Last season, he finished 20th.
He also made two NCS starts at the Indy Road Course, with a best finish of ninth in 2022.
Custer has three top-10 results in four O’Reilly Series starts at Indy, leading 47 total laps and earning a pole in July 2024.
O’Reilly Auto Parts Driver Lineup:
No. 00 Driver: Sheldon Creed
Hometown: Alpine, CA
Crew Chief: Jonathan Toney
Partner: Road Ranger
O’ Reilly Series Points Standings: 3rd, +171 points to cutline
Creed’s Indianapolis O’Reilly Series History:
Starts: 2
Wins: —
Top-10s: 1
Poles: —
Key Numbers:
Creed is set to make his third O'Reilly Series start at Indianapolis on Saturday, where he has a best finish of fifth (2024). He started third in last year's race before late-race contact dropped him to a 17th-place finish.
He has also made two NOAPS starts on the Indianapolis Road Course, earning a best finish of eighth in 2023.
No. 41 Driver: Sam Mayer
Hometown: Franklin, WI
Crew Chief: Jason Trinchere
Partner: Audibel
O’ Reilly Series Points Standings: 10th, +33 points to cutline
Mayer’s Indianapolis O’Reilly Series History:
Starts: 2
Wins: —
Top-10s: 1
Poles: 1 (2025)
Key Numbers:
Mayer is set to make his third O'Reilly Series start at Indianapolis this weekend after a standout performance in last year's race. He earned the pole and led a race-high 32 laps before finishing second.
In three starts on the Indianapolis Road Course, Mayer has recorded two top-10 finishes, highlighted by a runner-up result in 2023.
HFT North Wilkesboro Recap: In the first points-paying NASCAR Cup Series race at North Wilkesboro Speedway since 1996, Cole Custer battled across all 450 laps to bring the No. 41 Sysco/The Smoke Pit Chevrolet home in 28th place.