Cole Custer Battles at Phoenix to Finish 27th in Cup Series Race.
By Haas Factory Team
AVONDALE, AZ (October 18, 2026) – Cole Custer worked his way through the field during Sunday afternoon’s race at Phoenix Raceway, using solid long-run speed to finish 27th in the No. 41 Sysco/Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers Chevrolet.
41 Cole Custer:
Rolling off 27th in his 10th Cup Series start at Phoenix, Cole Custer battled minor handling issues early, dropping to 30th before the No. 41 Sysco/Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers Chevrolet gained ground as the tires wore. Pitting under the lap-44 caution, Custer cycled back to 23rd and worked his way to a 21st-place finish in Stage One.
Custer made his second stop for four tires and handling adjustments before restarting 22nd for Stage Two. Although the No. 41 Sysco/Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers Chevrolet continued to struggle with tight handling, Custer made progress over the longer green-flag runs, moving into the top 20. After cycling through green-flag pit stops, he remained inside the top 20 until a caution brought the stage to a close. Custer pitted under yellow and maintained his position inside the top 20 to finish Stage Two.
Custer began Stage Three in 18th and held his position through the opening laps before a caution on lap 223 slowed the run. As the stage progressed, however, he struggled to maintain his earlier pace and slipped outside the top 20. His final scheduled pit stop on lap 270 dropped him to 29th, but a late caution with 30 laps remaining allowed him to get back on the lead lap. He climbed as high as 23rd, but despite the late recovery, Custer finished the race in 27th.
“We had some really solid long-run speed throughout the day. It’s some of the best short-track speed that we’ve brought all year so hats off to our guys at Haas Factory Team,” Custer said. “Unfortunately, we got caught a lap down there on the caution at the end, but overall, it was a good day. Thank you to everyone at Sysco and Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers for their support.”
Up Next:
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Talladega Superspeedway next Sunday, October 25th, with race coverage on NBC set for 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.