{"id":50488,"date":"2025-03-22T22:28:29","date_gmt":"2025-03-23T03:28:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/?p=50488"},"modified":"2025-03-22T22:28:29","modified_gmt":"2025-03-23T03:28:29","slug":"nascar-saturday-homestead-miami-notebook-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/22\/nascar-saturday-homestead-miami-notebook-3\/","title":{"rendered":"NASCAR: Saturday Homestead-Miami Notebook"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service<\/em><\/p>\n

Alex Bowman wins the pole for Cup race at Miami<\/b><\/p>\n

HOMESTEAD, Fla. \u2013 Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman provided a dramatic final few minutes of Busch Light Pole Qualifying on Saturday afternoon \u2013 claiming the pole position for Sunday\u2019s Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).<\/p>\n

\"\"

Alex Bowman, driver of the #48 Ally Unrivaled League Chevrolet, poses for photos after winning the pole award during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on March 22, 2025 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

With only four cars remaining in the session, Bowman\u2019s No. 48 Chevrolet set fast lap of 168.845 mph around the 1.5-mile track, knocking Front Frow Motorsports\u2019 Noah Gragson from the lead position that he had held for the majority of the qualifying session.<\/p>\n

Last week\u2019s Las Vegas race winner, Wood Brothers Racing\u2019s Josh Berry took the track immediately after and nearly equaled Bowman\u2019s lap – instead his No. 21 Ford coming a mere .073-second off the pole-winning pace but earning a front row position alongside the Hendrick driver.<\/p>\n

This is Bowman\u2019s sixth career pole position and first at Homestead, a place the 32-year-old Arizona-native doesn\u2019t necessarily consider one of his historically better tracks. He has only a pair of top-10 finishes, but his best outcome \u2013 seventh place \u2013 came in the series most recent Homestead visit last October.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were some cars not so great on the short run and really fast on the long run and we were kind of the opposite of that practice, we were really faster in the short run and not great on the long run stuff so I knew qualifying was going to be really important because of that and that we had some work to do for tomorrow,” Bowman said, \u201cBut for me, I had a pretty clear cut plan for qualifying and I thought I was able to execute that pretty well and my race car gave me what I needed to do that.”<\/p>\n

Gragson will start third, followed by Daytona 500 polesitter, Joe Gibbs Racing\u2019s Chase Briscoe in the No. 19 Toyota and current NASCAR Cup Series championship leader William Byron in the No. 24 Hendrick Chevrolet.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re still really fast, but I\u2019ve never gotten a pole in the Cup Series, but our Beef A Roo Mustang is pretty quick on the short run,” said Gragson, driver of the No. 4 FRM Ford. \u201cWe just need to get a little better for the long run and we\u2019re up in the hunt, so that\u2019s good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Intermittent clouds cooled the 74-degree afternoon and as Bowman alluded to, several of the fastest cars in practice did not necessarily fare as well in actual qualifying.<\/p>\n

23XI Racing\u2019s Bubba Wallace set top pace in Group B practice, for example, but was only ninth quickest in qualifying. Fellow Toyota driver, Legacy Motor Club\u2019s Erik Jones was second \u2013 just behind Wallace – in that practice session but ended up only 28th quickest on the starting grid.<\/p>\n

Conversely, Kaulig Racing\u2019s A.J. Allmendinger, who was 25th fastest in that Group 2 practice session will start the race from 10th position. Berry, still basking in his first career win last week at Las Vegas, was 31st in practice but will start from the front row.<\/p>\n

Defending race winner Tyler Reddick was 20th in qualifying. Kyle Larson, who is attempting to win in all three national series races this weekend will roll off 14th in the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.<\/p>\n

And the season\u2019s winningest driver, Joe Gibbs Racing\u2019s Christopher Bell was 16th in qualifying. A three-time winner already, he is trying to become only the third driver in NASCAR history \u2013 joining Hall of Famers Bill Elliott (1992) and Dale Earnhardt (1987) as the only competitors in the modern era to win four of the opening six races.<\/p>\n

NOTEBOOK ITEMS:<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

*BERRY INSISTS SUCCESS NOT A FLUKE<\/b><\/p>\n

*First-time NASCAR Cup Series winner Josh Berry and the Wood Brothers Racing team come into Homestead race week still enjoying the legendary team\u2019s 101st victory at Las Vegas last Sunday \u2013 a huge career achievement for Berry, personally, and only the second win for the team in the last nine years.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Josh Berry, driver of the #21 Motorcraft\/Quick Lane Ford, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 16, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

Only five races into his tenure, Berry has already delivered an early-season Playoff berth for the team and by the looks of the strong showing may well win again in the months before the championship march starts. He was adamant that the Vegas win wasn\u2019t a \u201cfluke\u2019 and is one of only four drivers with multiple top-five finishes on the year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWithout a doubt I feel like I had things to prove,” said the 34-year-old Berry, who is beginning only his second fulltime season in the Cup ranks. \u201cObviously, coming off of last year and everything we went through, I think people were still looking at all four of us that were part of that program with a lot of question marks, so, to me, I wanted to go out and prove myself all over again in the Cup Series.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt like this was probably the opportunity for me. I think if I fail at this one, I don\u2019t think there\u2019s probably another one lined up for me, so most definitely there was pressure to go out and perform. During the offseason we just really buckled down and obviously getting to know and working with my new crew chief, Miles.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe put in a lot of work over the offseason to be prepared when the season started and I feel like that obviously paid off. Honestly, our results and performance has exceeded our expectations, so I\u2019m super happy with that and winning a race in the Cup Series is a big deal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Berry\u2019s second place qualifying lap marks the fourth time in the past five races he\u2019s secured a top-10 start.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Kyle Larson, driver of the #5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, enters his car during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on March 22, 2025 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

*LARSON\u2019S TRIPLE QUEST<\/b><\/p>\n

No driver is busier than Hendrick Motorsports\u2019 Kyle Larson this weekend and the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion is already batting a thousand in his quest to win trophies in all three national series races at Homestead.<\/p>\n

He earned his first trophy with a dramatic comeback victory in Friday\u2019s NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race making the pass for the lead with only two laps remaining. It adds to an already-impressive resume here for Larson, who is a former winner in both Saturday\u2019s Xfinity Series 300-miler (2015) and Sunday\u2019s NACAR Cup Series race (2022) at the South Florida 1.5-miler.<\/p>\n

He comes into Sunday\u2019s race ranked sixth in the NASCAR Cup Series championship standings, with three top-10s and a pair of third place finishes through the opening five races.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt like the Truck race was probably going to be the toughest to win, I don\u2019t have much experience in them and the runs are typically shorter,” Larson said. \u201cI feel better about Xfinity and Cup but the competition keeps getting tough and tougher as you get on with the weekend, but we\u2019ll see. Off to a good start.”<\/p>\n

*HOMESTEAD A FINALE FAVORITE<\/b><\/p>\n

NASCAR just raced at the Homestead-Miami Speedway 1.5-miler during the October 2024 Playoff run and this weekend marks the first time it has been a Spring event since 2021.<\/p>\n

Ask the drivers where they\u2019d like to see the former, longtime season finale venue on the schedule and the consensus is, they\u2019d love to see it return as the championship race one day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI certainly would like to see it play a bigger factor in our championship, whether it\u2019s in the Playoffs or part of the championship race round or whatever it might be,\u2019\u2019 said the Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin, whose three wins are most among active drivers. \u201cI\u2019d just like to see it a part of that because we just talked about how the driver makes a bigger difference at the is race track than the car.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Team Penske\u2019s Ryan Blaney took it a step further.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the above, really,” Blaney responded with a grin when asked if he preferred the spring or fall Homestead placement on the calendar.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll be honest, it doesn\u2019t matter to me when we come here, spring all, in the playoffs, championship race, as long as we\u2019re coming here. I think if you asked, some guys would love to come here twice, once in the spring and once in the fall, where that race in the fall lays, I don\u2019t care. Do I think the championship race should rotate between a few tracks? Yeah. And this should be one of them. This place puts on a great show no matter what.”<\/p>\n

*THE WINNING Bs<\/b><\/p>\n

The five NASCAR Cup Series races have all been won by drivers whose last names begin with the letter \u201cB.\u201d Hendrick Motorsports\u2019 William Byron won the Daytona 500. Joe Gibbs Racing\u2019s Christopher Bell won the next three races \u2013 at Atlanta, Circuit of The Americas and Phoenix \u2013 and Berry picked up his first career win at Las Vegas last weekend.<\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s Homestead pole winner? Alex Bowman.<\/p>\n

Several drivers conceded that B letter trend could likely continue this weekend at Homestead with 2023 NASCAR Cup Series champ Ryan Blaney considered a favorite. He started the season with a pair of top-10 finishes and won the pole position at Atlanta but has back-to-back showings of 28th and 35th in the two races heading to South Florida \u2013 suffering an engine failure at Phoenix and crashing last weekend at Las Vegas.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought our car was really good last week until I wrecked all of us on the back stretch so just hope to keep that same pace but I feel good with where our program is at right now,” said Blaney, who has finished runner-up in the last two Homestead races.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust a matter of trying to get some stuff to go our way.”<\/p>\n

*SEASON OF LEARNING<\/b><\/p>\n

One of the more heralded rookies this season is former Australian SuperCars champion Shane Van Gisbergen, who turned heads and earned high praise for his historic victory at the Chicago Street Course two years ago in his first ever NASCAR Cup Series start.<\/p>\n

With a strong background in road and street courses before coming to America as a fulltime NASCAR Competitor, the 34-year-old New Zealand-native said it has been a legitimate learning curve in the NASCAR Cup Series on the ovals.<\/p>\n

His lone top-10 result of the year in the No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet came at the Circuit of The Americas road course. He says it has been an education on the assortment of long and short ovals in this first full NASCAR Cup Series schedule. Twice \u2013 in the last two races at Phoenix and Las Vegas \u2013 he\u2019s been collected in crashes not of his own doing.<\/p>\n

“I feel like we\u2019ve showed a lot of promise but we have nothing to show for it, really,” Van Gisbergen said. \u201cCOTA was a good day, but on the ovals we\u2019ve really struggled and we\u2019ve had a lot of accidents and they haven\u2019t really been our fault.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really tough results-wise but I see a lot of potential and speed. Just got to put it together and get to the end of the races and things will start clicking for us, I think.”<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has been hard because I\u2019m not really known for crashing too much and not finishing, so it\u2019s been a bit of a pain really,” Van Gisbergen added. \u201cJust have to stay out of trouble and get through it. The first stage we\u2019re always going good and improving and thinking the rest of the race is going to be good then something seems to happen, so hopefully we stop that this weekend.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service Alex Bowman wins the pole for Cup race at Miami HOMESTEAD, Fla. \u2013 Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman provided a dramatic final few minutes of Busch Light Pole Qualifying on Saturday afternoon \u2013 claiming the pole position for Sunday\u2019s Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3 p.m. ET […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":676,"featured_media":50501,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[11],"tags":[527,16],"class_list":["post-50488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nascar","tag-homestead-miami-speedway","tag-nascar"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racedaysa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-2206405517-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1707&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7hzTZ-d8k","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50488","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/676"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50488"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50488\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50506,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50488\/revisions\/50506"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50488"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50488"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50488"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}