The NASCAR Cup Series heads to EchoPark Speedway for the second time this season with only seven races remaining in the 2026 regular season while the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competes for the second straight year at Lime Rock Park.
THE SCHEDULE
- Saturday, July 11 -- NCTS @ Lime Rock, 1 p.m. ET (FS1)
- Sunday, July 12– NCS @ Atlanta, 7 p.m. ET (TNT)
UP TO SPEED
BLANEY EXTENDS PERSONAL BEST
TOP-10 STREAK
Ryan Blaney has been a model of consistency this season and he provided further proof of that over the weekend as his seventh-place run at Chicagoland Speedway marked his seventh straight Top-10 finish. That is a personal best for Blaney, who leads all NASCAR Cup Series drivers with 14 Top-10s in 19 starts this season. He is currently third in the overall point standings and goes into this weekend’s race at EchoPark Speedway having finished 10th or better in seven of the last eight events.
CINDRIC FLYING UNDER THE RADAR
Austin Cindric finds himself in Chase contention as he sits 15th in the NASCAR Cup Series point standings with seven races remaining in the regular season. Cindric has finished 15th or better in four of the last five races and is coming off a 13th-place run at Chicagoland Speedway in which he led 18 laps. Cindric, who has qualified for the postseason in three of his four full-time seasons, is 27 points above the cut line. He’s led at least five laps in each of the last eight Cup events at EchoPark Speedway, including a race-high 92 in the 2024 fall event where he finished 10th.
SITTING ON 749
The next Ford win will be its 750th all-time in NASCAR’s top series. Ned Jarrett is Ford’s win leader with 43 while Bill Elliott is second with 40. Shirtless Jimmy Florian scored the Blue Oval’s first series victory when he upset the likes of Lee Petty, Curtis Turner and Joe Weatherly at Dayton Speedway on June 25, 1950. Florian earned his nickname after getting out of his 1950 flathead Ford without a shirt. Overall, 91 drivers have won at least one series race with Ford, including notable drivers Mario Andretti, Dan Gurney, Parnelli Jones, A.J. Foyt, Richard Petty, and Dale Earnhardt.
A LOOK BACK
KESELOWSKI GETS FIRST CUP WIN FOR MUSTANG
In 2019, Brad Keselowski gave Mustang its first NASCAR Cup Series victory as he held off Martin Truex Jr. at the finish line to win the Folds of Honor 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Keselowski, who was battling an illness all weekend and had Austin Cindric standing by in case he needed relief, led the final 33 laps to post his 28th career victory. In all, Ford led 177 of the 325 laps and won for the third straight year at the 1.5-mile track.
RIGGS HOPING TO CONTINUE HOT STREAK
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series has had the last two weeks off, and points leader Layne Riggs is hoping that won’t break the momentum he’s built over the past month. Riggs has won three of the last four series races, including the inaugural Navy 250 on Naval Base Coronado when he passed Tyler Reif on the final lap. Riggs goes into this weekend’s race at Lime Rock Park with four wins in 2026, which is a career-high for one season, and he’s now second on the all-time Ford win list with nine NCTS victories. The only driver with more is the late Greg Biffle, who had 16.
FIVE RACES REMAINING
There are only five races remaining in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series regular season and Layne Riggs has firm control over the top spot in the standings as he holds a 65-point lead over second-place Kaden Honeycutt. Ford Racing’s Chandler Smith is third overall while the ThorSport trio of Ty Majeski (sixth), Ben Rhodes (seventh) and Jake Garcia (10th) also find themselves in Chase qualifying positions.
RECAPPING LAST YEAR
This marks the second race for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Lime Rock Park. Last year in the inaugural event, Ford had four F-150 drivers finish in the top six positions. Ty Majeski finished second to winner Corey Heim while ThorSport teammate Ben Rhodes was fourth. Cam Waters made his trip from Australia a good one as he finished fifth while Chandler Smith ended up sixth. Layne Riggs was 13th, but was the only other driver to lead a lap in the race besides Heim.
PAST WINNERS
FORD’S ATLANTA CUP SERIES WINNERS
1961 – Fred Lorenzen
1962 – Fred Lorenzen
1963 – Fred Lorenzen
1964 – Fred Lorenzen and Ned Jarrett
1965 – Marvin Panch (Sweep)
1967 – Cale Yarborough and Dick Hutcherson
1968 – LeeRoy Yarbrough
1969 – LeeRoy Yarbrough
1975 – Buddy Baker
1978 – Bobby Allison
1981 – Neil Bonnett
1985 – Bill Elliott (Sweep)
1987 – Ricky Rudd and Bill Elliott
1990 – Morgan Shepherd
1991 – Mark Martin
1992 – Bill Elliott (Sweep)
1993 – Morgan Shepherd
1994 – Ernie Irvan and Mark Martin
1997 – Dale Jarrett
2002 – Kurt Busch
2005 – Carl Edwards (Sweep)
2008 – Carl Edwards
2017 – Brad Keselowski
2018 – Kevin Harvick
2019 – Brad Keselowski
2020 – Kevin Harvick
2021 – Ryan Blaney (1)
2023 – Joey Logano (1)
2024 – Joey Logano (2)
