Cookout Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium Race Rundown

This past Sunday, February 2, 2025, the NASCAR Cup Series took to the iconic Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina for a 200-lap slugfest. With a Last Chance Qualifier event to kick off the evening, 19 drivers had to compete to order their sports in the Main Event and as expected, things got crazy with drivers making moves out of desperation. We saw the cream rise to the top during the LCQ and the best drivers run up front during the Main, which ultimately built some great momentum up heading into Speedwells at Daytona in two weeks. Here’s a detailed rundown of what took place during this first-time event.

Larson, Berry advance into the Main Event

Kyle Larson was the only driver of his four Hendrick Motorsports teammates that did not advance into the Main Event, after his Heat Race the following Saturday, which cut his work out for him. Other notables who missed the Main included Ryan Blaney, Erik Jones, Ty Gibbs and the new hire for the Wood Brothers, Josh Berry.

The race began with Kaulig Racing’s Ty Dillon on the pole, with Front Row Motorsports driver, Zane Smith, staring alongside him. Dillon battled Smith, his brother and Richard Childress Racing driver, Austin Dillon and even Erik Jones for the top spot throughout the evening, with drivers getting aggressive up front, a lot of beating and banging and the best cars ultimately ending up first and second.

The intensity ramped up during the LCQ, as Bowman Gray hero, Burt Myers collided with Ricky Stenhouse Jr., sending Myers’ #50 Chevrolet into the wall. Not long after, Ty Gibbs was spun by Justin Haley, which prompted retaliation under caution from Gibbs, sending him airborne in the process. In the end, Josh Berry, who started 13th and finished second, Kyle Larson charged to the front within the final twenty laps to win the LCQ. Ryan Blaney wound up finishing last and completed 23 laps in the LCQ, as Blaney was awarded the provisional for being the highest finisher in last year’s Owner’s Points Championship, so Blaney took it to the pits to save his stuff for the Main Event.

After the chaos and calamity of the LCQ ended, the night was far from done. All 23 NASCAR Cup Series drivers knew the task at hand for this non-points exhibition event, which was to take it home and load up on the trailer at the end of the night with a trophy in hand. Hendrick Motorsport’s Chase Elliott started alongside Chris Buescher, who won their Heats the prior night, as did Denny Hamlin and Tyler Reddick, who started on the second row behind Elliot and Buescher. When the Green Flag dropped short after 8:30PM EST, Elliott wasted no time to take charge, pulling away from the other three within ten laps.

On Lap 21, Front Row Motorsport’s newest driver, Noah Gragson was sent into the back bumper of Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch, which was catapulted by Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suarez. Busch wound up being a lap down in last-place after these chain of events, taking him out of contention for the rest of the night. On the next restart, Ryan Blaney, who started dead-last, made his way to the front of the field, picking up ten positions during his march to the front.

Hamlin charged hard to the front before the halfway break on Lap 96 to challenge Elliott, while the middle of the pack got super antsy. Reddick came up to third with two laps to go before the break, while Hamlin took the lead on Lap 99 and wound up leading at the halfway point of this event.

Not long after the restart, Larson and JGR’s newest driver, Chase Briscoe, got spun coming out of Turns 3 and 4. Briscoe excited the race not long after, due to a steering issue, resulting in a last-place finish.

Lap 108 entailed defending Champion, Joey Logano get into Carson Hocevar, sending him into the wall. Hocevar was able to re-fire, but Larson and teammate, William Byron, collided in Turns 1 and 2, prompting another yellow. Hamlin proceeded to restart on the inside lane, with Reddick on his outside. On Lap 120, Brad Keselowski, Alex Bowman and Carson Hocevar, once again, got spun.

Elliott reclaimed the lead on lap 126, after bumping Hamlin from the lead and never looked back. Blaney’s Menards Ford was no match for Hamlin either, as Blaney ended up in striking distance from Elliott with 30-to-go. Blaney started 23rd and proved that his 2023 title was not a fluke, but it was not enough for Elliott’s strong showing.

This event was not for points and is just a momentum builder for the remainder of the season. With this momentum, Elliott and Blaney are looking for their first Daytona 500 victories, as are Chris Buescher and Tyler Reddick, who had strong showings in Sunday Night’s event and all look to carry this momentum going into Speedweeks. The 2025 season is going to be a crucial one and everyone should watch out for Elliott, Hamlin and Reddick this season, and even the entire RFK organization.