Track: Pocono Raceway
Location: Long Pond, Pa.
Track length: 2.5 miles
When: Sunday, 2 p.m. ET
Where to tune in: Prime Video, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Race purse: $11,055,250
Race distance: 160 laps | 400 miles
Stages: 30 | 95 | 160
Defending winner: Ryan Blaney, July 2024
Starting lineup:Denny Hamlin wins pole
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Pocono poses several tricky challenges as regular season winds down
After Shane van Gisbergen snared a playoff spot last week at Mexico City, it leaves 10 tests to finalize the mighty grid of 16 title hopefuls.
Postseason urgency kicks off at the “Tricky Triangle”, where winless drivers face long odds to muscle their way upfront. Each of the last 11 winners in Long Pond ranked sixth or higher in the playoff standings and a few past Pocono winners will be tough to beat on Sunday.
Among them is seven-time Pocono winner Denny Hamlin. Admittedly, he may be ‘rusty‘ after a week off for the birth of his son, but he should slot back in seamlessly as he leads the field to green.
“It‘s a track that no matter the car that we drive or the tires we have on or the aero package, none of that really matters — you still make speed at this race track the same way, no matter what car you’re driving,” Hamlin said. “It‘s been one of the few tracks that I haven‘t had to change my approach to it depending on the car I’m driving. I think that‘s why the success has been sustained.”
That familiarity has helped veterans at times, but the nature of Pocono‘s layout leaves room for mayhem. Joey Logano and his crew chief, Paul Wolfe, who always seems to pull a rabbit out of the hat when there’s a slew of different race strategies on the table, shine at tracks like this.
“You’ve got to have the strategy piece worked out and the execution of the race, and restarts in general are chaotic here as well,” Logano said. “This track definitely presents a lot of opportunities to do things. With the stages, the way they fall, being able to pit and not go a lap down, there‘s a lot of opportunity to do some crazy stuff.”
MORE: Cup Series standings | Full 2025 schedule
The restart zones and pit cycles can reshuffle the deck and possibly produce a new victor. Contenders such as Chase Elliott, Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace — all with strong runs in past Pocono events — are among those eyeing a breakthrough as time ticks down and not wanting to chance their season on points.
“We would like to take some positive things that we had a year ago to this weekend. That would be great,” Elliott said. “We will just keep chipping away, and I thought we were doing some good things, so we just have to do some of the things we are doing well and add some more to it.”
Then, there‘s the track‘s mismatched corners and Ryan Blaney — who scored his first Cup win here — relishes the challenge of trying to tackle each end to be the best again.
“I like the challenge of three completely different corners,” Blaney said. “Every race track is different, no matter if it‘s an oval. Like both ends are very different everywhere we go. But this is very, very different at all three ends. How do you pick and choose where you want to be good?
“Your driving style is completely different from [turns] one to two to three, so I‘ve always liked that change-up. I think it really shows how diverse you are as a race car driver that you can switch it up three times a lap.”
Whether you’re in it to stack more points or punch a postseason ticket, there‘s no room left to wait. The time to gamble is now — especially at a track that rewards bold strategy and punishes indecision.
MORE: Full Saturday recap
From atop the pit box …
What do crew chiefs have in focus to win Sunday’s race?
Pocono Raceway‘s unique layout has always provided a challenge to crew chiefs. How do you give a driver the right balance in a car setup across three completely differently shaped and banked corners?
Jonathan Hassler, crew chief for the No. 12 Team Penske Ford, mastered that one year ago, aiding Blaney and Co. to Victory Lane at the “Tricky Triangle.” But it wasn‘t because every corner was perfect; it‘s that the right sacrifices were made to achieve speed.
“I’ve always tried to pick two corners to be good in and just kind of deal with the other one,” Blaney said Saturday. “And my mindset has always been trying to prioritize [Turns] 1 and 3 and just live over the “Tunnel [Turn]”. It’s kind of how we were last year. Like I was great in 1 and 3 and I gave up a little bit of time in the tunnel, but I was still a net positive in those two corners.”
For Hassler, that balance can be, well, tricky.
“It’s tough,” he told NASCAR.com. “Like, Turn 2 is really rough and heights are super important. Sometimes, having the car lower, especially in Turn 3, tends to give overall grip and performance, but you start to maybe take away from Turn 2. So that’s kind of what you’re playing with.”
Cole Custer and the No. 41 Haas Factory Team qualified fifth for their best start of 2025, a performance that comes one week after their best finish of the season at Mexico City where Custer finished eighth. Crew chief Aaron Kramer is careful not to get too far ahead of himself but carries optimism into the 2.5-mile Pocono.
“We’ve had a couple good weeks. I won’t call this a good week yet. It’s a good start,” Kramer told NASCAR.com. “We obviously need to capitalize on our opportunity to make it a good week.”
Part of that will come from fuel mileage. Pocono is renowned for putting a premium on strategy. This year, the fuel component will be coupled with a new, softer Goodyear tire package. The left sides have been used at intermediates like Las Vegas, Darlington and Michigan this year while the right sides are the same as last year‘s rights at Indianapolis.
“The tire and the fuel strategy stuff kind of go hand-in-hand,” Kramer said. “The fuel strategy stuff doesn’t work if the tires won’t live as long as you need to make them live to do some of those options. So it’ll be interesting. This tire is a little bit softer than what we ran here in the past.
“Tire wear typically isn’t an issue here, which opens up these different strategy options, but because the tire is a little softer, it may come into play where it forces your hand on some decisions.”
— Zach Sturniolo
RELATED: See where drivers will pit for Sunday’s race
History tells us …
Call it a pattern, Toyota trends well at the triangle. Toyota has won six of the last 10 races in Long Pond. In particular, Hamlin is responsible for half of those six wins and it doesn‘t hurt that the No. 11 driver ranks first in speed, long run speed and restarts at Pocono in the Next Gen car, according to NASCAR Insights. Plus, he‘s finished first or second in five of the last eight Pocono races.
He may not be the favorite to win, but watch out for …
TY GIBBS. The No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing driver has been in play for the win the last two weekends. Gibbs has found some speed to kick off the summer stretch with eight of his last nine qualifying efforts starting in the top 10. At Pocono, he has one run of finishing in the top five in three starts and should it come down to it, the No. 54 crew ranks fourth-best on pit road this season, per NASCAR Insights. Plus, Gibbs would cause a major upset if he can notch his first career win 77 points below the elimination line.
Fantasy update
NASCAR Fantasy Live expert Dustin Albino provides insight for your Sunday lineup.
Eventful practice and qualifying sessions at Pocono mixed up my lineup from earlier this week. One thing is for certain, a returning Denny Hamlin should be included in your lineup, despite not being keen of his No. 11 Toyota in practice. William Byron had the fastest car on five- and 10-lap averages but wrecked during his qualifying attempt. Hendrick Motorsports has a best starting spot of 18th with Chase Elliott. Chris Buescher, who enters Pocono on the playoff bubble, will take the green flag from the front row and has a top-five car in five-lap averages. Strategy will be aplenty over 400 miles, making it an uphill battle to choose the best lineup.
Lineup: Denny Hamlin, Chris Buescher, Ty Gibbs, Ryan Blaney, Carson Hocevar
Garage: Chase Elliott
MORE: Lineup advice in Fantasy Fastlane
Speed reads
Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles.
• NASCAR at Pocono: Key information, links, results through the weekend | Read more
• In-Season Challenge: $1 million tournament begins to take shape | Read more
• Racing Insights: Full finishing order projections for Sunday’s 400-miler | Read more
• Field of 16: Valuable stage points up for grabs as regular season winds down | Read more
• Turning Point to Pocono: Is Chase Elliott the sleeping giant of 2025? | Read more
• At-track photos: Scenes, sights from the Pocono Mountains | View gallery
• NASCAR Classics: Unlock the vault of the best races held in Long Pond | Watch races
• Paint Scheme Preview: Fresh designs slated for the “Tricky Triangle” | View gallery
• Power Rankings: How the Cup Series field stacks up before Pocono | Read more
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