Category: Crown Jewel

Daytona: Hoggan Dominates at Daytona in Fresh From Florida 250

Daytona Beach, FL – In an electrifying showcase of speed and strategy, Boyd Hoggan clinched victory at the Fresh from Florida 250 on February 17, 2025, at the Daytona International Speedway. The race, known for its intense competition and dramatic finishes, lived up to its reputation with a total of 10 cautions over 100 laps.

Hoggan, starting from pole position, led an impressive 37 laps, showcasing his prowess by collecting 52 points, including 40 race points, which underscored his dominance throughout the event. The race was marked by 25 lead changes among 12 leaders, indicating a fiercely contested battle for supremacy on the superspeedway.

Key Moments and Standout Performances:

  • Stage 1 saw Patrick Mcpeak taking the stage victory, demonstrating early promise with 12 laps led. However, Hoggan’s consistency set the tone for his eventual triumph.
  • Stage 2 was won by Hoggan himself, solidifying his claim on the race lead with 14 laps led during this segment.
  • Kyle Sosnoski made a remarkable climb from 10th to 2nd place, finishing just 0.009 seconds behind Hoggan, earning 36 points with one bonus point for his efforts.
  • Munatsi Major also had a noteworthy performance, jumping from 21st to secure a podium finish in 3rd place, accumulating 34 points.

Notable Incidents:

  • The race saw a high level of competition, with multiple caution flags due to incidents on the track, particularly affecting the middle to latter stages of the race.
  • Despite the challenges, the top finishers managed to keep their trucks running clean, with Hoggan, Sosnoski, and Major all finishing without damage.

This year’s Fresh from Florida 250 was a testament to the skill and endurance of NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series drivers, with Hoggan’s strategic approach and consistent performance earning him the top spot on the podium. As the series moves forward, the competition is set to intensify, with drivers like Sosnoski and Major proving they are forces to be reckoned with in the upcoming races. The VRS Truck Series returns to action next Monday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the FR8 208.

DAYTONA: Kallhoff Secures the Victory in ARCA Season Opener

Garth Griswold

The Project K-9 Hero ARCA Series commenced their season on Sunday night with a rejuvenated and robust field. A total of 32 drivers completed 80 laps at speeds exceeding 200 mph, resulting in thrilling racing combined with significant destruction. In a display of skill, strategy, and sheer determination, Henry Kallhoff emerged victorious in the Project K-9 Hero Daytona 200, leading for 11 of the 80 laps and securing the first win of the season. The race, characterized by nine cautions over 21 laps, showcased the competitive spirit and the high stakes of the Project K-9 Hero ARCA Series.

Race Overview:

  • Duration: 1 hour and 51 minutes
  • Laps: 80
  • Leaders: 8
  • Lead Changes: 14
  • Cautions: 9 for 21 laps
  • Weather: Partly cloudy, 74°F, 1-2 MPH from the NE

Top Performers:

  • Henry Kallhoff piloted his way to victory, starting first. He recaptured the lead at the end to win and secure 45 total points, a blend of race points and bonus points for leading laps.
  • Starting from the 23rd position, Cat Wheeler performed remarkably, finishing just 0.056 seconds behind Kallhoff. Wheeler’s ability to move through the field and secure 43 points underscored the race’s competitiveness.
  • Craig Martin completed the podium with a strong drive from 25th on the grid to 3rd place, showing resilience and speed to finish -0.216 seconds off the lead.

Notable Performances:

  • Jim Mott and Garth Griswold finished 4th and 5th, respectively, with Griswold gaining an extra point for leading laps. Both drivers were able to avoid the last-lap carnage and move up almost 20 positions on the last lap.
  • Despite leading for 35 laps, Zander Short ended in 26th due to a significant setback, demonstrating how quickly fortunes can change under racing conditions. Womp, Womp.

The race was punctuated by its 14 lead changes and eight different leaders, which kept spectators and participants alike on the edge of their seats. The high number of cautions led to strategic decisions regarding fuel management and pit stop timings. These decisions, crucial in determining the final standings, highlighted the strategic aspect of the sport and its impact on the race outcome.

The Daytona 200 was a testament to the competitive nature of the ARCA field, where strategy, luck, and driving ability all came into play. Henry Kallhoff’s victory was well-earned, but the battle for positions throughout the field was fierce. This provided fans with memorable moments and set the stage for even more exciting races in the future. As the season progresses, it will be intriguing to see how these dynamics evolve and who will rise to the top when the ARCA Series returns to the racetrack on March 9th in Phoenix.

DAYTONA DUELS: PATASKA REMAINS ON FIRE, LEACH MAKES A COMEBACK IN THE DUELS

Garth Griswold

It was Duels week in the Majors Garage Cup Series (MGCS) at Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday night. Fifty-five drivers turned out to battle for their spots in the prestigious Daytona 500 in the MGCS, a race that every driver dreams of participating in. Unfortunately, fifteen drivers will have to watch next week’s race from the stands, missing the chance to be part of this iconic event.

Qualifying

The qualifying session during Speedweek is the most important qualifying session all season long. Drivers aren’t just racing for the pole and the chance to be on the front row when the green flag waves next Wednesday night and the broadcast booth yells “boogity” repeatedly. Dallas Pataska would keep the wheels on that 17 Majors Garage car on fire this week, claiming the pole. We all better get used to this showdown between Pataska and Thomas Wolfe for the rest of the year. Wolfe would claim the second-place starting position and start outside Row 1 in the Big Show next week. Duel 1 and Duel 2 would have 18 Franchised entries in each race. Duel 1 would have 11 open car entries, and Duel 2 would have 10 open cars, but only the top open car from each Duel would advance to the big show!

Duel 1

The excitement could be felt throughout the speedway as Pataska led the first Duel field to the green flag. The race would run green for almost the first half of the 60-lap race before green flag pit stops began. The first group peeled off into the pit road, and all were able to execute pit stops safely. Still, last year’s Daytona 500 winner Nic Vasquez and Garth Griswold got caught speeding off pit road. Just as the first group exited the pit road, the first yellow flag came out for the race on Lap 26.

Two more cautions would occur before the end drew near as drivers tried everything, they could to reach the front. With the Franchise Cars racing for valuable Stage Points and the Open Cars trying to qualify for the Big Show, the finish was guaranteed to be exciting.

The exciting finish came to fruition as the caution came out with 2 to go; one green-white-checker wasn’t enough as the field couldn’t get around to the white flag before the caution flew again. Pataska, who had led the field for the last third of the race, maintained his position up front. Henry Kallhoff, John Connor, Caleb Tipton, and Ray Gill were lined up second through fifth behind him. Pataska would take the green flag, and Kallhoff would help push on Pataska while the outside line of Gill and Tipton would try their best to stay with them. The high line, though, would fall apart coming out of four, and Pataska and Kallhoff would pull away as Pataska would win the first Duel. Kallhoff would lock himself into the big race next week, finishing second, beating out all the open cars.

“It means a lot to my team and me to make the Daytona 500; we are a small team compared to the other teams out there, and to make it in despite the odds against us is special.”

Henry Kallhoff, #63 Kallhoff-Deitch Racing

Duel 2

The drivers in Duel 2 had to be somewhat apprehensive after seeing the chaotic ending to Duel 1. Usually, each Duel is the polar opposite, but these two were very similar. Thomas Wolfe led the field to green, and the drivers shuffled throughout the field until the first caution came out on Lap 9. Once the race returned green, it would stay green until it was time for more gogo juice around Lap 31.

Green flag pit stops played a pivotal role in Duel 2, just like they did with Duel 1. Ben Lawson and Zack Saunders would both have issues on pit road. Lawson would try to get slowed down when the car broke free and sent him sliding into the wall, sustaining significant damage to his race car. Zack Saunders would receive a black flag for a pit road violation, which would cause Saunders to have a drive-through penalty. A black flag for speeding in Duel 1 took the reigning Champion out of contention; that same fate looked in store for the #60 machine with 22 laps to go.

The field spread out during these pit stops, and Stewart Harding took the lead in a pack with Justin Bell, Stephen Menke, and Cody Leach, hoping the race would stay green. Their wish wouldn’t come to fruition, though, as the caution lap would come out with 16 Laps to go. But it was Saunders’s wish that was granted, allowing him to catch up with the pack.

They would get back to racing with 12 to go, as Menke would lead the field to green, being pushed by Cody Leach. The field would run side by side as the Hollywood Motorsports boys Allen Phillips and Nathaniel Campbell would move to the front with 8 to go. Still, miscommunication between the two would bring out the caution with seven laps to go as Nathaniel Campbell moved up to block the high line run. Phillips was a little late on the run, causing a significant stack-up behind them before the field began crashing behind them.

Phillips escaped the incident unharmed, but when the green flag waved for the green-white-checkered finish, Phillips would get turned into the right wall in Turns 3 and 4. The field would have to be restacked again for another try. That green-white-checkered was also unsuccessful as wrecking occurred behind the leaders going into Turn 1.

3rd Times the Charm

Menke would bring them to the green flag again, but unlike the last two times, Munatsi Major was ready on the outside and cleared Menke before going to the low line into Turn 1. The top line would evaporate for the most part as they went down the backstretch. Major would stay in front to take the white flag, and Menke and Harding stalk him from behind. Menke would move heading into Turn 1 to the outside, and the entire bottom line would follow him, leaving Major out to dry on the bottom. Menke would reclaim the lead, with Harding, Saunders, and Jonathan Leger finishing the Top 5.

Menke may have led the charge out of Turn 1 like a fat colonel leading the charge on the battlefield. Still, the army behind him would swallow him up as Harding and Saunders moved past him to the inside. Harding would be one turn away from victory as Saunders would leave him like a stormy one-night stand to the high side. Out of nowhere, Cody Leach appeared with a massive run on the outside as he blew by Saunders and Harding; coming to the line and getting a push from Tommy Carroll Jr., Cody Leach would get to the line first, capturing the win of Duel 2.

NEXT WEEK

The duels kicked off the week at Daytona and more exciting racing will be coming here this week. The Hero Project K-9 ARCA Series will kick off action live on Sunday Night, followed by the VRS Truck Series on Monday, and the Team Conti Sim-Performance Dash Series on Tuesday. The big final show will be 40 cars for 200 laps to see who will be crowned the 2025 Daytona 500 Champion.

MORE: Cup standings / Trucks Schedule

Crown Jewel Racing

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OFFICIAL: Crown Jewel Racing Announces Open Car Championship

Crown Jewel Racing revamps rules regarding open cars across the three franchised series in the Crown Jewel Racing League.

Crown Jewel Racing is excited to announce the Open Car Championship – a new format for open cars to compete across the Majors Garage Cup Series, Team Conti Sim Performance Dash Series, and VRS Truck Series. Details of the Open Car Championship are as follows:

Majors Garage Cup Series

  • Drivers outside of franchised entries will now be able to attempt to qualify for ALL Majors Garage Cup Series events in the 2025 season.
  • Open Car Licenses will cost $25 for the Majors Garage Cup Series, and drivers will be able to reserve a car number at time of registration and payment.
    • Open cars will not be eligible for the Drivers’ Playoffs or the Owners’ Playoffs.
  • Open Cars will compete in a season long points challenge, with the top finishing Open Car receiving a prize.

Team Conti Sim Performance Dash Series

  • Drivers outside of franchised entries will now be able to attempt to qualify for ALL Team Conti Sim Performance Dash Series events in the 2025 season.
  • Open Car Licenses will cost $10 for the TCSPDS, and drivers will be able to reserve a car number at time of registration and payment.
    • Open cars will not be eligible for the Drivers’ Playoffs or the Owners’ Playoffs.
  • Open Cars will compete in a season long points challenge, with the top finishing Open Car receiving a prize.

VRS Truck Series

  • Drivers outside of franchised entries will now be able to attempt to qualify for ALL VRS Truck Series events in the 2025 season.
  • Open Car Licenses will cost $5 for the VRS Truck Series, and drivers will be able to reserve a car number at time of registration and payment.
    • Open cars will not be eligible for the Drivers’ Playoffs or the Owners’ Playoffs.
  • Open Cars will compete in a season long points challenge, with the top finishing Open Car receiving a prize.

All license and race restrictions still apply. Drivers may only compete in 5 races per division lower than their main series, excluding the Project K9 Hero ARCA division.

This new open car system will allow the league to fundraise some more money for investment into broadcasting resources as well as provide drivers outside of the franchise system an opportunity to compete. The system will go into effect starting with Atlanta Motor Speedway. Please fill out the Open Car Registration Form to register today and you will be reached out to for payment processing.

OFFICIAL: Crown Jewel Media launches a revamped Crown Jewel Racing Network

Long time community member and Cup Series driver Nathaniel Campbell has decided to step back from his role as a driver in the Majors Garage Cup Series and will enter the booth for his first season as the Majors Garage Cup Series lead broadcaster for the Crown Jewel Racing Network.

Crown Jewel Racing has made a last-minute change in the media deal for the 2025 season. This change will see long time community member, team owner across all four series, and Cup Series Playoff driver Nathaniel Campbell take a step back from Cup Series racing to command the broadcasts for the Majors Garage Cup Series for the 2025 Season. This change comes after 2 weeks of broadcasts provided by broadcasting partner Wind Tunnel TV on their YouTube and Facebooks pages. For the 2025 season, all races will be broadcasted by Nathaniel on the Crown Jewel Racing Network on Twitch, with the VODs being available on the Crown Jewel Racing Network YouTube channel. In addition, Nathaniel will also head all media operations at Crown Jewel Media in a permanent staff position moving forward.

Nathaniel Campbell takes over as the Head of Crown Jewel Media and the Crown Jewel Racing Network. Campbell will head the 2025 Majors Garage Cup Series Broadcast and all media operations for Crown Jewel Media.

But wait, there’s more! Nathaniel Campbell will be stepping down to the Team Conti Sim Performance Dash Series to race full time, leaving a gap to fill for the Drivers Only broadcast for Xfinity. In comes 2024 Cup Series Champion, Thomas Wolfe – the new head of the Crown Jewel Racing Network Drivers Only broadcast for the 2024 Team Conti Sim Performance Dash Series. Thomas will be joined by rotating cast of full-time Cup Series drivers over the course of the season. Thomas will also be broadcasting the Project K9 Hero ARCA Series on Sunday nights.

Thomas Wolfe joins the Crown Jewel Racing Network as the lead broadcaster for the Team Conti Sim Performance Dash Series and the Project K9 Hero ARCA Series.

This is a great leap forward for Crown Jewel Media and the Crown Jewel Racing Network, as 3 out of our 4 series will now be broadcasted on the Crown Jewel Racing Network. This will allow Crown Jewel to easily market and expand media operations in the future.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: THE DUEL AT DAYTONA

The Majors Garage Cup Series is live from Daytona tonight for the Bluegreen Vacations Duel at Daytona. Green Flag flies at 8:15pm EST live on WTTV

SNAPSHOT OF QUALIFYING

As of 1:30pm cst, Thomas Wolfe and Logan Giesbrecht have locked themselves into the front row of the Daytona 500 next week. As of right now, Boyd Hoggan and Leeroy Sellers have locked themselves in as the 2 open cars to get in through qualifying.

Crown Jewel, we have THE BEEF

Some would say this is DeJa’Vu from the season finale of last year. Nic Vasquez has once again killed his teammate and Factory Motorsports owner Stephen Menke. Last week with an oddly late attempt to enter pit road, Nic Vasquez slammed into the pit barrels Kyle Larson style flipping Menke in the process. Oddly enough, he’s a Joey Logano fan. Stephen has kept things cool and lighthearted, but things may change if this happens in a points paying race.
In the LCQ for the Clash, a last lap move by Caleb Tipton has started some new beef. Apparently from reports of arguments at the 00 hauler between the two, this beef is a Griswold vs the entire THM crew. Stewart was heard yelling from the pits at the Hollywood Motorsports executive about getting “JET PUFFED”. Moments later, Tipton, who was 100% locked into the Clash Feature race gave Garth a shove in turns 1 and 2. This sent Garth around and to the ice cream stand earlier than he hoped. Garth has been heard saying “they’ll pay for their sins” under his breath since the incident. Tonight, we will see if he gives them grace by getting his revenge now instead of next week in the Daytona 500.
Toyotas vs everybody. WRL has been an anchor team in superspeedway racing at Crown Jewel. With creating the Ford alliance last season and starting the domination of Fords on Superspeedways. Last Season a Ford Driver won 3 out of the 4 superspeedway races, but WRL making the controversial move to Toyota and Top Tier rebranding to Palmetto Motorports and also getting the call from Toyota, this has created a new the new super team. Not to mention that Toyotas legacy team of Moonshine motor club and their four chartered cars to add makes them an 11-car train.

RUMOR HAS IT

Sources inside the garage are saying that the number 20 car for BBR could be up for grabs with Boyd Hoggan looking for a cup ride. Nim has told us that he has “no comment.” and “don’t believe everything you hear.” when we asked him about the situation. Boyd has a resume that many racers dream of and after the big shock of the Luka to the Lakers trade during the NBA trade deadline, we can confidently say that anything is possible. Austin Runkel has decline to give us a statement.
The Factory Motorsports camp is hopeful that they can create an alliance with Tipton-Harding Motorsports going into the Daytona 500. After losing WRL as their main partners, Factory could have trouble next week in continuing their dominance on superspeedways. Stewart has been heard by sources talking around the garage that he would work with the Factory Motorports drivers, but he does not trust them as far as he can throw them. We caught a glimpse of an unnamed executive’s schedule and noticed that the two teams have scheduled a meeting before the duels to attempt to clear out any grievances they have from last season and move forward going into the duels and the Daytona 500.

HOW THINGS WILL WORK TONIGHT

  • Top 2 qualifying times will be locked into the first row, regardless of duel finish.
  • Top 2 open car qualifying times will be locked into the Daytona 500.
  • Franchise entries and open car entries will be seeded separately to ensure an even split of each across both duels.
  • Duel 1 will consist of 18 franchise entries + 11 open cars. Top finishing open car (qualified car exempt) advances to the 500. Finishing order sets the inside row of the 500.
  • Duel 2 will consist of 18 franchise entries + 10 open cars. Top finishing open car (qualified car exempt) advances to the 500. Finishing order sets the outside row of the 500.
  • Each duel will pay stage points – 10, 9, 8, 7, etc.
  • RC (incident caused) points will begin being counted tonight!

Pataska Triumphs at the Clash, Launching the 2025 Majors Garage Cup Series

Garth Griswold

The highly anticipated 2025 Crown Jewel Racing Season commenced on a thrilling note Wednesday night in Lakeland, Florida, at the USA International Speedway. Despite the unavailability of Bowman Gray Stadium on the iRacing Service, CJR officials made a strategic decision to maintain the short track, bumper-to-bumper, and at times, chaotic competition at a similar track. The USA International Speedway certainly lived up to its reputation, delivering an electrifying start to the season.

Opening night can always have its issues, and CJR Officials had to adjust on the fly when four heats were scheduled, but iRacing said they would only do three. Three heats would race, with the top five advancing to the show. Then, those unlucky drivers would get one more chance to make the show in the last-chance qualifier, with the top seven keeping their hopes alive to win the clash.

Qualifying

The qualifying round saw a standout performance from newcomer Dallas Pataska, who secured the pole position in the #17 Majors Garage Esports Chevrolet with an impressive time of 20.886. His speed was nearly two-tenths faster than the reigning Season Champion Thomas Wolfe, who qualified second with a time of 21.081. Hollywood Motorsports also made a strong showing, with three out of their four drivers, Garth Griswold, Nathaniel Campbell, and newcomer Cameron Albertson, qualifying in the Top 10, promising an exciting main event.

HEAT ONE

The first heat of the night would be the cleanest race of the night. Dallas Pataska would lead the field to the green flag, but Saunders would get the lead-to-lead Lap 1 before the only caution of the heat would come out on the backstretch when Cory Mott and Garth Griswold would make contact and spin down the backstretch. Pataska would win the first heat, Saunders would finish 2nd, Diego Rodriguez 3rd, Haden Higginbotham 4th, and Logan Giesbrecht would hold off Griswold for 5th place.

HEAT TWO


The 2024 Season Champion, Thomas Wolfe, would lead the field to the green flag to kick off Heat #2. The second heat wasn’t as clean as the first heat and would have four cautions throughout the heat. WRL co-team owner and driver Cody Leach had his hands while trying to keep his car off of others throughout the heat, but Wolfe, Pete Morales, Stewart Walker, Stephen Menke, and Campbell would advance on to the main. Leach would finish sixth after being involved in 3 of the four cautions during the heat race and get another chance in the LCQ.

HEAT THREE


The final heat will start with familiar driver Cody Porter leading the field to the green flag. Porter, who signed with Moonshine Motorclub, hopes to run his first season in CJR. Heat #3 would clean the racing up with only two cautions occurring. The starting five would remain in the Top 5 when the checkered flag waved, with Porter taking 1st Place and Steven Carlile in his normal second-place position. Newcomer Cameron Albertson would finish 3rd, and Tyler Belanger would move up one spot to finish fourth. Nic Vasquez would secure the final transfer spot, moving back one spot from where he started to finish 5th.

LAST CHANCE QUALIFIER


The last-chance qualifier was a nail-biting affair. Griswold would be in unfamiliar territory at the front of the field to lead the flag to green for 40 laps around a 3/4-mile track. Completing this race would take more than 40 laps, with the caution laps not counting. You could tell it was the LCQ as the green flag runs came few and far between, with 11 cautions throughout the race.

Griswold would control the restarts and be able to check out from the carnage behind him multiple times. Griswold and his teammate Allen Phillips were in control of their destiny with two laps to go, and that was when their chance at the show started to slip through their grasp. Phillips would get loose off of two and would go around. He would catch a few licks from cars as they went by, and just like that, Griswold’s security blanket was gone.


Griswold would have to fend off Caleb Tipton on the outside with “Wreck-it Ralph” Leach of WRL pushing him from behind on the green-white-checkered finish. Griswold would lead the field to green and lead the first lap to take the white flag, but he would leave the inside door cracked open in 1 and 2. Tipton was able to get below the yellow line and get his nose in, but the door wasn’t open enough to get through without bumping into Griswold’s quarter panel and sending him spinning up the track. Tipton, Leach, Nishill Condoor, Zach Johnson, Mott, Vince Mitchell, Joe Wright, and Ray Gill would be the luckiest recipient, claiming that final transfer spot after the controversial move sent Griswold home after leading 38 out of 40 green flag laps.

“I’m not happy about it, but it’s racing. And that style of racing will be returned in due time.”

Garth Griswold #00 Hollywood Motorsports

The Show

The feature began with a bang. As the green flag waved, Pataska and Wolfe made contact down the front stretch, causing chaos and destruction that Floridians haven’t seen since it snowed three inches there two weeks ago. The front stretch became a disaster zone. It would take several laps to clean up and straighten the mess out, and the race would finally go back green on Lap 11.

Porter would take over as the front runner and hold that lead throughout the race’s first half. Saunders and Pataska would battle their way back to the front to secure the second and third-place positions before the competition caution came out on Lap 50. Cory Mott wouldn’t head to the pits and would stay out to take over the lead. Nathaniel Campbell and Vince Mitchell followed the same strategy and lined up second and third to start the race’s second half on Lap 55. Mott would lead the race for 34 laps until Pataska could return from the early destruction. Pataska would take the lead and hold onto that lead through the final 14 laps to claim victory at The Clash.

“USA is one of my favorite tracks and somewhere I have a lot of experience running Super-Late Modifieds. The carnage was tough, but I was lucky enough to make it back to the front and made some clean passes for the win.”

Dallas Pataska #17, Majors Garage Esports

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: THE CLASH

The Cup series returns in 2025 as the Majors Garage Cup Series! Tonight, the green flag flies on WTTV at 8pm est.

NEW LOOK ON THE OLD DOGS

After the preseason race at Autoclub last Wednesday. It didn’t take much time to notice that the top 10 were the usual suspects in the lineup. Thomas Wolfe taking the checkered flag seems like a fever dream some nights. One thing you can’t say is that he didn’t earn that victory. Starting in 28th and running all the way up to 1st is no small feat. Actually, looking deeper into the finish order, 5 of top 10 finishers didn’t even qualify in the top 20 (Saunders, Phillips, Cory Mott, Leach). No matter how they got up there by bullying or by diplomacy, we won’t find out about the repercussions till tonight at USA International Speedway.

ROOKIES TO WATCH

  • Cody Porter– Cody ran a limited schedule last year but now he is making his full-time appearance into the cup series. Many are saying he has the ability from what he showed last year to fight for the title at phoenix in November.
  • Noah Hamilton– Noah showed us last week that he has the speed to be in the cup series by placing 4th in qualifying. The question now is can he put a whole race together and make a run for the playoffs that no one would see coming.

FAVORITES GOING INTO THE SEASON

Thomas Wolfe goes into this season as the top favorite out of the 3 selected by Vegas Sportsbook. Coming off a championship win and turning around after the offseason with a preseason win, Vegas has him sitting at +425 to win back-to-back championships. Honestly, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone after the beat down he handed out last season, securing 8 wins on his way to that Cup Series Championship.
Zander Short is a seasoned veteran at the Crown Jewel Racing league. Outside of last season, Zander has been seen as the favorite and a no brainer pick to take home a Cup Series trophy. This year Vegas has him sitting in the 3rd spot at +1340 to win the Majors Garage Cup Series Championship. The big question is can he stay out of his own way on and off the track? If you are a betting man and have been reading reports coming out of the Factory Motorsport’s camp, you will have heard that Zander is “100% locked in on finally bringing home a trophy.”
Cody Porter has shown us last season in the few races completed by him that he knows how to win. Winning both at Pocono and in Nashville, Cody showed the fans that if you give him a full season to show his true potential, a Majors Garage Cup Series championship isn’t something he’s hoping for, it’s something that is truly possible to obtain. Vegas currently has him sitting just behind Thomas Wolfe with +844 odds to take home the trophy in Phoenix.

TEAM SPOTLIGHT

Tipton-Harding Motorsports: After Combining forces last season, Caleb “THE UBERMAN” Tipton and Stewart Harding-Walker have created a team that wants to become a powerhouse in the Majors Garage Cup Series. Stewart was asked How does he feel about the team as a whole going into the season? Do they expect all cars to get into the playoffs this season or have they set more realistic plans for the future?
Stewart: “Hard to say. we have a solid team for 2025 and are much more organized and prepared for this season, I put a lot of time into reorganizing our team to work out the issues from last season that held us back. I think there’s a good chance we have multiple playoff entries like last season but with such an unknown and strong field it’s honestly anyone’s guess as to who makes the cut.”

THANK YOU!

Lasty, we here at Crown Jewel Racing League want to say thank you to all of our fans, broadcaster, sponsors, drivers, and team owners for continuing to support this amazing community. Through the laughter, the beefs, the wins and the loses, you all continue to help us grow and create a community of diverse race fans! Good luck to all the drivers in the 2025 Majors Garage Cup Series!

PHOENIX: BBR RETURNS TO GREATNESS, WOLFE WINS TCSP CUP SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP

The Champions have been Crowned for the 2024 Crown Jewel Racing Season, and what a year it has been. Two hundred sixty-seven days ago, the battle for the Championship began at the beaches of Daytona, and last night, the victor claimed their throne in the desert of Phoenix.

Championship night meant Crown Jewel Racing of 312 Laps around the mile-long Phoenix RACEWAY. Stephen Menke, Thomas Wolfe, Nic Vasquez, and Cory Mott were all racing to be crowned the Team Conti Sim Performance Cup Champion.

Menke would set the tone in qualifying by capturing the pole by three-thousandths of a second over Thomas Wolfe. Nic Vasquez would qualify 9th, and Cory Mott would have to battle from the back starting in 23rd after making contact with the wall.

Menke led the field to the green flag, but Wolfe also also had a great jump off the start. Wolfe beat Menke back to the line and led the first lap. Most drivers were surprised to find a clean start since the Spring race had 24 cautions and raced 200 laps. But the racing would stay under the green flag until an incident involving Jim Mott and Garth Griswold would bring out the yellow flag on Lap 30. There would be four more cautions throughout the Stage, with the final one on Lap 59 with Thomas Wolfe getting the stage win and momentum heading into Stage 2.

Stage 2

Allen Phillips led the pack back to the green flag and led the race until Zack Saunders captured the lead on Lap 66. The first caution of Stage 2 came out on Lap 84 when Ben Lawson got loose through the dogleg on the front stretch. The field would get stacked back up. Zack Saunders was still leading, but all four playoff drivers who were hunting for the Championship were lined up behind him.

Wolfe would recapture the lead on Lap 96 from Saunders before a Championship Implication incident occurred on Lap 114. Menke would get loose going into one, slide up the track, and collide with Griswold and Stewart Harding Walker, who would make contact with Menke’s teammate and playoff driver Nic Vasquez. This incident would end Walker’s night, but the playoff drivers escaped without severe damage.

Cautions would breed more caution throughout Stage 2, with the significant incident occurring on Lap 169 when Vasquez would give a tap to Saunders’s back bumper, which caused him to snap into the outside wall. Vasquez’s teammate and team owner Stephen Menke couldn’t avoid Saunders, and they would collide just past the start-finish line. Menke’s guardian angel was with him last night as he again avoided serious damage.

Another significant incident on Lap 177 would take out a few non-playoff drivers on the front stretch, but the Stage would end on lap 184, and Nathaniel Campbell would lead the field to his first Stage win of the year.

To Pit or Not to Pit

Pit Strategy would become the key in the final phase of the race as green flag racing would resume one Lap 219 with 93 Laps to go. Wolfe would maintain the lead, but the strategy was coming into play behind him. Finishing the race on the last fuel stop would be a stretch as Wolfe, Griswold, Menke, and Tipton would do their best to stretch the run out as long as possible and try to make it to the end. Mott and Vasquez would pit, and the race was on to see if Mott and Vasquez could get back on the lead lap and catch Wolfe again before the checkered flag flew.

Mott needed to get around Oskar Jensen on Lap 277 behind Wolfe to get back on the lead lap. Mott would be on the outside of Jensen when Jensen would snap loose, and he and Mott would go wrecking into the wall. Mott’s Championship hunt was over just like that.

With Wolfe leading, Menke was behind Caleb Tipton and Griswold sitting in 4th, and Vasquez hunting the Wolfe in 5th with 31 laps to go. Wolfe would lead the field to the green for the final time; when the green flag waved, Wolfe would throw up the deuces, and he was gone. Wolfe would drive to the checkered flag with a four-second lead to win the 2024 Team Conti Sim Performance Cup Championship.

“I like to think I have a little talent, but really the secret to the sauce, is late night test runs, racing as much as I could, and just work that I have put in over the season that earned me this Championship.”

Thomas Wolfe, #94 Backroad Bandit Racing, Chevy

BBR Dominates

The Backroad Bandit Racing team would end the season on a high note, winning every race of the Championship Weekend, with Zack Saunders winning the VRS Truck Series Championship on Monday. Zack Saunders would also win the Bob Henry’s Xfinity Series race on Tuesday, but Stewart Harding Walker would win the Season Championship.

To conclude Championship night, Thomas Wolfe would bring the BBR Race Team back from the ashes the organization found themselves in at the halfway point of the season to find themselves on top of the Crown Jewel Racing League.

From the Admin Team: Thank you to the entire CJR Community, the team owners, the drivers, the broadcasters, all of our wonderful sponsors, for which we are so grateful, and lastly, to the fans. We hope you enjoyed this season as much as we did, and we can’t wait to run it back in 2025.

Happy Holidays to you and your family!

OFFICIAL: Crown Jewel Racing Finalizes Media Deal

Crown Jewel Racing Media Team announced today that they have finalized Media Deals for the 2025 Season after a change in the Cup Series Broadcasting deal couldn’t be completed.

It was announced earlier this year that FTN would be the broadcaster for the 2025 Cup Season, but after personnel changes occurred at FTN, a deal could not be reached, as concerns over securing a contract for the 2025 season began to rise for the CJR Front Office.

“We were looking forward to working with FTN, and we still look forward to working with them in the future. We understand the difficulty of securing personnel and having them available weekly for our race season, and we wish them the best and hope to work with them again in the future.”

Garth Griswold, CJR Media Director

CJR Media Team announced the signing of Wind Tunnel TV (WTTV) to broadcast all 39 Crown Jewel Cup Series Races in 2025. WTTV, owned by Mr. Dean Doucet, has over 9 years of experience in the Sim-Broadcasting Market and bleeds racing through and through. WTTV primarily streams to YouTube and Facebook and focuses on providing quality content at an affordable rate.

“We are thrilled to have WTTV on board for the 2025 Season. Mr. Doucet and WTTV will be able to provide a high-quality broadcast week in and week out that showcases the talents of the Crown Jewel Cup Series that our fans will love to watch.”

Garth Griswold, CJR Media Director

The CJR Media Team also reported that they have finalized a deal with High-Velocity TV to broadcast all 23 VRS Truck Series Races in 2025. High-Velocity TV has proven its worth numerous times by filling in for the CJR Media Team and providing high-quality content to our fans in 2024. We are extremely happy to bring them on board full-time for 2025.

For the 2025 Team Conti Sim Performance Dash Xfinity Series, spectators can expect a twist for the broadcast – welcome to the Crown Jewel Cup Series Drivers Only broadcast! Headed by current broadcasters Nathaniel Campbell and Cory Mott, fans will be treated to a rotating cast of Cup Series talents telling the stories throughout the 33-race schedule. Nobody knows the league storylines quite like the veterans and giving them the opportunity to shine on the TCSP Dash Xfinity broadcast will bring nothing but good times and great commentary for the fans of the Xfinity drivers.

Make sure to check out WTTV and HVTV Channels and give them a follow!

It will be a year to remember in 2025 at Crown Jewel Racing.