RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 3 sourcesBefore July 24, Corey Heim had never seen Indianapolis Motor Speedway .
Two days later, he won the Brickyard 400 there.
That’s the kind of success the 24-year-old is having right now. In his last three Cup Series starts, he has finished first, ninth and first.
And the craziest thing? He’s not even a full-timer yet.
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Sunday marked Heim’s eighth Cup race of the season for 23XI Racing and the 15th of his career. He's scheduled to take over the No. 35 Toyota from Riley Herbst next year.
Before then, though, Heim's already the first driver to claim two victories within his first 15 appearances since AJ Foyt. He’s also the first part-timer to capture multiple wins in the same season since Davey Allison and Tim Richmond in 1987.
“It’s unbelievable,” Heim said. “I just studied my butt off and tried to make sure I’m prepared going into races. These guys gave me an unbelievably fast Camry.”
Here are three takeaways.
1. Corey Heim holds off big boys for Brickyard 400 victory
Heim led a race-best 58 laps.
He held off runner-up Christopher Bell and third-place finisher Joey Logano in the closing circuits, with both of them crossing the line within a second of Heim. Bell sat only 0.287 seconds back.
And to obtain the lead, Heim beat one of his team owners, Denny Hamlin , on a restart.
“I was hanging on for dear life once the shade went down and the pace picked up,” Heim said. “My car got really loose, and I had never really been in a lot of clear air throughout the day.
“That was the hardest I’ve ever fought in my life to just make sure I focus on exits and keep them in dirty air. I’m pretty out of breath. That was a workout. But this is a dream come true.”
2. Todd Gilliland wins NASCAR In-Season Challenge over Ryan Blaney
Todd Gilliland didn’t get to kiss the iconic bricks like Heim did. But he was able to raise a trophy.
The Front Row Motorsports wheelman polished off the second In-Season Challenge , clipping Ryan Blaney for the title. Gilliland placed 24th. Blaney ranked 26th.
As the 25th seed, Gilliland navigated a difficult path. Through the first four rounds, he defeated No. 8 Daniel Suarez, No. 9 Carson Hocevar, No. 32 Alex Bowman and No. 4 Chase Elliott. Blaney carried the third seed.
“Even though we were 24th and 26th or whatever, it felt good to feel those nerves of someone chasing you down and for something meaningful,” Gilliland said. “It seemed like we just barely skated by every single round. We did what we had to do. We weren’t great today, but we made the most of it and came out of here as the In-Season Challenge champion ... We’ve still got a long way to go, but it was something to celebrate, for sure.”
Now, the 26-year-old has a decision to make.
“We’ll have to figure out what to do with the million bucks,” Gilliland said.
3. NASCAR schedule update: No race next Sunday
No, your eyes aren’t deceiving you. Your calendar is correct.
The Cup Series receives a rare day off next weekend. Aug. 3 will be the first Sunday without a race since Easter on April 5. It will also be the last quiet weekend until mid-November after the season ends and the 2026 champion is crowned.
As for when drivers will return to the track, circle Aug. 9. That day will feature the Iowa Corn 350 at Iowa Speedway, a 0.875-mile oval in Newton. The event will air on USA, ending TNT’s five-week run of broadcasting Cup action.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR takeaways: Part-timer Corey Heim kisses the bricks at Indy
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