Chase Briscoe looks ahead to Darlington after double speeding day
LAS VEGAS – Chase Briscoe came home eighth at Las Vegas but started his weekend on the backfoot once again.
Joe Gibbs Racing unloaded strong for the 1.5-mile oval, but Chase Briscoe trailed his teammates slightly in both single-lap speed and long-run pace.
Back-to-back 37th-place finishes put him first out in qualifying, and on a track surface that only picked up speed, his 29.343-second lap slid to 18th by the time the session ended.
The day started on a sour note before he even reached the track. Briscoe joked on Instagram after getting pulled over on the way in which served as an omen for what followed.
He climbed toward the top ten early, but the first green-flag pit cycle derailed everything.
A speeding penalty dropped him a lap down, putting him on a familiar path after two rough weeks.
Briscoe couldn’t catch a break in his return to the lead lap. But lady luck would finally side with him down the stretch.
Mid-race, he fought for the free pass with Josh Berry, only for Berry to hand it away with his own speeding penalty . Then watched Ross Chastain take the spot before the stage ended.
Back down on his luck, it looked as if he would stay a lap down.
A Good Finish to a Bad Day
Finally, with 56 laps to go, a caution broke before the final pit cycle commenced. Connor Zilisch packed into the back of Ricky Stenhouse Jr which allowed Briscoe the free pass.
Back on the lead lap, he charged through the field up to seventh before his tires gave way for a hard-fought eighth on the day.
“It was definitely a hard fought day” said Briscoe “Overall I had an amazing car. I got to do better on my end and minimize the mistakes. The couple of them you just can’t make mistakes typically and win the race.”
He was proud of his group for sticking with him after the early mistake and finally clear of the jinx, he jokingly admitted his double speeding woes “two speeding penalties in one day…I need to slow down apparently”
Despite sitting 26th in points, Briscoe underlying speed remains strong.
Among the full-time drivers, he sits 8th in green flag running speed and 11th in the series for driver rating. Numbers that backup why he was a preseason chase lock.
The two-time defending Southern 500 winner hasn’t had as much luck in the spring race but comes in among the favorites for victory.
If he can shake the early season gremlins and minimize early race mistakes then Darlington reset his course towards a Chase bid.
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Ryan Kemna View All
Ryan Kemna is a photojournalist for The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2025.
Currently residing in the Minneapolis, MN, area, Kemna brings his passion for motorsports, photography, and a good story to readers.