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Corey Heim Wins First Cup, Crash Eliminates Van Gisbergen

6/22/2026

Summary

Corey Heim Wins

Corey Heim earned his first Cup Series win at the NASCAR Anduril 250 on Naval Base Coronado.
A nine-car crash on Lap 32 caused the first Cup Series red flag and eliminated favorite Shane van Gisbergen, who finished 38th.
Tyler Reddick led with three laps remaining but suffered a left-front flat tire and dropped to 25th.
Bubba Wallace overcame a two-lap penalty to finish second, his best street-course result.

Summary

van Gisbergen Pole

Shane van Gisbergen took pole with a 2:14.788 lap, the fastest on the new 3.4-mile, 16-turn Coronado circuit.
Carson Hocevar qualified second, giving Chevrolet a front-row sweep and his best road-course qualifying.
Tyler Reddick started from the rear after an unapproved splitter swap forced by a 360-degree spin on Turn 2.
Officials said the 50-minute practice leveled competition despite a forecast of 60-degree highs and a 5% rain chance complicating tire strategy.

Summary

Hill Causes Crash

Austin Hill has earned a reputation for forcing tight gaps on restarts, a style that drew criticism from competitors such as Aric Almirola and Michael McDowell after the San Diego crash.
Rookie Connor Zilisch entered the race ranked 34th of 35 full-time Cup drivers and recorded his sixth DNF of the 2026 season in the San Diego incident.
Zilisch praised the safety of modern NASCAR cars, noting that “concrete walls are no joke, but I’m thankful for the safety of these cars and how far we’ve come as an industry.”
Prior to the event, Shane van Gisbergen warned that Turn 1’s dark-to-light seal patch and rough surface would punish any mistake, a prediction that proved accurate when the crash unfolded there.
Hill later confirmed on team radio that his rear brakes locked, directly causing his car to slide into the wall and trigger the multi-car wreck.

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Corey Heim Wins

Corey Heim earned his first Cup Series win at the NASCAR Anduril 250 on Naval Base Coronado.
A nine-car crash on Lap 32 caused the first Cup Series red flag and eliminated favorite Shane van Gisbergen, who finished 38th.
Tyler Reddick led with three laps remaining but suffered a left-front flat tire and dropped to 25th.
Bubba Wallace overcame a two-lap penalty to finish second, his best street-course result.

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