Sports
Carson Kvapil earns 1st OAP victory at Indianapolis
NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series driver Carson Kvapil (1) celebrates Saturday, July 25, 2026, winning the Pennzoil 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. SPEEDWAY, Ind.– Carson Kvapil chose the perfect time to claim his first victory in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.
Kvapil’s emotional victory in Saturday’s Pennzoil 250 presented by Take 5 Oil Change at Indianapolis Motor Speedway — one of the biggest stages in motorsports — had the driver shedding tears and team co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. temporarily at a loss for words.
It was a day of milestones. With Justin Allgaier, Ross Chastain and Chase Elliott in positions two through four, respectively, JR Motorsports scored the first four-driver sweep of an event in series history.
The victory was the 14th of the season for JRM with six different drivers, the latter number tying the record the organization set last year. For the 79th straight race, JR Motorsports placed at least one driver in the top 10, tying the record set by RFK Racing from 2008-2010.
“It means the world to me,” Kvapil said, as his No. 1 Chevrolet team climbed the frontstretch catchfence in celebration of the victory. “It’s very emotional. I rode around on that lap backwards (after taking the checkered flag), and I sat there just thinking about all the hard work I’ve put in — me and my dad, Travis — to get to this point.
“And the faith (team principals) Dale Jr., L.W. Miller and Kelley Miller put behind me to give me this opportunity — a second chance, I guess you could say, to come back at it this year… I’m going to try not to cry too much. I’ve already shed a few tears — just trying to hold it together right now.”
In an event that featured just one caution for an on-track incident, Kvapil passed Chastain on Lap 79 of 100 and held it the rest of the way. Allgaier powered past Chastain into second place on Lap 94 and closed his deficit to Kvapil to less than a car-length on the white-flag lap.
Crossing the Yard of Bricks with one lap left, Allgaier trailed by a scant 0.283 seconds, but his efforts to shrink the distance on the final circuit proved fruitless, and Kvapil crossed the stripe with a 0.643-second advantage to score his first victory.
Kvapil accomplished more than just a win. He moved into second place in the series standings, 265 points behind Allgaier, who has already clinched the top Chase seed.
Kvapil also joined Allgaier and Jesse Love in the Chase with two regular-season races left — as did Sheldon Creed (eighth Saturday), Corey Day (seventh), Brandon Jones (ninth) and Austin Hill (10th).
Allgaier, a six-time winner this season, felt the race slip away from him when his No. 7 Chevrolet fell from first to fourth after the Lap 67 start of the final stage.
“That was kind the difference maker for us, I feel like, over the day,” Allgaier said. “I guess, in some ways, we kind of set up to be good on long runs, and it showed through. That’s why we were able to be really good at the end of that run…
“We made good adjustments. We did all the right things. We just came up a couple of laps short. I think if we have a couple more laps, if we have maybe a little bit different help from some of the lapped cars, there’s things that we maybe could have done different.
“But again, super proud of Carson and the whole No. 1 team. He’s done a really good job, and as a company, to do what we did today shows really where we’re at and what we’re able to accomplish, and for that I’m super proud.”
Crew chief Rodney Childers and the No. 1 team kept Kvapil in the mix from start to finish, but that was no surprise. While working as Kevin Harvick’s crew chief, Childers fashioned two NASCAR Cup Series victories at the Brickyard.
Kvapil has cobbled the current season together in three different cars with three different teams–the Nos. 1 and 9 at JR Motorsports and the No. 91 fielded by Mario Gosselin for DGM Racing.
Saturday’s victory was vindication of Kvapil’s determination to sustain a career despite some imposing obstacles in his path.
With seven of 12 Chase positions now filled, the fight for the final spots intensified at Indy. After finishing 12th, Taylor Gray holds the final berth above the current cut line by seven points over Joe Gibbs Racing teammate William Sawalich and 20 over Rajah Caruth, who stayed out on old tires to win the second stage before finishing 22nd.
NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Race — Pennzoil 250 presented by Take 5 Oil Change
Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway, Indiana
Saturday, July 25, 2026
1. (2) Carson Kvapil, Chevrolet, 100.
2. (13) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 100.
3. (8) Ross Chastain(i), Chevrolet, 100.
4. (7) Chase Elliott(i), Chevrolet, 100.
5. (9) William Sawalich, Toyota, 100.
6. (15) Brent Crews #, Toyota, 100.
7. (11) Corey Day, Chevrolet, 100.
8. (1) Sheldon Creed, Chevrolet, 100.
9. (6) Brandon Jones, Toyota, 100.
10. (19) Austin Hill, Chevrolet, 100.
11. (17) Parker Retzlaff, Chevrolet, 100.
12. (5) Taylor Gray, Toyota, 100.
13. (3) Sam Mayer, Chevrolet, 100.
14. (20) Anthony Alfredo, Chevrolet, 100.
15. (12) Jeb Burton, Chevrolet, 100.
16. (26) Jesse Love, Chevrolet, 100.
17. (14) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 100.
18. (24) Harrison Burton, Toyota, 100.
19. (10) Sammy Smith, Chevrolet, 100.
20. (23) Nick Sanchez, Chevrolet, 100.
21. (25) Dean Thompson, Toyota, 100.
22. (16) Rajah Caruth, Chevrolet, 100.
23. (18) Patrick Staropoli #, Chevrolet, 100.
24. (22) Kyle Sieg, Chevrolet, 100.
25. (30) Garrett Smithley, Chevrolet, 100.
26. (21) Mason Maggio, Chevrolet, 100.
27. (31) Lavar Scott #, Chevrolet, 100.
28. (27) Blaine Perkins, Chevrolet, 100.
29. (28) Brennan Poole, Chevrolet, 100.
30. (29) Preston Pardus, Chevrolet, 100.
31. (36) Nathan Byrd, Chevrolet, 100.
32. (33) Ryan Ellis, Chevrolet, 99.
33. (32) Josh Bilicki, Chevrolet, 99.
34. (37) Blake Lothian, Chevrolet, 99.
35. (38) David Starr, Chevrolet, 99.
36. (35) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, 99.
37. (4) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 97.
38. (34) J.J. Yeley, Ford, Fuel Pump, 39.
Average Speed of Race Winner: 128.94 mph.
Time of Race: 1 Hrs, 56 Mins, 20 Secs. Margin of Victory: 0.643 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 3 for 13 laps.
Lead Changes: 10 among 8 drivers.
Lap Leaders: S. Creed 1-23;J. Clements 24-32;C. Kvapil 33;R. Chastain(i) 34-36;W. Sawalich 37-38;R. Chastain(i) 39-54;D. Thompson 55-56;R. Caruth 57-62;J. Allgaier 63-66;R. Chastain(i) 67-78;C. Kvapil 79-100.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Ross Chastain(i) 3 times for 31 laps; Sheldon Creed 1 time for 23 laps; Carson Kvapil 2 times for 23 laps; Jeremy Clements 1 time for 9 laps; Rajah Caruth 1 time for 6 laps; Justin Allgaier 1 time for 4 laps; William Sawalich 1 time for 2 laps; Dean Thompson 1 time for 2 laps.
Stage #1 Top Ten: 51,9,1,18,41,7,00,54,19,8
Stage #2 Top Ten: 32,7,9,00,1,26,41,18,21,88
–Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service
Sports
Astros put RHP Spencer Arrighetti (foot) on 15-day IL
Jul 8, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Houston Astros pitcher Spencer Arrighetti (41) throws a pitch against the Washington Nationals during the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images In the thick of the American League West and AL wild-card races, the Houston Astros placed right-handed starter Spencer Arrighetti on the 15-day injured list Saturday with nerve irritation in his foot.
Arrighetti, 26, left Friday’s start against the Chicago White Sox after one inning and 33 pitches due to the foot issue.
In a corresponding move, Houston recalled left-handed reliever Bryan King from Triple-A Sugar Land.
In 17 starts this season, Arrighetti is 7-5 with a 4.60 ERA, allowing six or more earned runs in three of his final four starts before the All-Star break. The 2021 sixth-round pick, who debuted with Houston in 2024, is 15-23 with a 4.66 ERA in 53 games (52 starts).
The 29-year-old King has made 42 relief appearances with the Astros in 2026, posting a 2-3 record with a 3.40 ERA. Across his three MLB seasons, all with Houston, he is 8-7 with a 2.91 ERA in 138 relief outings.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Athletics activate star Nick Kurtz (thumb) from IL
![Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler (13) takes first base as Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz (16) misses a catch during the first inning] at Comerica Park in Detroit on Wednesday, July 8, 2026.](https://dailyfacthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/29355296.jpg)
Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler (13) takes first base as Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz (16) misses a catch during the first inning] at Comerica Park in Detroit on Wednesday, July 8, 2026. The Athletics activated All-Star first baseman Nick Kurtz from the 10-day injured list prior to Saturday’s road game against the Minnesota Twins.
Kurtz sustained a right thumb capsule sprain and was placed on the IL on July 10 and the injury forced him to miss the All-Star Game. He had been elevated to American League starter when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (back) of the Toronto Blue Jays backed out.
Kurtz is batting second and serving as the designated hitter on Saturday.
Kurtz exited a 6-1 loss at Detroit on July 8 after 1 1/2 innings after he appeared to hurt the hand while trying to field a throw in the bottom of the first. The following day, he was the designated hitter and went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts in a 4-1 loss to the Tigers.
Kurtz, 23, is batting .266 with 20 homers and 66 RBIs in 92 games. He was the unanimous 2025 AL Rookie of the Year with a .290 batting average, 36 home runs and 86 RBIs in just 117 games.
Third baseman Max Muncy was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas in a corresponding move. He was recalled by the A’s earlier this week and went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts in two games.
Muncy, 23, is batting .223 with five homers and 20 RBIs over 48 games. He has a .218 average in 111 big league games over the past two campaigns.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Davis Alexander, Alouettes look to extend East cushion vs. Tiger-Cats
Nov 16, 2025; Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; Montreal Alouettes quarterback Davis Alexander (10) looks to pass during the fourth quarter against the Saskatchewan Roughriders during the 112th Grey Cup Championship at Princess Auto Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Fedyck-Imagn Images With a healthy Davis Alexander at the controls, the Montreal Alouettes have a chance to run away with the East Division pretty quickly.
When Montreal hosts the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Sunday night, it has a chance to take a three-game lead and earn the tiebreaker with a victory.
Most of that is because Alexander has – to this point – stayed off the injured list after playing just eight games last year due to a hamstring injury. Alexander has rolled up huge numbers for the Als (5-1), passing for 2,181 yards and 11 touchdowns while setting a new CFL record by throwing 336 straight passes without an interception.
Head coach Jason Maas said he and Alexander came to an understanding that he had to curb his scrambling style to be of maximum use to the club.
“He’s very smart about how he plays and what he decides to do,” Maas said. “There’s a reason he has played (six) straight games. These things, after you’ve had one, they can reoccur and it takes a lot of time to get over them.”
While Montreal is soaring with its quarterback at 100 percent, Hamilton (3-3) got back into the win column last week when its third starting quarterback in three weeks gave the offense a big lift in a 24-23 win over Toronto.
Tre Ford hit on 21 of 27 passes for 218 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 109 yards on 10 attempts. The Tiger-Cats struggled mightily on offense in back-to-back losses to Winnipeg and Saskatchewan, largely because star QB Bo Levi Mitchell broke his ankle in the third quarter against Winnipeg.
“Using my legs is going to be an asset for my team,” said Ford, a former starter in Edmonton before being benched last year for Cody Fajardo. “Having legs definitely helps … being able to extend plays, run around and get first downs.”
It was really helpful last week when tackles Trevor Reid and Quinton Barrow left with injuries, forcing rookie tight end Max Mang into emergency duty as a guard.
–Field Level Media
Astros put RHP Spencer Arrighetti (foot) on 15-day IL
Athletics activate star Nick Kurtz (thumb) from IL
