If you were looking for a predictable weekend in the desert, 2025 probably wasn't your year. Las Vegas Motor Speedway has a weird way of rewarding the guys you least expect while snatching victory away from the heavy favorites just when they’re starting to celebrate. Honestly, the las vegas nascar results from this past season felt more like a high-stakes poker game than a standard set of races. We saw everything from emotional first-timers to veterans hitting massive career milestones, all while the playoff pressure was threatening to boil over.
Let’s be real: Vegas is usually the "Kyle Larson show." The guy treats this 1.5-mile tri-oval like his personal playground. But in 2025, the narrative shifted. We didn’t just get one dominant performance; we got two completely different stories—one in the spring breeze of March and a much more chaotic one under the autumn sun in October.
The Shocking Spring: How Josh Berry Stole the Show
Most people heading into the Pennzoil 400 back in March were betting the house on Christopher Bell or Kyle Larson. It made sense. Bell was on a three-race winning streak, and Larson had the speed to lap half the field. But then the race actually started.
The turning point was Lap 195. A messy seven-car wreck on the backstretch completely flipped the script. Larson had led 61 laps and looked untouchable, but the timing of that caution during a green-flag pit cycle threw him into the pack. That’s when Josh Berry, driving the iconic No. 21 for Wood Brothers Racing, decided it was his time.
It wasn't a fluke win. Berry had to fight Daniel Suárez tooth and nail. They were literally beating and banging on each other with less than 20 laps to go. It was old-school racing. Berry finally cleared the No. 99 Chevrolet through the tri-oval on Lap 254 and never looked back.
- Winner: Josh Berry (His first career Cup win!)
- The Gap: 1.358 seconds over Daniel Suárez.
- The Stat: This was the 101st win for the Wood Brothers.
- Top 5 finishers: Berry, Suárez, Ryan Preece, William Byron, and Ross Chastain.
Winning in Vegas is hard. Doing it for your first-ever Cup victory against a field that included four Hendrick cars in the top 10? That's legendary. You've gotta respect the grit Berry showed there.
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The Playoff Pressure Cooker: Denny Hamlin’s 60th
Fast forward to October 12, 2025. The stakes were way higher. We're talking about the South Point 400, the opening race of the Round of 8. If you win here, you’re basically booking your flight to Phoenix for the Championship 4.
Denny Hamlin started on the pole, which, history tells us, is a huge deal in Vegas. Eleven of the last twelve winners here started in the top 10. But even with that advantage, it looked like a Larson day again. Larson led a massive 129 laps. He won Stage 2. He looked like he was coasting.
But Vegas eats favorites for breakfast.
The race descended into absolute mayhem in the final 50 laps. First, Ryan Blaney’s championship hopes basically evaporated when he blew a tire on Lap 72 and hit the wall hard. Then, on Lap 237, William Byron—who had won Stage 1—got caught up in a bizarre incident with Ty Dillon that ended his day.
The Final Charge
Hamlin’s crew chief, Chris Gayle, made the call of the season. During the final pit stop, they nailed the adjustments. Hamlin came out behind his teammate Chase Briscoe, who had stayed out on two tires for track position. With four laps to go, Hamlin rocketed past Briscoe and held off a charging Larson.
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It wasn't just a win; it was career win number 60. It tied him with Kevin Harvick for 10th on the all-time list. Seeing Hamlin get emotional after the race, talking about his dad and the frustration of 20 years without a title, you could tell this one hit different.
Breaking Down the October Las Vegas NASCAR Results
If you missed the broadcast, the box score doesn't tell the whole story of the "wreck-fest" that happened toward the end. Here is how the front of the pack shook out:
- Denny Hamlin: Clinched a spot in the Championship 4.
- Kyle Larson: Led the most laps but fell short by 1.5 seconds.
- Christopher Bell: Solid points day, kept himself in the hunt.
- Chase Briscoe: That two-tire gamble almost paid off.
- Tyler Reddick: The highest-finishing non-playoff driver in the top 5.
What's kinda wild is that despite the chaos, the cream still rose to the top. Joey Logano managed to salvage a 6th-place finish through pure strategy, and Kyle Busch fought his way into 8th at his home track.
Why These Results Actually Matter
Vegas is a "cookie-cutter" 1.5-mile track, but the way these races played out tells us a lot about the current state of NASCAR. The Next Gen car has made track position everything. If you're out front in clean air, you're a god. If you're stuck in the middle, you're a target.
Josh Berry’s win showed that the "smaller" teams (if you can call Wood Brothers small) still have a path to victory if they play the strategy right. Meanwhile, Hamlin’s playoff victory proved that experience still trumps raw speed when the pressure is at a maximum.
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Common Misconceptions About Vegas:
- It’s boring: Not in 2025. The average of 32 lead changes in the spring race proves that the "parade" era is over.
- Larson always wins: He’s the favorite, sure, but he went 0-for-2 in the win column at Vegas this year despite leading the most laps in both races combined.
- The pole doesn't matter: Actually, it does. Clean air is king. Hamlin winning from the pole in October just reinforced that.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Bettors
If you’re looking ahead to the 2026 races at Las Vegas, keep these takeaways in your back pocket. First, look for the "Hendrick vs. Gibbs" rivalry to stay heated. These two teams occupied the majority of the top 10 spots in both Vegas races.
Second, pay attention to the pit strategy. In both the spring and fall races, the winner wasn't necessarily the fastest car all day—they were the car that took the right tires at the right time.
Finally, don't sleep on the mid-tier Ford teams. Between Berry's win and Ryan Preece’s top-10 runs, the Fords have clearly figured something out about the aero-package at this specific track.
If you're planning a trip to the speedway next year, aim for the fall race. The playoff atmosphere adds a layer of desperation that you just don't get in March. Just be prepared for some heart-stopping restarts—because in Las Vegas, the house usually wins, but in NASCAR, it's anyone's game until the checkered flag drops.