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Cup drivers reflect on adversity after Corey Heim's 'championship day'

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As Corey Heim crossed the finish line in a battered Toyota Tundra to win Friday afternoon's race at the Charlotte Roval, he heard a message from his team celebrating how he had overcome adversity.

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"That is a championship day right there," the Tricon Garage driver heard as he scored win No. 10 on the season. The team delivered this message because they had rebounded from a stunning wreck on Lap No. 1.

Grant Enfinger made a mistake entering Turn 1 and caused a three-car crash. Enfinger, Heim, and Layne Riggs all hit the Turn 1 wall as they ran in the top three positions. This damaged Heim's Toyota and appeared to take him out of contention for the win.

The team continued making repairs to the No. 11, particularly on the front end, and they got Heim back in the race. He still had speed in his Toyota, which he used to put himself in the top five in the closing laps of the race. He then gambled and stayed out on the track for an overtime restart.

Heim held on to win over Brent Crews, who had dominated the race in the No. 1 Toyota. He and his team dealt with considerable adversity, but they still celebrated while locking up a trip to the Championship 4.

The Cup Series drivers watched this race, and they expressed respect for the manner in which the No. 11 team battled back at the Charlotte Roval.

"Yeah, I mean, obviously they did a great job," Chase Elliott said. "You know, it was unfortunate. It was not (Heim's) fault either."

Said Ryan Blaney, "Corey and that group did a great job (Friday) of sitting on the pole, getting wrecked Lap 1, and just working through it.

"'Hey, how do we get this truck back together and how do we put ourselves in a spot to win?' And they were able to do it, and that's very, very impressive."

Some of these drivers also spoke to FanBuzz and reflected on some races where they and their teams showed championship fight.

These races didn't necessarily end with them in victory lane, but the drivers still viewed them as wins due to how their teams responded in the moment and kept fighting. Championship seasons are built on this foundation.

Kyle Larson

Larson won the championship in his first season with Hendrick Motorsports (2021), and he dominated in the process. However, it appeared that he would not make it beyond the Round of 12 after a stunning issue at the Charlotte Roval.

The voltage dropped on the No. 5 Chevrolet during the Round of 12 elimination race, which put Larson in danger of elimination. Yet, the team did not continue riding around. They made it to the end of stage 2 and then car chief Jesse Saunders and hauler driver Steven Legendre changed the battery and alternator belt.

With the work complete, Larson had the ability to race through the field. He went out and took the lead for the first time with eight laps remaining, and he did not look back. He crossed the finish line first, scored win No. 7, and advanced to the Round of 8. He went on to win three more races and the championship.

"We had obviously a great season to that point; a ton of playoff points and all that," Larson said in response to a question from FanBuzz. "We weren't even thinking about being eliminated. There was one point in the race where if we didn't get it fixed, I think we were going to be right at the cutline or just below.

"I remember my mindset was just like, 'Man, let's just get this thing fixed, get a top-20 and leave here and make it through the next round.' Our team did a really good job of diagnosing the issue, fixing the issue, and then just executing the day. We had a great car, obviously, too, but we just planned out our race good from there and just made our way forward; had some good restarts and ultimately got the win, which was unbelievable."

Chase Elliott

Elliott spoke about two different examples of races when his team showed championship fight, both of which occurred at the Charlotte Roval. One of these races ended with him in victory lane; the other race ended with him advancing to the Round of 8 over fellow champion Kevin Harvick.

The most recent example occurred in the Round of 12 elimination race in 2021. Harvick spun Elliott into the Turn 8 wall, seemingly in retaliation for their clash at Bristol weeks prior.

This significantly damaged the No. 9 and put Elliott's playoff chances in jeopardy. However, the No. 9 team went to work and got Elliott back onto the track. He then finished 12th and advanced over Harvick, who locked up his tires and slammed nose-first into the SAFER barrier. This ended his race and his playoff run.

The other incident took place in 2019. This time, Elliott made a mistake. He missed Turn 1 and slammed into the tire barrier with 45 laps remaining in a race that he had largely dominated.

The Hendrick Motorsports driver thought that he had destroyed his chances of finishing the race, let alone winning, but his team didn't quit. They made repairs and got Elliott back on track so he could keep going. He restarted 31st but worked his way into the lead with six laps remaining in the race. He then went on to win for the first time at the Roval.

"In both of my scenarios and in (Heim's) scenario yesterday, there was some good fortune in what part of the car was hurt and what parts weren't," Elliott told FanBuzz. "Fortunately, in all three of those scenarios, enough of the suspension was not bent and enough of the body was still intact to be able to repair it. So that's number one. If you can fix it, is it fixable? How bad is the damage?

"Fortunately, all those situations and for us and those two that you referenced, our car wasn't hurt that bad. And the pace here is pretty slow, and when you look at it from an aero perspective, you're not going super-fast. Yes it is a deficiency, but you can kind of patch it back together and go out there and still have a solid day with a beat up race car. So that plays a role.

"And then I think the mentality aspect of it is really all the same. I feel like we're always of the mindset you're never giving in, right? So whatever situation you're faced with, that is not an option. So, it's just, you just put your head down and fight through whatever it is until it's over until somebody says it's done. And that's just how it's going to be."

Christopher Bell

"Homestead for sure, a couple years ago," Bell told FanBuzz. "We came close to going a lap down early in the race and then we caught a very fortunate yellow that got our day turned around."

This race took place in 2023. At that time, Bell did not particularly like Homestead-Miami Speedway. He only had one top-10 finish at the track, which he scored during his rookie season in 2020. Yet, it served as the site of one of his biggest triumphs.

Bell headed to Homestead after finishing second to Larson by a mere 0.082 seconds at Las Vegas Motor Speedway the week prior. Instead of punching his ticket to the Championship 4, he remained well below the cutline and in essentially a must-win situation.

He did not have the most confidence that he could pull this off at Homestead. Yet, he did exactly that.

Bell's day started with frustration. He didn't have the car he needed to contend for the win. He wasn't great in the pack, and he didn't have the speed to contend with the leaders. He also had a slow pit stop that buried him in the field.

But crew chief Adam Stevens and the No. 20 team kept working. They got the car to the point where Bell could use it to crack the top five for the first time with 50 laps remaining. He then chased down William Byron and Ryan Blaney, ultimately taking the lead with 16 laps remaining.

"I was about ready to throw the towel in during that second stage, I got really frustrated," Bell said after winning in 2023. "But Adam Stevens kept after it and gave me what I needed. Whenever we got some clean air this thing was really good."

Bell has won several more races since this playoff race in 2023, but he still views it as one of the biggest of his career due to how the team overcame adversity.

Ryan Blaney

Blaney, like Bell, didn't get wrecked early in a race. His No. 12 Team Penske group didn't have to patch a car back together. No, they just had to battle through some mental adversity after some near-misses.

The reigning champion kicked off last season's Round of 8 with a horrendous weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. A blown tire caused a wreck in practice and sent them to a backup car. He was then collected in a four-car crash in stage 2. Blaney ultimately finished 32nd and eight laps down.

The round continued at Homestead-Miami Speedway where Blaney had the lead coming to the checkered flag. He cleared Denny Hamlin and appeared to be en route to a win that would send him back to the Championship 4.

However, Tyler Reddick passed Hamlin on the white flag lap to take second place. He then raced alongside the outside wall in the final turn and passed Blaney for the lead. Reddick won the race and went to the Championship 4 for the first time in his career.

These two races put Blaney in a difficult position entering the Round of 8 cutoff race at Martinsville Speedway. He needed to win to advance, much like he had in 2023.

The Team Penske driver did exactly that. He went to Martinsville Speedway and raced inside the top five throughout the day. He then took the lead from Elliott with 15 laps to go, and he went on to score his third win of the season.

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"I'd say one, a really proud win that we have in my group is when we won Martinsville last year," Blaney said. "We had a rough week at Vegas, gave the win away the week before — I gave the win away the week before — at Homestead and kind of back's up against the wall, needing to win. And we ended up pulling it off.

"Like that was a huge testament of just the grind and determination. A couple of weeks didn't go great. Can you still rise to the occasion? And we were able to do that. So that was a fun win for sure last year.

"So it wasn't like we got wrecked early in that race and came back, but that was the closest I can kind of do it as far as that feeling goes."

William Byron 

Byron scored a win at Atlanta Motor Speedway rebounding from a penalty on Lap 63 and a spin on Lap 80. Yet, this was not the race he highlighted when asked about overcoming adversity. Instead, he chose a podium finish from a six-win season.

"I remember Kansas in 2023 — you know, we we won six races that year and we were kind of still on our upward trajectory that year," Byron told FanBuzz. "And at Kansas, I think I spun out like twice in the first part of the race and was like three laps down — two or three laps down — and came back and finished third."

This race took place in May 2023. Byron actually won the pole in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, but he struggled with handling early in the race. He hit the wall in stage 1, and he also received a penalty for speeding on pit road.

Byron fell multiple laps down after serving his pass through, which took him out of contention. However, he took advantage of some cautions in stage 2 to get back on the lead lap. He then continued methodically racing his way through the field in the final stage, ultimately taking second place in the closing laps.

Byron fell to third place before taking the checkered flag, but he learned an important lesson about his team and himself.

"And that was like one of those days where it's like, 'Okay, if we just keep ourselves in the game, we're a good enough team where we can overcome,'" Byron said.

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