Against all odds. That’s the best way to describe Ross Chastain’s win at Charlotte Motor Speedway. After crashing due to a blown tire in practice, the No. 1 Chevy team had to scramble to prepare the backup car ahead of the Coca-Cola 600. The plan was to use the secondary vehicle at Nashville, but under the circumstances, many changes needed to take place overnight. Phil Surgen and the rest of the crew only slept a couple of hours ahead of the crown-jewel event, as they were desperately trying to make sure everything was in place ahead of the marathon race.

And it all paid off. Despite starting rock-bottom at the race, Ross Chastain showed lightning-fast speed at the 2.28-mile oval to pull off a historic victory. But while the headlines and plaudits are going to the Florida native, and rightly so, the achievement would not have been possible without the help of his crew.

Ross Chastain is surprised by his majestic run in Charlotte

People often underestimate just how much of a team sport NASCAR can be. While the driver gets the majority of attention since he’s behind the wheel of the car, it’s easy to overlook the effort that goes on behind the scenes that contributes to every race win. From the backroom staff, team engineers, spotters, and the crew chief, each member is an integral cog to a machine that needs to work in cohesion to get a result. Especially in a race like the Coca-Cola 600. While Ross Chastain did the unthinkable at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the accomplishment wouldn’t have been possible without a lightning-fast No. 1 Chevy.

Sharing his thoughts on the win, Ross Chastain told Sirius XM NASCAR Radio, “To stand here in Victory Lane now, with you, with this big ring, this big Busch Light, a big slice of watermelon that I just ate, it’s unbelievable. It really doesn’t make sense that we were able to drive up and pass two cars that were way better than us all night on the last run.” Recognizing his crew’s tireless efforts, the racer went on to say, “They told me to go home, they were there till 2:30. I left at 10. They were back there at 5:30, I woke up at 8.”

The decision to use the backup car wasn’t immediate. After the wreck in practice, the crew analyzed the damage on the No. 1 Chevy for 90 minutes before concluding that they were not going to be able to fix it. “As we start pulling parts off, it just became more evident that there was a section of the rear frame that was bent probably beyond repair,” explained Phil Surgen. “Then, at that moment, it became a necessity to go to a backup car.” Chastain also hailed his crew chief’s efforts on fine-tuning the backup car after the race, saying, “You [Phil Surgen] nailed it. That’s the best we’ve been.”

What followed was nothing less than a herculean effort, as the team burned the midnight oil to prepare the backup vehicle, which would ultimately go on to win NASCAR’s longest race. No less than 30 people came in to help after the backup car was taken to the race shop to lend their assistance, right from the road crew to engine support from ECR. Surgeon revealed that they even had the “shop guys that were at concerts and ball games and everything that just dropped what they were doing, came to the shop.”

Even though the backup vehicle was almost fully assembled when taken to the race shop, it didn’t have an engine installed. That, along with tune-ups and other changes, was needed to be able to run the 600-mile race and face no mechanical problems. Sharing the work that went into it, Surgen said, “We changed the transaxle. We had to use the engine from the primary car that was at the racetrack. Then there’s the wrap, final set on suspension, final set on the body, and then final scale and such, all those last-minute adjustments.”

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Justin Marks hails his team’s remarkable effort

Trackhouse Racing had plenty to celebrate when the checkered flag was waved at Charlotte Motor Speedway. His crew, exhausted but happy, was seen cheering along the sidelines while Ross Chastain distributed watermelon to his teammates. Justin Marks was also elated at the triumph, which was his team’s first win in 2025, and at an event as prestigious as the Coca-Cola 600, no less.

Sharing his thoughts after the win, Marks said, “This weekend I think was a master class in never giving up and grinding. It wasn’t just the #1 Team that built that car last night. It was people from all corners of the organization that said, I’ll drop what I’m doing and drive to the shop and help, because we’ve all been working so hard the last month, month and a half to sort of turn this team around.”

After the result, Trackhouse Racing will make its way to Nashville Superspeedway, hoping to keep up the momentum. While the team hopes to compete against traditional heavyweights such as Team Penske, Hendrick Motorsports, and Joe Gibbs Racing, the real test will come once they are expected to maintain their dominance. Will the likes of Ross Chastain and Co. manage to recreate their lightning-fast speed next weekend? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!