Ross Chastain goes from worst to 1st to win NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Ross Chastain stood on top of his No. 1 Chevrolet in his white fire suit and held a watermelon above his head as the crowd at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roared with delight in anticipation.

Then, with sense of ferocity, Chastain slammed it to the track, smashing it to pieces.

Chastain began smashing watermelon as a way to uniquely honor his family’s legacy as eighth-generation watermelon farmers. The tradition began after his first NASCAR Cup Series race and has continued after every win as his own unique way to celebrate his strong ties to watermelon farming.

But this win was extra special, his first at crown jewel event.

“This thing is fresh from Florida,” Chastain said with a laugh. “It just came up from our family farm. Man, for the Florida watermelon industry, that’s your watermelons you’re getting right now, so y’all better go buy a dang watermelon to celebrate. I want to see videos of smashed watermelons flood the socials. I want to see it. Florida watermelons are in season."

Chastain passed two-time Daytona 500 winner William Byron with six laps left and won the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway, capping a remarkable comeback and becoming the first driver to win the event after starting at the back of the field.

NASCAR said he’s the first driver to win from an official starting position of last since Bobby Allison at the Richmond Fairgrounds in 1969.

William Byron won the first three stages and led 283 laps, but surrendered the lead to Chastain, who started in 40th place and led just eight laps in his first NASCAR Cup Series victory of the year.

It was a huge boost to Trackhouse Racing, and a bitter disappointment for Byron, the Charlotte native who had signed a four-year contract extension Friday with Hendrick Motorsports. Byron has finished in the top three in the last three Coca-Cola 600s without winning.

Chastain said his crew stayed up all night to build him another car after a crash in practice on Saturday.

“To drive on that final run in the 600 and pass two cars that had been better than me all night, wow,” said Chastain, who celebrated by standing on his car and slamming a watermelon down on the track as has become his tradition following a victory. “Holy cow! We just won the 600.”

Chastain said the plan was the fix the original car after the wreck, but NASCAR intervened. It might have been a good thing they did.

“We thought we were going to have to fix the primary and NASCAR said, no, there is something bent (so) go build another one,” Chastain said. “That’s how we did that.”

Chastain's crew chief, Phil Surgen, said it was “deflating” when a tire went down and Chastain crashed during practice because their original car had been running so well, finishing fastest among the field in 10-, 15- and 20-lap averages

But he said more than 30 employees came into the nearby race shop to work on the car, with nearly a dozen staying until 2:30 a.m. to get it ready to race. The car they used was slated to be a backup car at the Nashville race, but didn't have an engine and needed several other additions.

“This group of guys I have got is relentless and no doubt everybody was going to give it their best," Surgen said. “Guys were at concerts and ballgames and dropped what they were doing to come in and help.”

Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks called it a “master class” effort by the team.

Byron left the track disappointed over his inability to maintain the lead.

“He was catching me and I was trying to defend and I was getting a little tight,” Byron said. “He got a run on me and was able to get to the bottom of the track off of two. It’s disappointing to lead that many laps."

Byron became the first driver to sweep the first three stages at NASCAR's longest race, but found himself in a battle with Denny Hamlin the final 100 laps. They exchanged lead a few times before both drivers pitted with 52 laps for one final fill up on gas.

But Hamlin didn't get enough fuel in his car and would have to pit again, falling out of contention. He would finish 16th.

Chastain, running in a backup car, ran down Byron for his sixth Cup Series win and first crown jewel victory.

Pole-sitter Chase Briscoe finished third.

Kyle Larson's day ended the way it started at the Indianapolis 500 — with a wreck.

Larson arrived at Charlotte Motor Speedway via helicopter more than an hour ahead of the start of the race after crashing out at the Indianapolis 500 in his failed second attempt to complete "The Double.”

In North Carolina, he started on the front row and ran out to the early lead before hitting the wall in Turn 3 on Lap 38.

A few laps later his car got loose, sending him spinning across the front straightaway and bringing out the race's first caution flag. But Larson was able to regain control and prevent further damage to his No. 5 Chevrolet before heading to the pits for adjustments that forced him to the back of the field.

But Larson got caught up in a wreck involving Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe and Daniel Suarez, sending him behind the wall. He finished 37th.

Jimmie Johnson's bid for a record-tying fifth Coca-Cola 600 victory ended early in the second stage when he hit the wall in Turn 4, causing severe damage to his No. 84 Toyota and knocking him out of the race. The seven-time Cup Series champion finished last.

“I made a rookie mistake,” Johnson said, who was making his 700th career Cup Series start. “The traffic situations are different with this car and I reacted in a way I shouldn't have.”

Keeping with tradition, drivers pulled their cars down pit road to a complete stop for a moment of silence as part of the Memorial Day weekend tribute to “honor and remember” those service members who've lost their lives.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Ross Chastain celebrates in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Ross Chastain does a burnout after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Ross Chastain celebrates in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Ross Chastain celebrates in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Ross Chastain celebrates in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Ross Chastain, front, climbs out of his car in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Bubba Wallace steers through Turn 4 during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Fans look on as drivers compete through Turn 4 during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Ryan Blaney (12) is towed after being involved in a wreck during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Drivers compete down the front stretch during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

Shane van Gisbergen (88) passes Ty Gibbs in Turn 4 during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sluggish December hiring concluded a year of weak employment gains that have frustrated job seekers even though layoffs and unemployment have remained low.

Employers added just 50,000 jobs last month, nearly unchanged from a downwardly revised figure of 56,000 in November, the Labor Department said Friday. The unemployment rate slipped to 4.4%, its first decline since June, from 4.5% in November, a figure also revised lower.

The data suggests that businesses are reluctant to add workers even as economic growth has picked up. Many companies hired aggressively after the pandemic and no longer need to fill more jobs. Others have held back due to widespread uncertainty caused by President Donald Trump’s shifting tariff policies, elevated inflation, and the spread of artificial intelligence, which could alter or even replace some jobs.

Still, economists were encouraged by the drop in the unemployment rate, which had risen in the previous four straight reports. It had also alarmed officials at the Federal Reserve, prompting three cuts to the central bank's key interest rate last year. The decline lowered the odds of another rate reduction in January, economists said.

“The labor market looks to have stabilized, but at a slower pace of employment growth,” Blerina Uruci, chief economist at T. Rowe Price, said. There is no urgency for the Fed to cut rates further, for now."

Some Federal Reserve officials are concerned that inflation remains above their target of 2% annual growth, and hasn't improved since 2024. They support keeping rates where they are to combat inflation. Others, however, are more worried that hiring has nearly ground to a halt and have supported lowering borrowing costs to spur spending and growth.

November's job gain was revised slightly lower, from 64,000 to 56,000, while October's now shows a much steeper drop, with a loss of 173,000 positions, down from previous estimates of a 105,000 decline. The government revises the jobs figures as it receives more survey responses from businesses.

The economy has now lost an average of 22,000 jobs a month in the past three months, the government said. A year ago, in December 2024, it had gained 209,000 a month. Most of those losses reflect the purge of government workers by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency.

Nearly all the jobs added in December were in the health care and restaurant and hotel industries. Health care added 38,500 jobs, while restaurants and hotels gained 47,000. Governments — mostly at the state and local level — added 13,000.

Manufacturing, construction and retail companies all shed jobs. Retailers cut 25,000 positions, a sign that holiday hiring has been weaker than previous years. Manufacturers have shed jobs every month since April, when Trump announced sweeping tariffs intended to boost manufacturing.

Wall Street and Washington are looking closely at Friday's report as it's the first clean reading on the labor market in three months. The government didn’t issue a report in October because of the six-week government shutdown, and November’s data was distorted by the closure, which lasted until Nov. 12.

The hiring slowdown reflects more than just a reluctance by companies to add jobs. With an aging population and a sharp drop in immigration, the economy doesn't need to create as many jobs as it has in the past to keep the unemployment rate steady. As a result, a gain of 50,000 jobs is not as clear a sign of weakness as it would have been in previous years.

And layoffs are still low, a sign firms aren't rapidly cutting jobs, as typically happens in a recession. The “low-hire, low-fire” job market does mean current workers have some job security, though those without jobs can have a tougher time.

Ernesto Castro, 44, has applied for hundreds of jobs since leaving his last in May. Yet the Los Angeles resident has gotten just three initial interviews, and only one follow-up, after which he heard nothing.

With nearly a decade of experience providing customer support for software companies, Castro expected to find a new job pretty quickly as he did in 2024.

“I should be in a good position,” Castro said. “It’s been awful.”

He worries that more companies are turning to artificial intelligence to help clients learn to use new software. He hears ads from tech companies that urge companies to slash workers that provide the kind of services he has in his previous jobs. His contacts in the industry say that employees are increasingly reluctant to switch jobs amid all the uncertainty, which leaves fewer open jobs for others.

He is now looking into starting his own software company, and is also exploring project management roles.

December’s report caps a year of sluggish hiring, particularly after April's “liberation day” tariff announcement by Trump. The economy generated an average of 111,000 jobs a month in the first three months of 2025. But that pace dropped to just 11,000 in the three months ended in August, before rebounding slightly to 22,000 in November.

Last year, the economy gained just 584,000 jobs, sharply lower than that more than 2 million added in 2024. It's the smallest annual gain since the COVID-19 pandemic decimated the job market in 2020.

Subdued hiring underscores a key conundrum surrounding the economy as it enters 2026: Growth has picked up to healthy levels, yet hiring has weakened noticeably and the unemployment rate has increased in the last four jobs reports.

Most economists expect hiring will accelerate this year as growth remains solid, and Trump's tax cut legislation is expected to produce large tax refunds this spring. Yet economists acknowledge there are other possibilities: Weak job gains could drag down future growth. Or the economy could keep expanding at a healthy clip, while automation and the spread of artificial intelligence reduces the need for more jobs.

Productivity, or output per hour worked, a measure of worker efficiency, has improved in the past three years and jumped nearly 5% in the July-September quarter. That means companies can produce more without adding jobs. Over time, it should also boost worker pay.

Even with such sluggish job gains, the economy has continued to expand, with growth reaching a 4.3% annual rate in last year's July-September quarter, the best in two years. Strong consumer spending helped drive the gain. The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta forecasts that growth could slow to a still-solid 2.7% in the final three months of last year.

FILE - A hiring sign is displayed at a grocery store in Northbrook, Ill., Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)