INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Todd Gilliland reached the final round of NASCAR's second In-Season Challenge by taking advantage of all the right breaks.
Daniel Suarez suffered an early tire problem in Round 1 at Sonoma and finished 31st. Carson Hocevar crashed early at Chicago in Round 2. Alex Bowman finished two laps behind the leaders at Atlanta in Round 3, then made a pit lane mistake at North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, that helped eliminate Chase Elliott and put Gilliland in Sunday's finale at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
So, naturally, the self-described underdog persevered again. He sifted his way through traffic, avoided trouble and took advantage of Ryan Blaney's late crash to collect the $1 million prize, earning the right to suddenly be called a champion.
"It was a tough day for us to be honest with you,” he said after finishing 24th, two spots ahead of Blaney to claim the title. “But I thought that was kind of our whole M.O. right through this whole thing. We were just barely scraping by and even today, it definitely took a little bit of bad luck clearly from the (No.) 12 (Blaney).”
While most NASCAR fans were watching Corey Heim speed past team co-owner Denny Hamlin on a late restart and into history with his first Brickyard 400 victory, Gilliland and Blaney continued to battle for the race inside the race with Gilliland seemingly one of the most unlikely winners in the challenge's field.
The 26-year-old driver from Front Row Motorsports began the five-round, single-elimination tournament seeded 25th and a resume that appeared less than daunting.
In five Cup seasons, he has never won a race or a pole and he has produced just 17 top-10 finishes in 164 career starts. So winning seemed almost unfathomable.
"We’ve caught a lot of lucky breaks. We’ve barely been skating by all these rounds,” Gilliland said Friday. “But now that we’re here, yeah, it feels a bit more real and you never know, right? Four hundred miles, anything can happen. So we’re just going to go give our best effort and try not to think about what it would be like if we won.”
The weekend sure didn't start well for Gilliland, who qualified 36th — 23 spots behind Blaney. And aside from a pit cycle that helped him finish second in Sunday's second stage, Gilliland always seemed to be in Blaney's rearview mirror, until destiny intervened with 41 laps to go.
This time, Blaney appeared to be perfectly positioned for a 12th consecutive top-11 finish and claiming one of the titles team owner Roger Penske hasn't held. That's when John Hunter Nemechek tapped Blaney's car, sending him hard into the wall, causing a nine-car crash that damaged the right side of Blaney's car.
“That 42 guy, it's every week with him," Gilliland radioed in, referring to Nemechek.
Blaney’s crew members scrambled to get the No. 12 Ford back on the track and Blaney methodically got his car within striking distance of Gilliland.
But Gilliland, who luckily managed to navigate his way cleanly through the debris and cars involved in the crash, stayed in front and barely finished ahead of Blaney to be crowned champion.
“I think when you're the 25th seed, looking up at that mountain of ‘We have beat this guy or this guy,’ it seems like a very tall task," Gilliland said. “So yeah, maybe for myself, I never really thought this was a realistic goal. But when you get a little closer, you get past one round, two rounds and then you're in the final eight, final four and then you're in the in the finale, it ramps up a lot. So, yeah, it's cool, and I think you kind of saw that with my team.”
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/apf-AutoRacing
Drivers perform a pit stop on driver Todd Gilliland's car during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race in North Wilkesboro, N.C., Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)
Todd Gilliland drives into the first turn during the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, July 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
BLAINE, Minn. (AP) — Jackson Koivun won the 3M Open by three strokes Sunday in only his third start as a professional, holding off Scottie Scheffler with a closing 5-under 66 for a tournament-record 25-under 259 total.
Koivun played a safe and steady game on a 97-degree afternoon at the TPC Twin Cities, going bogey-free for the second straight day after a 61 on Saturday gave him a three-shot cushion.
The 21-year-old player who led Auburn to the NCAA championship last month confidently fended off the world’s top-ranked player in Scheffler, who surged into contention with a 63 while playing five groups ahead.
Scheffler had his fifth runner-up finish this season. His lone win this year came in his first start at The American Express in California.
Hideki Matsuyama, Brian Harman, Chandler Phillips and Denny McCarthy tied for third at 20 under.
Koivun, who became the fourth rookie winner this season, missed the cut at the John Deere Classic in Illinois and tied for 10th at the ISCO Championship in Kentucky earlier this month. He made 10 starts as an amateur on tour events.
ROCESTER, England (AP) — Lucas Herbert had the lowest 72-hole score in LIV Golf history, finishing LIV Golf United Kingdom at 30 under to lead Ripper GC to the team, title.
Herbert led wire-to-wire for his second victory of the season, closing with a 10-under 62. He opened with a 61 to break the course record at JCB Golf & Country Club.
Tyrrell Hatton was second at 24 under after a 63. Bryson DeChambeau followed at 21 under, shooting 68.
GLENEAGLES, Scotland (AP) — Jerry Kelly won the Senior British Open by two shots for his third senior major title, shooting a 2-under 68 on the Kings course at Gleneagles to finish at 10-under 270.
The 59-year-old American also won the Senior Players in 2020 and 2022. He has 14 PGA Tour Champions victories.
Cameron Percy, Darren Fichardt and Matt Gogel tied for second.
TROON, Scotland (AP) — Jenny Shin of South Korea won the Women’s Scottish Open for her first LPGA Tour victory in more than 10 years.
The 33-year-old Shin shot a 3-over 75 on the Dundonald Links to finish at 9 under. She won for the first time since the Texas Shootout in May 2016,
A Lim Kim was second, two strokes back.
The Women’s British Open starts Thursday at Royal Lytham and St. Annes.
GLENVIEW, Ill. (AP) — Tommy Morrison won the Evans Scholars Invitational for his first Korn Ferry Tour title, shooting an 8-under 63 for a three-stroke victory.
Morrison finished at 29 under at The Glen Club. The 21-year-old former University of Texas player opened with rounds of 63, 63 and 64.
Dylan Menante was second after a 65.
Christine Wang won the Hartford HealthCare Women’s Championship for her first Epson Tour title. She closed with a 3-under 68 to finish at 13 under, a stroke ahead of Mirabel Ting at The Golf Club of Avon. ... Germany’s Anton Albers took the Raiffeisenbank Golf Challenge in the Czech Republic for his first Challenge Tour victory. He shot a 6-under 65 to get to 20 under, three shots clear of American Alex Goff. ... Canadian Etienne Papineau outlasted Jack Lundin with a par on the second hole of a playoff in the Osprey Valley Open for his first PGA Tour Americas victory. They finished at 19 under at TPC Toronto. ... Reina Kato won the Japan LPGA’s Daito Kentaku Eheyanet Ladies, closing with a 4-under 68 for a one-stroke victory. She finished at 22 under.
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Individual champion Lucas Herbert, right, of Ripper GC, celebrates after his win with teammates Cameron Smith, Marc Leishman and Travis Smyth on the 18th green following the final round of the LIV Golf United Kingdom golf tournament Sunday, July 26, 2026, in Rocester, England. (Jon Ferrey/LIV Golf via AP)
Jackson Koivun reacts after winning the 3M Open golf tournament at the Tournament Players Club Sunday, July 26, 2026, in Blaine, Minn. (AP Photo/Bailey Hillesheim)
Jackson Koivun holds his trophy after winning the 3M Open golf tournament at the Tournament Players Club Sunday, July 26, 2026, in Blaine, Minn. (AP Photo/Bailey Hillesheim)
