In a race that's become known as a championship barometer, the NASCAR Cup Series will tackle a new twist this weekend at Phoenix Raceway. Sunday's 312-lap race will feature the debut of option tires on the 1-mile oval.

CONCORD, N.C - If one was to put Alex Bowman's running position on a line graph throughout the 95 laps run on Sunday at Circuit of The Americas, it'd probably closely resemble an electrocardiogram. Fittingly enough, it took a lot of heart from the No. 48 Ally team, as well as a little luck, to end a long, weird day on a major uptick.

Here's what's happening in the world of NASCAR with Circuit of The Americas in the rearview and Phoenix (Sun., 3:30 p.m. ET, FS1) up next.

Christopher Bell has won two of the first three races of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season, and he has a chance to make it three out of four in Sunday's Shriners Children's 500 at Phoenix Raceway.