“Made sure to take advantage”: Layne Riggs reacts after capitalizing on Corey Heim’s misfortune to win the NASCAR Pocono race

Front Row Motorsports driver Layne Riggs secured his third win of his NASCAR career at the MillerTech Battery 200 on June 20, 2025, at Pocono Raceway. Following his triumph, during the post-race interview, Riggs gave his take on capitalizing on Corey Heim's late-restart misfortune.

The 23-year-old had his intentions clear from the beginning of the race. He secured his maiden pole position of the season at the 2.5-mile oval track with a best time of 53.13 seconds and a top speed of 169.41 mph. Meanwhile, the series leader, Corey Heim, was in third place with a 0.14-second difference.

Despite being the fastest at Pocono Raceway, Layne Riggs ran second behind Heim. However, on a restart with 19 laps to go in the 80-lap race, Heim had a flat and headed to the pits, giving Riggs (the control car) the lead. However, Spire Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar jumped ahead on the restart, resulting in a penalty. Ultimately, the #34 Ford driver got the lead back and took home his maiden win of the season.

Reflecting on the incident, the Front Row Motorsports driver told NASCAR:

“That’s just a testament to this team, that thing was bad fast, especially that last run right there. I really hate the 11 [Heim] fell out and not sure what the seven [Hocevar] was doing on the restart there, but made sure to take advantage of it." “But, hey, I’m a happy man right now. This is not what I had circled. Last year, we wrecked in practice, didn’t qualify and ran dead last all day. And today we were the best. It’s amazing,” he added.

Layne Riggs crossed the finish line 3.640 seconds ahead of the #15 Toyota driver, Tanner Gray. Following Riggs' win, Kaden Honeycutt, Brandon Jones, and Daniel Hemric finished in the top five drivers. Meanwhile, Corey Heim finished the 200-mile race outside of the top 20 drivers in P23.

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Layne Riggs opens up about keeping track of his studies while being a professional race car driver

Outside of stock car racing, Truck Series driver Layne Riggs has enrolled in an engineering degree from UNC Charlotte. He disclosed that juggling both concurrently is a challenging endeavor, demanding his complete focus to yield satisfactory outcomes.

“You have to dedicate yourself because engineering homework is not something you can quickly spit out in 30 minutes," Riggs was quoted as saying by Niner Times in October of 2024.

Additionally, the Front Row Motorsports driver showcased his gratitude to the university for allowing him to compete in the Truck Series. Also, his professors recognize the NASCAR driver for his accomplishments.

Layne Riggs ranks sixth in the Truck Series points table with 424 points to his credit. He has secured one win, eight top-ten, and six top-five finishes with one pole position in 14 starts this season.

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Edited by Anisha Chatterjee