Corey Heim turned NASCAR’s first Cup Series race at Naval Base Coronado into the biggest result of his young career, beating the field in San Diego for his first victory in the top division.
The 23-year-old took the lead from Tyler Reddick in the closing laps of Sunday’s Anduril 250, then watched the race tilt decisively his way when Reddick suffered a flat tire while running second. It left Heim clear to complete a breakthrough victory in just his 13th Cup start, with Bubba Wallace second and Kyle Larson third.
NASCAR’s official race recap confirmed Heim’s late move on Reddick, while Jayski’s race page listed Wallace, Larson, Zane Smith and AJ Allmendinger inside the top five.
Heim turns 23XI’s day into a San Diego statement
The result was not just a first-time winner’s shock. It was also a heavy 23XI Racing imprint on a chaotic new event, with Heim and Wallace finishing first and second after Reddick had looked positioned to protect his points lead with a victory of his own.
Reddick still left San Diego ahead in the standings, but the manner of the finish mattered. Heim stayed close enough through the final run to pressure the No. 45 Toyota, then made the decisive move as Reddick’s race unravelled. For a driver still building his Cup reputation, there is no bigger shortcut than winning a rough, high-profile race that caught out several established names.
Readmotorsport had already followed how Carson Hocevar’s late caution chance put Spire in the middle of the San Diego finish, but the final stretch ultimately swung away from Hocevar, Larson and Reddick before Heim took control.
San Diego’s first Cup race refused to settle down
The finish capped a race that had rarely looked stable. Ryan Blaney won Stage 1 under yellow, Ryan Preece took Stage 2, and the biggest flashpoint came at Lap 32 when Austin Hill and Connor Zilisch crashed from the lead on a restart.
That incident also ended Shane van Gisbergen’s day, turning his pole-winning weekend into another reminder that NASCAR’s new street-course stop was never going to be controlled by qualifying speed alone. The crash had already changed the shape of Readmotorsport’s race coverage after SVG’s San Diego Cup debut was turned upside down.
The event had carried warning signs from the start of the weekend, when the surface, walls and rhythm of the temporary circuit made the Cup debut feel unusually fragile. That concern was visible long before the green flag in our preview of how San Diego’s bumps turned NASCAR’s street-race debut into a real test.
A first win that changes Heim’s Cup standing
For Heim, the value of this win is obvious. He did not inherit a quiet afternoon or coast through a clean-air procession. He had to stay alive through the mess, remain close enough to matter, and then beat a title leader when the race finally came down to execution.
That is the sort of Cup win that travels. San Diego may be remembered for its incidents, its unusual venue and its unpredictable first run, but Heim now owns the line that matters most from the inaugural race.
He arrived at Naval Base Coronado as a part-time threat. He left it as a NASCAR Cup winner.
