Hendrick Motorsports give a stunning remake to the ‘only Corvette to ever qualify for a NASCAR Cup Series race’

Chevrolet may be NASCAR's winningest car brand but its staple, the Corvette, was only used in a few seasons. Hendrick Motorsports decided to bring back the car in today's time, touted as the only Corvette to qualify for a Cup Series race.

Hendrick Motorsports is a Chevrolet-affiliated NASCAR team fielding William Byron, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliot, and Alex Bowman in the premier series. The team is a partner of General Motors, Chevrolet's parent company.

In an X (formerly Twitter) post, HMS, owned by automotive tycoon Rick Hendrick, shared photos of the restored Chevrolet Corvette (based on the first-gen C1) driving around the Bowman Gray Stadium.

"The only Corvette to ever qualify for a NASCAR Cup Series race. Recently, Hendrick Motorsports located this historic car and restored it to its original glory," the team wrote.

The team noted the racecar competed at Bowman Gray Stadium in the early 60s, saying:

"It raced at Bowman Gray Stadium four times from 1961-1963 with Bill Whitley behind the wheel."

"A special thank you to everyone involved in the restoration process," the team concluded.

Hendrick Motorsports posted the restored Chevrolet Corvette Cup car amid the Cook Out Clash race weekend. The Clash is held at Bowman Gray Stadium, which marks NASCAR's return to the quarter-mile North Carolina track after 54 years.

Today, Chevrolet uses the Camaro in the Cup Series in the ZL1 form and the Xfinity Series in the SS trim. The bowtie brand previously brought models such as the Monte Carlo, Lumina, and Impala to the NASCAR stage.

---

Hendrick Motorsports' results in the 2025 Cook Out Clash heat races

After the four heat races at Bowman Gray Stadium on Saturday, three of four Hendrick Motorsports drivers advanced to the main event. The list includes William Byron, Alex Bowman, and Chase Elliott, who won the Heat Race 1.

Kyle Larson, meanwhile, failed to make the top five transfer spots in the Heat Race 2.

Speaking about the heat race win, Chase Elliott said his past K&N Pro Series East experience driving at Bowman Gray Stadium didn't give him an edge on the track. Instead, the No. 9 HMS driver had to get familiar again during the practice session.

"I kind of had to re-teach myself I guess or get familiar again today this afternoon and that was kind of how I approached the day and what I was expecting, and fortunately it was pretty similar to what I was thinking it was going to be based on the Coliseum and the differences visually what it looks like from that," Elliott said via Bob Pockrass on X.

Kyle Larson can still make the main event if he finishes first or second in the last chance qualifier. Of all the entrants, only 23 cars will compete in the race.

The last chance qualifier is scheduled for February 2 at 6:00 p.m. ET ahead of the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium at 8:00 p.m. ET. The pre-season race is being covered by Fox Sports.