“Showed up and ruffled some feathers!” Justin Marks makes Brad Keselowski comparison as Ross Chastain wins Coca-Cola 600

Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks has shared his thoughts on Ross Chastain’s evaluation as a driver since joining them.

“Showed up and ruffled some feathers!” Justin Marks makes Brad Keselowski comparison as Ross Chastain wins Coca-Cola 600

Ross Chastain, Justin Marks and Brad Keselowski (Via IMAGO)

Ross Chastain produced one of the greatest performances from a driver in the history of the NASCAR with his win at the 2025 Coca Cola 600. He won the race starting at the very back of the grid, after the team was forced to field their back up car due to a wreck during the practice that totaled the primary car.

Ross Chastain is the first driver since Bobby Alison is 1969 to win a race starting at the very end and the first racer to do it in the modern era. He earned a spot in the playoff with the win, proved he is the “top guy” at Trackhouse and a legitimate championship contender. Team owner Justin Marks assessed the significance of Chastain’s win on Sunday. He believes Chastain is one of the many drivers that comes with some baggage before thriving.

It’s experience and understanding what it takes to be successful as a NASCAR Cup Series driver. I think if you look back through time and you look at some of these really, really talented people that have shown up in the Cup Series and just had all this talent and all this speed but not a lot of experience, sometimes it was problematic at the beginning.

Justin Marks said at Charlotte in the post-race media session.

The racer turned owner then name dropped 2012 Cup champion Brad Keselowski, who like Ross Chastain worked their way up the pyramid and ruffled feathers of the big dogs of the sport. They start their careers with some wild moments on the track, but once they have some experience, they match their potential and become more productive.

I think of, like, Brad Keselowski and some of these guys that showed up and ruffled some feathers and then they figured out how to settle into a place where they can harness their talent and their speed into a way that’s really productive in the races.

Justin Marks added.

Justin Marks details the evolution of Ross Chastain

When Marks signed the Florida native to drive the No:1 Chevy in 2022, after buying the resources of Chip Ganassi Racing, many didn’t expect him to become the lead driver at the team over Daniel Suarez. But he won two races in his debut season and secured P2 in the championship, behind winner Joey Logano.

Justin Marks
Justin Marks (Via IMAGO)

Since 2022, he has won four races, with all of his seasons featuring at least a win. Talking about this evolution of the driver, Marks pointed out that the star driver has grown with the experience and is putting full races together better than ever.

I think that’s the evolution that Ross has gone through is that he knows how to take that speed and deploy it when it makes the most sense and how to really put full races together. I think it just comes with time and experience.

Justin Marks said.

He then highlighted how intelligent Chastain is as a driver and how he mastered the talent of digesting the races. This has helped him to become a complete driver and place himself among the best drivers on the current grid.

He’s a very, very intelligent person. He’s very cerebral. He really digests the races when they’re over and looks back through them. I think he just had to go through the experience of understanding where the give and take is and how to be a complete driver, and he has done that.

Justin Marks added.

The veteran comments show how much he appreciates his drivers and the efforts he has taken to make Trackhouse better. Without Chastain, the Chevy team won’t be as consistent as they are now, and it would be interesting to see how long it will take them to win a championship with the “Watermelon man.”

Also Read: Shane Van Gisbergen Names The “Top Guy at Trackhouse Racing” after Ross Chastain’s Coca Cola 600 triumph