There aren’t many things that are certain in life, but with a record-extending eighth win in the Randy Dorton Hendrick Engine Builder Showdown on Friday, it’s starting to feel like Danny Emerick is as close to a lock as there gets outside of death and taxes.
With Jeremy Aimi of Rick Hendrick City Chevrolet paired with Emerick for the first time, the duo of Emerick and Aimi was able to achieve an engine build time of 21 minutes, 53.48 seconds in the championship build matchup. That build time was enough, by a margin of 16.51 seconds, to secure the win over the team of former Engine Builder Showdown champions, Kevin Moler and Kyle Kittell of Hendrick Chevrolet, Shawnee Mission.
Here is a replay of the final build, where Emerick and Aimi came out victorious:
Hendrick Engine Builder Showdown Final Build – 11/14/25 https://t.co/hbp0ugMZS6
— Racing America (@RacingAmerica) November 14, 2025
The win is the fourth consecutive in the event for Emerick, and the Hendrick Motorsports mechanic’s eighth win in the event comes in the 24th iteration of the Randy Dorton Engine Builder Showdown.
In the high-paced, knuckle-smashing world of building engines against a clock, Emerick said he gained a friend for life in Aimi, who helped him reach yet another win in the prestigious offseason competition waged at the Hendrick Motorsports campus.
“This is incredible,” said Emerick. “These trophies get better each year, it seems like. To have me on the wall in the engine shop on that plaque, to have made an amazing friend, a lifelong friend who is very deserving, too, I can’t explain how exciting this is.”
For Aimi, who was competing in the event for the first time, he was welcomed to the Engine Builder Showdown properly with a win, which will cement his legacy forever on the walls of Hendrick Motorsports.
While Emerick and Aimi ultimately took the win, there were multiple points in the final build where the lead changed, and the end result was in question. But in the closing moments, Emerick’s team charged to the finish line first.
While Moler was unable to capture his second victory in the event, he found solace in the fact that he and his teammate, Kittell, were able to push Emerick and Aimi to the limit, and it resulted in a heck of a show for those in attendance.
“There [are] some sounds, some things you hear along the way,” said Moler. “The emcees talk about some things. I knew we beat them on the flip. I knew he was watching me, also. I think we traded the lead back and forth a few times based on what I heard. It was a great show, and that’s what we’re here for.”
With Emerick’s latest victory in hand, all eyes shift toward 2026, when the 25th running of the Randy Dorton Hendrick Engine Builder Showdown will be contested. Can Emerick come back and claim a ninth crown?
