Parker Kligerman and Swan Racing are entering Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend hoping to revive themselves from dismal finishes the past two weeks at Phoenix International Raceway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Kligerman, whose best finish this season came at Daytona International Speedway in the Daytona 500, is entering his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in Bristol, Tennessee this weekend, and he expects the results to be promising.
“In the lower series I’ve never finished outside the top ten at Bristol up until this year, so I have a lot of confidence.” Kligerman explained following a dismal finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. “Bristol is a place I really love going to and I enjoy racing there.
“(Starting the season off slow) has put us in a precarious position heading to Bristol as we’ll be forced to qualify in on time,” Kligerman explained about finishing outside the top 40 in two of the three races ran this season. “But we’ll fight back, and make sure everyone keeps working hard and we’ll get past this.”
Kligerman’s career stats at the challenging half mile stretch in all three of NASCAR’s premier series are quite impressive. He posted a ninth place at ‘Thunder Valley’ in the NASCAR Nationwide Series while piloting Kyle Busch Motorsports’ No. 77 Toyota last season. His tenure with Red Horse Racing during 2012 in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series led to an outstanding career best runner-up finish at the ‘Last Great Colosseum’.
“The Cup car at Bristol really suits my driving style, so I’m hoping I can be even more successful this weekend then I have been in the lower series,” Kligerman told me on Tuesday evening.
While Kligerman and Swan Racing will be attempting to score their first Bristol triumph, they’re chasing one ultimate goal, and that’s finishing this season top 25 in the point’s standings.
“We (Swan Racing) look at a successful year as a top 25 finish in the points standings,” Kligerman told me. “We aren’t focused on winning a race, or making the Chase, our organization is fighting to become one of those mid-field organizations. If we can breakthrough into that (mid-field group) we can really feel like we accomplished something.”
Following a average 2013 season, Swan Racing completely re-constructed their race team by adding Kligerman and fellow rookie Cole Whitt to their driving line-up. The addition of a second full-time car has really forced the organization to step-up their game.
“Putting another car on the racetrack for any organization can put a strain, or really just rise the stress level of your team,” Kligerman explained about Swan Racing extending to a two car team this season.
Kligerman doesn’t expect him or Cole to make the NASCAR ‘playoffs’, or even win a race, however, the doors always open for a lower organization to score a victory on fuel strategy or at a restrictor plate track. And with the new Chase system, a victory within the first 26 races almost guarantees you a berth in the post-season.
“Winning a race, or making the Chase, would be a massive financial gain and also a huge thing for our partners and I think it’d be a big thing for our sport, it would show hard work and determination can get you into the post-season and make a run for a championship.”
Kligerman, in his first season at Swan Racing, is expecting consistent results and possibly a chance at the Rookie of The Year award, despite experts saying that Austin Dillon and Kyle Larson are likely to take the award due to being with top-tier multi-car organizations. This weekend at Bristol could be the ‘eye opener’ that fans need to realize just how good this 23-year-old Connecticut racecar driver really is.
