Bojangles’ Southern 500
Darlington Raceway, Darlington, S.C.
Brett Moffitt | No. 34 Dockside Logistics Ford
“I’ve never been to Darlington — never seen the place — but I’m kind of excited about it. It’s seems like a really cool racetrack and I think it will be a lot of fun. You run right up by the fence there. That’s where the most speed is. So, I’m looking forward to it, even though I don’t know really what to expect. But it should be fun.”
JUST THE FACTS: Sunday’s Southern 500 will be Moffitt’s first appearance in his racing career at Darlington Raceway … Moffitt earned the Sunoco Rookie of the Race award at Bristol Motor Speedway Aug. 22 and now leads the Rookie of the Year campaign by nine points … The Dockside Logistics colors return to the No. 34 Ford for the Labor Day weekend race.
Cole Whitt | No. 35 Speed Stick Ford
“Darlington was actually my first big track that I got to go to with the Truck Series. I got the pole, and it was really cool because no one expected us to do that. I think we even had to qualify in on speed. So, to grab the pole and lead a bunch of laps early in the race was something that was just pretty special to me.
“It’s as tough as everyone says. We’ll definitely use the wall up for sure. You run right against it and it’s the fastest way around the track. I like it, even though it wasn’t very nice to me in my Cup debut there. We had a decent run going and then got into the wall and caused my own problems. But I’ve learned a lot since then. So, I look forward to going back there in the Speed Stick Ford and establishing myself a little bit better there. The Lady in Black and I got off on the wrong foot so hopefully we’ll be able to rebound this time.”
JUST THE FACTS: Whitt has two prior Sprint Cup starts at Darlington Raceway … He earned the pole position and finished eighth in his only Camping World Truck Series start at the 1.366-mile oval (2011) … Speed Stick returns as primary sponsor of the No. 35 Ford … Whitt will be at the Ford Performance display at Darlington Raceway on Sunday at 3 p.m. for fan Q&A.
David Gilliland | No. 38 Love’s Travel Stops Ford
“It’s tough. Darlington is probably the most challenging racetrack I’ve ever raced on. But, it’s fun. I talked to some of the guys that did the tire test down there, and they said there is a lot of fall-off and the track is aging, and it’s getting back more to the old Darlington. It’s tough in the driver’s seat, too. The more challenging a track is, the more tense you are. And with the heat, it just builds on that. So, it can be a very physically demanding race.
“We’ve had some run-ins with the ‘Lady in Black’ before. But we’re going with our Love’s Travel Stops Ford this time. It has hearts on the paint scheme, so hopefully she’ll like that and be nice to us.”
JUST THE FACTS: Gilliland has eight Sprint Cup starts at Darlington Raceway … His best finish at the 1.366-mile oval is 20th (2008) … Love’s Travel Stops returns as primary sponsor of the No. 38.
About Front Row Motorsports
Front Row Motorsports is a race-winning organization competing in NASCAR’s premier Sprint Cup Series, fielding the No. 34, the No. 35 and the No. 38 Fords. The team is owned by Bob Jenkins and is headquartered just outside of Charlotte, N.C. FRM was named to INC Magazine’s “INC 5000” list in 2012, recognizing the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the U.S. The team’s partnership base is representative of more than $200 billion of the U.S. economy and includes organizations such as Ford Motor Company, Love’s Travel Stops, Colgate-Palmolive, CSX Transportation, Taco Bell and Long John Silver’s. Visit teamfrm.com.
