JR MOTORSPORTS TEAM PREVIEW:
TRACK: Kansas Speedway
RACE: Kansas Lottery 300 (200 laps / 300 miles)
DATE: Saturday, Oct. 20, 2018
Elliott Sadler
No. 1 Textron Off Road Wildcat XX Chevrolet
• Elliott Sadler enters the Round of 8 sitting in the fifth position in the NASCAR Xfinity Series playoff standings, with 11 current playoff points to his name.
• At Kansas Speedway, the veteran driver has claimed three top fives and six top 10s in eight career NXS starts.
• Sadler’s best finish at the 1.5-mile track came in 2016 when he crossed the finish line in second place while driving for JR Motorsports.
• This season on tracks measuring 1.5 miles in length, the Virginia native has earned an average finish of 6.6.
• Textron Off Road Wildcat XX will adorn the hood of the No. 1 Chevrolet for the final time this season on Saturday.
Michael Annett
No. 5 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet
• Michael Annett’s best finish at Kansas in his six NXS starts came in 2012, when the Iowa native finished eighth.
• Annett has been markedly consistent at Kansas, completing 98.3 percent of the laps attempted in his six starts on the 1.5-mile oval.
• On 1.5-mile tracks in the Xfinity Series this season, Annett’s best finish of 12th came at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May.
• All laps led this season by Annett and the No. 5 team have taken place on racetracks measuring a mile-and-a-half in length.
Justin Allgaier
No. 7 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet
• Justin Allgaier heads to Kansas, the opening race for the Round of 8, as the second seed just five points back from the leader.
• In seven NXS starts at the 1.5-mile track, Allgaier has two top-five and five top-10 finishes, with a best effort of fifth (2013 and 2017).
• This season on mile-and-a-half tracks, the Illinois native has three top fives and five top 10s, earning his best finish of second at Las Vegas in September.
• In 2018 Allgaier has led 60 laps on tracks measuring 1.5 miles in length, running point at Kentucky and both Las Vegas events.
Tyler Reddick
No. 9 BurgerFi Chevrolet
• Tyler Reddick earned a second-place finish after starting from the pole in his lone start at Kansas Speedway in 2017.
• In 21 NXS starts at tracks between 1 and 2 miles in length, Reddick has scored one win (Kentucky 2017), five top-fives, 10 top-10s and two pole awards.
• Reddick recorded a best finish of 13th in each of his two previous starts in the Truck Series at Kansas.
• The Corning, Calif. native begins the Round of 8 as the sixth seed, just one point behind the fourth and final cutoff position with three races remaining in the round.
Driver Quotes
“A strong start to the Round of 8 this weekend in Kansas is going to be key to moving forward. With the Nos. 7 and 20 having a strong playoff points lead, we’ve got to get top
fives and hopefully a win this round. I know we have the speed and the resources to make that happen, we just need to make sure we’re there at the finish. Kevin
(Meendering, crew chief) and my guys have worked hard all season long. They deserve to be among the top four fighting for the championship at Homestead. It all starts
this weekend, getting our Textron Off Road Wildcat XX Chevrolet a strong finish.” – Elliott Sadler
“Getting back to the 1.5-mile tracks is good for our Pilot Flying J team after a ton of road courses and the Roval at Charlotte. We ran well at Dover a couple of weeks ago, and I am anxious to put some of the things we’ve learned these past few races to work at Kansas. We’re doing a good job of finding a baseline for the remaining races this season, including the two on 1.5-mile tracks at Texas and Homestead, and will hopefully put those to good use for 2019.” – Michael Annett
“I’m excited to get this Round of 8 kicked off at Kansas. The first round of the playoffs didn’t go exactly how we wanted, so it’s great to be able to reset and head to Kansas with a clean slate. This team has been working hard and we’ve had a pretty strong mile-and-a-half program this season, so I think we’ve got a good shot at contending for the win with our BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevy.” – Justin Allgaier
“We are definitely ready to kick off the Round of 8 in the playoffs this weekend with our BurgerFi Chevrolet. We’ve had Kansas circled on the calendar all season and know that this will be a great opportunity to build toward making the Championship 4 in Homestead. If we just have a smooth, mistake-free day and gain the maximum amount of points in each stage we should have a really great afternoon. I’m ready to go.” – Tyler Reddick
JRM Team Updates
• JRM at Kansas: In 28 NXS starts at Kansas Speedway, JR Motorsports has eight top-five and 15 top-10 finishes, with 165 total laps led. Last season, all three playoff teams finished within the top seven, earning an average finish of 5.3.
• JRM in the Round of 8: Since the elimination format began for the NASCAR playoffs in 2016, JR Motorsports has claimed one win, six top fives and 11 top 10s in the Round of 8. Last season, William Byron and the No. 9 team earned the victory at ISM Raceway after starting from second and leading 17 laps en route to the checkered flag.
• Annett, Reddick Autograph Session: Teammates Michael Annett and Tyler Reddick will be participating in the fan autograph session on Saturday, Oct. 20 at 9 a.m. CT in the driver/crew chief meeting tent at Kansas Speedway.
• BurgerFi On The Fly: Hungry? Quick. Easy. Save time with the BurgerFi On The Fly online ordering and mobile app. Get 25% off your first order as a registered user. Visit http://burgerfi.me/BFiAppAndroid or http://burgerfi.me/BFiAppiOS to sign up.
