JR MOTORSPORTS TEAM PREVIEW:
TRACK: Kansas Speedway
RACE: Kansas Lottery 250 (167 laps / 250.5 miles)
DATE: Saturday, July 25, 2020
Michael Annett
No. 1 TMC Transportation Chevrolet
• Entering this weekend’s race at Kansas Speedway, Michael Annett will seek to continue his streak of five straight top10 finishes in NASCAR Xfinity Series competition.
• In eight starts this season on 1.5-mile tracks, Annett has two top-five and six top-10 finishes. His average finish on these tracks in 2020 is 8.4.
• At Kansas, Annett’s most recent trip to the track resulted in a fourth-place finish last season, his best there for JR Motorsports. He also has two top-10 results in eight career NXS starts at Kansas.
• The black-and-gold TMC Transportation colors return to the No. 1 Chevrolet for the second time this season.
Daniel Hemric
No. 8 Poppy Bank Chevrolet
• Daniel Hemric gets back behind the wheel of the No. 8 Poppy Bank Chevrolet for the 11th time in the 2020 NXS season this Saturday.
• In two previous starts in the NXS at Kansas, Hemric has earned a best finish of second, coming in the 2018 running of this event after starting from the pole and leading 128 laps.
• Hemric has also earned one pole, one top five and two top 10s in four combined starts between the Cup Series and the Truck Series at the 1.5-mile speedway.
• Through 10 NXS starts in 2020, Hemric has earned a best finish of second at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May.
Noah Gragson
No. 9 Bass Pro Shops / TrueTimber Chevrolet
• Noah Gragson has one previous start in the NXS at Kansas, recording a 13th-place finish in the Fall of 2019.
• At tracks that are between 1 and 2 miles in length in the NXS, Gragson has eight top fives, 19 top 10s and 413 laps led.
• After 16 races in the 2020 season, Gragson leads the way for JRM with two wins, eight top fives, 11 top 10s and is currently third in the championship standings.
• Since returning to racing at Darlington in May, Gragson has an average finish of 9.1 and has tallied 424 laps led.
• Gragson is currently the NXS leader in stage wins, scoring a total of eight throughout the 2020 season.
Justin Allgaier
No. 7 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet
• Justin Allgaier is coming off two consecutive top-five finishes at 1.5-mile tracks heading into this weekend at Kansas.
• The Illinois native has nine starts at Kansas with three topfive and six top-10 finishes. In his most recent start at the mid-west track, Allgaier started seventh and finished fifth.
• This season on mile-and-a-half tracks, Allgaier has led 162 laps and earned three stage wins. His best finish of third came last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.
• Through 16 NXS starts in 2020, the 34-year-old driver has four top fives, eight top 10s and has paced the field for 417 laps. He currently sits sixth in the point standings.
Driver Quotes
“It’s been a good five weeks for this No. 1 team, and we’re glad to have TMC Transportation on the car again this week. The 1.5-mile tracks for us this season have been solid, and we were fourth at Kansas last year, so we are definitely moving forward with our program. That’s going to be key as the season goes on and especially in the playoffs. We want to keep the momentum rolling.” – Michael Annett
“Jason Burdett (crew chief) and this entire No. 7 team have done a fantastic job preparing fast cars each and every week. Last weekend at Texas, I really felt like we were finally going to get that win and get that monkey off our back, but it just didn’t work out the way we wanted it to. That makes me even more hungry to go out there and get it done this weekend at Kansas with our BRANDT Professional Agriculture Camaro.” – Justin Allgaier
“I’ve always enjoyed racing at Kansas. It’s a place that I’ve always felt really comfortable at and we’ve had some strong runs here in the past. We had a lot of speed last time out in Kentucky and I feel extremely confident that Taylor (Moyer, crew chief) and all the guys on this No. 8 team will have that same kind of speed ready to go when we unload on Saturday. I’m ready to get after it and see what we can do with our Poppy Bank Chevrolet.” – Daniel Hemric
“Kansas is a track that I have circled on my calendar, just like Homestead each year. It’s a track where we can move up and run against the wall and those types of tracks seem to really suit me the best. We put on two great showings at Homestead running the wall, so I am hopeful that we can carry what we learned there over to Kansas and get back on the right track this weekend.” – Noah Gragson
JRM Team Updates
• JRM at Kansas: In 36 NXS starts in the Land of Oz, JRM has scored 12 top fives and 19 top 10s, with a best finish of second occurring in 2014 with Kevin Harvick and 2016 with Elliott Sadler. Last season, JRM left Kansas with two top-five finishes from Michael Annett and Justin Allgaier.
• JRM’s 1.5-Mile Success: 12 (25 percent) of JRM’s 48 victories in the NXS have come on 1.5-mile tracks. Mark Martin scored the organization’s first victory on a mile-and-a-half on March 1, 2008 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with Tyler Reddick earning the most recent victory at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 17, 2018.
• Feeding America: Unilever has partnered with Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization, to deliver critical food to people in need across the U.S. To join in helping feed the most impacted communities during the COVID-19 crisis, click here to make a donation or to find a Feeding America location near you.
• Moonshot Mask Challenge: Through the inspiration of their home state of Utah’s challenge, Alsco has embarked on a 55-day #moonshot
mask challenge, which began July 13. For the 55 days leading up to Labor Day, Alsco will be sharing information on face masks and featuring social media posts of users wearing masks! Just be sure to tag @alscoinc in your post and use #maskup to help combat COVID-19!
