JR MOTORSPORTS TEAM PREVIEW:
TRACK: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
RACE: Alsco Uniforms 302 (201 laps / 302 miles)
DATE: Saturday, Sept. 25, 2021
Broadcast Information – TV: 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN / Radio: 7 p.m. ET on PRN and Sirius XM Ch. 90
Josh Berry
No. 1 Pilot Flying J Driver Appreciation Chevrolet
• Josh Berry will sit in for Michael Annett again this week as Annett continues his recovery from a leg injury. It will be the fourth event in which the 30-year-old Tennessee driver will drive the Pilot Flying J #ThankATrucker Chevrolet.
• Berry has one start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in a NASCAR Xfinity Series car, and it came earlier this season with JRM’s No. 8 team. Berry started ninth and finished seventh in the spring race on the 1.5-mile oval.
• Berry has made 19 NXS starts this season and earned a victory at Martinsville Speedway, along with five top-five and 10 top-10 finishes while pacing the field for 175 total laps.
Sam Mayer
No. 8 Carly Pearce Written In Stone Chevrolet
• Sam Mayer will make his first NXS start at Las Vegas this weekend in a special Big Machine Label Group Chevrolet promoting country singer Carly Pearce’s new album 29: Written In Stone.
• In one start at a 1.5-mile track in his NXS career, Mayer started 22nd and finished ninth at Atlanta Motor Speedway in July.
• The 18-year-old comes off his strongest performance to date in the NXS as he paced the field for 49 laps last weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway en route to a ninth place finish, tying his career best finish in the series.
Noah Gragson
No. 9 Bass Pro Shops / TrueTimber / Black Rifle Coffee Chevrolet
• Noah Gragson will start the 2021 NXS Playoffs at his home track this weekend, a place where the 23-year-old Las Vegas native has had a ton of success. In five starts on the 1.5-mile oval, Gragson has four top-five and five top-10 finishes, none lower than sixth.
• Gragson is fourth in the playoff grid entering the first of seven races that will determine the series champion, 27 points off the lead.
• Gragson has been on a hot streak of late, earning two victories (at Darlington Raceway and Richmond Raceway), two more top-five finishes and a pair of top-10 results in his last seven races leading up to the playoffs.
Justin Allgaier
No. 7 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet
• Justin Allgaier heads into the opening round of the NXS Playoffs as the third seed on the playoff grid, just 24 points outside of the lead.
• In 14 previous starts at Las Vegas in the NXS, Allgaier has scored six top fives and 11 top 10s, with a best finish of second coming in this event in 2018.
• Allgaier has recorded a top-five finish in all three of the fall races at Las Vegas dating back to 2018, netting an average finish of 3.7 during that span.
• According to NASCAR’s Loop Data Statistics, Allgaier ranks first in the NXS at Las Vegas in green flag passes (660), quality passes (554) and laps run inside the top 15 (2,654).
Driver Quotes
“In the spring, we were able to earn a top-10 finish despite the fact that I had never raced at Las Vegas. That’s my goal this weekend, to get Michael (Annett) and this No. 1 Pilot Flying J #ThankATrucker team another solid finish. I know that Bummy (crew chief Mike Bumgarner) will have a fast Chevrolet Camaro for me, and I look forward to the opportunity to represent all of the truckers who work so hard to keep us going.” – Josh Berry
“I’m ready to get these playoffs underway on Saturday in Las Vegas. We’ve traditionally had a lot of speed there with our BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet and I feel really confident that we will have that once again when we unload. This Round of 12 is full of unknowns, especially with the two wild card races coming up after Vegas, which makes this weekend all that more important to go out there and do what we can to try to secure our spot into the next round. If we can just execute the way we have been all season to this point, I feel like we will be in a great position to contend for the win and move on in the playoffs.” – Justin Allgaier
“We ran really well in our only other 1.5-mile start this year at Atlanta and I really learned a lot that I think will transfer over to this weekend. The first part of the race will be all about learning the track and how this No. 8 Carly Pearce Written In Stone Chevrolet handles and then towards the end we can start making our move. Hopefully we can put this car in Victory Lane to give our family friend Scott Borchetta something to celebrate and to advance us in the Round of 8 for the owner’s championship.” – Sam Mayer
“I’m always happy when I get a chance to head back to Vegas and see all my family and friends. Plus racing in front of a hometown crowd makes it even better. We’ve had really good runs there in the past and haven’t finished outside of the top 10. This starts our playoff run and I wouldn’t want it to be anywhere other than home. It’s the perfect place to keep our momentum moving forward and hopefully we can lock ourselves into the Round of 8.” – Noah Gragson
JRM Team Updates
• JRM at Las Vegas: JRM has competed in “Sin City” a combined 56 times. Over the course of the 56 starts at the 1.5-mile facility, JRM has tallied one win, 21 top fives and 35 top 10s. JRM’s win came in 2008 when Mark Martin drove the No. 5 to Victory Lane after leading 81 laps on the day. Martin’s win marked the first for JRM as an Xfinity Series team.
• Pilot Flying J Driver Appreciation Month: The No. 1 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet will again carry a signature paint scheme this weekend as part of Pilot Flying J’s Driver Appreciation Month. The red and yellow scheme features the words “If you’ve got it, a trucker brought it” on the hood and #ThankATrucker on the TV panel at the rear of the car. The Driver Appreciation theme inspires fans to thank professional drivers for all their hard work in delivering the goods we all depend on. And to see how Pilot Flying J is thanking professional drivers, visit pilotflyingj.com.
• 29: Written In Stone: Big Machine Records along with chart-topping Country star Carly Pearce joins the No. 8 team with a special paint scheme promoting the Grand Ole Opry member’s brand new album 29: WRITTEN IN STONE. Pearce is a two-time ACM Award winner with No. 1 hits such as the platinum certified “Every Little Thing” and 2X platinum “I Hope You’re Happy Now”, which ignited her truth-soaked career. Earlier this summer, Dolly Parton invited the Kentucky native to become a member of the Grand Olem Opry ahead of an official induction by Trisha Yearwood.
