JR MOTORSPORTS TEAM PREVIEW:
TRACK: Texas Motor Speedway
RACE: Andy’s Frozen Custard 335 (200 laps / 300 miles)
DATE: Saturday, Oct. 16, 2021
Broadcast Information – TV: 3 p.m. ET on NBC / Radio: 2:30 p.m. ET on PRN and Sirius XM Ch. 90
Michael Annett
No. 1 Allstate Peterbilt Group Chevrolet
• Michael Annett is on a roll at Texas Motor Speedway, earning top-10 finishes in four of the last five events on the 1.5-mile oval. The run includes his career-best finish, fifth, in the 2020 spring race there.
• The Iowa native will have longtime partner Allstate Peterbilt Group on his No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro this week in honor of the company’s 50th anniversary.
• Annett has three top-10 finishes on 1.5-mile tracks in 2021 with a best finish of sixth at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
• The No. 1 team enters the Round of 8 ranked eighth in the owner’s championship playoffs. They’ll be competing for a berth in the Championship 4 over the next three races.
Sam Mayer
No. 8 QPS Employment Group Chevrolet
• Sam Mayer will make his third NXS start on a 1.5-mile oval this weekend at Texas in a new-look QPS Employment Group Chevrolet featuring a silver and blue paint scheme.
• Mayer’s best finish on a 1.5-mile oval came at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The 18-year-old started 22nd and finished ninth to earn his first career NXS top-10 finish.
• Mayer’s 94.8 driver rating at the Charlotte Roval was his second highest rating for the 2021 season. Driver rating is calculated through a formula of win, finish, top-15 finish, average running position while on lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, led most laps and lead-lap finish. The highest a driver can score is 150.
• Noah Gragson enters the Round of 8 in the NXS Playoffs this weekend as the fourth seed in the standings, 33 off the lead with three races until the Championship 4 is determined.
Noah Gragson
No. 9 Bass Pro Shops / TrueTimber / Black Rifle Coffee Chevrolet
• Gragson has been good on intermediate tracks this season, earning a victory at Darlington Raceway in September, six top-five and eight top-10 finishes in 10 starts. He was seventh at Texas in the spring and has led a total of 56 laps on the 1.5-mile oval.
• Gragson’s best finish at Texas came in this race a year ago, when the 23-year-old finished second. In five NXS starts at Texas, Gragson has one top five and two top 10s
Justin Allgaier
No. 7 Sam’s Club Chevrolet
• Justin Allgaier enters the first race in the Round of 8 as the third seed in the NXS Playoff grid, five points above the playoff cutline.
• Earlier this season at Texas, Allgaier came home with a runner-up finish after starting 16th and leading 23 laps.
• In 22 previous NXS starts in Fort Worth, Allgaier has earned three top fives, including two in the last three events, and 11 top 10s.
• According to NASCAR’s loop data statistics, Allgaier ranks first in green flag passes (935), first in quality passes (681) and second in laps run inside the top 15 (3,373) at Texas.
Driver Quotes
“We’ve been pretty good at Texas in the past, and this type of track seems to really suit our Allstate Peterbilt Group team. We’ve been running up near the front the last few times we’ve raced there, and Bummy (crew chief Mike Bumgarner) had a great setup the last race. I can’t wait to get out there and get going.” – Michael Annett
“I’m really looking forward to getting to Texas this weekend with our Sam’s Club Chevrolet. We had a great car here earlier this season and I feel extremely confident that Jason (Burdett, crew chief) and all the guys on this JR Motorsports team will give me a car just as fast on Saturday. Hopefully we can have a nice, smooth day and be one spot better at the end of the race and get this Round of 8 started on a really strong note. We’re ready to go.” – Justin Allgaier
“This No. 8 QPS Employment Group team gave me a great car last weekend and we put together an entire race while running up front. That gives us extra confidence as we head to Texas this weekend. It’ll be my first time there but we’ve had a good couple races on 1.5-mile tracks this year and hopefully we can have this No. 8 towards the front again this weekend.” – Sam Mayer
“This is the one that slipped away from us last year. It couldhave locked us in to Phoenix to race for a championship but we lost it on the last lap. We need to go out and have another good run and be towards the front in both stages and hopefully we can fight for the win again at the end. It’s all about points and trying to stay as far ahead of the cut line as possible while making no mistakes.” – Noah Gragson
JRM Team Updates:
• JRM at Texas: JRM has competed at Texas Motor Speedway a combined 85 times in the NXS. Over the course of those 85 starts at the 1.5-mile facility, the organization has tallied one win, 22 top fives and 52 top 10s, while holding an average finish of 11.0. JRM’s lone win came in 2014 with Chase Elliott and the No. 9 team.
• #FridgeHunters: Fridge Hunters know how to work a Flexipe: We aren’t making a list, shopping, and spending hours in the kitchen. Think fast and loose! Grab a base like pasta, rice or bread. Add some veggies. Throw in some protein. And don’t forget the Hellmann’s. It works wonders with pastas, salads, sandwiches and bowls. Do a little chopping, toss in the skillet, and look at you–you’re Fridge Hunting with a Flexipe. A-mmmmazing. POST A PHOTO, TAG IT #FRIDGEHUNTERS. Show off what you made with those random ingredients and challenge a friend to Fridge Hunt, too. Let’s save as many meals as possible.
• Allstate Peterbilt Group: Michael Annett’s No. 1 Chevrolet will carry sponsorship this weekend from Allstate Peterbilt Group in honor of its 50th anniversary. Established in 1971, Allstate Peterbilt Group started with just one dealership location in South Saint Paul, Minnesota, and has since grown into an award winning one-stop resource for truckers with over 20 locations across the Upper Midwest serving Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, and Wisconsin. Their secret? Never losing sight of what made these last 50 years possible…serving their customers.
