TRACK: Richmond Raceway
RACE: ToyotaCare 250 (250 laps / 188 miles)
DATE: Saturday, April 2, 2021
TV: 1:30 p.m. ET on FS1
RADIO: 1:00 p.m. ET on MRN Radio Network and SiriusXM Ch. 90
Quotes:
Sam Mayer: “We had a really good run last week in COTA that qualified us for the Dash 4 Cash this weekend. I can’t wait to get to Richmond, it’s a great track for me and I know Taylor (Moyer, crew chief) and this entire Accelerate Professional Talent Solutions team will have this car ready to go. Hopefully we can come out of this weekend with a win, the $100k and another chance to race for the Dash 4 Cash.”
Justin Allgaier: “I can’t wait to get back to Richmond with our BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet. Richmond has always been a really strong track for us over the past few years and I see no reason why that won’t be the case again this weekend. Hopefully we can have a smooth day and be there in the end to fight for the win. It’s going to be a fun day for sure.”
Josh Berry: “I’ve only raced at Richmond a couple of times but I really enjoy racing there. The way the tires wear out during the long runs reminds me a lot of the late model so I am excited to get back to that style of racing. After how last weekend went in COTA, this Tire Pros team is due for a good run and hopefully we can do just that this weekend.”
Noah Gragson: “Last year we had a really strong Bass Pro Shops/TrueTimber/Black Rifle Coffee Camaro at Richmond, so that gives this team a lot of confidence as we head into this weekend and having another chance to win a Dash 4 Cash race. I can’t thank Xfinity enough for allowing us drivers to run for $100k and hopefully we are walking out of Richmond with another large check but also with a trophy.”
Notes:
- Sam Mayer will compete for a $100,000 prize in his first Dash 4 Cash race this weekend at Richmond Raceway.
- In one NASCAR Xfinity Series start at the .75-mile facility, Mayer led seven laps en route to a 12th-place finish. Mayer also made two Truck Series starts at Richmond with a best finish of ninth in 2021.
- According to NASCAR’s loop data statistics, Mayer had the fifth-best driver rating (110.2) at Circuit of the Americas last weekend. Mayer led the charge for JR Motorsports in the category.
- Mayer currently sits ninth in the Championship standings, 27 points above the cutline and 96 points from the leader.
- Justin Allgaier enters this weekend at Richmond on a string of five consecutive top-five finishes at the Virginia short track.
- Overall, Allgaier has earned two victories, eight top fives and 11 top 10s in 21 career NXS starts at Richmond.
- The Illinois native’s victories both came in the 2020 season, where Allgaier led 213 out of a possible 500 laps en route to the wins.
- According to NASCAR’s loop data statistics, Allgaier currently ranks first in laps led (494), laps run inside the top 15 (4,164), fastest laps run (314) and quality passes (421).
- Josh Berry returns to the site where he earned his first career NXS top-10 finish. Berry started fifth and finished seventh in his first start at Richmond in 2015.
- On tracks measuring less than 1 mile in length in the NXS, Berry has seven starts with one win, one top five and three top 10s.
- Berry remains fifth in the championship standings only 77 markers behind teammate Noah Gragson who is currently leading the field.
- In two starts at the .75-mile oval, Berry holds an average finish of 15.5 with his most recent start coming during the 2021 season.
- Noah Gragson is one of four drivers to compete for Xfinity’s Dash 4 Cash $100k prize this weekend. The Las Vegas native has four D4C checks and looks to add a record fifth.
- Gragson heads into this weekend as the most recent winner at Richmond, taking last fall’s race after leading the final 14 laps.
- The 23-year-old driver has had a hot hand so far in 2022, winning at Phoenix and earning top-five finishes in five of the six races.
- Richmond has been a very good track for Gragson, as he has the one victory, three top-five and five top-10 efforts in six starts. His average finish there is 7.5.
JRM Team Updates:
• JR Motorsports at Richmond: JR Motorsports has competed at Richmond Raceway a combined 85 times in the NXS. Over the course of these 85 starts at the .75-mile facility, JRM has tallied six wins, 28 top fives – the most it has at any facility – and 52 top 10s. JRM’s most recent win came with Noah Gragson during the 2021 season. The organization has won three straight races at Richmond as Justin Allgaier swept the doubleheader in 2020 and Gragson won the only event in 2021.
• Tire Pros Store Appearance: JRM driver Josh Berry will be making an appearance at 301 Auto Repair Tire Pros located at 8270 Jupiter Drive, Mechanicsville, VA 23116 on Friday, April 1 from 12 p.m. – 1 p.m. ET.
• Dash 4 Cash Panache: Should Noah Gragson win the opening Xfinity Dash 4 Cash bonus this week at Richmond, he will become the alltime winningest driver in program history. The 23-year-old Nevada driver has won four Dash 4 Cash bonuses over the past two seasons, including three of the four in 2021. Currently, Gragson is tied with teammate Justin Allgaier and former JRM drivers Regan Smith and Elliott Sadler for the top spot. Since the beginning of the program in 2009, JR Motorsports has collected 17 Dash 4 Cash wins. Sam Mayer will vie for his first $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus by virtue of his fifth-place finish last week at Circuit of the Americas. Gragson qualified after finishing fourth at COTA.
