Toyota NASCAR Charlotte All-Star Advance

Toyota NASCAR Charlotte All-Star Advance
Week of May 15 – 20, 2017

Truex Topping the Charts: Martin Truex Jr. drove the new 2018 Toyota Camry to victory lane for a second time this season at Kansas Speedway, capturing his ninth Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) victory. Although Truex continues to remain second in the MENCS point standings, he’s at the top of the charts in numerous categories this season. Truex leads NASCAR’s premier series with the most playoff points (15), most stage wins (five) and most laps led (536) as he puts together what could be his most-successful season yet.

Hey Now, You’re an All Star: Toyota is set to field four drivers in the Monster Energy All-Star race on Saturday including Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Martin Truex Jr. Rookies Erik Jones and Daniel Suárez will compete in the Monster Energy Open prior to the All-Star race in hopes of making the main event through a stage win or the Fan Vote. Among the 15 drivers set to compete in the All-Star race, Busch leads the field with the highest driver rating (101.9), but he has yet to capture a victory in the event. In 16 All-Star starts, Kenseth has the second-most top-10 finishes (12) while Hamlin owns Toyota’s only win in the event (2015).

Starting 100 in a Tundra: After making his first Toyota Tundra start in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) in 2008, Kyle Busch will celebrate his 100th Tundra start at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Friday. In his tenth year running a Tundra, Busch has captured 41 of his 47 total victories with Toyota, including his most-recent victory at Kansas Speedway on May 12. Busch is just four wins from tying Ron Hornaday Jr. (51) for the most NCWTS victories in series history and Busch has the most all-time NCWTS wins at Charlotte (10). While the Tundra driver looks to add to his series wins record at Charlotte, he continues to support NASCAR’s youth movement by fielding entries for young Kyle Busch Motorsports drivers Christopher Bell (22 years old) and Noah Gragson (18).

Rhodes on the Rise: 20-year-old Ben Rhodes looked to have the Toyota Tundra 250 on lockdown at Kansas Speedway, leading the field with eight laps remaining when debris went through his radiator, ultimately causing the engine to expire and relegating him to a 23rd-place finish. It was the second time this season Rhodes led laps as he paced the field four times for 25 circuits on the 1.5-mile track. Rhodes looks to continue building off a strong run at Kansas this Friday as he makes his second NCWTS start at Charlotte. Earlier this month, the ThorSport Racing driver participated in the NCWTS test at Charlotte, posting the seventh-fastest overall time in the session.

Staying Connected: You can follow Toyota Racing on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter by using #ToyotaNation and online at www.toyotaracing.com. For media images, please visit www.toyotaracingmedia.com.

Toyota at Charlotte – Notes & Numbers:
In 2017, Truex has the most laps led in MENCS competition with 536 while fellow Toyota driver Busch is second with 521 … The two drivers have led 30 percent of the total laps run this season … Matt Crafton returns to Charlotte as the defending NCWTS race winner … Crafton also captured his first NCWTS win at the 1.5-mile track in 2008.
Toyota 2017 Statistics: