JR MOTORSPORTS TEAM PREVIEW:
TRACK: Daytona International Speedway Road Course
RACE: UNOH 188 (52 laps / 187.72 miles)
DATE: Saturday, Aug. 15, 2020
Michael Annett
No. 1 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet
• Michael Annett enters this week’s race at Daytona International Speedway’s road course on a streak of seven consecutive top-10 finishes in NASCAR Xfinity Series competition after finishing 10th at Road America last week.
• In two road course starts this season, Annett has finished in the top 10 twice, including a ninth at Indianapolis.
• The 3.61-mile road course at Daytona will host its first NXS race this weekend. At the 2.5-mile oval, Annett has one victory, two top-five and three top-10 finishes.
• Annett will return to the familiar Pilot Flying J scheme this weekend at Daytona. Annett has earned two top-five and six top-10 finishes in Pilot Flying J livery so far in 2020.
Daniel Hemric
No. 8 Poppy Bank Chevrolet
• Daniel Hemric will make his ninth NXS start on a road course this weekend in Daytona.
• In eight previous starts on road courses in the NXS, Hemric has earned three top fives, four top 10s and a best finish of second in the 2017 event at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
• Hemric has also scored an additional two top-five finishes in six combined road course starts across the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and the NASCAR Cup Series.
• Through 12 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 / Black Rifle Coffee Chevrolet
• Noah Gragson has two NXS starts at road courses in 2020 and holds an average finish of 4.5.
• Throughout Gragson’s NXS career on road courses, he has an average finish of 5.3, including four top fives and no finishes outside of the top 10.
• After 18 races in the 2020 season, Gragson leads the way for JRM with two wins, eight top fives, 12 top 10s and is currently fourth in the championship standings.
• Gragson is currently the series leader in stage wins, scoring a total of eight throughout the 2020 season.
Justin Allgaier
No. 7 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet
• Justin Allgaier is a three-time winner on road courses in NXS competition. He’s visited Victory Lane at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve (2012), Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Road America (2018).
• So far this season, the Illinois native’s best finish on a road course came at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July where he finished seventh after leading two laps.
• Last year, Allgaier posted four top-10 finishes in four starts on road courses with a best finish of third at Watkins Glen.
• Through 18 events in 2020, Allgaier has led 418 laps and won seven stages. He remains seventh in the NXS point standings.
Driver Quotes
“We had a solid run at Road America and continued our streak of top-10 finishes, so we’re feeling pretty good about this trip to the Daytona road course. None of us have ever raced on the new course, so it will be about who gets it right the quickest. With no practice or qualifying, it’s going to be interesting into Turn 1 for the first time. I’m looking for another good run at another new place.”– Michael Annett
“The Daytona road course is a track that I’ve wanted to race on for a long time. No one has had laps on the current configuration and we’re going to be starting the race without any practice, so it’s going to be a lot different than the scenario we had at Indy. We were able to get some laps in practice there and familiarize ourselves with what was going on. With Daytona, our familiarization is going to be Turn 1, lap 1 of the race. There’s going to be a lot of unknowns, but our BRANDT Professional Agriculture team has prepared as best we can and our goal is to come out of this weekend with a strong finish.” – Justin Allgaier
“This weekend is going to be really interesting at the Daytona road course. It’s a place that none of us have really competed at before and that’s going to make this race something to see. I’m really looking forward to getting down there and seeing what we can do with our Poppy Bank Chevrolet. I’ve always really enjoyed road racing and I feel extremely confident that we will unload with a lot of speed and be in contention all day long on Saturday.” – Daniel Hemric
“Heading to the Daytona road course and not having any practice beforehand is going to be a lot of fun. We’ve always brought great road course cars to the track and that gives me the confidence as we head into this weekend at a track very few of us have raced on. I’ve been in the Chevy sim trying to get familiar with the layout and braking points. I think the fans are in for a real treat because of the unknowns that this track is going to bring all of us. The last time we were at Daytona the Bass Pro Shops/TrueTimber/Black Rifle Coffee Camaro was in victory lane and I think that’s something we can do again this weekend!” – Noah Gragson
