This Week in Motorsports: February 13-20, 2022
· NCS/NXS/NCWTS/ARCA: Daytona International Speedway – February 16-19
PLANO, Texas (February 14, 2023) – It is the official kickoff to the 2023 NASCAR season as teams head to the iconic Daytona International Speedway for the Daytona 500 race weekend.
NASCAR National Series – NCS| NXS| NCTS
Hamlin looks to add to incredible Daytona 500 success… Denny Hamlin continues to be one to watch in The Great American Race. Hamlin is Toyota’s only Daytona 500 winner – a feat he has accomplished three times – in 2016, 2019 and 2020.
Official Reddick Toyota-debut… Two-time Xfinity Series champion Tyler Reddick makes his official Toyota debut this weekend at the Daytona 500. Reddick had a strong run in the non-points, Clash at LA Coliseum, earning a top-10 finish in his first run behind the wheel of a Toyota Camry TRD for 23XI Racing.
Wallace plans to be one spot better… Bubba Wallace is coming off a career-best season with best-ever totals in top-fives (five), top-10s (10) and average finish (18.3). Wallace is looking to add to his success with a Daytona 500 win. The Alabama-native has finished in the runner-up spot in the Great American Race twice, including last season.
Pastrana ready for first Daytona 500 attempt… Motorsports legend Travis Pastrana will make his first career Daytona 500 attempt, aboard a third entry for 23XI Racing. Pastrana has two scenarios to make his way into the field either by being the one of the two fastest cars in single-car qualifying on Wednesday or by being the top-finishing open car in his Thursday duel event.
Double for Smith… Sammy Smith is experiencing his first Daytona Speedweek as the 18-year-old will get two opportunities to compete on the high-banks. Smith will make his Truck Series debut on Friday, driving the No. 17 TRICON Garage Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, before making his Daytona Xfinity Series debut on Saturday in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota GR Supra.
Nemechek competing in Xfinity Series in 2023… After two seasons in the NASCAR Truck Series, John Hunter Nemechek returns to the NASCAR Xfinity Series in the No. 20 Toyota GR Supra for a full season run. Nemechek has already had success with Joe Gibbs Racing, as he drove to victory at Texas Motor Speedway in 2021.
Grala back full-time… For the first time in his NASCAR career, Kaz Grala will compete full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series with Sam Hunt Racing, as the team fields a full-time driver for the first time in its short history. Grala won at Daytona as an 18-year-old in the NASCAR Truck Series in 2017. The Boston-native also has top-five finishes in both of his Xfinity starts at Daytona.
Heim ready to back up rookie title… Corey Heim had a stellar run in his debut season in the NASCAR Truck Series with two wins and 10 top-10 finishes in just 16 starts. Now with the newly formed TRICON Garage, Heim gets to run for his first Truck Series title. Heim has won back-to-back races at Daytona in ARCA Menards Series action.
TRICON Garage set for debut… TRICON Garage, formerly David Gilliland Racing, is back with Team Toyota and will make its return with five Toyota Tundra TRD Pros at Daytona. In addition to Heim and Smith, Tanner Gray, Dean Thompson and Jason White will compete for the new look team.
NASCAR Regional Series – ARCA
Love looking for lots of wins in 2023… Toyota’s lone full-time driver in the ARCA Menards Series this season is 18-year-old Jesse Love, who turned 18 just last month. The Toyota development driver has run 28 national ARCA events with two wins and 24 top-10 finishes.
Venturini plans for sixth straight season opening win… Venturini Motorsports has had an incredible run of success at the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway as the team has won five consecutive races at Daytona. They will have four chances to continue that streak on Saturday with Love, Amber Balcaen, Toni Breidinger and Gus Dean behind the wheel.
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.
Toyota directly employs more than 48,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 45 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 20 electrified options, with more in showrooms later this year.
Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.
