Dakoda will be making his third career NASCAR XFINITY Series start at Michigan International Speedway to go along with three prior starts in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and one in the ARCA Racing Series. Armstrong has a best XFINITY Series finish of 16th at the Brooklyn, Michigan track which occurred in this event last season.
Kasey Kahne has three poles at Michigan -- in 2006, 2010 and 2015. After starting the June 2006 race from the pole position, the Enumclaw, Washington, native led 19 laps and went on to take the checkered flag for his fifth career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win.
Brian Scott may be making his first Sprint Cup Series start this weekend at Michigan International Speedway, but the two-mile speedway is not a new track for Scott with several years of XFINITY Series racing experience there.
After a Top-20 finish in Pocono this past weekend, Aric Almirola jumped two positions in the Championship Point Standings to 24th place. Almirola is looking forward to going back to the Irish Hills of Michigan in the No. 43 Smithfield Ford to continue his climb through the standings after a string of disappointing finishes.
“Michigan is a track that Roush Fenway, Ford, and Jack (Roush) have had a lot of success. We always want to have a strong showing at Michigan since it is in the backyard of Ford and Roush Industries. I’m really looking forward to racing the new aero package.
“Michigan is always a special place to race for us since it is in (team owner) Jack (Roush) and Ford’s backyard. It really gives you some extra motivation to go out there and get the job done. I’m confident that (crew chief) Matt (Puccia) will give me a solid AdvoCare Ford that will let us get up front and make some noise come Sunday afternoon.”
“Michigan is a pretty cool track to race on. You can carry a lot of speed down the straightaways and really make some moves. I’m looking forward to getting there with our LoudMouth Exhaust Mustang and seeing if we can get Ford in victory lane in their backyard.”
“I don’t know what it is about Michigan, but it’s one of my favorite tracks to go to and is a great track for Roush. I’m undefeated in the Truck series, two races, two wins and four wins in the Cup series. It’s just one of those race tracks that I love the way it’s laid out.
Ryan Reed has competed at Michigan International Speedway (MIS) twice in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. In 2014, Reed finished 11th after starting 24th. In this race last season, Reed finished 19th after starting in the same position.
"This season, I fully expect our team to do everything we did last season and more. My goals are to run inside the top 10 and finish inside the top 15. We have a great advantage every time we come to race tracks like this; our ECR Engines have a ton of power to get us around the track. I enjoy racing here and hope to bring home a solid finish for this 95 team."
Haiden Deegan came into St. Louis with a shot at securing a second straight Western Divisional 250SMX Class Championship and did so by dominating against a full field of the class’ top talent during the East/West Showdown.
The two-time ARCA Menards Series East champion from Eden Prairie, Minnesota, led 80 of 250 laps and became the 183rd competitor to win in the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series division by winning for the first time ever at The Rock.
