TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol, Tennessee
March 16-17, 2024

BRISTOL DOUBLEHEADER

After a three-year stint on dirt, Bristol Motor Speedway will return to its traditional concrete surface for the track’s spring event as the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) will hit the track’s famed half-mile high banks for a doubleheader race weekend. This weekend will mark the first of two appearances for both series at Bristol Motor Speedway, with all three NASCAR national series returning to “The Last Great Colosseum” for the annual night race tripleheader in September.

Chevrolet at Bristol Motor Speedway:

Sunday’s Food City 500 will mark the NCS’ 124th appearance on Bristol Motor Speedway’s concrete configuration. Chevrolet has earned a winning percentage of 37.4 percent in NASCAR’s top division at the Tennessee half-mile with a series-leading 46 victories. Charlie Glotzbach recorded Chevrolet’s first win at Bristol – and the first for the Monte Carlo – in July 1971, which started a run of seven consecutive victories at the track for the Bowtie brand. Kyle Larson is credited with Chevrolet’s most recent NCS triumph at the track (Sept. 2021) – a victory that took the Team Chevy driver one step closer to his first career championship title.

The NCTS made its debut at Bristol Motor Speedway in June 1995, with Saturday’s Weather Guard Truck Race marking the series’ 27th race at the Tennessee half-mile. Rick Carelli drove Chevrolet to its first NCTS victory at the track in June 1996, with Team Chevy’s Sam Mayer earning the manufacturer its 10th – and most recent – NCTS triumph in September 2020.

 
LARSON’S STRETCH OF SHORT-TRACK SUCCESS

Team Chevy’s Kyle Larson is undoubtedly a favorite heading into the Bristol Motor Speedway race weekend. The former series champion put on a stellar performance on the series’ short-tracks last season. In six points-paying races on tracks measuring less than one-mile, Larson finished no worse than sixth in four of those events – including two victories (Richmond and Martinsville) and a runner-up finish at the Bristol night race. In addition, the 31-year-old California native posted a near dominate weekend in NASCAR’s return to North Wilkesboro Speedway – collecting the victories in both the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event.

Larson’s one career NCS win at Bristol Motor Speedway came in September 2021. The victory was the start of an impressive stretch of success for the Hendrick Motorsports driver at the Tennessee half-mile, with Larson becoming the only driver to tally a top-five result in each of the series’ last three events on the track’s concrete configuration.

REMEMBERING A MILESTONE

On March 25, 2007, Kyle Busch drove Chevrolet and Hendrick Motorsports to a history-making victory at Bristol Motor Speedway. In a side-by-side overtime finish, Busch edged out Jeff Burton at the line by a mere 0.064-seconds to take the win – a record that still stands as the closest margin of victory in a NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol. The win was a milestone feat for both Chevrolet and car owner Rick Hendrick – marking the manufacturer’s 600th all-time NCS win and 200th overall win for Hendrick.

Making it even more special, the victory came in the competition debut of NASCAR’s fifth-generation race car – also known as the “Car of Tomorrow”. The new-generation race car marked the return of the Impala SS to NASCAR competition, with the legendary nameplate previously competing in the series from 1959 to 1964. Throughout its time on the track in NASCAR’s top division, the Impala/Impala SS collected 152 victories before retiring from competition following the 2012 season.

 
BUSCH BY THE NUMBERS AT BRISTOL

Kyle Busch’s storied NASCAR career has seen much success at Bristol Motor Speedway. In 34 NCS starts at the Tennessee half-mile, Busch has tallied a series-leading eight victories – more than double the next active driver, Brad Keselowski, with three. The 38-year-old Nevada native also leads the series’ active drivers in runner-up finishes (four), top-fives (14), top-10s (19) and laps led (2,593).

One of his most notable achievements in the NASCAR national ranks also came at “The Last Great Colosseum”. To date, Busch is the only driver in NASCAR history to win all three national series races in a single weekend – a feat he accomplished on two separate occasions at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2010 and 2017.

Busch will also be making his third NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series start of the season at Bristol Motor Speedway – returning to the seat of the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Silverado RST. The winningest driver in series’ history, Busch has recorded five of his 65 all-time NCTS victories at the Tennessee short-track.

 
NCTS BACK ON-TRACK; SILVERADO RST REMAINS UNDEFEATED

As the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series returns from its first off-weekend of the season, Chevrolet’s drivers and teams will look to power the manufacturer to its fourth-straight victory in Saturday’s Weather Guard Truck Race. The Silverado RST has been unbeatable thus far this season – courtesy of victories by Team Chevy’s Nick Sanchez, Kyle Busch and Rajah Caruth.

The Bowtie brand also remains steady at the top of both the NCTS’ driver and manufacturer points standings. Coming off a runner-up finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s Tyler Ankrum maintained the lead in the driver points standings by five-markers over second-place. Six drivers from five different Chevrolet organizations have earned a top-10 position in the points standings, with Ankrum leading 2024 race winners Rajah Caruth (fourth) and Nick Sanchez (fifth); and fellow Team Chevy drivers Bret Holmes, Christian Eckes and Grant Enfinger in the eighth through 10th positions, respectively.

 
BOWTIE BULLETS:

· Chevrolet will pace the field in the doubleheader race weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. The Silverado RST will lead the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in Saturday’s Weather Guard Truck Race; and the Camaro ZL1 will lead the NASCAR Cup Series in Sunday’s Food City 500.

· Chevrolet has recorded wins in eight of the 11 points-paying races in NASCAR’s three national series this season – remaining undefeated in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

· Active Chevrolet drivers with a NASCAR Cup Series win at Bristol Motor Speedway:

Kyle Busch: series-leading eight wins (2019, ’18, ’17, ’11, ’10, ’09 sweep, ’07)

Kyle Larson: one win (2021)

· In 123 NASCAR Cup Series races held at Bristol Motor Speedway, Chevrolet has recorded a series-leading 46 victories – a winning percentage of 37.4 percent.

· Within the first three points-paying races of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season, each Chevrolet organization had already recorded at least one top-10 finish.

· Within the season’s first three tripleheader race weekends for NASCAR’s three national series, four graduates of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity Program have earned victories in their respective series this season – all of which come from the Chevrolet camp (Nick Sanchez, Daniel Suarez, Rajah Caruth, Kyle Larson).

· With its 42 NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships, 33 NASCAR Cup Series Driver Championships, and 854 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title as the winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history.

FOR THE FANS:

· Fans can visit the Team Chevy Racing Display in the Fan Midway at Bristol Motor Speedway.

· Activation Hours:

Saturday, March 16: 12 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Sunday, March 17: 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Manufacturer Points Standings

Chevrolet: 151
Toyota: 141 (-10)
Ford: 132 (-19)

Manufacturer Points Standings

Toyota: 150
Chevrolet: 148 (-2)
Ford: 120 (-30)

Manufacturer Points Standings

Chevrolet: 120
Toyota: 103 (-17)
Ford: 95 (-25)
 
TUNE-IN:

NASCAR Cup Series

Food City 500

Sunday, March 17, at 3:30 p.m. ET

(FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series

Weather Guard Truck Race

Saturday, March 16, at 8 p.m. ET

(FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)

 
QUOTABLE QUOTES:

COREY LAJOIE, NO. 7 GAINBRIDGE CAMARO ZL1

“Looking forward for the opportunity to rebound at Bristol with the Gainbridge Camaro. We’ve had decent speed there the last couple of races, so we need to execute a solid day and try to walk away with a top-10.”

AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 16 MOUNTAIN DEW / CHEETOS CAMARO ZL1

“I’m looking forward to getting back in the Cup car at Bristol. Bristol is a racetrack we’ve had success at in 2022 so hopefully we can learn from the things we have done well. Last year we had speed in practice but had an incident early in the race. I’m excited to see what we can make happen.”

DANIEL HEMRIC, NO. 31 CIRKUL CAMARO ZL1

“I’ve always loved Bristol. The timing of the race is going to be fun seeing how the track changes and evolves from the beginning of the weekend and throughout the mid parts of the race. You go through such a big swing, so we’re going to build some versatility within our car. Hopefully we can give ourselves an opportunity to contend as the laps wind down. It’s a long event, but it’s one of the most fun ones we run.”

RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 BALL PARK BUNS & ROLLS CAMARO ZL1

Are you looking forward to being back on concrete at Bristol even though you had success on the dirt surface?

“Yeah, we had two top-fives and felt like we had a really good shot of winning the first race on the dirt, but I feel like our cars are just not made for dirt racing. Bristol is by far my favorite race track so I’m really excited to go back to the concrete race track, the red and white painted walls are sick and I can’t wait to get there and rub up close to the wall with those things. I think Bristol puts on one of the best races that we have throughout the season and I’m looking forward to being on concrete for both races this season.”

What would a win at Bristol mean to you?

“We finished second quite a few times in Cup and in the Xfinity Series. Bristol is kind of that next one that I want to check off the list. Obviously, the Bristol night race is probably at the top of everybody’s Bristol races, but at this point I would take any Bristol win. Man, it would be huge and it would be a big boost for our season. We’ve been strong at times and I feel like Bristol we can maybe put everything together that we’ve been working on this offseason and looking forward to getting there this weekend.”

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1

Bowman on racing at Bristol Motor Speedway:

“I think this weekend may play out similar to the fall race- even though it’s not a playoff race. It’s going to be exciting; Bristol (Motor Speedway) always is that. I’m looking forward to it. It would be an awesome place to win and hopefully we can make that happen.”

BLAKE HARRIS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1

Harris on racing at Bristol Motor Speedway:

“The fall race at Bristol (Motor Speedway) was pretty strong for the No. 48 Ally team. We had a top-10 run going and sat I think in the sixth to eighth position most of the day. (We) didn’t have the speed to get in the top five. Track position is super important, so we need to go qualify well and then I think we have pretty good baselines. A couple teammates ran really well in that race as well and we were just outside the top five ourselves so with a few tweaks off of our notes, I feel good about where we are going.”

ZANE SMITH, NO. 71 FOCUSED HEALTH CAMARO ZL1

Bristol is the first short track of the season, how are you feeling going into Sunday’s race?

“Our goal is to keep getting better each weekend. Bristol is definitely its own animal, but a fun track to race. The fans always provide a great atmosphere there and I am looking forward to being able to race on both Saturday and Sunday. It’s going to be a busy weekend but a lot of fun.”

CARSON HOCEVAR, NO. 77 GAINBRIDGE CAL RIPKEN SR. FDN. CAMARO ZL1

You’ve secured two consecutive top-15 finishes to kick off your rookie year. How are you staying focused and motivated to maintain this momentum and build on your impressive start?

“I feel like we’ve been able to capitalize on a couple challenging races and finish in the top 15. Both races ended up being solid days for points. It all builds together. So, to keep momentum, we keep bringing fast race cars and capitalize, adapt and overcome any challenges that are thrown our way. That way you know when we have those good days, we’ll really let the results show.”

Last year, your best NCS finish was an 11th at Bristol, where you even reached fifth by the end of stage two. What strategies can you use to replicate that success and potentially achieve an even better result at Bristol this time around?

“You know, we got to fifth and had to hold on with a loose wheel and finished in 11th which really showed the strength of our racecar that week, to be able to hold on like that for 130 laps. So, I think Luke and I, having that notebook of confidence walking into this place with the help of our pit crew, we should be able to have a better finish than what we got in the fall.”

 
Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics

Manufacturers Championships:

Total (1949-2023): 42

First title for Chevrolet: 1958

Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)

Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2023

Drivers Championships:

Total (1949-2021): 33

First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)

Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)

Most Recent: Kyle Larson (2021)

Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021

Event Victories:

Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)

2024 STATISTICS:

Wins: 3

Poles: 0

Laps Led: 354

Top-five finishes: 7

Top-10 finishes: 12

Stage wins: 3

· Chase Elliott: 1

· Kyle Larson: 2

CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:

Total Chevrolet race wins: 854 (1949 to date)

Poles won to date: 743

Laps led to date: 249,529

Top-five finishes to date: 4,305

Top-10 finishes to date: 8,873

Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date:

       General Motors: 1,188

       Chevrolet: 854

       Pontiac: 154

       Oldsmobile: 115

       Buick: 65



       Ford: 828                                                           

       Ford: 728

       Mercury: 96

       Lincoln: 4



       Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467

       Dodge: 217

       Plymouth: 191

       Chrysler: 59



       Toyota: 181

 

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

In 16 NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) races at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, including both pavement and dirt surfaces, Spire Motorsports has logged one top-15 and six top-25 finishes with nine different drivers. Corey LaJoie, driver of Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Gainbridge Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 finished 15th in the 2022 Bass Pro Shops Night Race. The Mooresville, N.C., team fields the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NCS with LaJoie, and fellow drivers Zane Smith and Carson Hocevar, respectively.

The Food City 500 from Bristol Motor Speedway will be televised live on FOX Sunday, March 17, beginning at 3:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The fifth of 36 races on the 2024 NCS schedule will be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. NASCAR RaceDay’s pre-race coverage on FS1 will take the green flag at 2 p.m. EDT and shift to FOX at 3 p.m.

Corey LaJoie – Driver, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Corey LaJoie will make his 15th NCS start at Bristol Motor Speedway in Sunday’s Food City 500. In 14 previous starts at “Thunder Valley”, including both pavement and dirt surfaces, LaJoie has an average start of 29.8, an average finish of 27.6, led 48 laps led and completed 4,807 of 5,500 laps attempted (85.4 percent).
• Gainbridge Insurance Agency, LLC (“Gainbridge”), a Group 1001 company, is an insurtech which strives to offer products that are simple, intuitive, and backed by smart technology with no complexity or hidden fees. Gainbridge empowers consumers to take control of their financial future with solutions that are accessible to everyone no matter their budget or financial knowledge. Gainbridge’s digital-first distribution model underpins its mission to reach all communities, including those that have been historically underserved by the national financial system.
• LaJoie earned a series/venue-best 15th-place finish in the September 17, 2022 Bass Pro Shops Night Race.
• In the NCS most recent visit to Bristol Motor Speedway, the Concord, N.C. driver started 10th and finished 25th behind the wheel of the Jessie Rees Foundation (NEGU) Chevy.
• Last weekend at Phoenix Raceway, LaJoie started 35th but ultimately finished 33rd after being collected in a lap-206 incident, forcing the third-generation racer to retire from the event prior to the checkered flag.
• LaJoie is currently tied for with Spire Motorsports teammate Carson Hocevar for 23rd in the NCS championship point standings. Both drivers are 10 points outside 20th, while just 17 markers separate them from the top 15.

Corey LaJoie Quotes
Tough result last weekend at Phoenix but you’ve had some good runs at Bristol so that seems like a good track to bounce back from a less-than-ideal weekend.
“Looking forward to the opportunity to rebound at Bristol with the Gainbridge Chevrolet Camaro. We’ve had good speed there the last couple races, so we just need to execute a solid day and try to walk away with a top 10.”

Zane Smith – Driver, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Zane Smith will make his first NASCAR Cup Series start at Bristol Motor Speedway in the Food City 500 on Sunday driving the No. 71 Focused Health Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports. It marks his fifth NCS start for Spire Motorsports and his 14th career start.
• On Saturday night, Smith will make his eighth NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) start at Bristol. It will be the second race of the four-race campaign with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing in the No. 91 Chevrolet Silverado.
• Smith started 28th in Sunday’s Cup race at Phoenix Raceway. The Huntington Beach, Calif., native held his position throughout the 312-lap race that saw few cautions, taking the checkered flag in 29th.
• Focused Health is a National Health Insurance agency founded by industry veterans with over 60 years combined industry experience. Primarily focused on the government programs space, Focused Health partners with payors and employers to deliver health insurance solutions for individuals and families. For more information visit AtFocusedHealth.com.
• Fans can now pre-order Focused Health No. 71 Zane Smith merchandise at shopzanesmith.com.

Zane Smith Quotes
Bristol is the first short track of the season, how are you feeling going into Sunday’s race?
“Our goal is to keep getting better each weekend. Bristol is definitely its own animal, but a fun track to race. The fans always provide a great atmosphere there and I am looking forward to being able to race on both Saturday and Sunday. It’s going to be a busy weekend but a lot of fun.”
You have carried the blue and orange Focused Health paint scheme with you for the last two races and including this coming weekend at Bristol. What’s this partnership mean to you?
“I’m fortunate for this partnership with Focused Health and it’s incredibly important to me. I’ve had great support from Shawn Holt and Larry Cassar during my racing career. It’s my job this year to bring awareness to the government supported health insurance programs available to our fans.”

Carson Hocevar – Driver, No.77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Carson Hocevar comes into the Food City 500 leading the Sunoco Rookie of the Year rankings and tied with Spire Motorsports teammate Corey LaJoie for 23rd in the NCS championship point standings. Both drivers are 10 points outside 20th, while just 17 markers separate them from the top 15.
• In his lone NCS start at Bristol Motor Speedway, Hocevar started 16th and finished 11th in last September’s Bass Pro Shops night race to record his best finish to date in NASCAR’s premier division.
• In collaboration with Gainbridge, a Group 1001 company, Hocevar’s No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 will carry the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation (CRSF) this weekend. The CRSF helps to strengthen America’s most underserved and distressed communities by supporting and advocating for children, building Youth Development Parks and STEM Centers, partnering with law enforcement and youth-service agencies, and addressing community needs through its national program initiatives. CRSF has opened 465 STEM Centers nationwide, gifting children in communities across the country a new access to state-of-the-art technology, hands-on learning experiences, and skill sets essential to the future of STEM.
• Hocevar continues his impressive rookie campaign following a hard-fought 15th-place finish at Sunday’s Shriners Children’s 500 at Phoenix Raceway. In four NCS races this season, the 21-year-old has recorded a 17.0 average start and a 22.3 average finish.
• In his four previous Bristol starts in the NCTS, Hocevar has earned two top-10s and boasts an average finish of 11.5. The Portage, Mich., native led six laps and completed 799 of the 800 laps contested (99.9 percent).
• Season ticket holders at BMS can meet Hocevar for a question-and-answer session in the Loyalty Lounge on Sunday, March 17, at noon.
• Hocevar’s crew chief Luke Lambert called Noah Gragson’s 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series win at the high-banked, half-mile oval. The victory was part of a four-race win streak that spanned Darlington, Kansas, Bristol and Texas Motor Speedway.
• In 372 races a top the pit box, Lambert has called one win, 26 top-five and 86 top-10 finishes in NASCAR’s premier division.

Carson Hocevar Quotes
You’ve secured two consecutive top-15 finishes to kick off your rookie year. How are you staying focused and motivated to maintain this momentum and build on your impressive start?
“I feel like we’ve been able to capitalize on a couple challenging races and finish in the top 15. Both races ended up being solid days for points. It all builds together. So, to keep momentum, we keep bringing fast race cars and capitalize, adapt and overcome any challenges that are thrown our way. That way you know when we have those good days, we’ll really let the results show.”
Last year, your best NCS finish was an 11th at Bristol, where you even reached fifth by the end of stage two. What strategies can you use to replicate that success and potentially achieve an even better result at Bristol this time around?
“You know, we got to fifth and had to hold on with a loose wheel and finished in 11th which really showed the strength of our racecar that week, to be able to hold on like that for 130 laps. So, I think Luke and I, having that notebook of confidence walking into this place with the help of our pit crew, we should be able to have a better finish than what we got in the fall.”
From the Top of the Box

Ryan Sparks – Crew Chief, No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Ryan Sparks serves in a dual role as both Spire Motorsports competition director and crew chief for driver Corey LaJoie and the No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro in the NCS.
• Sparks, a Winston-Salem, N.C., native, has been paired with LaJoie since 2020.
• Combined, Sparks and LaJoie have earned four top-five and seven top-10 finishes, including a pair of top four in the 2024 Daytona 500.

Stephen Doran – Crew Chief, No. 71 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Stephen Doran begins his first full season as a Cup Series crew chief leading Zane Smith and the No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet team during the 2024 season.
• In 2006, Doran got his start in NASCAR at Petty Enterprises.
• Prior to his arrival at Spire Motorsports, Doran worked at Stewart-Haas Racing as an engineer, most recently on the No. 4 car driven by Kevin Harvick.

Luke Lambert – Crew Chief, No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Luke Lambert is the crew chief for Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 team with 2024 NCS Rookie of the Year candidate Carson Hocevar
• The 2005 North Carolina State graduate has led the competition efforts for some of the sport’s most notable names including Jeff Burton, Ryan Newman, Elliott Sadler and Chris Buescher.
• In 2014, Lambert led Newman to a berth in the Championship 4, and ultimately a runner-up finish in the NCS championship point standings.

About Spire Motorsports …
Spire Motorsports is a NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race team co-owned by long-time NASCAR industry executives Jeff Dickerson and Thaddeus “T.J.” Puchyr. In 2024, Spire Motorsports will campaign the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NASCAR Cup Series with drivers Corey LaJoie, Zane Smith and Carson Hocevar, respectively. The team will also field the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Silverados full time in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. An all-star driver lineup will rotate throughout the 2024 season in the No. 7 Chevy. Rajah Caruth will drive the No. 71 entry and Chase Purdy rounds out the team’s fleet of Chevrolets in the No. 77.

Spire Motorsports earned its inaugural NASCAR Cup Series victory in its first full season of competition when Justin Haley took the checkered flag in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on July 7, 2019. Less than three years later, William Byron drove Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado to its inaugural NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win on April 7, 2022, at Martinsville Speedway. The team’s most recent win came on May 20, 2023, when Kyle Larson took the checkered flag in the Tyson 250 at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Food City 500 Advance | Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Chris Buescher, driver of the No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, is coming off a runner-up finish last weekend at Phoenix Raceway. As he prepares for Sunday’s annual Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway, where he has one career NASCAR Cup Series victory, he spoke about returning to the concrete surface for the spring race after three seasons on dirt.

CHRIS BUESCHER, No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang Dark Horse – WHAT IS IT ABOUT BRISTOL THAT SUITS YOUR DRIVING STYLE? “Bristol has been my favorite race track for a really long period of time. I’ve absolutely loved it there from the first I was able to go. I’ve always run really well there. I just had it quick pretty early on and even though I’ve got that sword at home right now and got a Bristol win, won a Bristol Night Race, which has been the one race on the top of my list that I care for just a little bit more than anywhere else. But I still go back to 2015 and having a fuel stumble on a green-white-checker finish and giving one away, so I still have those memories of the ones that did slip through, but from that one I think it’s just motivated me ever since to try and get that Bristol win. It’s just a fun track, honestly. I’ve loved where the surface has gone. I’d love to see the bottom and top have equal opportunities to make speed and make passes. I think that the top is probably a little bit more dominant in its most natural state, but some of the stuff that they’ve done with the PJ1 or I guess resin this weekend seems to have helped the bottom have that little bit of grip when needed to make some passes, so, to me, it’s the most fun track we go to. I feel like it gives us options. It may not be very wide to start, but it always finds its way to move around and be able to make some two or three-wide moves throughout the race and put on a good show. I’ve just really enjoyed that.”

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE? “I’m probably the worse one to ask right now when you look at our results on the year. The one thing I will say is that we’ve had a lot of speed every single place we’ve gone. We’ve been able to lead laps at the first three races. We’ve been able to be runner-up last week, which was huge for us. Our long run speed was fantastic, so I certainly feel like we are headed in the right direction. We’ve got some stuff to dial in still. I think, for us, last weekend we were able to finish very strong with both of our race cars and get back here and still feel like we have a ton of work to do to balance out this new Mustang and figure out how to optimize it. I feel like we left a lot on the table and that’s a good thing when you run as good as you do to say that there was a lot more out there. That puts us in a good spot heading back.”

WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOUR PROGRAM NEEDS TO REACH THAT NEXT LEVEL? “Our second half of last season was very strong – very, very good. Obviously, we were able to win a handful of races there, but we were very good most everywhere we went. Homestead snuck in there on us, but we took that and really said that if we can fire off this season where we left off, then we’ll basically be able to have the talks that we’re having right now – that we have had a chance to win races everywhere we’ve been. We’re not the dominant car at this point, but we’re certainly sneaking up on it and feel like we have the ability to get there. The big focus for us was to make sure that our first eight races were competitive. Last season, I felt like that’s where we missed it. It’s where I felt like we got behind and it took us way too far in the season to find what that was, so I guess to answer your question, I don’t know that I have the one thing that gets us there, that takes us over that edge, but we’re certainly way closer to start this season than we were last go around. I think that puts us in a position to where we are looking for one small step up versus at this time last year trying to figure out how we’re gonna climb that flight of stairs. That’s exactly what we were trying to do, so I don’t have the answer beyond right now, but I’m surely proud of what we’ve been able to do through the offseason.”

HOW OFTEN DO YOU SEE JACK AND HOW IS HE DOING? “Jack is doing good. He’s not coming to as many races now, but he’s still down here at the shop during the week. He’s still in all of our meetings that we do both post and pre-race for weekend prior and heading up, so we’ll be talking with him in a little over an hour when we sign up to start talking about Bristol. He’s still very active and involved in knowing what’s going to the racetrack, what we think and what our plans are, and the reminders from his experiences through the years. Usually, we get a little tidbit or a little story about where we’re heading into and something that has stuck in his mind through the years. I guess the big thing is don’t lift at the white flag at Bristol. I’m sure that will come up. Don’t tell him I said anything, but he’s doing great and it’s still good to see him around the shop and really focused in on all of our meetings. I promise you, as soon as I mess something up on the weekend I won’t even be out of the firesuit yet and I’ve got a missed call from Jack, so he’s staying in the loop.”

IS THERE ANY EXTRA PRESSURE RACING IN YOUR HOME STATE? COTA IS A WAYS FROM PROSPER, TEXAS. “Always, a little bit. COTA is farther away than Bristol, Darlington, Richmond, and Charlotte all are from us right now from where I grew up in Texas. It is still a home track and so, yes, there’s always a little more. The last handful of years that my parents were in Texas they were outside of Austin a little ways, so that was a place where they actually made a lot of friends in the area, so a lot of them will come out to the racetrack. Road course racing has been strong for us. We don’t have a win on one yet and that’s a little discouraging because we have been very close at times. We’re certainly trying to figure out how to make that a bigger possibility when we get to COTA. It seems to be the one road course that hasn’t been our strongest. We’ve got to figure out why that is. For whatever reason, Texas was the same way. We could figure out a lot of mile-and-a-halves and couldn’t quite get the home track down, so I don’t know if that’s a normal stat for drivers or not, but something that has certainly ached me a little bit from home tracks. But we’re ready to go down there and turn that around, get through that conversation and start talking about winning in front of that home crowd. That would be a big moment.”

YOU ARE THE MOST RECENT WINNER AT RICHMOND. HOW WILL THIS NEW PACKAGE REACT AT THAT TRACK? “I would say my thought process says that Richmond the package would show up as a bigger change versus others simply from the surface being more worn out and having more fall off there. I feel like we’re able to drive this car a little bit freer with this aero package to where you can get a little bit more feel in it. I don’t know that it changes our racing product a whole lot. We were still able to pass a lot of cars in Phoenix. We were able to pass a ton of cars last year, so I don’t know exactly how to break that down yet, but with the surface and the fall off that we will get at Richmond, it seems like that has the potential to have a bigger impact there. With that, I do think that it is still going to carry over a lot of what we had at Phoenix, a lot of that will come in at Richmond as well. I think there is a lot of similarity. I don’t know that you’re gonna see a huge shakeup from what you saw at Phoenix, but it’s gonna be a bit of an unknown. We haven’t run it enough to put any kind of a bow on this package or to understand where we’re at yet.”

DO YOU FEEL THE THINGS YOU NEED TO WORK ON AS A TEAM ARE ACHIEVABLE? “Yeah, we’re certainly probably working in more detail work. We’ve been on treasure hunts looking for golden horseshoes and rabbit’s feet and all that stuff would certainly go a long way for some of them, but the speed has been there, which is so hard to find. You can work on cleaning up decisions on restarts. You can work on timing on pit road. You can certainly work on fine-tuning and developing setups that are already proven to be competitive. It’s when you don’t have those baselines to even know where you need to search, when you’re really just guessing week to week a 20-minute practice with the limited adjustments we have, your race has been decided before you ever unload off the truck – not fully, but ultimately your potential has been decided at that point. You can get it better and you can work a couple spots here and there, but there’s just not the knobs to turn to get that fixed if you miss it from the get-go. Fortunately, we’re not having those conversations right now. We’re able to work within those smaller areas that we are allowed to during practice to get ourselves better and set ourselves up better for a race. Phoenix, having a longer practice, did enable us to work around this package a little bit. I know COTA will have that extended practice as well, which is good for the same reasons. That’s a big difference for us to not be searching right now. Last year, the west coast swing always stands out. It’s hard because I don’t feel like you can catch up if you miss the first one because then it used to be three weeks that you couldn’t find your way, I didn’t feel like. You really needed that time back in Charlotte to dive into it and be able to figure out what it was, not just be trying to get a car ready to ship out and sent across the country. Again, those two races for us we had a lot of potential at Vegas and obviously had our issues. Our team has worked really hard and has come up with better game plans to avoid that going forward. The pit crew is very, very competitive and has a ton of potential, so I know we’re gonna be in a good spot going forward, and we have been. They’ve done a fantastic job, so we’ll work through being human at times, but certainly when you’re looking for the things that we are, it just feels more feasible.”

HOW CLOSE ARE THE 6 AND 17 NOW IN TERMS OF PERFORMANCE? “In ways, yes. I will say that I’m sitting here talking about the beginning of our season and being very happy when we’ve had three crashes out of four races, but I’m happy because I know the potential there and what the we’re capable of. What I would say to add to that and to answer your question is if you look at last year, strictly the races that we won and even the Bristol race that we won, the 6 was leading at the time when they blew their tire. Richmond, we were battling the 6 for the lead there at the end and it came down to a good, clean execution on pit road to get track position and we were able to get clean air and run away. We were fighting each other for that win essentially. Michigan, at the end of that race I did not have the fast laps of that race. The 6 was coming very competitively there at the end on a little different strategy and kind of covering our ground to if we had a different outcome or different scenario there like another caution, certainly I was gonna have to think about racing the 6 car there, and then Daytona one-two. Like I said, strictly looking at those four because they’re the most glaringly obvious to me, we both have been very competitive. You’ve got to have the results for everybody else to say the same thing, but certainly as we’ve gotten this year fired off we’ve both been in similar scenarios to where we’re both very competitive at the racetrack, that we both feel like we have potential to win races a lot earlier in the season than we were last year. I don’t know as far as setups, driving styles if that’s really gotten any closer as much as we’ve really just honed in on what works for each of us.”

HOW DIFFERENT WAS WHAT YOU HAD TO DO TO GET THAT TOP FIVE FINISH IN THE FALL VERSUS WHAT YOU HAD TO DO TO GET THE TOP FIVE ON SUNDAY? “We dove into it a little bit. I would say we had more potential in our car overall last year. Towards the tail end of the year we had a little better understanding of the package. I would say we unloaded closer. We raced a little closer. We went to the test and a new aero package was being thrown at us the whole time, tires. It was a lot. We left the test not really happy with our performance there and then as we got back we were able to understand the package. We got it more optimized and figured out and went back to Phoenix and with the exception of just being overall tighter for us personally, there was very little change from the feel of last fall. I would say if you want to say the middle would have been the fall race last year, that we went to the test we were three numbers this way and we came back for the race and we’re only one number the other way. We were much closer to the end of last year than we were at the test. I think that just goes with being able to really work on what we were officially running. We had so much thrown at us over those two days that it’s hard to really understand it and know what that’s gonna look like, especially once you get more than seven cars out on the track, too. For me, I think our long run speed still showed up in a really big way. Our short run speed was probably a little bit more off this time. I’m gonna relate that to us simply just being too tight and needing to discover a little bit more on what we need to re-balance to be able to get that fire off speed, but we were still able to get late into a run, move around the racetrack a little bit and pass cars. We were able to do that quicker, so if our long run speed came from 25 or 30 laps on the go-around, then last time it was 15 laps. Those aren’t exact numbers, but I’m just trying to put it into perspective. We were better a little bit earlier last go-round. I’m not gonna sit here and say I feel like there was a really big change with the package this race. I think we did a lot of the same things and had a lot of the same issues of dirty air at times, and you’re not gonna get away from that conversation, period. There’s always gonna be dirty air to some extent. We’re just trying to figure out how do we open up options for us to be able to do something about it when you’re not directly in line.”

WHEN YOU CAME TO PIT IN THE FINAL STAGE LAST WEEK WAS IT A GAMBLE OR DESPERATE MOVE? “A little bit situational in our race. Like you said, we finished the previous stage 10th and got going. One car hit the fence really hard in front of us on that restart and we lost a ton of spots being trapped behind him. That put us right on that break point of do we go ahead and pit now knowing that we’re a little short? Really, that was trying to watch the mirror as much as anything to hit pit road and try to understand if we were gonna be the last car on old tires staying out or if we were gonna make the decision to be one of the first on new tires. Obviously, the decision worked out really well as the race played out. That put us in a great spot and got our track position, which really helped. The fire off speed wasn’t great still, but we were able to manage it a little bit. We lost probably four or five spots getting going early and was able to just steadily pick them all back off with the exception of one. He actually started way behind us and still came through there, so it was definitely the right call for us. It definitely helped us play to our strengths. Our strengths were never gonna be strong enough to outrun the 20 on that day, I don’t believe, but like we’ve talked about a little at this point the potential of the race car there’s a lot more left in it and when we get some of those things right and can manage our fire off, then we’ll be good for the extent of the entire race, the entire run and won’t have to try and hedge against some of those tougher decisions like that where it could go either way.”

HOW DO YOU LOOK AT THINGS AFTER FOUR RACES WITH ONLY TWO STAGE POINTS? “I hadn’t looked at it and that made me feel better about it until you just said that. The way I see it, we’re not points racing this year. We’ve got to win races and we’re capable of winning races and when we go do that, the rest will fall in line. I don’t think we’re a team that’s gonna sit here and say we’re gonna have to battle for this bubble spot of 15th, 16th, 17th for points to try to break into the playoffs. That’s not gonna be our season and with that being the case, I’m not worried about the stage points and what we’ve been able to do there. I don’t like that it shows we haven’t been where we need to be, but, like we’ve talked, the speed has been there at times – not the right times all the time – and in three of the four races we’ve lost race cars. We may have finished Atlanta decent. Daytona we limped it back around, but we’ve got a full dumpster around here of race car parts and that ultimately shows why we don’t have any more points to show for it. We’ve got to clean up and find a little bit of luck here or there. We’ve got to make better decisions at certain times and just be smarter in ways and work harder, clean up. It’s gonna be tricky, but I’m not gonna read much into it right now. Like I said, we’re definitely not gonna start having points talks this early in the season. That’s not my speed at all.”

RYAN PREECE
Bristol Advance
No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Event Overview

● Event: Food City 500 (Round 5 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday, March 17
● Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway
● Layout: .533-mile, concrete oval
● Laps/Miles: 500 laps/266.5 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 125 laps / Stage 2: 125 laps / Final Stage: 250 laps
● TV/Radio: FOX / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Sunday’s Food City 500 returns to the concrete of Bristol Motor Speedway and Ryan Preece, driver of the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Stewart-Haas Racing, is poised for a breakthrough performance on the half-mile, high-banked oval in Eastern Tennessee. Preece has competed in three different racing divisions at Bristol – the NASCAR Cup Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour – for a total of 17 starts and 4,877 laps, or the equivalent of 2,600 miles, roughly the same distance between Preece’s hometown of Berlin, Connecticut, and Phoenix Raceway, site of last Sunday’s Cup Series race.

● Preece endured an eventful race at Phoenix. After narrowly avoiding a multicar accident on just the seventh tour of the 312-lap race, Preece began a relentless ascent, climbing from his 27th-place starting spot to as high as second during the race’s final stage. However, with the race going green for the final 92 laps, fuel mileage became a factor. Preece was forced to make a late-race stop for fuel and fresh tires, which left him an unsatisfied 23rd.

● The Food City 500 will mark Preece’s seventh career NASCAR Cup Series start at Bristol. In his six previous starts, Preece has never finished outside the top-25. In fact, he has three results of 12th or better to earn an average finish of 15.5. His best finish was a ninth-place drive in September 2020.

● Preece won at Bristol in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. In his third and most recent Xfinity Series start at the track, Preece won the 2018 Fitzgerald Glider Kits 300. He led four times for 39 laps in the April event, including the final 10 circuits to take the victory over Justin Allgaier.

● Preece’s Bristol success in the NASCAR Xfinity Series was preceded by his success on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. In eight starts at Bristol in the only open-wheel series sanctioned by NASCAR, Preece never finished worse than 11th. He had seven top-10 finishes with five top-fives and three podiums. Preece finished third in his Tour debut at Bristol in August 2009 and then equaled that finish in August 2022 before earning an impressive win in August 2015 when he led three times for 47 laps to take the victory over Woody Pitkat. Preece left Bristol atop the championship standings by two points over Pitkat, but eventually succumbed to Connecticut counterpart Doug Coby, who took the title by 11 points over Preece. It was one of four runner-up finishes for Preece in the Modified Tour championship. However, Preece did take the Modified Tour crown in 2013, which highlighted a four-year run where he never finished outside the top-two in points (2012-2015).

● Back with Preece and the No. 41 Ford Mustang Dark Horse at Bristol is HaasTooling.com, the cutting tool division of Haas Automation. HaasTooling.com allows CNC machinists to purchase high-quality cutting tools at great prices. Haas cutting tools are sold exclusively online at HaasTooling.com and shipped directly to end users. Haas Automation, founded in 1983, is America’s leading builder of CNC machine tools. The company manufactures a complete line of vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers, rotaries and indexers, and automation solutions.

Ryan Preece, Driver of the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse

What are your thoughts on leaving the dirt and returning to the concrete surface for the Food City 500 at Bristol?

“I’m someone who has grown up around short-track racing. Bristol is the world’s fastest half-mile, and I think moving back to the concrete is something everyone is happy about. It was a great event to do on dirt, but I think it was time to go back to the concrete and what we all love. I, for one, am someone who is certainly happy that we’re going back to the concrete, even though we ran good on the dirt, as well.”

Do you feel that Bristol is one of the best opportunities for you and the team to potentially capitalize on with a strong finishing position, based on your past success at the track?

“It’s certainly been a track that has been good to me. It’s one of the stronger racetracks that we go to, so the confidence is pretty high. We’re building toward being consistent, and hopefully we can show up and have that speed.”

Can you share a glimpse into your journey from the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and how those experiences shaped who you are as a driver, and how that experience has prepared you to tackle the short tracks on the Cup Series schedule today?

“Obviously, when it comes to short-track racing, and the experience that I have in Modifieds, all the experience racing at my local tracks and on the Whelen Modified Tour, have certainly shaped who I am as a driver. I’ve won at Bristol in a Modified, and I’ve won there in an Xfinity car. I would say that the grit of having to pass cars and find a way to the front is there.”

What role does having discipline play into succeeding at Bristol? How do you balance the need for speed and aggression with patience?

“Bristol is a really fast short track, so doing the whole bump-and-run is kind of risky now, but at the same time, there are points during that race that we will need to force the issue, and just knowing how to do that correctly plays a big part.”

Take someone who doesn’t drive racecars into your perspective behind the wheel and tell us what it’s like driving at Bristol, and how it’s different from other short tracks?

“Bristol is super fast, high-banked, and not very forgiving, so it’s a track that can bite you pretty quickly. At the same time, it’s one of my favorite tracks. We can run on the top and run on the bottom, so as a driver, you’re never locked into a spot and never feel like you can’t move forward.”

No. 41 HaasTooling.com Team Roster

Primary Team Members

Driver: Ryan Preece

Hometown: Berlin, Connecticut

Crew Chief: Chad Johnston

Hometown: Cayuga, Indiana

Car Chief: Jeremy West

Hometown: Gardena, California

Engineer: Marc Hendricksen

Hometown: Clinton, New Jersey

Spotter: Tony Raines

Hometown: LaPorte, Indiana

Over-The-Wall Members

Front Tire Changer: Devin Lester

Hometown: Bluefield, West Virginia

Rear Tire Changer: Kevin Teaf

Hometown: Tallahassee, Florida

Tire Carrier: Chad Emmons

Hometown: Tyler, Texas

Jack Man: Kapil Fletcher

Hometown: Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

Fuel Man: Dwayne Moore

Hometown: Griffin, Georgia

Road Crew Members

Front End Mechanic: Joe Zanolini

Hometown: Sybertsville, Pennsylvania

Interior Mechanic: Robert Dalby

Hometown: Anaheim, California

Tire Specialist: Matt Ridgeway

Hometown: Carrollton, Georgia

Engine Tuner: Jimmy Fife

Hometown: Orange County, California

Transporter Co-Driver: David Rodrigues

Hometown: Santa Clarita, California

Transporter Co-Driver: Charlie Schleyer

Hometown: Youngsville, Pennsylvania

JUSTIN HALEY | KAZ GRALA
Bristol Advance
Event Overview

● Event: Food City 500 (Round 5 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday, March 17
● Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway
● Layout: .533-mile concrete oval
● Laps/Miles: 500 laps/266.5 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 125 laps / Stage 2: 125 laps / Final Stage: 250 laps
● TV/Radio: FOX / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Justin Haley, Driver of the No. 51 Ohanafy Ford Mustang Dark Horse

● Justin Haley, driver of the No. 51 Ohanafy Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Rick Ware Racing (RWR), will make his fourth start at Bristol Motor Speedway in Sunday’s Food City 500 NASCAR Cup Series race. The .533-mile track set in the mountains of East Tennessee played host to the series’ only dirt race each spring for the last three years. But no more, as The Last Great Colosseum will once again host both of its races this year on its iconic, high-banked concrete surface.

● In three starts on the traditional concrete surface, Haley has a best finish of 12th earned in September 2022. The 24-year-old also owns six NASCAR Xfinity Starts at Bristol with two top-10s.

● Bristol is the site of Haley’s career-first NASCAR national series start. On Aug. 19, 2015, a 16-year-old Haley made his first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series start from the 21st position and took the checkered flag 14th against the likes of reigning Cup Series champion, Ryan Blaney, and the winningest driver in NASCAR history, Kyle Busch.

● After its first appearance two weekends ago at Las Vegas, Ohanafy – a management platform for beverage and beyond – returns to the No. 51 Ford Mustang Dark Horse for the first short-track race of the year.

● Ohanafy is redefining the beverage industry by harnessing the power of Salesforce, the world’s leading CRM. The mission is clear: to empower beverage producers and distributors to reclaim their time and focus on crafting exceptional beverages while streamlining production and distribution operations. Built on innovation, excellence, and quality, Ohanafy offers a robust, cloud-based solution that revolutionizes how beverage companies operate. By leveraging cutting-edge technology, it enables data-driven decision-making, leading to optimized processes, increased profitability, and reduced costs.

● Last Sunday’s race at Phoenix Raceway saw the debut of NASCAR’s enhaced short-track package. Despite qualifying 33rd, Haley and the No. 51 team made improvements over the race’s 312 laps and brought home a 24th-place finish, RWR’s best ever at Phoenix.

Kaz Grala, Driver of the No. 15 N29 Capital Partners Ford Mustang Dark Horse

● Sunday’s Food City 500 marks Kaz Grala’s first Cup Series short-track start and he will once again pilot the No. 15 N29 Capital Partners Ford Mustang Dark Horse.

● In two Xfinity Series starts at Bristol, Grala has a best finish of 10th earned last September. He’s finished no worse than 20th in eight of 13 Xfinity Series short-track starts. Grala also owns two top-five finishes in the ARCA Menards Series East at Bristol (2015 and 2016).

● In three races behind the wheel of the No. 15 RWR entry, Grala has a best finish of 14th earned Feb. 25 at Atlanta Motor Speedway and has completed 836 of 839 laps – 99.6 percent.

Rick Ware Racing Notes

● For the first time since 2021, the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup Series will head to Sebring (Fla.) International Raceway, where RWR drivers Cody Ware and Preston Pardus are set to compete in a weekend doubleheader that will make up rounds three and four of the 2024 schedule. Wednesday will see the pair practice and qualify for the first of two 45-minute races, set for Thursday afternoon on the 3.74-mile, 17-turn road circuit. Thursday’s results will the lineup for the Friday morning’s race. Both MX-5 Cup races will be streamed live on RACER.com and IMSA.tv.

● The Progressive American Flat Track (AFT) season kicked off last week with two-time AFT Singles champion Kody Kopp taking the win in his heat race and Al Lambs’ Dallas Honda Challenge exhibition race before running away with his first victory of the seaon in the main event. Kopp, who joined the RWR lineup just a week before the start of the season, took control of the race at mid-distance and took the checkered flag by a 1.502-second margin.

● Rick Ware has been a motorsports mainstay for more than 40 years. It began at age six when the third-generation racer began his driving career and has since spanned four wheels and two wheels on both asphalt and dirt. Competing in the SCCA Trans Am Series and other road-racing divisions led Ware to NASCAR in the early 1980s, where he finished third in his NASCAR debut – the 1983 Warner W. Hodgdon 300 NASCAR Grand American race at Riverside (Calif.) International Raceway. More than a decade later, injuries would force Ware out of the driver seat and into fulltime team ownership. In 1995, Rick Ware Racing was formed, and with wife Lisa by his side, Ware has since built his eponymous organization into an entity that fields two fulltime entries in the NASCAR Cup Series while simultaneously campaigning successful teams in the Top Fuel class of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, the LMP3 class of the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge, Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup, Progressive American Flat Track and FIM World Supercross Championship (WSX), where RWR won the 2022 SX2 championship with rider Shane McElrath.

Justin Haley, Driver Q&A

Where does Bristol rank on your list of favorite tracks?

“Bristol is an awesome track. I actually made my first NASCAR national series start there in a truck, so it’s always been a special place for me. I’ve always run pretty strong there. I finished sixth in the spring Bristol race last year but the track had dirt on it and they took that away, so I’m not sure how I’ll fair now. But, I love Bristol and it’s obviously one of a kind. It’s a cool place to race, so I’d say it’s pretty high.”

Sunday’s race at Phoenix was very trying for the No. 51 team, but you came out with a top-25 finish. What’s your mindset now, and how do you push through to the next race after tough races like the one you had last weekend?

“I’m good. I felt like we improved a lot by the end of the race. Learned a lot and are just steadily building up our notebook. You’re going to have those days, especially with a new team, but I just can’t let that stick with me. I’m in such a relaxed environment now. There’s pressure, but I’m at it every week. We’re all growing and building together and this team is relying on me and trusting me to do my part to be successful. I appreciate everything these guys do every week to get better and I feel like they truly appreciate me. As a racecar driver, you really can’t ask for anything more meaningful than a team that will go to battle with you and win and lose with you.”

Kaz Grala, Driver Q&A

As a driver who grew up short-track racing, this must be your favorite part of the season with Bristol, Richmond (Va.) Raceway and Martinsville (Va.) Speedway coming up over the next four weeks. What are you most looking forward to?

“I’m just excited to get to the short tracks, in general. I feel like that is where I can really do the most to give us a good result, but I’m also still learning the NextGen car, so we’ll definitely have to pack our patience and take what we can get. These tracks that are coming up are all so different but we’ll be able to learn something we can take to each, so hopefully we can build up some good momentum.”

What is the key to being successful at Bristol?

“Bristol is one of the coolest places we visit. If you get your car handling well, it could be a really good day and, as a driver, you really have to be able to find your rhythm and stick to it. Hopefully I can do that early on. The biggest thing everyone will face is staying out of the mess that is bound to happen at some point. Things happen quickly on a track as short and fast as Bristol, so staying focused goes a long way.”