Ford Performance Notes and Quotes NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 Qualifying | Saturday, July 29, 2023
Ford Qualifying Results:
8th -_ Kevin Harvick
11th – Ryan Preece
13th – Brad Keselowski
16th – Todd Gilliland
18th – Michael McDowell
20th – Chase Briscoe
22nd – Harrison Burton
23rd – Joey Logano
24th – Aric Almirola
25th – Ryan Blaney
26th – Chris Buescher
30th – Austin Cindric
32nd – Ryan Newman
35th – JJ Yeley
BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 6 BuildSubmarines.com Ford Mustang – WHAT ABOUT YOUR QUALIFYING RUN? “It was OK. I think 13th is where we’re gonna end up. I’d like to be in the top five in our group, but we’re not terribly far off. I don’t know qualifying for this weekend, I don’t think it’s as important as it normally is. The cars with the way they’re running here, short-run speed versus long-run speed, you really need that long-run speed, so we’ll see what shows up in the race.”
IT’S SO HOT OUT THERE. WHAT IS IT DOING TO THE TRACK? “There’s less grip and more emphasis on tire management and all of those things. It will be a different race here than it was in the spring, for sure.”
WHAT HAPPENED ON THURSDAY NIGHT IN THE SRX RACE WITH KYLE BUSCH? “I’m not entirely sure yet. Obviously, we had some kind of contact and spun out. It’s a shame because I was having the best run I’ve had in that series yet. I was able to drive to the lead and pass all those guys and I felt really good and the next thing I know I was spun out. It seems like every time I run those races I keep getting spun out, so it’s frustrating but it was good to be able to run up front and be fast and leading laps.”
YOU HAVEN’T TALKED TO KYLE? “No. I’ve got to run today. I’m worried about this weekend.”
WHAT KIND OF IMPROVEMENTS CAN YOU MAKE FOR TOMORROW? “I felt like we had a top-five, top-10 car for most of the race this spring and we had a shot there at the end and some things didn’t go our way with the pit strategy and so forth, but I feel like we’ll have a similar weekend here. We don’t necessarily have the short-run speed that we’d like to have. We had really strong short-run speed in the spring race, but it appears at the moment we might have the other side of that. There are so many variables that it’s hard to say how the race will play out.”
IS THERE A REASON FOR THAT SHORT-RUN SPEED? “We’re just working on the race car and you find different things here and there and you take what you’re given.”
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HERE AT RICHMOND? “We always love coming to Richmond. It’s been one of my best track and certainly when you think of NASCAR and you think of tracks that they’re known for this is one that comes to mind. Richmond with a great crowd and big energy and short track racing, but I think this is kind of a quintessential NASCAR track for us.”
NASCAR CUP SERIES RICHMOND RACEWAY COOK OUT 400 TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT JULY 29, 2023
KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 X WORLD WALLET CAMARO ZL1, met with the media prior to the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Richmond Raceway. Press conference transcript:
THE DENNY HAMLIN AND KYLE LARSON INCIDENT AT POCONO RACEWAY – WHAT’S YOUR TAKE ON FORCING SOMEONE TO MAKE A CHOICE BETWEEN LIFTING OR POTENTIALLY HITTING THE WALL WHEN YOU GET UNDERNEATH THEM? IS IT A FAIR MOVE? DENNY SAID THAT IT’S BECOME AN ACCEPTED WAY OF DOING BUSINESS THE LAST 10 YEARS.. WOULD YOU AGREE WITH THAT?
“Yeah – so there’s different ways of characterizing driving styles, right? But also I guess racing styles and how aggressive you are – slide jobs or forcing somebody out of the groove and making them lift or whatever. But the cars being more equal this day in age, yeah – you don’t want to get stuck side-by-side with somebody and allow the third place guy to kind of come into the fray and make it a three-way battle. You want to disperse of that guy as fast as you can, and the easiest way to do that is run them out of the groove. Whether that’s dirty or not, it kind of is what it is. Denny (Hamlin) might be a little remiss and forgotten about him doing that same move to me back in 2010 or ’11 at the All-Star Race and putting me into the fence off of (turn) two. He’s done it for a lot longer than 10 years.”
YOU SAID ‘IS IT DIRTY OR NOT’ – DO YOU THINK IT’S DIRTY AND WOULD YOU DO IT FOR A WIN?
“Yeah, I mean I think in certain circumstances – you try to win races as clean as you can, right? I mean that’s always kind of been my way of being brought up. You have to have a race car to go to the next week with, so if you’re crashing your stuff or somebody else’s stuff, they’re going to come back and crash you later. I don’t know – if I was in that same boat, I’m going to try and race it out and do the best I can to figure out how to make a side-draft and make a slide job where I’m clear and I can take that guy’s air, not just force them up the track door-to-door and into the wall.”
FROM A DRIVER’S STANDPOINT, WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT WE SAW LAST WEEK VERSUS WHAT YOU WOULD SEE AT A SHORT-TRACK AS FAR AS LIKE A BUMP-AND-RUN FOR THE WIN?
“Well I mean the bump-and-run scenario – that might even be a worse cheap shot, you know? Carl in 2017 here, is that right? Keep bringing them up, I’ll keep telling you that it happened to me (laughs).
Yeah, you flat out run into the corner deeper than you know your car is going to stick and you use the guy in front of you as a brake, and that’s what happens in the bump-in-run sometimes. My issue with (Dale Earnhardt) Jr. here in 2008 was we were racing, battling hard side-by-side – you keep inching into the corner a little bit deeper every single time and there’s going to be a time where you go over that limit and you slip, and that was me and made contact with him. That to me, like we were side-by-side for three laps, and it was kind of building up. It was going to be inevitable. But those are hard racing moments and those are moments in which you’re pushing a little bit more when you get side-by-side with somebody for the first chance and you just whack ‘em out. That’s not racing, that’s whacking.”
IN THE SITUATION THAT YOU SAW LAST WEEKEND, DOES IT MATTER WHO’S ON THE OUTSIDE, AS FAR AS HOW LONG YOU RACE THEM ‘CLEAN’?
“Yeah – yeah, I would say it definitely matters who you’re around and who you’re racing with; what they’re history is and what your history with them is on how they’re going to be raced or how you think you should race them.”
ALONG THOSE LINES, HOW DO YOU DEFEND AGAINST A MOVE LIKE THAT? OUTSIDE OF BEING FASTER THAN SOMEBODY ELSE AND NOT GIVING THEM THE OPPORTUNITY, HOW DO YOU DEFEND AGAINST THAT BECAUSE DRIVING DEFENSIVELY SEEMS TO BE COUNTERPRODUCTIVE TO WHAT HAS MADE YOU GUYS SUCCESSFUL IN THE FIRST PLACE?
“Yeah, I think that’s the tough part, right? If you’re (Kyle) Larson in that situation, do you just lift out of the gas once Denny (Hamlin) gets alongside of you? No.. like you have to put trust and faith into that guy that he’s going to be able run you as you would expect to be ran and not have to lift. If Larson lifts and brushes the wall, he loses eight spots on that straightaway. So really, you’re in a no win situation when you’re that guy on the outside like that.”
MANY, MANY YEARS AGO, ROBIN PEMBERTON SAID ‘BOYS, HAVE AT IT’. NOW WE ARE TOLD THAT THIS A SELF-POLICING SPORT, BUT PEOPLE HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED NOW FOR DOING THINGS THAT ROBIN PEMBERTON TOLD THEM YEARS AGO WAS OK. WHERE DO YOU COME DOWN ON ‘BOYS, HAVE AT IT’, POLICE OURSELVES OR WE’LL SUSPEND YOU IF WE WANT TO?
“Well I think in some of the suspension cases, it was a big egregious.. it was a bit much. I was probably close to that with my incident with (Kevin) Harvick.. man, I’m giving a history listen today boys and girls, in 2010 or ’11 I think at Darlington (Raceway). I hooked Harvick in the right-rear and that, today, would have been grounds for suspension on that one. But we had a history and we had a run-in, and he ran me into the fence and everything else. So I think they kind of waived on that one, just how we’d been racing with each other.
Yeah, there’s a line and they know where it is, and we all try to get to that edge as much as we can when we’re mad at somebody. You’re going to have those repercussions when it comes down to it.”
(NO MIC.)
“There is no definitive line. I don’t know if it’s over there or it’s over there, but it’s somewhere in this room.”
YOU RACE AGAINST A LOT OF KIDS. YOU BRING UP A LOT OF KIDS THROUGH KBM. I WOULD THINK THAT YOU TAKE A LOT MORE SATISFACTION OUT OF GETTING A WIN THE WAY YOU DID AGAINST COREY HEIM IN THE TRUCK RACE, WHERE YOU SET HIM UP AND PASSED HIM TO GET THE WIN. A WIN IS A WIN, BUT I WOULD THINK FROM A MORALE STANDPOINT, IF THERE IS ONE IN RACING, THAT THERE’S GREATER SATISFACTION IN HOW YOU DID IT?
“Yeah, there were definitely some other moments in that race where I was alongside of him – I was loose and I could have just stayed loose, stayed in the gas, ran into him and him washout or whatever. But I try to keep our stuff as clean as we could; race it out and race it hard and clean for the finish. Like I said, there’s certain people that you’re going to do that with, but there’s also how you’re raised and your mentality of what you feel like is right and you live by that moral. I think (Kyle) Larson is down probably four on Denny (Hamlin), at least, right now so he’s got a lot to get even.”
YOU WON AT AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY IN THE SPRING. WE’RE GOING TO MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY NEXT WEEK, WHICH IS A SIMILAR TRACK. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT GOING BACK TO MICHIGAN AND WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR CHANCES ARE?
“Yeah, completely different race tracks. Even though they’re two miles, the same distance – man, Fontana (Auto Club Speedway) and Michigan (International Speedway) are so vastly different from each other. But I’m looking forward to it. We’ve had good speed at the fast race tracks this year – the 1.5-mile to 2-mile speedways, even the 2.5-mile tracks. So I would like to think that we’ve got a good shot going to Michigan. I remember, I think, running second and third with the No. 8 car there last year with (Tyler) Reddick – he was fast, we were fast. We both had good cars and unfortunately I got caught up in a wreck early on and didn’t get to finish. But it seems like they’ve got a good baseline package for that place, so I’d like to think we’d be fine.”
YOU HAD A STRONG WIN AT SRX ON THURSDAY. DOES THAT GIVE YOU ANY CONFIDENCE HEADING INTO A SHORT-TRACK HERE AT RICHMOND RACEWAY WITH NASCAR?
“Yeah, I mean it does. It tells you when you get everything right that you can do the job. Those cars are all pretty equal, the same and whatnot. I was really loose in the heat races, but I was able to kind of tune on it a little bit with the adjustments that were allowed and made my stuff a lot better for the features, so that was really cool. It’s fun to race and get there and duke it out with some of those guys. To not have spotters is certainly different. I think you kind of see that and that’s sort of where most of the wrecks come from – it’s about knowing your situation and having situational awareness. That’s the biggest thing that race is all about. When I was running in the back of the second heat, like I was trying to make my way forward. I couldn’t make my way forward, so now I’m like – ‘OK if I’m not going forward, then there’s going to be somebody behind me that’s going to be trying to go forward. I better look in the mirror and just check and see where they’re at’. So you always just have to be on top of it.”
OBVIOUSLY SRX HAS SUSPENDED PAUL TRACY. WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE THAT KIND OF MODEL APPLIED IN NASCAR FOR THAT KIND OF MOVE?
“I don’t know that he did a move.. I just think that he had absolutely zero situational awareness and thought that he was far enough ahead of the guy on his outside that the guy should lift and get out of the gas. He must have learned from Denny (Hamlin) the week before. I don’t know.. that was completely blatant and uncalled for of just driving up the race track and not having any care for the guy that’s alongside of you. They want to put on a good show. They’ve got a good product. They’ve got nice cars and they just keep getting torn up because of dumb moves.”
YOU’VE TALKED ABOUT YOUR SHORT-TRACK PACKAGE THIS YEAR AND HOW YOU GUYS WOULD LIKE TO GET BETTER THERE. YOUR STATS AT RICHMOND RACEWAY SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES. HOW RECEPTIVE HAS RCR BEEN TO YOUR FEEDBACK ON WHAT TO IMPROVE, NOT JUST ON SHORT-TRACKS IN GENERAL, BUT AT THIS RACE TRACK SPECIFICALLY?
“Yeah, I mean we’ve been talking about it nonstop, day in and day out – trying to figure out what it is that we need to do to get better to go faster at the short-tracks. This weekend will be another one of those tests, just being at a short-track here and trying to figure it out. There’s really not a whole lot of short-tracks left for the remainder of the year. You’ve got Martinsville (Speedway) and Phoenix (Raceway) I think, so this is kind of your last test before knowing that you better be ready for the Championship Four and having a good shot for a title run.
Yeah, we’ve completely thrown a whole new idea and concept out there this week, so we’ll see.”
ARE YOU CONFIDENT IN IT?
“I should be because it’s a damn copy and paste from somebody else that was really fast here in the spring, so if it doesn’t work, we’ve got bigger issues.”
YOU SPECIFICALLY HAVE BEEN SO GOOD HERE – FINSIHED ALL BUT ONE LAP YOU’VE EVER COMPETED IN ALL OF THESE RACES. HOW MUCH ARE YOU ABLE TO MAKE AN IMPACT TO KIND OF CLOSE THE GAP AND GET IT WHERE YOU NEED TO BE?
“Yeah, that one lap.. that one lap killed me, too. Knocked us out of the playoffs that year.
I’ve enjoyed Richmond (Raceway). When I first came here, it was in the Truck Series on the old asphalt back with the sealer and stuff. I was terrible – I think I hit every wall there was here that night. And then I came back the next time with the Xfinity cars – sat on the pole, won the race for my first win and that was the repave of this track in 2004. I’ve just always enjoyed it, always liked it since then. Always been pretty familiar with how to get around here. It reminds me a lot of some other short-tracks that I’ve raced at, including my home track in Las Vegas, the Bullring, and then some others around the country, too. How it’s aged and wore out reminds you a little bit more of some of those places, as well.
It’s fun, I enjoy it. I’ve done well here, which makes it a lot easier to talk about. I would love to go out here and get another win or two so I can get myself closer to Richard’s (Petty) mark of the most wins here.”
PUTTING ON YOUR TEAM OWNER HAT IN THE TRUCK SERIES, IS THERE ANYTHING THAT NASCAR OR THE SERIES COULD DO AS A WHOLE TO KIND OF CURB COSTS MORE THAN THEY ALREADY ARE?
“Find more money for us to race for. That’s where it comes from. The world of motorsports is not getting cheaper, that’s for sure. People costs, tire costs, inflation.. everything has really gone up. The engine program with Ilmor was a great start of that, but those costs have now I think gone up 26 percent or something in the last two or three years, so even that’s taken a hurting. Our teams are flying less – we’re driving more, they drove here to Richmond (Raceway) because you just can’t pay for that stuff. The flight costs have gone up $250 a ticket, per person, or something like that to go to these races. You have to race for more money. If it costs more money to go racing, you need more money. And if there’s no sponsors, you have to be able to race for more.”
AS COSTS HAVE GONE UP, IS THERE MORE THAT NASCAR CAN DO IN TERMS OF JUICING THE PURSE MONEY TO COINCIDE WITH OTHER COSTS THAT GO ALONG WITH FIELDING A TEAM?
“It’s no different than running a business, right? A race team is a business. When your top line and your bottom line – like if you don’t have enough top line, your bottom line is going to be black or red. So whatever it is in that space you have to work with, you know what you have to work with. Most business operate on 10 to 35 percent profit range and I would say race teams probably operate within a negative 30 percent profit range. We’re always spending more than what we’re bringing in, and that’s why it takes rich people to do it.”
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Toyota Racing – Denny Hamlin NASCAR Cup Series Quotes
RICHMOND, Va. (July 29, 2023) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to media prior to practice for the NASCAR Cup Series event at the Richmond Raceway on Saturday:
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 Mavis Tires & Brakes Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing
When did the rules of going for the win change?
“I think it has become accepted, certainly. It has been more lenient from a media standpoint and from a fan standpoint, within reason, as long as it’s not something crazy. It changes depending on how severe – if you look at the Ty Gibbs, Brandon Jones thing – that is certainly way over the top, things like that. I think normal racing, hard racing, at the end of races for wins, that’s kind of been the mantra that has come about the last 10 years or so. It’s definitely different, over the last 30 years, it hasn’t happened, but win at all costs type of mantra for sure.”
When NASCAR gave Playoff points for wins, did that affect how people race for victories?
“Certainly, I think when they started giving Playoff points and stage points – that is what it was geared to do – give us the sense of urgency to ramp up and that regular season performance matters to get to the final four with a shot. The system is doing what it was designed to do.”
Is it easier to do the move that you made in the Next Gen car?
“It is so different with the Next Gen because with the other car, the guy on the outside would use the air to make the guy on the inside loose. You’ll see in the Xfinity Series or the Truck Series, the guys on the outside want to get closer to the inside guy and get him loose, and sometimes they spin, sometimes they don’t, but that is them manipulating the air to make it tough on that guy. In the Cup car, it’s the other way around. The power for the position is actually on the bottom, not the top. It certainly is a lot different than the other one.”
Have you and Kyle Larson talked?
“We have communicated.”
How did that go?
“I thought it went good.”
Would you do anything different if you had to do it all over again?
“I mean, it’s really hard to say that you would do anything different. It is so split second. The win meant so much to me at that time. So many different records that we could accomplish with that one win – with the track, with Toyota, with myself personally – it’s hard to say in that moment that I would do anything different for sure. Certainly, I didn’t like the outcome for him. I wish he could have finished second, but it was just one of those things where we flat ran out of room and I made a split-second decision to try to clear him instantly, and you can see from my on-board that I don’t see him. I see him go up the track, and I don’t know where he’s at when I start to throttle up and I’m saying ‘alright, I’m going to clear him.’ But when I didn’t, I knew we were going to be in a bad spot.”
Did you and Kyle Larson come to the race together?
“No, not this time.”
Can you tell us more about what you discussed?
“Not really. Similarly, to the Chase Elliott incident, he reached out to me, I just prefer to keep it private and between us. If they care to elaborate on it, that’s totally fine, but I’ll leave it up to them.”
Did you have to change how you drive and be more selfish with this system and car?
“I think it’s just different now. The cars are closer together. Passing is more difficult than it’s ever been. Even Mark Martin would have to adjust his style in this type of car, because the days of the gentleman letting the guys go and you will just go and get them later – it’s just a different game these days. I wish we could go back to those days, but that is not where we are at. You have to adapt to where you are at. You adapt or you die. Certainly, I feel like over the last few years, I’ve decided to be more aggressive because I’ve got used up by aggressive and it is hard to blame them at the time – especially in a race winning situation. Certainly, you are upset when someone right rear hooks you or runs right in the back of you in stage one and spins you out and puts you in the wall. That’s one thing, racing for the win is certainly a lot different than it has been in the past. If you have one person willing to be aggressive and one person not, aggressive will win every time. It’s just the facts of it. Usually, you are not going to find two guys that are the nice guy at the end of these races anymore. Someone has to take it the next level to want it, and then if you have two guys that really want it, you have what you had at Darlington where this person is squeezed, well next restart, now that person is squeezed. That is just what happens. I’m adamant that is when the race fans win. That is when they get to see the action and the passion they want to see.”
When did you decide that you needed to be more aggressive?
“Honestly, I think it was after the (Ross) Chastain thing for sure. Certainly, I was very vocal that I need to do something, I need to do something. At the time, the scales were like three to nothing. I was very frustrated. My team was very frustrated at me for not doing anything. The mindset has just changed. You have to put it out there that you are going to be aggressive. I think if a guy is going to run into you, you are going to run right back into him. That’s the way I’ve got to change things from this point forward because for the most part it has been tough results for us at the end of races, especially the last three years. I’ve been spun out of the lead three times. That’s really, really tough, so I just said it’s time to be more aggressive. Certainly, hate that it came at Kyle’s (Larson) expense, for sure. If there is anyone that I should protect, it’s those guys and my teammates. The win just met a lot to me at the time. I made an attempt to pass him, and it didn’t happen the way I intended for sure.”
Did you have a goal when you had the conversation with Kyle Larson, and did you accomplish that goal?
“There is always going to be a difference of opinion and sometimes you have to agree to disagree. That’s okay, but the biggest thing is I think hearing the other person out and understanding why they are frustrated. Sometimes you get caught up in your own world, thinking about your own team and how important it is to them, and you have an incident like that, you need to sit down and take a second to hear the other side. I totally understand that for sure. On why I wanted to have it in person, I did because I thought that we should have that type of relationship, but the details of it won’t come from my end.”
How do you walk the fine line on aggression as you head towards the Playoffs?
“I think you are typically going to have these incidents with guys that are up front, that’s because you are racing next to each other all of the time. They are going to be competitive every week; we are going to be competitive every week. That is just part of it. I think both sides understand there is a bigger prize. Certainly, it probably meant as much to him at the time because he knows he’s just trying to get to Phoenix with a shot. Same as we are. It just is so different, and it’s a dog-eat-dog mentality. It seems like it has grown on some of the older guys. It really is, short of maybe Martin (Truex Jr.) – he is probably the cleanest guy in the garage. He wins them, but he usually doesn’t have anyone close to him when he wins. It is a little different for sure.”
Are you able to enjoy the milestones in the moment or do you have to wait till the end of the season when there is a break?
“I don’t know. It is very tough. When you lose, you have another chance to win in seven days, but when you win, the team is ready to turn the corner and focus on the next track and you don’t get a lot of time to enjoy it. Like I mentioned in last weeks after the race, the conversation with Matt Kenseth was like, you don’t understand what you’ve accomplished. We will look back on it one day, but the job at hand is to keep putting stats in the stat column to try to have a conversation at the end of the career about. I’m very happy even if I didn’t have another top-five, top-10 or another win, I’m very happy with my career.”
Do you expect to be raced differently in the upcoming races because of the Pocono incident or is this how people race now?
“I think the field is like this. You will see it in turn one on a restart – no one really cares about what others have done for you or what you’ve done to others. They are just trying to get it all for themselves. It’s the nature of racing in the Cup Series now. I don’t expect any different because stuff like that happens many times during the race that we don’t even see.”
Do you remember when the ‘Boys Have It’ mantra kind of went away?
“I think that was during the (Matt) Kenseth incident, honestly. With him and (Joey) Logano. That was the point that they stepped in and for the first time in a long time, someone got suspended for something on-track. From that point, they deemed it as anything super egregious that puts someone in danger – they are going to do something about it. The two suspensions we have seen have been egregious and have put people in danger.”
Are you referencing the Martinsville incident?
“That was the point that I think they said unless you are racing for position, they are not going to tolerate someone slowing down – the (Clint) Bowyer, Jeff Gordon incident where Jeff slowed down and waited for him and then took out Bowyer and (Joey) Logano at the time. Those were just really over the top stuff that they thought that was essentially not racing.”
Do you think that because you are willing to race a good friend like that establish how people race you going forward?
“It is how I’m going to be. That’s for sure. I’m not going to backdown. I’m having to adapt my style to this. It is not the same as it was 10 years ago. Certainly, the game has changed for sure. I think the fan should like that two people were willing to put any personal friendship aside when they go and compete on the race track on Sunday. That is when they win. They don’t want to see someone go. That is less entertaining, and we are in an entertainment business. I think the fans win in that instance, but it is just certainly – in me and Kyle’s (Larson) instance – he’s gotten the worst end of it a few times and so I probably need to be more aware and be more cautious around him, simply because the scales are in my favor in that instance.”
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NASCAR CUP SERIES RICHMOND RACEWAY COOK OUT 400 TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT JULY 29, 2023
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1, met with the media prior to the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Richmond Raceway. Press conference transcript:
DENNY HAMLIN’S MOVE ON KYLE LARSON AT POCONO RACEWAY, WHERE YOU FORCE A DRIVER TO MAKE A CHOICE BETWEEN LIFTING OR GASSING AND POTENTIALLY HITTING THE WALL. WHAT’S YOUR TAKE ON THAT – IS THAT FAIR WHEN YOU DO IT FOR THE WIN? DENNY SAID THAT IN THE LAST 10 YEARS, THAT’S BEEN SORT OF AN ACCEPTED WAY OF DOING BUSINESS. HAS IT ALWAYS BEEN THAT WAY SINCE YOU’VE BEEN HERE?
“It’s not always been that way. I think it’s gotten that way with the Next Gen car because of the way the aero works. I explained this to Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. in the pre-season – the old car would get aero-loose under somebody, so you would never get that close to somebody without sucking your car around. Eventually, you’d kind of tag them in the left-rear and both of you would crash. With this car, the inside car gets tighter and comes up into the outside car. The inside car is the one at the advantage, aero-wise, so he has the control. He can move up and put that guy in a vulnerable spot where he really has no choice but to hit the wall.
I see it a little bit differently. I don’t think in Kyle’s (Larson) situation.. he’s already lifting on SMT so I think he’s going to hit the wall regardless. Like Denny (Hamlin) is the one that put him in that spot.. very similar to what happened at Texas (Motor Speedway) with us. So I think it’s just a situation where the inside guy is at an advantage – he has all the cards to play. And the outside guy is really dependent on what kind of race the inside guy wants it to be. I think it’s just a product of the Next Gen car and the way that the aero works.”
DO YOU THINK IT’S A FAIR MOVE, AND WOULD YOU DO IT FOR A VICTORY?
“Well I think it’s becoming more common with certain guys out there. So yeah, it’s becoming more common because what’s the penalty for the inside guy, right? He’s going to hit you and move on. You can’t retaliate. You can’t go up to him.. there’s nothing you can do. Like once your car is in the wall, it’s damaged and it’s over for you. So I think you have to look at the tactics of it and what that means for your race, and I think for the inside guy, he kind of goes on.”
DO YOU MAKE THAT MOVE OR DO YOU ONLY MAKE THAT MOVE ON SOMEBODY THAT’S ALREADY DONE THAT TO YOU?
“I think to me, it does matter who you’re racing. Like to me, I try to play it fair to where – if that guy hasn’t done something like that to me, I probably wouldn’t do that to him. I think there’s ways to make that move and still kind of race it off the corner. But you have to look at the trajectory of the car – like (Kevin) Harvick was in fourth and Harvick is a full lane down.. he’s on the outside, he’s in fourth, he’s running the normal racing line and both of the cars in front of him were above where he was. That’s way out of the groove.. there’s marbles up there. It’s probably hard to tell that on TV because it all looks black and dark, but the racing groove was quite a bit lower.”
THERE’S BEEN SPECULATION THAT THE YOUNGER CROWD HAS GROWN UP LEARNING THEIR CRAFT ON VIDEO GAMES. LEARNING THAT THE WAY YOU DID AND BEHIND THE SCREEN, THERE’S NOT THE CONSEQUENCES. YOU’RE A LITTLE MORE SKILLFUL, BUT YOU’RE SEEING SO MUCH MORE OF THAT AND YOU SAY IT’S THE CAR, BUT HOW MUCH IS ALSO COMING UP THAT WAY IN LEARNING A SKILLSET?
“Yeah, I mean just from my experience, I had a lot of run-ins on iRacing so I think I got all my bad run-ins out of the way and learned what I needed to when I was really young. When I was on there, yeah I would pull a lot of crazy moves and do a lot of aggressive things. I feel like I kind of learned what my code was; how I wanted to race. So I feel like where I am now, I’m pretty mature in my thoughts and how I want to race. Yeah, you want to do what’s best for your team so I think that’s ultimately what our job is.. is to try and go out there and get the best result for our team. You just have to know maybe how desperate the decision is, whether it’s playoff chances or championship chances. Now that we see how these cars race, I think you’re going to see some desperate moves probably.”
WITH FIVE RACES TO GO, YOU TRAIL MARTIN TRUEX JR. BY 30 POINTS. HOW IMPORTANT IS WINNING THE REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP, GETTING THOSE 15 POINTS AND WHAT KIND OF STRATEGY HAVE YOU AND RUDY (FUGLE) LOOKED AT TO KIND OF CATCHUP OR SURPASS MARTIN?
“Yeah, it’s really important but we can’t get too focused on the result of the regular season points. We obviously want those points, but our process has been like it is to this point, and if we start focusing on that carrot out in front of us too much, it’s going to get us off-track. Yeah, we’re 30 points behind – all that is up for play and up for grabs. But for us, it’s just trying to do the same things every week that got us to this point. We had a 60 point penalty this time in the spring and we’ve crawled all the way back and took the point lead. We’ve just got to focus on trying to knock off results that are going to get us 40- to 50-point days. Those would be really good.”
TALK ABOUT THE UPCOMING TEST HERE… (NO MIC).
“Yeah, we’ll see. We’ll see how it goes. I think we’re kind of wait and see on our end – just to understand the package and get back to the shop after this test and understand what it’s all about. But yeah, looking forward to testing for NASCAR over the next two days. Luckily, the weather is going to be a little cooler than today and I can just makes some laps and hopefully learn some things for our team going forward.”
KIND OF ALONG THOSE LINES, BUT WITH THIS BEING THE LAST SHORT-TRACK HEADING INTO THE PLAYOFFS, DO YOU SEE THIS WEEKEND AS BEING A PLACE WHERE SOME PEOPLE ARE LIKE I’VE GOT TO GO FOR IT NOW.. WE CAN SHORT-TRACK RACE IT IF WE NEED TO? DO YOU EXPECT IT TO BE A LITTLE MORE AGGRESSIVE BECAUSE OF THAT?
“I expect there to be kind of a clear idea of who’s got the speed at the short-tracks. When I look at last year’s race here, (Joey) Logano led 200-plus laps and went onto Phoenix (Raceway) and dominated. So I do think there’s some correlation to being good here on Sunday to being good at Phoenix. Yeah, it is kind of our last true test of what we’ve got for – I would say the three-quarter to one-mile race tracks. We’ve hopefully got speed here on Sunday to show that we’re good on the short-tracks and give ourselves confidence that we can go to Phoenix and have a good car.”
YOU MENTIONED THE WEATHER – IT’S GOING TO BE COOLER MONDAY AND TUESDAY, BUT I THINK IT WAS 102 DEGREES YESTERDAY AND THERE’S NO RELIEF IN SIGHT TODAY. WHAT IS THAT GOING TO BE LIKE IN TERMS OF HOW THE TRACK WILL RACE – DO YOU EXPECT IT TO BE SLICKER?
“It will be slick. Richmond (Raceway) is always that way. I noticed they painted the frontstretch – they put lines on the frontstretch, so I don’t know if that’ll play into running the lower line down the straightaway for grip. But yeah, it’s just going to be about tire management. Managing the heat inside the car is going to be tough. Luckily tomorrow is going to be I think 89 degrees is what I saw, so it’s going to be way better. If it was 99 or 100 degrees, I would think a lot of the drivers would have some trouble finishing. Yeah, we’ve got to keep working on the heat but we’re just up against the climate that we’re in right now.”
About Chevrolet Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. 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.
The CW to Broadcast All NASCAR Xfinity Series Races Starting in 2025 33 Race Weekends Per Year
JULY 28, 2023 (Burbank, CA) – The CW Network will become the exclusive home to the NASCAR Xfinity Series beginning in 2025 and extending through the 2031 racing season. The CW will broadcast 33 live NASCAR Xfinity Series races annually, along with practice and qualifying events each weekend. Starting in 2025, for the first time in series history, every NASCAR Xfinity Series race will be available on free, over-the-air broadcast television with additional content available through The CW’s digital platforms. All NASCAR Xfinity Series races and ancillary content will be fully produced by the Emmy Award-winning NASCAR Productions group, in close collaboration with The CW Network.
Comprised primarily of NASCAR’s younger, up-and-coming drivers, the NASCAR Xfinity Series features the sport’s future stars often competing side-by-side against NASCAR’s biggest names – many of whom earned their stripes and won championships in the Xfinity Series. NASCAR Xfinity Series races in some of the nation’s largest markets—from Chicago to Los Angeles to Miami—and at the sport’s most iconic tracks, including the Daytona International Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway and the series championship at Phoenix Raceway.
NASCAR Xfinity Series races draw an average of approximately 1 million viewers per race each season, historically airing on a combination of cable and broadcast television, but will now be entirely and exclusively distributed on broadcast television. The NASCAR Xfinity Series agreement with The CW underscores recent trends in which major sports properties have prioritized broadcast television to ensure the widest reach for their fan base and industry.
“Landing the NASCAR Xfinity Series is a game changer for The CW and our CW Sports division and represents another important building block in our programming strategy,” said Dennis Miller, President of The CW. “Live sports are the most watched television content and with The CW’s national reach, moving NASCAR Xfinity Series to The CW will transform and elevate the viewing experience for the series and its fans. The CW has quickly become a destination for sports, as the NASCAR Xfinity Series joins our growing slate of sports programming, including INSIDE THE NFL, ACC college football and basketball, LIV Golf, and the motorsports documentary series 100 DAYS TO INDY. Beginning in 2025, The CW will have 48 weekends per year of live sports programming. With ubiquitous distribution across one of the nation’s five major broadcast networks, NASCAR Xfinity Series races on The CW will deliver more access for fans and far more revenue opportunities for The CW and its affiliates.”
Brian Herbst, Senior Vice President, Media and Productions for NASCAR commented, “CW’s leadership shared a compelling vision for cultivating the next generation of NASCAR talent by bringing the NASCAR Xfinity Series exclusively to broadcast television and we are thrilled for the opportunity to partner with them. With more than one million viewers tuning in each week to see NASCAR’s future stars battle some of its biggest names at our most legendary tracks, NASCAR Xfinity Series consistently delivers the moments that excite current fans and create new fans of our great sport.”
Mr. Miller added, “Live sports are key to expanding broadcast audiences and are valuable to our network affiliates and cable, satellite, telco and streaming distribution partners as well as The CW and its parent company, Nexstar Media Group, Inc. Nexstar’s owned and operated stations and The CW’s nationwide affiliate network will allow us to create local excitement for the Xfinity Series as we expand its reach and drive viewership growth. This will deliver a larger audience for NASCAR Xfinity Series competitions, its major sponsors and CW advertisers looking for national brand awareness and local activation. In addition, by creating a singular home for NASCAR Xfinity Series races, fans will be able to quickly find their favorite racing entertainment each weekend. Ultimately, bringing NASCAR Xfinity Series racing to The CW is a win-win for everyone – fans, drivers, teams, sponsors and affiliates. We can’t wait for the green flag to begin flying on The CW in 2025.”
Andy Alford, President of Nexstar’s Broadcasting Division said, “Nexstar is already NASCAR’s third-largest broadcast partner, carrying NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series races across its FOX and NBC affiliates and has a deep understanding of NASCAR’s value. NASCAR’s loyal and passionate fan base and adrenaline-fueled races will provide CW stations with highly valuable live sports content that can deliver big audiences. These exciting events resonate in our local markets and with a local Nexstar station within driving distance of each and every NASCAR market, we are uniquely suited to drive attendance, viewership and revenues through local coverage, fan engagement, promotion and value-added marketing solutions for advertisers and brands.”
2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series Highlights
NXS has produced 11 different winners this season – tied for the fifth-most through 18 races (all-time: 1982-Present)
The average age of the 11 winners this season is 29.
6 of the 11 different winners are 30 years old or under. The youngest being is 18-years old.
6 of the last 11 NASCAR Cup Series championships have been won by former NASCAR Xfinity Series champions
Chase Elliott (2020), Kyle Busch (2019, 2015), Martin Truex Jr. (2017), Kevin Harvick (2014) and Brad Keselowski (2012).
13 former NASCAR Xfinity Series champions are currently active in the NASCAR Cup Series
Ty Gibbs (2022), Austin Cindric (2020), Tyler Reddick (2019, 2018), William Byron (2017), Daniel Suarez (2016), Chris Buescher (2015), Chase Elliott (2014), Austin Dillon (2013), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (2012, 2011), Brad Keselowski (2010), Kyle Busch (2009), Kevin Harvick (2006, 2001), Martin Truex Jr. (2005, 2004).
About The CW Network
The CW Network, LLC is one of America’s major broadcast networks and reaches 100% of US television households. The CW delivers 14 hours of primetime programming per week in addition to sports and other entertainment programming and is the exclusive broadcast home to LIV Golf. The fully ad-supported CW App, with more than 96 million downloads to date, is available for free to consumers on all major platforms and is home to the latest episodes and seasons of The CW’s primetime programming, live streaming of its sports content, and a library of entertaining film and television content for on-demand viewing. The CW is 75%-owned by Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST), a leading diversified media company and largest CW affiliate group with 37 CW and CW Plus affiliates, covering 32% of the population. For more information about The CW, please visit www.cwtv.com.
About Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST) is a leading diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports and entertainment content across television, streaming and digital platforms, including more than 300,000 hours of news, sports, and entertainment programming each year. Nexstar owns America’s largest local broadcasting group comprised of top network affiliates, with 200 owned or partner stations in 116 U.S. markets reaching 212 million people. Nexstar’s national television properties include The CW, America’s fifth major broadcast network, NewsNation, America’s fastest-growing national news and entertainment cable network reaching 70 million television homes, popular entertainment multicast networks Antenna TV and Rewind TV, and a 31.3% ownership stake in TV Food Network. The Company’s portfolio of digital assets, including The Hill and BestReviews, are collectively a Top 10 U.S. digital news and information property. In addition to delivering exceptional content and service to our communities, Nexstar provides premium multiplatform and video-on-demand advertising opportunities at scale for businesses and brands seeking to leverage the strong consumer engagement of our compelling content offering. For more information, please visit nexstar.tv.
About NASCAR
Celebrating its 75th Anniversary in 2023, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR sanctions races in three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series™), four international series (NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race, NASCAR Mexico Series, NASCAR Pinty’s Series (Canada), NASCAR Whelen Euro Series), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour) and a local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races annually in 12 countries and more than 30 U.S. states.
For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).
Sales stats for ATVs and UTVs show an interesting trend. With 780 thousand combined units sold in the US last year, these vehicles far outnumber motorcycles with just over 550 thousand units. Prices aside, there’s more to ATVs than meets the eye. New riders find them more comfortable than a comparable dirt bike as they offer a more upright seating position bolstered by the added padding in wider and larger seats.
Add to this the increased stability of four wheels, and you have a vehicle that functions equally well in different terrain and riding conditions. Besides carving up dirt trails just for thrills, these vehicles are being snapped up by hunters, farmers, and anyone looking for an off-roading adventure without the typical cost of a large SUV.
There are compromises with both types of vehicles though. While ATVs are safer, often better built, and more versatile, there’s more maintenance involved since you’ll be thrashing your ride through mud, sand, rocks, snow, and hard-packed dirt more often.
Parts that need regular inspection include the front and rear axles, the CV boots, and the drive belts. With more weight being pushed around in more demanding settings, these are the first that need replacing. You’ll also be looking at regular maintenance parts like brake pads, air filters, and spark plugs. Luckily, specialized ATV parts are easy to find and priced right, and some options can add a performance boost if you’re looking for that little bit extra.
ATV Axles and CV Boots
Many manufacturers cheap out on the factory axles, so if you’re into harder riding, these will throw up a few common signs before they finally call it quits.
Clicking or popping sounds when turning, clunks when accelerating or braking, and excessive vibrations at any speed are times when you need to check the axles and CV boots for damage. Damage occurs from overheating, mediocre build quality, subpar bearings, and parts that aren’t designed to be pushed. Any changes over stock, such as lift kits and bigger tires, aren’t forgiving either and will lead to premature wear.
Regardless if you’re looking for rear solid or front half-shaft types, there are a few key things to consider when replacing or upgrading your axles. Strength and build quality are what make aftermarket axles better in every way. Most are oversized, can take more weight, and stand up to heat much better.
This is down to the choice of the materials. Less expensive replacements are built around high-strength steel bars, paired with neoprene boots that get you better articulation in tougher terrain and the durability to perform under higher loads for much longer. Go with these if you’re the occasional ATV rider.
More heavy-duty setups have chromoly steel that adds to overall strength. Axles in these materials can last longer in more spirited driving and are well-balanced for most use cases.
If you’re into extreme riding and through the toughest terrain, consider higher grade 5340 steel axles which, besides the higher tensile strength, endure higher temperatures and are corrosion resistant. Thicker axles in this alloy are supplied with matching heavy-duty bearings and the combo can take higher torque rates, allow the use of lift kits without the risk of overheating, and can easily take on deeper mud or water.
Replacements are sold as single left or right front or rear axles or in pairs. Generally, you can swap out a single axle, though this may impact the power transfer. Opting for pairs makes more sense, especially when going for heavy-duty variants geared for more performance and reliability.
Lastly, go with replacements that fit and are compatible with your ATV. This is straightforward as most are advertised for specific ATV makes and models rather than wheel offset or size, or driveline layout.
Another concern is the CV boots. These allow the transfer of power under varying angles. They’re located at the ends of half-shafts.
Cracked or ripped CV boots will cause lubricating grease to escape leading to excess friction and heat while letting water, mud, and dirt eat away at the axle from the inside. The front boots are more at risk than those at the rear.
You’ll notice difficulty turning and maintaining direction once the boots start to slip and tear. In worst-case scenarios, the boots and joints will lock up, so you won’t be going anywhere. When buying axles, also check the quality of the supplied CV joints and boots.
Drive Belts
These help transfer the power from the engine and transmission through the driven axles. They too are some of the first parts that wear out sooner and need replacing.
Generally, belts can last anywhere between 3 and 5 thousand miles in occasional weekend runs lasting a couple of hours. But if you like having fun with your ATV and pushing it through tougher terrain or participating in racing, those numbers quickly change.
Wear and tear in belts is down to very high temperatures, fractures or cracks in the cogs, or the belt slipping and being misaligned in the first place. This can also be caused due to clutch slippage. Abrupt changes in drive speeds cause uneven wear, and sudden bursts of throttle, with higher engine loads, are what can tear belts in two.
When buying replacements, look for respected brands and belts made of high-quality natural and synthetic materials (reinforced rubber, Nylon, Kevlar, and carbon fibre). These are layered throughout the different sections to provide optimal strength. While the teeth will see the most wear, the belt backing also cops its fair share of mud, water, and dirt.
On the whole, drive belts are some of the least expensive ATV parts. Going for something more high-end guarantees consistent performance for longer periods. Usually, belts are priced according to engine power output, so bigger displacement ATVs will need belts that cost a few dollars more.
General Maintenance and Replacement Parts
Like bikes, cars and trucks, ATVs and UTVs will need periodic replacement of general parts such as brake pads, air filters, and spark plugs. These are low-cost items but necessary for day-to-day use. These are low-cost items but necessary for day-to-day use. This is especially important if considering a side by side rental.
ATV owners can also find performance replacements, such as ceramic pads for improved stopping power, pre-oiled filters to keep the engine clean, and performance plugs for improved combustion. As with axles, CV boots, and drive belts, buy ATV parts at a dedicated and well-stocked auto, bike, and ATV/UTV stores.
It’s also important that your ATV lights work properly at all times to ensure your safety, so make sure to add lights and bulbs to your list of replacement parts. Such upgrades ensure that your ATV is running at its best and you can keep pushing it to the limit without worrying about breakdowns or poor performance.
IndyCar & IMSA Star Returns to NASCAR for 2023 Races at Road America, IMS, WGI and Charlotte
ELKHART LAKE, WI, July 27, 2023 – With one of the most diverse careers in motorsports, spanning everything from INDYCAR/Indy 500, IMSA sports cars and NASCAR to testing a Formula 1 car, Katherine Legge will return to the NASCAR Xfinity Series for four races this season, beginning with this weekend’s Henry 180 at Road America.
She will also be entered in the upcoming Xfinity Series races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Watkins Glen International, and Charlotte Motor Speedway, all with SS Greenlight in the #07 Chevrolet.
“The Indy 500 made me realize that life and racing careers are too short not to go for it,” said Legge. “My interest and passion is to continue to break new ground in motorsports. I’ve been proactive over the last year in thinking about what I want to do in my career and how I can accomplish those things. I’m so thankful to [SS Greenlight team owner] Bobby Dotter for the opportunity; and to Wayne Auton, Mike Helton, and Jim France, for welcoming me back to NASCAR, especially at one of my favourite tracks, Road America.”
In May, Legge made history with her Indy 500 qualifying run, turning the fastest single lap and four-lap qualifying average by a female driver in the 107-year history of the Indianapolis 500. Her four-lap average of 231.070 eclipsed the mark of 229.439 set in 2002. Legge became the ninth woman to compete in the Indy 500 in 2012; and in 2023 was the only woman in the race, generating 50 million media impressions for her third start in the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
“Female athletes are the rarest of birds because they are able to transcend audiences in a way that their male counterparts cannot, said Klint Briney, Legge’s agent. “At the Indy 500 this year, we saw unprecedented demand around Katherine from media outlets and major advertisers. It signals a sea change in our sport and highlights a new and emerging audience for figures like Katherine. We’re very optimistic about her future, as she’s racing now more than ever before and see great potential in maximizing her opportunities on and off the racetrack.”
Legge currently competes full-time in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Series driving the #66 Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo22. She has scored four top-10 finishes this season, including finishing fourth in the 24 Hours of Daytona. She also brought NSX its first ever win worldwide in Detroit in 2017.
The springboard to her professional career was winning the Toyota Atlantic series season opener in Long Beach in 2005, in her first career start, to become the first woman to win a developmental open-wheel race in North America. She also won that season at Edmonton and San Jose, finishing the season 3rd in the points championship and subsequently turning pro and moving up to Champ Car. She spent three seasons in Europe driving for Audi in the premier DTM series, and was a key part of the DeltaWing project in the American Le Mans Series.
Formula One offered her a test in 2005 at Vallelunga Circuit in Italy. In 2018, Legge competed in four NASCAR Xfinity Series races: at the Mid-Ohio SportsCar Course, Richmond Raceway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, and Road America, where she had her best finish of 14 th out of 40 entries. For her return this year, her #07 machine will carry sponsorship from ref-ology + Blast Equality Collab (BEQ), Team Schuler of Compass Real Estate and the Women’s Premier Basketball Association (WPBA).Blast Equality Collab, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, founded by Shelley Russi is a leadership collaboration taught through the lens of diverse sports experiences. Blast Equality Collab aims to help members and partners learn how to put people first while making decisions with a higher degree of integrity and accuracy by having to do it in real-world game/event situations. We partner with, and receive donations from, entities where our members are provided opportunities to put into practice Embodied Leadership at the intersection of Sports +Officiating, and beyond.
“Katherine Legge and SS Greenlight Racing embody the Blast Equality Collab (BEQ) Mission,” said Russi. “This opportunity to collaborate with Katherine, who trail blazes throughout the world, makes her the perfect fit to drive the SS Greenlight 07 at Road America. Katherine is a powerful sports figure who aligns with the BEQ Embodied Leadership vision. Alongside Team Schuler, we are supporting the first Black Woman-owned, FIBA certified league in California where the WPBA is generating opportunity for WPBA players to land contracts internationally/domestically, in a playing capacity or in leadership roles impacting corporate culture.”
Following this weekend’s Henry 180 NASCAR Xfinity Series Road America 180 on July 22 (televised on NBC at 3:00 PM ET), Legge’s remaining 2023 schedule will include: – Road America IMSA SportsCar Weekend August 6 (USA Network, 11:00 AM ET). – NASCAR Xfinity Pennzoil 150 presented by Advance Auto Parts on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course on August 12 (USA Network, 5:30 PM ET). – NASCAR Xfinity Shriners Children’s 200 at Watkins Glen International on August 19 (USA Network, 3:30 PM ET). – IMSA SportsCar Michelin GT Challenge at VIRginia International Raceway on August 27 (USA Network, 2:00 PM ET). -IMSA SportsCar Battle on The Bricks at Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course on September 17 (NBC, 1:00 PM ET). – NASCAR Xfinity Drive for the Cure 250 presented by BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina on October 7 (NBC, 3:00 PM ET). – IMSA SportsCar Motul Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta on October 14 (USA Network, 6:30 PM ET).
Practice for the NASCAR Xfinity Road America 180 will begin on Friday, July 28 at 5:05 PM, with qualifications following at 6:05 PM, and the race on Saturday, July 29 at 3:00 PM ET. All on-track action can be seen on NBC or NBC’s Peacock Premium streaming service.
For more on Katherine Legge, please visit katherinelegge.com, and for more on ref-ology + Blast Equality Collab, please visit shelleyrussi.com. Join the Blast Quality Collab Team in our campaign with HundredX and give without spending. Every piece of feedback you share supports our mission to support embodied leadership education through diverse sports experiences. Text ‘Blast’ to 90412, join the NASCAR affiliation and have your voice heard!
About Katherine Legge Legge, an Atlanta transplant but native of Haslemere, United Kingdom. She currently competes in the NASCAR Xfinity Series road course events in the #07 GS Greenlight Chevrolet; and in the #66 Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Legge has appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, TODAY with Hoda & Jenna, 60 Minutes, The Tamron Hall Show, GMA, Modern Marvels, and Jay Leno’s Garage. Legge is represented by BRANDed Management and Klint Briney, who long oversaw the career of nine-time Indy 500 starter Sarah Fisher. For more on Katherine, please visit katherinelegge.com.
5 KYLE LARSON Age: 30 (July 31, 1992) Hometown: Elk Grove, California Resides: Mooresville, North Carolina Crew Chief: Cliff Daniels Standings: 7th
No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
RICHMOND REPEAT: On Sunday, Kyle Larson will seek his second Richmond Raceway win of 2023 after going to victory lane there in April. The 30-year-old driver has earned two wins, four top-five finishes and eight top-10s in 17 NASCAR Cup Series starts at the Virginia short track. Over the last three Richmond races, Larson has posted the second-most laps run inside the top five (622) behind only teammate William Byron (648). He is also one of only five drivers to lead at least 100 laps at the 0.75-mile venue since the start of 2022.
SHORT-TRACK SUCCESS: In 2023, Larson has won every Cup Series race held on a pavement short track: the points-paying events at Richmond Raceway and Martinsville Speedway and the non-points NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway. The last driver to win three straight paved short-track races was Rusty Wallace in 1993. In Larson’s first 38 (of 48 total) short-track starts, he earned one pole position, one win and six top-five finishes. In his most-recent 10 races, he has posted two poles, three victories and six top-fives on short tracks.
UP FRONT: Larson, the 2021 Cup champion, has earned two wins and a series-best nine top-five finishes this season. After taking the second stage at Pocono Raceway on Sunday, he now has 45 career stage wins, which is third-most amongst all Cup drivers. Larson has led 622 laps in 2023, good for third-best in the series behind Byron (810) and Martin Truex Jr. (763). This year, he ranks fourth in both laps run in the top five (2,078) and laps run in the top 10 (3,280).
FOUR TIRES FAST: After 21 points-paying races in 2023, the No. 5 HendrickCars.com pit crew stands third in the Cup Series in average four-tire pit stop time (11.110 seconds). The team’s 9.281-second performance on lap 93 in last month’s race at Nashville Superspeedway ranks as the second-fastest four-tire stop in the series this season. The No. 5’s pit crew consists of Blaine Anderson (front-tire changer), R.J. Barnette (tire carrier), Brandon Harder (fueler), Brandon Johnson (jackman) and Calvin Teague (rear-tire changer). Rod Cox is currently filling in for Teague, who is week-to-week as he rehabs an injury.
BIRTHDAY RACE: Larson, who hails from Elk Grove, California, will turn 31 years old on Monday, July 31, following the race at Richmond.
EXTRACURRICULAR: In addition to his full-time Cup Series schedule, Larson often races dirt during the week. On Wednesday night, he finished second in a rescheduled High Limit Racing Sprint Car Series event at Grandview Speedway in Bechtelsville, Pennsylvania. He posted a heat race win and dash victory before leading the opening 18 laps of the main event.
HENDRICKCARS.COM IS HOME: Larson and the No. 5 crew will wear their white “home” fire suits this weekend at Richmond for the 10th home race for the HendrickCars.com team in 2023. Every HendrickCars.com home race this season (15 total) will feature a unique hat released the week of the event and exclusively available for purchase at trackside merchandise haulers or to win on HendrickCars.com. Less than 100 of each limited-edition hat will be made available. Check out this weekend’s Richmond hat here. The No. 5 team celebrates home races in markets where Hendrick Automotive Group car dealerships are located.
THE (CAR) CAPITOL: The River City is also a car town. The Richmond, Virginia, market is home to Hendrick Automotive Group dealership Rick Hendrick Chevrolet Buick GMC Richmond. Not located in Richmond? Customers can pick from any of Hendrick Automotive Group’s 95 dealerships nationwide and shop from the convenience of their home by visiting HENDRICKCARS.COM. The website offers searches by category, make, model and vehicle packages from the nearly 30,000 new, high-quality pre-owned and certified cars, trucks and SUVs.
RICHMOND RUNDOWN: On Sunday, Chase Elliott will make his 15th Richmond Raceway start in the NASCAR Cup Series. In his previous 14 races at the 0.75-mile oval, he has collected five top-five finishes – one being a runner-up result in April 2018 – and six top-10s. Additionally, he has made four Richmond starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, never finishing outside the top five and earning a win in 2015.
RECAPPING RVA: In Elliott’s most recent Richmond start last fall, he started 23rd at the Virginia short track and steadily climbed through the field throughout the 400-lap event. The 2020 Cup Series champion ended stage one in the 11th position and stage two in the eighth spot before taking the checkered flag fifth. During the spring Cup Series event this year, driver Josh Berry filled in for the injured Elliott. After being mired deep in the field for much of the race, the No. 9 team used pit strategy to get Berry track position. They ended the day with a runner-up finish.
SHORT-TRACK PERFORMANCE: On Sunday, Elliott will make his 43rd short-track start in the Cup Series. In his previous 42 races, he has garnered one win (Martinsville Speedway in 2020), 14 top-five finishes, 22 top-10s and 1,491 laps led. This season, Elliott has one points-paying start on a track measuring less than 1 mile in length, placing 10th at Martinsville Speedway in his first race back following a leg injury.
READY FOR A WIN: This season, Elliott has finished in every position inside the top five except for first. He placed second at Auto Club Speedway prior to sitting out several weeks for an injury. Since returning, Elliott has added to his top-five tally, finishing third at Darlington Raceway, fifth at Sonoma Raceway, fourth at Nashville Superspeedway and third at the Chicago Street Course. After starting just 14 of the 21 Cup Series races in 2023, the 27-year-old driver has five top-five finishes – tied for 10th-most at the sport’s top level. In fact, over the last six Cup events, the Dawsonville, Georgia, native has the best average finish in the field (7.83).
PLAYOFF PUSH: With his 10th-place finish Sunday at Pocono Raceway, Elliott moved up to 21st in the Cup Series standings, 56 points outside of the provisional cutline for a playoff spot. With five races left in the regular season, the Hendrick Motorsports driver needs to average 12 markers per race against the cutline to advance to the playoffs on points. While pointing his way in is mathematically possible, the surefire path for Elliott is a victory. At the five tracks remaining in the regular season, the driver has two wins at Watkins Glen International and a combined six runner-up finishes coming at Richmond (one), Michigan International Speedway (three) and Daytona International Speedway (two).
GREAT GUSTAFSON: On Sunday, No. 9 team crew chief Alan Gustafson is set to call his 35th Richmond race in the Cup Series. In his previous 34 starts at the track with five different drivers (Kyle Busch, Casey Mears, Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon and Elliott), Gustafson has accumulated 15 top-five finishes including five runner-up results, 19 top-10s and 625 laps led.
UNIFIRST IS BACK: UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF), a North American leader in providing customized work uniform programs, corporate attire and facility service products, is back on board as the primary partner on No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for its third of three races in 2023. Last year, UniFirst extended its partnership with Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports and the No. 9 team through 2028. Starting in 2024, the company will increase to five primary races per season with the team. Get a look at all the angles of the UniFirst Chevrolet here.
24 WILLIAM BYRON Age: 25 (Nov. 29, 1997) Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina Resides: Charlotte, North Carolina Crew Chief: Rudy Fugle Standings: 2nd
No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
NOTHING REGULAR ABOUT IT: With five races left in the regular season, William Byron is second in the NASCAR Cup Series driver standings, just 30 points behind leader Martin Truex Jr. The Charlotte, North Carolina, native is looking for his first regular-season Cup championship and the extra 15 playoff points that come with it. Byron leads the series in wins (four), laps led (810), laps run inside the top five (2,682) and stage wins (seven). After just 21 of 36 points-paying races in 2023, his 810 laps led are already a personal full-season record. In addition, the 25-year-old driver is tied for second in both top-five finishes (eight) and top-10s (11) and has run the second-most laps inside the top 10 (3,516).
SHORT-TRACK SUCCESS: Byron is carrying momentum into Richmond Raceway, the third short-track race of 2023. Since the start of 2022, he ranks fifth in points scored on short-track layouts. He also has three top-five finishes, which tie him for fourth among drivers in the same time period. In fact, Byron has led more than 100 laps in three of the last seven short-track events.
RICHMOND READY: Sunday’s race will mark Byron’s 11th Richmond start in the Cup Series. His personal-best finish of third at the 0.75-mile oval occurred in April 2022 after starting on the front row and leading 122 laps. However, Byron came close to picking up a Richmond victory earlier this season after winning stage one and leading 117 laps before he was involved in an incident that left him with a 24th-place result. In the last three races there, he has run 648 laps in the top five and has led 239 laps – both the highest of any driver in that span.
RUDY AT RICHMOND: No. 24 team crew chief Rudy Fugle has seven combined NASCAR national series starts at Richmond Raceway: four in the Cup Series, two in the Xfinity Series and one in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. In April 2022, Byron and the No. 24 team had a track-best weekend at Richmond, qualifying second, leading 122 laps and ultimately finishing third in the Cup event after being passed for the win with four laps to go.
PIT ROAD PROWESS: After 21 races in 2023, the No. 24 pit crew is the best in the Cup Series with an average four-tire pit stop time of 11.013 seconds. The No. 24 pit crew consists of Spencer Bishop (jackman), Landon Walker (fueler), Ryan Patton (tire carrier), Jeff Cordero (front-tire changer) and Orane Ossowski (rear-tire changer). The team boasts three of the 10 fastest stops in the series this season, which rank sixth (9.383 seconds), eighth (9.443) and ninth (9.504).
LIBERTY U IS BACK: On Sunday at Richmond, Byron will sport his Liberty University paint scheme. Featuring a white base with navy flames and red accents, the Liberty University No. 24 will be sure to stand out on track. Liberty University has a long history with Byron starting back in 2014 in the late model ranks. Liberty University has been Training Champions for Christ since it was founded in 1971. Located in the mountains of Central Virginia, Liberty is a liberal arts institution with 17 colleges and schools that offers more than 600 degree programs from the certificate to the doctoral level, on campus and online. Working on an undergraduate degree in strategic communication, Byron is now in his junior year at Liberty University through its online program. For a better look at Byron’s new Liberty University paint scheme, click here.
RICHMOND WINNER: Heading to Richmond Raceway for the second time in 2023, Alex Bowman has garnered one win (April 2021), one top-five finish, four top-10s and one pole position (April 2023) in 14 NASCAR Cup Series appearances at the 0.75-mile oval. In his first race there this season, he finished seventh in both stages en route to an eighth-place result. The Tucson, Arizona, native will make his 275th career Cup start on Sunday.
VIRGINIA IS FOR VICTORS: Bowman is no stranger to victory lane at Virginia-based tracks. The 30-year-old driver has two Cup Series wins in the Commonwealth: March 2021 at Richmond and November 2021 at Martinsville Speedway. He is one of just three drivers to record multiple Virginia wins in the last 11 Cup races.
ALLY ARENA: Ally announced Monday on its social media platforms that the No. 48 primary sponsor is hosting a sweepstakes for Ally Racing fans where Fortnite users who beat Bowman’s Chaos Course time of 4:53 in the Ally Arena (arena code: 3804-0541-8611) have the opportunity to win tickets to Daytona International Speedway for final race of the 2023 regular season.
MAKING POINTS: With just five Cup Series races left before the 2023 playoffs, Bowman is 46 points behind the provisional cutoff line. As it stands, the 30-year-old driver would need to gain an average of 10 markers per event on the cutline to make it in on points alone. A win in one of the five upcoming races would solidify Bowman’s spot in the playoffs.
SAVE THEM ALL: Bowman and primary partner Ally are teaming up this year to bring back the Best Friends Animal Society donation effort. This week, the duo will make charitable contributions to the Prevent A Litter Veterinary Hospital, which serves the local community in Virginia’s capital city. Bowman and Ally will donate $4,800 to Best Friends and the Prevent A Litter Veterinary Hospital. Ally will increase its donation to $10,000 if the No. 48 team wins on Sunday.
DAY ‘N’ NITE: The No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 will feature two versions of its primary scheme during the 2023 Cup Series season. The No. 48 Ally Chevy “day” scheme will host a white base with bright plum, grapefruit and seafoam stripes down the side. This version of the primary scheme will appear at races that take place during the day. When the lights come on over the racetrack, the black-based No. 48 Ally Chevy “night” scheme will be sported with a similar design to its daytime counterpart. This weekend, the No. 48 machine will showcase the “day” scheme. Check out all the angles of the new look here.
HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS /
Hendrick Motorsports
2023
All-Time
Richmond
Races
21
1,330
78
Wins
6**
297*
12
Poles
6*
245*
18*
Top 5
26*
1,216*
67*
Top 10
38*
2,083*
123*
Laps Led
1,539*
78,856*
4,472
Stage Wins
11*
90
1
*Most **Most (tie)
CLOSING IN ON 300: Hendrick Motorsports is just three points-paying victories away from its milestone 300th win in the NASCAR Cup Series. Twenty drivers have combined to reach the organization’s current total of 297, which is the most Cup Series wins by any team. With six points-paying victories in 2023, the team has posted its 36th multi-win season in the Cup Series while maintaining a streak of at least two per season for the past 30 years. The organization has gone to victory lane at more racetracks (31) than any other active team.
MILESTONE MOMENTS: In addition to 300 Cup Series wins, Hendrick Motorsports is approaching several other major milestones. With 245 pole awards, the team is just five away from 250 at the Cup level. In addition, Hendrick Motorsports engines have recorded 495 NASCAR national series victories and need just five more to reach 500.
WINNING IN THE RIVER CITY: In its storied history, Hendrick Motorsports has tallied 12 wins at Richmond Raceway. Jimmie Johnson and Terry Labonte lead the way with three victories apiece, followed by Jeff Gordon with two. Alex Bowman, Kyle Larson, Joe Nemechek and Tim Richmond each have one win at the 0.75-mile track. The seven different drivers to win in Virginia’s capital city are the most by a single organization.
SPRING REWIND: In April’s race at Richmond, Larson’s victory highlighted a strong day for Hendrick Motorsports. Josh Berry, who filled in for the sidelined Chase Elliott, finished second. Bowman finished eighth in the 400-lap event, while William Byron led a race-high 117 laps and scored a stage win. All told, the team led 228 laps on the day.
TOP-10 TRIO: Two of the last three races at Richmond have seen Hendrick Motorsports place three cars inside the top 10. The team achieved it in April 2023 and April 2022, which saw Byron finish second, Larson fifth and Bowman eighth.
NO SHORTAGE: Hendrick Motorsports leads all active Cup Series teams with 57 points-paying victories on short tracks, which is 12 more than the next-closest team. Gordon leads all drivers in team history with 17 short-track wins.
VICTORY IN VIRGINIA: Team owner Rick Hendrick grew up in Palmer Springs, Virginia, and his teams have won 40 Cup Series races in his home state. Hendrick Motorsports has gone to victory lane in Virginia at least one time in 28 different seasons, including each of the past four. The most recent 11 races in Virginia have seen one of his cars emerge victorious on six occasions with all four active drivers winning.
TOP OF THE BOARD: In the Next Gen car era (2022-present), Hendrick Motorsports has won 17 races, which is five more than any other team. During that span, all four drivers in its lineup – Byron (six), Larson (five), Chase Elliott (five) and Bowman (one) – have notched victories.
QUOTABLE /
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on his short-track success in 2023: “All of our wins this year have been on short tracks: Richmond, Martinsville and North Wilkesboro. We were good at Loudon, even compared to our teammates. Honestly, we have been pretty good everywhere this year. Especially early on in the year, we were really good on 1.5-mile tracks, intermediate tracks and superspeedways even. I’ve been up front, but crash or whatever. I’m excited about going to Richmond this weekend and going back to a track that we won at earlier this year. As the season progresses, setups change and the weather is going to be different than it was earlier this year. It’s not going to be the same, but I’m confident because we have been good on all the short tracks.”
Cliff Daniels, crew chief of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on competing at Richmond Raceway: “We are planning to try to respect the track as much as we possibly can. This place is so difficult. We were very fortunate to have a great race car and race overall in the spring. It’s certainly been a tough place for us in the past and we know that so we are trying to have a healthy amount of respect to make sure we do the right things and study ourselves right. We won’t rest on our laurels of a great race in the spring or be lazy about our approach. We will certainly look at everything that we can or need to from the spring race and make any adjustments that we see needed. Kyle was pretty happy with the car, but we can always be better. Hopefully we can execute a very solid race and be in the top 10 by the end of it and have a shot (to win).”
Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on racing at Richmond: “When I think of Richmond, the surface and the age of the asphalt comes to mind first – just how that has changed the races over the last few years. You’ve had a lot of strategy options because there’s so much (tire) falloff because the asphalt’s so old. You end up having guys two-stopping stages and being able to make up enough time with their fresh tires as opposed to only making one trip down pit road. So I just think about the surface being aged and how that’s impacted strategies.”
Alan Gustafson, crew chief of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on Richmond: “Richmond is actually one of my favorite tracks. I like the fact that it always has different lanes and, if your car drives good, you usually can make some progress. There are a lot of pit stops, and tires really matter there. All of those things make it a lot of fun, and the strategy can be super creative, which can help you a lot. It’s a super finicky track. You either hit it or you don’t. There doesn’t seem to be any in between. This weekend it’s going to be hot and slick for sure, so that’ll add another element. Usually when it’s that way, it really spreads out and the lanes get really wide, so that makes it interesting, too. I’m looking forward to going up there.”
William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on racing at Richmond Raceway: “I’m excited to get back to Richmond this weekend. We ran well there in the spring and didn’t get the result we deserved. Hopefully we can redeem that this weekend. It’s going to be a hot one, though, and that’s going to play a factor. Not only from how the car handles and grip levels but also from a heat inside the car aspect. The heat will probably be the biggest thing that all of us will have to manage throughout the weekend.”
Rudy Fugle, crew chief of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on what differences there are from the spring to the summer race at Richmond: “We were pretty good at Richmond earlier this year, but this race will be vastly different. It’s going to be really hot and a day race. The biggest thing is that the balance is going to change. It will be looser off the corners and tighter in the middle. You’re going to have to get the grip to improve and try to get your car to do better things at slower speeds. It’s still a short track, and it’s still worn out. The basics should all still be the same. You’re just going to want to add some more grip, especially when you’ll be going about a half-second slower compared to the spring. So that’s what we will focus on.”
Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on Richmond Raceway: “I think it’s a good track for us. We won there in 2021, and since then I feel like it has been one of my better tracks. I used to not like going there but that’s changed, obviously. We have good notes for when we go there, and we had a great car in the spring, so we expect to have success this weekend and be able to contend for a win. This team is really focused on getting into the playoffs, and I think this weekend is a place we all have circled as a track that can be good for us.”
Blake Harris, crew chief of the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on his approach to Richmond: “This weekend is another chance for us to perform the way we should. The last two weeks have been frustrating because the result we have isn’t reflective of the way we have ran during the race. We had a good race in Richmond in the spring so we know what we need to run well. It just comes back to the same thing I have preached all season. We need to focus on the details, get the little things right and capitalize on others’ mistakes. There is no reason we can’t go run in the top 10 all day and have a shot to win this Sunday.”
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (July 26, 2023): SS Greenlight Racing, with Canadian Alex Labbe behind the wheel, on Thursday announced a partnership with ref-ology + Blast Equality Collab as the primary sponsor with Team Schuler of Compass Real Estate and the Women’s Premier Basketball Association (WPBA) as associate sponsors on the #08 Ford Mustang in the NASCAR Xfinity Series this weekend for the Road America 180 at Elkhart Lake, WI.
“Thanks to Shelley Russi and her team for the support – can’t wait to see what we can accomplish there this weekend. I am excited to drive for SS Greenlight with the ref-ology + Blast Equality Collab/Team Schuler/WPBA colors on board with me on this road course and it’s incredible to have the opportunity to run on a freshly paved Road America circuit this weekend!” says driver Labbe.
This unique collaboration represents the embodiment of transformation at many levels. ref-ology + Blast Equality Collab brings together the WPBA and Team Schuler to partner with a race team whose driver embodies what it means to push hard, turns circumstances into the path and demonstrates a drive to win.
Blast Equality Collab, (a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization) founded by Shelley Russi – is a leadership collaboration taught through the lens of diverse sports experiences. Blast Equality Collab aims to help members and partners learn how to put people first while making decisions with a higher degree of integrity and accuracy by having to do it in real-world game/event situations. We partner with, and receive donations from, entities where our members are provided opportunities to put into practice embodied leadership at the intersection of Sports + Officiating, and beyond. Join the Blast Quality Collab Team in our campaign with HundredX and give without spending. Every piece of feedback you share supports our mission to support embodied leadership education through diverse sports experiences. Text ‘Blast’ to 90412, join the NASCAR affiliation and have your voice heard!
“We are thrilled to team up with SS Greenlight, driver Alex Labbe, Crew Chief Jason Miller and the entire 08 team at Road America,” said Russi. “This is an amazing opportunity to collaborate with Alex along with a proven, veteran team like SS GreenLight Racing and owner Bobby Dotter to represent the ref-ology + Blast Equality Collab brand on the track.”
Don Vaden, a 30-year NBA Veteran, former Finals Referee, and Russi’s business partner, will serve as one of the #08’s spotters this weekend.
“It’s an honor having ref-ology + Blast Equality Collab, Team Schuler and the WPBA teaming up with SS Greenlight and Alex in the #08. Looking forward to helping guide Alex toward the front,” says Vaden.
The Women’s Premier Basketball Association founded by Faatimah A, is the first Black Woman-owned FIBA Certified league in California. The WPBA is a collaborative of professional athletes, community leaders, coaches, and staff dedicated to the vision of upholding the highest standard in Women’s Basketball. The current 8-team League plays its final regular season games Saturday July 29 and Championship weekend at the College of Alameda in the East Bay, California on August 4-6, 2023. All things WPBA found at Instagram (@womenspba) or online (womenspba.com).
Team Schuler, Compass Real Estate’s mission is to transform the real estate experience by building and maintaining a diverse team. Team Schuler utilizes a holistic approach to benefit clients and continuously delivers BEST-IN-CLASS service – in an industry of sameness, ‘WE RISE ABOVE.’ We collaborate with Blast Equality Collab through our giving campaign (per transaction donation) and specifically with the WPBA to bring the Real Estate Agent opportunity to this group of talented Professional Basketball Players as they look to build a business alongside the playing brand. For more info visit us at: Team Schuler NorCal at teamschuler.com.
For more on SS GreenLight Racing, visit SSGreenLight.com, or ‘like’ on Facebook (SS GreenLight Racing) and follow them on Twitter (@SSGLR0708) and Instagram (@ssgreenlightracing).
For more on ref-ology + Blast Equality Collab, please visit ref-ology.com, shelleyrussi.com, blastequality.org, and follow them on Instagram (@ref.ology), and follow them on Twitter (@refology).
Practice for the Xfinity Series will be shown live on USA Network on Friday July 28 at 5:00PM ET/2:00PM PT with Qualifying at 6:00PM ET/3:00PM PT.
The Road America 180 (45 laps | 182.16 miles) at Road America Raceway will take the green flag Sat. July 29, 2023. Coverage begins at 3:00PM ET/12:00PM PT on NBC, the NBC Sports App, MRN Radio, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 and the Sirius XM app.
July 27, 2023 – Houston, TX – BeONE Sports – developers of a platform where accomplished athletes’ movements are digitized into a phone app with the goal of creating a training paradigm for athletes to learn – today announced the first-of-its-kind collaboration with Mass St. Collective and the University of Kansas to bring a Collegiate NIL NASCAR car to the upcoming NASCAR race on September 9 at Kansas Speedway.
The collaboration also includes JD Motorsports, eleven (11) University of Kansas student-athletes being featured on the race car, and Mass St. Collective – the KU NIL Collective founded in 2021 to help Jayhawk student-athletes build their personal brand and benefit from their name, image and likeness.
“Our goal at Mass St. Collective is to find new and unique instances where we can grow the brand of our KU student-athletes in new and meaningful ways through name, image and likeness.” says Dan Beckler, President of Mass St. Collective. “To partner with BeOne Sports and have 11 Jayhawks on a NASCAR Xfinity Series Race car is something that has never been done before, and it’s an exciting way to bring NIL and college athletes to the racing industry. Brand loyalty is the best among NASCAR fans, and we hope this car only adds to that. What makes this even more special is to debut the car in our home state at Kansas Speedway.”
“I’m so excited to be a part of something that’s never been done before! I love Kansas and it’s going to be so cool to have the college athletes on the car and give them a ride in our fast race car!” said Brennan Poole, driver of the #6 JD Motorsports Chevrolet.
Additionally, BeONE Sports is developing technology to level the racetrack. With the technology available from BeONE Sports, JD Motorsports hopes to become more competitive with the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ top teams and is exploring a variety of applications using comparative training within the team.
”JD Motorsports and Brennan Poole are teaming up with athletes from the University of Kansas for The Kansas Lottery 300 on September 9th at Kansas Speedway. We are happy to have BeONE back, Scott and I have worked very hard to put the NIL deal together to create a first in Nascar.” said Tony Priscaro, VP of Marketing and Sales for JD Motorsports.
“We believe athletes are everywhere, and we are very excited to bring new and interesting NIL opportunities to student-athletes. The KU NIL NASCAR is a great example of collaboration and driving innovation…literally,” says Scott Deans, BeONE Sports Founder and CEO.
BeONE Sports will be on location in Kansas from September 7th-9th. They will be kicking off their collaboration with athletes from the Kansas CIty Chiefs on September 7th, working with University of Kansas athletes on campus on September 8th, and at the NASCAR race on September 9th. For more information, visit beonesports.com.
About BeONE Sports
BeONE Sports has developed cutting-edge, sports training technology based on body mechanics within any sport. They’ve invented “Comparative Training,” where accomplished athletes’ movements are digitized into the technology, creating a catalog of learning potential. Using their patent-pending AI on a mobile device, young athletes around the world can train with their heroes! Athletes, coaches and parents receive immediate feedback on technique and body-position improvements, and BeONE Sports is revolutionizing the use of NIL where athletes and coaches earn income while training the next generation. For more information, visit www.beonesports.com
About Mass St. Collective
Mass St. Collective is the name, image and likeness organization serving all student-athletes at the University of Kansas. Utilizing gifts from donors, Mass St. coordinates opportunities for student-athletes to use their NIL in various ways like marketing opportunities with businesses and charitable organizations that align with their values and interests. Our mission is to create generational change for these student-athletes, all while helping them build a brand during their time at arguably the most recognizable collegiate athletics program in the country. For more information, visit www.MassStrategies.com
