Home Blog Page 1923

CORVETTE RACING AT LE MANS: No Words

By
Official Release
-

Both Corvettes retire early in final GTE Pro race at 24 Hours

LE MANS, France (June 12, 2022) – Corvette Racing’s GTE Pro run at the 24 Hours of Le Mans ended with retirements of both Chevrolet Corvette C8.Rs on Sunday.

Alexander Sims in the No. 64 Corvette was fighting to regain the class lead just before the 18-hour mark when a prototype competitor moved into him on the Mulsanne Straight. The contact, with Sims on the far-left with two LMP2 cars going by, pitched the Corvette hard left into the guardrail nose-first.

Sims exited the car unassisted and was fine upon his return to the paddock. He, along with FIA World Endurance Championship teammates Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy, took turns leading in the pole-winning Corvette. Sims earlier set the fastest GTE Pro lap of the race.

Only moments earlier, Corvette Racing had retired the No. 63 Corvette due to significant mechanical damage – seen and unseen – at the rear of the car. It was unclear if this was a continuation from an earlier suspension issue in the race’s first six hours. Every effort was made to get the car back into the race, but due to safety concerns for the team’s drivers and fellow competitors, the decision was made to retire.

“This isn’t how we wanted our Le Mans race to end,” said Laura Klauser, GM Sports Car Racing Program Manager. “We’re all proud of the dedication of everyone on the Corvette Racing team to give us the absolute best chance for our ninth class victory. At the end of the day, we’re all proud to be part of the One Team effort that is Corvette Racing. We’re glad Alexander is OK and that the C8.R kept him safe. Our focus now is on our two full-season efforts in the WEC and also the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.”

CORVETTE RACING AU MANS: Sans paroles

Les deux Corvettes abandonnent dans la course des GTE Pro aux 24 Heures

LE MANS, le 12 juin 2022 – La course du Corvette Racing aux 24 Heures du Mans s’est terminée par l’abandon des deux Chevrolet Corvette C8.R dimanche matin.

Alexander Sims, au volant de la Corvette n°64, se battait pour reprendre la tête de la catégorie GTE Pro juste avant la 18e heure lorsqu’un concurrent prototype l’a percuté sur la ligne droite des Hunaudières. Le contact, alors que Sims se trouvait à l’extrême gauche et que deux voitures LMP2 le dépassaient, a envoyé la Corvette de front dans les rails.

Sims est sorti de la voiture sans assistance et se sentait bien à son retour dans le paddock. Avec ses coéquipiers du Championnat du monde d’Endurance, Tommy Milner et Nick Tandy, il s’est relayé en tête de la Corvette qui a remporté la pole. Sims avait auparavant réalisé le tour le plus rapide de la course en GTE Pro.

Quelques instants plus tôt, Corvette Racing avait retiré la Corvette n° 63 en raison d’importants dégâts mécaniques – visibles et invisibles – à l’arrière de la voiture. Il n’était pas clair s’il s’agissait de la suite d’un problème de suspension survenu au cours des six premières heures de la course. Tout a été fait pour que la voiture reprenne la course, mais pour des raisons de sécurité pour les pilotes et les autres concurrents, la décision a été prise de retirer la voiture.

“Ce n’est pas comme ça que nous voulions que notre course au Mans se termine,” disait Laura Klauser, GM Sports Car Racing Program Manager. “Nous sommes tous fiers de l’engagement de tous les membres du team Corvette Racing pour nous donner les meilleures chances de remporter notre neuvième victoire de catégorie . En fin de compte, nous sommes tous fiers de faire partie de l’effort de l’équipe unique qu’est Corvette Racing. Nous sommes heureux qu’Alexander aille bien et que la C8.R l’ait bien protégé. Désormais, nous nous concentrons sur nos deux efforts en WEC et aussi dans le championnat IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar”.

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in nearly 80 countries with nearly 2.7 million cars and trucks sold in 2021. 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.

DGR NCWTS Race Recap: Sonoma Raceway

By
Official Release
-

Saturday, June 11
Track: Sonoma Raceway, 1.99-mile road course
Race: 12 of 23
Event: DoorDash 250 (75 laps, 149.25 miles)

Hailie Deegan, No. 1 Monster Energy Ford F-150

Start: 9th
Stage 1: 10th
Stage 2: 9th
Finish: 32nd

Hailie Deegan qualified ninth for the DoorDash 250. At the end of Stage 1, the Monster Energy F-150 was in the 10th position to earn one stage point. A penalty on pit road for a crew member over the wall too soon relegated Deegan to the back of the field for Stage 2. She did not short pit the stage and ended up ninth in Stage 2. With ten laps to go in the race, a flat right front tire sent the No. 1 into the wall on the frontstretch and ended Deegan’s day early. She was credited with 32nd.

Tanner Gray, No. 15 Ford Performance F-150

Start: 27th
Stage 1: 27th
Stage 2: 26th
Finish: 13th

Tanner Gray qualified 27th and maintained there at the end of Stage 1. After pitting for tires and adjustments at the stage break, the Ford Performance truck restarted 17th. Jerry Baxter short pitted Gray with three to go in Stage 2 and they settled for 26th in the stage rundown. The New Mexico driver restarted the final stage in 10th and survived the late race attrition to finish 13th.

Harrison Burton, No. 17 Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford F-150

Start: 23rd
Stage 1: 33rd
Stage 2: 28th
Finish: 12th

Harrison Burton qualified 23rd for Saturday’s 75-lap event. The team short pitted Stage 1 and settled for 33rd. During the break, the team worked on troubleshooting an engine issue and pitted multiple times. Burton ran around 28th for Stage 2 and short pitted the stage once again. He restarted 12th for the final stage and managed to hang right around the top-10 throughout the final 20 laps and bring home a 12th-place finish.

Next event: Clean Harbors 150 at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa on June 18 at 9:00 p.m. ET.

GMS Racing NCWTS Race Recap: Sonoma

By
SM Staff
-

Grant Enfinger, No. 23 Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet Silverado RST

START: 8TH
FINISH: 11TH
POINTS: 9TH

Quote: “Crazy race at Sonoma for our No. 23 team. Our GMS Racing guys did great battling back after I spun in the second stage to come back and finish 11th. I feel like we had a solid Champion Power Equipment Chevy today. We have some stuff to build on for Mid-Ohio, and a couple of things to work on as well. I’m looking forward to getting back on the dirt next week at Knoxville.”

Jack Wood, No. 24 Cooks Collision Chevrolet Silverado RST

START: 28TH
FINISH: 16TH
POINTS: 23RD

Quote: “Long day with doing double duty between running the ARCA West and Truck race at Sonoma. I’m proud of my No. 24 team, I think we showed some pretty good speed and were finally able to get our ship sailing in the right direction towards the end of the race. There’s definitely still a want to gain some more, but we had a solid day and I gained a lot of confidence heading into the coming weeks of Knoxville and Nashville.”

ABOUT GMS RACING:

GMS Racing competes full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series operating the No. 23 and the No. 24 Chevrolet Silverado RSTs, as well as the ARCA Menards Series with the No. 43 Chevrolet SS. Since the team was formed in 2012, GMS Racing has won five titles across multiple series, including the 2016 and 2020 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship, the 2015 ARCA Menards Series championship, as well as the 2019 & 2020 ARCA Menards Series East championships. GMS has grown to occupy several buildings located in Statesville, N.C. including operations for GMS Fabrication. The GMS Racing campus also houses operations for Petty GMS, a two car full-time NASCAR Cup Series team formed in 2021.

SOCIAL MEDIA:

To keep up-to-date with the latest news, information and exclusive content, follow GMS Racing on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Toyota Racing – NCWTS Sonoma Post-Race Report – 06.11.22

By
Official Release
-

BUSCH CLAIMS VICTORY IN TRUCK SERIES RETURN TO SONOMA
Kyle Busch earns first Truck Series road course victory

SONOMA, Calif. (June 11, 2022) – Kyle Busch earned his first Truck Series win of the season at Sonoma Raceway on Saturday afternoon. It was Busch’s fifth, and final, Truck Series start of the season. Busch was joined inside the top-five by Ty Majeski (third), who scored his first stage win today, and Chandler Smith (fifth).

Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Sonoma Raceway
Race 12 of 23 – 75 Laps, 149.25 Miles

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, KYLE BUSCH
2nd, Zane Smith*
3rd, TY MAJESKI
4th, Ross Chastain*
5th, CHANDLER SMITH
8th, JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
9th, TYLER ANKRUM
15th, CHASE PURDY
18th, BEN RHODES
20th, TODD BODINE
22nd, BRAD PEREZ
28th, TIMMY HILL
30th, JOSH BILICKI
31st, STEWART FRIESEN
33rd, JADE BUFORD
34th, MATT CRAFTON
35th, CHRISTIAN ECKES
36th, STEFAN PARSONS
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

KYLE BUSCH, No. 51 Yahoo! Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, Kyle Busch Motorsports

Finishing Position: 1st

What does it mean for you to get a win here in Sonoma?

“It means a lot. You look back at the history of the sport and the Truck Series growing up in California, these were their parts. It basically started in Bakersfield and Sonoma on a yearly basis there, so now that its back, it was good to come out and knock the rust off a little bit with the road racing and stuff. I didn’t want to run sim this week, so I thought the road course would knock that off. Certainly, it feels good to get our Yahoo! Toyota Tundra TRD Pro here in victory lane. Being a part of Kyle Busch Motorsports, and us being in the sport this long, it means a lot to get more diverse tracks on the schedule and get some wins at those places. Our Rowdy Manufacturing chassis was awesome today, and these guys did a really good job working their butts off.”

How important was it for you to keep the win streak going?

“I look back on the missed year of 2011 or 2012, where I didn’t get a win. I think we finished second like six times that year or something stupid. That was frustrating. That’s more bitter than this one not winning, but it’s good to be able to score a win. We were in position a few times this year. We had a couple really, really fast race trucks. Vegas comes to mind, COTA (Circuit of the Americas) comes to mind, so we didn’t miss by very much, just circumstances, but proud to get one today. Everything kind of went our way, and we had a fast truck.”

TY MAJESKI, No. 66 Cincinnati Incorporated Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, ThorSport Racing

Finishing Position: 3rd

How does another top-five feel?

“At a road course, it feels pretty good. This is only my second or third road course race in a truck, so I’m really green at it, especially in a stock car side. Just thankful we had a good truck and we could put it all together. Toyota gives us a lot of great tools to shorten that learning curve and I’ve always used iRacing.com. I’m a huge advocate of their software and I use that a bunch. We have a SimCraft simulator at the shop. Just ran hard with the laps on there to shorten that learning curve, and thankful we had a great Cincinnati Toyota Tundra today.”

CHANDLER SMITH, No. 18 Safelite AutoGlass Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, Kyle Busch Motorsports

Finishing Position: 5th

Can you walk me through those last two laps?

“I made way too many mistakes honestly. I spun the tires like no tomorrow. We got clear and then the 38 (Zane Smith) got inside. Honestly, the race was so long at the very end – that green, white-checkered, when you got to the frontstretch, all the way to (turn) four, you couldn’t see at all and that threw me off so bad. Everybody was on the same boat, but I couldn’t literally see anything whatsoever. It threw me off really bad honestly, but I’m really happy. It was a really good big, picture day for my Safelite AutoGlass Toyota Tundra. With that being sad, happy for everybody at KBM (Kyle Busch Motorsports). Looking forward to going to play in some dirt.”

#

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs more than 48,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 43 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With the more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, more than a quarter of the company’s 2021 North American sales were electrified.

Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.

Power jet washer: a perfect addition to your household toolkit

By
SM
-
Photo by Erik Mclean

A high-pressure washer is a perfect addition to your household toolkit. A pressure washer can be a significant investment, which makes it absolutely essential that you make the right pressure washer choice and find the right deal. This is easier said than done. There are a number of aspects to take into account. In this article, we invite you to discover the main questions about a jet wash for sale when making a purchase on such sites as www.ukplanettools.co.uk or in offline tool shops.

How often do you use a pressure washer?

Depending on the type of work you want to do with your pressure washer, consider a commercial or light home use portable jet washer or a heavy-duty professional model for big jobs. Please note, that the motors of these devices are adapted to the specific type of use, and any mistakes in the use of the washer could quickly end up with some worn-out parts. Depending on the intensity of your use, you must choose the best pressure washer that is safe and fits your needs along with the best pre-wash snow foam.

What kind of dirt do you need to remove?

Depending on the type of job you want to do with a pressure washer, you will need more pressure or higher flow.  It all depends on the dirt you want to get rid of. The distinction between pressure and flow is crucial. Pressure simply means the power with which the water leaves the pressure washer. Do you mainly need to remove loose dirt such as sand or mud? In this case, powerful jet washers with high throughput will suit for you. If you’re dealing with stubborn, caked-on dirt instead, you need more power to remove it. You can also consider checking Hotsy of Houston with their new type of pressure washers.

Do you need hot water or cold water?

The answer to this question is very simple. A higher temperature increases the cleaning power of your pressure washer. Therefore a hot water machine will be better suited to remove stubborn dirt and grease. For all other applications, it is therefore better to use a cold water machine.

Kyle Busch capitalizes in final Truck Series start with a victory at Sonoma

By
Andrew Kim
-
Photo by David Myers for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Kyle Busch made the most of his final NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start of the season by winning the inaugural DoorDash 250 at Sonoma Raceway on Saturday, June 11, following a two-lap shootout to the finish.

The two-time Cup Series champion from Las Vegas, Nevada, led four times for a race-high 45 of 75 laps and was able to pull away from teammate Chandler Smith at the start of a two-lap shootout to the finish and beating Zane Smith by more than a second to record his first Truck Series victory of the 2022 season at Sonoma, California.

With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, Carson Hocevar, who was still recovering from his final lap accident at Gateway from a week ago, notched his first pole position after clocking in a fast lap at 91.135 mph in 78.609 seconds. During his pole-winning lap, however, Hocevar got loose and smacked the wall in Turn 10. The incident along with unapproved adjustments forced Hocevar to start the event at the rear of the field in a backup truck along with Stefan Parsons. With Hocevar dropping to the rear of the field, teammate Ross Chastain, who was making his 100th Truck Series career start, and Kyle Busch occupied the front row, with Chastain’s qualifying time occurring at 90.492 mph in 79.167 seconds while Busch’s was at 90.428 mph in 79.223 seconds.

When the green flag waved and the race started, Chastain rocketed with the lead follows by Kyle Busch as the field battled dead even through the first three turns and entering the return of the Chute corner through Turns 4 to 7. Through Turns 8 through 11 and when the field returned to the start/finish line, Chastain led the first lap while Ty Majeski challenged Busch for the runner-up spot ahead of Tyler Ankrum and Alex Bowman.

Through the first five laps of the event, Chastain was leading by nearly three seconds over Kyle Busch followed by Majeski, Bowman and Ankrum while John Hunter Nemechek, Stewart Friesen, Parker Kligerman and Matt DiBenedetto were in the top 10. Austin Dillon was in 11th followed by Zane Smith, Hailie Deegan, Christian Eckes and Derek Kraus while Ben Rhodes, Chandler Smith, Kaz Grala, Lawless Alan and Timmy Hill occupied the top 20.

On the following lap, Friesen spun after locking up his front tires and slipping sideways while battling Kligerman in the top 10 in Turn 7. The race, however, proceeded under green as Chastain continued to lead by two seconds over Kyle Busch. 

At the Lap 10 mark, Chastain remained as the leader by less than two seconds over Kyle Busch while Majeski, Bowman and Ankrum remained in the top five. Meanwhile, Carson Hocevar, who started at the rear of the field while battling a broken right tibia, was up in 23rd place as he had Daniel Suarez on standby to relieve him.

The following lap, Hocevar pitted and the driver swap occurred as Suarez hopped into the No. 42 Worldwide Express Chevrolet Silverado RST. By then, Stefan Parsons took his truck to the garage after he was trailing smoke. The switch, however, cost the No. 42 team two laps while Chastain retained the lead by one-and-a-half seconds over Busch.

Just past the Lap 15 mark, Chastain stabilized his advantage to more than a second over Kyle Busch followed by Majeski, Bowman and Ankrum while Nemechek, Enfinger, Kligerman, DiBenedetto and Zane Smith were in the top 10.

Shortly after, Friesen pitted his No. 52 Halmar Toyota Tundra TRD Pro followed by the leader Chastain as Kyle Busch moved into the lead. Harrison Burton also pitted. Then with the field approaching the final two laps of the first stage, Kyle Busch pitted his No. 51 Yahoo! Toyota Tundra TRD Pro along with Bowman while Majeski moved into the lead. 

When the first stage concluded on Lap 20, Majeski claimed his first stage victory of the season after fending off a last-lap challenge from Ankrum. Nemechek settled in third place followed by Enfinger, Kligerman, DiBenedetto, Derek Kraus, Zane Smith, Austin Dillon and Hailie Deegan. 

Under the stage break, a majority of the field led by Majeski pitted while the rest led by Chastain remained on the track. During the pit stops, Harrison Burton reported being down a cylinder despite continuing. Following the pit stops, Deegan was penalized for an equipment going over the wall early along with Kris Wright and DiBenedetto, both of whom were penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation. Tanner Gray was also penalized for equipment being thrown from his pit box while Todd Bodine was penalized for speeding on pit road. Meanwhile, Suarez cycled his way to be only a lap behind the leaders.

The second stage started on Lap 25 as Chastain and Kyle Busch occupied the front row. At the start, Chastain cleared Busch and the field from the outside lane to retain the lead entering the first two turns. Then in Turn 7, Enfinger, who was in the top 10, locked up his front tires, ran over the curb and spun in the middle of the field. With the field scrambling to avoid hitting Enfinger, the race proceeded under green as Enfinger continued without sustaining any damage. 

Back at the front, Kyle Busch moved into the lead after overtaking Chastain in Turn 11 while Bowman was in third place ahead of Ankrum and Friesen. During the following lap, the caution returned when Christian Eckes, who was the fastest during Friday’s practice session, made contact with Nemechek as he spun and hit the wall in Turn 8. The caution cycled Suarez to the lead lap.

When the race proceeded under green on Lap 30, Kyle Busch pulled ahead of Chastain and the field to lead through the first two turns and entering Turns 3 and 3A. Through the 11-turn circuit and back to the start/finish line, Busch remained the leader despite having Chastain close behind in his rearview mirror. Behind, Ankrum was in third ahead of Bowman and Majeski while Friesen and Ben Rhodes battled for sixth place. Kligerman was in eighth while Kraus and Nemechek were in the top 10.

By Lap 35, Kyle Busch continued to lead by nearly two seconds over Chastain followed by Ankrum, Bowman and Majeski while Friesen, Rhodes, Chandler Smith and Kraus were in the top 10. Not long after, Kraus surrendered his spot in 10th place to pit as Zane Smith moved into the top 10. 

Two laps later, Matt Crafton spun his No. 88 Menards Toyota Tundra TRD Pro in Turn 8 after getting hit by Todd Bodine, who locked up his front tires prior to entering the corner.

Through Lap 40 and with the event surpassing its halfway mark, Kyle Busch stabilized his advantage to more than three seconds over Chastain, who had Ankrum pressuring him for the runner-up spot while Bowman and Majeski were scored in the top five.

Two laps later, a handful of competitors led by Zane Smith pitted under green while Kyle Busch continued to lead. Another lap later, however, Busch surrendered the lead to pit followed by Ankrum, Bowman, Chastain, Majeski and Kligerman while Ben Rhodes moved into the lead.

When the second stage concluded on Lap 45, Rhodes claimed his eighth stage victory of the season. Chandler Smith settled in second followed by Chase Purdy, Kaz Grala, Austin Dillon, Suarez, Timmy Hill, Dean Thompson, Deegan and Bodine.

Under the stage break, some led by Rhodes pitted while the rest led by Kyle Busch remained on the track.

With 26 laps remaining, the final stage started as Kyle Busch and Chastain occupied the front row. At the start, Kyle Busch fended off Chastain to lead through the first two turns while the field scrambled and jostled for positions entering Turns 3, 4 and 7. Back to the start/finish line, Busch was leading by a tenth of a second over Chastain while Majeski, Bowman, Friesen, Kligerman, Zane Smith, Nemechek, Tanner Gray and DiBenedetto were in the top 10.

Five laps later, Bodine spun his No. 62 Camping World Toyota Tundra TRD Pro in front of Dean Thompsons entering Turn 3. The race, however, continued under green as Kyle Busch remained the leader by less than a second over Chastain.

Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Kyle Busch stabilized his advantage to nearly a second over Chastain while Majeski, Bowman and Kligerman were in the top five. Way behind the leaders, Crafton pitted as smoke was lightly billowing out of his No. 88 Menards Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, an issue that started through the esses and was enough to have his truck pushed behind the wall.

With 15 laps remaining, Kyle Busch was leading by less than two seconds over Chastain. Behind, Bowman was in third place, trailing by more than three seconds, while Majeski and Kligerman were in the top five. Just then, the caution flew when DiBenedetto, who was making a move beneath Friesen for 10th place entering Turn 11, ran into the tire barrier and into Friesen with both spinning in the turn as a tire barrier was knocked on its side.

During the caution period, nearly the entire field led by Kyle Busch pitted as Busch exited first followed by Chastain, Majeski, Bowman, Chandler Smith and Nemechek. Back on the track, however, Rhodes, who did not pit, remained on the track and assumed the lead along with Kraus and Chase Purdy, both of whom did not pit. Following the pit stops, Bowman was penalized for equipment interference.

Down to the final 11 laps of the event, the race restarted under green. At the start, Rhodes took off with the lead through the first two turns while Kyle Busch battled and overtook Kraus for the runner-up spot while on fresh tires. As the field jostled for positions, Rhodes locked up his front tires and Kraus got turned and spun in Turn 7 as Kyle Busch reassumed the lead. 

Then during the following lap, the caution returned when Deegan blew a right-rear tire, slipped sideways and smacked the wall entering Turn 1, thus sustaining significant right-side and rear-end damage to her No. 1 Monster Energy Ford F-150.

With seven laps remaining, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Kyle Busch rocketed with the lead as teammate Chandler Smith moved his No. 18 Safelite AutoGlass Toyota Tundra TRD Pro into the runner-up spot through the first two turns. Through Turns 3 and 3A, Rhodes went off the course and reported a flat tire as the field continued to jostle for positions under green. 

Two laps later, Kyle Busch was leading by six-tenths of a second over teammate Chandler Smith. Behind, Zane Smith overtook Majeski to move into third while Chastain was in fifth ahead of Kligerman and Suarez. Shortly after, the caution flew for a heavy wreck entering Turn 1 that started when Friesen got Josh Bilicki sideways as Bilicki clipped the inside wall before he smacked the outside wall hard along with Friesen. In the process, Bowman and Lawless Alan sustained damage to their respective trucks after getting into Bilicki. The incident was enough for the event to be drawn into a red flag period for nearly 13 minutes.

When the red flag lifted and the race restarted for a two-lap shootout, Kyle Busch cleared the field and retained the lead while teammate Chandler Smith fended off Zane Smith to retain second place. Through Turn 7, Zane Smith move his No. 38 CMR Ford F-150 into the runner-up spot ahead of Chandler Smith while Busch continued to lead.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Kyle Busch was leading by more than a second over Zane Smith and more than two seconds over teammate Chandler Smith as the field jostled for positions. Behind, Dean Thompson spun, but the race remained under green flag conditions. With Zane Smith unable to mount a challenge for the final time through the 11-turn circuit, Kyle Busch navigated his way back to the finish line for his first checkered flag of the season.

With the victory, Kyle Busch, who is a two-time Cup winner at Sonoma, notched his 62nd career win in the Camping World Truck Series and his first victory on a road course circuit in the Truck Series. The victory also extended Busch’s current winning streak in the Truck Series to 10 consecutive seasons with this season marking his 17th Truck season with at least one victory.

“I appreciate Yahoo! and everybody that has made this partnership possible with Toyota and [Toyota Racing Development],” Busch said on FS1. “This Tundra TRD Pro was awesome today. I’m really proud to drive it. We had a struggle at Charlotte a couple weeks ago, but today was really good. Awesome adjustments by [crew chief] Mardy [Lindley] and all the guys here to get us in position to be able to win today. Yesterday was ugly. I wasn’t sure about it. I didn’t feel good about the truck, but they worked on it all night long and we made some brake changes. We made some chassis changes and these guys never stop. As hard as it might seem sometimes, I know the efforts there. Super effort here. Ready to go celebrate.” 

Zane Smith settled in second place for his sixth top-five result of the season followed by Ty Majeski, who notched his fifth top-five result of the 2022 season. Chastain came home in fourth place while Chandler Smith fell back to fifth place.

“[The day] didn’t start out too good,” Zane Smith said. “Took a huge swing at our MRC Ford Performance F-150. Luckily, it went the right way. It’s really hard to do in a racing situation, so props to my team, but I hate finishing second. Especially to [Kyle Busch]. I feel like just racing with [Chandler Smith], he got out too far out front and I think that last lap was the fastest lap of the race for me. I just wished I was a little closer so I had a shot at him.”

Suarez earned a strong sixth-place effort while subbing for the injured Carson Hocevar while Kligerman, Nemechek, Ankrum and DiBenedetto finished in the top 10. Jack Wood was the highest-finishing rookie competitor in 16th place.

“[Today] was busy, man,” Suarez said. “It was very busy. I was hoping to go one lap down, but when we went two laps down, I was like, ‘Man, it’s gonna be a long recovery’. I was hoping to recover quicker on that, but the truck had speed. I was hoping for long runs so I can be able to make some ground, but overall, the team did a very good job. Very thankful I was able to help. We were able to get some stage points in stage number 2 and then finish in the top six. That was a pretty decent day. I wished we could have won. The truck was capable of winning the race, but we just ran out of time.”

There were 10 lead changes for five different leaders. The race featured six cautions for 17 laps. A total of 26 of 36 starters finished on the lead lap.

With four races remaining of the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series regular season stretch, Ben Rhodes leads the regular-season standings by five points over Chandler Smith, 12 over Zane Smith, 14 over John Hunter Nemechek. 45 over Ty Majeski and 47 over Stewart Friesen.

Zane Smith, Ben Rhodes, John Hunter Nemechek, Chandler Smith and Stewart Friesen are tentatively locked into the 2022 Truck Playoffs based on winning at least once throughout the season while Ty Majeski, Christian Eckes, Carson Hocevar, Grant Enfinger and Matt Crafton are above the top-10 cutline based on points. Tanner Gray trails the top-10 cutline by 33 points, Matt DiBenedetto trails by 36, Derek Kraus trails by 39, Tyler Ankrum trails by 50 and Chase Purdy trails by 91.

Results.

1. Kyle Busch, 45 laps led

2. Zane Smith

3. Ty Majeski, four laps led, Stage 1 winner

4. Ross Chastain, 19 laps led

5. Chandler Smith

6. Carson Hocevar (*subbed by Daniel Suarez)

7. Parker Kligerman

8. John Hunter Nemechek

9. Tyler Ankrum

10. Matt DiBenedetto

11. Grant Enfinger, one lap led

12. Harrison Burton

13. Tanner Gray

14. Kaz Grala

15. Chase Purdy

16. Jack Wood

17. Austin Dillon

18. Ben Rhodes, six laps led, Stage 2 winner

19. Colby Howard

20. Todd Bodine

21. Blaine Perkins

22. Brad Perez

23. Spencer Boyd

24. Dean Thompson

25. Lawless Alan

26. Kris Wright

27. Derek Kraus, one lap down

28. Timmy Hill, two laps down

29. Alex Bowman – OUT, Accident

30. Josh Bilicki – OUT, Accident

31. Stewart Friesen – OUT, Accident

32. Hailie Deegan – OUT, Accident

33.  Jade Buford – OUT, Transmission

34. Matt Crafton – OUT, Transmission

35. Christian Eckes – OUT, Accident

36. Stefan Parsons – OUT, Oil cooler

Next on the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series schedule is Iowa’s Knoxville Raceway for the second annual running of the Clean Harbor 150. The event is scheduled to occur on Saturday, June 18, at 9 p.m. ET on FS1.

Larson notches fifth consecutive Cup Series pole at Sonoma Raceway

By
Andrew Kim
-
SONOMA, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 11: Kyle Larson, driver of the #5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, poses for photos after winning the pole award during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway on June 11, 2022 in Sonoma, California. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images).

For a fifth consecutive time, Kyle Larson will be leading the field to the green flag from the pole position at Sonoma Raceway.

The reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion from Elk Grove, California, clocked in a pole-winning lap at 91.936 mph in 77.776 seconds to place his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at the top of the leaderboard and claim the Busch Light Pole Award for Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350.

The pole award at Sonoma was Larson’s fifth at the track, the second of the 2022 Cup season and the 12th of his career, placing him in a tie with Ricky Rudd for second place on the all-time pole list at Sonoma and one behind Jeff Gordon. With the pole, Larson aims to defend his victory at his home track following his dominant win a year ago, where he swept both stages leading up to the victory.

“[The qualifying run] was good,” Larson, who was slipping sideways entering the Chute corner from Turns 4 to 7, said on FS2. “I was a little bit surprised I ran that seventy-something I ran because I gave up a lot of time in Turn 4 and 7. Had I had those two corners back, I feel like I could’ve been quite a bit faster. Just really good HendrickCars.com Chevy. Thanks to everybody at our team and everybody back at the shop. Engine shop. Excited about it, but for [teammate] Chase [Elliott] to lay down that lap, I feel like that shows how strong he is because he was really good on race trim, too. I got to figure some things out on my end. I think my car’s capable of racing good. I just got to get a little bit better on the long runs and hopefully, have a good shot.”

Teammate Chase Elliott will be sharing the front row with Larson after he posted a fast qualifying lap at 77.799 mph in 92.083 seconds in his No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Elliott will be pursuing his first victory at Sonoma after finishing in the runner-up spot behind Larson a year ago.

Chris Buescher, who makes his return behind the wheel of the No 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang after being absent last weekend at Gateway following a positive COVID-19 test, was the third-fastest qualifier while Michael McDowell and Tyler Reddick will start in the top five. Rounding out the top-10 qualifying spots are Cole Custer, Ross Chastain, Daniel Suarez, Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin, respectively.

Kurt Busch, the first competitor who did not transfer to the final round, will start in 11th place in his No. 45 Monster Energy Toyota TRD Camry followed by brother Kyle, Austin Dillon, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe, AJ Allmendinger, Joey Hand, Justin Haley, Alex Bowman and William Byron, respectively. Todd Gilliland was the fastest-rookie qualifier in 24th place in front of Austin Cindric and Harrison Burton.

Cody Ware was the only competitor who did not post a qualifying lap due to his No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford Mustang failing pre-qualifying inspection three times. As a result, Ware will be assessed a drive-through penalty following the drop of the green flag at Sonoma and his car chief Steve Gray has been suspended for the remainder of the weekend.

Qualifying position, time, speed

1. Kyle Larson, 77.776 seconds, 92.111 mph

2. Chase Elliott, 77.799 seconds, 92.038 mph

3. Chris Buescher, 77.938 seconds, 91.919 mph

4. Michael McDowell, 77.941 seconds, 91.916 mph

5. Tyler Reddick, 78.021 seconds, 91.821 mph

6. Cole Custer, 78.070 seconds, 91.764 mph

7. Ross Chastain, 78.137 seconds, 91.685 mph

8. Daniel Suarez, 78.148 seconds, 91.672 mph

9. Joey Logano, 78.276 seconds, 91.522 mph

10. Denny Hamlin, 78.515 seconds, 91.244 mph

11. Kurt Busch, 78.244 seconds, 91.560 mph

12. Kyle Busch, 78.275 seconds, 91.523 mph

13. Austin Dillon, 78.319 seconds, 91.472 mph

14. Ryan Blaney, 78.472 seconds, 91.294 mph

15. Chase Briscoe, 78.507 seconds, 91.253 mph

16. AJ Allmendinger, 78.572 seconds, 91.178 mph

17. Joey Hand, 78.578 seconds, 91.171 mph

18. Justin Haley, 78.603 seconds, 91.142 mph

19. Alex Bowman, 78.664 seconds, 91.071 mph

20. William Byron, 78.691 seconds, 91.040 mph

21. Aric Almirola, 78.706 seconds, 91.022 mph

22. Brad Keselowski, 78.829 seconds, 90.880 mph

23. Kevin Harvick, 78.857 seconds, 90.848 mph

24. Todd Gilliland, 79.065 seconds, 90.609 mph

25. Austin Cindric, 79.300 seconds, 90.340 mph

26. Harrison Burton, 79.315 seconds, 90.323 mph

27. Bubba Wallace, 79.337 seconds, 90.298 mph

28. Martin Truex Jr., 79.356 seconds, 90.277 mph

29. Josh Bilicki, 79.493 seconds, 90.298 mph

30. Corey LaJoie, 79.544 seconds, 90.063 mph

31. Christopher Bell, 79.553 seconds, 90.053 mph

32. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., 79.617 seconds, 89.981 mph

33. Erik Jones, 79.711 seconds, 89.875 mph

34. Ty Dillon, 80.037 seconds, 89.509 mph

35. Scott Heckert, 81.171 seconds, 88.258 mph

36. Cody Ware – Did not qualify

The Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway is scheduled to commence on Sunday, June 12, at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.

Jake Drew scores second ARCA Menards Series West career victory at Sonoma

By
Andrew Kim
-
Photo by David Myers for SpeedwayMedia.com.

A week after notching his first victory at Portland International Raceway, Jake Drew went back-to-back in the ARCA Menards Series West after winning the General Tire 200 at Sonoma Raceway from pole position on Saturday, June 11.

The 22-year-old Drew from Fullerton, California, and who drives for Sunrise Ford Racing, dominated from start to finish, leading a race-high 48 of 56 laps, and survived the carnage, a series of restarts and late challenges from Landen Lewis and Drew Moore before the latter two were collected in a late wreck that eventually shortened the event to claim the checkered flag under caution.

With on-track practice and qualifying sessions that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, Jake Drew started on pole position after clocking in a pole-winning lap at 1:20.397 in 89.108 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Landen Lewis, whose best lap occurred at 1:21.134 mph in 88.298 seconds.

When the green flag waved and the race started, Drew cleared the field entering the first turn to lead through the first three turns and approaching the return of the Chute from Turns 4 and 7. Through Turns 8 through 11, Drew retained the lead and led the first lap followed by Landen Lewis, Todd Souza, Dale Quarterley and Austin Herzog.

Through the first five laps, Drew remained as the leader ahead of Lewis, Souza, Quarterley and Herzog while Tanner Reif, Sebastian Arias, Paul Pedroncelli Jr., Jack Wood and Dean Thompson were in the top 10. 

Four laps later, the first caution of the event flew when Nick Joanides stalled his car at the entrance of the temporary pit road on the Sonoma Raceway drag strip.

When the race restarted on Lap 13, Drew was able to retain the lead ahead of the field. Two laps later, however, the caution returned when Vince Little spun and wrecked in Turn 10.

At the start of the following restart on Lap 18, Drew and Souza battled dead even as Souza emerged as the new leader through the first two turns while the field scrambled for spots. Then through Turn 7A, Lewis made his move into the runner-up spot over Drew until Drew reassumed the spot through Turn 11. 

Through the first 20 laps, Drew, who reassumed the lead from Souza when Souza went wide in Turn 7A during the previous lap, was ahead of Souza, Lewis, Quarterley, Cole Moore, Herzog, Tanner Reif, Joey Iest, Jack Wood and Colby Howard. Behind, Sebastian Arias and PJ Pdroncelli spun in Turn 11.

Three laps later, the caution flew when Robb Kneeland, who bumped and rubbed with Bridget Burgess through Turn 7A, got bumped by Brugess as he spun and collected Arias in the process, thus sending both into the tire barriers between Turns 7 and 8 and out of the event. The incident was one that left Burgess heated towards Arias. During the caution period, some led by Lewis pitted while the rest led by Drew pitted. 

When the race restarted under green on Lap 29, Lewis took off with the lead at the start while Quarterley spun the tires on the inside lane as he briefly stacked up the field. Then as the field made its way through Turn 3A, the caution returned when Tanner Reif spun off the front nose of Joey Iest before he was T-boned on the right side by Takuma Koga. 

With 30 laps remaining and the race restarted under green, Drew had to fend off a challenge from Cole Moore to retain the lead through the first two turns. Not long after in Turn 7A, Souza spun, but the race proceeded under green.  

Two laps later, the caution returned when Tim Spurgeon spun and wrecked his car against the tire barriers in Turn 10.

When the race proceeded under green with 26 laps remaining, Drew retained the lead ahead of Moore as the field scrambled and jostled for positions up through the first four turns before entering the Chute and Turn 7. 

Then with 22 laps remaining as the battle for the lead ignited between Drew, Moore and Lewis, Moore made a bold move to the outside of Drew to briefly take the lead until he went wide through Turn 11. This allowed Drew to reassume the lead as Lewis joined the battle for the lead.

During the following lap, Lewis took over the runner-up spot over Moore, who briefly went off the course and into the gravel in Turn 2, as Drew remained as the leader.

Following another caution period with 18 laps remaining due to debris reported in Turn 3, the race restarted four laps later. Drew took off with the lead on the outside lane entering Turn 1 while Colby Howard challenged Lewis for the runner-up spot. Then in Turn 11, Howard got into Lewis while battling for the runner-up spot as Lewis collected Moore with the latter two spinning. As Moore was trying to straighten his car, he got hit on the right side by Dean Thompson, Ryan Philpott and Paul Pedroncelli Jr. while Lewis continued.

The multi-car incident and the extensive cleanup period were enough for the event to conclude under caution eight laps shy of the finish to the 64-lap distance due to time constraints as Drew claimed his second consecutive victory in the ARCA Menards Series West. The victory also allowed Drew to retain his lead in the drivers’ championship standings by 35 points over Todd Souza, 37 over Tanner Reif, 38 over Cole Moore and 39 over Austin Herzog.

Colby Howard, a full-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series competitor for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing who was making his ARCA Menards Series West debut, settled in second place followed by Dale Quarterley, Jack Wood and Joey Iest while Austin Herzog, Eric Nascimento, Todd Souza, Tim Spurgeon and Bridget Burgess completed the top 10.

There were four lead changes for two different leaders. The race featured seven cautions for 29 laps

Results.

1. Jake Drew, 48 laps led

2. Colby Howard

3. Dale Quarterley

4. Jack Wood

5. Joey Iest

6. Austin Herzog

7. Eric Nascimento

8. Todd Souza, two laps led

9. Tim Spurgeon

10. Bridget Burgess

11. Vince Little

12. Cole Moore

13. Andrew Tuttle

14. Landen Lewis

15. Dean Thompson – OUT, Accident

16. Paul Pedroncelli Jr. – OUT, Accident

17. Ryan Philpott – OUT, Accident

18. Tanner Reif – OUT, Accident

19. Takuma Koga – OUT, Accident

20. Rodd Kneeland – OUT, Accident

21. Sebastian Arias – OUT, Accident

22. Nick Joanides – OUT, Accident

23. Paul Pedroncelli – OUT, Accident

24. Brian Kamisky – OUT, Did not start

The replay of the Sonoma event will air on June 16 at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

Next on the 2022 ARCA Menards Series West schedule is the series’ second trip of the season to Irwindale Speedway, which will occur on July 2 at 10 p.m. ET on FloRacing.

Sudden Surge Continues with Pole for Rossi at Road America

By
Official Release
-
Road America - 2022

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (Saturday, June 11, 2022) – Alexander Rossi earned his first NTT P1 Award in more than three years, taking the top spot Saturday for the Sonsio Grand Prix at Road America presented by AMR.

Rossi’s final lap secured his seventh career pole and first since June 2019 at Detroit, as he produced a time of 1 minute, 44.8656 seconds in the No. 27 NAPA AUTO PARTS/AutoNation Honda. That lap also ensured there was a different pole winner for the first eight races of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season, a feat last achieved in 1961.

Four of the drivers in the Firestone Fast Six qualifying session decided to use the Firestone primary “black” tires, which are more durable but have less grip than the alternate “red” tires. Josef Newgarden used the same strategy last year to win the pole on this 14-turn, 4.048-mile circuit.

“I think we saw with Josef last year that he was able to get Colton (Herta) on the blacks, and most of our competition was on the primaries, as well,” Rossi said. “I think that’s just kind of the trend here.

“It was an amazing job all weekend by the NAPA AUTO PARTS-AutoNation-Andretti Honda guys. It’s been a long time since we’ve been in this position. It’s cool, we’ll enjoy it, but we’ve got a job to do tomorrow.”

The 55-lap race starts at 12:55 p.m. (ET) Sunday. Live coverage starts at 12:30 p.m. on NBC and Peacock Premium and at noon on the INDYCAR Radio Network.

Two-time series champion Newgarden will join Rossi on the front row after his best qualifying lap of 1:44.9371 in the No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet. Newgarden, in a change of strategy from last year, joined Pato O’Ward as the only drivers using alternate tires for their flying laps in the Firestone Fast Six.

“I thought he was on used reds like everyone else,” Newgarden said of Rossi. “I’m surprised he was able to make that work on the blacks, to be quite honest. In my opinion, I thought it was clear we were going to go used reds. They just seemed significantly better this year than last year.

“If he made that work, that’s pretty stout. The lap time he did on blacks was really, really good. That’s an impressive pole.”

Defending series champion Alex Palou qualified third at 1:45.3822 in the No. 10 The American Legion Honda. Teammate and 2022 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Marcus Ericsson will join Palou in the second row after his best lap of 1:45.4240 in the No. 8 Huski Chocolate Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.

Colton Herta will start fifth after his top lap of 1:45.5388 in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda, while O’Ward rounded out the Firestone Fast Six at 1:45.6826 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet.

Rossi and the No. 27 Andretti Autosport team have turned around their season after a rough start. Rossi was 18th in the championship standings after finishing 11th in the GMR Grand Prix on May 14 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Since then, Rossi has finished fifth in the Indianapolis 500 on May 29 and second in the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear last Sunday to vault to seventh in the standings, 60 points behind leader Palou.

It also was announced last week Rossi will leave Andretti Autosport after seven seasons to join Arrow McLaren SP starting next year. But Rossi vowed to continue with maximum effort in 2022 for the Andretti team, and he backed that up again Friday by turning the quickest lap in practice before winning the pole today.

“We’re really strong on the primaries,” Rossi said. “The balance isn’t quite there on the Firestone reds. I think we struggled a little bit through the first two rounds. We knew that if we could get there (Firestone Fast Six), it would be ours to lose, really.

“A huge thanks to the team. It’s been a tough go for all of these guys. It’s a good boost for everyone.”

Newgarden will earn a $1 million bonus from PeopleReady with a victory Sunday. The PeopleReady Force for Good Challenge rewards the first driver to win on all three types of circuits – road courses, street circuits and oval tracks – in 2022. If earned, the $1 million will be shared, with $500,000 going to the team/driver and $500,000 donated to their chosen charity. Newgarden has won this season on the Texas Motor Speedway oval and the Long Beach.

Sonsio Grand Prix at Road America presented by AMR Qualifying Results

  1. (27) Alexander Rossi, Honda, 01:44.8656 (137.799 mph)
  2. (2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 01:44.9371 (137.705)
  3. (10) Alex Palou, Honda, 01:45.3822 (137.124)
  4. (8) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, 01:45.4240 (137.069)
  5. (26) Colton Herta, Honda, 01:45.5388 (136.920)
  6. (5) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 01:45.6826 (136.734)
  7. (28) Romain Grosjean, Honda, 01:45.1543 (137.421)
  8. (7) Felix Rosenqvist, Chevrolet, 01:45.2307 (137.321)
  9. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 01:45.2412 (137.307)
  10. (9) Scott Dixon, Honda, 01:45.2446 (137.303)
  11. (60) Simon Pagenaud, Honda, 01:45.2759 (137.262)
  12. (77) Callum Ilott, Chevrolet, No Time (No Speed)
  13. (30) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, 01:45.4024 (137.097)
  14. (18) David Malukas, Honda, 01:45.6017 (136.839)
  15. (12) Will Power, Chevrolet, 01:45.4227 (137.071)
  16. (06) Helio Castroneves, Honda, 01:45.6217 (136.813)
  17. (21) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, 01:45.5581 (136.895)
  18. (20) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, 01:45.7234 (136.681)
  19. (51) Takuma Sato, Honda, 01:45.7045 (136.706)
  20. (45) Jack Harvey, Honda, 01:45.9420 (136.399)
  21. (29) Devlin DeFrancesco, Honda, 01:46.0785 (136.224)
  22. (15) Graham Rahal, Honda, 01:45.9951 (136.331)
  23. (4) Dalton Kellett, Chevrolet, 01:46.9755 (135.081)
  24. (14) Kyle Kirkwood, Chevrolet, 01:46.6130 (135.541)
  25. (11) Tatiana Calderon, Chevrolet, 01:47.5661 (134.340)
  26. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Honda, 01:47.3134 (134.656)
  27. (16) Simona De Silvestro, Chevrolet, 01:48.1033 (133.672)

CHEVY NCS AT SONOMA: Kyle Larson Press Conference Transcript

By
Official Release
-

NASCAR CUP SERIES
SONOMA RACEWAY
TOYOTA / SAVE MART 350
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 11, 2022

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Sonoma Raceway. Press Conference Transcript:

AS THE DEFENDING RACE WINNER HERE AT SONOMA RACEWAY, HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE BACK?

“Yeah, it’s nice. It’s home, so it’s cool to get out here to Sonoma (Raceway); a track where we won last year. I’ve always qualified really well here, so I’m excited about today. I’m hoping with this Next Gen car that we’re just as good as we were last year. I’m excited to get on track.”

HOW MUCH TIME HAVE YOU SPENT IN THE SIMULATOR TO ADJUST TO WHAT THE NEW CAR IS GOING TO DO HERE.

“I haven’t been in the sim, but we should be alright. These cars, especially on the road courses, haven’t driven too much different, at least at COTA. The braking zones go a little bit deeper, but other than that, it felt similar.”

THIS IS A PLACE WHERE YOU GOT YOUR FIRST CAREER ROAD COURSE WIN. AS A NORTHERN CALIFORNIA NATIVE, WHAT WOULD IT MEAN TO YOU TO GO BACK-TO-BACK HERE AT SONOMA RACEWAY?

“Yeah, it would be really cool for sure. Jeff Gordon, also another Northern California guy, has had a lot of success here. I’d like to catch him in wins someday, so have to go to work on that because he’s won a lot here.

It would be neat. Like I said, it’s always nice to come home, but it’s especially nice when you can win.”

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE LAYOUT CHANGE?

“Yeah, it kind of is what it is. I think it’s going to be similar racing either way. The same guys are going to be up front as they would with the other style. Personally, I enjoyed the carousel. It added a left-hander, more normal feeling corner to me. They added a patch of new pavement over there last year, so I felt like that kind of opened up the groove a little bit in getting grip. I don’t know the reasoning behind changing it back. Maybe it’s just better viewing for the fans or something. But again, it doesn’t really matter a whole lot. We know what to expect because we’ve raced on this layout for a long time. It should be fine.”

ON TOP OF THAT, YOU WON BOTH STAGES AND THE RACE LAST YEAR. ARE YOU GUYS GOING TO TRY AND DO THAT AGAIN OR IS THAT SOMETHING THAT’S GOING TO BE HARD TO DO?

“I have no idea. I think last year, our car was so much better than the fields that we were able to kind of be aggressive with the strategy like that and go after the stages and the race win. I think I read somewhere earlier where there had never been a stage winner to win the race here, so that just showed how good our stuff was last year.

I don’t expect you’ll be able to do that this year. I think everybody’s cars are a little bit more equal. You’re going to have to play the strategy more conservatively to prepare yourself to lineup in the best spot for the final stage.”

WE HAVE OUR OFF WEEK COMING UP. WHAT’S YOUR THOUGHTS ON ONLY HAVING ONE OFF WEEK; AND ARE YOU GOING TO DO YOUR TYPICAL THING AND GO RACE?

“I’m not going to race. I’ve been racing a lot more this year than I have in years previous. So, I want to take this off week and spend more time with my family; kind of recharge and get back excited about racing. Obviously I would love to have more than one off week. I think all of us in the sport deserves more than one off weekend. But again, it is what it is. If there were no off weekends, we would still be racing.

I loved having two off weekends in a row last year. I know that was circumstantial with the Olympics, but that fell at a perfect time. It was Katelyn’s birthday and my birthday for both of those off weekends. So, that was fun. I would love to get at least one off weekend back. If we could get three off weekends in a year, that’d be great.”

LOOKING AHEAD TO NASHVILLE, LAST YEAR YOU DOMINATED THAT RACE. DESPITE DOMINATING IT, IT WAS A PRETTY GOOD RACE. WERE YOU SURPRISED WITH HOW GOOD THE RACE WAS AND YOUR THOUGHTS ON HOW YOU WON THE RACE?

“A lot of the tracks we went to last year, our car was so good that we were able to lead a lot of that race and get the win. It raced really well. I had only tested there before and it was always kind of just right around the bottom; where last year, I think they put some resin no the track or something and we were able to move up the track a far bit. It was pretty slick and you could move around. I hope it’s similar to that. I think it should be and probably even better. It seems like these Next Gen cars slide around even more, so it should be fun.”

THE NASHVILLE MARKET HAS REALLY COME TOGETHER FOR NASCAR, WITH THE BANQUET AND CHAMPIONS WEEK. IT JUST SEEMS LIKE NASHVILLE GETS PRETTY FIRED UP FOR NASCAR.

“Yeah, definitely. Nashville is a great area for racing, especially NASCAR racing. I look forward to getting there. Last year was the first event there for the Cup Series. The crowd was huge and the atmosphere in the city was great. I’m sure it will be a lot of the same.”

AFTER LAST WEEK AT GATEWAY, ARE YOU CONCERNED AT ALL THAT YOU MAY GET CAUGHT UP IN SOMEBODY ELSE’S PAYBACK?

“I don’t know – you’d have to ask people if they feel the need to pay me back (laughs). I don’t know who owes me anything.”

HOW CRITICAL IS TIRE MANAGEMENT? ALSO, TOMORROW IS SUPPOSED TO BE COOLER. WILL THAT HELP WITH HANDLING AND TIRES?

“Sonoma (Raceway) has a really wore out surface, so you have to manage your tires, especially the exit of (turns) 7 and 11. I feel like that’s where you really fight grip. The more you can manage your tires, the better off you’ll be for the long run. Tomorrow being cooler will be a lot better for us in the cockpits with the cars being cooler inside. Usually when it’s cooler outside, the track is cooler and has more grip. It makes it a little bit easier to manage your stuff and things like that. It will be similar racing whether it’s 100 degrees or 78 degrees.”

NEXT YEAR’S OFF WEEKEND, WOULD YOU SPEND IT IN FRANCE VACATIONING?

“(laughs) I would, yes. If NASCAR would allow us, for sure.”

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

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.

1...1,9221,9231,924...6,651Page 1,923 of 6,651