Kyle Busch claims 60th Cup career win in wild finish at Bristol Dirt Course

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April 18, 2022

Photo by Christian Gardner for SpeedwayMedia.com.

In an unexpected turn of events, Kyle Busch benefitted from a final lap incident involving leaders Tyler Reddick and Chase Briscoe to storm to his first NASCAR Cup Series victory of the season in the second annual, rain-delayed Food City Dirt Race at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course on Sunday, April 17.

The two-time Cup champion from Las Vegas, Nevada, came into Sunday night’s feature on Bristol’s dirt course with five results in the top 10 through the first eight scheduled events. When the final lap of the main event occurred, Busch appeared to have a solid third-place result sealed. Then as Reddick and Briscoe tangled while battling for the win on the final lap, Busch managed to erase his deficit and cycle to the lead ahead of Reddick to capture another win at Thunder Valley and achieve career win No. 60 in NASCAR’s premier series.

The starting lineup was determined through four 15-lap heat events on Saturday, where the competitors accumulate points for their finishing results and for passes that improved their original starting spots.

Despite finishing in the runner-up spot behind Tyler Reddick during the first heat event, Cole Custer earned his first Cup career pole position for the main event after accumulating 16 points, nine for finishing in second place and seven for improving from his ninth-place starting spot. Joining him on the front row was Christopher Bell, who won the second heat event and racked up 14 points, 10 for winning the heat event and four for improving from his fifth-place starting spot.

When the green flag waved and the race started, Custer shot out with a brief early advantage until teammate Chase Briscoe, who qualified in fourth place, challenged and assumed the top spot when the field returned to the start/finish line. As Briscoe led the first lap, Christopher Bell moved his No. 20 DeWalt Toyota TRD Camry into the runner-up spot while Custer fell back to third. Behind, Tyler Reddick and Justin Haley battled for fourth place in front of a hard-charging Kyle Larson in his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.

Through the first five scheduled laps, Briscoe retained a narrow advantage ahead of Bell while Custer, Reddick and Larson were in the top five. Ty Dillon, who won the fourth and final heat event, was up in sixth place followed by Haley, Alex Bowman, Joey Logano and Kyle Busch.

By Lap 12, Custer pitted due to an overheating issue while teammate Kevin Harvick was lapped by the field. Just as Aric Almirola was making a pit stop to have the front grille of his No. 10 Cummins/Rush Truck Center Ford Mustang clean during the following lap, the first caution of the event flew due to mud on the track.

Under the first caution, the entire field made a mandatory pit stop to have their grilles and windshields clean from the mud and the dirt, with Briscoe retaining the lead ahead of Bell, Reddick, Larson and Haley. By then, teammates Harvick and Custer were pinned a lap behind the leaders despite taking the wave around.

When the race restarted on Lap 25, Briscoe rocketed away from Bell to retain the lead as Larson also muscled his way into the runner-up spot. At the same time, Ty Dillon battled against Bell for third place while Kyle Busch moved into the top five ahead of Reddick and Austin Dillon.

By Lap 35, Briscoe was leading by more than half a second over Larson followed by Ty Dillon, Bell, Kyle Busch, Reddick, Austin Dillon, Kurt Busch, Bowman and Haley.

Just then, trouble struck for the leader Briscoe on Lap 49, who got up on the high banking in Turn 3 and fell off the pace entering Turn 4 while Larson stormed to the lead. Two turns later, Briscoe spun in Turn 2 after cutting a right-rear tire on his No. 14 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang.

On Lap 55, the race restarted under green as Larson retained the lead. Behind, Ty Dillon and Bell battled for second while Austin Dillon and Bowman were up in the top five ahead of Kyle Busch’s No. 18 M&M’s Toyota TRD Camry.

With reports of light rain lingering close to the track under the final 10 laps of the first stage, Larson extended his advantage to eight-tenths of a second ahead of Ty Dillon while Bell, Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch while Bowman, who nearly spun, slipped back to sixth ahead of Joey Logano, Reddick, Blaney and Chris Buescher.

When the first stage concluded under caution on Lap 75 due to Justin Allgaier wrecking in Turn 3, Larson captured his first stage victory of the season. Ty Dillon settled in second followed by Bell, Austin Dillon, Kyle Busch, Bowman, Logano, Reddick, Blaney and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Under the stage break, some like Daniel Suarez, Ross Chastain and Briscoe remained on the track while the rest of the field led by Larson peeled off the track to pit road for service. By then, Harvick received the free pass to cycle back on the lead lap while Custer was still pinned a lap behind.

The second stage started on Lap 75 as teammates Suarez and Chastain occupied the front row. At the start, Suarez rocketed with the lead ahead of Larson, who overtook Chastain for the runner-up spot while Briscoe and Bell battled in the top five. Behind, Kyle Busch was in sixth ahead of Ty and Austin Dillon.

On Lap 91, the caution flew when Alex Bowman got loose and spun his No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 off the front nose of Chris Buescher in Turn 4. Under the caution period, Hamlin took his No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry to the garage due to a blown engine as he suffered his fourth DNF of the season.

Six laps later, the race proceeded under green as Suarez retained the lead ahead of Larson and the field. Not long after, however, the caution returned for a multi-car pileup on the backstretch that involved Corey LaJoie, Noah Gragson, Bowman and Harvick, who retired his No. 4 Busch Light Ford Mustang in the garage.

When the race restarted under green on Lap 105, teammates Suarez and Chastain dueled for the lead with the former retaining the top spot while Kyle Busch tried to split both Trackhouse Racing teammates.

By Lap 110, Trackhouse teammates Suarez and Chastain battled for the lead while Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Kyle Busch and Bell dueled for third place. Briscoe, meanwhile, was in fifth ahead of the field.

Three laps later, the caution returned when Brad Keselowski made contact against Austin Dillon’s No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through Turns 1 and 2, which got Keselowski sideways as he spun while barely clipping former teammate Ryan Blaney.

When the race restarted under green on Lap 119, Suarez retained the lead while Bell muscled his way into the runner-up spot as he started to put pressure on Suarez for the lead.

At the halfway mark on Lap 125, Suarez was leading ahead of Bell, Larson, Briscoe and Kyle Busch while Chastain, Chase Elliott, Logano, Ty Dillon and Blaney were in the top 10. Then during the following lap, the caution flew due to debris reported on the backstretch.

By Lap 131, the race restarted under green as Suarez retained the lead while Briscoe issued a challenge for the lead. The caution, however, flew due to an incident on the backstretch that involved LaJoie, Harrison Burton and Bubba Wallace,

On Lap 139, the race restarted under green. At the start, Suarez was locked in a three-wide battle with Bell and Briscoe before Briscoe assumed the top spot. In the process, Bell moved up to second while Suarez fell back to third place ahead of Chase Elliott.

By Lap 145, Briscoe was leading by more than four-tenths of a second over Bell while Suarez, Elliott and Logano were in the top five.

When the second stage concluded on Lap 150, Briscoe captured his first stage victory of the season. Bell settled in second followed by Suarez, Elliott, Kyle Busch, Larson, Logano, Michael McDowell, Blaney and Reddick.

Under the stage break, names like Kyle Busch, Logano, Blaney, Reddick, Austin Dillon, Keselowski, Haley, William Byron, Bubba Wallace, Buescher, rookie Harrison Burton, Bowman, JJ Yeley, Aric Almirola, rookie Austin Cindric and Cody Ware remained on the track while the rest led by Briscoe pitted.

Following the pit stop procedures, the race was red-flagged due to precipitation. At the moment of the event’s hiatus, Briscoe was scored the leader. When the red flag was lifted following an extensive delay and the race proceeded under caution, Kyle Busch cycled to the lead. As the competitors made their way back on the track, Ross Chastain, who noted that his engine expired during the red flag period, retired.

With 100 laps remaining, the final stage commenced under green. At the start, Kyle Busch was leading until Tyler Reddick made his way to the front.

Eleven laps later, the caution flew due to a multi-car stack-up and wreck in Turn 3 that involved Cody Ware, Elliott, Suarez, Martin Truex Jr. and Stenhouse.

With 83 laps remaining, the race proceeded under green as Reddick retained the lead ahead of Logano, Blaney, Austin Dillon and the field. It took only one lap, however, for the caution to return when Erik Jones made contact with Stenhouse entering Turn 2 before spinning his No. 43 Tide Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 across the outside wall.

Down to the final 75 laps, the race proceeded under green as Reddick retained the lead ahead of Logano, Austin Dillon and the field. The caution, however, returned three laps later when rookie Todd Gilliland got loose and spun in Turn 2.

Another five laps later, the race restarted under green and it was Reddick who fended off the pack and retained the lead.

With 43 laps remaining, the caution returned when Stenhouse spun for the second time in the event. It then took only three laps for the event to restart under green.

Then with 39 laps remaining, trouble ignited for Austin Dillon when he fell off the pace in Turn 4 and caused the field to scramble to avoid hitting him. In the midst of the scramble, JJ Yeley barely made contact with Dillon while Kurt Busch, who veered dead right to avoid hitting Dillon, ended up turning himself into the outside wall as he also collected Almirola.

During the caution period, the race was red-flagged for a second time due to another round of precipitation.

When the red flag lifted and the race restarted with 24 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Reddick retained the lead ahead of Kyle Busch, Logano, Briscoe, Blaney, Bell and the field.

Under the final 20 laps, Briscoe and Kyle Busch engaged in a fierce battle for the runner-up spot while Reddick continued to lead.

Down to the final five laps of the event, Reddick, who continued to lead, had Briscoe starting to erase his deficit as he was half a second behind.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Reddick was ahead by less than two-tenths of a second over Briscoe, who was right behind the rear bumper of Reddick’s No. 8 3Chi Chevrolet. Through Turns 1 and 2, Reddick retained the lead. Then in Turn 3, Briscoe made a final lap dive beneath Reddick’s car in a bid for the lead, but slipped sideways in the dirt and clipped Reddick in the process as both spun from the top to the bottom lane in Turn 3.

Following a full 360 spin, Reddick tried to limp to the finish line with the lead while Briscoe came to a rest backward below the apron. Just as Reddick had victory within his grasp, Kyle Busch, who was trailing the two leaders by less than four seconds at the start of the final lap, managed to edge Reddick at the finish line to win by 0.330 seconds.

With his first victory of the season and by becoming the eighth different winner through the first nine events of the 2022 season, Kyle Busch notched his 60th NASCAR Cup Series career win in his 615th series start, which kept him in ninth place on the all-time Cup wins list. In addition, Busch tied seven-time NASCAR champion Richard Petty’s record of achieving at least one Cup victory in 18 consecutive seasons. He also achieved his ninth Cup victory at Bristol Motor Speedway, but first on dirt.

“We got one,” Busch, who only the final lap of 250, said on FOX. “It doesn’t matter how you get them. It’s all about getting them. Man, I feel like Dale Earnhardt Sr. right now. This is awesome. I didn’t even do anything. Just a testament to our team, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota, M&M’s…[The car] being fast. Fast enough to stay in contention. Fast enough to see those guys. I don’t know why we just couldn’t fire off after the rain. Every time it rained, both times, it just would not fire. It took it about 20 laps to get going. Overall, just real pumped to be back. Real pumped to get a win. This one means a lot. I could win on any surface here at Bristol. Bring it on, baby!”

Reddick, who led a race-high 99 laps and was a few feet away from achieving his first Cup career win, settled in a disappointing second place for the fourth time in his career while Briscoe, who led 59 laps and rallied from his early spin to contend for his second Cup triumph, tumbled down the leaderboard to 22nd. Following the event, both competitors managed to share their perspectives on the incident and shake hands in the process.

“I don’t think I did everything right, to be honest with you,” Reddick said. “Briscoe was able to run me back down there. Just looking at it, I should have done a little bit better job of just…I don’t know. I shouldn’t have let him get that close. He ran me back down. Worked really hard to do that. I mean, you’re racing on dirt; going for the move on the final corner. It’s everything that as a driver you hope to battle for in his situation. Made it really exciting for the fans. It does suck, but we were able to finish second still. I’m being honest. I should have done a better job and pulled away so he wasn’t in range to try to make that move. That’s how I look at it.”

Logano, the reigning Bristol Dirt Course winner, came home in third place as Larson and Blaney finished in the top five. Rounding out the top 10 were Bowman, Bell, Elliott, McDowell and Ty Dillon.

There were six lead changes among five different drivers. The race featured 14 cautions for 82 laps.

With his eighth-place finish, Chase Elliott continues to lead the regular-season standings by three points over Ryan Blaney, 21 over Joey Logano, 29 over William Byron and 51 over both Alex Bowman and Kyle Busch.

Results.

1. Kyle Busch, one lap led

2. Tyler Reddick, 99 laps led

3. Joey Logano

4. Kyle Larson, 27 laps led, Stage 1 winner

5. Ryan Blaney

6. Alex Bowman

7. Christopher Bell

8. Chase Elliott

9. Michael McDowell

10. Ty Dillon

11. Brad Keselowski

12. Daniel Suarez, 64 laps led

13. Cole Custer

14. Justin Haley

15. Chris Buescher

16. Austin Cindric

17. Todd Gilliland

18. William Byron

19. Corey LaJoie

20. Harrison Burton

21. Martin Truex Jr.

22. Chase Briscoe, 59 laps led, Stage 2 winner

23. Aric Almirola

24. Erik Jones

25. Josh Williams

26. Cody Ware

27. Noah Gragson, two laps down

28. Bubba Wallace, five laps down

29. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., 10 laps down

30. JJ Yeley – OUT, Accident

31. Austin Dillon – OUT, Accident

32. Kurt Busch – OUT, Accident

33. Ross Chastain – OUT, Engine

34. Kevin Harvick – OUT, Accident

35. Denny Hamlin – OUT, Engine

36. Justin Allgaier – OUT, Accident

Next on the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is Talladega Superspeedway, the first of two visits to the 2.66-mile superspeedway venue in Lincoln, Alabama, for the series, which is scheduled to occur on Sunday, April 24. The coverage for the event is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. ET on FOX.

Ben Rhodes rallies to win Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway

By

Official Release

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April 17, 2022

BRISTOL, Tenn. (April 16, 2022) – Overcoming a mistake in communication, Ben Rhodes charged to the front in the closing laps of Saturday’s Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway and snatched the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory from runner-up Carson Hocevar.

One circuit after the final restart on Lap 146 of 150, Rhodes, the defending series champion, buried his No. 99 ThorSport Racing Toyota into Turn 1, slid to the outside of third-place finisher John Hunter Nemechek and dived to the inside of Hocevar to take the lead.

The dramatic charge to victory atoned for Rhodes’ failure to bring his truck to the pits at the end of the first stage on Lap 40 after missing his entrance to pit road. Forced to pit after winning Stage 2, Rhodes restarted 13th on Lap 91 and worked his way forward with the aid of four cautions in the final 60-lap stage.

“My crew gave me such an awesome Tundra this weekend that I wasn’t going to let them down,” said Rhodes, who led 95 laps and won the first two stages on the way to his first victory of the year and the sixth of his career. “I had to go back up there and earn the spot back. I’m really proud of all their effort.”

Rhodes and Hocevar were the only two drivers credited with leading laps. The driver of the No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet grabbed the top spot after restarting fourth on Lap 91 and held it until Rhodes passed him for the win.

In hindsight, Hocevar said he could have done a better job defending against the decisive pass.

“Either ripped the top or crashed him,” Hocevar said of his alternatives. “I hate saying that, but it’s part of this racing, right? I just couldn’t compete with him. He just had better (fresher) tires, and he was the fastest truck all day. I was just trying to hold on…

“He slide-jobbed me, and I should have prepared for it, crossed him over and race him really hard. Second just sucks. It’s terrible, especially being that close.”

The race marked the NASCAR national series debut of reigning USAC National Midget champion Buddy Kofoid, who started 32nd after his No. 51 Toyota overheated during the first qualifying heat earlier in the afternoon.

Methodically working his way forward, Kofoid ran as high as third before spinning in Turn 2 as he tried to cross over to the inside of Rhodes’ truck in a battle for fourth place on Lap 139, after Rhodes drove deep into the corner and slid toward the top of the track.

Collected in the ensuing wreck were Ty Majeski, who saw a probable top-five effort go awry, and Derek Kraus.

The race also had a taste of the bizarre. On Lap 96, Austin Wayne Self nudged the Chevrolet of hard-luck Matt DiBenedetto after the latter had passed Self. The front bumper of Self’s Silverado locked with the rear bumper of DiBenedetto’s Chevy, and the two drivers could not power them apart.

It took a red flag and a handful of track workers to separate the trucks. That incident ruined the race for both drivers, but the subsequent restart on Lap 106 put Rhodes on his path to the eventual victory. By the time caution flew again on Lap 112, he had climbed to fifth and was well on his way to the front.

-Story by NASCAR Newswire

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race
2nd Annual Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt
Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt
Bristol, Tennessee
Saturday, April 16, 2022

(2) Ben Rhodes, Toyota, 150.
(6) Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet, 150.
(18) John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota, 150.
(4) Parker Kligerman, Chevrolet, 150.
(19) Christian Eckes, Toyota, 150.
(1) Joey Logano(i), Ford, 150.
(7) Chase Elliott(i), Chevrolet, 150.
(16) Grant Enfinger, Chevrolet, 150.
(14) Matt Crafton, Toyota, 150.
(17) Zane Smith, Ford, 150.
(3) Stewart Friesen, Toyota, 150.
(12) Colby Howard, Chevrolet, 150.
(33) Chase Purdy, Toyota, 150.
(10) Austin Dillon(i), Chevrolet, 150.
(35) Tanner Gray, Ford, 150.
(27) Dean Thompson #, Chevrolet, 150.
(21) Mike Marlar, Toyota, 150.
(26) Hailie Deegan, Ford, 150.
(5) Chandler Smith, Toyota, 150.
(23) Harrison Burton(i), Ford, 150.
(8) Ty Majeski, Toyota, 150.
(13) Jack Wood #, Chevrolet, 150.
(29) Timmy Hill, Toyota, 150.
(34) Spencer Boyd, Chevrolet, 150.
(28) Blaine Perkins #, Chevrolet, 150.
(25) Kaz Grala, Chevrolet, 150.
(32) Buddy Kofoid, Toyota, 150.
(24) Tate Fogleman, Toyota, 149.
(15) Derek Kraus, Chevrolet, 149.
(31) Lawless Alan #, Chevrolet, 149.
(20) Tyler Ankrum, Toyota, 147.
(22) Andrew Gordon, Ford, 146.
(30) Kris Wright, Chevrolet, 146.
(36) Keith Mcgee, Chevrolet, 146.
(9) Matt DiBenedetto, Chevrolet, 145.
(11) Austin Wayne Self, Chevrolet, 143.
Average Speed of Race Winner: 45.957 mph.

Time of Race: 1 Hrs, 37 Mins, 55 Secs. Margin of Victory: 0.824 Seconds.

Caution Flags: 8 for 43 laps.

Lead Changes: 3 among 2 drivers.

Lap Leaders: J. Logano(i) 0;B. Rhodes 1-91;C. Hocevar 92-146;B. Rhodes 147-150.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Ben Rhodes 2 times for 95 laps; Carson Hocevar 1 time for 55 laps.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 99,66,52,54,18,75,7,88,42,25

Stage #2 Top Ten: 99,66,4,75,54,7,51,42,18,19

Toyota Racing – Bristol NCWTS Post-Race Report – 04.16.22

By

Official Release

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April 17, 2022

RHODES WINS DIRT RACE AT BRISTOL
The reigning champion widens his points lead after dominating victory

BRISTOL, Tenn. (April 16, 2022) – Ben Rhodes earned his first victory of the season by sweeping the stages and making a late-race pass to score the win at the dirt race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday evening.

Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt
Race 6 of 23 – 150 Laps, 75 Miles

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, BEN RHODES
2nd, Carson Hocevar*
3rd, JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
4th, Parker Kligerman*
5th, CHRISTIAN ECKES
9th, MATT CRAFTON
11th, STEWART FRIESEN
13th, CHASE PURDY
19th, CHANDLER SMITH
21st, TY MAJESKI
23rd, TIMMY HILL
27th, BUDDY KOFOID
28th, TATE FOGLEMAN
31st, TYLER ANKRUM
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

BEN RHODES, No. 99 Tenda Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, ThorSport Racing

Finishing Position: 1st

Did you learn some of what you learned watching the Chili Bowl this year?

“I tried to. I really did. It was a tough race once the track started to slick off. It held moisture in different pockets around the track. It was hard to hunt for the grip, but luckily I had a really good team behind me telling me where to go and where they tried to see it. I just tried to follow their instruction. I had a bad fast Tenda Toyota Tundra.”

What were you thinking as you were driving through the field?

“I really wanted to get to the front, but it was so hard to pass. I just didn’t want to give it away. I told Michael Waltrip that nah, everything was cool. We meant to stay out, but truthfully mistake by me. We got the stage win because of it, but you don’t want to forfeit the win, so we had to get to the front. I knew we had the truck to beat, we just had to get there.”

JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK, No. 4 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, Kyle Busch Motorsports

Finishing Position: 3rd

Solid finish. How was the finish from your perspective?

“Solid night for our Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. We worked really hard over the off season to make the dirt prograam better. I feel like we were successful in doing that. I felt like we had one of the better trucks in practice. We needed the racetrack to dry slick off and it definitely did that – just didn’t quite have enough to get past the 42 (Carson Hocevar) and the 99 (Ben Rhodes) there. They were a little bit better than us. We will go back to work, but solid points day. Solid finish for our No. 4 Toyota Tundra TRD KBM (Kyle Busch Motorsports) team. Looking forward to the next few weeks and just trying to build on the recent finishes that we had after the start of the year.”

CHRISTIAN ECKES, No. 98 TSPORT/Curb Records Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, ThorSport Racing

Finishing Position: 5th

Solid top-five for you on the dirt. How was your race?

“We drove through the field pretty well. In the first stage, we got to 11th or 12th, and made an adjustment to help my forward drive and it got me a little bit too much on the tight side for the second and third stages, but I still felt like I could get some speed on a restart or last couple lap run. When we got a couple of those restarts, I got lucky and got in a good position in the outside groove and would pass two at a time. To finish fifth is definitely exciting for the day we probably should have had. Those are the kind of days we have to have more often – maximizing what we can do. Just proud of my 98 TSPORT Tundra guys.”

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

Finishing Position: 21st

Great race until the end. Can you talk about the run and the finish?

“I had a lot of fun. I was skeptical coming in. I’ve never run dirt in a race car before, but it was a lot of fun. We had a really, really good truck. I thought we had the truck capable of winning of the race – me and Ben (Rhodes) I thought were the class of the field. When you have race trucks like that capable of winning, you want to take advantage of them and it hurts to get caught up in somebody else’s incident, but that’s part of the game. Overall, had a really fast TSPORT Toyota Tundra TRD Pro and if we keep bringing fast trucks like this our time will come.”

BUDDY KOFOID, No. 51 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro, Kyle Busch Motorsports

Finishing Position: 27th

Incredible drive through the field. Can you talk about your debut overall and the late race contact?

“I felt like we had plenty of speed today in our Mobil 1 Tundra. Being my first time in something that heavy – especially on dirt – I felt like we had a strong showing for sure. I think that last stage I felt like we were too free. We were about a third or fourth place truck, but then the guys that pitted – they started coming on like we figured. Eventually (Ben) Rhodes got to me and was trying to slide me and eventually was going to make it work. I don’t know if we made any contact or not, but when he slid in front of me, I thought we touched a little bit in the left front. When I tried to come back down, it got the attitude of the truck kind of jacked up and with kind of already being on the free side it was enough to kind of finish me off. Just kind of a tough deal and very unfortunate, but more or less just a racing deal. I felt like we had plenty of speed and made great adjustments. We made a gamble with the strategy at the stage and it almost worked. Just sucks to end it like that.”

#

About Toyota

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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.

Rhodes earns dominant Truck victory at Bristol Dirt Course

By

Andrew Kim

-

April 16, 2022

A year after finishing in the runner-up spot during the inaugural NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course, Ben Rhodes was not going to be denied. On Saturday night, April 16, during Easter weekend, Rhodes rose to the occasion and persevered over a five-lap shootout against Carson Hocevar to win the Pinty’s Truck Race on Bristol’s dirt course.

The reigning Truck Series champion from Louisville, Kentucky, led a race-high 95 of 150-scheduled laps and captured both stages before losing the lead and having to methodically carve his way to the front throughout the final stage. Then during a restart with five laps remaining, Rhodes was able to utilize the outside lane and his fast truck to his advantage as he rocketed to the lead and muscled away from Hocevar and John Hunter Nemechek for the remainder of the event to capture his first victory of the 2022 season as he pursues his quest to defend his series championship.

The starting lineup for the main event was determined through four 15-lap heat events on Saturday, where the competitors accumulate points for their finishing results and passing by improving from their original starting spots.

By winning the third heat event and earning a total of 15 points, 10 for winning the heat event and five for improving from his sixth-place starting spot, Joey Logano started on pole position for the main event. Joining him on the front row was Ben Rhodes, who finished in the runner-up spot behind Logano but earned 14 points, nine for finishing second and five for improving from his seventh-place starting spot.

Jessica Friesen, wife of driver Stewart Friesen, and veteran Norm Benning were the two competitors who failed to qualify for the main event.

Prior to the event, Hailie Deegan dropped to the rear of the field due to starting the event in a backup truck along with Andrew Gordon, who received unapproved adjustments to his truck.

When the green flag waved and the race started, Rhodes launched his No. 99 Tenda Toyota Tundra TRD Pro to an early challenge for the lead beneath Logano’s No. 54 Planet Fitness Ford F-150 through the first two turns. Rhodes would then prevail entering the third turn and come back around to lead the first lap.

Behind Rhodes and Logano, Stewart Friesen was in third place ahead of Chandler Smith, who had Parker Kligerman and Carson Hocevar engaged in a side-by-side battle for a spot in the top five.

By the fifth lap, Rhodes stretched his advantage to half a second over Logano. Friesen and Chandler Smith retained their respective spots of third and fourth while Chase Elliott, who was piloting the No. 7 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Silverado RST for Spire Motorsports, was up in the top five.

Through the first 20 laps of the event, Rhodes was leading by more than a second over Logano followed by Friesen, Elliott and Ty Majeski while Kligerman, Chandler Smith, Carson Hocevar, Matt DiBenedetto and Colby Howard were in the top 10. Matt Crafton was in 11th ahead of Austin Wayne Self, Grant Enfinger, John Hunter Nemechek and Austin Dillon while Christian Eckes, Derek Kraus, Zane Smith, Tate Fogleman and rookie Jack Wood were in the top 20. Tyler Ankrum was in 21st ahead of Buddy Kofoid, Kaz Grala, Harrison Burton and Andrew Gordon while Hailie Deegan was mired inside the top 30.

Four laps later, the first caution of the event flew when Andrew Gordon spun in Turn 4.

When the race restarted on Lap 31, Rhodes retained the lead following a strong start while Majeski overtook Logano for the runner-up spot. Soon after, Majeski challenged teammate Rhodes for the lead, but the latter prevailed as Stewart Friesen, who also passed Logano, joined the battle.

When the first stage concluded on Lap 40, Rhodes, who led all the laps in the first stage, captured his fourth stage victory of the season. Teammate Majeski settled in second followed by Friesen, Logano, Chandler Smith, Kligerman, Elliott, Crafton, Carson Hocevar and Matt DiBenedetto.

Under the stage break, names like Rhodes, Majeski and Austin Wayne Self remained on the track while the rest led by Friesen pitted. It was soon revealed that Rhodes, who did not pit, meant to, though he retained the lead.

The second stage started on Lap 41 as teammates Rhodes and Majeski occupied the front row. At the start, Rhodes rocketed with another strong start to retain the lead ahead of teammate Majeski and Austin Wayne Self while Friesen and Logano battled for fourth place ahead of a pack of competitors that included Kligerman, Chandler Smith, Elliott, Nemechek and Crafton.

At the Lap 50 mark, Rhodes was leading by less than four-tenths of a second over teammate Majeski while Self, Logano and Kligerman were in the top five. Elliott was in sixth ahead of Chandler Smith, John Hunter Nemechek, Friesen and Hocevar while Buddy Kofoid was in 11th ahead of Crafton, Christian Eckes, Grant Enfinger and Zane Smith.

Five laps later, the caution returned when Dean Thompson spun and backed his No. 44 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet Silverado RST against the outside wall between Turns 2 and 3. In the midst of the incident, Blaine Perkins got turned below the apron, though he continued without sustaining any significant damage.

By Lap 61, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Rhodes retained the lead on the outside lane while Majeski fended off Logano for the runner-up spot. Meanwhile, Nemechek challenged Self for fourth place.

At the halfway mark on Lap 75, a battle for the lead ignited between teammates Rhodes and Majeski as Majeski launched repeated attacks on Rhodes for the top spot. Meanwhile, Logano trailed by more than two seconds in third place while Nemechek and Kligerman were in the top five. Elliott was in sixth ahead of Self, Hocevar, Buddy Kofoid and Chandler Smith while Derek Kraus, Eckes, Zane Smith, Friesen and Austin Dillon were in the top 15. By then, Crafton, Enfinger and DiBenedetto were mired in the top 10 while Hailie Deegan was in 26th behind Harrison Burton.

Ten laps later, Rhodes continued to lead ahead of teammate Majeski while Nemechek muscled his No. 4 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro to third place ahead of Logano and Kligerman, though Nemechek and Logano bumped against one another in Turn 3. With Elliott in sixth, Kofoid was up in seventh place ahead of Hocevar.

When the second stage concluded on Lap 90, Rhodes, who swept both stages of the event, captured his fifth stage victory of the season. Teammate Majeski settled in second followed by Nemechek, Kligerman, Logano, Elliott, Kofoid, Hocevar, Chandler Smith and Derek Kraus.

Under the stage break, names like Nemechek, Kligerman, Kofoid, Hocevar, Chandler Smith, Enfinger, Eckes, Zane Smith, Tate Fogleman, Mike Marlar, Chase Purdy and Deegan remained on the track while the rest led by Rhodes pitted.

With 58 laps remaining, the final stage started under green. At the start, Nemechek retained the lead through the first two turns until Hocevar launched his No. 42 Premier Security Solutions Chevrolet Silverado RST into the lead approaching Turn 4. Despite being pressured by Nemechek, Hocevar retained the lead while Kligerman, Enfinger and Kofoid were in the top five. Meanwhile, Chandler Smith, Elliott and Majeski were in the top 10 while Rhodes and Logano were mired in the top 15.

Four laps later, the caution flew when Self got the front nose of his No. 22 AM Chevrolet Silverado RST dead-locked and stuck to the rear bumper of DiBenedetto’s No. 25 TW Frierson Chevrolet Silverado RST entering Turn 4. With both competitors trying to shake one another off of each other, they eventually came to a stop in Turn 2 while still stuck to one another. The incident was enough for NASCAR to pause the event to allow the safety crew to separate the competitors.

Following a delay of nearly six minutes as the red flag was lifted, the race restarted under green with 45 laps remaining. At the start, Hocevar retained the lead ahead of Nemechek, who was soon overtaken by Enfinger.

Five laps later, Hocevar was leading by more than half a second over Nemechek while Kligerman, Enfinger and Kofoid were in the top five. Meanwhile, Rhodes, who was in the top 10, was trying to march his way back into the top five.

A few laps later, the caution flew due to a single-truck incident between Turns 2 and 3 that involved Keith McGee.

Down to the final 32 laps of the event, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Hocevar prevailed on the outside lane to retain the lead while Nemechek tried to launch another attack on Hocevar for the lead. Behind, Buddy Kofoid muscled his way into third place ahead of Kligerman, Enfinger and Rhodes.

Six laps later, the caution returned when Chandler Smith spun his No. 18 Charge Me Toyota Tundra TRD Pro after being bumped by Eckes through Turns 2 and 3. The contact caused Smith’s truck to spin in a looped circle and he spun it again while trying to straighten his truck, though he was dodged by the field.

Another seven laps later, the race restarted under green. At the start, Hocevar retained the lead following another strong start while Nemechek fended off Kligerman to remain in second place. Behind, Majeski and Kofoid battled for fourth place while Rhodes was in sixth.

With 15 laps remaining, Rhodes muscled his way into the top five as he went to pursue Kofoid for fourth place. Meanwhile, Hocevar retained a narrow advantage over Nemechek.

Then with 11 laps remaining, the caution flew when Rhodes, who was battling Kofoid for fourth place, pulled a slide job on Kofoid through Turns 1 and 2, which caused Kofoid to step out of the gas and spin his No. 51 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. Behind, Majeski also spun as both competitors came to a sliding halt on the bottom lane. Both competitors, however, were unable to escape damage as Kraus, who was unable to slow his truck below the apron, collided with them. The incident spoiled Kofoid and Majeski’s run towards the front.

Down to the final five laps of the event, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Hocevar retained the lead while Rhodes used the outside lane to rocket past Nemechek and Kligerman for the runner-up spot. Just as the field returned to the start/finish line, Rhodes challenged and quickly overtook Hocevar for the lead. Hocevar then tried to mount a challenge beneath Rhodes in Turn 3, but the latter remained on the outside lane to muscle away with the lead.

With two laps remaining, Rhodes was leading by less than four-tenths of a second over Hocevar while Nemechek retained third ahead of Kligerman, Eckes and Elliott.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Rhodes was leading by seven-tenths of a second over Hocevar while third-place Nemechek trailed by more than a second. Having no challengers put the pressure to him for a final lap, Rhodes was able to pull away, slide back around to the frontstretch and claim the victory by more than eight-tenths of a second over Hocevar.

In addition to claiming his first victory of the season, first at Bristol and first on dirt, Rhodes claimed his sixth career win in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in his 147th series start. The victory was enough for Rhodes to add 34 points to his lead in the regular season standings as he became the third series regular to be guaranteed a spot in this year’s Truck Playoffs.

“I thought we gave it away for a moment,” Rhodes, who led a race-high 95 of 150 laps, said on FS1. “Michael Waltrip asked me on the radio, ‘Did you mean to stay out [after the first stage]?’ The real answer was no. Driving back through the pack like that was really, really tough. Not something we wanted to do. My crew gave me such an awesome Tenda Toyota Tundra this weekend. I wasn’t gonna let them down. I had to go back up there and earn the spot back. Really, really proud of all their effort. It looked like I had really fast teammates today, too. Thanks, everybody, for coming out. Happy Easter!”

Hocevar, who led 55 laps, notched the second runner-up result of his career while Nemechek notched his third consecutive top-five result in recent weeks by finishing in third place.

“[I could have] Either ripped the top or crashed [Rhodes],” Hocevar said. “I hate saying that, but that’s part of this racing, right? I just really couldn’t compete with him. He just had better tires. He was the fastest truck all day, so I was just trying really hard and hoping I could hold off. I kept looking up in the mirror. I was like, ‘Man, he’s fifth. He can’t really go anywhere.’ Once I knew he was in fourth, I was like, “Oh, I’m in trouble here.’ He slide-jobbed me and I should’ve prepared for it. crossed him over and then, raced him really hard. Second just sucks. It does. It’s terrible, especially being that close…Just close, but [the late Bryan Clauson] was definitely with me tonight, running that thing as hard as we were”

“Just didn’t quite have it tonight,” Nemechek said. “We struggled with some forward drive, just couldn’t get it off the corner kind of like [Rhodes] could. He was definitely the dominant truck tonight. Congrats to those guys. Thank you to everyone at [Kyle Busch Motorsports]. After the first string of races, I feel like we’re kind of on a roll here with top fives.”

Kligerman brought the No. 75 Henderson Motorsports entry to a fourth-place result while Eckes recorded his second top-five result of the season by finishing fifth. Logano, Elliott, Enfinger, Crafton and Zane Smith finished in the top 10.

Notably, Friesen finished 11th, Austin Dillon came home in 14th and Deegan settled in 18th ahead of Chandler Smith and Harrison Burton. Majeski fell back to 21st while Buddy Kofoid ended up in 27th place behind Kaz Grala.

There were three lead changes for two different leaders. The race featured eight cautions for 43 laps. All 36 starters finished the event, with 27 finishing on the lead lap.

With his first victory of the season, Ben Rhodes continues to lead the regular-season standings by 38 points over Chandler Smith, 51 over Stewart Friesen, 54 over Zane Smith and 62 over John Hunter Nemechek.

Results.

1. Ben Rhodes, 95 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

2. Carson Hocevar, 55 laps led

3. John Hunter Nemechek

4. Parker Kligerman

5. Christian Eckes

6. Joey Logano

7. Chase Elliott

8. Grant Enfinger

9. Matt Crafton

10. Zane Smith

11. Stewart Friesen

12. Colby Howard

13. Chase Purdy

14. Austin Dillon

15. Tanner Gray

16. Dean Thompson

17. Mike Marlar

18. Hailie Deegan

19. Chandler Smith

20. Harrison Burton

21. Ty Majeski

22. Jack Wood

23. Timmy Hill

24. Spencer Boyd

25. Blaine Perkins

26. Kaz Grala

27. Buddy Kofoid

28. Tate Fogleman, one lap down

29. Derek Kraus, one lap down

30. Lawless Alan, one lap down

31. Tyler Ankrum, three laps down

32. Andrew Gordon, four laps down

33. Kris Wright, four laps down

34. Keith McGee, four laps down

35. Matt DiBenedetto, five laps down

36. Austin Wayne Self, seven laps down

Next on the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series schedule is the series’ first of two visits of this season at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. The event is scheduled to occur on May 6 at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.

Ford Performance NASCAR: Cole Custer Earns First Cup Series Pole

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Official Release

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April 16, 2022

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Bristol Dirt Qualifying | Saturday, April 16, 2022

FORD QUALIFYING RESULTS:
1st – Cole Custer
4th – Chase Briscoe
10th – Joey Logano
15th – Chris Buescher
17th – Michael McDowell
18th – Brad Keselowski
20th – Austin Cindric
23rd – Todd Gilliland
24th – Harrison Burton
25th – Ryan Blaney
29th – JJ Yeley
31st – Aric Almirola
32nd – Kevin Harvick
35th – Cody Ware
36th – Josh Williams

Cole Custer, driver of the No. 41 Jacob Construction/Haas Tooling Ford Mustang, earned the first pole of his NASCAR Cup Series career after going from ninth to second in the first heat race of the day. Those passing points enabled him to gain the top spot for tomorrow’s Food City Dirt Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

POLE-WINNING PRESS CONFERENCE

COLE CUSTER, No. 41 Jacob Construction/Haas Tooling Ford Mustang – TELL US ABOUT QUALIFYING TODAY. “The guys just did a great job guessing right on the track. Obviously, it’s a totally different track than what we had yesterday, so we did a good job with that and was able to get to the top and make some good moves to try and pass some cars. Overall, just have to guess right on the track tomorrow, but it should start our race off a lot better.”

DO YOU LIKE THE FORMAT NOW? “I was kind of thinking of that when I walked in. That kind of backfired on me. I wish we qualified because I was nervous about starting ninth, but it worked out good. I mean, the track, they did a great job with the track today. It was really racy. Obviously, they added a little bit more moisture than yesterday and hopefully we can have some more of that tomorrow. I think our car liked it, but, overall, it was a good day to start ninth and pass some cars.”

DID YOU THINK YOUR FIRST POLE WOULD COME THIS WAY? “No, not at all. I wouldn’t call myself a dirt racing expert whatsoever. I did it when I was younger. I raced some Ford Focus midgets when I was in my early teens and I always loved dirt, but I wouldn’t say that I’m an expert. I’m nowhere near Kyle Larson, so getting my first pole at a dirt race is pretty crazy.”

HAVE YOU RACED ANY DIRT BESIDES LAST YEAR OF LATE? “Not really. I went and tested a crate late model before coming here just to kind of get my feet wet, but nothing crazy.”

IF THESE ARE THE CONDITIONS TOMORROW IS IT ADEQUATE TO RACE WELL? “Yeah, I mean I thought we saw today it was really racy. You could kind of run the top, in the middle, or you could run the bottom. There were just multiple lanes where you could go and try to pass, so obviously tomorrow you have to kind of worry about guys getting mud flung up and getting the cars too hot, but hopefully we can still have some moisture so you can kind of have a little bit more of lanes to work with for a little bit and then eventually it’s gonna get dry.”

HOW WAS THE VISIBILITY TODAY? “Not bad at all for us. I think the first truck heat race you saw some mud got flung up on their windshields and on their grilles and stuff, but after that nobody seemed to have a problem. It’s the perfect amount is what they’re chasing, it seems like. If it gets too dusty, then there’s too much dust in the air and if it’s too wet, then there’s too much mud flying up, so it’s just trying to find that sweet spot I think.”

WHAT KIND OF ACHIEVEMENT IS THIS FOR YOU? “It’s different because it’s Bristol Dirt and it’s heat races and stuff like that, but I’m still starting on the pole so it’s a great day. I think we can keep carrying momentum. I think we had a fast car at Martinsville last weekend, so it’s just a matter of carrying that momentum. We know this is kind of a wildcard race. There’s no reason why we can’t go out there and just have a good day and keep the momentum rolling.”

ARE YOU ALSO LISTENING TO EVERYTHING CHASE BRISCOE SAYS? “Oh, yeah. I mean, after practice the first stop I make is the 14 hauler just trying to see what Chase thinks. We made our cars extremely similar trying to just have something baseline off of, honestly, because he probably knows a little bit better where the track is gonna go and just what to look for, so he’s definitely been a huge asset to our team and just kind of getting a head start on the weekend and being able to adapt a little faster.”

WHAT HAVE YOU IMPROVED ON THROUGH HIS ADVICE? “Honestly, I think just knowing where the track is gonna go and just knowing how to adjust your car. I think at times you can get a little bit lost just because so many different things are happening and you don’t know where the track is gonna go and you start adjusting your car, where when you have him you kind of baseline off him and you can kind of know, ‘OK, this is where we probably need to put our car.’ This is what he thinks and we can just go with that.”

CHASE BRISCOE, No. 14 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang – “I thought ours was OK. The track was fast from what we had over yesterday. Our car is still really, really tight, but it was manageable there. I think the track may come to us a little bit, but we definitely need to get it a little more freed up just so we can have some maneuverability as far as the racetrack goes. We should have a decent starting position come tomorrow and we’ll see what we’ve got.”

CHEVY NCS AT BRISTOL DIRT: Six Camaro ZL1’s in the Top-10 of Starting Lineup

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Official Release

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April 16, 2022

NASCAR CUP SERIES
BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
FOOD CITY DIRT RACE
TEAM CHEVY LINEUP
APRIL 16, 2022

TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10 STARTING LINEUP:
POS. DRIVER
3rd TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 3CHI CAMARO ZL1
5th KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM ZL1
6th JUSTIN HALEY, NO. 31 LEAFFILTER GUTTER PROTECTION CAMARO ZL1
7th TY DILLON, NO. 42 FOOD CITY / GAIN CAMARO ZL1
8th ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1
9th CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 KELLEY BLUE BOOK CAMARO ZL1

TOP-FIVE UNOFFICIAL QUALIFYING RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st Cole Custer (Ford)
2nd Christopher Bell (Toyota)
3rd Tyler Reddick (Chevrolet)
4th Chase Briscoe (Ford)
5th Kyle Larson (Chevrolet)

· Four, 15-lap qualifying heat races will determine the starting lineup for the main event. The lineup for the heat races are determined by random draw, performed in the order of team owner points.

· The lineup for the NASCAR Cup Series 250-lap Food City Dirt Race is determined by an accumulation of passing and finishing points.

· Following the NASCAR Cup Series qualifying races, six Camaro ZL1’s have locked-in top-10 starting spots for tomorrow’s event.

· FOX will telecast the NASCAR Cup Series 250-lap Food City Dirt Race live at 7 p.m. ET Sunday, April 17. Live coverage can also be found on PRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

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.

CHEVY NCS AT BRISTOL: Kyle Larson Press Conference Transcript

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Official Release

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April 16, 2022

NASCAR CUP SERIES
BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
FOOD CITY DIRT RACE
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 16, 2022

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series qualifying session at Bristol Motor Speedway. Press Conference Transcript:

KYLE, OBVIOUSLY YOU HAVE A DEEP DIRT BACKGROUND. GIVE US A REVIEW OF YOUR TWO PRACTICES YESTERDAY AND HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT GOING INTO THE HEATS THIS AFTERNOON.
“I was pretty sad after first practice. Our car was not handling very good at all, but you know after second practice I was really proud of my team because they did a really good job with adjustments between the sessions. I felt like we were really competitive the second time and the balance was much closer. I was happy about that. The track was pretty good. Probably as good as it could be I thought. We felt like we could run all over the track and slide around which was fun. The heats will be, I assume, pretty fast paced, and go by quickly. Probably a little hard to pass, but still a long race for tomorrow. The heats aren’t extremely important in my eyes.”

EVERYONE SEEMS TO THINK THAT YOU’RE THE ONE THAT’S ADVISING NASCAR AND BRISTOL ON WHAT THEY NEED TO BE DOING AND TRACK PREP. BUT THEN ON SIRIUS YOU SAID YOU REALLY HADN’T TALKED TO THEM THAT MUCH. WHAT’S BEEN YOUR INVOLVEMENT SINCE LAST YEAR?
“The only person I’ve talked to about track stuff is Steve Swift and that’s just when I am here. Like when I was here for the late model races just throughout the night, I would be like hey I think, and he’s got a really good understanding anyways, but I think just maybe hearing from me or helps verify. Just like hey I think the top needs a little bit of moisture right now to help it survive or help it be racy, just stuff like that. I mean even yesterday during practice after first practice I told them hey you need to water and pack the apron. Stuff like that. He has been the only one that I’ve talked to.”

DOES HE LISTEN TO YOU?
“Yeah, I think so. It seems like everything that he’s done, I’m sure a lot of the times he’s already got it a part of his plan to do that anyways. He’s done a really good job. I feel like everybody has here. I feel like the surface has been much better than it was last year.”

HAS THAT TOP CUSHION OPENED UP ANYMORE IN THE TRACK THAT YOU SAW IN PRACTICE AND DO YOU EXPECT GUYS TO BE RUNNING THAT LINE?
“It’s hard to say now. I mean the track is totally different and fresh from where it was in practice yesterday. Now we’ll just have to wait and see how the track develops during these truck heats. It’s hard to predict the future with dirt.”

WAS IT OK IN PRACTICE?
“I thought the track was really good. It got slick from top to the very wall. There’s no cushion here, but we just kind of chased the moisture up the track until it got to the wall, which was fun. I thought all the lanes were pretty equal. It should make for a good race.”

THERE’S BEEN A LOT OF TALK ABOUT WHAT FUTURE CUP SCHEDULES MIGHT LOOK LIKE, MAYBE A STREET RACE, MORE DIRT, ETC. HOW WOULD THE SCHEDULE BE DIFFERENT IF YOU HAD A LOT MORE INPUT INTO IT OR HAD THE MAJOR INPUT INTO IT? WHAT WOULD THE SCHEDULE BE LIKE?
“I don’t think it really matters I guess what I would think. Really, I am cool with a street course and stuff like that. I don’t know. I mean, I think everybody assumes my opinion would be to race dirt every weekend, but no I don’t think Cup cars should be on dirt. That’s the only change I would make is not race on dirt.”

HOW DO YOU VIEW YOUR SEASON TO THIS POINT?
“It’s been a struggle so far. I feel like our racecar is close. I feel given different circumstances if we execute a little bit better and get that little bit better track position, we could have some totally different races. Here lately it’s just been a lot of mistakes on my part, so that’s been frustrating when it’s on you. I feel like that’s also the easiest thing to fix is when it’s yourself. I feel like phoenix we blew up, but we were competitive. Atlanta we were competitive and got in a wreck. COTA we were competitive, and I just did a really bad job on the restarts and then got myself in the hornet’s nest and didn’t do a good job. Richmond we were ok and got a better finish than we deserve and then last week we were clawing our way to get some good track position and right when we did, I sped on pit road. Like I said, a lot of mistakes on my part here lately, which has gotten me frustrated. I’ve got a really great race team with really great leadership with Cliff (Daniels) and everybody. I know we’ll be able to get through it, we just got to keep working hard and keep fighting and staying positive.”

WE’VE BEEN TO A VARIETY OF TRACKS. DO YOU HAVE A GOOD FEEL FOR THE CAR NOW THAT KIND OF FEEL THAT YOU NEED TO KNOW WHAT THE CAR NEEDS TO GO FAST? DO YOU HAVE THAT KIND OF COMFORT LEVEL YET?
“Yeah, I think I don’t feel like it drives way different so that comfort feel is not hard to find. I feel like as we’ve gotten racing more it’s maybe just the way the schedule is laid out, it’s gotten really hard to pass and that makes executing that much more important. That’s where I feel like I haven’t done a good job. You look at your guys who are winning and they’re just executing really good races and maintaining their track position all race long. That starts from practice through qualifying and into the race, where I haven’t done a good enough job to be challenging for wins yet consistently like we were. Just got to do a little bit more work on my part and just be a little bit better and we’ll be right there.”

WHAT’S THE RISK OF GOING UP TOP THIS WEEKEND, BECAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE WITH THE NEW CAR A LOT OF TOE LINK AND ISSUES IN THE REAR? WHAT’S THAT KIND OF RISK AND BALANCE?
“I don’t know. I mean, I think when the track gets to where it was yesterday and dusty kind of on entry the risk is higher. If the track’s got some moisture on entry the risk, to me, isn’t quite as much because it’ll hold you a little bit better with the grip up there. Obviously, you always want your car handling good to where you can go anywhere, and the safest part of the track is further away from the wall. A lot of times you can find a lot of speed up there, so just like any pavement race you definitely have to weigh the risk versus reward.”
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.

Toyota Racing – NCS Bristol Quotes – Kurt Busch – 04.16.22

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Official Release

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April 16, 2022

Toyota Racing – Kurt Busch
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

BRISTOL, Tenn. (April 16, 2022) – 23XI Racing driver Kurt Busch was made available to media prior to the Bristol Motor Speedway race this Saturday:

KURT BUSCH, No. 45 Monster Energy Toyota Camry TRD, 23XI Racing

Can you give us an update of how your practice was yesterday and how the track looks today?

“I feel like the way that everybody has adapted to this in the second year in the Cup Series and the Trucks to dirt being on top of Bristol – it seems like there is more confidence out of everybody and the practice sequences and how you attack them are all about that track prep and how you read the mud. With yesterday’s practice, I thought we were a top-five car in the first practice and the second one we were sideways loose, struggling for grip. I’m glad we had both of those elements in both of our practices yesterday for my team on the No. 45 car. So, with Billy Scott (crew chief) and my engineering group, the mechanics, we all have our theories in dirt racing and with Bubba (Wallace) and the way that he approaches it, as well, it’s just a matter of collecting the right information and then applying it to each of our sequences or each of our times on track. Watching the truck races – their heat races will be important for our heat races, and then we will see how the mud looks and what the trucks will do in the different stages tonight and who ultimately wins will have to do it on a dry slick style dirt. That’s what we will end up seeing with the Cup cars, but to start tomorrow’s race we are going to see it just as muddy as this is right now, so you have to go through all of the changes and make sure you adapt to all of the changing circumstances.”

How long does it take a veteran driver like yourself to embrace all of the recent changes?

“Ever since we had the break for COVID and came back, it’s been night and day, so you roll with it. You just smile. For me, it gives me an appreciation more so of my job and the fun that this is and the challenge that it takes for everybody to keep finding that rhythm of that sequence. I would honestly say that the crew chiefs and the crew members have a tougher time than the drivers do. Each week is fun, new challenges everywhere we go.”

Has your previous success here helped you since it’s been covered in dirt?

“For me, I ran dirt back in the mid-90s in a little dwarf car. When we found a rhythm with that car at some of the dirt tracks we traveled to, the setup didn’t change much. We just stuck with three or four things to try to make it easy and to make it travel and go to all of the different styles of mud or banking. With Bristol being dirt, it’s completely different than the concrete. The spring race had its attitude versus the night race on how it raced. The old Bristol versus the new Bristol with the way the concrete was reconfigured. This Next Gen car – every week – is a fun, new challenge – with all honesty. I have over two decades of experience, but I try to throw all of that out and just go with it and just challenge myself with my team to get the best results for the No. 45 Toyota Camry.”

How would the schedule look if you were in charge of it in the future?

“I think we made huge improvements last year. All of the new venues we went to seemed to have that inaugural vibe. The energy level was up with everything that went on in Road America, Nashville, the Indy Road Course even had that different feel through the garage area. Everywhere we are looking to go with dirt here at Bristol, whatever we can do to keep things right on that edge of doing it for the right reason and integrity of NASCAR and to know that these are oval cars that are supposed to be going 185 mph. That’s important, but also to be reaching out to new demographics, new fans, new markets. That’s a key element. Keeping the variety going is what I would recommend.”

NASCAR and FOX see tomorrow night as a big opportunity. What kind of race do fans need to see to justify that?

“It’s the product. We know that we have a show to produce. We have the cars and the way that they have to look on track, whether it’s the speed, whether it’s the passing. We are going to see cars sideways and in yaw, and it’s like the best stock cars drivers in the world are hanging on to these things and putting on a great show. The 250-lap count is tough because you are just cooking that dirt and now you are ending up with way more dust and it’s very difficult to control that so, I’m hopeful that the night element helps the dust level stay down. It helps the mud level and the consistency of the track stay more consistent, because if it is in the day, you are just going to cook it and get it slicker quicker. The atmosphere of a cool coliseum effect, the stands all wrapped around this track. It’s rare you see 150,000 seats ready to watch a race and this is a good show to stand on. I don’t know what produces a good show other than cars side-by-side and commentators talking about what makes it fun to be a fan in this sport and what it means to have fun as a driver, owner as well as the sponsors being involved.”

How confident are you that the double-wide racing can exist throughout the race?

“It looked great. That was the biggest thing. I was on a FOX production call earlier this week talking about track prep and the fun, quick answer was it was a monsoon last year. What do you do with that type of track prep? I’m like I think we are going to see something different. Kudos to the staff here at BMS and the way the dirt crew has made the track look thus far. Let’s hope the Truck race goes that same way and we can get that with the Cup cars. It’s just tough. Our Cup cars are 3,600 pounds. They are 40 of us out there and we are blazing the tires across the surface and that is why we cook it more than any other dirt series in the world.”

Can you talk about the decision to paint the top of the wall white?

“That’s good. I just thought because I was one of the older guys, I just couldn’t find the wall and then the white line people would rub the white line with their left side tires and it’s like wow, everything is dirt out here. I think a few guys have recommended something for the outer wall and then the inside line, I guess they just need to go out there with a quick paint crew. Just like you would do in baseball – put in a new chalk or new lines to help during the stage breaks. We’ve all got to work together the right way and we should all be pretty darn smart from the all the dirt racing that we have for experience in this group.”

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Ford Performance NASCAR: Harvick, Almirola and Blaney Bristol Media Availabilities

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Official Release

-

April 16, 2022

Ford drivers Kevin Harvick, Aric Almirola and Ryan Blaney came into the Bristol Motor Speedway infield media center following their final NASCAR Cup Series practice session last night. Here is some of their Q&A sessions with members of the media.

KEVIN HARVICK, No. 4 Busch Latte Ford Mustang – DO YOU FEEL BETTER AT THIS POINT THIS YEAR THAN A YEAR AGO IN TERMS OF THIS EVENT? “Yeah. At this point I wasn’t worried about coming here just because you kind of know everything that you’re gonna go through. The cars are my cars. I sit in them every week and it’s the same throttle, the same stuff and learned last year that it’s not a dirt late model or something along those lines. It’s our own style of dirt racing – much slower pace.”

WAS VISIBILITY A PROBLEM TONIGHT? “It was way worse in the first practice than it was in the second practice. When I have a question, I would assume that would probably get better at night. Briscoe tells me that should get better at night and that’s really all I have to go off of, so if he tells me to run the bottom, I run the bottom. If he tells me to run the top, I run the top. If he tells me to go backwards on the back straightaway, I’ll go backwards on the back straightaway because it’s just not anything that I know what’s going on.”

YOU HAVE THAT MUCH TRUST IN HIM? “Oh, yeah. I think as you look at it he’s the leader of this whole dirt program, so he’s the only one with any experience, so we kind of have to live and die by what he says and use his experience as the guidance for what we do.”

SO WHEN CHASE SAYS THEY SHOULD CONSIDER WATERING THE TRACK MORE, YOU WOULD AGREE WITH THAT? “They tell me water makes dust, so I don’t know (laughing). I don’t know when you water the track.”

WATER MAKES MUD. “That’s only at the beginning. Apparently, water makes dust if you water it right now, so I’m totally confused because I thought water made mud, too.”

SOMETHING IS MAKING IT DUSTY. “I don’t know. Water makes dust and mud, so I don’t know. Once I get into a rhythm, I feel like I’m just always five laps behind the guys who know what they’re doing because they know where to go on the racetrack. They know where the moisture is, but once I can get into a rhythm I’m fine, but you’re just always trying to play catchup with the guys who know where to go on the racetrack instantly and you’re always a little bit behind because you’re playing follow-the-leader. It’s like a really slick asphalt track once you get going, but it’s just those fast laps, knowing how hard to push it and things like that, but the rest of it I’m fine with.”

DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THE TOE LINK ISSUES AND WHAT’S THE BALANCE OF NOT DAMAGING THAT? “Don’t hit the wall. The same guys have all hit the wall and they break the toe link. You hit the wall and the car is 45 degrees yawed out it’s gonna hit the back of the wheel and it’s gonna break the toe link. There’s really no way around that, so I don’t know what to tell them other than don’t hit the wall.”

IS THE FASTEST WAY AROUND HERE UP AGAINST THE WALL OR DO YOU FEEL LIKE THE BOTTOM WILL COME IN? “It depends. Earlier it was faster around the top. I never had any luck with the dead bottom, right against those little turtles down there. We were one lane up and seemed to be the best place for us, but in the first practice what was the top, I was fine with and could do that, but I never got in a good rhythm like right against the wall with the small cushion. It’s not even a cushion because if you miss it’s dust. It’s just a big pile of dirt. You can’t even call it dirt. It’s a big pile of dust, so that’s what happens. You get comfortable and then you get hung in that dust up there and it then it will just kind of grab it and pull it into the wall.”

HAVE YOU EVER RACED ON EASTER BEFORE? “I have not.”

WHAT DO YOU NORMALLY DO ON EASTER? “We have an annual vacation that we got to come home from three days early this year.”

SO YOU’RE THRILLED ABOUT BEING HERE? “Super thrilled (laughing).”

THEY NEED THIS TO BE A NIGHT RACE AND PUT IT ON EASTER SUNDAY TO CAPITALIZE ON THE TELEVISION WINDOW. IS IT IMPORTANT THAT THE SHOW IS DECENT? “The only way it’s successful is if the TV ratings are through the roof. That’s the only way that having it on Easter night is successful. That’s the only reason it is where it is is for a TV rating, so if it doesn’t have a TV rating, you should never do it again, in my opinion. It’s an experiment, which I’m fine with experiments if it’s beneficial. If it’s beneficial for this sport and beneficial for TV ratings and beneficial for a number of things, then I’m all in, but that will be the real tell of success if that rating is way up compared to what it was.”

WHERE WAS VACATION? “The beach.”

DID THEY STAY AND YOU CAME BACK FOR THIS WEEKEND? “No, they went early when I was at Martinsville and then we all came back.”

ARIC ALMIROLA, No. 10 Cummins/Rush Truck Centers Ford Mustang – WAS VISIBILITY ANY BETTER FROM PRACTICE 1 TO PRACTICE 2? “Not for me. It just depends on how close you are to a car. If you have three quarters of a straightaway or so from a car in front of you, then you’re OK. The closer you get to a car in front of you, and depending on where they’re running, if they run up close to the wall, it just creates such a cloud of dust that it’s really hard to see the wall. The wall is painted black. I think that makes it harder to see as well.”

THE GOOD NEWS IS YOU COULD RUN AGAINST THE WALL, BUT THE BAD NEWS IS IT’S UNFORGIVING IF YOU HIT IT? “Yeah, I tried to test those limits as well. I got in the fence a couple of times just trying to figure it all out. I’m not a dirt racer and these cars are not dirt cars, so just trying to figure out what those limits are and how much of a cushion, it’s not really a cushion. There’s a bunch of loose crumbs up there, but if you get close to it there’s some grip, but if you just barely go over the top of it, you get in all of that loose dirt and it sucks you into the wall pretty quick.”

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN BUILD OFF OF FROM LAST YEAR’S DIRT RACE? “No, it’s a totally new car and the track is even different with the banking change and the way they transition from the straightaways into the corners is different than what we had last year. Those turtles, or whatever those are on the bottom, are less aggressive as last year, so I think so much is different from last year that you can’t really take anything away from that.”

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Menards/Dutch Boy Ford Mustang – WHAT WAS THE VIEW LIKE FOR YOU OUT THERE? “It was hard to see, not as bad as last year but it’s still pretty rough. The sun being down definitely helped that, which was a little bit better. The wall is painted black, so you can’t see the wall, which makes it worse. They need to paint that white or neon or Easter egg colors. I don’t care, but you need to paint it something other than black because you can’t see it when it gets dusty. Overall, it’s not as bad as last year. I think the night race is gonna help it out a little bit. The track seemed to be OK, pretty decent, so it’ll be nice to just get the dust down, but you can’t really do anything about that.”

DID VISIBILITY IMPROVE FROM PRACTICE 1 TO PRACTICE 2? “A little bit with the sun going down helped, but I think the track got dustier in general the second practice, so it kind of evened each other out. It was better than the sun being up and getting a glare. You could at least squint your eyes and see a little bit.”

THERE’S NOT A LOT OF SIMILARITY FROM LAST YEAR TO THIS YEAR, BUT IS THERE SOMETHING YOU CAN TAKE FROM THAT RACE TO THIS ONE? “Yeah, I mean slightly. The car is obviously different. The tire is way different. The tire is way better this year, honestly. It’s got way more grip and you can actually drive it more, so I don’t know if you can compare much like car to car, setup to setup, but just knowing the trends of how the race went last year, maybe that applies to this year so you try to look at the trends of the racetrack and all that, but the track is a lot smoother than what it was last year, so that’s nice. But there’s not a lot you can compare.”

DID YOU FIND A PREFERRED LINE? “That’s the deal. The top, where the moisture was, was really small by the end of practice. Larson and Bell, they were up there and could do it really good, but I think they both hit the fence pretty hard, so I was right around the middle. I’m not good enough to run up there consistently like they could, honestly, so I was like middle. I thought I had pretty decent grip, actually, so that’s gonna be tough. I think you’re gonna have that option Sunday night, where it’s gonna be a pretty narrow strip of kind of moist mud, but the risk factor is gonna be pretty big with no cushion. There’s really nothing to lean on and you’re just kind of gauging where your right-rear tire is and is it gonna get in the moisture. And the bad thing is you can’t get close to the wall because the quarter-panel is gonna hit before the tire hits anything, so I will not be up there probably because I’m not good enough, so I’m gonna be in the middle trying to chase where the other grip is.”

IS RUNNING THE TRUCK RACE AN ADVANTAGE FOR JOEY? “I talked to him and he was like there’s so much different – the two cars. The tire is way different. He was like, the Cup cars are spoiled from the tire we’ve got now. That tire the trucks have and what we had last year was way less grip of what we have now. I think it will help him, like seeing how the track changes. I think it’s gonna help those guys running, but I think the tire being such a big difference over there can be misleading, but the track time is gonna be big for those guys, I think.”

HAMLIN, REDDICK, BRISCOE AND KYLE BUSCH AMONG FASTEST CUP DRIVERS IN BUSH’S BEANS PRACTICE DAY AT DIRT-COVERED BMS

By

Official Release

-

April 16, 2022

HAMLIN AND REDDICK LEAD CUP SERIES — Denny Hamlin (11) led the NASCAR Cup Series field during the second practice session Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway during Bush's Beans Practice Day.

Friesen and Logano are quickest in Camping World Truck Series sessions

BRISTOL, Tenn. (April 15, 2022) – Denny Hamlin rebounded from a difficult first practice session on Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway, topping the NASCAR Cup Series field during the final session in Bush’s Beans Practice Day to prepare for Sunday’s Food City Dirt Race.

Hamlin made contact with the wall early in the opening 50-minute practice sessions, scraping a right-rear fender on his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing machine and putting an abrupt end to his first run on the dirt surface. But the team returned in impressive fashion and posted a top speed of 87.218 mph during the second session, leaving Hamlin all smiles after the early struggles.

“This team did a good job between practices,” Hamlin said. “The car has been pretty good all day and I haven’t had a whole lot of issues. I’m trying to figure out where to run, and I feel pretty good about how the car is running.”

Tyler Reddick made the strongest first impression to open up another spectacular weekend on dirt, topping the field during the first practice session on Friday with a lap of 89.924 mph in his No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet.

Kyle Busch, who was third-fastest to open the day, was second later on Friday with a best lap of 87.091, and Todd Gilliland was third after going 87.028. Reddick and Christopher Bell rounded out the top five, with Bell’s finish giving JGR three of the top five spots in the second practice.

Kyle Larson, defending event winner Joey Logano, Justin Haley, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Brad Keselowski finished off the top 10 in what was another adventurous 50-minute practice session.

Busch was consistent throughout both practice sessions, putting him on track to possibly grab another memorable Bristol moment. He was impressed with how the new car handled the dirt, giving him confidence the weekend can be another successful one in a place that has treated him well over the years.

“I’m surprised about the amount of grip this car has,” Busch said. “More drive off of the corners. I think most of that has to do with the tire. The tires are really wide. It has really good footprint on it based on looking at its tread pattern versus an open wheel tread pattern. It matches pretty well versus the truck tire, which is very rounded and crowned. I would say the tires a benefit, but the car everywhere we have been with this thing so far has had added grip. Plus, we are at 100 less horsepower than we were last year, so that’s going to help with the throttle on time as well.”

Like the first session, there were plenty of wild moments to close out the day. Several drivers, including Larson, William Byron, Bell, Austin Cindric, Stenhouse and Aric Almirola, made contact with the outside walls as drivers alternated between running high and low.

Ty Dillon spun out early in the session, while Chase Elliott capped off a day of struggles by getting turned around for a fourth time on Friday. He spun around three times during the first session, but did manage to avoid any damage to his car.

BUSH’S BEANS PRACTICE DAY FIRST SESSION – CUP SERIES

Reddick paced the field during a wild opening practice session. Chase Briscoe was second-fastest to open the day, going 89.753 mph, with Kyle Busch, who has dominated at Bristol over the years, taking third after a best lap of 89.625. Justin Haley and Kurt Busch took fourth and fifth, respectively, while Stenhouse, Ross Chastain, Gilliland, Ty Dillon and Bell rounded out the top 10.

It was a solid starting point for Reddick, who expects track conditions to continue to change throughout the must-see weekend.

“Well, with this car, from what I saw as it transitioned and as it changed – in dirt racing, the line is going to be different just about every single lap as the track changes,” Reddick said. “I think there is going to be a point in time, in the beginning of the race certainly, where one lane is going to be more dominant than the other.

“I think there is going to be a lot of lane choices, based off of just where this tires’ grip is and where the power in this car is, horsepower-wise. But a lot of these things just depend on what the weather does Saturday and how much that really dictates what we can and can’t do to this track Sunday getting ready for our race.”

Like Reddick, Briscoe noticed the changing conditions even during the practice sessions. He’s eager to see how it all unfolds under the lights on Sunday night, which adds another thrilling layer to the unique race.

“I thought it was interesting how we were running the top versus last year we were always on the bottom. Hopefully, we can race where it’s like that and you can kind of move around,” Briscoe said. “I will say it have more grip than I thought it was going to — like from a forward drive standpoint it definitely had way more grip and we carried way more throttle than I thought we would. I was kind of surprised by that. I’ve never driven a dirt car with this kind of suspension, so that part was interesting. I was surprised, truthfully, how well it drove on the dirt.”

Along with Elliott’s three spins and Hamlin scraping the wall, Logano, Bowman, Ross Chastain and Haley spun during the first practice. Briscoe also slowed late in the practice session thanks to a flat rear-left tire.

Four 15-lap qualifying heat races are scheduled, starting Saturday at 6 p.m. during Bush’s Beans Qualifying to set the starting lineup for Sunday evening’s main event.

BUSH’S BEANS PRACTICE DAY – CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES

Stewart Friesen and Joey Logano led the way during the two sessions during Bush’s Beans Practice Day for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway, as both impressed heading into Saturday’s Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt.

Logano, of course, is pulling double-duty as the defending winner of the Food City Dirt Race in the NASCAR Cup Series and looked strong to close out the day in his No. 54 truck with a top speed of 91.006 mph.

Friesen, meanwhile, had the best pass of the day in the opening session, going 92.932 in his No. 52 Toyota. Ben Rhodes was solid during both sessions on Friday, making the second-fastest lap in each of the two sessions to take plenty of momentum into Saturday’s race.

Matt Crafton, Buddy Kofoid and Chase Elliott made up the top five during the second practice session, while top-five drivers in the opening practice also included Derek Kraus, Carson Hocevar and Matt Crafton.

Rhodes enjoyed every bit of his time on the track on Friday, reveling in the dirt environment in Bristol.

“We were pretty quick in practice both times today, and I think it is a whole lot of fun,” Rhodes said. “I love that you can throw the truck into the corners, and you will have the banking to catch you. When you just start sliding and sliding and sliding, I mean, some people like that, but I don’t. My feel is when I throw it in there, I want to know I’ve got something to lean on and the banking provides that. I’ve never experienced that before.”

Rhodes said he enjoyed racing on dirt at The Last Great Colosseum more than the concrete because he hasn’t experienced much success on the traditional set-up in Bristol. But he’s found a strong footing on the dirt, finishing second a year ago and putting together two strong practice runs on Friday, and he’s looking forward to carrying that over to the race on Saturday.

“I had a really, really fun practice session today,” Rhodes said. “We ran a few laps off of the bat and the crew chief (Rich Lushes) said ‘Alright, that’s enough. Let’s be done for this round.’ After about 30 minutes of watching other people, I got really bummed out that they were having fun and I wasn’t. I begged him to let me go out and he got the truck back on the ground and we put some tires back on it and we went out and ran some laps. That is the happiest I’ve been in a truck at a dirt track ever. This next session we were running through changes and tried to get some sensitivities on what some of the changes are like here, so that way at the end of the stage breaks we know how to adjust the truck. Pretty calm, cool and collected practice for us, but the track is changing a lot to say the least.”

During the second practice, multiple trucks collided, causing significant damage to the No. 02 of Kaz Grala when he made contact with Austin Dillon’s No. 20 machine.

Four qualifying heats are scheduled, starting at 4:30 p.m. during Saturday’s Bush’s Beans Qualifying at Bristol, leading into the Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt at 8 p.m.

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