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NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Richmond

By
Jeffrey Boswell
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Credit: RICHMOND, VIRGINIA - APRIL 03: Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards/Richmond Water Heaters Ford, leads the field to start the NASCAR Cup Series Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway on April 03, 2022 in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Ryan Blaney: Blaney started on the pole at Richmond and finished seventh.

“That’s two straight poles for me,” Blaney said, “and my third this season. I’m collecting Busch Light Pole Awards faster than I can get rid of them in yard sales.”

2. Chase Elliott: Elliott started strong at Richmond but experienced handling issues in the final stage that kept him out of the top 10. He finished 14th and is tied with Ryan Blaney atop the points standings.

“The No. 9 Chevy was just good,” Elliott said, “but not great. What my car needed was a shot of adrenaline, much like ‘A Shoc’ performance energy drink would provide for a person, or Brad Keselowski’s mechanic would provide for his engine.”

3. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex led 80 laps and won Stage 2 at Richmond on his way to a fourth-place finish, posting his first top-five of the season.

“Just when you think you’ve heard it all in NASCAR,” Truex said, “the term ‘pit stop choreography’ became a thing at Richmond. Let’s be honest, footwork is an important part of all aspects of racing. For example, I’d like to take my right foot and work it towards the behind of my crew chief James Small, who screwed up our pit strategy at Richmond.”

4. William Byron: Byron led 122 laps at Richmond but couldn’t hold off the fresh tires of Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota down the stretch. Byron held on for third and is fourth in the points standings.

“If you’re on old tires at Richmond,” Byron said, “you’re a ‘sitting duck.’ If you can’t handle your alcohol and pass out in the bleachers without sunblock, you’re also a sitting duck. And you’ll likely leave with a sunburn and one less eyebrow.

“I had the Liberty University paint scheme on my No. 24 Chevy. When that’s on your car and you’re leading, everybody’s watching, including Jerry Falwell, Jr.”

5. Ross Chastain: Chastain, last week’s winner at COTA, recorded a 19th at Richmond, one lap down to the leaders.

“It just wasn’t my day,” Chastain said. “I’m frustrated. But my day wasn’t altogether ‘fruitless,’ because, just as was the case a week ago at COTA, I smashed a watermelon. But this time, it was out of frustration.”

6. Alex Bowman: Bowman came home eighth in the Toyota Owners 400 for his fourth top 10 of the year.

“Congratulations to Denny Hamlin for winning the race,” Bowman said. “He had a slow start to the season, but Denny kept working hard knowing wins would come his way. You could say he ‘got what was coming to him,’ which is something Denny is dying to say about me.”

7. Joey Logano: Logano finished 17th at Richmond, one lap down.

“We’re off to Martinsville for a Saturday night race and the renowned half-mile track,” Logano said. “I always look forward to racing there, especially when I’m not looking behind me for Matt Kenseth.”

8. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin passed William Byron with five laps remaining and held off Kevin Harvick to win the Toyota Owners 400 Richmond. It was Hamlin’s first win of the year as well as his first top 10 of the year.

“You could say I got the ‘monkey’ off my back,” Hamlin said. “Unfortunately, that monkey was on the back of another larger monkey, which is still on my back. And has paid rent through mid-November.”

9. Chase Briscoe: Briscoe finished 11th at Richmond.

“As expected,” Briscoe said, “tire management was a big factor in the race. It’s one thing to ‘nurse’ your tires; it’s another thing to ‘doctor’ your tires, which is something you’d expect Brad Keselowski’s team to do.”

10. Kevin Harvick: Harvick surged late and chased eventual race winner Denny Hamlin to the line at Richmond. Harvick settled for the runner-up spot, his best finish of the year.

“I was hoping to get close enough to Hamlin to ‘take a swipe’ at him,” Harvick said. “Does that mean I was going to wreck him? Maybe, but really what I hoped to gain by saying ‘take a swipe’ was a sweet sponsorship deal with a credit card company.”

John Hunter Nemechek – No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra Camping World Trucks Martinsville Preview

By
Official Release
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John Hunter Nemechek: Driver, No. 4 Mobil 1 Toyota

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Overview:
Event: Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 200, Race 5 of 23, 200 Laps –50/50/100; 105.2 Miles
Location: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway (0.526-mile oval)
Date/Broadcast: April 7, 2022, at 8 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR 90

Nemechek #Back4More in 2022:
Nemechek and the No. 4 Mobil 1 team head to Martinsville (Va.) Speedway looking to build momentum off of their second-place finish at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) on March 26. Despite being sent to the rear of the field twice during the 46-lap event at COTA, the No. 4 team rebounded for their first top-five finish of the season.

Through the first four races of the 2022 season, Nemechek currently sits eighth in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series standings, 55 points behind his Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM) teammate Chandler Smith, who leads the standings. Nemechek has led at least one lap in each of the first four races this season and leads the NASCAR Truck Series with three stage wins and 85 laps led.

The 24-year-old driver will be making his 14th career start at Martinsville Speedway in Camping World Truck series action. He has tallied one win (2018), 83 laps led, four top-five, and five top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 16.2 in his first 13 starts. He also has two starts at ‘The Paperclip’ in the NASCAR Cup Series, with a best finish of 25th coming in the spring event in 2020.

The Toyota Racing driver spent the Truck Series off weekend racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Richmond (Va.) Raceway in the No. 18 Toyota Supra for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR). Nemechek started second, won the first stage, and led a race-high 135 laps before finishing second to JGR teammate Ty Gibbs.

The world’s leading synthetic motor oil, Mobil 1, will adorn the hood of the No. 4 Tundra TRD Pro Thursday night at Martinsville Speedway. Mobil 1 returns as the primary sponsor of Nemechek’s Toyota in the following Truck Series event at the Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway Dirt race on April 16.

Nemechek is an 11-time winner in Camping World Truck Series action, winning at least one race each season from 2015 to 2018 for his family-owned team, NEMCO Motorsports, and returning to victory lane in 2021 with KBM. Across 128 career starts in NASCAR’s third division, he has compiled three poles, 1,266 laps led, 41 top-five and 67 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 12.8.

Eric Phillips returned to lead the No. 4 team in 2022. His 41 career Truck Series victories make him the winningest crew chief in Truck Series history, with 32 of those coming while at KBM including five last year. Phillips led the No. 18 team at KBM in its debut season in 2010 and helped build the organization into one of the premier teams in all of NASCAR before departing at the end of the 2014 season. Under his guidance, the No. 18 team won eight races in its inaugural campaign and became the first team in Truck Series history to capture an owner’s championship in its first season of competition. In 2014, the Illinois native led the No. 51 team to an owner’s championship and his team’s 10 wins spearheaded KBM to a single-season Truck Series record of 14 wins. At Martinsville, Phillip’s drivers have collected two poles, one win (Denny Hamlin, 2011), 251 laps led, six top-five, and 12 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 14.2 across 21 starts.

John Hunter Nemechek, Driver Q&A:
John Hunter Nemechek | Martinsville Speedway Preview
Do you feel like things are finally starting to turn your way a little bit after having a tough start to the year?
“I definitely think so. I think after having a tough start to the year it’s definitely turned a little bit to try and get the ship righted in the right direction. I think the biggest thing for us is just being able to finish races. We’ve had speed all year, we’ve been able to get a lot of stage points and some stage wins and that has kept us in the points position that we’re in. Definitely feel like after having the second-place finish at COTA and now having the second-place finish last weekend at Richmond in the Xfinity Series car, we’re on the right track.”

What’s the most challenging part about Martinsville?
“I think the most challenging part is having track position, how to pass, and trying not to make enemies. It is a short track so it’s not if you are going to get run into, it’s when you are going to get run into. So, trying to keep your head cool and not lose your mind in a sense and not make any mistakes. I think the biggest thing for us is to go there and have a solid day. We’ve got to get some more solid finishes underneath our belt and just be able to race hard. You can have everything going right for you all day and get turned or make somebody mad and they can ruin your day so just have to keep the truck in one piece and be there at the end when it counts.”

Do you think with Martinsville being a regular season race that people will be less aggressive?
“I think that times have changed and seems like everybody is being aggressive now no matter where you go. I think the biggest thing for us is knowing who you’re racing around, how they’re going to race you, and different things of that sort. Just because it’s not a playoff race doesn’t mean that it doesn’t matter so I still feel like the intensity is going to be high and everybody is going to be racing as hard as they can to try and maximize their performance and get the best finish that they can.”

John Hunter Nemechek Career Highlights:

  • Eleven-time winner in Camping World Truck Series action, winning at least one race each season from 2015 to 2018 for his family-owned team, NEMCO Motorsports. Across 125 career starts in NASCAR’s third division, has compiled two poles, 1,231 laps led, 40 top-five and 66 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 12.7. Registered a career-high and series-leading five victories in 2021 and earned the NCWTS Regular Season championship while finishing third in the final standings after qualifying for the Championship Four for the first time in his career.
  • Produced three top-10 finishes and an average result of 22.4 while competing for rookie of the year honors in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2020. He recorded a career-best eighth-place finish twice, both coming at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway
  • Across 56 career XFINITY Series starts, has totaled two wins, one pole, 364 laps led, 14 top-five and 33 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 11.7.

John Hunter Nemechek’s No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra:
KBM-58: The No. 4 Mobil 1 team will unload KBM-58 for Thursday’s race at Martinsville. Nemechek produced three of his series-leading five wins with this Toyota last year: Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway, Richmond (Va.) Raceway and Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. KBM owner-driver Kyle Busch also produced a victory with this Tundra TRD Pro at Charlotte in 2019.
KBM-58 Performance Profile

KBM Notes of Interest:

  • KBM drivers have collected eight wins, five poles, 987 laps led, 24 top-five and 38 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 9.4 across 6o starts at Martinsville. Todd Gilliland picked up the organization’s most recent victory at the 0.526-mile oval in October of 2019. Kyle Busch (2016 & 2019), Darrell Wallace Jr. (2013 & 2014), and Denny Hamlin (2011 & 2012) have all collected two victories at the Virginia track while Noah Gragson (2017) has one win.
  • KBM holds the Camping World Truck Series records for most career wins (92) and most wins in a single season (14 in 2014). With his victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway Corey Heim became the 18th different driver to win a Truck Series event for KBM. In addition to collecting a series-record seven Owner’s Championships, the organization has produced two championship-winning drivers: Erik Jones (2015) and Christopher Bell (2017).
  • The No. 4 has 16 career victories at KBM and was the number for both of the organization’s driver championships.

NASCAR Announces Nominees For NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2023, Landmark Award

By
Official Release
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Kenseth, Brewer, Foyt Become First-Time Nominees

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 4, 2022) — NASCAR today announced the 15 nominees for the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s Class of 2023, a group that will comprise the first Hall of Fame ballot in two years following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Matt Kenseth (2003 Cup Series champion) and Tim Brewer (two-time Cup Series champion crew chief) join the Modern Era Ballot for the first time; A.J. Foyt (seven-time Cup winner) is added to the Pioneer Ballot along with Sam Ard, who was a nominee for the Class of 2020. This is the second nomination class under the redesigned format. Ten nominees appear on the Modern Era ballot, five on the Pioneer ballot – designed to honor those whose careers began more than 60 years ago. Two Modern Era candidates and one Pioneer candidate will be elected as the Class of 2023.

Lesa France Kennedy joins the Landmark Award ballot, an award given for outstanding contributions to the sport. Award winners are also eligible for NHOF enshrinement.

The NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel will meet in person to discuss and vote for the Class of 2023 and Landmark Award on Wednesday, May 4.  Six new members join the 62-person panel – Mike Burch (Speedway Motorsports), Kelly Crandall (NMPA President), Ryan McGee (ESPN), Bob Pockrass (FOX Sports), Cathy Rice (South Boston Speedway) and Chip Wile (NASCAR). In addition, because there was no Class of 2022, both Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson will participate as one-time voters as NASCAR Cup Series champions. The 63rd vote goes to winners of a NASCAR.com Fan Vote (www.nascar.com/halloffame). The Fan Vote is currently open and will close on April 29.

The Modern Era Ballot and Landmark Award nominees were selected by the Nomination Committee, which consists of representatives from NASCAR and the NASCAR Hall of Fame, track owners from major facilities and historic short tracks. The Honors Committee, largely comprised of all living Hall of Famers, Landmark Award winners and Squier-Hall Award winners, selected the Pioneer Ballot.

Following are the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2023 nominees and Landmark Award nominees:

Modern Era Ballot

Neil Bonnett, won 18 times in the NASCAR Cup Series including consecutive Coca-Cola 600 victories

Tim Brewer, two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crew chief

Jeff Burton, won 21 times in the NASCAR Cup Series including the Southern 500 and two Coca-Cola 600s

Carl Edwards, winner of 28 NASCAR Cup Series races and 2007 Xfinity Series champion

Harry Gant, winner of 18 NASCAR Cup Series races, including two Southern 500 victories

Harry Hyde, 1970 NASCAR Cup Series championship crew chief

Matt Kenseth, 2003 NASCAR Cup Series champion and winner of 39 Cup races

Larry Phillips, first five-time NASCAR weekly series national champion

Ricky Rudd, won 23 times in NASCAR Cup Series, including the 1997 Brickyard 400

Kirk Shelmerdine, four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crew chief

Pioneer Ballot

Sam Ard, NASCAR Xfinity Series pioneer and two-time champion

AJ Foyt, won seven NASCAR Cup Series races including the 1972 Daytona 500

Banjo Matthews, built cars that won more than 250 NASCAR Cup Series races and three championships

Hershel McGriff, 1986 NASCAR West Series champion

Ralph Moody, two-time NASCAR Cup Series owner champion as mechanical genius of Holman-Moody

Landmark Award

Janet Guthrie, the first female to compete in a NASCAR Cup Series superspeedway race

Alvin Hawkins, NASCAR’s first flagman; established NASCAR racing at Bowman Gray Stadium with Bill France Sr.

Mike Helton, named third president of NASCAR in 2000; career included track operator roles at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway

Lesa France Kennedy, NASCAR Executive Vice Chair and one of the most influential women in sports

Dr. Joseph Mattioli, founder of Pocono Raceway

Subway Racing: Kevin Harvick Martinsville Advance

By
Official Release
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KEVIN HARVICK
Martinsville Advance
No. 4 Subway Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing

Event Overview

● Event: Blu-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 400 (Round 8 of 36)
● Time/Date: 7:30 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 9
● Location: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway
● Layout: .526-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 400 laps/210.4 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 80 laps / Stage 2: 100 laps / Final Stage: 220 laps
● TV/Radio: FS1 / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● DYK? In every race where Subway® restaurants has served as the primary sponsor of the No. 4 team of Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), driver Kevin Harvick has finished among the top-10. Subway put its Eat Fresh Refresh™ on the fast track by becoming a primary sponsor of the championship-winning NASCAR Cup Series team last year and Harvick delivered. Harvick finished second in his Subway debut Sept. 18 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, ninth in the very next race Sept. 26 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and third Oct. 24 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. It’s a pattern that has continued in 2022, as Harvick took his No. 4 Subway Ford Mustang to a seventh-place finish Feb. 27 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. Harvick is back in the green-and-yellow colors of Subway this weekend at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway for the Blu-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 400, and his front-running ways have earned Harvick his own Subway signature sub – the Full-Throttle Ham – which features thin-sliced Black Forest ham, crispy hickory-smoked bacon, pepper-jack cheese, and lettuce and tomato on fresh-baked artisan Italian bread, all finished with yellow mustard. The Full-Throttle Ham is sold exclusively on The Vault, available only at Subway.com and the Subway app, where sandwiches created by some of today’s most notable sports stars can be delivered straight to your door via Subway Delivery, powered by DoorDash. Subway has a $0 delivery fee on all Subway Delivery orders and guests can still earn and redeem Subway MyWay® Rewards points.

● Baseball’s opening day is this week (April 7, to be specific) and Harvick is batting almost .500 when it comes to finishing among the top-10 at Martinsville. The driver of the No. 4 Subway Ford Mustang has made 41 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at the .526-mile oval and recorded 20 top-10s, tied with Kyle Busch for the second-highest tally among active Cup Series drivers. Only Denny Hamlin has more top-10s at Martinsville (22).

● Among those 20 top-10s earned by Harvick is a win in April 2011. He defeated Dale Earnhardt Jr., by .727 of a second to win the Goody’s Fast Relief 500. It was Harvick’s 20th NASCAR Cup Series start at the track and his 16th career Cup Series victory. Harvick now has 58 career Cup Series wins and is alone at 10th on the all-time win list.

● Harvick’s next best finish outside of that lone Martinsville win in April 2011 was a third-place drive in the series’ prior visit to the track in October 2010. It was the start of a three-race run of top-fives at Martinsville, as Harvick followed his win with a fourth-place effort in the series’ return to the facility in October.

● Harvick’s best Martinsville finish since joining SHR in 2014 is a pair of fifth-place results – Oct. 29, 2017 and March 20, 2018.

● Martinsville is the shortest track on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule, and its tight corners with only 12 degrees of banking means that beating and banging – be it door-to-door or bumper-to-bumper – is commonplace. But that also means accidents are prevalent, and being able to keep one’s car running from start to finish is easier said than done. In Harvick’s 41 career Cup Series starts at Martinsville, he has an impressive lap completion rate of 98.3 percent. That means that of the 20,540 laps available to him, he has failed to complete just 344 of those laps. Among active drivers, only Kurt Busch has completed more laps at Martinsville (20,882), but with two more starts than Harvick (43).

● Harvick has tasted success in every type of car he has raced at Martinsville. In addition to his NASCAR Cup Series win, he has a NASCAR Xfinity Series triumph and three NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victories.

● Harvick is undefeated in the Xfinity Series at Martinsville. He earned the equivalent of a walk-off homer on July 22, 2006 when in his only Xfinity Series start at the track, he led three times for a race-high 149 laps to take the win by .271 of a second over runner-up Clint Bowyer.

● Harvick’s three Truck Series wins at Martinsville came in 17 starts. He won on March 30, 2009 (defeated Ron Hornaday Jr.), March 27, 2010 (defeated Hornaday again) and March 31, 2012 (defeated Ty Dillon).

● The Truck Series is where Harvick made his first start of any kind at Martinsville – Sept. 26, 1998 when he finished 25th. Harvick earned his first top-10 at Martinsville on April 17, 1999 in a Ford F-150 for team owner Jim Herrick.

● DYK? Harvick tested a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour car at Martinsville on Jan. 21, 2020. The Modified Tour is NASCAR’s oldest division and it is the only open-wheel series sanctioned by NASCAR. Compared to a NASCAR Cup Series car, a Tour car is 11 inches shorter in height and a little more than 23 inches wider. It also weighs nearly 800 pounds less. Harvick’s test came via Ryan Preece’s No. 6NY Tour car. Preece was the 2013 series champion and he earned the first of his 25 career Modified Tour victories at Martinsville on Sept. 20, 2008, leading 265 of the race’s 300 laps. Harvick and his company, KHI Management, represent Preece, who is SHR’s reserve driver in 2022.

Kevin Harvick, Driver of the No. 4 Subway Ford Mustang

You’re in your 22nd NASCAR Cup Series season. You’re 10th on the all-time Cup Series win list. You’re a Cup Series champion. But your most recent achievement, and perhaps biggest, is that you have your own sandwich at Subway – the Full-Throttle Ham. All joking aside, is that a little surreal when you think about it and what your original goals were when you first started racing go-karts in Bakersfield, California?

“I don’t know that I’d ever thought that I’d have a lot of the things I have today, and my own signature sandwich at Subway is one of them. I walk around sometimes and have to laugh at all the things I’ve collected over the years – the cars, the suits. I walk into my shop and I look at all the helmets on the wall and I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, how in the world can you even process that you were going to have that many helmets?’ And then you look upstairs and there are suits everywhere, and shoes, and you just used to hope that yours didn’t rip so that you can wear the same one week after week so you could buy tires instead of new shoes or a new suit.”

Martinsville is one of those tracks where you’ve made a lot of starts, dating all the way back to 1998 when you raced there in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with Spears Manufacturing. The track is celebrating its 75th anniversary and you’ve been racing there for 24 of those years. Does the history of Martinsville resonate with you?

“Martinsville has a deep history in our sport. It’s a place that’s just a part of NASCAR racing and I think you have to respect that. But I definitely would tell you it’s not a racetrack that I would say, ‘This is where I want to go.’ It’s just not been a place where I’ve had streaks of success.”

Martinsville can be a frustrating track. For instance, you’ve won there, you’ve finished in the top-10 in just about half your races there, but you’ve also left that place shaking your head. Describe what it is that makes Martinsville so maddening, but also so rewarding when you do have success.

“Look, I’ve done this a long time, and there’s really not going to be a racetrack that I go to that I don’t leave thinking that I could’ve done better. Martinsville is the one I leave thinking that probably more often than some of the others, but it’s going to be the exact same as any other racetrack when I get to Monday – it’s just going to be in the past and I’m not going to think about it. It’s been a racetrack where you just never know what’s going to happen. It’s just one of those places that’s been like that. I have no idea how we’ve won there, but we have. It was one of our most successful racetracks in the Truck Series, and I was able to win an Xfinity race there back in ’06. We’ve won in all the divisions there. It’s just one of those places that’s frustrating. Even on a day when you do well, you just leave there with your wires crossed.”

When Martinsville isn’t your favorite place, what do you have to do to still compete at a high level?

“We’ve put in a lot of time this year – the simulator, we’ve been to two tests so far. We knew coming into this year that we had some habits we were going to have to break, thought processes that you were going to have to break to really understand this car, and I think we’ve done a pretty good job of that with all the adversity we’ve gone through so far this year. Martinsville will just be more of that same process, and that’s going to be our aggressive process until we get to victory lane.”

This NextGen car seems to be a little more forgiving than the previous generation car when it comes to beating and banging. Those composite body panels don’t cut tires like the sheet metal of past cars used to. Does that give drivers a green light to lean on one another perhaps a bit more than they used to?

“You still have to be careful. Front-to-rear is fine with the foam and everything in the back of the car, but as we experienced at Atlanta when we had that front impact, it tore the fender off, which would’ve been fine, but when it pushed that foam back, it allowed the nose to go down on the car and then it grinds everything off. So, you still have to take care of the racecar. You still have a little more leeway than what you used to, you just don’t want to hit the wheels really hard because those parts will break.”

What’s OK and what isn’t when it comes to car-to-car contact at a short track?

“You can pretty much tell if it’s on purpose or not on purpose. You just have to be mentally prepared to know that there is going to be contact as you go through that race. You just have to try to stay as calm as possible. But, usually, if it’s the same guy that keeps having contact, then you know you have to do something different.”

This is your 22nd year in the sport, but you’re driving as hard as when it was just your second year in the sport. What keeps you going and competing at this level?

“I like where I race. I like Stewart-Haas Racing. I like the atmosphere. I like the people here. That’s really the biggest reason that I like to do it, especially this year. You’re with a group of people where you’re constantly problem solving. You’re trying to fix it faster than everybody else and come to something that is better than everybody else so you can win races. I like the core group of guys that I started here with. That’s why they all came here, and I guess I would feel like I’m abandoning them if I didn’t go a couple more years. For me, I still enjoy that challenge. I enjoy where this series is, and learning about the new car is not a bad thing to do as you go forward into the future and do something different.”

No. 4 Subway Team Roster

Primary Team Members

Driver: Kevin Harvick
Hometown: Bakersfield, California

Crew Chief: Rodney Childers
Hometown: Mooresville, North Carolina

Car Chief: Robert “Cheddar” Smith
Hometown: Whitewater, Wisconsin

Engineer: Dax Gerringer
Hometown: Gibsonville, North Carolina

Engineer: Stephen Doran
Hometown: Butler, Pennsylvania

Spotter: Tim Fedewa
Hometown: Holt, Michigan

Over-The-Wall Members

Front Tire Changer: Shayne Pipala
Hometown: Frankfort Square, Illinois

Rear Tire Changer: Daniel Smith
Hometown: Concord, North Carolina

Tire Carrier: Jeremy Howard
Hometown: Delhart, Texas

Jack Man: Stan Doolittle
Hometown: Ninety Six, South Carolina

Fuel Man: Evan Marchal
Hometown: Westfield, Indiana

Road Crew Members

Mechanic: Richie Bean
Hometown: Bradford, Vermont

Mechanic: Nick DeFazio
Hometown: Orange, California

Tire Specialist: Jamie Turski
Hometown: Trumbull, Connecticut

Engine Tuner: Robert Brandt
Hometown: Mobile, Alabama

Transporter Co-Driver: Rick Hodges
Hometown: Raleigh, North Carolina

Transporter Co-Driver: Stephen Mitchell
Hometown: Woodville, Ohio

DGR NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Advance: Martinsville Speedway

By
Official Release
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Thursday, April 7
Track: Martinsville Speedway, .526-mile oval
Race: 5 of 23

Event: Blu-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 200 (200 laps, 105 miles)

Schedule
Practice: 3:00 p.m. ET
Qualifying: 3:30 p.m. ET
Race: 8:00 p.m. ET (FOX Sports 1)

Hailie Deegan, No. 1 Wastequip Ford F-150

  • Hailie Deegan makes her 28th career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start this Thursday as she lines up under the bright lights of Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.
  • The fifth race of the NCWTS season marks Deegan’s second career start at Martinsville. The Temecula, CA native brought home a top-20 performance in her first appearance at “The Paperclip.”
  • Veteran signal-caller Mike Hillman Jr. has enjoyed plenty of success at the half-mile oval, netting eight top-fives and 13 top-10 finishes throughout his storied Truck Series career.
  • Wastequip returns to the No. 1 for the second time this season. The waste handling equipment manufacturer made their debut appearance on Deegan’s Ford F-150 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Tanner Gray, No. 15 Black’s Tire Ford F-150

  • Tanner Gray heads into the fifth race of the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway for a rare Thursday night showdown under the lights.
  • Through the opening four rounds, Gray has two top-fives and three top-10 finishes with an average finish of 8.5. He sits tied for fourth in the series standings, 31 points behind leader Chandler Smith.
  • Thursday night will be the New Mexico driver’s fourth career appearance at Martinsville. Last October was his personal best finish at the track with a third place.
  • Black’s Tire returns to the No. 15 for the second of four races this season. Gray and Black’s Tire kicked off the season together with a fourth-place run at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway to start the year.

Taylor Gray, No. 17 Ford Performance F-150

  • Taylor Gray returns to the seat of the No. 17 Ford Performance F-150 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway for his second start of the NCWTS season.
  • Two weeks ago at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, Gray qualified ninth but had an up-and-down day after getting taken out on lap one, rebounding to 11th midway through the race and then losing brakes on the final lap and finishing 26th.
  • The Ford driver earned his first career NCWTS top-10 finish at Martinsville last October.
  • After Martinsville, Gray will take two months off from Truck Series competition before returning to the No. 17 on June 4th at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois.

2022 Chevrolet Camaro SS Convertibles Presented as 500 Festival Event Cars

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Official Release
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INDIANAPOLIS (Monday, April 4, 2022) – A longtime tradition and another sign of the return of the Month of May took place April 4 as the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Chevrolet staged 50 identical 2022 Chevrolet Camaro SS convertibles on the main straightaway at IMS.

The “Festival Event Cars” have reminded Indianapolis-area residents of the upcoming Indianapolis 500 since the 1960s, and this year’s fleet of unique Camaros again will turn heads as they are driven around Central Indiana.

Presenting the cars were Allison Melangton, Penske Entertainment Senior Vice President; Pat Merna, 500 Festival Vice President Strategic Partnerships; and Todd Christensen, Chevrolet Motorsports Strategic Marketing and Operations.

The Festival Event Cars are a unique option code based off the 2022 Chevrolet Camaro SS convertible and are powered by a 6.2-liter small block V-8, which offers 455 horsepower and 455 pound-feet of torque.

The exterior of the car features Wild Cherry Tintcoat exterior paint with special decals from Chevrolet’s Performance Design Studio representing the 106th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. The car also features a Ceramic White interior, a power-folding convertible top that can be lowered while driving at speeds up to 30 mph, Brembo front and rear performance brakes with red calipers and 20-inch black-painted aluminum wheels.

“We’re glad to continue the tradition of providing Festival Event Cars to build excitement for the Indianapolis 500,” said Dean Stramer, Chevrolet Camaro marketing and advertising manager. “Our Chevrolet Design team did a great job making this year’s Camaro a stand-out.”

The 106th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is scheduled for Sunday, May 29, 2022. Visit IMS.com for tickets and more information on all Month of May events and activities at IMS.

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 80 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.

Meyer Shank Racing Set for Double Duty at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach

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Official Release
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Long Beach, Calif. (4 April 2022) – Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) will return to North America’s longest-running street race this weekend, when it takes both its NTT INDYCAR SERIES and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship programs to the coast of Southern California for the 47th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

The MSR with Curb-Agajanian Acura sports car team will compete in a 100-minute race on Saturday, a welcome sprint after tackling Florida’s two endurance classics, winning the Rolex 24 At Daytona and taking fifth in the 12 Hours of Sebring.

MSR’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES team runs in its second street-course race of the 2022 campaign, coming off the high-speed oval race at Texas Motor Speedway after opening the season in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida.

Meyer Shank Racing Looking for Strong IMSA Run at Acura’s Home Race

Driver Lineup:
Tom Blomqvist and Oliver Jarvis: No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM Acura ARX-05 DPi

Tune In:
Saturday, April 9, 2022 on USA Network and Peacock (5-7 p.m. ET)
SiriusXM Ch. 202

MSR opened the WeatherTech Championship season by winning the Rolex 24 At Daytona, with Tom Blomqvist and Oliver Jarvis joined by Helio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud. The team went on to place fifth in the grueling Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring last month and are now hoping to make up championship ground on the streets of Long Beach.

Jarvis competed in three IMSA races at Long Beach in the DPi category. He finished fourth in 2018 and 2019, and fifth in 2021. Blomqvist made his Long Beach debut in 2019 running in the GTLM ranks which saw him finish seventh.

MSR ran in four Prototype races at Long Beach. The team finished fifth and ninth in its debut outing in 2006. MSR drivers, John Pew and Ozz Negri made a front row start in 2014 and the team finished sixth in 2015. Last year, MSR qualified fourth in the Acura DPi, but an accident with 10 laps remaining resulted in a sixth place finish.

MSR IndyCar regular (and sports car endurance driver) Castroneves holds the Long Beach DPi qualifying record, 1:11.332-seconds set in 2019 onboard the Acura DPi.

Driver Quotes:

Oliver Jarvis:
“With Long Beach being Acura’s home race we would love to deliver their first home win, but as we have seen from the past few seasons this is a track very much suited to our competitors. With that in mind, we know it won’t be an easy task but that won’t stop us from giving everything to make that home win become a reality. Aside from great racing, Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach is such a fantastic event all round and one I look forward to every year.”

Tom Blomqvist:
“First off, Long Beach is a cool event and it’s cool to be sharing the paddock with INDYCAR. And it’s even more special that its Acura’s home race. It’s always a great turnout with it being right in the city center and I love street tracks. I think it’s going to be a bit of a difficult race. Obviously going into that race we are realistic with our expectations, but we have the tools and we just need to make sure we make the most out of what we have. Hopefully we can have a good result and bounce back from Sebring.”

Meyer Shank Racing’s Pagenaud and Castroneves Both Long Beach winners

Driver Lineup:
Helio Castroneves: No. 06 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda
Simon Pagenaud: No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda

Tune in:
Sunday, April 10, 3 p.m. ET on NBC
SiriusXM Ch. 205

Simon Pagenaud finished eighth in the the second round of IndyCar competition at Texas Motor Speedway in March and now looks to build on that result in Long Beach. The 2016 IndyCar champion and 2019 Indianapolis 500 winner has raced nine times at Long Beach, winning in 2016 and placing second in 2012. Pagenaud most recently finished fifth in 2021.

Aside from his IndyCar success the street course, Pagenaud also won both of his IMSA (then ALMS) starts at the circuit, in 2009 and 2010.

Helio Castroneves ran in four Champ Car races at Long Beach, finishing second in 2000 and raced to his first Long Beach win in 2001. Castroneves has 10 IndyCar starts in Long Beach, finishing second in 2015 and third in 2016.

As part of his six race IndyCar season with MSR last season, Castroneves raced in Long Beach and qualified third for the season-ending race. After leading for 14-laps, Castroneves was poised for as strong result, but an uncharacteristically long green flag did not play into the team’s strategy with the Brazilian finishing 20th.

Driver Quotes:

Helio Castroneves:
“We’re looking forward to the Grand Prix of Long Beach – we had great pace last year and we had great potential in the race after qualifying third. Unfortunately, strategy didn’t work out too well for us, but we learned from it. Now coming back around six months later, we are looking forward to a great result with the AutoNation / SiriusXM car. We are looking really, really strong. I think MSR might impress a lot of people.”

Simon Pagenaud:
“Long Beach is one of my favorite tracks. I have been very fortunate there with great success. I’m very excited to be going there with Meyer Shank Racing for the first time. They had a great weekend the last time I raced there, so I am expecting great things on the street course like St. Pete. Obviously, looking towards good execution all week long and trying to finalize the speed we have and transform it into a great result. We’ll see how we can do, but I’m really excited to be going to the west coast.”

Pat Smage Sweeps Rounds One & Two at the AMA Trials Nationals in Tennessee

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Official Release
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Credit: Stephanie Vetterly of Stephanie Vetterly Photography

Sequatchie, TN – Rounds one and two of the 2022 AMA observed trials national championship took place this weekend in the foothills of the Smokey Mountains at the Trials Training Center. FactoryONE Sherco pilot Pat Smage picked up where he left off with a commanding sweep of the weekend. Smage would score just 11 points over both days compared to second place with 49.

“Today started out pretty shaky I would say!” exclaimed Pat Smage when speaking on day one. “I didn’t feel that confident or comfortable from the start as I hit my skid plate on one and my boot on a few rocks. After that, I started getting frustrated and wasn’t having fun,” continued Smage. “From there, I changed my mindset to have fun and not focus on the final placement. You never know how long you will have to ride nationals so I decided to just go have fun and not worry if I won or lost, and surprisingly, I didn’t dab from there, I cleaned the rest of the day. The sections were really good so I was happy to go clean from then on out. The competition has really stepped up their game, so I know i have to ride really well to stay ahead of them”.

Pat would finish with just four points from the first loop. He would not score another point on the day coming in with 34 “cleans”. Josh Roper and Alexander Niederer would round out the first podium. FactoryONE Scorpa rider Alex Myers would just miss the last step of the box with a P4 finish. Younger brother Willem woke with severe back spasms and wasn’t able to compete.

Round two saw a much tighter battle for the top two positions between Smage and Roper. Smage’s clean loop three would be the difference maker. The pair finished loop one with Smage on six points and Roper on seven. Loop two would remain equally close, but Smage would gain 2 points to the better over Roper with scores of one for Smage and three for Roper. The third and definitive loop saw Smage with a zero and Roper with a seven for a 10 point deficit to the 12 time champion. Scorpa pilot Alex Myers would better his previous days finish with a P3 podium finish. Willem Myers was able to compete on day two and finished P5.

Pat Smage on day two: “Overall it went really well but I started off with a big mistake in section six. There was a creek and I didn’t have much confidence in the line I was taking. I took a couple points early and I had a small line where I thought there was traction but I ended up behind it a bit and I spun (the rear tire) and ended up taking a five there. I took one more point on the loop so I was a bit frustrated but I knew what I needed to do to clean it up. I did have another dab there on the second loop but went clean on the third. I had some good rides and some shaky rides that I really had to work for to stay clean. In the end, I am happy with the result”

Alex Myers on his P3 finish on day two: “My riding improved from yesterday. It seemed like the first two loops I was on it, and then I wasn’t. It was a mental battle with that. My minder did a really good job keeping me calm and focused. I am happy to salvage the third, but I know I have some work to do to put pressure on Pat.”

Rounds three and four move to the west coast on May 14th and 15th. Pat Smage will be making a stop at the California Invitational Trial on April 20 and the 50th El Trial de Espana on April 23rd. Louise Forsley will be making her trials debut at those same two events.

About FactoryONE Sherco: FactoryONE Sherco is a multi-time United States AMA championship observed trials team and multi-discipline Championship enduro team led by some of the top riders in the business. The Enduro team is led By Cody Webb who is a multi-time champion that competes in Extreme Off-Road, EnduroCross and FIM SuperEnduro. He is also the 2010 AMA Mototrials Champion. The Trials team is led by 12x AMA Champion Pat Smage (Smah-gee) on the men’s side; and 6x AMA Champion Louise Forsley (fours-lee) on the Women’s side. The trials team consists of four professional riders and five development riders.

Gilliland Finishes 25th and McDowell 30th in Richmond, Virginia

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Official Release
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The Front Row Motorsports (FRM) NASCAR Cup Series teams were in action this past weekend at the Richmond (Va.) Raceway. After solid runs in Austin, Texas, the duo of Michael McDowell and Todd Gilliland were ready to tackle their next test- 400 laps at the Richmond short track.

GILLILAND STRUGGLES EARLY, REBOUNDS TO FINISH 25th

Todd Gilliland started the weekend at the Richmond Raceway with a career-best qualifying effort. The No. 38 Black’s Tire Ford Mustang team started the event in the 22nd position. But, once the green flag dropped the team struggled to find grip.

Gilliland fought hard early in the race. He stayed on the Lead Lap and raced inside the top-25. However, loosing grip and being tight in the center, made it difficult for Gilliland to advance any higher. The pit crew continued to make adjustments during green flag stops and made the Black’s Tire Ford Mustang better.

This allowed Gilliland to maintain his position during the the final stage. Patience was key, as the car came to life and the team raced lap times that were close to the top-10 cars. Gilliland finished the 400-lap event in 25th.

GILLILAND ON RICHMOND

“Yeah, that was a long race for us and a lot of guys. I’m proud of our Black’s Tire Ford Mustang team for never giving up throughout the race. You didn’t see too many teams today on the Lead Lap. We didn’t have a lot of cautions, so you had to take care of your car and manage the tires. I learned a lot that I can take into Martinsville this Saturday night.”

McDOWELL FIGHTS HARD ALL RACE, FINISHES 30th

This past weekend, Michael McDowell debuted the Navage Nasal Care Ford Mustang on the track. The car looked great on the track and the teamed started the race from the 24th position. With weather taken into consideration, the expectation was for a loose car that would favor the track conditions early in the race.

After an early race pit stop, the team played the strategy game to get back with the leaders. Without may cautions, the team was forced into running long during the stages in hopes of catching a caution and advancing their position.

The cautions never came. This meant no opportunities for taking advantage of the strategy. However, by capitalizing on the mistakes of others, McDowell was able to run clean to the end and finish in the 30th position.

McDOWELL ON RICHMOND

“The race didn’t go the way we wanted. The Navage Nasal Care Mustang looks great, but it wasn’t our day on the track. In a race that is normally 50/50 on cautions to green flag runs, we saw mostly the latter today. We learned more about the car and hopefully we can take that into this weekend.”

ABOUT FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS
Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is a winning organization in the NASCAR Cup and Camping World Truck Series and the 2021 Daytona 500 champions. The team was founded in 2004 and is owned by successful entrepreneur, Bob Jenkins. FRM fields the No. 34 and the No. 38 NASCAR Cup Series teams along with the No. 38 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team– from its Mooresville, N.C. headquarters. Visit teamfrm.com and follow FRM on social media: Twitter at @Team_FRM, Instagram at @team_frm and Facebook at facebook.com/FrontRowMotorsports.

KURT BUSCH TO CELEBRATE MILESTONE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIS MEMORABLE FIRST CUP SERIES WIN WHEN NASCAR CIRCUIT RETURNS TO THUNDER VALLEY FOR FOOD CITY DIRT RACE

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Official Release
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Since his breakthrough 2002 Cup Series victory at Bristol Motor Speedway, Busch has claimed six victories at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile

BRISTOL, Tenn. (April 4, 2022) – When Kurt Busch is asked about all of his success at Bristol Motor Speedway, he always pauses and has a slight smile when he thinks back to the first time he ever jumped into a NASCAR Cup Series machine around the all-concrete high-banked bullring where so much NASCAR history has unfolded.

You see, Busch’s success at Bristol was earned through the school of hard knocks in his first two visits to the ultra-challenging short track nestled in the mountains of Eastern Tennessee. It wasn’t instant.

This season Busch is celebrating the milestone 20th anniversary of his first Cup Series victory, which came at BMS back in 2002. He is part of an exclusive fraternity of NASCAR hall of famers who tamed Bristol to get that first ‘W’ on their resumes. That short list also includes Dale Earnhardt Sr., Rusty Wallace, Ernie Irvan and Elliott Sadler.

Before Busch mastered the World’s Fastest Half-Mile that Sunday afternoon in the Food City 500 at the controls of the No. 97 machine for Roush Racing, he used his first two starts at Bristol during his rookie season in 2001 to “get adjusted” to a short track that races like a superspeedway. He finished 42nd in his first ever Bristol start and then posted a 25th place effort in his second BMS start.

Busch is proud to have overcome that rough introduction to The Last Great Colosseum and graduate as a highly-decorated member of the elite group of drivers who conquered Bristol to earn their breakthrough victory on the NASCAR Cup Series.

“Wow, it’s hard to imagine that it’s been 20 years since my win at Bristol,” Busch said recently. “It’s been a great ride. I was so intimidated my first time at Bristol, I feel like I wrecked five times in the first 100 laps. Then I was able to come back my second year in about my 50th race and win the spring race there.”

After getting that first BMS win, Busch unlocked the Bristol secret that only a handful of drivers have discovered over the years. It’s a powerful secret that has allowed drivers to score multiple victories, and a few, like Busch, to earn consecutive wins at the high-banked oval. Since 2002, Busch has become one of Bristol’s winningest drivers with six total victories.

Busch says he remembers an amazing feeling after holding off Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Cup veterans Jimmy Spencer and Ricky Rudd to take that win in 2002. He said it was like reaching the top of Mount Everest.

“What I remember so vividly was that Jack Roush came up to me after practice and said the car looked really good on exit of turn four,” Busch recalled. “That’s what I was telling my crew chief Jimmy Fennig, is that my car is really dialed in and feels great on the exit of turn four. That’s the spot where I’ve watched Rusty Wallace, Darrell Waltrip, Dale Sr. and all of the big names win at Bristol, because their car would really carve off of turn four. It was a great battle with Jimmy Spencer; I moved him out of the way, but I wasn’t going to take no for an answer that day. It was really cool to get my first win at Bristol.”

Busch sits sixth on the impressive list of Bristol’s all-time Cup winners, behind Waltrip (12), Earnhardt Sr. (9), Wallace (9), Cale Yarborough (9) and his younger brother, Kyle Busch (8).

The Las Vegas native will be going after lucky Bristol win number seven when the Cup Series returns for the Food City Dirt Race, April 15-17. This time around, Busch will be driving the No. 45 machine for 23XI Racing. Busch is teammates with Bubba Wallace, who pilots the No. 23 for the two-car team that is owned by NBA legend Michael Jordan and fellow Cup star Denny Hamlin.

In last year’s historic Food City Dirt Race, the first dirt race for the Cup Series in more than 50 years, Busch finished 16th after starting 28th. So far this season Busch has had a strong start to the season, posting a third place finish at Atlanta, fifth place effort at Phoenix and an eighth place showing in Southern California.

Busch’s most recent Cup victory at Bristol during the Bass Pro Shops Night Race in 2018 was highly ranked on fan polls and has been called an “Instant Classic” by many racing historians. That night Busch emerged the winner in an explosive race that featured a bunch of crashes and a big mix of race leaders. He eventually held off Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano and Clint Bowyer to take the checkered flag.

“This track brings out the best in everybody,” Busch said after the 2018 win. “Just to come here and feel that Saturday night atmosphere and racing under the lights, it brings you back to your roots… When you come to the ‘Holy Grail of Short Tracks,’ you want to win it.”

The Food City Dirt Race weekend starts on Good Friday with Bush’s Beans Practice Day that will have both the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series machines on track for two 50-minute practice sessions during the afternoon.

On Saturday, Bush’s Beans Qualifying will be held for both Cup and Truck competitors with each series participating in four blind-draw 15-lap qualifying heat races to set the fields for the main races. The Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt will follow Bush’s Beans Qualifying with an 8 p.m. (ET) start (FS1, MRN Radio, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio).

The green flag for the Food City Dirt Race is scheduled to drop at 7 p.m. (FOX, PRN Radio and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio) on Easter Sunday evening.

Fans will want to take advantage of all of the fun activities taking place during the weekend. The BMS Fan Zone has plenty of action going on, highlighted by driver appearances, music, games and prizes at the Food City Fan Zone Stage. On Saturday night, country music artist Tim Dugger will perform during the post-race concert at the Food City Fan Zone Stage. On Sunday at 4 p.m., BMS will host a very special Easter Celebration in the Fan Midway, which will be headlined by Chris Tomlin, Max Lucado and former Rascal Flatts lead singer Gary LeVox.

For additional information or to purchase tickets, please visit www.bristolmotorspeedway.com. If you prefer to make your ticket purchases over the phone, you can also call the BMS Ticket Office at (866) 415-4158.

About Bristol Motor Speedway
Forged amid the scenic mountains of Northeast Tennessee near the Virginia state line, Bristol Motor Speedway is The Last Great Colosseum, a versatile multi-use venue that hosts major auto races, football games, concerts and many other captivating events. The facility features a 0.533-mile concrete oval race track with 28-degree corner banking and 650-feet straightaways that offers racing in several NASCAR touring series, highlighted by two major Cup Series weekends each year. In 2020, the track also served as host of the prestigious NASCAR All-Star Race, and in 2021 began converting to a temporary dirt track each spring to take the Cup Series back to its racing roots. While at the track, fans are offered a unique viewing experience courtesy of Colossus TV, the world’s largest outdoor center-hung four-sided video screen with a 540,000-watt audio system. The adjacent quarter-mile dragstrip, Bristol Dragway, offers more than 50 events annually, including the marquee NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. The Thunder Valley Amphitheatre presented by Ballad Health transforms Bristol Dragway into a premier outdoor concert venue for the world’s greatest music performers. Three football games have kicked-off inside the oval, most notably the 2016 Pilot Flying J Battle at Bristol, where border rivals the University of Tennessee and Virginia Tech met before an NCAA-record crowd of 156,990. In existence since 1961, Bristol Motor Speedway was purchased in 1996 by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., a publicly traded company that is a leading marketer and promoter of motorsports entertainment in the United States. For more information, please visit www.bristolmotorspeedway.com.

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