KEVIN HARVICK
Kansas Advance
No. 4 Subway Delivery Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing

Event Overview
● Event: Hollywood Casino 400 (Round 34 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Oct. 24
● Location: Kansas Speedway in Kansas City
● Layout: 1.5-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 267 laps/400.5 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 80 laps / Stage 2: 80 laps / Final Stage: 107 laps
● TV/Radio: NBCSN / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Subway® restaurants has joined Kevin Harvick and the No. 4 team of Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) to put its Eat Fresh Refresh™ on the fast track by becoming a primary sponsor of the championship-winning NASCAR Cup Series team. The world’s largest quick-service restaurant brand is leveraging the partnership to highlight Subway Delivery powered by DoorDash, which allows guests to order their Subway favorites via the Subway app or on Subway.com. Guests can buy one Footlong and get another Footlong for 50 percent off using code KEVIN50 when they order delivery online or in the Subway app. (Limit one at participating restaurants.) Subway has a $0 delivery fee on all Subway Delivery orders and guests can still earn and redeem Subway MyWay® Rewards points.

● Dorothy was right. There’s no place like home. And for Harvick, home is an intermediate racetrack. With apologies to those in Harvick’s hometown of Bakersfield, California, the veteran racer has made the intermediate tracks that comprise the majority of the NASCAR Cup Series schedule his home. Of Harvick’s 58 career NASCAR Cup Series wins, 23 have come at intermediate-style racetracks. Kansas is a sweeping, D-shaped oval that has produced high speeds and daring, side-by-side racing since its debut in 2001. Harvick has competed at the track for every one of its Cup Series races – one of only three drivers to do so (Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman being the others) – and has amassed quite the history in his 31 career starts. Three wins, five second-place finishes, 10 top-threes, 11 top-fives, 18 top-10s and 949 laps led make Harvick one of the most successful drivers in Kansas’ relatively young history. His average start is 13.2, his average finish is 9.1 and he has a lap completion rate of 98.7 percent.

● In his last two NASCAR Cup Series races at Kansas, Harvick has finished second. In his most recent visit to the 1.5-mile oval back in May, Harvick finished .336 of a second behind race winner Kyle Busch. In last year’s Hollywood Casino 400, Harvick finished .312 of a second behind Joey Logano.

● Harvick scored his first NASCAR Cup Series win at Kansas in the 2013 Hollywood Casino 400 with a massive 1.140-second margin over runner-up Kurt Busch. Harvick scored his next Kansas win in the 2016 Hollywood Casino 400 with another impressive performance, crossing the stripe 1.183 seconds ahead of next best Carl Edwards. Harvick’s most recent Kansas victory came in May 2018 when he beat Martin Truex, Jr., by .390 of a second.

● Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon lead the NASCAR Cup Series in wins at Kansas with three victories apiece. Only Harvick, Hamlin and Logano are still active, and only eight of the 15 Cup Series winners at Kansas are active. Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 marks the 32nd Cup Series race at Kansas.

● Harvick’s 11 top-fives at Kansas are the most among active drivers, as are his 18 top-10s, and he leads nearly every Loop Data category: Average Finish of 7.9 (series-best); Average Running Position of 8.644 (series-best): Driver Rating of 109.7 (series-best); 642 Fastest Laps Run (series-best); 5,863 Laps in the Top-15 (81.7 percent, series-most) and 1,055 Quality Passes (series-most).

● Harvick has scored 22 top-10 finishes this season, third-most among NASCAR Cup Series drivers. The two drivers ahead of him: championship leader Kyle Larson (24 top-10s) and Hamlin (23 top-10s).

● Harvick has completed the second-most laps of any driver this season (8,070). Only Hamlin is ahead of Harvick in this category with just 46 more laps completed (8,116).

● Harvick is good at Kansas even outside of the NASCAR Cup Series. He has six top-fives across 11 NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the 1.5-mile oval, with the highlight being a victory in September 2006.

● Harvick’s No. 4 Subway Delivery Ford Mustang will carry the name of Lester DeVooght above the driver’s side door during the Hollywood Casino 400. DeVooght was an avid supporter of Harvick and his family nominated DeVooght as their Cancer Hero via a collaboration between the Martin Truex Jr., Foundation and the NASCAR Foundation. DeVooght courageously battled cancer after his first diagnosis in late February 2019 of duodenal adenocarcinoma, a rare but fast-spreading cancer of the small intestine. He finished his chemo and radiation treatments in August 2019 and had a short reprieve before his cancer returned in April 2020. Sadly, DeVooght passed away on Oct. 4, 2020. Throughout his battle, the Findlay, Ohio-native remained a staunch follower of NASCAR and Harvick, in particular. Sunday at Kansas, DeVooght gets his name on the car he cheered for on countless Sundays.

Kevin Harvick, Driver of the No. 4 Subway Delivery Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing

Consistency has been a hallmark of your season and you’ve talked about how you’ve had to grind all year long to get the best finish possible. Is this a testament to your 21 years as a NASCAR Cup Series driver and your eight years together with the No. 4 team of Stewart-Haas Racing?

“I feel like the experience of our team has carried us through this year because we know how to race for eighth to 10th and finish eighth to 10th. And we know the scenarios, when to gamble and when not to gamble. And I think our team has done a great job of executing all the details of the season, and that’s what’s kept us in the game.”

Heading into your first race at Kansas earlier this year, you and your crew chief, Rodney Childers, talked about how you needed to approach the race differently to overcome the loss of downforce your car had compared to last year. Can you provide some insight into what you had to do behind the wheel to get that second-place finish?

“It was a combination of things. I think it was a change in thought process. I think it was a great gamble on the call at the end of the race to come and get tires. I think a lot of things just changed that weekend for a better direction and we got a good finish out of it.”

You’ve raced at a good amount of mile-and-a-half tracks since you last competed at Kansas. As the year has progressed, have you also seen progress in your mile-and-a-half program?

“We’ve definitely still got a deficit to some of the cars that we’re racing against, but we’ve definitely made up ground on the performance side and just have a better idea of where we need to be to just keep us in the game.”

Your history at Kansas is impressive. Three wins, five second-place finishes, 10 top-threes, 11 top-fives, 18 top-10s and 949 laps led across 31 career NASCAR Cup Series starts. What makes you so good there?

“I think Kansas has been a great racetrack and, really from a driver’s standpoint, a fun racetrack because of the fact that it’s worn in so well. You can race at the top of the racetrack, which is the preferred groove as the tires wear out. It’s faster at the bottom of the racetrack on new tires. But as a driver, having options is something that is a lot of fun. As they repave Atlanta and you look at some of the other racetracks, really Kansas is going to be one of the more unique racetracks because of the fact the asphalt and the shape of the racetrack is so driver-friendly as far as where you can drive on the racetrack. You can literally drive from the wall to the apron all the way around the racetrack. So, it’s a fun racetrack. It’s been good to us and, hopefully, we can continue that trend on Sunday in our Subway Delivery Ford Mustang.”

No. 4 Subway Delivery 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

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

Toyota Racing – Denny Hamlin
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

KANSAS CITY (October 20, 2021) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to media via videoconference prior to the Kansas race weekend today:

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

If a non-Playoff driver did what Ryan Blaney did last race, would that be against the driver code?

“I think we have seen in our sport that there is no code. Just depends on how you were brought up and kind of how your racing background is and stuff like that on whether that is acceptable or not. Certainly, I would have been more upset at (Ryan) Blaney at the time. Looking back on it, Ryan was three-wide in the middle and just steered right and cut our tire, but after the race I told him, ‘I get it, no big deal.’ I know it wasn’t malicious. It was a mistake, and you can ask him. I said, ‘It’s all good.’ I understand it for that reason – that we are all fighting for it and whatnot, but he is a car that we are battling. He is trying to get the spot just as much as I am from him. It’s hard racing amongst guys going for a championship.”

Do you expect non-Playoff drivers to give you a little more room because they are not competing for the championship with the favor returned next year?

“You expect the favors that you have be returned. It’s over with, but my frustrations are with if you take me out and I don’t wreck you immediately the next race or the next few, then like you owe me one. It’s just one of those things that I just don’t understand the mentality of some of these guys, but like I said in post-race media after Texas that I understand that everybody is racing for their own individual race. You can go through the whole list of quotes that I’ve got. Somebody asked me that question, and I gave plenty of quotes for it.”

Was there a period that you weren’t comfortable at Martinsville or when did you find the feel of the track?

“It started pretty early in my career. My rookie season was actually pretty rough at Martinsville. I remember getting into an incident and I cut a tire and backed into a wall, but I think it was probably just a time that I got lapped there. My story is very similar to – I forget who it was, whether it be Jimmie Johnson or Tony Stewart who said – that they got lapped, I think it was Jimmie, he got lapped early on in his career and he followed Jeff Gordon and just followed him and was like oh, well that is how you are supposed to do it. From that point on, you just kind of get it. I think that my situation was probably really similar to that.”

Shy of an outright win, what do you think the threshold for advancing?

“I think that if we can run in the top-five in the next four stages and if we can finish in the top-five the next two races then I think we will be okay. We will probably be fine. A lot of it honestly depends on your competition. I think we were very, very fortunate this past weekend with all the attrition with the competitors getting in trouble. All of that played a big factor into us kind of maintaining our position up towards the top. Feel very fortunate of that, but we have to assume, based on past results, that one of those guys at the bottom – whether it be Joey (Logano) or Martin (Truex Jr.) are going to go out and win these next two races, and if they do that, then that cut line moves right to me, and I’m actually plus one, not plus nine or eight or whatever it is. That’s the number that I’m racing to – is plus one to even right now.”

When do people start thinking about how do you beat the 5 team?

“Well, I think the 5 (Kyle Larson) has been very, very dominate on the mile-and-a-half racetracks and our championship is going to be decided on a mile racetrack, which is very, very different. Last year, we were very good on the mile-and-a-halves, and we were not that strong on short tracks, and we were beat before we got there. Our cars were just not fast enough. We knew that. This year, I think that we’ve flipped that a little bit where we are actually better on the 750’s than we are at the 550’s, even though we are still strong. That was by far our worst 550 race in probably a couple of years, just off of speed and what not that we had, and we were still sixth-to-seventh place. I think, while we know – I’m not putting their speed aside or ignoring it. I certainly just think we are going to a very, very different racetrack that is one in itself. We are going to decide a championship on this one racetrack. Hope your cars are fast and you’re good at that one type of racetrack because if you get to the final four what you did the first 35 races does not matter.”

Can you give me a sense of the restarts at Kansas?

“Kansas, we’ve actually seen as many big wrecks as we’ve seen anywhere, and a lot of them come on restarts, guys trying to push their lanes forward, guys going three-wide in a lane that closes and it causes a wreck, so there is just a lot of pushing that goes on, on restarts because you are trying to get your lane to move forward and advance and sometimes that pushing just gets a little too far. Kansas has been an attrition racetrack. It really has for whatever reason. You’ve got to treat it with respect and certainly on these restarts, you’ve got to manage your risks.”

Why did you engage Chase Briscoe on Instagram?

“A lot of it to me is the mentality that the younger guys have is they can’t pick up the phone and call you. They just make immature statements on social media, so I thought I would just go down to that level for a minute.”

Did that lead to any other conversations?

“No.”

Do you have any interest in Formula One?

“I think this year I’ve probably watched more races than I have my whole life, for sure. Some of that is driven by social media. My friends are tuning into it. You see that the American press is giving it more attention this year. Obviously when you see a buzz or see something on social media about it, you want to kind of tune in and see what’s going on. That’s kind of driven my interest in it, more so than anything.”

What are your thoughts when you are watching it?

“I’m interested by it, but it’s crazy because you know – you’ve got probably a 90 percent chance of picking which two guys are going to win. This year has been a little bit different with craziness going on, but there is two people that can win, two teams that can win. There is not much side-by-side racing, as compared to NASCAR, but yet fans and media love it. I think Kenny Wallace actually posted a very good question this week asking ‘What is it? What is people’s infatuation with it right now?’ because when you talk about how critical fans or media or whoever might be of our racing in NASCAR, it’s head and shoulders above anything going right now. The show is good. Why can’t we get people to turnout? Texas was just a big disappointment seeing what was up in the stands there, and yet we are talking about the biggest crowd in history showing up for COTA F1 race next week. So, there is some kind of disconnect that’s going on that’s not making this deal work, but I would love to see us have more of an F1-style approach to a race weekend and how we host hospitalities, parties, just all of those things. There’s just got to be more to it than us showing up and racing like we are doing right now.”

Have you watched Drive to Survive?

“Yeah, I have. When we started filming our deal with Bubba (Wallace) and 23XI, it certainly made me tune into that to see how they did the production on that and certainly it came across with some good storylines. Certainly, I’m a person that will turn into that series as it continues.”

Does it change your aggression level with Kyle Larson locked in?

“I think the entire field would’ve said that was a perfect case scenario for all other seven guys. If you ask them again this weekend, if they are not going to win for themselves, they are going to be rooting for the 5 (Kyle Larson) to win again. I think we understand in the position that I’m in, I’ve got to be smarter with the decisions that I make. I think the 22 (Joey Logano) and 19 (Martin Truex Jr.) with the hole that they are in, they are probably going to be more aggressive so we’ve got to be aware of that, but certainly, it was probably the best situation that could have happened this weekend was the car that was likely going to get in on points no matter what anyway win the race.”

Do you have any plans to expand to the Xfinity or Truck Series on the ownership side?

“No, that financial model does not make sense for us.”

Have you had a conversation with Bubba Wallace since Texas? He was very low after Texas, but the Talladega victory was a big high.

“I think that it’s part of our sport. It’s week-to-week. A lot of that comes with just time and experience on how can be settled within yourself to understand that it’s just one week and you move on. He’s racing to improve for the rest of the year. There really is not much for goals that we have other than work on being more competitive and continue to learn as a driver. I like his aggressiveness. I like that he was trying to be aggressive and get spots on a restart. Definitely am not going to fault him on that. I think that win is going to carry his confidence for quite a while, although that this is kind of just a little speed bump in the road for the confidence. It certainly could grow there at Kansas. He ran really good earlier in the year and had a good car. Run well, and I think that confidence will come right back. That’s our sport. It’s week-to-week. You’re only as good as your last race, so I’m sure he’s probably down in the dumps a little bit this week.”

About Toyota

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

Toyota has created a tremendous value chain and directly employs more than 47,000 in North America. The company has contributed world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 40 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama that begins production in 2021.

Through its 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.

PARKER KLIGERMAN
Kansas Advance
No. 96 Fast Checkout Toyota Camry

Event Overview
● Event: Hollywood Casino 400 (Round 34 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Oct. 24
● Location: Kansas Speedway in Kansas City
● Layout: 1.5-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 267 laps/400 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 80 laps / Stage 2: 80 laps / Final Stage: 107 laps
● TV/Radio: NBCSN / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Veteran NASCAR driver and current NASCAR on NBC pit reporter Parker Kligerman returns to Gaunt Brothers Racing (GBR) and the cockpit of the No. 96 Fast Checkout Toyota Camry for Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. It will be Kligerman’s first NASCAR Cup Series start since Nov. 3, 2019 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, which culminated a 14-race season for Kligerman in GBR’s No. 96 Toyota.

● As part of the NASCAR on NBC broadcast team, Kligerman will serve as the in-race analyst during the Hollywood Casino 400, providing periodic updates from the cockpit of the No. 96 Fast Checkout Toyota. He will also pull double duty this weekend by working Saturday’s Kansas Lottery 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race in his regular role as a pit reporter during the NBC broadcast.

● Making its first Cup Series appearance as a primary partner this weekend is San Francisco-based tech company Fast, whose headless checkout solution allows consumers to find and buy online with one click – without the hassle of navigating through multiple sites and payment fields. The No. 96 Fast Checkout Toyota Camry Kligerman will race Sunday at Kansas will feature a QR code on its hood and quarterpanels. Fans at the track, watching on NBCSN, or following on social media can scan the QR code (or enter the URL fast.co/hoodie) to purchase a Fast hoodie for $1. Fast made its NASCAR debut as a primary partner earlier this year with Kligerman when he raced the No. 75 Henderson Motorsports entry in the Camping World Truck Series race June 18 at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway. Fast also joined Kligerman and the No. 75 Truck for the road-course race Aug. 7 at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, earning a strong fifth-place finish.

● Fast’s mission is to make buying online faster, safer and easier for everyone. Its Fast Login and Fast Checkout products enable a one-click sign-in and purchasing experience that makes it easier for people to buy and merchants to sell. The company’s products work on any browser, device or platform for consistent, stress-free purchasing, either on a merchant’s own domain or through headless checkout on any other website. Fast invests heavily in its user privacy and security, with a Zero Fraud Guarantee on chargebacks for sellers. Headquartered in San Francisco, Fast is a privately held company founded by Domm Holland and Allison Barr Allen and funded by Stripe, Addition, Index Ventures, Susa Ventures and Sugar Capital. To learn more, visit fast.co.

● The Hollywood Casino 400 will be the 29th Cup Series start of Kligerman’s career and his 19th with GBR. The 31-year-old from Westport, Connecticut, drove four races in the No. 96 Toyota in 2018 before his 14-race run the following year. He’s amassed 178 overall starts across NASCAR’s top-three series, including 53 in the Xfinity Series and 178 in the Camping World Truck Series. Since his last Cup Series race in November 2019 at Texas, Kligerman has competed in 18 Truck Series races in the No. 75 Henderson Motorsports entry.

● Best among Kligerman’s 18 previous races in the No. 96 GBR Toyota was a pair of 15th-place finishes – the 2019 Daytona 500 and the October 2019 race at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.

● Sunday marks Kligerman’s second career Cup Series start at Kansas and his 10th overall at the 1.5-mile oval. He has four Camping World Truck Series starts, three Xfinity Series starts and one start apiece in the ARCA Menards Series and Cup Series. Kligerman qualified on the pole in his very first Xfinity Series race there in October 2009, leading seven laps en route to a 16th-place finish. In his only ARCA race there just two days prior, Kligerman scored his seventh of a series-high nine victories that year after starting second and leading a race-high 75 laps. His best Xfinity Series result at Kansas was seventh in October 2013 and his best Truck Series effort was eighth in April 2012. His lone Cup Series outing at Kansas netted a 29th-place finish in October 2019.

● The No. 96 Fast Checkout Toyota Camry will be making GBR’s 81st Cup Series start since the outfit joined the top echelon of NASCAR as a part-time team in 2017. Team owner Marty Gaunt’s almost two-decades-long relationship with Toyota dates back to his ownership of Toyota-powered Clean Line Racing in the Truck Series, which became Red Horse Racing, as well as his executive role in the formation of Red Bull’s nascent Toyota-powered Cup Series team. Gaunt’s Toyota ties strengthened after the 2008 season, when he purchased Triad Racing Development, which leased Toyota engines across NASCAR’s Cup, Xfinity and Truck Series and continues to be NASCAR’s exclusive distributor of Toyota parts as Triad Racing. Gaunt founded GBR in 2010, with his eponymous team starting out in the Canada-based NASCAR Pinty’s Series and the U.S.-based NASCAR K&N Pro Series. Its first driver, Jason Bowles, scored GBR’s maiden victory in the 2011 Toyota All-Star Showdown at Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway, with the precursor to that win being the pole position in track-record time at the 2011 Streets of Toronto 100. After seven years competing in NASCAR’s development divisions, Gaunt stepped up to the NASCAR Cup Series in 2017.

Parker Kligerman, Driver of the No. 96 Fast Checkout Toyota Camry for Gaunt Brothers Racing

You’re back with Gaunt Brother Racing for the first time since running 14 races with the team two seasons ago. What are your thoughts as you head to Kansas this weekend?

“My last Cup race was Texas 2019 with Marty and we’ve always been friendly and kept in touch. I’ve obviously been racing in the Truck Series the last two years, but when this opportunity came about with Fast, it made total sense to come back together and go racing. Marty and I always talked about doing more racing together – when we got done in 2019, he told me, ‘This isn’t goodbye, it’s ‘I’ll see you later.’ Looking forward to it. We’ve always had a lot of fun racing together. I’ve always enjoyed everybody at Gaunt Brothers Racing, I’m still friends with everyone there, I keep in touch all the time. Although it’s been since 2019, it doesn’t feel that way at all. It kind of feels like we’re picking up right where we left off.”

What have you done to prepare for your first time behind the wheel of a Cup Series car in two years?

“I haven’t been able to get on the Toyota sim, but I’ve gotten very adept at using iRacing and correlating it to the real stuff pretty well. Also, just using SMT data and all the information from GBR, and a lot of my notes from past years and that sort of thing. Preparation-wise, I think there’s a little bit more involved because there always is at the Cup level compared to a Truck Series race and that sort of thing. I think from just having done what I have the last couple of years, and the way I was doing it back in 2019, it all worked pretty well.”

How far back does your relationship with Marty Gaunt go?

“The first time I raced in the Cup Series, I drove for Swan Racing and he was owner of Triad. I didn’t actually meet him until a little after that, but we’ve always joked that, until we raced together with a TRD motor in 2019, I’d actually never raced in Cup without one of his motors. We’ve had a history together and been successful and, when I look back at what we’ve done together in the Cup Series, we had a lot of success for the situation we’d been in – taking one of the smaller teams and really overachieving. We’ve always found a way to do that and I’ve enjoyed it.”

Would you consider Kansas Speedway a good place to race to make your Cup Series return?

“I love this track, it’s one of my favorites, by far. I love the city – I tell people all the time Kansas City is one of the most underrated places in the country. For one reason or another, I’ve always loved going to this racetrack. In 2009, my first Xfinity Series start, I sat on the pole, which was something very cool. Ever since, it’s just been very kind to me and I’ve had a lot of great runs, a lot of great races there. I’ve always enjoyed going to this racetrack and, since they repaved it, it keeps getting better with age and it’s one of my favorite weekends of the year. I couldn’t think of a better place to be going in this situation. We’ll pick up where we left off and go out there and try and have an excellent run.”

Considering it’s the middle race in the Round of 8 of the NASCAR Playoffs, how does that affect your approach this weekend?

“I’ve done this so often in Trucks over the years, racing against playoff contenders. I think the way to approach it is that it’s honestly something you’re conscious of, but you don’t let it affect your decision-making. You just race people the way you want to be raced and the conscious side of it leads you to be just a little bit more careful around those guys, knowing they have such a big thing they’re racing for. But, you also owe it to your partners, your team, everyone involved, to honestly put the best effort forward that you possibly can when you go to the racetrack. So, it’s there and it isn’t, as I like to say, and it’s something that at this level you just have to be very cognizant of. For us, what we’re looking to do is to have a great run and, for me, I look back at what our last run was in 2019 at Texas – I felt like that was one of the best Cup races we had, ever, as a group. Maybe the final result wasn’t the highest, but it was one of the most excellent weekends, we executed the race perfectly, and it was an overall great weekend. And although it was back in 2019, I think of it as yesterday and we’ll build on that. I have all the notes and that sort of thing, so for me, it’s, ‘OK, how can we go and do that same level of performance and have a better result.’”

How did your relationship with Fast Checkout come about?

“I actually met the CEO, Domm Holland, a little over a year ago on Twitter. Basically, I’ve always been a part of what’s called ‘Tech Twitter,’ which is sort of the startup tech world niche on Twitter and I followed it because I was fascinated by that world and consider myself to be someone who’s very interested in tech. I saw Fast pop up among a bunch of people I followed and I thought the name was obviously pretty awesome. I thought, ‘What do they do?’ And then I saw that they facilitate one-click checkout. It sounds crazy, but I’ve talked to so many people that are close to me about shopping online and they always would say they would get frustrated having to fill in the same information all the time, the process was too long, so often they just wouldn’t shop online. So when I saw what Fast was trying to facilitate, I thought it was awesome and I reached out one day and asked them if they’d be interested in promoting what they’re doing in motorsports. We first talked, myself and Domm and the other co-founder Allison (Barr Allen), and we kept in touch. This summer, Domm reached out to me and said they were ready to do it, let’s go racing. We started with the Truck Series race at Nashville and had a great time, and then we did Watkins Glen, and the one-dollar hoodie promotion happened and that was awesome for getting a top-five, which I promised all week that I would get done – it was amazing to call my own shot for the situation. And now, we’re doing our first Cup race together at Kansas. It’s been an incredible couple of months working with them. I’ve gotten to hang out with so many of the employees and team members at Fast and it’s an incredibly talented group. Every time I hang out with them, I’m just so inspired to do big things. So, I’m hoping we can take that energy into the race and have a great run – and go fast, obviously.”

How would you view the company’s response, as well as the motorsports community’s response, to Fast Checkout’s involvement with you at Nashville and Watkins Glen?

“Domm came to the first one at Nashville and I think he had a great time. The race fans have been awesome about getting involved with the hoodie promotions. We did the five-dollar one at Nashville, and we did the one-dollar hoodie promotion at Watkins Glen and now, every racetrack I go to across America, I’m signing Fast hoodies, which is awesome. People actually just scream ‘Fast’ to me while walking around racetracks and things, so I love it, it’s really cool. I think it’s awesome to see the fans so into it, so involved, and for Fast, it’s just a great way for them to continue to promote what they’re doing in terms of Fast Checkout across the entire internet. The more sites they’re on and the more people see them, the more they start to identify what we’re trying to do on the motorsports side, it all connects. It’s been really cool to see the reception and it’s been fun to be a part of.”

Roush Fenway Weekly Advance | Kansas II

The NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) returns to the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway this weekend for its second trip in the 2021 season. Jack Roush has nine wins all-time at the track including four in the NCS. Chris Buescher is coming off an eighth-place run there this spring.

Hollywood Casino 400
Sunday, Oct. 24 at 3 p.m. ET
NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90
· Ryan Newman, No. 6 Violet Defense Ford Mustang
· Chris Buescher, No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang

Texas Recap, Kansas Preview

· Newman was caught up in a 15-car pileup just 30 laps into Sunday’s race from Texas, ending his day early in the Violet Defense Ford.

· Buescher had turned his afternoon into what was going to be a solid top-10 (if not more) run, before crashing inside 10 laps to go to ultimately finish 21st.

· Violet Defense is back on Newman’s machine this weekend at Kansas for its final primary race of 2021, while Fastenal returns to Buescher’s Ford.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

Overall, Roush Fenway has started 173 races across the three national series, earning nine wins, 41 top-five finishes, 76 top-10 finishes and has an overall average finish of 14.8.

Winning at Kansas

Roush Fenway swept both the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NCS races at Kansas in the fall of 2012 with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Matt Kenseth. Stenhouse became the sixth driver to win at the track for the organization via his Xfinity victory.

NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin earned Roush Fenway’s first NCS win at Kansas in 2005 and former driver Greg Biffle bested the 1.5-mile track in 2007 and 2010. Roush Fenway’s first overall win at Kansas came in 2002 via Jeff Burton in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Three drivers (Jon Wood in 2003, Carl Edwards in 2004 and Erik Darnell in 2007) have won in the NGROTS at Kansas for Roush Fenway.

Tale of the Tape

Roush Fenway has started 104 NCS races at Kansas, recording four victories, 20 top-five finishes, 35 top-10 finishes, an average finish of 16.5 and has led 956 laps. Kenseth earned the most recent victory at Kansas in the fall of 2012.

Roush Fenway Kansas Wins

2002 Burton NXS

2003 Wood Truck

2004 Edwards Truck

2005 Martin Cup

2007 Biffle Cup

2007 Darnell Truck

2010 Biffle Cup

2012-2 Kenseth Cup

2012 Stenhouse NXS