Matt DiBenedetto and the No. 21 Reese/Draw-Tite Ford team are headed into the 61st annual Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway hoping to steal some of the thunder from the Cup Series Playoff contenders.

Throughout his career, DiBenedetto, who is 18th in the points standings, has had some of his best runs on the high-banked concrete half-mile oval in the Tennessee foothills.

His best run there came in 2019, before he took over the iconic Wood Brothers Ford. He finished a close second after leading 93 laps late in the race.

The Wood Brothers also have had success at Bristol, with a win in 2001 along with nine other top-10 finishes and a total of 26 top-10s. Their most recent top-10 came in 2019 when the now-retired Paul Menard finished sixth.

“I’m hoping for some redemption after coming so close there before,” DiBenedetto said, adding that he’s proud to be representing his sponsors for Saturday night’s 500-lapper under the lights. “I’m excited for Reese/Draw-Tite, this is one of my favorite races of the year.”

There will be no practice or qualifying prior to the start of Saturday night’s race. DiBenedetto will line up his No. 21 Mustang in 19th place for the drop of the green flag.

The starting order was set based on results from Richmond Raceway, with the 16 Playoff drivers starting ahead of all others.

The green flag is set to fly just after 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time with Stage breaks at Laps 125 and 250.

NBCSN will carry the live TV broadcast.

Wood Brothers Racing

Wood Brothers Racing was formed in 1950 in Stuart, Va., by Hall of Famer Glen Wood. Wood Brothers Racing is the oldest active team and one of the winningest teams in NASCAR history. Since its founding, the team won 99 races (including at least one race in every decade for the last seven decades) and 120 poles in NASCAR’s top-tier series. Fielding only Ford products for its entire history, the WoodBrothers own the longest association of any motorsports team with a single manufacturer. Glen’s brother, Leonard, is known for inventing the modern pit stop. The team currently runs the Ford Mustang driven by Matt DiBenedetto in the famous No. 21 racer.

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (September 15, 2021) – It’s a win and you’re in situation for Michael McDowell and his No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops / Luber-finer team this Saturday night at the Bristol Motor Speedway as McDowell currently sits 38 points outside of the final transfer position leading into this weekend’s elimination race.

Much like Daytona (International Speedway), Bristol (Motor Speedway) has proven to be another strong race track for the reigning Daytona 500 Champ. McDowell knows what it takes to find Victory Lane and is optimistic about his team’s chances to do it again this weekend on the half-mile short track of Bristol Motor Speedway.

“I think that Bristol has always been a strong track for Front Row (Motorsports) as well as for our alliance with Roush Fenway (Racing). For whatever reason, even with package changes and things like that, it has seemed to fit our cars well and it was definitely the track that we had circled in this first round of the playoffs,” said McDowell.

Michael McDowell and his No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops team had a dominating performance in last year’s Bristol Night Race, to which they brought home a 10th-place finish. As the NASCAR Cup Series heads back to Bristol this Saturday, the No. 34 team looks to pick up right where they left off and contend for the victory.

“Obviously, we’ve dug ourselves a big hole, but Bristol has been a good track for us and we know what we have to do,” McDowell continued. “We’ve already put our No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops Ford Mustang in Victory Lane once this season, so hopefully we can do it again on Saturday night with Luber-finer along for the ride as well.”

Michael McDowell and his No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops / Luber-finer Ford Mustang will take the green flag in Saturday night’s NASCAR Cup Series elimination race from the 16th position. Race coverage from Bristol Motor Speedway will air live on NBCSN at 7:30 p.m. ET.

ABOUT LOVE’S TRAVEL STOPS
Love’s Travel Stops is the nation’s leading travel stop network with more than 560 locations in 41 states. Founded in 1964 and headquartered in Oklahoma City, the company remains family-owned and operated and employs more than 33,000 people. Love’s provides professional truck drivers and motorists with 24-hour access to clean and safe places to purchase gasoline, diesel fuel, fresh coffee, restaurant offerings and more. Love’s has over 415 truck service centers, which include Speedco and Love’s Truck Care. Love’s and Speedco combined is the largest oil change, preventive maintenance and total truck care nationwide network with over 1,500 maintenance bays and 1,200 emergency roadside vehicles. Love’s is committed to providing customers with “Clean Places, Friendly Faces” at every stop. To learn more, visit loves.com or follow the company on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter.

ABOUT LUBER-FINER
Luber-finer® provides premium filtration solutions for all fleets operating vehicles on-highway, as well as all off-road applications such as heavy construction, mining, agriculture, oil and gas industry and marine. Luber-finer filtration products are part of FirstBrands Group, which includes Raybestos® complete brake solutions, Centric® Parts replacement brake components, FRAM® filtration products, TRICO®wiper blades, Carter® fuel and water pumps, ANCO® wiper blades, StrongArm® lift supports, and Autolite® spark plugs. Luber-finer® has been a trusted name in filters since 1936, providing high efficiency performance in the most demanding work environments. For more information visit www.luber-finer.com or call (800) 851-3641.

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.

COLE CUSTER
Bristol Advance
No. 41 Autodesk Fusion 360/HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing

Event Overview

● Event: Bass Pro Shops Night Race (Round 29 of 36)
● Time/Date: 7:30 p.m. EDT on Saturday, Sept. 18
● Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway
● Layout: .533-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 500 laps/266.5 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 125 laps / Stage 2: 125 laps / Final Stage: 250 laps
● TV/Radio: NBCSN / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Cole Custer and the No. 41 Autodesk Fusion 360/HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) return to pavement racing on the half-mile, high-banked, concrete oval at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, where they and their fellow NASCAR Cup Series competitors made history in March by competing in the first Cup Series dirt race in more than 50 years. This weekend’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race is typically one of the most highly anticipated stops on the Cup Series tour.

● Back with Custer and the No. 41 SHR Ford team for the season’s fourth of six appearances as primary partner is Autodesk Fusion 360, which kicked off its fourth season with the 23-year-old driver and SHR in June on the Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway road course and made its third appearance three weekends ago on the 2.5-mile oval at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. The Sonoma weekend was a hometown race for San Francisco-based Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK), a leader in software applications for the engineering, manufacturing, construction, architecture, media and entertainment industries.
● Saturday night’s 500-lap race on the half-mile Bristol oval will be Custer’s 68th Cup Series start and his third on the high-banked, .533-mile concrete oval. The reigning Cup Series Rookie of the Year’s 23rd-place finish in last year’s Bristol night race was the best of his first two Cup Series visits to Thunder Valley. In last year’s non-points NASCAR All-Star Race held for the first time at Bristol, Custer started eighth and finished 16th. He qualified for that event with his maiden Cup Series victory just three days prior at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta. In this year’s inaugural Food City Dirt Race on the Bristol oval, Custer posted a 24th-place finish.
● In six career NASCAR Xfinity Series appearances at Bristol from 2017 through 2019, all in SHR Fords, Custer has a best finish of third from his pole starting position in the spring 2019 race. That came on the heels of his fourth-place finish in the fall 2018 race, and his pole position in the spring 2018 race that resulted in an eighth-place finish. He led 31 laps in those six Xfinity Series starts at Bristol.
● Custer made annual spring-race stops at Bristol for the 2014 through 2016 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series events. He had a best finish of sixth in his most recent visit in 2016, driving the No. 00 JR Motorsports entry. The previous year, in the JR Motorsports entry, he led 111 of the first 159 laps of the race from the fifth starting position before getting caught up in an accident that relegated him to a 16th-place finish.
● The first taste of the Bristol oval for Custer came in the 2013 and 2014 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East events. He finished 24th for owner Ken Schrader in 2013 and 14th for owner Bill McAnally the following year.
● After last Saturday night’s 22nd-place finish on the .75-mile Richmond (Va.) Raceway oval, Custer arrives at Richmond 28th in the driver standings.
● Joining Autodesk on the No. 41 Ford Mustang is team co-owner Gene Haas’ newest holding, Haas Tooling, which was launched as a way for CNC machinists to purchase high-quality cutting tools at great prices. Haas cutting tools are sold exclusively online at HaasTooling.com and shipped directly to end users. HaasTooling.com products became available nationally last July, and the cutting tools available for purchase at HaasTooling.com have proven to be even more important during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic as CNC machines have become vital to producing personal protective equipment. Haas Automation, founded by Haas in 1983, is America’s leading builder of CNC machine tools. The company manufactures a complete line of vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers and rotary tables and indexers. All Haas products are constructed in the company’s 1.1-million-square-foot manufacturing facility in Oxnard, California, and distributed through a worldwide network of Haas Factory Outlets.
● September is Hunger Action Month, and SHR, its partner Wow Wow Classic Waffles, and Feeding America®, the largest hunger relief organization in the United States with a network of 200 food banks and 60,000 food pantries and meal programs, are asking fans to think about their answer to a simple question: How will you choose to end hunger? Hunger Action Month is an annual campaign dedicated to driving awareness and inspiring action to help end hunger in America, both on a national scale and on the ground in local communities. It’s a time when the Feeding America network of food banks and the public come together to raise awareness and inspire action to help people facing impossible choices due to hunger. Fans are encouraged to visit the Hunger Action Month page via the Feeding America website to learn how they can take action through sharing, volunteering, pledging to advocate, fundraising and making a donation. Each $1 donated helps provide at least 10 meals secured by Feeding America on behalf of local member food banks. Custer and the No. 41 SHR Ford team have accumulated nearly 100 volunteer hours to date, working with Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina in packing bags and helping with drop-off events at Charlotte-area schools.

● Fans can do their part by texting HUNGER to 50555 to make a $5 donation to Feeding America, by visiting the Feeding America donation page on Facebook, or the donation page via the Feeding America website. Each $1 donated helps provide at least 10 meals secured by Feeding America® on behalf of local member food banks.

Cole Custer, Driver of the No. 41 Autodesk Fusion 360/HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing

What are your thoughts as you and the team head to Bristol for the annual night race?

“I think it’s great. Bristol’s an exciting racetrack where a lot of stuff can happen fast. When you put 40 guys out there who are trying to fight hard for every single spot, it can create some great racing and it always does. It’s definitely one of the greatest shows we put on for the fans.”

You excelled at Bristol when you were in the Xfinity Series. Why do you think that was the case, or what about the track suits your driving style?

“Bristol was a good track for me in the Xfinity Series, for sure. It’s a track that has always come a little natural to me, I feel like. I like the feel of it and being able to move around in the lanes. It’s a lot about keeping momentum. The bottom is about hooking the line. Hopefully we’ll be able to make those things happen in our Cup car with the 750 (horsepower) package, managing our race from beginning to end and getting through traffic without getting caught up in someone else’s mess. It can get pretty chaotic.”

Do you prefer the 750-horsepower package at Bristol?

“I think the 750-horsepower package is definitely something that’s more natural to me because it’s similar to what we had in the Xfinity car. A lot of the stuff I did in the Xfinity car transfered over to this 750 package in the Cup Series. It doesn’t do that with the 550-horsepower package we run at a lot of tracks. So I’d say I’m more comfortable and used to the 750.”

No. 41 Autodesk Fusion 360/HaasTooling.com Team Roster

Primary Team Members

Driver: Cole Custer
Hometown: Ladera Ranch, California

Crew Chief: Mike Shiplett
Hometown: Amherst, Ohio

Car Chief: Tony Cardamone
Hometown: Bristol, Virginia

Engineer: Davin Restivo
Hometown: Ashboro, North Carolina

Engineer: Scott Bingham
Hometown: Lawrenceville, Georgia

Spotter: Andy Houston
Hometown: Hickory, North Carolina

Over-The-Wall Members

Front Tire Changer: John Roselli

Hometown: Terre Haute, Indiana

Rear Tire Changer: Coleman Dollarhide
Hometown: Hickory, North Carolina

Tire Carrier: Chad Emmons
Hometown: Tyler, Texas

Jack Man: Matthew Schlytter

Hometown: Ponte Vedra, Florida

Fuel Man: Corey Coppola
Hometown: Bluefield, West Virginia

Road Crew Members

Mechanic: Joe Zanolini
Hometown: Sybertsville, Pennsylvania

Mechanic: Nick McIntosh
Hometown: Havre, Montana

Shock Specialist: Aaron Kuehn
Hometown: Kensington, Connecticut

Tire Specialist: Thomas Gagliano
Hometown: East Hampton, Connecticut

Engine Specialist: Evan Cupples
Hometown: Hudson, Illinois

Transporter Co-Driver: Eddie DeGroot

Hometown: Baldwinsville, New York

Transporter Co-Driver: David Rodrigues
Hometown: Santa Clarita, California

NASCAR CUP SERIES
BASS PRO SHOPS NIGHT RACE
BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE, Teleconference Transcript Highlights:

HOW DO YOU LOOK AT THIS BRISTOL? DO YOU HAVE TO DO ANYTHING DIFFERENT THAN YOU WOULD DO AT ANY OTHER BRISTOL RACE?
“I don’t think so. Bristol is always tough. I feel like you’ve just got to score as many points as possible. There is obviously a lot of opportunity with that with the Stages and the race being as long as it is. I feel like we’ll kind of know where we stack up by the end of things and have a lot of time to make a difference. So, I’m looking forward to it. It’s one of those places that fortunately, starting position is not a huge deal. We’re starting kind of upward of mid-pack, and I think we can make ground from there. So, we’ll just try to get as many points as possible in the Stages and try to win the race.”

THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS A LOT OF DRIVERS HAVE SAID THEY THINK THEY CAN DO WELL AT BRISTOL, EVEN IF THEY HAVEN’T DONE WELL BEFORE. IT SEEMS LIKE EVERY DRIVER MENTIONS BRISTOL IN THIS ROUND. WHY DO YOU THINK THAT IS?
“Well, I think it’s just the most opportunity of this round. There’s the most opportunity for mistakes and the biggest opportunity for success. It’s a really tough track. There’s not much difference between the good cars and the bad ones. It’s a very tough place to get around and I feel like you can really make a difference. I would say it’s just the most unpredictable race of the round, probably.”

YOU SPENT TIME AT THE NEXT GEN TEST LAST WEEK. WITH THE 2022 SCHEDULE BEING ANNOUNCED TODAY, IS THERE ANY PART OF YOU THAT’S SAYING MAN, STOP DISTRACTING ME. I HAVE BRISTOL TO WORRY ABOUT?
“Yeah, I kind of take all that stuff in and put it in a different compartment, or box, for next year. Definitely next year is going to be its own beast. I’m sure it’s going to be a busy off-season with testing. We’re going to have a lot of time in that car. So, I’m not really worried about the car too much because I know that things are going to evolve a lot by the time we get to the Coliseum and Daytona. So, I think I’m kind of keeping it in the back of my mind just for planning purposes and what I want to do next year in terms of travel and things like that. But as far as racing goes, I’m not thinking about that car at all. I’m really not thinking about how it’s going to handle or what it’s going to feel like because I know it’s going to change drastically by the time we get to Daytona.”

IS THERE ANY CALMNESS OR LESS NERVOUSNESS GOING INTO THIS ONE?
“Yeah, that’s a fair question. I know that my team is solid. I know that we’re doing all the right things. I think it’s been a tough two-race stretch for us, but we’ve had speed consistently. So, I feel like the intangible qualities, the good qualities that are really important are there. It’s just a matter of executing the races and putting ourselves in position to advance. We’ve had a really good year in a lot of ways. Yeah, we’re hungry for more. We know what we want to accomplish. There is no real distraction in terms of the team. We know we’re all kind of set in stone and just working hard.”

SINCE YOU CAME INTO CUP, THERE HAS BEEN A CHANGE TO THE SCHEDULE IN EVERY YEAR BUT ONE. DO YOU THINK THERE’S ALWAYS GOING TO BE SOME SORT OF CHANGE AND THAT IT’S NO BIG DEAL?
“Yeah, I think it’s no big deal for me. I feel like next year is probably the most clean slate that I’ve had as a driver in the Cup Series. A lot of the drivers I’ve raced against have been in the low downforce package and had new set-ups and cars for a few more years than I have. And so, I feel like yeah, next year is kind of a clean slate. It’s a new car. Our learning curve is all going to be the same. It’s just going to be a matter of how quickly you learn and adapt for next year. So, I’m kind of excited for that, in a way; but also, excited for this year because I feel like we have really, really good cars that we have an opportunity to capitalize on that. So, it’s a little bit of both. Excitement for next year, but not done and not unexcited for this year because I feel like we’ve got a really good chance to win a lot of races still.”

WHAT HELPS YOU PREPARE FOR A WEEKEND LIKE THIS? WHAT KIND OF EXPERIENCE DO YOU GO ON?
“Definitely past experience. But I’ve never been in this situation minus maybe being…. I guess I was, going into Kansas in my first year in the Playoffs. So, I rely a little bit on past experience, but it’s a lot different than last year. Last year I think, I was right on the cutline and just had to have a solid race and unfortunately, we got caught up with a lapped car there and ended our day. But yeah, I think this year going in, just try to be aggressive and I feel like we’ll have the car this weekend. So, we just have to perform and execute a good race and let other guys have whatever happens to them. All we can do is kind of focus on trying to win the race and I feel like we’re doing a good job preparing for it.”

WITH ALL THE SUCCESS HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS HAS HAD THIS YEAR, WHAT IS THE SENSE OF URGENCY KNOWING THAT TWO DRIVERS COULD POTENTIALLY FALL OUT OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP HUNT INCLUDING YOURSELF?
“The same as normal. We try to show up with the best race car and the best preparation every week. So, it’s not any different. Everyone is obviously kind of out for their own good this weekend because it’s an elimination race. So that’s how it works. I feel like we’re doing a good job preparing on the No. 24 team and I feel like we’ll have a fast race car and just do our jobs.”

GOING INTO THIS ELIMINATION RACE AS THE LEADER OF THE NO. 24 TEAM, DO YOU TELL YOUR TEAM ANYTHING DIFFERENTLY THIS WEEK? DO YOU HAVE ANY TALKS TO TRY TO PUMP THEM UP, AS IF YOU NEED THAT?
“No, I don’t think we do. I think it’s going to be a race this weekend to see what we’re made of. Regardless of the outcome, we’re going to learn a lot about ourselves and our abilities and ability to handle adversity. We’ve had the most adversity the last two weeks that we could possibly want. So, I think we’re prepared for it. We’ve been through this, and we know what we’re doing. So, just go out there and do the best job we can and try to win.”

WITH THE 2022 SCHEDULE BEING RELEASED TODAY, INCLUDING TWO NEW VENUES LIKE THE L.A. COLISEUM AND GATEWAY, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON GOING TO THOSE TWO TRACKS AND IN STARTING OFF IN AN UNCONVENTIONAL CIRCUIT LIKE LOS ANGELES?
“A lot of question marks. I feel like by that time we’ll have a lot better idea of what the car is going to handle like on a shorter track like that. I’m excited for it. I think it’s a great opportunity to have a good fan base and good energy around the first race of the season. I’m thankful that I’m in the Clash and all those things and look forward to the challenge of it. It would be awesome to win it in front of that crowd and in that environment would be really cool.”

GIVEN THE UPS AND DOWNS YOU’VE EXPERIENCED THIS YEAR, BOTH ON AND OFF THE TRACK, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE THINGS YOU’VE BEEN DOING TO KEEP AS OPTIMISTIC AS POSSIBLE?
“Just trying to stay focused and keep a little bit of variety throughout the week. I enjoy playing golf with my buddies and my family. I enjoy doing various things around town. So yeah, I just try to keep it pretty relaxed throughout the week.”

HAVING BEEN WITH HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS SINCE 2018, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE TRAITS OF THE HENDRICK WAYS THAT HAVE FOUND THEIR WAYS INTO YOUR LIFE BOTH AS A RACE CAR DRIVER AND AS A PERSON?
“I love the culture at Hendrick Motorsports. I feel like we have a really good culture. We’re honest with each other and are motivated and have a lot of unbelievable resources from Mr Henrdick and Jeff Gordon and Jeff Andrews. I really enjoy being there and I love racing their cars. It’s a lot of fun this year. We’ve had a lot of fun but definitely want to accomplish a lot more.”
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.

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

Event Overview

● Event: Bass Pro Shops Night Race (Round 29 of 36)
● Time/Date: 7:30 p.m. EDT on Saturday, Sept. 18
● Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway
● Layout: .533-mile, concrete oval
● Laps/Miles: 500 laps / 266.5 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 125 laps / Stage 2: 125 laps / Final Stage: 250 laps
● TV/Radio: NBCSN / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Kevin Harvick debuts a new partner this Saturday night at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. Subway® restaurants has joined with 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 now earn and redeem Subway MyWay® Rewards points on Subway delivery orders as well. In conjunction with Harvick being one of the 16 drivers in the NASCAR Playoffs, Subway also announced a $0 Delivery fee on all Subway Delivery orders plus a 15 percent discount on a footlong for a limited time beginning Saturday when using promo code KEVIN15. Subway will return as the primary sponsor of the No. 4 Ford Mustang for the Sept. 26 race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the Oct. 24 race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. Subway will also serve as a major associate sponsor of the No. 4 car Oct. 10 at the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Roval, Oct. 17 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth and Oct. 31 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.
● The Bass Pro Shops Night Race marks the third race of the 10-race NASCAR Playoffs. When the checkered flag drops, four of the 16 playoff drivers will be eliminated from championship contention. Harvick comes into Bristol ranked sixth, 25 points above the cutline to advance to the Round of 12. A win would punch Harvick’s ticket to the Round of 12, but even without a win, Harvick is in good shape. If he ends the race with a 31-point margin over the 13th-place driver, he will advance to the Round of 12. Harvick has advanced out of the Round of 16 in all seven of his attempts in the postseason since 2014.
● Harvick is the defending winner of the Bass Pro Shops Night Race. The driver of the No. 4 Subway Delivery Ford Mustang won last year’s race in dominating fashion by leading four times for a race-high 226 laps, including the final 32 tours around the .533-mile oval. Harvick beat Kyle Busch by .310 of a second to take his 58th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his third at Bristol and his 35th since joining SHR in 2014.
● Harvick’s first NASCAR Cup Series win at Bristol came in April 2005. In his ninth start at the high-banked, half-mile, Harvick beat Elliott Sadler by an impressive 4.652 seconds for his fifth career Cup Series victory. It would be another 23 races before Harvick scored his second Bristol win. In the 2016 Bass Pro Shops Night Race, Harvick beat Ricky Stenhouse Jr., by 1.933 seconds to take his 33rd career Cup Series victory.
● How did Harvick do in his last race at Bristol? It doesn’t matter, because the track was covered in dirt. Harvick finished 15th on March 29 in the first NASCAR Cup Series dirt race since Sept. 30, 1970 at the North Carolina State Fairgrounds in Raleigh. It was Harvick’s first dirt race since competing in Tony Stewart’s Prelude to the Dream dirt late model event in 2009 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. With 1,138 laps led on Bristol’s concrete and zero laps led when it was covered in dirt, count Harvick among the drivers happy to return to traditional racing at Bristol.
● The Bass Pro Shops Night Race will be Harvick’s 41st career NASCAR Cup Series start on Bristol’s concrete. He and Kurt Busch each have 40 starts at Bristol, the most among active Cup Series drivers. The only driver even close to them is Ryan Newman with 38 starts. In fact, there are only two other active drivers with 30 or more starts at Bristol – Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr., with 30 starts apiece.
● Harvick has proven prolific at Bristol outside of the NASCAR Cup Series. He has made 29 NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the track, winning five times and scoring 15 top-fives and 24 top-10s while leading 1,217 laps. Harvick has also made five NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts at Bristol, winning once and finishing in the top-10 in his last four starts on the concrete surface.

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

Does your preparation change between the regular season and the playoffs, or do you keep doing what got you into the playoffs?

“Several years ago, if you were going to compete with the 48 car (seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson) on a week-to-week basis, you had to playoff race every week, and that’s always something Rodney (Childers, crew chief) and myself and the team have prided ourselves on. The preparation is no different. You prepare and do all the same things you do on a weekly basis to be able to compete at a high level. There’s obviously a lot more chatter about playoffs and first-round races and third-round races, and in the end I know those are great stories, but all that stuff is irrelevant to us. We’re week-to-week racers and we’ll prepare the same, win or lose, every week.”

The Bristol Night Race always has an electric vibe to it, but is that vibe heightened with it being a cutoff race to make the Round of 12?

“The vibe at the Bristol Night Race is always over the top. It’s always a great event. You really never know what to expect at the Bristol Night Race. It can go completely smoothly or it can be complete chaos. Usually, it’s somewhere in between those two and you just have an exciting night. Bristol is intense every lap. There’s just a lot happening every single corner to make good lap times at Bristol. There’s always something happening in front of you, so you try and look as far ahead as you can to keep yourself out of trouble. But the best way to keep yourself out of trouble at Bristol is to be on offense and going forward, so hopefully we can do that.”

Bristol is fast and loud. That means entertainment for the fans, but it can pose problems when it comes to communicating with your crew chief. How do you handle that aspect of Bristol?

“Bristol is definitely loud and hard for the teams to hear. One of the hardest things at Bristol is just to see what’s going on. I have crashed at Bristol and gone back to watch it on TV and you’re like, ‘What in the hell were you doing? You just ran into four or five cars that have been sitting there for two seconds.’ But, Bristol is a very demanding racetrack. It’s very hard because things happen so fast, communication is hard. It’s easy to make a mistake or pile into a wreck. It’s easy to wreck somebody or to get into a fight. It’s easy to do a lot of things because there is just so much happening. It’s a tough place to race, to put it all together, and it’s mentally and physically exhausting.”

Bristol marks the second short-track race in as many weeks. When it comes to short-track etiquette – what’s OK and what isn’t in this day and age?

“It depends on how mad you are. I think a lot of that just depends on the situation. When you’re not running well, there’s a lot more that’s OK in your mind because the day’s screwed up anyway and you feel like you want to run into somebody just to take your aggression out on the day. A lot of that just depends on who you’re racing and how that guy’s raced you that day, if you’ve had trouble and you’re trying to get back to the front and it’s late in the race, or at the end of a stage – it’s just different things at different times that are OK. In the end, it’s just like every other race, you’ve got to somehow be able to get to the finish with the best result you can get that day.”

Where did you learn short-track etiquette, and is it still applicable today?

“It’s applicable, and a lot of times there are still a lot of guys who don’t apply it and they wind up getting themselves in trouble – tearing their cars up and putting themselves in a bad spot. I think part of our success is being able to race like that when we need to race like that and understanding how that works. In my book, it’s just being smart. In today’s day and age, a lot of it is just go as hard as you can go and screw the other guy. In the end, there are a lot of guys who think that way, but there are a lot of guys who tear their stuff up, too. So, it’s a fine line, but you have to go on the restarts in today’s world. You have to just throw caution to the wind on the restarts because that’s when most of it happens. Once we get strung out and get to the racing part of it, that’s usually when you have to apply some of that and there is some give-and-take. But on the restarts, I would say all those rules go out the window because of how important the restarts are in today’s world.”

Who were the elder statesmen you learned from when you started racing in the NASCAR Cup Series?

“A lot of that I would credit to Richard Childress just because of the fact he put so much emphasis on finishing races. I think most of that comes from the RCR mentality when I started of you have to finish the race, no matter what the cost or what you have to do, you have to finish the race.”

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

Roush Fenway Weekly Advance | Bristol II

NASCAR heads to Thunder Valley Saturday night for the third race of the 2021 playoffs, where Hall of Fame owner Jack Roush has 18 wins all-time, including 11 in the Cup Series.

Bass Pro Shops Night Race
Saturday, Sept. 18 at 7:30 p.m. ET
NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM Channel 90

· Ryan Newman, No. 6 Kohler Generators Ford Mustang
· Chris Buescher, No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang

Richmond Recap, Bristol Preview

· Newman finished 20th a week ago at Richmond, while Buescher ran 24th.

· Kohler Generators returns to Newman’s Ford Mustang at Thunder Valley.

· Fastenal will be on Buescher’s Ford Saturday night, as the company will help honor National Truck Driver Appreciation Week by displaying the names of 552 truck drivers on the hood.

Runner Up

Roush Fenway’s storied history at Bristol began on April 10, 1988 with the No. 6 NCS car earning a second-place finish. Since that time, in addition to the organization’s 11 NCS wins at the track, Roush Fenway Fords have finished second at Bristol on 15 occasions (7 NCS, 4 NXS, 4 NCWTS).

One-Two Punch

Roush Fenway’s most recent victory at Bristol came after sweeping the top two positions in the March 2014 event with Carl Edwards taking the victory and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. coming home in second. Edwards led the final 78 laps of the event to earn the victory.

History and Hot Streaks at “Thunder Valley”

Roush Fenway’s history at Bristol has been one of hot streaks, including trips to victory lane in nine of the last 19 seasons at the famed short track. Roush Fenway swept the track in 2003 and put a NCS car in victory lane at least once in every season from 2002-2008.

Thunder Rolls

Roush Fenway has earned five victories, 23 top-five finishes, 37 top-10 finishes and an average finish of 15.8 at Bristol in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Former Roush Fenway driver David Ragan earned the organization’s most recent Xfinity victory at the .533-mile short track in the Aug. 2009 event.

Tale of the Tape

Roush Fenway has started 217 NCS races at Bristol, recording 11 total wins with 51 top-five and 89 top-10 finishes. RFR Fords have an average finish of 15.9 with 3396 laps led all-time.

Roush Fenway Bristol Wins
1993-2 Martin Cup
1996-1 Martin NXS
1997-1 Burton NXS
1998-2 Martin Cup
2002-1 Busch Cup
2003-1 Busch Cup
2003-2 Busch Cup
2003-2 Busch Cup
2004-1 Busch Cup
2004 Edwards Truck
2005-2 Kenseth Cup
2006-2 Kenseth Cup
2006 Martin Truck
2006-2 Kenseth NXS
2007-1 Edwards NXS
2007-2 Edwards Cup
2008-2 Edwards Cup
2009-2 Ragan NXS
2014 -1 Edwards Cup