Larson claims fifth checkered flag of 2021 at Watkins Glen

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August 8, 2021

WATKINS GLEN, NEW YORK - AUGUST 08: Kyle Larson, driver of the #5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, celebrates in the Ruoff Mortgage victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on August 08, 2021 in Watkins Glen, New York. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images).

Victory No. 5 was awarded to the driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Watkins Glen International after Kyle Larson led the final 26 of 90 laps and fended off his teammate and a hard-charging Chase Elliott to win the Go Bowling at The Glen on Sunday, August 8. The victory was Larson’s fifth of the season, which reignited his challenge for this year’s NASCAR Cup Series title.

The starting lineup was based on a performance metric formula, weighing the driver’s and owner’s results from a previous Cup event, the owner points position and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Cup race. With that, Brad Keselowski, who is set to join Roush Fenway Racing as a driver and co-owner in 2022, started on pole position and was joined on the front row with teammate Joey Logano.

Prior to the event, Chase Elliott and Christopher Bell started at the rear of the field due to their respective cars not complying with the technical rules related to the rear window air deflector. As a result, Alan Gustafson, Elliott’s crew chief, and Adam Stevens, Bell’s crew chief, have been suspended from participating in today’s Cup event along with being fined $25,000. Both competitors were docked 10 points. Engineer Tom Gray served as an interim crew chief for Elliott while car chief Chris Sherwood was atop the pit box of Bell’s team.

When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Keselowski managed to pull ahead of teammate Logano to assume an early advantage through the first turn and heading into the Esses. Through the Esses, the backstretch, the chicane and the seven-turn, 2.45-mile road course, Keselowski managed to lead the first lap while the field battled jostled for positioning.

Following the first lap, Ryan Newman spun in Turn 1, but he managed to continued and the race proceeded under green.

By the third lap, Keselowski was still leading by three-tenths of a second over teammate Logano, with Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. in the top five. Ryan Blaney was in sixth followed by Tyler Reddick, William Byron, Kevin Harvick and Alex Bowman.

Through the first five laps of the event, Keselowski, racing in the No. 2 Wabash National Ford Mustang, continued to hold a slim lead over teammate Logano’s No. 22 Verizon 5G Ford Mustang and Larson’s No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE. By then, Elliott and Bell were mired back in 23rd and 26th.

On the ninth lap, Keselowski got loose while leading and spun in Turn 6. Keselowski’s misfortune allowed teammate Logano to slip by and take the lead just as the competition caution flew scheduled on Lap 10. Larson moved up to second place followed by Truex, Hamlin and Blaney while Keselowski, who quickly recovered following his spin, fell back to sixth.

Under the competition caution, names like Keselowski, Kurt Busch, Elliott, Michael McDowell, Bubba Wallace, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ryan Preece, rookie Chase Briscoe and others pitted while the rest led by Logano remained on the track.

When the race restarted on Lap 12, Logano managed to pull ahead of Larson and retain the lead through the first turn and heading into the Esses. While Larson kept Logano in his sights, Truex and Hamlin were in third and fourth while Reddick battled Blaney, Byron and Kyle Busch for a spot in the top five.

By Lap 15, Logano continued to lead by three-tenths of a second over Larson while third-place Truex and fourth-place Hamlin were approximately a second behind. By then, Reddick retained fifth ahead of Blaney, Byron, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Alex Bowman. Behind, Austin Dillon was in 11th ahead of Erik Jones, Keselowski was in 14th behind Matt DiBenedetto, Aric Almirola was in 15th in front of Ross Chastain and Bell, Elliott and Kurt Busch were in 18th and 20th, Briscoe was in 21st, Daniel Suarez and Bubba Wallace were in 22nd and 25th and Ryan Newman was in 26th ahead of Stenhouse and Michael McDowell.

Not long after, some competitors led by Blaney and including Harvick, DiBenedetto, Ryan Newman, Chastain, Briscoe, Cole Custer, Wallace, Bell and Almirola pitted under green. The following lap, Truex pitted just as the pit road entrance closed to signal the end of the first stage nearing.

Back on the track, Logano continued to lead by nearly half a second over Larson and more than a second over Hamlin. Despite being pressured by Larson, Logano managed to maintain the lead and capture the first stage victory on Lap 20, thus claiming his fourth stage victory of the season. Larson settled in second followed by Hamlin, Reddick, Byron, Kyle Busch, Bowman, Elliott, Austin Dillon and Erik Jones.

Under the stage break, a majority led by Logano pitted while others led by Stenhouse and Truex remained on the track.

The second stage started on Lap 22. At the start, Briscoe, who restarted on the second row, made a bold three-wide move in a bid for the lead. Truex, however, was able to take over the lead over Briscoe through the first turn and the Esses. Behind, Kevin Harvick made his way to fourth ahead of Blaney, Bell and Matt DiBenedetto.

Approaching Lap 24, the caution flew due to James Davison stalling his car near Turns 6 and 7. By then, Truex was leading by more than a second over Briscoe, with Stenhouse, Harvick and Bell running in the top five. Behind, Blaney spun through the Bus Stop, but he managed to continue. In addition, Keselowski pitted to address a braking issue to his car.

Under caution, names like Keselowski, Suarez, rookie Anthony Alfredo, Blaney and RC Enerson pitted while the rest led by Truex remained on the track.

When the race restarted on Lap 27, Truex managed to retain the lead while Harvick, a former Glen winner who is pursuing his first victory of the season, muscled his way into the runner-up spot. Briscoe fell back to third ahead of Bell, DiBenedetto and Stenhouse.

By Lap 30, Truex continued to lead by more than two seconds over teammate Bell, who out-braked Harvick entering the Bus Stop the previous lap to take over the runner-up spot. Briscoe and DiBenedetto were in the top five followed by Chastain, Stenhouse, Logano, Custer and Larson. Behind, Elliott, who was running in the mid-20s, pitted under green after he flat-spotted his tires.

With three laps remaining in the second stage, Bubba Wallace and Corey LaJoie pitted under green. By then, Truex was leading by three seconds over teammate Bell.

When the second stage concluded on Lap 40, Truex remained uncontested as he claimed his fifth stage victory of the season. Bell settled in second, trailing by more than three seconds, while Harvick, Larson, Briscoe, Chastain, DiBenedetto, Hamlin, Logano and Kyle Busch were scored in the top 10.

Under the stage break, some featuring Hamlin pitted while the rest led by Truex remained on the track.

With 47 laps remaining, the final stage started. At the start, Truex launched ahead while Bell withstood his ground over Harvick to retain the runner-up spot. Through the Esses, the backstretch and the bus stop, the field settled in a single-file line as Truex remained at the front ahead of teammate Bell.

At the halfway mark on Lap 45, Truex was leading by three-tenths of a second over teammate Bell while Larson was in third and trailing by more than six-tenths of a second. Chastain and Harvick were in the top five followed by Briscoe, Kyle Busch, Byron, Logano and DiBenedetto. Behind, Austin Dillon was in 11th ahead of Newman and Aric Almirola, Keselowski was in 15th behind teammate Blaney, Hamlin and Elliott were in 16th and 18th, Kurt Busch was in 21st ahead of Reddick and Wallace was in 24th ahead of Bowman and Suarez.

Two laps later, Bell and Larson issued a challenge for the lead on Truex past the start/finis line and entering the first turn, but Truex managed to fend off the near three-wide battle from both competitors past the first turn and through the Esses.

With 40 laps remaining, the top-three competitors — Truex, Bell and Larson — were separated by less than a second, with Truex continuing to lead over teammate Bell and Larson. Chastain and Harvick continued to run in the top five ahead of Briscoe, Kyle Busch, Byron, DiBenedetto and Hamlin. By then, Elliott moved up to 11th ahead of Logano.

Four laps later, what became an intense three-car battle for the lead dwindled down to two after Larson locked up his brakes and bumped into Bell, thus sending Bell’s No. 20 Stanley Toyota Camry spinning in Turn 1, though he continued under green.

With Bell out of contention, Truex was leading by more than a second over Larson. Behind, Harvick and Chastain pitted under green. Back on track, another green-flag incident occurred in Turn 1 after Keselowski locked up entering the first turn and spun, clipping teammate Logano in the process as both Penske competitors spun and sustained damage to their respective Mustangs.

In the ensuing laps, names like Briscoe, DiBenedetto, Newman and McDowell pitted under green. Truex, the race leader, also pitted along with runner-up Larson, giving the lead to Hamlin while Elliott moved up to second.

With 30 laps remaining and a variety of pit strategy occurring, Hamlin continued to lead while Elliott surrendered the runner-up spot to pit. By then, names like Blaney, Bowman, Almirola, Chris Buescher, Wallace, Alfredo, Josh Bilicki, Reddick and Stenhouse had made a pit stop.

On Lap 63, Kurt Busch took over the top spot after Hamlin brought his No. 11 FedEx Toyota Camry for fuel. Two laps later, Kurt Busch pitted and Larson, who had managed to squeak ahead of Truex on pit road during his previous pit stop, emerged with the lead. By then, Custer and Suarez pitted.

With 15 laps remaining, Larson was leading by nearly three seconds over Truex and nearly seven seconds over Elliott, who was the fastest competitor on the track. Behind, Kyle Busch and Byron were in the top five followed by Hamlin, Bell, Harvick, Chastain and Briscoe.

Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Larson continued to lead by less than five seconds over Truex, who also had the No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE piloted by Elliott in his rearview mirror.

Not long after, Elliott overtook Truex’s No. 19 Reser’s Fine Foods Toyota Camry to move into the runner-up spot. By then, Elliott was more than five seconds behind teammate Larson.

With five laps remaining, Larson maintained an advantage of approximately five seconds over teammate Elliott while Truex was trailing by more than seven seconds.

Two laps later, Larson’s advantage was cut down to more than three seconds as Elliott continued to close in on his Hendrick Motorsports teammate. By then, the leaders were mired in lapped traffic.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Larson was leading by less than three seconds over teammate Elliott, who was given a final opportunity to win the event after starting at the rear of the field.

Through the first turn, the Esses, the bus stop and the final corners, Larson was able to streak across the finish line and grab the win and the checkered flag by more than two seconds over teammate Elliott.

In addition to claiming his fifth victory of the season, Larson captured his 11th NASCAR Cup Series career win and his second on a road course after winning at Sonoma Raceway in June. Larson also recorded the 10th Cup victory of the season for Hendrick Motorsports. With that, Larson, who signed a two-year contract extension to remain at Hendrick Motorsports nearly a month ago, drew himself into a tie with fifth-place finisher Denny Hamlin for the lead in the regular-season standings.

“Yeah, it’s awesome,” Larson said on NBCSN. “I mean, it really just shows how good the organization is, all the people that they’ve assembled at their race shop, all the men and women. All four of us could not be getting these wins like we have been without them. Thanks to them, and thanks to everybody else I get to race for. Chase was already catching me pretty quick, even with me being in open track, so when I caught those, I think, four cars and got into [Anthony Alfredo] right here, I thought I would look at my mirror and [Elliott] would be right on me, but thankfully had a comfortable enough gap to where I could make a mistake like that…Thanks for everything you guys do for me, everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, Rick Hendrick, Jeff Gordon, [crew chief] Cliff Daniels, this whole 5 bunch. Another amazing car. I could tell from about Lap 3 after I stopped making a bunch of mistakes that we were going to have a car that could win today.”

Elliott, who started at the rear of the field following a pre-race technical issue that left his crew chief Alan Gustafson suspended for the remainder of the day, settled in second place as he came one spot short in winning at The Glen for a third consecutive time.

“I made too many mistakes to get the win, unfortunately, and made it too late in the race,” Elliott said. “Super proud of our team. Been kind of an uphill battle all day, but everybody was just super prepared coming into the day, and our NAPA team just did a really good job of fighting it. If I hadn’t have let them down there, I think we would have had a shot at it, but congrats to Kyle [Larson, race winner], Cliff, all the guys on the No. 5 [team]. Happy for everybody at HMS. Hendrick Motorsports has been working extremely hard, and not only do the people deserve to win, but Mr. [Rick] Hendrick deserves to win. Really happy for him, and I’ll try to clean some things up and make less mistakes next time. Maybe it’ll work out.”

Behind, Truex came home in third place while teammates Kyle Busch and Hamlin finished in the top five.

Byron finished in sixth followed by Bell, Harvick, Briscoe and Reddick.

Twenty-five of the 37 competitors in the field finished on the lead lap, with James Davison being the only competitor to retire due to electrical issues.

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

With three races remaining until the 2021 Cup Playoffs commences, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson are tied for the lead for the regular-season lead. Currently, 13 competitors (Kyle Larson, Martin Truex Jr., Alex Bowman, Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Kurt Busch, Aric Almirola, William Byron, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Brad Keselowski, Christopher Bell and Michael McDowell) are guaranteed Playoff spots based on winning at least once throughout the regular season. Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick and Tyler Reddick continue to occupy the remaining three vacant spots to the Playoffs as winless competitors, with Reddick ahead by 15 points over teammate Austin Dillon, 135 over Chris Buescher, 147 over Matt DiBenedetto, 148 over Ross Chastain, 188 over Ricky Stenhouse Jr., 190 over Bubba Wallace, 219 over Chase Briscoe and 223 over Daniel Suarez.

Results.

1. Kyle Larson, 27 laps led

2. Chase Elliott

3. Martin Truex Jr., 34 laps led, Stage 2 winner

4. Kyle Busch

5. Denny Hamlin, six laps led

6. William Byron

7. Christopher Bell

8. Kevin Harvick

9. Chase Briscoe

10. Tyler Reddick

11. Matt DiBenedetto

12. Ross Chastain

13. Kurt Busch, two laps led

14. Ryan Blaney

15. Austin Dillon

16. Aric Almirola

17. Chris Buescher

18. Cole Custer

19. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., one lap led

20. Alex Bowman

21. Michael McDowell

22. Joey Logano, 11 laps, Stage 1 winner

23. Bubba Wallace

24. Corey LaJoie

25. Ryan Newman

26. Anthony Alfredo, one lap down

27. Erik Jones, one lap down

28. Ryan Preece, one lap down

29. Justin Haley, one lap down

30. Kyle Tilley, one lap down

31. Daniel Suarez, two laps down

32. Quin Houff, two laps down

33. Josh Bilicki, two laps down

34. RC Enerson, two laps down

35. Brad Keselowski, three laps down, nine laps led

36. Garrett Smithley, three laps down

37. James Davison – OUT, Electrical

Next on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the series’ inaugural event at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course layout, which will occur on Sunday, August 15, at 1 p.m. ET on NBC.

Kyle Larson takes fifth victory of the season by winning the Go Bowling at The Glen

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Official Release

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August 8, 2021

By Holly Cain
NASCAR Wire Service

Kyle Larson had to navigate lapped traffic in the closing laps and hold off his hard-charging Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott – the track’s most prolific winner of late – to earn the victory in Sunday’s Go Bowling at the Glen.

The 28-year-old Californian has been a driver to count on this season, finishing either first or second 10 times through the 23 races to date. And Sunday’s trophy at the historic Watkins Glen International road course is Larson’s NASCAR Cup Series-best fifth of the year; 11th of his career.

His 2.430-second victory over Elliott was good enough to move him into a tie with Denny Hamlin for the regular season championship with only three races remaining before the Playoffs.

It marked the eighth Hendrick Motorsports victory in the last 11 races and the fourth time Larson and Elliott have finished 1-2 – the third time at a road course event.

Larson led the final 27 laps of the 90-lap event, taking the lead for good from Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr., who had paced the field for a race best 34 laps. Elliott got around Truex with nine laps remaining to claim second place.

Truex finished third, followed by his JGR teammates Kyle Busch and Hamlin. Hendrick driver William Byron was sixth with JGR’s Christopher Bell, Stewart-Haas teammates Kevin Harvick and Chase Briscoe and Richard Childress Racing’s Tyler Reddick rounding out the Top-10.

“Chase was already catching me pretty quick, even with me being in open track so when I caught those, I think four (lapped) cars and got into the 38 (Anthony Alfredo) right here, I thought I would look at my mirror and the 9 (Elliott) would be right on me, but thankfully had a comfortable enough gap to where I could make a mistake like that,” said Larson, who apologized to his friend Bell during his post-race interview. The two made contact racing door-to-door for second place late in the race.

“Incredible race today, hats off to Hendrick Motorsports,” added Larson, “It’s awesome. It really just shows how good the organization is, all the people that they’ve assembled at the race shop, all the men and women. All four of us (Hendrick Motorsports drivers) could not be getting these wins like we have been without them. Thanks to them and thanks to everybody else I get to race for.”

Although Elliott, 25, had to settle for a runner-up showing today, it was an incredible drive for the reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion and two-time Watkins Glen winner. He started the race from the last row – and his crew chief Alan Gustafson was suspended – after his car failed pre-race technical inspection.

Elliott steadily made his way forward, picking off cars with each turn. And as with Larson, he had to navigate that lapped traffic in the closing laps, which essentially cost him any shot at getting close enough to his teammate to challenge for the lead.

“I made too many mistakes to get the win unfortunately, and made it too late in the race,” Elliott said. “Super proud of our team. Been kind of an uphill battle all day, but everybody was just super prepared coming into the day and our NAPA team just did a really good job of fighting it.”

With three races remaining to set the Playoff field, Reddick gave himself a little more cushion room in that 16th and final transfer position. He improved his advantage over his Richard Childress Racing teammate, 17th place Austin Dillon, from six points entering the race to 15 points heading to Indianapolis next week.

The series makes its Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course debut next Sunday with the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard (1 p.m. ET, NBC, IMS Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). It will mark the first time the NASCAR Cup Series has raced on the famed track’s road course since it began racing at Indianapolis in 1994.

CHEVY NCS AT WATKINS GLEN: Post-Race Notes and Quotes

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Official Release

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August 8, 2021

NASCAR CUP SERIES
WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL
GO BOWLING AT THE GLEN
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES
AUGUST 8, 2021

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE
2nd CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE
6th WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE
10th TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CHEVROLET ACCESSORIES CAMARO ZL1 1LE
12th ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 42 MYMCDONALD’S REWARDS CAMARO ZL1 1LE
13th KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE
15th AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 COWBOY CHANNEL CAMARO ZL1 1LE

TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st Kyle Larson (Chevrolet)
2nd Chase Elliott (Chevrolet)
3rd Martin Truex Jr. (Toyota)
4th Kyle Busch (Toyota)
5th Denny Hamlin (Toyota)

The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course with the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard on Sunday, August 15, at 1 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBC and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES:

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Race Winner
KYLE, WHAT A GREAT VICTORY, BUT THERE IN THOSE CLOSING LAPS, I HAVE TO ASK – AS YOU CAUGHT ALL THOSE LAP CARS, WERE YOU WORRIED ABOUT LOSING THE TIME THERE?
“Yeah, I was. Chase was already catching me pretty quick, even with me being in open track, so when I caught those, I think, four cars and got into the 38 right here, I thought I would look at my mirror and the 9 would be right on me, but thankfully had a comfortable enough gap to where I could make a mistake like that.”

“I want to say a big apology to Christopher Bell. I was inside but I wasn’t inside enough, and I didn’t — I needed to have the nose a few feet further ahead, and the angles just caught there in the middle and I ended up turning him. I hate that. I race with him a lot. He’s probably the one guy that I race with the most in all my racing, so hate to turn him like that. We’ve had incredible races together.”

“Anyways, hats off to Hendrickcars.com. Thanks for everything you guys do for me, everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, Rick Hendrick, Jeff Gordon, Cliff Daniels, this whole 5 bunch. Another amazing car. I could tell from about lap 3 after I stopped making a bunch of mistakes that we were going to have a car that could win today.”

THIS IS YOUR FIFTH WIN ON THE SEASON, ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL SEASON OF ALL TIME. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO COME TO HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS AND HAVE THIS SUCCESSFUL OF A SEASON?
“Yeah, it’s awesome. I mean, it really just shows how good the organization is, all the people that they’ve assembled at their race shop, all the men and women. All four of us could not be getting these wins like we have been without them. Thanks to them, and thanks to everybody else I get to race for. Get to go to Iowa this week and chase another big win, so looking forward to that, and hopefully can just keep racking these wins up.”

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SAY TO ANOTHER MASSIVE CROWD HERE AT WATKINS GLEN?
“Yeah, thanks all you guys for coming out. It’s been a while since we’ve been here, so hopefully we put on a good show for you. It was definitely a good show from my seat when the three of us were going at it for the lead in the first stage, then there in the second and third stage. Just a lot of fun today, and hope you guys enjoyed it.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 2nd
EXHAUSTING DAY, BUT WHAT A HEROIC EFFORT IT WAS TO GET BACK THERE TO SECOND AT THE END. HOW DO YOU SUM UP THIS DAY? YOU PASSED MORE CARS THAN I THINK ANYBODY OUT THERE BUT STILL COME UP ONE SPOT SHORT.
“Yeah, I made too many mistakes to get the win, unfortunately, and made it too late in the race. Super proud of our team. Been kind of an uphill battle all day, but everybody was just super prepared coming into the day, and our NAPA team just did a really good job of fighting it.”

“If I hadn’t have let them down there, I think we would have had a shot at it, but congrats to Kyle (Larson, race winner), Cliff (Daniels, Crew Chief), all the guys on the 5. Happy for everybody at HMS. Hendrick Motorsports has been working extremely hard, and not only do the people deserve to win, but Mr. Hendrick deserves to win. Really happy for him, and I’ll try to clean some things up and make less mistakes next time. Maybe it’ll work out.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 6th
“We had a solid run and ended up sixth in the No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE. Lost the fifth spot on the last lap, unfortunately. We had a good car and it was a good run for us. We started mid-pack and worked our way forward, so I’m happy with that. Definitely a solid road course finish for us and we’ll keep moving forward.”

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CHEVROLET ACCESSORIES CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 10th
“We had some good speed in our No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE today but just needed the balance to be a little better overall. I was really tight throughout most of the day, especially on landing through the turns. It didn’t seem to matter which way I was turning, I just couldn’t get the front to rotate like I needed it to once I got through the first third of a turn. The adjustments we made during the day seemed to help during the last stage of the race and I was able to grab the tenth spot on the final lap. It’s good that we were able to leave the track with another top-10 to help us with the Playoff cutline. I wish we were able to finish a little higher up, but we will have a good shot next week to show what we can do at another road course. There’s no other group I’d rather be fighting with to make the Playoffs, and I know they’ll all continue to fight through the coming weeks.”

ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 42 MYMCDONALD’S REWARDS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 12th
“Tough day at Watkins Glen (International) for the No. 42 MyMcDonald’s Rewards Camaro ZL1 1LE. I think Kurt (Busch) and I both struggled for turn. There was quite a bit front chatter and it was just hard to get through a lot of the rights. That’s hard on a primarily right-hand turn track. Our left and rights balance was off just a little bit.”

“The pit stops helped, but we just started too far off. We definitely played the right strategy to keep cycling up. I went for one spot there at the end, I think for eighth, and gave up four to finish 12th when I ran it out of gas. A lesson learned there. I needed to save a straightaway more and I didn’t; I went for it. Live and learn.”

AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 COWBOY CHANNEL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 15th
“What a day at Watkins Glen International. We started the race 16th in the No. 3 Cowboy Channel Chevrolet and finished ninth in Stage 1 to grab a couple of stage points. We struggled a little bit through the esses but overall handling was pretty good today. I think we could have finished well inside the top-10 if things would have gone just a little differently. I made a mistake that cost us maybe five spots when a car ahead of us slammed on the brakes and I just didn’t anticipate it. Good job to everyone on this RCR team all day. Everyone fought hard, just as they have all season. Thank you to The Cowboy Channel for their support. We’ll go to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course next week ready to battle.”

ERIK JONES, NO. 43 CLEAN HARBORS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 27th
“The day started off okay. The No. 43 Clean Harbors Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE was good, and we made our way forward. Then we lost track position and got too far back, spun-out and never caught a caution to get caught back up. Not a solid end, but we proved to have an okay car. We just lost the balance a bit through the middle of the race, and got too free and didn’t really have it where we needed it. We will head to another road course next week. I think we learned some good stuff and got a few things better that will carry over.”

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.

RCR Post Race Report – Go Bowling at The Glen

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Official Release

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August 8, 2021

Austin Dillon’s Playoff Hopes Still Alive With Top-15 Finish in the No. 3 Cowboy Channel Chevrolet at Watkins Glen International

Finish: 15th
Start: 16th
Points: 13th

“What a day at Watkins Glen International. We started the race 16th in the No. 3 Cowboy Channel Chevrolet and finished ninth in Stage 1 to grab a couple of stage points. We struggled a little bit through the esses, but overall handling was pretty good today. I think we could have finished well inside the top-10 if things would have gone just a little differently. I made a mistake that cost us maybe five spots when a car ahead of us slammed on the brakes and I just didn’t anticipate it. Good job to everyone on this RCR team all day. Everyone fought hard, just as they have all season. Thank you to The Cowboy Channel for their support. We’ll go to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course next week ready to battle.” -Austin Dillon

Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 Chevrolet Accessories Team Fight to a Top-10 Finish at Watkins Glen International

Finish: 10th
Start: 13th
Points: 12th

“We had some good speed in our No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE today and I’m proud of everyone on this RCR team. We just needed the balance to be a little better overall. I was really tight throughout most of the day, especially on landing through the turns. It didn’t seem to matter which way I was turning, I just couldn’t get the front to rotate like I needed it to once I got through the first third of a turn. The adjustments we made during the day seemed to help during the last stage of the race and I was able to grab the tenth spot on the final lap. It’s good that we were able to leave the track with another top-10 finish to help us with the Playoff cutline. I wish we were able to finish a little higher up, but we will have a good shot next week to show what we can do at another road course. There’s no other group I’d rather be fighting with to make the Playoffs, and I know they’ll all continue to fight through the coming weeks.” -Tyler Reddick

Toyota Racing NCS Post-Race Recap — Watkins Glen 8.8.21

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Official Release

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August 8, 2021

STRONG RUN FOR THE JOE GIBBS RACING CAMRYS AT WATKINS GLEN
Martin Truex Jr. leads four Joe Gibbs Racing Camrys in the top seven

WATKINS GLEN, NY (August 8, 2021) – Martin Truex Jr. (third), Kyle Busch (fourth), Denny Hamlin (fifth) and Christopher Bell (seventh) put all four Joe Gibbs Racing Camrys inside the top-seven finishers in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) race at Watkins Glen International. Hamlin is tied for the lead in the regular season points championship with race winner Kyle Larson with three races remaining before the Playoffs begin.

Toyota Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Watkins Glen International
Race 23 of 36 – 90 laps, 220.500 miles

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Kyle Larson*
2nd, Chase Elliott*
3th, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
4th, KYLE BUSCH
5th, DENNY HAMLIN
7th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
23rd, BUBBA WALLACE
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 19 Reser’s Fine Foods Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 3rd

How much of a battle was it for this third-place finish?

“It was quite a battle. James (Small, crew chief) did a great job with our Reser’s Fine Foods Camry to get track position to put us where we needed to be. We didn’t quite have the speed on the longer runs to take advantage of that track position. We tried hard and thanks to everybody for working hard. We’re a little behind those two (Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott) right now on road courses, they’re really, really fast. I just had to burn my tires off to try to stay with them and then in 20 laps they’re gone. Heck of a fight, but we’ll take a third or a podium as they say in road course racing and go to work and try to get better.”

What did you need to beat Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott today?

“A little bit of everything. Honestly, I felt like through the esses and through the carousel, off the carousel was my weakest point. Just couldn’t quite turn as good as them in turn two and then turn three I would get loose and couldn’t get the power down at all off the carousel. Just a little bit of everything. When I asked it to turn, they would out-turn me and when I ask it to go, they’re out-going me. Nonetheless, all the guys did a great job. We had a replacement or fill-in tire changer on the front and he did a good job so thanks to him. Overall, it was a solid day for our Reser’s Fine Foods Camry. Thanks to Toyota, TRD and everybody that works with us to make the cars better. Just need to find some more. We were second to those two guys at Sonoma as well. I think the 20 (Christopher Bell) had a good car as well, but those two (Larson and Elliott) were just strong. I don’t know exactly how we’re going to get there, but we’re going to keep working.”

KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 Snickers Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 4th

How was the track for you today?

“Slick. We just didn’t quite have what we needed. That was not fun. The guys gave me a pretty decent Snickers Camry. Just not quite where we needed it and not quite good enough. Just couldn’t really hang on during the long runs. We’d lose too much time off the corners and be too slick. Fought hard all day. A lot of green flag action today and a lot of long runs. As much as I workout, I’m out of shape.”

How do you feel about your finish today?

“Not as good as we wanted. We didn’t quite have the car we needed. It was just all on top of the race track. We haven’t been here in a few years and the track fall off to the grip fall off with the tire being too hard – we kind of missed all of that for the package that we needed, but I’m good here and the cars are good here. We kind of overcame the downfall of what we had for car setup, but can’t blame anybody. Got to go to work, figure it out and make it better for what’s going to be here next year.”

Was this the most challenging road course race of the season thus far?

“It was for us. The car being really up on top of the race track just sliding all around and you’re trying to keep it under control and keep it under you so you don’t spin or don’t wreck or whatever. We just kind of missed it today. It was a lot of work and driving the hell out of it. Overall, we know we’ve got good stuff and we know we always run well here, but we hadn’t been here in two years, the asphalt is older, same tire and really hard tire – wrong tire for this track. Just made for a challenging day.”

You seemed very hot when you got out of the race car, was it hot today inside the car?

“I’m not hot, it wasn’t hot. I’m not even really sweating all that much. It’s just I’m sore. Everything from being tensed up all day and all we had were the three competition cautions and that was it. The rest was all green flag runs and it was hard, it was long.”

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

Finishing Position: 5th

How will you approach the next three races being tied with Kyle Larson for the regular season championship?

“It’s going to be a battle all the way to the end I think. Really proud of our effort today. We passed, had to be the most cars. We were really, really fast all day. Proud of this whole FedEx Express team. We’ve come a long way on the road courses. I thought we had equal pace with the 5 (Kyle Larson), especially on the long run. Obviously, we made an extra stop there for whatever reason. It’s an encouraging day when we can be as competitive as what we were.”

CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 STANLEY Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 7th

What is your take on that contact in turn one with Kyle Larson?

“I haven’t seen it so I don’t know if I crowded him (Kyle Larson) at all, but he shouldn’t have been in there in the first place. He didn’t really have a run coming off of (turn) seven. We were all packed up. I was faster than the 19 (Martin Truex Jr.) but never could make a run on him to get by him, and same thing with him. It’s very disappointing. Our STANLEY/Pristine Auction Camry was extremely fast and definitely capable of winning the race today. Extremely frustrating, but a lot more racing to go.”

How did you feel about the race today overall?

“Just pretty disappointed. Our STANLEY/Pristine Auction Camry was every bit as capable of winning the race and finished seventh. Very happy that we’ve turned a corner and now we’re frustrated with seventh. It should have been a lot more today.”

When did you become so good at road racing?

“I don’t know, I guess just more experience and getting more laps on it and having really fast Camrys to drive. In this sport, you’re only as good as your race car and I’ve had really fast race cars he last couple of weeks.”

How does this race set you up for Indy next week?

“It should be good. Indy, we have practice so have a little more time to tune on it and make it better, but been really proud of Adam (Stevens, crew chief) and this 20 group to give us really fast Camrys and I expect that to be similar next week.”

About Toyota

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Ford Performance NASCAR: Harvick and Briscoe Post Top-10 Runs on Watkins Glen Road Course

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Official Release

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August 8, 2021

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series — Go Bowling at The Glen
Watkins Glen International | Sunday, August 8, 2021

FORD FINISHING RESULTS
8th — Kevin Harvick
9th — Chase Briscoe
11th — Matt DiBenedetto
14th — Ryan Blaney
16th — Aric Almirola
17th — Chris Buescher
18th — Cole Custer
21st — Michael McDowell
22nd — Joey Logano
25th — Ryan Newman
26th — Anthony Alfredo
30th — Kyle Tilley
33rd — Josh Bilicki
35th — Brad Keselowski

KEVIN HARVICK, No. 4 Busch Light Apple Ford Mustang — Finished 8th

“Our Busch Light Apple Ford was decent today. We just had to go into fuel mileage savings as soon as we came in the pits that last run, and just kind of ran our pace and finished where we finished because we couldn’t afford to run out of gas. So, they did a good job and had a good strategy. We scored a few stage points and had a solid finish, so we’ll go to the next one.”

CHASE BRISCOE, No. 14 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang — Finished 9th

“We’ve only got three top 10s now, so you’ll take any of them you can get. I felt like we ran up front a lot of the day, but still weren’t quite good enough. I felt like earlier in the race I was a little bit better and as the race went on I don’t know if the other guys got better or we just got worse. Obviously, we’re in a position where we’ve got to go win, so ninth doesn’t necessarily cut it for us, but, overall, it was a good day. We got stage points and finished in the top 10, so we’ll go on to Indy. We know we’ve got to get it better if we’re gonna win one of these and just from a balance standpoint I’ve still got to get better, too. We’ll go on to Indy and back home next week. Obviously, that one is super special, so we’ll try to capitalize there.”

MATT DIBENEDETTO, No. 21 Menards/Moen Ford Mustang — Finished 11th

“I think we were an eighth to 10th-place car. We probably finished a couple spots further back than what we could have got. We caught that whole group of cars at the end and just ran out of time. It was solid. We were lacking a little bit of speed, but it was a day I thought we maximized. We made good adjustments. Hassler made the perfect adjustment there at the end and it was as good as our car was gonna be without practice. There were things I wanted to change, but you can’t when you don’t have practice.”

CHEVY NCS AT WATKINS GLEN: Kyle Larson Race Winner Quote

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Official Release

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August 8, 2021

NASCAR CUP SERIES
WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL
GO BOWLING AT THE GLEN
TEAM CHEVY RACE WINNER QUOTE
AUGUST 8, 2021

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Race Winner Quick Quote

Kyle, what a great victory, but there in those closing laps, I have to ask, as you caught all those lap cars were you worried about losing the time there?
“Yeah, I was. Chase was already catching me pretty quick, even with me being in open track, so when I caught those, I think, four cars and got into the 38 right here, I thought I would look at my mirror and the 9 would be right on me, but thankfully had a comfortable enough gap to where I could make a mistake like that.”

“I want to say a big apology to Christopher Bell. I was inside but I wasn’t inside enough, and I didn’t — I needed to have the nose a few feet further ahead, and the angles just caught there in the middle and I ended up turning him. I hate that. I race with him a lot. He’s probably the one guy that I race with the most in all my racing, so hate to turn him like that. We’ve had incredible races together.”

“Anyways, hats off to Hendrickcars.com. Thanks for everything you guys do for me, everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, Rick Hendrick, Jeff Gordon, Cliff Daniels, this whole 5 bunch. Another amazing car. I could tell from about lap 3 after I stopped making a bunch of mistakes that we were going to have a car that could win today.”

This is your fifth win on the season, one of the most successful seasons of all time. What does it mean to come to Hendrick Motorsports and have this successful of a season?
“Yeah, it’s awesome. I mean, it really just shows how good the organization is, all the people that they’ve assembled at their race shop, all the men and women. All four of us could not be getting these wins like we have been without them. Thanks to them, and thanks to everybody else I get to race for. Get to go to Iowa this week and chase another big win, so looking forward to that, and hopefully can just keep racking these wins up.”

What do you want to say to another massive crowd here at Watkins Glen?
“Yeah, thanks all you guys for coming out. It’s been a while since we’ve been here, so hopefully we put on a good show for you. It was definitely a good show from my seat when the three of us were going at it for the lead in the first stage, then there in the second and third stage. Just a lot of fun today, and hope you guys enjoyed it.”

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.

Marcelli and Formal, Missig, Harrison win at Road America

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Official Release

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August 8, 2021

Elkhart Lake, Wis. (August 8, 2021) — The Wayne Taylor Racing stable swept the top two classes, dominating the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America weekend at Road America with five class wins, six podiums, and every driver finishing top five in class in both races. At the front, the driver pairing of Kyle Marcelli and Daniel Formal commandeered their No. 1 Prestige Performance machine to back-to-back overall wins from pole in the PRO class across the 50-minute races at the 4.048-mile circuit.

Jordan Missig, the sole driver of the No. 53 WTR car, drove brilliantly to overtake five cars and win the PRO|AM class in Race 1, finishing P4 overall. He proceeded to hold position and win the class again on Sunday. This weekend showcased the talent, work-ethic and growth of the 22-year-old, who is still quite new to sports car racing.

Ashton Harrison won Race 1 in the AM class in her Harrison Contracting with WTR No. 25, and despite contact early in Race 2, finished P3 in class for a second podium on the weekend.

Randy Sellari, driver of the No. 03 JG Wentworth LST drove consistently to secure a pair of impressive P4 AM class finishes. He gained two positions in Race 1 by extending his stint, leading the field and clocking fast laps as everyone else pitted. He then used the improved track position to good effect in Race 2.

Prestige Performance with Wayne Taylor Racing concluded rounds seven and eight of the 2021 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America season with success up and down the grid. The wins in the PRO category mark the fourth time in six years that WTR has come to Road America and swept the top class.

The Prestige Performance with Wayne Taylor Racing team will compete next at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca for Rounds Nine and Ten of the 2021 Lamborghini Super Trofeo Season on September 11-12. Race coverage will be broadcast live on IMSA.com/tvlive.

FINAL RESULTS: ROUND 7

PRO CLASS, No. 1 Prestige Performance with WTR Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo
Kyle Marcelli | Daniel Formal – P1 overall
Qualification by Practice 1 Timing – overall Pole

PRO|AM CLASS, No. 53 WTR Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo
Jordan Missig – P1 in class
Qualification by Practice 1 Timing – P3 in class

AM CLASS, No. 25 Harrison Contracting with Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo
Ashton Harrison – P1 in class
Qualification by Practice 1 Timing – P2 in class

AM CLASS, No. 03 JG Wentworth with Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo
Randy Sellari – P4 in class
Qualification by Randy Sellari – P6 in class

FINAL RESULTS: ROUND 8

PRO CLASS, No. 1 Prestige Performance with WTR Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo
Kyle Marcelli | Daniel Formal – P1 overall
Qualification by Round 7 Finishing Pos. – overall Pole

PRO|AM CLASS, No. 53 WTR Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo
Jordan Missig – P1 in class
Qualification by Round 7 Finishing Pos. – P1 in class

AM CLASS, No. 25 Harrison Contracting with Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo
Ashton Harrison – P3 in class
Qualification by Round 7 Finishing Pos. – P1 in class

AM CLASS, No. 03 JG Wentworth with Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo
Randy Sellari – P4 in class
Qualification by Round 7 Finishing Pos. – P4 in class
Kyle Marcelli, No. 1 Prestige Performance with Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo (PRO)
“A perfect weekend here in Wisconsin. The team really needed this. We’ve had our challenges up until now this season, although we had some podiums early on. We just haven’t quite had the speed that we needed. We made some big changes from Watkins Glen to Road America and it paid off. Again, thank you so much to Wayne Taylor Racing for putting the work in and figuring out what we needed to do. To get a pole position and two wins, just fantastic. Danny crushed it this weekend, I had a lot of fun behind the wheel and looking forward to the rest of the year.”

Daniel Formal, No. 1 Prestige Performance with Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo (PRO)
“What a weekend. We go two-for-two here at Road America for the seventh and eighth round of the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America series. The No. 1 Wayne Taylor Racing Car was on rails all weekend. I’m so thankful for the team, thankful for Kyle, we did a fantastic job. All the mechanics were working so hard the last month to get the car ready after what happened in Watkins Glen. Super happy. Max points, pole position and two race wins. Super excited for Laguna Seca and the world finals and hopefully we get to win some more.”

Ashton Harrison, No. 25 Harrison Contracting with Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Super Trofeo (AM)
“Happy with another podium here at Road America, unfortunately due to contact from another competitor we were struggling with steering and front end damage the entire race. Happy to have made up several spots to finish P3. Thankful for my coach Tom Long and the WTR team. Our HCC customers had an amazing weekend and that’s what matters! Onto Laguna!”

Randy Sellari, No. 03 JG Wentworth with Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Super Trofeo (AM)
“Overall the weekend was positive and I’m getting closer to the podium. I was able to improve on my race pace despite our shortened practices and a canceled qualifying. I am happy the team was able to walk away with a strong weekend and that we can carry this momentum into the next races at Laguna.”

Jordan Missig, No. 53 Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Super Trofeo (LB Cup)
“It’s been one of the best weekends I’ve ever had. Can’t say enough about the guys at Wayne Taylor Racing for putting together such a rocket ship, not just my car, but everybody’s car underneath the tent. We’ve all been fast in all three categories. Awesome to see for the team, but awesome to see myself get two wins on the season and sweep the weekend. Unbelievable job and looking to next year to build on the progress we made here, take the motivation to Laguna Seca, and hopefully we’ll be able to get more top five finishes and even some wins.”

Toyota Racing – NCS Watkins Glen Pre-Race Quotes – 08.08.21

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Official Release

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August 8, 2021

Toyota Racing – Pre-Race Media Availability
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

WATKINS GLEN, NY (August 8, 2021) – Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr. and Christopher Bell and 23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace were made available to media prior to the Watkins Glen race today:

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

What does it mean to be back at Watkins Glen?

“It’s great, love the racetrack, love the atmosphere here. It’s good. Rolling in here, it doesn’t seem like a couple years, but I guess it has. Looking forward to today.”

What do you remember from your win here in 2016?

“We just overcame some adversity and had a couple good restarts and won it. Really, just trying to improve overall the road course techniques that I’m using and hopefully we can take that next step and get another win today.”

What do you love about social media?

“I love it for the informational purposes. I never was someone before Twitter or anything to pick up a newspaper and read it for information purposes, so it keeps you in tune with everything going on.”

How do you feel about Bubba Wallace’s Playoff chances with four races remaining?

“His biggest chance is probably going to come at Daytona. That’s where he’s going to be the most competitive. As good of a shot as any really. It’s going to be a wild and crazy race and it always turns into some drama at the end figuring out who is going to get that last Playoff spot. We just hope it’s us.”

How do you feel 23XI Racing is progressing?

“Satisfied, so-so. Really, I think we need – I look at the finishes and they are trending downwards, I’m impatient like everyone else would be who’s competitive. I want to get those guys more competitive and get Bubba’s (Wallace) confidence back up. I think confidence is a big thing with him. He really hits highs and lows pretty often. How can we keep him a little bit more steady with his emotions and I think he’ll continue that trend in a good direction.”

Does it worry you that you are not technically locked into the Playoffs yet?

“Not really. It doesn’t worry me or anything like that, but really it’s just the battle with (Kyle) Larson that I’m focused on.”

What is the difference with your team this year compared to last year?

“I think our FedEx team has been good, we just have had the crazy stuff happen to us. Lugnut flying in the air at Loudon and taking us out of contention where I thought we probably had the best car. Crazy stuff has happened, but we’re still consistent and we’re up front every week. We’re top-three or four every week, it doesn’t matter what kind of race track we go to. Yeah, it’s agitating that we haven’t gotten a win still, but we’re in a good position in points and I want to keep that point lead for the regular season. If we can do that, I think that’s just as big as one or two wins we could get over the next four weeks.”

What are your thoughts on the Playoff format?

“I don’t know how you change it really. This is what we signed up for or this is what NASCAR wanted was a one-race, winner take all. It used to be a season, then it was 10 drivers then 12 drivers and then 16 drivers. It just kept getting bigger and bigger and the sample size kept getting smaller and smaller. It is what it is. I think you really gauge yourself off of race wins more so than anything right now. I think race win is what we go after every year is to get a handful of them and get yourself to the final four. Then hopefully your fast enough to win it. It’s so hard because the best car over the course of the season like Kevin Harvick last year didn’t make it. I don’t know. I don’t know what’s fair.”

Is Indy the same Indy without running the oval?

“We lost a crown jewel. People hated the racing. I don’t know. Are they really going to get more people out to the road course than what they did for the Brickyard 400? I’m not sure. I don’t love it; I don’t love the move. It took away a crown jewel. I don’t think anyone will consider the Indy road course any sort of crown jewel race. Indy, because of the oval track, that’ what makes Indy so special. I don’t think it’s the last time we’ll be back on the Brickyard on the oval. We can’t just keep adding road courses and just keep adding road courses, everything is cool the first time. The second time…although we might have a good crowd next weekend for the road course, year two, I think it’s going to be back to, where’s all the people? Maybe alternate or something, but certainly I think the Brickyard is special and Indy is special because of the oval, not because of the road course.”

KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 Snickers Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

What does it mean to be back at Watkins Glen?

“It’s good. One of my favorite courses here at Watkins Glen. Enjoy this place every year. Kind of bittersweet missing it last year. Nice to be back this year. Hopefully, we can have a good, solid run today.”

Are you able to take in the surroundings at this track?

“Obviously, every year we try to head over to the waterfall and do the hike over there at the gorge, but other than that, it’s just laying back. A lot of guys just showed up today, they’re in and out today. We’re on a whirlwind tour these two weeks of racing with Brexton (Busch, son) so we ran up here in Syracuse with the quarter midget club so that was really fun. He had a good time up there playing with the kids. We’ll be back in the Midwest tomorrow doing some more racing with him.”

Was it a relief that Chandler Smith made the Playoffs in NCWTS yesterday?

“Yes and no. Definitely making the Playoffs is a relief, but a lot of simple mistakes being made over there. We’ve got to clean that up and be better here for these final seven weeks. They’re in a hole, they’re starting in a hole and they’re behind, so they’ve got to do about everything perfect in order to get themselves where they need to be and score some stage points, try to get a couple wins and get themselves further up.”

What are the messages you’ve sent to John Hunter Nemechek regarding wins and championships?

“No doubt. That’s kind of the reason why we got John Hunter (Nemechek), he’s got good experience, but he’s also a good driver and does a good job behind the wheel. We’ve seen that so far this year. Looked like they were off a little bit yesterday, probably about a sixth-place truck or so and he got a second out of it. Good points day for those guys, but the wins are where it’s at with the bonus points and everything in order to get yourself to that final four. I think they’ll have a good shot at that.”

Is John Hunter Nemechek getting better as a driver or is the perception changing because he’s in better equipment?

“I would like to think he’s (John Hunter Nemechek) getting better. I would like to think that some of the help that I’ve been giving him and the talks that we’ve been having is certainly helping him in that regard. He is a good driver, he’s just in good stuff and he’s starting to get that recognition. When he was in his dad’s (Joe Nemechek) stuff, he was doing a good job for what his Dad’s stuff was, but it wasn’t quite the recognition as being with KBM (Kyle Busch Motorsports) and running up front each and every race and finishing top-five every week. That’s certainly been a big bonus for him and the look he’s getting now.”

Is Indy still Indy without running on the oval track?

“For my opinion and my perception, I don’t view it as Indy, no. Indy is the oval. That’s what makes the allure of Indy and that’s the prestige of the place and being around since 1900. It’s been there forever; it has a lot of history there. Spin and win with Sullivan and Mears and AJ Foyt and the Unser story and all that stuff for years. The Andretti story – all of that is IndyCar obviously, but then it all started in 1994 with NASCAR going there and Jeff Gordon winning five times and Earnhardt winning and Dale Jarrett winning, Bobby Labonte winning. It’s like the who’s who has won the Brickyard 400. I don’t foresee that being the same allure being on the road course.”

Does it make a difference that F1 raced on the road course at Indy?

“I don’t know, when the winner wins next week do, they get out and do a kiss on the bricks?”

How does Brexton’s Midwest tour get set?

“Day by day, just looking at it. We had a few of our friends that we raced with at Millbridge, they’re all up here with us. The Millers and Kyle Beaty and his kid, there’s seven of us I guess that are all kind of doing this. They told us all about it and how do you look at what the last race was in the Midwest and then I have to come to New York and there were two days of a break and two days of nothing so is there anything to do in those two days for Brexton. I looked up the Syracuse quarter midget club and a guy reached out to us and offered up his car so that was super nice of them. Really enjoyed being able to go out there and spend time with those guys. Owen King is the kid’s name of Brexton’s kart that he ran.”

What is it that you like about racing at Watkins Glen?

“Just enjoy road racing. You used to only have two a year and you kind of treated them like an off weekend – come in, have fun and try to run hard and what not. Now, there’s four, five, six of them or whatever it is so there’s a bit more work involved to it, but still feel as though it’s a fun track. Always enjoy coming here and I’ve always been fast here. It’s nice when you have a shot to come up to a track that you know you can guarantee yourself a top-three and go shoot for a race win.”

How big of a factor is it when you lose a crew chief hours before the race?

“It’s a big factor, right? If we didn’t need the crew chiefs then we wouldn’t come here with them. We come with them here for a reason and that’s for them to be able to orchestrate our team and kind of be the head coach of everything that’s going on and to make sure we’re getting all we need out of all our team members around the team. We’ve got, but I guess the 20 (Christopher Bell) and the 9 (Chase Elliott) have gotten a shift in today and maybe that will be a little bit different for their race program, but probably not a whole lot. I’m sure they’ll be somewhere on a cell phone or a radio anyway.”

Do you think you’ll have to knock the rust off the first few laps after not racing here since 2019?

“A little bit, yeah, but the simulator and everything everybody does these days, that’s kind of the way of knocking the rust off. I did that earlier last week and was able to do some of that stuff to run some laps and just familiarize myself again with the line that you run around here, and the braking points you do. It’s embedded in my mind anyway from running here for so many years. It’s a good opportunity to get going again with the sim.”

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 19 Reser’s Fine Foods Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

What does it mean to be back at Watkins Glen?

“It means a lot and feels good. I’m excited about it and have a great crowd here today. Excited about the opportunity to go win another race at this place.”

Do you see yourself as a stronger contender this weekend with the package?

“I’m not sure. We ran second with both the low and high downforce last two times we were here so just have to wait and see how it goes. No practice is always a challenge, but hopefully we showed up with the right stuff and we can drive forward from ninth.”

What have been the big strengths in your career when it comes to road course racing?

“I don’t know, just having experience and having confidence and having great race cars. I think those are the three keys. This place has been good to us, and we’ll see what we can do today.”

What can you say about Ty Gibbs’ success and his win here yesterday?

“Very impressive. Obviously, everything he’s (Ty Gibbs) done this year has been crazy impressive at 18 without having a lot of experience and new tracks, no practice. It’s pretty impressive. He’s on his way.”

How do you compare Watkins Glen to other road courses like Sonoma or Road America?

“It’s definitely its own kind of place. It’s high grip and repaved not long ago so high traction and really fast. This is a fast momentum road course that we go to so it’s own unique challenge and it’s a fun one to drive on.”

What are your thoughts on going to the road course at Indy next weekend?

“No idea. All I know about is what I’ve seen on TV so got a lot of homework to do this week obviously to get prepared and ready for practice on Saturday there. It will be fun. Exciting to go to new tracks and I like road courses as well so it should be good.”

Do you do much simulator work?

“Oh yeah, if you don’t today, you might as well stay home. It’s just the way it is. Especially with no practice and a new track coming up. I think everybody does and there’s so many tools available today, it’s almost like we’re becoming robots. If you don’t use those things and the tools available, you’re going to be behind.”

How does it impact you to have a new tire changer on the car today?

“We hope it doesn’t impact things. Honestly, at the end of the day you hope he’s ready to go. Tough circumstances the way it all worked out because he didn’t even test positive, he was around somebody who did. It’s kind of weird times as we all know, but hopefully it doesn’t affect us.”

How do you feel about where your team is currently with the Playoffs coming up?

“I think somewhere in the summer we hit a speed bump and started having some bad luck and crashes and crazy things. Loudon, it started raining and we crashed and still came back and finished 12th. It’s been a battle but feeling really good about the team and where we’re at and what we can do. Obviously, this place has been really good to us and hopefully we can have a good day today.”

Is your mental health important and do you get down when the performance isn’t on target?

“I think you have to be pretty mentally strong to be a race car driver. We’re having a great season and we’ve won three races; we’ve lost a lot. I guess maybe our sport is different in that we get trained to lose more than we win no matter how good you are. You have to have pretty thick skin and pretty tough mental attitude to do this stuff.”

Do you expect to have to knock off rust these first few laps at Watkins Glen?
“I don’t think so. For the first two or three laps, everywhere you go, it’s always on a road course like this you’re trying to feel things out and not make a big mistake or go off track or whatever. I know my marks, I know where I need to be and just tying, starting ninth to work through that a little bit. Not really rust, just re-acclimation. It always takes a lap or two, particularly here because it’s so fast to hit your marks exactly.”

Where does Watkins Glen rank for you in favorite tracks?

“I don’t know. It’s up there for sure. I have a hard time ranking favorite tracks. You’re favorite one is your next win, I guess. Hopefully that will be us here today.”

CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 STANLEY Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

How does it feel to be back at Watkins Glen?

“Yeah, finally. It feels like it’s been a while. It’s been since ’19, right? I’m excited. It’s been a place that I’ve run decent at. I don’t have a ton of laps here, but I’m excited about road course racing today. It’s obviously been good for us this year so I think we can potentially have a great run.”

What is your mindset with the penalty and your crew chief being ejected?
“It will be tough. It’s pretty tough to pass here, but throughout the last couple races at least, we’ve had to go to the back. It just puts us a little bit behind, but I’m not too concerned about it. I think we’ll work our way up.”

Do you concern yourself too much with what happens in inspection pre-race?

“It obviously caught me off guard, but it is what it is. Just have to start a little further back and not having Adam (Stevens, crew chief) on the pit box will be a little bit of a hinderance, but I have all the faith in the world that Joe Gibbs Racing is going to come through and we’re going to have really, really great Camrys and I think we’re going to be racing up front today.”

What do you have to do differently behind the wheel today?

“I was talking to Adam (Stevens, crew chief) and asked him if it affects our strategy at all and he said not really. Just I have to work a little bit harder to pass guys. It would have been nice to start up front at Watkins Glen, especially not having laps here in a Cup car ever and then only two Xfinity races. It would have been nice to start up front with the experienced guys and learn from them. On the other hand, starting in the back, the pace will be a lot slower, so I have a little more time to get up to speed.”

Are you able to rely on any information gained from the Joe Gibbs Racing Xfinity teams?

“It will be a lot, especially with the way the rules packages are today, the Cup cars and the Xfinity cars are way more similar than what they’ve been in years past. I’m sure the crew chiefs are really looking at the data from yesterday.”

Who will be on the radio with you today?

“I believe Chris Sherwood, who is our car chief and he’s going to be substituting.”

What will you talk with Chris about today that you will need to inform him about?

“I don’t really think it changes too much. I don’t hear from Adam (Stevens, crew chief) very much on the radio during the races, so I think we’re in a pretty good spot where I don’t think it’s going to impact me or at least for me inside the car. I don’t know how much it’s going to affect the team because obviously I don’t see that side of it whenever I’m racing. I don’t hear from Adam very much on the radio.”

What are good passing zones here at Watkins Glen?

“Really your passing zones are where you have really fast mile per hour to really slow mile per hour. Turn one, turn six are really good. The bus stop is a great opportunity to pass, but unfortunately, it’s really hard to pass there just because it’s such a quick turn right, turn left that it’s really hard to be side-by-side there. One and six are really your safe passing zones without contact.”

Is the big challenge keeping the fenders clean?

“Yes, especially the Cup Series and these cars are so fragile. Starting in the back now, I’m going to have to be really careful to not cave a fender in and Watkins Glen is really high speed. It’s going to be very important to make sure that all four of the corners are nice and pretty.”

Will Indy still be Indy being on the road course and not the oval?

“I definitely think the feeling is going to be different for sure. We all grew up watching the oval at Indy so it’s definitely going to be a lot different.”

Have you done simulator work for Indy and what is the curbing like?

“Four and five has temporary curbing. I don’t know what the finished product is going to be, but I know what’s in our simulator and that’s definitely going to be a very key area because there’s a lot of area to be gained by manipulating the curbs and understanding how much you can run over and how much you can’t run over. It’s going to be really interesting to see what the final product is and you’re going to have to pay attention to that because that’s going to be a lot of time gained or lost.”

How much have you leaned on your teammates experience here to prepare?

“Kyle (Busch) is probably our benchmark going into Watkins Glen. You look at the racetracks and Sonoma is probably Martin’s (Truex Jr.) best track and Kyle’s definitely one of the best here at Watkins Glen. I got to race with him as a teammate a couple years ago in the Xfinity Series and he pretty much smoked us. I think he had a DNF that day, but his car was really fast. Really paying attention to his driving style and what he does to get around here. Hopefully I can mimic it.”

Did you talk to Ty Gibbs after his win yesterday?

“I haven’t got to talk to Ty (Gibbs), no.”

BUBBA WALLACE, No. 23 Toyota Toyota Camry, 23XI Racing

How much do you feel like you needed this reset?

“The off-weeks were good. You obviously need that for mental and physical reset. It’s good to be back at the track though. You get kind of used to enjoying the off weeks, being lazy for a little bit, but we’ve got 14 races left. It’s time to really jump start our season here and finish off on a strong note.”

Road courses have kind of been a struggle throughout your career. What kind of work have you put in to making them better?

“I’ve done a lot of sim time, looking over a lot of SMT data, too, data from the sim, watching YouTube videos, just figuring out where everybody is faster. Our main topic when we go into these races is the 9 car (Chase Elliott), just figuring out where he is beating us and a lot of it is the braking zone and carrying speed through the bus stop. It seems like the 19 (Martin Truex Jr.) can hang with him, but the 9 just has an advantage just a little bit to edge him out. Excited about today. I’ve always loved racing at Watkins Glen. The weather looks good. I wish it was raining. It would be a little bit more of an equalizer, but all-in-all, we will go out and utilize everything I’ve learned leading out to this point and see what I can do.”

What does it mean to be back in New York?

“It feels good. It’s been two years since we’ve been here. The track is a lot of fun. Fans are great, so it should be a good day.”

Is it hard to balance out all of the exciting life news with the racing?

“No, I think we obviously know the priorities. The engagement and the house stuff. That’s all-long-term stuff. We know that we have 14 races left. I’m focused. She was trying to have a conversation last night about some house plans and I’m just like ‘yep’ and she sees me watching YouTube videos of the race here. She got it very quickly. It’s all good.”

What do you need to do over these next four races to make the Playoffs?

“Win. Do our best here. We’ve got a lot of ground to make up points wise these next four races. I don’t think we can point our way in anymore with these last two wins from Kurt (Busch) and Aric (Almirola). That really put us behind. That’s the way the sport goes. We really got to win, but do our best here, come out of here on a positive note, come out of Indy in a positive note. I’m really excited for Michigan. Our mile-and-a-half stuff – that package is really good, and I’ve ran really strong there in the past. I’m excited for that, and then Daytona, we know our Toyota Camrys are strong, specifically at Speedweeks this year was really good, so we will just have to give it our all and survive.”

With the NASCAR schedule going to more tracks this year, does not having a second race at tracks hurt new teams?

“Yes and no. We have our notes from last year and what to expect and look at the JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) debriefs before each and every race. We are looking at the new one and learning as much as we can. We are shooting blind the first race, and then you will get it better the second time around. We pick and choose, but sometimes you show up and you hit it right. It’s just a matter of me giving the correct feedback and getting our packages where we want to be. Our mile-and-a-half stuff is really, really good, and it seems like when we show up to Michigan, I think we will have a good baseline, but that is from all of the mile-and-a-halves that we have. We have that package secure and where we want it – get it a little bit better and we will be alright.”

Do you see Daytona as your best chance to win to get into the Playoffs?
“I hate being reminded of the 400. That one still stings, way worse than the 500, three years ago. Daytona is obviously one that is circled and highlighted on the calendar. I know we can go out and do good things, we just have to not overtry and overstep our boundaries and be there at the end.”

How would you grade your season?
“Our progress is continuing to build. It’s really hard. We talked about no practice or showing up to these places for a second time – those are the races that you look forward to the most. It’s an unknown. Those guys are working hard, and I’m giving them the feedback that hey, I like this, I like that from the 43 car, let’s try to build that in there. All of these cars react differently. As similar as they are, they all react differently from driving styles and different drivers too. I’m excited to get to these tracks for a second time, but I’m also just excited to see what we have. The unknown of being excited about that, but I’m excited about our progress. I’m really looking forward to what the years have to come.”

What makes a good superspeedway driver?

“I don’t know. The races all play out so differently. If you go back and watch the 400 from last year, it’s like this happened, this happened, well, that’s not going to happen again. What’s the chances – again, very slim to none. You just have to be there and be smart and put yourself in smart situations to be there at the end. If you are there for the last lap – we always say, if you are there in the last five laps, man, we’ve had 10 cautions in the last five laps, so it’s setting ourselves up, making sure our teammates have some help, creating some allies on the racetrack to go out and execute and get a win. In the last lap at Daytona, I’ve came from 20th to fifth. Driving a little pissed off helps too.”

You’ve become one of the mainstream faces of the sport, does that come with any added pressure?

“If you let it. Obviously, I look different. I kind of act different than other drivers, and I accept that. I’m comfortable with my own skin and being who I am. I still focus on what we need to do on the racetrack, winning races and being competitive, going out and being the best that I can be on the track and letting everything else fall into place.”

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Ty Gibbs scores third Xfinity career win at Watkins Glen

By

Andrew Kim

-

August 8, 2021

WATKINS GLEN, NEW YORK - AUGUST 07: Ty Gibbs, driver of the #54 Monster Energy Toyota, celebrates in the Ruoff Mortgage in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey at Watkins Glen International on August 07, 2021 in Watkins Glen, New York. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images).

In a late shootout between a future star and a pair of road-course ringers, rookie Ty Gibbs came out on top after the Charlotte, North Carolina, native fended off late challenges from AJ Allmendinger and Austin Cindric to win the Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey 200 at Watkins Glen International on Saturday, August 7. The victory at The Glen was Gibbs’ third of his Xfinity Series career and his third of the season while coming in his 10th series start.

The starting lineup was based on a performance metric formula, weighing the driver’s and owner’s results from a previous Xfinity event, the owner points position and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Xfinity race. With that, Justin Allgaier started on pole position and was joined on the front row with Austin Cindric, winner of the recent Xfinity Glen event in 2019.

Prior to the event, Ryan Sieg and Jesse Little started at the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective machines.

When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Allgaier and Cindric battled dead even for the lead until Cindric managed to pull ahead through the Esses. Through the backstretch, the Inner Loop, the Bus Stop and the seven-turn, 2.45-mile circuit, Cindric managed to lead the first lap. Behind, Ryan Sieg and David Smith spun in Turn 6, but the field continued to compete under green.

Three laps later and while Cindric continued to lead, the caution flew due to Michael Munley wrecking into the tire barriers in Turn 5.

The race restarted on the eighth lap. At the start, Cindric maintained the lead while AJ Allmendinger moved into second place over Allgaier while teammates Harrison Burton and Daniel Hemric battled in the top five ahead of their other teammate, Ty Gibbs, and the field.

When the competition caution flew on Lap 10, Cindric was still leading. Under the competition caution, some led by Austin Dillon pitted while the rest remained on the track.

On Lap 13, the race restarted with Cindric and Allmendinger leading the field. Behind, the No. 99 Chevrolet of Kyle Tilley was turned and spun past the start/finish line, but the race continued under green.

At the front, Cindric maintained the lead ahead of Allmendinger, Daniel Hemric, Allgaier and Ty Gibbs. Behind, Kris Wright spun near Turn 11, but the race continued under green.

In the closing laps of the first stage, names like Allgaier, rookie Ty Gibbs, Myatt Snider, Brandon Brown, Alex Labbe and Josh Williams pitted under green.

Back at the front, Cindric remained uncontested and was able to win the first stage on Lap 20. Allmendinger settled in second followed by Hemric, Harrison Burton, Jeb Burton, Justin Haley, Gragson, Brandon Jones, Riley Herbst and Sam Mayer.

Under the stage break, some led by Cindric and Allmendinger pitted while the rest led by Harrison Burton remained on the track. By then, Labbe lost an axle.

The second stage started on Lap 24. At the start, Harrison Burton managed to retain the lead until his teammate, Brandon Jones, took it through the Esses. A lap later, Gibbs muscled his way into the lead. Behind, teammate Daniel Hemric spun in Turn 1, but he was able to continue with the race remaining under green.

On Lap 34, the caution flew when Alex Labbe spun and got his car stuck in Turn 1. Under caution, names like Myatt Snider, Jeb Burton, Justin Haley and others pitted while the rest led by Gibbs remained on the track.

When the race restarted on Lap 36, Allmendinger issued a challenge and managed to overtake Gibbs through the Esses.

Despite being pressured by Gibbs, Allmendinger managed to retain the top spot over Gibbs and win the second stage on Lap 40. Settling in third was Cindric followed by Allgaier, Gragson, Herbst, Mayer, Michael Annett, Erik Jones and Hemric.

Under the stage break, several names led by Allmendinger pitted while the rest led by Gibbs remained on the track.

With 41 laps remaining, the final stage commenced. At the start, Gibbs managed to fend off Cindric for the lead while Mayer moved up to third ahead of teammate Gragson and Harrison Burton. Two laps later, Gibbs managed to extend his advantage to more than a second over Cindric and the field.

On Lap 49, the caution flew due to Matt Mills getting into the tire barriers out of the bus stop turn. The incident occurred as Mills was trying to avoid the No. 52 car of David Smith.

Under caution, few led by Hemric remained on the track while the rest pitted. During the pit stops, Riley Herbst was busted for speeding on pit road and rookie Sam Mayer was penalized for an over-the-wall too soon penalty.

With 32 laps remaining, the race restarted. At the start, Hemric, who did not pit under the last caution, led the field ahead of Bayley Currey and Brandon Jones.

On Lap 56, Hemric surrendered the lead to teammate Gibbs to pit. By then, Austin Dillon pitted and then took his No. 23 Our Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro to the garage due to a mechanical issue.

On Lap 59, Jeremy Clements spun following contact from Jeb Burton, but the race continued under green.

Six laps later, Brandon Jones and Allgaier pitted for service. Shortly after, Kris Wright spun following contact with Sam Mayer in the bus stop, but the field continued under green.

Then on Lap 68, the caution flew when Erik Jones, driving the No. 31 Chevrolet Camaro for Jordan Anderson Racing, lost his brakes and wrecked hard in Turn 6, with his damaged car getting stuck in the gravel trap.

Under caution, names like Gibbs, Cindric, Allmendinger, Harrison Burton, Jeb Burton, Brandon Jones, Tommy Joe Martins, Landon Cassill, Kyle Weatherman, Allgaier and Clements remained on the track while the rest pitted.

With 12 laps remaining, the race restarted. At the start, Gibbs was leading until he went wide in Turn 1, which allowed Cindric to muscle ahead. While Gibbs, tried to peak ahead through Turn 7, Cindric maintained the lead. A lap later, though, Gibbs was back in the lead.

Just under the final laps, the caution flew due to Kyle Weatherman stopping on the track in the backstretch and climbing out of his car.

Down to the final four laps of the event, the race restarted. At the start, Allmendinger managed to pull ahead through the Esses. Behind, Hemric spun in Turn 1 again.

A lap later, Gibbs was able to take the lead back from Allmendinger through Turn 6. From there, Gibbs went to work in fending off Allmendinger and Cindric with the top spot. Allgaier settled in fourth behind the three front-runners while Harrison Burton, Brandon Jones and Gragson battled for a spot in the top five.

When the white flag waved to signal the final lap of the race, Gibbs remained ahead of Allmendinger and Cindric.

For a final lap, Gibbs was able to navigate his No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Supra through the seven-turn course and streak across the finish line in first place for his third checkered flag of the season.

The victory was the 10th of the season for Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 54 Toyota Supra team, three of which came from Gibbs, as Gibbs also collected his second road-course victory of the season.

“I felt like [Cindric] got a really great restart the restart before and he got a little wide,” Gibbs, who led a race-high 43 of 82 laps, said on CNBC. “First of all, I have to say thank you to the man above. That was probably the most fun race I’ve ever been in with AJ and with[Justin Allgaier] and [Cindric], those guys are very experienced veterans in this racing series. To be able to race and beat them just means a lot. I learned a lot from them too. I just can’t thank Monster Energy, [Toyota Racing Development]. My Toyota Racing Supra was super fast today and this is just a dream come true…This is just wonderful – I can’t even believe it.”

Behind Gibbs, Allmendinger and Cindric, two road-course ringers and Xfinity Series full-time competitors whom led a combined 28 of 82 laps and battled for the win at The Glen in 2019, finished in second and third.

“[The 54 car]’s a fast car,” Allmendinger said. “Ty was doing a great job. We weren’t very good a couple years ago, so we went with a completely different setup. The Hyperice Chevy was pretty solid; second-best race car, unfortunately. Gibbs is tough and that No. 54 car, all year, has been tough. Ty did a great job. He was clean, made a great move on me. I couldn’t do really anything to defend it…I’m ready to go win at the Brickyard [next weekend].”

Allgaier came home in fourth while Harrison Burton finished in the top five. Brandon Jones crossed the finish line in sixth followed by Gragson, Jeb Burton, Haley and Sam Mayer.

Michael Annett, who returned following a two-race absence, finished 11th ahead of Brandon Brown, Herbst, Josh Williams and Myatt Snider. Clements and Sieg finished 16th and 18th while Hemric fell back to 22nd following his late spin.

There were 12 lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured eight cautions for 15 laps.

With his 13th top-five result of the season, Austin Cindric continues to lead the regular-season standings by 80 points over AJ Allmendinger.

Results.

1. Ty Gibbs, 43 laps led

2. AJ Allmendinger, six laps led, Stage 2 winner

3. Austin Cindric, 22 laps led, Stage 1 winner

4. Justin Allgaier

5. Harrison Burton, three laps led

6. Brandon Jones, one lap led

7. Noah Gragson

8. Jeb Burton

9. Justin Haley

10. Sam Mayer

11. Michael Annett

12. Brandon Brown

13. Riley Herbst

14. Josh Williams

15. Myatt Snider

16. Jeremy Clements

17. Kris Wright

18. Ryan Sieg

19. Tommy Joe Martins

20. Landon Cassill

21. Jade Buford

22. Daniel Hemric, seven laps led

23. Preston Pardus

24. Josh Bilicki

25. Jeffrey Earnhardt

26. Brett Moffitt

27. Jesse Little

28. Stephen Leicht

29. Timmy Hill, one lap down

30. Joe Graf Jr., one lap down

31. Colby Howard, one lap down

32. Bayley Currey, one lap down

33. Dave Smith, two laps down

34. Kyle Weatherman – OUT, Electrical

35. Michael Munley – OUT, Suspension

36. Erik Jones – OUT, Accident

37. Austin Dillon – OUT, Chassis

38. Matt Mills – OUT, Accident

39. Alex Labbe – OUT, Rear gear

40. Kyle Tilley – OUT, Dvp

Next on the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is another road course venue as the series will compete at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course on Saturday, August 14. The event is scheduled to start at 4 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

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