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CHEVY NCS AT BRISTOL DIRT: Post-Race Notes and Quotes

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Official Release
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NASCAR CUP SERIES
BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
FOOD CITY DIRT RACE
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES & QUOTES
MARCH 29, 2021

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
2nd RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE
4th DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 CAMPING WORLD CAMARO ZL1 1LE
6th WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE
7th TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 BETMGM CAMARO ZL1 1LE
9th ERIK JONES, NO. 43 TIDE CAMARO ZL1 1LE
10th CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE

TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st Joey Logano (Ford)
2nd Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (Chevrolet)
3rd Denny Hamlin (Toyota)
4th Daniel Suarez (Chevrolet)
5th Ryan Newman (Ford)

The NASCAR Cup Series season continues in two weeks at Martinsville Speedway for the Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 on Saturday, April 10, at 7:30 P.M. ET. Live coverage can be found on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES:

RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 2nd
BRINGING IT HOME IN SECOND PLACE, YOU GUYS HAD TO MAKE SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THIS RACE CAR ALL DAY LONG. FINALLY AT THE END, IT LOOKED REALLY GOOD.
“Yeah, our Kroger Camaro was really good on the long run; we needed a little bit more NOS Energy Drink for the restarts. I just couldn’t get going; couldn’t get the turn in the race car that we needed. But we made a ton of adjustments and we kind of went back and forth overnight of what we were going to do. (Kyle) Larson and I came out and hung with the track crew. Steve Swift and the boys did a great job of getting this thing raceable today with all the rain and all the challenges that they had.”
“Man, we had a blast. At the start of the race, I was terrible with the green race track and a little bit of moisture in it. But as it blew off, we got back to where we were in practice and felt really good with it. A good way to go into the off week. I’m going to go run my sprint car with my dad this weekend. Hope everyone has a good Easter. Go get some NOS Energy Drink at Kroger!”

DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 CAMPING WORLD CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 4th
LESS THAN A WEEK AGO, YOU GOT ON DIRT FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME. TODAY YOU LED 58 LAPS IN THE CUP RACE AND FINISHED FOURTH. HOW IN THE WORLD DID YOU DO IT?
“To be honest, I had no idea what I was doing. But we’re having fun. Everyone at Trackhouse Racing did an amazing job. This is the second week in a row that we’ve had very fast race cars capable of running in the Top-5, Top-10. I couldn’t be more proud of all these guys (like) Justin Marks, Ty Norris, and everyone that helps in this program; Camping World, Chevy, CommScope. Everyone has been a huge support of myself. It just feels so good to be back. It’s been a little bit difficult the last year, and it feels so good to be able to race with these guys and to have some fun up front. Hopefully our time will come soon.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 6th
“We had a lot of fun today. I felt like we were really good in Stage 1 and 2, and then I got too loose. The car just didn’t have enough to lean on and we struggled on the restarts because of that. We got it really good by the end and came back from eleventh to sixth. It was good; a lot better than I would have thought. We’ll move onto Martinsville and try to win that one.”

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 BETMGM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 7th
“That was a tough day for everybody out there, but I’m really proud of my BetMGM team for sticking with me all day long. It was truly a battle out there to keep up with the changing track conditions. I felt like we had everything come at us today. Our No. 8 BetMGM Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE fired off too loose and then built too tight as the track changed. Visibility was a huge challenge too. My spotter, Derek Kneeland, did a great job helping me through all the restarts when I couldn’t see anything on the track with all the dust. Towards the end of Stage 2, my engine temps started pegging and we were all worried that was going to ruin our race, but thankfully a caution came out at the right time. I was able to cool it off long enough under yellow to make it to the stage break and have my team work on it. We had a shot at a top-five at the end today, but I went for it on the top and the grip just wasn’t there like I hoped. But overall, a really good day for us. We’ll take this top-10 finish and build on it in a couple weeks at Martinsville Speedway.”

ERIK JONES, NO. 43 TIDE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 9th
“It was a good day for our No. 43 Tide Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at the Bristol Motor Speedway. We started a little bit further back in the lineup, and worked our way towards the top-10. Our Richard Petty Motorsports team ended up getting some good stage points throughout the day (Stage 2, 8th-place) and ended up coming home in the ninth place. It was a solid day. What we were looking for today was getting back towards the top 10, and I think our Chevrolet Camaro was probably a little bit better than that even. We just kind of ran out of laps and ran out of time the way the race was sectioned out.”

“We got some good notes. It sounds like we are going to do this again in the future, so hopefully we can take something we learned from today, move forward with it and bring it back next time.”

KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 16th
“We tried the slow and steady approach, tried to keep all the fenders on the Monster Energy Chevy, maybe that was too much of the old man sequence. Not many scratches on it, but not much speed, just tried to take care of it. It was good to see fans back at the track. Me and Harvick were back there trying to hold each other up!”

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 22nd
“Not how we wanted to end our day. We lost fourth gear early on and it just affected the rest of our race. I really think we could have been up front at the end. It’s going to be nice to have a weekend off this week and we will come back strong in Martinsville.”

ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 42 CLOVER CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 35th
“Just a disappointing day for the Clover team. We were making progress and working to see how the track conditions would change. Unfortunately, we didn’t even make it to the end of the first stage. Just a wrong place at the wrong time kind of moment.”
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 75 countries with nearly 4 million cars and trucks sold in 2019. 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 www.chevrolet.com.

RCR Post Race Report – Food City Dirt Race

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Official Release
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Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet Team Fight Through Long Afternoon at Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Race

Finish: 21st
Start: 9th
Points: 11th

“What a day at Bristol Motor Speedway. We fought hard all day, but we just never had the Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet we needed. It’s perplexing because it was a night and day difference from our practice sessions to the race. The team never gave up and worked all day to improve our handling. We’ll go back to Welcome to evaluate everything and start working on a game plan for next year’s race.” -Austin Dillon

Tyler Reddick Capitalizes on Wild Race to Claim Seventh-Place Finish in BetMGM Chevrolet at Inaugural Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Race

Finish: 7th
Start: 27th
Points: 25th

“That was a tough day for everybody, but I’m really proud of my BetMGM team for sticking with me all day long. It was truly a battle out there to keep up with the changing track conditions. I felt like we had everything come at us today. Our No. 8 BetMGM Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE fired off too loose and then built too tight as the track changed. Visibility was a huge challenge too. My spotter, Derek Kneeland, did a great job helping me through all the restarts when I couldn’t see anything on the track with all the dust. Towards the end of Stage 2, my engine temps started pegging and we were all worried that was going to ruin our race, but thankfully a caution came out at the right time. I was able to cool it off long enough under yellow to make it to the stage break and have my team work on it. We had a shot at a top-five at the end today, but I went for it on the top and the grip just wasn’t there like I hoped. But overall, a really good day for us. We’ll take this top-10 finish and build on it in a couple weeks at Martinsville Speedway.” -Tyler Reddick

Ford Performance NASCAR: Logano and Mustang Win Inaugural Bristol Cup Dirt Race

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Official Release
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Ford Performance Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series – Food City Dirt Race
Bristol Motor Speedway | Monday, March 29, 2021

FORD FINISHING RESULTS:
1st — Joey Logano
5th — Ryan Newman
8th — Ryan Blaney
11th — Brad Keselowski
12th — Michael McDowell
13th — Matt DiBenedetto
14th — Chris Buescher
15th — Kevin Harvick
20th — Chase Briscoe
24th — Cole Custer
30th — Josh Bilicki
36th — Aric Almirola
37th — Shane Golobic
39th — Anthony Alfredo

JOEY LOGANO AND MUSTANG WIN INAUGURAL BRISTOL DIRT CUP RACE

  • Joey Logano won his first race of the season with today’s victory.
  • The win is Ford’s first Cup win on dirt since David Pearson won at the State Fairgrounds in Raleigh, NC, on June 26, 1969.
  • The win today is the 27th of his Cup Series career and 25th with Ford.
  • Today’s win is Ford’s 707th all-time in NASCAR Cup Series competition.
  • Of Team Penske’s 81 MENCS wins with Ford, 54 have come since rejoining Ford in 2013.

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang — VICTORY LANE INTERVIEW

HOW DO YOU SUM THIS UP? “Man, it’s incredible. How about Bristol on dirt? This is incredible, unbelievable racetrack — great job by everyone that prepped the track. Obviously, a lot of work over here the last few days. We did a lot of work in the dirt department here the last few weeks. My buddy Ryan Flores and my car chief Jerry Kelley doing a good job with the modified and just making laps and learning where I was going. A lot of that helped. Kevin Buskirk helped a lot, too. He has a lot of knowledge and obviously Paul Wolfe, this team, great car obviously to be able to execute the race that we did and get a win. I was getting nervous. There were so many first-time winners and different winners than there has typically been I said, ‘We’ve got to get a win to make sure we get in the playoffs,’ so it’s amazing to get this Shell/Pennzoil Mustang into Victory Lane at Bristol. There’s nothing like winning at Bristol, but putting dirt on it and being the first to do it is really special.”

TAKE US THROUGH THE CHANGING TRACK CONDITIONS ALL DAY. HOW MUCH OF A CHALLENGE WAS THAT? “It was definitely a challenge. When they watered the track the last stage that kind of changed everything. Denny and I had a heck of a race because he found grip up top and I was like, ‘Well, I don’t know how to do that,’ so I had to go up there and try to figure that out to defend the lead position and then eventually just worked the lapped cars. That was very hard as well as it should be. Everybody is racing to stay on the lead lap, so I was able to get through them as needed and, of course, the late-race caution but what an amazing team. Everyone at Team Penske really put together some really good cars to come here and wing it. That’s what this is about. Nobody really knew what to put in the car and we were able to adjust the right way throughout practice and get into Victory Lane. It’s great.”

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE PART OF HISTORY? “When you start the weekend here you don’t know what’s coming your way. You have no idea and to be able to figure it out some way and then be able to figure out where the speed is throughout practice. Paul Wolfe and all the guys did a tremendous job figuring that out for me.”

WHAT WERE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE FINAL RESTART? “This is obviously my first dirt win. It’s only my fourth dirt race ever, so I had a lot of fun trying to figure it out. I was having a blast racing, trying to find the right lanes, moving around, watching Denny figure out the top after they watered the track. I was like, ‘Oh no, now what do we do?’ So, just a crazy moment.”

WHAT WAS THAT LAST STAGE LIKE? YOU AND DENNY WENT AT IT. “I knew it was slugfest there for a little bit and as you see the lapped cars coming you’re like, ‘Oh no, now what?’ So, I was able to clear them at the right times and I think Denny might have got the wall a little bit and that helped on the final restart.”

YOUR THIRD BRISTOL WIN. “I finally won a spring race. I guess we needed dirt.”

RYAN NEWMAN, No. 6 Oscar Mayer Ford Mustang

“That was fun, no doubt. It was a good run for our Oscar Mayer Ford Mustang and a great team effort the entire week. I wish we could have had a chance to run the Truck race for Coke and Aggressive Hydraulics. I am really proud of the effort and a lot of guys got to see a lot more and experience a lot more. We got turned around there from a racing accident in turn 2 with the 24 and had to fight back and did. We just didn’t make it all the way back to the front. We had a pretty good car. I would have liked to see what we would have done with some track position but I am sure everyone else would say the same thing.”

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Advance My Track Challenge Ford Mustang

“Obviously, it was a long day, for sure, starting up towards the front and just hanging around there. We ran fifth or something in the first stage, but we were struggling a little bit with our race car and trying to find the best way to work on it and fix it. It was pretty tight in the middle. We couldn’t get the tightness out of it all day until the last run, really. And then we got really good, but we faded a little bit there and then had a restart and I couldn’t see nothing. Everyone was in the dust and I think I chopped down on the 18 and we wrecked and, luckily, we were able to fix it up nice and made some really good changes there for that last run. We drove all the way from like 22nd or 23rd to eighth, so just really proud of the effort. It’s a shame we didn’t find that change a little sooner than what we did, but, overall, a good comeback by the 12 group.”

MICHAEL MCDOWELL, No. 34 Love’s Travel Stop Ford Mustang

“It was a fun day on the Bristol dirt. Our Love’s Travel Stop Ford Mustang was hooked up at the end. We passed a lot of cars on that last stage with 50 to go. I think we ended up 12th, so it was a solid day, a good points day, a lot of fun on the dirt. Visibility was tough. It was hard to see, but it was great racing there at the end. Thanks to all my guys. They brought a really fast Ford Mustang and it was a lot of fun. For a guy that doesn’t have any dirt experience this was a pretty good run.”

CHASE BRISCOE, No. 14 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang

“We had decent speed, it just seemed like every wreck we were a part of in weird ways. It is definitely frustrating being the dirt guy and having high hopes coming into this one and things just didn’t go our way. That is just part of it. We will just go on to Martinsville next. We made gains on our car compared to where we started today, so we will keep trying to do that.”

COLE CUSTER, No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang

“It was a struggle for us. We were really good in the wet but then in the dry we just couldn’t get a good balance on the car. We guessed one way after practice and it just wasn’t the right way. We survived and we will move on to the next one but it was definitely a pretty frustrating day for sure.”

ARIC ALMIROLA, No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang

WHAT TOOK PLACE THERE? “It started before that. The 77 slipped off the bottom. I was hunting the bottom and he slipped off the bottom, and I was trying to get in between him and the silly humps there and he turned back down across my nose and hit me in the right-front and kind of ran me up over the dirt hump and I spun. You can’t stop. You can’t see. That’s honestly the biggest problem. In dirt racing you don’t have a windshield in front of you, so you can pull a tearoff. We can’t reach out there and pull a tearoff off our windshield, so you can’t see anything. Everybody just comes piling in because you can’t see.”

Toyota Racing NCS Post-Race Recap — Bristol 3.29.21

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HAMLIN ADDS ANOTHER TOP-FIVE FINISH AT BRISTOL
Denny Hamlin scores sixth top-five finish in first seven events of the 2021 season

BRISTOL, Tenn. (March 29, 2021) – Denny Hamlin (third) drove his Toyota Camry to a top-five finish in the NASCAR Cup Series race on the dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway on Monday evening.

Toyota Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt
Race 7 of 36 – 125 miles, 250 laps

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Joey Logano*
2nd, Ricky Stenhouse Jr.*
3rd, DENNY HAMLIN
4th, Daniel Suarez*
5th, Ryan Newman*
17th, KYLE BUSCH
19th, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
26th, TY DILLON
27th, BUBBA WALLACE
31st, MIKE MARLAR
34th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 3rd

Did the damage play a factor in trying to chase down Joey Logano for the win?

“Probably, I couldn’t see a whole lot. I was kind of guessing, but I thought I could – on that last restart – run the top-end hard, but they didn’t prep it in-between cautions like they did before, so it was just marbles up there. I’m proud of this whole FedEx Camry team. Man, I thought I had a shot there. I cut the 22 (Joey Logano) too many breaks there when he was cutting us off, but at the end of the day it looked like he had a little bit better car in the long run. I’m proud of this whole team. We are third-best again.”

How did you get your dirt experience to finish third in today’s race?

“I watch a lot of TV and that’s about the only thing I could do there. Really had the top ripping there for a couple laps and that was my opportunity to get the 22 (Joey Logano). Ran him back down and then just kind of stalled out there behind him. I went back to the top and jumped the cushion, got a bunch of damage and that was all she wrote. All effort there.”

CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 Irwin Trade Strong Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 34th

What happened during the accident that ended your day?

“I was just trying to run the water in under yellow. I knew it was a little bit slick, but I felt like I could go up there and make some time and I kind of entered shallow underneath of it and tried to pick it up on exit and it was just really greasy up there. I hate it for all of our partners – IRWIN Tools, PristineAuction.com, Toyota, TRD. That was a lot of fun, being able to be out there for that first run was really cool and hate it that I can’t be out there longer.”

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. and North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time, Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have contributed to world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 38 million cars and trucks in North America, where we have 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama (10 in the U.S.), and directly employ more than 47,000 people (over 36,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold 2.8 million cars and trucks (2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2018.

Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit ToyotaNewsroom.com

Thwaits Collects TA Masters Award at Rain Affected Road Atlanta

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Braselton, GEORGIA – March 29, 2021 – 2020 Trans Am XtremeGT Class Champion Ken Thwaits collected the TA Class Masters Award at a sodden Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, March 28, as the Tennessee pilot continued his integration into the prestigious top level of Trans Am presented by Pirelli racing.

The No. 5 Franklin Road Apparel Chevrolet Camaro was making its National Championship debut in Round 2 of the 2021 TA class season, and it was a baptism of water rather than fire for the Camaro as the torrential rain lashing down at the start of the race in Georgia meant a very wet track throughout. After the early departure of SGT driver Steven Davison brought out a red flag, guiding the car home safely in the atrocious conditions for Championship points was understandably the priority for Ken, who finished in P11.

Driving the 850+ bhp muscle cars that populate the TA field is still a learning curve for Ken, as he explained to us on Saturday, “We came into Road Atlanta knowing the track because we ran here in November but that was in a GT3 car with lots of downforce and Trans Am is a totally different animal.”

Explaining his strategy for the weekend he added, “My approach was to be methodical about it and take small bites. That’s advice from Chris Dyson and it’s what the guys at the front of the field do.”

“I was a bit disappointed with the times early on but then we started looking at data and the results started coming. Every session we improved three seconds, two seconds over the previous one.” Ken was quick to praise his team for helping him get competitive when he added, “The guys are fired up. This is the best race crew I have ever had in my career and I need to deliver for them. I like that pressure. It forces me to concentrate and get it done.”

“For qualifying I knew it was going to be short and sweet. Just get a bit of heat into the tires and go for it. My engineer Owen Hayes said, “Ken, I know there’s a 1:24 lap in you and I said I’d do a 1:23 and we laughed. Then in qualifying, second lap, bang! There it was 1:23:8.”

Talking about the race itself Ken added, “The race started in conditions that were horrendous. There were rivers running across the track and it was amazing how everyone was creeping round really slowly. I was able to get past a car at the start but you couldn’t see anything. Then the red flag came out and after the restart I was just running my race, working with the car, keeping it going straight. It was very much a mission accomplished. We finished another race.”

Ken’s enthusiasm for Trans Am only grows and this first Masters Award will only add to that, “The paddock is wonderful. The management is wonderful. This is where you want to be! I want to be a part of it and I want to help it in any way I can.”

There is an exciting year ahead when the action resumes at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca at the end of April. Learn more about the Showtime Motorsports team partner, Franklin Road Apparel, at franklinroad.com and showtimemotorsports.net. Keep up to date with the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli at gotransam.com.

Check out the Showtime Motorsports Facebook page: facebook.com/showtimemotorsp/ and @ShowtimeMotorsp.

About Showtime Motorsports:

The Showtime Motorsports brand includes Ken Thwait’s racing team and racecars, and an outstanding classic Camaro collection. Showtime Motorsports brings together a dynamic staff who employ diverse talents and share a passion for cars, racing and caring for clients like they are our own family members. 

Sheehan’s Top Ten Charge Halted Early at Road Atlanta

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Braselton, GEORGIA – March 29, 2021 – Tom Sheehan’s bid for a second top ten finish this season was halted prematurely on Sunday, March 28 through no fault of the driver himself. An electronic control unit problem and harness issue caused him to retire after 26 laps. The LTK Ford Mustang was lying in 11th place at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta inside a field of 26 TA2 cars and poised for a typical late charge at the leaderboard.

Tom reported the oil pressure, rockers and mechanicals to be fine but the problem with the ECU meant the car was running on only 4 cylinders – giving him no choice but to coast into the pits. It was a disappointing end to the weekend for Tom who had worked his way into contention and was beginning to shake his way up the field.

It was a dramatic weekend at the Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta with torrential rain lashing the track at the start of the TA Class race but by the time the TA2 grid had assembled for the second round of the 2021 Trans Am presented by Pirelli Championship season the track was dry, enabling the cars to start on slick tires.

Tom and his dedicated LTK team at Damon Racing will regroup now and set their sights on the long haul from their Granite State headquarters all the way to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in California for Round 3 of this year’s TA2 Championship. It’s perhaps important at a time like this to remember that we’re very fortunate to be racing in the current situation, while the race commentators (including Adam Andretti) on the broadcast coverage highlighted how much fun Tom said he has racing and being at the track when they name checked the Ironman mid-race.

Keep up with Trans Am driver Tom Sheehan on social media – Facebook page is Damon Racing, Instagram @TomSheehanTA97 and Twitter @TomTA2_97.

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DGR NCWTS Race Recap: Bristol Motor Speedway

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Monday, March 29 (originally scheduled Saturday, March 27)
Track: Dirt Race at Bristol Motor Speedway, .5-mile oval
Event: Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt (150 laps, 75 miles)

Hailie Deegan, No. 1 Monster Energy F-150
Start: 22nd
Finish: 19th

  • During the first caution on lap 12, Deegan reported her F-150 was tight while in the 22nd spot.
  • Deegan ended Stage 1 in 16th and pitted during the break for adjustments to help with her drive off.
  • She started the second stage from 13th. Nine laps into the stage, the caution was displayed again and Deegan reported she needed more lateral grip. The Monster Energy driver stayed out on the track and restarted in the same position.
  • Throughout several cautions in the stage, Deegan steadily remained within the top-16. The Ford driver ended the stage in 14th. During the stage break, she came in for adjustments to give her more grip.
  • Deegan started Stage 3 from the 15th spot. With 50 laps to go, the caution was displayed with Deegan in the 16th position. Throughout several more cautions to end the stage, Deegan remained in the top-20. The track continued to dry out in the closing laps and it became more difficult to pass which relegated Deegan to a 19th-place finish.

Tanner Gray, No. 15 Ford Performance F-150
Start: 18th
Finish: 13th

  • Gray lined up 18th for the initial start and quickly used the high line to advance to 14th. While attempting to pass for 13th, he spun to the inside of the track to avoid contact.
  • The No. 15 Ford Performance F-150 restarted 36th and would finish there in Stage 1 after making contact with the outside wall caused the handling to fade.
  • At the stage break, the team changed tires, added fuel and made damage repairs to the right front suspension. Positions could not be gained on pit road, so the No. 15 restarted in the 36th position for Stage 2.
  • Caution flag waved nine laps into the stage and Gray had advanced up to 24th. A series of cautions throughout the remainder of the stage made it tough to gain positions, but Gray managed to advance three more spots to finish Stage 2 in 21st.
  • Green flag waved for the final stage on lap 92 and the No. 15 was up to 17th within the opening seven laps. When the caution came out on lap 117, Gray was up to 14th and continued to battle for position over the remaining 25 circuits. He would ultimately finish 13th as the highest-finishing F-150 for DGR.

Kevin Harvick, No. 17 Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford F-150
Start: 30th
Finish: 15th

  • Harvick started the event from the 30th position and made his way forward throughout the stage. At the end of the stage, the Hunt Brothers Pizza driver reported he needed more forward drive. He pitted from 17th for service.
  • In Stage 2, the Ford driver continued his march forward in the F-150 and ended Stage 2 15th. Harvick visited pit road for service during the stage break.
  • Harvick started the final stage from 16th. With just under 30 laps to go in the event, Harvick was in the top-10. On the last restart late in the race, the inside lane got bottled up which caused Harvick to lose track position and ultimately finish 15th.

Next event: ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond Raceway in Richmond, Virginia on April 17 at 1:30 p.m. ET.

Toyota Racing NCWTS Post-Race Recap — Bristol 3.29.21

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TRUEX DRIVES TO FIRST TRUCK SERIES WIN
NASCAR Cup Champion Martin Truex Jr. drives to victory in first Truck Series start since 2006

BRISTOL, Tenn. (March 29, 2021) – Martin Truex Jr. scored his first career NASCAR Truck Series victory on the dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway on Monday afternoon. Truex becomes the 36th driver in NASCAR history to win a race in all three national series. It is the third consecutive win for Kyle Busch Motorsports and the fifth consecutive for Toyota to open the 2021 Truck Series season.

Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt
Race 5 of 23 – 150 Laps, 75 Miles

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
2nd, BEN RHODES
3rd, Raphael Lessard*
4th, Todd Gilliland*
5th, Chase Briscoe*
6th, GRANT ENFINGER
9th, AUSTIN HILL
11th, BUBBA WALLACE
12th, STEWART FRIESEN
14th, MATT CRAFTON
28th, MIKE MARLAR
32nd, JOHNNY SAUTER
34th, CHANDLER SMITH
36th, DANNY BOHN
38th, DEREK KRAUS
39th, JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 51 Auto Owners Insurance Toyota Tundra, Kyle Busch Motorsports
Finishing Position: 1st

How exciting was that Martin?

“It’s unbelievable really. I guess they had to put dirt on Bristol to get me back into victory lane here. It’s been a long time. That was a blast. I’m still really surprised. I wanted to run this race so I could get more experience for the Cup car, and then we got out there in practice and it felt really good and I was having a lot of fun, so I just kept trying to work with the guys and tell them what I needed, and just thanks to Auto Owners, Noble Aerospace, Toyota, TRD, everybody at KBM (Kyle Busch Motorsports) for letting me drive this thing and putting this deal together. That was a blast. I kept thinking, ‘what’s going to happen next, am I going to get a flat tire or something stupid?’ This 51 is pretty much used to finishing in victory lane, so a lot of pressure there, so I’m glad we could get it done.”

What did you learn that you can take to the Cup race this afternoon?

“I learned a lot. It was really amazing just how much the track changed, but I’ll have to say this thing stayed really, really good the whole time. I think if you’ve got a good car, you are going to be good all day long. It just depends on what they do to the track. It’s getting hotter, it’s going to keep drying out and get slicker, so we will see what they do to prep it, but no matter what they do, that was a blast and I’m looking forward to this afternoon.”

Did you expect to win here today?

“You always expect to win when you come to the race track. I’m pleasantly surprised to say the least. We came here this weekend and I wanted to run this truck just to get some experience and try to help with the Cup car. Who would have thought that I would get my first Truck Series victory on dirt. Really happy for the opportunity. Thankful to Auto Owners Insurance, Noble Aerospace and obviously Kyle (Busch, team owner) and everybody at KBM (Kyle Busch Motorsports) for putting this deal together and letting me do this – Toyota, TRD. This was a lot of fun. We weren’t supposed to come here and win. That’s really the icing on the cake. Now I’ve got my truck win that I’ve been thinking about wanting to go after. Really, really cool and still a little bit surprised. What an awesome job these guys did with this truck. Made the right adjustments for today. I told them a few things I wanted to change from practice, he (Marty Lindley, crew chief) changed a few things himself. Marty Lindley (crew chief), he’s an old veteran. He did a heck of a job and that was a lot of fun.”

How did reality differ from your initial expectations of how this race would go?

“I really just had an open mind about it. I thought that any time we go and do something new and different, it’s always fun. Even though I don’t have a lot of experience doing this, I looked at it as, ‘Hey, Bristol hasn’t been a great place for me anyway, let’s put dirt down and see how it goes.’ The little time I’ve spent in dirt vehicles, which is not much at all, I really enjoyed myself. That was one thing I was looking at and thinking. Every time I got on dirt in something, I had a lot of fun. I just approached this weekend as let’s go have some fun, let’s try to figure it out as quickly as we can and that’s why I ran the truck. Clearly, we had a good truck and we figured it out and here we are. Just a blast and thankful for everybody for making it happen.”

What types of things did you learn to apply to this afternoon’s Cup Series race?

“I learned a ton. Obviously, the track changed a huge amount and my wish is that they could put it back to the way we started this race because that’s what really made it fun. You could move around early in the race, especially make moves and we went from 15th to the lead in 15 or 20 laps. You could move around on the race track a little bit more than you could at the end. Hopefully, they’ll do some more work and get it back closer to what it was. By the end of our race, it’s going to be super slick. It’s going to be really black all the way around and guys are going to have their hands full. It’s going to be fun.”

BEN RHODES, No. 99 Bombardier Toyota Tundra, ThorSport Racing
Finishing Position: 2nd

Do you think the missed shift on that last restart cost you an opportunity at going for the win?

“We were running him (Martin Truex Jr.) back down those last few laps, but yeah, just the worst restart of my life. Early in the race, I had an issue of getting it into fourth gear, and missed a shift early on and really didn’t think anything of it. I had clean shifts afterwards, and then just missed it. Bummer for my guys. That is as close as I’ve been at Bristol to winning here and it was on the dirt, so they gave me a great Bombardier Tundra. I’m just a little angry at myself. I think I could have brought them home a trophy, but big picture, I know the 51 (Truex) is kind of doing their thing, but for the overall championship for us, this is a huge race. I know that a few of our competitors had a bad day. At the end of the day, still really solid. We came here and did exactly what we said we wanted to do. We hit all of our goals, just sucks to be the first loser.”

GRANT ENFINGER, No. 98 Champion Power Equipment Toyota Tundra, ThorSport Racing
Finishing Position: 6th

How was your race as a whole?

“Overall, it was solid. We fired off decent in our Champion Tundra right there when the track was tacky, I made it up to fourth or fifth. Then we faded back a little bit. It seemed like we were a sixth to eighth place truck it felt like, so we decided to go back on adjustments to what we felt like the race track was going to go towards, which is slick off and get dusty. After that, I still felt like we were maybe a sixth to eighth place truck. We decided to stay out there at the end of stage two and see what a little track position did for us. I think it worked out. I don’t think we had anything for Ben (Rhodes) or (Martin) Truex, but I think we could have run with everyone else and just ended up sixth. Not ecstatic, but overall satisfied. I think we made the most of it and now me and Jerod (Prince, crew chief) will talk about it and try to make it better for Knoxville.”

AUSTIN HILL, No. 16 United Rentals Toyota Tundra, Hattori Racing Enterprises
Finishing Position: 9th

How did you feel the race track was today overall?

“The track was pretty good when we first started. I kind of thought that it might be a little muddy, but it turned out that the track was pretty good and ready to go. Our United Rentals Toyota Tundra fired off really well. I was just trying to figure the track out, I’m not a dirt guy so trying to figure it out. Lost some track position on a couple restarts. It seemed like the bottom lane, I could just never get going and it took our truck three or four laps to get going. There at the end, it just came down to that last restart and I got in line. I started finding some lanes that were working for me, but just kind of ran out of time there. I felt like I was faster than the three or four in front of me, but solid points day. Coming into this thing, I wasn’t expecting a top-10 so it’s nice to get a top-10. After as good as we ran, I wanted to win. We’ll go onto the next one and try to do a little better on this dirt stuff.”

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. and North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time, Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have contributed to world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 40 million cars and trucks in North America, where we have 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama (10 in the U.S.), and directly employ more than 47,000 people (over 36,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold nearly 2.8 million cars and trucks (nearly 2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2019.

Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.toyotanewsroom.com.

Martin Truex Jr. wins the Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt at Bristol

By
Official Release
-
BRISTOL, TENNESSEE - MARCH 29: Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #51 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Pinty's Truck Race on Dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 29, 2021 in Bristol, Tennessee. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

In defiance of conventional wisdom, it wasn’t an experienced dirt racer who won Monday’s twice-rain-delayed Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Nor was it a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series regular who took the checkered flag.

When the dust settled, Martin Truex Jr. was the unlikely occupant of Victory Lane—and a dominant one at that. Racing in the Camping World Truck Series for the first time since 2006, Truex led 105 of the 150 laps in an action-filled race that featured 12 cautions for 54 laps and saw pre-race favorite Kyle Larson and series leader John Hunter Nemechek in the garage with wrecked trucks at the finish.

It was the first career win for Truex in his third career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start, but it was the third straight victory this season for a Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota—and 83rd overall. Truex is the 35th driver to win in all three of NASCAR’s top touring series.

“It’s unbelievable, really,” said Truex, who was using the Truck Series race to prepare for the NASCAR Cup Series event later on Monday afternoon. “I guess they had to put dirt on Bristol to get me back to Victory Lane here. It’s been a long time. Man, that was a blast.

“I wanted to run this race so I could get more experience with the Cup car, and we got out there in practice and it felt really good. And I was having a lot of fun, so I just kept trying to work with the guys and tell them what I needed. It was really amazing how much the track changed, but I will have to say the (No. 51 Tundra) stayed really, really good the whole time.”

Truex took control of the race after reigning series champion Sheldon Creed led Laps 2 through 39. Ben Rhodes lined up beside Truex on the front row for the final restart on Lap 139 but missed a shift, dropped briefly to third and fought his way back to the runner-up spot.

Rhodes finished 1.149 seconds behind Truex, with Todd Gilliland coming home third and Chase Briscoe and Grant Enfinger completing the top five.

“We were running them back down there the last few laps, but, yeah, just the worst restart of my life,” Rhodes said. “Early in the race, I had an issue of getting it into fourth gear and missed a shift early on, but I really didn’t think nothing of it and had clean shifts afterwards—and then just missed it. Bummer for my guys, but the closest I’ve been to winning here at Bristol was on the dirt.”

Nemechek exited after a Lap 49 crash, spinning after contact from Matt Crafton’s Ford and sustaining heavy damage when the No. 19 of Derek Kraus slid into his No. 4 Toyota as it sat near the outside wall of the half-mile high-banked speedway.

Larson was unable to avoid the slow truck of Mike Marlar on Lap 99 and sustained extensive damage to his No. 44 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet after heavy contact with the No. 30 Toyota of Danny Bohn in the same incident.

“My spotter said they were slowing down the backstretch, and a I saw some trucks slowing on the bottom, so I was running the top,” said Larson, who was set to start the subsequent NASCAR Cup Series race from the rear of the field because of an engine change in his No. 5 Chevrolet. “I thought ‘I’m going to get a lot of spots here in (Turn) 3.’ So I ended up top, and there was somebody parked there.

“We were fighting. Our truck wasn’t very great, but we were making adjustments on it… I still learned something for the Cup race, which was nice… learned how to pass people, so starting in the back, that’s a help.”

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will return to action on April 17 at Richmond Raceway for the ToyotaCare 250 (1:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race – Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt

Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt
Bristol, Tennessee
Monday, March 29, 2021
(15) Martin Truex Jr.(i), Toyota, 150.
(9) Ben Rhodes, Toyota, 150.
(29) Raphael Lessard, Chevrolet, 150.
(13) Todd Gilliland, Ford, 150.
(33) Chase Briscoe(i), Ford, 150.
(8) Grant Enfinger, Toyota, 150.
(6) Zane Smith, Chevrolet, 150.
(16) Parker Kligerman, Chevrolet, 150.
(2) Austin Hill, Toyota, 150.
(17) Austin Wayne Self, Chevrolet, 150.
(32) Bubba Wallace(i), Toyota, 150.
(7) Stewart Friesen, Toyota, 150.
(18) Tanner Gray, Ford, 150.
(4) Matt Crafton, Toyota, 150.
(30) Kevin Harvick(i), Ford, 150.
(3) Sheldon Creed, Chevrolet, 150.
(26) Daniel Suarez(i), Chevrolet, 150.
(23) Chase Purdy #, Chevrolet, 150.
(22) Hailie Deegan #, Ford, 150.
(14) Ryan Truex, Chevrolet, 150.
(11) Carson Hocevar #, Chevrolet, 150.
(37) Myatt Snider(i), Chevrolet, 150.
(24) Tate Fogleman, Chevrolet, 150.
(10) Brett Moffitt, Chevrolet, 150.
(31) Spencer Boyd, Chevrolet, 150.
(34) Cody Erickson, Chevrolet, 150.
(20) Codie Rohrbaugh, Chevrolet, 150.
(38) Mike Marlar(i), Chevrolet, 148.
(36) Jake Griffin, Toyota, 147.
(27) Timothy Peters, Chevrolet, 147.
(40) Andrew Gordon, Chevrolet, 144.
(5) Johnny Sauter, Toyota, Accident, 124.
(35) Jennifer Jo Cobb, Chevrolet, Electrical, 120.
(21) Chandler Smith #, Toyota, Accident, 117.
(28) Kyle Larson(i), Chevrolet, Accident, 98.
(25) Danny Bohn, Toyota, Accident, 98.
(39) Norm Benning, Chevrolet, Parked, 72.
(12) Derek Kraus, Toyota, Accident, 49.
(1) John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota, Accident, 48.
(19) Tyler Ankrum, Chevrolet, Accident, 34.

Average Speed of Race Winner: 41.096 mph.

Time of Race: 1 Hrs, 49 Mins, 30 Secs. Margin of Victory: 1.149 Seconds.

Caution Flags: 12 for 54 laps.

Lead Changes: 11 among 6 drivers.

Lap Leaders: J. Nemechek 0;A. Hill 1;S. Creed 2-39;M. Truex Jr.(i) 40-41;S. Friesen 42;M. Truex Jr.(i) 43-57;B. Rhodes 58;M. Truex Jr.(i) 59-75;B. Rhodes 76-77;M. Truex Jr.(i) 78-91;G. Enfinger 92-93;M. Truex Jr.(i) 94-150.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Martin Truex Jr.(i) 5 times for 105 laps; Sheldon Creed 1 time for 38 laps; Ben Rhodes 2 times for 3 laps; Grant Enfinger 1 time for 2 laps; Austin Hill 1 time for 1 lap; Stewart Friesen 1 time for 1 lap.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 51,2,21,52,4,16,99,88,98,13

Stage #2 Top Ten: 51,99,16,04,2,38,52,24,22,98

Rusty’s “The Last Ride” NASCAR Dodge at the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America is Vintage Motorsport Magazine’s March/April Cover Car

By
Official Release
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2005 Team Penske Miller Lite Dodge is Second Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Treasure Featured on Vintage Motorsport Cover in Last Four Issues

Top Automotive Photographer Peter Harholdt Shot it on Location at the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America at Daytona International Speedway

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (March 29, 2021) – The 2005 Team Penske Miller Lite Dodge that 2014 Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MSHFA) Inductee Rusty Wallace drove in the “The Last Ride” of his championship-winning NASCAR career is the featured cover car in the March/April issue of Vintage Motorsport Magazine.

Rusty has owned the Dodge ever since his longtime team owner Roger Penske (MSHFA Class of 1995) gave the Charger to him minutes after he took the checkered flag for the final time in the season-ending 2005 NASCAR Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Active in the MSHFA and Museum since his induction, Rusty supported from the beginning the Hall’s move from Detroit to Daytona International Speedway (DIS) six years ago. His Dodge has been on loan and showcased in the Stock Cars display at the MSHFA Museum since it reopened on the DIS grounds in 2016.

The national spotlight now shines once again on Rusty’s “Blue Deuce” and the MSHFA thanks to Vintage Motorsport.

The current issue’s cover story is a 7-page Salon written by Ted West and lavishly illustrated with many additional examples of the excellent work of top automotive photographer Peter Harholdt. The video below by Harholdt and Brian Dooley gives viewers an inside look at the January photo shoot at the MSHFA and the clever “trick of the trade” Harholdt used to capture the true beauty of the blue No. 2.

“The modular lighting process is a digital and PhotoShop variation on the ‘paint light’ technique developed by 19th century photographers to illuminate large spaces or objects with limited artificial light sources,” Harholdt said. “Projects like the Penske Dodge can be done with a minimum of equipment and, although it requires much more post-production work, its flexibility offers many advantages over working in conventional studios.”

The current feature is the second time in the last four issues that a car on display at the MSHFA has been the subject of a Vintage Motorsport cover story. The September/October issue featured a 1972 NASCAR Cup Series championship-winning Dodge Charger campaigned by Richard Petty (MSHFA Class of 1989). Owned by John Kyle, the famous No. 43 is exhibited a few steps from Rusty’s Dodge.

“To have not one but two cover stories in Vintage Motorsport within the past 12 months is testament to the types of vehicles and artifacts we have to share with our guests every day here at the Hall of Fame in Daytona Beach,” said MSFHA President George Levy. “As the ‘Journal of Motor Racing History,’ it is clear Vintage Motorsport shares our commitment to preserve the history, legacy and achievements of motorsports competitors from all disciplines. We thank Paul Pfanner, D. Randy Riggs and everyone at Racer Media & Marketing and VM for their support of our shared passion.”

For more information, visit the MSHFA at www.mshf.com or contact George Levy at (248) 895-1704 or glevy@mshf.com. For MSHFA tickets, call 1-800-PIT-SHOP.

The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America is on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MotorsportsHOF/ and Instagram and Twitter at @MotorsportsHOF.

About the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America: The MSHFA is the only hall that honors all American motorsports: cars, motorcycles, airplanes, off road and powerboats. Its mission is to celebrate and instill the American motorsports values of leadership, creativity, originality, teamwork and spirit of competition. Founded by Larry G. Ciancio and Ronald A. Watson, it held its first induction in 1989. Wason spent the next 30 years tirelessly building it into the nation’s premier such hall until his passing in 2019. The original museum in Novi, Mich., relocated to Daytona Beach, Fla., in 2016 and greets more than 100,000 guests a year. MSHFA is operated by the nonprofit Motorsports Museum and Hall of Fame of America Foundation, Inc.

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