NASCAR CUP SERIES
BOWMAN GRAY STADIUM
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
JANUARY 31, 2026

Reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion, Kyle Larson, met with the media via Zoom in advance of the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium.

Media Availability Quotes:

Monday night could still have a chance to be the coldest race in NASCAR history, if that’s when it gets run. What’s the coldest you ever remember being inside a car, and how do you prepare, if you do prepare any differently, for those kind of conditions?

“Yeah, I don’t know if I’ve ever competed when it’s that cold. But thankfully for us, we’re inside of a stock car, which is basically like an oven, so that’ll help. I think, honestly, I think it’ll feel fine for us inside the car. I wouldn’t be surprised if you still break somewhat of a sweat in there, just because of all the temps from internally, and it’s not windy in there because we’re going so slow.

But yeah, I just feel for the the crews, the mechanics, the fans and NASCAR officials; everybody who’s there outside in the cold. But, you know, we love the sport, and we’ll compete in any conditions, I think. I just look forward to the challenge; just seeing kind of how the race plays out and seeing what teams can step up.”

Usually with weather situations, it’s a lot of ‘hurry up and wait’. To get the information now this early, where we know we’re going to be pushing to Monday, how does that help you not just be in this sort of weird in between and help set up a better plan for what the next couple of days look like for you?

“Well, I think we all assumed it probably wasn’t going to happen tomorrow anyways. So, in my head, I think I was already planning for Monday, or potentially even further. But, really, it just kind of gets you excited that you can enjoy the snow with your family. As soon as I’m done with this, I’m going to head over to my shop. We’ve got a good hill. We’ll probably build a jump; put the kids on some tubes and sleds, and go have some fun for the next couple days.

So, just try to make the most out of the situation, and also be ready to go when it is time to go. You know, we’ve already done our pre-event packet; going over the race weekend, practice, qualifying, all of that. So, I feel like we have a good plan. Now, we just have to wait until we get on track.”

In terms of your last championship you won, how cool was it to win one with your kids being old enough to really kind of grasp what was going on, unlike back in 2021, when they were much younger?

“Yeah, I think Owen had an okay understanding from the first one. But, you know, this one I think was cooler because I would imagine Audrey will remember this now for the rest of her life. Obviously I wasn’t in the motorhome watching the race because I was on the track, but my wife, Katelyn, she told me how emotional Owen had gotten. You know, he was a little bit teared up because I think he could grasp the magnitude of it, and also grasp how wild the finish was for us. I think he understood that we were not in a great position to win the championship, and then the script flipped and we won. I think he was just as surprised and emotional as we all were on the team and behind the wheel. So, yeah, it was cool, but also, having all the photos, videos and memories made that we’ll get to have forever is always cool.”

How hard do you have to remind yourself when they’re racing not to over-coach?

“Yeah, it’s tough, for sure. I think I’ve realized at this point that, which it makes it even tougher to just keep your mouth shut, but I feel like my kids do better when I don’t talk to them. You know, I think I get a little too detailed, and then I think they’re probably out there trying to do what I say and they’re thinking too much rather than reacting to what’s going on on the track. I realized that at the Tulsa Shootout, because Owen did get to run a few divisions, that once I showed up to town — like the first race I got to watch him, I’m like trying to coach him and all that, and that was the worst race he had all week. So, I was like — all right, I’m just going to stop talking and let Chad Boat and the team coach him up because he seems to listen to them, or relate to what they’re saying, better than me.”

I’m thinking about the DAYTONA 500 in a couple weeks. There were some comments last year by some folks who said, well, the 500 doesn’t feel as prestigious as it once was. I’m curious, do you feel that way, and if so, what needs to happen, or what can NASCAR do, to get it back to feeling like it once was, where winning the 500 felt special, whereas now it seems like folks look at it as, oh, well, anyone can win?

“I mean, it’s always going to be prestigious and feel prestigious. You know, I’ve never won the race. I’ve never even finished top-five, so I don’t know what the feeling is like. I would imagine the feeling of winning is still going to be extremely massive, if it ever happens.

But in a way, yeah, not that I fully agree with those comments, and I don’t know if that’s exactly how they’re meant to be anyways, but it is difficult to get really excited about the winner or who’s won when usually there’s a 20-car pile-up and the guy running towards the back squeaks through, and then misses another wreck later and wins. But that’s the race and that’s how it is. You know, I think William Byron winning two in a row is not a fluke, so the cream does rise. He’s won there in the old-style car and this car.

So, yeah, Daytona and Talladega, sure, anybody can win, but still the teams positioning themselves the best and drivers making the best decisions do win.

I don’t know if that really answers your question or not, but it’s still always going to be prestigious.”

You were in a bit of a slump as you went on to win the championship. You hadn’t won in a while, but then you got into the off-season and you started to win again. I don’t know how many races you won, but do you feel like you sort of have gotten your momentum back?

“I don’t know… it’s completely different race cars and stuff, but we’ll see. I mean, we just got to get the season started. I feel good about things. I felt like we were trending in a good direction at the end of the year. I mean, you don’t make the final four in a slump, and you don’t win the championship in a slump. So, yeah, I feel confident. Although we didn’t get some wins in the playoffs, we had a great opportunity to win two or three races in the playoffs, barring some cautions or whatever playing out differently.

I feel very capable of winning. We have a new body style, which yeah, sure, maybe would take a handful weeks to get a full grasp on, but I think once we do, we can be really, really competitive. So, yeah, just look forward to getting on the track and getting things going; getting back in the flow and just racing.”

Katelyn had a bunch of funny videos while you were off racing. She sort of was in charge of the kids racing. What’s that like for her to have to do that on her own without you? Do they prefer you not being there, and then what was it like when you guys all won on the same night on different continents?

“Yeah, I mean, I’m sure Katelyn and the kids would prefer if I was there all the time, but I think they also understand that I can’t be there all the time because I’m working or whatever you want to call it… it doesn’t feel like work to me, but you know, we can call it that. But, yeah, she’s gotten the hang of it more. I think she thrives at the kids races now. I think it was a bit stressful in the beginning, especially when Cooper was younger. He’s still a handful for sure, but you can pack a lot less now. He can go play with friends, and she can focus more on Owen and Audrey.

But, yeah, I think she really loves it there. She was set up selling the kids merchandise by the trailer, helping push them to staging and doing all that.

At the Tulsa Shootout, when I was in Australia, was great. The kids did way better at the shootout than I thought that they would. I’m sure there’s a lot of people in here that have no idea what the Tulsa Shootout is, but there are 2,000 cars, and divided by, I don’t know, five or six classes… there’s a couple hundred to over 400 in some of the classes. And yeah, for Audrey, like she just started and won a heat race, so that was really cool. And then Owen, as well, he’s out there racing with adults, and adults who have won the shootout before, and beat them in a heat race. So, yeah, they had a really, really good week, and I was super proud of them.”

You and I talked a little bit about Audrey’s competitive nature in Perth. How important is it for her to have interest outside of racing, like her playing hockey. You guys did a photo shoot the other day with Roto-Rooter. How cool is it for her not just to have these experiences, but to have you share them, as well?

“Well, I think it’s good for — any parent can parent their kids differently, but I think for us, it’s important to try to have our kids in as many activities as we can try to have them in, especially because they’re homeschooled, so they don’t get quite the exposure to other kids, probably. I mean, I guess you could argue that either way I think because we do have them doing racing and hockey, and when the weather is better, playing baseball and stuff. So, yeah, I just think it’s important to have them mingling with other kids. And also, just staying active; being in different environments and stuff. Audrey loves hockey. She loves racing. She loves being able to do all the things she does. We signed Owen up for hockey now too, so he gets to start that soon. The hockey part of it’s fun because it’s so different than what I do. I know nothing about hockey, so it’s fun to kind of go there and see them learning and seeing how talented the kids are out there, so I really enjoy it”

I wanted to ask you about Steve O’Donnell. How would you describe Steve’s leadership and interacting with him over the years?

“Yeah, I mean, I think he’s a really good leader. I feel like he runs a good balance of being, you know, friends with everybody, but also can stand his ground, which I think is important for a leader. So, yeah, I respect him and I respect the role that he has. I know the job that they have as executives at NASCAR is extremely tough, so, like I said, I think he balances it all very well.”

I kind of know the answer to this from a racer standpoint, but if you were to develop your entirely own series, no matter what the cars, what would be the best way to determine your season champion?

“Well, I have started a series, and it’s about 60 races and we have a full season standing (laughs). But, I mean, that’s totally different… that’s sprint cars versus NASCAR. I would assume you’re talking about NASCAR, but we will race in whatever format.”

With your youngest, Cooper, how soon would you be able to get him in a car, and how far do you want your kids to go racing? Do you want them to follow all the way, like you did? “Well, racing is an expensive sport, and I’ve got two doing it currently. I’ve spent a lot of money here lately because we’re starting our own micro team for them. So, in a perfect world, I would love for Cooper not to race, but I know that’s probably impossible, so I don’t know. Both of my other kids were, I think, five-and-a-half or six when they started, so he’s still got a few years. But yeah, he’s the craziest, for sure, of the three. So, we’ll see. I think he’ll be the most expensive, probably, because I’m sure he’ll be tearing up the most equipment. So, we’ll see if we can keep him out of it.”

Can you take me through the micro team? What’s that going to look like?

“Yeah, so in the past couple years here, I’ve just rented their rides from Chad Boat. He’s got a really great program, but he was going to travel a lot less this year with his team and I wanted my kids to race a lot more. I have my shop that I used to run my World of Outlaw team out of, and not that it was empty, but it wasn’t seeing a lot of use. So, I thought it’d be a fun project to start my own team. We hired a couple guys, Clinton Boyles and Carsen Perkins, and we started our own team. We’ve got a truck and trailer, another trailer, a bunch of race cars, engines, all the parts, components, all of it, so we are fully invested in the micro racing.

It’s honestly been a lot of fun though, and I look forward to kind of having our own little touch on things.”

As you were going through last year, you had a pretty successful superspeedway package, where in the past it hasn’t. You had some good finishes. Do you have confidence going into this season, knowing that Daytona and Atlanta starts off the season?

“Well, I would say, honestly, I always have confidence when we go to superspeedways because I feel like we do a good job. Just prior to last year, you know, I would just get caught up in wrecks and whatnot, and last year just worked out where the wrecks avoided me. So, you know, I wouldn’t say I have any more confidence this year than I did last year. I just hope that we have the same sort of good fortune as we did last year… maybe it can be a few spots better to get a win.”

I was listening to Justin Swilling from NASCAR talk about the effort that has been put in to try to get this race underway, no matter when it happens. From a driver’s perspective, do you appreciate all that’s put in to try to get it underway, even though this is a challenge race, a pre-season race?

“Yeah, I absolutely appreciate the effort, as always. I feel like a lot of times, you know, there’s many races where I’m like — man, there’s no chance we’re going to get out there and they’ll postpone it to Monday, Tuesday or whatever, but they find a way. They work really hard, and that’s a credit to the men and women who are working behind the scenes to make it all happen, whether that’s drying the racetrack, making sure the tech line is clear, stuff like that.

I think they’ve got a long track record of a lot of effort, so I’m not surprised that we’re still in the same plan, even for an exhibition race.”

You also are very much one who rolls with the punches, and you said you’re looking forward to the challenge. Is that kind of what this is to you, or what this race means?

“Yeah, well for one, I don’t have experience, really, with a snow delay, especially one as heavy as it is, so I think that’ll be new. But as always, what are you going to do? You know, we all just have to ride it out and see. So, yeah, I think that’s obviously the approach.”

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Let’s Clash… The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season kicks off with the Clash at Bowman Gray this Sunday, February 1 at the narrow quarter-mile oval inside the legendary Bowman Gray Stadium. This weekend’s event marks the 48th running of the annual non-points exhibition race, with the Winston-Salem, North Carolina track serving as just the fourth venue for the event since its inception in 1979.

Richard Childress Racing in the Clash… Richard Childress Racing has earned nine wins in the Clash, six by Dale Earnhardt (1980, 1986, 1988, 1991, 1993, and 1995) and three by Kevin Harvick (2009, 2010 and 2013). Prior to the Clash relocating to North Carolina in 2025, RCR had at least one driver claim a podium finish in the final three runnings of the exhibition race at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (2022: Austin Dillon – third; 2023: A. Dillon – second, Kyle Busch – third; and 2024: K. Busch – second).

Coming Home… Headquartered in Welcome, North Carolina, Richard Childress Racing is only 14 miles away from Bowman Gray Stadium.

Did You Know? Richard Childress’s humble beginnings started at Bowman Gray Stadium, selling peanuts in the grandstands as a young boy. Childress then began his driving career with a $20 race car – a taxicab – competing at Bowman Gray. The now-NASCAR Hall of Fame team owner also raced at the facility in the 1971 Cup Series event and the 1972 Grand National race.

Format Loading for 2026… Although 38 drivers will attempt to make the Clash, only 23 will make it through to the 200-lap main event. Each driver has two chances to qualify for the feature. Given the revised schedule due to anticipated inclement weather in the region, the top 20 fastest drivers from qualifying will advance to the main event.

Positions 21 and 22 will be set by the top two finishers from the last chance qualifying race (75 laps). The 23rd and final starting position is reserved for the driver who finished highest in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series points standings that did not transfer on finishing position.

Catch the Action… The Clash at Bowman Gray will be televised live Sunday, February 1 at 8:00 p.m. ET on FOX, with the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 carrying the live radio broadcast.

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/Winchester Chevrolet at Bowman Gray Stadium… Austin Dillon, the 2018 Daytona 500 Champion, is looking for redemption heading into this year’s Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium after narrowly missing out on advancing into the main event last year after failing to qualify in via the heat races and last chance qualifier.

Winston-Salem Roots… Dillon has lived within 20 minutes of Bowman Gray Stadium his entire life and has fond memories of watching races at the facility on Saturday nights in his youth.

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AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:

What do you think about the new points format and the return of the Chase to the NASCAR Cup Series?

“I think stage racing has made NASCAR a more aggressive sport than it ever was before. I was in the sport before stage racing and I think it’s made a difference in our sport. Everyone has to be aggressive from the drop of the green flag, and that’s what ends up building your points. Winning is everything, and it’s always going to be that way. I know I’m going to stay aggressive. Trophies are what I want to bring back to this organization. These people want to see us get to Victory Lane in any way possible and I owe that to the fans, the sponsors and all of the employees who come to work every day in Welcome, North Carolina.”

Are you looking forward to the Clash this year and returning to Bowman Gray Stadium?

“I can’t wait to get back there. I’m looking for a little redemption from last year, which didn’t go as well as we wanted to. Last year we missed making it into the race. Going there this year, we have a little better practice position, hopefully a little better qualifying position and if all goes according to plan we can get in the race and make some noise.”

Kyle Busch and the No. 8 zone Chevrolet at Bowman Gray Stadium… Sunday’s Clash will mark Kyle Busch’s second career start at Bowman Gray Stadium. In his debut at the quarter-mile oval last season, Busch battled back after going two laps down to finish the race inside the top 15. Historically, Busch has won the season-opening exhibition race twice, both at Daytona International Speedway – on the oval in 2012 and again on the road course in 2021.

Exhibition Wins Not Limited to the Clash… Busch’s success in NASCAR exhibition races extends beyond the Clash. The Las Vegas, Nevada native also has a win in the 2017 NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where Busch used an aggressive three-wide pass for the lead to earn his first All-Star victory. The win was the first for him in a NASCAR Cup Series car at Charlotte Motor Speedway and paid a $1 million-dollar grand prize.

Welcoming Jim Pohlman… This weekend’s race at Bowman Gray Stadium will mark Jim Pohlman’s debut as crew chief for Kyle Busch and the No. 8 zone Chevrolet. A determined competitor, Pohlman previously worked at RCR as the organization’s head of research and development. He returns to the Welcome, North Carolina based team after serving as the crew chief for the No. 7 Chevrolet with driver Justin Allgaier at JR Motorsports since 2023. During his time with the No. 7 team, Pohlman built a winning program in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series that included nine wins. He guided Allgaier to a Championship 4 appearance during their rookie year together in 2023, and followed up their first-year success with a dominating performance that led Allgaier to his first O’Reilly Auto Parts Series championship in 2024. His tenure with Allgaier ended in 2025 with their third consecutive Championship 4 appearance.

Starting Out Strong… Busch has scored a win, two second-place finishes and a third-place finish in four of his last five Clash races.

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KYLE BUSCH QUOTES:

What has the offseason been like getting to know your new Crew Chief Jim Pohlman? How has your relationship been developing over the last few months?

“The offseason has been good getting to know Jim, our new crew chief coming on board for this year. It’s not something I’m not accustomed to, I’ve had a few crew chiefs over the years. Fortunately for me, I have won with every single one of them, so I am looking forward to a new opportunity of working with another crew chief and having the opportunity to go out there, get some race wins, get ourselves up there in the points and contend for a Championship.

The relationship has been good. We’ve had some communication; we’ve had some sim sessions. Thankfully we actually had a really good opportunity to test in North Wilkesboro, so we were there getting some on track time and had a day to spend together at the racetrack kind of going through our dialogue, going through some changes and understanding what I would say and what the data would say, coming up with some good answers to make our racecar go faster. Jim’s been a very strong proponent of making sure we’ve got some good stuff this year.”

Where do you think that Jim Pohlman can help you now that you’ve spent a little bit of time with him?

“I think Jim’s biggest thing is keeping everyone accountable. Getting everyone in the race shop pulling the rope in the same direction. Pushing them in order to dig deeper and work harder. It’s not always just a 9-5 job. Racing in this business, especially at this level, you can be there 24 hours and still feel like you’re behind. It’s just the nature of what its all like and trying to get the most out of everybody.”

What are your thoughts going into Bowman Gray Stadium?

“Bowman Gray was really great last year. I feel like the fans really supported that race, really came out well. NASCAR’s most popular driver won the race, so that was good for everyone too. But we want to be a little bit more out front and be battling for the win. So hopefully we can be a force to be reckoned with and put our name in the hat to win this year.“

What does it mean to start the year with Bowman Gray Stadium?

“Bowman Gray is cool because it’s so short, it’s so small and the fans are right there on top of everything. It reminds me a little bit of the Summer Shootout and racing the Legends cars. It’s a real tight bull ring and hard to get around there, hard to pass with these big heavy stock cars. But we made the most of it last year and I felt like the fans came out and supported it very, very well, so I hope they do so again this year.”

Do you think after having a year of racing at this track, we’ll see some of that beating-and-banging Bowman Gray style this year?

“Yeah, I think we saw plenty of it last year. The heat races, the last chance qualifier race. There were guys crawling over guys and spinning each other out and all that stuff, so it got pretty hectic and chaotic, and even in the feature race there was some of that going on towards the back of the field. So hopefully we’re far enough up front where we don’t have to deal with much of that and we can have a nice smooth race.”

Do you expect more chaos at The Clash this season?

“I felt like last year’s Clash was a little chaotic. There were definitely some moments there where some guys were running over each other, and guys got mad at each other for no reason. You are going to hit each other. It’s inevitable, it’s going to happen. But the nature of just getting a little bump-bump and then getting mad about it and trying to retaliate, that’s just the nature of the sport I guess we are in today. Hopefully the drivers have grown up over the off season, I doubt it, but we will see what happens.”

Event: Cook Out Clash
Date/Time: Sunday, February 1, 2026, 8 p.m. ET
Location: Bowman Gray Stadium, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Layout: 0.25-mile Oval
TV/Radio: FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Josh Berry and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang Dark Horse are set to compete this weekend in the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C., a venue deeply rooted in the history of Wood Brothers Racing.

Team founder Glenn Wood was one of the most successful drivers in the track’s storied past, recording 29 wins at the quarter-mile oval, including four victories in NASCAR’s premier Cup Series division. From Wood’s driving days to the present, Bowman Gray has remained a favorite among drivers and fans alike.

Last year’s Clash marked the return of NASCAR Cup Series competition to the famed “Madhouse,” and the non-points event delivered on its reputation.

“The Clash at Bowman Gray last year was awesome,” said Berry, who raced his way into the main event with an aggressive drive to a second-place finish in the 75-lap Last Chance Qualifier. “The atmosphere was electric.”

Like many of his peers, Berry first experienced Bowman Gray as a fan.

“It had been a long time since I’d been there after previously going to watch a Modified race,” Berry said. “The fans were incredible, and that energy really showed.

“One of the things I remember most was pushing the cars out to the track during pre-race as a team right next to the fans, only about 10 feet away, which was really cool. It’s just a great atmosphere overall, and those fans truly love racing.

“That’s where we want to be, places where racing means something.”

Saturday’s activities at Bowman Gray have been canceled due to expected inclement weather, and practice and qualifying will now take place on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET. The 75-lap Last Chance Qualifier will take the green flag at 6 p.m. ET ahead of the 200-lap Cook Out Clash, which is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. ET. Only green-flag laps will count in the feature, which will be televised live on FOX.

Josh Berry

Age: 35 (Oct. 22, 1990)

Hometown: Hendersonville, Tennessee

Crew Chief: Miles Stanley

IG: @joshberry88

X: @joshberry

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LEGACY MOTOR CLUB:
BOWMAN GRAY STADIUM PRE-RACE ADVANCE
EVENT: Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray

SCHEDULED DATE: Feb. 1, 2026

RACE: NASCAR Cup Series 00 of 36 (Exhibition Race)

TRACK: Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C. | .250-Mile Oval

CLUB MINUTES:
BOWMAN GRAY HOSTS THE CLASH: The NASCAR Cup Series returns for the second year to the historic grassroots racetrack of Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C. for its unofficial kickoff to the 2026 season – the Cook Out Clash. The Clash was previously held at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway for years before moving to the Los Angeles Coliseum in 2022. In 2025, Bowman Gray held the NASCAR Clash for the first time after having a strong history in grassroots racing. The field was not only made up of the NASCAR Cup Series regulars, but also some hometown heroes for Bowman Gray Stadium who were making Cup Series debuts. In a sold-out event, NASCAR brought the excitement of short-track racing, and saw Chase Elliott as the victor.

LEGACY IN GRASSROOTS: This weekend’s Cook Out Clash will combine NASCAR with the legacy of grassroots racing. LEGACY MOTOR CLUB drivers John Hunter Nemechek and Erik Jones both came up through the grassroots. Nemechek began competing at the age of five in go-karts, quarter midgets, and dirt bikes. In 2010, he participated in the Allison LEGACY Series, which is a spec stock car racing grassroots series in the Carolinas. He won the championship in 2012 before moving up to NASCAR in 2013. Jones got his start in racing through grassroots racing as well. He participated in late model races for most of his childhood and got his break when he bested NASCAR superstar Kyle Busch in the 45th Annual Snowball Derby in December 2012 at just 16 years old. It was just his first time running the legendary grassroots race.

HOMETOWN HERO: Rick Rozier, the fueler for the No. 42 Dollar Tree Toyota Camry XSE pit crew, attended Winston-Salem State University, where he majored in exercise science and competed as a football and track student-athlete. Rozier joined LEGACY MOTOR CLUB in 2023.

LEGACY IN JAPAN: Following the 2025 season finale at Phoenix Raceway, Nemechek and LEGACY MOTOR CLUB owner Jimmie Johnson went to Japan for a NASCAR Exhibition by the Automobile Business Associaion of Japan (ABAJ). Nemechek piloted a two-seater No. 42 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry XSE, Johnson returned to the driver’s seat of the No. 24 Garage 56 car with Hendrick Motorsports, and 23XI Racing brought the No. 67 TGR Toyota Camry XSE to be driven by Kamui Kobayashi. The three drivers showed the unique way of NASCAR racing by running exhibition laps ahead of the Super Taikyu Series race at Fuji Speedway. To learn more about LMC’s journey to Japan, check out the documentary here.

JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
NO. 42 DOLLAR TREE TOYOTA CAMRY XSE
JHN AT BOWMAN GRAY: John Hunter Nemechek enters his second race at “The Madhouse”. In the NASCAR Cup Series’ debut at Bowman Gray Stadium last year, Nemechek finished eighth in his heat race after incurring damage as he was working his way up through the field during the heat race. His eighth-place finish meant he had to race in the 75-lap Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ) in order to earn a spot in Sunday’s main event. In the LCQ, Nemechek steadily worked his way through the field avoiding cautions and wrecks, and ultimately finished fourth, two spots shy of the transfer spot.

T-MACK ON SHORT TRACKS: 2026 marks crew chief Travis Mack’s second full-time season on top of the box with Nemechek and the No. 42 team at LEGACY MOTOR CLUB. Mack has 31 starts on short tracks in the NASCAR Cup Series. In the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, he has 13 starts on short tracks with Michael Annett, including nine top-10 finishes.

JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK QUOTE:
“I’m looking forward to getting back in the racecar. I’m excited for 2026. It’s going to be super cold this weekend, so it’ll be hard to get temperature in tires. Racing at Bowman Gray Stadium though is going to be unique, there’s a lot of history there. I’m ready to get back in the car and get my feet wet per se and hopefully go race for a win. I feel like we had a strong car last year, so I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do this weekend before heading down to Daytona and getting back into the rhythm of things.”

TRAVIS MACK QUOTE:
“Last year we got wrecked in the heat race and had a really good car. We rebuilt it all night and we were really close to making the main race’s starting last. We just had a really good test in North Wilkesboro with the No. 43 car, so I think that’s going to help us at The Clash. I’m excited to get back to the racetrack, especially a short track. I feel like we need to work on our short track program from last year, so I think this is going to be a big step in that direction.”

GRAPHIC CREDIT: LEGACY MOTOR CLUB

ERIK JONES
NO. 43 ADVENTHEALTH TOYOTA CAMRY XSE
JONES AT BOWMAN GRAY: Sunday’s Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium will mark Jones’ and the series’ second start at the iconic grassroots venue. In last year’s inaugural event, Jones finished eighth in his heat race and would have to race in the 75-lap Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ) event on Sunday night prior to the Clash, where only the top-two finishers would advance to the main event. After running steadily in third for a majority of the event, Jones took the lead late in the race. On a restart with 11 laps to go, Jones was leading as the front of the field went three-wide and contact with another car caused enough damage to put him out of the race with just a handful of laps to go.

FORMER CLASH WINNER: Jones is no stranger to victory lane in NASCAR’s pre-season event. In 2020 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, Jones had locked himself into the Clash via his 2019 Southern 500 victory the year prior. He started the race 12th, but damage from wrecks on Lap 74 and Lap 84 seemed to take him out of the race. Jones stayed in the race though and in a last lap battle, his former teammate Denny Hamlin, pushed Jones across the finish line in first. He earned his first career NASCAR Clash victory.

FIRST RACE WITH ALEXANDER: The No. 43 team welcomes a new leader to the team as Justin Alexander takes over the role formerly held by Ben Beshore. Alexander joins the team after a long tenure with Richard Childress Racing (RCR) as a crew chief and competition director. He was essential in Austin Dillon’s 2017 Coca-Cola 600 win and his 2018 Daytona 500 victory. Prior to his role at RCR, Alexander worked as a shock specialist and engineer at Hendrick Motorsports, where he worked on Jimmie Johnson’s No. 48 team as the race engineer for the 2005 season. During his time at Hendrick, Alexander also worked alongside his fellow crew chief Travis Mack on the No. 48 team.

NOTABLE OFFSEASON EVENTS: Jones continued to stay busy in the offseason while he spent a majority of his time with family in his home state of Michigan. Not long after the season finale at Phoenix Raceway, Jones celebrated his son David’s first birthday on Thanksgiving Day. He then trucked down to Pensacola, Florida to attempt the Snowball Derby at the beginning of December. Some trouble with the car though sent Jones to the LCQ where he had to finish top-four to advance. He unfortunately came up just short in fifth after a hard-fought race.

ERIK JONES QUOTE
“The Clash at Bowman Gray is a crazy race. Last year, we saw a lot of contact and a lot of guys getting into each other. It came down to being in the right place at the right time. We got taken out in a transfer spot last year with just a couple of laps to go, so it didn’t work out for us. I just hope we have a good car and a shot to transfer to make it into the main race. I’m excited for that, and to work with Justin (Alexander, crew chief). Him and I got some time together at the test at North Wilkesboro to help figure out communication not only between us but also the No. 43 team guys. I think Bowman Gray will be a good extension of what we learned as a group there. Hopefully, we can have luck go our way and stay out of trouble so we can make the main event on Sunday.”

JUSTIN ALEXANDER QUOTE
“The biggest thing heading into the Clash is continuing to learn how we communicate with each other. This weekend is about understanding what Erik likes in the car, how he gives feedback, and how we operate as a team. The expectation is to be competitive but also learning and building as a group to create a solid foundation for the rest of the season.”

GRAPHIC CREDIT: LEGACY MOTOR CLUB

CLUB APPEARANCES:
Erik Jones and John Hunter Nemechek will participate in the NASCAR Clash Preview on Friday, Jan. 30 at the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds. Both will be a part of an autograph session with Jones’ starting at 11:30 a.m. local time, and Nemechek’s at 12:15 p.m. local time.

TUNE IN:
Fans can tune in to watch the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C. on Sunday, Feb. 1 at 8 p.m. EST on FOX, MAX, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).

LEGACY MOTOR CLUB is a premier auto racing organization owned by seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and 2024 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee, Jimmie Johnson and Knighthead Capital Management, LLC. Drawing from a rich tradition of success, LEGACY MC is dedicated to pushing the boundaries of motorsport and setting new standards of excellence. The CLUB competes under the Toyota Racing banner in the NASCAR Cup Series with the No. 43 Toyota Camry XSE piloted by Erik Jones and the No. 42 Toyota Camry XSE driven by John Hunter Nemechek. Johnson also races on a limited basis in the No. 84 Toyota Camry XSE. With NASCAR legend and Hall of Famer Richard Petty, “The King”, serving as CLUB Ambassador, LEGACY MC blends timeless racing traditions with a new forward-thinking vision. As an inclusive community for motorsport enthusiasts, LEGACY MC honors both its storied past and the promising future of its members, always striving for victory and championship glory at the pinnacle of NASCAR competition.