ROOKIE HARRISON BURTON EARNS BACK-TO-BACK VICTORIES
Burton becomes the youngest winner in Martinsville Speedway history
MARTINSVILLE, Virginia (October 31, 2020) – Rookie of the Year leader Harrison Burton led the most laps (81) and drove to his fourth victory of the season. It is the first time in Burton’s career that he has won back-to-back races and it is the eighth victory for the Toyota Supra this year. Brandon Jones had a solid day with another top-10 finish, but Jones came up just short in advancing to the Championship 4.
Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS)
Martinsville Speedway
Race 32 of 33 – 131.5 miles, 250 laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, HARRISON BURTON
2nd, Justin Allgaier*
3rd, Noah Gragson*
4th, Jeb Burton*
5th, Ross Chastain*
6th, RILEY HERBST
9th, BRANDON JONES
17th, TIMMY HILL
20th, MASON DIAZ
32nd, CARL LONG
33rd, BJ MCLEOD
37th, CHAD FINCHUM
38th, MATT MILLS
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
HARRISON BURTON, No. 20 DEX Imaging Toyota Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 1st
What does it mean to win at Martinsville?
“It was a really fun race. Martinsville is one of those places that’s really cool to win at. For me in particular because my family is from here. There’s a guy in a hot dog for Halloween. The fans here are awesome. It’s amazing to win here at what is one of my home tracks I would say and do what my dad did. I think it was his first Xfinity win was here.”
Did you grow up wanting a Grandfather clock with your name on it considering your Dad had one since you were a kid?
“Absolutely. It’s probably one of the coolest trophies in the whole series that we get. It’s pretty hard to describe how exciting this is. My race team worked their tails off on this car expecting us to have to fight to get into Phoenix to win a championship and we got knocked out, but we’ve proven people wrong. We won two in a row in this round and we’re going to go try to make it three at Phoenix.”
What do you take away from the Playoffs heading into 2021?
“Just confidence. I think the schedule got released and it’s the same round going to Phoenix next year. If we can come and perform next year and make it through the first round, we’re going to be fighting for a championship and that’s an amazing feeling. I’m really proud of my race team. They work their tails off on this race car and our DEX Imaging Supra was pretty bad to the bone.”
BRANDON JONES, No. 19 Menards/Jen Weld Toyota Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 9th
Solid finish just wasn’t enough. How was your race?
“It was a pretty good day, better than yesterday. Definitely got a lot better, learned a lot from yesterday to help out. We just struggled a bit to get our car to react to some adjustments. We ended up a decent amount freer and was still struggling to turn the corner. We’ve got a couple things that we are going to go back and look at and try to make it better for next year.”
Are you focusing on a win next weekend?
“Yeah, absolutely. I think that we have the setup and I have the notes to do that. We had a really good run earlier this year and I don’t see why we can’t go there and have another really good weekend and win the race.”
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About Toyota
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AUSTIN CINDRIC, No. 22 Pirtek Ford Mustang — “Our goal for the entire day was to leave here with smiles on our faces going to Phoenix and to be able to do that is a big box checked. I know our guys worked really hard on our Pirtek Ford Mustang in anticipation of this race — a lot of blind decisions having to be made with the race car and how we come here. To lead laps early shows that we were prepared and from there we lost a little bit of track position. Other guys were able to take advantage of tire strategy and from there I just played really conservative with my lane choice on restarts and just being able to make sure we could keep all the fenders on it. It’s so frustrating to race that way. I feel like I’ve had to race that way the entire playoffs and that’s obviously not my style, so I’m excited to go to Phoenix, have some fun, and race for a championship.”
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT YOUR CHANCES AT PHOENIX? “I feel like raw speed-wise I think we’ll be good. It’s just about understanding where the racetrack is gonna be up high and up low and trying to understand what our race car needs to do that. We got caught off-guard with how our race car drove the last time we were there as it moved up and I feel like we have to be a bit aggressive heading into that race setup-wise trying to figure out what’s best. I’m looking forward to that challenge and if we’re there, we’ve got a shot. This series has been crazy all year and it’s been fun to be a part of, and it’s great to have a shot at the championship.”
AUSTIN CINDRIC POST-RACE ZOOM TRANSCRIPT
HOW ARE YOU FEELING ABOUT MAKING THE CHAMPIONSHIP 4? “I’m happy. This is what we worked the whole year for — a lot of boxes checked for us today. I feel like we’ve had to points race the entire playoffs and it’s been really annoying and we’ve brought some really fast race cars to the racetrack the last couple weeks. I feel like my guys did an incredible job coming to a racetrack with no notebook and basing it off of, whether it’s the Ford simulator or past notes from the Cup guys, so really proud of that effort. A lot of work was put in to do that on my end as well as the team’s end, so for us to unload like that and be able to lead the first bit of that stage felt nice, felt rewarding, and then from there lost a little bit of track position, wasn’t on the right side of the stage flips and from there I pretty much picked the bottom lane on every restart to just be conservative. I feel like that really hurt me on track position today, so I don’t know if we got to see the full potential of our Pirtek Ford Mustang today, but overall really proud of the effort. It’s a year’s worth of work and go try and make the most of it next week.”
HOW VALIDATING DOES THIS FEEL? “It’s a year’s worth of work and I think the team of guys that I’m around, the driver that I’ve become the last three years, I think it’s a championship effort. Obviously, Team Penske is a place that expects to win championships, so for us to be in that fight is important and it’s what we expect out of ourselves. It’s what I expect out of myself. I definitely probably had the most roundabout way as far as what I’ve driven in my career and how I’ve learned how to drive race cars, and that’s made me different and that’s gotten me opportunities and that’s gotten me the opportunity to make the final four in trucks and have a shot at the championship there and now in the Xfinity Series. It’s been a lot of fun. It’s a lot of hard work and that’s gotta continue the next couple days. I know my guys are gonna be busting their butts back at the shop to give me the best opportunity to try and have a championship.”
YOU RAN FOR BRAD KESELOWSKI IN THE TRUCKS AND HE’S HAD A LOT OF FORMER DRIVERS MOVE ON AND DO WELL. WHAT DOES HE DO FOR YOUNG DRIVERS? “The first thing you want as a driver is an opportunity and my first NASCAR opportunity came at this track because of Brad Keselowski. When Austin Theriault had has back injury in Vegas in 2015 they needed a driver for the 29 truck. I had done one ARCA race at that point. Granted, that ARCA race went very well, but I’d done one ARCA race at that point. It was Brad’s idea. Brad wanted me in the truck and I started from not having a clue where anything was my first laps of practice to running in the top five at the end of the truck race, and that’s obviously grown into a lot of different opportunities. Brad has believed in me. Brad has believed in Chase. Between Brad and Ford Performance, I feel like Chase and I wouldn’t be in the position we’re in right now, so very appreciative of that and obviously that was some conversation, I don’t know if it was this week or last as far as all his drivers having an opportunity to move into the Cup Series and I think that’s validation in itself. I think the numbers show. I can take myself out of the equation and be impressed by that. It’s a great group of people. I keep in touch with the folks that worked at BKR. That was a special place for a while.”
DO YOU FEEL YOU HAVE TO WIN AT PHOENIX TO WIN THE TITLE? “I think we have to go there prepared to have to win the race. I feel like that’s what I expect out of my competitors. It’s what I expect out of Allgaier. That’s what I expect out of Haley. That’s what I expect out of Briscoe. I expect those guys to try to win the race next week, so for us to be able to win a championship we’re gonna have to do that. Mentality-wise, I don’t know where we’re gonna line up as far as metrics go, but I’ll try and run as many qualifying laps as possible until that doesn’t work and try and figure out what the next move is. I’m excited for it. It’s a fun racetrack. It’s a very dynamic racetrack. Now we’ve got the PJ1 on the track, so a lot of changing factors and it feels like forever ago we were racing there, so we’ll try and put our best foot forward.”
With the NASCAR Xfinity Series returning to Martinsville Speedway for the first time since 2006 and three spots to the Championship 4 round up for grabs at the start, rookie Harrison Burton knocked another one out of the park after holding off Justin Allgaier to win the Draft Top 250 at the Paperclip circuit. The victory was Burton’s fourth of this season and of his career as he also claimed back-to-back victories for the first time in his NASCAR national touring series career.
The starting lineup was based on four stats: current owner’s standings, driver’s and owner’s results from a previous Xfinity race and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Xfinity race. With that, Austin Cindric started on pole position and was joined on the front row with Noah Gragson.
Kyle Weatherman and Josh Reaume started at the rear of the field due to driver changes. In addition, Reaume’s No. 93 Chevrolet team have been docked a pit selection for next weekend’s finale event at Phoenix Raceway due to the car failing pre-race inspection twice.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Cindric jumped ahead with the lead and he was able to come back around the start/finish line to lead the first lap. Behind, Gragson retained second place ahead of Kaulig Racing teammates Justin Haley and Ross Chastain. Justin Allgaier closed in in fifth place while Jeb Burton settled in sixth ahead of Brandon Jones.
The first caution of the race flew on the fourth lap when Gray Gaulding fell off the pace and was nearly rammed by leader Cindric and the oncoming leaders when his No. 07 Panini Chevrolet Camaro continued to stall before it came to a rest in Turn 1.
The race restarted on the eighth lap with Cindric and Gragson on the front row followed by Haley, Allgaier, Chastain and Jeb Burton. At the start, Cindric retained the lead following a strong start while Haley mounted a challenge on the inside lane for second place. Behind, Allgaier and Chastain were in the top five while Joe Gibbs Racing’s Harrison Burton and Brandon Jones moved into sixth and seventh.
Shortly after, Harrison Burton moved into fifth place and teammate Jones followed suit while Chastain slipped back to seventh place while stuck on the outside lane. In addition, Michael Annett joined the party as he started to challenge Chastain for more.
By Lap 15, Cindric continued to lead by more than half a second over Haley with Gragson trailing by more than a second. Allgaier and Harrison Burton were in the top five followed by Brandon Jones, Chastain, Jeb Burton, Annett and Brett Moffitt. Meanwhile, Chase Briscoe and Ryan Sieg were in 11th and 12th while A.J. Allmendinger was in 19th place behind Riley Herbst and Jeremy Clements.
Five laps later, on Lap 20, Cindric stabilized his advantage by more than half a second over Haley while Gragson, Allgaier and Harrison Burton continued to run in the top five.
A few laps later, Bayley Currey made contact with the wall after sustaining a flat tire, but he was able to nurse his car back to pit road with a tire rub and the race continued under green.
When the competition caution flew on Lap 25, Cindric was still at the front as the leader followed by Haley, Gragson, Allgaier and Harrison Burton while Brandon Jones, Chastain, Jeb Burton, Annett and Moffitt were in the top 10.
Under caution, some like Sieg, Myatt Snider, Ryan Vargas and Brandon Brown pitted while the rest led by Cindric remained on the track.
When the race restarted on Lap 31, Cindric retained the lead following another strong start while Gragson retained second place on the outside lane. Behind, Haley and Harrison Burton battled for third place while Allgaier was in fifth place ahead of Chastain. Behind, Allmendinger used the outside lane to move up to 11th place.
By Lap 35, Cindric and Gragson were at the front followed by Harrison Burton, Haley, Allgaier and Chastain. Not long after, the caution returned when Gaulding spun in Turn 1 while he was engaged in a three-wide battle with Stefan Parsons and Colby Howard.
The race restarted on Lap 42 with Cindric and Gragson on the front row. At the start, Gragson mounted a challenge for the lead on the outside lane next to Cindric. Back at the start/finish line, Gragson led a lap for himself as he and Cindric made contact in Turn 1 before battling hard through Turns 2 and 3. Entering Turn 4, Gragson cleared Cindric for the lead as Harrison Burton mounted a challenge for second place on Cindric.
By Lap 46, Harrison Burton moved into second place over Cindric while Gragson continued to lead. Shortly after, Jeb Burton wheel hopped and got loose entering Turn 3 as he slid towards the outside wall and got shuffled out of the top 10, though he was able to continue and the race remained under green.
Back towards the front, Harrison Burton started to close in on Gragson for the lead. Behind, Cindric retained third place followed by Haley and Allgaier while Chastain, Jones, Annett, Allmendinger and Moffitt were in the top 10 with Briscoe just outside of the top-10 mark on the track.
While Gragson and Harrison Burton battled for the lead, Allmendinger continued to carve his way toward the front as he overtook Allgaier for sixth place. Behind, Briscoe, a 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series championship contender, cracked the top 10 in 10th place.
With five laps remaining in the first stage, Gragson retained a narrow lead over Harrison Burton and Cindric while Kaulig Racing’s Haley, Chastain and Allmendinger pursued behind.
With one lap remaining in the first stage, the leaders started to approach lapped traffic. Despite encountering lapped traffic and being challenged by Harrison Burton, Gragson was able to retain the lead and win the first stage on Lap 60 for his ninth stage victory of the season. Burton settled in second place followed by Cindric, Chastain and Haley while Allmendinger, Jones, Allgaier, Annett and Briscoe were scored in the top 10.
Under the stage break, most of the leaders pitted and Harrison Burton exited with the lead over Gragson followed by Cindric, Allgaier and Allmendinger, who was hit by Brandon Jones as Jones was exiting his pit stall. Back on the track, J.J. Yeley, Stefan Parsons and Sieg remained on the track. Shortly after, Parsons surrendered his position towards the front by pitting.
The second stage started on Lap 68 with Yeley and Harrison Burton on the front row followed by Sieg and Gragson. At the front, Yeley retained the lead while Harrison Burton mounted a challenge behind.
On Lap 70, Harrison Burton emerged with the lead for the first time after passing Yeley. Not long after, Gragson moved into second place over Yeley while Cindric, Haley, Chastain, Sieg and Allgaier battled behind.
Three laps later, the caution returned for a multi-car wreck in Turn 3 that involved Donald Theetge, B.J. McLeod and Parsons. Not long after, the race was red-flagged for more than seven minutes due to mud and dirt on the track that was kicked on the racing surface from the incident.
When the red flag was lifted and the race resumed under green on Lap 80, the battle for the lead ignited between Harrison Burton and Gragson with Gragson prevailing the following lap. Behind, Cindric was in third place in front of Kaulig Racing’s Chastain and Haley while Allgaier and Sieg battled for sixth.
On Lap 83, Harrison Burton reassumed the lead following a lengthy battle with Gragson. A lap later, Chastain overtook Cindric for third place as teammate Haley started to mount a challenge for more along with Allgaier. Behind, Allmendinger moved into seventh place while Jones, Sieg and Herbst were in the top 10. Briscoe, meanwhile, was back in 13th place.
By Lap 90, Harrison Burton was still leading while Chastain, who moved into second place, started to close in for the lead. Gragson fell back to third place while Haley and Allgaier were in the top five. Allmendinger moved up to sixth followed by Jones, Cindric, Herbst and Sieg while Briscoe was in 12th behind Annett.
On Lap 92, Chastain muscled his way below Harrison Burton to take the lead. While Chastain settled into an advantage of half a second over Harrison Burton, Gragson retained third place followed by Haley, Allgaier, Allmendinger and Cindric.
At the Lap 100 mark, Chastain, who was approaching lapped traffic, extended his advantage by more than a second over Harrison Burton with Gragson, Haley and Allgaier pursuing behind. By then, the remaining eight Playoff contenders were running in the top 13 with Briscoe still mired back outside the top 10.
Five laps later, the caution returned when fire erupted out of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro driven by Matt Mills, who parked and exited his car on the backstretch. Under caution, some like Harrison Burton, Annett, Allmendinger, Jeb Burton, Sieg, Herbst, Snider, Briscoe, Brandon Brown, Jesse Little and others pitted while the rest led by Chastain remained on the track.
With six laps remaining in the second stage, the race restarted with Chastain and Gragson on the front row. At the start, Chastain was able to clear Gragson for the lead entering Turn 1 while Gragson was able to fend off Haley for second. Allgaier and Cindric were in the top five followed by Jones, who overtook Moffitt for position.
Down to the final laps of the second stage, Chastain continued to lead with Gragson remaining in pursuit. With clean air being key, Chastain was able to hold on and win the second stage on Lap 120 and for his third stage victory of the season. Gragson settled in second followed by Haley, Allgaier and Cindric while Jones, Moffitt, Allmendinger, Harrison Burton and Timmy Hill rounded out the top 10.
Under the stage break, some of the leaders pitted with Chastain exiting pit road ahead of Gragson, Jones, Allgaier, Cindric and Haley. Back on the track, Allmendinger, who pitted prior to the conclusion of the second stage, remained on the track and assumed the lead followed by Harrison Burton, teammate Herbst, Jeb Burton, Sieg and Briscoe.
With 123 laps remaining, the final stage commenced. At the start, Allmendinger retained the lead and Harrison Burton fended off teammate Herbst for second. Behind, Jeb Burton muscled his way into third place while Myatt Snider, who overtook Briscoe and Herbst for position, went to work on Sieg for fourth.
With 118 laps remaining and the pack behind the leaders bumping and battling hard for position, the caution returned when contact from Allgaier in Turn 4 and a bump from Haley entering Turn 1 sent Yeley spinning as everyone behind scattered to avoid hitting Yeley.
Under caution, the No. 61 Toyota Supra driven by Chad Finchum was towed back to the garage due to mechanical issues.
When the race restarted under green with 112 laps remaining, Allmendinger retained the lead following a strong start while cousins Harrison and Jeb Burton battled for second. Behind, Snider and Sieg battled in the top five while Herbst was in sixth ahead of Briscoe. Behind, Chastain and Jones battled for a top-10 spot while Allgaier was in 13th. Gragson, Cindric and Haley were mired back in 16th, 17th and 18th.
With 105 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead by nearly two seconds over Harrison Burton while Jeb Burton was in front of a bevy of competitors in third place. By then, Chastain carved his way into eighth place as he went to work on Briscoe for more.
Five laps remaining and with 100 laps remaining, Allmendinger stabilized his advantage by more than a second over Harrison Burton with Jeb Burton trailing by more than three seconds. Sieg, Snider and Herbst were in the top six while Chastain, a Playoff contender trying to fight his way into the Championship 4 finale round, moved into seventh place ahead of Briscoe.
Meanwhile, Allgaier, Gragson and Cindric were in 10th, 11th and 12th while Haley and Jones were in 14th and 15th behind Brandon Brown.
Fifteen laps later, with 85 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead followed by Harrison and Jeb Burton. Sieg, Snider and Herbst continued to run in fourth through sixth while Chastain started having JR Motorsports’ Allgaier, Annett and Gragson close in for seventh place.
Nearly five laps later, Chastain attempted to push Herbst beneath Snider for position to move forward on the track, but it did not work as Chastain lost his momentum and Allgaier was able to overtake him for position and continue to move up on fresh tires.
With 75 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead over Harrison and Jeb Burton followed by Sieg and Allgaier, who overtook Herbst for position. Behind, Chastain slipped back to 10th place while Gragson and Annett moved up to eighth and ninth.
Down to the final 70 laps of the race, the battle for the lead between Allmendinger and Harrison Burton started to heat up as they were mired in lapped traffic. A few laps later, the caution flew when Bayley Currey made hard contact into the outside wall entering Turn 2.
Under caution, the leaders pitted and Harrison Burton was able to reassume the lead after exiting pit road ahead of Allmendinger with Jeb Burton, Sieg and Allgaier exiting in the top five.
With 61 laps remaining, the race restarted under green with Harrison Burton and Allmendinger on the front row. At the start, Burton and Allmendinger battled dead even for the lead and continued to do so for the next four laps before Burton made contact and got loose entering Turn 4 with Allmendinger with the latter prevailing on the outside lane.
Behind, Allgaier overtook teammate Jeb Burton for third place while Gragson passed Sieg for fifth place. Behind Sieg and Herbst was Chastain, mired in eighth place and still scored outside of the top-four cutline in the Playoff standings.
With 52 laps remaining, Harrison Burton reassumed the lead while Allmendinger fell off the pace and made a pit stop under green due to cutting a left-rear tire as a result of his on-track battle and contact with Burton for the lead.
Back on the track and down to the final 50 laps, Allgaier moved into second place behind Harrison Burton while Gragson, Jeb Burton and Herbst were in the top five. Chastain was in sixth ahead of Sieg, Cindric, Briscoe and Haley with Jones in 11th place.
With 45 laps remaining, Harrison Burton continued to lead by a narrow margin over Allgaier with Gragson, Jeb Burton and Chastain in the top five. By then, Cindric, Allgaier and Haley were above the top-four cutline in the Playoff standings and in position of transferring to the Championship 4 round with Chastain, Jones, Gragson and Sieg trailing on the outside of the cutoff mark.
Under 40 laps remaining, Harrison Burton stabilized his advantage by nearly a second over Allgaier, who continued to pressure the rookie for the lead. Gragson retained third place while Chastain overtook Jeb Burton for fourth place.
Four laps later, the caution returned when Snider spun following contact with Brandon Brown. Under caution, some like Sieg, Briscoe, Brandon Jones, Annett and others pitted while the rest led by Harrison Burton remained on the track.
With 30 laps remaining, the race restarted under green with Harrison Burton and Allgaier on the front row. At the start, Burton and Allgaier battled dead even for the lead with the former prevailing the following lap. Allgaier settled in second while teammate Gragson, facing a “must-win” situation, moved into third place. Jeb Burton was in fourth while Chastain was in fifth ahead of teammate Haley, Herbst and Cindric.
Down to the final 20 laps of the race, Harrison Burton was still leading, though JRM teammates Allgaier and Gragson kept Burton within their sights. Behind, Chastain overtook Jeb Burton for fourth place while Haley, clinging onto the final transfer spot to the Championship 4 round, battled Herbst to retain sixth place. Cindric was in eighth while Jones was in 10th ahead of Briscoe.
With less than 15 laps remaining and with Harrison Burton still leading Allgaier by more than half a second, Haley was shuffled back to 12th place while teammate Chastain was in fourth place as both Kaulig Racing teammates were left in a battle with one another for a championship finale spot.
Down to the final 10 laps of the race, Harrison Burton continued to lead by nearly a second over Allgaier with teammate Gragson trailing by nearly two seconds. Chastain settled in fourth ahead of Jeb Burton while Herbst, Briscoe, Jones, Annett and Cindric were in the top 10. Haley was in 12th and holding onto the final transfer spot by four points over teammate Chastain.
With five laps remaining, leader Harrison Burton started to catch lapped traffic as he continued to lead by less than a second over Allgaier with Gragson trailing behind by more than a second and Chastain trailing by four seconds.
Despite the lapped traffic, Harrison Burton continued to stabilize his advantage over Allgaier, who continued to close in. At the final lap, Burton continued to lead by half a second. Coming back around to the checkered flag, Burton was able to hold on and win by approximately three-tenths of a second over Allgaier.
At 20 years and 22 days old, Harrison Burton became the youngest winner at Martinsville Speedway, eclipsing his father Jeff’s previous record at 23 years, two months and 24 days old.
During his cool-down lap and victory burnout, Harrison received congrats from his father Jeff, who interviewed his son during the on-track celebration.
“What’s up, dad? That was pretty awesome!” Burton exclaimed. “Great race car. I got the best team in the garage. That’s pretty fun!”
“I heard my old man get on the radio, which was pretty special,” Burton added during a post-race interview. “He’s funny on the TV. He was probably hating that because he tries to stay as non-biased as possible and avoids talking about me as much as he can. When they told him to do that, he was probably excited to talk to me but probably, he was a little bit nervous. That was awesome to have my dad talk to me. The amount of stuff that my dad and my mom have done for me, sacrificing time together, sacrificing time with my sister,…To give back to them by winning these races and, hopefully, proving that all that time spent away was worth it, racing all over the country with my mom, that means a lot.”
Allgaier finished in second place and raced his way into the Championship 4 round while teammate Gragson failed to advance to the Championship 4 round despite finishing in third place.
“I’m just proud of our team, everybody at JR Motorsports,” Allgaier said. “We had four really fast Camaros today. We came in today with the idea of just managing the stages as best we could, managing the race as best we could. At the end there, I really wanted to be able to get up there and pass Harrison, but hats off to those guys. They did a great job. I just didn’t do a good job on getting off the corner. I struggled all day to get my rhythm down. Once we finally did that, I felt like we had a really fast Camaro. Proud to get Unilever a good finish. Most importantly, proud to get all of our partners an opportunity to go for a championship next week. That’s what this is all about. Just got to get after it next week…We just got to go all week and work as hard as we can, and be there whenever it comes time.”
Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images.
“I definitely thought our Bass Pro Shops/True Timber was pretty good,” Gragson said. “I was saving my tires a little bit the run before that…We put on one hell of a stretch in the Playoffs. Overall, we can’t hang our heads over this stretch. We did the best we could do. It wasn’t meant to be. We’ll go fight hard next weekend at Phoenix. I like that track. I wish I was competing in the Final Four. Congrats to all the guys who made it happen. I’m hungry to win one. It sucks finishing second and third. I wanna go win.”
Jeb Burton recorded a strong fourth-place run while Chastain finished in fifth place and failed to advance to the Championship 4 round by four points.
“I made too many mistakes the two races leading up to this,” Chastain said. “I know that. It was a tough week coming here knowing the hole I put us in. Today though, the fight was awesome. I just wanted to win Martinsville. I knew how fast our car was, especially in clean air. Proud of the fight, proud of the effort from everybody. I’ve got great owners. Can’t wait to go to Phoenix and put all the effort after Phoenix into 2021.”
Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images.
Herbst, Briscoe, Annett, Jones and Cindric rounded out the top 10 on the track. Cindric and Haley, who finished 12th, secured the final two spots to the Championship 4 round, joining Allgaier and Chase Briscoe.
“Yeah, obviously, coming to a race track with a brand new set-up and a car that hasn’t been here, I’m sure [crew chief Brian Wilson] was pretty nervous but obviously, he did a great job,” Cindric said. “Our guys worked incredibly hard on this Pirtek Ford Mustang for this race. Really proud of that. I don’t think we really got to show its capability today. I took the easy way out and picked a lot of bottom lane restarts, which were a lot safer. I hate playing the points game, but we have done that the entire Playoffs. I’m happy we’re in the final four…We get to go to Phoenix and have a lot of fun. I’m excited to go fight for a championship…We got to beat everyone, that’s the thing. You can’t just be better. You have to be the best.”
“The motor’s actually blown up,” Haley said. “From about halfway through the race, the motor started letting go. Just so thankful for everyone at Kaulig Racing. When I first signed on, Chris Rice [President of Kaulig Racing] was like, ‘Hey man, this is a 12th-place car. You got to get it. We gotta work together, we got to get it in the Final Four, we gotta win races and we can do it.’ I believed him. It’s just so awesome to get this thing in the Final Four. If you told a lot of people at the start of the year that the No. 11 car out of Kaulig Racing was gonna be in the Final Four, I’m sure they’d probably say you’re wrong. So, so thankful. Sigh of relief. Matt Kaulig, have a drink for me.”
Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images.
Chase Briscoe, Austin Cindric, Justin Allgaier and Justin Haley will contend for this year’s NASCAR Xfinity Series championship next weekend at Phoenix Raceway. In addition to the drivers’ championship, all four will battle for this year’s owners’ championship.
Ross Chastain, Brandon Jones, Noah Gragson and Ryan Sieg, who finished 11th, have been eliminated from title contention.
“I wanted to go to Phoenix and have a shot to [win the title],” Jones said. “Luckily, we announced that we’re coming back next year and we’re gonna have a shot at it again. Pretty cool to see Harrison get a couple more wins before the year’s over. I think these guys still need to watch out. We’re gonna be really good at Phoenix when we get there. I think we still could be better for next year.”
There were 11 lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured 10 cautions for 63 laps.
Results.
1. Harrison Burton, 81 laps led
2. Justin Allgaier
3. Noah Gragson, 23 laps led, Stage 1 winner
4. Jeb Burton
5. Ross Chastain, 31 laps led, Stage 2 winner
6. Riley Herbst
7. Chase Briscoe
8. Michael Annett
9. Brandon Jones
10. Austin Cindric, 42 laps led
11. Ryan Sieg
12. Justin Haley
13. Brett Moffitt
14. J.J. Yeley, five laps led
15. Jeremy Clements
16. Tommy Joe Martins
17. Timmy Hill
18. Brandon Brown
19. Josh Williams
20. Mason Diaz
21. Joe Graf Jr.
22. Jesse Little, one lap down
23. Myatt Snider, one lap down
24. Stefan Parsons, one lap down
25. Colby Howard, two laps down
26. A.J. Allmendinger, two laps down, 68 laps led
27. Alex Labbe, three laps down
28. Jeffrey Earnhardt, four laps down
29. Kody Vanderwal, four laps down
30. Kyle Weatherman, four laps down
31. Donald Theetge, five laps down
32. Carl Long, six laps down
33. B.J. McLeod, 11 laps down
34. Ryan Vargas, 17 laps down
35. Gray Gaulding – OUT, Electrical
36. Bayley Currey – OUT, Accident
37. Chad Finchum – OUT, Engine
38. Matt Mills – OUT, Oil line
39. Josh Reaume – OUT, Suspension
Bold indicates Championship finale contenders
Standings
1. Chase Briscoe – Advanced
2. Austin Cindric – Advanced
3. Justin Allgaier – Advanced
4. Justin Haley – Advanced
5. Ross Chastain – Eliminated
6. Brandon Jones – Eliminated
7. Noah Gragson – Eliminated
8. Ryan Sieg – Eliminated
The NASCAR Xfinity Series will travel to Phoenix Raceway for the 2020 season finale and where a champion will be crowned. The race will occur on Saturday, November 7, at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
Longest serving, most accomplished driver in Corvette Racing program history
DETROIT (October 31, 2020) – Chevrolet and Corvette Racing are paying tribute to the accomplishments of Oliver Gavin, who will step away from full-time competition with the program at the end of 2020. Gavin, one of sports car racing’s biggest stars, has been part of Corvette Racing since 2002 and will complete his 18th full-time season with the team at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring in two weeks.
The first race for Gavin with Corvette Racing took place at Sebring in 2002, and he was promoted to full-time status the following year.
Gavin’s list of accomplishments with Corvette Racing is unmatched. He has more starts (201), championships (five), race wins (51), 24 Hours of Le Mans victories (five) and pole positions (25) than any other driver in program history. He also has won five times at both Sebring and Petit Le Mans with Corvette Racing and captured the Rolex 24 At Daytona in 2016 to begin his latest championship run.
“To have been with the same team for 19 seasons has been an immense privilege, and I thank from the bottom of my heart each and every person who has shared that journey with me,” Gavin said. “It’s been an amazing run, and I’ve been very lucky to have been able to drive at such a high level for so long. I’m extremely proud of what we’ve achieved together, especially the championship wins and milestone victories at Le Mans, Daytona and Sebring, among others. I’m also very proud of the part I played in developing four generations of Corvette race cars for both IMSA and at Le Mans, and I look forward to exploring opportunities to represent Chevrolet and Corvette Racing in the future.”
In addition to his competitive record, Gavin also has been a fundamental part in the development of every generation of racing Corvette during his tenure with the program. His efforts in the Corvette C5-R laid the groundwork for the GT1- and GT-spec versions of the C6.R. Gavin was heavily involved in testing and development of the C7.R and mid-engine C8.R. He won an IMSA championship, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Rolex 24 At Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring with the Corvette C7.R.
“Oliver Gavin is a name that is synonymous with Corvette Racing,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. Vice President, Performance and Motorsports. “He has been one of the sport’s greatest drivers and a fantastic representative of Chevrolet for nearly two decades – on the track, working with our Corvette production engineers, and engaging Corvette owners and fans around the world.”
Gavin claimed the first pole position for the C8.R at Daytona in July, and he and Milner won the next event at Sebring in their No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette C8.R. They stand second in the GT Le Mans Drivers’ Championship entering this weekend’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship event at Laguna Seca.
“All of us at Chevrolet thank Oliver for his nearly 20 years of contributions to Corvette Racing,” Campbell added. “No driver at Corvette Racing has started more events, captured more championships or won more races. Oliver’s success has brought great improvements over the years not just to Corvette Racing, but also to every Corvette that sits in an owner’s driveway. We are hopeful of creating more of those opportunities with Oliver into the future.”
Details on Corvette Racing’s complete driver roster for 2021 will be confirmed at a later date. Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
About Chevrolet Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with 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.
Grant Enfinger celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series NASCAR Hall of Fame 200 at Martinsville Speedway on October 30, 2020. Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images.
Despite a bundle of late-race cautions in the final 20 laps on Friday night at Martinsville, Grant Enfinger, who was in a must-win situation, held off his ThorSport teammate Ben Rhodes to claim his spot in the Championship 4 by winning the NASCAR Hall of Fame 200.
“It was tough; we knew we were going to have to take our gloves off and fight for this one,” Enfinger said after celebrating with his team. “It’s been an up and down season for us, but we tended to peak when we needed to. And now I feel really good about our chances at Phoenix.”
No Trucks were sent to the rear following prerace inspection and Sheldon Creed was on the pole based on the metric system. Stages of 50-50-100 made up the 200-lap event.
Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 50
When the green flag flew, the battle for the lead was between GMS drivers Sheldon Creed and Zane Smith with Creed taking the lead on Lap 12 and leading through the early portions of the race. Three cautions would slow the first stage. The first yellow came on Lap 14 with a major stack up on the frontstretch. Tanner Gray was spun after contact from the No. 02 of Tate Fogleman. Others involved included Ray Ciccarelli, Danny Bohn, Trevor Bayne and Codie Rohrbaugh.
During the pit stops, Bayne was penalized for removing equipment while Rohrbaugh was penalized for pitting too soon.
Another yellow flew on Lap 49 when the No. 44 of Natalie Decker was bumped from behind by the No. 3 of Jordan Anderson. From there, a 19 lap green-flag run occurred before Clay Greenfield in the No. 68 spun in Turn 3, bringing out a late-stage yellow and ending the first stage under caution. Sheldon Creed took the stage victory with Crafton, Sauter, Zane Smith, Rhodes, Moffitt, Eckes, Enfinger, Lessard, and Friesen completing the Top 10 stage finishers.
Stage 2: Lap 59 – Lap 100
A lot of action was seen throughout Stage 2 including problems for Austin Hill in the No. 16. Hill, who recently announced his return to Hattori Racing in 2021, began experiencing engine-related issues as his truck began shutting off and on.
Meanwhile, two drivers had tire issues. On Lap 72, Parker Kligerman in the No. 75, had a left-front tire go down after contact with Austin Hill, while the race leader, Sheldon Creed, experienced a left-rear flat.
Fortunately for Kligerman and Creed, both drivers caught a break a few laps later when the No. 68 of Greenfield would once again bring the caution out in Turn 3. During the caution, problems continued to get worse for Hill as the team attempted to diagnose his engine problem. The issue was found during a Lap 90 caution, as it was reported that Hill had a dead cylinder.
Unfortunately for the Georgia native, the truck quit running on Lap 117 and he was credited with a 35th place finish which ended any chance of making it to the Championship 4.
The stage would restart with two to go on Lap 98 and featured exciting action as Stewart Friesen in the No. 52 picked up his first stage win of the 2020 season. Crafton, Enfinger, Lessard, Moffitt, Ankrum, Eckes, Sauter, Hocevar, and Rhodes were the Top 10.
it was at this very moment, we would see Enfinger’s first glimpse at the lead, as the No. 98 team used a different pit strategy during the stage break, staying out to assume the lead for the Stage 3 restart.
Stage 3: Lap 112 – Lap 200
As in most cases, Stage 3 saw the most action and the most yellows with six yellows flown through the remaining 88 laps.
It would seem as though once a restart took place, another yellow would ensue which created a couple of harrowing moments for Enfinger who was trying to race his way in for a Championship 4 spot. On a Lap 161 restart, his teammate Johnny Sauter spun his tires and fell back to 18th with Enfinger right on his back bumper. Enfinger wrestled the lead away but was once again involved in a caution with 25 to go when Sheldon Creed, who was battling with Enfinger, got spun in Turn 4 after contact by the No. 98 truck.
Things weren’t looking so great for Enfinger with the restart that came with 10 to go, as he restarted in the fourth position with some stronger trucks in front of him, including Raphael Lessard and Brett Moffitt. But the Alabaman caught a lucky break just one lap later when the No. 4 of Lessard wrecked in Turn 2 with contact from the No. 99 of Rhodes after Rhodes was caught from behind by the No. 23 of Moffitt.
Following the yellow, the restart came with two laps to go with Enfinger and Rhodes making up the front row and both needing a victory to advance to the Championship 4. As fate would have it, Enfinger fended off Rhodes and got his fourth win of the year.
Rhodes, unfortunately, finished second and would miss out on making the Championship 4 by just one position.
“We had a shot, but first off, congrats to Grant they worked their butts off all year,” Rhodes said of his teammate. “They have three wins, this is their fourth, they deserve it. We were racing as hard as we can. Didn’t have the speed we needed but we hung around and my team had good strategy all day long. It’s just unfortunate.”
There were 11 cautions for 82 laps and 16 lead changes among nine different leaders.
Those racing for the championship include Sheldon Creed, Brett Moffitt, Grant Enfinger and Zane Smith. The driver who has the has the best finish of these four contenders next week at Phoenix International Raceway will win the Truck Series championship.
Official Results following the NASCAR Hall of Fame 200 at Martinsville Speedway.
Grant Enfinger, led 49 laps
Ben Rhodes, led one lap
Zane Smith, led 20 laps
Christian Eckes
Matt Crafton, led six laps
Stewart Friesen, won Stage 2, led five laps
Danny Bohn
Sheldon Creed, won Stage 1, led 65 laps
Austin Wayne Self
Derek Kraus
Trevor Bayne
Tyler Ankrum
Carson Hocevar, led five laps
Timmy Hill
Spencer Boyd
Dawson Cram
Brandon Jones
Sam Mayer, OUT, Crash
Jordan Anderson, 1 lap down
Raphael Lessard, 1 lap down
Clay Greenfield, 2 laps down
B.J. McLeod, 2 laps down
Johnny Sauter, 3 laps down
Parker Kligerman, 4 laps down
Ray Ciccarelli, 4 laps down
Norm Benning, 4 laps down
Natalie Decker, 5 laps down
Brett Moffitt, OUT, Crash
Jennifer Jo Cobb, 26 laps down
Ryan Truex, 31 laps down
Tanner Gray, OUT, Damage Vehicle Policy
Todd Gilliland, OUT, Overheating
Spencer Davis, OUT, Brakes
Codie Rohrbaugh, OUT, Overheating
Austin Hill, OUT, Engine
Tate Fogleman, OUT, Crash
Josh Reaume, OUT, Transmission
Up Next: The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will head to their final race of the season to decide a champion at Phoenix International Raceway on Friday, Nov. 6 live on FOX Sports 1 and MRN Radio.
Veteran Mike Wheeler will be serving as crew chief for Bubba Wallace and the newly formed 23XI Racing for the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season.
Wheeler, a native from Southold, New York, and a graduate of Michigan’s Kettering University with a degree in mechanical engineering, currently works as a competition director for Leavine Family Racing, which is set to cease operations following this season. He carries an abundant of experience as a crew chief as he has called 148 Cup Series races and 33 Xfinity Series races atop the pit box. He made his debut as a crew chief for Denny Hamlin and the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team on a six-race interim role in 2014, served his first full-time season as a Cup crew chief in 2016 with Hamlin and last served as crew chief for Matt DiBenedetto with Leavine Family Racing in the 2019 Cup season. He also served as a full-time crew chief in the 2015 Xfinity Series season for Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 20 Toyota team that was piloted by eight different competitors.
The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season will serve as Wheeler’s fifth full-time season as a crew chief in the sport’s premier series.
The move for Wheeler to 23XI Racing reunites him with Denny Hamlin, whom Wheeler worked with as a crew chief at Joe Gibbs Racing for 112 races in the Cup Series (2014, 2016-2018) and six races in the Xfinity Series (2015). Together, Wheeler and Hamlin have won five Cup races, the 2016 non-point Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway and three Xfinity races, with a best points result of sixth place occurring twice in the 2016 and 2017 Cup Series seasons. Their biggest accomplishment was winning the 2016 Daytona 500 following a photo finish, where Hamlin edged Martin Truex Jr. at the finish line by a nose to claim one of NASCAR’s crown-jewel events. They also won the 2017 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.
23XI Racing is a newly formed NASCAR Cup Series team owned by three-time reigning Daytona 500 champion Denny Hamlin and NBA legend Michael Jordan that is set to make its debut in 2021, beginning at Daytona International Speedway for the 63rd running of the Daytona 500 on February 14, with Bubba Wallace, NASCAR’s lone African-American competitor, to serve as the team’s driver. Plans of the team’s formation was first announced on September 20 and the team name, 23XI Racing, was revealed on October 22 as Wallace is set to sport the No. 23, Jordan’s number in NBA, on his car next season.
The announcement of Wheeler joining 23XI Racing served as one of two major announcements for the team on Friday, October 30. Earlier, Toyota announced their support for the team along with Joe Gibbs Racing, which will be forming a technical alliance with 23XI Racing.
Catch Wheeler’s return and 23XI Racing’s debut at Daytona International Speedway for the 63rd running of the Daytona 500 on February 14, 2021.
TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE XFINITY 500 MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY RIDGEWAY, VIRGINIA NOVEMBER 1, 2020
MARTINSVILLE: RACE #35 NASCAR’S three national series head to the .526-mile oval of Martinsville Speedway to close out the Playoffs’ Round of Eight and the last opportunity for drivers to punch their ticket for the Championship Four in each series. For the second time this season, the NASCAR Cup Series returns to the Martinsville, Virginia, short track for the Xfinity 500. The 500-lap, 263-mile event will be the 144th race in the track’s history for NASCAR’s premier series and the first time that Martinsville has held the elimination race for the Round of Eight.
The Playoff tripleheader kicks off under the lights with the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series’ NASCAR Hall of Fame 200 tonight, October 30th, at 8:00 p.m. ET. Day two is an appearance by the NASCAR Xfinity Series with the Draft Top 250 on Saturday, October 31st, at 3:30 p.m. ET, the first time the series has been at Martinsville Speedway since 2006. To conclude the weekend. The NASCAR Cup Series’ Xfinity 500 will wrap up the Playoff Round of Eight cut-off weekend on Sunday, November 1st, at 2:00 p.m. ET.
As NASCAR returns to Martinsville Speedway, up to 1,000 fans will be welcomed back to the venue and have the chance to experience the three days of Playoff racing action in-person.
ROUND OF EIGHT: THE ELIMINATION RACE It all comes down to 500-laps around the .526-mile paperclip-shaped oval of Martinsville Speedway to set the field for the series’ championship. Martinsville Speedway has held three different spots on the post-season schedule since the beginning of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs in 2004. It’s the third different track to be positioned as the ninth event in the Playoff stretch, joining Darlington Raceway (2004) and Phoenix Raceway (2005-2019).
Three Team Chevy drivers have their eye on the final three spots left in the Championship Four and their opportunity to compete for the title of the NASCAR Cup Series Champion. Going into the Round of Eight elimination race at Martinsville Speedway, here’s where the Team Chevy drivers currently sit in the Playoff standings, as well as key statistics at the track:
Alex Bowman, No. 88 Planters Camaro ZL1 1LE – 5th in Standings (4,095 points) Victories: 1 (Auto Club Speedway) Top-Fives: 6; Top-10’s: 14; Laps Led: 439; Average Finish: 14.9 Stage Wins: 4 At Martinsville: Top-10’s: 2; Average Finish: 22.0
Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE – 6th in Standings (4,095 points) Victories: 3 (Charlotte Motor Speedway, Daytona Road Course, Charlotte Road Course) Top-Fives: 13; Top-10’s: 20; Laps Led: 858; Average Finish: 12.3 Stage Wins: 9 At Martinsville: Top-Five’s: 3; Top-10’s: 5; Laps led: 193; Average Finish: 13.4
Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE – 8th in Standings (4,039 points) Victories: 1 (Las Vegas Motor Speedway) Top-Fives: 6; Top-10’s: 18; Laps Led: 142; Average Finish: 15.9 Stage Wins: 1 At Martinsville: Wins: 2; Top-Five’s: 3; Top-10’s: 8; Laps Led: 464; Average Finish: 20.1
Coming off last weekend’s NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series win at Texas Motor Speedway, GMS Racing and Team Chevy’s, Sheldon Creed, secured his position in the Championship Four. Joining teammate Brett Moffitt, Team Chevy enters into the Round of Eight cut-off race with two spots clinched in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway and the chance to win the series title.
After a wild conclusion in the Lone Star state, three spots are still up for grabs for the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship Four. Of the eight playoff contenders left in title contention, five of those are occupied by Team Chevy drivers. For their first appearance at the track since 2006, the series finds their trip to Martinsville Speedway as their final shot to seal their fate into the championship weekend at Phoenix Raceway.
Heading into the Round of Eight finale, here are where the Team Chevy drivers sit in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff standings:
NASCAR GANDER RV & OUTDOORS TRUCK SERIES
Sheldon Creed, No. 2 GMS Racing Silverado: Clinched by Win
Brett Moffitt, No. 23 GMS Racing Silverado: Clinched by Win
Ryan Sieg, No. 39 RSS Racing Camaro SS: 3,050 points / -43 points
BOWTIE BULLETS: · Victories by active Team Chevy drivers at Martinsville Speedway include: Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, has nine wins (2004, ’06, ’07-twice, ’08, ’09, ’12, ’13, & ’16) Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE has two wins (2002, & ’14)
· The first win for Chevrolet at Martinsville Speedway came in 1957, when Buck Baker parked his Chevrolet 150 ‘Black Widow’ stock car in victory lane. Through NASCAR’s history at the .526-mile oval, other models that have scored a win include Bel Air, Biscayne, Impala, Monte Carlo, Lumina, Impala SS and SS. Of the 143 NCS races held at the oldest track on the NASCAR circuit, a Bowtie brand has visited victory lane 56 times, the most of any other manufacturer.
· Hendrick Motorsports and Team Chevy driver, Chase Elliott, heads into the final race of the Round of Eight leading Playoff drivers in a variety of statistical categories through eight Playoff races: Most points earned (307), stage points earned (93), most laps in the top-five (1,374), and most laps in the top-10 (2,006). Teammate, Alex Bowman, has had an impressive run in his first Round of Eight run in his six-year Cup Series career. Bowman holds the best average finish in the Playoffs thus far with an 8.3 and ties for the lead of top-10 finishes in the Playoffs with six.
· In 143 NASCAR Cup Series events held at the .526-mile venue, Chevrolet has captured 53 poles, 262 top-five’s, 500 top-10’s and 27,429 laps led.
· Hendrick Motorsports leads the NASCAR Cup Series in wins at Martinsville Speedway with 24 wins: Jeff Gordon (nine), Jimmie Johnson (nine), Darrell Waltrip (four), Geoffrey Bodine (one) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (one).
· Heading into his final race in his full-time NASCAR Cup Series career at Martinsville Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports and Chevrolet driver, Jimmie Johnson, tops the leaderboard in a variety of categories in his 37 career starts: o Johnson leads the series in victories at Martinsville Speedway with nine. With a win this weekend, Johnson can become the third driver in NASCAR Cup Series history to record 10 or more wins, joining Richard Petty and Darrell Waltrip. o Johnson leads the series in runner-up finishes at Martinsville Speedway with four, top-five finishes with 19, and top-10 finishes with 25. o Among active drivers, Johnson leads the series in average finishing position with a 9.3.
STARTING LINE-UP: For the remainder of the 2020 NCS season, the starting lineups will be determined by a competition-based formula, combining the following metrics from the previous race event: 15% of a fastest lap time position, 25% of the driver’s final race finish position, 25% of the owner’s final race position and 35% of the Owner points position.
Here are Team Chevy’s top-20 starters for Sunday’s Xfinity 500:
3rd Alex Bowman, No. 88 Planters Camaro ZL1 1LE 5th Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE 8th Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE 13th William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1 1LE 14th Austin Dillon, No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Off Road Camaro ZL1 1LE 17th Tyler Reddick, No. 8 MotorTrend Camaro ZL1 1LE 18th Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1 1LE
TUNE-IN: NBC will telecast the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday, November 1st, at 2:00 p.m. ET. Live coverage of the 263-mile, 500-lap event for the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of Eight elimination race can also be found on the NBC Sports Gold app, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
QUOTABLE QUOTES: ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 PLANTERS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 5th IN STANDINGS “The only way to make the final four is to go out this weekend and get the win. We have been really focused on Martinsville not knowing the outcome of the first two events of the Round of 8. I am confident in this No. 88 team and I am confident in Greg (Ives). This is what we have been working for all year, to go for a championship in Phoenix. While we were in Texas, the crew back at Hendrick Motorsports was dialing in our Martinsville Chevrolet and getting it ready to race. We have all been putting in the work needed to get the job done and that is what we plan on doing.”
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 6th IN STANDINGS “Both fortunately and unfortunately we have been in this position a few times. I think at the same time it’s not something where you need to go hit a homerun, we just need to go win. I don’t think you have to hit homeruns to win races. We will treat it like a normal race weekend because that is what it is and we will give it our best shot to make it to the final four. If we just do our thing and improve on the last couple of Martinsville trips, take our notebook and try to improve upon it, I think we can contend for a race win. Still one race left in the round so it’s certainly not over. I’m looking forward to it.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 12th IN STANDINGS BYRON ON HOW TO APPROACH RACING AT MARTINSVILLE: “I’ve really enjoyed going to Martinsville even more recently since I’ve really started to figure it out I feel like. It has an interesting rhythm to it, and once you figure it out it’s just a lot of fun and a cool track in general. There really is no room to move around that much. And while rhythm is a key there, you need to know the areas of the track that you want your car to be good in as well. There is a lot of factors that make speed there. It’s just figuring out that rhythm that you need to go fast.”
TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 MOTORTREND CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 19th IN STANDINGS WHAT ARE SOME LESSONS FROM THE RACE WE HAD AT MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY EARLIER THIS YEAR THAT YOU CAN APPLY TO THIS WEEKEND? “We had a really good Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE the last time we went to Martinsville Speedway and learned a lot about the track that I think will help us this time around. The race we had back in June was my first time back at Martinsville since 2016, so I had to adapt quickly to figure out how to get around there in a Cup car since we went into that race without any practice. The track changed a lot over the course of that race, a lot more than we were expecting, so we’ll take that into account when setting up our strategy for it this time around. This is one of my crew chief’s favorite tracks, so we’re all looking forward to getting back there in our No. 8 MotorTrend Chevrolet to see what we can do.”
Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics
Manufacturers Championships: Total (1949-2019): 39 First title for Chevrolet: 1958 Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)
CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS: Total Chevrolet race wins: 793 (1949 to date) Poles won to date: 717 Laps led to date: 236,283 Top-five finishes to date: 4,061 Top-10 finishes to date: 8,396
Total NASCAR Cup wins by corporation, 1949 to date
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
About Chevrolet Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with 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.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Oct. 30, 2020) – NASCAR today announced the 2021 schedule for the NASCAR Xfinity Series™, which will mirror many of the historic changes in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series schedule that was announced in September.
The Xfinity Series will join the Cup Series for 32 of its 33 weekends, including running for the first time at Circuit of the Americas (May 22) and for the first time since 2011 at Nashville Superspeedway (June 19). The series will return to Mid-Ohio on June 5 for the only event at a venue apart from the Cup Series.
“As was the case with the Cup Series, we’re thrilled to have worked with the industry and our broadcast partners to deliver an exciting Xfinity Series schedule for our fans,” said Ben Kennedy, NASCAR vice president of racing development. “We saw phenomenal Xfinity Series racing in 2020, and this schedule allows us to build on that momentum by adding compelling new venues to an already fantastic mix of traditional racetracks.”
The Xfinity Series will make its lone Sunday appearance in Pocono on June 27 as part of an action-packed NASCAR Cup Series doubleheader weekend in Long Pond, Pennsylvania.
After a pair of off weekends in late July, the series returns to action for back-to-back road course racing in Watkins Glen (August 7) and on the Indianapolis Road Course (August 14). Those events will kick off 14 consecutive weekends of racing, including seven straight Playoff races culminating with the crowning of an Xfinity Series champion in Phoenix (November 6).
Bristol Motor Speedway will again host the regular-season finale (September 17), while Las Vegas Motor Speedway will open the Playoffs (September 25). The Charlotte ROVAL (October 9) and Martinsville Speedway (October 30) will once again serve as the cutoff races, trimming the Playoffs field to eight and four, respectively.
Broadcast times and networks will be announced at a later date, as will the 2021 schedule for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Below is the full 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule (Playoff races in bold font):
2021 NASCAR XFINITY SERIES SCHEDULE
Date
Race / Track
Saturday, February 13
Daytona
Saturday, February 20
Homestead-Miami
Saturday, February 27
Auto Club
Saturday, March 6
Las Vegas
Saturday, March 13
Phoenix
Saturday, March 20
Atlanta
Friday, April 9
Martinsville
Saturday, April 24
Talladega
Saturday, May 8
Darlington
Saturday, May 15
Dover
Saturday, May 22
COTA
Saturday, May 29
Charlotte
Saturday, June 5
Mid-Ohio
Saturday, June 12
Texas
Saturday, June 19
Nashville Superspeedway
Sunday, June 27
Pocono
Saturday, July 3
Road America
Saturday, July 10
Atlanta
Saturday, July 17
New Hampshire
Saturday, August 7
Watkins Glen
Saturday, August 14
Indianapolis Road Course
Saturday, August 21
Michigan
Friday, August 27
Daytona
Saturday, September 4
Darlington
Saturday, September 11
Richmond
Friday, September 17
Bristol
Saturday, September 25
Las Vegas
Saturday, October 2
Talladega
Saturday, October 9
Charlotte Roval
Saturday, October 16
Texas
Saturday, October 23
Kansas
Saturday, October 30
Martinsville
Saturday, November 6
Phoenix
About NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR consists of three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series™), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour), one local grassroots series and three international series. The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, Americrown Service and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).
NASCAR Racing Experience 300 to Kick off Season While the Wawa 250 Powered By Coca-Cola Will Again be Part of Exciting Summer Weekend; NASCAR Announces Full 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series Schedule
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Oct. 30, 2020) – The 2021NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule was announced today, and like it has since 1982, the February Xfinity Series race at iconic Daytona International Speedway – the NASCAR Racing Experience 300 – will kick off another exciting season.
While the NASCAR Racing Experience 300, set for Saturday, Feb. 13, will be the first opportunity for drivers to win – and thus become eligible for the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs – the Aug. 27 Wawa 250 Powered by Coca-Cola on the 2.5-mile venue again be a part of the track’s summer classic, set for the last weekend in August for the second consecutive year.
The NASCAR Racing Experience 300 will be the day before the 63rd Annual DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, Feb. 14, President’s Day Weekend. It will mark the 40th straight time (dating back to 1982) The Great American Race has started off NASCAR’s Cup Series season. Next year’s Wawa 250 Powered by Coca-Cola will be held the evening prior to the traditional Coke Zero Sugar 400 Cup Series race, set for Saturday, Aug. 28, the final regular season Cup Series race.
For the first time in history, Daytona International Speedway hosted three Xfinity Series events in 2020 as Noah Gragson won the season-opener and Justin Haley was victorious on the high banks in August. The monumental first-ever DAYTONA Road Course race for the Xfinity Series also took place, in early August, with Austin Cindric taking the victory. All three drivers are currently in the Xfinity Series Playoffs.
Families attending both the NASCAR Experience 300 and Wawa 250 Xfinity Series races can take advantage of free grandstand admissions to all kids 12 years of age or younger. Tickets to the DAYTONA 500, the NASCAR Racing Experience 300 and all events part of Speedweeks Presented by AdventHealth, can be purchased by calling 1-800-PITSHOP or visiting www.DAYTONA500.com. Denny Hamlin can rewrite history and become the first driver to capture three consecutive checkered flags in the DAYTONA 500.
Fans wishing to attend the 2021 Coke Zero Sugar 400 and the Wawa 250 Powered by Coca-Cola can take advantage of an early access pre-sale. Available online or by phone, tickets for the general public for the Coke Zero Sugar 400 start at $49 for adults and $10 for kids 12 and younger. Fans who had tickets for the 2020 event can take receive even lower pricing when renewing by the deadline of Dec. 4. For ticket information, fans can log onto www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or call 1-800-PITSHOP.
The full ’21 Xfinity Series schedule can be found at www.nascar.com. Schedules for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series 2021 seasons will be announced in the near future. Start times and television networks for both Cup Series and Xfinity Series races will be also announced at a later date.
Fans can stay connected with Daytona International Speedway on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and by downloading Daytona International Speedway’s mobile app, for the latest Speedway news throughout the season.
About Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a state-of-the-art motorsports facility and was awarded the SportsBusiness Journal’s prestigious Sports Business Award for Sports Facility of the Year in 2016. Daytona International Speedway is the home of “The Great American Race” – the DAYTONA 500. Though the season-opening NASCAR Cup Series event garners most of the attention – as well as the largest audience in motorsports – the approximately 500-acre motorsports complex, also known as the “World Center of Racing,” boasts the most diverse schedule of racing on the globe. In addition to at least nine major event weekends, the Speedway grounds are also used extensively for events that include concerts, civic and social gatherings, car shows, photo shoots, production vehicle testing and police motorcycle training.
About NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR consists of three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series™), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour), one local grassroots series and three international series. The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, Americrown Service and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).
Up and comer gives glimpse of future with monumental win at Orange County Speedway
RALEIGH, N.C. (Oct. 30, 2020): 15-year-old William Cox is continuing his own personal tradition of excellence in auto racing after recently winning the Fall Classic season finale at Orange County (N.C.) Speedway on Oct. 24, 2020.
Battling the best of the best in the region, Cox was able to dominate the night in his Chad Bryant Racing Late Model at the 3/8-mile asphalt oval. Despite qualifying sixth, Cox was able to quickly head to the front and take control of the event early and never look back. leading the most laps in the 75-lap Late Model division event.
“This was a huge win for me and the Chad Bryant Racing team,” said Cox. “My goal is to keep winning and my dream to make it all the way to the NASCAR Cup Series. I’ve had the opportunity to work with some of the best coaches in the motorsports industry and I’m truly blessed for their guidance not only this weekend but their support over these last few years.”
Under the leadership of team owner Chad Bryant, Cox was able to put on a clinic in his second race with the Mooresville, N.C. team. The 2016 ARCA Menards Series championship team was able to build on their debut together at Southern National (N.C.) Motorsports Park and accelerate the results quickly by hoisting a trophy.
“I’ve been around a lot of talented drivers in my career and based on our brief relationship, William is certainly going to turn heads and make statements,” offered Bryant. “We’re proud of his success at Orange County and look forward to seeing him strengthen his resume next year.”
Earlier this year after spending three years of competing in Karts, Mazda Miatas and Legends Cars, Cox was presented with the next challenge in his racing endeavor – the chance to begin testing a Late Model Stock.
Following a successful test and with a dedicated crew behind him, Cox took the next step in his Motorsports path and left his success in the Legends Car behind.
At the tenure age of 15, it didn’t take long for people to notice the talent of Cox behind the wheel of a Late Model.
By June, he joined the Carolina Pro Model Series with DLP Motorsports and running a limited schedule with Dexter Canipe of 3D Motorsports. A month later he was in Victory Lane at the historic Tri-County Speedway.
Since the win, he has continued to hone his skills at the legendary Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway – battling some of the best Late Model drivers in the country, adding crucial laps behind the wheel to his growing resume.
Touted as one of the youngest rising stars on track with the style of an experience veteran, Cox is certain to continue to turn heads entering the next phase of competition in the CARS Tour in 2021.
For more on William Cox, please visit williamcoxracing.com, like him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter (@willcox3racing) and Instagram (@willcox3racing).
For more on Chad Bryant Racing, please visit ChadBryantRacing.com, like them on Facebook (Chad Bryant Racing) or follow them on Twitter (@ChadBryantRace).
