TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
BASS PRO SHOPS NIGHT RACE
BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
BRISTOL, TENNESSEE
SEPTEMBER 19, 2020

BRISTOL: RACE #29
It’s a historic race with Playoff implications on the line – it’s ‘America’s Night Race’ at Bristol Motor Speedway. For the third time this season, the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) returns to the ‘World’s Fastest Half-Mile’ for the Bass Pro Shops Night Race on Saturday, September 19, at 7:30 p.m. ET. The pressure is heightened as the 500-lap, 266.5-mile event at the .533-mile Tennessee venue will serve as the third race in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs and the cut-off race for the Round of 16. This weekend’s event marks the first time in NASCAR history that Bristol Motor Speedway has hosted a post-season event.

Joining the NASCAR Cup Series, the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series will visit Bristol Motor Speedway to make it a three-day race weekend. The weekend’s schedule kicked off with the UNOH 200 presented by Ohio Logistics for the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors on Thursday night, which served as the first race in the Truck Series’ seven-race Playoff stretch. Bristol Motor Speedway will also be the host of the NASCAR Xfinity Series regular season finale with the Food City 300 on Friday, September 18, at 7:00 p.m. ET as drivers vie for the last chance to compete for the championship title. With momentum on his side, JR Motorsports and Chevrolet driver Justin Allgaier enters the weekend coming off of a doubleheader sweep at Richmond Raceway, giving the team their 50th and 51st victories in the series.

A limited number of fans will be allowed to take in the action in-person for the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Cup Series’ events, adhering to all safety measures and protocols in place. To-date, the NCS All-Star Race that took place in July at Bristol Motor Speedway has had the largest crowd in any sporting event this year since the pandemic restrictions took place in March. With approval for up to 30,000 fans in attendance, Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race has been sold out at ‘socially-distanced capacity’.

ROUND OF 16: THE CUT-OFF RACE
For the first time in NASCAR history, Bristol Motor Speedway will be the host of the third race of the Playoffs, serving as the elimination race for the first of four rounds and cutting the championship field down from 16 to 12 drivers. Bristol will become the fifth different track to serve as the third race of the Playoffs, joining Talladega Superspeedway (2004-2005), Kansas Speedway (2006–2010), Dover International Speedway (2011-2017) and the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course (2018-2019).

Heading into the Bristol race weekend, here are where the Team Chevy Playoff Contenders sit in the points standings:

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Off Road Camaro ZL1 1LE – 6th in Standings (2,094 points)
Victories: 1 (Texas Motor Speedway)
Top-Fives: 4; Top-10’s 9; Laps Led: 135; Average Finish: 15.9
Stage Top-Five’s: 5; Stage Top-10’s: 16; Stage Points: 78
At Bristol: Top-Five’s: 1; Top-10’s: 3; Average Finish: 17.385

Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE – 7th in Standings (2,086 points)
Victories: 2 (Charlotte Motor Speedway and Daytona Road Course)
Top-Fives: 11; Top-10’s: 16; Laps Led: 646; Average Finish: 12.8
Stage Wins: 6; Stage Top-Five’s: 20; Stage Top-10’s: 38; Stage Points: 217
At Bristol: Top-Five’s: 3; Top-10’s: 4; Average Finish: 12.667

Alex Bowman, No. 88 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE – 8th in Standings (2,085 points)
Victories: 1 (Auto Club Speedway)
Top-Fives: 3; Top-10’s: 10; Laps Led: 389; Average Finish: 16.3
Stage Wins: 4; Stage Top-Five’s: 14; Stage Top-10’s: 31; Stage Points: 184
At Bristol: Top-Five’s: 1; Top-10’s: 2; Average Finish: 22.667

Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE – 11th in Standings (2,065 points)
Top-Fives: 4; Top-10’s: 15; Laps Led: 111; Average Finish: 13.2
Stage Wins: 1; Stage Top-Five’s: 6; Stage Top-10’s: 24; Stage Points: 101
At Bristol: Wins: 6; Top-Five’s: 12; Top-10’s: 21; Average Finish: 14.871

William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1 1LE – 13th in Standings (2,058 points)
Victories: 1 (Daytona International Speedway)
Top-Fives: 3; Top-10’s: 10; Laps Led: 97; Average Finish: 15.9
Stage Wins: 2; Stage Top-Five’s 9; Stage Top-10’s: 24; Stage Points: 117
At Bristol: Top-10’s: 1; Average Finish: 17.2

BOWTIE BULLETS
· Current Chevrolet drivers that have recorded wins at Bristol Motor Speedway include:
Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, has 6 wins (’02, twice in ’03. ’04, ’06, & ’18).
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, has 2 wins (’10 & ’17).
Matt Kenseth, No. 42 Credit One Bank Camaro ZL1 1LE, has 4 wins (’05, ’06, ’13 & ’15)

· Of 119 NASCAR Cup Series events held at “The Last Great Colosseum”, Chevrolet has scored 210 top-five’s, 437 top-10’s and have led 23,701 laps.

· Matt Kenseth, No. 42 Credit One Bank Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads all active drivers in top-five finishes with 15.

· Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads the series’ active drivers in top-10 finishes at Bristol Motor Speedway with 21. Since 2014, Johnson also leads all drivers with an average finish of 8.85.

· Of the NCS active drivers, Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, ties for the most starts at Bristol Motor Speedway with 39. His March 2002 victory at Bristol made him one of just five drivers to score their first career NASCAR Cup Series win at the track.

BRISTOL SCORECARD
NASCAR’s premier series has made 119 appearances at the high-banked, all-concrete Tennessee short track. With eight different manufacturer’s finding their way to victory lane at Bristol Motor Speedway in NASCAR’s history, Chevrolet leads the way with 45 wins, giving the Bowtie brand a winning percentage of 37.8%. Chevrolet’s first win at Bristol Motor Speedway was captured by Charlie Glotzbach in the 1971 event, which also set the current race record at 101.074 mph.

In addition to the win category, of nine different manufacturers that have won the pole at Bristol Motor Speedway, Chevrolet has scored 39 poles, more than any other manufacturer. Hendrick Motorsports and Chevrolet driver Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE, currently holds the track qualifying record from his April 2019 pole win, clocking in at 131.713 mph with a lap time of 14.586 seconds. Of his 10 career-starts, Elliott also leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in average starting position with 6.889.

STARTING LINEUP
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 Saturday Bass Pro Shops Night Race:
5th Austin Dillon, No. 3 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Off Road Camaro ZL1 1LE
6th Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE
8th Alex Bowman, No. 88 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE
13th Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE
15th William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1 1LE
17th Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Childress Vineyards Camaro ZL1 1LE
19th Matt Kenseth, No. 42 Credit One Bank Camaro ZL1 1LE

TUNE-IN
NBCSN will telecast the 500-lap, 266.5-mile Bass Pro Shops Night Race live at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, September 19th. Live coverage can also be found on the NBC Sports Gold App, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

QUOTABLE QUOTES:
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS / TRACKER OFF ROAD CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 6th IN STANDINGS
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY?
“Anything can happen at Bristol Motor Speedway. It’s a short track and you can get caught up in things fast. Our goal as a team is to be consistent and to try and score Stage points early. I think Stage points will play a big part of advancing out of each round in the NASCAR Playoffs, and with Bristol being the cutoff race there’s a lot on the line.”

WHAT’S GOING TO BE YOUR TOP PRIORITY FOR THE BRISTOL RACE WEEKEND? JUST FINISHING OR GOING FOR A WIN?
“I think you’ve got to keep going for wins. Darlington and Richmond were both good races for us, but we have just as much potential at Bristol. We had a solid run here back in May, and I really think this team has the capability to back that up.”

DID YOU FEEL LIKE YOU WERE OVERLOOKED COMING INTO THE PLAYOFFS A LITTLE BIT?
“I get overlooked some, probably more than most, and I don’t know why. I always feel like I perform pretty well in pressure situations, and RCR as a whole can step up. I have total belief in the 3 team and probably more belief this year than I’ve ever had because we’ve brought consistent speed to the track. We might not have gotten every finish that we should have gotten this year, but we’ve gotten a lot of good finishes. It’s been one of my best years statistically and just the ability behind the cars are better. Chevy has stepped up. Eric Warren, RCR, all of the mechanics and everybody that puts work in do a really good job. I think the smaller group has been good for us, with less distractions at the track. As a whole, our group really works together well.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 7th IN STANDINGS
DOES SUCCESS AT PREVIOUS RACES AT BRISTOL THIS SEASON GIVE YOU AN EDGE?
“I’m not sure that it gives us an edge, but it does give us a good starting spot from a setup perspective so I look forward to that. I think we have a good base line, so to speak, to start the race which is encouraging. Hopefully we can make the right adjustments throughout the race to be good at the end of 500 laps.”

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 8th IN STANDINGS
BOWMAN ON BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY:
“Bristol is a good track for us, just as long as we have the track position we need. If you get down on track position early, it can be difficult to bounce back. We ran pretty strong in the All-Star race over the summer, which gives the team some momentum going into the final race in the Round of 16.”

BOWMAN ON THE TEAM’S MOMENTUM:
“Following last weekend’s race in Richmond, we have some really good momentum going into Bristol. Richmond has always been a tough track for this team but coming out of Saturday night with a ninth-place finish, was like a win. We are doing what we need to do, as a team, in order to continue pushing our way through the playoff rounds.”

KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 11th IN STANDINGS
“I think this is awesome to have a Bristol race in the playoffs. I think Bristol has always been deserving of being in the Playoffs. Even though it’s one of those Crown jewel, marquee events; it’s as big as the Southern 500 was a couple weeks ago at Darlington. I mean, it’s the Bristol night Race! A lot of people are focused on playoffs and it’s the cutoff at same time. The set-ups for Bristol have changed a lot, pretty rapidly. Some of my consistent results there; I finished second to my little brother when I first started with Chip Ganassi racing, I won there in 2018 with Stewart Haas. Those set-ups just aren’t there anymore. We’ve had to evolve and adapt. This particular race with the Playoff situation puts things into the drivers hands. If he says you’re two points to the good; you want look in the mirror and make sure you’re clear. If he says your two points behind and somebody’s on your front bumper out ahead, well, that’s where you’ve got to take matters into your own hands. That’s what this opportunity is for everybody to advance through the rounds. It’s a short track and drivers need to take things into their own hands.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 13th IN STANDINGS
BYRON ON HIS MINDSET FOR BRISTOL:
“I have confidence for this weekend at Bristol after our performance in the spring race and the All-Star Race. We ran well in both races this year, plus all four races that I’ve run there with Chad (Knaus) on the pit box have been good. We’ve just had circumstances out of our control. I think Hendrick Motorsports as whole runs well at Bristol, too. Chase (Elliott) showed that with his All-Star Race win in the summer. That just means we have a good notebook to utilize for our setup. Overall, I have confidence for this Saturday’s race. We just need to focus on the details, execute all race and we’ll accomplish what we need to.”

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CHILDRESS VINEYARDS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 19th IN STANDINGS
OVER THE COURSE OF THESE FINAL EIGHT RACES, WE RETURN TO A COUPLE OF TRACKS YOU’VE NOW BEEN ABLE TO MAKE A CUP START AT, INCLUDING THIS WEEKEND AT BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY. HOW ARE YOU AND THE TEAM LOOKING TO IMPROVE FROM YOUR LAST RACE AT BRISTOL?
“We had a really good Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE during the spring race at Bristol Motor Speedway. We started near the back of the field due to how line-ups were determined at the time, but we were making some good adjustments on our car and starting to pick our way up through the field. Unfortunately, it was just a wrong place-wrong time situation when we got caught up in the wreck with the No. 47 car and a few others during the first part of that race. Bristol is a tough track and one where you have to be aware of those moves people will make entering the backstretch, especially since that seems to be where a lot of the wrecks happen. So that is something I’ll be paying attention to, but we had a solid piece entering that race and were making good adjustments before our day ended early. We’ll definitely be looking back at our notes from that time to get a feel for what we want to do entering this weekend’s event with our No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet.”

Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics

Manufacturers Championships:
Total (1949-2019): 39
First title for Chevrolet: 1958
Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)

Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015

Drivers Championships:
Total (1949-2019): 31
First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)
Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)

Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016

Event Victories:
Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)

2020 STATISTICS:
Wins: 5
Poles: 3
Laps Led: 1,614
Top-five finishes: 37
Top-10 finishes: 94

CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:
Total Chevrolet race wins: 791 (1949 to date)
Poles won to date: 717
Laps led to date: 235,920
Top-five finishes to date: 4,051
Top-10 finishes to date: 8,376

Total NASCAR Cup wins by corporation, 1949 to date

       General Motors: 1,125
       Chevrolet: 791
       Pontiac: 154
       Oldsmobile: 115
       Buick: 65

       Ford: 802                                                         
       Ford: 702
       Mercury: 96
       Lincoln: 4

       Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467
       Dodge: 217
       Plymouth: 191
       Chrysler: 59

       Toyota: 150

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.

Richard Childress Racing at Bristol Motor Speedway … In 177 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Bristol Motor Speedway, Richard Childress Racing has scored nine wins, 34 top-five, and 70 top-10 finishes. The Welcome N.C. organization has also found success in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the ‘World’s Fastest Half-Mile’, capturing nine wins, 37 top-five and 61 top-10 finishes.

NASCAR Playoffs … Austin Dillon is in the midst of his fourth NASCAR Playoffs appearance and currently ranks sixth among the 16 Playoff-eligible drivers following a couple strong top-five performances in the opening round of the NASCAR Playoffs (second at Darlington Raceway and fourth at Richmond Raceway). Dillon is 36 points above the cut line with only one race remaining (Bristol) in the Round of 16.

Catch the Action …The NASCAR Xfinity Series’ Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway will be televised live Friday, September 18, beginning at 7 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network and will be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

The NASCAR Cup Series’ Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway will be televised live Saturday, September 19, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network and will be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

This Week’s Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off Road/E-Z-GO Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Bristol Motor Speedway … In 13 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Bristol Motor Speedway, Dillon has one top-five and three top-10 finishes, including a career-best fourth-place finish in August 2016. He finished sixth in his most recent Bristol Motor Speedway appearance in May. He is a former winner in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the track (August 2016).

Tracker Off Road … Dillon’s No. 3 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE prominently features TRACKER ATVs, a game-changing new line of all-terrain vehicles and side-by-sides offering breakthrough performance, service and value in the off-road industry. TRACKER OFF ROAD was born out of a powerhouse partnership formed between Bass Pro Shops and TRACKER founder Johnny Morris and Textron Specialized Vehicles, bringing together the undisputed world leader in boating with a global leader in innovation and technology.

Bass Pro Shops … Bass Pro Shops is North America’s premier outdoor and conservation company. Founded in 1972 when avid young angler Johnny Morris began selling tackle out of his father’s liquor store in Springfield, Missouri, today the company provides customers with unmatched offerings spanning premier destination retail, outdoor equipment manufacturing, world-class resort destinations and more. In 2017 Bass Pro Shops acquired Cabela’s to create a “best-of-the-best” experience with superior products, dynamic locations and outstanding customer service. Bass Pro Shops also operates White River Marine Group, offering an unsurpassed collection of industry-leading boat brands, and Big Cedar Lodge, America’s Premier Wilderness Resort. Under the visionary conservation leadership of Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops is a national leader in protecting habitat and introducing families to the outdoors and has been named by Forbes as “one of America’s Best Employers.” Bass Pro Shops has a long relationship with NASCAR, dating back to 1998. For more information, visit www.basspro.com/.

E-Z-GO … E-Z-GO is an iconic, world-renowned brand in golf cars and personal transportation vehicles. Products sold under the E-Z-GO brand include RXV® and TXT® fleet golf cars, Freedom® RXV and Freedom TXT personal golf cars, E-Z-GO Express™ personal utility vehicles, and the 2Five® street-legal low-speed vehicle. Known for innovation in electric-vehicle technology, E-Z-GO’s newest offerings include the ELiTE series of lithium-ion powered golf cars and PTVs, and the company’s exclusive 72-volt AC electric powertrain found in its latest Express series vehicles. Founded in 1954 in Augusta, Ga., E-Z-GO became part of Textron Inc. in 1960, and today operates as part of the company’s Textron Specialized Vehicles division.

NASCAR Playoffs … Dillon’s 2020 NASCAR Playoffs appearance was enhanced last Saturday at Richmond Raceway by a career day in which he led 55 laps, scored 18 Stage points and finished fourth despite two in-race penalties. Dillon now ranks sixth among the 16 Playoff-eligible drivers. The four-round postseason consists of eliminations after the Round of 16 (Darlington, Richmond, Bristol), the Round of 12 (Las Vegas, Talladega, Charlotte Roval) and the Round of 8 (Kansas, Texas, Martinsville). The Championship 4 will compete for the title at Phoenix.

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:
What are your thoughts on Bristol Motor Speedway?
“Anything can happen at Bristol Motor Speedway. It’s a short track and you can get caught up in things fast. Our goal as a team is to be consistent and to try and score Stage points early. I think Stage points will play a big part of advancing out of each round in the NASCAR Playoffs, and with Bristol being the cutoff race there’s a lot on the line.”

What’s going to be your top priority for the Bristol race weekend? Just finishing or going for a win?
“I think you’ve got to keep going for wins. Darlington and Richmond were both good races for us, but we have just as much potential at Bristol. We had a solid run here back in May, and I really think this team has the capability to back that up.”

Did you feel like you were overlooked coming into the playoffs a little bit?
“I get overlooked some, probably more than most, and I don’t know why. I always feel like I perform pretty well in pressure situations, and RCR as a whole can step up. I have total belief in the 3 team and probably more belief this year than I’ve ever had because we’ve brought consistent speed to the track. We might not have gotten every finish that we should have gotten this year, but we’ve gotten a lot of good finishes. It’s been one of my best years statistically and just the ability behind the cars are better. Chevy has stepped up. Eric Warren, RCR, all of the mechanics and everybody that puts work in do a really good job. I think the smaller group has been good for us, with less distractions at the track. As a whole, our group really works together well.”

Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Bristol Motor Speedway … Tyler Reddick has one previous NASCAR Cup Series start at Bristol Motor Speedway. Reddick also has five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the track, winning last fall’s race with crew chief Randall Burnett, along with two top-five and four top-10 finishes. Reddick has two NASCAR Truck Series starts, with two top-five finishes at Bristol.

About Childress Vineyards … Childress Vineyards is a premier winery located at the southern gateway of the Yadkin Valley in Lexington, North Carolina. Owned by Richard Childress, NASCAR team owner and Hall of Fame member, Childress Vineyards has been producing award-winning wines with the expertise of Winemaker Mark Frizsolowski. Open daily for tours, tastings, and lunch in the Bistro. Information about Childress Vineyards can be found on Facebook at facebook.com/childresswines/, on Twitter at @ChildressWines and on Instagram at Instagram.com/childresswines.

About Food City … Headquartered in Abingdon, Virginia, K-VA-T Food Stores (Food City’s parent company) operates 134 retail supermarkets throughout southeast Kentucky, southwest Virginia, east Tennessee, Chattanooga and north Georgia, including 109 pharmacies and 108 fuel/convenience stores. The company also owns and operates their own 1.2 million square-foot distribution center in Abingdon, VA. Food City offers a wide variety of services and conveniences, including in-store bakery/delis, floral boutiques, full-service meat and seafood departments with in-house butchers, locally grown produce, full service pharmacies, fuel centers, GoCart curbside pick-up, and home delivery. The Food City name is also synonymous with NASCAR racing through their title sponsorship of two of the sport’s most popular events, the Food City 500 and Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, TN. Food City is Bristol Motor Speedway’s longest running sponsor and the second longest in NASCAR.Learn more by visiting FoodCity.com.

TYLER REDDICK QUOTE:
Over the course of these final eight races, we return to a couple tracks you’ve now been able to make a Cup start at, including this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. How are you and the team looking to improve from your last race at Bristol?
“We had a really good Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE during the spring race at Bristol Motor Speedway. We started near the back of the field due to how line-ups were determined at the time, but we were making some good adjustments on our car and starting to pick our way up through the field. Unfortunately, it was just a wrong place-wrong time situation when we got caught up in the wreck with the No. 47 car and a few others during the first part of that race. Bristol is a tough track and one where you have to be aware of those moves people will make entering the backstretch, especially since that seems to be where a lot of the wrecks happen. So that is something I’ll be paying attention to, but we had a solid piece entering that race and were making good adjustments before our day ended early. We’ll definitely be looking back at our notes from that time to get a feel for what we want to do entering this weekend’s event with our No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet.”

Anthony Alfredo and the No. 21 Death Wish Coffee Chevrolet Camaro at Bristol Motor Speedway …
Anthony Alfredo returns to the seat of the No. 21 NASCAR Xfinity Series entry for Richard Childress Racing this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. Friday night will mark Alfredo’s first short track appearance of the 2020 season; however, Alfredo is familiar with ‘The Last Great Colosseum’ after competing in the short track nationals behind the wheel of a late model stock car early in his career.

About Death Wish Coffee … In 2012, Death Wish Coffee Co. started a small coffee shop in Saratoga Springs, NY. Founder Mike Brown saw a need for coffee that was both strong and delicious to serve his groggy morning customers. After creating the perfect blend of beans and combining it with his unique roasting technique, the ‘World’s Strongest Coffee’ was born. Today, thousands of people trust Death Wish Coffee to wake them up and keep them going every day. For more information visit deathwishcoffee.com.

Fast Start for Fast Pasta … Running a limited schedule in the No. 21 Chevrolet Camaro for Richard Childress Racing, Alfredo has secured six top-10 finishes. He also won an eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series Saturday Night Thunder Race at Dover International Speedway during NASCAR’s hiatus from on-track competition.

ANTHONY ALFREDO QUOTES:
How do you feel about making your first short track appearance of the season at a place like Bristol Motor Speedway?
“I’m pumped to finally go short track racing in the NASCAR Xfinity series, especially at Bristol where RCR has had a lot of success. Short track racing is where I started my career, so it’s exciting to go back to my roots and be racing at this level. I even have a little history at Bristol from when I competed in the short track nationals in a late model stock car. I’m looking forward to putting together a strong performance in our Death Wish Coffee Chevrolet, and hopefully we will have a shot at the win under the lights on Friday night!”

What are going to be the keys to a successful night at Bristol Motor Speedway?
“I think patience will be key on Friday night, especially with us starting further towards the back of the field. With that being said, I know we will have a very fast Death Wish Coffee Chevrolet. There will also be times where I will need to be aggressive behind the wheel to capitalize on opportunities since track position is very important. If we can have a smooth night and not make any mistakes, I am confident we can be in contention at the end.”

MATT DIBENEDETTO, No. 21 Menards/Dutch Boy Ford Mustang — ARE THE NERVES SIMILAR AS DAYTONA OR DIFFERENT? “No, I would say different than Daytona. Daytona was really hard. Our primary, number one goal of the season was we’ve got to make the playoffs and then everything after that is opportunity, so that was extremely stressful and something I don’t want to go through again. This is still, I mean this first round of the playoffs our first two races have been terrible and things haven’t fallen our way. Darlington was just tough. Richmond, we just didn’t have an opportunity to recover because of no cautions. Going into Bristol this weekend just kind of being in a hole, I still look at it as opportunity going to my personal favorite racetrack, a track where I know we can perform really well at. Yeah, it’s pressure for sure, but I still look at it as opportunity for us and there’s no other track I would choose other than Bristol to be in this situation and to go out there and perform at our very highest.”

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST CONCERN FOR SATURDAY? DOING TOO MUCH TOO SOON? “I don’t know. I guess I really don’t have any major concerns. That might be a boring answer, but, no, I think everything is mostly just looking at our team and making sure to do the best job possible as far as I know my ability behind the wheel in driving Bristol. I think we all know that. I love that place and take well to it. It’s my favorite, but what I look at is I wouldn’t call it concerns, but the things I look at and put the most emphasis on is my communication with the team. Us making the right adjustments and calls throughout the race because that’s gonna be everything. Us doing a good job of pit road and not only the pit crew but myself also because it’s kind of a tricky pit road, so maximizing your in and out because every single spot gained or lost will dictate the outcome of your race, so I wouldn’t call them concerns, but those would be what I’m looking at the most going into Bristol that’s gonna be the biggest player into us preferably having a shot to win the race.”

DO YOU HAVE TO MAKE YOURSELF MORE AGGRESSIVE IN THIS TYPE OF SITUATION AND HOW DO YOU TURN IT ON AND OFF? “Yes, I would say we do have to be more aggressive in this situation knowing what’s on the line and what we need and that we have to perform at the very highest and, really, for the most part, it’s not necessarily a must-win, but we really, probably have to go out there and win the race, and it’s our best shot I would say all year. Yeah, to answer your question, it’s a little bit maybe to a slightly lesser extent, but very similar to how I approached the Open race when I was trying to make it in the All-Star. We got damage early, had to go to the back, and we drove from the back to the front and won the Open. It took us a little bit, but I was impatient going through the field and I knew I had to be, and it’s kind of that same case. I would reiterate what Blaney said. If I’m faster than the people in front of you, you can’t just sit. You’re not gonna be crashing people. You’re not gonna do anything stupid, but you can’t sit and wait behind them. I was very aggressive getting through the field in the Open. I did have to bump a couple of people out of the way. There was some aggressive driving, not dirty driving, but it was aggressive to get through the field because you don’t have time to waste at a track like Bristol, where every single lap, every bit of your position, everything is setting you up for the end of the race. Every stage point matters. All that, so we’re definitely gonna have to get all we can get.”

HOW DO YOU DEFINE AGGRESSIVE DRIVING AND DIRTY DRIVING? “I think it’s always kind of a little bit of a moving target, just depending on the situations. Some of the moves that I made in the Open race were aggressive to get through the field and everything’s on the line and you’re trying to make the All-Star Race and it’s a very short race. Some of the moves that I made in the Open race if it were a regular points race and we’re at the beginning of the race or something, some of those moves probably at that time were just considered aggressive because everyone knows what we’re doing and what’s at stake. In other situations, they could have been dirty because I moved some people out of the way. That’s a little bit of a moving target, so it’s hard to answer that question. I would say for this weekend that everyone usually knows what’s on the line for different people. Everybody pays attention, so as long as you’re not out there crashing people and just sending them right out of the way in the first corner that you get to them or any nonsense like that. If you’re knocking on somebody’s door or you have a little position and you have to get to the bumper and give them a little nudge, it’s really whatever you have to do and it will be a little bit of a moving target as to how aggressive you’ll be based on the situation. If it’s real early in a run or you just got to the guys bumper, or you’ve been stuck behind this guy for four laps and you’re faster and you just can’t waste anymore time, it’s a little bit of a moving target as to how aggressive that you are with people.”

HOW DISAPPOINTED ARE YOU TO BE IN THIS POSITION? “We’ve dug ourselves a hole, for sure. It’s not optimal. As competitors, that’s frustrating for Blaney and I, but it just shows how tough the playoffs are and how crucial every single race is. You just can’t have a couple of bomb races and it just makes it really hard to recover, not that it’s impossible, for sure. I would look at it, yeah, it’s frustrating but we also have opportunity and I still look at it as we’re going to my favorite racetrack in Bristol and we still have opportunities. I definitely haven’t given up or I’m not that level of frustrated. I’m bummed about the first two races, but I can’t sit and we can’t sit and dwell upon those races. As much as I can say I’m happy that we made the playoffs, I am. I know the team is happy, but you instantly as a competitor turn the page the next day and you’re like, ‘All right, now how do we make the next round?’ We as drivers and competitors are never gonna be satisfied unless we can win the championship.”

HOW DISAPPOINTED WOULD YOU BE NOT TO MAKE IT TO THE SECOND ROUND? “I don’t know. I wouldn’t be satisfied. I’m glad that we made the playoffs, but it’s never enough. There have been a lot of variables that 2020 has thrown at us. We still have just barely scratched the surface as far as our 21 team. I think we have a long ways to go as far as progression. Hopefully we’ve built this team together for a long time to come because we’re barely getting started — 2020 has been quite crazy, so I’ve got to keep it in perspective. I couldn’t be too disappointed if we miss it, but I still look at it as a lot of opportunity for us this weekend to redeem ourselves. I think part of what will be a little disappointing is knowing that through the midpoint of the season we had speed like crazy. Every single week I was driving up in the top five and top 10, so it was like, ‘Man, if we make the playoffs, I really know we can make a good splash.’ And then we start the playoffs and we have two bad weeks. I know that we have the speed and the ability as a team to perform a lot better, but that’s part of the structure and you’ve got to be perfect every week.”

HOW DO YOU THINK THIS RACE WILL AFFECT WHAT HAPPENS TO YOU IN 2021 CONTRACT-WISE? “I sure hope it doesn’t come down to just one race as far as my contract stuff for next year. I’ve said it before, I came over here and there was a lot of people involved. It’s a dream come true driving for the Wood Brothers. They’re not the only ones involved. We have a strong alliance with Team Penske, a big relationship with Ford, so there are a lot of folks involved in this and in the decision-making, but they heavily expressed they wanted this to a multi-year opportunity as far as my contract. They heavily expressed they wanted this to be a long-term relationship, something that we build for a long time to come. All those things, so that was very encouraging when I came over here. I do not want to go anywhere. I love driving for the Wood Brothers. It’s a dream come true. They are family and as far as my contract stuff, it has options for I think 2021, ‘22 and ‘23, if I’m not mistaken, so it’s a multi-year deal opportunity, but the team has to pick it up each year and the deadline for that is at the end of this month, so I guess I should know pretty soon. I wish I knew now because I don’t want to go anywhere and it would put me in a pretty bad situation if something were to change, but I don’t expect any changes. I’m just waiting to hear.. Hopefully, it works out. Hopefully, I’m not going anywhere. I love being the driver for our team.”

HOW DO YOU BALANCE THE AGGRESSION EARLY? “2020 has been really challenging for a lot of people. Not to pick on anybody or point out anyone, but Kyle Busch and guys that different teams — some have maybe excelled and some that have had some advantages or things taken away from them, man, it’s tough. You’ve got to hope that your starting setup is close, which the teams do a great job, but you’ve really got to hope that you start close and your race is so important from lap one because you think about, I’ll give Richmond as an example. We started Richmond and were tight. We were a little off because of no practice. If we had practice this wouldn’t have even been an issue. We would have been fast and competitive and ran great. We started the race and were too tight . We got to work on it. There are no cautions. We’re behind the eight-ball. We get trapped a lap down. We get our car better and we’re like, ‘We’re pretty fast now. We’re a decent car, probalby a top-10, top-12 car, could have a decent day,’ and you’re just stuck in the lucky dog position for an hour and you can’t recover. So your race from the very beginning is that important. Even though it’s a 500-lap race at Bristol, from the drop of the rag it is really, really important every move you make, every position you can get, staying up front, staying competitive, that’s the only way you can position yourself for the win to the end. It’s gonna be very important from the start of the race that we hopefully have the setup close, which I feel pretty confident in. This is our third time driving around Bristol this year, so I feel good about that. Our cars are fast. We won the Open race, so I have a lot of great things that give me a lot of confidence, but we have to be really good from start to finish in that 500-lap race.”

HOW IS YOUR COMMUNICATION WITH THE TEAM? “Greg Erwin is a great guy and we’ve worked together well. This year has made it tougher on a new group working together and figuring each other out because there are a lot of things we’ve learned and figured out with each other and our communication and stuff in practice to be a lot better versus having to do things in the race and figure it out. So 2020 and the way it’s been had just made it so much tougher, so we haven’t maximized some races just because of having to learn together and these crazy circumstances that we’re not accustomed to being thrown at us. We work together well. It’s gotten better and better throughout the course of the season and continues to get better, so we’re in a must-win type situation or close to it. I wouldn’t choose any other time than now. We are definitely most prepared and I wouldn’t choose any other track than Bristol.”

WHY DO YOU AND BRISTOL SEEM TO MESH SO WELL TOGETHER? “I kind of asked the same thing to myself a lot. It’s funny. I think Bristol just is, I don’t want to say it’s an equalizer because your equipment is so important everywhere, but it’s just one of those racetracks where you’re really hustling the race car and kind of the older school principles matter the most, like just having good grip and a good balanced handling race car, and you’re hustling the car around the racetrack a lot, which suits my style. A place where you really have to drive super-hard from start to finish of the run, I feel like I’m pretty good at all kinds of different racetracks, but if I were choosing places that I love, Martinsville, Bristol, I love both of them a ton and I would say the thing that they have in common is that you’re hustling both of those types of racetracks and you’re just driving it really hard. You’re up on the wheel and it’s very opposite of a place like Richmond, which I’ve run well at, but Richmond is a short track that has a very slow feeling. Every movement that you do is very slow, very easy on the throttle. Bristol, you’re attacking the corners really hard and it’s just the most fun short track to go to, so it’s a place I’ve taken well to and I think I know what I need there very well, also, to be good in the race. I know exactly what my car needs. It’s just a place I have a lot of confidence at and it is a bit of a special place to me and has been to my career.”