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Buescher Finishes 20th at Michigan

By
Official Release
-

BROOKLYN, Mich. (Aug. 8, 2020) – After sustaining damage from an incident at the final stage of racing, Chris Buescher and the No. 17 Fastenal Ford team fought back to a 20th-place finish on Saturday afternoon at Michigan International Speedway.

Buescher started the first of the weekend’s two races from the rear of the field after a pre-race inspection penalty. The driver made quick work, passing 14 cars in the opening laps and driving his way up to 24th. At the competition caution, the team elected to pit for four tires and fuel. Buescher restarted 32nd and worked his way back up to 24th, reporting that his No.17 machine needed rear security. The team finished the stage in 27th.

Buescher and the team pitted during the stage break for four tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment. The team restarted 24th and with the implementation of the choose cone rule, chose the bottom lane. The driver toggled between 23rd and 24th during the caution free stage. The team took the green-white-checkered flag for stage two in 23rd.

The Prosper, Texas native pitted for tires, fuel and a few adjustments at the stage break. The team restarted 26th, but was involved in a caution flag not long after the green flag waved. The damage bent the nose of the No. 17 Ford Mustang in and the team came down pit road at Lap 95 to assess and fix as best they could. Buescher restarted 27th, but elected to pit at a caution six laps later for fuel, tires, an air pressure adjustment and to reinforce the tape on the nose of the car. Back on track, the team stayed steady in between the 27th and 28th positions until a caution flag waved with 26 laps to go. The team went down pit road for tires, fuel and to tighten up the car’s handling. After restarting 29th with 18 to go, the driver gained two positions when another caution flag waved four laps later. The team already on their last set of tires, elected to stay out and restarted 22nd. A caution flag waved with five to go and shortly after, the red flag was displayed to clean up fluid on the track. It all came down to a three-lap shootout. When the green flag waved, Buescher restarted 26th but gained a spot when the final caution of the race came out. The driver restarted 21st and gained another position to take the checkered flag in 20th.

Buescher and the No. 17 team return to action at Michigan International Raceway tomorrow, Sunday, August 9 at 4:30 p.m. EST on NBC Sports Network, MRN and SiriusXM Channel 90.

Blaine Perkins takes ARCA West victory at Douglas County

By
Briar Starr
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Photo Courtesy of Benjamin Green/ARCA Racing

Blaine Perkins in his No. 9 Sunrise Ford Bob Bruncati entry was able to fend off hard charger Gracie Trotter for his second victory of the race weekend. The victory was a sweep for Perkins, the California native, who also won Friday night at Evergreen Speedway.

“We’ve been on rails this weekend,” Perkins said to NBC post-race. “I’m so proud of these guys. They work so hard, especially with the two races in one weekend and they brought me really two fast race cars. Best of the year so far. Just getting some seat time with these guys, it’s been great, it’s been fun. Just a hats off to these guys. Jeff Schrader my crew chief, Bob Bruncait (Team Owner), for giving me this opportunity to drive this awesome No. 9 car. It’s a dream come true.”

“It wouldn’t be possible without all these people. Just pumped up. We did what we wanted to do. Got two wins and it feels great.”

150 laps made up the ENEOS / NAPA Auto Parts 150 from Douglas County Speedway in Roseburg, Oregon. Gio Scelzi, driver of the No. 16 Bill McAnally NAPA entry, qualified on the pole.

Six cautions flew throughout the 150-lap race. Perkins’ first sight of the lead came on Lap 19 after a restart when he wrestled the lead away from pole-sitter Scelzi.

Prior to Perkins taking the lead, the first yellow of the night was on Lap 14 when the No. 27 of Bobby Hillis Jr. spun in Turn 2. His night only got worse as he caused another yellow on Lap 127.

While the caution flags would slow the field a couple of times, nothing would stop Gracie Trotter’s No. 99 machine, who was on the rear bumper of Perkins throughout the event. At one point, Trotter caught the No. 9 of Perkins who had slowed a little bit. However, Perkins picked up his pace again and checked out.

With Trotter having a good night running in the top five, Love had to earn his finishing spot the hard way. On Lap 115, Takuma Koga in the No. 77 got spun from behind with help from Love who received major hood damage to his No. 19 Toyota from the contact. Despite the hood damage, Love kept on going.

The final caution was seen with 15 to go when Holley Hollan got turned sideways in Turns 3 and 4 after contact with Todd Souza. The yellow set up a late-race restart with 13 to go.

Perkins managed to hold on to the lead for the final 12 circuits around the .375 mile speedway for his third win of the year in the ARCA Menards West Series. It was his third victory since his first win dating back to Utah Motorsports Park.

“It made me a little nervous,” Perkins noted when his car slowed momentarily. “I got in the gas off Turn 2 and the car popped out of gear. Thankfully, it didn’t do it again and got the lead, the checkered flag.”

Following behind Perkins’ car was Gracie Trotter, who recorded the best finish of her ARCA Menards West Series career of second place.

“I’m not really sure, but I do love the shorter bull-ring type tracks,” Trotter said to NBC about her second-place finish. “I always seem to figure out those places, I’m not sure why but I love it. Really good car today, too much on the tight side for me. I wish we would have loosened it up a little bit more in practice, but the crew gave me a really good car. Made it work with what we had, just one spot short. Tired of finishing third and second. So, I’m ready to go win at Colorado.”

Jesse Love remains the championship points leader.

“Have to be really aggressive on this place,” Love said. “You can kind of lose and gain a lot of momentum in a span of two laps, right? So, you had to take whatever you can get and maybe I was a little bit too clean in the beginning. But, we’re the best team here. Our performance is not where we should be running. We’re going to get our mojo back here. We did it once, we’re going to do it again. Have the best team in the pits and we’re going to make a lot of it. We’re still the points leader, so we’ll keep carrying that momentum.”

The margin of victory was .376 seconds Perkins over Trotter.

There were six cautions for 24 laps. Pole sitter Scelzi led the first 15 laps while Perkins led the final 135 laps.

Official Results following the ENEOS / NAPA Auto Parts 150 at Douglas County Speedway

  1. Blaine Perkins, led 135 laps
  2. Gracie Trotter
  3. Jesse Love
  4. Gio Scelzi, led 15 laps
  5. Trevor Huddleston
  6. Jack Wood
  7. Holley Hollan, 1 lap down
  8. Takuma Koga, 4 laps down
  9. Bridget Burgess, 5 laps down
  10. Bobby Hillis Jr, 8 laps down
  11. Todd Souza, 12 laps down

Up Next: The ARCA Menards Series West visits Colorado National Speedway on Saturday, Aug. 22 live on NBC Sports Trackpass.

Harvick claims the first Cup Michigan race of the weekend

By
Andrew Kim
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Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images.

Following a late battle and the slightest of contact with Kyle Busch in the closing laps, Kevin Harvick prevailed through a series of late restarts and in overtime against Brad Keselowski to win the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway on Saturday, August 8, the first of two NASCAR Cup Series races at Michigan of the weekend. The victory was Harvick’s fifth of the season, fourth at Michigan and the 54th of his Cup Series career.

The starting lineup was based on a random draw. Joey Logano started on pole position for the second time this season and was joined on the front row with Denny Hamlin. 

Prior to the race, NASCAR confiscated the spoilers from the Roush Fenway Racing two-car lineup of Ryan Newman and Chris Buescher during the pre-race inspection process. With both teams violating Section 12.4.12.b (spoiler section) of the NASCAR Cup rule book, both competitors dropped to the rear of the field and they were also docked 20 driver/owner points. In addition, their crew chiefs (Scott Graves and Luke Lambert) were each fined $25,000 for the infraction. Jimmie Johnson and Joey Gase also dropped to the rear of the field due to their respective cars failing pre-race inspection twice.

When the green flag and the race commenced following a 45-minute delay because of the delayed Xfinity Series race occurring at Road America, Logano received a push from Aric Almirola on the outside lane to jump to an early lead as he led the first lap. The following lap, Hamlin attempted to pass Logano on the inside lane, but he lost his momentum entering Turn 2 as Logano retained the lead while Almirola challenged Hamlin for the runner-up spot. Behind, Kevin Harvick was in fourth followed by Alex Bowman, teammate Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski, all of whom battled one another through Turns 3 and 4. 

In Turn 1, Keselowski lost his momentum and dropped all the way back to 12th behind rookie Tyler Reddick, who was fresh off a one-year contract extension deal with Richard Childress Racing. 

After the first 10 laps, Logano, who reported a vibration, was still leading by less than two-tenths of a second over Hamlin with teammates Almirola and Harvick trailing behind and battling one another for third place. A few laps later, Almirola dropped out of the top five after being overtaken by Harvick and Kurt Busch. 

On Lap 14, Hamlin made a move beneath Logano’s No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford in Turn 3 and both battled dead even for the lead through Turns 4 and 1. While Hamlin led the 15th lap, Logano cleared Hamlin for the lead back in Turn 2 just as the competition caution flew. Prior to the competition caution, Ryan Blaney made a green flag pit stop for early adjustments and fresh tires for the ensuing restart. At the time of caution, Almirola had fallen back to 10th place and Martin Truex Jr. was in sixth while Harvick, Bowman and Kurt Busch were scored in the top five. Erik Jones and Chase Elliott were in 11th and 12th while Matt DiBenedetto and William Byron were in 14th and 15th. Clint Bowyer was in 16th, Jimmie Johnson was in 17th and Ryan Newman was in 29th. 

Under caution, a majority of competitors led by Keselowski, Almirola, Elliott, rookie Cole Custer, Byron, Austin Dillon and Newman pitted while the rest led by Logano, Hamlin, Reddick and Harvick remained on track. 

The race restarted on Lap 19 and Hamlin received a push from Reddick on the inside lane to move into the lead through Turns 1 and 2. Behind, Logano, who restarted on the outside lane, retained the runner-up spot followed by Harvick, Kurt Busch and Bowman. A lap later, Truex cut a right-front tire in Turn 3 after making contact with Reddick in Turn 2. He was able to keep his car off the wall and return to pit road for two fresh right-side tires. The misfortune, however, cost Truex two laps.

At the front, Harvick gained a run on Hamlin in Turn 4 and was able to pass Hamlin’s No. 11 FedEx Toyota to emerge with the lead on Lap 23. Behind, Blaney bolted his way into sixth place followed by Reddick and Jones. 

By Lap 30, Harvick was ahead by two-tenths of a second over Hamlin. Kurt Busch was in third followed by Blaney, Bowman and Jones. Elliott was in eighth while Logano was back in ninth following contact with Kyle Busch in Turn 2. Bowyer was in 12th, Johnson was in 14th, Byron was in 17th and Almirola was in 18th. Truex was in 36th while Reddick, who had been running inside the top 10, was back in 35th after making an unscheduled pit stop under green a few laps earlier.

With no one behind him nor close enough to challenge for the lead, Harvick was able to cruise to the win in the first stage on Lap 40 as he claimed his third stage victory of the season. Hamlin trailed in second place and above half a second followed by Blaney, Kurt Busch and Keselowski. Jones, Bowman, Elliott, Kyle Busch and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. were scored in the top 10. Logano had fallen back to 18th while battling loose-handling conditions to his car.

Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Hamlin exited pit road first ahead of Harvick following a stellar pit stop from the FedEx crew. Blaney exited in third place followed by Keselowski and Kurt Busch.

Prior to the start of the second stage and with the new choose rule implemented, Harvick dropped from second to fourth to restart on the outside lane while Keselowski was lined up in second place and beneath Hamlin on the front row. In addition, Jones moved up from sixth to third as the second car to restart on the bottom lane while Bowyer moved up from ninth to fifth.

The second stage started on Lap 47 and Hamlin gained a huge run on the outside lane to retain the lead. While the field behind battled intensely against one another and raced three to four wide for position, Blaney took the lead on Lap 49. Harvick settled right behind Blaney in second followed by Kurt Busch while Hamlin and Keselowski battled for fourth. 

By Lap 55, Blaney was still ahead by less than four-tenths of a second over Harvick followed by Kurt Busch and Jones, who gained a huge run on the outside lane to pass both Hamlin and Keselowski for position a few laps earlier. Bowman trailed behind in seventh followed by Bowyer, Kyle Busch and Bubba Wallace. Elliott and Logano were in 12th and 15th while Johnson was in 17th. Reddick, who took the wave around to return to the lead lap under the first stage break, was in 26th while Truex was in 34th, still a lap behind. 

Five laps later and with less than 100 laps remaining of the overall race, Blaney was still leading by less than half a second over Harvick with Michigan natives Jones and Keselowski lingering behind. Soon after, Hamlin joined the party as he battled teammate Jones and Keselowski for position inside the top five.

With Blaney leading by less than two-tenths of a second over Harvick on Lap 67, the Busch brothers started to close in towards the top-five competitors for position. By Lap 76, Harvick benefitted from Blaney getting stuck behind a lapped car to reassume the lead. By then, Reddick made another unscheduled pit stop after he reported a flat tire to his No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE. Behind the leaders, Keselowski moved up to third after passing Hamlin, who earlier nearly wrecked with the lapped car of Timmy Hill. Both competitors continued to battle intensely for the spot as the laps of the second stage continued to dwindle.

Like his run to the conclusion of the first stage, Harvick was able to pull away from Blaney by less than a second and not worry about any lapped traffic to win the second stage on Lap 85 and claim his fourth stage victory of the season. Blaney settled in second followed by Hamlin, Jones and Keselowski. Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, Bowman, Bowyer and Johnson settled in the top 10. 

Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Harvick, this time, exited pit road with the lead followed by Hamlin, Blaney, Keselowski and Kyle Busch.

The final stage under green occurred with 65 laps remaining and Hamlin, who restarted on the inside lane, received a push from teammate Jones to move into the lead. In Turn 3, however, Jones and Harvick attempted to place Hamlin in a three-wide situation for the lead. While Jones slipped and dropped back into the top 10, Harvick was able to muscle his way back into the lead. Keselowski advanced to the runner-up spot over Hamlin while Blaney and Kyle Busch moved into the top five.

The caution returned shortly after when rookie John Hunter Nemechek spun in a flurry of circles on the frontstretch following contact with Chris Buescher. With the caution, Truex received the free pass and cycled back to the lead lap. Under caution, few that included Buescher, Corey LaJoie, Newman, Almirola, Reddick and Nemechek pitted while the rest remained on track.

With 58 laps remaining, the race restarted and Harvick was able to clear Hamlin on the outside lane to retain the lead. Keselowski and Hamlin battled again for the runner-up spot followed by Kyle Busch and Bowyer while Blaney, Johnson, rookie Christopher Bell, Jones and Elliott settled in the top 10. 

Eight laps later, the caution returned for another spin in Turn 4 involving Nemechek. Under caution, the leaders pitted and Kyle Busch emerged with the lead after only taking fuel for his No. 18 M&M’s Fudge Brownie Toyota Camry. Jones and Truex followed suit after they elected for only fuel to their respective Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas followed by Elliott and Bell, both of whom opted for a two-tire stop. Harvick also opted for a two-tire stop to remain within sight of the lead.

Prior to the restart and with the choose rule implemented, Harvick moved up to the front row on the inside lane beneath Kyle Busch while Austin Dillon and Jones lined up right behind the leaders. Keselowski lined up in fifth next to Truex followed by Hamlin and Elliott.

With 46 laps remaining, the race restarted and Kyle Busch received a push from teammate Jones to retain the lead on the outside lane. A lap later, Harvick made a move beneath Kyle Busch in Turn 1 to reassume the lead. Behind, Truex passed teammate Jones and started to challenge teammate Kyle Busch for the runner-up spot. 

With 40 laps remaining and with fuel in question for the leaders to complete the race to its scheduled distance, Harvick was still ahead by less than eight-tenths of a second over Kyle Busch followed by Joe Gibbs Racing’s Truex and Jones. Elliott was in fifth place followed by Austin Dillon, Keselowski, Logano, Bell and Hamlin with Blaney in 11th.

Ten laps later, Harvick extended his advantage to more than a second over teammates Kyle Busch and Truex. Jones was in fourth while Elliott prevailed in a battle with Keselowski for fifth place. Behind, Hamlin was still running in 11th and trailing Team Penske’s Logano and Blaney for a spot in the top 10.

With 26 laps remaining, the caution returned for a third incident involving Nemechek in Turn 3, who made contact with the outside wall and sustained heavy rear end damage. Compared to his previous two incidents, this recent incident ended Nemechek’s race in the garage as he will move to a backup car for Sunday’s race at Michigan.

Under caution, some like Logano, Blaney, Bowyer, DiBenedetto, Michael McDowell, Matt Kenseth and Buescher pitted while the rest remained on track. Prior to the restart, Jones dropped back to sixth to restart as the fourth car on the outside lane while Elliott moved up to second and alongside Harvick on the front row. Keselowski and Kyle Busch were lined up behind the two leaders and in front of teammates Hamlin and Truex.

With 18 laps remaining, the race restarted and Elliott powered his way into the lead on the inside lane. While the field fanned out and battled for positions through the straightaways and the turns, Elliott maintained a narrow advantage over Harvick a lap later followed by a flurry of Toyota competitors led by Kyle Busch, Truex, Bell, Jones and Hamlin. 

Five laps after the restart and with the battle for the lead intensifying, the caution returned after Ryan Preece made contact with the outside wall in Turn 2. Under caution, some like Reddick and Kenseth pitted while the rest remained on track. Prior to the restart, Kyle Busch elected to restart on the inside lane beneath Elliott on the front row. Behind, Harvick and Hamlin restarted alongside one another in the second row. 

The race restarted with nine laps remaining and Kyle Busch received a push from teammate Hamlin to take the lead through Turns 1 and 2. In Turn 3, however, Kyle Busch slipped following close racing with Harvick, which nearly involved contact between the two, and Harvick reassumed the lead while Busch lost his momentum and fell back to the top 10. Shortly after, the caution flew when rookie Cole Custer made hard contact into the outside wall in Turn 3 and retired from the race, thus moving him to a backup car for Sunday’s race at Michigan. At the time of caution, Harvick was leading followed by Elliott, Hamlin, Blaney, Wallace, Jones and Truex while Kyle Busch was back in ninth. The race eventually went into a red flag period for nearly six minutes to allow the clean-up crew to clear the incident site in Turn 3 caused by Custer. 

Prior to the restart when the race resumed under caution, Hamlin elected to restart beneath Harvick on the inside line and on the front row in front of Wallace and Elliott with teammates Blaney and Keselowski in the third row. 

The race restarted with three laps remaining and Harvick and Hamlin battled dead even for the lead entering Turn 1. It was there where Wallace attempted to make a three-wide move for more, but it was not enough as Harvick reassumed the lead in Turn 2. Elliott moved up to second followed by Blaney, Keselowski and Truex while Hamlin and Wallace dropped back to sixth and seventh. In Turn 4, Austin Dillon, McDowell and Newman wrecked in Turn 4 as the caution returned and the race went into overtime. 

Prior to the overtime attempt, Keselowski restarted on the front row beneath Harvick in front of Hamlin and Elliott. Wallace and Blaney were lined up in the third row followed by Johnson and Truex.

In the first overtime attempt, Harvick and Keselowski battled dead even against one another through half a circuit with both not prevailing ahead of the other and receiving not drafting help from behind. In Turn 3, however, Harvick cleared Keselowski for the lead on the outside lane entering Turn 4. On the final lap, Harvick’s No. 4 Busch Light Apple Ford Mustang were ahead by two-tenths of a second over Keselowski’s No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang. Though Keselowski remained within sight of Harvick, he was unable to gain any draft for the lead as Harvick was able to claim the checkered flag in first place and win by less than three-tenths of a second. 

The victory was also the 12th of the season for Ford and the sixth for Stewart-Haas Racing. With his 54th career win, Harvick moved into a tie with the late Lee Petty for 11th place on the all-time series wins list.

“This was an awesome car to drive today,” Harvick said on NBCSN. “The restarts were obviously a handful, but our Busch Light Apple Ford Mustang was really fast today and we held on for the long run and would really go on the short run and did everything we needed it to do. I think that the confidence is high when we come to Michigan. It’s a race track that’s been really good to us and just fits our style of cars. [Crew chief] Rodney [Childers] and [the No. 4 crew] have given me great racecars at Michigan every time we’ve come… I can’t say enough about our whole organization. Since we’ve come back from COVID, the work that these guys and gals are putting in at the race shop and the organization, they’ve had a lot of really good training from Tony Stewart in awkward situations on how to prepare for things. Thanks, Smoke!”

“I knew I needed to be right there [with Kyle Busch],” Harvick added regarding the contact with Kyle Busch. “I couldn’t tell if I touched him. I knew I wanted that side draft there. I knew that we had a fast enough car to pass him, but I knew that I needed to take the opportunity I had and I needed to side draft him.”

Keselowski finished in second place as he came one spot short of winning at his home track. Truex ended his race in third place followed by Blaney and Kyle Busch, who nipped teammate Hamlin at the line for a top-five run. 

“[Harvick] is just super fast in the corners and the straightaway,” Keselowski said. “He was definitely the best car out here today. We put a good effort to kind of maximize our day and that is what we did, finished second. Proud of everyone on the Discount Tire Ford Mustang team. We will go back to work on it and hopefully find a little bit more for the race [Sunday].”

“I just didn’t get loose and turn up to the wall by myself,” Kyle Busch said regarding the contact with Harvick. “I don’t know whether he hit me or it was just air. It was close enough that it disturbed my car and made me have to get out of [the gas] real bad and chase it real bad. Thankfully, we kept it out of the fence and at least try to salvage something out of it. That’s a pretty good run for us there. I felt like we had a fast car, but it was the best of the rest. [Harvick] was lights out. He deserved to win the race, anyways. It was a race for second today, overall. We’ve been fighting hard all year. We’ve been running well enough for good finishes. We just aren’t getting them. Today was another indication of that. We should’ve finished second, I guess, but a top five it is.”

Hamlin, Elliott, Logano, Wallace and Kurt Busch rounded out the top 10. Buescher finished 20th and will start on pole position for the second Cup Michigan race on Sunday, August 9, alongside Bowyer with the top-20 finishers on Saturday being inverted for Sunday.

Jones, who will not be remaining with Joe Gibbs Racing after this season, finished 11th and is 16 points behind 14th-place finisher Byron for the 16th and final spot to the 2020 Playoffs with five regular-season races remaining. Reddick, who finished 18th, is 19 points behind while Johnson, who finished 12th, is 22 points behind. DiBenedetto and Bowyer, both of whom finished 15th and 19th, are 40 and 41 points above the top-16 cutline while Wallace, who notched a career-high fourth top-10 result of this season, remains 123 points below the cutline.

There were 12 lead changes for seven different leaders. The race featured nine cautions for 43 laps.

With his victory, Harvick continues to lead the regular-season series standings by 94 points over Keselowski, 127 over Hamlin and 128 over Blaney.

Results.

1. Kevin Harvick, 92 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

2. Brad Keselowski

3. Martin Truex Jr.

4. Ryan Blaney, 27 laps

5. Kyle Busch, four laps led

6. Denny Hamlin, 10 laps led

7. Chase Elliott, nine laps led

8. Joey Logano, 18 laps led

9. Bubba Wallace

10. Kurt Busch

11. Erik Jones

12. Jimmie Johnson

13. Christopher Bell

14. William Byron

15. Matt DiBenedetto

16. Aric Almirola

17. Matt Kenseth 

18. Tyler Reddick

19. Clint Bowyer

20. Chris Buescher

21. Alex Bowman

22. Corey LaJoie

23. Ty Dillon

24. Daniel Suarez

25. Ryan Preece

26. J.J. Yeley, one lap led

27. Quin Houff

28. Ryan Newman 

29. Michael McDowell

30. Reed Sorenson

31. Austin Dillon

32. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

33. Timmy Hill, two laps down

34. Cole Custer – OUT, Accident 

35. Garrett Smithley – OUT, Steering

36. John Hunter Nemechek – OUT, Accident

37. Brennan Poole – OUT, Engine

38. James Davison, 58 laps down

39. Joey Gase – OUT, Transmission

The NASCAR Cup Series will return the following day, August 9, for its second Michigan race of the season, which will air on 4:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

Cindric wins the Henry 180 at Road America

By
SM Staff
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ELKHART LAKE, WISCONSIN - AUGUST 08: Austin Cindric, driver of the #22 Menards/Richmond Ford, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series Henry 180 at Road America on August 08, 2020 in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Austin Cindric took the lead with three laps remaining and held off veteran road-course ace A.J. Allmendinger to win Saturday‘s NASCAR Xfinity Series Henry 180 race on the historic 4.048-mile Road America road course in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

“We were able to get around and once AJ got clear I knew I was running qualifying laps. This car was really fast on short runs. Those guys brought a great package and I tried to mind my p’s and q’s and put together two of my best laps to come home with the win. I am over the moon about it. This is the first place I ran an Xfinity race and I feel like every time I have come here we have had a shot to win. It feels great to do it and do it in front of fans and a home crowd from Menards.” Cindric said.

The Mooresville, N.C. native led a total of 19 laps of the 45 laps in route to his fourth victory this season and the third time on a road course in his No. 22 Menards/Richmond Mustang.

Chase Briscoe finished third, Kaz Grala fourth and IMSA driver Andy Lally finished fifth followed by Noah Gragson, Ross Chastain, Preston Pardus, Ryan Sieg, and Michael Annett rounded out the top-10.

Justin Haley won the stage one in a one-lap shootout and AJ Allmendinger won stage two under caution.

The race was stopped for a little over a hour and a half for weather near the end of the first stage.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series returns on Saturday, August 15 with the UNOH 188 at the Daytona Road Course with coverage starting at 3:00 p.m. ET NBCSN, MRN, and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. This will be the first time that the NASCAR Xfinity Series has raced on the iconic road course.

NASCAR Xfinity Series Race Number 18

Road America – Elkhart Lake, WI – 4.048 – Mile Road

Total Race Length – 45 Laps – 182.16 Miles

FinStrNoDriverTeamLapsS1PosS2PosS3PosPtsStatus
1222Austin CindricMenards/Richmond Ford4520049Running
23316AJ AllmendingerEllsworth Advisors Chevrolet4501045Running
3798Chase BriscoeHenry Repeating Arms Ford4530042Running
4621Kaz Gralaruedebush.com Chevrolet4506038Running
5232Andy LallyNew Wave Cleaning Solutions Chevrolet4555044Running
699Noah GragsonBass Pro Shops/TrueTimber Camo Chevrolet4500031Running
71110Ross ChastainNutrien Ag Solutions Chevrolet4542046Running
83736Preston PardusChinchor Electric/Danus Chevrolet4500029Running
91639Ryan SiegCMRRoofing.com Chevrolet4500028Running
1011Michael AnnettAllstate Parts & Service Group Chevrolet4579033Running
11411Justin HaleyLeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet4513044Running
121368Brandon BrownBMS Chevrolet4507029Running
132292Josh WilliamsAlloy Employer Services/ProAct Chevrolet4500024Running
14819Brandon JonesToyota Service Center Toyota4500023Running
152190Alex LabbeFrameco/Prolon/rousseau Chevrolet4500022Running
16320Harrison Burton #DEX Imaging Toyota4500021Running
173099Josh BilickiAriens Toyota4584030Running
183644Tommy Joe MartinsSkyview Partners Chevrolet4500019Running
19196Jade BufordBig Machine Hand Sanitizer Chevrolet4598023Running
20247Rc EnersonLucas Oil School of Racing Chevrolet45100018Running
213247Kyle WeathermanStand For The Flag Chevrolet4500016Running
221561Stephen LeichtJANIKING Toyota4500015Running
23518Riley Herbst #Monster Energy Toyota4500014Running
24200Mike WallaceUnkers Therapeutic/Market Scan Chevrolet4500013Running
25268Joe Graf Jr #Bucked Up Energy Chevrolet4500012Running
263513Jesse Iwuji(i)G2 Xchange Toyota450000Running
272852Kody Vanderwal #ADVANCED DAIRY SERVICES Chevrolet4300010Engine
28144Jesse Little #JD Motorsports Chevrolet430009Running
291851Jeremy ClementsRepairables.com Chevrolet420008Accident
30127Justin AllgaierBRANDT Chevrolet4160012Accident
311715Jeffrey EarnhardtTeamJDMotorsports.com Chevrolet410006Accident
322993Myatt Snider #ShoreLunch Chevrolet410005Accident
332778Scott HeckertKoolbox Ice/JW Transport Toyota4101005Running
34345Vinnie MillerThompson Electric/JF Electric Chevrolet100003Engine
35108Daniel HemricPoppy Bank Chevrolet70002Engine
363166Chad FinchumOCR GAZ BAR Toyota50001Transmission
372574Bayley Currey(i)Repairables.com Chevrolet00000Engine

Cindric Pilots Ford Mustang to Victory at Road America

By
Official Release
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NASCAR XFINITY SERIES
SATURDAY, AUGUST 8, 2020
HENRY 180 – ROAD AMERICA
FORD PERFORMANCE DRIVER – POST RACE QUOTES

FORD FINISHING RESULTS:
1st — Austin Cindric
3rd — Chase Briscoe

POST-RACE PRESS CONFERENCE

AUSTIN CINDRIC, No. 22 Menards/Richmond Ford Mustang — CAN YOU TALK US THROUGH THE FINAL LAPS? “Yeah, with the cars that didn’t pit we definitely knew whoever had us was going to have to navigate that traffic the quickest. We were able to get around and once AJ got clear I knew I was running qualifying laps. This car was really fast on short runs. Those guys brought a great package and I tried to mind my p’s and q’s and put together two of my best laps to come home with the win. I am over the moon about it. This is the first place I ran an Xfinity race and I feel like every time I have come here we have had a shot to win. It feels great to do it and do it in front of fans and a home crowd from Menards.”

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO WIN HERE AT ROAD AMERICA? “I think this is a special race track to any racer. You hear guys like Mario Andretti talk about it being the most complete race track in the world. The fans that come out to this place, whether there is a pandemic or not, it is such a great atmosphere and great family atmosphere. It makes you want to do it even more as a driver. It challenges you in every type of way, especially when there is weather. It also feels awesome to win at all three of the natural born road courses on the Xfinity Series schedule with Watkins Glen, Ohio and Road America. Those three are special to me in different ways. I am so proud that I get to drive these race cars.”

CAN YOU DESCRIBE THE LAST TWO LAPS? HOW CONCERNED WERE YOU ABOUT ALLMENDINGER? “I knew I was in control if I made it past turn five. We struggled with braking stability there last year all weekend today and with low fuel, that will make that a lot worse. With the alternative pitting it definitely made it hard for us because we couldn’t add fuel to the car to add stability in the rear of the car when we put new tires on. It is a lightweight car but at the same time the braking stability was a big thing for me to lose. I was moving my brake bias about five times a lap. The end of that long run as well as the last two laps. I am sorry if I am blinking a lot but I got something in my eye halfway through the race and it hurts so bad. I have been blinking like the entire last hour.”

WHAT DID YOU DO TO YOUR EYE? “Something came in my visor or something. It has been stuck under my eyelid from like halfway through the race. I have had tears running down my face the entire race and I can’t get it out. I was taking my gloves off and whatever. When you have the adrenaline it isn’t a big deal apparently because right now it is driving me crazy.”

WHAT KIND OF SUMMER HAS THIS BEEN FOR YOU WITH FOUR WINS IN FIVE RACES? “It has been incredibly gratifying. When I have a team behind me like I do this year and those guys are so loyal to me and do such a great job with the tools that they have. When it comes to me, it is my job to do the best with the tools I have. I feel like from the start of this year I have been getting the most out of the cars I have been driving and it is gratifying to see the results. I look for that to continue. It is a really fun month of race tracks with the Daytona Road Course and Dover, one of my favorite tracks and a double header there. A doubleheader at Richmond and Darlington I get another shot to figure that place out. And then Bristol. We have a lot of race tracks that I am really looking forward to closing out the regular season.”

DID IT MATTER TO YOU IF IT WAS A TWO-LAP OR FOUR-LAP SHOOTOUT? “I definitely think I was going to be a little better the longer we ran. I felt like I was able to save my tires enough and was going to be able to control the pace of the race there after we got a couple laps. I felt like my braking stability was good enough to be able to do that. With the two laps, it was about clearing those lap cars as quickly as possible. You can get a dive-bomb pretty quickly at this race track. Having that five or six car length buffer was really important after the first few corners.”

WATKINS GLEN IS NOT ON THE SCHEDULE NOW AND IS A TRACK THAT MEANS A LOT TO YOU. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON NOT RACING THERE THIS YEAR? “We have added some races to the schedule and you would think I would be really excited about going to the Daytona road course but we have also taken two tracks that I won at last year off the schedule and I feel like we would be really good there if we started with no practice. I really wish we were still going back there. Those are great race tracks and have a great history with our race car and race team. I miss that we will miss out on those events but it definitely adds some unique venues to go to from here.”

IT FEELS LIKE YOU AND AJ ALLMENDINGER KEEP RACING FOR WINS ON ROAD COURSES. THOSE LAST TWO LAPS, DID YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAD A SENSE OF WHAT HE WAS GOING TO TRY IF HE GOT THERE? “Yeah, a big lunge. I definitely knew he was going to try to lunge the first opportunity that he got. I felt like we were really good in the back section of the race track and he was good in some of the slower corners. For me, those were weak points last year, the higher speed corners. I think that is where Christopher Bell was able to maintain a lead and gap himself. We were able to do that same thing today adopting that to our race car. I am happy we were able to do that. Once I got through turn five I knew that I was in control. I knew that once I made it through those areas that we were going to be set to go.”

WE HAD A LONG RED FLAG AND TONS OF CAUTIONS. AS A COMPETITOR IN THE RACE, HOW HARD IS IT HAVING TO GO THROUGH ALL THAT? “Honestly, it wasn’t as troubling as you would think. We got like a 10-lap practice if you think of it that way. I feel like if that stage would have run green at the beginning of the race we would have been able to figure out where our car was on the long run and I feel like that has been our advantage early in these races. To understand where our race car is very quickly and try to get a gap. We weren’t able to do that today. I think it was a great practice session for everybody else to kind of get the jitters out, especially the guys that have never been here before to understand the race track. I said it in my post-race interview, we definitely over pressured our tires. I was probably the fastest car on the track for the first four or five laps and then all of a sudden I was junk. No grip, sliding on top of the track, I could smell the tires. I was spinning my tires at the top of fourth gear. It was terrible. So, that is what prompted me to pit and put us on the correct strategy with having tires there at the end and having a little bit of track position. It worked out for the best. I had a lot of fun racing Justin. That was cool. I think we raced side-by-side for three laps straight which is 12 miles here. Hopefully we gave everyone at home something good to watch. I don’t know with the Cup race at Michigan if people were able to watch it but it was a lot of fun.”

DO YOU HAVE AN IDEA OF WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT WEEK AT DAYTONA? “Honestly, I feel like Daytona with the exception of the new chicane that everyone else will have to learn as well as myself, it is a pretty straightforward race track. I expect the field to be tight like Indy. I wouldn’t rate Indy as the most difficult race track, the IndyGP, but I think that is why we saw some incredibly tight racing at that race track and I think you will see more of the same or even more at the Daytona road course. Given those straightaways it will be hard to get away from people in the draft. It is only like six or seven turns, not to downplay the track but I feel like guys will take to it and understand it quickly and it will put on a great show.”

Toyota Racing NXS Post-Race Recap — Road America 8.8.20

By
Official Release
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JONES LEADS TOYOTA IN WEATHER-AFFECTED RACE AT ROAD AMERICA
Brandon Jones scored in 14th to lead Toyota

ELKHART LAKE, Wisconsin (August 8, 2020) – Brandon Jones finished 14th to lead Toyota in the Henry 180 at Road America on Saturday afternoon.

Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS)
Road America – Elkhart Lake, Wisc.
Race 18 of 33 – 182.2 miles, 45 laps

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Austin Cindric*
2nd, AJ Allmendinger*
3rd, Chase Briscoe*
4th, Kaz Grala*
5th, Andy Lally*
14th, BRANDON JONES
16th, HARRISON BURTON
17th, JOSH BILICKI
22nd, STEPHEN LEICHT
23rd, RILEY HERBST
26th, JESSE IWUJI
33rd, SCOTT HECKERT
36th, CHAD FINCHUM
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

BRANDON JONES, No. 19 Toyota Service Centers Toyota Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 14th

How was the race for you today overall?

“At the start of the race, I had a lot of confidence coming into it. For about three weeks, I would say or so, we ran laps on the simulator at TRD and that was really the best I’ve felt coming into the weekend. Was running probably sixth-place lap times to kickoff the race really good and I was probably running about 80 percent just trying to figure out for the final stage where I could possibly push my braking zone a little bit more and things like that. That way when it came down to the end of the race, I knew exactly how far I could push it. Then the rain hit, of course, and I have to figure out how to get some laps in the rain. That’s kind of what led to our day going backwards a little bit. I was just trying to be safe, to take it easy. I knew at the end of the race it was probably going to go back to dry, which it did. I think at that point we just got so far back in the pack with the rain that it was kind of hard to recover from it. Still did our job in a way, I never really ran off track. I never put ourselves in a terrible position at the end of the race. There’s still come good positives to come out of it. I still learned a bunch in the first half of the race as well. We’ll see. We’ve got some more crazy road courses coming up so maybe this is a little bit of a momentum booster going into those.”

Is it beneficial to go from one road course right to another?

“I think it is. Any time that you stop doing anything and then try and pick it back up in a week or even a month, I think it’s pretty difficult. It helps a bunch and right now we’ve been going to the go-kart track and wearing those out a bunch. We’re doing a bunch of things to just be focused purely on road course racing. If we were to go oval racing for a while and then come back and do that, it would be hard to switch it back on for me anyways just not being 100 percent used to it. I know I’ve been in the series awhile now, but still not something I grew up doing through my racing career. Something that we’re getting a heck of a lot better at I think. This is something that takes time and there’s a bunch of schools you can do and oval racing isn’t like that at all. Oval racing has no schools or anything so definitely a different style of racing.”

What is the hardest part of racing in the rain?

“My biggest thing is you can’t see anything. The rooster tails are incredible behind the cars and there’s people blowing by you and you can’t see a half a car length in front of you. If anybody wrecks in between that, you’re not going to see smoke or nothing. I think to be honest; timid-ness is the issue with me on the rain. If you can’t see, you’re not going to be very confident.”

# # #

About Toyota

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

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

Zane Smith notches first career Truck Series win at Michigan

By
Briar Starr
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Zane Smith, driver of the #21 Bay Mountain Aire Chevrolet, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Henry Ford Health System 200 at Michigan International Speedway on August 07, 2020 . Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

The victory wasn’t easy but Zane Smith held off competitor Christian Eckes in the second overtime restart coming to the checkered flag at Michigan International Speedway. Smith found his opportunity after race leader Grant Enfinger spun from the lead and then making sure Eckes wasn’t going to get a run on him. The Californian finally got the win in just 12 starts in his Truck Series career.

“I really don’t know where to start. A lot of people don’t understand my situation with racing. It’s unbelievable I’ve made it to this point. Just thank you. A lot of this sport, as we all know, is about money and I don’t come from that. Making it to this point and to win and to be with such an awesome team like GMS Racing is something special,” said an emotional Smith. “I wish everyone could be here so I could celebrate with my parents and my girlfriend. Man, this is a lot to take in and it was awesome racing with all my friends. Man, an unbelievable day.”

Stages of 20-20-60 laps made up the original 100 lap race but two overtimes forced the race into 107 laps.

Prior to the event, major news came out of prerace inspection when ThorSport driver Johnny Sauter failed inspection due to a side panel violation. As a result, Sauter lost 10 driver points and ThorSport lost 10 owner points due to an L1 penalty. His crew chief, Joe Shear Jr. was also ejected for the race and replaced by Rich Lushes. Despite the penalty, Sauter was able to keep his starting position of 13th.

Kyle Busch Motorsports’ Chandler Smith drew the pole via owner points.

Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 20

It didn’t take long for cautions to fly in throughout the 107 lap event. Cautions flew as early as Lap 3 when the No. 14 of Trey Hutchens and the No. 00 of Josh Reaume collided with each other on the frontstretch.

The second caution flew on Lap 14 for Christian Eckes as he spun on the backstretch. One final yellow of the stage flew for the No. 30 of Brennan Poole when he spun off Turn 4.

The yellow was too late in the stage to get enough green flag laps in, therefore series officials called the stage early and ended it under yellow. Birthday boy Brett Moffitt won Stage 1. Sheldon Creed, Ben Rhodes, Matt Crafton, Derek Kraus, Austin Hill, Grant Enfinger, Stewart Friesen, Zane Smith and Chandler Smith completed the top 10.

Stage 2: Lap 24 – Lap 40

Before the second stage began, Zane Smith was penalized for too many crew over the wall.

Canadian Raphael Lessard led the early laps of the second stage but ran into trouble when his No. 4 Toyota Tundra had a left rear tire go flat, forcing Lessard to pit and lose valuable track position.

However, Johnny Sauter’s strategy of not pitting under the first stage break gave him the lead on Lap 29 and his first stage win of the 2020 Truck Series season. Moffitt, Gilliland, Enfinger, Gray, Creed, Hill, Nemechek, Kligerman and Kraus were the top 10.

Stage 3: Lap 47 – Lap 107

The third and final stage was littered with yellow flags. The first fell on Lap 49 for a wreck on the frontstretch. The No. 52 of Stewart Friesen spun after contact with the No. 18 of Eckes. Drivers Matt Crafton, Ryan Truex, Ty Majeski, and David Gravel were involved in the incident. Friesen suffered the most damage and was credited with a last place finish.

Another yellow came on Lap 60 for an incident between Chandler Smith and Kentucky native Ben Rhodes. It appears the two had an incident with each other laps prior to the wreck as Rhodes would retaliate and wreck Smith going into Turn 1. As a result, Smith’s day was done and he finished 38th after starting on the pole.

One of the most notable incidents that happened in the remaining laps was a battle between the two ThorSport teammates Enfinger and Sauter. Both were battling hard for position and the lead. Coming out of Turn 2, the air got taken off Sauter’s No. 13 truck and the Wisconsin native went crashing into the wall. While the team was able to get back out on the track, Sauter finished a disappointing 16th after contending for the win late.

Two more accidents slowed the race, including one red flag that lasted nine minutes and 46 seconds.

The defining moment came for Smith after the leaders took each other out. He would take the lead and hold on for the first checkered flag of his career.

“It’s a super cool place to get one (the victory) for Chevrolet,” Smith said about winning. “This is their home place. I think any manufacturer wants to win here (Michigan). I don’t know how many times they (Chevrolet) won here in a Truck, but it’s really cool to be a part of that.”

A record 11 cautions flew for 51 laps and 17 lead changes among 13 different drivers.

Official Results following the Henry Ford Health Systems 200

  1. Zane Smith, led one lap
  2. Christian Eckes
  3. Tanner Gray
  4. Tyler Ankrum
  5. Todd Gilliland, led three laps
  6. Brett Moffitt, won Stage 1, led 20 laps
  7. Raphael Lessard, led four laps
  8. Derek Kraus
  9. Parker Kligerman
  10. David Gravel
  11. Ben Rhodes
  12. Austin Hill, led 11 laps
  13. Tate Fogleman
  14. Dawson Cram, led three laps
  15. Ty Majeski
  16. Johnny Sauter, won Stage 2, led 18 laps
  17. Josh Reaume, led one lap
  18. Codie Rohrbaugh
  19. Ryan Truex
  20. Clay Greenfield
  21. Tyler Hill
  22. Jesse Iwuji
  23. Matt Crafton
  24. Cory Roper
  25. John Hunter Nemechek, led two laps
  26. Tim Viens
  27. Spencer Boyd
  28. Jennifer Jo Cobb
  29. Trey Hutchens III
  30. Sheldon Creed, 1 lap down, led one lap
  31. Norm Benning, 1 lap down
  32. Jordan Anderson, 1 lap down
  33. Grant Enfinger, 2 laps down, led 38 laps
  34. Ray Ciccarelli, 4 laps down
  35. Brennan Poole, OUT, Accident
  36. Jeb Burton, OUT, Accident
  37. Austin Wayne Self, 8 laps down
  38. Chandler Smith, OUT, Accident
  39. Stewart Friesen, OUT, Accident

Up Next: The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will make their debut on the Daytona Road Course Sunday, August 16 at noon ET live on Fox Sports 1. The new venue will also mark the start of the Triple Truck Challenge where drivers have a chance to earn up to $500,000.

A Decade of Great Moments: NASCAR’s Top Series Wrote History on the Daytona Beach-Road Course from 1949-58 Before Moving to Superspeedway

By
Official Release
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An aerial view of cars negotiating the north turn of the Daytona beach-road course during a mid-1950s NASCAR Cup race. After turning off the beach portion of the track, the cars would then head down the paved portion of the track that was public Highway A1A. (Photo by ISC Images & Archives via Getty Images)

Iconic Names Had Success on the 4.1-mile Layout; Today’s Stars Will Make the NASCAR Cup Series Return to Road Course Racing in Daytona Beach at Daytona International Speedway’s Trioval/Road Course on Aug. 16

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Aug. 7, 2020) – From 1936 through the middle of 1949, smaller, older modified stock cars had competed on the sands of Daytona Beach, but it was in 1949 that Bill France’s dream of having a series, featuring new, full-size sedans that could be purchased off a showroom floor, became a reality.

After introducing his “Strictly Stock” Series (later known as “Grand National” and today the “NASCAR Cup Series”) concept for an initial race in Charlotte in June of ’49, the second event on the slate was at the Daytona beach-road course. It would become a mainstay in the foundation of the sport for the next decade, and many of its winners would read like a “Who’s Who” of NASCAR legends.

During this time period, Big Bill saw that the days of racing on the beach-road course were numbered due to the spreading land usage of a rapidly growing population and huge race crowds. He put a plan for the future of Daytona Beach in motion with a proposal to construct a permanent speedway facility that would become Daytona International Speedway, which hosted the first DAYTONA 500 in 1959.

As a result, the Daytona beach-road course race in 1958 was the grand finale for the asphalt and sand. The 10-year stretch of memorable moments will never be forgotten. Below are quick recaps of each of the historical races, today known as the NASCAR Cup Series, on that iconic 4.1-mile Daytona beach-road course, located near Ponce Inlet.

July 10, 1949
Red Byron of Atlanta took the lead from Gober Sosebee with six laps remaining and went on to win the 166-mile NASCAR Strictly Stock (changed name to Grand National in 1950) race.

Sosebee, who had taken the lead from Joe Littlejohn just after the drop of the green flag, appeared headed for the $2,000 victory but his Oldsmobile bobbled as he negotiated the North Turn on the 34th lap of the 49-lap contest. Byron would go on and win the championship.

February 5, 1950
Harold Kite, a former Army tank driver who began racing on the short tracks after World War II, drove past Red Byron on the 25th lap (of 48) to score a convincing triumph in the season opener over Byron.

Competing in his first NASCAR “Grand National” event, the East Point, GA, driver pushed his Lincoln around the sandy course at a record speed of 89.894 mph to win by 53 seconds.

February 11, 1951
Marshall Teague, the 29-year-old hometown favorite, wheeled his Fabulous Hudson Hornet around Tim Flock’s Lincoln with 12 laps remaining to win the 160-mile Grand National race. His margin of victory was 74 seconds.

Flock’s pit crew had an issue fueling his machine during a routine pit stop after leading the first 27 laps, but was able to recover to finish second. His brother, Fonty Flock, was third, followed by Bill Blair and Buck Baker.

February 10, 1952
For the second straight year, Marshall Teague, in his Fabulous Hudson Hornet, kicked off the season with a victory, outrunning his teammate, Herb Thomas, to win the 151.7-mile race at an average speed of 85.162 mph.

The race started late to allow an unexpected crowd of 20,000 spectators to find parking spots. With a delayed start, the 200-mile race (48 laps) was cut short to 37 laps due to an incoming tide.

February 15, 1953
After three finishes in the top six in the first four Daytona beach-road course races, Bill Blair finally reached the pinnacle of victory, beating Fonty Flock by 26 seconds.

Blair, in an Oldsmobile, led on the last lap, taking advantage of Flock, who ran out of gas as he took the white flag. His teammate Slick Smith helped push his car to the pits for fuel. Because NASCAR rules permitted a car to be assisted to the pit area, but not to be pushed from the pits, Flock rebounded to finish second.

February 21, 1954
Lee Petty was declared the winner after apparent winner, Tim Flock, was disqualified because of an altered carburetor. The decision wasn’t popular with Flock, who quit driving NASCAR for the rest of the year.

Petty, who would go on and win the first-ever DAYTONA 500 on the 2.5-mile high-banked facility in 1959, beat Buck Baker by nine seconds.

February 27, 1955
Tim Flock, after being disqualified the previous year, rebounded to win after Fireball Roberts was disqualified for push rods in his engine being altered.

Flock was teaming with car owner Carl Kiekhaefer for the first time, and the No. 300 Chrysler finished ahead of second-place Lee Petty, who was the beneficiary of Flock’s misfortune a year before. It was Flock’s first NASCAR race since the Daytona beach-road course event in 1954.

February 26, 1956
For the second time in the event’s history, the Daytona beach-road course race was called short of its scheduled finish – two laps shy – because of a high tide. For the second consecutive year, Tim Flock took the victory.

He led all but three laps in the 37-lap, 151.7-mile event and held off Billy Myers with Ralph Moody third. 

February 17, 1957

Cotton Owners picked up his first Grand National Series victory, piloting a Pontiac to the win over Johnny Beauchamp. Owens and Paul Goldsmith battled for the lead, but with eight laps to go, the engine in Goldsmith’s Chevrolet blew.

February 23, 1958
A year after a blown motor with eight laps left took away a possible victory, Goldsmith outdueled Curtis Tuner to win the final race on the Dayton beach-road course. It marked the closest finish in the 10-year history of the event, winning by a mere five car lengths.

Just how Goldsmith accomplished the feat will be covered in the next installment of this series.

Fast forward to 2020! A limited number of fans will get the opportunity to see NASCAR’s return to road course racing in Daytona for the Go Bowling 235 At The DAYTONA Road Course, along with the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series race on Sunday, Aug. 16. Fans can get tickets, which start at $49 (both races included) for adults and $10 for kids 12 years old and younger, by visiting www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or calling 1-800-PIT-SHOP.

Fans can stay connected with Daytona International Speedway on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube and Snapchat, 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.

CHEVY NCS AT MICHIGAN: Tyler Reddick Press Conf. Transcript

By
Official Release
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NASCAR CUP SERIES
MICHIGAN DOUBLEHEADER
MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
AUGUST 7, 2020

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CHEVY ACCESSORIES CAMARO ZL1 1LE, met with media via teleconference and discussed his outlook for this weekend’s Michigan races, the new Choose Rule, the importance of preparing for the upcoming race at Daytona for both the new road course and the heat and more, making it into the Playoffs and more. Full Transcript:

YOU ARE STARTING 14th FOR THE FIRST RACE AT MICHIGAN. CAN YOU WALK US THROUGH ABOUT HOW YOU ARE PREPARING FOR THE WEEKEND RACES AT MICHIGAN AND YOUR MINDSET HEADING INTO THEM?
“For us, for these next six before the Playoffs start, it’s very important that we manage everything to the best of our ability. So, we’ve got to run good and we can’t afford to make costly mistakes to take us out of the race. So, we just have to be very thoughtful with everything on the race track and every strategy call has to be with a purpose because every single matters immensely right now and will continue to matter as these races wind down to the cutoff.”

DOES THE CHOOSE RULE BENEFIT YOU MAYBE MORE THAN OTHERS SINCE YOU LIKE THE HIGH SIDE AND MIGHT BE ONE TO TRY IT MAYBE A LITTLE BIT MORE AT CERTAIN TRACKS?
“I don’t know if it actually does benefit me because the people that will want to start on the top lane will start up there. So, we’ll be able to take advantage of it at times as somebody isn’t necessarily going to push the issue at some of these race tracks that line up on the outside. I know you can take advantage of that so. I don’t know how much it really changes it. It might make the restarts a little bit more difficult for me to gain positions that I’ve been able to gain before. But you know, maybe not. We’ll see. It’s a rule that everyone was kind of on board for and really kind of pushing for with how the racing has kind of been with these low-horsepower cars. The top is so dominant on restarts and getting in somebody’s right rear quarter panel is pretty much end game for the car on the inside. I’m glad we’re changing it. It’ll probably be a little confusing a few times as first, especially the further you are back within the field. It gets more and more challenging to count the cars of who is going where. But it’ll be a fun new challenge. Me and my spotter had fun with it at Bristol even though we didn’t have a good run there. But I think it’s going to be good for our racing and it’ll make it more interesting too.”

DO YOU HAVE MUCH EXPERIENCE WITH IT IN LATE MODELS?
“We didn’t really have any of that in Dirt Late Model racing. We had a very similar restart setting, or restarts would be set a very similar to how the Cup series is except the lead car has his own lane to himself. So you can kind of use both lanes to get a better launch than the rest of the field. So, I’ve never really done anything like this before that I can remember. But we’re still going around the same race tracks. Once they’re set it’ll be very similar to what they already are, but you’ve got to make one more decision in the race car as a driver and as a team. So, it will be a new challenge.”

WITH SILLY SEASON UPON US, CAN YOU STAY WHAT YOUR STATUS IS AT THIS POINT WITH RCR IN REGARD TO 2021 AND ALSO WHAT DOES THE LANDSCAPE LOOK LIKE FOR A YOUNG DRIVER LIKE YOURSELF?
“Well it’s definitely always concerning regardless of age when you’re 24 years old and you’re getting replaced in the Cup series or in any kind of racing. But, it’s part of it. It’s unfortunate. But that’s the world we live in. There are comers and goers and there’s always somebody coming up through the ranks that is going to have a shot at something. So, I’m glad I know where I’m going to be next year. I’m going to be with RCR. So, I’m not necessarily allowing the pressure to come off by any means. We still want to make the Playoffs. We still want to run really good this year. We want to beat the other drivers that are competing for Rookie of the Year. So, it’s not going to take away my aggression any, knowing that for the first time in a while I guess, in my racing career, knowing that I’m going to be in the same place is nice.”

IN PREPARATION FOR THE DAYTONA ROAD COURSE RACE, PERHAPS WITH IRACING, HAVE YOU HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE ANY LAPS THERE YET AHEAD OF TIME?
‘Yeah, it’s pretty much all you’re really going to have to go off of is iRacing or simulation. For me, it’s through Chevrolet. We’ve been able to use the simulators that they have and for a guy like me who has never made a lap around the Daytona road course, I have no idea what I’m getting into for the most part. Even with how the Cup cars brake and race on a road course themselves, it is tough because I have no background in a Cup car on a road course. From my understanding the brakes are a little bit better. Some things are a little bit different and are better for the drivers. You can be more aggressive, I think. I’ve got nothing to go off really other than help from A.J. Allmendinger, who helped me a lot last year in the Xfinity stuff. He’s worked with Randall Burnett (crew chief) in the past and helped me get up to speed, especially when he was running the Kaulig cars for them. I have other good friends (like) Austin Cindric and other drivers who have run this course in the past that I know well too, that I’ve been able to bounce some ideas off of, too.”

COMING TO DAYTONA, HOW ARE YOU PREPARING FOR THE HEAT IN AUGUST? IT’S 100 PERCENT HUMIDITY AND 100 DEGREES AND YOU CAN’T ESCAPE FROM IT
“Yeah, I think this year and the way we’ve gone about making up these races has kind of been, in a way, conditioning us for that. But, at the same time it could be wearing us down in that one last extremely hot race that we have this year. So, none of us really know what to expect. It’s going to be extremely hot and you don’t want to spare any expense or time putting into hydration. That’s going to be extremely important for that race. You just don’t know how taxing it’s going to be on you, on your car, or on anything; and you have to be on your toes at all times, especially on a road course. You can’t afford to make mistakes. You wheel-hop once and your day could be done, or you significantly damage your car. Like I mentioned earlier, every point matters and every spot matters. Going into that race we’ve just really got to be on our game and make sure that we don’t have too many adult beverages at dinner with the lady throughout the week, or whatever it is, and just really focus on hydrating and cutting out the fun beverages that you normally have at dinner.”

WHEN YOU STARTED THIS YEAR, DID YOU EVER THINK THAT YOU WOULD BE COMPETING FOR A PLACE IN THE CHASE AGAINST JIMMIE JOHNSON?
“I thought we had the capability of making the Playoffs, but I didn’t really foresee Jimmie having the bad luck and struggles that he’s had. The speed has definitely been there. We’ve seen it at times. But unfortunately, you have to capitalize when you do have it and unfortunately for him and his team, he hasn’t. And then he missed the race at Indy. So, he’s had the deck stacked against him for sure this year. I thought we would be battling to get into the Playoffs, but I didn’t think it would be against him, for sure.”

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

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All-Electric Mustang Mach-E 1400 to Star in this Weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series Broadcast

By
Official Release
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NASCAR Cup Series Champion Joey Logano this week had a chance to feel the raw electric power of the one-of-a-kind Mustang Mach-E 1400 prototype along with Ford’s famed drift star Vaughn Gittin Jr. at Ford’s Romeo Proving Grounds in Michigan.

Logano and Gittin were on-track to make a short film to showcase the Mustang Mach-E 1400 – developed in collaboration with Gittin’s RTR Vehicles – that will appear for the first time Saturday and Sunday during NBC’s televised coverage of the NASCAR Cup Series races at Michigan International Speedway.

Projecting 1,400 peak horsepower and with seven motors, Logano experienced firsthand what a Ford Performance/RTR electric vehicle can do.

“It was so cool to get a chance to drive the Mustang Mach-E 1400,” Logano said. “With all-wheel drive it just launches at the start and you have so much power it’s crazy. The Ford Performance guys with Vaughn and his team have built something special.”

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