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Stewart-Haas Racing: Watkins Glen NXS Advance (Cole Custer | Riley Herbst)

By
Official Release
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COLE CUSTER | RILEY HERBST
Watkins Glen NASCAR Xfinity Series Advance
NASCAR Xfinity Series Overview

  • Event: Mission 200 at The Glen (Round 25 of 33)
  • Date: Saturday, Sept. 14
  • Location: Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International
  • Layout: 2.45-mile, seven-turn road course
  • Time/TV/Radio: 3 p.m. EDT on USA/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Cole Custer Notes of Interest

  • Cole Custer is ready to trade in the high banks and unpredictability of superspeedway-style racing for the high-speed, left-and-right turns of Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International in Saturday’s Mission 200 at The Glen. Custer’s strength on road courses has been prevalent throughout his career. In his 27 Xfinity Series starts on road courses, Custer has scored two wins, 20 top-10s and led 26 laps. Last season, he scored two of his three wins on a road course and a street course – June 3 at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway and July 1 on the Chicago Street Course. The series has visited three road courses – Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, Portland, and Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway – and the Chicago Street Course so far this season. Custer scored top-10 finishes in three of these four starts with a best finish of fourth on March 23 at COTA. In fact, Custer hasn’t finished outside the top-10 at a traditional road course in the Xfinity Series since an accident cut his race short on July 29, 2023, at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. Custer and the No. 00 HighPoint.com team look to be contenders to win this weekend as he attempts to continue to close the gap on Justin Allgaier’s regular-season points lead with just two races to go before the Xfinity Series Playoffs begin Sept. 28 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City.
  • Saturday’s Mission 200 at The Glen will mark Custer’s sixth Xfinity Series start at the 2.45-mile, seven-turn circuit. His five prior starts feature back-to-back top-10 finishes in 2018 (sixth) and 2019 (seventh), and a seventh-place result in August 2023. He’s never finished outside the top-12 in his Xfinity Series starts at the track. Custer also has six starts outside of the Xfinity Series at Watkins Glen – three in the NASCAR Cup Series and three in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East. He earned a best K&N Pro Series East finish of third in August 2016, and a best Cup Series finish of 11th in August 2022.
  • HighPoint.com is a leading provider of technology infrastructure solutions that is headquartered in Sparta, New Jersey. HighPoint has been a partner of Stewart-Haas Racing since 2020, when the company supported Chase Briscoe’s NASCAR Xfinity Series campaign, a collaboration that netted a series-best nine victories. HighPoint has climbed the NASCAR ladder with Briscoe and has helped Stewart-Haas maximize its IT investments. As an IT Solutions Integrator focused on all things that connect, HighPoint helps its customers with the selection and supply of network infrastructure, mobility, collaboration, data center, security solutions and the risk-mitigated implementation and management of their technology. The company, founded in 1996, is a minority-owned business that serves markets in its nearby Tri-State Region (New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware) and the Southeastern United States via its presence in Charlotte, North Carolina, as well as globally with offices in Amsterdam and London. To learn more about HighPoint’s solutions, visit HighPoint.com.

Riley Herbst Notes of Interest

  • Riley Herbst is looking for a change of scenery in Saturday’s Mission 200 at The Glen at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International. After being caught up in an accident with just a handful of laps to go in last Saturday’s race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Herbst was able to limp to the finish after an otherwise solid day of running in the top-10 at Atlanta. With that heartbreak behind him, Herbst is hoping that the No. 98 Monster Energy team can rebound to earn a top finish at Watkins Glen, the track where his playoff bid last year took a critical hit when Herbst ran inside the top-10 all day, but a mechanical issue forced him to retire early with a 35th-place result. This weekend, Herbst finds himself already locked into the seven-race postseason thanks to his July 20 win at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. With two races to go until the playoffs kick off Sept. 28 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Herbst is sitting seventh in the regular-season points standings and eighth in the playoff standings with seven playoff points.
  • Saturday’s race at Watkins Glen will mark Herbst’s fourth Xfinity Series start at the track. Best among his three prior starts was a seventh-place finish in August 2022. He finished 13th in his first start at the track in August 2021 with the No. 98 Monster Energy team. He also has two starts at The Glen outside of the Xfinity Series – one in the ARCA Menards Series in August 2021, which resulted in a sixth-place finish, and one in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, which resulted in a 12th-place finish.
  • Herbst has proven his resilience on road courses in the last year, bouncing back from several tough runs at the start of the year to nab top-15 finishes in five of the eight road-course races last season. He earned a 10th-place finish in last year’s first road-course race at COTA on March 25, 2023. He then finished 15th when the series visited Sonoma for the first time on June 10. In his fifth-place finish July 29 at Road America, Herbst rebounded from incidents during the race to work his way from the back of the pack. He followed that up with a 12th-place result after starting 10th at the Aug. 12 Indianapolis Grand Prix. He closed the season with his strongest run of the year at a track that has troubled him in the past, the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Roval. Herbst finished fourth in that Oct. 7 race, his best Roval finish after back-to-back DNFs in 2021 and 2022. While his road-course starts in 2024 have been riddled with bad luck, Herbst has proven it’s never too late in the season to turn luck around. His fourth-place finish at Charlotte was his first of five straight top-fives to close out the 2023 season, which included his first career Xfinity Series victory Oct. 14 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Cole Custer, Driver of the No. 00 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse

You’re welcoming HighPoint.com to your car this weekend at Watkins Glen for the second year in a row. It’s been an SHR partner for several years and made the move last year to sponsor you in the Xfinity Series for a race. You earned a sixth-place finish. What does it mean to have the company’s support?

“HighPoint’s support means a lot to me and Stewart-Haas. The whole family and all the people over there are extremely caring and really on the ground floor with things. Mike (Mendiburu, owner) has always been a big supporter of my career. We met years ago and it’s nice to finally be able to work with them on my own car. It’s really cool to see just how much effort they put into their business and seeing how invested they are in NASCAR. It’s hard to come by these days. I think you’ve seen it with their investment in the Stewart-Haas team all these years. I’m excited to have them back as primary partner at Watkins Glen. Overall, just seeing how invested they are in the sport and how much they love racing is pretty awesome. I can’t thank them enough for also investing in me. Hopefully, we can give them another good run and park their Ford Mustang in victory lane.”

You’re heading to the fourth traditional road course of the 2024 season. In the three prior starts, you scored top-10 finishes. Talk about your expectations for the weekend at Watkins Glen, given your success on road courses.

“Watkins Glen is a fun track for me. I’ve never finished outside the top-12 there, but it’s honestly just a high-speed, fast road course. It’s difficult for sure, but I think that’s what makes it more fun as a driver. You have to be careful not to overstep or lose your temper too quickly. Road courses are all about patience so you can stay out of trouble and be there at the end. You’ve seen that countless times – including my win at Portland when I passed the leaders who got tangled up on a restart. If you’re too aggressive, you can put yourself in a worse position. I think the No. 00 team will be one of the ones to watch this weekend.”

Riley Herbst, Driver of the No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang Dark Horse

The No. 98 Monster Energy team has shown so much speed at road courses, but bad luck has taken you out of contention for some potentially great finishes. What do you need this weekend to get the job done and park your Ford Mustang in victory lane at The Glen?

“Our No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang has been fast all year on any style of track. It’s just a testament to the hard work that this team is putting in each and every week to make us better. The only one I will say that we were truly slow is COTA earlier this year, but every other race has been great. We’ve had some bad luck. We’ve had some work cut out for us. But, we never gave up. I think that mentality has only helped us get better. I’m thankful for these guys for sticking by me and giving me fast cars each week. Last year was tough at Watkins Glen, but now we’re not focused on making it into the playoffs. We’re already in. Now, we can focus on winning and preparing for these final races. There isn’t any other team I would rather head to a road course with.”

Watkins Glen seems to be a favorite road course among the drivers. Describe what goes through your mind as you’re making your way around it.

“Watkins Glen is a fun track as a driver, for sure. It’s such a fast road course, and you really have to think about each turn so you’re not getting yourself into trouble. Each of the turns on this course is unique, so you just have to be on top of your game every time you go there. I’m excited to head back there to hopefully compete for a win, and given the speed we’ve had on road courses, I think we’re in a good spot this weekend. We’ve had top-five speed almost every week, it seems, so now it’s just about avoiding mistakes and having another perfect race. If I’ve learned anything, it’s that it’s never too late to turn your luck around.”

Austin Dillon to make 400th Cup start at Watkins Glen

By
Andrew Kim
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Photo by Ron Olds for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Austin Dillon is primed to achieve a milestone in his 11th full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series. By competing in this weekend’s Cup Playoff event at Watkins Glen International, the driver of the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing (RCR) Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 will make his 400th career start in NASCAR’s premier series.

A native of Welcome, North Carolina, Dillon made his inaugural start in the Cup Series at Kansas Speedway in October 2011. At the time, he was campaigning in his second full-time season in the Craftsman Truck Series for Richard Childress Racing after clinching the Rookie of the Year title in 2010. Driving the No. 98 Chevrolet Impala for Curb Racing, Dillon finished 26th in his first Cup event.

The following two seasons, Dillon competed full-time in the Xfinity Series for RCR, where he achieved the 2012 Xfinity Series’ Rookie of the Year title before notching the drivers’ championship a year later. During the two-year stint, he made 12 Cup Series starts, his first occurring at Michigan International Speedway in June 2012 as he piloted RCR’s No. 33 Chevrolet to a 24th-place finish. The remaining 11 Cup starts occurred in 2013, with his first being the 55th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway as he finished 31st.

In total, Dillon made five Cup starts with RCR, four with Phoenix Racing and two with Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) as an interim competitor for the injured three-time Cup champion Tony Stewart. Within the starts, he notched a season-best 11th-place finish at Michigan in June with RCR and a 14th-place run at Michigan in August with SHR. At Talladega Superspeedway in October, Dillon, who was driving the No. 14 SHR Chevrolet SS, was running in third place on the final lap when he slipped sideways off the front nose of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., came back across the track in the backstretch and was sent airborne after being rammed by Casey Mears, with the result dropping Dillon to 26th place in the final running order.

Less than a month after winning the 2013 Xfinity Series title, Dillon was announced as a full-time Cup Series competitor in RCR’s No. 3 Chevrolet SS for the 2014 season, which marked the return of the No. 3 in NASCAR’s premier series for the first time since the 2001 Daytona 500, last piloted by the late seven-time NASCAR champion Dale Earnhardt.

Dillon commenced his rookie Cup season on a strong note by securing the pole position for the 56th running of the Daytona 500, which was his first in the series, and becoming both the fourth competitor to place a No. 3 entry and the fifth rookie candidate on the pole for the Great American Race. During the main event, Dillon, who led the opening lap, rallied after being involved in a late multi-car wreck to record his first top-10 result in the series with a ninth-place finish. He would then finish no higher than 11th three times during his next 16 starts before securing his first top-five result in the form of a fifth-place finish at Daytona in July.

With only an additional top-10 result, being a 10th-place run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July, occurring in the final eight regular-season events, Dillon was unable to qualify for the 2014 Cup Series Playoffs. He would proceed to finish no higher than eighth during the final 10 events on the schedule before settling in 20th place in the final standings and the runner-up spot behind Kyle Larson for the Rookie-of-the-Year title. Overall, Dillon achieved a single pole, one top-five result, four top-10 results, 10 laps led and an average-finishing result of 17.5 during his first full-time Cup Series season.

Dillon’s sophomore Cup season in 2015 was mired with a harrowing final lap accident at Daytona in July, where his car went airborne after colliding with a spinning Denny Hamlin. He flew over four competitors and smashed upside-down into the frontstretch’s catchfence before the car came back on the speedway on the roof and was hit by a spinning Brad Keselowski before coming to a rest on the roof. Amid the wild wreck that ripped the engine out of the No. 3 car, Dillon, who managed to finish seventh before the wreck, emerged uninjured as he only sustained a bruised tailbone and a bruised forearm.

The Daytona result would serve as one of Dillon’s five total top-10 results he earned throughout the 2015 Cup season, with his best on-track result being a fourth-place finish at Michigan International Speedway in August after leading 19 laps. After missing the Playoffs, Dillon settled in 21st place in the final standings with an average-finishing result of 21.0.

Like his rookie Cup season, Dillon commenced his junior Cup Series season with a ninth-place result during the 58th running of the Daytona 500. Two races later, he recorded a strong fifth-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March followed by a ninth-place run at Phoenix Raceway before notching his second Cup career pole at Auto Club Speedway, an event where he would finish 24th. Nabbing three additional top-five results and a total of six top-10 results during the final 21 regular-season events, Dillon was able to race his way into his first career Cup Series Playoffs based on points.

After finishing 14th, 16th and eighth throughout the Round of 16, Dillon transferred into the Round of 12. With respective finishes of 32nd, sixth and ninth throughout the Round of 12, however, he did not transfer to the Round of 8 amid a tie-breaker against Denny Hamlin. Scoring his second pole of the season at Texas Motor Speedway in November, Dillon finished no higher than 12th during the final four events on the schedule before settling in 14th place in the final standings. Overall, Dillon achieved two poles, four top-five results, a career-high 13 top-10 results, 17 laps led and an average finishing result of 15.9. He had also surpassed 100 career starts in NASCAR’s premier series.

Dillon began the 2017 Cup Series season with a 19th-place finish during the 59th running of the Daytona 500. Then after managing only one top-five finish during the first 11 events on the schedule, he scored his first Cup career victory in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May after overtaking seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson with two laps remaining and having enough fuel to coast his No. 3 Chevrolet across the finish line ahead of Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr.

With the victory, Dillon became the 188th different competitor to win a Cup Series event and the seventh to notch a first Cup victory in the Coke 600. It was the first victory for the No. 3 since Dale Earnhardt won at Talladega Superspeedway in 2000. Despite finishing in the top 10 only twice during the final 14 regular-season events, the Coke 600 victory enabled Dillon to automatically advance to the Playoffs for a second consecutive season. After having his title hopes come to an early end after finishing no higher than 16th twice and not advancing past the Round of 16, Dillon proceeded to notch five top-15 results within the final seven events on the schedule before settling in a career-best 11th place in the final standings.

Returning for a fifth full-time Cup campaign in 2018, Dillon commenced the season with a thriller after spinning Aric Almirola on the final lap to win the 60th running of the Daytona 500 and notch his second Cup career victory. With the accomplishment, Dillon, who only led the final lap and piloted a Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to its first NASCAR victory in its first event, became the 39th competitor to win the Great American Race as he delivered the third Daytona 500 victory for Richard Childress Racing and the first for the No. 3 since Dale Earnhardt won his first and only 500 event in 1998.

The victory also occurred 11 years to the day when Kevin Harvick delivered the second and latest 500 victory for RCR. With the 500 victory guaranteeing Dillon and the No. 3 team a spot in the 2018 Cup Series Playoffs, the North Carolina native proceeded to finish in the top 10 three additional times during the remaining 25 regular-season events. Having his title hopes eliminated early after finishing 11th, sixth and 39th throughout the Round of 16, Dillon proceeded to finish in the top 11 five times during the final seven events on the schedule before settling in 13th place in the final standings. Despite achieving one less top-five result from his previous season (two), he doubled his top-10 results (eight) and improved his average-finishing result from 18.6 to 17.5.

After missing the 2019 Cup Series Playoffs and finishing 21st in the final standings, where he notched a total of six top-10 results, a career-high three poles and surpassed 200 Cup career starts throughout the season, Dillon began the 2020 Cup season with a 12th-place finish in the 62nd running of the Daytona 500 before notching a fourth-place run during the following event at Las Vegas. Then after recording three additional top-10 results during his next 15 starts, Dillon snapped an 88-race winless drought and returned to the Victory Lane in the Cup Series at Texas for the third time in his career after leading 22 laps and fending off teammate Tyler Reddick during a two-lap shootout.

The Texas victory also enabled Dillon to clinch a spot in the 2020 Cup Series Playoffs, which marked his fourth time making the postseason title battle, as he concluded the regular-season stretch with two additional top-10 results, amid being absent from the Daytona International Speedway Road Course event in August following a positive COVID-19 test. After notching a strong runner-up result during the Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway in September followed by a fourth-place finish at Richmond Raceway and a 12th-place run at Bristol Motor Speedway, respectively, Dillon transferred into the Round of 12. After being eliminated from the Playoffs due to finishing no higher than 12th throughout the Round of 12, he secured two 11th-place finishes during the final four-scheduled events before tying his career-best result in the final standings in 11th place. Overall, Dillon still managed to notch a career-high 135 laps led along with a total of four top-five results, nine top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 16.2.

Throughout the 2021 Cup Series season, where he reached 300 Cup career starts at season’s end, Dillon accumulated a total of eight top-10 results and a season-best third-place finish in the 63rd running of the Daytona 500. Despite winning the second Bluegreen Vacations Duel at Daytona in February following a final lap where he overtook Bubba Wallace, Dillon did not make the 2021 Cup Series Playoffs and concluded the season in 17th place in the final standings. Nonetheless, he still secured a career-best average-finishing result of 14.4 on the strength of 27 top-15 results throughout the 36-race schedule.

The 2022 Cup season began with a 25th-place finish during the 64th running of the Daytona 500, Dillon collected two runner-up results and a total of seven top-10 results throughout the following 24 regular-season events. Then during the regular-season finale at Daytona in August, he raced his way into the Playoffs after dodging a wreck that eliminated nearly the entire field with 23 laps remaining and withstanding a lengthy rain delay period to lead 10 laps and overtake Austin Cindric with three laps remaining before leading teammate Tyler Reddick across the finish line as part of a 1-2 finish for Richard Childress Racing.

The victory was Dillon’s fourth of his Cup career and the fifth time he made the Playoffs. Although his title hopes were eliminated early after finishing no higher than 14th throughout the Round of 16, Dillon notched a fourth-place finish and two 10th-place runs during the final seven-scheduled events before ending up in 11th place in the final standings for the third time in his career. By then, Dillon notched career-high stats in top fives (five) and top 10s (11) while emerging with an average finishing result of 16.5.

This past season, Dillon notched a strong runner-up result in the non-points Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Two weeks later, he was in contention and battling for the victory in the Daytona 500 before he was swept up in a multi-car wreck during an overtime shootout and ended up in 33rd place. Dillon proceeded to finish in the top five once and in the top 10 six times during the following 25 regular-season events but missed the Playoffs for the fifth time in his career. Finishing no higher than 10th throughout the 2023 Playoffs, Dillon ended up in 29th place in the final driver’s standings, the lowest of his career as a full-time Cup competitor.

Dillon started the 2024 Cup Series season with only two top-10 results through the first 22 scheduled events, which left him mired outside the top-30 mark in the regular-season standings. Then at Richmond Raceway this past August, he endured a high-turned-low career moment that started when he assumed the lead from Denny Hamlin with 28 laps remaining. Initially poised the seal the victory during the event’s scheduled distance, the event was sent into overtime due to a late multi-car wreck. Despite retaining the lead during the event’s caution period, Dillon would lose the lead to Joey Logano at the start of the overtime shootout. Then on the final lap, Dillon stepped on the gas and bumped into Logano and sent him spinning through the final turn. Dillon then veered dead left and turned Hamlin into the frontstretch’s outside wall to reclaim the lead and streak across the finish line to win for the fifth time in his career.

After initially guaranteeing himself and his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet team a spot into the 2024 Cup Series Playoffs, disaster struck three days later after NASCAR revoked his Playoff eligibility due to the North Carolinian’s deliberate actions to win and make the postseason. Following two appeal processes made by Dillon and Richard Childress Racing, both of which were denied, Dillon plummeted back down towards the top-30 mark in the regular-season standings. Despite finishing in 15th place in the regular-season finale at Darlington, Dillon was unable to race his way back into the Playoffs, which he missed for the sixth time in his career.

Through 399 previous Cup starts, Dillon has achieved five victories, six poles, 23 top-five results, 78 top-10 results, 411 laps led and an average-finishing result of 18.4. He is currently ranked in 29th place in the 2024 drivers’ standings.

Austin Dillon is scheduled to make his 400th Cup Series career start at Watkins Glen International for the Go Bowling at The Glen on Sunday, September 15, with the event’s broadcast scheduled to occur at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

Todd Gilliland to make 100th Cup start at Watkins Glen

By
Andrew Kim
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The 24-year-old Gilliland from Sherrills Ford, North Carolina, is scheduled to reach a milestone start in his third full-time campaign in NASCAR's premier series.

Todd Gilliland is poised to achieve a milestone start in his third full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series. By competing in this weekend’s Cup Playoff event at Watkins Glen International, the driver of the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang Dark Horse will make his 100th career start in NASCAR’s premier series.

A third-generation racer from Sherrills Ford, North Carolina, Gilliland made his inaugural presence in the Cup Series at the start of the 2022 season, where he assumed the role of the driver of the No. 38 Ford Mustang for Front Row Motorsports. By then, he had achieved two victories in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and was a two-time champion of the ARCA Menards Series West.

During the season-opening 64th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, Gilliland ended up 33rd after being involved in a late multi-car wreck. During his next 20 starts, he notched eight top-20 results with a best finish of 15th at Darlington Raceway in May. He achieved his first career top-five finish at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course by finishing fourth amid an overtime finish.

Gilliland capped off the regular-season stretch with four consecutive results outside the top 20 and did not make the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs. He managed to notch his second career top-10 result at Talladega Superspeedway with a seventh-place finish and then finished 13th during the penultimate Cup event on the schedule at Martinsville Speedway. Gilliland concluded his first full-time Cup season in 28th place in the final standings. In addition, he settled in third place in the Rookie-of-the-Year battle behind Austin Cindric and Harrison Burton.

This past season, Gilliland competed driving for Front Row Motorsports and Rick Ware Racing for the entire 36-race schedule, 31 of which occurred with FRM. The remaining five occurred with Rick Ware Racing as the reigning Craftsman Truck Series champion Zane Smith piloted Gilliland’s No. 38 entry for six events. Throughout the 36-race schedule, Gilliland achieved a season-best eighth-place finish at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course in April and earned four top-10 results. With an average-finishing result of 22.0, Gilliland, who did not make the Playoffs for a second consecutive season, ended up in 28th place in the final standings for a second consecutive season.

Returning as a full-time Cup Series competitor for Front Row Motorsports this season, Gilliland commenced his junior season by finishing 35th in the 66th running of the Daytona 500 after being involved in a late multi-car wreck. He would then lead a race-high 58 of 260 laps during the following event at Atlanta Motor Speedway before he was involved in another late multi-car wreck that pinned him four laps down and mired in 26th place in the final running order. After finishing no higher than 13th during his next seven starts, Gilliland notched his first top-10 result of the season by finishing eighth at Talladega Superspeedway in April.

The North Carolinian proceeded to record three top-10 results and seven top-15 results over his next 12 starts before he capped off the regular-season stretch with finishes no higher than 17th twice in four races. By then, he missed the Cup Playoffs for a third consecutive season. Nonetheless, Gilliland has recorded four top-10 results through 27 scheduled events this year, which ties his current record of top-10 results from his previous season. In addition, he has led 126 laps with an average finish of 19.9, both higher than his previous marks over the last two seasons.

Through 99 previous Cup starts, Gilliland, who is set to remain at Front Row Motorsports in 2025, has achieved one top-five result, 10 top-10 results, 137 laps led and an average-finishing result of 21.8 as he continues his pursuit of his first Cup Series career victory. He is currently ranked in 21st place in this year’s standings, which would mark a career-best result for the competitor.

Todd Gilliland is scheduled to make his 100th Cup Series career start at Watkins Glen International for the Go Bowling at The Glen on Sunday, September 15, with the event’s broadcast time set for 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.

GMG Racing Continues Recent Run of Podium Finishes Saturday in SRO America Competition at Barber Motorsports Park

By
Official Release
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  • Kyle Washington Finishes Third in Saturday’s GT America Sprint Race at Barber Motorsport Park in the No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R
  • Top-Five Pro-Am Finish and Fastest Lap of the Race in Saturday’s GT World Challenge America for Washington and Tom Sargent in Sister No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (September 10, 2024) – GMG Racing secured a podium finish for the fourth straight SRO America race weekend Saturday at Barber Motorsports Park where team driver Kyle Washington drove the No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R to a third-place showing in the 40-minute GT America powered by AWS sprint race. The P3 run for Washington set the stage for another strong result later on Saturday when Washington and Tom Sargent co-drove to a top-five Pro-Am finish in the 90-minute Fanatec GT World Challenge America race in the team’s sister No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R. Sargent also set the fastest race lap in the closing stages of Saturday’s GT World Challenge race.

“We have just seen incredible improvement and progress from Kyle and Tom,” said GMG Racing Founder and Principal James Sofronas. “Kyle has made it to the podium every SRO America race weekend since Circuit of The Americas (COTA) back in May with Tom closing the deal for two of those finishes with fantastic final stints in GT World Challenge. Getting on the box again at Barber showed that the hard work is paying off because we were not able to test here, and our drivers have never been here before, but we had the fastest Porsche on the grid and Tom set the fastest race lap overall on Saturday. It’s a testament to the team and drivers hitting on all cylinders each and every race weekend.”

Washington was impressed by the unique nature and rolling terrain and turns of the pristine Barber Motorsports Park circuit and facility.

“This place is amazing,” Washington said. “It reminds me of a skate park! Everything is cambered, it’s up and down and super, super fun. The rain kept us from getting much practice early in the weekend, but when I finally got some laps around the track I felt like I knew it better. I had a good sprint race with a P3 podium, which I was super happy about, and we had a solid run in the GT World Challenge race on Saturday.”

Washington’s visit to victory lane at Barber followed a GT America season-best second place finish at COTA in May. One race weekend later, Washington and Sargent broke through for their first GT World Challenge America victory at VIRginia International Raceway (VIR). From there, the podium and race-winning momentum continued straight to Road America in August where Sofronas marked his professional racing debut on the 4-mile Wisconsin circuit 30 years earlier with a GT America Sunday race win in his No. 14 GMG Racing Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO2. The milestone victory for Sofronas followed a second-straight GT World Challenge podium run for Washington and Sargent who scored a second-place GT World Challenge Pro-Am finish at Road America on Saturday.

“Kyle is really improving on his race craft,” Sofronas said. “He put a move on Johnny O’Connell on Saturday at Barber which was something Johnny would have put on most people back in the day. Overall, Kyle’s confidence is increasing and Tom is certainly showing his abilities despite having never been to most of the tracks. We don’t have a testing program in place due to Kyle’s heavy corporate schedule away from the track, so we really couldn’t be happier to keep reaching the podium and picking up some race wins too.”

The third-place showing at Barber was the fifth podium for GMG Racing in the current streak dating back to COTA, but the team has a total of 12 visits to victory lane this year. Sofronas (GT3) and Brent Holden (GT2) each scored a pair of GT America podium finishes in April’s Grand Prix of Long Beach GT America doubleheader. Holden also picked up a pair of GT2 podiums in the season-opening GT America race weekend at Sonoma Raceway where he was joined in victory lane on Sunday by Sofronas, who finished second in GT3 in the Audi.

Next up for GMG Racing is the final USAC Porsche Sprint Challenge race weekend of the season at Sonoma Raceway, September 26 – 29. One week later, GMG arrives in full force at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the season-ending Indianapolis 8 Hour that includes the final rounds of both GT World Challenge America and GT America, October 3 – 6.

NOTEWORTHY – Sights on Thermal:

  • GMG Racing’s move to its new 28,000 square-foot race shop at The Thermal Club in October is now just weeks away. The shop is nearly complete and is located in the heart of one of the most impressive country club motorsports facility in the world. The facility will soon be open for service, performance upgrades and motorsports arrive-and-drive programs and track support. The Thermal shop will also continue to offer the same street performance product support and maintenance services as the Santa Ana shop, which is also open for both street and track support over the next few weeks before the permanent move to Thermal. “We are excited to bring all of our current customers, and to welcome all of our new clients, to the Thermal Club where we will continue to do everything that we currently do in our existing shop at our all-new and state-of-the-art facility,” Sofronas said.

About GMG Racing: Founded in 2001, GMG Racing quickly established itself as North America’s premier performance tuning facility. What began as a small 1,200 sq. ft. shop, maintaining two race cars, has grown into a state-of-the-art performance tuning, racing and service facility located in Santa Ana, California in Orange County and with a trackside motorsports facility at 28,000 sq. ft. currently being built at The Thermal Club. The staff, attention to detail, and passion are what make GMG the choice of professionals and enthusiasts worldwide. GMG, in its early years, was located directly across the street from Porsche Motorsport North America (PMNA). This close proximity allowed GMG to build a strong relationship with the legendary racing brand which has helped us support our customers to the highest level possible. From club racing to Sebring, Daytona and Spa, GMG can take you as far as you want to go. More information can be found at www.gmgracing.com.

RFK Advance | Watkins Glen

By
Official Release
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Watkins Glen Event Info:
Date: Sunday, Sept. 15
Time: 3 p.m. ET
Series: NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Location: Watkins Glen, New York
Format: 90 Laps, 220.5 Miles, Stages: 20-20-50
TV: USA
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)

Weekend Schedule:
Saturday: 11:30 a.m. ET, Practice (USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Saturday: 1 p.m. ET, Qualifying (USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Sunday: 3 p.m. ET, Race (USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

Pace Laps:

  • Race two of the NASCAR Playoffs rolls from New York this weekend as Watkins Glen International hosts a playoff race for the first time in its history.
  • The 2.45-mile course stands as the middle race in the opening slate in the Round of 16, with Bristol Motor Speedway set to determine the Round of 12 next weekend.
  • Despite recent struggles on road courses, Keselowski and the No. 6 team finished 13th in Sonoma back in June, and 18th in Chicago after qualifying 10th in that race.
  • Chris Buescher has notably been one of the better drivers in the Cup Series on road courses as of late. His 9.6 average finish since the start of the 2021 season is second-best among all drivers as he has 12 top-10s in that 20-race stretch.
  • Jack Roush has six wins all-time at The Glen, with three in the Cup Series.

6 Team Info:
Crew Chief: Matt McCall
Partner: King’s Hawaiian Pretzel Bites

17 Team Info:
Crew Chief: Scott Graves
Partner: BuildSubmarines.com

Keselowski at Watkins Glen
Starts: 13
Wins: —
Top-10s: 6
Poles: 1 (2021)

  • Watkins Glen stands as Keselowski’s best road course statistically with a 13.9 average finish in 13 starts.
  • He has six top-10 finishes, including four inside the top five, with three career runner-up results – all of which came in consecutive races from 2011-13. Most recently, he finished 15th a season ago after starting 24th.
  • Keselowski has an average starting position of 12.5 at The Glen with six starts inside the top-10, and one pole in 2021.
  • He also made 10 Xfinity Series starts at WGI with one win (2013) and nine top-10s.

Buescher at Watkins Glen
Starts: 8
Wins: —
Top-10s: 2
Poles: —

  • Buescher lines up for his ninth Cup start at The Glen this weekend, where he carries an average finish of 18th.
  • He’s coming off back-to-back top-10s at the road course after a P7 result last year.
  • His best qualifying effort also came two summers ago (P7), as he has a 19.3 average starting position overall.
  • Buescher also made a pair of Xfinity starts at WGI in 2014-15, earning a third-place finish in 2015.

RFK Historically at Watkins Glen
Cup Wins: 3 (Mark Martin, 1993, 1994, 1995)

  • There’s Nothing You Can’t Do, Now, You’re in New York: In 111 NCS starts at WGI, RFK has three wins, 23 top-five and 43 top-10 finishes along with four poles. All three of RFK’s victories came with former driver and NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin (1993, 1994, 1995).
  • Top of the List, King of the Hill: Martin secured three-straight wins for RFK at the famed New York road course from 1993-95. He started on the pole for each of the three races and led a combined 183 laps during the three-year streak.
  • Tale of the Tape – Road Courses: In 264 road course starts all-time in the NCS, Jack Roush’s Fords have won five races and tallied 43 top-five and 93 top-10 finishes, along with six poles. In those 264 starts, an RFK Ford has led 625 laps for an average finish of 17.3.

RFK Watkins Glen Wins

1993 Martin Cup

1994 Martin Cup

1995 Martin Cup

1998 Ruttman Truck

2000 Biffle Truck

2012 Edwards NXS

Last Time Out & Where They Stand
Atlanta: Keselowski finished 19th in one of the more uneventful Superspeedway races to date Sunday afternoon, as Buescher was caught up in an incident in stage three to DNF.

Points Standings (6: 13th, 17: 18th): Through just one race in the playoffs, Keselowski is currently P13 and on the bubble, just one point out of 12th, and two points behind 11th.

FOND MEMORIES AT MAPLE GROVE RACEWAY DRIVING TOP FUEL POINTS LEADER DOUG KALITTA AT PEP BOYS NHRA NATIONALS

By
Official Release
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READING, Pa. (Sept. 10, 2024) – The most recent race didn’t go the way reigning Top Fuel world champion Doug Kalitta planned, but it would be hard to deny that the current points leader still has plenty of momentum heading into this weekend’s 39th annual NHRA Pep Boys Nationals based on last year’s results at Maple Grove Raceway.

Kalitta enters the opening race of the Countdown to the Championship playoffs as the defending event winner and it was a huge victory, jumpstarting his memorable run to a first world championship and also giving the veteran his 50th career win.

The bump in the road is Kalitta failed to qualify at the U.S. Nationals two weeks ago, the first time that happened for the longtime standout in 301 races and nearly 14 years. Kalitta and the team rebounded with a successful test session in Indy in his 11,000-horsepower Mac Tools/Toyota dragster, restoring Kalitta’s confidence as he looks to defend his world title, as well as his key Reading victory from a year ago.

“I was very relieved and I think we got the wheels back underneath this thing,” Kalitta said. “Indy’s a big race and we just struggled to get the down the track. It just wasn’t our weekend. We’re definitely looking forward to this weekend. Everyone is working really hard on this thing. Our team is really excited and it should be fun. Reading is a great place to run and I think our car will be happy there.”

Last season, Kalitta (Top Fuel), Robert Hight (Funny Car), Matt Hartford (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) all claimed wins in their respective categories and this year’s race will again be broadcast on FS1 and FOX, including elimination coverage on FOX on Sunday, Sept. 12 beginning at 2 or 4:30 p.m. ET (based on local listings). It is the first of six races in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs – and the 15th of 20 races in the 2024 campaign – and Kalitta has enjoyed a number of bright spots this year.

He’s won three races, advanced to five final rounds and has been the points leader for the past seven races. Kalitta has also enjoyed plenty of success at Maple Grove Raceway, winning the race a pair of times. He’ll open the playoffs with a 15-point advantage over Justin Ashley in what should be an epic fight to the finish in the loaded Top Fuel ranks.

Kalitta’s teammate, Shawn Langdon is third, while other championship contenders include four-time world champ Steve Torrence, three-time champ Antron Brown, U.S. Nationals winner Clay Millican, class rookie and racing legend Tony Stewart, Tony Schumacher, Brittany Force, Billy Torrence, Josh Hart and Shawn Reed.

But after winning his first world title last year, Kalitta certainly isn’t satisfied, pointing to the back-to-back world titles his cousin, Scott, won in the Top Fuel ranks in 1994 and 1995 as one source of motivation.

“We’re certainly looking forward to it. It’s pretty exciting right now with everyone at Kalitta Motorsports,” Kalitta said. “We’re focused on going rounds. At this point, I would love to be like my cousin, Scott, and win back-to-back championships. He did it back in the day (1994-1995), so that will be our goal. It would be cool if we could pull it off and it’s definitely the goal. I think we’ve got what we need to make it happen and I’m looking forward to it.”

Funny Car’s Austin Prock has taken over driving duties for Hight and will look to keep rolling in Reading. He has five wins this season, entering the playoffs in the points lead while taking on the likes of Bob Tasca III, reigning champion Matt Hagan, Ron Capps, J.R. Todd and Funny Car veteran Jack Beckman, who is racing for John Force.

Pro Stock’s Hartford will look to get his season on track, but it won’t be easy in a loaded category that includes points leader Dallas Glenn, Aaron Stanfield, who starts the postseason second in points, reigning world champion Erica Enders, and veterans Greg Anderson and Jeg Coughlin Jr.

Six-time Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Smith started the playoffs with a Reading win last year, but Gaige Herrera dominated the rest of the way, winning the last five races en route to the title. Herrera has won seven of nine races in 2024 and has a second straight world title in mind, also taking on John Hall, Richard Gadson and Angie Smith.

The event also will feature thrilling competition in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, as well as Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown and Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Mountain Motor Pro Stock.

Fans will be invited all weekend long to the Nitro Alley Stage, which is the main entertainment hub in the pits, hosting Nitro School, meet and greets, music and much more. Race fans at Maple Grove Raceway can enjoy the special pre-race ceremonies that introduce and celebrate each of the drivers racing for the prestigious Wally on Sunday and includes the fan favorite SealMaster Track Walk. The final can’t-miss experience of any NHRA event is the winner’s circle celebration on Sunday after racing concludes, where fans are invited to congratulate the event winners.

As always, fans get an exclusive pit pass to the most powerful and sensory-filled motorsports attraction on the planet in Reading. Fans get a unique chance to see teams in action and service their hot rods between rounds, get autographs from their favorite NHRA drivers, and more. They can also visit NHRA’s popular Nitro Alley and Manufacturers Midway, an exciting atmosphere that includes interactive displays, merchandise, food and fun for the entire family.

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 2:30 and 5 p.m. ET on Friday, Sept. 13 and the final two rounds of qualifying on Saturday, Sept. 14 at 12 and 2:30 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 10:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, Sept. 15. Television coverage includes qualifying action on FS1 at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, as well as at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday and eliminations on FOX at 2 or 4:30 p.m. ET (check local listings) on Sunday.

To purchase tickets to the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway, fans can visit www.maplegroveraceway.com. All children 12 and under are admitted free in the general admission area with a paid adult. For more information on the NHRA, please visit www.NHRA.com.

About Mission Foods

MISSION®, owned by GRUMA, S.A.B. de C.V., is the world’s leading brand for tortillas and wraps. MISSION® is also globally renowned for flatbreads, dips, salsas and Mexican food products. With presence in over 112 countries, MISSION® products are suited to the lifestyles and the local tastes of each country. With innovation and customer needs in mind, MISSION® focuses on the highest quality, authentic flavors, and providing healthy options that families and friends can enjoy together. For more information, please visit https://www.missionfoods.com/

About NHRA

NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 20 national events featuring the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series and NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, as well as the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+, NHRA Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown™, NHRA Holley EFI Factory X and Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage NHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock at select national events. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and NHRA Street Legal™. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. Street® program for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League® for youth ages 5 to 17. With 110 Member Tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete at a variety of locations nationally and internationally. NHRA’s Youth and Education Services® (YES) Program reaches over 30,000 students annually to ignite their interest in automotive and racing related careers. NHRA’s streaming service, NHRA.tv®, allows fans to view all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates three racing facilities: Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park; and In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip in Southern California. For more information, log on to www.NHRA.com, or vis

Michael McDowell and the No. 34 Benebone Ford Mustang Dark Horse

By
Official Release
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Watkins Glen International Competition Notes

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (September 10, 2024) – The NASCAR Cup Series heads to the Finger Lakes of Upstate New York and Watkins Glen International for road course racing this weekend.

Michael McDowell returns to his road racing roots, looking for another solid finish. So far this season, the No. 34 has had two Top-5s on road courses, a 2nd place at Sonoma and a 5th place at the Chicago Street Race.

This weekend Benebone will return to the No. 34 Ford Mustang Dark Horse. Benebone is a leading brand of USA-made durable chew toys for dogs. The company’s simple mission is to make lives better for dogs and the people who love them. Benebone’s core values center around awesome products, building and serving communities, and a good dose of fun.

Track activity for the NASCAR Cup Series will start Saturday, September 14th with practice and qualifying at 11:30 am ET. Go Bowling at The Glen will be Sunday, September 15th at 3:00 pm ET. Fans can watch the action live on the USA Network or listen via the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM channel 90.

No. 34 Benebone Ford Mustang Dark Horse:

DRIVER MICHAEL MCDOWELL:

“Watkins Glen is a great track for us. I always know what I need out of the car. WGI is a different style of road course where we carry a lot of speed. I’ve always felt that no matter the road course that I can be up front. Now we have cars that are allowing us to do that. It’s been a lot of fun this season. It’s now time to finish the job and get a win.”

CREW CHIEF TRAVIS PETERSON:

“We are very confident in our road course setups, and we only have one job now, to be a playoff spoiler. The new tire and track changes at The Glen should make for an exciting practice. We will adapt to those changes and plan to be at the front with a chance to win!”

ABOUT FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS

Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is a winning organization in the NASCAR Cup and CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The team is the 2021 Daytona 500 and 2022 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champions. The team was founded in 2004 and is owned by successful entrepreneur, Bob Jenkins. FRM fields the No. 34 and the No. 38 NASCAR Cup Series teams along with the No. 38 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series team from its Mooresville, N.C. headquarters. Visit teamfrm.com and follow FRM on social media: Twitter at @Team_FRM, Instagram at @team_frm and Facebook at facebook.com/FrontRowMotorsports.

Larson set for second Indy 500-Coke 600 bid with Hendrick Motorsports and Arrow McLaren in 2025

By
Andrew Kim
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Photo by Adam Lovelace for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Nearly four months after having his plans of competing in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day spoiled due to Mother Nature, Kyle Larson returns to Memorial Day weekend in May 2025 with “unfinished business” as he will make a second attempt at “The Double” between two motorsports’ regions in two iconic racing venues.

In a press conference at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Tuesday, September 10, Hendrick Motorsports and Arrow McLaren will join forces to support Larson’s double-duty effort for a second consecutive season in 2025. The conference featured Larson, Hendrick Motorsports’ owner Rick Hendrick, Hendrick Motorsports’ vice chairman Jeff Gordon, McLaren Racing’s CEO Zak Brown and Arrow McLaren’s sporting director Tony Kanaan.

The news comes as Larson, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion from Elk Grove, California, who first announced his double-duty plans in January 2023 for the 2024 season, attempted to become the fifth competitor to pull off motorsports’ iconic double this past May. With on-track precipitation delaying the start of Larson’s first double-duty leg at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500, Larson opted to remain at Indianapolis, which resulted in him missing the start of the Coca-Cola 600. Once the Indy 500 commenced amid the delay, he proceeded to finish in 18th place despite getting penalized for speeding on pit road in the closing stages.

At the conclusion of the Indy 500, Larson hopped on a plane and was flown to Charlotte Motor Speedway, where the Coke 600 had commenced as Xfinity Series veteran Justin Allgaier was piloting Larson’s No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry as a fill-in competitor. By the time Larson arrived at Charlotte, however, the event was placed in a red flag period on Lap 249 of 400 due to on-track precipitation. Following an extensive rain delay period, the event was made official. As a result, Allgaier, who was credited with starting the Coke 600 and methodically carved his way up the leaderboard from the rear of the field, was awarded a 13th-place result while Larson was unable to turn in a single lap for his second leg of “The Double.”

Despite being named the 2024 Indy 500 Rookie-of-the-Year recipient and being praised by many for his attempted double-duty efforts, Larson has since evoked a goal to plot a second attempt at “The Double” and compete in both events spanning a total of 1,100 miles in a single day.

“I really enjoyed the Month of May in Indy and racing with Arrow McLaren, but I was really disappointed with missing the Coca-Cola 600 with the No. 5 HendrickCars.com team,” Larson said in a released statement. “I appreciate the second opportunity because we have unfinished business. I really want to complete all 1,100 miles, and I think we have the opportunity to battle for the win in both events.”

Since the Indy-Charlotte double attempt, Larson did achieve a little redemption of his own at Indianapolis this past July when he won the Brickyard 400 for the first time in his career while sporting the exact blue, orange and white scheme to his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet entry that he was initially set to sport during the Coke 600. After celebrating in the frontstretch, Larson hinted at a potential return to the 2025 Indy 500 to the delight of the Indianapolis fans, which is now official and set for next season.

Like this season, Larson’s NTT IndyCar Series and Cup Series entries will carry sponsorship support from HendrickCars.com. The Californian will also sport the No. 17 on his Arrow McLaren Dallara-Chevrolet IndyCar entry at Indianapolis for a second consecutive season before he travels back to Charlotte and climbs aboard his No. 5 Chevrolet entry in the Cup circuit.

“Kyle had a great month of May and showed what a gifted race car driver he is,” Rick Hendrick, a 14-time Cup Series championship owner, said. “From a sponsorship perspective, we saw an incredible lift for HendrickCars.com and measured a three-to-one return on our investment. It was a monumental effort by all involved, but we didn’t have the opportunity to see it through [because of inclement weather]. Everyone learned a great deal that we’ll take into next year. Now that we’ve experienced it once, we know what to expect, which can only make us better and more prepared. Zak [Brown] and the team at Arrow McLaren are tremendous partners, and we’re looking forward to finishing the job together in 2025.”

Currently, Larson is one of 16 competitors vying for the 2024 Cup Series championship in the Playoffs. Having earned four victories throughout the 2024 regular-season stretch, he is ranked in 10th place in the Playoff standings and is 15 points above the top-12 cutline to advance from the Round of 16 to 12, with the first Playoff’s round set to conclude less than two weeks from now at Bristol Motor Speedway on September 21.

The 2025 season is set to mark the 12th time overall where a competitor will attempt to compete in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day, a motorsports’ challenge that started when the late John Andretti achieved the first feat in 1994. In addition, Larson is set to become the first competitor to attempt “The Double” for a second time since Robby Gordon made his fourth attempt in 2004 and had Jaques Lazier fill in for him for the remainder of the Indy 500 due to a rain delay period as he competed in the Coke 600 with Richard Childress Racing.

To date, Kurt Busch, the 2004 Cup Series champion, is the latest competitor to achieve “The Double” in 2014 despite having his hopes of completing the double’s 1,100 miles spoiled due to a late engine failure during the Coke 600. Tony Stewart, a three-time Cup Series champion, is the only competitor to complete all 1,100 miles of both races on the same day, finishing sixth at Indy before notching a third-place effort at Charlotte.

For the 2025 Indianapolis 500, Larson will be a teammate to Arrow McLaren’s NTT IndyCar Series driver lineup that consists of Pato O’Ward, Nolan Siegel and Christian Lundgaard, the latter of whom will be joining the organization next season. It will also mark the third consecutive season that Arrow McLaren will attempt to field four entries in the Indy 500 as the organization attempts to return the iconic McLaren name to Victory Lane at Indianapolis since Johnny Rutherford made the last accomplishment in 1976.

Photo by Chris Jones | IMS Photo.

“Kyle showed us all what he was capable of this past May, and given a second chance with better weather conditions, I think we’ll all be excited to see him fight for a win at the Indy 500 and then another one in Charlotte,” Zak Brown added. “He’s one of the most talented racing drivers out there, and it’s a privilege to do this again with Mr. Hendrick and Jeff Gordon, who are both world-class. We can’t wait for May.”

*Note: Compared to this season, Rick Hendrick mentioned that the 2025 Coca-Cola 600 race will be Larson’s priority in the event that Mother Nature hinders the Californian’s double-duty effort for a second time. In an event of this nature, Tony Kanaan, the 2013 Indianapolis 500 champion and the 2004 NTT IndyCar Series champion with 17 victories who coached Larson during his attempted double, will pilot Larson’s No. 17 Chevrolet entry.

With his Memorial Day weekend plans for next season set, Kyle Larson’s 2025 “The Double” campaign is scheduled to occur on May 25. The 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is slated to air at 11 a.m. ET on FOX before the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway will follow suit later in the day. While the Coke 600 will be aired on Amazon Prime Video, a start time remains to be determined.

Friction Stir Welding in the aerospace industry

By
SM
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A popular new technology that is being widely used within the aerospace industry is Friction Stir Welding (FSW), which has many advantages over other welding techniques that are used. In this paper, the author discusses how FSW has been implemented in the aerospace industry, the advantages and the problems it solves, underlining its function as a significant solution that helps reduce costs while simultaneously introducing improvements.

Advantages of Friction Stir Welding in aerospace

Besides, it is worthy of mentioning that FSW has several benefits when applied to aerospace.

Friction Stir Welding is particularly valuable in aerospace due to its unique benefits:

One of the ways of efficiently using it in the making of aluminum alloys is by the process noting the following advantage. In the aerospace industry, especially for constructing the airframes, aluminum alloys are widely used due to their lightweight and high strength to weight ratio, which are useful in increasing payload and fuel efficiency. When using traditional fusion welding methods which include GMAW, GTAW, SMAW, and SAW, there are some defects and weaknesses that are produced in aluminum alloys. On the other hand, FSW provides sound and quality welds in aluminum structures devoid of defects. This method of welding reduces imperfections such as porosity and at the same time enables a cost-effective process since there is little or no need for additional processes such as repair welds.

Better strength, undermining and resistance to forces. This is particularly important for applications where high mechanical strength and load-bearing capability is needed such as aerospace applications. FSW differs from the usual welding processes because it does not involve the creation of a molten pool which results in the preservation of the material’s properties and prevents cases of thermal expansion and contraction. This leads to the generation of high-quality welds that can stand the pressure of aerospace environment conditions such as pressuring and high temperature.

Lower expenses in its primary materials and the manufacturing expenses. Another one of the primary benefits of FSW is improvement in the buy-to-fly ratio, which is the ratio of the weight of the raw material to the weight of the final part. The utilization of FSW in manufacturing is also an added advantage since it helps in cutting down on wastes as well as machining time, hence lowering the cost greatly. For instance, FSW facilitates the creation of complicated aerospace parts from aluminum extrusions while reducing the amount of raw material and machining time.

Use of Friction Stir Welding in aerospace applications

FSW is already making a substantial impact in the aerospace sector through various applications:

Hydrogen tank manufacturing In space application, FSW is used mainly in the production of hydrogen tanks. These tanks are essential to space launchers and are, as a rule, made of aluminum. Several benefits of FSW for this application include lower cost than composite tanks, and safer material than steel tanks. It generates water-proof tanks with enhanced mechanical strength besides fatigue resistance which are crucial in space traveling.

Riveting replacement In conventional fabrication practice for aerospace structures, rivets are used for joining assemblies, which may result in added mass and adverse features such as defects. FSW addresses this problem by substituting rivets with strong non-industrial welds. This method is most advantageous in welding high-strength aluminum alloys, which tend to crack by using other welding processes. By replacing the need for rivets properly, FSW delivers a lighter design, yet stronger and more fatigue resistant and even waterproof.

Copper component welding FSW is also used to weld copper parts in space applications inclusive of bus bars that are vital in the circulation of electricity. It is shown that FSW makes it possible for manufacturers to produce seamless welds of copper and aluminum to remove screws that take much time, energy, and money. This has the effect of reducing costs, increasing electrical conductivity, and increasing the mechanical properties of the respective material.

Challenges and considerations

Despite its advantages, FSW presents some challenges that need to be addressed:

Tool wear and maintenance Here it can be noted that FSW tools and dies experience high forces and temperatures, resulting in tool wear. It is also correct that periodic maintenance and replacement of the worn-out tools are important in order to achieve good quality welds. The latest technologies reveal that there is always a way of increasing the tool durations and at the same time, the manufacturing companies have to put into consideration the costs and the frequency of turning the tools around for repairs and renewal.

Process optimization and control In order to attain the best performance while using FSW, several factors such as the tool profile, spindle speed, feed rate, and downward force can be controlled. These parameters must be selected properly depending on material type and joint design for achieving high quality of welds in aerospace structures manufacturing. Current and future research and development are directed to process control and product automation to increase process control and standardization.

Here the choice of material used for pipe and fitting bodies and compatibility of materials of both pipe and fittings during fabrication plays a crucial role in deciding the joint design of pipes and fittings. The data shows that FSW is suitable for various materials types; however, compatibility and joint design pose several challenges. Since aerospace parts require particular materials and shapes, FSW processes and tool designs must be specific for their application in these products. Compatibility on one hand and design compatibility on the other hand are some of the challenges that need to be met to produce the intended performance and reliability.

Ford Performance NASCAR – 2024 Watkins Glen Playoff Advance

By
Official Release
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WATKINS GLEN

Saturday, September 14 — NASCAR Xfinity Series, 3 p.m. ET (USA)
Sunday, September 15 — NASCAR Cup Series, 3 p.m. ET (USA)

The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs got off on a good note for Ford as Joey Logano won last week’s opener at Atlanta Motor Speedway to clinch a spot in the Round of 12. The circuit now heads to Watkins Glen International for the first Cup postseason race at that facility on Sunday. Prior to that, the NASCAR Xfinity Series will conduct its penultimate event of the regular season on Saturday.

FORD DRIVERS IN THE CUP PLAYOFFS

Joey Logano – Atlanta Winner (Clinched Round of 12)
Ryan Blaney – 2nd (+45 above the cut line)
Austin Cindric – 7th (+27)
Brad Keselowski – 13th (-1 below the cut line)
Harrison Burton – 14th (-16)
Chase Briscoe – 16th (-21)

FORD’S SECOND HALF HOT STREAK

Ever since Joey Logano won the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race in May, Ford has been on a roll. The Blue Oval has won eight times in the last 15 races, including the current three-race streak that has seen Harrison Burton (Daytona), Chase Briscoe (Darlington) and Logano (Atlanta) all find Victory Lane. The last time Ford won at least four in a row was in 2018 when Kevin Harvick (Michigan), Kurt Busch (Bristol) and Brad Keselowski (Darlington, Indianapolis and Las Vegas) combined to win five straight.

CLIMBING THE ALL-TIME FORD WIN LIST

Logano’s victory was the 34th of his NASCAR Cup Series career and 32nd with Ford, which is fourth on the all-time Blue Oval win list. The only three drivers ahead of him are Ned Jarrett (43), Bill Elliott (40) and Mark Martin (35).

CLOSING IN ON 100

In addition to being fourth on Ford’s all-time win list, Logano has also won more races for Team Penske with Ford than any other driver. His win on Sunday marked the organization’s 98th with the manufacturer. Rusty Wallace scored the first win when he won at North Carolina Motor Speedway in Rockingham, NC, in 1994. Team Penske won 27 races from 1994-2002 and then returned to Ford in 2013 with Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano. Since then, they’ve added a third car with Ryan Blaney and have won 71 times. Seven different drivers have won at least one race with Team Penske and Ford with Logano leading the way (32).

TEAM PENSKE ALL-TIME FORD WINNERS

32 – Joey Logano
26 – Brad Keselowski
23 – Rusty Wallace
11 – Ryan Blaney
3 – Jeremy Mayfield
2 – Austin Cindric
1 – Ryan Newman

LOGANO AT THE GLEN

Joey Logano comes into this weekend with consecutive top-10 finishes at Watkins Glen International and is the only current Ford driver with a Cup victory at the famed road course. He also has three NASCAR Xfinity victories and became the first driver to sweep a Cup/Xfinity weekend when he did it in 2015. That also marked Roger Penske’s first Cup victory at the historic track.

KESELOWSKI AND CINDRIC AT WGI

Playoff drivers Brad Keselowski and Austin Cindric have also been to Victory Lane at Watkins Glen International, both getting there in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Keselowski, who has three second-place finishes and one third on the Cup side, posted his victory in 2013 while Cindric passed AJ Allmendinger with two laps to go and took the checkered flag in 2019.

BUESCHER ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Chris Buescher may not be in the Playoffs, but he is definitely a driver to watch this weekend at Watkins Glen International. That’s because the Texas native has finished 10th or better in 12 of the last 14 road/street races, including a streak of eight straight at one point.

YEAR/RACE – FINISH

2024 Chicago – P20

2024 Sonoma – P3

2024 COTA – P8

2023 Roval – P7

2023 Watkins Glen – P7

2023 Indy – P11

2023 Chicago – P10

2023 Sonoma – P4

2023 COTA – P8

2022 Roval – P6

2022 Watkins Glen – P9

2022 Indy – P10

2022 Road America – P6

2022 Sonoma – P2

JOEY LOGANO: “Watkins Glen isn’t the typical Watkins Glen that we’ve seen in the past. They’ve changed some things to the track. They’ve added rumble strips off of turn one that prevents us from dropping way outside of the curb. They’ve changed the curbing to the bus stop itself to where you won’t be launching them into the corner as much, and then they also added rumble strips on the exit of the carousel to keep us from dropping way out there, so the track will race differently. The cars will want something different from a setup perspective and they’re also changing the tire, too. It sounds like there will be a lot more tire wear, so there are a lot of unknowns for sure.”

RYAN BLANEY: “I don’t know what to expect. We have some idea from the tire test that went on there and what the fall off is gonna be. I think there’s gonna be a lot of fall off, which is good. You’ll see some comers and goers unlike that place last year when we really struggled with tire fall off, so I think that’s gonna be good. The changes to the track are not crazy. The bus stop entry curb is gone, so that’s gonna be different. Some of the rumbles they’ve got on the exit of the carousel in turn one will change a little bit, which I think is positive for the racing. You won’t be able to just blow turn one and bail out to the apron and still have speed, so it will take a little more precision. I try not to overthink before I go into the weekends because you can never predict these things, especially when it’s something new. Even if it’s the same tire and same everything it’s like, ‘Well, the track could be different. Your setup is gonna be a little different.’ So, I try not to spin myself out on that side of it. I just see what it’s like in practice and then see where we need to get better and how I as a driver need to be better through practice and into qualifying and the race. It’ll be an exciting one that’s for sure, but I’m happy they made changes to the tire. I think that’s gonna help the racing.”

HARRISON BURTON: “It’s probably the road course I have the most laps on. As you come up through the ranks you get a lot of laps at a lot of different tracks and similar racetracks, but you go to all these road courses and even in my Cup career my first race at Sonoma was in a Cup car. It’s really kind of nice to go somewhere I have a lot of laps at. I’ve run a lot of different race cars there and now they’re gonna change some of the configuration with the curbing. The tires are gonna be a lot softer, so they’re gonna fall off more. It’s a little bit more to manage and a little bit more complicated than just go drive as fast as you can for as many laps as you can, which is fun for me. As a driver, I enjoy those kinds of races, so trying to handle all of the curveballs that get thrown at you there is gonna be tough, but fun.”

CLASSIC FINISH

One of the all-time classic finishes at Watkins Glen International came when Marcos Ambrose went slip sliding away on the final lap, but still resulted in him winning the NASCAR Cup Series race for the second straight time on August 12, 2012. Ambrose was able to avoid a massive streak of oil that had been laid down on the track, allowing him to pass Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski for Ford’s third win of the season. Busch appeared to be headed toward victory, but as he came into turn one on the final lap, he slipped in some oil and got loose. Keselowski came up from behind and hit Busch, sending him spinning off the track. A battle between Ambrose and Keselowski, which inluded both driving through the grass at one point before Ambrose was able to get by in the treacherous carousel.

THREE STRAIGHT

Mark Martin became the first driver to win three straight NASCAR Cup Series races at Watkins Glen International, and he capped that streak on Aug. 13, 1995 after passing Wally Dallenbach, Jr. on lap 84 of the 90-lap event. Martin, who led a race-high 61 circuits overall, held off the road racing specialist to win by one second. That victory completed a three-year run that saw him not only sit on the pole every time but lead 183-of-270 laps (68%).

TWO RACES REMAINING IN REGULAR SEASON

While the NASCAR Cup and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series have begun their respective Playoffs, the NASCAR Xfinity Series still has two races remaining in its regular season. Defending champion Cole Custer has already clinched a spot in the field of 12 after his win in Pocono while Riley Herbst also owns a berth because of his victory in Indianapolis. Ryan Sieg goes into this weekend’s race at Watkins Glen International on the outside looking in as he sits 44 points behind the final transfer position.

FORD’S NASCAR CUP SERIES WINNERS

AT WATKINS GLEN

1965 – Marvin Panch

1993 – Mark Martin

1994 – Mark Martin

1995 – Mark Martin

1995 – Mark Martin

1996 – Geoffrey Bodine

2011 – Marcos Ambrose

2012 – Marcos Ambrose

2015 – Joey Logano

FORD’S NASCAR XFINITY SERIES WINNERS

AT WATKINS GLEN

1993 – Bill Elliott

2008 – Marcos Ambrose

2012 – Carl Edwards

2013 – Brad Keselowski

2014 – Marcos Ambrose

2015 – Joey Logano

2016 – Joey Logano

2018 – Joey Logano

2019 – Austin Cindric

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