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CHEVROLET NCS PLAYOFF MEDIA DAY: Austin Dillon Media Availability Quotes

NASCAR CUP SERIES
2025 PLAYOFF MEDIA DAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
AUGUST 27, 2025

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, met with the media in advance of the start of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

Media Availability Quotes:

How do you see the first few rounds of the playoffs? Some say it builds pressure on the drivers and others say no?

“I think there are definitely times when certain people’s backs are against the wall pressed too hard and you can see it in their driving styles or the moves or choices they make. And teams, too. It’s very easy for a team to tighten up coming down pit road, make bold strategy moves that might not have been the same call that you would have made in the regular season. I think the cool part for our team is we’ve been executing at a high level lately and it started about four or five weeks ago. I think we can keep that same mentality, especially these first three races.”

Just a couple years ago at Bristol, you were involved in a wreck while in contention. What level knowing that you guys were in position before and something happened?

“That’s unfortunate. When those things happen, Bristol is probably the one of the three. Things happen at Darlington, too. They can happen at Gateway and anywhere, but Bristol’s one of those ones that if a wreck happens, you can be swept up in it pretty easy. But I would not have chosen any other three tracks. I feel like for our team, other than if you could throw a Richmond or Homestead maybe in there, of tracks, those three are in my top five. So, I’m excited for the way the playoffs lay out for us. And I think we scored a couple years ago in the playoffs we scored like second most points in the first round and transferred. So, I feel good about it. Darlington, it’s a good track.”

Some might be counting you guys out. It as motivation or at least fuel for you, pushing forward and making those rounds?

“I always use it as fuel, but I feel like I have really a good confidence and a calm about it. I don’t have anything to prove in that sense. I’m just really happy with where we’re at as an organization because first quarter of the season I would have said differently. But now I feel confident. I feel good that we can execute and make a good push. We’re one of the last teams to win on a regular oval, so.”

What’s going on different? You said last five weeks, your confidence is different?

After Dover, I think we probably took a different approach of like, all right, what can we do? What are the things that we’re not looking at as an organization to get better? And I think all things opened up a little bit more during those times. Like just a more group effort of really resetting, let’s start from scratch and kind of start there. But there were some things happening even before Dover that we probably didn’t get the fruits of all the labor that’s been going in. It’s just that Dover is truthfully probably historically a horrible track for us as an organization, so it kind of came to a head. But then we’ve been working hard and my team’s pretty in its infancy if I look at it that way. Boswell and I were one year in, and like we’re really building that atmosphere, and it’s just kind of coming together at the right time for the 3 team and I think that’s what it’s kind of come down to. You have winners in the group. I mean, we were at our win luncheon at RCR and it’s like we’ve got winners here now and that means something, and it feels good and makes you know that you can execute in a tight situation and not fall apart. And I think RCR’s always kind of had that execution factor, and we’re doing a better job of putting better product on the tracks, so that all comes together nicely.”

Making the playoffs is a way for some race teams to gauge success. What’s success for the next 10 weeks from here?

“I want to start with the first round. I think we are very capable of transferring to the next round. So that’s where I would start. That’s success. I would have said making the playoffs at one point this year would have been a huge goal. But now, at this point, like, we’ve got an opportunity. It’s like when momentum hits in the sport, in sports worlds, you’ve got to take advantage of it. Momentum is fickle. So, you got to take advantage of it when you’re hot, and I feel like our team’s a little hot right now and we don’t want to cool down. I think the picture changes and evolves throughout the playoffs, but there’s no one running away with it.”

What’s your biggest strength and weakness?

“I think biggest strength right now as a team, we’re executing well. Weakness, I don’t want this be weakness, but I think qualifying is going to be the most important thing for us. If we can qualify, which I think being in the playoffs and going out later is going to help that for us. We’ve had to fight that from a point situation all year. So now, if we can capitalize on being able to go out late, I think that helps our weakness.”

Do you feel like heading into it you have a lot of exuberance yourself given that you haven’t won the championship?

“I’m excited. I have a different perspective, probably, from where we were, or where we are now, and I’ve raced for championships before and won them in other series, so it’s not like I’m bad in that situation or a novice in that situation. I feel like I’m built for that. So now we just got to go do it.”

How hard is that? Can you just go through for the fans how hard it is to get to this level of being in the playoffs and actually win?

“Hours and hours of time and frustrations and happiness and grinding away with your team, questioning yourself, questioning what you’re doing to come out. This is what we do it for. This is for the championship. It’s for this trophy that a select few have ever been rewarded with. And so that’s the only way you would have it is to go to battle each and every day to try and get to this point. We’re in a heck of a schedule right now, like 28 straight weeks, but when you win Richmond like we did, you look back all the time and effort spent in the simulator, the time and effort put in … it’s worth all of it. And it almost motivates you to go do more, right? Like, now I’m ready to rock. Like, yeah, it’s validated. It can happen.”

You’ve taken a bigger step in the organization, is that right?

“I definitely am in a lot of the conversations that go on about the future and the direction and I’ve tried to stick my head in as much as possible because I feel like no one’s going to care about it more than family. And that is all I know because I’ve only been at RCR, so I feel like I have a direct correlation to the competition side also because I’ve seen the good times we’ve had and the bad times and I’ve gone through it all and different people and so I feel like at some point in my career — I’m doing this, what, 11 years now — that I got to speak up at times when it needs to be when I need to speak up. I’ve been to the point where I’m not going to say nothing and just let things happen because it’s not necessarily your job or responsibility. But then, at this point, it’s like, yeah, I’m ready. I want to help in any way I can, and I think the consistency as a human has helped gain respect from my grandfather, and so he knows I’m a Dylan is what he’ll say. My dad and I are fiery people, and my brother’s the same way. My brother’s probably the calmer of the three Dylan boys, and it’s a good mix. Ty’s been stepping in this year, learning more about the business side. And his perspective, too, is from like other teams that he’s been with. So, it’s good because I know what I know, and that’s RCR, and he’s been able to go and work on other teams and work with Kaulig and work with our partners there. So, it’s been good, and I think RC always will surprise you because he’s just a competitor. When it comes down to it, he wants to figure out how to make it work for everybody, and he cares.”

You’re looking to the future of the organization?

“I think that the focus … I’m really happy with where the 3 team is as a team, and I think that the focus has to be on how to make the 8 team perform better. I think that things are good. Talks are being had to progress that. I think one good meeting that we had on the 3 team was just me and Boswell sitting down the first third of the year and really getting to know each other and understand how each other flow and work together. And I think for that 8 team to take the next steps we’ve got to dig in and figure out what’s going to get them to executing better on a race date, because I personally think they have more speed than 75 percent of the teams, I would say, out there. Speed doesn’t seem to be an issue. So how do we get through a full race? Because I think now the hardest part of winning a race is execution because the field is literally razor thin. There’s no advantage. If there’s a giant advantage it would be a tenth and a half, maybe a tenth. So now, when you close that gap down, like, where is the execution? I think they’ve got a direction. I think that RC has got a good handle on things. I think we’re finally starting to help the 8 team, too. Like, at one point in time, I thought the 8 was kind of carrying a load and we weren’t delivering on our side. But I think we’re doing some good things now on the 3 team that they can take from us and start doing more at track.”

Understanding the history of the sport, what does Darlington mean?

“I think going through the tunnel at Darlington feels like home in a way just because I grew up at those types of racetracks. Seeing the fans in the infield cooking out, grilling out. And I love this time of year because it’s college football starting, racing’s in a really good place. It’s just like a happy time of the year for me going to Darlington. I’m ready. I feel good about it.”

About General Motors

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NASCAR Playoffs begin at Darlington, eligible drivers and format

Daelington Raceway photo by Ted Seminara for SpeedwayMedia.com

This weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series and Craftsman Truck Series head to Darlington Raceway. It will be the first race in the Cup Series Playoffs Round of 16 and the opening race in the Round of 10 for the Truck Series.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series has two races remaining in the regular season. They will compete at Portland International Raceway this Saturday and World Wide Technology Raceway Sept. 6. The series playoffs begin on Sept. 12 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Cup Series Playoff Drivers

  1. Kyle Larson (2,032 points)
  2. William Byron (2,032 points)
  3. Denny Hamlin (2,029 points)
  4. Ryan Blaney (2,026 points)
  5. Christopher Bell (2,023 points)
  6. Shane van Gisbergen (2,022 points)
  7. Chase Elliott (2,013 points)
  8. Chase Briscoe (2,010 points)
  9. Bubba Wallace (2,008 points)
  10. Austin Cindric (2,008 points)
  11. Ross Chastain (2,007 points)
  12. Joey Logano (2,007 points)
  13. Josh Berry (2,006 points)
  14. Tyler Reddick (2,006 points)
  15. Austin Dillon (2,005 points)
  16. Alex Bowman (2,002 points)

Craftsman Truck Series Playoff Drivers

  1. Corey Heim (2065 points)
  2. Layne Riggs (2026 points)
  3. Chandler Smith (2019 points)
  4. Daniel Hemric (2011 points)
  5. Tyler Ankrum (2010 points)
  6. Ty Majeski (2010 points)
  7. Grant Enginger (2007 points)
  8. Rajah Caruth (2005 points)
  9. Kaden Honeycutt (2003 points)
  10. Jake Garcia (2002 points)

NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Format

Round of 16: The 16 eligible drivers compete in three races, including Darlington Raceway, World Wide Technology Raceway and Bristol Motor Speedway. After the third race, the four drivers with the lowest points are eliminated.

Round of 12: The remaining 12 drivers compete in the next three races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Kansas Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway. The four drivers with the lowest points are eliminated.

Round of 8: The remaining 8 drivers compete in the next three races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway. The four drivers with the lowest points are eliminated.

Championship 4: The final four drivers compete in the last race of the season at Phoenix Raceway. The highest-finishing driver wins the championship title.

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs Format

Round of 10: The 10 eligible drivers compete in three races, including Darlington Raceway, Bristol Motor Speedway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway. After the third race, the two drivers with the lowest points are eliminated.

Round of 8: The remaining eight drivers compete in the next three races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway. The four drivers with the lowest points are eliminated.

Championship 4: The final four drivers compete in the last race of the season at Phoenix Raceway. The highest-finishing driver wins the championship title.

BMS EXTENDS PARTNERSHIP WITH UNOH AND OHIO LOGISTICS AS ENTITLEMENT FOR SEPTEMBER NASCAR CRAFTSMAN TRUCK SERIES RACE

BRISTOL, Tenn. (Aug. 27, 2025) – Bristol Motor Speedway officials announced today that it has extended its long-running partnership with the University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH), which serves as the entitlement for the track’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in September.

The nearly two-decade partnership started in 2009 and also features presenting sponsor Ohio Logistics as part of the sponsorship package.

UNOH is headquartered in Lima, Ohio and provides one of the most prominent motorsports academic programs in the United States. The motorsports industry is heavily populated with UNOH alumni in important career positions. Ohio Logistics is based in Findlay, Ohio, and specializes in warehouse and transportation services.

“We are thrilled that UNOH and Ohio Logistics are returning to continue this important entitlement,” said Jerry Caldwell, president and general manager of Bristol Motor Speedway. “Through their passion, support and leadership, we have been able to grow this wonderful NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event and it has become a fan-favorite as a key part of the racing action that takes place during our famed Night Race weekend in September.”

The UNOH 200 presented by Ohio Logistics will be held on Thursday, Sept. 11, with a start time of 8 p.m. The race will be televised on FS1 with radio coverage provided by PRN Radio. The race is the second race in the Playoff Round of 10. Layne Riggs, who drives the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports truck, is the defending winner of the event.

“All of us at the University of Northwestern Ohio are excited to be extending this amazing sponsorship with Bristol Motor Speedway as sponsor of a major NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoff race each September,” said Dr. Jeffrey A. Jarvis, president of UNOH. “The relationships and opportunities that this entitlement has presented to us has been immeasurable. Our staff, faculty and students have all benefitted greatly from this program and it made our decision to extend again an easy one.”

Ohio Logistics began supporting the sponsorship in 2019 and made an immediate impact. They are also eager to return as presenting sponsor.

“This entitlement provides the perfect platform for us to achieve our marketing and business goals and objectives and it provides a seamless backdrop to engage our associates and customers during the weekend,” said Chuck Bills, president and CEO of Ohio Logistics. “We are fortunate to be aligned with UNOH in this partnership with Bristol Motor Speedway to showcase the incredible Playoff action in this NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race.”

About UNOH
The University of Northwestern Ohio is a private university in Lima, Ohio. Founded in 1920 it has approximately 3,000 students. The University offers master’s, bachelor’s and associate degrees in more than 40 programs, including a high-performance motorsports program from UNOH’s College of Applied Technologies. The program, started in 1992, was the first high performance/motorsports program in the United States.

About Ohio Logistics
Ohio Logistics, with headquarters in Findlay, Ohio, operates over nine million square foot of state-of-the-art warehouse space, one of the largest privately held logistics firms in the Midwest. The company has 35 locations spread across seven states. Their mission is to provide all of the assets and operational support necessary to meet your most sophisticated logistics requirements.

About Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol Motor Speedway, known as The Last Great Colosseum, sits in the mountains of Northeast Tennessee near the Virginia state line. The 0.533-mile concrete oval, with 28-degree banking, hosts two major NASCAR Cup Series weekends each year. The venue has staged iconic moments such as the 2016 Pilot Flying J Battle at Bristol football game between the University of Tennessee and Virginia Tech (NCAA-record 156,990 fans), the MLB Speedway Classic between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds (MLB regular-season record crowd of 91,032), the 2020 NASCAR All-Star Race, the rebirth of NASCAR Cup Series racing on dirt from 2021–2023 and sold-out concerts for Morgan Wallen and Kenny Chesney. Fans enjoy Colossus TV, the world’s largest outdoor center-hung four-sided screen video board. The adjacent Bristol Dragway is the home to the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, and the dragway can transform into the Thunder Valley Amphitheatre for concerts. Opened in 1961 and acquired by Speedway Motorsports in 1996, Bristol remains one of America’s most unique and versatile sports and entertainment destinations. For more information, please visit www.bristolmotorspeedway.com.

TEAM CHEVY NASCAR RACE ADVANCE: Darlington Raceway 2 and Portland International Raceway

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
Darlington Raceway / Portland International Raceway
August 30-31, 2025

A bicoastal tripleheader weekend is on deck for the NASCAR national touring series. For the NASCAR Cup and Craftsman Truck Series, the 2025 playoffs will officially get underway at Darlington Raceway with the oval tapped as “The Lady in Black” set to host the first of three races in the opening round of their respective postseason schedules.

Chevrolet will lead its manufacturer competitors in representation for each playoff lineup with seven Team Chevy drivers vying for the Bill France Performance Cup and four Team Chevy drivers competing for the Craftsman Truck Series Driver Championship.

Coming off its 21st victory of the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series season, the Bowtie brigade will make its furthest trek on the schedule to Portland International Raceway for the penultimate race of the regular season. The battle for the regular season championship title is closer than ever with reigning champion, Justin Allgaier, regaining the top position by a mere three-point margin over his JR Motorsports teammate, Connor Zilisch, heading into Saturday’s 75-lap event.

 Chevrolet in the Southern 500:

Holding the prestige as one of NASCAR’s crown jewel events, the Southern 500 was first introduced to the division in 1950. Chevrolet has conquered “The Track Too Tough to Tame” to take the crown jewel triumph a series-leading 29 times – a legacy that began with Herb Thomas’ victory in the 1955 race. Career Chevrolet driver, Jeff Gordon, is the series’ winningest driver in the 500-mile race with six victories. Most recently, it was Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson that took the crown in 2023 to deliver the Bowtie brand its second Southern 500 win in now three races in the series’ Next Gen era.

SEVEN TEAM CHEVY DRIVERS SET FOR CUP SERIES TITLE CHASE

The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs will see seven drivers from three different Chevrolet organizations make a run for the Bill France Performance Cup – a number that tops its manufacturer competitors in both driver and organization representation. Since the debut of the 16-driver playoff field and elimination rounds in 2014, Chevrolet has placed no worse than five drivers in the title chase. This season’s regular season produced six different winners under the Chevrolet banner to earn a combined 12 victories. Despite still looking for a trip to victory lane, a stellar summer stretch for Alex Bowman and the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team ended with a much-deserved berth into the postseason.

Larson Starts Second Title Bid as Top Seed

Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson will start his campaign for a second NASCAR Cup Series championship title from atop the playoff standings – entering the first of three races of the Round of 16 with a 26-point advantage over the cutline. To no surprise, the 33-year-old Elk Grove, California, native has been among the front runners of title contenders through much of the 2025 season. The 26-race regular season has seen the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team earn three trips to victory lane – one of which included their near-dominate triumph at the track that also concludes the Round of 16 (Bristol Motor Speedway). Larson has also gone on to tally 11 top-fives and 16 top-10s thus far to lead the series in both statistical categories. This season will mark Larson’s ninth career playoff appearance in the division, including a run of five-straight since his tenor with Hendrick Motorsports began in his championship-earning season (2021).


Byron Backed by Regular Season Momentum

Ranked just behind his Hendrick Motorsports teammate is William Byron and the No. 24 Chevrolet team, with the regular season champions heading into their title run with a 26-point cushion over the playoff cutline. Byron has been a staple figure in the division’s postseason competition in recent years with the 27-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina, native set to make his seventh consecutive playoff appearance this season. With back-to-back runs to the Championship Four under his belt, the Team Chevy driver has put together a regular season that has set their team up for arguably their best shot at the championship title. Securing the first automatic berth into the playoff field with another DAYTONA 500 crown, Byron went on to maintain the series’ points lead for 21 races of the regular season. Throughout his Cup Series career, Byron has found victory lane at four of the tracks found on the 10-race postseason schedule, including the venue that opens the playoffs (Darlington Raceway – May 2022), as well as the track that ultimately decides the championship title winner (Phoenix Raceway – March 2023).

TEAM CHEVY SECURES FOUR BIDS IN NCTS PLAYOFF FIELD

With the playoff field set, four drivers representing three different Chevrolet organizations will have the chance to drive the Bowtie brand to its 15th NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Driver Championship. All four playoff contenders will enter the opening race of the Round of 10 above the cutline – led by a pair of McAnally-Hilgemann Racing teammates, Daniel Hemric and Tyler Ankrum, who are ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, in the standings. Also earning his playoff berth by virtue of a win was Spire Motorsports’ Rajah Caruth, with CR7 Motorsports’ Grant Enfinger locking up his title hopes on points prior to the start of the series’ regular season finale race at Richmond Raceway.


Enfinger Eyeing Three-Straight Championship Four Runs

While still in search of a victory this season, Grant Enfinger carries the added boost of veteran experience to keep the No. 9 CR7 Motorsports Chevrolet team at the forefront of the series’ title contenders. The 40-year-old Fairhope, Alabama, native is on the brink of his seventh appearance in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series playoffs, including back-to-back trips to the Championship Four (2023-24). Enfinger is no stranger to being able to capitalize on the playoff pressure when it matters the most. In 2024, Enfinger made a late-season stampede that saw the No. 9 CR7 Motorsports Chevrolet team earn wins in two of the three races in the Round of Eight (Talladega Superspeedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway).


PORTLAND MARKS PENULTIMATE NXS REGULAR SEASON RACE

The NASCAR Xfinity Series is set to make its fourth-ever appearance at Portland International Raceway this weekend with the 1.97-mile circuit tapped to host the penultimate race of its regular season. Eight drivers have already solidified their playoff hopes with a win – six of which come from the Chevrolet camp including JR Motorsports’ Connor Zilisch, Justin Allgaier and Sammy Smith; Richard Childress Racing’s Jesse Love and Austin Hill; and Big Machine Racing’s Nick Sanchez. Among those heading to the Pacific Northwest in the four provisional points positions includes Carson Kvapil, with the JR Motorsports driver sitting at the only triple-digit points cushion (+120) over the cutline.

It’s been a season for the record books for the Chevrolet camp with the manufacturer already boosting 21 wins in 24 races. Among those triumphs includes an undefeated record on road courses this season – all of which have been earned by a JR Motorsports-prepared Chevrolet.

JRM Teammates Continue in Regular Season Title Battle

A third-place finish and a race-high 50-point night at Daytona International Speedway was just enough to put the series’ reigning champion, Justin Allgaier, back atop the points standings heading into the Portland race weekend. The series veteran is one step closer to grabbing his second career regular season championship, but the title won’t come easy for the veteran driver. With an assist behind the wheel by Parker Kligerman, Connor Zilisch still remains at a striking distance with just a three-point deficit to his teammate. With his prowess at making left- and right-hand turns, the ‘Rookie of the Year’ contender will have the perfect opportunity to regain the points lead this weekend. The 19-year-old Mooresville, North Carolina, native has yet to finish outside of the top-five on road courses this season, including three trips to victory lane (Circuit of The Americas, Sonoma Raceway and Watkins Glen International).

Chevrolet’s season statistics with 26 NASCAR Cup Series races complete:

Wins: 12

Poles: 10

Laps Led: 3,116

Top-Fives: 52

Top-10s: 111

Stage Wins: 22

Chevrolet’s season statistics with 24 NASCAR Xfinity Series races complete:

Wins: 21

Poles: 14

Laps Led: 2,870

Top-Fives: 81

Top-10s: 154

Stage Wins: 35

Chevrolet’s season statistics with 18 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races complete:

Wins: 6

Poles: 2

Laps Led: 887

Top-Fives: 41

Top-10s: 84

Stage Wins: 7


BOWTIE BULLETS:

· Active Chevrolet drivers with a NASCAR Cup Series win at Darlington Raceway:

Kyle Larson – one win (2023 Southern 500)

William Byron – one win (May 2023)

Kyle Busch – one win (2008 Southern 500)

· In 128 NASCAR Cup Series races at Darlington Raceway, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 44 victories. In seven events in the series’ Next Gen era, Chevrolet has earned three victories – recorded in consecutive events by Erik Jones (Sept. 2022), William Byron (May 2023) and Kyle Larson (Sept. 2023).

· Chevrolet paces its manufacturer competitors in both driver and organization representation in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs with seven drivers from three different Chevrolet organizations set to compete for this season’s driver championship title.

· Chevrolet has earned at least half of the top-10 finishing results in 12 of the 26 points-paying races thus far this season, including a season-high seven top-10 finishes at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.

· In 134 points-paying races in the Next Gen era, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 64 victories – a winning percentage of 47.8%.

· With its 43 NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships, 33 NASCAR Cup Series Driver Championships, and 878 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title as the winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history.


TUNE-IN:

NASCAR Cup Series (Darlington Raceway)

Playoffs Round of 16: Race One

Cook Out Southern 500

Sunday, August 31, at 6 p.m. ET

(USA Network, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)

NASCAR Xfinity Series (Portland International Raceway)

Pacific Office Automation 147

Saturday, August 30, at 7:30 p.m. ET

(CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (Darlington Raceway)

Playoffs Round of 10: Race One

Sober or Slammer 200

Saturday, August 30, at 12:00 p.m. ET

(FS1, NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)


QUOTABLE QUOTES:

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Do you like racing at Darlington Raceway?

“I can’t wait to get to Darlington Raceway in our Bass Pro Shops/Winchester Deer Season XP Chevrolet. The Southern 500 is one of the coolest races of the year. I love the long races. You really have to race that track from start to finish. It’s exciting to be able to go to Darlington as a NASCAR Playoffs contender and represent everyone in Welcome, North Carolina.”

How do you prepare for 500 grueling laps at Darlington Raceway?

“I think racing for 500 miles is one of those things you prepare yourself all year long for. There’s some races, like the Coca-Cola 600, the Southern 500, that you know are just going to be one of those places that you go to and get locked in, focus on one lap after another. You take it lap by lap.”

Is getting a Darlington Stripe a badge of honor?

“The Darlington stripe is a badge of honor, but I like to keep my car clean. I don’t want any stripes. I want it to be race ready the whole race so I have everything I can for the end of the race.”

How important is qualifying at Darlington Raceway?

“Qualifying is super important. A lot of emphasis will be put on qualifying because we’re trying to gain stage points. Darlington Raceway is a tricky place to qualify at, because you can be very aggressive and gain a lot but it’s easy to step over the line in the same situation.”

What’s the strategy for the Southern 500?

“I think the strategy for the Southern 500 is to get better throughout the race. Execution is key. You can’t have a setback, but as it gets cooler throughout the night you’ve got to make the right adjustments so the car is the best at the end of the race.”

Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

“I think we’ve been kind of quietly getting better here lately with the five team, we get to go to one of our better tracks at Darlington [Raceway] and hopefully can get some momentum for our final 10 weeks. It’s a fun time of year; I’m excited about the opportunity to race for another championship and wouldn’t want to do it with any other group. So, looking forward to doing it with Hendrick Motorsports, HENDRICKCARS.COM and see if we can get Chevy a win.”

Justin Haley, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

You were so close to winning at Daytona to lock into the Cup Series Playoffs, what are your goals for the next 10 races?

“I am focused on one race at a time. The No. 7 team has a lot of momentum following Daytona which will give us a great metric for qualifying. Our team has put in a lot of effort, and we are getting better each week. I think we can get to where we want to be to close out the 2025 season.”

Darlington has hosted Cup Series races since September 1950. It’s a track with multiple nicknames and a lot of history. Do you have any favorite moments?

“I think my favorite moment is probably finishing third with Kaulig in Xfinity in May of 2022. I qualified 29th and got up to 20th by the end of Stage 1, but I fell back to 27th and went a lap down in Stage 2. In the final stage we got the free pass, made up track position, and took advantage of the chaos at the end to bring home a third-place finish.”

Where does Darlington rank on your list of favorite tracks?

“Darlington is definitely one of my favorites. I’ve always ran well there and enjoy the challenges of racing there. The track surface is old and worn, as a driver it’s fun to move around and find speed through the duration of a stint. The Southern 500 is an iconic race for our sport and I’m looking forward to seeing how we shake out!”

Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Do you enjoy the challenge of racing at Darlington?

“I do feel like Darlington has its own unique challenges and those challenges are pretty fun. It kind of gives to that old school nature of NASCAR but yet still has its own unique differences between any of the other one-mile or mile-and-a-half racetracks that we go to.”

AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

“The Southern 500 is the most physically demanding race that we have during our season. We’ve had good speed the last couple times there; it’ll be a challenge, but it’s one I’m looking forward to. Our goal in these last ten races is to finish out strong and building momentum with our group. This is an important race to go do that at and we plan to execute.”

Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet

“Darlington is one of the toughest tracks we go to, but it’s also one of the most exciting. You have to respect the history of this place and race the track with patience all night. I’m looking forward to having Pudgy Penguins on board with us. It’s cool to welcome a new partner that brings such fun energy, and hopefully we can give them a good show for their NASCAR debut.”

Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

How do you approach Darlington given you are not one of the 16 drivers competing for a championship?

“We aren’t where we want to be. We were hoping this would be the first round of the playoffs, but we’re still fighting for a win before the end of the year. This is the start of where we need to build some momentum and get everything ready for next season. Darlington is one of the tracks we’ve been to before, outside of Atlanta and Daytona, so it’ll be helpful to have a notebook. But things have changed throughout the year for us. I feel good about it this weekend. It’s a fun race and a cool track. The Southern 500 is a special weekend for sure.”

Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

You had a great run at Darlington last September and qualified well in April until you encountered some issues. How do you replicate your prior success and put together a complete 500 miles?

“The biggest hurdle is the changing track conditions throughout the night. You transition from the daytime to night and have to stay up on adjustments. Everyone wants to win the Southern 500. A win at Darlington and add yourself to the list of winners is really special. We’ve improved a lot as a team since May. I’ve qualified well in all three Cup starts at Darlington, and I think we have a good chance to show speed in practice, qualify decent and have a good night.”

Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

Darlington is a track like no other, what is going through your mind as you prepare for the Playoffs to start this weekend?

“Darlington is one of my favorite ovals, but the next three races aren’t going to be easy. We are in a decent spot and have earned some nice playoff points, which is cool, but now we have to execute; no mistakes and get good results every week. That will help us achieve our goal.”

What makes Darlington one of your favorite ovals?

“It’s just cool! You drive into the track and feel such a cool vibe, and everyone is happy to be there. But the challenge of the track, how slippery it is, how you have to run the wall and the dynamic of the racing, I always enjoy it.”

Connor Zilisch, No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet

“This will be the first race after my collarbone injury where run the whole race. Last week at Daytona was really cool with Parker Kligerman getting in and taking the WeatherTech Chevrolet to victory lane. It was really cool to watch and awesome for Parker to keep up the momentum we had built up over the last few months. This is my first time going to Portland. This is another road course for me and another great opportunity to score some points for the regular season championship. I’m looking forward to getting back behind the wheel and being 100 percent on Saturday.”

Portland is the first road course that you’re competing at that you’ve never seen before until you arrive onsite. Is that more challenging than going to an oval that you’ve never seen?

“I would say the ovals are more challenging. I feel like the road courses come more naturally to me. I watched a lot of races from Portland. It’s always going to change a little bit going there for the first time.”


Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics

Manufacturers Championships:

Total (1949-2024): 43

First title for Chevrolet: 1958

Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)

Most recent: 2024

Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024

Drivers Championships:

Total (1949-2024): 33

First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)

Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)

Most recent: Kyle Larson (2021)

Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021

Event Victories:

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

2025 STATISTICS:

Wins: 12

Poles: 10

Laps Led: 3,116

Top-Fives: 52

Top-10s: 111

Stage Wins: 22

CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:

Total Chevrolet race wins: 878 (1949 to date)

Poles won to date: 763

Laps led to date: 255,827

Top-fives to date: 4,421

Top-10s to date: 9,118

Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date:

       General Motors: 1,212

       Chevrolet: 878

       Pontiac: 154

       Oldsmobile: 115

       Buick: 65



       Ford: 845                                                                               

       Ford: 745

       Mercury: 96

       Lincoln: 4



       Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467

       Dodge: 217

       Plymouth: 191

       Chrysler: 59



       Toyota: 198

About General Motors

General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.

Toyota GAZOO Racing – NCS Playoff Media Day Quotes – Tyler Reddick – 08.27.25

Toyota GAZOO Racing – Tyler Reddick
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

CHARLOTTE (August 27, 2025) – 23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick was made available to the media on Wednesday as part of NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Media Day.

TYLER REDDICK, No. 45 The Beast Unleashed Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing

How does your Playoff experience last year change your mental approach for the Playoffs this year?

“I think it’s just experience. Yeah, for me, I was on the good side of it last year. I’ve done this a few times. Coming in with very little Playoff points so it’s just all experience. Last year was a little nicer one, right? Because we were able to have those Playoff points to fall back on. It seemed like even though we had them in each round, we found our way into trouble. So, I think this time around we’ve got to be much more on top of it. We don’t have that much room for error but that’s okay. There are some good tracks. Obviously, Darlington is a great one to start at. There’s a lot of good tracks in the Playoffs for this team I think.”

Has the team gone over strengths and weaknesses this season?

“Yeah, we did that. Got to look at a lot of numbers and a lot of things. I don’t know if it helped. I think it added to the frustration. Even more reason for a reset going into the Playoffs, if you will.”

What stood out to you?

“Well, I mean honestly, it has the feeling from my vantage point that the speed just wasn’t quite the same. Obviously, the execution we all know is not great. Looking at everything that we have, the speed seems pretty good. Yeah, just when you look at pace and everything that we have versus our finishing position, not many in the field are worse. We’ve just really got to take advantage of fast Toyota Camrys and get top fives and win races especially here in each of these rounds.”

How do you go and win a championship this year?

“Pretty much don’t do what we did the first 26 races (laughter). We’ve been in a position to win and lose, we just – don’t take ourselves out. Yeah, there’s plenty of things on a more serious note to go over and look at how we’ve been doing things. Everyone on the team has been looking into that, working hard, reflecting. And, yeah, the word reset has been thrown around a lot today. I feel like that’s a good way for us to look at it as well. Yeah, we’ve had a tough regular season. Yes, we’re behind the cut line and everything else but the points margins are all closed up quite a bit with the Playoff seeding. We’ve just got to go out there and do what we’ve been capable of all year – just do it this time.”

Where is the confidence to put the regular season behind you and say you know you can do this?

“For me, going to Darlington to start really helps because that’s a track for me that even when I like just can’t even function as a driver we still manage to run somewhere in the top 10. I feel like over the years that’s a place that when we’re strong we’re upfront, we’re leading laps and when we’re a little off we’re still in the top 10 and top five. So, for me, that’s just been one of those tracks just whether it’s the spring race or the Southern 500, it’s just a really good track for me.”

Do you like the way the Playoffs are setup?

“I’m just thinking about the first race honestly. Gateway, yeah Gateway I think we’re good at when we don’t have brake failures. Bristol is the one if I’m looking at the whole Playoffs, is kind of the question mark. We haven’t had race-winning speed there in a bit. It’s a place we know we got to get better, but yeah, I know I don’t always show up in Martinsville it seems like and perform the level Bubba (Wallace) does but it’s obvious that our Camrys are good when we go to Martinsville. Yeah, when I look at a lot of the tracks that we have on the remainder, they all look good. It’s just Bristol. I’ve got to figure out how to run top 10 there.”

Is this one of the most frustrating and stressful seasons that you’ve had?

“You know, if I let myself think about it like that, I’m sure I could find reasons as to why it would be. I mean, the results, right. The speed, the capability looks like it’s there but the results – we have found a way to throw some away. Yeah, you know, I think it would be but when you come into the Cup Series as a rookie it’s real easy to just let the weight of everything just crush you. Yeah, it’s not as bad as that to there’s that at least.”

What do you feel is your biggest strength and biggest weakness over the next 10 races?

“Our speed is our strength. What’s been our weakness is the execution. We haven’t got the results on those days where we’ve been that fast. Whether that’s DNF or damage and finishing laps down, it seems when you look at this year when we’ve been fast and leading laps, we’ve found a way to not be on the lead lap by the end of it.”

How much different is your setup for the Southern 500 compared to the spring race?

“The weather’s different. The transition from day to night is where you try to really trust your notes, have good notes. My crew chief Billy Scott’s got a lot of experience – done this race many, many times. We’ve done this race a few times together too. You just really try to do your best to trust your instincts but also go off of what you know has happened in the past. Yeah, it seems like over the years spring to fall we’ve been pretty good both times. I’m just looking forward to getting there honestly.”

Where would a Southern 500 win rank for you?

“I guess technically I don’t think I’ve won a major. I won at Indy when we ran the road course there, so I think it’d shoot to the top for sure.”

Who was the driver that you looked up to on the track when you first started out in Cup?

“I think it was Jimmie (Johnson) and then literally 15 minutes later we were wrecking coming to pit road for the first green flag cycle so that was an awful way to start it.”

What do you think of the idea that someone coming up through racing could look at you the way you thought about Jimmie Johnson?

“I feel like those moments are creeping up on me sooner than I want them to. It’s funny you bring this up, Luke Barnes is a part of the pit development group at 23XI, and his father Lanny was my engine tuner. He’s still at ECR. But I remember going racing in the 2 car in the Xfinity Series and Lanny was obviously engine tuning back then more so and his son came to the race track a few times and when I talked to Lanny a couple weeks ago, he’s like, ‘Yeah, my son’s over there now.’ And I’m like, ‘Oh, he is.’ Then I’m like, ‘Last time I saw him he was a kid. He was 12 and now he’s 21.’ He’s talking about, ‘Oh yeah, that was so long ago when you won those championships.’ I feel the gray hairs coming. So, yeah, it’s crazy how time moves quick and yeah there’s a kid that I’ll probably meet at the race track that one day might be coming for my job. You never know.”

What kind of impact has your group had?

“I haven’t really given it a lot of thought – you are putting me on the spot (laughter). It is crazy to think about as time goes on. Always growing up racing, I was always the young kid racing against adults and stuff. I guess I’m getting to 30 – and there are younger guys. Connor (Zilisch) is coming up and he is a teenager. The older you get the more you realize those things are in play and going on. I think for me it just drives it home more so to just remember, as a kid, I was just trying to get Steve Kinser’s autograph. I was trying to meet Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Always try to keep that in mind at the race track when kids want an autograph or wanting a picture or want to talk to you. That impact you leave on the next generation is super important.”

What kind of impact can your generation have?

“I think about where I came from. I came from dirt racing – Kyle (Larson) did as well. I grew up racing Outlaw Karts like he did. I think it is cool that I got to do a lot of learning racing dirt Late Models with Hall of Famers, guys like Bobby Pierce – who is a friend of mine. He is going to be a future Hall of Famer for sure. It is cool to be able to say and represent the ranks of where you came from, so for me, I try to be mindful of that when I have good, bad or indifferent races – I came from some of the toughest dirt racing ranks that you can, and those guys in dirt Late Models are some of the best, smart, intense drivers. I try to be mindful of that and keep up with that as much as I can.”

What is it about the region where you’re from that has some of the toughest racers out there?

“For me, it was Cycleland (Speedway). It was Outlaw Karts. During the winter we got to race at Red Bluff, but just the places that we could go run those Outlaw Karts growing up – we had Cycleland in summer, Red Bluff we would race occasionally; we would go race up at Lakeport. My dad was crazy; he drove all over the place. There was just a lot of really good tracks out there and a lot of really young kids at that time racing in all of the different classes, so I just felt like the blueprint of a go-kart, starting out young with the Briggs Stratton, then getting into the 125, 250, 500 – all of that power in a go-kart with a wing, and running on dirt tracks with cushions and slicked off middle grooves. The level of racing that we were doing in those Outlaw Karts at a young age set us down that path and being able to jump into midgets and Sprint Cars, mini-sprints, late models and be competitive.”

That set you up for success at Homestead, but you didn’t get the respect that you deserve.

“I had my own faults for that – I played into it. It wasn’t the best year that I had when I got my head on straight and put together a good stretch, it finally showed what that team was capable of all year long, that first year. When I moved over to RCR (Richard Childress Racing), and started from scratch, if you will, there, I was in a much better place.”

So, to have Homestead as the finale next year, you were probably one of the happiest guys out there?

“Yeah, absolutely.”

What is it about Darlington that seems to work well?

“Don’t take this the wrong way – I think it is all of its little imperfections that make it perfect. All of the little details and that the wall isn’t just perfectly smoothed out. It has waves in certain spots. The holes, the bumps, the seams, the patches that they’ve had to put in over the years. All of the little things that add up to a really tricky, tough race track to get around. I think – nowadays, all of these tracks are built – they try to have them perfectly flat, smoothed out, and yes, they are great race tracks, but a place like Darlington – it’s been there as long as it has. It has a lot of character. It has a lot of things that a track, if it was built today, wouldn’t have. I think for me, that is what makes it so great.”

Why does it work for you?

“Well, if I miss the bottom, I just try to move up. I just keep moving up until I find competitive lap time and at a place like Darlington, yeah, pretty much after lap two or three, you are pretty much at the top ripping. For me, it is my comfort zone, honestly.”

Do you feel like 23XI is treated fairly with the legal issues?

“Yeah.”

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for nearly 70 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs nearly 64,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 49 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants. In 2025, Toyota’s plant in North Carolina began to assemble automotive batteries for electrified vehicles.

For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.

NASCAR Weekend Schedule – Darlington and Portland

SEPTEMBER 01: Bubba Wallace leads the field to the green flag to start the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on September 01, 2024 in Darlington, South Carolina. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)

This weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series and Craftsman Truck Series head to Darlington Raceway as the Playoffs begin. Saturday evening will feature the Truck Series SOBER OR SLAMMER 200 as the opening race in the series Round of 10. The Cook Out Southern 500 on Sunday evening will close out the weekend with the first Cup Series race in the Round of 16.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series has two races remaining in the regular season. They will travel to Portland International Raceway this Saturday and World Wide Technology Raceway on September 6.

Friday evening, the ARCA Menards Series West will headline the events at Portland with the Portland 112 race.

Cup Series Highlights

The winner of the opening race in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs has won the championship title five times: 2004, 2011, 2012, 2017, and 2024.

Denny Hamlin leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in wins at Darlington with four victories (2010, 2017, 2020-2, and 2021-2).

The Hendrick Motorsports team has the most NASCAR Cup Series wins at Darlington Raceway with 16 victories among eight drivers: Tim Richmond (1986), Ricky Rudd (1991), Jeff Gordon (1995, 1996 sweep, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2007), Terry Labonte (2003), Jimmie Johnson (2004 sweep and 2012), Mark Martin (2009), William Byron (2023) and Kyle Larson (2023).

Friday, August 29 – Portland

2 p.m.: ARCA Practice
3:20 p.m.: ARCA Qualifying
7 p.m.: ARCA Portland 112

Friday, August 29 – Darlington

3:05 p.m.: Truck Series Practice
4:10 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying

Saturday, August 30 – Darlington

9 a.m.: Cup Series Practice
10:10 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying
Post Qualifying: NASCAR Press Pass

Noon: Truck Series Sober or Slammer 200
Stages 45/90/147 Laps = 200.8 Miles
Post Truck Series race: NASCAR Press Pass
Purse: $782,900
FS1/MRN/SiriusXM

Saturday, August 30 – Portland

3 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice
4:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying
7:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Pacific Office Automation 147
Stages 25/50/75 Laps = 147.75 Miles
Post Xfinity Series race: NASCAR Press Pass
Purse: $1,651,939
FS1/MRN/SiriusXM

Sunday, August 31 – Darlington

6 p.m.: Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500
Stages 115/230/367 Laps = 501.32 Miles
Post Cup Series race: NASCAR Press Pass
Purse: $10,447,135
USA/MRN/SiriusXM

*All times are Eastern.

CHEVROLET NCS PLAYOFF MEDIA DAY: Ross Chastain Media Availability Quotes

NASCAR CUP SERIES
2025 PLAYOFF MEDIA DAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
AUGUST 27, 2025

Ross Chastain, driver of the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet, met with the media in advance of the start of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

Media Availability Quotes:

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE TEAM’S STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES?

“I’ll start with the weakness, because it’s the easiest one. It’s just, are we going to be fast? Are we going to roll off the truck fast for practice at Darlington, and are we going to be able to stay fast on lap10 of that run, lap 20, lap 30, and transfer that through into qualifying for one lap, and then back to long run for the race? That’s the ultimate question for Trackhouse, in my mind is, can we go fast? And if we can do that, can we execute? We can call strategy right. We’ll miss calls. All the little things, I think we can do really well, but it’s holding ourselves accountable to keep doing them well. I don’t just rest on what we’ve done, but you need to make sure we do the little things right.”

GOING OFF WITH THAT, DO YOU THINK YOU GUYS FOUND SOMETHING IN THE RECENT ENTIRE TEST AT NEW HAMPSHIRE?

“We found a lot of data. I can’t even imagine how much stuff they downloaded off that car over the course of more than 700 laps. I got to explore as a driver, I got through in all different feelings of Goodyear tires, and I know kind of what they’re going to settle on. So, yeah, learned a lot. Whether we can put that into action into speed, on race weekend, is to be determined.”

DO YOU THINK THAT DATA CAN TRANSFER OVER TO OTHER TRACKS?

“I don’t really know to be honest, I don’t understand how that works. I know what I need to go faster, feeling out of the car, but I’m not the one assembling them, bolting them together, making decisions for springs and shocks and geometry. I don’t know.”

CAN YOU TAKE ME BACK TO YOUR CUP DEBUT OR WHATEVER EARLY IN YOUR CAREER, THAT YOU WERE RACING AROUND SOMEBODY THAT WAS SOMEBODY YOU’D LOOKED UP TO AND IT WAS A SPECIAL MOMENT”

“I did. It was 2017 spring Dover, racing for Premium Motorsports, and partway through the race we were a lap down, and they were telling me just ride around the back. We’d put tires on, but they wanted me to just wait on the next caution or something. And I said, ‘the free pass is right in front of us’. And they’re like, ‘oh, yeah, go see if you can pass them’. And I went past Paul Menard for the free pass and got my lap back. We had better tires, but that kept us in a higher spot, and I think we finished 20th or 18th or something that day. So, passing him for the free pass was a big deal that stood out, and then racing around Dale Jr.”

MAYBE SOMEDAY, A NEW KID MAY BE RACING WITH YOU AND THE WAY THAT YOU FELT ABOUT DALE JR., THEY MAY FEEL THAT WAY ABOUT YOU.

“I hope they do. It means I’m doing something right. That means that I’m around for a long time, so I plan on this being still the early part of my career and being here for a long time.”

ANY BUSINESS OR JOB OR SPORT CAN BE A GRIND. THERE’S GOOD THINGS AND BAD THINGS ABOUT THAT. BUT WHEN YOU WANT TO BE THE ONE OUTWORK TO OUT GRIND, HOW CHALLENGING IS THAT, OBVIOUSLY NOT EVERYBODY NEEDS THAT CHALLENGE, SO HOW DO YOU KEEP YOURSELF GRINDING, BECAUSE THIS IS A TOUGH GAME?

“It’s not as tough as farming. I promise you that. There’s a lot of tougher jobs out there. This is not. I mean, this is not that difficult. If you show up and can go fast, and then do all the work off the track, you keep everybody happy, and do what is expected. Our farm name is JDI. It stands for just do it. It’s my dad’s life motto, and he has said it my whole life. And anytime anybody that works at the farm ever has a reason why they’re not going to do something, he says, just do it. There doesn’t have to be any more reason than that. He’s boss, the owner, so he gets to say that. And that’s my mentality for when I wake up every day if I question, ‘oh, I don’t know, I want to stay in bed today or I want to sleep in’. Alarm’s going off, get up, go do it.”

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST STRENGTH AND YOUR BIGGEST WEAKNESS ENTERING THE FINALS?

“The weakness is the question of, can we go fast? It is a simple question, and a really tough one to answer until we get on track, starting at Darlington. Then carrying it through week after week through these rounds. The best part, the biggest thing we good at is the little things and executing through the weekend and making the most out of our race on Sunday. We’re confident in that I’m going to continue to push that and not rest on what we’ve done in the past.”

WINNING CHARLOTTE IN MAY, WINNING THE COKE 600, WHERE DO YOU FEEL THAT YOU AND THE TEAM ARE AT RIGHT NOW COMPARED TO A COUPLE MONTHS AGO?

“We have the potential to pull on track at Darlington and have the same level of group that we had that Saturday. I felt it into the first corner, off pit road in practice and rolled down in turn three, and when I came off turn four, I felt right away that the car had grip and then it was up to me to go make lap time. If we have that feeling at Darlington and that balance in the car, it’s going to be a fun weekend.”

AFTER YOU WON AT CHARLOTTE, AND GOT IN (THE PLAYOFFS) DID YOU SAY I’M GOOD, I JUST HAVE TO JUST KEEP RACING AND GETTING BETTER AND YOU KNOW, ADD MORE PLAYOFF POINTS?

“Well, I’m not going to “hail melon” it, we know that. From there, it’s just a whole body of work, and go fast and get the points, it’s just that. It’s just every position’s a point, stage points, winning fixes everything in each round. So how fast can we go? That’s the big question.”

SHANE VAN GISBERGEN IS ONE OF THOSE QUESTION MARKS, AND HE WAS JUST SAYING A MINUTE AGO MAYBE PEOPLE ARE ALREADY STARTING TO COUNT US OUT. ARE THERE THINGS THAT YOU’VE SEEN IN HIS DEVELOPMENT ON THE OVALS THAT PLEASE YOU TO BELIEVE THAT, MAYBE NOT SO FAST?

“Yes. The gap from the 1 to the 88, on the ovals, has shrunk. If we’re fast, I expect him to be right there with us. He’s put the time in and learned the cars. You will always be better with more experience, but there’s enough there if Trackhouse performs the way we want to, we can make a lot of people wrong. And one of them won’t be me, I expect him to be right there with me wherever I’m at.”

EVERY TIME I’VE TALKED TO YOU, YOU’VE SEEM PRETTY CALM EVERY SINGLE SEASON. ARE YOU JUST HIDING THAT, OR ARE YOU?

“There are definite times where butterflies are flying a little more in the playoffs than they would have earlier in the summer.. The biggest mistake I’ve believe I’ve made is two. I’ve made one at Talladega where I tried to go four wide for stage points in the 2023 fall race. And then Roval, I believe, in ’22 or ’23, I wrecked by myself at the Roval. So, both of those stand out as unforced errors. I should have been off the gas, and I was on it, and I crashed. One cost me moving on and one I got away with. So usually, you don’t get away with those.”

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ABOUT DARLINGTON?

“It’s my favorite track. It’s just absolutely top of my list. Whenever I look at tracks that I want to win at, and I want to work to be better at, Darlington is it. I’ve been through an incredible learning process since I first drove on that track of how to drive it and getting a Cup win there is absolutely top of my list.”

AND IF YOU GOT IT, WHAT WOULD THAT MEAN?

“It would mean everything. I mean, it’s a life achievement, similar to winning the Coca Cola 600, but I put Darlington at the very top. So, any fall race, Southern 500 race, is what I will work a long time to win, whether that’s this year or sometime later in my career. I know when I get done, I’m going to put a full body of work into trying to win there, and whether we ever do it or not is to be determined. But short term, it would mean say at World Wide Technology Raceway and Bristol, I would be walking around a whole lot lighter than if we don’t.”

About General Motors

General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.

Garrett Smithley and SS-Greenlight Announce New Scheme for Portland Race!

Mooresville NC, Garrett Smithley and SS-Greenlight Racing in collaboration with Knight Fire Protection and Dozer Winch Parts are bringing a fresh look for this weekends Pacific Office Automation 147 at Portland International Raceway. The race which will take place on August 30th, is the home race for both Knight Fire & Dozer Winch Parts. Joining Dozer Winch & Knight Fire on the car are other Portland based companies PNW Cookie Company, Five Guys Excavating, and N8 Excavating. The race will be broadcast live on the CW Network at 7:30pm EST (Local time 4:30).

Team owner Bobby Dotter comments “It has been an honor to work with both Jack (Owner of Dozer Winch) and Randy (Owner of Knight Fire) this year. They have been a true asset to our team, so we are excited to celebrate their home race and have a great run out west.” He went on to say “Last weeks Top ten at Daytona was a massive accomplishment and we hope to build on that momentum this weekend.”

Garrett Smithley stated: “This weekend is a special one with Beth and Randy from BRK and Knight Fire protection being from Olympia and Jack from Dozer Winch being from Portland. They have been great partners for me and it will be a cool weekend with them and all of our supporters there.

To stay up to date with Both SS-Greenlight & Garrett Smithley Follow Us on Socials:

SS-Greenlight Racing:
TikTok: @ss_greenlight_racing
Instagram: @ssgreenlightracing
Twitter/X: @SSGLR0708
Facebook: SS-Greenlight Racing

Garrett Smithley:
TikTok: @garrettsmithley
Instagram: @garrettsmithley
Twitter/X: @GarrettSmithley
FaceBook: Garrett Smithley Racing

Wright Motorsports Takes on the Nürburgring

NÜRBURG, Germany. (August 27, 2025) – Two months after an impressive debut at the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa, Wright Motorsports returns to international competition this weekend, taking on the legendary Nürburgring for a three-hour endurance race in the GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS.

The Ohio-based team will once again showcase its global strength, entering the No. 120 Porsche 911 GT3 R in the highly competitive Gold Cup. Piloted by drivers Adam Adelson, Elliott Skeer, and Tom Sargent, the entry will be one of 10 cars battling for class honors, with 61 cars total spread across the PRO, Gold, Silver, and Bronze fields.

While the Nürburgring is best known for its 12.9-mile Nordschleife, the event will run on the GP Strecke, a challenging 15-turn, 3.199-mile layout that demands precision and consistency. The condensed format ensures constant action and tight battles throughout the grid, making strategy, pit execution, and pace critical for success.

The team arrives with momentum following their Spa debut, where they earned an impressive fourth-place debut result. Now, with valuable experience competing against Europe’s toughest GT3 field, Wright Motorsports aims to take another step forward on one of the sport’s most iconic stages.

The race will take place on Sunday, August 31st at 3:00 PM CEST, 9:00 AM Eastern, streaming live for free on the GT World YouTube Channel.

DRIVER QUOTES

Adam Adelson

I’m super excited to be racing in GTWC Europe again this year, especially at one of the most legendary tracks of the calendar. Just like at Spa, this race is about building experience and seeing how we stack up in the most competitive GT3 field in the world. Our performance at Spa gives me a lot of confidence about how we can perform at the Nürburgring, and now that Wright Motorsports has a European race under its belt, I think we’ll have a chance to do even better.

Elliott Skeer

Racing at the Ring is going to be an incredible experience, even if only the GP circuit. This will be a stressful but rewarding event, going into a pace we have never been before, but these are the experiences we’re ultimately after!

Tom Sargent

To be back with Wright Motorsport again after a long break, and to be doing GT World Challenge Europe at the Nürburgring is so exciting. We had such a good race at Spa in our European debut, and it will be nice to tackle a different style of racing at an equally famous racetrack. It will be tough not having previous laps here, but we all welcome the challenge.

Wright Motorsports

Wright Motorsports is a championship-winning Porsche customer racing team based in Batavia, Ohio, with a proven legacy in North American sports car racing. Over the last two decades, the team has become synonymous with professionalism, precision, and performance, competing in top-tier series including the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, SRO Fanatec GT World Challenge America, Porsche Carrera Cup North America, and more. With an unwavering commitment to excellence, Wright Motorsports offers full-service race programs, driver development, and technical expertise to amateur and professional drivers alike. The team continues to grow its presence across North America and beyond while laying the foundation for future innovation in motorsport engineering and vehicle development.

CHEVROLET NCS PLAYOFF MEDIA DAY: Alex Bowman Media Availability Quotes

NASCAR CUP SERIES
2025 PLAYOFF MEDIA DAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
AUGUST 27, 2025

Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, met with the media in advance of the start of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

Media Availability Quotes:

What was going through your mind the last few laps (Saturday)? Because you’re watching on TV the back-and-forth, back-and-forth, who’s in, who’s out, and you’re sitting there watching the whole thing.

“Nerve-wracking for sure, but at the same time everything that we’ve been able to do this summer and as strong as we’ve been able to run… obviously you want to be in the playoffs, but when it’s that much out of your control and there’s nothing you can do, you also can’t let it absolutely ruin your year if something outside of your control happens. So that was kind of the mindset going down and kind of the mindset that we carried through that.”

Do you feel relieved now or more stressed?

“I would say I feel the same. It’s not really a relief because you have to go get right back to work. It’s the same high-pressure situation that we were in before. We really need to go perform each and every week.

Do you think you have something to prove?

“Yes and no. Obviously it would be amazing to go win a championship. And I feel like we’ve got a race team that can definitely contend right now. We’re going to do all we can to make it happen. But I don’t drive race cars to prove anything to anybody anymore. I’m here to do my job for Hendrick Motorsports and to go perform at a high level every week.”

You said going in that you were stressed. Is that the most mentally and physically just wrapped up that you’ve ever been?

No, I mean, mentally it was a lot to sit there, right? It’s a very uncomfortable situation and your anxiety and stress is spiked through the roof at that point. But past that, it kind of was what it was. It was just so much out of your control. The last couple of laps, there was so much going on… our teammates were leading and then they got shuffled back and then the 12 was in the picture. With all that going on, it was such a range of emotions that that kind of made it probably a lot more so than just one non-winner leading the whole time. That kind of made it up and down. It was a weird thing to sit through.”

Given the uncertainty of the last few weeks, have you and the team prepared as if you were going to be in the playoffs?

“I don’t think anything changes. You’re preparing at a high level for the last eight months and continuing to prepare at a high level for this week the same as we did last week and the week before. So while it’s certainly not like a ramp up, because we’re already there, we’re just kind of going to work… business as usual.”

What about Darlington? How do you look at that race?

“Yeah, it’d be nice to win, but it hasn’t been the best place for me. We’ve been pretty hit and miss there. I think we were running eighth or ninth last spring, and I hit the fence and broke a toe link, so got to avoid that, right? That’s the biggest thing about Darlington for me is just avoiding mistakes and racing the racetrack and kind of letting the rest happen. If we can just put together solid weeks through this first round, we should be okay.”

Do you think part of it is not being overzealous? You know, that adrenaline kicks in, it’s the first race of the playoffs…

“Darlington’s an easy place to make mistakes. It’s such a long night, a lot of opportunities for mistakes, a high-risk level racetrack in general. So trying to limit those is definitely important.

What feels like your biggest strength and your biggest weakness heading into the playoffs.

“The biggest strength is the momentum that we have behind us… the year that we’ve been able to put together, the speed that we’ve had at some racetracks that I’ve been pretty bad at before. At Homestead, we’ve never been good and we almost won. Richmond, we’ve been pretty bad with the Next-Gen car and we were strong there. So I think that shows me that we can go to places that we haven’t been good at before and be really strong. The lack of playoff points is probably our biggest weakness, but the field’s pretty wide open.”

Inaudible.

“I feel like that has been our baseline throughout the year. That’s where we started the year. We were pretty good on points, then we crashed for like two months straight and then kind of got back to it. I felt like our team had a lot of growth going into the playoffs last year and got a lot better. Just knowing that we can do it. Obviously the DQ (in 2024 at Charlotte) was unfortunate, but we were able to execute at a high level the next week when we went to Vegas and contended for the win there. So it didn’t shut us down by any means and we have to continue to work hard.”

Do you feel like you guys are in a better position this year to go out and take a run around the last year?

“We have momentum going into the playoffs, which we’ve never really had before. So I do think we’re in a better position. The lack of playoff points is tough, but we’ll continue working hard at it.”

If you had to pick one element that is the most important going into this first round, what would that be.

“Consistency, just continuing to execute through these first three races, right? It’s three tough racetracks where a lot can happen. And, really, I think you can ‘consistency’ your way to the Round of Eight pretty solidly. Past that, you’ve got to win races. But, yeah, I think continuing to do what we’ve been doing.”

About General Motors

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