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Spire Motorsports Southern 500 Race Advance

By
Official Release
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  • In 31 previous NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, Spire Motorsports has one top-five and four top-10 finishes. Carson Hocevar earned the team’s best result at Darlington with a fourth-place effort in March. Spire Motorsports fields the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the Cup Series with Daniel Suárez, Michael McDowell and Hocevar, respectively.
  • For the first time since the organization’s inception in 2018, Spire Motorsports’ NASCAR Cup Series team will compete in the sport’s 10-race championship playoff format, The Chase. Suárez and Hocevar begin The Chase seeded 11th and 12th in points, respectively.
  • The Southern 500 will be televised live on USA Network Sunday, Sept. 6 beginning at 5 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The 27th of 36 points-paying races on the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series calendar will also be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Daniel Suárez – Driver, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

  • Daniel Suárez will pilot Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Sunday’s Southern 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway.
  • Freeway Insurance was established in 1987 and is one of the largest and fastest-growing personal lines insurance brokers in the United States, offering coverage through a “click, call, or come in” approach that connects customers nationwide. The company continually researches, grows, and diversifies its product offerings to stay responsive to the evolving insurance market. Freeway provides a wide range of options—from basic to premium coverage—in auto, truck, commercial vehicle, homeowners, renters, small business, motorcycle, recreational vehicle, fire, and flood insurance. In 2008, Freeway Insurance became part of Confie, the nation’s leading personal lines insurance distribution company. Customers can access Freeway Insurance through neighborhood offices, online at www.freeway.com, or by calling (800) 300-0227.
  • Suárez finished second in Saturday’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway to earn his third top-five finish of the season and secure top-finishing bragging rights amongst his Team Chevy stablemates. He also scored three stage points by finishing eighth in Stage 2 and briefly held the lead before being scored second at the checkered flag.
  • Sunday’s annual Labor Day Weekend classic at Darlington kicks off The Chase, NASCAR’s 10-race playoff format to determine the Cup Series’ 2026 champion. After NASCAR re-seeded the points for the 16 drivers who are eligible to compete for the title, Suárez sits 11th with 2,025 points, 75 markers behind the leader. He enters the postseason with one win, three top-five, seven top-10 and 21 top-20 finishes. The 34-year-old driver carries a 14.4 average start and a 14.7 average finish through the first 26 races of the season.
  • The Monterrey, Mexico native finished 10th in points in 2022 after making it to the Round of 8 in the previous iteration of NASCAR’s playoffs. He returned to the playoffs in 2024 but was sidelined from championship contention following the Round of 12.
  • Suárez’s best Darlington finish came in March, when he came home seventh. In 17 career starts at the venerable South Carolina speedway, the 34-year-old driver has two top 10s, seven top 20s and led one lap. He holds an average starting position of 21.4 and an average finishing position of 22.1. Last Fall, he started 17th but was involved in an early crash and relegated to a 25th-place result.
  • In NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series competition, Suárez has recorded two Darlington starts (2015-2016) where he finished third both times.
  • Suárez is a veteran of 349 Cup Series starts and earned three wins, 27 top fives and 82 top-10s in NASCAR’s premier division. He’s led 947 laps and earned three poles since 2017. Suárez has collected checkered flags at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway (2022), Atlanta Motor Speedway (2024) and Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (2026).

Daniel Suárez Quote
How are you feeling heading into Darlington?
“I’m really proud of my team and the work we’ve put in to get to this point. To start The Chase at Darlington, we have some good notes from the spring and a solid notebook to build from. The night race is always a lot of fun and I’m really looking forward to seeing how the track changes as the sun goes down. It’s supposed to be pretty hot, so I think the track is going to be tough on tires, which will make tire management a priority. Hopefully, we can take what we learned in the spring, make the right adjustments throughout the night, and put ourselves in a good position to start The Chase strong.”

Ryan Sparks – Crew Chief, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

  • Ryan Sparks is the Crew Chief of Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 with driver Daniel Suárez in the NASCAR Cup Series.
  • Sparks will call his first Chase race at Darlington as he and the No. 7 team begin their pursuit of the NASCAR Cup Series championship. Sparks’ best finish at the South Carolina track came this spring, when he guided Suárez to a seventh-place finish. He has called 13 Darlington races in NASCAR’s premier division.
  • The Winston-Salem, N.C., native has called 228 NASCAR Cup Series races, earning one win, seven top-five and 17 top-10 finishes since making his Cup Series debut atop the pit box in 2020.
  • Sparks joined Spire Motorsports in 2021, where he served as both Crew Chief and Competition Director, leading the organization’s competitive and technical efforts. In 2026, Sparks serves in a singular role as Crew Chief for Suárez. He brings more than a decade of experience across all three of NASCAR’s national touring series, highlighted by 13 seasons at Richard Childress Racing and contributions to title-winning campaigns in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (2011) and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (2013).

Michael McDowell – Driver, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

  • Michael McDowell will pilot Spire Motorsports’ No. 71 Delaware Life Chevrolet ZL1 in Sunday’s Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.
  • Delaware Life is an insurance and annuity company that empowers financial professionals with a wide array of customizable solutions. A subsidiary of Group 1001 Insurance Holdings LLC, Delaware Life focuses on delivering a seamless experience for advisors. The company understands how important it is to find the right fit for every client, every situation and every individual need. Delaware Life is passionate about equipping advisors with annuities that give their customers peace of mind and a successful future, allowing them to plan with confidence for whatever’s next.
  • McDowell has earned three top-10 finishes in 22 career Cup Series starts at the “Lady in Black”. Meanwhile, the two-time race winner has registered eight top-20 finishes at the iconic 1.33-mile South Carolina venue.
  • In the Cup Series’ most recent visit to Darlington, McDowell raced his No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet to a 20th-place finish.
  • The Glendale, Ariz. native, earned back-to-back of top-10 finishes in 2022, when he came home seventh in the spring, and sixth that summer.
  • Last weekend at Daytona International Speedway, the 2021 Daytona 500 Champion finished fourth, marking his third top-five finish of the 2026 season. With that effort, McDowell matched his previous total number of top fives in a single season (2025).
  • In 26 races this year, the 19-year Cup Series veteran has led 24 laps and logged three top-five and six top-10 finishes. He’s recorded a 16.3 average start, an 18.8 average finish and currently sits 20th in points.

Michael McDowell Quote
How do you maximize the momentum from Daytona heading into The Chase as a driver who is not eligible for the title?
“Daytona was a much-needed result for us. The last few weeks have been tough and we aren’t exactly where we want to be this season. Regardless, having two of our Spire Motorsports Chevrolets locked into The Chase is huge for us as an organization. Our No. 71 team wants to win, and that is still our goal while we keep building our notebook and focus on quality results that we can use as building blocks for next season. Darlington, especially the Southern 500, is such a fun race. Managing tires, running the wall, and watching the track transition from day to night makes for a great weekend all the way around. Hopefully, we can carry the momentum from last weekend into the final stretch of the season and finish 2026 strong.”

Travis Peterson – Crew Chief, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

  • Travis Peterson serves as the Crew Chief for driver Michael McDowell and Spire Motorsports’ No. 71 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the NASCAR Cup Series.
  • Across 138 starts serving in the Crew Chief role, Peterson has called eight poles, one win, nine top-five and 28 top-10 finishes.
  • The Peterson/McDowell combination previously worked together at Front Row Motorsports where they posted a 10th-place finish in the 2024 Goodyear 400.
  • Peterson was part of Chase Elliott’s 2014 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Darlington win in April of that season while working as a race engineer for JR Motorsports. The victory came one week removed from Elliott’s first series victory at Texas Motor Speedway and seven months prior to clinching the division’s 2014 championship.
  • The 35-year-old is a 2012 graduate of the Williams States Lee College of Engineering at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering.

Carson Hocevar – Driver, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

  • Carson Hocevar will race Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 Spectrum Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Sunday’s Southern 500, the first of 10 races in The Chase.
  • Spectrum is a suite of advanced communications services offered by Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR), a leading broadband connectivity company available to 58 million homes and small to large businesses across 41 states. Founded in 1993, Charter has evolved from providing cable TV to streaming, and from high-speed Internet to a converged broadband, WiFi and mobile experience. Over the Spectrum Fiber Broadband Network and supported by our 100 percent U.S.-based employees, the Company offers Seamless Connectivity and Entertainment with Spectrum Internet®, Mobile, TV and Voice products. More information can be found at corporate.charter.com.
  • Hocevar and the No. 77 team, along with teammate Daniel Suarez and the No. 7 team, will compete for 2026 championship honors. The opportunity marks the first appearance in The Chase for Hocevar and the first time a Spire Motorsports team will compete for a Cup Series title. The team kicks off the 10-race championship contest 12th in the standings, five points behind 11th.
  • Through 26 races, the Portage, Mich., native has already set career-highs in multiple categories:
  • Season-to-date results of one win, five top fives, nine top 10s
  • 157 laps led
  • 673 points scored
  • 12.2 average start
  • 16.7 average finish
  • The 23-year-old driver has been one of the most improved on the circuit throughout the 2026 campaign. The team’s average starting and finishing positions have each improved by over five spots compared to this point in 2025. Hocevar is on pace to improve his average finish by 4.9 positions at the end of the season while his 12th position in the series’ points is an 11-position improvement compared to the end of 2025.
  • In the series’ last visit to Darlington Raceway this spring, Hocevar was forced to start at the tail of the field following right-rear suspension repairs Sunday morning, which stemmed from an incident in Saturday afternoon’s practice session. Despite falling one lap down to the leaders in Stage 1, he kept his elbows up, raced his way through the field and restarted the final 100-lap segment 19th in the running order. After a spirited charge up the leaderboard, Hocevar passed seven cars over the final 25 laps to secure an impressive fourth-place finish. He gained 32 positions from the drop of the green flag, the most of any driver in the field, earning the best result for the Chevrolet camp and leading the field with 128 green-flag passes.
  • In six career NASCAR Cup Series Starts at the iconic egg-shaped oval, Hocevar owns one top-five and two top-10 finishes, including a venue-best fourth-place finish (April 2026). He also adds five CRAFTSMAN Truck Series races – collecting three top fives – and a lone O’Reilly Auto Parts Series start – a sixth-place result during his series debut in 2023.
  • The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year hit the ground running at “The Track Too Tough to Tame.” In his first Cup Series start at Darlington in the 2023 Southern 500, he qualified 15th and finished 17th in a race that marked just his second start in NASCAR’s premier division. He returned in 2024 with Spire Motorsports and qualified on the outside pole to become the youngest driver to start on the front row at the legendary facility.
  • Hocevar registered his first-career victory earlier this season at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. He survived a late-race restart with three laps remaining and brought home the checkered flag to register Spire Motorsports’ second Cup Series win and first since the 2019 Coke Zero Sugar 400.

Carson Hocevar Quotes
With The Chase officially under way, does your mindset shift, at all, heading to Darlington and the final 10 races of the season?
“I don’t think anything changes for us. We just get to enjoy it. It is Spire Motorsports’ first time as a part of The Chase, and we’ve got two of us in it. Us and the over 200 employees at Spire get to enjoy, have fun on the journey, and get to go racing for a championship. We are approaching it as we would any other race. Luke (Lambert, crew chief) has a lot of experience in The Chase, and so does Matt McCall (Cup Series Competition Director). No one expected Ryan Newman to make it all the way to Homestead and have a chance in 2014, but they were there, they were competitive, and they did it all with consistency. In that time, the format didn’t reward consistency, and now it does. That’s how we are going to look at it, and we will see how the chips fall while playing the hands we are dealt each week.”

Does the Southern 500 have an atmosphere comparable to the other crown jewel events?
“For me it does. I enjoy it. First off, I love to rip the fence at Darlington. Then as the run goes on, you really struggle as the tires wear out and you are just trying to hang on. A lot of my friends go to that one just because of the eye candy of the track. You have the old school feel, but you add in the sunset throughout the opening portion of the race, then pure under-the-lights racing for the second half. I think the track suits the nighttime racing more than the daytime, and the place always gets packed out for this one.”

Luke Lambert – Crew Chief, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

  • Luke Lambert is the crew chief of Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the NASCAR Cup Series with driver Carson Hocevar.
  • Lambert is in his third season at Spire Motorsports and fourth with Hocevar. The duo has logged two pole awards, one win, eight top-five and 24 top-10 finishes in 106 races.
  • The 16-year veteran crew chief has led his team to the NASCAR Cup Series postseason for the fourth time, and first since 2017 with Ryan Newman and Richard Childress Racing’s No. 31 team. A runner-up finish in the 2014 point standings is a career-best for Lambert.
  • The North Carolina State University graduate has called 19 NASCAR Cup Series events at Darlington, earning seven top 10s, most recently with Hocevar in the 2026 Goodyear 400. He tacks on a trio of top-10 results between 2007-2010 as a race engineer for Jeff Burton during his time at Richard Childress Racing.
  • The Mount Airy, N.C., native led Noah Gragson to Victory Lane at “The Lady in Black” in September 2022. Gragson led 82 of the event’s 147 laps but was running third when the field took the white flag. He survived a thrilling finish with Sheldon Creed and Kyle Larson, passing both drivers in Turns 3 and 4.

About Spire Motorsports …
Spire Motorsports fields full-time entries in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing.

The team, co-owned by longtime NASCAR industry executive Jeff Dickerson and TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss, earned its inaugural NASCAR Cup Series victory in its first full season of competition when Justin Haley took the checkered flag in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway July 7, 2019. Less than three years later, William Byron drove Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado its first NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win April 7, 2022, at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The team’s most recent victory came May 24, 2026, when Daniel Suárez won the NASCAR Cup Series’ Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway.

In 2026, Spire Motorsports campaigns the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NASCAR Cup Series and the Nos. 7 and 77 Chevrolet Silverado RSTs in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The Mooresville, N.C., organization also fields the No. 77 410 sprint car in Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing competition.

AS INDY’S BIGGEST WINNER, TONY SCHUMACHER LOOKS FOR TURNAROUND AT CORNWELL QUALITY TOOLS NHRA U.S. NATIONALS

By
Official Release
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INDIANAPOLIS (Sept. 1, 2026) – The season has not gone as planned thus far for Top Fuel standout Tony Schumacher. But all of that can change in an instant at this weekend’s prestigious 72nd annual Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.

It’s a race that helped shape Schumacher’s legacy of the winningest and most successful Top Fuel driver in NHRA history. As NHRA celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2026, Schumacher’s incredible success is a big part of it, from his eight world championships to his remarkable 10 victories at The Big Go.

It is the most in NHRA history, as one of the sport’s biggest stars has shined the brightest on the sport’s biggest stage.

Which goes back to how quickly Schumacher could turn around a season that’s had its share of rough moments. Currently 12th in points in the loaded Top Fuel ranks in his 12,000-horsepower American Communications Construction dragster for Rick Ware Racing, Schumacher and his team are eager to get their season on track. An 11th Indy victory would unquestionably do the trick.

“I’ve been here in this position before where it just wasn’t quite right and you’re one decision or one little thing away from going fast,” Schumacher said. “We’ll get there and we’ve got a lot of smart guys on this team who have won a lot of races. We’ll get it figured out.

“I don’t have another thought process but going and winning Indy. We tested after Brainerd and the car ran well. We made some big changes, but we’re walking into (Indy) thinking we can win this race.”

Last year’s Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals saw Austin Prock (Funny Car), Justin Ashley (Top Fuel), Erica Enders (Pro Stock) and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) win the world’s biggest drag race. This year’s event will once again be broadcast on FS1 with qualifying and the NHRA Funny Car All-Star Callout throughout the weekend. Monday’s eliminations will be broadcast on FOX beginning at 2 p.m. ET.

It is the last of 14 races in the Mission Foods Drag Racing Series regular season, with the six-race Countdown to the Championship playoffs right around the corner. An epic U.S. Nationals is on tap as well, with special 75th anniversary highlights including:

  • Appearances from NHRA legends Don Garlits, Don Prudhomme, Kenny Bernstein, Joe Amato, Shirley Muldowney, Larry Dixon, Darrell Gwynn and many more.
  • A celebration of NHRA’s 75-year history with exhibition runs on Friday and Sunday from the classic Rat Trap and Bradford’s Fiat nitro Fuel Altereds.
  • Plus, push-start cackle cars on Friday and Sunday driven by NHRA legends.
  • The Sox & Martin Hemi Challenge returns as the longest-running continuous specialty race in NHRA history, featuring exciting heads-up, wheelstanding, and side-by-side racing of Hemi-powered ’68 Super Stock Dodge Darts and Plymouth Barracudas competing in the NHRA SS/AH class.
  • Free parking for all fans in attendance for the entire weekend.
  • Night qualifying on Friday, the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge on Saturday and the PlayNHRA Funny Car All-Star Callout on Sunday before Labor Day raceday.

Schumacher knows plenty about surreal moments at Indy. His Top Fuel debut came at The Big Go in 1996, advancing to the final round after qualifying 16th in the field, just seven days after getting his license.

His first Indy win came in 2000, signaling a run of dominance on drag racing’s grandest stage. He won eight times during that decade, with Schumacher’s most recent Indy victory coming in 2026. An 11th U.S. Nationals victory would do wonders for a team and a season that’s included just four round wins through 13 races.

Schumacher will also have to take on the lights of points leader and reigning world champ Doug Kalitta, who has won three straight races in 2026, Shawn Langdon, Tony Stewart, Leah Pruett, Antron Brown, Ashley and rookie sensation Maddi Gordon.

But Schumacher knows a bit about Indy magic and never counts out the possibility of it happening again.

“This is my 30th year of racing at Indy and it’s such a special place,” said Schumacher, who has an unprecedented 88 career Top Fuel victories. “It’s done some special things for me. This is where it started.

“A lot guys on my team are very young and I hope they understand this is part of the journey. If it wasn’t so frustrating at times, the wins wouldn’t be so amazing. The car went down the track three times in a row during testing (in Brainerd) and it went fast, so we’re encouraged by that.”

Funny Car’s Prock swept Indy last year, winning the race, the Callout and the regular season championship. This year, Matt Hagan leads the points, but only 22 points separate him from the next three drivers – Jordan Vandergriff, Ron Capps and J.R. Todd – in what will be an epic showdown at The Big Go.

Six-time Pro Stock world champion Erica Enders won for the fourth time at Indy last year, getting her 50th career victory with a win over Matt Hartford. Dallas Glenn earned the regular season championship and went on to secure his first world title. With four wins, Greg Anderson currently has the points lead in the talent-heavy class.

Two-time Pro Stock Motorcycle champ Gaige Herrera rolled to his second straight win at The Big Go by defeating Brayden Davis last year. Teammate and reigning champ Richard Gadson leads the points, while others to watch include Matt and Angie Smith, Steve Johnson, Ryan Oehler, Jianna Evaristo, John Hall and Chase Van Sant.

Also competing will be drivers in the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, JBS Equipment NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by Elite Motorsports, NHRA Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown and Right Trailers Outlaw Street.

As always, fans get an exclusive pit pass to the most powerful and sensory-filled motorsports attraction on the planet. 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 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 one round at 6:15 p.m. ET on Friday, Sept. 4, two rounds at 12:30 and 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Sept. 5 and the final two rounds of qualifying on Sunday, Sept. 6 at 12 and 2:45 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 10 a.m. ET on Monday, Sept 7.

Television coverage includes qualifying action on FS1 at 3 and 10:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, and eliminations at 12 p.m. on FS1 on Monday, shifting to FOX at 2 p.m.

To purchase tickets to the 72nd annual Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals, fans can visit www.NHRA.com/tickets. Children 12 and under are admitted free. For more information about NHRA, 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 JBS Equipment NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by Elite Motorsports and NHRA Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown™ 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 more than 100 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 visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

ARCA Menards Series at DuQuoin State Fairgrounds: Audubon Park 100 Pre-race Note

By
Official Release
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  • The ARCA Menards Series returns to the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds for the second and final dirt race of the season in Sunday’s Audubon Park 100. The race will also serve as the second round of the Audubon Park Dirt Double; if Springfield winner Max Reaves (No. 18 Cook Out Toyota) wins the race, he will earn a $20,000 bonus for sweeping both races.
  • The battle for the ARCA Menards Series championship remains tight with four races remaining, as Jake Bollman (No. 20 Nitro Motorsports Toyota) added one point to his lead over Thomas Annunziata (No. 70 JBL Audio Toyota) at Madison International Speedway, where Bollman finished fourth and Annunziata finished fifth. Annunziata had the upper hand the last time the two raced on dirt; he finished third at Springfield and Bollman was sixth.
  • Reaves will be hunting for his fourth win of the season. His Joe Gibbs Racing team has won seven times so far in 2026, four with Gio Ruggiero – Daytona International Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway, Michigan International Speedway, and Pocono Raceway – and three with Reaves – Berlin Raceway, Elko Speedway, and the last dirt race at Springfield. The JGR team has opened a 27-point lead over the Pinnacle Racing Group No. 28 team in the ARCA Menards Series owner points standings.
  • The Pinnacle Racing Group organization heads into DuQuoin fresh off a 1-2 finish in the most recent series race at Madison International Speedway. Tristan McKee, who is not entered at DuQuoin, scored his third win of the season; this weekend dirt track specialist Taylor Reimer (No. 77 Buzzballs Chevrolet) takes the wheel alongside Carson Brown (No. 28 Klean Freak Chevrolet), who won earlier this season at Phoenix Raceway. Reimer finished fourth at Springfield after racing from the back of the field due to a mid-race restart violation, while Brown finished 13th after an unscheduled pit stop late in the race; he finished second behind McKee at Madison.
  • Gavan Boschele (No. 25 Toyota Racing Toyota) returns for the first time since his fifth-place finish at Springfield; Boschele was battling for the victory with Reaves when he spun entering turn one on lap 98, just two laps shy of the finish. Boschele has six top-five finishes in eight starts in 2026, including a career-best second at Pocono Raceway in June.
  • Previous ARCA Menards Series winners at Madison International Speedway include Ramo Stott (1970), Tom Bowsher (1971), Bruce Gould (1973), Alex Bowman (2011), Chris Buescher (2012), Kyle Benjamin (2013), Justin Boston (2014), Josh Williams (2016), Austin Theriault (2017), Chandler Smith (2018, 2019), and Max Reaves (2025).
  • Isaac Kitzmiller (No. 79 A.L.L. Construction / Carter CAT Chevrolet) had only raced on dirt a handful of times before his second-place finish in the series’ last dirt race at Springfield. Despite the lack of experience, Kitzmiller was able to set a career-best with his runner-up finish, and combined with a sixth-place finish at Madison last Friday continues a streak of top-ten finishes to five straight starts.
  • Tim Monroe (No. 10 Mark Rumbold Farms Ford) finished fifth last season at DuQuoin, his best career finish in 43 series starts. Monroe is coming in to DuQuoin off his eighth career top-ten finish, a ninth-place effort in his most recent start at Springfield.
  • Chase Howard (No. 80 Two Fellas Moving Chevrolet) and Michael Maples (No. 99 Maples Motorsports Chevrolet) are both looking for their second career top-ten finishes and first since last year at DuQuoin. Howard finished seventh and Maples was ninth in last year’s race.
  • The Audubon Park 100 also serves as the final round of the 2026 CGS Imaging Four Crown championship, encompassing races on each of the four types of tracks the ARCA Menards Series races on: superspeedways, short tracks, road courses, and dirt tracks. This season’s CGS Imaging Four Crown races were at Talladega Superspeedway, won by Gio Ruggiero, Toledo Speedway, won by Tristan McKee, and Watkins Glen International, won by Kaden Honeycutt. Ryan Vargas (No. 91 Castle Pack Power Products Chevrolet) leads Takuma Koga (No. 12 Ikedo/Fast Track Racing Toyota) by 19 points heading into Sunday’s final round at DuQuoin.
  • Should Reaves not earn the $20,000 Audubon Park Dirt Double bonus by winning, the driver with the best average finish in both dirt races will take home $7,500, the driver with the second-best average finish will take home $5,000, and the driver with the third-best average finish will score $2,500. Reigning series champion Brenden Queen took home the 2025 bonus with a 2.5 average finish; he was fourth at Springfield and won at DuQuoin. Kelly Kovski and Lavar Scott also scored bonus money in 2025. The last driver to win both dirt races in the same season was Parker Kligerman in 2009.
  • Sheldon Creed holds the ARCA Menards Series track qualifying record at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds, set in 2018, at 31.804 seconds/113.190 miles per hour.
  • Christian Eckes holds the ARCA Menards Series track race record at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds, set in 2019, at 92.119 miles per hour.
  • Previous ARCA Menards Series winners at DuQuoin include Jerry Unser (1957), Jimmy Bryan (1957), Fred Lorenzen (1958, 1959), Den Roper (1983, 1986, 1987, 1994), David Goldsberry (1984), Lee Raymond (1985), Bob Keselowski (1988, 1989), Bob Brevak (1990), Bob Schacht (1992), Billy Thomas (1993, 1997, 1998, 2000), Bob Hill (1995, 1996), Jeff Finley (1999), Frank Kimmel (2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2008), Tony Stewart (2004), Ken Schrader (2006, 2007, 2013), Parker Kligerman (2009), Steve Arpin (2010), Chris Buescher (2011), Grant Enfinger (2014, 2015), Tom Hessert III (2016), Austin Theriault (2017), Logan Seavey (2018), Christian Eckes (2019), Landen Lewis (2021), Ryan Unzicker (2022), Jesse Love (2023), Brent Crews (2024), and Brenden Queen (2025).
  • Races at DuQuoin from 1984 through 1990 were scheduled for 200 laps / 200 miles. The 1984 race, won by David Goldsberry, took 3 hours, 22 minutes, and 38 second to complete, the second-longest race in the series’ modern era; the only race that took longer to complete was the 1986 race at St. Louis International Raceway at 3 hours and 29 minutes
  • Any restarts within the final 10 laps or overtime will be single file.
  • ARCA Menards Series races at DuQuoin have been extended into overtime on 14 previous occasions, including each of the last two years. Should the race be extended into overtime, there will be unlimited attempts at a two-lap “green-white-checkered” finish. Should the caution be displayed after the white flag has been shown, there will be unlimited attempts at a one-lap “green and white together” finish.
  • The Audubon Park 100 is set for 8:30 pm ET / 7:30 pm CT on Sunday, September 6. The race will be televised live on FS1. Live timing & scoring data and live race audio will be available on ARCARacing.com; for up-to-the-minute updates please follow @ARCA_Racing on X (formerly known as Twitter).

About ARCA 
The Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA), founded in 1953 by John and Mildred Marcum in Toledo, Ohio, and acquired by NASCAR in April 2018, is the leading grassroots stock car sanctioning body in the United States. Bridging the gap between NASCAR’s top three national touring series and weekly and regional tour racing all across the country, the organization sanctions over 100 races per year in the ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East, ARCA Menards Series West, ASA STARS National Tour, ASA CRA Super Series, ASA Midwest Tour, ASA Southern Super Series plus weekly racing at Toledo and Flat Rock Speedways. For more information about ARCA visit www.arcaracing.com, or follow ARCA on Facebook (@ARCARacing) and Twitter (@ARCA_Racing). 

About Menards
A family-owned and run company started in 1958, Menards is recognized as the retail home center leader of the Midwest with 236 stores in 15 states.  Menards is truly a one-stop shop for all of your home improvement needs featuring a full-service lumberyard and everything you need to plan a renovation or build a home, garage, cabin, shed, deck, fence or post frame building.  You’ll find a large selection of lumber, roofing, siding, construction blocks, trusses, doors and windows, plus cabinets, appliances, countertops, flooring, lighting, paint, plumbing supplies and more.  To complete the job, Menards has quality hand tools, power tools, fasteners, electrical tools plus storage options and supplies for everyone from the weekend warrior to the pro!
 
Menards has what you need to complete your outdoor projects and keep your yard in tip-top shape including mowers, trimmers, blowers, pressure washers and more, plus a beautiful garden center stocked with plants, shrubs, trees, landscaping tools, grass seed, fertilizer options, outdoor décor and patio furniture.  Menards also has everyday essentials like health & beauty products, housewares, pet and wildlife supplies, automotive items and even groceries.  And at Christmas, an Enchanted Forest display area with impressive trees, lighting, decorations, ornaments, inflatables and more. 
Menards is known for friendly Customer Service and as the place to “Save Big Money” with low prices every day, and sales too!  For more information, please visit Menards.com to learn about our store locations, offerings and services.

J.D. Steel to Make NASCAR Debut with Ryan Ellis and Young’s Motorsports at Darlington Raceway

By
Official Release
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MOORESVILLE, N.C.: With the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series regular season in the rearview mirror, Ryan Ellis and Young’s Motorsports are shifting into the final stretch of the year with a new partner joining the No. 02 Chevrolet for Saturday night’s Fleetio 200 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

J.D. Steel Co. Inc., a respected provider of steel installation and erection services, will support Ellis and the Young’s Motorsports No. 02 Chevrolet at the legendary South Carolina facility famously known as “The Track Too Tough to Tame.”

Founded in Phoenix, Arizona, in 1970, J.D. Steel has grown from a small operation into an employee-owned company with a nationwide presence.

For more than five decades, the company has built its reputation on safety, craftsmanship, integrity and customer satisfaction while completing projects of all sizes with professionalism and precision.

The addition of J.D. Steel further expands the roster of companies aligned with Ellis and Young’s Motorsports during the 2026 season.

Throughout the Darlington race weekend, J.D. Steel branding will be carried aboard Ellis’ No. 02 Chevrolet.

The collaboration continues the team’s efforts to welcome new companies into NASCAR and help them build connections with the sport’s passionate and loyal fan base.

“We’re incredibly proud to welcome J.D. Steel to our program and to NASCAR at Darlington Raceway,” said Ellis.

“Their company has been built over more than five decades through hard work, attention to detail and a commitment to its people, and those are qualities that resonate strongly with our team.

“Darlington is one of the most historic and demanding tracks on the schedule, which makes it a special place to begin this relationship. I’m looking forward to representing everyone at J.D. Steel and hopefully giving them a strong performance and a memorable first experience in the sport.”

For J.D. Steel, supporting Ellis and Young’s Motorsports provides a high-profile introduction to NASCAR while showcasing the company’s employee-owned culture, nationwide capabilities and commitment to quality.

The relationship brings together two performance-driven industries where preparation, teamwork, precision and an unwavering commitment to safety are essential to achieving success.

“J.D. Steel is proud to partner with veteran driver Ryan Ellis for Saturday’s Fleetio 200 at Darlington Raceway,” said Scott Hamilton, president of the J.D. Steel Family of Companies.

“Since our founding in Phoenix in 1970, we have grown from a company focused on the safe and efficient installation of concrete-reinforcing steel into a nationally recognized leader in reinforcing and structural steel services.

“For more than five decades, we have built our reputation on quality, safety, professionalism and strong relationships with our customers and employees.

“Those same values of experience, teamwork and dedication make supporting Ryan a natural fit for J.D. Steel. We are proud to have him representing our company and look forward to cheering him on at Darlington.”

With the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season entering its final stretch, Ellis will make his 12th career start at Darlington Raceway in Saturday night’s Fleetio 200.

In 11 previous appearances at Darlington Raceway, the Ashburn, Va., native earned a track-best 16th-place finish during his third series start at the 1.366-mile egg-shaped oval in the 2021 Steakhouse Elite 200 while competing for B.J. McLeod Motorsports.

Recent competitive performances and continued hard work at the team’s race shop in Mooresville, N.C., have highlighted the improving strength of the No. 02 J.D. Steel Chevrolet program. Ellis and Young’s Motorsports will enter Darlington focused on turning those gains into another top-10 finish before the season concludes.

The results have reinforced the organization’s belief in the program’s direction. Team principal Tyler Young credits the progress to the preparation, collaboration, determination and never-give-up attitude demonstrated throughout Young’s Motorsports.

“Everyone at Young’s Motorsports has continued to put in the work and remain committed to making this program better,” said Young.

“We have faced challenges along the way, but nobody at the race shop has backed down or stopped pushing. The gains we’re seeing on the racetrack are a direct reflection of that effort.

“Darlington is one of the most demanding tracks on the schedule, but we believe in Ryan and the direction of the No. 02 team. If we execute and put together a complete race, I believe we can put ourselves in position for another strong finish and give J.D. Steel and all of our partners a performance to be proud of.”

For more on Ryan Ellis, please visit ryanellisracing.com, like him on Facebook (Ryan Ellis), and follow him on Instagram (@ryanellisracing), TikTok (@ryanellisracing), and X | Twitter (@ryanellisracing).

For more on Young’s Motorsports, please visit YoungsMotorsports.com, like them on Facebook (Young’s Motorsports), and follow them on Instagram (@youngsmotorsports) and X |Twitter (@youngsmtrsports).

The Fleetio 200 (147 laps | 200.8 miles) is the 25th of thirty-three (33) NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series races on the 2026 schedule. Practice will occur on Sat., Sept. 5, 2026, from 1:30 p.m. to 2:20 p.m. Qualifying will begin immediately after, at 2:35 p.m. The field will take the green flag later in the day, shortly after 7:30 p.m., with live coverage on The CW Network, the Motor Racing Network (Radio), and SiriusXM NASCAR Channel 90. All times are local (ET).

About J.D. Steel Co. Inc.:

Founded in Phoenix, Arizona, in 1970, J.D. Steel Co. Inc. is an employee-owned company specializing in steel installation and erection services nationwide.

For more than five decades, the company has built its reputation by delivering high-quality work with an unwavering focus on safety, craftsmanship, integrity and customer satisfaction.

Supported by a skilled and experienced workforce, J.D. Steel approaches projects of varying size and complexity with professionalism and precision.

For more information, please visit jdsteel.com

Five Ford Mustang Dark Horses Begin Chase for Cup Title at Darlington

By
Official Release
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DARLINGTON 2

Sunday, September 6 — NASCAR Cup Series, 5 p.m. ET (USA)

Ford Racing goes into the start of this season’s Chase with momentum on its side. Winners in five of the last seven races and three in a row, the Blue Oval heads to Darlington Raceway with five drivers competing for the championship after Ryan Preece’s dramatic overtime win in Daytona. Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Austin Cindric and Chris Buescher join him in the 16-driver field.

FORD DRIVERS IN THE CHASE

Ford has won three of the last four NASCAR Cup Series championships and this year five drivers will have the opportunity to extend that streak. Ryan Blaney, who won the title in 2023, is the second seed after posting three wins in the regular season while three-time champ Joey Logano is ninth after a late-season run saw him post victories at North Wilkesboro and Richmond. Austin Cindric rounds out the Team Penske trio while RFK Racing drivers Chris Buescher and Ryan Preece complete the lineup.

POS – NAME

2nd – Ryan Blaney (-25)
9th – Joey Logano (-65)
10th – Chris Buescher (-70)
15th – Austin Cindric (-95)
16th – Ryan Preece (-100)

PLAYOFF APPEARANCES SINCE 2014

NASCAR began the 16-driver playoff format in 2014 and while that number hasn’t changed, the format for this season has as the 10-race Chase returns. This will mark Joey Logano’s 12th appearance as a member of the field while Penske teammate Ryan Blaney is in it for the 10th time in his career. Austin Cindric has now qualified four times in his five seasons at the Cup level, and for Chris Buescher it marks his third career postseason berth and second as a member of RFK Racing. Ryan Preece, who is in his seventh fulltime season and third with RFK, is making his first Chase appearance.

DRIVER – PLAYOFF APPEARANCES IN 16-DRIVER FORMAT

Joey Logano – 12
Ryan Blaney – 10
Austin Cindric – 4
Chris Buescher – 3
Ryan Preece – 1

FORD’S ALL-TIME PLAYOFF RECORD

Ford has 59 all-time NASCAR Cup Series playoff victories since the postseason era started in 2004. Kurt Busch won the inaugural race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway that year and rode that momentum to the series championship. Since then, a total of 13 drivers have captured at least one playoff event with Joey Logano leading the way with 15. Ryan Blaney has seven postseason wins, including two last season, while Chris Buescher has two. Austin Cindric and Ryan Preece are still looking for their first.

BERRY RUNS TOP 10 STREAK TO FIVE

Josh Berry was able to avoid all of the chaos on the final lap to finish ninth in Daytona and run his streak of consecutive top five finishes to five. That result came on the heels of a season-best third place run at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The Wood Brothers Racing driver led 73 laps in Loudon, a career-high for one race, after qualifying second. Berry’s streak started in Indianapolis, where he finished seventh, and continued at Iowa (fourth) and Richmond (eighth).

THE FIRST TIME FORD WON THE SOUTHERN 500

The first time Ford won a NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway was when Curtis Turner took the Southern 500 on Sept. 3, 1956. Unlike today, where the field is set at a maximum of 40 cars, there were 70 vehicles in the race that saw Turner lead 224 of the 400 laps. He beat Speedy Thompson to the finish line by more than two laps, and did it in record fashion with an average race speed of 95.167 mph.

KESELOWSKI SWEEPS 2018 SOUTHERN 500 WEEKEND

Brad Keselowski rode a fast pit stop by his crew to register a win in the 2018 Southern 500. Keselowski found himself in a three-way battle with Kyle Larson and teammate Joey Logano in the latter stages. When the caution came out for a spin by Jeffrey Earnhardt with 23 laps to go, Keselowski and his crew were able to win the race off pit road and assume the lead for what proved to be the final restart of the race. Keselowski was able to get out front on the restart with 19 laps to go and eventually win by 1.224 seconds. Logano finished second to make it a 1-2 Ford/Team Penske finish and cap a weekend that also saw him take the NASCAR Xfinity Series race a day earlier.

WOOD BROTHERS LEAD THE WAY

It comes as no surprise that the Wood Brothers are Ford’s all-time winningest team at Darlington Raceway, posting eight career victories. All but one of those triumphs came in a Mercury, which the team ran in the 1960’s and 70’s. David Pearson, who holds the record with 10 career Darlington Cup victories, led the way with six while Cale Yarborough captured the team’s first in 1968. The last Darlington win for Wood Brothers Racing came in 1981 when Neil Bonnett took the Southern 500 in 1981 behind the wheel of a Ford.

FORD’S NASCAR CUP SERIES WINNERS AT DARLINGTON

1956 – Curtis Turner

1960 – Joe Weatherly (1)

1961 – Fred Lorenzen and Nelson Stacy

1962 – Nelson Stacy and Larry Frank

1963 – Fireball Roberts (2)

1964 – Fred Lorenzen

1965 – Junior Johnson and Ned Jarrett

1968 – David Pearson (1)

1969 – Lee Roy Yarbrough (2)

1970 – David Pearson (1)

1981 – Neil Bonnett (2)

1982 – Dale Earnhardt (1)

1985 — Bill Elliott (Sweep)

1988 – Bill Elliott (2)

1992 – Bill Elliott (1)

1993 – Mark Martin (2)

1994 – Bill Elliott (2)

1997 – Dale Jarrett (1)

1998 – Dale Jarrett (1)

1999 – Jeff Burton (Sweep)

2001 – Dale Jarrett (1)

2005 – Greg Biffle

2006 – Greg Biffle

2018 – Brad Keselowski

2020 – Kevin Harvick (1) and (3)

2022 – Joey Logano (1)

2024 – Brad Keselowski (1) and Chase Briscoe (2)

The Ford Mustang® coupe is America’s best-selling sports car and has a global racing presence. With Mustang-based race cars competing in international sports car competition (GT3 and GT4), NASCAR, NHRA, Formula Drift, in Supercars, at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb and in its own bespoke regional one-make series – Mustang Cup and Mustang Challenge – the platform has an unprecedented global reach. This weekend, 32 Mustang race cars are scheduled to compete across all active disciplines. Learn more about Mustang at www.FordRacing.com.

Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing Race Advance: Circuit of The Americas

By
Official Release
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Photo credit: Wes Duenkel

TRACK: Circuit of The Americas — 3.4-mile, 20-turn road course

TUNE IN: Peacock, IMSA.TV and the Ford Racing YouTube channel, Saturday, Sept. 5, 6:30 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. Central Daylight Time for Race 1, and Sunday, Sept. 6, 9:50 a.m. to 10:35 a.m. Central Daylight Time for Race 2.

  • In partnership with Paley Motorsport, AAG Racing is in its first season competing in Mustang Challenge North America. AAG Racing competed at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) earlier this year in USAC competition with Mustang Cup USA, with Chris Clarke piloting the No. 9 entry. Ryan Persing will visit the Austin, Texas, circuit for the first time.
  • Paley Motorsport team owner Sam Paley earned a double podium last season in Mustang Challenge at COTA with back-to-back second-place finishes.
  • Chris Clarke heads to COTA second in the Dark Horse Legends standings, 180 points behind the championship leader with two races remaining. Through the first four race weekends of the season, Clarke has earned six podium finishes and one pole award, while Ryan Persing has earned two top-five finishes in the Dark Horse class this season.
  • In May at COTA, Clarke earned a second-place finish in Race 2 of Mustang Cup. This time out, he will look to go one step higher on the podium to cap off a stellar first season of Mustang Challenge competition.

Chris Clarke – Driver, No. 9 Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse R

  • Chris Clarke will pilot Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing’s No. 9 Pro Turf Services, Inc., T. Disney Trucking and Grading, Inc. and Clarke Construction Group Ford Mustang Dark Horse R in Saturday and Sunday’s Mustang Challenge races at Circuit of The Americas.
  • Pro Turf Services, Inc. has proudly served Florida and the Southeast United States since 2012 and is celebrating its 14th year in business in 2026. Scott Heydolph, president, and Robert Clarke, vice president, have more than 63 combined years of experience in the golf course industry. The company specializes in golf course turf installation and works with several reputable turf farms to provide customers with a variety of grass breeds and types. Pro Turf Services, Inc. focuses on professional, on-time service for golf course and turf installation projects throughout its service area.
  • T. Disney Trucking and Grading, Inc. is celebrating 46 years in business in 2026. Based in Florida, the company provides trucking and logistics services throughout the state through a network of more than 1,000 haulers. T. Disney Trucking & Grading, Inc. works with customers across a range of projects and emphasizes on-time delivery, professional service and long-term relationships with its partners.
  • Chris Clarke enters the season finale second in the Dark Horse Legends championship with a shot at the title, looking to close the gap to the championship leader across the two races at COTA. Clarke enters this weekend 180 points behind the Mustang Challenge championship leader.
  • COTA marks the second circuit this season where Clarke has previous starts in the Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse R. The first was Sebring (Fla.) International Raceway in March. At both venues, Clarke raced in Mustang Cup prior to the Mustang Challenge weekend.
  • The Fort Myers, Fla., driver brings experience from endurance and sports car racing to the Mustang Challenge field. His strong start to the season has been aided by the knowledge and coaching of Paley Motorsport team owner Sam Paley.

Chris Clarke Quote

You enter the Mustang Challenge season finale with a shot at the title in your first season in the series. What are your expectations this weekend, and how much does it help having previous experience in the No. 9 Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse R at the circuit?

“We were fast at COTA in the spring and were able to earn a second-place finish in Mustang Cup our last trip to Texas. With Sam’s (Paley) success there last year, it puts Ryan (Persing) and me in a good position to go out and compete for podiums. I take it one race at a time. The racing in this series is always close and intense, so you have to hit your marks each and every lap. We hope to go out and put together performances reflective of all the hard work from our Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing team this season.”

Ryan Persing – Driver, No. 29 Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse R

  • Ryan Persing will pilot Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing’s No. 29 OPI Commercial Builders and enjoyTahoe.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse R in Saturday and Sunday’s Mustang Challenge races at Circuit of The Americas.
  • Hauserman Rental Group, based in Tahoe City, Calif., has served the North Lake Tahoe community for more than 60 years. Founded in 1966, the company provides vacation-rental management and guest services while drawing on decades of experience serving homeowners and guests throughout the Tahoe region. Hauserman Rental Group emphasizes reliable rental management, homeowner support, guest communication and reservation services.
  • OPI Commercial Builders is a Silicon Valley-based general contractor specializing in design-build, tenant and market-ready projects involving new construction and redevelopment. The company works with developers, real estate brokers, facilities departments, landlords and tenants on projects ranging from façade redevelopment to new buildings, laboratories, clean rooms, manufacturing facilities and creative office interiors.
  • New beginnings have been a theme for the Morgan Hill, Calif., driver this season. Persing graduated from high school during the Mid-Ohio Mustang Challenge weekend and began his freshman year at the University of Utah last week, where he is majoring in mechanical engineering.
  • This weekend will mark Persing’s first start at the 3.4-mile COTA road course. Persing looks to once again take on the challenge of a new circuit and close out his first Mustang Challenge season on a high note. 
  • Every lap is a learning experience for the California driver, who made the jump from Radical Cup North America to Mustang Challenge this season. Persing has great mentors around him, including his older brother, Nick Persing, a championship contender in Lamborghini Super Trofeo, and Paley Motorsport team owner and driver coach Sam Paley.

Ryan Persing Quote

This will be your fifth Mustang Challenge race weekend with Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing. How much have you grown since Sebring, and what do you hope to accomplish this weekend?

“Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing has helped me become the driver I am. Being with them this season has allowed me to become a better driver, and it’s pushed me to the front of the field. VIR was tough, but overcoming challenges is what racing is all about. I have to go to COTA with a fresh mindset. The track is very unique. It has been a bucket-list item for me to compete there for years now. I’m hoping to learn the track quickly and use the skills I’ve learned this year to go out and execute in the season finale.”

Meet the Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing Drivers

Saturday, Sept. 5

Chris Clarke and Ryan Persing will be at the Mustang Challenge Driver Autograph Session at the series transporter at 1:30 p.m. CT to meet fans and sign autographs.

About Paley Motorsport with AAG Racing

Mustang Challenge front-runners Paley Motorsport joined forces with AAG Racing, a proven IMSA program that also competes in the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup Series presented by Michelin, for the 2026 Mustang Challenge North America season.

This strategic alignment strengthens both organizations as they expand their presence and performance within the IMSA paddock. 

Jim Dunn Racing – Indianapolis Advance for the NHRA U.S. Nationals

By
Official Release
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Jeff Arend

Blaze Exhaust Probes Funny Car Driver for Jim Dunn Racing
72nd Annual Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals
Sept. 2-7 | Indianapolis

Event Overview
Friday, Sept. 4 (Nitro Qualifying, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

Nitro qualifying session (Q1): 7:30 p.m. EDT

Saturday, Sept. 5 (Nitro Qualifying & Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

Top Fuel qualifying session (Q2) & Mission #2Fast2Tasty Top Fuel Challenge – Round 1: 12:30 p.m. EDT
Funny Car qualifying session (Q2) & Mission #2Fast2Tasty Funny Car Challenge – Round 1: 1:05 p.m. EDT
Top Fuel qualifying session (Q3) & Mission #2Fast2Tasty Top Fuel Challenge – Finals: 3:30 p.m. EDT
Funny Car qualifying session (Q3) Mission #2Fast2Tasty Funny Car Challenge – Finals: 4 p.m. EDT

Sunday, Sept. 6 (NHRA Funny Car All-Star Callout and Top Fuel Qualifying, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

Top Fuel qualifying session (Q4): 12 p.m. EDT
NHRA All-Star Funny Car Callout – Round 1: 12:45 p.m. EDT
Funny Car qualifying session (Q4 – All entries not in the Callout): 1 p.m. EDT
NHRA All-Star Funny Car Callout – Semi-Finals: 2:15 p.m. EDT
Top Fuel qualifying session (Q5): 2:45 p.m. EDT
Funny car qualifying session (Q5 – All entries not in the Callout): 3:15 p.m. EDT
NHRA All-Star Funny Car Callout – Finals: 3:40 p.m. EDT

Monday, Sept. 7 (Nitro Eliminations, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

Round 1: 10 a.m. EDT
Round 2: 12:30 p.m. EDT
Semi-Finals: 2:10 p.m. EDT
Finals: 3:50 p.m. EDT

TV coverage on FS1/FOX

Sunday, Sept. 6: Qualifying show recapping Friday and Saturday’s action (3 p.m. EDT on FS1)
Sunday, Sept. 6: NHRA All-Star Funny Car Callout (7 p.m. EDT on FS1)
Sunday, Sept. 6: Qualifying show recapping Sunday’s action (10:30 p.m. EDT on FS1)
Monday, Sept. 7: Finals Round 1 (12 p.m. EDT on FS1)
Monday, Sept. 7: Finals (2 p.m. EDT on FOX)

Notes of Interest

The NHRA U.S. Nationals Sept. 2-7 at Indianapolis Raceway Park (IRP) is the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series’ regular season finale. The Big Go marks the 14th race on the 20-race calendar before the Countdown to the Championship begins Sept. 18-20 with the inaugural NHRA Great Lakes Nationals in Martin, Michigan. Jim Dunn Racing brings its one full-time entry in Funny Car for Jeff Arend. A native of Canada, Arend moved to Southern California in 1997.

As the NHRA celebrates its landmark 75th season in 2026, Jim Dunn Racing is celebrating 76 years of success in drag racing. Jim started drag racing when he was 15 years old and at 92 years old, he plans to keep going as long as he can. In 2024, Jim received the NHRA Lifetime Achievement Award. He has won some of the sport’s most significant races and has provided driving opportunities for some of the biggest names in the sport.

Coming into Indianapolis, Arend is 14th in the Funny Car standings, 688 points behind leader Matt Hagan.

Blaze Exhaust Probes is the primary partner of Arend this weekend in Indianapolis. Blaze Technical Services was founded in 1996 by Ralph and Candy Hickman in Northeast Ohio. They are a leading full-service temperature sensor manufacturer that offers solutions for even the most demanding applications. Their reputation for creating the most rugged industrial temperature sensors and high temperature thermocouple assemblies has made them a top choice in the industry. Being ISO 9001 certified since 2003 reflects their commitment to producing only the highest quality products, including their popular exhaust gas temperature probes and other industrial temperature sensors. They also specialize in high temperature thermocouple designs that perform reliably in extreme conditions, including High-temperature aerospace sensors and Soil temperature monitoring setups. They are dedicated to delivering quality products on time and at a fair price. Additionally, they document all products with CAD drawings to make future changes or reordering easy, and can provide certification on request. Their Blaze Technical Services temperature solutions are trusted by professionals across a wide range of industries.

The NHRA U.S. Nationals will mark Arend’s 261st career Funny Car appearance, and his 11th overall appearance in the NHRA U.S. Nationals. It marks his third Funny Car appearance on behalf of Jim Dunn Racing at Indianapolis. His previous appearances for the team came in 2013 and 2014. Arend’s first U.S. Nationals appearance came in 1995. It will mark his ninth appearance this season as driver of the Jim Dunn Racing Dodge.

It has been 27 years since Frank Pedregon won the U.S. Nationals for Jim Dunn Racing (1999), claiming the team’s lone victory in the world’s most prestigious event. Since then, Jim Dunn Racing has reached the quarterfinal round five times, most recently in 2024 with Buddy Hull as driver. Overall, Jim Dunn Racing has raced in the final round at Indy three times. Jim Dunn himself was runner-up to Hall of Famer Raymond Beadle in 1981and Kenji Okazaki was runner-up to John Force in 1993.

In addition to the U.S. Nationals itself, Okazaki was stellar in the Big Bud Shootout Funny Car bonus race contested in conjunction with The Big Go. After earning runner-up honors in that event in 1994 (losing to the late Al Hofmann), he won three years later (1997), beating Tony Pedregon in the final round.

The NHRA U.S. Nationals will feature legends throughout the week to honor the NHRA’s 75th Anniversary, including Don Garlits, Don “the Snake” Prudhomme, Joe Amato, Shirley Muldowney, Kenny Bernstein, and Darrell Gwynn.

There are 24 Funny Cars entered for the prestigious NHRA U.S. Nationals that will be vying for one of the 16 qualifying positions.

Jeff Arend, Driver of the Jim Dunn Racing Blaze Exhaust Probes Funny Car

In addition to celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary on your Jim Dunn Racing Funny Car, you’ll also be representing Blaze’s 30th Anniversary. How special will that be at The Big Go?

“Indy is one of those races that everybody looks forward to, but Big Jim is at the top of the list by far. When leaving Indy to go home after the race, he is already thinking about next year’s Indy! I am really proud of how everybody on the Jim Dunn Racing team has come together and I think our results show the consistency and improvements in ET (elapsed time). We have a couple of tricks up our sleeve and can’t wait for that first run at Indy. We are celebrating 250 years of the United States of America and 30 years with our major sponsor, Blaze Exhaust Probes. Keep an eye out for us and we expect our best results of the year.”

23XI Racing and Fleetio Expand Partnership with Multiyear Renewal

By
Official Release
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Fleetio to continue primary sponsorship of Corey Heim in the NASCAR Cup Series

BIRMINGHAM, AL – September 1, 2026 – Fleetio, the leading fleet maintenance and optimization platform, today announced an expanded multi-year partnership with 23XI Racing, continuing Fleetio’s primary sponsorship of Corey Heim in select NASCAR Cup Series races.

A race team and a commercial fleet look nothing alike on the surface. Underneath, they run on the same discipline: knowing the condition of every asset, catching problems before they cause downtime, and making the right call under timed pressure. Fleetio was built to support this work, bringing 14 years of maintenance data directly into the maintenance workflow. With cross-fleet benchmarks and AI-driven decision support, Fleetio provides insights into approval queues, service schedules, and repair orders, so teams can act on the data, rather than interpret it after the fact.

Powering maintenance decisions on and off the track

The maintenance impact extends beyond the completed repairs to those that are avoided altogether. In the first half of 2026, Fleetio users rejected $41.4 million in unnecessary repairs, with line items caught, questioned, and stopped before the money left the building. The value of those decisions grows with the scale of the network supporting them. Across its comprehensive ecosystem, the company supports more than 8 million vehicles, including 8,500+ fleets in 100+ countries, and processes over 80 million repair orders through a network of over 140,000 repair shops.

“As we prepare for Corey’s first full-time season in the Cup Series, we look forward to Fleetio expanding and continuing their partnership with 23XI next year and beyond,” said Steve Lauletta, 23XI team president. “Similar to how Fleetio supports their customers, success for 23XI starts with the team at Airspeed, our headquarters, and continues with execution by the drivers and crew at the track on race day. These similarities in our brands make this an ideal partnership.”     

“Performance on race day is earned through thousands of good decisions before the green flag,” said Jon Meachin, CEO of Fleetio. “Fleet operations work the same way. The difference between a fleet that runs and a fleet that struggles usually isn’t the size of the budget – it’s the quality of information guiding each decision. That’s exactly what Fleetio provides, and it’s why a team like 23XI is a natural fit.”

Shifting the partnership into high gear

Earlier this year, Fleetio sponsored Heim and the No. 67 Toyota at the Coca-Cola 600, setting the stage for an expansion of the partnership. Through the expanded relationship, Heim’s Toyota Camry XSE will feature Fleetio branding in select Cup Series races starting in 2027. The activation includes branding on driver gear and team assets, as well as an associate sponsorship across the broader race schedule.

Heim enters the agreement with recent wins at two of the summer’s biggest Cup Series races, the inaugural event at Naval Base Coronado and the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as he moves to a full-time Cup Series schedule.

Fleetio’s expansion with 23XI comes as the brand also expands its reach into the greater NASCAR landscape by sponsoring the Fleetio 200 at Darlington Raceway. The Fleetio 200 on Saturday, September 5, serves as the opening act for Sunday’s Southern 500, one of NASCAR’s crown-jewel races and the opening event of the NASCAR Cup Series Chase.

Fleetio. The crew chief for your fleet. Get under the hood of the Fleetio and 23XI Racing partnership at fleetio.com/nascar.

About Fleetio

Fleetio is the leading fleet maintenance and optimization platform, helping fleets, repair shops, and partners efficiently manage their assets by providing resources fueled with data-driven recommendations and expert insights. Fleetio sets the industry standard as an operating system built to support real execution through embedded intelligence, automation, and connected maintenance workflows. Leveraging its comprehensive fleet ecosystem, the company supports over 8 million vehicles, including more than 8,500 fleets across 100+ countries, and processes over 80 million repair orders through a network of over 140,000 repair shops. Fleetio equips fleet professionals with the tools they need to extend asset life, reduce downtime, and confidently deliver results for their business.

About 23XI Racing

23XI Racing – pronounced twenty-three eleven – was founded by NBA legend Michael Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin in 2020. With rising NASCAR star Bubba Wallace selected to drive the No. 23 Toyota Camry, the team made its NASCAR Cup Series debut in the 2021 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Wallace made history on October 4, 2021, when he captured his first career Cup Series win, becoming just the second African American to win in the Cup Series, and earning 23XI its first-ever victory. 23XI expanded to a two-car organization in 2022 with Cup Series Champion and Hall of Famer Kurt Busch driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry. With a win at Kansas Speedway in May of 2022, Busch earned 23XI the team’s first-ever playoff berth. Tyler Reddick joined the team in 2023 to drive the No. 45 car. In 2024, Reddick won the Regular Season Championship and raced to a spot in the Championship 4, a first for both the team and Reddick. In 2026, Reddick made history by winning the first three Cup Series races of the season, including the Daytona 500. 23XI currently features the lineup of Bubba Wallace in the No. 23 Toyota Camry XSE, Tyler Reddick in the No. 45 Toyota Camry XSE and Riley Herbst in the No. 35 Toyota Camry XSE. Corey Heim currently serves as the team’s development driver and races occasionally in the No. 67 Toyota Camry XSE. The team operates out of Airspeed, a state-of-the-art facility in Huntersville, N.C.

NASCAR Playoff Betting: What to Watch Across September’s First Four Races

By
SM
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Photo by Andrew Boyd for SpeedwayMedia.com

September immediately raises the stakes in the NASCAR Cup Series because the Chase begins and every point starts carrying greater championship significance across the final 10 races. 

It’s worth noting that NASCAR has replaced its elimination-style playoff format with a modernized version of the Chase for 2026, designed to reward greater consistency across the final 10 races while removing round-by-round eliminations.

The Chase begins at Darlington Raceway on September 6, followed by stops at World Wide Technology Raceway, Bristol Motor Speedway, and Kansas Speedway before the month ends. Each track presents a different challenge for the drivers competing for the championship.

That variety matters for bettors too. A factor that carries considerable weight at Darlington may be less important a week later at Gateway. Track characteristics, recent speed, Chase position, and race strategy all deserve attention as the postseason moves through its first four events.

Darlington Opens the Chase With Little Margin for Error 

The Southern 500 at Darlington starts the Chase on September 6. As the first postseason race, it gives every championship contender an opportunity to establish an early advantage. A difficult opening weekend, however, can immediately increase the pressure heading into the remaining nine races of the Chase. 

Darlington itself demands a lot from both driver and car. Tire wear can change performance during a run, while the narrow racing surface leaves little room for mistakes. Long-run speed and the ability to manage tires without giving away too much pace can therefore be more revealing than raw speed over a few laps.

Those demands make track history and recent performance on comparable tracks useful starting points when comparing the field. Bettors looking at race markets through FanDuel can consider those factors alongside qualifying position, practice speed, and how consistently a driver has maintained competitive pace over longer runs.

One strong recent finish shouldn’t carry the entire argument for a wager. A driver may have gained positions because of strategy, cautions, or problems elsewhere in the field. Looking at how the result developed can provide a better indication of whether that performance offers meaningful evidence for the Southern 500.

Gateway Changes What Bettors Need to Evaluate 

The postseason moves to World Wide Technology Raceway on September 13. The change of venue matters because Gateway asks different questions of drivers and teams. A strong performance at Darlington doesn’t automatically indicate that the same driver will have an advantage one week later.

Gateway’s flatter layout and different corner characteristics place greater emphasis on braking and getting through the turns efficiently. Track position can also become important when passing is difficult. Restarts, pit execution, and decisions that gain or lose positions can consequently have a major influence on the final result.

For bettors, relevant track performance deserves more attention than simply carrying the previous week’s finishing order forward. Results from tracks that require similar skills can help identify drivers whose strengths fit Gateway, while recent overall form can show whether their teams are currently providing competitive cars.

Chase position adds another layer after Darlington. Some drivers will arrive with comfortable points totals, while others may already need a stronger result. That doesn’t guarantee a particular strategy, but the standings provide useful context when considering how valuable stage points and track position could become as the Chase progresses. 

Bristol Turns the Chase Pressure Up 

Bristol Motor Speedway hosts the third Chase race on September 19, adding a demanding short-track test under the lights. By this point, two postseason races will already have separated drivers in stronger championship positions from those facing larger points deficits. 

The track also introduces a different type of uncertainty. Bristol’s short layout keeps cars in traffic, while the number of laps means leaders regularly encounter slower cars. Contact, restarts, and changing track position can all alter a race that appeared to be developing predictably.

That makes Bristol-specific performance particularly valuable when assessing the field. A driver can enter with excellent recent results while having fewer convincing performances on short tracks. Bettors can compare recent speed with previous Bristol races and other relevant short-track results rather than assuming overall momentum will transfer automatically.

The Chase standings become especially important at Bristol because every point gained or lost carries forward through the remaining seven races. Drivers separated by only a handful of points may find themselves in very different championship positions as the race develops. Understanding those circumstances can add context to strategy decisions and help bettors interpret what they see once the race is underway. 

Kansas Brings a New Test to the Chase 

Kansas Speedway hosts the fourth September Chase race on September 27, presenting another distinct test in the championship battle. The same 16 Chase drivers arrive with three postseason races already reflected in their championship totals. 

Those weekends can reveal which teams are consistently bringing competitive cars to the track. Raw finishing positions tell part of that story, while running position, qualifying speed, pit execution, and the circumstances behind each result can help explain whether a driver’s form is stronger or weaker than the final standings suggest.

Comparing those recent performances with broader NASCAR analysis and stats can help bettors separate a genuinely strong playoff trend from a result heavily influenced by the circumstances of one race. The aim is to build a fuller picture of performance rather than allowing one particularly good or poor finish to dominate the assessment.

Kansas still requires its own evaluation. Fresh playoff evidence is useful, but track fit remains important when the series changes venues again. Previous Kansas performance and results on comparable intermediate tracks can help determine whether a driver’s recent form is likely to translate to the demands of the fourth September race.

What September Reveals 

The first four Chase races make September a useful reminder that NASCAR betting analysis has to change with the schedule. Darlington emphasizes tire management and long-run performance, Gateway introduces different technical demands, Bristol combines intense short-track racing with mounting championship-points pressure, and Kansas introduces another intermediate-track challenge as the Chase reaches its fourth race.

No single statistic can capture all of those variables. Combining track-specific history with recent speed, qualifying, playoff circumstances, and race-week information can provide a more complete view of each event. Odds can then be considered within that wider context, while keeping wagers at a level that fits a planned entertainment budget.

What Car Enthusiasts Should Know About Ceramic Coating Before Track Season

By
SM
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Photo by depositphotos at https://depositphotos.com/

As spring rolls in across the Piedmont region and local drivers start prepping for track days at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Carolina Motorsports Park, or VIR, vehicle preservation quickly becomes a top priority. Track days are brutal on your paint. Between hot rubber marbles, heavy brake dust, and high-speed grit, your exterior takes a massive beating compared to normal street driving. We all spend weeks prepping our brakes and tires, but paint protection usually gets ignored—at least until you’re stuck trying to scrub baked-on track grime off your bumper on Sunday night. Investing in professional auto detailing Charlotte, NC before the season kicks off provides a crucial baseline of defense, but knowing exactly what modern liquid polymer formulas can and cannot withstand is essential for keeping your weekend track machine in pristine condition lap after lap.

Understanding How Ceramic Coatings Handle Thermal and Chemical Punishment

Heavy track braking turns ordinary dust into hot metallic shards that melt right into unprotected paint. This is prevented by a suitable ceramic coating, which adheres directly to your clear coat to form a smooth, hardened shell that withstands abuse. This glass-like shield delivers remarkable thermal resistance, preventing track rubber “marbles” and corrosive, hot metallic particulates from fusing directly to your body panels. When you participate in sanctioned open-track events and high-performance driver education, you subject every exterior surface to extreme environmental stress, making the slick chemical barrier of a coating indispensable for preventing paint etching from caustic track grime, acidic exhaust soot, and trackside chemical residues.

Why Ceramic Coating Needs a Partner for Heavy Impact Defense

Ceramic coatings are fantastic for locking in that shine and making track-day cleanup a breeze. Just don’t expect miracles—a thin liquid coating isn’t going to deflect high-speed rock chips or stop physical scratches. A ceramic layer is only a few microns thick, meaning it cannot absorb the severe kinetic energy of pea-sized gravel kicked up by a race car running slick tires directly in front of you down the straightaway. 

For optimal track-day protection, experienced drivers throughout the Carolinas combine a high-grade ceramic layer with paint protection film Charlotte on high-impact zones such as the front bumper, hood, side mirrors, and rear quarter flares. Applying a ceramic formula directly over your film amplifies hydrophobic self-cleaning properties while the thick urethane film underneath takes the brunt of physical impacts, giving you the best of both worlds without dulling the deep optical clarity of your vehicle’s factory paint.

Post-Session Wash Routines and Track-Ready Maintenance

The real magic of having a coated car becomes obvious the moment you pull back into the paddock or your home garage after a full weekend of hard sessions. Instead of spending hours scrubbing aggressively with abrasive clay bars or harsh bug removers—which inevitably introduces unsightly swirl marks into your clear coat—the slick surface energy of a ceramic finish allows tire rubber streaks, bugs, and brake grime to release with minimal agitation. 

To safely wash off heavy track dirt without swirling your paint, stick to a foam cannon or a two-bucket setup with pH-neutral soap. Modern clear coats scratch easily, but a ceramic layer makes the surface so slick that stubborn brake dust and grime just slide off, cutting your post-race cleanup in half.

Conclusion: Maximizing Your Vehicle’s Longevity for the Season Ahead

Entering track season with a fully protected vehicle allows you to focus purely on your apexes, braking markers, and lap times rather than stressing over the inevitable wear and tear of high-speed driving. By pairing realistic expectations of impact resistance with the formidable chemical and thermal shielding of a professionally installed nanocoating, you can preserve your car’s showroom shine through countless demanding track sessions across the Southeast. Taking the time to schedule comprehensive auto detailing Charlotte, NC ahead of your first event ensures your clear coat is thoroughly decontaminated, paint-corrected, and sealed to withstand everything the asphalt throws your way this season.

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