ThorSport Racing Looks To Continue Early Season Success at Charlotte
When the green flag drops Friday night, you can be assured that ThorSport Racing will be in the thick of the battle as they have so far this year.
While most say that you need to be centered into the hub of NASCAR in Charlotte, ThorSport Racing has done things differently as they’re based in Sandusky, Ohio. As the team says, they are coming from the “Ice Palace” (as dubbed by Krista Voda) to take on the “Queen Palace”.
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[/media-credit]”They aren’t new questions, I’ve heard them my whole career at ThorSport Racing and we’ve never really given it a second thought,” Matt Crafton said in the team preview. “We’ve heard things like, ‘You have to be in Charlotte to be successful.’ ‘There are no equipment suppliers or people in Ohio.’ ‘What about the wind tunnel or technology?’ ‘How can you win a championship from somewhere other than the heart of racing?’ All valid questions, but all questions we’ve either answered or solved in a really humble way – quietly – through great people, partners, technology and track performance over the last few years as we’ve hit our stride.”
Currently, Matt Crafton leads the point standings and goes into Charlotte looking to get his second win. With two top-fives and seven top-10s there in the past including a win in 2008, he is looking for more success.
“With all due respect, I love Charlotte,” Crafton continued. “This is my adopted city, after being from California and driving for a team from Sandusky. We have so much momentum this year, coming off a great season last year – my teammate, Johnny Sauter, and I being third and fourth in points; me winning at Charlotte in 2008; and doing pretty well the first six races this year. Many of our extended families and friends live here, and it’s a place to pay homage to our racing forefathers, just as Daytona is for all of us racers.”
Charlotte also marks the welcoming of a new name aboard the hood as Mullican Great Lakes Flooring will adore the hood of the No. 88 Menards Chevrolet.
“I’m looking forward to this race and having Great Lakes by Mullican on the hood,” he said. “I spent two extra days in Sandusky with my guys after racing Toledo on Sunday in the ARCA Racing Series. It gave us a chance to connect over the Charlotte truck, and it also gave us the mental gains to prepare for this week. Every week is a big race week, but our 1.5-mile program is dominant this year. I’d like to come back and really see if we can get this truck in Victory Lane again.”
Meanwhile, Johnny Sauter is looking to have success also so he can jump back up in the lead as he currently sits second in points.
“Being at the top of the points this early in the season was a positive surprise to me, and it was a great feeling after Nashville,” Sauter said. “It’s a lot of pressure though, when we have so many races ahead of us. Charlotte has always been a track that has challenged me, and our 1.5-mile program is really stellar this year. That’s got to be my focus with (crew chief) Joe (Shear, Jr.) and my guys. Perform on all fronts – from the truck setup to the pit cycles and fuel management. I said it at the end of Dover and I meant it, with me and Joe it’s back to basics and some tried-and-true setups we used last year for great finishes.”
Sauter likes being in the backseat behind Crafton as somewhat “underdog” though as he says it presents an opportunity for success.
“The best finishes I’ve ever had, all my wins, were coming back from behind or scraping to the top all the way,” he said. “That’s how I love to race. So the pressure is off right now, and I can get back to being the underdog. There’s nothing this team can’t do this year with the right focus, and we’re proving that every race. Charlotte is no different – we’re proving to the racing world exactly how consistent we can be at these tracks, using a lot of communication and strategy. ThorSport Racing is building championship-consistency teams this year, and we’re going to show that at the racetrack.”
ThorSport Racing looks to continue their success not only this coming weekend, but down the road in the future. In August, the team plans to continue expanding as they will be opening a new shop, keeping things based in Sandusky.
“ThorSport Racing opens a brand new, 100,000-sq. ft. race facility in Sandusky in August, though, and it’s a source of huge pride in where we’ve come from and to in ten years,” Crafton said. “We can’t wait to celebrate with our Ohio family and NASCAR fans everywhere. This continues to be a great year. But we’d like to prove, in a subtle, humble way of sorts – that you don’t necessarily have to live and work here as a team, to be successful & win championships in this business.”
Kevin Harvick and No. 29 Budweiser-Realtree Team Sprint All-Star Race Advance
Indianapolis 500: Conway and Andretti Only Drivers To Make Laps in Tuesday Sesson
Mike Conway shook down his No. 27 Hire Heroes Car and his Andretti Autosport teammate Marco Andretti got five laps in driving Conway’s car, before the rains came ending the session early.
Conway’s shake down has a speed of 219.901mph (40.9259 seconds).
“We just wanted to feel some of those (changes) and see what we had,” Conway said. “These were certainly not ideal weather conditions and aren’t representative of what we’re going to see in a few days, so it didn’t make too much sense to log a lot of laps.”
Conway said that he also allowed his teammate Andretti to get some laps in the car so they could compare notes.
“We made some changes overnight, and we wanted to get a feel for what it felt like,” he said. “It’s good for me to let (Marco) have a feel and see if I’m feeling the same things as him. We had the same comments, and we got some good back-to-back running.”
Andretti said it gave him a chance to try something different, also.
“I was able to try a setup that I haven’t run yet,” he said. “I just kind of got my thoughts on it and a second opinion. You always learn. If we were going through pretty extensive test items and stuff like that, it’s different. I just wanted to feel out an overall package.”
This is the second time that a session has been cut short for racing as nobody got any laps in during the Sunday session. Some drivers are okay with the lost day, while others are concerned. Andretti had a quick lap of 224.215mph (40.1163 seconds) for the day, but only ranks 15th on the combined speed chart.
“It makes a difference,” Andretti said of not getting the full session in. “Who knows if we would have gained or they would have gained on us. I’m really worried about the speed of our car. I’ve driven exactly Danica’s setup 3 miles an hour off of her (lap time). I can’t explain why. I’m worried about qualifying for this race. It is still early days, but I honestly think if you’re not going to be qualifying in the top 10 you should be worried.”
Conway says that with the timing, you always have the conscious of the time left.
“We always think we have loads of time at the beginning of the week, and then it’s always the same thing,” Conway said. “You get to the last couple of days, and if you haven’t quite got the car right, then you’re going to be rushing a bit more. As long as the car is good and you keep chipping away at it, I think that’s the main thing. I think we’re really close. I think we’ve got a good balance, and I think the speed is there. We’ve just got to take our time and know that qualifying isn’t that far away.”
Alex Taglani’s lap of 225.878mph from the Monday sesson tops the charts so far during the testing. Testing will continue on Wednesday from noon to 6pm EST.
ARCA: George Miedecke To Drive For Venturini Motorsports at NJMP
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[/media-credit]Marcos Ambrose Motorsports driver George Miedecke will make his ARCA Racing Series debut this weekend at New Jersey Motorsports Park in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards.
Miedecke will drive the No. 25 Toyota fror Venturini Motorsports, will backing from iSeek Communications, who sponsored him during the Australian V8 Ute Racing season.
“To be scouted out by (Venturini Motorsports general manager) Billy Venturini at the opening round of the UARA-STARS Series at Hickory Speedway was a huge honor,” said Miedecke. “Venturini Motorsports are the powerhouse team in ARCA competition. They have a great history and track record of developing drivers for the top tiers of NASCAR, and I plan to put their flagship No. 25 machine in Victory Lane.”
He caught Venturini’s eyes at Hickory on March 12th, when he finished second in the UARA Series. He has also worked with Sprint Cup Series drivers in teaching them how to drive road courses.
“New Jersey Motorsports Park is a fairly wide open road course, and the event normally includes several specialist ring-ins,” Miedecke said. “I have already been talking to Marcos about how to muscle a stock car around a road course. There’s really no better person to have in your camp.”
Venturini Motorsports has had success this season in the ARCA Series as a couple weeks ago, Brennan Poole won at Salem Speedway.
