Home Blog Page 722

High-Energy TeamSLR Lineup Heads to COTA

By
Official Release
-

With Pro-Am Title Clinched, Barry Boes Eyes Top Overall Result Joined by Teens Tristan McKee and Evan Slater, 21-Year-Old Carson Kvapil, for TA2 Season Finale

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. (Oct. 31, 2024) – With one title already in the bag, a quartet of TeamSLR M1 Racecars competitors are ready to hit the majestic Circuit of the Americas road course in Austin, Texas, to close out the 2024 Cube 3 Architecture TA2 Series season during Sunday’s COTA SpeedTour event.

First-year TeamSLR driver Barry Boes and his No. 27 Accio Data/SLR-M1 Racecars Ford Mustang arrive at the 3.4-mile, 20-turn circuit having clinched the 2024 Pro-Am Challenge championship within a championship by virtue of his seventh class win in 11 races this season Oct. 5 at Virginia International Raceway in Alton. Boes will be joined for Sunday’s 30-lap, 75-minute season finale by three young, part-time TA2 drivers all returning to the TeamSLR lineup after posting solid results in previous stints in M1 Racecars equipment this season – 21-year-old Carson Kvapil, 18-year-old Evan Slater, and 14-year-old Tristan McKee.

With Pro-Am title in hand, the pressure is off for Boes, the sixth-year TA2 Series competitor who from 1995 to 2023 called Austin, Texas, home before his offseason move to Ooltewah, Tennessee. He relishes the opportunity to go all out for a top overall finish Sunday against a packed field of 45 entries. It will be the sixth career TA2 appearance at COTA for Boes and first with TeamSLR. His first three resulted in finishes of ninth, seventh and 10th in 2019, 2020 and 2021, respectively. In July, Boes scored his first career Cube 3 Architecture TA2 Series Western Championship victory at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway in M1 Racecars equipment. He also scored a fourth-place finish in his No. 27 Ford with co-driver Greg Biffle in the non-points SpeedTour All-Star Race July 20 at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut.

McKee, who turned 14 on Aug. 3, returns to the cockpit of the No. 28 SLR-M1Racecars Chevrolet Camaro after a stellar official TA2 debut in the most recent round at VIR. He qualified sixth and held position among the leaders en route to a fourth-place finish, just .7 of a second behind the final podium position. McKee has shown his racing brilliance as a Chevrolet development driver this season. He’s been a regular in the Pro Late Model division of the popular CARS Tour, where in 2023 he became the series’ youngest winner at the age of 12. McKee added a win in the series’ July 3 round at Caraway Speedway in Sophia, North Carolina, and another in the Aug. 4 round at North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway. He got his first taste of TA2 competition when he co-drove a TeamSLR M1 Racecars entry with his Team Chevrolet mentor Scott speed in July’s All-Star Race at Lime Rock.

Kvapil will be making his fifth career TA2 start this weekend, his third of the season and first since it was announced Oct. 1 that he will drive fulltime in the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports. The son of 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Travis Kvapil is also a Team Chevrolet development driver. His first TA2 outing of the year in the No. 17 SLR-M1Racecars Chevrolet Camaro came in the June 3 race at the Pittsburgh International Race Complex, where he drove to a third-place finish from the ninth starting position. He returned Aug. 25 at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, where he qualified third and was running with the leaders before a shredded tire led to an early exit from the race. With zero road-racing experience prior to his TA2 debut in June 2023 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Kvapil qualified second and finished fifth, then qualified third the following weekend at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, and moved up to second on the opening lap of the race before getting punted off track and sustaining damage beyond repair. He’s enjoyed success in numerous other racing disciplines already this year, including three top-five Xfinity Series finishes in nine races with JR Motorsports, and top-three finishes for Pinnacle Racing Group in the ARCA Menards Series. Kvapil also has a pair of wins in six races on the zMAX CARS Tour in the Late Model Stock class.

Slater, the native of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, who’ll be behind the wheel of the No. 8 Cube 3 Architecture/Willis & Smith Capital/Paul Racing SLR-M1Racecars Chevrolet Camaro, returns to the team for the second time this season and first since qualifying and finishing second Memorial Day weekend at Lime Rock, where he chased race-winner and two-time TA2 champion Rafa Matos across the finish line. Slater competed in six TA2 races in 2023 for Ken Thwaits’ Showtime Motorsports M1 Racecars team, scoring top-five finishes at Sebring (Fla.) International Raceway and Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, and another pair of top-10s at NOLA Motorsports Park in Avondale, Louisiana, and Lime Rock. Slater has one previous TA2 appearance at COTA, qualifying fourth but having to start at the back of the 42-car field, from where he drove to a 14th-place finish.

Another pair of M1 Racecars entries fielded by Peterson Racing return to the TA2 Series for the fourth time this season. Last year’s TA2 Series Rookie of the Year Austin Green returns to the cockpit of the No. 89 Ford Mustang that he drove to a runner-up finish at Watkins Glen in August, qualified on the pole at Mid-Ohio in June, and drove to a fifth-place finish at the season-opening race at Sebring (Fla.) International Raceway in February. Meanwhile, team owner and Masters-class competitor Doug Peterson is back behind the wheel of the No. 87 Ford Mustang.

Riding along with this weekend’s TeamSLR drivers and their M1 Racecars, as it has all season long, is Nashville, Tennessee-based Franklin Road Apparel Company, which has been a longtime team supporter and serves as associate partner on all four TeamSLR entries this weekend. Also supporting the overall TeamSLR effort is Cube 3 Architecture. TeamSLR is also supporting part-time TA2 driver Julian DaCosta’s Powered by Hixson-backed SVRA vintage car effort this weekend at COTA.

M1 Racecars was represented on the podium at 12 of the 13 TA2 rounds in 2023, highlighted by a pair of victories by Rafa Matos for Peterson Racing. Team SLR’s Dillon Machavern and Thad Moffitt both scored podium finishes, as did Connor Mosack at the season-opening event at Sebring, when he qualified on the pole and led the first 19 laps of the race before finishing third.

This weekend’s COTA SpeedTour kicks off with a pair of TA2 test sessions at 10:55 and 4:55 p.m. EDT Friday. Official practice is set for 11:30 a.m. Saturday, followed by qualifying at 4:45 p.m. Race time is 10:35 a.m. EST Sunday with live television provided by series partner MAVTV, augmented by live-streaming video on the Trans Am and SpeedTour channels on YouTube. MAVTV will air a 60-minute race show at 8 p.m. EST on Thursday, Nov. 7.

Barry Boes, Driver, No. 27 Accio Data/SLR-M1 Racecars Ford Mustang:

What are your thoughts about the track, considering you lived fulltime in the Austin area from 1995 until last year?

“COTA is one of those racetracks where, if you’ve never been on a racetrack and you get on it in a racecar, it feels like you’re on a Formula One track, because you are. You’ve got all the great big, huge curbing and the big, painted runoff areas, and the gantries going over the racetrack and all that sort of stuff. It looks larger than life. But as a competitor, especially in TA2, it’s a track where there’s not a ton of risk. You go straight, you brake hard, you go straight, you brake hard, there’s a little bit of fiddly stuff, and you start all over again. Turn 13 is a challenge to get right, and then really nailing 18 and 19 is way harder than it looks. To be really fast, it’s really tough to get that one right and a lot of fun to work on perfecting, same with 13 and 14. I lived there since well before the racetrack was ever there, and the track was there for years before I started racing, so I’ve raced at a lot of other tracks a lot more than I have at COTA. Still, I’m looking forward to having a good run there this weekend.”

You arrive at this weekend’s season finale at COTA with an insurmountable 125-point lead in the Pro-Am Challenge standings. How does that affect the way you approach this race compared to a typical weekend?

“With Pro-Am in the bag, I’m just going to go flat out as opposed to having to be as careful as I can be if it wasn’t in the bag. I’m going to just see how far up there I can run among the ‘national series’ guys and just give it everything I’ve got.”

You’re wrapping up your first season driving for TeamSLR. How would you describe the experience?

“Yeah, I mean, this has been both my most successful and most rewarding year of racing. And, obviously, the people and the equipment that have been standing behind me are a very big part of that.”

Carson Kvapil, Driver, No. 17 SLR-M1 Racecars Chevrolet Camaro:

Since we last saw you at Watkins Glen, it was announced you will drive fulltime next year in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports. How does that affect your perspective as you race this weekend at COTA, which is on the Xfinity Series schedule?

“Obviously, I want to go there and treat it as any other race, I want to go out there and try to win. We’ll just try to get really good test and practice sessions in, qualify well and run all the laps in the race to get as much experience as we can. With the Xfinity schedule having pretty limited practice time, it’s good to get as much track time as you can on these road courses, which is kind of not my forte, I guess you’d say. I’m just looking forward to it and I know TeamSLR is going to bring me a good piece, so I’m sure we’ll have a pretty good shot to win the race, or at least have a good shot to run really well.”

You recently had a chance to run some laps at COTA in a stock Camaro. What are your impressions of the track and what it takes to run well there?

“It’s a really huge place, and I think it’s kind of cool. It’s not just 10 or 11 turns, it’s really long and the facility is really, really nice, more so than I’ve witnessed at any other road course. It’ll be pretty cool and super exciting to race on a track like that. Like every other road course, it’s got its little quirks and little tough spots. Hopefully, we can go in this weekend and figure it all out and learn all the turns, which sometimes can be tough on a big track like that.”

How would you describe your experience working with TeamSLR and its contribution to helping you make it to the next level in the Xfinity Series?

“Running a handful of races with TeamSLR these last two seasons, the whole team has been a great experience and I’m going to say it’s going to be a big help going into next year’s Xfinity schedule. Being able to run Watkins Glen earlier this year and now COTA with the Lagasses is going to pay big dividends. Working with a group like TeamSLR makes my job a lot easier. They’re super good about how they look at data and driver training for the road courses, and with their NASCAR experience, we’ve been speaking the same language, so I couldn’t be with a better group, and we’re excited to hit it this weekend.”

Tristan Mckee, Driver, No. 28 SLR-M1 Racecars Chevrolet Camaro:

You got a sneak peek at the COTA layout driving a stock Camaro a few weeks ago. What are your initial impressions of the track, and how did it help your preparation?

“I’m excited. The elevation change all around the track is cool. I’ve done some sim work with Scott Speed and their preparation has been great, so I think I’m pretty ready. It’ll be good to actually get to run there for real in a TA2 car. F1 was there a couple of weeks ago, that adds to the excitement of being able to drive there. It’s a super huge racetrack and one of the coolest in the country, so I’m really excited.”

Did you identify any key parts of the track that are important to turning fast laps there?

“Yeah, there’s so much to that track. It was just a matter of making sure you get all the proximity right in the corners, cutting everything as close as you can. There are some track limits all around and they’ll be pretty strict on that, especially through the esses, so cutting those as tight as you can will be important. The lap there is so long, there are many different things to think about every lap.”

You came within one spot of a podium finish in your official TA2 debut with TeamSLR at VIR the first weekend in October. How was that experience for you?

“It was great. I’ve been working with TeamSLR since December last year, we’ve been testing a lot. It’s been great to work with Scotty (Scott Lagasse Jr.) and his dad (Scott Lagasse Sr.) and getting to know all the guys, it’s been good. They helped me a lot at VIR. I think I could’ve done a few things a little bit better, but obviously I’m still learning. That was my first real TA2 race, so I’m excited to see what we can do at COTA.”

Evan Slater, Driver, No. 8 Cube 3 Architecture/Willis & Smith Capital SLR-M1 Racecars Chevrolet Camaro:

You’re back with TeamSLR and the Trans Am Series for the second time this year and the first time since your runner-up finish at Lime Rock in May. How are you approaching this weekend?

“I don’t think it’ll take too long to break the rust off. Lime Rock was my first time back in the car in nine months and we got second in the race, I think we went second the first practice session, so it didn’t take long to knock the rust off there. So, COTA, I haven’t driven the track in two years, and they’ve done some repaving, but I expect to be fast right out of the box. I’ve been driving racecars here and there since Lime Rock, a lot of coaching in TA2 cars – sometimes I hop in for a data lap. Um, and I’ve been driving other forms of cars like Radicals, prototypes, sportscars. I’ve been staying active, so I don’t think it’ll be too much of a learning curve to get back into it.”

You have one previous TA2 outing at COTA, which resulted in a 14th-place finish in 2022. What do you expect to take from that race into this weekend?

“COTA is such an interesting track, a ton of turns, a lot of different types of turns. You’ve got fast-flowing turns, tight turns, turns where you need to get good power down, you have hard braking zones. So, what a great track. There are a lot of different types of turns and options, which makes it really fun. In 2022, I had a good run, but it didn’t look as good on paper. We qualified fourth, but then I missed the driver meeting in my worst move of the season, so I had to start 43rd, but went from 43rd to 14th in the race, which was a great race, I thought. Obviously, we would have liked to have started fourth rather than 43rd, but it showed that you can pass around that track, and I was able to find the gaps, find the opportunities around there. This year, I’m definitely not going to miss the driver meeting, so hopefully we can stay at the front end of the field the whole time. I already have my alarm set for the for the COTA driver meeting in my phone, so I’m not going to miss this one.”

How would you describe your first experience with TeamSLR at Lime Rock in May?

“Lime Rock was my first experience with Scott Sr. and Scott Jr., and I enjoyed it from the start, they know so much. I mean, they built the car, so they know it inside and out. The level of professionalism they brought was unmatched from anything I’ve seen. They were so great at so many things, like figuring out what setup changes that we needed to do starting a practice, laying out the plan – ‘We’re going to do a few laps, pit, make a change, and go out again, then make another change.’ They have a layout and a plan for all the practice sessions, which I think is great. They know what they need to learn to make the cars drive the best they can. And it’s just a super-professional environment, everybody knows what they’re doing, and everybody’s really good at their job.”

About TeamSLR:

TeamSLR (Scott Lagasse Racing) competes fulltime in the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli’s newly renamed Cube 3 Architecture TA2 Series in a multifaceted effort that includes dedicated entries in the TA2 division, customer programs, driver coaching and car construction. Its history dates back to 1985 and covers a wide spectrum of motorsports, including NASCAR, IMSA, SCCA, ARCA and ASA. TeamSLR is a family-owned organization run by Scott Lagasse Sr., and Scott Lagasse Jr., The father-and-son duo have combined to win more than 120 races and seven championships across a variety of series and styles of racecars, from paved ovals to road courses to dirt tracks. For more information, please visit us online at www.TeamSLR.com, on Facebook, on Twitter, on Instagram and on LinkedIn.

Whelen Engineering and Richard Childress Racing Extend Partnership in 2025

By
Official Release
-

Jesse Love Will Continue to Pilot the No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet in the NASCAR Xfinity Series

WELCOME, N.C. (October 31, 2024) – Whelen Engineering, a global leader in the emergency warning industry for over 70 years, will continue their partnership with Richard Childress Racing in 2025 as anchor sponsor on the No. 2 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Jesse Love, current Sunoco Rookie of the Year points leader, will return to the organization to pilot the race-winning entry.

“We’re thrilled to extend our partnership with Richard Childress Racing and Jesse Love in 2025,” said Peter Tiezzi, General Manager of Motorsports for Whelen Engineering. “It’s been an honor to watch Jesse grow as a driver and ambassador for Whelen and RCR in his rookie season. Our shared commitment to excellence and community impact makes this partnership truly special, and we can’t wait to see what we achieve together next year!”

Since 1952, Whelen Engineering has been a proud ally and supporter of our nation’s first responders. Driven by a mission to protect those who protect others, Whelen provides the high-quality, reliable products and technology needed to aid them in their critical missions. From warning lights to white illumination, sirens, controllers, and software, every product that bears the Whelen name has been thoughtfully designed, manufactured, and tested right here in America to perform at the highest level in any condition. Whelen is honored to have earned the trust of first responders around the world as leaders of the emergency warning industry and carries the responsibility earnestly, always striving to ensure that the everyday heroes serving under the illumination and protection of Whelen products are equipped to do their jobs with enhanced efficiency, reliability, and safety.

“Whelen’s commitment to the motorsports industry is unwavering and we are proud to continue our relationship with such a great brand,” said Torrey Galida, president of Richard Childress Racing. “Throughout our partnership, we have brought awareness to worthy causes that support first responders and built a robust at-track hosting program that encourages collaboration. Jesse has been an outstanding representative for Whelen in his rookie season. Together, he delivered Whelen their first victory in the Xfinity Series. We are confident that there is much more success on the horizon for Jesse and Whelen.”

Love, the 2023 ARCA Menards Series Champion, has earned one win, five poles, seven top-five, and 17 top-10 finishes through 31 Xfinity Series races so far this season. In his rookie campaign, the 19-year-old has led 335 laps – fourth most in the series – and earned a berth in the Playoffs.

“Entering the NASCAR Xfinity Series and being paired with Whelen, a company that values and protects first responders, has been an honor,” said Love. “Since I joined Richard Childress Racing, the entire company at Whelen has welcomed me with open arms. From touring both of their facilities in Connecticut and New Hampshire to unveiling the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation scheme at FDIC International and participating in Sonny Whelen’s Racing for a Cure charity go kart event, I’ve been able to see firsthand all the work that Whelen does to enrich our communities. I’ll always be grateful that we were able to give Whelen their first NASCAR win earlier this season, and I know we have more victories in our future together.”

For more information, please visit rcrracing.com.

Whelen Engineering is a family-owned company with a pioneering spirit and a passion to protect the lives of those who protect and serve others. The company mission is to provide industry-defining safety solutions around the world, while creating a community of problem-solvers who are inspired to push boundaries and continue our legacy of delivering ground-breaking innovation. As a global leader in the emergency warning industry, Whelen has been trusted to perform since 1952, when George Whelen III invented the first rotating aviation beacon. Whelen now encompasses two state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Connecticut and New Hampshire with over 750,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing space and the largest design staff in the industry. Every part of every Whelen product is proudly designed and manufactured in America. We embrace quality as our foundation, we celebrate innovative engineering in every product we produce.

Richard Childress Racing is a renowned, performance-driven racing, marketing and manufacturing organization. Incorporated in 1969, RCR has celebrated over 50 years of racing and earned more than 200 victories and 16 championships, including six in the NASCAR Cup Series with the legendary Dale Earnhardt. RCR was the first organization to win championships in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Truck Series and is a three-time winner of the Daytona 500 (1998, 2007, 2018). Its 2024 NASCAR Cup Series lineup includes two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch (No. 8 Chevrolet) and 2017 Coca-Cola 600 winner and 2018 Daytona 500 champion Austin Dillon (No. 3 Chevrolet). RCR fields a full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series program with Jesse Love (No. 2 Chevrolet) and Austin Hill (No. 21 Chevrolet).

Mahindra Tractors Racing: Chase Briscoe Martinsville Advance

By
Official Release
-

CHASE BRISCOE
Martinsville Advance
No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Event Overview

● Event: Xfinity 500 (Round 35 of 36)
● Time/Date: 2 p.m. EST on Sunday, Nov. 3
● Location: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway
● Layout: .526-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 500 laps/263 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 130 laps / Stage 2: 130 laps / Final Stage: 240 laps
● TV/Radio: NBC / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Sunday’s Xfinity 500 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway will mark Chase Briscoe’s eighth career NASCAR Cup Series start at the venerable track. Since his Cup Series debut at the .526-mile oval in April 2021 when he finished 27th, Briscoe had made steady and significant improvement. He finished 22nd in his return to Martinsville in October 2021 and has not finished outside of the top-10 in his last five Martinsville starts, finishing ninth (April 2022), ninth (October 2022), fifth (April 2023), fourth (October 2023) and 10th (April 2024).

● Briscoe’s best NASCAR Cup Series result at Martinsville is fourth, earned last October. However, his best race at the paperclip-shaped track came seventh months prior on April 16, 2023. In that race, Briscoe started fourth and took the lead on lap 186 and paced the field for the next 71 laps. A series of green-flag pit stops jumbled the running order, but Briscoe came back to take the lead on lap 307 and he stayed out front for another 38 laps to bring his laps-led total for the race to 109, second only to his Stewart-Haas teammate Ryan Preece, who led 135 laps. Ultimately, Briscoe finished fifth.

● Briscoe has led a total of 142 laps at Martinsville, and they’ve all come in three of his last four NASCAR Cup Series starts at the track. He led 25 laps in October 2022, 109 laps in April 2023 and eight laps in his most recent Martinsville start in April.

● Briscoe has three other Martinsville starts outside of the NASCAR Cup Series – one in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and two in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Briscoe finished seventh in his lone Xfinity Series start at Martinsville in October 2020, and in his two Truck Series starts at the track, both taking place in 2017, Briscoe finished 11th (April) and 19th (October).

● Briscoe won the pole for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Martinsville in October 2017. He promptly led the first 39 laps and was a front-running fixture until he was collected in an accident on lap 138 of the 200-lap race. The winner that day was Noah Gragson, Briscoe’s current teammate at Stewart-Haas.

● Mahindra Ag North America is a proud sponsor of Briscoe and Stewart-Haas Racing, and 2024 highlights an impressive milestone for Mahindra – 30 years of selling tractors in the United States. Houston-based Mahindra Ag North America is part of Mahindra Group’s Automotive and Farm Sector, the No. 1-selling farm tractor company in the world, based on volumes across all company brands. Mahindra offers a range of tractor models from 20-75 horsepower, implements, and the ROXOR heavy-duty UTV. Mahindra farm equipment is engineered to be easy to operate by first-time tractor or side-by-side owners and heavy duty to tackle the tough jobs of rural living, farming and ranching. Steel-framed Mahindra Tractors and side-by-sides are ideal for customers who demand performance, reliability and comfort. Mahindra dealers are independent, family-owned businesses located throughout the U.S. and Canada.

Chase Briscoe, Driver of the No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Ford Mustang Dark Horse

You come into Martinsville with five straight top-10 finishes at the track. Talk about your progression at Martinsville and how you attack each race.

“I feel like Martinsville is one of those places where the more you run there, the better you’re going to get. It’s such a unique racetrack. It seems like guys, once they figure it out, they’re always good there. You look at Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon and people like that, it’s one of those place where once you figure it out, it seems like your technique always works there. We’ve been really good at Martinsville every time we’ve gone there over the last three years, and have probably done everything but win the race, it seems like. We’ve led a ton of laps and things like that, so hopefully this will be the time we can improve on our recent finishes there. Would love to obviously bring home a grandfather clock. It’s one of the more iconic trophies and we’ve been really close and almost close enough to where we could see it – see where we want to put it, we just haven’t been able to put it there yet.”

How physical is a race at Martinsville? You’re on the brakes hard at least a thousand times, so your lower body gets a workout as much as your upper body.

“It’s really hard. I probably didn’t realize how hard it was until we were there last fall. For whatever reason after the race, I couldn’t even bend over to take my shoes off. I had to have my wife help me because my back was in so much pain from all the braking we were doing. It’s a really hard place to run, and even mentally it’s a place where you’ve got to be on your game. So Martinsville is probably overlooked a lot of the time, the physicality of it, just because the speeds and the G-forces are what we would have at other places. There’s a lot that goes on with your body at those races, so you definitely feel it the next day. Martinsville’s definitely gotten a little more challenging with the NextGen car because before, you would leave it in fourth gear and just run the whole time in fourth. Now, we’re downshifting every single corner, and then upshifting down the straightaway, so you’re just busier inside the racecar. It definitely has made Martinsville more physical overall. Your arms are getting more of a workout, your feet are doing a lot more with the pedals and things like that, so there’s just a lot going on at Martinsville in a very short lap.”

When you have a race that’s as physical as Martinsville, how does the simulator help prepare you?

“The sim’s really hard at Martinsville. It seems like the shorter the racetrack is, the harder it is sometimes to manage the simulator. Really flat tracks and really, really high-banked tracks sometimes throw it for a little bit of a loop. But I will say I feel like we’ve done a really good job over the last year trying to make our Martinsville simulator better, in general. I think that is some of the reason why we’ve had success on the real racetrack, as well. Martinsville’s a hard one just because there are so many variables that go into it. The weather is always really important there with how the rubber gets laid down. At that racetrack, just where the rubber is laid down and things like that really change the grip level. That’s what makes the simulator so challenging there.”

When it comes to on-track contact at Martinsville, what’s OK and what isn’t?

“It’s hard to say until you’re in it. It’s hard for me to say this would be OK, or this wouldn’t be OK. Once you’re in the moment, you kind of make up your mind as soon as it happens in regard to what you’re going to do to somebody else. It’s one of those deals where if you’re getting held up by a guy time and time and time again, you finally just kind of get fed up with it and you go and move him and go on. I feel like early in the race you try to give him at least a little bit of the benefit of the doubt but, anymore, it’s so hard to pass that as soon as you get to him, you try to move him and go on. It’s definitely evolved a lot over the last couple of years with the NextGen car.”

When do you need to just let something go and when do you need to stand up for yourself and give a shot back?

“I think it’s different for everybody. I don’t ever really get worked up, but I think there are some drivers who get worked up and just go ballistic, and that’s when it’s better if you just let it go and forget about it. You see some guys where somebody does them wrong early in the race, it just derails their whole race because they’re more worried about getting that guy back than just trying to run their race. I think it’s different for everybody. Everybody’s personalities and attitudes are so different that it’s a different answer for all. For me, it’s hard to say what you’ve got to do. If somebody does you wrong, you definitely have to get them back at some point just to stand up for yourself because, if you don’t do it and you let somebody walk all over you on the racetrack, they’re just going to do it time and time again because they know you’re not going to do anything about, so you have to stand your ground.”

How challenging is pit road at Martinsville, from navigating the curves, the tight boxes and all the traffic?

“Martinsville’s hard. It’s just so narrow on pit road and there’s not a whole lot of room. It’s always hard when you’re leaving your pit box there just because there are normally cars coming around on the outside line. It’s only two lanes wide, in general, so then you’re in the inside lane while those other pit crews are trying to change the right-side tires and it’s really, really tight. And just with how slow the speed is, the RPM change is very, very tight, and that’s why you see so many speeding penalties at Martinsville.”

No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Team Roster

Primary Team Members

Driver: Chase Briscoe

Hometown: Mitchell, Indiana

Crew Chief: Richard Boswell

Hometown: Friendship, Maryland

Car Chief: J.D. Frey

Hometown: Ferndale, California

Engineer: Mike Cook

Hometown: Annapolis, Maryland

Spotter: Joey Campbell

Hometown: Berlin, Connecticut

Over-The-Wall Members

Front Tire Changer: Daniel Coffey

Hometown: Granite Falls, North Carolina

Rear Tire Changer: Daniel Smith

Hometown: Concord, North Carolina

Tire Carrier: Mason Flynt

Hometown: High Point, North Carolina

Jack Man: Brandon Banks

Hometown: High Point, North Carolina

Fuel Man: Evan Marchal

Hometown: Westfield, Indiana

Road Crew Members

Underneath Mechanic: Stephen Gonzalez

Hometown: Mooresville, North Carolina

Interior Mechanic: Trevor Adams

Hometown: Plymouth, Wisconsin

Tire Specialist: Keith Eads

Hometown: Arlington, Virginia

Shock Specialist: Brian Holshouser

Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina

Engine Tuner: Jon Phillips

Hometown: Jefferson City, Missouri

Transporter Co-Driver: Todd Cable

Hometown: Shelby, North Carolina

Transporter Co-Driver: Dale Lackey

Hometown: Taylorsville, North Carolina

Bed Bath & Beyond Racing: Noah Gragson Martinsville Advance

By
Official Release
-

NOAH GRAGSON
Martinsville Advance
No. 10 Bed Bath & Beyond Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Event Overview

● Event: Xfinity 500 (Round 35 of 36)
● Time/Date: 2 p.m. EST on Sunday, Nov. 3
● Location: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway
● Layout: .526-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 500 laps/263 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 130 laps / Stage 2: 130 laps / Final Stage: 240 laps
● TV/Radio: NBC / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Short-track racing is where Noah Gragson’s career began. The Las Vegas native owns victories in two of the United States’ most prestigious Late Model races – the 2017 Winchester 400 at the half-mile Winchester (Ind.) Speedway and the 2018 Snowball Derby at the half-mile Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida.

● Sunday’s Xfinity 500 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway will mark Gragson’s fourth career NASCAR Cup Series start at the .526-mile oval, with his best result being a 20th-place drive in the series’ prior race there in April.

● Gragson’s tenure at Martinsville outside of the NASCAR Cup Series is impressive. In five career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the track, he only has one finish outside of the top-four, and that lone 20th-place result in April 2022 came after Gragson qualified third and led 23 laps before he was caught up in a 15-car accident on the frontstretch 10 laps short of the finish. From 2020 through 2022, Gragson’s finishes in the Xfinity Series at Martinsville were third (October 2020), second (April 2021), first (October 2021), 20th (April 2022) and fourth (October 2022).

● In his NASCAR Xfinity Series win at Martinsville in October 2021, Gragson dominated. Despite qualifying ninth, it only took him 65 laps to make his way to the front and take the lead. Gragson ended up leading six times for a race-high 153 laps, or 59.5 percent of the 257 laps available. When the checkered flag dropped, Gragson had a .064 of a second advantage over runner-up Austin Cindric in a green-white-checkered finish.

● Gragson’s Martinsville history in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is just as impressive. In four career Truck Series starts from 2017 through 2018, Gragson never finished worse than seventh. He came home fourth in his Truck Series debut at the track in April 2017, won in his next Martinsville start in October 2017, and then finished fifth and seventh, respectively, in his last two Truck Series starts in March and October 2018.

● Gragson delivered a gritty performance to earn his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series win at Martinsville in October 2017. He started fifth but never took the lead until lap 191 of the 200-lap race. But those last 10 laps were the only laps that mattered as Gragson pulled out a 1.586-second margin over second-place Matt Crafton.

● Bed Bath & Beyond adorns Gragson’s No. 10 Ford Mustang Dark Horse at Martinsville. The partnership celebrates Bed Bath & Beyond as the ultimate online destination for home essentials, featuring an unmatched assortment for every room of the house. Whether it’s your kitchen, bedroom, outdoor space or bathroom, Bed Bath & Beyond has what you need to create a space that feels uniquely yours. From cookware and bedding to bath accessories and beyond, Bed Bath & Beyond is your go-to source for functional and stylish home essentials.

Noah Gragson, Driver of the No. 10 Bed Bath & Beyond Ford Mustang Dark Horse

You’re very successful at Martinsville, winning in both the Xfinity Series and Truck Series, where in nine combined starts there – five in Xfinity and four in Trucks – you have two wins, seven top-fives and eight top-10s. What made you so good at Martinsville in those series?

“I think being able to be disciplined and move your line around and, depending on how the rubber’s being laid down on the racetrack, center exit of the corner, and then your proximity off the inside curb, I feel like there are four or five, maybe six different ways you can run a corner at Martinsville in Xfinity and Trucks and with the old Cup cars. You used to have to mount a run, but now you just downshift, so I’m trying to figure that out, but I used to be really good there.”

You finished fourth and first in your first two Truck starts there in 2017. Did you take to the track right away?

“It was pretty natural for me, a lot of heavy braking into the corner, and then just moving around. I watched Kyle Larson when he ran a Truck there. He was in a GMS Truck, maybe the 24 Truck in 2016, and I watched his line around there and how he moved around the racetrack. I utilized that when I first went there and developed more processes as I got around the corner as the years went on.”

Did Martinsville remind you of some of the tracks you raced on out West as you ran Late Models and then the NASCAR K&N Series West?

“Not really. There was nothing really like Martinsville that I had been to before.”

With all that prior success at Martinsville, what makes emulating those accomplishments at the Cup level so hard?

“I think everybody’s pretty locked in trying to figure out what a good car should feel like around there. I feel like the balance of the car changes. It gets really free on the entry of the corner as the run goes on. Just knowing and gaining experience on what you need your car balance to be at the beginning of the run compared to the end of the run. Obviously, the caliber of drivers is really high that you’re racing against, and it’s also pretty challenging to pass there with the downshifts.”

How physical is a race at Martinsville? You’re hard on the brakes at least a thousand times, so your lower body gets a workout as much as your upper body.

“It is a physical one. You never stop there. You’re shifting the whole time, so you’re pretty much driving one-handed, and you’re constantly on one pedal or the other with the brake or the gas. So you’re pretty worn out mentally and physically. It’s a demanding racetrack to go out there and run fast.”

Are you a left-foot or right-foot braker?

“I’ve always left-foot braked in a racecar. It’s just natural to me.”

When it comes to on-track contact at Martinsville, what’s OK and what isn’t?

“I guess just don’t spin the guy out in front on you, but if you do have to move him out of the way, you better hope you get away from him so he can’t get you back.”

When do you need to just let something go and when do you need to stand up for yourself and give a shot back?

“I think you race pretty hard to fill a hole on the restarts, but unless you’re racing for the win, or if somebody’s been holding you up for countless laps, there’s really no point because it’s really hard to get to somebody in a Cup car, now. It’s almost impossible, and if you do hit him, you have to hit him going 20 miles an hour faster just because they’re so stuck to the racetrack. Bumping doesn’t do much anymore, but I guess you can knock them out of the way pretty good on entry, and if they get loose on the corner, you can kind of squirt them up out of the way on the entry to the corner.”

How heady are restarts at Martinsville?

“Restarts at Martinsville are challenging just because the inside line is so dominant that with the choose cone you can gain some rows on the outside, but if you don’t get down after a couple of laps, you might fall back and net out a three- or four-spot loss. So, it’s risk versus reward.”

No. 10 Bed Bath & Beyond Team Roster

Primary Team Members

Driver: Noah Gragson

Hometown: Las Vegas

Crew Chief: Drew Blickensderfer

Hometown: Decatur, Illinois

Car Chief: Jerry Cook

Hometown: Toledo, Ohio

Engineer: James Kimbrough

Hometown: Pensacola, Florida

Spotter: Andy Houston

Hometown: Hickory, North Carolina

Over-The-Wall Members

Front Tire Changer: Ryan Mulder

Hometown: Sioux Center, Iowa

Rear Tire Changer: Trevor White

Hometown: Arlington, Texas

Tire Carrier: Tyler Bullard

Hometown: King, North Carolina

Jack Man: Sean Cotten

Hometown: Mooresville, North Carolina

Fuel Man: James “Ace” Keener

Hometown: Fortuna, California

Road Crew Members

Mechanic: Chris Trickett

Hometown: Grafton, West Virginia

Mechanic: Beau Whitley

Hometown: Carmel, Indiana

Tire Specialist: Jacob Cooksey

Hometown: Westbrookville, New York

Engine Tuner: Matt Moeller

Hometown: Monroe, New York

Transporter Co-Driver: Steve Casper

Hometown: Salisbury, North Carolina

Transporter Co-Driver: Matt Murphy

Hometown: Augusta, Georgia

CONGRUITY NHRA PRO MOD WORLD CHAMPION TO BE CROWNED IN LAS VEGAS AT RACE POWERED BY JBS EQUIPMENT

By
Official Release
-

LAS VEGAS (Oct. 31, 2024) – With a host of standout contenders, the championship in the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+ will be on the line this weekend at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway as part of the 24th annual Ford Performance NHRA Nationals.

It is the final race in the Road to the Championship and the 10-event season in the category, and this weekend’s must-see race is powered by JBS Equipment.

An epic title chase will come down to the wire, with 16 drivers still in contention heading into the weekend. With the points-and-half scenario in play in Vegas, it should make for a wild finish and one of those contenders is JBS Equipment President and Owner Justin Bond.

Looking for his first NHRA Pro Mod world championship, Bond trails points leader Khalid Al Balooshi by just 12 points, meaning the title could come down to the final run of the year in Vegas.

“The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is recognized as one of the largest sanctioning bodies globally, offering a prestigious platform for companies to promote their brands and support diverse racing classes,” Bond said. “In this spirit, my company, JBS Equipment, has made a deliberate decision to partner with the NHRA, focusing specifically on the Pro Modified class.

“For JBS Equipment, this collaboration represents a strategic opportunity with numerous advantages. By aligning our brand with such a prominent racing organization, we enhance our visibility and connect with a wide, relevant audience. This increased exposure not only boosts brand recognition but also positions JBS Equipment as a trusted and reputable company in the industry.”

Bond and Al Balooshi are hardly the only championship contenders in the loaded class, which will again have another huge 20-plus car field to close out a thrilling year in Las Vegas. Jordan Lazic is only 24 points out of first, while Ken Quartuccio and Mason Wright just 26 and 35 points behind the leader, respectively. Quartuccio won in Indy at the U.S. Nationals, while Wright picked up a victory in Epping.

The list of contenders doesn’t stop there, either. Former world champion Kris Thorne (-38) and Kevin Rivenbark (-50) are both within two rounds of Al-Balooshi, with the likes of Billy Banaka, Dmitry Samorukov, and former champions Mike Castellana and Jose Gonzalez close behind. Castellana is the defending event winner in Las Vegas, clinching both the championship and the race victory in the process.

Thorne has advanced to three final rounds, winning in Bristol, while Gonzalez won the season-opener in Gainesville and Rivenbark took the victory in the category’s first-ever appearance in Phoenix. It’s undoubtedly a loaded field this weekend in Las Vegas, promising intensity and excitement at a fever pitch to close out a stellar 2024 season in the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+.

The Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+ will kick off with two qualifying rounds on Friday, Nov. 1 at 11 AM and 5:10 PM PT, with the final two qualifying rounds set for 10:45 AM and 5:10 PM on Saturday, Nov. 2. The first round of eliminations is slated for 8:40 AM PT on Sunday, Nov. 3.

To purchase tickets to the Ford Performance NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, call 800-644-4444 or visit www.lvms.com. Children 12 and under are admitted free in general admissions areas with a paid adult. For more information about NHRA, visit www.NHRA.com.

About JBS Equipment

JBS Equipment design and manufacture the most technologically innovative spreaders, baggers, trailers, boxes, wagons and flingers in the business. Built at our state-of-the-art fabrication and assembly plant in Mission, British Columbia, our technology delivers the highest performance and the highest quality. JBS equipment is versatile, powerful, and efficient, engineered to save you valuable time and effort in the field. Constantly innovating, we create reliable, durable, and innovative solutions for your unique challenges, helping make your work life easier and your agricultural operation more efficient and successful. The JBS Equipment dealer program gives farmers access to over 100 dealer locations in the Unites States and Canada. Making your purchase of JBS Equipment a local purchase to you. Find your local JBS Equipment dealer at www.jbsequipment.com. When you’re a part of the JBS Dealer family, your potential for success is unlimited. JBS is committed to providing personalized support, rewards and recognition to all JBS Authorized Dealers. Visit www.jbsequipment.com and join our dealer network.

About Ford Performance

Ford Performance is based in Dearborn, Mich. It is responsible for Ford’s performance vehicle development and major racing operations globally, including NASCAR, IMSA, SRO British GT, FIA World Rally Championship, Supercars Championship, World of Outlaws, Ultra4, SCORE-International, FIA Rally-Raid, Formula Drift, NHRA, Rebelle Rally, Thailand Super Series and our latest commitment in Formula 1 with RedBull Ford Powertrains. Ford Performance also maintains a constantly evolving fleet of electric performance demonstrators to showcase the limits of electrification technology. In addition, the organization also oversees the development of Ford’s racing engines, as well as the outreach programs with all Ford Clubs and Ford enthusiasts. For more information regarding Ford racing’s activities, please visit Performance.Ford.com or follow @FordPerformance on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Twitter, TikTok and YouTube.

About Mission Foods

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

About NHRA

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

NHRA AT VEGAS 2: Team Chevy Race Advance | Notes & Quotes

By
Official Release
-

CHEVROLET IN NHRA
2024 FORD PERFORMANCE NHRA NATIONALS
THE STRIP AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

TEAM CHEVY RACE ADVANCE | NOTES & STATS

NOVEMBER 1-3, 2024

TEAM CHEVY HEADS TO THE STRIP AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY FIRST AND SECOND IN FUNNY CAR POINTS WITH JOHN FORCE RACING

Notes:

  • The penultimate event of the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season sees Team Chevy taking on The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the Ford Performance NHRA Nationals Nov. 1-3.
  • Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car drivers Austin Prock and Jack Beckman of John Force Racing currently sit first and second, respectively, in the Countdown to the Championship. Prock leads Beckman, who is racing on behalf of team owner and 16-time champion John Force, by 147 points.
  • Force, who has been sidelined and recovering from a traumatic brain injury stemming from his on-track incident in Richmond, returns to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend in support of his team.
  • Heading into the second of two events at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this year, Prock raced to runner-up in the spring Four-Wide event.
  • Together, the trio of Funny Car pilots (Prock, Force, and Beckman) at John Force Racing this season have combined for a staggering 10 wins and 14 No. 1 qualifiers, with Prock himself racing to seven wins and 13 No. 1 qualifiers in his first full year behind the wheel of a Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car. Force holds two wins and one No. 1 qualifier, and Beckman has raced to one win so far racing on behalf of Force.
  • Brittany Force, driver of the Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster, heads to Las Vegas looking for a return to the Winner’s Circle, and currently sits eighth in the Countdown to the Championship, just 190 separating the top eight.
  • Eyeing The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Team Chevy looks to capture the 400th Pro Stock victory since 1970. Dallas Glenn, racing to his fifth victory in 2024 at the Texas Motorplex, captured Chevrolet’s 399th in the category.
  • Racing for the inaugural Holley EFI Factory X title, Chevrolet COPO Camaro competitor Aaron Stanfield, a three-time FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown champion, leads over his father Greg Stanfield by 57 points. Lenny Lottig is in third, trailing A. Stanfield by 63 points.

Quotes:

AUSTIN PROCK, DRIVER OF THE CORNWELL TOOLS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS FUNNY CAR:

“I’m ready to get back after it in the Cornwell Tools Camaro. It’s been a long few off weekends (since the Dallas loss) and I’m ready to stand on the gas again. Conditions look great for some great racing (and) we’re looking for another solid weekend.

“We’re not treating this race any different than any other one. We want to go out there and run low E.T. every round and we want to win every race. If you’re competitive, and a racer, that’s what you expect, and I believe you can do that. We want to do good for JFR, we want to do good for Robert, and we want to do good for Cornwell and all our other great partners.”

JACK BECKMAN, DRIVER OF THE PEAK ANTIFREEZE AND COOLANT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS FUNNY CAR:

“After not being able to race at our last event in Dallas, I am looking forward to climbing back in the PEAK Chevy this week at Las Vegas. We’ll have our boss there to cheer us on, and posting another win for him is our ultimate goal.”

BRITTANY FORCE, DRIVER OF THE CHEVROLET TOP FUEL DRAGSTER:

“I’m excited to get back to Las Vegas with my Chevrolet Accessories dragster. The Strip has always been a strong track for us and it’s easily one of my favorite places to race. We’ve had great moments there, including winning (the Nevada Nationals) in 2019 and winning both races in 2022, and to have my dad back at this year’s race would make a win even more special. With only two races left, we’re focused on finishing strong and moving up in the points for a finish we can be proud of.”

How to Watch:

The Ford Performance NHRA Nationals from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway airs first with Friday qualifying on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1). Sunday’s finals air following, also on FS1, at 5 p.m. ET. Coverage streams live throughout the weekend on NHRA.tv, and is available via AppleTV, Android TV, and Roku devices.

TEAM CHEVY BY THE NUMBERS:

1,460: Round wins for John Force (1st all-time). Jack Beckman, who is currently racing on behalf of John Force in 2024’s Countdown to the Championship and second in points, has a Round W-L record of 12-5 in six events.

626: Round wins for Robert Hight; 13th all-time. Cruz Pedregon (Funny Car), sits 12th, with 633.

167: Number of career No. 1 qualifiers for John Force (1st all-time).

169: Number of Chevrolet Racing Funny Car wins since 1967.

84: Number of career No. 1 qualifiers for Robert Hight (6th all-time). Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel) is fifth with 88.

89: Number of Chevrolet Racing Funny Car wins with the Camaro SS body.

50: Number of career No. 1 qualifiers for Brittany Force.

28: Number of NHRA championships Chevrolet holds as a manufacturer since entering the first in 1966. This is the seventh consecutive award and ninth in 11 seasons. No other manufacturer has won it more than Chevrolet.

26: Wins by John Force in a Chevrolet-bodied Funny Car.

20: Chevrolet career Top Fuel wins in NHRA.

16: Number of Chevrolet career wins by Brittany Force.

7: Number of Funny Car driver championships.

2: Number of Top Fuel driver championships.

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.

Martinsville Showdown: One Last Push for the Championship 4

By
Angie Campbell
-
Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.

NASCAR heads to Martinsville Speedway for the final races in the Round of 8 to determine the four drivers in each series who will contend for the 2024 Championship.

Tyler Reddick (Homestead) and Joey Logano (Las Vegas) are locked into the Championship 4 with wins followed by Christopher Bell (+29) and William Byron (+7).

Hendrick Motorsports Cup Series drivers Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson are looking at an uphill battle at Martinsville Speedway. Elliott only has one win in 18 races at Martinsville and needs nothing short of a victory to advance. Larson, however, has fared somewhat better than Elliott at the 0.526-mile track with two runner-up finishes in the past four races.

Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney came up short last weekend at Homestead with a heartbreaking runner-up finish followed by Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin in third. Both drivers are at risk of missing the cut for the championship battle.

Xfinity Series drivers Austin Hill (Homestead) and AJ Allmendinger (Las Vegas) are locked in with wins as Justin Allgaier and Cole Custer complete the top four heading to the cut-off race at Martinsville.

Grant Enfinger leads the Truck Series standings with wins at Talladega Superspeedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Cup Series – Playoff Drivers

Tyler Reddick (23XI Racing): Advances with the win at Homestead
Joey Logano (Team Penske): Advances with the win at Las Vegas
Christopher Bell (Joe Gibbs Racing): +29
William Byron (Hendrick Motorsports): +7
Kyle Larson (Hendrick Motorsports): -7
Denny Hamlin (Joe Gibbs Racing): -18
Ryan Blaney (Team Penske): -38
Chase Elliott (Hendrick Motorsports): -43

Xfinity Series – Playoff Drivers:

Austin Hill (Richard Childress Racing): Advances with the win at Homestead
A.J. Allmendinger (Kaulig Racing): Advances with a win at Las Vegas
Justin Allgaier (JR Motorsports): +35
Cole Custer (Stewart-Haas Racing): +28
81 Chandler Smith (Joe Gibbs Racing): -28
Jesse Love (Richard Childress Racing): -35
Sam Mayer (JR Motorsports): -47
Sammy Smith (JR Motorsports): -95

Craftsman Truck Series Playoff Drivers:

Grant Enfinger (CR7 Motorsports): Advances with wins at Talladega and Homestead
Corey Heim (Tricon Garage):+49
Christian Eckes (McAnally-Hilgemann Racing): +38
Ty Majeski (ThorSport Racing):+22
Rajah Caruth Spire Motorsports):-22
Taylor Gray (Tricon Garage): -24
Tyler Ankrum (McAnally-Hilgemann Racing): -41
Nick Sanchez (Rev Racing):-43

The Craftsman Truck Series headlines the racing action Friday evening in the Zip Buy Now, Pay Later 200 as the Xfinity Series Series National Debt Relief 250 takes center stage Saturday afternoon. On Sunday afternoon the Cup Series closes out the weekend with the XFINITY 500.

Weekend Schedule for Martinsville Playoff Race

By
Angie Campbell
-
Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.

NASCAR travels to Martinsville Speedway for the final races in the Round of 8 of the Playoffs this weekend. Four drivers in each series will advance to contend for the coveted 2024 championship title at Phoenix Raceway.

The Craftsman Truck Series headlines the racing action Friday evening in the ZIP BUY NOW, PAY LATER 200 followed by the Xfinity Series NATIONAL DEBT RELIEF 250 Saturday afternoon. On Sunday afternoon the NASCAR Cup Series closes out the weekend with the XFINITY 500.

Friday, Nov. 1 Schedule

1:36 p.m.: Truck Series Practice – FS2
2:10 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying – FS2

3:35 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice – NBC Sports App
4:10 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying – NBC Sports App

6:0 p.m.: Truck Series Zip Buy Now, Pay Later 200
105.2 miles (200 Laps)
Stages end on Lap 50, Lap 100, Lap 200
FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
Purse: $672,417
Post Truck Series Race: NASCAR Press Pass

Saturday, Nov. 2 Schedule

1:00 p.m.: Cup Series Practice
NBC Sports App/MRN/SiriusXM

2:05 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying
NBC Sports App/MRN/SiriusXM
Post Cup Series Qualifying: NASCAR Press Pass

4:00 p.m.: Xfinity Series National Debt Relief 250
131.5 miles (250 Laps)
Stages end on Lap 60, Lap 120, Lap 250
CW/MRN/SiriusXM
Purse: $1,441,088
Post Xfinity Series Race: NASCAR Press Pass

Sunday, Nov. 3 Schedule

2:00 p.m.: Cup Series Xfinity 500
263 miles (500 Laps)
Stage end on Lap 130, Lap 260, Lap 500
NBC/MRN/SiriusXM
Purse: $8,991,338
Post Cup Series Race: NASCAR Press Pass
Current Playoff Standings – NASCAR Cup Series

Current Playoff Standings – NASCAR Cup Series

Tyler Reddick-win
Joey Logano-win
Christopher Bell +29
William Byron +7

Kyle Larson -7
Denny Hamlin -18
Ryan Blaney – 38
Chase Elliott -43

Current Playoff Standings – NASCAR Xfinity Series

Austin Hill – win
AJ Allmendinger – win
Justin Allgaier +35
Cole Custer +28

Chandler Smith -28
Jesse Love -35
Sam Mayer -47
Sammy Smith -95

Current Playoff Standings – NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series

Grant Enfinger – win
Corey Heim +49
Christian Eckes +38
Ty Majeski + 22
Rajah Caruth -22
Taylor Gray 24
Tyler Ankrum -41
Nicholas Sanchez -43

NTT and Toyota Motor Corporation agree to joint initiative in the field of mobility and AI/telecommunications with the aim of realizing a society with zero traffic accidents

By
Official Release
-

Toyota City, Japan, Oct 31, 2024 – (JCN Newswire) – Today, Toyota Motor Corporation (hereafter, Toyota) and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (hereafter, NTT) have agreed to a joint initiative in the field of mobility and AI/telecommunications with the aim of realizing a society with zero traffic accidents.

Through their previous collaborations, the two companies have confirmed that they share common values, such as contributing to society through technological and industrial development, a people-centered approach, and global contributions that start in Japan. This time, they will further deepen their collaboration with the aim of achieving a “society with zero traffic accidents” as the first step towards realizing a prosperous mobility society where safety and freedom are in harmony.

In order to achieve a society with zero traffic accidents, it is necessary to take an infrastructure-cooperative approach that constantly connects people, mobility and infrastructure, in addition to the advancement of driving support technology based on data-driven technology in cars and the development of future automated driving technology.

To achieve both of these things, Toyota is developing Software Defined Vehicles (SDV) with safety and security as the top priority. Alongside the evolution of SDV, it will become more important to build infrastructure such as a high-speed, high-quality communication infrastructure, an AI infrastructure that can collect and intelligently process vast amounts of information, and a computing infrastructure.

In this collaboration, NTT, whose strengths lie in the telecommunications, and Toyota will jointly build a “Mobility AI Platform” that combines a seamless communications infrastructure with AI and computing platforms that can intelligently process large amounts of data. By doing so, they aim to connect people, mobility, and infrastructure to realize a safe, secure, and sustainable mobility society with no traffic accidents.

Details of the joint initiative

We will jointly develop and operate the “Mobility AI Platform” and use it in our efforts(1) to achieve a society with zero traffic accidents. The Mobility AI Platform is made up of multiple elements(2).

The Mobility AI Platform aims to standardize the mobility field, and we envision that it will be used not only by the two companies, but also by a wide range of industry, government, and academic partners who share the goal of realizing a society with zero traffic accidents.

Through this initiative, the two companies expect to invest a total of 500 billion yen by 2030. Starting in 2025, they will begin development of the Mobility AI Platform, and from around 2028 under the three-pronged infrastructure, they will begin social implementation and collaboration with various partners, aiming for widespread adoption from 2030 onwards.

(1) Main initiatives aimed at achieving a society with zero traffic accidents

  • Three-pronged infrastructure collaboration” to prevent collisions at blind intersections, etc.
  • Development of advanced driving support/future automated driving systems” that are data-driven, with AI learning on its own based on large amounts of driving data

(2) Elements that make up the mobility AI platform

  1. Distributed computing platform (data center)

Computing resources (data centers) for analyzing and processing vast amounts of data using AI are installed in distributed locations, utilizing IOWN’s optical communication technology. By locating them in areas rich in renewable energy, we can achieve local production for local consumption of electricity, and by achieving high power efficiency in the coordination and processing of distributed computing resources and AI, we can promote the greening of the vast amounts of electricity needed for data analysis and processing.

  1. Intelligent communication infrastructure

A system is being built to coordinate human mobility infrastructure through seamless communication that is suitable for various traffic environments and conditions in urban areas, rural areas, and suburbs. In addition to being highly reliable, it also achieves low-latency communication for large volumes of data.

  1. AI infrastructure

A platform that achieves mobility AI that learns and infers from various data from human mobility infrastructure, based on a “distributed computing infrastructure (data center)” and “intelligent communication infrastructure”.

News URL: https://www.acnnewswire.com/press-release/english/93629/

URL: https://plus.google.com/+toyotaglobal | Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/ToyotaMotorCorporation/ | Twitter : https://twitter.com/TOYOTA_PR/ | Youtube : https://www.youtube.com/user/toyotajpchannel/ | Linkedin : https://linkedin.com/company/toyota

AM Racing | Dylan Lupton Martinsville Speedway Xfinity Series Race Preview

By
Barry Albert
-

AM Racing | NASCAR Xfinity Series
Martinsville (Va.) Speedway | National Debt Relief 250

Fast Facts
No. 15 AM Racing Team:
Driver: Dylan Lupton
Primary Partner(s): Lupton Excavation | AirBox
Manufacturer: Ford Mustang
Crew Chief: Ryan “Pickle” London
Spotter: Michael Fisher
Chassis Intel: AMR Chassis No. X-1028
Engine: Roush-Yates Engines

Notes of Interest:

Final Stretch: Veteran race car driver Dylan Lupton will pilot AM Racing’s No. 15 Ford Mustang for the final two 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series races, including Saturday afternoon’s penultimate National Debt Relief 250 race of the season at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.

Lupton, a graduate of the NASCAR Next initiative, will also drive the team’s Ford Mustang in the season finale at Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway on Nov. 9, 2024.

The former ARCA Menards Series West winner returned to NASCAR Xfinity Series competition for the first time since Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway last year on Oct. 5, 2024, at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.

Driving the No. 15 Sentinel Foundation | Nine Line Apparel Ford Mustang for AM Racing, Lupton contended for a top-10 finish before being collected in the “Big One” with three laps to go.

To jumpstart his stock car racing career this year, Lupton returned to the ARCA Menards Series at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International in mid-September when he piloted the No. 30 Lupton Excavation | Rette Jones Racing Ford Mustang to a top-10 finish in the General Tire 100 at The Glen.

The Wilton, Calif. native has spent most of 2024 competing in select Late-Model events on the West Coast and in a limited Trans Am Series XGT Class schedule.

The Californian has four career starts for AM Racing at Talladega, the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Road Course, Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway (Fla.) respectively.

Lupton has 64 starts across all three of NASCAR’s national divisions, with one top-five and five top-10 finishes.

Welcome Aboard: For the 32nd of 33 NASCAR Xfinity Series races this season, AM Racing and Lupton welcome Lupton Excavation to the team as the primary partner on the No. 15 Ford Mustang for the 250-

lap race on Saturday afternoon.

Lupton Excavation Inc. was founded in 1987. The company provides excavation work and digs foundations.

Serving Sacramento, Calif., and surrounding areas, Lupton Excavation Inc. also specializes in Earthwork and plumbing.

Giving You Peace of Air: For the penultimate short track race of the season, AirBox will serve in an associate partnership role on Lupton’s No. 15 Ford Mustang in Saturday afternoon’s National Debt Relief 250 at Martinsville Speedway.

In 2017, AirBox was established to focus on building the world’s best air purifiers for indoor occupied spaces. This coincided with people starting to wake up to issues with indoor air quality. With new challenges to air cleanliness, such as COVID-19 and wildfire smoke, people are looking for effective and proven solutions to ensure they receive cleaner air, at last.

Their history in delivering clean air systems and services gives them an expertise that is unmatched. AirBox uses some of the most effective air filtration technologies that exist with Certified HEPA and Advanced Molecular Adsorption. Coupled with their Indoor Air Quality Assessment, AirBox is the total solution for all indoor air quality needs, ensuring their customers meet and exceed current and future ventilation standards.

Today, AirBox filtration systems are used across the country, purifying the air and capturing harmful irritants to create healthier, safer spaces. They’ve become the trusted choice for hospitals, educational centers, offices, warehouses, construction zones, public assembly, sports facilities, and more.

They’re proud to build all products to the highest standards in the USA at their North Carolina production facility. Every day, AirBox is working hard to give the American people the safer learning, working, and living environments they deserve — helping people breathe easy and live better.

Double Duty: In addition to Saturday afternoon’s National Debt Relief 250 at Martinsville Speedway, Lupton will pull double duty and compete in Friday night’s NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series Zip Buy Now Pay Later 200 driving the No. 02 Young’s Motorsports entry.

Lupton is utilizing the next-to-last Truck Series race of 2024 to acquire additional seat time ahead of his fifth NASCAR Xfinity Series start of the season on Nov. 2. 2024.

He has two prior Truck Series starts for the Mooresville, N.C.-based Young’s Motorsports team at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway (2016) and Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (2019), respectively with a best finish of 12th at Talladega.

Lupton is poised to make his 16th career Truck Series start on Nov. 1 and the first since the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in July 2022.

Dylan Lupton NASCAR Xfinity Series Martinsville Speedway Stats: Saturday afternoon’s National Debt Relief 250 at Martinsville Speedway will mark Lupton’s first career Xfinity Series start at the famed 0.526-mile paperclip in the heart of Virginia.

However, Lupton did make one NASCAR Cup Series start at Martinsville during the 2016 season, competing in the Goody’s Fast Relief 500, piloting the No. 83 BK Racing Toyota Camry.

He will look to improve his overall short track average Xfinity finish of 21.7.

Dylan Lupton NASCAR Xfinity Series Career Stats: In 45 NASCAR Xfinity Series starts, Lupton has a career-best ninth-place finish after starting 16th for Athenian Motorsports at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in August 2015.

In addition to his Xfinity Series starts, he has achieved four NASCAR Cup Series starts and 15 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series starts to his credit.

Thanks For Your Support: With 93 percent of the 2024 Xfinity Series season complete, AM Racing and Dylan Lupton would like to thank their marketing partners for their support: AirBox, Flying Circle, Mechanix Wear, Mobil 1 and WIX Filters.

Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway | Credit One NASCAR Amex Credit Card 300 Race Recap: The 31st race of the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series season kicked off with a solo trip to Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway on Saturday, October 26, 2024.

In his Homestead return, Lupton and the AM Racing team led by crew chief Ryan “Pickle” London worked hard to improve the balance of their race car from practice to qualifying.

After picking up the pace in qualifying, Lupton started his No. 15 Lupton Excavation | AirBox Ford Mustang from the 30th position. After initially picking up a few positions at the drop of the green flag, Lupton reported an extremely loose race car, which was reflected in his track position.

Managing the looseness, Lupton stayed on the lead lap until the end of Stage 1, when London made a significant chassis adjustment to improve the car.

Lupton fired off strong at the start of Stage 2, continued to march forward, and worked to a race-high of 21st before finishing Stage 2 in the 23rd position.

With the sun beginning to set, Lupton continued to ask for more help to battle how free his race car was.

With new tires, fuel, and more adjustments, Lupton restarted inside the top 25, but early in Stage 3, a tire went down, causing him to make slight contact with the wall.

The team repaired the car with Lupton returning to the track and a couple of laps down. Lupton fought back and climbed back to 26th on the track before a right front flat tire with less than 10 laps to go sent the No. 15 AM Racing Ford Mustang to pit road for two tires.

Because of the late unscheduled stop, the team finished 32nd at the checkered flag.

From the Pit Box: Industry veteran Ryan “Pickle” London is Dylan Lupton’s crew chief.

He will be crew chief for his 32nd NASCAR Xfinity Series race and his third at Martinsville Speedway.

In his previous 31 NASCAR Xfinity Series starts, he has collected two top-10 finishes, including a career-best ninth at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International with Joey Logano in September 2024 for AM Racing.

Follow on Social Media: For more on AM Racing, please visit AMRacingteam.com, like their Facebook page (AM Racing), or follow them on Instagram and X | Twitter @AMRacingNASCAR.

For more on Dylan Lupton like him on Facebook (Lupton Racing) and follow him on Instagram (@luptondylan) and X | Twitter (@LuptonDylan).

Dylan Lupton Quoteboard:

On Martinsville Speedway: “I’m optimistic about returning to Martinsville Speedway this weekend. Even though we did not have the finish we deserved last weekend at Homestead, I am encouraged by the changes we made throughout the race that made us more competitive.

“Without a doubt, I think running double duty will be a benefit to me. It’s all about seat time this weekend at one of the most demanding NASCAR short tracks on the schedule. I think the 200 laps on Friday night will help me get into a rhythm and get reacquainted with Martinsville.

“I’m looking for a solid finish for our AM Racing team that we can build on and head to Phoenix Raceway next weekend and end the year on a high note.”

Race Information:

The National Debt Relief 250 (250 laps | 131.5 miles) is the 32nd of thirty-three (33) NASCAR Xfinity Series races on the 2024 schedule. Practice will occur on Friday, November 1, from 3:35 p.m. to 4:10 p.m. Qualifying will immediately follow. The 38-car field will take the green flag on Saturday, November 2, shortly after 4:00 ET, with live coverage on the CW Network, the Motor Racing Network (Radio) and SiriusXM NASCAR Channel 90. All times are local (Eastern).

About AM Racing:

AM Racing is a multi-tiered, multi-faceted Motorsports program headquartered in Statesville, N.C.

Established in December 2015, AM Racing is prided on faith, honesty and intelligent performance.

The family-owned team will compete in the ARCA Menards Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series and various Dirt Modified events in its eighth year of competition.

1...721722723...6,668Page 722 of 6,668