ROVAL Event Info:
Date: Sunday, Oct. 13
Time: 2 p.m. ET
Series: NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Location: Concord, North Carolina
Format: 109 Laps, 252.88 Miles, Stages: 25-25-59
TV: NBC
Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)

Weekend Schedule:
Saturday: 12:30 p.m. ET, Practice (USA, NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Saturday: 2 p.m. ET, Qualifying (USA, NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Sunday: 2 p.m. ET, Race (NBC, NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

Pace Laps:

• The ROVAL at Charlotte Motor Speedway hosts the final race in the Round of 12 in the NASCAR Playoffs this weekend, in what is the final road course event of the 2024 season.
• The ROVAL underwent a reconfiguration since the last race, now featuring a new Turn 6, sending the field into a much sharper hairpin Turn 7. On the frontstretch, a sharper apex in Turn 16 of the final chicane has been created. The circuit still features 17 turns in total and a 2.28-mile course.
• Chris Buescher, the winner of the most recent road course race at Watkins Glen, has been the class of the field in left and right turns as of late. His 9.2 average finish in the last 21 road course events tops all Cup drivers with 13 top-10s in that stretch.

6 Team Info:
Crew Chief: Matt McCall
Partner: Castrol Edge/TravelCenters of America

17 Team Info:
Crew Chief: Scott Graves
Partner: Fifth Third Bank

• As part of the Fueled by Fifth Third Bank pass through program, Metro Trailers will ride along with Buescher on the decklid of the No. 17 this weekend.
• Metro Trailers, with 14 different locations, has been around since 1975with 40,000 trailers in its fleet. From vans, flats and refrigerated, Metro offers short and long term, flexible rates.

Keselowski at the ROVAL
Starts: 6
Wins: —
Top-10s: 1
Poles: —

• Keselowski makes his seventh start on the ROVAL at Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend. He has a 17.7 average finish with a best finish of fifth in 2019. Last season he finished 18th.
• Keselowski led laps in each of the first three events on the ROVAL, and started inside the top five twice (third – 2020, second – 2021).
• Overall on road courses in his Cup career, Keselowski has 11 top-10s and a 17.1 average finish.

Buescher at the ROVAL
Starts: 6
Wins: —
Top-10s: 3
Poles: —

• Buescher makes his seventh start on the ROVAL this weekend He’s coming off three-straight top-10s at the configuration after a P7 result last fall.
• In those last three events Buescher carries a 5.3 average finish, third-best of any driver. On all road courses (since the start of the 2021 season), Buescher’s 9.2 average finish leads the Cup Series with 13 top-10s in that 21-race span.
• In road course racing this season, Buescher has finishes of P8 (COTA), P3 (Sonoma), P20 (Chicago), and P1 (Watkins Glen).
• Buescher carries a 16.7 average starting position into the weekend with a career-best P10 qualifying effort in 2018.
• Overall on road courses, Buescher 15 top-10s and a 13.1 average finish in his career.

RFK Historically at the ROVAL
Cup Wins: —

Road Course Racing: Overall, RFK has 266 starts on road courses in the Cup Series with six wins, 94 top-10s and 44 top five finishes. RFK Cup drivers have a 17.3 average finish with 644 laps led.

Last Time Out & Where They Stand
Talladega: Keselowski finished P2 in a photo finish for the second-straight Talladega race, while Buescher finished 17th after maneuvering through a 28-car pileup, the largest in NASCAR history.

Martin Truex Jr.
Charlotte Roval Advance
No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry XSE for Joe Gibbs Racing

Event Overview

● Event: Bank of America Roval 400 (Round 32 of 36)
● Time/Date: 2 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Oct. 13
● Location: Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Roval
● Layout: 2.28-mile, 17-turn road course
● Laps/Miles: 109 laps, 252.88 miles
● Format: Stage 1: 25 laps / Stage 2: 25 laps / Final Stage: 59 laps
● TV/Radio: NBC / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Five to Go: After a 11th-place finish last weekend at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Truex sits 14th in the driver standings with 2,130 points heading to this weekend’s race on the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Roval.

● Truex has two top-10 finishes and has led a total of six laps in six career NASCAR Cup Series starts on the Charlotte Roval. Truex’s average Roval finish is 15.7.

● Sunday’s Bank of America Roval 400k at Charlotte marks the final race of five road-course races on the 2024 Cup Series schedule. Truex finished 10th in the first road-course race of the year March 24 at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, before finishing 27th on June 9 at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway, where he was running second when he ran out of fuel on the last lap. He was 33rd in the series’ second visit to the downtown Chicago street course on July 7, then finished 20th in September at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International.

● Road-Course History: Truex has a total of five wins, 13 top-five finishes and 19 top-10s at the three permanent road-course venues on the Cup Series schedule – Sonoma, COTA and Watkins Glen. Four of those wins came at Sonoma and one at Watkins Glen.

● Looking for 35: Truex’s July 2023 win at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon was his most recent Cup Series win, the 34th of his career, tying him with 2004 champion Kurt Busch for 25th on the all-time Cup Series win list.

● Ahead at this Stage: Truex has accumulated 64 stage wins since the beginning of the stage era in 2017. He is the only driver with 10 or more stage sweeps, with his latest sweep coming at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn in August 2023. Truex scored his fourth stage win of the season last month at Watkins Glen, leading the field across the line at the end of Stage 1.

Martin Truex Jr., Driver of the No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry XSE

Back when the Roval was first announced, did you think it would be as cool as many thought it would be today?

“Yes, I remember all of it. I remember testing on the track for the first time when it was even a different configuration than we ended up with. There were no curbs, no grass, no paint, there was just dirt and old pavement. They just kept spicing it up and adding curbs and paint and all this stuff and it turned out to be a pretty cool-looking racetrack, especially on TV with all the paint, and it had a bit of an F1 feel to it from that standpoint. Still think it was kind of wonky and weird, but I also think it’s what makes it what it is. It’s very unique, it’s different, it’s challenging. They went out on a long limb when it was created and it’s turned out to be pretty cool.”

Did you feel that the Roval was going to be difficult? And what did you think of it after running it a few times?

“I would say so. I was one of the first guys to test with just an infield road course with grass all around. I was wondering, since it was small and narrow and not sure how we would race on it beforehand, but it turned out to be quite the show. You have to be open-minded and embrace the challenges and try to do the best you can with it. That was how I viewed the Roval at the beginning, and how we tried to approach the Chicago Street Race, as well. We almost won the Roval the first year, so we ran well there and would love to get that win there this weekend with our Bass Pro Shops Camry.”

What type of track causes the most chaos in the Cup Series these days?

“The obvious answer to most is the superspeedways and how things happen and how it can take out a lot of cars quickly. However, road-course restarts have become the next-craziest part of what we do. Looking back at last year, we crashed on one of the restarts with guys going five- and six-wide and guys trying to make up eight to 10 spots in one corner. I think that’s the biggest change in our sport the last few years.”

Is it still possible to win a bunch or even half of the playoff races in this era?

“I think it’s definitely harder to do than it was. It’s all because of the car. Definitely. You used to be able to find advantages easier with cars and builds than you can now. You’ve sort of seen it so far here in the playoffs, not only have we seen several different winners, but we’ve also seen several guys who have won who are not currently in the playoffs.”

No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Team Roster

Primary Team Members

Driver: Martin Truex Jr.

Hometown: Mayetta, New Jersey

Crew Chief: James Small

Hometown: Melbourne, Australia

Car Chief: Chris Jones

Hometown: Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia

Race Engineer: Jaik Halpainy

Hometown: Blockville, New York

Spotter: Drew Herring

Hometown: Benson, North Carolina

Road Crew Members

Underneath Mechanic: Ryan Martin

Hometown: Mechanicsburg, Virgina

Mechanic: Todd Carmichael

Hometown: Redding, California

Interior/Tire Specialist: Tommy DiBlasi

Hometown: Annapolis, Maryland

Engine Tuner: Beau Morton

Hometown: Lake Havasu City, Arizona

Transporter Driver: Kyle Bazzell

Hometown: Fairbury, Illinois

Transporter Driver: Eddie DeGroot

Hometown: Baldwinsville, New York

Over-The-Wall Crew Members

Gas Man: Matt Tyrrell

Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Jackman: Caleb Dirks

Hometown: Riverside, California

Tire Carrier: CJ Bailey

Hometown: Outer Banks, North Carolina

Front Tire Changer: Thomas Hatcher

Hometown: Middleburg, Florida

Rear Tire Changer: Lee Cunningham

Hometown: Leaf River, Illinois

RYAN PREECE
Charlotte Roval Advance
No. 41 United Rentals Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Event Overview

● Event: Bank of America Roval 400 (Round 32 of 36)
● Time/Date: 2 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Oct. 13
● Location: Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Roval
● Layout: 2.28-mile, 17-turn road course
● Laps/Miles: 109 laps/252.88 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 25 laps / Stage 2: 25 laps / Final Stage: 59 laps
● TV/Radio: NBC / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Sunday’s Bank of America Roval 400 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway is the fifth and final road-course race on the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series schedule. Ryan Preece, driver of the No. 41 United Rentals Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Stewart-Haas Racing, finished 23rd in the series’ first road-course race of the year March 24 at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas. He then placed 18th in the series’ second road-course stop June 9 at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway. Next came his 34th-place result in the July 7 Grand Park 165 on the streets of downtown Chicago. And his most recent road-course outing was his best of the year, a ninth-place finish Sept. 15 at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International.

● Sunday’s 109-lap race around the 2.28-mile, 17-turn circuit will mark Preece’s fourth NASCAR Cup Series start on the Roval. Best among his four previous starts was his most recent, an 11th-place drive from the 18th starting position in his No. 41 Stewart-Haas Ford in October 2023. Preece’s first three Cup Series starts on the Roval came with JTG Daugherty Racing, which resulted in finishes of 21st, 14th and 19th in September 2019, and October 2020 and 2021, respectively.

● Preece’s first career outing on the Roval came in the NASCAR Xfinity Series while driving for Joe Gibbs Racing in September 2018. It was an impressive one as Preece started 10th and finished fourth. It remains his only Xfinity Series start on the Roval.

● Sunday’s race will mark Preece’s 23rd career NASCAR Cup Series road-course start. His ninth-place finish at the most recent road-course race at Watkins Glen matched his career-best road-course finish, first achieved in February 2021 from the sixth starting position on the Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway road course behind the wheel of a JTG Daugherty Racing entry. In addition to his fourth-place finish in the September 2018 Xfinity Series finish on the Roval, Preece has three other road-course outings in the series, all at Watkins Glen with a best result of fourth from the eighth starting position in August 2018, also in a Joe Gibbs Racing entry. Preece’s best career road-course outing was a dominating one in the June 2023 ARCA Menards Series West race at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway, where he drove the No. 9 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford to victory from the pole, leading 50 of 64 laps along the way to crossing the finish line more than 9 seconds ahead of runner-up Sammy Smith. Preece made his professional road-course debut in the July 2010 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race on his home track, Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut, where the native of Berlin, Connecticut, started seventh and finished fourth. It was his only road-course outing in 174 career starts on the Tour, where he won the 2013 championship and finished runner-up in 2009, 2012, 2014 and 2015.

● Joining Preece at the Roval is United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE: URI), the largest equipment rental company in the world. United Rentals has an integrated network of 1,449 rental locations in North America, 13 in Europe, 27 in Australia and 19 in New Zealand. In North America, the company operates in 49 states and every Canadian province. The company’s approximately 24,700 employees serve construction and industrial customers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners and others. The company offers approximately 4,700 classes of equipment for rent with a total original cost of $19.3 billion. United Rentals is a member of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, the Barron’s 400 Index and the Russell 3000 Index®. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. Additional information about United Rentals is available at UnitedRentals.com.

Ryan Preece, Driver of the No. 41 United Rentals Ford Mustang Dark Horse

You had a top-10 at Watkins Glen last month and had to work pretty hard to get it. Does that give you a bit of confidence heading to the Roval?

“Definitely. I’ve said this before, road courses are something that I enjoy doing. The Roval is one that I feel like it’s not necessarily a wild card, but it’s something that’s different from what all our teams are used to just because they changed the configuration, which is something I’m excited about. I’m definitely excited about going to the Roval for our last road-course race of the season.”

The changes to the track are in the back section, and the chicane has also been tightened. How do you think those changes will affect the racing?

“For me, it’s just going to emphasize that your car needs to have really good braking capabilities because you’re going to have to be able to beat somebody into the braking zones and have a car that changes direction very quickly. That’s going to be important, and it’s just going to emphasize how much more important track position is going to be, and you’re going to have to do everything it takes to get it.”

Are there any drivers, past or present, whose ability to excel on the road courses really caught your attention?

“I think all of us have some degree of road-course ability, but somebody who sets themselves apart that you’re going to go and analyze and study how they do those things is typically a road-course driver who is really good in heavy braking zones and has the ability to outbrake somebody without driving into them or locking up the brakes. I would have to say that’s AJ Allmendinger and SVG (Shane Van Gisbergen) and Michael McDowell. Those are our three strongest road-course drivers who I see able to do those things.”

With the Roval being a cutoff race for the playoff drivers who want to move on to the Round of 8, does that have any bearing on how you approach this weekend’s race?

“I think you’ve got to be respectful, for sure, but at the same time, our team has a job to do. We have five more races and more opportunities to have respectable and great days, so obviously that’s our focus and what we want to do. Hopefully, we can have really good days the rest of the way.”

How would you describe your evolution as a road-course racer since you began driving stock cars?

“From a road-racing perspective, I’ve always enjoyed it. It’s always been something I like to do and I’ve always had kind of a knack for it when we get to these races. So when I show up to the Roval, or some of these other places like Sonoma or Watkins Glen, I feel like we have an opportunity to have a good day. I feel pretty optimistic and I think we could be really good. I didn’t run Formula 1, IndyCar or V8 Supercars, but it’s always something I’ve enjoyed because of my short-track background – heavy braking and the downshifting, all those little things you do as a racecar driver. The road-course races are ones I look forward to being aggressive and having good days.”

No. 41 United Rentals Team Roster

Primary Team Members

Driver: Ryan Preece

Hometown: Berlin, Connecticut

Crew Chief: Chad Johnston

Hometown: Cayuga, Indiana

Car Chief: Jeremy West

Hometown: Gardena, California

Engineer: Marc Hendricksen

Hometown: Clinton, New Jersey

Spotter: Tony Raines

Hometown: LaPorte, Indiana

Over-The-Wall Members

Front Tire Changer: Devin Lester

Hometown: Bluefield, West Virginia

Rear Tire Changer: Austin Chrismon

Hometown: China Grove, North Carolina

Tire Carrier: Chad Emmons

Hometown: Tyler, Texas

Jack Man: Sherman Timbs

Hometown: Indianola, Mississippi

Fuel Man: Dwayne Moore

Hometown: Griffin, Georgia

Road Crew Members

Mechanic: Joe Zanolini

Hometown: Sybertsville, Pennsylvania

Interior Mechanic: Robert Dalby

Hometown: Anaheim, California

Tire Specialist: Matt Ridgeway

Hometown: Carrollton, Georgia

Engine Tuner: Jimmy Fife

Hometown: Orange County, California

Transporter Co-Driver: David Rodrigues

Hometown: Santa Clarita, California

Transporter Co-Driver: Charlie Schleyer

Hometown: Youngsville, Pennsylvania