Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series at Watkins Glen International… Richard Childress Racing has two NASCAR Cup Series victories at Watkins Glen International. Robby Gordon won the 2003 event, leading the final 30 laps and scoring his third victory with RCR over the span of three seasons. Kevin Harvick captured the 2006 race at the New York road course, edging Tony Stewart for the victory, and claiming his first win at Watkins Glen. The victory was Harvick’s first on a road course and came in his 200th career Cup start. Dale Earnhardt won three poles (1990, 1992, 1996) for the Welcome, N.C.-based organization. RCR drivers have racked up eight top-five and 23 top-10 finishes in 81 starts at the New York road course. (more…)
XFINITY Series
NASCAR’s XFINITY Series was originally known as the Busch Series, or Grand National Series. It is a training ground for future Cup Series drivers and teams.
Young’s Motorsports Watkins Glen International September Xfinity Team Preview
Stretch Drive: In January, Young’s Motorsports announced it would graduate from the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series to the NASCAR Xfinity Series full-time in 2024 with rising star Leland Honeyman Jr. behind the wheel of the team’s No. 42 Young’s Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro for the entire 33-race season continuing with Saturday afternoon’s Mission 200 at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International.
NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs From Watkins Glen, INDYCAR Season Finale, And Supermotocross Playoffs Round 2 Headline NBC Sports’ MEGA-MOTORSPORTS WEEKEND Across NBC, PEACOCK, USA NETWORK, And CNBC
Live Pre-Race Coverage of NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Race from Watkins Glen International Begins Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET on USA Network
NBC Sports’ Signature Fan-Favorite “Radio Style” Broadcasts Return for Cup and Xfinity Races at Watkins Glen This Weekend
INDYCAR Season Finale from Nashville Superspeedway Begins Sunday with Pre-Race Coverage at 3 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock
Live Coverage of Round 2 of 2024 SuperMotocross Playoffs Starts Saturday, at 3 p.m. ET on Peacock from Texas Motor Speedway
STAMFORD, Conn. – Sept. 12, 2024 – NBC Sports’ mega-motorsports coverage this weekend is headlined by the NASCAR Cup Series’ Round of 16 playoff race from Watkins Glen International on Sunday on USA Network, the INDYCAR season finale from Nashville Superspeedway on Sunday on NBC and Peacock, and the second round of the SuperMotocross World Championship Playoffs on Saturday on Peacock from Texas Motor Speedway. (more…)
Parker Kligerman Not Returning to Big Machine Racing in 2025, Not Pursuing Full-Time Rides
Parker Kligerman announced on his podcast “The Money Lap” that he won’t be returning to Big Machine Racing for the 2025 Xfinity Series season and is done pursuing full-time rides at NASCAR.
Kligerman returned as a full-time competitor in 2023, after more than a decade of making sporadic starts for multiple teams across all three national touring levels. He finished the 2023 season 10th in the championship standings, with a career-high eight top-five finishes. (more…)
Mack Trucks Enters Long-Term Partnership with Richard Childress Racing
GREENSBORO, NC (Sept. 12, 2024) – Mack Trucks and Richard Childress Racing (RCR) today announced a long-term partnership under which Mack will be designated as the “Official Long-Haul Truck of Richard Childress Racing.”
As part of the agreement, Mack will provide a fleet of customized Mack Anthem® 70-inch Stand-Up Sleeper models dedicated to meeting the needs of RCR during the grueling NASCAR season. (more…)
NASCAR Xfinity Series: Road Course Racing at The Glen
The NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers will be back for some left and right turn action as they head to Watkins Glen International on Saturday, September 14 for the Mission 200 at The Glen at 3 p.m. ET (USA Network, NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Watkins Glen International has hosted 29 NASCAR Xfinity Series races, producing 18 different race winners and just as many pole winners.
Nine Xfinity Series Watkins Glen races have been won from the pole or first starting position, most recently by Joey Logano in 2018.
Chandler Smith – No. 81 Smith General Construction Toyota GR Supra Preview – Mission 200 at Watkins Glen International
- SMITH AT WATKINS GLEN: Chandler Smith made his track debut at Watkins Glen International in last year’s NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) race. Smith finished the race in eighth-place. Smith has finished in the top-10 in two road course races so far in 2024 – Circuit of the Americas and Sonoma Raceway.
- ATLANTA RECAP: Last weekend, Smith returned to his home track, Atlanta Motor Speedway. The No. 81 started eighth and earned a few stage points with a ninth-place finish in Stage 1 and a eighth-place finish in Stage 2. Smith led twice in Stage 3 for a total of 28 laps. Smith made a run at the lead on the last lap, but fell back for a fourth-place finish.
Aric Almirola – No. 20 Go Bowling Toyota GR Supra Preview – Mission 200 at Watkins Glen International
- ALMIROLA AT WATKINS GLEN: Aric Almirola has made 14 NASCAR national series starts at Watkins Glen International. His best finish was a fifth-place result in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at the track in 2018.
- ALMIROLA’S SEASON: Almirola has earned one win and four top-five finishes overall in six Xfinity Series races this season. He has finished inside the top five in his last four starts, including a win at Martinsville Speedway in April and a third in his most recent start at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July.
- 20 TEAM: The No. 20 team is currently ranked second in the Xfinity Series owner’s points standings, only 11 points out of the top spot. Through 24 races, the No. 20 team leads the Xfinity Series in wins (seven), top-five finishes (12), and laps led (702). The team has won races with four different drivers – Aric Almirola, Christopher Bell, John Hunter Nemechek, and Ryan Truex.
Sheldon Creed / No. 18 Friends of Jaclyn Toyota GR Supra Preview – Misson 200 at the Glen
- CREED AT WATKINS GLEN: Sheldon Creed heads to Watkins Glen International for the Mission 200 at the Glen this weekend with a chance to lock himself in the playoffs via points. The Glen has been good to Creed in his two prior Xfinity Series starts there, as he has one top-five, two top-10s and an impressive average finish of 5.0. Most notably, Creed finished second in the race last year, as he lost the lead in overtime to Sam Mayer after hitting a part of the track that had been treated for oil in the caution prior. The track was still slick and sent him out of the groove, leading to his chances at a win slipping away once again. With a strong run this weekend and no new winners, Creed is in a prime position to secure his 2024 playoff bid this weekend.
- ATLANTA RECAP: Creed’s day was marred by issues on pit road, which led to a result that was not indicative of the speed the team showed throughout the race. After starting fifth, Creed kept with the lead pack and scored a fourth-place finish. Creed ended up falling back to 11th for stage two, but it was not until the final stage that trouble arose. Creed started the final stage with an uncontrolled tire penalty during pit stops, and after working himself back up to the top-20, he had to pit for a cut tire under green following contact with another car. While servicing the cut tire, Creed received a pass-through penalty for having a crew member over the wall too soon, which left him three laps down late in the race. Creed ultimately finished 25th on the day.
JR Motorsports — NXS Watkins Glen Preview
- JR Motorsports at Watkins Glen International: JR Motorsports has competed at Watkins Glen International a combined 50 times in the NXS since its first trip there in 2006. In those starts at the 2.45-mile road course, the organization has recorded two wins,11 top-fives and 29 top-10s, with an average finish of 12.0.
- Souvenir Rig: JRM drivers Sam Mayer, Justin Allgaier, Sammy Smith, Brandon Jones and Connor Zilisch will be signing autographs at the JR Motorsports / Legacy MC souvenir rig on Saturday, Sept. 14 from 12:00 p.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET.
William Sawalich – No. 18 Starkey/SoundGear Toyota Camry Preview – General Tire 100 at Watkins Glen International
- SAWALICH ON ROAD COURSES: Last year at Watkins Glen International, Sawalich finished the race in fifth. Since working on his road course program over the off-season and throughout the first half of 2024, Sawalich has earned two road course wins this year – his first career road course win coming at Portland and his second at Mid-Ohio.
- LAST TIME OUT: Sawalich most recently ran his No. 18 Toyota Camry on dirt at DuQuoin. Sawalich earned the pole for the race and finished second.
- 2023 ARCA EAST CHAMPION: Sawalich claimed the 2023 ARCA Menards Series East (AMSE) championship at Bristol Motor Speedway. He ended the AMSE season with four wins and finished in the top-five in all eight races on the AMSE schedule. He became the second AMSE champion for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) and the first Minnesotan to win the series championship.
Stewart-Haas Racing: Watkins Glen NXS Advance (Cole Custer | Riley Herbst)
Cole Custer is ready to trade in the high banks and unpredictability of superspeedway-style racing for the high-speed, left-and-right turns of Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International in Saturday’s Mission 200 at The Glen. Custer’s strength on road courses has been prevalent throughout his career. In his 27 Xfinity Series starts on road courses, Custer has scored two wins, 20 top-10s and led 26 laps. Last season, he scored two of his three wins on a road course and a street course – June 3 at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway and July 1 on the Chicago Street Course. The series has visited three road courses – Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, Portland, and Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway – and the Chicago Street Course so far this season.
Dead On Tools Returns as Primary Sponsor of Anthony Alfredo
WELCOME, N.C. (September 9th, 2024) – Starting at Talladega Superspeedway on October 5th, Dead On Tools will serve as the primary sponsor of Anthony Alfredo and the number 5 NASCAR Xfinity Series car in four of the final six races of the 2024 season. In addition to Talladega, the Dead On Tools Chevrolet Camaro will be seen on track in action at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 19th, Martinsville Speedway on November 2nd, and the season-finale at Phoenix Raceway on November 9th.
Dead On Tools and Anthony Alfredo first partnered in 2022 during his first full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series campaign, and again for one race primary sponsorship in 2023. (more…)
Here’s How The New England Drivers And Those With Connections To The Six State Area At Atlanta Did
Joey Logano of Middletown, CT won the Cup race with Corey LaJoie coming in 15th and Ryan Preece of Berlin, CT finishing 18th. Corey LaJoie is the son of Two-Time Xfinity Champion Randy LaJoie whose hometown is Norwalk, CT.
Austin Hill crossed the finish line of the Xfinity race first with Parker Kligerman of Westport, CT finishing up second. Kyle Weatherman took the 11th place with Anthony Alfredo of Ridgefield, CT taking 14th and Blaine Perkins coming in 19th. Weatherman and Perkins both drive team cars for father and daughter of Cape Cod’s Chris and Mary Hour of Chatham, MA.
RCR Race Preview: Atlanta Motor Speedway
Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway… In 163 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Richard Childress Racing has earned nine wins and four pole awards, including Kevin Harvick’s emotional victory in 2001. Dale Earnhardt won eight times at the Hampton, Ga., track under the RCR banner (1984-fall, 1986-fall, 1988-spring, 1989-fall, 1990-spring, 1995-fall, 1996-spring, 2000-spring). The Welcome, N.C., team has 31 top-five and 62 top-10 finishes at Atlanta and has led a total of 3,008 laps at the 1.54-mile oval.
RCR in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway… RCR has recorded six NASCAR Xfinity Series wins at Atlanta, led by Austin Hill’s three victories (2022-fall, 2023-spring, 2024-spring). Jeff Burton (2006 and 2007) and Kevin Harvick (2013) also secured victories at Atlanta with RCR. As an organization, RCR has piled up 17 top-five and 32 top-10 finishes over a span of 62 starts at the Peachtree State track.
Shane Van Gisbergen Details NASCAR’s Mindboggling Qualifying Method
The three-time Supercars champion has just three races remaining in the NASCAR Xfinity Series before the playoffs begin and will be part of the Round of 12 thanks to his win at Portland Raceway.
In the first round of the playoffs, there is just one road course-style race on the Charlotte Motor Speedway ‘Roval’ where he stands a good chance of winning.
However, beyond the Round of 12, there are no road courses. (more…)
Beginning Of NASCAR Cup Series And Supermotocross Playoffs Headline NBC Sports’ Big Motorsports Weekend Across NBC, Peacock, USA Network, And CNBC
Live Pre-Race Coverage of First NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Race from Atlanta Motor Speedway Begins Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET on USA Network
Live Coverage of Round 1 of 2024 SuperMotocross Playoffs Starts Saturday, at 2:30 p.m. ET on Peacock from zMAX Dragway at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.
STAMFORD, Conn. – Sept. 5, 2024 – NBC Sports’ motorsports coverage this weekend is headlined by the first race in the NASCAR Cup Series’ Round of 16 playoffs on Sunday on USA Network from Atlanta Motor Speedway and the first round of the SuperMotocross World Championship Playoffs on Saturday on Peacock from zMAX Dragway at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.
Ryan Truex / No. 20 Gazoo Racing Toyota GR Supra Preview – Focused Health 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
TRUEX AT ATLANTA: Ryan Truex and the No. 20 Gazoo Racing Toyota GR Supra crew head to Atlanta this weekend for the Focused Health 250, fresh off back-to-back wins for the No. 20 car at Daytona and Darlington. Truex has five starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway, including three on the new configuration. In five starts at the track, Truex has two top-fives, four top-10s, eight laps led, and an impressive finish of 7.0. Truex has a best finish of third which he has earned twice in 2022 and 2023. Since joining JGR and running on the track’s new configuration, Truex’s worst finish at Atlanta is ninth which came earlier this year when he ran out of fuel coming to the checkered flag.
LAST TIME OUT: Truex’s last start at Daytona turned into a career highlight as he scored his third career Xfinity Series win, and his second win in just eight starts this season. Truex ran up front for most of the night as he started sixth and earned sixth and third place finishes in the first two stages, respectively. Truex led 28 laps en route to his victory, which included the final eight laps to secure the sixth win on the year for Tyler Allen and the No. 20 Toyota GR Supra crew. (more…)
Sheldon Creed / No. 18 CW Sports Toyota GR Supra Preview – Focused Health 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
CREED AT ATLANTA: Sheldon Creed takes his summer hot streak and his CW Sports Toyota GR Supra to Atlanta this weekend for the Focused Health 250. In five starts at the track, Creed has scored one top-five, two top-10s, 55 laps led, and an average finish of 16.2. In his last start at the track earlier this season, Creed scored his best finish at Atlanta, which was a fourth-place performance.
DARLINGTON RECAP: Creed showcased one of the greatest Xfinity Series performances as well as perhaps the worst heartbreak of his career last week at Darlington. After starting second, Creed ran in the top-five for the entire day, proving to be the class of the field along with teammate Christopher Bell. After a fifth-place finish in stage one, Creed came back to score his first stage win of the year in stage two. In the final stage, Creed chased down Bell from four seconds behind to take the lead with eight laps to go before a late-race caution sent the race in overtime. Creed lost the lead on the last minute round of pit stops and could not overcome the setback in overtime, leaving him to finish third despite leading 30 laps on the day. (more…)
NASCAR Xfinity Series Sets Its Eyes on Atlanta Motor Speedway
After dancing with the Lady in Black last weekend, the NASCAR Xfinity Series heads to its second drafting track race in three weeks at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Focused Health 250 on Saturday, September 7 at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network, the NBC Sports App, PRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
The 1.54-mile track will be hosting its sixth race since its reconfiguration in 2022. Since then, Atlanta has produced five different pole winners but just three different race winners, none of which came from the first starting position.
Superspeedway ace Austin Hill has won half of the Xfinity races at Atlanta over the last three seasons, capturing the checkered flag at least once in 2022, 2023, and 2024.