Beard Motorsports enters this year’s Daytona 500 solemnly but with a tremendous amount of pride in the contributions its founder and president, Mark Beard Sr., made to his family, his friends, his businesses and his favorite endeavor – NASCAR. Mr. Beard passed away on Jan. 31. He was passionate about racing and the businesses he built with his family, and even though he will be terribly missed, his work ethic and kind heart lives on with the many people he influenced. (more…)
“This is really an unbelievable moment,” said Alfredo. “When you start out racing karts as a kid, you dream of making it to the sport’s top level. I want to thank Bob Jenkins and everyone at Front Row Motorsports for making this dream a reality. I know the challenges ahead, but I’m here to work hard and prove myself.”
“We met Anthony and spent time with him when last season ended,” added owner, Bob Jenkins. “We wanted another young driver and someone that fit well into our team. We feel that Anthony is a great match and we look forward to this season together.”
McDowell returns to the wheel of the No. 34 alongside crew chief Drew Blickensderfer for their third- consecutive season together. McDowell and Blickensderfer had an organization-best season in 2020. The duo combined for four top-10 finishes – the most in the team’s history.
“Michael has really solidified his place as our veteran leader,” continued Jenkins. “He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience that has helped us continue to grow our program.”
“Despite all of its challenges, our 2020 season was one of the best in FRM history,” said McDowell. “I feel like we’ve really been able to hit our stride and I’m excited to channel that momentum into a new season.”
Returning to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for his second season with Front Row Motorsports, Todd Gilliland will again work with crew chief Chris Lawson. Gilliland earned 10 top-10 and four top-five finishes in the 2020 season, leading FRM to a playoff berth in its first season in the series.
“Our debut season in the Truck Series with Todd was very successful,” said Jenkins. “We qualified for the Playoffs and had some great runs throughout the year. We’re excited to continue those accomplishments into the future.”
“I’m thrilled to return to Front Row Motorsports next year,” said Gilliland. “Bob has been great to drive for and we’ve got a solid foundation to build up our program moving forward.”
Finally, FRM will enter David Ragan in the Daytona 500 in the No. 36 Ford Mustang. Derrick Finley will partner with Ragan. The team finished fourth in last year’s 500 race.
Front Row Motorsports has competed full time in NASCAR’s premier series since 2009. The 2021 season will mark Front Row Motorsports’ 12th with Ford Performance, the team’s manufacturing partner since expanding to a multi-car organization in 2010.
FRM will announce all team partners leading into the Daytona 500 and throughout the season.
About Front Row Motorsports
Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is a winning organization in the NASCAR Cup and Camping World Truck Series. The team was founded in 2004 and is owned by successful entrepreneur, Bob Jenkins. FRM fields the No. 34 and the No. 38 NASCAR Cup Series teams along with the No. 38 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team– from its Mooresville, N.C., headquarters. Visit teamfrm.
NASCAR makes its return to Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend with the NASCAR Cup Series set to roll Sunday afternoon for 500 laps at ‘The World’s Fastest Half Mile.’ A Jack Roush Ford has visited victory lane 18 times at Bristol, including 11 times in the Cup Series. Ryan Newman will pilot the No. 6 Castrol Ford Mustang and Chris Buescher will pilot the No. 17 SunnyD Ford Mustang.
Bristol Motor Speedway (.533-mile)
Food City presents the Supermarket Heroes 500
Sunday, May 31, 2020 | 3:30 p.m. ET
FS1, PRN, SiriusXM Channel 90
NASCAR Returns to Action
Thursday Recap, Sunday Preview
Starting Lineup Procedures at Bristol
NASCAR announced this week the starting lineup for Bristol would be determined by a random draw based on teams’ order in owners points. Both Buescher and Newman – 20th and 21st, respectively – fall within the 13-24 group, with their random draw coming from charter teams in those positions. Newman drew the 17th starting spot for Sunday, while Buescher drew 19th.
Runner Up
Roush Fenway’s storied history at Bristol began on April 10, 1988 with the No. 6 NCS car earning a second-place finish. Since that time, in addition to the organization’s 11 NCS wins at the track, Roush Fenway Fords have finished second at Bristol on 15 occasions (7 NCS, 4 NXS, 4 NGROTS).
One-Two Punch
Roush Fenway’s most recent victory at Bristol came after sweeping the top two positions in the March 2014 event with former driver Carl Edwards taking the victory and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. coming home in second. Edwards led the final 78 laps of the event to earn the victory.
History and Hot Streaks at “Thunder Valley”
Roush Fenway’s history at Bristol has been one of hot streaks, including trips to victory lane in nine of the last 16 seasons at the famed short track. Roush Fenway swept the track in 2003 and put a NCS car in victory lane at least once in every season from 2002-2008.
Thunder Rolls
Roush Fenway has earned five victories, 23 top-five finishes, 37 top-10 finishes and an average finish of 15.8 at Bristol in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Former Roush Fenway driver David Ragan earned the organization’s most recent Xfinity victory at the .533-mile short track in the Aug. 2009 event.
Tale of the Tape
Roush Fenway has started 212 NCS races at Charlotte, recording eight total wins with 46 top-five and 80 top-10 finishes. RFR Fords have an average finish of 16.3 with 2627 laps led all-time.
Roush Fenway Bristol Wins
1993-2 Martin Cup
1996-1 Martin NXS
1997-1 Burton NXS
1998-2 Martin Cup
2002-1 Busch Cup
2003-1 Busch Cup
2003-2 Busch Cup
2003-2 Busch Cup
2004-1 Busch Cup
2004 Edwards Truck
2005-2 Kenseth Cup
2006-2 Kenseth Cup
2006 Martin Truck
2006-2 Kenseth NXS
2007-1 Edwards NXS
2007-2 Edwards Cup
2008-2 Edwards Cup
2009-2 Ragan NXS
2014 -1 Edwards Cup
This year’s edition of “The Great American Race” will include a number of drivers who must earn a spot in the starting lineup either through their qualifying time during Sunday’s DAYTONA 500 Qualifying Presented By Kroger or by racing their way in based on their finish in their Bluegreen Vacations Duel At DAYTONA qualifying race on Feb. 13. (more…)
It was only fitting that the four title contenders all started in the top 4 spots this past weekend. All four drivers had a shot to win and they all led laps. But it was the mistake free team that won the race and gave Kyle Busch the title. (more…)
Martin Truex, Jr. led 464 of the 500 laps at Martinsville to cement his position in the final race of the season.
Denny Hamlin led a dominating 153 laps to win and advance to the next round of the playoffs. Although 10 drivers officially led laps, Kyle Larson was next in line with 60 and Martin Truex, Jr. led 33. After that, no single driver led more than 7 laps. (more…)
NASCAR did not have a great idea of what kind of racing the new aero package would produce at Talladega this weekend. They allowed teams to change gears after RPMs were up around 9000 and the giant spoiler, roof wicker, air ducts, oil pans and tapered spacer had a lot of teams scratching their heads. Speed was not a problem, even with the lower hp engines since the engines actually gave more power and throttle response than the restrictor plate package gave. (more…)
Often times following the Daytona 500, the series championship leaderboard includes names that may not stay there over the course of the season. But that’s not necessarily the case this year, as several familiar names had solid performances on Sunday.
Check out the stats on this weekend’s Monster Energy Cup Series Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 event at Atlanta… (more…)
Welcome back race fans!
In this episode, we are taking a quick look at the 2018 Silly Season. (more…)
