joe gibbs

Cole Custer is the First Rookie to Win at Kentucky

by Chuck Abrams
Cole Custer is the First Rookie to Win at Kentucky

In a surprising finish, rookie Cole Custer stole the show from the veteran drivers on the final restart to win not only his first Cup race, but he became the first rookie to win at Kentucky. All past winners at Kentucky Speedway are Cup champions, which could speak to Custer’s future. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here.

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Christopher Bell – No. 95 JBL Toyota Camry Preview – Bristol Motor Speedway

by Mike
Christopher Bell – No. 95 JBL Toyota Camry Preview – Bristol Motor Speedway

No. 95 JBL Toyota Camry News and Notes:

  • Bell at Bristol: Christopher Bell has four NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) starts at Bristol Motor Speedway (BMS) including one win a year ago in the spring race.  In addition to the victory, Bell has two top-five and two top-10 finishes in his four starts and has led 110 laps.  Bell also has three NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series (NGOTS) starts at the 0.533-mile speedway, earning one pole and two top-10 finishes.
  • Season Refresh: In the last four races Bell has increased his average finish to 16.2, over 13 positions higher than the start of the 2020 season.
  • On the Hood: JBL will be featured on the No. 95 at Bristol.  Bell and JBL have a winning history in the NGOTS, including a Championship in 2017.  For more information on JBL visit: www.jbl.com
  • Charlotte Recap: Bell had a fast No. 95 Toyota Camry Thursday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway, running consistently in the top 10 for most of the first two stages.  A slow pit-stop marred him back in track and the handling shifted to tight.  Despite the handling, Bell was able to salvage a lead-lap 21st-place finish.
  • RACE INFO: The Food City presents the Supermarket Heroes 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway begins at 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 31, 2020. The race will be broadcast live on FS1, Sirius XM 90, and PRN Radio.

 

From the Cockpit:

Christopher Bell: “Bristol is one of my favorite tracks and I’m really anxious to get there this year.  The biggest transition for me going from Xfinity to Cup has been the rules package with the Cup car.  The rules package between the Xfinity cars and the Cup cars has been totally different, but now this year on the short tracks, we have a rules packages that is almost identical to what I raced in Xfinity.  At Phoenix it was really rewarding to get to drive this package, so going to Bristol with a rules package that is really similar to what I’ve been driving has the recipe to be a really good weekend for us.  We still have to be on our game, but it’s going to be a great race.”

 

Bell’s Career NASCAR Xfinity Series Stats at Bristol Motor Speedway:

StartsWinsTop 5Top 10PolesLaps LedAvg. StartAvg. Finish
412201105.211.5

 

Bell’s 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Season Stats:

StartsWinsTop 5Top 10PolesLaps LedAvg. StartAvg. Finish
80010019.422.6

 

Bell’s Career NASCAR Xfinity Series Stats:

StartsWinsTop 5Top 10PolesLaps LedAvg. StartAvg. Finish
741641461229206.410.2

About Leavine Family Racing

Leavine Family Racing is an organization competing in the NASCAR Cup Series focused on growing competitively and providing results-driven partnerships for its sponsors. The single-car team was founded in 2011 by Bob and Sharon Leavine, two individuals who are passionate about NASCAR and started the team to make a positive impact on the sport and community. Christopher Bell will pilot the No. 95 Toyota Camry for the team starting with the 2020 season. In alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota Racing Development, the team operates out of their Concord, N.C.-based race shop with a veteran group of racing personnel driven by their desire for progress. For more information, please visit www.LFR95.com.

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Martin Truex Jr. ­– No. 19 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota Camry Preview – Food City Presents Supermarket Heroes 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway

by Mike
Martin Truex Jr. ­– No. 19 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota Camry Preview – Food City Presents Supermarket Heroes 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway

No. 19 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota Camry News and Notes

  • TRUEX AT BRISTOL: Martin Truex Jr. has earned two top-five finishes and three top-10s in NASCAR Cup Series competition at Bristol Motor Speedway. Most recently, Truex matched his career-best starting position (third) and led 52 laps when the Cup Series visited the ‘World’s Fastest Half-Mile’ last August. He posted finishes of 17th and 13th in two starts at Bristol in 2019 despite running in the top five during both events.
  • CHARLOTTE RECAP: Truex claimed a pair of top-10 finishes in two starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway earlier this week. In the Coca-Cola 600, he ran inside the top five throughout the race before ultimately finishing sixth. On Thursday night, Truex battled a loose handling condition throughout the race and ran as low as 28th before mounting a late charge to finish ninth.
  • BREAKTHROUGH MOMENT: In March 2004, Bristol Motor Speedway played host to Truex’s first NASCAR national series victory when he won the NASCAR Xfinity Series race. He led a race-high 134 laps that afternoon and fended off Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch for the first of six victories during his 2004 Xfinity Series championship season.
  • SINCE THE RETURN TO RACING: The No. 19 team is tied for the most points scored since NASCAR’s return to racing on May 17. Counting the two Darlington races and a pair of events at Charlotte, Truex and overall points leader Kevin Harvick have each earned 167 points. Over that stretch, Truex jumped from 15th to seventh in the series standings.
  • STRONG IN THE STAGES: Through eight races, Truex ranks second in stage points. His 92 stage points trail only Alex Bowman in that category.
  • NASCAR LOOP DATA: According to NASCAR’s Loop Data, Truex ranks seventh or better in multiple categories. He leads all drivers as being the fastest on restarts. The No. 19 driver is also fourth in fastest laps run and percentage of laps run on the lead lap. Additionally, he is fifth in fastest drivers early in a run and sixth in average running position, green flag speed, laps in the top 15, laps led and speed by segment. Truex currently has the seventh-best driver rating.
  • AUTO-OWNERS: Sunday marks the first race this season that Auto-Owners Insurance will be featured as primary sponsor of Truex’s No. 19 Camry. The Lansing, Michigan-based company offers multiple lines of insurance, including life, home, auto and business to customers in 26 states. In their first season with Joe Gibbs Racing, Auto-Owners was on board for monumental moments like Truex’s first victory for the team at Richmond in April, his 500th career start at Michigan in August and the No. 19 team’s dominant Martinsville win that propelled them to a Championship 4 appearance.
  • JGR AT BRISTOL: Joe Gibbs Racing owns 13 NASCAR Cup Series victories at Bristol Motor Speedway, including both races last season and four of the past five overall. In 138 combined starts, the organization has amassed 34 top-five finishes, 52 top-10s, 11 pole awards and 5,833 laps led the .533-mile concrete oval. Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Tony Stewart have each raced JGR entries to victory lane at Bristol.
  • TUNE IN: Coverage of this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway begins Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1, PRN Radio and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.

 

Martin Truex Jr., Driver of the No. 19 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota Camry

Talk about going to Bristol on Sunday and racing with no practice…

“Bristol is always wild, so you go in there expecting anything can and probably will happen. Going there without practice and running the low downforce package will be exciting and a challenge for everyone for sure. I feel like we’ve actually ran pretty well there the last few times and just crazy stuff happens to knock us out of contention. We just need to be able to put a full race together without any mistakes. If we can do that, I feel good about our chances to have a solid day.”

Truex NASCAR Cup Series Stats at Bristol Motor Speedway

StartsWinsTop 5Top 10PolesLaps LedAvg. StartAvg. Finish
28023028216.020.6

Truex 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Season Stats

StartsWinsTop 5Top 10PolesLaps LedAvg. StartAvg. Finish
8004011815.016.1

Truex NASCAR Cup Series Career Stats

StartsWinsTop 5Top 10PolesLaps LedAvg. StartAvg. Finish
52126102209199,02414.415.7

About Auto-Owners Insurance

Established in 1916 and headquartered in Lansing, Michigan, Auto-Owners Insurance Group is the 15th-largest property/casualty insurance group in the nation, based on written premium of over $7.4 billion. The company also ranks 375th on the Fortune 500 list. Auto-Owners is one of nine insurance carrier groups in the U.S. to receive the highest rating possible, A++ Superior, by A.M. Best, which is a nationally recognized rating agency for insurance companies. Auto-Owners offers auto, home, business and life insurance through more than 44,000 licensed independent agents in its 26 operating states. Auto-Owners owns Atlantic Casualty Insurance Company which sells excess and surplus lines polices in 49 states and is affiliated with Concord General Mutual which sells property & casualty products in four states. Auto-Owners employs over 5,000 associates nationwide. Find your agent at auto-owners.com, and connect with Auto-Owners Insurance on Facebook and Twitter (@AutoOwnersIns).

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Stewart-Haas Racing: Chase Briscoe NXS Race Report from Charlotte

by Mike
Stewart-Haas Racing: Chase Briscoe NXS Race Report from Charlotte

Date:  May 25, 2020

Event:  Alsco 300 (Round 6 of 33)

Series:  NASCAR Xfinity Series

Location:  Charlotte (N.C) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)

Format:  200 laps, broken into three stages (45 laps/45 laps/110 laps)

Start/Finish:  8th/20th(Running, completed 200 of 203 laps)

Point Standing:  1st (251 points, eight ahead of second place)

Note:  Race extended three laps past its scheduled 200-lap distance due to a green-white-checkered finish.

 

Race Winner:  Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

Stage 1 Winner:  Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

Stage 2 Winner:  Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

 

Overview:

Fresh off a victory in the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ previous race at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, Chase Briscoe was poised for another strong result in his No. 98 HighPoint.com/Ford Performance Racing School Mustang Monday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway until oil on the racetrack sent him into the turn-three wall 47 laps short of the finish. Briscoe began the Alsco 300 from eighth in the 37-car field and climbed to as high as second. He finished eighth in Stage 1 and third in Stage 2. Shortly after, however, Briscoe’s race began to come undone. An uncontrolled tire penalty stemming from his pit stop after the second stage sent him to the back of the field for the lap-98 restart. Still, the 25-year-old from Mitchell, Indiana, made his way back inside the top-10, rising to sixth before making a green-flag pit stop on lap 148. Unfortunately, Briscoe was cited for speeding on pit road, and he had to serve a pass-through penalty on the following lap. Mired in the middle of the field, Briscoe became a victim of circumstance on lap 156 when his No. 98 Ford Mustang slipped up the banking and into the wall after the engine on Timmy Hill’s Toyota broke and spewed fluid onto the racetrack. While the No. 98 team was able to make repairs, Briscoe returned to the track in 18th, two laps down to the leaders. But on lap 172, a cut tire sent Briscoe back into the wall, deepening the damage to his HighPoint.com/Ford Performance Racing School Mustang. Briscoe soldiered on to finish 20th, maintaining his position atop the championship standings.

 

Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 98 HighPoint.com/Ford Performance Racing School Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:         

“We had a pretty good HighPoint.com/Ford Performance Racing School Mustang the first run of the race. We were a little off before that first pit stop, but we were able to get the car dialed in and had good track position off pit road. I felt like I was pretty equal to the 54 (Kyle Busch). He was probably a little better in the latter half of the run, but I felt like we were just as good as the leaders. When we started that final stage with the uncontrolled tire, that’s what kind of set everything in motion. We went from starting dead last to sixth and for a while there we were still the fastest car, and I thought were going to be OK if we could catch a caution, but I sped on pit road and from there it was one thing after another. I thought we were a top-three car, for sure, and probably could’ve battled for the win. It’s tough to have a race-winning car and run 20th, but it could’ve been worse. We were able to rally and end up with a top-20 finish. It’s a shame we didn’t run better, but I’m ready to go to Bristol where we should be really good.”

 

Notes:               

● Briscoe finished eighth in Stage 1 to earn three bonus points and third in Stage 2 to earn eight more bonus points.

● Briscoe remains the championship leader after Charlotte with an eight-point advantage over second-place Austin Cindric.

● Kyle Busch won the Alsco 300 to score his 97th career Xfinity Series victory, his first of the season and his ninth at Charlotte. His margin of victory over second-place Daniel Hemric was .178 of a second.

● There were 11 caution periods for a total of 53 laps.

● Only 11 of the 37 drivers in the Alsco 300 finished on the lead lap.

 

Next Up:           

The next event on the Xfinity Series schedule is the Cheddar’s 300 on Saturday, May 30 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. The race starts at 3:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

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M&M’S Fudge Brownie Racing: Kyle Busch Alsco Uniforms 500k at Charlotte Advance and Team Report

by Mike
M&M’S Fudge Brownie Racing: Kyle Busch Alsco Uniforms 500k at Charlotte Advance and Team Report
HUNTERSVILLE, North Carolina (May 25, 2020) – Until last Wednesday night’s event at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, the last time the NASCAR Cup Series ran a race on a Wednesday was almost 36 years ago – the Firecracker 400 on July 4, 1984. Back then, no matter on what day July 4 fell, NASCAR’s top series raced at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. That 1984 Firecracker 400 also happened to be one of the more memorable races in NASCAR history, as Richard Petty brought home the 200th win of his Cup Series career.

 

While the race last week at Darlington marked the first Wednesday Cup Series race in more than three decades, the next midweek event is set for just seven days later. The series heads back to Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway for Wednesday night’s Alsco Uniforms 500k as NASCAR continues to make up races lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has affected events of every kind, not only in the United States but all over the world.

 

This Wednesday night, Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M’S Fudge Brownie Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), will look to improve on his most recent outing, which resulted in a fourth-place finish in Sunday night’s traditional Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte. Busch ran up front for most of the first portion of the race, but a pit road speeding penalty sent him to the rear of the field. However, he and the M&M’S team were able to rally back to bring home his fourth top-five finish in seven races this season. Wednesday night’s 500-kilometer race replaces the cancelled race at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway originally scheduled for June. With a second-place finish last Wednesday at Darlington and the fourth-place run Sunday night at Charlotte, Busch is hoping the Sonoma replacement race nets him his third top-five in a row and first win of the season.

 

Busch has managed to enjoy plenty of success at the 1.5-mile Charlotte oval. He now has 14 top-five finishes and 19 top-10s in his 31 previous Cup Series starts there over the past 14-plus seasons. In addition to solid Cup Series finishes, Busch has captured eight NASCAR Xfinity Series wins at Charlotte – May 2004, 2005, 2008 and 2010, October 2008 and 2009, and both May and October 2013. He also has eight NASCAR Truck Series wins at the track – 2005, 2006, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2017 and 2019.

 

While he had gone to Charlotte’s victory lane at early and often in the Xfinity and Truck Series, Busch only recently broke through in the Cup Series there. His 2017 win in the non-points All-Star Race was his first Cup Series win of any kind at the track. The following year, in 2018, Busch was able to win there again, this time in the points-paying Coca-Cola 600 to add another crown jewel to his already impressive resume.

 

So as the Cup Series continues its busy run of eight races in less than a month, Busch and his M&M’S Fudge Brownie team hope they can break through for the first of many wins under the Wednesday night lights at Charlotte. He’ll hope to keep the momentum he’s built over the last two races as the season is finally able to kick into full gear for the summer.

KYLE BUSCH, Driver of the No. 18 M&M’S Fudge Brownie Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing: 
With track position being so important, how will you approach Wednesday night with the inversion of the top-20 grid positions?

 

“It’s definitely going to be more of a sprint race with our M&M’S Fudge Brownie Camry. Thankfully, my guys are really, really, really good on pit road and they probably passed the most cars Sunday night on pit road – more than I did. It’s definitely beneficial when you can come down pit road 15th, 10th, eighth, seventh, whatever it is, and those guys are going to get you five or six spots. I’m not too upset about where we have to start. We certainly saw that track position was a big deal on Sunday night, so we want to work our way to the front and stay there if we can. I know I’m up for it and the guys on pit road are up for the task, too, with how well they performed on Sunday night.”

 

It seemed you had some pretty big swings in handling on Sunday night. Will you go back and try and figure out why that was the case and make some changes for Wednesday night?

 

“The only thing I can really attribute it to is tires. That’s the only thing that makes sense. When you go and you have two runs that are really, really good and you have tires on and you don’t make any changes, and then you make one slight air pressure adjustment with the next set of tires and it goes haywire, you have to think it’s the tires. You didn’t put a wedge wrench in the thing, you didn’t change anything too crazy. Also, track position sometimes, too, is a factor. When you’re further up toward the front, the cars drive way, way better. We had the speeding penalty there and it put it toward the back and it certainly handled differently back there than up at the front of the field. When you get back in the seventh to ninth to 11th range, you are just out of control and have no grip. So I know Adam (Stevens, crew chief) and I will go back and talk about how to make our car better this week and we’ll see what happens.”

 

Do you feel you’re in race shape now that you’ve run three Cup Series races since the shutdown?

 

“I felt good after all of these races. We had the race last Sunday at Darlington and it was a little warmer out and I saw a couple of guys get out of the car and kind of sit next to their car and they were pretty wet and kind of hot and overheated maybe a little bit. I felt fine. Then, no issues the last couple of races, certainly a bit easier when they are at night and cooler outside. I’ve got enough cooling and things like that where I feel pretty good and ready to go.”

 

M&M’S Fudge Brownie Racing

Race 8 of 36 – Alsco Uniforms 500k – Charlotte

Car No.: 18 – M&M’S Fudge Brownie Toyota Camry

 

Teammates:  Denny Hamlin – No. 11 Toyota Camry; Martin Truex Jr. – No. 19 Toyota Camry; Erik Jones – No. 20 Toyota Camry.

 

At-Track PR Contact: Bill Janitz, True Speed Communication (704-875-3388 ext. 803 or Bill.Janitz@TrueSpeedCommunication.com).

Primary Team Members:

Driver: Kyle Busch

Hometown: Las Vegas

 

Crew Chief: Adam Stevens

Hometown: Portsmouth, Ohio

 

Car Chief: Nate Bellows

Hometown: Fairfax, Vermont

 

Spotter: Tony Hirschman

Hometown: Northampton, Pennsylvania

 

Over-The-Wall Crew Members:

Gas Man: Matt Tyrrell

Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, Florida

 

Front Tire Changer: Cam Waugh

Hometown: Johnstown, Colorado

 

Jackman: T.J. Ford

Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina

 

Tire Carrier: Joe Crossen

Hometown: Salisbury, North Carolina

 

Rear Tire Changer: Jeff Cordero

Hometown: Salem, Connecticut

 

Notes of Interest:
  • The Alsco Uniforms 500k will mark Kyle Busch’s 542nd career NASCAR Cup Series start and his 32nd NASCAR Cup Series start at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
  • Busch has career totals of 56 wins, 32 poles, 204 top-five finishes, 300 top-10s and 17,446 laps led in 541 career Cup Series races. His most recent Cup Series win came in November at Homestead-Miami Speedway, resulting in his second Cup Series championship. Busch’s most recent pole, the 32nd of his career, came in November at Phoenix Raceway.
  • Busch has one win, 14 top-five finishes and 19 top-10s and has led a total of 1,449 laps in 31 Cup Series starts at Charlotte. Busch’s average Charlotte finish is 14.2.
  • Finally: Busch’s combined record in NASCAR Xfinity Series and Truck Series races is quite impressive at Charlotte, where the Las Vegas native has eight wins apiece on the 1.5-mile oval for a total of 16 victories. While he found victory lane early and often at Charlotte in those series, Busch was unable to find similar success in NASCAR’s top series. That all changed starting in 2017, when he brought home the win in the NASCAR All-Star Race, the first Cup Series win of his career at Charlotte, albeit a non-points event. But a little more than a year later, in 2018, Busch was able to bring home his first Cup Series points paying win at Charlotte as he led a whopping 377 laps of the Coca-Cola 600 en route to the crown jewel win.
  • 56 Career Cup Series Wins: With his Cup Series win at Homestead in November, the 56th points-paying win of his career, Busch passed NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace for sole possession of ninth place on the all-time win list in NASCAR’s top series. Next up for Busch on the list is eighth-place Dale Earnhardt, who had 76 wins during his Hall of Fame career. With his 40th Cup Series victory at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in August 2017, Busch became the fourth-youngest driver to reach 40 Cup Series wins at 32 years, 109 days, behind only Richard Petty, Jeff Gordon and Herb Thomas.
  • All-Time JGR Wins Leader: With his Brickyard 400 win in July 2016, Busch passed Tony Stewart for most all-time Cup Series wins for JGR. Busch now has 52 wins for JGR to Stewart’s 33 following his most recent win at Homestead last year.
  • 209 and Counting: Busch enters Monday night’s Xfinity Series race at Charlotte with 209 career wins among NASCAR’s top three divisions – Cup (56), Xfinity (96) and Truck (57) – following his Truck Series win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway back in February.
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M&M’S Red, White, and Blue Racing: Kyle Busch Race Recap for the Coca-Cola 600 from Charlotte

by Mike
M&M’S Red, White, and Blue Racing: Kyle Busch Race Recap for the Coca-Cola 600 from Charlotte

Date: May 24, 2020

Event: Coca-Cola 600 (Round 7 of 36)

Series: NASCAR Cup Series

Location: Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)

Format: 400 laps, broken into four stages (100 laps/100 laps/100 laps/100 laps)

Start/Finish: 11th/5th (Running, completed 405 of 405 laps)

Point Standing: 9th (207 points, 82 behind leader)

Note: Race extended five laps past its scheduled 400-lap distance due to a green-white-checkered finish.

 

Race Winner: Brad Keselowski of Team Penske (Ford) in overtime

Stage 1 Winner: Alex Bowman of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)

Stage 2 Winner: Alex Bowman of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)

Stage 3 Winner: Joey Logano of Team Penske (Ford)

 

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-100):

● Kyle Busch started 11th and finished sixth, earning five bonus points.

● The M&M’S Red, White and Blue driver qualified in 11th, but soon after the green flag flew, found he had a very loose racecar.

● Good news for Busch was a competition yellow on lap 20, as he came to pit road for tires and adjustments on lap 22. The M&M’S over-the-wall team did quick work, moving Busch up from 12th to 10th on the ensuing restart.

● Busch held his 10th position when green flag racing resumed, but on lap 48, rain made it to the track and the race was red flagged for over an hour while the track was dried.

● When the race restarted, crew chief Adam Stevens called Busch to pit road for four tires, fuel and adjustment as a strong stop by the M&M’S team vaulted him up to seventh exiting pit road.

● The race restarted on lap 57, and Busch moved up to sixth by lap 79. Busch radioed to Stevens that his M&M’S Red, White, and Blue Camry was a little free on entry and tight off the corner. Busch held the sixth spot and finished stage one in that spot.

 

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 101-200):

● Busch started second and finished third, earning eight bonus points.

● Following the end of the stage, Busch came to pit road for four tires, fuel and adjustments. Yet again, the M&M’S Red, White, and Blue pit crew had a phenomenal pit stops, gaining four spots on pit road to restart stage 2 in the runner-up spot.

● The Las Vegas native settled into third-place and hung there for most of stage 2, as Busch radioed to Stevens that his car starts the run a little bit free but trends to the tighter side as the run goes on.

● Busch came to pit road to take on four tires, fuel, and adjustments on lap 157.

● The M&M’S Red, White, and Blue driver cycled out in third and ended the stage in that same spot.

 

Stage 3 Recap (Laps 201-300):

● Busch started 19th and finished sixth, earning five bonus points.

● Busch came to pit road following the end of the stage, taking on four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment, gaining one spot on pit road to second. However, Busch was penalized exiting pit road for speeding, sending him to the back of the lead lap in 19th on the lap 208 restart.

● The two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion moved up to 15th by lap 275, as he came down pit road on lap 277 for four tires, fuel, and an adjustment to loosen up the M&M’S Red, White, and Blue Camry and restarted 13th on lap 282.

● Busch moved up quickly following the restart, as he made it into the top-10 by lap 285 and all the way up to sixth at the end of the stage.

 

Final Stage Recap (Laps 301-405):

● Busch started fifth and finished fifth.

● Busch came to pit road on lap 303, taking on four tires and fuel, as he gained one spot to restart in the top-five for the restart of the fourth and final stage.

● The M&M’S Red, White, and Blue driver dropped after the restart, as Busch reported that he couldn’t get back to the gas, but he couldn’t quote figure out what happened to the handling of his car, as he dropped to 11th by lap 337.

● When the caution waved on lap 348, Busch came to pit road on lap 350 for four tires and an air pressure adjustment back out from the previous stop. The M&M’S over-the-wall crew is one of the best on pit road, and they showed it yet again, gaining an incredible five spots on pit road to restart sixth on lap 353.

● On the next restart, Busch continued to struggle with the handling of his M&M’S Toyota, falling to eighth by lap 364 as it appeared he was going to end up in eighth as the laps wound down.

● However, a caution waved with two laps to go for a spin by William Byron. Stevens decided to bring Busch to pit road for two tires.

● Busch restarted in ninth, and over the course of the final two laps, gained four spots to secure what looked like an unlikely top-five finish.

 

Notes:

● Busch’s fifth-place finish was his fourth top-five finish of the season in seven starts.

● The top-five finish was Busch’s 14th top-five at Charlotte in 31 career starts at the 1.5-mile oval.

 

Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M’S Red, White and Blue Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing:

 

“During the middle stages of the race, I thought we were really fast. I feel like we had a great M&M’S Red, White, and Blue Camry and ran up front and got back up front from having to go to the back. But we put tires on it and it was never the same after that from about lap 280 or 290 when we put tires on it and it wasn’t the same as it was before that. We were lucky to steal a fifth-place finish out of it today and we’ll have to go back to work and figure out some things to make our stuff better for when we come back on Wednesday and get back after it. I certainly want to give a huge shout out and a huge thanks to all the men and women who have served for our country her on Memorial Day weekend, we appreciate you. Everyone be safe tomorrow and have fun.”

 

Next Up: The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Alsco Uniforms 500k on Wednesday, May 27 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. The race starts at 8 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

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Christopher Bell – No. 95 Rheem Toyota Camry Preview – Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte

by Mike
Christopher Bell – No. 95 Rheem Toyota Camry Preview – Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte

No. 95 Rheem Toyota Camry News and Notes:

  • 600 Miles at Charlotte: Christopher Bell, a rookie contender in the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS), will make his first Cup start at Charlotte Motor Speedway (CMS) in the Coca-Cola 600, the longest race of the season for the series.  The 600 miles that make up the Coca-Cola 600 is a challenge for all drivers, but Bell knows his way around the 1.5-mile track at CMS.
  • Bell at Charlotte: Bell has three NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) starts at CMS earning two top-five and two top-10 finishes.  Last year at CMS Bell dominated early in the race, earning the pole position and leading 33 of 45 laps in the opening stage before a flat tire ended his day early in stage two.
  • NASCAR Salutes: Christopher Bell will carry the name of Sergeant Jerry L Ganey Jr. on the windshield header of his No. 95 Rheem Toyota Camry this Sunday for the Coca-Cola 600 in honor of Memorial Day weekend as a part of NASCAR Salutes.  Ganey Jr. was assigned to the 648th Engineer Battalion, 48th Infantry Brigade, Georgia Army National Guard, Statesboro, GA, and was killed Aug. 3, 2005 when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated near his armored personnel carrier as he was conducting a dismounted security patrol in Baghdad.
  • Darlington Recap: Christopher Bell started 24th for the Wednesday night race at Darlington Raceway and went on to earn his best finish of the season.  The No. 95 team steadily made adjustments on Bell’s Toyota all night and Bell was sitting just outside the top 10 when the rains came, and the race was called.  Bell finished 11th, his best finish through six races this season.
  • RACE INFO: The Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway begins at 6:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 24, 2020. The race will be broadcast live on FOX, Sirius XM 90, and PRN Radio.

 

 

Bell’s Career NASCAR Xfinity Series Stats at Charlotte Motor Speedway:

StartsWinsTop 5Top 10PolesLaps LedAvg. StartAvg. Finish
30221335.012.7

 

Bell’s 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Season Stats:

StartsWinsTop 5Top 10PolesLaps LedAvg. StartAvg. Finish
60000021.325.2

 

Bell’s Career NASCAR Xfinity Series Stats:

StartsWinsTop 5Top 10PolesLaps LedAvg. StartAvg. Finish
741641461229206.410.2

 

From the Cockpit:

Christopher Bell: “I’m pretty anxious about the Coke 600 this weekend. Obviously, it’s a really long race, so I’m trying to make sure I’m as prepared as I can be. I just want to do a good job. I want to make sure I see the end of the race; after this one, the rest of them are going to feel short.  It’s also an honor to pay tribute to the brave men and women who protect our country’s freedom.  I’m proud to have Sergeant Ganey Jr. riding along with me on Sunday.”

About Rheem

Founded in 1925, Rheem® innovates all-new ways to deliver just the right temperature while saving energy, water and supporting a more sustainable future. Today, Rheem is America’s #1 water heating brand, and its products are available in more than 50 countries. Paloma Co., Ltd. of Nagoya, Japan, acquired the iconic Rheem brand in 1988, and today the company’s portfolio of premium brands include Rheem®, Raypak®, Ruud®, Eemax®, Richmond®, Splendid®, Solahart® and EverHot™ as well as commercial refrigeration brands Russell®, Witt®, ColdZone® and Kramer®, which are part of the Heat Transfer Products Group (HTPG®) division.

*All are Trademarks of Rheem Manufacturing Company.

 

About Leavine Family Racing

Leavine Family Racing is an organization competing in the NASCAR Cup Series focused on growing competitively and providing results-driven partnerships for its sponsors. The single-car team was founded in 2011 by Bob and Sharon Leavine, two individuals who are passionate about NASCAR and started the team to make a positive impact on the sport and community. Christopher Bell will pilot the No. 95 Toyota Camry for the team starting with the 2020 season. In alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota Racing Development, the team operates out of their Concord, N.C.-based race shop with a veteran group of racing personnel driven by their desire for progress. For more information, please visit www.LFR95.com.

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