NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series – The MotorSportsNews.Net(work)

Speedco Returns to Front Row Motorsports in Search of Back-to-back Truck Series Playoff Berths

February 8, 2021February 8, 2021

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (February 8, 2021) – Speedco, a national network of service locations for the trucking industry, will rejoin Todd Gilliland for the second consecutive year as a primary partner aboard the No. 38 Ford F-150. Speedco will be the primary partner for a total of eight races throughout the 2021 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season, while also serving as a season-long associate partner. (more…)

Special Edition NASCAR Cup Series News & Notes – Phoenix Raceway

November 6, 2020November 6, 2020

It was announced back in March of 2019, that the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Weekend would be held at Phoenix Raceway in 2020. After a long, unpredictable, and unprecedented season the series has arrived, and four drivers and teams are ready give it their all and decide who will be crowned the 2020 champion. (more…)

NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series News & Notes – Atlanta Motor Speedway

June 4, 2020June 4, 2020

NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
Next Race: Vet Tix/Camping World 200
The Place: Atlanta Motor Speedway
The Date: Saturday, June 6
The Time: 1 p.m. ET
TV: FS1, 12:30 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 200.02 miles (130 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 30),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 60), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 134)
2019 Winner: Kyle Busch

Bounty acquired

The bounty hunter, Chase Elliott, set out to capture the win on Tuesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway and on the first try, he was successful.

In the closing laps of the North Carolina Education Lottery 200, Elliott held off a hard-charging Kyle Busch to earn the victory and a $100,000 bounty, to be paid to a COVID-19 relief charity of his choice, offered to any full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver who could beat Busch in a Gander Trucks race.

Elliott, who hadn’t been behind the wheel of a truck since 2017, made it happen despite the fact that Busch had won each of his last seven races started in the Gander Trucks.

The idea of the bounty all started when Cup Series driver Kevin Harvick and chairman and CEO of Gander RV & Outdoors, Marcus Lemonis, each put up $50,000 following the Las Vegas event for any Cup driver who could beat Busch in a Gander Trucks race. The money is being donated to coronavirus relief in Elliott’s name.

Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender Zane Smith finished third in his first national series start at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Brett Moffitt finished fourth and Sheldon Creed rounded out the top five. John Hunter Nemechek, who was also going after the bounty, finished sixth, Johnny Sauter finished seventh followed by Ty Majeski, Austin Hill and Ben Rhodes.

Tuesday’s race marked the return for the Gander Trucks, which had been off since Feb. 21 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

They enter another off weekend while the Xfinity Series and Cup Series head to Bristol Motor Speedway, but return on June 6 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Starting lineup, pit stall selection process updates
NASCAR recently announced how the lineup will be set for the two Gander Trucks races through mid-June (Atlanta, June 6; Miami, June 13).

• Positions 1-10: Random draw of teams in those positions in owner points
• Positions 11-21: Random draw of teams in those positions in owner points
• Positions 22-32: Random draw of teams in those positions in owner points
• Any vehicles that are eligible for the Event in position 33rd – 40th will be assigned starting positions based on their order of eligibility.

Like the other two series, pit stall selections will be ordered based on finishing positions from the series’ previous race, followed by new entries in order of points.

Here is a look at the Gander Trucks points standings:

DRIVER	POINTS	BEHIND	WINS
*Austin Hill*	120	0	0
*Johnny Sauter*	103	-17	0
*Zane Smith*	103	-17	0
*Ben Rhodes*	99	-21	0
*Brett Moffitt*	98	-22	1
*Sheldon Creed*	90	-30	0
*Grand Enfinger*	81	-39	1
*Christian Eckes*	78	-42	0
*Tyler Ankrum*	76	-44	0
*Codie Rohrbaugh*	12	-48	0

Nashville Superspeedway to host the NASCAR Cup Series in 2021

June 3, 2020

DOVER, Del. (June 3, 2020) – NASCAR and Dover Motorsports, Inc. (NYSE: DVD) have agreed to host a NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway in 2021.

(more…)

No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang: Cole Custer Supermarket Heroes 500 Race Advance

May 30, 2020

KANNAPOLIS, North Carolina (May 29, 2020) – Cole Custer and the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Mustang team venture a little more than four hours to the north and west from their Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) headquarters to Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway for Sunday’s Supermarket Heroes 500. Custer will make his first Cup Series start at the Tennessee track and 12th career Cup Series start.

The No. 41 Ford Mustang will sport the colors of co-owner Gene Haas’ newest holding, HaasTooling.com, for the short-track event. Haas Tooling was launched a few weeks ago as a way for CNC machinists to purchase high quality cutting tools at great prices. Haas’ cutting tools are sold exclusively online at HaasTooling.com and shipped directly to end users.
Custer spent the last week honing his craft at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway for the season’s longest race – Sunday night’s Coca-Cola 600, and Thursday night’s Alsco Uniforms 500k. His first Cup Series start at the 1.5-mile track last Sunday netted Custer a 12th-place finish after recovering from falling one lap down earlier in the race. He earned an 18th-place finish in Thursday night’s 500-kilometer – 310-mile – race after battling a loose-handling No. 41 Mustang.
The Cup Series has completed one race at a short track this season at Phoenix Raceway in March, where Custer and the No. 41 team finished ninth. The series will run a similar package this weekend at Bristol and the HaasTooling.com driver hopes to capture another top-10 this weekend.

In the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Custer had six consecutive starts at Bristol from 2017 through 2019. Five of those resulted in top-five qualifying positions. The California native has two Xfinity Series pole awards at Bristol – April 2018 and 2019. Custer has four top-10 finishes in the series at Bristol, with 31 laps led. Custer also has three Bristol outings in the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series at Bristol, all starting in the top-10 with a pair of top-10 finishes and 111 laps led.
While the NASCAR season has resumed, the sport also continues to do its part during the COVID-19 pandemic. SHR’s partnership with Novant Health continues to expand. So far, SHR has helped transport and deliver millions of face masks for Novant, in addition to building intensive care unit webcam carts. Now, SHR is now providing 25,000 square feet of property adjacent to its shop in Kannapolis, North Carolina, for Novant’s partnership with Zipline, the world’s only national-scale, on-demand drone logistics service. Zipline will deliver medical supplies via its fleet of drones to Novant Health’s integrated system of physician practices, hospitals and outpatient centers. Click here to download b-roll of site build, drone delivery and interviews.

In SHR’s 70 starts at Bristol, the team has earned two pole awards and two victories. The championship team has 10 top-fives, 29 top-10s and 873 laps led at the high-banked, concrete oval.
Haas Automation, founded by Haas in 1983, is America’s leading builder of CNC machine tools. The company manufactures a complete line of vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers and rotary tables and indexers. All Haas products are constructed in the company’s 1.1-million-square-foot manufacturing facility in Oxnard, California, and distributed through a worldwide network of Haas Factory Outlets.
Even though Custer had a trio of starts in the Cup Series in 2018, 2020 officially marks his Rookie of the Year campaign in NASCAR’s most prestigious series. He’s competing for rookie honors with notables Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick. The three have battled against each other in the Xfinity Series and are making the full-time transition to the Cup Series together. Custer was the third-highest-finishing rookie at Charlotte Thursday night and looks to improve his position Sunday afternoon at a track where he’s run well in the past.

Cole Custer: Driver of the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

You’ve wrapped up a couple races at a mile-and-a-half track. Do you feel like you learned a lot, and can apply some things to the other mile-and-a-halves coming up?

“We’ve learned a ton as a team over the last four races and running the 550 horsepower package. I think I have a better understanding of the cars now and it’s just applying it in the future.”
In the Xfinity Series, you’ve done really well at Bristol as long as you haven’t had something happen. Why do you think you excel there, or what makes it suit your driving style so much?
“Bristol has been a good track for me in Xfinity. It’s a track that has always come a little natural to me, I feel like. I like the feel of it and being able to move around in the lanes. It’s a lot about keeping momentum. The bottom is about hooking the line. Sunday it’s just a matter of running a lot longer race and a lot of cars to pass, which makes it chaotic.”
You had a ninth-place finish at Phoenix earlier this year. You’ll run the same package at Bristol. Do you favor the 750 package?
“I think the 750 horsepower package is definitely something that’s more natural to me because it’s similar to the Xfinity car. A lot of the stuff I did in the Xfinity car transfers over to this 750 package in the Cup Series. It doesn’t do that with the 550 horsepower package we run at a lot track in Cup. So I’d say I’m more comfortable and used to the 750.”
We’re going back to a little bit of a traditional NASCAR schedule with one race per week. Are you looking forward to going back to more of a traditional schedule? Or were you really starting to like the two races per week schedule?
“I think it was nice to kind of mix it up with the mid-week races. It was interesting and I think it might get used in the future some. I don’t think it’s something you could do all year long though. You need to have a break at some point. It’ll be nice to go back to our week by week schedule to catch our breath and look at what we learned to apply to future races.”

No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang Team Report
Race 9 of 36 – Supermarket Heroes 500 – Bristol

Car No. 41: HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang Team Report

At Track PR Contact: Lauren Emling with True Speed Communication (Lauren.Emling@TrueSpeedCommunication.com)

Primary Team:

Driver: Cole Custer

Hometown: Ladera Ranch, California

Crew Chief: Mike Shiplett

Hometown: Amherst, Ohio

Engine Specialist: Evan Cupples

Hometown: Hudson, Illinois

Car Chief: Tony Cardamone

Hometown: Bristol, Virginia

Engine Builder: Roush Yates Engines

Headquarters: Mooresville, North Carolina

Spotter: Andy Houston

Hometown: Hickory, North Carolina

Over-The-Wall Crew:

Fuelman: Chad Emmons

Hometown: Tyler, Texas
Carrier: Dwayne Moore

Hometown: Griffin, Georgia

Jackman: Brett Morrell

Hometown: Windham, Maine

Front Changer: Josh Leslie

Hometown: Mount Clemens, Michigan

Rear Changer: Coleman Dollarhide
Hometown: Hickory, North Carolina

Bristol Motor Speedway Notes of Interest:

Cole Custer will make his first Cup Series start Sunday afternoon at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. The start will bring his career Cup Series total to 12.
The California native earned 12th- and 18th-place finishes at the series’ most recent events at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
2020 marks Custer’s first fulltime season in the Cup Series and he will contend for Rookie of the Year honors along with four other Cup Series competitors.
The Ford driver has six NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Bristol, all from the top-10 position on the grid, and he has two top-five finishes and four top-10s. Two of his top-10 starts were from the pole – April 2017 and April 2018. He also has three NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series starts at the half-mile track with a best finish of sixth.

It’s Good To Be Genuine Toyota Racing: Daniel Suárez Supermarket Heroes 500 at Bristol Preview

May 30, 2020

MOORESVILLE, North Carolina (May 29, 2020) – It’s time for a little change of scenery for Daniel Suárez and the No. 96 It’s Good To Be Genuine Toyota Camry team for Gaunt Brothers Racing (GBR). After four races in the Carolinas during an 11-day stretch that ended a 70-day hiatus for the NASCAR Cup Series due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they’ll take to the concrete, high-banked, half-mile Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway oval for the some short-track racing.

Sunday’s Supermarket Heroes 500 marks the ninth race of 2020 for the Cup Series competitors and the fifth since the suspended schedule was resumed April 17 with the first of two consecutive races at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. Suárez and his No. 96 Toyota finished 25th in NASCAR’s return to racing at Darlington, and followed it up with a 27th-place finish three days later in the first Wednesday-night Cup Series race in 36 years. They then moved to Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway for last Sunday night’s traditional Memorial Day-weekend Coca-Cola 600, followed by Thursday’s night’s Alsco Uniforms 500k, netting 28th-place results in both.

The fifth Cup Series race in the last two weeks takes Suárez and his It’s Good To Be Genuine Toyota Camry – a nod to its partner’s Parts & Service heritage – to one of his more successful racetracks. His history on the Bristol oval began in 2012 with his first of three NASCAR K&N Pro Series East outings – all in Toyota equipment. Suárez also has a pair of Bristol starts in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series, six in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, and six in the Cup Series. In his most recent Truck Series outing, he started second and led 77 laps before an accident ended his day 16 laps from the finish. His five top-six finishes in six Xfinity Series starts are highlighted by runner-up finishes to Joey Logano and Kyle Busch, respectively, in April 2015 and August 2017.

In last year’s two Bristol Cup Series races, Suárez brought home finishes of eighth in both, driving the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing entry, and he almost added another top-10 when he drove his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota to an 11th-place finish there in April 2018. His average Cup Series finish at Bristol is 13.0, his average start 17.7. But Suárez will have to work hard to make forward progress from the wave of the green flag Sunday as he’ll start 37th on a grid for which the top 36 positions – all reserved for chartered teams – were decided Friday by random draw, and positions 37 through 40 – all non-chartered teams – lined up by car owner points.

No matter, Suárez is at his most comfortable when the battle is toughest, and he and his teammates look forward to the typical 500 laps of beating and banging among 40 competitors fighting for position in the tight quarters of the half-mile Bristol Motor Speedway oval on Sunday afternoon in the hills of East Tennessee.

Daniel Suárez: Driver of the No. 96 It’s Good To Be Genuine Toyota Camry for Gaunt Brothers Racing:

You’re coming off a pair of 28th-place finishes at Charlotte and are headed to Bristol. Your thoughts?

“Right now, it’s all about taking baby steps – baby steps. Obviously we have a lot of work to do to get where we are going and it’s not going to happen all in one race. It’s a process and it will continue to be a process until we get there. Everyone knows we started out behind in a lot of areas. We just need time. We need races. We need practice. We need a lot of things and we continue to work very hard. We’re not in the best position, but that is why we are all here, to try to do each of our jobs the best we can and to keep making our cars better and better. We have done a good job of keeping the cars in one piece and we continue to develop what we have.”

Bristol is one of your best tracks, results-wise, since you started racing there in the K&N East Series back in 2012. How do you like racing there?

“I like Bristol a lot. It’s a fun place to race – a lot of fun. When the stands are filled with fans, it’s one of the most exciting tracks we go to. It will be strange to race there with no fans. Like I said at Darlington and Charlotte, I hope it’s not something we get used to because we’re all about the fans. Bristol is especially fun when you have a fast racecar. We’ve been working hard to show up with a setup on our It’s Good To Be Genuine Toyota that is as good as possible and will make it fun for us on Sunday.”

You’ve normally started closer to the front at Bristol, but this time you’ll have to start 37th as the first of the non-chartered teams. How big of a challenge will that be?

“Starting 37th is a huge disadvantage at Bristol, but it is what it is. You start the race and you’re already half a lap down. I think it will be an even bigger challenge because we will not have practice and no qualifying. We’ll just do everything we can with what we have to work with and the challenges that we face and try and keep taking baby steps forward.”

No. 96 It’s Good To Be Genuine Toyota Camry Team Report
Race 9 of 36 – Supermarket Heroes 500 – Bristol

Car No. 96: It’s Good To Be Genuine Toyota Camry

PR Contact: Laz Denes with True Speed Communication (Laz.Denes@TrueSpeedCommunication.com)

Primary Team:

Driver: Daniel Suárez

Hometown: Monterrey, Mexico

Crew Chief: Dave Winston

Hometown: Miami, Florida

Technical Director: Nick Ollila

Hometown: Warren, Michigan

Car Chief: Mark Hillman

Hometown: Lockport, New York

Engine Specialist: Kirk Butterfield

Hometown: Carrollton, Ohio

Engine Builder: Toyota Racing Development

Headquarters: Costa Mesa, California

Spotter: Steve Barkdoll

Hometown: Garrison, Iowa

Over-The-Wall Crew:

Gas Man: Cory White

Hometown: Vinson, Iowa

Front Tire Changer: Mike Mead

Hometown: Sherrills Ford, North Carolina

Rear Tire Changer: Brandon Traino

Hometown: Cherry Hill, New Jersey

Tire Carrier: Mason Harris

Hometown: Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia

Jackman: Joel Bouagnon

Hometown: St. Charles, Illinois

Windshield: Mark Hillman

Hometown: Lockport, New York

Supermarket Heroes 500 Notes of Interest:

After piloting the No. 19 NASCAR Cup Series Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2017 and 2018, then the No. 41 Cup Series entry for Stewart-Haas Racing in 2019, Suárez joined the single-car No. 96 Toyota Camry effort for Gaunt Brothers Racing (GBR) for the full 2020 season.
Suárez will be making his 116th career NASCAR Cup Series start in Sunday’s Supermarket Heroes 500 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. He has career totals of eight top-five finishes, 32 top-10s and 241 laps led, with an average start of 16.2 and an average finish of 17.6. He also has qualified on the pole twice.
In six previous Cup Series outings on the .533-mile, high-banked concrete oval at Bristol, Suárez has best finishes of eighth in his two 2019 starts there in his Stewart-Haas Racing entry, and a best starts of 12th in the August 2017 and April 2018 races in his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. He led five laps in the April 2018 race, in which he finished 11th. Suárez’s average Bristol start is 17.7 and average finish is 13.0.
Suárez has a pair of runner-up finishes and three other top-six results in six career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Bristol. He finished second to Joey Logano in the April 2015 race and second to Kyle Busch in the August 2017 race. His best Xfinity Series start at Bristol is third in August 2016, the year he won the Xfinity Series championship. His average Bristol start in the series is 7.7 and his average finish is 8.0.
In most recent NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series race at Bristol in August 2016, Suárez started second and led 77 laps before an accident ended his day 16 laps from the finish. In his only other Truck Series start there in August 2015, he qualified 16th and finished 30th. Both Truck Series outings were with Joe Gibbs Racing.
Suárez also has competed in three NASCAR K&N Pro Series East races at Bristol with a best start of 17th in his most recent outing in March 2014, and a best finish of 15th in his first race there in March 2012.
Crew chief Dave Winston, a native of Miami, Florida, and a veteran of 67 Cup Series races atop the pit box, has called the shots at four previous races at Bristol. He collaborated with driver Alex Bowman in the No. 23 BK Racing Toyota in the April and August 2014 races, both which ended up with 33rd-place finishes. The duo came back for the fall 2014 race and started 33rd and finished 30th. His driver Michael McDowell finished 29th and 19th in the April and August 2016 races, respectively, for the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing entry.
On May 11, GBR announced the addition of longtime motorsports veteran Nick Ollila as technical director. The native of Warren, Michigan, will oversee the team’s engineering department and returns to the United States after a three-year stint serving in the same capacity with Kelly Racing in the Virgin Australian Supercars Championship. Ollila and team owner Marty Gaunt first worked together in 1997 when the two were at Kranefuss-Haas Racing. Their NASCAR paths crossed again 10 years later when both worked at Red Bull Racing – Gaunt as general manager and Ollila as chief aerodynamicist. NASCAR is where Ollila has spent the bulk of his career, which includes being the drivetrain specialist at Rod Osterlund Racing in 1980 when Dale Earnhardt won the first of his seven Cup Series championships. Ollila’s racing career began at Team Penske in 1972 as a mechanic. He prepared cars for each of the series in which the organization competed, a lineup that included IndyCar, NASCAR, Can-Am, Formula 5000, sports cars and Formula One. NASCAR became Ollila’s focus in late 1976. He joined DiGard Racing as the team’s drivetrain specialist, working with NASCAR Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip until the end of the 1978 season, whereupon he went to work for Osterlund. IndyCar and Penske beckoned in 1982, and Ollila returned as the team’s engine builder, enjoying four championships (1982, 1983, 1985 and 1988) and four Indianapolis 500 victories (1984, 1985, 1987 and 1988). That Penske connection led Ollila back to NASCAR in 1990, when he became the lead engineer for Hall of Fame driver Rusty Wallace. It was the beginning of a 20-year stint in NASCAR.
Sunday marks the third Cup Series start at Bristol for the No. 96 Gaunt Brothers Toyota. Both previous starts were in 2018 with driver D.J. Kennington starting 35th and finishing 27th in the April race, and Jesse Little starting 33rd and finishing 35th in the August race.
Coca-Cola and CommScope continue their respective partnerships with Suárez at Gaunt Brothers Racing. The iconic Coca-Cola brand has been with Suárez since 2015 when he won the Xfinity Series rookie-of-the-year title. CommScope, a leader in communication network technology, has been with Suárez through its ARRIS and Ruckus Networks brands since 2014, when he first competed in the Xfinity Series.

RCR Event Preview – Bristol Motor Speedway

May 30, 2020May 30, 2020

Richard Childress Racing at Bristol Motor Speedway … In 175 NASCAR Cup Series starts, Richard Childress Racing has earned a total of nine race wins at Bristol Motor Speedway, including seven with Dale Earnhardt, one with Kevin Harvick and one with Jeff Burton. The Welcome, N.C.-based organization also has nine NASCAR Xfinity Series wins at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile, including four with Kevin Harvick and one each with Jeff Green, Clint Bowyer, Elliott Sadler, Austin Dillon and Tyler Reddick.

COVID-19 Relief … Own a piece of history by participating in an auction and sale of Richard Childress’ personal collection of memorabilia. All proceeds will assist COVID-19 relief efforts. Thousands of rare, hard-to-find and exclusive items from Richard Childress’ 50+ years in NASCAR are up for bid or sale. Visit https://www.ebay.com/str/RichardChildresscollection

Catch the Action … The Supermarket Heroes 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway will be televised live Sunday, May 31, beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 and will be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series Cheddar’s 300 presented by Alsco at Bristol Motor Speedway will be televised live Monday, June 1, beginning at 7 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 and will be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Austin Dillon at Bristol Motor Speedway … In 12 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Bristol Motor Speedway, Dillon has one top-five and two top-10 finishes. He posted his best finish of fourth in August 2016. He is a former winner in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the track.

SYMBICORT Partners with the No. 3 at Bristol Motor Speedway … SYMBICORT is an AstraZeneca product and the sponsor of the No. 3 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Bristol Motor Speedway with Austin Dillon. You can learn more at MySymbicort.com. AstraZeneca is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of prescription medicines. AstraZeneca operates in over 100 countries and its innovative medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide.

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:

What do you think about racing at Bristol Motor Speedway?
“Man, they can’t mess Bristol Motor Speedway up, truthfully. Bristol is Bristol, and it doesn’t matter what lane you are in, it is good racing. I enjoy going there. Bristol is just a hardcore track where you need some drivability that you have built into the car mechanically. I look forward to Bristol each year.”

Tyler Reddick at Bristol Motor Speedway … Tyler Reddick will be making his NASCAR Cup Series debut at Bristol Motor Speedway during this Sunday’s Supermarket Heroes 500. Reddick has five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the track, winning last fall’s race there with crew chief Randall Burnett, along with two top-five and four top-10 finishes. Reddick also has two NASCAR Truck Series starts, with two top-five finishes at Bristol.

About Alsco … Alsco is a fourth-generation family owned and operated business, founded in 1889, that was recognized by the prestigious Hohenstein Institute for having invented the linen and uniform rental industry. Celebrating over 130 years of business, Alsco provides linen and workwear rental services to customers that include restaurants, healthcare, automotive industry and industrial facilities. With over 180 locations and more than 20,000 employees, Alsco provides world-class service to over 355,000 customers in 14 countries. Learn more at alsco.com.

Watch with Cheddar’s … Reddick and his No. 8 team are excited to tune in to the Cheddar’s 300 on Monday, June 1, and watch RCR’s Xfinity team try to capture the win. To celebrate the race, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen is offering 15 percent off all online to go orders with the offer code RACEDAY placed on 6/1. With scratch-made favorites like Santa Fe Spinach Dip served with house-fried tortilla chips or Cheddar’s signature hand-breaded Chicken Tenders, fans can enjoy a taste of the race at their Cheddar’s 300 watch-parties. Or pick up one of Cheddar’s new Family Bundles and feed your whole pit-crew like a bundle of Slow-Smoked Baby Back Ribs that comes complete with 2 family-sized sides and 6 of your favorite Honey-Butter Croissants. Terms & conditions apply. Visit cheddars.com/offer/race-day for full offer details.

TYLER REDDICK QUOTES:

Bristol Motor Speedway is known for being a tough track. How do you feel entering your first Cup Series start there with no practice or qualifying?

“It’s going to be tough on Sunday. Bristol is one of the toughest tracks to go around when it doesn’t have rubber and heat on it. I’ve ran Truck races there through my career, and when we’re one of the first ones on the track, that first hour of practice, you can’t really learn much. The traction compound is slick – you go down in there to try to use it and you almost spin out. You run the middle, and that’s about it. Man, the first hour or so of practice you can’t get up in that either because it’s slick, and you almost wreck. I remember the first time they put traction compound down at Bristol, I went out for practice and I was in the middle of it, so we were OK. But I wanted to try the bottom, so I went down there, got loose and couldn’t go anywhere. I realized that wasn’t going to work, so I went up to try to use the top and I drove it straight into the fence. Given that experience, I’m worried that the start of Sunday’s race is going to be very chaotic. I don’t know how that’s going to go. There’s only one groove, and we’re going to be starting double-file, so that’s going to be very interesting.”

This Week’s No. 21 TaxSlayer Chevrolet Camaro at Bristol Motor Speedway … Myatt Snider will look to back up a strong top-10 performance as the NASCAR Xfinity Series visits the half-mile of Bristol Motor Speedway. Snider will be making his Xfinity Series debut at Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend. He has one career NASCAR Truck Series start at the track in 2018.

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MYATT SNIDER QUOTE:

After a strong top-10 performance at Charlotte, what kind of momentum can you and your team bring into a place like Bristol Motor Speedway?

“We had great speed in Charlotte and performed really well together as a team. I am thankful for all the hard work my crew chief Andy Street and our entire Richard Childress Racing team has put into producing these fast TaxSlayer Chevrolet Camaros. The speed we’re bringing to the racetrack gives me that much more confidence heading into Bristol. This will be my last race with RCR until the end of the year, so I really want to go out and have our best performance yet this weekend. I can’t wait to slay it at the Last Great Colosseum with my No. 21 TaxSlayer Chevrolet Camaro.”

No. 98 HighPoint.com: Chase Briscoe Bristol NXS Advance

May 30, 2020

NASCAR Xfinity Series Overview

Event: Cheddar’s 300 presented by Alsco (Round 7 of 33)

Date: June 1, 2020

Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway

Layout: .533-mile oval

Chase Briscoe Notes of Interest

• The Cheddar’s 300 presented by Alsco is the seventh event of the 33-race NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule. It will mark the third event for the Xfinity Series since racing returned May 21 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway after a 10-week hiatus amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

• The No. 98 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang will carry the name of Xfinity employee and National Guardsman Peterson Ferlene Monday night at Bristol Motor Speedway. Ferlene has eight years of active service in the National Guard, and on March 23 he began providing critical service at Hard Rock Stadium near Miami in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of his duties include screening and directing first responders, along with the general public, as they arrive for testing at the stadium. Ferlene has been a communications technician with Comcast since January 2018 and he recently appeared in the Florida Region Tech Agenda thanks to his heroic actions on Feb. 6 when he saved the life of a Comcast customer.

• In four career Xfinity Series starts at Bristol, Briscoe has two top-five finishes, both of which were earned in 2019 – a fourth-place effort in the April 6 Alsco 300 and a second-place drive in the Aug. 16 Food City 300.

• In addition to his Xfinity Series experience at Bristol, Briscoe has one NASCAR Truck Series start at the .533-mile oval. In 2017, Briscoe started 15th and finished 12th in the UNOH 200.

• Briscoe comes into Bristol as the championship leader with an eight point-advantage over second-place Austin Cindric. Briscoe has three top-five and four top-10 finishes this season, punctuated by victories Feb. 23 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and May 21 at Darlington.

• Briscoe was poised for another strong result in his No. 98 Ford Mustang last Monday night at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway until oil on the racetrack sent him into the turn-three wall 47 laps short of the finish. Briscoe began the race from eighth in the 37-car field and climbed to as high as second. Following pit stops at the end of the second stage, Briscoe’s race began to come undone as he was cited for a series of pit road penalties over the course of the next 50 laps. 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 racecar.

• Briscoe won the 2019 rookie-of-the-year title in the Xfinity Series and is racing for a championship in 2020. He already has one title to his name – the 2016 ARCA Racing Series championship. Briscoe finished fifth in the Xfinity Series championship standings last year, narrowly missing out on advancing to the Championship 4 and competing for the series title.

Chase Briscoe, Driver of the No. 98 HighPoint.com Ford Mustang

Bristol is a track that is known to be very tough on drivers, but you earned top-five finishes in both races there last year. What does it take to be successful at Bristol?

“The key to being successful at Bristol is just being versatile. The track changes, the racing changes, and you just never know what’s going to happen. You also have to be good in traffic because when something happens, it happens fast. I think that’s where my dirt background helps. Bristol keeps you on your toes.”

This is the first short-track race of the year and, once again, you’ll take your first laps on the racetrack when the green flag drops. Is there a difference between having no practice at a track like Darlington or Charlotte compared to a short track like Bristol?

“I think they all equally present different challenges. Bristol will probably be the hardest for the team to unload close to what we need for the race just because of the travels and not knowing how the traction compound affects the car. Those are the two biggest things you look at in practice or qualifying, and it is harder to prepare for that.”

With the race being moved to Monday night from its original afternoon start time on Saturday, does that change anything in terms of the team’s preparation for the race?

“That’s something we definitely have to think about, but we race during the day and during the night at Bristol already, so we have data from last year that we can go back to. That’s something we didn’t have for Darlington or Charlotte, and I had to look for input from the Cup guys and other guys in the garage. We ran really well at Bristol last year, so I feel good about our chances of finishing up front in our HighPoint.com Ford Mustang.”

Chase Briscoe Bristol Performance Profile

No. 98 HighPoint.com Team Roster

Primary Team Members:

Driver: Chase Briscoe

Hometown: Mitchell, Indiana

Crew Chief: Richard Boswell

Hometown: Friendship, Maryland

Car Chief: Nick Hutchins

Hometown: Columbia, South Carolina

Engine Tuner: Craig Hermann

Hometown: Albany, New York

Spotter: Tim Fedewa

Hometown: Holt, Michigan

Over-The-Wall Crew:

Front Tire Changer: Ryan Mulder

Hometown: Sioux Center, Iowa

Rear Tire Changer: Chris Jackson

Hometown: Fort Mill, South Carolina

Tire Carrier: Jon Bernal

Hometown: Shelby, North Carolina

Fueler: Andrew Migliozzi

Hometown: Westborough, Massachusetts

Jackman: Sean Cotten

Hometown: Mooresville, North Carolina

About HighPoint

HighPoint is a leading IT infrastructure and solutions company. With its customer-centric, results-driven approach to digital transformation, you get technology that works, delivered by people you want to work with. HighPoint builds lasting relationships with clients, employees and partners based on honesty, integrity, trust and a mutual commitment to growth and success. The company, founded in 1996, is a minority-owned business headquartered in Sparta, New Jersey, serving markets in the tri-state region and southeastern United States, with a presence in Charlotte, North Carolina, and overseas in London. To contact us or learn more about our solutions, please visit www.HighPoint.com.

Hunt Brothers Pizza Racing: Kevin Harvick Food City presents the Supermarket Heroes 500 Advance and Team Report

May 30, 2020

KANNAPOLIS, North Carolina (May 29, 2020) – Kevin Harvick will compete in his fifth race in 15 days on Sunday, May 31 in the Food City presents the Supermarket Heroes 500 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. That’s a lot of races in 15 days, but not for someone like Harvick.

The driver of the No. 4 Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) drove in four races in eight days back in 2007.

It was the year of the great rainout at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn. Harvick drove in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Michigan on Saturday, Aug. 18 and finished third. The Cup Series race ended up running on Tuesday, Aug. 21 after it was rained out Sunday and Monday.

Harvick then headed south to Bristol for the Xfinity Series race on Friday, Aug. 24 and finished 16th. Finally, on Saturday, Aug. 25, he finished 16th in the Bristol Cup Series race.

He raced a total of 1,055.7 miles during that 2007 stretch. By the end of this past Thursday night’s 500-kilometer race at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, he will have driven have driven 1,595.588 miles since the Cup Series resumed its suspended season April 17 with the first of two races at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. And he has another 250 miles coming up Sunday at Bristol.

So while the schedule has been odd, because of Harvick’s experience, he’s sort of been through this before. And he has been successful at Bristol before, as well.

Harvick has two wins, one pole, 12 top-five finishes, 19 top-10s and has led a total of 912 laps in his 38 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Bristol. His average start is 16.7, his average finish is 13.8 and he has a lap-completion rate of 96.7 percent – 18,401 of the 19,027 laps available.

He has competed in 29 NASCAR Xfinity Series races there with five wins, 15 top-fives and 24 top-10 finishes with two pole positions. He has driven in five NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series events at Bristol and has one win and four top-10s.

Harvick will also have the support of longtime partner Hunt Brothers Pizza at Bristol Sunday.

With more than 7,800 locations in 30 states, Hunt Brothers Pizza is the nation’s largest brand of made-to-order pizza in the convenience store industry. Hunt Brothers Pizza offers original and thin crust pizzas available as a grab-and-go Hunk perfect for today’s on-the-go lifestyle, or as a customizable whole pizza that is an exceptional value with All Toppings No Extra Charge®. Headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, Hunt Brothers Pizza is family owned and operated with more than 25 years of experience serving great pizza to convenience store shoppers through its store partners. To find a Hunt Brothers Pizza location, download the Hunt Brothers Pizza app by visiting www.huntbrotherspizza.com/app/

Hunt Brothers Pizza has partnered with Harvick for 11 years and last visited victory lane with him when he won the 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. In 2019, Hunt Brothers moved up to the Cup Series as a primary sponsor for three races and, in 2020, will be on Harvick’s car five times.

Harvick has also won two Truck Series races with Hunt Brothers as a sponsor at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, and at Bristol, both in 2011. The company also sponsored him in the non-points NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte in 2014 and 2015. Harvick finished second in both races.

Harvick is hoping he can heat up at Bristol and score his second victory of 2020. And if he leads just one more lap, he will have led 10,000 laps in his SHR career dating back to 2014.

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Is it hard to communicate inside the racecar at Bristol because everything happens so fast?

“It’s definitely loud and hard for the teams to hear. One of the hardest things at Bristol is just to see what’s going on. I have crashed at Bristol and gone back to watch it on TV and you’re like, ‘What in the hell were you doing? You just ran into four or five cars that have been sitting there for two seconds.’ But, Bristol is a very demanding racetrack. It’s very hard because things happen so fast, communication is hard. It’s easy to make a mistake or pile into a wreck. It’s easy to wreck somebody or to get into a fight. It’s easy to do a lot of things because there is just so much happening. It’s a tough place to race, to put it all together, and it’s mentally and physically exhausting.”

Can you talk about “the bounty” and Chase Elliott defeating Kyle Busch in the Truck Series race last Tuesday?

“I was sitting in my motorhome in Las Vegas and I woke up the next morning after Kyle (Busch) had won and saw a tweet from Kyle Larson that just had two cherries in it, which basically symbolizes cherry picking. When Delana (Harvick) and I used to own truck teams, that used to fly all over me, because I know how much time, effort and money it takes to get those trucks on the racetrack. I know how much work Kyle puts into putting those vehicles on the racetrack and I just thought, ‘What the heck, let’s put some money on the line and see if we can get some of these guys to come out and race in the Truck Series.’ You look at it the other night, with everything that has gone on in our sport with Chase (Elliott) and Kyle, to have them battling it out in the Truck Series and have Marcus Anthony Lemonis jump on board, it just wound up being a lot of fun. I really have a lot of respect for what Kyle Busch does and the effort he puts into putting those racetrucks on track and sometimes I think people forget the art of promoting. Sometimes you have to go out and give a little bit of nudge to create a little bit of excitement. As a fan, I love the Truck Series. I love to watch racing and, as a fan, I sat up with my son the other night watching and wondering what was going to happen. It was fun and exciting and it’s going to end up being a great donation once Chase decides where he wants take that $100,000 for charity during a time when there are so many things bigger than our sport right now. Our sport, once again, is going to step up just like we did during the first iRacing event at Homestead-Miami Speedway to donate some money to charity.”

Hunt Brothers Pizza Racing Team Report

Round 9 of 36 – Food City presents the Supermarket Heroes 500 – Bristol

Car No.: 4 – Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford Mustang

PR Contact: Joe Crowley, True Speed Communication (704) 875-3388 ext. 808 or Joe.Crowley@TrueSpeedCommunication.com)

Primary Team Members:

Driver: Kevin Harvick

Hometown: Bakersfield, California

Crew Chief: Rodney Childers

Hometown: Mooresville, North Carolina

Car Chief: Robert Smith

Hometown: Whitewater, Wisconsin

Engine Builder: Roush-Yates Engines

Headquarters: Mooresville, North Carolina

Engine Specialist: Robert Brandt

Hometown: Mobile, Alabama

Spotter: Tim Fedewa

Hometown: Holt, Michigan

Over-The-Wall Crew Members:

Front Tire Changer: Shayne Pipala

Hometown: Frankfort Square, Illinois

Rear Tire Changer: Daniel Smith

Hometown: Concord, North Carolina

Tire Carrier: Mike “Shrek” Morneau

Hometown: Oxford, Maine

Gas Man: Evan Marchal

Hometown: Westfield, Indiana

Jackman: Stan Dolittle

Hometown: Ninety Six, South Carolina

Windshield: Shawn Hopkins (also serves as interior mechanic)

Hometown: Chesterfield, Virginia

Bristol Notes of Interest:

· Dynamic Duo: While this is Harvick’s 20th year in the NASCAR Cup Series, it’s his seventh with crew chief Rodney Childers, which is the longest pairing of any current driver-crew chief combination. Since joining forces at Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) in 2014, Harvick and Childers have combined to produce 27 points-paying victories, a victory in the non-points-paying 2018 NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, 25 Busch poles, 111 top-five finishes and 161 top-10s while leading 9,999 laps. They won the 2014 championship, finished runner-up in the 2015 title chase to champion Kyle Busch, finished eighth in 2016 and third in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

· Harvick has career totals of 50 wins, 31 poles, 211 top-fives, 370 top-10s and 14,425 laps led in 690 starts.

· His most recent Cup Series win came on May 17 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

· His most recent Busch Pole came in November 2019 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth.

· Harvick’s 50 career NASCAR Cup Series victories puts him in a tie with NASCAR Hall of Famers Ned Jarrett and Junior Johnson for 12th on the all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins list. He is third on the active driver list behind Jimmie Johnson and Busch. Harvick is four wins behind Lee Petty for 11th on the all-time wins list.

· At the Homestead season finale in 2019, Harvick became just the 11th driver to have led 14,000 laps in his NASCAR career. He’s led 14,452 and trails 10th-place Busch, who has led 17,445, and Johnson, who is ninth with 18,862 laps led. Harvick has led 9,999 laps as an SHR driver.

· Points Position: Harvick arrives at Charlotte first in the NASCAR Cup Series standings with 331 points, 14 markers ahead of second-place Joey Logano.

· Harvick in the Monster Energy Cup Series at Bristol: Harvick has two wins, one pole, 12 top-five finishes, 19 top-10s and has led a total of 912 laps in his 38 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Bristol. His average start is 16.7, his average finish is 13.8 and he has a lap-completion rate of 96.7 percent – 18,401 of the 19,027 laps available.

· Xfinity and Trucks at Bristol: Harvick has competed in 29 NASCAR Xfinity Series races with five wins, 15 top-fives and 24 top-10 finishes with two pole positions. He has driven in five NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series events and has one win and four top-10s.

· Already Playoff Bound – Harvick qualified for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs with his win May 17 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

· 111 and Counting – Harvick scored his 100th career win in NASCAR’s top three series with his March 2018 Las Vegas win. He now has 111 total victories – 50 in the Cup Series, 47 in the Xfinity Series and 14 in the Truck Series. Only three other drivers in NASCAR history have passed 100 wins in NASCAR’s top three series: Richard Petty, David Pearson and Busch.

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