November 1, 2023

For Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team, the goal for this weekend’s season-ending NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway is to build on their Martinsville run and end the season on the upswing.

Last Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, Burton and the No. 21 team recovered from a mid-race setback that put them two laps down and raced their way to a 15th-place finish. Crew chief Jeremy Bullins is looking for another strong run this weekend in the season finale.

“I’m super proud of the way we battled last week at Martinsville,” Bullins said. “We made some spots early but got trapped on the outside for a while and hurt our right-rear tire and got loose at the end of Stage One. We wound up getting spun out battling to stay on the lead lap.”

But they didn’t let the set-back hold them down for long.

“We did what you have to do,” he said. “We stayed in the game all day, and got ourselves in position to come back for a top 15.”

The veteran crew chief said that was just what the team needs at this point.

“Races like that are the momentum we need as we keep building toward 2024,” he said. “I think we can do the same this weekend in Phoenix.”

Bullins said he’s encouraged by the way Burton raced at a similar track, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, in July, when he scored a top-20 finish.  

“Harrison ran really well at Loudon earlier this year, and I think we can do the same at Phoenix,” Bullins said. “It’ll be an exciting season finale and hopefully a good finish for our Wood Brothers Ford and a championship for RB and everyone at Team Penske.”

Practice for the Cup Series Championship Race is set for 5:05 p.m. local time (8:05 p.m. Eastern Time) on Friday, with qualifying scheduled to start at 1:35 p.m. (4:35 Eastern) on Saturday.

USA Network will carry the TV coverage of practice and qualifying.

Sunday’s 312-lap race on the one-mile oval is set to get the green flag just after 1 p.m. (3 p.m. Eastern Time), with TV coverage on NBC.

Stage breaks are planned for Laps 60 and 185. 

CONCORD, NC (Nov. 1, 2023) – Rarely in professional sports does a player or team come along and transcend the boundaries of the game, accomplishing what was once only a passing thought or a dream in the minds of those involved.

American motorsports has found that player this year in 17-year-old Jade Avedisian – the first female national Midget series champion.

Avedisian claimed the 2023 Xtreme Outlaws Midget Series presented by Toyota championship in her first season with Indiana-based Keith Kunz Motorsports – breaking the mold for a rising presence of female drivers in motorsports.

“It’s a dream come true, honestly,” she said.

While Avedisian is the first woman ever to win a national dirt racing championship, her accomplishment expands upon the foundation laid by several women who have come before and found success in their own way.

Open the World of Outlaws history books to Oct. 29, 2004, and you’ll find another first for women in motorsports. On that day at Thunderbowl Raceway, Erin Crocker-Evernham became the first woman to win a World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Feature event.

At 23 years old, she beat Steve Kinser; she beat Danny Lasoski; she beat Donny Schatz. Evernham made her own mark in open-wheel racing, paving the way for a future generation of female stars in the sport like Avedisian.

“I do see a little bit of myself in her, and I think that’s why I’ve taken to following her and what she’s doing,” Evernham said.

Still an avid open-wheel racing enthusiast and present-day host of Winged Nation on the Motor Racing Network, Evernham kept up with Avedisian’s run to the Xtreme Outlaw Series title this year. While she immediately recognized the unprecedented achievement, she also noticed a striking resemblance.

“What she did this year is really significant and I think it truly shows the natural ability she has,” Evernham said. “I love the way she carries herself. She wants to be known as a racer, not as ‘I’m the woman racer,’ which is how I always felt throughout my career. Like, I want to be a racer, and I want to go out there and win. And I get that feeling from her.

“I think it’s huge – she gives me a lot of hope for women in the future.”

Avedisian’s road to the future began in February with the announcement of her signing with KKM – the 17-time national Midget championship-winning team – for 2023 and their plans to chase the Xtreme Outlaw Series title in its first full-length schedule. Fast forward eight months, and Avedisian was hoisting the championship trophy after a season of five Toyota Racing Feature wins, 16 top-five and 26 top-10 finishes.

“I’m just super grateful to even be in contention to win a championship,” Avedisian said. “To capitalize on it just means the world to me.”

For several weeks during the season, she questioned whether or not she’d even be in title contention by the end of the year.

A win inside the Southern Illinois Center in March bolstered her into the Series points lead to start the season, but an average finish of 8.9 and only one top-five result over the next eight Series races dropped her back to fourth in the standings – 180 points behind the leader.

With the schedule already a third of the way complete and a mountain in front of her to climb, Avedisian turned to the one mantra that’s repeatedly defined her season.

“I knew just had to put our heads down and never give up,” she said.

Standing right behind her was the deep roster of KKM crew members with a matching appetite for victory. For her first season with the team, Avedisian was paired with car chief Jarrett Martin – a five-year expert on the wrenches with KKM. Right away, and more frequently as the season progressed, he noticed Avedisian’s never-say-die mentality.

“She wants to make sure she never loses the will to always get better,” Martin said. “That’s one thing I’ve noticed about her that sets her apart – she never wants to give up, she never wants to slow down.

“She works at getting better and wants it as bad as us, so that makes it easier for all of us when we do have a bad night to know that she’s upset too. She’s working hard as well.”

Throughout the year, Martin also helped coach Avedisian through many of the darkest moments of her season – including the Appalachian Midget Week opener at Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway, where she crashed and flipped while leading, then did it again from the tail of the field only two laps later.

“She’s up front leading the thing, and she said she just felt so good that she wanted to go faster and faster,” Martin said. “By the end of that night, we had the talk about knowing when to when to slow down and knowing when to push it.”

“I feel like those kinds of moments could’ve thrown the championship away,” Avedisian said. “Luckily, it didn’t.”

After several months of working together, the duo had made significant progress – improving their average finish to 4.6, collecting four additional Feature wins and climbing all the way back from 180 points down, up to the top of the Series points standings coming into the final race weekend of the season in Oklahoma.

“The second half [of the season], I really started to take the stuff I learned and apply it,” she said. “I feel like I was two different drivers from the first half to the second half.”

From 11 points up, Avedisian had expanded that gap to 59 by the time the weekend was out. In Victory Lane, she exchanged hugs, tears and endless smiles with the KKM crew and her family as the celebration began.

“To get it done for her, for the people around her and around us that wanted it just as bad as everybody else – that feels good, for sure,” Martin said.

But the next day, it was right back to business. Business with her future as part of the Toyota Racing Development lineup and working on what’s next for The First Lady of the Xtreme Outlaw Series. Life for the teenager from Clovis, CA has changed dramatically in the past year, and she’s taking it all in stride.

“To have Toyota give me a lot of opportunities… me doing a commercial the other day – obviously a lot has changed,” she said. “I’m a lot more busy now, but it’s a good busy, that’s for sure.”

While Avedisian spends the next few months solidifying exactly what her 2024 racing season will look like, one thing is for certain – she’ll have the attention of Evernham and her other female racers as the motorsports world awaits her next potential historic achievement.

“I’m really excited to watch her in the following years,” Evernham said.

NASCAR CUP SERIESPHOENIX RACEWAYTEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPTOCTOBER 31, 2023

Rick Hendrick, Owner of Hendrick Motorsports, met with the media via Zoom ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race weekend at Phoenix Raceway – Press Conference Transcript  THE MODERATOR: Thank you so much for joining us today, Mr. H. We appreciate you spending some time with us. I know you have a very busy schedule. We appreciate you taking the time to do so.First off, congratulations on having both William and Kyle in the Championship 4 this weekend. We wish you guys the best of luck. We’ll go ahead and go to questions from the media. Q. We’ve talked a lot about William and his work ethic, just how much he puts into it. Knowing all that, did you ever have any doubt on Sunday that he was going to make it into the Final 4?RICK HENDRICK: Yeah. Q. You did?RICK HENDRICK: Yes. Well, Sunday I did, yeah (smiling).That was a nail-biter. He’s won that race before. We’ve been so good at Martinsville. That was a struggle. It was just a tough race. As it played out, once we could see that probably the 12 was going to win, we had to finish I think 18th or better, we were in good shape. Not the way we wanted to finish that race. Q. How do you feel now you have two chances? Do you like either one of them better than the other? How do you prepare the two?RICK HENDRICK: You really expect me to answer that (smiling)? Q. I do.RICK HENDRICK: Well, listen, both of them have had a great year. When you look at William, he’s won six races, Kyle four plus the All-Star Race. We’re taking two good cars. William won that race in the spring. We’re just happy to be in the race. We’re happy to have two cars going out there to race for the championship. Both cars have run good all year. I hope that one of them can win. I don’t see that either one has any more advantage over the other guy. If anything, William did win the spring race, so… That doesn’t make any difference when you go back. I think our guys are prepared. We’re going to go out with the best cars we have. A lot of attention to detail. We’ll try to execute a race without any mistakes. That’s what you got to do. You have to have good pit stops. Cautions have to fall the right way. You can be a dominant car and not win this race, so we’ve just got to run the race. Again, when you start the year, you want to try to get cars to the Championship 4. When you can get one or two, you’ve had a great year. Very happy that we’re going to be there with these two guys and we’ll see how it works. Q. There hasn’t been a driver raised in North Carolina who has won the championship since Dale Jarrett in ’99. William could be the first since then. Does it matter?RICK HENDRICK: I think to have a guy like William that grew up here in Charlotte, is kind of a native of the Charlotte market where all the teams are based, I think it would be a great message for him to win the championship. I don’t think where you’re from makes any difference. Where you live now is what counts. Kyle is here. Blaney is here. Christopher Bell is here. Maybe it’s bragging rights for the states, but I don’t see any difference. They’re all living here now and racing in NASCAR. I think William’s age, his story, really would be a big story if you take a kid that didn’t grow up in the sport, that had no connections in the sport, that was able to go to college and do all the things he has done, learning how to race on a computer, I think that is kind of like when Jeff Gordon came on the scene and opened the door for a lot of open-wheel guys. I think what this can do for a lot of kids that are from anywhere in the country, in the world, that racing on a computer, there’s opportunity if you get in the right spot. I think William is a great example for a lot of kids, young people, that have a dream of racing in this sport, seeing that you can put those tools to work and accomplish something pretty spectacular. Q. Do you think it makes a difference whether you’ve been in it before or won a championship before? You have, say, a William Byron that is relatively new, it is such a big task, yet he’s very talented. You have Kyle Larson, folks that have been in it before. Does that make a difference, in your mind?RICK HENDRICK: I really don’t think so. The nerves are there for both guys. I was just with Cliff out in the shop a few minutes ago. You can see the intensity that’s there. You say you’ve been there before. The way this thing plays out, you got to go run one race. Once they strap in the car, everybody that’s got a car in this race is going to do the very best they can to take the best car they’ve got with all the information that they can gather to be ready for this race. I don’t think it’s any more pressure for William this weekend than it was last weekend, just trying to make it into the race. So I’ve seen Jimmie Johnson after winning four straight as nervous as he was, Chad, going into the next race. I think the organization has experience of running for a championship, so he’s surrounded by four crew chiefs and four drivers, an organization that has been there before with Jeff Andrews, Jeff Gordon, all of the folks that support the team. I think we give him all the moral support, but preparation here and trying to call a good race and execute. I think when you look at Rudy, he’s as good as there is in the sport, and so is Cliff. I think they’re prepared. Once he straps in the car… I think getting ready to go, all the conversations and interviews going into the race, the pressure of knowing you’ve raced the whole year, and for William, he’s raced his life, here is a shot to win a championship. Yeah, that’s going to be more pressure, a lot of pressure. For sure Kyle has won one, so it’s not his first. Again, I’ve watched these guys when they get ready to go into a one-race deal. The nerves are there. But once they get in the car, I think everybody will be ready to go. Q. Some said that William, no discredit to him, had a sense of panic almost on the radio, that he almost panicked there. That’s what you get when you’re thrown into that, what you’ll face coming up. He will not have to face the likes of Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin. They’re all relatively young guys. What do you think of that?RICK HENDRICK: William is very mature for his age. He’s come a long way in a short period of time. To be a champion at his age or win more races than anybody has this year shows his talent and the talent of that team. I think every experience is a learning experience. Again, I go back to watching Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson get ready. This is not fair to say, but I like the old system before where you can win a race before the end of the year and you don’t have to go down to one race with four cars. We know we’re having a battle with two really good teams with a lot of momentum. It’s just an honor to be in it, to have the two cars in it. Again, everybody gives Kyle a tremendous amount of credit as one of the best that ever sat in any kind of car. William’s kind of been under the radar. For a guy that’s won six races, had a chance to win the regular-season championship, for him to accomplish what he has, he’s kind of been under the radar. Nobody has talked about him a lot. If you look at what he’s been able to do, it’s pretty impressive. At his age, the chemistry between he and Rudy, I think there will be a lot of championships in their horizon. Q. Back to 2016 when you signed William Byron, you had Dale Jr. on your roster, Chase Elliott’s rookie year, Kasey Kahne and Jimmie Johnson. What led to going after William? Why did you decide to make the move at that point?RICK HENDRICK: The thing about William I was so impressed with is how quickly he learned, what he did in late models, what he did in the legend cars, everything he got in. More than anything to have a determination, have a goal and go after it. What blew me away with William was the fact that he won that I guess K&N Series championship, became an Eagle Scout, graduated Country Day, which is the toughest private school in Charlotte, college courses at the same time. He did all that in the same year. I kept up with William through my neighbor that was friends with his dad. He said, Can you believe that kid raced on Saturday, Sunday, got in the car, went to the mountain, slept in a tent at eight degrees to get an Eagle badge? When I looked at him, watched him, remember what he did at JRM, how confident he was when he walked up to me one day when he was 15, said, I’m going to drive for you one day. He just had the whole package. You put him in the right spot, give him time, he’s going to develop into something special because he’s a special guy. He has got a drive and determination. You see him, you think he’s a mild-mannered little guy, he’s not got a killer instinct. His determination to succeed and his willingness to work hard, his willingness to put in the extra hours, to spend time in a simulator when nobody else wants to do it, they’ve done it, the time is open, he’ll take it. His work ethic is so impressive. I just felt like if he was in the right spot with the right people, he was going to do great things. It’s turned out to be that way. Q. Moving him up to Cup in 2018, great success at lower levels, there’s always the question do you move somebody up quickly, throw them to the wolves, or do you give them more time. You moved him up quickly. Why so and the reservations?RICK HENDRICK: I’m probably different than a lot of people. I think you can leave them in Xfinity too long. You learn a lot. Where you’re going to spend your time… I look at Ty Gibbs as an example. Ty, it was time for him to move up. He won a championship. William did, too, in Xfinity. If you’re going to drive with those guys, you might as well put them out there and let them learn, know they’re going to make some mistakes, they’re not going to be as aggressive.William showed me, again, that he’s willing to take what the car will give him and learn. When he makes a mistake, his restarts weren’t that good, things he had to learn, he had to get the respect of all the guys out there. Kind of done it with Chase, did it with Jeff, did it with Jimmie. Our kind of track record has been, if the guy’s got talent, he’s spent a year or two in Xfinity, he’s won and run up front, then if he’s going to end up in Cup, put him in there and let him learn, let him learn where he’s going to be racing, gain the experience, get the respect of guys around him. William didn’t come in roughing up people. He raced everybody clean. People have a lot of respect for him. He’s earned it. I think if I had it to do over, I’d do it that way again. Sometimes you might make a mistake. But if the guy’s got talent, you might as well put him in the ring where he’s going to have to live. Q. Looking at Cliff Daniels, when the decision was made to pair him with Jimmie Johnson in 2019, why was he the right crew chief for Jimmie then and not necessarily the right crew chief for Jimmie when Chad moved on?RICK HENDRICK: Oh, man. You want a guy to mature, you want to see what they can do. You’re a good team engineer, you think you’re ready, you want to put him in the right spot. In hindsight, it’s easy to look back and say wish I’d done it then, knowing how good Cliff is, how quick he learned, how quick he matured, how he became a leader. It’s been so impressive. Hindsight I probably would have done something different. At the time we thought that was the thing to do. It’s a crapshoot sometimes when you move a guy in the crew chief position that can be a great engineer, but can they lead a team, can they lead people. You don’t really know that till you put them in that position, then you see what they’re capable of doing. Being a crew chief in this sport today is a lot more than just being a guy that understands the car. You got to be able to lead the people around you. You have to have the respect of the people that are in the organization. You have to use all the tools that are around you. It takes time. I’m probably slower moving a crew chief than I am the drivers, as we talked about a minute ago. Yeah, looking back, you just don’t know how a guy is going to blossom as a leader. I mean, that’s the key in this sport, I think, for a good crew chief. I go back to Steve Letarte. Steve Letarte probably wasn’t the smartest guy in the organization as knowing the car, but as a leader and as a motivator, as a guy that could make everybody from the pit crew to the driver to the engineers all work together, he was a master. You got to learn. You got to be able to do all those things. I think that’s one reason we didn’t move him any quicker than we did. That was probably a mistake. Q. When the decision was made to pair him with Kyle Larson, what was the impetus behind that decision?RICK HENDRICK: I think it was time to move him and the opening was there. Kyle had a lot of experience driving all kinds of cars. We felt like that was just a good combination at the time.There again, did not know the leadership skills that Cliff had. We could see the drive and the desire. He was a little bit more subdued as an engineer than he has been as a crew chief. When you have a champion like Jimmie Johnson, you try to make sure that you put the right person with him, and you don’t want to make a mistake. With Kyle, we just felt like Cliff had shown he was ready. What an awesome combination it’s proven to be. Cliff is a very intense guy, and Kyle is a little bit of a laid-back guy. They click. The marriage there has been a very good one. They like each other, respect each other, and they want to work together. That’s the secret sauce in this business. Sometimes you put two together, and the chemistry just isn’t there. It has worked with these two. Q. You said a minute ago how big a story you think William’s story would be if he won the championship. You expressed how impressive his season has been. Under the radar. If he’s able to win the championship, do you think that would be just as big a deal that a driver who arguably has been the best driver all season statistically can cap it up and win the championship in this format, kind of like what Kyle did in 2021?RICK HENDRICK: Yeah, I think it’s going to be a huge story. I think William Byron’s story in general is just a very impressive one. I think the fact that he has had the kind of year he’s had, if he can go out there and win the championship at his age and his level of experience in the sport, shows his talent and Rudy’s talent and their chemistry. I think William is a good poster child, I don’t want to say poster child, but poster guy maybe, for a lot of young people that have ambitions to be in racing or any sport that you want to work as hard as he’s worked to get there. Not a whole lot of help from a lot of different people. I mean, he did it on his own. He knew what steps he needed to take and he did it. Super confident in his ability and just a good person, too. For a guy that represents the sponsors well, squeaky clean but aggressive when he needs to be, and just a good person. You don’t have to apologize for anything with him. I think that’s one of the reasons he’s kind of been under the radar. He’s not outspoken. He doesn’t run his mouth. He doesn’t go out and rough people up. He’s done it in a very professional way. I think it would be a tremendous story if a kid that started at 14 or 15 years old on a computer can end up marching through the Truck Series and Xfinity Series and then the Cup Series, cap off a year where he won more races than anybody did and win the championship, I think it would be a really great story for NASCAR and a lot of the fans. Q. Last year we had the introduction of the Next Gen car. Is this year the introduction of our next generation of Cup champions?RICK HENDRICK: I think this is what kind of shows you, I won’t say anybody, but there’s probably 10 or 15 guys out there in the right position that could be in this Playoff, be one of the guys in the Final 4.You look at the talent of the people out there, the way these cars equalize the field. On any given day you see organizations that rise to the top. Stewart-Haas will be at four cars in the top 10, Gibbs will have three cars or four cars in the top 10, Penske, all of us. Then all of a sudden you see Mike or people win races.I think it opens the sport up. I think it’s what Jim France wanted and what NASCAR wanted and the fans wanted, to equalize the field and see multiple people have shots to win races. I think this car has taken a lot of the engineering tricks or all the different things that teams were able to do to gain advantage away from everybody. We’re basically racing the same car. When you look at the motors, they’re all pretty close. I mean, they’re within three or four horsepower of each other from Toyota to Ford to Chevrolet. The advantage in the sport today is pit crews, having a really good pit crew that’s fast, guys calling the race not making any mistakes. Do you know how many times this year we’ve seen restarts where a guy is leading all day, all of a sudden there’s a caution that comes, here is a restart, and the guy that was sixth or seventh ends up winning the race. The wild card today is restarts, getting track position. Whether you get it with two tires, no tires, fuel only, whatever you do. We’ve been fortunate enough to win this year, like I said, 11 races. Some of those races we were in the right spot at the right time, some of the races we dominated. I think what you’ve seen with all the winners and how many people were in the 16-car Playoff, I think NASCAR is getting what they want with the car. It’s making the field more equal than it’s ever been. Q. You’re familiar with Kyle and William, believe they could win championships. You’re familiar with Ryan Blaney and Christopher Bell. Any surprise for you that they’ve reached this point?RICK HENDRICK: No, not at all. I mean, Christopher Bell is a heck of a talent. I watched him in the sprints and midgets, watched him race. He has an awesome amount of talent. Joe Gibbs, his organization is one of the best. The same with Ryan Blaney. I think he’s one of the most talented guys out there. The Penske organization, Roger and Joe both are good friends of mine. They lack for nothing. I mean, they’re the best. Blaney is as good as anybody out there. So is Christopher. I hate to have to race those two because they definitely are going to be hard to beat. I’m not surprised at all that they’re there. Q. When Kyle won his championship a couple years ago, we talked a lot about what it meant for the 5 car to be back to prominence. If William is able to close it out and win the championship this weekend, it will be 22 years since Jeff’s last championship in that car. What would it mean for the organization for the 24 to be champion again?RICK HENDRICK: Yeah, I remember when we won the hundredth race with the 24. The 24 won our first championship. That’s a number that everybody here, it’s close to everybody’s heart. To see that car win again is super special. I think we’ve seen Chase win with the car No. 9 that means so much to him. Of course, the 5, Kyle won the championship with it. To see the 24 back in Victory Lane winning a championship with William is going to be special. I kind of know who Jeff Gordon is probably pulling for (smiling). Anyway, it is special because that number has meant so much to us, of course what Jeff’s done with it. It would be very, very special to see the 24 in Victory Lane Sunday. THE MODERATOR: Rick, thank you for your time today. We appreciate it. We wish you guys the best of luck this weekend in Phoenix. RICK HENDRICK: Thank you.

The World of Outlaws Late Models battle for three nights at The Dirt Track at Charlotte

CONCORD, NC – October 31, 2023 – After 10 months of high-octane action nationwide, the 2023 World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model season ends this weekend in Charlotte.

The Series returns to The Dirt Track at Charlotte for the World of Outlaws World Finals, Nov. 1-4, highlighted by the crowning of a new for the second consecutive season.

Racing action begins on Wednesday, Nov. 1, with Low-E Insulation Qualifying night. World of Outlaws CASE Late Models drivers will run two Qualifying sessions, setting the Heat Race lineups for Thursday, Nov. 2, and Friday, Nov. 3. Highlighting those two nights are 35-lap Features paying $15,000-to-win.

Then, drivers return Saturday, Nov. 4, for the 2023 season finale—a 50-lap Feature with $25,000 on the line. Points collected from Thursday and Friday’s Feature results will set up Saturday’s Heat Race lineups.

A weekend sweep would see one driver walking away with $55,000.

The World of Outlaws CASE Late Models are joined this weekend by the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars and the Super DIRTcar Series Big Block Modifieds. For tickets, CLICK HERE.

If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live on DIRTVision, either online or with the DIRTVision app.

Here are the storylines to watch this weekend:

Bobby’s Time: Bobby Pierce enters the World Finals with a 156-point lead over Chris Madden, and when he hits the track for Low-E Insulation Qualifying on Wednesday he’ll mathematically clinch the 2023 World of Outlaws Late Model Series championship.

The Oakwood, IL driver enters the weekend with 14 victories, 25 top fives, 31 top 10s, and has won seven of the last 10 Series events. 

Pierce has only made one World Finals start in career, finishing third in 2013.

He’ll officially be crowned the 2023 champion on Saturday, after racing is complete, during the annual Champion’s Celebration on the front stretch. By winning the title, he’ll also keep a streak of five straight championships won by a driver from Illinois, joining Brandon Sheppard and Dennis Erb Jr.

Rolling With Momentum: While Pierce has dominated the 2023 season, his two closest championship rivals, Madden and Brandon Sheppard, are coming off high-paying victories.

Madden won the National 100 at East Alabama Motor Speedway, and Sheppard won the Dirt Track World Championship for the fifth time at Eldora Speedway.

Both have also found success at Charlotte, having three World Finals victories. However, both have not won since 2019, when Madden took the checkered flag on the event’s opening night.

Madden has three Series wins in 2023, winning twice at Sharon Speedway and once at Cedar Lake Speedway. Meanwhile, Sheppard’s earned two wins. One at Davenport Speedway and another at Mississippi Thunder Speedway.

The two are also battling for the second spot in the standings, as Madden holds a 54-cushion.

The Battle For Fourth: Entering World Finals, positions four through nine in the Series standings are separated by 42 points.

Kyle Bronson holds the fourth position but leads Ryan Gustin by eight points, while Nick Hoffman and Brian Shirley are 10 points behind.

Tanner English and defending Series champion Dennis Erb Jr. are still in striking distance, sitting 38 and 42 points behind Bronson, respectively.

For a full breakdown of the six drivers competing for spots four through six, click the link below.

RELATED: Six Driver Battle For Fourth In World Of Outlaws Late Models Standings

As the drivers battle for those positions, there’s a $32,000 difference between fourth and ninth. The driver who finishes fourth wins $75,000, while the driver who finishes ninth gets $43,000.

For a complete look at the Series points standings, CLICK HERE.

Climbing The Ladder: Along with the battle for fourth through ninth in points, there are other positions still up for grabs. Shane Clanton, the 2015 Series champion, holds a 38-point lead over Cade Dillard for the 10th spot in the standings. 

The “Georgia Bulldog” enters the weekend with five top fives and 15 top 10s, while “The Thriller” has two top fives and 15 top 10s.

While neither driver has scored a victory in 2023, Dillard has shown speed throughout the season, earning five Simpson Racing Products Quick Time Awards, tied with Pierce and Madden for the most this year.

The other battle to watch entering this weekend is for 12th between Brent Larson and Gordy Gundaker.

Larson holds a 22-point advantage over Gundaker, scoring one more top 10 (8) than the St. Charles, MO driver throughout the season (7).

A World Finals victory for either driver would be their first World of Outlaws win.

The Outsiders: The World of Outlaws World Finals typically brings the best driver’s dirt Late Model racing has to offer to “America’s Home for Racing.” And that’s no different in 2023.

Leading that pack is Ricky Thornton, Jr., who, along with Pierce, is having a historic season. The Martinsville, IN driver has won 36 times in 2023, including the Prairie Dirt Classic at Fairbury Speedway earlier this season.

“RTJ” has made one previous start at Charlotte, finishing 20th in 2014.

Another Indiana driver to watch is 2023 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series champion Hudson O’Neal, who returns to where he made his first start with Rocket1 racing last season. “The New Deal” scored his first career World of Outlaws win earlier this year, scoring the finale at Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park. 

He’d made seven starts at Charlotte in his career—his best finish was a fifth last season. However, he led 27 laps in last year’s finale before dropping back to eighth.

Joining Thornton and O’Neal are two of the winningest drivers in World Finals history, Jimmy Owens and Jonathan Davenport.

The “O-Show” is a seven-time World Finals winner, with six coming during the weekend’s finale. However, the Newport, TN driver hasn’t won at World Finals since 2018.

Davenport, who is currently tied with four-time Series champion Josh Richards with six victories, is one win away from tying Owens for the most all-time. Davenport has won three of the last five World Finals Features, including a weekend sweep in 2022.

Tim McCreadie will also return to World of Outlaws competition this weekend after earning the “Big Gator” trophy at DIRTcar Nationals earlier this season. The Watertown, NY, driver will be on the hunt for his first World of Outlaws World Finals victory this year. However, he won at The Dirt Track at Charlotte in 2020 during the World of Outlaws Last Call event.

If he finds Victory Lane this weekend, he’ll grab his 34th Series win, breaking a tie with Scott Bloomquist.

WHEN AND WHERE  

The Dirt Track at Charlotte (4/10-mile) in Concord, NC on Nov. 1-4

ONLINE   
The Dirt Track at Charlotte: www.charlottemotorspeedway.com

TRACK RECORDS

The Dirt Track at Charlotte: 14.183 by Kyle Larson on 11/5/20

On the Internet   
World of Outlaws CASE Late Models Series   
Twitter – Twitter.com/WoOLateModels – @WoOLateModels   
Instagram – Instagram.com/WoOLateModels – @woolatemodels   
Facebook – Facebook.com/WorldofOutlawsLateModelSeries   
YouTube – Youtube.com/WorldofOutlaws   
DIRTVision – DIRTVision.com – Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/month   

FEATURE WINNERS: (14 Drivers)
Rank- Driver- Hometown-Wins

1. Bobby Pierce, Oakwood, IL-14
2. Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, IA-3
   Chris Madden, Gray Court, SC-3
   Mike Marlar, Winfield, TN-3
3. Devin Moran, Dresden, OH-2
   Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, IL-2
4. Hudson O’Neal, Martinsville, IN-1
   Cory Hedgecock, Loudon, TN-1
   Brandon Overton, Evans, GA-1
   Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, NC-1
   Kyle Bronson, Brandon, FL-1
   Brian Shirley, Chatham, IL-1
   Dennis Erb Jr., Carpentersville, IL-1
   Ricky Thornton Jr., Martinsville, IN-1

HEAT RACE WINNERS (38 Drivers)
Rank- Driver- Hometown-Wins

1. Bobby Pierce, Oakwood, IL-21
2. Chris Madden, Gray Court, SC-17
3. Cade Dillard, Robeline, LA-9
   Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, IA-9
4. Brian Shirley, Chatham, IL-8
5. Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, IL-7
6. Kyle Bronson, Brandon, FL-6
   Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, NC-5
   Mike Marlar, Winfield, TN-5
7. Ricky Thornton Jr, Martinsville, IN-4
   Shane Clanton, Zebulon, GA-4
   Dennis Erb Jr., Carpentersville, IL-4
8. Tim McCreadie, Watertown, NY-3
   Drake Troutman, Hyndman, PA-3
   Tanner English, Benton, KY-3
9. Devin Moran, Dresden, OH-2
   Dale McDowell, Chickamauga, GA-2
   Gordy Gundaker, St. Charles, MO-2
   Max Blair, Centerville, PA-2
   Gregg Satterlee, Indiana, PA-2
   Todd Cooney, Des Moines, IA-2
   Jonathan Davenport, Blairsville, GA-2
   Hudson O’Neal, Martinsville, IN-2
10. Kyle Strickler, Mooresville, NC-1
    Chase Junghans, Manhattan, KS-1
    Brandon Overton, Evans, GA-1
    Jensen Ford, Johnson City, TN-1
    Kyle Larson, Elk Grove, CA-1
    Chris Ferguson, Mt. Holly, NC-1
    Mike Norris, Sarver, PA-1
    Doug Drown, Wooster, OH-1
    Ryan Montgomery, Fairmont, WV-1
    Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, NM-1
    Daniel Hilsabeck, Earlham, IA-1
    Daulton Wilson, Fayetteville, NC-1
    Shannon Babb, Moweaqua, IL-1
    Jake Timm, Winona, MN-1
    Adam Stricker, Batavia, OH-1
    Jason Feger, Bloomington, IL-1

LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINNERS (41 Drivers)
Rank- Driver- Hometown-Wins

1. Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, IA-5
2. Brent Larson, Lake Elmo, MN-4
3. Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, NM-3
   Tyler Bruening, Decorah, IA-3
4. Mark Whitener, Middleburg, FL-2
   Chub Frank, Bear Lake, PA-2
   Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, IL-2
   Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, NM-2
   Daulton Wilson, Fayetteville, NC-2
   Frank Heckenast Jr., Frankfort, IL-2
   Kyle Bronson, Brandon, FL-2
   Chad Simpson, Mt. Vernon, IA-2
   Garrett Smith, Eatonton, GA-2
   Jesse Wisecarver, Zanesville, OH-2
   Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, NC-2
5. Jimmy Owens, Newport, TN-1
   Tanner English, Benton, KY-1
   Mike Norris, Sarver, PA-1
   Dale McDowell, Chickamauga, GA-1
   Ricky Thornton, Jr, Martinsville, IN-1
   Mike Spatola, Manhattan, IL-1
   Carson Ferguson, Concord, NC-1
   Garrett Alberson, Las Cruces, NM-1
   Gregg Satterlee, Indiana, PA-1
   Alex Ferree, Saxonburg, PA-1
   Dennis Erb Jr., Carpentersville, IL-1
   Dan Stone, Thompson, PA-1
   Jason Feger, Bloomington, IL-1
   Kip Hughes, Enid, OK-1
   Daniel Hilsabeck- Earlham, IA-1
   Tad Pospisil, Norfolk, NE-1
   Donny Schatz, Fargo, ND-1
   Shane Edginton, East St. Paul, MB-1
   Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, MN-1
   James Rice, Verona, KY-1
   Jake Timm, Winona, MN-1
   Ethan Dotson, Bakersfield, CA-1
   Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, MN-1
   Dillon McCowan, Urbana, MO-1
   Matt Lux, Franklin, PA-1
   Cody Laney, Torrance, CA-1
   Gordy Gundaker, St. Charles, MO-1
   Adam Stricker, Batavia, OH-1
   Cade Dillard, Robeline, LA-1
   Shane Clanton, Zebulon, GA-1

PODIUM FINISHES (22 Drivers)
Rank – Driver, Hometown – Podiums

1. Bobby Pierce, Oakwood, IL-21
2. Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, IL-12
3. Tanner English, Benton, KY-9
   Chris Madden, Gray Court, SC-9
4. Kyle Bronson, Brandon, FL-7
   Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, IA-7
5. Ricky Thornton Jr., Martinsville, IN-6
6. Mike Marlar, Winfield, TN-5
   Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, NC-5
7. Tim McCreadie, Watertown, NY-3
   Devin Moran, Dresden, OH-3
   Shane Clanton, Zebulon, GA-3
   Hudson O’Neal, Martinsville, IN-3
   Brian Shirley, Chatham, IL-3
8. Dennis Erb Jr., Carpentersville, IL-2
9. Brandon Overton, Evans, GA-1
   Cory Hedgecock, Loudon, TN-1
   Brandon Overton, Evans, GA-1
   Max Blair, Centerville, PA-1
   Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, MN-1
   Jimmy Owens, Newport, TN-1
   Tyler Erb, New Waverly, TX-1

FOX FACTORY HARD CHARGER (15 Drivers)
Rank – Driver, Hometown – H.C.

1. Brent Larson, Lake Elmo, MN-7
2. Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, IA-5
3. Chris Madden, Gray Court, SC-4
4. Gordy Gundaker, St. Charles, MO-2
   Brian Shirley, Chatham, IL-2
   Mike Marlar, Winfield, TN-2
5. Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, IL-1
   Hudson O’Neal, Martinsville, IN-1
   Ricky Thornton Jr., Martinsville, IN-1
   Wil Herrington, Hawkinsville, GA-1
   Tanner English, Benton, KY-1
   Boom Briggs, Bear Lake, PA-1
   Jason Feger, Bloomington, IL-1
   Shane Clanton, Zebulon, GA-1
   Kyle Bronson, Brandon, FL-1
   Todd Cooney, Des Moines, IA-1
   Bobby Pierce, Oakwood, IL-1
   Tyler Erb, New Waverly, TX-1

SIMPSON RACING PRODUCTS QUICK TIMES (14 Drivers)
Rank – Driver, Hometown – QTs

1. Cade Dillard, Robeline, LA-5
   Bobby Pierce, Oakwood, IL-5
   Chris Madden, Gray Court, SC-5
2. Brandon Overton, Evans, GA-4
3. Dennis Erb Jr., Carpentersville, IL-3
4. Chris Madden, Gray Court, SC-3
5. Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, IL-2
6. Devin Moran, Dresden, OH-1
   Drake Troutman, Hyndman, PA-1
   Jake Timm, Winona, MN-1
   Mike Norris, Sarver, PA-1
   Mike Marlar, Winfield, TN-1
   Kyle Bronson, Brandon FL-1
   Daniel Hilsabeck, Earlham, IA-1
   Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, NC-1
   Shane Clanton, Zebulon, GA-1
   Shannon Babb, Moweaqua, IL-1

CASE FEATURE LAP LEADERS (26 Drivers)
Rank – Driver, Hometown – Laps Led

1. Bobby Pierce, Oakwood, IL-564
2. Chris Madden, Gray Court, SC-182
3. Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, IA-134
4. Tanner English, Benton, KY-82
5. Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, NC-80
6. Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, IL-79
7. Kyle Bronson, Brandon, FL-77
8. Mike Marlar, Winfield, TN-65
9. Tim McCreadie, Watertown, NY-60
10. Dennis Erb Jr., Carpentersville, IL-55
11. Hudson O’Neal, Martinsville, IN-40
12. Brian Shirley, Chatham, IL-35
13. Brandon Overton, Evans, GA-29
14. Devin Moran, Dresden, OH-28
15. Ricky Thornton Jr., Martinsville, IN-25
16. Dale McDowell, Chickamauga, GA-15
    Brandon Overton, Evans, GA-15
17. Gregg Satterlee, Indiana, PA-14
18. Cory Hedgecock, Loudon, TN-10
19. Ryan Montgomery, Fairmont, WV-6
    Cade Dillard, Robeline, LA-6
    Adam Stricker, Batavia, OH-6
20. Shane Clanton, Zebulon, GA-4
21. Gordy Gundaker, St. Charles, MO-1
    Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, MN-1

2023 World of Outlaws Late Model Schedule & Winners

1. Thursday, Jan. 19 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Devin Moran (1)
2. Friday, Jan. 20/ Volusia Speedway Park/ Barberville, FL/ Devin Moran (2)
3. Thursday, Feb. 16/Volusia Speedway Park/Barberville, FL/Bobby Pierce (1)
4. Saturday, Feb. 18/Volusia Speedway Park/Barberville, FL/Hudson O’Neal (1)
5. Thursday, April 20/ 411 Motor Speedway/ Seymour, TN/ Cory Hedgcock (1)
6. Friday, April 21/ Talladega Short Track/ Eastaboga, AL/ Tanner English, Kyle Bronson/Brandon Overton*
7. Saturday, April 22/ Talladega Short Track/ Eastaboga, AL/ Brandon Overton (1)
8. Thursday, May 4/Mississippi Thunder Speedway/Fountain City, WI/Brandon Sheppard, Cade Dillard*
9. Friday, May 19/Marion Center Raceway/Marion Center, PA/Ryan Gustin(1)
10. Tuesday, May 23/ Stateline Speedway/Busti, NY/ Nick Hoffman (1)
11. Thursday, May 25/ Sharon Speedway/ Hartford, OH/Chris Madden (1)
12. Friday, May 26/Sharon Speedway/Hartford, OH/Ryan Gustin (2)
13. Saturday, May 27/Sharon Speedway/Hartford, OH/Chris Madden (2)
14. Thursday, June 1/ Farmer City Raceway/Farmer City, IL/Bobby Pierce (2)
15. Friday, June 2/ Tri-City Speedway/Granite City, IL/Kyle Bronson (1)
16. Saturday, June 3/ Paducah International Raceway/Paducah, KY/Brian Shirley (1)
17. Friday, June 23/81 Speedway/Wichita, KS/ Brandon Sheppard, Bobby Pierce*
18. Saturday, June 24/81 Speedway/ Wichita, KS/ Dennis Erb Jr. (1)
19. Sunday, June 25/ Off Road Speedway/ Norfolk, NE/ Bobby Pierce (3)
20. Tuesday, June 27/ Mason City Motor Speedway/Mason City, IA/ Bobby Pierce (4)
21. Thursday, June 29/ Red River Valley Speedway/West Fargo, ND/ Mike Marlar (1)
22. Friday, June 30/ River Cities Speedway/Grand Forks, ND/ Ryan Gustin (3)
23. Saturday, July 1/ I-94 emr Speedway/ Fergus Falls, MN/ Bobby Pierce (5)
24. Friday, July 14/ Ponderosa Speedway/ Junction City, KY/ Mike Marlar (2)
25. Saturday, July 29/ Fairbury Speedway/ Fairbury, IL/ Ricky Thornton Jr. (1)
26. Tuesday, Aug. 1/Boone Speedway/Boone, IA/Bobby Pierce (6)
27. Thursday, Aug. 3/Cedar Lake Speedway, New Richmond, WI/Bobby Pierce (7)
28. Friday, Aug. 4/Cedar Lake Speedway/ New Richmond, WI/Chris Madden (3)
29. Saturday, Aug. 5/Cedar Lake Speedway/New Richmond, WI/Bobby Pierce (8)
30. Thursday, Aug. 24, Davenport Speedway/ Davenport, IA/Bobby Pierce (9)
31. Friday, Aug. 25, Davenport Speedway/Davenport, IA/Bobby Pierce (10)
32. Saturday, Aug. 26, Davenport Speedway/Davenport, IA/Brandon Sheppard (1)
33. Friday, Sept. 1, Mississippi Thunder Speedway/Fountain City, WI/Brandon Sheppard (2)
34. Saturday, Sept. 2, Deer Creek Speedway/ Spring Valley, MN/Bobby Pierce (11)
35. Friday, Sept. 29, Atomic Speedway/Chillicothe, OH/Mike Marlar (3)
36. Saturday, September 30, Atomic Speedway, Chillicothe, OH/ Bobby Pierce (12)
37. Friday, October 6, Brownstown Speedway, Brownstown, IN/Bobby Pierce (13)
38. Saturday, October 7, Fairbury Speedway, Fairbury, IL/Bobby Pierce (14)

CONCORD, NC (Oct. 31, 2023) – Keeping the best interest of drivers and fans in mind, officials have adjusted the World of Outlaws World Finals schedules on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday due to extreme cold temperatures expected at night. Saturday’s schedule remains the same.Wednesday (Nov. 1) will now see the Fan Fest party start at 12 p.m. (ET) in the midway at The Dirt Track at Charlotte with a live concert at 1:30 p.m. and the Race Day Live show on the Sage Fruit Stage at 3 p.m. Opening Ceremonies will still begin at 4:45 p.m., followed by qualifying for the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series and Super DIRTcar Series.Then, Opening Ceremonies on Thursday (Nov. 2) and Friday (Nov. 3) will now start at 4 p.m., followed by racing for the three premier series. The Race Day Live show on the Sage Fruit Stage has also been moved up to 2:30 p.m. those two days.The fan-favorite 3X4 Wide Parade Lap remains on Friday before the start of the three Feature events.Saturday’s schedule will still see Opening Ceremonies start at 3 p.m. with racing to follow. Champions for the three series will crowned on the front stretch after the final Feature of the night.For the full 2023 World of Outlaws World Finals schedule, CLICK HERE.For tickets to the World of Outlaws World Finals, CLICK HERE. But if you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all the action live on DIRTVision.

LAS VEGAS (Oct. 30, 2023) – David Barton and his Retail Fixtures / Sawmill Auto Chevrolet COPO Camaro picked up their first victory of the season Monday at the NHRA Nevada Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
 
In the 12th final round of his career, first of the season, Barton would take on Kevin Skinner and the Columbus Joint & Clutch Ford Cobra Jet in the final round of eliminations. The pair would be nearly identical off the starting line, but Barton would pull away to go 7.729 seconds at 177.46 mph for the win while Skinner slowed to a 9.003 at 107.92.

 David Barton in Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown Nevada Nationals winner’s circle, photo credit Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

“It was a long weekend but when you come out with a win, that makes it worth it. Really proud of this team, putting in the work to get the job done for the last race of the season,” Barton said. “It hasn’t been a perfect season but we’re ending it on the right note. Have to thank all our sponsors for their support, our families who support all these guys getting to come out to the track and the competitors, hard fought win today and one hell of a competitive season.”
 
En route to victory, Barton, who is the outgoing series champion, took down Mark Pawuk and the Empaco Equipment Dodge Challenger in the first round with a 7.767 pass at 176.07 while Pawuk spun the tires off the starting line.
 
“I’m stepping away from racing to focus on helping our customers and work on building our business,” said Barton. “To walk away with a win in my final Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown race feels great. I have to thank my wife Samantha, all the guys in the shop, the Libersher family, Chevrolet, VP Racing, NGK Spark Plugs, Retail Fixture, Saw Mill Auto, Mickey Thompson, Joel Rabe, Tim Rubendall and Alex Anderson.”

 David Barton Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown Nevada Nationals champion, photo credit Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

In the second round, Barton and the COPO Camaro team collected $1,000 with their victory over the Texas NHRA Fall Nationals winner, Lenny Lottig, thanks to the Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown. Barton would be second off the starting line but manage to chase down Lottig with a 7.738-second pass at 177.16 mph to Lottig’s 7.787 at 175.73.
 
In the semifinals, Barton would meet No. 1 qualifier Stephen Bell. Barton would have the starting line advantage and never trail for a 7.803 at 177.04 that defeated Bell’s 7.836 at 164.27.
 
“Pretty cool that we picked up the bounty, never going to complain about more money. But now we also have the bounty on our backs heading into next season,” Barton said. “Hopefully we carry it for a races going into next year.”
 
On his way to his fifth final round, Skinner and his Ford Cobra Jet first had to take down Doug Hamp in the first round. Skinner had the win with a 7.768-second pass at 176.56 to Hamp’s 7.794 at 178.61. The win set Skinner up to run Dell Holbrook in the quarterfinals. They left the starting line at the same time, but Skinner was able to pull away with a 7.714-second pass at 177.44 mph while Holbrokk had a 7.956 at 173.29. In the semifinals, Skinner managed at 7.714 pass at 176.86 to defeat Lee Hartman’s 8.429 at 134.00. 
 
With the end of the NHRA Nevada Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the NHRA Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown season comes to a close. Aaron Stanfield will be carrying the championship title into the 2024 season.
 
Flexjet Bounty Program
Gatornationals (Gainesville, FL)
$1,000 bounty collected by Joe Welch, defeated Aaron Stanfield, Dallas winner
Four-Wide Nationals (Charlotte, N.C.)
$1,000 bounty collected by Lenny Lottig, defeated Joe Welch, Gainesville winner
Route 66 Nationals (Chicago)
Bounty not collected
Thunder Valley Nationals (Bristol)
$2,000 bounty collected by Lee Hartman, defeated Lenny Lottig, Charlotte and Chicago
winner
Summit Racing Equipment Nationals (Norwalk, Ohio)
$1,000 bounty collected by Stephen Bell, defeated Aaron Stanfield, Bristol winner
U.S. Nationals (Indianapolis)
$1,000 bounty collected by Jesse Alexandra, defeated Stephen Bell, Norwalk winner
Pep Boys NHRA Nationals (Reading)
$1,000 bounty collected by David Davies, defeated Jesse Alexandra, Indianapolis winner
Midwest Nationals (St. Louis)
$1,000 bounty collected by Mark Pawuk, defeated Aaron Stanfield, Reading winner
Texas FallNationals (Dallas)
$1,000 bounty collected by David Janac, defeated Mark Pawuk, St. Louis winner
Nevada Nationals (Las Vegas)
$1,000 bounty collected by David Barton, defeated Lenny Lottig Dallas winner
 
2023 Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown Results
Gainesville – Joe Welch, winner; Aaron Stanfield, runner-up
Charlotte – Lenny Lottig, winner; Aaron Stanfield, runner-up
Chicago – Lenny Lottig, winner; Doug Hamp, runner-up
Bristol – Aaron Stanfield, winner; Del Holbrook, runner-up
Norwalk – Stephen Bell, winner; Lee Hartman, runner-up
Indianapolis – Jesse Alexandra, winner; Stephen Bell, runner-up
Reading – Aaron Stanfield, winner; Del Holbrook, runner-up
St. Louis – Mark Pawuk, winner; Stephen Bell, runner-up
Dallas – Lenny Lottig, winner; Doug Hamp, runner-up
Las Vegas – David Barton, winner; Kevin Skinner, runner-up
 
 

(10/30/23 – Ben Deatherage) Stockton, CA … This Saturday, November 4th, will be the final curtain call for the NARC 410 Sprint Car Series as NAPA Auto Parts will present the Tribute To Gary Patterson at the Stockton Dirt Track. This is the last time you can see, hear, and feel these 900+ horsepower open wheel racing machines in 2023, that will ultimately crown this year’s King of the West championship team.

“We are really looking forward to closing out the 2023 sprint car season for the NARC, SCCT, and Hunt Series at Stockton,” stated Stockton Dirt Track operator Tony Noceti. “It’s not very often that you get a Triple Crown event like this so open wheel racing fans should be excited.”

The Tribute To Gary Patterson is one of the cornerstone traditions of the NARC 410 Sprint Series, and 2023 will be the 40th year the event has been held. Gary Patterson was one of the original “true Outlaws” touring across the United States and Australia. Patterson won the Gold Cup at West Capital Speedway and the Turkey Night Grand Prix at Ascot, both in 1977, and Skagit Speedway’s storied Super Dirt Cup in 1973. He lost his life while racing at Calistoga Speedway on Memorial Day weekend of 1983. 

Since 1984, there has been a Tribute To GP, which began at Calistoga until 2007. Silver Dollar Speedway had the honor of having the race from 2008 to 2012. The Stockton Dirt Track has been the home of the event since 2013 and, from 2017 to the present, has been the championship event for the NARC 410 Sprint Series. Steve Kent and Brent Kaeding have the most wins in the event, with four each.

“Our teams have poured their heart and soul into this racing campaign, and we put a big bow on it on Saturday at the Tribute to GP,” commented NARC General Manager Jim Allen. “It’s a perfect ending to a successful campaign that had us traveling up and down the West Coast.”

Companion divisions for the evening include the Sprint Car Challenge Tour and Hunt Magnetos Wingless Series.  Both will also be crowning their series champions as well.

The weather promises to be perfect for this event.   

Who to Watch

Corey Day hopes to close out his remarkable 2023 campaign and win his first career NARC 410 Sprint Car Series. The Clovis teenager won the Tribute To GP in 2021 and is looking to break Tyler Walker’s modern NARC record of nine wins in the same season. Day achieved his ninth tour win last weekend at The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park.

Defending Tribute To GP winner Justin Sanders dazzled everyone last year by winning the 410 and 360 features. The Aromas racer also managed to achieve success in 2020 when he would score the victory during the limited race season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Two-time defending NARC champion Dominic Scelzi has never won the 410 portion of this historical event. Scelzi has a ten-point margin over Roseville’s Justyn Cox for third in the standings table.

Speaking of Cox, he has had a solid season with the NARC 410 Sprints and is hoping to cash in his second win with the series in 2023.  He is also in a tight point battle with Bud Kaeding for fourth, as only seven markers separate the two.

2017 NARC champion Bud Kaeding has been awfully close to a breakthrough win. Not only would the Campbell chauffeur love to end the season in victory lane, but he has a potential opportunity to climb as high as third in points if the stars align just right.

Shane Golobic is a driver who has had a lot of success in 2023 and hopes to end the NARC schedule with his second win of the season. From Fremont, Golobic won the Tribute to GP in 2014 and 2019.

Other full-time NARC regulars to be on hand will be the teenager from Oakley, Dylan Bloomfield, Billy Aton of Benicia, and Nick Parker from Chico. Last week’s runner-up Buddy Kofoid from Penngrove, and Oklahoma’s Ryan Timms are some notables to be on the roster. Other California competitors expected to attend are Clovis teenager Dominic Gorden, Templeton driver Kaleb Montgomery, Lemoore hot shoe Cole Macedo, and Hanford pilots D.J. Netto and Gauge Garcia.

Fan & Competitor Info

There will be a NARC champions autograph session taking place in front of the grandstands between 3:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.

The Stockton Dirt Track is located at the San Joaquin Fairgrounds at 1658 S Airport Way in Stockton, California. For ticket information, log on to https://www.eventbrite.com/e/nov-4th-triple-crown-championship-finales-at-the-stockton-dirt-track-tickets-733680186187?fbclid=IwAR2-4oVijdVoXAX0896_qwJ_PpD-zhJruv0n3wAexPySAxo_rD-7RSmUbKk for online purchases. Tickets are priced at $30.00 for General Admission (5+), while fans 4 or younger are FREE. 

Pit Gates will open at 1:00, Front Gates at 3:00, Drivers Meeting at 3:00 p.m. and Opening Ceremonies will kick off around 5:00, followed by racing.

Additional information can be found at www.stocktondirttrack.com. 

The NARC racing format includes qualifying, three eight-lap heat races, an exciting six-lap trophy dash, a 12-lap last chance race, and a 30-lap NAPA Auto Parts-sponsored main event.

The NARC 410 Sprint Series is the leading 410 Sprint Car tour west of the Rocky Mountains. Since 1960, they have enthralled countless thousands of fans from tracks up and down the Pacific Coast. For more information, visit their website at www.narc410.com or social media pages.

The event at Tribute To Gary Patterson at the Stockton Dirt Track can be viewed live on Floracing.com, along with every NARC 410 Sprint Car Series race.

The NARC 410 Sprint Car Racing Series is also sponsored by Hoosier Racing Tires, Floracing.com, and NAPA Auto Parts. Associate and product award sponsors include Automotive Racing Products (ARP), Beacon Wealth Strategies-Raymond James Financial, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Bullet Impressions, D & D Roofing, Diversified Machine Inc., Johnstone Supply, Kaeding Performance Center, Kimo’s Tropical Car Wash, KSE Racing Enterprises, Lifeline LLC, Maxim Racing Products, Mettec Titanium, Pyrotect, Safecraft Safety Equipment, Saldana Racing Products, Schoenfeld Headers, Scelzi Enterprises, SCI Racing Products, Starr Property Management, Sunnyvalley Bacon, System 1 Ignition, Ultra Lite Brakes, Williams Roofing, Wilwood Disc Brakes, and Winters Performance Products.

NARC 410 SPRINT CAR SERIES 
CHAMPIONSHIP POINT STANDINGS
(AFTER 19 EVENTS IN 20-RACE SERIES – 10/30/23)

1. Corey Day, Clovis – 2504
2. Justin Sanders, Aromas – 2467
3. Dominic Scelzi, Fresno – 2443
4. Justyn Cox, Roseville – 2433
5. Bud Kaeding, Campbell – 2426
6. Dylan Bloomfield, Oakley – 2363
7. Chase Johnson, Penngrove – 2304
8. Billy Aton, Benicia – 2287
9. Nick Parker, Tucson, AZ (R) – 2265
10. Cole Macedo, Hanford – 1624
11. DJ Netto, Hanford – 1581
12. Shane Golobic, Fremont – 1504
13. Tanner Holmes, Central Point, OR – 1483
14. Joel Myers Jr., Sebastopol – 1465
15. Kaleb Montgomery, Templeton (R) – 1279
16. Burt Foland Jr., San Jose (R) -1220
17. Colby Copeland, Roseville – 1207
18. Joey Ancona, Concord (R) – 1153
19. Ryan Bernal, Roseville – 887
20. Karl Hoffmans, Australia – 816

montreal ocala

September 30th & October 14th

As promised the updates from Montreal are here along with a last minute trip to Ocala, FL for a one day 2 show adventure.

Montreal, the mega show of the year for 14 of the baddest monster trucks to battle it out on the largest floor we get to preform on, the Olympic Stadium. With over 52,000 tickets sold the nerves were running high.

We placed 3 in the 2 wheel competition. Racing time came and RJ was set to take it to the winners circle until he had an issue with rear steer and this put him of the second round of racing. RJ was not happy with the failure. We hustled to figure out the issue and fixed it to make freestyle. With 13 trucks to out perform we knew RJ had to keep a level head. Going out in the middle of the pack RJ laid down a very clean run taking the biggest air of the weekend. Keeping his pace up and hitting what ever he squared up with taking the lead till the

Final 2 trucks of the night. Taking 3rd place out of 14. During this event we were are asked to take a trip to Ocala, Florida for one more event. So we did. October 12th we headed out for 2 shows on Saturday. Weather was great the fans packed the stands and show number one was awesome. Came in 3rd in racing and second in freestyle. Show number 2 was just a great. We took home another 3rd in racing and won freestyle.

Now time for a much needed tear down to the truck and get everything fresh and ready for January 2024!.

5006 General Stuart CT. Sharpsburg, MD 21782 Office: 407-314-6936 wwr@warwizardracing.com

Gravel and Sweet’s championship fight headline The Dirt Track at Charlotte’s season-ending World FinalsCONCORD, NC (Oct. 30, 2023) – All Dirt Roads have led the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars to Charlotte, NC.This year has taken the tour through 18 states from coast to coast and 34 different racetracks. Now, the thousands of miles and hundreds of laps will culminate in the World of Outlaws World Finals. The Dirt Track at Charlotte takes center stage for the four-night sendoff of the 2023 season.The on-track action gets going on Wednesday, Nov. 1 with two Low-E Insulation Qualifying sessions to line up Heat Races for Thursday and Friday’s racing programs. Points accumulated on those two nights will set the lineups for Saturday and one final night to punctuate the World of Outlaws’ 46th season of racing.Teams from all over will gather to chase their share of the more than $250,000 purse up for grabs. The first two nights of racing will be capped with $15,000-to-win Features before Saturday’s $25,000-to-win finale wraps up the 2023 World of Outlaws season.In addition to the Sprint Car action, fans will be treated to the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Late Models and Super DIRTcar Series Big Block Modifieds all four nights.BUY WORLD FINALS TICKETSLet’s look at the weekend’s top storylines:SWEET VS. GRAVEL: For the third consecutive season, the World of Outlaws championship will come down to a duel between Brad Sweet and David Gravel. Heading into the final event of the season, Sweet owns a 50-point advantage, and Gravel has three nights to erase the gap.Sweet is looking to complete his Drive for Five as he eyes a fifth straight title with Kasey Kahne Racing. Five straight championships would tie Sweet with Donny Schatz (2014-2018) for the second longest streak and move him within one of Steve Kinser’s record of six consecutive titles (1983-1988).On the other hand, Gravel is chasing his first championship aboard the Big Game Motorsports #2 after finishing runner-up in the past two seasons. If he can pull it off, Gravel would become the 11th different competitor to claim a World of Outlaws championship.In terms of overall body of work at Charlotte, Gravel has the upper hand with five victories on his résumé (tied for second most in track history) including a stretch of three straight from 2019 to 2020. Sweet is yet to win in Charlotte, but he’s been consistent as of late with nine consecutive top 10s, including seven top fives.Not only does the championship include all of the prestige of being at the pinnacle of Sprint Car racing, it also comes with a $350,000 payday.CATCHING KINSER: A potential fifth championship for Sweet would also make history for car owner – Kasey Kahne.Kahne has already earned five titles as an owner with Sweet’s four and one with Daryn Pittman in 2013. If Sweet can supply him with a sixth, Kahne will equal Steve Kinser Racing for the third most World of Outlaws championships as a car owner. “The King” was champion 14 times driving for Karl Kinser and six times under his own banner.Karl leads the way in the category with 16 titles. Tony Stewart Racing’s nine championships rank second.FIGHT FOR FOURTH: In addition to the battle for the title, there’s a three-man war for the fourth spot in the standings. Currently, Giovanni Scelzi owns the position with Logan Schuchart 34 points behind and Donny Schatz trailing Schuchart by 20 markers. The trio are separated by a total of 54 points.There’s history on the line for Scelzi if he can hold on. The Californian is wrapping up his Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year campaign, and fourth would equal the best rookie finish in history. Both Jeff Swindell (1981) and Brad Doty (1982) hit the mark. KCP is about to claim their second Rookie of the Year as a team after earning the honor with Ian Madsen in 2018, which will make KCP only the third team/car owner to supply multiple Rookie of the Year winners. Kasey Kahne Racing has had three while Dave Helm’s team produced a pair. Scelzi has been strong in 10 Charlotte starts with six top fives, including a 2019 victory.A fourth-place finish in points would be Schuchart’s second best result for a World of Outlaws campaign. The Shark Racing pilot has won four times at the North Carolina 4/10-mile, most recently at last year’s World Finals opener. The Hanover, PA native has also podiumed 11 times in 28 Feature starts.Over the years, Schatz has owned The Dirt Track at Charlotte. His 14 wins outrank the second most by nine. Two of those victories came during the final two nights of 2022. The 10-time Series champion is looking to keep his streak of 20 straight years of finishing in the top five in Series points alive.ENDING STRONG: While some have their points position essentially settled, there’s still plenty of hunger in those drivers to close out 2023 strong for an even better 2024.Carson Macedo was in contention for the championship throughout the first half of the campaign but has slipped out of reach in the second half as he’s 140 points behind Sweet. It’s still been another stout season with Jason Johnson Racing for Macedo as he’s won seven times, set Simpson Quick Time on 14 occasions, and grabbed 19 podiums. The Lemoore, CA native is yet to win at Charlotte, but has been in the top five in four of his last five tries including a runner-up last year.Sheldon Haudenschild sits seventh in points in his seventh year on the tour. The Wooster, OH native has collected a trio of victories in 2023 and looks to add to that total before the season ends. Charlotte hasn’t been the kindest to him, but he did pick up his second-best finish at the track with a third-place effort to conclude last season.Spencer Bayston will cap his sophomore season with an eighth-place finish in points. The CJB Motorsports pilot has finished eighth in three of his last four Features in Charlotte and owns a best finish of fourth (2018) at the facility.FIRST-TIME WINNER?: Since its opening in 2000, The Dirt Track at Charlotte has produced a few notable first-time World of Outlaws winners.Back in 2003, Blake Feese led all 22 laps of a rain-shortened main event for his one and only Series victory in his 29th Feature start. Three years later, Kevin Swindell went to Victory Lane to become, at the time, the youngest winner in Series history. Fast forward nine years to when Dusty Zomer wheeled the Blazin’ Racin’ machine to his first win at Charlotte.Three first-time winners – Brady Bacon, Corey Day, and Zeb Wise – have already arose from the 2023 campaign, and Charlotte’s history suggests we could see another before the year is done. Full-time Series drivers – Robbie Price, Noah Gass, and Bill Rose – are still seeking their first win. And World Finals always attracts drivers from all over, plenty of which will be chasing their first victory this week.If you can’t make it to the track, catch all of the World Finals racing live on DIRTVision.THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCEWHEN AND WHEREWednesday – Saturday, Nov. 1-4 at The Dirt Track at Charlotte in Concord, NCON THE INTERNETWorld of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series Twitter – @WorldofOutlaws Instagram – @WoOSprint Facebook – Facebook.com/WorldofOutlawsSprintCarSeries YouTube – Youtube.com/WorldofOutlaws DIRTVision – DIRTVision.com – Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/monthCURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (68/71 Races):1. 49 – Brad Sweet (9226PTS) 2. 2 – David Gravel (-50PTS) 3. 41 – Carson Macedo (-140PTS) 4. 18 – Gio Scelzi (-452PTS) 5. 1S – Logan Schuchart (-486PTS) 6. 15 – Donny Schatz (-506PTS) 7. 17 – Sheldon Haudenschild (-586PTS) 8. 5 – Spencer Bayston (-760PTS) 9. 3Z – Brock Zearfoss (-1320PTS) 10. 83 – James McFadden (-1788PTS)NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (19 Drivers):11 wins – David Gravel (Big Game Motorsports #2)10 wins – Brad Sweet (Kasey Kahne Racing #49)7 wins – Carson Macedo (Jason Johnson Racing #41)6 wins – James McFadden (Roth Motorsports #83), Logan Schuchart (Shark Racing #1S), Rico Abreu (Rico Abreu Racing #24)4 wins – Kyle Larson (Silva Motorsports #57), Donny Schatz (Tony Stewart/Curb Agajanian Racing #15)3 wins – Sheldon Haudenschild (Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing #17)2 wins – Buddy Kofoid (CMS Racing #11, Roth Motorsports #83JR)1 win – Brady Bacon (TKH Motorsports #21), Anthony Macri (Macri Motorsports #39), Brian Brown (Brian Brown Racing #21), Gio Scelzi (KCP Racing #18), Spencer Bayston (CJB Motorsports #5), Corey Day (Jason Meyers Racing #14), Brent Marks (Murray-Marks #19), Tyler Courtney (Clauson Marshall Racing #7BC), Zeb Wise (Rudeen Racing #26)FEATURE LAPS LED (25 Drivers):335 laps – Brad Sweet268 laps – James McFadden234 laps – Rico Abreu220 laps – Carson Macedo210 laps – David Gravel172 laps – Logan Schuchart118 laps – Kyle Larson114 laps – Buddy Kofoid108 laps – Sheldon Haudenschild104 laps – Donny Schatz62 laps – Brent Marks57 laps – Gio Scelzi40 laps – Spencer Bayston, Corey Day31 laps – Brian Brown19 laps – Tyler Courtney18 laps – Lance Dewease15 laps – Cole Macedo11 laps – Anthony Macri, Daryn Pittman10 laps – Cory Eliason3 laps – Brady Bacon, Danny Varin, Justin Peck1 lap – Austin McCarlSIMPSON PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS QUICKTIME AWARDS (17 Drivers):14 QuickTimes – Carson Macedo13 QuickTimes – David Gravel6 QuickTimes – Brad Sweet5 QuickTimes – Logan Schuchart, Rico Abreu3 QuickTimes – Sheldon Haudenschild, Buddy Kofoid2 QuickTimes – Anthony Macri, Bill Balog, Justin Peck, Gio Scelzi, Tanner Holmes1 QuickTime – Brian Brown, Donny Schatz, James McFadden, Jacob Allen, Kyle LarsonHEAT RACE WINNERS (46 Drivers):29 Heat Wins – Carson Macedo, David Gravel20 Heat Wins – Brad Sweet15 Heat Wins – Logan Schuchart, James McFadden14 Heat Wins – Donny Schatz13 Heat Wins – Buddy Kofoid, Gio Scelzi, Sheldon Haudenschild12 Heat Wins – Rico Abreu9 Heat Wins – Spencer Bayston6 Heat Wins – Brian Brown5 Heat Wins – Jacob Allen, Justin Peck, Brent Marks4 Heat Wins – Cory Eliason3 Heat Wins – Anthony Macri, Bill Balog, Parker Price-Miller2 Heat Wins – Brock Zearfoss, Noah Gass, Kerry Madsen, Robbie Price, Tim Kaeding, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Tyler Courtney, Kasey Kahne1 Heat Win – Danny Dietrich, Freddie Rahmer, Mark Dobmeier, Austin McCarl, Lachlan McHugh, Ryan Timms, Tim Estenson, Kyle Larson, Shane Stewart, Lance Dewease, Cole Macedo, Chase Randall, Ian Madsen, Tanner Holmes, Dominic Scelzi, Kalib Henry, Dylan Bloomfield, Justin Sanders, Zeb WiseTOYOTA DASH APPEARANCES (51 Drivers):45 Dashes – Carson Macedo, David Gravel43 Dashes – Brad Sweet30 Dashes – Logan Schuchart29 Dashes – Gio Scelzi27 Dashes – James McFadden26 Dashes – Sheldon Haudenschild23 Dashes – Donny Schatz22 Dashes – Rico Abreu20 Dashes – Spencer Bayston17 Dashes – Buddy Kofoid9 Dashes – Brent Marks8 Dashes – Jacob Allen, Cory Eliason, Brock Zearfoss7 Dashes – Justin Peck, Brian Brown6 Dashes – Tyler Courtney, Robbie Price, Kasey Kahne5 Dashes – Anthony Macri, Corey Day4 Dashes – Justin Sanders, Parker Price-Miller3 Dashes – Danny Dietrich, Kyle Larson, Cole Macedo, Tanner Holmes2 Dashes – Garet Williamson, Austin McCarl, Bill Balog, Dominic Scelzi, Aaron Reutzel, Freddie Rahmer, Lance Dewease, Devon Borden1 Dash – Brady Bacon, Chad Trout, Dylan Norris, Cap Henry, Stuart Brubaker, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Shane Stewart, Danny Varin, Ian Madsen, Shane Golobic, Kalib Henry, Dylan Bloomfield, Daryn Pittman, Sye Lynch, Zeb WiseMICROLITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (37 Drivers):5 LCS Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild4 LCS Wins – Spencer Bayston, Robbie Price3 LCS Wins – Noah Gass, James McFadden, Gio Scelzi, Logan Schuchart2 LCS Wins – Parker Price-Miller, Carson Macedo, Brock Zearfoss, Tim Estenson, Donny Schatz, Kerry Madsen1 LCS Win – Hunter Schuerenberg, Wayne Johnson, Ryan Timms, Ayrton Gennetten, Kraig Kinser, Freddie Rahmer, Henry Malcuit, Cole Macedo, Aaron Reutzel, Sye Lynch, Cory Eliason, Tyler Courtney, Rico Abreu, Jacob Allen, Daryn Pittman, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Jamie Veal, Kaleb Johnson, Lachlan McHugh, Tanner Holmes, Austen Wheatley, Buddy Kofoid, Danny Dietrich, Dusty ZomerKSE HARD CHARGER AWARDS (35 Drivers):7 Hard Chargers – Sheldon Haudenschild6 Hard Chargers – James McFadden5 Hard Chargers – Donny Schatz4 Hard Chargers – Brock Zearfoss, Rico Abreu, Tyler Courtney3 Hard Chargers – Brad Sweet, Logan Schuchart, Danny Dietrich2 Hard Chargers – Justin Peck, David Gravel, Spencer Bayston, Corey Day, Robbie Price, Gio Scelzi1 Hard Charger – Blake Hahn, Buddy Kofoid, Joe B. Miller, Kyle Larson, Hunter Schuerenberg, Kyle Moody, Freddie Rahmer, Skylar Gee, Cole Duncan, Austin Pierce, Brenham Crouch, Tim Kaeding, Jacob Allen, Caden Englehart, Zeb Wise, Carson Macedo, Dale Blaney, Tasker Phillips, Brent Marks, Kaleb Johnson, Tanner HolmesPODIUM FINISHES (30 Drivers):34 Podiums – David Gravel29 Podiums – Brad Sweet19 Podiums – Carson Macedo15 Podiums – Rico Abreu, Donny Schatz14 Podiums – Logan Schuchart11 Podiums – James McFadden10 Podiums – Sheldon Haudenschild9 Podiums – Buddy Kofoid7 Podiums – Gio Scelzi6 Podiums – Kyle Larson, Brent Marks4 Podiums – Spencer Bayston3 Podiums – Brian Brown, Jacob Allen, Corey Day2 Podiums – Tyler Courtney1 Podium – Danny Dietrich, Kasey Kahne, Devon Borden, Parker Price-Miller, Brady Bacon, Anthony Macri, Garet Williamson, Dave Blaney, Tanner Holmes, Justin Sanders, Dominic Scelzi, Daryn Pittman, Zeb WiseTOP 10 FINISHES (64 Drivers):60 Top 10s – Brad Sweet57 Top 10s – Carson Macedo, David Gravel46 Top 10s – Gio Scelzi43 Top 10s – Logan Schuchart42 Top 10s – Sheldon Haudenschild41 Top 10s – Donny Schatz39 Top 10s – Spencer Bayston38 Top 10s – James McFadden33 Top 10s – Rico Abreu25 Top 10s – Buddy Kofoid15 Top 10s – Justin Peck14 Top 10s – Jacob Allen, Brent Marks11 Top 10s – Tyler Courtney, Kasey Kahne, Cory Eliason8 Top 10s – Kyle Larson, Brock Zearfoss7 Top 10s – Danny Dietrich, Brian Brown, Tanner Holmes6 Top 10s – Corey Day5 Top 10s – Dominic Scelzi, Justin Sanders4 Top 10s – Zeb Wise, Lance Dewease, Robbie Price3 Top 10s – Anthony Macri, Bill Balog, Cole Macedo, Chase Randall, Freddie Rahmer, Parker Price-Miller2 Top 10s – Aaron Reutzel, Blake Hahn, Brady Bacon, Tim Kaeding, Shane Golobic, Dave Blaney, Dale Blaney, Cole Duncan, Daryn Pittman1 Top 10 – Devon Borden, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Joe B. Miller, Hunter Schuerenberg, Brandon Rahmer, Chad Trout, Cap Henry, Stuart Brubaker, Skylar Gee, Austin McCarl, Garet Williamson, Shane Stewart, Larry Wight, Noah Gass, Rusty Hickman, Kerry Madsen, Jason Solwold, Chase Johnson, T.J. Stutts, Scott Bogucki, Brenham Crouch2023 WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE & WINNERS:No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)1. Fri, Feb 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (1)2. Fri, Feb 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (2)3. Sat, Feb 11* / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / James McFadden (1)4. Sun, March 5 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Carson Macedo (1)5. Mon, March 6 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (3)6. Sat, March 18 / Lincoln Speedway / Abbottstown, PA / Rico Abreu (1)7. Fri, March 24 / Talladega Short Track / Eastaboga, AL / Buddy Kofoid (1)8. Sat, March 25 / Magnolia Motor Speedway / Columbus, MS / Brad Sweet (1)9. Fri, March 31 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX / Brad Sweet (2)10. Sat, April 1 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX / James McFadden (2)11. Fri, April 7 / U.S. 36 Raceway / Osborn, MO / Sheldon Haudenschild (1)12. Sat, April 8 / 81 Speedway / Wichita, KS / Rico Abreu (2)13. Fri, April 14 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Brad Sweet (3)14. Fri, April 28 / Tri-City Speedway / Granite City, IL / David Gravel (4)15. Sat, April 29 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN / Brady Bacon (1)16. Fri, May 5 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Logan Schuchart (1)17. Sat, May 6 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Rico Abreu (3)18. Wed, May 10 / Lincoln Speedway / Abbottstown, PA / Anthony Macri (1)19. Fri, May 12 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Brad Sweet (4)20. Fri, May 19 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH / Donny Schatz (1)21. Sat, May 20 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH / Donny Schatz (2)22. Fri, May 26 / Atomic Speedway / Chillicothe, OH / Brad Sweet (5)23. Sat, May 27 / Atomic Speedway / Chillicothe, OH / Carson Macedo (2)24. Mon, May 29 / Lawrenceburg Speedway / Lawrenceburg, IN / James McFadden (3)25. Fri, June 2 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND / David Gravel (5)26. Sat, June 3 / Ogilvie Raceway / Ogilvie, MN / Carson Macedo (3)27. Fri, June 9 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Brian Brown (1)28. Sat, June 10 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / David Gravel (6)29. Fri, June 16 / Beaver Dam Raceway / Beaver Dam, WI / Gio Scelzi (1)30. Sat, June 17 / Beaver Dam Raceway / Beaver Dam, WI / Sheldon Haudenschild (2)31. Wed, June 21 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Kyle Larson (1)32. Thurs, June 22 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / James McFadden (4)33. Fri, June 23 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Logan Schuchart (2)34. Sat, June 24 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / David Gravel (7)35. Fri, June 30 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI / Brad Sweet (6)36. Sat, July 1 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI / David Gravel (8)37. Sat, July 8 / Wilmot Raceway / Wilmot, WI / Carson Macedo (4)38. Tues, July 11 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH / Kyle Larson (2)39. Fri, July 14 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Carson Macedo (5)40. Sat, July 15 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Donny Schatz (3)41. Thurs, July 20 / BAPS Motor Speedway / York Haven, PA / David Gravel (9)42. Fri, July 21 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Logan Schuchart (3)43. Sat, July 22 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Rico Abreu (4)44. Sun, July 30 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, NY / David Gravel (10)45. Fri, Aug 4 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Spencer Bayston (1)46. Sat, Aug 5 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Kyle Larson (3)47. Sat, Aug 12 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Kyle Larson (4)48. Thurs, Aug 17 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN / James McFadden (5)49. Fri, Aug 18 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN / James McFadden (6)50. Sat, Aug 19 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN / Carson Macedo (6)51. Fri, Aug 25 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND / Logan Schuchart (4)52. Sat, Aug 26 / Red River Valley Speedway / West Fargo, ND / Logan Schuchart (5)53. Thurs, Aug 31 / Skagit Speedway / Burlington, WA / Sheldon Haudenschild (3)54. Fri, Sept 1 / Skagit Speedway / Burlington, WA / Rico Abreu (5)55. Sat, Sept 2 / Skagit Speedway / Burlington, WA / Brad Sweet (7)56. Mon, Sept 4 / Grays Harbor Raceway / Elma, WA / Logan Schuchart (6)57. Sat, Sept 9 / Silver Dollar Speedway / Chico, CA / Corey Day (1)58. Fri, Sept 15 / Kings Speedway / Hanford, CA / Brad Sweet (8)59. Sat, Sept 16 / Placerville Speedway / Placerville, CA / Buddy Kofoid (2)60. Fri, Sept 22 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Rico Abreu (6)61. Sat, Sept 23 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH / Brad Sweet (9)62. Fri, Sept 29 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Brad Sweet (10)63. Sat, Sept 30 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Brent Marks (1)64. Fri, Oct 6 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA / Tyler Courtney (1)65. Sat, Oct 7 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA / Zeb Wise (1)66. Sat, Oct 14 / Lakeside Speedway / Kansas City, KS / Donny Schatz (4)67. Fri, Oct 20 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX / Carson Macedo (7)68. Sat, Oct 21 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX / David Gravel (11)

CORVETTE RACING AT BAHRAIN: A Corvette Coronation!Final race for C8.R in historic championship season for Corvette program DETROIT (Oct. 30, 2023) – Can Corvette Racing go out on top to end 2023? That’s certainly the plan as the team goes for its fourth FIA World Endurance Championship victory this year in the season-ending Eight Hours of Bahrain. It would be a fitting exit for the Chevrolet Corvette C8.R, which will race for the final time in the hands of Nicky Catsburg, Ben Keating and Nico Varrone. Already this year, the No. 33 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette has won the GTE Am category at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 1,000 Miles of Sebring and Six Hours of Portimão.

By finishing no worse than fourth at any race so far, the No. 33 Corvette Racing squad locked up the GTE Am Drivers and Teams championships two rounds ago at Monza in Italy. A fourth WEC win would give the C8.R a total of 21 victories worldwide in 82 events and close Corvette Racing’s two-year campaign in the FIA WEC with a fifth win. As much of a coronation as Bahrain will be for the Corvette program, it also serves as a transition point for the Corvette brand. The Corvette Z06 GT3.R is slated to be part of the WEC grid next year in the hands of TF Sport for the LM GT3 category while the No. 33 C8.R team transitions back to the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship under the Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports banner. There’s still work to do in the present, however. Corvette Racing finished second in GTE Pro last year in its first race at the 3.36-mile, 15-turn Bahrain International Circuit with stellar drives from both Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy. Armed with that experience and notebook from the event, the goal is to finish one step higher on the podium this time around. Working in the benefit of Corvette Racing is its perfect 2-0 record in races longer than six hours in FIA WEC competition this year with wins at Le Mans and Sebring – each by at least one lap. It also doesn’t hurt that Keating is a two-time GTE Am winner at Bahrain, Catsburg posted two top-five finishes in World Touring Car Cup a year ago, and Varrone has previous history in the C8.R at Bahrain from last year’s Rookie Test. As in previous races, the C8.R will run at Bahrain with a level of rewards weight due to its successes earlier this year: 15 kilograms for leading the championship and 10 kilograms for finishing second in the previous race at Fuji on top of 10 extra kilograms added to the car’s minimum weight ahead of the Monza round for a total of 35 kilograms – five less than at the Japanese round but still the heaviest in GTE Am. The Corvette also will race with a two-liter decrease in fuel capacity and a 0.6mm restrictor adjustment to limit engine power. The Eight Hours of Bahrain is scheduled for 2 p.m. Arabian Standard Time / 7 a.m. ET on Saturday. MotorTrend and MotorTrend Plus will provide both live television and streaming coverage, as will the FIA WEC app. Radio Le Mans will stream audio coverage of the race plus Friday’s final practice and qualifying.

CORVETTE RACING MEDIA INFORMATION Corvette Racing media information is updated and available ahead of the FIA WEC’s Eight Hours of Bahrain. Materials include Corvette Racing event advance and quotes, Corvette Racing stats and figures, Corvette Racing racecar comparisons, Corvette Racing Fast Facts, driver biographies and Corvette Racing photography, among other items.

NICKY CATSBURG, NO. 33 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “The pressure is a little bit off, but it is a weekend I’m looking forward to. It’s our last weekend together with this team in WEC with the C8.R and the GTE cars. It’s kind of like a weekend of goodbyes. The whole season, you are fighting for something and trying to achieve something, and we’ve done that. But there is always the challenge of winning the race. It is nice we will be crowned champions during the after-season party, so it will be great to be back with the guys again, driving a car that I love to drive, and being with Ben and Nico again.”(On the legacy of the C8.R): “The C8.R is the best GTE car that I’ve ever driven. It’s such a versatile car that is good at anything you throw at it. Tracks like Le Mans, little tracks, big tracks, high-speed corner, low-speed stuff… the car is just a championship-winner. It’s not just good at one thing, and that’s what makes it so strong. We’ve always been able to adjust our setup and car to the tracks and perform well everywhere. It’s an amazing car. It’s a car that I’ve always felt comfortable in, and it’s a car that I will miss driving, although it’s clear that the Corvette GT3 will be similar.”

BEN KEATING, NO. 33 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “I am looking forward to the race in Bahrain, not only because we’ll be there to celebrate our accomplishments, not only is it the end of a fairy tale season by winning everything in the last year of GTE with the Corvette is incredible. I really enjoy the race at Bahrain. To me, the longer the race the better. It’s been a little while since we’ve had a longer race like that. I enjoy the eight-hour race in Bahrain. Traditionally I have been fairly good there. I would say I have high expectations, but I’d also say that we’ve been up front in every race this season, so why wouldn’t we continue that? We still get to lose another five kilos for this race, which should be a little bit better for us. This should be fun to watch. From what I remember about this track, the tire degradation is really high. I think that’s good for the Corvette. Having raced in the Porsche and the Aston Martin, I think the Corvette handles the tire deg better than the other cars. Once again, I have very expectations for what we can achieve there. I’m looking forward to the whole experience of heading to Bahrain, doing the last race, doing the final celebration dinner. It’s exciting.”

NICO VARRONE, NO. 33 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “It’s crazy. This has been a dream season. We won a lot of races, won the championship three races early, we won Le Mans as well. It’s been a fantastic season and we’ve had so much fun that it went so far, which is sad a little bit. But we will make sure we enjoy all the time with the mechanics, the engineers and the rest of the team at Bahrain. It will be fun.”(On his first season with Corvette Racing): “I feel like from the outside, you always see teams like Corvette Racing and I have to say I was really nervous before Sebring. I didn’t know how the team worked, how the car works, how different things were than what I was used to. But I learned a lot on how to work with these guys and how to work with a lineup like this with Nicky and Ben, and also with engineers and mechanics. I’ve also had races where we had to manage the tires and save fuel. I had done that before, but I feel like I maximized it in a good way. I think I’ve gotten better in all those ways for endurance racing. I feel like I’ve learned so much how to set up a car, how I like the car also. It’s been a great season with some really good memories that I’ll remember all my life.”

2023 FIA World Endurance Championship – GTE Am (After six of seven events)Driver Standings1. Ben Keating/Nicky Catsburg/Nico Varrone – 1642. Michelle Gatting/Rahel Frey/Sarah Bovy – 793. Davide Rigon/Francesco Castellacci/Thomas Flohr – 734. Christian Ried/Julien Andlauer/Mikkel Pedersen – 685. Ahmad Al Harthy/Charlie Eastwood/Michael Dinan – 65 Team Standings1. No. 33 Corvette Racing – 1642. No. 85 Iron Dames – 793. No. 54 AF Corse – 734. No. 77 Dempsey-Proton Racing – 685. ORT by TF – 65 CORVETTE RACING AT BAHRAIN: By the Numbers• 1: As in one team, one manufacturer and one model of car for 25 years of racing: Corvette Racing, Chevrolet and the Chevrolet Corvette• 3: Positions gained in GTE Pro by Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy in last year’s Bahrain race in the No. 64 Corvette• 3: Number of GTE Am wins in four FIA WEC races this season for Nicky Catsburg, Ben Keating and Nico Varrone with the No. 33 Corvette C8.R• 7: Hours difference between Manama, Bahrain and Detroit in the Eastern Time Zone• 14: Manufacturer Championships for Chevrolet and Corvette Racing since 2001• 27: Tracks at which Corvette Racing has won races – Baltimore, Charlotte Motor Speedway, COTA, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park/Mosport, Daytona, Detroit, Houston, Laguna Seca, Le Mans, Lime Rock, Long Beach, Miami, Mid-Ohio, Monza, Portimão, Portland, Road America, Road Atlanta, Sebring, Sonoma, St. Petersburg, Texas, Trois Rivieres, Utah, VIR, Washington DC and Watkins Glen• 34: Number of drivers for Corvette Racing since 1999. Ben Keating and Nico Varrone joined that list with their participation – and victory – in the 1,000 Miles of Sebring for the World Endurance Championship• 35: Kilograms of success ballast for the Corvette C8.R at Fuji – 10 for finishing second at Fuji, 15 for leading the GTE Am championship and 10 additional kilograms added to the car’s minimum weight by the organizers• 127: Victories worldwide for Corvette Racing – 115 in North America, nine at Le Mans and three in the FIA WEC• 283: Event starts by Corvette Racing since 1999• 6,883: Approximate mileage from Detroit Metropolitan Airport to Bahrain International Airport, one way. That’s a greater distance than the No. 33 Corvette C8.R has raced this year in WEC competition• 361,214.36: Total number of racing miles completed by Corvette Racing since its inception. To put that in perspective, Corvette Racing is more than halfway to the distance traveled by Apollo 13 – the longest manned spaceflight in history: 622,268 miles. That means Corvette Racing has raced to the moon and more than halfway back! Corvette Racing at Bahrain2022No. 64 Corvette C8.R: Tommy Milner/Nick Tandy – 2nd in GTE Pro

RIDGEWAY, VA – October 30, 2023 – Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney won Sunday’s Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway, earning a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Round of 4. This past weekend’s win marked Blaney’s third win of the season and 10th of his career.

“Congratulations to Roger, Tim, Jonathan, Ryan, and everyone at Team Penske on the race win at Martinsville,” said Doug Yates, President and CEO of Roush Yates Engines. “Jonathan and Ryan have worked well together throughout the regular season and earned the opportunity to race for Ryan’s first NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Championship”.

“I thought we put together a really strong playoffs, especially the Round of 8. We had a good Round of 8, so just really proud of the whole effort. Proud to have Discount Tire on the car, Menards, Ford, Advance Auto Parts, Body Armor. RP couldn’t be here unfortunately, but I know he’s watching and this is awesome stuff. I can’t wait to get to Phoenix next week,” commented Blaney.

Four Ford Performance drivers qualified and started Sunday’s race in the top 10: Stewart-Haas Racing’s Chase Briscoe in P3, Kevin Harvick in P8, Ryan Preece in P9, and Roush Fenway Keselowski (RFK) Racing’s Brad Keselowski in P10. Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney qualified in P11 and was fourth in the standings at the beginning of the race; 10 points ahead of Tyler Reddick, 17 points ahead of Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr, and 43 points ahead of RFK Racing’s Chris Buescher.

At the end of Stage 1, Blaney had worked his way to the front of the field to finish in P2. After a back-and-forth battle with Denny Hamlin, Blaney took the lead to win the second stage. The race featured a total of seven cautions, the most of any race at Martinsville since the introduction of the Next Gen car. During a 168-lap green-flag run to the finish, Blaney passed Stewart-Haas Racing’s Aric Almirola on Lap 478 of 500. Twenty-two laps later, Blaney took the checkered flag 0.899 seconds ahead of Almirola and advanced to the Championship 4. Blaney joins fellow Round of 8 winners Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell along with William Byron in the race for the 2023 NCS title.

A total of seven Ford Performance drivers finished in the top-10: Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney in P1, Stewart-Haas Racing’s Aric Almirola and Chase Briscoe in P2 and P4, Team Penske’s Joey Logano in P5, RFK Racing’s Chris Buescher in P8, Team Penske’s Austin Cindric in P9, and Front Row Motorsports’ Todd Gilliland in P10.

The Xfinity Series also raced at Martinsville Speedway on Saturday where Stewart-Haas Racing’s Riley Herbst finished in P4 and Cole Custer finished in P19. Cole advances on to the NASCAR Xfinity Series Round of 4 and races for the championship this upcoming weekend. Both the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series head to Phoenix Raceway for the final race of the 2023 season.

35 CHAMPIONSHIPS – 457 WINS – 420 POLES

October 30, 2023

The prospects for Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team looked bleak after Burton was spun by another driver while racing to avoid getting lapped in the closing circuits of Stage One of Sunday’s Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway.

Burton was at one time two laps down, but he, crew chief Jeremy Bullins and the rest of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team responded and came away with a 15th-place finish.

Burton got one of his laps back following the Lap 103 spin by taking the wave-around during the caution period at the end of the first 130-lap Stage.

He got the second lap back when he earned the free pass by being the first driver off the lead lap when the caution flag flew at Lap 304 for an incident involving Carson Hocevar and Ty Gibbs.

Returning to the track after a pit stop, Burton continued his trek forward. A key move came during a caution period at Lap 325 when Bullins called him to the pits for right-side tires and fuel. He had just made a stop 20 laps earlier, but the later stop assured him he’d have enough fuel to make it to the checkered flag.

Burton maintained his spot among the top 20 for all but a handful of the final 168 laps, that ran under the green flag to the finish.

As drivers who made their final stops earlier than him headed to pit road under green in the closing laps, Burton motored by them to finish 15th. 

Burton and the Wood Brothers team also offered their congratulations to Team Penske and Ryan Blaney, who won the race and earned a spot among the final four who will compete for the Cup Series championship next Sunday in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway.
 

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (October 30, 2023) – With the 2023 Trans Am by Pirelli championship already secured, Chris Dyson’s third in as many years, the pressure should be off for the CD Racing team at this weekend’s season finale at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. That’s not the case. “If you aren’t planning to make every effort to win,” Dyson said, “there’s no reason to go to a race. Everyone on the team will be treating this race just as seriously as we did eight months ago at the season opener at Sebring. I will be trying just as hard to win the pole and the race as I have at every Trans Am event this season.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       In fact, since we have the championship locked up, that persistent concern about points is gone, and we can just go for it this weekend.” Former COTA Winner Brabham Is Back For the first time since the Mid-Ohio event in late June, the Dyson team will be competing with its newer chassis alongside the car with which it has claimed multiple championships.  The team has continued to upgrade both chassis and expects to continue the assessment of progress on track in Austin.  In addition to Dyson’s #16 GYM WEED Ford Mustang, the team has also entered the #20 GYM WEED Ford Mustang for Matthew Brabham. Between them, Dyson and Brabham have won the last two of the Trans Am season finales at the Circuit of the Americas. “Matt joined the team here on very short notice two years ago to fill in for me and drove us to victory lane,” Dyson said.  “He’s done a tremendous job in all circumstances since then and has been a great team player.” As One Season Ends, Attention Turns To The Next Dyson confirmed that while main objective the weekend is the race win, looking to the future it is equally important “to come away with an understanding of what we’ve moved forward with the cars and which areas need more work over the very short off-season before the 2024 race schedule which starts in late February,” he said. “Having Matty in the second car will help us gain more data as we prepare to turn our full focus toward next year,” Dyson said, while highlighting the team’s dedication and incredible job over the course of the current season. “I’m proud of the team’s efforts. It’s been a challenging, long year where we have been introducing new components and doing R&D on the fly; the team never stopped pushing. That we were able to win three championships in a row is a testament to the team’s ability to maintain its focus, month after month and year after year.” Dyson further noted that “the opposition is not sitting still and we know full well how competitive this series is. No one in our group is resting on their laurels. For CD Racing in a lot of ways this weekend is as much the first event of 2024 than it is the last event of 2023.  The guys are all hungry and we’re eager to see the progress with the new car. What’s so fascinating about Trans Am racing is the steps the team can take in advancing the cars and pushing all areas of our car and engine development. You have to be relentless to win here.” Tech Test in Texas “From the technical perspective COTA is one of the trickiest circuits on our calendar,” Dyson said, noting that managing the mix of high speed, heavy braking, super-low-speed corners while preserving tires is a particular challenge.  “We’ve always made it a point to show up at COTA with a set-up that’s in the ‘ballpark’ because the lap is so long and there isn’t much practice time. Since we are running some new bits without a lot of testing on both cars, there’s a sense of the unknown, but that’s exciting.  We rest assured knowing that we have two excellent baseline setups for each car to fall back on in race trim; we are pushing the envelope and ourselves to learn more regardless.” Click here for more on Chris Dyson Racing. Circuit of the Americas Schedule Qualifying takes place Saturday, November 4, 3:45 p.m. — 5:35 p.m. CT (4:45 p.m. ET) The 100-mile race takes the green flag Sunday, November 5, at 1:10 p.m. (2:10 p.m. ET) Broadcast Schedule The race will be live-streamed on both the Trans Am and SpeedTour’s YouTube channels.  Additional Broadcast Coverage On MAVTV In addition to the livestream, 60-minute feature produced by Greenlight TV will be broadcast the following Thursday at 9:00 p.m. ET to MAVTV’s 22 million North American linear households and 175 million connected devices.

No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R ‘shows potential to be on the podium’ in every race

DETROIT (Oct. 30, 2023) – It has been a whirlwind 16 months since Earl Bamber drove the hybrid Cadillac prototype in its initial on-track outing. Data collection, systems validation and development, performance optimization and basically learning the capabilities of the Cadillac V-Series.R has followed – along with strong results: multiple IMSA Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) championships, victories and Cadillac’s first-ever podium finish in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

This weekend, Cadillac Racing looks for a strong finish to its maiden trip through the FIA World Endurance Championship. “It’s been an amazing time with simulation and then bringing the car online in July 2022, Daytona the first-ever race, Le Mans and now, all of a sudden, the season is nearly finished,” Bamber said of the Nov. 4 finale. Bamber will share the seat of the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R with recently crowned European Le Mans Series LMP2 champion Alex Lynn and Richard Westbrook in the 8 Hours of Bahrain on the 5.412-kilometer (3.36-mile), 15-turn Bahrain International Circuit. The LMDh entry received a 7-kilogram dry weight reduction (from 1037 at Fuji) for the race.

Media resources * Race preview in French* WEC statistics* Driver bios* On-track photos* Driver candids* Cadillac sweeps IMSA GTP championshipsShift your focusWatch the eight-hour race unfold from the driver’s point of view inside the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R HERE.

Cadillac Racing started the season with three successive top-five finishes and then made a resounding return to Le Mans after a 21-year absence with the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R earning third place and the No. 3 Cadillac V-Series.R finishing fourth in the centenary race. “The first year of the program has been fantastic,” team manager Stephen Mitas said. “When you look at the results, particularly at Le Mans, we could only be happy with it. There have been some challenges along the way and some lessons learned, but we are targeting to finish strong in Bahrain. The beginning of next year is all about taking our lessons learned and turning that into positive action for the team and on-track with the car.” The 8 Hours of Bahrain is scheduled for 2 p.m. Arabian Standard Time / 7 a.m. ET Saturday. MotorTrend and MotorTrend Plus will provide both live television and streaming coverage, as will the FIA WEC app. Radio Le Mans will stream audio coverage of the race plus Friday’s final practice and qualifying. Still in development At the heart of the racecar built to IMSA and the ACO’s LMDh regulations is the purpose-built 5.5-liter DOHC V8 engine developed by GM’s Performance and Racing propulsion team based in Pontiac, Michigan, which is paired with the LMDh spec hybrid system. The cross-plane crankshaft produces the signature sound that has made the car a fan favorite at every event.“This is a new engine for this car, but leaning heavily on the experience and architecture of V8 engines that we have across the portfolio,” GM sports car racing program manager Laura Wontrop Klauser said. It’s the only LMDh entry without turbochargers and has displayed reliability and pace in both the WEC and IMSA. The championship-winning No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R and No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R both won an IMSA race, and they combined to earn two pole starts and record the fastest lap in five of the nine races. “Combustion efficiency on naturally aspirated engines has gotten to a point now where it’s worth it to go with a naturally aspirated motor to save the weight of a turbo and intercooler,” said Adam Trojanek, Cadillac Racing lead propulsion engineer for the WEC and IMSA programs. “You look at what’s the best way to make that power reliably with the fewest objects to possibly break. It’s been rock solid this year.” Celebrating 20 years The Cadillac V-Series.R is Cadillac’s third-generation prototype racecar and represents the fifth generation of the brand’s storied V-Series production vehicle lineup that is celebrating its 20th anniversary.  The first-generation Cadillac CTS-V entered competition before it entered production and was immediately successful. Overall, Cadillac Racing has produced 68 victories, 222 podium finishes and nine manufacturer championships in all series since 2004. “Setting the expectation, what is V-Series,” CTS-V program engineering manager Ken Morris said about incorporating on-track learning into the production vehicle. “From day one, the integration of the vehicle to be sophisticated and how does it handle, brakes, how does it set itself apart when you have that kind of power.”  Added Brandon Vivian, executive chief engineer: “The bimodality of having to be a luxury car and a performance car is one of the hallmarks of V-Series DNA that we’ve carried through each generation.” What they’re sayingEarl Bamber: “I’m looking forward to the race in Bahrain. We’ve definitely had our ups and downs. The highlight of the year, so far, has been the third place at Le Mans, though we’ve shown at every race this year that we have the potential to be on the podium. Now looking to Bahrain, I think our Cadillac LMDh will really suit the circuit and we shoot for the podium like we always do. It’s been an amazing 18 months with simulation and then bringing the car online in July of 2022, Daytona the first-ever race, Le Mans and now, all of a sudden, the season is nearly finished. It was great to see the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac win the GTP championship and Cadillac win the manufacturer championship. It is an awesome achievement for the whole project.”Alex Lynn: “It’s the season finale for us in the WEC and Bahrain is also a great event. I’m looking forward to getting back to racing in our Cadillac. I think we have a good result in us to finish this season and I’m just excited to driving in the World Endurance Championship again in our Cadillac. The car has come such a long way in 16 months and we’re looking to have a strong result to bounce into 2024. It’s been an exciting first season for the Cadillac team in the WEC, with the highlight being the podium finish at Le Mans. We’ll look to finish on a high.”

Richard Westbrook: “I’m really looking forward to Bahrain. It’s a track that I know well; where I kind of started my international sports car career in the Porsche Super Cup with a win, so I have good memories. It’s going to be a grueling race in the heat as we all know from Formula One recently racing in the region. It’s going to be the same for closed cockpit racing in the WEC. It’s always difficult to know whether your car is going to suit a particular track because every track we’ve been on this year has been new for our car. But I really do feel Bahrain will be good for the Cadillac. It’s lots of slow speed corners which require good traction. That’s a strong point of the car. It’s very hard on the tires, which is a strong point with how kind the Cadillac is on the Michelin tires. There is reason to be optimistic. We’ve had an up and down year – probably more up than down – but the last couple of results have been tough. We’re looking to get back on track to where we were at the beginning of the year and come away with a strong finish like we did at Le Mans.”

ROBERT HIGHT AND CORNWELL TOOLS WIN BIG ATTHE STRIP AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY

LAS VEGAS (Oct. 29, 2023) – Robert Hight and the Cornwell Tools / AAA Chevrolet Camaro SS team picked up their fourth win of the season Sunday at the NHRA Nevada Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Top Fuel teammates, Brittany Force in the Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy dragster and Austin Prock in the Montana Brand Rocky Mountain Twist dragster had quarterfinal exits while team namesake John Force in the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy Camaro had a first-round exit. In a final round with championship implications, Hight, in his sixth final round of the season 102nd of his career, would take on long-time rival Bob Tasca III. Hight would have a sout 3.851-second pass at 326.79 mph to take down Tasca’s 4.235 at 268.28 after he had to pedal to the finish line. This is Hight’s third win at the fall event at The Strip and his sixth overall at the facility. After a perfect weekend, Hight moves within 17 points of the championship lead sitting third behind only Matt Hagan and Tasca. “It’s really been a strong weekend. I’m not sure if anyone in Funny Car has swept every single point possible in a weekend. That goes out to my team. They gave me a car that was perfect. Our 3.88 was our worst run, then the 3.81, we weren’t trying to do that, it just happened. That’s kind of scary because we had to have been really close to smoking the tires,” Hight said. “This win meant a lot. We dug ourselves a hole in Dallas, and we knew we had to come in here in almost a must-win situation. The rest of these Funny Car guys are running right with us, and we’re not running away with this thing. This Chevrolet Camaro, man, Chevrolet is going to be very happy with that right there and Cornwell Tools, they’re finally here for a win.” Coming in as the No. 1 qualifiers for the sixth time this season, Hight and the Cornwell Tools team had a victory at the starting line when first-round opponent Jeff Diehl red-lit by .093 seconds. Hight would handle the Cornwell Tools Camaro to a 3.816-second pass at 332.67 mph, the quickest pass in Funny Car since former teammate Courtney Force ran a 3.815 at Topeka, Kansas in 2017. In the quarterfinals, the Jimmy and Thomas Prock run Cornwell Tools Chevy kept up their performance with a 3.859-second run at 333.99 mph to defeat Alexis DeJoria’s 4.058 at 247.79. The win set Hight up with a semifinal matchup against Blake Alexander. Alexander would run into trouble early coasting to a 7.579 at 89.99 while Hight laid down a 3.868 at 330.55 for the win. Brittany Force and the Flav-R-Pac team stayed consistent coming into race day. They would pick up the first-round win with a 3.704-second pass at 331.04 mph bettering Antron Brown’s 3.739 at 315.34. In the quarterfinals, the Flav-R-Pac dragster would slow to a 3.785 at 311.85 with a cylinder out while Steve Torrence would run the second quickest pass of the day at 3.674 and 330.72 for the win. “This Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy team was faced with another tough weekend here in Las Vegas. Coming into race day from the No. 10 spot we knew we needed to step up our game to have a fighting chance,” Force said. “We made big moves, improving our ET with a solid 3.704 run in round one earning us a win light. Unfortunately, our performance fell off in round two as we slowed to a 3.78. That was not our plan, and it was a frustrating round loss. Our team plans to test on Monday to get us in a better position heading into Pomona. We leave seventh in points before going into the final race of the season.” Austin Prock and the Montana Brand team didn’t let up in the first round. Prock would take the Montana Brand dragster to the finish line in 3.719 seconds but only 289.51 mph after the engine blew up down track. It would be enough to defeat rookie Kelly Harper’s 3.806 at 317.27. The round win would set Prock up to face Justin Ashley in the quarterfinals. The Montana Brand dragster would drop a cylinder to go only 3.727 at 319.07 coming up short to Ashley’s 3.703 at 331.69. “We have a good race car, and the team is working hard. It was unfortunate that we blew it up in that first round. Second round, it blew some spark plugs, so we were running on six cylinders, and that’s just not going to get the job done,” said Prock who moves from 10th to eighth in points. “I’m proud of this Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team and I know we’ll be itching to get back at it in Pomona, California in a couple of weeks.” In the No. 5 qualifying spot, John Force and the black and gold PEAK Chevy smoked the tires in their first-round matchup against Blake Alexander. Force would have to pedal the Camaro to a 5.468-second pass at 134.22 mph coming up short to Alexander’s 3.940 at 319.52. “Well, tough race day. Definitely not what we wanted for this black and gold PEAK Chevy and the 50th anniversary of Old World Industries. We qualified decent but couldn’t get the job done. We continue to celebrate Tom Hurvis, they guy who keeps me in a job, this week at SEMA and AAPEX, looking forward to that,” Force said. “I might be out of this championship fight, but Robert is right in the thick of things and I’m proud of that and that team. Hopefully, we can all put on a good show in Pomona, and end this season on a good note.” The 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season comes to a close November 10-12 at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip with the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals. -30-

AUSTIN PROCK, 28, Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist dragsterQualifying:3rd; 3.692-seconds; 328.86 mphBonus Qualifying Points:+5 (2nd quickest Q2, Q3; 3rd quickest Q4)Race Results: Beat Kelly Harper; Lost to Justin AshleyBRITTANY FORCE, 37, Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac dragsterQualifying:10th; 3.732-seconds; 333.48 mphBonus Qualifying Points:+3 (quickest Q1)Race Results: Beat Antron Brow; Lost to Steve TorrenceJOHN FORCE, 74, PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SSQualifying:4th; 3.887-seconds; 322.34 mphBonus Qualifying Points: 0 Race Results: Lost to Blake AlexanderROBERT HIGHT, 54, AAA / Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SSQualifying:1st; 3.851-seconds; 327.51 mphBonus Qualifying Points:+12 (quickest Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4)Race Results: Beat Jeff Diehl, Alexis DeJoria, Blake Alexander and Bob Tasca III

Photo Credit: Gary Nastase, Auto Imagery

Unofficial NHRA Camping World Championship Points Standings TOP FUEL – 1. Steve Torrence, 2483; 2. Doug Kalitta, 2468; 3. Leah Pruett, 2449; 4. Mike Salinas, 2407; 5. Justin Ashley, 2401; 6. Antron Brown, 2337; 7. Brittany Force, Monster Energy/FLAV-R-PAC dragster, 2303; 8. Austin Prock, Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist dragster, 2256; 9. Tony Schumacher, 2248; 10. Clay Millican, 2227; 11. Josh Hart, 2201; 12. Shawn Langdon, 2199.  FUNNY CAR – 1. Matt Hagan, 2539; 2. Bob Tasca III, 2524; 3. Robert Hight, AAA/Cornwell Tools Chevy Camaro SS, 2522; 4. Ron Capps, 2400; 5. John Force, PEAK Coolant and Antifreeze Chevy Camaro SS, 2297; 6. J.R. Todd, 2283; 7. Chad Green, 2275; 8. Tim Wilkerson, 2270; 9. Alexis DeJoria, 2249; 10. Alex Laughlin, 2245; 11. Cruz Pedregon, 2202.

CHEVROLET IN NHRA2023 NHRA NEVADA NATIONALS THE STRIP AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY LAS VEGAS, NEVADA TEAM CHEVY RACE RECAP OCTOBER 29, 2023 CHEVROLET DOUBLES UP WITH ROBERT HIGHT IN FUNNY CAR AND ERICA ENDERS IN PRO STOCK; AARON STANFIELD SECURES THIRD FLEXJET FACTORY STOCK SHOWDOWN CHAMPIONSHIP WITH CHEVROLET

Robert Hight raced to victory over Bob Tasca, III in Funny Car, earning his fourth win in six final rounds in 2023, and the 85th of his career.Hight’s win at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway earns Chevrolet their 159th in Funny Car and 79th in the Camaro body.Erica Enders secured her 47th Pro Stock victory and 48th of her NHRA career, defeating Greg Anderson in the final round in the NHRA Nevada Nationals to earn her 10th victory at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.Enders, with her win Sunday, earned Chevrolet’s 381st in Pro Stock and 262nd in the Camaro.Hight, driver of the Cornwell Tools/AAA Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, took the No. 1 Qualifier position for Sunday’s race for the sixth time of 2023 and earning 12 bonus points, with his No. 2 run of 3.851 seconds. Bob Tasca, III’s Saturday night run was disqualified, giving Hight the No. 1 position heading into race day.Kyle Koretsky, driver of the Lucas Oil Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock for KB Titan Racing, earned the Nevada Nationals No. 1 Qualifier with his run of 6.589 E.T. at 205.66 MPH, picking up six bonus points towards the Countdown to the Championship.  Hight led the leaderboard Friday night, qualifying provisional No. 1 with his run of 3.881 E.T. at 327.51 MPH and collecting three bonus points towards the Championship.Enders, with her Q1 run Friday, took the provisional No. 1 spot with her pass of 6.595 E.T. at 207.66 MPH.Aaron Stanfield, driver of the Stanfield Racing Engines Chevrolet COPO Camaro, clinched his third FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown World Championship Friday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.Stephen Bell, driver of the Stanfield Racing Engines Chevrolet COPO Camaro, qualified No. 1 for the second time of his career in FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

LAS VEGAS (October 29, 2023) – It was a winning weekend in Las Vegas, with Chevrolet doubling up in the professional ranks at the 2023 NHRA Nevada Nationals as Robert Hight captured the win in Funny Car and Erica Enders in Pro Stock. With one race left in the Countdown to the Championship, both victories come at a critical time as the season champion is crowned in two weeks. Hight, driver of the Cornwell Tools/AAA Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, first defeated Jeff Diehl in Round 1, Alexis DeJoria in Round 2, and Blake Alexander in Semifinals on his way to the final round versus Bob Tasca, III. After entering Sunday as the No. 1 Qualifier, Hight raced his way to his fourth victory of the year, and his 65th career win tying him with Jeg Coughlin, Jr. for ninth on the all-time NHRA win list with his run of 3.851 E.T. at 326.79 MPH. Additionally, Hight’s win in Las Vegas Sunday is Chevrolet’s 79th in the Camaro body and 159th in Funny Car. “It’s going to be everything,” reflected Hight on his weekend approaching the final race of the Countdown. “We dug ourselves a hole in Dallas, and we knew we had to come in here in almost a must-win situation. These guys are running right with us, and we’re not running away with this thing. This Chevrolet Camaro, man, Chevrolet is going to be very happy with that right there. I thought to myself as I was staging, you look at this beautiful sunset in Las Vegas and you want to drive off into the sunset, and at least we’re carrying a Wally. Pomona is going to be exciting.” “We really screwed up in Dallas and we knew when we came here, we knew we had to win, said Thomas Prock, Hight’s Crew Chief at John Force Racing. “We just really took our time to look over notes and make good decisions coming here. It’s really paid off. I’m really so proud of everyone. This is such a hard class to win in, and to do it is unbelievable, honestly, here in Las Vegas.” On her march to a potential sixth NHRA World Championship, Enders, driver of the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling/SCAG Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock for Elite Motorsports, captured her 47th Pro Stock win and 48th in NHRA over KB Titan Racing’s Greg Anderson in the final round, while entering and leaving Las Vegas with the Championship points lead heading into Pomona. Enders win Sunday was Chevrolet’s 381st in Pro Stock, and 262nd in the Camaro. Defeating Mason McGaha in Round 1, teammate Troy Coughlin, Jr. in Round 2, and teammate Jeg Coughlin, Jr. in Semifinals, Enders was able to capture the winlight and Wally trophy after Anderson faced issues after the start. Enders’ win in Las Vegas Sunday was her 10th at The Strip. “You can’t do it alone. No matter how much negativity surrounds you, if you don’t let it in your boat, it can’t sink you,” said Enders. “I think that’s the biggest lesson from this weekend with what had to deal with, the adversity we had to get through, and again I say it all the time, but when our backs are against the wall, my boys perform flawlessly. Greg (Anderson) had lane choice and took the right, and my crew chiefs were thrilled. This one, this is awesome. We came in here with the (points) lead. Greg (Anderson) is right on my heels, and that was a big round for us. I’m just really proud. We’re going to Pomona, we’re going to give it all the effort. When you dig deep and play with all the heart you have, they can’t get you.” For the 16-time champion John Force, driver of the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, he faced an unfortunate early end after hazing the tires early on his run. Qualifying No. 5, he fell to No. 12 Blake Alexander in the first round. “Well, tough race day. Definitely not what we wanted for this black and gold PEAK Chevy and the 50th anniversary of Old World Industries,” said Force. “We qualified decent but couldn’t get the job done. I might be out of this championship fight, but Robert is right in the thick of things and I’m proud of that and that team. Hopefully, we can all put on a good show in Pomona and end this season on a good note.” In Top Fuel, it was an early day for the pair of Brittany Force and Austin Prock, both facing elimination in Round 2. B. Force, driver of the Flav-R-Pac/Monster Energy Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster, faced elimination by Steve Torrence after she defeated Antron Brown in Round 1. Prock, driver of the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster, fell to Justin Ashley in the second round after defeating Dan Mercier in Round 1. “We have a good race car, and the team is working hard,” said Prock. “It was unfortunate that we blew it up in that first round. Second round, it blew some spark plugs, so we were running on six cylinders, and that’s just not going to get the job done. I’m proud of this Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team and I know we’ll be itching to get back at it in Pomona, California in a couple of weeks.” Clinching his third FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown World Championship, Aaron Stanfield was able to secure the success early in the weekend by outrunning Stephen Bell in the first round, and then defeating No. 1 qualifier Lenny Lottig in the second. “It’s pretty cool to be able to do it here in Las Vegas,” said Stanfield, also an 11-time FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown national event winner. “I love this racetrack. It’s good to be able to do it, we’re happy to get it done quick this weekend. All the championships are special and they all have their own story. There’s no such thing as a bad championship so I’m very thankful, very blessed.” “Thank you to all the all the guys that work on my hot rod. Collectively between Pro Stock and Flexjet Factory Stock there’s a lot of guys that play a big hand in me being able to do all of this,” said Stanfield. “I’m just very thankful for individually each one of them. I’m so glad to get it done and I want to thank FlexJet and the NHRA.” Due to a cold track and adverse weather conditions, the FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown will complete their NHRA Nevada Nationals race day Monday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The final race of the 2023 NHRA season and Countdown to the Championship takes place Nov. 10-12, 2023, at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals at the In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip. In competition and representing the Bowtie brand, Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock will all crown world champions Sunday, Nov. 12. Qualifying airs first on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1), with Finals following at 4 p.m. ET on FS1. Coverage streams live throughout the weekend on NHRA.tv, and is available via AppleTV, Android TV, and Roku devices.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: Brittany Force, driver of the Monster Energy/Flav-R-Pac Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster for John Force Racing:“This Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy team was faced with another tough weekend here in Las Vegas. Coming into race day from the No. 10 spot we knew we needed to step up our game to have a fighting chance. We made big moves, improving our ET with a solid 3.704 run in round one earning us a win light. Unfortunately, our performance fell off in round two as we slowed to a 3.78. That was not our plan, and it was a frustrating round loss. Our team plans to test on Monday to get us in a better position heading into Pomona. We leave seventh in points before going into the final race of the season.”

ROBERT HIGHT, driver of the Cornwell Tools/AAA Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car for John Force Racing – NHRA Nevada Nationals Winner’s Press Conferece:WALK US THROUGH YOUR RACE DAY…“It’s been a strong weekend at the races. I’d like to know if anybody in a Countdown race has ever, in Funny Car, swept every single point possible. That goes to my team. They gave me a racecar that was perfect this weekend, and we had good conditions, but a 3.88 was our worst run. The 3.81, we weren’t trying to do that. Everything just happened and worked perfectly, which kind of scared me. If we weren’t trying to do that, that’s stuff that’s kind of been biting us. First round at Dallas against Haddock, we smoked the tires. You think you had to have been really close to smoking the tires to run 3.81. But Jimmy (Prock) and Thomas (Prock) got it in check, and we just did our job all day. Now, I heard it was 17 points for the top-three (in the Championship) in Funny Car. If that isn’t going to make an exciting Pomona, I don’t know what is.” YOU’VE BEEN HERE SO MANY TIMES IN THE FINALS WITH RACES THAT ARE CLOSE. WITH SINGLE DIGIT CHAMPIONSHIPS. HOW DO YOU FEEL RIGHT NOW?“I feel really good right now. We’ve just got to stay stead and stay focused. There’s nothing we can do about the conditions, what they’re going to be at Pomona. I’m going to pray every night that they’re great, fast conditions like we had this weekend. Whatever it is, it is. I feel my team has a good handle on this racecar, and we just got to go get it done. With two tough competitors, it’s not going to be easy. (Ron) Capps is still mathematically in it, but the three of us, we’re going to duking it out. My boss (John Force) is going to test tomorrow. Hopefully, he gets his hot rod running better and he can help me out a little bit and put some pressure on these guys.” WITH THE MAGNITUDE OF THIS MOMENT, HOW MUCH DO YOU LIVE FOR THESE SITUATIONS?“I’d rather be in Gaige Herrera’s spot, if I had to trade that’s what I’d do. We’re here. We’ve got to make the best of it. We’ve got to perform, and those guys are going to be right there. More than likely, it’s going to go down to the final round at Pomona to win the championship, and it doesn’t get more dramatic than that. It’s cool, and to look back on it, and you get the job done, boy, there’s not going to be anything more rewarding than that.” IS THERE SOMETHING EXTRA IN YOUR RIGHT NOW GOING INTO POMONA THIS YEAR AFTER FINISHING RUNNER-UP IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP LAST YEAR?“Yeah, kind of. But you can’t focus on that. You have to focus on the task at hand. What’s behind us is behind us. You might use it as a little motivation, but we’ve got our hands full here. When it’s 17 points, and points-and-a-half, every point with four points in every run in qualifying – if I did in Pomona what I did here, I’m one point back going into Sunday, potentially. Every run, the magnitude of importance, it’s going to be crazy. I’d rather it be next weekend than a weekend off. I don’t really want to think about it for 10 days.”

ERICA ENDERS, driver of the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling/SCAG Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock for Elite Motorsports – NHRA Nevada Nationals Winner’s Press Conference:COMING IN FROM NO. 2 QUALIFYING POSITION, AND EARNING FOURTH WIN OF THE YEAR, 10TH IN LAS VEGAS, 47TH IN PRO STOCK, YOU NOW HAVE A 114-POINT LEAD HEADING INTO POMONA. DO YOU FEEL HISTORY IS REPEATING ITSELF FOR A SIXTH WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP?“Today, I drove, but stress level was do or die. We needed to perform perfectly, and my guys went out there and did just that. It was a challenging day. I watched Mason (McGaha) go double-0 on someone in St. Louis, and send them packing first round. You just know he can be good, so I wanted to just go up there and do my thing. Then (Troy Coughlin, Jr) my teammate, I know the horsepower he has, he has been literally within a hundredth on his reaction times all through qualifying and eliminations. I knew I had to do good there. Then Jeg Coughlin, Jr. went .004, .005, and .007 in reaction time in qualifying. His graphs looked perfect. He’s a legend, and him and I both got pretty loose out there. It was a little scary. And then the final round against Greg (Anderson), it was just kind of epic. When Greg (Anderson) and I both won the semifinals, we both shook hands down there and he said, ‘Old guys to the top.’ I really enjoy racing him but I enjoy beating him more, respectfully. It was just a tremendous day. Vegas is always great to us. We knew coming in, that was working in our favor, but you still have to put your head down and go to work. It’s stressful, it’s antagonizing, it’s all kinds of things, but the biggest lesson this weekend is trying to stay positive through all the negativity. People try to put water in your boat and make you sink, and you just have to keep them out. That’s what my guys do the best. We put our arms around each other, we put our heads down together. We don’t complain when we lose, we just do our thing and that’s what I’m most proud of today.” TO HAVE TEN WINS AT ONE FACILITY, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?“It’s huge. When I was 21, I was racing Super Comp dragster, and my dad said for my 21st birthday, he’d let me come out here and race. We had a great time, so I’ve been racing at this facility for a long time. Being that it was here when I got my first win with Elite Motorsports in 2014, we doubled that weekend with the K&N Challenge, won the fall race, did the exact same thing in 2015, and throughout the years have done, obviously, very well and clinched a handful of championships at this very racetrack. It’s kind of hard to even think negatively when you pull in the gate here, because you just see things that trigger memories, and the winner’s circle that goes on in the staging lanes, the sprinkles and confetti and all of the great things we do here, it’s kind of our happy place. I love it.” YOUR RIVALRY WITH GREG (ANDERSON) HAS CHANGED OVER THE YEARS. WHY IS THAT SO SPECIAL FOR YOU?“Greg (Anderson) has 100 and something wins and five world championships. He’s one of the baddest dudes to ever race Pro Stock. To be able to go toe to toe with him is pretty cool for me as a Pro Stock fan before I was ever a driver. When I first came on the scene, I was 19 years old, and I can only imagine what they thought, right? Here’s this… No girls did it ever, really, and here’s this young kid, and she’s going to come in here. We didn’t have a lot of success at the beginning, but I’m sure the thought was ‘she’ll just be a flash in the pan,’ or ‘she won’t do well and she’ll be gone.’ They had me pegged wrong because I went to work. It took a long time before we were successful. It means so much to me because it went from I feel like he hated me and didn’t want to be the first guy to lose to me, and with an awesome sense of humor, that’s what happened in Chicago. We went through a lot together. Some really low points. I’ve watched him win, he’s watched me win. We’re not best friends, but to have a mutual respect for one another. That’s something he said to me at the Dallas Champions dinner was that you never gave up, and you worked hard and you drove crap that wouldn’t qualifying. When these kids come in now with checkbooks, they want instant gratification. They don’t work hard for it. That meant a lot to me coming from him that he saw that in me. I’m glad there’s some mutual respect there. He wants it too, and we both bring our A-game.”  APPROACHING YOUR SIXTH CHAMPIONSHIP, DO YOU FEEL IT’S YOURS YET?“No. I definitely don’t feel like it’s ours. We have to go out there and continue to earn it. Had you asked me that 12 races ago, I’d say you’re nuts if you told me we’d be contending for a sixth championship this year, because we were absolutely horrible. I don’t think that way at all. Sure, it’s 114 points, but Pomona is points-and-a-half. A lot can happen, a lot can change, so I just try to put that out of my mind. I know it sounds silly and cliché, but I just try to focus on what’s right in front of me. I don’t want to get the bigger picture in my mind too far ahead, but at the same time believe we can do it and we’re capable.”

Round 1 Recap:Top Fuel:No. 10 Brittany Force defeated No. 7 Antron Brown with her run of 3.752 E.T. at 304.87 MPH to Brown’s 3.736 E.T. at 326.79 MPH.No. 3 Austin Prock defeated No. 14 Kelly Harper with his pass of 3.719 E.T. at 289.51 MPH to Harper’s 3.806 E.T. at 317.27 MPH. Funny Car:No. 1 Robert Hight defeated No. 16 Jeff Diehl as Diehl redlit to Hight’s 3.816 E.T. at 332.67 MPH.No. 5 John Force fell to No. 12 Blake Alexander after smoking the tires early in his run, with Alexander running 3.940 E.T. at 319.51 MPH to the winlight. Pro Stock:No. 1 Kyle Korestky defeated No. 16 Jerry Tucker with his pass of 6.552 E.T. at 208.36 MPH to Tucker’s 6.595 E.T. at 208.39 MPH,No. 8 Greg Anderson defeated No. 9 Aaron Stanfield with his run of 6.577 E.T. at 207.27 MPH to Stanfield’s 6.612 E.T. at 207.69.No. 5 Matt Hartford defeated No. 12 Camrie Caruso with his run of 6.584 E.T. at 208.07 MPH to Caruso’s 7.370 E.T. at 142.10 MPH, facing issues mid-run.No. 2 Erica Enders defeated No. 15 Mason McGaha after her run of 6.554 E.T. at 208.81 MPH to McGaha’s 6.625 E.T. at 207.30 MPH.No. 7 Troy Coughlin, Jr. defeated No. 10 Bo Butner, III with his run of 6.573 E.T. at 208.26 MPH to Butner’s 6.582 E.T. at 207.75 MPH.No. 14 Deric Kramer fell to No. 3 Christian Cuadra after running 6.597 E.T. at 205.57 MPH to Kramer’s 6.601 E.T. at 207.75 MPH.No. 6 Dallas Glenn fell to No. 11 Jeg Coughlin, Jr. after facing issues on the start, with J. Coughlin, Jr. running 6.595 E.T. at 207.43 MPH. Round 2:Top Fuel:Prock fell to Ashley on his run of 3.727 E.T. at 319.07 MPH to Ashley’s 3.703 E.T. at 331.69 MPH.B. Force fell to Torrence with her run of 3.785 E.T. at 311.85 MPH to Torrence’s 3.674 E.T. at 330.72 MPH. Funny Car:Hight defeated DeJoria on his run of 3.859 E.T. at 333.99 MPH to DeJoria’s 4.085 E.T. at 247.79 MPH. Pro Stock:Koretsky fell to Anderson with his run of 6.567 E.T. at 207.91 MPH to Anderson’s 6.583 E.T. at 207.98 MPH, including a .004 reaction time.Hartford defeated Cuadra, Jr. with his run of 6.589 E.T. at 207.78 MPH to Cuadra, Jr.’s 6.612 E.T. at 206.86 MPH.Enders defeated T. Coughlin, Jr. with her run of 6.570 E.T. at 208.36 MPH to T. Coughlin, Jr.’s 6.616 E.T. at 207.88 MPH.J. Coughlin, Jr. defeated C. Cuadra with his pass of 6.616 E.T. at 206.70 MPH to C. Cuadra’s 6.615 E.T. at 207.75 MPH. Semifinals:Funny Car:Hight defeated Alexander with his run of 3.868 E.T. at 330.55 MPH as Alexader faces issues on the run. Pro Stock:Hartford fell to Anderson on his run of 7.294 E.T. at 153.42 MPH to Anderson’s 6.566 E.T. at 207.88 MPH.Enders defeated J. Coughlin, Jr. with her run of 6.578 E.T. at 207.81 MPH to Coughlin, Jr.’s 6.948 E.T. at 144.12 MPH and pulling the chutes at the 800-foot mark. Finals:Funny Car:Hight defeated Tasca, III after Tasca had to pedal his car and struggle on the run to Hight’s 3.851 E.T. at 326.79 MPH. Pro Stock:Enders defeated Anderson with her pass of 6.557 E.T. at 208.23 MPH to Anderson facing issues on the start.

Elite Motorsports Driver Extends Her Points Lead At Penultimate Event Of The NHRA Season

LAS VEGAS (October 29, 2023) – Elite Motorsports standout Erica Enders earned her second consecutive victory today at the NHRA Nevada Nationals, effectively extending her lead in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Pro Stock category. Enders, the winningest woman in motorsports, has more wins at this facility than any other professional driver. “You can’t do this alone,” said Enders. “No matter how much negativity surrounds you, if you don’t let it in your boat, it can’t sink you. I think that’s the biggest lesson from this weekend. When our backs are against the wall, that’s when these guys perform flawlessly. Greg’s right on my heels and that was a big round win for us. I’m just really proud. I give God all the glory. When you dig deep and play with all the heart that you have, they can’t get you.” All nine Elite Motorsports Pro Stock entries successfully secured spots on the eliminations ladder at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Enders started race day from the No. 2 position as she began her hard-fought journey to the winners circle.  Elite Motorsports teammates Troy Coughlin Jr. and Bo Butner lined up against each other in the first of two all-Elite first-round matchups. Troy Jr. got the starting line advantage and took the win with an impressive pass of 6.573 seconds at 208.26 mph in his JEGS.comCamaro.  It was an interesting battle to the finish line when Fernando Cuadra Sr., in the black Corral Boots Mustang, faced his eldest son, Fernando Cuadra Jr., in his yellow Corral Boots Camaro. While F. Cuadra Jr.’s car lagged at the starting line, he was able to get in front of his father by the half-track point to advance to the next round.  The third Corral Boots machine, piloted by Cristian Cuadra, defeated Deric Kramer for a first-round win advancing him to the quarterfinals. C. Cuadra’s killer reaction time of .006 seconds secured the holeshot win for the talented young driver.  Jeg Coughlin Jr. started his return to Pro Stock on a high note with a win against Dallas Glenn. The five-time Pro Stock world champion took his new SCAG Power Equipment Camaro to the stripe with a run of 6.595 at 207.43. Reigning five-time Pro Stock world champion Enders powered her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Camaro to a win against Mason McGaha.  The first round of eliminations also paired No. 8 qualifier Greg Anderson against Elite Motorsports standout Aaron Stanfield who qualified No. 9 behind the wheel of his Janac Bros. / Melling Engine Parts Camaro. Both cars had great runs but it was Anderson who crossed the finish line first. Stanfield’s Elite teammate Jerry Tucker was the only other Elite driver to make a first-round exit against a non-Elite entry. While Stanfield made an uncharacteristically early exit in the Pro Stock category, he clinched his third consecutive world championship in the Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown.  As one side of the ladder was stacked with Elite Motorsports entries, the quarterfinal round of competition was an intense one for everyone still in the game. C. Cuadra faced his new teammate Jeg Jr. in the first matchup. Jeg Jr. launched off the starting line with a .004-second reaction time to defeat C. Cuadra on a holeshot. Enders faced Troy Jr. in yet another all-Elite pairing. Enders went 6.570 at 208.36 to get the win. F. Cuadra Jr. did not have enough to get by Matt Hartford. After watching Anderson defeat Hartford in the first semifinal pairing, Elite Motorsports teammates Enders and Jeg Jr. lined up against each other. They launched within four-thousandths of a second as Enders left with a reaction time of .014 seconds and Jeg Jr. had a light of .018 seconds. Ultimately it was Enders who crossed the finish line first.  In the finals, Enders and Anderson faced each other for the 54th time in their careers. Enders got the starting line advantage and soared past the finish line to pick up her fourth win this season and the 10th at this facility.  The final event of the season takes place November 9-12 when the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series rolls into Pomona Calif. for the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals at NHRA In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.  ***

Unofficial Pro Stock Points Standings For The Countdown To The Championship

1. Erica Enders 2,576 2. Greg Anderson 2,462 3. Matt Hartford 2,421   4. Dallas Glenn 2,397 5. Aaron Stanfield 2,363 6. Troy Coughlin Jr. 2,362 7. Kyle Koretsky 2,288 8. Deric Kramer 2,283 9. Cristian Cuadra 2,24510. Camrie Caruso 2,23711. Bo Butner 2,21912. Fernando Cuadra Jr. 2,18613. Jerry Tucker 2,13114. Mason McGaha 2,11415. Chris McGaha 2,10416. Fernando Cuadra Sr. 2,011

Photos

Erica Enders earned her fourth win of the season aboard her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage / Melling Performance / SCAG Power Equipment Camaro. (Photo credit: Auto Imagery)

Aaron Stanfield takes to the track in his Janac Brothers / JC3 Energy / Melling Engine Parts Camaro at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. (Photo credit: Auto Imagery)

Troy Coughlin Jr. launches his JEGS.com Camaro. (Photo credit: Auto Imagery)

Bo Butner powers onto the track in his Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Camaro. (Photo credit: Auto Imagery)

Fernando Cuadra Jr. in his Corral Boots Camaro. (Photo credit: Auto Imagery)

Jerry Tucker warms up the tires of his Outlaw Mile Hi Light Beer Camaro. (Photo credit: Auto Imagery)

Cristian Cuadra in his Corral Boots / Cuadra Mustang. (Photo credit: Auto Imagery)

Fernando Cuadra Sr. in his Corral Boots / Cuadra Mustang. (Photo credit: Auto Imagery)

Jeg Coughlin Jr. returned to Pro Stock in Las Vegas this weekend. (Photo credit: Auto Imagery)

LAS VEGAS (October 29, 2023) — Justin Ashley and the Leatherwood Distillery Top Fuel dragster powered by Phillips Connect came up just short of their bid for a seventh Top Fuel in this season today at the NHRA Nevada Nationals. Ashley, the No. 6 qualifier, outran Dan Mercier, Austin Prock and Steve Torrence before losing to Mike Salinas in the final round. The successful day kept Ashley in the championship conversation as the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series heads to Pomona, California for the season finale in two weeks.  Justin Ashley and Leatherwood Distillery Top Fuel dragster powered by Phillips Connect, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery “I feel really good about the way the day went today,” said Ashley. “It was critical for us to be in the championship hunt and give ourselves a realistic chance going into Pomona by the time this race was over. I think that we did a good job of accomplishing that. One more round would have made a big difference and we would have loved to have come away with the win. Anytime you go to a final round in a race like this, at such a crucial point in the season that is super important. We feel good and I am just looking forward to trying to take those next steps.”   Ashley faced Canadian drag racer Mercier in the opening round looking to kick start his championship hopes. As the No. 6 qualifier the Leatherwood Distillery Top Fuel dragster powered by Phillips Connect had lane choice and Ashley took full advantage getting a starting line advantage and never trailing in the drag race. Ashley’s winning time of 3.736 seconds was enough to get the win over Mercier’s solid 3.752 second pass.   In the quarterfinals Ashley drew fellow Countdown competitor Prock and his John Force Racing backed Top Fuel dragster. Once again Ashley was first off the line with a reaction time advantage .043 to .060 and his much improved 3.703 second pass prevailed over Prock’s 3.727 second run. The win advanced Ashley into the semifinals and race against Torrence, one of the drivers he is chasing for the Top Fuel world championship.   Looking for a 40-point swing in the championship standings Toyota teammates Ashley and Torrence pulled up to the starting line. Ashley was looking to overcome a slight performance disadvantage and he used his starting line expertise to jump off the line with a .036 second reaction time and hold off Torrence at the finish line with a slower elapsed time 3.730 seconds to 3.680 seconds. Ashley advanced to his eighth final round of the season.  The Leatherwood Distillery Top Fuel dragster powered by Phillips Connect, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery “Our goal coming into this race was getting four win lights,” said Ashley, who raced to his first final round at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. “It’s just so tough out here. Steve is a great competitor. He’s a Toyota teammate and that car is running great but you know, there’s no quit in this team. This Leatherwood Distillery Toyota Phillips Connect team, just grinds and grinds. I couldn’t be prouder of this team. We are trying to stack as many rounds up today as possible and we have more work to do.”   Racing the No. 1 qualifier Salinas in the final round Ashley was looking for his seventh win of the season. Ashley was first off the line but his 11,000-horsepower Top Fuel dragster overpowered the track and opened the door for Salinas to race to the win. At the end of the day Ashley is only 82 points out of first place which with points and a half is only three rounds.   “Going to the final was big for points, which is most important but in addition to the points, it gives us more data and information,” said Ashley. “We haven’t been able to go rounds the last few races so when you don’t go rounds you don’t pick up the points but we also don’t get more data and information. It was crucial for us just for the sake of momentum to stack some round wins on top of each other this weekend.”   Qualifying Results Q1: 3.748 sec, 330.72 mph; Qual. 3 Q2: 3.714 sec; 334.07 mph Qual. 6 Q3: 4.711 sec, 130.68 mph; Qual. 7 Q4: 3.708 sec, 334.82 mph; Qual. 6 Bonus Points: +1 (Third quickest of Q1)   Race Results   First RoundJustin Ashley, Leatherwood Distillery dragster powered by Phillips Connect, (.065), 3.736, 326.79 mph def. Dan Mercier, dragster, (.129), 3.752, 304.87 mph Second RoundJustin Ashley, Leatherwood Distillery dragster powered by Phillips Connect, (.043), 3.703, 331.69 mph def. Austin Prock, Montana Brand dragster, (.043), 3.727, 319.07 mph  SemifinalsJustin Ashley, Leatherwood Distillery dragster powered by Phillips Connect, (.036), 3.730, 328.46 mph def. Steve Torrence, Capco Contractors dragster, (.097), 3.680, 331.77 mphFinal Round Mike Salinas, Valley Services dragster, (.086), 3.673, 333.16 mph def.  Justin Ashley, Leatherwood Distillery dragster powered by Phillips Connect, (.054), 5.796, 120.56 mph Top Fuel Top Ten1. Steve Torrence       2483 2. Doug Kalitta             2468 3. Leah Pruett             2449 4. Mike Salinas           2407 5. Justin Ashley          2401 6. Antron Brown         2337 7. Brittany Force         2303 8. Austin Prock            2256 9. Tony Schumacher   2248 10. Clay Millican         2227

LAS VEGAS (October 29, 2023) — Veteran Top Fuel driver TJ Zizzo wrapped up his return to the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season with a strong showing at the NHRA Nevada Nationals even if it did not culminate with a trip to the winner’s circle. Making his seventh trip to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Zizzo and the Rust-Oleum Top Fuel dragster team kept his streak alive of qualifying every time he has entered the NHRA national event. After two days of qualifying Zizzo wound up No. 13 and faced championship contender Doug Kalitta in the first round. Zizzo knew he would have his hands full but based on all the changes the team made this season he was up to the challenge.   “We have a completely new operation which is brand new from tip to tail,” said Zizzo. “Being able to go out to our first event earlier this year, after testing, and go to the semifinal round was huge. We stumbled a little and we were humbled at our next event. We kept working on every race and we are ending on a super high note here in Las Vegas.  These are things I am proud of that we persevere. We don’t quit. We keep our heads down and keep on working. I just wish we could go to Pomona in two weeks.”   After four qualifying runs Zizzo and his Mike Kern tuned 11,000-horsepower Top Fuel dragster made their best run of qualifying on Saturday night, a 3.800 second pass at 326.00 mph which moved him up to No. 13 going into race day. Facing Kalitta the Rust-Oleum Top Fuel team was ready to build on their Saturday night success. The team knew they were behind the eight ball but felt that could make an improved run in the first round.   “This weekend we came here with brand new cylinder heads from Don Schumacher Racing,” said Zizzo. “Why would we do that? We do it because we’re confident in the parts. The only thing that was a negative this weekend is that we have a little bit of new car blues. We’re still working through some things and we’ve only made two dozen runs plus on this car. Now little things are creeping up on us like power wires. Once again as a team, we worked really hard we figured the problems out. We made our Q2 pass during E1.”   Kalitta was first off the line but Zizzo and the Rust-Oleum were right with the Mac Tools team heading down the track. At the finish line Kalitta made the quickest runs of the session for the win posting a 3.683 second pass at 334.73 mph in front of a much-improved time by Zizzo, 3.719 seconds at 318.99 mph.   “We’re not going to change much over the winter,” said Zizzo. “We have made great strides and we will be ready for next season. This is a great team and being able to spend time with my family is a blessing. I got to drive with my dad out to the races. That’s over 2,000 miles together and it was awesome. The on track performance is important but so are the special moments off the track.”   Following this weekend’s race Zizzo will be showing off a Rust-Oleum Wipe New Top Fuel dragster at the SEMA show this week at the Las Vegas Convention Center.   Qualifying Results Q1: 3.910 sec; 262.33 mph; Qual. 7 Q2: 19.996 sec; 38.23 mph; Qual. 14 Q3: 10.322 sec; 79.20 mph; Qual. 15 Q4: 3.800 sec, 326.00 mph; Qual. 13   Race Results   First Round Doug Kalitta, Mac Tools dragster, (.060), 3.683, 334.73 mph def. TJ Zizzo, Rust-Oleum dragster, (0.119), 3.719, 318.99 mph

LAS VEGAS (October 29, 2023) —- With one more race on the schedule, second year Pro Stock driver Camrie Caruso is looking to make her first Top Ten finish exiting the NHRA Nevada Nationals. The third generation drag racer has worked her way up the NHRA ranks from Junior Dragster to the most competitive door-slammer class in the world, NHRA Pro Stock.          Driving the Powerbuilt Tequila Comisario Day of the Dead Chevrolet Camaro Caruso made four solid qualifying runs on Friday and Saturday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. On Saturday Caruso made her quickest run in qualifying a solid 6.632 second pass at 205.63 mph which moved her up to No. 10 before she settled into the No. 12 position coming into race day.

 Camrie Caruso and Powerbuilt Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro, photo by Innovative Creation Experts

“We were consistent in qualifying, but we just couldn’t break through to get into the top half,” said Caruso, who won the first Pro Stock Allstar Callout specialty race. “This class is so tight when it comes to performance and our KB Titan Racing cars have been doing really well. We didn’t make great runs on Saturday, but we stepped up on Saturday.”
 
In the opening round today the Powerbuilt Tequila Comisario Day of the Dead Chevrolet Camaro pulled up beside a KB Titan Racing powered Camaro driven by championship contender Matt Hartford. Caruso was looking to move up higher in the top ten and Hartford was racing to keep his championship hopes alive. Both Camaros jumped off the line together but as Caruso accelerated down track the car made a move to the middle and on a cool windy track her race car began sashaying in the left lane. In a veteran move Caruso kept her car on all four Goodyears but had to lift as Hartford drove away.
 
“I had my hands full for sure and I really wanted to stay with it, but I didn’t think it was a good idea,” said Caruso. “That was the closest I have come to getting upside down. This Powerbuilt Tequila Comisario Day of the Dead Chevrolet Camaro is too beautiful to destroy for a win light. I had a good weekend but we just need to find a little more power earlier in the weekend so we can run up front with the top cars.”

 
Going into the final race of the season Caruso will be looking to pick up her second win of the season and cap and solid second year on the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. With two weeks off Caruso will be back at the KB Titan Racing shop following a busy week at the SEMA show at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
 
“I will be spending a couple days at the SEMA show for sponsor appearances and some media opportunities then my focus is going to shift to winning the last race of the season,” said Caruso, who picked up her first Pro Stock win this season at the Arizona Nationals. “We have some big plans for the off-season and this Countdown was an improved effort over last year. I have big goals and I want to finish 2023 strong and carry some momentum into 2024.”   
 
Qualifying Results
Q1: 6.646 sec, 205.66 mph; Qual. 10
Q2: 6.647 sec, 205.66 mph; Qual. 12
Q3: 6.632 sec, 205.63 mph; Qual. 10
Q4: 6.643 sec, 205.91 mph; Qual. 12
Bonus Points: 0
 
Race Results
 
First Round
Matt Hartford, Total Seal Chevrolet Camaro, (.059), 6.584, 208.07 mph def. Camrie Caruso, Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro, (.054), 7.370, 142.10 mph def. 
 
Pro Stock Camping World Top Ten
1. Erica Enders             2576
2. Greg Anderson       2462
3. Matt Hartford         2421
4. Dallas Glenn           2397
5. Aaron Stanfield      2363
6. Troy Coughlin Jr      2362
7. Deric Kramer           2283
8. Kyle Koretsky          2288
9. Cristian Cuadra       2245
10. Camrie Caruso      2237