Three-time Hell Tour champion scores back-to-back wins in two different cars

PEORIA, IL – June 16, 2021 – Inside, outside, through the middle… lapped traffic was everywhere as the leaders battled back-and-forth through the pack at Peoria Speedway Wednesday night.

Bobby Pierce was clawing his way through the slower cars in his way each and every corner as he chased down race leader Ryan Unzicker in the caution-free, 40-lap event. He started on the pole, right to the inside of Unzicker, but it took him 32 laps to catch and pass the MB Customs #24.

And finally, he did. Ripping the top lane like he’s so often found doing, Pierce caught a small pause in traffic and used it to its full potential, making the move around Unzicker as he drove away into more traffic for his 29th career Hell Tour Feature win.

Even the biggest Pierce fans know his favorite lane is all the way up by the wall, sometimes scraping the paint off of it. But he almost had to be convinced to try it this time.

“My dad kinda gave me the idea,” Pierce told DIRTVision pit reporter Georgia Henneberry in Victory Lane. “He showed me with the sticks there to possibly try it out. I wasn’t gonna ride in second – I was gonna end up trying it.”

Pierce, of Oakwood, IL, did ride in second for the better part of the race, watching outside polesitter Unzicker step out to a small lead in the opening laps. Once he reached the rear of the field, the battle was on, and his competition wasn’t going to let him by easy.

“Ryan was doing a good job – I could tell he was watching his guys too. Any time I got some momentum on the top, he would move up to the middle and block a little bit. I think his tires went away a little bit. Luckily it stayed green for a long time and we were able to pull it off,” Pierce said.

Unzicker, of El Paso, IL, favored the bottom lane for most of the race until Pierce began showing him a wheel lap-after-lap. Unzicker appeared to have a better drive on corner exit, which pulled him past Pierce several times down the straightways.

That was, until Pierce went back to the top and found the break he needed from the heavy traffic to zoom past him and swipe the spot away permanently – but not before executing one of the boldest, full-send passes all race as he dove into Turn 3 on Lap 25. Unzicker slid back underneath him to regain the spot out of Turn 4, bringing the full Peoria crowd to the edge of their seats.

“Hopefully I raced him clean. He left the door open and I decided to shoot in there after I gave him a little love tap and let him know I was there,” Pierce said.

Defending Summer Nationals champion Brian Shirley had the best seat in the house for this lap-after-lap battle and decided to take advantage of it himself on Lap 34 – getting by Unzicker on the top side with just six laps remaining. Tanner English and Devin Moran had been locked in a battle of their own for several laps and were both in hot pursuit of Shirley but came up just short in the top-five.

This made it back-to-back Feature wins in two nights for the three-time Hell Tour champion, this time driving a different car, more geared towards the tighter, bullring-style tracks like Peoria. It ended up working out in his favor, making him $5,000 richer and breaking the tie between he and fellow three-time tour champ Scott Bloomquist for fourth on the all-time wins list.

UP NEXT

The Hell Tour action continues Thursday night at the Kankakee County Speedway in Kankakee, IL, for Round #3 of the 2021 campaign. Join us at the track or watch live on DIRTVision pres. by Drydene.

Feature (40 Laps) 1. 32-Bobby Pierce[1]; 2. 3S-Brian Shirley[3]; 3. 24-Ryan Unzicker[2]; 4. 81E-Tanner English[4]; 5. 9-Devin Moran[8]; 6. 25- Jason Feger[7]; 7. 12-Ashton Winger[17]; 8. 38J-Jake Little[16]; 9. 10-Paul Parker[6]; 10. 21B-Rich Bell[5]; 11. 21JR-Billy Moyer Jr[12]; 12. 14G-Joe Godsey[14]; 13. B12-Kevin Weaver[11]; 14. 18-Jeffrey Ledford[9]; 15. 4G-Bob Gardner[18]; 16. 1W-Donny Walden[13]; 17. 74-Mitch McGrath[19]; 18. T2-Todd Bennett[21]; 19. 16-Rusty Griffaw[20]; 20. 35-Austin Simpson[10]; 21. 48-Tim Lance[15]; 22. 51-Dean Carpenter[22]

2-FOR-2: Hoffman Nets Back-to-Back Victories with Second Win of 2021 Tour at Peoria

Nicely rebounds 14th-to-5th after breaking in Heat Race

Nick Hoffman spent Wednesday night at Peoria Speedway just doing what champion drivers do – dominating and winning more races.

For the second night in-a-row, Hoffman, of Mooresville, NC, had a perfect night – setting fast time in Qualifying, winning his Heat Race and leading all 25 laps of the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals Feature – the 40th of his career.

“I was trying to pick the smoothest line down this front straightaway, just didn’t want anything to happen. Hats off to the track prep crew, it was probably the best I’ve ever seen this place,” Hoffman said.

The quarter-mile was very racey, and although Hoffman generally stayed clear of having to race with any of his competitors, he knew what could have been had things gone different in the qualifying events earlier on in the program.

Tyler Nicely, of Owensboro, KY, is always a threat to win wherever he goes and often times is a challenger when Hoffman’s up front. However, he broke on Lap 1 of his Heat Race and was forced to start 14th on the Feature grid, making it back up to fifth by Lap 25 – something Hoffman would have rather raced out with him instead had he not broke in the Heat.

“I just hate it for Tyler [Nicely] there in that Heat Race,” Hoffman said. “I think we could’ve raced pretty well out there [in the Feature].

“Dave [Wietholder] – he’s one of my customers – he’s been on a tear up here, so for him to run second, that’s pretty cool.”

UP NEXT

The Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals action continues Thursday night at the Kankakee County Speedway in Kankakee, IL, for Round #3 of the 2021 campaign. Join us at the track or watch live on DIRTVision pres. by Drydene.

CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES REV GROUP GRAND PRIX ROAD AMERICA IN ELKHART LAKE, WISCONSIN TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE JUNE 18-20 RACE 9 OF 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES SEASON Chevrolet carries momentum to Road AmericaTeam Chevy coming off win, four podium finishers at Detroit doubleheaderDETROIT (June 16, 2021) – Runner-up in the second race of the July 2020 doubleheader at Road America was Pato O’Ward’s calling card entering the 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. Now, with confidence garnered from two victories in the past five races with a fast Chevrolet-powered race car, the 22-year-old Arrow McLaren SP driver is looking forward to settling some unfinished business this weekend at Road America. O’Ward recorded his first Series pole on the 4-mile, 14-turn road course, led 43 of the 55 laps and wound up second to current teammate Felix Rosenqvist in the second race. In the opener, O’Ward advanced four positions to finish eighth. “It’s not easy to compete in INDYCAR. I think we showed we’re contenders,” O’Ward said after the race at the Wisconsin venue. He has consistently showed the race craft, poise and demeanor not only of a contender for race wins but a title threat through the first half of the season. O’Ward moved to the top of the championship standings with a victory and third-place finish from the pole in the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix doubleheader last weekend on the Belle Isle temporary street circuit. His second win of the season also pushed Chevrolet to the top of the Manufacturers’ Championship standings. “Obviously, there’s been very high and very low moments. But these guys gave me an opportunity, and I told them I will get you your wins and I will get you your results, so I hope my bosses are proud of me” O’Ward said. “I’m very excited to see what we can accomplish in the next years.” In the short term, securing another solid result in the 55-lap Rev Group Grand Prix presented by AMR on Sunday, June 20, is the goal shared by O’Ward and 10 other Team Chevy drivers. Team Penske teammates Josef Newgarden and Will Power will seek their second win at the facility since the NTT INDYCAR SERIES returned in 2016 after a seven-year absence. Both won from the pole, and Power has added second-place finishes the past two years. There are two changes to the Team Chevy lineup for the race weekend due to drivers not being medically cleared by INDYCAR to compete. Oliver Askew, the 2019 Indy Lights champion, will drive the No. 21 Direct Supply Chevrolet for Ed Carpenter Racing after Rinus VeeKay underwent successful outpatient surgery for a fractured left clavicle sustained Monday, June 14, in a cycling incident. Askew, 24, who made 12 NTT INDYCAR SERIES starts in 2020, most recently filled the seat of the No. 7 Vuse Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet in the second race at Belle Isle after Felix Rosenqvist crashed in Race 1 and was not cleared to drive. In Rosenqvist’s place this weekend, Formula One veteran Kevin Magnussen will be behind the wheel of the No. 7 Chevrolet in his NTT INDYCAR SERIES debut. Magnussen, 28, who drove for McLaren in F1, co-drove a Cadillac prototype to an IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship overall victory last weekend in Detroit. NBCSN will telecast the REV Group Grand Prix live at noon ET Sunday, June 20. The 55-lap/220.5-mile race will also be broadcast live on INDYCAR Radio Network affiliates, Sirius 211, XM 205, Indycar.com, and on the INDYCAR Mobile app powered by NTT DATA. Practice and qualifications will stream on Peacock.
Team Chevy will be represented by:A.J. Foyt EnterprisesDalton Kellett, No. 4 K-Line Insulators AJ Foyt RacingSebastien Bourdais, No. 14 ROKiT AJ Foyt RacingArrow McLaren SPPato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren SPKevin Magnussen, No. 7 Vuse Arrow McLaren SPCarlinMax Chilton, No. 59 Gallagher CarlinEd Carpenter RacingConor Daly, No. 20 U.S. Air ForceOliver Askew, No. 21 Direct SupplyTeam PenskeJosef Newgarden, No. 2 Hitachi Team PenskeScott McLaughlin, No. 3 PPG Team PenskeWill Power, No. 12 Verizon 5G Team PenskeSimon Pagenaud, No. 22 Menards Team Penske
Chevrolet IndyCar V6 Year-By-Year Results since 20122021 ­– 3 wins, 3 poles in 8 racesWins – Pato O’Ward (Texas2, Detroit2); Rinus VeeKay (Indy RC1). Pole – Pato O’Ward (Barber Motorsports Park, Detroit); Josef Newgarden (Detroit2).2020 – 7 wins, 11 poles in 14 racesWins – Simon Pagenaud (Iowa1); Josef Newgarden (Iowa2, St. Louis2, Indy RC2, St. Petersburg); Will Power (Mid-Ohio1, Indy RC3, St. Petersburg). Poles – Josef Newgarden (Texas, Road America1, Iowa2), Will Power (Indianapolis road course, St. Louis1, Mid-Ohio1, Indy RC3; St. Petersburg), Pato O’Ward (Road America2), Conor Daly (Iowa1), Rinus VeeKay (Indy road course October)2019 – 9 wins, 9 poles in 17 racesDriver/owner championship (Josef Newgarden/Roger Penske); Indianapolis 500 win (Simon Pagenaud)2018 – 6 wins, 9 poles in 17 racesIndianapolis 500 win (Will Power)2017 – 10 wins, 11 poles in 17 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Josef Newgarden/Roger Penske)2016 – 14 wins, 13 poles in 16 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Simon Pagenaud/Roger Penske)2015 – 10 wins, 16 poles in 16 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Scott Dixon/Chip Ganassi);Indianapolis 500 win (Juan Pablo Montoya). First manufacturer to capture all titles since Chevrolet returned to INDYCAR in 20122014 – 12 wins, 14 poles in 18 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Will Power/Roger Penske)2013 – 10 wins, 11 poles in 19 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; Indianapolis 500 win (Tony Kanaan)2012 – 11 wins, 10 poles in 15 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Ryan Hunter-Reay/Michael Andretti)Total – 92 wins, 102 earned poles in 157 races

World of Outlaws gear up for grueling Upper Midwest StretchCONCORD, NC – June 16, 2021 – The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models are a month away from one of their most grueling stretches in 2021. Four races. Six days. Three states. On the heels of a trip to Jackson Motorplex, The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet make their first Tuesday stop of the season. They’ll visit Gondik Law Speedway in Superior, WI on July 13.  It’s the fifth time the World of Outlaws has visited the Wisconsin venue. Last year, three-time and defending Series champion Brandon Sheppard led all 50-laps to score his then 64th career Series win.  Joining the card that night is the speedway’s modified and hornet divisions.  PREVIOUS GONDIK LAW SPEEDWAY WINNERS2020- Brandon Sheppard2013-Tim McCreadie2010- Jimmy Mars1989- Scott Bloomquist After a few days off, the Series moves to River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, ND on Friday, July 16. It’s the only trip to the Peace Garden state in 2021.  River Cities has held 12 World of Outlaws Late Models events. Former Series champions Tim McCreadie and Darrell Lanigan are tied with the most wins at the speedway (2).  The last time the Series visited the iconic bullring in 2019, it was Sheppard who found Victory Lane. The “Rocket Shepp” stole the lead from 2015 Series champion Shane Clanton early in traffic and held off a late charge from Ricky Weiss to score the victory.  NOSA Sprints and Street Stocks will join the World of Outlaws Late Models in action that night.   PREVIOUS RIVER CITIES SPEEDWAY WINNERS2019 – Brandon Sheppard on July 12 2018 – Mike Marlar on July 13 2017 – Shane Clanton on July 14 2015 – Tim McCreadie on July 10 2014 – Tim Fuller on July 18 2012 – Darrell Lanigan on July 13 2011 – Tim McCreadie on July 15 2010 – Austin Hubbard on July 9 2009 – Josh Richards on July 10 2008 – Brady Smith on July 112007 – Tim Fuller on June 12 2006 – Darrell Lanigan on May 30 On Saturday, July 17, the World of Outlaws return to Minnesota for the third time in eight days, visiting the I-94 Sure Step Speedway. It’s the first time the Series will make an appearance at the Fergus Falls, MN track.  Joining The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet are the Modifieds and Street Stocks.  Tickets: https://bit.ly/3vvcMtd The weekend finishes up with a trip to Menomonie, WI for the Rumble at the Red Cedar at Red Cedar Speedway on Sunday, July 18. It’ll be the Series’ second at the venue.  The 2019 Feature saw a thrilling finish, as Chase Junghans held off Clanton in an epic duel for his third career World of Outlaws victory. PREVIOUS RIVER CITIES SPEEDWAY WINNERS2019- Chase Junghans on July 14 Tickets: https://bit.ly/3guUIex Fans who attend any of these four events will witness Brandon Sheppard’s chase for history. The New Berlin, IL driver is trying to catch Josh Richards for the most wins all-time (78), and most Series championships with (4).  The driver with the best chance to dethrone the “Rocket Shepp” this season is Chris Madden. “Smokey” is 46 points behind Sheppard, and has more World of Outlaws wins than anyone in 2021(4).   Another driver they’ll have to contend with is Ricky Weiss. The Upper Midwest swing is the closest he’ll come to his Headingley, MB home. Weiss hopes to bring the house down with a victory, as the Canadian driver is a fan-favorite when the Series travels to that part of the country.  Sheppard, Madden, and Weiss will also have to battle Rookie of the Year contenders Tyler Bruening and Ryan Gustin, along with Cade Dillard, Boom Briggs, Dennis Erb Jr., and Brent Larson as they fight to climb up the standings.

NASCAR CUP SERIES NASHVILLE SUPERSPEEDWAY ALLY 400TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT JUNE 16, 2021
MATT MCCALL, CREW CHIEF, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE Teleconference Transcript: YOU PARTICIPATED IN THE GOODYEAR TIRE TEST A COUPLE OF MONTHS IN ADVANCE OF THE NASHVILLE RACE. CAN YOU GIVE US AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT THE TEAM IS LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS WEEKEND?“We actually got to test there twice. The first time we went there, the tire wear was pretty high. Goodyear was trying to figure what compound makes sense for the race and not have tires completely worn out during a fuel run. So, we went back a second time for a little confirmation. It seemed like that right side was pretty good and seemed to be a gain. For us, we’re looking forward. There will be a little bit of practice, plus we got a little testing. But the Goodyear testing doesn’t do a ton of your own work but at least it gives you a little bit of data to try get what the best sequence will be, set-up wise, for us to unload with and make a couple of adjustments and be in a good spot there to qualify good and get a good race.”
KURT BUSCH HAS BEEN PRETTY OPEN ABOUT JUST NEEDING TO GET THE CAR TO DO WHAT IT NEEDS TO DO. CAN YOU EXPAND ON WHAT THE BIGGEST STRUGGLES ARE?“Finishing the races would be the starting point. We’ve had a lot of things happen to us. But as far as overall balance, just trying to get the window we live it to get it to what he’s been looking for has been really tight. There have been a couple of weeks there has been some rear grip. Then at Texas we were tight on exit. There’s just such a fine line to crossover to keep the front turning and still be able to have that rear grip. It’s not that it’s consistently the same thing every week. I feel like Dover was probably the first race we had that was somewhat of a clean race. We didn’t get hit by anyone or anything crazy happen during the race. And then we had a couple of our own issues, self-inflicted, that caused our balance to get off at the end of the race there. And then the road course was okay at Sonoma. And last week we never could get it free enough to what he was looking for. I think it’s all perspective there, right? From Atlanta to, I guess basically before Dover, there’s been like four or five 30th-plus finishes. And most of those were either because we were in someone else’s mess or something broke. It’s hard to work on your car when you’re not running all the races as well. We’re still concentrating on those things we think that can get better, but it’s still an overall deal in of completing the laps is going to be the best way to get there.”
IS THE PRIMARY FOCUS JUST TRYING TO GE THE SHIP RIGHTED IN A SENSE, OR IS STILL A FOCUS AND BELIEF THAT YOU GUYS CAN MAKE THE PLAYOFFS?“Well for sure, you think you can make the Playoffs. You wouldn’t go each week and that’s what you go to do, right? You go to try to win and put yourself in a spot, obviously. As fast as Hendrick Motorsports is right now, they pretty much take the top four spots. So, if you can get up there and get in those positions to give you a chance to win a race, that’s what you’re going to have to do. But there’s no different approach every week. You’re working just as hard. There are so many hours a day that you can put in and try to keep improving.  It’s interesting when you bring it up. It’s interesting when you bring it up. Like if you actually review the races for what the performance is during the event, before something happens, you would think we’re running 40th. In reality, there have been plenty of races we could have run a top-5 or top-10. It’s interesting the perspective.”
YOU RACED AN XFINITY CAR AT NASHVILLE IN MAYBE 2006 AND KURT RACED THE TRUCK THERE IN 2001. DO ANY OF THOSE MEMORIES OR NOTES OR THOUGHTS APPLY A SMIDGE? OR, DO YOU JUST NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT THOSE?“I would say not really. It helps obviously that Kurt has had some laps there. And then, going there for the tire test just got him acclimated a little bit quicker. But yeah, it’s just more or less the line you may run. As far as notes for set-up and stuff, all that stuff is way beyond what it used to be many years ago.”
DO YOU THINK YOU HAVE AN ADVANTAGE HAVING DONE THE TIRE TEST?“It’s a double-edged sword, right? You go to the tire test, and you think that maybe you had something that was close, balance-wise, and sometimes it forces you not to steer too much out of the box. We feel like we got a good baseline but we’re also going to be open to know if our speed is not where it needs to be to work on it and not just think it’s going to come to us.”
YOU HAVE AN EXISTING RAPPORT WITH HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS ON THE ENGINE-SIDE. DOES THE SUCCESS THEY’VE HAD TRICKLE DOWN TO YOU AT ALL?“Obviously the engine stuff is the biggest thing and transmissions and gears, we get all that stuff from them. From there, it’s more of working through GM if there’s any stuff that’s being shared there. But I mean yeah, obviously there speed right now is above and beyond. They have everything working their way. You look at it, relative to last year, the gains they’ve been able to make, and we’ve not been able to make those. So, we think we understand what we’ve got to work on, but we’ve not been able to show that as possible results yet. Hopefully in the next few weeks we’ll be able to do that.”
HOW IS THE TRACK USUALLY RACED AT NASHVILLE? IT THE LOW GROOVE USUALLY THE PREFERRED LINE? OR MAYBE THE UPPER GROOVE AS WELL? WHAT IS IT LIKE RACING THERE?“Obviously the bottom has always been mostly preferred now. Putting the resin down will change it some and that’ll dictate….. Obviously how these cars are in traffic are different from what they’ve previously been because everybody is so good at attitudes right, and it just makes it a lot tougher in traffic. There’s a slim chance that they won’t be completely on the bottom the whole time. Hopefully that’s how it works out so there will be a little bit of passing for the races.”
HOW IS THE RESIN DIFFERENT FROM THE PJ1 TRACTION COMPOUND? A LOT OF PEOPLE CAN’T DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN THE TWO.“Yeah, it’s not like it’s heat activated. It’s more for trying to lay rubber on the track. The PJ1 actually has some adhesion to it, so it can add to the grip level. I guess in reality, it could add grip level, but it’s more related to trying to get the rubber to lay down. Nashville is real bad about basically creating powder, so the tire would wear and the powder just gets up out of the groove and it’s really bad if you get out of the groove. So hopefully we keep all that intact and just keep the grip level up.”
ARE THERE ANY TIRE WEAR CONCERNS BASED ON WHAT YOU’VE SEEN DURING THE TESTS?“I think by the time we left the last test, everyone felt okay about what they had. There was still a slim chance, there were only three cars in the tire tests. I think there’s a possibility maybe you see the Trucks when they first go on the track, maybe you’ll see some; but I would say by the time the Cup cars are practicing and the Truck and Xfinity race, I think it’ll be somewhat okay. Now the wear, it appears there will be some, but I don’t think it’ll cause any issues I don’t believe.”
WHAT CAUSES TIRES TO CORD LIKE THEY DID DURING THE TIRE TEST?“Some of it is just that the track surface itself and then I believe we were trying to guestimate when we were at that first tire test, it had been like six or seven years or maybe eight years since anything had really been on the track. So, a lot of that is just abrasion that is created over time from weather.  And the tire we were trying to run wouldn’t lay rubber down, which just creates more and more wear and creates that powder that just runs up the track and never really gets better. That’s where we were at the first test. And then at the second test, like I said, it did clean up some. I think that everyone is hopefully that it should be in a pretty good spot for the race.”

NASCAR CUP SERIESNASHVILLE SUPERSPEEDWAYALLY 400TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPTJUNE 16, 2021

RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER/NATURE VALLEY CAMARO ZL1 1LE, Teleconference Transcript: WHEN YOU THINK OF NASHVILLE, DO YOU THINK OF RACES THAT YOU’VE BEEN IN THERE? DO YOU THINK OF TESTING THERE? DO YOU THINK OF THE PRAYER? DO YOU THINK OF GUITARS? WHAT DO YOU THINK OF? “For me, it was always kind of that racetrack that for me when I was first starting out in my career, it was really close to home. It’s only 3.5-hours away from my hometown, so I always had a lot of friends and family that came. I’ve had some good memories of the track and I’ve had some bad ones. I was actually just watching pre-race of 2011. We ended up running second in that race to Carl. Then, like you said, a lot of the testing that we did in the wintertime – it was really cold there. So, obviously now, it’ll be really hot, slick and a lot of fun.”
“There’s a lot of things that I think I remember, but also a lot of things I feel like I don’t remember – what exactly it feels like driving the car around a concrete racetrack that big and also kind of that flat. There will be a lot of things to pick up on in that 50-minute practice that we have.”
DO YOU THINK THE DRIVERS THAT HAVE ALREADY RACED AT NASHVILLE MIGHT HAVE AN ADVANTAGE THIS WEEKEND? ARE THE CARS AND THE TRACK DIFFERENT NOW THAT IT’S NOT GOING TO GIVE TOO MUCH OF AN ADVANTAGE?“I definitely think anytime you’ve raced at a racetrack, there’s a little bit of an advantage. Simulator time obviously kind of helps that transition quite a bit. And these cars are totally different than what we’ve ever ran at Nashville (Superspeedway) before. I would say most of us had a lot of test sessions there, at least in the Cup Series. So, I feel like a lot of us have been there and have had laps there. I do think there is a little bit of a comfort feeling knowing that you’ve been there before.”
IS THERE A TRACK THAT’S ON THE CURRENT SCHEDULE THAT IS MOST SIMILAR TO NASHVILLE THAT YOU GUYS ARE LOOKING AT ALL?“No, I think Nashville (Superspeedway) is kind of its own beast. It’s concrete and fairly flat compared to most other racetracks of similar size. The concrete does have a little bit of a different reaction, as far as however much rubber is laid down and things like that. It definitely took more rubber than I remember when I went back and watched some of the races, so I’m anxious to see if we can get the groove moved up instead of just running the bottom of the racetrack. I think the weather is going to be good this weekend for the opportunity to move around the racetrack, especially with the Trucks, Xfinity and Cup all in the same weekend and the weather looking good.”
SINCE YOU SAID NASHVILLE IS KIND OF ITS OWN BEAST NOW, DO YOU VIEW IT AS A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD FOR EVERY TEAM, CONSIDERING EVERYONE IS KIND OF STARTING FROM SQUARE ONE HERE THIS WEEKEND?“I wouldn’t go that far. It’s still a circle track; we’ve still got the same cars that we run every week. So, I think that the cars and teams that are the ones to beat are still the ones to beat. I feel like us drivers in a 50-minute practice session, we pick up on things really fast. One or two runs in, we kind of have everything figured out, as far as what you need in your racecar and how to get around the racetrack. I think the cars that run really well right now are still going to be the ones that you have to beat.”
LOOKING AHEAD TO POCONO RACEWAY NEXT WEEKEND, ANOTHER DOUBLEHEADER. WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM THAT EXPERIENCE WITH THAT MUCH COMPRESSION IN THE SCHEDULE, LOGISTICALLY AND ON THE TRACK THAT HELPED YOU FROM ONE DAY TO THE OTHER?“It was cool for us. Pocono (Raceway) is a track that we’ve just been average at. We had an idea going in of what we needed. Obviously, running a race and turning around and running the next day, you’re able to make those adjustments that you feel like you needed that you normally talk about the following week in your debrief; like ‘when we go back next time, I want to try this or do this’ and you’re able to implement that overnight. I think we made the right adjustments between the two races last year and I’m looking forward to doing that again. As long as you have good weather in Pocono, a doubleheader is a great idea.”
IF THE TRACK IS NEW TO YOU AND YOU GET A SHORT PRACTICE, LIKE YOU SAID, YOU GUYS ARE PROFESSIONAL AND YOU CAN PICKUP ON IT AND WHATNOT. WHAT IS YOUR RHYTHM OF A NEW TRACK? WHAT DO YOU DO TO PREPARE FOR IT? “For us and our race team at JTG Daugherty Racing, Ryan Preece and I don’t get simulator time. I think we both use the same WR1 iRacing Sim that I have right here behind me to make laps at Nashville (Superspeedway), and like you said, just get that rhythm of what everything is like. The things I remember about the racetrack when I ran it: the wall comes up really fast off of turn four; turn two exits really wide; and turn three getting in is kind of tricky. I feel like we kind of have a rhythm a little bit from running laps on iRacing or the simulator. Your team has a run log of what you want to do in that 50-minutes. It’s so condensed, so you have to have it scienced out in what you plan on going through. Going out there and running 10, 15, 20-laps to kind of figure it out, you don’t really have that opportunity. You better be ready when you get there.”
DO YOU REMEMBER – IS IT DIFFICULT TO PASS THERE? THAT’S PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST CHALLENGING PARTS OF THE TRACK, RIGHT? “Yeah, I definitely felt like it was tough to pass. But if you have a really good racecar, I think it shows there. You’re able to run up through the field. You’re able to get out and lead laps. I feel like, for us in one of the races that I watched, we stayed about three-quarters of a second right behind Carl. I could never really get any closer and never really fell any further back. It is a tough place to pass, but I do think with all three series this weekend, the heat, the temperatures, I think the racetrack could widen out and you could see some really good racing.”
HOW DO YOU THINK YOUR SEASON HAS GONE SO FAR AND WHAT’S YOUR MINDSET AS YOU GET CLOSER TO THE PLAYOFFS?“It started off, I would say, on the right foot; pretty consistent and we were happy with where we were. Then, you try to take that next step of how are we going to turn these top-12’s and top-15’s into top-10’s. You start working on your racecars and you start going through the process of trying to figure that out, as well as at the same time as everybody else is trying to make theirs faster. I think we got off a little bit, so we’re looking to kind of reset our program and kind of make another final run towards the Playoffs. We’ve still got quite a few races left that if we can get back to that consistency that we had to start the season, I feel like as those races play out, we could be back in close racing for those Playoff spots. That’s our goal, that’s our plan, and we’re going to see how that shakes out starting this weekend at Nashville.” 

 

June 16, 2021

NASCAR’s Cup Series is returning to Nashville, Tenn., for its first race there since 1984, and the Wood Brothers are back Cup racing in Music City for the first time since 1958 when team founder Glenn Wood ran 12^th at the first-ever Cup race at the city’s Fairgrounds track. 

That .596-mile oval is still hosting short-track races and is the oldest continuously operating track in America, but Sunday’s Ally 400 will be contested at Nashville Superspeedway, a relatively new 1.33-mile concrete oval in the suburb of Gladeville.

The superspeedway, which hosted IndyCar events as well as NASCAR’s Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series from 2001 to 2011 but has been closed since then, will reopen to a packed house on Sunday as all available tickets already have been sold.

Matt DiBenedetto and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team will have a bit of an advantage over some of their competitors as DiBenedetto ran an Xfinity race there in 2010 and finished 10^th. It was his second career start in NASCAR’s No. 2 series, the first coming the year before at Memphis.

DiBenedetto said he’s happy to be returning to the site of his first top-10 finish in a major NASCAR division.

“I’m excited to go there,” he said, adding that the current horsepower and handling package is another allure for him. “Any races we add to the schedule that are low downforce and high horsepower races are my favorite.”

There will be a 50-minute practice session on Saturday afternoon for the Cup Series, and qualifying for the Ally 400 is set for Sunday at 10:05 a.m. (11:05 Eastern Time). The green flag for the 300-lap race is set to fly just after 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time. There will be Stage breaks at Laps 90 and 185.

This is the first race of the season for the NBC broadcast crew, which has taken over from FOX, and the race will be shown on NBCSN. 
 

Super DIRT Week “Pre=Game” to host practice and a concert on Tuesday; Salute the Troops 150 now on Saturday night

OSWEGO, NY – June 16, 2021 – Everything is in place. The historic venue is open. The eclectic playlist of ground-pounding thunder is made. Even the parade is set to bring people back to the streets.

Racing’s Biggest Party is back at Oswego Speedway for the 49th NAPA Auto Parts Super DIRT Week, Wednesday to Sunday, October 6-10, in Oswego, NY. And all fans are invited.

CLICK HERE for tickets

“There is no underselling the excitement of seeing Super DIRT Week with fans again,” DIRTcar CEO Brian Carter said. “This is a special event not only for us and the drivers but for everyone in New York and the motorsports community. Like you, we’re eager to get this historic party going again.”

Super DIRT Week will again feature the best drivers from around the world in the Big Block, Small Block, Sportsman and Pro Stock divisions.

Before racing action commences, join the Super DIRT Week “Pre-Game” party at the Steel Palace on Tuesday, Oct. 5, with practice for all divisions from 5pm(ET) to 7pm and a free concert at 7:30pm, open to everyone.

The streets of Oswego will be flooded with a rainbow of glossy graphics, chrome parts and a familiar rumble when the Super DIRT Week parade of cars returns on Wednesday, Oct. 6, at noon to officially kick off Super DIRT Week. The cars will then return to Oswego Speedway for another practice session, from 2pm (ET) to 4pm, before the DIRTcar 358 Modifieds and Sportsman compete at Weedsport Speedway that night (7pm).

Thursday, Oct. 7, will feature practice and Time Trial sessions for the 358 Modifieds and Super DIRTcar Series throughout the day. Then, at 7pm, the 358 Modifieds and Sportsman will run the 29th Annual Hurricane 75 at Brewerton Speedway.

The DIRTcar Sportsman and Pro Stocks will get their turn to practice and Time Trial on Friday, Oct. 8, before all four divisions run their Heat Races, starting at 7pm (ET).

This year, the DIRTcar 358 Modified’s Salute the Troops 150 will take place on Saturday night, Oct. 9, starting at 5pm (ET). Practice and Last Chance Showdowns for all four divisions will be held before the 150-lap race. Another Super DIRT Week celebration for all fans and drivers will take place at 8pm (ET) after the 358 race.

Then, Sunday, Oct. 10, will end the event in spectacular fashion with headlining events for the Sportsman, Pro Stocks and Super DIRTcar Series. The DIRTcar Chevrolet Performance 75 will kick off the racing action for the day at 11am (ET). Fans will get to meet their favorite Super DIRTcar Series drivers during the noon autograph session before the DIRTcar Pro Stock 50 takes to the track at 12:30pm. Then, in its new start time for 2021, the illustrious Super DIRTcar Series Billy Whittaker Cars 200 will run at 3pm.

“We’re super excited about heading back to Oswego after the success we found the last time we were there,” said 2019 Super DIRT Week Billy Whittaker Cars 200 champion Mat Williamson. “It’s going to be nice to try to conquer it again.”

Also, new this year for fans is if you can’t make it to the event, you can watch all six days of action at Super DIRT Week live on DIRTVision with either the annual Platinum FAST PASS or the monthly FAST PASS subscription.

FULL SCHEDULE

Sun. Oct. 3

8AM                          Camper Staging begins on E. Albany St.

8AM                          Will Call opens at Albany St. Guest Services Building (Albany St. & Big Block Blvd)

8AM                          Tickets, Camping, Parking and Pit Pass sales open at Gate 6

10AM-5PM             Grounds Open for Camper Parking (not available to Blue Lot until 1pm)

Super DIRTcar Series Platinum Teams and Fulton 200 competitors Pit Parking open via Gate 6

Mon. Oct. 4

10AM-5PM             Grounds Open for Camper Parking through Gate 6

Will Call, Tickets, Camping, Parking and Pit Pass sales open at Gate 6

ALL Divisions Pit Parking open through Gate 6

12-5PM                    Tech Inspection open for ALL Divisions at Tech Tent

Tues. Oct 5

9AM-8PM                Will Call, Tickets, Camping, Parking and Pit Pass sales open at Gate 6

9AM-6PM                ALL Divisions Pit Parking open through Gate 6

9AM-6PM                Grounds Open for Camper Parking – Reservations & Credentials Required

10AM-6PM             Tech Inspection open for ALL Divisions at Tech Tent

5-7PM                       OPEN Practice for ALL Divisions

7:30PM                    Super DIRT Week Concert

Wed. Oct. 6

7AM (24 hrs.)        Will Call, Tickets, Camping, Parking and Pit Pass sales open at Gate 6 (24 Hours daily thru 8pm Sat.)

7:30AM                   ALL Divisions Pit Parking open through Gate 6

8AM                         Tech Inspection open for ALL Divisions at Tech Tent

10-5PM                    Tickets and Parking sales open at Gates 1 & 2

12:00 (Noon)         City of Oswego Parade & 50th Anniversary announcement

2-4PM                      Super DIRTcar Series, DIRTcar 358 Modifieds, DIRTcar Sportsman, and DIRTcar Pro Stock Practice

7PM                          Weedsport Speedway – Super DIRT Week ‘Kickoff Party’ – DIRTcar 358 Modifieds and Sportsman

Thurs. Oct. 7

7AM (24 hrs.)         Will Call, Tickets, Camping, Parking and Pit Pass sales open at Gate 6 (24 Hours daily thru 8pm Sat.)

8AM                          Tech Inspection open for ALL Divisions at Tech Tent

9AM-5PM                Tickets and Parking sales open at Gates 1 & 2

9AM                          Drivers Meeting – DIRTcar 358 Modifieds

9:30AM                    Drivers Meeting – Super DIRTcar Series

10AM                        Grandstands Open

10-10:55AM            DIRTcar 358 Modified Practice

11AM-11:55AM       Super DIRTcar Series Practice

1:20PM                    DIRTcar 358 Modifieds ‘Salute to the Troops’ 150 Time Trials (Top 6 Locked)

2:45PM                    Super DIRTcar Series Billy Whittaker Cars 200 Time Trials (Top 6 Locked)

7:00PM                    Brewerton Speedway – 29th Annual Hurricane 75 – DIRTcar 358 Mods and Sportsman

Fri. Oct. 8

7AM (24 hrs.)        Will Call, Tickets, Camping, Parking and Pit Pass sales open at Gate 6 (24 Hours daily thru 8pm Sat.)

10AM-9PM             Tickets and Parking sales open at Gates 1 & 2

10AM                        Inspection open for ALL Divisions at Tech Tent

11AM                        Drivers Meeting – DIRTcar Pro Stocks

11:30AM                  Drivers Meeting – DIRTcar Sportsman

12:00 (Noon)         Grandstands Open

DIRTcar Pro Stocks and Sportsman Load-in

12:30-12:55PM     DIRTcar Pro Stock Practice

1:05-1:45PM          DIRTcar Sportsman Practice

2:00-2:45PM          DIRTcar Pro Stock 50 Time Trails (Top 6 Locked)

4:00PM                    DIRTcar Sportsman Chevrolet Performance 75 Time Trials (Top 6 Locked)

5:00PM                    Track Quiet

7:00PM                    Opening Ceremonies – Friday Night Lights

DIRTcar 358 Modifieds ‘Salute to the Troops’ 150 – 20-lap Qualifying Heats

DIRTcar Pro Stock 50 – 8-lap Qualifying Heats

Super DIRTcar Series Billy Whittaker Cars 200 – 25-lap Qualifying Heats

DIRTcar Sportsman Chevrolet Performance 75 – 15-lap Qualifying Heats

Sat. Oct. 9

7AM-8PM              Will Call, Tickets, Camping, Parking and Pit Pass sales open at Gate 6

8AM-8PM              Tickets and Parking sales open at Gates 1 & 2

8AM-1PM               50th Running of NAPA Super DIRT Week Ticket & Camping Renewals available at Gate 2

8AM                        Tech Inspection open for ALL Divisions at Tech Tent

9:30AM                  Grandstands Open

10-10:25AM           DIRTcar 358 Modified Final Practice – HOT Pit

10:30-10:55AM     Super DIRTcar Series Final Practice – COLD Pit

11-11:30AM           DIRTcar Sportsman Final Practice – HOT Pit

11:35AM-Noon     DIRTcar Pro Stock Final Practice – COLD Pit

12:30PM                 DIRTcar 358 Modified Last Chance Showdowns

Super DIRTcar Series Last Chance Showdowns

DIRTcar Sportsman Last Chance Showdowns

DIRTcar Pro Stock Last Chance Showdowns

3:00PM                    DIRTcar 358 Modified ‘Salute to the Troops’ 150 Drivers Meeting

4:45PM                    DIRTcar 358 Modified ‘Salute to the Troops’ 150 Opening Ceremonies

5:00PM                    DIRTcar 358 Modified ‘Salute to the Troops’ 150

8:00PM                    Super DIRT Week Celebration

Sun. Oct. 10

7AM-4PM                Will Call, Tickets, Camping, Parking and Pit Pass sales open at Gate 6

8AM-4PM                Tickets and Parking sales open at Gates 1 & 2

9AM                           Drivers Meeting – DIRTcar Sportsman

9:15AM                    Drivers Meeting – DIRTcar Pro Stocks

9:30AM                    Drivers Meeting – Super DIRTcar Series

10:00AM                  Grandstands Open

11:00AM                  DIRTcar Sportsman Chevrolet Performance 75

12:00PM                  Super DIRTcar Series Top 30 Autograph Signings

12:30PM                  DIRTcar Pro Stocks 50

2:30PM                    Super DIRTcar Series Billy Whittaker Cars 200 Opening Ceremonies

3:00PM                    Super DIRTcar Series Billy Whittaker Cars 200

Batavia, OH (June 15, 2021) – The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series (LOLMDS) and COMP Cams Super Dirt Series (CCSDS) presented by Lucas Oil roll into Columbus, MS for a co-sanctioned event with over $110,000 in prize money on the line. Magnolia Motor Speedway is set to host the Optima Batteries Clash at the Mag Presented by Big River Steel – a three-day weekend that is one of the biggest in Mississippi. Set for June 17th – June 19th, the Clash at the Mag will have full racing programs on Thursday and Friday, capping off the weekend with a 60-lap A-Main on Saturday, paying $15,000-to-win. A complete program of Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and a $5,000-to-win main event is on tap for Thursday and Friday nights. Each night, the pit gates will open at 2:00pm, followed by general admission at 4:00pm. A driver’s meeting will take place at 7:00 pm, followed by hot laps at 7:30pm. Drivers will earn valuable points in each of the two preliminary nights that will determine the lineups for Saturday night’s finale. The top 18 in points will be locked into the A-Main, while the rest of the field will contend for one of the final transfer spots through one of the B-Mains. Joining Thursday night’s program are both Eaton Clinic Modified Sportsman paying $600-to-win and the Murphy Towing Hot Shots paying $200-to-win. Accompanying Friday’s program will be complete shows for the MSSS Murphy Towing Street Stocks paying $1,000-to-win, Trak-Star Crate Late Models paying $800-to-win, and William Wells 3 Star Tire and Auto Factory Stocks paying $500-to-win. On Saturday, the pit gates will open at 2:00pm, followed by general admission at 4:00pm. Saturday’s festivities will kick off with a Dirt Racing Outreach service from 4:30pm through 5:15pm. On-track action is slated for 7:00pm, beginning with hot laps. LOLMDS/CCSDS competition will kick off with consolation events, topped off by the $15,000-to-win Optima Batteries Clash at the Mag Presented by Big River Steel. Joining Saturday’s program are MSSS Murphy Street Stocks paying $1,000-to-win, Trak-Star Crate Late Models also paying $1,000-to-win, and Glenn’s BBQ and Fish Late Model Sportsman paying $500-to-win.  In 2020, the main event saw three different leaders, with Jimmy Owens regaining the top spot from Shane Clanton on lap 23. After several breakaway runs, Owens held off Clanton at the finish for his third Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win of the year. Clanton finished just ahead of Josh Richards who came home in third. Bobby Pierce and Tyler Erb rounded out the top five drivers. The stars of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event will be joined by a strong showing of local and regional standouts.Tim McCreadie goes into the weekend with a slim 25 point lead over Hudson O’Neal. Trailing by 195 points is Jonathan Davenport in third, Josh Richards currently sits fourth in series point standings, with Eibach Springs Rookie of the Year contender, Ricky Thornton Jr in fifth, just 25 points out of third. A three-way tie ensues for sixth between Shane Clanton, Mike Marlar, and Kyle Bronson. Tyler Erb and Jimmy Owens round out the top ten in championship points.  All three nights will be LIVE on MAVTV Plus, the home of the greatest LIVE and On-Demand grassroots motorsports programming available today. Join today at MAVTVPlus.com and gain access to over 175+ Live Races, thousands of On-Demand television programs and exclusive behind-the-scenes coverage from your favorite events. Thursday and Friday night’s shows will be available to monthly and/or yearly subscribers, and tape delayed for air on MAVTV Motorsports Network. Saturday night’s finale at Magnolia Motor Speedway will be available for yearly subscribers only, but tape delayed to air on MAVTV Motorsports Network, NBC Sports Network, and CBS Sports Network.  The entire 2021 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series TV schedule can be found on the series website at: www.lucasdirt.com/schedule/tv-schedule Track Information:Magnolia Motor SpeedwayPhone Number: 662-240-3478Location: 495 Hwy 45 South, Columbus, MS 39701Directions: 5 miles west of Columbus on US 82, then 0.4 miles south on US 45, then east on SR 182Website: www.magnoliadirt.com Tire Rules:Thursday-Friday, June 17th – 18th:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier Rib (28.5) 1350Right Rear – Hoosier (29.0) 1350 NRM, (29.0) 1350 NRMW, (29.0) White Dot 1600 NRM, (29.0) White Dot 1600 NRMW*Must use the same set of 4 tires for Time Trials, Heat Races, and B-Mains.*For the A-Main, competitors may use 2 new rear tires.*Flat tire must be replaced with a used tire of the same compound and construction to retain starting position. Saturday, June 19th:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier Rib (28.5) 1350Right Rear – Hoosier (29.0) 1350 NRM, (29.0) 1350 NRMW, (29.0) White Dot 1600 NRM, (29.0) White Dot 1600 NRMW*For the B-Mains, competitors may use 4 new tires.*For the A-Main, competitors may use 4 new tires. Event Purses:Thursday-Friday, June 17th – 18th (25 laps): 1. $5,000, 2. $3,000, 3. $2,000, 4. $1,500, 5. $1,250, 6. $1,000, 7. $950, 8. $900, 9. $850, 10. $800, 11. $700, 12. $600, 13. $600, 14. $600, 15. $600, 16. $600, 17. $550, 18. $500, 19. $500, 20. $500, 21. $500, 22. $500, 23. $500, 24. $500. = $25,000 Saturday, June 19th (60 laps): 1. $15,000, 2. $7,000, 3. $5,000, 4. $4,000, 5. $3,500, 6. $2,500, 7. $2,250, 8. $2,100, 9. $2,050, 10. $2,000, 11. $1,700, 12. $1,600, 13. $1,500, 14. $1,450, 15. $1,400, 16. $1,350, 17. $1,300, 18. $1,250, 19. $1,200, 20. $1,150, 21. $1,100, 22. $1,050, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000. = $63,450

Inside Line Promotions – PLACERVILLE, Calif. (June 15, 2021) – Dominic Scelzi capped a busy weekend of competing with the King of the West-NARC Fujitsu Series by earning his 10^th victory of the season last Saturday at Placerville Speedway.

The win was his 11^th career with the series and pulled him to within seven points in the championship lead following a frustrating opener on Friday at Ocean Speedway.

“For three reasons it was a huge night on Saturday,” he said. “For one, the recovery. We had a terrible night Friday. You have to recover from those. Reason two, I feel it’s my worst track in California over the last 10 years. To roll in there, qualify good, do everything we need to do and knock off a huge win is a big sign of where we’re at as a race team. And reason three, to win the Dave Bradway Jr. Memorial is special. It is one of the crown jewels of California.”

Scelzi started the weekend on a sour note during the 35^thannual Pombo/Sargent Classic hosted by the dirt oval in Watsonville, Calif. He qualified 20^th quickest before rallying from seventh to fourth in a heat race, which locked him into the 16^th starting position for the main event.

“We were second or third in hot laps,” he said. “We went out late in qualifying. I got about halfway down a straightaway when the car started veering left. I corrected it right and got into the wall and spun out backwards. I was disoriented by the whole thing. I had them push me back off and it started doing the same thing again. I stayed three-quarter throttle down the straightaways and limped it through the corners. We came in and found the right front broke where the bottom radius rod mounts. When I was turning the axle was moving in the car. I was relieved to figure that out because I was confused with what was going on.

“We changed that for the heat race and went seventh to fourth. I raced a little cautious the first few laps of the feature. We worked our way to 12 ^th fairly quickly. About 10 laps in two guys crashed in front of me and I had nowhere to go. It knocked the front end out and tipped over and that was it.”

Scelzi was credited with a 22^nd-place result, which was only the third time of placing outside the top 10 all season.

Saturday presented a new opportunity and Scelzi took advantage during the 30^th annual Dave Bradway Jr. Memorial hosted by Placerville Speedway. He qualified second quickest before advancing from fourth to third place in a heat race. That locked him into the dash and he pulled the No. 2 to start on the outside of the front row.

Scelzi made the most of the favorable draw by leading every lap of the dash to garner the pole position for the 40-lap A Main. He continued to pace the field throughout the feature on the tricky quarter-mile oval, where he led the distance to become the first repeat winner of the season with the series.

“We knew the track was probably going to get abrasive,” he said. “When we went green I ran the middle-top. I did that for about 10 laps. As I felt the track getting cleaner I moved down with the grip. We ran around the bottom from Lap 12 on. We led the distance to earn my first-ever win at the track, which meant a lot.”

Scelzi will return to the Midwest this weekend to drive for Mark Dobmeier during the first three nights of THE SHOWDOWN at Huset’s Speedway in Brandon, S.D. The Chuck Zitterich Tribute kicks off the action on Sunday followed by the inaugural Huset’s 50 presented by BillionAuto.com with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series on Monday and Tuesday.

“The one night we got in in Minnesota was something to get us comfortable with the car and the team,” Scelzi said in reference to his debut behind the wheel of the No. 13. “I felt like that was successful despite a couple of setbacks. I’m looking forward to going to a place I’ve felt comfortable at and somewhere Mark has had a lot of success.”

QUICK RESULTS –

June 11 – Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, Calif. – Qualifying: 20; Heat race: 4 (7); Feature: 22 (16).

June 12 – Placerville Speedway in Placerville, Calif. – Qualifying: 2; Heat race: 3 (4); Dash: 1 (2); Feature: 1 (1).

SEASON STATS –

27 races, 10 wins, 20 top fives, 24 top 10s, 25 top 15s, 25 top 20s

UP NEXT –

Sunday through Tuesday at Huset’s Speedway in Brandon, S.D., for THE SHOWDOWN featuring the Chuck Zitterich Tribute and the Huset’s 50 with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series

MEDIA LINKS –

Website: http://www.GaryScelziMotorsports.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DominicScelzi41

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Scelzi41

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Scelzi Enterprises

Scelzi Enterprises builds the finest utility truck bodies in the USA, including flatbed bodies, water truck bodies, custom truck bodies, service truck bodies and more. After nearly 40 years in business Scelzi Enterprises occupies 20 acres in South Fresno with additional pool and assembly locations in Oregon, Washington, and Southern California. For more information, visit http://www.SEInc.com. 

“Scelzi Enterprises is a family business that has been around far before I was born,” Scelzi said. “Now I have a role there. It’s my daily job and something I really enjoy being a part of. It gives me a lot of pride to represent our family business on the side of our race cars.”

Scelzi would like to thank Red Rose Transportation, Inc., Whipple Superchargers, Red Line Oil, Fuel Delivery Services, Inc., Roth Motorsports, NAPA Auto Parts, Todd Jorgensen, Schoenfeld Headers, FK Rod Ends, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Auto Meter, K&N Filters, Sparco, Allstar Performance, Meridian Steel, Kenny’s Components and Worldwide Bearings for their continued support.

Summit Modifieds Begin 36-Race Season with Six Races in Week 1Tours’ longest season in history begins Tuesday, July 15 at Brownstown Speedway in Indiana BROWNSTOWN, IN – June 14, 2021 – Thirty-six races in its 36th year of operation. The 2021 DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Model Hell Tour is finally here. Alongside the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals, setting out on their 11th season of competition, the Summer Nationals Late Models kickoff the tour this Tuesday night, June 15, in Indiana at the quarter-mile Brownstown Speedway. $5,000 is on the line for the Late Model Feature winner, while the new tour minimum $1,500 will go to the UMP Modified winner. Week 1 ScheduleTuesday, June 15 | Brownstown Speedway | Brownstown, INWednesday, June 16 | Peoria Speedway | Peoria, ILThursday, June 17 | Kankakee County Speedway | Kankakee, ILFriday, June 18 | Tri-City Speedway | Pontoon Beach, ILSaturday, June 19 | Fairbury Speedway | Fairbury, ILSunday, June 20 | Plymouth Speedway | Plymouth, IN (Related: SUMMER’S ALMOST HERE: Hell Tour Regulars Speak on New Format, Purse, Tracks) Don’t forget – each and every Summer Nationals and Summit Modified event will be broadcasted live this summer on DIRTVision presented by Drydene. Get a FAST PASS subscription today and watch the 2021 Hell Tour unfold wherever you are. Here are the drivers to watch for and the storylines to follow in Week #1… WHOLE NEW BALLGAME – The Summer Nationals and Summit Modifieds both take on a new championship chase format to decide this year’s champions. The Late Model tour will take a driver’s best 31 finishes over the 36 races scheduled into the points standings, meaning championship chasers will either have some of their worst finishes dropped or be able to sit some race out, depending on the number of races that are completed by season’s end. For their efforts, a new points fund system has been implemented that could award the champion a potential $36,000. For each race completed above 25, an additional $1,000 will be added to the champion’s check, making the potential for $36,000 to be awarded to the victor. VIEW FULL CHAMPIONSHIP PAYOUT CHART The Modifieds will stick with their $5,000-to-win championship check and take each driver’s best 12 finishes of the 36 scheduled, breaking away from the traditional eight-best finishes. SQUIRREL ON DEFENSE – Four-time and defending Summer Nationals Late Model champion Brian Shirley gets set to defend his title in the kickoff at Brownstown Tuesday night. Shirley, of Chatham, IL, is coming off a solid showing at Eldora Speedway this past weekend, where the DIRTcar Late Models ran four consecutive nights in back-to-back Dirt Late Model Dreams. Shirley made all but one Feature and posted a week-best finish of fifth on Wednesday night. In last year’s kickoff at Brownstown, Squirrel dropped out 21 laps in while running sixth with apparent mechanical issues. However, he’s shown his prowess with the tour at the quarter-mile before, with one win that came back in 2008 – ending a then seven-year tour absence from the facility. CHASING FOURTEEN – There’s only two drivers on the DIRTcar UMP Modified scene with ten national points victories or more at this point in the season. One of them is the defending DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals champion, Nick Hoffman. Hoffman, of Mooresville, NC, won his second consecutive and third overall Summit Modified championship last year on the back of 13 Feature wins in 24 races – tying a record he set the year previous. This year, he shoots to break that record by reaching 14 Feature wins. He’ll have 36 opportunities to get it done, compared to only 28 scheduled races last year. He’s coming off a stellar weekend at Eldora as well, piloting a DIRTcar Late Model for Mahomet, IL-based Hatcher’s Motorsports. Hoffman qualified for all four Dream Features he attempted, posting two top-10 finishes over the four-day stretch. STAND UP 10 – A feeling of relief ascended over the Eldora Speedway grandstands and pit area Friday night as Jason Feger emerged unharmed from his wrecked racecar after a vicious crash in Turn 1. Feger, of Bloomington, IL, made heavy contact with Kyle Strickler and was sent flipping wildly, badly damaging his MB Customs #25. Fortunately, he was able to pull out a backup car and finish the weekend, which he will start his 2021 Summer Nationals campaign with on Tuesday. The 2010 Hell Tour champion claimed two victories on the circuit last year and looked very strong since making the switch to the MB Customs Race Car. ON TOUR – Several drivers on both the Late Model and Modified side of the tour have revealed their intentions of following at least the first week of the schedules – many of which are expected to follow the tours in their entirety. Late Models: Brian Shirley, Bobby Pierce, Tanner English, Devin Moran, Ashton Winger, Bob Gardner, Billy Moyer Jr., Taylor Scheffler, Joe Godsey, Tim Lance and Tim Lance Jr. UMP Modifieds: Nick Hoffman, Hunt Gossum, Kyle Hammer and Steven Brooks

DIRTcar Summer Nationals is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners, including: Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, Chevy Performance, DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), FireAde, Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), Indiana Decal Company, Intercomp, iRacing, Racing Electronics, SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), Summit Racing Equipment, and VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel). Contingency sponsors include: ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Beyea Custom Headers, COMP Cams, Drydene, Fox Factory, Hoosier Racing Tire, MSD, Quarter Master, Summit Racing Equipment, VP Racing Fuels, and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum).

Summit Modified Nationals is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners, including : Summit Racing Equipment, Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, Chevy Performance, DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), FireAde, Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), Indiana Decal Company, Intercomp, iRacing, Racing Electronics, SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), and VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel). Contingency sponsors include: ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Bassett Racing Wheel, Bell Helmets, Beyea Custom Headers, COMP Cams, Drydene, Fast Shafts, Fox Factory, Hoosier Racing Tire, Jerovetz Motorsports Shock Service, K1 Race Gear, KSE Racing Products, MSD, Mulit FireX, Schoenfeld Headers, Summit Racing Equipment, Velocita USA, VP Racing Fuels, Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum), and Xceldyne.

The Greatest Show on Dirt Visits 34, Dubuque & Beaver Dam This WeekendWEST BURLINGTON, IA – June 14, 2021 – After sweeping through Knoxville, there’s no slowing down for The Greatest Show on Dirt.This weekend, the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series prepares for a triple-header through the states of Iowa and Wisconsin.The Outlaws are back at West Burlington’s 34 Raceway for a Thursday night under the lights, then it’s off to the Dubuque Fairgrounds Speedway for the first time ever on Friday night, and finally the weekend concludes with a return to Wisconsin’s Beaver Dam Raceway on Saturday evening.Thursday at 34 (BUY TICKETS) Friday at Dubuque (BUY TICKETS) Saturday at Beaver Dam (BUY TICKETS)Here are some of the top storylines to follow:PARITY AT 34: Thursday’s trip to West Burlington, IA’s 34 Raceway marks the sixth appearance by the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series. A different winner has found victory lane in every race giving us five winners in five shows at the 1/3-mile oval.Of active drivers, Donny Schatz and Parker Price-Miller are the only two with World of Outlaws wins at the facility. Schatz won in 2014 and he’ll be back on Thursday chasing his first win of the 2021 season aboard the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15. PPM will enter this week’s race as the defending winner and a chance at his third career victory with his third car owner, now driving his own #19.FIRST TIME EVER: Since 2019, the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series has been trying to race at Dubuque Fairgrounds Speedway each season. Unfortunately, on each previous occasions, the Iowa fans never got to see The Greatest Show on Dirt. Rain washed out the event in 2019 and COVID-19 protocols cancelled the race in 2020. In 2021, we’re bound and determined to finally host the first-ever World of Outlaws event at the Dubuque 3/8-mile, which comes this Friday night.SWEET’S SAVING GRACE: It’s been more than a month since Brad Sweet last appeared on the podium of a World of Outlaws Feature, precisely nine races actually. His best finish over that nine-race stretch has been fifth, but his low points have 12th & 14th at Eldora and most recently a season-worst 16th at Knoxville. His struggles have allowed both David Gravel and Carson Macedo to close in on the championship battle.The Grass Valley, CA native heads to Beaver Dam Raceway on Saturday, where he’s dominated in the past. The Big Cat has four total wins at the Wisconsin track, tied for most all-time with his former Kasey Kahne Racing teammate Daryn Pittman. Recently, the NAPA Auto Parts #49 has topped three-straight Features at the 1/3-mile, including a weekend sweep at the joint last June.A return to form this weekend at Beaver Dam could be crucial to Sweet’s championship hopes and his momentum heading into the “Summer of Money.”WAYNE WANTS A WIN: Oklahoma City’s Wayne Johnson has driven to victory lane at two of the three tracks on this weekend’s slate. The 2020 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year is still chasing his first-career World of Outlaws win, something he hopes to check off his bucket list this weekend.The pilot of the Two-C Racing #2C has previously won at 34 Raceway in a 2015 National Sprint League race and he topped a 2019 Sprint Invaders show at Dubuque Fairgrounds Speedway. Through 30 races this year, Johnson sits 12th in the championship standings with two top-10 finishes to his credit.BACK-TO-BACK: For the first time in his career, Carson Macedo has won back-to-back World of Outlaws Features. Coming off a weekend sweep at Iowa’s Knoxville Raceway, the Lemoore, CA native is carrying more confidence than ever inside the cockpit of the Jason Johnson Racing #41.With Philip Dietz on the wrenches and in the ownership role along with wife Brooke, the JJR squad is thriving as much as ever. Crew members Clyde Knipp and Nate Repetz, along with the trust and faith from the Johnson family, has the group chemistry meshing more than ever before.Macedo’s five-win campaign is already the most of his young World of Outlaws career, and he could add even more this weekend.POINTS TIGHTENING: In part due to Brad Sweet’s recent struggles, the championship chase is as close as it’s been since March. The top-three are separated by exactly 60 points and the top-six are all within 200 of each other.Sweet’s KKR #49 continues to hold the edge with 4,188 points, but closely following him is David Gravel’s Big Game Motorsports #2 (-48 PTS), Carson Macedo’s Jason Johnson Racing #41 (-60 PTS), Donny Schatz’s Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15 (-134 PTS), Sheldon Haudenschild’s Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing #17 (-138 PTS), and Logan Schuchart’s Shark Racing #1S (-166 PTS).SUMMER OF MONEY: This weekend’s triple-header offers up some crucial confidence and momentum to be found heading into the luxurious “Summer of Money.” On Sunday, the season’s officially change and the most lucrative portion of the World of Outlaws campaign begins. A total of nine events over that period will pay out more than $20,000-to-win.here’s the Huset’s 50 paying $30,000-to-win on June 22, the Jackson Nationals paying $50,000-to-win on June 24, the Kings Royal paying $175,000-to-win TWICE on July 15 and July 17, the Silver Cup paying $25,000-to-win on July 20, the Summer Nationals paying $20,000-to-win on July 24, the Ironman 55 paying $20,000-to-win on August 7, the Knoxville Nationals paying $150,000-to-win on August 14, and the Skagit Nationals paying $25,000-to-win on September 5.Following the May 21 Feature at Attica (OH) Raceway Park, Aaron Reutzel drove his race car through the pit area at an excessive and unacceptable speed, which is a direct violation of the World of Outlaws rule book. He was assessed a fine and placed on probation for the remainder of the 2021 World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series season.This Week at a Glance – When and WhereThursday, June 17 at 34 Raceway in West Burlington, IA Friday, June 18 at Dubuque Fairgrounds in Dubuque, IA Saturday, June 19 at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, WIOn the Internet World 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/monthAround the Turn: Following this weekend, the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series will roll northwest to visit River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, ND on Friday, June 4, then Granite City Speedway in Sauk Rapids, MN on Saturday, June 5.NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (10 Drivers): 9 wins – Brad Sweet, Kasey Kahne Racing w/ Mike Curb #49 5 wins – David Gravel, Big Game Motorsports #2 5 wins – Carson Macedo, Jason Johnson Racing #41 3 wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Stenhouse Jr. Marshall Racing #17 2 wins – Aaron Reutzel, Roth Motorsports #83 2 wins – Logan Schuchart, Shark Racing #1S 1 win – James McFadden, Kasey Kahne Racing w/ Mike Curb #9 1 win – Brent Marks, Brent Marks Racing #19M 1 win – Dave Blaney, Dave Blaney #10 1 win – Kyle Larson, Paul Silva #57FEATURE LAPS LED (20 Drivers): 202 laps – Brad Sweet 152 laps – Sheldon Haudenschild 108 laps – David Gravel 105 laps – Aaron Reutzel 89 laps – Donny Schatz 68 laps – Logan Schuchart 57 laps – Carson Macedo 40 laps – Kerry Madsen 31 laps – James McFadden 27 laps – Sam Hafertepe Jr. 25 laps – Kyle Larson 19 laps – Tyler Courtney 17 laps – Brent Marks 10 laps – Jacob Allen & Brock Zearfoss 3 laps – Ian Madsen 1 lap – Kasey Kahne, Kraig Kinser, Brandon Spithaler, Dave BlaneySLICK WOODY’S QUICKTIME AWARDS (13 Drivers): 8 QuickTimes – David Gravel 4 QuickTimes – Sheldon Haudenschild 3 QuickTimes – Brad Sweet 2 QuickTimes – James McFadden, Aaron Reutzel, Logan Schuchart, Cory Eliason, Giovanni Scelzi, Sam Hafertepe Jr. 1 QuickTime – Carson Macedo, Danny Dietrich, Anthony Macri, Kasey KahneDRYDENE HEAT RACE WINNERS (26 Drivers) 14 Heat Wins – David Gravel 10 Heat Wins – Aaron Reutzel, Carson Macedo 8 Heat Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Logan Schuchart 6 Heat Wins – James McFadden, Donny Schatz 4 Heat Wins – Giovanni Scelzi, Brian Brown 3 Heat Wins – Brad Sweet, Brock Zearfoss, Ian Madsen, Sam Hafertepe Jr. 2 Heat Wins – Jacob Allen, Kasey Kahne, Kraig Kinser, Jason Sides, Kyle Larson 1 Heat Win –  Danny Dietrich, Hunter Schuerenberg, Tyler Courtney, Lance Dewease, Anthony Macri, Brandon Spithaler, Kerry Madsen, Parker Price-MillerPODIUM FINISHES (22 Drivers): 14 Podiums – Brad Sweet 10 Podiums – Sheldon Haudenschild, Carson Macedo 8 Podiums – Donny Schatz, Logan Schuchart 7 Podiums – David Gravel 6 Podiums – Aaron Reutzel 5 Podiums – Brent Marks 3 Podiums – James McFadden, Giovanni Scelzi 2 Podiums – Cory Eliason, Lance Dewease, Anthony Macri, Kerry Madsen 1 Podium – Kraig Kinser, Danny Dietrich, Tyler Courtney, Justin Peck, Brian Brown, Anthony Macri, Dave Blaney, Kyle Larson, Sam Hafertepe Jr.2021 World of Outlaws Sprint Car Schedule & WinnersNo. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins) 1. Fri, Feb. 5 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Brad Sweet (1) 2. Sun, Feb. 7 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Logan Schuchart (1) 3. Fri, March 5 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Carson Macedo (1) 4. Sat, March 6 / East Bay Raceway Park / Tampa, FL / Aaron Reutzel (1) 5. Fri, March 12 / Magnolia Motor Speedway / Columbus, MS / Sheldon Haudenschild (1) 6. Sat, March 13 / The Rev / Monroe, LA / David Gravel (1) 7. Fri, March 19 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Sheldon Haudenschild (2) 8. Sat, March 20 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Brad Sweet (2) 9. Sat, March 27 / Lake Ozark Speedway / Eldon, MO / Brad Sweet (3) 10. Fri, April 2 / I-55 Raceway / Pevely, MO / Brad Sweet (4) 11. Sat, April 3 / I-55 Raceway / Pevely, MO / Brad Sweet (5) 12. Fri, April 9 / Kokomo Speedway / Kokomo, IN / James McFadden (1) 13. Sat, April 10 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN / Carson Macedo (2) 14. Fri, April 22 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN / David Gravel (2) 15. Sun, April 24 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN / David Gravel (3) 16. Thur, April 29 / Jacksonville Speedway / Jacksonville, IL / Brad Sweet (6) 17. Fri, April 30 / I-70 Motorsports Park / Odessa, MO / Brad Sweet (7) 18. Sat, May 1 / I-70 Motorsports Park / Odessa, MO / Brad Sweet (8) 19. Sat, May 8 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Brent Marks (1) 20. Sat, May 8 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Sheldon Haudenschild (3) 21. Wed, May 12 / Lincoln Speedway / Abbottstown, PA / Brad Sweet (9) 22. Fri, May 14 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Carson Macedo (3) 23. Sat, May 15 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Aaron Reutzel (2) 24. Tues, May 18 / Bridgeport Speedway / Swedesboro, NJ / Logan Schuchart (2) 25. Fri, May 21 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH / David Gravel (4) 26. Sat, May 22 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH / Dave Blaney (1) 27. Mon, May 31 / Lawrenceburg Speedway / Lawrenceburg, IN / Kyle Larson (1) 28. Sat, June 5 / Granite City Speedway /Sauk Rapids, MN / David Gravel (5) 29. Fri, June 11 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Carson Macedo (4) 30. Sat, June 12 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Carson Macedo (5)Photo – Jared Buckallew

(6/11/21 – Alex Nieten) Watsonville, CA … The Kaeding name has been synonymous with success in California for many years, and Tim Kaeding out-dueled his brother, Bud, on Friday night at Ocean Speedway to continue the family’s winning ways by earning his third Pombo-Sargent Classic victory with the NARC King of the West Fujitsu Sprint Cars.

“Congrats to Bud, he ran a hell of a race. He just got snookered by the old man,” an elated TK joked in victory lane.

Tim’s win was his first with the series since August of 2019, and it made for the fourth different winner in as many NARC-KWS races this year.

Mitchell Faccinto led the field to green and paced the field early on with third row starters Bud Kaeding and Justin Sanders in pursuit. A caution after ten laps had been completed bunched the field back up for what would be a chaotic restart.

Bud used an excellent jump to slide Faccinto into turn one. Faccinto attempted to turn back underneath Bud, but he found Justin Sanders’ car sliding up the track, and the two collided in the middle and came to a stop in turn two.

Their misfortune proved to be the Kaedings’ gain as Bud and Tim inherited the top two spots for the ensuing restart.

What followed was a brotherly battle through lap traffic as the two raced for the Kaeding family’s 17th overall Pombo-Sargent Classic win. Tim seized on a key opportunity when Bud got trapped behind a slower car on lap seventeen and snuck by coming out of fourth corner in his Bates-Hamilton Motorsports Vinyltech/R&B Company No 42. Bud launched a huge slider into turn one the next lap, but Tim countered with a crossover and put a little distance between himself and the 69 car.

“We built a great racecar,” Tim said, crediting his BHR team and machine. “Josh, Bobby, Roger, everybody that’s associated with this forty-two car.”

A few more late race cautions brought the field back together, but with Bud, Shane Golobic and DJ Netto waging war late for the runner-up spot, Tim was able to cruise to a comfortable win in what he knew was one quick machine.

“This thing was bullet-fast,” Tim said. “It was fast all night long,”

Bud Kaeding, Shane Golobic, DJ Netto and Sean Becker completed the top-5.  The remainder of the top ten featured Kurt Nelson, Sean Watts, Colby Copeland, Austin McCarl and Ryan Robinson.

Ryan Robinson earned his first ARP Fast Time of the year by breaking the Ocean Speedway track record with a blistering 10.867.

FUJITSU FEATURE EVENT (30 laps) – 1. 42X Tim Kaeding 2. 69 Bud Kaeding 3. 17W Shane Golobic 4. 88N DJ Netto 5. 83V Sean Becker 6. 72W Kurt Nelson 7. 98 Sean Watts 8. 76 Colby Copeland 9. 21 Austin McCarl 10. Ryan Robinson 11. 01 Mitchel Moles 12. 46JR Joel Myers Jr. 13. 98X Bryce Eames 14. 3M Adam Kaeding 15. 88 Kyle Offill 16. 22 Keith Day Jr.  17. 26 Billy Aton 18. 2 J.J. Ringo 19. 78 Mark Barosso 20. 37 Mitchell Faccinto 21. 16A Justin Sanders 22. 41 Dominic Scelzi 23. 09S Geoffrey Strole 24. 34 Ryon Nelson

HOOSIER TIRE LAPS LEADERS: Faccinto 1-10, Bud Kaeding, 11-16, Tim Kaeding 17-30

SWIFT METAL FINISHING HARDCHARGER: Sean Watts 19th to 7th.

ARP FAST QUALIFIER (24 cars): Ryan Robinson 10.867 seconds (New Track Record)

BROWN & MILLER HEAT RACE #1 (10 laps): Austin McCarl, Justin Sanders, Ryan Robinson, Sean Becker, Mitchel Moles, Joel Myers Jr., Adam Kaeding

FUJITSU GENERAL USA HEAT RACE #2 (10 laps): Mitchell Faccinto, DJ Netto, Bud Kaeding, Dominic Scelzi, JJ Ringo, Keith Day Jr., Sean Watts, Mark Barroso

FLORACING.COM HEAT RACE #3 (10 laps): Shane Golobic, Tim Kaeding, Ryon Nelson, Kurt Nelson, Colby Copeland, Kyle Offill, Geoffrey Strole, Bryce Eames

SUNNY VALLEY “POWERED BY BACON” DASH (6 laps): Mitchell Faccinto, Ryan Robinson, Shane Golobic, Tim Kaeding. Bud Kaeding, Justin Sanders

Madden, Sheppard, Briggs and more get ready for Stateline, Thunder Mountain, and Selinsgrove

CONCORD, NC – JUNE 14, 2021 – The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models is gearing up for its biggest weekend of the season, so far. 

The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet kickoff a Northeast swing through New York and Pennsylvania, with three 40-lap Morton Buildings Features paying $10,000-to-win, at three different tracks. 

It starts on Thursday, June 17, when the Series visits Stateline Speedway in Busti, NY. It’s the first of two trips to the Empire state in 2021. 

The Series moves South on Friday, June 18, to Thunder Mountain Speedway in Knox Dale, PA for the 11th annual Connor Bobik Memorial. 

The jam-packed weekend finishes with the “Late Model National Open” at Selinsgrove Speedway in Selinsgrove, PA on Saturday, June 19.

If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live on DIRTVision with the annual Platinum FAST PASS subscription for $299/year or the monthly FAST PASS Subscription for $39/month.

Here’s a look at some of the storylines heading into this weekend:

Boom’s Backyard: It’s always exciting to race in front of your home crowd. Boom Briggs has that chance this weekend since Stateline Speedway is 15 minutes from his Bear Lake, PA home. 

Briggs finished ninth the last time the Series raced there in 2019. 

He’s also had success at Thunder Mountain Speedway. Boom has two wins at the track in non-sanctioned events and had a top-10 last year in World of Outlaws competition.  

If Briggs wins this weekend, not only would it be his first home state win, it would be his first trip to Victory Lane with the Series.  

Dream-Like Momentum: The driver with arguably the most momentum heading into this weekend is Chris Madden. 

“Smokey” finished second at the 26th annual “Dirt Late Model Dream,” leading a few laps before getting passed by the winner, Brandon Overton. 

While the Gray Court, SC driver has been good on all types of tracks in 2021, he has two wins on 1/2-mile tracks like Selinsgrove Speedway this year. 

He also has past success at Selinsgrove, winning the “Late Model National Open” in 2018. 

Madden is trying to chase down three-time and defending champion Brandon Sheppard in the standings. “Smokey” is 46 points behind and hopes to make up some ground with his fifth Series win of the season. 

A win this weekend would give him 33 World of Outlaws victories, tying him for seventh on the all-time win list, with 2004 Series champion Scott Bloomquist, and 2006 champion Tim McCreadie. 

Number 1 Focus: While Brandon Sheppard isn’t having the season many would expect, he’s still at the top of the standings heading into the weekend. 

The reigning champion has held the points lead since Bristol, on the strength of consistent finishes. 

“The Rocket Shepp” had back-to-back top five’s during the Indiana swing, including a runner-up finish at Circle City Raceway. 

Despite the consistency, Sheppard still only has one win this season.  

The good news for the New Berlin, IL driver is the Series returns to a track he’s had success at. Sheppard won one of the two stops at Thunder Mountain Speedway last year. It’s also a track like Mississippi Thunder Speedway, where he won his 70th career World of Outlaws Feature. 

Sheppard hopes to make up ground in his quest for history. He’s chasing Josh Richards for most wins all-time (78) and most Series championships (4). 

Rise of The Rookies: While Sheppard and Madden are turning heads, another battle to keep an eye on is the chase for Rookie of the Year. 

Tyler Bruening leads Ryan Gustin by 108 points heading into this weekend. 

The two Iowa drivers have similar numbers in 2021. Both have four top-fives, and Bruening (12) has one more top-10 than Gustin (11). 

Each driver had a podium finish during the Indiana swing. Gustin finished third at Circle City Raceway, and Bruening finished third at Plymouth Speedway. 

Both also hope they can capitalize on momentum from the “Dirt Late Model Dream” at Eldora Speedway. 

“The Reaper” had a second-place finish during one of Friday’s preliminary Features, while Bruening gave a thrilling performance by making Saturday’s “Dream” after starting last in the B-Feature. Bruening finished 12th in the 100-lap race. 

Bruening and Gustin are each searching for their elusive first Series victory. 

When and Where

June 17: Stateline Speedway, Busti, NY

June 18: Thunder Mountain Speedway, Knox Dale, PA

June 19: Selinsgrove Speedway, Selinsgrove, PA

About the tracks

Stateline Speedway is a 1/3-Mile semi-banked 

Thunder Mountain Speedway is a 3/8-Mile semi-banked oval 

Selinsgrove Speedway is a 1/2-mile oval 

PREVIOUS STATELINE SPEEDWAY WINNERS

2019- Max Blair on Sept. 19
2018- Brandon Sheppard on June 14
2013- Shane Clanton on June 1
2006- Dick Barton on July 1
2005- John Blankenship on July 2

PREVIOUS THUNDER MOUNTAIN SPEEDWAY WINNERS

2020- Brandon Sheppard on Sept. 26
2020- Scott Bloomquist on Sept. 25

PREVIOUS SELINSGROVE SPEEDWAY WINNERS

2019- Darrell Lanigan Sept. 21
2018- Chris Madden on Sept. 22
2017- Jeff Rine on Sept. 3
2016- Billy Moyer Jr. on Sept. 4
2015- Darrell Lanigan on Sept. 6
2014- Darrell Lanigan on Aug. 31
2014- Tim McCreadie on Aug. 30
2013- Darrell Lanigan on Sept. 1
2013- Greg Satterlee on Aug. 31

June 14, 2021

Matt DiBenedetto and the No. 21 Quick Lane Tire and Auto Center Mustang didn’t have quite enough speed to race their way into Sunday’s NASCAR All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway. But their fans had stepped up and voted DiBenedetto into the non-points extravaganza, so he was able to join the 21-driver starting field and wound up finishing the 100-lap affair in 17^th place.

DiBenedetto started the night by taking the green flag for the NASCAR Open from third place.

That race, divided into three segments, two 20 lap segments followed by a 10 lap segment, offered the winner of each segment a berth in the All-Star race. He ran in the top five throughout the Open, but came short of winning a segment. He finished fourth in the first round, third in the second and second in the third.

Then the results of the fan vote were announced.
 
“I’m really thankful to the fans who voted us in,” DiBenedetto said. “That was really cool for all of us, pretty special. We were up against some good competition on that.”
 
Like the Open, the All-Star Race proved to be one in which track position was critical.
 
Because the drivers who advanced to the All-Star Race from the Open had to start in the rear of the pack, they were at a disadvantage from the start. DiBenedetto ran near the back of the 21-driver field for most of the first two Rounds of the All-Star race.
 
“We didn’t have great speed but we were able to hang on pretty good when we had track position,” he said, adding that when he did get to start up front he could stay there.
 
In the third 15-lap Round of the All-Star race, the line-up was set by a full-field inversion of the previous segment, and DiBenedetto started second.
 
He got the lead just after the drop of the green flag, led the first six laps and finished second in that segment.
 
DiBenedetto started eighth in the fourth Round, after a partial inversion, and ran as high as fourth before finishing eighth.
 
In the fifth Round, at 30 laps the longest of the night, he made his mandatory four-tire pit stop after just two laps but a slow stop cost him valuable track position, and he finished 19^th. He gained two spots in the final 10-lap run and was scored 17^th for the night.
 
“Once we lost track position, I couldn’t do much in the dirty air,” he said. “But, overall it was a good night, especially winning the fan vote.
 

NASCAR CUP SERIES TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY NASCAR ALL-STAR RACE TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT JUNE 13, 2021
 KYLE LARSON WINS MILLION-DOLLAR NASCAR ALL-STAR RACE FORT WORTH, TEXAS (June 13, 2021) – Kyle Larson took the checkered flag and the $1 million prize when he drove his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 1LE to victory lane in the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway. The 28-year-old Hendrick Motorsports driver won the first and final rounds of the unique All-Star format to score his second-career All-Star win in three seasons. The triumph marks Larson’s third consecutive, and fourth NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) victory thus far in 2021. The annual, non-points paying race made its debut at the 1.5-mile Texas oval for the first time in the event’s history. Larson’s victory in the six-round, 100-lap race gave Chevrolet it’s 20th All-Star win.The triumph marked the 11th victory in the prestigious All-Star event for Hendrick Motorsports, more than any other team in NASCAR’s premier series.  All four Hendrick Motorsports drivers claimed All-Star round wins with Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE victorious in Round 3; William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE in Round 4; and Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE winning Round 5. Elliott finished third, Bowman finished sixth, and Byron finished seventh in the final order. Kurt Busch drove his No. 1 GEARWRENCH Camaro ZL1 1LE to a 10th-place finish to give Team Chevy five of the top-10 finishing positions.  Elliott’s No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports pit crew also pocketed a $100,000 bonus for recording the fastest service during the mandatory four-tire pit stop in Round 5. Brad Keselowski (Ford) was second, Joey Logano (Ford) finished third, and Ryan Blaney (Ford) rounded out the top-5 overall. The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at Nashville Superspeedway with the Ally 400 on Sunday, June 20 at 3:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBCSN, NBCSports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE, Press Conference Transcript: 
THE MODERATOR: We are now joined by the winner of tonight’s NASCAR All-Star Race, and that is Kyle Larson. Kyle, just a quick opener, lots of rounds, lots of inversions but also lots of action, lots of passing, which was the reason for those rounds and inversions. Exciting race. Congratulations. Please take us through the action tonight. KYLE LARSON: Yeah, first off, I’m just glad Brandon Overton wasn’t here to take any more of our money. He was really good this week at Eldora, so good to get a win in something. Yeah, no, it was fun, I thought. That first segment there I thought I kind of fell back to third maybe, second or third, and I was like, man, it’s Texas, it’s going to be hard to pass. But was able to get to the lead again, win that segment, and then I was like, okay, I think I’ve got a good car to be able to drive up, and that was not the case. I was really tight in traffic, and we had to take a really big swing at it. The third round I actually went backwards in the second one so we took a huge swing at it, and I’m not really sure what happened that segment. But anyways, after that one, we kept making huge swings, and then I noticed that the guys who had finished up in front and started in the back of the invert didn’t move forward, so I was like, well, we’re probably not bad in points here. Then for that fourth one, I knew as long as I finished second I was going to be second points lineup for the fifth round there, and that worked out good. We were able to get out and get running and stretched out and ended up lining us up for third going into that final stage. I definitely wanted to be third because I wanted to be able to choose the outside. I feel like you have more options when you go there. That restart just worked out perfect where Chase kind of got choked up and I was able to get to his back bumper and push him past the 12 to get him a little bit clearer, and he kind of shaded left a little bit much, and I poked through the outside and had about — almost all fours but both right sides above where we had been running and I kind of eyeballed it under yellow and I was like, you know what, we have a 10-lap run and there’s no points on the line, I’m going to go for it if I get the chance, and if I wreck, I wreck. But I think there will be enough grip. It worked out there was. Yeah, that was just really cool. Q.With this format, were you able to get in any sort of a rhythm? Were you confused? It seemed a little disjointed watching it. Did you feel there was a flow?KYLE LARSON: So I honestly looking at the format before I got out there, like you said, I thought they were going to be too short of ones where you couldn’t get into a flow and you couldn’t really pass.I think at least for me, when it strings out, I can pass people easier that way, but the drafts were so big that you could make up ground for, gosh, 10 laps or so, and then it seemed like people — your tires would start fading and it got harder to pass. I don’t know what other people think. I actually kind of enjoyed it. I don’t know if this format, I don’t know if this is an event now we’re going to take to other tracks each year or not, but I don’t know if this is a format that will work at every track, but I feel like for Texas it worked, and I think the mandatory green flag stop at the end was kind of cool, the inverts were nice, not knowing exactly what the invert number was going to be kept you wanting to progress even if you were anywhere inside the top 12. You wanted to progress.I thought it was okay. I don’t know what the other competitors and fans thought of it. And you, Bob. Q.Are you concerned at all about your teammates thinking you’re winning too much? If you know what I mean by that. Are you concerned that they’ll get frustrated that they have the same equipment and you’re beating them?KYLE LARSON: I don’t know. I mean, who’s to say? I think for me, I mean, I guess I’m the one winning so I’ve got a different view of it, but our team, our overall Hendrick Motorsports is winning. When William won Homestead I was pumped; when Alex has gotten his couple wins I’ve been pumped. Even getting beat by him at Dover, I was excited for him. When Chase won at COTA, I was in position to win the race and the rain came out, and I was still happy for him and the team. As long as our organization is winning, I’m cool with it, and so far I think we all are, as well. If we can keep running good and working together, we’ll be — all four of us will be hard to beat. So we’ve just got to keep that up. We have talks about it throughout the week, and yeah, I think those are great conversations to have and get ahead of things. Like I said, I enjoy racing with my teammates. We race hard together. I thought we raced great today to kind of set us up to be up in the front, to give at least three opportunities to win this race going into that final 10 laps. Yeah, I think we’ve worked well together. Obviously it’s proven, we’ve all been up front these last month and a half or so. Q.Brandon Overton won 273,000. You won over a million and didn’t have to work two nights for it.When you got out of the car you seemed happier. I haven’t seen you this happy since winning the Chili Bowl. I’m just kind of wondering what was it about this event? I know you like big events and I know you like big checks, but what was it just that had you so elated when you stepped out of the car?KYLE LARSON: Well, I think because there was points in the race that I didn’t think I was going to win. I think through the second and third rounds there, I was like, you know what, I’m just out here logging laps, I’m not going to be able to win tonight. My car is not driving nearly as good. I’m getting passed by people. I can’t pass cars that we lapped typically. I was like, there’s no way. But then I kind of got that glimmer of hope when I looked up and I noticed that the 18 and the 9 hadn’t passed anybody in that one stage, so I was like, we’re going to line up front, and now that I ran that whatever segment that was where I was kind of towards the front, I was like, you know what, my car is getting better. So then yeah, I think I was so excited because there was a while where I didn’t think I’d win, and then to go and steal it there in a shootout from Chase Elliott, who’s to me in my opinion like the most aggressive and best restarter — one of the best restarters, especially from the front row. That was really cool. And to win a lot of money is awesome, too. Q.Also curious about the PJ1. You really used it to your advantage except when you broke the draft on Keselowski to really jump out and give an advantage for him. But the PJ1 really seemed to come in and be the place — it seemed like the groove to be in tonight.KYLE LARSON: Yeah, yeah. I saw Dale Jr., I think he tweeted something about maybe it’s time to either not put it down or potentially move it up the racetrack, and I would kind of agree with that now after running. It gets so grippy, and we know that it’s got so much grip, I think it’s almost too low and too fast in 1 and 2. 3 and 4, I don’t know if we’ll be able to move up much more than where we were at already.I think for sure I would like to see coming back in the fall — I don’t really know what the weather will be like. If it’s weather, then yeah, for sure I think we probably need to move it up some, but yeah, it was a ton of grip up there for sure. 3 and 4 it’s so easy to run that you don’t really even notice the VHT. Q.Your teammates may or may not be frustrated, but it seems like your competitors. Brad Keselowski says you guys are too fast. How do you respond to a competitor saying things like that?KYLE LARSON: I don’t know. I’m not the one that works on the car, so I think that’s a big credit to Hendrick Motorsports and everybody back at the shop, the engine shop, because they’ve been putting in the work. It’s a shame we’ve got only half a season or whatever left with this package, but I think next year we’ll be hopefully just as good. Q.You’re one of eight people now to win multiple All-Star Races and everybody on the list is a former champion or a Hall of Famer. Curious if you’ve had any — what does that mean to you to have an accomplishment like that and be associated with legends of the sport like that?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, you’re right. I hadn’t thought of it. But yeah, it’s cool, but the races are hard to win and championships are even harder to win. We’ve just got to keep working really hard. This is definitely the best opportunity I’ve ever had to win the championship. But there’s still a long season left, and other cars and teams are going to get better, and so will we. Just got to keep working hard, and hopefully we can have ourselves in position come October or November. Q.I don’t know if you’ve spent the million dollars you won a couple years ago, but do you have any idea how you’re going to spend this million?KYLE LARSON: I’m going to save for sure. Q.Kind of following up, you’re the first driver I believe over the history of the All-Star Race to have won it at two different tracks. Given how many drivers have won this race and how few tracks we’ve gone to in that time, how has it taken only until now for that to happen?KYLE LARSON: I don’t know, probably because it stayed at Charlotte for so long, for a couple generations, I think, or so. Yeah, I don’t know. It was fun to watch it at Bristol last year. I’ve always believed that the All-Star Race should move around to different tracks and stuff, kind of like how other sports, their All-Star games kind of move to different venues and things. Yeah, we’ll see if that’s something that they do. I think all of us drivers would love to see that, but yeah, it’s cool to be one of the few guys that have now won it at a couple different tracks. Q.Where does this win rank? You’ve won a lot of big races. Where does this one rank?KYLE LARSON: Ooh, I don’t know. It’s hard to really think about right now. My emotions were really high for sure. Gosh, as soon as I took the lead, my foot is wide open and I can feel it shaking. It obviously means a lot to win. But I don’t know where yet to rank it. It’s definitely up there. Purse-wise it’s in the top two now of purse races I’ve won. Really cool to win any crown jewel in any sport, but in NASCAR especially. Q.How does it feel right now? It seems no matter what you get in, you’re up front, you’re winning, you’re 10 feet ball and bulletproof, at least the last couple of weeks. What does it feel like as a race driver to be in this kind of a groove with good equipment and be on top of your game?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, I mean, it’s great for sure. I think it’s a credit to all the race teams that I get to race for. I’m in some of the best equipment, and any time I sit in a race car, I’m in some of the best if not the best equipment out there. Paul Silva prepares — and I believe he’s the best sprint car mechanic, so his sprint car is amazing. Kevin Rumley, who I got to spend all week with at Eldora, he’s a genius. His cars are always good, too, and then obviously my 5 team is unbelievable. Just very fortunate to be in these cars. I’ve worked really hard to put myself in the best equipment. But yeah, it’s definitely enjoyable for sure. Q.How did this battle with Keselowski compare to any you’ve had with him before? I’m just wondering because for as strong as you guys have been, I wondered if you saw a little bit more desperation or a little bit more aggressiveness maybe than what you had in maybe some other battles with Brad or if this was a typical battle?KYLE LARSON: I think it was a typical battle with any competitor. He didn’t seem — like it didn’t matter to me that it was Brad behind me. It could have been anybody, and I think it would have been the same. I haven’t seen a replay at all so I don’t really know what was happening behind me. I could watch my mirror a little bit in 3 and 4, but 1 and 2 I was just focused on my marks. I think I felt him maybe try to take the air off my rear into 1 once. I got a little bit light getting into 1. It’s hard to pass the leader for sure, and I could tell he was going to have to get desperate to do something and get a run on me. But thankfully our car was fast enough, he just couldn’t get those extra few feet. THE MODERATOR: Kyle, have a great night and good luck next week in Nashville.
CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE, Press Conference Transcript: 
THE MODERATOR: We are now joined by the winning crew chief, crew chief of the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, and that’s Cliff Daniels. Cliff, obviously I mentioned this to Kyle, but lots of rounds, lots of inversions but lots of passing, lots of strategy for you. Can you take us through the strategy side of this event and this unique format that was put in front of you? CLIFF DANIELS: Yeah, I would — honestly the grade I would give myself on the execution of the strategy would be probably a B because at the beginning of the race our car was too built for trying to have clean air and we didn’t do a good job getting the balance right for what he needed in traffic early. We had to work on the balance to get it closer so he could run in traffic better, and the second round did not go very well for us. So once we — the guys buckled down, we threw a lot of changes at it, got the car a lot closer where he could be aggressive and try to set himself up for passes, which was cool to see, and then the way the points and everything worked out for us to start in the top 3 or 4 going into the fifth round worked out pretty well. Executing the pit stop was okay. Big, big tip of the cap to the 9 team, congrats to those guys on winning the pit crew deal, and they had a phenomenal pit stop, and had it not worked out like that, I don’t know that the 2 would have been a factor the way they were, and then of course Brad did a really good job of keeping his car kind of in the mix to kind of break up what we had going on with our Hendrick cars. And then the last restart Kyle was just absolutely phenomenal. I don’t even think there was a lane up there from what I saw, and he put it up there and it stuck. Really cool day for our HendrickCars.com, Chevy. Proud of all the guys. Just a cool day. Q.I’m just curious, how do you strategize in a race like that? What is the strategy there?CLIFF DANIELS: Our best strategy going in was to try to have a car that could pass better than we did at the early part of the race, which is why I’m not giving myself a very good grade to start the day. We knew the way kind of the rerack of the lineup was going to work out, you had to be able to pass, so it took us a little while to get our car where it could do that, otherwise the one invert did help us out when we just weren’t as good as we needed to be, and that was certainly no intention on our part to try to lag back to get the invert. It just kind of played out that way, and of course having a car to take advantage of starting on the pole the way we did and get the first win or whatever of the first round was important to just kind of help minimize the way the points worked out, I believe. That was about all we could do. Q.When he’s restarting third, I think, before the final stage, are you feeling good, or are you thinking it’s going to be a tough road to hoe?CLIFF DANIELS: I don’t know that I was hedging my bet one way or the other. Never bet against yourself, and I kind of knew Kyle could get it done in that position. My confidence was lacking a little bit in kind of what we had given him with the issues we had in traffic earlier, so I was kind of crossing my fingers that our adjustments worked out, and we had to get pretty aggressive with the car in some adjustments that we made. Fingers were crossed that the adjustments were going to be okay and the car was going to be under him, and I knew that he was just going to make whatever move he could to get to the lead, and he did, which was really cool to watch. Q.What does it feel like now, this team, every time you show up, you’ve got a car good enough and your driver is giving you everything he’s got to make you — basically this team is on a roll that we haven’t seen in quite some time. What does it feel like from your perspective, a team perspective to be on this kind of a roll, this kind of success?CLIFF DANIELS: More than anything just thankful. When I walked in today, I was talking to my car chief Jesse, and I remember years ago back in the 2000s I was working on a start-and-park Xfinity team and I was a mechanic and getting through tech was a struggle if it was a hot day. To be in a position now where we have such an amazing team, we have the support of Chevrolet and Mr. H and Hendrickcars.com, everything single guy on our team is bought in. They’re strong. A team is really only as strong as its weakest link and we just don’t have any. All the guys on our team are racers and they live, eat and breathe this stuff. They put in so much prep time at the shop, and of course all teams do, and I think what is helping us right now is just the chemistry. This is a tough stretch that we’re on in the summer months. Everyone is going through it with the backup cars and multiple-day shows that we’re about to have quite a few in a row. You know, it just takes a lot of different things, chemistry-wise, and then of course the timing of what we have. Chevrolet the last three or four years, we’ve been off, and we had to get to work. Very thankful for what we have with the Chevrolet body now, with Hendrick Power that we have now. There’s a lot of good things that have kind of come together for us that trickled in last year, and Alan and Chase certainly showed that at the end of 2020, to their credit, and fortunately we’ve been able to take a lot of what they proved to us and to the world and keep building on it and make it better. Q.Any personal vindication? I know when you guys were struggling to win with Jimmie and whatnot, a lot of people called you into question a little bit. Do you feel any personal vindication?CLIFF DANIELS: I mean, to a degree, yes. One thing that’s for sure, if it weren’t for Jimmie, I would not be in this seat right now, so I’m forever grateful to him. I think a lot of the leadership that he taught me and taught the guys on our team of how to be tough when things aren’t going your way, and he knew that the last few years our cars just weren’t quite right. We had a great group back at the shop and again with Chevrolet and Hendrick Motorsports that dug deep and knew we had a hole to climb out of. Jimmie was behind us the whole time to stay strong, and of course being in my position, I did have self-doubts of our performance last year and what we could potentially do this year.We knew we had built a really good team; a lot of that is credit to Jimmie. The guys on this team really bought into him as a driver for all those years, and he kind of helped bring some of us up, including myself from years ago from when we were younger and gave us an opportunity, and we’re just trying to make the best of it. Q.You talked about the fact that you guys have been really successful and how that’s been great. What does it mean to you when you hear a lot of people now saying that the No. 5 is the championship favorite as we head into the second half of the year?CLIFF DANIELS: It’s a great position to be in, and it’s really cool to hear, but facts on the table, and honestly Alan Gustafson has taught me this a lot, it is a long summer and it is a long year. There were some things that happened to the 9 in 2020 if you look at the championship run that they went on, where the summertime they had a couple tough moments, and they knew it was a long year and they kind of regained their strength and executed at the end of the year that they could end it strong, and they did.Really that’s on us now to make sure we get through the stretch of the hot summer months strong and everybody is still maintaining the good chemistry that we have now within our company, within our team, and take that into the playoffs. We all know that this is the Cup Series. Things go in cycles. While we have the cycle going our way now, when we get into the end of the summer and into the playoffs, we need to keep it going because our competition is certainly not taking their foot off the gas, so we’re going to keep ours on it, too. Q.Looking at tonight in particular with the format that NASCAR went with, what are your thoughts on how they chose to go with this format and how it played out?CLIFF DANIELS: Yeah, I definitely thought it was interesting coming in and we’ve seen so many different formats of the All-Star Race play out. I thought it was really interesting, now in retrospect, how much just really the flow of the race kind of changed things I thought because we got stuck in traffic back there with the 24 and some of those other guys and kind of got down on ourselves that we may not have a shot to be up front at the end. And then the next round with the next invert, some of the guys that were at the front that we thought were going to be really strong and they went to the back, I think it was 18 and maybe the 9, they didn’t make it very far up there that round. So you really saw just kind of a big mix within the field. I don’t know, I’ve never been asked about All-Star format races, so I don’t know what I would say to change it at this point, but luckily it worked out today. THE MODERATOR: Cliff, congratulations and good luck next week in Nashville. 

NASCAR CUP SERIES TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY NASCAR ALL-STAR RACE TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES & QUOTES JUNE 13, 2021

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL ALL-STAR RACE RESULTS:POS.   DRIVER1st      KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE 3rd     CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE6th      ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE 7th      WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE10th    KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 GEARWRENCH CAMARO ZL1 1LE TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL ALL-STAR RACE RESULTS: POS.  DRIVER1st      Kyle Larson (Chevrolet)2nd     Brad Keselowski (Ford)3rd     Chase Elliott (Chevrolet)4th      Joey Logano (Ford)5th      Ryan Blaney (Ford)
The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at Nashville Superspeedway with the Ally 400 on Sunday, June 20 at 3:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBCSN, NBCSports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. TEAM CHEVY ALL-STAR POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES:KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Race WinnerWE HEARD YOU SAY ‘THAT PLAYED OUT EXACTLY LIKE YOU PLANNED’. THE SEASON YOU’RE HAVINGT, HE ALL-STAR WIN WITH YOUR NEW TEAM AND YOUR FOURTH WIN ON THE SEASON. DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’RE LIVING A DREAM? “Definitely. Honestly, I can’t believe it. That second run there, we were really bad and I was like, ‘man, we’re in trouble’. I went backwards that round, so I was like we’ve got an uphill battle. I did not imagine seeing myself winning this race today. Cliff (Daniels, crew chief) and everybody works so hard on this thing and made some good adjustments throughout the first, second and third rounds and got us in position.”
“That last restart worked out exactly how I needed it to. I wanted Chase (Elliott) to not get a good run down the back. Thankfully, I think the No. 12 (Ryan Blaney) got to his inside. I just shoved him down the back and he probably thought I was going to just follow him. I thought there had to be enough grip above where we’d been running for one corner. It was a little slick up there, but I was able to get it and hold him off from there. I can’t believe it.”
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 3rdWHERE DID IT GO AWRY FOR YOU IN THAT END SEQUENCE?“Kyle (Larson) got to my outside and that was the end of it, really. Just got beat. Appreciate the effort today by Alan (Gustafson, crew chief) and everybody on our NAPA team. I’m super proud of everybody at Hendrick Motorsports and Chevrolet. We’ll keep it rolling and try to find another spot or two when it counts.” ON THE NO. 9 TEAM’S PIT STOP COMPETITION WIN: “Yeah, we had a badass stop. I knew when they dropped the jack that it was close. They did a really good job and I’m proud of them for that. Hopefully, we’ll carry some of that momentum forward and try to get to victory lane.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 6th“Sixth place isn’t terrible, but definitely not where we wanted to end our night. Congrats to Chevrolet and the No. 5 team. A million dollars would have been nice.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 7th“Tonight, we had a very strong Axalta Chevy. We were able to really get through traffic even though passing was difficult with this package. We put ourselves where we needed to be in basically just about every round. We definitely had a shot at the million-dollar prize going into the last stint, but it just didn’t go our way. While it’s tough to not get the win, there are still positives we can take away from tonight. We’ll take the momentum and go on to Nashville.”
TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 ICASHAUTOS / I AM SECOND CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 16th “Man, that was one of the hottest races I’ve ever been part of, but we did what we initially came to do and that was to make the main show tonight to give it our all for the $1 million dollars. Our iCashautos / I Am Second Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE was really loose in the Open, but I was able to keep it up front and win Stage 2 to advance to the All-Star race. We definitely fired off better for the All-Star race, but it was tough to tell which direction the car was leaning in once the shade started to come in. I felt like we teetered right on the edge of being too tight and too loose all night long, but the car seemed to change every single lap. We kept fighting though to try to make our car better all night long and made some progress. It was fun to be in the All-Star race for the first time in my career and race with no points on the line, but I’m ready to get back to the season and continue our momentum at Nashville next weekend.” AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 ANDY’S FROZEN CUSTARD CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 19th “It was great to see all of the fans at Texas Motor Speedway today, and all of the excitement and buildup for the All-Star Race. Man, what an opportunity to be able to race for $1.1 Million dollars in the No. 3 Andy’s Frozen Custard Chevrolet. It was a hot one out there tonight, which made Andy’s Frozen Custard a cool sponsor for the race. We started fifth and ran a strong race despite how slick the track was. We were lacking a lot of grip and just missing something. I got a little too aggressive during our timed pit stop and we ended up with a speeding penalty, which put us a lap down. I wish we could have gotten the Lucky Dog before the last round. It was hard to make up many positions in those last 10 laps. We’ll regroup and move onto Nashville Superspeedway next week.”

Austin Dillon and The No. 3 Andy’s Frozen Custard Chevrolet Team Vie For A Cool $1.1 Million in NASCAR All-Star Race

19th

5th

12th

“It was great to see all of the fans at Texas Motor Speedway today, and all of the excitement and buildup for the All-Star Race. Man, what an opportunity to be able to race for $1.1 Million dollars in the No. 3 Andy’s Frozen Custard Chevrolet. It was a hot one out there tonight, which made Andy’s Frozen Custard a cool sponsor for the race. We started fifth and ran a strong race despite how slick the track was. We were lacking a lot of grip and just missing something, but this team never gave up. I got a little too aggressive during our timed pit stop and we ended up with a speeding penalty, which put us a lap down. I wish we could have gotten the Lucky Dog before the last round. It was hard to make up many positions in those last 10 laps. We’ll regroup and move onto Nashville Superspeedway next week.”  -Austin Dillon

Tyler Reddick Races His Way into the NASCAR All-Star Race with the iCashautos / I Am Second Chevrolet Team

16th

19th

13th

“Man, that was one of the hottest races I’ve ever been part of, but we did what we initially came to do and that was to make the main show tonight to give it our all for the $1 million dollars. Our iCashautos / I Am Second Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE was really loose in the Open, but I was able to keep it up front and win Stage 2 to advance to the All-Star race. We definitely fired off better for the All-Star race, but it was tough to tell which direction the car was leaning in once the shade started to come in. I felt like we teetered right on the edge of being too tight and too loose all night long, but the car seemed to change every single lap. We kept fighting though to try to make our car better all night long and made some progress. It was fun to be in the All-Star race for the first time in my career and race with no points on the line, but I’m ready to get back to the season and continue our momentum at Nashville next weekend.” -Tyler Reddick

Written by Ainsley JacobsHosted at the iconic Summit Motorsports Park, the fourth stop on the 2021 Holley NMRA Ford Nationals drag racing tour was the Inaugural NMRA Ford Performance Nationals on June 11-13 in Norwalk, Ohio, and the weekend wound down the fields in over a dozen classes to finish out strong with memorable winner’s circle celebrations. Continuing his number one qualifying streak from St. Louis in Norwalk as well, Tony Hobson’s name topped the order for VP Racing Madditives Street Outlaw as his ProCharged 1990 Ford Mustang ran out the back door to go 4.353 at 165.01 mph. The Lake St. Louis, Missouri, resident took on John Urist in his Hellion Turbo 2015 Mustang, and although Urist had the hole shot advantage, he spun not long into the run and Hobson powered past to conclude another event with a win as his 4.422 at 164.81 mph time slip made things official.

Once again, the Edelbrock Renegade qualifying sheet hosted KBX Performance power in the top spot as Joel Greathouse, the 2020 season champion, piloted Jeremy Wolf’s turbocharged 1993 Mustang to a quick 4.612 at 154.00 mph timeslip. New Yorker Eric Bardekoff was close behind in second with his supercharged 2016 Mustang and a 4.640 at 154.58 mph trip. The two took out the rest of the field on their way to the finals where it was a wild fight for glory, but Greathouse refused to relinquish his advantage and got the job done with a 4.633 at 153.33 mph blast to cap off his second win of the weekend.  Reigning JDM Engineering Limited Street champion Bill Putnam of Loxahatchee, Florida, put his UPR Products-backed 1994 Mustang into the lead during qualifying when he ran it out the back door to go 8.525 at 160.48 mph. Putnam continued to dominate the field in eliminations and met with Kevin McCotter who had qualified seventh in the finals. When the green light signaled the start, Putnam let loose with a monster rip and widened the gap all the way to the finish. He lit the scoreboards with an 8.538 at 161.04 mph run to add yet another win to his incredible streak as McCotter slowed to cruise home as the runner up. Nathan Stymiest was the number one qualified driver in G-Force Racing Transmissions Coyote Stock for the second event in a row, as the Pennsylvania-based driver ran 9.905 at 134.91 mph this time out in his 1992 Mustang. Stymiest exited during eliminations, although Randy Soper and Chad Stephens both continued on. In the finals, Soper had the advantage on paper having qualified fourth to Stephens’s twelfth, but a red light ended the weekend for Soper and allowed Stephens, who had overcome ongoing mechanical trouble with his ’87 “Dirty Bird” Thunderbird all weekend long, to take his much-deserved first ever trip to the winner’s circle for the class before he headed back to his home in Canada. With both the quickest elapsed time and the fastest trap speed, Mike Bowen of Girard, Pennsylvania, topped the qualifying list in Richmond Gear Factory Stock with a 10.362 at 129.83 mph trip in his 1971 Ford. However, the final round was occupied by the number two qualifier, Mark Anderson of Illinois, and Justn Fogelsonger of Pennsylvania, for a rematch of the St. Louis race they had run less than 48-hours prior. With a reversal of the results from the last showdown, Anderson and his Laris Motorsports Insurance-backed Mustang wrapped up the win with a 10.363 at 127.04 mph blast.

A perfect 0.000-second reaction time for ARP Open Comp driver Ray Williams Sr. of Thomasville, Georgia, put him and his 1979 Ford ahead of the rest of the 37-car class for qualifying. In eliminations, though, Dennis Corn and Ashley Conway-Lang lined their cars up against one another for all the marbles in the finals. Lang was a touch late on the tree and opened the door for Corn to steal the show, which he did when he ran 9.418 at 124.46 mph on his 9.32 dial in. The competition was tight in Exedy Racing Clutch Modular Muscle, but Floridian Jason Henson’s dead-on 0.000-second light with his 2002 Mustang in qualifying entitled him to have his name put into the lead. Andy Russell also had a perfect reaction time and wound up third as a result, and Fallon Walker wasn’t far behind in sixth with a 0.005-second light. They both drove expertly through eliminations and were aiming for 10.12-second and 11.25-second runs in the finals, but Walker slowed a touch and Russell illuminated the win light with a 10.211 at 125.83 mph run to make Walker the runner up. Running in two categories this weekend, Texas’s own Llyod Mikeska qualified number one in HP Tuners Super Stang with a 0.004-second reaction time behind the wheel of his 2016 Mustang. Mikeska made his mark on eliminations and stayed in the game through to the finals, but Chris Parisi of Jacksonville, Florida, who had qualified on Mikeska’s heels in second outran the man where it mattered most. Taking the win with a 120.94 at 104.80 mph pass, Parisi added an Edelbrock Victor to his collection.Mike Roup’s 1970 Ford pickup left the startling line just 0.001-seconds after the green light lit during Detroit Locker Truck & Lightning qualifying to earn the top spot. Based out of Texas, Roup held strong until the semi-finals, but multi-time champion Randy Conway of Michigan and defending champion Bob Dill of Pennsylvania worked their way to the finals. As the lights came down, both men wanted to get going, but Dill was too quick on the tree with his 2001 truck and Conway scored the win as a result of a red light in the opposing lane with a 10.319 at 126.16 mph trip from his 1984 model as the icing on the cake. Running just 0.003-seconds over his 10.503 index with his 1972 Ford, Clyde Dunphy was the number one qualifier in RacePagesDigital.com Ford Muscle. When eliminations began, the Illinois-based racer went out in the semi-finals while the number five and six qualified drivers, Danny Towe and Matthew Keiser, respectively, took up the two spots in the finals. Although both men were just 0.01-seconds off their dial ins, with Georgia resident Towe going 12.01 and the Indiana-based Keiser going 10.26, the victory went to Towe by default as Keiser turned on the red light at the start instead of the win light at the finish. The Fastest Street Car Bracket classes hosted full fields of fast cars on both days. On Saturday, the B1 Fast Ford winner was John Gregory who ran 9.824 at 119.95 mph over Kenny Robinson, the B2 Quick Ford winner was Randy Conway going 10.248 at 131.78 mph over Rod Lenhart, and the B3 Street Ford winner was Daniel Imloff with a 12.199 at 109.70 mph pass over Duane Vennings. On Sunday, however, B1 was won by John Gregory yet again with a 9.725 at 126.29 mph pass over Jerry Spoor, B2 had Gary Fitzgerald as the winner with a 10.012 at 123.45 mph pass against Kim Moritz, and B3 was trumped by Mike Baker on an 11.589 at 114.95 mph trip to Elaine Moistner’s effort. Mickey Thompson Street Car Challenge competitors put their street legal machines to work on the 1,320 and Randy Thomas had the quickest car of them all in qualifying as his 2010 Ford Mustang recorded an 8.393 at 164.49 mph run. Thomas took his place in the finals with Shane Isaacs and his 1993 Mustang in the other lane. Both men had run quicker than 8.50 earlier in the race and, as neither car held a chassis certification to go below the number, were given warnings as per the rulebook. When it came time to do business, they both went all out and ran quicker than 8.50 yet again. As a result, both were simultaneously disqualified and with no winner of the race, they were designated as co-runners up. It was a truly unique situation, but Thomas and Isaacs had fun with the turn of events as they shared the winner’s circle photos and even cut the trophy in half so they could each keep a piece. Drivers in QA1 True Street got to enjoy a scenic 30-mile cruise around Ohio farm country before blasting down the drag strip three times in a row. The quickest average of the group, 8.691-seconds, belonged to Randy Thomas of Paducah, Kentucky, and his 2010 Ford Mustang, which made Thomas the overall winner. Neal Adler was named the runner up thanks to his 9.471-second average with his 1988 Mustang, while individual class wins went to Rick Baum (9-second), Bo Webb (10-second), Dominic Post (11-second), Thomas Van Tassel (12-second), Timothy Miller (13-second), Chris Lee (14-second), and Chris Graff (15-second). The ladies got to compete in a separate QA1 All Female True Street Presented by Baer Brakes, with top honors going to Leticia Hughes who averaged 11.095-seconds in her 2018 Mustang and the runner-up spot was taken by Leigh Ann Wagoner with an 11.982-second average in her 2019 model. Maci Belcher won the 12-second group, Sabrina Wright won the 13-second section, Amanda Jordan was the quickest of the 14-second racers, and Heather Flanagan took the title for the 15-second bunch. The special TREMEC Stick Shift Shootout hosted the quickest eight manually-shifted cars of the QA1 True Street for a random-pairing of eliminations. Each contestant received a custom acrylic award, but Jeff McCool earned the big win in the battle of the Fox body final round and got to take home a McLeod Racing RXT win disc clutch and flywheel valued at $1,300 thanks to his 10.202 at 136.91 mph blast while runner up Tim Lasto scored a $500 McLeod Racing product certificate. On Friday evening, four of the rain-delayed final rounds from the 16th Annual NMRA/NMCA Super Bowl of Street-Legal Drag Racing Presented by HPJ Performance at World Wide Technology Raceway outside of St. Louis, Missouri, were run to completion. Taking the win in Edelbrock Renegade was Joel Greathouse over Martin Connelley, while in JDM Engineering Limited Street the victory went to Bill Putnam who ran against Chad Wendel. In G-Force Racing Transmissions Coyote Stock, Kevin McMullin lit the win light in his lane and put Randy Soper on the trailer, and Justin Fogelsonger did the same to Mark Anderson in Richmond Gear Factory Stock. The UPR Products Car Show and special Ring of Fire competition were in full swing on Saturday as well, and the Model T Ford Club International brought out their absolutely beautiful antique Fords to display during the festivities. The 2021 Holley NMRA Ford Nationals drag racing series continues with the Inaugural Arrington Performance NMRA/NMCA Power Festival presented by Force Engineering at “The Fastest Track in Michigan,” US 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan, on July 22-25 and the NMRA will return to Summit Motorsports Park in 2022 on June 10-12. For more information and advance tickets, visit NMRAdigital.com.

CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES CHEVROLET DETROIT GRAND PRIX STREETS OF BELLE ISLE TEAM CHEVY POST RACE PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT JUNE 13, 2021
Pato O’Ward and Taylor Kiel Press Conference Transcript
THE MODERATOR: We’ve been joined by our race winner, Pato O’Ward, driver of the No. 5 AMSP Chevy. We’ve also been joined by president of Arrow McLaren SP, Taylor Kiel. Congratulations. Pato, tell us how you’re feeling. You’re the first guy to win multiple races this season, and after finishing third yesterday, here you are, winner.PATO O’WARD: Yeah, today was pretty good. I knew I had a great car. I made a stupid mistake in qualifying, didn’t transfer. I started in the back, so I knew it was going to be tough. I knew I had to fight my way literally to the front because I remember after the last pit stop Taylor was like, okay, this is the order, everybody has one pit stop, everybody is reset, so it’s like, well, we’re staying here unless we have a yellow and I can ship it.So yellow came out, and that’s where I — I have a lot of faith in myself whenever the car is wiggling around. I know I’m very strong on cold tires, so I took advantage of it, got by people and got her done.THE MODERATOR: Taylor, obviously an emotional weekend for you this weekend with Felix’s injury. Pato dedicated the race to him. Can you give us your perspective?TAYLOR KIEL: Yeah, I think that’s really it. It says it all, emotional. When you see something like that happen to a race driver, it puts your stomach in your throat. First of all, we’re happy that Felix is okay and he’ll be back with us soon. Certainly bringing home a victory was top of mind in trying to help Felix’s recovery a little bit, but man, what a great effort from everybody, certainly from the men and women on the 7 car to get that thing fixed and ready to compete today.But also the men and women on the 5 car, to make it a race-winning car. We had a great car today. Pato did what he needed to do. The team did what they needed to do. And when you execute like that, we’re tough to beat.Certainly lows and highs, but we’re ending on a high and excited to get to Road America in a week.THE MODERATOR: Have you had a chance to talk to Felix yet?PATO O’WARD: No, I have not seen my phone, but I told Felix this was for him before the race started.TAYLOR KIEL: He’s been texting me a lot. He said he’s never seen 10 laps like that in his life. He was certainly watching. He’s super excited for the team and ready to get back.Q.Pato, pretty big weekend for Mexico sporting-wise, first Brandon Moreno becomes the first Mexican-born UFC champion last night and now this big win for you today. We all know your first win earlier this year was special, but what does it mean to you to win in Detroit in Chevrolet’s backyard and to dedicate this win to your teammate?PATO O’WARD: Yeah, I think first off, I’m really happy that I got it because I truly wanted to get it for the — because yesterday was very mixed emotions. We were on the podium but everything was very focused on Felix being okay, and I consider Felix very close, and it’s not a cool feeling to see that because it can happen to any of us. Yeah, it’s not fun.I was really pleased to hear that he was okay. Yeah, he left the hospital today. He’s feeling better. He’s sore. But yeah, I’m excited that I got this for the team, for him, and yeah.Q.How was that dip in the fountain?PATO O’WARD: Oh, my God. Water has never felt so good. It was like perfectly chilled.Q.Pato, a lot of people are wondering, how do you get your tires warmer than others or how do you keep them so clean heading into a restart? What was your secret for that last climactic restart?PATO O’WARD: Fast hands.Q.What did your car feel like in those last few laps as you were —PATO O’WARD: It was wiggly, but I felt like I still had life in the tire available, so I just had to be very — I knew I only had one chance to get every single guy. I couldn’t spend three chances on Dixon. It had to be one. So every time I would pull out or do something, I had to take the risk of pushing the braking zone or getting that mega exit to be able to get in front of them.But I feel like — I was very happy with how I executed it.Q.Several people I talked to said what stands out about you, at least that they’ve seen, is once you get there like you were just talking about, you do strike, you don’t necessarily delay. Where does that come from, that aggression, whatever you want to call it?PATO O’WARD: The problem is whenever you let people step around over you, then it becomes a habit. You need to — I mean, people know that I’m not here to be fifth or sixth. They know I’m here to win. I’m pretty sure that’s the message that we portrayed today.Q.You’re aggressive, you got two guys in two turns, I think four or five guys in four or five laps and wheel to wheel with Josef. I think you guys touched there; is that correct?PATO O’WARD: Yeah, he was moving me on to the marbles. He knew where to put me in order for me not to be able to get him, but I didn’t move, so we kind of both went into each other, I guess. That straightaway isn’t really straight.Yeah, it was a good battle, I think. I think it makes it more exciting whenever there’s a little rubbin’ rub.Q.How do you balance that? Like you’re aggressive and you go for it? How do you not go over the line?PATO O’WARD: Yeah, I didn’t forget the words that Taylor said. He’s like, okay, this is the caution, everybody is going to stack up, lap cars are going to go, blah blah blah. If you have a chance, take it, but if you don’t, keep the championship in mind. But in my head, the two guys that I’m fighting the championship with are in front of me, and I was not going to be pleased if we ended behind them, especially if we had a restart and we were all together, so if I had the chance I was going to strike. I just had to make sure every strike wasn’t like, Oh, am I going to get it? No, it had to be like boom, definite. Once you’re on the inside, it’s yours.Yeah, I mean, I think they were very clean passes. I don’t think I put anybody in jeopardy in ways of hey, I screwed your race or anything. I felt like I did it very clean. I knew I was racing around very professional drivers, very clean, hard racers, Josef, Colton, Palou, definitely on, Graham, some of them have been racing many years. Some of us have been in INDYCAR very little, but these guys are pros. I was around people that you can get within less than an inch and race.Q.Were you a Juan fan? You fact like him, you drive a little bit like him, you’ve got the confidence of him.PATO O’WARD: I know Juan. I feel like we get along really well. Maybe that’s something Taylor can catch on. I was a little too young in Juan’s time. I was a big Montoya fan when he was in INDYCAR after he was in Formula 1, but I started really watching —Q.After NASCAR?PATO O’WARD: Yeah, I was really watching all the races until maybe I was like seven, eight years old when I really somewhat understood kind of the Formula 1 and INDYCAR racing. But Juan was in like Formula 1 and stuff in 2004, 2003, and then he was an INDYCAR champion the year I was born. Yeah, I don’t think I remember much about back then.Q.Zach said at Indy that you know how important it is for the team to win the INDYCAR championship. How has that message been conveyed to you?PATO O’WARD: They have given me an opportunity that many people would kill for, and I want to be the one that gives them their first championship. Yeah, I mean, there’s not much more to say than that. I have so much faith in this group of people. They have my back, I have theirs.In a business like this you consistently have to show that you are capable and still have it, and I feel like it’s races like these where everyone, that little extra that you may put into something will always be given because they know that you’ll be out there giving it everything you have, to give them what they deserve.Q.One win got you a test. What does two wins get you?PATO O’WARD: I don’t know. I know what a championship will get me, though.Q.What?PATO O’WARD: Maybe I share whenever I win the championship. Hopefully I win it. That’s going to be the goal for sure.Q.So now everybody has got to wait?PATO O’WARD: Yes. I’ll post a picture.Q.Do you change your firesuit before you come in or do you come in wet?PATO O’WARD: Oh, I’m wet.Q.Obviously a lot is going on this weekend. To end on this high note, how does that make the team feel?TAYLOR KIEL: Well, I think it’s the right medicine for the issue that we had. Obviously Felix’s crash is shocking. It’s shocking to watch. It makes everybody sick to their stomach. To rebound like we did, it’s huge, and it’s a good boost to morale for the group. It’s a boost to morale for Felix. I think he’s very excited for his teammate, and it’s the least we can do to try to just bring this group back together and refocus after an event like that that just kind of shakes everybody.Q.How did you guys get to Oliver? Was it because he was here and he was familiar with the team and the car?TAYLOR KIEL: Both, yeah, but Oliver is a good driver, and I think that in a situation like that, it’s not about evaluating or finding the next Pato O’Ward, it’s about calming the waters, and I think Oliver was somebody we were familiar with, we knew he could just hop in and get on with it. We had his belts and his measurements and his seats and he was here and all those things, so it just made a very difficult situation less difficult.Q.Everybody was here until 1:00, 2:00 in the morning?TAYLOR KIEL: Yeah 2:30 I think the group left.Q.So everybody gets pep back in their step after, I suppose?TAYLOR KIEL: I hope so. I think probably by the time they get to Fort Wayne tonight on the way back to Indy, it’ll be — hopefully we’ve got some people that are good to drive tonight.It’s been a heck of a weekend.Q.What do you make of you guys have come so far in two years?TAYLOR KIEL: It’s crazy. You’ve got to sit back and peek your head above water sometimes. We’re grinding so hard to try to be the best team in the paddock, and I think when you’re working that hard and you’re so focused on the goal, it’s hard to see how far you’ve come.It’s moments like this where I try to allow myself to take a step back and look around and go, man, we’re close. We can compete every weekend. When the chips are down and we’re P6, we’ve still got a shot to win.It doesn’t come without a lot of hard work and a lot of great support from our partners, but we’re knocking on the door. I don’t think we’re there yet. We’ve still got a long way to go. But we’ve got a shot and that’s all we can ask for?Q.And you’re wet, as well?TAYLOR KIEL: I am, yeah.Q.Taylor, you have one good car but you have a perfect day now with Pato. Do you feel like you can apply that strategy that works or is it just faith in him?TAYLOR KIEL: Well, I think we can only take strategy so far, and at a certain point the driver takes over, and I think that’s exactly what we saw today. We got ourselves as far as we could go with strategy, which was P6, and we got the yellow that we needed, and after that it was all up to the driver.It’s a mix of both. It’s certainly a team effort, no doubt.Q.Taylor, can you explain how well Felix’s car stood up to a really hard hit and just go over what the safety features did and how much he owes Dallara for building a car that’s really tough?TAYLOR KIEL: Well, I think a lot of things. The car certainly did its job. Like I said earlier, you watch that replay on TV and it’s like, shocking. You take into account the speed and the angle of impact and those types of things. The tub held up extremely well. The aeroscreen did exactly what it needed to do. Certainly all of the safety equipment that Felix was wearing and the safety of the track, obviously there was tires everywhere, but the walls held up, the tires held up. There was only minor repairs.It really was a wonderful job by everything in and around that accident that kept him okay, and to see him literally go to the hospital just to double check, that’s kudos to anybody that’s involved in and around safety in INDYCAR.Q.Two years ago at this track, at this race, your career was at a crossroads. You had just signed with Red Bull, didn’t know what your INDYCAR career was going to be. Any time over the last two years that you’ve doubted where you’re going to be?PATO O’WARD: For sure. My career has almost ended at least four or five times, so honestly if everyone says, oh, it’s easy to make it, it hasn’t been hard enough for you then, because it’s such a tough business to make it. When you do it, you have to continue proving yourself for the next 20 years if you want to have a long career.But yeah, obviously there’s been very high and very low moments. But like I said, these guys gave me an opportunity, and I told them I will get you your wins and I will get you your results, so I hope my bosses are proud of me.But we’ve got a long way to go. I love the group of people that I work with. I think they’re some of the best in the business for sure. I’m very excited to see what we can accomplish in the next years.Q.Pato, second win of your INDYCAR career, now second in just five races or so. I know you were so incredibly excited after that first one that you got in Texas. Can you describe a little bit about how this win feels different like from a career or season perspective? I know it’s not the first one, but maybe in some way it’s even more validating?PATO O’WARD: I was always like telling Taylor, man, at Texas we really had to work for it. It didn’t just land on us. I feel like today we fought for it even harder. I feel like those races maybe them taste so sweet because we truly worked together as a team to get it done.When it’s such a competitive series like INDYCAR, I don’t care what anybody says, there is nothing like this in the world. Nothing, nothing like this in the world. It’s so competitive. The cars are beasts. They’re physical, they’re fast, they’re loud. They’re just hard to control.I feel like that’s what really makes the win feel like you just accomplished something really cool.Q.Kind of a similar but maybe different question for you, Taylor, from the team’s perspective what does a second win in a season do compared to just getting one in a year?TAYLOR KIEL: I think one is relieving and two is validating. It shows you that what you’re doing is sustainable, and that’s something that’s been in our narrative for a long time. We’ve been a flash-in-the-pan team for a long time. We sneak out a win here or there and we’re happy to be there.It’s not the case anymore. Our goal is to compete at the front all the time and win championships, and for us to do that you have to win three, four races a season. By the way, you also have to finish in the top 5 like all the time.That’s what we’re aiming to do, and that’s what we’ve proven that we can do, so that’s the goal.Q.You mentioned a couple minutes ago that you still feel like there’s a ways for this team to go. Is part of that — I know we’ve seen Felix up and down the season before his crash on Saturday. Do you feel like a lot of what we’ve seen from him just comes down to continuing to onboard him with this team and get him to a level of comfort that Pato is with Arrow McLaren SP?TAYLOR KIEL: Yeah, Pato has got a year head start. I feel like the car we produce is very difficult to drive, but it’s fast. I think that we’re working to make that better for both drivers, and there’s no boundaries on that. Whatever Felix needs, he’s going to get, and likewise with Pato. There’s no, hey, here’s the car we’ve got and it is what it is. It’s a continual process, and we’re working towards it.I think if Felix was here he’d tell you that the car is coming to him, and he feels better about where it is today than it was in say St. Pete.We’re never satisfied with results or how good the car is to drive or otherwise. It’s nose down and we’ll continue to work to make it better.Q.I think this got brought up in Texas when you guys won your first race of the year. For so many years we’ve tossed around this team in INDYCAR the big three. I imagine for both of you this might signal the end of us referring to that without you guys included.PATO O’WARD: That has been the plan. I don’t think it’s my place to say, though.TAYLOR KIEL: Well, I think being a part of the big three means that we’re a part of the championship hunt and we’re regular contenders and we’re winning races. If it’s the big three or the big 15 or the big one, it doesn’t matter to me, as long as we’re doing that.That’s what we’re doing now, and I aim to keep it up. If we want to call it whatever we want to, that’s fine, but my goal is to be first at the end of the year.THE MODERATOR: Thanks to Taylor and Pato for joining us.
Josef NewgardenPress Conference Transcript
THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon, everyone. We are joined today by our second-place finisher Josef Newgarden, driver of the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevy. Josef, obviously a disappointing finish there at the end. Tell us more about your day.JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, just our breaking day for sure, finished second, and yeah, just kind of was what it was there at the end. Felt like we had a good car and just didn’t work our way strategy-wise and some of the times that we had to pit where we thought we had to pit because a yellow was probably going to come out, I think it all just didn’t play into our favor.Yeah, it is what it is. Move on to the next, but felt like we had a good car. Really proud of our team. I thought they were really resilient this weekend, which is important, and it’s a great job for our partners at Team Chevy to get a one-two here, so pretty stoked for those guys and certainly our partner Hitachi and everybody from Penske Corp that was here supporting us.Q.Last year after St. Pete you were saying Pato is one of the future stars of INDYCAR, in fact you said you were already a fan of him, he was already a star at that time and how clean he’s driven you, now you guys have had some battles this year at Texas and then today. What’s he done differently compared to last year to this year when you’ve been racing him?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I don’t know that he’s done anything different, but he’s — I think he’s picked up where he left off last year. They were in the fight last year and they’ve got strong cars certainly at McLaren. They were in the fight pretty much all the way through last season. I think you’re seeing a lot of the same.Q.How do you think yourself and the team can bounce back from this going into Road America next week?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Well, I’m not sure we have to really bounce back. It’s just we were fast today, hopefully fast next weekend, and hopefully it all works out.Q.You’ve been close to a win a couple times this year, just can’t quite get there. What is it going to take for you and Team Penske to finally get a victory this year?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Well, if I had the answer I’d be doing it but I’m sure it’ll happen at some point. It just hasn’t aligned. Sometimes you get that. You just don’t get everything to line up perfectly. I think we’ve got a lot of the ingredients right. I don’t think we really need to change much, just keep doing our thing.Q.Do you feel the team is taking too risky a calls or anything like that where the cautions could catch you out?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Nope, nope, I wouldn’t change a thing. Look, you can’t predict these races. You can look like a hero or a zero pretty easily in this sport, so yeah, I would ask anyone to change anything. I think they’re doing all the right stuff, it’s just not worked out.Q.Josef, can you describe just how much of a challenge it was for you just to hold off Colton and Alex at the end there? Those tires looked cooked and one little mistake and you’d probably go from second to fourth.JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, they were fried. I think probably the worst part was we had to put about 10 extra laps on those tires because we thought the caution was going to come out in that first stint around lap 18 I think we pitted, and you just can’t risk missing the caution. If you miss the caution, you’re just hosed. It just completely ruins your day.I think that compromised us more than anything. Then we had to run 25 laps on used reds, so that was not ideal, and then the cautions bunching us up probably hurt us, as well, just brought the whole field back to it. I think we probably could have held Colton off potentially if we just would have run cleanly to the end there. But that’s kind of impossible to say. I’d have to see that play out. I think, yeah, just the cautions and the potential caution is more of what hindered us today.Q.You and Pato touched on a pretty quick section of the racetrack. I just wanted to get your thoughts on how you saw that. Was it just good hard racing or was it a bit on the limit?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Definitely I think on the limit, but I think it was good hard racing. There’s a kink on the back straight so it’s not perfectly straight, so to be fighting side by side, I think you probably get a little bit of contact like that. It’s not completely abnormal down in that section of the track. But he was coming like a freight train. My tires were cooked, and he was having great drives off the corner, as you saw.I think that’s what kind of did us in. It almost did us in with Alex, too. Thankfully we were able to hold on to second, but yeah, just hard racing.Q.My question is the fact that it’s been two years now since we’ve been at Belle Isle. Has the track changed or evolved in relation to the tire wear that you’re getting on either the reds or blacks?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: If anything the reds were quite a bit more durable than ’19. I think if you guys cast your thoughts back to ’19, they were diabolically bad for tire wear. You didn’t want to be on them for more than two laps in the race. Certainly they were more resilient today. You could almost make a used set work. A new set would have been preferred, but you could definitely make a used set work for I would say 15, 20 laps. 25 is pushing it, but Firestone made a change and definitely made them more durable, but I think the fact that they are more fragile than the blacks makes it interesting to watch. I think as a spectator it’s probably more fun to see that mix-up and that dynamic than them being just both really durable and just a little time offset.That’s what you set here. You get quite a bit of spread. But a lot less spread than what it was in ’19.Q.Looking back through this season, can you consider this isn’t a bad one, or can you consider a successful one?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Well, we haven’t completed it yet, so I don’t know how to look at it yet completely.I think looking at half of it, it seems okay. It’s not exactly what we wanted, but it’s not too bad. We’re in the hunt. But we’ve got halfway to go, so a lot of racing to hopefully still be in this fight.THE MODERATOR: Josef, good luck next weekend at Road America.

·        No. 1 qualifier and three-time event winner Matt Hagan drives DSR Performance Parts Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car to quarterfinals at National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) New England Nationals

·        Leah Pruett pilots DSR Precision Manufacturing HEMI®-powered Top Fuel dragster from No. 10 seeded position to a close quarterfinal battle at New England Dragway

·        Solid Funny Car qualifying effort put Ron Capps and his DSR Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the No. 2 spot for eliminations with fire ruining his opening-round run

·        No. 6 seed Cruz Pedregon qualifies Snap-on Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in top half of eliminations ladder for sixth consecutive event and has solid side by side battle in opening round

June 13, 2021, Epping, New Hampshire – It looked to be a very promising race day for HEMI®-powered machines at New England Dragway for the TascaParts.com New England Nationals, the sixth National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Camping World Drag Racing Series event of the season. Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) stablemates Matt Hagan and Ron Capps qualified No. 1 and No. 2 aboard their Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Cars, while Cruz Pedregon extended his season-long streak of qualifying in the top-half of the eliminations ladder with a sixth place seeding.

Reigning Funny Car world champion Hagan returned to Epping, New Hampshire, dragstrip as the defending three-time winner (2017, 2018, 2019) and in the hunt his first win of the 2021 season after taking his DSR Performance Mopar to the No. 1 qualifier position with his Friday evening run at 3.891 seconds at 331.53 mph. With that effort, Hagan earned three valuable bonus points and a first round bye. He powered his Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat to a 3.935 seconds/ 327.11 mph pass, the quickest of the opening round, to find himself paired with Tim Wilkerson for a quarterfinal showdown. The two competitors gave the crowd a great show and a close race but Hagan’s 3.983 sec./328.06 mph was just short of Wilkerson’s 3.956/324.44 mph winning passto defeat the defending event champ. 

Hagan’s teammate Capps earned his No. 2 qualifier position with his NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat’s 3.941-second pass at 315.42 mph in Q2, and then backed that up with the third quickest pass in Q3 to earn a total of four bonus points. A two-time winner at the New England Nationals (2014 and 2016), Capps came out strong in the opening round against No. 13 seed Terry Haddock in order to take advantage of a quarterfinal bye opportunity, but sparks appeared at half-track causing a sudden lack of traction. He tried to wrangle his ride but ultimately saw his opponent squeak by as they approached the finish. While fire made an appearance beneath him, Capps brought his Funny Car to a safe stop and immediately turned his focus to the next event in Norwalk, Ohio, in two weeks.  

Also qualified in the top half of the Funny Car eliminations ladder for a sixth consecutive event this season was Pedregon who earned the sixth place starting position by taking his Snap-On Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat for a 3.969 second run at 326.71 mph, the fastest speed in final qualifying. That effort set up with a first round match-up against No. 9 qualifier J.R. Todd and, looking to build on the Pedregon Racing team’s season-long progression, the veteran driver came out swinging. Pedregon hit the throttle and earned the starting line advantage with a 0.052-second reaction time to Todd’s 0.085-second launch. The two battled side-by side the length of the dragstrip to cross the finish line within just 0.0003 seconds of each other. Unfortunately, the approximately two-inch margin of victory was not in Pedregon’s favor as his 4.027/321.73 mph run was edged out by Todd’s winning 3.994/322.88 mph pass.

In Top Fuel competition, DSR’s Leah Pruett marked her NHRA silver anniversary with a silver ribbon displayed on her HEMI-powered dragster’s roll cage and tenth seeded position heading into race day in celebration of her racing debut 25 years ago as an eight year-old in Junior dragsters. From the hit, Pruett took her DSR Precision Manufacturing Mopar Dodge//SRT dragster straight down the lane for her quickest pass of the weekend at 3.771 sec./324.28 mph to dispose of No. 3 qualifier Justin Ashley in the opening round. Pruett had a similarly strong run in the quarterfinals against No. 4 seed and Top Fuel points leader Steve Torrence, posting a 3.811/323.12 pass to her opponent’s 3.823/320.13, but a quicker start gave him the edge he needed and the holeshot victory to end her day.

The next event on the NHRA’s 70th anniversary season calendar, Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, takes place June 25-29 at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.

ADDITIONAL NOTES and QUOTES

FUNNY CAR:

Matt Hagan, DSR Performance Dodge Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
(No. 1 Qualifier – 3.891 seconds at 331.53 mph / Three bonus point for quickest Q1 run)

Round 1: (0.073-second reaction time, 3.935 seconds at 327.11 mph) wins on a BYE run
Round 2: (0.067/3.983/328.06) loss to No. 8 Tim Wilkerson (0.058/3.956/324.44)

“It was a pretty good weekend at Epping. We qualified No. 1 for the first time this year and got that yellow Camping World hat. The car ran really good and we have a really good race car. We were just on the bad side of a good drag race that second round against Tim Wilkerson. You’re gonna have those. You lose more than you win, but when you do win them, it makes them that much more special. Our turn is right around the corner, so I’m really looking forward to Norwalk. We’re doing everything right to turn on the win lights, but sometimes you get on the bad side and that’s just racing. Last year we were on the right side of most of those races. You pay your dues, work hard and it will come around for you and that’s what we’re doing right now. We’ll roll into Norwalk and be excited for a great weekend. We’re glad to get DSR Performance and the DSR parts website some good exposure with getting the No. 1 qualifier. That car looked good and it ran good too. There’s so much racing left this season. This is only our sixth race in and there’s so much racing left, but it’s all about the finish and we’re a marathoner, not sprinting.”

Ron Capps, DSR NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
(No. 2 Qualifier –  3.941 seconds at 315.42 mph / Three bonus points for quickest run in Q3 and one bonus point for third-quickest in Q2)

Round 1: (0.093-second reaction time, 4.292 seconds at 263.20 mph) loss to No. 13 Terry Haddock (0.150/4.214/253.23)

“Haddock has been running well and we knew we couldn’t take them lightly, so we definitely were prepared to lay down a good number. ‘Guido’ (crew chief Dean Antonelli) came on the radio and said ‘we need to make sure we win this round’ because we knew there was a Bye into the semis and you can’t take that for granted. The car was driving fine, it was smooth, it didn’t seem out of control, and all of a sudden, the tires came loose. I waited and gave it a pedal and then the car blew up and caught fire. I didn’t even realize it at that point because I was trying to stay on it and get ahead of Haddock, and then just before the finish line, I saw him drive by. By then, my legs started to feel really hot so I just wanted to get the car stopped and get out of there. The fire burned up my suit pretty badly, and I’ve got to give credit to Impact Racing. My Impact firesuit protected my legs, and other than a little soreness, I’m alright. The suit did what it was supposed to do. The whole situation is a bummer because if we would’ve won that round, we would’ve had an automatic Bye to the semis, so it’s just disappointing to give up rounds like that. But, we’ll comb through all of the data, figure out why it smoked the tires, and head to Norwalk.”

Cruz Pedregon, Pedregon Racing Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat

(No. 6 Qualifier – 3.969 seconds at 326.71 mph)

Round 1: (0.052-second reaction time, 4.027 seconds at 321.73 mph) vs No. 9 J.R. Todd (0.085/3.994/322.88)

“We had a solid weekend here in New England. We qualified sixth and kept our streak of qualifying in the top half of the eliminations ladder for the entire 2021 season alive. I think the worst we’ve qualified was eighth so far. The opening round was a great race against J.R. Todd and it was literally a race of inches. Unfortunately, it didn’t go our way but it was a great effort. We’re getting better but have a few kinks we still have to work out. I feel like we’re on schedule to have some great runs here coming up in the near future. We’re looking forward to going to our next race in Norwalk and shortly thereafter, our Western swing starting out in Denver for the Dodge//SRT Mile High Nationals and then California. Overall it was a good weekend and we ran top speed of all the cars, even Top Fuel, in Saturday’s final qualifying effort with a 326 mph pass, so it shows that the HEMI power is there. We’re putting it to the ground and we’re just looking to improve little by little, and start winning these close rounds.”

 
TOP FUEL:

Leah Pruett, DSR Precision Manufacturing Dragster  
(No. 10 Qualifier – 3.927 seconds at 278.92 mph)

Round 1: (0.090-second reaction time, 3.771 seconds at 324.28 mph) defeats No. 3 Justin Ashley (0.045/4.063/274.78)

Round 2: (0.103/3.811/323.12) loss to No. 4 Steve Torrance (0.060/3.823/320.13)

“A second round exit is not what we had in mind for this DSM Manufacturing dragster today. The silver lining on the weekend is that we have a car that is having conversations with us. We had second quickest ET of round one and that was awesome with that (3).771. We were behind a little bit after having some bad data from the weather station. The team did a phenomenal job of getting us qualified and into a winning position on race day. The first round win was great. We had never been able to beat Justin Ashley before, so that was a boost for this team. The second round was just a good, close drag race. We lost on a holeshot and that’s on me. Walking away from this, we have a race car that is properly working and we’re now very confident heading into Norwalk where we get to pull double-duty with the Dodge SRT dragster and Factory Stock (Showdown) Drag Pak.”

NHRA Championship Points Standings:
Following the TascaParts.com NHRA New England Nationals Presented by Bandero Premium Tequila at New England Dragway

FUNNY CAR (season wins in parentheses)
1. Bob Tasca III – 495 (2)

2. John Force – 480 (1)

3. J.R. Todd – 450 (1)4. Robert Hight – 423

5. Matt Hagan (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat) – 375

6. Ron Capps (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat) – 372

7. Tim Wilkerson– 364

8. Alexis DeJoria – 325

9. Cruz Pedregon (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat) – 305

10. Terry Haddock – 221

TOP FUEL (season wins in parentheses)
1. Steve Torrance – 606 (2)

2. Antron Brown – 444 (1)

3. Billy Torrence – 391 (1)

4. Shawn Langdon – 354

5. Brittany Force – 341 

6. Doug Kalitta – 330

7. Justin Ashley – 283

8. Josh Hart – 278 (1)
9. Clay Millican– 270

10. Leah Pruett (Mopar Dodge//SRT) – 267

DodgeGarage: Digital Hub for Drag Racing News

Fans can follow all the NHRA’s action this season at DodgeGarage, the one-stop portal for Dodge//SRT and Mopar drag-racing news. The site includes daily updates and access to an online racing HQ, news, events, galleries, available downloads, and merchandise. For more information, visit www.dodgegarage.com. 

@DodgeMoparMotorsports on Instagram

The @DodgeMoparMotorsports Instagram channel continues to share content capturing Dodge//SRT Mopar drivers on the track. Fans can see action from the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series and NHRA Sportsman grassroots racers competing in classes such as Factory Stock Showdown, Stock and Super Stock, as well as additional motorsports series.

Mopar  

Mopar (a simple contraction of the words MOtor and PARts) offers exceptional service, parts and customer-care. Born in 1937 as the name of a line of antifreeze products, the Mopar brand has evolved over more than 80 years to represent both complete vehicle care and authentic performance for owners and enthusiasts worldwide.

Mopar made its mark in the 1960s during the muscle-car era with performance parts to enhance speed and handling for both on-road and racing use. Later, the brand expanded to include technical service and customer support. Today, Mopar integrates service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance customer and dealer support worldwide.

Complete information on the Mopar brand is available at www.mopar.com. Mopar is part of the portfolio of brands offered by leading global automaker and mobility provider Stellantis. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.

Follow Mopar and company news and video on:

Company blog: blog.stellantisnorthamerica.com

Media website: media.stellantisnorthamerica.com

Mopar brand: www.mopar.com/

Mopar blog: blog.mopar.com/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/mopar

Instagram: www.instagram.com/officialmopar

Twitter: twitter.com/OfficialMOPAR

YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/mopar or www.youtube.com/StellantisNA

Dodge//SRT

For more than 100 years, the Dodge brand has carried on the spirit of brothers John and Horace Dodge. Their influence continues today as Dodge shifts into high gear with muscle cars and SUVs that deliver unrivaled performance in each of the segments where they compete.

2021 marks the year that Dodge is distilled into a pure performance brand, offering Hellcat-powered, 700-plus-horsepower SRT versions of every model across the lineup. For the 2021 model year, Dodge delivers the drag-strip dominating 807-horsepower Dodge Challenger SRT Super Stock, the new 797-horsepower Dodge Charger SRT Redeye, the most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan in the world, and the new 710-horsepower Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat, the most powerful SUV ever. Combined, these three muscle cars make Dodge the industry’s most powerful brand, offering more horsepower than any other American brand across its entire lineup.

In 2020, Dodge was named the “#1 Brand in Initial Quality,” making it the first domestic brand ever to rank No. 1 in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study (IQS). The Dodge brand also ranked No. 1 in the J.D. Power APEAL Study (mass market). These results are historic because it marks the first time a domestic brand has earned top spots in both J.D. Power studies in the same year.

Dodge is part of the portfolio of brands offered by leading global automaker and mobility provider Stellantis. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.