March 19, 2022

Harrison Burton and the No. 21 DEX Imaging Mustang posted the fourth-best time in Saturday’s practice session on the reconfigured Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Drivers, Burton included, used terms like “insane” and “wild” and “crazy” to describe the action on the track that has seen the banking in the turns increased from 24 to 28 degrees while the width of the surface has been reduced from 55 to 40 feet in the turns and 42 feet on the backstretch. The frontstretch has been widened to 61.5 feet.
 
With the Cup Series cars using a Talladega/Daytona horsepower and aero package, drivers ran in big packs during Saturday’s practice session, which was postponed from Friday to Saturday due to rain. That schedule change also means that the starting line-up was set by metrics based on recent results. Burton will start 31^st.
  
“This new track is wild!” Burton said after Saturday’s practice, which saw him post a speed of 181.121 miles per hour on the 43^rd of the 49 laps he ran. “It’s a super crazy racing style that was fun in practice.”

He said he feels good about his prospects for Sunday’s Fold of Honor/QuikTrip 500.

 “I’d say our DEX Mustang is pretty good,” he said. “We just need some more stability and we should be good to go.”
 
Sunday’s 500-miler is set to start just after 3 p.m., with TV coverage on FOX.

NASCAR CUP SERIES ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY FOLDS OF HONOR QUIKTRIP 500 TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSRIPT MARCH 19, 2022 CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series practice session at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Press Conference Transcript:  WHAT’S THAT LIKE GOING OVER TO SENOIA, COMPETING AGAINST SOME LOCAL HEROS? ANY EXPECTATIONS COMPETING ON THE (INAUDIBLE) TONIGHT?“No. Definitely no expectations. Yeah, excited to go there. Bubba called me a couple weeks ago or maybe it was last week and asked me about it. I told him I’d love to. He and his family bought that track probably a couple years ago now and it seems like they’ve been doing a great job with it, getting some big shows in town and I think tonight is more local one of their local events. Excited to go race number one and drive one of his cars and have some fun. Obviously try to support a local short track that we all want them to do well and succeed close to here. So, feel like they will get a good crowd and good car count.” CHASE YOUR NAME HAS BEEN TOSSED AROUND IN CONNCECTION WITH THE HENDRICK TRIP TO LE MANS NEXT YEAR. DO YOU HAVE INTEREST IN THAT?“Yeah, you know I’m not super up to speed on it. Boss called me last week and said they were going to do it. I guess we are probably racing on that weekend, but I think it would be a lot of fun to go do that event one day. I’m not sure it’s really possible the way our schedule is. I don’t know 100 percent how that is going to line up, but certainly would have interest in it. I just don’t think logistically that’s going to work for any of us, but we’ll see.” IF THE OFF WEEK IS THAT WEEK?“Yeah, potentially. I don’t know. We will just have to wait and see how the schedule falls.” ASSUME YOU WATCHED SOME OF THAT TRUCK PRACTICE. DID THAT TELL YOU ANYTHING ABOUT HOW YOUR CARS ARE GOING TO BE ON TRACK?“Yeah, I actually didn’t. I was working my way down here. I was keeping up with it from afar and it sounded like those guys were wide open and drafting. I would imagine we would be doing the same, which I think is what we all pretty much expected coming into this. You know I think there’s a lot of ways you can look at it. I really, for a repave and the situation for a mile and a half getting repaved and kind of the way these places drive to have the ability to you know move off the bottom and get rubber down in different lanes, I feel like this might be the best way to do that. I think it will be interesting for sure. I don’t exactly know what to expect but hopefully we have two solid lanes, and you can work them both and not think that the cars are probably going to drive good enough where you can do that. So, we’ll see. I don’t know man, I’m as open as anybody about it and I really don’t 100 percent know but I do think it will be kind of speedway-esque and just looking at it reminds me a lot of Turns 3 and 4 at Texas and I think it will be really similar to the All-Star race out there last summer on that end of the racetrack is kind of been my head space and how I would approach the weekend.” WILL YOU SPEND A LITTLE BIT OF TIME LOOKING FOR ROAD AMERICA KIND OF FOR PREP THIS WEEK OR WHAT WILL YOU TAKE IN TO COTA NEXT WEEK?“I mean, I think just learning. Obviously our first road course race with this car. I don’t think anybody has really driven it a lot on road courses. You know we had the test at Charlotte there early on, but it seemed like every team was they had a car at the track and they were kind of rotating drivers through. So, I don’t think any of us got a ton of time with it, but you know these cars, really a lot of the design pieces come from road race background some of the things they see and on the IMSA side of things. I really think they’re probably going to suit road racing well. I think they’ll be fine, and I don’t know that the race will look a ton different honestly. I think the cars will drive fine. Certainly, getting use to those small things that are going to be a little bit different and the shifting and the brakes. Just how they act at some of those different style of corners. You know COTA has a lot of different angles and weird off camera situations, so curious to see how it drives. I think it would be fine.” OVER YOUR LAST SIX YEARS HERE IN THE CUP SERIES, WHEN YOU LOOK BACK TO YOUR FIRST RACE TO WHERE YOU ARE NOW HOW DO YOU SEE YOUR DEVELOPMENT AS A DRIVER COMMUNICATION WISE WITH YOUR TEAM?“I would like to think it has gotten better. I hope, you know i feel like I’ve learned a lot for sure over the course of my time. I’m always learning, you know I don’t feel like I ever had it perfect. Somebody has it perfect, I’d love to meet them. I think it’s definitely a learning thing and you know the sports just always changing. I mean look at this year. We are coming in with a new car and these things drive different. Coming to a brand new Atlanta Motor Speedway here, things are just always changing. It’s like nothing is ever just going to stay the same always. So, I think just having an open mind and maybe taking some of those past experiences with you as you encounter new things and be willing to maybe break a habit or two to improve. Sometimes those things are hard to do. I feel like a lot of times, as a driver, you always kind of fall back into what is natural to you. But sometimes you have to adjust that, and you know like I said, break a habit which is tough. I think it’s necessary sometimes to be successful, so yeah just trying to take a weekend at a time and make the most of, like I say all the time, a great opportunity. I’ve got that right now, so I’m just trying to have some fun with it too.” YOU SAID SOMETHING INTERESTING YESTERDAY ON SIRIUS (XM NASCAR RADIO) THAT I HADN’T THOUGHT ABOUT. YOU SAID THIS IS THE FIRST TIME YOU’VE GONE THROUGH A CAR CHANGE, I GUESS BESIDES OTHER THAN CHEVY WHEN THEY CHANGED THE BODY. SO, WHAT HAS THAT BEEN LIKE, I GUESS MAYBE BREAKING OUT OF ANY COMFORT ZONES OR ANY WAYS THAT YOU’VE HAD TO ADAPT AND JUST TAKE ON A CHALLENGE LIKE THIS WITH A COMPLETELY NEW CAR?“Yes, first time I have been through it. You know I think some of the, there’s probably a handful of guys in the field that went through the COT change and then as the car transitioned to whatever they called the last one, but for me personally this is the first time I’ve kind of gone through that. I’ve had fun with it really just because it is different. This thing does drive different. I feel like it is a little less forgiving than what we had last year. You’re not really going any faster, but it’s just less forgiving which is interesting. Typically, with a lack of forgiveness comes extra speed, but that’s just not really the case with this car. It’s still very draggy, but there’s just not a lot of cushion to lean on with the right side from an aero standpoint. It’s just a different feel, but I think as you go through some of these changes as I said a second ago, you really have to have an open mind. I mentioned it yesterday, but I felt like California was a pretty natural feel to me and that seemed to work ok. Phoenix was kind of the same way. Vegas was not and I think that’s just something that I have to really think about how I go back and find that sense of comfort and still go fast. You might have to adjust that as you go from these different tracks, so yes that’s been my experience so far, but it has been fine and been fun and it’s been a challenge.” WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS? WHAT’S POSITIVE WITH THIS TEAM RIGHT NOW SETTING YOU UP FOR THE REST OF THE SEASON?“I mean like I said, I look at California I thought we were really solid there before I crashed the car the first time. I thought we were really good at Phoenix; you know in contention there for the majority of the day. We’ve had great pit stops for the most part all year. Like I said, the pace has been there when we get the thing driving like I want at some of those tracks too which is good. It’s nice to go to a place, like last week I thought was like a nice weekend builder to say hey we showed up, I was looking for a feel and we were able to achieve that with the car and then when we achieved that we had that pace comparison to the rest of the competitors. When those things happen, it’s a good thing and I feel like all the pieces to the puzzle had been there at different times, just not the end results. Certainly no wins, so we want to be better and try to check those boxes.” HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO CONTINUE TO RIDE THE MOMENTUM THAT NASCAR HAS RIGHT NOW BY YOU DOING THINGS LIKE THAT? FROM KYLE DOING HIS GRASSROOTS EFFORT, HOW MUCH DOES THAT HELP THE SUNDAY SHOW AND JUST BRINGING EYEBALLS ON IT?“I hope it helps. I feel like, speaking for myself, I do that type of thing because I enjoy it. You know, I enjoy going and racing and driving a different car and challenging myself in a different way. So it’s very naturally, I don’t do it because I’m trying to pull people from one area to the other. If that comes along with it though, I think that’s a great thing. That should be a natural thing too just like it’s natural for me to want to go do that stuff. You want someone to naturally have interest in watching us on Sunday if they are at the race tonight or vice versa, somebody is going to watch on Sunday maybe cruise over there tonight and check out the dirt track that’s only a half hour away. You want that to be a natural thing and I think that’s really my standpoint is I naturally want to go do it and if you pull some people with you to enjoy that crossover then great. Maybe you’ll make a new fan or two or have somebody take part in an event that they wouldn’t have before which would be positive as well.” ALAN GUSTFASON WAS ALSO ON THE CHANNEL THIS WEEK AND SAID SOMETHING ALONG THE LINES OF THIS CAR DOESN’T REALLY SUIT YOUR DRIVING STYLE. DOES THIS CAR REMIND YOU OF ANYTHING PERHAPS THAT YOU’VE DRIVEN BEFORE?“Not really, no. It’s definitely different for sure and I think most everything I have driven along the NASCAR side of things, look at truck they have the big flat right sides, a lot of forgiveness with the air from that standpoint. The Xfinity cars are really the same way. The Cup cars were that way you know and especially last year with the big spoilers on them. You can take advantage of that. You know guys can take advantage of that comfort on the right side of these things and this thing just does not, there’s not a lot extra there. Once you get past that slip of the tire on whatever is available grip wise in the right rear or the right side it seems like that’s kind of it. There’s nothing beyond that, so you know for me I think going to some of these places like a Las Vegas you know I was really loose and just couldn’t find that comfort. Potentially going to have to break some habits and that’s a part of the deal. I have no problems with that, it’s ok to have to challenge yourself in a different area to get better. I’m all good with it and I think it’ll be interesting. I think a lot is going to change throughout the year and I think right now there’s a lot of teams in a lot of directions right now and in six months I don’t that’s really going to be the case. I’m curious to see how the racing changes from now until mid-late summer.” THERE’S BEEN SOME TALK THAT DRIVERS WITH A DIRT BACKGROUND OR MAYBE WHO ARE WILLING TO KIND OF HOP INTO DIFFERENT CARS AND EXPERIEMENT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO HAVE SUCCESS WITH THE NEXT GEN CAR. AS SOMEONE WHO HAS DONE THAT LATELY IS THAT TRUE? IS THAT WHAT YOU ARE FINDING?“Yes and no. I mean I think a guy can still be really good if you just race on Sundays and you’ve had success along the way and kind of learn the right tools, I guess, over the years to have this kind of bigger background. So, I don’t know that you really have to do that, but I definitely don’t think it hurts anything to go and run different style cars dirt or asphalt. I will say the one thing that has really stood out to me is anytime I’ve gotten into a car that you may or may not be going faster mile per hour wise, but when you’re in a car that is going fast for a certain style racetrack and it feels fast, things are happening really quick, I think anytime you can jump back into something that your surroundings are slowing down is a big help whether it is on dirt or asphalt. Certainly, searching around and finding the grip and all that’s good and is a helpful thing too, but I think anytime you can jump in something really fast and you can come back and slow your surroundings down, things happen slower for you and I think things get easier too.” AS THE BIGGEST BRAVES FAN IN THE GARAGE HAVE YOU BEEN PAYING ATTENTION TO FREE AGENCY AND WERE YOU CRYING WITH FREEMAN LEAVING (INAUDIBLE)?“Yeah, no I think it was, look I get both sides of it for sure. I’ve enjoyed keeping up with it. I had a chance to spend some time with Freddy when we were out in L.A. and that was the first time that I had ever really been around him and he was just a super guy, which made me want him to stay even more. Obviously, he’s a great baseball player, but really an even better individual in my opinion. So, I hated to see that, but you know I knew as things were starting to get talked about around the All-Star break and what not it could go either way. I get it, it’s money ball. It’s part of it. The Dodgers certainly got a good one, so I hate to see him go but I’m excited about their team and I think they have been filling all the gaps well and I think they’ll be just fine. I’m excited to watch either way.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY FOLDS OF HONOR QUIKTRIP 500 TEAM CHEVY POST-PRACTICE MARCH 19, 2022

TEAM CHEVY: TOP-20 IN NASCAR CUP SERIES PRACTICE1st      RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER/SWEETLEAF CAMARO ZL1 7th      JUSTIN HALEY, NO. 31 LEAFFILTER GUTTER PROTECTION CAMARO ZL111th    CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 12th    TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 3CHI CAMARO ZL1 13th    DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 COMMSCOPE CAMARO ZL1 14th    ERIK JONES, NO. 43 FOCUSFACTOR CAMARO ZL1 17th    TY DILLON, NO. 42 ALSCO UNIFORMS CAMARO ZL119th    ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 ADVENT HEALTH CAMARO ZL1 ·       The NASCAR Cup Series participated in a 50-minute practice session, where Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Kroger / SweetLeaf Camaro ZL1, was the fastest overall.  ·       Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s fastest lap was 29.708 seconds, at a speed of 186.616 mph.  ·       Due to inclement weather, qualifying is cancelled. The starting lineup for tomorrow’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 is set per the rule book.  TEAM CHEVY TOP-20 UNOFFICIAL LINEUP: POS.   DRIVER5th      TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 3CHI CAMARO ZL1 6th      CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL17th      ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 ADVENT HEALTH CAMARO ZL1 11th    ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 12th    WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL113th    DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 COMMSCOPE CAMARO ZL1 17th    AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS/TRACKER OFF ROAD CAMARO ZL1 18th    TY DILLON, NO. 42 ALSCO UNIFORMS CAMARO ZL1  TOP-FIVE UNOFFICIAL LINEUP:  POS.  DRIVER1st      Chase Briscoe (Ford)2nd     Ryan Blaney (Ford)3rd      Joey Logano (Ford)4th      Kyle Busch (Toyota)5th      Tyler Reddick (Chevrolet) 
FOX will telecast the NASCAR Cup Series Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway live at 3 p.m. ET tomorrow, Sunday, March 20. Live coverage can also be found on PRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER / SWEETLEAF CAMARO ZL1, met with the media after the NASCAR Cup Series practice as the fastest driver in today’s practice session. Press Conference Transcript: 
WALK US THROUGH WHAT YOU WERE GOING THROUGH OUT THERE. DID YOU LEARN ANYTHING AND WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FOR TOMORROW?“I think what you saw in practice is probably what you’re going to expect. For us, we made some laps on the simulator and kind of had an idea of what the car was going to drive like and what the track was like. And then obviously when we got out there, we learned a lot more at a pretty high rate of speed. I think the speeds, for me, I didn’t think they’d be as fast as what we were, as far as the single speed there in the draft.”
“The cars draft pretty good. It does get a little bit tight on entry, especially into turn three. I think you see a lot of people kind of drift up off the bottom until you kind of catch more of the banking, and then you can kind of turn back down and drive off. Two-wide is comfortable. I think center of the corner three-wide isn’t terrible, but the exit of turn two and the entry of turn three gets really narrow on the backstretch. It will be kind of tricky to see how that plays out. Obviously it was practice, so nobody was really trying to shove three-wide or get too aggressive.”
“It’s going to be a battle. I think for us, I felt like our car was really fast and really good. When you get out front, you’re going to be able to control the lanes a little bit easier than a Daytona or a Talladega. Daytona is easier to control a lane than Talladega because it’s so much more narrow. You take it another step further here on how wide the racetrack is compared to Daytona. So, you’ll be to maneuver and block those two lanes I think a little bit better, so I think track position is going to be important. We didn’t see a lot of tire wear, so I think that’s a good thing with how fast we’re going. We weren’t sure about that.” 
“All-in-all, it’s going to be about what you saw there.” 
THERE’S A BIG DEBATE ON SOCIAL RIGHT NOW; CHOAS OR CALM. WHAT’S YOUR PREDICTION? “It seemed kind of chaotic for a practice session. Obviously we’re all trying to learn as much as we could. We have 500 miles around here; it’s a long time. I think we ran 44 laps or so in that practice. Some guys ran 60-something laps, which I feel like you never see out of us in practice. So, everybody is just trying to learn.”
“I think that was fairly calm right there, even though it still felt intense. I think some of the drivers are going to be worn out come Sunday with just how intense and on top of the car you have to be. But I think one mistake, you’re going to wipe out the whole field if it’s at the front. It’ll be kind of crazy to watch this.”
YOU MENTIONED BLOCKING AND I’M CURIOUS ABOUT HOW YOU DO THAT WITH THE LINES. WHAT ARE THE RUNS LIKE AND WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES GOING TO BE IN BLOCKING, EVEN IF YOU DON’T HAVE AS MUCH GROUND TO COVER? “Yeah, the decision are going to still have to be made fast, for sure. But like I said, the room left to right is a lot smaller. But I do feel like, to your point, the runs can be bigger, depending on what happens. I think obviously we’re going to keep learning as we go through here. I watched the No. 48 (Alex Bowman) jump up in front of the No. 6 (Brad Keselowski) I believe. And then the No. 18 (Kyle Busch) was able to turn and just drive under both of them because it stalled both of them out pretty quick. Pretty much by himself, he cleared both of them. The runs are big, for sure.”
IN REGARDS TO THE END OF A GREEN FLAG RUN, NORMALLY WHEN YOU HAVE GREEN FLAG PIT STOPS AT DAYTONA AND TALLADEGA, THERE’S THAT STRAIGHT SHOT OFF OF TURN FOUR WHERE EVERYONE CAN GET TO PIT ROAD FAIRLY EASILY. HERE, IT’S RIGHT OFF THE CORNER. HOW DO YOU THINK GREEN FLAG STOPS ARE GOING TO WORK? “I don’t see handling being a terrible issue at the end of the run. Like I said, I think you saw a lot of guys run a lot of laps on tires and still felt like they were pretty competitive and handled really well. You brought up a good point. Coming to pit road is going to be super treacherous. Like you said, you’re braking in the corner and the corner isn’t that wide to begin with, so you can’t get off the racetrack to start your braking like you can at Daytona and Talladega. But I think it’ll break the field up. It’ll be exciting. You’re going to have to nail it right to continue to keep in the lead draft, especially if you’re in the front to retain the lead. It’ll be important to still pit with cars so you can go out and run fast laps. But I think you’ll see cars kind of break up and eventually get back together. Daytona, you kind of stay broken up. Getting to pit road is going to be tough.”
INAUDIBLE“Yeah, I agree with that. We’re all in the same box though. There are certain racetracks where it’s tough to miss wrecks. Martinsville, Bristol, are some of those. But with this new Next Gen car, we have pretty big brakes. I notice that at Daytona, when there is a crash, you can get slowed down pretty quick. But that’s the tightest I’ve seen all of us together in a small portion of a racetrack in a long time. That will be a factor and you’re going to have to be at the right place and the right time.”
I KEPT HEARING SPOTTERS TALK ABOUT THE BUBBLE. HOW DIFFERENT DOES IT FEEL THAN OTHER PLACES THAT YOU’VE DRAFTED AND CAN YOU EXPLAIN THE SENSATION FROM BEHIND THE WHEEL?“I felt like for us, our car was really good as far as the bubble goes around being able to get to the car’s bumper in front of us. I felt like we struggled – the Chevy’s in general – a little bit at Daytona with getting to someone’s bumper. But here, I felt like – I think it was Denny (Hamlin), (Daniel) Suarez, and myself – in a three car run. I was able to get to Suarez’s bumper without anyone behind me. So, I felt like I got through that bubble pretty good. But when you do catch up to someone, it really pushes you and that person to the cars in front of them a lot faster than Daytona and Talladega are going to be.”
AT DAYTONA AND TALLADEGA, WE SEE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE MANUFACTURER CARS WORKING TOGETHER. IS THAT SOMETHING YOU GUYS HAVE ALREADY HAD MEETINGS ON OR WILL HAVE A MEETING ABOUT LIKE YOU WOULD AT DAYTONA OR TALLADEGA? “Yeah, I’m not sure exactly on our side what’s kind of going to go down. I think everyone kind of wanted to see how practice shook out first. Definitely when you have teammates or manufacturers with you at the front of the field, you can definitely control those lines a little easier when you have multiple people trying to help you do that. So, I think that’s still going to be a factor when it comes down to it. Everything I think is a little bit more tricky here at Atlanta than at Daytona, as far as Daytona is pretty straight forward with what the manufacturers are going to do to help each other. But here, I feel like there’s still so many unknowns that we’re still not 100 percent sure how that’s going to play out.”
WAS THERE ANY THROTTLE RESPONSE AT ALL TO HELP AVOID A WRECK; OR IS IT JUST KIND OF LIKE DAYTONA OR TALLADEGA?“I think on one hand, it could be a little calmer because you can lift and not really lose spots and kind of keep your position on track. Daytona, we were all worried about losing the draft and I don’t think we’re going to be worried about losing the draft here. I think that made everybody at Daytona pretty aggressive to make sure they stayed up in the pack. You didn’t want to be the last car. Here, I don’t think you’re going to have those issues. I wasn’t wide open every lap out there. I was playing around with the throttle. The front stretch kind of gets clogged up. I think I saw a few of you talk about that. Just the way the front stretch is and when you come off of turn four, for whatever reason, it seems like that second dogleg, things just kind of almost stack up a little. I was having to use the brake, get off the gas and really work the pedals, as well. I think the biggest asset for us to avoid wrecks are just the bigger brakes.”  

World of Outlaws West Coast Swing Concludes Next Week at Bakersfield & PerrisWATSONVILLE, CA – March 19, 2022 – An early morning storm parlayed with persistent showers throughout the day has forced the cancellation of Saturday’s World of Outlaws race at Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, CA. The event will not be rescheduled.Those who purchased a ticket in advance to Saturday’s event at Ocean will receive a face-value credit to their MyDirtTickets.com account to be used towards any World of Outlaws event available at WorldofOutlaws.com/tix. If credit to your account does not work for you, then you have until April 19 to request a refund. For more details email tickets@dirtcar.com if you have further questions. CLICK HERE for a refund request.The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series now turns their attention to concluding the spring swing through California next weekend with stops at Bakersfield Speedway (Friday, March 25) and Perris Auto Speedway(Saturday, March 26). For tickets, CLICK HERE.The Greatest Show on Dirt has another four dates in the Golden State this fall with trips to Silver Dollar Speedway (Sept. 9-10), Keller Auto Speedway (Sept. 16), and Placerville Speedway (Sept. 17) on the schedule. If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch both nights live on DIRTVision – either online or with the DIRTVision App.

California Natives Sweep Podium with Macedo (1st), Sweet (2nd), Scelzi (3rd)

MERCED, CA – March 19, 2022 – For the third time in three nights of the west coast swing, a Californian walked away with the win; only this time, it was a full-time World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series driver getting the job done.

In true bullring fashion, Merced Speedway ended an eight-year absence from The Greatest Show on Dirt and promptly delivered a spectacular battle for the win between Lemoore’s Carson Macedo, Grass Valley’s Brad Sweet, and Fresno’s Giovanni Scelzi.

Friday’s 35-lapper officially saw two lead changes but featured off-the-charts action from green-to-checkered. Among many highlights included Scelzi’s top-shelf pass for the lead, an intense lap traffic battle at the front, and several sliders shared by Macedo & Sweet.

Ultimately, the 25-year-old rising star (Macedo) welcomed every attack that the 36-year-old wily veteran (Sweet) threw his way in the late stages. The Big Cat tossed several scenarios his way, forcing Macedo to cross over, stay in it, and make every difficult decision you could imagine while manhandling a 900+ horsepower beast.

The duo was ultra-close as the white flag waved, but Macedo slightly gapped Sweet to cross the finish line ahead by 0.559-seconds. The victory marks his second win of the season aboard the Jason Johnson Racing, Albaugh #41, and brings Macedo to 19 career World of Outlaws wins with four of those coming in California.

“Wow, California Sprint Car Racing is awesome,” Macedo shouted. “It doesn’t get any better than bullrings like this. I was pushing it so damn hard those last 8-10 laps. I can’t tell you how nervewracking it is in lap traffic like that while you still have to battle for the lead. It’s a fine line between being aggressive enough to split cars, but patient enough to not give the win away.

“Racing at home is always so special. We’re not exactly down by Lemoore, but this is only an hour away and I still had so many people close to me make the drive up to support us. I’m thankful for every single one of these wins, especially ones like this.”

For the second time in as many races, Brad Sweet was again the bridesmaid, not the bride. The Kasey Kahne Racing, NAPA Auto Parts #49 controlled the opening 21 laps of the 35-lapper, but the final restart of the race spelled doom for the three-time and reigning World of Outlaws champion.

Choosing the inside on a double-file restart allowed Macedo to fire off on the outside and zoom by Sweet, and then go on the defense. The moment snatched The Big Cat’s 75th career win away and extended their dry spell to 24 consecutive races without a win.

“That’s my fault for choosing the bottom,” Sweet admitted. “I had a few shots at him there near the end, and I definitely think we had a better car. A little bit of rubber came in and kind of took away the technical aspect of it. You have to be perfect to win these Outlaw races, though, so we just need to get a little better.”

Rounding out Friday’s California podium sweep was Fresno’s Giovanni Scelzi aboard the KCP Racing #18. The 20-year-old shot by Sweet to take the lead on a Lap 13 restart, but a poorly timed caution negated the pass and hurt his chances at a second win in three races.

“I hate getting beat like that,” Scelzi said. “I got out-raced fair and square. The yellow didn’t help, but man that sucks. I was hoping they would slow each other down and get me back in the hunt, but I can’t be too disappointed. We have a great car, great crew, and we’re only getting better.”

Closing out the top-five was a pair of Indiana natives with Indianapolis’ Tyler Courtney in fourth aboard Kevin Kozlowski’s #57W and Lebanon’s Spencer Bayston in fifth with the CJB Motorsports #5.

Other top-10 finishers included Kerry Madsen in sixth in the Roth Enterprises #83JR, Logan Schuchart in seventh in the DuraMAX, Drydene #1S, Dominic Scelzi in eighth in the Scelzi Enterprises #41S, Rico Abreu in ninth in the Rowdy #24, and Sheldon Haudenschild with a KSE Hard Charger Award for driving from 21st-to-10th in the NOS Energy Drink #17.

NOS NOTEBOOK (MERCED – 3/18/22)

Carson Macedo’s 19th career World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series victory pushes him beyond Brad Doty to reach 31st on the All-Time Win List. Brad Sweet’s dry spell is extended to 24 consecutive races since his last victory at Skagit (WA) on September 4, 2021.

Championship leader David Gravel was involved in a Lap 13 crash (running sixth) but rebounded from the work area to salvage a season-worst finish of 15th. He still holds the top spot in the standings with a 10-point margin over Brad Sweet.

10-time Series champion Donny Schatz was collected in a Lap 1 crash and returned from the work area to finish two laps down in 22nd-place. That’s three consecutive finishes outside of the top-10 for the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15 since heading west.

Giovanni Scelzi established a new track record by turning in a lap of 10.057 seconds around Merced Speedway. He became the eighth driver in eight races to earn the Slick Woody’s QuickTime Award this season. NOS Energy Drink Heat Race wins went to Giovanni Scelzi (19th career), Kerry Madsen (186th career), David Gravel (185th career), and Tyler Courtney (8th career).

Brad Sweet scored the pole position after outrunning Giovanni Scelzi in an exciting side-by-side battle in the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash. Sheldon Haudenschild won his third MicroLite Last Chance Showdown of the year, a Series best mark.

16-year-old Corey Day (Clovis, CA) started his first-career World of Outlaws Feature and drove forward to finish 14th-from-22nd in the Jason Meyers owned #14.

UP NEXT – The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series travels to Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, CA tomorrow for a Saturday showdown on March 19. The west coast swing concludes next weekend at Bakersfield Speedway (March 25) and Perris Auto Speedway (March 26). Fans can BUY TICKETS HERE or watch every race LIVE on DIRTVision.

NOS Energy Drink Feature Results (35 Laps): 1. 41-Carson Macedo (6); 2. 49-Brad Sweet (1); 3. 18-Giovanni Scelzi (2); 4. 57W-Tyler Courtney (3); 5. 5-Spencer Bayston (7); 6. 83JR-Kerry Madsen (8); 7. 1S-Logan Schuchart (13); 8. 41S-Dominic Scelzi (10); 9. 24-Rico Abreu (11); 10. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild (21); 11. 26-Cory Eliason (17); 12. 16A-Colby Copeland (15); 13. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss (18); 14. 14-Corey Day (22); 15. 2-David Gravel (5); 16. 17W-Shane Golobic (24); 17. 83-James McFadden (23); 18. 21-Mitchell Faccinto (14); 19. 88-Austin McCarl (20); 20. 1A-Jacob Allen (9); 21. 83T-Tanner Carrick (4); 22. 15-Donny Schatz (16); 23. 11K-Kraig Kinser (19); 24. 2X-Justin Sanders (12).

NEW Championship Standings (After 8/86 Races): 1. David Gravel (1,124); 2. Brad Sweet (-10); 3. Carson Macedo (-30); 4. Sheldon Haudenschild (-32); 5. James McFadden (-68); 6. Logan Schuchart (-88); 7. Giovanni Scelzi (-90); 8. Donny Schatz (-92); 9. Cory Eliason (-98); 10. Spencer Bayston (-124).

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE RUOFF MORTGAGE 500 PHOENIX RACEWAY AVONDALE, AZ MARCH 13, 2022 RACE #4 – PHOENIX RACEWAYThe NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Chevrolet drivers and teams look to make it three in-a-row for the Camaro ZL1 as NASCAR heads to Phoenix Raceway this weekend for the final race of the west coast swing. The 1-mile Arizona tri-oval will be the host of the fourth race of the 2022 season for the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS). The NCS Ruoff Mortgage 500 will be broadcasted on FOX at 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 13, with FS1 carrying coverage of the NXS United Rentals 200 at 4:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 12. Chevrolet will be pacing the field at Phoenix Raceway, with a Camaro SS leading the field in both events. 
In the 51 NASCAR Cup Series races that have been held at the Arizona venue since November 1988, Chevrolet has recorded 25 victories to lead all manufacturers, including Kyle Larson’s win last November that clinched his first Driver Championship and 33rd for Chevrolet.  CAMARO ZL1 GOES BACK-TO-BACK ON THE WEST COASTIn the second of the three-race west coast swing for the NASCAR Cup Series, the Camaro ZL1 made its way to victory lane at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, marking the second win on the season for Chevrolet. The 400-mile race at the 1.5-mile Nevada oval came down to a battle between teammates after a late-race caution pushed the finish to overtime, with a two-tire pit strategy putting a pair of Camaro ZL1’s on the front row for the final restart of the race. Alex Bowman battled Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kyle Larson, with the No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 edging out Larson at the line to capture the win by 0.178 seconds. The feat gave Bowman his first win of the 2022 season; his seventh all-time in NASCAR’s premier series; and a guaranteed playoff berth and his chance at a run for NCS championship title. 20 different drivers have contributed wins for Hendrick Motorsports, who now sits at 282 all-time wins in NASCAR Cup Series competition and extending its record as the winningest team in NCS history. With Bowman’s victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the 28-year-old Chevrolet driver surpassed Kasey Kahne on the Hendrick Motorsports win list, where all seven of his NCS wins have been made with the organization behind the wheel of a Chevrolet. 
For the second week in a row, Chevrolet placed an impressive four drivers in the top-five and six in the top-10 of the final running order at Las Vegas. Three different Chevrolet teams were represented in the top-10: Alex Bowman (Race Winner; Hendrick Motorsports); Kyle Larson (2nd; Hendrick Motorsports); Ross Chastain (3rd; Trackhouse Racing); William Byron (5th; Hendrick Motorsports); Tyler Reddick (7th; Richard Childress Racing); and Chase Elliott. (10th; Hendrick Motorsports).
BACK ON TOPThe last time Kyle Larson was at Phoenix Raceway, the 29-year-old California native drove his Chevrolet-powered machine to victory lane, capturing his 10th victory on the season and his first-career NASCAR Cup Series championship title. Larson returns back to the 1-mile Phoenix tri-oval exactly where he left off: on top of the points standings. Following his runner-up finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Larson jumped from the eighth position to take the lead in the standings. With his win at Auto Club Speedway, Larson also secured his spot into the 16-driver NCS Playoffs field and his chance at defending the coveted championship title.
A Chevrolet driver not only took over the lead in the driver standings, but back-to-back strong weekends for the Camaro ZL1 has moved the bowtie brand into the lead of the manufacturer points standings. The winningest brand in NASCAR history, Chevrolet captured a milestone 40th NCS Manufacturer Championship title in 2021. 
BOWTIE BULLETS·       With its 40 NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships; 33 NASCAR Cup Series Driver Championships; and 816 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet holds the title of winningest brand in NASCAR.
·       In addition to its 25 wins at Phoenix Raceway, Chevrolet has recorded 19 poles, 115 top-five’s, 225 top-10’s and has led 6,457 laps.  ·       Heading into the Phoenix race weekend, Chevrolet sits atop the NASCAR Cup Series manufacturer standings. Through three NCS races this season, the bowtie brand also leads in laps led (326), stage wins (4), top-five’s (8) and top-10’s (13).
·       With three races in the books for the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Chevrolet leads in the manufacturer and driver points standings, with eight Chevrolet drivers making up the top-10 of the driver standings. In addition, the Camaro SS has gone three-for-three in pole wins thus far this year.
·       Ross Chastain captured a third-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after capturing a stage win and leading a race-high 83 laps, the most laps Chastain has led in his previous 117 NCS starts combined.
·       Chevrolet team Hendrick Motorsports leads the NASCAR Cup Series in wins at Phoenix Raceway with 12 victories among eight drivers: Terry Labonte (1994), Kyle Busch (2005), Jeff Gordon (2007, 2011), Jimmie Johnson (2007, 2008 sweep, 2009), Mark Martin (2009), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2015), Chase Elliott (2020) and Kyle Larson (2021).
·       Career Chevrolet driver Jimmie Johnson holds the qualifying record at Phoenix Raceway with a lap at 25.147 seconds, 143.158 mph (set in November 2015).
·       In the NASCAR Cup Series total laps led category for 2022, three of the top-five are Chevrolet drivers: Tyler Reddick (1st; 90 laps led); Ross Chastain (2nd; 83 laps led); and Kyle Larson (5th; 56 laps led).  FOR THE FANS:

• Fans can visit the Team Chevy Racing Displays in the Fan Midway at Phoenix Raceway. 
• Fans can check out an assortment of Chevrolet vehicles at the Fan Midway including: Camaro LT1, Corvette 2LT Coupe, Equinox RS, Tahoe RST, Silverado Trailboss, and Traverse Redline. 
• At the Chevrolet Display, fans can also view Kyle Larson’s No. 5 Camaro ZL1 show car.

TEAM CHEVY QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSIONS AT THE DISPLAY:Saturday, March 12·       Jeremy Clements: 11:30 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.·       Sam Mayer: 11: 45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.·       Josh Berry: 12:00 p.m. – 12: 15 p.m. Sunday, March 13·       Ty Dillon: 9:30 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.·       Erik Jones 10:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.·       William Byron: 10:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Chevrolet Display Hours of Operation: 

• Friday, March 11: 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. 
• Saturday, March 12: 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. 
• Sunday, March 13: 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

TUNE INFOX will telecast the NASCAR Cup Series Ruoff Mortgage 500 live at 3:30 p.m. ET Sunday, March 13. The NASCAR Xfinity Series United Rentals 200 will air on FS1 at 4:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 12. Live coverage of both events can also be found on MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. QUOTABLE QUOTESROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 K1 SPEED CAMARO ZL1TALK ABOUT YOUR LAS VEGAS RESULT.“The Next Gen cars are so different from what we are used to driving. The No. 1 car felt a lot like the No. 42 (Xfinity Series) car did when I won at Las Vegas. I have a lot of history at Vegas and that weekend changed my life. Its carrying on here at Trackhouse and what we’re building and Justin Marks believing in me. When I crashed the car at Auto Club and spun out in the race, Justin took me to lunch and gave me confidence. If we keep having cars like our Vegas car, we’re going to be strong.”  HOW ABOUT ALL OF THE BUZZ ABOUT NASCAR THIS SEASON? “This is my 11th year in the sport. I’ve just tried to be a sponge and watch these guys that have been here well before me and have seen a lot of change. If I can go out on the track and make a splash, that’s one thing. But off of the track I like to watch, listen and learn from the people who have been here before me. We’re all in, especially Trackhouse, on getting new people involved in the sport with the different sponsors and big named people from outside of the sport. We’ve seen that with (UFC) Dana White’s brand and (actress) Eva Longoria’s brand. Trackhouse Racing and Justin Marks want to bring in like-minded people.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 GET BIOETHANOL CAMARO ZL1WHAT DO YOU EXPECT THE RACING TO BE LIKE AT PHOENX RACEWAY? DO YOU EXPECT ANY NOTICEABLE DIFFERENCES FROM HOW THE PREVIOUS CAR RACED THERE? “I tested one day at Phoenix Raceway, but we didn’t really get around a bunch of cars at the test. One thing about Auto Club Speedway, and a reason why I thought it was a solid race, is there’s a lot of options at that track and places to go find some air for these cars. I think short tracks are going to be great for this car. Tracks like Richmond Raceway and Martinsville Speedway should be strong. Fans saw a great race at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Phoenix Raceway is kind of in between a short track and a speedway, which will make it interesting. You start to get into a bit of an aero problem at Phoenix, and you start relying on downforce and different things so I feel like it’s going to be important to qualify well. I do think that tires are going to fall off a pretty good amount at Phoenix, which will be nice. You have to set up your car for that and hope you make it work. It’s going to be a race either way. I don’t know how great it’s going to be, but it’s performed well so far, so I wouldn’t underestimate it. It’s a challenging car to drive and it’s putting on a good show so far.” HOW MUCH DO YOU THINK YOU’LL BE ABLE TO TAKE FROM THE SPRING PHOENIX RACEWAY RACE WHEN WE GO BACK FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP IN NOVEMBER? SINCE WE’RE LEARNING SO MUCH ABOUT THE NEXT GEN RIGHT NOW, ARE WE GOING TO BE ON A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PAGE BY THE TIME NOVEMBER ROLLS AROUND? “I would say some things will probably change, but not a whole lot by the time we go back. We just need to take good notes. Anytime we go to the track, we’re going to be writing notes, talking about parts, pieces, and different thoughts on how to drive. It’s a whole new notebook this year. Even if you don’t go back to a track, or you change tracks that you’ll never see again, there’s something you can learn and take to the next event.” KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1LARSON ON JANUARY’S NEXT GEN TEST AT PHOENIX AND COMPARISONS TO LAST YEAR’S RACE CAR: “The balance of the car during the test didn’t change as much during a run compared to last November at Phoenix. My first time in the Next Gen car – well, at least my first time with the rules package as close to what we’re using this year – was at Phoenix in January, which was the freshest track in my mind. It helped me realize it didn’t drive too much differently.” CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1DANIELS ON HIS MINDSET ENTERING JANUARY’S NEXT GEN TEST AT PHOENIX AFTER WINNING THE 2021 TITLE THERE IN NOVEMBER: “Pulling into Phoenix for the test was definitely cool because winning the championship there in the fall was such a special moment for this team. Getting back there brought back some very special memories. But our focus changed quickly with the challenge this Next Gen car brought, and a lot of those challenges we were preparing for at the test. It’s going to be a fun weekend – I love the track and I love the area, and I am looking for a lot of good things out of our team.” COREY LAJOIE, NO. 7 BUILT.COM CAMARO ZL1“We’ve had a good start to our season going into the final race of the west coast swing. We’ll be running the same car for all three, so it’s a testament to the hard work by our Spire Motorsports team. In the past, I’ve had some ups and downs at Phoenix, but I look forward to building on our good run in Vegas & having another solid day for our Built Bar Camaro. We didn’t participate in the Phoenix pre-season testing, so we’ll lean into our Chevy support going into the first true mechanical grip-heavy track where we’ve brought these cars.” TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 GUARANTEED RATE CAMARO ZL1 TALK ABOUT HOW YOU WERE ABLE TO RALLY BACK TO A SEVENTH-PLACE FINISH AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY LAST WEEKEND AFTER STARTING FROM THE REAR TWICE, SUFFERING LEG DISCOMFORT AND ON-TRACK OBSTACLES. “It was a pretty good recovery for our team. I guess if you look at where we started and where we finished, you’d think it was a pretty boring day because we were supposed to start seventh, but it was anything but that. We had a few issues throughout our weekend starting with some steering issues that ultimately led to us changing our steering rack, forfeiting our starting spot, going to the back. From there, we definitely had a car that was pretty good in clean air, which we practiced a majority in, but once you get back there in that bubble of 10th to 20th, it’s pretty vicious back there. We just needed something different to be able to handle better but we had good pit stops and got a couple of breaks on restarts where we were able to get ourselves in that fifth to 10th bubble and we were able to manage it to the finish. I’m proud of the fight our team showed throughout that whole race and feel like we have good momentum heading to Phoenix this weekend.” YOU GOT TO TEST THE NEXT GEN CAR AT PHOENIX A FEW MONTHS AGO. HOW DO YOU THINK THE RACING WILL PLAY OUT THIS WEEKEND WITH A LOT MORE CARS ON TRACK AT ONCE? “This weekend’s race at Phoenix Raceway is going to provide some really entertaining and exciting racing, I think. When we were out there for the test, we didn’t get to run a lot in traffic but that will be different on Sunday. We’ve seen such solid and good racing at all the tracks we’ve visited so far this season and it feels like Phoenix is going to be the perfect mix of all of them. This car is so challenging to drive and with the aerodynamics at Phoenix, practice is going to be crucial to see what kind of speed and car you’ve got. Qualifying is going to be really important too, you want to have a good starting position especially as the tires start to give throughout the first stage or two. My team has been working really hard each and every week and I think we’ll have a good game plan put together for this weekend and hopefully we’ll be able to run upfront and put on a good show.” CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 UNIFIRST CAMARO ZL1ELLIOTT ON RETURNING TO PHOENIX AFTER TESTING THE TRACK IN JANUARY: “When we tested at Phoenix earlier this year, I felt like of all the tracks it was the most similar to how our old car felt when we were there. Obviously, testing is a little different than going out and racing, but I’m looking forward to getting back there and continuing the success we’ve had in the past.” ALAN GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF, NO. 9 UNIFIRST CAMARO ZL1GUSTAFSON ON UNIFIRST’S FIRST RACE OF 2022: “I’m excited to have UniFirst with us for another season. They’ve been a great partner and we’ve had many memorable moments together over the years, including an All-Star Race win. I really like their new scheme and I’m looking forward to carrying their green and white colors this weekend at Phoenix. Hopefully we can create another winning moment for them and end Sunday in victory lane.” WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1BYRON ON THE CHALLENGE THAT PHOENIX BRINGS: “Even with the Next Gen car, I think restarts are going to be just as crazy at Phoenix (Raceway) this weekend. We’ve seen it the last two races, and I think this weekend will be no different. Choosing the right lane is going to be crucial to get yourself in a good position heading into turn one as well as maintaining track position overall throughout the race. Once you get back in traffic, the harder it is to make up ground, especially at a short track like Phoenix. We’ve had pretty good speed last year at Phoenix in the spring. We just need to make sure to keep up with the track and minimize mistakes to keep us up front and in contention at the end.” RUDY FUGLE, CREW CHIEF, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1FUGLE ON KEEPING MOMENTUM HEADING TO PHOENIX: “We had a good run in Las Vegas and got the result that we needed. It was a solid day overall, and I think it shows the strength this No. 24 team has. We had lots of positives in that race and loads of potential left. We just need to clean up the little things and I think we will be in contention to win every time we show up to the track. This is a team that is hungry for more. We’ve been good at Phoenix. We just need to be a little bit better. It’s a track that I really like overall in every series I’ve been, so I enjoy that we get two chances at it in a season. The goal is to be in the Championship 4 when we come back in November.” RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 FRY’S / NOS CAMARO ZL1“We feel good going into Phoenix. We’ve had some tough breaks, but the speed is there. At Vegas (Las Vegas Motor Speedway), we qualified ninth and ran in the top-15 all day. We just have to be consistent and keep getting after it with our No. 47 Fry’s/NOS Camaro.” ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY / BEST FRIENDS CAMARO ZL1BOWMAN ON HIS WIN AT LAS VEGAS: “We had an amazing race car at Las Vegas. Greg (Ives, crew chief) made a great (two-tire) call at the end that gave me a chance to go out and get the win. I am super proud of my team, and I’m looking forward to getting out to Phoenix with the momentum our team has.” BOWMAN ON THE DONATION TO THE BEST FRIENDS PROGRAM AFTER HIS LAS VEGAS WIN: “It’s awesome to know that Ally will be making a bigger donation to help animals in Las Vegas. Having their support in helping animals is really neat. Last year, we were able to make a big difference with Ally’s support, so I am glad we are starting the year off on the right foot.” GREG IVES, CREW CHIEF, NO. 48 ALLY / BEST FRIENDS CAMARO ZL1IVES ON HIS MINDSET HEADING TO PHOENIX: “Whenever you get a win, it always helps carry momentum into the next week. Going into this week at Phoenix, we are focused on running a clean race and executing like we did in Las Vegas. It is one of Alex’s favorite tracks and a place that we always look forward to going to and improving. We continue to work hard to get more consistent and find that little bit extra each year. So I am excited and ready to get out to Phoenix and have another great weekend.” DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 COMMSCOPE CAMARO ZL1IS RUNNING UP FRONT IN 2022 BUILDING YOUR AND YOUR TEAM’S CONFIDENCE?“Definitely a lot. I mean every time you get the opportunity to have a shot at winning, you get more confident. You get hungrier and that happens not just for me as a driver, but for the entire team. My engineers, my crew chief, my pit crew all can’t wait to race again.”Ross and I have amazing teams. All of them, they want to win, be competitive. And when you know that you can, you just show up to the racetrack even more excited. I’m very fortunate to be in this position. I think that we’re going to be able to do some fun things this year.”
WHAT WAS IT LIKE WATCHING YOUR TEAMMATE BATTLE FOR THE VICTORY?“It was great. I mean you wish it were you, but I was rooting hard for Ross and the No. 1. We work very well together and feel like we are one team. It gives you great confidence knowing how fast our Chevrolets have been in 2022.”
WHEN YOU SAY YOU WILL WORK HARD TO DESERVE A VICTORY, WHAT DO YOU MEAN?“It’s a combination of many things you know. If you were asking me that question two years ago, I was going to tell you go work out, work physically and trying to watch some film as many hours as possible. But right now, I have learned and realized that it goes just way more than that. Trying to work with your team and trying to realize what we could have done different and better. I look back in California and we left a lot on the table. I did, the car did a little bit. We had a good car, but I believe that we are going to have such a better car this weekend and probably everyone is going to say that, but to our plan and the way that we are growing as a team I feel like we just keep getting better. Learning as we go and learning is a process and I understand that, but I think that you know working hard and smart is going to be very important. Doing that with a team like the one I have is going to be important and really fun at the same time.”
Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series StatisticsManufacturers Championships:Total (1949-2021): 40First title for Chevrolet: 1958Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15) Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021 Drivers Championships:Total (1949-2021): 33First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)Most Recent: Kyle Larson (2021) Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021 Event Victories:Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)                2022 STATISTICS:                                                                                                    Wins: 2Poles: 1Laps Led: 326Top-five finishes: 8Top-10 finishes: 13Stage wins: 4

• Tyler Reddick (Fontanax2)
• Alex Bowman (Las Vegas)
• Ross Chastain (Las Vegas)

CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:Total Chevrolet race wins: 816 (1949 to date)Poles won to date: 724Laps led to date: 241,662Top-five finishes to date: 4,146Top-10 finishes to date: 8,568                                                                                                          Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date:           General Motors: 1,150           Chevrolet: 816           Pontiac: 154           Oldsmobile: 115           Buick: 65            Ford: 812                                                                    Ford: 712           Mercury: 96           Lincoln: 4            Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467           Dodge: 217           Plymouth: 191           Chrysler: 59            Toyota: 162

Richard Childress Racing at Phoenix Raceway … In 130 starts at Phoenix Raceway, Richard Childress Racing has scored six NASCAR Cup Series victories led by Kevin Harvick with four victories (a sweep of both races in 2006 plus the fall races in 2012 and 2013). Dale Earnhardt won in 1990 while Ryan Newman claimed the win in the 2007 spring event. In the NASCAR Xfinity Series, RCR has three wins by three different drivers: Elliott Sadler (2012), Clint Bowyer (2007) and Harvick (2006).  Introducing the Next Gen … NASCAR’s Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, which officially debuted in 2022, is a collaboration of the brightest engineering minds in racing. With technology at the forefront, Richard Childress Racing has played a unique and critical role in helping to bring this new on-track identity to life, working closely with OEMs, other teams and NASCAR to build and test the initial prototype.  Catch Saturday’s Action … The United Rentals 200 at Phoenix Raceway will be televised live on Saturday, March 12 at 4:30 p.m. ET on FS1 and will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  Follow Sunday’s Action in Phoenix … The Phoenix 500 will be televised live Sunday, March 13 beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX and will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

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This Week’s Get Bioethanol Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Phoenix Raceway … Dillon has 16 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Phoenix Raceway to his credit, earning two top-10 finishes. He earned his best finish of eighth at the track in November 2018. Delivering Performance On the Track and For the Planet … Austin Dillon will race the Get Bioethanol Chevy in Phoenix, showcasing the performance benefits of racing with earth kind and engine smart bioethanol blended fuel, Sunoco Green E15. Whether it’s delivering cleaner and cooler high octane on the racetrack or a more affordable option for spring break road trips, plant-based bioethanol makes a positive impact on our planet. Learn more about  bioethanol at getbioethanol.com.  AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:What do you expect the racing to be like at Phoenix Raceway? Do you expect any noticeable differences from how the previous car raced there?“I tested one day at Phoenix Raceway, but we didn’t really get around a bunch of cars at the test. One thing about Auto Club Speedway, and a reason why I thought it was a solid race, is there’s a lot of options at that track and places to go find some air for these cars. I think short tracks are going to be great for this car. Tracks like Richmond Raceway and Martinsville Speedway should be strong. The fans saw a great race at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Phoenix Raceway is between a short track and a speedway, which will make it interesting. You start to get into a bit of an aero problem at Phoenix, and you start relying on downforce and different things so I feel like it’s going to be important to qualify well. I do think that tires are going to fall off a pretty good amount at Phoenix, which will be nice. You have to set up your car for that and hope you make it work. I don’t know how great it’s going to be. It’s performed well so I wouldn’t underestimate it. It’s a challenging car to drive and it’s putting on a good show so far.”  How much do you think you’ll be able to take from the Spring Phoenix Raceway race when we go back for the championship in November? Since we’re learning so much about the Next Gen right now, are we going to be on a completely different page by the time November rolls around?“I would say some things will probably change, but not a whole lot by the time we go back. We just need to take good notes. Anytime we go to the track, writing notes, talking about parts, pieces, and different thoughts on how to drive. It’s a whole new notebook this year. Even if you don’t go back to a track, or you change tracks that you’ll never see again, there’s something you can learn and take to the next event.” Outside of winning races and making the playoffs, are there any specific competition goals that the team has set for itself to achieve this year, especially with the new car?“For me it’s winning a championship. My goal is to be the first guy to win all three championships. That’s what I put the effort into. It’s what I spend my weekends for, to try and win all three. That’s why I wrote ‘Crazy Faith’ on the back of my helmet this year. I’m believing in the process. I’ve set goals throughout different seasons. In the past, I’ve set obtainable goals like a earning a couple of wins and getting in the playoffs. I want to start thinking about what I really want and having faith towards that. The championship is the only thing I wrote down as a goal.”

This Week’s Guaranteed Rate Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Phoenix Raceway … Reddick will make his fifth start at the Avondale, Arizona track on Sunday, sporting the red, white and black Guaranteed Rate paint scheme on the No. 8 Chevrolet. Reddick made his Cup Series debut at Phoenix in 2020 and most recently, finished 19th in the 2021 season finale. He has a best finish of 19th twice, both in the Cup Series championship race, and he’s completed 95.6 percent of laps attempted. During his time in the Xfinity Series, Reddick made five starts at Phoenix and tallied a best finish of third in both of the races at the track in 2019. In total, he has four top 10s and two top fives and completed 999 of 1,000 laps attempted. Lastly, during his NASCAR Truck Series career, Reddick made three starts at Phoenix and grabbed a best finish of fifth in 2015.  Reddick’s Stats Improve … Reddick has led the most laps this season among all Cup Series drivers with 90. Prior to this season, Reddick had only led 73 laps total in 74 races. Last weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Reddick grabbed his first top-10 finish of the season after overcoming some obstacles throughout the race. Reddick and the No. 8 team are looking forward to adding another great finish this weekend at Phoenix Raceway. About Guaranteed Rate … Guaranteed Rate is a leader in mortgage lending and digital financial services. Headquartered in Chicago, the company has more than 8,000 employees in 500 offices across the U.S., and is licensed in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Since its launch in 2000, Guaranteed Rate has helped hundreds of thousands of homeowners with home purchase loans and refinances, funding more than $95 billion in total loan volume in 2021 alone. Powered by its belief in positivity, the company has become one of the largest retail lenders in the nation. Guaranteed Rate delivers innovative technology, including the world’s first Digital Mortgage, low rates and unparalleled customer service. TYLER REDDICK QUOTES:Talk about how you were able to rally back to a seventh-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last weekend after starting from the rear twice, suffering from leg discomfort, and on-track obstacles.“It was a pretty good recovery for our team. I guess if you look at where we started and where we finished, you’d think it was a pretty boring day because we were supposed to start seventh, but it was anything but that. We had a few issues throughout our weekend starting with some steering issues that ultimately led to us changing our steering rack, forfeiting our starting spot, going to the back. From there, we definitely had a car that was pretty good in clean air, which we practiced a majority in, but once you get back there in that bubble of 10th to 20th, it’s pretty vicious back there. We just needed something different to be able to handle better but we had good pit stops and got a couple of breaks on restarts where we were able to get ourselves in that fifth to 10th bubble and we were able to manage it to the finish. I’m proud of the fight our team showed throughout that whole race and feel like we have good momentum heading to Phoenix this weekend.” You got to test the Next Gen car at Phoenix a few months ago. How do you think the racing will play out this weekend with a lot more cars on track at once?“This weekend’s race at Phoenix Raceway is going to provide some really entertaining and exciting racing, I think. When we were out there for the test, we didn’t get to run a lot in traffic but that will be different on Sunday. We’ve seen such solid and good racing at all the tracks we’ve visited so far this season and it feels like Phoenix is going to be the perfect mix of all of them. This car is so challenging to drive and with the aerodynamics at Phoenix, practice is going to be crucial to see what kind of speed and car you’ve got. Qualifying is going to be really important too, you want to have a good starting position especially as the tires start to give throughout the first stage or two. My team has been working really hard each and every week and I think we’ll have a good game plan put together for this weekend and hopefully we’ll be able to run up front and put on a good show.”

This Week’s Whelen Engineering Chevrolet Camaro SS at Phoenix Raceway … Creed will be making his second start at Phoenix Raceway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. He scored a 10th-place finish this past November at the 1.0-mile desert oval. It was his first top-10 and came in his fourth career start in the series. He has two top-10 finishes in three NASCAR Xfinity Series starts this season and enters the United Rentals 200 on Saturday afternoon 14th in the series standings. The Alpine, Calif., native has made four NASCAR Truck Series starts at Phoenix, highlighted by his victory in 2020 that gave him the series championship. About Whelen … Whelen Engineering is a family-owned company with a pioneering spirit and a passion to protect the lives of those who protect and serve others. The company mission is to provide industry-defining safety solutions around the world, while creating a community of problem-solvers who are inspired to push boundaries and continue our legacy of delivering ground-breaking innovation. As a global leader in the emergency warning industry, Whelen has been trusted to perform since 1952, when George Whelen III invented the first rotating aviation beacon. Whelen now encompasses two state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Connecticut and New Hampshire with over 750,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing space and the largest design staff in the industry. Every part of every Whelen product is proudly designed and manufactured in America. We embrace quality as our foundation, we celebrate innovative engineering in every product we produce. SHELDON CREED QUOTES: What is the key to running well at Phoenix Raceway?“You need to roll really good through the center of the corner and put the power down on exit. That was what I battled at Phoenix Raceway when I ran the NASCAR Xfinity Series car there in the fall. If we can just turn a little bit better that should help us get off the corner better and I think we’ll be faster.” How big of an advantage is it to have one NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Phoenix Raceway? “Having a little bit of experience in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Phoenix Raceway will be huge for us. I’m excited to be able to go there having laps in a NASCAR Xfinity Series car and knowing what to expect right off the bat for practice and feeling like I know what I need. I’ll be a lot more comfortable just having that prior experience. I’m excited to get into the race with the Whelen Chevrolet and to continue to learn as much as I can. It’s important get more comfortable and get up to speed. I’m just trying to learn and get comfortable these first few weeks of the season and get ourselves a good base. We all want to win, but I’ll take solid finishes early in the season and have solid races.”

This Week’s United Rentals Chevrolet Camaro SS at Phoenix Raceway … Hill will be making his first NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Phoenix Raceway on Saturday afternoon. He won the pole at Phoenix in 2019 and has one top 10 (a 10th-place effort in 2021) in the NASCAR Truck Series. Hill is 10th in the Xfinity Series driver standings entering Saturday’s race and has led at least one lap in two of the first three races this season. With his victory in the season-opening event at Daytona, Hill has clinched a spot in the 2022 NASCAR Playoffs.  About United Rentals … United Rentals, Inc. is the largest equipment rental company in the world. The company has an integrated network of 1,278 rental locations in North America, 11 in Europe, 28 in Australia and 18 in New Zealand. In North America, the company operates in 49 states and every Canadian province. The company’s approximately 20,100 employees serve construction and industrial customers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners, and others. The company offers approximately 4,300 classes of equipment for rent with a total original cost of $15.72 billion. United Rentals is a member of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, the Barron’s 400 Index and the Russell 3000 Index® and is headquartered in Stamford, Conn. Additional information about United Rentals is available at unitedrentals.com. AUSTIN HILL QUOTES:How important are restarts at Phoenix Raceway? “Restarts are huge everywhere but even more so at Phoenix Raceway. As soon as you get to the start-finish line on a restart, you’ve got to start looking in your mirror. You’ve got to be ready for the guy behind you. If you’re leading the bottom lane, you’ve got to be ready for the guy behind you to short cut the racetrack. When he does that, you’ve got to be ready to react and throw that block and run that shorter line. Getting through the gears with smooth shifts is crucial. It seems like once you get in the restart , people start playing some games and you have to watch out for that.”  You were able to watch the Phoenix race last fall. What did you learn?    “I was able to sit on the box and listen and watch last year when they ran at Phoenix. It just seemed like the way the cars were driving, the track fit my driving style well. They were a little on the freer side.”  How big of a factor is the PJ1?“I think the PJ1 has a lot to do with how the track is going to change throughout the race. As soon as the PJ1 gets activated, it then seems like you have to be up there to be fast. Sometimes your car works up there, sometimes it doesn’t. That’s one of those things that you’ve got to work through.”

Milner, Tandy start FIA WEC title hunt at familiar spot for Corvette Racing DETROIT (March 10, 2022) – Competing at Sebring International Raceway is nothing unusual for Corvette Racing. Competing there in the FIA World Endurance Championship… that’s a different story. Nevertheless, this is the latest chapter for Corvette Racing as it begins its first full season in the FIA WEC. Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy will team together in the No. 64 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R for all six rounds of the World Championship – starting with the 1,000 Miles of Sebring – in the GTE Pro category for factory race teams. Ahead of the March 18 are two days of testing at the 3.7-mile, 17-turn Sebring circuit Saturday and Sunday. It’ll be the first time that the No. 64 mid-engine Corvette will run in a primary yellow livery after two years in silver during the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and last year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. The No. 64 will run in the same configuration as the last two seasons in IMSA’s GT Le Mans (GTLM) category as well as GTE Pro at Le Mans last August. Sebring and Corvette have a rich history going back nearly 25 years with more than 51,000 miles worth of racing and at least 10 times that in testing and development over the last quarter-century. Part of that total came during the 2019 season when Corvette Racing entered one C7.R in the FIA WEC round at Sebring in a one-off in addition to entries in that year’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. Both Milner and Tandy are no strangers to competition in the FIA WEC, albeit in differing degrees. This will be Tandy’s third full-season campaign in the WEC with the British ace claiming a pair of victories and four pole positions in 19 starts. Milner has two starts in the FIA WEC outside of the 24 Hours of Le Mans: 2014 at Circuit of The Americas and 2018 at the Six Hours of Shanghai – each in a Corvette C7.R. To prepare for its World Championship challenge, Corvette Racing has a full-time crew and engineering team that is dedicated to the full season, all of whom have logged significant time with Corvette Racing in IMSA and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The lessons learned and data gained at Sebring and the next WEC round at Spa-Francorchamps will go a long way toward Corvette Racing’s return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June. The 1,000 Miles of Sebring for the FIA World Endurance Championship is scheduled for noon ET on Friday, March 18 from Sebring International Raceway. Qualifying is set for 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, March 17.

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “I’m really excited about our full-season run in the WEC. Something about each event is exciting. They’re all new tracks for me – outside of Sebring and Le Mans. I’ve raced in Europe and Japan before but not the tracks on our calendar. So starting that off at Sebring is a cool throw-back to how it used to be for us in the American Le Mans Series. Once we get to Sebring, I’m sure it will feel different. It will be a different path for us. For personally, I’m excited to do this and race in a new championship on some new racetracks. It’s a great chance to show off the mid-engine Corvette to fans all around the world.”

NICK TANDY, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “In our usual season, Sebring is our second event which is kind of normal. But for the WEC, it’s the start of our season. We plan to take the whole Prologue event as a testing event, but this the start of the WEC season. Sebring is a bit like Daytona. You look at it and it feels familiar with how the structure of your season is playing out. Everything beyond that is different. There is something exciting about doing something different like this. One of the things I’m really looking forward to in seeing how it’s going to work, we’ll have our whole Corvette Racing family together, racing in two events separately for the first time. I’m really glad that the first time we split off as single-car entries, we’re actually all going to be there together. That’s very cool. It’s not a situation where what we do with one car will necessarily help the other, but at the same time we’ll have multiple sets of eyes on two sets of situations that are happening on the same track throughout the weekend. Corvettes will be on track a lot over the two days. Hopefully that will be a benefit; I can’t think of a way it’s a determent. It is interesting to start our full-season begins at Sebring again and not Daytona. It’s for a very good reason: the fact that we’re doing something new and different in going for a World Championship, and the good thing is that it starts in North America.”

March 9, 2022

Harrison Burton and the No. 21 DEX Imaging team are headed to Phoenix Raceway, hoping to build on their most recent performance at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where they recovered from some mid-race misfortunes to post a 16th-place finish.

Burton, making his first appearance at Phoenix in a Cup Series car, said he believes his past races at the unique one-mile track will be a confidence booster for him and the DEX Imaging team. In his four Xfinity Series starts there he has a runner-up finish and a third-place finish, along with a sixth-place run and a 12th. He also has a third-place finish at Phoenix in NASCAR’s truck series.

“Phoenix is a great track for me personally,” Burton said. “I love it there, and building on the past race at Vegas is important.”

“Obviously 16th isn’t what our goal was, but to finish the race and show flashes of the speed we need was great.”

“I’m excited to move forward with the group and carry the momentum.”
 
He’s also proud to be representing DEX Imaging, which has been his primary sponsor in all but one of his prior Phoenix races, including two in the K&N Series.

“Every time DEX is on the car it’s pretty special,” Burton said. “They have been with me since I was a kid, so to get to try to have success with that group in Cup is very fun.”

Practice for the Ruoff Mortgage 500K is set for Saturday at 11:30 a.m. (1:30 p.m. Eastern Time) to be followed by qualifying at 12:05 (2:05 p.m. Eastern).

Sunday’s 312-mile race is set to get the green flag just after 12:30 p.m. (3:30 p.m. Eastern) with TV coverage on FOX. Stage breaks are set for Laps 60 and 185.

Full-Time Outlaws Prepare to Battle California’s Best Sprint Car Drivers

TULARE, CA – March 9, 2022 – After three complete years (almost 1,100 days), the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series is finally bringing the spring swing back to life in California.

The Greatest Show on Dirt will host six events at five tracks over the next three weeks, and it all starts this Friday & Saturday, March 11-12 at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, CA. The Series has visited the thrilling 1/3-mile on 27 occasions since debuting at the facility in 2003. You can find EVENT INFORMATION HERE and watch every lap LIVE on DIRTVision if you’re unable to make the trip.

As always, any race in California for the World of Outlaws means squaring off with one of the toughest local scenes in the country when it comes to Sprint Car racing. You’ll see full-timers like Sweet, Schatz, Haudenschild, Macedo, McFadden, Schuchart, Gravel & more battle against California’s best including Scelzi, Abreu, Larson, Golobic, Eliason, Copeland, Sanders, Faccinto & more.

Here’s what to watch for this weekend:

HOMECOMING: The upcoming spring swing offers two World of Outlaws championship contenders the chance to stay close to their California homes, and this weekend specifically presents an opportunity for their first wins at Tulare.

• Brad Sweet of Grass Valley, CA hails from a NorCal background but has enjoyed his fair share of racing in the San Joaquin Valley while growing up. The three-time and defending Series champion has yet to win through the first five races, only the fourth time that’s happened since he first went full-time in 2014 with Kasey Kahne Racing. He’s scored nine of his 74 career World of Outlaws wins in his home state, but none have come at Tulare. On a streak of five top-five finishes in his last six starts at Tulare, The Big Cat has a chance to finally get that first Thunderbowl triumph this weekend.
• Carson Macedo of Lemoore, CA grew up a half-hour down the road from the Thunderbowl and still considers it one of his favorite tracks worldwide. The Jason Johnson Racing #41 driver enters as the most recent Series winner, topping the finale of the Texas Two-Step at Cotton Bowl Speedway. The 25-year-old has earned World of Outlaws wins at Chico’s Silver Dollar Speedway and Hanford’s Keller Auto Speedway, but his Tulare career-best is currently fifth. He did win at the track last fall in Kings of Thunder competition but now searches for his first Series win at the 1/3-mile.

HOT START: Through the first five races in 2022, only two drivers have finished in the top-10 of every NOS Energy Drink Feature, and both are former World of Outlaws winners at this week’s destination of Thunderbowl Raceway.

• David Gravel of Watertown, CT has produced his strongest start ever and in turn, leads the championship standings for the first time in his career. The Big Game Motorsports #2 pilot owns an average finish of 3.8, highlighted by his DIRTcar Nationals championship with his worst result in seventh. The 29-year-old already owns a pair of Tulare triumphs, coming in back-to-back fashion during the spring of 2016 and 2017.
• 10-time World of Outlaws champion Donny Schatz of Fargo, ND is leading a resurgence in the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15 camp. The Ford Performance (FPS410) powered team topped the season-opener at Volusia and has yet to finish worse than eighth this season. The 303-time Series winner scored three of those victories at Tulare with scores coming in 2004, 2007, and 2017.

IN THE MIX: For almost a decade the trio of Schatz, Sweet & Gravel have been staples near the top of the World of Outlaws standings, but in the mix with them to start off 2022 is two fearless gassers who have the potential to shine in Tulare.

• Sheldon Haudenschild of Wooster, OH became the first repeat winner of the season last weekend, following his Volusia victory with a Cotton Bowl score. The Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing, NOS Energy Drink #17 is currently second in points ahead of a Tulare trip, where he’ll be a contender both nights. In four previous starts, Haudenschild has been battling at the front in every single Feature with finishes of fourth, fourth, third, and 19th due to a DNF while leading.
• James McFadden of Alice Springs, NT, AUS may have had his first win of the year in the bag last Friday at Cotton Bowl had it not been for a flat right rear tire while leading. Other than one small slice of misfortune, the Roth Motorsports #83 has been a model of consistency with their new driver at the wheel. The pairing enters the west coast swing tied for fourth in points with hopes of scoring a home-state win for Dennis & Teresa Roth.

SHARK ATTACK: In their respective rights, the stock of both Shark Racing drivers is trending in an upward direction.

• Jacob Allen currently leads the league in NOS Energy Drink Heat Race Wins (3) and DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash Appearances (4) through the first five races. Excluding some tough luck come Feature time, the Hanover, PA native has been on rails aboard the old school #1A in honor of his father Bobby Allen. Historically, Allen has struggled at Tulare with a career-best of 26th, something he aims to change this weekend.
• Logan Schuchart started his 2022 campaign with an up and down trip to Volusia’s DIRTcar Nationals. Cotton Bowl’s Texas Two-Step offered some much needed consistency with a pair of fourth-place finishes for the DuraMax, Drydene #1S. The 30-time World of Outlaws winner owns a Series best of second at Tulare, and even led laps during his debut at the track in 2014.

FIRST GLANCE: Three of this year’s 15 full-time travelers will encounter Tulare’s Thunderbowl Raceway for the first time in their career.

• Brock Zearfoss of Jonestown, PA no longer dons the rookie stripes on his Moose’s LZ Bar & Grill #3Z, but he will get his first taste of Tulare this weekend. Impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Zearfoss’ 2021 rookie campaign only saw a fall trip to California, but this yea the sophomore will get the full Outlaw experience with a spring swing included. The second-year driver is already showing signs of improvement, recording a season-best of sixth last weekend, a spot it took him 58 races last year to reach.
• Spencer Bayston of Lebanon, IN currently owns the top spot when it comes to the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award through the first of 85+ races. The 23-year-old established his season-best of ninth last weekend at Cotton Bowl, and now prepares for his first California swing. He’s yet to compete at the Thunderbowl, but his CJB Motorsports #5 has enjoyed Tulare victory lane on several occasions with Barry Jackson turning the wrenches.
• Noah Gass of Mounds, OK continues his learning curve as the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year contender faces his third new track of the season. It will be his first time racing in the state of California, let alone Tulare’s 1/3-mile, as he, Cody Cordell, and Robby McQuinn battle their next challenge.

CALI CLIQUE: A group of five California natives who have dethroned the World of Outlaws are expected to be in action this weekend chasing another Series win.

• Kyle Larson, the reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion and 25-time World of Outlaws winner, is expected to be in action at least one of the two nights at Tulare. Although hard to believe, the 29-year-old native of Elk Grove, CA hasn’t raced at the Thunderbowl since he won the 2013 Trophy Cup title in remarkable fashion over brother-in-law and World of Outlaws champion, Brad Sweet.
• Rico Abreu returns to the site of his first and second career World of Outlaws victories this weekend in Tulare. The St. Helena, CA native topped spring shows in 2014 and 2015 at the Thunderbowl, and returns as one of only three multi-time winners (Schatz, Gravel) racing this weekend. He’ll be in the Rowdy Energy #24 with “Tricky” Ricky Warner calling the shots as crew chief.
• Giovanni Scelzi has beaten the Outlaws on three occasions (Williams Grove, Charlotte, Lakeside), but has yet to score one in his home state of California. The Fresno, CA 20-year-old has topped Tulare with the Sprint Car Challenge Tour & NARC King of the West Series, but now turns his attention to beating The Greatest Show on Dirtin his own backyard.
• Shane Golobic of Fremont, CA owns a pair of World of Outlaws wins at NorCal venues Antioch and Placerville, and now wants a Central Valley victory to his credit. The two-time Trophy Cup champion is already a winner in 2022, winning at Keller Auto in February aboard the NOS Energy Drink #17W with hopes that momentum will lead into a stellar spring swing against the Outlaws.
• Cory Eliason of Visalia, CA earned his two World of Outlaws wins both in 2018 and both in his home state of California at Stockton and Calistoga. That was with Roth Motorsports and it was 78 Series starts ago, but the now pilot of the Rudeen Racing #26 appears closer than ever to claiming a third win. He was fast all weekend, led laps, and contended for the win at Cotton Bowl, and now brings that confidence out west.

DON’T COUNT ‘EM OUT: Outside of the aforementioned winners, a whole handful of California locals are eager and plenty capable of scoring their first-ever World of Outlaws win this weekend in Tulare.

• Justin Sanders of Prunedale, CA pieced together a masterful 2021 campaign with 20+ wins on the west coast. In limited World of Outlaws competition, he’s nailed down three podium finishes in only 15 starts with a career-best of second-place.
• Dominic Scelzi of Fresno, CA recorded the best year of his career in 2021, winning six times at Tulare alone. He’s as sharp as ever with Jimmy Carr on the wrenches of the #41 and extra motivated to join brother Giovanni Scelzi as a World of Outlaws winner. Dominic’s Series best is a third-place finish.
• Mitchell Faccinto of Hanford, CA is the most recent winner in the state, topping last weekend’s Silver Cup at Silver Dollar. He and brother-in-law Drew Warner are building a potentially lethal combination with the Tarlton Motorsports #21. Mitchell’s World of Outlaws career-best is eighth-place.
• Colby Copeland of Roseville, CA notched his career-best World of Outlaws run last year at Silver Dollar, leading laps and ultimately finishing runner-up to David Gravel. He owns several runner-up finishes at Tulare with hopes of adding one more spot up top.
• Chase Johnson of Penngrove, CA will wheel his family-owned #24 this weekend in hopes of a 10th career World of Outlaws start. He’s made three previous appearances at Tulare with the Series, resulting in a career-best of 15th.
• DJ Netto of Hanford, CA is a former NARC winner at Tulare and enters the weekend with a World of Outlaws career-best of third-place in the #88N.

OUTSIDERS: They aren’t full-time Outlaws, nor are they locals to California, but these three drivers are proven gassers in some of the Golden State’s finest equipment this weekend.

• King Sunshine XXXVIII is making the flight from Indianapolis to Fresno to pilot the Kevin Kozlowski owned #57 in four starts with the World of Outlaws, including both nights at Tulare. Tyler Courtney will have Paul Silva on the wrenches for him, and now has Thunderbowl experience after reaching a best of seventh during last year’s Trophy Cup.
• Kerry Madsen of St. Mary’s, NSW, AUS won three World of Outlaws Features last year while aiding Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing with the Ford Performance FPS410, and now he’s assisting Roth Motorsports in developing the Toyota Racing Development 410 engine. He’ll be trying to join younger brother Ian Madsen, who won the most recent World of Outlaws race at Tulare, as a Thunderbowl winner.
• Austin McCarl of Altoona, IA continues his relationship with the Country Builders #88 this season. He matched his World of Outlaws career-best of second-place at Huset’s last summer, and following that bumped his Tulare career-best to fifth during late fall.

NEW KID ON THE BLOCK: For some, turning 16 years old signifies the opportunity to obtain your driver’s license; for others, including Corey Day, it means you’re finally eligible to compete with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series. The son of Ronnie Day, a former NARC champion and six-time podium finisher in 70 World of Outlaws starts, Corey represents the next generation and will officially begin his career with The Greatest Show on Dirtthis weekend at Tulare.

The Clovis, CA native made waves in 2021 by briefly becoming the youngest winner in USAC Midget history and winning several 410 events on the west coast, including a pair of NARC races at Keller Auto & Stockton. A prodigy of Jason Meyers, the 2010 & 2011 World of Outlaws champion, Day has a chance almost all season long (until October 18) to break Giovanni Scelzi’s record (16 years, 10 months, 21 days) as the youngest winner in World of Outlaws history.

This Week at a Glance – When and Where

Friday & Saturday, March 11-12 at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, CA

On 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/month

CURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (5/83 Nights):
1. 2-David Gravel (714 PTS); 2. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild (-16 PTS); 3. 15-Donny Schatz (-16 PTS); . 49-Brad Sweet (-32 PTS); 5. 83-James McFadden (-32 PTS); 6. 41-Carson Macedo (-40 PTS); 7. 1S-Logan Schuchart (-60 PTS); 8. 26-Cory Eliason (-76 PTS); 9. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss (-80 PTS); 10. 8-Aaron Reutzel (-84 PTS).

NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (3 Drivers):
2 wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing #17
1 win – Donny Schatz, Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15
1 win – David Gravel, Big Game Motorsports #2
1 win – Carson Macedo, Jason Johnson Racing #41

FEATURE LAPS LED (8 Drivers):
52 laps – David Gravel
26 laps – Sam Hafertepe Jr.
25 laps – Donny Schatz
13 laps – Cory Eliason
10 laps – Sheldon Haudenschild
8 laps – James McFadden
7 laps – Brad Sweet
4 laps – Carson Macedo

SLICK WOODY’S QUICKTIME AWARDS (5 Drivers):
1 QuickTime – David Gravel, Aaron Reutzel, Cory Eliason, Jacob Allen, Sam Hafertepe Jr.

HEAT RACE WINNERS (12 Drivers):
3 Heat Wins – Jacob Allen
2 Heat Wins – Brad Sweet, James McFadden, Kraig Kinser, Aaron Reutzel
1 Heat Win – Jacob Allen, Carson Macedo, David Gravel, Sheldon Haudenschild, Tyler Courtney, Cory Eliason, Brock Zearfoss, Sam Hafertepe Jr.

DIRTVISION FAST PASS DASH APPEARANCES (18 Drivers):
4 Dashes – David Gravel, Jacob Allen
3 Dashes – Brad Sweet, Kraig Kinser, Cory Eliason, Aaron Reutzel
2 Dashes – Donny Schatz, James McFadden, Carson Macedo, Tyler Courtney
1 Dash – Sheldon Haudenschild, Brock Zearfoss, Kyle Larson, Anthony Macri, Kerry Madsen, Brent Marks

MICROLITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (4 Drivers):
2 LCS Wins – Ayrton Gennetten
1 LCS Win – Sheldon Haudenschild, Spencer Bayston, Anthony Macri

PODIUM FINISHES (11 Drivers):
2 Podiums – David Gravel, Sheldon Haudenschild, Brad Sweet, James McFadden
1 Podium – Donny Schatz, Carson Macedo, Kyle Larson, Aaron Reutzel, Brent Marks, Cory Eliason, Sam Hafertepe Jr.

TOP 10 FINISHES (20 Drivers):
5 Top 10s – David Gravel, Donny Schatz
4 Top 10s – Sheldon Haudenschild, Brad Sweet, James McFadden, Logan Schuchart
3 Top 10s – Carson Macedo, Cory Eliason, Giovanni Scelzi
2 Top 10s – Brock Zearfoss, Jacob Allen, Aaron Reutzel, Tyler Courtney
1 Top 10 – Kyle Larson, Anthony Macri, Justin Peck, Brent Marks, Spencer Bayston, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Rico Abreu

2022 WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE & WINNERS:
No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)
1. Thur, Feb. 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Donny Schatz (1)
2. Fri, Feb. 11 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Sheldon Haudenschild (1)
3. Sat, Feb. 12 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (1)
4. Fri, March 11 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Sheldon Haudenschild (2)
5. Sat, March 12 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Carson Macedo (1)
6. Fri, March 18 / Merced Speedway / Merced, CA
7. Sat, March 19 / Ocean Speedway / Watsonville, CA
8. Fri, March 25 / Bakersfield Speedway / Bakersfield, CA
9. Sat, March 26 / Perris Auto Speedway / Perris, CA
10. Tues, March 29 / Vado Speedway Park / Vado, NM
11. Fri, April 1 / Lawton Speedway / Lawton, OK
12. Sat, April 2 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX
13. Fri, April 8 / US-36 Raceway / Osborn, MO
14. Sat, April 9 / Lake Ozark Speedway / Eldon, MO
15. Fri, April 15 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO
16. Sat, April 16 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO
17. Fri, April 22 / Tri-City Speedway / Granite City, IL
18. Sat, April 23 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN
19. Fri, April 29 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN
20. Sat, April 30 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN
21. Fri, May 6 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH
22. Sat, May 7 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH
23. Wed, May 11 / Lincoln Speedway / Abbottstown, PA
24. Fri, May 13 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
25. Sat, May 14 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
26. Tues, May 17 / Bridgeport Speedway / Swedesboro, NJ
27. Fri, May 20 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH
28. Sat, May 21 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH
29. Sat, May 28 / Atomic Speedway / Waverly, OH
30. Mon, May 30 / Lawrenceburg Speedway / Lawrenceburg, IN
31. Fri, June 3 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND
32. Sun, June 5 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD
33. Fri, June 10 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA
34. Sat, June 11 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA
35. Fri, June 17 / Beaver Dam Raceway / Beaver Dam, IA
36. Sat, June 18 / Beaver Dam Raceway / Beaver Dam, IA
37. Thur, June 23 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD
38. Fri, June 24 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD
39. Sat, June 25 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD
40. Fri, July 1 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI
41. Sat, July 2 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI
42. Fri, July 8 / 34 Raceway / West Burlington, IA
43. Sat, July 9 / Wilmot Raceway / Wilmot, WI
44. Tues, July 12 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH
45. Wed, July 13 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH
46. Thur, July 14 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH
47. Fri, July 15 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH
48. Sat, July 16 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH
49. Wed, July 20 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA
50. Fri, July 22 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
51. Sat, July 23 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
52. Sat, July 30 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, NY
53. Sun, July 31 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, NY
54. Fri, Aug. 5 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO
55. Sat, Aug. 6 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO
56. Wed, Aug. 10 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA
57. Thur, Aug. 11 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA
58. Fri, Aug, 12 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA
59. Sat, Aug. 13 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA
60. Thur, Aug. 18 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN
61. Fri, Aug. 19 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN
62. Sat, Aug. 20 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN
63. Fri, Aug. 26 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND
64. Sat, Aug. 27 / Red River Valley Speedway / West Fargo, ND
65. Thur, Sept. 1 / Skagit Speedway / Alger, WA
66. Fri, Sept. 2 / Skagit Speedway / Alger, WA
67. Sat, Sept. 3 / Skagit Speedway / Alger, WA
68. Mon, Sept. 5 / Gray’s Harbor Raceway / Elma, WA
69. Fri, Sept. 9 / Silver Dollar Speedway / Chico, CA
70. Sat, Sept. 10 / Silver Dollar Speedway / Chico, CA
71. Fri, Sept. 16 / Keller Auto Speedway / Hanford, CA
72. Sat, Sept. 17 / Placerville Speedway / Placerville, CA
73. Fri, Sept. 23 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH
74. Sat, Sept. 24 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH
75. Fri, Sept. 30 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
76. Sat, Oct. 1 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
77. Fri, Oct. 7 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA
78. Sat, Oct. 8 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA
79. Fri, Oct. 14 / I-80 Speedway / Greenwood, NE
80. Sat, Oct. 15 / Lakeside Speedway / Kansas City, KS
81. Wed, Nov. 2 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
82. Thur, Nov. 3 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
83. Fri, Nov. 4 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
84. Sat, Nov. 5 The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC

NASCAR CUP SERIES PHOENIX RACEWAY RUOFF MORTGAGE 500 TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT MARCH 9, 2022

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 GUARANTEED RATE CAMARO ZL1. met with media via teleconference in advance of this weekend’s Ruoff Mortgage 500 at Phoenix Raceway. Press Conference Transcript:
ANY PROGRESS ON THE LEG NUMBING ISSUES AND WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO TRY THIS WEEK?“Yeah, so I just think with this new car there are some things (inaudible). The last car, from since I have been racing really stayed much the same. (inaudible) Yeah, you know just making some mistakes in how I think I needed to be sitting in this car. So, we’ve been able to, now that we are back home, came back from Vegas, been able to sit in the car and adjust some things. Pinpoint some areas where I think I just had my body in a bad posture, not really allowing the weight of my body in the seat being distributed the way it should. Nothing like to the extent of having to change inserts, do that sort of thing. Just moving some things around in the car seems to be better. Obviously, the reason this has been an issue is pretty challenging to understand sitting still you know with no load, no bumps, no heat, whatever it might be to really feel if there is going to be a problem. It’s hard to really understand what’s ok and what’s not. After we ran Fontana, you know we had our Vegas car right there, it was already in Fontana. Sat in it, moved some things around, thought I was going to be good to go in Vegas and obviously I was looking in the wrong places. We had some help this week and were able to make some adjustments and continue learning more and more about it. You know I just think I was in a really good place in that old car for such a long time and didn’t realize how easy or how bad you could end up missing it, the comfort side of things. Unfortunately going through that, that process right now (inaudible) a lot better.”
IS IT ABOUT KIND OF HOW THE PEDALS ARE MOUNTED AND HOW YOU POSITION YOUR FOOT? OR IS IT MORE KIND OF WHERE THE SEAT IS IN RELATION TO PEDALS AND MAYBE THE HEIGHT OF THE SEAT?“I think more than anything its just having you know no matter where you put your seat its kind of important to have your legs comfortable for you. You know, not too high, not too low. You don’t want to cut circulation off having the pedals too low, on the edge of your seat or having your legs really having a lot of weight or force on the bottom of your seat cutting your circulation off that way. Certainly, with this deeper car, or deeper driver area or cockpit (inaudible) with how ramming my current insert was. So, we made some adjustments there. Certainly, I think I have frustrated some things in my body by putting it through that the last two weeks in a row now. I normally don’t give myself a lot of rest time in between with exercising and everything, so just coming up with the best approach to get my body some time to get out some of the stress I’ve been putting it though the last two weekends.”
HOW WELL TIMED WAS IT TO GET THAT FIRST TOP 10 OF THE YEAR AT LAS VEGAS, GIVEN HOW CRAZY THAT RACE WAS FOR YOU GUYS?“It was important. I guess for our whole team it was an important thing to be able to come back from that. For me, personally too, I have a lot of distractions in the car. Just hard to give it my best effort with everything going on, not really allowing you to be 100 percent. To still get a top-10 was good, but certainly still I can’t let it keep taking away potential good runs for our team. I do think that it held me back in Vegas. Held us back in Fontana even though we were still really good, still able to execute fairly well on pit road and everything. After going through what I did in Vegas and not always having the track position all day long, it tells me that I was leaving some on the table in Fontana too. I mean I felt like I was and couldn’t really run the bottom because of what I was fighting, but we still had a pretty good car there. Yeah, it was good to get that top 10. The biggest thing that we’re focused on is making sure that we (inaudible) when we get to Phoenix, a place that requires a lot of braking, a lot of thinking about the car and its such a fine line balance wise at that place. It’s going to be very important to have all that worked out, so that is what we are going to try to do, my team is. Make sure that I can be 100 percent.”
WITH YOU HAVING THE FITNESS REGIMEN THIS OFF SEASON AND CHANGING YOUR BODY SO MUCH, DO YOU GUYS CHANGE THE SEAT INSERT FROM YEAR TO YEAR AND IS THAT KIND OF PART OF THIS SITUATION?“It could be, but weight wise I haven’t moved that much shape wise a little bit. In the areas that I have changed shape, I don’t think it would, well thinking about it off the top of my head I don’t think it’s where our issue is coming from. I think it just has more to do with it’s a brand new race car, it’s a lot more options of where you can put the pedals in relation to the seat and I just think that’s where some of it is. I guess, yeah, with where I end up putting my pedals for the last couple weeks yeah it could have added some material underneath me to help fill the gap that was there. Yeah, I mean it’s not like the insert itself doesn’t fit me too bad. If anything, I feel like I fit a little bit better, like snug in it than I did. It’s just those other things that we moved around unknowingly really.”WHAT DO YOU THINK WE ARE GOING TO SEE NEXT WEEKEND?“I don’t know. It’s hard to say. These cars, it’s been a lot of fun. it’s been challenging to understand so far. I don’t know. I think the transitioning from straightaways to corners is going to be interesting. It will be interesting to see how that plays out. I haven’t even read on it. I have only heard you know a little bit about it, so I really can’t say. I have tried, for the most part, to go into a lot of the race weekends with not a lot of expectations so I can be ready to adapt to anything. That has been a good approach for me and I’m pretty much carrying that thought process, that approach, into Atlanta as well.”
JUST FOLLOWING UP ON THE LEG NUMBNESS, I’M CURIOUS IF ANOTHER SOLUTION YOU GUYS OR THE RCR CAMP HAVE THOUGHT OF WOULD BE GETTING THE BLOOD FLOWING IN THE LOWER EXTREMETIES BEFORE A RACE? COULD THAT POSSIBLY BE A SOLUTION TO THAT TOO OR NOT REALLY?“For the amount of time that you spend in a car, I think that could help in some sense, but I mean I was in the car for four hours in Las Vegas and to a degree it could help some, but when you are sitting in a car for a long period of time, I don’t expect that to be a fix. But I think it could be something, you know it certainly doesn’t hurt and you don’t necessarily want to get in a car for four hours and not be stretched out and have some good blood flowing anyway. You want to be ready at the start of the race, anything can happen. It certainly helps, but I think there’s some other things that we moved around that hopefully will take care of it.”
AS YOU ENTER THIS WEEKEND, CAUSE THIS IS A TRACK WHERE YOU HAVE TO USE BOTH PEDALS, IS THIS A TRACK WHERE YOU’RE REALLY CONCERNED THAT THE LEG NUMBNESS MAY BE HAPPENING ONCE AGAIN OR NOT REALLY WITH THIS ADJUSTMENT?“Like I said a little earlier, it’s really hard to tell at the shop sitting still. You can strap yourself in, you can sit there forever. Without the car moving, you know the loads. When I sat in the car in Fontana for Vegas, I thought it was going to be ok. That does make it a little concerning, but I know that we went the right direction. It’s just hopefully we have gone enough, hopefully we didn’t go too far. Its just kind of difficult to really know if we got it right, and you know we got, well I thought we had enough time at Las Vegas to get a feel for it but we had some pretty lengthy changes, I didn’t get to stay out on the track quite long enough for that really to take into effect. You know coming in and sitting for 10 minutes while we were making some changes to the car took away from that, so we had the opportunity with that practice to get an idea for if we were going to be ok or not. We just didn’t take advantage of it. You know at Fontana, we didn’t really get to run long enough in the 15 minute practice session, or group split that we had to figure it out, so that is a cause for concern. We could probably run that whole session straight through and still may not know if it’s ok or not for the race.”
ARE YOU GETTING TO A POINT WHERE YOU’RE STARTING TO KNOW WHERE THE EDGE IS, HOW FAR YOU CAN TAKE IT OUT? “It’s getting closer. The last two weeks have been a little more difficult to know, Vegas for sure was as well. (inaudible) You know in practice, you know just thinking we were balance wise pretty close and then figuring out as the race kind of unfolded that we were too loose and ultimately the car came around on me. There was a lot of learning left there, but it is hard to kind of get a feel for it with some of the things that we’ve been fighting. You know a place like Phoenix, when I tested there, I guess it would have been January, I actually felt like you could get away with more in this car than what we’ve ran there the last two years on short-tracks. This wider tire definitely adds a little bit different on a short-track than it does on some of the higher speed racetracks, so very interesting to see what that’s like in a lot more traffic, a lot more dirty air in full on racing versus what we were experiencing during the test. The cars definitely different, everyone’s seen that already, but I feel like we have been able to race pretty hard. It’s been kind of nice having a car that, in my opinion, doesn’t get as aero-loose when you’re on someone’s door. There’s a lot of things different about it, it’s been fun learning some characteristics early.”
YOU THINK IT’S FAIR TO SAY IT SUITS YOUR STYLE?“I don’t know actually. I like having a car hung out and you can’t really have this car hung out anymore.”
DO YOU FEEL LIKE ITS (NEXT GEN CAR) LIVED UP TO ITS EXPECTATIONS COMING IN?“I do. It’s definitely more difficult to drive. There’s so much to (inaudible) that you can’t rely on, your old senses or marks. I mean for me it has. It’s been a lot of fun. I really do like the things that are different about this car. As to be expected with it, you know you are going to have more difficult things than others, but I feel like everyone’s maximum potential is or starting point is with this car has kind of brought together. Throughout the field more people have more opportunities to hit it right and be able to run up with the best of the best at the front of the field. But at the same time if you miss it really bad, you’re going to have a really tough day. There’s a lot to learn and we are going to continue to learn with this car.”

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (Mar. 09, 2022) – John Force and his PEAK / BlueDEF PLATINUM Chevrolet Camaro SS team will continue to build their performance heading to the historic Gainesville Raceway for the East Coast opening Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals. The third of 22 events on the Camping World Drag Racing Series tour has historically been good to the 16-time champion. No one has won more Funny Car races at Gainesville Raceway than Force (8). In one stretch, he reached the final round nine times in 11 years (1991-2001) and recorded a personal best when he won five straight times (1992-1996). He won the race for the first time in 1992 and most recently in 2017, a span of 25 years. He has started from the No. 1 qualifying position seven times, winning from that spot in 1992, 1995, 2001 and 2017. His other No. 1s came in 1993, 1996 and 1999.   “Getting things started on the East Coast. Always love coming out to Gainesville, the Gatornationals are a big deal, all the history. With the Hall of Fame induction, all the who’s who, they all come out. It’s a great time,” Force said. “I grew up watching these guys. Don Garlits is a legend and he’s done so much for the sport. It’s going to be something special to have all the greats out watching. The fans always come out strong here in Florida too. Going to be quite the show, hoping to get this PEAK BlueDEF Chevy in the winners circle, that’s the goal. Would be something special at the Gators.” Force had pre-season success at testing at Wild Horse pass Motorsports Park in Arizona but stumbled at the season opening Winternationals where he qualified 16th and had a first-round exit. The PEAK / BlueDEF team turned things around back at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park for the NHRA Arizona Nationals. Force would qualify No. 3 and have a semifinals appearance. “We’ve been running better. I know Danny Hood and Tim Fabrisi have been putting in the work on this BlueDEF Chevy and we’re in the game,” Force said. “It’s early still and we have plenty of time to get things going. We’ve already started, coming off a decent weekend in Phoenix. I’m just excited to be out her doing what I love. I want those wins though, to do well for myself, my fans and my sponsors. Looking forward to chasing a win this weekend.” The Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway March 11-13 begins with a single qualifying session on Friday at 5:30 p.m. Qualifying continues Saturday with sessions at noon and 2:45 p.m. Gatornationals eliminations are slated for 11 a.m. on Sunday. Television coverage begins Saturday with shows at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) and eliminations air Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on FS1.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 09, 2022) – At a facility filled with history and nostalgia, Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist dragster team will hope to add their names to the list of winners this weekend at the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway, the third of 22 events in the 2022 Camping World season and the East Coast opener. Despite missing most of the last two seasons, Prock showed no ill effects from the layoff when he took the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist dragster to the final round of the season opening Winternationals at Pomona, Calif. Gremlins created trouble for the Top Fuel standout at the most recent event in Arizona but the Montana Brand / RMT team are only 58 points back sitting sixth in the points standings. “We had a really strong start to the season at the Winternationals. This Montana Brand / RMT team was pumped and we still are,” Prock said. “Arizona was tough but it was also a learning experience, I learned a lot in the seat in that first round. It wasn’t the weekend we wanted but it was a weekend of growth and that’s important. We’ll take what we learned and go to Gainesville and try to get to the finals again.” The 2019 winner of the Auto Club’s Road to the Future as the NHRA Rookie-of-the-Year, Prock has a unique opportunity this week to become the third generation of the Prock family to reach the final round of the Gatornationals. His dad, Jimmy, crew chief on Robert Hight’s Auto Club Chevrolet Funny Car, has won the race five times, four with Hight, once with Top Fuel Hall  of Famer Joe Amato, and his grandfather, Tom, was runner-up to another Hall of Famer, Don Prudhomme, in the 1975 Gatornationals. Austin is making just his second appearance in the Florida race. As a rookie in 2019, he qualified No. 10 and had a first round exit. “It’s been a great start to the week attending the Hall of Fame inductions and celebrations. Listening to the wealth of knowledge of the inductees has been absolutely amazing. It already has me fired up and ready to continue to make my mark on the sport. I know my Montana Brand / RMT team will have the same energy rolling through the gates,” Prock said. “Hoping to get a win in Gainesville. It’s got a lot of sentimental value in my heart, with Eric Medlen. It would be cool to get it done for Eric.” The Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway March 11-13 begins with a single qualifying session on Friday at 5:30 p.m. Qualifying continues Saturday with sessions at noon and 2:45 p.m. Gatornationals eliminations are slated for 11 a.m. on Sunday. Television coverage begins Saturday with shows at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) and eliminations air Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on FS1.

CHEVROLET AT GAINESVILLE What: Amalie Motor Oil NHRA GatornationalsWhen: Friday, March 11-Sunday, March 13Where: Gainesville Raceway in Gainesville, FloridaTV: FS1 will telecast taped eliminations at 7 p.m. ET Sunday, March 13          Team Chevy aims to continue momentum at GainesvilleChevrolet youth movement making a statement in Pro Stock class

DETROIT (March 9, 2022) – Reigning and five-time NHRA Pro Stock champion Greg Anderson could secure his milestone 100th victory this weekend, which would also mark Chevrolet’s 350th in Pro Stock competition since 1970. To join 16-time NHRA Funny Car champion John Force as the only professional class drivers with 100 wins requires Anderson to navigate a deep, young and talented field dominated by fellow drivers of the Chevrolet Camaro SS.

“The competition out there is incredible; the talent level is incredible,” said Anderson, driver of the HendrickCars.com Camaro SS who has come up short in elimination rounds against the eventual winners of the first two races. “These young guys are not only talented, but they’re in top-shelf equipment, which you wouldn’t have seen 10, 15 years ago. They are a win waiting to happen every race they go to, and they are very disappointed if they don’t win. They have the right attitude. It’s hard racing every day against them.” Listen: An informative and insightful interview with Top Fuel champion Brittany Force Aaron Stanfield, who turned 27 on Feb. 10, is among the drivers of the Camaro SS heading into the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals aiming to make another statement for the Chevrolet youth movement. The class points leader is coming off a victory at Phoenix preceded by a runner-up finish in the season opener at Pomona in the Janac Brothers Camaro SS. “The younger generation is, I think, driving more fans back to Pro Stock,” said Kyle Koretsky, 32, who was the No. 1 qualifier at Phoenix in the KB Racing-prepared Lucas Oil Camaro SS and has advanced to five final rounds in 27 races. “It’s good for me and my marketing partners, it’s good for NHRA and it’s good for the class in general. “The rental programs that are out there these days are unbelievable. It’s not like it used to be when my dad raced, where if you didn’t have power, you weren’t winning and they wouldn’t give you power. Now, it’s more affordable than going out there and trying to R&D your own stuff.” Koretsky’s KB Racing teammate and 2021 NHRA rookie of the year Dallas Glenn is 31, as is Phoenix runner-up Troy Coughlin Jr. Second-year driver Mason McGaha is 20 and class first-year driver Camrie Caruso turned 24 on Feb. 14. “We’re proud to help the future of the class, and the future of the class was looking a little bleak a few years back and it’s absolutely done a 180,” Anderson said. “The sport in general is on the rise and getting stronger as the year goes by.” Added four-time Pro Stock champion and Pomona winner Erica Enders, driver of the Melling Performance Camaro SS: “The landscape has completely changed. In 2005, I was racing against a bunch of older guys. Now, it’s Greg Anderson and myself taking on this class of kids, and I think it’s so cool because we have all these kids interested in the class and it’s more affordable because of what (Elite Motorsports owner) Richard Freeman and the KB Racing guys have done.” Stanfield will pull double duty this weekend as he returns to the Janac Brothers Chevrolet COPO Camaro as the reigning and two-time champion of the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown. The event is the first of eight during the season. “I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “We’ve been working over the winter in our shop on the car. Thirty cars fighting for 16 spots will be pretty intense and there will be some really competitive races.”  Robert Hight will aim for his third consecutive Funny Car victory to start the season in the Auto Club of Southern California Camaro SS, while John Force seeks to extend his record with a ninth Funny Car win in the Gatornationals driving the PEAK BlueDEF Platinum Camaro SS. Brittany Force, the No. 1 qualifier at Pomona, and Pomona runner-up Austin Prock look to claim their first victory of the season. FS1 will telecast taped eliminations at 7 p.m. ET Sunday, March 13. CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPITTOP FUELBRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONSTER ENERGY/FLAV-R-PAC CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (No. 1 qualifier and semifinalist at opener; holds both ends of the Top Fuel track record): “This Monster Energy/Flav-R-Pac team has had a good start to the season. We are heading into the Gatornationals sitting fourth in points and we’re only two races in. I’m looking forward to building on what we’ve already done and moving forward. The Gatornationals is one of the biggest races on our circuit. It will always be a special place for me. I grew up going to that race and I got my first professional win at that track in 2016. (About the All-Star Callout) Out of the eight drivers, our team is qualified in the second position. We are all excited to be in the chase for this specialty race and the $80,000 prize. It’s going to be an eventful weekend.” AUSTIN PROCK, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONTANA BRAND/ROCKY MOUNTAIN TWIST CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (No. 4 qualifier and runner-up at opener): “We’ve been making leaps every day it seems. We made a lot of headway at Phoenix and we’re learning something new every time up there. You’re going to have to be on your game at all times if you want to go for those Wallys. I visited the Garlits museum and it already has me fired up and ready to continue to make my mark on the sport. I know my team will have the same energy rolling through the gates. Hoping to get a win in Gainesville. It’s got a lot of sentimental value in my heart, with Eric Medlen. It would be cool to get it done for Eric.” FUNNY CARJOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK BLUEDEF PLATINUM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (eight-time winner of event): “Getting things started on the East Coast. Always love coming out to Gainesville, the Gatornationals are a big deal, all the history. With the Hall of Fame induction, they all come out. It’s a great time. I grew up watching these guys. Don Garlits is a legend. He’s done so much for the sport. It’s going to be something special to have all the greats out watching. The fans always come out strong here in Florida too. Going to be quite the show, hoping to get this PEAK BlueDEF Chevy in the winner’s circle, that’s the goal. Would be something special at the Gators.” ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 2 qualifier in both races and winner of both races; holds both ends of the track Funny Car record): “It’s a great start to the season for this Auto Club team. We’ve ran well but we haven’t found the edge yet, there’s still more out there. This Auto Club team has to stay focused, we can’t get complacent. We have to continuously work hard, and the results will come. We know the rest of these guys out here are gunning for us and they’re going to be pushing hard. We’ve got to keep doing our job.” PRO STOCKAARON STANFIELD, ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JANAC BROTHERS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (winner at Phoenix, runner-up at Pomona, points leader): “At Phoenix, we had a fast and consistent hot rod all weekend long. It just felt smooth and fast. (About tightness of field in first two races) I think it’s a look into the rest of the season that nobody is safe even though you qualify on the pole, you still have to cut a good light and stay consistent to go some rounds. (About maintaining mental focus) Last year, we had a period where we were doing really well, but it’s about maintaining consistency throughout the year. (About being a new dad) You lose a little bit of sleep, but it’s worth it. It’s been great.” TROY COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (runner-up at Phoenix): “There’s definitely a lot of momentum in the camp and my crew chief Mark Ingersoll and the boys — Kyle Bates, Ricky Calloway and Kelly Murphy — certainly have the JEGS.com Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ready to win. Why not Gainesville? It’s a very historic race, the first big one of every season that takes place on the East Coast, and one that all the legends have won. That includes my Uncle Jeg, who won Pro Stock there in 2001 and 2008. I’d love to win it again in the Pro Stock car.” GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (four-time winner of event, including 2021; seeking to become second pro driver with 100 wins): “We started the season there last year and won, so I’m going to consider the Gatornationals as the start of my season this year. My guess is we’re going to be shortened at least one, if not more, qualifying runs (because of inclement weather), so you better have your ducks in a row when you’re on the grounds because there won’t be a lot of time to get it right. You have to be ready to make your best run right off the trailer. We certainly didn’t perform like we should have or needed to at the first two races, so we’re going to act like those didn’t happen and we’re going to start our season this weekend in Gainesville.”  KYLE KORETSKY, KB RACING, LUCAS OIL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier at Phoenix): “Going into Gainesville, I know our car is fast and capable of the No. 1 qualifier but looking to go more rounds. A semifinal loss (at Phoenix) is a great outing, but it was straight driver error. They gave me a car to win and I let the team down. We’ll go to Gainesville with a clear head and give it our best. (About qualifying at Phoenix) The team hit it right and that’s why I went to the top.”  DALLAS GLENN, KB RACING, RAD TORQUE SYSTEMS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (2021 NHRA rookie of the year): “I feel like I’ve got something to prove after Phoenix. I’m lucky I was able to race at all after having the car fall off the jack and onto my foot but as a racer, I want to win every time I get behind the wheel. I rested up and let my foot heal a little bit on our weekend off and I think I’m back in fighting shape for Gainesville.” DALLAS GLENN, KB RACING, RAD TORQUE SYSTEMS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (2021 NHRA rookie of the year): “I feel like I’ve got something to prove after Phoenix. I’m lucky I was able to race at all after having the car fall off the jack and onto my foot but as a racer, I want to win every time I get behind the wheel. I rested up and let my foot heal a little bit on our weekend off and I think I’m back in fighting shape for Gainesville.” CAMRIE CARUSO, CARUSO FAMILY RACING, RIGHT TRAILERS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (earned first round win at Phoenix): “March is Women’s History Month, so it was cool to make a little history of our own getting that win light in our second race. The NHRA has had so many amazing women competitors. I am proud to be out here competing against the Pro Stock guys with Erica Enders and other NHRA professional women drivers like Leah Pruett, Alexis DeJoria and Brittany Force. I have a great team and we are all working together every day to get better. I might be the one in the race car but there are guys back in the shop at Titan Racing Engines who put a lot of sweat into giving me the power to run in the top half.”

Inside Line Promotions – FRESNO, Calif. (March 9, 2022) – Dominic Scelzi is excited to defend his home turf this weekend when the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series invades California for the first of three straight weeks.

The action begins Friday and Saturday at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, where Scelzi was victorious six times last year.

“Any more I think you have to treat it like any race,” he said. “To win a local race or a national race, you have to put yourself in position. If we can qualify well and get ourselves in position in time trials that’s the biggest hurdle we’ll need to cross. If we can do that I think we’ll put ourselves in a good position to contend for wins. We’re in a good place as a team right now. I’m excited to get back to racing with the World of Outlaws.”

Scelzi posted a sixth-place result during his most recent World of Outlaws event last year and he rallied from 22^ndto 15^th during the last Outlaws show at Thunderbowl Raceway in March 2019. His career-best World of Outlaws result at the track was a fourth-place showing in 2018.

“I think we’ve been hot and cold there over the years,” he said. “That’s just been the results overall. I don’t think that’s mattered whether it’s an Outlaws race or a local race over the years. We’ve been a lot hotter there lately. We won races in the slick, won races when there was grip and won races when it was rough last year so that gives us a lot of confidence.”

Scelzi also plans to race with ‘The Greatest Show on Dirt’ the following weekend at Merced Speedway in Merced and Ocean Speedway in Watsonville as well as at Bakersfield Speedway in Bakersfield and Perris Auto Speedway in Perris during the final weekend of the World of Outlaws spring swing through California.

“I love racing with the Outlaws,” he said. “I love when they are in town. I miss racing with them night in and night out. I had a lot of fun when I was traveling. It’s great being able to gauge how we are as a team and stack up with the best drivers in the world. If you’re good at something it will show and if you’re bad at something it’ll really show.”

SEASON STATS –

2 races, 0 wins, 2 top fives, 2 top 10s, 2 top 15s, 2 top 20s

UP NEXT –

Friday and Saturday at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, Calif., with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 09, 2022) – Robert Hight and the Automobile Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS team are having a perfect start to their 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season. They’ll head to the East Coast opener, the prestigious Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway, sitting No. 1 with a 65-point lead and nothing but motivation to keep it going.  Hight is off to the best start of his career and one of the best starts of all time after winning back-to-back races at the season-opening Winternationals and NHRA Arizona Nationals. Only 15 other drivers have started with back-to-back wins. Hight is just the fifth Funny Car driver to start the season with two wins, joining teammate John Force (1997), Don Prudhomme (1975, 1976), Matt Hagan (2015, 2017) and Ron Capps (2009). The consistency has shown through for Hight and his Jimmy Prock and Chris Cunningham led Auto Club team, they’ve run in the 3.8-second range 13 out 14 passes. “It’s a great start to the season for this Auto Club team,” Hight said. “We’ve ran well but we haven’t found the edge yet, there’s still more out there. This Auto Club team has to stay focused, we can’t get complacent. We have to continuously work hard, and the results will come. We know the rest of these guys out here are gunning for us and they’re going to be pushing hard. We’ve got to keep doing our job.” Hight has four wins at the NHRA Gatornationals, most recently in 2019 when he was also the No. 1 qualifier alongside teammate Brittany Force in Top Fuel. Hight also has two additional No. 1s at the facility where he set the track records on March 19, 2017 when he ran 3.828-seconds at 334.82 mph. “I am excited about getting to some different conditions in Gainesville. We haven’t raced in any humidity yet and you get that at the Gatornationals,” Hight said. “I’m excited to get back in the Auto Club car, when you’re on a role like this you want to just keep racing, so I tried to enjoy my weekend off but I’m ready to work hard and try and do it again at the Gatornationals.” The Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway March 11-13 begins with a single qualifying session on Friday at 5:30 p.m. Qualifying continues Saturday with sessions at noon and 2:45 p.m. Gatornationals eliminations are slated for 11 a.m. on Sunday. Television coverage begins Saturday with shows at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) and eliminations air Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on FS1.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 09, 2022) – Brittany Force and the Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team have shown that performance will once again be no issue for them in the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season. They enter this weekend’s prestigious Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway with confidence after opening the season with two promising performances.  Seeming to pick up right where they left off, Brittany Force and the Monster Energy team started the 2022 off with a strong season-opening Winternationals. The David Grubnic and Mac Savage led tuned team entered race day from No. 1 for the 33rd time in Force’s career and the 23rd time in her last 46 starts. At the Arizona Nationals, Force and the Monster Energy team showed some consistency when they were quickest during the warmest run of qualifying and picked up their performance during eliminations despite a second-round exit.     “This Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team has had a good start to the season. We are heading into the Gatornationals sitting fourth in points and we’re only two races in,” Force said. “I’m looking forward to building on what we’ve already done and moving forward.” Force and the Monster Energy team will be building on an already well-established base as they head to Gainesville Raceway. Force set the track elapsed time record at 3.860-seconds in 2019 when she and Robert Hight both were No. 1 qualifiers, one of only 12 times that John Force Racing drivers have occupied the No. 1 positions in both nitro categories at the same event. She also set the track speed record at 331.94 mph in her most recent appearance in 2021. “The Gatornationals is one of the biggest races on our circuit. It will always be a special place for me. I grew up going to that race and I got my first professional win at that track in 2016. I’m excited to be heading there with my Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team this weekend,” Force said. “This weekend also holds a race within a race with the Pep Boys NHRA All-Star Callout on Saturday. Out of the eight drivers, our team is qualified in the second position. We are all excited to be in the chase for this specialty race and that $80,000 prize. It’s going to be an eventful weekend, I’m excited to be in the mix.  I’m looking forward to being back in Florida and in the mix of such an eventful weekend.” Force is the No. 2 qualifier for the inaugural Pep Boys All Star Callout. She’ll be racing for her first win in a shootout competition. From 2013 to 2017, Force qualified four times for what was then the Traxxas Shootout held at the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway March 11-13 begins with a single qualifying session on Friday at 5:30 p.m. Qualifying continues Saturday with round one of the Pep Boys NHRA All-Star Callout serving as round one of Top Fuel at 11:45 a.m. The final session of qualifying will either be second round of the Pep Boys Call out at 1:30 p.m. or regular session at 2:45 p.m. The finals of the Callout will take place between Top Fuel and Funny Car qualifying at 3:15 p.m. Gatornationals eliminations are slated for 11 a.m. on Sunday. Television coverage of the Pep Boys Top Fuel All-Star Callout airs at 2 p.m. ET on FOX Broadcast Network. Qualifying airs Saturday at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) and eliminations air Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on FS1.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 9, 2022) – The Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown begins its eight race NHRA season at historic Gainesville Raceway for the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, March 11-13. After a lengthy off-season, past rivalries and heated competition will once again be front and center for the class showcasing Chevrolet COPO Camaros, Ford Cobra Jets and Dodge Challenger Drag Paks entries.

“We’ve been at the shop working hard for the start of the season. We’re ready to get it started in Gainesville,” said two-time defending class champion and driver of the Janac Bros. COPO Camaro, Aaron Stanfield who already in 2022 has a win and a semifinal appearance in the NHRA Pro Stock category. 

Aaron Stanfield, defending Gatornationals winner, photo by Auto Imagery

“We’ve been working on some longevity things on the engine, overall, trying to find a little bit more power on the dyno. We know we have targets on our backs. That’s our goal every time we show up, to win. I know everyone else wants to, too, but we’re hoping to make that bounty larger and larger, just come out and get the win every time.”

Stanfield started his 2021 championship campaign with a win at the Gatornationals. He didn’t see the winner’s circle again until back-to-back wins at the final two races of the season secured him the championship and racked up his bounty to $2,000entering the Gatornationals. Introduced in 2021, the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown Bounty Program has increased fan and driver interest in the class. The bounty on Stanfield will increase until another driver defeats him during eliminations.

One driver looking to cash in on that bounty is manufacturer rival, Mark Pawuk, a six-time Pro Stock national event winner who honed his drag racing skills bracket racing in Norwalk in the 1970s and joined the Factory Stock Showdown class in 2018.

“We’ve had some pretty good results in testing this off-season. Obviously, everything resets coming into the Gatornationals. That’s one race I’ve really wanted to do well at over my entire career. It’s one of my favorite events,” said Pawuk, driver of the Empaco Equipment Mopar Dodge Challenger Drag Pak for Don Schumacher Racing. “I’m just really looking forward to going out and being able to build on what we learned this winter when we were doing our testing. We have a new teammate in Warren Welcher and David Davies is back. So, I’m looking forward to us working together and building off each other and hopefully bringing some wins to Don Schumacher Racing this year in the Dodge.”

Mark Pawuk, Empaco Dodge Drag Pak

Pawuk finished the 2021 season with eighth in points and will be looking to lead a strong contingent of Don Schumacher Racing Dodges into the 2022 season.

Norwalk winner Chuck Watson II will once again be racing his Ford Mustang Cobra Jet, and he knows how big a win at the season-opening Gatornationals could be.

“I’m super excited. I just checked the car counts and we’re at or over 30,” said Watson. “That’s phenomenal, and all three major manufacturers, that’s fantastic. It’s a nice spread. It’s what makes our class so exciting. On the outside, minus the stickers, these cars look like production cars, even on the interior. It would mean everything to come out to win the Gatornationals. I’m truly just thankful and excited to be participating in this class. Like I said, it’s extremely competitive, with a lot of experienced drivers, a lot of cars competing. To walk away with a win this weekend would be super exciting.”

Chuck Watson, Norwalk Nationals winner, photo by Auto Imagery

Qualifying for Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown at the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway will begin Friday at noon followed by a second session at 3 p.m. Qualifying will continue Saturday at 9:30 a.m. before first round of eliminations at 1:15 p.m. Eliminations will continue Sunday at 12:55 p.m.

Ahead of the 70th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Advance Auto Parts on March 19, drivers Sebastien Bourdais (No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R) and Tristan Vautier(No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R) met with the media March 8 via Zoom conference. They co-drove to the overall victory in the 2021 race. Bourdais also co-drove to the overall win in 2015 in a Corvette DP. For this year’s race, they will be competitors. Full transcript (by driver):

SEBASTIEN BOURDAIS (No. 1 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R): TELL US HOW IT’S SHAPING UP FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE.“Great memories from Sebring. It couldn’t have asked for any better with the result from last year and I’m looking forward to giving it another go. I think it’s a track that I very much enjoy; probably one of the tracks that I enjoy the most out of the whole schedule. We haven’t had exactly the start of the season that we were hoping for, but we were really quick at Daytona in the Cadillac 01 and we can only hope that we turn the tables around and get a little bit better success on track and keep executing and results will follow.” YOU’RE FOCUSING ON A 12-HOUR. WAS THAT YOUR DECISION OR SOMETHING THAT (THE TEAM) WAS SUGGESTING YOU DO INSTEAD OF ALSO UNDERTAKING THE WEC RACE?“It was a Cadillac call, which I totally understand. If the 1,000 miles was after the 12 hours, that would have been a different story. The team was basically not super comfortable with me doing a 1,000-mile race before the 12 hours.” YOU’VE DONE A LOT OF MILES AT SEBRING, AND THE BUMPS ARE WHAT DEFINE THE TRACK. DO YOU THINK THE CADILLAC DOES A BETTER JOB OF HANDLING THE BUMPS THAT SOME OF THE OTHER PROTOTYPES?“There is no arguing that. Now it’s a two-manufacturer battle between Cadillac and Acura, but even when it was Mazda it’s pretty clear that Cadillac with the Dallara chassis has better characteristics for bumpy tracks. It’s a car that is less ride-sensitive than the competitors. We can see that we can run a bit softer, which at a place like Sebring is very beneficial. The drawback of that is the car doesn’t really have a big peak in downforce and therefore and is less sited to tracks where you can run low and stiff. It’s a balance, but obviously it’s won quite a few championships since 2017, so it seems to be working out pretty good.” TALK US THORUGH THE END OF THAT RACE LAST YEAR. WHAT TOOLS DO YOU HAVE IN THE CAR; WHAT DID YOU HAVE TO DO TO HANG ON AND BRING IT HOME?“I didn’t have a whole lot of time to figure out what was going on. Initially, I thought the front bar broke and I stiffened it up all the way and that helped. Full stiff front bar and full soft rear bar and I think 3 percent of full brakes to the front and just hang on. That’s pretty much all there was to do. It was far from ideal, but I was really quick in the straights. As long as I was not getting passed in the corner, it was pretty hard to get past.” HOW MUCH COMPROMISE DO YOU HAVE? DO YOU TYPICALLY SET UP THE RACE CAR FOR THE HEAT OF THE DAY AND COME GOOD FOR THOSE FINAL THREE HOURS?“I think everybody shoots for the end of the race. That’s when it’s go time. Usually you always have a two, three or one hour to the end to the last yellow and that’s when everybody is nose to tail. You obviously want track position, but you need to be in a strong position with the balance of the car. You can’t hope to win the race if you’re really struggling. If you’re going to be struggling, it’s going to be in the middle of the afternoon. You can always play a little bit with tire pressures and this and that, but it’s usually what you’re not shooting for. You’re shooting for the end of the race.” WITH THIS EVOLUTION (HELPING INDYCAR ROOKIE DRVER KYLE KIRKWOOD) HOW DO YOU FEEL THIS HELPS YOU RACING IN PROTOTPES AND HOW WOULD IT HELP YOU IN SEBRING?“I think it’s two separate things. I live in St. Pete (first INDYCAR race of season) and Kyle is a really good kid and was jumping in that 14 car and we were talking after Daytona and I said it you want me to be there I can try to be another set

Batavia, OH (March 8, 2022) – Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series officials are delighted to announce the Racing For Heroes organization as the sponsor for the start zone with the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series in 2022. The excitement and thrill of every start and restart by the stars of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will happen at the “Racing For Heroes Start Zone”. Racing For Heroes is a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering the lives of our Nation’s Veterans through motorsports, health, wellness, and employment opportunities. Racing For Heroes helps Veterans with Post Traumatic Stress (PTS), Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI), and drug addictions because of these neurological damages caused by trauma. Racing For Heroes provides Veterans a place to improve their health and wellness with employment opportunities, all while incorporating engagement in motorsports as real therapy. “We are proud to be partners with the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. This partnership highlights our belief that engaging in motorsports provides catharsis and a sense of camaraderie to the Veterans we serve. We are looking forward to 2022 and beyond,” stated Dr. Brett Morash, Executive Director of Racing For Heroes. Racing For Heroes located in Alton, VA relies on contributions and donations from individuals and organizations to help fund their programs and provide Veterans rehabilitation through their services and operations. To learn more about Racing For Heroes visit www.racingforheroes.org. To make a donation to this great organization visit www.racingforheroes.org/donate.  “We are thrilled to be associated with Dr. Brett Morash, everyone at Racing For Heroes, and their organization. Helping Veterans and supporting our military in any way is important to Forrest Lucas and Lucas Oil Products. This partnership will help bring more awareness and hopefully more donations to this great organization to help Veterans all across our great country,” stated Wayne Castleberry, Corporate Sales and Marketing for Lucas Oil Motorsports. About Racing For Heroes: Racing for Heroes is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization supporting disabled veterans in the community through Advocacy, Engagement and Racing. Since the Organization’s inception in 2014, RFH has provided Veterans with medical assistance for PTSD, TBI rehabilitation, purchasing and supplying equipment that accommodates disabilities, suicide prevention and recognition to Veterans for their service. We have built a community who continues to care for each other and promotes continued patriotism through giving back to our community. Racing has positively impacted and saved the lives of many of our Veteran friends and patrons. RFH is dedicated to providing access to the thrills of racing and to team camaraderie for all who have served and benefit from a goal oriented, leadership environment. To learn more visit www.racingforheroes.org.

About Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt SeriesFounded in 2005, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series showcases the talents of the top dirt late model drivers from across the country. In 2022, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will sanction 65 events across 18 states, including some of the biggest marquee events in the industry, providing dirt slinging, sideways, door-to-door racing action lap after lap.  The series receives national exposure through a television package filmed, produced and edited by Lucas Oil Production Studios. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series events will be streamed live on MAVTV Plus, with broadcasts on MAVTV Motorsports Network.   The in your face excitement of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is second to none in motorsports. For more information, including the latest news, tour schedule, driver information, and more, visit the official website at: www.LucasDirt.com.

2022 Official Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Marketing Partners

2022 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Partners Include:Advanced Powder Coating, Ag Protect 1, Allstar Performance, Arizona Sport Shirts, Armslist.com, Automotive Racing Products (ARP), Big River Steel, Black Diamond Chassis, Boyd Bilt Fabrication, Brandon Ford, Brodix, Capital Race Cars, Clements Racing Engines, Cornett Racing Engines, DirtCar Lift, Dirt Draft, DirtonDirt.com, Dirty Girl Racewear, Dixie Chopper, eBay Motors, E3 Spark Plugs, Earnhardt Technologies Group, Etchberger Trucking, Fast Shafts,General Tire, Heath Lawson Photography, Holmatro, Hoosier Tire, Hot Rod Processing, Keyser Manufacturing, K&N Engineering, Longhorn Chassis, Lucas Oil Products, MAVTV Motorsports Network, Mega Plumbing of the Carolinas, Midwest S