February 2021, the shortest month of the year! January went by pretty quick for us this year, and with another month rolling around we are still in deep with multiple builds here at the SB Motorsport HQ.

This wasn’t without our – out of workshop trips to partners though! Early on in the month we headed to our awesome Wrap & Vinyl sponsor, @FLSLTD. Where we had some patch work completed on the race van. This was a result in installing the side window, so the guys replaced the logos we had to cut off the side.

February was a month of snow in the UK, and as we don’t get snow that often, it was a big deal to most. This was also the week we collected the freshly painted #LSXR35 shell back from @BoltonBodyWorks.

The #SB350z is also near completion, with the @Garrettmotion G25-660 turbo mounted. Next step is the radiator & intercooler.

We started our LSX engine rebuild, which will be installed into the #S13V8 for this year. At the end of last year, we decided to completely strip and rebuild this fire breathing V8, to make sure 2021 saw nothing but reliability for the car.

The last few days of Feb were our busiest, with the rebuild and Version 3 of the GT-R. A newly painted shell, subframes, steering arms and suspension ready to go on, all in the first few days.

March 2021. With what seemed to be a very quick February, we rolled into the third month of the year primarily focusing on the rebuild of the #LSXR35.  The bare shell quickly became a rolling shell within a few weeks. Documenting every nut and bolt being fastened onto the car. Filming the progress of the build as it happens.

The front & rear subframes installed, @RadiumEngineering Fuel Cell in place, wiring harness and steering column all fitted.

Now it was time to test fit the new Version 3 @LibertyWalkSilhouette bodykit for the first time. Reportedly the only kit to be shipped to Europe!

This is shaping up to be our best, or even coolest version yet! Keep watching our socials to keep track of the progress. @SBMotorsport @BaggsyBoyUK

March was also the month we announced that we have partnered up with @FunkMotorsport in our 2021 race program. Their quality products ready for the #S13V8 and the rebuilt LSXR engine install. With the delay of our #PS13V8 coming back from Oman, we decided to make a few upgrades to the S13 to make it a competitive beast for the UK drift championships.

This included moving the whole cooling system to the rear of the car to work more efficiently, and a custom exhaust using all @VibrantPerformance parts.

To end off the month, Baggsy collected his new race trailer from Fleet Livery Solutions LTD, who have been wrapping the Brian James Transporter in the 2019/2020 GT-R Baggsy livery. Another show piece from Ash and the guys at @FLSLTD!

Baggsy – “Both February and March were great months for us, and I’m super excited to show you what has been happening in the lead up to this years event season.” “And… my new GT-R Version 3” www.baggsyboy.com www.sbmotorsport.com

NHRA^® Team Report

NHRA Four-Wide Nationals – Las Vegas

Pre-Race Report

With one of his strongest starts to a season, Cruz Pedregon and team are third in the NHRA Funny Car standings and ready to get back on the track this week in Las Vegas in front of a sold-out crowd.

“We’ve got good data and the confidence of going to the semis our first time out with this new team that will give us the momentum we need to do well at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway,” Cruz says. “John Collins has had cars he’s tuned in the final rounds at both of the previous Vegas four-wides, so we’re eager to give it our best shot.”

The Snap-on Dodge^® piloted by Cruz is already seeing consecutive 3.9 runs, a tribute to the hard work being done to get it right early in the season and stay in the groove. 

Cruz is one of only five Funny Car drivers who’ve won a championship and five majors — the Winternationals, Gatornationals, Englishtown, U.S. Nationals, and the World Finals and one of only seven Funny Car drivers who’ve won four majors and a championship. “It feels really good to be a contender again,” says Cruz. 

Follow Cruz and Snap-on on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

To see the latest Cruz news, like his Facebook page, where you can also check out his Vlog “Kickin’ It With The Cruzer.” Follow Cruz on Twitter and Instagram. Be sure to follow @MakersandFixers on Instagram and share your stories at makersandfixers.com.

With the threat of rain looming and the forecast showing Saturday as almost a guaranteed washout, race officials pushed hard to get two rounds of qualifying completed on Friday. However, the day’s events ran so smoothly that the schedule actually completed early, and a third session was run on Friday as well. Saturday morning broke with skies clearer than expected, so qualifying continued until afternoon showers ultimately forced race officials to call the day a wash. By Sunday, though, the sunshine had returned and eliminations were contested without interruption so that the rightful winners of each category were able to enjoy their celebrations in the winner’s circle. Fans showed up in droves to watch one of the last events in Atlanta Dragway’s storied history and enjoyed the on-track action as well as the UPR Products car show, manufacturer’s midway, swap meet, and so much more.

Joining forces with the NMCA contestants, Alan Felts topped the qualifying list of NMRA VP Racing Madditives/NMCA Mickey Thompson Street Outlaw with his 4.290 at 168.09 mph run behind the wheel of his turbocharged ’91 Mustang. Felts went out in the semi-finals, while the finals paired the number-three qualified driver, Steve Halprin, against the number-five driver, John Urist, for a rematch of the same showdown at the previous event. The men staged, but Urist’s Hellion-turbocharged ’15 Mustang pushed through the beams and triggered a foul to gift the win to Halprin, who cruised to an easy victory in his ’02 Mustang. NMRA Edelbrock Renegade ran in conjunction with NMCA Edelbrock Xtreme Street, and a 4.573 at 152.95mph pass from the Buick-powered Fox Mustang driven by Dave Fiscus was the quickest of them all. Eric Bardekoff put his ’16 Mustang into the number-two position, while last season’s NMRA champion, Joel Greathouse, was eighth. Fiscus wasn’t able to advance past round two, but Bardekoff and Greathouse both worked their way to the finals. Greathouse had the starting-line advantage, but it was Bardekoff’s blast of 4.538 at 154.86 mph that enabled him to drive around the champ to earn the win while Greathouse settled for second with his 4.579 at 152.73 mph run. Repeating her number-one qualifying performance from the previous race in Florida, Samantha Moore took the lead once again in JDM Engineering Limited Street this time going 8.319 at 164.29 mph pass in his supercharged ’14 Mustang. She red-lighted in round two, so the final round was open for the 2020 season champion and number-two qualifier Bill Putnam to face off against Stacey Roby who qualified fifth. Roby had trouble with his ProCharged S197 Mustang and wasn’t able to make a pass. Putnam enjoyed earning more points toward defending his title behind the wheel of his UPR Products-backed ’94 Mustang.

The G-Force Racing Transmissions Coyote Stock wheelie exhibitions were in full swing, but Randy Soper stole the show in qualifying when his ’04 Mustang covered the quarter-mile in just 9.815 seconds at 137.67 mph. In eliminations, it came down to Nathan Stymiest who had qualified second and Tim Matherly who was ninth. The two left the line hard, but Matherly had the advantage all down the track and it was his ’03 Mustang that crossed the finish in front, posting a winning 9.887 at 136.14 mph number on the scoreboard over the 9.985 at 136.06 mph belonging to Stymiest’s ’92 Mustang. Justin Fogelsonger was the number-one qualified driver in Richmond Gear Factory Stock when he earned a 10.295 at 128.93 mph time slip with his Coyote-powered ’86 Mustang, and he scored two round wins in eliminations to earn a seat in the finals against last year’s champion, John Leslie Jr and his ’89 Mustang. Although Leslie had qualified behind Fogelsonger in third, he had his game face on at the starting line and treed the other driver by three-hundredths of a second to take the win for the weekend on a holeshot, going 10.291 at 130.10 mph over Fogelsonger’s quicker 10.281 at 128.87 mph run. The always competitive ARP Open Comp class had three drivers cut 0.001-second reaction times in qualifying; Eddie Colwell, Brent Blacker, and Charles Atkinson occupied the top three spots as a result. Five fierce rounds of eliminations whittled down the pack to just two men — Greg Cole and Dennis Corn — both piloting ’88 Ford Mustangs with low 9-second dial-ins. With close reaction times, the win was up for grabs but, in a double-breakout scenario, it was ultimately Cole who got to celebrate his success in the winner’s circle.

Tons of drivers came out to compete in Exedy Racing Clutch Modular Muscle and Dean Snow with his ’04 Ford Mustang was the number-one qualifier courtesy of a stellar 0.002-second reaction time. Snow exited before the finals, but Susan Roush-McClenaghan and Jason Henson held strong. Henson captured the better reaction time, but Roush-McClenaghan had him at the stripe where it mattered most when she ran 9.327 at 137.81 mph on her ’10 Mustang’s dial-in, while he went 12.064 at 109.36 mph on the 12.08 estimate for his ’03 Mustang. Roush-McClenaghan was deemed the winner while Henson went home as the runner-up. Chis Parisi proved he was the quickest off the line in Fastest Street CarSuper Stang qualifying, leaving just 0.003 seconds after the green illuminated. That put his ’20 Ford Mustang in the number-one spot. Parisi’s prowess paid off in the finals when he defeated Marvin Knack by running 12.196 at 108.13 mph on his 12.05 dial-in to Knack’s 11.910 at 116.52 mph on a dial-in of 11.84 for his ’11 Mustang. Bob Dill’s 0.005-second light during qualifying earned him the top spot in Detroit Locker Truck & Lightning with his ’01 Ford F-150 for the second race in a row. However, it was Dave Cole and Randy Conway who stayed in the eliminations game all the way through to the finals. Fielding ’84 and ’85 model Ford trucks, respectively, Conway went 10.192 at 124.24 mph on his 10.16 dial-in, but it wasn’t enough to hold off the nearly dead-on onslaught of Cole, whose 11.341 at 116.58 mph pass on his 11.34 dial-in made him victorious. Running on an 11.75 index and going 0.004-seconds over gave Lloyd Mikeska the advantage in RacePagesDigital.com Ford Muscle when eliminations began as the top qualified driver. However, he went out in round one, while Danny Towe and Chris Parisi both advanced into the finals. There, Towe aimed for an 11.75 and Parisi was going for a 12.00-second run, but both men went under and it was Towe whose 11.741 at 106.93 mph pass illuminated the win light in his lane to take home the top honors. Cars cruised 30-miles of Commerce, Georgia, roads and then made three back-to-back passes down the track for the last time in QA1 True Streetcompetition at Atlanta Dragway. Scott Oshinski took the win with an 8.77-second average in his TorqStorm-supercharged ’72 Oldsmobile Cutlass with Bill Unkel not far behind clocking a 9.055-second average to claim the runner-up honors. Additional winners include Eddie Fleeman (9-second), David Bleigh (10-second), Ben Bramlett (11-second), Dale Aldridge (12-second), Lonnie Sinclair (13-second), Mark Smith (14-second), and Jayton Dugger (15-second). Sunday’s Bracket Open category hosted six rounds of eliminations. Ultimately, it came down to Gary Youngblood Jr. and Michael Garner, both driving Fox Mustang entries. Garner was close to his 6.63-second dial-in when he went 6.643 at 103.03 mph, but Youngblood bested him with a 7.063-second at 94.99 mph pass on a 7.06 dial-in. The 2021 Holley NMRA Ford Nationals drag racing series will continue at the 16th Annual NMRA/NMCA Super Bowl of Street-Legal Drag Racing Presented by HPJ Performance at World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis, Missouri, on May 13-16. For more information and advance tickets, visit NMRAdigital.com/STL

April 11, 2021

Matt DiBenedetto and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team rallied from a mid-race incident that resulted in significant damage to the No. 21 Mustang and came home with a 12th place finish in Sunday’s Blue Emu 500 at Martinsville Speedway.

DiBenedetto started the 500-lap race from 22nd place on Saturday night, and had moved to 15th place when rain halted the race after just 42 circuits.
 
When rain continued into the night, the race was postponed until 4 p.m. on Sunday. When the action resumed, DiBenedetto and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team showed good speed and were running 13th at the end of the first 130-lap Stage.

In Stage Two, he continued to run just outside the top 10 until the closing laps when he was unable to avoid spinning drivers ahead of him. The contact crumpled the right front fender of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Mustang, with damage also to the splitter and the front sway bar connection.

Quick work by the Motorcraft/Quick Lane crew led by Jonathan Hassler, filling in for Greg Erwin who contracted COVID-19, allowed DiBenedetto to rejoin the race in 26th place, just one lap down. 

He drove his way into the free pass position and rejoined the lead lap when Kyle Busch and Chris Buescher spun as they raced beside him with 178 laps remaining in the race.

Back on the lead lap, he continued to work his way forward, and was able to avoid several accidents. He also steered clear of significant damage when 11 drivers piled up on the backstretch with 114 laps remaining, bringing out the red flag.

When the green flag was displayed again, DiBenedetto was able to move from 16th place to 12th at the checkered flag. It was his fourth straight top-15 finish.

“Our Motorcraft/Quick Lane Mustang was pretty good to start with,” DiBenedetto said. “It had a lot of potential. It could have been a pretty big day for us.”

Then came the damage.
 
“When Ryan Newman spun in front of me, I just didn’t have anywhere to go,” he said.

But what might have been a disappointing day turned into one to be proud of.

“To come from getting all that damage and losing a lap to getting the lucky dog [free pass] and getting back on the lead lap and finishing 12th was pretty impressive,” DiBenedetto said. “Nobody on the team gave up. Everyone just kept grinding away at it, and we wound up with a decent finish.”

Part of that success included DiBenedetto dodging numerous crashes, many of which occurred just ahead of or beside him.

“It went on the whole day,” he said. “I’m tired. We evaded enough for 10 races.” 

Next up for DiBenedetto and the No. 21 team is a Sunday afternoon 400-lapper at Richmond Raceway. 
 

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 American Ethanol Chevrolet Team Post Solid Performance at Martinsville Speedway Despite Adversity-Filled Day

14th

18th

12th

“It was a marathon this weekend at Martinsville Speedway in the American Ethanol Chevrolet. We faced a lot of adversity. The entire right side of our Chevy was gone by the end of the race. There was just a lot of beating and banging out there today. We got our car handling pretty well but were held on pit road for a lap as a penalty for pitting outside the box. We lost our track position but did a good job of trying to work our way back to the front. The handling of our Chevy just wasn’t what it needed to be once it got dark outside. The track changed too much. We’ll go get them at Richmond Raceway on Sunday.” -Austin Dillon

Tyler Reddick and No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Team Leverage Long Run Speed for Eighth-Place Finish at Martinsville Speedway

8th

13th

21st

“Today was a good day for our No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, but we definitely had to fight for it. I learned a lot about racing at Martinsville Speedway over the course of the weekend. We fired off strong Saturday night and were able to work our way up a handful of spots after having to start from the rear of the field due to an unapproved adjustment. Then the rain came through and postponed the race, but that also gave our team a good chance to talk about what we had and what we needed to work on. Once we got back going today, I had really good long run speed and was able to use that to capitalize on some good runs to get into the top 10 and grab stage points at the end of Stage 2. I needed more center turn and to be a little looser during that span of short runs that came in the middle of Stage 3 when we had all those back-to-back yellows while being shuffled back a little bit due to our pit cycle. Luckily, the final run of the race was a longer one that allowed us to bring home a top-10 finish. Overall, this was a good weekend for our team and I’m looking forward to carrying this momentum into next weekend’s race at Richmond.” -Tyler Reddick

Wins Bristol Bash Finale Hammer scores back-to-back runner-up finishes, Arnold recovers from Friday to finish third BRISTOL, TN – April 11, 2021 – Most drivers would agree – driving just one car around Bristol Motor Speedway in a day is hard enough. Kyle Strickler drove two on Sunday afternoon and came out $10,000 richer. Strickler, of Mooresville, NC, jumped out of his PCC Motorsports Late Model after competing with the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series, immediately strapped into his Longhorn by Loenbro #8 UMP Modified and flat-out dominated the Feature, leading all 20 laps of the World of Outlaws Bristol Bash finale. “The Modified is so much fun to me. After having a rough weekend with the Late Model, it was very refreshing to have a bunch of fun in the Modified,” Strickler said. While it was a trying weekend for him in the Late Model, his Modified program was far more set up to his liking. This, and his familiarity in the seat of the Modified significantly helped him in the Feature. “The Late Model side of it is so finnicky and all of your adjustments are fine-tuned and so touchy,” Strickler said. “The Modifieds – you’re going so much slower; they slip and slide around and there’s so much less grip that they don’t dart around as much.” In short, Strickler ran a flawless race. None of his competitors had any strong challenges for him, even on a Lap 4 restart after a caution that took Friday night’s Feature winner, David Stremme, and Dave Wietholder out of the race when they collided in Turn 4. With outside polesitter Kyle Hammer keeping him in-sight behind him, Strickler reached the rear of the field with only a handful of laps remaining. After mainly running the preferred low groove to that point, The Highside Tickler put his nicknamesake on full display and maneuvered around the slower traffic. “I could rip the top in the Late Model, and I tried it there at the end in the Modified and it really helped me get through lapped traffic,” Strickler said. Strickler’s always preferred the bigger, faster tracks. With several UMP Modified victories in his career at other high-profile half-miles at Volusia Speedway Park and Eldora Speedway, it comes as no surprise he excelled in the high speeds of Bristol. “I think a lot of it is just me liking these big racetracks, and just all fun, no stress, jump in the Modified and have a blast,” Strickler said. “Your finishes are usually directly related to your mood or how you’re feeling about one car or the other.” Despite his best efforts, Hammer was unable to catch Strickler in the final laps. “Down the straightaways I could kinda see him just getting closer and closer each time,” Hammer said. “Toward the middle, once we got opened up and our tires really kicked in, I feel like we had a better car, just couldn’t do much at that point.” However, Hammer did take home the honors of the highest average-finishing driver with two runner-up results on the weekend. Overall, a great showing for the young Illinoisan. Chris Arnold crossed the stripe in third, completing an up-and-down weekend for he and his crew. Starting third in Friday’s Feature, Arnold caught a piece of a wreck heading into Turn 1 on the first lap and was forced to retire. But a great run Sunday showed exactly what the Virginian team is capable of. “I think we had one of the fastest cars like [Hammer] and Strickler all weekend,” Arnold said. “I think [Friday] night, we would’ve been pretty good. I wish I had moved up to the top from Lap 1 and I think both of us probably would have been right there with Strickler.” Like Hammer, Arnold agreed once Strickler got out front, the chances of catching and passing him were slim. “You’ve got to use every type of advantage you have against him, and at this point, it would have been going to the top sooner than he did,” Arnold said. Six drivers recorded top-10 finishes in both Features over the weekend – Kyle Hammer, Ryan Ayers, Nick Hoffman, Dylan Woodling, Trent Young and David Reutimann. Hoffman, the two-time and defending national UMP Modified champion, came back from a broken rocker arm in Qualifying Sunday, qualifying fo the Feature through his Heat Race to finish 7th. The World of Outlaws and DIRTcar Racing action from Bristol Motor Speedway isn’t over just yet – don’t miss the World of Outlaws Bristol Throwdown, April 22-24, featuring the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series and Super DIRTcar Series Big Block Modifieds. If you can’t be at the track, catch all the action live on DIRTVision presented by Drydene. Feature (20 Laps) 1. 8-Kyle Strickler [1][$10,000]; 2. 45-Kyle Hammer [2][$5,000]; 3. 99W-Chris Arnold [3][$3,000]; 4. 6A-Ryan Ayers [5][$2,500]; 5. OOD-David Reutimann [6][$2,000]; 6. 3W-Dylan Woodling [7][$1,700]; 7. 2-Nick Hoffman [14][$1,500]; 8. 10Y-Trent Young [8][$1,200]; 9. 8S-Kyle Steffans [11][$1,100]; 10. 21A-Nick Allen [9][$1,000]; 11. 72-Todd Neiheiser [12][$1,000]; 12. 29J-Jordan Wever [18][$1,000]; 13. 67-Garret Stewart [13][$1,000]; 14. 1S-Brian Shaw [16][$1,000]; 15. 95-Michael Altobelli [21][$1,000]; 16. 45S-Nick Stroupe [20][$1,000]; 17. 97-Mitch Thomas [22][$1,000]; 18. 8A-Austin Holcombe [17][$1,000]; 19. 5-Jonathan Taylor [24][$1,000]; 20. 11-Troy Loomis [23][$1,000]; 21. 44-KC Burdette [15][$1,000]; 22. 2ND-Jake Leitzman [19][$1,000]; 23. O5-Dave Wietholder [4][$1,000]; 24. 35-David Stremme [10][$1,000] Hard Charger: 2-Nick Hoffman[+7]

DIRTcar Racing is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel), Chevy Performance Parts, iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, and NAPA Auto Parts (SDS). Contingency sponsors include: ARP (Automotive Racing Products), ASI Race Wear (SDS), Bassett, Bicknell Racing Products, Billy Whittaker Cars & Trux (SDS), Cometic Gasket (SDS), COMP Cams, Drydene, Fast Shafts, Fox Factory (SDS), Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, Jerovetz Motorsports Shock Service, KSE Racing Products, MSD, Quarter Master, Schoenfeld Headers, Summit Racing Equipment, and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum) (SDS); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Beyea Headers, FireAde, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics and Velocita USA.

NASCAR CUP SERIES MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY BLUE-EMU MAXIMUM PAIN RELIEF 500 TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES APRIL 11, 2021

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:POS.   DRIVER2nd     CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE4th      WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE5th      KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE 8th      TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CHILDRESS VINEYARDS CAMARO ZL1 1LE14th    AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE15th    RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER/CREST CAMARO ZL1 1LE TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS: POS.  DRIVER1st      Martin Truex Jr. (Toyota)2nd     Chase Elliott (Chevrolet)3rd      Denny Hamlin (Toyota)4th      William Byron (Chevrolet)5th      Kyle Larson (Chevrolet) 
The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at Richmond Raceway for the Toyota Owners 400 on Sunday, April 18, at 3 P.M. ET. Live coverage can be found on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES:CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 2nd YOU WERE COMING ON STRONG THERE AT THE END, CHASE. DID THE CAR GET BETTER OR WAS THAT JUST CIRCUMSTANCE?“I really felt like we were not perfect, for sure, all day. But we did make it better I think as the day went on. The run was kind of that right distance for me there at the end to maximize it. I felt like if it was any longer than that, I was probably going to fade again kind of like I had been all day.”
“I really appreciate the effort. We worked really hard today to get back to second. I felt like every strategy call and circumstance just kind of went the other direction for us. We had a couple of good restarts there at the end; had a good pit stop and made a good last adjustment just for a short run. But definitely need to be better. Our NAPA team has been working hard. We’ve had a very eventful year I feel like, so it’s nice to just have a solid day. We got some stage points and got a good finish. We’ll try to go get them next week.” WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 4th “It was a hard-fought day for us. We had handling issues early on and then once we got back further in the pack – it was just crazy. We had fresh tires and the speed but had to manage traffic. Once we got track position back we were making up ground but got held up a couple times which hurt us. Overall though we had a fast Liberty University Chevy. It was a good day and we learned a lot. On to Richmond next weekend.”  KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 5th“Yeah, definitely the restarts were crazy. I didn’t have the best balance on the restarts and that made it even a little crazier for me because I was kind of on defense, I felt like, most of the time. Even when I was on offense, I was kind of on-edge. But after we would get 15 to 20 laps in, I actually felt really good. I felt like we were probably a fourth-place car on the long runs, so I was happy about that. To get a top-five here at probably, by far, my worst race track feels like a win.” TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CHILDRESS VINEYARDS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 8th “Today was a good day for our No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, but we definitely had to fight for it. I learned a lot about racing at Martinsville Speedway over the course of the weekend. We fired off strong Saturday night and were able to work our way up a handful of spots after having to start from the rear of the field due to an unapproved adjustment. Then the rain came through and postponed the race, but that also gave our team a good chance to talk about what we had and what we needed to work on. Once we got back going today, I had really good long run speed and was able to use that to capitalize on some good runs to get into the top 10 and grab stage points at the end of Stage 2. I needed more center turn and to be a little looser during that span of short runs that came in the middle of Stage 3 when we had all those back-to-back yellows while being shuffled back a little bit due to our pit cycle, but luckily the final run of the race was a longer one that allowed us to bring home a top-10 finish. Overall, this was a good weekend for our team and I’m looking forward to carrying this momentum into next weekend’s race at Richmond.” AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 14th “It was a marathon this weekend at Martinsville Speedway in the American Ethanol Chevrolet. We faced a lot of adversity. The entire right side of our Chevy was gone by the end of the race. There was just a lot of beating and banging out there today. We got our car handling pretty well, but were held on pit road for a lap as a penalty for pitting outside the box. We lost our track position but did a good job of trying to work our way back to the front. The handling of our Chevy just wasn’t what it needed to be once it got dark outside. The track changed too much. We’ll go get them at Richmond Raceway on Sunday.” RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER/CREST CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 15th “It wasn’t pretty, but we were able to salvage a decent day at Martinsville Speedway for our No. 47 Kroger/Crest Chevy. We really struggled to get the right balance throughout the majority of the race, but Brian (Pattie, crew chief) made some strategy calls to keep us in a position where we could maintain our track position and stay on the lead lap, and ultimately race in the top-15 for the majority of the end of the race and miss the big wreck that took out our teammate. We were really fast at Richmond Raceway last year and I’m looking forward to getting there next week and keeping our momentum going.” ERIK JONES, NO. 43 PETTY’S GARAGE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 30th “It just wasn’t the day we really wanted for the No. 43 Petty’s Garage Camaro ZL1 1LE. It was just up-and-down trying to find a balance to get the car where it could roll the center and not be too free. I finally felt we kind of got the car where we wanted to be towards the end. We had those string of cautions and got caught up in one of the later wrecks. We really didn’t have too much damage, but I had either an axle or a gear issue that ended our day there. I wish we could have seen where we would have ended up. I think we probably could have drove up towards the top-15, maybe even the back of the top-10. We learned a lot though and I think we can take it to the race coming back to Martinsville Speedway in the fall.” DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 CAMPING WORLD CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident on lap 385; Finished 32ndTHANKFULLY, YOU GOT OUT AND YOU’RE OK. DANIEL, WHAT DID YOU SEE FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE THAT LED TO THAT?“First of all, I saw a couple of cars on fire, so luckily nobody got hurt. I was a bit surprised that the safety people took a long time to get to my car. I tried to make sure everything was good to stop the fire, but for some reason, they just weren’t stopping the fire. In that wreck, there wasn’t really anything I could do. I was trying to slam on the brakes to try to slow down, but it was a parking lot in there. I couldn’t do anything about it. The No. 24 car (William Byron) put us in that position; he pushed me out of the way. I had a few laps older tires than everyone else.” “But overall, we have to keep working. This weekend, overall, wasn’t great. We came from the back several times. We had a fast car, but we made bad adjustments. It just wasn’t a clean weekend.” ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident on lap 385; Finished 34th ALEX BOWMAN WAS ONE OF THE FASTEST CARS TODAY. THEN, HE HAD A LOOSE WHEEL AND RIGHT AFTER THAT IS THE CARNAGE YOU JUST SAW. HOW DO YOU DESCRIBE WHAT HAPPENED HERE IN THE LAST TWENTY MINUTES?“It’s very frustrating. I hate it for everybody at Hendrick Motorsports; everybody at Ally and Chevrolet that gives us so much support. Everybody works so hard to give us what we need and we had such a good race car today; such a fast Ally Camaro. I had a loose right-front wheel and that’s just part of racing; things are going to happen. Our pit crew is phenomenal every week. I make mistakes, people make mistakes, it happens. It put us behind the eight ball there and then they all crashed in front of me. I stopped and the guys behind me didn’t stop. It was one of those deals.” “I hate it. I feel like we had a car capable of winning, which says a lot because I drive this place completely wrong. I’m so bad here. Greg (Ives, Crew Chief), everybody on this No. 48 team have their work cut out for them to make a car work for me and they did that this week. It was phenomenal; couldn’t ask anything more of it, but not much to show for it.” CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE, SECOND-PLACE PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT: THE MODERATOR: We are joined now by today’s runner-up, Chase Elliott.Chase, walk us through your second-place finish today.
CHASE ELLIOTT: Yeah, really, really hard-fought second actually for us. We were not great, but had some, I guess our strong suit was kind of early on in the run, then really faded hard, too hard there latter part of a run.
But we never got one of those super long runs, which is probably a good thing for us because we were struggling on that end. But, yeah, proud we could fight back. We had a long day with strategy not going our way, restart lane choice at times was tough. I’m glad we were able to get back in the fight there and give ourselves a chance.
THE MODERATOR: We’re going to open the floor for questions.Q.Chase, does this do anything for you for October when you look ahead, this being such a pivotal race?CHASE ELLIOTT: Yeah, for sure. I mean, I think this is an important race. They’re all important, but for sure, when you get down to that Round of 8, if you’re still alive in that deal, a win at any of those tracks gives you an opportunity. Of course, definitely.
As long as it’s where it’s at in the final 10, it will always be an important race.
Q.You just said on FOX Sports, you described this as an eventful year so far. How challenging has the season been for you guys so far, now being your third top five of the year after coming off a championship?CHASE ELLIOTT: Yeah, I mean, like I said, every week I feel like it’s been one thing or another, a bad run or just whatever. Just nice to have just a smooth day, no damage. We didn’t break anything. Everything was just smooth. It was uneventful. That’s the days you have to have to compete for wins ultimately. Some of that is in your hands, some of it’s not.Truly nice to have an uneventful day, so to speak, just get a solid finish. Got some solid stage points. It was definitely a step in the right direction for us.
Q.With today’s solid performance, Truex gets his second win of the season, how important is it going to be moving forward to get multiple wins? Do you think kind of where we’re at in points, what you’ve got right now, is going to be okay? Is it still pivotal to get multiples?CHASE ELLIOTT: I mean, I definitely think winning is a crucial part to the Playoffs. It doesn’t guarantee you as you go along. It sure does hedge your bet and having a successful Playoff run if you have wins in the bank.
I want to be on that side of the fence when that rolls around rather than in the opposite position.
Q.What do you feel you were missing there at the end in relation to the Joe Gibbs Racing duo?CHASE ELLIOTT: Just rear grip for me was kind of the story of my day. That was also the problem there at the end. Just didn’t have the drive I needed to get up off the corner like I wanted and to be able to really get the power down early.Yeah, solid day, but just came up short.
Q.Can you talk about the rocky start you’ve had to the season? How much momentum and confidence does this give you towards Richmond and beyond?CHASE ELLIOTT: Like I said earlier, just nice to have an uneventful day, so to speak. Just have some nice stage points, have a nice finish, those things are always nice. I feel like we had a mistake-free day, which is what you have to have, so it was good.
THE MODERATOR: Thanks for joining us, Chase. Good luck at Richmond.
CHASE ELLIOTT: Cool. Thanks.

Moran Wins $25K at The Bristol Bash  The Dresden, OH driver passes his father in career World Of Outlaws Wins BRISTOL, TN – APRIL 11, 2021 – Devin Moran keeps adding unique trophies to his collection in 2021. On Sunday, he earned Bristol Motor Speedway’s iconic sword, to go with his Big Gator from February’s DIRTcar Nationals.   The Dresden, OH driver passed Ricky Weiss in traffic with 10 laps to go to win his second World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models Feature of the season.  It’s a special win, Moran said, especially with the $25,000 check he walked away with. “We’re definitely going to take this in for what it is,” Moran said. “To come back and be able to pass Ricky [Weiss] for the win was pretty cool.”  The win is Moran’s sixth World of Outlaws win of his career. That now gives him one more than his father Donnie, who’s last win was in 2008.    Despite starting second, the win wasn’t easy for “The Mailman.” He dropped back a few positions on an early re-start, and needed to crawl his way back.  Figuring out the restarts was one of the hardest parts of the 40-lap race, Moran stated. “On the restart when I was in fourth [Lap 11], I saw Chris [Madden] really charged hard into one to get by Ricky [Weiss], and it let me get back underneath Chris,” he said.  Moran bided his time until Weiss caught traffic. He made his move with 10 laps to go, darting to the top of the track and clearing Weiss on the front stretch.  He knew that move was his one shot to go after the lead once Weiss caught slower cars.   “[Weiss] caught lap traffic too quick for himself,” Moran said. “I was biding my time and I feel like he had to use up his tires more than I did. Once I got to him, I could take advantage and move out of the rubber.”  Ricky Weiss finished second after leading the first 30 laps of the race. He wasn’t surprised that Moran was able to use the outside line to get by.  “Anytime you can watch the leader and see what they’re doing it’s easier to judge off the car in front of you,” Weiss said. “I couldn’t seem to get by Parker [Martin] at the end. He slipped up a little bit which made me check-up, and it was all over from there.”  Weiss’s second place finish didn’t come without hard work from his team. The crew had to change the rear-end on the car in an hour window between the Heat Race and Feature. Despite having to make that change, Weiss was still confident in his car.  “I was more than confident, it wasn’t like we were changing bolts while I was getting in,” Weiss said. “I had more than enough confidence to sit on the pole.” Ross Bailes had a strong third place finish in the 40-lap Feature. He said a better starting spot may have helped in the end.  “I think I needed to start on the front row, we drew fourth and it put us back as far as it possibly could,” Bailes said. “Devin did a really good job getting through lap traffic and it was just his day.”  Ricky Thornton Jr. charged from 21st to finish fourth. He was another driver that used the outside lane to his advantage.  “I watched Jonathan Davenport get to the top in [Turns] three and four and I look up and he was like ten cars ahead of me,” Thornton said. “That’s when I thought maybe it was time to move up.”  Brandon Overton rounded out the top five. Three-time and defending champion Brandon Sheppard finished 13th, gaining two points on Kyle Strickler, who finished 14th.  Sheppard now leads Strickler by 20 points in the standings.  UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models are heading to Richmond Raceway in Richmond, KY Friday April 23. On Saturday April 24, they’ll travel to Brushcreek Motorsports Complex in Peebles, OH.  Visit www.richmond-raceway.net or www.brushcreekmotorsports.com to buy tickets for either event. If you can’t make it either night, watch all the action live on DIRTVision with the annual Platinum FAST PASS subscription for $299/year or the monthly FAST PASS Subscription for $39/month.   Morton Buildings Feature (40 Laps)- 1. 9-Devin Moran [2][$25,000]; 2. 7-Ricky Weiss [1][$10,000]; 3. 79-Ross Bailes [4][$5,000]; 4. 20RT-Ricky Thornton [20][$4,000]; 5. 76-Brandon Overton [5][$3,500]; 6. 44-Chris Madden [6][$3,000]; 7. 40B-Kyle Bronson [9][$2,800]; 8. 49-Jonathan Davenport [17][$2,700]; 9. 16-Tyler Bruening [16][$2,600]; 10. OE-Rick Eckert [3][$2,500]; 11. 20-Jimmy Owens [12][$2,000]; 12. 19R-Ryan Gustin [15][$1,800]; 13. 1-Brandon Sheppard [18][$1,600]; 14. 8-Kyle Strickler [19][$1,500]; 15. 25-Shane Clanton [14][$1,400]; 16. 28-Dennis Erb [21][$1,300]; 17. F9-Frank Ingram [8][$1,200]; 18. 29V-Darrell Lanigan [10][$1,200]; 19. O-Scott Bloomquist [24][$1,200]; 20. 1G-Ryan King [22][$1,200]; 21. B1-Brent Larson [26][$220]; 22. 6JR-Parker Martin [7][$1,200]; 23. 99B-Boom Briggs [25][$220]; 24. 14-Josh Richards [11][$1,200]; 25. 6-Blake Spencer [27][$220]; 26. 777-Jared Landers [13][$1,200]; 27. 97-Cade Dillard [23][$1,200] Hard Charger: 20RT-Ricky Thornton[+16] Qualifying Flight-A-1. 40B-Kyle Bronson, 16.048; 2. 9-Devin Moran, 16.066; 3. 6JR-Parker Martin, 16.084; 4. 14-Josh Richards, 16.118; 5. 79-Ross Bailes, 16.119; 6. 44-Chris Madden, 16.158; 7. 28-Dennis Erb, 16.337; 8. 19R-Ryan Gustin, 16.357; 9. 8-Kyle Strickler, 16.395; 10. 20RT-Ricky Thornton, 16.433; 11. 777-Jared Landers, 16.644; 12. 7R-Ross Robinson, 16.673; 13. 2-Joey Coulter, 16.916; 14. O-Scott Bloomquist, NT; 15. 97-Cade Dillard, NT  Qualifying Flight-B-1. 76-Brandon Overton, 15.966; 2. 20-Jimmy Owens, 16.033; 3. OE-Rick Eckert, 16.046; 4. 7-Ricky Weiss, 16.066; 5. 29V-Darrell Lanigan, 16.113; 6. F9-Frank Ingram, 16.338; 7. 25-Shane Clanton, 16.366; 8. 49-Jonathan Davenport, 16.384; 9. 1-Brandon Sheppard, 16.39; 10. 16-Tyler Bruening, 16.446; 11. 1G-Ryan King, 16.629; 12. 99B-Boom Briggs, 16.786; 13. B1-Brent Larson, 17.565; 14. 6-Blake Spencer, 17.84

The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings® Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Drydene (Official Motor Oil), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Morton Buildings (Official Building), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider) VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors, including: Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, MSD, Penske Racing Shocks, Quarter Master, Slick Woody’s (Quick Time Award), and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Capital Race Cars, FireAde, Integra Shocks, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics, Reliable Painting, and Rocket Chassis.Founded in 1978, the World of Outlaws®, based in Concord, NC, is the premier national touring series for dirt track racing in North America, featuring the most powerful cars on dirt, the World of Outlaws NOS® Energy Drink Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings® Late Model Series. Annually, the two series race nearly 140 times at tracks across the United States and Canada. CBS Sports Network is the official broadcast partner of the World of Outlaws. DIRTVision® also broadcasts World of Outlaws events over the Internet to fans around the world. Learn more about the World of Outlaws.

Myatt Snider And The TaxSlayer Chevrolet Team Fight Hard For 15th-Place Finish at Martinsville Speedway

15th

9th

7th

“Today was one of those days where you had to fight for every spot on the track. We had high hopes coming into this weekend and I definitely thought we had a chance at the win with my experience at Martinsville. Our TaxSlayer Chevrolet Camaro fired off pretty neutral at the start this afternoon and we steadily made our way back to the front, running consistently inside the top-10. We had ourselves in a solid position for the end. Unfortunately on our last stop of the day, we had to pit twice to tighten some loose lug nuts which forced us to restart in 33rd. I worked my way forward as much as possible, but the center wouldn’t rotate as well and we ran out of laps. My RCR team is one of the best and I wouldn’t want to be doing this every week with anyone else. We will regroup during the off week and go get it in Talladega.”  -Myatt Snider

THUNDERCLAP: \Stewart Friesen bested an elite field of Super DIRTcar Series drivers to win Thunder in the Thousand Islands 100LaFARGEVILLE, NY – Stewart Friesen, from Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, wheeled his way to the front and picked up a healthy $7,500 for a night’s work. The #44 flashed across Can-Am Speedway’s start/finish line just ahead of Tim Fuller, who led the most laps. Lightning Larry Wight, from Phoenix, NY, brought the #99L home third. Max McLaughlin, the 2021 DIRTcar Nationals champion, led the field to the green flag with veteran Big Block pilot Carey Terrance. Almost immediately, the #32c was swallowed up and faded back into the field, eventually pulling the car behind the wall on lap 83. Tim Fuller took the early lead and began driving away from the field, however, he wasn’t alone. Fuller was towing an eager Erick Rudolph in his wake. Rudolph, in the #25R, slowly gained on Fuller as the laps clicked off. Finally, Fuller hit lapped traffic at lap 30. Rudolph closed in and the #19 and #25R swapped first and second positions multiple times in a heated battle. At that point, it looked as though Rudolph and Fuller were going to lap the field and Friesen watched them get farther and farther away. At the halfway point Fuller began to pick away at the lapped cars, which became more and more difficult to get around. Rudolph was not able to keep up Fuller’s pace of passing cars and fell back. Meanwhile, Friesen got to work on Larry Wight, from Phoenix, NY, who was occupying third. “I got by a couple of guys but then when I got up to Larry he’d move and take my line away,” said Friesen. Eventually, Friesen was able to motor by Wight on his path to the win.  Lap 70 turned out to be a fateful lap for the Halmar Racing team. Rudolph slowed down and had back to go to the pits for a repair and brought out a caution flag. This lined Friesen up next to Fuller on the restart and the #44 was able to power around the #19 to make a winning pass. Friesen’s car came to life at just the right time but it wasn’t a coincidence. “I had the car set up for the beginning of the race with a heavy fuel load so it would come in towards the end,” said Friesen. “It got good around lap 60 or 70. I thought early on I would be able to make the top work in turns one and two and see if I could sneak by a few cars. I went up there and skated. It was a little dusty but then the middle cleaned off and that was pretty good.” This was his 36th career Super DIRTcar Series victory. Friesen is only three away from Bob McCreadie on the all-time list. Runner-up Tim Fuller was not pleased with his second step on the podium after leading most of the race’s laps. Fuller described the pass:“He [Friesen] came down and I got out of it so we both didn’t crash but he’s an incredible talent, Fuller said. “You hate to get beat that way. I think we were better than the first place car but we got snookered there a little bit. It happens.”he was satisfied with the effort and the drive but not the result. “I just wish I’d had a taller spoiler,” Fuller cracked. “But I wouldn’t have done anything differently.”The Gypsum Racing machine of Larry Wight crossed the line third after battling in the top five the entire race. Wight was searching for a way to compete with Fuller and Friesen but just couldn’t find another gear. “I stayed on the bottom because of a hole on top but once I saw Friesen show his nose up there I knew I had to move up and try it,” Wight noted. “We were a third-place car though. We’ll take it and build off of it for the next one.”Track conditions for dirt surfaces can be tricky for the first race of the year however the Can-Am Speedway track crew brought the best out of our drivers and they were appreciated. “Great job by the track crew for grading the track and giving us something to race on,” said Friesen. Wight added, “For the first race of the year the track was beautiful besides one blemish but that was nothing to complain about. We weren’t sure what the track was going to do. Sometimes when they scrape the top layer off it turns into a dust bowl. The track took it though and the water soaked in. It actually had a middle line to it. We could run the top too.”Race fans were elated to have the Super DIRTcar Series back underway and the 28-car starting field did not disappoint. The 100-lap battle was fought all across the track, from the very top, through the middle, and the bottom. For example, hard charger Mike Mahaney, from King Ferry, NY,  made use of the racy surface by picking up 17 positions after starting 25th. Seven-time Series champion Matt Sheppard was involved in battles constantly but the #9S did not stray far from its starting position. After redrawing 10th Sheppard looked to be on the move but a stubborn Peter Britten, from Queensland, Australia, would not give up position number six. Next up for the Super DIRTcar Series Big Block Modifieds are a pair of $10,000-to-win, NAPA Super DIRT Week qualifiers at the dirt-covered Bristol Motor Speedway for the World of Outlaws Bristol Showdown. Get your tickets now or purchase a DIRTVision FAST PASS and enjoy all the World of Outlaws and DIRTcar Racing that you can handle. Stay tuned to Super DIRTcar Series social media on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram plus SuperDIRTcarSeries.com has full results, highlights, recaps, and more. FEATURE RESULTS (100 laps)Pos No. Name1 – 44 Stewart Friesen2 – 19 Tim Fuller3 –  99L Larry Wight4 –  91 Billy Decker5 –  83X Tim Sears Jr.6 –  21a Peter Britten7 –  9S Matt Sheppard8 –  35 Mike Mahaney9 –  3 Justin Haers10 –  42p Pat Ward11  – 7M Michael Maresca12 –  2L Jack Lehner13 –  5H Chris Hile14 –  60 Jackson Gill15  – 88 Mat Williamson16 –  M1 Dave Marcuccilli17 –  28 Jordan McCreadie18 –  48T Dave Rauscher19 –  17 Marcus DinkinsDNF 32c Max MclaughlinDNF 2 Rusty SmithDNF 25 Erick RudolphDNF 98H Jimmy PhelpsDNF 7t Billy DunnDNF 66x Carey TerrenceDNF 4r Kevin RootDNF 111 Demetrios DrellosDNF 98w Rocky WarnerDNF 22 Brandon WaltersPHOTO: Joe Grabianowski

The Super DIRTcar Series is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel), Chevy Performance Parts, iRacing (Official Online Racing Game) and NAPA Auto Parts. Contingency sponsors include: ARP (Automotive Racing Products), ASI Race Wear, Bicknell Racing Products, Billy Whittaker Cars & Trux, Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, Drydene, Fox Factory, MSD, and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: FireAde, Intercomp, and Racing Electronics.

Macedo Beats McFadden on Final Lap of Dramatic Tri-State FeatureFive Different Leaders & Haudenschild’s Heartbreak Highlights Action-Packed RaceHAUBSTADT, IN – April 10, 2021 – The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series did it again on Saturday night.Visiting a sold-out crowd at Tri-State Speedwayin Haubstadt, IN, The Greatest Show on Dirt lived up to its name. The 40-lap feature on the 1/4-mile offered up five different leaders, drama that you couldn’t even dream of, and a last-lap pass to send the crowd home happy.It started with Aaron Reutzel out front before Tyler Courtney led in pursuit of his first-career win, and then Sheldon Haudenschild drove to the lead and ran away until a flat tire soured his run with seven laps left. Ultimately, it came down to a duel between Carson Macedo and James McFadden on the final restart.They swapped sliders, exchanged some contact, and eventually Macedo snookered McFadden to win it by 0.398-seconds.”I know he’s probably upset with me, but I really wanted to win that race,” Macedo noted. “These races are tough to win, I’m gonna give it everything I have. James [McFadden] is a great driver and I have the utmost respect for him; I want to run everybody clean. I beat him to the line there and just tried to protect the bottom the best I could.”Before eighth-starting Macedo and 11th-starting McFadden waged war in the end, the beginning was between the front row of Courtney’s Clauson-Marshall Racing #7BC and Reutzel’s Roth Motorsports #83.Reutzel, of Clute, TX, paced the opening four laps before Courtney, of Indianapolis, IN, drove by on Lap 5. It quickly became a non-wing affair as former USAC standouts Courtney and Hunter Schuerenberg of Sikeston, MO ran 1-2 with both drivers chasing their first-career World of Outlaws win.Courtney, AKA Sunshine, led a race-high 19 laps aboard the NOS Energy Drink TURBO machine until Haudenschild in his own NOS Energy Drink whip wheeled by him to take command on Lap 24. Mastering lap traffic, Haudenschild ran off to a 2+ second advantage before a flat left rear tire sent his Stenhouse Jr. Marshall Racing #17 from the lead to the work area on Lap 33.Inheriting the lead with seven to go, Macedo brought the field back to life in his Jason Johnson Racing #41 and immediately received a challenge from McFadden in the Kasey Kahne Racing #9. They ran side-by-side for a handful of laps until J-Mac finally cleared his slider coming to the white flag.McFadden officially led Lap 39, but Macedo was quick to cross under him and steal it back entering turn one. The duo made contact fighting for real estate on the bottom and nearly allowed Courtney to sneak by them both as they went down the backstretch. Macedo made the move to go low in the final two corners and did just enough to survive McFadden’s onslaught.For Macedo, of Lemoore, CA, it was his second win at Tri-State, his second win of the 2021 season, and his eighth-career win with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.”I could see him peeking his nose and I knew I needed to stay in front or he would pull the trigger hard enough,” Macedo mentioned on his strategy. “I saw the white come out and knew I needed to capitalize. This is a great win for our Jason Johnson Racing crew. I’m glad I can get Phil, Nate and Clyde back to victory lane.A dejected James McFadden came home with a close second-place effort following his victory in Friday’s show at Kokomo Speedway. The Alice Springs, NT, AUS native offered up some choice words following his on-track combat with Macedo.”He was racing like a bit of a d**k head to be honest,” McFadden said. “He chopped me and put me over the tires and jammed it off the fence a couple of times. I kept giving him room and I probably shouldn’t have; I should have parked him and cleared him. I feel bad for letting my team down. Second is decent, but I probably needed to be a bit ruder.For the second night in a row, the third-place finisher collected his first-career podium finish with there World of Outlaws. This time it was Tyler Courtney, a former USAC National Midget and Sprint Car champion adventuring into the winged world with Clauson-Marshall Racing.”I think it was just inexperience in lap traffic,” Courtney offered on where he lost the lead. “I’ve had more laps around here than those guys, but I just struggled with where to put the car. To rebound tonight with a podium against the best drivers in the country, maybe the world, is really awesome for our team.”Hunter Schuerenberg earned his second-career World of Outlaws top five, and first since Tri-State in 2018, aboard the Vermeer Motorsports #55. Early leader Aaron Reutzel wrapped up the top five finishers in Saturday’s show.Rounding out the top ten at Haubstadt was David Gravel in sixth, Brad Sweet in seventh, Carson Short in eighth, Justin Peck in ninth and Ian Madsen in tenth.UP NEXT – The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series takes to Lawton (OK) Speedway on Friday, April 16 and Devil’s Bowl (TX) Speedway on Saturday, April 17. After that, it’s the Bristol Throwdown on April 22-24.NOS Energy Drink Feature (40 Laps) – 1. 41-Carson Macedo [8][$10,000]; 2. 9-James McFadden [11][$6,000]; 3. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [1][$3,500]; 4. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [5][$2,800]; 5. 83-Aaron Reutzel [2][$2,500]; 6. 2-David Gravel [3][$2,300]; 7. 49-Brad Sweet [12][$2,200]; 8. 21-Carson Short [14][$2,100]; 9. 13-Justin Peck [18][$2,050]; 10. 11-Ian Madsen [4][$2,000]; 11. 55V-Spencer Bayston [7][$1,600]; 12. 26-Cory Eliason [10][$1,400]; 13. 5S-Chase Stockon [17][$1,200]; 14. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [9][$1,100]; 15. 1A-Jacob Allen [6][$1,050]; 16. 15-Donny Schatz [21][$1,000]; 17. 7S-Jason Sides [20][$1,000]; 18. 3-Ayrton Gennetten [16][$1,000]; 19. 1S-Logan Schuchart [25][$]; 20. 11K-Kraig Kinser [24][$1,000]; 21. 96-Robert Ballou [23][$1,000]; 22. 19-Parker Price-Miller [13][$1,000]; 23. 44-Kyle Cummins [15][$1,000]; 24. 5K-Paul Nienhiser [22][$1,000]; 25. 14-Tim Kaeding [19][$1,000]; 26. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [26][$]. Lap Leaders: Aaron Reutzel 1-4; Tyler Courtney 5-23; Sheldon Haudenschild 24-33; Carson Macedo 34-38, 40; James McFadden 39. KSE Hard Charger Award: 9-James McFadden[+9].NEW Championship Standings (13/83 Races): 1. Brad Sweet (1,880); 2. Sheldon Haudenschild (-92); 3. David Gravel (-98); 4. Carson Macedo (-110); 5. Logan Schuchart (-11); 6. Aaron Reutzel (-134); 7. Donny Schatz (-184); 8. Kraig Kinser (-234); 9. Brock Zearfoss (-318); 10. Jason Sides (-348).Photo – Trent Gower

The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink® Sprint Car Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Drydene (Official Motor Oil), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Morton Buildings (Official Building), NOS Energy (Official Energy Product), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider) and VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel); contingency sponsors include ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, KSE Racing Products (Hard Charger Award), MSD and Slick Woody’s (Quick Time Award); manufacturer sponsors include FireAde, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, and Racing Electronics.Founded in 1978, the World of Outlaws®, based in Concord, NC, is the premier national touring series for dirt track racing in North America, featuring the most powerful cars on dirt, the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series. Annually, the two series race nearly 140 times at tracks across the United States and Canada. CBS Sports Network is the official broadcast partner of the World of Outlaws. DIRTVision® also broadcasts all World of Outlaws events over the Internet to fans around the world. Learn more about the World of Outlaws.

LaFARGVILLE, NY – Today is a day of celebration. Not just 410 Sprint Car Day. Today marks the long-awaited return of the Super DIRTcar Series in the Northeast.For the first time in 518 days – due to the pandemic – the Series run a points-paying race to kick off the 2021 season at Can-Am Speedway for the $7,500-to-win, 100-lap, Thunder in the Thousand Islands 100The 100-lap Feature will separate one driver from the 26-car starting lineup. There is no shortage of storylines going into this highly anticipated race.If you can’t make it to the track, every Super DIRTcar Series race will be broadcast live on DIRTVision. Here are the top storylines to follow:The Championship Begins: The biggest names in dirt modified racing are bringing their Big Blocks to bear at Can-Am. Mat Williamson, Matt Sheppard, Larry Wight, Billy Decker, Jimmy Phelps, and the list goes on are locked into a season-long championship battle and it all starts with the $7,500-to-win Thunder in the Thousand Islands 100.All 17 full-time Series are slated to be in the house with 20-plus others making their intentions known. Plus, there may be a few more surprises dropping by the LaFargville, NY race track. Max McLaughlin, who won the Big Gator championship at the DIRTcar Nationals over Billy Decker is set to go for the $7,500 grand prize. Other big names like four-time NAPA Super DIRT Week champion and NASCAR Truck Series driver Stewart Friesen, recent first-time Series winner Michael Maresca, Can-Am ringers like Billy Dunn, Tim Fuller, Pat Ward, and more are slated to go for the $7,500 winner’s share. The Bandit and The Bat: Watch for Jimmy Phelps and Peter Britten to make some noise as both drivers have made the switch to Bicknell chassis and have shown early success and speed with them. Phelps and Britten are experienced, confident drivers who know how to take the long view of a Super DIRTcar Series season. Phelps came away with a pair of top-10s at Volusia but he’s coming off a huge night at Fulton Speedway last October sweeping both the Super DIRTcar Series Feature and the DIRTcar 358 Modified Series Feature. Britten put together a superb DIRTcar Nationals in his new Bicknell, picking up two top-fives and four top-10s in four races. Batman has finished outside the top-10 in his last two Series starts at Can-Am. Rookies in Victory Lane?: DIRTcar Sportsman Modified Series champion Kevin Root has made the move into Big Blocks in a big way. He’s behind the wheel of the fabled #4* which has been filled by Brett Hearn and Tim McCreadie in the past. Root has won everything there is to win in the DIRTcar Sportsman Modified division including Land of Legends Raceway and Brewerton Speedway track championships plus DIRTcar Sportsman Modified Series regional and overall championships. Chris Hile is finally ready to begin his first full-time year in the Series. With over 50 starts to his name including two top fives and 14 top 10s. Plus driver Olden Dwyer from Vermont is also a rookie this season. While not a rookie on the Series (yet) the Land of Legends Raceway runner Robbie Johnston will make the tow to Can-Am. He was the 2020 DIRTcar Big Block Modified Rookie of the Year, making most of his starts against a stacked Canandaigua field throughout 2020 as well as participating in DIRTcar OktoberFAST.TicketsSpectator Information & Pricing: GA Gate will open at 2:30pmGA Pricing for this Special Event: 18+: $305-17: $15Under 5: FreeMore info at RaceCanAm.com. DIRTVisionIf you can’t make it to the track then be sure to pick up your DIRTvision FAST PASS for all the Super DIRTcar Series, World of Outlaws, and DIRTcar Racing action live.Follow us!Follow the Super DIRTcar Series on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and at SuperDIRTcar.com for news, notes, photos, videos, and more.The Nasty TrackCan-Am Speedway is a 5/8-mile clay oval in LaFargville, NY, just a few miles from the Canadian border as the name implies. The track sanctions three Hoosier Racing Tire Weekly Championship divisions: DIRTcar 358 Modifieds, DIRTcar Sportsman Modifieds, and DIRTcar Pro Stocks. The legendary “Hurricane” Steve Paine currently holds the record for the most Series wins at Can-Am with three. Matt Sheppard, who has two Series wins there, has the Series track record with a 19.084 sec. Lap.In addition to the 100-lap Super DIRTcar Series Feature there will also be a DIRTcar Sportsman Modifed and Pro Stock Feature all of which will be on DIRTVision. Super DIRTcar Series Winners at Can-Am Speedway7/19/88 – Doug Hoffman7/18/89 – Brett Hearn7/17/90 – Pat O’Brien7/23/91 – Steve Paine7/21/92 – Doug Hoffman7/21/93 – Steve Paine7/20/94 – Alan Johnson8/30/95 – Danny O’Brien7/18/96 – Bob McCreadie7/17/97 – Steve Paine7/16/98 – Pat Ward7/22/99 – Billy Decker7/20/00 – Danny Johnson7/24/02 – Tim McCreadie9/6/03 – Tim McCreadie7/28/04 – Gary Tomkins8/18/07 – Tim Fuller8/18/07 – Steve Paine8/16/08 – Gary Tomkins8/21/09 – Matt Sheppard4/13/19 – Matt Sheppard10/9/20 – Anthony Perrego All-Time Can-Am Speedway WinnersPat O’Brien 73Billy Dunn 51Doug Carlyle 37Danny O’Brien 36Bob McCreadie 35Marcel LaFrance 33Frankie Caprara 32Tim Fuller 28Rick Wilson 27Lee Gill 27Tony Corcoran 24PHOTO: Rebecca Eisle

The Super DIRTcar Series is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel), Chevy Performance Parts, iRacing (Official Online Racing Game) and NAPA Auto Parts. Contingency sponsors include: ARP (Automotive Racing Products), ASI Race Wear, Bicknell Racing Products, Billy Whittaker Cars & Trux, Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, Drydene, Fox Factory, MSD, and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: FireAde, Intercomp, and Racing Electronics.

MIGHTIER THAN THE SWORD: at BristolFormer NASCAR veteran dominates throughout the night for $5,000 victory BRISTOL, TN – April 9, 2021 – He’s been one of the fastest UMP Modifieds at Bristol Motor Speedway all weekend, and now he’s got the hardware to show it. David Stremme wheeled his Lethal Chassis #35 to Victory Lane Friday night on the first race night of the World of Outlaws Bristol Bash in dominating fashion, leading all 20 laps en route to a $5,000 victory over Kyle Hammer and Ryan Ayers. “I tell people when you walk in here, you gotta look around,” Stremme said. “To win here is pretty cool. Just to win at anything anymore is hard.” It was hard to miss the Stremmes on the DIRTVision cameras through the night. David showed the way around the dirt-covered half-mile, setting Quick Time in Qualifying and made the winning pass on Hammer in Heat 3. His wife Ashley then worked her usual magic in the redraw and pulled the pole for the Feature. At the drop of the green, Stremme wasted zero time making his presence felt, wrestling the lead away from Hammer on the low side as they rounded Turns 1-2. From that point forward, it was all Stremme’s race out front, as he piloted his #35 machine around the fast, high-banked track. “I think the track crew did a great job. I feel for the amount of cars we have here, it was in a lot better shape than I thought it would be,” Stremme said. “You could move around quite a bit, and that’s all you can ask for.” As a former NASCAR star on its concrete surface, Stremme has gotten to know Bristol’s high banks well since the start of his motorsports career. While the banking has been cut down to 19 degrees on the dirt, he said he’s been able to recognize the similarities between the two configurations and use it to his advantage. “It still has the same characteristics – each corner is different. Obviously, I’m able to use that, and there is stuff there that I felt I could still do, whether it was in a [NASCAR] Cup car or Xfinity car,” Stremme said. Hammer was solid up front all night long in his Elite Chassis #45. Initially, he lost second to Taylor Cook on Lap 7, after a restart, but regained the spot when Cook ran into issues and dropped out with five laps left. Even with the solid runner-up, Hammer still wants to be better for Saturday’s finale. “Definitely learned we need to be a little stiffer on the right-front,” Hammer said. “At these speeds, these things really upset our cars.” Ayers had a great showing in his Lethal Chassis #6, coming all the way from 11th to finish third. With a wreck on the initial start and a great run down low on Lap 1 to get by cars, Ayers was already in fifth as he crossed the line to complete the first circuit. After gaining two more spots before the home stretch, Ayers was forced to play some tough defense for a moment, as a hungry Nick Hoffman was putting the pressure on from behind for the third spot. Hoffman ultimately slipped on the high side in the end but showed Ayers a better line in the process. “The first 13 or 14 laps, I was right around the bottom,” Ayers said. “Nick showed me the top with about four or five [laps] to go, and I moved up. It was a lot better.” The DIRTcar UMP Modifieds are back in action Saturday night, April 10, for the $10,000-to-win Bristol Bash finale alongside the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series – catch all of the action live at the track or on DIRTVision presented by Drydene! Feature (20 Laps) 1. 35-David Stremme [1][$5,000]; 2. 45-Kyle Hammer [6][$2,500]; 3. 6A-Ryan Ayers [11][$1,700]; 4. 2-Nick Hoffman [8][$1,400]; 5. 3W-Dylan Woodling [10][$1,200]; 6. 10Y-Trent Young [5][$1,000]; 7. OOD-David Reutimann [13][$800]; 8. 8A-Austin Holcombe [15][$700]; 9. O5-Dave Wietholder [22][$600]; 10. 67-Garret Stewart [21][$550]; 11. 7-Evan Taylor [24][$500]; 12. 97-Mitch Thomas [23][$500]; 13. 44-KC Burdette [17][$500]; 14. 21-Taylor Cook [7][$500]; 15. 1S-Brian Shaw [12][$500]; 16. 11-Troy Loomis [16][$500]; 17. 72-Todd Neiheiser [14][$500]; 18. 17N-Dillon Nusbaum [18][$500]; 19. 45S-Nick Stroupe [19][$500]; 20. 2ND-Jake Leitzman [20][$500]; 21. 99W-Chris Arnold [3][$500]; 22. 21A-Nick Allen [2][$500]; 23. 8-Kyle Strickler [4][$500]; 24. 95-Michael Altobelli [9][$500] Hard Charger: O5-Dave Wietholder[+13]

DIRTcar Racing is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel), Chevy Performance Parts, iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, and NAPA Auto Parts (SDS). Contingency sponsors include: ARP (Automotive Racing Products), ASI Race Wear (SDS), Bassett, Bicknell Racing Products, Billy Whittaker Cars & Trux (SDS), Cometic Gasket (SDS), COMP Cams, Drydene, Fast Shafts, Fox Factory (SDS), Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, Jerovetz Motorsports Shock Service, KSE Racing Products, MSD, Quarter Master, Schoenfeld Headers, Summit Racing Equipment, and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum) (SDS); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Beyea Headers, FireAde, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics and Velocita USA.

The Rocketman wins his 78th World of Outlaws FeatureBRISTOL, TN – April 9, 2021– When it comes to the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models, there aren’t many accomplishments left for Josh Richards. But during Friday’s portion of the Bristol Bash, he added another notch to his belt.The four-time champion won the first World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model race at Bristol Motor Speedway, and the $10,000 check to go with it.The win may not have happened without a little luck, even though Richards drew the outside pole for the Feature.Tennessee driver Jimmy Owens looked to be on a path toward home state glory, before heartbreak hit the Ramirez Motorsports machine. His left rear wheel came off the car, handing the lead to Richards.The all-time winningest driver led the rest of the way, for his 78th Series victory.Richards said he’s not sure if the Clint Bowyer Racing team had enough for Owens. He said the race into Turn 1 was very important on the initial green flag.“On that first corner running wide-open with hard tires [the pass] wasn’t going to happen,” Richards said. “I hate it for those guys tearing stuff up, but most of all I’m glad [Owens] is ok.”Out of all of his wins, the Shinnston, WV native puts Bristol toward the top of his list.“The first one is going to be the best for sure but this one’s up there, it’s pretty cool to win the first one here,” Richards said.Finishing second to Richards was Chris Madden, who was reeling in the 14 toward the end of the race. The Gray Court, SC driver said the last caution didn’t help his chances of finding Victory Lane.“I definitely think I had him before that caution, actually we were door to door,” Madden said. “I definitely had a good car on long runs for sure and I think that’ll be a key factor [Saturday] night.”Three-time and defending champion Brandon Sheppard finished third and also said his car was better on longer runs.“I think we have a really good race car, it’s just one of those deals that you really need to start up front here because it makes for a lot easier night,” Sheppard said.“I think for the big race on [Saturday] as long as it stays green for a little while I think we’ll have something.”Sheppard leaves night one of the Bristol Bash as the new Series point leader. Kyle Strickler did not finish the event, after running over Owens’s left rear wheel and flipping over in Turn 4.The distance between Sheppard and Stricker is 18 points going into Saturday’s portion of the Bristol Bash. Chris Madden moved up the most spots in the standings. He sits third just 74 points behind Sheppard.Rick Eckert crossed the line fourth, and Brandon Overton charged from his 20th starting position to finish fifth.The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models return to Bristol Motor Speedway Saturday April 10, for night two of the Bristol Bash. The Most Powerful Late Models on The Planet will run another 40-lap Feature, this time paying $25,000-to-win.For tickets, visit BristolMotorSpeedway.com.If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live on DIRTVision with the annual Platinum FAST PASS subscription for $299/year or the monthly FAST PASS Subscription for $39/month.Morton Buildings Feature (40 Laps) – 1. 14-Josh Richards [2][$10,000]; 2. 44-Chris Madden [3][$6,000]; 3. 1-Brandon Sheppard [5][$3,500]; 4. OE-Rick Eckert [4][$2,800]; 5. 76-Brandon Overton [20][$2,500]; 6. 19R-Ryan Gustin [6][$2,300]; 7. 29V-Darrell Lanigan [11][$2,200]; 8. 40B-Kyle Bronson [16][$2,100]; 9. 20RT-Ricky Thornton [18][$2,050]; 10. 9-Devin Moran [14][$2,000]; 11. 49-Jonathan Davenport [13][$1,600]; 12. 16-Tyler Bruening [17][$1,400]; 13. 28-Dennis Erb [24][$1,200]; 14. O-Scott Bloomquist [7][$1,100]; 15. 79-Ross Bailes [21][$1,050]; 16. 7-Ricky Weiss [12][$1,000]; 17. 25-Shane Clanton [10][$1,000]; 18. 99B-Boom Briggs [22][$1,000]; 19. 6JR-Parker Martin [9][$1,000]; 20. 777-Jared Landers [15][$1,000]; 21. B1-Brent Larson [25][$110]; 22. 97-Cade Dillard [8][$1,000]; 23. 20-Jimmy Owens [1][$1,000]; 24. 8-Kyle Strickler [23][$1,000]; 25. 7R-Ross Robinson [19][$1,000] Hard Charger: 76-Brandon Overton[+15]Qualifying Flight-A –1. 14-Josh Richards, 15.475; 2. OE-Rick Eckert, 15.506; 3. 19R-Ryan Gustin, 15.646; 4. 97-Cade Dillard, 15.653; 5. 6JR-Parker Martin, 15.708; 6. 777-Jared Landers, 15.728; 7. 20RT-Ricky Thornton, 15.816; 8. 29V-Darrell Lanigan, 15.838; 9. 49-Jonathan Davenport, 15.885; 10. 79-Ross Bailes, 15.935; 11. B1-Brent Larson, 15.939; 12. 28-Dennis Erb, 16.026; 13. 16-Tyler Bruening, 16.041; 14. 2-Joey Coulter, 16.218; 15. 1G-Ryan King, 16.481Qualifying Flight-B-1. 8-Kyle Strickler, 15.083; 2. O-Scott Bloomquist, 15.35; 3. 20-Jimmy Owens, 15.394; 4. 44-Chris Madden, 15.398; 5. 1-Brandon Sheppard, 15.471; 6. 76-Brandon Overton, 15.485; 7. 9-Devin Moran, 15.545; 8. 7-Ricky Weiss, 15.636; 9. 7R-Ross Robinson, 15.652; 10. 40B-Kyle Bronson, 15.699; 11. 25-Shane Clanton, 15.808; 12. F9-Frank Ingram, 15.866; 13. 99B-Boom Briggs, 15.882; 14. 6-Blake Spencer, 16.077

The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings® Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Drydene (Official Motor Oil), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Morton Buildings (Official Building), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider) VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors, including: Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, MSD, Penske Racing Shocks, Quarter Master, Slick Woody’s (Quick Time Award), and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Capital Race Cars, FireAde, Integra Shocks, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics, Reliable Painting, and Rocket Chassis.Founded in 1978, the World of Outlaws®, based in Concord, NC, is the premier national touring series for dirt track racing in North America, featuring the most powerful cars on dirt, the World of Outlaws NOS® Energy Drink Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings® Late Model Series. Annually, the two series race nearly 140 times at tracks across the United States and Canada. CBS Sports Network is the official broadcast partner of the World of Outlaws. DIRTVision® also broadcasts World of Outlaws events over the Internet to fans around the world. Learn more about the World of Outlaws.

Championship Hopefuls Schatz, Schuchart & Gravel Hampered by Feature Trouble

KOKOMO, IN – April 9, 2021 – Brad Sweet seemed unstoppable on his four-race winning streak, that is until his own teammate James McFadden stepped up to deny him.

Making his 100th career World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series start on Saturday night at Kokomo Speedway, McFadden led the final 30 laps aboard his Karavan Trailers #9 and paved the path for a Kasey Kahne Racing 1-2 finish with Sweet behind him in the NAPA Auto Parts #49.

A drama-filled 40-lapper at the Kokomo, IN 1/4-mile saw David Gravel command the opening 10 laps before spinning from second with two to go, saw Donny Schatz and Logan Schuchart suffer mechanical issues, saw Tyler Courtney’s career-best run of third shattered with a flat right rear, and saw Sheldon Haudenschild roar from 21st-to-5th in the closing stages.

For McFadden, the Alice Springs, NT, AUS native banked $10,000 with his first victory of the season in only his sixth start since coming overseas to relieve Kasey Kahne of full-time duties back in March. It’s the third career victory for the 31-year-old they call J-Mac.

“I’m just pumped to be here right now, man,” an elated McFadden said in victory lane. “I gotta thank Kasey [Kahne] and this whole KKR team; it’s a pleasure to drive this car. I’m glad I can do it justice and put in victory lane. It’s good to get one on that NAPA car. He’s been laying it on us, so hopefully we can get on our little roll now.”

Nearly perfect on the night, McFadden’s Kokomo quest began with the Slick Woody’s QuickTime Award (11.243 seconds) and continued with a win in the opening Team Drydene Heat Race. He was stopped by Gravel in the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash, but earned the outside pole position with 40 laps on tap.

Aboard the Big Game Motorsports, THE SHOWDOWN #2, Gravel paced the opening 10 circuits of Feature action before lap traffic allowed McFadden to capitalize. Moving up a lane as Gravel became mired on the bottom behind back markers, McFadden quickly swooped right by Gravel on Lap 11 and never looked back.

Hampered by six cautions, Saturday’s feature saw a Lap 2 mechanical issue for Donny Schatz (5th), Lap 21 problem for Logan Schuchart (16th), Lap 26 trouble for Tim Kaeding (17th), Lap 30 red flag for Carson Short (14th), Lap 37 spin for Jason Sides (13th), and a shocking Lap 38 infield tire incident for David Gravel (2nd).

In the end, McFadden survived a green-white-checkered restart and ran off to a 1.059-second advantage at the checkered flag.

“The track was surprisingly tough tonight, it just changed around a bunch,” McFadden noted. “I was running the top to get around David, but it go so dirty that I felt like I needed to get to the bottom. We got through lap traffic really well, and I think that was big. Being in victory lane six races in is pretty awesome.”

Chasing McFadden to the stripe was his Kasey Kahne Racing w/ Mike Curb teammate, Brad Sweet. The Big Cat rallied from 12th on lap one to finish in second, extending his career-best streak of consecutive podium finishes to a whopping nine races.

“I just shot myself in the foot during qualifying tonight,” Sweet said on getting behind the eight-ball. “Once we got to third in the Feature I think the track just moved down and we ran out of options. I tried the top on the green-white-checkered, but felt like I was gonna give up second and had to come back down. That’s what you have to do sometimes: get the best finish you possibly can. Tonight is a great testament to our team. It’s fun to be disappointed with second.”

Finishing third and landing on the podium for the first time in his World of Outlaws career was Justin Peck. The Monrovia, IN native drove from 11th-to-third aboard the Tom Buch owned #13 and kept his early-season hot streak alive; ahead of his return to Haubstadt tomorrow where he’s excelled in the past.

“Our team morale is pretty high right now, so it makes working with these guys super easy,” Peck noted on their success. “We’ve got everything hooked up right now. It’s great to be on the podium, but obviously we want to be a little better. That KKR team is just outstanding right now. We’ve got a little bit to clean up on our end.”

Coming home a season-high fourth at Kokomo was Australia’s Ian Madsen in the McGhee #11. Rounding out the top five was Sheldon Haudenschild with KSE Hard Charger honors thanks to his magnificent 21st-to-fifth bid in the NOS Energy Drink, Stenhouse Jr. Marshall Racing #17; which gives him eight-straight top five finishes.

Closing out the top ten was Jason Johnson Racing’s Carson Macedo, Bloomington, IN native Kraig Kinser, Kokomo’s own hometown hero Parker Price-Miller, Indianapolis superstar Tyler Courtney with a solid recovery, and Aaron Reutzel in the Roth Motorsports ride.

UP NEXT – The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series wrap up the Hoosier State doubleheader on Saturday, April 10 with a trip down to Haubstadt, IN’s Tri-State Speedway.

NOS Energy Drink Feature (40 Laps) – 1. 9-James McFadden [2][$10,000]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [10][$6,000]; 3. 13-Justin Peck [11][$3,500]; 4. 11-Ian Madsen [8][$2,800]; 5. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [21][$2,500]; 6. 41-Carson Macedo [6][$2,300]; 7. 11K-Kraig Kinser [22][$2,200]; 8. 19-Parker Price-Miller [4][$2,100]; 9. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [9][$2,050]; 10. 83-Aaron Reutzel [12][$2,000]; 11. 26-Cory Eliason [16][$1,600]; 12. 2-David Gravel [1][$1,400]; 13. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [15][$1,200]; 14. 7S-Jason Sides [3][$1,100]; 15. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [5][$1,050]; 16. 15H-Sam Hafertepe [24][$1,000]; 17. 2C-Wayne Johnson [25][$]; 18. 3-Ayrton Gennetten [19][$1,000]; 19. 10-Zeb Wise [17][$1,000]; 20. 1A-Jacob Allen [18][$1,000]; 21. 24-Rico Abreu [23][$1,000]; 22. 1S-Logan Schuchart [20][$1,000]; 23. 21-Carson Short [14][$1,000]; 24. 14-Tim Kaeding [13][$1,000]; 25. 15-Donny Schatz [7][$1,000]. Lap Leaders: David Gravel 1-10, James McFadden 11-40. KSE Hard Charger Award: 17-Sheldon Haudenschild[+16]

NEW Championship Standings (12/83 Races) – 1. Brad Sweet (1,744); 2. Sheldon Haudenschild (-78); 3. Logan Schuchart (-86); 4. David Gravel (-100); 5. Carson Macedo (-124); 6. Aaron Reutzel (-138); 7. Donny Schatz (-166); 8. Kraig Kinser (-208); 9. Giovanni Scelzi (-272); 10. Brock Zearfoss (-284).

JOSEF NEWGARDEN TOPS CHARTS AFTER TWO-DAY NTT INDYCAR SERIES TEST AT INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAYTwo-time Series’ Champion led the field of 32 cars testing with scorching lap of 226.819 m.p.h.
INDIANAPOLIS (April 9, 2021) – Josef Newgardern, in the cockpit of the No. 2 Shell Fuel Awards Team Penske Chevy, ran 130 laps of the two-day open test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in preparation for theAT 105^th running of the Indianapolis 500. Despite losing over five hours on Thursday to rain, Newgarden and his team maximized the time wisely to leave with the No. 2 burning brightly at the top of the scoring pilon. 
Five of the top-nine drivers on the speed chart were Chevy powered.
The only incident came 11 minutes into testing on Thursday when 2020 Rookie-of-the-Year Rinus Veekay met the Turn One wall He suffered a broken finger on his left hand, but after being fitted with the appropriate brace, the driver of the No.21 Sonax Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet has been cleared to drive at the season opener on April 18, 2021 at Barber Motorsports Park, Leeds Alabama.  DRIVER QUOTES:JOSEF NEWGARDEN . NO.2 SHELL FUEL REWARDS TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET — POST TWO-DAY INDYCAR OPEN TEST AT INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY: “It’s just nice to be back…its nice to have a couple of days to work even though the first day was as completed as we would have liked. It’s just  nice to be back here with four cars and having Scott join the program, we are going to be able to make a lot of headway quick with the amount of resources we have. I think the Shell Fuel Rwards Chevy is beautiful and I’m loving driving it so far. We need to learn as much as we can and then carry that momentum into May when the real work begins.”
SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN, NO. 3 SHELL PENNZOIL TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET – POST TWO-DAY INDYCAR OPEN TEST AT INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY: “Once we get laps, I think we…when you  roll up to the gate for the first time it’s amazing.  But not now because of the rain. Rolled out for the first time we had a good lap but massive help with the tow. Then we focused on doing some stuff with what I learned from that tow. We’ve been good, the tires have been really strong and we’ve been consistent. Rick Mears has been great. Just been there for me to lean on. He simplifies the  more technical stuff for me Tells me great stories on preparing for it. Yeah, its been great so far.”
SIMON PAGENAUD, NO.22 MENARDS TEM PENSKE CHEVROLET – POST TWO-DAY INDYCAR OPEN TEST AT INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY: “Yeah great great to studious day for us. We  just went through different aero configuration on the racecar but overall it’s always such a it’s good to be back could be back in the Speedway. Obviously it is  place a phenomenal place for racing and for our team. It is our number one priority to win here so Chevy power seem strong and I was very very excited you to finish the day in the Menards No; 22 today so we could shape. So far program is a is on time for what we wanted to do.” MAX CHILTON, NO.59 CARLIN CHEVROLET – POST TW0-DAY INDYCAR OPEN TEST AT INDIANAPOLIS: “A really positive day at IMS. The Carlin team has worked harder than ever this past winter. I can definitely see the change in the car, especially if you look at the no-tows, so that’s a really good sign of speed. I could sense we’d be quick right away. We still have to work on running in traffic, but we’ve got plenty of time in May to work on that. My new engineer Luke [Mason] and I are working together really well, and I think the whole Carlin team is coming together. So overall, a positive day at the Speedway.”
 JUAN PABLO MONTOYA – NO. 86 ARROW MCLAREN SP CHEVROLET –  – POST TWO-DAY INDYCAR OPEN TEST AT INDIANAPOLIS: : “Today was a good day and we learned a lot. It was great to be back in the car with Arrow McLaren SP and very useful for me to start getting back into traffic before the actual Month of May. I still have a lot to do personally to get better, but the test was a great opportunity to bond with the engineers and team. We have good speed in the car but still a lot to learn.” PATO O’WARD – NO. 5 ARROW MCLAREN SP CHEVROLET –  – POST TWO-DAY INDYCAR OPEN TEST AT INDIANAPOLIS:: “I think we had a solid test. We tested a lot of different things that should help us when we come back for the 105th Running of the Indianapolis 500. The No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet feels good and I think we’ve made improvements over where we were last year in the race. It was good to get :500 weekend is normally like. I think we should have a good starting point to be competitive this May.”  FELIX ROSENQVIST – NO. 7 VUSE ARROW MCLAREN SP CHEVROLET –  – POST TWO-DAY INDYCAR OPEN TEST AT INDIANAPOLIS:: “I thought today was good, we got a lot of laps done and had a pretty good car for most of the day. We fell off a little bit at the end, running in traffic with a little too much understeer, but we got to try a lot of good things with the team. These test days really let the team get into gear a little bit better. We are going to be back here pretty soon and it was nice to get on track in :Indianapolis again.” POST TEST TRANSCRIPTS:
Juan Pablo MontoyaArrow McLaren SPJosef NewgardenPenske RacingPress Conference
THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon, everybody. We have Juan Pablo Montoya standing by and we expect to have Josef Newgarden, as well. Juan Pablo finished third on the speed chart, pretty successful day with Arrow McLaren SP.How was your day today, Juan Pablo?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: It was good. I think yesterday was a little shocking getting back in the car. Today was good. We worked through a lot of things. We found a lot of good things and a lot of bad things, like you always do.It was nice to get back a little bit in the draft. A lot to catch up again, learn, understand again what you need to do, the timing. But everything just starts coming back.It’s funny, getting up to speed yesterday was, Ooh. Today you don’t even think about it. This afternoon even better. The first few runs with traffic is like, Ooh. Then you start relaxing, getting in the flow of things. We did some pit stops at the end.Everyone at Arrow McLaren SP has been doing a very good job. It was fun so far. I think this test was very, very useful.
THE MODERATOR: Yesterday you never really had to do a rookie orientation, refresher program. You had to go through that yesterday, didn’t you?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: Yes. I was joking to the engineers, said I’m going to run 214.9, 215.1. My second lap was 215.1, then 214.9, 215.2. I’m going, We need to be below 215 (laughter).THE MODERATOR: You have to go slow before you can go fast.If you have a question for the two-time Indy 500 champion, go ahead.
Q.I wanted to ask, appeared to be that your car could go pretty much anywhere on the track. When you dropped back, you were able to slice back through the field. Is that because the aerodynamics, the aero changes, are so good, or because your particular car, the 86, is so strong at the moment?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: I felt okay. I didn’t feel as good as you said. It’s great that it looks like that. I did pass few cars and everything, I could move, I could change, I felt pretty decent at parts.The thing is, remember, every run you do, you change something. You don’t keep the same car, keep doing things. You always trying to improve the feeling, improve the car to maybe be more consistent in clean air, more consistent in the draft, things like that.As you go through those things, there’s some runs that you go out there, you’re just in the way, and you hate it. I said like three times today, Hell, I’m not doing this. Actually the word wasn’t ‘hell’ but I’m using the polite word. I said, I’m not doing this and I bailed.One of them actually bailed and really scared the hell out of me in three and four. I lifted and I didn’t even do turn one. I went in the deceleration lane. I’m not doing this (laughter).
Q.Do you feel as well as being fast that your car was actually handling quite well in traffic? Could you kind of like run directly behind someone or do you still need quite a lot of clean air?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: You always need a lot of clean air. Even before this, even the old cars, you need a lot of clean air. With these cars, I think for me personally you still notice the difference.It’s a shame, yeah, I mean, that we didn’t — some people tried the ‘push to pass’, they did the other test. But it would make racing quite more wild, I think. I know some people don’t want wild.
THE MODERATOR: Also joining us here in the Zoom room, we welcome in the two-time NTT INDYCAR Series champion, Josef Newgarden, as well.Josef, tell us about your day. Quickest in that session, 226.819 miles per hour.JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, it was a pretty good day.JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: Are you driving?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: No, not yet. I’m still in the parking lot. Where are you?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: I’m in the garage working. We got meetings and things. We love meetings.JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Are you trying a new approach this year?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: No, I’m trying to avoid the meetings, but they still make me go.JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, it was a pretty good day. I was happy enough with the car. I think we still need some work, for sure.But just to get an initial read on where we’re at, obviously there’s a lot of new parts, differences to the last couple years. So we’re just trying to assess what we need to really work on now these last couple weeks before we get back here in May.Pretty happy. I felt the Shell Fuel Rewards car looked good. Had some decent speed, which is always nice to see, but doesn’t mean much when it comes to race day. We’ll see how we shake out as we get to the meat of things in the month of May.
THE MODERATOR: We’ll continue with questions.
Q.Juan, wondering how this year’s car compares to 2015 and 2000?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: How does it compare? How does the car compare? This is engineer right here (laughter).They’re a little harder to drive, I think. I think the difference between clear air and dirty air is a little bigger. I think the changes from what INDYCAR did, from what everybody says, it’s a little harder as before, but not that bad. Put it that way.Q.What about an extra hundred horsepower?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: After running today, I would be a big fan of that ‘push to pass’, to be honest.
Q.Josef, how was the Chevy today?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Good. I think Chevy has done a great job, as evidenced with Juan as well. I think the McLaren boys are quick. I think we feel pretty good about things.I think they’ve definitely made improvements, and we needed to in the off-season. We all did. Us as a team, I think Chevrolet, we all got together and looked where we were weakest. I think there was a little bit to go around on all sides. They’ve really stepped up.We put in a lot of effort. I think we found some good stuff. It’s getting hard nowadays. These gains you’re looking to find are so small. I think they’ve managed to find a decent chunk, which is impressive with how far along we are. Very encouraged with Chevrolet.
Q.With the aero changes they were working on in the off-season, bringing them in for the 500 to increase passing, did you notice a difference between last year’s aero package compared to this year’s?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yes, definitely. It’s easier to follow. It’s still tough. You’ll still get a big front wash in traffic. 10 cars back, it’s always going to be difficult. But I think they’ve made the ability to follow better. That balance separation between clean air and dirty air is definitely reduced.Some of them are tricky to drive, some of these parts. I think you’re seeing some split camps here along pit lane. Not everybody is running the same stuff. That’s been interesting to watch. There’s more downforce on the car. I think the balance shift in traffic is less.Yeah, the ability that we’re going to have to race compared to last year will be better.
Q.Any restaurant recommendations for Nashville?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Man, there’s plenty. If you’re into coffee, Barista Parlor. Hot chicken, Hattie Bs. The Southern is very good. There’s a lot of good spots. Those are a few.
Q.Juan, this is your first time with the Aeroscreen now. How long did it take you to get used to it? Your thoughts on it so far?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: It wasn’t too bad to get used to it. I thought it would be a little more intrusive. It’s definitely a pain in the butt to get in and out of the car, and it’s a lot hotter. I know like here it hasn’t been that bad in the oval. I did a test in Laguna. In a road course, you don’t get a lot of air. That was kind of shocking.Yeah, I mean, it’s kind of weird because, like, you’re really in a little bubble. It feels a little bit once you’re driving like a sports car.But you’re with a closed visor, I still don’t get why you have to run — I don’t think you have to. I think you probably do, but I’m used to sports cars. Same thing you’re with the visor open so you get a little more air.It’s good. It’s fine. I think from the safety point of view, it’s a great thing. It’s a matter of getting used to it more than anything else.
Q.Some of the guys last year talked about it was harder to find a limit with the open cockpit. Did you find it harder to find a limit in your car today?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: No, because I come from a sports car and a closed cockpit car. For me, it’s the same thing. It doesn’t really change that much. I think for the guys that are used to the open cockpit, might be a little harder.I’ve driven a lot of closed cars. Last four years, I’ve mainly been driving sports cars, P2 cars. Feels about the same.
Q.Josef, how much did you notice any differences in the car today from the test last October?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: When were we here? I thought it was the beginning of November.
Q.When you tested these configurations.JOSEF NEWGARDEN: It’s identical to the final config that we ran in November. From then it’s the same. Literally the last that config that we ran is what you can put on the car, at least the maximum amount. It’s pretty similar to what we tested, I mean, the same.
Q.The weather conditions play a role today with traffic?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I mean, I think it was a pretty easy day. It was pretty ideal conditions. Not too hot. Certainly not too cold. A little bit windy. That was probably the most difficult part about the day, was the wind, the movement of the car. Pretty standard for this place. You’re always kind of fighting that depending where it’s coming from. It’s always playing a factor.Weather wasn’t an issue. It was a pretty easy day, for the most part, to be honest.
Q.I noticed the turn two trap speed chart, seems like the guys at the top of the speed chart were good there. Is that one of the more important corners to get right at this track?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I think that was probably the most difficult corner as far as wind today. For most of the day you had a tailwind going into two, you had the side wind on the track. It could catch you out. It was difficult in traffic to get it right. Someone was having a big tow, it was one of the tougher corners to get right. That’s probably why you saw the cars that were quick and good, they were typically pretty good through two, as well.
Q.I know yesterday probably had to be a little bit of a frustrating day. What kind of energy and excitement do you get from a day like this where you have eight, nine cars running in packs? Does a day like this on the track really invigorate you to get this season started here?JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: For me personally, I think it’s definitely a huge thing. I know yesterday we didn’t run as much as we could. In a way, I’m pretty happy it worked out that way. We did the refresher. We did installation up in the morning. I had a look at everything the other guys were doing, just to relax with the guys and everything. It wasn’t too bad.At the end of the day we managed to get the refresher done. It was good. It was good because it still feels like this place is fast. When you do it often, you lose the appreciation of how fast you go. It was nice to get a night’s sleep on it. Yesterday when I was done, I was like, This place is quick. Today it was like, Aah, it’s normal. So it was nice.
JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, obviously for someone like Juan, this test is great. Even for all of us that have been regulars here, this is a great test to have, to give a warmup for the month of May. It felt like the month of May, to be honest with you, typical day to start out.Yeah, pretty happy we got this peek into the future.THE MODERATOR: We want to say thank you to Juan Pablo Montoya for stopping by. Appreciate you doing so after a couple busy days. The month of May will be here before we know it.We’ll continue with Josef Newgarden.
Q.A couple of the engineers and a few of the other drivers were conjecturing that with the package the way it is, it’s going to be two cars, the second-place car will kind of have an advantage. They think anything further back than two cars you might have five cars running in a pack, but the fifth-place car and fourth-place car don’t have much of a shot. Does it feel that way to you?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I mean, certainly last year that was the case. I think you have a better opportunity this year looking at the amount of downforce we have, the balance shift in and out of traffic. I think you have a better opportunity to fight for the win in the third or fourth car in line.I think more than that, you are a quick car during the race, you somehow find yourself in the back, I think you have a better opportunity of making your way forward. Those two elements will automatically help the show. But you don’t want to have it so easy where we’re packed up the entire field the entire time. I think that’s something that you would want to avoid.It’s a balancing act. I think it will be a lot better than last year as far as the ability to race up front. Time will tell. But I think you’ll have a better show.
Q.In Happy Hour we saw some pretty good passing and some dicing around out there. Some of the drivers said the dicing was a little bit by design. When you have these test sessions, do you go in with the mindset of trying different things to see how they work so when you’re back here when it matters you’ll know what it’s going to do?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, I mean, definitely. We’re constantly trying to assess everything. Today we were spot checking some qualifying stuff early on. We got into race running, just tried to focus on how our cars were in race traffic.At the end of the day that’s going to be probably the most important thing. Yeah, when we’re out there running, it’s for real. There’s people that drop back every now and then. That’s not real passes. As far as the way we’re running in line, we’re trying to simulate it as much as the race.It’s very much the real deal what people are seeing.
Q.Considering you’re one of the more we’ll say older statesmen now at Penske Racing. These days you’ve just had at Indy, how valuable are they for someone like Scott McLaughlin?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Tremendously. Scott has been so much fun to be around because he’s truly a rookie in INDYCAR. Everything that he does is like the coolest thing ever. So to see that perspective again after having been here myself for 10 years, it’s just really fun. It’s really fun to see that through his eyes.But it’s a very valuable day. He’s soaking everything up. Every moment he’s getting better. He’s doing a really good job trying to take time, ask a lot of questions, pay attention to every detail. He’s really switched on. He’s a smart race car driver. He’s doing all the right things to figure out how to be good in this category.I think you can come to expect that. I think he will be very competitive this year. So, yeah, valuable day for him, for sure.
Q.For Roger, what do you think this means to him, building up to what could be a great month of May this year by comparison to what we had last year?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Certainly, Roger has a lot of pride in this place, and he should. This is an amazing facility. He is a very deserving captain to lead this ship. I think we’re all pretty happy that he’s at the helm of it.He’s beaming to be out here every day. He’s always excited, excited for what we’re doing as a team, but more excited for what the Speedway is doing. There’s no one that wants fans here more than Roger, I can tell you that. I think if we get a semi-filled up crowd, he’s going to be a very happy man. We’re all going to be very happy.This place was built for fans. That’s what this track is all about. We get to the month of May, have some people in the stands, it’s going to be good for everybody.
Q.To Barber, how important is it to get points on the board early on and kick-start the season in the most positive way?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, it’s always important. I always tell people, I tell the team, Let’s get on the board today. We don’t need to win the race, but we need to score some points, have a good showing, set ourselves up for a good year.That’s what we try to do. That’s what we’re going to try to do next weekend.
Q.Did you get a feel for how the Chevy and Honda balance power is at the moment? I realize it’s difficult in these conditions to judge. We all know what happened last year. You guys were powerful but didn’t have the fuel economy.JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, it’s hard to say. It looks a lot more even this year, is what I would say at the moment. Someone could obviously be miles ahead by the time we get to the month of May. It’s possible. But I would say it looks a lot more even right now than where we were at last year.We’re all excited about that. I think Chevrolet has done a great job. It’s going to provide an interesting show for everybody.
Q.Did you check out how far you could go on a tank of fuel, turbo boost level, fuel rich level?JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, we didn’t do a lot of economy stuff today. We just did it — I didn’t run through any mixtures. I think there’s still some questions to be answered in the month of May. We were trying to check off some bigger team item stuff.Chevy has more manpower than just us at Team Penske. Not sure what they’re up to. We’re going to debrief with them after a test like this. We’re pushing. I think we’re going to be in a good spot looking at the initial information.THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Josef Newgarden.
Ed CarpenterEd Carpenter RacingPress ConferenceTHE MODERATOR: Good afternoon, everyone. Thanks, everybody, for tuning in, Zooming in, if you will, after the first half of the day, day one of the Indy 500 open test. Certainly an interesting day for Ed Carpenter Racing, Conor Daly, P1 in the 47 car, top speed of 222.714 miles an hour. Ed second quick in the 20 machine. His Rookie of the Year from last year, Rinus VeeKay, with an interesting day as well.We’ll begin things with Ed. How would you describe day one today for the IMS Indy 500 open test?ED CARPENTER: Not the way we had exactly hoped it would go. You never want to lose one of your three cars kind of in the first 10 minutes of the session. That was a bit of a bumpy way to start the test.We do have three cars, so Conor and I carried on. We were able to get a little bit of work done. By the time Rinus’ yellow and cleanup was done, we had about 90 minutes of track activity, but probably only 45, 50 minutes of that by the time you get installs done.We were able to get a couple changes in really just to establish a baseline. There’s a lot to do now tomorrow, a lot of new parts to test. We were able to test some of them last fall. There’s a lot to work through to be ready for when we come back for Indy 500 prep.
THE MODERATOR: How is Rinus doing?ED CARPENTER: I think he’s okay. Disappointed. Obviously not the way he wanted to start either. It’s easy to be upset about things like that. The conditions were a little tricky with the wind. It’s an inexperience thing still. He’s got a year under his belt, but it was a truncated year.He did so well at Indy last year, but got a little bit ahead of himself today. Didn’t quite have a feel for his balance, got a little bit too aggressive in one.I know he’ll bounce back. He’s shown that he can bounce back from unfortunate circumstances in the past. I know he’ll be ready when he gets back out there.
THE MODERATOR: We’ll open for questions.Q.Is there anything you could really take away from today, given it was kind of a truncated day for you guys? If you can get the car back on the road for Rinus tomorrow, do you expect him to run, given that he’s injured his finger?ED CARPENTER: It’s my understanding that he’s cleared. I know the guys took that car back to the shop. If we can get that car together, it’s possible he runs tomorrow.I don’t know that we would pull out his backup, just because it will be the race car for Barber, St. Pete and Texas. It’s all a little tight to going racing, the risk, potentially another excursion.If the guys can get that other car back together, possibly. I don’t really know. I was focusing on what I was doing with my car, debriefing with Conor. A lot of guys had gone back to the shop to evaluate all that, see where they were.I’m waiting to hear from Tim Broyles, our team manager, on that. One of the good things about being a driver today, I don’t have to worry about everything, I can focus on what we have going on track and what we have to accomplish tomorrow yet with my run plan.
THE MODERATOR: How much did the weather play a factor in what you had planned today?ED CARPENTER: The day was definitely short. Felt like May watching the radar already. Yeah, I mean, we certainly had a lot more we wanted to do. We really just did a baseline, made one small adjustment to kind of adapt for conditions. Have a lot to do yet.Essentially we each just got a baseline run in. I only did nine laps. Happy the car has had some pace, we were able to get a good draft. At the same time it doesn’t really mean anything after just a brief period of running, and not everybody out there yet.
Q.I know you were planning on two full days. Do you feel like one full day, as long as we don’t get any more weather, will be enough to accomplish everything? Will you be able to squeeze everything in to tomorrow that you would have hoped for over two days?ED CARPENTER: We’ll do the best we can. You would always take more time if you could get it. At the end of the day, for the most part, everyone is going to have the same opportunity to have the same amount of track time.Don’t worry about it too much. Weather and changing schedules is something we’ve all gotten quite adept at over the past year. Looks like it’s going to be a better weather day tomorrow. The six hours will go quick.Some of the things we wanted to do, it would have been nice to have our session, lunch break, go back out and do some longer changeover types of things that we may have to scrap till we come back.If we can be efficient, we can still get through everything we wanted to, at least the big items.
Q.You had a handful of changes to the car as far as the aerodynamics are concerned. You’ve had a little bit of time to look at those things. How important is the setup two days to getting like you feel like you’re really ready to go once we get to May?ED CARPENTER: Well, certainly if you come out of this test and have success and are able to get a good baseline, it will springboard you into a quick week of practice leading into qualifying.In a perfect world, we would feel really happy with our cars, how they’re running in traffic. With the speed we have out of our Chevy engines, worst-case scenario, we have a good idea of what we need to improve on coming out of this test coming back.Either way we’ll have things we want to improve on. Hopefully we come out of it with good speed and feeling good about how the cars are handling in traffic. We’ll fine-tune it for practice leading into qualifying and the race.
Q.We have an oval event before Indy this year with Texas. How relevant is that going to be in terms of what you do with your setup leading into the month of May, as well?ED CARPENTER: I mean, setups are quite different from Texas to Indy. I think probably — I mean, I like that we have an oval before. It’s nice to be able to get two races under our belt for me.But compared to when Indy was the first oval, especially having three in a row with Barber, St. Pete and Texas, it presents a little bit of a challenge with car rotation and spares potentially and things like that. We’ve known the schedule for a long time and have a good plan. I don’t think it’s that big of a deal.
Q.Were you able to do enough running in traffic to get a sense if there’s any improvement with the changes made to the cars?ED CARPENTER: No, not yet. I got a one-car tow, but it was about seven seconds out, so not really a good enough read to start to fully establish that.We had some of the parts on, not all of them. There are a lot of different configurations out there. Definitely need more time. There’s really no group that formed in the short amount of time we had. Still plenty to learn. But I’m sure we’ll get through that tomorrow.
THE MODERATOR: Ed, what is the rest of your night looking like? On dad duty?ED CARPENTER: Yeah, Ryder has a class here till 7:30. I’ll be watching that, maybe answering some emails. We’re supposed to have a team owners call at 7, but that got pushed till 8 because cars are on track later. Wait for him till 7:30, go home and get some dinner, get the boys a shower, I might take one myself, rinse and repeat.
THE MODERATOR: Nothing confirmed yet about when we’re going to start back up tomorrow morning. For those of you joining us, we’ll pass that information along as soon as we get it.
Ed, thanks so much. Have a great evening. Tell everybody we said hi.ED CARPENTER: Will do. Thanks.

NASCAR CUP SERIES MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY BLUE-EMU MAXIMUM PAIN RELIEF 500 TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT APRIL 9, 2021 WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE, Press Conference Transcript:  ON SHORT TRACKS, YOU’RE EITHER TOP-10 OR OUTSIDE THE TOP-20. WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO?“That’s a good question. We’ve had some really good short track races, but yeah, then we’ve had some issues with brakes and mechanical things. Trying to make sure that we make all that stuff last and make it to the end of the race is really important. So, I think that’s a big emphasis for us. I feel like some of that is how your car is driving, but also just technique and making sure that I’m taking care of my stuff throughout the early part of the race so I can have something good at the end. I think that’s all it is. When we’ve had good handling stuff, then we’ve done well. But you can’t try to crutch it too much with brakes and stuff if you’re not handling well.”  SOME CHATTER NOW THAT MORE AND MORE PEOPLE ARE GETTING VACCINATED, WHEN WOULD NASCAR ALLOW POTENTIALLY MORE PEOPLE IN THE GARAGE; WOULD DRIVERS START DOING MEET-AND-GREETS AGAIN. DO YOU HAVE ANY SORT OF STANDARD FOR WHAT WOULD MAKE YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE OR DO YOU JUST DO WHAT YOU’RE TOLD TO DO?“Yeah, I’ll just roll with whatever is comfortable with how we approach it. I feel fairly comfortable as is right now. I think the protocols and things are working well. Yeah, I think it’s going to be a gradual thing. But I think you see all sports right now getting more and more fans around; having them in masks, but being able to have them around. So, I’m good with it if people have masks on. I think it’s working towards the right direction.” SPECIFIC TO MARTINSVILLE, LAST YEAR YOU WERE 8TH IN THE SPRING AND 35TH IN THE FALL. WHAT WAS THE DIFFERENCE IN THOSE TWO RACES FOR YOU?“The fall, there was a lot of stuff going on. We had a mechanical issue there at the end that cost us finishing that race. But I thought we were OK; I thought we were honestly that eighth to tenth range. I don’t think we were going to run in the top-five. But the spring, I thought we could run the top-five, but we had to go to the back three or four times for issues. I think, honestly, the spring I was pretty happy about. I know we’ve got a little bit of a different setup this time. I feel like we’re going to be really fast, so it’s just a matter of making it to the end of the race with a shot at it.” IF YOU HAD TO PIN-POINT ONE THING THAT MAKES MARTINSVILLE UNIQUE AND DIFFICULT, WHAT WOULD IT BE?“Just the rhythm. You have to adapt to kind of how the rubber lays down. It’s just a very difficult rhythm place. A little bit off is a lot; you can go a lap down pretty easily. It’s just kind of a rhythm place. You have to find that. It makes it easy if you have a decent car and you can find that rhythm.” BACK IN DECEMBER, YOU TALKED ABOUT WANTING THE NO. 24 TEAM TO BECOME A CONSISTENT THREAT WHERE EACH TRACK WASN’T A WEAKNESS FOR YOU AND YOU WEREN’T JUST A ONE-TIME WINNER EACH YEAR. WITH THE PERFORMANCE YOU’VE HAD THROUGH SEVEN RACES, HOW CLOSE DO YOU FEEL YOU AND YOUR TEAM ARE TO BEING AT THAT LEVEL?“I think it’s going according to plan. I think honestly, we started the year and things were off to a really bad start; we had some bad luck and it really forced us to hone in on just executing a clean race. We did that and we won. And then honestly from there, we just tried to execute really clean races and try to get this team executing on a high level to where we can start to push some of the details, like pit road, restarts and things like that that we can start to be aggressive with. We put together a really good five races in a row here and yeah, I feel like we are in that category now of being able to contend every week. We just have to make the next step to lead some more laps. It’s been a couple of weeks since we’ve done that, so that’s important to us.” DRIVERS HAVE SAID MARTINSVILLE IS BOTH FUN AND QUITE DIFFICULT TO RACE THERE. WHAT CHARACTERISTICS OF THIS RACE TRACK STAND OUT TO YOU THE MOST?“I think just the way you have to run the curb. Obviously, you try to be as low to it as you can without touching it too much. It’s tricky – you have to get in the corner a certain way. Running the curb is hard and it’s tough to get drive off, too. It’s really kind of one of those standard short tracks, but I like the rhythm of it. It’s one of my favorites because it’s got good grip, but it’s a challenge. And you can pass; usually it’s not a huge issue to pass, you just have to set guys up the right way. I like it. Somebody mentioned how a lot of champions win at Martinsville – I think it’s just because it’s an experience place. It’s a really tough place.” BEING NO WORSE THAN EIGHTH SINCE YOU WON AT HOMESTEAD, HOW HAS YOUR MENTALITY OR CONFIDENCE CHANGED IN HOW YOU APPROACH GOING TO THE RACETRACK EACH WEEKEND?“I think we approach it the same, but I think there’s definitely a little more confidence that we can think outside the box a little bit. We’re not just trying to string together one good run to kind of get back on track. Yeah, I think for us, it’s kind of that slow climb of trying to go from I feel like we’re that top-seven to eight team right now, but try to make that next step to be a top-five team. It’s kind of an evolution, but I think we’re getting there. It’s awesome to run as well as we have every week and have specific things to work on; not have to worry about big stuff, we can just worry about small stuff to try and get better. I think we’re on the right track.” IN THE WEEKEND RELEASE FROM HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS, YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE GRASS THAT’S BEEN TAKEN OUT AT MARTINSVILLE. HOW BIG OF A THING IS THAT FOR DRIVERS? IS THAT ACTUALLY NOTICABLE AND SOMETHING YOU’RE GOING TO HAVE TO ADJUST TO?“Yeah, I mean I think in turns three and four, for sure. One and two, I’ve never really noticed the grass; but three and four, there was a separation between the grass and when the concrete started. So now, it’s not there and that was kind of a reference for where the center of the corner was. I think honestly, that’s going to be different. I’m interested to see how that is on the pace laps. But yeah, I think you’ll adapt and find new marks. It does kind of change things.”

Arnold sets overall fast time, Stremme second in practice sessions BRISTOL, TN – April 8, 2021 – The DIRTcar UMP Modifieds have officially taken their first look at the dirt-covered Bristol Motor Speedway in preparation for this weekend’s inaugural World of Outlaws Bristol Bash. Chris Arnold, of Matoaca, VA, recorded the fastest lap of 17.154 in Thursday night’s practice session, logging 18 laps in total. Arnold turned that lap in the third session, besting David Stremme who ranked second quick at 17.176. Ryan Ayers, of Concord, NC, clocked in third quick at 17.198; Nick Hoffman, of Mooresville, NC, was fourth overall at 17.409; and Taylor Cook, of Stanley, NC, rounded out the top-five at 17.439. The UMP Modifieds will compete this Friday and Saturday night, April 9-10, alongside the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series, with complete racing programs and a 20-lap Feature on both nights. $5,000 goes to Friday night’s winner while the big $10,000 grand prize goes home with the Feature winner on Saturday. Tickets are available online at BristolMotorSpeedway.com; DIRTVision presented by Drydene will have live race coverage throughout the weekend. Hoffman, the two-time and defending DIRTcar UMP Modified national points champion, made his first laps around the half-mile and was amazed at the feeling in the seat, combining the straightaway speeds and high degree of banking. “The straightaways are pretty long. I feel like you can take a drink and do whatever down the straightaways, and then you get to the corner and it’s elbows up,” Hoffman said. Hoffman was one of nine drivers to log at least 20 laps over each of the six sessions. Overall, he considered it a solid night, but knows where he needs to make improvements for his first competitive night on Friday. “The racecar’s really good; I’ve got a ton of grip. But I think I have too much grip for this place. I’m just too tight, gotta get better as far as steering,” Hoffman said. For this special event, Hoffman has put together an equally special package for the racetrack. As the owner and founder of Elite Chassis, Hoffman restored the very first Elite frame he assembled during the 2012 season, strapped in a Chevrolet SB2 engine and brought it to Bristol. So far, so good. “I felt like the car drove great from the beginning. No bugs, didn’t have anything stupid happen, motor ran great. No real issues, just gotta get it to turn a little bit better,” Hoffman said. As a two-time national champion of the division, Hoffman has won at numerous tracks across the country, but only a select few compare in size and speed to Bristol. One track that immediately comes to Hoffman’s mind is the half-mile of Eldora Speedway, where he won back in 2012 on the very first night out driving his new Elite Chassis brand. “Eldora’s pretty round and sweeping. It’s decently banked, but it isn’t like this. It’s pretty round and forgiving. Here, you’re going straight at such high speed and just running into that banking. That’s the biggest thing that’s so much different,” Hoffman said. With those differences in speed and banking comes a big physical challenge in the cockpit – one which Hoffman doesn’t normally see during the regular season. “Right now, it’s everything you can get,” he said. “I feel like I’m in pretty decent shape, I’m not going to fall out of the seat I don’t think, but it’s way more physically demanding than anywhere else we’ve gone.” Hoffman says the keys to victory will be laying down a good lap in qualifying and getting out in clean air to control the race. He’s done exactly that many times before, and he’s confident he can do it again. Don’t miss the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds in action at the Bristol Motor Speedway for the inaugural Bristol Bash this Friday at Saturday night, April 9-10. If you can’t make it to the track, catch every bit of racing live on DIRTVision presented by Drydene. DIRTcar UMP Modified Bristol Bash Practice Night Leaderboard1. Chris Arnold (Matoaca, VA) – 17.154 2. David Stremme (Mooresville, NC) – 17.176 3. Ryan Ayers (Concord, NC) – 17.198 4. Nick Hoffman (Mooresville, NC) – 17.409 5. Taylor Cook (Stanley, NC) – 17.439 6. Dylan Woodling (Warsaw, IN) – 17.441 7. Michael Altobelli (Saxton, PA) – 17.448 8. Nick Allen (Wheatfield, IN) – 17.485 9. Kyle Hammer (Clinton, IL) – 17.488 10. Jonathan Taylor (Saltsburg, PA) – 17.504 11. Garret Stewart (Leesburg, FL) – 17.509 12. Mitch Thomas (Oakland, MD) – 17.627 13. Austin Holcombe (Elm City, NC) – 17.632 14. Evan Taylor (Saltsburg, PA) – 17.649 15. Jordan Wever (Bloomington, IN) – 17.722 16. Trent Young (Crofton, KY) – 17.726 17. Jake Leitzman (Paragon, IN) – 17.758 18. David Reutimann (Sherrills Ford, NC) – 17.784 19. Hunt Gossum (Mayfield, KY) – 17.868 20. Todd Neiheiser (Panama City, FL) – 17.890 21. Dave Wietholder (Liberty, IL) – 17.894 22. Kyle Steffens (St. Charles, MO) – 17.913 23. Brian Shaw (Robinson, IL) – 17.999 24. Troy Loomis (Sherrills Ford, NC) – 18.004 25. Bill Griffith (Van Buren, OH) – 18.156 26. Dillon Nusbaum (Columbia City, IN) – 18.183 27. Lance Grady Jr. (Doswell, VA) – 19.160 28. Jason Sage (Glen Allen, VA) – 20.793

DIRTcar Racing is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel), Chevy Performance Parts, iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, and NAPA Auto Parts (SDS). Contingency sponsors include: ARP (Automotive Racing Products), ASI Race Wear (SDS), Bassett, Bicknell Racing Products, Billy Whittaker Cars & Trux (SDS), Cometic Gasket (SDS), COMP Cams, Drydene, Fast Shafts, Fox Factory (SDS), Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, Jerovetz Motorsports Shock Service, KSE Racing Products, MSD, Quarter Master, Schoenfeld Headers, Summit Racing Equipment, and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum) (SDS); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Beyea Headers, FireAde, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics and Velocita USA.

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE BLUE-EMU MAXIMUM PAIN RELIEF 500 MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY RIDGEWAY, VIRGINIA APRIL 10, 2021

RACE #8 – MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAYThe challenging Martinsville Speedway, which has hosted two NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) races per season since 1950, is the site this week for the Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 and NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) Cook Out 250.
Chase Elliott won the last NASCAR Cup Series race on .526-mile paperclip on November 1, 2020, on the way to wrapping up his first NCS Driver Championship. Starting eighth based on metric qualifying in his No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, Elliott led 236 of the 500 laps. Elliott, who made his NCS debut at Martinsville Speedway in the sixth race of the 2015 season, has four top-five and six top-10 finishes in 11 races at the track.
Career Chevrolet driver Jimmie Johnson is the last driver to win from the pole or No. 1 starting position — in April 2013, the eighth of his nine victories at the track. Kurt Busch leads active drivers with 41 starts and 19,883 laps completed. Busch, No. 1 GEARWRENCH Camaro ZL1 1LE, has won at the track in 2014 and 2002 (from the 36th starting position) and has 10 short track victories in his NCS career.
Justin Allgaier, No. 7 Walmart Fight Hunger Camaro SS, will lead the Chevrolet contingent to the green flag in the Cook Out 250 from the outside of the front row. Allgaier, who won at Atlanta two weeks ago, was runner-up in the October 2020 race at Martinsville. AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Ellsworth Advisors Camaro SS, who won the NXC race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and is fourth in the Driver Standings, will start third.
FS1 will telecast the NASCAR Cup Series’ 500-lap/263-mile Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 at 7:30 p.m. EDT Saturday, April 10. 
57 WINS AND COUNTINGChevrolet leads all manufacturers with 57 victories at Martinsville Speedway, including 25 by Hendrick Motorsports – Jeff Gordon and Johnson with nine; Darrell Waltrip with four; and Geoff Bodine, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Elliott with one each. Chevrolet has 797 NASCAR Cup Series wins to lead all manufacturers.
FOUR IN THE TOP-10Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Camaro ZL1 1LE, is fourth in the NCS Driver Standings. William Byron, No. 24 Camaro ZL1 LE, is sixth and Chase Elliott, No. 9 Camaro ZL1 1LE, is ninth. Austin Dillon, No. 3 Camaro ZL1 1LE, is tied for 10th.
Larson and Byron have secured their spots in the 10-race Playoff run after winning already this season. Byron, who has scored five top-eight finishes in a row, was runner-up in the October 2019 race at Martinsville.
ON THE WAY TO THE GREENWith no practice or qualifying for the race, the starting lineup is determined by NASCAR’s metrics system that was introduced to the series last year and incorporates results from both individual races and season-long results. Here are Team Chevy’s Top-20 starters: 3rd      William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1 1LE5th      Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE6th      Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Kroger/Crest Camaro ZL1 1LE11th    Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Camping World Camaro ZL1 1LE13th    Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Childress Vineyards Camaro ZL1 1LE17th    Ryan Preece, No. 37 Louisiana Hot Sauce Camaro ZL1 1LE18th    Austin Dillon, No. 3 American Ethanol Camaro ZL1 1LE19th    Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 1LE20th    Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE
BOWTIE BULLETS·       Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 698 laps led – 197 more than its closest competitor.
·       Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 32 top-10 finishes – 10 more than its closest competitor.
·       In addition to its 57 NCS wins at Martinsville, Chevrolet has amassed 264 top-five and 503 top-10 finishes. Chevrolet drivers have led 27,656 laps.
·       Justin Haley will pull double duty this weekend, driving the No. 7 Camaro SS in the NXS race and the No. 77 Camaro ZL1 1LE in the NCS race. Haley made his NXS debut at Martinsville Speedway in 2020.
·       Kyle Larson paces all drivers with 379 laps led in the seven races. He’s also the leader in fastest laps (237) and quality passes (446).
·       Kyle Larson (9.5) and Willian Byron (10.7) are in the top-five of average running position.
·       Career Chevrolet driver Jeff Gordon is the all-time leader with 38 top-10 finishes in 47 races at Martinsville.
·       Austin Dillon, No. 3 Camaro ZL1 1LE, has completed all but two of the 1,694 laps.
·       Chase Elliott (Daytona Road Course), William Byron (Homestead-Miami Speedway) and Kyle Larson (Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Atlanta Motor Speedway 2) have stage wins.
TUNE INFS1 will telecast the NASCAR Cup Series 500-lap/263-mile Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 live at 7:30 p.m. EDT Saturday, April 10. FS1 will telecast the NASCAR Xfinity Series 250-lap/131.5-mile Cook Out 250 at 8 p.m. EDT Friday, April 9. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
QUOTABLE QUOTES KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 4th IN STANDINGSLARSON ON MARTINSVILLE’S CHALLENGES: “Martinsville is probably one of my worst tracks – it’s been the toughest for me to figure out since there are so many challenges there. It’s a different style than what I grew up racing. You’re hard on the brakes and you need to be consistent with that while hitting your marks lap after lap. It’s such a challenge to do all that and keep up with the changing lines throughout the race. Hopefully, someday I can win a Martinsville clock.”
CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LEDANIELS ON WORKING WITH LARSON AT MARTINSVILLE’S WET WEATHER TIRE TEST LAST WEEK: “Testing was cool, and it’s always good to have more time with Kyle. It helps our team continue the rhythm we’re in – just being able to cut laps around the place with him in one of our cars is always helpful. NASCAR has some good rain tire options if they choose to use them in the future.”
DANIELS ON FINISHING TENTH WITH JIMMIE JOHNSON IN 2020: “We led a lot of laps early but didn’t keep up with the track as well as we should have. We were just an adjustment behind. We got up front, we led laps, and we knew the car was fast, but we didn’t want to over-adjust so we made small adjustments. After looking back at our notes, the track really tightened up throughout the race. Our teammates got aggressive with their changes and we were just a step behind.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 6th IN STANDINGSBYRON ON THE CHALLENGES OF RACING AT MARTINSVILLE:“Martinsville Speedway is always difficult no matter how many times you’ve raced there. You have to balance the entry of the corner to how you turn in the middle, all while not allowing the guy behind you to get underneath you on the exit of the corner. You want to be aggressive enough to make up ground but also not overly aggressive that you lose track position early on. It’s a track that requires patience and the knowledge of when to push it and when to save. It’s a challenge for sure but I enjoy it. It makes it tough on the drivers to get around there.”  BYRON ON ADJUSTING TO THE REMOVAL OF THE INFIELD GRASS AT MARTINSVILLE:“I’m interested to see what it’s like with the grass removed but I don’t think it will change much on the racetrack. The only thing I think that will be different is your visual cues. You’ll have to get use to looking at the concrete at the start of the race and set new marks for yourself in the corners. That’s always critical there. It will make the first couple laps interesting but once you figure those marks out, it will get easier as the race goes.”  CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 9th IN STANDINGS“Last year’s win at Martinsville was huge for us. It’s great to know that we’ve had some good runs at there, but you always have to keep in mind that your past success doesn’t equal success in the future. It never has and I don’t think it ever will – that’s just racing. So, I think for us, we will have some good information from last year and I look forward to getting to Martinsville this weekend and seeing what we can do.” AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 11th IN STANDINGS“I really like Martinsville Speedway. It is one of those places where you go through so many emotions during the course the race. Someone might bump you and that give-and-take can get frustrating. It’s a short little paper clip, with hard-braking corners. We’ve had some solid runs there, and I think that we can go back and do it again. We’d love to have a good run at Martinsville Speedway.”
RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER/CREST CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 14th IN STANDINGS“I think short track racing at Martinsville Speedway with the lights is going to be awesome. NASCAR Cup Series cars, an especially our No. 47 Kroger/Crest Chevrolet, look better under the lights and we know fans love seeing the sparks fly. Martinsville always has a lot of contact and beating and banging so going into it expecting that I think is half the battle. Martinsville is not typically my favorite track, but we’re on a really strong momentum swing right now with strong runs at Bristol and Atlanta so I’m looking forward to racing after a week off and keeping that going.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 16th IN STANDINGSBOWMAN ON GETTING BACK ON TRACK AFTER THE WEEKEND OFF: “It was nice to have a weekend off last week. A week off is nice, but I am ready to get to Martinsville this weekend. We had two top-10 finishes at the track last season and I think we have a good notebook to lean on for Saturday night’s race. Hendrick Motorsports has been strong at Martinsville in the past and I feel like our teams can lean on each other a bit for this weekend’s race.”
GREG IVES, CREW CHIEF, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE“Anytime you have night races, you prepare a little bit differently depending on the track grip. There were times when you would start the race during the day and then it would end at night, but this is a true night race. Now we just have to worry about if the track is going to rubber up or not. I think it is generally going to be a clean track and hopefully we can get another groove in there. You might see some fender banging to make the pass. You might have some tempers flare, but it’s just short track racing.”
RYAN PREECE, NO. 37 LOUISIANA HOT SAUCE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 18th IN STANDINGS“I’m looking forward to racing at Martinsville Speedway under the lights this Saturday night. We’ve got a new look on our No. 37 Louisiana Hot Sauce Chevrolet, and I’m lucky enough to be running the Modified race on Thursday night and get plenty of laps in before the NASCAR Cup Series hits the track on Saturday. Martinsville is one of my favorite tracks, we’ve had some strong runs there in the Cup Series and I’ve been fortunate enough to get a win in the Modified Series there so I feel good about it, and feel like we are heading the right direction to come out with a strong run.”
DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 CAMPING WORLD CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 20th IN STANDINGS“I love going to Martinsville. It’s just a different atmosphere and they have things so unique to them – the trophy, the style of track, etc. Martinsville is cool because it’s one of the old-school tracks that we go to. I drive back and forth from home and it’s a unique place. It reminds me kind of like a Late Model race, where it’s just a different environment from the big tracks we usually go to.” 
ERIK JONES, NO. 43 PETTY’S GARAGE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 22nd in STANDINGSWHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM A NIGHT RACE AT MARTINSVILLE?“I think the Martinsville Speedway is going to be good for our Richard Petty Motorsports team. I look at last year and how we ran there in the fall race, which ended at night, and when the sun went down was when the team was at its best. Between that race, and the way Richard Petty Motorsports has run the last few years at Martinsville (Speedway), I feel good about going into the weekend.
“It is going to be a cool race. It is the first true night race at the Martinsville Speedway for the NASCAR Cup Series, which is going to be fun. I think we are all looking forward to the race, and what it is going to look like. I am excited to get there.”
TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CHILDRESS VINEYARDS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 25th IN STANDINGSLAST YEAR WAS YOUR FIRST TIME RACING AT MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY SINCE 2016. WHAT ARE SOME THINGS YOU LEARNED THAT WILL BE HELPFUL FOR THIS WEEKEND? “One thing I think that really stood out not just to me, but a lot of the drivers was how hot that June Martinsville race was. Everyone is so used to it being cold at Martinsville that the heat really took everyone by surprise. So, I’m definitely taking my hydration seriously this week to avoid being overheated this time around. We also saw the track change a lot during both races, and we needed to do a better job of keeping up with it. That’ll be a major focus this time for us. This track is one of my crew chief’s favorites so I’m confident we’ll have a good plan for our No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE on Saturday night.”
COREY LAJOIE, NO. 7 ARK.IO CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 29th IN STANDINGS“Really looking forward to getting to Martinsville this weekend. Statistically, it’s turned into one of my better tracks, but also one of my favorites to drive. It’s awesome to have Travis and Ark.io back on the Chevy Camaro this weekend as he continues to support my racing career. This race is the first true short track race of the year, so I’m excited to see what Ryan Sparks and my team at Spire Motorsports can accomplish at the paper clip this weekend!”

Richard Childress Racing at Martinsville Speedway… In 177 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Martinsville Speedway, Richard Childress Racing has earned four pole awards and posted seven victories with drivers Dale Earnhardt (five times), Ricky Rudd (1983) and Kevin Harvick (2011). RCR Chevrolet teams have earned 30 top-five and 63 top-10 finishes at Martinsville dating back to the team’s first start there on April 10, 1972. Richard Childress, a former driver in NASCAR’s top division, contributed four of those top-10 finishes from 1976-1978.  With the NASCAR Xfinity Series returning to Martinsville Speedway in 2020 after a 14-year hiatus from the Virginia short track, the Welcome N.C. organization has only three NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the half-mile paperclip. In 2006, Kevin Harvick scored the victory, followed by a runner-up finish from Clint Bowyer. Collectively, Harvick and Bowyer combined to lead 207 out of the 250 laps en route to a 1-2 finish for RCR. Catch the Action… The NASCAR Xfinity Series Cook Out 250 will be televised live Friday, April 9, beginning at 8 p.m. ET on FS1 and will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  The NASCAR Cup Series Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 will be televised live Saturday, April 10, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1 and will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

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Austin Dillon and the No. 3 American Ethanol Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Martinsville Speedway… In 14 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Martinsville Speedway, Dillon earned his best finish of fourth in April 2016 at the half-mile short track after starting deep in the field from the 29th spot. He also has a fifth-place finish at the track (April 2017). He has made four appearances at the track in the NASCAR Truck Series, earning his best finish of third in October 2011. Delivering Performance on and Off the Racetrack… Dillon races on Sunoco Green E15 fuel made with 15 percent American Ethanol. Ethanol is the most effective and least expensive source of octane available and it also burns cleaner and cooler than gasoline. All those factors mean that ethanol helps drive peak engine performance whether you’re in a racecar or on your way to the grocery store. And, ethanol helps keep our air cleaner and our environment healthier by reducing toxic and greenhouse gas emissions. Learn more about why ethanol is the smart choice for your engine, your wallet and our environment at americanethanolracing.com. TV Time… Dillon is scheduled to serve as a guest analyst for FOX Sports 1’s coverage of this weekend’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Martinsville Speedway. Tune in beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Friday, April 9 on FS1. AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE:How do you feel about short tracks like Martinsville Speedway?“I really like Martinsville Speedway. It is one of those places where you go through so many emotions during the course the race. Someone might bump you and that give-and-take can get frustrating. It’s a short little paper clip, with hard-braking corners. We’ve had some solid runs there, and I think that we can go back and do it again. We’d love to have a good run at Martinsville Speedway.”

Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Martinsville Speedway… Tyler Reddick has two NASCAR Cup Series starts at Martinsville Speedway, with his best finish of 16th coming during last year’s spring event. Reddick also has six NASCAR Truck Series starts at the track in which he collected two top-five and three top-10 finishes. About Childress Vineyards… Childress Vineyards is a premier winery located at the southern gateway of the Yadkin Valley in Lexington, North Carolina. Owned by Richard Childress, NASCAR team owner and Hall of Fame member, Childress Vineyards produces award-winning wines with the expertise of Winemaker Mark Frizsolowski. Open daily for tours, tastings, and lunch in the Bistro. Information about Childress Vineyards can be found on Facebook at facebook.com/childresswines/, on Twitter at @ChildressWines and on Instagram at Instagram.com/childresswines. TYLER REDDICK QUOTES: Last year was your first time racing at Martinsville Speedway since 2016. What are some things you learned that will be helpful for this weekend?“One thing I think that really stood out not just to me, but a lot of the drivers was how hot that June Martinsville race was. Everyone is so used to it being cold at Martinsville that the heat really took everyone by surprise. So I’m definitely taking my hydration seriously this week to avoid being overheated this time around. We also saw the track change a lot during both races, and we needed to do a better job of keeping up with it. That’ll be a major focus this time for us. This track is one of my crew chief’s favorites so I’m confident we’ll have a good plan for our No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE on Saturday night.” We just wrapped up the only off-weekend for about four months. What do you and the No. 8 team need to do over the next stretch of races to get in a better spot to contend for a Playoff position?“Well, we can really take two ways to get there. We can win and lock ourselves in that way or we need to run top five and top 10 from here on out. That’s a tall ask for sure, but I have faith in my team. You have to be relevant to win races, and for us that means finding ways to get track position early in the race and get some stage points and a good finish. We also need to work on minimizing mistakes that took us out of Playoff contention last year and put solid races together from start to finish. Unfortunately, without qualifying it gets a little tougher since we start farther back than we maybe would if we had a chance to qualify. It’s hard to then know what we have at these tracks until we get up near some decent cars and by then it’s normally late in the race. Hopefully, we’ll turn a corner this week at Martinsville and put together a good race to kick of this big stretch of races with.”

Myatt Snider and the No. 2 TaxSlayer Chevrolet Camaro at Martinsville Speedway… Snider has one career NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Martinsville Speedway, which came at the end of the 2020 season. The Charlotte, N.C. native has also competed in three NASCAR Truck Series race at the paperclip half-mile, earning a third-place result in the 2018 fall race and a pair of sixth-place efforts in the 2018 and 2019 spring races respectively. About TaxSlayer… TaxSlayer makes online tax filing accessible for millions of Americans, with an easy-to-use platform and unlimited support at a fraction of the cost of the competition. Trusted for over 50 years, the Augusta-based tech company successfully completed more than 10 million federal and state e-filed tax returns in 2020 and processed $15 billion in refunds. TaxSlayer achieved a 4.5/5 TrustScore on consumer review site Trustpilot, with 87% of its customers rating the tax filing platform Great or Excellent. For more information, visit www.TaxSlayer.com. MYATT SNIDER QUOTES:You’ve raced quite a few times at Martinsville Speedway throughout your career. Do you enjoy going to the Virginia short track? “Racing at Martinsville is always a personal one for me. I’ve competed in a bunch of late model races there, got really close to a couple Truck Series wins there and it’s a track that has a lot of importance to me. I’ve run so many races there before that it semi feels like a home race for me personally. It’s important to me to get the clock this Friday night.”  What is your game plan heading into Martinsville Speedway?“Martinsville is quite the crazy race, because you never are that far away from another car. You can get out and build a good lead, but that’s really difficult to do since everyone is so close together. It can be a frustrating place for drivers, since you can’t get away and focus on what you are doing. There is always someone there to bump you out of the way or mess you up. That is what I think makes Martinsville one of the best tracks though. It forces you to be on your toes all the time and think as a driver which is what makes the racing product so good.”