Mat Pombo and Mike LaMarra score third place finish in VP Fuels Stay Frosty 240
Taylor Hagler and Ryan Eversley run fourth in best LA Honda World result of 2020

BRASELTON, GA (September 6, 2020) – It was a pair of top-four finishes for the LA Honda World in the 2020 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge VP Fuels Stay Frosty 240 on Sunday at Michelin Raceway Road Atanta, with the #73 Honda Civic Type R TCR of Mike LaMarra and Mat Pombo finishing third and the #77 of Ryan Eversley and Taylor Hagler taking the checkers in fourth.

The four-hour event evolved into a race of attrition, with many competitors struggling with reliability, penalties and on-track incidents. However, for the LA Honda World team, the enduro proceeded with minimal issues and the team was rewarded with their first podium finish of the season thanks to LaMarra and Pombo.

Starting eighth on the grid in the hands of LaMarra, the #73 ran an incident-free race, swapping positions with the #5, #21 and #23 cars throughout the first half of the event. Using less fuel than his competitors, LaMarra was able to leverage the strategy to move to the front of the field, spending most of the first two hours in the top five and leading at halfway before handing over to Pombo.

Georgia-native Pombo took over the #73 with one hour and 58 minutes remaining. Resuming fifth after his pit stop, Pombo worked his way through the field to second. Pitting under a yellow with 61 minutes remaining, Pombo would have to stretch the Honda Civic Type R TCR’s fuel mileage in order to stay in the podium fight. After four hours of hard-fought racing, he crossed the line in third position for the #73 team.

Pombo and LaMarra’s teammates, the #77 Honda Civic Type R TCR of Eversley and Hagler started the race in the ninth position. Hagler made moves during the early part of the race, climbing to fifth in the opening laps before settling back into eighth during the first of three caution flags during the race.

In her second stint, Hagler also managed to stay out longer than the competition, and got the #77 up to second place behind teammate LaMarra before pitting and changing over to another Georgia-native, Eversley, who resumed the race in sixth place.

Despite a quick, unscheduled pit stop with just over 90 minutes to go, Eversley maintained track position, exiting the pits in fourth place. Much like his teammates, Eversley also had to save fuel in the final stint to complete the final 61 minutes of the race and finishing fourth.

HPD has three ready-to-race Civic models for touring car competition. The line starts with the affordable and reliable Civic Si TCA race car, then leads to the Civic Type R TC racer that puts legendary Type R performance on track, and culminates with the no-compromise, championship-winning Civic Type R TCR race car. Our unparalleled trackside support at every level from HPD engineers is a unique benefit that no other manufacturer can offer. Find out more about these cars and our touring programs at: https://hpd.honda.com/Motorsports/Touring

Honda Racing social media content and videos from Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta are available on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD) and on Twitter at (https://twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD).  Produced by CoForce Digital Media, YouTube video packages can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV.  

Next
The MICHELIN Pilot Challenge travels to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course September 25-27 for two races during Acura Sports Car Challenge At Mid-Ohio weekend. The race can be streamed live on TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold.

Quotes
Mike LaMarra (#73 LA Honda World Honda Civic Type R TCR) finished third: The racing was kinda tight at the beginning. I was trying to bide my time, but the LAP Honda World Civic was handling great, I really enjoy driving this Type R TCR, it’s really fantastic. We were able to battle early, so that was good, and maintained our position. Our fuel mileage was great, and enabled us to pit from first place at the end of each stint. That set us up for a great pit stop and driver change. Mat [Pombo] had a great drive, and the team did a great job. I think we did the best we could today.”

Mat Pombo (#73 LA Honda World Honda Civic Type R TCR), finished third: “Honestly, we had a good strategy. Mike [LaMarra] drove a great first stint, keeping the car in the top five for most of his run, then pitting from the lead. We had to fuel save at the end, but we got the final step on the podium, and I’ll take it. Thanks to HPD, Honda, LA Honda World and LAP Motorsports, I can’t thank these guys enough. Gotta thank everyone in Atlanta, too. This is my home town, and my home track and I’m always happy to be on the podium here.”

INDIANAPOLIS, IN (September 6, 2020) — Entering the 66^th annual NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis Terry McMillen and the AMALIEⓇ Motor Oil Top Fuel team had a number of goals most importantly picking up their second win at the historic event. In addition to victory the team was looking to continue gathering data and runs on a brand new chassis as well as making a switch in their clutch package. The three rounds of qualifying for the event including a Friday night session gave the team the opportunity to run in optimal conditions.

“We had a number of things we want to accomplish this weekend at the U.S. Nationals,” said McMillen. “We wanted to get another U.S. Nationals win in the AMALIEⓇ Motor Oil XTERMIGATORⓇ Top Fuel dragster of course but we also wanted to continue to show the rest of the class that we are one of the top teams. Even though we didn’t get our top goal we accomplished all our other goals.”

On Friday night after a lengthy delay McMillen and his Rob Wendland tuned AMALIEⓇ Motor Oil XTERMIGATORⓇ Top Fuel dragster made a 3.799 second run at 323.27 mph which was quick enough to place the team 10^th on the qualifying sheet. It was the first run in the cooler night conditions since the team brought out the new chassis.

“We knew we would have really good conditions on Friday night,” said Wendland. “We had a killer tune up in this Amalie Motor Oil Top Fuel dragster but we got delayed almost two hours and the conditions changed dramatically. We were able to make a few changes but I know there is more in this tune up. We got some good data and I know we can run in those conditions if we need to again.”

During Saturday’s two qualifying sessions McMillen’s team got information from both runs in spite of one run being less that successful. The opening run of the day was a tire smoking 4.267 second run which was followed by a much improved 3.773 second run at 317.87 mph which left the team as the No. 11 qualifier.

“We learned a lot from the first run on Saturday and put it to good use on the final run,” said McMillen. “Rob was excited to see how the car reacted and we felt good going into race day. We got a good handle on the new clutches and we knew we were headed in the right direction. The one thing was we were a little behind the eight ball and know we would have a tough first round.”

In the opening round today McMillen squared off against Leah Pruett the No. 6 qualifier. It was a battle of two Top Fuel championship contenders. In an epic race McMillen made another dramatic performance leap running 3.726 seconds at 320.13 mph which was the fourth quickest run of the event. Unfortunately, Pruett was beside him making the quickest run of the event, a blistering 3.703 seconds at 325.61 mph pass. The team took the best of the situation and will head to the next race, the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, September 26-27.

Qualifying Results
Q1: 3.799 sec, 323.27 mph; Qual. 10
Q2: 4.267 sec, 195.36 mph; Qual. 11
Q3: 3.773 sec, 317.87 mph; Qual. 11
Bonus Points: 0

Race Results

E1: Leah Pruett, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., Mopar dragster 3.703, 325.61 mph def. Terry McMillen, Elkhart, Ind., AMALIEⓇ Motor Oil XTERMIGATORⓇ Top Fuel dragster, 3.726, 320.13 mph

Terry McMillen Racing based in Elkhart, Ind., is a Top Fuel drag racing team competing in the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. The team was founded in 2007 and has shown remarkable determination and dedication. McMillen won the prestigious Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals in 2018 and has qualified for the NHRA Countdown, the end of season playoffs, in 2017 and 2018. Throughout his career with longtime sponsor AMALIE® Motor Oil McMillen has raced to eight final rounds including a career best five finals in 2018.

·       Matt Hagan defeats Jack Beckman in all-Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat battle in the rescheduled Summernationals Funny Car final in Q3 session of 66th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway near Indianapolis

·       Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) reaches a milestone 350th NHRA national event victories with Hagan’s second win of the season

·       Tommy Johnson Jr. earns No. 1 qualifier position for Sunday’s NHRA U.S. Nationals elimination rounds

·       Leah Pruett qualifies sixth in both Top Fuel and Factory Stock Showdown with a chance to earn two Wally trophies at world’s most famous drag racing event

·       Factory Stock Shootout eliminations have begun with No.2 qualifier Mark Pawuk and sixth-seeded Pruett advancing to the next round

September 5, 2020, Brownsburg, Ind. – While Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) Funny Car drivers Matt Hagan and Jack Beckman waited more than a month to run the All-Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat final elimination round, rained out at the Summernationals on July 19, it was nonetheless an important race on multiple fronts. Run as their third and final qualifying pass for the 66th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis, Hagan drove straight down the left lane of Lucas Oil Raceway with a 3.919-second elapsed time run at 328.54-mph to defeat his DSR teammate Jack Beckman’s 3.940-second run and take his team into the history books.

The win marked a milestone 350th national event victory for the NHRA’s winningest team, coming 50 years after team owner Don Schumacher won the first of his five national titles as a driver in his Funny Car debut at the 1970 NHRA U.S. Nationals.

“It’s hard for me to even comprehend the team having that many wins,” said Schumacher of the milestone victory that further cements DSR’s drag racing dynasty and positions them as one of the motorsports industry’s most elite teams. “I’m just amazed at the accomplishments that my teams and team members have made over the last 22 years.”

“What a huge milestone, what a legacy Don Schumacher has created here,” said Hagan of the team’s collective achievement which also resulted in his 35th career win with the team. “I lost my brother a couple of years back, and I switched helmets for this race. I know he’s riding with me, but God bless it. I tell you, I’ve probably been as nervous as running for a championship just because you want to get it done.”

Hagan’s second win of the season moves him up to second place in the Funny Car Championship standings behind his DSR teammate Tommy Johnson Jr. with just five national events left on the reworked 2020 NHRA schedule. The win marks the eighth consecutive Funny Car victory for DSR, dating back to October 2019 at Dallas.

It came as part of his qualifying effort at the iconic Labor Day weekend staple affectionately known as “the Big Go”. The result put Hagan’s Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye fifth on the eliminations ladder for Sunday’s first round where he will be paired with Paul Lee. It also provides the DSR pilot with the rare opportunity to come away from the weekend with two national event trophies. 

“This Mopar Hellcat has been running extremely well,” said Hagan who won the 2016 edition of the prestigious race. “(Crew chief) Dickie Venables has been putting a great race car underneath me. It’s just running hard and I’ve been trying to do my job on the starting line. To get 350 wins for DSR; it’s a big part of my career, a big part of Don Schumacher’s career. To have a Wally already on Saturday night at the U.S. Nationals, the Big Go, it can only get better from here.”

Also hoping to compete for the win is current Funny Car points leader, Tommy Johnson Jr., who secured the No. 1 qualifier position with his Riley Kids Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat running a 3.878-second E.T. at 326.40 mph. For his qualifying efforts, he received a total of six valuable bonus points to add to his tally. His final drive was an improvement on two previous qualifying passes and pairs him up with Dale Creasy Jr. for the first round of eliminations action at the world’s most famous drag race.

“We missed it by just a little bit on Friday night,” said Johnson who earned his 21st career No. 1 qualifier position, his third in the last four events this season, and hopes to vie for his first U.S. Nationals title. “We knew it was going to run a good lap and our car has the performance. I was glad to see a bit of a delay. The sun went behind the grandstands and the guys made a huge change in the clutch and I knew they were going for it. It was evident a few hundred feet into the run that it was on a good one. I knew by how hard it was pushing me back in the seat. The performance is solid. We have three No. 1s and a No. 2 at the four races here at Indy. Now it’s time to turn those into a win.”

Fresh off his HEMI-powered win at the previous Dodge NHRA Indy Nationals event, Ron Capps came out firing on all cylinders in Friday night qualifying to take the provisional No.1 spot. Capps tried to regain the top spot from Johnson, but ended up No. 2 with a 3.881 sec./327.19 mph effort to earn a total of five bonus points and an appointment with 15th seed Jim Campbell for the first round.

Seventh-seed Beckman will see Cruz Pedregon in the lane beside him for the first round as he tries to work his way to a second win this season and a second U.S. Nationals title to add to his 2015 victory. Third in points, the Infinite Hero Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat driver hopes to further close the points gap in the battle for the NHRA Championship. 

In Top Fuel action, after two difficult attempts Leah Pruett rocketed her DSR Mopar Dodge SRT Hellcat Redeye Top Fuel Dragster to the third quickest pass of the final session with a 3.742 sec/ 326.24 mph run to earn one bonus point and put her previously non-qualified machine in the show. She will line up next to Terry McMillen on Sunday in her quest to advance to her first final round appearance to battle for the coveted U.S. Nationals Wally Trophy.

Pruett, who is pulling double duty by running in both Top Fuel and Factory Stock Showdown (FSS) categories this weekend, will also have the chance to double-up on trophy hardware by battling through a 32-car field of qualified factory- built vehicles.

Pruett qualified sixth for eliminations contested on Saturday evening while her teammate, Mark Pawuk, put his Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak in the No. 2 spot on the ladder.

In the first round, Pawuk defeated Kim Shirley handily with 0.108 reaction time and 7.965 sec. pass at 173.49 mph. Meanwhile, from her sixth place spot on the ladder, Pruett ran down her opponent, James Jeshke Jr. with a (0.067 reaction time) 7.969 sec/171.64 mph run to beat his (0.012 reaction time) 8.207/161.98 drive. FSS elimination rounds will continue on Sunday

The DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA U.S. Nationals will be broadcast on Sunday, September 6 on FS1 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. (EDT), then moves to the FOX national network from 1-4 p.m. (EDT), which will include LIVE final round action.

NOTES and QUOTES: 

Jack Beckman, Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car

(No. 7 Qualifier – 3.940 seconds at 325.53 mph)

Qualifying 1:  4.858 sec./ 159.32 mph 

Qualifying 2:  3.991 sec./ 318.92 mph (1 bonus point for third quickest run of session)

Qualifying 3:  3.940 sec./ 325.53 mph

“We obviously struggled for the last race and first lap here. We had our backs to the wall on the second qualifying run. We had to make a good run to get into the U.S. Nationals field and we desperately need tune-up data with this new clutch package. I thought our second run was fantastic. We made a great lap. We got a bonus point and we got good data. That helped us drag it up there for the final. I think if you give us a few more laps on this new clutch pack we’ll be right back at the front. I’ll take the four tomorrow, our more dial-in runs. We have a good hot rod again. It’s starting to do what we tell it again. I like our chances for tomorrow.”

Matt Hagan, Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye Funny Car  
(No. 5 Qualifier – 3.919 seconds at 328.54 mph)
Qualifying 1: 3.977 sec./ 321.96  mph

Qualifying 2: 4.291 sec./ 226.35 mph

Qualifying 3: 3.919 sec./ 328.54 mph

“It’s amazing. What a huge milestone, what a legacy Don Schumacher has created here. I lost my brother a couple of years back, and I switched helmets for that race. I know he’s riding with me, but God bless it. I tell you, I’ve probably been as nervous as running for a championship just because you want to get it done,” said Hagan regarding his Summernationals victory that was achieved at the very facility where his boss prevailed to claim his first Funny Car crown 51 years prior.

“This Mopar Hellcat has been running extremely well. (Crew chief) Dickie Venables has been putting a great race car underneath me. It’s just running hard and I’ve been trying to do my job on the starting line. To get 350 wins for DSR; it’s a big part of my career, a big part of Don Schumacher’s career. To have a Wally already on Saturday night at the US Nationals, the Big Go, it can only get better from here.”

Tommy Johnson Jr., MD Anderson Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car
(No. 1 Qualifier – 3.878 seconds at 326.40 mph) 
Qualifying 1: 5.198 sec./ 138.00 mph 

Qualifying 2: 3.979 sec./ 317.19 mph (3-points for quickest of session)

Qualifying 3: 3.878 sec./ 326.40 mph (3-points for quickest of session)

“We missed it by just a little bit on Friday night. We knew it was going to run a good lap and our car has the performance. I was glad to see a bit of a delay. The sun went behind the grandstands and the guys made a huge change in the clutch and I knew they were going for it. It was evident a few hundred feet into the run that it was on a good one. I knew by how hard it was pushing me back in the seat. The performance is solid. We have three No. 1’s and a No. 2 at the four races here at Indy. Now it’s time to turn those into a win.”

Ron Capps, NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car
(No. 2 Qualifier – 3.881 seconds at 327.19 mph)
Qualifying 1: 3.895 sec./330.63 mph (3 bonus point for quickest run of session)

Qualifying 2: 4.005 sec./319.82 mph

Qualifying 3: 3.881 sec./ 327.19 mph (2 bonus points for second quickest run of session)

“Hearing (crew chief) Rahn Tobler talk about how prepared he was for Q1 and how excited he was to try what he had been working on and it showed on the track with that great 3.89. We knew there was another night session if there was a small delay and the sun went down like it did. We don’t count out our teammates. We have the only two five-disc clutch cars. We’ll settle for second, but we’ve gone down all the runs. We have great data. It’s the U.S. Nationals. The pressure is heightened. The guys have done a great job. Let’s see if we can put it all together like we did last time here.”

Leah Pruett, Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye Top Fuel Dragster  
(No. 6 Qualifier –  3.742 seconds at 326.24 mph)   
Qualifying 1: 4.427 sec./ 172.12 mph

Qualifying 2: 4.479 sec./ 175.78 mph

Qualifying 3: 3.742 sec./ 326.24 mph (1 bonus point for 3^rd quickest of session)

“Qualifying for this Dodge Hellcat Redeye dragster were definitely in the ‘Big Go’ fashion and what I mean by that is that the challenges we faced in qualifying and overcame. I never lost belief in this team. We smoked the tires in Q1 when we were getting after it. We thought we’d throw down a safe number to get qualified in Q2 and we ended up smoking the tires. We ended up not acquiring any data on that lap. So we go into the final qualifying session at the US Nationals and we’re not qualified in the show. For this team to make blind calls of data and feel is what brought us to that 3.742 and that put is sixth. You gotta be in it to win it and I’m extremely stoked on that pass. The parts and car look great and clean. We’re going to have really good conditions in the morning with a 10 am start very comparable to the Q3 lap and we’re in a great spot to have a great day on Sunday.”

Mark Pawuk, Empaco Equipment Mopar Drag Pak– Factory Stock Shootout

(No. 2 Qualifier –  7.903 seconds at 174.41 mph)   

Round 1: 7.965 E.T. at 173.49 MPH defeated Kim Shirley 8.795 E.T. at 154.90 MPH

“We really made a good run this morning which got both Leah (Pruett) and myself into the top half of the field, and got our Dodge Drag Paks back on track. It’s great to see our DSR Dodges qualify so well and get a round win under our belts. We’re both excited that we get to race tomorrow, and hopefully go some more rounds. I would love nothing more than to get one of these DSR Dodges in the winner’s circle tomorrow.

“NHRA has done a great job with safety, and being able to race here for the fourth time in here in Indy. It’s great to see more fans this weekend, and we look forward to keeping this momentum going, and continuing with the safety protocols that NHRA has in place so we can finish our season out.”

Leah Pruett, Mopar Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak – Factory Stock Shootout 
(No. 6 Qualifier –  7.958 seconds at 172.08 mph)   
Round 1:  (0.067 sec) 7.969 at 171.64 mph defeated James Jeschke Jr. 8.207 at 161.98 mph        

“We ran a great Q2 lap this morning and that pass was something we’ve been searching for and it’s a testament to fresh motors and blowers. We’re getting back to the high performance and how we know how to run. We got a first-round win with both cars and we’re going to sleep on today and get ready to go rounds tomorrow. We know they won’t sleep on us the way these Drag Pak’s are performing.”

PORTSMOUTH, OH (September 5, 2020) – On the day he celebrated his 20th birthday, Hudson O’Neal drove to victory on Saturday Night at Portsmouth Raceway Park. He overtook Jimmy Owens on Lap 37 on his way to taking the win in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series sanctioned Bob Miller Memorial River Days Rumble – presented by Pepsi. After grabbing the lead, O’Neal withstood a caution with one lap to go to become the 18th different winner this season, and he notched his first win of 2020. Owens finished in second followed by Tanner English, Jared Hawkins, and Shane Clanton. Jonathan Davenport and Owens started on the front row with Owens taking the lead on the opening lap.  Owens and Davenport ran 1-2 for the first ten laps until Devin Moran moved into the second spot and started challenging Owens for the race lead. Moran was pressuring Owens for the lead when he suffered a left rear flat tire with 32 laps scored. On the restart Tim McCreadie moved into second, but a few laps later he would lose a left rear wheel heading down the backstretch. O’Neal became the new second-place runner and on the 37th lap he made his move for the lead. In Lucas Oil Victory Lane for the seventh time in his career, the former series Rookie-of-the-Year was relieved and excited to get the first win for his new team that started just last month. “We were fortunate enough to win at Eldora last year on my birthday. I knew I had a good race car coming into tonight. I can’t thank Craig and Shannon Sims, my girlfriend Tessa, and Dustin Nobbe enough for their help. This has been a long seven or eight months. I didn’t think I was ever going to do it again. That one late restart helped me. I was able to capitalize. I don’t think I had the best race car, but I just think I found a line that worked for me.” Owens was seeking his 11th series win of the season but was happy with his runner-up finish in the end. “The cautions were good for us for a while. The top side was getting higher and higher. There was a lot of thrashing the cushion up there tonight. There were people knocking quarter-panels off, I was waiting for one of mine to get knocked off. Hudson just had a good car tonight, congratulations and happy birthday to him.” English, the top point man in the Eibach Rookie-of-the-Year chase had his first podium finish of the season. “He [O’Neal] got up to the top pretty quickly. I was racing with him side-by-side and the next thing I knew he was out in front.  He had a good car. Congratulations to him. It’s been a long year for him so it’s good see him get a win. It’s been a long year for us as well, we have been up-and-down and all around and we finally got a good result tonight.” The winner’s PCC Motorsports Rocket Chassis is powered by a Cornett Racing Engine and sponsored by Professional Concrete, Cutting and Drilling, Tarpy Trucking, O’Neal’s Salvage, Bob and Tammy Burton, WR! Sim Chassis, Roth Heating and Cooling, and Slicker Graphics. Completing the top ten were Kyle Bronson, Jonathan Davenport, Josh Richards, Kody Evans, and Tyler Bruening.

·        No. 1 qualifier Stephen Yantus crowned as first new winner of Dodge HEMI^® Challenge in five years at 2020 NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis 

·        15 Super Stock 1968 Dodge Darts and Plymouth Barracudas battled head-to-head for an iconic custom-made Dodge HEMI Challenge trophy and $15,000 winner’s prize 

·        Previous four-time winner Jimmy Daniel sees his consecutive round win-streak end in the first round of eliminations

·        Legendary Mopar racer Herb “Mr. 4 Speed” McCandless led the parade of participating HEMI-powered muscle cars as guest of honor aboard his original 1968 Super Stock HEMI Dart

Friday, September 4, 2020, Brownsburg, Ind. –The 2020 edition of the Dodge HEMI^® Challenge has crowned a new king at the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis. The ever-popular dedicated Super Stock/A-HEMI (SS/AH) annual competition featuring 1968-model Dodge Dart and Plymouth Barracuda factory stock race cars, saw No.1 qualifier Stephen Yantus battle to become the first new winner in five years.

Yantus, who earned the No. 1 qualifier position aboard his ‘68 HEMI-powered Plymouth Barracuda with an 8.477 second, 158.50 mph pass, put together a string of quick and consistent elapsed time laps at 8.412, 8.452 and 8.413 seconds through eliminations with a solo run and wins over Russ Campbell and past winner Bucky Hess (2001). He advanced to his first Dodge HEMI Challenge final round showdown to face Steve Comella who had qualified 15^th but made his way to his first final as well with wins over Jim Pancake, Gary Wolkwitz, and Steve Kent.

In the all-Cuda final round, Yantus beat Comella off the start with a 0.030 to 0.062-second reaction time and led the way to his quickest run of the weekend; an 8.410 second pass at 158.28 mph. With the win, Yantus earned his first coveted 42.6 lbs. Dodge HEMI Challenge trophy uniquely-crafted with a 426 HEMI cylinder head along with a $15,000 award. 

“We kept on plugging away, kept on chugging, and my whole team, my owner of the car, (engine builder and past winner) Charlie Westcott and Militia Racing Products built me the baddest bullet on the face of the planet,” said an emotional Yantus of the collaborative effort it took to get to the winner’s circle. “I mean that thing went 40s all day and we were the only car in the 40s. I owe everything to my whole crew and all of them. I was at driver and I got the call with this bad car. I’m just grateful just the we got down through here. You know, we’re all drag racers and they say sometimes you got to get lucky rather than be good. I got a lot of luck but the car hung itself out every time and we never slacked off. We had it on kill all day. It went .049 (seconds), 45, and back-to-back 41s. I can’t thank (engine builder) Charlie Westcott enough for what he does for us and this crew. It’s just a dream come true. We’ve been chasing this for a long time along with our families. It’s really emotional and I just I can’t thank everybody enough for making this happen.”

The victory by Yantus ended the four-year reign of Jimmy Daniel who had qualified No.2 in his 1968 Dodge Dart amongst the 15-car field of contenders. Daniel suffered his first-ever defeat since taking the wheel from his father Jim Daniel Sr. in 2016 against Jim Teuton in the first round of eliminations with an 8.60 sec. to 8.58 loss.

Prior to the final round, guest of honor and legendary Mopar racer, Herb “Mr. 4 Speed” McCandless, led the parade of Darts and Barracudas that participated in this year’s Dodge HEMI Challenge down Indy’s fabled return road aboard his own original 1968 Super Stock HEMI Dart in celebration of the classic muscle cars that contributed to Mopar and Dodge brands’ legendary reputation and success at the drag strip.

Highlights of the final elimination round of the Dodge HEMI Challenge, as well as the parade of participating Darts and ‘Cudas, will be shown during coverage of 66th annual NHRA U.S. Nationals on Sunday, September 6 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. (EDT) on FS1 and then on the FOX national broadcast network from 1-4 p.m. (EDT). 

Acura Sweeps Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta
First double win for Acura in IMSA competition with victories in DPi and GTD
Helio Castroneves, Ricky Taylor score second consecutive overall win of 2020
Mario Farnbacher, Matt McMurry and Shinya Michimi claim GTD honors

BRASELTON, Ga. (Sept. 5, 2020) – Acura swept the six-hour TireRack.com Grand Prix at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta today, as Helio Castroneves and Ricky Taylor piloted their Acura ARX-05 prototype to the overall honors, while the trio of Mario Farnbacher, Ricky Taylor and Shinya Michimi took their Acura NSX GT3 Evo to the win in the GTD class.

The win is the first overall “weekend sweep” for Acura in two and a half seasons of multi-class competition for the manufacturer in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship; and provisionally vaults Acura, Meyer Shank Racing and the full-season driver lineup of Farnbacher and McMurry to the top of the GTD points championships.

Acura Team Penske
Fighting back from an early-race penalty for a pair of pit lane violations during the first round of pit stops, Castroneves and Taylor recovered from a one-lap deficit to the field at the one-hour mark to regain the lead lap by the end of the second hour. The pair joined the battle for the race victory in their #7 Acura Team Penske ARX-05 in the final two hours. With just over an hour remaining, Taylor used lapped traffic to pass his teammate Dane Cameron in the #6 Acura and eventually build a 14-second lead over the field.

The #6 ARX-05 of Cameron and Juan Pablo Montoya had an equally fraught race, with contact at the race start resulting in a spin for Cameron. Quickly recovering, Cameron was up to second place just 30 minutes into the contest. The pair remained in the hunt for the victory until the final minutes of the race, when contact with a GTD-class Ferrari that was returning to the circuit after sliding off course resulted in heavy damage to the #6 Acura, ending their day.

The crash resulted in a full-course caution and erased a seven-second lead for Castroneves. But he held on for the final two laps of green-flag racing as he and Taylor combined for the second consecutive win of 2020, following their victory last month at Road America.

Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo
In the always competitive GTD division for production-based cars, Farnbacher, McMurry and endurance-race addition Michimi prevailed in a typical multi-manufacturer battle for the class victory, with a strong double-stint to the finish by defending champion Farnbacher sealing the victory for the trio’s Acura NSX GT3 Evo, which also marked the first victory of 2020 for the 22-year-old McMurry in his 150th IMSA race start.

Combined with a trio of podium finishes earlier this season, Acura now leads the GTD Manufacturers’ Championship by eight points after six races in 2020. Farnbacher and McMurry lead the drivers’ title chase by 12 points, and Meyer Shank Racing also has a 12-point lead in the teams’ championship.

The #57 Heinricher Racing with MSR Acura of Alvaro Parente, Misha Goikhberg and Trent Hindman encountered early difficulties after a pair of off-course excursions in the opening hour. An additional spin in the second hour resulted in damage to the front bodywork of the #57 Acura, but the trio persevered to a sixth-place finish.

Next
The 2020 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship next heads to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in three weeks-time, for the Acura Sports Car Challenge at Mid-Ohio, on September 26-27.

Acura Motorsports social media content and video links from this weekend’s IMSA TireRack.com Grand Prix at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta are available on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD).  Produced by the CoForce Digital Media, the YouTube videos can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV.  

Quotes
Ted Klaus (President, Honda Performance Development) on today’s double victory for Acura: “This is a great day for Acura and HPD, and for all the hardworking associates on our IMSA programs, our excellent drivers and partner teams. This is also a great reward for [Acura Brand Officer] Jon Ikeda, who has spearheaded the return of Acura to IMSA competition as we prove the brand is the home of Precision Crafted Performance. Congratulations to everyone at Acura Team Penske and Meyer Shank Racing, and let’s keep it up as we head to our ‘home’ race at Mid-Ohio later this month.”

Ricky Taylor (#7 Acura Team Penske ARX-05) race winner, 2nd consecutive victory of 2020: “We’ve been fighting back all year, today was just a synopsis of our season. Coming from a lap down and a complete nightmare of a start of the race, but we’ve all made mistakes, and Helio’s recovery was brilliant. When he’s angry, look out! He fought back so hard. We got back to the front, and he made it look easy at the end. Acura, HPD and Team Penske, it’s an awesome combination.”

Helio Castroneves (#7 Acura Team Penske ARX-05) race winner, 2nd consecutive victory of 2020: “I made a mistake at the beginning, unfortunately. I like to think I drive like a 20-year-old, but sometimes I make the mistakes of a 20-year-old, too! Thankfully, [team president] Tim Cindric is always cool, and made all the right calls to get us back in the race, and we got the yellow [caution flag] that worked in our favor. Finally, we got in the lead thanks to this guy [Taylor]. It was just a great job from everyone: Acura, HPD and Team Penske. Two in a row, baby, let’s go for more.”

Mario Farnbacher (#86 Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo) GTD winner, first win of 2020, leads the GTD drivers’ championship after six races: “This win is such a relief for us, it’s something that we’ve come so close to getting but just couldn’t quite get there. The crew really worked their asses off during the pit stops today. We were really unlucky during the [season opening] Rolex 24, and we have progressively been working really hard to keep collecting points for the championship. Now, to finally get the victory it’s such a good feeling. There’s so many people working behind the scenes, HPD, Acura, MSR, that have all helped us to get here.”

Matt McMurry (#86 Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo) GTD winner, first win of 2020, leads the GTD drivers’ championship after six races, made his 150th race start in IMSA competition today: “Today the MSR guys just did everything right and the crew did so awesome – all of our pit stops were super-fast. Shinya [Michimi] started the race off really strong and put me in a good position for when I had to get in the car, and Mario finished perfectly. To get a win on my 150th race start is a pretty good feeling too. A big thank you to everyone at MSR, HPD and Acura for giving us a great car today.”

Mike Shank (team owner, Meyer Shank Racing): “This was a big win for us in many ways. We’ve come so close to getting a win [this year] and we just couldn’t make it happen. So this win, especially during an endurance event, was really good for us. This win also puts us in a good position in the championship. We’ve been staying consistent with our finishes which will help us in the long run. Shinya did a great job considering he has not been in the car since January. Matt continues to show improvements each race and Mario did what he needed to do to bring it home in the end. I’m really proud of these guys, especially the crew who just knocked it out of the park on pit stops today. I’m really happy with the result today.

CORVETTE RACING AT ATLANTA: Runner-Up Finish for Gavin, MilnerNo. 4 Corvette C8.R second in GTLM points behind teammates Garcia, Taylor

BRASELTON, Ga. (Sept. 5, 2020) – Corvette Racing’s Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner completed a stellar comeback to finish as class runner-up Saturday in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s TireRack.com Grand Prix at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. The duo drove their No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R from nearly a lap down in the six-hour endurance race to nearly a second victory of the year in another highly competitive GT Le Mans (GTLM) class battle. The result advanced Gavin and Milner to second place in the GTLM Drivers’ Championship standings, and it meant Chevrolet maintained its advantage in the category’s Manufacturers’ standings. Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor finished fifth in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette to retain their lead in the Drivers’ Championship with five races remaining. They hold a 14-point advantage to their No. 4 Corvette teammates. The challenge by the No. 4 Corvette appeared in danger in the opening hour. Milner took the class lead just past the 30-minute mark and the race’s second restart following a full-course caution. He held the position until suffering a flat tire 64 minutes into the race, which brought out another caution.  After slipping back to sixth in class, Milner and Gavin fought for the next two hours in hopes of remaining on the lead lap – at most times running anywhere from two to five seconds ahead of the class leaders. In fact, the entirety of Gavin’s time in the car was spent trying to remain ahead of the leaders – much of it running against lead entries from other GTLM teams. The race came back to the No. 4 with the race’s fourth full-course caution with two hours to go. Gavin drove two full stints under green-flag conditions to keep his car in the hunt, and Milner re-entered with two hours and 50 minutes to go. After the final yellow-flag period, Milner was back on the tail of the GTLM field and retook the lead with 55 minutes to go. A quick stop thanks to fuel savings with 51 minutes left saw him cycle back to second – and ahead of two cars he had been running behind before the final stop sequence – for the stretch run. The Garcia/Taylor pairing saw its two-race win streak come to an end on a challenging day where the midday heat played havoc with the handling and track conditions. A chassis adjustment with less than three hours left helped the balance of the No. 3 Corvette for a final push, but a tire issue late in the going halted a podium challenge.  Corvette Racing’s next event is Sept. 25-27 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED SECOND IN GTLM: “It was a real battle the entire six hours. When I had Antonio behind me, I thought ‘OK he’s in a Corvette and will be a little bit nice to me!’ We managed to pull away from everyone else a little bit and managed it as best we could. It was still tough and hard. Then in the next stint it was the 911 we were battling, and I knew he wasn’t going to be anywhere near as nice. We also had to go to a slightly different tire set, and that made it a little harder. But yes, it was some of the hardest driving I’ve ever done around here – just to stay on the lead lap while we were praying for a caution. We finally got one, and Tommy drove brilliantly to get us back up there toward the front while saving some fuel. We managed to do the undercut with everyone else in pit lane and nearly got the 25; it just looked like at the end that it was in a class of its own. We’ll take second today. It gets us that much closer in the championship. In terms of that, it’s a good day in the championship for Tommy, me and the No. 4 Corvette team. I have to take my hat off to the crew. They did a phenomenal job on all the stops today. They were rock solid. It was a great day for Corvette Racing in that respect.”

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED SECOND IN GTLM: “I’ve never had to push so hard! The last two stints were such big, big pushes and giving it all we had. It didn’t look so great there for a little bit. We were unlucky with the puncture early on, and that set us back quite a bit. Ultimately all we needed was that one yellow, and we got it to get us back in the hunt again. Our Corvette today was super fast. I’m really happy with it… the balance was really, really good all day long. It was a great strategy call at the end. It’s not often that works but I was able to save some fuel in the train of cars there; thanks to Jordan who let me go just before he came in to save me a little more time. I was able to close the gap to the 24 and then threw everything at it for two laps before we stopped. That plus a shorter stop from fuel got us out ahead of the two cars ahead of us. We almost got ahead of the 25. A lot like qualifying, we’ll go back and say, ‘If I had just a second better on my in-lap or braking into the pitlane, maybe that would have put us just ahead.’ Even then the gap to them before we pitted was already big so trying to make up that much time and keep them behind would have been really hard. I’m really happy with the race today. Obviously you want to win, but P2 is great for the points. That’s what it’s going to take – getting all the points we possibly can. I think we may have had a little bit of a tire problem at the end so that yellow really helped us ultimately. But I’m definitely happy with today.”

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED FIFTH IN GTLM: “Definitely not the result we wanted or expected today. The things that broke our way over the last four races didn’t happen today, but that is how it goes sometimes. Today was a classic long-distance GTLM race. I think nearly every car in the class led at one point, including us. The heat of this race made things difficult in the middle, and by the end we didn’t have enough to catch up over a stint. The good news is we have a healthy points advantage, and now Olly and Tommy are second. That’s great for Corvette Racing and Team Chevy. We will move to Mid-Ohio and try to get back on the podium.”

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED FIFTH IN GTLM: “This was a tough day. My stints in the heat were some of the most challenging conditions I think I’ve faced this year. The combination of the heat in the track and the tire compound made it difficult, but we tried to hang in there as best we could. The crew did a great job on pit stops; I don’t know how many spots we gained in the pitlane but it was a lot. Things didn’t go our way today like they had the last two months. We’ll go back, look at the data to see where we can make gains before coming back here in October for Petit Le Mans.”

Anthony Alfredo and the Blue Otter Polarized Chevrolet Team’s Strong Performance at The Track Too Tough to Tame Haulted By On Track Incident

27th    12th  10th

“I’m really proud of my team for bringing such a fast No. 21 Blue Otter Polarized Chevrolet to the race track, even though it was a tough day for us at Darlington Raceway for throwback weekend. On lap two the car bottomed out on the splitter, which caused our Chevrolet to shoot up the track and catch the wall. Fortunately, that was just cosmetic damage and we were able to continue. Our Richard Childress Racing pit crew did a great job getting our Chevy repaired and keeping us in contention. We were able to go to work and pass a lot of cars on track even after our initial incident. My team did a great job of putting us in position late in the race on older tires. We restarted in the fourth position and settled into fifth on older tires, which is a big deal at Darlington. It looked like our strategy was going to play out just fine until I saw the leader wreck. I went high to avoid him, but ran through the same rear end grease he went through and wrecked as well. It’s a shame it tore up a lot of good cars, including ours. It definitely wasn’t the finish we deserved, but I’m extremely proud of all my Richard Childress Racing guys and the speed we continue to bring each week.”  -Anthony Alfredo

JUNCTION CITY, KY (September 4, 2020) – Jonathan Davenport notched his third Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win of the season on Friday Night at Ponderosa Speedway. Davenport, the 3-time and reigning series champion, led all the way in winning the 16th Annual John Bradshaw Memorial and earning his 50th career LOLMDS win. Billy Moyer Jr. finished in second to equal his best career LOLMDS finish. Mike Marlar made a late-race charge on the outside to claim third. Zack Dohm came home fourth with Tim McCreadie coming from 12th to place fifth. Davenport took the lead at the start of the race with Jimmy Owens hot on his heels until the first caution of the race came out with 14 laps scored. The race then saw a long-stretch of green-flag racing as Owens and Moyer Jr. diced it up for second for several laps. A caution with 38 laps scored allowed for a clear track in front of Davenport.   The battle for second saw Moyer Jr. clear Owens. Owens faded to sixth with 12 laps remaining. The final caution appeared with four laps to go, setting up a single-file restart. Davenport opened up breathing room as he flashed across the finish line, beating Moyer Jr. by 1.3 seconds in the final results. Davenport, who raced at Ponderosa a few weeks ago on an off-weekend for the LOLMDS made it two-for-two in his trips over the last month to the Central Kentucky bullring. “Man, it’s been a struggle here for sure. We have had some really good years. We just try to not let the lows get too low. I’ve got to give this win to my guys. They have been working their tails off. Man, I cherish these wins. I didn’t know when I was going to get another one.” Moyer Jr. stayed in the hunt the entire distance and earned yet another podium finish with the series this year. “Congrats to Jonathan on the win. We have a new Capital piece that Marshall Green put together. I know I say it all the time, but those guys are great to work with. We made some changes after hot laps and it turned our night around. So all-in-all in turned out to be a good night.” Marlar came on strong near the end to challenge for the runner-up position. “I was trying to put on a show for the fans. I was really wanting to win one so close to my home. The track was awesome out there tonight, we could move around a little bit. I needed a few more things to go my way on the restarts, but we had a good car at the end for sure.” The winner’s Lance Landers Motorsports Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Cornett Racing Engine and sponsored by Nutrien Ag Solutions, Spartan Mowers, Lucas Oil Products, Penske Shocks, VP Fuels, ASC Warranty, and Midwest Sheet Metal. Completing the top ten were Tyler Erb, Jimmy Owens, Kyle Strickler, Hudson O’Neal, and Kyle Bronson.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series 
Race Summary 
16th Annual John Bradshaw Memorial 
Friday, September 4th, 2020
Ponderosa Speedway – Junction City, KY
Lucas Oil Time Trials
Fast Time Group A: Jonathan Davenport / 13.696 seconds (overall)
Fast Time Group B: David Webb / 13.743 seconds 

Penske Race Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport[1]; 2. 17D-Zack Dohm[3]; 3. 25-Shane Clanton[2]; 4. D8-Dustin Linville[5]; 5. 97-Michael Chilton[4]; 6. 11B-Tommy Bailey[7]; 7. 1GK-Ryan King[6]; 8. 18-David Seibers[8]

FK Rod Ends Heat Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 21-Billy Moyer Jr[2]; 2. 157-Mike Marlar[3]; 3. 1T-Tyler Erb[1]; 4. 11H-Jared Hawkins[5]; 5. 9-Devin Moran[4]; 6. 12J-Jason Jameson[6]; 7. 4G-Kody Evans[7]

Simpson Race Products Heat Race #3 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 20-Jimmy Owens[2]; 2. 13W-David Webb[1]; 3. 81E-Tanner English[5]; 4. 14-Josh Richards[4]; 5. 57M-Cameron Marlar[7]; 6. 1-Earl Pearson Jr[3]; 7. 2S-Stormy Scott[6]; 8. 9G-Larry Greer[8]

Ohlins Shocks Heat Race #4 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 8-Kyle Strickler[1]; 2. 40B-Kyle Bronson[3]; 3. 39-Tim McCreadie[5]; 4. 71-Hudson O’Neal[2]; 5. 1G-Devin Gilpin[4]; 6. 16-Tyler Bruening[6]; 7. 16R-Justin Rattliff[7]

Tiger Rear Ends B-Main #1 Finish (12 Laps, Top 6 Transfer): 1. 97-Michael Chilton[1]; 2. 57M-Cameron Marlar[2]; 3. 9-Devin Moran[3]; 4. 1G-Devin Gilpin[4]; 5. 12J-Jason Jameson[7]; 6. 1-Earl Pearson Jr[6]; 7. 11B-Tommy Bailey[5]; 8. 1GK-Ryan King[9]; 9. 16-Tyler Bruening[8]; 10. 16R-Justin Rattliff[12]; 11. 4G-Kody Evans[11]; 12. 2S-Stormy Scott[10]; 13. 18-David Seibers[13]; 14. 9G-Larry Greer[14]

INDIANAPOLIS (Sept. 4) — For the third time in the last six seasons, the team from NHRA’s West Central Division (Division 5) captured the overall points title at the 36th JEGS Allstars event, held this year at Lucas Oil Raceway.  The victorious team, which shared a $20,000 bonus from JEGS Mail Order, got wins from Trevor Larson (Super Comp), Kris Thies (Super Street), and Allen Firestone (Top Sportsman), to help accumulate 1,300 points, outscoring the competition from the Division 4 team by 300 points. Division 2 tallied 800 points to finish third. The alcohol title was clinched by the Eastern Region after Jackie Fricke drove to the Top Alcohol Dragster title and Dan Pomponio earned a runner-up finish in Top Alcohol Funny Car. Larson, who has the distinction of being the only driver to double-up at the JEGS Allstars race, defeated Division 4 racer Christopher Dodd in what was easily the most memorable final round of the day. On the starting line, Dodd was perfect with a .000 reaction time but his advantage was almost nil since Larson had an equally-competitive .001 light. Larson won with an 8.909 run after Dodd broke out with an 8.873. Thies chipped in with three round wins of his own in Super Street after topping Division 2 racer Kevin MacNicol in a double-breakout final, 10.877 to 10.874. Thies was also stellar on the starting line with two near-perfect reaction times in his three round wins. Firestone, who already has two divisional victories this year, added the JEGS Allstars title when he slipped past defending JEGS Allstars champion Kynon Dinkel in the Top Sportsman final. Firestone also turned in an impressive performance with a 6.561 on his 6.56 dial-in.  The Division 4 team made a strong run at what would have been a record ninth overall championship with strong performances by Comp winner Craig Bourgeois, and Stock  star Slate Cummings. Bourgeois, a past national champion in his front-engine Nostalgia Dragster, won after reigning world champion Frank Aragona Jr. red-lighted in the final. Cummings continued his run of exceptional performances at the JEGS Allstars race with his fifth title. Cummings won in Stock Eliminator after his opponent, Division 5 racer Tyler Wudarczyk, encountered a problem on the starting line and received a foul start.  After just missing out on the Super Stock world championship last year, Division 7 racer Kyle Rizzoli visited the winner’s circle in Indy by beating Division 2’s Mike Crutchfield in the final. Rizzoli drove his Jim Whiteley-owned Camaro to a 9.47 on his 9.45 prediction for the win after Crutchfield broke out. The Super Gas title went to reigning world champ Jeremy Mason of the Division 3 team. Mason got the win light when opponent Vernon Rowland red-lighted. Rowland was one of several drivers to qualify for the Allstars in two classes, racing in Super Comp and Super Gas. Cody Webber picked up the Top Dragster victory over Division 5 racer Victoria Johnson on the strength of a .006 light and a 6.38 on his 6.36 dial. Johnson, a past winner of the Mile-High Nationals in Denver, broke out with a 6.56 on her 6.59 dial. Fricke drove to the Top Alcohol Dragster title by beating Randy Meyer Racing teammates Rachel Meyer and Julie Nataas on the way to the final, where she finished the job with a 5.299 to 5.406 win in a battle against Josh Hart, her East Region teammate. Representing the North Central Region, Ray Drew won his second consecutive JEGS Allstars crown when he stopped Dan Pomponio, 5.500 to 5.591. Each of the JEGS Allstars winners have earned the right to return next year as a blocker for their respective teams. In addition, any driver who goes on to win the Denso Spark Plugs U.S. Nationals title on Sunday will earn a double-up bonus from JEGS Mail Order.

Helio Castroneves claims pole in qualifying for Saturday’s TireRack.com Grand Prix
Second consecutive WeatherTech SportsCar Championship pole for Acura Team Penske
Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evos qualify fourth, sixth in GTD

BRASELTON, Ga. (Sept. 4, 2020) – Helio Castroneves claimed the second consecutive WeatherTech SportsCar Championship pole for Acura Team Penske Saturday at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta; while Shinya Michimi and Misha Goikhberg qualified their Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo’s fourth and six, respectively in the production-based GTD class.

Acura Team Penske
Castroneves took his #7 Acura ARX-05 to the pole in a hard fought 15-minute session, edging the #31 Cadillac prototype of Felipe Nasr by less than a tenth of a second. The pole is the second of the season for Castroneves, and the second consecutive pole for the #7 Acura Team Penske duo of Castroneves and co-driver Ricky Taylor, fastest qualifier last month at Road America.

Defending series champion Dane Cameron took his #6 Acura ARX-05 to third in qualifying, in the car he will share tomorrow with co-driver and fellow defending champion Juan Pablo Montoya.

Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3
Shinya Michimi, third driver for Meyer Shank Racing in the long-distance rounds of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, will start fourth in the GTD category, less than three-tenths of a second off the pole time around the challenging 2.54-mile Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta circuit. He will share his #86 Acura in tomorrow six-hour race with full-season drivers Mario Farnbacher and Matt McMurry.

In the #57 Heinricher Racing with MSR Acura, Misha Goikberg qualified sixth, less than four-tenths of a a second off his teammate, in the NSX GT3 Evo he shares with fellow full-season driver Alvaro Parente and endurance-race driver Trent Hindman.

Where to Watch
Live network television coverage from Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta begins at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, September 5, for one hour on the NBC Sports Network. Coverage will resume on NBCSN from 2:30 p.m. EDT to the finish. Live flag-to-flag race coverage also will be available on the NBC Sports App and NBC Gold with NBCSN Trackpass authentication.

Quotes
Helio Castroneves (#7 Acura Team Penske ARX-05) pole qualifier, his second pole this season and fifth career IMSA pole, third pole of 2020 for Acura Team Penske: “It’s all on the line [in qualifying]. You’ve got great competitors, and you’ve got to push it to the limit. Every time we go out there [for qualifying], for me, it’s great. And every time we achieve something great, doing something that you love, it’s just fun. Tomorrow’s six hours of racing, but again, this is something I love to do.”

Garcia, Milner just miss out on pole in dynamic GTLM qualifying session

BRASELTON, Ga. (Sept. 4, 2020) – Corvette Racing will start second and third in class for the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship’s TireRack.com Grand Prix following a stunning GT Le Mans (GTLM) qualifying session Friday at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Antonio Garcia and Tommy Milner just missed pole position in their Chevrolet Corvette C8.Rs by a whisker ahead of Saturday’s six-hour race. Garcia’s best lap in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R was a 1:16.181 (120.029 mph) effort that ended 0.014 seconds off Nick Tandy’s pole-winning time. Milner was basically Garcia’s equal with a 1:16.212 (119.980 mph) lap in his No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette – just 0.045 seconds off the fastest GTLM lap. The entire GTLM field was within 0.192 seconds at the end of the 15-minute session. It sets up what should be a tantalizing race – the first long-distance event for Corvette Racing since a February round of the World Endurance Championship and the first in IMSA since the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona in January, which also was the debut of the mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette C8.R. Garcia and teammate Jordan Taylor enter as the GTLM Drivers’ Championship co-leaders, as does Chevrolet in the Manufacturers’ standings. The Garcia/Taylor pairing has won three times in the last four races including two in a row. Milner and Oliver Gavin sit third in points with a victory at Sebring in July to their credit. Corvette Racing’s four-race winning streak is its longest since the 2014 season.  The Corvette Racing program has won 10 times at Road Atlanta, eight of those in long-distance endurance rounds. Gavin is IMSA’s winningest active driver at the circuit with five wins, and Taylor is a past IMSA winner at the track, having won twice in a prototype. Road Atlanta is one of the tracks at which Corvette Racing tested the mid-engine C8.R during its development phase, albeit more than a year ago. It has been a good omen so far with victories at Daytona, Sebring, Road America and VIR – all places where the Corvette C8.R was tested in the past. The TireRack.com Grand Prix is scheduled for 11:35 a.m. ET on Saturday with live coverage on NBC Sports Network starting at 11:30 a.m. ET before continuing on Trackpass at 12:30 p.m. and returning to NBCSN at 2:30 p.m. IMSA Radio will have the race on IMSA.com, which also will host live timing and scoring.

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – QUALIFIED SECOND IN GTLM: “I know where those hundredths of a second are! That’s what hurts a little bit. When it’s that close and you don’t know how close they are, you have to guess where pole position is. I knew pole was a 1:16.1 but I didn’t know where in that range of 1:16.1. I knew I had the slowest 1:16.1 you could get, and I still improved by a hundredth on that last lap. I’m sure I could find a tenth on those laps but everyone else can do the same. I really enjoyed this qualifying where it’s all out and you’re really pushing to go for it. It’s a shame it wasn’t enough and being that close. But we probably chose the best race to do this. We have six hours tomorrow to move up. It’s a good start. The Corvette is there. We had reasonably good practice sessions and good data. The cars should be good in the heat so let’s see where we are in the heat. If we win tomorrow by a hundredth then I’ll be good with that!”

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – QUALIFIED THIRD IN GTLM: “When it’s that close, you replay every single lap and you think, ‘If I had done the entry to that one corner the same way on my quick lap, that would have been pole.’ I’m sure every guy in the class had bits and pieces where if you put it all together, it would have been good enough. Congrats to Nick and the 911. They did better job of all of us. This was classic GTLM qualifying with everyone super close. It’s a longer race tomorrow, so qualifying doesn’t matter too much. I think we feel really good about long-run pace based on practice today. It’s certainly good to be toward the front today but I think I’m more excited about the race tomorrow and the pace we have. It was fun to qualify. This track really lends itself to close racing and close lap times between all of us. It should be a good race tomorrow.”

• Mopar Dodge//SRT racers ready to head to the staging lanes for this weekend’s 66th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway near Indianapolis
• Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) set to reach a milestone 350 NHRA national event wins at the U.S. Nationals
• Matt Hagan and Jack Beckman rain-delayed Indy 2 Funny Car final to take place during third qualifying session on Saturday afternoon
• Three HEMI-powered drivers with opportunity leave Indy with two Wally Trophies
• Dodge HEMI® Challenge kicks off the weekend for the fleet of Mopar Dodge//SRT brand entrants
• Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye scheme returns to DSR Funny Car and Top Fuel Dragster of Matt Hagan and Leah Pruett, respectively
• Top-four spots in Funny Car championship standings held by DSR Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat drivers

September 4, 2020, Brownsburg, Ind. – A strong contingent of Mopar and Dodge//SRT entries in both National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Sportsman and Pro Classes have descended upon Lucas Oil Raceway near Indianapolis, Indiana, and are ready to take part in the oldest and most prestigious of drag-racing events, the 66th annual U.S. Nationals. First contested in 1955 and affectionately known as “the Big Go,” the Labor Day weekend staple is expected to be an exciting and memorable one on many fronts.

In his first Funny Car race at the 1970 U.S. Nationals, Don Schumacher, owner of Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), earned his first win at the prestigious event. Now, Fifty years later, at this same venue, he and his team are on the cusp of winning their 350th national event. In fact, DSR is guaranteed to reach that milestone as Matt Hagan and Jack Beckman are set to battle it out in their Dodge Charger SRT Hellcats in the rescheduled (rain-delayed) Indy 2 final round during the third Funny Car qualifying session on Saturday afternoon.

Also of note at this weekend’s event is the rare and unusual chance for three HEMI-powered DSR drivers to come away with two Wally trophies. Hagan and Beckman, who will face off in Saturday’s Funny Car final (Q3), will have another opportunity to vie for victory in Sunday’s eliminations rounds, while Leah Pruett will be competing in both Top Fuel and Factory Stock Showdown for her opportunity to double-up on trophy hardware.
 
However, before the Nitro Class participants even roll out to the staging lanes for the DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA U.S. Nationals on Friday evening, the spotlight shines on the largest gathering of sportsman racers of the season, nearly 900 on the entry list, for the first two days of competition. Mopar and Dodge//SRT continue to underscore their commitment to sportsman racing, all while embracing their drag-racing roots and the historic nature of the U.S. Nationals, by once again lending support to the Dodge HEMI® Challenge, something the FCA brands have done annually since its inaugural event in 2001. 

The 2020 edition of the Dodge HEMI Challenge, a head-to-head competition between vintage 1968 HEMI-powered Dodge Darts and Plymouth Barracudas, kicked off with two rounds of qualifying on Thursday, Sept. 3. The fleet of Darts and ‘Cudas competed for coveted spots on the eliminations ladder in the ever-popular annual dedicated Super Stock/A-HEMI (SS/AH) event. 

Stephen Yantus earned the No.1 qualifier position aboard his ‘68 Cuda with a 8.477 second (158.50 mph) hour pass. Meanwhile, four-time defending winner Jimmy Daniels earned the No.2 spot with his ‘68 Dart with a 8.541 second (155.94 mph) effort as he works to extend his consecutive win streak of 18-0 round wins while eyeing a possible unprecedented fifth consecutive title.
 
Four rounds of eliminations will be contested on Friday, with the final Dodge HEMI Challenge showdown scheduled just prior to Nitro evening qualifying. There will also be a parade of participating Darts and Barracudas down Indy’s fabled return road, led by special guest of honor Herb “Mr. 4 Speed” McCandless, aboard his own original 1968 Super Stock HEMI Dart in celebration of the classic muscle cars that contributed to Mopar and Dodge brands’ legendary reputation and success at the drag strip.

The DSR quartet of Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Cars will then get ready to take their first qualifying passes of the weekend while looking to maintain their top-four positions atop the championship points battle. With elimination of the Countdown to the Championship playoffs due to the pandemic and a reduced schedule, every point earned and every round of racing is crucial. 

Points leader Tommy Johnson Jr., who has 11 round wins and a Wally under his belt this year, would like to add a first U.S. Nationals win to pad that lead, while Beckman, the 2015 national event winner, is hot on his heels in second place with a win of his own and 11 round wins as well.

Ranked third in the Funny Car standings with one win this season, Hagan is back behind the wheel of the “Demon-possessed” Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye-themed race car for a third consecutive event. The fierce-looking red, black and chrome paint scheme are in tribute to the unveiling of the new 797-horsepower Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye, the most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan in the world.

“This is a huge weekend for us going into this U.S. Nationals,” says Hagan, who was No. 1 qualifier five times at the U.S. Nationals (2010, 2013-2014, 2016-2017), with a coveted victory earned in 2016 and a runner-up finish in 2018. “We’ve got two races in one, so we really want to start the weekend off well. As far as points go, we need to win this race because we’re right there on (Jack) Beckman’s heels (in the points). This could be a big weekend, especially with the chance to come away with two wins in one weekend.”

Coming into this weekend fourth in points with a Wally earned at the Dodge NHRA Indy Nationals presented by Pennzoil, Ron Capps, while bolstered by his first win at the Indianapolis drag strip at the previous event, is focused on securing his first U.S. Nationals trophy for what could be his 66th career victory at the 66th edition of the world’s most famous drag race.

In Top Fuel competition, DSR’s Pruett is ranked third in the category and looks to continue to make some gains aboard her Mopar Dodge SRT Hellcat Redeye Top Fuel Dragster.

“It only makes sense to have our most fierce paint scheme yet make its encore appearance at the largest race of the year, the U.S. Nats,” says Pruett, who has taken that same Redeye dragster to two semi-finals appearances prior to this weekend. “The fans have absolutely loved this Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye, both the race car and the street version, and we love giving the fans what they want, especially during these times. But what we really need right now is a win and we have the car, the team, and the consistency for that. We know where we left room for improvement on the table at the last Indy race, and we have a solution for it. I believe that Friday night qualifying is going to set the tone for the weekend and we have a strong setup sheet for that.”

Pruett has two chances to go for a win as she will also go to battle in the Factory Stock Showdown Series, which boasts a 32-car qualifying field this weekend.

“My most favorite memory of the U.S. Nationals actually comes from the Factory Stock category,” says Pruett. “It’s from when I won in my Mopar Dodge Challenger Drag Pak in 2018.”

That year, she and teammate Mark Pawuk had a hard fought showdown in an all-DSR Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak final elimination, from which she emerged victorious for the first of three consecutive wins on her way to her championship title. Pawuk followed up that runner-up effort with a No. 1 qualifier position at last year’s event.

Fans who can’t make it to the 2020 Denso Spark Plugs NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway in person can catch all the action online via NHRA.TV and its subscription-based, video-on-demand coverage of live racing action throughout the weekend. 

Qualifying highlights will be presented on FS1 this Saturday, September 5 from 2-4 p.m. and 10 p.m. to midnight (EDT). NHRA elimination rounds coverage will begin at 11 a.m. Sunday, September 6 on FS1, then moves to the FOX national network from 1-4 p.m. (EDT), which will include LIVE final round action.

Drivers Fredric Aasbo and Ryan Tuerck make competition debut as teammates

ST. LOUIS, Missouri (September 4, 2020) — Papadakis Racing is returning to competition this weekend as Formula Drift opens its adjusted season at World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis, Missouri.

“It’s almost like I can’t believe we’re back at the track,” said driver Fredric Aasbo, who debuts the all new Rockstar Energy Drink Toyota GR Supra in Formula Drift this weekend. “The series is going to look a little different in 2020 and I’m excited to be back and facing the challenge of figuring it all out and putting in the best performance we can as a team.”

WATCH VIDEO: https://youtu.be/DCpUbSxXjyw 

The 2015 series champion, Aasbo has been a member of the Papadakis Racing squad since 2011. This season he is joined by Ryan Tuerck, who takes the helm of the Gumout / Nitto Tire / Mobile1 Toyota Corolla Hatchback.

Fans got their first look at the powerhouse duo in April as the covers came off the team cars for the first time. But a delayed start to the season due to the global pandemic means this weekend marks the first time teammates Aasbo and Tuerck will compete together under the same tent.

“I’m feeling really good about the upcoming season,” said Tuerck. “We’ve had a chance to get out and run a couple of test sessions as a team and I’m feeling like the cars will be at 100 percent when we hit the track here in St. Louis.”

The adjusted schedule will see the Formula Drift series run a full calendar of eight points-scoring rounds over four doubleheader weekends this fall. A condensed weekend schedule will keep the pressure on drivers and teams. 

Practice opportunities are limited, and the single-car qualification runs that typically take place the day before the main competition will be replaced with a draw. With less seat time for drivers, there is the potential for shakeups as drivers meet door-to-door for the first time on Saturday during the Round of 32. 

Even so, Aasbo said the strategy doesn’t change. “The plan is still essentially what it always has been,” said Aasbo. “We’re going to keep focused on having a cool head going into every turn, every battle, every day, and every weekend.”

This weekend’s doubleheader competition will be streamed on Formula Drift channels, with the Round 1 Pro competition live broadcast starting at 11:45 a.m. (local time) on Saturday before the Round of 32. Opening ceremonies are scheduled for 4 p.m. It starts all over again for Round 2 on Sunday at 11:45 a.m.

Taking a lead from other racing series including NASCAR and IndyCar, Formula Drift has implemented a host of safety precautions for the weekend, including a requirement for face coverings and social distancing measures. 

Although the competition arena might look a little different in 2020, Tuerck said he’s happy to be back. “I’m such a huge fan of motorsports that when racing first came back on TV this year, I was really happy and I realized it’s a huge stress reliever to be able to watch competition,” he said. “I’m stoked we’re getting back out there and bringing the show to the fans.”

FORMULA DRIFT 2020 COMPETITION SCHEDULE

Round 1 & 2: September 4-6 // World Wide Technology Raceway (St. Louis, MO)

Round 3 & 4: September 25-26 // Evergreen Speedway (Seattle, WA)

Round 5 & 6: October 16-18 // Texas Motor Speedway (Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX)

Round 7 & 8: November 20-22 // Irwindale Speedway (Los Angeles, CA)

Each round will be streamed live. Formula Drift is a partner of CBS Sports.

Aasbo is the most winning driver in Formula Drift history, with 13 career victories. He joined Papadakis Racing in 2011 and earned the series crown in 2015. He started his Formula Drift career in 2010 as a privateer in a Mark IV Supra and comes full circle this season as he takes the helm of his all new Toyota GR Supra.

Tuerck is a leading social influencer and top-tier driver with a career 14 podiums. His down-home charm, commitment to the sport’s grassroots, and talent in front of the camera have brought him a social fanbase of over a million followers. Earlier this year, he retired his previous chassis, a powerful Toyota 86.

The Papadakis Racing team began drifting in 2004 and is the most winning team in Formula Drift history, earning the 2015 title with driver Aasbo, as well as back-­to-­back championship titles with driver Tanner Foust in 2007 and 2008.

Expanded Coverage of the ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series and Lucas Oil Off Road Series Along with Late Model Dirt and Pro Pulling League Featured This Month

Lucas Oil Racing TV (LORTV) has announced the network’s September LIVE broadcast schedule will commence with three days of racing drama from Lucas Oil Speedway for The 10th Annual General Tire Jesse Hockett/Daniel McMillin Memorial Presented By Lucas Oil, which runs September 17, 18 and 19. This race marks the ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series’ first appearance at the “Diamond of Dirt Tracks” during its 2020 tour. The POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprint Car Series is also running in memory of Jesse Hockett and Daniel McMillin, coverage from both classes will air LIVE on LORTV. Please note, the September 19 telecast of the POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprints is available for yearly LORTV subscribers only.  Yearly Lucas Oil Racing TV subscribers will also have exclusive access to LIVE coverage of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series OPTIMA Batteries I-80 Late Model Nationals Presented By General Tire from I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, Nebraska, on September 17, 18 and 19.  Following the series’ first three-day tripleheader at Lucas Oil Speedway, the Lucas Oil Off-Road Racing Series (LOORRS) will make its way to Chandler, Arizona, for rounds six, seven and eight of The Super Clean Duel In the Desert Presented By Toyota. LIVE telecasts from Wild Horse Pass are scheduled to air September 18, 19 and 20.    Closing out the month’s LIVE broadcast are two consecutive telecasts of the Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League from Lucas Oil Speedway on September 25 and 26, The General Tire Pro Pulling Nationals Presented By K&N Filters. Lucas Oil Racing TV will also have LIVE coverage of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series The Super Clean Night Before The Jackson 100 Presented By Dixie Chopper on September 25 and The Super Clean 41st Annual Jackson 100 Presented By Dixie Chopper on September 26 from Brownstown Speedway in Brownstown, Indiana, available for yearly subscribers.

In addition to this LIVE broadcasts, motorsport fans can choose from more than 5,400 shows across 90 different categories, all available 24/7 on-demand on the Lucas Oil Racing TV platform.

Both returning and new subscribers can log directly onto LucasOilRacing.TV and watch the action from the convenience of their browser. Additionally, Lucas Oil Racing TV is available on all the most popular streaming devices like ROKU, Apple iOS, Android devices, Amazon Fire TV, Google Chromecast, Google Play, Xbox One, and more. A full list of supported devices can found HERE.

CHEVROLET AT INDIANAPOLIS What: Denso Spark Plugs NHRA U.S. Nationals at IndyWhen: Saturday, September 5th – Sunday, September 6thWhere: Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis, IndianaTV:    FS1 will telecast qualifying from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm ET Saturday with final eliminations on Sunday broadcast on FS1 at 11:00 am ET to 1:00 pm and on FOX starting at 1:00 pm ET                                                                                       Chevrolet looks to make it three wins in a row at Indy in Pro Stock
Coughlin, Line, Enders all with victories, separated by 77 points for overall lead
DETROIT (September 4, 2020) – As the Pro Stock division descends upon Indianapolis for its third straight event at Lucas Oil Raceway, that doesn’t diminish the fact that the U.S. Nationals is still the most prestigious weekend in the NHRA Mello Yello Series. The traditional Labor Day Weekend event also nicknamed the “Big Go”, may be a bit shorter in on-track activity, but still a momentous victory for teams and drivers. 
Chevrolet Pro Stock drivers Jeg Coughlin Jr., Jason Line and Erica Enders, have all visited victory lane at least once this season and sit 1-2-3 atop the standings.  Coughlin Jr., who took his JEGS.com Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro to victory circle for the second time of the year at the most recent Indy event, leads Line by 44 points. Line, driver of the Summit Chevrolet Camaro for KB Racing, and Coughlin Jr. both will retire from full time competition at the end of the season. 
We’ve certainly had a wonderful run of late, including here in Indy,” said Jeg Jr., “It would be wonderful to close things out with another U.S. Nationals victory. I know everyone working on the JEGS.com Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro has that same opinion. It’s been an unusual year to say the least but it has allowed us to race a few extra times at Indy, which is a track my family has enjoyed for decades, dating all the way back to when my father raced here. We were fortunate enough to win the last race here three weeks ago, so we feel very optimistic about our chances going into the event. We’re taking every round as if it’s our last.”
Reigning Pro Stock Champion, Erica Enders, scored her first and only victory of 2020 at Phoenix in her Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro earlier this year.  Enders, a 26-time winner on the Pro Stock circuit also earned a win in the U.S. Nationals in 2015. She currently sits 77 points back of teammate Coughlin Jr.
FOX will telecast eliminations and finals live at 1:00 p.m. ET Sunday, September 6th.
CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPITPRO STOCK:BO BUTNER, JIM BUTNER AUTO GROUP, STRUTMASTERS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS: “I’m really looking forward to this weekend. It’s a home race for us, and we’ve got a lot happening in our pit area and on the track. It’s going to be a really fun weekend, but of course you always go to a race to win. I’ve never won the U.S. Nationals in any class, and it’s time to change that.” 
JASON LINE, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS: “This should be an interesting race, and it’s certainly one I’ve been looking forward to. The U.S. Nationals are special for a lot of reasons – we’ve had a lot of fun there in the past, both with KB Racing and with my Stocker. But since this is my last season as a Pro Stock driver, it’s also my final opportunity to win a U.S. Nationals trophy in the class. I’d like to be able to do that this weekend with my Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro, and I think we’re in good shape to do it.”
GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS: “This has always been a very special race for us. I love racing at Indy, it’s my favorite racetrack. None of the magic of the U.S. Nationals has been lost for me; it’s still a big one. It’s always been a race I look forward to, and that certainly hasn’t changed this year. To do well there means everything.” 

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE COOK OUT SOUTHERN 500 DARLINGTON RACEWAY DARLINGTON, SC SEPTEMBER 6, 2020
DARLINGTON: RACE #27With the end of the regular season in the books, the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) makes their Labor Day weekend visit to Darlington Raceway for the 71st running of the Cook Out Southern 500 on Sunday, September 6, at 6:00 p.m. ET. This will be the third appearance at the 1.366-mile venue dubbed the track “Too Tough to Tame” and “The Lady in Black” for NASCAR’s premier this series as the track previously hosted NASCAR’s ‘return to racing’ after the halt in season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The holiday weekend event marks the 27th race on the NCS schedule and the first of the 10-race Playoff stretch as drivers compete to be crowned the title of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. This is the first time in history that the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs has started at Darlington Raceway. 
Joining the NASCAR Cup Series in the popular ‘throwback theme’ race weekend, Darlington Raceway will also host the NASCAR Xfinity Series Sports Clips Haircuts VFW 200 on Saturday September 5, at 12:30 P.M ET and the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series South Carolina Education Lottery 200 on Sunday, September 6, at 2:00 p.m. ET. A limited number of fans will be in attendance for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series event, complying to all safety measures and protocols in place. 
BOWTIE BULLETS·       Of the 118 appearances made by NASCAR’s premier series at Darlington Raceway, a Chevrolet has sat on the pole 22 times. The most recent Chevrolet pole winner was William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Throwback Camaro ZL1 1LE, who led the field to the green at the 2019 Southern 500, also making him the youngest polesitter at the track to-date (09/01/2019 – 21 years, 9 months, 3 days). 
·       Other Chevrolet statistics of note at the 1.366-mile track includes 188 top-five finishes, 395 top-10’s and 13,581 laps led.  ·       Current Chevrolet drivers that have recorded wins at Darlington Raceway include:Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Throwback Camaro ZL1 1LE, with 3 wins (2004 sweep, 2012)Matt Kenseth, No. 42 McDelivery Camaro ZL1 1LE, with 1 win (May 2013)
·       Hendrick Motorsports leads all organizations in NASCAR Cup Series wins at Darlington Raceway with 14 victories among six drivers: Tim Richmond (1986), Ricky Rudd (1991), Jeff Gordon (1995, ’96 sweep, ’97, ’98, ’02, ’07), Terry Labonte (2003), Jimmie Johnson (2004 sweep and 2012) and Mark Martin (2009).
·       Prior to the 2020 season, Darlington Raceway has held only one race during the Playoffs, which dates back to the start of Playoffs in 2004. The event was won by Chevrolet and Hendrick Motorsports driver Jimmie Johnson. 
BACK IN TIMEThe famed “Too Tough to Tame” racetrack has been staple event on the NCS schedule since its inaugural race on September 5, 1955, in which Herb Thomas, piloting a Chevrolet Bel Air, took the Bowtie Brand to victory lane. Of the 118 races held at the 1.366-mile egg-shaped racetrack, Chevrolet has scored 41 wins, more than any other manufacturer. Twenty different Chevrolet drivers and teams have added their names to the win history book. Career Chevrolet driver Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Throwback Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads all active drivers at “The Lady in Black” with three (2004 sweep, 2012), making him only one of three active drivers to be a multiple race winner at the track. 
PLAYOFF FIELD IS SETFollowing the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway, round 26 of 36 races in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, 16 drivers have now qualified to compete in the 10-race NCS Playoffs that will ultimately determine the 2020 NCS champion. Five of the 16 Playoff contenders are Team Chevy Drivers. 
There are three rounds of Playoffs (3 races per round) in the 2020 format, plus one final championship-crowning season finale. Four drivers will be eliminated following each round of three.

• Sept. 6 at Darlington, Sept. 12 at Richmond, and Sept. 19 at Bristol – 16 drivers
• Sept. 27 at Las Vegas, Oct. 4 at Talladega, and Oct. 11 at Charlotte Road Course – 12 drivers
• Oct. 18 at Kansas, Oct. 25 at Texas, and Nov. 1 at Martinsville – 8 drivers
• Nov. 8 Championship race at Phoenix – 4 drivers

 Heading into the Darlington race weekend, here are where the Team Chevy drivers rank to kick off the 2020 NCS Playoffs:  Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Throwback Camaro ZL1 1LE – 5th in Standings (2,020 points)Victories: 2 (Charlotte Motor Speedway and Daytona Road Course)Top-Fives: 10; Top-10’s: 15; Laps Led: 530; Average Finish: 12.8Stage Wins: 6; Stage Top-Five’s: 18; Stage Top-10’s: 35 Alex Bowman, No. 88 ChevyGoods.com/Truck Hero Camaro ZL1 1LE – 8th in Standings (2,009 points)Victories: 1 (Auto Club Speedway)Top-Fives: 3; Top-10’s: 8; Laps Led: 388; Average Finish: 17.0Stage Wins: 4; Stage Top-Five’s: 13; Stage Top-10’s: 28 William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Throwback Camaro ZL1 1LE – 9th in Standings (2,007 points)Victories: 1 (Daytona International Speedway)Top-Fives: 2; Top-10’s: 9; Laps Led: 97; Average Finish: 16.1Stage Wins: 2; Stage Top-Five’s 8; Stage Top-10’s: 23 Austin Dillon, No. 3 American Ethanol Camaro ZL1 1LE – 10th in Standings (2,005 points)Victories: 1 (Texas Motor Speedway) Top-Fives: 2; Top-10’s 7; Laps Led: 80; Average Finish: 16.9Stage Top-Five’s: 3; Stage Top-10’s: 13 Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE – 15th in Standings (2,001 points)Top-Fives: 4; Top-10’s: 14; Laps Led: 91; Average Finish: 13.4Stage Wins: 1; Stage Top-Five’s: 5; Stage Top-10’s: 21 STARTING LINEUPFor the remainder of the 2020 NCS season, the race weekend format will consist of no practice or qualifying. The starting lineup for Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500 will be set by a combination of the following metrics from the previous event: 15% of a fastest lap time position, 25% of the driver’s final race finish position, 25% of the owner’s final race position and 35% of the owner points position. Chase Elliott will lead the field to the green from the pole position in his No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Throwback Camaro ZL1 1LE.  Here are Team Chevy’s top-20 starters:           1st      Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Throwback Camaro ZL1 1LE           3rd      William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Throwback Camaro ZL1 1LE           4th      Alex Bowman, No. 88 ChevyGoods.com/Truck Hero Camaro ZL1 1LE          12th    Austin Dillon, No. 3 American Ethanol Camaro ZL1 1LE          16th    Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE          17th    Bubba Wallace, No. 43 Cash App Camaro ZL1 1LE TUNE-INNBCSN will telecast the 367-lap, 501.3-mile Cook Out Southern 500 live at 6:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, September 6th. Live coverage can also be found on the NBC Sports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.  QUOTABLE QUOTES:CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS THROWBACK CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 5th IN STANDINGS“I am looking forward to the playoffs. I think these last 10 races are going to be super interesting and I look forward to the challenges myself and the NAPA team have ahead of us. It’s going to be a tough 10 for sure. We will have to bring our best to compete and I think we can do that. We just have to be consistent and be up front every week.” ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM/TRUCK HERO CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 8th IN STANDINGSBOWMAN ON THE 2020 PLAYOFFS:“Everything resets this weekend. As a team, we have to regroup and use the momentum from the last two races to start the playoffs strong. We have shown that we are capable of wins and we have shown we can move on in the playoffs. This No. 88 team and everyone at Hendrick Motorsports has been preparing for the playoffs since our win in California, so I am ready to get underway this weekend in Darlington.” BOWMAN ON CAPITALIZING AT DARLINGTON: “Earlier this year we had some good runs at Darlington. The first race back from the brief pause, was really good for us as a team. We finished second and really capitalized on stage points. Our goal for Sunday is to do the same thing. We need to have a solid race, earn stage points and get a good finish at the end of the night to start these playoffs off right.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY THROWBACK CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 9th IN STANDINGSBRYON ON RACING AT DARLINGTON: “Hopefully, we can have a good race and execute really well. Darlington is a really tough racetrack but luckily we’ve been there twice already this year. I have a pretty good idea of what the track is going to feel like and how it’s going to drive and handle. It definitely is a very temperature-sensitive track and it’s going to be warmer than when we were there in May. It rubbers up a lot, especially up by the wall. You have to move your line around and try to avoid the rubber at times until it covers the full track. Once it does, you can run wherever your car handles the best. It’s a balancing act of trying to chase clean track and trying to find good racetrack to run on.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 10th IN STANDINGSWHAT WILL IT TAKE TO ADVANCE TO EACH ROUND OF THE NASCAR PLAYOFFS AND VIE FOR A CHAMPIONSHIP THIS YEAR?“Over the years, running in the NASCAR Playoffs I’ve figured out that every point does matter, so I think you have to attack from the opening green flag. Stage points are important. In 2016, I missed advancing to the Round of 8 by one point over Denny Hamlin. That really makes you realize how important every single point is. It does help that the Playoff drivers will all be starting the races towards the front of the field together, but as a team we need to do a good job of starting up front and keeping that track position. Throughout the season so far, we have done a good job of adjusting our car throughout the race and finishing well but we need to start our races with our Chevys just a little better so that we can put ourselves in the next round.” HOW DOES DARLINGTON SUIT YOUR RACING STYLE?“I think long races in the past have fit my racing style. There is plenty of time to make the car better during a long race, and all of our wins have come in races 500 miles or more. So, I think that bodes well for Darlington. We like the long-distance races and it’s a place that falls off. RCR has always been known for a long run speed. Short run speed is something that we’ve struggled with, but we’re trying to change. It’s nice that we’re going to place that long run speed matters a bit.” TALK ABOUT HOW SPECIAL IT IS TO RUN A JUNIOR JOHNSON TRIBUTE SCHEME THIS WEEKEND AT DARLINGTON RACEWAY.  “This Junior Johnson car means so much to me and I’m grateful to American Ethanol to be able to work with them to honor a NASCAR Hall of Famer this weekend. It’s a beautiful car. I grew up going to school with Junior’s kids and Junior came to our school and spoke to us when I was in middle school. He was a hero to me and when he came and spoke to us, he took me aside and talked to me because he knew my grandfather, obviously. He was nice and always a great person to be around. My mom and Lisa Johnson are very close friends. They talk all the time, so to do this throwback for Junior is very special. My grandfather is pumped about it, too. Darlington Raceway would be a great place to grab a win to honor Junior, solidify our place in the NASCAR Playoffs and earn our third Crown Jewel race. It would be special.”
KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 15th IN STANDINGS“The first race in the Playoffs! I love the excitement and the focus from all of our team members. The car that we are bringing to Darlington went to the wind tunnel an extra time and our setup will be what we had from last year’s race. That car ran up front and led a bunch of laps, that is what we’ll have underneath the Monster Energy Camaro again this Sunday. it’s just a matter of executing as a team and having smooth day on pit road. Pit stops are a huge part of Darlington with all the tire wear and the abrasive surface of that track. Each pit stop is that important towards the end of the race; if we have that, a good set-up and make smart decisions we should be in good shape. The racetrack it just old school Darlington, which means we just have to race the track as much as the other cars. Darlington is a great place to kick-off the Playoffs!” TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CAT POWER CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 19th IN STANDINGSWE’RE HEADED BACK TO DARLINGTON RACEWAY THIS WEEK, BUT IT’LL BE A MUCH LONGER RACE FOR YOU THIS TIME AROUND. HOW ARE YOU PREPARING FOR THAT?“Well, based on the two races we had at Darlington earlier this year, I need to avoid hitting both the wall and things that come off the wall. That sponsor banner that came off the wall and got stuck on the grill of my Caterpillar Chevrolet during the first race there back in May completely messed up the handling of it. The handling got so bad that I got into the wall too, and that didn’t help things either. So, I need to avoid both those things. 360-plus laps at Darlington is a long time with lots of opportunity to have success, but also a lot of opportunities to receive a Darlington stripe. Everything will be important on Sunday, and we’ll need to run a perfect race. Adapting to the changing track conditions as the rubber comes in throughout the night will be key to being successful.” CAN YOU TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR THROWBACK SCHEME YOU’LL BE RUNNING THIS WEEKEND? “We’re running a scheme on our No. 8 Cat Power Chevrolet that honors longtime Caterpillar driver, Jeff Burton, and his rookie season. Jeff also ran the No. 8 during his rookie year and captured Rookie of the Year honors, so our scheme highlights the Raybestos scheme that he accepted the trophy with. I love participating in NASCAR’s Throwback weekend and really appreciate all the history in our sport, so I’m looking forward to having a good run with our scheme on Sunday.” 

NOT The European Finals presented by STPSanta Pod RacewayFri.11 – Sun.13 September 2020 The crackle and bark of blown fuel drag racing ricochets once more around Santa Pod Raceway next weekend. Fans starved of nitro’s sensory spectator experience will have their patience rewarded as Top Fuel Dragsters and Funny Cars return to action for the first time in a year. The weekend was scheduled to host the European Finals, the biggest drag race on the calendar, when racers would pour in from across the continent to decide the season’s FIA/FIM European championships. Covid-19 put an end to that, forcing the cancellation of all national and international competitions and series. In its place, Santa Pod unveils NOT The European Finals presented by STP, a socially-distanced version of the big race in miniature – yet not so miniature: the current entry list stands at a respectable 181 cars and motorcycles, with entrants from no fewer than six continental countries (down from the usual 16 or 17) praying that quarantine regulations will work in their favour. Making the big noise at the head of the programme are a pair of nitro-burning Top Fuel Dragsters, three nitro Funny Cars and a trio of historic-style Nostalgia Funnies. It will be exactly a year since fuel cars last pounded the Santa Pod track. Starring in match-race action, the weekend’s Top Fuel stars are Susanne Callin, representing the UK, and Finland’s Antti Horto. Callin, who holds the unique distinction of world’s first 300mph teenager, returned to the track last year after a 14-year family-life break. Like her, Horto cut his racing teeth in the Junior Dragster class and makes his first Santa Pod appearance since finishing second in 2018’s European Top Fuel championship. Friday’s traditional evening twilight session, which sees fuel cars visually and audibly at their most spectacular, will feature a novel match-race pitting the Nostalgia Funny Cars against their modern-day counterparts, an old-versus-new contest with David-and-Goliath overtones. The supporting programme includes a full range of Sportsman classes on two and four wheels, including Top Fuel Bikes, plus exhibition Jet Cars, a Monster Truck and stunt driving and riding displays. For a few quiet – but no less quick – seconds, Denmark’s Hans-Henrick Thomsen will attempt a quarter-mile world record on an electric drag bike. Santa Pod began hosting behind-closed-doors events in early July, and ventured into “covid-compliant venue” territory with paying spectators admitted from the end of that month, all under the strictest local authority scrutiny. Immense efforts have been made to ensure that social-distancing, hygiene and safety measures are maintained, with the local authority reviewing risk assessments in detail every week. Accordingly, spectator numbers are limited and all tickets must be booked in advance, online at santapodtickets.com or by telephone at 01234 782828. There will be no ticket sales on the gate. As usual, under-16s are admitted free (up to three per paying adult) and socially-distanced overnight camping is also free. NOT The European Finals takes place at Santa Pod Raceway, near Wellingborough (NN29 7XA) from Friday 11^th to Sunday 13^th September. Full event information is available online at santapod.co.uk/nottheeurofinals.php. Sunday’s fuel car runs will finish by 4pm, allowing families to head home in time for a school start next day. Fingers in ears, please, and hold on to your hats. It’s getting fast, furious and loud again at Santa Pod. 

Inside Line Promotions – GREENWOOD, Neb. (Sept. 3, 2020) – Dominic Scelzi is looking forward to a big weekend at Huset’s Speedway.

Scelzi captured a runner-up result at the high-banked oval in Brandon, S.D., approximately a month ago. He returns this weekend for a $20,000-to-win World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series doubleheader that runs Saturday and Sunday.

“I’m really excited to head back to Huset’s Speedway this weekend,” he said. “We had a great run there during our debut a few weeks ago. We were coming on strong at the end of the race so hopefully we can start this weekend where we ended that night and be a contender right out of the box.”

Scelzi won a heat race and finished second in both a dash and the main event during an Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions race at Huset’s Speedway on Aug. 2. This weekend his sights are set on topping his season-best World of Outlaws result of ninth, which he earned a little more than one week ago.

Scelzi is also eager to get back to the track following a frustrating weekend with the World of Outlaws. He qualified 21^st quickest before advancing from seventh to sixth place in a heat race and from 18 ^th to 14^th in the main event last Saturday at U.S. 36 Raceway in Osborn, Mo. Unfortunately, Sunday’s show at I-80 Speedway was a rough one for the team.

“We had mechanical problems and blew a tire so it was just a tough night,” Scelzi said. “We weren’t able to finish either the heat race or B Main despite being in a transfer position in both races. We’re looking forward to rebounding this weekend a

NASCAR CUP SERIES COOK OUT SOUTHERN 500 DARLINGTON RACEWAY TEAM CHEVY PLAYOFFS MEDIA DAY SEPTEMBER 3, 2020
 ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM/TRUCK HERO CAMARO ZL1 1LE – ROTATION TRANSCRIPT:
ASIDE FROM YOURSELF, WHO DO YOU THINK IS SORT OF A ‘DARK HORSE’ OR A SURPRISE DRIVER THAT CAN MAKE A RUN IN THESE PLAYOFFS?“That’s a good question – I wish you would have left out the ‘aside from myself’ (laughs). Honestly, I think William Byron, just coming off of a win, could be really strong. I feel like as a team, everybody at HMS has picked up lately – been faster, been having some goods runs. So, I think any of the HMS cars can be really strong. I don’t think anybody really considers Chase Elliott a ‘dark horse’. I can’t pick myself, so I’ll go with William.”
CAN YOU EXPLAIN THE CHALLENGE OF MAXIMIZING TIME ON PIT ROAD AND DO IT WITHOUT A PIT ROAD SPEEDING PENALTY? I DON’T THINK YOU’VE HAD A SPEEDING PENALTY THIS YEAR AND JUST HOW YOU’VE BEEN ABLE TO MANAGE THAT. IS THERE A TRUE SKILL THERE OR IS IT JUST RUDIMENTARY IN JUST LOOKING AT WHAT THE LIGHTS TELL YOU TO DO? “Yeah, it’s pretty rudimentary, as far as being able to look at what lights tell you to do. There’s a lot of different settings that you can do with your dash and how you choose to react to what the lights are saying. A Cup car doesn’t drive smoothly at those speeds and the pit roads aren’t perfectly smooth. The lights jump around a lot, basically. If you want the lights accurate, they jump around a lot. If you make them not jump around, they aren’t very accurate. So, just finding what works for you as a driver in that sense is really important. But also, curved pit roads throw another element in. Segments throw another element in. It’s all really based off of time, it’s not really based off mph. So, sometimes tracks will have one fast segment that you’re not really speeding up – the segment’s technically just wrong, but everybody has to deal with it. There’s a lot of factors to it. It’s really tough on a busy pit road trying not to run into people, trying to hit your pit box well. It’s definitely important, but it’s a big risk versus reward. Like if you have a green flag speeding penalty, it’s a huge, huge deficit for the rest of your day, especially at a speedway race. So, there are times to push and times not to push, for sure.”
THE SUMMER MONTHS WEREN’T VERY GOOD TO YOU, BUT YOU’RE COMING OFF A TOP-FIVE AND A TOP-10 AT DAYTONA AND DOVER. WHERE DO YOU FEEL LIKE THE 88 TEAM STANDS RIGHT NOW? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON DARLINGTON CONSIDERING YOU FINISHED SECOND THERE IN THE FIRST RACE THIS YEAR?“Yeah, you’re right – the summer was pretty rough on us. We started the season really strong. Coming back from the COVID-19 (break), we were still really strong and it fell off really hard for the summer. Trying to identify why that happened, what we did wrong and getting better over the last couple of weeks, especially. So, I think we’re in a good place going into the Playoffs.”“Darlington, for us, we were really fast there the first two races this year. The first race we finished second. The second race we had a way better race car. I started racing my competitors instead of the race track and hit the fence, so that’s on me to not do this time. But I think we can be really strong and have a really good day. I think each and every week during the Playoffs we’re going to be really good, but Darlington is one that we had circled that we can be really strong at, for sure.”
LOOKING AT THE THREE OF YOU BEING IN AND JIMMIE (JOHNSON) NOT BEING IN, IS JIMMIE GOING TO CONTINUE TO WORK HIS JOB AS A DRIVER COACH TO TRY TO GET YOU GUYS THE BEST OPPORTUNITY FOR ONE OF THE HENDRICK CARS TO WIN A CHAMPIONSHIP?“Yeah, I think so. Jimmie (Johnson) is an open book. We all know the type of person that he is and how much of a help he is to really anybody that asks him – he’s willing to help. I’m very appreciative to have him to lean on and to be able to learn from him. There’s nobody that has gone through probably this Playoff situation and succeeded in it as much as him. Hopefully, we can learn for him. We all want to see him go out on top and win races. I don’t think there’s a driver in the field that doesn’t want to see him win races before he completes his last full-time season. It’s really cool to be able to lean on him and to learn from him, regardless of the Playoff situation. I’m just really thankful to have him as a teammate.”
EACH ONE OF THESE ROUNDS HAS A REALLY TOUGH CUTOFF RACE – A WILD CARD. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE ROUND ONE CUTOFF AT BRISTOL?“I think Bristol is pretty unique, just with how much the racetrack changes, the VHT and how that effects it, and how hard it is to pass. I mean you can be way faster than a guy and still not be able to pull off a pass. With the way the bumpers line up these days and the way the race cars drive in traffic, it’s just as hard to move somebody else out of the way as it is to pass. Just trying to have a good race car there – obviously our day got cut really short there in the spring. Not really knowing how the race is going to go and not having great notes to lean on, but our teammates were really strong. So, being able to lean on their notes will be good. But it’s definitely a wild card, for sure.”
YOU’RE STARTING UP FRONT IN THE SECOND ROW NEXT TO WILLIAM (BYRON) AND BEHIND CHASE (ELLIOTT). I KNOW IT’S A LONGER RACE, BUT HOW CRITICAL IS IT TO GET TO THE FRONT TO THAT CLEAN AIR SINCE YOUR CAR IS SUITED TO LONG RUNS?“Yeah, it’s hard to say. We don’t really know if our car is going to be suited to long runs or not until we get there. I feel like each week is a little bit different. The end of some of the long runs at Darlington in May, we were definitely falling off harder than we wanted to be. But we were really fast on the short runs. I think that’s a racetrack that you really just have to race the track. Kind of like I said before, the second race, I got caught up racing somebody else, drove it right into the fence and did a really bad job. So, we just need to race the racetrack and be there at the end. It’s such a long day – it’s a really long 500 miles. Being there at the end with a clean race car is super crucial.”
AS AN ARIZONA BOY, WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION WHEN YOU HEARD THE CHAMPIONSHIP WAS GOING TO BE HELD AT PHOENIX AND WHAT WOULD IT MEAN TO YOU TO MAKE THE CHAMPIONSHIP FOUR AT YOUR HOME TRACK?“It would mean the world to me to make the Championship Four and try to win a championship in Arizona. That would be really special. That racetrack has kind of a love-hate relationship with me. Obviously, we’ve had some strong runs there in the past, but the last couple of years have been pretty awful there. We haven’t had a good day there period really since 2016. So, we’ve got our work cut out for us. We’ve improved that program of ours and try to go be stronger there. But I think it’s really cool. It’s a cool atmosphere. The fans there are awesome – the campground there is awesome. I feel like it’s kind of an underrated atmosphere, as far as the racetracks go. Just excited to get there and happy for them to be hosting the final four.”
THERE’S SPECULATION OUT THERE THAT MAYBE YOU’RE A CANDIDATE TO TAKE OVER THE NO. 48 FOR JIMMIE JOHNSON. WONDERING IF YOU’VE HAD THOSE CONVERSATIONS AND THAT SPECULTAION IS ACCURATE?“Man, I don’t know. I have no clue – nobody has talked to me. I’m just here to drive the race car. I’m focused on Darlington and going to Darlington to go try and win. As far as I know, I’m driving the 88 car and that’s what I’m focused on doing.”
IN THIS TIME PERIOD WITH NO PRACTICE AND, OF COURSE, DEALING WITH THE PANDEMIC, HOW HAVE YOU KEPT YOURSELF UPBEAT IN THIS TIME PERIOD? WITH THE PLAYOFFS STARTING AT DARLINGTON, YOU GUYS ARE GOING THERE FOR THE THIRD TIME. WHAT KEY WILL IT TAKE TO GET THAT WIN? I KNOW YOU WERE BATTLING WITH (KEVIN) HARVICK BACK IN MAY.“I think everybody that’s been around me kind of knows that staying upbeat, for me, is a little tough when things aren’t going well. The summer was rough on us, for sure, but good runs for me cures that – running up front and contending for wins. So, just trying to run the best that we can and we’ve had some good runs here lately. When things are going well, it’s pretty easy for me to stay upbeat. We definitely miss the fans and the pandemic has changed a lot of things for us, but it’s pretty awesome that we’re kind of back on schedule with where the season is.”
“Going to Darlington, just being there at the end with a clean race car is going to be crucial to try and win that race. The first race there in May, we really weren’t very happy with our race car and we were still really fast. The second race, we were much better. Had to start in the back and drove to the front way quicker than the other people that started as far back as we did. Just got greedy and hit the wall. So, you can’t be greedy, you’ve got to race the racetrack and be there at the end.”
YOU KEEP TALKING ABOUT THE SUMMER MONTHS AND THINGS KIND OF GOT OFF TRACK. WAS IT JUST SOMETHING WHERE THE SPEED JUST DISAPPEARED? WERE YOU GUYS TRYING ANYTHING? HOW WOULD YOU EXPLAIN BASICALLY COMING OUT OF THE GATE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR LIKE GANGBUSTERS AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN, IT JUST SLOWLY STARTED TO GO AWAY? “I think, for us, the tracks we went to, the tire we were on and the weather really affected us more than we anticipated. Our race car was just really unhappy when it got hot and slick through the summer months, and the speed was gone. We went to the racetracks that we thought we were going to go and dominate at – like Homestead, Kansas, places that we thought we would be awesome at, especially with how we started the year at Vegas, Fontana, Charlotte and Darlington. We were terrible, struggled. Kansas, I think we finished eighth or something, but we ran 25th all day and it was all I could do not to crash for the majority of the race – we were so loose. I don’t think we were trying anything. If we were, they didn’t tell me. I wish we were, I wish we could just point it out and be like ‘yeah, we were trying stuff. It’s all good, we’ll be fine’. But we definitely kind of missed it there for two months or so. I’m really thankful that we were able to not lose our heads. The team was able to continue to work together really well, keep a level-head and turn it around. The last couple of weeks have been much better to us. Dover, we got damage the first race. But the second race, we had a really great race car and it was a backup car. So, to be that strong with a backup car was really good. I think we’re pointed in the right direction to start the Playoffs, for sure.”
LAST YEAR, WE SAW YOU WITH A LOT OF POTENTIAL AT THE 1.5-MILE TRACKS. DO YOU THINK THIS WILL BE YOUR STRENGTH ONCE WE GET TO THOSE TRACKS IN THE ROUND OF 12?“Yeah, I feel like as a company, the 1.5-mile tracks have been our strong suit as long as I’ve been driving for HMS. Especially last year, we went on a run there and were really strong at all of the 1.5-mile tracks and this year, we continued to be strong at the intermediate tracks. We were definitely off a little bit through the summer at those racetracks, but I think those are probably our strong suits going into the Playoffs, for sure.”
WE TALKED TO THE FORD AND PENSKE TEAMMATES YESTERDAY. DOES HMS HAVE A POLICY IN HOW THEY’RE GOING TO HANDLE TRACKS LIKE TALLADEGA GOING INTO THE PLAYOFFS?“I don’t really think we have a policy. I think we’ve all seen the manufacturers work together over the last couple of years at those racetracks. I feel like Ford kind of did it first and we did a really good job of it with Chevrolet. Now it’s interesting to see how everybody tries to kind of one-up each other with how they can play the race out and work together. You can’t not work together as a team at this point, as well as everybody is working together and as much communication as there is. We’re going to do all that we can to go there and win as a team. We’ve had success at it, obviously William (Byron) just won at Daytona. Just trying to go there and get all of our cars up front. That’s the goal and we’ve got to work together to do that.”
WITH NO QUALIFYING AND HOW NASCAR IS SETTING UP THESE PLAYOFFS WHERE THE TOP-16 IN THE FIRST ROUND GET SET TOGETHER. THAT WAY, IT DOESN’T REALLY MESS YOU UP GOING FORWARD. AND THEN THE CHOOSE RULE, WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS WITH THAT AND AS FAR AS NOT BEING TAKEN OUT BY A NON-PLAYOFF DRIVER LIKE WE’VE SEEN IN THE PAST?“To start with qualifying, I’m all good with the format and the way everything goes. We’re starting pretty close to the front this weekend, so it’s hard for me to complain. I think they have a good way of doing it. The random draw – I started in the same spot like five weeks in a row, four weeks in a row or something. So, it was funny how that all worked out because it was a random draw – it was interesting. I’m a fan of the formula that they’re using. I think it’s working really good.”
“The choose deal, it’s simple when you’re up front. The farther back you get, the harder it gets and the more confusing it gets – trying to count cars gets pretty complicated. It’s really hard to see from the race car. The box is hard to see and it’s hard to count. So, staying on top of that is critical. Making the right decisions in that is critical. My spotter is terrible at math, so I can’t lean on him because he always gets the count wrong (laughs). It’s definitely added a new element to it. Everybody is there to race and win races, so it’s easy to get into it with a non-Playoff guy, but hopefully we avoid that and have a good, clean Playoffs.”
GIVEN THE PLAYOFFS IN THE COVID-19 WORLD THAT WE’RE IN THIS YEAR, YOU GUYS ARE GOING TO BE COMING THE FURTHEST WEST WHEN YOU COME TO LAS VEGAS AND PHOENIX. IS THERE ANY SPECIAL OR ADDITIONAL PRECAUTIONS YOU’RE GOING TO TAKE, GIVEN THE FACT THAT YOU’RE COMING SO FAR WEST?“I don’t know – I’m sure there will be, I just don’t know what they are at the moment. Hendrick Motorsports has done a really good job of laying out things for us and trying to help us, as well as NASCAR. NASCAR has done an awesome job at having recommendations, laying out guidelines for everybody. I would kind of assume that there will be differences. I feel like every week is a little bit different with how regulations are working depending on where we’re going in the country. So, I’m sure it will be a little different, but that’s kind of normal. Each and every week has been different.”