NASCAR CUP SERIES BASS PRO SHOPS NIGHT RACE BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES SEPTEMBER 18, 2021

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:POS.   DRIVER1st      KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1 1LE 3rd     WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE 5th      ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE 8th      ERIK JONES, NO. 43 US AIR FORCE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN CAMARO ZL1 1LE 12th    TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 FOOD CITY/CHILDRESS VINEYARDS CAMARO ZL1 1LE 14th    ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 42 MOOSE FRATERNITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE 15th    AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS/TRACKER OFF ROAD CAMARO ZL1 1LE 
TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS: POS.  DRIVER1st      Kyle Larson (Chevrolet)2nd     Kevin Harvick (Ford)3rd     William Byron (Chevrolet)4th      Ryan Blaney (Ford)5th      Alex Bowman (Chevrolet) 
The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the South Point 400 on Sunday, September 26, at 7 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBCSN, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES: KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Race Winner KYLE MAKES IT HAPPEN WITH A PASS ON KEVIN HARVICK. A BRISTOL WIN IS IMPORTANT TO YOU, BUT HOW DID YOU GET THAT DONE? “Yeah, that was an awesome race. It was so cool to be able to race there for the win. Obviously Harvick and Chase got together. Chase was upset. Kind of held him up. It got Harvick having to move around and use his tires up off the bottom.”
“I started to get some dive-ins working off of two, got a big run, decided to pull the trigger, slide him, squeeze him a little bit. Then he had me jacked up down the frontstretch. It was wild.”
“But had my hands full. Thanks to Valvoline, everybody that helps on this Hendrick Motorsports car. Beautiful paint scheme. Two wins with it. Thanks to Valvoline. Thanks, Mr. H. Wish you were here. So cool.”
HOW ABOUT WINNING ONE IN FRONT OF THE BRISTOL FANS?“I love this place. This is by far my favorite track. This is why. You guys are amazing, loud. We feel the energy while we’re out there racing. Thanks, everyone, for spending your hard-earned money to come watch us putting on a show. I look forward to the rest of the year.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 3rdYOU ARE INTO THE NEXT ROUND BY 2 POINTS. YOU HAD THE PERFORMANCE YOU NEEDED TODAY, BUT WOW, TALK ABOUT THOSE CLOSING LAPS.“Honestly, I don’t think I breathed for 100 laps. I was honestly just trying to go as hard as I could. I mean, I don’t know. I had the best seat in the house for the leaders getting together. I was just trying to make as much speed as I could. I felt like that was what our car had, and we were just trying to hold off the No. 12 (Ryan Blaney) and just drive it as hard as I could. It was a pretty awesome moment that we could pull through being 18 points out and come into this race and advance is pretty amazing.” WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO DO TO GET THROUGH THESE NEXT ROUNDS AND IMPROVE ON?“I think we’re going to some really good tracks. We won on a 1.5-mile earlier this year. The ROVAL, we’ve been really fast there and have had a number of poles on road courses, so I feel like we just had to get through this round. We had a really unfortunate start to it and we made up for it tonight. Thanks to Axalta, Chevrolet, and Mr. Hendrick, and everybody back at the shop. It’s pretty awesome.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 5th THE FIRST PART OF THE RACE DIDN’T LOOK THAT GOOD, BUT THE SECOND PART WAS REALLY GOOD. YOU ADVANCED PLUS 10. TALK ABOUT THE EVENING.“It was an interesting night, for sure. We were pretty awful at the start of the race. Greg (Ives, crew chief) threw everything, including a laptop at it, I think. I heard there was a laptop casualty there during the race, it was so bad (laughs).” 
“I just started really out of the race track and it took a lot of adjusting on it to get it where we needed it; and it was obviously really fast there at the end. I’m just proud of everybody on this No. 48 team for not giving up. My mistake at Darlington kind of put us in this box; us and the No. 24 (William Byron). I’m really glad the No. 24 made it because if they wouldn’t have, that would have been on me, too.”
“I’m just appreciative to make it through this round. It’s Ally’s first time in the Playoffs and we want to get them as far as we can and try to go chase a championship. There are some good tracks coming up for us this round and I’ve just got to go do my job and not make any more mistakes and have a good rest of the Playoffs.”
ERIK JONES, NO. 43 US AIR FORCE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 8th“Solid day for the Air Force Chevy. Glad we could get them a top ten run there. We had some damage on the right side and the balance was just a bit tight to run further forward than we did. But proud of the effort and hope we can keep the good runs going.”
TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 FOOD CITY/CHILDRESS VINEYARDS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 12thTYLER, TWO POINTS SHORT OF MAKING IT INTO THE ROUND OF 12. WHAT A FIGHT. DOWN A LAP AT ONE POINT. I CAN’T IMAGINE HOW FRUSTRATING IT MUST BE TO KNOW ALL YOU NEED ARE TWO MORE SPOTS AND YOU’RE IN. “Yeah, unfortunately we certainly gave up more than two spots over the course of this first round. Darlington, getting stuck down a lap at Richmond. Not just one key opportunity, but there was a number that was the difference.”
“One situation, the situation tonight, doesn’t really stick out as the one that makes it sting. It was just unfortunate getting to the Playoffs, we don’t really have the pace that we had to just point our way into the Playoffs leaderboard.”
“Missed it by two. Have the races we did. It kind of all adds up. For us to miss it by two and run the way we did isn’t a surprise.”
“Yeah, it stinks, but we still get to go race the last, I don’t know, six or seven races we have on the schedule. Good tracks for us. Our starting spot and pit stall won’t be as good, but everything else on the racetrack will be. We’ll make the most out of those races.”
YOU NEVER GAVE UP AND ALMOST STILL MADE IT IN. “Yeah, well, I mean, winners never quit. Hopefully one day the right break will come our way. We continue to learn and get better even though we didn’t make it through to the Round of 12.”
“We feel as a team we were able to pick up on some things that are going to help us when we come back here next year or go to another track, short track.”
“We’ll see where it goes from here. Yeah, we’re not racing for a championship anymore, but we still have a lot to race for with this team. Make the most with the rest of the races we have.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS/TRACKER OFF ROAD CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 15th“Good job by everyone tonight on this Richard Childress Racing team. We fell behind a little in the middle of the race, but Justin Alexander came through clutch with a strategy to get us back on the lead lap, and we were able to climb back into the top-15 in the final stage. We were just too tight to really make anything happen. Everyone on this Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet team hung in there through all of the twists and turns tonight.”
KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 19th“Really disappointing effort today. That was not a championship-type effort. We missed it big time. We had bad luck last week and we have no shot at a championship this year. We have to race for pride, dignity and honor for the next few weeks. The team is shutting down and we’re eliminated early. That’s not the way we wanted this to go. Maybe we can crawl our way back up to a fifth to tenth-range in points. But tonight was not a night to miss the setup.”
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 25thYOU DON’T FEEL YOU WERE RACED VERY WELL BY KEVIN HARVICK. “Well, it’s something he does all the time. He runs into your left side constantly at other tracks. Sometimes it does cut down your left side. Other times it doesn’t. He did it to me at Darlington a few weeks ago because he was tired of racing with me. Whether he did it on purpose, it doesn’t matter. At some point, you’ve got to draw the line. I don’t care who he is or how long he’s been doing it. I’m going to stand up for myself and my team and we’ll go on down the road.” THIS HAPPENED AT A LOT OF PLACES YOU SAID. THINGS LIKE THIS TYPICALLY HAPPEN AT BRISTOL.“I just ran my line. I’m super happy for Kyle (Larson, race winner). He’s had a heck of a year. He’s a good dude and a great race car driver. He deserves the accomplishments and deserves the success. I’m happy for him and happy for Team Hendrick. I wish I could have gotten our Hooters Chevrolet in Victory Lane, but we’ll try again next week.”

Colton Herta, Alexander Rossi make up an all-Andretti Autosport Honda front row for Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey
Championship leader Alex Palou qualifies fourth, Oliver Askew to start fifth
Honda drivers, teams take four of top six in qualifying

MONTEREY, Calif. (Sept. 18, 2021) – For the second consecutive weekend, Honda drivers and teams dominated qualifying today at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, sweeping the front row and claiming eight of the top 12 starting positions for Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey.

Honda drivers previously swept the top three positions in qualifying for last Sunday’s Grand Prix of Portland, with championship points leader Alex Palou going on to score his third NTT INDYCAR SERIES victory of the season.

In today’s qualifying action, Colton Herta claimed his second consecutive Laguna Seca pole, and the seventh of his Indy car career, with teammate Alexander Rossi completing an Andretti Autosport Honda sweep of the front row. Palou will start tomorrow’s penultimate race of the 2021 season from fourth for Chip Ganassi Racing, with Oliver Askew qualifying an impressive fifth in just his second race with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Honda Qualifying Results
1st Colton Herta Andretti Autosport Honda
2ndAlexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda
4th Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
5th Oliver Askew Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
7th Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
8th Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
11th James Hinchcliffe Andretti Autosport Honda
12th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
13th Romain Grosjean-R Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
14th Ed Jones Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan Honda
19th Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport Honda
20th Jack Harvey Meyer Shank Racing Honda
22nd Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing Honda
23rd Takuma Sato Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
25th Jimmie Johnson-R Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
R – Rookie

Quotes
Colton Herta (Andretti Autosport Honda) Pole qualifier, third pole of 2021, seventh career Indy car pole “We have a great car, to be honest. It’s awesome to be powered by Honda. What an amazing track, I love this place. You have to drive right to 100% at this track, especially in the final [qualifying] round when you’re on used tires on a track that typically uses up tires quickly. Tire [wear] will also be critical here tomorrow, we need to learn how long we can make the tires last before the big ‘fall off’ in times takes place.”

Alex Palou (Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) Championship points leader, qualified fourth: “It was an interesting session, I would say. We lacked a bit of pace in [the first round of qualifying], but we made it up in the fast 12 [second round]. We were really really strong, and I was looking forward to the fast six [final round qualifying]. But, unfortunately, we didn’t have the pace today to fight for pole position on the used ‘reds’ [soft compound Firestone tires]. Starting fourth tomorrow, the second row, is always good and we know we have a really strong race car. So, yeah, looking forward to it. Three [expected pit] stops, should be an exciting race, and hopefully we can overtake three guys!”

Oliver Askew (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda) Qualified fifth, tied his career-best Indy car starting position: “Fantastic qualifying today for the Hy-Vee #45 guys from Rahal Letterman Lanigan. I felt really good in the car, and the car complemented me as well. When you get it right around here, it feels really good. When you get it wrong, not so much—but today we got it right. It was a really enjoyable session and I’m looking forward to starting in the top five tomorrow. I know I have a really good pit crew, we had one of the best times on pit road in [his first race at] Portland and hopefully we can capitalize on that. Looking for a clean race tomorrow and hopefully we can move forward!”

Fast Facts
This is the sixth pole for Honda this season, and the second consecutive front-row lockout for the manufacturer.

Honda teams and drivers have won eight of 14 races to date this season, and currently holds a 95-point lead in the Manufacturers’ Championship (2,110-1,115) over rival Chevrolet with two races remaining. The company is seeking it’s 10th Manufacturers’ title, and fourth consecutive trophy.

In a strong all-round qualifying showing for the manufacturer, Honda drivers claimed eight of top 12 grid positions after the first round of INDYCAR “knockout” qualifying, with four Honda’s advancing to the “Fast Six” final round and then sweeping the front row for tomorrow’s 95-lap race.

Where to Watch Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey
Live network television coverage Sunday’s penultimate race in the 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES starts at 3 p.m. EDT on NBC. Complete, flag-to-flag race coverage also will be available on NBC Peacock, the INDYCAR Radio Network, and on SiriusXM satellite radio.

Honda Racing social media content and video links from WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca can be found on Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd), Twitter (twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD). Additional features and long-form videos can be found on the Honda Racing/HPD YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV).

CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES FIRESTONE GRAND PRIX OF MONTEREY WEATHERTECH RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA QUALIFYING RECAP SEPT. 18, 2021 POWER AND O’WARD LEAD CHEVY TO FIRESTONE FAST SIX MONTEREY, CALIF (SEPT. 8, 2021) – Will Power, No. 12 Verizon 5G TTeam Penske Chevrolet, and Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet led Team Chevy into the highly competitive Firestone Fast Six.  Power, the 2014 NTT INDYCAR Series champion and winner of the 2018 winner of the Indianapolis 500, will roll off third in tomorrow’s 95-lap Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey on the  2.238-mile, 11-turn road course that features a 300-foot elevation change and the famous “Corkscrew” in Turns 8 and 8A. Title contender Pato O’Ward spun in the Corkscrew on his flyer lap in the final stages of the Firestone Fast Six. As a result he will start sixth on Sunday. Two-time Series’ champion Josef Newgarden arrived at Laguna Seca a close third in the championship standings, but was unable to transfer out of round one of qualifying and has to settle for starting 17^th in the 27-car field. Colton Herta won the pole. Alexander Rossi, Alex  Palou and Oliver Askew complete the Firestone Fast Six field. NBC will telecast the 90-lap Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at 3 p.m. ET Sunday, Sept. 19. The race will also be broadcast live on INDYCAR Radio Network affiliates, Sirius 211, XM 205, Indycar.com, and on the INDYCAR Mobile app powered by NTT DATA.  TEAM CHEVY DRIVER STARTING POSITIONS: No.12 Will Power, Verizon5G Team Penske Chevrolet, Qualified 3^rdNo. 5 Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet, Qualified 6^thNo. 22 Simon Pagenaud, Menards Team Penske Chevrolet, Qualified 9^thNo. 59 Max Chilton, Gallagher Carlin Chevrolet, Qualified10^thNo. 7 Felix Rosenqvist, Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, Qualified 15^thNo. 3 Scott McLaughlin, PPG Team Penske Chevrolet, Qualified 16^thNo. 2 Josef Newgarden, Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, Qualified 17^thNo. 20 Conor Daly, U.S. Air Force Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet, Qualified 18^thNo. 14 Sebastien Bourdais, ROKIT AJ Foyt Chevrolet, Qualified 21^stNo. 21 Rinus VeeKay, Sonax/AutoGeek Ed Carpenter Chevrolet, Qualified 24^thNo. 77 Callum Ilott, Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet, Qualified 26^thNo. 4 Dalton Kellett, K-Line AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet, Qualified 27^thDRIVER QUOTES:WILL POWER, NO. 12 VERIZON 5G TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET – Qualified 3rdWAS THERE ANYTHING LEFT IN THAT VERIZON 5G MACHINE IN THE FAST SIX SESSION?“Yeah, there was a little bit left there in the last corner. But everywhere else, it was as good as it got there. It was a good lap.” YOU WERE ON THE PODIUM HERE TWO YEARS AGO. WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE OUTLOOK FOR THE RACE TOMORROW AFTERNOON?“Hopefully a challenge for a win.” PATO O’WARD, NO. 5 ARROW MCLAREN SP CHEVROLET – Qualified 6thWE SAW YOU SPIN OUT THERE. IT’S BEEN AN ADVENTUROUS DAY OVERALL. CONSIDERING ALL THAT, HOW PLEASED ARE YOU TO BE A PART OF THE FIRESTONE FAST SIX?“This was our maximization. The best we did in practice was 20^th just because we were all over the place. We didn’t really have the balance correctly and I’m happy with sixth. Fifth obviously, would have been better, but I was pushing just to try to get every ounce out of the car. We made it to the Fast Six, which seemed kind of like a long haul for us going into qualifying, but we accomplished it. So, I’m happy with the changes that we made. Now we need to make the race car go faster and see what we can do in the race” LOOKS LIKE YOU WILL LINE-UP BEHIND THE GUY YOU ARE CHASING FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP IN ALEX PALOU. WHAT CAN WE EXPECT AT THE START OF THIS RACE TOMORROW?“I’m a bit in the Ganassi group because I think Marcus (Ericsson) and Scott (Dixon) are in the row behind me. I guess we’ll have to see tomorrow.” JOSEF NEWGARDEN, NO. 2 HITACHI TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 17^TH: “Obviously, not the result we were looking for. We showed good pace yesterday and were on the right path this morning but we just missed in qualifying. Unfortunate as we’ve made things more difficult for ourselves. Regardless, we’re focused on doing everything we can to move forward and we’ll be ready to get to work tomorrow.” SÉBASTIEN BOURDAIS, NO. 14 ROKIT CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 21^ST: “It started off pretty good yesterday. I thought the car was seemingly in the window, just needed a bit of grip and a bit less understeer. It seemed like there was potential from the work we did at the (simulator) deal. At least it correlated pretty well, the feel behind the wheel was very similar. Then we went back out this morning and picked up a massive amount of understeer which was really strange. Put the reds on and it didn’t really fix anything, so made very little changes for this afternoon because for us the car has gone fairly oversteer between cold and higher track temps and sure enough we got loose on entry and really never recovered the front grip that we had in the center of the corners so it became a very difficult car to drive. Unfortunately it’s nowhere near good enough, so yeah, very disappointed.”DALTON KELLETT, NO. 4 K-LINE INSULATORS CHEVROLET. QUALIFIED 27TH: “Not an easy session for us overall. It was obviously a scramble to recover from that hit in practice and the guys did a good job getting the car fixed up. Luckily it wasn’t too much damage and they were able to turn that car around quickly, so that was a good job by them. We tried to gamble and do reds-reds (tires) because we felt like without having the experience on reds from practice that would be a good move just to get some more time and see how those tires behave. The overall grip felt like it never came in and it was just kind of sliding around the whole time on the first set and then the second set, the same thing. Kind of loose in, quite a bit of understeer mid-off and kind of backed it off a bit to just put a lap together, but it just never really felt like the temps came up. Towards the end of the stint after the checkered going through (turn) 10, it felt like we were finally getting some load in the wheel, so maybe we could have gone a lap shorter on the first stint to do four on the second run probably would have been a better idea, but hindsight is 20/20. So we obviously have some work to do in the race but we’ve shown that we could have good race pace. Qualifying is still our crux, but we’ll have to make something happen in the race tomorrow.”

CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION DEWALT NHRA CAROLINA NATIONALS ZMAX DRAGWAY, CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA QUALIFYING RECAPSEPT. 18, 2021
Chevrolet again sweeps No. 1 qualifiers at zMAX Dragway • Brittany Force records eighth consecutive Top Fuel top qualifier• Funny Car points leader John Force earns 163rd No. 1 of career• Aaron Stanfield scores first career Pro Stock top spot
CONCORD, N.C. (Sept. 18, 2021) – For the second time in four National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) events and fourth time this season, Chevrolet drivers in Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock swept the No. 1 qualifier spots.
Team Chevy will aim to continue momentum on race day Sunday, Sept. 19, at the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals – the second race in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship — at zMAX Dragway. Chevrolet also swept the professional car categories at the venue in May.
Brittany Force earned her eighth consecutive NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Top Fuel top qualifier honor in the Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster, extending her single-season record. Force, entering eliminations only four points out of first place, paced the field with a blistering 3.662-second pass at 331.85 mph.
She registered the same elapsed time in qualifying No. 1 in the spring race at zMAX Dragway.
“It’s incredible that this team has been able to carry that for eight races straight. That’s incredible,” said Force, who is one top qualifier off the Top Fuel consecutive record set by Gary Beck in the 1982-83 seasons. “It’s picking up bonus points and we’re stashing away those No. 1 qualifier hats, but again, we’re looking for race day tune, that’s our focus.”
Funny Car points leader John Force, driving the PEAK Antifreeze & Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS, scored his second consecutive No. 1 qualifier at zMAX Dragway and 163rd of his illustrious career with a run of 3.860 seconds at 332.18 mph. Teammate Robert Hight was second for the second event in a row, posting a 3.878-second run mph in the Automobile Club of Southern California Camaro SS.
“It was a good way to start the weekend. We’re just trying to stay in the game, this PEAK Chevy team,” said Force, who will seek his second consecutive win at zMAX Dragway and fourth of the season in the drive to his 17th Funny Car title. “Daniel Hood, Tim Fabrisi and Joe Barlam, they give me a race car and we go right down the racetrack. I’m really excited about that. I’d like to at least be in the hunt and I’m in the hunt.”
Aaron Stanfield, a three-time winner this season in the Janac Brother’s Camaro SS, recorded his first Pro Stock No. 1 qualifier with a 6.575-second pass.
“Now is the time to be mistake-free and we’ll see what happens,” said Stanfield, the 2020 Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown champion in the Janac Brother’s Chevrolet COPO Camaro.
Reigning Pro Stock champion Erica Enders was second in the tightly bunched pack in the Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Camaro SS, and Greg Anderson was third in the HendrickCars.comCamaro SS.
Anderson, the points leader, will aim to record his 98th career Pro Stock victory, which would pass Warren Johnson for most all time in the class and be second to John Force’s 154 wins.
FOX will telecast eliminations live at 2 p.m. ET Sunday, Sept. 19.
CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT
TOP FUEL:BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONSTER ENERGY CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (No. 1 qualifier): “Right now, it’s gaining as many points as we can. That’s the way I look at the Countdown. It can get overwhelming; there’s a lot on the line. Right now, it’s focusing on one run at a time. The cool thing is my whole team is involved (in the streak). They’ve got us here. I’m very proud of all my guys. (Crew chief) David Grubnic wants to put the best number we can on the board every single time we run. We want to get the job done in these last six races.”
FUNNY CAR:JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK ANTIFREEZE & COOLANT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier): “Every qualifying will give you a few points. I just want to race with these kids. I want to beat everybody and I want to lose to everybody. A race car doesn’t know how old you are; the driving is the easy part.”
ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTOMOBILE CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 2 qualifier): “That was a good run. We wanted more and we can see that there’s more out there. You know we picked up some extra qualifying points and we put a good number on the board. We’ll get after it. Jimmy Prock and Chris Cunningham, they’ll get us set up and then have us going rounds on race day.”
PRO STOCK:AARON STANFIELD, ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JANC BROTHER’S CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier): “We’ve made some really good runs and been pretty close (to qualifying No. 1) a couple of times, but it’s not an easy thing to accomplish. Our guys have been working really hard. They got me a really good hot rod and I’m just the lucky one to be behind the wheel. My first No. 1, it’s a cool feeling. I think we’re getting back on the right track where we were the last couple of races. Definitely have to bounce back (after early exit in Countdown opener) and go some rounds.”
ERICA ENDERS, ELITE MOTORSPORTS, MELLING PERFORMANCE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 2 qualifier): “Today is by no indications of what we’re capable of. After the first qualifying session today we had to swing motors in the car, so we’ll get a tune-up for tomorrow and my guy continue to work really hard. I just have to do my job. It’s a little bit frustrating to not accumulate any baby points today, but we’ve been in far worse positions than we are right now. I’m ready to dig deep.”
GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 3 qualifier): “We left a few points on the table last night; we were a little too conservative and that cost us the pole. We still got the majority of the (qualifying) points. The bottom line is the conditions today were more like what we’re going to see tomorrow on race day. My car was fast on both runs today so that’s a good sign. I feel good about and we’re ready to race.”
KYLE KORETSKY, KB RACING, LUCAS OIL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 4 qualifier): “That final run felt really good for the KB Lucas Oil Chevy Camaro. We struggled a little bit at the beginning of the weekend but I think we have it figured out. Greg (Anderson) and the guys have a tune-up on it. We’ll go first round (against Christian Cuadra) and see what we get, but the Lucas Oil Chevy Camaro is ready to run.”

Erick Rudolph outraced Series rivals Billy Dunn and Tim Fuller to win $4,000 at Mohawk Int’l Raceway 

AKWESASNE, NY – Erick Rudolph, the three-time DIRTcar 358 Modified Series champion, finally broke through at Mohawk Int’l Raceway for his first Series win of 2021. Rudolph had to hold off the driver who won the first two Series races of the year Billy Dunn. Dunn finished second. Tim Fuller, Series points leader going into the race, fought his way up through the tough top half of the field to finish third. 

Erick Rudolph, from Ransomville, NY, is an absolute ringer in the DIRTcar 358 Modified Series but he had the best of the best hounding him for 60 laps. 

“Billy [Dunn] is one of the best here and is one of the best in 358s,” said Rudolph. “I’ve been coming here a lot of years. I’ve finished second and third here countless times. It’s awesome to finally get a win here.”

At the drop of the green flag, Can-Am Speedway promotor Ryan Bartlett shot out into the lead. Rudolph, who started third, was right there in his tire tracks. By lap 10 Bartlett, in the #93, caught up to the backend of the field. Just as Bartlett and Rudolph began managing lapped traffic, third-place Jackson Gil joined the battle at the front but on lap 13 the caution flew. 

On the lap 16 restart, multiple cars jammed up in Turn 2 and the red flag was displayed due to the blocked racetrack. Once the race got back underway, the top three got into a rhythm and pulled away from the field. 

But not from everyone. 

At halfway, Billy Dunn reloaded and started making his moves to the front. At the same time, Ryan Bartlett was passed by Erick Rudolph as well as Jackson Gil who slotted in behind Rudolph. 

By lap 35 Dunn had overtaken all challengers and made it to second with his eyes on the prize. 

Concurrently, Tim Fuller started seventh and made smart moves to be there at the front when it mattered. 

With nine laps remaining, Carey Terrance, in the #66X, suffered a mechanical failure and stopped on the backstretch. That would end up being the final restart and with six laps to go Dunn got alongside Rudolph in Turn 1. They drove hard side-by-side for the lead, but they never touched and Rudolph kept the advantage to win. 

NEXT UP: The DIRTcar 358 Modified Series is set to shine at NAPA Super DIRT Week beginning Wednesday, Oct. 6 at Weedsport Speedway for the NAPA Super DIRT Week Kickoff. Then the Series heads to Brewerton Speedway for the all-new Hurricane Harvey 75. On Friday, it’s qualifying races at Oswego Speedway during Friday Night Lights. Then the Salute to the Troops 150 will be set for Saturday, Oct. 9 at Oswego Speedway for the $20,000-to-win DIRTcar 358 Modified Series spectacular. 

FEATURE (60 LAPS) – 1. Erick Rudolph 2. Billy Dunn 3. Tim Fuller 4. Louie Jackson Jr. 5. Jackson Gil 6. Lance Willix 7. Ryan Bartlett 8. Dave Marcuccilli 9. Jordan McCreadie 10. Ron Davis III 11. Marshall Hurd 12. Lucas Fuller 13. Greg Atkins 14. Darryl Mitchel 15. Steven Lewis 16. Jeff Sykes 17. Carey Terrance 18. Mike Stacey 19. Matt Woodruff 20. Derrick Webb 21. RJ Tressiter 22. Kristan Smoke 23. Preston Forbes 24. Ryan McLean 25. Tyler Meeks 26. Tom Jock Jr. 27. Cameron Black 28. Mike Mandingo 

KNOXVILLE, IA (September 17, 2021) – For the second straight night, Tyler Erb won the 25-lap preliminary feature for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series at Knoxville Raceway. Erb took the lead on lap two from Brandon Sheppard and was able to hold him off in a 2-lap shootout, for his third career win at Knoxville. The 24-year-old Texas native’s 15th career win in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series means he will start on the outside of the front row alongside Tim McCreadie for tomorrow night’s $50,000-to-win Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals presented by Brandt Professional Agriculture. Sheppard crossed the finish line in second followed by Tyler Bruening, Tim McCreadie, and Mike Marlar. “You never want to see a caution like that,” said Erb who won his sixth Lucas Oil feature of the season. “We ran good enough last night that I didn’t really want to commit myself to running the cushion tonight. I just tried to practice in the heat running the bottom. I could tell somebody was getting a good run on the outside. I figured it was Sheppy. As long as I stayed to the inside getting into three, I didn’t think anyone could ever pass me the way I could drive in and go across. I am thrilled, this is awesome. I am pumped to win here.” Sheppard started from the pole but fell back to third as both Erb and Bruening went around him on the second lap. Sheppard trailed Bruening until a lap 17 restart when Sheppard went by Bruening for the runner-up spot. Sheppard tried to track down Erb; a caution flag with two laps to go was just the chance that Sheppard was waiting on. On the green-white-checker Erb was too strong, going on for the victory. “Congratulations to Tyler and his whole team, they deserve it for sure. They have been doing a heck of a job this year. My guys did a heck of a job putting that thing back together during the heat race. It was definitely a wild night for us. I want to thank everybody who put that thing back together. It meant a lot to me to get back out there and get the heat win. It gave us a better starting spot than we would have had.” Bruening, last year’s Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series runner-up in the Eibach Springs Rookie-of-the-Year chase, continues his impressive 2021 season coming home in third on Friday Night. “I heard Brandon [Sheppard] say he was good for a couple of laps after those restarts. I felt the same way. I think Tyler was just a little bit better than everybody tonight. He deserved to win. I think we will have something for them in the 100-lapper tomorrow night, hopefully we are up front.” The winner’s Best Performance Motorsports, Rocket Chassis is powered by a Clements Racing Engine and sponsored by M&W Transport, Roberts Bee Company, Posi Flow, First Class Septic, Bazell Race fuels, Go Lithium, Lucas Oil Products, KBC Graphics, Keyser Manufacturing, and Midwest Sheet Metal. Completing the top ten were Ricky Thornton Jr., Jimmy Owens, Hudson O’Neal, Kyle Bronson, and Frank Heckenast Jr. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race Summary 17th Knoxville Late Model Nationals – Night 2Friday, September 17th, 2021Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA Allstar Performance Time TrialsFast Time Group A: Jonathan Davenport / 17.486 seconds (overall)Fast Time Group B: Tad Pospisil / 17.791 seconds Penske Race Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport[6]; 2. 1T-Tyler Erb[4]; 3. 21B-Rich Bell[2]; 4. 18J-Chase Junghans[5]; 5. 51-Matt Furman[1]; 6. 10K-Shawn Kirwin[7]; 7. 30-Todd Cooney[3]; 8. (DNS) 248-Tim Lance Summit Racing Equipment Heat Race #2 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 1S-Brandon Sheppard[4]; 2. 157-Mike Marlar[6]; 3. 14-Josh Richards[3]; 4. 33-Nick Marolf[2]; 5. 80-Allan Hopp[1]; 6. 41-Jeremiah Hurst[5]; 7. 10-Junior Coover[7]; 8. (DNS) 22H-Daniel Hilsabeck Simpson Race Products Heat Race #3 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 20-Jimmy Owens[4]; 2. 25F-Jason Feger[1]; 3. 56JR-Tony Jackson Jr[3]; 4. 71-Hudson O’Neal[6]; 5. 22M-Charlie McKenna[2]; 6. 14M-Reid Millard[7]; 7. 7W-Ricky Weiss[5]; 8. (DNS) 53-Andrew Kosiski Ohlins Shocks Heat Race #4 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[2]; 2. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[5]; 3. 66-Kyle Bronson[1]; 4. 11H-Spencer Hughes[3]; 5. 32S-Chris Simpson[4]; 6. 04-Tad Pospisil[6]; 7. 21M-Luke Merfeld[7]; 8. 6H-Al Humphrey[8] Fast Shafts Heat Race #5 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 25-Shane Clanton[1]; 2. 8-Kyle Strickler[3]; 3. 18-Shannon Babb[5]; 4. 45-Kyle Hammer[4]; 5. 36-Logan Martin[6]; 6. 59-Garrett Alberson[2]; 7. 1X-Aaron Marrant[8]; 8. 93-Mason Oberkramer[7] Lucas Oil Heat Race #6 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 39-Tim McCreadie[6]; 2. 1C-Chad Simpson[1]; 3. 16-Tyler Bruening[5]; 4. 46-Earl Pearson Jr[4]; 5. 19R-Ryan Gustin[2]; 6. 98-Jason Rauen[3]; 7. 29D-Spencer Diercks[7] LINE-X B-Main #1 Finish (15 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 71-Hudson O’Neal[1]; 2. 18J-Chase Junghans[2]; 3. 41-Jeremiah Hurst[3]; 4. 51-Matt Furman[6]; 5. 22M-Charlie McKenna[5]; 6. 33-Nick Marolf[4]; 7. 30-Todd Cooney[10]; 8. 10K-Shawn Kirwin[8]; 9. 248-Tim Lance[13]; 10. 80-Allan Hopp[7]; 11. 14M-Reid Millard[9]; 12. (DNS) 10-Junior Coover; 13. (DNS) 7W-Ricky Weiss; 14. (DNS) 22H-Daniel Hilsabeck; 15. (DNS) 53-Andrew Kosiski UNOH B-Main #2 Finish (15 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 36-Logan Martin[2]; 2. 46-Earl Pearson Jr[5]; 3. 32S-Chris Simpson[3]; 4. 04-Tad Pospisil[1]; 5. 45-Kyle Hammer[4]; 6. 98-Jason Rauen[7]; 7. 19R-Ryan Gustin[9]; 8. 11H-Spencer Hughes[6]; 9. 1X-Aaron Marrant[11]; 10. 29D-Spencer Diercks[12]; 11. 93-Mason Oberkramer[14]; 12. 59-Garrett Alberson[8]; 13. 21M-Luke Merfeld[10]; 14. 6H-Al Humphrey[13]

Knoxville Late Model Nationals Night 2 Feature Finish (25 Laps):

Race StatisticsEntrants: 47Lap Leaders: Brandon Sheppard (Laps 1-2); Tyler Erb (Laps 3-25)Wrisco Feature Winner: Tyler ErbArizona Sport Shirts CJC – Presented by DirtOnDirt Feature Winner: n/aBrandon Ford TV Challenge Feature Winner: Tyler ErbMargin of Victory: 0.910 secondsStop Tech Brakes Cautions: Logan Martin (Lap 17); Kyle Strickler (Lap 19); Shannon Babb (Lap 23)Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals: n/aSeries Emergency Provisionals: n/aBig River Steel Podium Top 3: Tyler Erb, Brandon Sheppard, Tyler BrueningPenske Shocks Top 5: Tyler Erb, Brandon Sheppard, Tyler Bruening, Tim McCreadie, Mike MarlarOptima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race: Hudson O’Neal (Advanced 11 Positions)Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Tim McCreadieHot Rod Processing Most Laps Led: Tyler Erb (23 Laps)Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Tyler ErbEibach Springs Rookie of the Race: Ricky Thornton Jr.Dirty Girl Racewear Fastest Lap of the Race: Tyler Erb (Lap 3 – 20.334 seconds)Fast Shafts Tough Break of the Race: Kyle StricklerOuterwears Crew Chief of the Race: Randall Edwards (Tyler Erb)ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Clements Racing EnginesMiller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Rocket ChassisDirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Earl Pearson, Jr. (17.623 seconds)Time of Race: 20 minutes 54 seconds

Myatt Snider and the No. 2 Crosley Brands Chevrolet Team Earn Solid, Top-10 Finish In Action-Packed Bristol Motor Speedway Night Race

8th

17th

12th

“Our Crosley Brands Chevrolet was extremely fast tonight at Bristol Motor Speedway. My Richard Childress Racing guys brought such a good piece to the track and I couldn’t be prouder. To finish inside the top-10 in the regular season finale is a good way to build momentum heading into the NASCAR Playoffs next week. To start the race, our Camaro was tight center off, but when we were on a long run, it had so much speed. My crew chief, Andy Street, barely had to adjust on the balance all night, which is the sign of a good handling car. Racing at Bristol is a battle and there was a lot of beating and banging out there. I wish we didn’t tear up our car after the checkered, but there was nowhere for me to go at that point. We are now looking forward to Las Vegas.”  -Myatt Snider

CONCORD, N.C. (Sept. 17, 2021) – Brittany Force with the Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster and John Force with the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car are the provisional No. 1 qualifiers Friday night at the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway. Robert Hight with the Automobile Club of Southern California Chevy rounded out a successful night of qualifying landing in the No. 2 spot. Chasing her eighth straight No. 1 qualifying position, Brittany Force piloted her Monster Energy dragster to a stellar 3.662-second pass at 331.85 mph to easily take over the Top Fuel No. 1 position. The impressive run wasn’t without its drama, the black and green hot rod suffered an engine explosion at the end of the run. “It always feels good to come out first run of the weekend like that. Well, I guess it’s debatable, we blew up and that costs a lot but we’re currently No. 1 and right now it’s about getting as many bonus points as we can,” Force said. “David Grubnic, he said we want to do what we did last weekend in Reading. He told me the number he was shooting for and we actually stepped up. To be able to run a 3.66 like that, that’s what we did all last weekend, so pretty impressive for this Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team.” Points leader John Force handled his PEAK Chevy to a 3.860-second pass at 332.18 mph as the final pair of Funny Cars for the night, bumping the blue and red Auto Club Chevy of Robert Hight into the No. 2 position. “It was a good way to start the weekend. We’re just trying to stay in the game, this PEAK Chevy team. Going low qualifier but we got the perk to follow everybody, see what everyone could do, see what Jimmy Prock could do,” Force said. “I give credit to the guys that run these hot rods. We’re just body and shoes. Daniel Hood, Tim Fabrisi and Joe Barlam, they give me a race car and we go right down the race track. I’m really excited about that. I’d like to at least be in the hunt and I’m in the hunt.” Hight and the Auto Club Camaro kept up their consistency Friday night when they went 3.878-seconds at 330.07 mph. The Jimmy Prock and Chris Cunningham tuned Chevy are looking for their fifth win at the Carolina Nationals along with a resurgence in the points. “That was a good run, we wanted more and we can see that there’s more out there. You know we picked up some extra qualifying points and we put a good number on the board,” Hight said. “We’ve got two more tomorrow and we’ll get after it. Jimmy Prock and Chris Cunningham, they’ll get us set up and then have us going rounds on race way Qualifying at the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals continues Saturday with sessions at 2:30 and 6:15 p.m. Eliminations are slated for Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Television coverage begins with a qualifying show Sunday at 10 a.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1). Eliminations will be on FOX Broadcasting Network beginning at 4 p.m. ET.

The Lake Elmo, MN driver is riding a career high with the World of Outlaws this season. 

CONCORD, NC – September 17, 2021 – Change. That’s one word to describe Brent Larson’s 2021 season with the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series. 

This year, the Lake Elmo, MN driver, made two adjustments leading to his best season with the Series. And with four races remaining – including the Oct. 1 event at Cherokee Speedway, Oct. 2 event at Senoia Raceway and then the NGK NTK World Finals at the Dirt Track at Charlotte (Nov. 4-6) – he still has goals to do better.

One of those critical changes was switching to a Rocket Chassis after driving a Longhorn and Barry Wright Race Car last season. Driving a Rocket has allowed him to ask fellow Rocket teams on tour for advice while on the road.  

“I think our chassis switch has helped, having had some guys to work with that have the same brand of chassis I do,” Larson said. “I really didn’t have that the last years I ran the tour; I was like the only Longhorn for a while, then we had a Barry (Wright) car at the end of last year, and even then, my results got better.  

“The big thing is having some other racers and teams I can bounce things off of on the road with the Rocket Chassis.”

Another change that’s helped Larson this season is who’s working on that Rocket Chassis. Earlier this year, he hired Donnie Birdwell as his crew chief. It’s a change Larson stated has been beneficial. 

“[Birdwell’s] been a consistent, stable, non-dramatic guy I can count on and help utilize to put fires out instead of him causing fires too,” Larson said. 

Those two adjustments have made it easier to adapt on the road. In Larson’s fourth season with the World of Outlaws, he’s seen tracks multiple times allowing him to hit the ground running.  

“We’ve seen some of these tracks now three or four times, which still isn’t that many compared to any of those tracks up in PA or South Carolina, and you’re racing against guys who race there every week,” Larson said. “Getting the experience on more of the tracks and tires and developing a notebook has been helpful.” 

Changes aren’t only impacting Larson on the road but also at home. Earlier this season, his son Matthew started his racing career near the family’s Minnesota dwelling. It’s given Larson a new perspective on the racing world. 

“It has been rewarding, and I’ve had a lot of fun doing this,” Larson said. “I’ve had a lot of fun coaching him and having him listen to my input and seeing him improve at a really quick rate has been fun and rewarding.

“It’s a different aspect, and maybe it gives me a little glimpse or look at what things may look like someday when I get out from behind the wheel.”

As the season starts to wind down for the Lake Elmo, MN driver, he knows time is running out to pick up his first World of Outlaws win. He’s hoping to finish the year on a good note, even if it means missing out on a trip to Victory Lane. Currently, he sits eighth in points – his previous best was 9th in 2019 – with eight top-10s and two top-fives – the most he’s collected in a year.

“Honestly, I missed a chunk of my goals I had set for myself this year,” Larson said. “I’m glad we’re going to Senoia [Raceway]; I really like that track. Cherokee is kind of hit or miss for me, and the same with Charlotte. 

“I’m not setting super huge goals for the rest of the year; I’d like to get myself another top-five at Senoia at least and maybe have a good run at the rest of the two.”

Even if he doesn’t grab that top five finish at Senoia, he’s still building toward 2022.  

His changes this year propelled him to the best season of his career—a path that could take Larson to new heights if he continues in the same direction.

Larson and the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models are back in action on Friday, Oct. 1, for the Mike Duvall Memorial at Cherokee Speedway in Gaffney, SC. 

Richard Childress Racing at Bristol Motor Speedway… In 179 NASCAR Cup Series starts at the concrete Bristol Motor Speedway, Richard Childress Racing has scored nine wins, 35 top-five, and 71 top-10 finishes. The Welcome N.C. organization has also found success in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the Tennessee short track, capturing nine wins, 37 top-five and 62 top-10 finishes. Catch the Action… The NASCAR Xfinity Series’ at Bristol Motor Speedway will be televised live Friday, September 17, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN and will be broadcast live on the Performance Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  The NASCAR Cup Series’ Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway will be televised live Saturday, September 18, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN and will be broadcast live on the Performance Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

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Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Bristol Motor Speedway… In 14 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Bristol Motor Speedway, Dillon has one top-five and three top-10 finishes, including a career-best fourth-place finish in August 2016. He is a former winner in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the track (August 2016). Winner, Winner… Dillon has won at Bristol Motor Speedway on both the paved and dirt configurations. In addition to winning a NASCAR Xfinity Series race at the track in August 2016 (paved), Dillon was among the first drivers to compete on the track’s dirt surface earlier this season. He won two features and a heat race in dominating fashion in a 604 Crate Late Model for Corey Hedgecock Racing. About Tracker Off Road… Dillon’s No. 3 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE prominently features TRACKER ATVs, a game-changing new line of all-terrain vehicles and side-by-sides offering breakthrough performance, service and value in the off-road industry. TRACKER OFF ROAD was born out of a powerhouse partnership formed between Bass Pro Shops and TRACKER founder Johnny Morris and Textron Specialized Vehicles, bringing together the undisputed world leader in boating with a global leader in innovation and technology.  About Bass Pro Shops… Bass Pro Shops is North America’s premier outdoor and conservation company. Founded in 1972 when avid young angler Johnny Morris began selling tackle out of his father’s liquor store in Springfield, Missouri, today the company provides customers with unmatched offerings spanning premier destination retail, outdoor equipment manufacturing, world-class resort destinations and more. In 2017 Bass Pro Shops acquired Cabela’s to create a “best-of-the-best” experience with superior products, dynamic locations and outstanding customer service. Bass Pro Shops also operates White River Marine Group, offering an unsurpassed collection of industry-leading boat brands, and Big Cedar Lodge, America’s Premier Wilderness Resort. Under the visionary conservation leadership of Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops is a national leader in protecting habitat and introducing families to the outdoors and has been named by Forbes as “one of America’s Best Employers.” Bass Pro Shops has a long relationship with NASCAR, dating back to 1998. For more information, visit http://www.basspro.com/. AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:What are your thoughts on Bristol Motor Speedway?“Anything can happen at Bristol Motor Speedway. It’s a short track and you can get caught up in things fast. Our goal as a team is to be consistent and to try and win.”  What’s going to be your top priority for the Bristol race weekend? Just finishing or going for a win?“I think you’ve got to keep going for wins. Darlington and Richmond were both good races for us, but we have just as much potential at Bristol. We had a solid run here back in May, and I really think this team has the capability to back that up.”

Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 Food City/Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Bristol Motor Speedway… Reddick has two previous NASCAR Cup Series starts at Bristol Motor Speedway, earning his best finish of fourth at the track last year. Reddick also has five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the 0.533-mile track, collecting one top-five and four top-10 finishes there. Winner, Winner… Reddick’s accolades at Bristol Motor Speedway include one win in five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts. NASCAR Playoffs… Last week, Reddick survived an eventful race at Richmond Raceway with a 14th place finish. He’s still well in contention for a spot in the Round of 12 heading into this weekend’s cutoff race in the NASCAR Playoffs.  About Food City… Headquartered in Abingdon, Virginia, K-VA-T Food Stores (Food City’s parent company) operates 134 retail supermarkets throughout southeast Kentucky, southwest Virginia, east Tennessee, Chattanooga and north Georgia, including 109 pharmacies and 108 fuel/convenience stores. The company also owns and operates their own 1.2 million square-foot distribution center in Abingdon, VA. Food City offers a wide variety of services and conveniences, including in-store bakery/delis, floral boutiques, full-service meat and seafood departments with in-house butchers, locally grown produce, full service pharmacies, fuel centers, GoCart curbside pick-up, and home delivery. The Food City name is also synonymous with NASCAR racing through their title sponsorship of two of the sport’s most popular events, the Food City 500 and Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, TN. Food City is Bristol Motor Speedway’s longest running sponsor and the second longest in NASCAR.Learn more by visiting FoodCity.com About Childress Vineyards… Childress Vineyards is a premier winery located at the southern gateway of the Yadkin Valley in Lexington, North Carolina. Owned by Richard Childress, NASCAR team owner and Hall of Fame member, Childress Vineyards has been producing award-winning wines with the expertise of Winemaker Mark Frizsolowski. Open daily for tours, tastings, and lunch in the Bistro. Information about Childress Vineyards can be found on Facebook at facebook.com/childresswines/, on Twitter at @ChildressWines and on Instagram at Instagram.com/childresswines. TYLER REDDICK QUOTE: How do you view the points now? Is it any different from how you looked at it in the last race of the regular season? “Oh no. Not at all. As we saw with Darlington and Richmond, so much can happen. The pressure is on not just us, it’s on everybody. Now a different kind of pressure is on. The pressure of not screwing it up is upon you. And it’s very easy to let that get to you more so than being in the hole. Wherever you’re at, I feel like it’s just important to have the same mindset, whether you’re in the hole or whether your plus 30 or minus 30, the same things need to happen. It’s just about running a clean race and getting the most out of your day. Without practice, and throwing darts at a board without even looking at it and hoping you’re going to get a bullseye. Nine times out of 10, it’s not going to work; especially in the Cup Series. So, to win these races, being consistent and being close to the front all day and hitting on all the details are important. And I don’t think running fifth and winning, there’s a bit difference in how you approach those things. It’s just a matter of did you do your homework perfectly, where all the little details add up. Was there a difference? Was there not? I don’t feel like we’re in a must win situation. We had a little bit of a stumble, a trip-up, if you will. But thankfully, our team is ready for the challenge on Saturday night.”

Myatt Snider and the No. 2 Crosley Brands Chevrolet Camaro at Bristol Motor Speedway… Snider has two career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Bristol Motor Speedway, recording a fifth-place finish for Richard Childress Racing in June 2020. The 26-year-old has also competed in one NASCAR Truck Series race at the World’s Fastest Half Mile.  About Crosley Brands… For over 30 years, Crosley Brands has been a leader in the nostalgic electronics category. From their beginning in the premium incentive industry, Crosley Brands developed their own exclusive product lines and built solid relationships with some of the most well-known catalogers and retailers in the business. Today, Crosley Brands is known for two brands – Crosley Radio and Crosley Furniture. At the front lines of the Vinyl Revolution, Crosley Radio seeks to bring new life to a classic medium, with its revolutionary line of turntables to its new series of high-fidelity units. Building on a legacy of entrepreneurship, Crosley Furniture delivers quality products at competitive prices, without sacrificing style. From the patio to the kitchen, bath, entryway and beyond, Crosley Furniture offers over 1,800 indoor and outdoor furniture items in a variety of categories and designs. For more information, please visit www.crosleybrands.com.  MYATT SNIDER QUOTE:There is one race left in the regular season for the NASCAR Xfinity Series. What do you hope to accomplish in Bristol to carry over to Vegas in Round 1 of the Playoffs? “The main thing is to have a good, solid finish. I’m confident our Crosley Brands team has prepared a fast Chevrolet Camaro and we are going to give it everything we have as a team to finish the regular season on a high note. Every week when we show up to the track, our goal is to compete for the win, but if it’s not in the cards for that day, we need to get the best finish possible. If we do that on Friday night, our team will have a lot of momentum heading into Las Vegas. It’s always a blast racing under the lights at Bristol. I’m excited for the fast-paced action on the high banks and to be back at another short track.”

KNOXVILLE, IA (September 16, 2021) – Tyler Erb took the lead early on in Thursday Night’s 25-lap preliminary night at Knoxville Raceway and went on to win his fifth Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event of the season. Tonight, kicked off three nights of racing culminated by the $50,000 to win Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals presented by Brandt Professional Agriculture finale on Saturday Night. Jonathan Davenport and Kyle Larson chased Erb across the finish line. Ricky Weiss led the first lap but came home in fourth followed by overall fast qualifier, Kyle Strickler. Once Erb took the lead from Weiss he held a comfortable advantage over the field until a stretch of caution flags in the last nine laps kept the competition close. A restart with two laps to go saw Erb hold off both Davenport and Larson for his 14th career Lucas Oil victory. In Lucas Oil Victory Lane for the second time in his career at Knoxville, Erb set himself up for a good starting spot in Saturday Night’s big finale. “Yes, three years ago I won my first national race here. It was like the greatest thing that had ever happened to me. Then two years ago we ran second on a Thursday night. To win tonight it’s awesome. Racing is so up-and-down. You think you’ve got it figured out and last week wasn’t good for us. Those two guys [Davenport and Larson] are at the top of their game. What a lot of people don’t see from the outside in our day and age, are the ways these cars are; if your car is bad, you are bad. We were really good at I-80 with this same tire rule and same dirt.” Davenport, coming off a win in the 50th World 100 at Eldora Speedway, challenged Erb to finish line. “We just weren’t that good really. It’s hard to get your angles here. We have to be a little bit better. We were a whole lot better than we normally are here. This is one of my favorite places. We are still learning. We are going to keep our heads up and keep trying. My crew gave me a great car. I didn’t really give them much feedback because I don’t feel comfortable here yet.” The last time Larson raced at Knoxville was in August when he won the Knoxville Sprint Car Nationals. In a late model for the first time at Knoxville he finished in third. “I got up against the wall too many times. Those caution flags hurt us. We had some good momentum going on the outside. I am not sure even if the race had more laps, we could have gotten up there even further. I was trying some sprint car lines there for a while and with this being the first time racing here in a late model we learned a lot for sure.”  The winner’s Best Performance Motorsports, Rocket Chassis is powered by a Clements Racing Engine and sponsored by M&W Transport, Roberts Bee Company, First Class Septic, Posi Flow, Go Lithium, Midwest Sheet Metal, Bazell Race Fuels, KBC Graphics, and Keyser Manufacturing. Completing the top ten were Tim McCreadie, Earl Pearson Jr., Tyler Bruening, Chad Simpson, and Brandon Sheppard. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race Summary 17th Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals presented by BRANDT Professional Agriculture – Night 1Thursday, September 16th, 2021Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA Allstar Performance Time TrialsFast Time Group A: Kyle Strickler / 17.878 seconds (overall)Fast Time Group B: Kyle Larson / 18.041 seconds Penske Race Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 18J-Chase Junghans[2]; 2. 59-Garrett Alberson[1]; 3. 8-Kyle Strickler[6]; 4. 19R-Ryan Gustin[4]; 5. 20-Jimmy Owens[7]; 6. 04-Tad Pospisil[5]; 7. 29D-Spencer Diercks[3]; 8. 25F-Jason Feger[8] Summit Racing Equipment Heat Race #2 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 39-Tim McCreadie[6]; 2. 16-Tyler Bruening[5]; 3. 157-Mike Marlar[4]; 4. 66-Kyle Bronson[3]; 5. 21M-Luke Merfeld[2]; 6. 30-Todd Cooney[1]; 7. 6H-Al Humphrey[8]; 8. 10-Junior Coover[7]Simpson Race Products Heat Race #3 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 7W-Ricky Weiss[5]; 2. 1C-Chad Simpson[4]; 3. 1S-Brandon Sheppard[3]; 4. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[6]; 5. 1X-Aaron Marrant[2]; 6. 21B-Rich Bell[7]; 7. 33-Nick Marolf[1]; 8. 22H-Daniel Hilsabeck[8] Ohlins Shocks Heat Race #4 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 1T-Tyler Erb[4]; 2. 6-Kyle Larson[6]; 3. 56JR-Tony Jackson Jr[2]; 4. 41-Jeremiah Hurst[3]; 5. 32S-Chris Simpson[5]; 6. 93-Mason Oberkramer[1]; 7. 51-Matt Furman[7]; 8. 14M-Reid Millard[8] Fast Shafts Heat Race #5 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 71-Hudson O’Neal[1]; 2. 46-Earl Pearson Jr[6]; 3. 11H-Spencer Hughes[4]; 4. 98-Jason Rauen[2]; 5. 36-Logan Martin[5]; 6. 80-Allan Hopp[7]; 7. 10K-Shawn Kirwin[8]; 8. 18-Shannon Babb[3]Lucas Oil Heat Race #6 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 14-Josh Richards[2]; 2. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[4]; 3. 49-Jonathan Davenport[5]; 4. 25-Shane Clanton[3]; 5. 45-Kyle Hammer[6]; 6. 48-Tim Lance[1]; 7. 22M-Charlie McKenna[7]; 8. (DNS) 53-Andrew Kosiski LINE-X B-Main #1 Finish (15 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 2. 66-Kyle Bronson[4]; 3. 04-Tad Pospisil[2]; 4. 20-Jimmy Owens[8]; 5. 19R-Ryan Gustin[3]; 6. 21M-Luke Merfeld[5]; 7. 25F-Jason Feger[13]; 8. 1X-Aaron Marrant[6]; 9. 29D-Spencer Diercks[10]; 10. 21B-Rich Bell[9]; 11. 6H-Al Humphrey[11]; 12. 22H-Daniel Hilsabeck[15]; 13. 10-Junior Coover[14]; 14. 30-Todd Cooney[7]; 15. 33-Nick Marolf[12] UNOH B-Main #2 Finish (15 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 25-Shane Clanton[5]; 2. 36-Logan Martin[3]; 3. 32S-Chris Simpson[2]; 4. 41-Jeremiah Hurst[4]; 5. 45-Kyle Hammer[1]; 6. 93-Mason Oberkramer[7]; 7. 98-Jason Rauen[6]; 8. 80-Allan Hopp[9]; 9. 22M-Charlie McKenna[12]; 10. 10K-Shawn Kirwin[11]; 11. 14M-Reid Millard[13]; 12. 51-Matt Furman[10]; 13. 48-Tim Lance[8]; 14. (DNS) 18-Shannon Babb; 15. (DNS) 53-Andrew Kosiski

Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals Night 1 Feature Finish (25 Laps):

Race StatisticsEntrants: 48Lap Leaders: Ricky Weiss (Lap 1); Tyler Erb (Laps 2-25)Wrisco Feature Winner: Tyler ErbArizona Sport Shirts CJC – Presented by DirtOnDirt Feature Winner: n/aBrandon Ford TV Challenge Feature Winner: Tyler ErbMargin of Victory: 0.712 secondsStop Tech Brakes Cautions: Chris Simpson (Lap 16); Mike Marlar (Lap 19); Hudson O’Neal, Logan Martin (Lap 23)Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals: n/aSeries Emergency Provisionals: n/aBig River Steel Podium Top 3: Tyler Erb, Jonathan Davenport, Kyle LarsonPenske Shocks Top 5: Tyler Erb, Jonathan Davenport, Kyle Larson, Ricky Weiss, Kyle StricklerOptima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race: Kyle Bronson (Advanced 9 Positions)Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Tim McCreadieHot Rod Processing Most Laps Led: Tyler Erb (24 Laps)Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Tyler ErbEibach Springs Rookie of the Race: Ricky Thornton Jr.Dirty Girl Racewear Fastest Lap of the Race: Tyler Erb (Lap 2 – 19.842 seconds)Fast Shafts Tough Break of the Race: Hudson O’NealOuterwears Crew Chief of the Race: Randall Edwards (Tyler Erb)ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Clements Race EnginesMiller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Rocket ChassisDirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Kyle Larson (18.186 seconds)Time of Race: 29 minutes 17 seconds

NASCAR CUP SERIES BASS PRO SHOPS NIGHT RACE BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT SEPTEMBER 16, 2021
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE, Teleconference Transcript Highlights: HOW MUCH ARE YOU PAYING ATTENTION TO WHAT OTHER DRIVERS DO AND HOW MUCH WILL THEIR STRATEGY DICTATE YOURS?“I think, in the situation we’re in, there are so many moving parts and pieces, and guys really close to us, that if you try to keep track of all that, you’re just going to dial yourself out and be worried about things you don’t need to be worried about. We just have to go execute and have the best day we can. There are a lot of guys that are really good at Bristol. I know we’re going to have to have a really good night and score a lot of points and not beat ourselves, which has been a struggle for us at Bristol, particularly. But I’m looking forward to it. I’m looking forward to the challenge. It’s a really fun race track. We’re always really fast there. We don’t have the results to show that in the last year or so, but we’ve always had speed. Last year we were really good in the Stages and had a tire come apart. So, we’ve just got to go execute and be the best we can be.”
YOU GOT YOUR RACING BEGINNINGS ON THE WEST COAST IN ARIZONA AND CALIFORNIA. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU TO SEE THAT THE CLASH IS MOVING TO THE L.A. COLISEUM THIS YEAR? WHAT DO YOU AND THE OTHER DRIVERS THINK OF THAT AND OTHER CHANGES TO THE 2022 SCHEDULE?“I can’t really speak much for the other drivers. From my side of things, I think it’s really cool. I ran that first E-Series race at Bowman Gray Stadium ten years ago, or whatever it was, and I remember going into that like oh, this isn’t even going to be a race, and so on, and it was just another race track. The atmosphere was amazing. The racing was great. The cars were fine on such a small race track. There are plenty of short tracks around the country that are quarter miles that people race on every Saturday night. So, I’m looking forward to that. I think it’s going to be really cool. The atmosphere I’m sure, is going to be amazing. That’s really what makes an event like that is the atmosphere. Hopefully, we absolutely slam that place full of people and put on a great event.”
WITH THE SUCCESS YOU’VE HAD THIS YEAR ON SHORT TRACKS, HOW MUCH CONFIDENCE DOES THAT GIVE YOU HEADING TO BRISTOL AND KNOWING WHAT’S ON THE LINE?“I definitely always have confidence going to Bristol. I really have confidence going anywhere, especially this year with Hendrick Motorsports. We’ve been fast everywhere. I’m confident but, definitely not comfortable, by any means in the point situation we’re in. So, we’ve just got to go have a good day. We have all the parts and pieces and tools we need to make that happen. We’ve just got to go do it.”
ON THE 2022 SCHEDULE OVERALL“I’m excited, like I said, about going to L.A. I think that’s going to be really neat. I’ve got some friends over at Gateway. It’s really cool to see all their hard work rewarded with a Cup Series event. They’ve worked really hard on that place. It’s really cool to see them have that success. Hopefully that’s another great event for us, and it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
WITH EVERYTHING THAT HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS HAS ACCOMPLISHED DURING THE REGULAR SEASON, HOW MUCH OF A SENSE OF URGENCY IS THERE WITH THE NO. 48 TEAM AS A WHOLE?“I don’t think there’s a sense of urgency. I don’t think we expected to be in this situation. I’m pretty frustrated with myself after Darlington to put ourselves in this spot. We know we need to go execute and go have a good day. We know it’s not going to be easy by any means. But we also know that if something goes wrong and we don’t make it to the next round, there are still more opportunities for us to win races this year. There are plenty of opportunities for us to still end up with a good points spot. We’ve just got to go execute each and every week. Consistency has been our hard spot over the last couple of years with this race team. We’ve got to get that figured out. But it’s been a great year and we’re going to do all we can to get all four Hendrick cars as far as we can in the Playoffs.”
AND ON THE NOTE OF CONSISTENCY, THESE LAST FIVE OR SIX RACES HAVE NOT BEEN VERY STRONG FOR YOU. BUT HOW DO YOU JUST FOCUS ON THE RACE AHEAD?“Yeah, it’s definitely difficult. But at the same time, I think a lot of it was things not of our doing. At the Indy Road Course, we had a flat tire on the last re-start. At Michigan, we got some damage. We just had some days that got away from us with things outside of our control. So, just need to go execute. Darlington, I’m really frustrated with myself still. That was a day that if we would have just gone and executed, we wouldn’t be remotely in this situation this week. So, when you start the Playoffs with a 26th place finish, it’s not very good and we just have to go make up for it this weekend.”
IF THE POST-SEASON DREAM DOES END THIS WEEKEND, WHAT’S THE BIGGEST POSITIVE TAKEAWAY YOU’LL HAVE IN YOUR FIRST SEASON REPRESENTING THE NO. 48 BRANDING? AND WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED ABOUT YOURSELF AS BOTH A DRIVER AND A PERSON?“It’s been a lot of fun working with Ally. I think that’s the biggest thing is just how great it is to work with everybody on their team. It’s been amazing to have a partner that has your back the way that Ally does. Obviously, winning three races this year and getting them their first point wins, their first trip to the Playoffs, it’s been really great. I feel like we have as good of a shot as anybody at transferring this week. And if we don’t, we can still finish fifth in points. We’ve just got to go have really good end to the year. We did that last year and ended up sixth in points, so high expectations for the rest of the year, but it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
WHAT DO YOU SAY TO PEOPLE WHO CLAIM THIS PACKAGE PUTS LESS EMPHASIS ON A DRIVER’S SKILL AND MORE ON RANDOM LUCK?“Well, the good news with that is we’re on the low downforce package this week at Bristol. So, lowdown force, high horsepower, I think passing is definitely tough just on the shape of the race track. But that’s just part of it. As far as the high downforce stuff goes, it’s just another race car. It’s another package. Everybody’s got the same thing. You’ve still got to drive it. So, I don’t think anybody can say it’s random luck by any means.”

CHEVROLET AT CHARLOTTE  What: DeWalt NHRA Carolina NationalsWhen: Friday, Sept. 17-Sunday, Sept. 19Where: zMAX Dragway in Concord, North CarolinaTV: FOX will telecast eliminations live at 2 p.m. ET Sunday, Sept. 19                                                                                                    Chevrolet looks to keep up momentum in Round 2 of CountdownTeam Chevy either first or second in three pro categories heading to Charlotte

DETROIT (Sept. 16, 2021) – Much like he has done throughout his march to 97 career Pro Stock victories, Greg Anderson takes a “one race at a time” approach to the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Countdown to the Championship.
Next in line for the driver of the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro SS – and 12 other Team Chevy title contenders in three professional categories — is the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway in Concord, North Carolina. Anderson enters the second event of the Countdown as the most recent Pro Stock race winner and points leader.
“I go to every single race trying to win that race. If I keep that mindset, that’s going to add up to be a championship,” said Anderson, who is taking aim at his fifth title and first since 2010. “I don’t go to a race hoping that I make more points than my toughest competitors. That’s not a win to me. I don’t try to count the points, I count the wins. I’m going there with one goal in mind and that’s to win the race and that’s going to add to my grand point total.”
One win will break a tie with Warren Johnson for the most all time in Pro Stock and second only to John Force’s 154 career Funny Car victories.
“I’m going to my home track of Charlotte and we’re going to have a ton of fans out here, and all the Hendrick Automotive Group will be there. I can’t think of a better place to break the record,” said Anderson, who will be inducted into the North Carolina Motorsports Hall of Fame on Oct. 8. “Yes, the championship is the grand plan but there are a few more immediate goals on my list and that is to win the race.”
John Force enters the weekend as the Funny Car points leader in the PEAK Antifreeze & Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS after a runner-up finish Sept. 12 in Reading, Pennsylvania. Teammate Robert Hight, a six-time winner at the track, is fifth in the Automobile Club of Southern California Camaro SS.
“We’re having a good season. We’re running well. Danny Hood and Tim Fabrisi have this PEAK Chevy just right, everyone is doing their job, I’m just hanging in there, trying to keep up,” said Force, who was the No. 1 qualifier and won the four-wide event at zMAX Dragway in May. “It’s the Countdown now, it’s time to fight. I’m loving it. I live for this.”
Record-setting Top Fuel star Brittany Force will aim for her second victory of the season, which would vault the driver of the Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster into first place, and her eighth consecutive No. 1 qualifier honor. Force is only 12 points behind front-runner Steve Torrence.
FOX will telecast eliminations live at 2 p.m. ET Sunday, Sept. 19. 
CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT
TOP FUEL:

BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONSTER ENERGY CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (Second in standings): “This Monster Energy team is heading to race two of the Countdown and we plan to capitalize on our hard work from last weekend. We are in the hunt for this championship and are currently sitting two in points. We plan to keep chipping away, gaining bonus points where we can and winning at zMAX to take over the lead.”
FUNNY CAR:
JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK ANTIFREEZE AND COOLANT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Points leader): “I always love coming to zMAX, it’s a beautiful track and we get to race here twice a year. The four-wide is great, it’s a spectacle, the fans love it. But then, we get to come back in the Countdown, when everything is on the line and the fans get to see competition at its highest level. We’ll put on a show, so fans better be ready.”
ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Fifth in standings): “We know what we need to do to get this thing done. This Auto Club team can do it. I have all the confidence in Jimmy Prock, Chris Cunningham and my entire team. We’re getting some consistency, which is what we need. Now we just need to keep it going, pick up points where we can, be aggressive and go after wins. We’ve had a lot of luck in Charlotte, hopefully that continues. We need to make good runs, clean runs, but we can’t be safe either. Jimmy and Chris, they’ll have this Chevy just right. I just need to do my job too.”
PRO STOCK:
GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Points leader): “Racing at Charlotte, we have all our family, employees and their families, friends here, so it means a lot to win here. And with HendrickCars.com on the side of the car we’re going to have about 150 of their employees out there on Sunday. I want to make the whole Hendrick Automotive Group proud having their name on the side of the race car. There’s a lot of the line here. Yes, the championship is the grand plan but there are a few more immediate goals on my list and that is to win the race.”
DALLAS GLENN, KB RACING, RAD TORQUE SYSTEMS CAMARO SS (Fourth in standings; winner of spring race at zMAX Dragway): “This is the part of the year where everything really gets cookin’ but after racing with Jason and Greg all these years, I know the Countdown to the Championship is definitely a marathon in a way and not a sprint. You just have to remain consistent during these final races and you should put yourself in a good spot to win the championship by Pomona. Coming back to Charlotte in the fall is a different feeling knowing I was the winner at the end of Sunday last time we raced here. I’d like to think the RAD Torque/KB Racing has the upper hand coming into this weekend, for sure.”
KYLE KORETSKY, KB RACING, LUCAS OIL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Fifth in standings): “Hometown track, Maple Grove. I had tons of support with family and friends. No. 1 qualifier Friday night was great, but we struggled Saturday in qualifying and got bumped back to No. 5. Still a good weekend; qualified top half. I know the Countdown is on, but I try not to think about it. I just go to every race, every round and do the best that I can do and try to win as many rounds as I can because every point counts. We wanted to have a better outcome at Maple Grove, but going into Charlotte I’m confident I’ll have a car that can win the race.” 
TROY COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM/ELITEMOTORSPORTS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Sixth in standings): “This race weekend feels a little bigger than normal. zMAX already makes a race feel more important because it’s such a massive stadium and the stands are always packed. Now there’s 10 very good race teams all fighting for one prize, so the excitement is growing every single round. The best way I can show my thanks to everyone who is a part of putting me in this position is to win races, so that’s our goal every single weekend. Charlotte will be no different.”

CONCORD, N.C. (Sept. 16, 2021) – Robert Hight and his Automobile Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS team are sitting fifth in the points standings heading into the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway. Just the second race of seven in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship, Hight, who is only 50 points back from the lead, knows a standout performance in North Carolina will put the Auto Club team in prime position for championship contention. With two victories in the 2021 NHRA Camping World Series, the SpringNationals in Houston and Sonoma Raceway’s NHRA Sonoma Nationals, two runner-up finishes at the season opening Gatornationals and the New England Nationals, and a No. 1 qualifier at the Las Vegas Four-Wide event, Hight and the Auto Club team left the most recent event at Maple Grove Raceway having shifted from sixth to fifth after a No. 2 qualifying position and semifinal finish. “We know what we need to do to get this thing done. This Auto Club team can do it. I have all the confidence in Jimmy Prock, Chris Cunningham and my entire team,” Hight said. “We’re getting some consistency, which is what we need. Now we just need to keep it going, pick up points where we can, be aggressive and go after wins.” Hight has won more races at zMAX Dragway than any other Funny Car driver (6). Four of his wins have come at the Carolina Nationals (2009, 2013, 2017 and 2019). His 2019 win marked the 50th win of his career. He is the track record holder for speed at 333.91 mph set in April 2017. This weekend, Hight will be trying to extend to four the number of consecutive seasons in which he has won a Countdown race, the longest active streak in Funny Car. Hight also leads the Funny Car category in Countdown wins with 12. “There’s no time to try and figure things out anymore, it’s time to get after it. This Auto Club team knows that,” Hight said. “We’ve had a lot of luck in Charlotte, hopefully that continues. We need to make good runs, clean runs, but we can’t be safe either. Jimmy and Chris, they’ll have this Chevy just right. I just need to do my job too.” Qualifying at the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals begins Friday with the first session at 7:15 p.m. and continues Saturday with sessions at 2:30 and 6:15 p.m. Eliminations are slated for Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Television coverage begins with a qualifying show Sunday at 10 a.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1). Eliminations will be on FOX Broadcasting Network beginning at 4 p.m. ET.

RACE #29 – BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAYThe opening round of the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Playoffs concludes with the third consecutive race on a short track. The .533-mile Bristol Motor Speedway will host the Bass Pro Shops Night Race on Saturday, September 18. Following races at the 1-mile Darlington Raceway and .75-mile Richmond Raceway, the 500-lap, 266.5-mile race under the lights on Bristol Motor Speedway’s high-banked concrete oval will determine the 12 drivers who advance to the next round. 
NASCAR Cup Series Regular Season Champion, Kyle Larson, is one of three drivers who has already secured a spot in the Round of 12. Larson, driver of the No. 5 Valvoline Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, charged from the rear of the field to finish sixth at Richmond. 
A look at Team Chevy in the NASCAR Cup Series title hunt:
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Valvoline Camaro ZL1 1LE – 1st in Standings (Playoff Rank: 3rd) Victories: 5 (field-high)Top-Fives: 15; Top-10’s: 20; Laps Led: 1,730Average Finish: 9.3Stage Wins: 13At Bristol (12 career NCS starts): Top-Fives: 2; Top-10’s: 7; Poles: 1; Average Finish: 14.417Of Note: The NCS Regular Season Champion drove from the rear of the field to finish sixth at Richmond, securing place in the next round of the Playoffs.
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hooters Camaro ZL1 1LE – 7th in Standings (2072 points)Victories: 2Top-Fives: 12; Top-10’s: 17; Laps Led: 395; Average Finish: 11.5Stage Wins: 3At Bristol (10 career NCS starts): Top-Fives: 3; Top-10’s: 5; Poles: 1Average Finish: 12.100 (series-best); Average Running Position: 9.892 (series-best)Of Note: The 2021 NCS season marks Elliott’s sixth consecutive year of being part of the Playoff field. Six of his 13 career NCS wins have come in the Playoffs.
Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE – 12th in Standings (2053 Points)Victories: 1Top-Fives: 4; Top-10’s: 10; Laps Led: 192; Average Finish: 16.4Stage Wins: 3At Bristol (40 career NCS starts): Wins: 6; Top-Fives: 12; Top-10’s: 21 (most of active drivers); Poles: 1Of Note: This is Busch’s 15th NCS post-season appearance, tying career Chevrolet driver Jimmie Johnson and two others for most. Busch’s first NCS victory came at Bristol in 2002. 
Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE –13th in Standings (2053 points)Victories: 3Top-Fives: 6; Top-10’s 13; Pole Wins: 1; Laps Led: 151; Average Finish: 14.5At Bristol (10 career NCS starts): Top-Fives: 1; Top-10’s: 2Of Note: The 2021 NCS season marks Bowman’s fourth-career Playoffs appearance. Bowman has raced his way into the Round of 12 for the last three years. 
Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Camaro ZL1 1LE – 14th in Standings (2048 Points)Top-Fives: 2; Top-10’s: 13; Pole Wins: 1; Laps Led: 26; Average Finish: 14.8Stage Wins: 3At Bristol (2 career NCS starts): Top-Fives: 1; Top-10’s: 1Of Note: The 2021 NCS season marks Reddick’s first Playoff appearance. Reddick won the fall 2019 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Bristol. 
William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE – 15th in Standings (2035 points)Victories: 1 Top-Fives: 9; Top-10’s: 16; Pole Wins: 2; Laps Led: 276; Average Finish: 14.0Stage Wins: 3At Bristol (6 career NCS starts): Top-10’s: 1 Of Note: The 2021 NCS season marks Byron’s third-career Playoffs appearance. 
GRAGSON TAKES HOT HAND INTO REGULAR-SEASON FINALENoah Gragson won the NASCAR Xfinity Series race for the second consecutive week in the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro SS. The Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday, September 17, is the final race in the series’ regular season. AJ Allmendinger – who has captured 3 NXS wins, 15 top-five’s and 16 top-10’s thus far this season – continues to sit atop the Driver Standings. Chevrolet, with 11 NXS wins, remains first in the Manufacturer Standings. 
CREED GOES BACK-TO-BACK IN ROUND OF 10The third race of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) Playoffs Round of 10 will be contested Thursday, September 16, at Bristol Motor Speedway. Reigning champion Sheldon Creed has won both races in the series’ opening Playoff round in his Chevrolet Silverado – most recently at Darlington to sweep at the track this season. The 200-lap race under the lights at Bristol serves as the Round of 10 elimination race, determining the eight drivers that will move onto the next round in quest for the coveted NCWTS championship title. 
RECAPPING CHEVROLET’S WIN STREAKS AT BRISTOLThe Bristol 500 Night Race is the 121st on the Bristol Motor Speedway concrete oval since 1961. Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 45 victories. Charlie Glotzbach recorded Chevrolet’s first win at Bristol and the first for the Monte Carlo on July 11, 1971, which started a run of seven consecutive victories at the track for the Bowtie Brand. He still holds the track race record of 101.074 mph set in the ’71 race. Chevrolet won nine of the 10 NCS races between 1983 and 1987, which included four each by Darrell Waltrip and Dale Earnhardt and one by Terry Labonte. The other win in the span was by Rusty Wallace in GM brand Pontiac.
CHEVROLET SITS ATOP MANUFACTURER STANDINGSChevrolet remains the leader in the NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Standings in pursuit of its 40th title. Team Chevy has recorded field highs of 13 victories, 124 top-10 finishes, 2,996 laps led and 25 stage wins through 28 races. The Bowtie Brand has already surpassed its totals for wins (9), top-10 finishes (120), laps led (2,399) and stage wins (21) from the 36-race 2020 season.
ON THE WAY TO THE GREENWith no practice or qualifying for the 400-lap race, the starting lineup is determined by NASCAR’s metrics system that was introduced to the series last year and incorporates results from both individual races and season-long results. Team Chevy’s Top-20 starters:4th     Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hooters Camaro ZL1 1LE 5th     Kyle Larson, No. 5 Valvoline Camaro ZL1 1LE 11th   Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE 13th   Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Camaro ZL1 1LE14th   William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE15th   Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE 17th   Ross Chastain, No. 42 Moose Fraternity Camaro ZL1 1LE18th   Austin Dillon, No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Off Road Camaro ZL1 1LE
BOWTIE BULLETS·       Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 124 top-10 finishes and 2,996 laps led of 6,793 total this season.·       In addition to its 45 wins, Chevrolet has amassed 211 top-five and 440 top-10 finishes at Bristol Motor Speedway.·       Kurt Busch is tied for most starts at Bristol among active drivers with 40.·       Busch has led 17 races at Bristol for a total of 1,095 laps.4·       Busch will be making his 749th NCS start. ·       Hendrick Motorsports continues to lead the Owner Standings.·       Kyle Larson paces all drivers with 1,730 laps led.·       Tyler Reddick is second among drivers with 99.46% of laps completed (6,756 of 6,793).·       Ross Chastain overcame two pit road penalties to finish seventh at Richmond – highest among non-Playoff drivers.·       Five Team Chevy drivers have combined for 25 stage wins – three more than in 36 races in 2020: Chase Elliott (Daytona RC, Michigan, Daytona2); William Byron (Homestead, Pocono2, Road America); Tyler Reddick (Road America, Indianapolis road course x2); Kurt Busch (Nashville Superspeedway, Pocono1, Atlanta2); Kyle Larson (Las Vegas, Atlanta x2, Kansas, Dover x2, Charlotte x3, Sonoma x2, Nashville, Darlington2).
TUNE INNBCSN will telecast the 500-lap NASCAR Cup Series Bass Pro Shops Night Race at 7:30 p.m. ET, Saturday, Sept. 18. Live coverage is also on PRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. NBCSN will also telecast the 300-lap NASCAR Xfinity Series Food City 300 at 7:30 p.m. ET Friday, Sept. 17. FS1 will telecast the 200-lap NASCAR Camping World Truck Series UNOH 200 presented by Ohio Logistics at 9 p.m. ET, Thursday, Sept. 16, from Bristol Motor Speedway.
QUOTABLE QUOTESKYLE LARSON, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 1st IN STANDINGSLARSON ON ATMOSPHERE FOR BRISTOL NIGHT RACE: “Bristol is cool all the time, but the night race, to me, has a little bit more meaning than the spring race because of the atmosphere around it. The lights, the crowd, the energy is just up for the night race. It makes me excited, and it makes me want to win there even more.”
CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1 1LEDANIELS ON THE MINDSET BEING LOCKED INTO THE NEXT ROUND OF THE PLAYOFFS: “Our goal is to go to Bristol and win, of course, especially since we are locked into the next round. But being locked in really doesn’t change our mindset – we just need to execute a good race. It allows us the opportunity to go after stage wins and the race win possibly with a different strategy, but I don’t know what a crazy ‘Hail Mary’ would look like at Bristol, so I don’t think we would do that.”
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 7th IN STANDINGSELLIOTT ON RETURNING TO BRISTOL’S CONCRETE CONFIGURATION: “It’s a little different, for sure. It seems like (Bristol) did a really good job of how they put the dirt down and took it back up to where the track surface doesn’t really look any different. I anticipate everybody will adapt pretty quickly. The Bristol night race is always one of my favorite races of the year. It’s a great environment. To me, it’s one of the coolest events on our schedule. It will be an exciting weekend. I am glad it’s in the playoffs and we get to go up there and enjoy a Saturday night in eastern Tennessee.”
ELLIOTT ON BRISTOL BEING A CUTOFF RACE: “A cutoff race at Bristol is perfect. It’s a great event. Like I said, it’s one of my favorite races of the year and, honestly, I feel like it is one of the most exciting events of the year. It’s one that has been that way for a long time on our schedule. I think that’s a great place for a cutoff, and I am glad it’s in the playoffs.”
ALAN GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1 1LE GUSTAFSON ON THE HIGH-PRESSURED PLAYOFF FORMAT: “It’s tough; that’s one of the hardest things about it. It’s a long time; just under a third of the season. A lot can happen, and you can have the best-laid plans and something happens that puts you in a tough spot. You just have to maximize your opportunities and your moments to try to get ahead. When it gets really tough is when you have a bad week to start a round, then you’re behind. You’re trying to reach and make too much happen. (We’re) just trying to stay ahead, execute, maximize points and keep ourselves on the front side of it. That takes a lot of the pressure off.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 13th IN STANDINGSBOWMAN ON HOW THE TEAM IS STRATEGIZING FOR BRISTOL: “I think we need to maximize stage points and hopefully that has us in a good spot at the end of the day. I don’t think we are in a must win situation by any means, but when you are racing Kurt (Busch) and Kyle (Busch) and guys that are so good at Bristol it is going to be tough. We are going to go do everything we can to win the race and hopefully make it happen. I don’t think we are going to put ourselves in a situation where we either win or run 30th. We are just going to go maximize the day and do the best we can.”  GREG IVES, CREW CHIEF, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE IVES ON PREPARING FOR THE CUTOFF RACE AT BRISTOL: “I have been in playoff situations plenty of times to know … you take all of your pennies out and figure out how many points you have. You divide them all up and if you do this and add that and you get this many stage points and finish here, you end up transferring on. Honestly, my thought is that if you go out there and execute, have good pit stops, don’t have any loose wheels, vibrations, great restarts, and keep your car clean, you are probably going to transfer on. That’s our goal and I haven’t been quiet about it either, it all comes down to executing the races and finishing where we should.”  IVES ON THE NO. 48 TEAM’S HISTORY AT BRISTOL: “I would say we have performed decent there – capable of top-10s. We haven’t been in the situation where I felt like we could win the race. Alex talks about it a lot, we kind of just focus on trying to get his driving style to match up with the setup I have underneath the car and being able to repeat that. Last time there, we were running between third and seventh most of the day and we had a left-rear tire come unbalanced. We had to pit, went two laps down and never got it back. That’s kind of what I am talking about, is whether we have a top-three car or a top-10 car, it doesn’t matter if you run into issues that you can’t overcome. Adversity is all about overcoming it and Bristol is definitely going to have plenty of opportunities to try and overcome.”  WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 15th IN STANDINGSBYRON ON HEADING TO BRISTOL UNDER THE PLAYOFF CUTLINE: “Obviously, we’re not in an ideal situation heading to Bristol but we’re by no means out of it. Just because we’re below the cutline doesn’t mean we need to try anything crazy, either. That’s when people put themselves in bad situations, I feel like. We just need to go to Bristol and execute on all levels as a team. We know we have the speed in our cars to run well at Bristol; we just need to focus on running our race. We’ll be aware of what’s going on around us, but we can only control our race and that’s what we’re going to focus on. We need to maximize our points and be around at the end of the night to capitalize.”
RUDY FUGLE, CREW CHIEF, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE FUGLE ON THE STRATEGY GOING TO BRISTOL: “Every week we try to go win and this race is no different. We put in the same amount of effort every week. There are always going to be some tracks that you have a better chance at winning at than others, but we feel like Bristol is one of those that is high up on our list. We think we can go in there, reach the top five hopefully by the end of stage one and continue to race in the top five all night long before seeing what happens at the end of it. There’s probably a couple scenarios where if we get a lot of stage points and a few people have issues – which statistically happens at the Bristol night race – that we could point our way in with a top-five night. But there’s no easier way to lock in than to win and there’s no better place to do it than the Bristol night race. We want to end the night driving up into victory lane and celebrating.”
FUGLE ON HOW EASILY THINGS CAN CHANGE THROUGHOUT A RACE: “No one knows better than us that anything can happen in a race, especially something out of your control. We had that happen at Darlington when a lug nut got wedged down in the wheel and broke a valve stem, ending our night early. These races – you can lose them faster than you can win them. All we can do is get those stage points early on and put more pressure on those guys in front of us. They may think they’re in a safe situation and can run 10th all night, but if we can put pressure on them to step it up, that’s when mistakes happen and we can be there to capitalize.”
DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 COCA-COLA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 24th IN STANDINGSWHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR PAINT SCHEME?“Oh my gosh, it is fantastic. Coca-Cola and Trackhouse Racing did a great job with it. I’m very honored to drive it and appreciate Coca-Cola recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month.”WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER ABOUT YOUR FOURTH-PLACE FINISH ON THE BRISTOL DIRT IN MARCH? “To be honest, I had no idea what I was doing. But we were having fun that day. Everyone at Trackhouse Racing did an amazing job getting me ready and I just raced the best I could.”
WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR SATURDAY NIGHT? “Just a few spots better this time. I want to win!”
ERIK JONES, NO. 43 US AIR FORCE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 26th IN STANDINGSWHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE SUCCESSFUL AT BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY? “Bristol Motor Speedway is tough. You are hustling the car nonstop. It is really the only place that we get to go where you are just all out for the whole race. A lot of places, you kind of have to manage your car. At Bristol, you are really going with all you’ve got from the start. Just being able to run both lanes; being able to make the bottom work in the PJ-1 and be able to move up as the race goes on. Getting in that upper groove, you can make a lot of speed up there and that’s really just as important. You have to have a good car in both lanes. That’s probably the toughest part, having that balance.”
COREY LAJOIE, NO. 7 SCHLUTER SYSTEMS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 29th IN STANDINGS“The Bristol night race is one of my all-time favorites! We look to rebound after a tough day in Richmond to have a run, which we know we’re certainly capable of. Schluter has been a great partner of mine since I started in the Cup Series. I’m excited to see that scheme pop under the lights at the last great coliseum. The last time we were at Bristol, it was covered in dirt. I’m happy it’s back to its original state & looking forward to the challenge of 500 grueling laps in the Schluter Systems Chevy Camaro.” 

CHARLOTTE, NC (September 16, 2021) — Six races remain in the 2021 NHRA Countdown and this weekend’s DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMax Dragway will be nine-time Funny Car finalist Alexis DeJoria’s chance to close the gap on the points leader. The Bandero Premium Tequila ROKiT Toyota Camry Funny Car team closed out the 2020 season on a strong run and recreating that successful run is doable for this experienced team. This season DeJoria’s Funny Car has posted some of the quickest times in qualifying and has raced to the final round at the Mile-High Nationals in Denver as well as five semifinals.

“There is no doubt our Funny Car can run with anyone,” said DeJoria. “This Bandero ROKiT Toyota Camry gives me a lot of confidence when it rolls up to the starting line. We have been talking about it for a couple races, but we just need to make some of our own luck. There are six races left in the playoffs and that is plenty of time to start getting wins and moving up in the points.”

This weekend will be DeJoria’s seventh appearance at the Carolina Nationals. In two of her previous three races at the track located in the heart of NASCAR country she advanced to the semifinals. In 2014 she scored her second career No. 1 qualifier at the Bruton Smith owned racetrack. From 2013-2017 she started as the No. 5 qualifier twice as well as No. 4 and No. 1 qualifier once each.

“This is a quick and fast track,” said DeJoria. “We were the No. 2 qualifier at the four-wide nationals earlier this season and raced to the final quad. Del (Worsham) and Nicky (Boninfante) are doing a great job with the tune up and I know it is just a matter of time until we get our first win of the season.”

Looking ahead to the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals DeJoria is sitting No. 8 in the Funny Car standings. The five-time Funny Car national event winner is five rounds out of first place with the addition of a handful of qualifying bonus points which the team regularly collects. Three solid qualifying runs combined with round wins against some Countdown contending Funny Cars on Sunday would easily move DeJoria and the Bandero Tequila ROKiT team well into the top four or five with five races left in the playoffs. Last season over the last four races she qualified No. 5 or better at every race and raced to the semifinals at three of those races.

“We have a stretch of races at tracks where I have had success in the past and that gives any driver confidence,” said DeJoria. “This team has been working together all season with one common goal to get that Funny Car championship. We are in a position to do just that and we need to dig deep and stay focused.”

Qualifying for the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals begins with one session under the lights at 7:15 p.m. on Friday night with two more qualifying sessions on Saturday afternoon. Eliminations will begin on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. ET with the race being broadcast nationally on Fox.

CONCORD, N.C. (Sept. 16, 2021) – Brittany Force and her Monster Energy team are heading into race two of seven in the NRHA Countdown to the Champion, the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway outside of Charlotte, N.C., just 12 points out of the championship points lead with the momentum and performance to overtake the top spot. Brittany Force and the Monster Energy team are going for her eighth straight No. 1 start, one shy of Gary Beck’s Top Fuel record of nine straight starts over the 1982 and 1983 seasons. If she tallies that eighth consecutive, she also will break a tie with her dad for the John Force Racing team lead. John qualified No. 1 at seven straight events – the last six races of 1994 and the first race in 1995. The Monster Energy team has a total of nine No. 1 qualifying positions along with one win. After qualifying No. 1 at Heartland Motorsports Park in Topeka, Kan., Brittany Force went onto share a historic winners circle with legendary father John Force. It was the first time in NHRA history that a parent-child duo had won together in the pro categories. “This Monster Energy team is heading to race two of the Countdown and we plan to capitalize on our hard work from last weekend,” Force said. “We are in the hunt for this championship and are currently sitting 2 in points. We plan to keep chipping away, gaining bonus points where we can and winning at zMAX to take over the lead.” Force is one of only two women (with Erica Enders) to have won a pro race at zMAX and is trying to become the first woman to win both events. In 2016, Force won the 4Wide and was runner-up to Steve Torrence at the Carolina Nationals in 2018. The Bellagio of Drag Racing, as zMAX is fondly known, is one of four tracks at which she has qualified No. 1 three times (with Las Vegas, Topeka and Reading). She has qualified No. 1, posted quick time and top speed of the event at the last five races and has had the fastest speed in 10 of the season’s 14 events. Qualifying at the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals begins Friday with the first session at 7:15 p.m. and continues Saturday with sessions at 2:30 and 6:15 p.m. Eliminations are slated for Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Television coverage begins with a qualifying show Sunday at 10 a.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1). Eliminations will be on FOX Broadcasting Network beginning at 4 p.m. ET.

CONCORD, N.C. (Sept. 16, 2021) – John Force and PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS team are entering this weekend’s DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway leading the Funny Car points standings by five with only six races left in the Countdown to the Championship, NHRA’s playoffs. Force and his Daniel Hood and Tim Fabrisi led PEAK Antifreeze team have been part of the Championship conversation since they returned to competition in 2021 after taking the 2020 season off. With five final round appearances that included three wins (Charlotte Four-Wide, New England Nationals and sharing the winners circle with daughter Brittany in Topeka at Heartland Motorsports Park) and two No. 1 qualifying positions (Charlotte Four-Wide and the U.S. Nationals), Force will be trying to win four races in a season for the 14th time in his career while tightening his hold on the Championship points lead. “We’re having a good season. We’re running well. Danny Hood and Tim Fabrisi have this PEAK Chevy just right, everyone is doing their job, I’m just hanging in there, trying to keep up,” Force said. “It’s the Countdown now, it’s time to fight. I’m loving it. I live for this.” The NHRA Carolina Nationals will be the 277th time Force has started a race as the points leader. He has three wins at zMAX Dragway and won the most recent race at the track, the Four-Wide Nationals in May after which he gave his trophy to track owner Bruton Smith, with whom he has a long personal relationship. Force has one win at the Carolina Nationals in 2016 when he beat last week’s winner, Tommy Johnson Jr., in the final. Just outside of Charlotte, zMAX is one of three tracks to have honored John by naming a grandstand after him (along with Norwalk and Pomona). “I always love coming to zMAX, it’s a beautiful track and we get to race here twice a year. The four-wide is great, it’s a spectacle, the fans love it,” Force said. “But then, we get to comeback in the Countdown, when everything is on the line and the fans get to see competition at its highest level. We’ll put on a show, so fans better be ready.” Qualifying at the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals begins Friday with the first session at 7:15 p.m. and continues Saturday with sessions at 2:30 and 6:15 p.m. Eliminations are slated for Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Television coverage begins with a qualifying show Sunday at 10 a.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1). Eliminations will be on FOX Broadcasting Network beginning at 4 p.m. ET.

CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES FIRESTONE GRAND PRIX OF MONTEREY WEATHERTECH RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA SEPT. 17-19 RACE 15 OF 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES SEASON Team Chevy heads to penultimate race in thick of title chaseEvery point at Laguna Seca counts for Pato O’Ward, Josef Newgarden  DETROIT (Sept. 15, 2021) – The focus will be on three drivers, including two powered by Chevrolet’s V-6 engine, as the tight NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship chase heads into its penultimate event this weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Pato O’Ward, driver of the No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet, is 25 points out of first place following the crash-marred event Sept. 12 at Portland, Oregon, while two-time Series champion Josef Newgarden, competing in the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, trails front-runner Alex Palou by 34 points. A maximum 54 points are available in the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey on Sept. 19 and the finale Sept. 26 on the temporary street circuit in Long Beach, California. Basically, the title is up for grabs. Two 45-minute practice sessions, qualifications and a 30-minute race day warm-up precede the 90-lap contest on the 2.238-mile, 11-turn road course that features a 300-foot elevation change and the famous “Corkscrew” in Turns 8 and 8A. The NTT INDYCAR SERIES returned to the venue in 2019 after a 14-year absence. The event was not contested in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. O’Ward, 21, a two-time winner and three-time pole sitter this season, will make his first NTT INDYCAR SERIES start at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. He recorded one victory in five Indy Pro 2000 races in 2015-16 at the track. “We are up against some great competitors for the championship, but we will come back the next two races and fight down to the last lap in Long Beach,” he said. “No pressure.” Newgarden is the most seasoned of the title contenders, winning the championship in 2017 and ’19 and finishing a close second in the truncated 2020 season. He’s seeking to become the 13th three-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion. “Going into Laguna Seca 34 points out of the lead is definitely doable. We are in the fight for the championship and that’s all we can ask,” said Newgarden, who qualified fourth and finished eighth in the 2019 race at Laguna Seca. “We have to hit on all cylinders these next two weeks and I’m confident in this team to be at a championship level.” Scott McLaughlin’s ninth-place finish at Portland – his second consecutive top 10 and fifth of the season — gave the driver of the No. 3 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet the inside track to the INDYCAR Rookie of the Year award.  Callum Ilott, who made his NTT INDYCAR SERIES debut at Portland in the No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet, will remain behind the wheel for the final two races. Ilott, 22, of the United Kingdom, was the 2020 Formula 2 championship runner-up and is a Ferrari Formula One test driver. “We have all been working hard together over the past few weeks to build our program, so it feels great to carry this relationship as a team for the rest of the season,” team co-owner Ricardo Juncos said. NBC will telecast the 90-lap Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at 3 p.m. ET Sunday, Sept. 19. Practice sessions and qualifications will stream on Peacock Premium. The race, qualifications and practice will also be broadcast live on INDYCAR Radio Network affiliates, Sirius 211, XM 205, Indycar.com, and on the INDYCAR Mobile app powered by NTT DATA.Team Chevy will be represented by:A.J. Foyt EnterprisesDalton Kellett, No. 4 K-Line Insulators AJ Foyt RacingSebastien Bourdais, No. 14 ROKiT AJ Foyt RacingArrow McLaren SPPato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren SPFelix Rosenqvist, No. 7 Vuse Arrow McLaren SPCarlinMax Chilton, No. 59 CarlinEd Carpenter RacingConor Daly, No. 20 U.S. Air ForceRinus VeeKay, No. 21 Sonax/AutogeekJuncos Hollinger RacingCallum Ilott, No. 77 Juncos Hollinger RacingTeam PenskeJosef Newgarden, No. 2 Hitachi Team PenskeScott McLaughlin, No. 3 PPG Team PenskeWill Power, No. 12 Verizon 5G Team PenskeSimon Pagenaud, No. 22 Menards Team PenskeChevrolet IndyCar V6 Year-By-Year Results since 20122021 ­– 6 wins, 7 poles in 14 racesWins – Pato O’Ward (Texas2, Detroit2); Rinus VeeKay (Indy RC1); Josef Newgarden (Mid-Ohio, St. Louis); Will Power (Indy RC2). Pole – Pato O’Ward (Barber Motorsports Park, Detroit1, Indy RC2); Josef Newgarden (Detroit2, Road America, Mid-Ohio); Will Power (St. Louis).2020 – 7 wins, 11 poles in 14 racesWins – Simon Pagenaud (Iowa1); Josef Newgarden (Iowa2, St. Louis2, Indy RC2, St. Petersburg); Will Power (Mid-Ohio1, Indy RC3, St. Petersburg). Poles – Josef Newgarden (Texas, Road America1, Iowa2), Will Power (Indianapolis road course, St. Louis1, Mid-Ohio1, Indy RC3; St. Petersburg), Pato O’Ward (Road America2), Conor Daly (Iowa1), Rinus VeeKay (Indy road course October)2019 – 9 wins, 9 poles in 17 racesDriver/owner championship (Josef Newgarden/Roger Penske); Indianapolis 500 win (Simon Pagenaud)2018 – 6 wins, 9 poles in 17 racesIndianapolis 500 win (Will Power)2017 – 10 wins, 11 poles in 17 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Josef Newgarden/Roger Penske)2016 – 14 wins, 13 poles in 16 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Simon Pagenaud/Roger Penske)2015 – 10 wins, 16 poles in 16 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Scott Dixon/Chip Ganassi);Indianapolis 500 win (Juan Pablo Montoya). First manufacturer to capture all titles since Chevrolet returned to INDYCAR in 20122014 – 12 wins, 14 poles in 18 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Will Power/Roger Penske)2013 – 10 wins, 11 poles in 19 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; Indianapolis 500 win (Tony Kanaan)2012 – 11 wins, 10 poles in 15 racesEngine Manufacturer Championship; driver/owner titles (Ryan Hunter-Reay/Michael Andretti)Total – 95 wins, 106 earned poles in 163 races

September 15, 2021

Matt DiBenedetto and the No. 21 Reese/Draw-Tite Ford team are headed into the 61^st annual Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway hoping to steal some of the thunder from the Cup Series Playoff contenders.

Throughout his career, DiBenedetto, who is 18^th in the points standings, has had some of his best runs on the high-banked concrete half-mile oval in the Tennessee foothills.

His best run there came in 2019, before he took over the iconic Wood Brothers Ford. He finished a close second after leading 93 laps late in the race.

The Wood Brothers also have had success at Bristol, with a win in 2001 along with nine other top-10 finishes and a total of 26 top-10s. Their most recent top-10 came in 2019 when the now-retired Paul Menard finished sixth.
 
“I’m hoping for some redemption after coming so close there before,” DiBenedetto said, adding that he’s proud to be representing his sponsors for Saturday night’s 500-lapper under the lights. “I’m excited for Reese/Draw-Tite, this is one of my favorite races of the year.”

There will be no practice or qualifying prior to the start of Saturday night’s race. DiBenedetto will line up his No. 21 Mustang in 19^th place for the drop of the green flag.
 
The starting order was set based on results from Richmond Raceway, with the 16 Playoff drivers starting ahead of all others.
 
The green flag is set to fly just after 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time with Stage breaks at Laps 125 and 250.
 
NBCSN will carry the live TV broadcast.
 

Wood Brothers Racing

Wood Brothers Racing was formedin 1950 in Stuart, Va., by Hall of Famer Glen Wood. Wood Brothers Racing is the oldest active team and one of the winningest teams in NASCAR history. Since its founding, the team won 99 races (including at least one race in every decade for the last seven decades) and 120 poles in NASCAR’s top-tier series. Fielding only Ford products for its entire history, the WoodBrothers own the longest association of any motorsports team with a single manufacturer. Glen’s brother, Leonard, is known for inventing the modern pit stop. The team currently runs the Ford Mustang driven by Matt DiBenedetto in the famous No. 21 racer.