Romain Grosjean qualifies his Andretti Autosport Honda second for Sunday’s Big Machine Music Grand Prix
Christian Lundgaard continues run of strong qualifying efforts, will start third
Defending series champion Alex Palou qualifies fourth

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Aug. 6, 2022) – In his best qualifying performance of 2022, Romain Grosjean advanced through all three rounds of NTT INDYCAR SERIES “knockout” qualifying today in his Andretti Autosport Honda, and will start on the outside front row – second – in Sunday’s second annual Big Machine Music City Grand Prix on the downtown Nashville temporary street circuit.

For the second consecutive race weekend, Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Christian Lundgaard also advanced to the final, “Firestone Fast Six” qualifying round, and will start third, his career best INDYCAR start and best among the rookies in the field. Defending series champion Alex Palou will start fourth in his Chip Ganassi Racing Honda as the top 10 all posted times within a second of the 1:14.555 pole time.

Big Machine Music City Grand Prix Honda Qualifying Results
2nd Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda
3rd Christian Lundgaard-R Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
4th Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
7th David Malukas-R Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda
9th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
11th Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
13th Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda
14th Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
17th Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda
18th Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
20th Takuma Sato Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
23rd Colton Herta Andretti Autosport Honda
24th Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing Honda
25th Devlin DeFrancesco-R Andretti Autosport Honda
26th Jimmie Johnson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
R – Rookie

Quotes
Romain Grosjean (#28 Andretti Autosport Honda) will start second: “I think this is a very good result for all of us on the #28 car. We’ve worked very hard to get the car working the way I wanted it to be. I knew from the opening practice that we were headed in the right direction, and every change we made on the car was in the right direction, thanks to my engineer Olivier [Boisson], Honda and everyone on the team, who have been working just as hard. Now we have to continue on and finish the job tomorrow.”

Christian Lundgaard (#30 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda) will start third: “I think the rain [prior to qualifying] actually helped us. It just cooled everything down from earlier in the day. It definitely helped stabilize our car under braking. I think it was a very exciting qualifying. And we’re making progress as a team, which is the most important thing. I’ve always liked street circuits, but after Toronto [where he started 10th and finished 8th] and today I’m starting to like them even more!”

Fast Facts
Honda drivers and teams dominated the results sheets of last year’s inaugural Big Machine Music City Grand Prix, as Marcus Ericsson recovered from an opening lap contact and brief “flight” to head a Honda sweep of the first seven finishing positions, and eight of the top 10.

Scott Dixon made it a Honda and Chip Ganassi Racing 1-2 result last year in Nashville, with James Hinchcliffe running third to complete the podium sweep for the manufacturer. Honda drivers Ryan Hunter-Reay, Graham Rahal, Ed Jones, and eventual series champion Alex Palou completed the top seven for Honda, with Helio Castroneves finishing ninth.

Previously, INDYCAR and the Indy Racing League conducted eight races on the 1.33-mile Nashville Super Speedway oval in Lebanon, Tennessee, from 2001-2008. Honda drivers and teams won five of the six races the manufacturer contested, from 2003-08.

CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES BIG MACHINE MUSIC CITY GRAND PRIXS TREETS OF NASHVILLE NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE TEAM CHEVY POLE WINNER QUOTE AUGUST 6, 2022

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN PUTS CHEVROLET ON POLE AT NASHVILLECAPTURES SECOND NTT P1 AWARD OF NTT INDYCAR SERIES CAREER Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Dex Imaging Chevrolet, captured his second career NTT Pole Award on the Streets of Nashville for the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix: “This Dex car has been really good. We won St. Pete with it. Won at Mid-Ohio when the guys were wearing these suits. Now I’m on Pole at Nashville which is a great track. I’m really proud of the Dex Chevy and the guys.  The car was phenomenal. To do that on one lap used tires is amazing. Oh man, really good lap. “I think more of the same Kevin, I don’t know. We just got our heads down and our bums up and then just wondering. I’m proud of this group, proud of this team.  If I have really good pit stops tomorrow, my Thirsty Threes have got plenty support. So  we’ll have a bit of fun. “

Sheldon Creed and the No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Team Earn 11th-Place Finish at Michigan International Speedway

11th

11th

13th

“At the start of the race the balance on our Whelen Chevrolet was too tight, but by the end we were running solid lap times. My crew chief, Jeff Stankiewicz, did a great job with the adjustments. We got a little behind after Stage 1, but we were able to steadily work our back through the field and by the end of the race we had a chance to score a top-10. For sure we were hoping for a better finish, but we’ll take it and move on to Richmond next week.”   -Sheldon Creed

Austin Hill and the No. 21 United Rentals Chevrolet Team Extend Top-10 Streak at Michigan International Speedway With Fifth-Place Finish

5th

16th

6th

“I’ve always loved Michigan International Speedway and have had some success in the past here, so we were really looking forward to the race today with our United Rentals Chevrolet. We started the race 16th, so we were back in traffic. Our Chevy was really loose. I should have known better, but I called for an adjustment that I didn’t need and put us behind. Even though I’m frustrated with myself, we still finished in the top five. There’s a lot we can hold our heads up high on. We’re on a pretty good streak and have some momentum. I’ll keep learning these cars and working to get better.” -Austin Hill

August 6, 2022

Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team are set to start 27^th in Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway.

Burton, driving the No. 21 Mustang carrying a special paint scheme honoring Ford and Lincoln’s 20-year Senior Master Technicians, turned a lap at 186.331 miles per hour on Saturday.
 
That speed represented an increase from practice earlier in the day when he was 29^th fastest with a best lap at 184.914 mph. His best lap was the fourth of the 18 laps he ran. 
 
Burton was ninth among drivers who ran 10 consecutive laps in the session. He averaged 183.432 mph on his first 10 laps on the track.
 
Sunday’s 200-lap, 400-mile race is scheduled to start just after 3 p.m., with TV coverage on USA Network.
 
Stage breaks are set for Laps 45 and 120.
 

NASCAR CUP SERIES

MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

FIREKEEPERS CASINO 400

TEAM CHEVY POST-QUALIFYING NOTES

AUGUST 6, 2022

TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-20 STARTING LINEUP:  

POS.   DRIVER

6th      TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 GUARANTEED RATE CAMARO ZL1

8th      KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1

10th    ERIK JONES, NO. 43 FOCUSFACTOR CAMARO ZL1

12th    NOAH GRAGSON, NO. 16 CHEVY ACCESSORIES CAMARO ZL1

13th    CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 UNIFIRST CAMARO ZL1

15th    DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 WORLDWIDE EXPRESS CAMARO ZL1

20th    WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1

TOP-FIVE UNOFFICIAL STARTING LINEUP:  

POS.  DRIVER

1st      Bubba Wallace (Toyota)

2nd     Christopher Bell (Toyota)

3rd      Kyle Busch (Toyota)  

4th      Joey Logano (Ford)

5th      Austin Cindric (Ford)

·       Last week’s NASCAR Cup Series winner, Tyler Reddick, will lead Chevrolet to the green in tomorrow’s FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway from the sixth position. 

·       Reddick led three Chevrolet drivers to top-10 qualifying positions, including three-time Michigan race winner Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1, in eighth; and Michigan native Erik Jones, No. 43 FOCUSfactor Camaro ZL1, rounded out the top-10. 

·       USA Network will broadcast the NASCAR Cup Series FireKeepers Casino 400 at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 7. Live coverage can also be found on the NBCSports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. 

No. 3 Corvette C8.R on inside of second row in chase for ninth Road America win

ELKHART LAKE, Wisc. (Aug. 6, 2022) – Antonio Garcia qualified third in GT Daytona (GTD) PRO as Corvette Racing’s No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R will start on the inside of the second row for Sunday’s IMSA Fastlane Sports Weekend at Road America. Garcia set a time of 2:05.829 (115.814 mph) Saturday around the spacious 4.048-mile, 14-turn circuit in scenic eastern Wisconsin. That put him 0.464 seconds off Jack Hawksworth’s pole-winning time in the class. Garcia qualified at Road America for the first time since 2018 but knows how to go fast around the track with a pair of fastest race laps in 2018 and 2020. The contrast in weather between Saturday’s ideal conditions and predicted rain Sunday will play a major role in the race’s outcome.  Garcia and Taylor are seeking their second win of the year and second victory at Road America as a tandem following a GT Le Mans class in 2020. After seven races, the pairing sits second in the Drivers Championship.Road America and the Corvette brand have a lengthy history dating back nearly 60 years. Chevrolet routinely used the track to test and validate the performance of early-generation Corvettes with that tradition continuing into the present day.  Road America was the site of the first on-track running of the Corvette C8.R in 2018, and the mid-engine Corvette continues to write new chapters each weekend. The IMSA Fastlane SportsCar Weekend from Road America is scheduled for 10:40 a.m. CT on Sunday, August 7. The race will stream live on Peacock and air same-day beginning at noon ET on USA. IMSA Radio’s race call Sunday also will be available on IMSA.com, XM 207 and SiriusXM Online 992.

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – QUALIFIED THIRD IN GTD PRO:“That definitely was the maximum. I must say that I had really good prep so the tires were where they needed to be. Even I improved fractionally on the second lap, I thought my first was probably it. Maybe if you put together both, you could shave off a tenth. I’m happy with how the car felt and how I approached the actual qualifying session and how I built up temperature and pressure on the tires. Now we’re focused on the race. It’s good we are on the second row where yesterday we didn’t know where we would be. We are ready for tomorrow. Let’s see what the weather brings. From that point on, we can see the leaders right there so we need to stay in contact with them and do the job.”I qualified once or twice on pole here but it’s been awhile since I qualified at Road America. It’s always very enjoyable. You feel like you have the track to yourself. Traffic didn’t play a part; it was perfect. This is the best track to have low fuel, new tires and space. It’s the best part of the weekend for sure.”

Alex Lynn, Earl Bamber to take green flag for 2-hour, 40-minute race from second position

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (Aug. 6, 2022) – Alex Lynn delivered a front-row start for Cadillac Racing for the 2-hour, 40-minute IMSA Fastlane SportsCar Weekend race Aug. 7. Lynn drove the No. 02 Cadillac Accessories Cadillac DPi-V.R to a best lap of 1 minute, 49.097 seconds on the 4.048-mile, 14-turn Road America natural-terrain course to claim the second spot in the 15-minute qualifying session. “I think our car was ballistic today,” said Lynn, who will alternate in the seat with Earl Bamber. “We had a car that was good enough to be on pole, and big thanks to our 02 crew. Tomorrow is a new day and we’re going to go for the win.”

Race day could deliver different track conditions than the ambient 85-degree Fahrenheit and 130-degree track temperatures during qualifying. The forecast is for a 70 percent chance of rain with a high of 79 for the late-morning green flag (11:30 a.m. ET on Peacock and noon on USA). “Tomorrow is a going to be a different day and I’m quite excited to race in the wet,” added Lynn. “The Cadillac is definitely the car to have in mixed conditions, so from our side we haven’t had a wet race all year so why not?” Richard Westbrook drove the No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R to the fourth starting position, while Olivier Pla qualified fifth in the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R. Filipe Albuquerque, driving the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Acura, earned the pole with a best lap of 1:48.915. Sebastien Bourdais looked to be on a pole-challenging lap late in the session before sliding in Turn 14 and the No. 01 V-Performance Cadillac DPi-V.R making left-side contact with the tire barrier. Bourdais was checked at the infield medical center and cleared to drive. “The car was wonderful,” said Bourdais, who will start sixth as he shares driving duties with Renger van der Zande. “The guys gave us a rocket ship again. I did one prep lap and went for it. Essentially, it was a clean lap, and I was going really strong. Probably lit up all the sectors. Just got to that last corner and I got in there with quite a bit more speed and took the bump and the front just jumped on the white line and I just sabotaged myself. From there, once you’re on the white line and touch the grass it’s no getting past it.” Bourdais and van der Zande won the last IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race – July 3 at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park – from the sixth starting position. The No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R drivers have secured three podiums, including two wins, in the past three races. Cadillac Racing has registered two podium finishes in each of the past two years at Road America.

Cadillac Racing lineup, starting position and quotes No. 02 Cadillac Accessories Cadillac DPi-V.R (Chip Ganassi Racing)Earl Bamber, Alex LynnLynn drove in the qualifying session (start second, 1:49.097): “I think our car was ballistic today. We had a car that was good enough to be on pole, and big thanks to our 02 crew. Tomorrow is a new day and we’re going to go for the win. Tomorrow is a going to be a different day and I’m quote excited to race in the wet. The Cadillac is definitely the car to have in mixed conditions, so from our side we haven’t had a wet race all year so why not?”Car chief-Jamie CoatesLead engineer-Danielle ShephardRace strategist-Michael Harvey No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R (JDC-Miller MotorSports)Tristan Vautier, Richard WestbrookWestbrook drove in the qualifying session (start fourth, 1:50.322): “We struggled yesterday with the balance of the car, so we threw everything at it today and completely changed the setup. It was going into the unknown a bit but a pleasant surprise. In some areas, we cured some of our understeer issues, which has been bugging us for the last three races. That was really encouraging. But we had a bit of a braking issue. In the end, happy with the position but never happy with the gap to the front row. I’ve never driven one of these monsters in the wet, but I love the rain, which is obviously no surprise being from England. I know from the Ford GT days it’s all about switching that tire on in the rain. I love a challenge.”Car chief-Josh KerriganLead engineer-Rick CameronRace strategist-John Church No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R (Action Express Racing)Pipo Derani, Olivier PlaPla drove in the qualifying session (start fifth, 1:50.369): “Obviously, not what we were expecting in qualifying. Tomorrow is a different day with different conditions, so we’ll have to see if the rain helps us. We’ll take what we have and try to do the best.”Car chief-Bill KeulerTechnical director/lead engineer-Iain WattRace strategist-Tim Keene No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R (Chip Ganassi Racing)Renger van der Zande, Sebastien BourdaisBourdais drove in the qualifying session (start sixth). “It’s a real shame. The car was wonderful. The guys gave us a rocket ship again. I did one prep lap and went for it. Essentially, it was a clean lap, and I was going really strong. Probably lit up all the sectors. Just got to that last corner and I got in there with quite a bit more speed and took the bump and the front just jumped on the white line and I just sabotaged myself. From there, once you’re on the white line and touch the grass it’s no getting past it. Tomorrow is obviously going to be a different scenario. We knew that all along and we focused on qualifying because the fry on full tanks wasn’t really a priority. We knew it was going to be wet tomorrow and the goal was to start on pole with a clear view. Now we have some work to do.”Car chief-Phil BinksLead engineer-John HennekRace strategist-Peter Baron

Filipe Albuquerque puts Wayne Taylor Racing’s Acura ARX-05 on the pole for Sunday’s IMSA Fast Lane SportsCar Weekend at Road America
Tom Blomqvist to start third in the Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-05
Rick Ware Racing NSX GT-3 Evo22 looks to move forward in potentially rain-affected race

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (August 6, 2022) – It’s a P1 start for Filipe Albuquerque, Ricky Taylor and the Wayne Taylor Racing team as Albuquerque qualified their #10 Acura ARX-05 on the pole today for Sunday’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Fastlane SportsCar Weekend at Road America. 

The pole position comes at a vital time in the championship for Wayne Taylor Racing, as the team battles for the championship with fellow Acura team Meyer Shank Racing. For their efforts, the #60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-05 will start third with co-drivers Tom Blomqvist and Oliver Jarvis. 

In the production-based GTD class, Aidan Read set the ninth fastest qualifying time aboard the #51 Acura NSX GT3 Evo22, however Read and co-driver Ryan Eversley will start at the rear of the field due to a pit lane infraction in qualifying. The pair will be looking to capitalize on the forecast rainy conditions for tomorrow and hope to make their way through the field. 

Road America Acura Qualifying Results
1st overall – #10 Filipe Albuquerqye, Wayne Taylor Racing Acura ARX-05 DPi
3rd overall – #60 Tom Blomqvist, Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-05 DPi [new lap record]
9th GTD – #51 Aidan Read, Rick Ware Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo22

Quote
Filipe Albuquerque (#10 Wayne Taylor Racing ARX-05) pole qualifier: “It all came together with pole position and the championship points [earned for pole]. The satisfaction is for me, from the drivers point of view, and for the team as well. They gave me the perfect car and I just felt great right away, from Turn 1, the car was really, really good, with a lot of grip. Tomorrow’s race is going to be really rainy, so starting from P1 in a potentially chaotic race, that should help keep us out of trouble. It’s ideal! The pressure is on now, though, we cannot finish behind the #60 and those guys are so fast. We are going to keep fighting for the championship and we’ll see how it goes tomorrow!”

Fast Fact
This is the fifth IMSA pole of the season for Acura. At the season-opening Rolex 24 at Daytona, Albuquerque and Taylor combined to win the qualifying race that set the starting field; and Taylor led another Acura front-row qualifying sweep at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Blomqvist scored consecutive poles at Watkins Glen International Raceway and Canadian Tire Motorsport Park; followed by Albuquerque’s pole today at Road America.

Where to Watch IMSA Racing from Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
The IMSA Fastlane Sportscar Weekend gets underway Sunday at 11:40 a.m. EDT with live streaming coverage on NBC Peacock. Television coverage on the USA Network begins at 12 p.m. EDT.

Fans can listen to audio commentary via IMSA.com, RadioLeMans.com and XM Radio; and follow the race live via in-car cameras, IMSA Radio and timing & scoring available worldwide on IMSA.com and the IMSA mobile device App.

Acura Motorsports social media content and video links from Canadian Tire Motorsport Park 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).

NASCAR CUP SERIES

MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

FIREKEEPERS CASINO 400

TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT

AUGUST 6, 2022

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series race weekend at Michigan International Speedway. Press Conference Transcript: 

IS THERE ANYTHING THAT CAN BE DONE OR DO YOU GUYS HAVE TO TAKE THINGS INTO YOUR OWN HANDS? OR IS THAT JUST RACING WITH FOUR OR FIVES RACES LEFT TO GO BEFORE THE PLAYOFFS? 

“I think it’s a little bit of just the way road courses have trended, it’s difficult to pass. If you get a late caution, with these cars, funneling down into a two-wide corner with six lanes on a straightaway is definitely a recipe for carnage. So it’s just the nature of kind of the way that braking zone is there. Our cars take so long to brake, number one. So under green, we’re braking at 700 I would say; and on a restart there, we’re braking at maybe the 400 or the 500.. still a lot of time to position yourself left or right. It’s just the nature of a late caution on a road course and that’s what it breeds, typically, with a wide braking zone like that. If you don’t do it, somebody is going to do it to you. You don’t want to get spun out, so you end up driving in deeper than you want to because of the guy behind you.”

HAVE YOU GOTTEN INTO PLAYOFF MODE YET? IF YOU HAVE, IS THERE ANYTHING YOU GUYS REALLY HAVE TO WORK ON? 

“Yeah, I don’t try to get into any sort of mode. I just try to race. We try, at times, to simulate what a playoff race would be like or things like that, but it never seems to work too good. Just try to go out there and race. We’re going to try our best when the playoffs start and we’re trying our best this weekend. Hopefully this weekend goes as we want it to. The only thing right now represents are the strengths or weaknesses at certain tracks. I feel like we’ve gotten the road courses pretty good. We were a top-three or four car last weekend. Now, it’s just focusing on the 1.5-mile and 2-mile tracks.. how good are we at those at this point of the season. And next week with the short track at Richmond, it will kind of represent a Phoenix-type track.”

IT’S BEEN FIVE YEARS SINCE A CHEVROLET CAR WON THE CUP RACE HERE AT MICHIGAN. OUTSIDE OF GETTING THREE CHEVY’S IN THE TOP-FIVE LAST YEAR, IT’S BEEN REALLY HARD FOR YOU GUYS TO FINISH UP FRONT. WHAT HAS CHEVROLET BEEN MISSING AT MICHIGAN THE LAST FEW YEARS?

“I think we had the speed last year. Gosh, we had them covered.. not only us on the No. 24, but the No. 1 car with Kurt (Busch) and the No. 5 with Kyle (Larson). So it was the three of us that were top-three at the end, I think, to a certain extent. I think Denny (Hamlin) was pretty fast, too. Just got kind of jumbled up there at the end with a late restart. We had lane choice and whoever got push or the shove out to the lead was going to be able to control the race.

So it just didn’t quite go our way, but I thought we had a really good car. I don’t know what to expect this year, but all the Chevy’s have been fast at the other high-speed tracks.”

YOU’VE LED SOME LAPS IN THIS RECENT STRETCH, BUT THE TOP-10S HAVEN’T BEEN THERE. WHAT IS THE CONCERN? IS IT AS MUCH WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE RACE, OR IS QUALIFYING AND NOT BEING IN THE TOP-10 AS OFTEN AND PUTTING YOURSELF IN A GOOD POSITION TO START OFF WITH?

“I would be really concerned if we didn’t have the speed that we’ve had the last few weeks. New Hampshire was a good Saturday for us; first in practice and qualified pretty good. We just made some incorrect adjustments overnight and just kind of put ourselves out of position there. 

But then the last two weeks – yeah Saturday’s haven’t been good, but Sunday at Pocono was really good. We were running fourth; had a pit road issue, had a tire get away and there was a penalty. Last week, probably could have handled the restart maybe a little different, but just unfortunately got caught up in a spin there and knocked the toe link out. 

I would be concerned if the last two weeks hadn’t been what it is. But both incidents the last two weeks, we were in the top-five when we’ve had issues. I think we just have to continue that.”

JUSTIN HALEY WAS MENTIONING THAT YOU HAD TEXTED HIM FOR THE CONTACT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE RACE AT INDIANAPOLIS. HE SAID WELL IT’S NOT HIS FAULT.. HE GOT HIT FROM FIVE CARS BEHIND. WHY DID YOU NEED TO SEND HIM A NOTE LIKE THAT BECAUSE OF THE CHAOS THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE RACE, BUT OBVIOUSLY WHAT HAPPENED AT THE START?

“It was just early in the race. I was starting way back, so I probably could have used a little bit of judgment there. Plus, Justin (Haley) is a good friend. We train together, so I think that’s part of it, too. I admire him and appreciate him as a person and a driver, so I wanted to reach out. He’s somebody that I like in the garage. That’s that deal. 

But as far as the restarts go, like I talked about with Bob (Pockrass), it was kind of just hit or be hit.. kind of demo go-karts out there. I’ve been in a lot of races like that at GoPro. If you lift for somebody, then somebody runs over you from behind.”

USUALLY WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT A ROAD COURSE RACE THE WEEK AFTER, YOU THINK ABOUT PUTTING MONEY INTO REPAIRING CARS. I’M CURIOUS ABOUT THE HAULER SITUATION FROM LAST WEEK. WAS THAT SOMETHING THAT RICK HENDRICK WAS ABLE TO GET REPAIRED OR DID THEY HAVE TO GO WITH A WHOLE NEW HAULER FOR YOU? 

“Yeah, so we have the test hauler we typically use. We’ve been to Watkins Glen with this hauler and a few different tests this year. We will use that for at least the time being; put a design on it, make it look nice and things like that. A little bit different rhythm for the guys I’m sure to kind of know where everything is, but for me it’s the same, really. I don’t use the hauler much. Most of my work is outside the hauler.”

SPEAKING OF SIM RACING, HOW WELL DO YOU THINK THAT IRACING OVERALL HAS BEEN ABLE TO INTEGRATE PARTICULARLY THIS TRACK, AS WELL AS THE NEXT GEN CAR? HOW COMFORTABLE DO YOU FEEL FROM GETTING EXPERIENCE FROM THAT AND CARRYING IT OVER TO REAL ON-TRACK RACING? 

“Yeah, I know they’re working super hard on those things. I get on there every couple of months when I’m home; see where it is, see what’s different and what’s new. They’re always working on how realistic the tracks are and how realistic the tires are. The tire is the biggest factor in everything. Obviously we change the tire all of the time based on the track and it’s a lot to keep up with. I feel like they do a good job with all of that stuff. I really just enjoy the community on there, as well.”

YOU’RE SIGNED UP TO RUN THE LATE MODEL AT BERLIN ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT. YOU WON THERE EARLIER THIS SEASON AND YOU’VE BEEN DOING GREAT IN THE LATE MODEL. HOW DOES THAT HELP YOU ON SUNDAY? DOES IT HELP YOU ON SUNDAY?

“Yeah, it certainly helps me on Sunday I feel like. Number one, just enjoying racing. But the more racing I can do, the better I feel like I get as a driver.. how much better my feedback is and all those things. It gives confidence. 

I raced the late model last week. Unfortunately didn’t win that one, but it was still a fun race with Erik (Jones). That was a good race track. IRP is awesome. We saw it in the truck race, it was really exciting. I enjoyed that and I’m excited for Berlin. 

Berlin was a really hard track the first time I went there a couple months ago. I’m sure it will take something a little different this time with a little bit hotter temperatures and things like that. I’m looking forward to it.”

IN YOUR PREPARTION FOR THIS WEEKEND’S RACE, HOW MUCH OF WHAT YOU LEARNED AT AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY WITH THIS CAR DO YOU THINK WILL APPLY TO THIS WEEKEND AT MICHIGAN? 

“I don’t know – I don’t think Auto Club is very similar now with the age of that surface compared to this one. I think just the speed is probably the biggest thing that’s similar, but there’s a lot more throttle time here.. a lot faster speeds. I don’t see a ton that will be transferable between the two, other than just the downforce, speed and grip are going to be your biggest factors in success.”

WHAT KIND OF RACE ARE WE GOING TO SEE TOMORROW? IS IT GOING TO BE STRESSFUL, NOT STRESSFUL? 

“It’s always stressful this year. I don’t think I ever wake up before a race and know what to expect. Last week, I thought I was going to run 25th. The race started and I was up into like the top-five. So you really just roll the dice and just hope that everything works out in your favor. But there’s really not a lot of consistency, as we’ve seen, with performances. There’s not a lot to lean on, in terms of what to expect. Especially coming here for the first time, I don’t know. I hope we’re fast and hope it’s less chaotic at the front.”

Four Different Winners in Four Xtreme Outlaw Midget Races

PEVELY, MO – August 5, 2022 – The wait is over. In his 43rd start across National Midget competition, Chance Crum finally earned his long-awaited trip to Victory Lane on Friday night at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55.

Earning his much-anticipated win with the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota, held in conjunction with POWRi, Crum was forced to deal with a ferocious Karter Sarff all throughout the 30-lap opening leg of Ironman weekend.

The Snohomish, WA native rolled from the pole position thanks to a six-car inversion drawn by high point man Michael Pickens, and he quickly took advantage of the good fortune. After leading the opening four laps aboard the Rudeen Racing #26, Crum soon lost control of the top spot when Sarff, of Mason City, IL, roared by to pace the fifth circuit.

Sarff, a young but experienced 19-year-old, opened up his lead to as large as 0.969-seconds on Lap 12 before a caution changed everything with Crum able to regroup and refocus. Once back green, the duo offered a thrilling bout for the lead as they swapped the top spot on several occasions while racing each other and racing the tricky and treacherous 1/3-mile surface.

Crum officially re-took the lead with the cross flags waving on Lap 15, and although he never relinquished it over the second half, he also never built a comfortable lead. The gap was no bigger than five-tenths of a second throughout the latter half and Sarff constantly kept the heat applied with both drivers chasing their first-career Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series win.

The slightest of bobbles on the final lap made it even closer at the checkered flag as Crum slipped high and Sarff nailed the bottom to create a drag race to the line – a race won by Crum at only 0.303-seconds over Sarff.

“This is really special,” an elated Crum said in Victory Lane. “We’ve been so close this first National Midget win so many times, but we just haven’t even been able to get the job done. It’s kind of funny, because these track conditions are not my forte at all, either. It’s a testament to my dad [Kevin Crum], my brother [Hunter Crum], and Trevor [Reed] and how hard they’ve been working to make this car better.”

It’s a largely fulfilling moment for the Crum family, who moved from Washington to Indiana last year in pursuit of a bigger slate in the motorsports world. It’s also a payoff for Rudeen Racing, a nationally successful Sprint Car team that has entrusted Chance and his family with building the Midget division.

“Kevin and Monica Rudeen took a chance on me, and I can’t thank them enough,” Crum added. “We’ve been having a blast. It’s been a ton of hard work, but I think we’re starting to see it pay off. This new Series has been a joy to run and I’m thrilled to be out here competing against a field like this.”

Accepting a bittersweet runner-up result was Karter Sarff in his family-owned #21K entry. It was bitter to lead 10 laps and lose the win but at the same time quite sweet to turn the corner and produce a career-best effort at the Pevely, MO 1/3-mile. The up-and-coming star is chomping at the bit to get back on track tomorrow in hopes of some redemption with $5,000 on the line.

“I’m definitely disappointed, but this is the best run I’ve ever had at Pevely, so I guess you could say were’ improving,” an optimistic Sarff said. “I think we had the car to win it tonight, but we’ll have another chance to get it done tomorrow. Hopefully the track is somewhat similar and I can do a little better job on my part to get that win we deserve.”

Rounding out the podium in third place was Auckland, NZ native Michael Pickens, who enjoyed a series of firsts on Friday night. It was his first-ever Xtreme Outlaw Midget race, his first-ever appearance at Missouri’s I-55 Raceway, and his first-ever night driving for Dave Mac Dalby Motorsports.

“We got better and better as the long runs went on and the laps wound down,” Pickens noted, who will return to his native country on Monday. “I owe a huge thanks to Dave Mac Dalby for the opportunity to get into equipment this nice. I really want to close out this trip with a win, so hopefully we can get it done tomorrow night.”

Closing out the top-10 at I-55 was Brenham Crouch, Zach Daum, Kyle Jones, Jerry Coons Jr., Jacob Denney, Bryant Wiedeman, and Taylor Reimer.

Xtreme Outlaw Midget Feature Results (30 Laps) – 1. 26-Chance Crum (1); 2. 21K-Karter Sarff (3); 3. 08$-Michael Pickens (6); 4. 97-Brenham Crouch (4); 5. 9M-Zach Daum (9); 6. 7U-Kyle Jones (2); 7. 85-Jerry Coons Jr. (16); 8. 61-Jacob Denney (11); 9. 01-Bryant Wiedeman (19); 10. 25K-Taylor Reimer (15); 11. 72J-Sam Johnson (20); 12. 51B-Joe B. Miller (13); 13. 71K-Dominic Gorden (21); 14. 21E-Emilio Hoover (8); 15. 84-Jade Avedisian (10); 16. 84X-Jesse Love (14); 17. 77W-Joe Wirth (7); 18. 19M-Ethan Mitchell (17); 19. 40-Chase McDermand (5); 20. 97A-Mitchell Davis (12); 21. 17-Kevin Thomas Jr. (18). Lap Leaders(s): Crum 1-4; Sarff 5-14; Crum 15-30; TJ Forged Hard Charger: Wiedeman (+10).

NEW Championship Standings (After 4/10 Races) – 1. Zach Daum (848); 2. Brenham Crouch (-45); 3. Bryant Wiedeman (-64); 4. Kyle Jones (-106); 5. Taylor Reimer (-130); 6. Ethan Mitchell (-130); 7. Sam Johnson (-156); 8. Chance Crum (-157); 9. Jade Avedisian (-214); 10. Dominic Gorden (-221).

UP NEXT (Saturday) – The Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota will conclude their portion of Ironman 55 weekend on Saturday, August 6 with a $5,000-to-win program, held in conjunction with POWRi, at Missouri’s Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55.

World of Outlaws Sprint Cars to Battle 55 Laps for $20,000 on Saturday

PEVELY, MO – August 5, 2022 – The check was all but written in Brad Sweet’s name on Friday when Carson Macedo came out of nowhere, threw a slider from St. Louis, and pulled off an all-time stunner to steal the win on the Night Before the Ironman.

After controlling the first 29 laps at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55, “The Big Cat” appeared poised to complete a clean sweep of the evening and bank his third World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series win of the 2022 season. The only problem is they don’t pay you for the first 29 laps, they only pay you for those final few feet at the checkered flag and that belonged to Macedo’s Jason Johnson Racing #41.

Capitalizing on bad positioning in lap traffic, Macedo chopped the gap down from 0.753-seconds at the white flag to virtually nothing when he went full send into turn three and committed to clearing the three-time and defending Series champion. It all worked out, though, as he hit the grip, slid across Sweet’s nose, whipped it under the lapper, and crossed the checkered flag while most fans in attendance and those watching on DIRTVision were still trying to process what happened.

It was a move that electrified the Pevely, MO crowd, sent social media into a frenzy, amped up the #41 camp, and dejected the #49 team. There were the highest of highs, and lowest of lows, and the reasons why it’s called The Greatest Show on Dirt.

“There was a little bit of luck involved there,” Macedo acknowledged on Sweet being held up. “I saw him get caught up and then spin the tires down the backstretch and I knew there wasn’t much grip up top where he was pointed. I had been doing it for much of the race where I’d run into turn three as hard as I possibly could to the center and find a little strip of grip with my right rear. That would get me to center off and from there I could just hope he was flustered and couldn’t cross me.”

The sensational victory gives Macedo eight in 2022, tying him with Sheldon Haudenschild as the winningest driver on tour. The 25-year-old now sits on 25 career World of Outlaws wins with 19 of those coming in the Jason Johnson Racing #41, tying him with David Gravel as the winningest driver in team history.

He’s now won back-to-back World of Outlaws Features at I-55, and tomorrow chases a $20,000 payday with his first-career Ironman 55 title on the line.

“Beating Brad, a three-time champion and one of the best out here, like that feels really special,” Macedo added. “That was a really great race. It’s why we’re here, to put on amazing shows like that for you fans. This place is tough, but it’s a lot of fun. You really have to get your elbows up and get after it. Hopefully we can add an Ironman title tomorrow.”

A heartbroken Brad Sweet, who led by as much as 3.379-seconds at halfway, was vocal on his last-lap traffic incident in Victory Lane. The battle cost him his third win of the season, but he did nail down his 16th podium and extended his championship lead over David Gravel.

“All you can do is hope the lappers race you with respect,” said Sweet, expressing his displeasure. “I gave Marcus [Dumesny] plenty of room there and thought I would get more in return. You know he was the caution before that and he sput out by himself, and almost took us out too. Then he did that there on the last lap and I just don’t think that is how you race people. It is what it is, though, and I could’ve made some different moves to not put myself in that position. It’s unfortunate for us, but Carson did a great job. We’ll be ready to get the Ironman title tomorrow.”

Behind the mayhem up front was James McFadden with his seventh podium finish of the season in third place. The Alice Springs, NT, Australia native continues to show speed in the Roth Motorsports #83, building his momentum towards that long-awaited 99th World of Outlaws win for car owners Dennis & Teresa Roth.

“We kept it on all four wheels and that’s kind of a win with how treacherous it is out there,” McFadden kidded. “I thought I was going to bounce clear back into the trailer at one point. We had a really great car I think, but I lost too much time sliding back and forth with Sheldon [Haudenschild]. I love racing at the place, though. I reckon that the fans really had a lot of fun watching that one. We’ll come back tomorrow ready for 55 more.

Rounding out the top-five on Friday night was two-time I-55 winner, Donny Schatz, in the fourth position aboard the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15, and the 2018 Ironman 55 champion, Logan Schuchart, in fifth place in the Shark Racing #1S.

Closing the top-10 in Pevely, MO was David Gravel, of Watertown, CT, Sheldon Haudenschild, of Wooster, OH, Justin Peck, of Monrovia, IN, Lachlan McHugh of Gold Coast, QLD, Australia, and Marcus Dumesny, of Nelson, NSW, Australia.

UP NEXT (Sat) – The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series returns to Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 in Pevely, MO on Saturday, August 6. The Greatest Show on Dirt will be joined by the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series as the 14th annual Ironman 55 concludes. Fans can BUY TICKETS HERE, or watch every lap LIVE on DIRTVision.

NOS Energy Drink Feature Results (30 Laps) – 1. 41-Carson Macedo [3][$10,000]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [1][$5,500]; 3. 83-James McFadden [4][$3,200]; 4. 15-Donny Schatz [2][$2,600]; 5. 1S-Logan Schuchart [10][$2,350]; 6. 2-David Gravel [12][$2,150]; 7. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [6][$2,100]; 8. 13-Justin Peck [5][$1,950]; 9. 101-Lachlan McHugh [18][$1,900]; 10. 1AU-Marcus Dumesny [7][$1,850]; 11. 5-Spencer Bayston [17][$1,400]; 12. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [21][$1,200]; 13. 20G-Noah Gass [24][$1,000]; 14. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [11][$950]; 15. 35-Zach Hampton [9][$900]; 16. 22S-Slater Helt [15][$900]; 17. 6-Bill Rose [23][$900]; 18. 51B-Joe B-Miller [20][$900]; 19. 7S-Robbie Price [13][$900]; 20. 49J-Josh Schneiderman [19][$900]; 21. 1A-Jacob Allen [16][$900]; 22. 11K-Kraig Kinser [8][$900]; 23. 83JR-Kerry Madsen [14][$900]; 24. 25-JJ Hickle [22][$900]. Lap Leaders: Brad Sweet 1-29, Carson Macedo 30. KSE Hard Charger Award: 20G-Noah Gass[+11]

NEW Championship Standings (After 46/77 Races) – 1. Brad Sweet (6,230); 2. David Gravel (-44); 3. Carson Macedo (-110); 4. Sheldon Haudenschild (-140); 5. Donny Schatz (-176); 6. Logan Schuchart (-190); 7. Spencer Bayston (-352); 8. James McFadden (-350); 9. Jacob Allen (-570); 10. Brock Zearfoss (-674).

Chris Madden earns outside pole for 100-lap, $50,000-to-win Feature at Cedar Lake Speedway

NEW RICHMOND, WI – AUGUST 5, 2022 – The 35th annual USA Nationals at Cedar Lake Speedway will start how the 34th ended. 

Defending USA Nationals champion Jonathan Davenport thundered to the lead from his second starting spot in Friday’s dash, leading all eight laps to earn the pole for Saturday’s 100-lap, $50,000-to-win finale. 

Two rounds of Heat Races for the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series locked the top 16 drivers into the Feature—while the top eight raced for a chance at the front row in the dash.

The drivers locked in are Jonathan Davenport, Chris Madden, Jake Timm, Tyler Erb, Brandon Sheppard, Bobby Pierce, Tanner English, Ashton Winger, Frank Heckenast Jr., Ricky Weiss, Jimmy Owens, Shane Clanton, Kyle Strickler, Ryan Gustin, Max Blair, and Chad Mahder.

Despite ending the night in a position to succeed on Saturday, Davenport, of Blairsville, GA, stated he needs to get better to take home $50,000 this weekend. 

“Really, I didn’t feel that great car-wise,” Davenport said. “We got stuck with the toughest Heat I feel like in the first one when it was slimy. So, we had a lot of adversity go our way, but we battled through it, and that’s the easiest seven cars I’ve passed all year.

“We’ve still got work to do; I don’t feel like we’re good enough to win by any means, but I feel like we’re in contention.”

While “Superman” has won the USA Nationals twice, he’s yet to do it back-to-back. A victory on Saturday would only add to the Eldora Million winner’s career highlights. 

“It’s a lot of luck to just get to the Feature here because of the passing points and the way the racetrack changes,” Davenport said. “I don’t think I’ve ever won a big event back-to-back that I can think of, so this will be, I think, the first time for any event, so it would be something special.”

Davenport has a familiar foe starting beside him for Saturday’s Feature, as Chris Madden finished second. 

The Gray Court, SC driver, has already won four $50,000-to-win events in 2022 and is confident he can add another to his resume this weekend. 

“We love this place, and we hope the weather doesn’t make it to where it’s hammer down or a Baja the whole race,” Madden said. “If it gets back to what we had (Friday), we’ll have a bunch of great racing, and I think we got a great race car.

“Hopefully, we can stay out of trouble for a little while and be there at the end. This race, sometimes the pace can be pretty fast to start with. They re-work it, and sometimes it can be pretty fast, so you have to know your boundaries and just stay within what you have and plan on racing there the last 20 laps.”

Jake Timm finished third in the dash holding off Tyler Erb, who earned the most passing points through the ten CASE Construction Equipment Heat Races.  

Four-time and reigning Series champion Brandon Sheppard rounded out the top five. 

Another driver who gained momentum entering Saturday’s portion of USA Nationals was Garrett Smith, who won the special standalone F.A.N.S. Fund Dash worth $3,000. The Eatonton, GA driver held off a hard-charging Jason Feger to earn the $3,000 prize.

UP NEXT: The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet return to Cedar Lake Speedway for the 100-lap, $50,000-to-win USA Nationals on Saturday, Aug. 6. Last Chance Showdowns and a non-qualifiers race will set the remaining spots in the field. 

If you can’t make it to the tracks, watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online on with the DIRTVision App. Each night of USA Nationals is included in a DIRTVision monthly OR annual FAST PASS subscription.

USA NATIONALS POLE DASH: 1. 49- Jonathan Davenport [2], 2. 44-Chris Madden [4], 3. 49T-Jake Timm [3], 4. 1T-Tyler Erb [6], 5. 1S- Brandon Sheppard[8], 6. 32- Bobby Pierce [5], 7. 81E-Tanner English [3] 8. 58- Ashton Winger [7]

Session 1 – Heat 1 (12 Laps): 1. 19R-Ryan Gustin[2]; 2. 76-Brandon Overton[1]; 3. 32-Bobby Pierce[8]; 4. 25F-Jason Feger[4]; 5. 157-Mike Marlar[6]; 6. 49-Jonathan Davenport[10]; 7. 40B-Kyle Bronson[7]; 8. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[5]; 9. 1-Boom Briggs[9]; 10. 38-Thomas Hunziker[3]

Session 1 – Heat 2 (12 Laps): 1. 58-Ashton Winger[1]; 2. 97-Cade Dillard[2]; 3. 81E-Tanner English[4]; 4. 3S-Brian Shirley[3]; 5. 55C-Chad Mahder[5]; 6. 7-Ricky Weiss[7]; 7. 28M-Jimmy Mars[9]; 8. 11T-Trevor Gundaker[6]; 9. 10K-Shawn Kirwin[8]

Session 1 – Heat 3 (12 Laps): 1. 1T-Tyler Erb[6]; 2. 1S-Brandon Sheppard[7]; 3. 31K-Kye Blight[2]; 4. 90-Lance Matthees[1]; 5. 18-Shannon Babb[5]; 6. 8-Kyle Strickler[9]; 7. 9T-Tim Isenberg[3]; 8. 7T-Drake Troutman[4]; 9. 16-Tyler Bruening[8]

Session 1 – Heat 4 (12 Laps): 1. 20-Jimmy Owens[1]; 2. 111V-Max Blair[2]; 3. 10-Joseph Joiner[3]; 4. 25-Shane Clanton[6]; 5. 51-Matt Furman[5]; 6. B1-Brent Larson[7]; 7. 42-Mckay Wenger[8]; 8. 11-Gordy Gundaker[9]; 9. 99B-Andy Boozel[4]

Session 1 – Heat 5 (12 Laps): 1. 49T-Jake Timm[2]; 2. 44-Chris Madden[8]; 3. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[4]; 4. 6M-Jeff Massingill[1]; 5. 18C-Chase Junghans[6]; 6. 7X-Jesse Glenz[3]; 7. 11G-James Giossi[9]; 8. 10S-Garrett Smith[7]; 9. 10P-Paul Parker[5]

Session 2 – Heat 1 (12 Laps): 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport[1]; 2. 1S-Brandon Sheppard[2]; 3. 25-Shane Clanton[3]; 4. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[5]; 5. 3S-Brian Shirley[6]; 6. 20-Jimmy Owens[8]; 7. 31K-Kye Blight[7]; 8. 10P-Paul Parker[4]; 9. (DNS) 10K-Shawn Kirwin

Session 2 – Heat 2 (12 Laps): 1. 7-Ricky Weiss[3]; 2. 1T-Tyler Erb[4]; 3. 11G-James Giossi[1]; 4. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[6]; 5. 25F-Jason Feger[7]; 6. 51-Matt Furman[5]; 7. 90-Lance Matthees[9]; 8. 97-Cade Dillard[8]; 9. 1-Boom Briggs[2]

Session 2 – Heat 3 (12 Laps): 1. 44-Chris Madden[2]; 2. 32-Bobby Pierce[3]; 3. 11-Gordy Gundaker[1]; 4. 18-Shannon Babb[5]; 5. 58-Ashton Winger[9]; 6. 11T-Trevor Gundaker[4]; 7. 7X-Jesse Glenz[7]; 8. 38-Thomas Hunziker[8]; 9. 99B-Andy Boozel[6]

Session 2 – Heat 4 (12 Laps): 1. 10S-Garrett Smith[3]; 2. 8-Kyle Strickler[1]; 3. 55C-Chad Mahder[5]; 4. 40B-Kyle Bronson[4]; 5. 49T-Jake Timm[7]; 6. 42-Mckay Wenger[2]; 7. 19R-Ryan Gustin[8]; 8. 10-Joseph Joiner[6]; 9. (DNS) 7T-Drake Troutman

Session 2 – Heat 5 (12 Laps): 1. 28M-Jimmy Mars[1]; 2. 16-Tyler Bruening[2]; 3. 81E-Tanner English[6]; 4. 157-Mike Marlar[5]; 5. B1-Brent Larson[3]; 6. 111V-Max Blair[8]; 7. 76-Brandon Overton[10]; 8. 18C-Chase Junghans[4]; 9. 9T-Tim Isenberg[7]; 10. 6M-Jeff Massingill[9]\

Batavia, OHIO (August 5, 2022) – One of the highly anticipated events of the season, the 40th Annual Sunoco North/South 100 Presented by Lucas Oil, will roar to life August 11-13 at Florence Speedway. The expanded format of the storied event adds $60,000 to the weekend purse in 2022, bringing the grand total for three days to over $300,000, the richest event in Florence Speedway history. Since its inception, a diverse group of twenty-seven different drivers that includes renowned veterans and rising young stars have graced the North/South 100 Victory Lane. A field of 27 assembled at Florence Speedway for the inaugural North/South 100 in 1983, which saw Pat Patrick lead 60 laps to earn the victory and a $4,000 payday. The event purse increased to an astounding $50,000-to-win in 2003. Dan Schlieper took the lead from Brian Birkhofer with five laps remaining to earn the victory and the record-breaking prize. The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series first sanctioned the North/South 100 in 2008. Since then, fourteen North/South 100 events have been contested with eleven different drivers going to Victory Lane. Those include Darren Miller (2008), Jimmy Mars (2009), Jimmy Owens (2010, 2011), Don O’Neal (2012, 2013), Eddie Carrier Jr. (2014), Jonathan Davenport (2015), Bobby Pierce (2016), Tim McCreadie (2017, 2020), Ricky Weiss (2018), Chris Madden (2019), and Brandon Overton (2021).  This year’s North/South 100 will pay the winner an impressive $75,000. A stellar field of drivers are expected to battle it out in two preliminary night’s (Thursday and Friday), that include a complete program of Dirt Draft Hot Laps, Allstar Performance Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and two $5,000-to-win A-Mains each night for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. The Modifieds will also compete in a full program on Thursday and Friday, vying for a $1,000 top prize each night.  Additional bonuses of over $3,000 have been posted, making the crown jewel event even more lucrative for competitors. The driver that tops the speed charts in Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Allstar Performance Time Trials on Thursday will receive a $2,034 bonus in memory of Doug Lee. On Friday, the CJ Rayburn Fast Time Award will give the fastest driver in both Group A and Group B of Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Allstar Performance Time Trials a $501 bonus. Saturday’s off-track festivities will kick off with the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Memorabilia Auction, and a Dirt Racing Outreach Service. The on-track action begins with Dirt Draft Hot Laps and Heat Races for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, which will be lined up based on cumulative points from Thursday and Friday. The Modifieds compete in a 30-lap, $3,000-to-win A-Main, followed by the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series B-Mains. The 100-lap, $75,000-to-win Sunoco North/South 100 Presented by Lucas Oil then takes center stage, followed by a $2,000-to-win Non-Qualifiers race to cap off the weekend action. On Thursday and Friday, the pit gate opens at 3:00 PM ET, while the general admission gates open at 5:30 PM ET. Hot laps start at 6:30 PM ET, with racing one hour later at 7:30 PM ET. The pit, and general admission gates will all open at 3:00 PM ET for Saturday’s Sunoco North/South 100 Presented by Lucas Oil. There will be a Dirt Racing Outreach Service at 5:00 PM ET following the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Memorabilia Auction. Hot laps are set to begin at 7:00 PM ET, with racing at 7:30 PM ET. Advance tickets and reserved seats for the Sunoco North/South Shootout and/or the Sunoco North/South 100, are available at: http://florence.getmytix.net/tickets. Tim McCreadie leads the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Championship standings, carrying the iconic Midwest Sheet Metal Orange Spoiler. Brandon Sheppard is second, with Ricky Thornton Jr., Hudson O’Neal, and Tyler Erb rounding out the Top-5. Garrett Alberson continues to lead the O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Year chase over Daulton Wilson, Spencer Hughes, and Ross Robinson. About Sunoco Race FuelsFor decades, Sunoco’s fuels have been associated with racing excellence. As the largest manufacturer of racing gasolines in the world, Sunoco has a 40-year track record of winning performances. With an expanded product line, Sunoco offers drivers more choices than ever before. To find your nearest dealer visit www.racegas.com and use our fuel finder to locate Sunoco HCR Plus or any of the other blends that fit your needs. You can also call 800-RACEGAS to speak with an engineer to help you decide on which one of our blends is best for your application. For the performance your engine is designed to deliver, consistently choose Sunoco Race Fuels. For more information, visit: www.sunocoracefuels.com. About Lucas Oil ProductsFounded in 1989 by Forrest and Charlotte Lucas, Lucas Oil Products was created with the simple philosophy of producing the best lubricants and additives available anywhere. Lucas Oil offers the most diversified range of innovative engine oil, gear oil and additive products refined by years of specialized research, development and testing. The company’s high performance engine oils and gear oils are widely recognized as best-in-class in the automotive, powersports, marine, industrial, outdoor, and motorsports marketplaces. In total, Lucas Oil boasts more than 300 premium products, representing the largest variety of shelf products of any oil company in the United States with a distribution network across 48 different countries. Lucas Oil’s commitment to motorsports includes long standing support for high profile regional and national racing series, and the distribution of exclusive motorsports content from across the globe via MAVTV, a Lucas Oil owned and operated television network. The company also serves as the exclusive oil and lubricant partner of Monster Jam®, The Dallas Cowboys, the Indianapolis Colts and Lucas Oil Stadium. For more information, visit www.LucasOil.com Track Information:Florence SpeedwayPhone Number: 859-485-7591Location: 12234 US 42, Walton, KY 41094GPS Coordinates: 38.873795, -84.699354Directions: KY exit 180 off I-71/75; west on US 42, nine miles to the track on the left.Website: www.FlorenceSpeedway.com Event Purses:Thursday, August 11: 1. $5,000, 2. $2,500, 3. $1,500, 4. $1,250, 5. $1,000, 6. $800, 7. $700, 8. $600, 9. $550, 10. $500,11. $490, 12. $480, 13. $470, 14. $460, 15. $450, 16. $440, 17. $430, 18. $420, 19. $410, 20. $400,21. $400, 22. $400, 23. $400, 24. $400 = $20,450 each x 2 = $40,900 Total Friday, August 12: 1. $5,000, 2. $2,500, 3. $1,500, 4. $1,250, 5. $1,000, 6. $800, 7. $700, 8. $600, 9. $550, 10. $500,11. $490, 12. $480, 13. $470, 14. $460, 15. $450, 16. $440, 17. $430, 18. $420, 19. $410, 20. $400,21. $400, 22. $400, 23. $400, 24. $400 = $20,450 each x 2 = $40,900 Total Saturday, August 13:40th Annual Sunoco North/South 100 Presented by Lucas Oil1. $75,000, 2. $20,000, 3. $10,000, 4. $9,000, 5. $8,000, 6. $7,000, 7. $6,000, 8. $5,000, 9. $4,500,10. $4,000, 11. $3,500, 12. $3,250, 13. $3,000, 14. $2,750, 15. $2,700, 16. $2,650, 17. $2,600,18. $2,575, 19. $2,550, 20. $2,525, 21. $2,500, 22. $2,500, 23. $2,500, 24. $2,500,25. $2,500 = $189,100 Non-Qualifiers Race1. $2,000, 2. $1,000, 3. $800, 4. 750, 5. $700, 6. $650, 7. $600, 8. $550, 9. $500, 10. $450, 11. $400,12. $400, 13. $400, 14. $400, 15. $400, 16. $400, 17. $400, 18. $400, 19. $400, 20. $400 = $12,000 Tire Rules:Thursday, August 11:Left Front – Hoosier (90) LM20, (28.5) 1350 or harderRight Front/Left Rear – Hoosier Rib (28.5) 1350Right Rear – Hoosier (92) LM40*Must use the same set of 4 tires for Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and A-Mains.*Flat tire must be replaced with a used tire of the same compound and construction to retain starting position. Friday, August 12:Left Front – Hoosier (90) LM20, (28.5) 1350 or harderRight Front/Left Rear – Hoosier Rib (28.5) 1350Right Rear – Hoosier (92) LM40*Must use the same set of 4 tires for Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and A-Mains.*Flat tire must be replaced with a used tire of the same compound and construction to retain starting position. Saturday, August 13:Left Front – Hoosier (90) LM20, (28.5) 1350 or harderRight Front/Left Rear – Hoosier Rib (28.5) 1350Right Rear – Hoosier (92) LM40*Must use the same set of 4 tires for Heat Races, B-Mains, and Non-Qualifiers Race*For the A-Main, competitors may use 3 new tires.*Flat tire must be replaced with a used tire of the same compound and construction to retain starting position. Previous North/South 100 Champions:2021 – Brandon Overton2020 – Tim McCreadie2019 – Chris Madden2018 – Ricky Weiss2017 – Tim McCreadie2016 – Bobby Pierce2015 – Jonathan Davenport2014 – Eddie Carrier Jr.2013 – Don O’Neal2012 – Don O’Neal2011 – Jimmy Owens2010 – Jimmy Owens2009 – Jimmy Mars2008 – Darren Miller2007 – Jimmy Owens2006 – Steve Shaver2005 – Bart Hartman2004 – Steve Shaver2003 – Dan Schlieper2002 – Chub Frank2001 – Rained Out2000 – Scott Bloomquist1999 – Bob Pierce1998 – Donnie Moran1997 – Rick Aukland1996 – Donnie Moran1995 – John Gill1994 – Jack Boggs1993 – John Gill1992 – Jack Boggs1991 – Rodney Combs1990 – Mike Head1989 – Jeff Purvis1988 – Scott Bloomquist1987 – Jeff Purvis1986 – Jack Boggs1985 – John Mason1984 – Pat Patrick1983 – Pat Patrick

Richard Childress Racing at Michigan International Speedway … In 179 NASCAR Cup Series starts at the two-mile speedway, Richard Childress Racing has recorded three wins with drivers Dale Earnhardt (1987 & 1990) and Kevin Harvick (2010), plus 25 top-five and 59 top-10 finishes. Earnhardt scored a dominating victory in 1987, leading 152 of 200 laps and scored thrilling victory in 1990, edging Ernie Irvan by just .22 seconds (about two car lengths). The victory by Harvick was one of three wins he claimed in 2010, all on superspeedways, and his first at Michigan.    RCR in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Michigan International Speedway … RCR has four victories in NASCAR Xfinity Series competition at Michigan: Kevin Harvick (2003), Paul Menard (2014), Austin Dillon (2018) and most recently Tyler Reddick (2019). The Welcome, N.C., team has claimed 13 top-five and 28 top-10 finishes in 50 starts at the 2.0-mile speedway.  Introducing the Carolina Cowboys … Driven by the same passion for performance that guides his race team, Richard Childress’ latest endeavor brings Professional Bull Riding to the Carolinas. The Carolina Cowboys represent Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in the PBR Team Series, an elite new league featuring the world’s top bull riders in games that began in July 2022. The team is operated by Richard Childress Racing with 2018 Daytona 500 Champion Austin Dillon serving as General Manager. The second game of the inaugural PBR Team Series season is scheduled for this weekend, August 5-7, at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.  Don’t Miss the Carolina Cowboys “Cowboy Days” … The inaugural “Cowboy Days” Home Stand for the Carolina Cowboys will take place on September 9-11 at Wake Forest’s Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Tickets are on sale at PBR.com and Ticketmaster. Catch the Action … The NASCAR Xfinity Series Michigan 250 at Michigan International Speedway will be televised live Saturday, August 6, beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on USA Network and the NBC Sports App. The race will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  Follow Sunday’s Action at Michigan … The Michigan 400 at the Michigan International Speedway will be televised live on Sunday, August 7 beginning at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network and the NBC Sports App. The race will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

This Week’s Dow MobilityScience Chevrolet at Michigan International Speedway … In the last 17 NASCAR Cup Series races at Michigan Speedway, Austin Dillon has five top-10 finishes and posted a career-best fourth-place finish in August 2018. Dillon won the NASCAR Xfinity Series race in 2018 at the 2-mile speedway. Dow Brings a Science and Engineering Crew Who is Driven by Limitless Curiosity to the RCR Team … Austin Dillon and the RCR team are again supported by Dow’s materials science expertise and technologies this season. Backed by the power of data analysis and virtual modeling, Dow develops and manufactures high-performance components and materials custom-made for the No. 3 car. Dow and RCR’s partnership has expedited innovation and shortened testing time in the automotive industry by recreating in the lab one of the most extreme environments – the racetrack. After nine years of collaboration, Dow scientists and RCR engineers are continuing to work together to make the No. 3 car faster, safer and more precise. Stay up to date with Dow’s exciting developments at www.dow.com/sports and follow us on Twitter @DowSports & @DowNewsroom. Welcome, Dow MobilityScienceTM … Dow’s MobilityScience™ platform is designed to enhance the customer experience by tailoring technologies, products, and services from across Dow businesses to the transportation industry. The platform is pursuing accelerated growth by addressing Mobility mega-trends – where lighter weight, longer range, greater comfort, enhanced safety, and lower carbon footprint are the ultimate objectives. That is where Dow science, innovation, and people step in – working closely with customers to create the materials that bring the possibilities to life. AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE:What are your thoughts on Michigan International Speedway?“We had a strong Chevy at Michigan International Speedway last year, and I expect the same this year. I’m really looking forward to the race. Michigan is a place we’ve run well at in the past, and it’s a place we’ve circled to try and win and lock ourselves into the NASCAR Playoffs.

This Week’s Guaranteed Rate Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Michigan International Speedway … Tyler Reddick will be making his fourth NASCAR Cup Series start at Michigan International Speedway this weekend. Reddick has completed 99.61 percent of the total possible laps in three previous Cup starts at Michigan. He has one win in four NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Michigan. The victory came in 2019, the same season Reddick won the NASCAR Xfinity Series title with RCR.  In Good Company … With his win one week ago at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, Reddick is one of six drivers to win more than one race this season. The driver of the Guaranteed Rate Chevrolet is currently the fifth seed in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs and ranks 11th in the Cup Series regular season standings.  About Guaranteed Rate … Guaranteed Rate is a leader in mortgage lending and digital financial services. Headquartered in Chicago, the company has more than 8,000 employees in 500 offices across the U.S., and is licensed in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Since its launch in 2000, Guaranteed Rate has helped hundreds of thousands of homeowners with home purchase loans and refinances, funding more than $95 billion in total loan volume in 2021 alone. Powered by its belief in positivity, the company has become one of the largest retail lenders in the nation. Guaranteed Rate delivers innovative technology, including the world’s first Digital Mortgage, low rates and unparalleled customer service. Visit https://www.rate.com/mortgage-rates for more information. TYLER REDDICK QUOTES:Auto Club Speedway looks similar to Michigan. How are they different? “They may be the same size and shape but the surface age is much, much different. We’ll see if we use resin and if so, how much we use. That will certainly play a role in how the race plays out. Looking back at Pocono, the preferred groove was the middle lane in the resin. It all depends on how well the track is prepared and how much resin is put on it.”  You now have two wins this season. How important is that entering the Playoffs? “It’s really nice that we’ve won two races this year because we now have more playoff points in our back pocket. We would like to win at other tracks in addition to the road courses but we’ll win where we can for now. We’ve certainly had potential to win at a number of different places. We’ll just keep working really hard and hopefully in the coming weeks win some more races, get some more playoff points, and put our entire Guaranteed Rate team in a good place, mentally and confidence wise, going into the Playoffs.”

This Week’s Bennett Transportation and Logistics Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Michigan International Speedway … Austin Hill will make his NASCAR Cup Series debut in the No. 33 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing on Sunday. Hill, 28, runs full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for RCR in the No. 21 Chevrolet Camaro SS. He has two wins so far this season with eight top fives and 13 top 10s. He is currently sixth in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff standings.   About Bennett Family of Companies … McDonough, Ga.-based Bennett Family of Companies is a woman-owned, Women’s Enterprise Business Council (WBENC) certified, diversified transportation and logistics company. Through its 12 affiliated operating companies, the Bennett Family of Companies delivers integrated transportation and supply chain management solutions worldwide. The company will use race experiences to recruit and retain hundreds of truck drivers for their organization in 2022. For more information, visit www.Drive4Bennett.com. AUSTIN HILL QUOTE:This is a very exciting weekend for you, what is your main goal as you make your Cup Series debut?“I’m super excited to get to Michigan this weekend and make my Cup Series debut. As a kid growing up in racing, the dream is always to make it to the Cup Series one day. I’m so grateful that it’s all happening for me and that I get that make my debut for Richard Childress Racing in the iconic No. 33 Chevrolet. My main goal this weekend is to finish all the laps, stay out of trouble and learn everything I possibly can. Opportunities like this are so special and I don’t take them for granted, I want to take full advantage of everything this weekend has to offer. Thank you to everyone who believed in me and to all of my sponsors who made this happen. Everyone has worked so hard to make this happen for me and I cannot wait to get the No. 33 Chevrolet on the track.”

This Week’s Whelen Engineering Chevrolet Camaro SS at Michigan International Speedway … Sheldon Creed will make his first-ever Xfinity Series start at Michigan International Speedway on Saturday in the No. 2 Chevrolet. During his time in the NASCAR Truck Series, Creed made two starts at the Brooklyn, Michigan track and scored a best finish of second in 2019. Most recently, he competed at the track in 2020 in the Truck Series.  Indy Recap … Last weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, Creed and the No. 2 team were looking to expand on their top-five streak but got turned around at the end of the race, which resulted in a 23rd-place effort. Luckily, Creed was able to hold onto 13th-place in the Playoff standings, the first driver below the cutline. He is 50 points below the cutline currently. Whelen Celebrates 70 Years … From a small garage workshop in Connecticut in 1952 to a worldwide leader in emergency warning equipment today, Whelen Engineering continues to push the boundaries of innovation. As we mark our 70th anniversary, we’re proud to continue our founder’s mission of making it safer for those who serve and protect. Whelen has been manufacturing in America for 70 years—we never left, and we’re here to stay. About Whelen … Whelen Engineering is a family-owned company with a pioneering spirit and a passion to protect the lives of those who protect and serve others. The company mission is to provide industry-defining safety solutions around the world, while creating a community of problem-solvers who are inspired to push boundaries and continue our legacy of delivering ground-breaking innovation. As a global leader in the emergency warning industry, Whelen has been trusted to perform since 1952, when George Whelen III invented the first rotating aviation beacon. Whelen now encompasses two state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Connecticut and New Hampshire with over 750,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing space and the largest design staff in the industry. Every part of every Whelen product is proudly designed and manufactured in America. We embrace quality as our foundation, we celebrate innovative engineering in every product we produce. SHELDON CREED QUOTE:You’re making your Xfinity Series debut at Michigan International Speedway on Saturday,. What’s your mindset like?“This will be my first time on a track like this in the Xfinity car so it’ll be a learning curve but I’m really excited to get there. I have experience at the track in the Truck Series so I know the track a little bit but this is definitely going to be a new challenge. It’s great that we have practice and qualifying to get any extra seat time possible. Our team has put in a lot of hard work and we’ve had a lot of simulator time to prepare for Michigan. We’ve been running very strong in our No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet and this weekend will be no different.”

This Week’s United Rentals Chevrolet Camaro SS at Michigan International Speedway … Austin Hill will make his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut at Michigan International Speedway this weekend in the No. 21 Chevrolet. Although he’s never made an Xfinity Series start, Hill has made three starts at Michigan in the NASCAR Truck Series. His first start was in 2018. In 2019, his second start at the Brooklyn, Michigan track, Hill won the race from the sixth position, earning his second Truck Series victory. Most recently, he finished 12th in 2020 at the track. This weekend is a special one for Hill as he will also be making his NASCAR Cup Series debut with Richard Childress Racing in the No. 33 Chevrolet. Hill will be making two debuts at Michigan throughout the weekend.  Indy Recap … Last weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, Hill added onto his current streak of top-10 finishes by grabbing a ninth-place finish at the road course. Currently, Hill is sixth in the Playoff standings and is leading the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings. About United Rentals … United Rentals, Inc. is the largest equipment rental company in the world. The company has an integrated network of 1,278 rental locations in North America, 11 in Europe, 28 in Australia and 18 in New Zealand. In North America, the company operates in 49 states and every Canadian province. The company’s approximately 20,100 employees serve construction and industrial customers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners, and others. The company offers approximately 4,300 classes of equipment for rent with a total original cost of $15.72 billion. United Rentals is a member of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, the Barron’s 400 Index and the Russell 3000 Index® and is headquartered in Stamford, Conn. Additional information about United Rentals is available at www.unitedrentals.com. AUSTIN HILL QUOTE:This will be your first Xfinity Series start at Michigan on Saturday. How are you feeling heading into the race?“I’m really excited to get to Michigan this weekend. I feel really good about this weekend especially since I’ve seen success at the track in the Truck Series. I got a win at Michigan in the Truck Series and that definitely adds some confidence. It was always a track I felt confident going to and after the way my team and I have been running for the past couple weeks, I’m looking forward to keeping that momentum going. We’ve put in a lot of simulator time and have had meetings and worked really hard on our strategy for the track. It’ll be a longer race, too, so I’m making sure to hydrate a little more than usual. We’re focused on getting another win and adding on all the points we possibly can as we get closer to the start of the Playoffs. I’m also making my Cup debut this weekend, so I’ve got a lot to look forward to!”

Brent Larson matches best World of Outlaws result for second-place finish

NEW RICHMOND, WI – AUGUST 5, 2022 – A well-timed change and a little luck kept Mike Marlar’s Wisconsin streak alive Thursday night at Cedar Lake Speedway. 

The Winfield, TN driver was chasing Jonathan Davenport for the lead when he moved to the top in Turns 1 and 2. That’s when the 2018 World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series champion got the break he needed. 

As Marlar started inching closer to “Superman,” heartbreak struck Davenport as ignition box issues sidelined him for the rest of the night on Lap 11.

From there, Marlar led the final 20 laps to score his third Series triumph of 2022—all of them in the Badger State.  

The “Winfield Warrior” knew Davenport’s misfortunes meant it was his race to lose as he reached the podium in his eighth straight World of Outlaws start. 

“I’m not going to say I was faster than [Davenport], but I found a little bit better line than him,” Marlar said. “But these guys have a knack of moving to that line right when they need to, too.

“You can’t count your chickens before they hatch, but definitely when he broke there, it was all mine to lose then.”

Marlar survived several restarts once he got the lead and challenges from Brent Larson and Gordy Gundaker. 

However, his ability to use the outside line in Turns 1 and 2 paid dividends en route to the $6,000 payday. 

“The groove for me that was better was high in (Turns) 1 and 2 and low in (Turns) 3 and 4,” Marlar said. “It was kind of weird because it was an extreme high right against the wall, and down there in 3 and 4, it was left front up over the tires and left rear against the tires. It was definitely a real technical racetrack, and these places up here always are.”

Larson held on for second, matching his best World of Outlaws finish. However, he felt he needed a few more adjustments to find Victory Lane at the track where he cut his teeth in a Late Model. 

“I stayed a little bit too conservative in my setup,” Larson said. “I just needed to make a few more changes than I made, and I might’ve had something for him in the middle if I had done that. 

“But it’s tough when you get off to a good start because you don’t want to change too much either. I’m happy with the night overall and happy knowing we’re a second-place car and that I know what changes I need to make to get better.”

Tanner English, Thursday’s Rookie of the Race, crossed the line third—his second straight podium finish. 

The Benton, KY driver, stated restarts were his strength, allowing him to get to the top three from his 14th starting position.

 “It came to the front the whole time, and every restart, it would really jump out there and go,” English said. “I was just hanging on, but every time someone would make a mistake, I would get my nose up underneath them and pass them.”

Like English, four-time and reigning Series champion Brandon Sheppard also charged into the top five, finishing fourth. 

The New Berlin, IL driver, felt his car was good but knew he had to go to the outside if he wanted to gain positions

“We had a really good car that whole race,” Sheppard said. “I could run top, middle, the bottom where I needed to. There at the end, I feel like I had my left rear tire used up a little bit because I was running that top so hard early. But they were all on the bottom, so I had to get out and try to make something happen. 

“Our team did a great job tonight. Our car was really good. We gave it all we had, for sure. I felt like we had a really good balanced car, so it’s exciting for the rest of the weekend.”

World of Outlaws Series points leader Dennis Erb Jr. rounded out the top five—his 15th top five of 2022. 

Despite the top-five run, the Carpentersville, IL driver isn’t satisfied with how he’s running right now. 

“It was getting a lot better, but it needs to get a lot better in the Feature,” Erb said. “We started off a little bit and worked our way in there, but I’m really not happy with it right now, so I just have to tweak on it and hopefully get it a little bit better on [Friday].”

English gained points on Erb for the second consecutive race. He’s now 164 points behind Erb after Thursday night’s Feature. He also gained on Max Blair in the battle for Rookie of the Year—20 points ahead of the Centerville, PA driver.  

UP NEXT: The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet return to Cedar Lake Speedway on Friday, Aug. 5, for night two of the 35th USA Nationals. Drivers will run a program of double Heat Races and a dash to help set the lineup for Saturday’s 100-lap, $50,000-to-win finale. 

If you can’t make it to the tracks, watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online on with the DIRTVision App. Each night of USA Nationals is included in a DIRTVision monthly OR annual FAST PASS subscription.

CASE Construction Equipment Feature (30 Laps): 1. 157-Mike Marlar[2]; 2. B1-Brent Larson[3]; 3. 81E-Tanner English[14]; 4. 1S-Brandon Sheppard[11]; 5. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[9]; 6. 1T-Tyler Erb[7]; 7. 18C-Chase Junghans[4]; 8. 18-Shannon Babb[15]; 9. 97-Cade Dillard[20]; 10. 11-Gordy Gundaker[5]; 11. 3S-Brian Shirley[19]; 12. 111V-Max Blair[23]; 13. 32-Bobby Pierce[12]; 14. 25-Shane Clanton[6]; 15. 1-Boom Briggs[24]; 16. 19R-Ryan Gustin[17]; 17. 16-Tyler Bruening[16]; 18. 7-Ricky Weiss[21]; 19. 44-Chris Madden[18]; 20. 8-Kyle Strickler[10]; 21. 76-Brandon Overton[8]; 22. 10S-Garrett Smith[13]; 23. 28M-Jimmy Mars[22]; 24. 49-Jonathan Davenport[1] FOX FACTORY HARD CHARGER: Tanner English [+11]. 

DIRTVision Showcases $20,000/Win, 55-Lapper on Saturday Night

PEVELY, MO – August 4, 2022 – Since 2009, the first weekend of August has been resevered for one of the most grueling and challenging races on the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series schedule – the Ironman 55 presented by Festus Tourism Commission.

That tradition remains the same this year as The Greatest Show on Dirt heads for Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55this Friday and Saturday, August 5-6. The two-day stop in Pevely, MO is capped off with a $20,000-to-win, 55-lap Feature that tests the durability of these 900+ horsepower beasts and the strength of the brave pilots that control them.

Leading the charge into this weekend is championship contenders Brad Sweet and David Gravel, who are both chasing their first conquest of the Ironman 55. Three of the favorites, however, are Sheldon Haudenschild, Logan Schuchart, and Rico Abreu, all former champions with experience lifting the dumbbell prize at I-55.

BUY TICKETS HERE (Fri-Sat)

Here’s what to watch for this weekend on DIRTVision.com:

WEIGHT LIFTERS: A trio of former Ironman 55 champions will be in attendance hoping to extend their legacies at the Pevely, MO bullring. Two of them (Haudenschild, Abreu) have a chance at matching Craig Dollansky’s all-time record of three titles, while another (Schuchart) is looking to become the fourth multi-time winner through 14 runnings.

Following a disappointing weekend, I-55 presents the perfect pick-me-up for Sheldon Haudenschild and Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing. The Wooster, OH native has earned four of his 30 career World of Outlaws wins in Pevely, MO, including the 2019 and 2021 Ironman 55. The NOS Energy Drink #17 is arguably the betting favorite this weekend as they chase redemption and a ninth win in the 2022 season.

Fresh off a victory at Knoxville (IA) Raceway against the All Star Circuit of Champions, Rico Abreu collected some major momentum ahead of the Ironman 55. The St. Helena, CA native topped back-to-back runnings in 2016 and 2017, earning two of his eight career World of Outlaws wins at the bullring he’s grown to love so much. He’s feeling good with “Tricky” Ricky Warner on the wrenches of the Rowdy #24 and hopes to end his 110-race winless streak with the Series that dates back to 2018.

Logan Schuchart, of Hanover, PA, is hoping to join Haudenschild and Abreu in the two title department of the Ironman 55. The Shark Racing star topped the 55-lapper in 2018, returned to contention last year when he advanced from 14th to fourth, and nearly stole April’s Pevely show from Carson Macedo in the closing laps. The DuraMAX Oil, Drydene Performance Products #1S team ended a month-long absence from the podium on Sunday, and now vyes for their first win since Bristol (TN) Motor Speedway on April 29.

BRAD VS. DAVID: The latter half of July had a massive impact on the championship standings as the battle shifted from four drivers within -100 points from the lead to only one driver in that category. Brad Sweet, of Grass Valley, CA, continues to hold the top spot in the Kasey Kahne Racing, NAPA Auto Parts #49 as he has since March in pursuit of a fourth consecutive World of Outlaws championship.

However, behind him in second, and back by only -36 points, is David Gravel aboard the Big Game Motorsports #2. The Watertown, CT native has won three of the last nine races and averaged a Series-best 5.0 finish throughout 13 races in the month of July. The 30-year-old veteran recorded a runner-up effort in the standings last year and now is arguably in the best shape of his career to dethrone Sweet for the $200,000 championship.

COWBOY UP: When the World of Outlaws last visited I-55 for a one-night offering in April, a first-time winner rose to the occasion with Carson Macedo in the Jason Johnson Racing, Albaugh #41. It was a rough and tough race with the winged warriors slicing and dicing across a treacherous surface impacted by rain on the newly-presented clay. The Lemoore, CA native led all 35 laps of that one and now pursues his first Ironman 55 title this weekend.

It’s been almost four months since then and the track crew has done an exceptional job working the new soil into the surface and studying its tendencies. In June, the Xtreme Outlaw Sprint Car Series presented by Low-E Insulation slid across a “smooth as glass” layout during their stop. Fans should expect plenty of thrilling battles from top-to-bottom presenting a jaw-dropping show that the Ironman is used to providing. 

AWESOME IN AUGUST: When the month of August rolls around, Donny Schatz and Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing traditionally seem to find speed on a consistent basis more than anyone else. The 10-time Series champion is fresh off his second win of the season at Weedsport and he’s won at all five venues on the docket this month.

The Fargo, ND native is a two-time winner at I-55, but he’ll be chasing his first triumph in the Ironman 55 this weekend. The focus then turns to chase an 11th Knoxville Nationals title before vying for more money at the Jackson Nationals, and then returning to his home state of North Dakota where he’s dominated River Cities Speedway and Red River Valley Speedway. 

With another 30+ races remaining on the 2022 schedule, Schatz has clawed his way back to fifth in the standings (-172 points) and still sits within a reasonable range to make a comeback for his 11th World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series championship.

GETTING XTREME: Joining the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series this weekend to make it an open-wheel-only doubleheader is the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota, held in conjunction with the POWRi National Midget League.

Several drivers including Michael Pickens (Auckland, NZ), Joe B. Miller (Millersville, MO), and Jake Neuman (New Berlin, IL) are candidates to potentially pull double duty with four Features in two nights at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55. Both programs will be available to watch in full on DIRTVision.com

THIS WEEK AT A GLANCE

Friday-Saturday, August 5-6 at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55

ON THE INTERNET
World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series
Twitter – @WorldofOutlaws
Instagram – @WoOSprint
Facebook – Facebook.com/WorldofOutlawsSprintCarSeries
YouTube – Youtube.com/WorldofOutlaws
DIRTVision – DIRTVision.com – Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/month

CURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (45/77 Races):
1. 49-Brad Sweet (6,084 PTS); 2. 2-David Gravel (-36 PTS); 3. 41-Carson Macedo (-114 PTS); 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild (-130 PTS); 5. 15-Donny Schatz (-172 PTS); 6. 1S-Logan Schuchart (-184 PTS); 7. 5-Spencer Bayston (-334 PTS); 8. 83-James McFadden (-348 PTS); 9. 1A-Jacob Allen (-532 PTS); 10. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss (-650 PTS).

NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (15 Drivers):
8 wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing #17
7 wins – Carson Macedo, Jason Johnson Racing #41
5 wins – David Gravel, Big Game Motorsports #2
5 wins – Brent Marks, Murray-Marks Motorsports #19
4 wins – Kyle Larson, Kevin Kozlowski/Paul Silva #57
3 wins – Jacob Allen, Shark Racing #1A
2 wins – Brad Sweet, Kasey Kahne Racing #49
2 wins – Donny Schatz, Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15
2 wins – Spencer Bayston, CJB Motorsports #5
2 wins – Giovanni Scelzi, KCP Racing #18
1 win – Logan Schuchart, Shark Racing #1S,
1 win – Brock Zearfoss, Zearfoss Racing #3Z
1 win – Brian Brown, Brian Brown Racing #21
1 win – Buddy Kofoid, Crouch Motorsports #11
1 win – Lance Dewease, Don Kreitz Jr. Racing #69K

FEATURE LAPS LED (29 Drivers):
184 laps – Carson Macedo
165 laps – Sheldon Haudenschild
132 laps – David Gravel
123 laps – Brad Sweet
119 laps – Kyle Larson
109 laps – Brent Marks
94 laps – Donny Schatz
78 laps – Jacob Allen
66 laps – Spencer Bayston
61 laps – Giovanni Scelzi
52 laps – Brian Brown
41 laps – Logan Schuchart
31 laps – Buddy Kofoid
26 laps – Sam Hafertepe Jr.
23 laps – Kasey Kahne
22 laps – Brock Zearfoss
21 laps – Tyler Courtney
15 laps – Justin Peck
14 laps – James McFadden
13 laps – Cory Eliason
13 laps – Rico Abreu
9 laps – Dominic Scelzi, Brady Bacon
8 laps – Anthony Macri, Riley Goodno
7 laps – Kerry Madsen
5 laps – Lance Dewease
1 lap – Corey Day, Aaron Reutzel

QUICKTIME AWARDS (20 Drivers):
8 QuickTimes – Carson Macedo
5 QuickTimes – David Gravel
3 QuickTimes – Brad Sweet, Sheldon Haudenschild*, Giovanni Scelzi*
2 QuickTimes – Donny Schatz, Logan Schuchart, Spencer Bayston, James McFadden, Jacob Allen, Rico Abreu, Justin Peck
1 QuickTime – Aaron Reutzel, Cory Eliason, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Buddy Kofoid, Brent Marks, Kerry Madsen, Daryn Pittman, Anthony Macri
* Denotes New Track Record

HEAT RACE WINNERS (46 Drivers):
18 Heat Wins – David Gravel
15 Heat Wins – Carson Macedo
12 Heat Wins – Brad Sweet
11 Heat Wins – Donny Schatz, Jacob Allen
9 Heat Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Logan Schuchart, James McFadden
5 Heat Wins – Rico Abreu, Giovanni Scelzi, Kerry Madsen
4 Heat Wins – Spencer Bayston, Kraig Kinser, Aaron Reutzel, Brian Brown
3 Heat Wins – Brock Zearfoss, Kasey Kahne, Tyler Courtney, Cory Eliason, Kyle Larson
2 Heat Wins – Austin McCarl, Justin Peck, Brent Marks, Hunter Schuerenberg
1 Heat Win – Sam Hafertepe Jr, Dominic Scelzi, Corey Day, Anthony Macri, Justin Whittall, Ian Madsen, Parker Price-Miller, Buddy Kofoid, Mark Dobmeier, Mitchel Moles, Brooke Tatnell, Riley Goodno, Matt Juhl, Jack Croaker, Paige Polyak, Carson McCarl, Marcus Dumensy, Sye Lynch, Daryn Pittman, Danny Dietrich, Devon Borden, Larry Wight

DIRTVISION FAST PASS DASH APPEARANCES (50 Drivers):
28 Dashes – David Gravel
25 Dashes – Brad Sweet
24 Dashes – Carson Macedo
20 Dashes – Spencer Bayston
18 Dashes – Sheldon Haudenschild, Donny Schatz, Logan Schuchart, Jacob Allen
14 Dashes – James McFadden
10 Dashes – Rico Abreu
9 Dashes – Giovanni Scelzi
7 Dashes – Kraig Kinser, Kyle Larson
6 Dashes – Brock Zearfoss, Cory Eliason
5 Dashes – Kasey Kahne, Aaron Reutzel, Brent Marks
4 Dashes – Kerry Madsen, Brian Brown, Tyler Courtney, Anthony Macri
3 Dashes – Danny Dietrich
2 Dashes – Dominic Scelzi, Corey Day, Justin Peck
1 Dash – Sam Hafertepe Jr, Colby Copeland, Tanner Carrick, DJ Netto, Brady Bacon, Matt Campbell, Justin Whittall, Ian Madsen, Cole Duncan, Parker Price-Miller, Austin McCarl, Matt Juhl, Buddy Kofoid, Scotty Thiel, Robbie Price, Zeb Wise, Ayrton Gennetten, Darin Pittman, Hunter Schuerenberg, Jeff Halligan, Lance Dewease, Devon Borden, Larry Wight, Danny Varin

MICROLITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (28 Drivers):
4 LCS Wins – James McFadden
3 LCS Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Ayrton Gennetten
2 LCS Wins – Logan Schuchart, Spencer Bayston, Brock Zearfoss, Noah Gass, Kerry Madsen, Rico Abreu, Anthony Macri
1 LCS Win – Donny Schatz, Mitchell Faccinto, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Brent Marks, DJ Foos, Christopher Bell, Austin Pierce, Jake Blackhurst, Robbie Price, Giovanni Scelzi, Scotty Thiel, Josh Schneiderman, Brian Brown, Lachlan McHugh, Justin Whittall, Chase Dietz, Brandon Rahmer, Jordan Thomas

KSE HARD CHARGER AWARDS (24 Drivers):
7 Hard Chargers – Sheldon Haudenschild
5 Hard Chargers – Logan Schuchart
3 Hard Chargers – David Gravel, Carson Macedo, Donny Schatz
2 Hard Chargers – James McFadden, Brock Zearfoss, Noah Gass, Anthony Macri
1 Hard Charger – Spencer Bayston, Kraig Kinser, Jason Sides, Rico Abreu, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Tanner Thorson, Alan Krimes, Devon Borden, Greg Wilson, Travis Philo, Kyle Larson, Russell Borland, Aaron Reutzel, Scotty Thiel, Freddie Rahmer, Larry Wight

PODIUM FINISHES (30 Drivers):
15 Podiums – Brad Sweet
14 Podiums – Carson Macedo
13 Podiums – Sheldon Haudenschild
12 Podiums – David Gravel
11 Podiums – Donny Schatz
9 Podiums – Kyle Larson
8 Podiums – Logan Schuchart
7 Podiums – Brent Marks
6 Podiums – James McFadden
5 Podiums – Brian Brown
4 Podiums – Spencer Bayston, Jacob Allen
3 Podiums – Giovanni Scelzi, Rico Abreu
2 Podiums – Aaron Reutzel, Corey Day, Buddy Kofoid, Anthony Macri
1 Podium – Brock Zearfoss, Kraig Kinser, Kasey Kahne, Cory Eliason, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Justin Peck, Parker Price-Miller, Riley Goodno, Tyler Courtney, Danny Dietrich, Lance Dewease, Paulie Colagiovanni

TOP 10 FINISHES (51 Drivers):
39 Top 10s – David Gravel
38 Top 10s – Brad Sweet
34 Top 10s – Carson Macedo, Donny Schatz
32 Top 10s – Sheldon Haudenschild
31 Top 10s – Logan Schuchart
26 Top 10s – Spencer Bayston
25 Top 10s – James McFadden
21 Top 10s – Giovanni Scelzi
20 Top 10s – Jacob Allen
15 Top 10s – Rico Abreu
13 Top 10s – Brock Zearfoss, Kyle Larson
10 Top 10s – Brent Marks
9 Top 10s – Anthony Macri
8 Top 10s – Cory Eliason
7 Top 10s – Aaron Reutzel, Brian Brown
6 Top 10s – Tyler Courtney
5 Top 10s – Kasey Kahne, Kerry Madsen
4 Top 10s – Hunter Schuerenberg, Justin Peck, Danny Dietrich
3 Top 10s – Kraig Kinser, Buddy Kofoid, Scotty Thiel, Lance Dewease
2 Top 10s – Dominic Scelzi, Corey Day, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Larry Wight, Danny Varin
1 Top 10 – Noah Gass, Shane Golobic, DJ Netto, Carson Short, Tanner Thorson, Greg Wilson, Cole Duncan, Cale Thomas, Cole Macedo, Mark Dobmeier, Parker Price-Miller, Riley Goodno, Ayrton Gennetten, Zeb Wise, Jeff Halligan, Devon Borden, Freddie Rahmer, Paulie Colagiovanni

2022 WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE & WINNERS:
No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)
1. Thur, Feb. 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Donny Schatz (1)
2. Fri, Feb. 11 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Sheldon Haudenschild (1)
3. Sat, Feb. 12 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (1)
4. Fri, March 4 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Sheldon Haudenschild (2)
5. Sat, March 5 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Carson Macedo (1)
6. Fri, March 11 / Thunderbowl Raceway / Tulare, CA / Giovanni Scelzi (1)
7. Sat, March 12 / Thunderbowl Raceway / Tulare, CA / Kyle Larson (1)
8. Fri, March 18 / Merced Speedway / Merced, CA / Carson Macedo (2)
9. Fri, March 25 / Bakersfield Speedway / Bakersfield, CA / Giovanni Scelzi (2)
10. Sat, March 26 / Perris Auto Speedway / Perris, CA / David Gravel (2)
11. Tues, March 29 / Vado Speedway Park / Vado, NM / Brad Sweet (1)
12. Sat, April 2 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX / Brent Marks (1)
13. Sat, April 9 / Lake Ozark Speedway / Eldon, MO / Jacob Allen (1)
14. Fri, April 15 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Carson Macedo (3)
15. Sat, April 23 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN / Carson Macedo (4)
16. Fri, April 29 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN / Logan Schuchart (1)
17. Sat, April 30 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN / Spencer Bayston (1)
18. Wed, May 11 / Lincoln Speedway / Abbottstown, PA / Jacob Allen (2)
19. Sat, May 14 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Brent Marks (2)
20. Tues, May 17 / Bridgeport Motorsports Park / Swedesboro, NJ / Sheldon Haudenschild (3)
21. Fri, May 20 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH / Kyle Larson (2)
22. Sat, May 28 / Atomic Speedway / Waverly, OH / Sheldon Haudenschild (4)
23. Mon, May 30 / Lawrenceburg Speedway / Lawrenceburg, IN / Sheldon Haudenschild (5)
24. Fri, June 3 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND / Carson Macedo (5)
25. Fri, June 10 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Brent Marks (3)
26. Sat, June 11 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Brian Brown (1)
27. Fri, June 17 / Beaver Dam Raceway / Beaver Dam, WI / Sheldon Haudenschild (6)
28. Sat, June 18 / Beaver Dam Raceway / Beaver Dam, WI / Sheldon Haudenschild (7)
29. Wed, June 22 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Spencer Bayston (2)
30. Thur, June 23 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Buddy Kofoid (1)
31. Fri, June 24 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Carson Macedo (6)
32. Sat, June 25 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Sheldon Haudenschild (8)
33. Fri, July 1 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI / Jacob Allen (3)
34. Sat, July 2 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI / Brock Zearfoss (1)
35. Sat, July 9 / Wilmot Raceway / Wilmot, WI / Carson Macedo (7)
36. Tues, July 12 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH / Kyle Larson (3)
37. Wed, July 13 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / David Gravel (3)
38. Thur, July 14 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Brent Marks (4)
39. Sat, July 16 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / David Gravel (4)
40. Sat, July 16 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Brent Marks (5)
41. Wed, July 20 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA / Kyle Larson (4)
42. Fri, July 22 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Lance Dewease (1)
43. Sat, July 23 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Brad Sweet (2)
44. Sat, July 30 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, NY / David Gravel (5)
45. Sun, July 31 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, NY / Donny Schatz (2)

CONCORD, NC – (Aug. 4, 2022) – Steve Francis, the 2007 World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series champion, has returned to the Series as Director of Competition, working with Series Director Casey Shuman.

The National Dirt Late Model Hall of Famer from Bowling Green, KY, is 10th all-time on the World of Outlaws wins list with 28 victories. Overall, Francis has nearly 300 wins in his career, including the World 100 and the Dirt Track World Championship. He was a key part of the rebirth of the Outlaws in 2004, even winning the first night in 2004 at Volusia Speedway Park.

“Steve joining our team of officials will make us all better as he’s proven to be a valuable and important voice in the sport since he retired as a driver,” said World of Outlaws CEO Brian Carter. “As we’ve continued to grow across all of our platforms, adding experienced, respected and talented people like Steve from within the sport will help continue our trajectory.”

Most recently, Francis has served as Technical Director of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. His wife, Amanda, will also join the staff to enhance the Fan Engagement side of the team.

“The World of Outlaws was a major part of my career, and I look forward to returning as the Director of Competition,” Francis said. “I’ve watched as they’ve continued to build big events across the country, I’m looking forward to jumping on board to keep the momentum going.”

Brooklyn, MichiganAugust 7, 2022  NASCAR CUP SERIES RACE #23 – MICHIGANShifting from the left- and right-hand turns of a road course circuit to a 2-mile oval, the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) and NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) head to Chevrolet’s home track: Michigan International Speedway (MIS). Located outside of “Motor City”, Detroit, the series’ trip to the manufacturers’ backyard has more than just the race win trophy on the line.  Drivers and teams will also be racing to deliver their manufacturer the Michigan Heritage Trophy. The prestigious award is a recognition and celebration of the history cars and manufacturers bring to the race track. Each year, the track recognizes the sport’s manufacturers by presenting the award to the winning manufacturer in the NCS race at MIS. Since the debut of the award in August 2013, Chevrolet has brought home the title six times.  Sitting in the Irish Hills of Southeastern Michigan, the 2-mile oval first hosted the NCS in June 1969 and has since held 104 races for NASCAR’s premier series. Chevrolet has recorded 26 trips to victory lane at MIS, most recently by reigning NCS Champion Kyle Larson in August 2017. The Michigan venue was also the track that delivered Larson his first career NCS win in August 2016; and to this date, the 30-year-old Hendrick Motorsports driver is one of just two drivers in the series’ history to record their first NCS win at the track.  Chevrolet will be pacing the field this weekend at MIS. The Camaro SS will be leading the NASCAR Xfinity Series in Saturday’s New Holland 250 and a Camaro ZL1 will pace the NASCAR Cup Series to the green in Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400.  A NASCAR SWEEP FOR THE BOWTIEWith all three NASCAR national series in competition in Indianapolis last weekend, each race saw a similar outcome: a Chevrolet-powered machine in victory lane. The bowtie brand’s weekend sweep kicked off with Grant Enfinger and the No. 23 GMS Racing Silverado RST team, taking the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) playoff opener win at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. Road course master, AJ Allmendinger, captured his third NASCAR Xfinity Series road course win in 2022 with the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Camaro SS team at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course. Capping off the weekend at the 2.439-mile, 14-turn circuit was Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Camaro ZL1 team, who delivered Chevrolet its 10th consecutive NCS road course win.  This marks the second time this season that Chevrolet has swept the wins when all three NASCAR national series are in competition on the same weekend. This feat was also accomplished earlier in July when Parker Klingerman drove the No. 75 Henderson Racing Silverado RST to the win at Mid-Ohio (July 9, 2022); and hometown heroes Austin Hill and Chase Elliott took the NXS (July 9, 2022) and NCS (July 10, 2022) wins at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Chevrolet is the only manufacturer to achieve this feat in 2022 thus far.

CHEVROLET’S ROAD COURSE DOMINANCE: 10 IN A ROWThe month of July started out the same way it ended for Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet team. The 26-year-old Chevrolet driver followed up his first career NASCAR Cup Series win at Road America (July 3, 2022) with a second consecutive road course win, piloting his No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to victory at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course last weekend. The win also made Richard Childress Racing the only organization in the series’ history to win on both the oval and road course circuit at the iconic Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “I need to do everything I can to win as many races as possible for this group because I wouldn’t be the road course racer I am today if it wasn’t for RCR; if it wasn’t for the people on my team; if it wasn’t for Chevrolet,” said Reddick. “I owe it to them. I owe it to my team. I owe it to the people that really have helped me to get that done and go out there and deliver for them.” Chevrolet has now recorded wins in 14 of the last 15 NCS road course races, including a streak of the past 10. That string of victories, which dates back to Chevrolet’s milestone 800th NCS win at Circuit of The Americas in May 2021, has been accomplished with wins recorded by six drivers from four different Chevrolet teams:Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet:(Circuit of The Americas; May 2021)(Road America; July 2021) Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet:(Sonoma; June 2021)(Watkins Glen; August 2021)(Charlotte ROVAL; October 2021) AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet:(Indianapolis Road Course; August 2021) Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet:(Circuit of The Americas; March 2022) Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet:(Sonoma Raceway; June 2022) Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet:(Road America; July 2022)(Indianapolis Road Course; July 2022) “Tyler, Crew Chief Randall Burnett and the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Camaro ZL1 team put together a strong weekend, clinching the pole on Saturday and racing hard and smart to bring home the win at the Brickyard,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. Vice President, Performance and Motorsports. “Tyler has been putting in a lot of work preparing for these road courses, and it has paid off.”

TEAM CHEVY NCS SCORECARD: FOUR TO GOLeaving Chevrolet’s “home away from home” of Indianapolis, the bowtie brand is now standing at 13 wins of the 22 NASCAR Cup Series races completed, including six of the last seven races. With just four races remaining in the series’ regular season, Chevrolet’s series-leading win count gives the manufacturer a winning percentage of 59%. Notching another win, Chevrolet extended its lead in the NCS manufacturer points standings to 86 points over its manufacturer competitors.  Chevrolet’s Chase Elliott, who drove his No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 to two top-five stage finishes in Indianapolis, remains atop the NCS driver points standings, while also increasing his lead to 125-points over second. Elliott continues to prove to be a championship contender, leading the series in wins (four), playoff points (25), top-10 finishes (15) and laps led (658).  HILL TO MAKE CUP DEBUTAustin Hill will be making his first-ever start in the NASCAR Cup Series this weekend at Michigan International Speedway, piloting the No. 33 Bennett Transportation Camaro ZL1, a third entry fielded by Richard Childress Racing. Hill moved up the ranks from the NCWTS to the NXS at the beginning of the 2022 season, competing full-time in the NXS behind the wheel of the No. 21 Chevrolet Camaro SS for Richard Childress Racing. In the Georgia native’s rookie season, Hill has already notched two victories and secured his spot into the 2022 NXS playoff field.  Hill has already experienced success at Michigan International Speedway, recording a NCWTS win at the track in 2019.

KING OF THE ROADKnown for his mastery on road course circuits, AJ Allmendinger continued his dominance in turning left and right, taking the victory in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Pennzoil 150 at the Brickyard on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course.  Leading the field from the pole position, Allmendinger was forced to give up the lead after difficulties on a pit stop on lap 16. Powering his way back up the field, the 40-year-old California native went on to lead a race-high 42 of the 62-lap race to secure his series-leading ninth career NXS road course victory.

Allmendinger led a stout performance by the bowtie brigade, with Chevrolet drivers sweeping the top-four spots in the final running order with Alex Bowman (2nd), Justin Allgaier (3rd) and Ross Chastain (4th). The stage wins were also taken by Chevrolet drivers, with JR Motorsports teammates Noah Gragson and Josh Berry taking the Stage One and Two wins, respectively.  With 20 NXS races complete: ·       Chevrolet has now recorded 14 victories, giving the bowtie brand a winning percentage of 70%. ·       Following his third win of the season, AJ Allmendinger continues to lead in the NXS driver points standings, with a 17-point lead over second-place Justin Allgaier. ·       Looking to captures its six consecutive NXS Manufacturer Championship title, Chevrolet remained on top of the NXS manufacturer standings, extending its lead to 94-points over second.  The NXS first made an appearance at Michigan International Speedway in August 1992, with Todd Bodine driving Chevrolet to victory lane in the inaugural event. The 2-mile Michigan venue has hosted the NXS 29 times, with Chevrolet scoring a manufacturer-leading 17 of those wins, including the last three (Austin Dillon – June 2018; Tyler Reddick – June 2019; AJ Allmendinger – August 2021).

ENFINGER ONTO ROUND OF EIGHTGrant Enfinger and the No. 23 GMS Racing Silverado RST team started out the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) playoffs exactly how they had hoped. In the series’ return to the Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, Enfinger swept the stage wins and went on to battle through an overtime finish to capture his first win of the season and an automatic advancement to the second round of the playoffs.  When a caution flew at lap 191, crew chief Jeff Hensley called Enfinger down pit road for a fresh set of tires.

On the final restart at lap 206 for an overtime finish, chaos among the leaders gave Enfinger the opportunity to make the winning pass and he never looked back. Taking the checkered flag for the seventh time in his NCWTS career, Enfinger’s win gave Chevrolet its fourth NCWTS win this season.  While an on-track incident late in the race resulted in a 21st-place finish for playoff contender Carson Hocevar, the driver of the No. 42 Niece Motorsports Silverado RST remains above the playoff cutline by seven points.  The NCWTS will be back in action at Richmond Raceway for the Worldwide Express 250 for Carrier Appreciation on Saturday, August 13. The 250-lap race at the .75-mile Virginia oval will mark the second of three races in the NCWTS Round of 10.   BOWTIE BULLETS·       Active NASCAR Cup Series Chevrolet drivers that have won at Michigan International Speedway:  Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 (3 victories) ·       Kyle Larson is one of only two drivers in the series’ history to post their first career NASCAR Cup Series win at Michigan International Speedway (August 2016). Larson went on to make it three-in-a-row at MIS, sweeping both race wins in 2017.  ·       Chevrolet has recorded 26 wins, 27 poles, 183 top-fives and 377 top-10s at Michigan International Speedway.  ·       Chase Elliott leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in average finishing position at Michigan International Speedway (7.727).  ·       Current NASCAR Cup Series points leader, Chase Elliott, leads the series in a variety of statistical measures, including: race wins (4), laps led (658), average finish (10.2), top-10 finishes (15) and playoff points (25).  ·       For the second time this season, Chevrolet swept the wins across all three NASCAR national series.. the only manufacturer to accomplish this feat during race weekends that all three NASCAR national series are in competition on the same weekend.  NASCAR Cup Series: Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Camaro ZL1NASCAR Xfinity Series: AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Camaro SSNASCAR Camping World Truck Series: Grant Enfinger, No. 23 GMS Racing Silverado RST ·       With Tyler Reddick’s win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, Chevrolet has now won 14 of the past 15 NASCAR Cup Series road course races, including a streak of the past 10. In that timespan, six drivers from four different Chevrolet teams have contributed to those wins.  ·       Chevrolet heads into the Michigan International Speedway race weekend with a manufacturer-leading 13 NASCAR Cup Series wins in 22 points-paying races. The bowtie brand also continues to lead its manufacturer competitors in NCS top-fives (54), top-10s (99), laps led (2,739) and stage wins (20).  ·       Seven Team Chevy drivers have combined 20 NASCAR Cup Series stage wins: Tyler Reddick 2 – Fontana x2Alex Bowman 1 – Las VegasRoss Chastain 4 – Las Vegas, Darlington, Charlotte, PoconoWilliam Byron 3 – Phoenix, Atlanta, TalladegaDaniel Suarez 2 – COTA, CharlotteChase Elliott 3 – Martinsville x2, Charlotte, Atlanta x2 Kyle Larson 3 – Bristol, Sonoma, Pocono ·       Chevrolet leads the driver points standing in both the NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Chase Elliott remains in the top position in the NCS standings with a 125-point lead over second; and AJ Allmendinger continues to lead the NXS standings by 17 points. Chevrolet also remains atop both the NCS and NXS manufacturer points standings.  ·       With its 40 NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships, 33 NASCAR Cup Series Driver Championships, and 827 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title of winningest brand in NASCAR.   FOR THE FANS·       Fans can visit the Team Chevy Racing Display in the Fan Midway at Michigan International Speedway. ·       Fans can check out an assortment of Chevrolet vehicles including: Silverado ZR2, Silverado 1500 Trailboss, 70th Anniversary Corvette Z06, Camaro ZL1, Colorado, Tahoe, Trailblazer. ·       Also making a special appearance in the Team Chevy Racing Display this weekend at Michigan International Speedway will be the first-ever, all-electric Chevrolet Blazer. ·       At the Chevrolet Display, fans can also view Kyle Larson’s No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 show car.  TEAM CHEVY QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSIONS AT THE DISPLAY:Saturday, August 6·       Noah Gragson: 11:15 a.m. ·       Myatt Snider: 11:30 a.m. ·       Justin Allgaier: 1:15 p.m. ·       Josh Berry and Sam Mayer: 1:30 p.m. ·       Rajah Caruth and Nick Sanchez: 1:45 p.m.  Sunday, August 7·       Daniel Suarez: 11:15 a.m. ·       Corey LaJoie: 11:30 a.m. ·       Erik Jones: 11:55 a.m. ·       William Byron: 12:30 p.m.  Chevrolet Display Hours of Operation:  Saturday, August 6: 8:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.  Sunday, August 7: 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.  TUNE INUSA Network will broadcast the NASCAR Cup Series FireKeepers Casino 400 at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 7. Live coverage can also be found on the NBCSports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  USA Network will broadcast the NASCAR Xfinity Series New Holland 250 at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, August 6. Live coverage can also be found on the NBCSports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. QUOTABLE QUOTESROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 ADVENT HEALTH CAMARO ZL1How do you think Michigan will be this weekend with this style of car?         “I think it will be similar to how we have seen racing at Michigan in the past. It’ll be similar to what we saw at Auto Club this year with lifting off of the gas going in the corners and using different lanes.” AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW MOBILITYSCIENCE CAMARO ZL1What are your thoughts on Michigan International Speedway?“We had a strong Chevy at Michigan International Speedway last year, and I expect the same this year. I’m really looking forward to the race. Michigan is a place we’ve run well at in the past, and it’s a place we’ve circled to try and win and lock ourselves into the NASCAR Playoffs.” KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1Larson on if racing will be similar to Auto Club Speedway earlier this year:“I feel like the runs haven’t been quite as big as they were earlier in the year. I’m sure we will be able to draft, but the runs were huge at California. I don’t know if they’ll be quite that big at Michigan, and there will be less lane options when you get to the corner this weekend (compared to Auto Club Speedway).” CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1Daniels on what he is expecting at Michigan International Speedway: “I think this weekend’s race has potential to go a couple different ways. Passing could be difficult – we’ll see what the resin does on the track. Certainly, we’ve come a long way as a sport since California. Michigan (International Speedway) tends to lean toward more straight forward racing, but the runs and the draft could be impactful.” CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 UNIFIRST CAMARO ZL1Elliott on the team’s outlook as we get closer to the playoffs: “You have to be at the top of your game heading into the playoffs. We can’t let setbacks like last week get to us. We have to keep focusing on what we can control and having good execution and just keep improving. I need to make sure I’m doing my job inside the car. Those are the things we’re focusing on to make sure we’re peaking at the right time.” ALAN GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF, NO. 9 UNIFIRST CAMARO ZL1Gustafson on how to finish the regular season off on a high note and looking ahead to Michigan: “I try not to attach that to the finishing position. You’ve got to say ‘Hey, how did we do in preparation for the race? How did the car run? How did we execute the race? How did we execute the pit stops?’ You can do all that really well and finish bad because you get crashed or something happens. So, I’d say after Nashville (Superspeedway), knowing with two wins we were going to be in the playoffs, from then on we just tried to set out some goals to try to be prepared for the playoffs. Developing things on the pit crew side and trying to improve the cars and making sure we’re in as good of shape as possible is really what we’re doing. I don’t think that Michigan (International Speedway) is one where we’re going to really use the setup in the playoffs, but I certainly think we can learn and apply some things. Texas (Motor Speedway) comes to mind a little bit. But really, we’re just trying to be the best we can be when it matters.” WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1Byron on wanting to rewrite history at Michigan: “Michigan (International Speedway) is a tricky track. You have to manage drafting on the straightaways but also the feeling that you’re always on the limit of grip. It’s almost like Daytona (International Superspeedway) but with characteristics of a mile-and-a-half track. It’s basically a hybrid track. Timing passes is also a major factor as well as it’s a very momentum-heavy track. Last year, we were leading on the last restart, but I blocked the run coming from the high lane and lost momentum and that took us out of contention with how few laps were left. I’ve been really close to winning a few times at Michigan (International Speedway). I’m trying to rewrite history this weekend and hopefully be able to finally pull out the win with how close I’ve been before. This is also an important track for manufacturers, and I would take a lot of pride to be able to go out there and get the win for Chevrolet.” RUDY FUGLE, CREW CHIEF, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1Fugle on why he loves racing at Michigan: “I really enjoy racing at Michigan (International Speedway). I feel like the whole weekend is just good, hard racing. It helps that there is usually always such a good fan showing, especially with the always packed infield of campers. I think the more fans in attendance, the more excitement it brings on race day and that’s a situation we thrive in. The racing isn’t quite pack racing, but there are some drafting elements, especially when it comes to making passes. You still need to have your car handling well, though, to make up any track position. It’s not extremely easy to pass, so you usually tend to see big moves made, especially on the restarts. It’s a race that tends to have pit strategy take place too, especially late in the going, just to make up that ground that is hard to do during a long run. I think it’s just a well-rounded type of racing and I’ve come so close to winning there so many times that this is a race I’ve had circled for this year.” ERIK JONES, NO. 43 FOCUSFACTOR CAMARO ZL1Michigan is a home track for both you and crew chief Dave Elenz. How important would a win be to both of you? “You always want to run good when you go home and I think when we look at the remaining tracks, Michigan is one where we feel like we can win. So yea, multiple reasons it’s important to us. I feel like it’s going to be an opportunity for us to win and an opportunity to win at home as well. We want to take advantage of both of those things. Every time I go to Michigan, I just want to run well for friends, family, everybody there. Hopefully we’ll have a good showing.”  RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER HEALTH / SWEETLEAF CAMARO ZL1“The crazy thing with Michigan is the speeds are so high. You want to take the shortest distance around, but the bottom of the racetrack is flat. It has less banking. The top groove is more banked. Now we’ve got some of the traction compound that they have sprayed down. So, it has more grip, but it’s a longer distance around. The draft is really big, but you don’t want to really be tucked up behind a car once you get into a corner because you need all the air to be on your car. So, it’s tricky, it’s fun, it’s fast and we are really looking forward to it.” ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1Bowman on his mindset heading to Michigan: “I feel like we have had our struggles recently getting the finishes we are capable of getting. Our team does a great job of putting in the work during the week and getting the little details right. We just keep getting caught in other people’s messes. Greg (Ives, crew chief) did a great job of putting me in a good position to make a late-race push for the front in Indy (Motor Speedway Road Course) and then we were taken out of the race, so it’s been frustrating because our car was better than where we finished. Our team has a lot of fight, and this weekend will be no different – we will put a good strategy together and try to be there at the end on Sunday.” GREG IVES, CREW CHIEF, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1Ives on heading to his home track this Sunday in Michigan: “It’s always nice to go home and get to race in front of your family and friends. There is a little extra pressure having everyone there supporting you – you naturally want to perform on any given weekend but having your support system watching adds that extra bit but it makes the success you have feel that much better. Knowing that Ally and Chevy are based in Michigan sweetens the pot – we have a lot of reasons to go out there and put on a show and I know our team is capable of contending for a win.” DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 WORLDWIDE EXPRESS CAMARO ZL1What do you expect at Michigan this weekend?“I don’t think any of us really know what to expect. The new cars race good everywhere so I expect a good race. But Michigan is different than really everywhere else we have raced. It looks like Auto Club Speedway, but that track is bumpy where I expect Michigan will have more grip. It will be interesting.” Describe what it takes for success at Michigan?“Michigan is the kind of racetrack where you have to have a lot of straightaway speed and try to be as good as possible in the corners. You have to have a good downforce car in combination with drag to be able to go fast in the straightaways.” What is your favorite Michigan memory?“Michigan is where I got my first Xfinity win, so it’s special to me. You don’t forget moments like that. I just remember I didn’t have any words to describe how I was feeling at that moment. Nothing in Spanish or English.” Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics Manufacturers Championships:Total (1949-2021): 40First title for Chevrolet: 1958Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15) Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021 Drivers Championships:Total (1949-2021): 33First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)Most Recent: Kyle Larson (2021) Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021 Event Victories:Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)                2022 STATISTICS:                                                                                                    Wins: 13Poles: 5Laps Led: 2,739Top-five finishes: 54Top-10 finishes: 99Stage wins: 20Tyler Reddick (Fontanax2)Alex Bowman (Las Vegas)Ross Chastain (Las Vegas), (Darlington), (Charlotte), (Pocono)William Byron (Phoenix), (Atlanta), (Talladega)Daniel Suarez (COTA), (Charlotte)Chase Elliott (Martinsvillex2), (Charlotte), (Atlantax2)Kyle Larson (Bristol Dirt), (Sonoma), (Pocono) CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:Total Chevrolet race wins: 827 (1949 to date)Poles won to date: 728Laps led to date: 244,075Top-five finishes to date: 4,192Top-10 finishes to date: 8,654                                                                                                          Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date:                    General Motors: 1,161           Chevrolet: 827           Pontiac: 154           Oldsmobile: 115           Buick: 65            Ford: 815                                                                    Ford: 715           Mercury: 96           Lincoln: 4            Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467           Dodge: 217           Plymouth: 191           Chrysler: 59            Toyota: 167

August 3, 2022

Fresh off a season-best third-place finish on the road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team are headed to Michigan International Speedway hoping to pick up where they left off Sunday afternoon.

Crew chief Brian Wilson said that while the two tracks are quite different, the outstanding finish at the Brickyard is a big plus for the team going forward.
 
“After last week’s result at Indy, everyone is excited to get to Michigan,” Wilson said. “I’m a believer in momentum and confidence. 
 
“It never hurts to go to Ford’s backyard with a good result to discuss, but overall I think the results at Indy and Atlanta show that our process is working and we’re making gains as a team.
 
“Everyone can have confidence that we’re doing the right things to improve.”
 
This weekend at Michigan, the No. 21 Mustang will carry a special paint scheme recognizing 20-year Ford and Lincoln Senior Master Technicians. 
 
The Wood Brothers and the No. 21 team are welcoming 153 of those veteran employees as special guests at the track this weekend, and their names will be on the side of the No. 21 Mustang. Sunday’s race culminates the Motor City Homecoming weekend festivities.
 
For NASCAR racers like those on the No. 21 team, Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 on the two-mile oval at Michigan offers a chance to perform in front of the auto manufacturing executives and others like the Senior Master Technicians who typically attend the Michigan events. 
 
“Michigan is always a fun place to race with manufacturer bragging rights on the line,” Wilson said. “The track produces incredible speed and offers multiple grooves which should provide for a great race with the new car.”
 
Practice for the Firekeepers Casino 400 is set for Saturday at 12:35 p.m. and will be immediately followed by single-car qualifying.
 
Sunday’s 200-lap, 400-mile race is scheduled to start just after 3 p.m. with TV coverage on USA Network.
 
Stage breaks are set for Laps 45 and 120.

ENNIS, TX (August 3, 2022) — The return of the Stampede of Speed, a ten-day festival of music, drag racing and amazing fan experiences in advance of the NHRA Texas Fall Nationals, was officially announced today with the release of the special event schedule on www.stampedeofspeed.com. Hosted once again at the historic Texas Motorplex, the multi-use facility located just 35 minutes from Dallas and Fort Worth, as well as in downtown Waxahachie the Stampede of Speed will feature non-racing activities, concerts, educational and business events for fans from across the country.

“Last year we took a leap of faith with the Stampede of Speed and it paid off with thousands of fans coming to Texas Motorplex, Waxahachie and Ellis County for ten days of racing and entertainment,” said Christie Meyer Johnson, Texas Motorplex co-owner. “Over the next two weeks we will be unveiling new events, a major country concert line-up, fan contests and additional elements making the second annual Stampede of Speed even bigger than last year. Our goal is to welcome visitors to the great state of Texas and introduce them to our facility, the NHRA playoffs and high quality family-friendly events.”

The Stampede of Speed event calendar will feature ticketed and non-ticketed events leading up to the NHRA Texas Fall Nationals. Fans can visit www.stampedeofspeed.com for more information. Tickets will be available for online purchase Saturday, August 6, at noon CT. Highlights of the Stampede of Speed include:

Friday, October 7 – High Noon Cattle Drive

In a true Texas tradition cowboys will drive over a dozen head of cattle along with special guests through downtown Waxahachie and around the historic courthouse to kick off the Stampede of Speed.

Friday/Saturday, October 7-8 – Funny Car Chaos World Finals

Featuring the fastest and coolest nostalgia Funny Cars from the past four decades, the Funny Car Chaos Series will crown their national champions over this two-day spectacle of speed and racing fury. The race day will conclude with a pit side concert event for the fans and participants.

Sunday, October 9 – Stars Over Texas Music Festival with Bull Riding, Beer Expo and BBQ Contest

BBQ, craft beer and music will be the theme of the day as some of the best pitmasters show off their tasty delicacies paired with some refreshing cold beer from Metroplex area breweries. Before the country stars take the stage fans will be treated to a bull riding exhibition featuring some of the toughest riders and bulls in the area. Multiple musical acts from Nashville to Texas will entertain the crowd from the afternoon into the evening. A special lantern release will cap off this magical event.

Monday, October 10 – The Stampede of Speed Scott Palmer Nitro Side Show

This ticketed event will feature some of the wildest race cars on the planet as they try and set speed records and breathe fire as they roar down the track. The pits will be open for fans to get up close and personal with some of the most exotic race cars on the planet. The eye-opening, pulse pounding evening of racing will ramp up the excitement level for the week.

Tuesday, October 11 – 2^nd annual NHRA Texas Stampede of Speed Shootout

Racing action will be the theme of the day as competitors from across the region race in the Stampede of Speed Shootout featuring Pro Mods, Top Dragster and a host of other high-performance racers. Door-slammers and dragsters will battle it out for bragging rights and the chance to hoist the Shootout trophy. Pro Mods from every association including NHRA will settle their scores on the track with a no-rules, anything goes battle to be the quickest at the Stampede. 

Wednesday, October 12 – NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Pro Invitational (10a – 6p)

                                               Texas Fall Nationals Champions’ Dinner (6p – 10p)

See Pro Stock, Pro Stock Motorcycles, Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Cars make test laps in advance of the NHRA Texas Fall Nationals. The stars of the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series will be on-site preparing for the fourth race of the NHRA Countdown. This open schedule test session is a chance for curious motorsports fans to get a taste of the high-speed excitement that will play out Friday-Sunday.

Join the 2021 Texas Fall Nationals champions Justin Ashley, Ron Capps, Greg Anderson and Matt Smith in a high-end dinner and celebration event in the Champions’ Club. The event will include cocktail happy hour, plated dinner the champions selected, photos and autographs, Q&A session, and special surprise for all attendees. 

Thursday, October 13 – Texas Fall Nationals Sportsman Qualifying (9a – 6p)

                                             Fan Fest in downtown Waxahachie (6p – 9p)

Racing action continues at Texas Motorplex as the NHRA Texas Fall Nationals officially begins with sportsman qualifying action.

The wildly popular and free Fan Fest event will begin in downtown Waxahachie highlighting race cars, interactive games, live music and family fun. A massive driver autograph session will be the highlight of the evening with food trucks and kid’s games entertaining the crowd. 

Friday, October 14 – Friday Night Live at Texas Motorplex

For the third year in a row Friday Night Live will turn the traditional qualifying schedule on its head as music, exhibition runs and a special guest DJ will surround the Friday night NHRA pro qualifiers as they try to run to the top of their respective categories at speeds over 330 mph in under four seconds. The night will conclude with a free after-party on the starting line.

Saturday, October 15 – Final Qualifying for NHRA Texas Fall Nationals

The last day for teams and drivers from across the country to make the highly competitive sixteen car fields will conclude on Saturday. Teams will only have two chances to make the show or be relegated to spectator status so tension will be high and the competition jumps to a new level as teams vying to be one of the lucky 16. 

Sunday, October 16 – NHRA Texas Fall Nationals Race Day

Following a massive opening ceremony the top drag racers from around the country will be racing to get one step closer to a world championship at the only playoff race in the state of Texas. Hundreds of thousands of dollars will be on the line as well as the chance for racing immortality. The pits as always will be open for fans to mix and mingle with the racers throughout the day. At the conclusion of the event fans are welcome to join the winner’s circle celebration on the starting line.