ENNIS, TX (October 14, 2022) —- The first day of the Texas NHRA Fall Nationals wrapped up with a record setting run by Funny Car driver Matt Hagan, and quick runs by Top Fuel racer Austin Prock, Pro Stock racer Erica Enders and Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Matt Smith. Hagan and Prock each scored $15,000 for their respective teams by making the quickest runs to grab the provisional No. 1 spots on the eighth day of the Stampede of Speed. Enders nabbed the $7,500 bonus and Smith went back-to-back winning the Friday Night Live bonus of $5,000 for the second consecutive year.

In addition to the racing action the fans were treated to a live performance by Grace Good, nationally known fire performer and a pair of high-performance jet dragsters. The fire and power of Friday Night Live wowed the fans but it was Hagan’s record setting run that was the buzz of the evening.

Fire performer Grace Good, Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

“I want to say thank you to Billy and Christie Meyer Johnson because without them there was no money to win,” said Hagan. “I have been out here all week promoting this event to a PBR crowd and then the Stars Over Texas concert with Brett Young and Wade Bowen. It feels good to get the bonus after you have been camped out here. It is exciting to get in the car and get up on the wheel. You have your adrenaline going and you are chewing on your mouthpiece because there is money on the line.”

Funny Car driver Matt Hagan, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

Hagan’s run of 3.825 seconds at 334.85 mph knocked Bob Tasca III’s best run of 3.879 seconds at 328.66 mph off the top spot and out of the saddle.

Before Hagan took his bonus Enders, who is racing for her fifth Pro Stock world championship, ran to the top of a tough Pro Stock field moving around Elite Racing teammate Cristian Cuadra’s 6.533 second run out of the bonus money. Enders flew across the finish line and to the Provisional No. 1 spot with a 6.524 second run at 210.53 mph. She is chasing her fifth No. 1 qualifier of the season and she was quickest of both sessions today collecting six bonus points in addition to the $7,500 Friday Night Live bonus check.

Erica Enders with $7,500 bonus cash, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

“When we saw Cristian go out there and run 6.53 seconds, we knew we could run right there with him,” said Enders. “I was surprised to hear over my radio from my crew chief that we were No. 1. The Stampede of Speed is so neat thanks to the Meyer family and the Texas Motorplex team. It is definitely fun and it adds a really cool environment up on the starting line and being able to run up there under the lights is not something Pro Stock gets to do very often. It makes for a very fun Friday night.”

Smith, the reigning Texas NHRA Fall Nationals winner and five-time Pro Stock Motorcycle world champion is racing for his sixth world title and holding off a tough field of motorcycle racers. For the second year in a row Smith made the quickest run of the Friday Night Live session outrunning his wife and teammate Angie Smith for the $5,000 bonus check. Ironically, Smith’s run in the second qualifying session was quick enough for the bonus cash but only moved him up to No. 2 in the provisional qualifying with a 6.734 second at 203.58 mph run which was just behind provisional No. 1 Angelle Sampey’s run of 6.728 seconds at 202.05 mph.

Top Fuel driver Austin Prock closed out the show with a 3.682 second 334.57 mph pass to upend Clay Millican’s hold on the top spot with his 3.685 second 332.08 mph blast early in the Top Fuel season. Millican withstood runs from five pairs of Top Fuel drivers before Prock rocketed past the veteran driver. If the time holds as the No. 1 qualifier it would be a first for the 2019 NHRA Rookie of the Year. He was running beside teammate and championship contender Brittany Force at the end of the second qualifier of Friday.

Austin Prock, $15,000 bonus winner, provisional No. 1, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

“I have dreamt of getting a No. 1 qualifier, so I hope it sticks,” said Prock. “The coolest part was doing it beside my teammate Brittany and going 1-2 in qualifying. We won the $15,000 grand last year and this performance just shows how strong our team is. This car has been coming along since before Indy. We seem to be peaking at the right time to do something good like winning this $15,000.”

The final day of qualifying for the Texas NHRA Fall Nationals will get under tomorrow at noon and 4:00 pm. With final eliminations starting at noon CT. The conclusion of the Stampede of Speed will be highlighted by the quickest and fastest race cars on the planet duking it out for a purse in excess of $1 million and a custom cowboy hat from Motorplex sponsor American Hat Company.

PORTSMOUTH, OH (October 14, 2022) – Teenager Garrett Smith and veteran Tim McCreadie will make up the front row for Saturday night’s 42nd Annual General Tire Dirt Track World Championship Presented by Optima Batteries at Portsmouth Raceway Park.  In Friday night’s six preliminary heat races, sixth heat race winner Earl Pearson Jr. is the only driver who has previously gone to victory lane in the crown jewel event. Pearson’s win came in 2010 at West Virginia Motor Speedway. The final event of the 2022 season for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will pay $100,000 to the winner. The 68 cars entered marked the highest car count of the event in five years. Smith earned his first-ever start in the Dirt Track World Championship by dominating the first heat race. Smith, who just celebrated his 19th birthday on October 11, won over two-time Dirt Track World Championship winner Shannon Babb who was making his first appearance at Portsmouth since 2016. Defending Dirt Track World Champion Ricky Thornton Jr. came home in third. In his last three starts at Portsmouth, Thornton has two wins and a runner-up finish, which came in the 2020 running of the Dirt Track World Championship. McCreadie, who clinched his second consecutive Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National title by registering for Friday’s racing action, walked away with the fourth heat race to earn the outside front-row starting spot for Saturday night’s season finale. McCreadie led wire-to-wire to take the win over Spencer Hughes and Eddie Carrier Jr., a former Portsmouth Raceway Park track champion. The second heat race of the night saw 2022 Lucas Oil Show-Me 100 champion Chris Ferguson taking the win. Devin Gilpin, the four-time and defending Brownstown Speedway track champion came from the fifth starting spot to take the runner-up spot. Camaron Marlar claimed the third and final transfer spot to qualify for his first Dirt Track World Championship. Heat race three saw the driver that ended up as the #1 ranked dirt late model driver in the country Brandon Overton taking the win to earn the fifth-starting spot in Saturday night’s Dirt Track World Championship. Zack Dohm and Mason Zeigler stayed close to Overton for most of the 12-lap race as as they crossed the line in second and third place respectively to earn a starting spot in the 100-lapper tomorrow night. The fifth heat would see a good battle between Mike Marlar and four-time Dirt Track World Champion Brandon Sheppard go down to the wire with Marlar securing the victory. Marlar will start fourth in tomorrow night’s finale. Sheppard with a win on Saturday night would equal Freddy Smith’s five career Dirt Track World Championship wins, the most all-time for any driver. Hudson O’Neal caught Jonathan Davenport on the final lap to take the third and final transfer spot. The final heat of the night was all four-time Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National Champion Earl Pearson Jr. He took the win ahead of a heated race from second on back between several drivers. Ryan Gustin was able to claim the second spot at the finish over the 2022 O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Year, Garrett Alberson. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race Summary 42nd Annual General Tire Dirt Track World Championship Presented by Optima BatteriesFriday, October 14th, 2022Portsmouth Raceway Park – Portsmouth, OH Entrants: 68Dirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Garrett Smith (14.302 seconds) Allstar Performance Time TrialsFast Time Group A: Garrett Smith / 14.774 seconds (overall)Fast Time Group B: Tim McCreadie / 15.002 seconds Penske Race Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 10G-Garrett Smith[1]; 2. 18-Shannon Babb[2]; 3. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[3]; 4. 21H-Robby Hensley[4]; 5. 71C-RJ Conley[5]; 6. 20-Jimmy Owens[12]; 7. 0K-Freddie Carpenter[9]; 8. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[10]; 9. 25-Mike Benedum[6]; 10. 3-Austin Neely[8]; 11. 5T-Erick Christian[11]; 12. 12-Jason Jameson[7] Summit Racing Equipment Heat Race #2 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 22F-Chris Ferguson[1]; 2. 1G-Devin Gilpin[5]; 3. 99-Camaron Marlar[3]; 4. 66C-Matt Cosner[4]; 5. 40B-Kyle Bronson[2]; 6. 55-Jesse Wisecarver[6]; 7. 33-Kevin Wagner[8]; 8. 1C-Lucas Crooks[10]; 9. 16S-Steve Sabo[11]; 10. 145-Chase Frohnapfel[7]; 11. 5M-Garet McCloud[9] Simpson Race Products Heat Race #3 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 76-Brandon Overton[1]; 2. 17D-Zack Dohm[2]; 3. 9Z-Mason Zeigler[4]; 4. 18D-Daulton Wilson[5]; 5. 7H-Zach Hill[3]; 6. 28-Tyler Carpenter[9]; 7. 59-Larry Bellman[8]; 8. 29K-Clint Keenan[7]; 9. 11A-Ryan Abel[10]; 10. 354-Chris Nash[11]; 11. 17C-Chris Carpenter[6] Ohlins Shocks Heat Race #4 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 39-Tim McCreadie[1]; 2. 11-Spencer Hughes[2]; 3. 66JR-Eddie Carrier Jr[4]; 4. 11H-Jared Hawkins[5]; 5. 111V-Max Blair[6]; 6. 11R-Josh Rice[8]; 7. 12D-Doug Drown[7]; 8. 0-Scott Bloomquist[3]; 9. 10-Nathon Loney[12]; 10. 2-Justin Carter[11]; 11. D8-Dustin Linville[10]; 12. 21K-Kirk Phillips[9] Wrisco Industries Heat Race #5 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 157-Mike Marlar[2]; 2. 1-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 3. 71-Hudson O’Neal[7]; 4. 49-Jonathan Davenport[3]; 5. 44B-Colten Burdette[5]; 6. 7-Ross Robinson[6]; 7. 81-Brandon Fouts[4]; 8. 1BN-Nick Bocook[8]; 9. 71R-Rod Conley[10]; 10. 1B-Shane Bailey[9] Lucas Oil Heat Race #6 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 46-Earl Pearson Jr[1]; 2. 19R-Ryan Gustin[6]; 3. 58-Garrett Alberson[2]; 4. 1T-Tyler Erb[3]; 5. 9-Devin Moran[5]; 6. B1-Josh Bocook[7]; 7. 22-Cody Rogers[9]; 8. 17T-Shannon Thornsberry[8]; 9. 00-Justin Cooper[4]; 10. W1-Ronnie Whitt[12]; 11. 79R-Fast Eddy[11]; 12. 73-Charlie Mullett[10] FAST Shafts B Main 1 | 15 Laps | Top 2 transfer to A-Main | Line-ups

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (October 14, 2022) – Despite all the advance hype of a four-way title fight, Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750) stole the show by earning his long-awaited maiden Progressive American Flat Track premier-class victory in Friday night’s Mission Volusia Half-Mile Finale I presented by Daytona Dodge and Zo CBD at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Florida. After working past holeshot winner Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) approximately one minute into the Mission SuperTwins presented by S&S Cycle Main Event, ‘VDK’ spent the remainder of the race with the title contenders packed up close behind him, each one viewing him as a potential points buffer should they prove capable of slotting him between themselves and their rivals. But after coming oh-so-close so often before, Vanderkooi refused to be their pawn and was instead the king, on this night at least. “I’ll always remember getting my first win here in Barberville, Florida,” Vanderkooi said. “I’ve been racing here for a long, long time – 85s, 250s, 450s. I’ve got a lot of laps around this place, but that didn’t help my nerves any with two champions right behind me. “That was awesome. Thank you to everyone who believed in me so much. My mechanic, my girlfriend, my parents, Ben Evans, everyone on the Mission Roof Systems team… I can’t wait to line them back up tomorrow – this was the spark I needed.” Still, the championship complexion was altered drastically even with the 25-point prize off the board. Daniels ultimately crashed out of fourth with less than three minutes to go. Forced to start from the back of the staggered restart, the rookie ace could manage just 12th and was mathematically eliminated from title contention as a result. At the same time, Jared Mees (No. 1 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750) pulled off a sensational, around-the-outside overtake on Briar Bauman (No. 3 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750) to steal away runner-up honors in the race’s final corner, which all but eliminated Bauman as well. Just behind, JD Beach (No. 95 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) took full advantage of the restart to leap up the order and then hold off Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750) for fourth by 0.060 seconds at the checkered flag. Due to Mees’ last-lap heroics, the reigning champ now leads Beach and Bauman by 23 and 25 points, respectively. That means Mees needs just a 16-place finish to take the title even in the event of a Beach victory. Meanwhile, Bauman’s only hope is to win and beat Mees via the tiebreaker in the unlikely chance that Mees goes home empty-handed tomorrow evening. Davis Fisher (No. 67 Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing Indian FTR750) finished sixth. He was followed to the stripe by Bronson Bauman (No. 37 Latus Motors Racing Harley-Davidson XG750R), Dan Bromley (No. 62 Memphis Shades/Corbin Seats/Vinson Construction Yamaha MT-07), Brandon Price (No. 92 G&G Racing/Yamaha Racing Yamaha MT-07), and Ben Lowe (No. 25 Rackley Racing/Mission Foods Indian FTR750), who rounded out the top ten. Mission Production Twins presented by Vance & Hines Mission Production Twins presented by Vance & Hines title leader Jesse Janisch (No. 33 Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson XG750R) took a major step toward the acquisition of his first-career Progressive AFT championship by scoring his seventh win of the year on Friday night. Janisch was hounded throughout – yet ultimately aided in his championship aspirations – by a hungry pack of decorated part-timers that consisted of Dan Bromley (No. 62 Memphis Shades/Corbin Seats/Vinson Construction Yamaha MT-07), Kolby Carlile (No. 36 KC36 Las Vegas Harley-Davidson XG750R), James Rispoli (No. 43 Wally Brown Racing/Haversack KTM 890 Duke), and Mikey Rush (No. 15 Helipower Racing/Las Vegas Harley-Davidson XG750R). The Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson ace managed to fight off their advances, placing them between himself and his title rival, defending class champion Cory Texter (No. 1 G&G Racing/Yamaha Racing Yamaha MT-07). In the end, Texter could only muster a sixth-place finish in a race he really needed to win to retain realistic hopes at the crown. It could have been (slightly) worse. Rispoli crashed out of fourth late, bringing out a red flag and providing Texter another shot with a bunched up field. While he was unable to mount a charge, he did pick up one position due to Rispoli’s absence and still has an outside shot heading into tomorrow’s finale. Just how far outside? Janisch now leads by 21 points (309-288), which means he needs just a 15th-place result on Saturday to secure the coveted #1 plate. “Oh, this is a high,” Janisch said. “Today didn’t start well; we were 15th in practice and 10th in the first qualifying session. But the team was awesome. We just kept working at it and ended up getting on pole. I looked over (on the grid) and thought, ‘Today is an awesome day to have good friends,’ because I had a whole front row of people I’m friends with. “We’re stoked. The Vance & Hines team is amazing. It’s been an unreal year. We’ve got one more. Let’s try to finish it off. Anything can happen, but we just need four more points.” Runner-up Bromley continued his perfect podium streak on the season, notching up his seventh top-three in seven attempts. Meanwhile, Carlile’s third saw him return to the podium for the first time since the season’s second round after missing ten rounds while recovering from injury. Rush came home fourth, followed by Bromley’s teammate, Cole Zabala (No. 51 Memphis Shades/Corbin Seats/Vinson Construction Yamaha MT-07), who kept Texter at bay for fifth. Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER With his championship campaign successfully done and dusted, recently crowned Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER champion Kody Kopp (No. 12 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-FFE) reminded the field exactly why he’s the category’s new master. Freed up to once again push at his maximum, Kopp made a stunning restart from the second row following an early red flag, winding his way through tight quarters and all the way up into second. Moments later, he executed an aggressive inside strike on Trevor Brunner (No. 21 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) to take control of the lead. Once clear at the front, Kopp set sail toward his seventh victory of the season, moving him to within one of equaling Dallas Daniels’ single-season class record of eight. The triumph was not just Kopp’s first win in six races, but his first podium over that span full stop. He said, “We went a long three-and-a-half months without a podium or a win. This feels so good. It’s really hard to race a championship and not think about the points. As much as I want to say I wasn’t, the whole time I was. We got that done last time out, and now we just won Volusia. Let’s do it again tomorrow.” Just as the fight for second place in the championship continues to rage, so it did as well in Friday’s Main Event. Brunner battled hard but was ultimately displaced and left in the wake of Trent Lowe (No. 48 Mission Foods/Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda CRF450R) and Dalton Gauthier (No. 79 American Honda/Progressive Insurance CRF450R). In the end, Lowe edged Gauthier for the position, while Brunner picked up fourth less than a second back. Meanwhile, Max Whale (No. 18 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-FFE) edged Chase Saathoff (No. 106 American Honda/Progressive Insurance CRF450R) and Morgen Mischler (No. 13 American Honda/Progressive Insurance CRF450R) for fifth. As a result, the struggle for second is only that much tighter. Brunner currently leads that effort with 237 points, followed closely by Mischer (233), Gauthier (230), and Whale (220). The Mission Volusia Half-Mile Finale I will premiere on FS1 on Sunday, October 23, at 11:00 a.m. ET/8:00 a.m. PT, while the Mission Volusia Half-Mile Finale II will air one week later, on Sunday, October 30, at 10:30 a.m. ET/7:30 a.m. PT. Both broadcasts will include exclusive features, cutting-edge aerial drone and onboard footage, and expert commentary. Next Up: The Progressive AFT season concludes with tomorrow’s Mission Volusia Half-Mile Finale II presented by Daytona Dodge and Zo CBD. Visit https://store.americanflattrack.com/ebooking/ticket/view/id/4054/ to reserve your tickets today. You can catch the livestream of all the weekend’s racing activities on FansChoice.tv. FansChoice.tv provides free-to-view livestreaming of Practice and Qualifying. FansChoice.tvsubscribers will then be able to watch the drama unfold from Opening Ceremonies through the Semis, Main Events, and podium celebrations. FansChoice.tv offers two subscription options, granting unlimited access to premium AFT content. Monthly subscriptions start at just $7.99, while a six-month subscription is available for $44.99. For more information on Progressive AFT visit https://www.americanflattrack.com. To score the latest gear for the Progressive American Flat Track fan, visit our official merchandise store at https://store.americanflattrack.com.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (October 14, 2022) – Progressive American Flat Track is excited to confirm that Randy and Daniel Dye will serve as the Grand Marshals of the Mission Volusia Half-Mile Finale I & II presented by Daytona Dodge and Zo CBD at Volusia Speedway Park, in Barberville, Florida, on Friday, October 14 and Saturday, October 15. Former race car driver Randy Dye is the owner of Daytona Dodge Chrysler Jeep RAM and Maserati Alfa Romeo of Daytona. An active supporter of Progressive AFT, Dye serves on the NASCAR Foundation board of directors, the Daytona State College board of trustees, and various other community organizations. His son, Daniel Dye, is one of auto racing’s brightest young talents. The teenager recently completed his first full ARCA Menards Series campaign with GMS Racing, finishing as the championship’s runner-up while earning both Rookie of the Year honors and the Bill France 4 Crown title. Dye, who has been racing for most of his young life, previously demonstrated his vast potential in quarter midget competition before transitioning to late model racing with Ben Kennedy Racing. Together Randy and Daniel are heavily involved with the suicide prevention initiative, “Race to Stop Suicide.” Randy serves as its Chairman while Daniel utilizes his national platform to be an effective spokesperson for the campaign, including prominently featuring its logo on his race cars. Visit https://store.americanflattrack.com/ebooking/ticket/view/id/4054/ to reserve your tickets for the Mission Volusia Half-Mile Finale I & II presented by Daytona Dodge and Zo CBDtoday. For more information on Progressive AFT visit https://www.americanflattrack.com. To score the latest gear for the Progressive American Flat Track fan, visit our official merchandise store at https://store.americanflattrack.com. How to Watch: FOX Sports and FansChoice.tv are the official homes for coverage of Progressive American Flat Track. For the 2022 season, all races will premiere in one-hour telecasts on FS1 during highly desirable weekend time slots. The complete schedule can be viewed athttps://www.americanflattrack.com/events-foxsports. FansChoice.tv provides livestreaming coverage of every Progressive AFT round at http://www.FansChoice.tv.

The St. Charles, MO driver scored a second-place finish at 81 Speedway in April

HUMBOLDT, KS– October 14, 2022 – Gordy Gundaker knew his first season with the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models would be a learning curve. And as the season enters its final six races of 2022, one lesson has stood out—consistency.

It’s a lesson the St. Charles, MO driver hopes to build off as the Series makes its final Midwest swing of the season, with stops at Humboldt Speedway in Humboldt, KS, on Friday, Oct. 21, 81 Speedway in Wichita, KS on Saturday, Oct. 22, and US 36 Speedway in Osborn, MO on Sunday, Oct. 23.

“I’ve kind of struggled with that, whether it’s been bad luck or just things we’ve done to kind of kick ourselves,” Gundakersaid. “It’s been a bit of a learning curve, and I think it’s just something as the year’s gone on, and as you race nationally, you just kind of find a way around those things.

“Just finding ways to get better consistently is something I’ve really learned, and we’ve done a better job here recently.”

While he’s trying to stay consistent and build on his three top-fives and seven top 10s, he also has a leg up on his competition entering the Midwest tripleheader. Gundaker and Ryan Gustinare the only two full-time drivers who’ve made stops at 81 Speedway this season.

“Earlier in the year, I ran 81 (Speedway) and ran second there,” Gundaker said. “That, to me, is a confidence booster just in itself going to a place I know. We’ve been working hard the last couple of weeks doing some testing, and I’ve been on the phone with some guys and found a few things that we’ve been doing incorrect.

“So, I think we have everything squared away now, so I really got some confidence heading into the three-day swing.”

Gundaker hopes to use that confidence boost as an advantage as he pushes toward his first World of Outlaws CASE Late Models win.

“Anytime you can have a notebook of races you’ve been to already, and nobody else has, it’s obviously an advantage,” Gundaker said. “You go there knowing some things you did right and knowing some things you did wrong, where some guys are unloading fresh and don’t really know.

“So, yeah, it’s a big deal for us, and it gives us a confidence booster heading into the weekend.”

Even though Gundaker’s first run at a national tour is uncharted territory, he didn’t do it alone. On many occasions, his 19-year-old brother Trevor joined him—most recently during the Quad Cities 150 at Davenport Speedway.

The elder Gundaker stated it’s something he wishes he could’ve done when he was Trevor’s age.

“It’s awesome getting to run up and down the road with my little brother,” Gundaker said. “Obviously, this is something we both love doing and have a major passion for and getting to do it together is neat. Getting to travel to some of the new places together and do things makes it even better.

“Especially because at his age, I wasn’t really getting to travel quite like that, and I really didn’t for a while. Getting him the experience earlier in his career is going to be better for him.”

Racing with his brother on a national stage isn’t the only experience he’ll get to enjoy this season, as Gundaker prepares to compete in his first World of Outlaws World Finals, Nov. 2-5,at The Dirt Track at Charlotte.

He’s looking forward to the atmosphere of racing on one of the biggest stages in motorsports.

READ MORE: 1 MONTH ALERT: All Dirt Roads Lead to World Of Outlaws World Finals, Nov. 2-5

“It’s awesome,” Gundaker said. “I’ve been to the World Finals a few times. I haven’t raced it. But I’ve been there as a spectator, and it’s a hell of an event. They do a great job with the atmosphere. Bringing the people there. And the fact that you have three major Series under the same roof for a weekend there in front of all those people.

“It’s going to be a tough weekend, but it’s definitely going to be a lot of fun.”

Gundaker hopes his lessons in consistency propel him to the top of the mountain in one of the final six races of his World of Outlaws rookie season and into his first trip to Victory Lane.

The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet kick off the Midwest weekend with a trip to Humboldt Speedway in Humboldt, KS, on Friday, Oct. 21, before a stop at 81 Speedway in Wichita, KS, on Saturday, Oct. 22. Then, the weekend finishes with a return to the “Show-Me” state for a battle at US 36 Speedway in Osborn, MO on Sunday, Oct. 23. FOR TICKETS: CLICK HERE.

If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online on with the DIRTVision App

BATAVIA, Ohio (October 13, 2022) – Tim McCreadie is set to claim his second consecutive Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National Champion on Saturday at Portsmouth Raceway Park. In addition to the championship chase, McCreadie also leads the Arizona Sport Shirt Crown Jewel Cup standings into the season finale. Ricky Thornton Jr. trails McCreadie by 150-points, followed by Earl Pearson Jr., Brandon Sheppard, and Hudson O’Neal. The Arizona Sport Shirt Crown Jewel Cup is a mini-series within the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series schedule comprising 13 events that pay $30,000 or more to the winner. The Arizona Sport Shirts Crown Jewel Cup Champion will receive a $15,000 cash bonus at the year-end awards banquet. The drivers who finish second through fifth in the Crown Jewel Cup standings will earn $6,000, $4,000, $3,000, and $2,000 in cash, respectively for a total point’s fund of $30,000 for these 13 events. The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will close out the 2022 season this weekend in Portsmouth, Ohio. The 42nd Annual General Tire Dirt Track World Championship presented by Optima Batteries takes place October 13th-15th, at Portsmouth Raceway Park. 2022 Arizona Sport Shirts Crown Jewel Cup Schedule (winner):May 28, 2022- Lucas Oil Speedway- Show-Me 100- $50,000 to win (Chris Ferguson)June 4, 2022- West Virginia Motor Speedway- Historic 100- $50,000 to win (Jonathan Davenport)June 18, 2022- Smoky Mountain Speedway- Mountain Moonshine Classic- $50,000 to win (Chris Madden)June 25, 2022- Lernerville Speedway- Firecracker 100- $50,000 to win (Tim McCreadie)July 3, 2022- Muskingum County Speedway- Freedom 60- $30,000 to win (Brandon Sheppard)July 9, 2022- Deer Creek Speedway- Gopher 50- $50,000 to win (Brandon Overton)July 23, 2022- I-80 Speedway- Silver Dollar Nationals- $53,000 to win (Jonathan Davenport)August 13, 2022- Florence Speedway- North/South 100- $75,000 to win (Jonathan Davenport)August 20, 2022- Batesville Motor Speedway- Topless 100- $50,000 to win (Jonathan Davenport)August 27, 2022- Port Royal Speedway- Rumble by the River- $50,000 to win (Earl Pearson Jr.)September 17, 2022- Knoxville Raceway- Late Model Nationals- $50,000 to win (Jonathan Davenport)September 29, 2022- Tyler County Speedway- 54th Annual Hillbilly 100- $30,000 to win (Kyle Larson)October 15, 2022- Portsmouth Raceway Park- Dirt Track World Championship- $100,000 to win

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (October 14, 2022) – Progressive American Flat Trackannounced today a multifaceted initiative to raise funds toward Hurricane Ian relief and recovery efforts entered around the series’ high-profile season finale, the Mission Volusia Half-Mile Finale I & II presented by Daytona Dodge and Zo CBD, at Volusia Speedway Park, in Barberville, Florida, on Friday, October 14 and Saturday, October 15. While Progressive AFT previously confirmed the venue suffered relatively minor damage in the storm, many others in the area were not nearly so fortunate. Based in nearby Daytona Beach, Progressive American Flat Track is dedicated to giving back to, and supporting, its local community, and thus announced the following actions:$1 from every ticket sold will go to Hurricane Ian relief effortsEvery lap counts – $5 will be donated for every lap completed in practice, qualifying, Semis, and Main Events across the entire weekend (as determined by the lap leader in each session)Continued encouragement of series partner donations, which are currently in excess of $8,00050/50 raffle (half goes to fans, the other half is donated)Organizing and accepting fan donations on siteProgressive American Flat Track is working in conjunction with Jeep Beach for proper distribution of the donations. With input and guidance from county and city officials in order to be both effective and intentional, all proceeds will be making direct impacts to those in dire need. Visit https://store.americanflattrack.com/ebooking/ticket/view/id/4054/ to reserve your tickets for the Mission Volusia Half-Mile Finale I & II presented by Daytona Dodge and Zo CBD today.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (October 14, 2022) – The 2022 Progressive American Flat Track season concludes this weekend with the Mission Volusia Half-Mile Finale I & II presented by Daytona Dodge and Zo CBD at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Florida, on Friday, October 14 and Saturday, October 15. All three Progressive AFT classes – Mission SuperTwins presented by S&S Cycle, Mission Production Twins presented by Vance & Hines, and Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER – will be back in action with the first practice scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. ET (12:30 p.m. PT) on Friday and 4:00 p.m. ET (1:00 p.m. PT) on Saturday. Catch the livestream of all the weekend’s racing activities on FansChoice.tv. FansChoice.tvprovides free-to-view livestreaming of Practice and Qualifying. FansChoice.tv subscribers will then be able to watch the drama unfold from Opening Ceremonies through the Semis, Main Events, and podium celebrations. FansChoice.tv offers two subscription options, granting unlimited access to premium AFT content. Monthly subscriptions start at just $7.99, while a six-month subscription is available for $44.99.

Becomes Eighth Different Winner in Eight Races

Boschele drives 19th-to-second; Hinton 21st-to-third in first national Midget Feature start

TULSA, OK – Oct. 13, 2022 – In the chase for the inaugural season championship, there was one big thing missing from Zach Daum’s season – a Feature win. Thursday night at Port City Raceway, he finally got it.

Daum, the current Series points leader from Pocahontas, IL, was forced to fend-off challenges from several contenders in the Keith Kunz Motorsports stable over the course of 55 laps around the high-banked, 1/8-mile. But he pulled through, riding the bottom groove all the way to Victory Lane to collect his first career Feature win with the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota.

Going winless through the first seven Series races was starting to cross Daum’s mind more frequently as of late, and he decided to do something about it. The win Thursday night makes him the eighth different winner in eight Series races, earning him a $5,555 check for his first career victory in the Donnie Ray Crawford Sooner State 55.

“It means a lot to Bundy [Built Motorsports], it means a lot to Whitz Racing Products, it means a lot to PME Engines, just everybody that helps this deal,” Daum said. “They work hard at this and I just wanted to get them a win. They’ve been gracious enough to let me race their car this year, and we just needed to get a win. I’m glad we got one.”

After winning Schoenfeld Headers Heat Race #3, Daum pulled the #6 pill from the inversion draw bucket, placing him outside Row 3 on the Feature starting grid. He made quick work of the top-five in the opening laps, passing his way into the top-three by Lap 6.

By Lap 20, he was up to second, getting past Brenham Crouch one lap prior and working the bottom lane to his advantage. Behind him, KKM entrant Brent Crews was winding-up the momentum on the top side and knocking on Daum’s door.

Crews soon drove around Daum and leader Gavin Miller to take the top spot and continued the torrid pace around the track. That was, until a Lap 30 restart, when the cushion began giving him issues and Daum was able to drive back by him on the bottom.

“I knew that them guys would start missing the bottom, and that’s when it would kinda get into my wheelhouse,” Daum said. “We caught lapped traffic, and then Brent [Crews] drove by… I needed someone to go to the top first. That way, the other two – the 71 and the 97 – I knew as soon as they saw someone go to the top, they would both abandon ship and that would leave me free on the bottom.”

Now with the lead again and a clear track ahead of him, Daum set his sights on Victory Lane. He kept it locked to the bottom and was pulling away as the laps wound down, until he reached the rear of the field with five laps remaining.

KKM driver Gavan Boschele, the 14-year-old sensation from Mooresville, NC, was on a mad-dash to the front in the final laps and had taken second on Lap 41 after the last restart. Charging all the way from 19th, Boschele was bound and determined to get to Daum’s rear bumper as he approached heavy lapped traffic.

“The first 15-20 laps, I was just kinda rolling the bottom, kinda taking it easy and picking cars off,” Boschele said. “Halfway through, I was just on go-mode. After I dodged all the wrecks and stuff, my mind was set on getting to the front.”

With five-to-go, Boschele’s gap to Daum was down to only a half-second and he could see Daum also getting held-up by the slower cars. It was all he could do to slide it deep into the corners and get by as many as possible, but Daum found a way through faster, freeing himself from the traffic web and crossing the stripe to taste victory.

“I think that would’ve won me the race if I could’ve just got by those two lapped cars in front of me,” Boschele said. “I think I could’ve caught up to [Daum] if I had a clear racetrack in front of me.”

Now on the brink of clinching the Series points championship with two races remaining, thoughts of points scenarios begin to cross everyone’s mind. However, Daum has found his own way to stay cool in pressure situations.

“I’ve been in this situation before, so I try not to think about it too much,” Daum said. “It’s always in the back of your mind a little bit, but you just try to keep doing what you’re doing.”

Louisianan Chelby Hinton made his first national Midget Feature start Thursday night and made it count, crossing the stripe P3 after charging from 21st on the starting grid. The young Micro Sprint regular made it to second at one point and began working on finding a way around Daum for the lead, but was soon met with an infield tractor tire.

“I knew Daum was going to be tough on the bottom, and he always is,” Hinton said. “I tried to mimic him; I mimicked him for about two laps, and then I hit the tire in Turns 1-2 and I lost him. Then, Boschele got by me.”

UP NEXT

The Xtreme Outlaw Series presented by Toyota is back in action Friday night, Oct. 14, at I-44 Riverside Speedway in Oklahoma City for the kickoff to the 18th annual Charlene Meents Memorial race. Tickets will be on sale at the gate. If you can’t be at the track, stream all the action live on DIRTVision.

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view full results)

Feature (55 Laps): 1. 9M-Zach Daum[6]; 2. 5-Gavan Boschele[19]; 3. 14X-Chelby Hinton[21]; 4. 7U-Kyle Jones[12]; 5. 01-Bryant Wiedeman[15]; 6. 71-Daison Pursley[4]; 7. 97-Brenham Crouch[5]; 8. 25K-Taylor Reimer[18]; 9. 84-Jade Avedisian[9]; 10. 71M-Gavin Miller[2]; 11. 71K-Dominic Gorden[8]; 12. 19M-Ethan Mitchell[14]; 13. 19AZ-Hayden Reinbold[13]; 14. 55-Jonathan Beason[7]; 15. 26R-Corbin Rueschenberg[17]; 16. 72J-Sam Johnson[23]; 17. 21-Emilio Hoover[25]; 18. 71E-Mariah Ede[24]; 19. 57-Daniel Whitley[1]; 20. 97K-Brent Crews[10]; 21. 61-Kale Drake[20]; 22. 40-Chase McDermand[11]; 23. 8-Alex Sewell[16]; 24. 08-Cannon McIntosh[3]; 25. 26-Chance Crum[22]

ENNIS, Texas (Oct. 13, 2022) – Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet dragster team enter this weekend’s Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex looking to ruffle some feathers in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship battle. Prock, the 2019 NHRA Rookie of the Year, turned his season around at Reading, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 18 when, after qualifying No. 4, he beat four-time reigning champion Steve Torrence in the second round and points leader Justin Ashley in the final to claim his second career win in Top Fuel. Although he is only 10th in points halfway through the Countdown, he and his Montana Brand / RMT dragster have shown they could play an enormous role in determining this year’s champion. “I’m looking forward to the ‘Stampede of Speed’ at Texas Motorplex. We had a great car at the FallNationals in 2019 and I’m hoping we can build from that,” Prock said. “I’m ready to be back in the seat, I’ve been dreaming of driving the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist car the last few nights. We’ve hoping for a big weekend for all of John Force Racing in this Countdown.” Prock is making just his second start at Dallas where he reached the semifinal round of the Texas FallNationals in 2019. Although he has made only 45 career starts, the third generation drag racer benefits from the presence of veteran crew chiefs Joe Barlam and Rahn Tobler, the latter the only crew chief to have won series championships with three different drivers in two different classes.  Competition at the Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex begins with four qualifying session Friday at 3:30 and 8:00 p.m. and Saturday at 1:00 and 5:00 p.m. Eliminations for the event will start on Sunday at noon. Television coverage will be on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) Sunday starting with a qualifying show at 10:00 a.m. ET and eliminations at 10:30 p.m. ET.

ENNIS, Texas (Oct. 13, 2022) – At the halfway point of the NHRA Countdown to the Championship, John Force and the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS team have kept themselves in the championship conversation and could make serious headway for a bid at a 17th championship with a win at this weekend’s Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex. Force and the PEAK Camaro are entering the weekend from the No. 4 spot. Their three final round appearances that included a victory at the Charlotte Four-Wide event, nine semifinal appearances, including the PEAK car’s current streak of four-in-a-row, and two No. 1 qualifiers (both at zMAX Dragway) have kept them only 114 points back from teammate and points leader Robert Hight. “It’s tough out there, trying to keep up with these kids. But we’re doing it. This PEAK Chevy team has been working hard, giving me a consistent race car. I’m just trying to do my job behind the wheel,” Force said. “You know, halfway through the Countdown and we still have a shot at it. Just have to keep on plugging away at it. This weekend is sure to be a show, everything Billy Meyer has going on, the extra fanfare, and then the competition at it’s all-time high. It’s going to be exciting.” Force remains the career leader in victories at Texas Motorplex with wins in 1993, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2005 and in the discontinued spring race in 2000. At no other track has Force started from the No. 1 qualifying position more often than he has at Texas Motorplex – 12 times (matching his total at Lucas Indianapolis Raceway Park). In addition to starting the Texas FallNationals from No. 1 in 1992, 1993, 1994, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2019, Force also was No. 1 in three of four starts in the spring (1997, 1999 and 2000). The 16-time champion has also had two runner-up finishes at the FallNationals in 2010 and 2013. Last year, after qualifying his PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy Camaro SS 11th, he had a second-round exit. Competition at the Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex begins with four qualifying session Friday at 3:30 and 8:00 p.m. and Saturday at 1:00 and 5:00 p.m. Eliminations for the event will start on Sunday at noon. Television coverage will be on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) Sunday starting with a qualifying show at 10:00 a.m. ET and eliminations at 10:30 p.m. ET.

ENNIS, Texas (Oct. 13, 2022) – Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet dragster team enter this weekend’s Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex looking to ruffle some feathers in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship battle. Prock, the 2019 NHRA Rookie of the Year, turned his season around at Reading, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 18 when, after qualifying No. 4, he beat four-time reigning champion Steve Torrence in the second round and points leader Justin Ashley in the final to claim his second career win in Top Fuel. Although he is only 10th in points halfway through the Countdown, he and his Montana Brand / RMT dragster have shown they could play an enormous role in determining this year’s champion. “I’m looking forward to the ‘Stampede of Speed’ at Texas Motorplex. We had a great car at the FallNationals in 2019 and I’m hoping we can build from that,” Prock said. “I’m ready to be back in the seat, I’ve been dreaming of driving the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist car the last few nights. We’ve hoping for a big weekend for all of John Force Racing in this Countdown.” Prock is making just his second start at Dallas where he reached the semifinal round of the Texas FallNationals in 2019. Although he has made only 45 career starts, the third generation drag racer benefits from the presence of veteran crew chiefs Joe Barlam and Rahn Tobler, the latter the only crew chief to have won series championships with three different drivers in two different classes.  Competition at the Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex begins with four qualifying session Friday at 3:30 and 8:00 p.m. and Saturday at 1:00 and 5:00 p.m. Eliminations for the event will start on Sunday at noon. Television coverage will be on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) Sunday starting with a qualifying show at 10:00 a.m. ET and eliminations at 10:30 p.m. ET.

ENNIS, Texas (Oct. 13, 2022) – Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet dragster team enter this weekend’s Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex looking to ruffle some feathers in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship battle. Prock, the 2019 NHRA Rookie of the Year, turned his season around at Reading, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 18 when, after qualifying No. 4, he beat four-time reigning champion Steve Torrence in the second round and points leader Justin Ashley in the final to claim his second career win in Top Fuel. Although he is only 10th in points halfway through the Countdown, he and his Montana Brand / RMT dragster have shown they could play an enormous role in determining this year’s champion. “I’m looking forward to the ‘Stampede of Speed’ at Texas Motorplex. We had a great car at the FallNationals in 2019 and I’m hoping we can build from that,” Prock said. “I’m ready to be back in the seat, I’ve been dreaming of driving the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist car the last few nights. We’ve hoping for a big weekend for all of John Force Racing in this Countdown.” Prock is making just his second start at Dallas where he reached the semifinal round of the Texas FallNationals in 2019. Although he has made only 45 career starts, the third generation drag racer benefits from the presence of veteran crew chiefs Joe Barlam and Rahn Tobler, the latter the only crew chief to have won series championships with three different drivers in two different classes.  Competition at the Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex begins with four qualifying session Friday at 3:30 and 8:00 p.m. and Saturday at 1:00 and 5:00 p.m. Eliminations for the event will start on Sunday at noon. Television coverage will be on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) Sunday starting with a qualifying show at 10:00 a.m. ET and eliminations at 10:30 p.m. ET.

CHEVROLET AT DALLAS What: NHRA Texas FallNationalsWhen: Friday, Oct. 14-Sunday, Oct. 16Where: Texas Motorplex in Ennis, TexasTV: FS1 will telecast eliminations at 10:30 p.m. ET Sunday, Oct. 16 Chevrolet not slowing down in Countdown driveTeam Chevy drivers seek to maintain and regain points lead at Dallas event

DETROIT (Oct. 13, 2022) – Three-time National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Funny Car champion Robert Hight has amassed a career-best eight victories in 19 races, which “makes me very, very proud.” But while the driver of the AAA Texas Chevrolet Camaro SS acknowledges the accomplishment, he knows with only a 46-point lead and three races left in the Countdown to the Championship there’s work left to realize his third title in six seasons.

Staying the course will be the team’s best strategy entering the NHRA Texas FallNationals at Texas Motorplex. “The truth is we really don’t need to change anything that we’ve done all year,” said Hight, who won the most recent event at St. Louis for his 61st career victory, 300th for John Force Racing and 155th for Chevrolet in Funny Car competition. “Do what got you here. And what we did, what we’ve done all year, has worked. So, we can’t change any of that. We can’t overthink it; we can’t overstress. We just got to keep steady doing what we did all year.” Hight, who has recorded four wins at the track in Ennis, Texas, has been steady since the opening race of the season in mid-February at Pomona — holding the top spot in the standings since Norwalk in June, posting a 52-11 round record and advancing to 11 finals. “You definitely can’t be racing defensively,” Hight said of the remaining playoff stretch that also includes Las Vegas and Pomona. “You’ve got to be on offense out here. Even if you’re the points leader, you’ve got to be pushing and pushing it right to the edge every single round. It’s not like we don’t have any competition. It gets tougher every weekend, and it seems like every round it’s tougher, every round you go. So, we just keep digging and getting it done.”

Hight’s heightsHighlights of Robert Hight’s NHRA Funny Car Countdown to the Championship: Countdown career: 14 wins, 5 runner-up finishes, 16 semifinals, 13 No. 1 qualifiers … 124-72 round recordSo far in 2022: 2 wins, 2 No. 1 qualifiers … 9-1 round record Championship seasonsCountdown numbers in his title-winning years: 2019: 1 win, 1 runner-up, 2 semifinals … 13-5 round record2017: 2 wins, 1 runner-up, 2 semifinals, 3 No. 1 qualifiers …16-4 round record2009: 3 wins, 2 No. 1 qualifiers … 15-3 round record

Likewise, Pro Stock points leader Erica Enders will continue digging until she unearths her fifth world championship. And like Hight, she has also notched eight wins this season, including her sixth career win and fourth in a row Oct. 2 at St. Louis that propelled her to a 120-point lead over teammate Aaron Stanfield. “I’ll definitely speak with confidence about the remaining three races,” the driver of the Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro SS said. “We haven’t had the success that we would want in Dallas, but we’ve won there before (2015). We can certainly do it again. But then, heading to Vegas, we’ve won nine national events there. In ’15, we locked up the championship there, so it obviously has a lot of fond memories. And then, going back to 2014 for our first world championship, final round winner-take-all in Pomona. So that memory always is at the forefront of my mind.  “So yeah, the next three tracks are definitely our tracks, and I’m excited. I definitely feel confident in what we’re capable of.” Reigning Pro Stock champion Greg Anderson won the 2021 event in the HendrickCars.com Camaro SS. Anderson, who has qualified fifth or better in the past seven races – including three consecutive No. 1 qualifiers – has six wins at the track. He recently was named a Texas Motorplex Legend. Brittany Force, the No. 1 Top Fuel qualifier last year at Texas Motorplex when she set the track records for ET (3.637 seconds) and speed (335.32 mph), is only 30 points from regaining the lead in the Monster Energy/Flav-R-Pac Chevrolet dragster. She set the national speed record of 338.43 mph at St. Louis.

The event also features the last of eight rounds of the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown. David Barton, driving the Sawmill Auto Chevrolet COPO Camaro, will wrap up his second series title by qualifying for race day. “I’m trying not to change a whole lot and only worry about one pass at a time. I’ll be honest, though, I’ve never been so nervous to stage for the first round of qualifying,” said Barton, who has won the past two races and three overall this season. “We’re just going to do our normal deal, what else can I do? I don’t want to psych myself out. We’re definitely ready to celebrate, but I don’t want to count my chickens before they hatch. I’m proud of my team, their effort, our customers, all our friends and family, it takes a lot to assemble this dream that we’re going to be living this weekend.” With Barton’s title-clinching outing, drivers of the Chevrolet COPO Camaro will have won the past three Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown championships. Aaron Stanfield won in 2021 and ’20. FOX Sports 1 will telecast eliminations at 10:30 p.m. ET Sunday, Oct. 16.CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPITTOP FUELBRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONSTER ENERGY CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (four-time winner this season; third in points): “Dallas is the halfway point in this Countdown and our team is aiming to step up our game at the Texas Motorplex this weekend. We head back to Texas in Monster Energy colors and to a track where we’ve been successful landing in the winnings circle in 2017. It’s easy to see we’ve gotten lost over the last few races, but we believe we have narrowed in on the issue and are looking to move beyond it Friday in that first qualifying session. This team is only 30 points out from the No. 1 position and can make up some serious ground this weekend. Our focus is a championship to end this season.” AUSTIN PROCK, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONTANA BRAND/ROCKY MOUNTAIN TWIST CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (won at Reading): “Looking forward to the Stampede of Speed. We had a great car at the FallNationals in 2019 and I’m hoping we can build from that. I’m ready to be back in the seat, I’ve been dreaming of driving the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist car the last few nights. We’ve hoping for a big weekend for all of John Force Racing in this Countdown.” FUNNY CARJOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK ANTIFREEZE AND COOLANT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Charlotte four-wide winner in spring; fourth in points): “We keep ourselves in the conversation every weekend and that’s what we need to be doing. We’re picking up some qualifying points, picking up round wins. It all matters, it all counts. The competition out there, it’s amazing. I’m just trying to keep up. Robert up there with AAA, that’s who we’re all chasing really. They got the job done again and I don’t think they’re done. It’s going to be a tough last three races. We’ll see what happens.” ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AAA TEXAS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (four-time winner at track; track Funny Car record-holder for elapsed time and speed set in October 2017; last won the back-to-back races at St. Louis and Texas in 2018; 2021 No. 1 qualifier at track; points leader): “The competition has never been tougher. At the beginning of the Countdown, (the team) decided we’re going to give it all we’ve got and that’s what they’ve done. This AAA Texas team has been working hard and we don’t plan to let up. We need to stay focused and just honestly take it one run at a time. It’s been a battle and I don’t think that is going to change. We’ll need all the points we can get and it all starts in qualifying.” PRO STOCKERICA ENDERS, ELITE MOTORSPORTS, MELLING PERFORMANCE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (won at track in 2015; has eight wins this season and coming off victory at St. Louis; points leader): “We are really excited to start the second half of the Countdown. Especially after securing two wins and a semifinal finish in the first three races. We currently have a sizable lead but, of course, it’s still not enough of a cushion. We are heading into Dallas as prepared as possible and ready to fight for our fifth title. The competition is stout and I’m sure they will do everything they can to throw us off our game, but we are Elite for a reason.” GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (reigning Pro Stock champion; six-time winner at track, including 2021; fifth in standings): “Winning at Texas Motorplex is always special. When they give you that cowboy hat it is pretty cool and the Texas fans are some of the best in the country. I have been lucky to have a lot of success in Texas and last year’s win was one for the record books.” KYLE KORETSKY, KB RACING, LUCAS OIL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (third in standings): “We were the No. 1 qualifier at St. Louis in the most recent race but didn’t bring it home, falling in the semifinals to Erica (Enders). The Lucas Oil Chevy is fast and the KB Racing team has given me a great hot rod all season. With a consistent weekend, we’ll see if we can put this Lucas Oil Camaro in the winner’s circle.”  DALLAS GLENN, KB RACING, RAD TORQUE SYSTEMS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Gainesville winner; runner-up at Indianapolis and St. Louis): “We’ve been to the finals in two of the past four races and could have, should have won both but for mistakes in staging. So we are going to Texas with confidence in the RAD Torque Systems Camaro for another good points weekend. Hopefully, we’ll get to wear that cowboy hat for the first time.” CAMRIE CARUSO, CARUSO FAMILY RACING, SAND HAULERS OF AMERICA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (first season in Pro Stock; No. 1 qualifier and runner-up at Houston): “We are looking forward to these last three races of the season. Starting the Countdown with back-to-back-to-back races was tough but we made it. I have been working on my driving all season and our Sand Haulers of America Camaro is running quick again. We had a great race the last time we were in Texas and I am hoping to get one more win light.” TROY COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (two-time winner this season; fourth in standings): “Our goal as a unit is to make eight awesome runs, one run at a time. The guys have worked hard servicing and cleaning and now it’s time to continue to show how awesome this group is.”

PLAYOFFS ROUND OF 8: LAS VEGASWith the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) and NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) playoff fields now trimmed down to just eight remaining championship contenders, both series will head out west to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for Race One of the Round of 8. While the 1.5-mile Nevada oval is no stranger to the post-season schedule, this season marks the first time that the track has hosted the opening race of the Playoffs Round of 8.  For the eight remaining playoff drivers, a win in the next three races will guarantee their team a spot in the Championship 4 and the opportunity to compete for the coveted championship title at Phoenix Raceway. Joining Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the Playoffs Round of 8 is the 1.5-mile oval of Homestead-Miami Speedway; with the .526-mile short track of Martinsville Speedway hosting the elimination race.  Chevrolet is heading to Las Vegas Motor Speedway looking to make it a NCS season sweep at the track in Sunday’s South Point 400. NASCAR’s premier series first appearance of the season at the Nevada venue saw Alex Bowman and the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 team take the checkered flag, with the victory ultimately securing Bowman’s spot in the 2022 NCS playoff field. The triumph brought Chevrolet to a double-digit win count at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, giving the manufacturer its 10th all-time NCS win at the track.  Saturday’s NXS Alsco Uniforms 302 will mark the first of three opportunities for Chevrolet’s playoff contenders to advance to the Championship 4. In 30 NXS races held at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, a Chevrolet-powered machine has made its way to victory lane a manufacturer-leading 15 times, including in the series’ debut at the track in March 1998 with a win recorded by Jeff Green. Chevrolet’s most recent NXS victory at the 1.5-mile Nevada oval came in September 2021 with JR Motorsports’ Josh Berry, who recorded just his second-career NXS win while filling in for an injured Michael Annett. One year later, Berry will return to the track as a playoff contender for the first time in his NXS career.  AND THEN THERE WERE EIGHT…Entering the NASCAR Cup Series Round of 12 elimination race, Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott was the only playoff contender that had sealed his fate into the Round of 8 by virtue of a win. When the checkered flag flew at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course, William Byron and Ross Chastain were able to maintain their positions above the cutline to give Chevrolet three drivers in the Round of 8.  With the playoff driver points standings restacked heading into the next round, Elliott and the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 retained the top spot with a 31-point buffer above the playoff cutline. First-time NCS playoff contender, Chastain, sits in the third position and 3-points above the cutline. Byron moves to the sixth position, but just three-points below the cutline.   A look at where the Team Chevy NCS playoff drivers stand heading into the opening race of the Round of 8, including season numbers and career stats at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:

Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 – 1st in Playoff Standings (31-points above cutline)2022 NASCAR Cup Series Regular Season ChampionVictories: 5 (series-leading)Top-Fives: 12; Top-10s: 19; Laps Led: 803Average Finish: 11.8; Stage Wins: 6 At Las Vegas Motor Speedway: Top-Fives: 3; Top-10s: 5Average Finish: 17.818 Of Note: – The 2022 season marks Elliott’s seventh consecutive appearance in the NCS playoffs. – Elliott has advanced to the Championship 4 the past two seasons, winning his first career NCS Driver Championship in 2020. – Elliott is one of just two former NCS champions that advanced to the 2022 NCS Playoffs Round of 8.

Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Camaro ZL1 – 3rd in Playoff Standings (6-points above cutline)Victories: 2Top-Fives: 11; Top-10s: 17; Laps Led: 624Average Finish: 14.6; Stage Wins: 6 At Las Vegas Motor Speedway: Top-Fives: 1; Top-10s: 1Average Finish: 23.625 Of Note: – The 2022 season marks Chastain’s first career appearance in the NCS playoffs. – Chastain posted top-five finishes earlier this season at two tracks in the Round of Eight, including Las Vegas Motor Speedway (3rd) and Martinsville Speedway (5th).  

William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 – 6th in Playoff Standings (3-points below the cutline)Victories: 2Top-Fives: 5; Top-10s: 9; Laps Led: 714Average Finish: 16.3; Stage Wins: 4 At Las Vegas Motor Speedway: Top-Fives: 1; Top-10s: 3Average Finish: 18.333 Of Note: – The 2022 season marks Byron’s fourth consecutive appearance in the NCS playoffs. – Bryon’s career-best finish in the NCS playoffs came in 2021, finishing the season 10th in the final. – Byron has wins at two of the three tracks in the Round of 8, including Homestead-Miami Speedway (2021) and Martinsville Speedway (2022).

ALLMENDINGER GOES FOUR-FOR-FOUR AT CHARLOTTE ROVALIt was a record weekend for Kaulig Racing’s AJ Allmendinger. A notable road course favorite, the 40-year-old California native was able to live up to the hype; grabbing the pole win and leading a race-high 25-laps en route to his fourth consecutive NASCAR Xfinity Series win at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course. The triumph also brought Allmendinger to a double-digit win count in NXS road course victories with 10, making him the first driver to accomplish that feat in series’ history. Adding in his two career NCS road course wins to that list, Allmendinger has recorded 12 career road course victories at the NASCAR national level.  Allmendinger’s victory at the Charlotte ROVAL brought Chevrolet its 22nd win in 29 NXS races this season, giving the Bowtie brand a winning percentage of 76 percent. 19 of those wins have been recorded in the past 21 races, an impressive run that started back with Noah Gragson’s win at Talladega Superspeedway in April. With now 499 all-time victories in the NXS, Chevrolet is on the brink of yet another milestone victory. 

CAMARO SS TAKES SIX SPOTS IN NXS ROUND OF 8Six Chevrolet drivers makeup the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs Round of 8, all of which are vying for their chance to compete for their first career NXS driver championship title. Regaining the top spot of the drivers points standings is Noah Gragson and the No. 9 Camaro SS team. Recording a series-leading seven wins and 56 playoff points, Gragson holds a 34-point advantage over the playoff cutline. The 2022 NXS Regular-Season Champion AJ Allmendinger sits in the second position in the standings and 22-points above the cutline. Joining Gragson and Allmendinger above the cutline is JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier, currently sitting in the fourth-position and 11-points above the cutline. First-time NXS playoff contenders Josh Berry, Austin Hill and Sam Mayer will kick-off the Round of 8 in the fifth-, sixth- and eighth-positions, respectively. SANCHEZ CROWNED 2022 ARCA MENARDS SERIES CHAMPIONIn last weekend’s ARCA Menards Series season finale at Toledo Speedway, Rev Racing’s Nick Sanchez was able to close out his first full-time season in the series with the 2022 ARCA Menards Series Championship title. The 21-year-old Florida native took his first full-time season with the series by storm, recording three victories, nine top-fives and 16 top-10s in 20 races. The triumph makes Sanchez the first Rev Racing driver to win a NASCAR or ARCA touring series championship since fellow Chevrolet driver Kyle Larson’s East Series Championship in 2012.

BOWTIE BULLETS·       Victories by active Chevrolet drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:        Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet (2022)        Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet (2021) ·       In 29 NASCAR Cup Series races held at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Chevrolet has recorded 10 victories. Hendrick Motorsports leads the series in wins at the track with seven, recorded among four drivers: Jeff Gordon (2001), Jimmie Johnson (2005, 2006, 2007, 2010), Kyle Larson (2021), Alex Bowman (2022). ·       Career Chevrolet driver, Jimmie Johnson, leads the NASCAR Cup Series in wins at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with four (2005, 2006, 2007, 2010). Johnson is the only driver in series’ history to post three consecutive race wins at the Nevada oval.  ·       For the first time in the organization’s history in the NASCAR Cup Series, Kaulig Racing placed both of their Chevrolet-powered machines in the top-five of the final running order of a race, with AJ Allmendinger finishing fourth and Justin Haley finishing fifth at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course.  ·       Chevrolet leads the NASCAR Cup Series in wins with 18 in 32 points-paying races. The Bowtie brand also continues to lead its manufacturer competitors in top-fives (75), top-10s (140), laps led (3,705) and stage wins (26). ·       Seven Team Chevy drivers have combined 26 NASCAR Cup Series stage wins:        Tyler Reddick 2 – Fontana x2       Alex Bowman 1 – Las Vegas, Kansas       Ross Chastain 6 – Las Vegas, Darlington, Charlotte, Pocono, Richmond, ROVAL       William Byron 4 – Phoenix, Atlanta, Talladega, Darlington       Daniel Suarez 2 – COTA, Charlotte       Chase Elliott 6 – Martinsville x2, Charlotte, Atlanta x2, Talladega        Kyle Larson 4 – Bristol, Sonoma, Pocono, Texas ·       Reigning NASCAR Cup Series and NASAR Xfinity Series Manufacturer Champions, Chevrolet, continues to lead in the manufacturer points standings in both series. The Bowtie brand leads the NCS manufacturer points standings by 95-points, with the manufacturer’s lead in the NXS standings expanding to 146-points.·       With its 40 NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships, 33 NASCAR Cup Series Driver Championships, and 832 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title of winningest brand in NASCAR.

TUNE INNBC will broadcast the NASCAR Cup Series South Point 400 at 2:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 16. Live coverage can also be found on the NBCSports Gold App, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  NBC will broadcast the NASCAR Xfinity Series Alsco Uniforms 302 at 3 p.m. ET on Saturday, October 15. Live coverage can also be found on the NBCSports Gold App, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. QUOTABLE QUOTESROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 TOOTSIES ORCHID LOUNGE CAMARO ZL1Some people have said that’s it’s really a surprise to see you in the Playoffs, what do you say to them?“We’ve prepared to do what we’ve done. But until you do it in the Cup Series, I couldn’t legitimately tell you that we were going to lead all of the laps we have led, have the finishes we have, win the races, etc. That’s wild. Until you do it, I don’t know how anyone could say it’s going to happen. We’ve done a lot of things we set out to do.”     Could you imagine five years ago going on to the Round of 8?“I couldn’t have imagined five months ago. Go back three or four years ago and I got my opportunity with CGR and I am forever grateful. Here we are still rolling on in the Playoffs with Trackhouse Racing and the No. 1 team.” You sound very optimistic about intermediate tracks coming up?“Yeah, I’m full on focusing on Las Vegas, not looking back at the ROVAL. Our intermediate program is strong. I have full confidence going into these two weeks at intermediate tracks. Our cars are strong.” AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS / TRACKER OFF ROAD CAMARO ZL1What are your thoughts on Las Vegas Motor Speedway?“Las Vegas Motor Speedway has always been one of my favorite tracks, so I’m looking forward to going there this weekend in the Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet. Being able to turn through the bumps in Turn 1 is very important. In Turn 3, you can’t miss the entry, the track has gotten a lot of character over the last couple of years, and that is what makes it fun to drive on. You really have to challenge yourself to be disciplined on your marks. We learned a lot at Las Vegas in the Spring with the Next Gen car, so I’m curious to see how much it has changed since then.” KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 Larson on the mission for the rest of the season: “I’m definitely bummed (to not be in Round of 8 for the driver championship), but we’re still in it for the owner’s championship. I feel Las Vegas (Motor Speedway) and Homestead (Miami-Speedway) are really good tracks for me and this No. 5 HendrickCars.com team. We’re going to work hard these next three races to hopefully contend for the owner’s title in Phoenix.” CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1Daniels on the team’s goals now: “Our focus right now is certainly to maximize every week. Disappointed to be out of the driver championship hunt but our objective is always to maximize points and go for race wins. Having the opportunity still to compete for the owner’s championship is a big deal for us. So, a lot of motivation to go to try and get our car in the Championship 4 for the owner standings in Phoenix and still be able to compete for a championship. I think the team deserves it. Our company deserves it and would certainly love to give that to Mr. H. It would be really cool to have our car win the owner’s championship for him and one of our two cars still eligible for the drivers’ championship to go win that as well. That’s the goal and we’ll keep pushing.” CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1 Elliott on the team’s key ingredient for success in the playoffs: “Our key ingredient is just our team. I feel like I have a great team around me. I’ve always felt that way and they make me look a lot better than I am very, very, very often. I’m super appreciative of them, the way that they go about their business, the way they let me go about my business and let me be me. We just focus on the things that we can excel at and the things that make us good. That’s the best way for us to be successful, to focus on ourselves and not get consumed by the rest of it.” ALAN GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1Gustafson on heading back to Las Vegas Motor Speedway: “This week our goal is to just kick off this round with a strong finish. If we do that, it will be an improvement on the opening races of the first two rounds. That’s what’s plagued us so far in these playoffs. The first time we went to Vegas, we tried something that we felt was good but as the year has gone on, we’ve realized it was in the wrong direction. We’re going back with what we feel is a stronger car and we’ve learned a lot as the season has progressed. I’m confident that we can go there and achieve what we need to.” WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 RAPTORTOUGH.COM CAMARO ZL1Byron on his journey to make the Round of 8: “Everyone has their own path. My path was really accelerated in each series. When I got to Cup, it was a tremendous learning curve. I think once you get to the Cup Series it’s just a steep learning curve that nothing can prepare you for. Especially now, the car has made the series ultra-competitive. We’re the best of the best and it’s going to take everything you have to make it to the Championship 4. Making the Round of 8 was our goal at the start of the season, and anything short of that would have seemed like failure. We’re now focused on what we need to do to fight for a championship in Phoenix. It’s one race at a time.” RUDY FUGLE, CREW CHIEF, NO. 24 RAPTORTOUGH.COM CAMARO ZL1Fugle on his thoughts for this weekend at Las Vegas: “This is another track that we’ve already raced at this year with the Next Gen car but so much has changed that there’s not much we can use from that race to prepare for this weekend. It will not only be hotter this time, but we’re also running a different tire than we did in the spring. It’s the same tire we ran at Texas (Motor Speedway) and Kansas (Speedway). It’s a bit softer, which means it will wear out more than before especially on a slick track. We’ve learned a lot about the car since the spring, especially at the most recent mile-and-a-half mile tracks which gives us some confidence for this weekend.” TY DILLON, NO. 42 LUCKY 29 VODKA CAMARO ZL1“I really like the racing Las Vegas Motor Speedway provides. The place is fast, but it allows us drivers to search around for grip as the run progresses. I feel like the track suits my driving style, and we’ve been lucky to have found some success there throughout the years. In the spring, we had a decently fast No. 42 Camaro, but our intermediate program has improved a lot since then, so I’m excited to see what we can make of our return this weekend.” ERIK JONES, NO. 43 FOCUSFACTOR CAMARO ZL1“Las Vegas is a track that was pretty good to us earlier this year as far as our speed. I thought we had probably a top three car but had some issues throughout the day that kept us further back in the field. We drove through the field a couple of times and ended up towards the front at the end. I made a mistake and got myself in the wall and got us a DNF at the end of the day. That was early in the season, and I think we’ve gotten our cars even better since then and I’ve learned a lot since then as a driver with this car and what it wants. I’m excited to get back to Las Vegas and see if we have similar speed and can have another solid run.”  GREG IVES, CREW CHIEF, NO. 48 ALLY / KOKER’S GARAGE CAMARO ZL1Ives on returning to Las Vegas: “It’s a weird feeling going to Las Vegas (Motor Speedway) this weekend given that we won with Alex (Bowman) in the spring. We can build off of the notes we have from the spring and successes at Kansas (Speedway). Noah (Gragson) has done a great job filling in for Alex and we will still have a shot on repeating our success this Sunday. Like we have done all year, we have to focus being clean on pit road, maximizing all of our opportunities, and not taking ourselves out of the race. When we do that, I don’t think there is a team on pit road that can beat us.” DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 KID ROCK’S HONKY TONK CAMARO ZL1 What are your goals for the final four races of 2022?“We want to win races. Pretty simple. That’s what we do. Anything less than winning all four races means there is room for improvement.” How would you assess your year?“It’s been good. Last weekend really hurt but when you look at the big picture we have a lot to be proud of at Trackhouse Racing and on the No. 99 team. Certainly we have to continue to work and continue to get better.” How is Justin Marks’ management style different from others you have raced with in NASCAR?“For me, he’s a race car driver; he’s an owner and he’s a very, very smart businessman. I think that the combination of those things makes him very successful at what he’s doing at Trackhouse Racing. Also, he thinks a lot outside of the box. He’s not concerned or scared of going right when everyone else is going left, so I really like that about him. He’s doing a great job with Trackhouse. He’s not just building a powerhouse in Trackhouse, but he’s building a brand. That’s exactly what he told me when Trackhouse was only on a piece of paper. It’s very nice to be involved with people that are putting their thoughts and ideas into reality.” Can you win one for Kid Rock?“Can you imagine the party if we win this race? I’m going to have to tell Kid Rock that we have to make it to Miami this next week so we can’t party too much. That would be so much fun if we could win in Vegas with Kid Rock.”

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: 18Poles: 8Laps Led: 3,705Top-five finishes: 75Top-10 finishes: 140Stage wins: 26Tyler Reddick (Fontanax2)Alex Bowman (Las Vegas), (Kansas)Ross Chastain (Las Vegas), (Darlington), (Charlotte), (Pocono), (Richmond), (Charlotte ROVAL)William Byron (Phoenix), (Atlanta), (Talladega), (Darlington)Daniel Suarez (COTA), (Charlotte)Chase Elliott (Martinsvillex2), (Charlotte), (Atlantax2), (Talladega)Kyle Larson (Bristol Dirt), (Sonoma), (Pocono), (Texas) CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:Total Chevrolet race wins: 832 (1949 to date)Poles won to date: 731Laps led to date: 245,041Top-five finishes to date: 4,213Top-10 finishes to date: 8,695                                                                                                          Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date:                    General Motors: 1,166           Chevrolet: 832           Pontiac: 154           Oldsmobile: 115           Buick: 65            Ford: 818                                                                      Ford: 718           Mercury: 96           Lincoln: 4            Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467           Dodge: 217           Plymouth: 191           Chrysler: 59            Toyota: 169

ENNIS, Texas (Oct. 13, 2022) – Brittany Force returns to her Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster paint scheme for this weekend’s Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex, the halfway marker of the six race NHRA Countdown to the Championship. Force is the track record-holder for both time (3.637 seconds) and speed (335.32 mph) at the Texas Motorplex, marks she set at the 2021 event. She qualified her Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac dragster No. 1 in each of her last two appearances in the Texas FallNationals (2019 and 2021) and took it to the semifinals on both occasions, losing both times to the eventual race winner – Billy Torrence in 2019 and Justin Ashley last year. Her 2017 double-up win with teammate Robert Hight was a key element in her run to the Top Fuel championship in which she became the first woman in 35 years (since Shirley Muldowney) to win the title in the premier category. Force will look to recreate some of that magic sitting third in points only 30 back from the lead.   “Dallas is the half-way point in this Countdown and our team is aiming to step up our game at the Texas Motorplex this weekend. We head back to Texas in Monster Energy colors and to a track where we’ve been successful landing in the winnings circle in 2017, Force said. “It’s easy to see we’ve gotten lost over the last few races, but we believe we have narrowed in on the issue and are looking to move beyond it Friday in that first qualifying session. This team is only 30 points out from the No. 1 position and can make up some serious ground this weekend. Our focus is a championship to end this season.” Force’s four wins this year equal her career best in a single season, just 30 points off the lead, she still is well positioned to become the fourth woman in NHRA pro drag racing history to win multiple championships (after Shirley Muldowney, Enders and Angelle Sampey). With David Grubnic and Mac Savage handling the tune-up duties, Force is the NHRA national record holder at 3.623 seconds (Aug.31, 2019 at Reading, Pa.) and 338.43 mph that she set at the Midwest Nationals just last weekend just outside of St. Louis. Competition at the Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex begins with four qualifying session Friday at 3:30 and 8:00 p.m. and Saturday at 1:00 and 5:00 p.m. Eliminations for the event will start on Sunday at noon. Television coverage will be on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) Sunday starting with a qualifying show at 10:00 a.m. ET and eliminations at 10:30 p.m. ET.

LakesideDavid Gravel Trailing Brad Sweet by 66-Points in Championship ChaseGREENWOOD, NE – October 12, 2022 – The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series will take The Greatest Show on Dirt to the Midwest for the final time in 2022 this weekend.I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, NE will host the penultimate race in track history on Friday, October 14, while Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, KS welcomes the Series back for the 20th appearance on Saturday, October 15.All eyes down the stretch are glued on Brad Sweet and David Gravel, as they are locked in a two-horse race for the $200,000 championship for the second year in a row. With six races remaining, Gravel has cut down the championship deficit to a mere 66-points as his hopes of a first-career title remain alive while Sweet continues to pursue his fourth consecutive crown.BUY I-80 TICKETS (Fri) BUY LAKESIDE TICKETS (Sat)Let’s preview what to watch for this weekend on DIRTVision.com:SOMEBODY’S CLOSER: Last weekend’s Port Royal (PA) Speedway doubleheader brought wholesale change to the championship chase as Gravel chopped a whole 28 points out of Sweet’s advantage – taking his deficit from 94 to 66 points with six races remaining. The Big Game Motorsports #2 made it happen with runs of fifth and third, while the Kasey Kahne Racing #49 struggled in 13th and ninth.While he’s much closer than he was, Gravel’s path to a first-career title is still within the hands of Sweet, who controls his own destiny in this season-long war. If Gravel were to win every remaining race, he would still need Sweet to finish sixth or worse each time to make up the gap and dethrone “The Big Cat.”A DNF is what could offer a massive shake-up, being that the difference from winning to last place is 48-points. However, there’s one problem with that, Brad Sweet doesn’t know how to DNF anymore. The three-time and reigning World of Outlaws champion currently owns an absurd streak of completing 164 straight races and 5,401 consecutive laps dating back to 2020. EXPERIENCE MATTERS: When it comes to I-80 and Lakeside, Donny Schatz and Brad Sweet – the only two active champions – are the only two active drivers with a World of Outlaws win at either track.Sweet, who first experienced these tracks with the Tour ‘n Topless Series in the mid-2000s, has thrived since running with a wing on top. He’s finished in the top-10 of all five I-80 visits (5.6 AVG) with a win in 2020, and he’s finished in the top-10 of all nine Lakeside trips (5.5 AVG)  with a win in 2015.Schatz, of Fargo, ND, rides an impressive streak as well with eight-straight top-10s at I-80 and seven-straight top-10s at Lakeside for the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15. The 10-time Series champion topped Lakeside in 2015 and 2019, but amazingly enough, his triumph last August at I-80 was his first in his 28th try.STOPPING THE DROUGHT: A return to the east coast (4 of the last 5 races won by non-platinum teams) has spurred some winless spells for the full-time World of Outlaws teams that they hope to snap this weekend.Carson Macedo (11), Sheldon Haudenschild (9), and David Gravel (6), the three-winningest drivers on tour this year have not won since the opening weekend of September in Washington. The Shark Racing duo of Logan Schuchart (4) and Jacob Allen (4) have struggled since leaving the west coast, where they last went back-to-back with a $25,000 Gold Cup triumph for the #1A and a $21,000 Tom Tarlton Classic win for the #1S.Other dry spells include Donny Schatz chasing his first win since his 11th Knoxville Nationals title in August, Brock Zearfossgoing for his second win of the season since his first in July, and Spencer Bayston eyeing his third of his rookie campaign and first since June.James McFadden, who is currently seventh in points with 10 podiums, 20 top-fives, and 36 top-10s, is still looking for his first win of the year and first since joining the Roth Motorsports #83 team.ONE LAST DANCE: Friday’s trip to I-80 Speedway will mark the final World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series race in history at the beloved Greenwood, NE 1/2-mile. It will serve as the opening act to the last weekend of racing at the track with a Saturday show set to end it all.From 1995 to 2022, the Series hosted 33 Features at I-80 with Mark Kinser (10), Danny Lasoski (5), Sammy Swindell (4), Steve Kinser (3), Stevie Smith (2), Jac Haudenschild (2), and Joey Saldana (2) winning the most.TOMAHAWK CHOP: While Lakeside Speedway resides across the border in Kansas, many Missourians will be looking to defend what they consider home turf on Saturday in Kansas City.Brian Brown, of Higginsville, MO, is trading in his Patrick Mahomes jersey for the FVP Parts, Caseys General Stores #21, a driver and car that has previously beaten the World of Outlaws at Lakeside in 2017.Ayrton Gennetten, of Versailles, MO, will contest his final weekend of 2022 in the family-owned #3 this weekend. Last year, he saved his best for last when he led 20-plus laps and nearly won his first-career World of Outlaws Feature at a different 1/2-mile – Devil’s Bowl.Hunter Schuerenberg, of Sikeston, MO, and his brother-in-law Clinton Boyles, of Greenwood, MO, will make it a family affair with both expecting to sit behind the wheel at Lakeside – a track where both have shined in non-wing competition.POTENTIAL HISTORY: The World of Outlaws now sits at 13 multi-time winners in 2022 with Carson Macedo (11), Sheldon Haudenschild (9), David Gravel (6), Brent Marks (5), Brad Sweet (5), Kyle Larson (4), Jacob Allen (4), Logan Schuchart (4), Donny Schatz (3), Giovanni Scelzi (2), Spencer Bayston (2), Lance Dewease (2), and Anthony Macri (2).It’s the second-most in Series history, trailing only 2002’s group of 14 multi-time winners which included Steve Kinser (23), Danny Lasoski (17), Mark Kinser (8), Joey Saldana (8), Daryn Pittman (6), Brad Furr (4), Jac Haudenschild (3), Craig Dollansky (3), Tim Shaffer (3), Greg Hodnett (3), Tyler Walker (3), Donny Schatz (2), Stevie Smith (2), and P.J. Chesson (2).Currently, Brian Brown, Buddy Kofoid, Brock Zearfoss, and Rico Abreu are the one-time winners closest to becoming the 14th multi-time victor.THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCEWHEN AND WHERE Friday, October 14 at I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, NE Saturday, October 15 at Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, KSON 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/monthCURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (68/74 Races): 1. 49-Brad Sweet (8,470 PTS); 2. 2-David Gravel (-66 PTS); 3. 41-Carson Macedo (-134 PTS); 4. 15-Donny Schatz (-224 PTS); 5. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild (-262 PTS); 6. 1S-Logan Schuchart (-386 PTS); 7. 83-James McFadden (-484 PTS); 8. 5-Spencer Bayston (-564 PTS); 9. 1A-Jacob Allen (-680 PTS); 10. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss (-960 PTS)NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (17 Drivers): 11 wins – Carson Macedo, Jason Johnson Racing #41 9 wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing #17 6 wins – David Gravel, Big Game Motorsports #2 5 wins – Brad Sweet, Kasey Kahne Racing #49 5 wins – Brent Marks, Murray-Marks Motorsports #19 4 wins – Kyle Larson, Kevin Kozlowski/Paul Silva #57 4 wins – Logan Schuchart, Shark Racing #1S 4 wins – Jacob Allen, Shark Racing #1A 3 wins – Donny Schatz, Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15 2 wins – Spencer Bayston, CJB Motorsports #5 2 wins – Giovanni Scelzi, KCP Racing #18 2 wins – Lance Dewease, Don Kreitz Jr. Racing #69K 2 wins – Anthony Macri, Macri Motorsports #39M 1 win – Brock Zearfoss, Zearfoss Racing #3Z 1 win – Brian Brown, Brian Brown Racing #21 1 win – Buddy Kofoid, Crouch Motorsports #11 1 win – Rico Abreu, Rico Abreu Racing #24FEATURE LAPS LED (30 Drivers): 307 laps – Brad Sweet 285 laps – Carson Macedo 189 laps – Sheldon Haudenschild 186 laps – David Gravel 134 laps – Jacob Allen 123 laps – Brent Marks 119 laps – Kyle Larson 99 laps – Donny Schatz 72 laps – Spencer Bayston 70 laps – Logan Schuchart 61 laps – Giovanni Scelzi 52 laps – Brian Brown 49 laps – Anthony Macri 46 laps – Tyler Courtney 36 laps – Rico Abreu 31 laps – Buddy Kofoid 30 laps – James McFadden 26 laps – Sam Hafertepe Jr. 23 laps – Kasey Kahne 22 laps – Brock Zearfoss 15 laps – Justin Peck, Lance Dewease 13 laps – Cory Eliason 9 laps – Dominic Scelzi, Brady Bacon 8 laps – Riley Goodno 7 laps – Kerry Madsen 1 lap – Corey Day, Aaron Reutzel, Austin McCarlQUICKTIME AWARDS (20 Drivers): 10 QuickTimes – Carson Macedo* 8 QuickTimes – Brad Sweet 7 QuickTimes – David Gravel 5 QuickTimes – Sheldon Haudenschild* 4 QuickTimes – Jacob Allen 3 QuickTimes – Spencer Bayston, Giovanni Scelzi* 2 QuickTimes – Donny Schatz, Logan Schuchart, James McFadden, Rico Abreu, Justin Peck, Brent Marks, Anthony Macri 1 QuickTime – Aaron Reutzel, Cory Eliason, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Buddy Kofoid, Kerry Madsen, Daryn Pittman * Denotes New Track RecordHEAT RACE WINNERS (51 Drivers): 23 Heat Wins – David Gravel 21 Heat Wins – Carson Macedo 17 Heat Wins – Brad Sweet, Jacob Allen 16 Heat Wins – Logan Schuchart 14 Heat Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, James McFadden 13 Heat Wins – Donny Schatz 6 Heat Wins – Spencer Bayston, Giovanni Scelzi 5 Heat Wins – Brock Zearfoss, Rico Abreu, Kerry Madsen, Brian Brown 4 Heat Wins – Kraig Kinser, Aaron Reutzel, Tyler Courtney, Anthony Macri, Brent Marks 3 Heat Wins – Kasey Kahne, Cory Eliason, Kyle Larson, Hunter Schuerenberg 2 Heat Wins – Austin McCarl, Justin Peck, Marcus Dumesny, Matt Juhl, Corey Day 1 Heat Win – Sam Hafertepe Jr, Dominic Scelzi, Justin Whittall, Ian Madsen, Parker Price-Miller, Buddy Kofoid, Mark Dobmeier, Mitchel Moles, Brooke Tatnell, Riley Goodno, Jack Croaker, Paige Polyak, Carson McCarl, Sye Lynch, Daryn Pittman, Danny Dietrich, Devon Borden, Larry Wight, Noah Gass, Tim Kaeding, Logan Seavey, Logan Wagner, Lance Dewease DIRTVISION FAST PASS DASH APPEARANCES (60 Drivers): 39 Dashes – Brad Sweet 37 Dashes – David Gravel 36 Dashes – Carson Macedo 28 Dashes – Spencer Bayston 26 Dashes – Donny Schatz, Sheldon Haudenschild, Logan Schuchart, Jacob Allen 24 Dashes – James McFadden 11 Dashes – Rico Abreu 10 Dashes – Brock Zearfoss, Giovanni Scelzi 8 Dashes – Kraig Kinser 7 Dashes – Kyle Larson, Brent Marks, Anthony Macri 6 Dashes – Cory Eliason, Kasey Kahne 5 Dashes – Aaron Reutzel, Brian Brown, Kerry Madsen, Tyler Courtney 4 Dashes – Robbie Price, Corey Day 3 Dashes – Danny Dietrich, Justin Peck, Ryan Timms, Hunter Schuerenberg, Lance Dewease 2 Dashes – Dominic Scelzi, Justin Whittall 1 Dash – Sam Hafertepe Jr, Colby Copeland, Tanner Carrick, DJ Netto, Brady Bacon, Matt Campbell, Ian Madsen, Cole Duncan, Parker Price-Miller, Austin McCarl, Matt Juhl, Buddy Kofoid, Scotty Thiel, Robbie Price, Zeb Wise, Ayrton Gennetten, Daryn Pittman, Jeff Halligan, Devon Borden, Larry Wight, Danny Varin, Marcus Dumesny, Mark Dobmeier, Joel Myers Jr, Mitchell Faccinto, Shane Golobic, Logan Seavey, Sye Lynch, Logan WagnerMICROLITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (37 Drivers): 5 LCS Wins – Logan Schuchart 4 LCS Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, James McFadden 3 LCS Wins – Ayrton Gennetten, Spencer Bayston 2 LCS Wins – Donny Schatz, Jacob Allen, Brock Zearfoss, Noah Gass, Kerry Madsen, Rico Abreu, Anthony Macri, Jesse Schlotfeldt, Brian Brown 1 LCS Win – Kraig Kinser, Mitchell Faccinto, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Brent Marks, DJ Foos, Christopher Bell, Austin Pierce, Jake Blackhurst, Robbie Price, Giovanni Scelzi, Scotty Thiel, Josh Schneiderman, Lachlan McHugh, Justin Whittall, Chase Dietz, Brandon Rahmer, Jordan Thomas, Joe B. Miller, Hunter Schuerenberg, Brendan Mullen, Tanner Holmes, DJ Netto, Dylan CisneyKSE HARD CHARGER AWARDS (32 Drivers): 10 Hard Chargers – Sheldon Haudenschild 8 Hard Chargers – Logan Schuchart 4 Hard Chargers – Donny Schatz, Noah Gass 3 Hard Chargers – David Gravel, Carson Macedo 2 Hard Chargers – James McFadden, Jacob Allen, Brock Zearfoss, Anthony Macri, Freddie Rahmer 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, Larry Wight, Tim Kaeding, Ryan Timms, Kevin Ingle, Tyler Thompson, Kerry Madsen, Ryan Smith, PODIUM FINISHES (32 Drivers): 24 Podiums – Carson Macedo 22 Podiums – Brad Sweet 18 Podiums – David Gravel 16 Podiums – Sheldon Haudenschild 15 Podiums – Donny Schatz 13 Podiums – Logan Schuchart 10 Podiums – James McFadden, Jacob Allen 9 Podiums – Kyle Larson 8 Podiums – Brent Marks 5 Podiums – Spencer Bayston, Brian Brown 4 Podiums – Rico Abreu, Anthony Macri 3 Podiums – Giovanni Scelzi, Lance Dewease 2 Podiums – Aaron Reutzel, Corey Day, Buddy Kofoid, Danny Dietrich 1 Podium – Brock Zearfoss, Kraig Kinser, Kasey Kahne, Cory Eliason, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Justin Peck, Parker Price-Miller, Riley Goodno, Tyler Courtney, Paulie Colagiovanni, Ryan Timms, Logan WagnerTOP 10 FINISHES (61 Drivers): 54 Top 10s – Brad Sweet 55 Top 10s – David Gravel 51 Top 10s – Donny Schatz 49 Top 10s – Carson Macedo 46 Top 10s – Sheldon Haudenschild 41 Top 10s – Logan Schuchart 36 Top 10s – James McFadden, Spencer Bayston 34 Top 10s – Jacob Allen 23 Top 10s – Giovanni Scelzi 17 Top 10s – Brock Zearfoss, Rico Abreu 14 Top 10s – Kyle Larson, Anthony Macri 12 Top 10s – Brent Marks 8 Top 10s – Cory Eliason, Brian Brown, Aaron Reutzel, Justin Peck 7 Top 10s – Tyler Courtney, Kerry Madsen 6 Top 10s – Kasey Kahne, Lance Dewease 5 Top 10s – Danny Dietrich 4 Top 10s – Hunter Schuerenberg, Corey Day, Dominic Scelzi 3 Top 10s – Kraig Kinser, Buddy Kofoid, Scotty Thiel, Trey Starks, Ryan Timms 2 Top 10s – Noah Gass, Robbie Price, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Larry Wight, Danny Varin, Shane Golobic, DJ Netto 1 Top 10 – 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, Lachlan McHugh, Marcus Dumesny, Daryn Pittman, Joel Myers Jr, Mitchell Faccinto, Justin Sanders, Lee Jacobs, Logan Wagner, Justin Whittall, Sye Lynch, Ryan Smith, Lucas Wolfe2022 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) 46. Fri, Aug. 5 / I-55 Raceway / Pevely, MO / Carson Macedo (8) 47. Sat, Aug. 6 / I-55 Raceway / Pevely, MO / Brad Sweet (3) 48. Wed, Aug. 10 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Logan Schuchart (SF)* 49. Thur, Aug. 11 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Jacob Allen (SF)* 50. Fri, Aug. 12 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Rico Abreu (SF)* 51. Sat, Aug. 13 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Donny Schatz (3) 52. Sat, Aug. 20 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN / Logan Schuchart (2) 53. Sat. Aug. 20 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN / Carson Macedo (9) 54. Fri, Aug. 26 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND / Brad Sweet (4) 55. Sat, Aug. 27 / Red River Valley Speedway / West Fargo, ND / Carson Macedo (10) 56. Thur, Sept. 1 / Skagit Speedway / Alger, WA / Logan Schuchart (3) 57. Fri, Sept. 2 / Skagit Speedway / Alger, WA / Sheldon Haudenschild (9) 58. Sat, Sept. 3 / Skagit Speedway / Alger, WA / David Gravel (6) 59. Mon, Sept. 5 / Grays Harbor Raceway / Elma, WA / Carson Macedo (11) 60. Thur, Sept. 8 / Silver Dollar Speedway / Chico, CA / Kyle Larson (NP)* 61. Fri, Sept. 9 / Silver Dollar Speedway / Chico, CA / Carson Macedo (NP)* 62. Sat, Sept. 10 / Silver Dollar Speedway / Chico, CA / Jacob Allen (4) 63. Fri, Sept. 16 / Keller Auto Speedway / Hanford, CA / Logan Schuchart (4) 64. Fri, Sept. 23 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Rico Abreu (1) 65. Sat, Sept. 24 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH / Brad Sweet (5) 66. Fri, Sept. 30 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Lance Dewease (2) 67. Fri, Oct. 7 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA / Anthony Macri (1) 68. Sat, Oct. 8 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA / Anthony Macri (2) 69. Fri, Oct. 14 / I-80 Speedway / Greenwood, NE / $10,000-to-win 70. Sat, Oct. 15 / Lakeside Speedway / Kansas City, KS / $10,000-to-win 71. Sat, Oct. 22 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / $75,000-to-win 72. Wed, Nov. 2 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC / $15,000-to-win 73. Fri, Nov. 4 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC / $15,000-to-win 74. Sat, Nov. 5 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC / $25,000-to-win

Transcript

GM sports car racing program manager Laura Wontrop Klauser and Alexander Sims, co-driver of the Cadillac V-LMDh prepared by Action Express Racing for the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship met with the media via Zoom on Oct.12 to discuss the development of the new Cadillac race car for the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class. Klauser also answered questions about the Chevrolet Corvette GT3 program for 2024. Full transcript (by individual):

LAURA WONTROP KLAUSER LOT OF MILES WITH LITTLE DOWNTIME AT MICHELIN RACEWAY ROAD ATLANTA. DID THE TEAMS AND ENGINEERING GROUPS GET WHAT THEY WANTED OUT OF THE THREE-DAY TEST?“You never get everything you want because you show up with these crazy, ambitious test plans. But, I’d say, everyone was pleased with our time at the track. We’re making major progress with the car. We transitioned from getting it to run to testing a couple of tests ago and now we’re full steam ahead of working through our plan. The more miles we put on the better from a durability perspective and checking all of our parts. Really working through all the integration side with the hybrid to the engine to the rest of the car, working on the braking system. And even looking at the aerodynamic part of the car as well. Rotated the driver through, which is always good. The more seat time we can give them, the better. It was a successful test from our point.” WHAT’S NEXT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CAR?“Working through homologation with IMSA, the FIA and the ACO. We’ve been busy getting through the wind tunnel and the things we do on the homologation side. But really our next big thing that we’re working toward is we’d like to do a 24-hour test before the end of the year. You learn the most when you do those. We’re excited to see how the car does, making sure we have all the representative parts on the car for that to make sure that test is successful.” WHAT’S THE TOTAL TESTING MILEAGE TARGET?“The number is probably secondary to different things that we want to get through. The 24-hour test is a big deal for us coming up. Doing different things at different tracks is also important to make sure we cover how the car is responding to different scenarios. Trying to hit those milestones are the big ones. With that, I think the mileage comes with it.” WHEN DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN TERMS OF THAT PROGRESS?“If you look at the timeline between now and January when we are racing, we better be at least 50 percent through. The things that are mission critical to get ready for January I’d say we are about a tick more that halfway through those items, and then there’s looking beyond January and the things we’ll be doing in the WEC we have a list for that as well. We’re prioritizing getting the car ready for Rolex just because that comes first and then we’ll look at the WEC schedule and the unique things that WEC tracks bring to the equation.” ARE THESE TEST CARS ACTUALLY GOING TO BE THE RACE CARS?“They are going to be cars that will be available. In terms of refreshing them and putting the fresh vehicles with the teams we will work toward that. It may or may not happen, and really a lot of that comes down to what parts we can get and what will be available when. With the time ticking toward January, we’ll work with what we have and try to put forward the best we can within the constraints we’re working in.” HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO HAVE THE THIRD CAR ON THE GRID AT DAYTONA?“The more you add it’s not easy. It usually means your spares bucket might be a little less than you’d hope for, but our goal is to be there with three. I see us meeting that goal and we’ll go from there.” WHAT DO YOU EXPECT IN TERMS OF WEC TESTING? ANYTHING IN EUROPE?“We would like to do some testing in Europe. We have to see when we can fit it in, what tracks we can get. And then shipping things back and forth at the moment is a lengthy process. So, it’s figuring out what we can fit in with the limited time we have.” HAVE YOUR FIGURED OUT HOW YOU’LL USE THE HYBRID EXTRA ENERGY?“Similar to the brakes, it’s evolving daily. We’re working on the simulation side and understanding and figuring out across the class what’s the plan. Some of that is still in motion. It’s probably the most exciting part – all of the opportunities. We can drive the car in electric mode. We can launch it, so you can see the true hybrid coming out. Where we evolve and how that works from the fuel economy standpoint versus other usefulness of having an electric motor on the car is what is going to make the class interesting. How each OE approaches that and how we change our strategy as we learn more.”Alexander Sims: “As probably most people coming into LMDh will be in the same situation. There are a thousand questions of what could you use these systems to give you on track performance-wise. Early in the development phase, it’s the big-ticket items we’re focusing on now. I’ve asked plenty of questions. It’s a fascinating thing to be in the category and as Laura says over time it will be a good item to focus on development.” HOW CLOSELY ARE YOU FOLLOWING THE PROGRESS OF THE OTHER MANUFACTURERS?“We are working together. Not so much that we’re helping tune each other’s cars, but there is a lot of alignment for handling all the things that this post-pandemic world has thrown at us from parts supply shipping and other things. We are keeping dibs on each other in terms of ‘how are you doing? Can you make it to the test? Can we share resources? Can we talk to the supplier to send us whatever it is and see if they can bundle it?’ I have a good feel just from that open communication on how everyone is doing. In terms of scrutinizing each and every one of their vehicles, I say that’s where my tunnel vision might be a little bit more on getting our car right. The way the regulations are set up, as long as each of us gets our cars right and fit into the rules that we’re supposed to be in, we’re inherently going to be very close from a performance perspective. It’s a bigger picture concern with what is going on with the competitors and mainly how we can help each other. I think it will be pretty wild when you see us start racing. It should be a great show.” HOW IS DEVELOPMENT OF THE V-LMDH DIFFERENT FROM OTHER CAR DEVELOPMENT BECAUSE OF THE ADDITION OF THE HYBRID POWERTRAIN?“From an aero perspective, I wouldn’t say it was too different for the hybrid. We did a lot of work in wind tunnels getting ready. The window that they’ve given us for the aero map that we have to fit in is quite small compared to things we’ve done in the past. And I think important because that’s what is going to help get the cars close to each other despite the fact that each one looks so different from each other. That’s good in terms of getting them set up for good racing. Starting with the scale wind tunnel – and a lot of that came from creating the body shape – we would check our ideas and still putting the car where it needs to be. When we had our first real full-scale race car, we started doing work in the big wind tunnels. The hybrid is weight to the car, so we need to keep on eye on that as we look at performance. But with that map being so small, our No. 1 target is getting there and the rest falls into place.” HOW PROGRAMMABLE IS THE HYBRID? IS THERE A COMMON MAP TO STICK TO?“There is the equity model that all of us have to run to that defines a lot of parameters on how we can use it and basically where and when. I think there is a little freedom in how we’re integrating everything and when we want to use the power coming off the hybrid versus engine power, or both or mix that. That’s where a lot of the learning is happening and working through things well past January because there is a lot to look at. There is some opportunity to have some identity from each OE’s perspective, but they’ve done a lot of work to make sure that they keep it parity as much as they can so that we don’t end up in a situation where one car is completely off in the weeds either positively or negatively and the rest are not. It’s evolving and we’re excited to find out all the things we can do.” IS A 24-HOUR TEST SOMETHING YOU NEED TO GET IN THE BAG BEFORE THE DAYTONA SANCTIONED TEST?“It’s something we need to get done before we get to January. Obviously, we’d love to have it as soon as we can so we can react to what we learn. In my perfect world, we would have done the 24-hour test in September. It’s something that we definitely need to get done before we race in January.” WOULD A THIRD CAR AT DAYTONA COMPROMISE YOUR WEC SCHEDULE TO TEST IN EUROPE?“When we made the decision to go forward, we were confident that it was the right move for us. I don’t believe any of that confidence has changed. I don’t see a huge impact to anything that we’re doing. Whenever we turn these cars on, we’re learning. It would be good to get to some tracks in Europe as soon as we can, but even as we drive around the tracks in the U.S. we’re enhancing the program. I’m glad we have the three cars at Daytona because it forces us to have all three cars race ready in January and go from there.” LIKELY YOU WON’T TEST IN EUROPE UNTIL AFTER SEBRING IN MARCH?“That could be the case. We have not finalized our schedule for next year. Honestly, our schedule for this year keeps changing just due to circumstances. We’ll see where it slots in and where is makes sense. It could be after Sebring; it could be before. It’s just whenever we can get it to work. This has been a wild ride to get this test plan to stick. Everyone has had to learn to be flexible.” WHEN DO YOU TURN CHIP GANASSI RACING AND ACTION EXPRESS RACING LOOSE AND SAY YOU DON’T HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER ANYMORE?“Both teams represent Cadillac Racing; that won’t change going forward. The DPi was more of a traditional customer program from our perspective where we had the various teams with different levels of sponsorship whether through us or different entities that they were working with versus as we move into LMDh – especially in these first couple years. With the complexity of this car and what it’s taken to get this car ready to race, we needed both teams to be in lockstep with us and with each other. We’re finding that relationship is a huge asset to the program, so we would like to carry that forward.” THERE ARE PARAMETERS THAT TEAMS CAN PLAY IN OUTSIDE THE BALANCE OF PERFORMANCE. WHAT DO YOU EXPECT TO SEE AT DAYTONA?“I think we will be close. Everything that we’ve run into on our side has been a hurdle to everyone. It will be interesting to see what happens come January.” CAN WE SEE ALL THREE CADILLACS AT LE MANS?“You have to be invited by the ACO to come to Le Mans. If you have a full-season entry, you’re guaranteed Le Mans because that’s part of the season, so we’ll have at least one. The rest of it is waiting for that communication and working it out with the ACO. It will be what they are willing to work with us for. We would love to see as many cars as we can there. It will come down to what it says on the invitation.” WHAT ARE THE PRIORITIES FOR YOU GOING FORWARD WITH THE GTD PRO PROGRAM? WHAT DO YOU STILL NEED TO PERFECT WITH THE CURRENT CORVETTE?“There’s still a lot to learn with the spec tire in the IMSA paddock. Any time you change the rubber that you’re riding on, a lot changes. We have a ton to learn from that. The other thing that’s been nice about the car in IMSA is that it has the ABS unit in it, it has features that were not originally in the car when it started. So that’s allowing us to integrate in those systems and see what’s working and what’s not. As we look to next year on the GT3 side of things, it’s testing and development at the beginning of the year and then the homologation process begins. There’s a lot of focus to make sure the car is right using any information that comes from the current program or programs from the past that can contribute to a good, strong foundation of a race car. That’s one thing we’re heavily focused on, and the other piece is setting up the customer support program. This will be a customer car, and we intend to have customers. We are going to start slow in ’24 because we can only build them so fast and we’ll grow from there. We’re making sure that anyone who takes delivery of the car and is racing has the complete support behind them from Corvette Racing. We want to make sure they do well because then they show out for us, and we want people know we are serious about this car.” HOW DIFFICULT IS TO PLAN WHEN YOU DON’T KNOW THE PRECISE NATURE OF THE REGULATIONS? “It’s always nice to know what you’re getting into fully. I think there’s enough information about how GT3 works today, and we can kind of extrapolate what GT3 is going to look like tomorrow based off that to get ourselves set up for what we need to know for each of the different series that the car could run in… although there are quite a few! We’ll probably have to target some main ones initially and then grow from there.” HAVE YOU BEEN SATISFIED WITH THE SPLIT STRATEGY OF A CORVETTE IN IMSA AND ANOTHER IN WEC?“From the marketing perspective, for sure. We have a global presence with the car, which is awesome just as the C8 is going into production and being available across the world. It was nice to start building fanbases for Corvette outside our traditional markets. That being said, we want to keep our traditional markets strong because that’s important to us. Developing the relationships in the WEC paddock has been successful. I’m sure Alexander can speak to this and put his 2022 Corvette hat on for a second, our experience at Le Mans this year – having been in the paddock and understanding the rules and the regs – it felt like this was totally different than in the past.”  Alexander Sims: “It felt brilliant. We were fully integrated with the way it was all working. The team and the understanding from Corvette’s side of the championship was fully in-tune. It worked very, very well and is good for the future.”Laura Wontrop Klauser: “That was our race. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out the way we wanted it. We were ready to see that through to the checkers first in GTE Pro. Even after we got through Le Mans, our Monza was super-exciting, to have that opportunity in the European market. The race we just did in Japan wasn’t the best on our side, but the exposure we’re getting over there has been good. We’re really pleased with how things worked out. I know our IMSA fans are still disappointed that they’re only seeing one car at the races here. I wish it wasn’t the case but letting the GTE car shine in the WEC where it was originally designed to run in that category and using the GTD PRO car to start learning for GT3 has been a nice balance.” WILL YOU HAVE TWO CARS AT THE ROLEX 24? “We have not yet made the 2023 announcements yet, but they are coming soon.” YOU SAID THE NUMBER OF CUSTOMER CARS WILL BE A LITTLE RESTRICTED IN THE FIRST YEAR SO YOU CAN PROPERLY SUPPORT THEM. WHAT REGIONS ARE YOU LOOKING TO DO THAT, AND IS THERE A MAX NUMBER OF CARS AVAILABLE FOR ’24?“Our first focus will be the United States. That’s our home market and that’s where the majority of our production car sales are. And it’s home, so it’s a lot easier to figure out support when you’re in the same country. We’re not turning a blind eye to anything else. We know the big volume for GT3 is in Europe, and the Asian market is growing as well. So while you may see us primarily in the U.S. to start, there is a growth plan to get to Europe and eventually to Asia as well. In terms of number, that part we’re still working through. The regulations say you have to build 20 in the first two years, so the first easy one is to say we’ll do 10 per year. But realistically we’re going to meet the requirement but also placing cars with the right teams in the right places. We’ll see how that shakes out. It’s not going to be like off the bat we’ll have 35 cars racing all over the world in 2024. It’ll probably a little bit of a slower walk than that… maybe 10 to 12 total, somewhere in there. They won’t all be starting the season. We’ll get there as we get there.” SO IT’S ONLY GOING TO BE FOR U.S. CUSTOMERS IN ’24?“The focus will be the U.S., but we’ll place a couple in Europe if we have a good fit and it’s the right series. In terms of the bulk of the volume to start, that’ll be the U.S. with Europe quickly coming in behind either at the end of ’24 or the beginning of ’25.” IS THE IDEA TO HAVE CUSTOMER CARS READY FOR DAYTONA OF 2024?“We’re intending to have the IMSA cars that we will commit to for 2024 ready to roll for Rolex. It’ll be multiple teams. Details are not set right now, and we’re still working through that. You have to find the right teams to pair up with to know if it will be Pro or Am and things along those lines. But the intent is to have multiple teams racing in the Rolex. We haven’t gotten to that part of an announcement yet. As we work through this plan, we’re seeing what makes sense for the car and what makes the most sense for the brand. That will come later once we’re ready to make that announcement.” FOR 2023, THE ONLY WAY TO RUN AT LE MANS IS GTE AM. ARE YOU LOOKING AT POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS FOR THAT IN WEC OR JUST A SINGLE ENTRY JUST FOR LE MANS?“I don’t know if anyone will be doing single entries for Le Mans. Based on how popular that race is going to be, I’m assuming it’s going to be very strict. We haven’t ruled out anything. The announcement for ’23 is coming soon. We explored all paths. We didn’t want to shut any doors without properly looking into what our options were. We also aren’t going to try and force something. If it doesn’t make sense, we aren’t going to do it for the sake of doing it. We want to make sure that we still keep what everyone thinks of when they think of Corvette Racing – strong performance by a strong team with strong drivers. All of that is critical to us, especially as we are getting into GT3 and we want to court great teams and great customers for our Corvette GT3 car. We’re keeping all those values.”

ALEXANDER SIMS WHAT WERE SOME OF THE DIFFERENCES IN THE CAR YOU NOTED AT ROAD ATLANTA FROM YOUR INITIAL TEST?“Just a general refinement from a systems point of view. With every test we try to bring new iterations of software. Braking maps I would say from a driver’s point of view. It’s going in the right direction; we’re making good progress on that. With the hybrid and the brake-by-wire system it allows you to alter the brake bias in different phases of driving that you can’t do in a conventional mechanical brake bias car. There’s a lot of work going on the in the background that is not immediately recognizable to the driver, but you start to think about how the downshifts are working and how the engine is pulling and all the different deployment strategies with the hybrid, and there’s a lot of work going on into every one of the settings that we try. From a pure performance point of view, it’s been good to get a lot of different scenarios checked out in terms of race stints and shorter runs. That’s been really helpful to me to get an good understanding of the car and to understand as a driver what I need to do to manage things as you do in every race. You need that seat time, getting those laps. This last test was great to get a lot of miles under our belt and really start to understand things better.” WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO IN THE NEXT PHASE OF TESTING?“Each track that we go to, for me it’s getting up to speed at that circuit. I’ve got experience at all theses tracks but nevertheless I’m lapping 10-15 seconds faster than the GT cars that I’ve driven before. There is some adjustment needed. Now that we’re getting past the fundamental things in the development of the car we’re looking to fine-tune, understand setups at different circuits, understand how we can push the performance envelope a bit more, ask a bit more from the car and get the balance tuned in through more of the corners. With all those steps hopefully extract more lap time and get closer and closer to what we can hopefully have at Daytona.”  HOW MUCH WILL YOU BE ABLE TO FINE-TUNE BRAKING MAPS?“It’s something that we haven’t worked out the answer to because it’s not as simple as coming up with your theoretical braking bias on each corner and then running it because different drivers like different sensations from the car. Some like to feel the rear axle locking up a bit more, some the front. At the start of the stint with 100-plus kilos of fuel it’s going to need different brake bias toward the end. Trying to achieve a good baseline that works in most conditions is our first priority and then work out how much we want to try to optimize for different states because that brings complications as well. It’s all doable, but with my experience with Formula E where you’re the only driver in the car, looking at one-lap qualifying, it’s a small state that you’re working in so it’s straightforward to optimize things for that one-lap format. Endurance racing is a whole different kettle of fish entirely.” WHAT DID YOU HAVE TO DO TO TAKE THE STEP UP TO PROTOTYPES?“Neck strength is a big one. The cars that I’ve driven for the last five or six years haven’t required too much neck training. I keep myself in good physical condition, but specifically the neck is the big difference. The speed the corners come up to you at, the length of time you actually have on each straight feels daunting to start with. The corners come up fast and you’re not processing things in your brain quickly enough. But Road Atlanta was actually the first time I felt calm. I was changing settings multiple times per lap and didn’t feel under pressure. I was changing settings to see how they affected performance in different corners and it was starting to come a bit easier. It was nice to feel a bit more on top of things. They’re really quick cars. It will not be that straightforward, especially when you bring traffic into the mix.” ARE THESE CARS MORE PHYSICALLY DEMANDING TO DRIVE THAN THE DPIS?“I don’t have a huge amount of experience with the DPi to compare. I was surprised how close it did feel to the DPi. We are aware of the physics of the car being a bit heavier, but I was surprised. Turn 1 at Atlanta is a good example. It’s a fast approach with short braking, you have to commit a lot of speed to it, but it held really well. The high-speed performance seems to be pretty good if you were to compare it with DPi. I don’t have enough experience to know about top speeds and accelerations. From what the others are saying, the car feels more powerful than the DPi. I don’t feel a huge difference in my driving compared to what I’ve done in GT, GTLM.”

October 12, 2022

Harrison Burton and the No. 21 DEX Imaging team head to Las Vegas Motor Speedway hoping to build on their encouraging run there in the Pennzoil 400 back in March but also facing some new challenges.

“During our first trip to Las Vegas earlier this year, the No. 21 Ford scored a top-20 starting position and a 16^th-place finish,” said crew chief Brian Wilson. “Those were solid results early in the year, and we look to improve on them as we head back.”

But over the course of the season, Wilson’s crew, like their competitors, has been able to learn more about the new car, which means the set-ups from March will need some tweaking.
 
“The first race was early in the learning curve of the Next Gen car, and our return trip is with four races to go in our season,” Wilson said. “If you bring the same set-up you’ll be behind the field.”

Another change from the most recent race at Vegas is in the tires. Goodyear, the exclusive tire supplier for the Cup Series, is bringing to Las Vegas a different tire combination which has reduced stagger, which means the right- and left-side tires will be closer to the same circumference.

And that suits Wilson and the DEX Imaging team just fine.

“We’ve recently run this tire combo at Kansas and Texas, where we saw Harrison take the lead early in the race,” he said. “We’ll look at our notebooks from those recent races and try to unload with competitive speed this weekend.”

Practice for the South Point 400 is set for Saturday at 9:05 a.m. (12:05 p.m. Eastern Time), to be followed by qualifying at 9:50 (12:50 p.m. Eastern).
 
Sunday’s 267-lap, 400-mile race is scheduled to get the green flag just after 11:30 a.m. (2:30 p.m. Eastern Time), with TV coverage on NBC.
 
Stage breaks are planned for Laps 80 and 165.

Enders Aims To Extend Pro Stock Points Lead Amidst Stout Competition

Elite Motorsports Pre-Race Preview

NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series ENNIS, Texas. (October 12, 2022) – The Elite Motorsports Pro Stock team is feeling confident as the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series rolls into the Dallas area for the 37th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex this weekend. Four-time Pro Stock world champion Erica Enders continues to lead the points in the heated Countdown to the Championship, NHRA’s version of the playoffs, with a 120-point lead over her teammate Aaron Stanfield, who is in the second position in points standings.  “We are really excited to start the second half of the Countdown,” said Enders. “Especially after securing two wins and a semifinal finish in the first three races. We currently have a sizable lead but, of course, it’s still not enough of a cushion. We are heading into Dallas as prepared as possible and ready to fight for our fifth title. The competition is stout and I’m sure they will do everything they can to throw us off our game, but we are Elite for a reason.” The Texas Motorplex has been very good to Stanfield in his sportsman racing career and he’s eager to add a Pro Stock win at the fan-favorite facility.  “We are ready to go for Dallas,” said Stanfield. “This is my home track and where I got my first national event win. We are looking for a cowboy hat to add to the collection.”  Sitting fourth on the Countdown points leaderboard, Elite Motorsports standout Troy Coughlin Jr. is experiencing the best season of his Pro Stock career. “Our goal as a unit is to make eight awesome runs, one run at a time,” said Coughlin. “The guys have worked hard servicing and cleaning and now it’s time to continue to show how awesome this group is.” Bo Butner is turning up the heat in his Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Camaro. The 2017 Pro Stock world champion is currently ninth in the points and has been making a lot of forward progress in the back half of the season. The Cuadra Boys, Fernando Cuadra Sr. and his sons Fernando Jr. and Cristian, are poised for disruption coming into the lone star state. All three talented drivers are looking for their first Pro Stock win, an outcome that would certainly shake things up in the Countdown points standings. NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series competition kicks off this Friday, October 14 with the first session of qualifying at 2:30 p.m. central.

Sportsman Snapshot In the FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by D-Wagon, Elite Motorsports driver Lyle Barnett is looking to add another national event win to his season and defend his title. The talented driver scored his first win last year at this event, a highlight of his rookie season. He is in contention to finish in the top 5 this season.  David Cuadra will be competing in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Top Sportsman category. Aydan Patterson will be representing the Patterson-Elite Performance team in Super Stock along with Jay Storey who will be competing in Stock. ***

Elite Motorsports Stats And Facts For Countdown Contention

The Elite Motorsports team will field seven Pro Stock entries during this week’s NHRA Texas FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex in Ennis, Texas. The Elite team is the largest in professional drag racing and features Erica Enders, Aaron Stanfield, Troy Coughlin Jr., Bo Butner, Fernando Cuadra and his two sons, Fernando Jr. and Cristian. This week’s event held just outside Dallas marks the fourth round of the Countdown to the Championship, NHRA’s six-race playoff to determine season champions. All seven Elite cars are in contention for the championship. Four-time world champion Enders is the leader followed by Stanfield (2), Coughlin Jr. (4), Butner (9), Cuadra Jr. (12), C. Cuadra (13), Cuadra Sr. (15). Two weeks ago in St. Louis, Erica Enders won her eighth event of the season by beating Dallas Glenn in the final round. As a result, Enders has a 120-point lead over teammate Aaron Stanfield in the battle for the championship. Enders has won eight of the 16 events contested so far this season and has appeared in 10 of 16 possible final rounds. There have been 16 Pro Stock events so far this season and Team Elite has won 13 of them. Enders has eight victories while Stanfield has three and Coughlin has two. Elite cars have also appeared in final rounds 23 times, as more than once, the final round has come down to two Elite-powered machines.

Erica EndersFour-time world champion Enders is off to the best start of her career with a record of 44-8 during eliminations, Enders has the highest winning percentage (.846) of any NHRA pro this season. Enders won the Dallas race in 2015, beating Jonathan Gray in the final round. She was also a finalist in Dallas in 2012. During her professional career, Enders has competed in 331 races and has 41 victories in 71 final rounds. Her overall win-loss record is 428-239. Enders currently holds both the elapsed time and speed record for the NHRA Pro Stock class with career bests of 6.450-seconds and 215.55 mph.

Aaron StanfieldStanfield, the driver of the Janac Bros/J3 Energy Camaro, finished the regular season as the No. 2 seed behind Enders thanks largely to victories in Phoenix and Bristol and four runner-up finishes in Pomona, Epping, Norwalk, and Denver. Stanfield is currently No. 2 in the Pro Stock class, 120 points out of first place following his most recent win in Charlotte. Stanfield has a record of 33-13 this season and six of those losses have come against teammate Enders. Stanfield won the 2020 Dallas event in the Factory Stock Showdown class, beating David Kramer in the final round. He also won in Super Stock here in 2015. Stanfield has won seven Pro Stock events in 13 career final rounds. He is also a two-time world champion in the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown. All told, Stanfield has 19 career wins in Pro Stock, Factory Stock, Super Stock, and Top Dragster. Stanfield’s career bests in Pro Stock are 6.457-seconds and 213.47 mph, both set this year in Gainesville.

Troy Coughlin Jr.Troy Coughlin Jr., the driver of the JEGS.comCamaro, finished the regular season as the No. 6 ranked Pro Stock driver but is currently fourth after his runner-up finish in Reading, semifinal finish in Charlotte, and quarterfinal in St. Louis. Earlier this year, Coughlin scored his first professional wins with back-to-back victories in Seattle and Topeka. In addition to his two Pro Stock victories this year, the multi-faceted Coughlin has additional wins in Top Alcohol Dragster, Super Comp, and Super Gas. Coughlin’s father, Troy Sr., is a 15-time national event winner in Pro Stock, Pro Mod, and Super Gas. Including his uncles, John, Mike, and Jeg Jr., the Coughlin family has combined to win 130 national event titles. Coughlin’s career bests in Pro Stock are 6.521-seconds and 211.93 mph, set this year in Sonoma and Gainesville, respectively.

Bo ButnerBo Butner is a two-time NHRA world champion in Pro Stock (2017) and Comp Eliminator (2006). He joined the Elite team this season driving the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Camaro. So far in 2022, Butner has an 8-16 round win record in Pro Stock competition. He is currently the No. 9 ranked driver in the class but is just eight points out of eighth place. Butner has 29 career national event victories including 11 in Pro Stock. He also has multiple wins in Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Gas, and Super Street to his name. Recently, Butner won back-to-back events in Indianapolis and Reading in the Super Gas class. Butner won the Dallas race in 1999, defeating five-time world champ Jimmy DeFrank in the Super Stock final. Butner’s career bests in Pro Stock are 6.475-seconds and 214.28 mph, set in Dallas (2015) and Gainesville (2017), respectively.

The Cuadra BoysThe Cuadra family including Fernando Sr., and his sons Fernando Jr. and Cristian, joined Elite Motorsports this season with their three-car Corral Boots team. Fernando Sr. is a two-time national event runner-up with final round appearances at 2019 races in Reading and Pomona. Cristian Cuadra was the runner-up to Enders at the 2022 Four-Wide event in Las Vegas. All three Cuadra entries will contend for the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Pro Stock title during the Countdown to the Championship playoffs. The Cuadra family has career-best elapsed times of 6.515 (Fernando Jr.), 6.524 (Fernando Sr.), and 6.528 (Cristian) – all of them recorded at the 2022 Gainesville event. Their career-best speeds are 212.13 (Fernando Sr.), 211.43 (Cristian), and 210.73 (Fernando Jr.).

Collectively, the seven Team Elite drivers have combined to win 101 NHRA national event titles across all classes including 61 in the ultra-competitive Pro Stock category.