June 29, 2020

Matt DiBenedetto and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team turned in another strong performance in the Sunday’s second half of a double-header at Pocono Raceway.

After finishing 13^th and scoring 10 Stage points on Saturday, DiBenedetto and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team came back on Monday and scored eight more Stage points and finished sixth in the Pocono 350.

Sunday’s finish netted 41 points, the most DiBenedetto has earned in a race this season. He remains 14^th in the Cup Series standings, but is just three points behind 13^th-place Clint Bowyer and six back of 12^th-place Jimmie Johnson.

DiBenedetto lined up eighth for the start of Sunday’s race and quickly drove his way into the top five then finished the first 30-lap Stage in sixth place, earning five Stage points.

In the second Stage, a 55-lapper, he ran in second or third place for much of the way, then made a pit stop from third place with 10 laps remaining in the Stage. Still, he drove his way back to ninth at the end of the Stage, earning two more points.

In the third and final segment of the race, he made his final pit stop with 38 laps remaining, taking two tires and fuel.

He rejoined the race and began working his way forward, gaining some spots through passes and others when drivers ahead of him made their last stops.

With 22 laps remaining, he was up to 15^th place, and broke back into the top 10 six laps later. With four laps remaining, he took sixth place and held off William Byron and Clint Bowyer to claim his best Pocono finish in 12 career starts and his fourth top-10 finish of the season.

“We had great strategy from start to finish,” DiBenedetto said of the plans formulated by crew chief Greg Erwin. “We followed Greg’s plan and it worked out even better than we thought.”

DiBenedetto said he and Erwin figured that making a pit stop just before the end of the second Stage would set them up better for the finish but cost them some Stage points, but that wasn’t the case.
 
“We thought we’d be sacrificing Stage points, but we had a good pit stop and had a solid restart and grabbed a couple of points.”
 
DiBenedetto said his Motorcraft/Quick Lane Mustang was fast and his crew was on their game.
 
“We had a top-10 car all day long,” he said. “Everything was really smooth. Everybody executed well, and it was just a good, solid day.”

He said the weekend’s performance at Pocono has him and the team feeling upbeat as they head to Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
 
“We’ve known we can do this,” he said, adding that he, Erwin and the crew have been working on their communication and on being more consistent in their on-track performance. “I think this weekend was an example of what we’ve been working on and knowing that we’re capable of doing is addressing that and just having solid days like we did today being in the top 10 from the start to the finish of the day, getting stage points and finishing up there.
 
“We’ve done a good job at working on that and I think we can do a lot more of this moving forward.”

Next up for DiBenedetto and the No. 21 team is the Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard on July 5. 
 

NASCAR CUP SERIESPOCONO RACEWAYPOCONO 350TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTESJUNE 28, 2020 
TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:POS.   DRIVER4th      CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE 7th      WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE9th      ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM/ADAM POLISHES CAMARO ZL1 1LE12th    MATT KENSETH, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1 1LE13th    KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE
TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS: POS.  DRIVER1st      Denny Hamlin (Toyota)2nd     Kevin Harvick (Ford)3rd      Erik Jones (Toyota)4th      Chase Elliott (Chevrolet)5th      Aric Almirola (Ford) The NASCAR Cup Series season continues at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with the Big Machine Hand Sanitizer 400 Powered by Big Machine Records on Sunday, July 5th, at 4:00 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBC, NBC Sports Gold and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
TEAM CHEVY NOTES AND QUOTES:CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 4th“It was good to have a solid run for our NAPA team after yesterday being so poor. Obviously, we would’ve liked to of been a little better, but after starting in the back, I was pleased how I was able to move forward and gain a lot of that track position back. It was a good rebound. Looking forward to getting back on track at Indy.” WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 7th“We ended up with a top-10 finish today which was good. It was definitely an improvement from yesterday – seven spots better to be exact – which is good. We still struggled a good portion of the race but I think we made the right calls and adjustments at the end. We had a lot of speed actually the last couple runs. I think the track kind of came to us and ultimately that’s what we needed. So we’ll go on to Indy and hopefully have a better run there.” ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM/ADAM POLISHES CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 9th“It was an up and down day. So many people are on different pit strategies throughout the day here in Pocono. We had a top 10 car all day, just didn’t have the running positions to show for it. Greg (Ives) and the guys made great adjustments on pit road and really improved the car throughout the race. A top-10 finish today is good momentum for us going to Indy next weekend.”
KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 13th“The team made a lot of changes to the car from the race yesterday, but we still really struggled with the handling in traffic. The difference between dirty and clean air is crazy. The Monster Energy Chevy was good early on when we had track position (clean air) and we were able to lead all the laps and get the Stage 1 win, but just a tough ending for the No.1 team, a little Pocono Deja vu for us today!”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 SYMBICORT CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 14th“Everyone on the Symbicort (budesonide/formoterol fumarate dihydrate) Chevrolet team did a great job hanging in there today and working together to pull off a top-15 finish. We made a few adjustments to our car and strategy based on what we learned yesterday. There was a lot more grip on the track then what I figured there would be for a 4 p.m. race start. We just battled a tight-handling condition for most of the day today, especially at the beginning of the race. We had to free up a bunch. We missed Stage points at the conclusion of Stage 1 by just one position, but then earned a few key Stage points at the end of Stage 2. During Stage 3, we worked our way into the top-five before pitting for fuel with 13 laps remaining. All-in-all, can’t complain about a 14^th-place finish. I want to thank everyone at AstraZeneca and Symbicort (budesonide/formoterol fumarate dihydrate) for their support.”
RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 15th“Overall, I think it was a solid weekend for our Kroger Chevrolet. We definitely learned some things on Saturday that we were able to adapt to for Sunday, but the track raced very differently on Sunday than it did on Saturday. We were really loose most of the race, but Brian (Pattie) made some great strategy calls to keep us running up front and ultimately get a top-15 finish at the end. We’re on a solid momentum streak and I’m looking forward to carrying that over to Indianapolis Motor Speedway next weekend.”
BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 VICTORY JUNCTION CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 20th“Our Richard Petty Motorsports team made the right adjustments for what we fought yesterday, but it still was not the right adjustments; that is kind of the frustrating part. We did not have enough raw speed and couldn’t quite get the handling we needed on our No. 43 Victory Junction Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE. All-in-all, we came-out with a top-20 finish and it’s an improvement from yesterday. Good to get out of Pocono, and give us time to refocus before we come back.”“I’m glad we got the race in. Racing with no lights is a little tricky, but all-in-all, we’ll head to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. We had our best finish there last year, so we’ll see if we can back that up.” TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CATERPILLAR CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 35th “This weekend did not go at all how we wanted it to, but I’m proud of the No. 8 Caterpillar team for never giving up at any point. Unfortunately, when I came across the line to take the green flag today I lost all power steering and had to drop back to protect the car. Right as I was going to hit pit road to see what we could do to fix the handling, the caution came out for rain, which almost ended up helping us. I was able to pit and give my team the entire yellow to work on the car. We figured out we would be able to replace the alternator belt right as the red flag came out. Once the yellow flag came back out, my team worked as fast as they could to make the repairs but we still ended up a handful of laps down by the time we could rejoin the field. From that point on it was just a matter of capitalizing on everything that came our way to gain as many spots as we possibly could. Every point matters in the fight to make the Playoffs, and we weren’t going to go down without a fight. We got trapped a little bit with how the race played out, but we gave it our all today to get everything we could. I wouldn’t want to be racing with any other group than the one I have right now and am looking forward to getting back after it at Indy next weekend.”

EASTABOGA, AL (June 27, 2020) – Jimmy Owens won his fourth straight Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt series event on Saturday Night leading all the way in the EZ-GO 50. The event marked the first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series race at Talladega Short Track in 12 years. The current series point leader extended his lead in the championship standings with his 69th career series victory. Josh Richards finished second in the Clint Bowyer Racing entry and Kyle Hardy recorded his best career finish in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series as he rounded out the Big River Steel podium in third. Michael Page came home in fourth followed by former series rookie-of-the-year, Billy Moyer Jr. in fifth. Owens took the lead at the start of the race with Hudson O’Neal quickly moving from his fourth starting spot to second. O’Neal ran in second behind Owens until he slowed on lap 8 and exited the race. Jonathan Davenport moved into second place where he would stay until a caution flew for him with 31 laps scored. Richards became the third different driver to run in the second spot behind Owens. A caution with ten laps to go bunched the field up, but for the fourth series race in a row, Owens went on to the victory in the richest race ever ran at TST. “Once again, the car was flawless all weekend,” said the 48-year-old 3-time series champion in Lucas Oil Victory Lane, “My hats to the crew and Dale McDowell for prepping the track this week. They watered the track and gave us a racy track for a long time. It’s great to come home with a win for Pope Construction, they are just up the road from here. He has helped us for years. I am just glad he could be a part of it and be here with us. I don’t think I have ever been here where I haven’t run off the corner in one and two. I am glad the fans stuck it out and I’m glad the weather held out. Hopefully, we can keep it going.”    Richards tried his best to stay with Owens in the closing laps but settled for the second finishing spot.  “Those guys have a done a good job,” said Richards in reference to Owens and his crew. “Whatever he has going on, he’s been riding it. It doesn’t seem like he has to hustle it very much. Compared to last night, tonight, we got the car more dialed in. We ran the race we feel like we came to win. We were right there on him. He beat us in certain parts of the track, but we feel like we can run with him in other parts.  Our balance is good, and we will just keep on digging.” Hardy was pleased with his run, “We came here with our backs against the wall. We had a tough night last night. I wish It didn’t end like it did. Hats off to the track crew. They worked hard on it this week and they gave us a track to race on. That’s what it’s all about. It means a lot to come here and finish behind Jimmy Owens and Josh Richards.”

The winner’s Ramirez Motorsports Rocket Chassis is powered by a Vic Hill Racing Engine and sponsored by Reece Monument Company, Tommy Pope Construction, Boomtest Well Service, Red Line Oil, General Tire, Midwest Sheet Metal, Hypercoil Springs, Ohlins Shocks, and Champion Spark Plugs. Completing the top ten were Cory Hedgecock, Dillon Tidmore, Tanner English, Tyler Erb, and Stormy Scott.Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series 
Race Summary 
EZ-Go 50
Saturday, June 27th, 2020
Talladega Short Track – Eastaboga, AL

Lucas Oil Time Trials
Fast Time Group A: Jonathan Davenport / 14.036 seconds (overall)
Fast Time Group B: Tim McCreadie / 14.273 seconds 

Penske Race Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer):  1. 49-Jonathan Davenport[1]; 2. 38-Dillon Tidmore[5]; 3. 18X-Michael Page[4]; 4. 9-Devin Moran[3]; 5. 50-Shanon Buckingham[8]; 6. 10J-Joseph Joiner[10]; 7. 66-Jake Knowles[7]; 8. 16S-Sam Seawright[6]; 9. 25-Shane Clanton[2]; 10. 00P-Dalton Polston[9]; 11. (DNS) 29-Christian Hanger

FK Rod Ends Heat Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer):  1. 14-Josh Richards[2]; 2. 2S-Stormy Scott[1]; 3. 1-Earl Pearson Jr[3]; 4. 40B-Kyle Bronson[8]; 5. 91-Heath Hindman[5]; 6. 21M-Billy Moyer Sr[4]; 7. 85-Jason Hiett[6]; 8. 35-Dallas Cooper[7]; 9. 6S-Blake Spencer[9]; 10. (DNS) 8-Kyle Strickler

Simpson Race Products Heat Race #3 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 20-Jimmy Owens[1]; 2. 21-Billy Moyer Jr[4]; 3. 79-Kyle Hardy[5]; 4. 81E-Tanner English[2]; 5. 44D-Dalton Cook[3]; 6. 22R-Will Roland[8]; 7. 57-Josh Adkins[9]; 8. 25M-Justin Mcree[10]; 9. 17-Logan Roberson[6]; 10. 84-Austin Smith[7]; 11. (DNS) 99M-JR Moseley

Ohlins Shocks Heat Race #4 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 71-Hudson O’Neal[2]; 2. 39-Tim McCreadie[1]; 3. 23H-Cory Hedgecock[3]; 4. 76-Brandon Overton[4]; 5. 1T-Tyler Erb[5]; 6. 24-Zach Leonhardi[6]; 7. 16-Tyler Bruening[8]; 8. 25T-Tim Roszell[9]; 9. 62-Cody King[7]; 10. 42K-Cla Knight[10]

Tiger Rear Ends B-Main #1 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer):  1. 50-Shanon Buckingham[1]; 2. 91-Heath Hindman[2]; 3. 10J-Joseph Joiner[3]; 4. 21M-Billy Moyer Sr[4]; 5. 85-Jason Hiett[6]; 6. 66-Jake Knowles[5]; 7. 25-Shane Clanton[9]; 8. 16S-Sam Seawright[7]; 9. 35-Dallas Cooper[8]; 10. 6S-Blake Spencer[10]; 11. (DNS) 00P-Dalton Polston; 12. (DNS) 8-Kyle Strickler; 13. (DNS) 29-Christian Hanger

FAST Shafts B-Main #2 Finish (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 1T-Tyler Erb[2]; 2. 44D-Dalton Cook[1]; 3. 24-Zach Leonhardi[4]; 4. 22R-Will Roland[3]; 5. 25T-Tim Roszell[8]; 6. 57-Josh Adkins[5]; 7. 62-Cody King[10]; 8. 42K-Cla Knight[12]; 9. 84-Austin Smith[11]; 10. 25M-Justin Mcree[7]; 11. 16-Tyler Bruening[6]; 12. 99M-JR Moseley[13]; 13. (DNS) 17-Logan Roberson

Lucas Oil Feature Finish (50 Laps): 

Race Statistics
Entrants: 42
Lap Leaders: Jimmy Owens (Laps 1 – 50)
Wrisco Feature Winner: Jimmy Owens
Margin of Victory: 1.581 seconds
Cautions: Hudson O’Neal (Lap 8); Jonathan Davenport (Lap 31); Shanon Buckingham, Earl Pearson Jr. (Lap 40)
Series Provisionals: Shane Clanton, Tyler Bruening
Fast Time Provisional: n/a
Series Emergency Provisionals: n/a
Big River Steel Podium Top 3: Jimmy Owens, Josh Richards, Kyle Hardy
Optima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race: Tyler Erb (Advanced 9 Positions) 
Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Jimmy Owens
Allstar Performance Most Laps Led: Jimmy Owens (50 Laps)
Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Jimmy Owens
Eibach Springs Rookie of the Race: Tanner English
ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Vic Hill Racing Engines
Miller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Rocket Chassis
Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Jeff Strope (Jimmy Owens)
Dirty Girl Racewear Fastest Lap of the Race: Jimmy Owens (Lap #1 – 14.276 seconds)
STEEL-IT Tough Break of the Race: Jonathan Davenport
PFC Brakes Pole Award: Jonathan Davenport
Time of Race: 23 minutes 48 seconds

Lucas Oil Point Standings:

NASCAR CUP SERIESPOCONO RACEWAYPOCONO DOUBLEHEADERTEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTESJUNE 27, 2020 
 TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:POS.   DRIVER11th    MATT KENSETH, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1 1LE14th    WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE17th    RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE18th    KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE19th    AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE 
TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS: POS.  DRIVER1st      Kevin Harvick (Ford)2nd     Denny Hamlin (Toyota)3rd      Aric Almirola (Ford)4th      Christopher Bell (Toyota)5th      Kyle Busch (Toyota)  The NASCAR Cup Series doubleheader race weekend at Pocono Raceway continues with the Pocono 350 tomorrow, June 28, at 4:00 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on FS1, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
TEAM CHEVY NOTES AND QUOTES:WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 14th“We struggled today. We had a hard time making speed and tried to salvage what we could there at the end. We started gaining more speed as the car tightened up by the end of the race. We’ll make some changes for tomorrow and see what we can do then.”
KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 18th“I’m not really sure what went wrong with the handling on our Monster Energy Camaro? The track changed dramatically for us. We were pretty good the first half of the race, before the car started handling really tight on the exit of the corners. The second half was not so good for us with the handling and track position. We’ll turn it around and work for a better result tomorrow”.
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 19th“We finished 19th today. Not what we wanted. Lost our track position in the middle of Stage 2 when the caution fell. It stunk. We were running eighth, and hoping it would go green and cycle out, but it didn’t. Nineteenth is what we had. I want to recognize all the farmers with American Ethanol. They’re the true backbone of America. I’m proud to race for them and all the ethanol producers across the country, so thank you guys for all your support. Tomorrow we start second and hopefully we can turn that into a solid run for all the RCR fans out there.”  BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 VICTORY JUNCTION CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 22nd“Well, that was a whole bunch of nothing. We didn’t really hit on much all day. On the tight side; just could never get the front end to work. The guys did good trying to figure out something on our No. 43 Victory Junction Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, it just wasn’t enough. We tried to pull some strategy there at the end, and just didn’t have enough raw speed to dial ourselves out. So, all-in-all, I’m proud of the efforts. We just kind of swung for the fences but didn’t really hit anything good. We know what not to do for tomorrow. We’ll come back way better with a totally different package. I had a good debrief with the guys, so we’ll see what tomorrow brings for us starting in the 22^nd-place. We missed that invert spot by two; stayed on the lead lap almost by a lap. But all-in-all it’s good to come out of there with a clean car. A lot of people had a bad day, so we capitalized. On to tomorrow.”
TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 26th “Our GEICO Camaro ZL1 1LE was fast and handled well through the corners, but something was wrong under the hood. Our car just didn’t have the speed on the straightaway and it hurt our momentum. We started the race really tight, but Matt (Borland) made a big adjustment on the first stop which helped the balance. My Germain Racing guys will try to figure out what was wrong tonight, so it doesn’t hinder us tomorrow.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 27th“That is not the way we wanted to end the race. We had a good run going and were going to end up top 10. The No. 2 got into us there at the end and we cut a tire. Definitely don’t have the finish to show how our day was going, but we will be back tomorrow with a new car.”
TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CATERPILLAR CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 30th“The Caterpillar Chevrolet was really fast today at Pocono Raceway, and I think we showed that. We had good speed at the start of the race but we were involved in a wreck at the end of Stage Two that put us two laps down and changed the course of our race. From then on out, it was all about finishing and earning maximum points. I have to thank my guys for their hard work and making repairs so I could finish the last stage. We kept after it as a team and finished all the laps, trying to maximize on as many points as we could. We will regroup and be ready for round two tomorrow. Thank you to Caterpillar and the Cleveland Brothers for their support. We will definitely be ready to go tomorrow.” 

NASCAR CUP SERIESPOCONO RACEWAYPOCONO DOUBLEHEADERTEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPTJUNE 26, 2020 
GREG IVES, CREW CHIEF FOR THE NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE FOR HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS, spoke with media via teleconference to discuss going into the first doubleheader race weekend in NASCAR history at Pocono Raceway, his thoughts as a crew chief on single-day shows without practice, and more. Transcript:  HOW EXCITING AND HOW CHALLENGING WILL IT BE TO BE RUNNING BACK-TO-BACK DAYS AT A TRACK LIKE POCONO? “Unfortunately for us, the doubleheader is going to be new to us, but our friends over at JRM just experienced that at Homestead a couple of weeks ago. Talking to Dave Owens, Travis Mack, and those guys, the crew chiefs over there, just getting some of their ideas and the problems they had. I know on the 9 car, they had to replace some body panels and those types of things. It’s definitely going to be new and exciting. I grew up short track racing myself and having twin-125’s and those types of things. Obviously, different scenarios on different days, but it’s definitely going to be fun to do something different.”
IF I READ THE RULES RIGHT, IT LOOKS LIKE YOU MAY HAVE 8 TO 9 HOURS TO WORK ON THE CAR FROM SATURDAY TO SUNDAY. THAT SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF TIME.“Yeah, I mean it’s always a lot of time until you’re down to the last 20 to 30 minutes. Typically, that’s what the race teams do. They utilize every minute they possibly can, either to make their car better or to double-check things. We have a full list of items that we’re going to either check or inspect to make sure that we don’t have any issues. Who knows what types of incidents we’re going to run into. You’re planning for some pushing on restarts, so are you going to have tail or rear bumper damage that doesn’t necessarily make you want to go to a backup car, but you have to fix it before you go back into the next race. There’s a lot of things like that you don’t have the luxury of your fabricators at the track to make sure it’s right, so that all takes time. Multiple runs maybe through the hawk-eye system and that nine hours is going to go by pretty quick. I think NASCAR is putting that amount of time in just because it’s new. Let’s not try to hit a home run the first time – make sure these guys have enough time to diagnose any issues they may have. And the next time we do this, maybe we can trim back some time.”
YOU GUYS HAVE BACKUP CARS THIS WEEKEND – THAT’S BEEN A REASON WHY THERE HASN’T BEEN PRACTICE OR QUALIFYING. HOW CLOSE DO YOU THINK YOU GUYS ARE TO BEING ABLE TO HAVE BACKUP CARS EVERY WEEKEND IF NASCAR WANTED TO START HAVING ANY PRACTICE OR QUALIFYING? “I think the one thing that backup cars cause issue with is the workforce in the shop. Just having to prepare two cars each week and do that without maybe all one hundred percent personnel in the shop. That tends to make for some long hours and you know what happens when people work long hours – they tend to get grumpy and we don’t want that to happen. This is a fun sport and enjoy what we love to do. Eliminating some of the mid-week races, the Wednesday races, helps that. But all-in-all, you just have to look at the pro of having practice versus what we’re doing already. I feel like what we have right now as a product on the race track is pretty good and that is without a backup car, without qualifying and without practice. I think for the short term, to continue on like this is probably the best way to go.”
FROM A CREW CHIEF STANDPOINT, YOU SAID IT LOOKS LIKE THE SHOWS HAVE BEEN BETTER WITHOUT PRACTICE AND THE SINGLE DAY SHOWS. WHEN THINGS GET BACK TO NORMAL, ARE YOU ITCHING TO SEE PRACTICE BACK? DO YOU THINK THE TEAMS CAN GO WITHOUT PRACTICE IN THE FUTURE? HOW DO YOU SEE IT?“I would like to see practice come back, just from the sense of I have some things I’d like to try to make the car better. You can run as much simulation as possible, but getting it on the race track is the true test. The true feel from the driver and also the stopwatch. I would definitely like to do that being in the Playoffs. Usually this time is used for experimenting and finding that next tenth or two, which is so hard to find in this sport because of how close everything is with rules and the competition. I would like to have practice – not necessarily because I think it’s going to make the racing better on Sunday or easier for the guys in the shop. But I feel like from my standpoint, I go to tests to make my car better and as a crew chief, that’s what you want to be able to do. That’s what I would like to do – have a little bit more time on the track without actually racing.”
WITH EVERYTHING THAT’S GOING ON WITH THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, YOU GUYS FIND YOURSELF IN AN UNIQUE POSITION WHERE YOU HAVE TWO RACES AT THE SAME RACE TRACK ON THE SAME WEEKEND. SO, IT’S ALMOST LIKE YOU GET A PRACTICE SESSION NOW WITH THE RACE ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. WHAT ARE THE THINGS YOU’RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO ADJUST BETWEEN SATURDAY AND SUNDAY TO MAKE THE CAR BETTER, DEPENDING ON HOW ALEX (BOWMAN) IS FEELING?“You really can’t change the body configuration. You can to a certain point. If you come there with more of a downforce car versus – you hear that a lot- I had too much drag in the car. It’s going to be difficult, probably, to change that style. There’s some tweaks you can make to get some of the drag off or maybe put some downforce in. But you can’t, obviously, rebuild the whole car. From my springs, shocks, camber settings, those types of things – you definitely can adjust. By the time it’s the end of stage one, usually my engineer is over there ‘hey, we should have done this or we should have done that’. I’ve already got a laundry list of items going of what we need to adjust and that’s not even for a doubleheader. Fortunately for us, I feel like we’ve had good baselines, a good foundation, each week and had a lot of speed. Just have to figure out how to execute and finish some of these races. I think for Pocono, I think the strategy side of things, you’re going to see how different people adjust. They may do one strategy on Saturday and one strategy on Sunday. That’s definitely going to be interesting to see how that plays out.”
OF ALL THE THINGS THAT MIGHT HAPPEN WHEN YOU HAVE A DOUBLEHEADER WEEKEND, WHAT ARE YOU MOST INTRIGUED TO FIND OUT?“Over the course of every year, every race, the track gains character. And what I mean by character is the bumps. Pocono, for example, it started out as a pretty smooth race track. You could stiffen up your front wheel brakes and mainly work on the attitude of the car, and get that so it really doesn’t move like a go-cart. But as the character of the track zones in over the tunnel and gets a little bit more bumps – and now people complain about the front end washing out because you hit a bump and it pushes up the race track, and now you have to work a little more on handling – those are the things that you can’t really predict when you don’t have practice. Typically, when you show up, you have a couple of laps – the driver comes in and says ‘yeah, I’m hitting the splitter too hard, we need a little softer front wheel or it’s way too rigid’, and you can work on that. Once you get into the race, it’s definitely difficult to know that or even change that once those laps start clicking off. The character of the track, you’ve probably even seen it at Talladega, that new tunnel in the entry of Turn Three, you can see the cars moving around a lot more. And you didn’t know that until either watching a race – the ARCA cars or the Xfinity cars – but once we got out there, definitely saw some different things like that.”
WHO DO YOU THINK BENEFITS FROM THIS KIND OF SCHEDULE? THE BIGGER TEAMS WITH TWO RACES IN A WEEKEND? DRIVERS WHO RACE A LOT? DRIVERS WITH EXPERIENCE? YOUNG GUYS?“I definitely think those that kind of have it together with a good foundation. Like I said, we were able to start the year, when we had practice, dialing our setup a little bit. Once we were able to start racing again, we were able to have some really strong runs and, potentially, could have had multiple wins. As the weeks start clicking off, everybody starts zoning back in on what they need to compete – either getting their cars better, setups better, drivers knocking the rust off, teams correlating their splitter heights and what the tires need for air pressure and grip. I think just having that solid baseline to start with and not trying to hit a home run, and ‘hey, we know this package is going to race well, so let’s not try to re-invent the wheel and just go out there and have a solid foundation’. Obviously, the bigger teams are able to feed off of each other. I have a lot of great teammates at Hendrick Motorsports that I can lean on for advice and what their thoughts are going into each week. So, I think it tailors a little bit better to the bigger teams and those that have more experience. The smaller teams, it’s maybe just taking a couple of weeks to zone in on what they need.”
JUST WANTED TO ASK YOU ABOUT POCONO AND INDIANAPOLIS – THE PAST, PEOPLE WERE ABLE TO LOOK AT IT AS BEING ABLE TO TAKE WHAT YOU HAD IN POCONO INTO INDIANAPOLIS. IS THAT STILL A CASE WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THE CHARACTER OF POCONO? “I think everything is relevant. I feel like, as a crew chief, every lap I learn. We used to test at Nashville or Kentucky back in the day, down to New Smyrna – every lap we learned. Pocono definitely has a lot of characteristics with the flat corners, in some sense, and understanding what your package is going to do there. Like I said, the character of Pocono is just going to be a little bit different than Indy. How your car is going to draft down the front straightaway versus at Indy with their long straightaways. So, there are a lot of similarities that you can definitely pull from. If you feel like you selected the wrong aero package at Pocono, it’s probably going to be the wrong one at Indy. And you’re going to do some more things to maybe trim the car out or vice versa – if you trim the car out too much and you still need the handle at Indy. There’s definitely a lot of similarities and like you said, you can learn from Pocono, you can learn what not to do to bring to Indy. Ultimately, definitely a different character at each track, so it’s not a complete ‘hey, I just won Pocono, now I’m going to go win Indy because of this package’. That’s probably not the best way to think about it, but it definitely correlates a lot. Both tend to have the fuel mileage race and that strategy at the end of each stage to win stage points or put yourself in the best position at the end of the race. So, a lot of similarities, a lot of things you can carry over, but it’s not a complete one off.”
CERTAINLY, I’M SURE YOUR AWARE, THE CHARLOTTE AREA HAS MORE CORONA VIRUS CASES. I’M CURIOUS, HOW DOES THAT AFFECT THE GUIDANCE THAT YOU GIVE YOUR TEAM TO PROTECT THEMSELVES? “Definitely. On an individual basis, you have to have those conversations with each guy that you have on your team. Like you said, from the comfort level of traveling to different areas. I’ve had that conversation with them. The other thing is, everybody at Hendrick Motorsports is taking this time seriously. When we are traveling to Pocono, how are we going to feed our guys and supply them with the food they need. It may sound trivial, but not having them go to restaurants to potentially expose them. And we’ve come up with plans where basically we give them the meals they need so they are only going to one location. Making sure they eat at the track versus going out to somewhere else. Those types of things, even from how we are feeding the guys to how we are protecting them, is definitely very much important to not only myself, but everybody at Hendrick Motorsports. I feel like we’re doing it the best way, the safest way. For those that may feel uncomfortable in those scenarios or situations, we’re definitely hearing their voice and taking the proper protocol.” 

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCEPOCONO DOUBLEHEADERPOCONO RACEWAYLONG POND, PAJUNE 27-28, 2020
RACE #14 & #15: POCONOFor the first time in NASCAR history, Pocono Raceway will be the host of a NASCAR doubleheader race weekend. The ground-breaking weekend schedule will feature five races in three days, including two NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) events on back-to-back days: the Pocono Organics 325 in Partnership with Rodale Institute on Saturday, June 27th, and the Pocono 350 on Sunday, June 28th. The NCS doubleheader around the 2.5-mile track known as the ‘Tricky Triangle’ will mark the 14th and 15th races on the revised NCS schedule. In compliance with the pandemic guidelines, all events during the doubleheader weekend will be run without spectators.  ALL-TIME WINS LEADEROf NASCAR’s premier series’ 84 trips to the 2.5-mile tri-oval, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with a total of 32 all-time wins. NASCAR Hall of Famer and career Chevrolet driver Jeff Gordon leads the way in wins at Pocono Raceway with six victories (1996, 1997, 1998, 2007, 2011 and 2012). Two Team Chevy drivers are in the record books as multiple race winners, including Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, and Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, both with three career wins at the track.  BOWTIE BULLETS·       Of the NASCAR Cup Series’ 84 races at the ‘Tricky Triangle’, Chevrolet has recorded 168 top-five’s, 367 top-10’s, and 7,180 laps led. 
·       Career Chevrolet driver Jeff Gordon leads the series in laps led at Pocono Raceway with 1,040 laps in 47-career starts. Of active drivers, Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, has recorded the most laps led with a total of 743 laps in 36 starts. Of other lap leader statistics, Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, holds the record for the most laps led in a single NCS race at the track with 175 of 200 laps (August ’07). ·       A Chevrolet has led the field to the green from the pole position 34 times, more than any other manufacturer. The most recent Chevy pole winner at Pocono is William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 (June ‘19). 
·       Chevrolet team Hendrick Motorsports has the most wins at Pocono of any team with 17 trips to victory lane: Jeff Gordon (six), Tim Richmond (three), Jimmie Johnson (three), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (two), Kasey Kahne (one), Geoff Bodine (one) and Terry Labonte (one). ·       Of active drivers, Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads the way in runner-up finishes with five and top-five finishes with 14 at the track. In other top-finishing statistics of note, Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch lead all active NCS drivers in top-10 finishes with 20 each in their careers. ·       With 13 races in the books thus far, Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads all NCS drivers in an Average Running Position of 8.2, as well as topping the Fastest Laps Run list with 317. Following the GEICO 500 at Talladega, Elliott broke his longest career streak for races led (eight).  COMING TO THE GREENThe race weekend format continues on with no practice or qualifying. The starting lineup for Saturday’s Pocono Organics 325 in Partnership with Rodale Institute will be set by virtue of owners points and a random draw. Here are Team Chevy’s top-20 starters: 5th      Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE7th      Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE10th    Alex Bowman, No. 88 ChevyGoods.com Camaro ZL1 1LE12th    Jimmie Johnson, No 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE14th    Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1 1LE15th    Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Caterpillar Camaro ZL1 1LE16th    William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE17th    Austin Dillon, No. 3 American Ethanol Camaro ZL1 1LE The starting lineup for Sunday’s Pocono 350 will be set by the finishing order of Saturday’s event, with an inversion of the top-20 finishers.  TUNE-INFOX will telecast the 130-lap, 325-mile Pocono Organics 325 in Partnership with Rodale Institute live at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 27th. FS1 will telecast the 140-lap, 350-mile Pocono 350 live at 4:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 28th. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. QUOTABLE QUOTES:CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 4th IN STANDINGS“So far, our prep hasn’t been any different for this weekend’s doubleheader. We ultimately want to run one car the whole weekend. I think keeping that in mind during the race on Saturday, but at the same time I don’t know that you are really going to approach it much different. You always want to try and finish, and finish toward the front, so I don’t think that is going to change. I do think track position is going to be really important with the shorter races, though, especially lining yourself up for the last stage in each event because it is going to be so short. It’s going to be hard to make up a lot of ground in a hurry.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 8th IN STANDINGSBOWMAN’S THOUGHTS ON POCONO: “Pocono is a really fun track. It is one of my favorite tracks we go to. We are typically really fast here. This track is an interesting track because there is a big compromise in all three corners. It is definitely one of the more technical places that we go to.”
BOWMAN’S THOUGHTS ON PASSING AT POCONO:“Pocono is a tough place to pass cars. One of the keys is to qualify decent, but since we aren’t qualifying, we need to hope we get a good draw. The track is really a one groove track and since it doesn’t widen out a lot, it is tough to get by cars. Hendrick Motorsports is building some fast cars right now and I know when we go to Pocono this weekend, that is what we will have.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 14th IN STANDINGSBYRON ON THE POCONO DOUBLE HEADER:“I think overall it’s going to be a fun weekend. I really enjoy racing at Pocono. I think it’s one of those racetracks we go to that’s cool to race at, but is also really tough to get around. The restarts are really difficult and usually pretty treacherous. It’s important to have good, clean and consistent restarts there. You also need a good long run car that turns well to make speed. Now add in back-to-back races there, I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to bring a new challenge and I think we’re up for it. We’ve ran well at Pocono in the past so this is a chance for us to really capitalize.”
BYRON ON IF A GOOD CAR AT POCONO IS SETUP TO RUN BETTER IN ONE CORNER OR CONSISTENT IN ALL THREE:“I think there’s still some truth to when people say you need to have your car setup better in one corner than the others at Pocono Raceway. However, I honestly think nowadays with the way engineering is, you have to figure out how to make it work in all three corners pretty well more than you use to. You have to be close to exceptional in all three turns to be competitive, but I think Turn 3 is the most important, personally. The way that corner is and how difficult it is for the majority of the field, you want to be better there than everyone else. I always look at racetracks and try to see where the majority of the field will be weak and usually the best cars throughout the race excel in those areas of weakness. With that being said, I think the saying still holds true today with the three corners and having to be good at one end over another.” TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CATERPILLAR CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 16th IN STANDINGS“The toughest thing to overcome at Pocono Raceway has got the be the dirty air. I’ve gotten in these Cup cars a few times on 1.5-mile tracks, and we ran a similar aero package in our Xfinity cars at Pocono a couple of years ago, and the draft is a huge part of your handling. Managing your track position to avoid as much dirty air as possible is going to be very important. If we’re entering that weekend on a draw, that draw could be the very thing that dictates the first half of the Saturday race and how you’ll need to go about getting track position. With the track being so flat, it’s also important to keep the front of the car rotating through all three corners, which is a challenge since you get tighter the longer we run. With this package, that’s going to get enhanced the longer we are in dirty air. It’s going to be a dogfight on the restarts because of how valuable the air is.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 18th IN STANDINGSTALK ABOUT POCONO RACEWAY. IT’S AN INTERESTINGLY-SHAPED TRACK.“Pocono is a fun, fast track and I feel like we’ve been able to build a good notebook there so I’m excited to get there this weekend for a double-header. Good finishes will be important for us and the points battle following Talladega. At Pocono Raceway, speed is definitely carried through turn two and through three to the start-finish line. I think those are the most important corners. Of course, every corner is important, but turns two and three are a little bit more important because it’s the flat end of the track.” RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 20th IN STANDINGS “Coming off of a really strong weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, I’m looking forward to the doubleheader at Pocono this weekend. The doubleheader is obviously going to create its own set of unique challenges. The races are shorter, and you could hit on something during the race on Saturday that could really help you on Sunday. We have definitely shown a lot of speed at the big tracks so far this season, and while Pocono Raceway has been a struggle for me in the past, I think Brian Pattie has hit on some things that will give us a strong run Saturday and Sunday in our No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1 1LE.” RYAN PREECE, NO. 37 P&G CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 29th IN STANDINGS“I really like the fact that Pocono Raceway is a doubleheader. I like racing twice in one weekend because of the opportunity it gives you to try something on Saturday and if that doesn’t work, you can readjust for Sunday. I think track position is huge at Pocono and being able to have clean air is a big advantage as well. It’s truly a ‘Tricky Triangle’ with the different turns and straightaways. We’ve got a new paint scheme with our partners at P&G this weekend, and I encourage our fans to go to pg.com/TakeOnRace for more information.”

June 25, 2020

Matt DiBenedetto and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team are headed to Pocono Raceway this weekend for a rare Cup Series double-header. They will run the Pocono Organics 325 on Saturday afternoon then return Sunday for the Pocono 350. Both races will be full points-paying events.

DiBenedetto has 10 career starts at Pocono but will be making his first appearance there in the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Mustang.

“Pocono used to be one of my favorite tracks,” he said. “It’s so unique, and we used to shift gears every lap.”

These days, he said, things are different with the new handling package and its lower horsepower requirement.

“Now you get everything you can get on the restarts,” he said. “You go banzai for the first few turns, then everything single-files out.”

He said that when you’re running anywhere other than in the lead, it’s a struggle, aerodynamically speaking.
 
“You battle dirty air more at Pocono than at any other track except Indianapolis,” he said.

“You have to really attack the restarts. Track position means everything. 
 
“That puts a lot of pressure on me and on the crew to execute on the pit stops and restarts.”
 
Pocono, with its relatively low banking and long distance (2.5 miles), offers opportunities for fuel-mileage strategies, and the Wood Brothers team historically has been adept at taking advantage of those situations.
 
DiBenedetto, although a newcomer to the team, is well aware of the possibilities Pocono presents.
  
“The track is so big and so long that you can make a green-flag pit stop and not lose a lap,” he said. “Even if the caution comes out, you can stay out and gain track position.
 
“And the crew can crunch the numbers and treat the races there like a road course.”
 
He doesn’t expect the shorter length of the races this weekend will change how teams plan their pit stops.

 “I think the strategies will be the same,” he said.
 
And DiBenedetto said running two Pocono races in two days won’t be too physically taxing.
 
“That part will be fun,” he said. “The races aren’t super long. I should be able to recover physically and get rehydrated.”
 
The real test, he said, will be for the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team, which has to take the Mustang they race on Saturday and in a short time prepare in for Sunday’s race.

“That part will be a good test for our team,” he said.

There will be no practice or qualifying for either race.
 
The Pocono Organics 325 is set to start just after 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, with TV coverage on FOX. Sunday’s Pocono 350 is scheduled to get the green flag at 4 p.m. on Sunday with TV coverage on FOX Sports 1.
 

• Emerging talents Jacob Abel, Dakota Dickerson, Taylor Hagler and Karl Wittmer work to accelerate their careers with experience behind the wheel of the Acura NSX GT3 Evo
• Inaugural GT3 Academy event combined on- and off-track instruction at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta
• Race winners and NSX GT3 Race veterans Dane Cameron and Ryan Eversley provided one-on-one coaching for the candidates

Atlanta, GA (June 25, 2020) – A quartet of promising racers became the first graduates of the Honda Performance Development GT3 Driver Academy earlier this week, as HPD’s program to assist young drivers accelerate their careers held its inaugural session at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.

The four members of the first GT3 Academy class all were selected for the racing career promise and included Taylor Hagler, Jacob Abel, Karl Wittmer and Dakota Dickerson.  All arrived Sunday for an orientation session with the Acura NSX GT3 Evo they would pilot during the next two days. The car, prepped and crewed by the 2019 SRO World Challenge GT America Championship-winning Racers Edge Motorsports team, proved to be an ideal classroom for the challenging Road Atlanta circuit.

Intermittent thunderstorms shuffled the planned schedule for the inaugural HPD GT3 Academy event at Road Atlanta, but the racer/students still each ran 60-plus laps over two days and worked through the full curricula that included one-on-one coaching and instruction. The first group meeting occurred online Thursday evening with Acura’s social media staff and agency offering best practices on digital engagement with fans, teams, and large OEMs.

Taylor Hagler, who drives a Honda Civic Type R TCR in the Michelin Pilot Challenge noted, “I had a pretty steep learning curve, but thanks to the pre-track briefings, I felt right at home once I got into the cockpit. The NSX GT3 Evo was amazing, and I’m still processing everything I learned in the last two days. I can’t wait for the next event at Mid-Ohio!”

The Road Atlanta program included on-track coaching sessions in the championship winning from NSX GT3 Evo race winners Ryan Eversley and Dane Cameron, as well as off-track instruction relating to effective communication with team personnel and engineers, in addition to driver marketing insights and sponsor searches. As a testament to the drivers’ quick learning, the original target lap set for the drivers by Dane had to be reset with an even faster base lap early on the second day.

“The first event of the GT3 Academy went flawlessly,” commented F3 Americas race winner Jacob Abel. “The NSX GT3 car was awesome, and having very limited experience in sports cars prior to this opportunity, I was concerned about adapting. However, Ryan, Dane, and everyone at Racers Edge Motorsports made the transition seamless. I’m looking forward to taking what we learned the past couple of days and building on it at Mid-Ohio next month!”

After each on-track session, the drivers immediately reviewed lap data and in-car video with an instructor, while drivers not on track would pair with another instructor at a location around the track. Acura Motorsports/HPD provided engineering support and feedback to increase driver experience in working with OEM engineering staff. With a stated goal of expanding diversity and access for North American racing talent, HPD is committed to bringing more opportunities like this for the future stars of motorsport.

Canadian racer Karl Wittmer said, “I have a lot of experience in Touring Cars, but even so, this was quite different. The pre-track briefings and coaching were really valuable, but the best part was definitely getting behind the wheel and getting faster and faster over the two days!”

The Mid-Ohio GT3 Academy event in July will feature two 2019 NSX GT3 Evo Champions in drivers Kyle Marcelli and Mario Farnbacher as instructors and will focus on communication and feedback with a racer’s team and engineering personnel. The remaining two GT3 Academy dates will be announced shortly with a planned bonus event later in the year.

Current F3 Americas Champion Dakota Dickerson concludes, “The first event of the HPD GT3 Drivers Academy was an incredible experience. Being able to work with so many experienced professionals including the Racers Edge Motorsports Team, Ryan Eversley, Dane Cameron, and all of the folks at Acura Motorsports helped accelerate my learning curve and gave me valuable insights. Plus, the Acura NSX GT3 EVO was a blast to drive!”

Next GT3 Academy Event: July 22-23 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Inside Line Promotions – GAS CITY, Ind. (June 24, 2020) – Giovanni Scelzi showcased speed in both a winged sprint car and a midget throughout four races in a six-day span.

Scelzi made his debut behind the wheel of Guy Forbrook’s sprint car on June 12 at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa, which hosted the two-day Brownells Big Guns Bash featuring the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.

Scelzi qualified fifth quickest out of 26 drivers in his group, placed sixth in a heat race and won the Last Chance Showdown to lock into the main event. He then charged from 21^st to 14^thin the feature to be tied for the third-most cars passed.

“Knoxville was about getting comfortable in the race car,” he said. “I think it takes time. It’s a new car so everything is different. We’ll get more comfortable the more we race. We had awesome speed though.”

Scelzi continued to be fast the following day as he timed in third quickest out of 26 drivers in his group. He was running second in a heat race when an incident ended the night early.

“I was in a spot to make the dash when I got into the infield and spun,” he said. “I tried to run the bottom lane and clipped the infield drain. It just bounced and backed me up into the fence.”

Scelzi was off for two days before joining Tucker Boat Motorsports for a pair of Indiana Midget Week races with the USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midgets beginning a week ago Tuesday at Paragon Speedway in Paragon, Ind.

Scelzi qualified eighth quickest out of 46 drivers before he maneuvered from fifth to third place in a heat race. That locked him into the main event and the feature inversion placed him on the pole for the 30-lap feature. Scelzi led the first 10 laps before losing a pair of positions in traffic. He was maintaining third place until he caught the cushion wrong with nine laps to go.

“We were really fast at Paragon,” he said. “I was pushing too hard and hit the cushion and flipped. It’s easy to do in those cars. I think we could have had a third-place run. We regrouped for a good finish on Tuesday.”

Scelzi also drove for the team the following night at Gas City I-69 Speedway, where he timed in 17^th quickest and won a heat race to garner the eighth starting position for the A Main. He continued to progress throughout the feature and posted a fifth-place finish, which was his sixth top five of the season.

“I’m glad we were able to have a good run,” he said. “I struggled to get off turn two. That’s where I think I got beat. I felt better in turns three and four. It was a lot of fun racing the midget again.

“I want to thank Toyota and Tucker Boat Motorsports as well as Guy Forbrook for the opportunities.”

Scelzi returns to pavement competition the next two weekends. He will race this Saturday at Utah Motorsports Campus in Erda, Utah, during the ENEOS/Sunrise Ford Twins presented by West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame with the ARCA Menards Series West.

BACK ON TRACK

Santa Pod Raceway

Sat.4 July 2020 – Racer Day

Sun.5 July 2020 – Racer Day

Sat.11 July 2020 – Street Day

British drag racing roars back to life next month with Back On Track at Santa Pod Raceway, two individual days of track action for racers on Saturday 4 ^th and Sunday 5 ^th July (Racer Days) and a third day for Run What Ya Brung (public track day) entrants on Saturday 11 ^th July (Street Day). All three events, naturally, will be conducted according to the Government’s lockdown guidance.

Each meeting will be held behind closed doors, admitting no spectators. On each Racer Day the attendance list will be limited to just 100 pre-booked entries. A paddock area accustomed to hosting 300 race teams and their transporters will enable bespoke, enlarged pit bays to accommodate social-distancing requirements. Both Racer Day events are open to cars and motorcycles using only race tyres, and the dragstrip surface will be prepared to full race standard.

Both Racer Day events will be live-streamed on Santa Pod’s YouTube and Facebook channels.

Street Day will also welcome cars and motorcycles. Only treaded street tyres will be permitted on the track.

New hygiene and safety measures are being introduced to ensure that Santa Pod remains Covid-secure. To comply with Government guidelines prohibiting gatherings of more than six people, individual entries at all three events will be restricted to one driver and five crew members. Hand-sanitiser stations will be located throughout the venue and regular hand-washing encouraged, while limited retail and catering facilities will be equipped according to required standards.

Full event information, detailing all the Racer Day and Street Day requirements and regulations, is available at www.rwyb.co.uk/backontrack.php and entry tickets may be booked, first-come, first-served, at www.santapodtickets.com. 

The UK drag racing season was due to begin at Easter, with racers already eager for action after a long winter’s break from the track. By now, Santa Pod should have hosted three national championship events and the opening round of the FIA/FIM European Championship series, plus its regular programme of modified car shows, specialist festivals and public track days on every intervening weekend. Despite their Covid-imposed restrictions, the Back On Track Racer Day and Street Day events respectively offer racers and RWYB entrants on two and four wheels a precious opportunity to test, tune and match race for the first time this year. It has been a long time coming, but drag racing is at last heading Back On Track.

BATAVIA, OH (June 26, 2020) – A doubleheader of racing action in Tennessee and Alabama is on tap with Friday’s event at 411 Motor Speedway, followed by an event on Saturday at Talladega Short Track. Both events will feature a complete program of: Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and a 50-lap, $12,000-to-win main event. The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series makes a second visit to the McCarter family-owned 411 Motor Speedway this Friday, June 26th. Known as Tennessee’s Action Track, 411 Motor Speedway is celebrating their 60th year of thrilling, edge of your seat racing action. In addition to the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, 411 Motor Speedway will have 604 Late Models, 602 Late Models, and Classics. In 2019, Ross Bailes led all 50 laps en route to his first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win, but it was not easy sailing for the South Carolina driver. A caution plagued event saw many drivers take a stab at the top spot, especially in the closing laps. Donald McIntosh charged from the sixth starting spot to finish second, while current series point leader Jimmy Owens, finished in third.  The activities on Friday will get underway with pit gates opening at 2:00 PM, followed by general admission gates at 4:00 PM, hot laps at 7:15 PM. The stars of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will make a return appearance to Talladega Short Track in Eastaboga, AL for the first time since 2008 (event rained out in 2009), on Saturday, June 27th. Talladega Short Track is a 1/3rd mile, high banked, red clay oval that is the home of “Dirt Trackin’ Southern Style”. The last series visit saw Chris Madden take the victory followed by Ray Cook and Shane Clanton, after a hard fought battle on a multi-grove track.  Saturday’s festivities will begin with pit and general admission gates opening at 12 PM. The on-track action will begin with hot laps at 6:30 PM. Along with the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, 604 Dirt Late Models, 602 Late Models, Modifieds, and Hot Shots will be on hand. Lucas Oil Championship Standings:

Track & Event Information:411 Motor SpeedwayPhone Number: 865-888-5901Location: 632 Maryville Hwy. Seymour, TN 37865Directions: Located just 13 miles south of Knoxville, 13 miles North of Sevierville, and just 13 miles East of Maryville. 1 mile south of U.S. Highway 441 (Chapman Highway) on Highway 411 intersection.Website: www.411motorspeedway.net Talladega Short TrackPhone Number: 256-831-1413Location: 4343 Speedway Blvd Eastaboga, AL 36260Directions: I-20 to exit 173 toward Eastaboga, turn south onto John N Wills Ave, continue 0.3 miles to the speedway.Website: www.talladegashorttrack.com Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Tire Rule:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier Rib (28.5) 1350Right Rear – Hoosier (29.0) 1350 NRM, (29.0) 1350 NRMW, (92) LM40 *Must use the same set of 4 tires for Time Trials, Heat Races, and B-Main.*For the Feature, competitors may use 2 new rear tires of choice.*Flat tire must be replaced with a used tire of the same compound and construction to retain the starting position.

June 22, 2020

DiBenedetto had a fast Quick Lane Mustang for much of Monday’s rain-delayed GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, but in the end he fell victim to one of the crashes that often occur in the draft at Talladega and its sister track, Daytona International Speedway.

DiBenedetto was involved in a last-lap melee on the backstretch, was unable to continue to the finish line and wound up 26th.
 
“We pitted for fuel and were driving up through the middle and got blindsided by somebody crashing,” he said.

He was checked out at the track’s infield care center and released but said it was a bruising wreck.
 
“It was a hard hit,” he said. “But I should be fine.”

Early in the race, things were going much better for DiBenedetto and the No. 21 team. He started 23^rd after the starting line-up was set by drawing positions.

He had moved up to 19^th by the time the competition caution flag flew at Lap 27, and led that lap by staying on the track while the drivers ahead of him pitted. Back underway he cracked the top five by Lap 42, and was in second place two laps later. He took the lead at one point but had dropped to 13^th place when rain halted the race at Lap 57.

After a 58-minute red flag, drivers headed to pit road, and DiBenedetto returned to the track in 10^th place.

Working with his Ford teammates, he kept the Quick Lane Mustang among the top five for much of the second Stage of the race but ended that segment in 17^th place. 

DiBenedetto was sent to the rear of the pack for speeding on pit road during a stop with 43 laps remaining, but battled back into the top 20 and was in 19^th place for the start of the overtime finish, where he was collected in the last-lap crash on the backstretch that caused him to drop one spot to 15^th in the points standings.
 
The No. 21 team now heads to Pocono Raceway for a Saturday-Sunday double-header this weekend.