The 16-year-old silenced many doubters with speed and maturity as his rookie campaign began

BARBERVILLE, FL (February 16, 2024) – A week ago, Sprint Car fans across the nation were left stunned. 

The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars unleashed its first Sea Foam Qualifying session of the 2024 season at Volusia Speedway Park and when the final car took the checkered flag, it wasn’t one of the usual suspects laying down the fastest lap. Neither qualifying master David Gravel nor Carson Macedo stood atop the speed chart. That spot belonged to 16-year-old Landon Crawley.

The Benton, AR native came out with a bang in his first laps with The Greatest Show on Dirt. And he wasn’t done yet. Crawley finished second in his Heat race to qualify for the Dash in his first appearance. Two nights later he qualified fourth fastest in his Flight and again made the Dash. This time he topped the Dash to sit on the pole of only his third World of Outlaws Feature. Heads were turned and doubters silenced.

“Blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while. I just happened to find two this week,” Crawley joked. “I don’t know how long I can keep it up, but I’m going to do my best and just take it one night at a time.”

The teenager is wise beyond his years and taking a healthy approach to his rookie World of Outlaws campaign. A one-night-at-a-time outlook is exactly what’s required to tackle the demanding 80-plus race calendar. Crawley displays a maturity that didn’t go unnoticed by Jason Sides as the longtime driver for his own team put him in the seat of the #7S for 2024.

“It definitely helps,” Crawley said of working with Sides. “As far as driving, he kind of just lets me do my thing and learn as I go. As far as setup and car, I feel like I’ve had probably one of the best race cars right now. This thing practically drives itself. I had probably one of the best cars I’ve ever had in my life last weekend. Everything has gone over so well.”

Crawley entered this year with only one night’s worth of 410 Sprint Car experience. Prior to making the leap to full-time 410 racing, Crawley followed in his father’s footsteps with success in the 360 ranks. His dad – Tim Crawley – is a three-time American Sprint Car Series (ASCS) champion.

The blooming racer’s mature mindset wasn’t only apparent on the track at Volusia. He came across well-spoken and articulate in interviews. He also made it clear he still has plenty of improving to do and a long road ahead. He doesn’t merely want to start first in World of Outlaws Features. He wants to finish up front, too.

“The biggest thing right now is I run up front, but I’m struggling with restarts and struggling with dirty air,” Crawley admitted. “The first night dirty air was my biggest problem on top of some motor problems, but I also had to fight some issues driving. I’m kind of just learning as I go.

“I’ve got to stay out of my own head. I beat myself down and get in my head then I lose 20 spots in a Feature. But at the same time, I’ve hardly ever done this before. I’ve only ran five 410 races in my life. It’s all just a learning process, and it’s going to take time.”

Track time is something Crawley will have plenty of as the season continues. The nine-month campaign takes the tour to 41 ovals of various shapes and sizes in 19 different states. Many new tracks await Crawley during his debut year with the World of Outlaws. But fortunately for him, the schedule also takes him to familiar territory soon. March and April boast a dozen races combined in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri – all not far from home for the Arkansas driver.

“I think I should be alright at some of those places,” Crawley said. “It’s more similar to what I’m used to. The biggest thing is just going to be the power difference for me. It may take three or four nights to get comfortable again, but I think all of that will go over decent. There’s definitely some Oklahoma tracks that I’ve already been to that I’m really looking forward to, Muskogee (Thunderbird Speedway) and 81 (Speedway) in Kansas, some of those places. They’re bigger tracks, but I feel like I’m a little bit better on the bigger tracks here recently.”

The 2024 season currently sits in a small break as teams regroup from four straight nights of racing during DIRTcar Nationals. The grind resumes in two weeks with another trip to Volusia, and Crawley isn’t thinking about replicating his Qualifying speed. He’s ready to put a full night together. He’s ready to learn what it takes to run up front with The Greatest Show on Dirt on a nightly basis.

“I’m just trying to get a little bit more consistent, put together some good laps, and get some better results.”

Crawley’s rookie World of Outlaws campaign continues in two weeks at Volusia Speedway Park’s Bike Week Jamboree (March 3-4) in Barberville, FL. For tickets, CLICK HERE.

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY DAYTONA 500 OEM PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT FEBRUARY 15, 2024 JIM CAMPBELL, VICE PRESIDENT, PERFORMANCE AND MOTORSPORTS FOR GENERAL MOTORS MET WITH THE MEDIA WITH LEADERS FROM FORD AND TOYOTA TO DISCUSS A NUMBER OF TOPICS BEFORE THE START OF THE 2024 NASCAR SEASON.  Regarding the outlook for the 2024 NASCAR race season. “We look forward to this weekend in a big way, and looking back at 2023, it was a good season but obviously there are certainly more goals that we want to accomplish in 2024.  We won fifty percent of the races across Cup, Xfinity and Truck Series, we had the manufacturer’s championships in those series as well, but we got to the Championship Race in Phoenix and didn’t bring home the championship. Obviously, the goal this year is to have good momentum this year and qualify the Chevrolet teams into the playoffs and get to Phoenix and go for a different outcome. Manufacturer and Driver Championships are always a goal and always go hand in hand. Excited about this year, excited to be in Daytona because here we have had 99 wins across all the national series. So, the next win here will be 100 and it will be a special one. All the teams are trying to get that 100th win for Chevrolet and obviously a win for themselves in either Truck, Xfinity or Cup. So, looking forward to the season and it’s great to be here.” Regarding the future of hydrogen and hybrid technology development for street vehicles and potentially in motorsport? “I would just say for GM, on the propulsion side, you really have to prepare for all lanes. Internal combustion and we do have a long-time development program in hydrogen fuel cells and we are partnering with Honda on that. Obviously around the world in our portfolio we do have hybrids and PHEV, so you have to be ready for all the combinations for the production side of the business, depending on what the consumers want and also for the compliance for the countries that you compete in. And we compete all over the world. So, we are developing all of those. As far as hydrogen, we have been in development for about a decade and a half and have a good partnership with Honda on that. So we will see where that goes as far as in market applications in the showroom and we will take that on down the road for the performance application.” Do you know whether you will replace the Camaro for next year since its going out of production and what is your timeline to decide on a new body style?“We are not making any announcements today, but we did say that Camaro is ending production. We are selling Camaros all through this year and actually some may remain in next year as well.  And as Scott Bell, who heads up our Chevrolet dealers said, this is not the end of the Camaro story.  But we have nothing to announce today.” Did General Motors/Cadillac find F1’s statement about your ability insulting or anything like that? And second part, you can build an engine in F1 by 2026, but can’t because of the regulations? “Just on the last part of your question, when you register to be a power unit, there is a deadline to do that, and for us it was last June for 2028. If you wanted to develop an engine sooner, then you would have had to register the previous year for that. So, it’s simply a regulation.   In terms of our application with Andretti (Autosport), we feel great about our application. The FIA studied it against other applicants and then gave our application a vote of confidence and approval. So obviously the FOM made their statement, and we have asked for a follow up meeting with FOM and so we will work through that. We do believe between Andretti and Cadillac that we have got the capability of fielding a competitive entry. We are not saying that it is easy, but we do between our two organizations have examples in our history of where we have been successful in other motorsports categories and that is true of Cadillac and Andretti. With that said, our joint teams are continuing to develop our car at pace. So, that is where we are at.” You weren’t insulted at all that they didn’t think you could do it? “As I said, we believe in the application we submitted and in that application we articulated the abilities of both Andretti as a race team, and Cadillac as a manufacturing and engineering entity. So, we feel confident in the application and are asking for a meeting with FOM.” Can you speak about the significance of the potential of reaching 100 NASCAR national wins here at Daytona and what that means for your company?“Yeah, I mean it is significant because across the three series we are at 99 and this is such a special venue to race at and whether you win in Truck, Xfinity or Cup, it’s a special moment. It’s a great way to start the season and to do that one of the teams could get their first win of the season and our 100th.  So it’s a special celebration and we do look for those key milestone victories as a way to rally and motivate our internal team as well as our partner teams.” Regarding keeping the Camaro gives Chevy a competitive advantage given that Toyota and Ford have new bodies in the sport. Do you think that an advantage will even be a thing?“Well, we will see here this weekend. Hopefully this weekend, if not this weekend, soon. The one thing that NASCAR has done in the ruleset is they keep us in a pretty tight box and keep the competition tight. Basically, in downforce and drag, they have parameters that you are required to stay within. And so our car is within that box as are the other two OEMs. It’s going to be tight. You can see out there in the Duels how tight that is going to be. The one thing that we do have because our body is the same as last year, is just continuity and momentum in development in preparation and simulation versus the time that we have had to switch to a new body, we spent a lot of time in that switchover. That is a positive, but you can see how tight it is out there and that is mainly because of the rule settings that NASCAR has on downforce and drag requirements.”  You won half the races, won the manufacturer championship, but didn’t win the driver championships. Does that make the season a yea or nay for you guys?“You know, it’s a bit of both. You are excited about winning 18 of the 36 in the Cup Series and the Manufacturer’s Championship and what that means and what that takes. Then you are completely motivated when you leave Phoenix to prepare and go back and win the Driver’s Championship. This season, the Manufacturer and Driver’s Championship are goals that we put forth every season and every series.  We didn’t get all the way there and it motivates us more at the end of that race in Phoenix and when you go to the banquet. You see who is getting celebrated and you get motivated. That is part of the excitement of racing is to come back the next season and go for it. And that is what we are doing.”

February 16, 2024

Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/DEX Imaging Mustang Dark Horse are set to start Sunday’s Daytona 500 from 12^th place after finishing fifth in the second Bluegreen Vacations Duel qualifying race on Thursday night.

In that 150-miler, Burton avoided significant damage in the “Big One” multi-car crash with 13 laps remaining then made a bid for the win on the final lap only to fall to fifth place at the finish line.

Burton started that qualifying race, the second of two that set the majority of the line-up for Sunday’s Great American Race, from fifth place.

He raced in the top 10 in the early going, and after dropping back a few positions, was back in the top 10 as a round of green-flag pit stops got under way.

Burton cycled into the lead before making his stop at Lap 44. He returned to the track in 15^th place and was running there on Lap 47 when a wreck began unfolding ahead of him.

Burton, one of 11 drivers collected in the incident, was able to slow the Motorcraft/DEX Imaging Mustang and avoid race-ending damage. When the race resumed following a red-flag period, he made a pit stop then worked his way forward and ran as high as second place before winding up fifth. That earned him a good starting spot for the 500 and six Stage points.

“I had a real shot at it,” Burton told reporters after the race. “I’m really proud of our guys.”

Burton said he bounced off the wall in the big wreck, but the Motorcraft/DEX Imaging crew checked over his Mustang and determined it was safe to continue.

“I have a lot of confidence in that crew,” he said. “When they say my car is good to go, it’s good to go. Burton added that he thought he was in position on the last lap to take the win.

“I tried to get to the [Christopher Bell’s] outside, … with [Austin Cindric] pushing me and got really, really loose,” he said. “I thought I had plenty of momentum to make it happen, but I just got a little free there, but I’m really proud of our guys. 

“We were a little damaged and still had a good car, so that’s how you know you have a really good car. Hopefully, we can see what’s wrong and it’s nothing major and we can go run this car in the 500 and try and win that one.”

Two practice sessions, the first on Friday at 5:35 p.m. and the second on Saturday at 10:30 a.m., will give the Motorcraft/DEX Imaging team a chance to fine tune the No. 21 Mustang Dark Horse.

The green flag for Sunday’s 200-lap Daytona 500 is set to fly just after 2:30 p.m., with Stage breaks planned for Laps 65 and 130.

FOX Sports 1 will televise the practices, with the coverage switching to FOX for the 500.

THE THRILL IN BARBERVILLE: Nick Hoffman Makes Last Lap Pass For World of Outlaws Win at DIRTcar Nationals 

Hoffman picks up his first Late Model gator with a last lap pass on Chris Madden

BARBERVILLE, FL (February 15, 2024) –

Nick Hoffman spent most of his career as Volusia Speedway Park’s most successful DIRTcar UMP Modified driver, winning seven consecutive Big Gator titles from 2016 to 2021. On Thursday night, he took the next step in trying to do the same in a Late Model.

The Mooresville, NC driver resorted back to his Modified ways in the 35-lap, $12,000-to-win Feature, scoring his first Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals golden gator with the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models – his 23rd DIRTcar Nationals win overall.

“I made (Volusia) my home by running the bottom and middle,” Hoffman said. “It’s how I won so many gators here in a Modified and it fit my style tonight to make speed and make circles and it was exactly like the Modified.”

Winfield, TN’s Mike Marlar and Gray Court, SC’s Chris Madden led the stacked 30-car field to the initial Gorsuch Performance green flag. Marlar first claimed the lead until he slipped over the cushion in Turn 2 – opening the door for Martinsville, IN’s Ricky Thornton Jr. to take the lead.

Three laps later, Thornton copied Marlar by jumping the cushion in the same corner, surrendering the lead to “The Winfield Warrior.”

Marlar held the hungry field at bay for half of the race until lap traffic hindered him, causing Marlar to lose the lead once more – this time to Madden.

Madden used the high line predominantly to hold his lead, fighting new contenders for the win in Hoffman and Oakwood, IL’s Bobby Pierce.

Hoffman, using the bottom line, continued to inch closer to “Smokey” for the Feature win while Pierce was stuck behind Madden on the high line.

After missing a mark with three to go, Hoffman’s chances of winning seemed distant. But his determination persisted. Driving with “human horsepower” mentality, he threw his NOS Energy Drink #9 car into each corner, cutting tenths off Madden’s lead every time he returned to the throttle.

On the final lap of the Feature, Hoffman kept his right foot planted while entering Turn 1, propelling him side by side with Madden of Turn 2. When they reached the final corner, he dove low and allowed his car to drift high, hoping he’d drove in hard enough to clear Madden.

The answer was, yes. Hoffman cleared Madden by the center of the corner and held the lead to the checkered flag for his second career World of Outlaws win.

Hoffman joins Kyle Strickler, Ryan Gustin and Kyle Bronson as the only drivers to win a DIRTcar Nationals gator in both a DIRTcar UMP Modified and Late Model.

“It’s unreal,” Hoffman said. “With about two or three to go, I made a mistake and the wheel spun down the straightaway and I thought I screwed this deal up and I got the momentum back rolling and in the last two (laps) I drove super hard and could notice Chris was getting pretty tight across one and two and he couldn’t make a whole lot of speed. That allowed me to get to him at the white and in (Turn) three, I bombed her off in there just made sure I was clear of Chris.

“At that point, I was gonna cross whether I was clear or not. The car was so good. I wasn’t sure if I would even get there because Bobby was on the top and on the restarts, I was worried about him clearing me and taking my line, but it worked out perfect.”

Madden came across the line to finish in second after a night that saw him win the Simpson Quick Time Award and lead 15 laps of the Feature.

“It was a good race,” Madden said. “We just got to where we couldn’t steer through (Turns) one and two and couldn’t carry the speed. Nick was able to run around the bottom there and got some speed and got us to the checkered.”

Pierce closed out the night’s top-three finishers, hoping to have stayed in second place to have a chance at winning when he had been clearly ahead of Hoffman.

“It was really tough out there,” Pierce said. “I told the guys that I put myself in a situation where I was constantly in dirty air. I wish that when I got to second that I could have held Nick off. The one time I really got by him, a caution came out. That was tough and I feel like I was burning my stuff up there constantly in battle.

“With Madden, sometimes I got really close to him, and I got more dirty air, so I was kind of stuck in this air pocket and that’s tough. Some of the hardest racing right there is when you’re in that dirty air and you got two guys running there. The track is super tricky as it is. It’s as tough as it gets. For us to finish third, I’m pretty happy with it.”

Thornton ended up in fourth after having to climb his way back from the early deficit. Daulton Wilson, of Fayetteville, NC, rounded out the night’s top-five finishers.

Centerville, PA’s Max Blair picked up the FOX Factory Hard Charger award after picking up eight spots to finish 12th in the tough field of 30 Late Models.

After tonight’s Feature, Pierce now holds the Series points standings, two points ahead of New Berlin, IL’s Brandon Sheppard and 16 points ahead of Hoffman and Madden, respectively.

UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws CASE Late Models invade Volusia Speedway Park for two more nights of racing from the 53rd Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals, Feb. 16-17.

Adjustments have been made to the purse, as the Series will now race for 40 laps and $16,000-to-win to insure drivers leave with a healthy payday if weather hinders the weekend. For more information and tickets, visit DIRTcarNationals.com.

If you can’t make it to the track, watch every lap live on DIRTVision – available either online or through the DIRTVision App.

CASE Late Models Feature (35 laps):

1. 9-Nick Hoffman[4]; 2. 44-Chris Madden[2]; 3. 32-Bobby Pierce[6]; 4. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[3]; 5. 18D-Daulton Wilson[7]; 6. 157-Mike Marlar[1]; 7. B5-Brandon Sheppard[9]; 8. 99-Devin Moran[10]; 9. 16-Tyler Bruening[5]; 10. 97-Cade Dillard[14]; 11. 39-Tim McCreadie[15]; 12. 111-Max Blair[20]; 13. 1T-Tyler Erb[13]; 14. 5-Mark Whitener[17]; 15. 3S-Brian Shirley[18]; 16. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[22]; 17. 1-Hudson O’Neal[12]; 18. 18-Chase Junghans[19]; 19. 97C-Cody Overton[27]; 20. 40B-Kyle Bronson[25]; 21. 19-Dustin Sorensen[21]; 22. B1-Brent Larson[28]; 23. 114-Jordan Koehler[8]; 24. 30-Todd Cooney[29]; 25. 22*-Max McLaughlin[11]; 26. 17M-Dale McDowell[23]; 27. 12-Ashton Winger[24]; 28. 19R-Ryan Gustin[26]; 29. 20-Jimmy Owens[16]; 30. 14W-Dustin Walker[30]

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA 500 DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY TEAM CHEVY DUEL 2 POST-RACE QUOTES FEBRUARY 15, 2024

DUEL #2 – TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 RESULTS 6th   Zane Smith, No. 71 WeatherTech Camaro ZL18th   William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL114th  B.J. McLeod, No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Camaro ZL1

Zane Smith, No. 71 WeatherTech Camaro ZL1Finished: 6th “After tonight, I feel really good about Sunday. I feel like I learned a lot. Last year, I had to race in – play it safe, but be aggressive at times and was just worried the whole time. I wanted to go into tonight with our No. 71 WeatherTech Chevy being aggressive and learn for Sunday, and I feel like we accomplished that.  I don’t know how I got that speeding penalty. I felt like it was my first gear launch, it was just a little bit too fast. Fortunately there was a caution and we were able to catch back up and have a shot at it there at the end. I wanted to be more aggressive, but I also wanted to have a car for Sunday. I’m excited for the Daytona 500.” Kyle Busch, No. 8 Zone Camaro ZL1Finished: 19th“I was just getting a push from the No. 6 (Brad Keselowski) there, and the No. 24 (William Byron) I saw kind of got messed up, out of line and slowed down. I tried to lift and roll out of the gas smoothly. I was still gaining too fast, and then I got all the way out of the gas. Got bumped again from behind and just accordioned into the No. 24 and sent him spinning. You don’t want to hit a guy in the tri-oval. I’ve been there, I’ve done that. I’ve also rolled out of here in an ambulance before doing that, so I know it’s not the right thing to do, but sometimes you don’t have a choice and I turned the No. 24 sideways and caused a wreck.  Our No. 8 Zone Camaro was pretty fast. I felt good about it. Couldn’t really make any moves, though. Man, what a frustrating race. Just sitting in line – saving fuel, stuck on the bottom, can’t go anywhere. You get back in line.. you want to go forward. We were taking the momentum, whichever way the momentum was coming, and just ended up wrecking.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA 500 DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY TEAM CHEVY DUEL 1 POST-RACE QUOTES FEBRUARY 15, 2024

DUEL #1 – TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 RESULTS2nd     Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL13rd      Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL14th      Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Gainbridge / Zeigler Auto Group Camaro ZL16th      Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Freeway Insurance Camaro ZL19th      Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1

Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1Finished: 2nd“I thought our NAPA Chevy was pretty good. I mean all things considered, we’re locked-in from qualifying, setup-wise and stuff, so I thought our car drove pretty good considering everything you try to do to go fast for a lap. I was pleased. I thought we had a good night of execution to put ourselves in a good position there. We came up a little bit short, but I thought overall, it was a solid effort. We kept the car in one piece, which is a big deal I feel like for Sunday. Looking forward to it.” Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1Finished: 3rd“It was a good night. I think we were all a bit nervous on how the No. 48 Ally Chevy was going to drive, and honestly, it drove really well. I think there’s a couple things we can kind of clean up all around, but I was really happy with my car. I hate that I let the No. 54 (Ty Gibbs) get to our outside before that caution getting off of (turn) two and just kind of missed the block there. It put us back some track position. I hate whatever happened with the No. 5 (Kyle Larson) getting into turn three. I knew I was catching him too fast to hit him and I lifted. I don’t know if it was air or if I just barely got him loose.  To come home third is really good.. way better than I thought we were going to run tonight, honestly, with how I thought it was going to drive. I’m just proud of this whole Ally team. We were all disappointed with last night, but definitely a good night tonight.” Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Gainbridge / Zeigler Auto Group Camaro ZL1Finished: 4th “We all had a game plan to just kind of ride and save as much fuel as possible. I got disconnected a little bit and had to make the best pit entry of my life to catch up. I had a big gap to make and got everything out of it. I kind of lost the draft a little bit, but luckily I had a really strong car with Corey (LaJoie) behind me to get caught back up. We made some really good moves to put myself in a decent spot there before the caution and get track position. I did my best to be a good Chevy teammate and help the boys over there at Hendrick Motorsports and get the No. 9 (Chase Elliott) out front. Just a little too draggy compared to them and I just couldn’t keep connected.   DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 FREEWAY INSURANCE CAMARO ZL1 Finished: 6thWere you able to learn anything tonight for Sunday and how was the car?“I think it was good. The guys did a really good job with it. Our No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevy had good speed – it handled well, and overall, it was a good day. There is always room for improvement and hopefully we can make the car a little bit better for Sunday and see what we can do. But we are all feeling pretty good about the car.” KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 Finished: 9th You looked pretty strong out front – was the car good? “Yeah, I felt really good about my car. I haven’t seen the replay.. I don’t think Alex (Bowman) touched me, but he got really close and it took the air off the back. I got sideways in the corner and thankfully was able to save it. Just bummed that I wasn’t able to finish up front. That sucks, but our No. 5 HendrickCars.comChevy was fast, and I think we learned a lot. Honestly every move we made was good, it just didn’t work out again. So, yeah, learned a lot and we will take it to Sunday.” ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 BUSCH BEER CAMARO ZL1Finished: 11th Were you able to get a feel for your car and the draft for Sunday? “Yeah, my car was really smooth to drive and it had no balance issues. A very neutral balance. I sped on the green flag stop. I didn’t get to go back out with more fuel and old tires because on the fueling stop, I sped and didn’t get to feel that in the draft. That is not good, but other than that, no issues on our car and everywhere I was, it wasn’t aggressive for the pushing.”

OCALA, FL (February 15, 2024) — At the conclusion of the 2023 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season Josh Hart and the R+L Carriers Top Fuel team held down the No. 10 spot in the standings for the 2024 Pep Boys Top Fuel All-Star Callout. As the reigning champion the multi-time Top Fuel national event winner knew he would not have a chance to defend his title in 2024, but circumstances changed on a variety of fronts that have opened the door for the Ocala, Florida based team owner and driver to participate in the big money race.

 Josh Hart and family celebrate with Pep Boys All-Star Callout trophy, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

Top Fuel qualifier Austin Prock switched to Funny Car for the 2024 season and will not be eligible to compete, moving Shawn Langdon from the No. 9 position into the top eight and moving Hart into the No. 9 spot as the first alternate. During the 2023 PRI Show Tony Stewart Racing announced Tony Stewart would take over the driving duties in the TSR Top Fuel dragster entry from Leah Pruett, who was No. 6 in the Pep Boy All-Star Callout. The announcement did not address the specialty race during the NHRA Gatornationals but yesterday TSR announced the possibility of Pruett not competing in the All-Star Callout if Stewart was not solidly qualified following the two sessions on Friday of the Gatornationals.
 
“I would love the opportunity to defend my 2023 win in the Pep Boys All-Star Callout this year,” said Hart. “Some things are out of my control, but we can help ourselves by making great qualifying runs on Friday and setting ourselves up for the possibility of competing in the big money race on Saturday. I have always said ‘Anything’s Possible’ and we will be ready if that opportunity presents itself.”
 
In 2023 Hart was the No. 8 qualifier and raced his way through Austin Prock, Brittany Force and Mike Salinas to secure the $80,000 top prize. The win was the highlight of the season for Hart and the R+L Carrier Top Fuel team that also raced to a final round in Chicago and finished in the Top Fuel Top Ten.

 Josh Hart and R+L Carriers team celebrate in Gainesville Raceway winner’s circle, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

“This R+L Carriers team didn’t see the results we wanted last season, but we never gave up and we finished the season with some big round wins,” said Hart, the 2021 Gatornationals Top Fuel winner. “We had a good test session in Bradenton and we are looking forward to starting the season at our home track with a strong performance. Whether we get into the Pep Boys All-Star Callout or not our goal will be to win the Gatornationals again.”
 
Hart and the R+L Carriers team will be on track Friday March 8 for two qualifying sessions. Prior to Friday’s qualifying runs Hart is hosting the 2^nd annual Gatornationals FanFest at Burnyzz Speed Shop on Wednesday, March 6. The free family friendly event will have a massive car show, food trucks, music and a driver autograph session featuring all the top names competing in the NHRA Gatornationals as well as many former Gatornationals winners. The event will run from 6 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Richard Childress Racing has collected seven points-paying victories in NASCAR Cup Series competition at Daytona International Speedway and won 11 poles. RCR owns three Daytona 500 wins (Dale Earnhardt – 1998, Kevin Harvick – 2007, Austin Dillon – 2018) and four Coke Zero Sugar 400 trophies (Earnhardt – 1990, 1993, Harvick – 2010, Dillon – 2022).  The Welcome, N.C. based organization has racked up 15 victories in the Daytona 500 Duel qualifying races, most recently by Dillon (2021). Earnhardt reeled off a record 10-consecutive Duel victories (1990 – 1999), while Mike Skinner (2001), Robby Gordon (2003), Jeff Burton (2011) and Harvick (2013) also claimed a front row starting position for the Great American Race. In addition to its NASCAR Cup Series success, RCR has accumulated eight wins (Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 2002, 2010, Harvick – 2007, Clint Bowyer – 2009, Tony Stewart – 2013, Dillon – 2015, Austin Hill – 2022, 2023) in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Hill returns to the World Center of Racing as the defending race winner of the United Rentals 300. RCR’s Xfinity Series program has captured an impressive seven of the last nine poles for the season opening event at Daytona International Speedway.  The 2024 Lineup… Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch return to RCR’s NASCAR Cup Series lineup for 2024, with Dillon driving the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and Busch behind the wheel of the zone Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Daytona. Jesse Love joins Austin Hill as both drivers compete fulltime in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Love will pilot the No. 2 Whelen Engineering Chevrolet Camaro SS while Hill returns to the No. 21 Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet Camaro SS.  Big Power… ECR Engines will have a total of 25 engine programs competing at Daytona International Speedway, with 17 entries in the Xfinity Series race and eight entries in the Daytona 500.  Time to Duel… On Thursday evening, the Bluegreen Vacations Duels at Daytona feature two 150-mile races from which the majority of the final starting grid for the Daytona 500 will be set. After their single-car qualifying times on Wednesday night, Dillon will compete in the first duel while Busch will race in the second duel.  Catch the Action… The Bluegreen Vacations Duels at Daytona, two 60-lap qualifying races, will be televised live Thursday, February 15 beginning at 7 p.m. ET on FS1 and will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. The NASCAR Xfinity Series United Rentals 300 at Daytona will be televised live Saturday, February 17 beginning at 5 p.m. ET on FS1 and will be broadcast live on Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. The 66th running of the Daytona 500 will be televised live Sunday, February 18 beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX and will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

February 14, 2024

Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/DEX Imaging team turned in a top-10 performance in Wednesday night’s pole qualifying for the Daytona 500 and are set to start fifth in the second Bluegreen Vacations Duel on Thursday night.

Burton was 10^th fastest in the opening round of qualifying on Wednesday with a lap around the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway at 180.350 miles per hour.

That advanced him to the second qualifying round where his Motorcraft/DEX Imaging Mustang Dark Horse was 10^th fastest again with a lap at 180.328 mph.

“That’s a decent start for us,” Burton told reporters at the track. “It’s exciting to be in the hunt and make the top 10.”

Burton said the Mustang Dark Horses are fast so far at Daytona. (Joey Logano and Michael McDowell swept the front row and Austin Cindric joined Burton among the top-10 qualifiers.)

“I’m excited to get out and see how [the Mustang Dark Horse] drives in the race,” Burton said. “It’s going to be interesting to see who gave up what for handling versus speed.
 
“I don’t think we gave up too much, so I’m excited to race and excited to carry that speed into the race as well…
 
“I’m proud of our guys. They brought me a fast race car, and I’m ready to go drive it well.”

Only the top two qualifiers earned starting spots on Wednesday. The rest of the Daytona 500 line-up will be determined during the two 150-mile Duel races on Thursday.
 
The first 60-lap Duel is set to get the green flag at 7 p.m., with the second race rolling off at approximately 8:45 p.m.
 
Two practice sessions are scheduled, the first on Friday at 5:35 p.m. and the second on Saturday at 10:30 a.m.
 
The green flag for Sunday’s 200-lap Daytona 500 is set to fly just after 2:30 p.m., with Stage breaks planned for Laps 65 and 130.
 
FOX Sports 1 will televise the Duels and practices, with the coverage switching to FOX for the 500.   
 

CONCORD, NC (Feb. 14, 2024) – Nearly 50 of the best dirt Late Model drivers in the country gathered at Volusia Speedway Park for a tripleheader of DIRTcar Late Model action at Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals Wednesday night.

The stout field was split into three 20-lap, $5,000-to-win, Features with World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model champions Bobby Pierce, Mike Marlar and Brandon Sheppard each taking home another gator trophy.

Here’s how each Feature played out:

FEATURE # 1: Redemption For Bobby Pierce
After a flat tire ended Bobby Pierce’s chance at victory Wednesday night, he left that memory in past by leading all 20 laps of the first DIRTcar Late Model Feature Wednesday night.

Pierce, of Oakwood, IL, set Quick Time in his group to claim the top starting spot in the Feature with multi-time national Late Model champion Tim McCreadie starting to his outside and Cade Dillard behind him.

Once the green flag was shown for the Feature, Pierce continued to act like he was making qualifying laps, pulling away by half a straightaway in two laps.

Seven cautions plagued the pace of the race, but never hindered Pierce’s drive. By the time he was through the first corner, the field was still racing to Turn 2 on every restart.

While he was on cruise control out front, the rest of the top five argued lap after lap for position.

Cade Dillard stole second from McCreadie on the Lap 4 restart, leaving the Late Model veteran to hold off attacks from division youngsters Ethan Dotson and Ashton Winger.

Doston, on the charge from fifth, followed Dillard by McCreadie to take third and then set his sights on the #97. He got within a car length, but a caution on Lap 14 negated the run. Then, when the race resumed, McCreadie slid in front of the #174 through the center of the corner. That took the air off Dotson’s front nose and caused him to push up the track, into the cushion, and spin around.

Fueled by frustration and determination, Dotson was able to driver back to sixth by the end of the Feature.

Winger moved up and down the running order throughout the night. In the first half of the race, he charged from eight to fourth, but then fell to sixth after a slip up at the halfway point. From there, he raced his way back to fourth by the checkered flag.

Max McLaughlin earned his career-best dirt Super Late Model finish, surviving the cautions and running a clean race to finish fifth.

For Pierce, the victory is his third at DIRTcar Nationals, giving him momentum for when the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model season continues Thursday.

“It feels like a rebound pretty good there,” Pierce said. “We’ve had a bad fast race car this whole time. It’s awesome to finally put it in Victory Lane where it belongs. I can’t thank my crew enough; they’ve been working hard.”

RESULTS:
Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 32-Bobby Pierce[1]; 2. 97-Cade Dillard[3]; 3. 39-Tim McCreadie[2]; 4. 12-Ashton Winger[8]; 5. 22*-Max McLaughlin[13]; 6. 174-Ethan Dotson[5]; 7. 25B-Mike Benedum[6]; 8. 11B-Stacy Boles[12]; 9. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[16]; 10. 1Z-Logan Zarin[4]; 11. 14JR-Jason Fitzgerald[15]; 12. 11-Austin Smith[7]; 13. B1-Brent Larson[10]; 14. 76-Blair Nothdurft[9]; 15. 40B-Kyle Bronson[11]; 16. 19-Dustin Sorensen[14]

FEATURE #2: First Gator Since 2019 For Marlar
Taking notes from the Falcon 9 rocket that launched out of Florida Wednesday evening, Mike Marlar was a rocket in the second DIRTcar Late Model Feature, leading all 20 laps unchallenged.

When the race commenced, Marlar gapped the field by two car lengths into the first corner. Behind him, Nick Hoffman, who started on the outside pole, bounced over the cushion and fell from second to fifth.

Jordan Koehler benefited the most from Hoffman’s misfortune, sliding into second, hoping to battle for his first DIRTcar Nationals win.

However, a caution on Lap 11 changed the outcome for several drivers. When the race resumed, Hoffman built a strong enough run to power around the outside of Dylan Thompson and Koehler to go from fourth to second. And behind him, Erb also made the leap from fifth to third.

On Lap 14, Erb moved by Hoffman for second, but Marlar was untouchable, already seconds ahead of him. The 2018 World of Outlaws champion cruised around the high side and crossed the finish line with a 1.2 second lead.

It’s his first DIRTcar Nationals victory since 2019.

“Happy to win one,” Marlar said. “We’ve had kind of a hard speedweeks. I’ve been fast a lot, just can’t win anything. Tearing up a lot of stuff. Happy to win one for sure there. The car was really good.”

RESULTS:
Feature 2 (20 Laps): 1. 157-Mike Marlar[1]; 2. 1T-Tyler Erb[4]; 3. 9-Nick Hoffman[2]; 4. 111-Max Blair[8]; 5. 5-Mark Whitener[6]; 6. 99T-Dylan Thompson[5]; 7. 114-Jordan Koehler[3]; 8. 23-David Breazeale[13]; 9. 4-Amanda Robinson[11]; 10. 18-Chase Junghans[9]; 11. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[10]; 12. B2-Brian Booze[14]; 13. 14W-Dustin Walker[15]; 14. 17Z-Jimmy Zacharias[16]; 15. 17M-Dale McDowell[7]; 16. 6JR-Parker Martin[12]

FEATURE # 3: Sheppard Steals One
Devin Moran and Ricky Thornton Jr. gave Volusia Speedway Park fans the show of the night, throwing slider after slider for the win in the closing laps. However, their thrills led to Brandon Sheppard stealing the victory.

At the start of the race, Moran followed the trend of starting on the pole and then running away from the field like the fastest man alive.

Thornton and Sheppard settled into second and third, respectively, racing about a car length apart as Moran had over a second lead.

Their running order and distance apart remained the same by the halfway point, but two laps later Thornton found a head of steam. In one lap he cut Moran’s lead down from a second to half a second.

On Lap 15, Thornton jumped the cushion exiting Turn 2, costing him a few tenths to Moran.

After a lap to reset, he was back on Moran’s bumper. Running high through Turns 3 and 4, Thornton had a run to charge around the outside of Moran, but the white #99 swerved right to block Thornton’s run.

Not willing to lift, Thornton quickly swerved left to dive under Moran into Turn 1 and then cleared him for the lead off Turn 2. They ran in that order until the next time around when Moran pulled the same move and reclaimed the lead.

Their battle came to blows when Thornton stayed tight to Moran’s left rear off the corner and the two made contact. Thornton’s right front fender bent up, while Moran suffered a flat left rear, bringing out the first caution of the race.

With Moran having to pit, Thornton inherited the lead with Sheppard behind him. The #20RT shot ahead of the field into the first turn, looking strong enough to run away with the win. But as he entered the second turn, his damage turned worse than expected and shot him up the track.

Sheppard snuck by to take the lead and Ryan Gustin entered the picture, moving into second.

With only a lap to go, Sheppard piloted his #B5 Longhorn Chassis around the “World’s Fastest Half Mile” with ease and claimed his 11th DIRTcar Nationals victory.

“Probably didn’t have the fastest car there, those guys were a little better than we were,” Sheppard said. “You know, we were there when we needed to be and capitalized off of them guys’ bad luck. Super thankful to be standing up on (the Victory Lane stage).”

RESULTS:
Feature 3 (20 Laps): 1. B5-Brandon Sheppard[3]; 2. 19R-Ryan Gustin[4]; 3. 18D-Daulton Wilson[5]; 4. 16-Tyler Bruening[6]; 5. 1-Hudson O’Neal[9]; 6. 7T-Drake Troutman[7]; 7. 3S-Brian Shirley[11]; 8. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[8]; 9. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 10. 20-Jimmy Owens[10]; 11. 89-Mike Spatola[13]; 12. 93-Cory Lawler[14]; 13. 30-Todd Cooney[15]; 14. 97C-Cody Overton[12]; 15. 99-Devin Moran[2]; 16. 44-Chris Madden[16]

CONCORD, NC (Feb. 14, 2024) – Nearly 50 of the best dirt Late Model drivers in the country gathered at Volusia Speedway Park for a tripleheader of DIRTcar Late Model action at Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals Wednesday night.

The stout field was split into three 20-lap, $5,000-to-win, Features with World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model champions Bobby Pierce, Mike Marlar and Brandon Sheppard each taking home another gator trophy.

Here’s how each Feature played out:

FEATURE # 1: Redemption For Bobby Pierce
After a flat tire ended Bobby Pierce’s chance at victory Wednesday night, he left that memory in past by leading all 20 laps of the first DIRTcar Late Model Feature Wednesday night.

Pierce, of Oakwood, IL, set Quick Time in his group to claim the top starting spot in the Feature with multi-time national Late Model champion Tim McCreadie starting to his outside and Cade Dillard behind him.

Once the green flag was shown for the Feature, Pierce continued to act like he was making qualifying laps, pulling away by half a straightaway in two laps.

Seven cautions plagued the pace of the race, but never hindered Pierce’s drive. By the time he was through the first corner, the field was still racing to Turn 2 on every restart.

While he was on cruise control out front, the rest of the top five argued lap after lap for position.

Cade Dillard stole second from McCreadie on the Lap 4 restart, leaving the Late Model veteran to hold off attacks from division youngsters Ethan Dotson and Ashton Winger.

Doston, on the charge from fifth, followed Dillard by McCreadie to take third and then set his sights on the #97. He got within a car length, but a caution on Lap 14 negated the run. Then, when the race resumed, McCreadie slid in front of the #174 through the center of the corner. That took the air off Dotson’s front nose and caused him to push up the track, into the cushion, and spin around.

Fueled by frustration and determination, Dotson was able to driver back to sixth by the end of the Feature.

Winger moved up and down the running order throughout the night. In the first half of the race, he charged from eight to fourth, but then fell to sixth after a slip up at the halfway point. From there, he raced his way back to fourth by the checkered flag.

Max McLaughlin earned his career-best dirt Super Late Model finish, surviving the cautions and running a clean race to finish fifth.

For Pierce, the victory is his third at DIRTcar Nationals, giving him momentum for when the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model season continues Thursday.

“It feels like a rebound pretty good there,” Pierce said. “We’ve had a bad fast race car this whole time. It’s awesome to finally put it in Victory Lane where it belongs. I can’t thank my crew enough; they’ve been working hard.”

RESULTS:
Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 32-Bobby Pierce[1]; 2. 97-Cade Dillard[3]; 3. 39-Tim McCreadie[2]; 4. 12-Ashton Winger[8]; 5. 22*-Max McLaughlin[13]; 6. 174-Ethan Dotson[5]; 7. 25B-Mike Benedum[6]; 8. 11B-Stacy Boles[12]; 9. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[16]; 10. 1Z-Logan Zarin[4]; 11. 14JR-Jason Fitzgerald[15]; 12. 11-Austin Smith[7]; 13. B1-Brent Larson[10]; 14. 76-Blair Nothdurft[9]; 15. 40B-Kyle Bronson[11]; 16. 19-Dustin Sorensen[14]

FEATURE #2: First Gator Since 2019 For Marlar
Taking notes from the Falcon 9 rocket that launched out of Florida Wednesday evening, Mike Marlar was a rocket in the second DIRTcar Late Model Feature, leading all 20 laps unchallenged.

When the race commenced, Marlar gapped the field by two car lengths into the first corner. Behind him, Nick Hoffman, who started on the outside pole, bounced over the cushion and fell from second to fifth.

Jordan Koehler benefited the most from Hoffman’s misfortune, sliding into second, hoping to battle for his first DIRTcar Nationals win.

However, a caution on Lap 11 changed the outcome for several drivers. When the race resumed, Hoffman built a strong enough run to power around the outside of Dylan Thompson and Koehler to go from fourth to second. And behind him, Erb also made the leap from fifth to third.

On Lap 14, Erb moved by Hoffman for second, but Marlar was untouchable, already seconds ahead of him. The 2018 World of Outlaws champion cruised around the high side and crossed the finish line with a 1.2 second lead.

It’s his first DIRTcar Nationals victory since 2019.

“Happy to win one,” Marlar said. “We’ve had kind of a hard speedweeks. I’ve been fast a lot, just can’t win anything. Tearing up a lot of stuff. Happy to win one for sure there. The car was really good.”

RESULTS:
Feature 2 (20 Laps): 1. 157-Mike Marlar[1]; 2. 1T-Tyler Erb[4]; 3. 9-Nick Hoffman[2]; 4. 111-Max Blair[8]; 5. 5-Mark Whitener[6]; 6. 99T-Dylan Thompson[5]; 7. 114-Jordan Koehler[3]; 8. 23-David Breazeale[13]; 9. 4-Amanda Robinson[11]; 10. 18-Chase Junghans[9]; 11. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[10]; 12. B2-Brian Booze[14]; 13. 14W-Dustin Walker[15]; 14. 17Z-Jimmy Zacharias[16]; 15. 17M-Dale McDowell[7]; 16. 6JR-Parker Martin[12]

FEATURE # 3: Sheppard Steals One
Devin Moran and Ricky Thornton Jr. gave Volusia Speedway Park fans the show of the night, throwing slider after slider for the win in the closing laps. However, their thrills led to Brandon Sheppard stealing the victory.

At the start of the race, Moran followed the trend of starting on the pole and then running away from the field like the fastest man alive.

Thornton and Sheppard settled into second and third, respectively, racing about a car length apart as Moran had over a second lead.

Their running order and distance apart remained the same by the halfway point, but two laps later Thornton found a head of steam. In one lap he cut Moran’s lead down from a second to half a second.

On Lap 15, Thornton jumped the cushion exiting Turn 2, costing him a few tenths to Moran.

After a lap to reset, he was back on Moran’s bumper. Running high through Turns 3 and 4, Thornton had a run to charge around the outside of Moran, but the white #99 swerved right to block Thornton’s run.

Not willing to lift, Thornton quickly swerved left to dive under Moran into Turn 1 and then cleared him for the lead off Turn 2. They ran in that order until the next time around when Moran pulled the same move and reclaimed the lead.

Their battle came to blows when Thornton stayed tight to Moran’s left rear off the corner and the two made contact. Thornton’s right front fender bent up, while Moran suffered a flat left rear, bringing out the first caution of the race.

With Moran having to pit, Thornton inherited the lead with Sheppard behind him. The #20RT shot ahead of the field into the first turn, looking strong enough to run away with the win. But as he entered the second turn, his damage turned worse than expected and shot him up the track.

Sheppard snuck by to take the lead and Ryan Gustin entered the picture, moving into second.

With only a lap to go, Sheppard piloted his #B5 Longhorn Chassis around the “World’s Fastest Half Mile” with ease and claimed his 11th DIRTcar Nationals victory.

“Probably didn’t have the fastest car there, those guys were a little better than we were,” Sheppard said. “You know, we were there when we needed to be and capitalized off of them guys’ bad luck. Super thankful to be standing up on (the Victory Lane stage).”

RESULTS:
Feature 3 (20 Laps): 1. B5-Brandon Sheppard[3]; 2. 19R-Ryan Gustin[4]; 3. 18D-Daulton Wilson[5]; 4. 16-Tyler Bruening[6]; 5. 1-Hudson O’Neal[9]; 6. 7T-Drake Troutman[7]; 7. 3S-Brian Shirley[11]; 8. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[8]; 9. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 10. 20-Jimmy Owens[10]; 11. 89-Mike Spatola[13]; 12. 93-Cory Lawler[14]; 13. 30-Todd Cooney[15]; 14. 97C-Cody Overton[12]; 15. 99-Devin Moran[2]; 16. 44-Chris Madden[16]

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA 500 DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY TEAM CHEVY QUALIFYING REPORT FEBRUARY 14, 2024

Six Team Chevy Drivers Post Top-10 Qualifying Results at Daytona

Team Chevy Top-10 Qualifying Results:3rd Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL15th Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL16th William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL17th Austin Dillon, No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Camaro ZL18th Kyle Busch, No. 8 Zone Camaro ZL19th Ross Chastain, No. 1 Busch Light Camaro ZL1

·       Six drivers from three different Chevrolet teams posted a top-10 qualifying lap in the first round of qualifying to vie for the pole position for the 66th running of the Daytona 500.  ·       In the final round of qualifying, Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson laid down the fastest lap among the Chevrolet drivers, clocking-in a lap at 181.635 mph to land third on the speed chart.  ·       Anthony Alfredo and the No. 62 Death Wish Coffee Camaro ZL1 team was one of the two open entries to punch a ticket into Sunday’s event through qualifying, with this marking just his second career start in the crown jewel event.·       The two 60-lap, 150-mile, Bluegreen Vacation Duels at Daytona will determine the remaining starting lineup for the 2024 Daytona 500. FS1 will telecast the Duels on Thursday, February 15, beginning at 7 p.m. ET. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

ANTHONY ALFREDO, NO. 62 DEATH WISH COFFEE CAMARO ZL1, Post-Qualifying Quote: What are these emotions like for you guys?“This is insane. We had just talked about any possible scenario we might find ourselves in today, tomorrow and obviously Sunday. But to make it to Sunday is such a challenge with such a competitive field of open cars and drivers behind the wheel, and I am just really thankful for the Beard family to give me this opportunity and for Death Wish Coffee coming on board. We clearly have a fast No. 62 Death Wish Coffee Chevrolet Camaro.  To know we are in and to not have to race in tomorrow; to remove ourselves from some of the sketchy circumstances and focus on Sunday is just an amazing feeling.”

By Michael Gilmer) … After several years of hard work and success racing with the Hunt Wingless Tour, Jarrett Soares will be making a comeback to NARC 410 sprint car racing.

In fact, Jarrett and his father Steven were always one of the NARC series biggest supporters, not missing a single NARC-King of the West event from 2013-2016!  Steven feels a great connection and is very ready to rejoin the group.

“I really missed the NARC family the last few years,” admitted Steven. “We were going to come back sooner but then COVID hit, and nobody knew what was happening and everything got super expensive. I grew up watching guys like Brent Kaeding, Chuck Gurney and Tim Green. Then I later helped out Bobby McMahan. The quality of the drivers and teams is second to none. We are a small family team but I told Jarrett ‘I have a couple years left as an owner, and I want to run NARC to finish’”.

The driver out of Gilroy, California, competed at 20 events with the wingless tour in 2023.  His efforts produced 11 top ten finishes, including eight in the top five and a pair of hard-fought victories.

Jarrett is eager to get back to 410 sprint car racing and showcase his refined skills. With the race season just a few short weeks away, he’s definitely ready to go.  Even with his success with the non-wing tour, his decision to return to NARC King of The West was an easy one.

“The series and competition is second to none,” said Jarrett, “so it did not take much convincing. The team and I jumped on the opportunity to go back to King of The West as soon as the opportunity arose.”

So, will this newly found success translate over to a 410 sprint car? Jarrett seems to think so.

“Non wing racing has taught me patience with the car, learning when to be aggressive in a race, and has also helped me develop a better race craft that I hope will turn some heads.”

Jarrett isn’t one to shy away from tough competition and is looking to continue on his successful career path in a 900+ horsepower sprint car.  He is also excited to make a return to the Tulare Thunderbowl, the one-third mile steel-lined bull ring.

Jarrett’s comeback to 410 sprint car racing was not a task he accomplished on his own. He generously credits his team, his supporters, but most importantly, his father.

“My biggest supporter without a doubt has been my dad, Steven Soares,” said Jarrett.  “His passion and true grit for this sport is admirable. I feed off of his energy and we have made a great team throughout our racing career. He has a no quit, never say die attitude that has made my racing adventure beautiful.”

The feeling is mutual.  Steven has watched his son blossom into the driver he is today. Throughout Jarrett’s non-wing sprint car adventure, he has watched him improve all of the skill sets of his racing game.

“The biggest difference is that he has matured,” explained Steven.  “We ran NARC in 2014 to 2017 when Jarrett was only 15. He now understands how to put a night together and where to put the car.”

Collectively, they both feel the entire team has improved.  “We as a team learned how to run up front and be consistent,” Steven continued. “We also learned what Jarrett likes and how to give him the car he needs. We are building a new car and working hard to finish a good motor so we can run as many shows as our budget allows.”

Steven made it a point to thank Scott Martin, Brian Sperry, Anthony Horn and their families; Nick Larson, Mike Caldwell, Kaeding performance, FK Shocks, Blake, OGIO, and his daughters Kayla, Avery and Olivia. Without them, none of this would be possible without them.

Jarrett and Steven’s relationship and dynamic is amazing. They are not just two co-workers trying to succeed, but they are a team. They share the good times, and the bad. Jarrett expresses this when he refers to his racing experiences as, “our racing career”. They always work together, and they always hope to succeed.

So with NARC 65th Anniversary season on the horizon, keep a look out for the number 12 sprint car as it is sure to turn some heads.

ED NOTE:  Michael Gilmer is one of our guest columnist.  He is a 17-years-old high school student and resides in Diamond Springs, CA.

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY DAYTONA 500 MEDIA DAYS FEBRUARY 14, 2024

KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING CAMARO ZL1 – 2024 Daytona 500 Media Day Quotes  Q. Of everything you haven’t done, is there anything else on the bucket list besides this race? KYLE BUSCH: Winning a damn Bandolero race down the road, yeah. We finished second three days in a row, man. He led every lap today and finished second again. He’s close.  Anyways, yeah, the Daytona 500. It’s certainly the highest honor out there to be able to win a race in our sport. I have not done that yet, although I won the Daytona 500 last year under the yellow flag, not under the checkered flag.  Those damn technicalities keep coming up and getting me.  Q. Five drivers led the Daytona 500 (indiscernible) have not won it. Where does that rank on the pain scale? KYLE BUSCH: High. High. I don’t have the trophy or the ring. It just means that I could have, should have, would have if it was prior to 2005, right? That sucks. It is what it is. I guess 2005, I knew the rules coming in anyways. That’s when I first started in the Daytona 500 was 2005, so… It happens.  Q. You talk about the results here at the 500. Have you looked into the results, meaning luck for some miscalculation on your part? KYLE BUSCH: Not necessarily. I haven’t looked at that. I’ve kind of looked at like, Okay, I finished second, third, fourth, fifth. I think there might be five finishing positions that I haven’t finished in in this race, but I’ve gotten all the rest of them. Weird stat. Maybe somebody will look that up.  All in all, coming out of turn four in 2007, maybe I had a little bit of sentimental feeling for Mark, trying to push Mark to the win. I didn’t pull out on the backstretch to take the lead around the outside, then I spun out of four. That was the melee of Bowyer upside down and on fire in that race.  2016, I should have pulled out of line down the backstretch when Denny got the lead. He won. I finished third on that one.  There’s a lot that have stung that you still think about, Dammit, man, should have, could have, would have.  Q. Do you compartmentalize those instances going through a race? I should do this this year… KYLE BUSCH: You would think, but I’m not that good of a studier. I procrastinate too much. I watch the races, I just don’t study them.  Q. It seemed like on superspeedways last year, the finishes were a lot better. Something to that? KYLE BUSCH: I would agree. I don’t know why, no. Speaking of study, I feel like you can study and get all those things in your mind of what to do in certain situations, but damn, man, you’re going to get surprised of a new situation and not be ready for it, then try to run through the categories of, Where does this one fall? What should I do? By the time you think that long, it’s over. You know what I mean? You need to be a quick thinker on your feet and just go with reaction and what you feel in the moment.  Q. Last year you won early and often. How important is it to get that out of the way early, then concentrate on what’s next? KYLE BUSCH: Yeah, no, winning early, man, that’s huge for your season. It kind of sets the tone, gives you a chance to know you’re in the Playoffs. You just have to make sure you keep everything else in order. If you’re getting into the July, August months, and you don’t have a win yet, it gets stressful. That’s not going to be a place where you want to get to.  Q. You had two top 10s at Atlanta last year. You really took to that track quickly, the reconfiguration. Different car. What is it about it or are you just easy acclimation? KYLE BUSCH: I don’t know. I’m not a fan of it. I don’t really like it, but it is what it is. I don’t know. We got lucky last year in the fifth-place finish because we stayed out on fuel mileage and then the rain came and gave up that opportunity.  Track position is hard to get there. Hard to pass. Two lanes, two-wide… I felt really good about my car. I felt like I could go to the bottom and rip the bottom better than anybody, but then there was no room to get back in line on the top to get the straightaway speed you need. I kept getting sucked backwards every time I would try to pull out of line and try to make a move.  The confidence I had in my car was net hurting me. Just hard to be patient in those situations and sit and ride.  Q. I noticed the logo on your sleeve. A sports betting logo 10, 15 years ago would be unheard of. What do you see as the role of sports betting in sports? KYLE BUSCH: It’s huge. I think there’s a huge market for it. I grew up in Vegas obviously. A lot of betting happens there. A lot of gambling happens there. It feels like I’m the natural fit for that. Thanks to Bet MGM for being associated with a Vegas cat.  All in all, again, it’s a huge market. A lot more states are coming up with releasing the regulations and allowing sports betting to happen in their states. I feel like that’s only a good thing for the industry, just having that chance.  Q. What’s your responsibility as an athlete in all that? KYLE BUSCH: Well, I mean, obviously I feel like for us, keeping the integrity of the sport obviously. You’re not going to do anything that hurts the things that you’re supposed to do behind the wheel. You can’t change the outcome of events, right? That’s a big piece of it. That’s what our part is.  Also just making sure you deliver the message of safe betting as well, too. Not getting somebody too much into it, addicted to it, right?  Q. Should we bet on you to win this week? KYLE BUSCH: I would. Well, from what I’ve heard of a lot of other people around our industry this past week, there’s a lot of people that have good feelings on us this week. Maybe that’s a good omen.  Q. What do you remember of your first win at Las Vegas? Being in front of the home crowd, what did that mean to you? KYLE BUSCH: In ’09, the Cup win?  Q. Yes. KYLE BUSCH: It was huge. It was big. That was a cool deal. That to me felt like my Daytona 500. I’ve had some big wins. I’ve won Indy. I’ve won the Southern 500. I’ve won the Coke 600, All-Star Race, all that stuff. But the Vegas win, it was just like such a relief, such a monumental win for me because I remember I grew up right down the street watching that place be built.  It was pretty cool. I can only imagine what winning here at Daytona on Sunday night will feel like.  Q. Is there less pressure when you go back to Vegas? KYLE BUSCH: Because I’ve won there, yes, there’s less pressure. But I’ve never backed it up. You still want to win there every time you go, being the hometown. I think I have four or five third-place finishes there in the last six or seven races, whatever the hell it is. We’re right there, we just don’t get it.  Q. Of all the various places that you have finished here at Daytona, is it more frustrating to be high and just miss or to be in position and get collected, you’re down the list? KYLE BUSCH: I think last year probably hurt the worst. We led mile marker 500, then got crashed out and finished 19th. There’s other years I got beat towards the end, finished second or third.  Yeah, you’re pissed, but you also know that’s a good start to the year. Getting out of Daytona with some good points, a good go of it, I guess lends it to be a little easier on the feelings than coming out of here with 19th.  Q. All the championships, the wins, the majors, do you still feel that something would be missing until the Daytona 500 box is checked off? KYLE BUSCH: Yeah, I mean, it’s missing, right? There’s no checkmark there. Does it do anything to solidify your career, validate the things that you’ve done or accomplished here? I don’t think so. I mean, I look at Mark Martin and Rusty Wallace and Tony Stewart as some greats that have blue jackets that made it to the Hall of Fame that haven’t won this race.  It would certainly be nice to not have to worry about that going in and have this trophy at home.  Q. You’re about at the point where Earnhardt was when he won his first. KYLE BUSCH: Trust me, I’m well aware. Thank you very much. I hope we can talk about some of the same storylines on Sunday. That would be nice.  Q. How do you compare the level of parity in this series compared to when you first got up here? KYLE BUSCH: Way more now than it was. Way more. I mean, back in 2005, early 2000, 2005 when I was here, I mean, you had to be in good stuff. That was one of the most frustrating things that I had, too, was I knew I was in good stuff at Hendrick, and Jeff Gordon is winning around me, Jimmie Johnson is winning around me. They’re raking up championships, top threes in points. I’m spinning out, crashing, winning only one or two races a year. It got frustrating really quick.  Over the years at Gibbs, found my own, found my way. Now again just with the car and everything, it just feels like it’s so tough. Parity is so tight. You can go to races back in the mid 2000s and probably race against five, six, maybe eight guys. Now you go to races and you’re racing against 12 or 15 of team win. Here at restrictor plate races, I think it’s 30. You can literally look down the list and be, Yeah, there’s no reason why any of these guys wouldn’t win.  Q. Do you think Chevy will have an advantage, considering the new body styles on both the Ford and the Toyota, they’re going to have to work in and get used to it? KYLE BUSCH: No. I would think anytime you come out with a new body, you fine-tune on it and you make it better than what it was. Ours being the oldest, we haven’t had time or any opportunity to work on it to make it better than what it was.  Those guys I’m sure are going to be fast. With all the testing and the things that NASCAR does in the wind tunnel and whatnot, they say parity is tight, it’s close. Everybody is in the same corner of the box. You don’t know till you see it on the racetrack.  Q. (No microphone.) KYLE BUSCH: So getting called to the NASCAR hauler is like getting called to the principal’s office. You have your own reasons of why or what. You really want to tell them why or what. You are better off just keeping your mouth shut and taking the beating and walking on and seeing the light come up the next day. I’ve had some meetings in there where I knew I was in the right, I knew I had a point, and my point was the solid, valid point. Boy, did that bite me in the ass.  Q. It’s less haunting now than it was 15 or 20 years ago, right? KYLE BUSCH: I don’t know. Maybe a little bit. Trying to think. Who was one of my worst meetings?  Q. Helton. KYLE BUSCH: I think Helton is still probably going to be in those meetings, yeah. O’Donnell in there. Who was the director years ago, like ’05?  Q. Darby. KYLE BUSCH: Those three: Darby, Helton and O’Donnell. Those were the three worst. Now you have Moran that’s going to be in there. Maybe Helton. Fortunately I don’t know because I haven’t been in there in a while.  It’s not a comfortable situation.  Q. There’s been occasions where you take it to them. You’re going to them. What is that situation like? KYLE BUSCH: Way better. I mean, way easier, yeah.  Q. Other people are saying they walk in and they’re all excited and fired up, walk through the door, it’s a bad idea. KYLE BUSCH: Yeah, I’ve definitely had other times where I’ve wanted to walk in there and say my piece on other things, too. Me inviting myself, not being invited.  My guys get around me and they’re like, Yeah, I don’t think you should do that. You should let that go and don’t worry about it.  I mean, it just kind of depends on the situation. But I haven’t been in there in a while. I’m going to knock on wood on that.  Q. Jimmie Johnson talked about them making him wait. Him and Tony Stewart. This was in ’04. Did they ever make you wait? KYLE BUSCH: Oh, yeah. They take their sweet-ass time coming down, yeah. No question. I think the last time I was in there for a big issue was me and Harvick in ’11 at Darlington. I think that was the last time, so… They just take their time. They come down here and you’re all staring at each other. Nobody’s in a good mood.  Q. What is it like sitting across from a guy that you just had an incident with, you’re all fired up, hit each other, you have to sit there and twiddle your thumbs? KYLE BUSCH: That’s what you do, yeah. You just sit there and don’t say much, yeah.  Q. (No microphone.) KYLE BUSCH: He doesn’t know anything about that, no. He’s not on YouTube yet.  Q. Kyle Busch back in the day, what words come out of your mouth when Brexton is getting fired upped and hot to go after somebody? KYLE BUSCH: Just calm down, take a breath, think about it for a second. Trust me, there’s been a couple times. Last year we were at a racetrack, he got wrecked by the same kid three times, three days in a row. I don’t care, you have permission to go kick his ass because if you don’t do it, I’m going to do it. The kid is nine years old. I know I can’t do it.  Q. Did he? KYLE BUSCH: No, no. We went over there and talked to him. All right, enough is enough. One more time and the gloves are off. Actually the gloves are off now. We’re just forewarning you, if you get close, it’s going to happen.  Q. Do they know him because his last name is Busch? KYLE BUSCH: Yeah. He already has a little bit of a bullseye. But that happens. It will only make him tougher.  Q. Last year you were on a new team, new manufacturer, Next Gen car. Preparing for this year, has there been more things you’ve been able to do? Do you feel more prepared, more things you’ve been able to work on this off-season? KYLE BUSCH: Yeah, working with Randall going into year number two with him and all the guys, that’s obviously better. I feel like we’ve had a really good start to the year last year, then we cooled off a lot towards the end, which was not good.  We sat down and we talked about a lot of those things like, Okay, what made us strong, what made us good, what are the setup tendencies that we ran well at each track, what are some of them that we didn’t. We tried to go through all that stuff and pinpoint exactly. That’s always kind of hard to do.  We also relied a lot on the Team Chevy notes we have from the Hendrick bunch and Trackhouse bunch to fine-tune our stuff a little bit more to have a better idea of what direction to go this year.

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY DAYTONA 500 MEDIA DAYS FEBRUARY 14, 2024

ZANE SMITH, NO. 71 SPIRE MOTORSPORTS CAMARO ZL1 – 2024 Daytona 500 Media Day Quotes   Would this step have been possible without all the work Justin Marks has put in? “It’s been very busy since Bristol and our announcement. What’s been awesome is Trackhouse is doing so much in this sport and so is Spire. For me, landing at Spire for this year and getting this Cup experience I think will go a very long way. I just have a great group of people around me and the people that Spire is acquiring from their management side and the people who put in the work behind the scenes is very high. I’m excited to see what we can do.” When did conversations start on this deal?“It definitely came out of nowhere. Justin and I have stayed in touch from when I was possibly going to end up at Ganassi and he had taken that over. He has always been so down to earth and so cool to talk to. My racecar is not out of that building but I do have meetings and it’s great to be back. It’s cool to see all the Trackhouse touches on that building.” Has this hit the timeline you expected, or has it been a bit of a whirlwind?“It has hit the timeline, but it’s definitely been a crazy path to get here. There have been so many times where I didn’t think I would see a racetrack again, and to make it to Sunday is what every racer dreams of and is so special. I want to make the most of this opportunity and be here for a while.” What are the expectations given the gains that Spire has made?“They’ve accomplished a lot in just this offseason. Their goals are to perform and nothing short of that. For Carson (Hocevar) and I, this is our rookie season, and we hope to learn and progress throughout the year. We know how crazy rookie seasons can be, but that’s where we’re at. On Corey (Lajoie) side, I know he’s looking for his first win as Carson and I are, but he’s had a lot more experience and have seen the old Spire days so it’s cool to hear him and Ryan Sparks’ stories of where it once was and to see it now. I’ve just experienced all the stuff that they’ve gotten through this offseason, and it’s been a lot. It’s cool to be a part of.” What does it mean to you to know this is the start of a 36-race process?“That’s the most exciting part. Last year I got to race in the Daytona 500 and didn’t get to sit in it for a few weeks and then would race and would wait a couple months and back in one, so to be able to race week in and week out is awesome. I feel as if I’m going to learn so much. I learned so much in just one Cup race last year. It’s been crazy the path to this point but excited for this year.” What’s it been like this offseason working with both teams?“It’s been a lot throughout this offseason just with me doing double everything. Double competition meetings, double pre-race meetings not only the Trackhouse side but the Spire side. My racecar is out of Spire, so I’d say I’m there a little bit more, but it’s just been a lot of trying to soak it all in learning every bit I can. It’s been great so far but ready to get this year going.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY DAYTONA 500 MEDIA DAYS FEBRUARY 14, 2024

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS CAMARO ZL1 – 2024 Daytona 500 Media Day Quotes   Last year was tough, physically, and some disappointments along the way. Were you 100% after that? “Yeah, I was fine. My injuries were not why we struggled, for sure.”  Can you pinpoint some reasons and some things from the offseason you looked into to move past that? “I just think I have some bad habits that this car doesn’t like, and I have to address it ultimately.” As in…“Things we talk about behind closed doors.” In the Duels tomorrow night, do you expect some to step over the line? If Fords are coming up behind you, are you expecting when pushed by a Ford or Toyota, do you know what the new car is going to do?“I don’t think so. Both of the noses they have designed are pretty flat. Our back bumpers are pretty flat, so I don’t think it’ll be anything super out of the ordinary, so we’ll see. I don’t think people will push too hard tomorrow night, but we’ll see.” Is that something where you expect those teams (Ford, Toyota) to practice?“I don’t know. I’m on Team Chevy. We’ll worry about Team Chevy.” It’s been 20 years since the inception of the Playoffs. From your point of view, do you think it’s the best way to find out who has been the best driver all year?“I think 2014 was when we started having the rounds, right? That, to me, is when things really changed because at least with the other way, you had 10 weeks and I feel like it all kind of came out in the wash in those 10 weeks, really. I’m not sure at the end of those 10 weeks if it would have looked a ton different versus a full season. Seemingly, the guys that ran good all year over the course of 10 weeks, that amount of races inside the Playoffs gave it enough time for things to come out in the wash. The people that belonged up front stayed up front. They got there. One bad race didn’t take someone out of ruining a really good year. That’s the only bad thing I see with the way we have it is, you know, whether it’s me or someone else. I’d just hate for somebody to win 10 races and not win the championship. To me, that would be a little bit of a black eye for the integrity of our sport.”  Would you put wins above championships at this point?“No. I think at this point, when you get a number of championships, it’s going to trump that. Certainly, winning more is going to mean you had probably more fun over the course of the entirety of your career. It means you had some good weeks. More often, having good weeks is a good thing.”  What’s one of your fondest memories here?“We ran second here one time, so that was kind of cool, I guess. I would have liked to have won, but that was a decent finish. The rest of them we’ve pretty much crashed, so there hasn’t been really a lot of good outside of that day, unfortunately.”  How do you feel about the changes that have been made to your home track of Atlanta?“Heck, we’ve had two years of what it is now. I don’t think it’s going to change much from what it’s been to what you’ve seen. I do think it’s going to age a bit at some point. It’s hot summers and can be kind of cold in the winter, so that’s typically tough on a track surface. I think the track aging is a good thing, and we’ll just see what happens when it does.” How have you adapted to changes to the track (Atlanta) over the past few years?“I’m in the middle of the road. I understand why they did it. The old track had a lot of character, and it was a lot of fun from a drivers’ perspective. I think it was time for a change. We had rode that horse for a long time, and sold the narrative with how hard it was to drive and people weren’t just on board with it anymore. They wanted to try something else and I applaud them for trying it. It’s got a new look. It’s produced some pretty good racing. People that have gone down there that I’ve talked to personally, spectators really enjoy it and they really enjoy the drafting aspect of Atlanta. If they’re having fun with it at the end of the day, that’s kind of all that matters, truthfully. Folks that come and support us and support this sport are what drives it.” Do you like this style of racing that it is now? “I don’t love… I think we really had a good speedway package with the old car, kind of worked out towards the end where you could have some big runs. It seemed like there was more energy transfer, and the cars weren’t so draggy as to what the cars are now. I just think we had a pretty good situation going on. It has changed quite a lot, and I think you’ve guy have seen the way races look, it’s changed a lot. They’re always adjusting little things here and there, getting back to what it was. It might take some time. Things certainly don’t happen overnight. Some stuff takes a little effort to get it perfect.”   Winning the Daytona 500 is a huge accomplishment regardless of the year, but especially this year being Hendrick Motorsports’ 40th anniversary. What’s the mindset coming in here?“Obviously, it’s a big year, a 40th year for HMS is a big deal. I’m super proud to be a very small piece of that puzzle. I think it’s a great honor. Look, (Mr. Hendrick) always wants to win. I don’t think it would matter if it were the second anniversary or whatever. He wants to win, and we do too. I don’t necessarily think just because it’s the 40th year of HMS, that doesn’t make me want to win the race any more. I wanted to win it pretty bad before. I don’t think it changes it from that standpoint.”  Did you and Ryan (Blaney) come up in the garage growing up?“We did. Ryan’s kind of a few years older than me. I saw him around the garage as a kid. We never really hung out when we were super young, like that age when our dads were racing. We both took a similar path through grass roots short-track racing. So, we started seeing more of each other then. That’s when we became good friends.” Regarding Ryan (Blaney), winning the championship, it’s an opportunity to have their voice amplified. When you won the championship, what were the opportunities the things you could do or opportunities presented to you?“I can’t really think off the top of my head. There are certain traditions that come with winning a championship that I think are really cool – the champions’ book, all of those things that last forever. That is what makes it really special, the tradition, and that it lives on forever. I think that it should at least earn you an opportunity to be heard a little more behind closed doors by people who make decisions. I do think that does earn you that right slightly a little more than it would otherwise. There is also guys who haven’t won a championship that I feel have been around long enough and enough success to have that type of voice, too.”  Do you spend more time at the shop in the offseason to try to “rally the troops” before coming down here to Daytona?“I spent a good bit of time at the shop. Obviously, we had a lot of prep and whatnot before the Clash, too. I feel like our team is in a good place. When you have a year like last year, it is really easy for a team to blow up from the inside. Really easy. You don’t know how easy. When I look at where our team is at mentally, our drive and our will, and our willingness to fight and not quit, I think it’s at an all-time high to be honest with you. My relationship with Alan (Gustafson) is as good as it’s ever been. I’m just super proud of those things regardless of how the season goes, because I work with a group of guys who don’t want to give up on me. I don’t want to give up on them. That, to me, means a lot when you go to war every week that have no desire to quit. It speaks volumes. That, in my opinion, is a huge hurdle in trying to get back to where we think we can be and where I feel where we belong.” Do you feel you’ve grown more into the role of cheerleader or the quarterback?“I definitely think as I’ve gotten older, Alan (Gustafson) and I share more of that. I think when I started, he probably had most of that role, because I kind of stepped into his team. I do think as I’ve got older, there is a responsibility there to at least try and make our team better through the experiences that I’ve had.” When you were going through that, did you truly fear it would blow up?“No, I truly didn’t. I’ve just watched enough of that happen over the years, and people jump ship on each other, and think the grass is greener elsewhere, I’ve seen enough of that to know how it works. But, no, that was not the case for us and has not been through the winter.” “We always want to do good. Our fire shouldn’t be in question. We might be frustrated or in a bad mood some days, but it’s because we want to do well, not for another reason.”  What responsibilities did you feel as champion in the 2021 season after winning in 2020? “Mine had such a different feel because it was COVID year. We didn’t do a banquet and some of those traditional things that the champion would typically do. It just had a little bit different of a vibe. When we fired off in 2021, everybody had kind of regrouped, and all the win stickers were off the car, and they were making a trophy for that year. You’ve just got to reset and get ready to go again, that’s how I looked at it.”  LA was kind of a weather nightmare, and this weekend looks to be a high chance of rain. What does that do to your psyche?“it doesn’t do anything to my psyche. I don’t know what it does to anybody else’s other than just being here for another day or two. It’s Wednesday, and we’re in Florida. So, I think, the biggest things it changes are the spectators based on who wants to come and whether or not they want to sit in the rain. For me, I don’t think it changes a whole lot, really at all. I’m here until we get this thing done whenever that is.”  All four Hendrick drivers have won the pole at least once for this race. How do you balance, and has that balance changed in the NextGen with the race and how it takes to be successful tonight compared to Sunday? “I don’t think so. I think that’s a pretty similar approach than with the old car too.” Do you feel you have to give something up for the race in order to qualify for the pole here in Daytona?“No, because you have practice after the Duels, so you can adjust after that.” But how much pride is there in qualifying on the front row for the Daytona 500?“To me, it’s a testament to the guys at the shop in the engine department, and to all of the staff for the work put in more so than what the drivers are doing. We’re not really doing a whole lot to contribute to that. That, to me, is where the recognition deserves to be, and that’s where I’ve always tried to lead it when it was me that had won a couple of poles. But listen, I want to win the race. Poles are great, but I want to be good on Sunday. I think we can do both.” Are you surprised it’s been 10 years since a Hendrick car won this race?“Nope. I’m not surprised by a whole lot. To be candid, that’s just the way it goes sometimes. It’s a hard race to win. You have to quite a few things go your way. Unfortunately for HMS, it’s just been a while, but I think it’ll come back around.”  With Fords and Toyotas having new bodies, do you expect anyone to be any more aggressive to figure out if a move works or how it reacts?“The races have been so calm the last couple of years, I just don’t see that changing a whole lot. I think everybody wants to race the car that they unload with down here on Sunday. So, no. You might get a little pushing here or there, but it’s not to the level it’ll be on Sunday.”  You’ve got Trey (Poole) coming in now as your spotter, and you race together in Legends cars. When you made the decision to go with him, what was that process and what type of comfort level does it give you?“I haven’t been missing any comfort, so I don’t want that narrative to get misunderstood. When we were looking at doing something different, Trey has been around our team, and he understands how we operate. He’s spotted at the Cup level for me before. He’s spotted quite a bit of short track racing events for me before, so we felt like it was the right fit. At the end of the day, you just want a team that has performance at the top of mind all the time, and genuinely wants what’s best for us. Trey is that way, just like Eddie (D’Hondt) was. I don’t want that to be misunderstood either. It was just the right fit for our group, and a guy I know very well, and someone I think will contribute at a high level.”  Now that we’re in February, how does it feel that now you’ve been able to reset after last year?“There is a sense of a new opportunity and I’m appreciative of that. There’s also realistic understanding that your problems don’t disappear because of the calendar change from ’23 to ’24. We know that we need to be better, and I need to be better, and intend on continuing to build on what we were working on at the end of last year, and just keep our heads down and keep pushing.”  Are you a guy who looks through a bunch of analytics and data? What works for you?“I look at a little bit of everything. It’s probably not as much data for speedways as I would for a downforce track. Certainly, tendencies, watching old races in the past, a little bit of everything.”  When you say tendencies, what do you mean?“A little bit of (other drivers’ tendencies) or how a late-race restart might unfold, which lane might be the better lane to be in, who gave a good push when. Was there a third lane involved? Why was there a third lane involved? Was it two lanes? Did people who rode around in the back have good finishes? All of the above, we’re thinking of all of it.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY DAYTONA 500 MEDIA DAYS FEBRUARY 14, 2024

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS CAMARO ZL1 – 2024 Daytona 500 Media Day Quotes  If a Ford or Toyota is behind you in the Duels, are you going to get nervous because they have a new car? “Yeah, I think those are just situations we have to learn from. Talladega (Superspeedway), for example – I could accept pushes really well from Chevrolet’s, and then when I tried to lead the top lane and accept pushes from the No. 4, I was out of control. So it’s kind of the opposite of what you would think with how flat that nose was versus ours.  I think with new cars from other manufacturers, you just have to get pushed to learn and know how our cars are going to react. So it’s just things we’re going to have to learn through the Duels, through practice and then through the Daytona 500.” Obviously winning the pole is a big thing here and you have several of them. Do you guys have any internal bets or fun stuff going on that we don’t know about on who gets the next one? “Obviously it’s really important for Mr. Hendrick and everybody at Hendrick Motorsports. It’s bragging rights, right? They can show who built the fastest car coming down here. So yeah, looking forward to hopefully having a shot at it. Obviously have no clue what to expect, but we want the pole for Mr. H and everybody at Chevrolet.” You talk about how important that is, as far as the process of switching over from the qualifying to the race. With standardized parts with the Next Gen car, do you have to give up something for the race in order to maximize qualifying, or is it case where practice afterwards lends you to make the changes that you need to make? “Yeah, I don’t think you give up anything for the 500, but you do give up things for the Duel, for sure. I think last year, I thought my car was going to drive OK. I made it to like turn four on the first lap before I realized my car was not going to drive OK. You definitely give things up for the Duel, but you can get that all back out of it for the 500. Hopefully we’re on the front-row tonight, but if not, we’ll go from there.” It’s been quite a while that a Hendrick Motorsports car has gone to victory lane in the Daytona 500. How much have you heard about that, if at all, within the organization? “It’s been 10 years, right? So definitely want to change that. I want to be the guy that changes that, but want to put Hendrick Motorsports in the best position with all four of our cars to get there. The Daytona 500 is a huge deal and we want to go get a trophy.” With this being Hendrick Motorsports’ 40th anniversary, obviously every season you want to win and do the best you can, but how especially important would it be to go out and have a great season this year? “Yeah, I think after last year, I selfishly want to go run well for me. The 40th anniversary season, it’s awesome to be a small part of it and I know it means a lot to Mr. Hendrick, Jeff (Gordon) and everybody at Hendrick Motorsports. But for me, I just want to go win races and run well for me and my team.” Joey Logano just said – what’s good about this sport is that there’s an end point and a start point, so if things didn’t go well, you have to stop and try to regroup and come back. Is that the benefit of being able to sweep away last year and hope improves this year? “Yeah, for sure. We had a lot go on last year throughout the year, so kind of being able to reset from that I think is good for us. I think our team is in a great spot – a couple of changes and I’m in a really good spot heading into this year. Looking forward to getting to work. These first two races are a bit interesting – a lot can happen that’s outside of your control. But we’re going to go control the things we can and try to make the most of those things and move on.” Did your accident change your perspective – are we going to see you, at least for a while, be away from racing your dirt cars and focus on being a team owner? “Yeah, for me, it just came down to – sprint car racing was kind of a hobby for me and something that I really enjoy. I love winged sprint car racing, non-wing sprint car racing, midget racing.. all of it is great and obviously have great support from Ally on that. My hobby started to get in the way of my job, which was not optimal. So for me, I can’t just sprint car race – financially, it doesn’t make any sense to do something that is getting in the way of your job. So just trying to be smart about it. Obviously I want to be a part of sprint car racing for a long time, just not driving them right now.” Do you physically feel fresher and better than you did, say, at the end of the year last year? “Yeah, I think so. With how my injury worked, it’s still something I’m going to feel forever. But I think the reset was good. I think being able to kind of catch back up on things was good. Get back into the gym and kind of physically catchup to where I was at pre-injury was super important. I feel really good. I worked super hard this offseason and overcame some things throughout the offseason even and I feel like I’m in a really good spot.” You’re entering your second year with Blake Harris (crew chief). What are the things that you feel like you learned from him in year one and what are you looking forward to doing with him in year two? “Yeah, I think just knowing that we were able to continue to work well together through a lot of adversity and work through all of those things were really important. I’m looking forward to just having a complete, full, clean season with him this year in our second season together.” Is there any one specific track that kind of stands out to you as a place where you’re looking to make a mark? “I think going back to Las Vegas is really important for us. It’s been one of my better racetracks throughout the course of the years, and just looking forward to trying to make up for last fall, for sure.” What do you hope to learn in the Duels tomorrow night? “Last year, Blake (Harris) said my car would probably drive pretty good in the Duel and I made it to turn four before I realized it was not driving pretty good.. it was driving pretty terrible (laughs). And it is the No. 48 car down here in Daytona on qualifying night, so I kind of have an idea of what tomorrow night could be like if we’re not on the front-row. Hopefully we end up on the front-row and don’t have to worry about it much because I don’t think it’s setup for tomorrow night, but we’ll get it dialed in for Sunday. Honestly, if we’re not on the front-row, we’re going to do all we can throughout the race to start as far up as we possibly can.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY DAYTONA 500 MEDIA DAYS FEBRUARY 14, 2024

ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 TRACKHOUSE RACING CAMARO ZL1 – 2024 Daytona 500 Media Day Quotes   I don’t know if you’ve seen it yet, but as someone who has been coming here since a kid, what’s it’s like to have a giant picture of yourself in the Fanzone?“I’ve looked up at that banner for so long. We would get the Fanzone access pass added on to our ticket. We did it a couple of times when we were kids. My parents would take us down in there and I remember ordering a Shirley Temple or something at the bistro there. I’ve never looked at it other than just as a place where you walk by. Now today I walk by and I see it… it’s stuff I’ve seen for so long but now it has more meaning. That big ol’ banner with my face on it is wild.” You’re up to four Cup victories now and have contended for a championship. Is the next step this year to add one of the big races to get you into that next phase?“I don’t know what the next step is. Competing is top of mind for me. It’s really all I focus on. I focus just as much for the Daytona 500 as I do any track in Cup. They are all so important and so pivotal. I never know when the last one is going to be. That’s just the way the world works. One of these will be my last win. I’m fortunate to have a couple now but we’ll see. Obviously the World 600, Southern 500, Daytona 500… those are big ones but I can’t prepare any more than I do for them because I’m preparing as much as I can, or as much as I know how. There’s probably always more I can do but it’s as much as I know how to do.” What’s your reaction to your role in the Netflix series?“It’s cool to show me, and that’s what I told Justin (Marks) and that’s what I told Trackhouse when we were negotiating my contract… and the Netflix group. I told them ‘Hey, I’m not going to give you the soundbites that you’re looking for.’ There were times when we would be talking with the producers and the cameras would be rolling and they’re asking me questions and they’d say ‘Is that all you want to say?’ and I’m like ‘Yes that’s my honest answer. I’m me.’ So when we were planning out stuff for them to capture, I told them I’d be out at the farm if they wanted to come see it, and they did. I’m glad they showed that because it’s really me.” How would you look at the racing at Atlanta since the reconfiguration?“I think the track knows what it wants to be, and it wants to be different. Because it is. As the pavement wears out, it’s getting wild. The first race we went to with the Gen Seven car and the repave, it all lined up together. I couldn’t even make laps in practice by myself. They were out there drafting and pushing each other. We were so loose and out of control that we had to make a ton of adjustments and ended up second in that race. Then as it’s evolved, we’ve gotten our car better but the track is losing grip. So last year in the second race, I couldn’t be aggressive. I was just trying not to crash by myself. We’ve had to put some work into it, so we’ll see. And that was only two years’ worth of racing. If in five years or 10 years.. we’d never think about repaving a track in 10 years if everything is ok with it. If they want superspeedway racing in 10 years, they’ll have to repave it again. With the current horsepower and aero package, we’re going too fast and sliding. At least I am. We gotta get some more grip built in the 1 car.” When we were here last year, the talk at Trackhouse was managing expectations with how you finished the 2022 season. What is the expectation level now?“Keep working. We definitely took some time and took some days, weeks and better part of a month to unplug, then we came back in January and it’s full speed ahead working as hard as ever and doing everything we know to do. We’re not going the same prep that we did for ’23 or ’22 and definitely not for ’21. As we’ve evolved and learned, we keep growing. What are the expectations? I don’t have any number-based ones or anything. Just go compete. Whatever we learn after the first two and the superspeedway stuff here and in Atlanta and then go out west and we evolve our packages for springs and shocks, that’s what gets me excited.” As a kid from Florida, what does the Daytona 500 mean to you and what would it mean to win it?“Why not us? I have to think that. Why can’t we win? There are no reasons why we can’t. From there, indescribable… I don’t know what it would mean. If it happens, you’ll get to watch us experience it for the first time together.” Not to suggest anything, but how do you normally spend a rain delay?“Trying not to eat. Even if I’ve eaten and prepared, and we go out and run 10 laps in the race and we get out, I’m looking for food. It’s just my natural nervous instinct. So I’ll eat more. Even though we aren’t racing, we’re still burning calories. The nerves and the adrenaline and the heart rate is up. It’s impossible not to need to take in more calories during these events.” When the forecast looks bad, do you dwell on that or do you plan that everything is going to run according to schedule?“We plan accordingly. We have rooms booked in case we need them. That’s a necessary insurance plan. I don’t dwell. I’d rather the rain be here than at the farm. We don’t need any more rain. A little bit is OK but not the two days of steady rain like they’re talking here. Farmer at heart here has been looking at different weather apps my entire life and listening to forecasts and meteorologists. We’ll see.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY DAYTONA 500 MEDIA DAYS FEBRUARY 14, 2024

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS CAMARO ZL1 – 2024 Daytona 500 Media Day Quotes   Regarding the Daytona 500 pole – Is there an internal battle to try and get this next one? “It’s one of those poles that you would like to have. I would say the Phoenix (Raceway) pole is really important as well, but this one is up there. So, it would be nice to get this one tonight to start the season off on a good foot and to just give you some momentum, really.” Do you have inside bets with Larson or Bowman or anybody? “No, I don’t, and honestly don’t know what their mindset is. We will just try to go out there and do the best we can to see who has the fastest car, basically. As long as I do my job and get through the gears and everything, then its just up to that.” Did you have a good offseason and are you ready for this one?“I feel like this offseason, I took more time just away from racing and I feel like I came back more energized, and I feel like I am more excited for what is ahead now.” You had a great season last year and made it to the Final Four, but are there some areas you would like to see the team improve in or are there certain types of tracks that you would like to feel a little more comfortable with?“I don’t know – just try to get a little better at short tracks. That has been the goal for us for about a year. We started to struggle at the shorter tracks in 2022, and I feel like going into this year, that has been the big emphasis – to try and get better at Martinsville in particular, but a lot of those places.”  Were you surprised last year, especially what happened in the fall race, when you went there thinking you were ready for Martinsville and it just didn’t happen?“Yeah, I mean I was surprised. I thought we could easily run top-five or top-seven. I was anxious, though, because of our past performance, but I thought we would improve. But yeah – definitely surprised, but hopefully its different this year.” Did NASCAR go in the right direction with some of the changes that came out of Phoenix?“Yeah, I think so. We will see. I don’t really know because I didn’t do any of the testing, but hopefully so, yeah.” Daniel Suarez was talking earlier today about your six wins, and he said that he brought three cars to the track that were capable of winning and you brought 20. As far as preparation, how does that translate from the race shop to get those cars to the track to get you those numbers?“I mean, I really don’t look at it that way. I look at it that every time the guys bring a car to the track, it has a chance to win. That is the confidence I have in my team, and I never look at weekends and say – ‘man, this car sucks’, or ‘this car doesn’t have a chance to win’. It’s just fine-tuning and sometimes you win races with a third-place car and sometimes you win by being the best car all weekend. I think we had maybe two races last year where we had the best car all weekend and that was Vegas and Watkins Glen. So, yeah, it just depends, and they all come in differently.” Did you have a lot of fun in doing the documentary on Netflix and the behind-the-scenes stuff? “It was really cool, and I liked it a lot. I thought they did a good job editing it and really making everyone look good. It was good. I was skeptical going in of what it was going to look like, but it turned out better than I thought.” What about Iowa Speedway? Do you like having a new track every season, like Chicago last year?“Yeah, I do. We continue to spice it up and do new and interesting things that I think is good. Iowa is a known commodity for us; we have been there. It hasn’t been in the Cup Series, so I am excited to see how it goes.” Ford and Toyota have new noses this year. Do you feel like you are a little bit on your back foot at an aero track like this?“Yeah, I mean our car was good last year, so sometimes you don’t want to mess with something that is already proven and competitive. So, hopefully our car is really good this year.”

CONCORD, NC (Feb. 14, 2024) – It will now pay to be the fastest in Hot Laps at every World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models race in 2024 with Dirt King Simulator’s Hottest Hot Lap of The Night.

Dirt King Simulator has partnered with the World of Outlaws Late Models this year to provide a $100 bonus to the driver that sets the quickest time in Hot Laps at every event. Also, the driver with the most Hottest Hot Lap of The Night awards at the end of the 2024 season will receive a $500 bonus.

Dirt King Simulator’s racing simulators will be set up in the midway of every World of Outlaws Late Model event, giving fans the chance to see if they can beat their favorite driver’s best Hot Lap time.

The Dirt King Simulators Hottest Hot Lap of The Night award will debut with the World of Outlaws at Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals, Feb. 15-17. Tickets are available at DIRTcarNationals.com.

If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision.